It Turns Our Weak Perfomances into Spiritual Sacrifices
Monday, October 25, 2010 at 11:55AM I’ve been thinking lately about the practical implications of the doctrine of the imputation of the righteousness of Christ to the believer. I may even write something about it—a list, perhaps.
I know a few people who are indifferent to the doctrine. They think it might be true, but they don’t know what difference it makes, really. Their sins are forgiven and that’s enough for them.
My standard reponse has been that when it comes time for them to die, it might matter to them. I know it mattered to my husband and I know it mattered to J. Gresham Machen. The closer we get to death, the clearer we see own lives and ugly niggling doubt can seep in. There is great comfort in the airtight double wrap of Christ’s death and his righteousness both counted as our own—his death bearing the penalty our sins deserved and his righteousness providing a record of perfect obedience that we cannot provide for ourselves. Understanding that God sees us as he sees Christ dissolves fear in the face of death.
But the imputation of Christ’s righteousness also matters in our lives right now, too. Here’s a quote from Consolations from Christ’s Imputed Righteousness by Thomas Brooks that shows one way it matters:
Now remember that this imputed righteousness of Christ procures acceptance for our inherent righteousness. When a sincere Christian casts his eye upon the weaknesses, infirmities, and imperfections that daily attend his best services, he sighs and mourns. But if he looks upward to the imputed righteousness of Jesus Christ, [it] shall bring forth his infirm, weak, and sinful performances perfect, spotless, and sinless, and approved according to the tenor of the Gospel. They become spiritual sacrifices, [and] he cannot but rejoice (1Pe 2:5). For as there is an imputation of righteousness to the persons of believers, so there is also an imputation to their services and actions…so the imperfect good works that are done by believers are accounted righteousness….
It turns our sighing and mourning over the imperfections of our best service to God into rejoicing because our imperfect service becomes righteous service in God’s eyes based on the imputation of Christ’s righteousness to us. Rather than becoming discouraged over the deficiencies in our good works for God we become encouraged by their acceptableness to God, who sees them through the lens of Christ’s work.
It might make you more motivated in service, mightn’t it?
And while we’re on the subject, do you find that understanding the imputation Christ’s righteousness has practical results in your life? How so?
I may use what you say on my list, so be forewarned.
Reader Comments (8)
It enables me to accept a costly call and know that the perfection of the call is in how Christ works in me to will all of His good work and none of mine. My obedience is required but it is His glory to shine through my weakest attempts. Otherwise, I could not even stand to say one word of teaching or instruction. Knowing that He has finished all, emboldens me to do any.
Oh, I LIKE Brooks' explanation of how imputation of righteousness applies to our actions as well as to our person!
Practical results of imputed righteousness in my life? Oh, what a great sigh of relief and joy! To think that for all the condemnation this world throws at us (and we sometimes throw at ourselves), there is a righteousness and a cleanness that Christ provides for us. The Father sees us as Clean. Already Clean. Even though we must yet walk out our days here, struggling with sin that desires to overpower us. We stand clean before the throne!
If I don't have the imputed righteousness of Christ, then I am by default, relying on my own righteousness. My own righteousness, in addition to being as filthy rags before Him, is about ME and not about Him. Having Christ's righteousness ensures that any righteousness that is in me, is entirely HIs in the end.
Without imputation, I would be struggling to maintain my standing before God based on my own works, which are doomed from the start. But because Christ's righteousness has been imputed to me, God's just demand for perfection is satisfied once and for all. I have hope because God looks at the perfect work of His Son and not me. (I blogged about this topic yesterday as well.)
I do like Brooks' application of imputation to our service unto God. Very encouraging.
Are you kidding? Imputation is everything! Without it, I must depend on my own righteousness, which — it might surprise you to learn — is somewhat inadequate. Take imputation out of the gospel, and, faith or no faith, I’m going to hell.
Dear Rebecca and readers,
I've read the post and parts of a link and I guess that reading too much must scare me or maybe I want to be one of God's Right hand little man you might say and then again, maybe there's more reasons that I'm not aware of yet why I chose not to read the Bible at this time.
I've learned in prayer that Our Heavenly Father has always LOVED U>S (usual sinners) and He has never even once thought of abandoning U>S ever. When Adam was perfect and before I continue I must and should make "IT" clear that these are my thoughts and if other people also think the same things, well, let us say that "IT" is just by coincidence. :)
Anyway to try and make a long story short God said to Adam,
Son, I love you very much and when you're ready to come home please just take that Narrow Gate which you can see over there but before ABBA could finish telling him that he could come back later to join his friends again, Adam interrupts and says...Butt dad, I like "IT" here so can't I stay until I get tired and then go through "IT?"
Don't you want to see my face SON? inquired his father?
I can hear Your Voice Dad and that's good enough for me right NOW! OK Hey Dad?
Alright Son, I've got work to do so please promise me that you won't touch of that tree over there, you can eat of any other trees in this your garden but please again sware that you won't eat of that tree which is glowing as we speak until after you go through that Narrow Gate which will lead you to a hall where my prophets will guide you home and then all knowledge of good and evil will be made clear to you my Son.
Gee Dad! "Don't worry about "IT", I promise, so can I go and play with my friends NOW? Please? Pretty Please!
OK Son! You go and play and remember that I love you son with all my heart and then his father's voice was silent and we can see one of his friends winking at Adam.
To make another long story short, Our Heavenly Father saw "IT" (the wink) and when Adam got tired, His Father got concerned about some of His Brother's toys that had been given to His Son and He could sense a little jealousy forming among then thinking that Adam was eventually going to leave them and "IT" became obvious to God that there would be a little hurting until His Son got through the Narrow Gate and made "IT" back to paradise so His Father put His Son in a Heavenly Sleep and took that extra rib and made Adam his own paradise playmate. She was very beautiful and of course Dad was also very pleased and because she was so pretty Adam took to her as his own and immeadiately fell in love with her and said thank you dad to which his father replied, Don't Mansion "IT" Son.
NOW to make another very very long story short, in a dark little corner there stood some of Adam's best and smartest friends thinking to Adam's Beautiful Conscience and this is some of what they thought to Eve which might have went something like this;
With a friendly smile "IT" said, Eve trust me, you are my friend and that's why I keep you so close and if you eat of that so called Adam's Apple, Adam and His Dad will be very proud of you ect....ect......and so she hate.
As Eve tasted the fruit of knowledge of good and evil, you could see this so called friend turning into a snake in the grass and HIs Father's Voice saying get into The Narrow Gate prophets and friends of my Children cause my dear love ones are going to need all the help they can get and for 6000 years sins make slaves of their conscience and they will need to follow their sins and be their slaves but I'll send My ONLY BEGOTTEN SON when sins ask for my help and after 4000 of God's Years, they asked for help and God told His Son that "IT" was all UP to HIM and made short that they would be "KINDER" to HIM and then time is seen moving at a warp speed and countless prophets running through The Narrow Gate and then "IT" turns to a blood red and stops at 4000 years of God The Father's Time.
To be continued as usual in The Bible but believing "IT" or not "IT" is an entirely different story for each and every one of God's Children and if you don't believe me, just ask their DNA! :)
God Bless Peace
Well, well…Thank you Rebecca for encouraging such a lively study on this subject this morning at my house! Yes, the doctrine of imputation most definitely produces practical results in my life! Robert and I been sorting out Brook’s thoughts here where he says:
“there is also an imputation to their services and actions…so the imperfect good works that are done by believers are accounted righteousness….”
We know that imputation is a judical process in both the Old and New testaments (ie. 1. Imputation of Adam’s sin to man; 2. Imputation of man’s sin to Christ and 3rd: Imputation of Christ’s righteousness to us) –logizomai (to reckon, take into account) is used in all NT accounts except for Romans 5:13 which uses ellogao (koine for “charging to one’s account”) So, having said that, we have to ask if imputation can become practical in the way that Brookes states – and if so, how?
When one considers the order of the process of salvation (ordo salutis) would imputation, being the judicial act of reckoning by imparting Christ’s righteousness to us, ALSO morph into the ACTUAL process of sanctification in a literal sense thus turning our feeble works into righteous ones? Or might it be better to express that because we know that our righteousness was judicially imputed to us we are now encouraged and can find consolation through the realization that we are clothed in His righteousness and are indeed accepted in the Beloved?
One reason for the wrangling out of the terminology for me here comes from passages such I Cor 3:13. Believer’s do have works of wood, hay, stubble that are not imputed with righteousness and those works will burn. Even when we have works that won’t burn and we are doing “the best” as you so well pointed out, those works will always be tainted by the remaining sin that indwells us. This suggests to me that it that it is the power of the Holy Spirit working in us through the process of regeneration and sanctification that makes our works pleasing to Him. Might we possibly define the difference between a work that will burn and work that will receive a reward as being the difference between walking in the Spirit or not? Just a thought.
I believe the doctrine of imputation of Christ’s righteousness to the believer lies at the heart of redemption therefore, understanding it as much as we are able does translate into practical living and consolation.
Hope my thoughts aren’t clear as mud -
God bless you Rebecca.
Thanks for your comment, Diane. I'm thinking about it and hope to respond later.