Sovereign Grace: Its Source, Its Nature and Its EffectsMoody, Dwight Lyman
Religion
Sovereign Grace: Its Source, Its Nature and Its Effects
Moody, Dwight Lyman
Grace (Theology) -- Sermons; Sermons, American -- 19th century
Mr. M.--Paul said he was "crucified with Christ." what did he mean?
Mr. R.--Oh, that is a grand text! Thank God I have been "crucified
with Christ." The Cross of Christ represents the death due to the
sinner who had broken God's laws. When Christ was crucified every
member of His body was crucified: but every believer that was, or
is, or shall be, is a member of Christ's body, of His flesh, and of
His bones. Again, we read: "Whether one member suffer, all the
members suffer with it; or one member be honored, all the members
rejoice with it: now ye are the body of Christ, and members in
particular." So when Christ was crucified for sin, I was also
crucified in Him; and now I am dead and gone as far as my old self
is concerned. I have already suffered for sin in Him. Yes; I am dead
and buried with Christ. That is the grand truth that Paul laid hold
upon. I am stone dead as a sinner in the sight of God. As it is
written, I am "become dead to the law by the body of Christ, that I
might be married to another, even to Him who is raised from the
dead, that I should bring forth fruit unto God." "I am crucified
with Christ; nevertheless I live; yet not I, but Christ liveth in
me;" and God Himself commands me so to regard my standing before Him
as His believing child. "In that Christ died, He died, unto sin
once: but in that He liveth, He liveth unto God. _Likewise reckon ye
also yourselves to be dead indeed unto sin_, but _alive unto God_
through Jesus Christ our Lord."
Mr. M.--Should not a man repent a good deal before he comes to
Christ?
Mr. R.--"Repent a good deal!" I do not think any man repents in the
true sense of the word till he loves Christ and hates sin. There are
many false repentances in the Bible. We are told that Pharaoh
repented when the judgment of God came upon him, and he said, "I
have sinned;" but as soon as the judgment passed away, he went back
to his sin. We read that Balaam said: "I have sinned." Yet "he loved
the wages of unrighteousness." When Saul lost his kingdom he
repented; "I have sinned," he said. When Judas Iscariot found that
he had made a great mistake, he said: "I have sinned, in that I have
betrayed innocent blood;" yet he went "to his own place." I would
not give much for these repentances; I would rather have Peter's
repentance: when Christ looked upon His fallen saint it broke His
heart, and he went out and wept bitterly. Or the repentance of the
Prodigal, when his father's arms were around his neck, and his
kisses on his cheek, and he said, "Father, I have sinned against
heaven and before thee, and am no more worthy to be called thy son."
Mr. M.--What is your title to heaven?
Mr. R.--The Person, the Life, Death, and Righteousness, of the
God-man, the Son of God, my Substitute, and my Saviour.
Mr. M.--How do you obtain that?
Mr. R.--By receiving Him. "As many as received Him, to them gave He
authority to become the sons of God, even to them that believed on
His name."
Public-domain text, read in full here on John Shaqi.
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