| CHRIST'S IMPUTED RIGHTEOUSNESS
Under the covenant of obedience, or the covenant of works, God required the perfect
obedience of man as a precondition for eternal life. God created Adam in His own image,
and gave him "dominion over the fish of the sea, and over the fowl of the air, and
over the cattle, and over all the earth, and over every creeping thing that creepeth upon
the earth," GEN 1:26.
In this state of innocence Adam was perfectly capable of walking acceptably before God.
However, God would prove that Adam was willing to submit to His Divine authority by only
one very small imposition. Adam was allowed to eat of every tree of the Garden except one
(GEN 2:15-17) to prove his willingness to submit.
This Divine authority was the object of Satan's attack to break the state of
conciliation between God and man, GEN 3:1-6. Satan tempted Eve to believe God's
restrictions were unkind -- and that she should be as god to be able to decide for herself
what was right or wrong.
Since it was rebellion against God's authority that broke the state of conciliation
between God and man -- the only way fallen man could ever become reconciled is by man returning back
unto perfect obedience from which he fell.
Even though we are no longer capable of perfect obedience to the law of God because of
the fall, God does not alter His just demands for perfect obedience as a requirement to
obtain eternal life.
We must not think that God is as a man who is subject to change, PRO 24:21, for God's
Word tells us in MAL 3:6, "I am the Lord I change not; therefore ye sons of Jacob are
not consumed." God's just demands for perfect obedience as the only condition for
eternal life certainly have not changed because of the disobedience of Adam.
Therefore, it was only by the perfect obedience of the Lord Jesus Christ in our human
nature -- being imputed unto us that we can again obtain eternal life. He paid the penalty
of this rebellion in the garden of Gethsemane and upon the cross of Calvary as an
act of obedience to His Father.
PHI 2:8-11 says, "And being found in fashion as a man, he humbled himself, and
became obedient unto death, even the death of the cross. Wherefore [or on this account] God
also hath highly exalted him, and given him a name which is above every name: That at the
name of Jesus every knee should bow, of things in heaven, and things in earth, and things
under the earth; And that every tongue should confess that Jesus Christ is Lord, to the
glory of God the Father."
We are justified by His blood, ROM 5:9, whereby we are saved from wrath; but it was His
perfect obedience that was required by the Father to purchase our eternal life. "For
as by one man's disobedience many were made sinners, so by the obedience of one shall many
be made righteous," ROM 5:19.
That which God looked for and accepted was the eminent obedience of Christ in our human
nature, so His holy and righteous life, His painful and cursed death make but one entire
piece of perfect obedience. He earned our salvation by His perfect obedience. "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," 2CO 5:21.
That imputed righteousness or, "perfect conformity of life to the divine law
[Daniel Webster]," is what His bride obtained through the perfect obedience of our
Saviour in his perfect submission to the will of God the Father. -- "God was in
Christ, reconciling the world unto himself, not imputing their trespasses unto them,"
2CO 5:19. --
However, reconciliation must come from both sides, therefore, the next verse says,
"Now then we are ambassadors for Christ, as though God did beseech you by us: we pray you in Christ's stead, be ye reconciled to God," V:20.
Amen. |
