is Jesus Christ the righteous we have therefore proposed to be considered First how cleer the Scripture is in this truth that it is his righteousnesse that carries the cause of a poor Believer when he hath sinned and gets the discharge for his sin after it is committed I say the plea lies in his righteousness I cannot insist upon the Scriptures mentioned they are very plentifull We came further to consider what this righteousnesse of his is that hath such a strength of plea in it the resolution of this I distributed into two heads First Negative Secondly Affirmative First the righteousnesse which carries away the cause and obtains the discharge of a Believers sin is no righteousnesse of our own no not so much as the righteousnesse of faith as it is our act of believing Here we left the last day I will give you a touch of the impossibility that faith should so plead for the discharge from sin in its own name or strength as to carry away the cause on the side of this person sinning It is true the Apostle speaks of the righteousnesse of faith in the 10. to the Romans about the 4. verse A righteousnesse of faith there is indeed but that righteousnesse which is here given and ascribed unto faith is afterwards appropriated to the Word that is unto the Gospel that is the righteousnesse of faith speaks on this wise say not in thine heart who shall ascend up into Heaven that is to bring Christ from thence or who shall descend into the deep But what saith it The Word is nigh thee in thy heart in thy mouth That is in the word in the heart and in the mouth that is the word of Faith and so not the righteousnesse of a mans own act of believing I cannot dwell upon what I have delivered before There are some things briefly to be considered even about our believing as it hath a stroke in the discharge from sin or in the pardon of sin The truth is beloved some hand faith hath in this businesse but it is not any righteousnesse in the act of believing that carries any stroke in it If you will consider it well you shall easily see there is no more righteousnesse in our believing as we do act believing then there is in any other gracious act whatsoever we do there is no more righteousnesse in the act of our beleving then is in our love of God nay more there is as much sinfulnesse in our act of believing as in our acting of other gifts There is no man under Heaven hath attained unto that height of believing or that strength of faith but there is still something wanting some imperfection and sinfulnesse in it And as there is weaknesse and imperfection in believing so it is not possible that this believing should give forth such a righteousnesse as to constitute a person who is unrighteous in himself to be righteous before God That which cannot set it self compleat and righteous before God can never set another righteous before God Faith must be first just it self or else it is not possible it should be imagined it can ever by the righteousnesse of its own act justifie another Beloved what ever the Scriptures speak concerning faith justifying it must of necessity be understood objectively or declaratively one of these two wayes Either faith is said to be our righteousnesse in respect of Christ onely who is believed on and so it is not the righteousnesse of his own act of believing but the righteousnesse of him that is apprehended by that act of believing Or else you must understand it declaratively that is whereas all our righteousnesse and all our discharge from sin flowing only from the righteousness of Christ alone is an hidden thing that which in it self is hid to men doth become evident by believing And as faith doth make the righteousnesse of Christ evident to the Believer so it is said to justifie by its own act declaratively and no otherwise And whereas in the 5. Chapter to the Romans and the 1. verse the Apostle there saith being justified by faith we have peace with God In Rom. 8. vers 33. the Apostle saith It is God that justifieth Now I beseech you compare these Texts together then tell mee whether the act of believing except it hath reference to the object which is Christ of it self doth justifie whether or no these two places caÌ„possibly be reconciled without contradiction It is God that justifieth and it is Faith that justifieth Faith is not God neither is God Faith If therefore it be faith in justification in respect of its own act that justifieth it is not God that justifieth us and if it be God that justifieth then it is not Faith in respect of its own act How will you reconcile it When therefore the holy Ghost speaks of faith justifying it speaks of faith as laying hold upon God for our justification and therefore though faith doth here appeare as that which doth lay hold upon the righteousnesse of God yet faith here cannot be said to be that righteousnesse that doth justifie us Ob. But I know some will be ready to say it is not to be understood as if saith had any innate power of its owne to procure the discharge or pardon from sin but saith is to bee understood as the Instrumentall cause that laies hold upon that justification and so it goes before the justification of a person and it is to be understood no otherwise Answ I shall desire to keep in the plain path for the cleering up of this truth and so far as possible may be I abhor to walk in the clouds in a truth that so highly concerns the comfort and establishing the consciences and spirits of men and therefore I say that faith as it layes hold upon the righteousness of Christ it doth not bring this righteousnesse of Christ to the soul but only doth declare the presence of this righteousnesse in the 〈◊〉 that was there even before faith was I beseech you mark me wel I know beloved I have many very catching ears about me I speak it the rather that there may be the more warines because there are frequent mis-understandings misâ—â—â—ings of the things I deliver especially by those that come to catch I say again there is no pâ—â—son under Heaven reconciled unto God justified by God through â—he righteousnesse of Christ but this person is justified and reconciled unto God before hee doth believe And therefore faith is not the instrument radically to unite Christ and the soul together but rather is the fruit that follows flows from Christ the root being united before hand to the persons that doe believe so that the efficacy and power of believing is to be instrumentall for the declaration of an act that was done before only it was hid For the cleering up of this to you beloved consider that expression in the 12. Chapter to the Hebrews vers 1. Faith saith the Apostle
is the substance of things hoped for and the evidence of things not seene Faith is the evidence saith the Text of things not seen The Apostle here doth not give any efficacy to faith to procure or bring forth a new thing but he gives to faith only an evidencing power and that not to evidence any new thing but to be an evidence of things not seen that is of things that were before in being but were hid but by faith come to be apparent and cease to be hid and are manifest and open when the evidence of faith doth bring them forth to light Either you must say it is not in being till faith is come and so faith doth more then evidence even beget and give being to the very thing or you must confesse the thing indeed was but faith makes it evident that before was hid and obscure Now though faith be honoured with the greatest businesse of all the gifts of the Spirit of God yet that Christ may not be robbed of that which is peculiar unto him and properly his own that is to give compleat being to our justification that it should be given unto faith it self I say give me leave to propose to you some particulars wherein it is as cleer as the day-light that it is impossible for any person under Heaven to believe till such time as this person be first united unto Christ and become one with him and that faith it self being but a fruit that flows from our union with him is not the uniter that knits Christ and a person together I shall not need to insist upon that place I have often made mention of in the 16. of Ezekiel But beloved when you take this point into consideration I beseech you remember that passage in the 8. and 9. verses The time when God fastened his love upon the Church was the time of the blood of the Church When I saw thee polluted in thy â—lood I said unto thee Live In vers 7. it is three mes repeated When thou wast in thy blood I said unto thee Live and in vers 8. Thy time was be time of love that is the time of thy blood that he spake of before this time was the time of love And I spread my skirt over thee saith the Text and I sware unto thee and entered into covenant with thee and thou becamest mine then washed I thee with water yea I throughly washed thee from thy blood Here is first loving and spreading the skâ—â—t over the Church before the Church is washed Here is not first washing and then loving and spreading the skirt over them but here is first a spreading of the skirt in blood and after that comes washing and throughly washing from blood If any man do think that this washing is to be understood of sanctification let them but consider whether or no there be a through-washing from bloud a perfect washing from bloud such a washing from bloud as that the person so washed is presently all fair or as the Prophet speaks expresly in that Chapter compleat in beauty that is perfect and that through his comeliness put upon this person But to go on consider I beseech you beloved that expression in Isa 43.22 23. the Lord there is pleased first to deciare himself concerning his people in what a condition they were their condition was this Thou hast not called upon me but thou hast been weary of me yea thou hast wearied me with thy sins and thou hast made mee to serve with thy transgeessions saith the Lord. And mark what follows I even I am hee that blotteth out thy transgressions for mine owne sake and will not remember thy sins Here the people whose sins God blotted out are not considered as believing people but are considered as a people that wearied God with their sins and people that made him serve with their transgressions they are considered as a people that had not so much as an heart to call upon God but were quite weary of God for so he doth expresse himself concerning this people and even while he doth consider them thus even then he for his owne sake blotteth out their transgressions And in the 53. of Isaiah whereof I spake so largely heretofore if you marke well in the 6. verse you shall see plainly there is nothing but sin considered in the person whose iniquitles the Lord laid upon Christ All wee like sheep have gone astray we have turned every one of us to our own way and hee hath laid on him the iniquity of us all Here is not a consideration of people as believing people as though there must be a believing before there can be a discharge from sin but there is a consideration of people before they are believing people even while they are a people going astray and turning every one to their owne way But the most notable expression of all to this purpose is in the 15. of John I desire you that you would seriously consider the strength of Christs plea in that place about the 4. 5. ver you see Christ comparing himself in the beginning of the Chapter saith I am the Vine and my Father is the Husbandman every branch in me that beareth fruit my Father purgeth it that it may bring forth more fruit every branch in me that beareth not fruit is cast forth as a branch and withereth But the main thing that I defire to be observed is this Abide in me as the branch abideth in the Vine for as the branch that abideth not in the Vine cannot bring forth fruit no more can yee except yee abide in me Out of which passage of Scripture I shall desire you to observe briefly these particulars wherein I hope it will be cleer and plain unto you that it is impossible a person should believe till Christ hath united himself to this person I know beloved there is none or at least I cannot meet with any yet that will deny but that faith or believing is a fruit of the branch that groweth upon the Vine that is one of the fruits of the Spirit that are wrought by the Spirit of Christ in those that are Christs For in the 5th Chapter of the Epistle to the Galatians towards the end of the Chapter you shall finde the Apostle reckon up the fruits of the Spirit and he takes up faith for one of those fruits amongst the rest If therefore believing be a fruit that persons beare by vertue of union to the Vine Christ then it must needs follow men must first be in Christ then believe For if persons do believe before they are vnited and their union by by a faith that they do act then surely the branch must beare this fruit before it be in the Vine before there be union And if faith be the uniter it is present before the union be made and so the branch doth bear fruit before it doth abide in the Vine contrary to Christs words For it is maintained
cleering up of this truth that a soul must be united unto Christ by Christs own power before can there be believing on him But beloved whereas we had thought the truth had been cleered up sufficiently I have found it otherwise I find that many stick and stumble at this assertion there must be believing faâ— some before there can be union with Christ and it is believing it self that makes up the firâ—â— union with him Since the last time I spake unto you I have received and I suppose from an ingenuous spirit for under such a stile it comes an objection against this assertion and weighing the objection I sinde it of weight enough to require an answer Besides I finde that divers other persons exceedingly stick and stumble at it and therefore I shall desire to cleer up this one thing both by answering such objections that may be made against it as also by letting you see what dangers necessarily follow upon the contrary I shall and do commend the candidnesse and ingenuity of those that seek to be informed in things they not yet so cleerly understand while they do it with a spirit rather seeking satisfaction then to maintain contention Object The objection proposed is briefly this Our Saviour very frequently in the Scripture holds forth believing or faith under the notion of coming unto him The inference iâ— this coming doth imply or suppose a distance between the person and Christ till there be coming The effect seems to be that he that comes to another is at distance from him till he be come The upshot or conclusion is this If believing be a coming to Christ then those persons that do thus come by believing before their believing are at distance from Christ and if at distance from Christ then there can be no union between Christ and them till their coming drawes them and makes them neerer and so their coming doth unite them The ground of this objection is taken out of some portions of Scripture divers are objected for it and one seems to have some strength with it and that is in Iohn 5. chap. and the 40. verseâ— You will not come to me that you might have life Whence it is inferred that there is no life till there be coming and this coming is believing and so consequently there can be no union till there be this believing The Argument indeed is laid as strong as may be and peradventure may seem to have an undeniable strength in it Now I shall desire and endeavour to answer this objection as candidly as it was made and it may be other objections that may be made like unto this shall be answered in the answer of this And that you may better understand the answer unto it and the truth cleared I shall answer two wayes and it shall be 1. In respect of the matter of the Argument 2. In respect of the proof of it First in respect of the matter of the Argument The matter of it is this before coming there must be a distance and coming is believing and therefore before believing there must be necessarily a distance and so consequently there must be no union Answ For answer to this beloved we are to take into consideration First what is meant by distance and then what by coming If by distance in this place be meant dis-union as it seems it is because the thing urged in the objection is that there is not a union then we shall proceed on accordingly First for this word coming you know full well that coming is but an Allegoricall expression and you must know that all coming will not necessarily infer a distance before coming Mark the expression in the 7. chapter to the Hebrews He is able to save to the utmost all them that come to God by him here is mention made of coming to God and of Christ ability to save them that come Now consider this with your selves Suppose a Believer hath been a Believer many years together and so also as long united unto Christ Whether or no doth not such a Believer still come to God by Jesus Christ Certainly Believers after they are Believers do frequently come unto God Now doth coming import a distance before there be a coming then there is a distance even a dis-union for such a distance we are speaking of between Christ and Believers themselves as oft as ever they do come Observe that in the 17. chapter of Iohn where Christ speaks to the Father himself And now Father I come to thee Here Christ comes to the Father I ask this question Was Christ at a distance or was Christ dis-united from the Father before he did come to the Father For he saith now I come to thee it seems before this coming Christ was dis-united if the Argument be good that where is coming there is a distance and this coming makes up union that was not before It seems by this there was no union but a distance between Christ himself and his Father till now at this very time that he doth come But Christ himself in that very same place testifieth the contrary saying Thou Father art in me and I in thee In a word coming it seems must import believing Suppose it be so must there be distance or dis-union alwayes before such a coming then consider this that Believers even to the end of their dayes have occasion ever and anon to renew their acts of believing that is to renew their act of coming to Christ For still take this along with you that coming and believing are all one for so faith the Objector Well is coming and believing all one then Believers have cause every day and every hour to believe a fresh that is to renew acts of believing and is there distance of dis-union before there be such coming then it must follow there must be union and dis-union and union again and dis-union again and this as frequent at there is the renewing of the acts of faith Object But some will say peradventure the first act of coming to Christ or the first act of believing doth import dis-union but all after acts of believing do not import dis-union Answ To this I answer Mark where the strength of the Argument lyeth and you shall plainly see there is the very same reason for after believing as there is for the first act of believing The first act of believing is coming and is not two three or four acts of believing coming too What coming is there more in one act of believing then in other acts of believing If this be a generall rule that believing is a coming and coming argues a distance and distance must necessarily be before coming hence it must follow in brief that it is no solid Argument persons are dis-united or not united unto Christ before the act of believing because believing is a coming unto him For you say and grant that there may be and often is a coming unto Christ by faith and yet
give him to believe actually But to say that this believing should give the first being of that life that should be in persons is to say there is not the life of the elect persons in Christ before they do believe In a word beloved I shall seriously desire you that with candidness and ingenuity of spirit you would take into your consideration those dangerous consequences that must of necessity follow if you will receive this for a Principle that there is no justification and union at all belonging unto elect persons till they do actually believe in Christ I say If this be maintained dangerous consequences must needs follow upon it if persons are not united unto Christ and doe not partake of justification before they doe believe but that believing is the instrument by which they are first united then mark what will follow upon it First this that in some respect there will be a bringing to life again the covenant of works How will that be will you say I beseech you consider it well The Apostle will tell you so as well as I The Lord told Adam at first Doe this and live If thou wilt enter into life keep the Commandements saith Christ to the rich man And the Apostle in the 10. Chap. to the Romans about the 4. and 5. verses tells us of the covenant of Works cleerly Moses saith he describing the righteousnesse of the Law saith thus He that doth these things shall even live in them mark here the covenant of Works out of these expressions is this namely for persons to do that they may live The covenant of Grace runs upon contrary terms men must first live that they may doe God in his covenant of Grace gives life first and from life comes doing In the covenant of Works there must be first doing for life Object But you will say how doth this follow out of this conceit that men must believe before they shall live in Christ Answ I answer thus you must of necessity presse upon your selves these terms or such like I must do that I may have life in Christ I must believe there is no life till I do believe now if there must be living first then there is doing before living Object But it may be you will say Faith is opposed to Works and doing Ans I answer when it is opposed to Works it be understood objectively that is it is understood of Christ believed on and not of the act it self of believing for it is certain beloved our act of believing is as much our doing as our acts of love or our acts of charity even as much our doing as any of these So that here must first be doing before life be obtained if persons must first believe before they have union with Christ Secondly if there must be our act of believing before there be participating in Christ then mark what will follow those sins which were once laid upon Christ and taken away from the elect for they could not be laid upon him unlesse they were taken from them they are it seems returned back again upon this Believer whereas they were charged upon Christ whereas Christ once paid the full price whereas upon the paiment of this price there was acknowledged full satisfaction so that those sins were once blotted out I say if there must be believing before there be union with or interest in Christ it must necessarily follow that till such believing the person of that elect doth beare his own transgression and is chargeable for his owne transgressions and his transgressions are imputed unto him But how can it stand with the glory of the Redemption of Christ that Christ should have all iniquity laid upon himself carring all iniquity like the Scape Goat into the Land of forgetfulnesse and yet till the time of that elect persons believing these sins are returned from the Land of forgetfulness whither they were once carryed and they are afresh charged upon this person agine Did Christ bear them away and did Christ return them back again Where did you ever finde that sin once taken away and carryed away by Christ from the person offending did returne back again upon the person from whom Christ took it way Thirdly suppose this that men have no interest in Christ till actually they do believe in him then it must follow that these persons till they are actually believers are under the hatred of God For if they bear their own transgressions themselves then God being a jealous God his holy and pure nature everlastingly hating iniquity and also the person upon whom iniquity is charged there must be a hatred of God upon these persons till they do believe and to conceive that God doth hate these persons is to conceive that God may love and hate the same person whereas he saith in the 19. Chap. to the Romans concerning Jacob that being yet unborn Jacob have I loved here you see love is communicated to Jacob being yet unborn Now mark Jacob when he was not yet born was not an actuall believer till after times Jacob was not come to believe Well had Jacob no interest in Christ and the love of God till such time as he did believe Yea bee had so saith the Text. I but yet Iacob must be hated till he doth believe because Jacob till he doth believe must bear his own transgressions so that here must be at the â—ame time upon the same person both the love and hatred of God and how can these contraries stand together Yet again Suppose persons have no interest in Christ untill they dâ—e actually believe it must follow from thence necessarily that there is a believing in such persons before they have union with Christ and then you must make some other root from whence this believing of persons must spring as for Christ it hath nothing to do with him for he hath nothing in regard of communicating his Grace Spirit to do with them but they are Beuevers and their believing is that which knits the knot between Christ and them Whence comes this believing where is the root of it Is Christ the root then have they first union with Christ that they may receive it from him then must they first be united unto Christ and made one with him and live in him and by vertue of union with him receive this faith as a fruit of that union If it proceed from some other root I beseech you consider how it can be and how can this be avoided but that this conceit must needs be exceeding derogatory to Christ to make another foundation besides Christ whereas in Heb. 12. it is expresly said there Christ is the author as well as the finisher of faith Beloved upon these confiderations for my own part I have receiv'd this principle that I have delivered unto you and meerly the vindication of the glorious priviledges which are proper peculiar unto Christ alone is the occasion that I do refer the being
righteousness but the righteousness of faith must be considered meerly only as it is Christ alone and not as it is any righteousnesse of faith it self as I may so speak If any strength of faith be brought in as concurrent to that righteousnesse that pleads out the discharge of a sinner over and above what is simply and only Christs own righteousnesse I say that is no righteousnesse to be pleaded nor hath power nor force in plea at all I shall give two or three passages by way of hint It is true the Apostle in the 10. to the Romans tells us The righteousnesse of faith speaks on this wise importing a righteousnesse of faith which indeed before was called the righteousnesse of God himself they submitted not themselves to the righteousnesse of God but beloved I take it the righteousnesse here is called the righteousnesse of faith as faith is the hand that doth close with the righteousnesse of God not as if this righteousnesse were properly faith but meerly objective as we say Faith as it lays hold upon that righteousnesse which is onely Christ the object thereof in 1. Rom. verse 16. the Apostle saith there I am not ashamed of the Gospel of Christ for it is the power of God to salvation to every one that believeth Mark it well here is the power of God to salvation revealed In what is the power of God to salvation It is in it saith the Apostle that is in the Gospel of which hee was not ashamed so it is the power of God to salvation to every one that believeth but the power of God to salvation is not in believing but in it that is in the Gospel And what is the Gospel of Christ there Certainly the Gospel of Christ there is not faith but the object of itâ— For it is said to be revealed from faith to faith But if you looke into the 2. or Luke and the 10. verse there you shall see plainly what the Gospel of Christ is An Angel came from Heaven to the Shepherds and speaks thus Behold I bring you glad tidings that is I Evangelizâ— so the word is in the originall â—â—ring you glad ridings of exceeding great joy for unto you is born this any in the City of David a Saviour that is Christ the Lord. The word Gospel in the Romans is the very same word drawn from the same theame with that in the 2. of Luke verse 10. It is as much as to say the Gospel is glad ridings of great joy and what are these glad tidings A Saviour is born unto you So Christ a Saviour born to men is the Gospel and saith the Apostle I am not ashamed of it that is I am not ashamed of Christ borne a Saviour for this reason Christ is the power of God to salvation to every one that believeth In the 1. of Peter and the 1. Chapter the Apostle tells us Wee are kept by the power of God through faith unto salvation where it is plainly imported that faith unto salvation is the thorrow fare it is but a meer chanell through which the righteousnesse of Christ doth run not communicating any righteousnesse it self by which a person may stand righteous before God or have discharge by the Lord or from the Lord. This I would fain know beloved in every act or in any act of believing is the act of believing absolutely perfect and compleat in all things without any defect at all or weaknesse Or Is there some imperfection There is some imperfection you must say If then there be imperfection this I would fain known how that thing that hath imperfection that hath unrighteousnesse in it self can constitute a person by it self righteous Can Faith chargeable with unrighteousnesse make a person unrighteous in himself stand righteous before God The Apostle in the 7. to the Hebrews telling us of Christ saith It behoveth us to have such an high Priest harmlesse holy undefiled and separate from sinners if Christ himself had had finfulnesse with his righteousnesse that very righteousnesse of Christ it self would not have served the turn and therefore it behoved him to be holy harmlesse and undefiled and withouâ— offence Beloved Christ himself could not constitute us righteous before the Father if he himself had not been holy and without sin and can it be imagined that faith that hath unrighteousnesse in it self can make us righteous This is the summe of that I shall speake at this time I hope the things that I have spoken will not be offensive to any for I desire freely that this and all that I have or shall deliver unto you may be received as they agree with the light of the Gospel that is to be the rule to measure all truths by and the rest that remainâ— I shall come to the next day SERMON VII 1 John 2. vers 1 2. My little children these things I write unto you that you sin not And if any man sin we have an Advocate with the Father Jesus Christ the righteous and he is the propitiation for our sins WE have observed already First from the connexion of both verses together the latter containing an Argument in it to inforce a charge in the former That the making known of this discharge from sin before sin be committed is so far from opening a gap unto licentiousness that it is one of the best means in the world to restrain men from licentiousnesse Secondly we came to consider the Argument and in the Argument the matter of it and the force of it The Argument that prevails with men not to sin is That if any maâ— sin he hath an Advocate with the Father Wee have considered what this Advocateship is and I shewed â—is a plea grounded upon Justice We have â—â—â—er considered for whose cause it is First it is the cause of Believers and the cause of Believers when they sin and not only the cause of present Believers but of the Elect although not yet Believers which yet in time shall be such We came also to consider how Christ this Advocate is qualified unto this office of Advocateship The qualifications of Christ are intimated in the three titles here attributed unto him First he is Christ that imports 1. A lawfull call to plead 2. A sufficient furnishing him with skill to plead Secondly he is Jesus importing the efficaciousnesse of his plea He pleads so well that he saves his people from their sins he carries the cause Thirdly Christs qualification to his office of Advocateship is imported in that attribute of Righteousnesse Jesus Christ the righteous and that contains in it the strengh of his plea whereby he doth attain to the salvation of those persons whose cause be doth plead Concerning this last attribute we have observed that the righteousnesse of Christ contains in it the strength oâ— Christs plea as Advocate whereby he doth become the propitiation for the sins of his clients I say the strength of his plea lies in this that he
there may be union before such coming But now to come to the proofes to the texts of Scripture that are brought in for the confirmation of it You will not come to me that you might have life The strength of the Argument it seems lies in this there is no life till there be coming and coming is for life it self there fore there is no union till there be coming by way of believing For answer to this and so to cleer up the meaning of the Holy Ghost In this text of Scripture we are first to consider what our Saviour means by coming in this place You will not come to me And secondly we shall consider what this life is that Christ speaks of which they should have in coming to him And to begin with the first what that coming is our Saviour speaks of in in this place You will not come to me that you might have life I will not insist upon this that Christ did speak to the opposers men that did contest with him and so that he doth speak to persons with reference and relation unto others For I verily believe though our Saviour speaks this to the Pharisces who certainly never should come to 〈◊〉 Christ nor have life by Christ yet his intent was to speak to them to whom the life of Christ did belong and who should come to him Let us therefore I say consider what he means by coming in this place In Iohn 6. vers 44. there you shall have our saviour plainly expounding unto you what he doth mean by coming unto him No man saith he there cometh unto me except the Father which hath sent me draw him Mark the expression well and therein you shall perceive what Christ means by first coming unto him For in that place You will not come to me that you might have life Christ speaks of first coming and not of after coming No wan cometh unto me except the Father which hath sent me draw him In which words you may perceive the act of first coming to Christ is rather by and from the Father then by any activity in the person that comes For coming there is plainly attributed unto a drawing act of the Father So that the first coming to Christ is just like the coming of a froward childe to meet the mother the childe hath taken a stomach and is sullen and dogged the childe will not stir if the childe be carried it strives and strugles wherefore the Father of this childe is fain to take up this childe and by a kinde of force to carry it with an overmastering strength where meat is The childe comes to his meat but how not by any act of the childe as if he did come of himself but by the power and over-mastering of him that brings the childe A coach we say comes to town when it is but drawn to town and yet it is said to come The Coach is wholly passive the childe is passive in coming to meat and so every elect person at his first coming to Christ the coming of this elect person to Christ is a passive coming And the coming of this person is nothing else but the Fathers over-mastering and drawing of this person elected unto Christ In the 31. of Ieremiah the Lord speaking there of the conversion of Ephraim Thou hast chastised me saith Ephraim I was chastised as a bullock unacquainted to the yoak convert thou me and I shall be converted Ephraim here appropriates the act of his conversion not to any coming of his own but only to the Lord himself acknowledging that the work of bringing unto Christ is the work of Gods own drawing nay he sheweth that he himself was so far from coming that he did confesse that when God took him first in hand to bring him to Christ he was as a bullock unaccustomed to the yoak It is true in a common speech the bullock is said to come unto the yoak even a bullock unaccustomed but how by meer force he is brought to it and not that he is brought willingly to it Beloved you must either establish the rotten Principle of Free-will that is a pervious principle of a mans own spirit to come to Christ or you must confesse that persons at their first coming unto Christ are meerly passive It is a known principle we are first acted or actuated before we do or can act there is not only a weaknesse simply before calling but there is a deadnesse and therefore there cannot be coming and if there be it is meerly passive and the whole businesse must be the Fathers own drawing In the 110. Psalme and about the 3. verse the Lord speaks to Christ thus Thy people shall be a willing people in the day of thy power There is no willingnesse till the over-ruling and overcoming power of Christ comes in to make and frame a willingnesse even contrary to the naturall will The summe then briefly is this and so to apply it to the Text objected You will not come to me that you might have life that is it hath not pleased the Father to draw you unto me that you might have life I cannot conceive how there can be any other sense given to the Text but that it is the Fathers sole and only power and the overcoming act of his to bring to Christ that there may be life Now what will be the sense of the words it will be only his there is no principle of life from Christ â—ill the Father by his over-ruling and overâ—nastering power do bring unruly and crosse spirits unto Christ Object But it may be some will say though this coming to Christ be the act of the Fathers drawing yet there is an act of believing when the Father doth draw Answ I answer it is not possible there â—hould be an act of our believing while the Father is first drawing mark what believing is in summe and substance it is but a yeelding to â—he minde of the Lord revealed I say the yeelding of mans spirits to the minde or God while persons are contradicting persons they are not believing persons in respect of those things that they do contradict To believe and to contradict the same thing is a contradiction For to believe is to sit down satisfied with the thing that is related and reported as long therefore as persons are contradicting persons as long as their spirits are crosse spirits as long as they do kick against that which God doth propose unto them so long do they not believe Now while the Father is drawing that very drawing is an argument of resisting and a kinde of kicking against that which the Father doth aim at For if there were yeelding if there were a submitting if there were a willing coming on to the truth reveald what need there any drawing men do not draw those things that do come of themselves And therefore I say during the Fathers first act of drawing the Father laying violent hold as it were upon