And you, being dead in your sins and the uncircumcision of your flesh, hath He quickened together with Him, having forgiven you all trespasses; Blotting out the handwriting of ordinances that was against us, which was contrary to us, and took it out of the way, nailing it to His cross
Colossians 2: 13-14
This is what the Lord Jesus Christ has done for all of us who are believers in Him.
First, He has taken that handwriting, and He has blotted it out, "blotting out the handwriting of ordinances that was against us." The Greek original has the meaning of smearing over or expunging the handwriting, so as to make it illegible as a document to be produced against us. With His own atoning blood, the Lord Jesus Christ has discharged all our debt.
As believers in Him, there is nothing whatever due from us to satisfy the justice of almighty God, for Christ has paid it all. We cannot, therefore, be punished for our sin, for that would be unjust, since God will not and cannot punish, first the Substitute - Christ - and then the sinners for whom that Substitute bled and died. God's justice cannot demand the payment twice.
Christ did become the Surety of all who believe in Him, and He was made to suffer for it; but, by the carrying out of his suretyship, He discharged all your liabilities at the throne of God if you are a believer; and hence He smeared over, expunged, erased, obliterated, the handwriting of ordinances that was against you, and it can never again be laid to your charge. This was the truth that inspired that brave challenge of the apostle Paul, "Who shall lay anything to the charge of God's elect?"
But Imagine! Christ has done something more than this for us. Look at the text again: "blotting out the handwriting of ordinances that was against us, which was contrary to us, and took it out of the way." First, it is blotted out; then, it is taken away, lest the blotting out should not prevent it from being real,—for you can sometimes trace through an erasure what was written there, and you say, "Oh, yes! I see what the entry was; 'So-and-so, so many dollars in debt.'" But Christ says, "You need not worry yourselves about that handwriting, for I will take it away." So He removes the document itself out of sight. It lay in the court against you; but Christ first obliterated it, and then took the accusation itself, the indictment, the charge upon which you were to be tried, and put it out of the way.
Perhaps someone says, "But, possibly, after all, He may bring the accusation up again. He may only have hidden it for a while, and laid it aside that He may bring it out against me some other day; and when it is produced, some expert will examine it, and through all the blotting he will make out the original charge, and say, 'This man was guilty of such-and-such crimes.'" "No," says Christ, "he shall not do that, for I will let you see where I put the handwriting. I will take it completely out of the way, but I will fasten it up where you can see it,"—"nailing it to His cross."
Just as Christ was fastened to the tree by those dreadful Roman nails, so has He nailed up all the sins of His people, and all that could be laid to their charge. I have heard that they used to drive a nail through the Bank of England notes when they were cashed; a hole was made right through the center, and they could never be used again; and our wonderful Lord has driven the nails right through the accusation that was against His people, and there you can see the handwriting hanging upon His cross.
First, He blotted it out; then, He took it out of the way; and, finally, He nailed it up to His cross, and there it is still, it’s accusing and condemning power forever gone. Sit down and say to yourself, "As to all the sins I have ever committed, whatever they may have been, inasmuch as I believe in Jesus, the record is crossed out; and, consequently, the very paper upon which it was written has been taken out of the way. And so that I may be completely sure that an end has been made of it, once for all, my Lord has nailed it, as a crucified thing which He has put to death with Himself upon the tree of sacrifice, and now it has no power to alarm or annoy me."
What better way can there be of abolishing a debt than by paying it? And Christ has paid your debts and mine. What better way can there be of putting an end to sin than by bearing the punishment which was due to sin. The punishment which was due to sin was for us to live forever under the wrath of God; but, owing to the majesty of Christ's divine person, the suffering which He endured upon the cross was accepted as an equivalent for all that suffering which we deserved to endure forever.
The wrath due to Christ's people was condensed into that one cup of which He began to drink in Gethsemane. As He put His lip to it, and tasted it, so terrible was it that it covered Him with a bloody sweat; but He never ceased to drink until He turned the chalice upside down, and not one black drop was found lingering there. At that one tremendous drink of love, the Lord had drunk damnation dry for all His people; and "there is therefore now no condemnation to them which are in Christ Jesus."
How could there be any condemnation when Christ endured it all? Because of Calvary, with joyful hearts, you can trust in the Crucified Christ! The great transaction is done, and done forever. He has blotted out the handwriting that was against you, and put it away, "nailing it to His cross." All this is true of every person who believes in the Lord Jesus Christ.
Trust yourself with Him now, and this gift shall truly be yours at this moment, and forever:
"You, being dead in your sins and the uncircumcision of your flesh, hath He quickened together with Him, having forgiven you all trespasses; blotting out the handwriting of ordinances that was against us, which was contrary to us, and took it out of the way, nailing it to His cross."
Sing Praise To The Lord
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