The Faithfulness of Christ

(Article for publication week of 1-4-2012 AD)

“Wherefore, holy brethren, partakers of the heavenly calling, consider the Apostle and High Priest of our profession, Christ Jesus; Who was faithful to Him that appointed Him, as also Moses was faithful in all His house.” Hebrews 3:1-2

One of the great proofs of the Deity of the Lord Jesus Christ is that He has all the attributes of God. Here we are told that our Lord has the attribute of faithfulness, as very God of very God. By sovereign grace God communicated faithfulness to Moses, but Christ is superior to Moses in that His faithfulness is inherently His by eternal Deity, whereas Moses was faithful as he was saved and graced by the Lord.

Christ, the Eternal Son of God was, and is faithful to God the Father in all that He has been appointed. As a Boy of twelve years old, the Eternal Son of God declared that He must be about His Father’s business. He declared in John 6:38 that He came down from heaven to do His Father’s will. It was prophesied of our Lord in the fortieth Psalm, “I delight to do Thy will, O my God.” Our great high Priest prayed in John 17:4, “I have finished the work which Thou gavest me to do.”

Christ was appointed by God the Father by an eternal and unalterable decree that He would be the Surety (Hebrews 7:22) for His people. That is, that He would stand good for all their obligations to God the Judge of all men. As our Surety Christ obeyed the law of God for us, perfectly. Romans 5:19 tells us that it is by the obedience of one that many are made righteous. That One is the Lord Jesus Christ who was faithful in all that He was appointed.

No sinner can ever be saved by his own faithfulness. We have all been unfaithful to our Creator. No amendment of life, or resolution to do better will ever make up for our record of unfaithfulness. The deepest repentance will not atone for our unfaithfulness. We must be saved by the faithfulness of Another.

Our Lord Jesus Christ faithfully obeyed the law of God. He was the only Man who truly loved God with all His being and His neighbour as Himself. He kept the law of God to a jot and a tittle. This faithfulness of Christ, which we call His active obedience, is imputed to the record and person of every one who will believe in Christ (see Romans 4).

Our Lord was also faithful in putting away the sins of the believer. He redeemed us from the curse of the law (Galatians 3:13) by being a propitiation for us (Romans 3:25). All the sins of all God’s elect were transferred to Christ Who was a sinbearer, and God the Father punished God the Son, for sins that were not His, but His people’s. This we call the passive obedience of Christ.

God the Father was well pleased with the life and death of His Son and so raised Him again for our justification (Romans 4:25). He is now seated at the right hand of God the Father as an eternal and faithful High Priest for His people.

Salvation is through the faithfulness of Christ, not the faithfulness of any sinner. The most faithful among men, as Moses all have come short in what God requires. But Christ did not come short. He was faithful in all that His Father appointed Him. Those who believe in this faithful Christ are counted faithful because of their identification with the Faithful One. Thank the Lord for the faithfulness of Christ!