Salvation delivers Christians from the dictates and practices of the old sinful nature, which cannot please God. Writing to born again Christians in Rome, the Apostle Paul puts it this way, “For the mind that is set on the flesh is hostile to God, for it does not submit to God’s law; indeed, it cannot. Those who are in the flesh cannot please God. You, however, are not in the flesh but in the Spirit, if in fact the Spirit dwells in you” (Romans 8:7-9). Therefore, no Christian has anything to fear or doubt, neither can anyone condemn us because “I have been crucified with Christ. It is no longer I who live, but Christ who lives in me. And the life I now live in the flesh, I live by faith in the Son of God , who loved me and gave Himself for me” (Galatians 2:20).
Paul reveals God’s eternal and unfailing results of our salvation, which is the indestructible foundation on which the believer’s faith rests. In Romans 8:34, we read, “Who is he that condemns? It is Christ that died, yea rather, that is risen again, who is even at the right hand of God, who also makes intercession for us.” Here we have stipulated four tenets of the Christian faith that will enable us to “grow in grace and in the knowledge of the Lord.”
Firstly, Christ died. “Christ died for our sins in accordance with the Scriptures, [and] that He was buried” (1 Corinthians 15:3,4). The death of the Lord Jesus Christ cannot be taken lightly or for granted. His death was absolutely essential because of human sin, which first entered the world through God’s first created being. And that was the result of disobedience. The Scriptures tell us “Just as sin came into the world through one man so death spread to all men because all sinned” (Romans 5:12).
Sin is repugnant to God. The Bible says He is of “purer eyes than to see evil and cannot look at wrong” (Habakkuk 1:13). This means that God cannot look with divine favor on sin. Bearing in mind God’s holiness and righteousness, He must act to bring about man’s deliverance from his sinful predicament. Therefore, God provided Jesus who “bore our sins in his body on the [cross], that we might die to sin and live to righteousness. By his wounds you have been healed.For you were straying like sheep”(1 Peter 2:24,25). Jesus died “so that in Him we might become the righteousness of God” (1 Corinthians 5:21).
Secondly, Christ is risen again. In speaking of the temple of His body, Jesus said; “Destroy this temple and in three days I will raise it up” (John 2:19). He came forth from death having conquered sin, death and the grave. Paul highlighted the importance of Christ’s resurrection to the Christian faith when he wrote. “If Christ had not been raised, your faith is futile and you are still in your sins” (1 Corinthians 15:17). Also, our faith would be entirely lacking in power and witness. “But in fact Christ has been raised from the dead” (1 Corinthians 15:20).
Thirdly, Christ is at the right hand of God. After His resurrection, Christ subsequently ascended to heaven to be seated at God’s right hand. Hebrews 4:12 states, “But when Christ had offered for all time a single sacrifice for sins, He sat down at the right hand of God,” strongly indicating that the work of redemption was complete with nothing omitted. The work that was required to save our souls is once and forever done. The righteousness that clothed the unrighteous is finished. “It is finished” was Jesus’ own words from the cross (John 19:20). The right hand of God is a position of dignity, power, and authority. Remember what He said, “All authority in heaven and on earth has been given to me” (Matthew 2818).
Fourthly, Christ makes intercession for us. Christsits at the Father’s right hand and “always lives to make intercession for us” (Romans 8:34). The word “intercession” means to intervene on behalf of another.” And for the christian it includes prayer and petition in favor of the Christian. Jesus, as our High Priest, perfectly represents us before God, and He is in a unique position to do this. The Bible explicitly declares, “For it was indeed fitting that we should have such a High Priest, holy, innocent, unstained, separated from sinners, and exalted above the heavens” (Hebrews 7:25).
In conclusion, we see that Christ was crucified for us. And He rose from the dead for us. He is presently seated in God’s presence for us. And now He is representing us before His Father. May our endeavor be to “Let the word of Christ dwell in us richly” (Colossians 3:16).