Free Offer

Is it desired that we should forbear to make a free offer of God’s grace in Christ to the worst of sinners? This cannot be granted by us, for this is the gospel “faithful saying, and worthy of all acceptation” (and therefore worthy of all our preaching of it), “that Jesus Christ came into the world to save sinners, and the chief of them,” (1 Tim. 1:15). This was the apostolic practice, according to their Lord’s command (Mark 16:15, 16; Luke 24:47). They began at Jerusalem, where the Lord of life was wickedly slain by them; and yet life in and through his blood was offered to, and accepted and obtained by, many of them. Every believer’s experience witnesses to this, that every one that believes on Jesus Christ acts that faith as the chief of sinners. Every man that sees himself rightly thinks so of himself, and does not think amiss in that. God only knows who is truly the greatest sinner, and every humbled sinner will think that he is the man. Shall we tell men, that unless they are holy, they must not believe on Jesus Christ? that they must not venture on Christ for salvation till they are qualified and fit to be received and welcomed by him? This would be to forbear preaching the gospel at all, or to forbid all men to believe on Christ. For never was any sinner qualified for Christ. He is well qualified for us (1 Cor. 1:30); but a sinner out of Christ has no qualification for Christ but sin and misery. Where should we have any better, but in and from Christ? No, suppose an impossibility — that a man were qualified for Christ; I boldly assert that such a man would not, nor could he ever believe on Christ, — for faith is a lost, helpless, condemned sinner’s casting himself on Christ for salvation; and the qualified man is no such person.   Robert Traill