Tuesday, October 29, 2013

His death or his resurrection?

J. I.Packer writes on the death and resurrection of Christ:
It is sometimes asked whether Christ's death or his resurrection is what directly brings about the sinner's salvation. The answer is both, and to minimize either's importance in relation to the other is to begin to falsify that answer. In other words, Christ died for our sake as our representative and substitutionary Sin-Bearer, and it is one facet of our faith in him to see and think of ourselves as having died with him, in the sense of having voluntarily ended the life we were living in our unbelief. But that is not all. Christ was raised from death for our sake as our forerunner and life-giver, and it is a further facet of our faith in him to see and think of ourselves as having been raised with him in union with him, so that now we participate in his resurrection life in terms of desire, direction, and divine energy. When Paul declared that in his ministry he toils, "struggling with all his energy that he powerfully works within me" (Col. 1:29), it is this supernaturalizing service that he refers to" (Packer, J. I. Weakness Is the Way. N.p.: Inter-Varsity, 2013. Print. 38-9)

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