The citizen., 1920-03-18


act .ron some future age. nor from
wrath TO come; Tut from "this present
evil age" This corrects the current
notion that salvation has altogether
To do with the future. As often said.
salvation has three lenses the past,
present ana future. Past sins are for
given through the Lord Jesus Christ
and assurance given that the believer
shall he saved from wrath through
him"
But salvation does not stop with
these Two great facts Of the past and
future life Of the believer; Il also has
10 do with his present life.
The text tells us that Christ pur-
posed In giving himself for our sins to
deliver US from this present evil age;
so, fot 'he believer In the Lord Jesus
Christ here Is present salvation, which
was wrought out for him by Christ on
the cross.
Reekoned Dead to Sin.
In another eplstle the writer Of this
one tells - that when Christ was cru
Gifted upon the cross. our old man
that II. our corrupt human nature
was cruritied with Christ. THIS cru
clfixion with Christ. Paul says. Is true
Of all believers In Gods reckoning and
the BELIEVERS dellverance from this
present evil age Is for him TO reckon
himself as God does. Likewise" In
the same way. he says. reckon ye also
yourselves 10 be dead indeed unto sin"
Romans CAD. Dellverance Is not
gained by denying the existence Of ths
old nature IN the believer. but by rec
ognlzing the fact OF the old nature
and then dealing with II as God asks
us TO. by reckoning II dead.
Reekoned Alive to God.
But the apostle goes further. He
says that we should reckon ourselves
not only TO be dead indeed unto sin.
"but alive unto God through Jesus
/ Christ our Lord" This IL the second
step In present deliverance.
Again we see that In the reckoning
Of God we were in Christ when he
arose from the dead. This does not
mean that like our Lord we are now
actually ON the resurrection side OF
the grave. II means that God counts
us as II we were there and that now
we are TO reckon ourselves there
through Jesus Christ our Lord.
Well may II be asked: How can
this reckoning be donef The answer
Is: by faith" Reckoning these things
true Is an act OF faith.
Yield to God.
The third step In present deliverance
might be called a double one; yield
not" yield TO" (Romans 6:13). The
believer Is not TO yield TO sin. This
shows that. unlike his Lord. the he
lIever is not without sin In him: the
old corrupt nature can give way TO sin,
II the believer allows II; therefore. he
is not TO yield TO the lust Of the flesh.
but rather TO yield himself TO God.
The motive power for godly living Is
not the energy OF the flesh but the pow
er OF tie Spirit. How necessary. then.
that the believer be filed with the
Spirit
Again the question arises, how shall
this bef And Paul answers: ''The
life which I now live In the flesh
live by the faith OF the Son OF God"
In other words he says that as he
Yields TO Christ-ana yielding. remem-
ber, Is faith. not effort; II is trusting.
not trying-Christ lives his own life
In him.
Thus Il is. that Christ saves us from
this present evil age, making II possi-
Bile for us TO count ourselves dead
unto sin. but alive unto God. and TO
yield ourselves 10 God as those that
are alive from the dead that Christ
may live In and through Us his own
blessed life.