slain, could give the guilty conscience ease or wash away its stain. But Christ, the heavenly Lamb, takes all our sins away, a sacrifice of nobler name and richer blood than they.” God in His great grace knew that the sacrifices were but a testimony of the perfect Lamb He would provide as the atonement for the sins of all mankind. God gave the law so that men might see how fa r they have strayed from His perfect and holy requirements? The coming of the Lord Jesus Christ was not something novel. It was not unforeseen because, from the very beginning of c r e a tio n , God planned to provide this g ift of love to all mankind. From G e n e s is 3:15 throughout the rest of the Old Testa ment this promise is given. Between the rigors of the law and the sinner, was the blood of the atonement. One of the greatest chapters of the Old Testament, dealing with Christ’s per fect sacrifice, is Isaiah 53. Looking forward to the cross, the inspired writer could give a perfect picture of the suffering and shame of God’s only begotten Son on our behalf. As David wrote in the long ago, “As far as the east is from the west, so far hath he removed our transgressions from us.” The Messiah had come to bring salva tion and eternal life. God plays no favorites. All men are sinners, whether they are Jews or Gentiles. Regardless of their color, station in life, education or any other basis, the g ift is available to all. Prior to the coming of Christ, men would have to stand in His presence alone, however, now they come not in their personal merit but through His pres ence, dressed in His righteousness, having at their side as Advocate, the Saviour Himself. As the hymn writer puts it, “When he shall come with trumpet sound, 0 may I then in Him be found. Dressed in His righteous ness alone; faultless to stand before His throne. On Christ, the solid Rock, I stand. All other ground is sinking sand.” The means whereby this is made possible is found in Romans 4:25, “ (Christ) Who was delivered for our 4
edge of God, however, they lived as if He didn’t even exist. (Much like many people in our own land today!) They had the veneer of religion but were very secular in their lives. How care ful they were not to pronounce the holy name of God lest they might com mit an offense. Yet by their very words in daily conduct they were an offense to Him. The purpose of Israel was to be an example to the Gentiles around them. (This is our purpose as believers to day.) In the third chapter, God points out these terrible errors of His people: they were not on the level, they were not seeking after Him, and they were not doing good (Rom. 3 :9 ). God shows that because all have sinned, so all are under condemnation. “There is none righteous, no not one.” The word “righteous” is a very interesting term. We might translate it to the ter minology of the day by saying, “There is no one ‘on the level.’ ” Men may appear to be religious but actually they are not. Cutting corners they seek to avoid God’s law and are will ing to compromise. As Israel looked at the law, she could only come to one conclusion: she had not pleased God. Crying out, “Where shall we turn? What must we do? Can we be justified by the law?” The answer came back solemnly, “No, by the law shall no flesh be justified, for all have sinned and come short of the glory of God.” This is why, “The wages of sin is death, but the g ift of God is eternal life through Jesus Christ, our Lord.” W h en man squarely face his own unrighteousness in the light of God’s holy law, he cannot help but an swer the question, “How can anyone stand before the Lord while he is in all of his sins?” Israel had ceremo nies, worship, ritual and sacrifices. Yet she might well have sung, “Not all the blood of beasts on Jewish altars When Messiah Came
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