Dr. upon the next question The words are these But if the Spirit of him that raised up jesus from the dead dwell in you he that raised up Christ from the dead shall also quicken your mortal bodies by his spirit which dwelleth in you and if Christ be in you the body is dead because of sin but the spirit is life because of righteousness ver 10. His interpretation of the verse is excellent in my mind and it is to this sense as I apprehend it That when we are Christians and have the Spirit of Christ dwelling in us and the presence of Christ by his Spirit we shall be sensible how far yet we remain unsanctified and that unsanctified part in us which the Apostle calls the body of death and desires to be delivered from will appear as ghastly and deadly a thing to us as the dead body tyed by Mezentius to the living did to him because Christ is living in us But yet now our Christian faith teacheth us to believe that though the body be dead because of sin that is there be a great part of us yet unsanctified and dead because of sinful remainders in it and by reason of this unsanctified part or body of death in us we are exceeding heavy and indisposed to all holiness and goodness yet that the Spirit of Christ in us is life and righteousness and will by degrees qvicken those very dead unsanctified parts that are yet within us for if the Spirit of him that raised up Christ from the dead dwell in us he that raised up Christ from the dead shall also quicken our mortal hodies that is that unsanctified part that is at present dead in sin by his Spirit which dwelleth in us Dr. More 's words are We finding a comfortable warmth in the grateful arrivals of the holy Spirit do believe That he that raised up Christ from the dead wil in due time even quicken these our mortal bodies or these dead bodies of ours and make them conspire and come along with ease and chearfulness and be ready and active complying instruments in alll things with the Spirit of Righteousness Which belief viz. that God will thus by his Spirit quicken our mortal bodies is saith he a chief point in the Christian faith and most of all parallel to that of Abrahams who believing in the goodness and power and faithfulness of God had when both himself and his Wife Saraah were dry and dead as to natural generation and so hopeless of ever seeing any fruiâ— of her Womb who had I say Isaac born to him who bears joy and laughter in the very Name oâ— him and was undoubtedly a type of Christ according to the spirit For Isaac is the wisedom power and righteousness of God flowing our and effectually branching it self so through all the faculties both of man's soul and body that the whole man is carryed away with joy and triumph to the acting all whatsoever is really and substantially good even with as much satisfaction and pleasure as he eats when he is hungry and drinks when he is dry And these now according to the designe of the Dis Discourse are acts of a Gospel-faith which justifie us as Abraham's believing in the power of God for a Son did justifie him I come now to another Question which is this How doth Faith justifie The fifth question of Iustification or under what notion and consideration doth faith justifie Now to this I answer that Faith justifies as our Righteousness It doth not justifie as some affirm only by relying upon the blood of Christ or apprehending the righteousness of Christ for I have given instances of several acts of faith which were justifying acts that had not this respect at all unto the blood of Christ at least not visibly and the reward of Justification was reckoned to them upon other accounts Abraham was fully perswaded that God was ABLE TO PERFORM and THEREFORE it was imputed to him for righteousness Rom. 4.21 22. Yea I have given instances of a faith in Christ that was justifying and yet was not directed to the blood of Christ by any thing that appears in the Scriptures quoted No faith it self is our righteousness faith in the power of God was Abraham's righteousness and faith in the power of God according as our necessities at any time require will be our righteousness But more especially faith in the power of Christ or in the blood of Christ is our Gospel-righteousness though as I affirmed before there cannot be true faith in God now in the dayes of the Gospel but it will turn into a faith in Christ as well as in God And for this Assertion that Faith is our Righteousness I shal give several Scriptures Rom. 4.3 What saith the Scripture Abraham believed God and it was counted to him for righteousness that is his believing in God and relying upon his power and faithfulness for the fulfilling of his promise this faith of his was accepted so farr was so highly pleasing to God that God made him his friend Jam. 2.22 23. and reputed and reckoned him through grace as righteous as if he had kept the whole Law So Rom. 4. ver 5. To him that believeth in God that justifieth the ungodly his faith is counted to him for righteousness What plainer expression can there be than this for our Assertion his faith is counted for righteousness to him or for his righteousness And for a little proof from the testimony of others for this Assertion I reckon is somwhat harsh see what Mr Baxter and Mr John Goodwin say upon it In his Aphorisms of Justification Thesis 20. pag. 108. saith Mr Baxter Our Evangelical righteousness is not without us in Christ as our Legal righteousness is but consisteth in our own actions of Faich and Gospel-obedience Thesis 23. pag. 125. In this sense also it is so farr from being an errour to affirm that faith it self is our righteousness that it is a truth necessary for every Christian to know that is Faith is out Evangelical righteousness in the sense before explained as Christ is our Legal righteousness And in the explication of this Thesis pag. 128. he hath these words Our Evangelical righteousness or Faith is imputed to us for as real righteousness as perfect obedience not that it is as much in true value yet it is so accepted because of the value of Christ's satisfaction Thesis 57. pag. 225. It is the act of faith which justifies men at age and not the habit yet not as it is a good work or as it hath in it self any excellency above other graces But 1. in the nearest sense directly and properly as it is the fulfilling the condition of the new Covenant in the remote and more improper sense as it is the receiving of Christ and his satisfactory righteousness Mr John Goodwin likewise declares himself not to be of their minde who conceive or teach That faith justifies as it is an instrument receiving
Joh. 37.10 Rom. 8.1 Besides the Apostle in his Epistle to the Romans where he is more large in the vindication of his Doctrine concerning Justification by Faith then elsewhere in any place speaketh expresly of the constituting i. e. of the actual making of men just or righteous c. 5.19 that is the investing men with the state of Justification but no where mentioneth any thing concerning the manifestation of such a state And the truth is that the contest about Justification wherein be ingaged against the Jews with so much zeal so much ardencie of desire to convince them with such variety of exquisite and ponderous arguing to bring the truth to light against which they contended with him the contest I say had hardly been worth all this oleum opera all this solemnitie and height of ingagement by such a man had it been onely about the manifestation and not about the way and means of procuring a justified estate An account of this assertion might be given if need were Another thing worthy consideration about the great Subject of the Treatise is whether if so why justification or Forgiveness of sins is ascribed as well to such acts of Faith which do not at least directly or immediately relate unto Christ or unto the death of Christ as unto these which do Thou wilt sinde here more produced from the Scriptures to prove the 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 of such an ascription then as farr as my reading and memory can inform me is to be met with elsewhere and as much said upon a rational and probable account for clearing the 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 or reason of it as may be sufficient to quiet the thoughts of men in the case For it doth not bear hard at all either upon the Wisedom of God or upon any of his words in the Scripture to conceive that any act from a believing frame or disposition of soul in man towards God should reduce him under the Divine Decree of Justification and so interesse him in the benefit or blessing hereof considering that every such act doth arguitive as the School-men speak that is virtually and consequentially comprehend in it such an act of believing also which is directly and immediately acted upon Christ or his death It is a rule in the Civil Law â—avores sunt ampliandi the meaning is that such passages or clauses in the Law which were intended in way of favour or benefit unto men ought to be interpreted in the largest and most comprehensive sense that the words will any way bear as on the other hand there is this rule In odiosis stricte facienda est interpretatio Such sayings in the Law which concern the punishment of persons in one kind or other are to be understood in as narrow and restrained a sense as the words will permit Doubtless these notions for the expounding of Laws both in the one case and the other are equitable agreeable to reason and the light of nature and consequently are to be found in the nature of God himself who as the Scripture informeth us made man in his own image or likeness and vested the same or the like principles or impressions of Reason Equity and Understanding in him with those that were in himself So that it need be no great matter of wonder that God should be very indulgent and large in interpreting such clauses in the Gospel which relate unto the justification and salvation of men and consequently should finde justifying Faith in such acts of believing which may any waies even by the most abstruse subtile or profound way of arguing be conceived to evince or comprehend it Whether upon every reiterated or repeated act of believing the believer is justified afresh if so what doth a supervenient act of Justification profit him that is perfectly justified already or how is there place for the effect of such an act as that of Justification in him all whose sins by means of his being in Christ are already pardoned by God or if not what should be the reason why one act of the same Faith should not justifie as well as another Are problemes worthy the consideration and inquiry of an ingenuous Student in the mysterious science of Justification These also or some of them are ingeniously discussed and endeavoured to be resolved in this Treatise Doubtless every new act of believing doth not procure or bring unto him that so acteth a new justification properly so called and which consisteth in remission of sins Nor is this any disparagement to an after-act of believing in comparison of any former or the first act in this kinde by which Justification in this sense was obtained nor doth it argue any whit less acceptance of it with God For as the saying in natural Philosophy is Quiequid recipitur recipitur ad modum recipientis the qualification or condition of the Subject doth often if not alwaies modifie the effect of the act that is exercised or acted upon it So he who by virtue of a former act of believing remains and is in a complete state of Justification all his sins being forgiven him by God is not capable of receiving the forgiveness of them at least in the same sense or kind the second time because he needeth iâ— not For it being unpossible for God in respect of the infinity of his Wisedom to do any thing superstuous no creature can be in a regular capacity of receiving any matter of grace or favour from him unless in one respect or other it standeth in need of it Every repeated act of Faith doth indeed obtain from God another kind of Justification I mean Approbation which is oft in Scripture expressed and this without any great acyrology or impropriety of speech by the word Justification For though men were approved of him before as well as justified yet Approbation being susceptive of magis and minus or of degrees which Justification strictly taken is not they may be oft approved yet not often in that sense justified their former justification remaining That forgiveness of sins which Christ teacheth us to ask of God dayly either imports the continuation of the first act whereby he justified us which it is meet we should ask of him in respect of our new and dayly transgressions or which I rather conceive yet with submission Gods forbearing to punish us with temporal punishments for our dayly sins being at liberty we know thus to punish us notwithstanding our justified estate if he be not intreated by us in this respect to forgive us Other great and high concernments the care of repeated acts of belicoing which are not proper to be mentioned here 〈…〉 in Christ or in God by means of Christ for the Scripture useth both expressions indifferently qualifieth and inricheth the soul with all principles of righteousness and goodness and so constitutes a person inherently just and righteous some of late have conceived that in this notion or consideration it justifieth and that God
what other soever actions or acts can be certainly ascribed unto God with relation to his own Essence but with relation to his creatures no other can be conceived but in the way of purposing and decreeing what he would be pleased to do in time 't is very true what that Scripture assirms that known unto God are all his works from the beginning of he world Acts 15.18 that is which he intended to work But that God should be said to do any action adextra that is without himself such as Justification is which is terminated upon another person without the compass of his own Essence when yet there was nothing but himself in being is to me a contradiction God might indeed in the eternal counsel of his own uncontroulable Wil Pleasure PURPOSE to juscifie such and such persons after he had made them but what is this to actual Justification It may be as wel said in my mind that the World was created faom eternity because God purposed in his Eternal Counsels to create the World as it can be said that any were justified from eternity because God purposed from all eternity to justifie them Purpose and Decree is one thing Acting and Performance is another 3. I cannot understand any countenance which this opinion hath from Scripture when the Scripture comes to speak of Justification it expresseth it self as of an action done in time onely Rom. 4.3 What saith the Scripture Abraham believed God and it was counted to him for righteousness Ver. 10. How was it thon reckoned WHEN he was in circumcision or in uncircumcision Not in circumcision but in uncircumcision that is in the time of his uncircumcision Abraham is not said to have been justified from eternity but upon his actual believing and this actual believing was in the time of his uncircumcision 4. Seeing justification follows onely upon Faith as the Scripture tells us Justification cannot be before Faith Now Faith is onely in time therefore Justification was not in Eternity which was before all time I shall trouble my self with no more as to the answer of the first question Whether Justification be in Eternity or in Time Now follows the second question If it be in time at what time is it And how often is it Once onely or oftner Here are two questions more in one 1. At what time is it Now for answer Seeing that the righteousness of Faith is the righteousness which God alone accepts unto Justification therefore Justification commenceth onely from the time of our believing When was Abraham justified Why when he believed that therefore is the time of Justification its beginning The Question therefore now before us is onely this Whether this one act of Justification which presently follows upon our act of believing serves for the justification of our persons as long as we live or whether there be any repetition of God's act of Justification upon our persons afterwards Now for answer to this which is indeed no contemptible Quest I say 1. That indeed the first act of Justification when Divine approbation comes upon us according to the Law and Statute of the New-Covenant Acts 13.39 That by him all that believe are justified putsi us into a state of favour and if there be no intercision in the state which the Arminians hold there may be this first act is the great and famous act that makes us happy and blessed But yet 2dly I hold that seeing Justification chiefly consists in pardoning of sins according to that Scripture Acts 13.38 39. Be it known unto you therefore men and brethren that through this man is preached unto you the forgiveness of sins and by him all that believe are JUSTIFIED FROM ALL THINGS FROM WHICH YE COULD NOT BE JUSTIFIED by the Law of Moses every renewed act of Pardon is a renewed act of Justification for though the first act of God's justifying us upon our turning to God do acquit us from all our sins till that moment yet every new sin brings a new guilt for which we might justly be condemned without a new act of justifying grace and though every new sin doth not put us out of the state of justification yet it requires a new act of justifying grace for the continuing the state and this makes the Advocateship of Christ necessary to be continued who when any Saint commits a sin he interposeth with his Father that upon his repentance a pardon may be issued forth in the Court of heaven for that soul as to that sin This I hold necessary even for every sinfull infirmity of any Saint of God that is I hold Christ's intercession and our habitual repentance at least and faith necessary chough many times there cannot be actual repentance and faith for pardon as in the case of secret and unobserved sins But yet even in such cases our habitual and general repentance is necessary together with Christ's intercession and a renewed act of pardon unto our justification * I would not be thought to make this continued justification which consists in continued pardon to be of like consâ—teration with the first act of pardouing justifying grace at first believing I only contend for this That it is true and necessary justification And in extraordinary cases the truth of my assertion will be much more visible for when any Saint commits such a great sin as according to the doctrine of the Remonstrants makes him no Saint for the time here must certainly be repeated a new famous act of Justification according to their doctrine as famous as the first was as well as a new act of conversion Luke 22.32 But I need not go to this Supposition of a Saints falling away for I can shew that this is no absonous or unheard of thing in the Scripture that Justification may be repeated even upon a Saint of God that keeps his standing See that Scripture in James 2.21 Was not Abraham our father justified by works when he had offered up Isaac his son upon the Altar ver 22. And the Scripture was then fulfilled which saith Abraham believed God and it was imputed unto him for righteousness Now when was this Justification of Abraham which is here mentioned Why it was at least thirteen years after Abrahams first famous Justification for that was upon his believing that God would give him a Son this was upon his offering up the Son after he was given when he was grown up to be a stout Lad and could carry the wood for his father up the hill That first act of Justification passed upon him when Abraham himself was in uncircumoision this after he and all his family were circumcised therefore the act of Justification may be repeated over several times upon the same person And for a little countenance for this from the authority of Authors Mr Baxter in his Aphorismes makes mention of a threefold Justification inchoate continued and sinall Thesis 59. pag. 233. Justification is not a momentaneous act begun
and ended immediately upon our believing but a continued act which though it be in its kinde compleat from the first yet is it still in doing till the final Justification at the Judgment day Pag. 303. Abraham was justified long before Isaac was offered yet Justification being a continued act God is still justifying and the Gospel still justifying and Abraham's Justification was not ended before Isaac was offered nor then neither and therefore was then in a proper sense said to be justified when he offered up Isaac these latter expressions which I add are full to Mr Baxter's sense in that place It is all one in my minde whether we use the word repeated or continued when we apply them to Justification for I think an act can be no otherwise continued but by repetition The best simâ—le of an act continued is a mathematical Line which they say is fluxus punctorum and yet points have no other continuity but by repetition I know a learned man that answers this by distinguishing upon Justification telling us that Justification may be taken either for Universal pardon of sins which is done at first believing or else it is taken for divine approbation the first he saith viz. General pardon is done but once but acts of approbation may be frequented as here they were upon Abraham and so he said to be justified twice though he kept his standing in grace betwixt the two acts of his Justification Now I do not deny that there are these two things in Justification viz. Pardon and Approbation but since pardon of particular sins is often repeated as well as acts of Approbation therefore methinks Justification may well be said to be repeated in both these parts of it though I alwaies hold that the first act of Universal pardon is the most famous Quest 2. about Iuâ—ification For what â—cts weare justified So much for the first Question about the time of Justification Now for the second Question proposed which was this For what act or acts is a person justified I answer first generally for the acts of faith primarily for the other good actions or good works secondarily but more particularly I shall answer first negatively 1 Negatively A man is not justified only for that act of faâ—th which respects the death and blood of Christ A man is not justified only for that act of faith which respects the death and blood of Christ and the reason is evident for that Justification in the Scripture is applyed to other acts of faith besides this Abraham was justified for his faith in the power of God that he would give him a Son when he and Sarah were both old Rom. 4.16 17 18. Who against hope believed in hope that he might become the Father of many Nations ver 21. Being fully perswaded that what he had promised he was ABLE also to perform and THEREFORE it was imputed to him for Righteousness So again there was another justifying act of his faith when he being commanded of God offered up his son Isaac that is did as good as offer him up shewed his true willingness and readiness to it the knise was at his Son's throat and this act of faith is said to be imputed to him for righteousness Jam. 2.23 Now neither of these acts of faith are said to be in the blood of Christ and yet are said by the Scripture to be justifying acts If it be objected that these acts of Abrahams faith had respect to Christ who was the promised seed as well as Isaac Object Abrahams faith had respect to Christ and that his sacrificing Isaac shewed his faith in the sacrifice of Christ I answer 1. I deny not but Abraham saw Christ's day by faith and rejoyced 2. How farr Abraham saw Chrift's death and offering I cannot say But 3. whatever was the knowledge or faith of Abraham concerning Christ these answers are â—at trivial in the present case for the Scriptures lay the stress of Gods approving or justifying Abraham upon his faith in the power of God at least they do openly referr Justification to this faith of his that God could give him a Son notwithstanding the deadness of his own body and the deadness of Sarah 's womb and then that he was able to raise him from the dead after that he had offered him up and so to raise a great Nation out of him Heb. 19.11 compared with James 2.21 23. which was only or especially an act of faith in the power of God and these men impertinently carry it to somewhat else which is uncertain if not untrue I shall insist only upon one more act of faith which was justifying and yet was not chiefly consisting of a respect unto the blood of Christ if it had that at all in it and it is the faith of Noah Heb. 11.7 By faith Noah being warned of God of things not seen as yet moved with fear prepared an Ark to the saving of his house BY WHICH he condemned the world and BECAME HEIR OF THE RIG HTEOUSNESS WHICH IS BY FAITH Here was a work of Faith in the threatning of a Flood and precept of building of an Ark and the stress of his Justification is chiefly laid upon his fear of Gods judgments and faithfull obedience to the command of building an Ark which proceeded from a firm belief of the threatning and BY IT is said to become an heir of the righteousness which is by faith I might likewise instance in the act of Rahab's faith which is said to be justifying James 2 8â— seems to have been only this as appears by the story that she received the Spyes and trusted in Gods power for their and her deliverance and in the faith of Phineas who had such a couragious zealous faith that he killed a Prince and a Princess at once with his own hand for committing lewdness and this is said to be accounted unto him for righteousness unto all generations for evermore Psal 6.31 but I shall mention no more But thus you see that there are other acts of faith unto which justification is imputed as well as the act of faith in Christs blood therefore that is not the only act of justifying faith as such If it be objected as it may well be that these are instances of justifying faith in the dayes of the Old Testament when faith in the blood of Christ was not so necessary but now that faith in the blood of Christ is necessary that is the only justifying act I answer 1. That for those men that are most zealous for the opinion That faith as directed to the death and blood of Christ is the only act of faith as justifying they hold that faith in Christ was as necessary under the Old Testament unto salvation as it is now and unto these I suppose the instances of faith as justifying in other acts prove pertinently enough That faith in the blood of Christ is not the only act of justifying faith 2. I affirm
that even in the dayes of the Gospel other acts of faith justifie besides that by which we have immediate respect to the blood of Christ I shall prove this second Assertion by Argument and Scripture 1. By Argument Certainly in the times of the Old Testament though I verily believe that saith in the death and blood of Christ was not necessary to Justification yet they had something in their faith that did answer our faith in the blood of Christ as perhaps a respect to the mercies of God and Gods readiness to be appeased which readiness in God was manifested by the Sacrifices which he had appointed Now I will argue by analogie If the Jewes had some such like object for their faith as the blood of Christ is to us and yet were not justified only by their fixing upon that object but for other acts of faith as is evident in the instances given then nothing hinders but we may be justified by other acts of our faith as well as that in the blood of Christ I will give another argument to prove my Assertion somewhat like this We are commanded in the Gospel John 5.23 That all men should honour the Son as they honour the Father and wherein did Abraham glorifie God so much as by his strong faith Rom. 4.20 If therefore our duty be to honour Christ by believing as ever any of the ancient Saints honoured God the Father why will not the same faith in the power of Christ justifie as did when it was placed in the power of God which yet I have proved that it did justifie Now for Scriptures c. I shall give several instances of faith in the power of Christ or at least in some attribute and excellency of Christ besides his blood which justified Luke 5.18 19 20. There was a great faith of the paralytick man and his friends that if he could but come to Christ he should be healed and therefore they opened the roof of the house and let him down through the tiling in his Couch and when Jesus saw cheir faith that is of the sick man and those that brought him he said unto him Man thy sins are forgiven thee Here is forgiveness of sins which is Justification upon a faith only to be healed whether it were in the goodness or power of Christ it was not faith in his blood for this man was as ignorant of that mystery sure as the Disciples of Christ were who yet understood little or nothing of it Luke 18.33 34. I shall give but two instances more of this and they are expresly of faith in the power of Christ as doubtless the former instance had much of this faith in it it is in Math. 9.28 29 30. There are two blinde men healed and restored to their sight and that purely upon their faith which great mercy coming in upon their faith was certainly a great token of divine approbation though indeed it be not then said that their sins were forgiven them Now what is the proper object of their faith at this time It is the power of Christ to help them Jesus saith unto them Believe yee that I am able to do this They said unto him Yea Lord then touched he their eyes saying According to your faith so be it unto you and their eyes were opened The last instance is of the Centurion's faith which I must needs say I think as pertinent an instance as either of the two former for his faith is highly approved of Christ I have not found so great faith no not in Israel as in this stranger to Israel and upon it speaks of him and others that are none of the children of the Kingdome that is not natural Jewes that yet shall go to heaven before these that are therefore I doubt not but this was a justifying faith in the Centurion Now let us see the compass of this Faith or wherein it chiefly manifested it self Why it was onely in this that Christ was able to cure his servant of the Palsie nay he thought that diseases were as much under the power of Christ to cure as the Centurions servants were under him to command he could make Diseases come and go as his servants would at his command Mat. 8 from the 5. to the 14. Having given instances of Faith in Christ which justifies besides Faith in his blood I shall give one general proof from a most remarkable Scripture out of the New-Testament for faith as justifying which onely carries in it a dependance upon God and Christ in straits and persecutions and distresses And indeed I must confess the former instances are not of so full proof to my particular though they are of good use because til Christ's death faith in his blood was not so necessary if at all necessary to Justification as afterwards but this place which I shall now give wil be beyond all exception it is Heb. 10.36 37 38. For ye have need of patience for yet a little while and he that shall come will come and will not tarry Now the just shall live by faith and if any man draw back my soul shall have no pleasure in him The Hebrews here were under great persecutions for the profession of the Gospel and they were somewhat inclined to Apostacy which here the Author of this Epistle endeavours to prevent by promises and threatnings 't is but a little while and he that shall come will come and will not tarry 't is not long saith he ere deliverance wil come one way or other either by the coming of Christ to judgement or some temporal deliverance In Habbakkuk it is The Vision is yet for an appointed time though it tarry wait for it And in the mean time saith the Author of this Epistle while the Vision tarries whilst he that is coming tarries wait his coming and endeavour to support your selves by faith for the just shall live by faith that is Faith wil keep him alive in straits The life that I live in the stesh saith Paul I live by the faith of the Son of God And saith Habakkuk Although the Fig-Tree should not blossome neither shall fruit be in the Vine c. when he describes a Famine yet I will rejoice in the Lord I will joy in the God of my salvation Hab. 3.17 18. This could be done onely by such a Faith as the Hebrews are provoked to live by This faith you see therefore by which the just live may be as wel a dependance upon the goodness and providence and power of God to support us in or deliver us out of straits and difficulties as resting upon the blood of Christ and that this living by Faith upon the Power of God and goodness of God here spoken of is an act of justifying-Faith nothing is plainer for that this is the great sentence the Apostle quotes to prove Justification by Faith out of the Old-Testament Rom 1.17 Gal. 3.11 when yet the occasion upon which it is delivered by Habbakkuk ch
2,4 was much like that of the Hebrews and therefore there is more of that place quoted in the Hobrews than in the Romans or Galatians Therefore if the Apostle would prove Justification by Faith out of this Scripture he must at least allow it as justifying in that case in which it is particularly used in the original place which was resting upon the providence of God in a time of danger therefore resting upon the providence of God in a time of danger is an act of Faith as justifying even in the dayes of the Gospel therefore there are other acts of justifying-Justifying-Faith even in the days of the Gospel besides that of resting upon the blood of Christ 2dly Therefore my great Assertion is That all acts of true Faith justifie though there is I believe some special excellency in that act which respects the blood of Christ but if our Faith be but a right new-testament-New-Testament-Faith every act of it justifies As under the Old-Testament they that had all things that were essential to an Old-Testament Faith were justified over and over by every renewed act of Faith whether in one kind or another in one case or another One man's Faith shews it self in a time of Famine as Habbakkuk's another in imprisonment as Jonah's and Jeremy's a third in leaving his Countrey when God calls him out as Abraham's or in believing he should have a son born when it was very unlikely in believing he should have him again from the dead after he had killed him with his own hand which was more improbable another's Faith in building an Ark as Noah's another in hiding of Spyes c. So now I say as it was then in the acts of an Old testament-Testament-Faith it is in an answerableness in the days of the New-Testament he whosoever hath all the essentials of a new-testament-New-Testament-Faith is justified over and over a thousand times according to the renewed acts of Faith if he believe as the Centurion did for his servant or as the woman of Canaan did for her daughter Matth. 16.28 or as the blind men did for themselves as the Hebrews were to do in the power and goodness of God for their deliverance or as the Galatians should have done more in the death and blood of Christ for they did evacuate the death of Christ in the way that they went Gal 2.21 I say they that exercise faith in any of these acts their faith is justifying in every of these acts onely provided that the Faith be a true new-testament-New-Testament-Faith though I may affirm once for all That there is no true faith in God but in the dayes of the New-Testament after sufficient information will prove a Faith in Christ and of a right New-Covenant strain We see this proved by the event in the Apostles days Acts 13.48 And when the Gentiles heard this they were glad and glorified the Word of the Lord and as many as were ordained to eternal life believed That is saith Dr. Hammond in his Paraphrase all they of the Gentiles that had any care or pursuit of the life to come the Gentile-Proselytes or that were fitly disposed and qualified for the Gospel to take root in received the Doctrine of Christ thus preached to them In his Annotations upon this verse he tells us That this was Mr. Mede's conjecture and that they were already believers So that their conversion was onely this That their Faith which before was a Faith in God now through that disposition and readiness that it had in it to embrace all further discoveries of the Grace of God turned into a Faith in Christ Therefore I may say where-ever there is any act of Faith in God that act is justifying and the reason now why every act of Faith exercised upon one occasion or another doth justifie is this for that it is faith in us that is our Gospel-Righteousness therefore whenever there is an act of this righteousness exerted there must eccho an act of Justification from heaven according to the Law of the New-Covenant which is sealed with the blood of Christ that whosoever believeth on God that justifieth the ungodly or on Christ his Son his Faith is counted to him for righteousness Rom. 4.5 or he shall not be ashamed Rom 10.11 He that believeth on the Son hath everlasting life John 3.36 As often therefore as thou dost any action that doth demonstrate this Faith in God or Faith in Christ so often are all thy fins pardoned so often art thou highly approved of God for there are these two things in justification We see Abraham was justified twice according to the express words of Scripture and there is a third act of his Faith recorded his going out of his own Countrey to which I doubt not might be accommodated that Scripture which St. James onely accommodates unto a latter act of Faith though it was in the original place spoken upon occasion of a former that then that Scripture was fulfilled which saith Abraham believed God and it was imputed unto him for righteousness And as Abraham was justified twice yea thrice and that for several sorts of acts of faith and the other instances given both out of the Old and New-Testaments for their various acts of Faith upon very different occasions yet all because they agreed in the general nature of faith so thou Saint whosoever thou art do but live in the actings of faith and thou art an haypy pardoned approved and juscified person All our life therefore should be a life of faith St. Paul lived no other life The life saith he which I now live in the flesh I live by the saith of the Son of God who loved me and gave himself for me Gal. 2.20 That distinguishing character one or more saith Mr. John Goodwin in his Banner of Justification displayed p. 37. of justifying-saith which we are at present inquiring after respecteth not the object but the intrinsick nature or complexion of it for at to the object it is variously exprest in the Scripture sometimes it is called a believing God Rom. 43. sometimes a believing on God Joh. 12.44 sometimes a believing on Christ or on the Son of God or on the Lord Act. 11.17 Ioh 3.18 1 Ioh. 5.10 So the object is various onely it must be for the intrinsick nature of it a believing in the heart Rom. 10.9 a believing with the heart ver 10. a believing with all the heart Act. 8.37 a faith unfeigned 1 Tim. 1 5â— a faith working by love and such a faith justifieth in all the acts of it though exercised upon disferent yet proper objects Now I find one Caution necessary to be given upon what I have delivered which is this That what I have said of faith that it justifies in every act of it to the procuring pardon of sins and Divine Approbation doth not at all confound the acts of Faith as if there were not a distinctness to be kept and observed in the actings of Faith as some may have such a
gross conception as this because I have said that the Centurion was justified for his faith in Christ for the healing of his servant and the woman of Canaan for faith for her daughter Abraham for â—ffering his son and so every man for any act of true Faith therefore if a man be to seek for the justification of his person let him find out but any thing in which Faith may act and he shall be justified As for instance I think it the duty of any that are enlightned concerning the corruptions of the Church of Chrise to believe that God wil destroy the Papal Hierarchy and all the superstitious innovations which the Church of Rome hath introduced into the Worship of God yea and I think to believe it strongly at this time when there is so great improbability of it is mighty acceptable to God and perhaps another such act of Faith as Abraham's was that he should have a son and as justifying But now if one that hath lived wickedly but now is greatly convinced of his danger as the Gaoler was should ask what he should do to besaved and justified it were a strange thing to put him upon this act of Faith That God would destroy the Pope of Rome which yet may be an act of justifying-faith to another man We would say to him as Paul and Silas did to the Gaoler when he asked this question They said Believe on the Lord Jesus and thou shalt be saved Acts 16.30 31 Believe that the blood of Christ can wash out as great stains as any of thy sins have made believe that Christ is willing to receive thee cast thy self upon his mercy and goodness Though every act of Faith juscifie yet there is a season for every act of Faith When the Centurion had a servant sick his act of Faith in the power of Christ was seasonable the womans faith for her daughter was seasonable the blind men's was seasonable Abraham's three acts were feasonable Noah's and Rahab's and that of Phineas were all seasonable Faith is a Divine faculty in the soul which hath great variety of operations e'en as many as the sight hath objects which are commended by the several seasons and occasions of acting Faith in famine seeds us in prison it sets us at liberty in weakness of nature it strengthens us yea and in weakness of Grace too Faith sometimes â—ixeth upon the Power of God sometimes upon the Wisdom sometimes upon the Faithfulness of God sometimes upon one attribute sometimes upon another Wee may see in Heb. 11. throughout the whole chap. what variety of glorious operations and effects Faith hath had Through Faith they subdued Kingdoms wrought righteousness obtained promises stopped the mouths of lyons quenched the violence of fire out of weakness were made strong women received their dead raised to life again c. ver 33. to the end All which were justifying acts of Faith onely they were seasonable and prudent he that was cast to the Lyons did not believe to have the sire quenched and they that were cast into the fire did not believe to have the mouths of the Lyons stopped Every act of faith is justifying but then faith is as an universal faculty which acts according to all the particular occasions of the soul and so it justifies I shall now add something of testimony out of Dr. More upon this second question What acts of Faith justifie because I am very sensible that my answer to it may seem very strange and sound very harshly unto some good men and I shall prove out of him so far as his Authority wil prove it That Abraham's act or acts of faith which were justifying to him were acts of faith in the Power Justice and Goodness of God and that they justifie by such their respect had unto these Attributes as also That our Gospel-Faith which indeed hath many new objects and encouragements offered to it doth justifie onely by agreeing with Abraham's faith in the general nature of faith or to use Mr. Goodwins words in the intrinsick nature and complexion of Faith which is ready to lay hold of all occasions of discovering our true and hearty dependance upon God acknowledging our own weakness renouncing all carnal confidence in any thing short of the omnipotent Power and Goodness of God And after these quotations out of him I shal proceed to some other questions In his Mysterie of Godliness p. 379. Faith saith he which is so highly commended by the Apostle I say it signifies nothing else but this in general viz. An high sense of and considence in the Power Justice and Goodnesse of God and a firm belief that he will assuredly bring to pass whatsoever he hath promised seem it never so unlikely and dissicult to flesh and blood And this is that which is so highly commended in Abraham as it is plain in the 4th to the Romans who against hope believed in hope that he might become the father of many Nations and being not weak in faith he considered not his own body now dead when he was about an hundred years old nor yet the deadness of Sardah's womb being fully perswaded that what God had promised he was ABLE to perform and therefore says the Apostle it was imputed to him for righteousness That is to say God approved of him In all this Justification of Abraham there is not a word of the blood of Christ for though I believe it was the blood of Christ that procured Abrahams pardon as a price yet I doubt not but it was Abrahams faith in the power and faithfulness of God that justified him Again pag 380 near the end of it Thus saith he from the example of Abraham would the Apostle commend the CHRISTIAN FAITH unto the World and in particular to the Jews the off-spring of Abraham For at the end of the fourth Chapter he makes this use of Abrahams faith being imputed to him for righteousness that we might also be brought 〈◊〉 TO BELIEVE IN HIM THAT RAISED UP JESUS CHRIST FROM THE DEAD who was delivered for our offences and raised again for our justification As Abrahams faith in the Power of God to give him a son was justifying so is our faith in the Power and Mercy of God as having raised up Jesus Christ from the dead who was delivered for our offences justifying Our faith viz. the Christian faith hath somewhat more in it than was in Abrahams faith yet Abrahams faith proving Justification to him we may well be encouraged to expect Justification in the way of a Gospelsaith And pag. 381. he gives us another instance of a Gospel-faith which he parallels with the faith of Abraham and that is A faith in the power of God to raise up Christ within us by his living Spirit from the 11th ver of Rom. 8. which I think is indeed rightly interpreted though with the favour of that great man not so happily applied but that I shall speak unto viz. wherein I differ from the
Christ's righteousness pag. 38. ult Banner of Justification therefore it must justifie as an act which by God's ordination investeth us in the priviledges of Justification therefore in his judgment faith it self is our righteousness But I shall adde no more in answer to those men that hold That Faith justifies only as it applyes the righteousness or blood of Christ unto the soul for I have shewn at large above That faith justifies in other acts of it besides resting upon the blood of Christ I shall have only here to do with Dr More his Notion and it is Mr Smith's too of the righteousness of Faith or Faith its being reckoned or imputed for righteousness and indeed I am very sorry that I should have a word to say against the opinion of so worthy a man and one that labour so vigorously and successfully against all that effeminacy of notion in Religion which is found amongst the Antinomians or others Neither yet do I much differ from him in designe only I cannot be faithfull to my present subject if I should not take notice of his unhappy mis-interpreting those phrases of the Righteousness of faith Justification and Faith's being impuâ—â—td for Righteousness I shall first give an account of the Doctor 's opinion and expressions in this business and then shew the reasons of my dissent from him herein In the 380 pag. of that book which I have so often quoted to borrow some authority and assistance from in this Discourse I mean his Mystery of Godliness at the end of that page the Doctor commenting upon Rom. 4.24 25. To believe on him that raised up Jesus our Lord from the dead who was delivered for our offences and raised again for our justification hath these words In this verse are contained the two grand Priviledges of the Gospel that is Forgiveness of sins upon the satisfaction of Christ's death and the Justifying of us that is THE MAKING OF US JUST AND HOLY THROUGH A SOUND FAITH IN HIM THAT RAISED JESUS FROM THE DEAD I need quote no more to shew the Doctor 's notion and apprehension of the whole business but yet I shall ex abundanti quote some other passages The Doctor you see is of opinion That Justification signifies making us just holy and righteous and when we are made so then God looks upon us as so because he judgeth of things aright and because Faith makes us truly holy inwardly just and righteous therefore this righteousness by which we are thus inherently righteous is called The Righceousness of Faith For this see page 379. about the middle of it Abraham being not weak in faith considered not his own body now dead being fully perswaded that what God had promised him he was able also to perform and therefore saith the Apostle it was imputed to him for righteousness that is to say God approved of him FOR A GOOD AND PIOUS MAN who not confulting with the natural improbability of the thing but giving firm credence to the promise of God did that which was due to the goodness and power of God and BECOMEING A GOOD AND RIGHTEOUS MAN So that 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 is NOTHING ELSE but to be approved as a good man or a doer of that which is righteous and good and that because he does that which is good and righteous And afterwards in the same page 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 signifies any virtue or goodness in a man whatsoever with much more to the same purpose And at last adds in page 372. Sect. 9. This is the only warrantable notion that I can finde of being justisied by faith So Mr Smith of Cambridge as I shew above page 220. saith that 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 and 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 the Righteousness of Faith and the Righteousness of God is only a Christ-like nature in man's soul c. Having given an account of the Doctor 's judgment I shall now shew in how many things I agree with the Doctor as to this business and then where I conceive there needs some rectification of the Doctor 's notion And first of all I confess these are two GRAND PRIVILEDGES of the Gospel as the Doctor sayes viz. The forgiveness of sins and The sanctification of our natures which latter the Doctor as I doubt not mistakes to be meant by the word Justification in Rom. 4.25 2. I acknowledge that true Sanctification is produced only by faith purifying their hearts by faith Acts 15 9. no other principle will work holiness in the soul The Law made nothing perfect as to inward holiness 3. I grant that if true Sanctification should be wanting from Faith that Faith would not be a righteousness would not justifie Faith without works is dead 4. I allow that Works have some share perhaps a second place in the matter of Justification continued so saith Mr Baxter often and I think so saith St James Jam. 2.24 Yee see then how that by works a man is justified and not by faith only 5. I allow that Justification is attributed several times in Scripture to a Work the Faith not mentioned though the Faith is understood nay the chief honor belongs to faith and the crown is to be set upon Faith's head if we wili make a strict and right interpretation of that Scripture whatever it be Thus the act of Phineas in killing Zimri and Cosbi is reckoned for righteousness and yet no mention of his faith Psal 6.30 31. Then stood up Phineas and EXECUTED JUDGMENT and so the plague was stayed and IHAT was counted unto him for righteousness unto all generations for evermore So very many of the actions in Hebr. 11. which are there by the author of that Epistle reckoned to be the actions of Faith and in several places of that Chapter said to be imputed for righteousness verses 4 5 7. yet in the original places where their stories are recorded not a word mentioned of their faith Compare Abel's history Gen. 4.4 with Heb. 11.4 compare Enoch's Gen. 5.24 with Heb. 11.5 Noah's Gen. 6.13 22. with Heb. 11.7 c. There is not a word mentioned of their faith in Genesis but only of their works and yet their faith in those works is plainly said by the Author of this Epistle to the Hebrews to be a justifying faith Justification is indeed attributed to works the faith not mentioned And so sometimes pardon of sins and eternal life are promised to other graces besides faith Acts 3.19 Math. 5. from ver 3. to ver 11. for these two reasons 1. For that they have a share or a second place in the matter of Justification but 2. and especially For that they necessarily suppose faith as being the fruits and issues of a true and lively faith Yea. 6. I will allow that 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 Righteousness in the New Testament yea and in St Pauls Epistles signifies Holiness Rom. 6.13 18 20. and that 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 signifies to be just Rev. 22.11 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉
man hath made God himself his righteousness and Christ his righteousness and this is a glorious righteousness indeed far beyond the righteousness of a perfect and unerring obedience if a man had it for this see one proof out of the Old-Testament and one or two out of the New Isa 45.24 25. Surely shall one say in the Lord have I righteousness and strength even to him shall men come and all that are incensed against him shall be ashamed in the Lord shall all the Seed of Isral be JUSTIFIED and SHALL GLORY For the New-Testament I have often mentioned already that place Gal. 2.20 yet it can never be too often repeated I am crucified with Christ nevertheless I live yet not I or no longer but Christ liveth in me and the 〈◊〉 that I now lâ—ve in the flesh I live by the faith of the Son of God who lived me and gave himself for me Here St. â—aul had a glorious righteousness indeed for Christ was his riches and righteousness and dwelt in him by Faith that is he lived upon Christ by faith 't is true he had a Christ-like nature in his soul but this Christ-like nature was not the righteousness of faith or the righteousness of God or his Gospel-righteousness but a fruit of that Faith which was his righteousness All other glorying is excluded in the Gospel save crâ—ely to glory in the Lord Rom 3.27 2 Cor. 1.30 31. Of him are ye in Christ Jesus who of God is made unto us wisdom and righteousnesâ—y that according as it is written He that glorieth let him glory in the Lord. Now this making God and Christ a mans righteousness is that alone which commends the Gospel so highly above the Law sets up he second Adam above the first gives a just account of all those Elogies which the Apostle gives of the Gospel the way of believing above the first way of works which I suppose out of Dr Moor's notion would not arise at all For though the Drs notion should be true which I confess there is no contradiction in I have delivered some things above p 218 219. but a little too much in favor of it * I would have that expression p. 219. 〈◊〉 shall say something to the like purpose understood only thus Tha sanctification is the condition of our justification onely in the second place faith in the first I say suppose the Dâ—â— notion should be true That faith justifies us purely because it sanctifies us and that the holiness which arises from faith should be that which is called the Righteousness of Faith yet how could this ever advance the Gospel above the Law in the business of Justification If we take the Law not in the mistaken sense of the Legallist but in the proper sense of it For so the righteousness of the Law is unerring obedience and the righteousness of Faith in the Dâ—s sence is obedience full of defects Now comparing obedience with obedience and the righteousness of Faith with the righteousness of the Law how can the righteousness of Faith be preferred to the righteousness of the Law How can the second Adam in the holiness which he causeth be advanced above the first in his earthly righteousness That therefore which make the excellency and precedency of the Gospel to the Law is this that the righteousness of the Law was one 's own this of Faith makes God himself and Christ himself our righteousness by our living wholly upon them I have said as much as I intend to the Dr. s notion of the righteousness of saith and I do cordially profess That what I have spoken hath been meerly out of love to the truth and if the truth had not engaged and enforced me to deliver what I have I should not have presumed to encounter counter such a great man being my self not worthy to carry the Doctors books after him And I know the Doctors candor and ingenuity to be so great that he will give others leave as freely to differ from him as he takes to differ from others I shall shut up this Question with a grave admonition out of Mr John Goodwin in his Banner of Justification displaied pag. 32. That Faith justifies saith he is the constant assertion of the Scripture and the Architectonical doctrine of the Gospel Rom. 5.1 3 28. Gal. 2.15.16 By the way upon occasion of these with many the like passages in the New Testament wherein Justification by faith is 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 expresly affirmed I cannot but mention my dislike of their strein in teaching who lay down and deliver it to the people for a doctrine positively and plainly That men are not justified by saith or by believing Douotless it is not convenient or comely positively to deliver or assert that for a doctrine of truth which is so diametrally opposite to 〈◊〉 frequent clear and express words of the Scripture And again I judge it very incongruous for any Minister of the Gospel to seâ— up a doctrine as it were in defiance of or in conâ—â—st against any thing so frequently and so directly in terminis affirmed in the Scriptures as Justification by faith I do not â—â—â—â—uce this quotation to infirmate as if the Doctor did not hold that we are justified by the acts of faith as well as by any other good actions but for that I am sensible the Doctor intends that we are not more justified by the acts of faith than by any other good actions which if it were true I could not see how faith could be worthy of so famous attributious of justification to it in such an eminent manner when the Apostle is silent about other graces only here and there in some places where there is no such professed dispute he speaks wordâ— in Tayor of other graces and good works in the matter of justification I tome now to a fifth Question which is this How do good works justifie And in answer to this I must first premise That seeing the Scripture is so express in it that works to justifie Jam. 2.25 Ye see then how that by works a man is justified and 〈◊〉 by saith only I dare not pass over this Question without speaking to it But I shall need to speak the less to this because Mr Baxter and others have delivered so much upon it I shall first shew the agreement which there is betwixt St Paul and St James in this business and then shew how works justifie 'T is true St Paul assirms Rom. 3.28 chat we are justified by faith without the deeds or works of the Law St James saith that we are justified by works and not by faith only here seems to be a jarring and disagreement But they are to be reconciled by the observation of the several sorts of works that these two Apostles speak of St Paul speaks of legal works or works of the Law which contain in them an opinion of merit or debt as I have shewn above pag. 97 98.
which otherwise I should be engaged to do from the fore-going discourse unto sincerity or sincere obedience which is the other part of the condition of Gospel justification I might adde as a great particular of the Exhortation to the exercise of faith that you must be sure to exercise frequent and vigorous acts upon Christ and his blood but of this I have spoken at large in the last Character To conclude therefore this use and so the whole Treatise if thou be rich in knowledge and firm in thy assent unto divine truths copious and strong in acts of affiance upon the divine power and goodness exhibited in the gracious promises of the Word and to this addest or rather makest to precede a sincerity of heart in the service of God that is in summe if thou be a great believer thou mayest not perhaps work Miracles but thou shalt be a wonderful Christian and shalt be able to do greater things than it was to do Miracles when they were in use for wicked men could work Miracles Math. 7.22 Thou shalt be eminently usefull unto the Church to thy Friends and Relations Acquaintance unto thine own soul thou shalt be fit to stand in the gap upon all occasions for others for thy self thou shalt free thy mind of all thy cares all thy businesses shall succeed thou shalt have all thy graces flourishing vigorous thou shalt by thy frequent actings of faith in prayer at last get such liberty of access to the throne of Grace such fellowship and communion with the Father and the Son as to be unto God and Christ in the quality of a Friend as Abraham was Jam. 2.23 which we know occasioned intimate communications from God to him as well as from him to God Gen. 18.17 Shall I hide from Abraham that thing which I do So our Saviour saith to his Disciples Henceforth I call you not servants but friends for the servant knoweth not what his Lord doth John 15.15 The secret of the Lord both of his Covenant and Providence shall be with thee Psal 25.14 In a word be but much in the exercise of faith and you shall need but little more to enquire into your selves what evidences you have of the favour of God to you than one at noon-day needs evidence that the Sun shines be but much in believing and ordinarily I speak not of extraordinary dispensations ye shall have joy unspeakable and full of glory 1 Pet. 1.8 this you may see at large above in the third Character pag 187. But I do not pretend here in the narrow compass of a Use to speak to all that may be said of the life of Faith either to the kindes of its acts the blessed effects of it all the cases about it motives to it or directions in it this would fill a large Treatise See Ball of the Life of Faith I shall conclude all with that of the Psalmist 37.3 Trust in the Lord and do good be large and firme in thy assent to divine truths be strong and vigorous in thy acts of Trust and Affiance and be faithfull to thy God and thou shalt dwell in the Land and verily thou shalt be fed verily thou shalt be justified verily thou shalt be saved FINIS THere being here some empty Pages I thought good to translate one place more out of Luthers Commentary upon the Galatians which I have a great esteem for I would have it referred to pag. 112. or rather to the 183. because it shews how apt even good men are to fall into a legal frame of heart it is in the 53 pag. his words are these Deinde quoque causa Justificationis lubrica est c. besides also the business of Justification is a slippery tickle thing not indeed in it self or in its own nature for in it self it is most firm and certain sed quoad nos but as to us and in our management of it That which I my self have often experienced Novi enim in quibus horis tenebrarum nonnunquam lucter for I know in what hours of darkness I sometimes struggle and wrestle I know how often or how that oftentimes I lose of a sudden the rayes and light of the Gospel and of Grace as it were in certain thick clouds novi denique quam versentur ibi in lubrico etiam exercitati qui pedem firmissime figunt in the last place I well know how that the most experienced Saints and those that have best footing stand here viz. in the business of Justification as in a slippery place and their foot is ready to slip ever now and then and they are apt to let go their hold habemus quidem cognitionem hujus causae we know indeed this matter in a doctrinal way because we can teach it to others and this is a certain sign that we understand it for none can teach others that which he knows not himself It is a sign of a knowing person as he said to be able to teach Verum eum jam in praesenti agone uti debemus Evangelio c. But when we come to practice this doctrine when we are in a strait and pressure of spirit need to use Gospel which is the word of Grace consolation and life then and there the Law the word of wrath sadness and death gets before the Gospel seiseth of us before the Gospel can come praevenit Evangelium and begins to make a tumult within us and stirs up no less terrors in the conscience than that terrible and horrible sight upon Mount Sinai did Sic ut vel unus locus comminationis in Scriptura omnes obruat obnubilat consolationes So that though but one place of threatning in the Scripture come to our minde it will over-whelm and darken all our comforts and will put all our inward parts into such a shaking and trembling adecque omnia interiora nostra concutiâ—t that we shall quite forget the right state of the matter of Justification we shall quite forget grace Christ and the Gospel ut plane obliviscamâ—r causae Justificationis Gratiae Christi Evangelii therefore as to us the business or cause of Justification is a very sl ppery tickle thing because we are slippery and unconstant in it Ides quantum ad nos attinetr es valde lubrica est quia nos lubrici sumus FINIS
to have it and do it but when I have it I make no use of it in my treating with God for justification and to give one instance which must needs prove that he doth not mean it of Justification at first believing In pag. 10. he takes men off when they come to dye from taking their comfort or discomfort from their past life which if ever they were justifyed is the longest time after their first Justification without any distinction about it whereas we finde that when Hezekiah came to die and had the sentence of death passed upon him by God he presently reflects upon his past-life and hath a great confidence upon it nay and useth the holiness of his life past as an argument with God to spare him longer Isa 38.2 3. Then Hezekiah after he had received the sentence from Isaiah turned his face to the wall and said Remember now O Lord I beseech thee how I have walked before thee in truth and with a perfect heart and HAVE DONE THAT WHICH WAS GOOD IN THY SIGHT And so St Paul when he thinks of leaving the world he reflects upon his past life 2 Tim. 4.6 7 8. For I am now ready to be offered and the time of my departure is at hand I have fought a good fight I have finished my cours I have kept the faith HENCEFORTH there is laid up for me a Crown of Righteousness c. But that I may not do Luther wrong I shall quote the whole passage which I think hath great usef lness in it were it not almost spoiled by that Antinomiaâ— dead flie that may be found in it Ejusmodi est humana imbecillitas c. such is the weakness and misery of Mankinde that in terrors of conscience and danger of death we look at nothing else but our Works our own worthiness and the Law nostram dignitatem Legem Which when it shews us our sin presently comes into our minde our past life and then with great grief of soul doth the sinner groan thus thinking with himself Ah quam perdite vixi utinam liceret diutius vivere tum velim emendare vitam meam c. Ah how wickedly have I lived would God I were to live longer then would I certainly amend my life and live better c. Upon which he adds Nec potest ratio humana neither can HUMANE REASON a very vile thing with the Antinomians ita hoc malum est nobis insitum illamque infelicem 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 comparavimus so is this evil imbred in us and such an unhappy custome have we gotten that humane reason cannot ex hâ—c spectro justitiae activae seu propriae evolvere attollere sese get it self out of the sight of this Bug-bear or apparition called Active Righteousness or our own proper Righteousness and lift it self up to the sight of Passive Righteousness or Christian Righteousness but it simply sticks upon and rests in the Active Now I do really believe that when we come to dye we shall sinde great use indeed of our faith in the mercies of God and blood of Christ and a little comfort immediately vouchsafed from God by the lifting up the light of his countenance upon us will be better worth to us and of more speedy help in those bitter agonies we may be cast into than all the comfort we may be able to conclude to our selves from the imperfect obedience of our past lives But yet believe it he that then shall have the testimony of a clear conscience and the fair appearance or apparition of a good past life or active righteousness so as to be able to use the words of good Hezekiah unto the Lord Remember how I have done that which was goad in thy sight will have no occasion to turn from it as a foul spectre or ghastly apparition but he will rather welcome it as his good Angel and desire it's company with him into the other world for upon this account it is that they are blessed that dye in the Lord for that they rest from their labours and THEIR WORKS FOLLOW THEM Rev. 14.13 I might adde many other passages out of Luther and others but these may suffice to shew the first extream opinion in the business of Justification that Works of no kinde have any thing to do there at all The other extream Opinion of some good men is That the righteousness of faith is an holy temper of heart or a Christ-like nature in a man's soul which because it is produced very much by faith it is called the righteousness of faith Now certainly these bend the stick too much the other way for though Holiness be requisite unto Justification yet it is not the only requisite nor the chief condition of it upon which the honour is put by God Yet this Opinion I look upon to be much safer than the Antinomian Doctrine As for the two middle Opinions that hold the mean betwixt these two extreams they are that of Mr John Goodwin and Mr Baxter Mr Goodwin allowes Evangelical works a share in Justification but then it is only in that part or kinde of Justification which consists in the divine approbation but excludes them out of that part or that kinde of Justification which consists in remission of sins which yet he affirmes is the strict Gospel-justification and for this he makes faith alone to be the condition of it In the last place Mr Baxter makes Faith and Evangelical Works together the compleat condition of that Justification which consists in pardon of sins as well as of the divine approbation only that Faith is the principal Works the last principal condition and to this Opinion I must needs adhere Though for Mr Goodwins I look upon it to be sufficiently removed from the Antinomian in that it makes Faith as an act not only as a hand receiving Christ's righteousness as some Antinomians love to speak the condition of Justification and Works too to be necessary unto the obtaining divine approbation besides that he holds that the final Justification at the day of Judgment shall proceed according to Works And indeed I am so farr of his opinion that I think faith hath a farr greater share in our Justification than all our good Works put together yea that our good Works do chiefly justifye as they have faith in them and for the sake of that faith that spirits them of which I have given some proof in the ensuing Treatise pag. 270 271. out of Heb. 11. where the Apostle sindes out a faith in the actions of several of the Patriarchs and sayes it was by faith that they did this or that and were justified though their story mention nothing of their faith at all And it may be said as well that Works without Faith are dead being alone as that Faith without Works is dead being alone Now these four Opinions lying fair in view in all which there are good men engaged in some of them to a great
heat of contention it were a worthy design in any man that were able to endeavour their reconciliation to each other if all means have not been used and especially considering that there is no other thing requisite in order to it but a right state of this or these two questions Whether and if so How farr Evangelical Works have an influence upon the justification of a sinner I say there is nothing else necessary to the ending of the controversies between all these but the stating of this question and the honest attending to such a state given For that all the parties agree upon the same things for matter viz. That we must believe and that we must do good Works and that to our utmost only one saith Evangelical Works have a share in our justification another sayes they have none one sayes they signifie so much another but so much none deny that good works are to be done I might mention another difference in opinion concerning faith in justification and that is concerning what kinde of faith it is that is the condition of our justification whether only that faith that hath a direct and express respect to Christ and his death or else all acts of faith whatsoever upon the power goodness and faithfulness of God as well as that upon Christ and his blood I hope I have in some of these things added one mire at least unto the treasury of Knowledg or else I were very impertinent indeed But this was not my design in composing this Treatise to give a state of such questions and therefore what I have done of such a kinde I have cast at the end of my Book as not being chiefly intended nor indeed intended at all at first but only as I found that it would be necessary to say something upon them Or if I had desired to engage in such a designe these several reasons might have discouraged me First that it required vast abilities to undertake it Secondly That I thought it had been very well performed by Mr Baxter already and Thirdly That though any should be judiciously satisfied that he could give a better state than yet had been given he might very well doubt how it would be entertained amongst the contenders when Mr Baxter of whom I have heard a very learned and godly Person say of late That he would shine in heaven for his book of Aphorismes yet by it purchased the highest displeasure from his Presbyterian Brethren My design therefore was wholly of another nature for observing that the Subject was as well practical and experimental as disputable though there are very worthy and lofty speculations to be had about it I thought it the most efficacious way of ending the disputes about it at least of making it usefull to honest men leaving disputers to themselves to shew how it was practical and experimental and by how much the shorrer I was in my doctrine upon this Subject to be so much the larger in my application And indeed I must needs say I observed as I thought that those who had hitherto written upon this Subject were deficient in one great piece of Application Mr Baxter and others I thought had done excellent service against the Antinomians who have sadly provoked them in these late times both in the Pulpit and Press and their private suggestions and insinuations but then they were more sparing in using the two-edged sword of Truth in this Subject on that side where it should cut the Legalist whereas there was as much or more need to set themselves against them as against the Antinomian If we would learn what Legality was that we might avoid it we must go to the Antinomians there was little to be heard of this Subject amongst others though in the mean time they did most dangerously poison their Auditors and Disciples with false descriptions of Legality so that I have my self whilest formerly an Antinomian and an Enthusiast looked upon that to be as ugly as Hell and Damnation which I now receive for good wholsom and precious Evangelical truth I could well have approved of that saying of Luther formerly Operatores sunt Martyres Diabâ—li that is That those that do minde Works in the matter of Justification though Evangelical works so farr as they minde them they are the Devils Martyrs and bear their testimony by the anguishes of their spirit against the Righteousness of the Gospel and yet from such Teachers we must receive the notes of Legality others that are enemies to the Antinomians not offering at this Subject at least in that professed way as the Antinomians do This I looked upon to be a considerable defect especially when I observed that the Apostle Paul in his Epistles to the Romans and Galatians as also in some other places le ts out the chief of his zeal Rom. 61 2. VVhat shal we say then shall we continue in sin that grace may abound God forbâ—d So ver 15. Rom. 3.5 7 8. and useth the greatest strength of argument against this sort of men whereas he is but here and there sparingly touching upon the Libertine which I hold to be the practical Antinomian And as I said even now this Subject is a practical Subject and highly experimental yea every whit and rather more experienced in the inconveniences of Legality than of those of Antinomiansme For the Law and Grace contend for the dominion and mastery in every heart that but entertains the thoughts of Religion Now where the notion of Grace prevails in a right way there is the right Saint or Christian By this division thou maist if thou judgest necessary supply a member of a division that may seem to be wanting Pag. 117 118. where I have divided all Religious persons into two forts viz. Legal and Evangelical though were iâ— not for giving offence I might still leave the Antinomian that is the high practical Antinomian out of the number of Religious persons where it prevails in a wrong way without a due seriousness of heart there is Antinomianisme when the Law prevails there is Legality Now I verily believe that there are ten Legalists to one Antinomian for all the Superstitious world are Legalists and I have shewn in the following Treatise that there are many moral Legalists and there is evident reason why there may well be more Legalists than Antinomians for that with a little knowledge in Religion men may prove Legalists whereas to be Antinomians requires somewhat more than ordinary of notion in Religion besides there is another reason why there should be at least equal care taken if not more in the application of the doctrine of Justification for the searching and rooting out of Legality than there is to be had for the destroying Antinomianism because destructive Legality takes faster hold of men that are under it than destructive Antinomianisme doth For the Legalist that depends upon his external Priviledges or performances is not so easily beaten out of his hold as the
Antinomian that is destructively so that is a Libertine for there is a partial Antinomianism as well as a partial Legality that is not destructive because he falls under an easie obvious conviction except he have gotten a brawny conscience for that his miscarriages are more gross whereas a Legalists faults are hidden and spiritual However I am sure there is both for the number of Legalists and their usual rootedness in that distemper reason for equal provision to be made about them to what there is to be made about the Antinomians Now finding that there was not at least not finding that there was equal care taken I adventured to say something about it I wish I may provoke some other to do it better they shall have my hearty prayers to the Lord for their assistance in such a work And besides these several reasons which I have mentioned as moving me to the composing of this Treatise especially that part of it which consists of the characters there was another very prevailing with me it was my own necessity of being well enlightened about this matter For I found dayly use use of some of the observations which I have here given thee in every prayer yea in the mannagement of my spirit all the day long I found the Law striving to get the mastery of my spirit that is sin by the severity of the commandemâ—nt would have destroyed all that little life and quickness which I had in the service of God would have made me unwilling to serve God to be averse unto him and his wayes yea to conceive a professed displeasure against God himself till I have been relieved by some of these considerations which I here tender unto thee for the same end with an earnest prayer that they may do thy soul good as I hope they have done mine And I doubt not but Luther being a good man and one of a great spirit had a considerable and worthy design in endeavouring to get the Law out of his conscience as his phrase is I mean getting it from its dominion over him though he might herein over-do it as it is certain he did over-speak it I shall here do him the right to quote a large and lively branch of his Discourse that is not as I apprehend lyable to exception it is in his Preface or Argument before his Commentary pag. 14. saith he When at any time the Law would ascend into thy conscience domineer there ibi domâ—naci say unto it Law or Lady Law as in some places he speaks Domina Lex wilt thou ascend into the Kingdom of my conscience rule there argue it of sin and take away my joy which I have by faith in Christ and bring me into desperation that I perish hoc praeter officium tuum facis here thou goest beyond thy Commission stay within thy own bounds consiste intra tuos limites exerce dominium in carnem and exercise dominion over my flesh which expression I do not well understand except it be that so farr as we are fleshly we are still under the Law and therefore as the Law was given to humble us at first so it hath the same use still as also to direct our lives exercise thy dominion over my flesh conscientiam autem ne atting as mihi but offer not to touch my conscience for I am baptized and called by the Gospel into the communion of righteousness and eternal life unto the Kingdom of Christ in which my conscience is quieted or doth acquiesce where there is no Law that is no Law for condemnation but meer remission of sins mera remissio peccatorum peace quietness joy salvation and eternal life ista ne interâ—nrbes mihi do not hinder me nor disturb me in the enjoyment possession of these things let not the Law which is an hard tyrant and cruel exactor reign in my conscience but Christ the Son of God the King of Peace and Righteousness the most sweet Saviour and Mediator And now I have have onely this to beg pardon of thee for that I have spoken to so great and weighty things in so unstudyed and undigested a dress and method but as an argument to prevail with thee for my pardon I assure thee that could I have promised my self an opportunity of printing these papers some two or three years hence and the Lord continued life I should have detained them in my own custody so long on purpose that they might have received a better formation If thou take offence at me for that I have taken liberty in something or other to vary from most of those few Authors that I quote in the Treatise I crave not thy pardon for it for neither will the Authors themselves have any reason to be angry when they consider and believe that if I had not valued them I should never have quoted them and but for that I valued the truth before them I should never have varied from them Once more Reader if thou shouldest think it undecent that there should be any thing in the following Advertisement for which I am so much beholden to the Reverend Author of it different from what is asserted in the body of the Book as for instance that the Author seemeth to judge that there is no repetition of the act of Justification as it signifies pardon that Works justifie only in sensu morali not in sensu forensi take this for thy satisfaction that I had full power from the Worthy Author of it to have left â—ut yea or put in what I pleased in the printing of it But I presumed not to adde or diminish one tittle as judging it but equity and justice that others especially the Learned should have the same liberty to differ from me that I take to differ from them Besides I account this so farr from being any lessening to the value of the testimony given me that I reckon it a greater advantage to receive it from a Learned man from whom I presumed to differ than if he had been perfectly of my minde Now the presence of God and of thy best understanding be with thee in the reading and so I bid thee farewell Thine in Christ Zach. Mayne An Advertisement unto the READER concerning the Author Subject and contents of the Treatise ensuing THE Treatise in thy hand whilest yet unread may possibly suffer in thy esteem through want of years in the Composer against which inconvenience I thought it might be some kinde of relief unto it to send it forth attended with a sober Preface drawn up by a Person whose years though but meanly improved are sufficient to discern between impertinencies and matters of weight and worth The Apostle in this brief address unto Timothie Let no man despise thy youth * 1 Tim. 4.12 supposeth two things 1. That youth is obnoxious to neglect or undervaluing by men 2. That young men may nonwithstanding redeem themselves from under this disadvantage and stave
convinceth of it yet I shall in searching out this distemper viz. Ignorance and neglect of Christ both in Ministers and People prove it to be a symptome of Legality from another character mentioned And truly I cannot guess what should be the reason of this ignorance and neglect of Christ so general and common even amongst those that are good but from a listlesness and irksomness to and weariness of the waies and knowledge of God Good people may chance think that they know a great deal of God already they know enough for their converse between man and man and for many duties of worship to God and they find this as much as they can attend together with their businesses and imployments in the world and so much they know of Christ that he died for their sins and intercedes with his Father for them and this is enough to satisfie them what should they trouble themselves any more about any Gospel Mysteries concerning Jesus Christ as his Mediatorial Kingdom and the like how God the Father orders and disposes of all things by him how they are to make their applications to him Now this listlesness carelesness I made before a plain symtom of Legality for the more Evangelical we are the more chearful we are in the service of God the more attentive to and inquisitive about any thing that he makes known to us especially concerning Jesus Christ every dust of this Pearl is precious I come in the second place to condemn predominant Legality from this Character Predominant Legality discovered from this Character 1. In the Jews and this wil convince two or three sorts of men of predominant Legality And first of all to be sure this convinceth the Jews of predominant Legality both those that were at the time of Christ's coming and have been ever since unto this day for that they denied then and still deny to receive Christ at all If they had been Evangelical under the Old-Testament they would gladly have received Christ who is the substance and spirit of all that Gospel which they had but darkly discovered in their dispensation They that love the dawnings of the day-light how much more would they be in love with the Sun of Righteousness but because their hearts were set upon the Law before Christ came therefore were they such enemies to Christ when he was come and there is no clearer proof of the charge which the Apostle oftentimes draws up against them viz. That they were legal than this that they are the great enemies of the cross of Christ and the same may be all applied to the present Jews that are enemies to Christ 2dly This discovers the Legality of the Modern Scribes and Pharisees and Zelotical Ceremonialists as Dr. Moore calls them those that are so much for the externals of Religion in the days of the Gospel that would set up a ceremonial Law again of their own inventing these argue their great affected ignorance of Christ and the Gospel by which these shadows are certainly done away for that the Body is come and this I look upon as a very shrewd sign though perhaps not absolutely concluding of predominant Legality But of these I have spoken largely already and therefore shall not enlarge further about them though they come here upon a new account to be convinced and reproved Lastly and so I shal end my Characters as I begun them vide pag. 117. the second observation premised to the Characters All those that have a zeal for God in the dayes of the Gospel and yet are not for a single Christ and for the purity and simplicity of the Gospel are legal for that all Religion which is not the right Religion is Legal The Jews corrupted the Gospel by adding the observations of the Law to it The Greeks and Philosophers destroyed the Gospel by inventions of worshipping Angels and other voluntary humilities Col. 2.8.18 Beware lest any man spoil you through Philosophy and vain deceit after the tradition of men after the rudiments of the world and NOT AFTER CHRIST ver 18. Let no man beguile you of your reward in a voluntary humility and worshipping of Angels intruding into those things which he hath not seen NOT HOLDING THE HEAD both these forts the Apostle sets himself vigorously against in several places of his Epistles Now whosoever shall in a likeness to either Jew or Grecian Philosopher go about to destroy the simplieity of the Gospel or the simplicity that is in Christ as it is called 2 Cor. 11.3 let him have never so much zeal in his way is legal and the reason is this for that whosoever goes about to establish his own righteousness is legal Rom. 10.1 2 3. Now all those that destroy the simplicity of the Gospel yet have a zeal for God go to establish their own righteousness I have now done with the Characters Having discharged now after a sort these several great parts of my Work shewn first that the Law could not justifie and that yet men wil needs seek Justification by the Law and having given the description of their Legality what it is formally in it self as also by the several characters of a Legal Spirit wherein it discovers that distemper which is otherwise many times unsearchable I hold my self now to be a little at leisure to speak unto some things in general touching Justification which I had no sitter place to speak unto then this and wil yet I hope further conduce unto the clearing and explaining of the great subject that is before us There may be therefore these several questions spoken to about Justification 1. At what time or times a person is ustified 2. For what act or acts a person is ustified These two questions the first of which contains several questions in it I shall first dispatch and then speak unto some others that wil arise to be spoken to The first Question is this The first question about justification At what time or times is a finner justified At what time or times is a sinner justified This contains these two questions 1. Whether or no a sinner be justified from eternity 2. Whether if he be onely justified in time Justification considered as God's act be one or more that is be done once for all at his strst Justification or else repeated often upon the person justified according to the exigency of the person For the first Q. Whether Justification be from eternity or in time Now to answer and resolve this Question 1. I should not have made this Question at all but for that some have asserted that we are justified from Eternity and I have heard it openly affirmed several times that Justification is an immanent act in God like the eternal generation of the Son 2. Now for the actions or acts which we may conceive in Eternity they either respect God himself or the Creatures Those that respect himself are such as whereby he understood loved and enjoyed himselfe and
and a man is justified without these nay he cannot be justified if he but pretend to these Therefore the Apostle James must speak of another sort of works which whilest a man doth he yet renounces merit in them and these works a man may be in part justified by without any prejudice to the doctrine of Justification by faith This is fully asserted by Mr Baxter Thesis 76. pag. 292. Neither is there saith he the least appearance of a contradiction betwixt this and Paul's doctrine Rom. 3.28 if men did not through prejudice negligence or wilfulness over-look this that in that and all other the like places the Apostle doth professedly exclude THE WORKS OF THE LAW ONLY from Justification but never at all THE WORKS OF GOSPEL as they are the condition of the New Covenant Works therefore justifie as a less principal part of the condition of the New Covenant I am not shy to speak in Mr Baxter's words since I intend much the same thing they do not justifie from their own merit so only legal works justifie but from divine promise and acceptance For proof of this that it is so that works do justifie in the second place besides the express words of the Apostle James I finde the same thing asserted by the Apostle Paul in three several Scriptures * Dr Hammond Par. All that is required to our justification is faith not all that is called by that name but such as is made perfect by addition of those duties which we owe to God and our brethren Gal. 5â— In Jesus Christ that is in the doctrine of Jesus Christ neither circumcision availeth any thing that is unto Justification 〈◊〉 uncircumcision but faith whiâ—â— worketh by Love Here faith indeed is â—aid to justifie but it is a faith which worketh by love a working faith But yet more plainly the same expression is used in two places to our present purpose Gal. 6.15 For in Christ Jesus neither circumcision availeth any thing nor uncircumcision but a new creature that is saith Dr Hammond the renewed regenerate heart and it may be added a new life 2 Cor. 5.17 If any man be in Christ he is a now creature old things are past away behold all things are become new that is he lives a perfect new life and this new life only availeth unto Justification beyond circumcision or uncircumcision which are meer external Priviledges The third Scripture where the same expression is used is beyond all exception to our present purpose 1 Cor. 7.19 Circumcision is nothing and uncircumcision is nothing these are of no consideration in the matter of pleasing God and obtaining his favour What then is why the keeping the commandments of God this is beyond all these considerations of bond and free circumcised and uncircumcised But these are the things with which he compares the new creature and good works he doth not set these above all when he compares them with faith in that place where he mentions faith that is set above works and other graces as the cause above the effect the principal agent above the instrument Neither circumcision availeth any thing nor uncâ—râ—umbâ—sion but faith which WORKETH BY LOVE But in these Scriptures we see plainly that work have an influence upon our Justification they are of great availe in order unto it If it be objected that the first Justification passeth upon believing before works I answer with many others that there is in the first faith a rooted disposition unto an universal obedience there is the new creature or new man of the heart there and in continued justification there is the new man of the life and conversation Now the reasons why the Lord would have works in the condition of Justification though he doth not justifie for works only or chiefly may be gathered out of the Scripture to be these The first reason is this 1 Reas Why works are in the condition of Gospel justification For that without works faith it self cannot be accounted a perfect saith Now certainly if faith justifie it must be a perfect compleat faith not a maimed imperfect faith That without works faith is imperfect and by works it is perfected are the assertions of the Apostle James Faith without works is dead James 2.20 26 ver 22. Seest thâ—â— how faith wrought with his works and by works was his faith made perfect What an uselets imperfect dead thing is a power or faculty for action without operation What an useless thing would it be for a man to have eyes able to see only the man hath a continual blinde put before his eyes that he never doth see in all his life Why just such a thing were faith withour action of no worth or use What an imperfect faith had Abraham's been if his works and actions had not attended it Suppose we that when God commanded Abraham to offer up Isaac he had refused and said Lord how then shall there arise of him a great Nation his faith had been exceedingly discredited But when he resolves with himself I will offer him up for I know that God that raised him out of Sarah's dead womb can as well raise him from the dead after I have killed him and offered him up here was a noble faith indeed his faith was perfected by this work here that grace shewed what it could carry men unto When any thing attains its end it receives its perfection Here faith attained its end in carrying Abraham to do so great a work and therein was perfected and so obtained the compleat reward of Justification then the Scripture was fulfilled which saith Abraham believed God if works had not accompanied his faith it had proved but an imperfect dead faith the Scripture had not been fulfilled which faith Abraham believed God No artificer will own any thing to be a true and perfect piece of work which will not attain it's end serve the use it is made for so will not God own that to be faith which will not put us upon acts of confidence in himself and obedience to his commands be they never so difficult For though God knows the heart and so can see into the very principle of our actions yet the Lord is pleased to keep that distance of State and Majesty that he will not seem to know what he doth know till the outward man express what is in the inward man God knew before what was in Abraham's heart but yet he will not seem to know that he was so great a believer till he had put him upon this trial of offering up his son Gen 22.12 Now I know that thou fearest God seeing thou hast not with-heâ—â—â—hy son thine only son from me Now I confess what is here said of works in this reason That faith receives it's perfection from them can only properly and immediately be applyed to the works of faith to other works only remotely as faith may have some kinde of influence even upon all good works but however
we see that faith is not perfect without some kinde of works That is the first reason Faith it self would be an imperfect thing without works and so could not justifie The second reason why works are taken into the condition of Justification is Reason 2. For that it were neither comely no nor possible for divine approbation which I have often affirmed to be contained in Justification to pass upon any man without them I put these two into one 1. It were not comely What a strange thing would it be in the apprehensions of men if the great and holy God should own a company of persons in the world for his for certainly whom he justifies he will own for his that should only be though they really were believers but never do any service for him Neither plead for his honour when he is blasphemed nor own his servants when they are in reproach and distressed Not to mention their negative holiness which lyes in avoiding the corruptions of the world without which negative holiness if God should own them he would be thought the Patron of all Vice c. but I dare not express the uncomly consequences that would follow Now besides the impossibility that ariseth from this uncomliness there is also an impossibility that ariseth from the nature of the thing and that was the second thing I intended in this reason I say therefore it is impossible that God should approve of any person as just or take him into his favor and delights all which the Lord doth in the great business of Justification that is not a good and a righteous man God cannot justifie the ungodly whilest he remains ungodly he cannot love him nor delight in him nor approve of him because then he should approve of and delight in that which were contrary to his own nature viz. in a sinfull wicked person being himself an holy God 3. Reason 3. Good works do not justifie only negatively as without which faith would not be perfect and without which the object could not be beloved but good works do help justifie as that which after the intervention of mercy and pardon do render the object lovely to the holy God and do naturally conciliate the divine love and approbation 'T is true all our obedience while it is any way defective cannot constrain approbation and love from God nay our defects must needs bring a guilt upon our best actions if we are considered as under the law of our creation But now after that the good and mercifull God hath found out a comely way how he may shew favour to sinners it is certain that all their good actions though they are not immediate acts of Faith but of Love or Patience Justice or Temperance must needs be exceeding pleasing to him Gal. 5.22 23. The fruit of the Spirit is Love Joy Peace Long-suffering Gentleness Goodness Faith Meckness Temperance against such there is no law that is against such graces and actions or persons adorned with them there is no law This is but a meiosis for indeed such graces and gracious persons though but imperfectly furnished with them are yet for these things sake through his gracious acceptance of them highly pleasing to God For this see Heb. 13.16 Acts 10.4 And this is that wâ—â—â—â— Mr John Goodwin acknowledgeth who yâ—â— denyes that works procure Justification as Justification signifies remission of sins in the Fanner of Justification displayed pag. 48. 49. When Abraham is said to have been justified by works when he had offered c. the meaning is that upon this great testimony given by Abraham of the truth and effectualness of his faith God highly APPROVED of him and DEALâ— BY HIM AS BY A PERSON RIGHTEOUS AND JUST and CALLED HIM HIS FRIEND with much more to the same purpose by this you see how good works do highly please God so as to justifie us with an high approbation at least and I should think too even unto remission of sins so that if such a man that doth these works thus highly pleasing to God have sins upon him lately committed they should be forgiven him according to these Scriptures Dan. 4.27 Break off thy sins by righteousness and thine iniquities by shewing mercy to the poor Iam 5.15 If he have committed sâ—â—s they shall be forgiven him if it may be a lengthning of thy tranquillity or an healing of thine error as the margin hath it So Acts 3.19 Repent yee therefore and be converted that your iniquities may be blotted out Isai 1.16 17 18. Wash ye make ye clean put away the evil of your doings from before mine eyes cease to do evil learn to do well seck iudgment relieve the oppressed judge the fatherless plead for the widow Come now and let us reason together saith the Lord though your sins be as scarlet they shall be as whiâ—e asnow though they be red like crimson they shall be as wool So lizek 18 21 22. Here you see that part of Justification which consists in the remission of sins is promised to good works as the Gospel reward of them and indeed I do not see how these two parts of Justification can be separated viz. Approbation and Pardon so as Faith should obtain the one and Good Works the other though indeed they may well be conceived as distinct parts of Justification I crave the pardon of that reverend person mentioned in that I take this liberty to express my self I shall conclude this Question with those words of Mr Baxter in his Aphorismes Thesis 73. pag. 289. 290. Faith ONLY doth not justifie in opposition to the works of the Gospel but those works do also justifie as the secoadary less-principal parts of the condition of the New Covenant I come now to the last Question which is this How comes faith thus eminently to intitule us to justification I have asserted Quest 6. that though works do justifie yet faith doth it so eminently as that gets the chiefest name of righteousness and works are never called our righteousness much less are they the righteousness of faith though it must be allowed as a good consequence that if we are said to be justified by works in a sense works are our righteousness because all Justification is by a righteousness But to let pass that that works are a partial secondary less principal righteousness The Question remains How comes faith to be so eminently our righteousness as to bear away the name so that our righteousness by which we are now said to be justified should be called the righteousness of faith in opposition to works that is legal works Now to this I answer in the general that the great reason of this must be the divine ordination and appointment It could not be meerly from the nature of the thing nothing in its own nature can justifie a rational creature but perfect righteousness unerring obedience Now the highest faith in the world can never deserve to be accounted
spiritual Worship of God by pulling down all the Jewish Ceremonies making Jew and Gentile one and revealing all the mysteries that were concealed in Moses his dispensation nay his very Sacrifice is one of the greatest Mysteries of all by which we are informed of God's performing his threatnings that the threatnings of heaven are not as claps of thunder without a thunder-bolt in them we see God's hatred of sin punishing it so severely in his own Son we see God's love to the world that he would give his Son for the life of it though he gave him up to the death we have in his life a pattern of perfect holiness which is more than all precepts alone and we see in our Saviour an instance of the Resurrection heavenly glory all these things have been of mighty instruction to the Saints of all ages since the death of Christ If this phrase the end of the world should be understood of the end of the Iewish state this will not at all prejudice my ieference from it that Christs death had respect unto the ages before his coming but rather strengthen it will be to all Saints unto the end of the world and therefore I say these other great ends of his coming being considered there is no undecency at all in his coming so early in the end of the world and offering a Sacrifice that should serve for many ages that were then to come It was at the end of the world that he came and therefore might very well serve for those fewer succeeding ages though it had the first respect unto the ages going before In the sixth and last place I shall bring plain Scripture to prove that Christ dyed for the Saints of the ages that were past before his death There are two Scriptures that speak to this purpose the first that I shall name is in that 9th of the Hebrews the chapter out of which I have been arguing ver 15. And for this cause he speaking of Christ is the Mediatour of the New Testament that by means of death for the redemption of the transgressions that were under the First Testament they which are called c. Here it is said that Christ by the means of his death redeemed or expiated the transgressions that were under the First Testament therefore he dyed for the fins of those that lived under the Old Testament But I shall deal so faithfully with my Reader as to acquaint him with another interpretation which is not contemptible that others give of these words and that is this That our Saviour Christ the Mediator of the New Testament or Covenant by his most excellent Offering redeemed and expiated those sins which could not be expiated by any Sacrifices that were appointed under the First Covenant according to that in Acts 13.39 By him speaking of Christ all that believe are justified from all things from which they could not be justified by the Law of Moses There being in Moses no Sacrifices for adulteries thefts murthers c. whereas in the Christian Religion there is pardon for all sorts of sinners by means of the death of Christ if they have but the Gospel-conditions of pardon So that this interpretation makes the place to speak of the kindes of sins and not of the individual or particular sins which were committed under the first Covenant that Christ by the means of his death hath made redemption of those kinde of fins which there was no redemption for under the first Covenant But I have something to ask of those that make this interpretation yet taking it for passable and it is this I would fain know if any of those sins were pardoned under the Old Testament which here are said to be redeemed by Christ for his followers if they say they were not then all that committed any such kinde of sins were damned for ever which was untrue witness David and Manasseh if they were pardoned as they were then either they were expiated by some Sacrifice or they were not if those that own this interpretation say they were not expiated by some Sacrifice and yet pardoned I oppose not to mention that great argument again That they could not be pardoned without expiation in any consistency with the veracity of God in his threatning this seems a strange rarity in the dealings of God with us that under the New Testament no sin is pardoned but what is expiated by the death of Christ and yet under the Old Testament which was certainly a dispensation more severe than ours there the greatest sins should be pardoned without the intervention of any Sacrifice nay what a strange thing was it in their very dispensation that legal uncleannesses such as Leprosie and Issues c. must be purged by sacrifice See Lev. 14 15. chapters yet the greatest sins of all should be pardoned without a sacrifice if therefore those great sins of Murther Adultery Witchcraft Idolatry c. were pardoned by expiation it must be by this death of Christ to ensue in the end of the world for there was no sacrifice so much as appointed for these sins those that were appointed could never reach to the purging and cleansing of the conscience they only purged the flesh from a fleshly uncleanness Heb 9.13 the blood of Christ alone hitherto hath had a virtue in it to cleanse the conscience therefore I conclude that the blood of Christ made expiation even for those individual sins for which there was no expiatory sacrifice appointed under the Old Testament But to let pass that Scripture what will be said to that in Rom. 3.25 26. where we have these words Whom speaking of Christ God hath set forth or fore-ordained as it is in the margin to be a propitiation through faith in his blood to declare his righteousness for the REMISSION OF SINS THAT ARE PAST through the forbearance of God to declare I say AT THIS TIME his righteousness that he might be just and the justifier of him which believeth in Jesus Now I suppose there may be this sense contained in these words That God in the dayes of the Gospel hath set forth clearly what that is by which he was alwayes propitiated and atoned for sins even those sins that were fore-past and fore-committed in the dayes of his forbearance and long-suffering that is the darker times of the world which times we have otherwise expressed in Acts 17.30 to be the dayes of ignorance which God winked at they were the dayes of God's forbearance it was and is the blood of Christ by which God alone alwaies was and still is propitiated for sins only then it was not so well known but now God hath declared 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 in the Acts it is 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 that the forepast sins the 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 as well as these that are committed under the Gospel were all redeemed and expiated by the blood of Christ As for any other sense that is given of
in this way of Gospel-Justification I shall shew how it appears from what hath been said by by A little proof first that so it is this the Apostle Paul often insists upon God hath made Christ unto us Wisedom and Righteousness unto them which are called Christ the Wisdom of God and the Power of God 1 Cor. 1.24 30. The Gospel is called the Wisedom of God in a Mystery even the hidden wisedom Eph. 1.6 7 8. In whom that is Christ we have redemption through his blood the forgiveness of sins according to the riches of his GRACE WHEREIN he hath abounded towards us in all wisedom and prudence One place more it is Col. 2.3 In whom speaking of Christ are hid all the treasures of Wisedom and Knowledge That is saith Dr Hammond paraphrasing the second and third verses In this course which hath more obscurely been taken by God the Father under the Old Testament and therefore in the second verse is called The Mystery of God the Father and more clearly now by God in Christ under the New and therefore called The Mystery of Christ to bring sinners to salvation in this course is wrapt up all the depth of divine Wisedom imaginable That there is great wisedom shewn herein is usually demonstrated thus which is a good way that herein the wisedom of God in saving flnners by Jesus Christ discovers it self in that so many Attributes are honoured altogether the Mercy Holiness and Power of God I shall instance further only in this that certainly the Wisedom of God as well as his Grace doth mightily appear in this way for that herein God hath graciously accommodated himself to the reason and nature of a man and hath taken that course Hos 11.3 4. of saving men in this way of Grace which is most likely to prevail I taught Ephraim also to go taking them by the armes I drew them with cords of a man with bands of love and I was to them as they that take off the yoke on their jawes and I laid meat unto them This Scripture may well be applyed to Gods way of saving men upon Gospel terms he takes off the yoke of the Law from our jawes sets meat before us whereas the Law afforded us nothing but stones instead of bread and for fish gave us scorpions The Lord here draws us with the cords of a man and with the bands of Love in that true winning way which is suited to the nature of a man Thou hast destroyed thy self saith the Lord to a poor soul but in me is thine help â—os 13.9 Thou art weak relye â—pon me who am the Rock of Ages if thou hast committed sins repent and turn unto mee and they shall be forgiven thee only thou must set thy self faithfully to obey my commands and whereas thou failest through weakness I am ready to pardon and now that thou maist have life upon these terms upon these rational terms Cast away from you all your transgressions whereby ye have transgressed and make yee a new heart and a new spirit for why will ye dye O house of Israel for I have no pleasure in the death of him that dyeth saith the Lord God wherefore turn your selves and live yee Ezek. 18.31 32. The Lord obviates all the objections that we can make if we say it is hard to walk with God in the obedience to his commands he promiseth strength if we say But what if I should fail in such and such instances of obedience why saith the Lord whilest there remains a sincerity I will pardon if any man doth sin wee have an Advocate with the Father 1 John 2.1 Thus the way of God in the Gospel is highly rational there is a variety of strong arguments in the way of Grace especially in the Gospel dispensation to perswade our faith and as many to perswade our obedience Dr Moor in his Mystery of Godliness makes mention of and insifts upon seven several Gospel-powers by which the Gospel becomes effectual to the bringing of man into a state of salvation and so as certainly of justification all which he reckons up pag. 392 sect 2. the two first he makes The evidence that we are to be inwardly and really righteous and not only so but in an extraordinary manner the five last are the promise of the Spirit through Christ's intercession the example of Christ the meditation on his Passion on his Resurrection and Ascension and on the last Judgment Most of which as it is evident work morally that is upon a man's reason and he tells us p. 410. ad sin That God in his infinite Wisedom hath traced out such a method in Christian Religion as is most accommodate to gain souls to himself And this certainly all those Divines will acknowledge that are for conversion to be ordinarily effected by moral suasion for though the Holy Ghost himself should represent the arguments to our souls which we are to be moved by yet if it be only represented in order to prevailing upon us in a way of perswasion it is only the reason of a man that is to close with them and therefore they will never prevail except they be accommodated and suited to a man's reason nay the more lively and truly they are represented unto a man's soul the less affecting will they be by how much the less rational they are And what Dr Moor afferts of the Christian Religion that it is so accommodated to man's nature to prevail upon it hath been alwaies true in the way of grace and faith in that measure in which it was at any time intelligible And therefore for these men that speak against reason in Religion they do but go about to unman us whilest they pretend to make us Christians and they rob God of the glory of his Wisedom the honour of which as it is given by us cannot be otherwise rightly and acceptably ascribed then as we understand how this Wisedom discovers it self in the several designes and effects of it which understanding is by no other faculty in us but that of our Reason though it need be elevated and strengthened by the spirit of God in such acts of our understanding The Wisedom of God therefore in this Gospel-way of Justification is very conspicuous not only in that God hath in this way made many Attributes illustrious together but in that the way it self is such as is most apposite to attain the end viz. to justifie men which is the highest commendation of the prudence of any designe Let us therefore be perswaded to admire the Wisedom and Prudence wherein God hath abounded towards us in this way of Faith which certainly if we studyed more we should be abundantly more affected with even from our own convictions of the wisedom of it and made to cry out with the Apostle Paul 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 O the depth of the riches both of the Wisedom and Knowledg of God! how unsearchable are his judgments and his wayes past finding
out Rom. 11.33 2. 2 Use of Information of the perversness of man This discourse informs us of the strange unreasonable perversness of the sons of men That when God hath in so much mercy and wisedom found out and appointed such a glorious easie way of saving sinners they should yet generally dislike this way and take to a more ignoble way to wit their own righteousness and an impossible way to wit the keeping of the Law which I have proved above at large that they do and it acquaints us with the strange infatuations which pride leads us into for that is by the Apostle chiefly glanced at as the reason of so many mens adhering to the way of Works because they would establish their own righteousness which they prefer far before the righteousess of God that is that righteousness which he hath sufficiently manifested he will alone accept They that are for the Law are for boasting and glorying this humour of self-confidence and fleshly boasting doth so besot them that they run upon the most absurd and irrational designs in the whole world but of this enough above 3. 3 Use of Consolation There is great matter of consolation which offers it self unto us from what hath been discoursed above Is it so that the Lord hath remitted of the rigour of his Law nay that he hath taken off the Law wholly from requiring an account of those that are married unto Christ as being their Husband no longer Is the condition of Justification altered from unerring obedience to faith and sincerity in obedience then here is comfort for all faithfull sincere hearts Art thou honest to God hast thou no Delilah in thy bosome art thou faithful to the interest of Christ and his Saints thou art safe thou art secure it is not necessary that thou be in the highest form of Christians 't is true it were well if thou wert there and it is thy duty to endeavour it but it is not absolutely necessary to thy being a Saint or in favour with God There are of all sorts and sizes See more of this pag. 202 203. above of all ranks and ages that are accepted with God There are babes and young men and strong men and fathers there are lambs and there are sheep that are with young only without sincerity without a lively faith they cannot be so much as Christ's little ones Now this is a matter of comfort which we may often reflect upon it is ready at hand unto us Art thou in any distress or trouble at any time either from without from men or from within by the bufferings of Satan turn in presently upon thy soul and examine see how thou hast lived and what thy present frame of heart is 2 Cor. 1.12 Our rejoicing is this the testimony of our conscience that IN SIMPLICITY GODLY SINCERITY not with fleshly wisedom but by the grace of God we have had our conversation in the world Now if thou hast such a testimony as this from thine own conscience thou maist conclude thou art in the favour of God and that therefore all things shall work together unto thee for good but herein do not deceive thy self with an imagined honesty of heart to God as many do but deal faithfully with thy self in the examination whether thou have a sincerity or no. If I should here give all the marks of sincerity that I could finde throughout the Scripture I should not be impertinent in so doing but yet seeing that hath been done well by many I shall forbear I shall only say this that if thou settest thy self any boundary or stint to thy attainments in holiness short of perfection thou art so far insincere or if thou avoidest any opportunity which thou canst by any means certainly understand to be an opportunity of honouring God thou art so far insincere Lastly if thou givest way to sin in the little degrees or appearances of it thou art so far insincere and if the interest of the flesh or of the world prevail in thy heart above the interest of God and Christ thou art altogether infincere whatever good desire and good affections thou maist have in thy heart I might here mention the other more principal condition of Gospel-justification viz. Faith and bid thee if thou wouldest have comfort enquire if thou have faith this St James tells thee how thou mayest know whether thou hast it oâ— no even by thy works thou maist discover it both unto thy self and others by these Jam. 2.18 Shew me thy faith without thy works and I will shew thee my faith by my works For though I affirm that the Apostle James doth not speak only in that Chapter of the demonstration of Faith by Works but also of real Justification before God by Works as they are a part of the condition of Gospel-justification according to the 14. ver of that Chap. If a man say he hath faith and not works SHALL FAITH SAVE HIM yet it is certain that he speaks there also of the demonstration of Faith by Works and both these designes I think may be as we understood in that chap. of James as in the 24 of Mat. we may understand our Saviour speaking of the destruction of Jerusalem and the end of the World But instead of giving marks and signes of true faith I shall rather proceed to an use of Exhortation unto the high and frequent exercise of Faith which when we are engaged in we shall have marks and signes enough to discover our faith by In the next place therefore I come to an use of Exhortation 4 Use of Exhortation Is it so that Faith is made the great and principal condition of our Justification that Faith bears so great a stroke in the business of Gospel-justification that the whole way should receive denomination from itâ— Rom. 4.14 If they which are of the Law be heires FAITH is made void Is the righteousness of God in the Gospel said to be revealed from faith to faith Is the Gospel-righteousness called the righteousness of faith nay is faith it self accepted as our righteousness then let this provoke us to the constant lively exercise of all the various excellent acts of Faith Let us do as all the Saints of old have done and if it be possible let us out-do them in believing By faith saith saith the Author of the Epistle to the Hebrews the Elders obtained a good report so he begins the chap. ver 2. These all saith he obtained a good report through faith so he ends it ver 39. What that great good report which they obtained was he tells you ver 33 34 35. Through faith they subdued Kingdomes wrought righteousness obtained promises stopped the mouthes of Lions quenched the violence of fire c. My first motive that I shall begin with to quicken this Exhortation shall be from the wonderfull things that faith hath wrought and can work 1 Mâ—tive Faith hath a virtue in it
that hath wrought and can work wonderfull things Witness but these three verses quoted Heb. 11.33 34.35 It was faith made the walls of Jericho fall down by faith in prayer Elijah that was otherwise a weak frail man as we are stopped the bottles of heaven for three years and six moneths that it rained not and by faith again he opened these bottles and the heavens gave rain and the earth brought forth her fruit Jam. 5.17 18. Faith enabled the Apostles to do miracles when the Disciples could not cast out a devil of one that was possest our Saviour tells them the reason was from their unâ—elief and that if they had faith but as a grain of mustard seed they should be able to say unto a mountain Be removed hence into yonder place and it shall remove and nothing should be impossible to them Mat. 17.19 20. What then would a strong faith do if a small faith would do so much It was by faith that persons obtained miracles to be done for themselves and others Math. 9.29 30. Then touched he their eyes saying According to your faith â—e it unto you and their eyes were opened and in Math. 15.28 Jesus answered and said unto her the woman of Canaan O woman great is thy faith be it unto thee even as thou wilt a large grant indeed and her daughter its said was made whole from that very hour This is commonly known by this name the Faith of Miracles and is plainly exprest what it is Mark 11.23 For verily I say unto you that whosoever shall say unto this mountain Be thou removed and be thou cast into the sea and shall not doubt in his heart but shall believe that these things which he saith shall come to pass he shall have whatsoever he saith So again 1 Cor. 13.2 If I had all faith so as to remove mountains Now if Faith will remove mountains even all mountains of difficulties and procure any thing from heaven that we need who would not endeavour to be strong in faith to be rich in faith as the several expressions are Rom. 4.20 Jam. 2 5. 2ly Faith will serve all occasions whatsoever 2 Motive and no wonder if it will work all miraculous effects therefore be rich in faith In famine it will feed thee as it did Elijah and the Widdow of Zareptha 1 King 17. and our Saviour in the Wilderness who lived not by bread but by the word of God for 40 dayes together Math. 4.4 In prison it will enlarge thee as it did Peter Acts 12. or at least enlarge thy heart as it did the hearts of Paul and Silas Acts 16.25 If thy children servants friends are sick it will heal them Mat. 15.28 Mat. 8.6 Jam. 5.14 15. There is no case but faith will reach it We may oppose this shield to all the fiery darts of Satan Eph 6.16 ABOVE ALL taking the shield of Faith whereby we shall be able to quench all the fiery darts of the wicked This I have spoken largely to above and therefore shall not enlarge here Faith and that alone will free thy minde of all cares and burthens 3 Motive Cast thy burthen upon the Lord and he shall sustain thee Psal 55.22 casting all your care upon him for he careth for you 1 Pet. 5 7. Now this is to be done onely by faith who would not have a minde quiet and free from cares and who can be carefull when he really believes that the only wise and omnipotent Jehovah takes all his cares upon himself This is the victory that overcometh the world even our faith 1 John 5.4 4. This will quicken all thy graces 4 Motive this you may see likewise above upon the last Question There is no thriving Christian but a believing Christian This is the highest way of honouring God that can be taken 5 Motive Abraham was strong in faith and so gave glory to God if thou doest not make it thy chiefest design in the world to honour God thou art no Saint of God now if thou wouldst study all the wayes imaginable to honour God thou canst not do it so effectually as by this one onely way of believing How is God known in the world in any way with such an honourable reflection as by men's trusting in him To trust our own wit and coÌ„ntrivance and endeavours only in what we do is as much as in us lyes to put God out of the world I am sure it is a living without God in the world whereas trusting in him for all is the only advancing the Lord upon his Throne of Sovereignty Goodness This is the only way of pleasing God 6 Motive Without faith it is impossible to please God for he that comes unto God must believe that he is a rewarder of all them that diligently seek him Men cannot more highly displease God than to believe that he is not good yea that he is not good to ALL that diligently seek him let them look to it that confine and set limits to his Goodness yea God is so highly pleased that men should trust in him that he hath made this the principal condition of the pardon of all our sins and receiving us into his special love and favour Abraham was therefore called the FRIEND OF GOD which is the highest honour in the whole world by this Enoch obtained this testimony taat he PLEASED GOD Heb. 11.5 which was an honourable testimony indeed Yea to conclude this Motive and all the Motives in this Use that the Lord might give us a testimony how highly he is pleased that we should trust in him and how fain he would have us rely upon him he hath at this time 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 in these blessed dayes of the Gospel set forth Christ a propitiation to shew how ready he is to be reconciled to all the world in a word one of the greatest ends of the oeconomy by Christ seems to be this that in him representing his Father being the express Image of his Pâ—rson yet partaking of Flesh and Blood like us we might have a fit instrument and help or mediate object for our faith to work upon first upon him and by him upon God himself according to that place once already mentioned 1 Pet. 1.21 Who by him that is Christ do believe in God that raised him up from the dead and gave him glory that your faith and hope might be in God I come now to the matter of the Exhortation it self Be exhorted therefore to be strong in faith that is in the acts of assent and the acts of affiance for these as I take it are the two chief proper acts of faith though after I have ended the Exhortation unto these two I shall give one notion of faith more under which we are to be exhorted to exercise faith 1. For Assent so faith is taken Isai 53.1 Who hath believed our report and Mark 1.15 Repent and believe the Gospel that is the doctrine
of the Gospel and to mention but one place more Rom. 14.23 Whatsoever is not of faith is sin This notion of faith viz. dogmatical faith where the word faith signifies an act is the most common notion of faith in the New Testament that is as the former part of the verse he that doubteth is damned if he eat because he eateth not of faith carrieth it whatsoever a man doth without a sound perswasion in his minde that it is lawfull to do it he sinneth in that action This is the first notion therefore of faith namely the assent to any Proposition though more accurately the assent to a testimony but yet you see the Scripture-notion of faith is somewhat larger than that of the Schools namely the perswasion of or assent unto the truth of a Proposition First therefore if thou wilt be rich in faith be thou rich in truth in thy assent unto truths that is truths in Religion for though it be faith to believe there is such a place as Rome or Constantinople yet my designe confines me here to truths in Religion Be thou rich therefore in assent to divine truths and that whether they be clear by the light of nature or revelation for assent to truths that are clear even by the light of Nature is called Faith by the Author of the Epistle to the Hebrews Heb. 11.6 where to believe that God is which certainly is clear by the light of Nature is called Faith as I have shewn above pag. 291. I say be rich in thy assent unto all truths as near as thou canst whether they be clear by the light of Nature or only by Revelation Let the word of Christ dwell in you richly in all wisedom Col. 3.16 So Christ shall dwell in your hearts by faith for according to thy light and knowledge and assent unto truths so will be thy heart affections and conversation he that hath a large light may have a large heart whereas those that have but a narrow light and a scanty knowledge can have but a lower and a more limited sphear and compass to act in for God And if it happen as often it doth that they that know little yet do more than many that know a great deal this comes not from any advantage of the honest man's ignorance but from the folly and carelesness of those persons that are knowing and their want of firm assent to the notions of truth which float in their brains I am but a little carefull here of distinguishing betwixt Knowledge Assent being confined with in the narrow limits of an Use Enlarge thy minde with knowledge and thou gettest a larger field of action and service than otherwise thou canst possibly have for thou must first know thy duty before thou canst do it rightly for he that doth the best actions in the world not knowing that they are good pleaseth neither God nor man they are only the actions of the man they are not humane or manly actions as the Schools distinguish Yea though thou dost a good action yet if thou doubtest whether it be good or no thou sinnest in doing this good action because whatsoever is not of faith is sin For this largeness of faith by assent see that last character where I shew how we should endeavour to know much of Christ 2. But then withall take this advice too in thy faith of assent do not only endeavour to get a true light and perswasion of the truth and goodness of things or actions but get it as firmly rooted and as clear as ever thou canst this will be a mighty advantage to thee for if thou hast only a glimmering light a little cloud will soon darken it if thou gettest but a faint perswasion a small objection will quickly turn it into doubting therefore get thy faith firmly built that thou maist be firm and stable in thy faith and perswasion Be not like children tossed to and fro with every winde of doctrine Eph. 4.14 Be not children in understanding in malice be ye children but in understanding be ye men 1 Cor. 14.20 I think we have sufficient experience in these times of of the sore evil of a weak perswasion about matters of Religion by the running up and down of so many from one party to another till at last they have made shipwrack of their faith that is saith doctrinal as well as of their consciences 1 Tim. 1.19 3ly As to this part of faith which lyes in assent as we ought to endeavour that it be large and strong so we must especially be wary that we fail not in our assent and that a firm assent to those truths that are most important Though it were to be wished yet it cannot be expected that all Saints should be so well acquainted with all truths even those of less weight as it may be justly expected their guid◠should be yet all must look to it that they be well establisht in foundation-truths such as the Death of Christ and his Expiation of sins the Resurrection of the body and the last Judgment we must be sure to continue in this faith grounded and settled and not moved away from the hope of the Gospel Col. 1.23 Rooted and built up in him that is Christ and stablished in the faith as we have been taught that is Faith doctrinal especially in that great Foundation of Jesus Christ Col. 2.7 And truly I think there hath been no greater weakening of our faith in foundation-truths than the multiplying of Fundamentals for taking off that weight and stress which we should lay upon those few fundamentals of the Faith of Christ that are really so and laying it upon things non-funnamental must needs make us unsettled from the foundation So much for the first part of Faith which lyes in assent and the directions about it 2ly For that part of Faith which lyes in Affiance I need not quote many Scriptures to evince this notion of Faith I shall give but one or two John 14.1 Let not your heart be troubled yee believe in God believe also in mee 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 there is a credere Deo which is to believe what the Lord sayes to be truth and a credere in Deum which is a resting and relying upon God committing all my cares and concernments to him He that believeth in the Son hath everlasting life John 3.36 So that phrase of Scripture to cite no more places of faith in the blood of Christ Rom. 3.25 can be understood of no other than some kinde of affiance such as this that for that blood sake the Lord is ready to be propitious to me if I have the Gospel-conditions of Justification and in this sense namely of affiance I have generally taken faith throughout this Treatise and the reason is this For that this is the end of a dogmatical faith or a faith of assent and cannot be conceived without it as that may without this not that I think there can be
a thorough dogmatical faith without this of * Faith of affiance is known in the Old Testament by the name of trusting as faith of Assent is known in the New Testament by the name of believing it it also expressed by staying one's self leaning upon confidence in God See Ball of Faith pag 24 25 26. who is large and clear upon it Affiance but yet seeing one may conceive them apart though they are never separated I took the surest course in using the word Faith in this sense namely for the faith of Affiance so including both unavoidably Look well therefore to this part of your faith this makes use of all the truths and promises which you assent unto for true and brings them down to your particular case as now for instance Doest thou assent to this for a truth that God is good to Israel even to such as are of a clean heart Psal 73.1 why then do thou believe for the Israel of God that God will preserve it and do it good notwithstanding all the sufferings that are brought upon it and do thou cleanse thy heart and believe that God will be good to thee The former viz. to believe the Promise true is a faith of Assent this a faith of Affiance so again for any particular trouble that the people of God may be under or that thou maist be under believe and doubt not but God will with this trouble make a way to escape that they and thou maist be able to bear it and that it shall work for good When thou prayest in any case of publick calamity as of Famine or of Pestilence c. thou must pray in faith and then thou hast no other way but to apply general promises which thou believest true by a faith of Assent to the particular case by a faith of Affiance so expecting the accomplishment of them When thou prayest for any sick person or for thy self upon any occasion it is the general promise must give thee incouragement to expect the mercy in the performance of it which expectation certainly must be understood to be affiance or at least some other act than meerly assent to the promise as from God In this part of Faith therefore namely Affiance 1. Endeavour to be rich and abundant 2. Be strong and intense 1. Be abundant extend your faith as far as you can unto all the cases of the Church or any particular persons whose cases you may have occasion to know St Paul had upon him the care of all the Churches 2 Cor. 11.28 but think you he could sustain it without casting this care upon God by faith See an act of faith for his beloved Romans Rom. 16 20. God shall bruise or tread Satan under your feet shortly and we finde how every Church to whom he wrote did partake of his most ardent prayers as we may see in the beginning of every Epistle which without faith would have been utterly ineffectual Nay the Apostle Paul was of so noble a spirit that he did not only interesse himself in the concernments of whole Churches but of every particular person that he could come to know of Who is offended and I burn not could he ease himself of this trouble but by faith Daniel he understood by books the number of the weeks wherein the Jews were to suffer Captivity and the time of their Deliverance and did he not adde prayers to his knowledge and faith to his prayers Dan. 9.2 3. Was it not for his prayers of faith looking towards Jerusalem Dan. 6.10 that he was cast into the Lions Den and did not the same faith that set him a praying and opened his mouth stop the mouthes of the Lions Heb. 11.33 Again for faith for particular persons I have often observed already that the Centurion believed for his Servant the Woman of Canaan for her Daughter the Palsie-man's friends for him Abraham's servant for his Master's Son Gen. 24.14 and it is said The prayer of faith shall save the sick Jam. 5.15 Therefore enlarge your faith and bowels of mercies for as many as you can 2ly Or if you cannot concern your faith so largely or universally as a Daniel or a Paul might do as some men and some Saints are of a more noble spirit and faith than other men then other Saints yet be sure look to it that whatever you do you mixe faith in the doing of it Whether you pray for your selves or others for Churches or particular persons you must pray in faith if you hear the Word you must mixe faith in the hearing of it if thou art under temptations findest great weakness infirmity thou must glory in it by faith that here is an opportunity for the power of Christ to rest upon thee When I am weak saith the Apostle then am I strong which could not be true in the same sense in which he was weak but only thus that when he was weak in himself then he found Christ most ready at at hand to help him as he explains himself in that Scripture 2 Cor. 12.9 10. If any of you lack wisedom let him ask it of God saith the Apostle James Jam. 1.5 But let him ask in faith nothing wavering as it follows in ver 6. But I shall not need to instance in particular cases wherein faith will stead us after so many reckoned together by the Author of the Epistle to the Hebrews chap. 11.33 34 35 there are cases personal and national in prosperity as victories adversity as imprisonments mockings scourgings death there are cases of Kings Judges Prophets private men and even of women only in the general therefore be sure whatever you do do it in faith let your whole life be a life of faith perhaps you may not have such a large sphear of action as some other more eminent Saints you may not be of such a large soul as some others but for what comes through your hands to do it must be done in faith in this we must all imitate the Apostle Paul Gal. 2.20 The life that I now live in the flesh saith he I live by the faith of the Son of God c. the life that I live the words are 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 THAT WHICH I now live in the flesh all this that I live and wherein I may be said to live is by th◠faith of the Son of God Mannage all thihe affairs perform all thy actions in faith whatsoever action thou hast to transact whether it be of a spiritual or a more secular concernment expect wisedom and strength and success from God And endeavour to be strong intense and vigorous in all the actions of thy faith as it is said Abraham was Rom. 4.20 and or a direction herein that your faith may be strong as Abraham's was take the course that he did if there be great difficulties appear in the way that thou art in yet knowing that thou art in Gods way look away from the difficulties that offer
themselves and consult only with the power and goodness faithfulness of God and this shield of Faith which above all the pieces of our spiritual armour we are cautioned to make use of will quench all the fiery darts of discouraging temptations Abraham was put upon as difficult acts of faith as ever any man was and if he would have considered all difficulties he might easily have been discouraged but it is said He CONSIDERED NOT his own body now dead nor yet the deadness of Sarah's womb ver 19. and therefore staggered not at the promise through unbelief The third Notion in which Faith is taken in Scripture Faith taken for fidelity or faithfulness to God and in which thou art to be exhorted to the exercise of faith is that of Fidelity or Faithfulness to God as it stands opposed to wavering and unfixedness of heart in the profession of his name and Gospel thus it is taken in James 15.6 If any of you lack wisedom let him ask of God who giveth to all men liberally and upbraideth not and it shall be given him But let him ask in faith nothing wavering If a man think to receive any thing of God wisedom or any such thing let him ask in faith What is this faith It is not meant of a particular certain expectation of that which we ask for that is understood in the phrase think to receive ver 7. but it is meant of trustiness and fixedness of heart to God without wavering as all the three verses 6 7 8. carry it for he that wavereth is like a wave of the sea driven with the wind and tossed A double-minded man is unstable in all his wayes now this double-mindedness and wavering cannot be meant of the want only of a certain expectation of that particular thing which we ask in prayer for though we should be wanting in this particular and sin in it yet it would not follow that we were unstable in all our wayes that we were like a wave of the sea driven with the wind and tossed or that we were double-minded for that is a word that plainly signifies hypocrisie Besides as I have intimated it is plainly said in the 7 verse that such a man that is a waverer a double-minded man must not think to receive any thing of the Lord now if double-mindedness and wavering here which are made the opposites of faith were taken for misdoubting to receive that thing which we pray for the paraphrase would be thus Let not him that doubteth whether he shall receive his petition think to receive his petition which were needless admiration for that while he doubteth whether he shall receive what he prayes for he cannot think he shall receive it But now there is a full and strong sense in the other exposition That if a man pray for wisedom or for any other thing at the same time is unfixed in his heart to the profession of the name and Gospel of Christ as it is known many of the Jews to whom the Apostle James directs this Ep stle were let not that man think to receive any thing of the Lord. If thou expectest or but desirest that the Lord should hear thy prayer at any time do thou come to him with thorough purpose of heart to cleave close to him do not bring with thee an heart and an heart a double mind into his presence for he hates a lukewarm soul that is neither for God nor for the world worse than he doth one that is stark cold Rev. 3.15 16. if thou comest with such an instability wavering and unfixedness of heart to God never think to receive any thing from him thou maist pray and pray thy heart out and do by thy self as Baal's Priests did by themselves to make their God to hear them 1 Kings 18.26 28. but thou shalt not be heard And what the Apostle James saith here in the matter of Prayer I may say in the matter of faith of Assent and Affiance both before mentioned That though you had the largest strongest assent to divine truths that ever any in the world had or as the Apostle makes the supposition 1 Cor. 13.2 Though you had the gift of Prophesie and understood all Mysteries and all Knowledge you though for affiance you had ALL FAITH that is saith Dr Hammond the highest degree of that faith by which Miracles are wrought so as to remove mountains nay I will adde though thou hadst the strongest affiance and trust in the mercies of God for the pardon of sins that ever any man had yet imagine all this but separated from that integrity and honesty of faith which is here required in this place of James and it is all worth nothing Thou must be a man fixed to God in thy resolutions to walk with him and serve him or else never think to fasten upon any of his promises nor to receive any answer to thy prayers Here you see is a notion of faith which signifies sincerity or faithfulness and this Conradus Bergius Professor at Breme in his Praxis Catholica pag. 15 16 17. asserts and proves to be the first notion of Faith pag. 17. Ad hanc quidem fidei significationem qua fidelitatem significat omnes caeterae revocari possunt that is Unto this signification or notion of faith wherein it signifies Fidelity or Faithfulness all the other significations of faith may be reduced Yet because as the same Author acknowledgeth in the same page Assensio quam adhibemus dicenti ita usu invaluit pro significatione fidei ut propria habeatur nihilque cedat illi quae ex prima impositione videtur descendere that is Assent to the authority and truth of the speaker is so commonly used to express the notion of faith that it is taken for the most proper notion of faith as also for that fiducia or affiance ad differentiam sicque ad dignitatem consequenter ad essentiam fidei pertinet as the same Author speaks pag. 44. that is affiance or trust belongs to the difference and so to the definition and consequently to the essence of faith for this reason that the firm assent to any testimony even that of God himself requires an affection in him that assents and therefore is Faith defined as he saith by Paraus assensum fiducialem a fiducial assent I say for these reasons from the notation of the word partly but especially for that though this fidelity and faithfulness be a Scripture-notion of faith as is to be seen in this place of James yet it is rarely used in this sense in the Scripture I have taken faith as justifying in that sense as it signifies assent or affiance chiefly for affiance for the reasons given above pag. 346. But however having urged the practice of faith as you see from the Scripture in this 3 Notion likewise which Bergius sayes is the first as it signifies Sincerity or Fidelity I shall not need to make any new exhortation