September
23
Romans 10: 6: But
the righteousness which is of faith speaketh on this wise, Say not in thine
heart, Who shall ascend into heaven? (that is, to bring Christ down from
above:) 7: Or, Who shall descend into the deep? (that is, to bring up
Christ again from the dead.) 8: But what saith it? The word is nigh thee, even
in thy mouth, and in thy heart: that is, the word of faith, which we preach; 9:
That if thou shalt confess with thy mouth the Lord Jesus, and shalt believe in
thine heart that God hath raised him from the dead, thou shalt be saved. 10: For
with the heart man believeth unto righteousness; and with the mouth confession
is made unto salvation. 11: For the scripture saith, Whosoever believeth on him
shall not be ashamed.
The
righteousness of God freely given to all whom God saves is the righteousness
which is of faith. This is the one way in
which God makes sinners righteous and saves us from our sins. The righteousness which is of faith does not
require of the sinner that which is impossible or out of reach. There are not great heights to be ascended or
depths to be fathomed. It is not some
great experience or feeling or work or words to be repeated. Faith is the gift of God. It is given into
the heart which God has made new through the preaching of the gospel of Jesus
Christ.
When God
reveals Christ in the heart, then and there the sinner beholds the
Righteousness of God, Christ Jesus. Divine
revelation opens the heart, bringing his child to the end of the law, Christ himself,
saying, “My child, meet Christ who is the Holiness, Justice and Goodness of the
law. Meet your Wisdom, Righteousness, Sanctification and Redemption.” The revelation of Christ is the gift of faith
in the heart.
The sinner in
whom this gift is bestowed believes in the heart that God raised Christ from
the dead because he beholds Christ is the Righteousness of God, because he beholds
Christ has fulfilled the law which was against him and took it out of the way,
because he beholds Christ has put away his sins forever so that in Christ he
has access and acceptance with God. Having his inner man overwhelmed with Christ
his Righteousness, the word of faith is near, even in his mouth and in his
heart. He finds he is not ashamed to confess to God and the world that Christ
is his Righteousness. He has not done
any work at all to make himself righteous. But by simply believing on Christ,
he has believed unto righteousness. He has not done any work at all to save
himself. But by simply confessing with his mouth that he is the purchased possession
of the Lord Jesus, he has confessed unto salvation.
No sinner will
ever believe and confess Christ so long as he continues waiting for an
experience or feeling or looking to his knowledge of doctrine. But when we are made to behold Christ in the
heart, what good news, “With the heart man believeth unto righteousness; and
with the mouth confession is made unto salvation.”