Though fully assured of his near dissolution, yet with what calm composure does Joshua utter these words! Though you are a sinner and must fall under the sentence of death for sin, yet you need not be under bondage all your life-time through fear of death. Why should you? Has not the sinner's Friend gained a complete and everlasting victory over death, the sinner's enemy?
Consider what Christ hath done for us sinners; for sinners we are, and shall be, though redeemed by the blood and sanctified by the Spirit of Christ, when the messenger of death calls us to glory. Honor thy Lord's work by the faith of thy heart: so fear and terror shall flee from thy soul. By his death he has appeased divine justice. As Jonah, his type, being cast into the sea, quelled the storm; so Christ, being cast into the furnace of Divine wrath, quenched the flames. God is just, while he justifies the ungodly who 'believe in Jesus. Rom. 3:26. He has silenced the accusations of the law. He has "redeemed us from the curse of the law, being made a curse for us." Gal. 3:13. Upon this follows the removal of guilt: "He put away our sins by the sacrifice of himself." Heb. 9:26. "We have redemption through his blood, even the forgiveness of sins. Eph. 1:7. He hath wrought out and brought in an everlasting righteousness for us. We are "made the righteousness of God in him." 2 Cor. 5:21. He hath conquered Satan: by his death destroying "him who had the power of death, that is, the devil." Heb. 2:14. He hath opened heaven to us. We lost a paradise by sin. We gain hen-yen by the cross of Christ. It is our "purchased possession." Eph. 1:14. He hath obtained victory over sin and death, so that we may joyfully cry out, "Thanks be to God, which giveth us the victory through our Lord Jesus Christ." 1 Cor. 15:57. Now, if Christ has appeased justice, silenced the law, taken away the guilt of sin, is made righteousness to us, has conquered Satan, opened heaven, overcome death, and obtained victory for us, what have we to fear? Why should we not triumph in the view of death.
We cannot thus triumph without the work of the Spirit in us. But if he has made the work of Christ glorious in our eyes; if he has given us to see our need of it; to believe in and rely upon Christ's life and death as our title to heaven and glory; by the faith of this he has sanctified our souls, as vessels of honor, to the glory of Christ. It is our privilege to rejoice in him, to look upon his victories as our own; to triumph over every enemy, and over death as the last enemy; for though he is an enemy to the flesh, he is the best friend to the soul.