Works of John Bunyan – The Greatness of The Soul, And Unspeakableness of the Loss Thereof; The Intercession Of Christ and Who are Privilege In It. 176

 

(3). The Lord Jesus having thus taken our sins upon himself and presented God with all the worthiness that is in his whole self for them, in the next place he calleth for justice, or a just verdict upon the satisfaction he hath made to God and to his law. Then a proclamation is made in open court, saying, “Take away the filthy garments from him,” from him that hath offended, and clothe him with a change of garment (Zech 3).

Thus the soul is preserved that hath sinned; thus the God of heaven is content that he should be saved; thus Satan is put to confusion, and Jesus was applauded and cried up by the angels of heaven and by the saints on earth. Thus have I shown you how Christ does advocate it with God and his Father for us, and I have been more particular in this because the glory of Christ and the comfort of the dejected are greatly concerned and wrapped up in it. Look, then, to Jesus, if thou hast sinned; to Jesus, as an Advocate pleading with the Father for thee. Look to nothing else; for he can tell how, and that by himself, to deliver thee; yea, and will do it in a way of justice, which is a wonder; and to the shame of Satan, which will be his glory; and also to thy complete deliverance, which will be thy comfort and salvation.

Second, But to pass this and come to the second thing, which is, to show you how the Lord Jesus manages this, his office of an Advocate before his Father against the adversary; for he pleadeth with the Father, but pleadeth against the devil; he pleadeth with the Father law and justice, but against the adversary he letteth out himself.

I say as he pleads against the adversary, so he enlargeth himself with arguments over and besides those which he pleadeth with God his Father.

Nor is it meet or needful that our advocate, when he pleads against Satan, should limit himself to matters of law, as when he pleaded with his Father. The saint, by sinning, oweth Satan nothing; no law of his is broken thereby; why, then, should he plead for the saving of his people, justifying righteousness to him?

Christ, when he died, died not to satisfy Satan, but his Father; not to appease the devil, but to answer the demands of the justice of God; nor did he design, when he hanged on the tree, to triumph over his Father, but over Satan; “He redeemed us,” therefore, “from the curse of the law,” by his blood (Gal 3:13). And from the power of Satan, by his resurrection (Heb 2:14). He delivered us from righteous judgment by price and purchase, but from the rage of hell by fight and conquest.

And as he acted thus diversely in the work of our redemption, even so, he also did in the execution of his Advocate’s office. When he pleaded with God, he pleaded so; and when he pleaded against Satan, he pleaded so; and how he pleaded with God when he dealt with law and justice, I have shown you. And now I will show you how he pleaded before him against the “accuser of the brethren.”