Have you peace with God?
This, beloved reader, is the question of all questions, needing to be considered by all, without distinction, whether old or young, rich or poor; and hence it is that we desire to press it upon you with affectionate earnestness, beseeching you to give yourself no rest until you can answer it truly and clearly in the sight of God. Everything depends upon it in the prospect of death and eternity. If you can say, Thank God, I have peace with Him, then you may be happy now, you can contemplate death without alarm, should you be called upon to die before the Lord's return, and you are able to rejoice in the prospect before you beyond the grave, knowing that, absent from the body, you will be present with the Lord.
If, on the other hand, you are compelled to confess, that you have not peace with God, you are even now under His wrath (John 3:36), and when death comes, should you remain as you are, it will introduce you to an eternity of misery and woe under the just judgment of a holy God.
But what is peace with God? you may inquire.
It will be enough at present to say, that it springs from the knowledge that all our sins have been put away by the substitutionary death of the Lord Jesus Christ; and that God has shown, by raising Him from the dead, that He is eternally satisfied with the finished work of Christ on the cross, and that He now has not only pardoned, but has also justified, counted righteous, every one who believes the testimony which He has given to His beloved Son. Every one who has peace with God knows that his sins are gone forever, that he is standing in God's eternal favor, and that the glory of God awaits him in the future. Happy is the soul that lives in the enjoyment of this blessed knowledge!
How then may this knowledge be obtained?
This is the question, dear reader, to which we now invite your attention. But, first of all, it will be necessary to explain why it is that all do not possess it. God made man upright; and Adam, when in the garden of Eden, before he listened to the voice of the tempter, enjoyed the visits and the presence of God. The moment he sinned, he was afraid, and sought to hide himself among the trees of the garden (Gen. 3). Up until that time he was innocent, now he was a sinner; and the scripture says, “By one man sin entered into the world, and death by sin; and so death passed upon all men, for that all have sinned.” There could therefore, be no peace between a holy God and sinners in their sins; for the will of the sinner is opposed to the will of God. Hence we read that the carnal mind (the mind of the flesh) is enmity against God (Rom. 8), and again of those who were alienated, and enemies in mind by wicked works (Col. 1:21). This is the reason why all have not peace with God; because, in a word, they are sinners; and, it may be added, until this is acknowledged, it is impossible to discover God's way of peace.
Do you then, my reader, take the place of being a sinner before God?
“All men are sinners.” Very true; but even to confess that you are a sinner before God, even though the confession springs really from the heart, is not enough; for while the words were on your lips, you might cherish the hope of reformation, of so changing the character of your life as to commend yourself to God, to merit His approval. Hence I must ask you another question.
Do you know that you are a lost sinner? By this I mean, are you aware that you are in a hopeless condition, that, if you are left to yourself, there is not only no possibility of recovery, but also that you must certainly perish forever?
Perhaps you will explain more fully what you mean by being a lost sinner?
Willingly. When Adam was placed in the garden of Eden, he was set under responsibility; that is, his continuance in the blessings by which he was surrounded was made dependent upon his obedience to the command he had received not to touch the tree of the knowledge of good and evil (Gen. 2:16-17). He transgressed, and so forfeited everything, and was, in consequence, driven out of the garden (Chapter 3). After this, God still went on proving man, to see if He could find any response to His claims. Noah failed, even as Adam had done (chap. 9:20-21); Israel broke the covenant of the law; the priesthood fell from their estate; under the kingdom, God's people renounced His authority and became idolaters; and, last of all, on the presentation of Christ to His ancient people, they rejected and crucified Him who was God's beloved Son. This was the end of God's trial of man, for at the cross judgment was passed on the whole world, for the death of Christ was the demonstration of man's hopeless enmity against God. Up to the cross, man was under probation; but from that time man is declared to be lost.
When, therefore, we say that you are a lost sinner we mean that you are not now under probation, that God is not now waiting upon you to see whether you will serve Him or not; for He has settled that question once and forever in the cross of Christ. On this account, His dealings with man from that time have assumed a new character. Instead of expecting anything from man, He declares that man is lost and undone before Him, that by works of law no flesh shall be justified in His sight; and thereon He brings His own righteousness to the sinner, and proclaims, that He justifies “freely by His grace through the redemption that is in Christ Jesus, whom God has set forth a propitiation through faith in His blood... to declare His righteousness; that He might be just and the justifier of him who believeth in Jesus” (Rom. 3:20-26). In other words, when God had shown, by His long patience in His ways with man, that man could produce no fruit for Him, could bring nothing to God, He stepped in, gave His only-begotten Son to die on the cross that He might lay a righteous foundation for the salvation of sinners through faith in Christ. Salvation, therefore, is now through faith, and not by works of any kind; for God has shown that the sinner is not only incapable of doing anything, but also that he is already lost and under condemnation on account of his sins.
Does my reader comprehend? And is he prepared to admit concerning himself that he is nothing but a poor, guilty, lost sinner?
It may still further help, for the point is of paramount importance, if we ask the reader to test himself by four words used by the apostle Paul of the past condition of those who had become believers; words therefore which describe the condition of all unconverted souls. Turn, then, to Romans 5. In verse 6 he says, “For when we were yet without strength, in due time Christ died for the ungodly.” Here are two words, “without strength,” and “ungodly.” We may take the latter first, and we ask you, reader, if you accept the term “ungodly” as true of you? Do you say, I am not so bad as that? Let us then inquire into the meaning of the word. Because the word has come to be applied to outward conduct, its real significance has been lost. As used in the scriptures it applies to the state of heart as well as to actions, and it means “godless,” that is, to be without God — to feel and to act apart from God, without reference to Him or to His will. Suppose, now, I follow you into your house, and I see you taking your seat at the table without thanking God for His mercies; or if I accompany you to your chamber, and see you lay yourself down to rest at night without commending yourself to God, or seeking His protecting care, I should at once say, That is an ungodly man: he does not acknowledge God, he is truly godless.
Will you bow to the truth of this indictment?
The next word is “without strength,” that is, helpless. Do you own not only that you are ungodly, but also that you are powerless to extricate yourself from your evil condition? It is precisely at this point that many stumble, because it reduces them to impotence before God; but the reader will at once see, if he considers for a moment, that he could not say he was a lost sinner as long as he thought he had any strength in himself. To see, therefore, that he is absolutely strengthless as well as ungodly is of the last importance; for not until then will he begin to look outside of himself for the means of salvation.
Passing down to verse 8, we find the term “sinners,” but as we have already considered this, we may at once take the fourth which is in verse 10. If, says the apostle, when we were “enemies,” etc. Thus every unsaved soul is an enemy to God. Is this too strong a word? Nay, the apostle says in another place, as we have already seen, that the carnal mind, the mind of the flesh — that is, the mind of the natural man, man as born into this world — is enmity against God (Rom. 8:7). It is a terrible thing, but it is nevertheless true, that the sinner's mind, his will, is always opposed to God. This was proved when our Lord was down here, and He thus said of those amongst whom He had moved, “They have both seen and hated both Me and my Father;” and again, “They hated me without a cause” (John 15:18-25). And this hatred found its full expression at the cross when they nailed Him, their Messiah, who was also the Son of God, to the cross (Acts 2:23).
Let me, then, beseech my reader to test himself by these divine descriptions. That they are true is certain, for they have been written with an unerring pen; but the question is, are they accepted as true? No real progress can be made until they are; for the character of grace as revealed in the gospel can never be apprehended until the truth of man's condition before God is first perceived.
Are there, then, no differences between man and man? Must we subscribe to these statements as affecting all alike, the upright and moral equally with the felon and the criminal?
The scriptures have anticipated the question. It is written explicitly: “That every mouth may be stopped, and all the world may become guilty before God.” Again, “There is no difference: for all have sinned, and come short of the glory of God” (Rom. 3:19,22-23). It is quite true that some go farther in sin outwardly than others; but the ground of judgment, as to man's condition before God, is his state of heart, his will, his feelings, his thoughts as well as his deeds.
Once more let me ask the reader if he accepts the testimony of God as to himself? The moment this is done, the way of peace can be announced. For why does God take such pains to set forth the state of the sinner? It is only that He might convince him that he is hopelessly guilty and undone, so that He might then attract his gaze to Himself, and to the provision which He in His grace has made for his salvation. For if, on the one hand, man is convicted of being a poor, lost sinner, God is proclaimed, on the other, as a mighty Saviour through the Lord Jesus Christ. And it is to this second part of our subject that we now invite the reader's attention.
First of all, we will refer to two scriptures, in order to show the simplicity of GOD'S WAY OF PEACE. In Colossains 1:20 we read, “Having made peace through the blood of His cross.” This, it should be carefully noted, is not peace with man, or even with believers; but it is an expression signifying that the blood of Christ has met all the claims of God upon man on account of his sin, inasmuch as in His death Christ took upon Himself all our responsibility, and settled every question before God concerning our sin and sins, concerning what we were and what we had done, and so settled it that God was infinitely glorified by the work which was accomplished on the cross; so that the blood of Christ becomes the righteous foundation on which God is now free to go forth and bring back poor, guilty sinners to Himself. The peace spoken of is thus Godward; it is the peace of God's throne, and was set forth in type by the blood that was sprinkled on the mercy-seat, on the great day of atonement (Lev. 16). Until the blood of Christ was offered in propitiation, the throne of God was against the sinner; now, on account of what that blood has been for God, His throne is favorable to every one that believes in Jesus; and, moreover, He assumes an attitude of grace to all, beseeching sinners, through the gospel, to be reconciled to Him. The blood of Christ enables God to receive, and righteously to receive, the vilest and the worst of sinners who come to Him in the name of Christ. The peace which has been made by the blood of Christ is, in other words, God's own foundation for the gospel; that is, the ground on which, all His righteous claims having been met, His whole nature glorified, He can gratify His own heart by sending forth the message of His grace: “God so loved the world, that He gave His only begotten Son, that whosoever believeth in Him should not perish, but have everlasting life” (John 3:16).
If now we take the next scripture, this will be abundantly clear. In Ephesians 2:17 we read: “And came and preached peace to you which were afar off [the Gentiles], and to them that were nigh [Jews].” That is, peace having been made by the blood of Christ, He can now, through His servants, proclaim peace to all who will receive the glad tidings of His finished work of atonement. And let the reader mark the words, “preaching peace,” that is, peace is offered, without money, and without price, to those who hear the message; it is offered as God's own gift of grace to guilty sinners. This is illustrated by an action of the Lord Himself. On the first day of the week, His resurrection day, when His disciples were gathered together, He appeared in their midst and His first words were, “Peace be unto you” (John 20). Having made peace by the blood of His cross, He can now come and bestow peace — peace with God — upon His disciples, as the fruit of His atoning work.
Is there nothing, then, for us to do?
Let the reader recall what has been written. The work which made peace was the work of Christ alone. It was a transaction between Him and God, and a transaction to the efficacy of which God has abundantly testified by the resurrection, by raising Christ from the dead, and by setting Him at His own right hand in heaven. In this work no one else could have part, for it was a work wrought out for those who were already lost sinners. Moreover, the work done, He came, as we have seen, and preached peace, first to His disciples, and now, through the gospel, to every one who will hear. God's way of peace is giving — giving in grace, through the finished work of Christ. Peace with God cannot therefore be purchased, nor can it be obtained by any human effort whatsoever; but it may be received as a free gift, for it is still preached in the gospel throughout the wide world.
“Proclaimer of that peace to all,
He tells of full, unmingled grace
To high and low — who hear the call;
To old and young of Adam's race
He preaches peace,
And love divine shines in His face.”
Does the reader comprehend the above statements? Does he understand first, that Christ has made peace towards God; that by His precious blood He has satisfied — and forever satisfied —all God's holy claims upon sinners; and, secondly, that because He has done so, God offers peace to guilty sinners; that to every one who receives His testimony concerning the death of His beloved Son, He presents peace with Himself — and presents this peace, because the sinner's sins, if he believes in Christ, have been removed out of His sight forever?
Is there a possible difficulty left?
Lest there should be we will ask the reader to turn to yet another scripture. We find in the Epistle to the Romans these words, “Therefore being justified by faith, we have peace with God through our Lord Jesus Christ” (Rom. 5:1). A glance at this scripture shows two things: that God's way of justification is by faith, and that those who are justified have peace with God. We will, therefore, touch upon each of these two points, only asking that the reader will kindly follow us with his Bible open in his hands.
First, then, justification is by faith. This is in contrast with justification by works. Under law it was written, “The man which doeth these things shall live by them” (See Rom. 10:5). But the apostle had shown in the very outset of the epistle, that both Jew and Gentile were sinners, that the whole world had become guilty before God. “Therefore,” he added, “by the deeds of the law there shall no flesh be justified in His sight” (Rom. 3:19-20). The way of works is therefore closed up forever, and it is consequently in vain that any soul, in any condition whatever, should seek the favor of God by its own doings. The way of works is not only closed, but it is also the way of sure and certain destruction. Understand it well, dear reader, that eternal perdition must be the consequence of seeking salvation by works, doing, or feelings. Hence we read, “To him that worketh not, but believeth on Him that justifieth the ungodly, his faith is counted for righteousness” (Rom. 4:5, see also Gal. 3:10).
Another observation may help the reader to understand this. God does not now require righteousness from man; because, in fact, as before pointed out, man is already shown to be a lost sinner, and as such he cannot produce any righteousness for God. No sooner, therefore, has the apostle declared that no flesh should be justified by the deeds of the law than he proceeds to tell us that the righteousness of God is manifested, and that this is by faith of Jesus Christ unto all, and upon all them that believe. Righteousness cannot be obtained by works; but, in the grace of God, His righteousness is seen in counting righteous all who believe in Christ. God acts, that is, in harmony with all that He is, on the foundation of the work of Christ, in justifying the believer. The way of righteousness, therefore, now is faith and not works.
It may, however, be inquired what is to be believed in order to justification or to being counted righteous.
This is fully set before us in the end of Romans 4. The apostle points out that the faith of Abraham was reckoned to him for righteousness (vss. 20-22). He then proceeds: “It was not written for his sake alone that it was imputed to him; but for us also, to whom it shall be imputed, if we believe on Him who raised up Jesus our Lord from the dead; who was delivered for our offenses, and was raised again for our justification” (vss. 23-25). How blessedly simple! God, as we read in chapter 3, set forth Christ Jesus a propitiation through faith in His blood, and now God Himself is seen coming forth to raise from the dead the One who was, as believers can say, “delivered for our offenses”; showing, by the very act of raising Him from the dead, that our sins have been put away forever; and in so doing He presents Himself as the God of grace, as the one who gave His beloved Son, and therefore as the Object for our faith. Believing thus in God, receiving the testimony He gives to His beloved Son, we are justified; that is to say, faith is reckoned for righteousness, God not only clearing away our sins, but also estimating every believer as a righteous person; and this is justification. Abraham was justified when he believed that God would accomplish what He had promised; we are justified when we believe what God has accomplished in raising Jesus our Lord from the dead.
The second point is, that all who are justified possess peace with God. That is to say, peace with God is the result of justification; for “we believe in a God who has intervened in power to raise Him (Christ) from the dead who had borne our offenses, and who, being raised, is the eternal witness that our sins are put away, and that the only true God is He who has done it in love. We have then peace with Him; all our sins are blotted out by the work of Christ; and our unburdened heart knows the Saviour God.” Let the reader pause and reflect upon these significant statements, for, once understanding their import, he will perceive that God Himself has removed everything out of the way between Himself and the believer, that it is He Himself who testifies, by the resurrection of Jesus our Lord, that the sins of the believer are forever gone from before His face, and that therefore it is He Himself who has laid for every one who is justified by faith the immovable foundation of peace with Himself.
Perhaps, however some trembling soul may say, I do not enjoy this peace.
What, then, let us inquire, are the conditions of its enjoyment? Are we to wait for happy feelings before we are assured that peace with God is our possession? This were to reverse the divine order, and even to contradict our experience in human things. Until we know the blessing is ours, it is impossible for us to enter upon its enjoyment. Suppose, for example, tidings were brought you that you had become the heir to a large estate. Would you reply, I do not think the estate can be mine because I do not feel happy? You know full well that the effect upon your heart would depend entirely upon your believing or otherwise the news you had received. So in regard to peace with God: if you accept the testimony of God as to the work of Christ, that He was delivered for our offenses and raised again for our justification; if you credit His word, that He counts you righteous, justifies you through faith, you will also believe that peace with God is made, is assured to you, and thus knowing it, but not until you thus know it, you will enter upon the blessed enjoyment of the fact, that God Himself has settled every question between Himself and you, and made a peace which, as it is founded upon the work of the cross, is both unchangeable and inalienable.
Can this peace, then, never be lost?
The enjoyment of it may undoubtedly be lost; for if a believer become a backslider, if he fall daily into sin, and do not judge himself before God, and if he were to walk as the children of this world — nay, as Peter teaches, if a Christian does not go forward, he may even forget “that he was purged from his old sins” (2 Peter 1:9). All this is true, and should ever be insisted upon, for nothing is more dishonoring to Christ, or more certain to ensure the chastening hand of God, than for a believer to walk carelessly and to live in sin; but, on the other hand, the eternal value of the work of Christ must never be ignored. We have therefore no hesitation in saying, on the foundation of many scriptures, (see, in addition to Rom. 5, Heb. 10:1-18) that peace with God is an everlasting possession, and can never be lost; for a justified person, whatever his practical state, abides forever as such before God, inasmuch as his justification depends wholly on faith in God. In this, indeed, lies the eternal safety of the believer, that it is God who justifies, and that the ground on which He justifies is the death and resurrection of Christ. It is indeed through faith that He justifies; but the work is all His own, and the peace with Himself which is ours when we are justified is through our Lord Jesus Christ.
There are other blessings linked up with peace with God, as following upon justification, concerning which a few sentences, in the words of another, will suffice. “Through Christ, entered into His presence, I am even now in the enjoyment of the favor of God in present grace. All the fruits of the old man were canceled before God by the death of Christ. There cannot be a question as to my sins between me and God. He has nothing to impute to me, that has all been settled in Christ's death and resurrection. As to the present time, I am brought into His presence in the enjoyment of His favor. Grace characterizes my present relationship with God. Further, all my sins having been put away according to the requirements of God's glory, and Christ being risen from the dead, having met all that glory, I rejoice in the hope of the glory of God. It is a well-grounded hope of being in it, not a coming short of it. All is connected with God Himself, with and according to His perfections, the favor of God, and His glory for our hope. All is connected with His power in resurrection — peace with God already settled, the present favor of God, and the hope of glory.”
In conclusion, allow me, dear reader, to ask affectionately, have you peace with God?
If you have, you can praise Him now as you will praise Him through all eternity, in that His grace has visited your heart. If you have not, then let me beseech you to read again and again this little book, with the prayer that God may open your eyes to see, and your heart to receive, the truth therein presented; and we also entreat you to give yourself no rest, until, in the mercy of God, you are able to say as in His sight, Therefore being justified by faith I have peace with God through our Lord Jesus Christ.