8. Thou art the Light of the World
we needed. They who affirm that the righteousness of God of which the apostle speaks (Rom. 3:21) means merely the divine attribute or perfection known by that name, overthrow redemption; not only destroying the apostle's argument in that epistle, but subverting totally the justification of the sinner as provided by God in Christ Jesus. For 'Christ is the end of the law for righteousness to every one that believeth' (Rom. 10:4); that is, He has fulfilled the law, in order to provide a righteousness by which the sinner is justified in believing. For in believing we receive 'the righteousness;' in believing we are 'justified;' in believing we are so placed in oneness with Him who is the Lord our righteousness, that we are henceforth treated by God as if we had lived the righteous life which He lived, as if we had done all the righteous things which He did, and spoke all the righteous words which He spoke. Though still sinners, and deeply conscious of evil, we know that in our righteous Representative we are reckoned righteous, and dealt with by God as if all our unrighteousness had never been, nay, as if we had done the righteousness which He has done, as our surety and our substitute. Recognising His vicarious life and death as that on which we stand before God, and shall hereafter take our stand before the judgmentseat, we realize the truth, 'As He is, so are we in this world' (1 John 4:17). 'The Lord is well pleased for His righteousness' sake' (Isa. 42:21); so well pleased with Him, and with what He has done, and so well pleased because of Him, and because of what He has done, that He causes His well-pleasedness to rest on every one who accepts His testimony to the Beloved Son.
It is the Judge Himself who has proposed the plan of acquittal, and provided the substitute. We fall in with His plan, we accept the substitute, and are thus put in possession of the righteousness. With the Judge upon our side, we have nothing to fear; and we know that He is upon the side of all who are willing to own their condemnation and accept His substitute.
8. Thou art the Light of the World
Light had always been associated with Messiah; and every Jew would remember this. As we read the prophets, we find this written everywhere; and looking into the face of Jesus of Nazareth, we say, Thou art the true light, set for the enlightening of every man, the Sun of a dark world. Thou art He by whom the long darkness is to be banished, and the world made what it was originally designed to be, —a world of light. Thou, O Jesus, art earth's true light, man's true light!
The veil had been spread over all nations, and Messiah came to remove it; the light for ages shone in the darkness, though the darkness did not receive it. Ages before He came, He was announced as the Star out of Jacob (Num. 24:17), as the Sun of righteousness (Mal. 4:2). The light that Israel had in their dwellings, was light from Him (Ex. 10:23). His was the light that beamed out of the pillarcloud (Ex. 14:20). His was the 'light of the morning' predicted by David (2 Sam. 23:4). His was the light of which we read so often in the Psalms, 'The Lord is my light' (Ps. 27:1). His is the light that is 'sown for the righteous' (Ps. 97:11). It is He whom Isaiah calls the 'light of Israel' (10:17); and of whom he says to Israel, 'Arise, shine, for thy light is come' (60:1); and 'the Lord shall be thine everlasting light' (60:19). He was the dayspring from on high (Luke 1:78), the light to lighten the Gentiles (Luke 2:32); and it is of Him that the evangelist wrote, 'In Him was life, and the life was the light of men' (John 1:4). He Himself took up the ancient symbol, and applied it to Himself, 'I am the light of the world' (John 8:12, 7:5).
As the revealer of the Father, He is the light of the world; as the forgiver of sin, He is the light of the world; as the raiser of the dead, He is the light of the world. Already in some measure this has been exhibited; but when He comes the second time, it shall be more fully seen how truly He is the 'daystar' (2 Pet. 1:19). He is the bright and morning star (Rev. 2:28, 22:16). All light is in Him; the light of the knowledge of the glory of God is in the face of Jesus Christ (2 Cor. 4:6). We look to Him, and are lightened (Ps. 34:5): that which we see in Him gives us light; for in Him is no darkness at all. All the