O happy soul, who can thus say with Paul, in life, in death, Christ is my gain. Verily, if thou believest in Christ, thou mayst. Thou hast the same right and reason as he had. Paul was a sinner, even as thou art; but Christ was all his gain. So he is to all who believe in him. Come, christian, let us state our loss and gain, sad see the sum total to-day.
In ourselves, as to righteousness before God, peace with him, love to him, hope in him, power to please him, enjoyment of him, as the life of our souls, we are lost, yea, our souls are all lost. We are all bankrupt sinners; insolvent debtors to law and justice; and deserve the prison of hell. Awful loss!
What is our gain? Inestimable riches! nothing less than Christ and his precious salvation. Is his dear name enrolled in our hearts? Can we read Jesus there? then we have perfect righteousness, full acceptance, free access, love from, peace with, hope of enjoying, yea, present fellowship with God. We are his children in Christ. All that he has is ours. His every attribute is engaged for us. His Spirit is ours, to make us holy and happy, and lead us to eternal felicity.
"But," says one," I am put to a stand in my reckoning; though Christ is my gain, yet I have not lost my burden. Sin is still alive in me." Stop not, O soul. Reckon on. Though we have sin, and feel sin raging and rebelling, yet, in Christ, we have gained a sacrifice for it, and redemption from it. He hath put away sin from us, and the wrath due to us from the justice of God. So it stands upon record in the court of heaven. The Holy Ghost is witness of it to us on earth. Record this in the court of conscience. Faith can show a discharge from the guilt of sin and the curse of the law; therefore "reckon yourselves to be dead indeed unto sin." "Dead indeed!" how emphatic! yes, dead to sin; and as much alive to God in Christ as though we had never sinned. "For," O precious words! "the law of the Spirit of life in Christ Jesus hath made us free from the law of sin and death." Romans 8:2.
Thus, in Christ, we gain a perfect victory over sin and the law. But sin will destroy our mortal bodies. This is all it can do. It cannot hurt our immortal souls. For, thanks be to God, we have victory over death. Christ is our gain in death. We shall lose nothing by it but sin and sorrow; we shall gain eternal glory. "We shall be ever with the Lord." "I count all things but loss, for the excellency of the knowledge of Christ Jesus my Lord." Philippians 3:8.
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