The All-Sufficiency of Christ. Miscellaneous Writings of C. H. Mackintosh, vol. I — John Shaqi
The All-Sufficiency of Christ. Miscellaneous Writings of C. H. Mackintosh, vol. IMackintosh, Charles Henry
Religion
The All-Sufficiency of Christ. Miscellaneous Writings of C. H. Mackintosh, vol. I
Mackintosh, Charles Henry
Theology
All this is simple to faith. The believer's standing is in Christ, and
if in Christ for one thing, he is in Christ for all. I am not in
Christ for righteousness, and out of Christ for sanctification. If I
am a debtor to Christ for righteousness, I am equally a debtor to Him
for sanctification. I am not a debtor to legality for either the one
or the other. I get both by grace, through faith, and all in Christ.
Yes, all--all in Christ. The moment the sinner comes to Christ, and
believes on Him, he is taken completely off the old ground of nature;
he loses his old legal standing and all its belongings, and is looked
at as in Christ. He is no longer "in the flesh" but "in the Spirit."
(Rom. viii. 9.) God only sees him in Christ, and as Christ. He becomes
one with Christ forever. "As he is, so are we in this world." (1 Jno.
iv.) Such is the absolute standing, the settled and eternal position,
of the very feeblest babe in the family of God. There is but one
standing for every child of God, every member of Christ. Their
knowledge, experience, power, gift, and intelligence, may vary; but
their standing is one. Whatever of righteousness or sanctification
they possess, they owe it all to their being in Christ; consequently,
if they have not gotten a perfect sanctification, neither have they
gotten a perfect righteousness. But 1 Cor. i. 30, distinctly teaches
that Christ "_is made_" both the one and the other to all believers.
It does not say that we have righteousness and "_a measure_ of
sanctification." We have just as much scripture authority for putting
the word "measure" before righteousness as before sanctification. The
Spirit of God does not put it before either. Both are perfect, and we
have both in Christ. God never does anything by halves. There is no
such thing as a half justification. Neither is there such a thing as a
half sanctification. The idea of a member of the family of God, or of
the body of Christ, wholly justified, but only half sanctified, is at
once opposed to Scripture, and revolting to all sensibilities of the
divine nature.
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