MAN'S POSSIBILITIES IN CHRIST.
By H. Scott
“He sat before me for a golden hour
And gave me counsel and encouragement,
Till, like broad gates, the possibilities
Of a serener and higher life
Were thrown wide open to my eager feet.”
He who chooses to sit a learner at the feet of Jesus, is certain to receive wonderful revelations. As he is led along the path of truth by his great Teacher, he will find it all radiant with light. Every by-path of thought will take on interest and importance. Text after text will be illuminated by that Spirit which “searcheth all things, yea, the deep things of God,” and he will find himself in a veritable wonderland of truth. Principle after principle is exhumed. Order takes the place of chaos in his mind. Wonderful harmony and beauty is seen. There is nothing irksome about his study under such a teacher, and, spiritually, the Word becomes his meat and drink. Truth without a personal application of it to the life, is of little value. No one knows this so well as the great Teacher, and his pupils will invariably apply the principles he reveals to their own lives. As applied they become search-lights that reveal a condition of heart from which they shrink as from a deadly foe. The thoughts and intents of the heart are clearly discerned. Heb. 4:12. As never before, the truth is forced home, that “the heart is deceitful above all things, and desperately wicked.” Jer. 17:9. They see, as if by the light of the noonday sun, that in them dwelleth no good thing (Rom. 7:18), and therefore for them to do good is as impossible as for the Ethiopian to change his skin, or the leopard his spots (Jer. 13:23). Yet, thanks to that loving Teacher, they are not overcome with(133)discouragement. The still small voice speaks courage and hope as some other text reveals the forgiving love of the Father. The door of escape appears. 1 Cor. 10:13. Jesus, the way, the truth, and the life (John 14:6), says, “Come unto me, all ye that labor and are heavy laden, and I will give you rest” (Matt. 11:28). What a wonderful assurance is this!—so opportune. Such a comprehensive provision will certainly meet the case, and the case of every individual, no matter how discouraging it may be. Rest from sin is what all need, and in Christ it is possible. Let the sinner exercise faith in him; and the condemnation will pass away, for he will then be “in Christ Jesus.” Rom. 8:1. “The law of the spirit of life in Christ Jesus hath made me free from the law of sin and death.” Rom. 8:2. Whereas he was dead in trespasses and sins (Eph. 2:1), he now lives unto God (Rom. 6:10). Every text he now reads has a new meaning. There is a height, a depth, a length and a breadth to it that is indeed life to him. John 6:63. How exactly does Gal. 2:20 describe such an experience. What possibilities must open up before the one who has had the above experience! He sees in Him whom he has taken as his portion “hid all the treasures of wisdom and knowledge.” A feeling like that expressed by David (Ps. 42:1) springs up within him, and he longs to be filled with his fulness. But how can these things be? This is the great question. I think a few texts will answer the question, and furnish food for a great deal of thought along this line. In Christ dwells all the fulness of the Godhead bodily. Col. 2:9. Paul, writing to the Corinthians, assures us that Christ is the power of God and the wisdom of God, and that he is made of God unto us wisdom, and righteousness, and sanctification, and redemption. 1 Cor. 1:24, 30. God has given us Christ (Rom. 8:32), and in the greater gift includes all minor ones (1 Cor. 3:21–23). To receive these blessings and rightly use them will glorify God. 2 Cor. 4:15. It is the will of God that all who accept Christ shall be conformed to his image. Rom. 8:29. This will require a transformation of the mind (Rom. 12:2), but this, God has provided for in Christ (Eze. 36:26; Col. 3:10). The Saviour sums it all up in these words, “Ye must be born again.” John 3:7. Let all accept the wonderful possibilities there are in Christ for them, have him formed within, the hope of glory (Col. 1:27), that they may at last sit down with him in his throne (Rev. 3:21), even as he has overcome and is now set on the right hand of the throne of the Majesty in the heavens (Heb. 8:1).