it freely imputed to us so as to stand in it before God for the present and everlasting acceptance of our Persons as righteous by it unto Eternal Life It may be and indeed is upon us as to some effects of it and this not be through Faith but unto Faith For Faith is obtained for us by it and bestowed on us for the sake of it But it s having an efficacy for us so as to have some effects of it communicated to us is indeed its operating for us and on us but it is not its being upon us which the Text speaks of This righteousness is one thing the saving effects of it are another The thing I am to speak to is not what reference Faith hath to any of the effects of this righteousness being wrought on us but what reference it hath unto the being on us of this righteousness it self and that by the free gift and valid imputation of God unto Justification of Lite Having premised these two things I shall deliver my self touching this matter in Six Propositions Propos 1. There is a reference or respect of connexion between Faith and this Righteousness being upon us unto Justification of Life And this connexion is inviolable and holds in all persons I speak of such as are adult for how it is upon Infants I now consider not Insomuch as it is a certain Truth that whosoever believeth not this righteousness is not upon him and whosoever hath it upon him is a Believer Having believed and having this righteousness are so inseparably connected and linked together that where-ever there is one the other also is and if there be not both there is neither If thou hast not believed with the Faith of Gods Elect thy own Conscience ought to pass this Judgment on thee for God in his Word doth it that thou hast not this righteousness upon thee And on the other hand if thou hast indeed believed with this Faith of the operation of God and thy Conscience know it thou mayst then conclude assuredly that whatever thy Sins have been or whatever thy defects and corruptions now be yet this righteousness of God is upon thee thou hast it and thou dost stand in it Propos 2. There is a reference of order between a mans believing and this righteousness being thus upon him I do not speak of an order of Time but an order onely of Nature and Consecution of the one upon the other And such an order there is among the Blessings and Benefits of the Covenant For it is ordered in all things 2 Sam. 23.5 all the concernments and blessings and benefits of it are wisely and graciously disposed and ranked by God You may see it in other Instances We are not first made Children and then pardon'd but first pardoned and then adopted to be Children We are not first sanctified and then justified but first justified and then being justified we are sanctified Not that there is any space of time between them no they are as to time done together and at once but yet there is an order of dependance and causality Our being sanctified is the Effect not the Cause of our being justified and our being justified the Cause not the Effect of our being sanctified In like manner it is between our believing and this righteousness being upon us for our Justification or the change of our state It is through Faith that this righteousness is upon us as the Text expresly saith and the Scripture every where speaks not contrarily Propos 3. There is between our believing and this righteousness's being upon as a reference of causality For Faith is a means thereof by the Ordination of God and whatever God hath ordained as a means hath some causal influence towards that whereof it is by him made a means Those Expressions of the Holy Ghost that we are justified by Faith and through Faith and this in the Text that this righteousness is upon Believers through Faith do imply some kind of causality nor do I see how they can be satisfied or a just account given of them without admitting some kind of causal influence and efficiency to be in Faith towards our having this righteousness or its being upon us I hope you will not stumble at the word causality All that call Faith an instrument do speak as much as I mean for instrumenta etiam in causis adjuvantibus connumerantur Instruments are a sort of Causes Those who are very tender in this Point and greatly averse and watchful against ascribing too much in our Justification unto any thing in us or done by us yet do concerning the hand of Faith herein freely use those words Causality Efficiency and instrumental cause See Dr. Owen of Justification pag. 148 149 150 151 152 153. Mr. Durham on Rev. digres 11. and indeed it is the common language of all Protestants who own the imputation of the righteousness of Christ unto us I shall indeavour to clear it further in the following Propositions Propos 4. This Causality of Faith unto the righteousness of Christ being upon us is of the least and lowest kind It is not at all by way of Merit or Desert nor is it by way of sole Efficiency no nor principal but all its Efficiency or Influence herein is from Gods Constitution or Ordination and wholly by virtue thereof And this Ordination or Constitution of God is not that we should have the righteousness of Christ upon us either for or as a reward of our believing No far be such a thought from us But God having in Wisdom and Grace made this inviolable Constitution that this righteousness shall be upon every one that believes it doth actually take place upon particular persons at their believing and so this righteousness is upon them through Faith He that removes out of the shade into the shine of the Sun hereby comes to have the Sun beams fall upon him But that removal of his hath no influence upon the Sun nor doth any thing to draw down the beams of it upon him So our believing hath no influence upon the righteousness of Christ it hath an influence onely unto its being upon us Though our unbelief makes us unworthy of it or of any the least mercy yet our believing is as far from making us worthy to have this righteousness of Christ upon us as our defective and defiled Obedience is from making us worthy of Eternal Glory Propos 5. The next and immediate influence of Faith in this matter is that by it according to the constitution of God our mystical vital union with Christ is accomplished Such an Union there is between Christ and Believers They are ingrafted into him Joh. 15.4 5. Rom. 11.17 23 24. Betrothed and married unto him Hos 2.20 Rom. 7.4 They do dwell in Christ and have Christ dwelling in them Joh. 6.56 This Union is brought about effected and accomplished by our believing and therefore we are said to believe into Christ 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉
those visible lower Heavens Heb. 4.14 and ascended far above them all Eph. 4.10 and this he did as a Priest though not only as a Priest for it was prefigured and foretold by the Priests going daily from the Altar of Brass which stood without the Temple up unto the Altar of Gold for Incense which stood within the Sanctuary before the Vayl and by the High Priests going once a year in the great day of Atonement up from the Brazen Altar before the door with the Blood of his Sacrifice and with Incense also into the Holy of Holies unto the Mercy-Seat But Christ Ascension or going to Heaven is not a part of this righteousness nor upon us through Faith as this righteousness is Again to give another instance Christ doth intercede and in his so doing he fulfils the Law of his Priestly Office For it was Typified by the Priests offering up Incense and by his bearing the Names of the Twelve Tribes on his Shoulders and on his Breast-plate But the Intercession of Christ cannot be said to be any part of this righteousness which is here said to be upon us Though it be of precious and effectual avail for us and doth procure all our saying Mercies yet it is not imputed to us it is no part of his Suretiship-Righteousness which he hath brought in for us before God Proposition V. This Suretiship-Righteousness of Christ which is through Faith upon Believers is his perfect Conformity to the Moral Law in all that which the Justice of God did by virtue thereof demand in behalf of the Elect from Christ as their Surety that they might not onely in a way of Grace but in a way of Justice be brought to that Eternal Blessedness and Glory whereto God in his infinite love had appointed them The ground of Christs bringing in this righteousness is his being our Surety So he is made by God the Father and by his own undertaking in that Covenant between God and him was he constituted a Surety So he is called expresly Heb. 7.22 and the thing wherein Suretiship doth consist is abundantly affirmed of him in the Scripture Some indeed who would not be accounted Socinians wrangle against and reject this Counsel of God against themselves and thence would have it understood either metaphorically So Trum. gr propit pag. 88 100. or of his being Gods Surety to us to assure to us his performance of his Promises See Mr. B. Script Gosp def p. 76 78. But the thing is plain He who is obliged to pay anothers Debt or any part of it is properly and in strictness his Surety Now so it is between Christ and us he was obliged to pay our Debt and hath done it accordingly His name was put in into the original bond in which we by the Law and Covenant of our creation were bound Herein as God hath in his Infinite Love and Grace consulted well for us so he hath acted according to his own blessed Supremacy and adorable Wisdom without any the least impeachment of his Justice or his Truth in his Law For though the Law name onely us and do directly firstly and immediately bind us as the principal Debtors yet God in substituting his Son to be our Surety doth not in the least recede from his own Truth or from the equity and justice of the Law For as in Contracts between man and man the end and intendment is that the debt be paid whether by the original Debtor himself who contracted it or by another for him it is all one as to the rights of the Creditor they are justly preserved and provided for either way So it is here The highest end and main intendment of the Law is the preserving and securing unto God the honour of his Supremacy Wisdom Holiness and Justice And this is not departed from but provided for and pursued and that with much advantage unto Gods glory as well as our good in his constituting Christ our Surety And therefore in Gods calling Christ unto the work of bringing in this righteousness for us he doth neither revoke nor make void the Law nor recede from his own immutable Truth and Holiness shining in it but establisheth it as the Apostle declares Rom. 3.25 26 31. The rule of this righteousness by which it is measured is the Moral Law and the demands of the Justice of God in our behalf according to it Hence God by this righteousness of Christ doth magnifie his Law and make it Honourable as Isa 42.21 When I say the Moral Law is the rule of this righteousness of Christ I would not be understood as excluding his observing the Ceremonial Ordinances from being a part of his Righteousness It is of Moral Obligation that the positive Ordinances of God should be observed and Christ himself speaks of his observing that positive Ordinance of Baptism as a thing that was incumbent on him that he might fulfill all righteousness Matth. 3.15 The end of this Suretiship-righteousness of Christ is with reference to us that we might and its attainment is that we must and shall be brought in a way wherein Justice as well as Grace is glorified unto that blessedness to which God in his Infinite Love hath fore-appointed us Hence it appears that Electing Love is not the effect or fruit of this righteousness but is indeed the cause and spring of it Election is not procured by it but the bringing in of this righteousness for us is ordained by the Electing Love of God to us So the Scripture speaks Joh. 3.16 and 1 Joh. 4.9 10. God in his Electing us appointed us unto an higher bliss and glory than was proposed to the first Adam in his Covenant or than he could ever have brought his Seed unto He was of the Earth Earthly Christ is the Lord from Heaven 1 Cor. 15. and the Elect are appointed to be married to the Son of God made members of him and co-heirs with him and to be Sons of God as in Christ their Head to whom they are predestinated to be conformed in their Dignities and Priviledges as well as in their qualities spiritual Principles and the frame of their Hearts Rom. 8.29 They are to judge the World yea to judge Angels at the great day 1 Cor. 6.2 3. and in the mean time while they are here they are to be served and ministred unto by them Heb. 1.14 And at last there will be a day when the love wherewith the Father hath loved Christ shall appear to be in them and Christ in them and the World shall know that the Father hath loved them as he hath loved Christ Joh. 17.23 26. These are things higher than Adam or his Covenant would have brought them unto Yet unto these things must they be brought in a way wherein not onely Grace but Justice also shall shine forth and be glorified And therefore God in setting a Crown of Glory on their heads exerts his Justice as well as his Grace his righteousness as well as
Love this Grace of Christ should constrain you and make you thus judge That if one dyed for all then those all have dyed namely unto sin and he dyed that they which live should not henceforth live unto themselves but unto him who dyed for them and rose again for their Justification and that they might rise unto newness of life 2 Cor. 5.14 15. Thus the Apostle Peter also argues pressing it upon Believers to be holy in all manner of conversation even as he who hath called you is holy And the ground upon which he inforceth it is this because they are redeemed with the precious Blood of Christ See 1 Pet. 1.14 15 16 18 19. 2. You should walk humbly also as well as holily This God doth require Mic. 6.8 for you stand accepted not in your selves nor in any Works of Righteousness that you have done but wholly in the Righteousness of Christ that is upon you through Faith Therefore when you have done all and attained to the utmost you should still be humble and say you are unprofitable servants Luke 17.10 For all your obedience and conformity to the Law avails no more to justifie you than your worst sins do and you should look on your best performances and your worst sins even with the same eye in the business of Justification Believers do own that all their best Righteousness is as to their Justification but as filthy rags Isa 64.6 and true Converts have the like and can have no worse thoughts of their worst sins Isa 30.22 Labour you should and abound in the work of the Lord not to work out a Righteousness to stand justified in before God No God forbid such a thought should ever be entertained by any Believer I do not think the Saints in Heaven would be willing to exchange and put off the Robe of Christs Righteousness to stand before God for acceptance in that perfect and spotless Holiness to which they have there attained Much less should any Believer be willing to stand and continue in a justified estate by his own imperfect defective and stained Obedience Neither indeed can I see how such a frame of Heart can be consistent with true Faith But obey you should because you have a Righteousness upon you in comparison and in competition wherewith the Righteousness of Men and Angels is to be despised Obey therefore to the utmost but look away from it when you have so done Obey not to acquire or continue to your selves an interest in this Righteousness much less to be your Righteousness before God but that you may show forth the Praises of him who hath called you into Fellowship with his Son Jesus Christ 3. You should also walk comfortably and rejoysingly as well as holily and humbly For you are made accepted in the beloved Standing in this Righteousness having it upon you through Faith you may you should rejoyse and glory not in your selves on any performances of yours or Graces inhering in you but in the Lord in whom you have both Righteousness and Strength For the Lord hath sworn that in him should all the seed of Israel be justified and glory Isa 45.23 24 25. Having by Faith received the atonement you may glory even in his presence of whom you are in Christ Jesus who is of God made unto you Wisdom Righteousness and Sanctification and Redemption and you made the Righteousness of God in him that he that gloryeth should glory in the Lord. POST-SCRIPT THere are two Passages in the foregoing Sermons which have been exclaimed against publickly and privately by one that heard them not And I do believe he was angered by more than two For he is one that makes union to Christ our having this Righteousness upon us and our being justified by it to be given us in way of reward of something done by us and he is the man that makes the state of Believers to be undecided and in suspense during this Life Both which Errors are damning the former in its Nature and direct tendency the latter in its Grounds and Principles And whether he do not in truth disown the imputation of our Sins unto Christ and of his Righteousness unto us it is like if he live the VVorld will see more fully for he hath given such pregnant indications thereof as do amount to at least just cause of jealousie But touching these things he thought it best to keep silence and to fix his nails where he thought he had better advantage The one Point is pag. 7. That the Incarnation of Christ is no part of his Humiliation As to the truth of it as there laid down I shall say little more knowing it cannot be overthrown The whole stress of the matter lyes in those two words Incarnation and Humiliation how they are taken If the former be taken largely as comprising Christs taking both our Nature and the common sinless Frailties of it together with his being in the form of a servant and made under the Law I know not why it should be denyed to be a part of his Humiliation But if it be taken strictly for his dwelling in Flesh or Humane Nature comprehending under it both the act of assumption and the relation or union arising and effected thereby between the Humane Nature so assumed and the Person of the Son of God who did assume it neither the one nor the other of these neither the act of assuming nor the Union of the two Natures effected by it may be allowed to be any part of Christ's Humiliation For Humiliation is not in this argument to be taken laxly and improperly for any thing which hath Goodness or Grace in it as God's beholding things in Heaven and in Earth is said to be an humbling of himself Psal 113.6 So Christ might have been said to humble himself though he had never been Incarnate But in this subject Humiliation ought to be taken precisely for that which is proper and peculiar to the second Person in the Trinity which the Apostle calls his being in the form of a Servant or rather his being made under the Law Between which there may be conceived some difference for Christ is now in his state of Exaltation Gods Servant but he is not now under the Law as he was in the days of his Flesh and Frailty And taking these words thus it is far from being a singular conceit of mine that the Incarnation of Christ is not a part of his humiliation Mr. Bradshaw not only saith expresly Christ's assuming the Humane Nature cannot properly be said to be a part of his Humiliation but gives his reason for it of Justif ch 17. Sect. 7. and makes the Title of that Chapter to be this Christ that he might taken on him the guilt of sin was made man Whence it is evident that in his Judgment which is also the current Judgment of all Christians Christ's becoming Man was not the effect of the guilt of sin being on him but the way of his