Page:Studies in the Scriptures - Series I - The Plan of the Ages (1909).djvu/238

 23* The Plan of ihc Ages.

to reach plane JV. How is this accomplished? Is it by good works? No; sinners can do no good works. We coald not commend ourselves to God, so " God commend- ed his love toward us, in that, while we were yet sinners, Christ died for us." (Rom. 5 : S.) Then the condition upon which we come to the justified or perfedt human plane is that Christ died for our sins, redeemed us and lifted us up, "through faith in his blood/' to the perfedt plane, from which, in Adam, A7e fell. " We axe justified [lifted to plane .#] by feith." And "being justified by faith, we have peace with God " (Rom. 5 : i), and are no longer esteemed by God as enemies, but as justified human sons, on the same plane as Adam and our Lord Jesus, except that they were a&ually perfed, while we are merely reckoned so by God. This reckoned justification we realize through faith in God's Word, which says, Yeare "bought/' "redeemed/* justified freely from all things/' We stand in God's sight blameless, spotless and holy in the robes of Christ's righteousness imputed to us by faith. Our sins he consent- ed to have imputed 'to him, that he might bear our penalty for us i and te died on our behalf, as though he were the sinner. His righteousness is consequently imputed to all who accept of his redemption, and brings with it all the rights and blessings originally possessed before sin entered* It restores us to life and to fellowship with God. This fel- lowship we may have at once by the exercise of faith, and the life and fuller fellowship and joy are assured in God's "due time/'

But remember that while justification fo a blessed thing, it does not change our nature*: we are still human beings.

of A man that He is i8natur8& Stri&Iy speaking, no Burn & evil by nature. Human nature is ** very good,** an eartkfy imag* of the divine nature. So every man is of a good nature, the difficulty being that tbia
 * 1) The word nature Is used in an accommodated sense wnen it Is said

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