The Lutheran Pioneer St. Louis — 1904, Page 58

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58 The Lutheran Pioneer.

it is not by good feelings, it is not by shouting and
jumping and screaming that man is saved, but by
trusting in the work of the Saviour. ‘‘The blood
of Jesus Christ cleanseth us from all sin.’? Just
trust it! The moment you trust it you are cleansed
from all sin and are made a child of God and an

heir of heaven.
—- ———_+ e-

Paid For.

A poor old woman, bowed with age and infirm-
ity, and almost crippled with rheumatism, was
helped into a seat in a car by the conductor. The
car soon filled and started on its way. In a few
minutes the man came in with his customary, “Fares,
please,” and collected the fares.’ But before he
reached the old lady, a kind old gentleman, who
was an Officer of the road and need not pay for him-
self, handed a fare to the collector, saying, ‘“That
is for the old lady opposite.?’ As the collector
passed her by, he said, ‘‘You are already paid for.”

No doubts troubled the poor, needy woman.
Freely as the gift was offered she with a simple
‘‘Thank you’’ accepted the payment made for her.

So the sinner must thankfully accept the pay-
ment made for him by the Saviour. Christ, the
Lord of all, who owed nothing for Himself, paid
for us all that we owed, with His own precious blood.
Payment has been made for all sinners. Those who
reject this payment are thrown into the prison of
hell and must remain there until they pay the last
farthing, which they can never do. But those who
thankfully accept the payment made for them by
Christ enjoy the freedom from all debts.

To my dear Surety’s hand
Will I commit my cause;
He answers and fulfills
His Father’s broken laws.
Behold my soul at freedom set.
My Saviour paid for me the debt.

————————__+2-o______—_

Strange.

There are unbelievers who say that the reason
why they do not become Christians is that there are
hypocrites in the church. How strange! Suppose
there are hypocrites in the church, what of it?
‘Hypocrites won’t be in heaven, but in hell when
the judgment is concluded. And if man refuses
~ Christ, no matter what may be his reason, he will be
in hell) and then he and the hypocrites will be to-
gether. He that refuses to become a Christian on
account of the hypocrites says in effect: ‘“‘Rather
_ than be a Christian.and member of the church in

which there are some hypocrites with whom I must
live in outward fellowship for a few years, I will
reject Christ, lose my own soul, and live with the
hypocrites in hell forever.’’ Strange, very strange!

Ne

Wherewith Christ Redeemed Us.

We speak of Jesus Christ as our ‘‘Redeemer’’
and say that He has ‘‘redeemed”’ us. These words
imply a ‘‘buying,’’ and therefore our Catechism
says that Christ has purchased us from sin, death,
and the power of the devil. But the word ‘‘redeem”’
means even more than “‘buying,” it implies a ‘‘buy-
ing back.’? Sin is a slavery, sinners are the bonds-
men of Satan and death. From this manifold slayery
Christ the Redeemer has redeemed the sinner. Jesus
paid an all-sufficient ransom, and thus delivered us
from the dreadful tyrant sway of sin, death, and
the devil. The apostle says, ‘‘Ye are bought with
a price.’

What was the price Christ paid for our liberty,
what ransom did. He give for oursouls? Christ did
not redeem us with corruptible, perishable things,
such as silver and gold (1 Pet. 1, 18. 19). Gold
and silver have great value, we speak of them as
precious metals, and when properly used much good
may be done with them; but they are not precious
enough to buy human souls. All the gold and sil-
ver in the world would not be sufficient to free one
human soul from sin, death, and the devil.
and silver are perishable, but the punishment of
sin is eternal. Because of sin we were doomed to
everlasting slavery; no corruptible, no perishable,
no finite ransom could therefore deliver us. The
ransom for our souls must be infinite.

Nor gold nor gems could buy our peace:
Nor the whole world’s collected store
Suffice to purchase our release;

A thousand worlds were all too poor.

Wherewith did Christ, then, redeem us? With
His holy, precious blood and with His innocent
suffering and death (1 Pet. 1, 18. 19. Is. 53, 4. 5).
While all that Christ did and suffered for us, His
whole active and passive obedience, served to bring
about our redemption, there is nothing that so much
shows the enormity of the price which the redemp-
tion of our souls cost as does the shedding of the
precious blood of Christ, as a Lamb without blemish
and without spot.

But was it absolutely necessary that blood should

‘flow and that the Lord give His life for our redemp-

tion? Could not the merciful and gracious God for-
give sin without that? No, for God is holy and

Gold ©