FOR WHOM CHRIST DIED
Recently I
was reading a history book about men of the past who did great works by which
they saved others. In each case the
historian reported who the person was and what work they did. But not only
that, the historian also reported that they actually saved a particular person
or group. I begin thinking that I have
never read a history book about the heroic works of men that left out the fact
that by their works they actually saved the particular person or group for whom
they did the work. It would be
meaningless to speak of a person’s work as a saving work while leaving out that
they actually accomplished the salvation of the person or group they set out to
save. So it is with the gospel. It ceases to be good news when men declare
Christ’s person and work only to leave out that our Redeemer knew that he was
come to save “his people” from their sins; it ceases to be good news to leave
out the truth that Christ actually accomplished the redemption of God’s elect
and God’s elect alone. This is why we
must preach God’s free and sovereign electing grace as well as the atonement
which Christ accomplished for his particular people, which is limited to only
those for whom Christ laid down his life, every time we preach. By this we declare Christ victorious and we
do not leave the choosing or the justifying in the sinner’s hand. In other words, by this we declare the
message we are sent to declare, all flesh is grass and thy God reigneth!