the matter of it setting aside the Ceremonial and Judicial Law it remains still obliging us in the dayes of the Gospel and the Apostle professeth to establish the Law even by the preaching of Faith 'T is true it was first of all given to the Jews that was their priviledge but now that it is given it is ours as well as theirs that therefore which seems to be peculiar to them in it was the manner of its delivery both being without promises and in that terrible manner given upon the Mount but yet still it was thus given because of transgressions to hinder transgressions they needed this terror at that time Children though they know their duty must have some terror to make them do it The Heir whilest he is a Child differeth nothing from a servant though he be Lord of all he is used like a servant harshly severely he is under Tutors and Governors till the time appointed by the Father Gal. 4.2 there is the same 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 that the Apostle hath in his answer to the objection 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 But because this particular hath some affinity with the second general end mentioned why the Law was given with respect to transgressions I shall now enter upon that and it was this 2. The Law was added because of transgressions for the heightning and aggravating of transgressions Rom. 5.20 The Law entered that the offence might abound 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 subingressa est irrepsit the Holy Ghost is pleased frequently to use such words as should shew that the Law came in by the by for some considerable ends indeed that the Lord had in delivering it but not as the great establisht way for Justification for certainly that could not come in by the by but the Law came in thus it stole in subingressa est it crept in by stealth irrepsit so the Original signifies But what was the end of the Law when it thus entred why it entred because of transgressions that the offences of men might abound In the 12. ver of Râ—â— 5. 〈◊〉 read that sin entered into the World and 〈◊〉 that the Law entered the Law hunted it followed it stole in afterwards to discover sin for as ver 13. hath it Before or until the Law sin was in the world that is not before the Law did oblige but before the Law was delivered in such a solemn manner as it was upon Mount Sinai before the Law sin was in the world but sin was not imputed when there was no Law yet death reigned all this while till Moses his time which was the curse of the Law Now that men might know wherefore they suffered death and the curse it was sit the Law should come into the world in a solemn manner delivered that so sin might be imputed by men to themselves as it was by God to men witness death the curse of the Law which reigned from Adam to Moses from Adam that sinned to Moses that gave the Law sin did not appear to be sin till the Law entred therefore it is said Sin that it might appear sin working death in me by that which is good viz. the Law that sin by the Commandment might become out of measure sinfull So Rom. 3.20 the Apostle proves that the Law cannot justifie for by the Law is the knowledge of sin The Law is so far from justifying saith the Apostle that it only brings sin to light brings the knowledg of sin with it makes the offence to abound and if that be the way to justifie sinners to aggravate their sins bind on their guilts more then ever upon their consciences let any man judg therefore indeed the Law in the immediate great intent of it was a killing Letter an Administration of Death a Ministration of Condemnation a Ministration of Desperation and not of righteousness unto justification and accordingly it was delivered with thundering lightning upon Mount Sinai to shew the horrible fire darkness tempest that there was in the Law it self to all that should come near it to think to make use of it for a way of Justification as Moses put a Vail upon his face to shew the vailedness of his Dispensation so the Law was delivered with fire to shew the fieriness of the Law unto the conscience for the Law was not only terrible to the beholders of it when it was given upon Mount Sinai but this terribleness is in the Law it self to all that ever had to do with it feelingly ever since to all that ever came near it for justification Indeed for those that stand aloof off from it only play about it at a distance hope to be saved in a loose way by their works by their good doings and by their good meanings they may perhaps never feel the stinging fiery lashes of the Law but let any of these self-Justiciaries drive their Principle to an Head let them come up near to the Law let them advance toward Mount Sinai and approach it and challenge their Justification from God by the Law and they shall quickly find themselvs scorched and scalded sent away with sad hearts and affrightned consciences they'â— find the Law to be a ministration of Death and not of Righteousness I might here shew in several particulars how the Lâ—w doth discover sin it discovers habitual sin St Paul or the man personated in Rom. 7. had never found there had been such a bottomless depth such a lively body of death within him but for the Law when that came sin revived and he dyed Rom. 7.9 2. It discovers actual sin I had not known sin that is lustings to be sin except the Law had said Thou shalt not covet ver 7. But I shall not insist longer upon this particular The third end of the Law 's being â—â—ded I hasten to the third great end of the Law 's being added with respect to transgressions and that was for the finishing of transgressions and making an end of sin as the expressions are though somewhat otherwise used Dan. 9.24 What shall we think that when God had given promises to Abraham and confirmed a Covenant in Christ to him and his Seed that he now gave a law to drive all his people into despair this amounts all to one as if he had broken his promise and his covenant as I have before argued out of the Apostle Paul did the Lord only send his law that they might know their duty and be affrightned into their duty as the first particular carries it if they did not do their duty should the law aggravate their sin bind on their guilts upon their Conscience and so leave them under desparation and be a ministration of death to them Was this all the Law came for If this were all they might better have been without the law at a venture then have had it they might have done better with the promises alone This therefore was not all the end
Now this being the great means of transferring Justification from the Law to Faith I shall a little insist upon the Explication of it That which I have to say upon it will be contained in these two assertions 1. That Christ in his own person here upon earth undertook the Law and answered it in all that it had to say against us And whereas it was a killing letter he took out this condemning power of it for all believers 2. That this was done by Christ for all ages of the Church and so it was and is the great foundation of that Justification by faith which the Apostle Paul contends to have been in all ages before the Law under the Law and in the dayes of the Gospel to the end of the world so that the way of Justification by faith comes in kindly and in a comely manner without any neglect or violation of the Law I begin with the first assertion That Christ in his own person here upon earth undertook and answered the Law The first assertion That Christ undertook answered the law for us c. Now to prove and illustrate this assertion it will be usefull to us 1. To consider in what condition the Lord Christ found us when he came into the world as a Saviour We were therefore all of us Jewes and Gentiles We were all under the law when Christ came to save us prisoners to the Law I shall give the account of this in the Apostle's expressions which are somewhat mystical to which I hope I shall adde some light by laying them together and comparing them one with another Before Christ came and before faith came and so at the time when Christ came when faith came in the doctrinal discovery or at any time doth come to us in the hearty closing with it We were kept under the Law Gal. 3.23 the words are 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 the Law had set a guard upon us and as it follows we were shut up unto the faith 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 we were all shut up as so many prisoners unto the Law and under its guard and custody and in Rom. 7.6 speaking of the Law the Apostle saith We were held by it that being dead that is the Law wherein we were HELD or by which we were detained 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 For though these places in the Galatians and Romanes may referr to the different dispensations of the Old Testament and New that before the dayes of the Gospel when faith came to be preached men were under a legal dispensation they were kept under the Law and shut up to the faith that was to be revealed yet I dare affirm that there is a deeper meaning then that at least a deeper truth then that if not in those places which is this That till Christ and the way of Justification by faith be made known to the soul the soul must needs be under a legal frame â—f heart towards God under fear and bondage â—ay and a further sense then this yet and that â—s this That till the virtue of the blood of Christ â—e applyed to the soul till actual Justification â—y or upon faith every man lies under the curse â—nd threatning and wrath of the Law the Law â—ath taken hold of us all an evident signe of â—hich is this That death hath passed upon all and â—hat is the reason why for that all have sinned â—om 5.12 And if any could plead exemption from this abnoxiousness to the Law it must be either the â—â—ntiles that had not the Law as the expression is â—â—m 2.14 that is had not the Law given to â—â—em or those that lived before the Law was â—ven by Moses now neither of these can plead â—is exemption therefore all mankinde were â—ptives to the Law when Christ undertook the â—ork of Redemption or rather until the desigâ—ation of Christ by the Father to this work For the first viz. the Gentiles the Apostle tells us that he had proved them under sin which is the transgression of the Law therefore under the Law and their thoughts within them did accuse for their breach of the Law which was written in their hearts Rom. 2.14 Neither were they free from this arrest of the Law who lived before the delivery of the Law by Moses for the Apostle tells us plainly Rom. 5.13 That untill the Law sin was in the world that is from Adam till the time that the Law was solemnly given by Moses sin was in the world now sin is the transgression of the Law and accordingly as sin was in the world all that space of time from Adam to Moses so Death reigned from Adam to Moses Now we know that death 〈◊〉 the wages of sin and the strength of sin is the Law 1 Cor. 15.56 Sin could never have brought in death but by the Law which bindes sin upon the sinner and with sin the punishment due to it therefore all that space of time from Adaâ— to Moses sin and death being in the world 〈◊〉 they were to be sure there was the Law in its power energy it was there in effect as sure 〈◊〉 it was in the hearts consciences of Heathens and the Grave was the Law 's Prison Death it's Arrest Sin it 's great Charge and Accusation by and upon which Death entred Sin entred in the world and death by sin upon the threatningâ— the Law Rom. 5.12 This was the state and condition therefore that Christ found us in wâ— were all under the Law as Prisoners and Captives therefore when the Father sent fort Christ upon the work of Redemption it is saâ— Gal. 4.4 God sent forth his Son made of a woman mâ—â— under the Law to redeem them that were under 〈◊〉 Law This was written to the Galatians who were Gentiles That we putting himself and the Galatians together might receive the adoption of Sons therefore the Gentiles were under the Law when Christ was sent forth for their redemption And our Saviour tells us what he was commissionated to by his Father Luke 4.18 The Spirit of the Lord is upon me because he hath anointed me to preach the Gospel to the poor he hath sent me to heal the broken-hearted to preach DELIVERANCE TO THE CAPTIVES and recovering of sight to the blinde to set at liberty them that are bruised or bound as it is in Isai 61.1 to preach the acceptable year of the Lord that is the Year of Jubilee when all servants were set free thus Christ's coming was to proclaim a Year of Jubilee to the whole world that the Law 's Captives should be delivered and those that served God under the tyranny of the Law might receive a spirit of Adoption So now thus farr we are gone in our proof of the first assertion that when Christ came as a Saviour and Redeemer of his people he found them all under the Law as the lawfull Captives and Prisoners unto it by reason of their sins which were
that it might be by Grace the way of Grace is the way of Faith So that is the third assertion with its explication and proof The fourth Assertion is this That every man in the World hath broken the Law Rom. 3.23 For all have sinned and come short of the glory of God The Jews call the Gentiles by this Name The sinners of the Gentiles or of the Nations But what saith the Apostle speaking of the Jews of whom himself was one What then Are we better then they No in no wise For we have before proved both Jews and Gentiles that they are all under sin as it is written There is none righteous no not one v. 9 10. When the Jews brought a Woman taken in Adultery unto our Saviour to see what Judgement he would pass upon her he delivered the Woman by this sentence of stoning her Let him that hath no sin cast the first stone at her Now if there had then been but one there that durst pretend to have been without sin the Woman might perhaps have lost her life John 8.34 And we find it amongst our selves none but some brain-sick people dare pretend to be free from sin even actual sin committed in their own person either in deed word or thought at least Now if we have all thus offended the law and transgressed the law shall we dare appeal unto it or can it justifie us The fifth assertion therefore which determines the Question negatively is That the law is disabled from justifying us by reason of sin In Rom. 8.3 Justification is called 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 that impossibility of the lavv translated thus What the Law could not do the lavv novv cannot do it according to that famous assertion of the Apostle Paul to this very purpose Gal. 3.21 For if there had been a Law given which could have given life verily righteousness should have been by the Law The Iavv cannot novv justifie and vvhat is the reason Why the Apostle tells us in Rom. 8.3 What the Law could not do in that it was weak through the flesh The law became thus disabled in the matter of Justification through the flesh through sinful flesh as appears by the following words so that now it could not justifie us if it would never so fain We can conceive no way now that the Lord hath to justifie by us the law but this one first to pardon then to give us a stock of grace ability to keep his law as he gave to Adam but then mark here you see first the way of Grace Faith must be made use of before the law can do us any good or stand us in any stead therefore still the fifth assertion holds true that the law in the present state of things cannot justifie us except the way of grace should first pass upon us and then what need vve come to the lavv again No it is so true that the lavv cannot novv justifie us nor give life unto us that if it could have done it it should have done it and God would not have made use of any other way I might now give several Scripture-proofs of this assertion under several Heads As 1. By the Law now comes onely the knowledge of sin Rom. 3.20 Therefore by the deeds of the Law there shall no flesh be justified for by the Law is the knowledge of sin Where-ever the Law comes now amongst sinners it discovers that they are guilty in such and such a particular I had not known sin saith the Apostle but by the Law for I had not known lust except the Law had said Thou shalt not covet Rom. 7.7 2. The Law worketh therefore Wrath therefore it cannot justifie this is the Apostles Argument Rom. 4. ver 15. Now the Law worketh Wrath these two ways either it setteth home the Wrath of God already deserved upon the Conscience or it gives occasion to further sinning and so to a further desert of Wrath for the Law hath this strange effect now upon a sinners heart that seeks to be justified by it that it will contrary to the first design of it which was to sanctifie justifie and save it will now stir up all manner of lusts in the heart as the Sun shining on a Dunghil sends forth a stink and so not onely discovers our former illdemerits and deserving of Wrath but provokes to further sinning so lays us under more wrath stil if this be not a truth let any make sence of these Scriptures if they can Rom. 7.8 9 10 11. Sintaking occasion by the Commandment wrought in me all manner of Concupisence for without the Law sin was dead for I was alive without the Law once but when the Commandment came sin revived and I dyed and the Commandment which was ordained to life I found to be unto death for sin taking occasion by the Commandment deceived me and by it slew me 13. Was then that which is good made death unto me God forbid but sin that it might appear sin working death in me by that which is good that sin by the Commandment might become out of measure sinful I know several of these expressions are and may be in part interpreted of sin in the guilt that it appears by the law but it must also be understood of the power of sin that the law discovers that likewise whilest it irritates and provokes it and I would fain know if there can be any other sence of that whole context from the 1. to the 7. ver of that chap. especially the 5. ver When we were in the flesh the motions of sin which were by the Law did work in our members to bring forth fruit unto death 3. The law by both these effects discovering of sin and exciting sin as also shewing the Wrath due to sin is so far from justifying that it becomes the Ministration of Death and Condemnation to the sinner and not of justification unto life and for this we may consult the whole third Chap. of the second to the Corinthians My 6th Assertion therefore is this Faith is the way and the onely way that we have to take for Justification being sinners We must have Mercy Grace Pardon We must not think to stand upon our terms to require Justification as a due debt We must be glad to receive it as a gift and this is the way that Faith leads us in That Faith and Grace are one way I have proved before in reckoning up the several Synonymaes of those onely two wayes which the Apostle mentions Now that Faith is the onely way for us appears from what hath been already said and proved For if the law be no way and there be only these two wayes imaginable then there is no other way but this of Faith left us But I shall yet give one full Scripture-proof of this Rom. 3.21 Therefore by the deeds of the Law there shall no fiesh be justified in his sight but now the righteousness of God without
essential branch of a New-Testament-faith 2ly His Intercession Secondly we are to look upon Christ as the procuring cause of all our mercies by his intercessions whereby he reaps the benefit of the purchase of his blood His Blood was the foundation of all his Intercession and his Intercession is as the harvest to that seed-time when he sowed in tears of blood He entred into the holy of holies by his own blood if he had not had that blood with him I conceive there had been no entrance for him there as a Priest but now that he is there entred and entertained as an High-priest for ever and ever liveth to make intercession for us Heb. 7.25 We are to look upon him as the great procuring-cause of all our mercies by his intercessions If when we were enemies we were reconciled unto God by the DEATH of his Son much more being reconciled we shall be saved by his LIFE Rom 5.10 1 John 2.1 My little children these things write I unto you that ye sin not and if any man sin we have an Advocate with the Father Jesus Christ the Righteous and he is the propitiation for our sins HE IS to this very day upon occasion of any failing of the Saints he interposeth to make God propitious to them and not onely to them saith the Apostle not onely for our sins who are the Saints of God but for the sins of the whole world He doth now as he did at his death and first entring into Heaven though not in the same form of offering which was but ONCE make use of his blood with his Father to prevail with him that he may be ready to pardon and receive into favour all that come unto God by him all that are come in upon any of their failings and all that shall come in with unfeigned repentance for their wicked lives past And as I shewed in the former particular of his death and blood that he did not onely procure pardon of sin by it but redeemed us from our vain conversation and purchased heaven it self for us so in this particular I might shew that he doth not onely procure pardon of sins for us by his intercession as our Advocate but every thing else that we stand in need of I am going to my Father saith our Saviour when he was leaving the World and there I will povide Mansions for you and whatsoever ye ask the Fther in my Name I will do it Joh. 14.2 3 13. Thus therefore our Faith if we would have it a right New-Testament Faith must eye Christ in his intercession and whatever we desire of God we must ask it in his Name and then believe that Christ as an Advocate with the Father wil take the care of it So much for the first Head or general Rule of a New-Testament-Faith We are to eye Christ as the great procuring cause of all our mercies 2dly 2 Gospel-faith eies Christ as the great dâ—spenser of all good things to us We are to look upon Christ as the great Dispenser of all our good things to us Our Saviour Christ hath the distribution disposal of all things committed to him as Joseph had in Aegypt The Father judgeth no man but all judgement is committed by the Father to the Son John 5.22 Jesus Christ is not onely represented unto us in the Scripture as standing at the right hand of God Act. 5.55 56. which may signifie his Advocatship and Priestly Office but much oftner as sitting at the right hand of God whch is a sign of his Kingly Office and Authority for this see Heb. 10 11 12 13. where sitting is opposed to standing as Maâ—esty is to Ministring And every Priest STANDETH daily MINISTRING and offering oftentimes the same sacrifices which can never take away sins But this man after he had offered one Sacrisice for sins for ever SATE DOWN at the right hand of God from henceforth expecting till his Enemies be made his footstool Our Saviour obtained of his Father by his death and offering not onely that sinners might be pardoned but that he might have the gift of pardon yea and of repentance too which is as great a gift as pardon it self Acts 5.30 31 32. The God of our fathers raised up Jesus whom ye slew and hanged on a Tree him hath God exalted with his right hand to be a Prince and a Saviour for to give repentance to Israel and sorgiveness of sins and we are his witnesses of these things and so is the Holy Ghost whom God hath given to them that obey him In a word Christ hath all power both in heaven and in earth So our Saviour came and told his Disciples after he was risen Matth. 28.18 19. Jesus came and spake unto them the eleven saying All power is given unto me in heaven and in earth Go ye THEREFORE and teach all Nations This is the form of the Commission which makes an Apostle I have received power therefore go teach they are not the Apostles of God immediately but of Jesus Christ by the will of God 1 Cor. 1.1 2 Cor. 1.1 Eph. 1.1 To instance in the several branches of this power in heaven and earth would be too much for me in this place there is the power of pardoning sins raising the dead judging the world destroying the wicked These with many other I could prove by plain Scripture to be all deposited and be-trusted in the hand of Jesus Christ Now what is the Faith that belongs to Christ as the Dispenser of all good things to us for that is my proper business to enquire after Why even the Faith that we place in God the Father This Christ taught his Disciples when he was about to leave them Joh. 14.1 Let not your heart be troubled ye believe in God believe also in me As much as to say Ye have been used hitherto by your Old-Testament-Faith to believe in God and you have found comfort and support in it and yet you do not see that God you believe in Why so now for my self I am going in deed out of your sight and at this you are troubled but believe in me when I am out of your sight as ye have hitherto beheved in an invisible God and ye shall find the same comfort and support in this Faith as ever ye found from Faith in God None so common a New-Testament phrase as believing in Christ He that believeth in me though he weee dead yet shall he live and whosoever liveth and believeth in me shall never dye Joh. 11.25.26 and our Saviour there giveth a very satisfactory reason The difference betwixt faith in Christ and in God the Father which is this I am the resurrection and the life therefore he that believeth on the Son hath life and shall have a resurrection unto lise Our Faith ought to be the same in the person of Christ as it is in God the Father onely with this difference that it must not be terminated in
unerring obedience faith was but a part of our duty which we owed to God under the first Covenant that is relying upon the power goodness and veracity of God and therefore where-ever faith comes to be our righteousness or our chief righteousness it argues that there is a great deficiency in the creature that is so to be justified and accordingly the Apostle often glances upon this that glorying is in this way excluded not by the law of works but by the law of faith Faith therefore cannot justifie by any natural excellency that it hath in it for though all the men in the world being now sinners and obnoxious to punishment by the law of their creation should resolve of their own accord to believe that there is so much goodness in God that he will not destroy the work of his own hands so depending upon his mercy and therefore they will endeavour to do all those things which they think may be pleasing and acceptable to him why all this faith and confidence attended with the most sincere obedience will not extort a Justification from Almighty God except it be in his good pleasure to justifie such believers and such obedient persons because they were all obnoxious to punishment for the breach of his law Faith therefore cannot justifie but by reason of divine ordination and constitution that hath passed upon it such as this The just shall live by faith and That if thou confess with thy mouth the Lord Jesus and believe in thine heart that God hath raised him from the dead thou shalt be saved Rom. 10.9 and for this reason I suppose it is so often called Gods righteousness Rom. 10.3 because it was a righteousness not in its own nature as works were but a righteousness purely of divine appointment This is Mr John Goodwin's notion of it Pag. 34. of the Banner of Justification displayed God was pleased to decree or make this for a law which the Apostle calleth the law of faith Rom. 3.27 that faith or believing in him through Christ should interesse men in the benefit or blessing of the death and blood shed of Christ that is in that remission of sins which was purchased by his death And in this consideration faith justifieth viz. by virtue of the Soveraign authority of that most gracious Decree or Law of God wherein he hath said or decreed that it shall intitle men unto or inright them in part and fellowship of that benefit of the death of Christ which consisteth in the forgiveness of sins or which comes much to the same as it is a qualification or condition ordained covenanted or appointed by God to bring upon those in whom it shall be found the great blessing of that pardon of sin which Christ hath obtained for men by his blood This is Mr Baxter's opinion too that is That saith justifies as it is made the chief condition of the N. Covenant Page 225 of his Aphorisms Thesis 57. It is the act of faith which justifieth men at age and not the habit yet NOT AS IT IS A GOOD WORK this is directly against Dr Moor's affirmation who faith that 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 is nothing else but to be approved as a good man or a doer of that which is righteous and good and that BECAUSE he doth that which is good and righteous methinks here is a Justification for good works purely and if faith comes in here to justifie it doth it only as it is a good work Mr Baxter is of another minde viz. That faith doth not justifie only under that quaâ—enus or reduplication AS a good work Faith saith Mr Baxter in the Thesis quoted doth not justlfie AS it is a good work or as it hath in it self any excellency above other graces But in the NEAREST SENSE DIRECTLY AND PROPERLY as it is the fulfilling the condition of the New Covenant c. But now though I have affirmed that it doth not justifie purely from its own nature Though faith doth not justisie purely from it's own nature yet it hath a great excellency in it self which might somewhat recommend it to this service but chiefly from the ordination of God and that it could not have justified without this ordination yet I shall adde that it had in its own nature a great fitness to be chosen of God for this eminent service to justifie men by It was the fittest medium that we can imagine when the first natural way of works failed to promote the honour of God and the good of the creature in Justification which consideration commends highly the wisdom of God in setting it apart for this use as the chief condition of our Justification To evince the truth of this let us consider a little the natural excellencyes that there are in faith And first of all faith takes in all spiritual objects 1 Excellency of Faith and represents them to the soul so that all other graces are beholden to faith for their objects Heb. 11.1 Faith is the substance of things hoped for and the evidence of things not seen hope could not be if faith did not give a real and evident being and subsistence to the things that we hope for as also to all other the invisible and unseen things which a Christian a Saint as such converseth with and lives upon Again ver 6. of that chap. 11. Without faith 't is impossible to please God For he that comes unto God must believe that he is Now it is by faith that we believe and know that God is ver 27. by faith Moses forsook Egypt not fearing the wrath of the King for he endured as seeing him who is invisible by faith Moses saw him that is invisible I will acknowledge that reason may finde out that there is a God but if a mans wayes please God his reason delivers over this observation to his faith which is an higher thing an higher principle in the soul then reason though it never contradicts true reason yet it is somewhat above meer reason * If any one here will say that faith in such a case as the belief that there is a God is much the same with reason or a rational conviction of the truth of such a Proposition I will not much contend only because here the divine Penman sayes it is by saith we believe there is a God and his assertion must have a truth in it we may distinguish Reason Faith thus That Faith is a more particular faculty or habit of divine principles such as respect God and Religion but Reason is a more general faculty conversant about all objects whatsoever and this consideration must come in That meer Reason only makes one a man but Faith makes a man a Saint and therefore this Faith must have a divine afflatus and spirit in it beyond meer reason It is by faith that we believe that God is and that he is a rewarder of all them that diligently seek him And these two
the Cross and Christ nailed the Law to the Cross and all this without violence or affront offered to the Law it being but naturally consequent upon what the Law did first to Christ for if the Law set upon Christ as our Surety and do the utmost to him that it can it must needs follow that it hath no strength left against those for whom he undertook and so must die and expire by the same death that our Saviour dyed it being nailed to the Cross which is but a sigurative expression And yet I shall carry the Allegory a little further herein still following the Apostle Paul Is it any wonder now is it any unreasonable thing now that the Law is dead and taken out of the way that we should be married to another husband that we should reckon our selves to be no longer under the Law The woman which hath an husband saith the Apostle Rom. 7.23 is bound by the Law to her husband so long as he liveth but if the husband be dead she is loosed from the Law of her husband So then if while her husband liveth she be married to another man she shall be called an adulteress but if her husband be dead she is free from that Law so that she is no adulteress though she be married to another man ver 4. Wherefore my brethren ye also are become dead to the Law or the Law is become dead to you BY THE BODY OF CHRIST that ye should be warried to another even to him that is raised from the dead that we should bring forth fruit unto God The Law is every soul's first Husband since the fall so every one's actual sin the Law is an intolerable husband there is no living with it it so sets on guilt presseth the soul w th terrors nay instead of producing good works the natural fruit of this Marriage-relation of the Soul to the Law whilest in innocency it now produceth all manner of lusts according to the 5. ver of that 7. chap. When we were in the flesh the MOTIONS OF SINS WHICH WERE BY THE LAW did work in our members to bring forth fruit unto death Now God in much mercy to mankinde finding that if the Law and the conscience or soul of man keep together his creature will be lost and himself lose those fruits of good works which the soul was first created for he provides another husband for the soul which is Jesus Christ only Christ must redeem his Spouse from that tyrannical Husband which now it lives with else the Soul shall be but an Adulteress to pretend marriage to Christ that is the way of grace whilest the Law can make a just claim to her as a wife which it might have done as long as it lived The manner of the rescue I have before declared it was by suffering and yielding to the Law yet so as in it the Law destroyed it self and then is it lawfull for the Soul that was before wife to the Law to be married to another husband and who so fit as he that redeemed her Now the Soul shall have it's forbearance under failings which the Law would not endure and God shall have a kindly and ingenuous Service there will be fruits unto God and this is the passage from Works to Faith from the Law to Grace I though the Law saith the Apostle am dead to the Law that I might live to God Gal. 2.19 that is through what the Law hath done to Christ it hath nothing to do with me But now we are delivered from the Law that being dead wherein we were held that we should serve in newness of spirit and not in the oldness of the Letter Rom. 7.6 One Scripture more to this purpose it is Rom. 8.1 23.4 There is therefore now no condemnation to ohem which are in Christ Jesus who are married to Christ and have accepted the terms of the Gospel who walk not after the Flesh but after the Spirit for the Law of the Spirit of life in Christ Jesus hath made me free from the Law of sin and death this chiefly relates to sanctification that the inward law or power of corruption which was occasionally and accidentally strenghtned by the Law of God was now broken by that inward power spirit and life which is conveyed by the Gospel of Christ and is called the spirit of life which is in Christ Jesus ver 3. for what the Law could not do in that it was weak through the flesh that is it could neither justifie nor sanctifie both these did God bring to pass by sending his Son in the likeness of sinfull flesh when for sin that is Christ's making himself a Sin-offering so answering the Law God condemned Christ in the flesh that is destroyed it both in the guilt and power of it out of us that were sinners so it follows that the righteousness of the Law might be fulfilled in us who walk not after the flesh but after the spirit that is that the Law might no longer accuse us being answered by our Saviour and that we might attain to that which is the chief designe of the Law to wit righteousness and holiness which if we had continued under the Law we could never have attained unto What so common now with the Apostle in the Epistle to the Romanes as to tell them that now they are not under the Law but under grace by this means namely the BODY OF CHRIST offered and that therefore there shall be no condemnation and that therefore sin shall not have dominion over them which are the two great effects of the death of Christ though the first chiefly belongs to that subject which I am upon viz. Justification Having given now all these things in an allegorical and mystical dress yet herein only following the Apostle I shall deliver the same thing somewhat plainly and so conclude this first particular The summe of all this is Man was made holy had a Law to live by to which there was a threatning annexed In the day thou eatest thou shalt die the death or shalt surely die * This threatning I take it is due by the Law to intended against all sins according to that of the Apostle The wages of sin is death Ro. 6.23 speaking of sin indefinitly besides wise Adam might have committed any other sin and not have dyed Man did eat and so was to die death accordingly entred by this sin into the world that is a natural death and for eternal death hereafter and the spiritual death of the soul here which consist's in alienations from God both which all men at age are obnoxious unto being sinners as for children I neither affirm nor deny any thing the Lord in mercy designing to deliver men from provided a Saviour who should first live a perfect life that so he might be the more acceptable Sacrifice and his terms of saving men must be these that he must freely offer himself up to
assoiling of this difficulty I shall now address my self that is to the proof of my second assertion which was this What was done by Christ viz. 2 Assertion his undertaking and answering the law was done for all ages of the Church and so it was and is the great foundation of that Justification by faith which the Apostle Paul contends to have been the only way of Justification in all ages And for proof of this I offer these things to consideration 1. The Saines in all ages before the death of Christ had this way of Grace then as well as we have it now that I have proved at large in the beginning of this Treatise therefore whence had it they but from this death of Christ which was certainly to follow at a prefixt time If it be said they had their way of Grace purely from the goodness of God I oppose 1. That if so many thousands vvere saved before by meer grace vvithout the consideration of a Saviour vvhy had not the Lord continued the same grace unto the end of the vvorld vvhich we see he hath not continued Why are the vouchsafements of Gods Grace in pardon of two such quite different kinds so as to save his people for 4000. years without a Saviour and the rest by a Saviour Nay to save them without a Saviour whom yet he had by multitudes of Promises Prophesies and Prefigurations made to hope for a Saviour 2dly If the Lord could in a consistency with his veracity in threatning death to sin pardon sin without either the sinners death or his sureties and that the law would be so well enough contented and satisfied why would the Lord put our Saviour to so much trouble in suffering a death which he might as well have escaped and which he so earnestly desired if it were possible that he might escape and all this to take off the Law from being our Head and Husband 3dly It is said expresly That the Covenant was confirmed to Abraham of God in Christ Gal. 3.17 which methinks must necessarily imply thus much that the consideration of Christ went into the confirmation of this Covenant whether Abraham or any of the Saints under the Old-Testament knew it or no as it is plain Abraham did He rejoiced to see my day and saw it and was glad John 8.56 Now this Covenant with Abraham is that which the Apostle doth mightily insist upon to prove Justification by Faith to be antecedent to the giving of the Law and therefore not to be nulled by the coming of the Law and yet this Covenant was confirmed of God in Christ that is as I think was sounded upon this consideration that Christ should aftervvards come into the World and pay that price vvhich God vvould accept for the redemption of all believers * 1 Cor. 10.1 2 3 4. All the Fathers did drink of the some spiritual drink for the drank of that spiritual Rock that followed them and that rock was Christ Again 4thly Christ is said to be the Lamb of God slain from the foundation of the World Rev. 13.8 vvhich to me signifies thus much that though he vvere not actually slain yet he vvas reckoned by God as slain then and so God vvas attoned for all the Saints of all ages ensuing or to follovv the other reading of the Words in Rev. 13.8 so that from the foundation of the world should refer to the vvriting the Saints Names in the Lamb's Book of Life and not to the Lamb 's being slain this vvill make more for my purpose for if they that vvere elected from the foundation of the World vvere all enrolled in the Lambs Book of life hovv should this come to pass but because they were all to be redeemed to God by the Lambs blood And if this opinion of personal Election be true that Scripture vvould serve to countenance this interpretation vvhich vve have Eph. 1.4 According as he hath chosen us in him that is Christ before the foundation of the world ver 5. Having predestinated us unto the adoption of children by Jesus Christ c. And methinks Mr. Biddle who in a late Book of his which he calls An Essay to the explaining of the Revelations pag. 64. lays so much weight upon this passage in Rev. 13.8 for proof of personal Election as to say That this alone in his judgement seemeth sufficient to decide the so much agitated Controversie about Predestination might very well have gone one step further in his alteration of his mind by acknowledging the reason why all the Elect should be said to be written in the Lamb's Book of life to be this namely Because he was to pay the price of their Redemption as the most proper and pleasing Sacrifice for sins that ever was offered up to God But to proceed as Christ was slain in Divine designation and acceptation from the beginning of the world for I shall take liberty to follow that reading so when he came into the world to be slain actually it is said to be in the fulness of time Gal. 4 4 5. WHEN THE FULNESS OF TIME was come God sent forth his Son made of a woman made under the Law c. Time went with this great birth of the Saviour of the World near 4000. years and then it was time Christ should be sent into the world to pay that debt which through the forbearance of God had been contracting for so long a space of time But 5thly for a pertinent and concluding Scripture-proof I shall insist a little upon Heb. 9.24 25. 26. For Christ is not entred into the holy place made with hands which are the figures of the true but into Heaven it self there to appear in the presence of God for us Nor yet that he should offer himself often as the High-Priest entereth into the holy place every year with blood of others for then must he often have suffered SINCE THE FOUNDATION OF THE WORLD but now ONCE IN THE END OF THE WORLD hath he appeared to put away fins by the sacrifice of himself Here are several differences which the Author of this Epistle observes betwixt Christ out High-Priest the High-Priest under the law who was the most eminent type of Christ The High-Priest under the law entred into the holy places made with hands ours into heaven it self The High-Priest under the law entred into the holy place often that is though but once in the year yet every year once which is often in many years ours but once in all Again the High-Priest entred with the blood of others ours by his own blood or the sacrifice of himself But yet herein there is a correspondence between our High-Priest and the legal High-Priest that as theirs went into the holy of Holies once in the end of the year for to make reconciliation for the sins of the year past so our High-Priest entred into Heaven with his own blood ONCE IN THE END OF THE WORLD to make attonement for
justifie the ungodly as Faith can Rom. 4.5 How Faith receives pardon and what this Faith is I shall have best opportunity to discover in the following part of this Discourse in the mean time I reckon that I have established these two positions in the general that the Law is now no way of Justification and that Faith which is the way of Grace and Pardon is the only way left us which sufficiently appears from Reason and Example the Reason is that of the fall and sinfulness of mankind The Example is that of Abraham which may serve instead of all and that which is of kin to it viz. the Allegory of Hagar and Sarah Isaac and Ishmael together with all the Saints of the Old-Testament reckoned up in Heb. 11. To which as an overplus I may adde the reason of God's approbation of this way of believing and preferring this way before the reviving the old way of Works again And this we have Rom. 4.16 The reason why after there was once a necessity of pardon the Lord was pleased to continue the way of grace altogether Therefore it is of Faith that it might be by Grace When once man had fallen and so brought on a necessity of another way of Salvation if the Lord wouldshew so much mercy when once the way of Grace became necessary the Great God liked this way of Grace altogether not to pardon man and then set him up a new in the way of Works and the Lord liked the continuation of the way of Grace rather then re-introducing the old way that hereby he might have a great revenue of Glory from his Grace which would be shown in this way the Lord liked not so well that his Creature should come and as it were challenge his Justification and Salvation as a Debt which in the way of the Law he might have done To him that worketh the reward is not reckoned of Grace but of Debt The Lord liked not that the Creature should glory and boast that it had saved it self as in the way of Works it might have done for glorying is not excluded by the Law of Works but onely by the Law of Faith whereas this way of Grace excludes glorying and that indebtedness of God to the Creature and holds the Creature in continual debt and obligation to God When Paul would have had the Thorn in the flesh the Messenger of Satan taken off from buffeting him the Lord teacheth Paul to be contented with this answer My Grace is sufficient for thee for my strength is made perfect in weakness 2 Cor. 12 7 8 9. This way of believing taught Paul to depend upon the Grace and Strength of God by which the Lord received an Honour which he should not have had if the temptation had been suddenly taken off And this we find to be the great Reason alledged by the Apostle frequently in this subject God in the way of his Gospel-Grace goes quite cross to that way which man would have chosen for this very reason to hinder man's glorying and boasting so we have it 1 Cor. 1.28 29. The base things of the World and things which are despised hath God chosen to bring to nought the things that are that no flesh should glory in his presence And in the 30.31 But of him are ye in Christ Jesus who of God is made unto us Wisdom Righteousness Sanctification and Redemption that according as it is written He that glorieth let him glory in the Lord So in Rom. 3. when the Apostle had shewed what God had declared to be his Righteousness even that of Faith Where is glorying then saith the Apostle It is excluded Again the righteousness of the Law and Works is called our own righteousness but Faith is called the righteousness of God Rom. 3.22 Now God will not allow that we should be justified by our own righteousness he will have another righteousness which is not our own that we may glory in him alone Having asserted and proved those two Positions That the Law is no way and that Faith is the onely way of Justification I come now to answer the objections that may be made against what I have asserted either in behalf of the Law or against the way of believing The great objection and that which contains almost all that can be mentioned is started by the Apostle Paul himself Gal. 3.19 Object Wherefore then serveth the law Wherefore then serveth the Law is the Law of no use then as you seem to make it For if it were once a way of life as you acknowledge and the Scripture affirms it was ordained to be unto life Rom. 7.10 and it be now no way unto life but the way of Faith onely is then you make it an old antiquated thing out of date out of use And the Apostle is sensible that this inconvenience would be objected Rom. 3.31 Do we then make void the Law through Faith But the meaning of the objection in Gal. 3.19 is chiefly this Wherefore then serveth the Law that is To what end or purpose was the Law given to the Children of Israel by Moses You assert say the objectors that as soon as Adam fell the Law became of no use to him nor any of his posterity in the matter of Justification but yet we find that the Law was given by Moses 2000. years after Adam's fall and it was given in the most glorious manner with the most astonishing glory that ever God appeared in at any time unto the World it was delivered by Angels with the voice of a Trumpet with Thundering and Lightning and Earthquakes so that the whole Mountain was of a fire and all the people saw and heard the thunder and fire and the voice of Words Yea God himself is said to descend upon the Mount in fire and speak with Moses Deut. 4.17 18 19 20. Heb. 18.19 20 21. And say the Objectors Whereas you seem to say in your third Position That the Law was onely a way of Justification to Adam The Scripture makes no mention that ever the Law was given to Adam but onely to the Children of Israel and when ever you have a comparison made between the Covenant of Works and the Covenant of Grace or betwixt the Lavv and Faith it is the comparing still of the Covenant vvith the Children of Israel under the Old-Testament and the Nevv-Covenant mad by Christ vvith his people under the Gospel So vve sind these two ways compared in 2 Cor. 3. throughout the chap. and Heb. 8. throughout that chapter but especially from v. 6. to the end In 2 Cor. 3. there the Law is indeed called a Ministration of death but yet it is the Law of Moses for in the same ver it is said to be written engraven in stones which is plainly the Law of the ten Commandments and that when Moses brought them to the people his countenance had such a glory and lustre upon it that the children of Israel could not
world now the whole World becomes guilty before God by the law and every mouth is silenced and stopped by it I do not say that the law as given to the Jews by Moses had this effect upon the Gentiles to whom it was not given but the Apostle tells us Rom. 2.15 how this came to pass that the law though not given to the Gentiles in the same manner as it was to the Jews did yet convince and condemn the Gentiles as well as the Jews because the effect and substance of the same law that was written upon Tables of Stone by Moses was written in the hearts of the Gentiles so that their thoughts did accuse them when they did evil as well as excuse them when they did well Now hence I draw an argument a minorâ—â— If the law written upon the hearts of the Gentiles though obscurely had yet an accusing and condemning power in it to them how might it well have upon the Jews to whom it was delivered plainly written and engraven in stones with thunder lightning earthquakes as is before expressed That which I have to add upon the third great end of the Law it's being delivered viz. to direct and bring the wounded sinner to Christ O How 〈…〉 Christ is by way of answer to this question How did the Law lead to Christ I shall give several answers unto this question and first of all The Law was our School-master unto Christ A. â—â— as the Dispensation of the Law made way for the Dispensation of the Gospel Sowre things make the sweet more pleasant Darkness makes Light more desirable Slavery and Severity makes Liberty more welcom Quineseâ—t servâ—re nescit imperare the School makes fair way for the University This consideration makes the succession of the Gospel to the Law more comely and it is insisted on very much by the Apostle in Gal. 4 for the seven first verses Ver. 3. When we were Children we were in bondage unto the Law but when the fulness of time was come God sent forth his Son to redeem us into liberty and to give us the spirit of sons Gal. 3 23. Before Faith came we were kept under the Law and kept under by the Law shut up unto the Faith which should afterwards be revealed wherefore the Law was our School-Master to bring us unto Christ that we might be justified by Faith but after that faith is come we are no longer under a School-Master it would now be an incongruous thing to be under a School-master any longer as it was very convenient that before we should be and thus the Law was a School-master unto Christ as John Baptist was by its severities to humble us and break our hearts and to make us 〈◊〉 people ready prepared for the Lord. And the beauty great conveniency of the succession of these two Administrations of the Law Gospel each to other appears still in the great work of Conversion upon every sinners heart where the same method is observed first to humble the soul by legal convictions then to make a discovery of Christ the Grace of the Gospel And this our practical Divines insist much upon in their Sermons and Treatises giving us this account of the Work of Grace upon the heart that first there is conviction compunction and humiliation all yet a legal work then Faith or Conversion And I do verily believe that the Spirit of God doth use this method though as all acknowledge not with the same degrees in every work of Regeneration And again they observe that as after the Gospel and Faith is come it is absurd to return to the Law of Moses in the whole Dispensation of it so they apply that Scripture Rom. 8.15 Ye have not received the Spirit of Bondage again to fear to this purpose That after men have received the Spirit of Adoption which in some degree every regenerate person hath received they receive not again the spirit of bondage to fear which they take to be a spirit of legal convictions preparatory to the Work of Conversion and indeed according to the Calvinist-principles it must needs be true that after they are regenerate they can never receive a spirit of Bondage again because a spirit of bondage is not Grace but onely preparatory to it and therefore men that have once been regenerate can never return to this Spirit without being emptied of all Grace But here it may be further queryed Q How did the Law direct those to Christ that lived and lived before Christ came that indeed it is not to be doubted that the Law in the dispensation of it made excellent way unto the Gospel for those that were to live in the days of the Gospel as we find in the Analogical succession of Law and Gospel in the Work of Grace but how was the Law a School-Master unto Christ to those that lived in the dayes of the Old-Testament Who dyed before Christ came How were they directed to Christ by the Law The Law might perhaps be a Ministration of death and desperation only to them How did the Law witness the righteousness of God by Faith unto them In answer I shall first of all premise these two things and then answer more directly 1. Negatively that to these it must not come to destroy the promise and the covenant that was made before nor the comfort of it It must not come to hinder but they might have as true saving comfort from the promises as the Saints before the Law had or else the Law had been against the promises which the Apostle denyes with a 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 2. It must preach Christ to them as truly though perhaps not so clearly as it doth unto us Thirdly and more directly The Law did preach Christ to the Jews under the Old-Testament these two ways 1. Virtually or consequentially 2. Formally and expresly 1. Virtually as it convinced them all of their necessity of some other besides a legal Righteousness as I have shewn at large in explaining the second end of giving the Law because of transgressions 2. Expresly as it made mention of Christ and this it did either improperly figuratively in types and shadows or properly in the prophecies and promises of Christ Or the answer may be better given after this distinction of the Law A different acceptation of the Law in the Scripture The Law in Scripture amongst the various significations of it hath these two very eminent 1. It signifies the strict and bare command and so is naturally a Covenant of Works that hath no mercy or grace in it can onely justifie the righteous and condemn the transgressor and in this sence it hath been taken by me for the most part hitherto in my Discourse I have produced several places where it is taken in this sence in the Scripture Take that for instance As many as are of the works of the Law are under the curse as it is written Cursed
Scriptural in the words and phrases of Scripture which is that the first Covenant the old Covenant or Testament is God's Covenant with the Jews by Moses the new Covenant is that made with the faithful by Christ and what others aim at in that other way of stating the Covenants may be attained without that confusion which they make Having made two as fair Concessions as the objectors can desire A. 2. I come now to the determination of the question or repelling the Objection after I have minded you of a distinction of the Law which I lately gave and it was this That sometimes the Law is taken strictly for the bare command with the threatning annexed to the breach of it and the promise of life upon the strict obeence of it So it is in Gal. 3.10 sometimes it is taken for the whole Old-Testament as Rom. 3.19 where the Psalms of David are made a part of the law sometimes taken for the five Books of Moses as in Luke 24.44 where the Old-Testament is divided into these three parts The Law of Moses the Prophets and the Psalms Now I answer Take the Law in the first sence for a Covenant of Works strictly and so it was not given for a Covenant to the Jews for then it must have come in against the promises or the Covenant of God in Christ that was made before But take it in the second or third sense either for the whole Old-Testament as we call the Writings of the holy men of God till our Saviours time or for the five Books of Moses the dispensation by Moses from the Mount and this I confess was a Covenant to them but then it was a Covenant of Grace and indeed contained in it all the promises that were given before it that traditional Gospel which Abraham and the holy Patriarchs before him were saved by is inserted in the Law of Moses else it had been a vain thing for the Apostle Paul to have undertaken to prove Justification by Faith out of the Old-Testament yea out of the Law of Moses for as a man cannot bring a clean thing out of an unclean so neither can he bring Gospel out of pure Law if therefore the Law of Moses had not been a Covenant of Grace the Apostle could never have proved Justification by faith out of it which yet he doth not onely by strained consequences but as there professedly Abraham believed God saith he and it was imputed to him for righteousness they therefore which are of Faith are blessed and justified with faithful Abraham Galathians 3. ver 6 7 9. which is as fair an Enthymema as can be and every Sophister can supply the Proposition that is wanting St. Paul proves Justification by Faith by two great Arguments out of Genesis the first Book of Moses viz by Abraham's Justification and the Allegory of Hagar and Sarah which I explained and urged before Nay the Apostle makes a great affirmation indeed which is this that even Moses himself the great Law-Covenant Mediator doth in his Writings give a clear distinction of the two Covenants of Works and Grace shews us the tenour of one Covenant and another When he had produced the Allegory of Hagar and Sarah out of Genesis saith he Alas Moses in this Story gives you Allegorically the two Covenants Gal. 4 21. to the 24. But the chief place for proof of what I have said is Rom. 10.5 6. for Moses describeth the righteousness which is of the Law That the man which doth these things shall live by them Lev. 18.5 But the righteousness which is of Faith speaketh on this wise Say not in thine heart who shall ascend up into Heaven c. and so goes on in the words of Moses Deut. 30.12 13 14. Here we see Moses in his Writings delineates and describes the two ways of Works and Grace of the Law and Faith and it is proved out of the same â—oses that the Law is no way to justifie sinners Now I shall but draw out the Apostles Argument which I suppose to be this Moses describes two ways of Justification that by the Law and that by Faith that by the Law Moses tells you is no way for sinners because you must continue in all things or you are accursed therefore certainly he described the way of Faith too that ye might betake your selves unto it for justification and life therefore the Law take it either for the whole Old-Testament or for the Dispensation by Moses and it was a Covenant indeed with the Jews but it was a Covenant of Grace for in it Moses describeth the way of Grace that his Disciples might adhere unto it But here you will object still Well 3 Object if Moses his Dispensation or Covenant which he was the Mediator of was a Covenant of Grace and not of Works for Justification why is it called a killing Letter a Ministration of Death a Ministration of Condemnation as it is 2 Cor 3.6 7 9. Why is the Lord said to find fault with it and so to abrogate it and make a new Covenant Heb. 8 7 8. By this it should seem to be a Covenant of Works for else God would not have found fault with a Covenant of Grace nor abrogated it To this I answer 1. Here observe That this 〈◊〉 no Jewish Argument for they would not acknowledge that their Law is a ministration of death whilest they seek life by it nor yet a ministration of condemnation whilst they seek justification by the righteousness of it but it is a cavil or objection against the Apostle Paul who calls the Law a ministration of death and condemnation and yet acknowledgeth that it was the Jews covenant and that Moses in it describeth the righteousness of Faith 2dly I answer That these two are very consistent it might prove a ministration of death to them and yet be a way of grace and life in it self so is the plainest Gospel in the World a savour of death unto the disobedient and unbelievers that yet is certainly in the great intendment of it a way of grace and life 3dly The Law proved a ministration of death to many of them because they mistook it for a covenant of works though it were not given with that intention they did not see the Grace that was contained in it There was a vail upon their heart and is to this day upon the hearts of many of the Jews their minds were blinded so that the Children of Israel could not stedfastly look to the end of that which is alolished they could not see Christ the end of the Law 2 Cor. 3.13 14 15. 4thly There is thus much indeed to be said concerning the dispensation it self that it was dark and obscure the children of Israel had not onely blinded eyes and a vailed heart but Moses had also a Vail upon his face ver 13. which was one reason they could not see that Grace which was in his Dispensation Moses had a vail over
his face so that they could not look stedfastly to the end of his Dispensation The fault of the first Covenant There was some kind of fault as it were in the Law it self so the Apostle tells us Heb. 8.7 For if that first Covenant had been faultless there should no place have been sought for the second What this fault was is commonly known and discoursed and it was the obscurity of it the promises of it were not so plain therefore it is said Christ is the Mediator of a better Covenant establisht upon better promises ver 6. There was a Covenant of works inserted in their Dispensation Else how could the Apostle give you a description of the righteousness of it out of Moses Which he doth both in Rom. 10.5 and Gal. 3.12 And no caveat entred in the place where the Covenant of Works is delivered 'T is true the same Moses describeth the righteousness of Faith too but an inobservant Reader might chance to mistake the Covenant of Works for his way to Heaven as well as take the Covenant of Grace for his way and they might keep in that way all their lives if they were not strict observers of the effects of that way upon their Consciences which was to gall and sting them and weary them out of their very lives till they came to the way of Grace And thus we find the generality of the Jews did mistake and ruined themselves by it so that unless God had by a wonderful hand as he plucked Lot out of Sodom and perhaps by irresistable illuminations and attractions brought a remnant to himself all Israel had been burnt up by the Wrath of God they had been as Sodom and Gomorrah Rom. 9.29 to the end Rom. 10.1.2.3 I might well transcribe every word of these eight Verses Now this was the fault which God found with his first Covenant that though it were a Covenant of Grace yet he is so gracious that he thought it was not plain enough to save the generality of them they would be still mistaking and misconstruing his Covenant it would not make them holy enough nor save enough of them and therefore this Fault the Lord amends in the second â—ovenant in the New-Covenant Heb. 8 9 For finding fault he saith Behold the dayes come saith the Lord that I will make a new Covenant with the House of Israel not according to the Covenant that I made with their Fathers when I took them by the hand to lead them out of the Land of Aegypt because here is the reason of the change because they continued not in my Covenant and I regarded them not It was a Covevenant which they brake with me and I brake with them upon there was a fault in that Covenant which seems to be this It had not Grace enough in it to hold them they continued not in it The fault is laid upon the Covenant not so much upon the parties covenanting though they were not free from blame God indeed was free he was ready to give his Grace and Spirit under the first Covenant but the Covenant was not a free channel for conveyance of this precious Water of Life for the Spirit runs freest in the clear promise therefore the Gospel which is full of rich and plain promises is called the ministration of the Spirit and called by the Name of Spirit whereas the Law of Moses was a dead meer out-side literal thing in comparison of it 2 Cor. 3.6 I say the fault was laid upon the covenant which yet was a covenant of Grace Now what other fault it could be then this that the Lord did not think it gracious enough I cannot imagine and I think that is the fault the Scripture pitcheth upon Now because Moses's Dispensation or the first covenant made with the Jews was thus faulty had a covenant of Works in 〈◊〉 and was mistaken by the Jews to be a covenant of Works it might well be called by the Apostle There was the same reason of the Gospel its being added to the Law that there was of the dispensation of Moses to be added to what they knew of God before a killing letter a ministration of death and condemnation and deserve to be abrogated and disannulled if the Lord will make a better clearer more gracious and saving and yet it can by no means be concluded hence that it was truly either in its own nature or in the intention of the Lord who gave it a covenant of Works nay the contrary hereunto is sufficiently evinced Ob. 4. But yet there is a very considerable Objection behind which is thus You have acknowledged that in Moses's Writings there is a covenant of Works described that St. Paul asserts now I will add saith the Objection that it is not onely there described but there commended to the children of Israel as a part at least if not the chiefest part of the Dispensation by Moses and it is given with as great Authority and hath as solemn a Sanction upon it as any part of the Law of Moses for in that place which the Apostle Paul quotes out of Moses viz. Lev. 18.5 for the description of a legal righteousness we have these words Ye shall therefore keep mp Seatutes and my Judgements which if a man do he shall live in them I am the Lord. So in the fore-going verses 1 2. And the Lord spake unto Moses saying Speak unto the children of Israel and say unto them I am the Lord your God then follow the three verses wherein the covenant of Works is described ver 3. After the doings of the Land of Aegypt wherein ye dwelt shall ye not do and after the doings of the Land of Canaan whither I bring you shall ye not do neither shall ye walk in their Ordinancee Ver. 4. Ye shall do my Judgements and keep mine Ordinances to walk therein I am the Lord your God Ver 5. Ye shall therefore keep my Statutes and my Judgements which if a man do he shall live in them I am the Lord. Here I observe 1. The simplicity and plainness of the delivery of these commands which contain the covenant of Works they are delivered without any caveat or caution to the Reader lest he should mistake this for his covenant which he should be saved by 2. I observe the Authority and Majesty they are delivered with even with this addition three several times in the compass of four verses I am the Lord and I am the Lord your God This doth not look like an old antiquated covenant made with Adam about 2000. years before and of use to him but onely for the strst day of his creation I conclude therefore saith the objector That it is a valid covenant and delivered with intention that men should be justified by it And besides I add that which hath great strength in it That even Jesus Christ himself repeats this covenant of Works in Moses his own Words and directs a man to this
this legality lies of what it consists which men are so generally inclinable unto and this is the chief thingin the Conviction this I shall dispatch in three Propositions the first is negative shewing what it is not yet ought to be if they understood what they go about 1. It is not a professed putting themselves upon the Law of God strictly as it requires perfect unerring obedience for Justification so the Jews durst not adventure their souls the Jews acknowledged themselves sinners though not such sinners as the Gentiles We find when the Jews brought the Woman to Christ that was taken in Adultery he set the Woman at liberty by this Sentence of stoning her He that hath no sin let him 〈◊〉 the first stone Neither did the Galatians assert themselves free from sins alas they had been sinners of the Gentiles Gal. 4.8 They had been Idolaters and accordingly the Apostle disputes against them with such arguments as took that pro confesso that they were sinners Gal. 3.10 Is many as are of the works of the Law are under the curse for it is written Cursed is every one that continueth not in all things which are written in the Book of the Law to do them Now surely as it might be supplyed you will not pretend to have continued in all things therefore you cannot expect to be justified by the works of the Law Though I must needs say this If they had gone wisely to work in their seeking Justification by the Law they must first have found themselves free from sin hitherto of their lives together with a power of keeping themselves free for the remainder of their lives or else must have desisted in the beginning and therefore the Apostle batters down their high imaginations of self-righteousness with such arguments as these The Law saith Cursed is every one that continueth not in all things now you have not continued in all things And in Rom. 3.19 20. when the Apostle had recited a Catalogue of sins out of the Law he infers Now we know that whatsoever things the Law saith it saith to them that are under the Law and so to you Jews especially that every mouth may be stopped and all the world may become guilty before God As much as to have said As for all these sins some are found in one and some in another and where-ever any of them is found there that man's mouth is stopped by the Law and every such person is become guilty or subâ—ect to the Judgement of God 20. Therefore by the deeds of the Law there shall no flesh be justified in his sight for by the Law is the knowledge of sin the Law tells you what is sin and so the wrath due to sin and by the Law every transgrestion should receive a just recompence of reward And so Gal. 5.3 I testifie again to every man that is circumcised which was the usual sign of their going off to the Law that he is a debtor to do the whole Law And yet this you dare not undertake O ye Galatians this you dare not profess to do A strange Dispensation that they gave themselves that they would aim to be justified by the Law and yet not hold themselves obliged to keep the whole Law How could they ever think that the Law should justifie them and yet these arguments brought by the Apostle to convince them both shew that they did not pretend to answer the Law byunerring obedience and fulfilling of it as also that they should have done thus had they gone wisely to work So much for the first Proposition shewing what their way was not yet ought to have been had they understood themselves 2. Yet though they did not profess to appeal to a strict Covenant of Works for Justification and did not understand themselves in what they did yet by the way that the Jews Galatians took for righteousness they fell under that way of Works were so reckoned by God to be and by the Apostle in his Discourses against them else his Arguments had concluded nothing against them And the reason is this for that though they did not formally intend a Covenant of Works yet the way they took was of that nature and tendency and we have a distinction in the Schools of sinis Scientiae Scientis now the sinis Scientiae is eternal and unalterable as proceeding from the nature of the thing let the finis Scientis be what it will so if the way they took be legal it is no matter whether they intended it or no. But you will say What was that in their way or what is that in this way which you say men usually taken which makes it so justly and unavoidably be called and reckoned by God a putting our selves under a Covenant of Works though we are not our selves aware of it I answer in the third and last place 3dly Wherein Legality consists positively It is such a mixture of the Covenant of Works with the Covenant of Grace as in which the Covenant of Works is predominant and so most justly gives the denomination to their way I fix upon the Word Predominant For else as I shal shew anon all the Saints have some legal mixtures in their Spirits even whilst they treat God for their justification and acceptation but because they are byassed and swayed more by Evangelical Principles then by Legal they are after the Spirit not after the Flesh in the business of Justification I shewed in the first Proposition that the Jews and Galatians did not profess themselves perfectly holy and so durst not appeal to the Law in a strict sense for a righteousness I shall now further shew how in many things it appears that these Legallists even whilst such did profess and adhere to the Gospel which is the way of Grace and then that yet by reason of their Legal mixtures all their Gospel was soured to them and turned into so much Law and they are no longer to be reckoned for Christians but the Disciples of Moses in Gal. 5.2 3 4. There are three proofs of this together that they were great professors of the Gospel when yet at the same time the Apostle disputes against them as adhering to a Covenant of Works for Justification Ver. 2. Behold I Paul say unto you That if ye be circumcised Christ shall profit you nothing Here you see they thought to have had some profit and benefit by Christ Now this was a great mixture of Gospel in their way for if hope of benefit by Christ be not Gospel what is Nay you may see in another place of this Epistle that they had hope in the death of Christ which certâ—inly is a mixture of the Gospel with their Legal way Gal. 2.21 If righteousness come by the Law as your way leads you to say then Christ is dead in vain but you will not allow that Christ died in vain you hope for benefit from the death of Christ notwithstanding your cleaving to
the Law for a righteousness Here was a great mixture you see of Gospel with their way And in the 3d. ver of Gal. 5. we see they thought it was not their duty to keep the whole Law but that I have spoken to already in ver 4. You may see yet the strangest mixture of Gospel in their way which yet the Apostle calls Legal that can be imagined for they did profess themselves all this while they so cryed up the Law were such admirers of it and Votaries to it they did profess themselves to be under Grace to be in the way of Grace Gal. 5.4 Christ is become of none effect unto you whosoever of you are justified by the Law â—e are fallen from Grace that is from the way of Grace and Mercy to be upon perfect strict exact terms with God Ye renounce the Grace of God the benefit of Christ's death Christ can do you do good let your false Preachers call what they preach Gospel while they will and you may think you are removed to another and better Gospel then what you received from me chap. â— v. 6 7 8. But there is no other Gospel but what I preached Some indeed have perverted the Gospel of Christ and made it a mongrel thing but it 's Name now muse not be Gospel any longer but Law and Works not Grace and Gospel Here you have â—â—en that they did not only avoid the rigor of the Law in exacting perfect obedience to a tittle but did take in the Gospel-Principles into their way of Justification such as the Death of Christ and the Grace of God and yet these were legal all this while else the Apostle had disputed impertinently where he had no Adversary Now what was that which soured all their Gospel which made their Grace no Grace and their Christ no Christ and made them perfect Debtors to the Law thus unexpectedly to themselves but this that they went to make a compromise betwixt the Law and the Gospel in the matter of Justification they would join them together that were as irreconcilable as fire and water The Law is not of Faith if it be of Grace then it is no more of works otherwise work is no more work Now by reasoâ— of the incompossibility and incompatibleness of these two in their * For else as the Elements are said to be mixed in a natural body losing their proper forms so the Lâ—w and Gospel will well mix one of them viz. the Law losing as I may say its natural form of a Covenant of works may be well reconciled to the Gospel and mixed with it for the matter of it proper and precise notion and nature they that mix these two must destroy one of them they can never agree togegether in this business of Justification any otherwise then heat and cold agree in water that look unto what degree the one is there the other is expelled so much as there is of cold so much there is wanting of heat and so much as there is of heat so much there is wanting of cold so here so much as there is wanting of legality in any heart so much there is of a Gospel-Spirit é contra Now because these Jews and Galatians did more hanker after the Law then after the Gospel though they owned many Gospel-principles and durst not own the Law in the strictness of it yet their predominancy of inclination to the Law for righteousness justly gave them the denomination of Legal as the predominancy of cold in water justly gives it the name of cold water and the Evangelical or Gospel-like men and women though they have always had some Legal-mixtures in their obedience yet because Gospel-Principles are predominant they obtain the name of Spiritual and Evangelical And according to this representation which I have now given of Legal-persons that is that they are more propending and inclining to the Law then to the Gospel doth the Apostle be-speak them and speak of them he speaks to them so in Gal. 4.21 Tell me saith he you that Desire to be under the Law They were such as though they durst not quit the Gospel and come off wholly to the Law yet had a desire to be under the Law So he speaks of them Rom. 9.31 32. But Israel which followed after the Law of righteousness hath not attained unto the Law of righteousness Wherefore because they sought it not by Faith but as it were by the works of the Law And this though it were but anâ— as it were and a Desire yet it ranked them under a Covenant of Works and accordingly the Apostle useth such arguments against them as would have served any that had perfectly renounced the way of Faith and the Death of Christ and wholly betaken themselves to the Law of Works I have done with the second particular in the Conviction viz. the explication of the Legality which is so generally to be found and wherein the deceit lies that men who acknowledge themselves sinners and profess themselves Christians may yet set themselves under a Covenant of Works for their Justification They that wil after what I have said deny that there may be or hath been such a thing such persons to be found that did acknowledge themselves sinners and profess themselves Christians and yet sought to be justified by the works of the Law let them quarrel with the Scriptures and with the Apostle Paul if they dare out of whom I have so clearly described them and confute him if they can Again if any one questions that which I have asserted to be the manner how this comes to pass that these persons are justly denominated and reputed Legal self-Justificiaries viz. by the predominancy of their inclination to the Law more then to the Gospel let them shew a more probable way and I shall gladly quit this Now the explication and proof of this matter being the very great thing of all should not pass without some improvement or observation from it which I shall perform by and by in the mean time methinks a sober person might very well desire to be further satisfied in this great business viz. the explication of the nature of a Legal-Spirit I suppose it will be acknowledged that that which gives denomination to a Legal-Spirit is his greater propension to the Law then to the Gospel but yet it may be queried Wherein doth this propension exert and shew it self in what one word or more then one would you express it Now this I confess is the great difficulty hic labor hoc opus est this were worthy of the most excellent Saint and the most learned and accurate Head to discover I can do it onely after my manner that is rawly enough but would God I could provoke some able man to undertake it in the strength of God Very many of those that have medled with it have dealt rudely and yet saucily with this subject I mean the Autinomians They will express the whole
business presently in one word and tell you that it is Doing So far as you seek to get life by doing you are legal they will tell you ye muâ—â— not act for life but from life a mighty distinction with them though quite false And for prooâ—â— they 'l bring you such a Scripture as this Mark 10.17 where the young man came to our Saviour and said What shall I Do that I may inherit Eternaâ— life Which is a question that I suppose might be asked by a good man though he was not good that asked it unless it be asked with such a design as if one thought that the doing good actions might merit heaven by this Divinity of theirs which they have of late spread far and near they have made their followers which I fear are very many think strangely of good works as if they had no influence aâ— all not so much as secondary to the obtaining oâ— our salvaâ—ion and so onely as matters of love and thankfulness from us but not as absolutely necessary unto the pleasing of God and continuing in his favour according to that of our Saviour Joh. 15.9 10. As the Father hath loved me so have I loved you continue in my love How may we do that ver 10. tells us If ye keep my Commandments ye shall abide in my love even as I have kept my Fathers Commandments and abide in his love Yet I would do the Antanomians this right to say that I think they have very many of them aimed honestly that they have lighted upon many Gospel-strains and have done very well in observing that there is a vast difference betwixt serving God with a Legal and with an Evangelical Spirit though they have not been so happy in telling us wherein the difference lies and for the difference which they make the Legal way to lie in Doing the Evangelical way in Believing I confess it hath a great countenance from Scripture as to the sound of words but as they explain their sense I reckon there is a great disagreement from the Scripture As to their sence of the word Believing I shal have some occasion to examin it anon but as to the word Doing in their sense I say at present That though the Scripture seems to express the whole business of Legality in that word Rom. 4 4. Working or Doing yet certainly in a far other sense from their explication of it For the Scripture in that place understands Working or Doing in a strict Law-sense so as to expect a Reward for it of Debt whereas they will tel you if you look upon Works as having any influence upon Justification let the works be what they wil you are so far Legal Now having proved as I suppose their exposition of Working or Doing to be but a false gloss I shall do my endeavour and no more can be expected to deliver the truth in this matter I suppose therefore according to that Text Rom. 4 4. where Legal Works or working are accurately described that Legality lies in Doing any work with this supposition or conceit in my mind that now I have justly obliged God not only by a Justice of performing promise but a Justice of strict distribution according to the natural desert of an action My meaning is best expressed in that commonly known word of Merit he that doth an action to God supposing that he hath now merited a reward from God by distributive Justice The reason why I make prefumtion of Merit the form of Legality is for that reward of Debt is the Characteristical note of a Legal Reward therefore the expectation or presumtion of such a reward ought to be in a Legal Spirit he is Legal in his action and none other It will bepresently said Then there will not be found so many Legal professors as you assert there are for that few amongst us if any at all acknowledge Merits I answer though they do not acknowledge it with their mouths yet this I suppose is the secret Language of their hearts and where it is not let them be free from the imputation of Legality for me I see no rule to condemn them of it though I wil add this I think many men may disown it in words nay and think they are not guilty of it that yet are extreamly guilty such a a secret unsearchable Disease of heart is this of Legality I have perfectly done with the explication or discovery of the Disease in its own nature I shall come anon to give some symptomes of it that are signs and effects of it in the mean time let us see what improvement what observations we can make upon that Anatomical Discovery which was made of the Galatians e'ne now And here 1 Obser first of all I shall observe the strange and unhappy disappointments that the Legal self-Justitiaries meet with the miserable cheat that they put upon themselves They think to mix Law and Gospel they dare not stand to the Law alone they would fain have a little help from the Gospel to eke out their defects in a Legal Righteousness and alas the Gospel turns them off with scorn to the Law onely to be tried and judged by it which wil certainly condemn and devour them 2dly 2 Obser I observe the strange absurdities and self-contradictions which these self-Justitiaries both Jews and Gentils run into in their prosecution of a Legal Righteousness There are no less then four contradictions which the Galatians ran into in this business 1. They would be justified by the Law and yet acknowledged themselves sinners which is a contradiction for it is obvious that the Law must condemn sinners 2. They would be justified by the Law and yet not be bound to do the whole Law whereâ—s the Law hath no other way imaginable to justifie any persons but when they have the works of the Law when they have done the whole Law He that doth them shall live in them 3. They would be justified by the Law and yet have benefit by Christ and his death whereas Christ â—ras not the Minister of Circumcision Christ came into the world and dyed because the Law was broken and could not justifie 4. See the greatest of contradictions imaginable They would be justifisied by the Law and yet profess the Gospel and the way of Grace therefore the Apostle convinceth them with this Argument If ye seek Justification by the Law ye are fallen from Grace Rom. 11.6 If by Grace then it is no more of works yet all these absurdities and contradictions the Galatians swallowed that they might go on with their way of Works which they were so greedy after and addicted to besides all those evident arguments both general and of more particular concernment to them which they went against though they had received the Spirit by the Gospel though miracles were done amongst them in confirmation of the Gospel neither of which attended the Law though they had done and suffered so many things
for the Gospel yet all of a sudden like men bewitched away they turn to the Law and in effect though not in profession they leave the Gospel From whence again I add new proof as I promised to the first thing proposed in the conviction which is my third observation Therefore certainly mankind is exceedingly addicted to this way of works 3 Obser though not in a-strict way yet in this mixt way which comes all to one at last and must be called by the same Name I say I may justly infer from this one example of the Galatians That mankind is exceedingly addicted unto this way of works For though an argument ab exemplo be not ordinarily cogent yet such an example as this wil of it self almost amount to a demonstration for it is not an example of one man but of a great company of men they were the Churches of Galatia as it is in chap. 1. ver 2. and Galaria was not a Town or a City but a large Countrey that had many Churches up and down in it and these were such as had gladly received the Gospel they had received the Apostle Paul as if he had been an Angel of God even as Christ Jesus they blessed themselves exceedingly in this that they had heard the Gospel from him they received the Spirit by it c. Now notwithstanding all this no sooner do a company of Law-Preachers come that could do no Miracles at all could not convey the Spirit in their Ministry and yet the Galatians are so bewitched and besotted with them through their own natural inclinations to a Legal Righteousness that they fall off to the Law in the sight and view of all those demonstrations and convictions to the contrary and swallow down four several contradictions to boot Ergo hence it evidently appears that men are exceeding apt to run into this way of Justification by Works unless we shall imagine that this inclination in whole Churches of Galatia was some strange kind of special distemper arising from the soyle or some such trifling cause that hinders it from being common to us with them I say I take it for proved and granted from this example which is to me much like an Induction the whole Nation of the Jews the Churches of Galatia that were Gentiles were wholly given to this way therefore this way is mighty natural to mankind and we have all a strong propension and inclination to it but here comes in one considerable objection upon the answering of which the truth of this last Assertion wil be much clearer and that is this You say Object that because the Nation of the Jews and the Gentile Galatians were so much addicted to the way of Justification of Works therefore it is an argument that all mankind is addicted to this way and that we are in danger of running into this way but you do not seem to observe the great snare and stumbling-block that lay in their way to put them upon it and that was the Ceremonial Law which they did not understand as typical of Christ and Gospel-Mysteries but looked upon it as a task of duties which if they did go thorow and do their best to keepe they should undoubtedly please God and be saved Now this Ceremonial Law was given to the Jews and not perfectly out of use when the Galatians were thus led aside by it but was preached up by the devout Jews that were turned to Christianity that if they were not circumcised and kept not the Law of Moses they could not be saved Act. 15.1 Now this the Galatians receiving as true and holding the Gospel with it they did with the Jews too much dote upon Ceremonial Observances and so their Gospel which they professed with it was sowred and spoiled by it but we are not in this danger we know that the Ceremonial Law is down and so we are free from this snare and danger therefore we need not fear lest we run into a Covenant of Works or seek Justification by works This is the objection and you see it is considerable to which I shall endeavour an answer And first of all I answer by way of concession in three particulars Ans 1. 'T is true the Jews had the Ceremonial Law imposed upon them by God and the Galatians by the seduction of false Teachers received it likewise as their duty 2. The Ceremonial Law was apt to prove a snare to all that were under it in leading them into a Covenant of Works For to be set to do a great many things which we understand no meaning almost in how naturally will it teach us to take up with the opus operatum the work done to look no further Which easily mis-leads us into an opinion of Merit especially when we think our selves prettily well to have discharged our selves of the duties of the Moral Law besides 3. Let it be granted that this did actually prove a great snare both to the Jews and Galatians which appears from this that the Apostle when he is rebuking the Galatians for their Legality he instanceth for proofs often in their observing the Ceremonial Law Gal. 4.8 9. I winder saith he that after ye were set free from bondage to Idols by the Gospel of Christ ye should desire again to enter into bondage to ceremonies which there he calls beggarly rudiments and in ver 10 11. saith he Ye observe dayes and months and times and years I am afraid of you lest I have bestowed upon you labour in vain Nay the Apostle instanceth so frequently in the business of the Ceremonial Law that an incurious Reader might think that all thrir fault was but this that they made Conscience of keeping the Ceremonial Law though 't is certain and I have proved it already that this was not the greatest fault they had fallen into for then the Apostle would onely have gone about to convince them that the Ceremonial Law was abolished by the death of Christ or at least that they being Gentiles need not have their Consciences obliged to it which doth not scarce at all appear to have been any part of his design but his main design is to beat them off from a Covenant of works unto which the Ceremonial Law served for an Inlet And indeed this was the nature and genius of their mischievous error they thought as the Jews also did that though they were not so strict as they should be in observing the great weighty duties of the Moral Law yet if they were strict and careful in observing the Ceremonial this would make some amends for their other great defects and herein we see the Ceremonial Law proved a great snare Thus our Saviour chargeth the Jews even whilest it was their duty to keep the ceremonial Law that they placed the observances of the ceremonial Law in the room of their obedience to the moral Law Ye pay tythe of Mint and Annise and Cummin and have omitted the weightier matters
of the Law Judgement Mercy and Faith these ought ye to have done and notto leave the other undone Matth. 23.23 and so in Isa 1. chap. ver 10. And this I think is the judgement of all Divines to have been the error of the Jews and Galatians Now let these three things be granted yet in the 4th place by way of direct answer to the objection Though the Ceremonial Lâ—w were apt to prove a Snare and actually did prove a Snare to the Jews and Galatians yet it was their natural inclination to Legality to a Legal way of treating with God for their Justification and acceptation that betrayed them into this Snare or that made it prove such a Snare to them For else the Ceremonial Law was in its true use and in the design of the Lord when he first gave it a great blessing unto the people of Israel it was a part of that Dispensation which is called their wisdom and their glory in the sight of the Nations Deut. 4.6 I say the Ceremonial Law was not in its own nature unavoidably such a snare as would lead them to a Covenant of Works nor in the design of God who gave it nay it was designed to be to them a sigurative Gospel and therefore though it was somewhat capable of being made use of to such an end to serve the turn and humor of a Legal Spirit yet none but those that were so addicted could have made such a perverse and destructive use of it or if it had been unavoidably I say make the supposition that it had been unavoidably such a dangerous snare to the Jews who had the Ceremonial Law given them from Mount Sinai yet the Gentile Galatians had not such a temptation to receive it with that veneration that the Jews had and having received the Gospel before and stil retaining the profession of it might have been well antidoted against the danger of it and yet they receive it suddenly in this noxious and mischievous use of it And for what reason can we imagine all this to have come to pass but because they were naturally disposed and exceeding apt to catch at any occasion of serving God as it were by the works of the Law or according to a Covenant of Works 5thly I say therefore that though we have not the Ceremonial Law of the Jews to prove a Snare to us yet we have this radicated inclination to a Covenant of Works which betrayed the Jews and Galatians by occasion of the Ceremonial Law into the prosecution of Justification by Works and this I think was formerly evinced from the example of the Jews and Galatians as by an induction 6thly As for the ceremonial Law perhaps it would be granted that if we had such reason to receive it as the Jews had before Christ when it was their duty to observe it or but such a seeming reason as the Galatians after their seduction thought they had perhaps it would be granted that if the case were so with us as it was with either of them that then we should be in great danger to do as they did and to vent that natural Legality or addictedness to the way of works which hath been evinced to be in all men in ceremonial observances Now let but so much be granted and then I have this to offer That though we are free from the ceremonial Law of the Jews know it abrogated by Christ's death yet we may stil have a like danger though not the same nay the Christian Church hath for many hundreds of years I shall not meddle with the present state of things I say the Christian Church hath for many hundreds of years together formerly been under as great a danger from ceremonies as the Jewâ— were in from the ceremonial Law and for proof of this I shal onely quote some passages out of the preface to the Book of Common-Prayer under the title Of Ceremonies why some be abolished and some retained where you have these besides other expressions Some Ceremonies are put away because the great excess and multitude of them hath so encreased in these later days that the burthen of them was intollerable whereof St. Austine in his time complained that they were grown to such a number that the estate of Christian people was in worse case concerning that matter then were the Jews and he counselled that such yoke and burthen should be taken away as time would serve quietly to do it But what would St. Austine have said if he had seen the Ceremonies of late dayes used amongst us whereunto the multitude used in his time was not to be compared This our excessive multitude of Ceremonies was so great and many of them so dark that they did more confound and darken then declare and set forth Christs benefits unto us There are other considerable passages concerning ceremonies in that Preface but this that I have transcribed serves sufficiently for my purpose and I suppose fully takes off the objection that since the ceremonial Law is down Christians cannot be in the same danger that the Jews Galatians were from ceremonies I have yet one more particular to add by way of answer to the objection and it is this in the seventh place That I verily believe though the Jews had had no such Law given them nor the Gentile-Galatians such a Law preached amongst them by the Jews nor had any such ceremonies ever been set up in the Church of Christ as the quotation speaks of yet both the Jews and Galatians and we all have such an inclination to such an earnest desire after the way of Works that without a strict hand over our selves from giving way to this natural disposition we should be all exceeding apt to find out some way or other of venting this humour either by inventing ceremonies and superisttions or doing the duties of the Moral Law superficially and yet resting upon them for our Justification As for duties or good works that are truly good though they may be abused after their performance by a spiritual pride adhering to them nay though they may perhaps be spoiled sometimes by an opinion of merit yet because I cannot think it possible for a man that doth exercise himself to serve God with a perfect heart to turn all his really-good Works into Legal-Works by an opinion of Merit I shal except this from being a third way in which Legality predominant may exert and shew it self But for the other two ways of invented ceremonies or superstitiuâ—s observances and an external obedience to the duties of the Moral Law I think the nature of man is so addicted to the way of Works that though there were no ceremonial Law amongst us at present either from God or men yet men would generally find out one or both of those ways to vent their Legality even to an opinion of merit in them This I shal shew to have been usually practised in the times of the Scripture and since and
come it will not tarry This was the very case with the wicked King last instanced out of 2 King 6.33 if the Visiontarry wait for it But now it follows ver 4. If you will not wait if your soul be lifted up in you with pride and impatience why this soul that is lifted up is not upright in him this Spirit is quite contrary to the Spirit of a just and justified man But the just shall live by Faith that is will be patient in such straits this is the great famous place which the Apostle Pau. makes use of to prove Justification by Faith in three several Epistles Rom. 1.17 Gal. 3.11 Heb. 10 38. Ergo Impatience weariness of the service of God is a great argument and symptom of a Legal Spirit in the service of God the thing that we have now under demonstration Now to apply this Character So far as thou findest thy self sloathful sluggish in the service of God ready to draw back and to be weary of well-doing contentious against God with Job angry as Jeremy and Jonah were in their sits of distemper So far Legality is discovered to be the principle of serving God For the Spirit of the Gospel is humble chearful I will bear the indignation of the Lord because I have sinned against him saith the Church in Micah ch 7 9. If God defers to hear and answer prayers yea gives denials yet the true Saints of God think it their duty to wait patiently on the Lord and to find out the cause of these denials in themselves Christ calls the woman of Canaan Dog Truth Lord saith she yet the Dogs eat of the crumbs And this is commended for an high piece of faith Mar. 7.28 I join these Scriptures of Old and New-Testament together and use them promiscuously for proof of the same thing because it is plain there were spiritual Worshippers under the Old-Testament as wel as there are Legal-Worshippers in the new Now in a consonancy to and connexion with this latter part of this last Character viz. the irksomness heaviness and weary somness that there is often found in a Legal Spirit as to the service of God I might make this a third Character That a Legal Spirit is weak and feeble and devoid of all strength in the service of God But I shall make this rather an Observation then a Character of a Legal Spirit yet I shall insist some what upon it I say then The Legal spirit is without strength in the service of God That the Legal-Worshipper is faint-hearted weak in the service of God like Ephraim in Hos 7.11 as a silly Dove without heart and it may very well be for the joy of the Lord alone is our strength Neh. 8.10 Which joy the Legallist never partakes of having never any true sence of divine acceptance And indeed what strength can the Law give us that is now through our fall become a poor weak feeble thing it self What the Law could not do in that it was weak through the flesh c. Rom. 8.3 The Law became weak through our sinful flesh so that it can neither justifie nor sanctifie and it gives no quickness at all in the service of God it gives quickness to the body of death indeed and to the motions of sin in our members as it is Rom. 7. â— but none at all to serve God with The A postle therefore appeals to the Galatians experience that they never received the Spirit by all the preaching of the Law which they had amongst them Gal 3 2. And this was the very reason of God's nâ—aâ—ing a new Covenant of his removing his old Dispensat on by Moses which was so full of Law and so like a Covenant of Works Heb 7.8 19. For there is verily a disannulling of the Commandment going before for the weakness and unprofitableness thereof for the Law made nothing perfect Thus the Law being weak the Legallist must needs be a weak imperfect thing in the service of God But now it is said They that wait on the Lord by Faith shall renew their strength they shall mount up with wirgs like Eagle they Well run and not be weary and they shall walk and not faint Isa 40.31 He that believeth on me saith our Saviour out of his belly shall flow kavers of living water this spake he of the Spirit which they that believed on him should receive John 7.38 39. The Gospel of Christ is and in its preportion ever was so far as at any time it was understood and embraced in the times of the Old Testament the Ministration of the Spirit In Col. 1.11 the Apostle prays for his Colossians that they may be strengthened with All might according to his glorious power in the Gospel there is ALL Mâ—GHT and a gâ—orious Power to strengthen and quicken the Saints with no wonder therefore if this quicken and encourage them mightily in the service of God beyond what ever the Law can do for its dependants and admirers I might here take fair occasion to discover what infinite quickning considerations and motiveâ— the Gospel carries in it unto the spiritual service of God beyond what the Law could afford But seeing I do not so much as make this a Character I shall not take the liberty to enlarge further upon it I shall onely now acquaint the Reader why I do not make this a Character and then pass on And truly one great reason is for the sakes of some good people I may say very many that we have amongst us who if we should make this a Character of a legal spirit that it is weak sluggish heartless in the service of God that it is not lively active and vigorous they would presently apply it to themselves and cry out that they are legal for that they find themselves that they are just thus whereas yet it is true that every true Saint the meanest Saint in the World hath more life and vigor of heart in his serving God then the devoutest and strictest legallist in the World And what if I should say in comparing the two Dispensations of the Old and New-Testament that there is never a Gospel-Saint since the day that the Spirit came down upon the Apostles but hath more life and spirit or it is hâ—s fault if he have not then the highest true Saint under the Old-Testament Would not that Scripture bear me out in it which says that John the Baptist was the greatest that ever was born of a woman before him and yet that the least in the Kingdom of Heaven which is often interpreted of the Gospel-state of the Church is greater then he Matth. 11.11 And would not that other Scripture countenance it which saith The feeble shall be as David Zech. 10.8 And accordingly I might affirm that if these complaining Saints had but the true courage of Saints and the true Character of themselves and at the same time the Character of the highest legallists yea of the most
sons a spirit of adoption Having made the spirit of bondage a Character and given you the distinctions upon it I shal briefly shew the inseparable connexion that there is between a legal spirit and it and the very reason how it comes to pass The inseperable connexion between a spirit of bondage and a legal spirit And indeed it must needs be that a legal spirit should be attended with fear and terror for his very way of serving God leads him into it He goes to serve God and to procure acceptance with him by the Works of the Law now the Law as I have shew nis of that nature that it cannot justifie but where there is perfect unerring obedience and therefore to all that seek justification by it and are not surnished with this obedience it can onely prove a Ministration of death terror and desperation So that let the Legallist fancy what he pleaseth at first when he enters upon his way as perhaps he may think to please God and satisfie his own Conscience with offering up some external services either ceremonious or moral and never pretend to keep the whole law and so not to seek justification in the true and proper way that the Law is to justifie yet he shall find himself first reputed and reckoned amongst those that seek Justification by the Law as the Galatians were who yet did not pretend to the proper righteousness of the Law and then he shall find in the next place that because of the imperfection of his obedience the Law is too weak to justifie him and yet it will still shew him his duty and press him to the doing of it and it will discover his defects and sins and the wrath due for them but to allow strength for the fulfilling it self or to procure pardon for any breach of it this it cannot do and so all the effects of the Law upon the Legallist can be only to lash sting and vex him which must needs sill his soul with horror and dread of that God whom hee serves Now I shall not undertake to shew on the contrary how the very nature of the gospel-way must needs produce peace and an holy boldness and confidence in the sight of God though I might shew that out of the very way it self these things would seem to spring or at least that it is very agreeable and suitable to the gospel-way of treating God that it should be accompanied with peace joy and holy boldness in the presence of God for if the great and holy God wil admit any sinful creatures whilst they remain in part sinful into fellowship and holy boldness with himself who can they be other then those that renounce all love to sin abhor themselves by reason of sin and cast themselves for pardon and salvation purely upon his mercy and grace All which I have shewn to be essential to the Evangelical or gospel-way the way of faith and grace which I am contending for Besides we know the gospel way of serving God receives a denomination from faith it is called the way of Faith They that are OF FAITH are blessed with faithful Abraham Gal. 3.9 Now if this way hath so much of faith in it which we know hath affiance in its notion that Faith should deserve to give name to this way as it doth then certainly this way cannot want an holy boldness and confidence in it But instead of insisting upon this way of proof from the very nature and constitution of the Gospel I shall content my self with a few more Scripture-proofs besides what I first mentioned in the entrance of this Character to shew that peace joy and holy boldness in the presence of God are great effects of a Gospel-way of serving God Gal. 5.22 The fruit of the SPIRIT is love joy peace c. By the spirit is meant either the gospel or the holy ghost which is conveighed by it or that better part which is within us called so in opposition to the Flesh or if you will all three and then the sense is this The Spiritual or New-nature within us brought forth by the Holy Ghost in the preaching of the Gospel hath such fruits as these Love Joy Peace c. So Rom. 14.17 The Kingdom of God that is the Gospel where it comes in power is not meat and drink that is it consists not of these chiefly if at all but it is righteousness and peace and joy in the holy Ghost these are the great designs and effects of the Gospel And we know that the Gospel is the great ministration of the Spirit who is given in the Gospel as a Comforter as an earnest of the inheritance as an Advocate within us teaching us to cry Abba Father It were endless to give all the places which make for the proof of this proposition that the Gospel hath great joys and comforts attending it and that the opposite way to it of serving God which is by the Law can have no such thing If it should be here objected that it 's strange Obj. if the Gospel-way be so full of comfort and boly boldness in the presence of God so attended with the Spirit of Adoption as you have declared that there should be so many sad drooping desponding Saints as there are that though they live holily and we cannot but think they are good men yet are not acquainted with any of those comforts durst not call God Father are full of fears and doubts touching the favour of God towards them c. I confess that this is a considerable objection Ans But I must answer it much after the same manner as I discoursed upon that which I might have made the third character viz. that a Gospel-Spirit was vigorous quick and lively in the service of God that a Legal-spirit was weak sluggish and unactive For I meet with the same kind of Christians in this Objection that then I met with who durst not be tried by that character First of all therefore I acknowledge there are many sad souls whom I cannot but think to be godly and true Gospel-saints and so much I acknowledged in giving the second distinction 〈◊〉 this character But Secondly I dare say the Gospel hath comforts for them if they could but receive them which yet the Law hath not in it for the Legallists no the Law is full charged with wrath against them and did they but fully understand what infinite treasures of wrath the Law contains in it self for them there is never a Legallist in the world but would be fuller of horror and desperation than were Cain or Judas Thirdly Setting aside what may be of extraordinary dispensation in the troubles of some Saints I think it 's generally their own fault that they have no more comfort and considence than they have God would have us rejoice Rejoice is the Lord alwaies and again I say rejoice Phil. 4.4 Rejoice evermore 1 Thes 5.16 The Gospel would have us rejoice
He that is righteous let him be righteous still which two places the Doctor makes use of for proof But that 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 or 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 should have these significations where the Apostle is strictly speaking to the business of Justification I can by no means allow yea I think it most abhorrent from the Apostles designe in this business what saith the Apostle Rom. 3.11 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 there is none righteous no not one here the righteousness of God is revealed from faith to faith Rom. 1.17 There is no other righteousness takes place here And to rip up the whole business again which here I am put upon by the Doctor 's assertion and interpretations though otherwise I might have gone on smoothly in my way First of all surely the Doctor will not deny that Justification and Sanctification have different proper conceptions and notions which they are to be understood by that Justification is God's pardoning our sins and receiving our persons into special love and favour that Sanctification is a mans likeness to God in his heart and life or if the Doctor should deny this there are several places will evidence it I shall name but two Acts 13.38 39. Be it know unto you therefore Men and Brethren that through this man is preached unto you the forgiveness of sins and by him all that BELIEVE are justified FROM ALL THINGS from which yee could not be justified by the Law of Moses That is saith Dr Hammond shall certainly be freed and purged from the wrath of God and the punishments attending sin in another world from which the Law of Moses could not by all its Ceremonies Washings and Sacrifices purge or cleanse us The other Scripture shall be that in Janes 12.24 Yee see then how that by works a man is justified and not by faith onely Take Justification here for sanctification and let any one see if he can make sence of it nay it is plain in that Chapter that Justification is taken for being highly approved of God and being made the friend of God ver 25. And the Scripture was fulfilled which saith Abraham believed God and it was imputed unto him for righteousness and then as it were exegetical of that expression it is added he was called the friend of God But I know the Dr will allow of the particular without this proof That Justification and Sanctification have these different and proper conceptions mentioned 2dly Certainly the Dr. will allow that the Apostle Paul hath a mighty vigorous and curious Discourse concerning Justification in its proper notion or its foreusal acception as the Dr himself expresseth it pag. 379. ad finem The Apostle forms a professed Discourse nay a Dispute with the Jew and Judaizing-Gentile upon the business of Justification taken for Divine approbation they thought to obtain the favour of God one way but he shews them another These two particulars I shall take for granted Now I proceed 3dly The Apostle therefore being to remove one way of Justification viz. that of the Legallist and to set up another he makes mention of two Righteousnesses one of the Law the other of Faith That of the Law as I have shewed in the beginning of this Treatise is a perfect conformity to the Law perfect inherent righteousness unerring obedience this saith the Apostle no man hath 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 there is none righteous no not one and the Apostle in that third chap. of the Rom. by enumerating all sorts of sins which we are all more or less guilty of proves that no man can be jusâ—â—ed by the Law this righteousness therefore the Apostle having fully removed as an impossible unattainable thing he as a Messenger from heaven substitutes another righteousness which he calls Gods Righteousness in opposition to our own the righteousness of God is revealed that is that righteousness which God will accept and what is that why it is Faith The righteousness of God is revealed from Faith to Faith as it is written The Just shall 〈◊〉 â—aith Rom. 1.16.17 The scope of the Apostles Discourse I doubt not is this That God hath designed and determined that seeing men have lost their Original purity and to can no longer stand upon their own bottom he will take them off from it altogether and make them live a life of pure dependance upon himself and that is by faith which must have holiness of life attending it and those that come off to do this renounce themselves their own righteousness and all creature-dependencies and roll themselves and all their concerns upon him and upon his Son though their imperfections may be 〈◊〉 yet this their faith shall be imputed to them â—â—r righteousness which they may plead for their â—â—tilication according to the Law of the new Covenant and they shall pass for righteous men as truly iustified and approved as if they had perfectly kept the whole Law under which they were created especially since God had made provision otherways how thâ— honor of that Law might receive râ—â—â—ation viz. by the death of his Son upon the Cross And this I suppose is no santastical notion of Justification by Faith which I suppose the Dr. is chiefly set against and seeing how many wayer men had corrupted the Doctrine of Justification by Faith after he had solidly confuted their opinions betakes himself to that of his own which I dare say had no evil intention though I still affirm that it is most unhappily exprest and I cannot but read it with a great displeasure and indignation For to think that the Apostle should make so much to do to decry the design of a legal Righteousness which in truth was no other in it self but true and real onely it must be perfect holiness however the Legallists all along in their pursuit after the Righteousness of the Law minded nothing less I say for the Apostle to dispute so vigorously against a Righteousness by perfect unerring obedience under the name of one's own righteousness and to set up Faith as Gods righteousness and yet that this righteousness of saith should signifie nothing else but those poor inconsiderable effects of Faith in holiness of life which the greatest part of Christians attain unto onely this seems a mean business for the Apostle to labour about Alas 't is true Faith works holiness and all the great Legallists shall never attain by all their stir and ado to so much true holiness as the meanest believer attains unto but yet this which we attain though by faith is nothing to give name to a righteousness in the sight of God for Justification to be justified by or for our holiness of faith is a low and base expression of Gospel-Justification The righteousness of Faith is an higher thing when a man comes off from himself and from all Creature-dependencies and professeth to live upon the Power and Goodness and Faithfulness of God and the blood spirit of Christ alone such a
Spirit of Christ being throughly convinced of the righteousness of the Law the truth of its threatning the Nature and Offices Sufficiency and Excellency of Jesus Christ his free offer to all that will accept of him for their Lord and Saviour doth hereupon believe the truth of this Gospel and accept of Christ as his only Lord and Saviour to bring him to God his chiefest good and doth accordingly rest on him as his Saviour and SINCERELY though imperfectly OBEY him as his Lord FORGIVING OYHERS LOVING HIS PEOPLE BEARING WHAT SUFFERINGS ARE IMPOSED c. and all this sincerely and to the end This is part of his desinition of Faith Again Mr. Baxter in another place pag. 238. Thesis 62. according to this definition of Faith tells us That Faith may be called the onely condition of the New-Covenant for two reasons 1. Because it is the principal condition and the other but the less principal and so as an whole Countrey hath ost its Name from a chief City so may the conditions of this Covenant from Faith 2. Because all the rest are reducible to it either being presupposed as necessary antecedents or means or contained in it as its parts properties or modifications or else implyed as its immediate product or necessary subservient means or consequents And so full to the same purpose Thesis 73. pag. 280. Thus we see by Scripture and according to the opinion of a very learned and good man that Faith is not onely the first Grace in order but a very operative Grace and was in its own nature exceedingly sitted for that service which God hath in much Wisdom and Prudence appointed it unto But thirdly 〈…〉 there is yet a more proper reason then either of these why Faith should be chosen for this uses and that is for that Faith is a self-emrying Grace to live by Faith is to live purely in dependance upon God and Christ for every thing and what fitter instrument or condition of Justification could be chosen after the fall of man when it was most reasonable that if God would save a man he should have all the glory Doth not the Apostle insist mightily upon this both in his Doctrine and particular practice Justification now saith he is not of works lest any man should boast Eph. 2.9 But by Grace are ye saved through Faith So Nom. 3.27 Where is boasting then it is excluded By what Law Of works Nay but by the Law of Faith This is St. Paul's Doctrine Then for his practice For my part saith he I am crucified with Christ I am a poor dead thing Nevertheless I live yet not I or no longer I 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 but Christ liveth in me and the life that I live is by Faith in Christ Gal. 2.20 Now that St. Paul is come to live the life of Faith he is nothing Christ is all he is dead and liveth not Christ onely liveth in him So that you see Faith besides all its other excellencies hath a peculiar fitness for this service of justifying a sinner and yet notwithstanding all these excellent qualities that are to be found in Faith it could not have justified without a Divine ordination and appointment Now for any to say as some do that Love justifies as much as Faith nay that God doth rather approve of a man for his Love then for his Faith is methinks very bold and unscriptural Divinity I shall onely adde a word of testimony out of Mr. Baxter to this last particular and so conclude the question and all the questions which I have to propose about Justification Pag. 231. of his Aphorisms he hath these words If God had seen meet to have stamped any thing else to pass for Justification it would have passed currantly yet take this Faith is even to our own apprehension the most apt and suitable condition that GOD COULD have chosen for as far as we can reach to know there cannot be a more apt or rational condition pag. 232. This is the most self-denying and Christ-advancing Work Nothing could be more proportionable to our poverty who have nothing to buy with than thus freely to receive c. I have now done with all the Questions which I thought any ways necessary to be spoken to for the more particular and distinct unfolding of the Doctrine of Justification and I might here shut up the Discourse with the Uses of the whole But before I come to the Uses I judge it convenient to add somewhat by way of Appendix concerning the means or way how Justification came to be transferred from the Law to the Gospel or from Works to Faith for that I have acknowledged that Works and the Law were the first natural way of justifying men but now that it is altogether brought about by Grace and Faith That which I have to say I shall introduce with this objection If we were all born under the Law Object and bound to obey it to a tittle upon which obedience it should have justified us but upon the least breach was armed with this threatning That we should dye the death and that we have all broken it how comes it to pass that we are not all the Laws Captives and Prisoners and condemned by it How came there such easie gracious terms to be offered us for our justification as Faith and sincere obedience that these shall be accepted instead of perfect unerring obedience How will this way be for the honor of God's veracity in the threatning or his holiness to take imperfect sinful creatures into favour Now in answer to this objection I shall not need to meddle with that question Answ whether it were inconsistent with the natural Justice or Holiness of God considered as antecedent to his threatning or Decree of punishing sinners with death for him to have pardoned sinners by an absolute Power and Soveraign Grace and so to have received them into favour upon their repentance without the intervention of a Saviour But in the first place seeing there was adecree passed In the day that thon eatest thou shalt dye the death Gen. 2.17 I see not how it was consistent with the veracity of God to remit the sinner without any consideration at all without a very considerable fulfilling of this threatning 2dly The threatning therefore was fulfilled these several ways 1. Upon man himself in a great measure for that presently upon man's fall insued his mortality and all the inconveniences and troubles which we meet with in the World which are the fore-runners and causes of our dissolution But secondly and especially the great God in infinite Wisdom and Mercy provided a Saviour one mighty to save that should come into the world in the fulness of time about the 4000th year of the World the World being to last but perhaps 7000. years in all and free us that were born under the Law and by our sins made obnoxious to the curse of it from the curse and power of the Law
transgressions of the Law Now therefore what remains but this that if Jesus will save his people from their sins if he will deliver the Law 's Captives he must make satisfaction to the Law The Law was such a thing as must not be dealt with in a way of violence 't is true when our Saviour came to redeem us from the power of Satan he did that by an holy violence he fought with all the powers of hell upon his Cross and conquered them by force of arms as I may speak and triumphed over them in himself or in his Cross but now the Law must be taken off in a more honourable way for the Law had an authority in it the Law was nothing but the will of God revealed for mans life with a reward and threatnings annexed so that the great God himself stood up in vindication of his own Law that if the Prisoners of it were rescued it must be upon such terms as these which appear what they were by the event That he that is the Saviour of the Law 's Captives must first be made under the Law himself The terms upon which the Law 's captives be delivered God sent forth his Son made of a woman made under the Law to redeem them that were under the Law And secondly That he must pass thorough a legal Justification himself before he can take others off from the Laws condemnation for being made under it the Law must either justifie him or condemne him which latter it did not for any personal breach that he made of it therefore it must and did acquit him But then for us who were under the curse of the Law if he will deliver us from it he must be made a curse Gal. 3.13 if he will save us from our sins which were invigorated by the Law with a sentence of condemnation all the strength of sin for condemnation being in the Law he himself must be made sin that is as much as an immaculate Lamb could be viz. a sin-offering 2 Cor. 5.21 he was made sin for us who knew no sin that we might be made the righteousness of God in him that is that we might be made righteous by Gods accepting Gospel conditions instead of legal for our Justification If Christ will redeem us from the wrath of the Law which is the wrath of God the Law worketh wrath Rom. 4 15. truely he must come under that wrath so farr as it was possible for such an innocent person to be under it and we know that he was under as horrible a desertion as ever any that trusted in God was under and that at such a time when he needed the greatest supports even when he hung upon the Cross crying My God My God words of an high saith why hast thou forsaken mee words expressing a most dreadfull desertion Math. 27 46. Not to mention his agony in the Garden which was but a fore-taste of that Cup which he was afterwards to drink off And methinks there is an eminent place for this in Zech. chap. 13. ver 7. saith the Lord there as it were stirring up his wrath against Christ Awake O Sword against my Shepherd and against the man that is my Fellow saith the Lord of Hosts As much as to say there is a man upon earth that is my Fellow and he hath undertaken to rescue the Law 's Captives to redeem them from under the Law Curse and Wrath now awake my Sword against him Here the great God the Lord of Hosts doth as it were set himself in battel array against Christ but what doth Christ now Doth he make resistance doth he redeem his Captives from the Law by forceâ— No though he were equal with God though he were God's Fellow as here the Lord calls him yet he made it not a prey or a robbery to be equal with God so as to hold it fast and stand it out but gave way he knew what he had undertaken to redeem Captives indeed but it was from under the Law the righteous and holy and pure law of God and this must not be violated this must not be resisted He had to do with his Father and there must be no resisting him The Cup which my Father hath given me shall I not drink it John 18.11 Though he were God's Fellow though he were equal to God as it is Phil. 2.6 7 8. Yet he made himself of no reputation he laid aside his equality took upon him the form of a Servant and humâ—â—ed himself and became obedient unto death even the death of the Cross And this was the utmost that the Law could do to him here the Law ended it's rage the Law brought Christ to the Cross and when he ascended the Cross he bare our sins in his own body 1 Pet. 2.24 and being as yet under the Law for the Law pressed him with our sins he carried up the Law as Sampson did the gates of the City upon his shoulders Judges 16.3 he carried up the Law upon the Cross he nailed the Law to the Cross both Moral and Ceremonial as to all it's condemning power as to all that wherein it was a gainst us wherein it was contrary unto us he answerit fully cancelled it and left it behinde him upon the Cross to this very day Christ came down again but the Law could never come down since Col 2.14 Blotting out the hand-writing of Ordinances that was AGAINST US THAT WAS CONTRARY UNTO US and took it out of the way â—ailing it to his Cross Now this was the manner of Christ's enervating the Law and leaving it without strength or obligation upon us to punishment as the expression is Rom 76. 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 the Law is made of no strength against us so it might be rendred though the Translation is this we are delivered fram the Law the Law can hold us captives no longer it is made a weak and a vain thing to us having spent all it's rage fury upon Christ for the Law could do no more then it did upon Christ what can the Law do more to a debtor nay to any malefactor then arrest him bring him to trial and execution and all this the Law did upon Christ as our surety and so left no strength or vigour in it self against those whose Surety he was The Law when it fell upon us it left us without strength Rom. 5.6 When we were yet without strength in due time Christ died for the ungodly but when Christ comes to deal with the Law he leaves the Law without strength nay though he offered no affront or violence to the Law yet he left it for dead as it is Rom. 7 6. Now we are delivered from the Law THAT BEING DEAD WHEREIN WE WERE HELD The Law that fell upon us when we were weak was taken by the Captain of our salvation and left for dead nay he made it suffer the same death that it put him to The Law nailed Christ to
God a Sacrifice for our sins give his life a ransome c. and though the Father loved him all the while as I cannot admit that the Father was really angry with Christ or that he tasted the Fathers wrath for God could never be angry with one that never displeased him yet undertaking such a load as our sins the Father would deal with him much like as with a sinner leave him to men and devils upon the Cross and with-draw the light of his countenance which forced those sad out-cryes upon the Cross Now upon condition of Christ's performing this great service which was as I verily believe the chiefest designe of his coming into the world for this cause came I to this hour John 12.27 though there were divers other great designes of his coming I say upon condition of performing this great service the great God of heaven would reckon that his word of threatning was fulfilled and the holiness of his Law satisfied in this eminent signification of his displeasure against sin shewn upon his own Son whom he would not spare when he had taken our sins upon him and for ever after would grant this new and living way of Justification unto the world THAT WHOSOEVER SHOULD BELIEVE AND OBEY SINCEREEY should be justified and saved and that for all such they should be no longer under the Law for their Justification but under Grace And I can understand no other sense of the Law 's being dead and Grace it's reigning through righteousness unto eternal life by Jesus Christ I shall only need to minde one thing before I go off from this particular The subjects of the great Priviledge of freedom from the Law and that is the subjects of this priviledge of freedom from the Law And they are only so many as put themselves upon the way of believing for Justification all others are really under the Law still When we were in the flesh the motions of sins which were by the Law did work in our members c. Rom. 7.5 All that are in the flesh are under the Law still But now saith the Apostle we are delivered from the Law that being dead wherein we were held The Law was alive before to their conscience whilest they were in the flesh and out of Christ but now the Law was become dead to them which plainly argues that the Law is dead or alive to men in the condemning power of it according to the state that a man is in either of sin or holiness So Rom. 6.14 For sin shall not have dominion over you for ye are not under the Law but under Grace plainly implying that if they were under the Law sin would have dominion over them an also that if sin had dominion over them it were a plain signe that they were under the law This being a great truth in this matter That all that are not serving God in the way of faith are under the law for that the law is the natural way which a man is born under and the way of faith and grace a superadded dispensation upon consideration of the death of Christ for all those that should believe and obey sincerely therefore till they get into the way of believing they must be in that state which men are naturally born under that is under the law I shall conclude this particular with a passage about Dr Preston I have heard it affirmed by one that was contemporary with Dr Preston in Cambridge a person of credit and worth that he heard him preach to this purpose That Christ dyed to make this Proposition true that WHOSOEVER BELIEVETH SHALL BE SAVED Now this I suppose is full to the purpose for proof of what I am upon That Christ dyed to buy a people off from the law that they might be justified by faith he dyed to buy those off from the law that should prove believers as for all others he leaves them to the law still For Christ did not dye to get the law annihilated or made utterly void Do we make void the law God forbid saith the Apostle Rom. 3.31 but he laid down his life for HIS SHEEP and to save HIS PEOPLE from their sins he bought them off from the law such as St Paul I through the law am dead to the law but not for wicked men that is such as continue so they shall finde the law alive to them and full charged with wrath against them it being nothing else but the holy will of the great God unto which all his creatures owe an exact conformity Now by what hath been said I suppose is plainly and fully proved that which I made my first assertion viz. That Christ Jesus in his own person here upon earth underlook and answered the law for all believers so that they may be justified for any accusation that the law hath to charge them with and thus they come under grace and into this easier and sweeter way of Justification in a comly manner the law being honourably taken off So that now God may be just that is mercifull saith Dr Hammond upon the place and the justifier of every one that believes in Jesus Rom. 3 24 25 26. He may now justifie the ungodly Rom. 4.5 which by the law if that had not been taken off by Christ he could not I think have done Methinks what I have said should be a clear proof of this assertion seeing I have not only proved that it is so but shewn out of the Scripture the very manner how the law was taken off All that I can apprehend to remain any whit doubtful or questionable is this How doth it appear that what Christ did in suffering under the law being under the curse c. did reach to the times that were before Christ's coming into the world it may be easily conceived how it makes clear way for our Justification by faith who have lived since his death for if he bare our sins the law will not charge them upon us if he dyed for us or in our stead we are not by the law to die if Christ were sacrificed for us as our Passover we need not fear if we have the Gospel-conditions of Covenant-relation to God in Christ but the destroying law will pass over us see how the word Passover comes from passing over Exod. 12.21 23 27. But how doth it appear that this death of Christ had this influence upon the times of the Old Testament to bring in the way of Justification by faith to them for that you have asserted that the way of Justification by faith hath been in all ages both before the law and under the law as well as now in the dayes of the Gospel and that none was ever justified in any other way Now how were they taken off from the law and brought under Justification by faith or how doth it appear that the death of Christ was the foundation of this way of Justification by faith even to them And unto the
the sins of the ages past I think there is this allusion in the words once in the end of the world for that the High-Priest offered but once in the year ver 7 of this chap. ours once in all and their once was in the end of the year nay about the same distance of time from the years end as our Saviour from the worlds end as is to be seen Lev. 16.29 it was in the seventh moneth seven bearing the same proportion to 12 or very near it that 4 doth to 7. taking it for granted that the world should last but about 7000 years therefore I would infer this allusion to be in the words that as theirs want c. Besides there is that in this Scripture which will enforce this Analogy of the end of the year to the fore-past year and the end of the world to the fore-past ages and it is this That if our Saviour through the excellency of his person and offering had not had this high honor from God that his once offering should serve instead of offering a hundred times over which the Priests under the law were fain to do and yet could never hereby purge away sin as to the Conscience I say if this once offering of our Saviour had not bin so highly acceptable to God as it was he must as the High-Priests did offer often have suffered often since the foundation of the world if he would have obtained pardon of sins for those for whom he obtained it he must have come into the World and suffered once a year or once in an age or else at the end of some certain term of years prefixed to him by his Father This is the argumentation of the holy Pen-man of the Epistle to the Heb. ch 9 25. * Dr Hammond in his Par. upon these words For then must he often have suffered since the foundation of the world hath it thus For then he should from time to time ever since the BEGINNING the world have dyed many times Now upon what ground doth this argumentation proceed other then this That when he suffered and offered himself it was as a propitiation to God for the sins of all the ages since the Foundation of the World For else whence would it follow at all though our Saviour should have been ranked by his Father amongst the common High-Priests his offering of himself no more accepted for pardon than their offering the blood of Buls Goats was I say whence would it follow that he must have offered himself often since the foundation of the World which certainly respects the ages past if he was not at all to make attonement for the sins of those past ages The Author of that Epistle would rather have said if he had not gone upon this supposition that Christ offered for the sins of the ages past before his suffering but had onely thought that he offered for the ages to come after his suffering I say he would rather have expressed himself thus If out High-Priest Jesus Christ had not been accepted for us under the Gospel more highly than the legal High-Priests were for their people under the law he must often offer as they did SINCE his first offering he must come and suffer death once in the year and then be raised to offer himself to God or at least once in an age or some set-period of time and this he must do to the end of the World he would never have expressed himself thus then must he often have suffered since the foundation of the world But whereas now the Apostle looâ—ing upon the world as it were at an end or drawing towards its end for suppose the World last 70 oâ— years yet after 4000. years the Skale of Time is turned and Time in its declining he speaks of the world and the continuance of it as you would do of a year and the continuance of it faith he as the High Priest amongst the Jews did enter into the Holy of Holies once in the end of the year for to make an atonement for the sins of the year past so hath our Saviour once in the end of the world appeared to put away sin by the sacrifice of himself Again for I have somewhat yet further which this phrase now once in the end of the world will afford us and that is this That indeed though it be true and I think I have sufficiently proved it above that this death offering of Christ frees US from sin that live after it as well as THOSE that went afore it yet I verily believe that his death hath a more obvious respect to them that lived in the ages before he suffered than to us who came into the world after he suffered though it hath indeed an influence upon us too and the reason is this for that the use of a Sacrifice is to make atonement for sin after it is committed When did you ever read of a Sacrifice for sins slain and offered before the sin was committed The Sacrifices that should be made thus would rather look like a bribing the Deity to get liberty to sin then to make atonement for sin Therefore all the particular Sacrifices that were appointed they were appointed to be used after the legal uncleanness was contracted and accordingly the High Priest that went but once into the Holy of Holyes it was at the end of the year not at the beginning of the year And thus our Saviour being to take away the sins of the world John 1.29 he came once in the end of the world to take away sin so that his appearing thus in the end of the world seems more plainly to respect the ages past than the ages which were to come and I verily believe if Christ had dyed only for the sins of those ages that have been since his death or shall be yet to the end of the world he would have forborn his death till the end of the world or the times that were near it from this very reason of decency That it is not proper to offer Sacrifice for sin till the sin be committed it rather looks like the dispensation to sin than making atonement for sin But now that Christ was to dye for the sins of all the Saints in all ages before him and that he stayed till the fulness of time even till the declining of time towards its end there being so many transgressions already committed that were to be removed out of the way it was no uncomely thing at all that our Saviour should come and die and offer himself to God when he did though the value of the same Sacrifice was to reach all ages after to the world's end and that especially for that there were many other ends of his coming besides the offering himself thus to God he was to take upon him the Mediatorial Kingdome Several other ends of Christs coming besides offering himself a Sacrifice for sin to set up a
spiritual Worship of God by pulling down all the Jewish Ceremonies making Jew and Gentile one and revealing all the mysteries that were concealed in Moses his dispensation nay his very Sacrifice is one of the greatest Mysteries of all by which we are informed of God's performing his threatnings that the threatnings of heaven are not as claps of thunder without a thunder-bolt in them we see God's hatred of sin punishing it so severely in his own Son we see God's love to the world that he would give his Son for the life of it though he gave him up to the death we have in his life a pattern of perfect holiness which is more than all precepts alone and we see in our Saviour an instance of the Resurrection heavenly glory all these things have been of mighty instruction to the Saints of all ages since the death of Christ If this phrase the end of the world should be understood of the end of the Iewish state this will not at all prejudice my ieference from it that Christs death had respect unto the ages before his coming but rather strengthen it will be to all Saints unto the end of the world and therefore I say these other great ends of his coming being considered there is no undecency at all in his coming so early in the end of the world and offering a Sacrifice that should serve for many ages that were then to come It was at the end of the world that he came and therefore might very well serve for those fewer succeeding ages though it had the first respect unto the ages going before In the sixth and last place I shall bring plain Scripture to prove that Christ dyed for the Saints of the ages that were past before his death There are two Scriptures that speak to this purpose the first that I shall name is in that 9th of the Hebrews the chapter out of which I have been arguing ver 15. And for this cause he speaking of Christ is the Mediatour 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 c. Here it is said that Christ by the means of his death redeemed or expiated the transgressions that were under the First Testament therefore he dyed for the fins of those that lived under the Old Testament But I shall deal so faithfully with my Reader as to acquaint him with another interpretation which is not contemptible that others give of these words and that is this That our Saviour Christ the Mediator of the New Testament or Covenant by his most excellent Offering redeemed and expiated those sins which could not be expiated by any Sacrifices that were appointed under the First Covenant according to that in Acts 13.39 By him speaking of Christ all that believe are justified from all things from which they could not be justified by the Law of Moses There being in Moses no Sacrifices for adulteries thefts murthers c. whereas in the Christian Religion there is pardon for all sorts of sinners by means of the death of Christ if they have but the Gospel-conditions of pardon So that this interpretation makes the place to speak of the kindes of sins and not of the individual or particular sins which were committed under the first Covenant that Christ by the means of his death hath made redemption of those kinde of fins which there was no redemption for under the first Covenant But I have something to ask of those that make this interpretation yet taking it for passable and it is this I would fain know if any of those sins were pardoned under the Old Testament which here are said to be redeemed by Christ for his followers if they say they were not then all that committed any such kinde of sins were damned for ever which was untrue witness David and Manasseh if they were pardoned as they were then either they were expiated by some Sacrifice or they were not if those that own this interpretation say they were not expiated by some Sacrifice and yet pardoned I oppose not to mention that great argument again That they could not be pardoned without expiation in any consistency with the veracity of God in his threatning this seems a strange rarity in the dealings of God with us that under the New Testament no sin is pardoned but what is expiated by the death of Christ and yet under the Old Testament which was certainly a dispensation more severe than ours there the greatest sins should be pardoned without the intervention of any Sacrifice nay what a strange thing was it in their very dispensation that legal uncleannesses such as Leprosie and Issues c. must be purged by sacrifice See Lev. 14 15. chapters yet the greatest sins of all should be pardoned without a sacrifice if therefore those great sins of Murther Adultery Witchcraft Idolatry c. were pardoned by expiation it must be by this death of Christ to ensue in the end of the world for there was no sacrifice so much as appointed for these sins those that were appointed could never reach to the purging and cleansing of the conscience they only purged the flesh from a fleshly uncleanness Heb 9.13 the blood of Christ alone hitherto hath had a virtue in it to cleanse the conscience therefore I conclude that the blood of Christ made expiation even for those individual sins for which there was no expiatory sacrifice appointed under the Old Testament But to let pass that Scripture what will be said to that in Rom. 3.25 26. where we have these words Whom speaking of Christ God hath set forth or fore-ordained as it is in the margin to be a propitiation through faith in his blood to declare his righteousness for the REMISSION OF SINS THAT ARE PAST through the forbearance of God to declare I say AT THIS TIME his righteousness that he might be just and the justifier of him which believeth in Jesus Now I suppose there may be this sense contained in these words That God in the dayes of the Gospel hath set forth clearly what that is by which he was alwayes propitiated and atoned for sins even those sins that were fore-past and fore-committed in the dayes of his forbearance and long-suffering that is the darker times of the world which times we have otherwise expressed in Acts 17.30 to be the dayes of ignorance which God winked at they were the dayes of God's forbearance it was and is the blood of Christ by which God alone alwaies was and still is propitiated for sins only then it was not so well known but now God hath declared 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 in the Acts it is 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 that the forepast sins the 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 as well as these that are committed under the Gospel were all redeemed and expiated by the blood of Christ As for any other sense that is given of
which otherwise I should be engaged to do from the fore-going discourse unto sincerity or sincere obedience which is the other part of the condition of Gospel justification I might adde as a great particular of the Exhortation to the exercise of faith that you must be sure to exercise frequent and vigorous acts upon Christ and his blood but of this I have spoken at large in the last Character To conclude therefore this use and so the whole Treatise if thou be rich in knowledge and firm in thy assent unto divine truths copious and strong in acts of affiance upon the divine power and goodness exhibited in the gracious promises of the Word and to this addest or rather makest to precede a sincerity of heart in the service of God that is in summe if thou be a great believer thou mayest not perhaps work Miracles but thou shalt be a wonderful Christian and shalt be able to do greater things than it was to do Miracles when they were in use for wicked men could work Miracles Math. 7.22 Thou shalt be eminently usefull unto the Church to thy Friends and Relations Acquaintance unto thine own soul thou shalt be fit to stand in the gap upon all occasions for others for thy self thou shalt free thy mind of all thy cares all thy businesses shall succeed thou shalt have all thy graces flourishing vigorous thou shalt by thy frequent actings of faith in prayer at last get such liberty of access to the throne of Grace such fellowship and communion with the Father and the Son as to be unto God and Christ in the quality of a Friend as Abraham was Jam. 2.23 which we know occasioned intimate communications from God to him as well as from him to God Gen. 18.17 Shall I hide from Abraham that thing which I do So our Saviour saith to his Disciples Henceforth I call you not servants but friends for the servant knoweth not what his Lord doth John 15.15 The secret of the Lord both of his Covenant and Providence shall be with thee Psal 25.14 In a word be but much in the exercise of faith and you shall need but little more to enquire into your selves what evidences you have of the favour of God to you than one at noon-day needs evidence that the Sun shines be but much in believing and ordinarily I speak not of extraordinary dispensations ye shall have joy unspeakable and full of glory 1 Pet. 1.8 this you may see at large above in the third Character pag 187. But I do not pretend here in the narrow compass of a Use to speak to all that may be said of the life of Faith either to the kindes of its acts the blessed effects of it all the cases about it motives to it or directions in it this would fill a large Treatise See Ball of the Life of Faith I shall conclude all with that of the Psalmist 37.3 Trust in the Lord and do good be large and firme in thy assent to divine truths be strong and vigorous in thy acts of Trust and Affiance and be faithfull to thy God and thou shalt dwell in the Land and verily thou shalt be fed verily thou shalt be justified verily thou shalt be saved FINIS THere being here some empty Pages I thought good to translate one place more out of Luthers Commentary upon the Galatians which I have a great esteem for I would have it referred to pag. 112. or rather to the 183. because it shews how apt even good men are to fall into a legal frame of heart it is in the 53 pag. his words are these Deinde quoque causa Justificationis lubrica est c. besides also the business of Justification is a slippery tickle thing not indeed in it self or in its own nature for in it self it is most firm and certain sed quoad nos but as to us and in our management of it That which I my self have often experienced Novi enim in quibus horis tenebrarum nonnunquam lucter for I know in what hours of darkness I sometimes struggle and wrestle I know how often or how that oftentimes I lose of a sudden the rayes and light of the Gospel and of Grace as it were in certain thick clouds novi denique quam versentur ibi in lubrico etiam exercitati qui pedem firmissime figunt in the last place I well know how that the most experienced Saints and those that have best footing stand here viz. in the business of Justification as in a slippery place and their foot is ready to slip ever now and then and they are apt to let go their hold habemus quidem cognitionem hujus causae we know indeed this matter in a doctrinal way because we can teach it to others and this is a certain sign that we understand it for none can teach others that which he knows not himself It is a sign of a knowing person as he said to be able to teach Verum eum jam in praesenti agone uti debemus Evangelio c. But when we come to practice this doctrine when we are in a strait and pressure of spirit need to use Gospel which is the word of Grace consolation and life then and there the Law the word of wrath sadness and death gets before the Gospel seiseth of us before the Gospel can come praevenit Evangelium and begins to make a tumult within us and stirs up no less terrors in the conscience than that terrible and horrible sight upon Mount Sinai did Sic ut vel unus locus comminationis in Scriptura omnes obruat obnubilat consolationes So that though but one place of threatning in the Scripture come to our minde it will over-whelm and darken all our comforts and will put all our inward parts into such a shaking and trembling adecque omnia interiora nostra concutiâ—t that we shall quite forget the right state of the matter of Justification we shall quite forget grace Christ and the Gospel ut plane obliviscamâ—r causae Justificationis Gratiae Christi Evangelii therefore as to us the business or cause of Justification is a very sl ppery tickle thing because we are slippery and unconstant in it Ides quantum ad nos attinetr es valde lubrica est quia nos lubrici sumus FINIS