Our God is an awesome God. No matter what we have done, when we have been saved by the blood of His Son, He makes sure we live. As Paul at one place said though we are faithless, He remains faithful. He remains true to His word in saving us. Once He has called us to Him, He never rejects us. This is the beauty and power of the blood He shed on the cross in Christ. That blood is so marvelous, intriguing and heart touching to Him that He does not see us as we are, but sees us by what He made us to be by it. He is all for us and never against us. He gave us such conscience in Christ that we realize all His ways toward us. We were all sinners and yet, He did not forget us nor leave us to sin. We have all sinned time and again after receiving salvation and yet, He did not condemn us and never will. It is by the reason of the blood of His Son that categorically displays His love. “For we will surely die and are like water spilled on the ground which cannot be gathered up again. Yet God does not take away life, but plans ways so that the banished one will not be cast out from him” (2 Sam. 14:14).
No doubt we will all die one day. It is our destiny to die in the flesh, because of the sin of the first man. Nevertheless, until that day and until God’s purpose toward us remains, He keeps us alive by making us stand up again and again in Christ. We may face consequences for our wrong doings and God is the judge of their nature, but we will be brought back to serve and glorify Him. The blood of Christ means we do not die unworthy and as failures. Because He died, we live and succeed. When men see a rebellious man or sinner, they debase and condemn him. But when the same man is in grace, God sees him differently. He sees him as one whom He will make righteous again for greater good. God has unfathomable love toward us. Without stretching too much it is acceptable to say that only when we fail before God we get to know the depth of His love. As the consequences or the fear of them come upon us, He comes to our aid. At times God allows us to fail, though He did not tempt us for it. The reason being He allows us to use our human nature that came through the fall of Adam. In other words, He tests us. This is not to condemn or humiliate us, but to make us strong for the cunning days Satan has in store for us.
Therefore, He does not take our life, but provides ways that our life is life-giving to others. Remember, God never banishes you permanently, but in love will bring you back into His arms. To banish you permanently is not the idea present in the blood of Christ. Men may banish you, but God will not. And, we can always have hope of living in Christ for the glory of God. So, let these words float on your lips at all times. “For great is the LORD, and greatly to be praised; He also is to be feared above all gods” (1 Chron. 16:25). You will never understand the need and the reason to praise Him until you have experienced the depth of His love by grace. Paul too was making it known in Romans chapter 7 when he spoke of sin working in him and of his mind that served God. We can always talk of His wondrous works to us, since He answered our prayers. But the greatest praise we give Him is when He pulled us out of the inescapable mire of sin. I am not purporting we should sin, but I am saying that we all sin in some form against Him while under grace and when we take the opportunity to turn to Him, we certainly understand more deeply the work at the cross. Then our praise of Him has more depth and substance. Grace gives us the conscience to realize or mark every sin or mistake we make. If we have such conscience, we know we are saved. And when we seek God’s forgiveness to maintain a perfect relationship with Him, we come to know His love is unfathomable.
Understanding the depth of His love in Christ turns us into greater and better beings. Our perception of life changes making it similar to God’s. We know who and what we are, but still know what God has made us to be. We know where we have been and where we are now. By grace we have been through valleys and mountains and yet, never disgruntled. “But as for me, I shall sing of Your strength; Yes, I shall joyfully sing of Your lovingkindness in the morning, For You have been my stronghold and a refuge in the day of my distress” (Ps. 59:16). God was with David, because of the cross that is to be and He is with us, because of the cross that was. To sing joyfully of His lovingkindness is the effect of knowing that He has not banished or abandoned us regardless of our situation. It is indeed His strength that keeps renewing us so that we live quietly and yet victoriously. Going into His presence has immaculate influence over us. He pours His strength into us.
The greatest result of experiencing His love day in and day out is that we escape the following. “For thus says the LORD of hosts, ‘Cut down her trees and cast up a siege against Jerusalem. This is the city to be punished, in whose midst there is only oppression” (Jer. 6:6). Because of the many so-called Christians, there is a misconception that there is condemnation to those who in Christ Jesus. Those who have truly received grace are separated from condemnation. This is not to say their sin has no consequences according to God’s measure, but it is saying God never banishes them. This is the effect of Christ on the cross substantiated by His resurrection.
But if you are to experience such unfathomable love of God by grace, you have to consider three important things.
- Name change. You ought to be called by the name of God and His Son. When you to listen to His gospel, turn to Him for redemption, the power of His resurrection rooted in the cross will cause it to take place. “For I will remove the names of the Baals from her mouth, So that they will be mentioned by their names no more” (Hos. 2:17). And you have heard the gospel and are hearing it so that you do not lack His name. God will give you a name of His choice. You will be known by it. It may be a man of wisdom, man of faith, man of strength or prayer, etc. Yet, such name will stem from the root name man of Christ.
- Christ must make you His. “But no one can enter the strong man’s house and plunder his property unless he first binds the strong man, and then he will plunder his house” (Mark 3:27). It is not you who can give up all things, but Christ should take them away from you. For if it is left to you (us) we are smart enough by the flesh to keep some. He must bind us in the Spirit and take away every undesirable thing in us. In the flesh we are all strong men opposed to God’s will and when Christ plunders us, He fills us with His and we become His.
- Be different. Receive Christ every time He approaches you. Because “He came to His own, and those who were His own did not receive Him” (John 1:11), they lost immeasurable things. They lost spiritual as well as earthly blessings. He appears to you each time you hear the gospel, read the word and pray telling you that which He desires from you. As you receive, you will reap more than you sow!