Friday, July 27, 2007

Unbelievers Can't Chose Christ or Make Him Lord

Quoting Obadiah Sedgwick . . .
True faith takes Christ and Him only to be it's Lord. Many will come to Christ and have a feast, but few come to Christ to bear His scepter. Some would come under the safety of His blood, but disdain the authority and dominion of His sword; they like Christ the priest, but not Christ the Lord. I will briefly show you two things - unbelievers will not accept Christ to be their Lord only, because their heart has another Lord. He is our Lord to whom we give service, and we His servants who obey Him. Let the commands of profit or pleasure versus Christ come into competition and you shall see that the unbelieving heart will go after it's lord; it will not hearken to Christ, for it prefers sin before Him. The unbelieving heart will easily adventure Christ's displeasure to fulfill it's own lusts. Again, the unbelieving heart cannot chose Christ; it cannot like him for a Lord.
Why? Because the dominion of Christ is holy and heavenly; it is directly opposite to the solid principles and affections, and ways of an unbelieving heart. Secondly, every believer admits to Christ as being their Lord as Thomas said, "My Lord, and my God" (John 20:28) - and so (1) Faith sets up the scepter of Christ, and sweetly frames the soul to a willing subjection, (2) Again faith takes the whole Christ, and therefore Christ is the only King and Lord to faith, (3) Again, faith knows that the whole person is Christ's purchase, His blood has bought us, and so passed us into the entire dominion of Christ: "ye are bought with a price; ye are not your own," said the apostle, 1 Corinthians 6:19-20.
Now then try yourself in this: who is your Lord? If by faith you have sworn fidelity to Christ, then though all temptations beset you, to captivate you, or to alienate your heart from the service of Christ, yet amidst all oppressions, yes, under all the knocks and buffetings, and interruptions by sin, the heart cries out, I acknowledge no Lord but Christ; him I would obey; Him I honor, I love; His I am, and yet hate those sins which yet I cannot conquer.
From:
The Humbled Sinner, year 1656 (Day By Day w/Puritans)

1 comment:

Shannon said...

Lord help us all to have this great devotion unto You!