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The Manifold Wisdom of God” The Wisdom of Grace “O the depth of the riches both of the wisdom and knowledge of God!” (Romans 11:33)
Only the all wise God could devise and execute the sovereign purpose of his grace toward us. Behold the great wisdom of God in grace, and worship him. I see the manifold wisdom of God in his choice of his Son to be our Redeemer, — in his determination to accomplish redemption by substitution, — the glorious incarnation of Christ, — the life of Christ in this world, — the sacrificial, sin-atoning death of Christ, — and in the glorious exaltation of Christ.
The Choice of His Son God’s choice of his Son to be our Redeemer displays his great, infinite wisdom. I do not pretend to understand the deep, hidden mysteries of the Covenant of Grace, the proposals, and agreements, and oaths of the triune God. I know that God does not need to plan, devise, or work out anything in his great mind. He knows everything. But I do know that a covenant was made (Jeremiah 31:31-34), that God the Father made proposals to his Son for the accomplishment of our redemption (Psalm 2:8; John 10:16-18), which our Savior voluntarily accepted (Isaiah 50:5-7), and that these transactions of grace between God the Father and God the Son were sworn to by Jehovah and secured the salvation of an elect multitude before the world was made (Hebrews 6:17-19; 8:10-12).
The Covenant of Grace In the Covenant of Grace, as it is revealed to us in the Scriptures, God the Father proposed the conditions upon which redemption could be accomplished. God the Son pledged himself to satisfy all the demands and conditions required by the holy law, character, and will of God. And God the Holy Spirit promised to effectually apply all the blessings of grace earned by Christ’s obedience to the elect. These are things that took place before the world began, when no one and nothing existed but the eternal God (Ephesians 3:11; 1:3-6; 2 Timothy 1:9). In those great, eternal counsels of grace, God set his heart upon his dear Son and chose him to be the Person who would perform the great work of redemption (Romans 3:25; 1 Peter 1:20). Christ is the Redeemer of God’s own choosing. Therefore, he is called God’s Elect (Isaiah 42:1). When God set his eye upon his Son, choosing him to save his elect, he said, with regard to all his elect, “Deliver him from going down to the pit: I have found a ransom (an atonement)” (Job 33:24). The triune Jehovah declared, “I have laid help upon one that is mighty; I have exalted one chosen out of the people” (Psalm 89:19). We rejoice in the love, mercy, and grace of God. But it was the wisdom of God which found a way for a holy God to embrace fallen, sinful men and women in love, mercy, and grace. How we ought to admire the wisdom of God in providing such a Redeemer!
Don Fortner
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Pastor Fortner’s
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