Fulton County tribune. (Wauseon, Ohio) 1883-1925, 1920-02-27

Aol IfOm some future age, nor IrOIn
wrath to come; but 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 and future. Past sins are for
given through the Lord Jesus Christ,
and assurance given that the believer
"shall be saved from wrath through
him."
But salvation does not stop with
these two great facts of the past and
future life of the believer; it also has
to 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, for the believer in the Lord Jesus
Christ there is present salvation, which
was wrought out for him by Christ on
the cross.
Reckoned Dead to Sin.
In another epistle the writer of this
one tells is that when Christ was cru
CITED upon the cross, our old man
that is, our corrupt human nature
was crucified with Christ. This cru
cifixion with Christ, Paul says, is true
of all believers in Gods reckoning and
he makes it clear that the first step in
the believers deliverance 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 to be dead indeed unto sim
(Romans GID. Deliverance is moi
gained by denying the existence of the
old nature in the believer, but by rec
ognizing the fact of the old nature
and then dealing with it as God asks
US to, by reckoning it dead.
Reckoned Alive to God.
But the apostle goes further. HI
says that we should reckon ourselves
not only to be dead indeed unto sin
''but alive unto God through Jesu.
Christ our Lord" This is the second
l step in present deliverance.
Again we see that in the reckonins
9 of God we were in Christ when b,
i arose from the dead. This does no
mean that like our Lord we are nov
/
the grave. It means that God count
: us as if we were there and that nov
we are to reckon ourselves ther
through Jesus Christ our Lord.
/ Well may it be asked eHow cal
this reckoning be done?" The answe
. is: by faith" Reckoning these thing
L true is an act of faith.
Yield to God.
), The third step in present deliveranc
i. might be called double one: "Yiel
+ not" "Yield to- (Romans 6:13). Th
l. believer is not to yield to sin. Thi
e shows that, unlike his Lord, the b,
lever is not without sin in him; th
n old corrupt nature can give way to sil
g if the believer allows it; therefore,
n is not to yield to the lust of the f1esl
IF but rather to yield himself to Go,
e The motive power for godly living
not the energy of the flesh but the pov
Il er of the Spirit. How necessary. thel
: that the believer be filed with th
a Spirit!
n Again the question arises, how sha
a. this be? And Paul answers: ''Tf
v life which I now live in the flesh
d live by the faith of the Son of God
n In other words he says that as
10 yields to Christ-and yielding, remer
= ber is faith, not effort: it is trustin
20 not trying-Christ lives his own Iii
\. In him.
1s Thus it is, that Christ saves US fro
"a this present evil age, making it poss
BILE for us to count ourselves des
- unto sin, but alive unto God, and
: yield ourselves to God as those tn
- are alive from the dead that Chri
- may live in and through US his ov
ST blessed life.