We have already seen that Christ is both God and man and that He is both the Redeemer and the Savior. Christ is both God and man to be our Redeemer and our Savior. For Christ to be our Savior, He must be our life and resurrection. Therefore, we now come to the third message—Christ being life and resurrection. We should not only hear the truth but also see the light. Light is revelation, not doctrine.
Christ is not only our Redeemer but also our Savior. If we know these two aspects of what Christ is, when we speak of Christ being our Savior or our saving Lord, we will not have a superficial and narrow understanding. His saving includes redemption and salvation. Redemption is an outward saving through the efficacy of the Lord’s precious blood; salvation is an inward saving by the operation of the Lord as the Spirit of life. According to God’s righteous law, a fallen man is a condemned criminal who is doomed to death and perdition. He is destined to go first to Hades and then to the lake of fire for eternal punishment. Such a criminal needs a Substitute who can pay the ransom for him and satisfy God’s righteous requirement.
The Lord Jesus was God who became flesh, putting on a body of flesh and blood to become a man. He died for us with a genuine body, and He shed real human blood for us on the cross. The blood He shed was genuine human blood which can redeem sinners. This blood fully paid the ransom for us. Therefore, according to the procedure of His righteous law, God could proclaim forgiveness. In this way we were redeemed, and God forgave us. This is an outward matter.
The outward redemption first includes the redemption for sins; second, the forgiveness of sins; third, the washing of sins; fourth, justification; and fifth, reconciliation. This is God’s complete redemption. Christ died and shed His blood to fully pay the ransom for us and make redemption for our sins. Based on Christ’s redemption, God could declare that there is forgiveness of sin; thus, our sins were forgiven. Then following the forgiveness of sins is the washing of sins. Forgiveness is to do away with the punishment for sins, whereas washing is to obliterate the traces of sins. We have received redemption for our sins and our sins have been washed away; therefore, we have no problem before God. Thus, God has justified us, and we have been reconciled to God with a complete change toward Him. This is God’s full redemptive work.
However, as fallen human beings, we not only have an outward position that is condemned before God, but we also have a sinful nature within. The salvation of the Lord Jesus is complete; it deals not only with our outward problem but also with our inward problem. This is because a fallen man is not only a criminal with a record of sins before God but also a sinner with the sinful nature within him. Since the nature of Satan has entered into us, we need to be saved from our sinful nature. However, God carries out His salvation not outwardly by exercising His mighty arm but inwardly by coming into us.
The inward salvation first includes regeneration; second, sanctification; third, transformation; fourth, conformation; and fifth, glorification. The outward redemption is by the efficacy of the blood, whereas the inward salvation is through the operation of the Spirit. Once we believe in the Lord, we receive outward redemption. As long as we believe with our heart and confess with our mouth the name of the Lord, we receive redemption for sins, forgiveness of sins, washing of sins, justification, and reconciliation. Immediately we obtain God’s complete redemption, which is outward. However, to obtain God’s full salvation inwardly is both a daily and lifelong matter.
From the time of our regeneration when Christ came into us to be our life, He has been sanctifying us within every day. Just as tea leaves “tea-ify” water into tea-water, so Christ is “Christ-ifying” us every day to make us Christ-men. This is the work of sanctification. When Christ sanctifies us within continually, we are being transformed and at the same time we are being conformed to His likeness. Eventually, we will be glorified. This is the procedure of the growth in life. Today Christ is sanctifying, transforming, and conforming us continually until we see Him in our glorification.