good Spirit The third Question is concerning the activenesse of Faith The Controversie is WHether Faith concurre as an active instrumentall cause to â—ur Justification In the explicating of it I must â—â—rst speake what it is that justifieth â—â—ee First we doe beleeve that in our â—ffectuall calling God draweth us to â—nion with Christ Ioh. 6. 44. Sheding abroad his Spirit in our hearts Rom. 5. 5. And working Faith in us 〈◊〉 receive Christ Ioh. 1. 12. 13. And 〈◊〉 live by Faith upon him Gal. 2. 20. Secondly we are no sooner alive in Christ but we are accounted of God â—s his adopted children in Christ Gal. â— 26. Ephes 1. 5. and so are made heires of righteousnesse Galat. 3. 29. God imputing the righteousnesse of his Sonne Jesus to us for our justification Rom. 4. 23. 24. 25. As we were no sooner alive in the first Adam but we became his children and heires of his transgression God imputing the guilt of it to our condemnation Now in this we all consent that in receiving the gift of Faith we are meerely passive But yet a double Question heere ariseth Whether in receiving of Chrisâ— or the Spirit who commeth into our hearts in his name we be meerly passive Whether our Faith bee active to lay hold upon the righteousnesse oâ— Christ before the Lord doe firsâ— impute the righteousnesse of Christ unto us Our Reasons are If it be the spirit of Grace sheâ— abroad in our hearts that doth beâ— get Faith in us then if wee were Passive in receiving Faith wee are much more passive in receiving Christ or the Spirit of Christ that begetteth Faith for if we have no life to be Active untill Faith come we have much lesse life to be Active before the Cause and root of Faith come But it is the spirit of Grace shed abroad in our hearts that begetteth Faith in us Zech. 12. 10. Therefore if we be Passive in receiving Faith we are much more Passive in receiving the spirit that begetteth Faith If we bee active in laying hold on Christ before he hath given us his Spirit then we apprehend him before he apprehend us then wee should doe a good act and so bring forth good fruites before wee become good trees yea and bee good trees before we be in Christ But these are all contrary to the Gospell Philip. 3. 12. 13. Matth. 7. 18. Iohn 15. 4. 5. Therefore wee bee not active in laying hold on Christ before hee he hath given us his Spirit Whether our Faith bee active to lay hold upon Christ for his righteousnesse before the Lord do first impute the righteousnesse of Christ to us we conceive no. For these Reasons If the sinne of Adam were imputed unto us for our condemnation assoone as we were alive by naturall life before we had done any act of life good or evill then the righteousnesse of Jesus Christ is imputed unto us to our Justification as soon as we be alive unto God by Faith before wee have done any act of Faith But the former is plaine Rom. 5. 18. 19. Therefore the latter also If our Faith be first active to lay hold upon Christ for his righteousnesse before God imputeth it unto us Then wee take Christs righteousnesse to our selves before it bee given unto us But that wee cannot doe for in the order of nature giving is the cause of taking unlesse wee take a thing by stealth If our Faith be first active in laying hold on Christ for his rightenesse before God impute it unto us then we doe justifie God before he doth justifie us For hee receiveth the testimony which God hath given of his Son that God hath given us life in his Sonne he hath set to his seale that God is true Iohn 3. 33. And so he which justifieth God as others that doe not receive the testimony condemne God of lying 1 Ioh. 5. 10. But we cannot Justifie God before he justiâ—e us no more then we can love him before hee first loved us 1 Ioh. 4. 19. If our Faith be first active to lay hold on Christ for his righteousnes before God impute his righteousnes unto us Then wee are righteous men to act and worke out our own righteousnesse before we be righteous by the imputed righteousnes of Christ But we be to our best acts and workes of righteousnesse unrighteous till our sinnes bee pardoned which is not untill the righteousnesse of Christ be imputed to us In the order of nature the object is before the act that is conversant about it Therefore it is in the order of nature before the act of our Faith To beleeve on the name of Christ is an act of Faith To beleeve on the name of Christ is to receive Christ Iohn 1. 12. Therefore the receiving of Christ is by an act of Faith The place in Iohn upon which the weight of this Argument lieth saith no more but that they which received Christ in the second Aorist in the time past doe beleeve on his name in the time present Which we willingly grant that they who receive Christ their faith becommeth active through him to beleeve in his name that so they might receive him and his righteousnesse We are justified by Faith Rom. 3. 28. When we are said to bee justified by Faith It is by the righteousnesse of Christ imputed unto us Abrahams To credere his act of beleeving was imputed unto him for righteousnesse Rom 4. 3. It is taken generally amongst the Learned for a singular opinion of Master Wotton that To credere the act of beleeving should be imputed for rigteousnesse For indeed the act of beleeving is neither a righteousnesse according unto the Law For the Law is perfect Psal 19. 7. Nor a righteousnesse according unto the Gospell For the act of beleeving is an act of our owne though given of grace But the righteousnesse of the Gospell is not an act of our own And therefore Paul desireth that he may be found in Christ not having his owne righteousnesse which is of the Law but that which is through the Faith of Christ the righteousnesse which is of God by faith Phil. 3. 9. to wit the righteousnesse of Christ imputed But this Doctrine is opposite unto the streame of all the Learned a passive Faith is not heard of amongst men and they doe genenerally make Faith an instrumentall cause of their Justification A passive Faith is rarely hard of out of my mouth but yet the thing meant by it is never rare in the writings of the learned nor sometimes the word passive Faith Two things are meant by the word of Faith and may be said to be passive in our Justification in a double respect Because a habite of Faith may be called passive before it putteth forth any act and we are justified assoone as by an habit of faith we are alive in Christ in the first moment of our conversion before
there needâ—th no preparation the almighty â—ower of God calleth them to be his people that were not his people 1 Pet. 2. 10. And by calling them to be so hee maketh them to bee so Rom. 9. 25 26. As hee saith inHosea I will call them My people which were not my people and her Beloved which was not beloved Verse 26. And it shall come to passe that in the place where it is said unto them Yee are not my people there shall they be called The children of the living God While Satan the strong man keepeth the house Christ the stronger cometh upon him and bereaveth him of his armour and divideth the spole Luke 11. 21 22. Wee are dead to our first husband the Law by the body of Christ Rom. 7. 4. and therefore it is by the vertue of Christs death we have fellowship with Christ and that giveth the deadly stroak unto our first husband The second Question WHether a man may evidence his justification by his sanctification The state of the Question is thus unfolded First To take a mans sanctification for an evident cause or ground of his justification is flat Popery Secondly To take a mans sanctification for an evident cause or ground of that faith whereby hee is justified is utterly unsafe for faith is built upon Jesus the Christ the head corner stone Ephes 2. 20. Mat. 16. 16. and not upon works A good work floweth from faith not faith from them Thirdly To take common sanctification that is such a reformation and a change of life as floweth from a spirit of bondage restraining from sin and constraining unto duty and sometimes accompanied with enlargement and comforts in duty yet without the sense and feeling of the need of Christ and before union with him to take such a sanctification for an evident signe of justification is to build upon a false and sandy foundation Fourthly That when a man hath first attained assurance of his faith of his justification by the witnesse of the Spirit of Christ in a free promise of grace made to him in the bloud of Christ Acts 13. 38 39. hee may discern and take his sanctification as a secondary witnesse or an evident signe or effect of his justification The Question being thus stated I propound the Question thus Whether a man may gather the first evidence or assurance of his faith of his justification by his sanctification Wee hold in the Negative part The first Argument As Abraham came to the first assurance of his justification so wee and all that beleeve as Abraham did for hee is made a patterne to us in point of justification Rom. 4. 23. Now it was not written for his sake alone that it was imputed to him V. 24. But for us also to whom it shall be imputed if we beleeve on him that raised up Jesus our Lord from the dead V. 25. Who was delivered for our offences and raised againe for our justification But Abraham came to his first assurance of his sanctification not from any promise made thereunto but from a free promise of grace Rom. 4. 18. Who against hope beleeved in hope that hee might become the father of many nations according to that which was spoken So shall they seed be V. 19. And being not weak in faith he considered not his own body now dead when he was above an hundred yeares old neither the deadnesse of Sarahs wombe Vers 20. He staggered not at the promise of God through unbeliefe but was strong in faith giving glory to God Vers 21. And being fully perswaded that what hee had promised hee was able to performe Vers 22. And therefore it was imputed unto him for righteousnesse The promise was absolute and free So shall thy seed be as the stars of heaven this hee beleeved with full assurance of faith resting onely on the faithfulnesse and grace and power of him that promised Rom. â— 21. Therefore wee and all the children of Abraham come to our first assurance of our Justification not from our Sanctification or from any promise made thereunto but â—â—om the free promise of grace The secoud Arguwent No man can take his assurance of the faith of his Iustification But as God will declare and pronounce him righteous in Christ Iesus But God will not declare and pronounce us righteous in Christ upon the sight and evidence of our sanctification Therefore we cannot take the assurance of the faith of our Iustification from the sight and evidence of our sanctification The Assumption is proved thus If God justifieth us that is declareth and pronounceth us to bee righteous he doth then declare his owne righteousnesse that he might be just Then he doth not declare us to be righteous in Christ upon the sight and evidence of our sanctification which is a righteousnesse of our owne But when God justifieth us that is first declareth us and pronounceth us to be righteous he doth declare his owne righteousnesse that he might be just Therefore he doth not first pronounce and declare us righteous upon sight and evidence of our sanctification which is a righteousnesse of our owne The proofe of the Proposition It will not stand with the righteousnesse of God to declare and pronounce a man just upon the sight of such an imperfect righteousnesse as our best sanctification is And therefore when God declareth and pronounceth us righteous He doth it not upon any sight of any sanctification or righteousnesse of ours But onely upon the sight of the perfect righteousnesse of Christ imputed unto us The proofe of the Assumption That when God justifieth us that is when he first declareth and pronounceth us to be righteous he doth declare his own righteousnesse that he might be just as Paul speaketh Rom. 3. 26. and the justifier of him which beleeveth on Jesus And it is the speech of David that when God declareth himselfe to bee just hee declareth onely the sinnefulnesse of the Creature Psal 51. 4. The third Argument If the promise be made sure of God unto faith out of grace Then it is not first made sure to faith out of works But the promise is made sure of God to faith out of grace Rom. 4. 5. to him that worketh not but beleeveth on him that justifieth the ungodly his faith is accounted for righteousnesse Therefore the promise is not made sure to faith out of works From the opposition of Grace and Works Rom. 11. 6 Aud if by grace then it is no more of workes otherwise grace is no more grace The opposition standeth not onely betweene grace and workes but beweene grace and the merits of works now no man ascribeth the assurance of faith in the promise to the merits of works The opposition standeth not only betweene grace and the merits of works but between grace and the debt due to workes For so the Apostle Paul expresseth it Rom. 4. 4. Now to him that worketh is the reward not reckoned of graco but of debt If
and shew it unto you Joh. 16. 14. Nor will he so much dishonour the righteousnesse and grace of the Father of glory as first to pronounce and declare us justified in the sight of our owne righteousnesse In Mat. 7. from verse 16. to 20. The tree is knowne by his fruit True to others but not unto himselfe If a tree could know it selfe it would first come to know it selfe by seeing upon what root it grew before it came to see what fruit it did beare Joh. 15. 1 2 3 4 5. But this Doctrine is new it is not ancient nor gray-headed The Doctrines of the Covenant of free-grace are ever new because they are the Doctrines of the New-Covenant which can never waxe old should it once waxe old it would soone vanish away Heb. 8. from vers 8. to 13. though it be as ancient as Abraham yea as Adam for hee had his first comfort and assurance in an absolute promise of free-grace Gen. 3. 15. yet it hath ever seemed new in every age Augustines Doctrine of Conversion that is of grace and not of free-will Luthers Doctrine of Justification that is of faith not of works Calvins Doctrine of Predestination that is of grace not of faith and works fore-seen were all of them thought new Doctrines in their times and yet all of them the ancient truths of the everlasting Covenant of grace And surely for this Doctrine in hand Calvin is as clear as my hearts desire to God is wee all might be his words have been partly rehearfed before in the answer of some Objections and partly in my large Answer to your Reply Bellarmine taketh it to be the generall Doctrine of the Lutherans That Assurance of faith goeth before works and doth not follow after Institnt lib. 3. cap. 9. And Pareus in answer unto him saith That though there be an assurance that followeth good works yet the former assurance from the witnesse of the Spirit goeth before And seeing they that are the chief Reformers of the Protestant Assemblies doe generally make sanctification a fruit of faith and doe define faith to be A speciall assurance of mercy in Christ it must needs be out of controversie their judgement That a man receiveth his first assurance not from his sanctification which they make to be an effect flowing from it but from an higher principle even from the grace of the Father and the righteousnesse of the Sonne the Lord Jesus Christ and witnessed by the holy Spirit Bilney in the Book of Martyrs in his Epistle to B. Tuâ—stall relating the manner of his conversion proâ—ested That when hee had wearied himself in many superstitious works of fasting and Popish pennance hee received at last his first assurance from that place in Timothy 1 Tim. 1. 15. hee calleth it a most sweet word unto him This is a true saying and worthy of all men to be received Jesus Christ came into the world to save sinners of whom I am the chiefe A word from an absolute promise set home unto him by the â—oly Spirit without respect of any sanctification formerly wrought or seene in him Alas how farre are they mistaken that thinke the contrary Doctrine hath beene sealed with the bloud of Martyrs Zancheus his judgement though he was a godly and an eminent learned man yet I would not have named him but that Mr. Perkins highly approved his discourse and translated it as a choyce piece into his owne Volume which maketh it obvious to every godly Reader that studieth Perkins learned Workes Page 429. the first testimony saith Zanchey and Porâ—ius for him by which God assureth us of our election is that inward testimony of the Spirit of which the Apostle Paul speaketh Rom. 8. 16. The Spirit witnesseth to our spirits that wee are the sonnes of God And afterward comming to give some direction how a man may know whether this testimony be true and proceedeth from the holy Spirit or no. Hee answereth Page 433. three waies First A man may know it first by the perswasion it selfe Secondly By the manner of its perswasion Thirdly By the effects For the first the holy Spirit doth not simply say it but doth perswade with us that we are the sonnes of God And no flesh can doe it againe By reasons drawne not from our worke or from any worthinesse in us but from the alone goodnesse of God the Father and the grace of Christ freely bestowed and in this manner the Devill will never perswade any man The perswasion of the holy Spirit is full of power for they which are perswaded that they are the sons of God cannot but must needs call him Father and in regard of love to him do hate sinne and on the contrary they have a sound hearty desire to do his Word and Will revealed For the second Answer to the imputation of Novelty Either saith John Cotton I am exceedingly deceived or it justly falleth upon the contrary Doctrine and they are much mistaken that think otherwise I never read it to my best remembrance in any Author olde oâ— new that ever a man received his first evidence of the faith of his Justification from his Sanctification unlesse it be one whom I met with within these two dayes Printed within these two yeares that maintaineth our first comfort of Justification from Sanctification But â—enerally all our English Orthodox Teachers doe oppose it Amongst the English Teachers one for ought I know did more â—dvance the Doctrine of Marks and â—ignes then Master Nicholas Byfield â—â—d yet he himselfe professeth that â—umane reason cannot beleeve such â—reat things from God from any â—â—ing that is in us But onely beâ—use we having the Word of God â—suring such happinesse unto such â— lay hold upon the promises conâ—ined in it So that it is that which â—eedeth Faith or as he calleth it â—e perswasion of our good estatesâ—et notwithstanding saith he the â—â—surance of Faith is much increased â—â—d confirmed by Signes the forâ—er part of which speech touchâ—â—g the first begettings of the assuâ—â—nce of Faith consenteth with me the latter concerning the increasing and confirming of the assuranceâ— argueth plainely his consent thuâ— farre also that he meant not that thâ— assurance of the Faith of Justification should spring from Sanctification But when he would have thâ— assurance of Faith to bee increaseâ— and confirmed by the light 〈◊〉 Signes I would not refuse it 〈◊〉 by the assurance of Faith hâ—â— meanes onely assurance of Knowledge or if he meaneth onely aâ—surance of Faith properly so caâ—led I would then put in this caâ—tion That then the Spirit of Goâ— himfelfe had need by his owne tâ—stimony to reveale our justificatâ—on unto us and Gods free grace 〈◊〉 accepting us in Christ or else it 〈◊〉 not Word nor Worke nor tâ—â— light of a renewed conscience thâ—â— can increase or confirme the assâ—rance of Faith of our Justificatioâ— But only the manifestation of Goâ— Free-grace in a Divine testimony â—atified by his owne