January 14

And you … hath he reconciled. Colossians 1:21.

RECONCILED to whom? To God. How? In the body of his flesh through death. This reconciliation is effected alone through the mediation of him who died for us, and rose again; of which the Apostle speaks when he says, “God was in Christ reconciling the world unto himself, not imputing unto them their trespasses.” We had provoked Jehovah, and he could easily and righteously have destroyed us. We lay entirely at his mercy, and we had no claim to his pity. But when he might have come against us in flaming fire with his holy angels, to take vengeance on us who knew him not, and did not obey him, behold he himself comes forward arrayed as the God of love.

There were difficulties in the way of our reconciliation; he removes them. A ransom was necessary; he provides it. A righteousness was requisite; he has wrought out and brought in everlasting righteousness. “He spared not his Son, but delivered him up for us all,” that we may have the assurance that “with him he will also freely give us all things.” And, oh, let us remember that in thus reconciling us, he did not wait for our submission and our application. He formed the plan himself, and he accomplished it; and “having made peace through the blood of his cross by him to reconcile all things to himself,” and having opened “a new and living way into the holiest of all by the blood of Jesus,” he himself advances; he comes forward, he invites us, and he presses us, “who were alienated and enemies in our minds by wicked works,” to enter in.

Hid as we were among the trees of the garden by fear, the voice of thunder would only have driven us yet further off; but the still small voice of peace, saying unto us, “Be ye reconciled unto God,” draws us forth, brings us to his dear feet, encourages us to say, “O Lord, I will praise thee; though thou wast angry with me, thine anger is turned away, and thou comfortest me,” and to pray, “Lord, I am thine, save me; Lord, I am thine, employ me.”