Selected quad for the lemma: cause_n

Word A	Word B	Word C	Word D	Occurrence	Frequency Band	MI	MI Band	Prominent
cause_n	imputation_n	justification_n	righteousness_n	3,015	5	7.9076	4	true

Text snippets containing the quad

ID	Title	Author	Corrected Date of Publication (TCP Date of Publication)	STC	Words	Pages
A37649	A vindication, or, Further confirmation of some other Scriptures, produced to prove the divinity of Jesus Christ, distorted and miserably wrested and abused by Mr. John Knowles together with a probation or demonstration of the destructiveness and damnableness of the contrary doctrine maintained by the aforesaid Mr. Knowles : also the doctrine of Christs satisfaction and of reconciliation on Gods part to the creature, cleared up form Scripture, which of late hath been much impugned : and a discourse concerning the springing and spreading of error, and of the means of cure, and of the preservatives and against it / by Samuel Eaton, teacher of the church of Jesus Christ, commonly stiled the church at Duckenfield.	Eaton, Samuel, 1596?-1665.	1651 (1651)	Wing E126; ESTC R30965	214,536	435

speaks a truth concerning which there is no controversie betwixt him and me He tells me of a righteousnesse of God by the Faith of Jesus Christ and of Gods being the principall Author of this righteousnesse which I grant though not in his sense for he means it of the Father alone but I understand it of Father Son and Spirit this God is the efficient à quo the efficient from whom righteousnesse is for it is he that doth account persons that believe righteous and doth acquit them from sin for the sake of Christ Rom. 8. 33. 34. Ephes 4. 32. But what is this to the purpose is this any Answer to my Argument or to the Scripture I produced I spake of a righteousnesse imputed to believers which is the materiall cause of a believers justification or of his righteousnesse in the sight of God and the imputation of this righteousnesse is the formall cause of Justification and this righteousnesse that is imputed is called the righteousnesse of God Philip. 3. 9. but he tells me of a righteousnesse of God which is from God as the Author or principall Efficient which is only true in this sense as God is he that appointed decreed and instituted the righteousnesse of Christ for the Justification of Beleevers and doth also pronounce them just upon that account But the Apostle Philip. 3. 9. doth not call the righteousnesse of Christ the righteousnesse of God in that sense the words are these That I may be found in him not having on mine own righteousnesse which is of the Law but that which is through Faith of Christ the righteousnesse which is of God through Faith The Apostle in this place speaks of a righteousnesse which is by the Faith of Christ materially as it is opposite to that righteousnesse which he calls his own righteousnesse and the one viz. his own righteousnesse he calls the righteousnesse which is ex Lege of the Law now this must be understood materially not efficiently God did account persons just while the Covenant of works was afoot in reference to righteousnesse which materially did consist in our obedience of the Law the obedience of the Law was the matter of it therefore it is called the righteousnesse which is of the Law The other viz. that righteousnesse which is through the Faith of Christ that is which is conveyed to us through Faith viz. Christ he calls the righteousnesse which is of God not efficiently but materially for it is 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 ex Deo not à Deo of God not from God God now accounts persons just this Covenant of Grace being on foot in reference to righteousnesse not ours of the Law but that of God viz. that of the person who is God the active and passive obedience of Christ who is God which Faith in Christ possesseth us of and makes ours instead of that which was ours viz. that of the Law for the Apostle speaks of righteousnesse which he would not be found in and of righteousnesse which he would be found in the former is Lis own of the Law the latter is of God by Faith that is of Christ who is God through faith in Christ The Apostle speaks not here of an Act of Grace in God that imputes the righteousnesse of an other unto Beleevers as theirs and so accepts of it but he speaks of that which is imputed and is become a covering in which he would be found and this he calls the righteousnesse not of the Law but of God viz. the obedience of that person who is God-man viz. Christ Suitable to this is that which we read in 2 Cor. 5. 21. He made him to be sin for us that we might be made the righteousnesse of God in him Here Christ is spoken of as a sinner but it is in the abstract to shew what a great sinner he was and the causes hereof are mentioned 1. God himself viz. the Father Son and Holy Ghost this God made Christ considered as Mediator and surety of the Elect a sinner that is he accounted him so here is the Efficient à quo from whom this was this was God 2. Here is the materiall cause which is our sins put on him and made his for he had none of his own it was for us 3. Here is also the formall cause which is in the imputation of our sins to him it was for us that he was made that is by laying of our iniquities upon him instead of us Isay 53. 6. 4. Here is the finall cause that we might be made the righteousnesse of God in him in which there is 1. The efficient cause that we might be made that is by God accounted reckoned by God 2. There is the materiall cause which is the righteousnesse of God viz. of Christ who is called in this place God which is put on us for we have no righteousnesse of our own as Christ had no sinnes of his own 3. There is the formall cause which is Imputation we are made that is by this righteousness of God put on us therefore it is said through him that is through the Imputation of this righteousnesse of his which is called the righteousnesse of God or els through him may be through faith in him He also makes Christ from this text of Rom. 3. 22. to be but an instrumentall Agent in this righteousnesse of a believer I suppose he draws it from these words by the faith of Jesus Christ for he will have this particle by to refer to the instrumentalnesse of the thing to which it doth belong And if it were granted him in this it would but make faith instrumentall and not Christ for it refers to faith and not to Christ It is not said By Iesus Christ but by the faith of Iesus Christ and Christ is mentioned as the object of this faith which the Apostle speaks of as the instrument There is the righteousnesse of Christ which is called the righteousnesse of God which God looks upon and hath respect to and for the sake of which God accounts persons just and righteous and this righteousnesse is therefore reputed the meritorious cause of our justification and faith layes hold of this and is the instrument to convey it to us and to make it ours So that this text serves not his purpose nor doth it at all help him in that assertion of his viz. of Christs instrumentalnesse in agencie in reference to this righteousnesse In the meane time he hath wholly passed over in silence the text that I alledged to prove my Argument by without speaking one word in answer according to the manner in which he hath dealt with me formerly But he undertakes to shew what that is in Christ which is imputed to us for righteousnesse It is saith he his obedience which was both active and passive The opinion now adayes saith he is that the active obedience of Christ whereby he did perfectly fulfill the Law and his passive obedience whereby he did perfectly

impartiall therein when his son whom he loved had offended by adultery caused one of his sons eyes and another of his own to be put out save only the praise of his justice and truth in his lawes and this is that which God grieves at And if the Judge loving the prisoner that is before him and knowing he hath nothing to pay and yet the law recovers payment will give his own son to be his surety and will lay the debt upon him and is content that his son shall fetch the price out of his own treasure yet the law is satisfied and the judges righteousnesse in reference unto it and his love to the Prisoner are glorified Nor is the satisfaction the lesse because God the offended person procures it and not man that offended him for the truth of God stands firme by that means and the law takes place and is not made of none effect as it would have been had no satisfaction been given which would have redounded to Gods dishonour Yea the righteousnesse of God and his love to undeserving creatures shines forth because the satisfaction is of Gods own procuring And though it proceed from God yet it cannot be said that God satisfies himself or that he was satisfied before for he that provides it doth not act it but it is acted in and by an other person The Father sends the Son and the Father in the Son receives satisfaction and though the Father and Son be the same God yet they are not the same person nor is the satisfaction that the Son gives materially considered given in the divine nature or God-head but the Sonne took flesh and in that flesh by dying and sheding his blood gave satisfaction so that it is from God but not in God if we speak of the next and immediate subject which is the man-hood if the matter of the satisfaction be respected And though it may be said that God was satisfied before in reference to his own love to such persons he did not repent of it in such sort as to cast them off nor was his purpose of glorifying them one whit shaken yet he was not satisfied after they had sinned and after he had sentenced them to death in point of righteousnesse and truth to passe by their transgression without satisfaction his Law was not satisfied in a free forgivenesse without satisfaction and so God was unsatisfied because the Law was Object 6. It is likewise asserted that there is an unsatisfied conscience in men men having sinned cannot discerne how Gods heart can be towards them without satisfaction therefore the Scripture speaks of propitiation through Christs bloud and of atonement by his death condescending therein to mans infirmity which could not otherwise apprehend how God could communicate life and glory to men after they had sinned without being first appeased and pacified by Christs blood But if things be rightly considered in themselves as in truth they are Christ dyed not to reconcile us to God but to heal us of an evill conscience and that we might know that God loved us after we had sinned as well as he did before by the gift of Christ who is the manifestation of the Fathers love after the fall which the Elect could not be perswaded of but by a pledge of it Therefore it is said that Christ shed his bloud to purge our conscience from dead works to serve the living God Heb. 9. 14. and not to satisfie God Sol. It will readily be confessed that it was an end of Christs dying to reconcile men to God and that they might have the answer of a good conscience before God 1 Pet. 3. 21. But that this was the solitary end or the principall end or that satisfaction to God is no end but is wholly excluded is denyed and hath been disproved all along in the discourse upon this subject 1. What need would there have been that Christ should have dyed at all if only satisfaction to mens consciences concerning Gods goodnesse and love to fallen creatures had been intended therein For God could best have done that by his spirit and must yet do it by his spirit if it be ever done in the hearts of men Indeed God having given Christ and delivered him up to death the spirit represents it as a great manifestation of the Fathers love but the spirit might have abundantly assured the heart of a sinner of the Fathers love without it so that there was no necessity of Christs dying in that regard 2. The love of God represented unto men in giving Christ is much lessened to them in the representation if Christ were only given to satisfie their hearts in reference to their fears of God not to satisfie Gods justice if there were no need of Christ in reference to any danger they were in in regard of God if God could or would have pardoned sin without him and his justice and truth could have remitted it 3. It is derogatorie to Gods wisdome and love to assert that Christ was delivered up to be crucified upon the crosse and there to shed his blood principally for this end to cure mans panique fears and his groundlesse causeles suspicions of God and not from any necessity that there was in mans evill condition in regard of sin committed by him and of Gods righteousnesse and truth prosecuting it against him For God might have done this in an easier way and have spared his dear Son God is represented prodigall of his dear Sons bloud if he must die and bleed out his spirits to cure some false conceits that men have entertained of God 4. What need was there that the Son should come in flesh and should empty himself of his glory and that he that is the Lord of glory should be crucified if no satisfaction to divine justice was looked at but only the satisfaction of the conscience the bloud of God as it is called would not have been necessary but the bloud of a meer creature Christ would have served the turne for such a purpose had that been all 5. How came those fears in the heart of man after the fall after sinne committed What bred them was there no ground for them were they meer conceipts and jealousies that wanted a right bottom did not the threatning before sinne was committed cause the horrours and terrours that were in the soul after sinne was committed and if they had Gods threatning as the ground of them viz. in the day thou eatest thereof thou shalt dye the death were they not well grounded and was it possible that these fears should be cured by the bloud of Christ and the cause not removed by the bloud of Christ the threatning not taken away the truth of God and his righteousnes not fulfilled and satisfied which were in the threatning and which bred the feares 6. These fears and terrors of the Elect before Christs bloud be brought to their hearts to remove them are they not of the same nature with the