Secondly, the Christ who exposed man’s unrighteousness to the uttermost also bore all the unrighteousness He had exposed. He firstly exposed man’s unrighteousness and then He bore it on the cross. This is like housecleaning. If you do not clean, you may not see the dust hidden under the furniture. In cleaning a room the dust is firstly exposed. Then it is swept into the dustpan. Likewise, on the day of the Passover, the Lord Jesus firstly exposed all the “dust,” all of man’s unrighteousness. Then He cleaned up the “dust” He had exposed. Oh, the very presence of the Lord Jesus exposed every particle of hidden “dust” in the whole universe. Eventually, the Lord Jesus Christ Himself became the “dustpan,” and all the “dust” was collected upon Him. During the first three hours He was on the cross, the time of man’s dealing with Him, all the sins, all the unrighteousness, all the universal “dust,” were put on Him. As He hung there on the cross, He was the universal “dustpan” into which all the “dust” in the universe had been gathered. Thus, after all man’s unrighteousness had been exposed, it was borne by Christ on the cross. This made everything ready for the righteous God to come in to judge the unrighteous ones and all their unrighteousness.
Without the black, the white could not be clearly manifest. Because all the “dust,” all man’s unrighteousness, was put on the cross, the stage was prepared for God’s righteousness to be revealed. If there had not been so much unrighteousness, it would not have been possible for so much righteousness to be manifested. The complete unrighteousness of mankind was heaped upon the Lord on the cross so that God’s righteousness could be manifested. The righteous God came in to exercise His righteousness by judging all this unrighteousness. This is the reason that through Christ man’s unrighteousness eventually turned into God’s righteousness. By this we have been saved.
Christ was the turning point. Man’s unrighteousness turned into God’s righteousness through Christ. Firstly, Christ exposed man’s unrighteousness, and then for judgment by God’s righteousness He bore upon Himself all of man’s unrighteousness that He had exposed. Today are you still in man’s unrighteousness, or are you now under God’s righteousness? Hallelujah, we, the saved ones, are under God’s righteousness!
This matter of righteousness is a crucial aspect of the truth of the gospel. This is very basic, for it is our ground and basis for being saved. Our salvation rests upon the solid rock of God’s righteousness. Romans 1:16 and 17 say, “For I am not ashamed of the gospel; for it is the power of God unto salvation to every one who believes, both to Jew first and to Greek. For the righteousness of God is revealed in it out of faith to faith.” Because of God’s righteousness, the gospel is powerful to save everyone who believes in the Lord Jesus. The gospel of Christ is so powerful not because of God’s love nor because of God’s grace, but because of God’s righteousness.
Legally speaking, both love and grace can fluctuate, but righteousness, especially God’s righteousness, cannot. Madame Guyon once said that even if God wanted to change His mind regarding her salvation, He could not do it because He had already judged her on the cross. Through Christ our substitute, we have already been judged according to righteousness on the cross. Therefore, God must save us. God is a just God. Because He has already righteously dealt with us judicially, He is now obligated to save us. We can boldly say to Him, “God, I do not speak now of Your love or of Your grace, but of Your righteousness. I appeal to You regarding Your righteousness. According to Your righteousness, You must save me. If You do not save me, it means that You are unrighteous.” If we say this to God, He will reply, “I surely must save you.”
Nothing binds God as much as His righteousness. Psalm 89:14 says, “Righteousness and justice are the foundation of thy throne” (A.S.V.). If God’s righteousness could be taken away, His throne would be cast down. We can say, “Praise the Lord! Even if God wants to change His mind, He cannot do it because He is a just God!” How meaningful this is!