and the thirty-fourth verses becomes true for us. Let it be noticed,
however, that in both of these verses the two words, "_it_," and "_is_"
are in italics, which would indicate that they were not in the
original. Concerning those who are justified, therefore, the verses
would read as follows: "Who shall lay anything to the charge of God's
elect." The rest of the verse is a question, "God that justifieth?"
The thirty-fourth verse reads, "Who is he that condemneth?" and the
answer is a question, "Christ that died, yea rather that is risen
again, who is even at the right hand of God who also maketh
intercession for us?" and Paul here simply means to say that if God can
lay nothing to our charge and Christ would not condemn us then we are
free, and justification at least to the layman carries with it this
thought:

1. The justified man stands as if he had not sinned at all. His record
is clean.

2. The debt which sin had incurred is paid and instead of being afraid
and trembling at the thought of sin we sing with rejoicing, "Jesus paid
it all, all to him I owe."

Third: Participation of his life. Paul writes to the Galatians, "I
live, and yet not I, but Christ liveth in me." And in the fifteenth
chapter of John the first six verses we read, "I am the true vine, and
my Father is the husbandman. Every branch in me that beareth not fruit
he taketh away; and every branch that beareth fruit, he purgeth it,
that it may bring forth more fruit. Now ye are clean through the word
which I have spoken unto you. Abide in me, and I in you. As the
branch cannot bear fruit of itself, except it abide in the vine; no
more can ye, except ye abide in me. I am the vine, ye are the
branches: he that abideth in me, and I in him, the same bringeth forth
much fruit: for without me ye can do nothing. If a man abide not in
me, he is cast forth as a branch, and is withered; and men gather them,
and cast them into the fire, and they are burned." So faith unites us
to him and his life becomes a very part of our being.

(a) It is like the principle of grafting. When the branch is grafted
into the tree the life of the tree throbs its way into the branch and
ultimately there is fruitfulness. If we only could sustain the right
relations to Christ we would have the cure for worldliness.

(b) Because of this participation and privilege we need not be
concerned. I have heard of a man who grafted a branch into a tree and
then went each