Reklamation Ministries
Seeing the Church and the World in Plain View
The Scripture plainly says, 'He that hath not the Son of God hath not life.' (1 John 5:12). Now seeing that we are in that condition, when death claims her forfeit, what are we going to do? Don't you see that we are left lifeless? If I owe a thousand dollars, and I have just exactly a thousand dollars in my possession, when I pay that debt, I am left penniless, am I not? So it is with this life of ours. We all have a life here in our possession, but it does not belong to us. It is forfeited to the law. It does not belong to us at all. When the law exacts that forfeit, and that life of ours is gone, then there is nothing left to us but eternal death.
But Christ, the Son of God, has so much life in Himself, that He can give life to every man and still have as much life left. He was not under any obligation to come to earth and go through the experience that He did. He had glory in heaven; He had the adoration of all the angels; He had riches and power: but he left them all, and He emptied Himself of His glory and His honor; came to earth as a poor man, took upon Himself
He worked out righteousness here in the flesh. What did He do it for? Was it for Himself? No, He did not have any need of it. He had all riches to begin with. He had it all when He was in heaven. But here on earth, as a man, He worked out righteousness and eternal redemption that He might give them to us. That was the main reason that brought Him into the world. He has all that righteousness He wrought out here, and He will and does give it to men. So He paid the penalty of the law, — was it for Himself? No! He had no sin; consequently the law had no claim upon Him.
In the second letter to the (Corinthians, chapter five, and verse twenty-one), the apostle Paul says: 'For He hath made Him to be sin for us, who knew no sin; that we might be made the righteousness of God in Him." So it was that He suffered the penalty, not for Himself, but for us. When we by faith lay hold on Christ, and become united with Him, so that we are identified with Him, then we have that life which He has to bestow.
But pay the penalty, suffer the forfeit, we must; for the law will exact that forfeit. But as I said
before, we have exact that forfeit. But as I said before, we have the choice as to whether we will wait, and let the law take the forfeit from us, at a time when we will have nothing left after it is gone, or whether we will give over the forfeited life, the life man lives in the flesh he lives by faith in the Son of God; then Christ becomes his life, and his life is now "hid with Christ in God." He has been raised to newness of life by faith in the operation of God. What can he fear that man can do to him? What will he fear that man will say of him? He will say to himself, it is not I, but Christ that liveth in me.
By E. J. Waggoner
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Excerpts from: Bible Studies on the Book of Romans, pp. 39-40
(Poor Chance for Satan) —The powers of darkness stands a poor chance against believers who love one another as Christ has loved them who refuse to create dissension and strife, who stand together, who are kind, courteous, and tender-hearted, cherishing the faith that works by love and purifies the soul. We must have the spirit of Christ, or we are none of His. (Ellen White, MS. p. 133, 1899)