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©FOUNDATION
A MAGAZINE OF BIBLICAL FUNDAMENTALISM
Dennis W. Costella, Editor; Karel Beyer, Production Manager; Matt
Costella,
Copy Editor
M.H. Reynolds, Jr. (1919-1997), Founding Editor
The Blood of Jesus
by The Rev. William Reid, M.A.
"Having therefore, brethren, boldness to enter into the
holiest by the blood of Jesus," Hebrews 10:19
[This is a reprint of a book
published by James Nisbet & Co., London, England, in 1866. Liberty Bell
Press no longer prints this book and has granted permission to the FEA for
reprinting. This resource is available in a booklet from the FEA. Click
here to order].
©FOUNDATION Magazine, July-August 1998
Contents
Preface
Chapter 1: Forgiveness Of Sins Through The Blood Of Jesus
Chapter 2: How Our Sins Are Taken Away By The Blood Of Jesus
Chapter 3: The Blood Of Jesus, Not Conviction Of Sin, The Foundation
Of Our Peace And Joy
Chapter 4: A Letter About The Love Of Jesus
Chapter 5: Salvation Through The Blood Of Jesus, The Gift Of God
Chapter 6: The Blood Of Jesus Our Only Ground Of Peace With God
Chapter 7: Regeneration Through The Blood Of Jesus
Chapter 8: Faith In The Blood Of Jesus Essential To Salvation
<= you are here
Chapter 9: The Blood Of Jesus The
Believer’s Life And Peace
Chapter 10: Faith In The Blood Of Jesus The Spring Of
Holiness
Chapter 11: The Blood Of Jesus The Essence Of The Gospel
Chapter 12: The Holy Spirit’s Testimony To The Blood Of Jesus
Chapter 8
Faith In The Blood Of Jesus Essential To Salvation
Topics In This Chapter:
- Faith The Saving Link
- The Evil Of Mistaking The Meaning Of Faith
- Faith Is Being Satisfied With Christ
IT IS OUR BELIEF of
God's testimony concerning His own grace and Christ's work that brings us into possession
of the blessings concerning which that testimony speaks. Our reception of God's testimony
is confidence in God himself, and in Christ Jesus His Son; for where the testimony comes
from a person or regards a person, belief of the testimony and confidence in the person
are things inseparable. Hence it is that Scripture sometimes speaks of confidence or trust
as saving us, (see the Psalms everywhere, such as 8:5, 52:8 ; also 1 Tim. 4:10, Eph.
1:12), as if it would say to the sinner, "Such is the gracious character of God, that
you have only to put your case into His hands, however bad it be - only to trust him for
eternal life - and he will assuredly not put you to shame." Hence, also, it is
that we are said to be saved by the knowledge of God or of Christ; that is, by
simply knowing God as He has made Himself known to us, (Isa. 5:3, 11; 1 Tim. 2:4; 2 Pet.
2:20); for "this is life eternal, that they might know Thee the only true God,
and Jesus Christ, whom Thou hast sent," (John 17:2). And as if to make simplicity
more simple, the apostle, in speaking of the facts of Christ's death and burial and
resurrection says, "By which also ye are saved, if ye keep in memory what I
preached unto you," (1 Cor. 15:1, 2).
God would have us understand that the way in which we
become connected with Christ so as to get eternal life, is by, "knowing
Him," or "hearing" Him - "trusting" Him. The testimony
is inseparably linked to the person testified of ; and our connexion with the testimony,
by belief of it, thus links us to the person. Thus it is that faith forms the bond between
us and the Son of God, not because of anything in itself, but solely because it is
only through the medium of truth known and believed that the soul can take any hold of God
or of Christ. Faith is nothing, save as it lays hold of Christ, and it does
so by laying hold of the truth concerning him. "By grace are ye saved THROUGH
FAITH; and that not of yourselves; it is the gift of God," (Eph. 2:8).
Faith then, is the link, the one link between the sinner
and Gods gift of pardon and life. It is not faith, and something else along with it; it is
faith alone; faith that takes God at His word, and gives Him credit for speaking the
honest truth when making known His message of grace - His "record " of eternal
life concerning "the Lamb of God, that taketh away the sin of the world," (John
1:29).
If you object that you cannot believe, then this
indicates that you are proceeding quite in a wrong direction. You are still laboring under
the idea that this believing is a work to be done by you, and not the
acknowledgment of a work done by another. You would fain do something in order to
get peace, and you think that if you could only do this great thing, 'believing' - if you
could but perform this great act called faith - God would at once reward you by giving you
peace. Thus faith is reckoned by you to be the price in the sinner's
hand by which he buys peace, and not the mere holding out of the hand to get a peace which
has already been bought by another. So long as you are attaching any meritorious
importance to faith, however unconsciously, you are moving in a wrong direction - a
direction from which no peace can come. Surely faith is not a work. On the
contrary, it is a ceasing from work. It is not a climbing of the mountain, but a ceasing
to attempt it, and allowing Christ to carry you up in His own arms. You seem to think that
it is your own act of faith that is to save you, and not the object of your faith,
without which your own act, however well performed, is nothing. Accordingly, you bethink
yourself, and say, 'What a mighty work is this believing - what an effort does it require
on my part - how am I to perform it?' Herein you sadly err, and your mistake lies chiefly
here, in supposing that your peace is to come from the proper performance on your part of
an act of faith, whereas it is to come entirely from the proper perception of Him to whom
the Father is pointing your eye, and in regard to whom He is saying, "Behold my
servant whom I have chosen, look at Him, forget everything else - everything about
yourself, your own faith, your own repentance, your own feelings -and look at HIM!"
It is in Him, and not in your poor act of faith, that salvation lies, and out of Him, not
out of your own act of faith, is peace to come.
Thus mistaking the meaning of faith, and the way in which
faith saves you, you get into confusion, and mistake everything else connected with your
peace. You mistake the real nature of that very inability to believe of which you complain
so sadly. For that inability does not lie, as you fancy it does, in the impossibility of
your performing aright this great act of faith, but of ceasing from all such
self-righteous attempts to perform any act, or do any work whatsoever, in order to your
being saved. So that the real truth is, that you have not yet seen such a sufficiency in
the one great work of the Son of God upon the cross, as to lead you utterly to discontinue
your mistaken aimless efforts to work out something of your own. As soon as the Holy
Spirit shews you have this entire sufficiency of the great propitiation, you cease at once
from these attempts to act or work something of your own, and take, instead
of this, what Christ has done. One great part of the Spirit's work is, not to enable the
man to do something which will help to save him, but so to detach him from his own
performances, that he shall be content with the salvation which Christ finished when He
died and rose again.
But perhaps you may object further, that you are
not satisfied with your faith. No, truly, nor are you ever likely to be. If you
wait for this before you take peace, you will wait till life is done. The Bible does not
say, ‘Being satisfied about our faith, we have peace with God;’ it simply says, 'Being
justified by faith, we have peace with God,’ (Rom. 5:1). Not satisfaction with
your own faith, but satisfaction with Jesus and His work - this is what God presses on
you. You say, ‘I am satisfied with Christ.’ Are you? What more, then, do you
wish? Is not satisfaction with Christ enough for you, or for any sinner? Nay, and is not
this the truest kind of faith? To be satisfied with Christ, that is faith in
Christ. To be satisfied with His blood, that is faith in His blood. What more could
you have? Can your faith give you something which Christ cannot? or will Christ give you
nothing till you can produce faith of a certain kind and quality, whose excellences will
entitle you to blessing? Do not bewilder yourself. Do not suppose that your faith is a
price, or a bribe, or a merit. Is not the very essence of real faith just your being
satisfied with Christ? Are you really satisfied with Him, and with what He has done? Then
do not puzzle yourself about your faith, but go upon your way rejoicing, having thus been
brought to be satisfied with Him, whom to know is peace, and life, and salvation.
You are not satisfied with your faith, you say. I am glad
that you are not. Had you been so, you would have been far out of the way indeed. Does
Scripture anywhere speak of your getting peace by your becoming satisfied with your faith?
Nay, does it not take for granted that you will, to the very last, be dissatisfied with
yourself, with your faith, with all about you and within you, and satisfied with Jesus
only? Are you then satisfied with Him? Then go in peace. For if satisfaction with Him will
not give you peace, nothing else that either heaven or earth contain will ever give
you peace. Though your faith should become so perfect that you were entirely satisfied
with it, that would not pacify your conscience or relieve your fears. Faith, however
perfect, has of itself nothing to give you, either of pardon or of life. Its finger points
you to Jesus. Its voice bids you look straight to Him. Its object is to turn away from
itself and from yourself altogether, that you may behold Him, and in beholding Him be
satisfied with Him; and, in being satisfied with Him have 'joy and
peace."("Words for the Inquiring," by Horatius Bonar, D.D.)
Faith is not what we FEEL or see,
It is a simple TRUST
In what the GOD of Love has said
Of JESUS, as the 'Just.'
What JESUS is, and that alone,
Is faith's delightful plea;
It never deals with SINFUL self
Nor RIGHTEOUS self, IN ME.
It tells me I am counted 'DEAD'
By GOD, in His own Word;
It tells me I am ‘BORN AGAIN’
In CHRIST, my RISEN LORD.
If He is free, then I am free,
From all unrighteousness
If He is just, then I am just,
HE is MY righteousness.
Continue With: Chapter 7: Regeneration Through The
Blood Of Jesus
Back to: Chapter 9: The Blood Of Jesus The Believer’s Life And
Peace
Return to: Table of Contents
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