our service this evening by singing
together hymn number 109, the tune is Jackson's 163. Awake my heart, arise my tongue,
prepare a tuneful voice, in God the life of all my joys, aloud
will I rejoice. hymn 109, tune Jackson's 163. Make me not arise by tongue,
pray, and enter by voice. With love and life of all my joys, And how will I rejoice? Dispair not, my naked soul, And
make salvation mine. Upon a hopeful new temple He
makes His praises shine. If it's the shadow of the spark,
should all my story fly, Eternal ruler, Saviour God, and
God's people around. Our Fatherland, live long and
cheer us, God help thee, Prince of Spain. Let all the world now thy grace
shine, How white the golden sky! The Spirit brought my faith and love,
? And of her every grace ? ? God, Jesus, friend, is mine forever
? ? Ever of righteousness evermore ? To thee, my soul, thou art carried
By the Great Sacred Three In sweetest love we appraise Let us read together from the
Holy Word of God in Paul's epistle to the Romans and chapter 4. The Epistle to the Romans, chapter
four. What shall we say then? That
Abraham our father, as pertaining to the flesh, hath found. For
if Abraham were justified by works, he were of to glory, but
not before God. For what saith the Scripture?
Abraham believed God, and it was counted unto him for righteousness. Now to him that worketh is the
reward, not reckoned of grace, but of debt. But to him that
worketh not, but believeth on him that justifieth the ungodly,
his faith is counted for righteousness. even as David also describeth
the blessedness of the man unto whom God imputes righteousness
with outworks, saying, Blessed are they whose
iniquities are forgiven and whose sins are covered. Blessed is
the man to whom the Lord will not impute sin. Cometh this blessedness
then upon the circumcision only, were upon the uncircumcision
also. For we say that faith was reckoned
to Abraham for righteousness. How was it then reckoned when
he was in circumcision or in uncircumcision? Not in circumcision,
but in uncircumcision. And he received the sign of circumcision,
a seal of the righteousness of the faith which he had yet being
uncircumcised, that he might be the father of all them that
believe, though they be not circumcised, that righteousness might be imputed
unto them also, and the father of circumcision to them who are
not of the circumcision only, but who also walk in the steps
of that faith of our father Abraham, which he had been yet uncircumcised. For the promise that he should
be the heir of the world was not to Abraham or to his seed
through the law, but through the righteousness of faith. For
if they which are of the law be heirs, faith is made void,
and the promise made of none effect, because the law worketh
wrong. for where there is no law, where
no law is, there is no transgression. Therefore it is of faith that
it might be by grace to the end the promise might be sure to
all the seed, not to that only which is of the law, but to that
also which is of the faith of Abraham who is the father of
us all. As it is written, I have made
thee a father of many nations, before him whom he believed,
even God, who quickneth the dead, and calleth those things which
be as though they were, who against hope believed in hope, that he
might become the father of many nations. According to that which
was spoken, so shall thy seed be. being not weak in faith,
he considered not his own body now dead, when he was about a
hundred years old, neither yet the deadness of Sarah's womb,
he staggered not at the promise of God through unbelief, but
was strong in faith, giving glory to God, and being fully persuaded
that what he had promised, he was able also to perform, and
therefore it was imputed to him for righteousness. Now it was
not written for his sake alone that it was imputed to him, but
for us also, to whom it shall be imputed if we believe on him
that raised up Jesus, our Lord from the dead, who was delivered
for our offences and raised again for our justification. May the Lord bless the reading
of his own precious word and grant to us a spirit of real
prayer. Holy, holy, holy, Lord God Almighty,
which is an art, an art to come, we desire to bow before thee
to call upon thy great, thy holy, and thy eternal name. We come as poor sinners, Lord,
lost and ruined in the fall, going forth from the womb, speaking
lies and hypocrisy. Truly, we have to say, defiled
I am indeed, defiled throughout by sin. and Lord how true this
is and we painfully feel it to be so for I know and Lord we
do know it that in me that is in my flesh dwelleth no good
thing oh gracious God we come then in all our wretched condition
as poor sinners ruined sinners We think of those lovely words
of grace, I came not to call the righteous but sinners to
repentance. We pray that thou would come
and that we may hear thy voice this night and that thou would
speak to our hearts and that the truth as it is in Jesus may
be open to our heart and to our understanding that we may be
led of the Spirit of God For as many as are led by the Spirit
of God, they are the sons of God. All to know that divine
leading and inward power of the Holy Spirit as we gather together
around the Word. Without thy heavenly power, O
Lord, no sweets the gospel can afford. No drops of heavenly dew will
fall. That precious love for the love
of God is shed abroad in our hearts by the Holy Ghost. O that
that may be so. O love that wilt not let me go.
O we do thank thee for that everlasting love of our Lord Jesus Christ,
of our Eternal Father, of the Spirit of God. God is love, and
he that loveth is born of or that we may have that true spirit
of love, that we may love one another, serve one another, bear
one another's burdens, thereby fulfilling the law of Christ,
or that we may be given that grace so to do, and that we may
esteem each other better than ourselves to be, or that that
may be our spirit. and it may indeed pervade in
our hearts, in our souls, as we gather together especially
around thy word, that we may be favoured to feel that love
one to another. May we know in the living experience
of it, in union with the Lamb, from condemnation free, the saints
from everlasting work, and shall forever be. Oh, to know that
union. And yet, Lord, we find such a
conflict in our hearts, because we're such wicked, sinful, corrupt
in our very nature. However, can we be in union with
Thee, who are holy and righteous altogether? Oh, but Lord, what
a wonderful, precious truth that is. God commendeth His love toward
that while we were yet sinners Christ died for us. What wonderful
love, what amazing love, what overwhelming love. And then we
think of those lovely words of grace, yea I have loved thee
with an everlasting love, therefore with loving kindness have I drawn
thee, and Lord we've known those drawings unto thee. Lord, we
do pray that we may know them tonight as we gather round the
Word, and that thou wouldst bless us with light and understanding
in thy Word, and that thy Word may be a lamp unto our feet and
a light unto our path, and that it may be with us as it was with
the dear Apostle, when he could say, our Gospel came unto you,
not in word only, but in power, the Holy Ghost and with much
assurance, O that it may be so among us. We thank thee for thy
mercies to us, we thank thee for thy loving kindness to us,
we thank thee that we have known the power of thy Spirit and the
power of thy love and the power of thy mercy in our hearts, not
in the letter but Lord in the Spirit. And we pray that tonight
we may be in the Spirit and that we may truly worship Thee in
spirit and in truth and that the grace of our Lord Jesus Christ
and the love of God our Father and the sacred fellowship of
the Holy Spirit may rest and abide upon us. Lord, what a wonderful
privilege to know that we have a Heavenly Father who loves us
with an everlasting O do come, we do humbly beseech thee. Blessed
Spirit, we pray that thou wouldst take of the things of Jesus and
reveal them unto us, and show us thy ways, and lead us in thy
truth. We pray, Lord Jesus, that thou
wouldst come and stand in our midst, that we may behold thy
glory, the glory as of the only begotten of the Father, full
of grace and truth. May we behold the glory of that
profound mystery of God manifest in the flesh, and the word that
was made flesh and dwelt among us. O gracious God, lead us into
these wonderful mysteries, and may we be enabled to say, Abba
Father, my God, my Father, blissful name, O to be able to truly say
that and feel that as we gather around thy word. Remember our
brethren, the deacons, and give grace, wisdom, and help unto
them in all their responsibilities. Remember, O Lord, we pray thee
each one of our brethren and sisters in church fellowship.
Remember those, O Lord, not able to be with us tonight for whatever
that reason may be. Some have no desire to gather. Others, Lord, that would but
cannot because of family responsibilities and sickness. We pray for each
one, that thou would remember them for good, and that thou
would remember those of us that were gathered, and remember those
that gather online as well. Remember our beloved brother
and sister in hand, and graciously bless them and undertake for
them. We do humbly beseech them. And
O Lord God, we do pray, that thou would remember the little
ones and the children that come into the sanctuary, Lord's days. Lord, bless them, teach them
in their young and tending years. Grant that there may be a generation
that shall be raised up to call thee the Redeemer blessed. Grant,
most gracious Lord, that thou, in thy precious mercy, would
guide and direct and undertake for our young friends Guide them
in all the matters of providence, whether it's their education
or whether it's employment or a partner in life's journey.
Lord, we lovingly commend them to Thee and to the word of Thy
grace. Lord, we think of in Thy word how Thou didst bring a Ruth
unto Boaz and a Rebekah unto Isaac, and they are that same
God. And thy love and thy mercy is
still the same. So remember, we do pray, those
that would seek a partner in life's journey. And we do pray,
most gracious Lord, that those remember all in affliction, trouble,
trial, perplexity, undertake for them. Remember dear Ina in
her great age and undertake for her. Remember each one of us
that is in the evening time of life's journey, Do be gracious
to us, Lord, do set our affections on things above, and do prepare
us for all Thy will. For soon, Lord, we must soar
through tracks unknown and see Thee on Thy judgment throne.
Oh, to be prepared, we do humbly pray Thee. And oh, Lord, we do
pray. that thou, in thy precious mercy,
remember all in the midst of the journey of life, parents
in particular, give them wisdom and grace to bring up their children
in the nurture and admonition of the Lord, grant thy blessing
upon the families and upon each of the dear parents. And O Lord God, we pray that
thou would remember the prodigals There are those that have wandered
away. We pray that they will stretch out thy almighty arm
and grant that they may be found hungering and thirsting after
righteousness, that they might be found seeking thee, the pearl
of great price, and that they may be prepared to lay aside
every weight and the sin that doth so easily beset and run
with patience the race that is set before us, looking unto Jesus. Hear us, Lord, who knows where
they are, and thou alone art able to bring
them. We lovingly bring them to thee, and commend them to
thee, and to the word of thy grace, which is able to build
them up and to grant them an inheritance among them that are
sanctified. what wonderful rejoicing there
would be, we could see the prodigals returning. Lord, we pray that
the glory, light, and power of gospel truth may shine into this
village and the surrounding villages and hamlets. Many, many precious
souls may be gathered unto Christ, led of the Spirit to this little
sanctuary. We think of the wonderful promises
that thou hast given us. I will bring thy sons from far
and thy daughters from the ends of the earth. They shall come
from the north and from the south and from the east and from the
west. Arise, arise, O God of grace, into thy restless end
now in the ark of thy strength. And let thy priests be clothed
with salvation. And thy saints shall shout aloud
for joy Remember all thy servants, as they labour upon the walls
of Zion, set them free, set them at liberty, grant her thus saith
the Lord, grant mighty signs and wonders to follow the preaching
of the word. We think of those even in our
locality, our friend at Hastings and our friend at East Peckham
that have commenced their pastorates even in this past week. and we
commend them to thee, pray that thou would send real prosperity. For I am returned unto Jerusalem
with mercies. Help us to look to thee, help
us to cleave to thee, help us to watch unto prayer. Preserve us from giving up. Instead
of looking down, may we look up and see what the mighty God
of all grace can do For, Lord, thou art almighty. Thou art able
to do abundantly more than we can even ask or think. Thou art
able to pull down the strongholds of Satan, set up the kingdom
of the Lord Jesus in the hearts of sinners. Thou art able to
bless the word that has been distributed and the calendars. Bless it to the great glory of
thy name. We do humbly pray thee for thy
great namesake. O Lord, we do pray that Thou,
in Thy precious mercy, would fill our hearts with gratitude,
with thanksgiving for all Thy tender mercies, Thy loving kindnesses
that have passed before us in the way. Truly, God is good to
Israel, and we would remember Thee. Great is the Lord, and
greatly to be praised, and His greatness is unsearchable. Oh,
we do thank Thee for the greatness of Thy love, the greatness of
Thy mercy. Oh, we do thank Thee for Jesus
Christ and the glory of His name and the fullness of His grace,
the incarnation of the Son of God. We thank Thee for the holy
life He lived as a man here upon earth, bringing in everlasting
righteousness for Thy people. We thank Thee for Calvary, where
the Lamb was slain, where sin was put away, where divine justice
was satisfied, where God and sinners are reconciled. We thank
Thee that He died for our sins but rose again for our justification
and is now set down at the right hand of the Majesty on high. Gracious God, all that we may rejoice in Thee, and in thy wonderful
ability to do abundantly more than we can even ask or think.
We've read together of thy servant Abraham and how few there were
then, manifestly the children of God, and yet he was persuaded
that what God had promised he was able to do. Give us, O Lord,
that sacred persuasion help us to look up and look on and to
press toward the mark to the prize of the high calling of
God in Christ Jesus. We ask for his great namesake. Amen. Let us now sing together hymn
number 113 The tune is Mainzer 364. Who but the soul that's led to
know how just and holy is the law, will to the cross of Christ
repair and seek salvation only there. Hymn 113, tune Mainzer
364. ? Through all the storm and storm and rain ? ? To our tender nature grow ? ? Till then cross of life's deep
end ? ? And teach of eternal life evermore ? ? Pleased as
I sought for wealth ? May the knowledge of the past
remain, Never to find myself again. Which I might give to thee this
day. ? The name of our Lord Jesus ?
? Hath made the hills and the mountains green ? ? And made
the hills and the mountains green ? The crown of Christ, Christ the
Lord. ? Which through fear of myself
undone ? ? Will make me made to be such self ? ? And all I need,
O God, do You choose ? Every man must earn a victory. We'll make thee love that glorious
rest, That glorious rest. O'er them they shall creep, and
from the crushed be the teeth. We have hearts of praise, love,
and joy ? We'll be there, God of Sabaoth ? ? And I'll make
a wishline to thee ? ? Wherefore, O God, save me not ? ? O come, O come, Emmanuel ? O'er the land of the free and
the home of the brave? God save the Queen! God save the Queen! Greatly feeling today the Lord's
gracious help. I'll direct your attention to
the fourth chapter of Paul's epistle to the Romans and we'll
read the last four verses of the chapter Romans chapter 4
verses 22 to 25 and therefore it was imputed
to him for righteousness now it was not written for his
sake alone that it was imputed to him, but for us also, to whom
it shall be imputed, if we believe on him that raised up Jesus our
Lord from the dead, who was delivered for our offences and raised again
for our justification. If we have faith, living faith,
in Jesus Christ, we are justified. This is the clear doctrine of
Holy Scripture. If we have faith, true living
faith, we believe in Jesus Christ. Now, I agree and absolutely agree
that there are degrees of faith. There's little faith, there's
great faith, and there's faith that is in between those two. But however little, or however
great, you know friends, we're righteous. And this is the teaching that
is set before us in this portion of God's Word tonight. And we read of Abraham here in
this context. And we read of his faith and
how the Lord made him a father of many nations by faith, verse
17. And being the father of many
nations and the apostolate labors this point here in this chapter. the promise that was given to
Abraham, and you can look it up in the book of Genesis, that he was made the father of
many nations, not just one nation. This is
what the Apostle is laboring here. You see, the Jews believe
they are the only chosen people The Gentiles are unclean and
unrighteous. What the Apostle says here in
the Gospel of Jesus Christ that Abraham was made the father of
many nations. You see, he starts this right
up at the beginning of the chapter. Verse 8, Blessed is the man to
whom the Lord will not impute sin. Cometh then this blessedness
upon the circumcision only or upon the uncircumcision also? For we say that faith was reckoned
to Abraham for righteousness. You see this doctrine. Doctrine
is precious. Luther said doctrine is heaven.
Doctrine is the skeleton on which the flesh hangs. Our skeleton. If we didn't have
bones, then we would just be a useless lump. But because we
have bones, you have a structure, a form, a shape, and the flesh
is all around those bones, and that's what gives it its rigidity. It does. And in the spiritual
sense of the word, there's a skeleton, there's a doctrine, Flesh is
the experience. We need both. We absolutely need
both. But here, in this doctrine, there
is precious truth. Truth, and may the Lord enable
you to hold it up in your heart, this precious truth. As against
the temptations of Satan, who will be constantly telling you,
you're a sinner. and you'll have the witness in
your own soul that you are a sinner. And you feel to be a sinner,
you know yourself to be a sinner. But what the Lord tells us, though
we are sinners, we're made righteous by faith. By faith in Jesus Christ. By
faith in His righteousness. For we say that faith was reckoned
to Abraham for righteousness. Now that is recorded of course
in Genesis chapter 15. That his faith was reckoned unto
him for righteousness. So is yours. So is mine. It is. How was this then reckoned when
he was in uncircumcision? In circumcision or uncircumcision?
Not in circumcision, but in uncircumcision. Before that sign was given. And he received the sign of circumcision,
a seal of the righteousness of the faith which he had yet been
uncircumcised. That he might be the father of
all then that believed. Jew and Gentile, though they
be not circumcised, that righteousness might be imputed unto them also. You see, my beloved friends,
see for the promise that he should be the heir of the world was
not to Abraham or to his seed through the law, but through
the righteousness of faith. for if they which are of the
law be heirs faith is made void and the promise made of none
effect because the the law worketh wrath for where no law is there
is no transgression therefore it is of faith that it might
be by grace to the end that the promise might be sure to all
the seed not to that only which is of the law that of course
is the jews but to that also which is of the faith of Abraham,
who is the father of us all. What a precious gift, isn't it?
It's the gift of God. Faith is the gift of God. It's
given by God. For him has God exalted as a
prince and as a saviour for to give repentance and remission
of sins. Therefore, It is of faith that
it might be by grace, the grace of our Lord Jesus Christ. You
see, he's the father of us all. I often try to emphasize to you
about Abraham being our father, that the true Christian believer
is a child of Abraham in Christ, that the Lord Jesus Christ was
of the seed of Abraham. And this is what the Lord showed
to Abraham, that in his seed should all the nations of the
earth be blessed. In verse 17, as it is written,
I have made thee a father of many nations before him whom
he believed, even God, who quickeneth the dead and calleth those things
which be not as though they were. who against hope believed in
hope that he might become the father of many nations. According
to that which was spoken, so shall thy seed be. And being
not weak in faith, he considered not his own body
now dead. When he was about a hundred years
old, neither yet the deadness of Sarah's womb, he staggered
not at the promise of God through unbelief, but was strong in faith,
giving glory to God. And this seemed to so stand out
to me this morning and being fully persuaded. What a mercy if we are fully
persuaded. Persuaded that Jesus is the only
saviour of sinners. Persuaded that the blood of Jesus
Christ, God's Son, cleanseth us from all sin. Persuaded that
that glorious everlasting robe of the righteousness of Christ
was wrought out for us. Persuaded, made righteous by
faith in Jesus Christ. You see, the righteousness of
Christ is the perfect obedience of the Son of God to the law. That's what the righteousness
of Christ is. That was one of the reasons why
the Son of God took a holy human nature into union with his divine
nature and became bone of our bone and flesh of our flesh.
As the Apostle puts it so clearly in the Galatians, made of a woman,
made under the law that he might redeem them that are under the
law. Christ was made of a woman. You
see, the seed of Abraham, made of woman, made of the law, under
the law. So the Son of God came to live
as a man under the law. The law was made for man. And
the Son of God became a man to live under that law as a man.
Why did He do that? To make His people righteous.
You see, my beloved friends, we've got no righteousness of
our own. No. It is a very solemn thought,
isn't it? It is the spirit that quickeneth the flesh, profiteth
nothing. For I know that in me that is
in my flesh there dwelleth no good thing. It's a very crucifying
thought to flesh, isn't it? There's no good thing in us.
We're unclean, we're unrighteous. You look at all the wickedness
and the evil that is around us, the immorality, the unrighteousness. And if we're rightly taught,
we shall know that all that sin and iniquity, immorality around
us, the seeds of it are in our heart. That's a very crucifying
sight of our flesh, isn't it? But it's a very necessary thing
that we should know. It's a painful thing, but it's
a necessary thing. And being fully persuaded, what
a wonderful thing. It's like the apostle here again
in the Romans in chapter eight. For I am persuaded that neither
death, nor life, nor powers, nor principalities, nor things
present, nor things to come, nor any other creature shall
be able to separate us from the love of God, which is in Christ
Jesus and all I am persuaded. Are you persuaded? It's a wonderful
thing if you are. And being fully persuaded that
what he had promised, that is what God had promised, he was
able also to perform what has God promised you. Have you got
a promise laid up in your heart? All the promises of God are yay
and amen in Christ Jesus. That's where they're fulfilled.
That's where they're performed. The promise of forgiveness of
sins by faith in Jesus Christ. That's where forgiveness of sins
is. In Jesus Christ. Persuaded. If ever my poor soul
be saved, his Christ must be the way. You're persuaded. You
know. It's like John says in his first
epistle, we know. I think he says it about five
times, we know. What do you know? If we know
something, we have knowledge. And we have an exhortation in
the word of God, but growing grace and in the knowledge, we
know. grow in grace and in the knowledge
of our Lord Jesus Christ. That's where we grow in grace.
It's like it's spoken of by John the Baptist, I must decrease,
he must increase. And that is that as the Lord
by his Spirit teaches us, we decrease in the estimation of
ourselves. I must decrease. As we go on,
as we walk in the Christian pathway, we are brought to decrease in
the estimation of ourselves. And that is by the inward teaching
and power of the Holy Ghost that that is done. And the more we,
as it were, decrease in the estimation of ourselves as to what we are,
and the more we increase in the knowledge of our Lord Jesus Christ. Because we see very clearly,
we're persuaded that He alone is able to save. No help. And this is a very much
the experience of the true living child of God. No help in self,
I find. You're off to sort it well. The
native treasure of my mind is sin and death and hell. That's where we are, that's what
we are. And therefore it was imputed
to him for righteousness. Perhaps you sometimes feel like
that man we read of in the Gospels. When he said to the Lord Jesus,
Lord, I believe help thou mine unbelief. There'll come a time
when you get beyond that, not completely, I don't mean that,
but there'll come a time when you are able to believe, when
Christ is made precious, and you're persuaded, you're persuaded. And not only is there a persuasion,
but there's a rejoicing, there's a sense of deliverance, there's
light, there's life, You're persuaded. I know. There are various points
that we have in God's holy world with this persuasion when we
can say I know. The Apostle, he says again in
that third chapter of the first epistle of John, he says, we
know that we have passed from death unto life because We love
the brethren. There may have been a time when
you did not love the brethren. You did not feel a union to the
brethren. You did not have communion with
the brethren. But now you do. You're persuaded. It's a wonderful thing to have
this persuasion. And therefore it was imputed
to him for righteousness Now it was not written for his sake
alone that it was imputed to him, but for us also. So it's a very
inclusive word here. It wasn't written for him alone,
but for us also. To whom it shall be imputed. What would be imputed? The glorious
righteousness of Christ. but for us all to whom it shall
be imputed if we believe on him. What is it to believe? It's faith.
It's the exercise of living faith. That's what it is to believe.
And this is a sovereign gift of God. You may try and try and
try and try and try and try to believe, but until this faith
is given, until this faith is in exercise, But when it comes, it's nothing
to do with the will of the flesh. It's entirely the Spirit of God
working faith in your heart, Christ revealed, Christ made
precious. You love Him. You say, it's a
faith that worketh by love. You love Him. I often feel How sad it is, there
are some godly men that have done it over the years, but they
say, you must believe, you must believe. You'll go to hell if
you don't believe. If you don't believe this, if
you don't believe that, if you don't believe something else,
what happened to you? My beloved friends, it's a sacred
gift. And the minister can exhort you
as much as he likes for you to believe, and he would love you
to believe. but it's only as the Holy Ghost
works faith in your heart. Then you believe. Then Christ
is made precious. Unto you that believe therefore
he is precious. Christ is made precious. Is he
precious to you? He is precious. What a wonderful
thing. What a precious thing here tonight.
If you can say that Christ is precious. Jesus is precious says
the word. What comfort does this truth
afford? The preciousness of Christ. The
preciousness of his blood. The preciousness of his righteousness. The preciousness of his power
to save. The preciousness of that light
that shines in him and into your heart. How precious he is. when that light shines into your
heart, what the Apostle says, Christ in you, Christ in you,
the hope of glory. It's a precious thing, isn't
it? Then coming with this precious
gift of faith, it's the righteousness of Christ. Now, it was not written
for his sake alone that it was imputed to him, So we have this
doctrine of imputation. The Apostle quotes from the book
of Psalms, from David, Blessed is the man to whom the Lord imputeth
not iniquity, but he imputes this righteousness. is by grace. By grace are ye
saved, that not of yourselves, it is the gift of God. The doctrine
of imputation is a precious doctrine. Again, I go back to Martin Luther
and I know exactly what the man means because I've felt it myself.
Doctrine is heaven. And this doctrine of imputation, it's when You see, blessed is
the man to whom the Lord imputes, not iniquity. So He doesn't charge
them with iniquity. Why? Because He charged it upon
His Son, upon Jesus Christ. And that doctrine of imputation
is so clearly opened in Isaiah chapter 53. He, that is our Eternal
Father, laid upon Him, that is His own begotten Son, The Lord
Jesus Christ, he laid upon him the iniquity of us all. In other words, he imputed, that's
what that word means, he imputed to him our sins. The iniquity of us all. And you
know, my beloved friends, that is the only hope we have of salvation. That our sins were laid on Christ. Now it was not written for his
sake alone that it was imputed to him but for us also to whom
it shall be imputed if we believe on him that raised up Jesus our
Lord from the dead who was delivered for our offenses and was raised
again for our justification. All the precious doctrine of
truth that we find here. So on the one hand our gracious
and our eternal father, he lifted the sin off of the church, literally,
he lifted it off the church and he laid it on Christ. He laid
upon him the iniquity of us all. Our sin was imputed to Christ. That's the meaning of it. That
gives you an idea of the meaning of the doctrine of imputation. Our sin was imputed to Christ.
It was as if it was his own sin. He took our sins and he nailed
them to his cross. My dear beloved friends, that
is why Jesus suffered, bled and died. For our sins. I think it's Joseph Hart. Was
it for crimes that I had done? He hung and suffered there. That's
what you want to know, isn't it? That your sin, to be persuaded
that your sin was laid on Christ. I've often told you of that time,
when feeling so defiled by sin. And that wonderful verse in Isaiah,
53, was breathed into my very soul. He was wounded for our
transgressions. He was bruised for our iniquities. The chastisement of our peace
was upon him, and with his stripes we are healed. All that wonderful
doctrine of imputation. Wounded for our transgressions,
bruised for our iniquities. Now it was not written for his
sake alone, that it was imputed to him, but for us also, but
for us also. To whom it shall be imputed.
That's the righteousness of Christ. So we've looked more closely
at the imputation of our sin to Christ. And that was a gracious
act of our eternal Father to do that. Now just look the other way round. The perfect obedience of Christ
is imputed to the church. That's the doctrine of imputation.
It's very central to the understanding of the gospel of Jesus Christ.
The sin of the church was laid on Christ The perfect obedience,
or as it's spoken of, the righteousness of Christ, is imputed to the
believer. It becomes theirs. Now it was
not written for his sake alone that it was imputed to him, but
for us also. To whom it shall be imputed if
we believe on him that raised up Jesus our Lord from the dead. Now, speaking of this raising
up, he says in the verse 25 here, who was delivered for our offenses
and was raised again for our justification. And then he goes
straight on, there wasn't the divisions of chapters in the
original Bible. He goes straight on, same subject,
therefore being justified by faith, we have peace with God. through our Lord Jesus Christ. What is it to be justified before
God? It's to be declared innocent. It is to be declared without
sin. No spot nor wrinkle can I see
in them that unto Jesus And then we have those lovely
words in Solomon's psalm. Thou art all fair my love. That
is Christ speaking to the church, to the believer. Thou art all
fair my love. There is no spot in thee. No spot in thee. No spot nor wrinkle can I see. them that unto Jesus flay. You know this is the sacred fullness
and preciousness of doctrine who was delivered for our offenses
and raised again for our justification that we should be declared to
be without sin therefore being justified by faith we have peace
with God through our Lord Jesus Christ by whom also we have access
by faith into this grace where in we stand and rejoice in hope
of the glory of God. It goes on here in this chapter,
verse 6 of chapter 5, for when we were yet without strength. What does it mean? When we were
not born, before we were even born? For when we were yet without
strength, in due time, Christ died for the ungodly. For the
ungodly. It's sinners can say, and none
but they, how precious is the Saviour. For scarcely for a righteous
man will one die, yet peradventure for a good man some would even
dare to die. but God commendeth his love toward
us, in that while we were yet sinners, Christ died for us. What a gospel, isn't it? Free
grace. Free grace. There's the apostle
when he writes to Titus, his son in the faith, who he left
at Crete, to be the minister of the church's inquiry. And
what does he say when he writes to him, not by works of righteousness
that I have done, but according to his abundant mercy, according
to his abundant mercy, free grace, peace by his cross as Jesus made,
the church's ever-living head, being fully persuaded that what
he had promised, he was able also to perform. What has he promised? Believe
on the Lord Jesus Christ and thou shalt be saved. That's what
he's promised. He said, this is the commandment
that I give unto that you believe, that you believe on the Lord
Jesus Christ. The Lord Jesus Christ himself
said, I am the way, the truth and the life. Now may the Holy
Spirit work precious faith in your heart so that you may indeed
believe on the Lord Jesus Christ. He begins in this chapter four,
how that is all of grace, And he says, what shall we say then
that Abraham our father is pertaining to the flesh of fount? For if
Abraham were justified by works, he hath whereof to glory, but
not before God. For what saith the scripture,
Abraham believed God, and it was counted to him for righteousness. Now to him that worketh is the
reward not reckoned of grace, but of debt. But him that worketh
not, but believeth on him that justifieth the ungodly, his faith
is counted for righteousness. Even as David, and of course
he's quoting here from the book of Psalms, even as David also
describeth the blessedness of the man unto whom God imputeth
righteousness without works, saying, Blessed are they whose
sins are forgiven, and whose sins are covered, whose iniquities
are forgiven and whose sins are covered. Blessed is the man to
whom the Lord will not impute sin. You see, these wonderful,
precious truths of our most holy faith. Salvation is all of grace. As the Apostle Labors in Ephesians
chapter 2, by grace are ye saved. that not of yourselves, it is
the gift of God. It's by grace and grace alone.
There's nothing to be added to it. It's entirely by grace, not
by what we have done, but by what Christ has done. Christ
has lived that perfect holy life on the behalf of his people.
Christ has fulfilled the law. The Apostle says here in the
Romans, Christ is the end of the law for righteousness unto
all them that believe. When we're brought to believe
in Jesus Christ, you see, my beloved friends, then there's
a righteousness received, not by any works that we have done,
but by what Christ has done. On that holy life that he lived. that precious death, that he
died. And here in this chapter 5, the
Apostle goes through from verse 12, wherefore as by one man sin
entered into the world, that of course is Adam, and death
by sin, and so death passed upon all men for the all have sinned.
For until the law, sin was in the world, but sin is not imputed
when there is no law. Nevertheless, death reigned from
Adam to Moses, even over them that had not sinned after the
similitude of Adam's transgression, who is the figure of him that
was to come. Adam was a figure of Christ. But not as the offense,
so also is the free gift. For if through the offense of
one many be dead, much more the grace of God and the gift by
grace, which is by one man, Jesus Christ has abounded unto many,
and not as it was by the one that sinned. So is the gift,
for the judgment was by one to condemnation, but the free gift
is of many offences unto justification. For if by one man's offence death
reigned by one, much more. They which receive abundance
of grace and of the gift of righteousness shall reign in life by one Jesus
Christ and being fully persuaded that what he had promised he
was able also to perform and therefore it was imputed to him
for righteousness. Now it was not written for his
sake alone that it was imputed to him but for us also to whom
it shall be imputed if we believe on him that raised up Jesus our
Lord from the dead, who was delivered for our offences and was raised
again for our justification. May the Lord add his blessings. Let us now sing together hymn
number 103 to the tune Justification 360. Jesus, thy blood and righteousness,
my beauty are, my glorious dress, midst flaming worlds in these
arrayed, with joy shall I lift up my head, hymn 103. Tune justification
360. Whose broad stripes and bright
stars through the perilous fight O'er the ramparts we watched,
were so gallantly streaming? It's dangerous, it's ill-fated,
It's foolish, it's blind, It's unkind, and Which choice shall I make? And from the dust of death I
rise, There take my love to be the strife, ? If ever you miss me ? ? Call
my name ? ? Jesus, I'm here ? ? And I know thee ? ? Jesus, I'm here ? Has lived and
died for me. O shall I stand on that great day,
O'er the mountain range, what shall we say? That we're like elves, or like
men? ? All things ? ? Remembered ? ?
Thus have changed ? ? All things ? ? Remembered ? ? Thus have
changed ? That we have a friend of God
That's only a little bit hard Maker of sinners, Maker of sinners,
of good and of evil, Sinners shall never keep their land. This promise vow of the slave
of peace, And who in whom to seek'st it gives, O'er the land of the free and
the home of the brave? ? Of righteous love for you ? ? For when the dead now hear my
voice ? Did not thy family's bonds rejoice, And in this end
glorious rest? Jesus, the hope of righteousness. Jesus, the hope of righteousness. Now, may the grace of our Lord
Jesus Christ, the love of God the Father, the sacred fellowship
of the Holy Spirit, rest and abide with us each both now and
forevermore. Amen. you