Psalm 92:1,2 "It is a good thing to give thanks unto the Lord, and to sing praises unto thy name, O Most High: To shew forth thy lovingkindness in the morning, and thy faithfulness every night," It is a good thing—yea, the best and most blessed occupation of the redeemed soul—to give thanks unto the LORD and to sing praises unto the Name of the Most High. The psalmist in Psalm 92 opens with this very thought: “It is a good thing to give thanks unto the Lord, and to sing praises unto thy name, O most High” (v.1). But what is the reason for such praise? What compels the believer, day by day, morning and night, to declare the LORD’s lovingkindness and faithfulness? The answer lies in the sovereign and saving grace of God in Christ Jesus. This grace, purposed from eternity, accomplished at the cross, and revealed effectually by the Spirit, is the sole reason we rise in the morning with songs of mercy on our lips and lay down at night resting in the assurance of God's faithfulness in Christ. The lovingkindness spoken of here is not merely a general kindness, but that covenant mercy— chesed —which flows from God’s eternal love for His elect in Christ. It is the very grace that chose us before the foundation of the world (Ephesians 1:4), redeemed us by Christ’s blood (Hebrews 9:12) , and called us with a holy calling (2 Timothy 1:9). “To shew forth thy lovingkindness in the morning.” Each morning that the believer awakens is not a product of chance, but a testimony of God's preserving mercy. Jeremiah wrote, “It is of the LORD’s mercies that we are not consumed, because his compassions fail not. They are new every morning: great is thy faithfulness” (Lamentations 3:22–23). Who is it that preserves the child of God through the night watches and raises him again to behold the light of another day? It is Christ Himself, our Life, our Righteousness, our Hope. “The Lord is my shepherd; I shall not want… he restoreth my soul” (Psalm 23:1,3). When we consider that all our spiritual blessings—redemption, justification, sanctification, regeneration, and glorification—flow from the eternal wellspring of God's sovereign grace, how can we not begin the day by declaring His lovingkindness? The believer knows that had God not loved him with an everlasting love and drawn him with lovingkindness (Jeremiah 31:3), he would still be lost, dead in trespasses and sins, without Christ, and without hope (Ephesians 2:12) . Herein is the wonder of God's saving grace in Christ: God loved us not because of foreseen merit or good, but according to His own will and purpose in Christ. “Not by works of righteousness which we have done, but according to his mercy he saved us” (Titus 3:5). That is the lovingkindness we declare in the morning. And in the evening, when the shadows fall and the day closes, we recount His faithfulness—not our faithfulness to Him, but His faithfulness to us. “Faithful is he that calleth you, who also will do it” (1 Thessalonians 5:24). When we consider what it means to shew forth  His lovingkindness in the morning, this is not merely a private emotion or an inward feeling, but a declaration , and a testimony. It is to speak, sing, pray, and live in such a way that the mercies of God in Christ are made known—first to our own hearts, and then to those around us. The heart enlivened by sovereign grace cannot remain silent. “I believed, therefore have I spoken” (Psalm 116:10). What do we speak? We declare the mercy that met us when we were dead in sins. We proclaim the love that lifted us out of the miry clay and set our feet upon a Rock. That Rock is Christ. Morning by morning, we are reminded that we do not stand in our own strength. Our salvation is not conditioned on our works, our will, or our faithfulness. It is built entirely on the immovable Foundation of God’s eternal purpose and Christ’s finished work. As the Apostle Paul wrote, “Who hath saved us, and called us with an holy calling, not according to our works, but according to his own purpose and grace, which was given us in Christ Jesus before the world began” (2 Timothy 1:9). This is the lovingkindness we rejoice in when the sun rises. But the day is not without its trials. The morning may begin with peace, but the world soon presses in. Temptations come. We may falter. We may even fall. Yet when the night returns and we lay our heads down again, we do so with confidence in His faithfulness . “If we believe not, yet he abideth faithful: he cannot deny himself” (2 Timothy 2:13). What God has begun in us by His sovereign grace, He will finish. “Being confident of this very thing,” Paul writes, “that he which hath begun a good work in you will perform it until the day of Jesus Christ” (Philippians 1:6). So we declare His lovingkindness in the morning—for it is by grace we are kept. And we declare His faithfulness every night—for it is by grace we are preserved. Grace began the work. Grace sustains the work. And grace will complete it in glory. The LORD has done it all. Christ has triumphed. And we, His blood-bought people, rest in that perfect work. Let us, then, live each day between these twin pillars of praise: the lovingkindness of God revealed in the cross of Christ , and the faithfulness of God who will never forsake His own . This is the song of the believer in time—and it will be the song of the redeemed throughout eternity. “Blessed is the man whom thou choosest, and causest to approach unto thee” (Psalm 65:4). The LORD Jesus is THE MAN that God the Father chose, and caused to approach unto Him, but as the Representative of elect sinners that the Father gave Him. They are caused to approach unto God, justified by the work of Christ, the Mediator between God and men. We come because we were chosen in Christ, and drawn by His Spirit. We believe because we were called. We endure because we are preserved. All is of grace. All is in Christ. And all redounds to the glory of God alone (Romans 8:28-34).

2 Corinthians 5:21  "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." The Gospel is a mystery! Apart from the Spirit of God revealing the Christ of the Gospel in our hearts, none of us could or would know how sinners could stand just before a Holy God. Our depraved minds and hearts would lead us to believe that we must somehow work out that righteousness ourselves, " For I bear them record that they have a zeal of God, but not according to knowledge. For they being ignorant of God's righteousness, and going about to establish their own righteousness, have not submitted themselves unto the righteousness of God" (Romans 10:2-3).      If God will give us ears to hear and eyes to see, what a Glorious Truth this is to learn that the matter of sin and righteousness was settled by the very Son of God on behalf of His people at the cross. How blessed are those in whom God reveals THIS TRUTH of His complete justifying of them in what Christ accomplished by His life and death! So absolute is the work of imputation at the cross that ALL those that Christ redeemed have ALL been already pronounced righteous by the Eternal Judge. There is no sin laid to their charge because it was ALL laid on Him as the sin-Bearer. There is complete righteousness before God’s law because He worked it out and the Father imputed it to their account. True, their sins were infinite and abominable! Yet before God, they were purged away by the precious blood shed unto death of the LORD Jesus, " Who being the brightness of his glory, and the express image of his person, and upholding all things by the word of his power, when he had by himself purged our sins, sat down on the right hand of the Majesty on high:"  (Hebrews 1:3).       It was on the cross that Jesus Christ satisfied the justice of God and based upon His finished work, all His elect were declared just and righteous. So complete was the work of the LORD Jesus in earning and establishing God’s righteous law and justice that there remains no more sin to charge to any of His elect. All of God’s righteousness imputed to them at the cross is ALL their righteousness before Him. What a comfort for those for whom HE accomplished the work.       The LORD Jesus was made sin for the elect. This does not mean that sin was infused in Him or in any sense made a sinner but rather sin was laid ON Him by God the Father.   "All we like sheep have gone astray; we have turned every one to his own way; and the Lord hath laid on him the iniquity of us all," Isaiah 53:6.  The same is true concerning the imputation of His righteousness. It is not infused into the sinner but charged to his account, whereby God declares such a one righteous before Him.  As that sin for which Christ was condemned and punished was not found in Him but charged to Him, so that righteousness by which we are justified and entitled to glory is NOT inherent in us but has been imputed to us. All to whom that righteousness was imputed, the Spirit will, in time draw to the LORD and cause to rejoice in Him and His finished work, repenting of any notion of contributing anything to it themselves, " And you, being dead in your sins and the uncircumcision of your flesh, hath he quickened together with him, having forgiven you all trespasses; Blotting out the handwriting of ordinances that was against us, which was contrary to us, and took it out of the way, nailing it to his cross;" (Colossians 2:13-14).    What unspeakable grace is this—that Christ, Who knew no sin, was made sin for us, that we might be made the righteousness of God in Him! Here is the heart of the gospel, the glorious exchange purposed by the Father, accomplished by the Son, and revealed by the Spirit. This is not by our merit, but by His mercy; not through our works, but through His wondrous work. As children of God we rest our soul in this finished Righteousness. Clothed in Christ and God's Righteousness imputed, we stand accepted, justified, and complete before the throne of God's justice and holiness, to the praise of His sovereign grace forever.

Ephesians 5:1,2 "Be ye therefore followers of God, as dear children; And walk in love, as Christ also hath loved us, and hath given himself for us an offering and a sacrifice to God for a sweetsmelling savour." The apostle Paul calls believers to be “followers of God, as dear children” and to “walk in love, as Christ also hath loved us.” This divine exhortation flows directly from the rich Gospel Truth declared in the previous chapters: that we are “accepted in the beloved” (Ephesians 1:6) , redeemed through His blood (Ephesians 1:7) , and made alive together with Christ by sovereign grace (Ephesians 2:4–5). To be followers—or imitators—of God is not a call to mimicry rooted in self-effort, but a fruit of our union with Christ, Who loved us and gave Himself for us “an offering and a sacrifice to God for a sweet smelling savour” (Ephesians 5:2). The love we are called to walk in is not a mere natural love, but the divine, electing, Sacrificial Love demonstrated at Calvary, where the Lamb of God bore the sins of His people (John 10:11, Romans 5:8). We walk in love not to become children of God, but as dear children —already chosen, redeemed, justified, and adopted by grace (Ephesians 1:4–5) . Our obedience flows from our position in Christ, Who “loved me, and gave himself for me” (Galatians 2:20) . This love is not general, hypothetical love, but a definite, effectual love that guarantees the salvation of God’s elect. Thus, these verses call us to reflect the Gospel we have received: a life shaped by the sovereign, Sacrificial Love of Christ. For a true child of God, the command here to be a follower of God is not something tedious. It's not burdensome. It shouldn't make you fearful, no more than saying to a child, "follow your father." If that father is a true father, you as a child are going to desire to follow in his steps. Where God has done a work of grace in a sinner's heart and given that sinner His Spirit, the scriptures call that being born again. That word literally means "to be born from above." That's how you become, in your experience, a child of God. There's the giving of the Spirit, and where the Spirit has done that work, there's going to be two things: One, you're going to search out those things that pertain to God. That's where the spiritual interest for the things of God originates. We're not born with this. We're not born thinking of God as a Father. It takes the Spirit of God to teach us. Two, where the Spirit has done that work, there is a searching . There's a seeking after God and His glory. " But as it is written, Eye hath not seen, nor ear heard, neither have entered into the heart of man, the things which God hath prepared for them that love him. But God hath revealed them unto us by his Spirit: for the Spirit searcheth all things, yea, the deep things of God" (1 Corinthians 2:9,10). What then is it to be a follower of God? First, it's to be an imitator of God . Not an imitator in the sense of imitation. The word "follower" here is the word that we get our word mime from. Have you ever watched a mime? They're not saying anything, but you see them sometimes in the streets, some of these actors, they will mime without words certain characters or events, and as they do it, you recognize it. Now, they're not actually that person or they're not actually that event, but you recognize by their actions what they're communicating. With regard to being imitators of God, it is one thing to say that you are a child of God and to profess it—that's using words. It is another thing entirely to live it. That is to communicate something even without speaking a word. Now, there are certain attributes of God that we cannot imitate. God is omniscient. What does that mean? It means He knows everything. Can you imitate that? You can act like you know it, but you cannot. Not in that sense. God is omnipotent—He is all-powerful. He can do whatsoever He wills. Can you imitate that? God is omnipresent. Have you ever thought about trying to be everywhere at the same time—or in two or three different places at once? Sometimes it feels like that’s how life is. But we are so finite. He is not limited by space—we are. Yet there are certain attributes of God that, as we read the Scriptures, we find that we are called to imitate. If we are God's children, we are called upon to reflect these. Truth. What is truth? It is that which characterizes God. "Be ye therefore followers of God,"  as He is in Truth. Don't you suppose that if the Spirit of God is in you, you will desire to follow the Truth, as God is revealed in the Scriptures? David said, "Through thy precepts I get understanding: therefore I hate every false way" (Psalm 119:104). That desire to know God in Truth affects who we are. It affects our direction in life. That is why we read this Word. We hear it. We study it. We want to know the Truth with regard to God. Second, it is to value above all else, the privilege of being His child. Why did the Spirit of God put "dear children" in there? Because that's who His people are to Him. They are dear. It doesn't say just as children, but dear children. Why are the Lord's people dear to Him? You know what that word "dear" means? It means "beloved". In fact, it means "well-beloved". I know if I'm beloved or well-beloved of God, it's not for anything in me. It's because He willed to love such as we are. Our being in Him and walking in fellowship with God has everything to do with what Christ accomplished in sacrificing Himself. That is what we see in Colossians 1:12, where Paul says, "Giving thanks unto the Father, which hath made us meet to be partakers of the inheritance of the saints in light."   Why are sinners called saints? It is because of that perfect Righteousness that God the Father has imputed to their account when the LORD Jesus finished His work on the cross. Verse 13 continues, "Who hath delivered us from the power of darkness, and hath translated us into the kingdom of His dear Son."   It can also be rendered, "into the kingdom of the Son of His love."  That is the work of the Spirit—He brings us out of darkness into light. This is the only way God could ever call any of us "beloved" —because of the Son of His love and what He accomplished. At the cross, when the Lord Jesus laid down His life, we were saved. There, God’s elect were redeemed from the legal condemnation of the law and from the guilt of their sins. This is what Christ did—He saved His people at the cross, and when called by the Spirit of God to Him, they follow HIM.

Joshua 2:18 "Behold, when we come into the land, thou shalt bind this line of scarlet thread in the window which thou didst let us down by: and thou shalt bring thy father, and thy mother, and thy brethren, and all thy father's household, home unto thee." Here we see a vivid token of God's sovereign saving grace in the scarlet cord hanging from Rahab’s window—a simple thread, yet rich with Gospel meaning. This scarlet line, appointed as the sign of deliverance amid judgment, prefigures the precious blood of the LORD Jesus Christ, shed for His elect. Just as Rahab and all within her house were saved because of that cord, so every sinner sheltered beneath the blood of Christ is free from wrath. Here is not the merit of Rahab, but the mercy of God, Who ordained her rescue according to His eternal purpose. The scarlet cord points us to the finished work of Christ, Who by His obedience and sacrifice obtained eternal redemption for those given to Him by the Father. What is the nature of the scarlet cord? The word translated thread  was not merely symbolic, but strong enough to let the men of Israel down through the window. In Joshua 2:15 , it is referred to as a cord : "Then she let them down by a cord through the window: for her house was upon the town wall, and she dwelt upon the wall." This would have been a line twisted with various scarlet threads. What is the significance of the cord? It served as the means of escape for the two spies, but more than that—it represented deliverance and salvation for Rahab and her household. What, then do we learn from this? 1. It was a singular (exclusive) cord. Rahab is a striking instance of the salvation of sinners by the grace of God alone. She was a sinner by birth, by practice, and notoriously so—as are all whom the LORD saves. Yet she stands as a testimony to God’s distinguishing, free, and efficacious grace. Just as the scarlet cord was appointed for her and her family alone—and no one else in Jericho—so too the purpose of God and His redeeming work are for a chosen number of sinners whom He has determined to save. Even as there was but one  cord, so there is but One  Way of salvation in Christ: "Jesus saith unto him, I am the way, the truth, and the life: no man cometh unto the Father, but by me" (John 14:6). 2. It was an emblematic cord. The color scarlet  signifies the blood of the LORD Jesus Christ, which He shed for sinners, and by which even the worst of sinners are justified. The scarlet cord was an emblem of that precious blood. Redemption, justification, sanctification—all the blessings of grace—are through it. Scarlet was the color used in the tabernacle’s fabric, representing the shed blood of Christ, necessary for the remission of sins. The Word of God declares: "Come now, and let us reason together, saith the Lord: though your sins be as scarlet, they shall be as white as snow; though they be red like crimson, they shall be as wool" (Isaiah 1:18). 3. It was a covenantal cord. All the promises of God are fulfilled in Christ: "For all the promises of God in him are yea, and in him Amen, unto the glory of God by us" (2 Corinthians 1:20). So the cord was for Rahab and her family a token of God’s faithfulness to preserve them alive. She pleaded for this covenantal assurance: "Now therefore, I pray you, swear unto me by the Lord, since I have shewed you kindness, that ye will also shew kindness unto my father's house, and give me a true token:" (Joshua 2:12). That scarlet line pointed to God’s unchanging promise to save those who flee for refuge to Christ: "That by two immutable things, in which it was impossible for God to lie, we might have a strong consolation, who have fled for refuge to lay hold upon the hope set before us" (Hebrews 6:18). They shall never perish. He is faithful to save all for whom Christ has shed His blood. God’s Word is His bond.

1 John 2:20 "But ye have an unction from the Holy One, and ye know all things." Here is a gracious reminder to the redeemed of the LORD that their knowledge of the truth is not the result of natural ability, religious effort, or human decision, but is purely the work of God's sovereign grace in Christ. The "unction" —the anointing—is the Holy Spirit Himself, sovereignly given by Christ, the Holy One, to all whom He has redeemed by His blood. It is NOT a potential blessing offered to all, but a particular gift bestowed on those elected by God the Father in eternity, for whom the LORD Jesus came into the world and laid down His life, and now by the Spirit of God, enabling them to discern the Truth, abide in Christ, and persevere in the Faith. This verse assures them that their standing and understanding in Christ is the result of God's sovereign will, not their will—a comfort and confirmation that salvation is of the LORD from beginning to end. The term “unction”  is translated here as “anointing,”  which John uses to remind his readers of the spiritual anointing they have received from the Holy One—Christ. This anointing is not to be sought as a separate experience after conversion, but is already upon them through Christ and His finished work at the cross. Let us explore the nature of this anointing: Primarily, anointing  relates to Christ Himself, whose title Christ  means the Anointed One   (Isaiah 61:1; Acts 4:27) . He was chosen and set apart by God the Father as Prophet, Priest, and King—offices traditionally conferred by anointing in the Old Testament. In Christ, all these roles converge: He is the Prophet  through whom God speaks— “For Moses truly said unto the fathers, A prophet shall the Lord your God raise up unto you of your brethren, like unto me; him shall ye hear in all things whatsoever he shall say unto you” (Acts 3:22), He is the Priest  by Whose sacrifice sinners are justified— “Now of the things which we have spoken this is the sum: We have such an high priest, who is set on the right hand of the throne of the Majesty in the heavens” (Hebrews 8:1), He is the King  to whom all will bow— “And they sing the song of Moses the servant of God, and the song of the Lamb, saying, Great and marvellous are thy works, Lord God Almighty; just and true are thy ways, thou King of saints” (Revelation 15:3). Having an anointing from the Holy One means that believers share in the righteousness of Christ, imputed to them through His sacrificial death: “Much more then, being now justified by his blood, we shall be saved from wrath through him. For if, when we were enemies, we were reconciled to God by the death of his Son, much more, being reconciled, we shall be saved by his life” (Romans 5:9–10). Christ, the Holy One, is the Foundation of their election, redemption, justification, and sanctification: “But of him are ye in Christ Jesus, who of God is made unto us wisdom, and righteousness, and sanctification, and redemption” (1 Corinthians 1:30). Through His completed work, believers receive all spiritual blessings: “Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, who hath blessed us with all spiritual blessings in heavenly places in Christ” (Ephesians 1:3). Believers having this anointing know all things —not in the sense of being without need of instruction, but because the Spirit of God reveals Christ in them, granting understanding of the forgiveness and justification already accomplished at the cross through Him. They are contrasted with those who reject the Truth, following after their desires or false doctrines. The believer’s anointing is rooted in union with Christ: His death and resurrection are theirs. Through God-given faith, they come to apprehend the blessings of this anointing, which is bestowed by grace. Christ is their complete satisfaction before the Father, leaving His chosen, redeemed children lacking nothing. The anointing  spoken of by John encompasses the believer's union with Christ, their sharing in His imputed righteousness, and the Spirit’s work of revealing Christ’s sufficiency in them for salvation. This passage emphasizes the centrality of Christ in the believer’s experience and the completeness of their satisfaction in Him.

Jeremiah 23:5,6 "Behold, the days come, saith the Lord, that I will raise unto David a righteous Branch, and a King shall reign and prosper, and shall execute judgment and justice in the earth. In his days Judah shall be saved, and Israel shall dwell safely: and this is his name whereby he shall be called, THE LORD OUR RIGHTEOUSNESS." Amid great apostasy and political upheaval, Jeremiah received from the LORD a message of hope—rooted not in national reform or human effort, but in the sovereign grace and will of God to save a remnant by the work of a coming Redeemer-King. The kings of Judah had failed. The shepherds of Israel had scattered the flock. Judgment was sure. Yet, the promise of a coming King—a righteous Branch from David—shined like a beacon in the darkness. This King would not merely be a reformer; He would be righteous. He would not simply restore political order; He would reign and prosper, executing true judgment and justice. And He would be called by this Divine and saving name: THE LORD OUR RIGHTEOUSNESS . This prophecy looked far beyond the return from Babylonian captivity or the installation of a better Davidic ruler. Its ultimate fulfillment is in the Person of the LORD Jesus Christ, the true and eternal King of Israel. The LORD Jesus, “made of the seed of David according to the flesh” (Romans 1:3), is the righteous Branch foretold by Jeremiah. He came not to make men righteous by moral instruction, nor merely to demonstrate righteousness by example, but to earn and establish a righteousness equal to that of God Himself—for His people, whom the Father chose before the foundation of the world, according to His grace in Christ Jesus (Romans 11:6). This passage declares the truth that is at the very heart of the Gospel—the justification of sinners by the righteousness of the LORD Jesus. For sinners who have no righteousness of their own, who stand condemned by the law, Christ is given as THE LORD OUR RIGHTEOUSNESS . This is not a righteousness infused or enabled, but imputed . It is the very RIghteousness of God revealed in the Gospel (Romans 1:17) —a perfect Righteousness, established by the obedience and death of Christ, reckoned to the account of all who are in Him by sovereign election and revealed by faith. This RIghteousness was accomplished at the cross. There, “the LORD hath laid on him the iniquity of us all” (Isaiah 53:6), and there He bore the full weight of God's justice in their stead. As it is written, “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” (2 Corinthians 5:21). This is substitutionary Righteousness—according to God’s eternal covenant of grace—not earned by the sinner but freely given for Christ’s sake. It is His righteous obedience unto death that justifies: “Being justified freely by his grace through the redemption that is in Christ Jesus” (Romans 3:24). When Jeremiah says, “Judah shall be saved, and Israel shall dwell safely”  (Jeremiah 23:6) , he is declaring more than national peace. He is foretelling the salvation of God’s elect in Christ—the spiritual Israel—who are saved from wrath and brought into the everlasting safety of union with Christ. These are they who call Him by faith, THE LORD OUR RIGHTEOUSNESS . They do not boast in their obedience, decisions, or supposed “free will,” but glory in the cross, where the LORD Himself became their righteousness. God has not left salvation in the hands of men, nor based it upon their worthiness or will. He has provided all in Christ. The righteousness we could never produce, God has provided through the life, death, and resurrection of His Son. And this RIghteousness is given—not to all indiscriminately—but to those whom the Father gave to the Son before the foundation of the world: a definite people, a chosen Israel, who are called and justified in time. So may we who are God's chosen, bought, and sought children rejoice in Him Who is all  our Wisdom, Righteousness, Sanctification, and Redemption (1 Corinthians 1:30). Our standing before God does not rise or fall with our feelings, failings, or frames of heart or mind. Feelings come and feelings go, and feelings are deceiving. It rests on the LORD Jesus Christ alone. He is THE LORD OUR RIGHTEOUSNESS —not merely a helper of righteousness, but the very Foundation and Substance of it. This is the Gospel: that in Christ, the sinner is declared righteous before God, fully accepted, eternally saved, and completely loved forever— all of grace, all for His glory . We can then say with the prophet Isaiah, in faith and thanksgiving: “Surely, shall one say, in the LORD have I righteousness and strength” (Isaiah 45:24). The full verse reads: “Surely, shall one say, in the LORD have I righteousness and strength: even to him shall men come; and all that are incensed against him shall be ashamed. Righteousness and strength are found only “in the LORD,” which is a foreshadowing of the Gospel truth fulfilled in the LORD Jesus Christ at the cross. Christ established the only righteousness that satisfies God’s justice for sinners and fulfilled it at the cross. He bore the shame and wrath due to His elect, and in Him are the strength and grace to save to the uttermost all who come to God by Him, having already accomplished their redemption and justification at the cross (Hebrews 7:25). Therefore, the phrase “in the LORD have I righteousness and strength”  finds its fulfillment exclusively in the finished work of the LORD Jesus at the cross, where Christ the LORD our Righteousness (Jeremiah 23:6) —both justified and sanctified His people. All who are “incensed” against Him—those who reject His Person and work—are put to shame, for they seek righteousness elsewhere and find none: “For they being ignorant of God’s righteousness, and going about to establish their own righteousness, have not submitted themselves unto the righteousness of God. For Christ is the end of the law for righteousness to every one that believeth” (Romans 10:3–4).

Matthew 11:28,29 "Come unto me, all ye that labour and are heavy laden, and I will give you rest. Take my yoke upon you, and learn of me; for I am meek and lowly in heart: and ye shall find rest unto your souls." This tender yet sovereign word from the lips of our LORD Jesus Christ is not a mere invitation extended to those who might choose Him at their leisure. It is a royal command, spoken with Divine Authority and irresistible Power. The One Who speaks is not only the Shepherd but also the King—He Who has “all power…in heaven and in earth” (Matthew 28:18) . He does not beg sinners to come. He commands the weary, the burdened, the broken, and the heavily laden, saying, “Come unto me.” To “come” is not an act of man's free will, for none will come unless drawn. As our LORD Himself declares: “No man can come to me, except the Father which hath sent me draw him” (John 6:44). The call is effectual. Those whom the Father gave to the Son shall come— “All that the Father giveth me shall come to me” (John 6:37). It is not a general offer rejected by most, but a sovereign summons attended by Divine Grace that makes the sinner willing in the day of His Power (Psalm 110:3). Notice that this command is given to a specific people: “all ye that labour and are heavy laden.” These are not those who feel healthy in their souls, nor those resting comfortably in their religious self-righteousness. These are the convicted, the crushed, the conscious of their sin and helpless estate. They labor under the weight of the law they cannot keep, and they are heavy laden with guilt because of the sinfulness of their sin that they cannot remove. To them Christ says, “I will give you rest.” Not offer nor suggest, but I will give, as a gift, sovereignly bestowed. And what is this rest? It is not a pause from labor, but the end of striving to justify oneself before God. It is the soul's resting in the finished work of Christ. It is that Peace which comes from the knowledge that He Who calls is the One Who also bore our sins in His own body on the tree (1 Peter 2:24). It is rest in His righteousness imputed, His blood shed unto death, His obedience fulfilled, His redemption accomplished. Then comes His further word: “Take my yoke upon you, and learn of me… For my yoke is easy, and my burden is light” (Matthew 11:29-30). The yoke of the law is heavy—it demands and never gives. The yoke of Christ is easy—it has been carried already by Another. The burden of our sin has been laid on Him, “and the LORD hath laid on him the iniquity of us all” (Isaiah 53:6) . What remains for us is not condemnation, but communion. To walk with Christ under His yoke is not servitude—it is liberty. For “if the Son therefore shall make you free, ye shall be free indeed” (John 8:36). His burden is light because He carries it with us, and indeed has already borne it to Calvary. The believer yoked to Christ walks not alone but in union with the risen LORD, upheld by His Spirit and led by His Word. This command of Christ to “Come” is not to be debated or delayed. It is to be obeyed by His Grace. It is not a suggestion to be considered, but a summons that grants what He promises. And all who come, come not because they willed it, but because they were made willing by His sovereign grace alone. They find in Him their Rest, their Righteousness, and their Reward. Come, then, weary soul—not in your strength, but in His. Come, not to do, but to have done for you. Come, and find that His yoke is easy, His burden light, and His rest eternal, everlasting as Christ Himself.

Romans 4:25 "Who was delivered for our offences, and was raised again for our justification." Here we pause and meditate on this glorious text, a summation of the Gospel of substitution by the finished work of the LORD Jesus on the cross. Romans 4:25 sets forth two great Gospel pillars: Christ’s substitutionary death and His victorious resurrection. Both acts are not mere historical events, but Divine transactions rooted in God's eternal purpose, finished redemption, and absolute justification by the death of the LORD Jesus on the cross. “ Who was delivered for our offences …” This speaks of the substitutionary nature of Christ’s death. The word “for”  here means because of  — He was delivered up because of our offences . Not for His own sin, for He had none, but for ours. This is substitution, pure and simple. He stood in the stead of His people, bearing their guilt, enduring their judgment, satisfying divine justice in their name. It was not merely a potential atonement, but an actual propitiation — a real and effectual offering for specific transgressions. Christ was not delivered in hope that some might be justified at some later time, but in certainty that all those whose sins He bore would be eternally cleared once He had laid down His life. Therefore, we must say: when Christ died, God once for all  justified those for whom He died. The penalty was paid, the debt canceled, and the record of sin was blotted out. Isaiah 53:11 declares, “by his knowledge shall my righteous servant justify many; for he shall bear their iniquities.”  The bearing of iniquities and the justification of sinners are inseparably linked, and simultaneous. There is no justification apart from the substitutionary death of Christ, and there is no substitution without certain immediate justification when the work was complete. Then Paul adds, “ and was raised again for our justification. " Again, “for”   here means because of  , not to justify us, but because  justification had been fully accomplished at the cross. His resurrection was not finishing the work, but the divine proof and public declaration that the work was done, accepted, and complete. Christ did not rise to make justification possible; He rose because justification had already been accomplished. The resurrection is God's Amen  to Christ’s "It is finished" (John 19:30). Therefore, when we read Romans 5:1, “Therefore being justified by faith…”, we must see the comma rightly placed: “Therefore being justified, by faith we have peace with God through our Lord Jesus Christ.” We are not justified because  of our faith, but being already justified , we receive and embrace that justification by faith . Faith is not the cause, but the effect. This is the heart of sovereign grace: a finished salvation, a full justification, accomplished entirely by Christ, and embraced by God-given faith. No room for boasting. No ground for fear. Christ was delivered because of  our sins, and raised because of  our justification. May the LORD cause us to rest entirely in His finished work, rejoicing in the peace we now have with God through Him. Amen.

Job 9:33 "Neither is there any daysman betwixt us, that might lay his hand upon us both." Job was one of God's children—perhaps one of the oldest that we find in the Old Testament—and yet the LORD was pleased to bring him through deep affliction and trouble. But the purpose was to draw him mercifully to his Redeemer and Savior, and to serve as a type of the LORD Jesus Christ, God's suffering Servant. He speaks in verse 33 of a daysman . This is a judge or an arbitrator, called a daysman  because such a person was designated to appoint the actual day on which arbitration or mediation was to take place. Now, nobody ever talks about arbitration or mediation unless there is a conflict. And here, there was a conflict—at least, Job in his depravity, crying unto the LORD in his complaint, saw it that way. Any kind of strife or controversy is one of three kinds: A strife that requires mediation due to a mistake, A controversy resulting from mutual wrongdoing, or A strife where one side wrongs the other. We know for sure that there is no blame that can be brought against God with regard to our sin or in how He deals with us. He is holy, just, and equitable. That was Job’s cry—that this Daysman , this Mediator, might "lay his hand upon us both." In other words, One Who could interpose Himself and lay His hand upon God in His justice and holiness, and at the same time, lay His hand upon Job, the sinner. Where is such a Daysman  to be found? And so, his cry was for a Mediator. Oh, that God would give us such a cry! Job, in his deepest moment of affliction—and again, this affliction was from the hand of God—was mercifully brought to see that nothing in this life has any lasting importance. You hear many preachers talk of health, wealth, or prosperity, but all these things are temporal. The first point we see here is the need for a Mediator. Job was a man whom God had enriched with substance and influence. Often, we do not understand the reason for a trial. We know that we do not deserve better, yet going through a trial as one of God's children can raise many questions. But one thing is certain—it is for God's glory. He does it for the honor of His Name and for His purpose. That was the whole reason the LORD laid Job low. Some might ask, “Why would God do that to one of His own?” It was a mercy that the LORD afflicted him and brought him low, lest he should in any way confide—even in the mercies of God—rather than in the merits of the LORD Jesus Christ as his God, his Savior, and his Redeemer. He was made to see just how vain the temporal enjoyments of time truly are. It is striking that we come, live, and die, and time marches on. Everything we enjoy in this life, by way of creature comforts, is temporary at best. And yet, time continues. The LORD graciously caused Job to look outside himself—not only away from temporal comforts, but also from any supposed personal obedience. The second point is this: the LORD Jesus Christ Himself is that Mediator . In 1 Timothy 2:5–6, we read: “For there is one God, and one mediator between God and men, the man Christ Jesus; Who gave himself a ransom for all, to be testified in due time.” Every word in this passage is vital. The LORD Jesus Christ is the Mediator, and He is also the Ransom required for all whom God has saved. Note again, the language used by Job is: “Neither is there any daysman betwixt us, that might lay his hand upon us both” (Job 9:33). What he refers to is an earthly mediator. If we look to men, or to anyone or anything, to stand between us and God, it is a false hope. Do not even look to the works of your hands or to any supposed good works to be that mediator. No! It is in the Person of the LORD Jesus Christ. The LORD Jesus Christ is the Daysman  between God and men. He is the God-Man in the flesh. That is why He became man—so that He might lay His hand upon God the Father, satisfying His law and justice, and honor the law. He did not set aside the law—He came to fulfill it by His perfect obedience. And then, to lay down His life—that is the ransom—to pay all that God's law and justice required because of the sin debt of the people He came to save. The LORD Jesus honored the law and made reconciliation for sinful men, making peace with the Father. How? “Having made peace through the blood of his cross, by him to reconcile all things unto himself” (Colossians 1:20). Upon completion of His obedience unto death, God justified, once for all—everyone that the LORD Jesus Christ came to save. That would have included Job. Job died not having seen the promise fulfilled, but he died believing that his Redeemer would stand at the latter day upon the earth (Job 19:25). If Christ had only fulfilled all righteousness and returned to glory without dying, there would still be no salvation. He had to be the perfect Lamb—the perfect Sacrifice—and lay down His life for His people. As the God-Man, He has laid His hand upon those sinners the Father gave Him. Therefore, they are secure forever in His hand. If the LORD has taught you of Himself, your one confession is this: “ God is holy, and I am impure, a worm.” A worm is a lowly, despised thing. We hardly notice one on the ground, and if we do, we step on it or push it aside. That is how we are brought to see ourselves before a holy God. That was the purpose of Job’s affliction—that he might be stripped of anything outward that gave him the appearance of personal righteousness. He was brought to abhor himself. The LORD tenderly and mercifully deals with sinners such as Job to bring them to the end of themselves. That they might cry out for that Daysman , that Mediator. Christ is that Mediator Whom God Himself has appointed, Who can lay His hand upon God as God, and upon the sinner as man. And that is what Christ has done. Glory be to His name!

Galatians 4:30 "Nevertheless what saith the scripture? Cast out the bondwoman and her son: for the son of the bondwoman shall not be heir with the son of the freewoman." Under the Spirit’s direction, the apostle Paul uses the story of Abraham casting out Hagar as an allegory of the truth that law and grace cannot abide together (Genesis 21).   This passage powerfully affirms that salvation is not by the flesh, the law, or human effort—represented by Hagar and her son Ishmael—but solely by God's free and sovereign promise—typified in Sarah and her son Isaac. The bondwoman and her son symbolize all attempts at righteousness through the law (Galatians 4:24-25) , which must be “cast out,” for they cannot inherit the promises of God. As Paul writes elsewhere, “For if righteousness come by the law, then Christ is dead in vain” (Galatians 2:21).  The freewoman’s son, Isaac, represents those born according to God's promise—chosen, redeemed, and justified entirely by God's grace in Christ. Thus, Galatians 4:30 calls the believer to rest in the finished work of Christ, “not of works, lest any man should boast” (Ephesians 2:9),  and to reject all confidence in the flesh, rejoicing instead in God's sovereign grace in Christ alone. The Galatians had begun to become enthralled again with the law as a means of justification and sanctification under the preaching and teaching of some legalistic preachers, and the apostle drew a line of distinction between salvation by the free grace of God in Christ (typified by Sarah, the freewoman), and any who would attempt to join to it any work or obedience of their own (typified by Hagar, the bondwoman). Such a distinction is necessary in our day, as many who would consider themselves preachers of grace are nothing more than servants of legalism. Nevertheless, when God truly reveals Christ in a sinner’s heart, and teaches them the Gospel, like Abraham with Hagar, they will cast out, and refuse to dwell with any doctrine or former profession that gives credence to man’s will or works.  Many today profess to be Christians based on something that they did to receive Christ. They unashamedly boast of having accepted Christ by their “free will,” and consider that they are the Lord’s because of having made a decision and now doing their best to live true to that profession.  Nevertheless, all such talk of free will and works is nothing but the voice and dialect of the bondwoman of which Paul writes. The only true sons of God are those born of the free woman—those in whom God has placed His Spirit. They have been made to see that what they once called “free will” is, in truth, bondage to self, sin, and self-righteousness. Now, as sons of the free woman, they freely confess that their salvation is entirely due to the free-will offering of Christ on their behalf: “He that spared not his own Son, but delivered him up for us all, how shall he not with him also freely give us all things?” (Romans 8:32). They rejoice that God has justified them freely: “Being justified freely by his grace through the redemption that is in Christ Jesus” (Romans 3:24), and that He has granted them grace to live in the freedom of redemption, justification, and sanctification that Christ has purchased for them. As Scripture says, “Now we have received, not the spirit of the world, but the Spirit which is of God; that we might know the things that are freely given to us of God” (1 Corinthians 2:12). Let us then take to heart the sure word of Scripture: “Cast out the bondwoman and her son.”   As elect and redeemed sons of God, we are not children of the bondwoman, but of the free. All who are born from above—true sons of freedom—gladly yield themselves to Christ, not as slaves under law, but as sons in grace. We serve Him not to be accepted, but because we are accepted in the Beloved. We obey Him not in dread, but in delight, for His yoke is easy and His burden is light (Matthew 11:28-30). We rejoice in His Person, rest in His Word, and glory in His finished work. And all of this is not of ourselves, but springs from the fountain of God’s free and sovereign grace in Christ. May we ever live as those who are free indeed, for if the Son shall make you free, ye shall be free indeed (John 8:36).

Nehemiah 9:17 " And refused to obey, neither were mindful of thy wonders that thou didst among them; but hardened their necks, and in their rebellion appointed a captain to return to their bondage: but thou art a God ready to pardon, gracious and merciful, slow to anger, and of great kindness, and forsookest them not." If salvation were based on fairness, no one would be saved. What's fair, in terms of what we deserve, is that God would send each of us into eternal condemnation. In understanding the message of God's sovereignty and salvation, we see that God is a just God, but He's also a merciful God. If it were not for God's mercy, none of us would be saved. In Nehemiah 9:17, we have the prayer of the Levites in confession to God for the people, as God was pleased to do a work of grace among them and bring them back into the land and settle them back. They confessed their sin before God and the sin of their fathers. God, as He has revealed Himself in the scriptures, delights to show mercy and to pardon guilty sinners. He said to Moses, "I will have mercy on whom I will have mercy” (Expdus 33:19). He has not left us to guess about His character. David said of Him, "Thou, LORD art good and ready to forgive and plenteous in mercy unto all them that call upon Thee" (Psalm 86:5). His readiness to pardon is seen in His longsuffering toward that nation of Israel. God's dealings with national Israel were very typical of His dealings with His church, though we are no more deserving of mercy than they were. Yet, God in Christ Jesus has been pleased to choose, to justify, and to pardon His elect. Why? Not for anything in them, but for Christ's sake. " For all have sinned, and come short of the glory of God; Being justified freely by his grace through the redemption that is in Christ Jesus:" (Romans 3:24,25). First, He's a God ready to pardon in His eternal purpose. God is eternal, He is without beginning from all eternity, so all that takes place we know and understand from the scriptures that it was settled in the mind of God, in the purpose of God, from all eternity. There's no time with God with regard to His eternality, and certainly in talking about a God ready to pardon, this is where we need to begin. What took place in eternity? He's a God ready to pardon in His eternal purpose. "Unto me, who am less than the least of all saints, is this grace given, that I should preach among the Gentiles the unsearchable riches of Christ; And to make all men see what is the fellowship of the mystery, which from the beginning of the world hath been hid in God, who created all things by Jesus Christ: To the intent that now unto the principalities and powers in heavenly places might be known by the church the manifold wisdom of God, According to the eternal purpose which he purposed in Christ Jesus our LORD: In whom we have boldness and access with confidence by the faith of him" (Ephesians 3:8-12). Second, God is a God ready to pardon in His gracious provision in the working out of salvation. It's not just that in all eternity He purposed to save sinners. The truth of Scripture is that in time He has accomplished the salvation of those that He purposed to save. He didn't just purpose to save sinners and say, "well now, I hope that they'll do what's necessary to be saved." If that were the case then no one would be saved. None of us could ever even think of doing what is necessary. It requires providing a perfect righteousness before God. But God is the One Who has accomplished this. He's ready to pardon in His gracious provision of all that's necessary for sinners such as we are to be saved and be pardoned. " But when the fulness of the time was come, God sent forth his Son, made of a woman, made under the law, To redeem them that were under the law, that we might receive the adoption of sons" (Galatians 4:4,5). Third, in that He has satisfied His justice by propitiation. The word “propitiation” means an appeasement. It means to satisfy the justice and holiness of God. And so we see that God is a God ready to pardon in the LORD Jesus Christ by that satisfaction that He provided for His people to God the Father. In Hebrews 2:16-18, we read, " For verily he took not on him the nature of angels; but he took on him the seed of Abraham. Wherefore in all things it behoved him to be made like unto his brethren, that he might be a merciful and faithful high priest in things pertaining to God, to make reconciliation for the sins of the people. For in that he himself hath suffered being tempted, he is able to succour them that are tempted." God is ready to pardon through that satisfaction that the LORD Jesus Christ has obtained for His people. Fourth, we see that He's a God ready to pardon in the preaching of the Gospel. Not many people want to hear it. Why? Because it gives God all the glory, and because sinners do not want to admit to what they are. They are sinners, depraved, condemnable before God, and yet man still thinks that somehow his salvation has something to do with what he does or doesn’t do as a sinner. No, it has everything to do with God and what God has purposed to do in Christ. Paul said in 1 Corinthians 1:17-20, " For Christ sent me not to baptize, but to preach the gospel: not with wisdom of words, lest the cross of Christ should be made of none effect. For the preaching of the cross is to them that perish foolishness; but unto us which are saved it is the power of God. For it is written, I will destroy the wisdom of the wise, and will bring to nothing the understanding of the prudent. Where is the wise? where is the scribe? where is the disputer of this world? hath not God made foolish the wisdom of this world?" Nehemiah 9:17 reminds us of God’s enduring mercy and faithfulness, even in the face of our sin, rebellion and forgetfulness. Though as elected sinners we have hardened our hearts and turned away, God has not nor ever will abandon any that He has chosen, and for whom the LORD Jesus Christ came to pay their sin debt. Instead, He remains “a God ready to forgive, gracious and merciful, slow to anger and abounding in steadfast love.” This verse directs us to reflect on the constancy of God’s character — a powerful encouragement to continue to look to Him with confidence, knowing that His grace is greater than all our sins. “Moreover the law entered, that the offence might abound. But where sin abounded, grace did much more abound: that as sin hath reigned unto death, even so might grace reign through righteousness unto eternal life by Jesus Christ our LORD,” Romans 5:20,21.

Romans 6:3,4 "Know ye not, that so many of us as were baptized into Jesus Christ were baptized into his death? Therefore we are buried with him by baptism into death: that like as Christ was raised up from the dead by the glory of the Father, even so we also should walk in newness of life." Many people interpret this portion of Scripture as referring to water baptism. While it is true that water baptism is a confession of Faith and symbolizes the death, burial, and resurrection of the LORD Jesus Christ, that is not what Paul is describing here. Water baptism cannot purify or remove sin—but the baptism of Christ does. These verses do not refer to His baptism in water; rather, they point to His death. The LORD Jesus Himself referred to His death as a baptism of fire that He would endure, and the word baptism  means “an immersion.” So complete was Christ’s work in His obedience unto death, that His baptism with fire was the full endurance of the wrath of God. This fire signifies the justice of God. It is not that the Father hated His Son in any way—for He loved Him unto the end—but Christ willingly bore the wrath that was due unto the people He came to save. Thus, He was entirely immersed in that fire, consumed as The Sacrifice. Even as in the Old Testament, the burnt offering was wholly consumed upon the altar, and the smoke ascended as a sweet savour unto God, so Christ gave Himself wholly in sacrifice. It is written: "And walk in love, as Christ also hath loved us, and hath given himself for us an offering and a sacrifice to God for a sweet smelling savour" (Ephesians 5:2) . "Know ye not?" —This is a truth not commonly known by all, but the apostle writes to those who have been regenerated by the Spirit of God, taught of Christ, and have seen in Him their full and perfect justification before God through His death, burial, and resurrection. In Romans 4:25  and 5:1, these truths are closely connected: “ Who was delivered for our offences, and was raised again for our justification. Therefore, being justified, by faith we have peace with God through our Lord Jesus Christ.”  He was delivered up on account of our offenses—that is, the sins of those sinners that the Father had given Him—and was raised again because of our justification. The word “for” in that verse signifies “because of,” not “to.” Thus, His resurrection did not accomplish the act of justifying, but was the declaration that justification was already accomplished, finished, when He offered Himself once for all. There is that knowledge that the Spirit of God gives to those for whom Christ paid the debt, and that the Father gave Him from all eternity. He says, "that so many of us as were baptized into Jesus Christ were baptized into His death?" The way that's written, it's not talking about individual water baptism, and it's also speaking in the past tense as if those who were baptized were all baptized at one time, in one place, and one Person, because it says we're "baptized into Jesus Christ." But how? We were baptized (immersed) into His death. Christ and Him crucified. When He died, they were altogether buried with Him in the waters of the death of His sacrifice. So in Christ we live by Grace according to the work of the LORD Jesus Christ, and what He has accomplished. When it speaks there in verse 3 of having been baptized into Jesus Christ and baptized into His death, it's talking about His death; that just as when He died, He was plunged into that death. He died. That means that that judgment was rendered for everyone for whom He died. So if He died for me, when He died, I died. "Therefore, we are buried with Him by baptism into death." That's not talking about water baptism. It's a one-time burial. It's not a continual burying, but it says here, "by baptism into death: that like as: Christ was raised up from the dead."  There's the clear connection that this baptism here is not speaking of water baptism, but the baptism of His death, "like as Christ was raised up from the dead by the glory of the Father." " Even so we also should walk in newness of life" (Romans 6:4). To walk in newness of life does not mean that, now that Christ has paid our debt and the Spirit of God has revealed Him in us, we shall never again struggle with sin. Rather, it means walking in the power and reality of that new life which Christ has accomplished on behalf of sinners such as we are. It is not the presumption that the sinful flesh is entirely eradicated, but the recognition that we are no longer under the dominion of the old man (Adam). To walk in this newness is to never trust in the flesh, never return to the law to establish some personal righteousness of our own, but to reckon ourselves “ dead indeed unto sin, but alive unto God through Jesus Christ our Lord” (Romans 6:11). It means that, by the Spirit of God, our hearts and eyes are fixed only upon Christ, in Whom our life is hid and by Whom we live.