April 14

Who can bring a clean thing out of an unclean? Not one.

Job 14:4.

God demands perfect fulfilment of His Law. Leviticus 19:2 He says: "Ye shall be holy; for I, the Lord, your God, am holy." And Matthew 5:48: "Be ye therefore perfect, even as your Father which is in heaven is perfect." Can we, then, keep God's commandments as He would have us keep them? Can we keep them perfectly? If we consider that God demands a perfect obedience of the whole Law every minute of our lives, no one will be so blind as

to think he can obey the Law in such a manner, and be justified before God because of such obedience.

Does not Scripture say that all have gone aside and are all together become filthy? We read Ecclesiastes 7:20: "There is not a just man upon earth, that doeth good and sinneth not." And Isaiah 64:6: "We are all as an unclean thing, and all our righteousnesses are as filthy rags."

No; since the Fall natural man cannot keep the Law of God at all. And yet the Law was given to man to be obeyed, and obeyed it must be, or we are eternally lost. We cannot obey it, and therefore we are lost! Is there no way of escaping this doom? There is. There is one God and one Mediator between God and men, the Man Christ Jesus, who is the Way, the Truth, and the Life, and no man cometh unto the Father but by Him. Having fully obeyed the entire Law for us, He, Christ, is the end of the Law for righteousness to every one that believeth. The regenerate can keep the Law, yet only imperfectly. Even they must daily pray: "And forgive us our trespasses." Even the true Christians must confess with Paul: "Not as though I had already attained, either were already perfect; but I follow after."

The moralist, indeed, before his eyes are opened, imagines himself to be righteous. But sooner or later he must see his nakedness before God, because he cannot fulfil the Law's demands.

Prayer.

We pray Thee, Thou God of mercy and grace, reward us not according to our iniquities, but cleanse our hearts and consciences by Thy Word that we may serve Thee in sorrow and in joy and render unto Thee thanks, honor, and praise in time and eternity. Be kind, comforting, gracious, and merciful toward us for the sake of Thy dear Son, Jesus Christ, who was made under the Law to fulfil it in our stead. Yea, Jesus' blood and righteousness our beauty are and glorious dress. Amen.

All our knowledge, sense, and sight Lie in deepest darkness shrouded, Till Thy Spirit breaks our night With the beams of truth unclouded. Thou alone to God canst win us; Thou must work all good within us.