Christ Preeminent and Christ Before Other Blessings (Tobias Crisp)

First, What is this pre-eminence that Christ should have. I will not insist upon the word pre-eminence: you all know, to give a person or thing the pre-eminence, is no more than this, to set up such a person or thing above all others, and especially for those uses and purposes we have occasion of them for: I say, to choose such a person before any other, as a person who can better, and more certainly bring to pass what we desire, than any else can. So that in brief, to give Christ the pre-eminence, is, to set up Christ above all things in the world; to choose Christ, rather than any thing, for every use and purpose to make of him: I say, above and before any thing whatsoever, as apprehending him infinitely more able and sufficient unto such purposes than any thing else is.

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You say, how can a man apply Christ without faith?

I answer, he cannot; but yet faith comes not before Christ, but he comes and brings it, and delivers it to the soul, whereby it takes him. I cannot illustrate this better than by Jeremiah's getting out of the dungeon. Ebedmelech (,a type of Christ) comes from the king to Jeremiah being sunk into the mire of
the dungeon, and brings cords and soft rags with him; these he lets down into the dungeon to him, and bids him put the rags under his arm-holes, fastening them to the cords: which he did, holding the cords fast: then Ebedmelech herewith drew him forth. Now the cords came not before Ebedmelech, neither did he draw himself to Ebedmelech with them; but he brought them, and drew him up by them unto himself Ebedmelech represents Christ, the cords and rags faith, Jeremiah the convert or saved sinner, the dungeon the deep pit of sinfulness and misery in which he sticks; Christ brings faith, and gives one end to a sinner to hold fast by, and keeps the other end in his own hand, and so draws the sinner towards him, who comes by the hold-fast of the cord immediately; but originally, and principally, by the strength of Christ's own arm. In brief, you must conceive Christ graciously present whenever faith is: now, if faith itself, the radical grace, come not before Christ, much less other graces that spring from it. The apostle tells us, from Christ, that" we are sanctified by faith," and that "faith purifies the heart." Do not therefore, put the cart before the horse, nor foolishly think to draw the horse with the earl. Some may say, we thought that we must first be humbled, changed, renewed, and then come to Christ: I confess too many go backward in this manner, and catch many a full and bruise: I would we had not some blind leaders of such blind, who are both like to fall into the ditch; have I not cleared the contrary way to you by manifest scripture? I come not to you in my own name about this business.

OVERCOMING SIN

1. You and I cannot overcome sin; it is the SUPERNATURAL and spiritual work of God alone. It is NOT, in any way, anything that we do for ourselves.

2. God Himself must come to us, even as He told Sarah, “At this time will I come, and Sarah shall have a son”, so to do supernatural stuff, God Himself must DO it (Rom 9:9).

3. It is by faith: it is not earned or human in any way; it is THROUGH the merit of Christ, the promise of the Father, and the power or supply of the Spirit; it is God working by faith, which is how He works ONLY.

4. It is TREASURING God above sin, so that when tempted, I say, “It is BETTER for me to have God and the pleasures of godliness/God, than to have the God disturbing pleasure of sin for a season”. There must be a HIGHER pleasure to take up the pleasure of sin, or we don’t have the strength (Heb 12:2).

Thus, the FEAR of God abandoning us and leaving us to sin and conviction… despair and hopelessness… is GREATER than the pleasure of sin.

We can only conquer sin by God and the pleasure and power of Christ.

The Vineyard of Naboth the Jezreelite (Rev 2; 1 Kings 21)

“But Jezebel his wife came to [Ahab] and said unto him, Why is your spirit so sad, that you eat no bread? And he said unto her, Because I spoke unto Naboth the Jezreelite, and said unto him, Give me your vineyard for money; or else, if it please you, I will give you another vineyard for it: and he answered, I will not give you my vineyard [The Lord forbid it me]. And Jezebel his wife said unto , Do you now govern the kingdom of Israel? Arise, and eat bread, and let your heart be merry: I will give you the vineyard of Naboth the Jezreelite” (1 Kings 21:3, 5-7)

We can only get the inheritance by faith in Christ the Lord; it cannot be gained by Jezebel. She can give you idolatry - worship of feelings, joy, pleasure, wife, cars - instead of God, and she gives fornication, a “sin that grace might abound” mind state, but she can’t give you the inheritance. That is gained by Christ only, and through faith, we have Him.

In Galatians 3:1-9, the Lord gives us the recipe for faith, the Spirit, miraculous power, righteousness, son-ship, and the blessing of God. All of these things are by faith in Jesus in the gospel, that He earned salvation by His cross, whereby He was made to be sin for us who knew no sin, and they are GIVEN to us by God, freely. You don’t have to earn anything. Only believe the Lord Jesus EARNED it all and gives it to whom He will by faith, and it is yours. Faith joins you and me to the Spirit, whereby we have God working in us by faith. Faith is how miracles are performed by the Spirit, how we serve and love in the kingdom, overcoming sin. Faith is how we’re MADE righteous by God imputing or charging righteousness to us. He looks upon all that believe and says “justified”, justified by God to receive the inheritance that Jesus died for by God’s power and rose again from the dead. He declares us BLESSED by faith and inheritors of God’s inheritance in the saints, “So then they which be of faith are blessed with faithful Abraham” (vs9), and these blessings are described in Ephesians 1:3-11 . We are chosen, loved, predestinated, redeemed, adopted, pardoned, called, and God works all things in existence to save us: every tear, crime, failure, reproof, hardship, and troublesome thing that we experience is ordered by God in wisdom and prudence to save His elect, us included!

These good things cannot be acquired by Jezebel’s doctrine. These come by faith. Christ doesn’t teach us to sin that grace might abound. He teaches that He died and we’re DEAD or justified from sin, so that we can live in newness of life (Rom 6:7, 11). We are UNCONDEMNED children designed to honor God by His grace and power. We are never going to be happy doing our thing, and Jezebel will give no relief to the church. Christ says, “Notwithstanding I have a few things against you, because you suffer that woman Jezebel, which calls herself a prophetess, to teach and to seduce my servants to commit fornication, and to eat things sacrificed unto idols. And I gave her space to repent of her fornication; and she repented not”. This doctrine that allows people to claim both Christ and sinful pleasure has been allowed, and now it will do its damage… “Behold, I will cast her into a bed”, her doctrine and message, “and them that commit adultery with her into a great TRIBULATION, except they repent of their deeds. And I will kill her children with death; and all the churches shall know that I am he which searches the reins and hearts: and I will give unto every one of you according to your works”, whether you and I obey God or not, “But unto you I say, and unto the rest in Thyatira, as many as have not this doctrine”, of licentious living and taking what is not mine - sin - as mine, “and which have not known the depths of Satan, as they speak; I will put upon you none other burden. But that which you have already, hold fast till I come”, Fight the good fight of faith, lay hold on Jesus’ gospel unto purity in action and life. “And he that overcomes”, this temptation to live in sin ‘because I’m saved by grace’, “and keeps my works unto the end, to him will I give power over the nations” (Rev 2:20-26). We shall be rewarded in due time, even as we have partial victory now by conquering sin and standing for Christ, “And he shall rule them with a rod of iron; as the vessels of a potter shall they be broken to shivers: even as I received of my Father” (vs27). We fight to overcome licentiousness, even as He resisted and is now at God’s right hand to punish His foes and save His children, “And I will give him the morning star. He that has an ear, let him hear what the Spirit says unto the churches”, let everyone hear God’s voice and do not shake it off (vs28-29). Hear the Master’s warning, and know that He will do this to you and me. We (none of us) are not exempt from the warnings of Christ. Those who heed them BELIEVE, and those who don’t, experience the wrath or chastisement promised. This shall happen just as sure as you read these words.

The inheritance of Jesus in the gospel is a holy calling to good works. Make sure that you and I have this by faith alone unto a zealous following of Christ and obedience to His will. Every word of God counts unto godliness, or it has not been heard (1 Tim 6:3-12).