Sovereign Grace Church

I am crucified with Christ: nevertheless I live; yet not I, but Christ liveth in me: and the life which I now live in the flesh I live by the faith of the Son of God, who loved me, and gave himself for me.


(GALATIANS 2:20)

When the great apostle of the Gentiles was brought, by the special power of God’s grace, to know something of this for himself, this is one part of his song: “He loved me, and gave himself for me.” Now Christ died for the sins of the elect, and it is only those who have grace given them to realize and enjoy this love who can truly sing this glorious song. But some will say he loved all men, and gave himself for all men. If that be true, the damned in hell might rise up and say, “He loved me, and gave himself for me, and yet we are damned!” Does not such a thought as this horrify the soul, after having been brought to see the wonders of the love of Christ? But this love was never fixed upon devils and damned spirits. It was locked up in the heart of God the Father, and God the Son, and was made manifest through the atonement of God’s dear Son; and the blessed Spirit, as the Great Teacher, comes down from heaven, for the special purpose of teaching rebels this love,—to lead poor vile wretches to know something of the nature of this great, this amazing, this peculiar love. Well, then, herein is love; not that we loved God, but that he loved us! Does this love suit you? Perhaps you do not believe you want so much of it, but think you can manage a little for yourselves. Well; the Lord knows, after fifty years’ experience, I have been brought to have all my creature doings rooted up, and burnt before my eyes; and I have stood and looked on, like a ruined fool. I have nothing to stand on in self but emptiness before God; and what is not empty is worse, for it is guilt and confusion. I would not stand upon anything short of Christ for ten thousand worlds; now that all my guilty pretenses are made manifest by the love of Christ, brought into my conscience by the blessed power of the Holy Spirit. It sets my soul solemnly going out after God, and brings me to wonder at and adore the riches of God’s peculiar love, to such a poor, vile, and wretched sinner. [Amen!]

^{An excerpt from “The Peculiar People” available for download at bookshelf.sovereigngrace.us}