with righteousness them that believe on Him; and reward the saints with eternal life; and so shall His kingdom be established forever. In his masterpiece of strategy, in the temptation in the wilderness, Satan was repulsed by Christ through His faith in God and obedience to His will. So again in his master-stroke of malignity, whereby he thought to destroy His kingdom and prevent the salvation of the world, by accomplishing Christ's death, Satan only established the righteousness of Christ forever, and gave Him an inviolable title to His kingdom; and secured the purchase of redemption for all who shall believe in Him. They who are in Christ need have no fear of Satan's utmost attacks on them, when Christ in whom they trust has been the death of death; slaying their last enemy and giving victory forever to the saints. In His judgment every knee shall bow, and every tongue confess that Jesus is the Christ to the glory of God the Father. Of this also the Spirit convinces them who trust in the righteousness of Christ, when He speaks peace to them and assures them of the hope of the glory of God, enabling them to say "Abba, Father." Whom He justifies, them He will also glorify. Nothing shall separate them from the love of God which is in Christ Jesus our Lord 88 HIS LOVE UNTO GLORIFICATION. But for the love of God the Father, in sending Christ, the world had perished without help or hope. But for the love of Christ in giving up His life to provide a righteousness for us, we had remained under condemnation and "dead in trespasses and sins." And but for the same infinite love of the Spirit we would inevitably have perished in our sin and hardness and unbelief, and have been lost in the very sight of the cross. The way to heaven would have been made with none to walk in it, and the gate of heaven open with none to enter in. Thus the great love of the Spirit in conviction is manifest in the end He seeks by it, the salvation of the sinner and the glory of Christ. Nor does His love end when He has brought the sinner to Christ, penitent and justified, but has only just begun. He has only introduced him to Christ, the way; and will, with the same patient, faithful Divine love, be his Comforter until the end is consummated in glory. And although His love seems to be different after He begins to bestow the grace of Christ upon the sinner, it is the same. He did not convict the sinner to taunt him with his sins and condemnation, and to make him wretched, but to bring him to Christ; and now He abides with him in whom He has begun a good work, to sanctify him and make him complete in Christ. The Christian has only just begun to drink of the fountain of His divine love. When the man of God goes into a saloon, or a gambling-hell, or brothel, we know that nothing but love for their wretched inmates takes him there, and his object is their salvation; while his very presence there produces conviction of sin and shame, and is as light in darkness; and we call his spirit one of Christian compassion and heaven-born charity. It is angelic, yea! Christ-like work. So, for the Holy Spirit to come to this lost world to convict it of sin, to abide and suffer long and wait to save, is even better for us than to have Christ with us in the body. Blot out from the earth all the sweet ministries of love, born of the Spirit in Christian charity, and this world were a wilderness and a desert of sin and death. Had not the Holy Spirit come to earth with His convicting, comforting, saving love and grace, blackness of darkness had settled down upon it in an everlasting night of death and despair. Surely the Spirit of God is the Comforter divinely sent, and is Himself Divine love, and as an ever-present Christ. a good work, to sanctify him and make him complete in Christ. The Christian has only just begun to drink of the fountain of His divine love. When the man of God goes into a saloon, or a gambling-hell, or brothel, we know that nothing but love for their wretched inmates takes him there, and his object is their salvation; while his very presence there produces conviction of sin and shame, and is as light in darkness; and we call his spirit one of Christian compassion and heaven-born charity. It is angelic, yea! Christ-like work. So, for the Holy Spirit to come to this lost world to convicti , to abide and suffe |