REFLECTIONS ON JEREMIAH 23:6 PT4

Can you think of some of the sweetest music you have ever heard? Oh, the feelings of delight and peace that fill your heart. Kinda makes you want to here it over and again doesn't it. What about that prettiest of colors or most pleasant of tastes and scents? How beautiful and enjoyable;how relaxing.

Yet, if we rolled all of these experiences into one, I wonder how it would compare to the delight God the Father experiences when He considers His Son..." Behold!My Servant whom I uphold, My Elect One in whom my soul delights! Is. 42:1

"This is My beloved Son, in whom I am well pleased" Matt 3:17

In Him, God the Father has that One who whould love Him with all of His heart, with all His soul, and with all His strength.

In His Son alone the Father has One Who would "live by every word that proceeds from the mouth of the LORD".

So now II Cor 5:21 comes to mind. First, God the Father unleashes His awesome fury on His sinless Son, causing Him to pay the penalty for my sins. Now, after being washed in the cleansing Blood of Jesus, I have the righteousness of Christ put to my account. My sins were put to His account, and He was subsequently punished for them; Then His righteousness-that righteous life He led from the manger to the cross-was put to my account.

Oh, the wisdom of God!

"But now the righteousness of God---is revealed---even the righteousness of God, through faith in Jesus Christ, to all and on all who believe" Rom. 3:21-22

Loving God with all of ones being and obeying every word that comes from His mouth-Wow! I'm incapable of that. Unfortunatley, it's not my nature. What I can't do HE HAS DONE. I, a 265 pound power-lifter, need a Hero. Without Him I have no hope. I can't please the Father even with my best efforts. But, our triune God has come with THE answer, a Saving answer. No wonder when the people shouted Hosanna! as they were praising God, they were actually saying "Oh, Save!". God is praised and worshipped when I come to Him in utter need and call out for His salvation.

I am as helpless as that thief nailed to a cross next to Jesus. In his emptiness and helplessness he merely asked Jesus to remember him. He had no hope of redeeming himself. He was in agony on a cross only hours away from death.

Salvation came to that man that very day.

I think of the righteous life of my Hero, my Saviour, Jesus Christ.

At age twelve, he asked his searching parents: "Why did you seek Me? Did you not know that I must be about My Father's business?".

Loving God with all of His Being. Living by every Word of God's mouth. THat was His life. At one point He told His disciples: "My food is to do the will of Him who sent Me, and to finish His work". Another time He said, "for I always do those things that please Him".

Sinless. Perfect. Obedient. Full submission.

Jesus wanted to submit to and obey His Father with every beat of His heart.

Gethsemane awaited.

In that garden Jesus cried out "Abba Father---not My will, but Thine be done".

Jesus knew the sufferings that were just hours away. He knew that shortly the Father was going to look away from Him as He hung on the cross as a sinbearer. Yet He cries out in child-like obedience and trust in His Father when He says, "Abba". "Father, not my will, but Yours be done".

Complete abandonment and submission to His Father.

Hours later, having completed His sin-bearing mission, He declares: "It is finished". At that, every righteous obedient act of His life was ready to be put into my account.

Now it was possible for me to become "the righteousness of God in Him". Now when the Father looks at me, He no longer "imputes my trespasses" to me. Now I am clothed in Christ's righteousness-His righteousness having been put to my account.

What a plan of Salvation!

Now this is His name by which He will be called:THE LORD OUT RIGHTEOUSNESS.