flow from persons It was therefore the person of the Word that made satisfaction for our sins Now that a person of that infinite worth and excellency as the Son of God the second Person in Trinity should come to subsist in our nature and being in our nature should be the person satisfying for our sins this was great condescension and abasement Thus the Son who was yet equal with the Father in respect of his Divine nature by his Incarnation and sufferings doth not only make himself inferiour to the Father but to himself also The Son though he was one of the persons offended yet he comes to make the satisfaction and considered as Mediator as God-man doth not only make satisfaction to the Father but to himself considered as God simply The fourth Consideration is this That whole Christ or the whole person of the Mediator was the price of our Redemption 1 Joh. 2.1 If any man sin we have an Advocate with the Father Jesus Christ the righteous and he is the propitiation for our sins It is Christ then that is the propitiation for our sins Now Christ is the name of the person subsisting in both natures When we speak of Christ Christus est nomen personae in duabus subsistentis naturis we understand that person who subsists in both natures in the nature of God and in the nature of man Christ doth not signifie one of the natures simply but Christ is the name of the person subsisting in both natures Now this is he who is the propitiation for our sins that person who is God and man he is the propitiation for our sins Persona Christi sive Christus satisfecit pro peccatis tanquamquod It was the person of Christ or Christ that did satisfie for our sins as the Principle making satisfaction To understand this we must consider that which was before hinted That Christ is our Mediator according to both natures he is not our Mediator as to one of his natures only but according to both natures and as he is Mediator according to both natures so he gives himself for us according to both his natures For though it were the humane nature only that suffered yet it was the Divine nature that sanctified the sufferings of the humane nature and gave virtue to them therefore is it said Himself bare our sins in his own body on the tree and that by himself he hath purged our sins Heb. 1.3 It is not said By his humane nature meerly though it is true it was the humane nature only that was capable of suffering but it is not so expressed but by himself Christ himself is the Sacrifice for our sins Gal. 2. He loved me and gave himself for me and Christ was once offered up Heb. 9. And that expression of the Apostle Peter is very emphatical 2 Pet. 2.24 Who his own self bare our sins in his body on the tree 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 Christ himself who was God-man made satisfaction for sins and laid down the price of our Redemption yea he himself was the price of our Redemption God hath redeemed the Church with his own blood To understand this two things are to be considered in the Satisfaction of Christ as Alvarez hath observed 1. One is that species or kind of humane actions by which Christ did satisfie and this proceeded from the humane nature as the formal principle of them Thus the Son of God obeyed suffered dyed in the humane nature 2. There is another thing to be considered in Christs Satisfaction and that is the infinite value and worth that was found in it Now the infinite value and worth that was in the Satisfaction of Christ proceeded from the person satisfying that is from the Divine Word or the person of the Son of God subsisting in the humane nature the actions and sufferings of the humane nature are the matter of his Satisfaction but that which gives the virtue and value to them is the Divinity Hence are those expressions of the Ancients If he had not been true God he had not brought a remedy for us Si non esset verus Deus non afferret remedium Quia ille qui moriebatur erat Deus Another observes That therefore did the death of Christ bring salvation to the world because the person who dyed was God And another hath a passage to this purpose Death saith he becoming as it were the death of God hath demolished death for the person that dyed was God and man both the sufferings of Christ being made the sufferings of that person who was God received their virtue from the Divinity As much as if he had said By virtue of the Divine person which suffered in the humane nature those sufferings received their virtue to save us and to make satisfaction for our sins This is another thing that discovers the humiliation of Christs person That he who was God and in his Divine nature simply considered was the person offended yet as God man was pleased to become a ransom for us 1 Tim. 2.6 He gave himself a ransom for all That person who gave himself a ransom for all is the Mediator and who is the Mediator but God-man 1 Joh. 1.7 The blood of Jesus Christ his Son cleanseth us from all sin There is a great Emphasis upon those words Jesus Christ his Son It is the blood of that person who was no other than the Son of God and God which cleanseth us from all sin It is a memorable speech of Luther He gave saith he not silver not gold neither was it a meer man that he gave neither did he give all the Angels but it was himself that he gave as the price of our Redemption than which nothing was greater neither had he any thing greater to give Consider this price aright and we shall find it infinitely greater than the whole Creation 5. In the sufferings of Christ we may see the humiliation of his person from hence namely that in the death of Christ the glory of his Divinity seemed to be most obscured and darkened and suffered the greatest Eclipse What more unworthy of God than suffering and death What more absurd and incongruous in the eye of carnal reason than a crucified God Now herein did Christ commend the greatness of his love to us That he permitted the glory of his Divinity by means of his death and suffering to be eclipsed for our sakes That he who was the immortal God should expose himself to suffering and death for our sakes as if he had been no more than a passible and mortal man for though he were really and indeed the Son of God and God the Lord of Glory yet by reason of his death and sufferings he was by the generality of men thought to be but as an ordinary man This is that which the Apostle intimates 1 Cor. 2.8 Whom none of the Princes of this world knew for had they known it they would not
shall open that in several particulars 1. In that the Son of God came into a nature so inferiour to his own What comparison is there between God and the creature That the eternal God should joyn himself so nearly to the nature of his own creature this is admirable This was that made Bernard say When I consider the person of him who comes Dignationis magnitudinem expavesco I cannot comprehend the excellency of his Majesty when I consider to whom he comes I tremble at the greatness of his condescension To whom was it that this great person came He came to us poor men who dwell in houses of clay And will God indeed dwell with men Yea he dwells with man The Word was made flesh 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 and dwelt among us Joh. 1.14 He pitched his Tent and Tabernacle in a part of our nature he did not only converse familiarly and was seen among men but he pitched his Tent and Tabernacle in a part of our nature Without controversie great is the mystery of godliness God manifested in the flesh God was in that very flesh which the Son of God assumed God was in that flesh that was once seen here on earth and was afterwards given as a Sacrifice for the life of the world yea so in it as to dwell personally in it Therefore doth the Son of God call the flesh he assumed his own flesh Joh. 6.53 Now consider it what a disproportion is there between God and our flesh Yet the eternal Word is made flesh he who was with God in the beginning and who was God this very Word is made flesh Joh. 1.14 It is a notable expression one useth to illustrate this Although it was not suitable to humane flesh according to the condition of its own nature to be united to God in the unity of person yet this was becoming God in the infinite excellency of his own goodness It was nothing but infinite goodness could move God to condescend so low as to take a part of our flesh and cloath himself with it 2. The condescension of Christ in his Incarnation appears in this in that the Son of God took a part of our nature after humane nature had been infected and when the whole mass of humane nature lay infected with original sin Let none mistake here that part of humane nature which was united to the person of the Son of God had no taint or pollution of sin in it but thus we ought to conceive of it The mass of humane nature out of which this part or particle of humane nature was taken was infected with original sin and in the same moment that the Word the second person in Trinity joyned himself to our nature that part or parcel of humane nature that was joyned to his person was sanctified by the Holy Ghost so that in the same moment or instant the union was made that part of humane nature which was assumed was sanctified by the Holy Ghost neither was it sanctified before assumed nor assumed before sanctified but both were done in the same instant as soon as there was flesh so soon was it the flesh of the Word We must not suppose any instant of time when that part of humane nature that was joyned to the Son of God should have a subsistence of its own before it was united to his person no but at the same time it was flesh 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 at the same time it was the flesh of the Word but this is that which commends the love of Christ and his great condescension that he should take part of our nature when the whole mass of it lay under the contagion of original sin God who was Purity and Holiness it self might justly have loathed and abhorred such impurity as ours he might justly have disdained to have sought out a habitation for himself among such polluted creatures None of the children of Adam was exempt and free from the contagion of original sin no not the Virgin her self who was the Mother of our Lord now that God should seek out and prepare for himself a habitation out of such an impure sink as our nature was by reason of sin this is that which greatly commends the love and condescension of the Son of God 3. The greatness of Christs love in his Incarnation with respect to his condescension appears in this in that he took our nature together with its infirmities He was in all things made like to us sin only excepted The Son of God did not only take flesh but he took passible mortal flesh such a nature as was subject to suffering and death this was a great commendation of his love For we must know the Divinity inhabiting in Christs humane nature could have prevented all suffering and death the Godhead which was personally united to the humane nature could have made the humane nature impassible and above suffering Therefore it is observed by a Learned man It was by the good pleasure of the Divine will Beneplacito Divinae voluntatis permittebatur carni pati operari quae propria that it was permitted to the humanity to do and suffer the things which were proper to it self The great end why the Son of God assumed our nature was that he might satisfie for the sins of men Now one is then said to satisfie for the offence of another when he takes upon himself the punishment that is due for such offences now suffering and death was the punishment due for sin By one man sin entred into the world and death by sin Rom. 5. Therefore the Son of God out of his great love to us was not only willing to take our nature but also the infirmities of our nature Isa 53.4 He hath born our griefs 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 and carried our sorrows That which was not assumed was not healed if Christ had not born our infirmities our infirmities had not been healed 4. The greatness of Christs condescension in his Incarnation appears in this in that he suffered the glory of his Divinity to be hid and veiled for a time in our nature after he had assumed it This is that which the Scripture calls his emptying himself 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 Phil. 2.7 We read it He made himself of no reputation in the Original it is He emptied himself How did Christ empty himself The former words compared with those that follow do acquaint us He was in the form of God Now that he that was in the form of God should take upon him the form of a servant should be made in the likeness of men and was found in fashion as a man there was his emptying himself He might always have continued in the form of God only without taking to himself the form of a servant or if he will take the form of a servant he might presently and immediately shew forth the glory of his Divinity in that humane nature which he
my God why hast thou forsaken me He was deprived of the sense and comfort of his Fathers love Secondly Christ suffered natural death his humane soul was truly separated from his body Now Christ having satisfied that Law In the day that thou eatest thou shalt dye the death by suffering the penalty of that Law hath fully delivered his people from the curse Gal. 3.13 Christ hath redeemed us from the curse of the law being made a curse for us A Learned man observes Because according to the sentence of the Divine Judgment in that day Adam fell and sinned humane nature ought to have been punished with eternal perdition therefore the Son of God offered himself to assume humane nature and afterwards did assume it that so man might not dye the death And the same Learned man hath another expression to the same purpose Because humane nature was depraved and lost so that it became the body of sin and death therefore the Son of God in lieu thereof was pleased in the humane nature assumed to condemn sin and abolish death and in his own person restore humane nature to righteousness life and happiness Christ having dyed for sin once dyeth no more death hath no more dominion over him Rom. 6.9 10. Our nature as it is in Christ it is above death and the fear of death O let us think of these things these things are the most solid grounds of comfort Our nature in Christ is above death and the fear of death it is possessed of life and immortality and brought to perfect happiness Hence is that expression 2 Tim. 1.10 Christ who hath abolished death and hath brought life and immortality to light through the Gospel Christ hath already brought life and immortality into our nature Christ doth already stand possessed of immortality in his own person And this is the singular comfort of Believers that they may see a part of their own nature set above sorrow misery and death and brought to the greatest happiness they can wish or long for and that they may be assured they shall be possessed of the same happiness in their measure which Christ their Head is possessed of This Christ assures them of Joh. 17.22 The glory which thou hast given me I have given them Christ had glory with the Father from Eternity as he was his natural and coessential Son this he speaks of vers 5. Glorifie me with thy self with the glory which I had with thee before the world was Now besides this there is a glory which is given to him the glory which thou gavest me I have given them Christ had a glory given to him as man and Mediator Now the glory which was given to Christ as man and Head of the Church is given to the Elect so that all the Elect do participate and share in it in their measure The glory which thou hast given me I have given them Calvin observes upon that Text The Samplar or pattern of perfect happiness is so exprest and set forth in Christ that nothing is confined to Christ only but Christ was therefore inriched that he might inrich Believers the glory which thou hast given me I have given them Christ and his Members share in glory in common only reserving the difference between Head and Members Christ hath the glory of the Head Believers have glory as Members Christs glorification is the surest pledge of our glorification for how is it possible that he who is our Head and is now in glory with the Father should leave us to those miseries we are now obnoxious to whenas we are so nearly related to him we being members of his body of his flesh and of his bones Eph. 5.30 and he that is joyned to the Lord is one Spirit The Church being so nearly related to Christ and Christ being in glory how is it possible Christ should leave them under those miseries they are now subject unto 17. The greatness of Christs love in his Incarnation appears in this In that by means of the Incarnation all the Elect shall have a standing Monument before their eyes wherein they may see and behold the infiniteness and transcendency of the love of God to all Eternity And the reason of this Proposition is this Because the Hypostatical or personal Union shall not be dissolved in Heaven the humane nature shall remain and abide united to the Divinity to all Eternity As in Heaven we shall be admitted to the sight of God we shall see the Unity in Trinity and the Trinity in Unity we shall see the Unity of the Essence and the three persons Father Son and Spirit subsisting in this one Essence of God so in Heaven we shall see the great Mystery of the personal Union the Mystery of the two Natures in the person of Christ more than now we can And this will be one part of the happiness of Heaven that we shall see our nature united to the Divinity in the person of the Son of God and by this means we shall come to understand the greatness of the love of God by seeing how near our nature is taken unto God in the person of our Head The Hypostatical or personal Union is the foundation of the mystical Union viz. of our union and communion with God God hath taken a part of our nature into personal union with himself and by means of this we have union and communion with him Now in Heaven we shall have a clear sight what that glory is which Christ our Head is advanced unto by the personal union And this I take to be carried in that great Text Joh. 17.24 Father I will that they also whom thou hast given me be with me where I am that they may behold my glory which thou hast given me The happiness of Heaven will be to gaze upon the glory of Christ as a Learned Divine expresseth it That they may behold my glory as if so be this would be Heaven enough for the Elect to see the glory their Head is possessed of And what glory is this That they may behold my glory certainly the glory of his Divinity Christ had glory with the Father before the foundation of the world Joh. 17.5 He was in the form of God saith the Apostle now all the Elect shall see and behold his glory that is they shall see the glory of his Divinity and how so They shall see and behold the glory of his Divinity shining forth through his humanity The humane nature is united to the Divinity in the person of the Son now the Elect in Heaven shall see that person who hath assumed their nature to be true God and to have all the glory of the Divinity in him As the second person in Trinity is true God and hath all the glory of the Divinity in him so the Elect in Heaven shall see the humane nature united to the Divinity in the person of the Son Therefore is it added in the close of the verse For
ready to lay down my life for you this is the minor Proposition that is necessarily implied for otherwise the Argument of our Saviour here in the Text would have no force in it The scope of our Saviour in the Text is to perswade his Disciples to love one another upon the account of his love to them and he lays down this as the main Proposition That it is the highest love for any man to lay down his life for his friend Now unless the Assumption be supposed That Christ hath laid down his life for us the Argument would fall to the ground and come to nothing therefore this is supposed and this is the minor Proposition necessarily to be understood That Christ hath laid down his life for his friends Greater love than this hath no man that he lay down his life for his friends But this is my love to you I have thus laid down my life for you I am just now about to do it and therefore 't is as certain as if it were already done this must necessarily be supposed 2. The second Assertion is That Christs laying down his life for his friends is the highest demonstration of love Greater love than this hath no man that he lay down his life for his friends Our Saviour speaks here after the manner of men he speaks of that which is the highest love among men The highest love among men is when one man is ready to lay down his life for another Now saith our Saviour I am ready to lay down my life for you it is the work I am now going about I am now going to lay down my life for you and therefore my love to you is the highest and greatest love From these two Assertions there are these two Propositions that do naturally arise The first is Doct. 1 That our Lord Jesus Christ hath laid down his life for his people The second is Doct. 2 That the love of Christ in laying down his life for us was the highest demonstration of love Greater love than this hath no man that he lay down his life for his friends To begin with the first of these The first Proposition then is this Doct. 1 That our Lord Jesus Christ hath laid down his life for his people This my Beloved is a point of great weight and moment and there are many things of great weight and moment that will necessarily fall in in speaking to it In the Explication of this Point I shall proceed in this Method 1. I shall shew what the import of this Phrase is what it is for a man to lay down his life for another 2. I shall shew how it was that Christ laid down his life for us 3. I shall shew how it is said that Christ laid down his life for his friends whenas elsewhere it is said that Christ dyed for us whilst we were enemies 4. I shall take occasion from this Text to speak something concerning the Doctrine of Christs Satisfaction I have already treated of the Love of Christ 1 In his Incarnation 2 Of the Love of Christ in his being made under the Law for us And when I first undertook to speak to those Heads there were two more I had in my thoughts to speak to the one was to speak of the Love of Christ in his Satisfaction and the other was to speak of the Love of Christ in his Intercession and now I shall take occasion from this Text to treat of that Argument viz. of the Love of Christ in his Satisfaction Greater love than this hath no man that he lay down his life for his friends It is one main demonstration of Christs love to us That he hath laid down his life for us But first I shall begin to open this Phrase what the import of this Phrase is what it is to lay down a mans life for another and then I shall shew how it was that Christ laid down his life for us 1. What is the import of this Phrase what doth it signifie for a man to lay down his life for another Greater love than this hath no man that he lay down his life If we would go about to translate it exactly according to the letter we might render it 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 ut quispiam animam suam ponat sive deponat That a man lay down his soul for his friends It is an Hebrew Phrase the Soul is put for the life which is the effect of the Souls presence or being in the body It is the presence of the Soul that causeth life take away the Soul and life ceaseth and therefore it is that the Soul is put for life so that to lay down a mans soul which is the Phrase here used it is to lay down a mans life for another The import of this Phrase is no more than we in our ordinary way of speaking are wont to express thus it is for a man to be willing and ready to dye for another Thus Peter saith Joh. 13.37 I will lay down my life for thy sake It is the same Phrase as in the Text I will lay down my life for thy sake that is I am ready to dye for thee So 1 Joh. 3.16 We ought to lay down our lives for the brethren that is we ought to be ready to dye for them if the case so requires So that Christs laying down his life for us is no more than his voluntary undergoing of death for us his giving up himself to dye for us But here we must inquire a little before we go any farther what was that life which our Saviour was willing to lay down for us Greater love than this hath no man that he lay down his life for his friends I answer It was his corporal life the life of his humanity or his life as he was man for as for the life of his Divinity that was not possible for him to lay down As he was God so he lives always and could not dye as he was God he was above the power of death It is true that person who was God assumed our nature and according to that nature he dyed he laid down the life of his Humanity but still he retained the life of his Divinity This our Saviour himself explains and it is a great Text Joh. 10.17 18. Therefore doth my Father love me because I lay down my life that I may take it again No man taketh it from me but I lay it down of my self and then it follows I have power to lay it down and I have power to take it again Christ had power to lay down his life this he had not had if he had been a meer man no meer man hath power to lay down his own life every mans life that is but a meer man is under the power of God it is at Gods dispose and not at his own and no man may dispose of his own life till God who gave him his life give him
shalt thou return Gen. 3.19 was the Curse pronounced upon man for sin Terra es in terram reverteris Earth thou art and unto earth shalt thou return By this expression Divines both ancient and modern understand a state of mortality that should come upon man by reason of sin Earth thou art and to earth shalt thou return that is thou shalt become mortal Terra es ostendit hominem in deterius commutatum Aug. Austin observes that expression Thou art earth it shews that the whole man was changed for the worse Man that had been immortal had it not been for sin is now become mortal by means of sin there is nothing that men fear more than death The Apostle tells us That men through fear of death are all their life-time subject to bondage Heb. 2. When man by sin was brought into a mortal state he was always in fear and expectation of death A man that is condemned doth not dye presently but he is in a dying condition and he is always in expectation of death and a man that is infected with the plague doth not it may be dye presently but he carries his deaths wound about him so man having sinned he had the matter of death in him he had that in him which would certainly and infallibly bring him unto death man having sinned brought himself into a mortal state therefore the Lord Jesus Christ our Surety that he might deliver us from this part of the Curse put himself into a state of mortality makes himself liable to death Hence is that of the Apostle Phil. 2. He took upon him the form of a servant and became obedient to the death even the death of the cross that is he took our nature and made himself mortal in it Had the Divinity in Christ exerted it self in its full power and strength it could have prevented suffering and death in Christ but it being a part of the Curse that we sâ—â—uld be subject to suffering and death the Divinity did so far suspend it self that Christ might become passible and mortal therefore Christ who was immortal in himself made himself mortal for our sakes In Rom. 8.2 we read of the Law of sin and of death The Law of sin is as Austin observes that whosoever sins shall dye Lex peccati ut quicunque peccârit moriatur August the soul that sins shall dye The Law of death is Dust thou art and to dust thou shalt return Therefore man being subjected to a state of mortality by the Curse Christ underwent this Curse for us Heb. 2.14 That through death he might destroy him that had the power of death that is the devil That through death he might destroy him c. The end why the Son of God assumed our nature was that he might suffer and dye in it he so assumed our nature as that being in our nature he might become passible and mortal in it Ought not Christ to have suffered these things Luk. 24. He that would be our Surety and pay our debt must suffer and dye for us and therefore that Christ might fully discharge our debt he was pleased to put himself into a state of suffering and death Learn from hence Vse 1 in the first place the infinite love of Christ that Christ who was free would become our Surety and bring himself under bonds for us and make himself liable to the Law and to the penalty of it for our sakes yea not only so that Christ who was most free would take upon him the payment of our debt but that he who in some respect was the Creditor and had the debt owing to him should yet in another respect and in a wonderful way of dispensation become the Surety and pay the debt for us Consider Christ as God sin was an offence against him as well as against the other Persons of the Trinity and Christ might have demanded and exacted punishment from men but yet Christ in a wonderful way of dispensation by assuming our nature and bearing the punishment due to us in it would become our Surety and pay the debt that was owing to himself Have we not reason here with the Apostle to cry out O the depth O the heights and depths and lengths and breadths of the love of Christ that when Christ might have demanded satisfaction from us he was pleased to take our nature and make satisfaction for us This shews us the great happiness and the singular priviledge of Believers Vse 2 who have an interest in Christ The priviledge of Believers lies in this That Christ who is their Surety hath undertaken to satisfie and discharge their debt for them Now if the debt of punishment which we owe to Divine Justice be already satisfied if the punishment which we owe to Gods Justice be already undergone Divine Justice can demand no more this consideration may be of unspeakable use and comfort to us when we come to be under agonies and terrors of conscience Those that truly belong to God may sometimes have such thoughts as these are What if I should be put to lye under the wrath of God What if the torments of the Damned should be inflicted upon me Holy Souls themselves have had some sips and tastes of Divine wrath Now that which may be of unspeakable comfort in such a case is this If thou be a true Believer if thou hast closed with Christ by faith thou hast already suffered punishment in Christ thy Head thou hast after a sort satisfied Divine Justice and born the torments of Hell in Christ thy Head Paul said I am crucified with Christ Gal. 2.20 I am crucified together with Christ concrucified When Christ was crucified 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 we were crucified together with him Christ suffering the punishment in our nature which was due to us it is in Gods account as if we had suffered Hence it is said He was made sin for us 2 Cor. 5.21 and we are made the righteousness of God in him Now thou that art a true sincere Believer who lovest Christ and prizest him above all the world if thou hast already suffered the wrath of God and the torments of Hell in Christ thy Head it is to be hoped thou shalt not be put to suffer it in thy own person Who shall condemn saith the Apostle it is Christ that hath dyed Rom. 8.33 If Christ hath dyed thou shalt not dye and if Christ hath been condemned thou shalt not be condemned This shews the unspeakable misery of such who have no interest in Christ Vse 3 and no part in his Satisfaction Their misery appears in this That they are liable to bear the punishment of their own sins As this is the singular priviledge of Believers that they are exempted from punishment because Christ their Head and Surety hath born it for them so this is the unspeakable misery of all Unbelievers of all such as lye out of Christ that they are liable to bear
of the Ancients I think it is Ambrose's observation Therefore saith he it was said to Adam In dying thou shalt dye or as it is rendred Thou shalt dye the death and not simply Thou shalt dye because the death here spoken of concerns both soul and body Now then as Adam and we in him became subject to a double death one of the body the other of the soul So our Saviour being pleased to be our Surety subjected himself to a double death for our sakes to a natural death and to a supernatural death 1. To a natural death the separation of his humane soul from his body 2. To a supernatural and spiritual death the separation of his soul for a time from the comfort of Gods presence Hence is it that we read that our Saviour did not only suffer death in the Singular number but he underwent deaths in the Plural number as if it were intimated that there was a double death that he suffered Isa 53.9 He made his grave with the wicked and with the rich in his death in the Hebrew it is in his deaths in the Plural number and this was not without some special Mystery in it as some Learned men conceive yea there is a judicious Divine that saith expresly he is perswaded that both kind of deaths natural and supernatural are intimated by that expression when it is said He made his grave with the rich in his deaths Our Saviour underwent therefore a double death a natural death and a supernatural death That our Saviour suffered the first death a natural death a separation of his humane soul from his body that we do all know and believe Now that he tasted of the second death or supernatural death the separation of his soul from God taken in a right sense that I must speak unto To understand this we must know that the soul may be said to be separated from God two ways 1. By a voluntary aversion from God by sin this was not in our Saviour and could not be in him his will did always firmly and inseparably adhere to God even in the midst of his greatest sufferings It is true this is part of the punishment of sin in us namely that our wills are turned aside from God Adam voluntarily deserting of God this is now part of the punishment that is come upon him that he is now left to himself and thereupon there is an aversion of his will from God and this is that which we call spiritual Death when the will declines and turns from God the chief Good But this kind of death could not be in our Saviour and the reason is because he that was to bear the punishment of all other mens sins must necessarily be supposed to be without all sin himself Christ could not have been a Surety for our sins born the punishment of them if he had not been without all sin himself This aversion of the soul from God as it is the punishment of sin so it is in it self a sin Now Christ so bears the punishment of our sins as that he himself is still without all sin in a way of inhesion Christ hath the guilt of our sins laid upon him by way of imputation but he hath no sin in him by way of inhesion 2. The soul may be said to be separated from God in a way of deprivation namely when the soul is deprived of the comfort of Gods love and presence Now this our Saviour did undergo he was deprived of the comfort of his Fathers love and presence for a time as we shall shew more hereafter Psal 88.14 Lord why castest thou off my soul why hidest thou thy face from me This is spoken in the letter in the person of Heman but Learned men conceive that Christs sufferings are here represented to us under these expressions Lord why hidest thou thy face from me Gods face was hid from Christ for a time that so it might not be hid from us for ever And this was the spiritual death that our Saviour underwent not a death in sin which we are all subject to not any aversion of his will from God but desertion of God in point of comfort to be deserted and forsaken of God as our Saviour was is in some sense the spiritual death of the soul It is a good speech of one of the Ancients That is not death so properly that separates the soul from the body but that is most properly death which separates the soul from God God is life life it self he therefore that is separated from God must needs be dead as the body lives from the soul so the soul ut beatè vivat that it may live happily must live from God Hence are those expressions of Austin The life of the body is the soul but the life of the soul is God the body dyes when the soul recedes from it and the soul dyes when God recedes from it Therefore when our Saviour was so far forsaken and deserted of God for our sakes as to have no sensible taste of his love and favour for a time in this sense he underwent spiritual and supernatural death for us 6. The sixth Particular which follows upon this is That our Saviour tasting of supernatural death for us he did in so doing undergo the very pains of Hell for us Hence are those expressions Psal 116.3 The sorrows of death compassed me the pains of hell got hold of me I found trouble and sorrow So likewise My soul is heavy to the death Mat. 26.38 It is a great expression which we have 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 Act. 2.24 Having loosed the pains of death or the sorrows of death The Greek word properly signifies the sorrows of a travailing woman and what were these sorrows Those which he had in the Garden when he was in his Agony and when he sweat drops of blood and those which he had upon the Cross when he cryed out My God my God why hast thou forsaken me These are called the sorrows or pains of death but indeed they were the sorrows or pains of Hell and therefore the vulgar Latin renders it the pains of hell because in these sorrows our Saviour did not only taste of the sorrows of natural death but he also tasted of the sorrows of supernatural death that is of the pains of Hell Hence is it as Learned men have observed That the sufferings of Christ and those great sorrows that he underwent are set forth in such a variety and multitude of expressions in the Scripture that sometimes they are set forth by the grave by darkness sometimes by the land of oblivion sometimes they are called wounding killing sometimes they are set forth by his being forsaken forsaken of his friends of his kindred yea of God himself sometimes they are called debts afflictions tempests solitude prison cuting off abjection treading under foot all which and many more which the Scripture is full of sets forth those most perfect
saith 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 undequaque tristis est anima mea My soul is exceeding sorrowful My soul is sorrowful on every side so the word properly signifies my soul is environed or compassed about with sorrow sorrow and grief possess me all over Yet that is not all but he adds farther My soul is exceeding sorrowful even unto death So great was his grief and sorrow before he came to the Cross and the sufferings that he underwent there that the greatness of his grief and sorrow had almost brought him to death before-hand yea we may well suppose that had not our Saviour had the power of the Divinity to support him the strength of his sorrows in the Garden before he came to the Cross might have taken away his natural life He saith his soul was heavy to the very death We see how many are killed with grief when grief and sorrow rises to a great height many have had their natural spirits suppressed and dyed away under it Now our Saviours sorrows did far exceed the sorrows of all other men yea if all mens sorrows were put together our Saviours sorrows exceeded them all and the reason is because he sustained the person of all the Elect and he bare the punishment not only of a few sins but of all the sins of all his people at once Therefore if he had not had the power of the Divinity to have supported him the greatness of his sorrows might have sunk him and brought him down to death but having other things to suffer upon the Cross besides those things he suffered in the Garden he was not sorrowful unto death absolutely that is not sorrowful so as to dye in and by those sorrows but yet he was sorrowful next to death setting aside death it self his sorrow and grief in the Garden was so great as it could not have been greater even in death it self My soul is sorrowful unto death Thus I have shewed how our Saviour suffered a great deal of anxiety and perplexity in his mind in respect of fear in respect of grief but this is only in general But to come a little nearer the matter and the thing it self 2. Our Saviour conflicted with the sense of Gods wrath in his soul I have shewed how he suffered the greatest anxiety perplexity and grief in his mind Now I shall shew how the great sorrows our Saviour underwent did arise from the conflict he had with Gods wrath in his soul Mat. 26. Father if it be possible let this cup pass from me What cup was this Truly the cup of Divine wrath The cup of God is the wrath of God Calix Dei ira Dei est ira Dei justa est vindicta quae imponitur à justo Judice the wrath of God is the just revenge which is inflicted by a just Judge for our sins and this is the cup our Saviour drank of our Saviour that he might bear the punishment that was due to us for our sins tasted of the wrath of God conflicted with the sense of Gods wrath The better to take in this we must consider that the sense of Divine wrath is part of the punishment that is due to us for our sins yea it is a principal part of the punishment and a great part of the pains and torments of Hell consists in it It is a speech of Luther The greatest temptation of all others is that temptation by which God is set in direct opposition to a man and appears contrary to him Quâ Deus contrarius homini ponitur This temptation saith he is an unsupportable temptation and is properly Hell it self and no man can tell how great this temptation is but he that hath felt it Now when a man is under the sense of Gods wrath he apprehends God to be contrary to him and to be set in direct opposition against him and as was said this is part of the punishment that is due to us for sin Observe what is spoken to this purpose Rom. 2.8 9. But to hem that are contentious and obey not the truth but obey unrighteousness indignation and wrath tribulation and anguish upon every soul of man that doth evil The Apostle is here speaking what is the punishment that shall come upon men for sin now he describes it by this Indignation and wrath tribulation and anguish Now by these expressions indignation and wrath tribulation and anguish I conceive the Apostle doth not only intend the effects of Divine wrath all the miseries that shall be laid upon the damned as the effects of Divine wrath but he also intends the impression of Divine wrath upon the conscience of the sinner and therefore he expresseth it by so many words that intimate so much indignation and wrath tribulation and anguish these words plainly intimate the horror and anguish that shall be upon the spirit of the damned and whence doth this tribulation and anguish arise certainly from the fense of Gods wrath When our first Parents had sinned God appeared to them as an angry God in an angry manner to Adam he saith Hast thou eaten of the tree whereof I said thou shalt not eat and to the Woman he said What is this that thou hast done Both these are expressions of anger When therefore man had sinned God appears to him as an angry God Now our Saviour being to take upon him the guilt of our sins he was to conflict with the sense of Gods wrath and therefore he had great and deep apprehensions fastned upon his soul concerning the displeasure that was due from God to us by reason of sin Christ when he came to suffer for our sins saw the Justice of God armed with revenge against us for our sins he saw the Justice of God ready to take hold on him as our Surety who had taken upon him the guilt of our sins There is a Learned man who is no friend to the Soul sufferings of Christ but makes it his business to oppose them that yet in discussing that argument is at last brought to this confession Christ saith he in his sufferings had a present sight of the Divine Majesty sitting as it were in Judgment and armed with the infinite power of Divine Justice to avenge the sins of men This is the confession of an Adversary that opposes the Soul-sufferings of Christ Now they which do assert the Soul-sufferings of Christ do only add thus much more That Christ did not only see Gods wrath that was due to us for our sins but he tasted of it and felt it and conflicted with the sense of it for to what purpose should he see it and not feel it Or how could Christs seeing the weight of Divine wrath that was due to us and not bearing it have expiated and taken away the guilt of our sins The sense of Divine wrath was that which was due to us as the punishment of sin for the Law saith Cursed is he that continueth not in all
the love of God because he laid down his life for us Still we see when the Scripture speaks of the love of Christ it expresseth it by what he suffered for us Now the greatness of Christs love the heights and depths and lengths and breadths of Christs love in his sufferings and in the work of his Satisfaction may be illustrated by several Particulars And I shall propound several things for the clearing up of this truth 1. That the sufferings of Christ were the lowest degree of his humiliation The Scripture speaks of Christs Exinanition or emptying himself Phil. 2.7 He made himself of no reputation so we translate it the word in the Original is he emptyed himself out of all 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 Ex omni seipsum ad nihilum redegit exhausit Tertul. he reduced himself to nothing One of the Ancients renders the expression he exhausted himself Now this Exinanition or emptying of the Son of God was his own voluntary laying aside of his own glory as to manifestation and also his subjecting himself to the lowest abasement for our sakes The Son of God did not could not divest himself of his essential glory he did not cease to be the Son of God and God in the lowest state of his humiliation but he did strip and divest himself of his manifestative glory he was content not to appear to be what indeed he was and he submitted-himself to the lowest abasement for our sakes Now there were two parts of Christs Exinanition or emptying of himself The first was his Incarnation his assumption of our nature The second was his suffering death for us and the Apostle speaks of both these in this place The first part of Christs Exinanition was his Incarnation He made himself of no reputation or emptied himself How so He took upon him the form of a servant he was in the form of God saith the Apostle and made himself of no reputation and took upon him the form of a servant That he who was in the form of God should take upon him the form of a servant this was emptying himself indeed That the eternal God should become a mortal man this was great humiliation indeed He was in the form of God saith the Apostle and yet he was made in the likeness of men and was found in fashion as a man These expressions must cautiously be understood we must not understand them as some ancient Hereticks did that Christ only had a fantastical body that is the shew and appearance of a body because it is said here the likeness of men and that he was found in fashion as a man I say we must not understand them as if Christ only had a fantastical body not a true and a real body for the Scripture tells us plainly That Christ was made of the seed of David and he was in all things made like unto us sin only excepted And it is a true expression that of the Ancients 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 That which was not assumed was not healed If the Son of God had not had the verity of humane nature in him humane nature could never have been restored If he had not assumed a true humane soul and a true humane body our fouls and bodies which were tainted with original sin could never have been recovered therefore when it is said He was made in the likeness of men and found in fashion as a man we must not understand it as if Christ had the likeness of a humane body and not a true humane body but these expressions Made in the likeness of men and found in fashion as a man not only set forth the greatness of his humiliation and condescension that he that was God blessed for ever that he who was so far above men did yet take to himself the common nature of men He was made in the likeness of men and found in fashion as a man The plain meaning seems to be That the Son of God taking our nature appeared among men as to his external visage and appearance as another man as one like the rest of men It is true spiritual eyes could behold the beams of the Divinity breaking through the veil of his flesh Joh. 1.14 The Word was made flesh and dwelt among us and we beheld his glory as the glory of the only begotten of the Father full of grace and truth The Apostles and other Believers who saw Christ in the days of his flesh with spiritual eyes and hearts that were given to them could see the beams of the Divinity breaking through his Humanity they could see something more than a man in him But look upon him as to his external form and habit and so he appeared to the generality of men like one of the rest of men he was wrapt up in swadling cloaths laid in a Manger he was subject to his Parents he did hunger and thirst and eat and drink and he was subject to the same common infirmities with other men and therefore doth the Apostle say He was made in the likeness of men and found in fashionas a man that is as to his external form and habit he seemed to be like to the common sort of men Hence are those expressions of the Prophet He was as a root out of a dry ground He hath no form nor comeliness and when we shall see him there is no beauty that we should desire him Isa 53.2 This is the first part of Christs humiliation Creator ac Dominus omnium rerum unus voluit esse mortalium that he who was in the form of God should yet take to himself the form of a servant He that was the Creator and Lord of all things as Leo expresseth it would yet become one of mortal men and he that abiding in the form of God did also make man himself the very same person taking on him the form of a servant himself is made man The second part of Christs Exinanition or emptying himself was his subjecting himself to death for us This is that which the Apostle takes particular notice of in the Text Phil. 2.8 He humbled himself and how did he humble himself He humbled himself and became obedient to the death even the death of the cross It is observable that when the Apostle had spoken of Christs Incarnation or his taking our nature he calls that his emptying himself so likewise when he comes to speak of Christs sufferings he calls that his humbling himself He humbled himself and became obedient to the death This was great humiliation indeed that the Lord of glory should be crucified that the Prince of life should be killed and hung upon a tree Impassibilis Deus non dedignatus est esse homo passibilis immortalis mortis legibus subjacere Leo. He that was God impassible did not yet refuse to become a passible man and he that was immortal did not refuse to subject himself to the laws of death It was a
great thing for God to become man but it was a greater thing for that person who was God to put himself into the nature of man to dye for man Joh. 6.51 I am the living bread which came down from heaven and the bread which I will give is my flesh which I will give for the life of the world Christ is said to come down from Heaven by his Incarnation when the Son of God took our nature into unity of person with himself this was his coming down from Heaven Now that the Word as he is called Joh. 1.1 In the beginning was the Word that the Word the second Person in Trinity should not only assume flesh but give that flesh for the life of the world this was the highest demonstration of love Hence is that expression of the Apostle 1 Joh. 3.16 Hereby preceive we the love of God that he lay down his life for us As if he should say This is the most illustrious and glorious manifestation of the love of God to us that that Person who was God laid down his life for us He that was God by nature took up the humanity in a voluntary way of condescension and having voluntarily taken up our nature voluntarily laid down the life of his humanity for us It was not possible for him to lay down the life of his Divinity but that Person who was God took up the humane nature and in that nature laid down the life of his humanity for us This is that which sets forth the greatness of Christs love that he should lay down his life for us What more contrary or unsuitable to the Nature of God than sin suffering and death and yet Christ who was God as well as man God and man in one person although he had no sin of his own no sin inherent in him yet was he content to be accounted a sinner He was numbered among the transgressors as the Prophet speaks Isa 53. yea He was made sin for us that we might be made the righteousness of God in him 2 Cor. 5.21 Christ also who was above suffering and death exposed himself to suffering and death for us He tasted death for every man Heb. 2.9 Thus was the Son of God pleased out of the greatness of his love to us to put himself as it were out of Heaven into Hell and to descend from the height and top of happiness to the lowest degree of misery and abasement He humbled himself saith the Apostle and became obedient to the death even the death of the cross This Doctrine of the Cross is the greatest stumbling-block and offence to carnal reason to hear of a crucified God to hear that he that was to be the Saviour of the world should suffer and dye this is that which carnal reason cannot away with 1 Cor. 1.23 We preach Christ crucified to the Jews a stumbling-block and to the Greeks foolishness A crucified Saviour was the great stumbling-block to the world and yet that which was accounted foolishness by the men of the world was the Wisdom of God to save the world by it This I say was the lowest degree of Christs humiliation or exinanition that the Lord of glory should expose himself to suffering and death for our sakes this is commonly expressed in that Article of our Faith That Christ descended into Hell When we say that Christ descended into Hell we are not to understand any local descension as if Christ did descend into the place of the Damned thus indeed Bellarmine and some others have understood that Article of a local descension but by Christs descending into Hell we are to understand the lowest degree of his humiliation his descending into a state of mortality and death first being content to put himself into a passible and mortal state who himself had been impassible and immortal and then actually undergoing suffering and death for us Eph. 4.9 That he ascended what is it but that he also descended first into the lower parts of the earth What are those lower parts of the earth into which Christ descended Compare it with Acts 2.27 Thou shalt not leave my soul in hell that is thou shalt not leave it in the grave So that Christs descending into the lowest parts of the earth is his descending into the grave Christ indeed suffered the pains of Hell but we do not read he descended into Hell locally and Christ suffered the pains of Hell in this life as I had occasion to shew heretofore But his soul did not locally descend into Hell no his soul was taken into Paradise This day saith Christ to the repenting Thief shalt thou be with me in Paradise Thou shalt be with me that is as a Learned man understands it thy humane soul shall be with my humane soul in Paradise Christ as to the presence of his Divinity is every where therefore when he speaks of his being in Paradise this is most properly to be understood of his humane soul that his humane soul was to be in Paradise Christs descending into Hell therefore notes his descending into the state of the dead which was the completion of all his sufferings and the lowest state of his humiliation 2. The love of Christ in his sufferings and in the work of his Satisfaction appears in this That we were the offending persons and Christ a person most innocent It was we that had done the wrong and injury unto God and yet Christ who had not committed the least offence was content to suffer for us Isa 53.6 All we like sheep have gone astray and the Lord hath laid on him the iniquity of us all So in vers 9 10. He had done no violence neither was any deceit in his mouth yet it pleased the Lord to bruise him Hence also is that of the Apostle Peter 1 Pet. 3.18 Christ suffered for sin the just for the unjust Christ who was a just and an innocent person gave himself to suffer for us who were the unjust and nocent persons yea which is much more admirable Christ who was one of the persons offended unto whom the wrong and injury was done he comes to suffer and bear the punishment for them that had committed the offence The injured person is content to bear the punishment for them who had done him the wrong and injury Sin is an offence against all the Persons of the Trinity for as all the Persons of the Trinity have but one Essence one Majesty one and the same Will so sin strikes at all the Persons and is an offence against all because it is one and the same common Divinity that is offended in all and yet the Son of God who is one of the Persons of the Trinity and had received wrong and injury from men by reason of their sins was pleased to take upon him the nature of man and to bear the punishment which man had deserved for his offence against himself as well as against the other Persons Hence is it said
he who was so excellent a person should lay down his life for us By this perceive we the love of God that is this was the most eminent expression and declaration of the love of God that that person who was no other than the Son of God and God should lay down his life for us As the dignity and excellency of Christs person gives virtue and value to his Sacrifice so the dignity and excellency of his person is that which doth enhance the price of his love that so great and excellent a person should come to suffer and to dye for us this commends the greatness of Christs love to us Act. 20.28 God redeemed the Church with his own blood The person that redeemed the Church was no other than God in our nature Without controversie great is the mystery of godliness God manifested in the flesh 1 Tim. 3.16 In him the fulness of the Godhead dwells bodily Col. 2.9 The whole Divinity says one of the Ancients fills his whole humanity Totum corpus ejus implet tota Divinitas And Athanasius hath this expression When the Son of God suffered he was not out of his own body but the Word was intimately present was personally united to the flesh that suffered Non erat extra corpus The Word the second Person in Trinity was not absent from but was personally united to the flesh that suffered therefore he says This is my body that was broken for you The Son of God calls it his body when it was broken Now that so great a person should give himself to suffer and dye for us this is that which demonstrates the greatness of Christs love to us This is notably set forth by the Apostle Phil. 2.6 8. Who being in the form of God counted it no robbery to be equal with God and yet vers 8. saith the Apostle He humbled himself and became obedient to the death even the death of the cross The Apostle sets forth the greatness of Christs condescension and humiliation by this That so great a person as Christ was should come to suffer and dye for us He was in the form of God and counted it no robbery to be equal with God Now that this person who was in the form of God and counted it no robbery to be equal with him that he should come to suffer and dye for us this was the admirableness of his love And that we may see how excellent a person that was that came to suffer and dye for us there are several things to be considered in what the Apostle here speaks of him 1. The Apostle speaks of Christ as a person long before his Incarnation that is to be gathered from that expression when it is said 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 qui existens Who existing in the form of God The Apostle saith of Christ That he existed in the form of God before he took upon him the form of a servant Christ then had his existence and subsistence before his Incarnation 1. He had his Existence Joh. 1.1 In the beginning was the Word He speaks of Christ the essential Word the Son of God the second Person in Trinity Now saith the Evangelist In the beginning was the Word The Word the Son of God had his existence in the beginning that is in the beginning of the Creation The Word was that is when all other things had their being and beginning given them before that the Word was the Word had his Being and existence before that and therefore by consequence he was from Eternity for whatever was before all time that must needs be from Eternity Now the Word the Son of God the second Person in Trinity was in the beginning that is he was in the beginning of time and the Creation when all other things began to be he had his Being and Existence antecedent unto this 2. The Evangelist doth not only say In the beginning was the Word but he also saith The Word was with God there is his subsistence he had his subsistence with the Father in the Divine Essence The first Proposition In the beginning was the Word declares the Eternity of the Son of God that his Being was from Eternity The second Proposition And the Word was with God declares the manner of his Being namely that he had a distinct subsistence in the Divine Essence with the Father The Word the Son of God the second Person in Trinity had his subsistence with the Father in the Divine Essence This is that which is set forth by the Apostle in this expression Who being in the form of God or as it is most properly rendred Who existing in the form of God The Son of God then had his existence in the form of God before he took on him the form of a servant i. e. before he took up humane nature And this perfectly cuts the throat of that Heresie of some of the Ancients and of the Socinians their off-spring who deny that the Son of God had any existence before his being born of the Virgin The Apostle saith plainly he had his Being and existence in the form of God before he took on him the form of a servant 2. As the Apostle speaks of Christ as a person before his Incarnation so he shews what manner of person he was he shews him to be an excellent person yea the most excellent person He was saith he in the form of God and counted it no robbery to be equal with God We ought to consider both these expressions a little because this person of whom it is said He was in the form of God and counted it no robbery to be equal with God this was the person that humbled himself and became obedient to the death even the death of the cross 1. It is said He was in the form of God What doth that expression import The plain meaning I take to be this That he was truly and properly God he was God by nature he was not God by name only as some have been called Gods and have had that appellation given to them but were not so by nature so Magistrates are sometimes called Gods I have said ye are Gods but ye shall dye like men Psal 82 6. God said to Moses I have made thee a God to Pharaoh so that some have been called Gods by name and appellation but were not so by nature but Christ was so by nature truly and properly God he had the verity and truth of the Divine Essence in him In the beginning was the Word and the Word was with God and the Word was God that is he was truly and properly God as the Father was whatever might be said of God might be said of him God is eternal infinite almighty omniscient now all this was Christ because he was in the form of God and whatever was proper to God was proper to him Essentia Dei suis coloribus depicta Essentia omnibus suis proprietatibus
who was in the form of God and counted it no robbery to be equal with God Now this was the person that humbled himself as this person emptied himself in his Incarnation so the Apostle tells us He made himself of no reputation he took upon him the form of a servant so the very same person humbled himself in his sufferings he humbled himself and became obedient to the death Christs humiliation both in his Incarnation and in his sufferings redounds to the whole person of the Mediator who is God as well as man Zanchy observes from that He was in the form of God and took upon him the form of a servant That as Christ is Mediator according to both natures so the whole person by reason of his taking on him the form of a servant is become a servant Now as the whole person of the Mediator God manifested in the flesh is humbled in his Incarnation humbled in his assumption of our nature so the whole person of the Mediator is humbled in his sufferings in his being obedient to the death the death of the cross It is true this humiliation of the Son of God both in his Incarnation and in his sufferings properly agrees and belongs to the humane nature and the reason is because the Deity simply and in it self considered is not capable of humiliation or abasement but yet we must know by the communion of Idioms as they call it that being attributed to the whole person which is proper to either of the natures the whole person of the Mediator is said to be humbled both in his Incarnation and in his sufferings so that it was the person of the Son of God who humbled himself taking on him the form of a servant and it was the person of the Son of God who humbled himself being obedient to the death even the death of the cross Now it is a contemplation worthy of our most serious thoughts to consider how in the death and sufferings of Jesus Christ there was the humiliation of the whole person and this I shall endeavour to open in a few Particulars 1. This is evident That Christ as God willed his own sufferings as man If Christ had not willed his own sufferings no one could have brought sufferings upon him for no man takes away my life saith our Saviour Joh. 10.18 No man takes away my life that is no one hath power to take it away unless I first give it This therefore we may take for granted That Christ as God willed his own sufferings as man Now consider what a condescension was this that that person who was in the form of God and was equal with God and knew himself to be so should yet will the taking up of our nature and also will his own sufferings in that nature This was the greatest condescension that he that knew the dignity of his own person his equality with the Father should yet in a voluntary way will his own abasement that he who was equal with the Father in respect of his Divine nature should yet by taking on him the nature of man and office of Mediator make himself inferiour to the Father for as he was man and Mediator so the Father was greater than he Joh. 14.28 Compare these two Texts together Phil. 2. and that of Joh. 14. In Phil. 2. it is said He was in the form of God and counted it no robbery to be equal with God and in Joh. 14. it is said The Father is greater than I. How is this to be understood He that was equal with the Father in respect of his Divine nature the same person becoming man and Mediator so he made himself inferiour to the Father and so the Father was greater than he This was the condescension and love of this great person that he that was in an equality with the Father in respect of the Divine nature becoming man and Mediator makes himself inferiour to him this will appear yet farther in the next Particular 2. Christ by taking on him the office of Mediator became subject to the Father therefore doth the Apostle fay 1 Cor. 11.3 That the head of Christ is God Christ as he is made man hath God for his head is subject unto him is under God as his head Hence also is it said Phil. 2. That he became obedient to the death Christ taking on him the office of Mediator became obedient to his Father and he underwent suffering and death in a way of obedience to him Now this was the great condescension of this excellent person who when he knew himself to be in a state of equality with the Father would yet put himself into a state of subjection to him and in obedience to the Fathers will expose himself to suffering and death This is that which our Saviour himself intimates to us Joh. 14.30 31. Hereafter I will not talk much with you for the Prince of this world cometh and hath nothing in me But that the world may know that I love the Father and as the Father gave me commandment even so I do Satan or men had nothing to do with Christ they had no power over his life but Christ laid down his own life meerly in obedience to the Father and out of his love to us The Prince of this world comes and finds nothing in me Satan had no right or power to touch Christs life but Christ had the power to dispose of his own life as he pleased and having freely and of his own accord taken on him the office of Mediator he must be subject to the Father and dispose of his life as he pleased and his Father commanding him to dye he must give up his life in obedience to him Thus he that was the Author and Prince of life he that gives life to all others was content to give up his own life to be at the Fathers dispose and this speaks the humiliation of this great person that was in a state of equality with the Father that he would in a voluntary way of condescension make himself subject to him 3. To set forth the humiliation of the person how he humbled himself in the work of his Satisfaction let us consider that it is the person of the Divine Word or the second Person in Trinity subsisting in humane nature that tenders and offers the satisfaction by the operations of the humane nature To understand this we must consider that the operations and passions of the humane nature in Christ are not Non principium quod sed principium quo as the Schools call it the Principle that makes the satisfaction but they are the Principle by which satisfaction is made The Principle that as they call it which makes satisfaction is the person of the Word the second Person in Trinity which subsists in humane nature and the ground of it is founded upon this Logical Axiom That actions belong to persons Actiones sant suppose torum or actions
have crucified the Lord of glory The Apostle here speaks of Christ crucified as the Wisdom of God this the Princes of the world knew not The Rabbies among the Jews the Philosophers among the Heathen knew not this Wisdom of God they were not acquainted with it they little knew the Lord of Glory was in that body that was crucified pierced and that hung upon the Cross they were ignorant of the Divinity of Christs person the Son of God containing and keeping in the rays of his Divinity and permitting his flesh his humane nature to suffer they thought him to be but as another man Hence was it that the spectators mockt him with those words If thou be the Son of God come down from the cross they took it for granted that he that was the Son of God and God would not have suffered in that manner Now this was the great the wonderful and stupendious humiliation of this great Person that the Divinity in Christ hid it self and withdrew its lustre as it were in the time of Christs suffering that so the Humanity might suffer It is true there were some rays of his Divinity let forth in the time of his suffering that the veil of the Temple was rent from the top to the bottom that the rocks clave in sunder that the Sun was darkened and the graves were opened and the bodies of the dead Saints arose Such prodigious things as these were manifest tokens that the person that suffered was more than an ordinary person therefore the Centurion and those that were with him said Truly this was the Son of God But yet these things had not such an influence upon the generality of men but that the Cross of Christ was to the Jews a stumbling-block and to the Greeks foolishness the world hath not been able to bear the Doctrine of a crucified Saviour and as Luther hath observed There is no Doctrine of Faith that the world is so offended at as this That whereas the wisdom and love of God hath been laid out to the uttermost in this way namely to save men by the death of his Son this hath been the greatest offence to the world Such is the pride and ignorance of men that they cannot think of being saved by one that was crucified But what doth the Apostle say The foolishness of God is wiser than men and the weakness of God is stronger than men Christ crucified is the power of God and the wisdom of God 1 Cor. 1.20 24. Whatever the world thinks of it this is the way of God and the wisdom of God to save men by the death of his own Son And herein did the greatness of Christs love to us appear That he who was so great a Person would suffer the glory of his Divinity to be obscured and darkened by his death and sufferings whenas he knew what he did and suffered for man would expose him to the disesteem of men and minister an occasion to them to think the more contemptuously of him than ever they would have done had he not stooped so low to do and suffer such things as he did for their sakes Behold Vse how great the price of our Redemption was the Word the second Person in Trinity was united to the flesh that suffered as we have heard God incarnate is the price of mans Redemption God hath redeemed the Church with his own blood Act. 20. This is notably set forth by the Apostle Peter We were redeemed not with corruptible things as gold and silver from our vain conversation but with the precious blood of Christ 1 Pet. 1.18 Precious blood indeed which was the blood of that person that was God as well as man It is well observed by Cyril It was not the blood of Peter or Paul or some other particular Saint that was but a meer man that we were redeemed by but it was by the blood of Christ God-man whose name is Emmanuel God with us Tanta medicina salus requiritur Divinitas incarnata sanguis ipse Filii Dei Luther This should teach us to have high thoughts of the work of our Redemption and of the price that was laid down for it O that the work of our Redemption should cost the death of so excellent a person as the Son of God! So great aremedy so great salvation says Luther was required that Divinity it self must be incarnate and the very blood of the Son of God must be shed for us O let us labour to get our hearts more deeply affected with these things The end of the eighteenth Sermon SERMON XIX Joh. 15.13 Greater love hath no man than this that a man lay down his life for his friends THE second Use is this Vse 2 Learn from what hath been opened how great a sin the contempt of Christs person and of his sufferings is If so excellent a person as the Son of God and God was the person that suffered for us and wrought out redemption for us how great a sin then must it be to contemn this person and his sufferings The Apostle joyns both these together Heb. 10.29 Of how much sorer punishment shall he be thought worthy who hath trodden under foot the Son of God and hath counted the blood of the Covenant by which he was sanctified an unholy thing The Apostle here speaks 1. Of the contempt of Christs person Who hath trodden under foot the Son of God 2. Of the contempt of his sufferings And counted the blood of the Covenant an unholy thing So that to be guilty of the contempt of Christs person and of his sufferings must needs be the most hainous sin 1. As for the contempt of Christs person the Apostle calls it a treading under foot the Son of God 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 Treading upon a thing is an argument of contempt and scorn we tread upon nothing but what is vile and of no esteem we tread upon a worm as upon a poor abject thing a thing of no account yea sometimes treading upon a thing is an argument of hatred thus we tread upon spiders and other venemous creatures Now that so excellent a person as the Son of God one and the same God with the Father that he should be contemned and looked upon as a vile person what an indignity is this which is offered to so excellent a person 2. The contempt of Christs sufferings is set forth in that other expression And hath counted the blood of the Covenant wherewith he is sanctified an unholy thing We may render it thus 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 Who hath counted the blood of the Covenant a common thing To count the blood of the Covenant the blood of Christ as common blood to count the sufferings of Christ but as the sufferings of a common ordinary man this is great contempt The blood of Christ is the blood of that person who is God as well as man and therefore to reckon his sufferings but as the sufferings
themselves cannot be supposed to be infinite for the habits cannot exceed the capacity of the subject if the humane soul of Christ be but a created thing then the habits of grace which are in it are not simply infinite yet notwithstanding this the love which is to be found in Christs humane nature is exceeding great and a love surpassing the love of men or Angels and the reason is the humane soul of Christ hath the Divinity inhabiting in it now as the Son receives all the Father hath in the eternal Generation the whole substance of the Father is communicated to the Son in the eternal Generation there is no perfection that is in the Father but it is to be found in the Son therefore by consequence it follows that the love of the Father must necessarily be communicated to the Son and doth reside in the Son and there is but one and the same Divine love both in the Father and in the Son Now the Son the second person in Trinity taking our nature both the love of the Father and the Son for as an Holy man observes Sweet is this contemplation doth in some sort abide and reside in our nature therefore the humane Soul of Christ being inflamed and set on fire with the fire of Divine love which is so near it which inhabits and dwells in it must needs be fuller of love than any creatures heart ever was The humane nature of Christ by means of its Union and Conjunction with the Divinity takes in the influence of the Divinity and the Divinity thus personally united to the Humanity must needs fill his soul with that love that no creature was ever filled with therefore we must necessarily suppose there was the greatest love imaginable in Christs humane soul the greatest as was possible there could be in any created nature The Godhead dwelling in Christ bodily that infinite love of God must be supposed in some sense to dwell in the heart of Christ Man How loving how tender how affectionate must that heart be that hath all the love of the Father and the Son poured out into it For consider it the Son receives all from the Father by eternal Generation the Son takes up our nature and dwells in it the humane nature united to the Son takes in the influence of the Fathers and the Sons love by means of its personal Union with the Son And thus the humane nature is not only warmed but wholly set on fire by the Divinity inhabiting in it Therefore it is well observed by one of the Ancients There is some warmth some heat that comes from Christ the eternal Word into all the Saints hearts In hac anima ipse ignis divinus substantialiter requievisse credendus est Orig. but in Christs humane Soul the very fire of Divine love dwells substantially there it rested substantially for in him the fulness of the Goahead dwells bodily Col. 2.9 Therefore there is the greatest love imaginable to be found even in the humane Soul of Christ More particularly the love that was in the humane Soul of Jesus Christ may be described and set forth under three considerations 1. The heart of Christ-Man was filled with the most sweet tender merciful compassionate dispositions that ever any heart was filled with Hence is it that we have those expressions that he is a merciful and a faithful High Priest Heb. 2.17 that he is touched with the feeling of our infirmities Heb. 3.15 We read also of the bowels of Christ the meekness the gentleness of Christ 2 Cor. 10.1 Never were there such words of love and sweetness spoken by any man as by him never was there such a loving and tender heart as the heart-of Jesus Christ Grace was poured into his lips Psal 45.3 Certainly never were there such words of love sweetness and tenderness spoken here upon this earth as those last words of his which were uttered a little before his Suffering and are recorded in the 13 14 15 16 17 Chapters of John Read over all the Books of love and friendship that were ever written by any of the sons of men they do all come far short of those melting strains of love that are there expressed So sweet and amiable was the conversation of Jesus Christ that it is reported of the Apostle Peter in the Ecclesiastical History that after Christs Ascension he wept so abundantly that he Quoties recordaretur illius suavissimae conversationis Christi was always seen wiping his face from the tears and being asked why he wept so he answered He could not chuse but weep as often as he thought of that most sweet conversation of Jesus Christ 2. The love of Christ as Man or which was in his humane nature may be seen in the compliance of his humane will with the Divine will in point of suffering It is true it was the Divine will that gave up the humane nature to suffer Joh. 6.51 The bread which I will give is my flesh which I will give for the life of the world It was the Divine will that gave up the humanity to suffer yet his humane will complied with the Divine will Father not as I will but as thou wilt There is a will and a will in Christ a Divine will and a humane will and the humane will complies with the Divine will Father save me from this hour nevertheless for this cause came I to this hour Joh. 12.27 Hence is it that the Apostle tells us he was obedient unto the death Phil. 2.8 The Lord Jesus knew right-well how great a burden the weight and pressure of his Fathers wrath was and yet he was content to undergo this burden for our sakes The cup which my Father hath given me to drink shall not I drink of it Joh. 18.11 I have a baptism to be baptized with and how am I straitned till it be accomplished Luk. 12.50 It is true had he not been God he could never have stood under such a burden as the burden of Divine wrath and had not his love been more than a created love had his love been the love of a meer creature he would never have undertaken such a work But being supported by the Godhead he was inabled to undergo his Sufferings and also his humane will influenced by the Deity was made willing to suffer therefore it is said For their sakes I sanctifie my self Joh. 17.19 There was a concurrence of his Divine and humane will in his suffering the Divine will in the person of the Son sanctifies and sets apart the humane nature to suffer the humane will concurs with the Divine and is made willing to suffer Joh. 10.17 18. Therefore doth my Father love me because I lay down my life The person that lays down his life is the Son of God incarnate the life which he lays down is the life of his Humanity for the life of his Divinity could never be laid down Now the Divine person had the
standing in such near relation to Christ as to be his body a part of himself this is the reason that Christ hath preserved it and will preserve it to the end of the world Mat. 18. I will build my Church See here he calls it his Church he challengeth a peculiar interest in it Feed the Church of God which he hath redeemed with his own blood Act. 20.28 Therefore the Church standing so nearly related to Christ no wonder Christ takes such care of it Learn from hence to whom to attribute all the deliverances of the Church it is our faithful omnipotent sympathizing compassionate Head that hath been the Author of all the preservations and deliverances we have seen and upon him we must depend for the time to come Lastly Vse 5 This may serve as a ground to confirm our faith touching the certian glorification of the Saints A part of our nature is already in the Head of the Church Christ man who is the Head of the Church is exalted to the highest state of glory God hath highly exalted him c. Phil. 2.9 Now though it be true Christ must be allowed his preheminence the head hath a preheminence above the members yet the members shall follow the head they shall have their measure of glory though not the same degree of glory In Heb. 6. ult we read how Christ is entred into heaven as our fore-runner If Christ be in Heaven the Saints who are members of his body shall certainly follow after It is the last passage in that last prayer of our Saviour That the love wherewith thou hast loved me may be in them and I in them Joh. 17. ult It is the inestimable priviledge of the Saints saith Calvin upon this Text that Christ was beloved of the Father for our sakes that we might be partakers of the same love If the Father hath glorified Christ he will certainly glorifie us if we be his members Only we must consider what is spoken in the last clause of all and I in them As we expect to be comprehended in that love with which our Head is embraced we must be sure to be in him We must see that we be in Christ and Christ in us we must have true and real union with him and if we be thus united to him then the love wherewith the Father hath loved him shall be communicated to us therefore let us endeavour to make sure of our Union with Christ and in-being in him and then as the Father hath commended his love to him the Head of the Church in glorifying him he will also commend his love to us in glorifying us in like manner The end of the fifth Sermon SERMON VI. Eph. 3. vers 17 18 19. That Christ may dwell in your hearts by saith that ye being rooted and grounded in love May be able to comprehend with all Saints what is the breadth and length and depth and height And to know the love of Christ which passeth knowledge 7. THE seventh Particular to demonstrate the greatness of the Love of Christ in the work of his Incarnation is this The love of Christ in his Incarnation appears in this In that by means of the Incarnation of the Son of God our nature as it is in the Head of the Church is restored to its ancient purity integrity and perfection It is a good observation of one of the Ancients Filius Dei naturam nostram sibi conjunxit ut eam in se primò per seipsum ad pristinam pulchritudinem restitueret Cyril The Son of God hath joyned our nature to himself that first of all he might repair our nature in himself and by himself restore our nature to its ancient beauty To understand this we must know that Adam had lost original Righteousness infected and corrupted mans nature with the contagion and taint of Original sin Now the Son of God by his Incarnation hath repaired our nature and restored it to its primitive beauty and perfection The first Adam by his Fall left our nature under the contagion of Original sin the Son of God in his Incarnation took up our nature without sin and as the second Adam represents our nature in himself pure and spotless Such an High-Priest became us who is holy harmless undefiled separate from sinners Heb. 9.26 So that this is the singular priviledge of Believers although they be poor sinful creatures in themselves groaning under the body of sin and death yet they have this to glory in that their Head the Lord Jesus is without sin and presents their nature pure and spotless before the Throne of God In him is no sin 1 Joh. 3.5 He doth not say In him was no sin that is true indeed for in him was no sin neither was there any guile found in his mouth But the Apostle saith here In him is no sin It is as much as if he should say As Christ was without sin here on Earth so he is without sin in Heaven he presents our nature pure and spotless before the Throne of God This is the singular priviledge of Believers that they may glory in Christ their Head when they have nothing to glory in of their own Hence is it that which the Apostle faith We glory in Christ Jesus or we boast in Christ Jesus c. Phil. 3.3 as much as to say We do not boast in our selves we do not glory in our own righteousness but we glory in the Righteousness of Christ we glory and boast in this that we have that righteousness and perfection in our Head which we have not in our selves 8. The love of Christ in his Incarnation appears in this In that by means of the Incarnation of the Son of God there is a foundation laid for our acceptance with God This is my beloved Son in whom I am well pleased Mat. 3. ult This is spoken of the Son incarnate after he was made man God the Father delights in the Son when incarnate To understand this we must know as he was the eternal Son the express image of the Fathers person proceeding from the Father by eternal Generation so he was eternally his delight This is clear from Prov. 8.30 I was daily his delight Now that which we are farther to consider is As the Father delights in the Son as his eternal Son so he delights in the Son when incarnate when made man he delights in the Son when cloathed with our nature the eternal Son being the object of his Fathers delight and complacency and the Son taking our nature into personal Union with himself the love delight and complacency of the Father redounds and overflows if I may so express it unto the humane nature assumed Joh. 3.35 The Father loveth the Son And how doth he love him Not only as the Son simply considered but he loves him as the Son incarnate he loves him as the Son come into our nature he loves him as he is Mediator To open this a little
so framed by God as that it was set and inclined to do that which was good for otherwise it could not have been said of man as it was said of all the other Works of God that God beheld all the things which he had made and behold they were all good very good If man had not been made with such a frame and constitution at first as that he had not the least inclination to evil but that he was framed and made so as that he was fitted to do good it could not be said of man as of other the Works of God That they were good but God made all things very good so also did he make man Man was made upright according to the Image of God and this is that which is commonly called Original Righteousness Man was indued at first with original righteousness now God creating man in such a state of Purity and Righteousness at first he doth still require that purity and righteousness from man in which he was at first created for God may justly expect that from man which first he gave him God created him in a state of Purity and God expects man should retain that purity in the inward frame and disposition of his heart And therefore Divines observe As Original sin is forbidden so Original righteousness is commanded in the last Commandment when it is said Thou shalt not covet 2. The Law requires actual obedience to whatsoever is commanded by it The righteousness of the Law speaks on this wise That the man that doth these things shall live by them Rom. 10.5 The Law requires that there should be a doing an actual performance of the things that are commanded by it and the Law saith Cursed is every one that continues not in all things that are written in the book of the Law to do them Gal. 3.10 Now our Saviour sums up the duty of the Moral Law in those two great Precepts the first is That we should love the Lord our God with all the heart and with all the soul and with all the mind and the second is That we should love our neighbour as our self Mark 12.30 Now Christ being made under the Law for us took upon him all this debt of obedience which the Law required of us 1. Whereas the Law of God requires purity and integrity of nature the Lord Jesus assuming our nature adorns and invests it with all that habitual purity and sanctity which the Law of God requires Hence was it that Christ took up our nature without sin brought original righteousness into it and hath preserved it in a state of purity all along Christs Conception and Nativity were without sin therefore is he said to be that holy thing which should be born of the Virgin Luk. 1.35 The inward dispositions of Christs soul were such as the Law of God required to be therefore is the Law said to be in his heart Psal 40.8 And in general it is said of him that he was holy harmless undefiled separate from sinners Heb. 7.26 That in him was no sin 1 Joh. 3.5 That he was a Lamb without blemish and without spot 1 Pet. 1.19 All these things speak the Purity and Sanctity of his nature that Christ in the inward frame of his nature answered that habitual purity the Law of God required and called for 2. Whereas the Law required actual obedience to what is commanded by it Christ being made under the Law for us left no part of the Law unfulfilled Christ did perfectly perform in thought word and deed what the Law commanded He fulfilled the Law as to every branch of it this we heard before that not one iota or tittle of the Law was to pass away till all was fulfilled All was perfectly and exactly fulfilled by Christ Hence is it that he is called the holy One and the Just Acts 3.14 Hence also is it that he challengeth the Jews Which of you can accuse me of sin Joh. 8.46 And it was prophesied of him before That he had done no violence neither was any deceit found in his mouth Isa 53.9 Christ performed all duties towards God and all duties towards man 1. For duties towards God He loved his Father perfectly feared him perfectly obeyed him perfectly Hence is it said of him He always did the things that were pleasing in his sight Joh. 8.29 And therefore when he came to dye he could say I have glorified thee on earth I have finished the work that thou gavest me to do Joh. 17.4 2. As for duties towards man Christ was so exact in all moral Righteousness that in the matter of paying Tribute though he knew he was not in strictness bound to it yet to prevent offence and avoid all appearance of evil he would work a Miracle rather than leave it undone Mat. 17.24 4. The fourth Proposition to illustrate the greatness of the love of Christ in being made under the Law for us is this Christ having taken upon him the whole debt of obedience which the Law required persevered and continued in the course of his obedience till all was finished Hence is it said of him He became obedient unto death even the death of the Cross Phil. 2.8 Christ was obedient all along his obedience lasted throughout his whole life he was obedient unto death It is an emphatical expression He was obedient unto death that is his obedience continued through the course of his life and continued unto death and his death was the last act of his obedience Hence was it when our Saviour came to dye he used this speech It is finished He had finished all that obedience which the Law had required and his Father had injoyned him The Law requires constant perpetual obedience as well as perfect obedience The Law requires obedience not only in one time and season but in the whole of our life Now there was no failing in any part of Christs obedience to the law at any time He was never found guilty of any sin in the whole course of his life Hence is that expression Isa 53.9 In him was found no violence neither was any deceit in his mouth And as he was never found guilty of the least sin so he persevered in all acts of obedience to the last Hence is it said Joh. 4.34 His meat and drink was to do the will of him that sent him and to finish his work 5. The fifth Proposition is The greatness of Christs love in being made under the Law appears in this In that what Christ did in a way of obedience to the Law it was for us Hence is it said that Christ is made sin for us and we are made the righteousness of God in him 2 Cor. 5.21 Christ took upon him our person Christ sustained the persons of all the Elect Christ did that for us which we should have done Hence is it that Christ is said to be the second Adam The obedience which Christ performed to the Father was in
a command and call him to lay it down and therefore they who are self-murderers and would take away their own lives do violate the Law of their Creation they put that in their own power which God alone hath a power over they take upon them to dispose of their own lives which God alone who is their Creator and Soveraign Lord hath power to dispose of for none but he that gave us our lives hath a power and right to dispose of them But now Christ was God as well as Man and therefore Christ had a right to dispose of his own life I have power saith he to lay it down and I have power to take it again Christ as he was God being the Author Conserver and Maintainer of his own life as he was Man had power to dispose of that life and this was his love to us that he laid down his life for us which he had power to dispose of We come now to the second thing and that is to shew you how it was that Christ laid down his life for us This I shall open to you in several Particulars 1. Christ is said to lay down his life for us in that he was ready to do it He did not refuse to part with his life for us but was most ready to give it up for our sakes Greater love than this hath no man that he lay down his life for his friends that is greater love than this hath no man that he is ready to lay down his life for his friends he is certainly the best friend who is ready to venture and hazard his life for his friend Such a friend was Christ he was ready to offer and give up his life for our sakes As Paul said He counted not his life dear to him so he might finish his course with joy and the ministry which he had received of the Lord Jesus Act. 20.24 And in another place he saith He was ready not to be bound only but also to dye at Jerusalem for the Name of our Lord Jesus Act. 21.13 So this was much more true of Christ he counted not his life dear to him but was ready to offer it up for our sakes I am the good shepherd 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 the good shepherd giveth his life for his sheep Joh. 10.11 Here is the same Phrase as in the Text. Grotius observes upon the former Text 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 mortem non defugere that the Phrase to lay down a mans life signifies not to decline death not to shun death Christ is the good Shepherd he doth not refuse to dye for the preservation of his sheep It is said of Paul and Barnabas that they were men that had hazarded their lives for the Name of the Lord Jesus Act. 15.25 They had hazarded their lives The words in the Original are They had delivered up their souls 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 that is their lives their lives were not actually taken from them but the meaning is they carried their lives in their hands they were ready to give them up they often put their lives in hazard they were ready to have parted with them so Christ was ready to expose and give up his life for the good of his people This is one thing but the least thing 2. The second Particular for clearing of it is this Christ did freely and of his own accord give up his life and subject himself to death when there was no necessity of nature nor violence from men that could have compelled him thereunto To understand this we must know That all other men besides Christ being found sinners were under a Law of death by reason of sin For by one man sin entred into the world and death by sin Rom. 5.12 And the wages of sin is death Rom. 6. ult But now it was otherwise with Christ Christ being not a Sinner and his Humanity being united to the second Person in Trinity he was exempt from the power of death and all manner of sufferings any further than he in a way of voluntary condescension was pleased to subject himself to death and sufferings This our Saviour plainly declares to us Joh. 10.15 I lay down my life for my sheep and more fully vers 18. No man taketh it from me but I lay it down of my self The Divinity in Christ could if it had pleased have preserved the humane nature from death and all manner of suffering but saith our Saviour I lay it down of my self when no man could have taken away my life without my permission yet I did freely and of my own accord give up my life It is possible that one man may venture his life and expose himself to death for another but then he that doth so venture his life for another must otherwise first or last have dyed according to the course of Nature But now it was not thus with Christ there was no necessity of Nature compelling Christ to dye but only upon supposition of his own free condescension It is true Christ was born a mortal man subject to suffering and death as we are but that was only his own voluntary submission and condescension Voluntar submissio Calvin For look upon the flesh of Christ as it was personally united to the Word the second Person in Trinity so that flesh of his setting aside the consideration of his own voluntary subjecting of it to death and suffering I say that flesh of his by means of its union with the Word the second Person in Trinity had been immortal and impassible and by reason of that union immortality was due to it but it was for our sakes and the sheeps sake which he dyed for that he made himself passible and mortal I say it was for the sheeps sake that he that was impassible and immortal made himself passible and mortal Hence is that expression of one of the Ancients Impassibilis Deus non dedignatus est esse homo passibilis immortalis mortis legibus subjacere Leo. The impassible God did not disdain to become a passible man and he that was immortal to subject himself to the Laws of death Christ in the time of his death and suffering did so far suspend the virtue of his Divinity as that the glory and virtue of his Divinity did not extend it self so far to his flesh as to keep him from suffering and dying It is true the power of the Divinity supported Christ in dying therefore is it said that By the power of the Eternal Spirit he offered himself without spot to God Heb. 9.14 but it did not hinder him from dying If the glory and virtue of the Divinity had exerted it self fully in Christ it would have kept him from death and all manner of suffering But such was the love of Christ to us that the Divinity in Christ suspended its virtue so far that Christ might be in a capacity to suffer and dye for us And if you
the second Person in Trinity was conjoyned with the flesh and it was his own flesh that he gave for the life of the world Hence is that speech of Athanasius 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 Athanas That very flesh was not the flesh of any other person but it was the flesh of the Word himself And the same Athanasius hath another expression to the same purpose They do erre saith he who say that there was another Son which did suffer and another which did not suffer for there was not another besides the Son of God who underwent death and sufferings for us The Word the second Person in Trinity was conjoyned with the flesh Though the flesh only was capable of suffering yet the Word was in conjunction with the flesh therefore our Saviour saith It is my flesh which I will give for the life of the world Joh. 6. It was his own flesh and not the flesh of any other To illustrate and confirm this yet farther we ought to consider that in the sufferings of Christ there was the voluntary humiliation of that great Person who was God as well as man He who was in the form of God emptied himself taking on him the form of a servant and he humbled himself and became obedient to the death even the death of the Cross Phil. 2.6 7. Here are two Acts spoken of 1. His emptying himself 2. His humbling himself His emptying himself was discovered in his Incarnation and taking on the form of a servant His humbling himself was seen in his sufferings and in the work of his Satisfaction in being obedient to death even the death of the Cross Not but that his Incarnation was also a part of his humbling of himself but the Apostle speaks of these two distinctly He tells us That he who was in the form of God emptied himself taking on him the form of a servant and he humbled himself and became obedient unto death even the death of the Cross Now both these Acts of his his humbling and his emptying himself they are the Acts of the Person they are the acts of that Person who was in the form of God It was he who being in the form of God who emptied himself by taking upon him the form of a servant and it was he that was in the form of God that humbled himself and became obedient to the death even the death of the Cross So that in the Satisfaction of Christ we ought to consider more than the bare oblation of the humane nature we ought to consider the conjunction of the Word the second Person in Trinity with the flesh and we ought to consider the voluntary humiliation of that glorious Person the Son of God who being in the form of God did not only stoop so low as to come into our nature but being in that nature humbled himself so far as to become a Sacrifice for us I say in the Sacrifice of Christ we ought to consider the will of the Person who being God as well as man there was the condescension of the Divine will as well as the concourse of his humane will The Son of God being in our nature voluntarily offers himself in that nature as a Sacrifice for our sins 4. The fourth Particular to be spoken to is this The form of Christs Satisfaction and that consists in this That Christ made a full compensation to the Justice of God for the sins of his people There are three things that concur to make up this 1. That Christ suffered the substance of what we ought to suffer Hence it is said That Christ suffered for us 1 Pet. 2.21 And The chastisement of our peace was upon him Isa 53. And By his stripes we are healed 1 Pet. 2.24 The stripes that should have been laid upon us were laid upon Christ so that Christ suffered the substance of what we ought to suffer The Law pronounced a Curse upon all the transgressors of it Cursed is every one that continueth not in all things that are written in the book of the Law to do them Now Christ was made a curse for us Gal. 3.10 If Christ did not suffer the whole punishment due to us for our sins then that part of the punishment which he did not suffer remains still for us to be suffered for this is certain Not one iota or tittle of the Law shall pass away till all be fulfilled Mat. 5.18 The whole preceptive part of the Law must be fulfilled the minatory or threatning part of the Law must be fulfilled Therefore if there be any part of that punishment which the Law would inflict upon us not undergone it remains to be fulfilled by us But now Christ hath redeemed us from the whole Curse of the Law Gal. 3.10 Therefore Christ hath born the punishment that we ought to undergo but of this more hereafter 2. Christ hath suffered what Divine Justice could demand otherwise there was not a full compensation to Divine Justice But now this is the excellency of Christs Satisfaction that in the Satisfaction of Christ there is as much given as Divine Justice could demand Rom. 3.25 Whom God hath set forth to be a propitiation through faith in his blood The scope of the Apostles argument tends to this That it is a righteous thing with God to forgive sins when he hath received satisfaction for them Now if the compensation had not been perfect that was given the Righteousness of God had not so much appeared in the forgiveness of sins but God having received a full compensation having received whatever Divine Justice could require at the hand of Christ now he is faithful and just to forgive us our sins It being therefore a part of Gods Justice to give remission of sins to as many as Christs Satisfaction is applied it is a certain sign Christ hath suffered as much as Divine Justice could demand or require 3. Lastly Christ having suffered the substance of what we were to suffer and Christ having suffered what Divine Justice could demand God is perfectly pleased and satisfied in what Christ hath suffered and hath nothing more to lay to the charge of his people Rom. 8.33 Who shall lay any thing to the charge of Gods elect it is God that justifieth who is he that condemneth it is Christ that dyed When the debt is fully paid the Creditor hath full satisfaction he desires no more Thus Christ having fully discharged our debt God expects no more from us to answer his Justice he is fully satisfied in what Christ hath done that is the fourth thing in the description 5. The fifth and last thing is this What the effects of Christs Satisfaction are and they are three 1. The averting and turning away of Gods wrath 2. The purchase of pardon of sin 3. The procuring of eternal life for us 1. One effect of Christs Satisfaction was the averting and turning away of Gods wrath God is highly offended and displeased with us as we are sinners Sin
infinite Justice and Righteousness then he must needs see himself worthy of condemnation and nothing can give ease and quiet to trembling consciences in this case but for a man to turn his eye upon the Satisfaction of Christ and see the Justice of God satisfied in Christ In Christ the Justice of God is satisfied to the utmost upon him was the wrath of God poured out to the full and the whole punishment that was due to us was inflicted upon him hither it is therefore that we must flye for refuge when-ever we are under the sense of guilt and under fears of condemnation by reason of sin there is no refuge but by flying to the Satisfaction of Christ The end of the fourth Sermon SERMON V. Joh. 15.13 Greater love hath no man than this that a man lay down his life for his friends I Proceed now to the seventh Proposition which is this It was the compact and agreement between the Father and the Son that the Son the second Person in Trinity should take our nature and in that nature become our Surety and undertake the payment and discharge of our debt for us I say this was the compact and agreement between the Father and the Son hence is it said The counsel of peace was between them both Zach. 6.13 Some Learned men render it Between those two Inter illos duos that is between the Father and the Son the counsel of peace was between them both Here it may be said Object How could there be such a compact or an agreement as this is between the Father and the Son concerning mans Redemption and Salvation God is but one the Divine Essence is but one and the Divine Will but one How then could there be this compact and agreement between the Father and the Son since they are both one and the same God and have one and the same essential Will To this the Answer is plain Answ that as the Essence of the Father and the Son is but one so the Will is but one But for as much as the Father and the Son are considered as distinct Persons so the counsel of peace is said to be between them both Here are two Persons spoken of from which also the third the Holy Ghost is not to be excluded but all the three Persons agree in one and the same will Now according to the counsel of the whole Trinity the Son the second Person of the three is to take our nature and in that nature to become our Surety hence is it said That Jesus is made a surety of a better Testament Heb. 7.22 And Christ being made a Surety by virtue of the compact that was between him and the Father he is to undertake the payment of our debt for that is the nature of a Surety A Surety is properly an Vndertaker 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 one that undertakes anothers cause and debt There are some Divines that call this compact between the Father and the Son the Covenant of Redemption and this Covenant of Redemption they describe after this fort namely The Covenant of Redemption say they it is the agreement between the Father and the Son who was designed to be Mediator concerning the Elect who are supposed to lye in sin and misery by their own demerit together with the rest of men I say concerning the Elect to be converted sanctified and saved by virtue of the obedience of the Son as Mediator which was to be performed to the Father this they call the Covenant of Redemption The Apostle doth plainly intimate this compact or agreement that was between the Father and the Son Heb. 10.5 6 7. Wherefore when he cometh into the world he saith Sacrifice and offering thou wouldst not but a body hast thou prepared me In burnt-offering and sacrifice for sin thou hast had no pleasure Then said I Lo I come in the volume of the book it is written of me to do thy will O God When Christ saith here Lo I come in the volume of the book it is written of me to do thy will O God he plainly refers to that ancient Decree and Compact that was between the Father and himself It was the Fathers will from Eternity that the Son should take a body and offer up that body to make satisfaction for the sins of the Elect and the Son consented to this will of the Father and what he did in time in assuming a body and in offering up that body was in pursuance of that ancient Decree and Compact that was between him and the Father therefore it is said In the volume of the book it is written I come to do thy will O God The eighth Proposition is this That Christ becoming our Surety stands responsible to the Law and is liable to pay all the debt we owe to God Hence are those expressions that he was made under the Law Gal. 4.4 That he was made a Curse for us Gal. 3.10 To understand this we must know that Christ is to be considered as a common Person as sustaining the persons of all the Elect. Look as the first Adam was a common person the obedience which he was bound to perform we were obliged unto and therefore when he sinned we sinned in him and when he became obnoxious to the curse and to death by reason of sin we also became obnoxious to the same Curse and death in him Rom. 5.12 Wherefore as by one man sin entred into the world and death by sin and so death passed upon all men for that all have sinned So Christ is to be considered as a common Person Christ undertaking to be our Surety the obedience which we were bound to perform Christ is bound to perform and the punishment which we are obnoxious unto by reason of our violation of the Law Christ becoming our Surety is obnoxious to the same punishment Hence is it said of the first Adam 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 That he is the figure of him that was to come Rom. 5.14 The figure of him that was to come that is the Type of Christ the first Adam is the Type of the second Adam How so As the first Adam was a common person and all his seed were comprehended in him and represented by him so the second Adam is to be looked upon as a common person and all his seed are comprehended in him and represented by him therefore Christ is called the second Adam 1 Cor. 15.45 The first Adam was made a living soul the second Adam was made a quickning Spirit Here it may be inquired How was it that the first Adam was made a common person And how was it that Christ the second Adam became a common person I answer briefly The first Adam was made a common person by Divine ordination and appointment and by the Law of his Creation he being the head and root of all mankind and Christ was made a common person partly by Divine ordination and appointment and
punishment because he was able to satisfie the Justice of God by his sufferings without suffering to Eternity 2. As for that which we call the Worm of Conscience which is one thing in the punishment of the Damned Christ could not undergo that and the reason is because that which is called the worm of conscience is an inseparable adjunct of sin inhering in the person in whom it is now Christ was most free from sin in his own person it is true he had sin imputed to him the guilt of our sins was imputed to him but he had no guilt of his own and therefore he could not have this worm of conscience for that which we call the worm of conscience is nothing else but conscience reflecting upon a mans actions and tormenting him upon the account of the obliquity and deformity that hath appeared in them Now Christ having done nothing that was contrary to the Law He had done no violence neither was guile found in his mouth as the Prophet speaks Isa 53. it was not possible he should undergo the worm of conscience because this supposeth sin in the person that underwent it which Christ was most free from 3. As for that of Despair some Divines are of opinion that despair is not properly in the Damned and the reason they give is this As hope in the godly after the last Judgment shall cease because hope shall then be swallowed up in fruition so they suppose that despair shall cease in the wicked because that perdition and destruction is then actually come upon them which before they feared But it may be said Do not the Damned see that they are miserable and that they shall be miserable for ever and doth not this cause them to despair To this they answer It is true the Damned see themselves in that misery from which they shall never be delivered but yet it may still be doubted whether this may be called Despair yea or no and the reason is say they because despair supposeth a sense of some future time but now in Eternity there is no time The Damned have a certain knowledge of misery that they are under they feel it at the present and therefore say they that which they do already feel they need not fear Hence is that speech of one of the Ancients Grief hath no fear in it because fear doth no longer torment the mind when a man begins already to suffer what he did fear But I know not whether it be worth the while to dispute whether despair be properly in the Damned yea or no. This I am sure of that the Damned know that they are miserable and they know that this misery shall continue always they know that it shall not be otherwise with them than now it is and this is equivalent unto despair but this is rather an adjunct of their torment and punishment than the substance of it therefore it was not necessary Christ should undergo it 2. We say That despair as it is opposite to the grace of hope so it could not be in Christ because despair at it is opposite to hope speaks a deordination and it would suppose some sin which Christ was most free from and therefore Christ when he was in the very 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 and height of all his sufferings when he had lost the sense and feeling of Gods love yet he manifested the highest faith when he saith My God my God why hast thou forsaken me Though he had not the sense and feeling of Gods love but complains that he was forsaken yet he calls God his God and that manifested his faith and where there is faith there will be hope for hope is the daughter of faith therefore despair was not in Christ But though Christ did not suffer some circumstances and adjuncts of punishment that the Damned suffer yet Christ suffered the substance of what we were to suffer and this is that which I must now begin to speak unto And here I am to shew how it was that Christ suffered the substance of what we ought to have suffered 1. Christ made himself passible and mortal for our sakes that is he made himself subject to suffering and death for our sakes Sin is the inlet of suffering and death had there been no sin there had been no suffering or death It was sin that brought in both suffering and death when man had sinned God first said to the woman I will greatly multiply thy sorrow and thy conception in sorrow shalt thou bring forth children Gen. 3.16 To the man he saith Cursed be the ground for thy sake in sorrow shalt thou eat of it all the days of thy life Gen. 3.17 Here we see sin brought in sorrow and suffering so also sin brought in death Gen. 2. In the day thou eatest thou shalt surely dye Rom. 5.12 Wherefore as by one man sin entred into the world and death by sin Now Christ our Surety that he might bear the punishment that was due to us he put himself into a state of suffering and death for us sin having brought in suffering and death into the world as the just demerit of it and the curse that was due to it Christ I say being our Surety put himself into a state of suffering and death for us To understand this we must know that although the Son of God had assumed our nature yet he needed not unless he had pleased to have subjected himself unto suffering and unto death For Christ assuming our nature without sin was in respect of the innocency of his Humanity and also in respect of the personal Union exempted both from the Law of suffering and of death but Christ becoming our Surety and being to bear the whole punishment that was due to us by reason of sin and it being the nature of the Curse 1. That we should be liable to suffering and death And 2. That we should actually undergo suffering and death therefore Christ did voluntarily undergo both these 1. He did subject himself to a passible and mortal state And 2. He did actually undergo suffering and death for us 1. Christ did subject himself to a passible estate he that was above all suffering made himself subject to suffering for our sake Hence is it said that he was a man of sorrows and acquainted with grief Isa 53.3 Hence also is it said He was tempted in all points like unto us sin only excepted Heb. 4.15 Christ was exposed to all manner of sufferings and temptations whatsoever excepting sin 2. Christ did subject himself to a mortal estate for our sakes The flesh of Christ as it was united to the second Person in Trinity who was God had been immortal had he not voluntarily subjected himself to death for our sakes but that being part of the Curse that man should become mortal and subject to death by reason of sin Christ was willing to subject himself to that part of the Curse Dust thou art and to dust
more sweet and comfortable is that speech of Ambrose My mind or spirit is crucified in Christ Mens mea in Christo crucifixa est Ambr. the meaning of which I take to be That the punishment which was due to my mind or spirit is laid upon Christ and I having suffered that in my mind or spirit in Christ my Head which I deserved to suffer I hope hereby to be set free from that punishment Christ I say suffered in his Soul hence is it said that Christ was smitten of God Isa 53.4 We did esteem him stricken smitten of God and it pleased the Lord to bruise him and to put him to grief vers 10. Christ was stricken of God immediately stricken in his Soul Psal 69.26 They persecute him whom thou hast smitten Mat. 26.31 I will smite the shepherd If Christ was smitten of God how should that be but immediately in his Soul Hence is that of one of the Ancients God saith he was justly angry with us for our sins and Christ interposing himself as the middle person took off the stroke and bare the punishment that hung over us Neither may it seem strange to us that our Saviour should suffer in his Soul for as much as he was pleased to take upon him the guilt of all our sins It is a memorable passage of a late modern Divine The guilt Dickson Therapeut Sacr. saith he of all our sins wickednesses and most hainous offences which from the beginning of the world to the end of it have been committed by any of the Elect all these were imputed to one Christ altogether and all at once and although Christ by taking the guilt of all these sins upon him did not pollute or defile that holy Soul of his yet nevertheless he did burthen his Soul with them by obliging himself to suffer the punishment that was due to the sins of the Elect as if so be those very sins had in some sort been his own sins Now saith he whenas we see the most profligate and impure sinners lyars thieves adulterers and the like when we see these they cannot patiently hear themselves to be called lyars or thieves or adulterers though guilty of such enormous crimes although it is manifest that they are guilty of them neither can they bear the shame and disgrace of their own guilt that yet doth manifestly lye upon them with how great a grief and passion of mind with how great a darkening of that sanctity and glory that was in our Saviour must we suppose that Christ did take upon his shoulders this most noisom dunghil of all our sins than which nothing could be more abhorring from the purity and sanctity of nature 4. Christ suffered death it self for us hence is it said That he tasted death for everyman Heb. 2.9 Nothing less than death could satisfie the Law the sentence of the Law was That the soul that sins shall dye therefore he that will be our surety and bear the punishment due to us must undergo death it self for us Some of the Papists tell us That such was the dignity of Christs person that the least drop of his Blood the least tear the least sigh of his heart would have been sufficient to redeem us But our Divines do well answer To what purpose then were all the rest of Christs sufferings his temptations his grief his reproaches and all that which he underwent both in his life and death If one drop of Christs blood had been sufficient to redeem us then all the rest that Christ suffered must needs be supposed to be superfluous and unnecessary But we must know that notwithstanding the dignity of Christs person the Law requires death In the day that thou eatest thou shalt dye the death therefore Divine Justice demanded the same punishment to be undergone which was threatned by the Law therefore death being threatned by the Law nothing less than death would satisfie Divine Justice The Apostle tells us in the Epistle to the Hebrews That under the Law without shedding of blood there was no remission the sacrifice must be killed and slain before there could be remission of sins Christ therefore being the true Sacrifice for our sins he was to be slain and put to death before remission of sins could be obtained for us It is true there were many advantages that did accrue by the dignity of Christs person some of which are such as these which Divines mention 1. That the death of one should be sufficient for the Redemption of so many If Christs person had not been of that dignity and worth it could not have been supposed that the death and suffering of one person would have sufficed for the Redemption of so many It is well observed by one of the Ancients If Christ had not been God how could he alone have been sufficient to have been a price for our Redemption Therefore there is that advantage which ariseth from the dignity of Christs person that the excellency of his person is such he being an infinite person that he is able to make satisfaction for all 2. The dignity of Christs person made the death of Christ to be meritorious for what may we not suppose that so great a Person who was of equal Majesty and Glory with the Father should not merit at the hand of his Father 3. The dignity of Christs person was available as to this That some circumstances of punishment which were not fit for him to undergo Christ undergoing that which was equivalent might be omitted as one circumstance which Divines mention is this namely That the torments of Hell which were to be suffered and undergone by us in the next life were suffered and undergone by Christ in this life These advantages did accrue from the dignity of Christs person yet notwithstanding this dignity of Christs person he that was to be our Surety was to undergo the substance of that punishment that we were to undergo Now death being the punishment that was to be suffered by the transgressors of the Law as being threatned by the Law Christ being our Surety was to undergo and suffer death for us 5. Christ did not only undergo natural death but he also tasted of supernatural death and so by consequence suffered the pains and torments of Hell for us Christ suffered the whole curse of the Law as to the substance of it Hence is that of the Apostle Christ hath redeemed us from the curse of the Law being made a curse for us Gal. 3.13 Now the Curse of the Law was In the day that thou eatest thou shalt dye the death or as it may be rendred In dying thou shalt dye that is thou shalt dye doubly thou shalt dye a twofold death thou shalt dye naturally and thou shalt dye spiritually thou shalt dye a natural death in having thy soul separated from thy body and thou shalt dye a spiritual death in having thy soul separated from me Therefore it is well observed by one
which was That he did not only feel the wonted presence of his Father withdrawn from him but he saw God alienated from him yea he saw his Justice armed against him to revenge upon him the sins of the Elect. O this was more than a thousand deaths Learn from what hath been opened Vse 1 how great a pain the pain of loss is Learn how great a misery it is to be separated from the sight of God This was so grievous to our Saviour that he could not contain himself from that bitter out-cry we heard of before he crys out in the bitterness of his soul My God my God why hast thou forsaken me O if Christ could not bear the want of the sight of God for so short a season and space foâ—â—â— was but for a short space of time this desertion continued with him how wilt thou bear to be separated from God for ever Mark what the sentence is that will be pronounced upon wicked men at the great Day Depart from me ye cursed into everlasting fire O in those words Depart from me is the very Hell of Hell there is not any thing worse in Hell than this Depart from me Consider also what the Apostle saith 2 Thess 1. Who shall be punished with everlasting destruction from the presence of the Lord. How canst thou bear the thoughts of being separated from God for ever I often think of the expression I heard from a troubled Soul O said that person I have lost God and must be separated from him for ever O can you think what a misery it is to sustain the loss of God and be separated from him for ever It is true wicked men love not God and care not for his presence and therefore they think it will be no great loss for them to be separated from him whom they do not love But when wicked men shall come to understand that there is no happiness but in the injoyment of God and that the last perfection that their Being was capable of was to injoy him though they love not God yet they love themselves though they love not God yet they love happiness therefore though they think it a little thing to be separated from God now they will not think it a little thing to be separated from happiness at last With thee saith the Psalmist is the fountain of life and in thy light we shall see light Psal 36.9 Being separated from God they are separated from light separated from joy separated from happiness separated from every thing that is good God that is the chief good makes every thing good that is so and what can be good where the chief good is absent therefore this will be matter of eternal torment to lost souls that they are destitute and come short of that happiness which their Beings were capable of Here is comfort to deserted Souls Vse 2 Christ himself was deserted therefore if thou be deserted God dealeth no otherwise with thee than he did with Christ thou mayst be beloved of God and not feel it Christ was so he was beloved of the Father and yet had no present sense and feeling of his love This may be a great comfort and support to holy Souls under the suspension of those comforts and manifestations which sometimes they have felt Christ himself underwent such a suspension therefore such a suspension of Divine comfort may consist with Gods love Thou mayst conclude possibly I am a Hypocrite and therefore God hath forsaken me this is the complaint of some doubting Christians I am a Hypcorite and therefore God hath forsaken me but thou hast no reason so to conclude there was no failure in Christs obedience and yet Christ was forsaken in point of comfort therefore desertion in point of comfort may consist with truth of grace yea with the highest measure of grace so it did in our Saviour It is true there is a root in us of this desertion some sin of ours that oftentimes occasions this desertion It was not so with Christ Christ had no sin of his own for which he was deserted he only bare the guilt of our sins and he was deserted for a time that we might not be deserted for ever But though there be that in us that may occasion desertion yet this is some relief to us that Christ hath undergone desertion though not for any sin of his own as we do and the greatest relief of all is that Christ was deserted that we might not be deserted the face of God was hid from him for a time that so it might not be hid from us for ever Wherefore to conclude this point If thou be one that hast fled for refuge to the hope that is set before us if thou hast come to Christ and believed on him in truth thou needst not fear that thou shalt be deserted of God for ever because Christ hath born desertion for us the Lord may hide his face from thee for a time but he will not hide it for ever because Christ hath suffered this part of the punishment due to us he hath born that absence of Divine comfort which thou deservest to lye under for ever Christ hath suffered dereliction for us The end of the eighth Sermon SERMON IX Joh. 15.13 Greater love hath no man than this that a man lay down his life for his friends HAving shewed already how our Saviour underwent the Pain of loss in his spiritual dereliction or desertion it remains that I should shew how it was that he suffered the pain of sense in being made a Curse for us That which Divines call the Pain of sense is a most perfect sense of the wrath of God and all the miseries that do attend it it doth I say In vivo efficaci sensuâ—irae Divinae consist in a quick and lively sense of the wrath of God Now our Saviour in being made a curse for us had this perfect sense of Gods wrath and felt those miseries that do attend it as we shall shew more by and by That Christ was made a curse for us the Scripture is clear the Apostle tells us expresly in that known Text Gal. 3.10 That Christ hath redeemed us from the curse of the Law being made a curse for us Sin was the inlet of the Curse and the Curse was the punishment of sin When Adam had sinned the Lord saith to him Cursed is the ground for thy sake Gen. 3.17 Now if the ground be accursed for Adams sake Adam himself must needs be much more accursed Quod efficit tale est magis tale for that which makes any other thing to be what it is is much more so in it self If therefore Adam be the cause why the ground is cursed Adam himself must needs be much more accursed This is more fully explained in that sentence of the Law Deut. 27.26 Carsed be he that confirmeth not all the words of the Law to do them Every transgressor of the Law is
Christ as to his own sense and apprehension should be as a person loathed and abhorred of God for our sakes who was always beloved of God in himself but let us rather wonder at the greatness of our sins that he that was so dear to God in himself should yet be made the object of his wrath and indignation and be dealt withal as if he were a person hated of God meerly to expiate the guilt of our sins It is an elegant expression which a Learned man hath Quid mirum si maledictus dicitur Deo qui habet in se quod odit Deus hoc est peccatum What wonder is it that he should be accounted accursed of God that hath that upon him which God hates that is sin Christ was looked upon by God as standing guilty of our sins in a way of imputation He hath made him to be sin for us How made him to be sin In a way of imputation Christ had no sin of his own but he was made sin by way of imputation Therefore Christ sustaining the person of a Sinner although he had no sin of his own he is accurst of God the wrath of God breaks forth upon him Neither was it a little wrath that was let forth upon Christ but there was a whole Sea and Deluge of wrath let forth upon Christ so much wrath as the humane nature was capable of bearing so much must we suppose was let in upon him and the reason is because sin deserves the utmost degree of punishment that the nature of the creature is capable of therefore must we suppose that the wrath of God was consummated in our Saviour Whatever wrath the humane nature supported by the Divinity was capable of bearing all that we must suppose was poured out upon our Saviour Hence is that expression of the Prophet I have trodden the wine-press alone and there was no one with me Isa 63.3 Our Saviour in his Passion in his Sufferings in the Garden and on the Cross hath trodden the wine press of Divine wrath the wrath of God was exprest and poured forth upon him to the utmost Now who knows who can conceive what this means Who knows what the power of Gods anger is Who knows what that wrath is that is let forth upon the spirits of the damned Job complains in his afflictions That God hunted him as a fierce lion and that he did shew himself marvellous upon him Job 14.16 Now if God might shew himself thus marvellous and terrible to his own children whom he doth love how marvellous and terrible doth he shew himself to the damned whom he hates Now Christ our Surety though he was always beloved of God as in himself yet he bare the very pains of Hell for us Look therefore what wrath the damned feel who lye under the heat and fierceness of Gods wrath that must Christ feel who is our Surety that we may be delivered from it O let us consider these things and let them sink deeply into our hearts Let us consider with our selves in what wrath it is that God manifests himself to a damned soul in the same wrath did God manifest himself to Christ who was our Surety that so we might be kept from damnation for if Christ had not suffered the pains of Hell for us we must have been left to suffer them our selves 2. Whatever shame whatever ignominy and contempt whatever pain and torment whatever sorrow and grief either in his soul or body our Saviour suffered and underwent upon the Cross he saw plainly that it was the effect of the wrath of God and the just punishment that was due to us for our sins The sting of an affliction is when a man suffers as a guilty person when he seeth clearly that what he suffers he suffers it as an effect of Gods wrath and as a just punishment of sin from an angry God A man might suffer great things as long as he seeth no mixture of wrath in all his sufferings but when he plainly seeth a vein of wrath from God in all his sufferings this is the sting of all his sufferings Now our Saviour though he was most innocent in himself yet he seeth that the Justice of God proceeds against him as standing under the guilt of our sins and whatever was inflicted upon him was nothing else but the effect of Divine wrath due to us The death of Christ was a shameful death and a painful death 1. Crucifixion or the death of the Cross was a shameful or ignominious death Hence is that expression of the Apostle Heb. 12. He endured the cross and despised the shame The death of the Cross had shame and ignominy attending of it Crucifixion was such a kind of punishment as was wont to be inflicted upon servants Crux erat servile supplicium mors turpissima and was one of the basest kinds of death And the reason why Crucifixion or hanging upon a tree was accounted so infamous was because he that was hung upon a tree by being lifted up in that manner was looked upon as an execrable person as one that was not fit to live upon the earth as one that was fit to be thrust out of the world turned out of the society of mankind 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 therefore is it that the Heathens accounted this death an impure and filthy kind of death 2. Crucifixion was painful as well as shameful To have several parts of the body thrust through with nails and fastened to a tree and hang there several hours together this must needs be a painful death Now our Saviour sustained all this all this shame all this pain and that which was the venom of all this he sustained and underwent as the effect of Gods wrath and the just punishment that was due to us for our sins So likewise he sustained the greatest sorrows and dolors in his soul as I have shewed at large heretofore Our Saviour finding himself forsaken and deserted of God finding God himself alienated from him yea set against him to cut him off this must needs fill his most holy Soul with the greatest anguish and sorrow and yet all this which he so underwent the pain and shame the anguish and sorrow whatever it was he underwent in either kind in his soul or body he suffered it all as the fruit of Gods anger and displeasure against sin avenging our sins upon him as our Surety And that our Saviour saw all these things coming upon him and actually inflicted upon him as the effect of Gods wrath is plain by what the Apostle adds Gal. 3.13 Christ was made a curse for us for it is written Cursed is every one that hangs upon a tree The Apostle proves his assertion Christ was made a curse for us by this Topick or Argument for it is written Cursed is every one that hangeth on a tree Christ being crucified in that manner being exposed to that kind of suffering and death it was
a plain sign and token that he was looked upon and dealt with as a person accursed of God Maledicti symbolum crux Crux signum maledictae mortu The Cross was a Symbol of the Curse the Cross was a sign of an accursed death Now it is well observed by a Learned man The death of the Cross simply and in it self considered was no more accursed than any other kind of death but therefore was the death of the Cross an accursed death because the person that was to undergo it was an accursed person Transgressio pendentis maledictionem contrabit The transgression of him that was hanged upon the tree was that which did contract the curse If a person had committed a sin worthy of that death he was an accursed person If Christ had not taken upon him the guilt of our sins the death of the Cross could not have rendred him accursed Maledictum cones peccati The Curse is that which accompanies sin and follows upon it therefore it is an elegant passage of one of the Ancients Non ideo maledictus quia pendet sed ideo pendet quia maledictus 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 Maledictio Dei upensus A person is not therefore accursed because he hangs upon the tree but he is therefore hanged upon the tree because he is accursed The Text from whence the Apostle takes this is Deut. 21.23 He that is hanged is cursed of God so we render it and so the Septuagint renders it Cursed of God Arius Montanus renders it A person that is hanged is the curse of God He is the curse of God that is the curse of God is upon such a person and because the curse of God is upon him therefore doth he suffer that punishment The Chaldee Paraphrase therefore renders it well For as much as he hath sinned against the Lord therefore he is hanged upon the tree Sin preceding brings the curse and the curse of God being upon such a person that kind of punishment was to be inflicted Our Saviour therefore being carried to the Cross and crucified saw plainly that the punishment of our sins was laid upon him our sins were imputed to him as our Surety and he being by this means led to the Cross saw plainly that he suffered the punishment that was due to us The Cross was a sign and Symbol of Christs being made a curse for us And Learned men have this apprehension that in this place in Deuteronomy the Lord did before-hand in his infinite Wisdom point out that kind of death hanging upon the tree as an accursed death because he intended that the death and sufferings of Christ should be signified thereby and that Christ dying in this manner his death should be the expiatory Sacrifice to expiate and take away the Curse that lay upon the whole world By way of admonition Vse 1 Let us be admonished to take heed of being offended at the Cross of Christ Flesh and blood carnal reason are apt to be offended at the Cross of Christ the wisdom of this world is apt to be offended at Christs sufferings carnal reason cannot bear that he that is the Saviour of the world should be exposed to so much shame and contempt Christ crucified saith the Apostle was to the Jews a stumbling-block and to the Greeks foolishness 1 Cor. 1. The Jews in derision call Christ He that was hanged up Talui suspensus But we may say with the Apostle God forbid that we should glory in any thing save in the cross of our Lord Jesus Christ He that is ashamed of the cross and sufferings of Christ let him be ashamed of his own Salvation Christ suffering what he did was the cause of our Salvation if ever we saved We may speak to such as are offended at Christs cross and at the shamefulness of his sufferings in the words of Tertullian Parce unicae spei totius orbis quodcunque Deo indignum est mihi expedits Tertul. Be contented to spare the only hope of the whole world thou that destroyest so necessary a pillar of faith whatsoever it is that may seem unworthy of God that was most necessary and expedient for man This is plain and evident if Christ had not been crucified and born the curse of the Law the curse of the Law had still lain upon us and remained to be born by us The Law saith expresly Cursed is every one that continueth not in all things that are written therein to do them and as many as are of the works of the Law are under the curse Therefore if we are under the curse as certainly we are if Christ hath not born the curse for us we must have been still left to bear it Therefore we have reason to be so far from being offended at the sufferings of Christ and at the ignominiousness of his death that we have infinite reason to be so much the more thankful Quantò major est injuria tantò major debetur gratia by how much the greater injury and indignity Christ underwent for us by so much the more thanks we owe to him for suffering so much for us for what relief or comfort could we have had against the pains of Hell and that curse which we deserved if Christ had not suffered the pains of Hell and been made a curse for us Therefore take heed of being offended at the Cross of Christ Vse 2 This shews us how sad and deplorable our condition by nature is Hath Christ been made a curse for us then we by nature are all under the curse Christ that was most blessed in himself was made a curse for us Christ was not born for himself nor lived for himself nor suffered nor dyed for himself but all that Christ did and suffered was for us If therefore Christ was made a curse for us it is a certain sign we are all by nature under the curse and O what a sad and deplorable thing is it to be under the curse of God! The curse is the comprehension of all evil it is the Epitome of all misery the curse comprehends in it all the miseries in this life and eternal damnation in the next The Apostle opens the nature of the Curse to us at large when he saith Rom. 2.8 9. Indignatin and wrath tribulation and anguish upon every soul of man that doth evil This is but a Paraphrase on the Curse and this is the curse that all of us by nature are subject to Indignation wrath tribulation anguish who can bear the thoughts of these things Who of us can think of remaining and abiding under the wrath of God at present and of suffering eternal damnation hereafter Of how much concernment then is it to every one to see that he come out from being under the curse For this is certain we are all by nature under the curse and what will it be to lye under the power of the curse and under the power of the
it to his cross Col. 2.14 and he is the Lamb of God that takes away the sin of the world Joh. 1.29 that is he hath perfectly taken away sin as to the guilt and condemnation of it Now this could not have been if Christ had not suffered all that was to be suffered he could not have made an end of sin he could not have taken away the condemning power of it if all the punishment that was to be inflicted upon the sinner had not been inflicted upon him but now Christ by offering himself a Sacrifice for our sins hath born the whole punishment so that nothing more remains to be suffered that Divine Justice can demand This is implied in his being made a curse namely that the wrath of God was spent upon Christ to the utmost and that Divine Justice could desire no more than what was laid upon him The last Particular to clear this how Christ was made a curse is this The curse took hold on Christ so far as that Christ was exterminated and cut off by it The utmost punishment that can be inflicted upon a Malefactor amongst men is death the extermination of him from mankind cutting him off from the land of the living separating him from the society of mankind Now the curse proceeded upon Christ so far as that Christ was cut off by it Hence are those expressions of the Prophet He was cut off from the land of the living for the transgression of my people was he smitten or stricken Isa 53.8 So likewise we have the same expression in the Book of Daniel Dan. 9.26 After sixty two weeks shall Messias be cut off but not for himself Christ the true Messias was to be cut off but not for himself that is not for any sin of his own but he was cut off for us because he bare the guilt of our sins To understand this we must know that nothing satisfies the Law but the death of the sinner We know what the sentence was that God pronounced upon our first Parents In the day that thou eatest thou shalt dye the death and this is the general sentence of the Law The soul that sins shall dye and The wages of sin is death Death is part of the curse yea death is as it were the consummation of the curse Death as it is the inlet unto eternal death so it is the consummation of the curse The curse aims at the extermination and utter destruction of the sinner A man that is taken away by a corporal death he is for ever destroyed as to men though his soul survive yet he is taken from amongst men he hath no communion with mankind Death is the destruction of a person as to any fellowship and communion that he is to have with mankind any longer in this world and therefore death is the utmost consummation of punishment amongst men Thus the curse cuts off Christ and Christ dyes as bearing the curse yea the curse is consummated in the death of Christ Christ was accursed even as Adam was It is a good expression of one of the Ancients Christ descended as low as Adam did and so dissolved the curse 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 Christ by descending where Adam had brought himself by his Fall dissolves the curse that Adam had brought upon himself and his posterity the curse that was upon Adam brought him to death Dust thou art and to dust thou shalt return The curse lying upon Adam subjected him to a state of mortality and brought him under the power of death Christ therefore being made a curse for us the curse subjects him to death and takes away his life Hence is that expression Heb. 2.9 That Christ tasted death for every man Death is the completion of the curse because the death of the body is the inlet to eternal death to those who are still under the power of the curse It is true Christ did not taste the pains of eternal death after his natural life was ended but Christ tasted the pains of supernatural death before the taking away of his natural life as I have shewed heretofore and here we may observe this difference in Christs sufferings and the damned's sufferings The damned suffer the pains of Hell after this life Christ suffered the pains of Hell here in this life corporal death is but the beginning of the damned's punishment but Christ at his death finished his sufferings So that in the order of suffering there is some difference between what Christ suffered and what the damned suffer The damned suffer the pains of Hell after this life Christ suffered them in this life yet Christ underwent death as a part of the curse and death as it is a part of the curse and a fruit of Gods wrath is a terrible thing yea most terrible and yet Christ that he might make satisfaction for us conflicted with this King of Terrors Christ as he was man had a natural fear of death as we have yet without sin and the reason is because Christ taking on him our nature took also upon him the infirmities of our nature Now there may be a natural fear of death without sin nature abhorring that which is contrary to it self and this was in our Saviour Christ being our Surety and seeing death coming upon him as part of the curse and as a part of the punishment due to us for our sins this made him to fear death Hence is that expression Heb. 5.7 He offered up prayers and supplications with strong crying and tears to him that was able to save him from death and was heard in what he feared Christ feared death as he was man especially he feared it as he saw it a part of the curse that was due to us and yet though he feared it the thing that he feared came upon him It is true the Apostle saith He was heard in what he feared How was he heard Was Christ heard so as to his fear of death as to be delivered from death No certainly if Christ had not dyed we must have dyed in our sins If Christ had not dyed we must have undergone death as a part of the curse How then is it said He was heard in what he feared He was heard so as that he was supported when he dyed and he was heard in being raised from the dead the third day so that he was heard in what he feared in his supportation under his sufferings and in his Resurrection but dye he must death was part of the curse yea the completion of the curse therefore Christ our Surety cannot escape death Christus sponsor noster communi maledictione nobis debitâ feriendus erat Christ says one being our Surety was to be struck with that common curse that was due to us death was due to us the great thing threatned upon sin therefore Christ being our Surety must of necessity undergo it Hence is that of Austin Cursed is every one that hangeth on a tree Why
were the offenders and yet the punishment was laid upon Christ who was an innocent person Therefore it is a good expression of one of the Ancients Non ille maledictus sed in te maledictus Christ was not accursed in himself but he was accursed in thee It was we that deserved the curse the curse was due to us but the curse lighted upon Christ that so it might not fall upon us Therefore it is wisely observed by another of the Ancients That no one ought to be offended at this that Christ is said to be made a curse who himself was without sin Because saith he Christ was made a curse Factus est ille maledictus non natus he was not born a curse Christ was most free from the curse in himself but he most voluntarily took the curse upon him Therefore another of the Ancients observes Christ was made a curse Non per necessitatem sed per obedientiam not out of necessity but in a way of obedience He was made under the Law and therefore he subjected himself to the curse of the Law he that would be made under the Law must undergo all that the Law required of him now the Law required obedience and the Law requires suffering therefore Christ being made under the Law must not only do but suffer what the Law requires Divines observe That Christ was born and dyed after a special Law different from other men Christ was born not for himself but for others and he dyed not for himself but for others Manifestum est Christum potuisse non mori sed voluisse ut mors sua nobis prodesset Ambros Christ is to be considered as a common person Hence it follows Christs bearing the curse was not for himself but for others Christ suffered and underwent the wrath of God which we should have born Hence is that of one of the Ancients It is manifest that Christ might have chosen whether he would have dyed but he therefore chose to dye that his death might become profitable Learn from what hath been opened Vse 1 what an infinite evil sin is that he who was most blessed in himself should yet be made a curse for us that the fountain of blessing should become a curse O how great a venom is there in sin that Christ having no sin of his own but being a sinner only by imputation should be made a curse that sin should cause him that was the Author of all blessing to become a curse Learn from hence the severity of Gods Justice Vse 2 that when Christ had no sin of his own but only took upon him the guilt of our sins that yet Divine Justice should fall so foul upon so innocent a person He spared not saith the Apostle his own Son Rom. 8. Christ taking upon him the guilt and punishment of our sins God did not spare him but executed upon him the severity of his Justice Now if Divine Justice did not spare him who was but a Surety how shall it spare us if we be found under the guilt of our sins Certainly every impenitent sinner may read his own destiny in the sufferings of Christ If Christ suffered such things who was meerly a Surety and bare the guilt of other mens sins not his own what is like to become of us that must bear the guilt and punishment of our own sins as certainly we must if we continue in unbelief and impenitency He that believes not on the Son the wrath of God abides upon him Joh. 3. ult O it is of infinite concernment to us all to secure our part and interest in the sufferings and satisfaction of the Lord Jesus for if the Justice of God arrested Christ seized upon him and proceeded so severely against him as we have heard if the curse did cut off him we cannot expect but Divine Justice will seize on us and cut us off unless we be hid in the clefts of this Rock Oh let us endeavour to get a part in him that was made a curse that we may be delivered from the curse The end of the tenth Sermon SERMON XI Joh. 15.13 Greater love hath no man than this that a man lay down his life for his friends THere is one thing more to be answered to that inquiry to make the answer full and compleat over and above what was said in the last Discourse How was it possible for Christ to suffer the wrath of God that was always beloved of him The third thing therefore that is to be said is this It was possible for Christ by faith to know that he was beloved of God and he did know that he was beloved of God when yet as to sense and feeling he tasted of Gods wrath Faith and the want of sense are not inconsistent there may be no present sense of Gods love nay there may be a present sense of his wrath and yet there may be faith at the same time This is manifest from that description of faith which the Apostle gives Heb. 11.1 Faith is the substance of things hoped for the evidence of things not seen Faith makes those things evident which are not evident and apparent unto sense This also is manifest from the experience of several of the Saints It is said of Abraham That he believed in hope against hope Rom. 4.18 Abraham had the hope of faith against the dictates of sense his faith prevailed against sense he believed when all things in sense made against him Thus was it with Job in one place he saith That God hunted him as a fierce lyon and that he shewed himself amrvellous upon him And yet in another place he saith Though he kill me yet will I trust in him Here was faith against sense In like manner in another place he saith That God counted him for his enemy in his sense and feeling God seemed as an enemy to him And yet in another place he saith I know that my Redeemer liveth Here was an opposition to sense Thus was it with Heman he complains Psal 88.7 That Gods wrath lay hard upon him that God had afflicted him with all his waves and in the sixteenth verse of that Psalm he saith Thy fierce wrath goeth over me and yet in the beginning of the Psalm he calls God the God of his salvation O Lord God of my salvation vers 1. here was faith contradicting sense Thus was it with our Saviour Christus licèt se in anima derelictum sentiret ut in nobis fuit tamen in anima intellexit in sese semper deamatum fuisse our Saviour had a present sense and feeling of Gods wrath and yet by faith he might know he was beloved of God Hence is that of a Learned man Christ although he felt himself forsaken as he was in us yet he understood that he was always beloved considered as in himself Thus have I spoken that which I think may be sufficient for the clearing of that objection
How Christ that was a person always beloved of God could yet bear the sense of his wrath And now I would make a little farther use of what hath been opened as to Christs being made a curse and then I shall proceed to the other Propositions that remain for the clearing the Doctrine of Christs Satisfaction Christ as we have heard hath been made a curse the wrath and displeasure of God hath been poured forth upon him whatever he underwent upon the Cross all that shame and pain all that grief and sorrow which he felt in soul and body was the effect of Gods wrath the punishment due to us for our sins the wrath of God was consummated upon him and he was cut off by the curse he underwent death as part of the curse Let us see what use may be made of this This may serve by way of direction to us Vse 1 to teach us what course to take when we are in distress and agony of conscience under the fear and terror of Gods wrath due to us for sin Who is there among us that some time or other may not lye under the fear of Gods wrath that may not be terrified with the apprehension of Gods wrath due to him for sin Now the proper relief in this case is to consider that Christ was made a curse If Christ hath felt what we fear if he hath suffered and undergone what we deserved what so proper a ground to relieve us as this We fear the wrath of God and Christ hath suffered that wrath This is the case of many of the children of God they do many times lye under dreadful apprehensions of Gods wrath and displeasure David in the trouble and anguish of his soul crys out Cast me not away from thy presence Psal 51.11 And that Saint we mentioned even now in Psal 88.14 Lord why castest thou off my soul Now when we begin to apprehend that God hath cast us off in displeasure when we are under trouble and anguish of soul and apprehend that God is highly incensed and his wrath is waxed hot against us what can give us relief in this case but to consider that Gods wrath was poured out to the utmost upon Christ our Head and Surety that the wrath of God spent it self and had a full vent upon him This therefore is the only course we can take when we are under the fear and apprehension of Gods wrath to lift up Christ in the arms of our faith and to interpose him between us and the wrath of an angry God If his wrath be kindled but a little blessed are all they that put their trust in Christ Psal 2.12 This Doctrine of Christ being made a curse is of marvellous and unspeakable use in the serious exercises of faith when the soul is under sore conflicts from the fear of Gods wrath If thou art burdened with the guilt of sin and the fear of Gods wrath thou mayst go to God and tell him that Christ hath suffered as much as ever thou hast deserved to suffer that there is nothing that he may justly inflict upon thee but it hath already been executed and inflicted upon Christ to the uttermost and will he punish sin twice Will he punish sin in thee and will he punish it in the person of his innocent Son who had no sin of his own but only took upon him their cause that were not able to deliver themselves from wrath From this Doctrine of Christs being made a curse Vse 2 we may learn what the true and proper Antidote is against the fear of death The proper Antidote against the fear of death is this That Christ hath suffered death as part of the curse therefore Christ having undergone death for us as a part of the curse if we be in Christ the curse of death is taken away from us It is true Believers undergo death still but here lyes the comfort to a Believer that death is no longer a curse to him Christ by undergoing death as a part of the curse yea as the completion of the curse hath taken away death as it is a curse Death is now no more a curse unto Believers but a passage unto life It is a sweet Text Hos 13.14 O death I will be thy plague O grave I will be thy destruction Christ by dying hath destroyed and overcome death and Believers are freed from death as a curse therefore is it that our Saviour saith He that believes on him shall never dye Joh. 11.26 What better news to any of the sons and daughters of men than to tell them they shall never dye Our Saviour assures us of this He that believes on him shall never dye Joh. 11.26 O but do not Believers dye as well as other men Object Yes they do Answ but they do not dye under the curse they dye not as malefactors as condemned persons 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 Athanas Death is now as no death to a Believer it is only a passage unto eternal life a Believers true life is not interrupted by death Joh. 10.28 I give to them eternal life and they shall never perish If death did interrupt or take away a Believers true life then there might be a time when he might be said to perish but our Saviour speaks it with the strongest asseveration and with the greatest solemnity They shall never perish I give unto them eternal life and they shall never perish therefore there is such a life given to a Believer by Christ that shall never perish though this natural life be taken away from him yet that which is the true life eternal life shall never be taken from him his natural life may be taken from him but instead of it he shall have eternal life I give unto them eternal life I proceed now to some other Propositions for the clearing the Doctrine of Christs Satisfaction The next Proposition therefore is this The eleventh Proposition God hath charged upon Christ the guilt and punishment of the sins of his people There is an act of God in this Christ did not only suffer such things as we have heard but he hath suffered them from the hand of God laying these things upon him as our Mediator and Surety Hence is it said That God hath made him to be sin for us 2 Cor. 5.21 God hath laid upon him the iniquities of us all Isa 53.6 God hath laid upon him there is the act of God the act of Divine Justice put forth in laying upon Christ all the punishment that he underwent Hence are those expressions that are so frequent in Scripture that Christ was made sin made under the Law that he was made a curse that he was made of God to us Redemption all which expressions plainly shew that there was an act of God put forth whereby Christ is made or appointed of God to be our Surety and that God did exact that debt of obedience and punishment from Christ which we should have
till we are brought to eternal life therefore the Satisfaction of Christ is of constant Use to us The end of the twelfth Sermon SERMON XIII Joh. 15.13 Greater love hath no man than this that a man lay down his life for his friends THat which we were last upon was Why we ought to live by faith upon the Sacrifice and Satisfaction of Christ Two Considerations have already been offered 1. Consid 1 Because the Satisfaction of Christ is the only means of our reconciliation with God 2. Consid 2 Christs Sufferings and Satisfaction are the food and nourishment of our souls the means to continue us in the favour of God as well as to bring us into it at first I shall only add a third and then proceed 3. Consid 3 God hath ordained and appointed the death of Christ as the means of reconciliation and offers it to us for that end That the death of Christ is the means of our reconciliation with God hath been shewn at large heretofore that it is so by Divine ordination and appointment and that God propounds and offers it to us to be received by faith on our part is that which I am now to speak of and for this we must have recourse unto that Text Rom. 3.25 Whom God hath set forth to be a propitiation through faith in his blood 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 Quem proposuit Deus Whom God hath set forth or propounded as a propitiation This expression Whom God hath set forth may have relation to two things 1. It may have relation to the Eternal Decree of God namely that God from Eternity hath decreed Christ to be our propitiation and decreed his death to be the means of our propitiation 1 Pet. 1.18 Ye were not redeemed with corruptible things as silver and gold but with the precious blood of Christ as of a lamb without blemish and without spot who verily was foreordained before the foundation of the world Consider that expression Who verily was foreordained 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 Christ was foreordained before the foundation of the world to be a slain Lamb his death was decreed and foreordained to be the means and only means of our reconciliation with God 2. This expression Whom God hath set forth may have reference and respect to the revelation and tender that is made of Christ in the Gospel Whom God hath propounded or set forth that is God hath propounded Christ and his death in the Gospel as the means of reconciliation The Apostle speaking of the Gospel saith That therein is the righteousness of God revealed from faith to faith Rom. 1.17 God hath revealed the righteousness of his Son in the Gospel as the great object of our faith Now Christs righteousness is nothing else but the result of his obedience active and passive as it is commonly called Christ giving that obedience to the Law which the Law requires Christ suffering and undergoing the punishment which the Law exacts from us for the breach of it this is the righteousness of Christ and this is that which the Gospel tenders to us as the object of our faith to be embraced and received by us Therein saith the Apostle is the righteousness of God revealed from faith to faith as much as if he should say The Gospel reveals the righteousness of Christ to be embraced and entertained of us by faith on our part Now if God do propound the righteousness of Christ whereof the sufferings and satisfaction of Christ are a principal part as the great object of our faith it concerns us then to have a constant recourse to this and to make use of it and therefore that expression is very observable in the Text before mentioned The righteousness of God is revealed in the Gospel from faith to faith Why from faith to faith The meaning I take to be that our faith ought to take a firm and fast hold of the righteousness of Christ and to take a deeper rooting in it from day to day We should not be content with some general apprehensions of this righteousness and that we have known a little of it but we should grow from faith to faith our faith should take deeper and firmer rooting in it continually I now come to the second thing propounded and that was to shew how we ought to make use of the Sacrifice and Satisfaction of Christ so as to draw down the virtue and benefit of it unto our own souls I take this to be an inquiry of great moment because much of the life of faith consists in the right understanding and practice of it I shall therefore propound several things by way of direction to shew how we ought to make use of the satisfaction of Christ so as to draw down the benefit and virtue of it unto our own souls 1. If we would make use of the Satisfaction of Christ let us look upon our selves as guilty persons most worthy of Divine wrath and condemnation as considered in our selves Satisfaction supposeth guilt an innocent person need not to have any satisfaction made for him an innocent person hath done no wrong and therefore nothing need to be tendered for him by way of compensation If therefore we would have the benefit of Christs satisfaction we must first see that we are guilty and condemned persons in our selves This was shadowed forth in the Levitical Ordinances he that brought his offering to the Priest was to lay his hand on the head of the Sacrifice Levit. 1.4 And he shall put his hand upon the head of the burnt-offering and it shall be accepted for him to make atonement This Rite of laying the hand on the head of the Sacrifice or Offering by him that brought it did carry in it a tacit or secret confession of the persons guiltiness he did hereby confess that he was worthy to be put to death for his sin He that brought the Sacrifice by laying his hand on the head of the Sacrifice did hereby profess that the beast suffered what he deserved That the beast being slain was an argument and token that he deserved to be so dealt with himself that he deserved to be destroyed for his sins therefore when we come to make use of the Satisfaction of Christ and his Sacrifice we ought to be sensible of our own guiltiness and worthiness of condemnation consider what the Apostle saith 1 Cor. 11.31 If we judge our selves we shall not be judged of the Lord. If we would have benefit from Christs satisfaction we must first judge our selves worthy of condemnation Christs righteousness and satisfaction is sweet to none but a self-condemned person Come unto me all ye that are weary and heavy laden and I will give you rest saith our Saviour Mat. 11.28 We must be weary and heavy laden with the sense of our own guiltiness before we can prize the satisfaction of Christ We ought therefore when ever we come to make use of the satiffaction of Christ to see what
God by a strict life they renounce the world spend their time in retirement abridge themselves of their delights and pleasures and live by such and such rules These and many more ways have men invented to satisfie God withal But it is a true speech of a moderate Papist Whatsoever was not God Quicquid Deus non est non potuerit sufficere was not sufficient to satisfie God All those ways that have been devised by men are too short to make satisfaction to the great God and if we summon our selves to God Tribunal and think with our selves how just and holy he is we shall soon apprehend his Justice will not be put off with such poor things as men bring to him to satisfie him withal nothing less than God can satisfie God The satisfaction of Christ is the satisfaction of that person who is God as well as man otherwise it had not been available and herein did the excellency of Christs Satisfaction appear that it was abundantly sufficient The dignity and excellency of Christs Satisfaction may yet farther appear from these considerations 1. That Christs Satisfaction was once made and but once the Sacrifice was but one and the Satisfaction made by it but one The Sacrifices under the Law were many The Sacrifices offered by the Heathen were many but Christs Sacrifice was but one and offered once for all Heb. 10.14 By one offering he hath perfected for ever them that are sanctified 1 Pet. 3.18 Christ also hath once suffered for sin the just for the unjust Heb. 10.10 By the which will we are sanctified through the offering up the body of Christ once for all once only 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 The Greek word hath a great force in it as Learned men observe It signifies that what was once done was so perfect and compleat that it was not necessary it should be done again nay that it was impious to repeat it Christs one Sacrifice comprehended the virtue of all other Sacrifices in it All the Sacrifices that were offered by men in all Ages both by Jews and Gentiles were a plain intimation that there was some Sacrifice by which God must be pacified and that men had an apprehension that God could be pacified no other way Now Christs Sacrifice was the true Sacrifice that which the world aimed at but could never attain was attained only by the Sacrifice of Christ that which the world would fain have been at and attained was to pacifie God now this could never be accomplished any other way but by the Sacrifice of the Son of God Christs Sacrifice was but one and yet by that one Sacrifice he hath for ever perfected them that are sanctified 2. The Satisfaction of Christ was perfect and compleat there was nothing wanting in it of what was necessary to make it compleat 1. The person who offers it was most holy and without sin Such an high Priest became us who was holy harmless undefiled separate from sinners Heb. 7.26 The Priests under the Law were to offer Sacrifices first for their own sins then for the sins of the people but Christ needed none of this for Christ had no sin therefore he that was without all sin in himself was most fit to make atonement for the sins of others 2. As the person himself that offered the Sacrifice was most perfect and compleat so the Sacrifice it self was most perfect and compleat and that appears by the effect of it Heb. 10.14 By one offering hath he perfected for ever them that are sanctified If the Offering and Sacrifice of Christ had not been most perfect in it self it could never have perfected others For this is a sure rule That the effect cannot rise higher than the cause therefore if Christs Offering had not been perfect in it self it could not have perfected others But now saith the Apostle he hath perfected and for ever perfected them that are sanctified that is Christ by his Sacrifice hath perfectly reconciled us to God There need be no more done to reconcile a person to God than what Christ hath done Now if the Sacrifice and Satisfaction of Christ hath that virtue and efficacy in it as to bring us into perfect reconciliation with God so as that there is no danger of losing it nor falling from it then it is a perfect and compleat satisfaction This shews us the dignity and excellency of Christs Satisfaction therefore we ought to have an high esteem of it and be so much the more incouraged to make use of it The end of the fourteenth Sermon SERMON XV. Joh. 15 1◠Greater love hath no man than this that a man lay down his life for his friends TO proceed a little farther to shew the dignity of Christs Satisfaction 3. Consid 3 The Satisfaction of Christ was adequate and commensurate to what the Law and Divine Justice did require All that the Law could require was the death of the sinner In the day that thou eatest thou shalt dye the death thou shalt undergo a double death death natural and death supernatural Now Christ in the work of his Satisfaction hath undergone both these deaths he hath undergone natural death and supernatural death All that Divine Justice could require was that the sinner should undergo the utmost punishment that the nature of man was capable of now the sufferings of Christ were consummate sufferings in the highest measure and degree whatever the humane nature supported by the Deity could suffer that our Saviour did undergo therefore his satisfaction was adequate and commensurate to the Law and Divine Justice 4. We may see the dignity and excellency of Christs Satisfaction in this That the Satisfaction of Christ in some respect was more than sufficient Christ in respect of some circumstances attending his satisfaction hath paid and given more than the Law required for it is well observed by a Learned man The Law did not require that God should dye the Law required that man sinning man should dye but now the person dying and satisfying for us was God as well as man God hath redeemed the Church with his own blood Act. 20.28 Neither 1 did the Law require that any person should dye but for his own proper sin The language of the Law is The soul that sins shall dye Now every soul was to bear his own iniquity Neither 2 did the Law require such a death that should be of so great efficacy that it should not be only able to abolish death but also be able to introduce life and that a life far more excellent than that terrene and earthly life which Adam lost In these respects the Satisfaction of Christ was more than sufficient and therefore one of the Ancients hath this expression Christ hath paid for us much more than we owed and so much the more was that which Christ paid by how much the vast and immense Ocean excels the least drop Let us learn then to have high thoughts of the dignity and excellency
of Christs Satisfaction this will be of marvellous use to us when we are under troubles and conflicts of conscience for sin Though our sins are great exceeding great considered in themselves yet being compared with the infiniteness of Christs Satisfaction they are swallowed up in the vastness and insiniteness of the merit of the sufferings of that person who was God as well as man 5. The excellency of Christs Satisfaction appears in this In that the Sacrifice of Christ is an eternal Sacrifice that is the virtue and efficacy of Christs Sacrifice and Satisfaction is eternal Christs Sacrifice is but one and that once offered and yet the virtue of it is eternal The repetition of the Sacrifices under the Law did shew the imperfection of those Sacrifices for if one Sacrifice had been sufficient what need of such a multitude of Sacrifices and those so frequently repeated Now the Sacrifice of Christ is but one and it was not necessary that it should be repeated for though it was but once offered yet the virtue of it is eternal It is a great expression of the Apostle speaking of this Sacrifice Heb. 9.14 Christ by the eternal Spirit offered himself up without spot to God Christ offered himself up to God by the eternal Spirit that is he offered himself up to God in the virtue of his eternal Deity the Son of God who offered himself up as a Sacrifice to God in our nature being an eternal person hath put eternal virtue and efficacy into that Sacrifice of his Such was the dignity of Christs person that he being the eternal Son of God the virtue and efficacy of his Sacrifice which was once offered and that now in the end of the world doth yet extend it self to all ages of the world those that are past as well as those that are to come For Jesus Christ is the same yesterday to day and for ever Heb. 13.8 The Sacrifice of Christ is eternal for as much as the virtue and efficacy of it is eternal and extends it self to all ages Hence also is Christ called the new and living way Heb. 10.20 That expression which we translate new 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 properly signifies that which was newly killed or newly slain the virtue of Christs blood is such in Gods account as if Christ were just now crucified his blood is always fresh the vigour and efficacy of it remains as if it were but newly shed What a mighty incouragement may this be to us to come and make use of the sufferings and satisfaction of Christ since the sufferings and satisfaction of Christ are as fresh in Gods account as if Christ had just now undergone them as if he were but newly come down from the Cross and God is as much pleased and satisfied in them as if Christ had but newly undergone them There is one Use more to be made of the Doctrine Vse 5 Let us learn from the Doctrine of Christs Satisfaction why the contempt of the Gospel is so great a sin and why it is that God punisheth the contempt of the Gospel so severely the reason why the contempt of the Gospel is so great a sin is because it is a contempt of the sufferings of Christ and the reason why God punisheth the contempt of the Gospel so severely is because it is a contempt of the great Sacrifice that was offered for sin There hath been a great impression on the hearts of men in all Ages That God was to be pacified by sacrifice hence it is that all Nations have offered sacrifices and hereby the common sense of mankind hath been exprest that God was to be pacified by some sacrifice Now when the true the great the only sacrifice hath been offered up which is the death of Christ and the virtue of this sacrifice which was to pacifie and atone God published and declared in the Gospel and men do yet contemn this sacrifice and him that hath offered it certainly this must needs make the sin of the world exceeding great and the reason is because that this is a plain evidence that men do not value reconciliation with God When God hath provided a sacrifice by which he will be atoned and reconciled to men and they despise this sacrifice and undervalue this way of reconciliation 't is a plain sign and evidence that men do not care for reconciliation with God it is all one to them if they continue in open hostility against him The slighting of Christ and neglect of grace offered by the Redeemer is a plain contempt of the Divine Majesty it is a clear sign that men do not regard Gods anger neither are they afraid of his wrath For if men were afraid of Gods anger and terrified at the apprehensions of his wrath they would seek after reconciliation with God Now nothing doth aggravate sin more than when there is a plain and manifest contempt of God and this there is in the refusing of reconciliation with him God offers reconciliation to men by a Redeemer they neglect it they reject it this is a manifest contempt of God and hence it is that God punisheth the contempt of the Gospel so severely I shall illustrate this by several Scriptures Mat. 22.1 c. The kingdom of heaven is like unto a certain King which made a marriage for his son and he sent forth his servants to call them that were bidden to the wedding and they would not come Again he sent forth other servants saying Tell them which are bidden Behold I have prepared my dinner my oxen and my fatlings are killed and all things are ready come unto the marriage But they made light of it and went their ways one to his farm another to his merchandise and the remnant took his servants and intreated them spightfully and slew them But when the King heard thereof he was wroth and he sent forth his armies and destroyed those murtherers and burnt up their city A certain King made a marriage for his son God hath married his Son to our nature God hath sent his Son into our nature and the Son of God hath married our nature to himself by joyning it to himself in the bond of personal union Upon this marriage the joyning of our nature to the Son of God God makes a Feast a Marriage-feast and in that Feast he prepares all good things for the sons of men he offers righteousness life salvation and all good things whatsoever in his Son and God by his Ambassadours the Gospel-Ministers invites them to partake of these good things He sent forth his servants to call them that were bidden to the wedding When God had prepared this Feast of all good things in his Son opened the Treasures of his Grace in Christ when he had set open the Treasure of Christs Righteousness for mens Justification and the alsufficiency of his Grace for Sanctification then he sends his Ambassadours and Ministers to invite men to come and partake of all this grace But
how is it that men entertain these offers of grace and good things made to them in Christ read vers 5. They made light of it and went their ways one 18 his farm another to his merchandise O but mark the issue how doth God take this flighting of his grace rejecting of his Son and despising of the marriage-feast read vers 7. When the King heard of this he was wroth and he sent forth his armies and destroyed those murtherers and burnt up their city This was the revenge which God took for his despised and rejected grace He sent the Armies of the Romans burnt up Jerusalem destroyed the Nation of the Jews to whom Christ and the Gospel was first sent That the Son of God who was God blessed for ever should come from Heaven in person that he should take to himself the nature of man and do and suffer such things for man in the nature of man and yet be contemned and rejected by men this makes the sin of men very great In Joh. 6.51 our Saviour tells us That he was the living bread that came down from heaven and the bread which he would give was his flesh which he would give for the life of the world I am the living bread which came down from heaven The Son of God who was life happiness salvation and all good things came down into our nature assumed a part of our flesh and gave that flesh for the life of the world Now when the Son of God himself so great a person and all his sufferings shall be contemned and despised this must needs be great sin This is more fully explained to us in another Scripture Heb. 10.26 27 28 29 30. For if we sin wilfully after that we have received the knowledge of the truth there remains no more sacrifice for sins but a certain fearful looking for of judgment and fiery indignation which shall devour the adversaries He that despised Moses law dyed without mercy under two or three witnesses Of how much sorer punishment suppose ye shall he be thought worthy who hath trodden under foot the Son of God and hath counted the blood of the Covenant wherewith he was sanctified an unholy thing and hath done despite to the Spirit of grace for we know him that said Vengeance belongeth unto me I will recompense saith the Lord. It is a fearful thing to fall into the hands of the living God The scope of the Apostle is to shew how severely God punisheth the contemners and despisers of Gospel-grace The sin of such who contemn the Gospel and reject the grace of it consists in this That they neglect and contemn the great Sacrifice that was offered for sin that is plainly implied in that expression when it is said There remains no more sacrifice for sin If we sin wilfully after we have received the knowledge of the truth there remains no more sacrifice for sin It is as much as if the Apostle had said There was a sacrifice for sin there was a sacrifice appointed there was a means to pacifie and atone God namely the death of his Son But they that neglect and reject the grace of the Gospel they contemn this sacrifice this great and only sacrifice they contemn the sufferings and satisfaction of Christ by which they might have peace with God Now let us consider what is the sentence that is passed upon such What is like to become of such who thus contemn the Gospel and despise the grace of it who contemn the great and only sacrifice That which is reserved for such is this It is judgment and fiery indignation which shall devour the adversaries If we sin wilfully after we have received the knowledge of the truth there remains no more sacrifice for sin but a certain fearful looking for of judgment and fiery indignation which shall devour the adversary 1. Consider God accounts such adversaries as persist and continue in sin after the offer and tender of grace to them God would be reconciled to men but they will not be reconciled to him therefore they are adversaries they continue in open hostility against God 2. There is judgment reserved for such a certain and fearful looking for of judgment God will judge them according to their deserts he will execute judgment upon them according to their demerit and that we may fully understand this 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 he calls it fiery indignation Beza renders it Heat of fire as much as if it had been said The hottest of Gods wrath is reserved for such and shall fall upon such as contemn and reject the Gospel And then the Apostle goes on to confirm this in vers 28 29. He that despised Moses law dyed without mercy under two or three witnesses Of how much sorer punishment suppose ye shall he be thought worthy who tramples under foot the Son of God and hath counted the blood of the Covenant wherewith he was sanctified an unholy thing and hath done despite unto the Spirit of grace The force of his argument comes to this He that transgressed the Law of Moses was punished he therefore that despiseth the Gospel shall be much more punished He that despised Moses law dyed without mercy Why doth the Apostle call it Moses Law That which was called Moses Law was indeed the Law of God Moses was only the Minister to whom and by whom it was delivered but the Law was God's But Moses is set here in opposition to Christ Moses was a Minister and Servant only but Christ was more than a Minister and a Servant Christ was the Son of God therefore doth the Apostle say Of how much sorer punishment shall he be thought worthy who trod under foot the Son of God Here lies the force of the argument If God did not suffer the transgressours of the Law which was published by Moses a Minister and Servant to go unpunished much less will he suffer the rejection of the Gospel which was published by his own Son that came out of his bosom to go unpunished The Law came by Mases but grace and truth came by Jesus Christ Joh. 1.17 But this is not all the Doctrine of the Gospel hath not only a more excellent Publisher than the Law which is the Son of God whereas Moses was a Minister and Servant only but there is something more in it the matter published and the great object of saith propounded in the Gospel is the Son of God himself that expression Who hath trampled under foot the Son of God doth not only intimate that Christ the Son of God is the Publisher of the Gospel but it also intimates the great sin of them who reject the Gospel in that they reject so excellent a Person as the Son of God is who is the subject matter of the Gospel Compare this with other Scriptures Rom. 1.3 Separate unto the Gospel of God concerning his Son Jesus Christ our Lord. The great thing which the Gospel reveals is the Son of God 2
nature to lay down his life and dye for our sins Certainly he that believes this will find no reason to doubt of the love of God If God sent his Son to be a propitiation for our sins if he had no other end in sending of him and if the Son of God did freely lay down his life for us then there is no reason that we should retain suspicious and jealous thoughts of the Father or the Son We know and believe the love that God hath to us How so Because God hath sent his Son to be the propitiation for our sins If we can realize the sufferings of Christ to our minds by the eye of faith this will confirm our souls in the love of God towards us 2. Another effect of our studying the love of Christ in his sufferings for us is This will be a means to beget much love in us to Christ What more powerful argument to inflame our love to Christ than to consider what Christ hath done and suffered for us Can we behold the Son of God the second Person in Trinity God equal with the Father Emmanuel God with us God come down into our nature can we behold this great and excellent Person giving himself to suffer and dye for us taking the whole curse and punishment upon himself that we deserve and not love this person who hath so loved us and hath done and suffered such things for us The Apostle tells us 2 Cor. 5.14 The love of Christ constrains us The love of Christ that is Christs love to us the apprehension of Christs love to us constrains us why so Because saith the Apostle we thus judge That if one dyed for all then were all dead If Christ had not dyed we must all have dyed If Christ had not suffered the wrath of God we must have suffered it to Eternity If Christ had not been deserted we must have been deserted If he had not undergone dereliction and the hiding of Gods face the face of God must have been turned away from us for ever If Christ had not conflicted with the Divine displeasure we must have conflicted with the wrath of God for ever If Christ had not been cast into that Agony wherein he sweat drops of blood we must have been cast into those inexpressible horrours and torments of soul and body which would have pressed us down to all Eternity The deep and serious consideration of these things cannot but constrain us to love Christ The love of Christ constrains us saith the Apostle because we thus judge That if one dyed for all then were all dead The consideration of this That Christ hath freed us from that by his death which otherwise we must necessarily have undergone must needs be a strong ingagement upon us to love Christ We love him because he first loved us Learn how great the sin and ingratitude of the world is in slighting and abusing all this love Vse 2 and also how just that revenge is which God takes upon the world for slighting and abusing all this love If the love of Christ be so eminently seen in his suffering and dying for sinful men for the sinful world then how great is the sin and ingratitude of the world in slighting and abusing all this love God hath sent his Son from Heaven to save the world he hath sent his Son from Heaven to dye for the world but all this love is little thought of little regarded or esteemed by the generality of men this is the cause of the Lords great indignation against the world The world is guilty of many other sins it is guilty of great immoralities and many abominations in point of practice and these may have their influence and no doubt have as to the bringing down Gods displeasure upon the sinful world but that which is the fundamental sin the root sin of all it is the contempt of Christ and the Gospel the slighting and rejecting Gospel-love Gospel-grace This is the condemnation that light is come into the world and men love darkness rather than light And we may say This is the condemnation that love is come into the world that the Son of God who is love it self the Son of God who hath all the love of the Father in him and God is love that he is come into the nature of man and hath dyed for men that they might be saved and this is not at all regarded by them When all this love of his hath been published and made known to men the generality of men have taken no notice of Christ and his love so they may have their honours pleasures and profits take Christ and his grace who will for them for this so great contempt of Christ and his grace when God hath offered his love and the grace of his Gospel to the world and men have slighted it taken no notice of it hath God come to revenge himself upon the ingrateful world and I speak it with a bleeding heart I fear will yet revenge it more sorely The end of the sixteenth Sermon SERMON XVII Job 15.13 Greater love hath no man than this that a man lay down his life for his friends I Come now to other Particulars that set forth the greatness of Christs suffering for us 5. The greatness of Christs love in laying down his life for us appears in this That there was no one else that could have satisfied for us If men or Angels had attempted this work their sufferings had been but the sufferings of finite creatures there would not have been infinite worth and value in them to have satisfied for the sins of the whole world The expiation of sin requires a price of infinite value and the reason is because every sin is committed against an infinite Majesty an infinite Majesty being offended there must be a price of infinite value to expiate the offence Now whoever had been but a meer man could not have offered a price of infinite value but Christs sufferings were of infinite value because he was God as well as man and this is that which enhanceth the price of Christs love that none else could have suffered for us but Christ so as to have satisfied Gods Justice this Christ himself sets before us Isa 63.3 I have trod the wine-press alone and of the people there was none with me So vers 5. I looked and there was none to help and I wondered there was none to uphold therefore mine own arm brought salvation This commends the greatness of Christs love in his sufferings That when none was able to suffer for us so as to satisfie Gods Justice Christ undertook the work The sixth Consideration is The greatness of Christs love in his sufferings appears in this That so great and excellent a person should come to suffer for us 1 Joh. 3.16 Hereby perceive we the love of God that he laid down his life for us that is that he who was the Son of God and God that
vestita because he was in the form of God Zanchy observes that this expression the form of God it signifies the Essence of God set forth with all its Attributes the Essence of God cloathed with all its properties or perfections For although whatever is in God be God and his most simple Essence really and in it self yet in respect of us who cannot conceive of God according to the simplicity of his Essence there is a distinction in our understanding between the Essence and the Attributes of God so that the form of God according to our understanding notes the Essence of God with the Attributes belonging to it so that the meaning is Christ was in the form of God that is he had the verity and truth of the Divine Essence in him and he had all the Attributes belonging to that Essence He was in the form of God that is he was truly and properly God he was eternal omnipotent omnipresent and the like whatsoever might be said of God may be said of Christ the Son of God because he was in the form of God 2. That he accounted it no robbery to be equal with God This expression notes two things 1. That Christ knew himself to be equal with the Father he knew that he was possessed of the same Essence of the same Majesty of the same Glory that the Father was All things that the Father hath are mine Joh 16.15 The Son injoyed all things in common with the Father the same Essence the same Power the same Majesty the same Divinity I and the Father are one Joh. 10.30 that is one in Essence one in Power one in Will 2. This also is implied That the Son being in the form of God and equal with the Father knew he should do no wrong and injury if he retained and kept to himself the same honour that the Father did that is if he had always kept in the form of God only and never emptied himself by his Incarnation and suffering The Father abideth always in the form of God only and never took upon him the form of a servant it was the Son not the Father that was incarnate and that took on him the form of a servant Now if the Son had always kept in the form of God and never took upon him the form of a servant he had done no wrong or injury he was in the same honour and dignity of God with the Father and he might have retained the same honour and dignity that the Father did without abasing himself by his Incarnation and suffering He was in the form of God saith the Apostle that is he did subsist in the Divine Essence as the Father did he might have continued in the form of God only without taking on him the form of a servant without assuming or taking to himself the humane nature but herein his love discovered it self That though he was in the form of God and knew himself to be equal with God yet he was pleased in a way of voluntary condescension to take upon him the form of a servant and subject himself to the death even the death of the cross Now that so great a person as this that had his existence and subsistence from Eternity who was truly and properly God possessed of the Divine Essence and cloathed with all the Divine Attributes who was equal to the Father that this person should not only strip himself as it were of his own glory by his Incarnation but also expose himself to the lowest abasement by his sufferings and most ignominious death this is that which sets forth the greatness of the love of Christ Now there are several considerations that arise from the dignity of Christs person that serve to set forth the greatness of Christs love to us in giving himself to suffer and to dye for us and O that we could take in these Mysteries with that reverence and solemnity of spirit as the Majesty of them doth require 1. Consider it was the Word the Son of God the second Person in Trinity that did order and dispose the sufferings that were in his own flesh his own humanity Hence is that of one of the Ancients 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 erat sibi 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 dispensator arbiter humanarum actionum passionum Sophronius The Word the Son of God the second Person in Trinity was the dispenser and determiner of all the actions and sufferings that were in the humane nature It was he that ordered disposed and governed the Humanity to do and suffer those things that were proper to it self The humane nature in Christ was not moved of it self to any of its actions or sufferings but it was moved ad nutum Verbi at the beck and command of the Word that is according to the direction of that person who assumed the humane nature the Word the Son of God did will and permit the Humanity to do and suffer such things as were proper to it self it was he that governed the actions and passions of the humane nature Joh. 17.19 For their sakes sanctifie I my self To sanctifie is properly the work of God and none but God can sanctifie Christ therefore as God sanctified himself as man the Divine nature in Christ sanctified and set apart the humane nature for the work of the suffering it was the Divine nature in Christ which did primarily will the sufferings in the humane nature which did permit the humane nature to suffer and which did strengthen and uphold the humane nature in suffering and all these things do greatly set forth the love of Christ 1. It was the Divine nature in Christ which did primarily will the sufferings of the humane nature It is true Christ as man did will his own sufferings Christ as man was willing to suffer and dye for us but yet we must consider that his humane will was influenced and governed by his Divine will the humane will of Christ willed those things which the Divine will would have it to will therefore it being the pleasure of the Divine will that Christ should suffer Christ also as man wills his own sufferings by his humane will but still it is the Divine will in Christ that is first and the humane will in Christ is governed by the Divine will This is very clear and apparent from our Saviours own words Mat. 26.39 Father if it be possible let this cup pass from me nevertheless not as I will but as thou wilt Here we see that Christ with his humane will wills his own sufferings not as I will but as thou wilt as if Christ had said If thou wilt have me suffer I will suffer I am content to suffer not as I will but as thou wilt his humane will was bowed to the Fathers will the Father willing his sufferings he wills it too It is true our Saviour discovered the verity and truth of humane nature in him in that aversness that was in him from
Fathers love that he should give so excellent a person as his own Son his only begotten Son to suffer and to dye for us God so loved the world that he gave his only begotten Son Joh. 3.16 How did he give him He gave him to be incarnate and to become man that was one way of his giving of him and secondly he gave him to suffer and dye for us that is another way of his giving of him Rom. 8.32 He spared not his own Son but delivered him up for us all That the Father should give such a Son so great a Son a Son that was equal with himself as we have heard that he should give him to become man to suffer and dye for man how great was the Fathers love 2. Learn to admire the Sons love that he that was in the form of God and counted it no robbery to be equal with God should yet come to suffer and dye for men Christ loved the Church and gave himself for it Eph. 5.25 The love of Christ in giving himself for us is exceeding admirable for Christ as we have heard as he was God willed his own sufferings as he was man yea he ordered and disposed of his own sufferings and that which is more admirable he inflicted sufferings on himself for our sakes This is wonderful indeed No man saith the Apostle ever hated his own flesh and yet Christ after a sort might seem to hate his own flesh that is he afflicted himself for our sakes Isa 53.10 It pleased the Lord to bruise him he put him to grief the hand of the Father was upon Christ It pleased the Lord to bruise him he put him to grief It was not only the hand of the Jews that was upon him but the hand of the Father was upon him Now the Father had not only a hand in Christs sufferings but Christ himself as God had a hand in his own sufferings as he was man The Lord that is the Father bruised him saith the Prophet the Father put him to grief the Son also bruâ—sed himself he put himself to grief for all the actions of the Trinity towards the creature are inseparable and undivided what one of the Persons doth the other doth If the Father bruised the Son and put him to grief as he was man the Son also as he was God bruised himself and put himself to grief as he was man Now who ever was known to be cruel to himself And yet the Son of Son to express his love to us after a sort was cruel to himself he afflicted his own flesh and put it to grief for our sakes therefore is it said By his stripes we are healed Christ gave stripes and wounds to himself that so we might escape stripes and wounds Vse 2 This shews us our great stupidity and dulness that we should be no more affected with this stupendious and amazing love of God Hath Christ loved us as we have heard in such a manner was Christ so excellent a person had he his existence and subsistence with the Father from Eternity Did he know himself to be equal with God so that he should do no wrong or injury if he had kept to himself the same honour always which the Father did without abasing himself by his Incarnation and sufferings Hath he ordered his own sufferings willed them permitted them upheld his Humanity in them was he united to his own flesh in suffering Hath the Son of God done all this for us O let us be ashamed at our own stupidity and dulness that we should be no more affected with these things That God should become man for our sakes and being man give himself to suffer and dye for us and we no more affected with this O what strange stupidity is it The holiest and the best hearts have too snallow thoughts of these things and I for my part who am not worthy to be numbered among the Saints upon the slender consideration I have had of these things cannot but wonder at my self that I am no more affected with them SERMON XVIII Joh. 15.13 Greater love hath no man than this that a man lay down his life for his friends 3. THE third Consideration arising from the Dignity of Christs Person to shew the greatness of his love in his sufferings is this It was the Deity the Divine nature in Christ that gave virtue and efficacy to the sufferings of the humane nature Chemnitius It is the observation of a Judicious Divine That it is one thing to speak of the Passion and death of Christ as it is the property of the humane nature and another thing to speak of the Passion and death of Christ as by that Passion and death of his the wrath of God is pacified the head of the Serpent broken death destroyed and life restored these are the operations of the Divine power although not without the humane nature The humane nature could never have done this without the virtue of the Deity Therefore we must consider that although it was in the humane nature that Christ obeyed and kept the Law and though it was in the humane nature that he suffered and dyed yet it was by the power and virtue of the Deity that these actions and sufferings of the humane nature were meritorious and satisfactory as to God and salutary as to men that is that they had an influence upon our salvation Had not Christ been God as well as man neither would his actions and sufferings been satisfactory and meritorious with God neither would they have brought salvation unto us Who but God could have conquered death hell and the grave Who but God could have wrought out redemption and salvation for us Hence is it that the Church in her triumphant Song when she declares how it was that her salvation was wrought out for her she attributes it wholly unto God Isa 12.2 Behold God is my salvation the Lord Jehovah is my strength and my song he also is become my salvation The Church looks upon all her salvation to be from God in Christ God was in Christ reconciling the world to himself 2 Cor. 5.19 It was God in Christ that gave the ranson and laid down the price for the Churches redemption Act. 20.28 Feed the Church of God which he hath purchased with his own blood The fourth Particular to set forth the greatness of Christs love in the work of his sufferings from the consideration of the dignity of his person That in the sufferings of Christ there was the humiliation of the whole person of the Mediator who was God as well as man This is a great thing to set forth the love of Christ in his sufferings to consider how great a person he was that humbled himself Phil. 2.8 He humbled himself and became obedient to the death Who was he that humbled himself that very person which the Apostle had spoken of before Now the person which he had spoken of before was he
him giving himself to us for these are no vain words This is my body which was broken for you setting aside those gross conceits of the Papists That the bread is transubstantiated into the body of Christ and that Christ is corporally present under the outward form of the Elements I say setting aside their gross conceits there is certainly a real though spiritual presence of Christ to every believing soul in the Sacrament The humane nature of Christ indeed is really present in Heaven therefore is it said Whom the heavens must contain till the time of the restitution of all things Act. 3. Yet the virtue of Christs body and blood is still really communicated to every believing soul Corpus ipsum in quo passus est resurrexit yea not only so saith Calvin Not only the virtue of his Death and Resurrection but that very body that dyed and rose again this is offered to us in the Sacrament these are great Mysteries indeed Now not to have a due reverence to such great and sublime Mysteries as these are to come to these as if they were common and ordinary things or to come to them with a common and slight spirit this is to come unworthily 2. Then do we come unworthily to the Sacrament when we live in the practice of any gross sin or retain the love of any sin We profess by our coming to the Sacrament that we believe that Christ dyed for such and such sins and yet we love these sins or continue in the practice of those sins that cost Christ his life this is to offer the greatest indignity to the Son of God This is as if a Traitor should come to sit at Table with the King to dine or sup with him and yet never repent of his treason but retain a traiterous mind and intention in his heart all the while When a man sits at the same table to eat and drink with another it is a sign of friendship no one would willingly admit another to his table but whom he accounts to be his friend When we come to the Lords Table we profess the highest friendship to Christ now when we profess the highest friendship to Christ and yet retain that in our love and practice that is most directly contrary to the honour and glory of Christ this is the greatest indignity that can be This is that the Apostle calls the crucifying the Son of God afresh and putting him to an open shame Heb. 6.6 What is this but crucifying Christ afresh and making Christ as contemptuous as possibly we can whenas we profess to expect salvation by the death and sufferings of Christ and yet in the mean time love harbour entertain and practise those very things we say we believe Christ dyed for Certainly every loose Christian that makes a profession of Christ and yet lives in gross open sins makes a plain mock of Christ and his sufferings for he professeth that he believes he shall be pardoned by the sufferings and death of Christ and yet he continues in the love and practice of those sins as if so be the end of Christs death were that men might continue in their sins and not be delivered from them 3. Then do men come unworthily to the Sacrament when they come without examining themselves Let a man examine himself and so let him eat of that bread and drink of that cup 1 Cor. 11.28 It is observable the Apostle opposeth this examining a mans self to his eating unworthily In the former verse he had said He that eats this bread and drinks this cup of the Lord unworthily shall be guilty of the body and blood of the Lord now he adds But let a man examine himself so then if a man do not examine himself then he eats unworthily But it may be said Object What ought a man to examine himself about Concerning two things Answ 1. Concerning his state 2. Concerning the present frame and dispostion of his heart 1. A man ought to examine himself concerning his state whether he be in Christ whether he have a right to such an Ordinance 2 Cor. 13.5 Examine your selves whether ye be in the faith prove your own selves Know ye not your own selves how that Jesus Christ is in you except ye be reprobate We must examine our selves concerning our fundamental estate whether that be good yea or no to examine what standing we have in Christ 2. We ought to examine our selves concerning the frame and disposition of our souls whether we be in a fit frame to partake of such an Ordinance We ought to examine our selves whether our hearts be strongly bent and inclined to any sin whether we be under the power of any sin this is the examination of our repentance We ought to examine what the frame of our hearts is God-ward whether the bent of our hearts be towards God and the ways of God this is the examining of our other graces Now when we rush upon the Sacrament without reflexion and examination of our spiritual state this is unworthy coming And here let us observe That the children of God themselves may in a degree come in an unworthy manner for there are several degrees of unworthy receiving They that have slight and contemptuous thoughts of this Ordinance they that live in gross and scandalous sins they are guilty of unworthy receiving in the highest degree But then they that have true grace and do not retain in their hearts the love of any sin yet if they are remiss in searching into their hearts to find out their secret corruptions and to judge themselves for them they come unworthily in a lesser degree and God may correct his own children for their spiritual remisness in this kind The Apostle tells us For this cause many were sickly and weak and many were fallen asleep 1 Cor. 11.30 that is for coming to the Sacrament without due preparation Others who grosly profane this Ordinance that come to this Ordinance and live in gross sins and continue to live and dye in them God punisheth them otherwise he punisheth them with eternal condemnation He that eateth and drinketh unworthily eateth and drinketh damnation to himself or judgment to himself as the word may be rendred The godly themselves coming in a rude and careless manner to this Ordinance may and oftentimes do bring the judgment of temporal chastisement upon themselves for not coming in a right manner to so great an Ordinance But such as are profane who come to this Ordinance and yet live in sin they eat to themselves the judgment of eternal condemnation Now to return unto what we first propounded to come unworthily to the Sacrament is one way of contemning Christs sufferings And if it be asked What is the reason of it why is the unworthy receiving of the Sacrament a contemning of Christs sufferings I answer 1. Because the Sacrament is a plain revelation and exhibition of Christ crucified This is my body which was broken
for you That very body of Christ in which he suffered dyed rose again is offered to us in the Sacrament to be looked upon by faith The Sacrament is as the Ancients call it Verbum visibile a visible Word The Sacrament declares by visible signs and representations that which the Word doth in another way Now as it is a great sin to contemn Christ when he is made known to us in the way of the Word so it is a great sin to contemn Christ when he is revealed to us by his own signs and symbols which are of his own institution instituted on purpose by himself to make himself known to us 2. The Sacrament is appointed to confirm our union and communion with Christ The bread which we break is it not the communion of the body of Christ The cup of blessing which we bless is it not the communion of the blood of Christ 1 Cor. 10. The ancient Church called the Sacrament of the Lords Supper Sacramentum unionis the Sacrament of Vnion because it is that special Ordinance by which our union and communion with Christ is strengthened and confirmed And our Saviour in effect tells us as much when he saith He that eateth my flesh and drinketh my blood dwelleth in me and I in him Job 6.56 When we eat Christs flesh and drink his blood Christ dwells in us and we in him Now when we profess the nearest union and communion with the person of Christ and with the death and sufferings of Christ and we slight both his person and his sufferings this must needs be a great sin Thus have we heard now how Christ and his sufferings may be contemned there is another thing that may be added and that is 5. That Apostates such as fall from deny and renounce the faith of Christ they once presessed they do in an eminent manner pour contempt upon the sufferings of Christ Of these the Apostle speaks in a peculiar manner Heb. 10. and of these he saith That they account the blood of the Covenant by which they are sanctified an unholy thing He that apostatizes from the Christian Profession what doth he do but make a mock of Christ and his sufferings as if all that he had formerly professed concerning Christ and his sufferings were but a meer sable Now it concerns us greatly to see that we be not found in the number of such who are contemners of Christs person or of his sufferings and the reason is because great punishment is denounced on such Heb. 10.29 Of how much sorer punishment shall he be thought worthy who hath trodden under foot the Son of God and hath counted the blood of the Covenant wherewith he was sanctified an unholy thing and hath done despite unto the Spirit of grace There is a sorer punishment shall be inflicted upon such who despise the person of Christ and contemn his sufferings and I verily believe this is one main cause of the Judgments which God hath already executed and will yet further execute upon the unthankful world because his Son hath been revealed to the world in this last Century of years more than in former Ages by that clear and great light that hath broken forth and yet men make no reckoning of Christ and of his grace but are grown worse and worse more profane and atheistical under the light of the Gospel that hath shone upon them As Idolatry was the great sin that God did avenge under the Old Testament upon the Jews that were then his professing people so the contempt of the Gospel wherein there hath been a plain and manifest revelation of the Son of God and of that grace and salvation which is brought by his death and sufferings seems to be the great sin that God is avenging upon professing Christians The end of the nineteenth Sermon SERMON XX. Joh. 15.13 Greater love hath no man than this that a man lay down his life for his friends I Proceed now to another Consideration to shew the greatness of Christs Love in his Sufferings Consid 7 The love of Christ in his sufferings appears in this That the Son of God so great a person should suffer such things as he did suffer for us The love of Christ doth not only appear from the consideration of the excellency of the person suffering but also from the consideration of the things themselves that he suffered for us that so great a person should suffer so much shame such reproach such indignity as he did for us this is that which commends Christs love to us Heb. 12.2 He endured the cross and despised the shame Isa 50.6 I gave my back to the smiters and my cheeks to them that plucked off the hair I hid not my face from shame and spitting That the Son of God should suffer such things for us poor men that he should suffer such pains and torments in soul and body for us this commends his love to us The sufferings of Christ did far exceed the sufferings of any other man yea if the sufferings of all men were put together they are not to be compared with the sufferings of Christ and the reason is because Christ did suffer the very pains of Hell for us as we have heard Christ did not only suffer from men but he suffered from the hands of his Father it pleased the Father to bruise him he put him to grief Isa 53. Christ did not only suffer in his body but he suffered in his soul yea his soul-sufferings were the greatest sufferings there it was that he suffered dereliction there it was that he suffered the sense of Gods wrath no sorrows were ever like to Christs sorrows and yet these sorrows Christ did voluntarily and electively undergo for our sakes Our Saviour knew before-hand what his sufferings were like to be and yet he freely underwent them Christ did not rush upon his sufferings unawares but he knew what his sufferings would be and yet he was content to undergo them for our sakes Luk. 12.50 I have a baptism to be baptized with he speaks of the Baptism of his sufferings The Lord Jesus knew that he was to undergo such sore and grievous sufferings and yet he voluntarily underwent them he did not rum ignorantly upon them but he knew before-hand what he was to suffer and yet he chose voluntarily to suffer that which he knew would be so bitter and grievous to him It is a great alleviation of a mans sufferings not to know what he hath to suffer the contemplation of a mans sufferings before-hand is sometimes almost as great a suffering as the suffering it self that he is to undergo but yet the Son of God had the contemplation and foresight in his mind of the sufferings that he was to undergo for us yet he was content notwithstanding to under go them Mat. 16.21 From that time forth began Jesus to shew to his Disciples how he must go to Jerusalem and suffer many things of the
Elders and chief Priests and Scribes and be killed and be raised again the third day Our Saviour was not ignorant of his own sufferings but had a perfect contemplation of them in his mind before-hand he knew how great and bitter and sore they would be and yet he was content to undergo them for our sakes Consid 8 The love of Christ in his sufferings appears in this That so great a person should give himself to suffer such things to expiate so vile a thing as sin which yet he hated so much and had power to punish that the life of the best person should go to expiate the worst thing this is admirable Sin is the worst of evils the vilest thing in the world Now that the life of the most excellent person the life of the Son of God should be given to expiate so vile a thing as sin this is admirable indeed The Lord hath caused to meet on him the iniquity or perversness of us all Isa 53. Sin is the perversness of the creature it is the crookedness or depravation of a mans actions sin is a defection or turning aside from a right path and yet the Son of God gave himself to expiate so vile a thing as sin is Dedit tam inaestimabile pretium pro tam despecta odioque dignissima re Luther It is a speech of Luther He gave so inestimable a price for our sins for a thing so vile so despicable so worthy to be hated What more abominable what more odious in the sight of God than sin and yet the Son of God gave himself to expiate our sins Sin is most hareful to Christ Heb. 1.9 Thou hast loved righteousness and hated iniquity it is spoken of Christ and yet though Christ hated sin so much he gave himself for our sins Gal. 1.4 Who gave himself for our sins and as Christ hated sin so had he power to punish and to be avenged for it and yet rather than we should undergo the punishment that was due to us he himself who had power to inflict the punishment and might justly have done it was content to suffer the punishment for us Well may we cry out with Luther O the condescension and love of God to wards man God was the person offended and yet God came to suffer the punishment that man deserved Consid 9 The love of Christ in his sufferings appears in this That Christ had all the Elect before him at once and suffered for all the Elect. It was not for one or a few of the Elect only that he suffered or for some or a few of their sins that he suffered but it was for all the sins of all the Elect Eph. 5.25 Husbands love your wives as Christ loved the Church and gave himself for it It was the Church that Christ gave himself for Christ knew all his sheep by name and he laid down his life for his sheep Paul could say He hath loved me and given himself for me and every true Believer may say He hath loved me and given himself for me Why now what an insinite Sea and Ocean of love must there needs be in the heart of Christ when as Christ out of the greatness of his love gave himself as a Sacrifice to expiate the guilt of all the sins of all the Elect that ever had been committed or should be committed to the end of the world This is set forth by the Apostle 1 Joh. 2.2 He is the propitiation for our sins and not for ours only but also for the sins of the whole world that is Christ is not only the propitiation for ours sins who do now live and believe on him but he is also the propitiation for the sins of all others who shall live after us and believe on him even to the end of the world The virtue of Christs death and the efficacy of his sufferings to the Elect of all Ages Consid 10 The love of Christ in his sufferings appears in this That Christ by his death and sufferings hath delivered us from that which was the greatest matter of fear to us The great thing which all the sons of men have feared hath been death and the consequence of death The great thing threatned for sin was death In the day that thou eatest thou shalt dye the death Death was the great punishment threatned for sin hence it comes to pass that all mankind ever since the Fall have been under a slavish fear of death and the consequence of death The great things which we do naturally dread are death and what follows death Hell and the wrath of God Now Christ by laying down his life hath taken away the fear of death and the consequences of death This is fully expressed by the Apostle Heb. 2.14 That through death he might destroy him that had the power of death and deliver them who through fear of death were all their life-time subject to bondage There are two things which the Apostle intimates are the great things that do keep men in bondage all their days the one is the fear of death and the other is the power that the Devil had over men That he might destroy him that had the power of death that is the Devil The Devil hath not the power of death simply and absolutely but he is said to have the power of death as he is the Executioner of Gods wrath and drags men to the torments of Hell Now Christ by his death delivers us from both these he delivers us from the fear of death and from the power of the Devil 1. Christ by death delivers us from death the strength and venom of death is spent in the death of Christ Christ underwent death as it was the Curse that was denounced upon us for sin Now death is no more a part of the Curse to a Believer because Christ hath undergone it as a curse for us 2. Christ hath also undergone the pains and torments of Hell as formerly hath been shewed and therefore he hath enervated 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 made void or frustrated the power of the Devil as the word signifies Christ by his death hath taken away Satans power The Devil after a sort as he was the Executioner of Gods wrath might be said to have the power of death that is of eternal death after a sort and in a sense he hath power over those torments which the damned feel But now Christ having born those pains and torments for his people the Devil hath nothing to do with them he hath no power over them Could we contemplate death as we ought to do in the death of Christ we might see death to have lost all its strength all its venom in the death of Christ It is the observation of Luther Could we believe so firmly as we ought to do that Christ dyed for our sins and rose again for our justification there would remain nothing of fear or terrour in us for saith he the
death of Christ is a certain Sacrament or pledge which certifies us that our death is nothing at all For if death hath executed all its power and strength upon Christ if death hath poured out all its venom and malignity upon Christ then there is nothing that remains in death to hurt us Death had nothing at all to do with Christ but only as he put himself under the power of death for our sakes Now the Son of God who was above death freely subjecting himself to death for our sakes and death having done all that it could against Christ it hath nothing more to do against a poor Believer It is true Believers dye still but yet their death is not part of the Curse the death of the Saints is only a passage unto life and it is that which prepares the way for a more blessed Resurrection Whatever was truly formidable or terrible in death is taken away by the death of Christ That which was most formidable in death was this that it was a part of the Curse that it was the effect of Divine wrath Now Christ having suffered the whole of Gods wrath for us death is not inflicted upon Believers as the effect of Gods wrath nay it is so far from being sent to a Believer in wrath that it is sent in mercy to him and death is an introduction unto a Believers happiness All things are yours things present things to come life is yours and death is yours 1 Cor. 3.21 22. Blessed are the dead that dye in the Lord Rev. 14. Death is an introduction to the Saints unto their perfect and compleat happiness the Saints happiness is inchoate and begun in this life when they are first brought into the Kingdom of Grace and their happiness is compleat and consummate in the next life when they are by death ushered into the Kingdom of Glory Consid 11 The love of Christ in his sufferings appears in this That he came into our nature and became man on purpose that he might suffer for us One of the principal ends of the Incarnation of the Son of God was that he might suffer and dye for men This is intimated by the Apostle Heb. 2.14 For as much as the children are made partakers of flesh and blood he also himself took part of the same that through death he might destroy him that had the power of death that is the devil It is as much as if he had said Had he not partaken of our nature he could not have suffered for us as he was the Son of God and possessed of the Divine nature so he was not capable of suffering but therefore did he take on him our nature and became the Son of man that he might be in a capacity to suffer for men O what overcoming love was this that the Son of God did therefore take upon him our nature that he might be in a capacity to suffer for men had he always abode in the form of God only it had not been possible for him to suffer but therefore would he take upon him part of our passible and mortal flesh that so he might be in a capacity to suffer and dye for us Consid 12 The love of Christ in his suffering may be seen in this Because so great benefits accrue and come to us by the sufferings of Christ Christ by the merit of his sufferings hath purchased and procured the greatest blessings for us To instance in a few briefly 1. Christ by his sufferings hath purchased for us the forgiveness of sins Eph. 1.14 In whom we have redemption through his blood even the forgiveness of sins 2. Christ by his sufferings hath purchased for us peace and reconciliation with God Eph. 2.16 That he might reconcile us to God by the cross Col. 1.21 You that were sometimes alienated and enemies in your minds by wicked works yet now hath he reconciled in the body of his flesh through death 3. Eternal life it self is the purchase of Christs sufferings Rom. 6. ult The wages of sin is death but the gift of God is eternal life through Jesus Christ our Lord that is through the merit of Jesus Christ our Lord so that eternal life is the merit of Christs death We have another clear Text to confirm this Heb. 9.15 For this cause he is the Mediator of the new Testament that by means of death for the redemption of the transgressions that were under the first Testament they which are called might receive the promise of eternal inheritance The eternal inheritance the inheritance which all the Elect are brought unto in Heaven is purchased by the death of Christ for so the Apostle expresseth it That by means of death those that are called might have the promise of eternal inheritance Hence is it that Heaven is called a purchased possession Eph. 1.14 Vntil the redemption of the purchased possession the Glory of Heaven is called a purchased possession Now in every purchase there must be a price there can be no purchase without a price the price therefore that was laid down for us that we might obtain eternal life was the price of Christs blood the death of Christ as appears from the former Scriptures 4. The Spirit of God and all that grace whereby we are inabled to believe and obey and in general whatever blessings are comprehended in the Covenant of Grace these are all the purchase of the death of Christ This is apparent from those words of our Saviour in the institution of the Supper This cup is the new Testament in my blood as much as if he should say All the mercies all the blessings of the new Covenant are the purchase of my blood and the Covenant it self is ratified and confirmed by my blood Now in the Covenant of Grace there are many great things promised in it the Lord promiseth to forgive the sins of his people he promiseth that he will put his Law in their minds and write it in their hearts he promiseth that he will give his Spirit to them and the like all these blessings are purchased and procured by the death of Christ great therefore must the love of Christ be in giving himself to suffer and dye for his people since by the death of Christ such great and admirable priviledges are purchased for them The Covenant of Grace is the greatest Charter of all our spiritual Priviledges whatever Priviledges belong to a Believer they are contained within the compass of the Covenant Now the Covenant it self is founded in the blood of the Mediator of the Covenant How precious then is that blood that purchased such great things for us And how great was the love of Christ that shed his blood to obtain such things for us Vse If the love of Christ be so great in his sufferings let us be exhorted from hence to meditate much on the sufferings of Christ O it were well for us if we could take many a turn at the Cross of Christ and
the desert of our own sins is in the sufferings of Christ Whatever Christ suffered was nothing but the desert of our sins it was that which we deserved should have been laid upon us Therefore when we come to make use of the sufferings of Christ his soul-sufferings or his bodily sufferings when we consider his soul-sufferings viz. his dereliction or his being forsaken of God the sense of Gods wrath that he underwent in his soul when we consider the pain grief torment and death that he suffered in his body we ought to consider with our selves that these were the very things we deserved we were the persons that deserved to be forsaken of God to have the face of God hid from us we were they that deserved to feel the wrath of God to be made the butt of Gods wrath and displeasure we deserved that pain anguish and death it self and all as part of the Curse for Christ suffered all these things for us and was made a Curse for us So that in the sufferings of Christ as in a glass or mirroir we may see what we deserved there was nothing Christ suffered but we deserved it and our hearts ought to be deeply soakt in these considerations as ever we desire to take in the benefit of Christs satisfaction He that doth not see himself worthy to be cast off nay I may say he that doth not see himself worthy to be cut off by the wrath of an angry God for his sins will never prize the satisfaction of Christ as he ought to do Christ in the work of his satisfaction trod the wine-press of Divine wrath therefore it becomes us to be sensible deeply sensible of our desert and worthiness of his wrath as ever we desire to have benefit by Christs satisfaction Our Saviour in the sixth of John doth at several times promise to us eternal life upon eating his flesh and drinking his blood vers 54. He that eats my flesh and drinks my blood shall have eternal life Now it is a good observation of one If thou wouldst eat the flesh of Christ and drink his blood so as to have eternal life by him do thou first taste death be sensible of what thou deservest by reason of sin be sensible of the spiritual death thou art subject to namely separation from God obnoxiousness to his wrath which is the death of the soul when once thou art sensible of spiritual death what it is to be separated from God what it is to lye under his wrath then thou wilt come with spiritual hunger and thirst to the sufferings of Christ to obtain life from him The second Direction is If we would make use of the Sufferings and Satisfaction of Christ so as to draw home the benefit of it to our selves let us direct the eye of our faith unto our natures suffering in Christ It was our nature that sinned and it is in our nature that satisfaction must be made and this is the great relief unto faith to see satisfaction made in the nature of man as sin was committed in the nature of man Consider what the Apostle saith 1 Cor. 15.21 Since by man came death by man also came the resurrection from the dead The Apostle plainly intimates that this is the singular happiness and comfort of Believers that as happiness was lost at first in and by our nature so happiness is now recovered and restored in and by our nature It was the nature of man that sinned in the first Adam and it is the nature of man that hath obeyed and satisfied in Christ the second Adam It was the nature of man that was deprived of happiness and lost communion with God and was subject to death in the first Adam and it was the nature of man that was restored to happiness that was admitted unto communion with God that was raised from the dead in Christ the second Adam Therefore is it that in Rom. 5.19 we read of two men Adam and Christ As by one mans disobedience many were made sinners By one mans disobedience here is Adam the first man Now read the fifteenth verse of the same Chapter If through the offence of one many be dead much more the grace of God and the gift by grace which is by one man Jesus Christ hath abounded unto many Here we have another man the second man from Heaven as he is called 1 Cor. 15.47 also The man Christ Jesus 1 Tim. 2.5 Now the scope of the Apostle is to shew that as disobedience was acted in the nature of man by Adam the first man so obedience was performed in the nature of man by Christ who was the second man from Heaven This is a great quiet and relief to faith to find that in our nature that is adequate and commensurate to the Law Christ having satisfied the Law in our nature for us it is in Gods account as if we had satisfied it Consider that expression Rom. 8.4 That the righteousness of the law might be fulfilled in us Some Learned men interpret that phrase in us that is in our nature Christ having fulfilled the Law for us in a part of our nature it is in Gods account as if so be we had fulfilled it This is more fully explained to us by the Author to the Hebrews Heb 2.11 c. For both he that sanctifieth and they who are sanctified are all of one for which cause he is not ashamed to call them brethren Christ is here spoken of as the Head of all the Elect. Now he is the person that sanctifieth He that sanctifieth and they who are sanctified Christ is the person sanctifying all the Elect are sanctified in him Now to sanctifie another is to make him holy and to present him holy unto God Christ doth thus sanctifie the Elect he makes them holy and presents them holy to God first in his own person and that he may do this that he may be in a capacity to do it he must participate of one and the same common nature with them whom he doth so sanctifie therefore is it that the Apostle says He that sanctifieth and they that are sanctified are of one the meaning is they are of one and the same common nature the person sanctifying and the persons sanctified are of one and the same common nature the head is true man and the members are true men This the Apostle doth farther amplifie at vers 14. For as much then as the children were made partakers of flesh and blood he also himself took part of the same Christ being the Head of the Elect and it being his office to redeem them he must come into their nature and do and suffer that in their nature which they ought to have done and suffered they were made subject to death therefore Christ tasted death for them as we have it vers 9. Christ taking upon him the same nature with his brethren did punctually fulfil for them in their nature whatever was expected from
them Now in the serious exercises of faith we ought to attend this we ought to consider how that all the great things of our salvation were transacted by our Head in a part of our nature for us what Christ suffered our nature suffered in him 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 Athanas It is a good speech of Athanasius It was not our Lord himself so much as we that suffered in him The third Direction is We should behold our nature in Christ suffering and undergoing the same things which we deserved and do lye under the fear of As it is a great relief to faith to behold our nature suffering in Christ so that which makes this relief compleat is to see our nature in Christ suffering the very same things which we deserved and are under the fear of The Apostle tells us Rom. 4.5 The law worketh wrath The Law works the fear of wrath in the conscience the Law begets the sense of Gods wrath in the conscience How so The reason is Because by the law is the knowledge of sin sin is the transgression of the law by the Law I know my self to be a sinner because I see I have transgressed such a Law now the breach of this Law worketh wrath that is it works the fear of wrath as that which is due for sin Hence also is that expression of conscience of sin Heb. 10.2 The worshippers once purged should have no more conscience of sin By conscience of sin here in this place I take it that we must understand a conscience burdened and laden with the guilt of sin The meaning is not certainly that those who are once purged by the virtue of Christs Sacrifice should make no more conscience of sin that would be an impious opinion nay the contrary thereunto is most true a conscience purged from the guilt of sin by the Blood and Sacrifice of Christ such a person makes more conscience of sin that is of committing sin Shall we sin because grace abounds God forbid The grace of God teacheth us to deny ungodliness and worldly lusts But the meaning of the place is that those who have their consciences once purged and cleansed by the blood of Christ they ought to have no more conscience of sin as to guilt that is they ought to look upon their consciences exonerated and discharged from guilt by the Sacrifice of Christ But that which I quoted this Text for was to shew that sin brings a conscience of guilt When sin lyeth upon the conscience it fills the conscience with the fear and horrour of Gods wrath now the great relief to conscience in this case must be for a man to turn his eyes upon Christ and to see Christ in our nature suffer that which we deserve and that which we are afraid of We are afraid of Gods wrath and Christ that was true man our Head and Surety felt and suffered the wrath of God we fear lest God should forsake us lest God should cast us off for ever now we ought to turn our eyes upon Christ and see our nature forsaken and deserted in Christ My God my God why hast thou forsaken me Do you fear the torments of Hell Christ hath born these very pains and torments This is certain there is no such relief or remedy to an afflicted conscience as for a man to turn his eyes upon Christ and to see Christ who was most innocent in himself suffering all that for us which we deserve and fear Deseritur cum desertis pro natura quam assumpserat tributum solvit Christ was deserted with them who were deserted and paid the tribute for that nature which he assumed as we heard heretofore And another of the Ancients expresseth himself to the same purpose God saith he in his righteous judgment exacted all those things from us which are written in the Law which when we our selves were not able to pay our Lord hath paid them for us Christ hath assumed and volunt arily taken upon himself the curse and condemnation which we were obnoxious unto Quae pati debueramus illa ipse pertulit those things which we ought to have suffered he himself hath born for us This is a great support to faith to consider that the things we deserved and feared those are the things which Christ hath suffered and born for us The fourth Direction is this Let us behold our nature in Christ voluntarily suffering what we deserved to suffer this also is a great relief to faith As it is a relief to faith to behold our nature suffering and suffering the same things that we ought to have suffered so this is another great relief to faith to behold our nature in Christ voluntarily suffering what we deserved to suffer As we who are the sinful sons of men have sinned voluntarily so one of our kin one of our stock and linage one that was true man hath voluntarily offered himself to suffer for us poor sinful men So that satisfaction is voluntarily tendered up to God in our room and stead by one who was true man and in all points like unto us sin only excepted Our sin and disobedience was not more voluntary than Christs obedience and offering himself to suffer for us was free and voluntary Christ our Head and Surety when the Justice of God was coming forth armed against us hath most voluntarily run to meet it and to expose himself to those strokes which should have lighted on us Lo I come to do thy will thy law is in my heart Heb. 10. The Justice of God was not more desirous of satisfaction to be made to it than Christ our Head and Surety was willing to tender it Now if a Creditor hath never so great a sum of money owing to him and the Surety undertake the payment of the whole debt and be most free and ready as to the payment of it as free to pay the debt as the Creditor is to demand it what can he desire more Christ our Surety undertook the payment of our debt and was as ready to tender the satisfaction as God was to require it The fifth Direction is Let us direct the eye of our faith to the person of the Son of God acting in our nature and sanctifying all his sufferings by the dignity of his own person To illustrate this let us consider that Scripture Heb. 7.26 Such an High Priest became us who is holy harmless undefiled separate from sinners made higher than the heavens and then it follows in vers 28. The Law maketh High Priests which have infirmity but the word of the oath which was since the Law maketh the Son who is consecrated for evermore The scope of the Apostle in this place is to shew that he who is our High Priest is more than a man he is the Son of God The word of the oath makes the Son which is consecrated for evermore He opposeth the Son of God to the Priests under the Law Now