Part 86 HOLINESS, the Only Way to Happiness
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Part 87 HOLINESS, the Only Way to Happiness
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(3.) Thirdly, To provoke you to labor after higher degrees of holiness, consider that the more holy you are—the more you will be the delight of God, and the more dear you will be to God, and the more beloved you will be by God. For the right understanding of this argument you must carefully distinguish between God's love of goodwill, and his love of delight.
God's love of GOODWILL is equal to all his saints, whether they are rich or poor, high or low, bond or free; or whether they have a sea of grace—or but a drop of grace. God's love of goodwill runs as much out to the weakest Christian, as it does to the strongest; as much to a babe in grace as to a giant in grace.
All saints are equally ELECTED. God never chose one man to be a vessel of glory more than another; the weakest saint is as much elected as the strongest, Romans 11:17.
And as all saints are equally elected—just so, all saints are equally REDEEMED by Jesus Christ. Christ bled as much for one saint as another, and he sweat as much for one saint as another, and he sighed and groaned as much for one saint as another, and he trod the wine-press of his Father's wrath as much for one saint as another, Isaiah 53:3-12. Christ paid as great a price for his lambs—as for his sheep, 1 Cor. 6:19-20. Christ paid as great a price for Lazarus in his rags—as for David in his royal robes.
And as all saints are equally redeemed—just so, all saints are equally EFFECTUALLY CALLED; one saint is as much called out of the kingdom of darkness as another, and one saint is as much called to Jesus Christ as another, 1 Pet. 2:9. In effectual calling, God looks with as favorable an eye upon one as he does upon another.
And as all saints are equally called—just so, all saints are equally JUSTIFIED, 2 Cor. 5:19-20; though one saint may be more sanctified than another—yet no saint is more justifiedthan another. The weakest believer is as much justified and pardoned before the throne of God as the strongest is; that pure, perfect, matchless, and spotless righteousness of Christ is as much imputed to one saint as it is to another, 1 Cor. 1:30.
And as all saints are equally justified—just so, all saints are equally ADOPTED, Gal. 4:4-6; the weakest believer is as much an adopted son of God, as the strongest believer in the world is. God is no more a father to one than he is to another. In human families, the babe in the mother's arms is as much a son—as he who is of riper years. Thus you see that God's love of goodwill is equal in all his saints. "Those He predestined, He also called; and those He called, He also justified; and those He justified, He also glorified." Romans 8:30.
But God's love of DELIGHT runs out more to some saints than it does to others; for those who have much holiness are much beloved—but those who have most holiness are most beloved, John 14:21-23. The greater you are in holiness, the greater will you be beloved of God. "O Daniel, you are greatly beloved," Dan. 9:23. And why does God love more, anddelight more in Christ, than he does in all the angels and saints in heaven, and in all the upright ones who are on earth? Because Christ is more eminent and glorious in holiness than all created beings are; he is more the express image of his Father's person, and the brightness of his Father's glory than others, and therefore he is more beloved than others.
It was an excellent observation of one of the fathers, namely, that God loved the humanity of Christ more than any man, because he was fuller of grace and truth than any man. Now for the further clearing up of this great argument, Consider—
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Part 87 HOLINESS, the Only Way to Happiness
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