The work of the Holy Spirit - pagina 415

CERTAINTY OF OUR JUSTIFICATION

375

But this does not settle the question. Altho we concede that the unholy motive of mistake can not be attributed to God, yet we must inquire What is God's motive, and how can the justification of the ungodly be consistent with His divine nature? We reply by pointing to the beautiful answer of the Catechism, question 60 " How art thou righteous before God? Only by a true :

:

faith in Jesus Christ

none

of them,

my

so that, tho

;

have grossly transgressed

and am

still

all

the

conscience accuse me, that

commandments

inclined to all evil

;

of God,

I

and kept

notwithstanding, God,

without any merit of mine, but only of mere grace, grants and im-

me

putes to

the perfect satisfaction, righteousness, and holiness of

even so as if I never had had, nor committed any sin yea, as if I had fully accomplished all that obedience which Christ hath accomplished for me inasmuch as I embrace such benefit with a Christ

:

;

;

believing heart."

That the Lord God joys

fiction,

justifies the

ungodly

is

or delights by a terrible paradox

not because

to call

He

en-

one righteous

wicked but this fact runs parallel with the other And that this fact, that such an ungodly one is really righteous. at the same wicked, and remains himself is one, who in ungodly in the ground and finds its reason continues righteous, and time is

who

in reality is

;

God puts

fact that

and miserable and

this poor

lost sinner into

partnership with an infinitely rich Mediator, whose treasures are inexhaustible.

and

all

By

this partnership all his debts are discharged,

those treasures flow

down

to him.

himself, poverty-stricken, he is at the

So tho he continues, in

same time immensely

rich

in his Partner.

This Christ faith,

are

;

is

the reason

why

for that faith is the

depends upon faith bond of partnership.

all

in the If

Lord Jesus

there

there can be no partnership with the wealthy Jesus

still

in

your

sin.

But

if

there

is faith,

is ;

no such

and you

then the partnership

is

no longer

it exists, and you engage on your own account, but in partnership with Him who blots out all your indebtedness, while He makes you the recipient of all His

established, then

in business

treasure.

How

be understood? Is it the Person of the Christ And, since God has no longer to reckon with our poverty, but can now depend upon the riches of Christ, does He therefore count us good and righteous? No,

who

is this to

takes us into partnership?

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