2. 15 is the Originall though our Translation hath it and not by childbearing if shee continue in faith and charity and holines with sobriety The meaning is notwithstanding the Popish false glosse given it that although sorrow in Childbearing was first inflicted upon that sexe as a part of Gods Curse for sin yet as many as beleeve shall finde the Curse removed and a blessing in the place thereof It shall be made a happy furtherance to their salvation putting them in minde of their sin that first brought the sorrow and so filling them with self-deniall and self-abhorring that they shall cleave the faster to Christ for salvation by Faith as knowing themselves forlorn in themselves and stand the more fixed and stedfast in charity holines and sobriety The like is to be concluded of the rest of the sufferings which he particularizeth God so dispenseth them that they may be furtherances of salvation to beleevers by working in them humblednes and self-denyall bearing up themselves by faith in Christ alone both for salvation and increase of their sanctification The very pravity of our nature of which he speaketh is left in us not as a curse in wrath but as a means in Gods wisdome and love more to humble us to make us more to cleave unto Christ and an Antagonist against which fighting in the power and spirit of Christ we may overcome and having overcome may obtein the Crown So that these two Arguments are impertinent and nothing to the question To the third I answer that there is nothing els in it but a wresting of Scriptures from their proper sense that they may be subservient to Mr. Baxters ends First that of 1 Cor. 15. 21 22. maketh nothing to his purpose It onely testifieth that as by man came death i. e. by Adam so by man i. e. by Christ came the resurrection But how far both of the members of this proposition reach is manifest by the following words For as in Adam all dye i. e. all that live and die in Adam perish hopelesly and everlastingly So in Christ all shall be made alive i. e. All that are translated out of Adam into Christ The one man being the root of death to himself and all that are in him the other the root of life to himself and to all that by faith shall be ingraffed into him That this is the genuine meaning of the words is evident by the next verse which amplifieth what th'apostle had said in this viz. who are these all that shall be made alive in Christ First Christ saith the Apostle as the first fruits then they that are Christs at his coming Here is no mention of the resurrection of them that are not in Christ Not that these shall not also be raised by Christ but that the Apostle speaketh here not of resurrection in generall but of resurrection to life whereof those that are in Christ do alone partake Even as of those which dye in Adam he speakes of an everlasting death whereof the unregenerate alone partake So that there is not any mention here expressed of the death of beleevers much lesse of the curse and wrath in their death Touching the second Scripture which he quoteth and citeth Rom. 6. 23. The wages of sin is death who doubts but it is so to them that are under the guilt and dominion of sin But what is this to beleevers And the third Scripture is as pat as the two former For this caus many of you are sick many weak many sleep The Apostle here writes to a visible Church in which it appears there were some true and some but formall and temporary beleevers Christ is in the midst of this Church dispensing his discipline The true beleevers by the contagion of the formall professors had somewhat prophaned the Lords Table by resorting to it somewhat disorderly The other had totally violated it by coming to it drunken and so were worse than beasts from their own Tables here now had Christ inflicted chastisements of sicknes and weaknes for the humbling and amending of those that were his but death and vengeance upon them that while they professed faith in him yet were indeed despisers of him and his ordinances What is this to the Curse of the Law upon beleevers Therefore I shall add to Mr. Baxters And if so my and if so if so that wresting of Scriptures will serve the turn Mr. Baxter will surely have the water run in his ground and his fancy stand though Gods truth thereby fall to the earth To the fourth That his phrase is ambiguous and it is not easily understood what so cunning a sophister meaneth by evills Untill therefore he hath discharged his bushell of distinctions putting a difference after his manner between a naturall and a metaphysicall good whereof this evill is a privation between an evill physicall and an evill morall and an evill in a theologicall sense between the evill of sense and the evill of loss and a whole bundle more of evills that he can distinguish into their kinds we know not what he meaneth when he saith that sufferings are in their own nature evills to us If I should answer in one sense he hath the slight quickly to evade to another and to study out all his evills would cost more labor than a hundred such Arguments and all his evills to boot are worthy of As for that which he addeth Doubtles so far as it is the effect of sin it is evill and the effect of the Law also It is as much as if he had said doubtles so far as the Sun is made or is the effect of a thunder cloud it is black and dark and the effect of the Thunderbolt also We deny it to be the effect of sin as the meritorious cause thereof so that the suffering of a beleever should be the curse or revenging punishment of his sin Christ hath born that and so it shall not be in this respect evill nor the effect of the law neither We grant a beleevers sin to be oft the occasion never the proper cause of a beleevers sufferings To the fifth We deny not the sufferings of beleevers to be oft in Scripture ascribed to Gods Anger But it is so ascribed 1 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 to set forth Gods dealings to mans dull understanding by a similitude of mans passions that they might be the more easily comprehended Because man in his anger and wrath doth correct most severely therefore the sufferings of the Saints when they are great and grievous are said to come from Gods anger and therefore said to be from his anger to speak out that they are great afflictions such as children receive from their parents when they are most hot in their passion Not that there is indeed any such passion in God 2 In respect of the sufferers apprehension who being weak in faith and too much prejudiced by sense is apt for a season sometimes in great tryalls to conclude himself
reason surmounting the reason and capacity of the people to comprehend And these questions which they spin and spit out by dozens yea hundreds thousands as they are mostly superfluous vain useless and many of them presumptuously and arrogantly proposed about things which the Lord hath kept secret in his own bosom not revealing them by his word so are they oft no less peremptorily and audaciously by these men answered and determined out of their Philosophicall and Metaphysicall fancies without one particle of the word to ground their determinations upon Thus by their questionary sophistry they have both obscured if not totally quenched all true Divinity i. e. the Doctrine of the Gospel and have foysted in a confused Chaos of titular Divinity that hath nothing of light or life in it such as the Scripture owns not from their own reason Compare we now Mr. Baxter with these to see whether as the Apostle calleth Timothy his own or his naturall son in the faith 1 Tim. 1. 2. because he walked directly after him in the steps of his faith So Mr. Baxter doth not also declare himself the own and naturall sonn of these sophisters by walking directly after them in the steps of their cunning and subtlety to destroy the Faith The Poets feigned that Minerva was begotten and born of Jupiters brain because she was all wisedom it self And I think Mr. Baxter would be offended if it should be denyed that all the quintissence of sophisticall learning that hath been in all the brains of all the Schoolmen and Jesuits were not so extracted from them as to have its residency now in his He was as far as I can understand born and brought up in the Protestant Church within this nation as Costor Pollux c. were in the house of Leda but by a new and strange generation or adoption of eggs layd by these Serpents he discovers himself now in a manner to be wholly theirs so fully doth he resemble yea parallel them that unum nôris omnes nôris you may read in him alone the Genius and the Craft of them all Attend we els to his own words in his explication of his 7th Thesis pag. 25 c. All that he hath written before I passe by without exception against it pag. 19. he layeth down his 7. Aphorism in these words Bax. Jesus Christ at the will of his Father and upon his own will being perfectly furnished for this work with a Divine power and personall Rigteousness first undertook and afterward discharged this debt viz. mans debt to God by suffering what the Law did threaten and the offender himself was unable to bear To this as to the rest he addeth that which he calleth an Explication i. e. an Exposition explainning or making plain of the Aphorism or point so laid Let us trace him how now he makes it plain beginning at the 25. p. before mentioned I should be too large to write all his words yet shall not wrong him by writing any save his own words or the very substance of them Bax. Here we are cast upon many and weighty and very difficult questions 1 Whether Christ did discharge this debt by way of solution or by way of satisfaction 2 Whether in his suffering and our escape the threatning of the Law was executed or dispensed with 3 And if dispensed with how it can stand with the truth and justice of God 4 And whether sinners may thence be encouraged to conceive some hope of a relaxation of the threatnings in the Gospell 5 And whether the faithfull may not fear lest God may relax a promise as well as a threatning 6 And whether if the Law be relaxable God might not have released his Sonn from the suffering rather then to have put him to so great torment and to have freely pardoned the offenders And p. 27. The resolving of the first question depends upon the resolving of two other questions both great and difficult 1 What it was which the Law did threaten 2 What it was that Christ did suffer Various are the judgments of * He means the Popish Doctors specially for they with him are the Divines Divines about the former c. 1 Whether Adams soule and body should have been annihilated and destroyed so as to become in sensible 2 Or whether his soule should have been immediately separated from his body as ours are by death and so be the only sufferer of the pain 3 Or if so whether there should have been any resurrection of the body after any space of time that so it might suffer as well as the soul 4 Or whether soul and body without separation should have gone down quick into hell ar into any place or state of torment short of hell 5 Or whether both should have lived a cursed life on earth through everlasting in exclusion from Paradise separation from Gods favâ—ur and gracious presence loss of his image c. 6 Or whether he should have lived such a miserable life for a season and then be annihilated or destroyed 7 And if so whether his misery on earth should have been more than men do now endure And the more importance are these questions of because of some others that depend upon them As 1. What death it was that Christ redeemed us from 2 And what death it is that perishing Infants dye or that our guilt in the first transgression doth procure For it being a sinn against the first covenant only will be punished with no other death than that which is threatned in that Covenant And pag. 31. Besides it is needfull to know what life was the reward of that Covenant that we might know what death was the penalty and this also comes into question about the reward whether if he had not fallen he should after a season have been translated into heaven without death as Enoch and Elijah or whether he should have lived for ever in this terrestriall Paradise without addition of further bliss to that which he had at his first Creation And as touching the death which Christ suffered whether it were the same that was threatned to Adam Pa. 33. If we take the threatning at its full extent as it expresseth not only the penalty but also its proper subject and its circumstances then it is undenyable that Christ did not suffer the same that was threatned For the Law threatned the death of the offender but Christ was not the offender Adam should have suffered for ever but so did not Christ Adam did dye spiritually by being forsaken of God in regard of holiness as well as in regard of comfort and so was deprived at least of the chief part of his image so was not Chrst Yet neither is this certain that Christs death was not the same c. for It is disputable whether these two last were directly contained in threatning or not whether the threatning were not fully executed in Adams death and the eternity of it were not accidentall even a
necessary consequent of Adams disability to overcome deaâ—h and deliver himself which God was not bound to do And whether the loss of Gods image were part of the death threatned or rather the effect of our sin only executed by our selves and not by God whether God did take away his image or man did thrust it away Admirable profoundness and learning but after all this stirr and such egregiously deep speculations as preparatories to the determining of the first question whether Christ did discharge our debt by way of solution or by way of satisfaction how doth he at length determine it Bax. P. 29 30. Much may be said this seemeth that is unlikely one thing probable another possible But for a finall conclusion p. 31. It is hard to conclude peremptorily any thing in so obscure a case And so he leaves us so wise as if he had slept and said nothing But afterwards recalling himself though he can conclude nothing as to the forementioned particular preparatories to the determination of the question yet p. 35. to the substance of it in generall he thus answereth Bax. I canclude then that in regard of the proper penalty Christ did suffer a pain and penalty of the same sort and of equall weight with that threatned but yet because it was not in all respects the same it was rather satisfaction than the payment of the proper debt being such a payment as God might have chosen to accept I list not to quarrel with him about the conclusion it being not a point mainly controverted between us and the Papists Only who sees not that he might as easily have thus concluded without medling with so many frivolous and arrogant questions leaving them where he found them as not giving the least fulture to such a conclusion And when he hath thus determined the question they that lock up to themselves his Conclusion as a treasure shall gaine so much by it as he that rejoyceth of a chip in his pottage Possibly it may do no hurt but certainly it will do no good to salvation But the answer to the second question comes without the help or push of a leaver to heave it after viz. whether the threatning was executed or relaxed and dispensed with B. The answer to this is plain in the Answer to the former p. 35. Both alike for were it worth the scanning we should find both either answered or unanswered and the things searched after no less plain to be seen and taken up than a needle in a bottle of hay And so much M. Baxter seeth for he comes after 1 with his distinction B. In regard of the meer weight of punishment considered as abstracted from person and duration it was executed and to avoid the mistake of the Printer I conceive it should be not relaxed Yet taking the threatning entirely as it was given out and we must say viz. if we say after Mr. Baxter it was dispensed with for mankind doth not suffer all that was threatned When I attain the meaning of the words I shall be able to judg of the strength of the reason therein contained And 2ly he brings in a doubt viz. B. If the death threatned did consist in our present miseries and temporall death only then the answer must be recanted c. And a little further Conference with these Diviners rather than Divines it seemeth would make him of their minds And so the answer to the question depends upon ifs if Mr. Baxter change his mind his answer must fall after him In the mean while the third question must depend upon the uncertain answer to the second B. If the threat be dispensed with how it can stand with the truth and justice of God so to dispense with it Lo the answer to the former question is stuck so deep in the mire that the best Team in Worcestershire cannot draw it out Nevertheless such an artizan is Mr. Baxter that with the spell of a few distinctions he doth it while a man would wipe his mouth thus B. Concerning the justice of God the question is not difficult and I shall say nothing to that See he is half out of the labyrinth already and never moves a finger for it O rare dexterity It costs a little more labour to get free from the other half and thus de doth it B. The question is how to reconcile this dispensation with Gods truth Here you must distinguish 1. Betwixt the letter of the Law and the sense 2. Betwixt the Law and the end of the Law 3. Between a threat with exception either expressed or reserved and that which hath no exception 4. Between a threatning which only expresseth the desert of the sinn and what punishment is due and so falleth under the will of precept and that which also intendeth the certain prediction of event and so falleth under the will of purpose also And now I Answer 1. The end of the Law is the Law and that being the manifestation of Gods justice and hatred of sin c. was fulfilled and therefore the Law was fulfilled a Let the Judg of assizes then chide and lay by the feet a murtherer for an hour declaring therby his justice and hatred of the offeÌ„ce M. Baxter must conclude him to be a just Judg to have fulfilled the Law if hereupon he forth-with discharge him 2. Most think that the threatning had this reserved exception Thou shalt dye i. e. by thy self or thy surety and though it be sinfull for man to speak with mentall reservations when he pretends to reveal his mind yet not in God because as he is subject to no law so he is not bound to reveal to us all his mind nor doth he indeed pretend any such thing 3. So that the sense of the same is fulfilled 4. But the special answer that I give is this when threatnings are meerly parts of the Law and not also predictions of the event and discoveries of Gods purpose thereabouts then they may be dispensed with without any breach of truth For as when God saith Thou shalt not eat of the tree c. the meaning is only It is thy duty not to eat and not eventually that he should not eat So when he saith Thou shalt dye the death the meaning is Death shall be the due reward of thy sin and so may be inflicted for it at my pleasure and not that he should certainly suffer it in the event b This Doctrine wipes off all feare from scandalous sinners having this plea put into their mouth by Mr. Baxter God hath said thou shalt not so offend but his meaning is not that I should eventually abstain and hath said Thou shalt be condemned not meaning eventually to execute it Ergo I may go on in sin without fear Read the rest he that loves it I have enough even to nauseousness What Jesuite reading this will not cry out O delicatum animulum a babe of the same mould with the Scholastick
saith nothing Yet because this still leaveth sub judice litem and certain Conclusions cannot be inferred upon premisses left uncertain I should answer secondly That the Curse pronounced and inflicted upon Adam related to him not as a private but publike person For so he fell and so was he sentenced As comprehending the Elect he had the blessing of the seed of the woman but as representing those that perish so he had the Curse But touching those things which he and the other godly do suffer the learned Sadeel Adver sus humanas satisfactiones answereth this Popish Argument here proposed by Mr. Baxter out of Augustine Posset aliquis dicere saith Augustine Si propter peccatum Deus dixerit homini In sudore vultus tui edes panem tuum spinas tribulos proseret tibi terra c. Cur fideles post peccatorum remissionem eosdem dolores patiuntur Respondemus saith Austin Ante remissionem esse supplicia peccatorum post remissionem esse certamina exercitationesque justorum i. e. Some one may say If for sin God said to man In the sweat of thy face thou shalt eat thy bread and the earth shall bring forth to thee bryars and thorns c. Why do the beleevers after the remission of sinns suffer these sorrowes We answer saith Austin Before remission these are punishments of sinns after remission they are tryalls and exercises of the Righteous Whereunto Sadeel addeth Non sequitur si mors vitae praesentis aerumnae per se sunt peccati poenae quippe propter peccatum in mundum ingressae eas esse proptereà peccatorum paenas ipsis etiam fidelibus quibus peccata sunt propter Christum condonata i. e. It followeth not if death and the sorrows of the present life be in themselves the punishments of sinn because they entred into the world for or by means of sinn that they are therefore punishments of sinn to the very faithfull also to whom their sinns are forgiven for Christs sake But to do him a pleasure should we give him his Argument forgiving the unsoundnes of it what doth he conclude Thus much that the suspending of the rigorous execution of the sentence of the Law is the most observable immediate effect of Christs death that the redeemed of the Lord partake of By suspending the rigorous execution of the Law he means that he doth forbear an hour or a day or some short time to destroy their lives and cast their souls into hell But so that every moment they must stand in expectation of it and that to their greater torment at last as their sinns during the time of the suspension is increased Whosoever now of Gods redeemed ones receives comfort by this doctrine will I doubt not give his verdit for Mr. Baxter having so nobly and divinely resolved this question that He is a Divine indeed He tells us there be other effects of Christs death c. But he is not at leisure now to communicate them But if they have no more sweet and marrow than this let him keep them to himself we will not be inquisitive after them P. 68. B. To the second Quâ—stion The Elect before Conversion do stand in the same relation to the Law and Curse as other men though they be differenced in Gods Decree Eph. 2. 3 12. Very short yet not so sweet as short He saith it but he proves it not For the Scripture which he brings for proof doth onely declare what the Elect are by nature before conversion not what they are before God in relation to his Covenant of Grace But Mr. Baxter purposeth to speak more largely hereunto in another place which will give me occasion to enlarge my answer At present he is in travell with his answer to the third question and cannot be at rest untill he be delivered of so beautifull a Monster and thus it comes from him Bax. To the third question I confess we have here a knotty question The common judgment is that Christ hath taken away the whole Curse though not the suffering by bearing it himself and now they are onely Afflictions of Love and not punishments I do not contradict this Doctrine through affectation of singularity the Lord knoweth but through constraint of judgment and that upon these grounds following 1 It is undeniable that Christs taking the Curs upon himself did not wholly prevent the execution upon the offender Ge. 3. 7 8 10 15 16 17 18 19. 2 It is evident from the event seeing we feel part of the Curs fulfilled on us we eat in labor and sweat the earth doth bring forth thorns and brayars women bring forth their children in sorrow our native pravity is the Curs upon our souls we are sick weary full of fears sorrows and shame and at last we dye and turn to dust 3 The Scripture tells us that we all dye in Adam even that death from which we must at the Resurrection be raised by Christ 1 Co. 15. 21 22. And that death is the wages of sin Ro. 6. 23. and that the sickness and weakness and death of the godly is caused by their sins 1 Co. 11. 30 31. And if so then doubtles they are in execution of the Law though not in full rigour 4 It is manifest that our sufferings are in their own nature evils to us and the sanctifying of them to us taketh not away their naturall evil but onely produceth by it as by an occasion a greater good Doubtles so farr as it is an effect of sinn it is evill and the effect of the Law also 5 They are ascribed to Gods anger as the moderating of them is ascribed to his lâ—ve Psa 30. 5. and a thousand places more 6 They are called punishments in scripture and therefore we may call them so Lev. 26 41 43. Lam. 3. 39. 4. 6 22. Ezras 9. 13. Hos 4. 9. 12. 2. Lev. 26. 18 24. 7 The very nature of affliction is to be a loving punishment a naturall evil sanctified and so to be mixt of evil and good as it proceeds from mixt causes Therefore to say that Christ hath taken away the Curs and evill but not the sufferings is a contradiction becaus so farr as it is suffering it is to us evill and the execution of the Curs What Reason can be given why God should not do us all that good without our sufferings which now he doth by them if there were not sin and wrath and law in them Sure he could better us by easier means 8 All those Scriptures and Reasons that are brought to the contrary do prove no more but this that our afflictions are not the Rigorous execution of the Law that they are not wholly or chiefly in wrath but as the common love of God to the wicked is mixt with hatred in their sufferings and the hatred prevaileth above the love so the sufferings of the godly proceed from a mixture of Love and Anger and so have in them a mixture
man or Devill pluck them out of my hands Joh. 10. 28. It is the will of my Father which sent me that of all which he hath given me I should lose nothing but should raise it up again at the last day Joh. 6. 39. If now the word of God stand and the judgement of the Churches that is grounded upon the immutable word of the eternall God then those bug-bear assertions the brats of Mr. Baxters windy distinctions which he brings as arguments to prove the slavish bondage of beleevers under the Law will appear vaporous and so vanish For if our Justification proceed not from the old age or perfection of faith its Concomitants but from our union to Chrst and no otherwise from faith than as it instrumentally closeth us with Christ which no instantaneous Faith that lives and dyes at an instant but a truly living faith can do then it will appear to be a falshood that None is justified in this life Nay all that by a living faith are united to Christ are fully justified in this life And as many as are unjustified here shall not be either justified or saved hereafter Again if our Justification spring from our union with Christ then not at all from our own willing running and persevering And so his two first Arguments fall into shivers 3 If no true and justifying faith be instantaneous and the perseverance of faith in the beleever and of a beleever in the faith depend not upon mans mutable will but upon the all sufficiency of Christs merits and the truth and omnipotency of the most high God then his two latter assertions viz. that of Apostacy from Christ and the other of the uncertainty of salvation fall into shivers also For what more fixed and certain than what by the will of God is bottomed and susteined with the rock Christ and the truth and power of the eternall God None then of his popish arguments here brought do give the least fulture to his assertion that The very beleevers are under the Law as a Covenant of Works The fift Position that all Believers according to Mr. Baxters doctrine must needs be damned ariseth from the Assertion which by the four mentioned Propositions as by so many Arguments he goeth about to prove viz. That untill death they are under the Law as a Covenant of works If so then must they be needs damned 1 Because whosoever is under that Covenant is bound to seek freedome from vengeance and possession of blessednes by the conditions Gal. 5. 3. of the same Covenant But these conditions are unpossible to man in his present feeblenes and corruption viz. the purification of himself from all sin and perfect performance of all obedience Who can perform all this except peradventure St. Francis and Mr. Baxter so that either none or at least they alone can be saved 2 Because whosoever professing the Faith is in the least part under the Law c. is fallen from Christ hath no part in the Covenant Gal. 5. 4. of Grace as I have before proved therefore must necessarily be damned 3 Because whosoever liveth and dyeth under a Covenant of works is under the curse and damnation Gal. 3. 10. That which follows in the conclusion of the Explication of this Thesis acquits me from all mens suspition of doing Mr. B. any wrong in mis-interpreting his meaning in this his dispute Himself acknowledgeth it to be his own sense In all this saith he i. e. in this whole dispute I speak nothing of the directive use of the Law viz. as it is a rule and Counseller to a Christian in all morall righteousnes but how far the Law is yet in force as a Covenant of works because an utter repeal of it in this sense is so commonly but inconsiderately asserted Let him name but one considerable man that ever affirmed the Law repealed that it may appear it is not a slander which he casts upon the Anti-Papists But he proceeds That it is no further overthrown no not to believers then is here explained I now come to prove And we shall come after him to see what he proveth and how far he proveth And that it may appear to all what sincerity is in the man two things are to be kept diligently in mind 1 What he is to prove 2 What he is not to meddle with in proving if he will shew himself honest and not a meer Imposter We utterly deny any repeal or abrogating of the Law as a Covenant of works to them that are under the Law or have not don their Law yea any repeal of the Law at all as I have made to appear Therefore if Mr. B. go about to prove either that the Law is not repealed or that unbeleevers or such as have not done their Law by satisfying for the breaches thereof are still under the Law This is fallacious dealing a proving of that which never came into Question for all acknowledg it without his proving That which he is to prove is that none no not believers are absolutely discharged from the Law but are under it as a Covenant of works to the utmost moment of their life This he promiseth throughout his whole dispute to prove let us attend how he doth it in this 13 Position under which he promiseth to do it CHAP. X. Mr. Baxter's much promised and long expected Arguments to prove Believers to be under the Law as a Covenant of works discovered to be meer impertinencies and Sophistical Impostures And the Question whether the Elect while yet Vnbelievers are so under the Law and in what respects discussed Thesis 13. B. IF this were not so but that Christ had abrogated the first Covenant then it would follow 1 That no sin but that of Adam or finall unbelief is so much as threatned with death or that death is explicitely i. e. by any Law due to it or deserved by it For what the Law in force doth not threaten that is not explicitely deserved or due by the Law 2 It would follow that Christ dyed not to prevent or remove the wrath and curse so deserved or due to us for any but Adams sin nor to pardon our sins at all but onely to prevent our desert of wrath and curse and consequently to prevent our need of pardon 3 It would follow that against eternall wrath at the day of judgement we must not plead the pardon of any sin but the first but our own non desert of that wrath because of the repeal of that Law before the sin was committed All which consequences seem to me unsufferable which cannot be avoided if the Law be repealed Unto these three Arguments he addeth four more in the Explication of this Position which thus follow B. We may plead our non deserving of death for our discharge at judgment 5 And further then Christ in suffering did not bear the punishment due to any sin but Adams first for that which was not threatned to us
was not executed on him This is a clear but an intolerable consequence 6 Scripture plainly teacheth that all men even the Elect are under the Law till they believe and enter into the Covenant of the Gospel Therefore it is said Jo. 3. 18. He that beleeveth not is condemned already and the wrath of God abideth on him ver 36. And we are said to believe for remission of sins Acts 2. 38. Mark 1. 4. Luke 24. 47. Acts 10. 43. 3. 19. which shew that sin is not before remitted and consequently the Law not repealed but suspended and left to the dispose of the redeemer Els how could the redeemed be the children of wrath Eph. 2. 3. The circumcised are debtors to the whole Law Gal. 5. 3 4. And Christ is become of no effect to them but they that are led by the Spirit are not under the Law and against such there is no Law Gal. 5. 18 23. The Scripture hath concluded all under sin and so far under the Law no doubt that the promise by faith in Jesus Christ might be given to them that beleeve Gal. 3. 22. We are under the Law when Christ doth redeem us Gal. 4. 5. See also Ja. 2. 9 10. 1 Tim. 18. 1 Cor. 15. 56. Gal. 3. 19 20 21. Therefore our deliverance is conditionally from the curse of the Law viz. if we we will obey the Gospel And this deliverance together with the abrogation of the Ceremoniall Law is it which is so oft mentioned as a privilege of believers and an effect of the blood of Christ Which deliverance from the curse is yet more full when we perform the conditions of our freedom And then we are said to be dead to the Law Rom. 7. 4. and the obligation to punishment dead as to us ver 6. but not the Law void or dead of it self 7 Lastly all the Scriptures and Arguments p. 60 61. which prove that afflictions are punishments do prove also that the Law is not repealed For no man can suffer for breaking a repealed Law nor by the threats of a repealed Law yet I know that this Covenant of works continueth not to the same ends and uses as before nor is it so to be preached or used We must neither take that Covenant as a way to life as if now we must get our salvation by fulfilling its conditions nor must we look on its Curse as lying on us remediless Alas for the conscience of this man I know saith he that this Covenant of works continueth not c. yet against knowledg and against conscience will he not only teach the contrary but with all Jesuiticall arts labour to screw it into the judgments of men that are more Logicall then Theologicall How hath he suspended our expectation with promises that in and under the 13 Thesis he would bring his Reasonâ— to prove 1 That the Law as a Covenant of works is not become null and void to believers p. 79. that they are not discharged in this life from the curse of the Law p. 82. But that 2 They are under the Law as a Covenant of works still after that they are in Christ and partakers of of his Redemption Why had he not by and by proved it but that he might Bellarmine-like first busie his Reader with Sophisticall distinctions and disputes untill he had forgotten the state of the Question and then prove what he would not what he should to his forgetfull Reader For so there is not the least gry or jota in all his Arguments here that doth so much as glance upon the things that he was to prove but a labouring to confirm things which no one of those whom he makes his adversaries doth or did ever Question much less deny So that all these his Arguments are meer impostures not as he tearms them Reasons to confirm the Doctrines which he pretends to prove For first his five first Arguments or rather those three in his Thesis which in the Explication he sub-divides into five and the seventh also in the Explication tends only to prove that God hath not did not revoke repeal and extinguish the Law that it should have no more a being or remain a Law to the sons of men assoon as Adam had sinned and a promise of redemption by Christ was made Gen. 3. 15. who ever taught or thought so or what is this to prove that the Saints after they have suffered and satisfied in and by Christ the whole penalty of the Law for all their transgressions of the Law are not delivered from it as a Covenant of works Secondly the other Argument which he puts in the sixth place goes about to prove that unbelievers are under the Law And this is as potent a reason to prove believers to be under the Law as if I should thus argue Mr. Baxter is a Jesuite because Bellarmine and Maldonat were Jesuiteâ— oâ— that Mr Baxter is not the Teacher of the Church at Kederminster because Robin Hood and little John are not Teachers there This might suffice as a full Answer to his seven Arguments and to manifest his sin and shame in using them But I shall add something by way of Explication to make that which I have said plain to the weakest Not imitating Mr. Baxter who under a pretence of Explication doth in most places totally darken what was before cleer and plain First then I grant to Mr. Baxter that if Christ had from the beginning of sins entrance into the world repealed and in the proper and full sense of the word abrogated the Law those five consequences which he mentioneth in his 5 first Arguments would follow 1 That no sin but that of Adam and finall unbelief is so much as threatened with death the one being forbidden by the Law while it was in force the other by the Gospel that is still unquestionably in force Nay not any thing else in reference to the old Covenant but that of Adam should be a sin because sin is the transgression of the Law and where there is no Law there can be no transgression 2 That Christ by his satisfaction for us prevented not the wrath deserved viz. otherwise then by Adams sin but the desert of wrath 3 Neither doth he properly pardon any such sin for where no Law is there is no sin where no sin there is nothing to be pardoned 4 And then might we plead innocency or our non deserving of death except before excepted for our discharge at judgement 5 And Christ in suffering did not bear the punishment of any other sins of mankinde besides the fore-mentioned Thus we grant Mr. B. five of his Arguments without any detriment to our Caus or advantage to his Believers are as fully freed from the Law as if he had slept while he thus disputed For all these his Arguments lean upon a false supposition If the Law be so repealed and abrogated as is before supposed then and not els will these cursed Consequences take place But
Christs undertaking c. The satisfaction was so virtually and effectually made by Christ and accepted by the Father as when it was actually accomplished First it seems there was such a Covenant For the Apostle tells us Rom. 5. 14. that Adam was a figure of him that was to come which is Christ And how a figure Doubtles not onely in this that as by him the one and first man sin and death by sin immediately came upon all men so by Christ righteousnes and by it life came upon all the elect But also in the manner of the agreement of the Type and Antitype together That as Adam representing all mankinde by his unfaithfullnes in breaking the Covenant brought sin and death upon all that he represented so Christ representing all the elect by his faithfullnes in performing the Covenant c. brought righteousnes and justification of life upon all the elect represented in him Yea the Holy Ghost in expresse words testifieth to such a Covenant In the volume of thy book it is written of me that I should do thy will O God saith he when he comes into the world i. e. it is testified in the word what Covenant hath passed betwixt thee and me c. Heb. 10. 5-10 yea and testifieth to the tenor of the Covenant his coming with a body to be offered in sacrifice this will of God he came to do And moreover he giveth witnes also to the faithfullnes of Christ in offering it Lo I come and to the efficacy of it upon all immediately for whom it was offered By the which will we are sanctified i. e. no more taken for sinners but Consecrated as holy to the Lord through the offering of the body of Jesus Christ once for all ibid. The same is implyed in that phrase which here termeth the offering of Christs body the doing of the Fathers will And elswhere obedience unto death even the death of the Cross Phil. 2. 8. Obedience and will presuppose Command and Covenant And the 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 the one righteousnes or one act of righteousnes of Christ opposed to the 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 that one offence of Adam for so the phrase seems to me to hold out more grammatically than the offence of one and the righteousnes of one doth not obscurely argue that one righteousnes of Christ in fullfilling opposite to that one offence of Adam in once breaking the Covenant Rom. 5. 18. And that all this was covenanted to be done and accepted for and in the behalf of the elect and to them and none but them to be effectuallized is also evident from the Scriptures For he did the will of his Father in offering himself as was before shewed i. e. did according as it was agreed and covenanted between him and the Father dyed for them onely for whom he made prayers and intercessions But when his time was come to suffer he prayed intercedâ—d not for the world but for them onely whom the Father had given him out of the world Joh. 17. 6 9. Therefore for them onely he undertook to satisfie Therefore is it that he is said to lay down his life onely for his sheep not for the goats Joh. 10. 11. 15. For them whose names were written in the book of life of the Lamb slain from the foundation of the world Rev. 13. 8. The rest things conteined in this position are granted by Mr. Br himselfe therefore need no proof here I have couched together many things in this to avoyd multiplicity of positions 2 That by force of this satisfaction so given and accepted for the sinns of the Elect according to the Tenor of this Covenant between the Father and the Son all the Elect of God were Justified in Christ from the very time of Christs undertaking to be their Justifier Therefore in the last alleaged Scripture their names are said to be written in the book of life of the Lamb slain from the foundation of the world Here though the book of life which is elswhere mentioned to be Gods book will be taken by Mr. Br to be the book of Election yet this book of life of the lamb is to be understood for the book of Justification implying indeed the election of all that are written therein but primarily and in its direct sense comprehending the names of them that are justified by the bloud of the sacrificed Lamb of God And these are said to be written in Christs book that is registred in Christ and upon Christs account from the foundation of the world immediately upon Christs undertaking to satisfie for them Of him ye are in Christ saith the Apostle who of God is made unto us Wisdome Righteousnes Sanctification and Redemption 1 Cor. 1. 30. When was he so made unto us Mr. Br answereth not onely upon the payment but upon his undertaking to pay our debt Therefore is he said to be Jesus Christ yesterday and to day and for ever Heb. 13. 8. And that not onely in reference to them that lived in all ages of the world but in respect of us also that in all ages of the world he hath been and will be what now he is our Jesus our Christ But this position hath been before proved in the former Chapter in answer to Mr. Baxters 13 Thesis and its explication where I spake to his sixth Argument 3 The Ministeriall way of offering and convaying the benefits of Christs satisfaction into the souls and apprehensions of men now used under the Gospel according to the command of Christ is or at least sounds like an inferior Covenant subordinate and sub-servient to this between the Father and the Son whereof we have spoken Christ having now made full satisfaction to the Father invites all and brings in his elect to taste and enjoy by faith all the perfections which he hath merited and received into his hands for them It is confessed by Mr. B. Thes 8. That God is so fully pleased with the Sons undertaking of this busines of Mediation that he hath delivered all things into his hands and given him all power in heaven and in earth and made him Lord both of the dead and living And the Lord Jesus himself affirmeth that the Father judgeth no man but hath committed all judgment to the Son i. e. the dispensation and ordering of all things in heaven and in earth And it is the opinion of great Divines that the Lord Christ in the old world before the Law and in all ages under the Law being that person of the Trinity which had undertaken to assume our nature unto him and in it to dye for the reconciling of us to God and entring from the beginning upon his power to set in order all things to this glorious end was he that conversed with the Patriarks and Prophets sometimes in an assumed body like a man sometimes invisibly making known the mystery of Redemption by himself to them and prescribing under what administrations he would have his Church
because the New Covenant threatens no death to such sinnes therefore no need if Christs mediating death here for us For where no death is threatned there is none explicitely due saith he But will he say none is either explicitely or implicitely due Or when Mr. Baxter tels us pag. 15. that in the Old Covenant the promise of life is not expressed but plainly implyed in the threatning of death Will it not follow by the same reasons that when Mr. Baxter in the after part of this his Tractate alleageth such multitudes of Scriptures that promise life to the performance of such and such acts of Gospel righteousnesse that there is implyed the threat of death against the non-performance of the same Or if it should have been printed as it is most probable because he so speaketh elswhere in reference to the covenants that where death is not explicitely threatned there it is not due and Christ hath not suffered it in our behalfe What shall we think then of all the fathers from Adam to Moses where was this death explicitely threatned to any actual sinne untill the Law was given by Moses The Scripture mentions it not and Mr. Baxter hath told us though I doubt somewhat rashly and Magisterially that to Adam himself in his perfection the form of the Covenant was not known as written in his heart but by superadded revelation pag. 14. Yea what shall we say of all the Nations of the world Israel alone excepted that even untill Christ had no revealed Covenant with God much lesse death threatned explicitely by such a Covenant Will Mr. Baxter deny death to have been due to them for their sinnes because not explicitely threatned Doth not the Apostle Rom. 1. 32. alibi affirm the contrary Thus if it were but it is not proved that the New Testament doth not so threaten death 3. When he tels us that Christ is said to have been made under the Law and to have born the curse of the Law and to have freed us from it but no where is this affirmed of him in respect of the Gospel pag. 161. This is an Argument of the same nature with that before from Heb. 9. 15. The Apostle to dash the crest of their self-confidence in seeking to be in part justified as Mr. Baxter also doth by their own personall righteousnesse done in conformity to the Law tels them that even the Israel of God that were priviledged above all other people with a Law of Righteousness were under the curse of the Law and could not be saved but by a Redeemer much less they that had not the help of such a Law It bears the same sense with that of Gal. 2. 15 16. We that are Jews by nature and not sinneâ—s of the Gentiles Knowing that a man is not justified by the works of the Law but by the Faith of Jesus Christ even we have beleeved in Jesus Christ that we may be justified c. What a monstrous delusion were it then for us to teach the sinners of the Gentiles to seek after Justification by their personal righteousness according to the Law And though it be no where totidem verbis said or affirmed of him in respect of the Gospel yet is it said in the words equivalent Heb 9. 15. That he is the Mediator of the New Testament whence Pareus on the place concludeth That if he hath satisfied for the sins against the Old much more for the sinnes against the New Testament seeing he is the Mediator of this not of that And the blood of Jesus Christ cleanseth us from all sinne 1 Joh. 1. 7. Ergo from sins also against the Gospel I cannot say from sinns which are onely against the Gospel for there are none such Or if Mr. Baxter will take the words so strictly as hee seems to take them that Christ hath redeemed onely from sins against the Law hee must exclude himself with all the Churches and Saints of the Gentiles that are or have been from the redemption which is by Christ for so then must that passage in Gal. 4. 4 5. be read Christ was made under the Law to redeem them onely that were under the Law i. e. Only the Jews for they onely were under the Law of Moses and of this Law Mr. Baxter must needs confess the Apostle here to speak So that this argument of his if it please not a Jew it will please no body 4. The last Argument which he brings in the same 161 pag. to hit the white and cleave the pin and resolve the question so unanswerably that no tongue which cannot speak may ever more utter or mutter against it is as streight with his purpose as a rams horn with a line 4. But the question is out of doubt saith he because that every man that performeth not the Gospel-conditions doth bear the punishment himself in eternall fire and therefore Christ did not bear it True for Christ did bear the punishment of none of his sins neither of his lying swearing lust murther drunkennesse and other sins against the Law but he shall bear all himself shall we therefore conclude that Christ dyed not to make satisfaction for those sinnes in reference to them that have part in his death This were to pronounce Christ to have satisfied for no sin at all either against Law or Gospel and so no flesh shall be saved but ll suffer in eternal fire 5. What is in this Argument as also in the two next and immediately put before this in the same 161 pag. of his Saint-conditions which he worshipeth as his Mediators to bring him into communion with Christ no less then he doth Christ himself to bring him into communion with God I have partly spoken to before and shall have large and frequent occasions to speak more fully and largely upon other parts of this Tractate of Mr. Baxter here he doth but name conditions in general and what he saith is not worthy of any particular Animadversions in relation to it He confesseth himself pag. 160. To have been long of another judgement in this point while he considered not the tenor of the Covenants distinctly That is as long as he derived his guidance therein from the Scripture it self and from the truly Evangelical and Orthodox Commentators thereon But since hee hath met with Apocryphal Doctors the Jesuits and other nimble braines among the Papists and with Grotius and Vossius and others of that hair which hâ—â—e divided their consciences between the Papists and Socinians little prizing the Word where some quaint wit and invention of man haâ—h not descanted upon it to make it shine in the paint and varnish of humane speculations and art Now having found a Câ—ckows egge in a Finches nest the man is so taken with the pretty conveyance that hee doth as it were nest himselfe by it and accounts all other contemplations base in comparison of this defies Eagles Swans Turtles yea the whole generation of other birds cares not
imforming and giving life and vertue to it an act apprehending Christ as its object in whom all its vertue lyeth the cloud or darknesse in which Christ dwelleth as God was formerly in a cloud or darknesse upon mount Sinai and in the Temple or as all our Divines say the hand by which we receive Christ made of God righteousnesse to us and in us Gal. 3. 27. 1 Cor. 1. 30. 2 Cor. 5. 21. That the life of justification consisteth not in works at all nor in faith considered in a sense divided from Christ but in Christ our life living in us so that the life which we live is by the faith of the Son of God by the recumbency of our souls by faith upon the Son of God which is our life and that this is to live by faith Gal. 2. 20. Col. 3. 4. Gal. 3. 11. That Christ with all his righteousnesse to remission and salvation is given us freely of God not sold as by Judas to his enemies and so made ours without money without price without fine or rent In the Covenant of grace there is nothing smelling of a Simoniacall contract it is wholly of Gods giving not in the least particle of our purchasing Isa 9. 6. Joh. 3. 16. Isa 55. 1. That the life and justification which are by the second Adam descend to us in the same manner with the sin and condemnation from the first Adam But these descended by our naturall union and communion with the first Adam not by our imitation of him For death reigned from Adam over them that had not sinned after the similitude of Adam Therefore also righteousnesse and justification descend to us by the union and communion which we have with the second Adam Christ Jesus and not from our imitation of him and configuration to him for when we were yet enemies we were reconciled to God by the death of his Son Not but that every one to whom the sin and condemnation of Adam once descended are thenceforth imitators of and configured to Adam or that they to whomsoever the righteousnesse and justification of Christ have descended do not thenceforth become imitators of and are configured to the image of Christ but that these imitations and configurations do follow and not goe before such union and communion declaring not producing the sin and condemnation which are from Adam or the righteousnesse and justification which are from the Lord Christ Rom. 5. 11. 19. And this is a sound Argument which the Apostle bringeth to prove that works can in no respect justifie or save For we are Gods workmanship saith he created in Christ Jesus to good works which God hath ordained before that we should walk in them Ephes 2. 9 10. where we may take notice that good works are Gods end in saving or justifying us from sin But the means do alway in order of nature go before and not follow the end in execution I mean though not in intention That we are first in Christ the justifyer and in possession of the justification that is by him and then being new created in Christ to the image of God are inabled to do good works That God hath ordained before that we should walk in them being saved or justifyed not that we should be saved or justifyed by them That the righteousnesse of God by which we are justifyed is from faith to faith not begun by faith and ended in works which according to the Apostle is a beginning in the spirit and a seeking to be perfected by the flesh Rom. 1. 17. Gal. 3. 3. Should I proceed so far as the Scriptures as a leading thread would guide me for the confirmation of justification without works I should be taken as exorbitant For the rest I shall refer the reader to such writers as have handled the point of justification against the Papists or to the disputations of the Apostle himself against the false Apostles who taught the same doctrine with Mr. Baxter though not expresly in the same words They taught that we cannot be saved by Christ by faith in Christ alone except we be circumcised and keep the Law or do the works which the Law commandeth Act. 15. 1 24. Mr. Baxter teacheth in this his 60. Thesis that B. The bare act of beleeving is not the onely condition of the New Covenant but severall other duties also are parts of that condition If we take together with his words that which in the precedent Chapter we have manifested to be his meaning in these words and that by the bare act of beleeving he understands faith without and in opposition to works for himself knoweth that it is his Pontificall-Arminian-Socinian not our Protestant Evangelicall doctrine which holds out justification by beleeving as either a bare or a cloathed act or work then he teacheth the same doctrine for which the Apostle anathematized the false Apostles and arch-church-troublers in his time Gal. 1. 7 8 9. 5. 12. And what the Apostle hath against them is against Mr. Baxter their own son I will not say in the faith but in perverting the faith and Gospell For neither did they deny faith but Mr. Baxters bare faith faith without works to be effectuall to justification Against this assertion common to him and them if there were no other Scriptures contradicting but what I have alleaged no arguments brought by our Divines to subvert it and to establish the contrary doctrine but what have been here expressed and implied al which are scarce a drop of their ful bucket yet doth Mr. Baxter declare any finglenesse of heart or sincere aime to advance the glory and truth of God in suppressing all this and all the rest in silence so to beguile his more Logicall then Theologicall readers whom he knowes to be more acquainted with Sophistry then Divinity with exotick scriblings then Canonicall Scriptures with an opinion that the stream of Scriptures runne all to his Mill and that we have nothing from the Word favouring our cause Neither let any object that our Churches do only deny the merit of works not the necessity of them as a condition to justification Herein I shall have a fit place to speak afterward as to Mr. Baxter and as it is his plea to lenifie his self-arrogating assertion In the interim to manifest the simplicity of our gudgeons that are apt to swallow the most portentous errours if offered to them involved in fine terms of logicall notions among whom some that erewhile did prosecute with bel book and candle some to death some to banishment some to sequestrations whom they thought but to smell a little of the perfumes of the purple whore These very same men now having inriched themselves with the spoyles of them whom by their outcries they erewhile pursued are mad to drench themselves with the very dregs of the cup of fornication which is in the hand of the whore and kisse the lips of Mr. Baxter which hath blessed with plausible words the doctrine
hast he leaves not his wits behind him but craftily delivers to us Papisticall Doctrine yet not in the Papists words lest he should be espyed and shunned Thus run his words B. Thes 9. It was not the intent either of the Father or Son that by this satisfaction the offenders should be immediately delivered from the whole curse of the Law and freed from the evil which they had brought upon themselves but some part must be executed upon the soul and body and the creatures themselves and remain upon them at the pleasure of Christ Rev. 1. 18. 1 Cor. 15. 26. The phrase and words of this Position are not a little ambiguous lest I should seem to wrest them to an evill when a good sense may be given them I will not so much as descant upon any thing therein with the least paraphrase but take all in his own Explication which thus followeth Explication B. The Questions that are here to be handled for the explication of this Position are these 1 Quest Whether the Redeemed are immediately upon the price paid delivered from any of the Curse of the Law if not from all Quest 2. Whether the sufferings of the Elect before Conversion are in execution of any part of the Curse of the Law 3 Whether the sufferings of Believers are from the Curse of the Law or onely afflictions of love the Curse being taken off by Christ 4 Whether it be not a wrong to the Redeemer that the people whom he hath ransomed are not immediately delivered 5 Whether it be any wrong to the Redeemed themselves 6 How long it will be till all the curse be taken off the beleevers and redemption have attained its full effect I have oft heard that one fool may put more Questions in an hour then a whole University of Divines can answer in an age If it be true what are we to conclude of the Questions of Mr Baxter the mirror of his age for wit and profoundness in learning who sitteth in the Chair alone passing his censure upon all the Divines that are or have been such are ignorant and unstudied such judicious and learned c. his Questions surely will try the braines of men and oh that he were so dexterous in Answering as in Questioning Then to use his own words we would take him for a Divine indeed yea for a Teacher sent from Heaven for no mortal weight upon Earth can answer many things which he questioneth Let us therefore hear himself answering himself B. To the first Question I answer In this case the undertaking of satisfaction had the same immediate effect upon Adam as the satisfaction it selfe upon us or for us To determine what these are were an excellent work it being one of the greatâ—st and noblest Questions in our How proâ—eâ— he that Adam and Eve were then existent when Christ undertook controverted Divinity what are the immediate effects of Christs death He that can rightly answer this is a Divine indeed and by the help of this may expedite most other controversies about Redemption and Justification In a word the effects of Redemption undertaken could not be upon a subject nor yet existent and so no subject though it might be for them None but Adam and Eve were then existâ—nt yet assoon as we do exist we do receive benefit from it The suspending of the rigorous execution of the sentence of the Law is the most observable immediate effect of Christs death which suspension is some kinde of deliverance from it Of the other effects elswhere A compleat and profound answer who so stupid or way-ward that he resteth not satisfied with it The Question was Whether the redeemed are immediately upon the price paid delivered from any of the curse of the Law if not from all He answers in this case the undertaking of satisfaction had the same immediate effects upon Adam as the satisfaction it self upon us or for us But what were those immediate effects upon Adam He answereth a riddle unriddle what this is what these effects are eris mihi magnus Apollo such a one shall have a Temple built unto him from which to give answer and resolution to all other questions and doubts in Divinity Oracularly And who more deserving of this honour then Mr. Baxter Who more able to unriddle his own Question than himself That he therefore may be taken for the Divine indeed he so resolveth the Question as his own words above declare The benefit which Adam and Eve forthwith received upon Christs undertaking to make satisfaction for them is the most remarkable immediate effect of Christs death whereof the redeemed partake But the suspension of the rigorous execution of the sentence of the Law was the benefit that Adam and Eve upon such undertaking of Christ for them forthwith received Ergo The suspending of the rigorous execution of the sentence of the Law is the most observable immediate effect of Christs death whereof the redeemed partake The Proposition he proveth thus becaus there were none els existent besides Adam and Eve when Christ so undertook therefore the effects of his satisfaction must be upon them or upon none The assumption he takes to be clear by its own light onely he addeth that this suspending was a kind of deliverance If this be not the sum and force of his answer to the Question Capiat qui capere potis est I must plead my self not guilty of understanding him But it is enough evident that this is his meaning Now if I listed to answer his Argument I should tell him that both premisses labour of one and the same fallacy which is in Schools termed Petitio principij an assuming of that as granted which is in Question The validity of both Propositions depending upon these begg'd Principles that Christ first undertook to make satisfaction to God for the sin of Adam and Eve when they were existent and that they were in the number of the redeemed ones as soon as they had sinned for so was the Question whether the redeemed c. are freed from any of the Curse of the Law Now what Mr. Baxter goes about to prove he doth it by the example of Adam and Eve which is in no wise a competent proof unless they be proved first to have been existent when Christ undertook to satisfie and secondly to have been then redeemed For the most observable effects of Christs death pertain to the redeemed not to the world Both propositions then being faulty the Conclusion is not worth a button In charity indeed we do not in any wise question the redemption and salvation of our first parents though the time of their conversion be disputable whether before the curse inflicted But not the judgment of charity but the undeceiving word of God must be made the ground of our Faith Untill therfore he bring some proof of Scripture that Adam and Eve were existent when Christ undertook then also and redeemed in all that he saith he
of good and evill But the Love overcometh the Anger therefore the good is greater than the evill and so death hath lost its sting 1 Co. 15. 55 56. There is no unpardoned sin in it which shall procure further judgement and so no hatred though there be anger 9 The Scripture saith plainly that death is one of the enemies that is not yet overcome but shall be last conquered 1 Co. 15. 26. And of our corruption the case is plain 10 The whole stream of scripture maketh Christ to have now the disposing of us and our sufferings to have prevented the full execution of the Curse and to manage that which lyeth on us to our advantage and good but no where doth it affirm that he suddenly delivereth us We have here an Antiscripturall and an Antichristian Conclusion yea a conclusion that hath many Antichristian and Popish Conclusions involved therein Therefore Mr. Baxter being extremely ambitious that an assertion of that nature should stand hath pillared and propped it up with no less than ten Arguments delighted more as it seemes with number than with the waight and strength of them And that he may go orderly to work he forelaies such a stating of the question as may not disadvantage him leaving the question obscure and ambiguous still The Common judgment saith he i. e. The Consenting judgment of all the reformed Churches is that Christ hath taken away the whole Curse though not the sufferings by bearing it himself and now they are afflictions of love and not punishments Who can perswade the Serpent to be streight and ceas from Crookednes and winding in his motions He that mainteineth a good Caus needs no shifts simplicity ingenuity and plain dealing sufficeth him Shall we think that Mr. B minceth and maimeth the judgment of the Orthodox Divines but for the advantaging of the Popish Caus which he mainteins against them With a Counited Judgment they assert a totall freedome by Christ both from the Curs and the sufferings also as they have reference to the execution of the law yea from the law also as it threateneth and curseth them that are in Christ so that their sufferings are chastisements and tryalls flowing from the same grace love from which Christ himself and the redemption which we have by him have issued dispensed toward them by a gracious and reconciled father not inflicted upon them by an incensed and unreconciled Judge But Mr. B casteth a veil over their judgments and le ts but a corner thereof to appeare becaus if he had set forth their judgment at the full it would have marr'd most of his Arguments wherewith he fights against them CHAP. V. The question stated between Mr Baxter and the Papists and Arminians whom he followeth and the Protestants whom he opposeth Scriptures and Arguments from scripture produced by the Protestants to prove 1 That Beleevers are not subject to the Curse 2ly That their sufferings have not the wrath and hatred but the love of God in them are not vindicatory judgments but Chastigatory tryalls LEt us now a little more fully state the question by shewing wherein that which Mr. B calleth the Common judgment and that which is his own pretendedly at least private judgment do consent together and wherein they differ either from other and so we shall avoyd all impertinencies and strife about words which are besides the question It is agreed then on both sides 1 That the Curse is the penalty or the revenging Judgment or an effect of Gods revenging wrath by the execution whereof he taketh satisfaction to his justice upon Transgressors for the breach of his Law so Mr. B. makes it out p. 17. 2 That the justice of God is so fully satisfied by bearing this Curse or penalty as by a complete fulfilling of all the righteousness which the Law requireth p. 48 50. 3 That the Lord Christ hath undertaken and made full satisfaction to God for all the sinnes of beleevers bearing the curse due to them and paying if not the idem according to Mr. B. yet the tantundem that their debt did amount to 4 That God resteth as fully satisfied with this satisfaction of Christ as if it had been made personally by the beleevers themselves These two last Mr. B so frequently asserteth that there is no need to quote the places To which I may add 5 That Afflictions are incident to the beleevers as well as to the unbeleevers so that Love and hatred are not discernable to the lookers on by that which befalls men in this life Eccle. 9. 1. 6 That these afflictions have in them a smart and bitternes as they befall the very Saints so that oft-times in their apprehension the very wrath and curs of God seemes to be in them These two things we grant Mr. B so that hitherto the judgements consent Heb. 12. 11. The difference then betwixt him and us consists principally in these two things 1 Whether when Christ hath by doing their law paying their debt and bearing their curse satisfied the justice of God for the sinns of beleevers when God hath accepted the satisfaction given when the beleevers have by faith apprehended and laid hold on it They do yet remain liable to the curse of the Law in whole or in part to be inflicted upon them 2 Whether the afflictions which God inflicteth upon beleevers in this life are the effects of Gods revenging justice the Curse which the law threateneth and so consequently whether after that God hath taken ful satisfaction from Christ he doth in whole or in part require and take satisfaction from them also Mr. Baxter with the Papists and Arminians mainteins the affirmative of both these questions we the Negative He that 1 after Christ hath born the Curse of the law for beleevers they are liable to beare it in whole or in part themselves also And 2 that the afflictions which they suffer are from the revenging justice of God the effects and Curse of the Law vindictive punishments of sin full of the wrath of God as in this his answer to the 3 question he declares himself But we utterly deny both these propositions either that the beleever is any more after his union to Christ subject to the Curse or that the afflictions which he suffereth have the Curse of the law and revenging justice of God in them but proceed not from the wrath of an angry judge but from the tender grace and love of a most wise and indulgent Father Both these assertions we ground upon evident Testimonies of Scripture First that beleevers are no more liable to but wholly freed from the Curse we have the Holy Ghost affirming Gal. 3. 13 14. Christ hath redeemed us from the Curse of the law being made a Curse for us c. that the blessing of Abraham might come on the Gentiles through Jesus Christ that we might receive the promise of the Spirit through faith What can be said more cleer and full to the Confirmation
who not acknowledging the riches of Gods Wisedome and Grace in that course of our redemption which God hath followed would accuse God of indiscretion for making much aâ— do about nothing and teach him to go a more compendious and easie way to work then his wisdom hath chosen These Criticisms upon Gods glorious wonderfull proceedings in his administrations we leave to Socinus and Arminius with their followers It is our part sapere ad sobrietatem and to understand what God hath not to tell him what he might or should have done To the Eighth Because he knoweth his assertion false he therefore saith something but conceals from us what it is tells us that all the Scriptures and reasons which are brought against his opinion do not hit it nor hurt it but will not let us to know one particular of all those Scriptures and Reasons that he hath heard or read urged against him lest that some one answering might manifest the falshood of the assertion This is safe disputing to speak so as â—o leave no footing for an answer Such baites may catch Froggs possibly but never a Fish And as he affirmeth neither Scriptures not Reasons prove more then this That our afflictions are not the rigorous execution of the Law what Scripture or Reason can be given why that believers shall not be damned in hell together with unbelievers For what is the rigor of the Law but the infliction of the Curse in its utmost extent and extremity But if the Saints be beaten with few stripes when the rebells are beaten with many and be damned but to the uppermost when the other are cast into the nethermost hell then is not the Curse of the Law executed upon them in its utmost rigor If this be not to abase the merits of Christ that hath purchased and abuse the grace of God that promiseth and abate if not to destroy the hope and comfort of believers that shall receive according to Mr. Baxter no better priviledges then this surely then nothing can do it As for that which he addeth of a mixture of love and hatred in God when he curseth the wicked and of love and anger when he curseth the godly This is a meer Chimaera of his own brain a making of God to be in a commotion against himself to carry fire in the one hand and water in the other to fight with the right against the left and with the left hand against the right sometimes the one and sometimes the other overcoming but of which side soever the Victory resteth still must the poor believer be cursed and when most under the curse we must believe Mr. Baxter telling us a strange wonder he is not at all under the hatred of God An excellent disputer to have stood alway at Marcions elbow prompting him with argument to prove this God to have been a malignant and envious God the author of all evill to mankinde what less doth Mr. Baxter affirm when he tells us that he curseth his very Friends those that trust in him those whom he hateth not yea those whom he loveth But doth he bring no Scripture to prove all that he hath said Yes one in steed of all and that as pertinent and proper to his purpose as a Pearl to a Swines snout Death hath lost his sting 1 Cor. 15. 55 56. There is no unpardoned sin in it Yet when God hath pardoned every of their sins he will neverthelesse powre upon them the Curse when they are without if not also because they are without sin ipse dixit and I must be silent To the Ninth It greeves me lesse when I finde Mr. Baxter leaving the pure fountain of Scripture stirring in his own element the puddle of humane art and wisedom then when he meddles with the word becaus he seldom toucheth it but with a defiled and defiling hand to pervert maim or add to it and so to prophane it So that his sin is greater in this than in the other The place which he quotes here 1 Cor. 15. 26. saith not that as he untruly alleageth Death is not yet overcome but onely saith The last enemy that shall be destroyed is death it is overcome already though not destroyed Yet not to strive about words Death is overcome and it is not overcome but in different respects It is overcome 1 In relation to Christ himself and his naturall body that it cannot reach or seize on him Els is not Christ risen from death and then our faith is vain But he is risen in the power of the Godhead having loosed or dissolved the pains and Chains too of Death it being unpossible he should be held by it Acts 2. 24. For how should a power finite over-power the power of God which is infinite Neither will any say that Christ escaped from the bonds of death by Treaty but by Conquest He ascended on high leading captivity captive Eph. 4. 8. Having spoyled principalities and powers he made open shew of them triumphing over them Col. 2. 15. By his death he hath destroyed not onely death it self but him also that had the power of death i. e. the Devill Heb. 2. 14. 2 In relation to the mysticall body of Christ the believers it is so overcome that it hath in it no curse to vomit out upon them That was carried away in Christs naturall body that this his mysticall body might be freed from it He took to himself saith the Apostle part of our flesh and blood that by death he might destroy him that hath the power of death i. e. the Devill and deliver them who through fear of death were all their life-time subject to bondage Heb. 2. 14 15. What was that in death that the Saints so feared under the Law before the Gospel had fully cleered to them their liberty but the Curse The Law threatned them with death as with the Curse and vengeance of God This made them to live all their life-time in a sad bondage for fear of death of the curse and vengeance in death at the last But Christ hath by his death delivered us from the Curse that was in death so that now we live not in fear and bondage in expectation of death It is but a sweet dormitory to the Saints in which they put off their corruptible and dreggish that at last they may put on immortall and spirituall bodies in them to meet with Christ in the day of Judgement and be for ever with him 1 Cor. 15. 44. 1 Thes 4. 17. In these respects death is overcome But it is not so overcome but that it hath its being yea full dominion with its curse over the wicked and in this respect it is said The last Enemy that shall be destroyed is death as will appear by reading the former vers with this Christ must reign till he hath brought all his enemies under his feet The last enemy c. The Apostle here from the Authority of that Prophecy Psal 110. 1.
concludeth that Christ must sit at the right hand of God having and executing all power in heaven and in earth untill he hath brought all his enemies under his feet Here if 1 We consider that death as the other enemies that are to be subdued is spoken of as an Enemy to Christ we must conclude that the Apostle speaketh not at all of death as a Curse For death is no more a Curse to Christ glorified than the other enemies wicked and reprobate men that are to be brought under his feet 2 A reason is here given why death must be the last Enemy destroyed viz. Because Christ must bring all his enemies under foot Now as long as there shall remain upon the earth enemies to Christ and his Gospel succeeding one another in their generations so long death in its fulnesse of the curse and wrath of God is usefull to seize on them at the Lord Christ shall destroy and bring them under its power so that as long as there is any other Enemy remaining death is not to be abolished in regard of its usefulnesse in respect of the other Enemies But when the end is come and the enemies all destroyed and no one more remaining to be seized on but that all shall be raised from this first to be sentenc'd unto and hurled into the second death hell and brimstone I mean all the enemies of Christ now death also it self shall be destroyed there being no further use of it That this is the proper meaning of this Text a blind man may see and consequently see it to be sinfully wrested by Mr. Baxter forcing it seemingly to prove that the Saints are yet liable to the Curse because subject to death To his plain case of our Corruption which he addeth I have spoken before To the tenth which is the last Every one will expect to find the sweet at the bottom and that the last stroke should drive the nail home to the very head Attend we to it therefore considerately and we shall find it if not the strongest yet the most portentous of all The whole stream of Scriptures saith he makes Christ to have now the sole disposing of us and of our sufferings Ergo because we are in Christs arms and under his dispensation we must needs be liable to the Curse For the Scripture affirms him saith he to have prevented the full execution of the Curse and to manage that which lyeth on us for our advantage and good but no where doth it affirm that he suddenly delivereth us Which of Mr. Baxters admirers would not have censur'd it in Bellarmin a most prodigious impudency if not blasphemy thus to father his conceits upon the holy Scriptures If Mr. Baxter had found but one least rivulet of that whole stream of Scriptures which he mentioneth to have been for his turn would he not have directed us to it or cited it to us If he took the holy Scriptures for any thing els then one of his Fathers once termed it to Cardinal Bembus Fabulam de Christo he would not dare so much to slander wrest and corrupt it While his dispute is wholly taken up about the Curse to bring believers under it he would fear that Curse denounced against himself all plagues upon him that shall add any thing to it and the taking away his part from the book of life whosoever shall take from it Rev. 22. 18 19. what less doth Mr. Baxter in pronouncing the whole stream of Scriptures to teach that which no drop of Scripture hath a relish of is not this adding And when the Scripture pronounceth Christ to have delivered us from the curse of the Law that there is no condemnation c. and he comes with his glosse he hath delivered us from the Curse i. e. hath prevented the full execution of the Curse There is no condemnation i. e. none is condemned to the Curse in its full rigour among all the beleevers is not this to take away from the word of God yea to enervate and emasculate it and make it of no vigour And further doth not his Arguing here tend to the abasing annihilating and even un-Christing of Christ What an absurdity is it to think that he who was God and accounted it no robbery to be equall with God should in overflowing love towards us make himself of no reputation take to him the form of a Servant humble himself to the death even the death of the Cross Phil. 2. 6. 8. and himself bear our sins in his own body on the Tree 1 Pet. 2 24. and all to this end that having disabled Law and Sin from all power to Curse without him to purchase to himself the Monopoly of Cursing or inflicting the Curse upon his own friends yea his own Body and Members that none henceforth should curse them but from by and under him Who but one that is ambitious to be his Vicar would make of Christ such a Pope Yea how is the glory of Christs grace and merits veiled nay extinguished by teaching that Christ is ascended into the Heavens and sit down at the right hand of God to manage the Curse to the tormenting yet if Mr. Baxter be heard for the advantage of his Saints on Earth The Scripture tels us of other and most glorious ends of his Resurrection Ascension and sitting at the right hand of God viz. to receive a Kingdom for himself and those that believe in him Lu. 19. 12 15. to prepare for them places and Mansions in it that coming again he may receive them to himself that where he is there may they be also John 14. 2 3. that being ascended on high and having led our captivity captive he may powre gifts upon his Saints even gifts greater than the whole world That he might be a blessing-giver to us that we might be blessed with all spirituall blessings in heavenly places in Christ Ephes 1. 3. to free us from the Curse and condemnation by making intercession for us Rom. 8. 34. But no where doth the Scripture make him a Curse-monger But with what impudence doth he close up all that he he hath to say upon this subject in a known falshood telling us that the Scripture no where affirmeth that he suddenly delivers us from the curse when the Scripture contrarywise affirmeth that he hath delivered us from the Law hath delivered us from sin hath delivered us from the Curse and that we are thus delivered already and already is a step before suddenly Thus abusive is he both to the Scriptures and to the Lord Christ CHAP. VII How manifoldly evill and hurtfull such sceptick and distinctionary disputes are and how farr Mr. Baxter and the Papists agree in the matter and form of this dispute I Have been large in answering these Arguments yet it hath proceeded not onely from my naturall slownes and uncapablenes of Concisenes but partly also from Mr. Baxters purposed Concisenes whose common slâ—ght it is here and elswhere under a pretence
of avoyding tediousnes to leave the most precious truths hidden in corners and onely to leave a paint of plausibility and probability upon the Embryons and errors of his own brain in stead of bringing them openly to the tryall And this occasioned me to be the more in length to bring forth cleerly into the light the truth that he hath hidden and to take off the outside paint from his fancies that they might appear in their own nature and colors Partly also to discover the pernicious danger which lurketh in the doctrine which he hath here delivered against which too much cannot be spoken to prevent the taking of inconsiderate and over credulous Christians in his snares I shall shew my reasons why I call it pernicious doctrine and so leave the question 1 It is anti-scripturall and diametrically opposite to the word as is enough manifested by that which hath been already said in the examination thereof 2. It is Antichristian hath sundry Popish errors some more apertly others more hiddenly included in it So that when immediately before his arguments he professeth that it is not affectation of singularity that divides him in judgement from the reformed Churches we doubt not but he speaks truth herein For it is to follow the stream and Clowd of Popish Doctors whose sophistry hath more force upon his judgment than ever I could perceive the Word to have Those Popish errors then that are more openly conteined in his doctrine here are principally about Christs and mans satisfactions made to God for mans sinns in which as the Papists so Mr. Baxter will have man to bear a share with Christ that the glory may not be wholly the Lords And here in sundry points Mr. Baxter speaketh the very same things though not altogether in the same words with the Papists I shall in these severall points lay down briefly the doctrine of the Papists first and then compare Mr. Baxters with it that the Coherence betwixt them may be cleerly seen The Papists opinions I shall truly set forth to you though briefly as they themselves express themselves in the Councell of Trent Sess 6. Cap. 14. 16. Sess 14. Cap. 8 9. and Bellar in his two books de Purgatorio lib. 4. de Poenitentia and by sundry other of their own Writers 1 They hold that although Christ hath by his death and merits satisfied the Law and Justice of God for the fault of our sinns in offending Gods Justice and violating his holy Law so that God is no more at enmity with but reconciled to them which truly repent and beleeve hath fully pardoned their sinn and forgiven their offences for Christs sake yet hath neither Christ given nor God taken full satisfaction for the punishment but that after the fault is pardoned God may and will inflâ—ct punishment upon the offender In this and the rest points of satisfaction they give this generall rule that Christ hath undertaken for us onely that which we could not do for our selves and satisfied for us so far onely as it was unpossible for us to make satisfaction for our selves As for that which by doing or suffering was in our power to accomplish for our selves that he hath left to be without his preventing us accomplished by us But in this Case say they It was unpossible for man to undertake any work any suffering so noble worthy as might stand in equipoise with the offending of so infinite a Majestie and so to satisfie Gods Justice for the fault This therfore Christ hath done and God hath accepted from Christ in our behalf But it was possible for man to satisfie at least in part for the punishment which the justice and law of God exact for the offence committed This therefore is in part left to us to satisfie and after he hath forgiven the fault doth notwithstanding inflict upon us the punishment for the satisfying of his law and justice This they go about to prove by the example of Gods dealing with Moses and Aaron when they had sinned against him he forgave freely their fault and offence nevertheless called them exactly to a reckoning about the punishment was in perfect friendship with them again yet would not abate them an ace of the punishment which he had threatened to them they must dye in the Wildernes and never enter into the land that flowed with milk and hony The like they instance in David about his sin in reference to Bathsheba and Vriah The Lord forgave the offence The Lord hath put away thy sin saith the Prophet thou shalt not surely dye 2 Sam. 12 13. Nevertheles in reference to the punishment David shall smoke for it The child shall dye the sword shall never depart from his house c. so that David shall rue it to his very dying day Other Scriptures and reasons they bring which would be over tedious to insert Compare we now Mr. Baxters doctrine with theirs Thes 7. he tells us That Christ Jesus being fully furnished for this work of Mediation by his Fathers and his own will first undertook and afterward discharged mans debt by suffering what the Law did threaten and the offender was unable to bear And Thes 8. That the Father so fully accepted the satisfaction that by way of reward to Christ that gave it he hath delivered all things into his hands and given him all power in heaven and in earth and made him Lord both of the dead and living Yet Thes 9th addeth that It was not the intent of either the Father or the Son that by this satisfaction the offenders should be immediately delivered from the whole Curse of the Law and freed from the evill which they had brought upon themselves but some part must be executed upon soul and body c. And this he goes about by his ten Arguments which we have examined to prove of the beleevers themselves that they are liable to the punishment and Curse of the Law to bear it in part even to death it self and that though there be no unpardoned sin for which the curse as the curse Pag. 71. Arg. 8 is inflicted upon them Let any discreet man here judge if there be the least haires breadth betwixt Mr Baxter and a Papist according to the Councell of Trent i. e. the worst Papist The rule of both about satisfaction is the same Christ hath done and suffered for us what we could not do and suffer for our selves say the Papists Christ hath suffered for us what the Law did threaten and we were unable to bear saith Mr. Baxter implying that whatsoever we can bear must yet be inflicted upon us For this satisfaction the fault is forgiven saith Bellarmine By means of this satisfaction there remains no unpardoned Sin saith Mr. Baxter viz. upon beleevers Yet say both when the sin is forgiven the punishment curse and penalty of the Law must be suffered Here is noble mercy and forgivenes to pardon a man his fault and to pronounce with
them worse than himself Matt. 23. 15. And what should that be but that God takes satisfaction to his justice by his judgments upon them here that they may not have or may have the less to satisfie for in hell or in Purgatory In this therefore as in the two former points I take him expressing himself an adopted sonne of the ghostly Fathers of Trent 4. The Papists hold that there is a Purgatory which they describe to be a prison as hot and full of the same materiall fire and flames as hell it self into which the souls of Christians after this life are cast to satisfie Gods justice for all their veniall sins that they have not made satisfaction for in this life by suffering or doing and being once cast into this prison they cannot come forth out of the torment untill they have paid the utmost farthing of their debt i. e. untill they have suffered so much as may counterpoise to a very grain the sinns whereof they dye unpardoned This they prove by many undeniable Arguments specially by the testimony of many good souls that have obteined a dispensation to come thence with their bosoms so full of fire as of flesh and bones to tell them so Doth Mr. Baxter joyn with them in this opinion also Soft and fair There is skill in daubing first he will try how this Tractate will take if according to his minde probably we shall have a second part and therein he may tell us plainly his judgment in this and many other of his mysteries that here he leaves obscure and ambiguous In the interim it pleaseth him not to deliver his minde herein in words at length but in dark and uncertain figures Yet joyn we together what he saith here and there in parcells and somwhat may be made or at least conjectured of it First then he telleth us that some part of the Curse must be executed upon beleevers i. e. upon the whole man the soul as well as the body Thes 9. 2 That untill the day of Resurrection and of Judgement all the effects of sin and law and wrath will not be removed from them pag. 74. Pag. 71 Arg. 8. Therefore thirdly what he will not doth not at least say of any of their former sufferings he saith of death That there is no unpardoned sin in it which shall procure further judgment and so no hatred in it though there be anger A glorious privilege no doubt such as according to our usuall proverb a man may find at Billingsgate for a box on the ear from the worst of men that he meets with When a man hath in revengefull fury persecuted his hated nighbour with all the strokes and stormes of wrath and mischief and after many years persecution hath at last slaughtered him and trampled his dead Corps into the mire and dust now at last he ceaseth from hatred is but angry with his poor reliques forgives him all the rest when he can do no more to him and forgivenes can do him no good Such tender mercies of Cruelty as the wise man terms them Pro. 12. 10. doth Mr. Baxter here ascribe unto God in his gracious dealings with beleevers for Christs sake viz. to persecute them with all the strokes of his wrath and all the Curses of the law all their life time sparing neither their body nor soul and at last with great indignation to destroy them and trample their bodies into the earth dust and rottennes yea and their souls whither he list and under what torment he list and after this so remarkeable is his love he will hate them no more but be angry with them still When they are dead and can offend no more and God hath inflicted upon them all his judgments that he can inflict no more now their sins shall be so pardoned that they shall suffer no more no more than all which they already suffer Who denies this to be the very quintessence of mercy and spirits of love when Mr. Baxter hath so defined it and held it forth to us as the most Celestiall comfort that we shall finde in death There is saith he no unpardoned sin in the death of beleevers that shall procure further judgement Where note 1 that he saith not simply and absolutely that there is no unpardoned sin upon the Saints now dead and buryed but no sin so unpardoned that it should bring further judgement than that which is already upon them And 2 That when he denyeth that their sin shall bring any further judgement upon them he doth not deny but rather imply their sins to be yet still unpardoned as to the holding those judgements upon them that are already inflicted A comfort that the Devills and reprobates in hell shall not want after the very day of judgment in the midst of their flames That there is none of their sinns so unpardoned as that it should bring any further judgment upon them But put we all together 1 That the beleever must bear the Curse even the whole man in body and soule also 2 That he shall not be delivered from this curse in soul and body untill the resurrection 3 That although death puts him into a freedom from further judgments yet it doth not at all deliver him from those that at death are inflicted upon soul and body How shall we now make up the matter If the whole man both soul and body must suffer and not be wholly freed untill the resurrection this is not fulfilled in the suffering of the body alone If the soul also untill then must suffer then is it not forthwith upon its seperation from the body exalted to Heaven for there is no suffering no affliction Neither doth it suffer in hell for Mr. Baxter exempteth thence all that persevere in the Faith according to his definition of faith untill death Where and whence then shall it suffer but in and from the fire of Purgatory And so there is no unpardoned sin upon beleevers after death that can procure to them any further judgment beyond this If Mr. Baxter meaneth not so it is his fault to write with so much ambiguity and so little plainnes and perspicuity as to toll us on to a strong Conjecture that he meaneth so and is in this as in the rest apostatized to the Papists 5 I might add also here that he seemes to joyn with the Papists in holding beleevers in an uncertainty of their salvation all their life long It is considerable that neither in his Aphorism nor in the whole explication therof nor in all his arguments by which he goeth about to prove beleevers under the Curse doth he once name any pardon of sin or freedom from further judgment which they attain untill after death and then when they have persevered to the end and dyed in Christ now he mentions and affirms it What doth Arg. 8 p. 71. this argue but that he would with the Papists have men to hope well but to be still
the Article of Justification they wholly dissent from him It hath filled my spirit with sadness to hear not onely in the Pulpits of the Country but of the City of London pronounced by the Mouths of some in great esteem both for piety and Learning That to say God doth not punish his Saints for their sinns is flat Antinomism and affirmed that the afflictions of beleevers are punishments for their sin I beseech these men to Consider whom they here explode as Antinomians whether besides the Apostles and Fathers of the Primitive Church they do not brand all the reformed Churches and their Champions against the Papists with this ignominy Whether there be any one Article of Christian Religion that hath been more stoutly defended by these against the Papists than this which heat of zeal without knowledg or Consideration at least hath of late Called Antinomian Let them produce any besides the Socinian and Arminian Sophisters that have stumbled at this doctrine as offensive I beseech these men to read one Chamier at least Panstr Tom. 3. lib. 23. the six first Chapters where this question is not onely handled at large but also the Arguments of the Protestants who are also named Cap. 1. particularized and all the objections of the Papists against those Arguments Confuted and the Papists Arguments to prove the Contrary assertion answered The question being thus stated Vtrùm puniantur fidelium scelera utrùm dura quae ijs immittit Deus sint peccatorum paenae So much by way of answer to Mr. Baxters resolving of his third question There remain yet three questions more viz. Bax. 4. Whether it be not a wrong to the Redeemer that the people whom he hath ransomed be not immediately delivered from the Curse 5. Whether it be any wrong to the redeemed themselves 6. How long will it be till all the Curse be taken off beleevers and Redemption have attained its full effect The two former of these questions are sawcy arrogant and proud In their proposall Mr. Baxter acts the part of Satan in questioning and accusing Gods Justice In his answer to them he takes upon himself to act the part of an Angel to be an Apologist to plead for the defence of Gods justice 2 Gods justice is not cannot be injurious to any so that God needs not an Apologist to plead his cause if he needed his wisdome would not make choice of his accuser to be his Advocate 3 Mr. Baxter if he would have dealt ingenuously should have put the questions whether himself be not injurious 1 To God and his Christ 2 To the redeemed by denying their deliverance from and affirming their prostrate bondage under the Curse and not to have questioned whether his slandering of Gods justice hath made God faulty And then he should have received an answer to his resolving of the questions But as he puts the questions I reject his resolving of them as unworthy of an answer Onely by the way I say that what he speaks in answer to his own questions is all meerly sophisticall and fallacious The three first reasons that he brings to prove that Christ is not wronged by the not delivering of his ransomed ones being things in question not proved by Mr. Baxter therefore in arguing from them he doth as it is usuall with him beg the principle The fourth reason is not ad idem but so farr from the question as London from Barwick that there is no hope they will ever meet together The question speaking of beleevers The reason of Christs dealing with the world to make them beleevers And the same is evident in what he saith to the fifth question also The sixth question he thus resolveth Bax. The last enemy to be overcome is death 1 Cor. 15. 26. This enemy will be perfectly overcome at the Resurrection Then also shall we be perfectly acquitt from the charge of the Law and accusation of Satan Therefore not till the day of Resurrection and judgment will all the effects of sin and law and wrath be perfectly removed If in the conclusion he mean the effects of sin and law and wrath shall not be removed from the world untill the resurrection he speaketh truth but nihil ad rem far from the question which speaketh onely of beleevers If he mean of them that the Curse shall not be removed I have answered it before and the Scriptures here brought to prove it and will not here Actum agere CHAP. VIII Whether Beleevers are under the Law as a Covenant of works The Negative proved Mr. Baxters ambiguities and mentall reservations in stating the question and asserting the affirmative The Law not repealed to any but exauthorated to beleevers having inflicted its whole curse upon them in Christ Mr. Baxter had ended but he had not finished his dispute about the Curse upon beleevers He did but Parthian or ram-like go backward and decline a little to return with the greater force Or as an Actor upon the stage withdraw and make his exit to put on a new dress in which to appear again forthwith to act a second part So doth Mr. Baxter decline the dispute in one Aphorism and its explication which I also shall pass by without excepting against it and then he returns to prosecute the same dispute afresh yet in another dress of words that it might seem to be a resolving or determining of another question That was whether beleevers remain under the Curse of the Law This whether they remain under the Law as it threateneth and curseth And between these two questions who seeth not so vast a difference as is between an arrow in the quiver and an arrow out of the quiver within and without the quiver it is the same arrow still Yet let us attend to him stating the question which anon we shall examine The result of it is thus Bax. That the Morall Law not in its directive use but as it is a Covenant of works is still in force to threaten and bring the Curse upon beleevers in case they do in any thing transgress the Law This he undertakes to make good pronouncing it inconsideratenes to assert the contrary Thes 11. p. 78. explic p. 79. explic of Thes 12. p. 82. Here before we meddle any further with Mr. Baxter let us examine what the Holy Ghost in Scripture speaketh to this point Ye are not under the Law but under Grace saith th'Apostle to believers Rom. 6. 14. I conceive there is no one Christian upon earth that hath his head unbiassed with sophisticall fallacies and falshoods but takes the words in the same simple and clear sense wherein the Holy Ghost delivers them viz. That we are no more under the Law as a Covenant of Works when we have once attained by faith to be under the Covenant of Grace But a very thunder-bolt against Mr. Baxter and his Assertion is that Gal. 5. 3 4. I testifie to every one that is circumcised that he is debtor to do
vouchsafeth not to answer one no nor to cite one why but that he thinks when the Scriptures and his own assertions do contradict either the other the authority of his own judgment not only to parallel but also to over-weigh the authority of the Scriptures What Papist what Enthusiast hath or can have the Scriptures in less esteem then this Aphorist shews himself here and elswhere to have What Scriptures are brought against him he disdaineth them an answer yea a glance of his eye to see them or tongue to read them to us But if he finds any Scripture whose point with much bowing and wresting he thinks he may turn about against us that have no more wit but to think their authority venerable and requiring our submission thereunto of these he makes use to befool yet more such fools as regard them If I fail in my censure the Lord forgive to me the mistake of my judgment and to Mr. Baxter his giving occasion yea cause of such a mistaking And as the authority of Scriptures is pufft from him with less then a piff or pish so do we find humane authority in all probability falsified by him I know saith he that learned and godly men are of this judgment that the Law as a Covenant of works is quite null and repealed in regard of the sins of beleevers I do not doubt but by these learned and godly he means some Protestant Divines whom somtimes he will flatter smooth and almost spit in their mouths to allure them to run after him Now if he do not falsify their assertions let him name but one of them that ever affirmed the Law to be so repealed I may possibly acknowledg him to be in the main learned and godly but I believe I shall never account him to have been considerate in laying down such an assertion For it directly contradicts the doctrine of our Saviour Think not saith he that I am come to destroy the Law c. I am not come to destroy but fulfill Verily verily Heaven and Earth shall pass but not one jot or tittle shall not pass from the Law till all be fulfilled Mat. 5. 17 18. Or to whom should it be repealed not to unbeleevers for it is consented in both sides that they are under the Law under the Curse Nor to beleevers for the Law hath pursued their sins unto death in the body of Christ and by Mr. Baxters acknowledgment hath inflicted upon him for them upon them in him the tantundem if not the idem which it ever threatned against sinners And how is the Law repealed in any of its power that doth or hath executed all its power upon all that have been transgressors Mr. B. very well knoweth what doctrine is taught in the Reformed Churches but will needs falsify it as he doth also the Holy Scriptures We affirm that the Law is still in force and shall be til the worlds end We preach not a repeal of any of its power or righteousness which it had from God at any time Neither on the other side do we attribute to it a power or unrighteousnes which God never gave it We grant it a power to take full vengeance upon every sinner for every sin committed during life But we deny that if any be raised to a second life after death as was Christ having born the whole wrath due to the sins of the former life that such a one comes under the power of the Law again the Law hath never more dominion over him But so stands the case with believers They have suffered in Christ done their Law in Christ are dead in Christ and in him they have satisfied the Justice of the Law for the sins of their whole life If now they are also risen with Christ and are dignified with a new life the life of grace so that though they live it is not so much they that live as that Christ liveth in them and the life which they live in the flesh is by the faith of the Son of God Gal. 2. 20. In this new life which they have by their union unto Christ now triumphant the Law can no more reach them then Christ himself triumphant So the Law is nulled to them but never repealed nulled because it hath inflicted upon them its whole penaâ—ty and after it hath so done it hath no more power over the very reprobates much lesse over the Saints So that the Law being null or of no force to believers hath received no diminution to its power holding it still firm and entire as ever no more then the Law of the Land is weakened for that when it hath inflicted death upon the Felon or Traytor it hath no further power to question him As before they had existence in Adam their not existing yet in him and under the Law by being in Adam argued no weaknes in the Law So when they have don their Law for the sins committed while under the Law and that by their new union unto and existence in Christ they cease to be under the Law that the Law hath no power over them argues no wound or weaknesse or detriment that the Law hath sustained any more then it doth because it is null in power to the Angels in Heaven over whom it had never power or null unto Christ now in Heaven over whom it had once power Mr. Baxter acknowledgeth that the penalty of the LAW is due to none but the transgressors of the Law to the unrighteous and withall affirms Thes 16. p. 96. and Explication page 98 99. That Satisfaction for disobedience is our Righteousnes makes a man so perfectly righteous as to the Law and further penalty thereof as if he had never disobeyed Yet we find him here fighting not onely against Heaven and Earth but against himself also to deny the nullity of the Law to them that have satisfied by CHRIST for their disobedience to the Law making it one and the same thing with the repealing of the Law This word repealing being here foisted in by himself partly to make way for his sophisticall and bombasticall distinctions which are no less deer to him then his life therefore in the Explication of the next Thesis comes in great ostentation no less trappled with them then a Cart-horse with his painted Collar bells and fethers partly to give occasion of his riding in state upon Grotius his shoulders to shew what new subtle and fine-spun learning he hath drawn from so noble and Apostaticall a Doctor no less fit to the Argument he hath in hand than the shoo iâ— for the hand or the glove for the foot But lastly and principally that having according to his wonted and inbred subtlety put on a false vizzard upon the doctrine of the reformed Churches he might in the 13 Thes and its explication dispute victoriously against the vizzard having nothing to say against the doctrine in its own nature and verity As for the other pretended opinion that the Covenant
soaring still higher towards the very top of it and sinking lower from the Orb of Christian verity So by that something of man that must enright him to Justification he must mean something more then Repentance and Faith which he had before concluded necessary to Justification Thes 14. Els were he upon a retreating not a marching posture Nevertheles how subtlely doth he dâ—wb and paint to gull the simple and catch them that are made to be taken by putting fine words upon his course purposes telling them that we are justified by Faith and that there is required on our part but receiving and applying of Christs merits as if he were as innocent as a Dove and had none of the Serpent in him when contrariwise the sequele of his Tractate proclaimes him by that which he calls here somewhat of man to mean at the full with the worst Papists mans works to the totall exclusion of Gods grace In mean while his words leave it doubtfull here what this somewhat of man is and whether it be the hand or the heel that must receive and apply Christ to Justification His Disciples are not yet enough moulded he thinks to receive the Dragons voice in his own tone they must be accustomed to bear the Calf daily untill he become an Oxe that he may be born then too and at length we shall finde the instruments which Mr. B. appoints to receive Christ to be instrumentall onely to push him from us However he concludes thus because he will have it so That no man by the meer satisfaction made is freed from the Law and Curse c. absolutely but conditionally onely i. e. not at all And this he hath said over and over already and there needs no further Answer then that which hath been before given So that where he repeats this Assertion again in the Explication That Christ doth not justifie by the shedding of his blood immediately without somwhat of man intervening c. adding that All the Scriptures alleaged p. 79. do prove it I grant what he saith for I finde no Scripture there alleaged But if he mean p. 89 90. what I said there I say here again he shall not misse of an answer to them when he comes to alleage them again in their proper place and declares how he will argue from them Yet because the man is delighted to deliver first in generall what he will after deliver again in particulars I shall say something also in generall to his generall assertion That Christs satisfaction justifieth not without something of man intervening to give him right to it Let us see what the Scripture saith for or against it The Apostle speaking of mans redemption and justification and shewing the cause why some have and some have not their part in it affirmeth and proveth that it is not of him that willeth or of him that runneth but of God that sheweth mercy Rom. 9. 16. By the willing is to be understood all the good qualifications and operations of the soul by running all the good works of a mans life and practice as all confess When the Holy Ghost excludeth every somewhat of man within the man and every somewhat of man without man from conferring any thing to Justification what other somewhat remaineth of man to intervene c Let it be judged whether Mr. B. doth not purposely fight against Scripture Again Rom. 5. 6 8 9 10. When we were yet without strength viz. to any spirituall operation Christ dyed for the ungodly while we were yet sinners Christ dyed for us and we were justified by his bloud while enemies we were reconciled to God by the death of his Son Here the Result of the Apostles reasoning discovers to us two things to our purpose 1 That according to the minde and language of the Holy Ghost Christ dying and by his death satisfying for any mans sinns and that mans justification and reconciliation to God by that satisfaction are equipollent terms holding forth one and the same thing For so the Apostle here useth justification and reconciliation as words of the same sense and weight And Amesius manifesteth Ames Med. Lib. 1. c. 27. Sect. 22. in what respects they must needs be taken for the same thing and makes both the same with Christs dying for him So that every person for whom Christ hath by his death made satisfaction is effectually justified and reconciled to God I mean in Christ though possibly not yet in his own apprehension 2 That we are thus justified and reconciled to God while ungodly while sinners while enemies while without strength to that which is good What somewhat of man can there be in such to enright them to justification unless any will say their impotency ungodlines sin and enmity shall do it Such contrariety is there between Mr. Br and the Spirit or word of truth There needs not much deliberation to determine which to follow But he proceeds Bax. p. 93. Let all the Antinomians shew but one Scripture which speaks of Justification from Eternity And what if it be but one of all or one that is not an Antinomian that shews it will Mr. Br harken and submit his judgement to that Scripture so alleaged I say in like manner Let all the Antichristian Jesuits or Mr. Br. or his Mr Grotius shew one Scripture which asserteth onely a conditionall and not an absolute Justification purchased to us by Christ I will hear and submit though I see not then how to be saved As to his Challenge I shall speak in a more proper place Bax. I know God hath decreed to justifie his people from eternity and so he hath to sanctifie them too but both of them are done in time Justification being no more an immanent act in God than sanctification as I shall shew afterward I shall therefore wait on him untill he hath the leisure and pleasure to shew it In the mean while why doth he Conclude so hotly and peremptorily before-hand that which he brings nothing save his own bare affirmation to prove He said not unwisely which said Let not him that girdeth on his armour boast as he that putteth it off 1 King 20. 11. Bax. The bloud of Christ then is sufficient in suo genere but not in omni genere sufficient for its own work but not for every work There are severall other necessaries to Justifie and save quibus positis which being supposed the bloud of Christ will be effectuall Qui non vult intelligi debet negligi He that will so speak that he may not be understood is worthy to pass without an Answer If he mean that the bloud of Christ is sufficient to compleat our justification before God and that this is its own work But that there are other necessaries to justifie us in our selves and our own apprehensions which being supposed the work is ended I will abstein from all contradiction If he mean otherwise and will not express himself Hony soit Qui male
the Moral Law For Adam received it while he was yet innocent and without sinne and in that state of his the Law could not convince him was not appointed to convince him of sinne having not all sinned 3. That it makes the Law upon its old terms i. e. according to Master Baxter as a Covenant of workes sufficient by it selfe to conviction without any need of Gospel convictions to bee used When contrariwise all the convictions of the Law so considered can worke but desperation and death in the convinced They are the convictions of the Gospel and Spirit of Grace working by the Gospel that are effectual to conversion and life For conclusion he saith B. But I judge the question to be of more difficulty than moment And I answer that the difficulty of the question is not from the Word of God but from him and his fellowes which fill with knots hard to be loosed the leading thread which Christ hath given us all displayed As for the Moment of the question let him crack at his pleasure among fooles yet the wise must needs see and acknowledge it such as if he lose it he loseth one of his chiefe pillars though it be but a paper pillar to bear up mans personal righteousnesse to justification For if it be proved that Christ requireth perfect obedience under the Gospel down falls all the perfection meritoriousnesse and efficacy of mans righteteousnesse to Justification And so he must begin all again and fit himselfe with better pillars next if any where from Rome or Jury they are to be had this proving rotten and unusefull That obedience which in relation to both Covenants to Law and Gospel too is sinfully unperfect cannot bee of any power to Justifie CHAP. XIX Arg. Whether Christ hath satisfied for sinnes against the Old Covenant and not for sinnes against the New also Thes 32 33 34 35. UNto this I may ad the quodlibetarie quidlibetarie doctrines of Mr Baxter his Niceties quiddities and nimble nothings whereof he disputes profoundly in the four next Theses viz. the 32 c. and in his Appendix in answer to the third question pag. 12. of the appendix and thence to pag. 27. in which many notable and rare speculations are unfolded viz. 1. Whether the rope wherewith Judas hanged himselfe were made of hair or hemp 2. Whether it were Simon alias called Peter or Peter alias called Simon that denyed Christ and whether it were Pontius or else Pilate that condemned him 3. Whether it were Christs Crosse or else the Crosse of Christ that Simon of Cyrene was compelled to bear Item whether hee carried it on his right or his left shoulder and which end of the Crosse was before and whether the contrary end were behind in carriage 4. Whether when Joab was put to death for killing two men Abner and Amasa for which of these two murthers he suffered for the former or the latter or for neither The same or like to these are the disputes of Master Baxter in these Theses and their explications and in the forementioned part of the Appendix viz. 1. Whether when himselfe hath laid it down for a position no lesse firm and unrepealable than the Lawes of the Medes and Persians which alter not that there is no sinne prohibited in the Gospel which is not a breach of some precept of the Decalogue and a sinne against the Old Covenant c. Yet neverthelesse there be any sinnes against the New Covenant which are not also against the Old Item whether there be any sinnes considerable in any of their respects against the Gospel onely and not against the Moral Law and then consequently whether Christ hath satisfied by his death for such sinnes as himself affirmes never have been never shall be or can be committed Thes 30. pag. 148. that is for imaginary sins which never were sins nor shall be Thes 32. 2. When he hath asserted and peremptorily concluded Thes 32. That Christ was not to satisfie for any sin committed against the New Covenant which was not is not also a sin against the Old Yet whether it be not very needfull to be questioned in the 33. Thes Whether Christ hath done what he was not to doe whether he hath satisfied for sins that violated the New Covenant as well as for those that violate the Old Covenant And consequently if he should have so done whether this were to have been reckoned as a work of supererogation above and beyond his duty to have merited superexcedently for us or an act of sin against his duty putting him into an incapacity to merit at all for us yea whereas Mr. Baxter concludeth absolutely as an undeniable truth Thes 32. Therefore Christ dyed not for any sin against the Gospel or Covenant of Grace whether that be not a sufficient argument to prove in Thes 33. that Christ hath not by his passive obedience satisfied for the sinnes that violate the Covenant of Grace who can evade the force of such an argument Christ hath not satisfied ergo he hath not satisfied specially when it hath been before proved in words at length that there is no sin against the New Covenant but is a sin against the Old also and it is satisfied for as to the Old Covenant what reason is there then that it should bee satisfied as to the New Covenant too When the Creditor is payd his full debt in the hall and hath yeelded up the bond will he expect to have the same debt payd to him in the parlor also 3. Whether when both Law and Gospel Old and New Covenant command the same thing that Christ then satisfyeth for the breach of that duty as to the Law but not as to the Gospel The Gospel then damneth men for that fault that in reference to the Law is satisfied for and consequently many poor wretches are damned by the Gospel and New Covenant which by the Law and Old Covenant should be saved Or if it be not so whether then it be not the Law that damneth even finall unbelief it self taking advantage from the violating of the grace of the New Covenant to aggravate their condemnation that under the means of Grace have lived and dyed contemners thereof 4. Whether all other sinnes which the Gospel precepts do prohibit be against Christ and his Gospel as the object of those sins onely the breaking of the conditions of the Gospel be not a sin against Christ and his Gospel as the object of that sin for so Mr. Baxter pag. 159. distinguisheth between those sinnes that have Christ and the Gospel for their object and those breaches of the conditions of the New Covenant as if these had not Christ and his Gospel for their object What then is the object of these sins or have they no object or how many thousand conditions of the New Covenant are there the breach whereof is by no sacrifice to be purged Hee tells us indeed Thes 32. pag. 159. that the Gospel threatneth death to no
other sin but final unbelief and rebellion But this finall unbelief and finall rebellion hath its belly so full of other small sins threatned in the womb of their Mother Rebellion as ever a man found of the berries in the belly of a breeding Lobster And in his Appendix pag. 23. he makes finall unbelief the genus to which he attributes but three species of which the first viz. Ordinary finall unbelief is not to bee considered as species specialissima but subalterna which being looked upon as a genus hath so many species or as a species hath so many individuals under it according to Mr. Baxters doctrine as the best Arithmetician in the world saving himselfe will not dare to yeeld up upon his casting the true summe of them to satisfie Mr. Baxters censure therein as it will appear when Mr. Baxter comes to unlace and rip abroad his Justifying Faith in its largest sense Thes 70. To these I might adde many more quaintisies of the same nature breathing out themselves from the veins of this his dispute But all the rest as those already mentioned are but tarrying irons to take up the time of men that are Malè feriati rather love to play with the buttons then to close with the body and drink in the spirit of true Christianity And what other end can Mr. Baxter have in these his chippings and mincings but to shew the delicacy of his wit Whom hath he in the substance of what he speaketh his adversary We grant and teach with him 1. That there is no sin prohibited by the Gospel or New Covenant which is not a sin against the Law and Old Covenant also 2. That finall unbelief and rebellion are sins if not unpardonable as if they exceeded the bounds of Gods grace and Christs merits to pardon them yet which have no futurition of pardon shall never be pardoned in this life or in that which is to come For so hath the Lord declared his purpose in reference to these sins 3. That both the Law and the Gospel concurre in damning such persons the Law as a Covenant of Workes properly for their refusall to submit even till death it self to the will and authority of God requiring Faith in Christ for their redemption from vengeance The Gospel improperly by withholding its shelter from the Laws sentence against them because they would never be perswaded to come under the shelter of it yea more in strengthning the hand of the Law to give them the sorer punishment for the contempt of Gods grace as well as of his Authority and Justice And thus not onely the mountains of their sinnes against the Law but also Christ the Rock shall fall upon them to their greater shivering for that they dared to dash themselves against him and would not be induced to be built against all the stroakes of vengeance upon him This is the summe of all that which Mr. Baxter here in substance saies To what purpose then are his elaborate distinctions of the differing respects and aspects senses and non-senses in which Christ hath either satisfied or not satisfied for mans sins unlesse it be Balaam-like to lay a stumbling block in the way of the simpler people of Gods Israel to occasion their fall to puzzle their judgements and consciences and to make the way of grace which is in it self as discovered by the Lord Christ easie and plaine to be unto them by his evill working therein intricate perplexed and full of snares To all sober men it sufficeth to know 1. That there is no one of their sins in whatsoever consideration it be taken but hath death and hell in the tayl of it 2. That there cannot be any other way of exemption from the death hel which every such sin of theirs meriteth by any other meanes but by the redemption which is by and in the Lord Jesus 3. That the blood of Christ hath in it a perfect efficacy to cleanse from all sin whatsoever no one excepted if it be applyed to cleanse Not the very sin against the Holy Ghost which it hath not power totally to purge out from the conscience if it were truly applyed But therefore is that sin never pardoned and purged from the soul because the Spirit of God never doth nor will apply the blood of Christ to the soul that is guilty of it nor generates Faith in such a soul to run unto and wash in the Fountain of Christs blood that it may be clean Let there be any one sin named of all the sins whereof our corrupt nature is pregnant that is so much a sin against the Gospel but that the purging or not purging away of it the absolving of the conscience from it or retaining of it upon the conscience doth not wholly depend upon the application or not application of the blood of Christ to the soul and I shall acknowledge that I have seen but the Letter and was never yet acquainted with the Spirit and drift of the Scriptures Or suppose we should take a delight to contend about that which is a meer lana caprina whether it be hair or wooll that grows upon the Goats shoulders how feeble might we manifest the reasons to be which Mr. Baxter beingeth to prove that the sins against the New Covenant are not satisfied for by the sacrifice of Christs death As 1. When the Apostle affirmeth Christ to have suffered death for the redemption of the transgressions under the first Testament Heb. 9. 15. Doth it follow thence that he hath not redeemed from the transgressions against the New Covenant also If I say that Christ forgave to Peter or Paul or Mary Magdalen all their sins committed before conversion do I thereby as much as imply that he retains still and revengeth upon them all the sinnes they committed after they were converted Or should one of Mr. Baxters acquaintance say that whatsoever Mr. Baxter preached and wrote untill four or five years since was good and Orthodox doth it follow that all that he hath since preached and written is heretical and erroneous Nay the purpose of the Apostle here is to convince the Hebrews that sought in part for righteousnesse by the Law or Old Testament that it could not make its observers perfect For Christ dyed to redeem the transgressions of them that were under the first Covenant which he needed not to have done if all the Sacrifices under the Law could have purged them And thus the Morall Law is not here at all opposed to the Gospel that the Gospel or New Covenant doe purge the sinnes onely that were committed under and against the Morall Law because all the righteousnesse of the Morall Law could not purge them but the sacrifice of Christ the Mediator of the New Covenant is here opposed to the Leviticall sacrifices under the Legall Covenant What these could not the sacrifice of Christ hath expiated 2. Where he tels us that Christ could not satisfie for sinnes committed against the New Covenant
wrath his life and righteousnesse were hid with Christ in God He could claim nothing from God by any evidential title but wrath and condemnation though he had right in Christ yet had he no right unto Christ though in Christ all was his because Christ had united purchased and received all into his hands for him yet had he no right to Christ by which to claim a partnership and interest in the kingdome and priviledge of grace was without all true peace of conscience all joy and consolation in the promises of grace under fears and terrors in expectation of wrath and damnation could be sensible of nothing but anger hatred and displeasure against him for sinne knew not himselfe to be one of the children of promise Gal. 4. 28. to be entitled to Christ in whom alone the promises of God are yea and Amen 2 Cor. 1. 20. Therefore as if there had been no Christ no Mediator and reconciler no Covenant of Grace yea no Grace or acts of Grace eternal or temporary in God thorow Christ so he remained under a Spirit either of delusion or of bondage still But now when the father hath drawn him to Christ and Christ hath received him when Christ hath apprehended him to himselfe by his Spirit and he by faith hath apprehended Christ to himselfe for redemption reconciliation remission righteousnesse and whatsoever else is laid up in Christ for him and so hath union and communion with Christ hath Christ in him and is himselfe in Christ Now his justification which was sure before in God and in Christ is also made sure to his conscience He is now justified in his own conscience after the tenor and by the vertue of the Gospel and Covenant and promises of Grace findes and knowes himselfe through Christ absolved at Gods tribunal hath all the evidences for it that possibly he can desire the Word and the Oath of God that by two immutable things in which it is impossible for God to ly he may have a strong consolation Heb. 6. 18. The Word evidenceth and his faith evidenceth the Covenant is now sealed mutually and reciprocally between God and him by beleeving he hath put to his seal that God is true and God sealeth to his conscience by certifying it by his Spirit that his wrath is pacified that all accusations are silenced there is no condemnation to him being now in Christ Jesus Rom. 8. 1. Himselfe may now rest satisfied banishing henceforth all fears and doubts and glorying in the Lord that the fear of death is past it is enough my soul is now alive Christ is made sinne for me that I might become the Righteousnesse of God in him 2 Cor. 5. 21. Now Lord lettest thou thy servant depart in peace for my eyes have seen thy Salvation and in the interim while he is here enjoying a heaven upon earth a kingdome of Righteousnesse joy and peace in the Holy Ghost untill he was incorporated by faith into Christ Christ might indeed plead for him but he had no evidence no shew of title not an article under Gods hand or from his lips to plead at Gods barre for life or pardon 6. That neverthelesse when a man truly beleeveth then may he apprehend justification and remission of sinnes not onely as now first declared and evidenced to his own soul But also as past and compleat before the foundation of the world was laid Because from eternity Christ satisfied in that he undertook to satisfie for the sinnes of the Elect and God from eternity rested in this satisfaction undertaken by Christ and so laid aside all displeasure which without this Covenant between him and his onely Son he might have taken up as wel against them that should afterward beleeve as against them which dye in unbeleef For their justification in time doth à posteriore argue their justification before all times and where faith findes the least rivulet of the great stream sent forth it can it ought by it to ascend up to the very fountain to be filled and satisfied with the deliciousnesse thereof Thus shall we finde the Apostle almost in all his Epistles from the sense of their present enjoyments in Christ to carry upward the Saints to whom he writeth unto the very bosom of Gods eternal grace counsell and good pleasure where all was laid up and treasured for them from all eternity that thence it might in due time be shed forth upon them Faith runs not away rashly and hastily with the gift but delights to enter and pierce through the vail to contemplate and embrace the as well eternal as infinite love of the giver 7. That although no man receiveth the sensible comfort of his justification before he actually beleeveth yet every elect vessell hath besides and without his knowledge the true benefit thereof as to freedome from vengeance throughout the whole time of his infidelity was in Christ beloved accepted and owned of God as righteous in that his sinne was not imputed as fully before as after he beleeved the price of his redemption was paid all his sinnes borne and punished upon the shoulders yea the soul and body of Christ so that himselfe was no lesse exempted from the revenging wrath of God from all obligation to make any part of satisfaction in his own person for his sinnes as hee that was already in Christ by faith So that whatsoever afflictions befell him in the time of his unbelief were not the infliction of the curse as the curse for sinne but sanctified chastisements of a loving father flowing from his grace and favour not from his indignation and hatred against his person though against his sins tending all to his good not to his ruine Else if he should have born the least stroke of Gods revenging justice and in the least pittance have made but one least peece of satisfaction by his sufferings for his offences then either Christ hath made satisfaction for him but in part and is not his whole Saviour and redeemer for that himselfe hath satisfied divine justice in part or otherwise the father hath taken satisfaction twice for the same sins once from the Lord Christ and after that from the offender also But this were to slander either the perfection of Christs mediation or the incorruptnesse of Gods justice both which are unsufferable 8. That the justification which is by faith consisteth not onely in a bare apprehension of our justification and pardon from God for this is onely mans act and no express act of God but first in Gods actual declaration evidencing and certisfying the conscience of man drawn to the barre of judgement set up as it were in the conscience that God hath taken satisfaction to his offended justice from the Lord Christ for all the offenders sinnes and hath for ever quit-claimed and discharged him from all sin and wrath and admitted him into favour and family to be under the dispensations of his grace for ever And then indeed God having by this
elswhere pronounceth of men that when they lay in their blood in their nakedness then hee made it the time of love sayd to them live spread his skirt over them and covered them entred into Covenant with them and made them his Ezek. 16. 6 8. God of his great love wherewith hee hath loved us even when we were dead in sins and trespasses hath quickned us c. Ephes 2. 4 5. God commendeth his love to us that when we were yet sinners when enemies we were justified by Christs blood and reconciled to God by his death Rom. 5 8 9 10. Here it is evident to all men that the love of God justifying and reconciling us to himself goeth before our Faith and Workes was then in its power and operation when wee were yet sinners in all our pollution enemies dead in sinne therefore without any spirituall motion or operation to our own cleansing or happiness I demand now when this love of God so justifying us beganne Not when we beleeved and first obeyed the Gospel for it went before it was then acted toward us when wee were enemies dead c. Or when wee beganne to be sinners Then it seems our sinne begat this love in God and then let the Atheists Aphorism stand as an impregnable Principle let our sinne abound that the grace and love of God may abound Or was there ever an hatred of us as a contrary affection in God before which is now expelled that love might succeed in its place And hath God now changed his hating of us to condemne us into a love to justifie and save us This were to accuse God of mutableness and change For God is Love 1 Iohn 4. 8. and the Love of God is God himselfe loving and to affirme where wee finde the Love of God at present that there was a time when this Love was not in God and a time when God beganne to love is no other but to affirme that there was a time when God yet was not and a time when he beganne to bee God the will of God being God himselfe And the volitions or willings of God being God himself willing And the acts of Gods Love and Hatred being acts of Gods Will yea of God himselfe and no more subject to change because immanent in God then God himselfe So that these Scriptures which affirme Gods love to us when sinners doe affirm also consequentially his love to us before we were either in being or just or sinners even from eternity Thirdly when the Lord saith to his people I have loved thee with an everlasting love Jerem. 13. 3. Doth hee not mean a love which is from everlasting to everlasting Or is there a Love of God to everlasting which was not from everlasting Or was it not the Love of accepting and approbation of them unto Righteousnesse and Salvation whereof hee there speaketh And when the Apostle Iohn tels us that the glory of Gods love doth herein shine forth Not that we loved him but that he loved us 1 John 4. 10. making not our love or any fruits thereof the foundation of Gods love to us but the love of God to us to goe before and prevent our love is not this a doctrin universally true of all the Saints that are or have been that Gods love to them prevented and was antecedaneous to their love toward him if so then consequently before mans being as well as before his loving and if before mans being then from eternity was this grace given us that we were loved of God in Christ to justification and salvation It is that which the Lord Christ speaketh and that not obscurely in his prayer before his passion where having interceded and craved sundry blessings for his Elect he adds this reason why he craved those blessings in their behalfe viz. That the world may know that thou hast sent me and that thou hast loved them as thou hast loved me Jo. 17. 23. How is that in the next verse he explaineth himself thus Thou hast loved me before the foundation of the world what doth follow hence but that as Christ so they that are Christs were loved of God unto life before the foundation of the world why will not Master Baxter acknowledge what Christ hath prayed that all the world may know Object 1. Or will it be objected that God loving the Elect in Christ before the foundation of the world is to be understood onely in this sense that before the foundation of the world God decreed in himselfe to love them in Christ afterward in time Then must we so conclude of Christ also that God loved Christ before that is decreed before the foundation of the world to love Christ in after time not that he loved him from eternity for as hee loved Christ so he loved them in Christ But he actually loved Christ as the head of the Church before the foundation of the World therefore also he loved the Elect in Christ as the body and members of Christ before the foundation of the world Yea to decree from eternity to love them afterward in time and untill the time came to hate them or not to love them in Christ was to decree mutablenesse and change in his own will i. e. in himselfe which is wholly repugnant to his nature that cannot change by receiving augmentation unto or diminution of the acts of his Will which were in him from eternity Object 2. But perhaps Master Baxter may object with his friends of the Netherlands the Arminians whose ghosts have much infested us within this Nation these many years that this love of God from Eternity that which he shed abroad upon the Elect when they were yet sinners enemies and dead in sin is to be understood onely of Gods universal common love his love to all the creatures which he hath made or at the uttermost his 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 his love unto mankind which he extends to all alike Making the raine to descend and his Sun to shine upon the just and unjust and fills the hearts of all with food and gladness Sol. But how then was Jaakob loved and Esau hated when Esau partaked more of this common love than Jaakob or was it a Common love by which God doth justifie and reconcile sinners to himselfe then all shall be reconciled justified and saved Or when the Apostle termes it 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 the much or great love of God out of which when he quickned us yet dead in sinnes and trespasses Eph. 2. 4. was this the common love extended to all the Sonns and Daughters of Adam without difference Then also for God loved us as he loved Christ the love of God to Christ was a common love in nothing supereminent to the love wherewith he loved Cain and Judas Lastly when God saith I have not beheld iniquity in Jaakob nor seen perversnesse in Israel Num. 23. 21. it will I doubt not be granted that the meaning was that God did
with the constant use of the Scripture And so the Text is thus to be read Repent c. that your sins may be blotted out and that the times of refreshing may come c. upon you In this sense is 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 taken Mat. 6. 5. Lu. 2. 35. Act. 15. 17. Rom. 34. In which soever of all these senses the words be taken this Scripture favours not at all Mr. Bax. neither hath his second justification or pardon in the day of judgement any patronage from it Yea the vanity of this distinction of pardon justification into that which is in Title of Law an◠that which is in sentence of judgement this declarative that constitutive is evident to as many as understand evidences For the whole tenor of scriptures which speakes of the last judgement tendeth to manifest it to be a pronouncing of eternall glory to the Saints because they were justified and before pardoned perfectly righteous in that sin was not imputed to them in this life not a pronouncing of pardon to them that they may be thereby received into glory Let there be any Scripture produced to evince the contrary Or why will Master Baxter have the sentence of the judge and Saviour in the last day called a declarative justification and pardon To whom shall this his sentence declare it to God He knoweth who are his and whom he hath justified and pardoned in himself and thorow Christ before the World was made therefore needs no such declaration To themselves They had in this life the word of the Gospel declaring the truth of Faith evidencing and the spirit of grace witnessing it to them and whether at the very instant they shall be affirmed to have come in spirit from the flames of Purgatory or from under the Altar in Heaven to reassume their bodies for Master Baxter keeps himself reserved in this treatise what he thinkes thereof yet their separation from the reprobates hath enough declared them to be justified so that they need no◠any further declaration to be made therein to themselves Or lastly to the World This might be somewhat usefull to the World and to themselves while they were in the World but is now utterly uselesse when they shall no more return to the World Neither is there need of a voice to declare it to the World where their instantaneous rapture up to Christ in the air to sit with Christ in judging the World shall fully enough demonstrate it And no more doth this Scripture uphold this Justification as in other termes he proposed it calling it Actuall as distinct from that which he terms virtuall All these are but windy notions to fill up the dictionary of his distinctions which have no footing in the word And when all these are fardled together they will quickly be consumed with the fire of Gods jealousie and little steed Master Baxter to dispute out his justification by works in the day of judgement No less vaporous is that which he hath Thes 40. and in its Explication where he distinguisheth most learnedly between a barre and the bar between a Wooden and an Iron Bar between a Bar and a Bar of judgement a primary and secondary bar a direct and a Consequential Bar and all with such sagacity and profoundnesse as passeth all the wisedom of the Holy Ghost in the scriptures to make out unto us pa. 190 191 192 193. B. Thes 40. When Scripture speaketh of Justification by Faith it is to be understood primarily and directly of justification in Law title and at the bar of Gods publick judgement and but secondarily and consequentially of Justification at the bar of Gods secret judgement or at the bar of Conscience or at the bar of the World And in the explication he disputeth about B. The Forum Dei and the Forum Conscientiae the Bar of God and the Bar of Conscience the Bar of God and the Bar of the World the Bar of Gods secret judgement and the Bar of his publick judgement the Bar in heaven before the Angels contradistinct I suppose to the Bar in hell before the Devills At last he gallantly gathers together all these dispersed bars justifying and unjustifying pardoning and condemning us in some sense at all the barrs and in severall senses at severall barrs according as his wit and Sophistry doth give him utterance And to what purpose is all this but to tickle witty wanton and sophistically phantasticall brains flattering them off from the simplicity plainnesse and soundnesse of the Gopsell into a disputative fangled and wordy formality of religion having the spirit and power of Conscience and the word that should regulate it enervate and evapored in to meer froth and bubbles by this questionary distinctionary and colorative shew of learning In the mean while all these barrs are by the subtlety of this Artificer made use of to bar out the poor and simple for whom Christ hath dyed from the due comfort of their justification obscuring to them the Doctrine of grace sending them from Bar to Bar for pardon and peace and leaving them unsetled and hovering to their very dying day yea till they come to the bar of Christ at the judgement day where if they be followers of this mans Doctrine they shall appear no lesse uncertainly and tremblingly before the great judge than the reprobate men and Devills For untill then all the former barrs according to Master Baxter minister no absolute pardon or acquittance to any soul so free from the Curse but that we are left under the curse acquit conditionally that is leave us fast bound to hell as it found us loose the finger to day that it may bind us up hand and foot to morrow Such and so pretiou◠Gospel doth this learned Scribe draw out of his Treasury among his Keder minsterians as by that we have already seen hath been in part manifested and by that which followes in this Treatise will more fully appear When contrary to all this Sophisticall winding circling and labyrinthicall Mazes the Scripture speaking of Justification and condemnation after the tenor of the Covenants makes onely two Barrs of judgment the Bar of justice according to the Law and the Bar of grace or Mercy-seat according to the Tenor of the Gospel or New Covenant affirming all that are judged at the one condemned and all at the other justified That as soon as we are convicted of death and vengeance onely due to us at the former we are carried out in the Spirit of Christ thorow the consecrated way of his purifying blood to seek remission of sinnes at the latter the Throne of grace the all gracious Father from the bar of grace pronounceth to our consciences peace and pardon and joy which shall never be taken from us This is the sole and all-sufficient Justification which the Scripture speakes of speaking properly of justification The subject hath heaped up Treasons against his Prince For this cause the Law apprehends and arraigns him The
adoption Or lastly is his meaning that our union with Christ is the foundation not only of remission justification and reconciliation which do restore the offender into the same state of freedome and favor which we had lost and faln from but also of Adoption and of a far higher advancement then that from which he fell herein I shall not dissent from him But why then doth he so transpose his words as to make the stream of Gods operations to run backward if not to make mans qualifications the ground of his union with Christ his faith and good works by which he is justifyed to be if not the cause yet the antecedent of this union and not this union to be the cause or antecedent of his both justification and holinesse So much I thought fit to interpose here that this Thesis of Mr. Baxter might not serve as a bridge to carry over the reader captive unto some fallacious untruths in the after-part of this his Tractate contained Hence now let us passe to the 55 Thesis which hath not a totall disagreement with the former that have been examined in this Chapter but a dependence upon them B. Thesis 55. p. 211. Before it be committed it is no sin and where there is no sin the penalty is not due and where it is not due it cannot properly be forgiven therefore sin is not forgiven before it be committed though the grounds of certain remission be laid before The strength and evidence of this reasoning will the better appear if we lay by it another to the same tune and upon the same terms It cannot be denyed to be as good an argumentation as this if I should thus argue Before it be committed it is no sin and where there is no sin there is no penalty due and where it is not due it cannot properly be required therefore the sins that have been committed since the death of Christ had not their penalty born by Christ before they were committed and consequently Gods justice remains unsatisfyed for the sins of all that have been committed since the death of Christ and every offender is to bear the condemnation of them in his own bosome though the grounds of certain remission were laid before in God except another Christ be sent from heaven to bear or the same Christ again to bear the penalty of the sins after they are committed Whether this argumentation doth not carry in it as great if not greater likelihood of reason then Mr. Baxters I leave to every rationall man to judge And thus when a proud lust possesseth us to reason from our own brain and not from Gods word we easily reason our selves into hell Neither do I see how Mr. Baxter according to this reasoning can ever look to be justifyed or saved except by one of these two wayes either by asserting his own righteousnesse which hitherto with his fellowes he hath made but a collaterall with the righteousnesse of Christ to justifie and save to be at a pinch all-sufficient and effectuall to perfect the work without Christ as it is with partners in a Trade and buying and selling of wares what one doth both do and what bargain one makes both must stand to it Or else by canonizing the Popish masse to offer therein Christ often unto God as a sacrifice for the expiation and forgivenesse of his sins when he hath committed them sith Christs offering himself was in no wise the bearing of the penalty or satisfying of Gods justice for his or our sins because not then committed But let us see whether in any sense the reasoning of Mr. Baxter here may be made good or taken up as tolerable Not to mention here Gods forgiving of sins as an act immanent in God from eternity For this would but make Mr. Baxter startle he is no more patient to hear this voice then was Caligula at the voice of Thunder his bloud riseth at it as do theirs at the sight of a Cat whose natures have an antipathy to that poor creature that never meant them hurt Let us consider forgivenesse and pardon in tearms and wayes as himself granteth a possibility of giving and receiving it And First in foro conscientiae at the bar of God in the conscience of man to which he most limiteth and contracteth remission and justification May not the offender apprehend and apply to himself the pardon of his future as well as of his past and present sins through the Lord Christ in some sense 1. In respect of the seed of all the sins which he shall through infirmity commit in the time to come of his life I mean his corrupt nature or originall defilement and sin from which as from their naturall source all their acts of sin spring every true beleever is and may apprehend himself pardoned this the very Papists acknowledge denying originall sin and defectivenesse to have any mortality of sin in it because the guilt thereof is purged from the soul by the bloud of Christ at his very first admission and entrance into Christ as they say In this respect I doubt not but Mr. Baxter will confesse that all their after acts of sin are remitted in their seed and womb to beleevers before they be committed 2. In respect of Gods not imputing them to the person that shall offend so the sins not yet committed are forgiven to every elect person God hath laid on Christs score all the sins of the elect committed or to be committed and satisfyed his justice for them upon Christ who in their names hath paid the penalty of all therefore their consciences are discharged neither sins past nor sins to come shall be any more imputed to them There is no condemnation to them that are in Christ Jesus Rom. 8. 1. There is dayly new sinning why not also subjection to condemnation because the person being in Christ though subject to a necessity of sinning yet through the justification of his person is exempted from the further imputation of sin so committed unto condemnation He that beleeveth hath everlasting life and shall not come into condemnation Joh. 5. 24. He comes dayly into the acting of new sins how is it that he comes not into a subjection and obligation to condemnation by those sins but because they were forgiven to the offender before therefore not imputed to him when committed It is one chief priviledge of the new Covenant Their sins and iniquities will I remember no more Now where remission of these is there is no more offering for sin Jer. 31. 38. c. Heb. 10. 17 18. speaks the holy Ghost here only of sin past and not of those to come that they which are within the new Covenant have remission of them then 1. The same person hath some sins forgiven and some not forgiven by Christ that which is past is remitted that which is to come is retained 2. Then the priviledge is no priviledge if only sins past are not remembred but sins to come are
kept in Gods memory to impute them every moment as fast as they are committed For one of these last milstones tyed to the neck of the poor offender sinks him into hell as surely as if all that are removed had their weight returned upon him with that one to sink him 3. If God hath remitted and justifyed a beleever from the sins which he hath committed and not from the sins which he foreknoweth they will commit but imputeth or will impute them then is the same person both justifyed and unjustifyed at the same time and God at the same time both loveth the same person to eternall life and hateth him to eternall condemnation which were no lesse absurdity then to attribute two contrary wils acting in God at once and so the same person be declared in his own conscience at the same time both in the state of life and in the state of death of life in respect of the sins past forgiven through Christ of death in regard of the sins to come not yet forgiven Secondly In Christ or as Mr. Baxter terms it Thesis 43. in Christs own justification either all sins are forgiven to the elect or none at all When having done their Law and paid their debt Christ appeared in the most holy place in the heaven at Gods mercy seat to mediate with his bloud for them he either received acquitance from and forgivenesse of all the sins which his elect in after times should commit and so in Christ their sins to come were forgiven or else no sin was forgiven for as yet they were not in being therefore neither were their sins yet committed But he received then in their names a full acquitance and forgivenesse of their sins as hath been before shewed therefore of their sins before they were committed and they were forgiven before they had offended Hence some of our Divines thus reason if since Christs satisfaction any sins be imputed any more to the elect they must be such as Christ hath or hath not expiated with his bloud and made satisfaction for to Gods justice if such as Christ hath expiated then notwithstanding that God imputes the sin yet the person to whom he imputes it is in grace and favour with God and the full penalty of his sin while imputed is paid to God but this were injustice not incident to God to impute a debt which is fully paid him If such as Christ hath not satisfyed for then the faith of an elect person obtains at Gods hands forgivenesse or the not imputing of such sins for which Christ hath not satisfyed Gods justice and so there shall be here remission without the shedding of bloud and justification out of Christ or faith and Gospell obedience shall be the price and ransome of their soules All which is most absurd Therefore the sins of the elect yet uncommitted are in Christ as fully forgiven as those that are already committed Thirdly If Mr. Baxters meaning be when he saith the sin is not forgiven before it be committed that the beleever hath not a singular apprehension of the forgivenesse of every singular sin before it be committed and that God hath not declared to his conscience the forgivenesse of every singular offence i. e. this evill which at this and that evill which in that hour of his life he shall drop into I acknowledge in this sense neither are any of our sins future forgiven nor many of our sins past For who in this case knoweth not only how oft he shall erre but also how oft and wherein he hath erred in this respect the generall pardon sealed in Christ bloud to us though it mention not every singular errour of our lives contained under the generall is alsufficient for us But perhaps Mr. Baxters meaning is that Christ hath not purchased to the elect a plenary and absolute forgivenesse but hath conditionally dyed for all if they shall beleeve and obey and upon this condition runs the hope of pardon as to the sins which they shall commit unto their lives end their renewed sins being dayly pardoned upon the continuance and dayly renewing of their obedience and so this Thesis runs in the same channell with the 43 44 45. Positions and for this cause I have annexed it to them Neither do I speak any thing to this Position in this sense here because it is prevented by what hath been already said in the examination of what he hath said there And too much hath been said both to those and this Position in which nothing but Magisteriall assertions without proofs are to be found CHAP. XXIV Arg. Mr. Baxters new Modell of the causes of Justification examined and first his dispute about the efficients and the materiall and formall causes thereof MR. Baxter in his 56. Thesis disputeth very Logically though but little Theologically of the causes of justification and because he thinks them all Athenians whom he hath a lust to corrupt viz. such as spend their time in nothing else but in telling or hearing some new thing Act. 17. 21. therefore looking aside from that which all the soundest i. e. with him the Antinomian Divines have said upon this Argument and disdaining it with a squint eye as too rustick and not enough pretty and dialecticall himself presents me with a new case and order of causes from the forge of his fancie viz. some sole and some sociall some single and some double some proper and some improper causes some causes that are causes and some causes that are no causes without further particularizing take him thus in his own words B. Thesis 56. By what hath been said it is apparent that justification in title may be ascribed to severall causes 1. The principall efficient cause is God 2. The instrumentall is the promise or grant of the new Covenant 3. The Prâ—catartick cause so far as God may be said to be moved by any thing out of himself speaking after the manner of men is fourfold 1 And chiefly the satisfaction of Christ 2 The intercession of Christ and supplication of the sinner 3 The necessity of the sinner 4 The opportunity and advantage for the glorifying of his justice and mercie The first of these is the meritorious cause the second the morall perswading cause the third is the objective and the fourth is the occasion 2. Materiall cause properly it hath none if you will improperly call Christs satisfaction the remote matter I contend not 3. The formall cause is acquiting of the sinner from the accusation and condemnation of the Law or the disabling the Law to accuse or condemn him 4. The finall cause is the glory of God and of the Mediator and the deliverance of the sinner 5. The Causa sine qua non is both Christs satisfaction and the faith of the justifyed It must be granted that he is not a man of delicacies hath a dull eye and dry brain whosoever is not enamoured with so fair a shew of causes like a cup-bord
as his Masters have done before him My labour therefore here will be the lesse because the labour of so many before me hath been so full to manifest how alien and improper these Scriptures are to desend what these men would have defended by them For why should I say again what so many worthies have said untill Mr. Baxter shall make it his taske to prove some infirmity and insufficiency in that which they have spoken All that Mr. Baxter here saith he doth almost wholely transcribe out of Bellarmine giving us a compendium of what Bellarmine hath at large and so Mr. Baxter here is but Bellarmine abridged Let us lay them together and 1 They jumpe in one common conclusion That the bare act of beleeving saith Mr. Baxter faith alone saith Bellarmine Thes 60. is not the only condition of Justification but many other duties c. One of these duties according to Bellarmine first and after Explicat p. 234. him according to Mr. Baxter here is Repentance In this alone they differ that Mr. Baxter puts Repentance as the first and Bellarmine puts it as the fourth in order after Faith and concurring with it in the pardon of sin and salvation The Scriptures which Mr. Baxter alleageth for repentance are some from Bellarmine some from Bellarmines fellowes To this place I referred those Scriptures which Mr. Baxter quoted Thes 14. pa. 90. beginning with Mark 1. 15. to prove repentance a collaterall with faith All which are here quoted over again saving these three Act. 20. 21. Revel 2. 5. ver 16. all which three Scriptures speak no lesse home to his purpose then if he should thus argue Kederminster is in Worcestershire ergo it supports Pauls Church at London Act. 20. 21. The Apostle having affirmed himself to have dealt faithfully in preaching all that was profitable to them to evince it gathers into two heads the sum of all his doctrine which he had testifyed among them viz. Repentance toward God and faith towards our Lord Jesus Christ what is there in this to prove repentance a concomitant with faith to justifie is every profitable doctrine effectuall to justifie A mans food and garments are both profitable to him shall I therefore concude either that his garments do nourish him or his meat clothe him Revel 2. 5 Christ admonisheth the Angell of the Church of Ephesus To repent and do his first works else will he come and remove his candlestick out of its place except he repent what is this to justification will he say that the removing of the candlestick out of its place was either the justifying of the unjustifyed or unjustifying of him that was before justifyed And Revel 2. 16. Christ cals upon the Angell of the Church at Pergamos Repent or else I will come to thee quickly and will fight against them viz. the Balaamites and Nicholaitans mentioned in the two former verses with the sword of my mouth Surely Mr. Baxter must flie from the latter and rationall meaning and follow the precepts of Origen in fishing after the Spirit or an Allegoricall sense of these words to make them speak any thing for his justification by repentance All the rest Scriptures quoted in the 14. Thesis we have again in a bunch here pa. 235. in the explication of his 60. Thesis to prove the same thing And here why doth he deal worse then Bellarmine in attributing justification which he makes to consist in pardon and salvation to repentance without manifesting as Bellarmine doth what he means by repentance This is but to strive about words and leave the matter in darknesse As for the other particular Scriptures here quoted if I should particularly examine them we should find not a few of them as the three former coming no neerer to the question in hand then Tybris doth to Thames As for all such of them as have the least shew or sound of speaking for him he hath them in part from Bellarmine whom he here followeth and in part from other Jesuits and Fryers that controversally handle the Popish justification against us I refer therefore the reader to informe himself from the many answers of the many Protestant Theologists which they have extant against Bellarmine and the rest of that generation from whom if truth and sobernesse be dear to him it is almost unpossible but that he must receive satisfaction Yet something shall I speak in generall of these quoted Scriptures As many of them as do hold forth the promise of life upon condition of repentance to sinners or to sinners if they repent all the rest quotations being altogether besides the purpose These all speak of a legall or of an Evangelicall repentance Of a legall repentance consisting meerly in a feeling of humiliation and contrition for hatred against departing from sinne and applying of the endeavours to all morall vertue and obedience This is a meerly morall repentance derivable from the strength of naturall conscience illuminated by the Law and common knowledge of Gods will and nature In this sense is the word taken in most of the Scriptures quoted from the old Testament and some also possibly of those that are quoted out of the new But then the life by these Scriptures promised is not the life of justification or of spirituall and supernaturall blessednesse but that which the administration under the Law is wont to call life viz. 1 The fruition of the land of Canaan which prefigured the life and rest both of grace and glory And 2 Of the blessings of health honour peace plenty safety and other temporall benefits promised to the obedient in the Land of Canaan This is clear to him that will see from the 18 of Ezek. where so often mention is made of life and death Turn and live if ye turn not ye shall die what is here meant by this life and death may be understood from that proverb cursedly used by the Jews whereof mention is made in the beginning of the Chapter The fathers have eaten sowre grapes and the childrens teeth are set on edge the fathers have sinned and death is inflicted upon the children for their fathers fault This gave occasion for the delivery of all the doctrine comprehended within this Chapter in which God throughly vindicateth his justice from inflicting death upon the children righteous children for their wicked parents offences shewing how justly they dyed which dyed and lived which lived in reference to their own not their fathers sinne and righteousnesse what then was this death here denounced or the setting of the teeth on edge but the plague famine sword which had been upon them in the Land and their captivity and exile now upon them in Babylon out of the Land of their inheritance these temporall evills are the death here affirmed to be inflicted and denounced to be continued upon them The life promised upon condition of their repentance and turning from their evill wayes was their restauration to the land and blessings of the
altering his judgment is because that opinion would not subserve to his justification by works which he hath so pertinaciously determined to set up that whatsoever of sacred or humane Authority he meets with opposit to it he shoulders it out of the way and whatsoever occurres out of any sink and puddle making for it he takes up as a treasure But the Meritoriousnesse of Christs Legislative and Kingly office to satisfie for our sins being laid as a groundwork he thought it seems would tend much to the exalting of the works done by the Commandement of King Jesus to justification therefore he took it up from Grotius and made use of it as a paved way to Justification by works which here almost from the same grounds he urgeth And so we see that from the very beginning to the end of this Tractate all that he hath conspireth and aspireth to this end justification by works and to elude all that the Gospell hath against it But let us come to examine his Assumption to this Argument and what he brings for it B. Thes 66. Christ is not in any one part or work of his office alone the object of justifying faith as such but Christ in his entire office considered is this object viz. as he is Redeemer Lord and Saviour In a good sense we might grant him both all this and all the substance of all the Arguments which he brings to prove it For none of the Protestant Churches have denyed but maintain 1 That all the offices of Christ are needfull and cooperating to and in the worke of Mediatourship that Christ not only as our high Priest but also as our King and Prophet made satisfaction for us and makes his satisfaction effectuall to us 2 That the object of justifying faith is Christ in all his offices King Priest and Prophet 3. That these offices of Christ are not to be severed by us because counited and coworking in him He layes not down nor puts from him any one of his offices when he either justifyeth sanctifieth or illuminateth c. but doth all and every of them as Lord Saviour and Teacher Yet when all this is granted to him his cause is never the stronger nor ours at all the weaker Nay he declares himself guilty of the fault wherewith he chargeth the innocent viz. of separating Christs offices holding him forth to us as redeeming us only as our high Priest governing and giving Lawes to his Church only by his Kingly office enlightening us in the truth only as our Prophet when contrariwise we teach that Jesus Christ i. e. the Anointed of God in all his offices and anointings is made unto us of God wisdome righteousnesse sanctification and redemption not wisdome in one only of his offices righteousnesse in another c. but all in all as the Scripture witnesseth 1 Cor. 1. 30. Neverthelesse we deny not but some acts and benefits of Christ are to be attributed more properly and peculiarly to one then another office of Christ yet so that the cooperation of the other offices therein is nor wholly to be denyed But this we deny that there is any other fountain opened for the washing away of our sins but the bloud of Christ only or any other satisfaction made to the justice of God but by the sacrifice of Christ alone yet so as this bloud and sacrifice as they are primarily our high Priests so are they our Kings and Prophets also howbeit the bloud and sacrifice of one Christ alone And herein we follow the Scriptures leading threed which affirm not only the Priest to have dyed for us but our Prophet or Shepheard also I am the good Shepheard and give and lay down my life for the sheep Joh. 10 11 15. He came not to be ministred unto but to minister and to give his life a ransome for many Mat. 20. 28. viz. to seal the doctrine with his bloud which he had taught with his lips and to make the way through the veil of his flesh thorough his bloud which he had taught to be the only way into the Holiest to the Father And as the Shepheard so the Lord and King also It was the LORD that was betrayeâ— 1 Cor. 11. 23. crucifyed 1 Cor. 2. 8 killed Act. 3. 15. and raisâ—â— again 1 Cor. 6. 14. Even the Lord of glory and Prince of life Therâ—fore it is that the holy Ghost cals it the Lords death 1 Cor. 11. 2â— The Lords body and the Lords bloud 1 Cor. 11. 27 29. And needfull was it that Christ as Lord and King with all his power should thus grapple with sin death and hell on our behalfe how else should he have vanquished them and having spoyled these Principalities and powers made a shew of them openly and triumphed over them Col. 2. 15. And without this victory his death had been to us vain our enemies had remained unconquered and our selves unransomed The strong man had not been driven out by a stronger then he Luk. 11. 21 22. Thus we neither divide nor separate the offices of Christ one from another but conjoyn them all in the death and passion of Christ by which alone we beleeve and teach that the Lord Priest and Prophet Christ Jesus hath made satisfaction for our sins But we utterly deny that which Mr. Baxter drives at that Christ as our Lord that is as a Lawgiver and to speak in Mr. Baxters words Thes 31. as he doth establish the morall Law commanding perfect obedience and forbidding every sin as exactly as under the Covenant of works is the object of justifying faith as justifying This was that great and principall article which Luther with so much vehemency defended against the Papists viz. that Christ is Luth. in Gal. Cap. 2. 20 alibi no Moses no Exactor no giver of Lawes in reference to justification but a giver of grace a Saviour c. pronouncing it an accursed â—and hellish doctrine which the Papists taught that he justifyeth as a Law-giver that they which so paint him out make him not a Christ but a Fiend or Devill The state of the question then is betwixt him and us not whether Christ as Lord as well as Saviour but whether by the sacrifice of himself for us or else by giving Laws and Commanding all duties of obedience to us also be the object of justifying faith as justifying i. e. whether our faith by obeying Christ in the works of righteousnesse as well as by cleaving to Christ crucifyed do justifie We maintain that the death of Christ or Christ dying for us is alone offered to our faith for justification he contrariwise that Christ as commanding the duties of obedience is the object of faith as justifying Our Assertion that Christ suffering for us is the alone object of justifying faith as such may be confirmed by many Arguments One Argument may be drawn from the offerings and sacrifices of the old Testament and the sacraments both of the old and new Testament
Such as these have exhibited or do still exhibit Christ to us for redemption or justification such is our faith still to receive him But these all have exhibited and do exhibit Christ not as a Law-giver but as an offering or sacrifice for our sins therefore under this notion our faith is to receive him to justification So all the sacrifices circumcision paschal Lamb c. under the old Testament directed the faith of men to Christs sacrifice to the bloud and wounds of Christ for purging c. Or if any will say as he may truly say that circumcision typified also the renovation of the heart by the Spirit of Christ himself may answer himself that this was to sanctification and not to justification 2 The whole stream of the Gospell leads our faith to Christ crucifyed or dying for justification As the serpent was lifted up in the wildernesse so shall the Son of man be lifted up viz. upon the crosse that whosoever beleeveth in him should not perish but have everlasting life John 3. 14 15. I determined to know i. e. to preach among you for your knowledg nothing else but Christ and him crucifyed 1 Cor. 2. 2. If I be lifted up I will draw all men to me signifying what death he should die Joh. 12. 32 33. He that eateth my flesh and drinketh my bloud c. Joh. 6. 47 58. Whom God hath set forth as a propitiation through faith in his bloud Rom. 4. 25. Being justified by his bloud Rom. 5. 9. The bloud of Christ cleanseth from all sin 1 Joh. 1. 7. The Lambe of God sacrificed that taketh away the sins of the World Joh. 1. 29. Having made peace through the bloud of his Crosse Col. 1. 20. And reconciled us in the body of his flesh through death Ver. 21 22. Having redemption through his bloud even the sorgivenesse of sin Col 1. 14. He hath purchased his Church with his bloud Act. 20. 28. Having boldnesse to enter into the Holiest by the bloud of Jesus by the new and living way which he hath consecrated through the veil of his flesh Heb. 10. 19 20. He was wounded for our sins and bruised for our iniquities and by his stripes we are healed Isa 53. 5. God forbid that I should glory in any thing but in the Crosse of our Lord Jesus Christ Gal. 6. 14. I might even weary the Reader with allegations of Scriptures every way as pertinently and properly making Christ dying for us the object of faith as justifying And I challenge Mr. Baxter and all his admirers to produce one Scripture proving Christ as a Law-giver to be the object of our faith to justification If they cannot do it let it be acknowledged as an audacious and daring presumption in Mr. Baxter from his own authority without and against the Word to lay it down here as a position and principle of Religion 3 If the death and sufferings alone of Christ and not his giving of Lawes and commanding duties of righteousnesse be the sole and entire satisfaction which he hath given to the justice of God for us then Christ in his death and not at all in his Laws and Commands of such duties is to be made the object of our faith for justification But the former is true therefore the latter also Both the consequent and consequence of the Proposition must needs be granted by all Protestants though not by Remonstrants and Socinians which hold the imputation of the obedience of Christ to us by which he hath satisfyed Gods justice that he for us and we in and by him have done our law that his satisfying obedience is by imputation so fully made ours to justification as if we had done it our selves which is the doctrine of all Protestant Churches But Mr. Baxter hateth this phrase of imputation of Christs obedience will not cannot admit it for then he destroyes and pronounceth all at the best to be erroneous whatsoever he hath spowted out for sacred doctrine he grants the imputation of nothing else but our own faith and works to justification so that after his principles the consequence is not so clear Let us see therefore whether also after and upon his own grounds it may stand firm and undenyable 1 Then Mr. Baxter Thes 18. affirmes our Legall righteousnesse as he cals it i. e. that righteousnesse by which the Law is satisfyed for our breaches of it to be in Christ and in calling this Legall righteousnesse ours and the satisfaction therein made ours he doth imply that the satisfaction of Christ is the thing that being made ours is that which justifyeth us This he speaks out yet more plainly pa. 218. telling us that Christs satisfaction must be made ours else we cannot be justifyed that so far as by imputation no more is understood then the bestowing of Christs satisfaction on us so that we shall have the justice and benefits thereof as truely as if we had satisfyed our selves in this sense he granteth the imputation of Christs satisfactory righteousnesse and thus according to his principles that act or those acts of Christ by which he made satisfaction for us or rather Christ in these acts is to be made the object of our faith as justifying According to this rule pa. 54. he makes the Active righteousnesse of Christ considered as such part of the satisfaction together with the Passive and to lay a ground for that which he here inferreth pa. 57 he affirms that among other parts of Christs righteousnesse or Active obedience his assuming of the humane nature his establishing and sealing the Covenant his working miracles his sending his Disciples to convert and save the world his overcoming death and rising again c. which were all works most proper to his kingly office to have been meritorious and satisfactory And all this to lay a foundation for what here and Thes 72. he buildeth viz. Christ as a Law-giver as well as a Redeemer is the object of justifying faith as such and that obedience to his Laws as well as faith in his sufferings hath to do in our justification We finde then Mr. Baxter making Christ in his Legislative righteousnesse upon this ground alone to be the object of justifying faith as therein he in part satisfyed for our disobedience Therefore hoc nomine and in this respect must the consequence of the proposition stand firm with him viz. If only the death and sufferings of Christ and not at all his Legislative righteousnesse be the sole and entire satisfaction c. then Christ in his death onely and not c. is to be made the object of faith as justifying For in that righteousnesse alone by which Christ satisfyed is faith to apprehend him to justification by his own rules The Assumption then remaines alone needfull to be proved viz. that Christs death and suffering alone is the entire satisfaction This is clear to them which will not wilfully retain beams in their eyes from these Scriptures which affirm the
life of Christ sacrificed for us to be the Ransom Mat. 20. 28. 1 Tim. 2. 6. The Price by which we are purchased and redeemed from thraldome 1 Cor. 6. 20. 7. 23. The propitiation for our sins through faith in his bloud Rom. 3. 25. 1 Joh. 4. 10. i. e. that one and only act of Christ by which our sinnes are expiated the justice of God satisfyed and his wrath appeased so that we finde him now a God propitious and gratious to us But if we will hear the Scriptures speaking at large and articulately confirming this position that the satisfaction made by Christ is begun continued and perfected meerly and wholly in and by Christs sufferings in steed of many Testimonies which the Scripture affordeth I shall pitch upon two disputes only of the Apostle in the Epistle to the Hebrews The former in cap 9. beginning at the 11 and 12 verses That Christ being become an high Priest c. by his own bloud entred once into the Holy place having obtained for us eternall Redemption I need not explain the words for the edification of any that hath but read the Scriptures and taken but overly into his consideration how that which was yearly under the Law figured in the act of the high Priest the type was at length effectually accomplished by Christ the Antitype Again ver 13 14. If the bloud of Buls c. sanctifyed to the purifying of the Flesh how much more shall the bloud of Christ which by the eternall Spirit offered himselfe to God without spot purge your conscience from dead works c. An undeniable vertue and efficacy in the bloud of Christ alone without any further acts of Christ himself to purge the conscience e. i. to absolve and justifie is here affirmed And further ver 15. He is the Mâ—diatour of the new Covenant that by means of death for the redemption of the transgressions under the first Testament they which are called may receive the promise of the eternall inheritance i. e. the eternall inheritance promised by means of Christs death and not by his Legislative righteousnesse And ver 26 Christ now once at the end of the world hath appeared to put away sin by the sacrifice of himself What sin All sin according to that of John The bloud of Christ purgeth from all sin 1 Joh. 1. 7. And if from all sin what sin is there left for Christs giving of Lawes to put away or what of justification left out for it to perfect or of full satisfaction not made for it to compleat Lastly ver 28. Christ was once offered to bear the sins of many How did he bear them but as the Apostle saith He hath redeemed us from the curse of the Law being made a curse for us Gal. 3. 13. and in bearing them on our behalfe he satisfyed justice on our behalf And this is affirmed to be by offering himself for us not by giving Laws to us or injoyning duties upon us His second dispute is chap. 10. where the Apostle having mentioned the feeblenesse of the sacrifices offered by the Law to take away sin brings in Christ offering himself to accomplish what these could not and declaring his ready obedience to fulfill that will of God written in the volume of Gods book to offer himself a sacrifice for sin with a Lo I come by this will of God saith he we are sanctifyed by the offering of the body of Jesus Christ once for all ver 5 10. He saith not we have our consecration to be holy by the commands of Christ c. but by the offering of his body And that by sanctification is to be here understood purification and justification I think it will not be denyed However ver 12. it is added that he having once offered sacrifice for sins for ever sat down at the right hand of God his sitting down and resting argues his work the work of our redemption and justification perfected in every degree and number His rest is as Gods rest was from the beginning then the work of Creation now of Redemption being made absolutely perfect the rest followed and where had this work its beginning progresse and perfection In his once offering of sacrifice for sins for ever Nothing here of Christs Law-giving and rule from the bottom to the top of the work of Redemption or Justification The sacrifice alone satisfyed so far all things of man are here excluded as that nothing else of Christ is required As it is more fully yet expressed ver 14. For by one offering he hath perfected for ever them that are sanctifyed His perfecting Mr. Baxter will not deny to be his making of perfect satisfaction for them and this is done by one offering of Christ Will Mr. Baxter be so audacious as to oppose the holy Ghost with his Nay telling that there must be somewhat else besides this offering viz. Christs Law-giving as part of the satisfaction made for us Lastly to put all out of doubt and besides the bounds of cavilling what the Apostle should mean here by sanctifying and perfecting this also is unfolded in plain words ver 17 18. viz. The taking away of their sinnes and iniquities And where the remission of these is there is no more offering c. satisfaction is made to the full and no need of any addition for the perfecting thereof I acknowledg there are many things required to condition Christ that he might be an effectuall offerer and offering else could not the redemption and justification which are by him have been completed or the satisfaction made for us been perfect Yea that after the work of satisfaction as formerly of Creation finished and a totall resting from any further addition to it yet the Father worketh and the Son worketh hitherto in the businesse of governing and preserving of what is so created and repayred yet this doth not at all hinder but that full satisfaction is made by the alone offering of Christ And here once more I call upon Mr. Baxter and all his adherents to bring forth any one testimony of Scripture to prove that either Christs Law-giving or any other act of Christ besides this one of offering himself a sacrifice for sin is by the Scripture in whole or in part affirmed satisfactory to God for our justification Let them not as Mr. Baxter before doth from pa. 54. to pa. 61. bring their peradventures and may bees and possibles and verisimilies for are the conjectures and results of a working and self-conceited brain to be laid as a foundation whereon to build an Article of our faith But let them bring the oracle of the Word testifying either that Christ hath done or God hath required of him or accepted from him such and such works in part of satisfaction Else our ears will be deaf to hear mans prattle being attentive in such matters only to the voice of the holy Ghost This shall suffice for the opening and confirming of ouâ— Tenet untill it shall
Even Mr. Pemble himselfe whose words hee can almost if not altogether rehearse without book gives it as the common interpretation of Protestant Writers so that he cannot be ignorant of it Yet he saith nothing to it and saith all to what none denieth Is this sincerity in handling the chiefe point of mans salvation Such as hee begged from God upon his knees or the use of that which he injoyns upon us tenderness in the interpretation of Scriptures But we must leave him in his own way because hee is resolute therein Sith hee will not answer us let us answer him in these things which in stead of an answer to us he would fish from the Text for himself Br. pag. 299. 1. When it is sayd we are justified by works the word by implieth more than an idle concomitancy if they only stood by while Faith doth all it could not be sayd wee are justified by works We grant it doth much yea almost all in the justification wherof James there speaks viz. before men And this is that which he speaketh ver 21. 22. 23. of Abrahams justification by works fulfilling that Scripture which sayth Abraham beleeved God and it was imputed to him for righteousness How did his justification by works fulfill the Scripture which affirmed him to be justified by faith but as this great work and fruit of his faith declared and manifested to men the truth of that Scripture and the truth of his faith by which he was so many yeers before justified B. p. 300. 2. When the Apostle saith by workes and not by faith onely hee plainly makes them concomitant in the procurement or in that kinde of causality which they have especially seeing he saith not as he is commonly interpreted Not by Faith which is alone but By Faith onely 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 All is granted as before of the justification before men The profession of Faith or to say we have Faith is not sufficient without declaring it by works so to justifie us Therefore saith the Apostle Shew me if thou canst thy Faith without thy works and I will shew thee my Faith by my works vers 18. B. 3. Therefore he saith that Faith is dead being alone because it is dead to the use and purpose of justifying for in it selfe it hath a life according to its quality still This appears from his comparison in the former verse 16 that this is the death he speaks of And so works make Faith alive as to the attainment of its end of Justification We grant that the hypocriticall profession of Faith which James reproveth is as all other sinne alive to condemne the unbelievers and unjustified but dead to the use of justifying us in our consciences before God or outwardly before men But that the addition of workes to such a dead Faith can make it alive to justifie a man before God we deny neither doth James affirm though there may be some force that way to his justification before men who are subject to failings in their judgement In the fourth place he findes something to say for and something against the Analysis of Piscator and Mr. Pemble When he would depresse it at the utmost he can onely say that they seeme to faile in the Explication of the 22. verse about the 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 Faiths working with Abrahams workes and perfecting by workes In this I leave the Reader to peruse Mr. Baxter and them whom hee opposeth from thence to judge which party layes the surer ground of their interpretation As to the question in hand the working of both together to justifie and declare his faith perfect or sincere to men doth nothing strengthen his assertion or weaken ours The rest that hee hath in this Section are meere words without proofs as also his Answer given to some Objections made on our part and the same so curt that the best examination of them is to leave them unexamined untill he bring somthing to prove them Yet what of all that hee saith heere hath or seemes to have force to some other end I may possibly in its proper place call it into Examination CHAP. VII Argument Mr. Baxters sixth Argument to prove justification by works drawne from the Identity of the Conditions of justification and salvation examined To which are added the Rules which Protestant Writers give for the Right understanding of such Scriptures as promise eternall life to men of such works and qualifications an enquiry into the force of those Scriptures out of which Mr Baxter seeks to evince that eternall life runs upon condition of works A Sixth Argument he draweth from the Identity of Justification and Salvation in relation to the Condition of their procurement and attainment He layes it thus p. 310 B. Thes 78. Our full Justification and our everlasting Salvation have the same conditions on our part But sincere obedience is without all Doubt a condition of our sâ—lvation Therefore also of our Justification We except here against the Terms or Phrases used in the proposition and that 1. against that which by way of distinction hee names our FULL Justification implying thereby that there is an empty or at least partiall maimed and not full Iustification before God as by what he hath oft said before by his own expressing himselfe and his meaning in the Explication of his Thesis he makes evident The Protestants utterly deny this 1. and 2. partiall and full unperfect and perfect Iustification acknowledging one onely Iustification of the New Covenant which as an act of God is simul semel perfect admits of no degrees or increases though as to a mans owne apprehension and comfort it hath its increases and decreases And whatever Mr. Baxter hath hitherto brought to proove on his part wee have found no lesse vaine than is that which hee seekes to prove The Scripâ—ure is altogether ignorant of such a two fold Iustification so that we leave it as Mr. Baxters not Gods Iustification 2. Against that which by the like way of distinction hee calls our everlasting salvation implying thereby a temporary salvation which is by Christ in respect whereof the saved may be unsaved againe and so the salvation which they have by Christ become transitory not everlasting Both these wee deny and detest as Popish Socinian and Arminian doctrines what audaciousnesse is it in Mr. Baxter to name them and not to prove them to beguile his credulous Reader not acquainted at all with Controversies with an opinion that these things are knowne and granted by Protestants who detest the hearing of them and with unresistable arguments of Scripture oppugne the Authours of them Wee shake off as prodigies in the Gospel Doctrine of Iustification and Salvation the Attributes which hee giveth in that sence in which hee gives them It is a bad Cause that seekes the support of Sophistry and fallaciousness to support it Truth loves to bee attended with simplicity and plainnesse Let Mr. Baxter say why he puts
he was nigh to Jerusalem and because they thought that the Kingdom of God should immediatly appeare by this Parable foretelling them that the Citizens the Children of the Kingdom the Iews for their rejection of Christ should bee cast out into utter darknesse where is weeping and gnashing of teeth i. e. into blindnesse of minde and stubbornnesse of heart accompanied with all calamity and misery as we see them undergoing untill this day This I acknowledge to be but my owne private opinion yet such as I could easily manifest from the Text it selfe if occasion were to be very probable if not certainely the minde of Christ Yet let it stand or fall sub calculo melioris Indicii But if we are to understand all of Christs last Comming to judgement it ministers nothing to advantage Mr. Baxters Cause but enough to ruinate it For first the faithfull Servants that shall bee so richly rewarded are such as wrought with a free spirit and the reward which they received was a free gift they challenged it not in St. Conditions name and Christ confers it freely as their munificent Lord. That hee mentions their service argues not either dignity or desert in their service but the riches of his grace that having justified their persons hee had in regard their service also The unprofitable servant cast into utter darknesse is Mr. Baxters legall man serving with a mercenary and slavish spirit expects nothing from Christ but in the way of justice lookes upon him as upon an Austere man a strait Law-giver and a rigorous exactor of the fulfilling of his Lawes I knew thee that thou art an hard man reaping where thou hast not sowne and gathering where thou hast not strawed and I was afraid saith he and so did nothing because of his feare of so strict a Lord at least nothing to purpose nothing to the advancing of the Kingdome of Christ in righteousnesse peace and joy in the Holy Ghost within himselfe or others The second Scripture Mat. 25. 34. 35. is most plain sayth Mr. Baxter in which the mouth of the Judge himselfe describeth the order of the processe of that day Come ye blessed inherit c. For I was hungry c. The Judges mouth describes but why doth Mr. Baxters mouth refuse to speak out the description which the Judge maketh of the processe of that day If hee began at ver 31. when Christ is set in his throne to call all Nations before him to judgement he declares the maner of the processe 1. by separating the sheep from the goats 2. by setting the sheep at his right hand What the sheep were himself declares Jo. 10. such as hear his voice his Gospel voice and are Gospellized and spirituallized by it What hee means by his right hand the Apostle declares 1. Thess 4 16 17. The dead in Christ shall rise first and shall bee caught up in the clouds to meet with the Lord in the ayre What to do not only to be with the Lord but also as the same Apostle sayth to sit with him in judgement and to judge the world 1. Co. 6. 2. This is the right hand of Christ to which the saints perhaps shall bee advanced even before the dead out of Christ shall be raysed To this at last is annexed what Mr. Br. alleadgeth Come yee blessed of my Father inherit the Kingdome prepared for you from the beginning of the world Who seeth not heer the grounds of their glorification to bee that they were Christs sheep the heirs of God and his elect vessels That they are to be convened before Christ not as prisoners to bee judged but to bee owned as his justified ones and to receive the glorious fruits of their justification and adoption a Kingdome by inheritance yea to sit as partners and Commissioners with Christ in judging the world what the Lord Iesus addeth for I was hungry c and yee thus and thus ministred unto me will Mr. Baxter because of the word for conclude these offices to be the cause of their justification then let him also conclude that the cause of Gods shewing mercy to Paul was his ignorance and unbeliefe This will as well follow from those words of Paul 1 Tim. 1. 13. I obtained mercy because I did it ignorantly in unbeliefe To his condition the proper place is to speak afterward So the 1 Pet. 1. 17. who without respect of Persons judgeth according to every mans work holds forth thus much to us that God cannot be deluded or corrupted as oft times earthly Iudges are either to pervert justice for favour or carnall ends or to take appearances for substance but jugeth all both persons and actions according to what they are not what they seem In like mnner 2 Cor. 5. 10. the Apostle appeales as may appeare by the 11. and 12. verses compared with this from the standers and censures of the false Apostles to the judgment Seat of God They had it seems questioned among the Corinthians the sincerity of both the Apostle and his Ministry Hee refers all to Christ the Iudge Before him wee must all appeare saith he and hee will reveale who are the sincere and which the hypocriticall Professors and Preachers of Christ they or I to take vengeance of the one and to owne the other He maimeth that testimony of Rev. 20. 12 13. that the force therof may not be understood by his Reader Let him supply what he hath cut off the Book of life by which they which are in Christ are to be judged which is there mentioned aswel as the other books by which the world is to be judged and then the judgments which the Saints are to pass through wil appear to be a judgment of Grace not of strict justice to consist in their admission to the Kingdom after the tenour of Grace not of Workes The other three Scriptures he seeth to have so little even of shew in them for his use that he deigns not the labour to alleage the words and let him not expect that I should stil do it for him Thus far we grant that the sentence of Iudgement though not the justifying sentence shall passe in the last day according to works 1. The whole world that hath not heard of Christ much less beleeved on him shall be judged according to their works to life or death according as their works have been perfect or unperfect yea to a measure of vengeance answering to the measure of their sinnes some to many some to fewer stripes 2. The whole bulk of professed Christians also shall in this respect be judged according to their works viz. that as their professions of and actings in Christ were eyther in truth or in hypocrisie meerly formall or else Vitall and reall so shall they be either exempted from or adjudged unto vengeance And so the secrets of all hearts shall bee then disclosed the Sheep and Goats Saints and Hypocrites shall then bee fully seperated one from the other which untill
that time shall never be wholly done nor bee known to all whose works were vitall and whose dead works 3. That the very Saints as compared one with another shall be judged according to their works i. e. shall be adjudged to glory in severall measures above according to the severall measures of their services and sufferings heere is the opinion of many eminent for learning and godliness neither doe their Reasons yet wholly sway me who dissent from them and will have neither right hand nor left hand nor sun nor stars nor great nor small but all equall in one degree of glory It is no proper place heer to dispute it but I see no reason to conclude that hee which distributeth his gifts of grace heer in different measures may not so also there distribute the degrees of glory Seeing both are by the purchase of his death and whether by the former he puts us in a greater or lesser capableness of the later is in question But in any other sense how as he sayth the sentence of justification shall passe according to works and that as hee infers from 2. Co. 5. 10. according to works whether good or evill I cannot conjecture 1. Not according to works as they are a condition which is the next thing hee undertakes to prove for evill works cannot be the condition of our justification either negatively that if we have done evill we neyther are nor shal be justified then all must bee damned nor positively that whosoever hath done evill shall be justified then all shall be saved Nor 2. shall it passe so as that according to our good works we shall be justified and according to our evill works we shall be condemned then every man at least every true Christian should be both saved and damned 3 Nor that we shal be much justified if we have all good works little justified if we have done some evil works also for that is the last judgment where every man shall have a full discharge or no discharge I must leave this as one of Mr. Baxters Mysteries it must die with him as to my understanding unless hee vouchsafe his interpretation As for the thing it selfe I utterly deny that they which are in Christ shall be so judged or justified according to their works as other men that they shall stand as prisoners with the world at the bar of Christ to bee judged for life and death as the other according to their works What that the Lord Christ should then discover the nakedness and lay open in the sight of men and divels all the sin and shame of his beloved members That he should cast in their faces all the filth of all their originall and actuall pollution even when they are upon the threshold of heaven Let it be Mr. Baxters doctrine my eares are abhorrent from the sound thereof It is against the stream of Gospel doctrine which tells us that Christ hath born their sin and curs and done their law therfore they are not to be called to such a reckoning That their iniquities are forgiven and sins covered Ro. 4. 7. That the Lord will no more remember them Heb. 10. 17. That they are not under the Law but under Grace Ro. 6. 14. Therfore exempted from the accusations of the Law at the Bar of Justice where the world is to be tried and to receive no other judgement but what flowes from the throne of grace That there is no condemnation to them that the law of the spirit of life which is in Christ Jesus hath freed them from the law of â—in and death Ro. 8. 1. 2. So that the Law hath no mâ—re power of judgmeÌ„t over theÌ„ than the lawes of our Land to try an Angel of Heaven for life and death That none can lay any thing to the charge of Gods elect because God justifieth them and who is hee that is the judge and condemner even Christ which is their Saviour Ro. 8. 33. 34. That they are the sheep that shal be first separated and set at the right hand of Christ before he enters upon the judging of the world and so freed from judgement by the mercy of God in separating them as Augustine well observeth Aug. de Consens Evang. lib. 2. cap. 30. That they shall not come into condemnation but are passed from death to life Jo. 5. 24. That what to the world is the day of judgement to these is the day of Redemption Lu. 21. 28. They shall not come into judgement to answer for any one of their sins as is well observed by Reverend Mr. Fox the author of that which we call the De Christo gratis Justif p. 336. Book of Martyrs for saith he Sublatâ offensâ tollitur simul Judicii obligatio i. e. The sin being taken away viz. by the Lamb of God as appears Io. 1. 29. all obligation of judgement is taken away with it As for the works and righteousness which these Scriptures declare shal be mentioned to beleevers in that their Jubilizing day this speaks out the infinit freeness and riches of Gods grace in covering their nakedness and setting forth only the beauty and ornaments which he hath put upon them but in no wise any sufficient ground or reason upon which they might expect so great a salvation Suppose a noble and indulgent Father hath a prodigall and rebellious son that for many yeers hath grieved the spirit of his Father with his impure cariage and exorbitant outrages to whom notwithstanding his Fathers heart is no less indeared than was Davids to Absolom therfore never hath a thought of disinheriting him but reserves his whole heritage together with a boundles treasâ—re entire for him in the mean while wooing and even melting him with loving kindness into love and duty â— at length the son repenteth becomes ashamed of his base carriage toward so good a Father returns to him waits on him ministreth to him in his weakness and sickness and his Father by his last Will and Testament gives him all naming him therin his good and beloved son that hath done him great service ministred to him much comfort in the time of his necessity Will any hence gather that the attendance of such a son on such a Father at last is a sufficient ground and reason for the Fathers setling on him so vast an estate Could not the Father have hired a stranger for a few Crowns to have done him as much service Doth not the mentioning of the sons good deeds which he would seem to reward with so rich munificence speak out only the remarkable goodness of the Father that hath buried in oblivion all the disobedience and mischiefs which his son hath committed and will have his good parts alone to be mentioned or if another that was not his son had done a thousand times more in his service should he have been entitled for it to the inheritance So also in this case to attribute to the works of beleevers the
of Promise how can it bee sayd properly this Doctrine tends to drive out obedience from the World Can it drive out of the World that which is not in it Had he sayd it tends to drive out the Formality and outside Morality and base Hypocrisie from the World wee might have considered of it But to tell of driving out obedience that which God accepteth and alloweth as true Obedience from such as would never bee drawne to it implies a kinde of contradiction 4. If hee meane Spirituall and Gospel Obedience the obedience of Faith which consisteth in the deniall of our owne righteousnesse and our owne strength and cleaving to Christ alone for Justification and Sanctification and that this Doctrine doth not drive it out of the World but hinder the World from pertaking of it how doth the Wisedome of Christ and the Wisdome of Mr. Baxter heerein dash eyther against other God so loved the world saith Christ that hee gave his onely begotten Sonne that whosoever believeth in him should not perish but have life everlasting Jo. 3. 16. He that believeth in mee out of his belly shall flow Rivers of living water Jo. 7. 38. If I bee lifted up from the Earth I will draw all men to me Jo. 12. 32. Come unto me all that are weary and heavy layden and I will refresh you Mat. 11. 28. Goe preach the Gospel to every Creature hee that beleeveth shall be saved Mark 16. 15 16. This is a faithfull saying c. that Christ Jesus came into the world to save sinners of whom I am chief 1 Tim. 1 15. They that receive abundance of Grace and the Gift of Righteousnesse shall reign in life by one Jesus Christ and hundreds more the like Scriptures in which the fulnesse of grace and righteousnesse offered to the world to the chiefe sinners of the world freely to be given to as many as will receive and believe in Christ is made an attractive to obedience and not as Mr. Baxter slandereth this Doctrine a hinderance to it 5. If there be any of the world that are so offended at this Doctrine as to make it a stone of stumbling to them and an hinderance to the obedience of faith they are the worst people of the world Jewes or of a Jewish spirit Scribes and Pharisees hypocrites who having made cleane the outside of the cup and platter though the inside be unpurged from its guilt think themselvs the alone holy and righteous persons will not enter into the Kingdome of Grace unlesse their owne worth and righteousnesse shall usher them into it and the Publicans and Harlots bee barr'd out â—â— unworthy rend their cloaths and cast dust in the aire like mad-men if mention bee made of admitting with them the unclean Gentiles Acts 22. 21 23. If the Prodigall sonne be entertained refuse in great wrath any more to meddle in their Fathers house and service Luke 15. 28 30. And will not hearken though earnestly entreated These many years have I served and never transgressed and shall now this companion of harlots be here with mee and these last that came in at evening bee made equall with us that have borne the burthen and heat of the day Mat. 20. 12. They had their owne Farmes Oxen Wives Therefore as happy enough at home they would not come to pertake of the Lords Fâ—ast but left it to the poore blinde and laâ—â— c. But against such the Lord hath sworne that they should not taste of his supper Luk. 14. and the misery of this doome wee see lying heavy upon that Nation to this day Is it not enough to Mr. Baxter that hee hath not himselfe taken heed of this Leaven of theirs but that hee must seeke to sowre us with it tco that we might incurre the like vengeance 6. If there bee such as turne this Doctrine into licentiousness that because good works are not appointed of God to be the condition of their justification will therefore relax their diligence the fault is not in the Doctrine but in the corruption of their hearts They ought to conclude from Grace to duty and not to carnall liberty If they do otherwise it is not because they have but because they have not effectually drank into themselves this Doctrine Else if all the means of Grace which carnall men abuse should bee guilty of their abuse then the death of Christ and preaching of the Gospel must be anathematized because he is laid as a stone at which some will stumble and as well for the fall as the rising of many in Israel and that is to some the savour of death as well as to others the savour of life The children must not lose their bread for feare the doggs should catch after it to satisfie their rapine The Apostle had delivered a sacred doctrine of Gospell truth Where sinne abounded Grace abounded much more Ro. 5. 20. Hee seeth easily this doctrine would be abused by sensuallists therefore annexeth an Objection Shall we continue in sinne that Grace may abound Ro. 6. 1. This use some might make of it Doth hee therefore recall his doctrine Nothing lesse Better many wretches to wantonize to their ruine than one soule for which Christ hath died lose such a prop of consolation 7. The truly beleeving saints cannot so reason or abuse the grace of God or relax their obedience as for other reasons so specially for those alleadged by the Apostle in the following part of that 6. Chapter to the Romans 8. Wee doe not by the Preaching of this Doctrine open a door to prophanenesse but following the guidance of the Scripture make use of it as the strongest obligation to obedience as in Answer to the next of Mr. Baxters Queres shall be manifested Lastly Mr. Baxters Doctrine of justification by Works is guilty of as many other crimes so of this also wherewith hee chargeth ours 1. By instilling into men a supposition of a possibility and necessity of attayning such a righteousness of their owne and worthiness of their works by the worth and merit whereof they may deserve Christ and justification by him The selfe-righteous Justiciaries will greedily swallow downe this bait and then little regard the obedience of faith Will not come in to Christ but upon their owne Terms and Articles For the whole need not the Physitian but the sicke Proofe enough heereof we have in the Scribes and Pharisees who if they might not be admitted as the only sons of God wholly rejected the Kingdome of God The very Publicanes and Harlots entring before them Such pride is there naturally in mans heart that if they have any thing of their owne faire though but in appearance they thinke the Gospel of Christ more credited by their profession of it than themselves benefited by it 2. By blunting the edge of mens desires after Christ If it must be their owne works and righteousness that must mediate their interest in Christ and justification by him despaire of attainment strikes them
Qu. 14. that he so layeth this position that he may thereby lay a ground-work for Justification by works Doth Dr. Preston to this end make Christ as Lord the object of Justifying Faith or any where affirm him to be offered as a Law-giver or Commander of morall works and duties to our justifying Much less doth he affirm that such works have any thing to do with Faith in justifying A notable skill hath Mr. Br in confounding when he should divide and distinguish and in distinguishing when there is no need as either may serve to his purpose He knowes that Dr. Preston when he treats of the New Covenant comprehends under it the whole doctrine and all the Promises of Grace made Yea and Amen in Christ as the same Christ is given to us not onely to Justification but also to regeneration illumination sanctification and whatsoever the Grace of the Eternall Father hath made him to us And when he treats of Faith he handles it as the instrument by which not onely Justification but also all the other benefits of Christ may be made ours in receiving Christ the treasury spring of all appropriated to us Therefore in describing the New Covenant he describes it in generall as the womb of all the blessings which are attainable by Christ and not of Justification and Salvation alone And in describing Faith he describes it as the instrument by which we apprehend and appropriate to our selves not onely Christ as righteousness and salvation but also as wisedome and sanctification yea all that tends to the perfecting of a poor sinner to our selves Therefore is it that he speaks more largely of the Covenant and treats more fully of it then needed if he had been to speak of it onely to Justification and Blessedness and that he speaks of Faith more largely and mentioneth other acts of it then are required to this one end And necessarily must he so do else should he have maimed both the Covenant of Grace and the Faith of Christ Here whatsoever Dr. Preston speaketh of the Covenant and Faith in generall of which some part belongeth to the interessing of us to sanctification and other blessings which are by Christ Mr. Br to beguile his Reader confoundeth and confineth to Justification as being spoken of it alone When contrariwise the Doctor doth enough cleerly express the distinct benefits of the Covenant and the distinct acts of Faith receiving the distinct benefits in the very words which he alledgeth out of him App. p. 117. Thou shalt receive the gift of Righteousness wrought by him for an absolution for thy sins and for a reconciliation with me This is our Justification And thereupon thou shalt grow up in love and obedience towards me This is our sanctification But suppose he should have affirmed that Faith as it cleaveth to Christ not onely for the sprinkling of his blood for Justification but withall for the effusion of his spirit to sanctification and the shedding forth of his beams for illumination and the stretching forth of his Almighty arm for supportation c. doth in all these acts justifie as some Divines do seem to speak though without prejudice to their reputation not enough advisedly yet both he and they are so far from making either the most spiritual knowledge and wisedom which are the immediate fruits of illumination or love righteousnes and holines and their acts or works which are the immediate fruits of sanctification to be in any respect usefull to justification that they utterly deny peace joy and hope the immediate fruits of Justification to be any way effectuall and usefull in this business But I find not Dr. Preston any where laying that ground-work much less erecting such a building on it To the five last points if Mr. Br hold them in that which I have expressed to be Dr. Prestons sense yea which himself expresseth to be his own sense I have nothing to say against him The tenth onely excepted to which I must be also mute because neither doth Mr. Br alledg what the Doctor saith and I have not that Treatise of his to inform me But all this is but a playing with holy things he might as well have said Dr. Preston consents with him in confessing there is a God a Christ a Justification a man a sinner to be justified as have said most of what he hath here said We expected he should have produced testimonies of other Divines speaking in common with him what he speaks in common with the Papists in opposition to the doctrine of the Protestants In his Appendix p. 167. and thenceforth to the end of the Book he brings a new supply of Testimonies which he intituleth Bax. Sayings of excellent Divines added to satisfie you who charge me with singularity I shall examine so many of them as have any shew of agreement with Mr. Br in those things wherein he fights against the doctrine of the Protestant Churches Bax. 1 He alleadgeth Dr. Twisse his discovery of Dr. Jacksons vanity p. 528. What one of our Church will maintaine that any one obteins actuall Redemption by Christ without Faith esspecially considering that redemption by the blood of Christ and forgivenesse of sins are all one Eph. 1. 17. Col. 1. 14. How prettily would he here instill into the thought of his Reader that Dr. Twisse is a man of levity here a subverter of Antinomianism whereof in his Aphorisms p. 173. he complained him to be a Pillarer that here he subverteth Justification from eternity whereof elswhere he is an assertor Nay here he speaketh of the Justification which is by vertue of the New Covenant of the obteining of it actually to our selves This neither Papist nor Protestant neither Dr. Twisse noâ— Mr. Br ever affirmed to be without Faith Bax. 2. Bishop Hooper cited by Dr. Jackson Christ onely received our infirmities and originall disease and not the contempt of him and his Law Expounded by Dr. Twisse against Dr. Jackson p. 584. His meaning in my judgment is onely this that Christ hath made satisfaction for the imperfection of our faith and holiness although we continue therein untill death But he hath not made satisfaction for the contempts and hatred of his word c. in case men do continue therein unto death Here is nothing of that which Mr. B. hunts after that Christ hath satisfied for no offence no infirmity committed against the New Covenant but this alone is the sum of it that they shall have no benefit by Christ no one sin committed against the Law or Gospel pardoned to them who live and dye impenitent and unbelievers According to that of our Saviour Jo. 8. 24. Therefore I said unto you ye shall dye in your sins for if ye beleeve not that I am he ye shall dye in your sins B. 3 Alstedius Distinct Theol. cap. 17. p. 73. The Condition of the Covenant of Grace is partly Faith partly Evangelicall obedience or holiness of life proceeding from Faith in Christ 1 In
thing that firmly susteineth namely the Righteousness of Christ imputed to us and not on the holiness and grace inherent in our selves For this is unperfect c. therefore we cannot for it be counted Righteous before God But the imputed righteousness of Christ is a perfect righteousnes in which there is nothing that can offend the eyes of God but all things that can abundantly please him Vpon this alone therefore are we to rest as upon a thing sure and stable and to beleeve that by it alone we are justified 7 This may undoubtedly be affirmed and it is the opinion of all Divines that God can justifie men and make them pleasing and amiable to him without any inherent quality or habits infused 8 To the same purpose and somewhat more fully speaketh Bellarmine The guilt or obligation to punishment saith he may be taken away without the infusion of Righteousnes For nothing hinders by how much the less God can will the not ordeining to punishment and the pardoning of the offence and the not accounting him for an enemy to whom he hath not granted the gift of habituall Righteousness 9 The Scope of James in the second Chapter of his Epistle is to shew that we are justified not by a barren but by a fruitfull Faith 10 The meaning of James is not that Faith without works is dead c. For it is evident that we are justified by Faith even without works But his meaning is that Faith without works that is which refuseth to work or is noâ— disposed to work is a dead Faith vain and justifieth not What therefore James alleageth out of Gen. 15. Abraham beleeved God to this purpose he alleageth it that he beleeved being in readiness to work Therefore he saith that in the work of offering his Son the Scripture was fulfilled speaking of his Faith prepared to work It was fulfilled I say as to the execution of that great work to which his Faith was prepared 11 If any where in Scripture thou hearest reward or wages promised know that it is no otherwise due then by Gods promise freely he hath promised freely he gives If thou wilt abide in his Grace and Favour make no mention of thy Merits 12 All Papists consentingly make the Merits of Christ the foundation of mans merits as far as he can merit Neither Faith nor works nor doing nor sufferings say they have any other vertue to merit then what they receive from the merits of Christs death then as they are dipt in his blood this makes them acceptable to the Father 13 When Christ saith of the woman Luk. 7. 47. Many sins are forgiven her for she loved much it is to be understood not that she loved much and so her much love was the cause of her great forgiveness but contrarywise that because many sins were forgiven her therefore she loved much 14 To be given freely and to be a retribution to works are as much opposit as that which is free and that which is from Justice or as not due and debt And this way of inference the Apostle useth in the beginning of this 4th Chapter viz. speaking of Justification by Grace 15 The work of Justice is wages or Reward and this way of Justice Grace excludeth whose work is meer gift or Donation 16 In this verse the Apostle concludeth that Christ hath saved us from all the evill both of fault and punishment That there is nothing of condemnation remaining to them that are in Christ because all judgment is taken away both to the fault and the punishment 17 It is certain that when originall sin is remited that the evils which it brought are not remitted and taken away as all finde by experience Notwithstanding they remain not under the consideration of punishment because the fault being taken away there can be no desert as to punishment remaining 18 I will remember their iniquities no more saith the Lord i. e. I will neither in this world injoin any Penance for them nor in that which is to come inflict any punishment for them So hath the Holy Ghost promised that our sins shall be forgiven by the New Covenant of Grace 19 In regard of the uncertainty of our own righteousness and the danger of vain glory it is most safe to repose our whole confidence in the sole mercy and benignity of God Baxter THe bare act of beleeving is not the onely condition of the New Cardinall Contarenus in Rom. 4. Covenant but severall other duties also are parts of that Condition The Common opinion that justifying faith as justifying doth consist in any one single act is a Wretched Mistake by the one act of faith he means Faith in opposition to works Aph. p. 235 248. Faith it self is our righteousnesse viz. our Evangelicall as Christ is our Legall Righteousnesse It self Toletus a Iesuite upon Rom. 3. is imputed to us for righteousnesse Aph. p. 125 126. It justifieth as it is an act of ours and as it is a morall duty App. p. 80. 102. Both Faith and workes make up one condition one righteousness one perfect righteousness of our own by Cardinall Cajetan upon Rom. 3. which we merit to be justified by God by the legall righteousness which is in Christ And consequently Faith doth not lean upon anothers and works upon their own righteousness but both make up one compounded righteousness and goodness which make us righteous and good also and by this righteousness and goodness deservers of justification salvation Aph. Thes 17 18 19 20 23 24 26. and scatteringly throughout the whole Book Faith as an act of ours and of it self with other workes procureth Righteousness And God hath used Toletus the Iesuit up on Rom. 1. works to justifie as he hath used faith even in the same kinde of causality So we have found Mr. Br. oft affirming as may be seen in our former quotations Let him deny that he holds the consequents of these two Antecedents if he will It is so far from being an error to affirm that Faith it self is our righteousness that it is a truth necessary for every Christian to know yea it both is our Righteousnesse and is imputed to us for righteousnesse The very personall performance of faith shall be imputed to us for a sufficient personall payment of righteousnes Idem in Rom. 4. as if we had paid the full duty and righteousnesse which the Law requireth This is the substance of his words though not his very words which being continued in terms of a Metaphor cannot without the citing of the whole similitude be expressed to the understanding otherwise Aphor. p. 125 126 129. There is a two-fold righteousnesse attainable by Christ at least in words the one an inherent righteousnesse in our selves consisting in the seed and acts of Faith Love Holinesse c. the other in Christ but made over to beleevers by Gods Donation if not imputation Both of these are absolutely necessary to salvation neither is
pious and not unlearned men that have taken some infection of the Epidemicall disease of our times too easily to drink down errors differing herein only from the vulgar that error is more appetible to them from a learned and sophisticall than truth from a plainer though faithfull hand Let a man once have the name of a learnnd Scholar and strict-walking Pharisee all his Doctrines by such men are concluded to be of rare use and excellency before they be seen whether they be white or black from Heaven or from Hell Not a few of these men having in my hearing stood firm and up moved in the defence of the doctrines of this book of Mr. Brs. not being able to speak any thing to refell the objections made against it but this that the Author thereof is an eminently learned and pious man As if Satan had not the wit to make choyse of his instruments that have the most compleat aptitude and power to deceive or that the Jews had not so much to say for their Pharisees the Papists for their Bellarmine and the Remoâ—strants for their Arminius or the Devill had forgotten his ancient subtlety when he will seduce from the verity of Christs Gospel to change himself into an Angell of Light or that no damning errour could proceed from a self-saving or rather self-deceiving Pharisee To cleer up the truth to such at lest to give their occasion to search the Scriptures by which they may cleer it to themselves I shall lay and compare together Paul and Mr. Br. in that which Mr. Br. saith was the question about which Paul disputed that it may be made evident whether they agree or contradict either the other To this purpose by the way there is to be taken out of the way a fallacy that lurketh in Mr. Brs. words where he saith The dispute of St. Paul is upon this Question It is not enough to say this was A Question excâ—pt he say also it was the Question yea the Onely Question upon which the Apostle disputed in those places where he excludeth works and inferreth Faith alone to be ordeined as effectuall to justification He disputed in some of his Epistles upon many questions To reduce what hee disputed severally to the severall questions all to one were to make non-sense of the whole The same may be said of all mens yea of the most Scholastick disputes of Mr. Br. himself who is a greater Philosopher and more studied in Logick and Metaphysicks than ever the Apostle was But I deny it to be the onely or the chief question about which St. Paâ—l so disputeth what is the Righteousnesse which wee must plead against the Accusation of the Law or by which wee are justified as the proper Righteousness of the Law I grant it to be one but a less principall question upon which he disputes But the more principall question is in generall by what means we may be interessed into Christ or obtain the righteousness of Christ to become ours and so still retâ—in it to justification More particularly whether the Native Faederall holiness of the Jewes and the priviledges of the Covenant in part mentioned Rom. 9. 4 5. Phil. 3. 5. Gal. 2. 15. Or their actuall and personall righteousnesse and sincere obedience to the Law mentioned Phil. 3. 6. Mat. 20. 12. and the 19 20. together with all the Typicall purgings mentioned in the 9. 10. Chapters of the Epistle to the Hebrews On the other side whether all the Naturall and Morall righteousness of the Gentiles which they performed by the instinct of the Law of Nature written in their Consciences without the help or knowledg of Gods written law or their exemption from the Covenant of God made with the Jews For some of the believing Gentiles reading the promises made of calling unto the grace of Christ them that were not Gods people or beloved before weakly concluded that their former uncircumcision and uncovenant-ship was a speciall furtherance to their admission unto Christ as may be probably gathered from Rom. 11. 19. Gal. 5. 6. whether any of these kinds of holinesse and works of righteousness either with Faith or without Faith or whether Faith alone without all or any of these be required as instrumentall subservient and effectuall to inright us to the Justification which is by Christ This was the more principall question upon which Paul disputeth in the places before mentioned Somewhat he saith to the former but lesse principally and seldom but in subserviency to this So the question upon which Paul disputes in his Epistles and Mr. Br. in his Aphorisms is one and the same but their Conclusions absolutely contradictory either to other The one concludeth that Faith alone without mans works and righteousness The other that not faith alone but Faith as a work together with all other works of righteousnesse do justifie and all morall duties collaterally with Faith are required to make the Righteousness of Christ ours to justification No greater or more palpable Contradiction can be devised Whosoever shall preach another Gospell of Justification otherwise than by Faith in Christ without works let him be accursed saith Paul Whosoever shall be practically a solifidian trust to a bare Faith and not work for Justification shall be Damned saith Mr. Br. If one of these be granted to be an Apostle of Christ the other must needs be proclaimed to be the Apostle of Antichrist But whether this which I have expressed be indeed the principal question on which the Apostle so disputeth adhuc sub judice lis est We are left uncertain on both hands may some say True and if I onely say and not shew it I shall be guilty of the fault which I blame in Mr. Br. And so we may deserve both to be laught at as Triflers This therefore is the next thing to be added First then if we do but consider to whom and against whom the Apostle handleth these disputes for Mr. Br. reduceth them all to his Epistles it will be more than probable to every rationall man that his most principall question is By what means we possesse and continue in the possession of the righteousnesse which is by Christ to Justification And but secondarily less principally and in subserviency to this question What the righteousnesse is by which we are to be justified The persons to whom he writeth were all Christians the purest and most eminent Churches of Christ that had received the pure doctrine of Christ by the preaching of the Apostles viz. that whereas sinn and death and the Curse by sinn reigned over all men in all the world so that all wete Children of wrath and every soul guilty before God Christ was given of the Father to be the Author of Righteousness and life by the Mediation of his death that in him and in no other name under heaven was salvation attainable that whosoever would beleeve in him should have everlasting life should be Justified freely by Grace
and touching the righteousness thereof were blameless When contrarwise the Gentiles had walked inordinately lawlesly after the instinct of their own nature and lusts of their own hearts servants to idols and devills not to God For this Cause they Contended that they by this their righteousness had that the Gentiles by means of their unrighteousness had not right to the redemption and Justification which are by Christ That the Gentiles in stead of the naturall holiness before mentioned must become Proselytes and so the ascititious or adopted Children of Abraham becoming Jewes must receive the seale of the Covenant Circumcision in their flesh receive and be brought under the Law and become personally righteous in keeping it Else they could not be saved by Christ Act. 15. 1 24. Their bare Faith in Christ without their own righteousness and works could not make them partakers of the tighteousnesse and salvation which are by Christ And who seeth not here that Mr. Brs doctrine is one and the same in generall with theirs that were the first heretical troublers and subverters of the Church of Christ But against this plea of the beleeving Jewes the Apostle layeth his Contradictory Conclusion That both the Circumcision and the uncircumcision they that had and they that had not all or any of these kinds of righteousness were made partakers of Justification through Christ onely by Faith in him That our own prejacent works and righteousness are nothing to further nor our former unrighteousness and sinn any thing to hinder our Justification but Faith in Christ is all He that beleeveth is not condemned he that beleeveth not is already condemned whether he be Jew or Gentile clean or unclean outwardly because as he had said before ver 22 23. There is no difference For all have sinned and come short of the glory of God This Conclusion that Faith alone without our prejacent or concomitant works and righteousness do make the righteousness which is by Christ ours to Justification he proveth soundly in the 4th Chapter 1 From the example of Abraham the Father of the Faithfull By what means Abraham found and obteined the Justification which is by Christ by the same means all now obteine it that are Justified But Abraham found or obteiaed it not by his own righteousness or works but by Faith Therefore so do now all that are justified The proposition he leaves as standing so firm on its own pillars that none will dare to seek the demolishing thereof The assumption he proves in both its members that it was not by his own righteousnes either Natural i. e. derived from parents and ancestors for they were Idolaters and served other Gods Josh 24. 2. Or faederall in the Jewes sense for he was justified before he was circumcised and after received Circumcision as a seal of the Righteousness of Faith ver 10 11 of this 4th Chapter to the Romans or Legal For he was so Justified 400 years before the Law was given Or personall by the works of righteousness which he had done For then first he should have had matter of boasting that he had done something towards his own Justification ver 2. And secondly then his justification should have been reckoned not of Grace but of debt and so the glory thereof should have redounded to Abraham and not to God ver 4. And if by no one of these kinds of his own then not at all by his own righteousness That it was by Faith he proves by clear Testimony of Scripture ver 3. Therefore the conclusion stands that we are justified also by faith without works That Faith and not any righteousness of our own makes Christs righteousness ours Another Argument he draws from clear and evident Scripture witnessing that the righteousness and justification which consisteth in the forgivenes not imputing and covering of sinn is made ours without works therefore by Faith alone ver 6 7 8. When in these two Arguments none can deny but that the righteousness and Justification which Abraham obteined and which Consisted not in the doing but in the imputing of righteousness and in the pardoning and not imputing of sinn is the Justification which is by Christ and when the Apostle laboureth not at all to prove this to be The proper Righteousness to Justification but takes it as granted and unquestioned all must acknowledge that his question was not What righteousness it is that Justifieth whether Christs or ours But when all his dispute is confined to this one point to prove that this righteousness by Christ is made ouâ—s not at all by works but altogether by Faith what rational man can be so swayed by a Spirit of Contradiction as to say with Mr. Br. that St Pauls question was not to make out by what means this Justification by Christ may be made ours Whosoever will see these two Arguments further and fully illustrated and amplified together with more arguments to these annexed let him peruse the residue of this 4 Chap. And if he return with his Reason sound and brings not this verdit that it is impudence not judgement in Mr. Br. to state Pauls question as he doth Then am I a stranger both to Paul and Reason Again when the Apostle still insisting upon the same subject setts forth the priviledges of them that are justified by Faith doth withall affirm that while they were yet sinners Châ—ist dyed for them and so they became Justified by his bloud and being yet enemies are reconciled to God by his death Rom. 5. 1 8 9 10. thereby implying that there is nothing of our own works and righteousness except sin and enmity against God be such that doth or can Concurr to our justification so leaving justification to Faith onely it is evident that his principall question was not whether we are Justified by Christ but whether Faith alone or works with Faith are appointed of God in order to Justification I shall forbear to cite short testimonies from other Epistles of the Apostle evincing this Truth and pass to his Epistle to the Galathians in which he wholly levelleth to this mark It cannot be denyed by Mr. Br. himselfe that the Apostle there disputeth not of a legal but Gospel Justification and that this is a Justification onely by Christ that when he saith If any man if we or an Angel from heaven preach any other Gospel c. his meaning is not a Justification out of Christ for this should be a legal not a Gospel Justification but any other way to the Justification which is by Christ save that which we have preached let him be accursed Gal. 1. 8 9. Herein it was agreed between the Apostle and the false Apostles that Christ is the alone Justifier and that salvation is onely by him and to this all the seduced ones among the Galathians assented Else had they been Apostate from Christ to the Law and not to another Gospel as the Apostle terms it Gal. 1. 6. And from their beginning in the Spirit to seek
to be received both as a justifier and sanctifier declareth him to have descended from heaven both to justifie the ungodly and to sanctifie the justified That he is made unto us of God not onely Righteousness but Sanctification also To justifie us by an imputed and sanctifie us by an inherent righteousness The one by the effusion of his bloud the other by the infusion of his Spirit That his office is not onely to satisfie justice for us that we may live but also to new principle and create us that we may live to God Not onely to redeem us from all iniquity but withall to purifie us into a peculiar people zealous of good works In whom both these works are not in good measure neither of them is in any measure effectually accomplished That sanctification is the purchase of Christs bloud but the immediate effect of his Spirit merited by his death but Conferred and Communicated by his life as all power both in heaven and in earth is given into his hand and as he is ascended on high to give gifts to men That both imputed and inherent righteousnes as termined and actually existent in and upon man proceed from his union unto Christ That Sanctification is as great and glorious a work as Justification and our real as our relative holiness and righteousness Neither could it be discerned so cleerly how we were quickened in Law raised from the dead who were dead in sinns and trespasses and so passed from death to life from Condemnation to salvation by the forgiveness of sinn were we not also quickened raised up from under the death and bondage of sinn no more to serve sinn but as alive from the dead had our fruit and living motions to practicall holines and righteousness That as well our sanctification as our Justification is in Christ and both from him derivable to us by Faith in him That Faith is qualified by God to apprehend Christ both to purifie us by his bloud and to sanctifie us by his Spirit and so becomes instrumentall both to Justification and sanctification yet by a twofold Act as the Condemned Traytor extends one and the same hand to receive from his gracious Prince a pardon of his Treason and a Commission to be his vice-gerent in some Noble and magnificent office therein to serve his Prince promote the welfare of his Countrey and make his own name and person famous and pretious in the eyes of all men among whom his present vertuous behaviour and Noble atchievements may wipe off and bring to oblivion the stain of his former delinquency That one and the same a chief end of our Justification by Christ is our sanctification the fruits thereof here inchoat and increasing hereafter Consummate and perfected Therefore are we delivered out of the hands of our enemies that we may serve him without Fear in holiness and righteousness Luk. 1. 74 75. Therefore are we dead to and delivered from the Law by the body of Christ that we should be married to another even to him that is raised from the dead that we might bring forth fruit to God and serve not in the oldness of the letter but in the Newness of the Spirit Rom. 7. 4 6. Christ hath made us Kings and Priests or a Royall Priesthood unto God to offer up living sacrifices acceptable to God through him 1 Pet. 2. 5 9. Rev. 1. 6. To our instalment therein are pre-required the sanctification of Consecration and the sanctification of habitual righteousness and holiness infused into us and set in actual operation in us The former of these is done chiefly by the sacrificed bloud of Christ sprinkled upon the Conscience and the sacred vestiments of his Righteousness put on by Faith as was typified primarily of Christ the High Priest and secondarily of the Priesthood of Saints under the kingdome of Christ by the Consecration of Aaron and his sonns with the bloud of the Altar sprinkled on them and the putting on of holy vestiments upon them their own being Cast off Lev. 8. The latter Chiefly by the Spirit of Christ in livening enabling and acting them to the work and worship for which they are Consecrated and I know not but this may be also figured in the ordination of the Priests under the Law by the Anoynting oyl in the same Chapter mentioned and used That differs but little from Justification as termined to this its end This differs not at all from sanctification when it is taken in the sense wherein the scriptures often and our Divines still use it when they distinguish between Justification and sanctification viz. in its active sense the inspiration of the habits of holiness and righteousness in its passive sense the same habits inspired into the soul Whosoever wanteth either of these prerequisits to this sacred office we grant him to be but a titular Priest a Mock-Saint For without Consecration to offer as a Priest speaks him an usurper And to profess Priest and not to offer speaks him a rebell and revolter We own no sanctification by the Spirit of Christ which hath not Justification by his bloud in order going before it nor any Justification or forgiveness by the death of Christ which hath not sanctification by his Spirit in order of nature following it Thus we do not as the Papists and Mr. Br. learning from the Papists object calumniously exclude works from the life of a Christian but assert them to be necessary to a Christian life so necessary that without them whosoever is Capable of working is no Christian Though we exclude them from Justification yet we include them in sanctification their habits as parts in the whole their acts or themselves acted as fruits thereof Nay we do not deny in a good sense some kind of Causality which they have to sanctifie that is to the increase of sanctification To him that hath it shall be given and he shall have more abundantly Well done good and faithfull servant thou hast been faithfull in a little I will make thee Ruler over much c. saith our Saviour Ask and ye shall have seek and ye shall finde knock and it shall be opened to you The ground or earth which drinketh in the Rain which cometh oft upon it and bringeth forth herbs or fruit c. is neer to a blessing But that which bringeth forth bryars and thorns is rejected and neer to cursing c. Heb. 6. 7 8. with many other the like Testimonies of Scripture which it would be superfluous here to recite How then do we in the least measure blunt the edge of mens affections to good works by teaching that they do not justifie when we affirm them necessary to sanctification If Mr. Br. should affirm that Bread and Wine and other Creatures appropriated to mans nutriment are not ordeined of God to Clothe him or that his garments are not ordeined of God to Feed him doth he therein minister to me just Cause to exclaym against him that