Christ Precious to All True Believers
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"Unto
you therefore who believe, He is precious!" 1 Peter 2:7
Yes!
blessed be God; though a great part of the creation sees nothing
desirable in Jesus Christ; though fallen spirits, both upon earth and
in hell, neglect him or profess themselves open enemies to him—yet
he is precious! He is precious not only in himself, not only to his
Father, not only to the choirs of heaven, who behold his full glory
without a veil—but precious to some even in our guilty world;
precious to some of our sinful race, who make no great show in mortal
eyes; who are lowly, unworthy creatures, in their own view; and who
are generally despicable in the view of others. I mean he is precious
to all true believers! And though they are but few comparatively in
our world; though there are, I am afraid—but few of them among
us; yet, blessed be God, there are some believers even upon our
guilty globe; and I doubt not but I am now speaking to some such.
My
believing brethren, (if I may venture to claim kindred with you,) I
am now entering upon a design, which I know you have much at heart:
and that is, to make the blessed Jesus more precious to you, and if
possible, to recommend him to the affections of the crowd who
neglects him. You know, alas! you love him but little; but very
little, compared to his infinite excellency and your obligations to
him; and you know that multitudes love him not at all. Whatever
they profess, their practice shows
that their carnal minds are enmity against him. This you often see,
and the sight affects your hearts.
It deeply affects you to
think that his great excellency should be
neglected and despised, and his great love meet
with such base returns of ingratitude. And you cannot but pity your
poor fellow sinners, that they are so blind to the
brightest glory and their own highest interest, and that they would
perish, through wilful neglect of their deliverer; perish, as it
were, within reach of the hand stretched out to save them! This is
indeed a very affecting, very lamentable, and alas! a very common
sight!
And will you not then bid me God-speed this day in my
attempt to recommend this precious, though neglected, Jesus? Will you
not contribute your share towards my success in so pious and
benevolent a design, by your earnest prayers? Now, shall not the
interceding sigh rise to heaven from every heart, and
every soul be cast into a praying posture? I shall hope to discharge
my duty with more comfort and advantage, if you afford me this
assistance. And surely such of you cannot deny me this aid, who
desire that Jesus may become still more precious to your own hearts,
and that he may be the object of universal love from all the sons of
men, who are now rebellious to him. To you that believe—he is
precious! Who? Is it Mammon, the god of the world? Is
it pleasure, or honour? No! None of these is
the darling of the believing heart. But it is he who is the uppermost
in every pious heart; he, who is first in the thoughts and
affections; he whom every friend of his must know, even without a
name; if it be but said of him, "He is precious!" this is
enough to distinguish him from all others. "If it is him the
apostle means," may every believer say, "who is most
precious to my soul, then I can easily point him out, though without
a name. It must be Jesus, for oh! it is he who is most
precious to me!"
The connection also of the text directs
us to the same person. It is he the apostle means, whom he had just
described as a living stone, chosen of God, and precious; the chief
corner-stone, the great foundation of the church, that spiritual
temple of God, so stately and glorious, and reaching from earth to
heaven. It is this precious stone, this heavenly jewel, who is
precious to believers.
"To you that believe—he is
precious!" That is, he is highly valued by you. You esteem him
one of infinite worth, and he has the highest place in your
affections. He is dearer to your hearts than all other people and
things. The word requires a still stronger translation: "To you
that believe, he is preciousness!" Preciousness
in the abstract; all preciousness, and nothing but preciousness; a
precious stone without one blemish. Or it may be translated with a
little variation, "To you that believe, he is honour." It
confers the highest honour upon you to be related to him; and you
esteem it your highest honour to sustain that relation. Though Jesus
and his cross are names of reproach in the unbelieving world, you
glory in them, and they reflect a real glory upon you. Or, "To
you that believe, there is honour." Honour is now conferred upon
you in your being built as living stones in the temple of God upon
this precious foundation; and honour is reserved for you in heaven,
where the crown of righteousness awaits you.
"To you
which believe, he is precious!" That is to say, the value of
this precious stone is, alas! unknown to the crowd. It is so far from
being precious, that it is a stone of stumbling, and a rock of
offence; a stone rejected by men, (v. 4) rejected even by the
builders, (v. 7) but you believers, you happy few, have another
estimate of it. Faith enables you to see the
glories of the blessed Jesus; and, when you know him through this
medium—you cannot but love him. The blind world neglects the
Lord of glory, because they know him not: but you believers know him,
and therefore to you he is precious. Faith presents him to your view
in a just light, and directs you to form a proper estimate of him. It
is truly lamentable that such real excellency should be despised; but
so it will be with the world until they believe.
The mere
speculative recommendation of their reason,
religious education, and the best human means, are not
sufficient to render Jesus precious to them. Nothing but saving faith
can effect this. "To you therefore who believe—he is
precious!"
The grammar shows this passage is
an inference from what went before; and the
reasoning seems to be this: "This stone is precious to God,
therefore it is precious to you that believe. You have the same
estimate of Jesus Christ which God the Father has; and for that very
reason he is precious to you, because he is precious to him."
That this is the connection, will appear, if you look back to the 4th
and 6th verses; where you find Jesus described as "a chief
corner-stone, laid in Zion, elect or chosen, and precious; rejected,
indeed, by men—but chosen by God, and precious."
Men
wickedly reject this stone, and even many of the professed builders
of his church reject him. This, says the apostle, must be granted.
But this is no objection to his real worth. He is precious to God,
who knows him best, and who is a perfect judge of real excellency;
and for that very reason he is precious to you that believe. Faith
teaches you to look upon people and things in the same light—in
which God views them; it makes your sentiments conformed to his.
Christ is the Father's beloved son—in whom he is well pleased;
and he is your beloved Saviour—in whom you are well pleased. Is
it any wonder that Jesus should be precious to believers, when he is
so precious in himself, and in his offices,
so precious to the angelic hosts, and so precious to his
Father?
1. He is precious in HIMSELF.
He is Immanuel, God-man; and consequently, whatever excellencies
belong either to the divine or human nature, centre in him. If
wisdom, power, and goodness, divine or human, created or uncreated,
can render him worthy of the highest affection—he has a just
claim to it. Whatever excellencies, natural or moral, appear in any
part of the vast universe, they are but faint shadows of his beauty
and glory. All things were created by him, and for him: and he is
before all things, and by him all things are held together; Col.
1:16, 17. And whatever excellencies are in the effect—must
be eminently in the cause.
You do not wonder nor
censure, when you see men delighted with the glories of the sun, and
the various luminaries of the sky; you do not wonder nor blame when
they take pleasure in the beautiful prospects of nature, or in that
rich variety of good things, which earth, and sea, and every element
furnishes for the support of man, or the gratification of his senses;
you do not wonder and blame, when they are struck with moral beauty,
when you see them admire and approve wisdom, benevolence, justice,
veracity, meekness, and mercy; you never think it strange, much less
censurable, that men should love these things, and count them
precious. And can you be astonished, can you ridicule or find
fault—that Jesus is precious to poor believers? If the copy is
so fair and lovely, who would not love the original—who
has eyes to behold it?
Believers see so much of the worth of
Christ as is sufficient to captivate their hearts, and to convince
them of their guilt in loving him no more; and the clearer their
views are of him—the more they are mortified at the criminal
defects of their love; for oh, they see he deserves infinitely
more!
2. The Lord Jesus is precious in
his OFFICES. His mediatorial office is
generally subdivided into three parts, namely, that of a Prophet, of
a Priest, and of a King: and how precious is Christ in each of
these!
As a PROPHET, how sweet are
his instructions to a bewildered soul! How
precious the words of his lips, which are the words of eternal life!
How delightful to sit and hear him teach the way of duty and
happiness, revealing the Father, and the wonders of the invisible
state! How transporting to hear him declare upon what terms an
offended God may be reconciled! a discovery beyond the searches of
all the sages and philosophers of the heathen world! How reviving is
it to listen to his gracious promises and invitations! Promises and
invitations to the poor, the weary, and heavy-laden, to the
broken-hearted, and even to the chief of sinners!
The word of
Christ has been the treasure, the support, and the joy of believers
in all ages. "I have esteemed the words of his mouth," says
Job, "more than my necessary food!" Job 23:12. It is this
precious Word which the Psalmist so often and so highly celebrates.
He celebrates it as "more to be desired than gold; yes, than
much fine gold; sweeter also than honey, and the honey-comb,"
Psalm 19:10. "Oh how I love your law!" says he, "it is
my meditation all the day," Psalm 119:97. "How sweet are
your words unto my taste! yes sweeter than honey to my mouth,"
verse 103. "The law of your mouth is better unto me than
thousands of gold and silver," verse 72. "Behold, I have
longed after your precepts," verse 40. "Your statutes have
been my songs in the house of my pilgrimage," verse 54. "In
my affliction, your Word has quickened me," verse 50. "Unless
your law had been my delight—I would then have perished in my
affliction," verse 92. This is the language of David, in honour
of this divine Prophet, nearly three thousand years ago, when Christ
had not revealed the full gospel to the world—but only
some rays of it shone through the veil of
the Mosaic dispensation. And must not believers now, who live under
the more complete and clear instructions of the great Prophet,
entertain the same sentiments of him? Yes, to such of you as believe,
even in this age, he is most precious.
But this external
objective instruction is not all that Christ as a Prophet
communicates; and, indeed, did he do no more than this—it would
answer no valuable end. The mind of man, in his present fallen state,
like a disordered eye, is incapable of perceiving divine things in a
proper light, however clearly they are revealed; and therefore, until
the perceiving faculty is rectified, all external revelation is
in vain, and is only like opening a fair prospect to a blind eye!
Hence this great Prophet carries his instruction further, not only by
proposing divine things in a clear objective light by his Word—but
inwardly enlightening the mind, and enabling it to perceive what is
revealed by his Spirit. And how precious are these internal
subjective instructions! How sweet to feel a disordered,
dark mind opening to admit the shinings of heavenly day; to perceive
the glory of God in the face of Jesus Christ, the beauties of
holiness, and the majestic wonders of the eternal world!
Speak,
you who know by happy experience, and tell how precious Jesus appears
to you, when, by his own blessed Spirit, he scatters the cloud that
benighted your understandings, and lets in the rays of his glory upon
your admiring souls; when he opens your eyes to see the wonders
contained in his law, and the glorious mysteries of his gospel. What
a divine glory does then spread upon every page of the sacred volume!
Then it indeed appears the book of God, God-like, and worthy its
Author!
Oh, precious Jesus! let us all this day feel your
enlightening influences, that experience may teach us how sweet they
are! Come, great Prophet! come, and make your own Spirit our teacher,
and then shall we be divinely wise.
Again, the Lord Jesus is
precious to believers as a great High Priest. As a High PRIEST,
he made complete atonement for sin by his
propitiatory sacrifice on the cross; and he still
makes intercession for the transgressors on his
throne in heaven.
It was his SACRIFICE, which satisfied the
demands of the law and justice of God, and rendered him reconcilable
to the guilty, upon terms consistent with his honor and the rights of
his government. It was by virtue of this sacrifice, that he procured
pardon for sin, the favour of God, freedom from hell, and eternal
life for condemned, obnoxious rebels! And such of you, who have ever
felt the pangs of a guilty conscience, and obtained relief from Jesus
Christ—can tell how precious is his atoning sacrifice! How did
it ease your self-tormenting consciences, and heal your broken
hearts! How did it change the frowns of an angry
God—into smiles of love, and your trembling
apprehensions of vengeance into delightful hopes of mercy!
How
precious did Jesus appear, with a pardon in his hand, with atoning
blood gushing from his opened veins, and making his CROSS, as it
were, the key to open the gates of heaven for your
admission! Blessed Saviour! our great High Priest! thus appear to us
with all your robes, dyed in your own blood, and cause us all to feel
the efficacy of your atoning sacrifice!
Let us next turn our
eyes upwards, and view this great High Priest, as our INTERCESSOR in
the presence of God. There he appears as a lamb that was slain,
bearing the memorials of his sacrifice, and putting the Father in
remembrance of the blessings purchased for his people. There he urges
it as his pleasure, as his authoritative will, that these blessings
should in due time be conferred upon those for whom they were
purchased. In this authoritative manner he could intercede even in
the days of his humiliation upon earth, because of the Father's
covenant engagements with him, the accomplishment of which he has a
right to demand, as well as humbly to petition: "Father, I
will—I will, that those who whom you have given me—be
with me where I am; that they may behold my glory!" John
17:24.
Now, how precious must Christ appear in the character
of Intercessor! That the friendless sinner should have an
all-prevailing advocate in the court of heaven to undertake his
cause! That the great High Priest should offer up the grateful
incense of his own merit, with the prayers of the saints! That he
should add the sanction of his authoritative will to the humble
petition of faith! That he should urge the claims of his people, as
his own claims, founded upon an unchangeable covenant with his
Father, of which he has fully performed the conditions required! That
he should not intercede occasionally—but always appear
in the holy of holies as the constant ever-living Intercessor, and
maintain the same interest, the same importunity at all times, even
when the petitions of his people languish upon their lips!
What
delightful reflections are these! And how warmly may they recommend
the Lord Jesus to the hearts of believers! How just is the apostle's
inference, "Since we have a great priest over the house of God,
let us draw near to God with a sincere heart in full assurance of
faith, having our hearts sprinkled to cleanse us from a guilty
conscience and having our bodies washed with pure water. Let us hold
unswervingly to the hope we profess." Hebrews 10:21-23. "He
is able to save to the uttermost, all who come unto God by him;"
for this reason—because "he ever lives to make
intercession for them." Hebrews 7:25. May each of us entrust his
cause to this all-prevailing Advocate, and we shall certainly gain
it! The unchangeable promise has passed his lips, "that whatever
we ask the Father in his name, he will give it to us." John
16:23.
Let me add, the KINGLY office
of Christ is precious to believers. As King he gives laws; laws
perfectly wise and good, and enforced with the most important
sanctions, everlasting rewards and punishments. And how delightful,
how advantageous, to live under such a government! to have our duty
revealed with so much clearness and certainty which frees us from so
many painful anxieties, and to have such powerful motives to
obedience, which have a tendency to infuse vigor and spirit into our
endeavours!
As King, he appoints ordinances of worship. And
how sweet to converse with him in these ordinances, and to be freed
from perplexity about that manner of worship which God will accept,
without being exposed to that question, so confounding to
worshippers, Who has required this at your hands?
As
King, he is head over all things to his church, and manages the whole
creation, as is most subservient to her good. The various ranks of
creatures in heaven, earth and hell, are subject to his direction and
control; and they must all co-operate for the good of his people. He
reclaims, confounds, subdues, or destroys their enemies, according to
his pleasure.
And how precious must he be in this sublime
character to the feeble helpless believer! To have an almighty
friend sitting at the helm of the universe, with the
supreme management of all things in his hands; to be assured that
even the most injurious enemy can do the believer no real or lasting
injury—but shall at length concur to work his greatest good;
and that, come what will, it shall go well with him, and he shall at
last be made triumphant over all difficulty and opposition! Oh! what
transporting considerations are here!
But this is not the
whole exercise of the royal power of Christ. He not only makes
laws and ordinances, and restrains the enemies of
his people—but he exercises his power inwardly upon their
hearts! He is the King of souls; he reigns in the hearts of his
subjects; and how infinitely dear and precious is he in this view! To
feel him subdue the rebellion within, sweetly
bending the stubborn heart into willing obedience, and reducing every
thought into a cheerful captivity to himself, writing his law upon
the heart, making the dispositions of his subjects a transcript of
his will, corresponding to it, like wax to the seal, how delightful
is all this! Oh the pleasures of humble submission! How pleasant to
lie as subjects at the feet of this mediatorial King without
arrogating the sovereignty to ourselves, for which we are utterly
insufficient!
Blessed Jesus! thus reign in
our hearts thus! Rule us, and subdue the rebel in our hearts!
Thus
you see the Lord Jesus is precious to believers in all the views of
his mediatorial office. But he is not precious to them alone: he is
beloved as far as known, and the more known the more beloved: which
leads me to add,
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