and by the Spirit of our God Or at least that I may speak to poor weak willing trembling souls Is this it that your souls are restless after Oh that I were that I were in such a blessed state Oh that I could but believingly say the righteousness of Jesus Christ were mine and that now I am I am justified Oh what peace and sweetness and joy would fill my heart Why Soul If this be indeed the breathing of thy Soul Jesus Christ is thine and thou art justified and pardoned and God will at last give in unto thee if thou continue to follow him the sense and comfort of it in thy poor Soul Only by the way take a Discovery or two of the reality of thy Heart in this matter 1. If thou Soul from a Spiritual Conviction be under a real making out after justification by Jesus Christ then thou wouldst also be as really sanctified be made holy 'T was as much in the purpose of God to call thee out of a state of sin and to sanctifie thee as to pardon and justifie thee 1 Ep. John 5.6 2. If thou art brought into a justified state thy soul making out after it thou art made alive in the Spirit Rom. 8.1 Thou art in Jesus Christ and wouldst walk no more after the flesh and the lusts thereof but after the Spirit Gal. 5.18 If ye are led by the Spirit ye are not under the Law namely to condemn you but are free from the curse of it And verse 23. Against such there is no Law that is such as would walk after the Spirit be led by the Spirit and shew forth the fruit of the Spirit And this is that which the Apostle intimateth 1 Ep. John 5.10 He that believeth on the Son of God hath the Witness in himself namely of the Spirit So that every justified person hath the Spirit of Christ according to the measure of the grace of God dwelling in him is quickened in the Spirit being once dead prays in the Spirit mortifies sin through the Spirit is taught by the Spirit and so in all other saving and sanctifying vertues of it If it be not thus with thee thou as yet hast no part in this blessedness but art under condemnation unto death And therefore sinner come before God in the sence of thy condemned estate and give up thy self to Jesus Christ to be washed justified sanctified and then blessed for ever 3. Let called and sanctified Believers labour to live in the sense of a pardoned justified state that God is not off and on with them in the matter of justification though it may be sometimes darkned and clouded as to the evidence of it Oh! do you labour to preserve the sense and sweet and blessed peace of it in your souls and give glory to the riches of grace for now there is No No condemnation to you you are passed from Death to Life and the Blessed God imputes no sin unto you Let this be the highest and strongest Argument to Holiness and love to the glory that possibly may be and if indeed you walk in the comfort of it it will be so unto you Only let me give caution here to young Converts whose hearts at the first discovery of the free and glorious grace of the Gospel and of Jesus Christ are wonderfully taken and affected with it but after a time are apt to wanton with it unless the first humiliation be the deeper and to wax sleight in Duties and so their Lusts recover strength again and return upon them and either they fall or are near unto it to the fresh wounding of their Souls This hath been the condition of many therefore be well caution'd in it and walk with fear in the midst of your joyous apprehensions of the sweetness of grace and the endearing love of the Lord Jesus to you Having briefly shewed what the nature of justification is what it is to be in a justified state before God I now come to open more particularly how a Soul comes to be partaker of this justification through the Redemption of Jesus Christ namely Through Eaith in his blood ver 25. of this 3d. of Rom. Observ As God through Free-grace hath set forth Jesus Christ to work forth Redemption for sinners so there must be a special believing on and applying the blood of Jesus Christ for the forgiveness of sins by every one that is saved Therefore justification is attributed to Faith Rom. 5.1 Therefore being justified by Faith we have peace with God by our Lord Jesus Christ So Gal. 2.16 and 3.11 In all which places Faith is put in opposition to the works of the Law And so the righteousness of Christ is called the Righteousness of Faith Rom. 9.30 and 10.6 in opposition to the righteousness by Works Not as if Faith were the matter of our justification that it did as an Act or Work in the Soul justifie before God but that God doth thus make over the blood and righteousness of Jesus Christ to a Soul by enabling the Soul to come unto to take hold of to apply to it self to appropriate the merit of the blood of Jesus Christ for its own Redemption and Salvation which may afford us a plain Description of justifying Faith precisely considered Namely Faith is a Work of the Holy Ghost in the Soul enabling it to appropriate or apply to it self the blood and righteousness of Jesus Christ for the Remission of sin and its justification unto eternal Life So it is called the work of Faith with power 2 Thes 1.11 and 't is expressed by receiving of Jesus Christ Joh. 1. and believing on his Name coming unto him resting upon him So that plainly Faith is a going out to believing in trusting on another namely the Lord Jesus Christ For what it can never be able to find or bring about in or by it self which may lead us to the more particular way of the Holy Ghost's working this power in the Soul in the saved ones of God 1. In the working of Faith in the Soul it is first brought to see an impossibility of coming to God as in its self or by its self concluded under an utter unability to pacifie God or make up a righteousness in it self to get access to God The soul is emptied from vessel to vessel till all the things that it counted gain before become loss for Jesus Christ this is the first work of the Spirit it empties a poor sinful Creature of all its refuges all its dependencies all its sufficiencies and so becomes naked in its guilt before God and therefore is brought to this that its acceptance to God if ever it be accepted must be out of its self what ever become of him he must perish as in himself 2. In the work of Faith the Soul is brought to see that this was the end of the Revelation of Jesus Christ of God's setting him forth to be a propitiation that he might work forth Redemption and Righteousness
that this is a way of God's own ordaining Jesus Christ was set forth for this very end even by God himself and therefore the soul is brought to this conclusion to venture the Issue of its life and eternal salvation upon it and so throws it self as in a sinking condition upon the grace blood righteousness of Jesus Christ sink or swim live or perish saved or damned there the soul casts Anchor there it pitcheth to this it will stand or fall before the righteous God if there be not enough in the blood of Jesus to give it acceptance with God the Soul resolves to Hell it must There saith a poor self-emptied Soul I cast even away my self if it might be upon it Phil. 3.9 3. The soul is brought on to believe the report that God in his word makes concerning his Son Jesus Christ and of the price value merit and all-sufficiency of his blood to save a poor sinner even to the utmost that comes to God by him Heb. 7.25 to answer all the wants and distresses of a poor soul namely in pacifying the Justice of God fulfilling the Law making attonement removing guilt procuring remission of sins reconciling to God Rom. 5.9 10. Much more being now justified by his blood we shall be saved from wrath through him For if when we were enemies we were reconciled to God by the death of his Son much more being reconciled we shall be saved by his Life In all which things the soul is enabled to believe the report of the Gospel that the blood and death of Jesus Christ can do all this for poor sinners that shall pitch upon it 4. In this working of faith the soul comes to see and fasten upon an absolue unlimited Free promise where any sinner that will may come to Jesus Christ and so have the vertue of his death and blood applied to it and therefore that he as well as any other sinner in the world may come to him and make claim to his blood and plead it before God whosoever will let him come Rev. 22. Now saith a poor self-emptied sinner I do not find that I am any where excluded but invited and called upon to come to the Lord Jesus and claim an interest in his blood and that I may plead it even at the throne of his Justice and that I may warrantably safely upon good grounds given out from the mouth of God himself take hold of the Lord Jesus in such a Promise and there is no sin or unworthiness can exclude me unless I will frowardly and wretchedly exclude my self I do not find saith the poor soul that any sin is too great for the Sacrifice of that blood of Jesus so the sinner will come to it yea that 't is the greatest sin and the top of condemnation not to come to it that I more injure God by standing off from Jesus Christ than by all the filthiness blasphemies ungodlinesses my Soul ever wallowed in Heb. 10.29 The Blood of Christ is a price sufficient for the sins of the whole World therefore saith a poor soul for mine He is the Lamb of God that taketh away the sins of the world and therefore he can take away mine and I am freely called and invited to it and 't is my Rebellion not to come what can I have more And so sense of Peace and Reconciliation falls in upon the Soul 5. The Soul by its often renewing of such Acts of Believing comes at last to see the blood of Jesus Christ appropriated to him now it can stay it self upon the word of promise and can sometimes rejoyce in believing If I roll my self upon the blood of Jesus I have the Word of God for it that I shall be saved we shall be saved from Wrath through him not it may be but we shall be saved and all upon the account of being justified by his blood Rom. 5.9 which justification ariseth upon this believing we have mentioned Thus have I opened the nature of Faith as it is precisely justifying as it applies and appropriates the blood and righteousness of the Lord Jesus for Remission of sins and Justification unto eternal Life I might insist upon the discovery of the effectual operations of Faith in the Soul as may distinguish it from a meer belief of the History of the death of Jesus Christ take two or three 1. When the Soul by Faith doth act upon the blood of Jesus Christ for justification it doth also bring the power and efficacy of it for purging of the Soul Heb. 9.14 How much more shall the blood of Christ who through the eternal Spirit offer'd himself without spot to God purge your Conscience from dead works to serve the living God So Acts 15.9 Purifying your hearts by faith There is a purifying vertue in the blood of Jesus Christ upon the souls of Believers they are for the purging away the filth as well as the guilt of sin there 's no believing soul but crys out Purge me Oh Lord purge me and throughly from my filth 2. The soul hath a secret yet real fellowship with the death of Jesus Christ to crucifie and destroy the body of sin in a justified believer which ariseth from its union with Christ Rom. 6.5 6. For if we have been planted together in the likeness of his death we shall be also in the likeness of his Resurrection knowing that our old man is crucified with him that the body of sin might be destroyed that henceforth we should not serve sin Every true believer can really say I am or I would be Crucified with Christ Gal. 2.20 Which the Apostle there brings in as an effect of Justification by Faith 3. Every justified believer looks upon this as one great end of his Justification that he might live to God Gal. 2.19 That I might live unto God Likewise reckon ye your selves to be dead indeed unto him but alive unto God through Jesus Christ our Lord Rom. 6.11 Every justified Believer doth thus reckon of himself I am to be dead to sin but alive to God I am to yield my self to God verse 13. To have my fruit unto Holiness verse 22. 4. Faith that justifies doth through the Spirit work the Soul to Gospel-obedience to all the Laws and Ordinances of Jesus Christ which shall be revealed to be the Will of Christ from the Command of Jesus Christ and from a principle of love to Jesus Christ John 15.10 5. A justifi'd believer will deny himself for Christ take up his cross and follow him let any sufferings be proposed to a called believer and let him know it is for Jesus Christ and that soul unless under a temporary desertion or temptation will choose and embrace those sufferings and undergo them with some chearfulness Luke 14.26 27. 7. Every justified believer hath a Marriage Vnion with Jesus Christ Ephes 5.25 26 32. The soul hath chosen Jesus Christ having broken off from all other lovers hath betrothed it self unto Christ in an
everlasting Bond and Covenant hath given it self to Christ as Jesus Christ bestows himself and all he hath upon the soul so doth the soul bestow it self and all it hath upon Jesus Christ and having so done resolves to be contented with him in every condition whom have I in Heaven but thee and none on earth in comparison of thee saith every gracious Believer 7. Every justified Believer lives by his Faith Gal. 2.20 lives upon Jesus Christ for all and fetcheth all from him sees him as a Treasury of all Grace hath recourse unto him this being the most proper act of Faith to make the soul live out of it self upon another Namely Jesus Christ for all 8. Faith that entitles the Soul to Jesus Christ works by love to all Saints Gal. 5.6 When the Soul closeth with Jesus Christ it will also close with his Disciples as distinguished from carnal unsavoury dead Professors What makes the living among the dead a living Soul alive in Christ highly priseth fellowship with such as are alive I might name many more particulars but these may suffice as the most distinguishing 1. Let what hath been spoken serve to discover to you Whether you have Faith that doth entitle you to the blood of Jesus Christ and the forgiveness of your sins Can you say Your Souls are carried out after more purging and 't is your daily cry to Heaven Can you say that you are often crucifiing with Jesus Christ And Oh that I were that I were but crucifi'd with Jesus Christ that I might reckon of my self as dead to sin and oh that I might live to God and might walk in Gospel-obedience That I might throughly deny my self for Jesus Christ and choose to suffer with him and for him Oh I would more clearly see the Marriage-union between Christ and my poor Soul I would I do bestow my self upon him and all that 's mine I do give my self to him I will be content with him here and for ever Whom have I whom have I but him Oh have you found in some good degree such Workings of heart towards Jesus Christ And do you live by your Faith upon Christ upon Promises and do you maintain your Souls this way And do you love and delight in the Fellowship of living Souls savoury Souls or do you at least long that you may have some opportunity to do so If you cannot in some measure experience these things your Faith is a dead empty Speculation such a Faith that is so far from uniting you to Christ that indeed it keeps you on this side Jesus Christ And therefore say of it 't is a Faith that is in vain that keeps me dead in my sins Oh therefore say in thy heart I will now wait on the Word the Ministration of it that is ordained of God to beget Faith I will go and pray the Father to draw me to Jesus Christ and that my Soul may be united to him that I may have Fellowship in his Death and Resurrection that I may be made alive unto God that I may feel the pacifying purging vertue of the blood of the Lord Jesus upon my poor Soul By what hath been said Believers may try their Faith and if they find their Souls to have experienced these things they may take comfort that they are justified by Faith in the blood of Jesus and therefore shall be saved by his Life To wind up all in a word of Exhortation 1. God hath set forth Jesus Christ to be a Propitiation that through Faith in his blood a sinner may become justified from his sin then what encouragement is there for sinners to come to him and believe on his Name to venture the Issue of Eternal Salvation upon him since God himself hath set him forth for that end and purpose that sinners might come unto him and be washed justified saved from their sins 'T is not then to be doubted but that God as he hath therein taken care for the Salvation of the sinner so for the glory of his own righteousness So that the sinner hath no reason to doubt that comes to Jesus in the way proposed but that God can take pleasure to accept of him through the blood of Jesus 'T was the most deliberate Act that ever the Wisdom of God was taken up about the setting forth of Jesus Christ to be the Saviour of Sinners through his Blood 'T was the first Foundation that God laid from all Eternity and after he had promised Jesus Christ it was some thousands of years before he set him forth to the world And therefore God cannot repent nor change his mind and purpose as to accepting pardoning justifying sanctifying poor sinners that cast their Souls upon it by the Blood of his Son Jesus Christ Upon which it is that blessed Souls are brought in in the Scriptures magnifying the grace of God for their cleansing by the blood of Jesus 1 John 1.7 The blood of Jesus Christ cleanseth us from all sin So are the Saints brought forth triumphing Revel 5.9 Thou wast slain and hath redeemed us to God by thy blood And Chap. 7.14 These are they who have washed their Robes and made them white in the Blood of the Lamb. Therefore I say with what boldness may poor sinners come unto it and how certainly are they in God's way to Salvation in which way blessed Souls have been ever found and none did ever miss of this end the Salvation of their Souls I have now dispatcht what I shall speak at this time as to the Doctrine of Justification by the Free-grace of God through the Righteousness of Jesus Christ and of saving Faith therein and shall commit it to the Lord to work it upon the Conscience I shall a little insist upon the last verse in the removal of that Objection which the heart puts up against this blessed Truth ROM 3. last Do we then make void the Law through Faith God forbid yea we establish the Law THE former Verses intermitted might have afforded us much choice matter in the opening the Doctrine of Grace and the Righteousness of Jesus Christ Namely that God is just in the remission of a Believer upon Faith in the Blood of Jesus from verse 26. And that the Doctrine of Grace excludes all boasting from the Creature from ver 27. That Jew and Gentile all that are saved must come to God and be justified in this way and no other from ver 29 30. But I must contract my self I come now to the Objection that the Heart so far as it is carnal doth naturally make against this Doctrine Namely If a Soul be only justified by Grace through the Righteousness of Jesus Christ doth not this then make void the Law and all Obedience to it What need then of our Obedience God forbid saith Paul we establish it that is the Doctrine of Justification by Faith doth rather establish it The Law doth stand establisht in a threefold sense First Jesus Christ hath establisht
vilest sinner in order to my acceptance with Jesus Christ Nay if this Conviction take upon thee thou wilt say to the glory of God and thy own Confusion If there be any difference 't is that thou art the greatest sinner having mock'd the Lord rested in out-side service dealt hypocritically with the jealous God offered him abominable sacrifice and therefore fit to be abhorred of the Lord for ever Oh! that this might be the posture of thy Soul and so thou may'st come and lye prostrate at the feet of Jesus Christ crying Oh! no more no more a righteous person but a sinner a guilty sinner a condemned sinner a poor blind naked sinner nothing else but a sinner Away with all my former confidences tear them from my heart Lord. Now Lord Jesus I cast my self upon thee Oh! let me creep unto thy blessed feet Oh! I come to thee not because I am righteous for I would abhor my self for ever in the thought of it but as a poor perishing sinner the worst of sinners an hypocritical sinner Oh! that I could take hold of thy righteousness to cover my naked Soul I expect it only upon the account of thy Free-Grace Oh Lord I come unto thee do not do not reject me And thus I have been endeavouring to lay the sinner before Jesus Christ in such a posture having proved him under the Law excuseless in his transgressing of it guilty before God under an impossibility of reaching to an acceptance with God by the best keeping of the Law laboured to beat him off such props and confidences that the Heart naturally cleaves to and stript him of all naked as Adam when he had sinned before the Lord as nothing else but a Sinner which is that I have driven at I now come to speak of the way of a poor Souls justification and acceptance with God by Jesus Christ as the Lord shall assist to the capacity of the weakest ROM 3.24 Being justified freely by his Grace through the Redemption that is in Jesus Christ c. I Am now come to open the Gospel-righteousness wherein a poor sinner finds acceptance with God which in ver 21. of this third of the Romans is said to be now manifested that is more fully manifested by the Revelation of Jesus Christ in the Gospel being witnessed before by the Law and the Prophets Even the righteousness of God which is by the Faith of Jesus Christ unto all and upon all them that believe ver 22. called the righteousness of God namely that whereby God doth only justifie and accept of a Sinner wrought forth by the obedience of Jesus Christ and made over and imputed to a poor Soul that doth embrace it by Faith whether Jew or Gentile outwardly righteous or profane All that ever come to God must come this way and stand before him in this Righteousness or perish for ever which I shall begin to open from ver 24 25. 1. Being justified freely by his grace through the Redemption that is in Jesus Cheist 2. Whom God hath set forth to be a propitiation through Faith in his blood c. We have endeavoured in the former Discourse to go along with the Apostle in proving that by all the Deeds of the Law all the best Obedience that a sinner can reach unto he cannot be justified before God neither in part nor in whole that your good deeds will not procure pardon nor poise down your sins but all by the Law equally under condemnation Of what importance then is it for poor condemned souls to be well acquainted with and really and practically invested in that way of justification that God in infinite wisdom mercy and love hath set forth in the Gospel which is that I now design The Apostles arguing is thus If all fall short of righteousness and acceptance with God by their own obedience if all have sinned and come short of the glory of God then are all and that equally condemned If so condemned then acceptance with God and justification and remission of sins must come in another way The Rise and Fountain of which must necessarily be Gods free mercy and grace If made righteous it must be in the righteousness of another wrought forth by another Justice must be satisfied by another a price paid to God for a sinners redemption by another which is Jesus Christ blessed for ever From the words then I shall first lay down this plain Observation viz. Observ Gods free mercy and grace is the first Fountain of any sinners salvation or 'T is upon the account of Gods free grace that any sinner is saved Thus runs the current of the whole Gospel the main design of the Gospel being to glorifie the riches of Gods Free-grace by Jesus Christ Among many other Scriptures the Apostle doth most convincingly discourse in Rom. 5. from the 15th to the end setting the Free-grace of God unto Justification in opposition to a sinners condemnation But not as the offence so also is the free gift for if through the offence of one many be dead much more the grace of God and the gift by grace which is by one man Jesus Christ hath abounded unto many To the same import runs the rest of the verses The free gift of many unto Justification much more they which receive abundance of grace and the gift of Righteousness shall reign in life by one Jesus Christ All of Grace and of Free-gift abundance of Grace from first to last That as sin reigned unto death so might Grace reign through Righteousness unto eternal life by Jesus Christ our Lord verse last So the Apostle in that Epistle to the Ephesians wherein the Doctrine of Grace is blessedly given forth drives all the spiritual blessings in heavenly things in Christ mentioned Chap. 1.3 c. to this blessed Fountain Chap. 2.4 c. But God who is rich in mercy for his great love wherewith he loved us even when we were dead in sins hath quickned us together with Christ for by Grace ye are saved so verse 7. That in the Ages to come he might shew the exceeding riches of his Grace and ver 8. For by grace ye are saved it is the gift of God Therefore the invitation of the Gospel to sinners runs upon this score Ho Every one that thirsteth come to the Waters of Life Isa 55.1 And Whosoever will let him come to the Water of life freely Revel 22.17 I might illustrate this in all the particulars of a sinners salvation God's fore-ordaining and choosing any to salvation 't was to the praise of the glory of his grace Eph. 1 5 6. The gift of his Eternal Son Jesus Christ from free love and grace John 3.16 The New Covenant and all the Promises of it freely given out for his own Names sake Ezek. 36. Effectual Calling from free grace 2 Tim. 1.9 The gift of Faith actual Justification Tit. 3.7 Sanctification Perseverance Eternal Life and Glory all flowing from the same fountain of Free-grace Some
guilt bondage reign service of thy sin go and cry to God offer him up the blood of his own eternal Son tell him thou seest he may let out justice upon thee to destroy thee and damn thee for ever of thy self thou hast no plea against it But ask the blessed God if it may not be more glory to him and his grace and mercy glorified by it if he will accept of satisfaction by his own Son Jesus Christ plead to him that thou hearest he died in the room of guilty condemned sinnners such as thou art ungodly Rom. 5.6 yea tell him with an humble adoration of his mercy and love in it that thou hearest in his blessed Gospel that 't is offered to any sinner that will come and accept it and that 't is proclamed from Heaven and there 's satisfaction made by the blood of a Jesus for the greatest Sinner such as thou art Oh! cry unto him that therefore thou comest and begg'st to be heard in thy plea and that it may be entred in Heaven that thou comest for all the ends of his death thou art weary of the service of thy lusts and the pollution of thy nature and therefore thou wouldst have thy nature cleansed thy conscience purged all which thou findest the blood of Jesus Christ is able to do yea tell him and plead it with some humble boldness that thou art acquainted that Jesus Christ prays in Heaven for such sinners that come and plead his blood to thee and that he is heard in what he prays and that therefore forgiveness must be had yea say thou wilt hold on thy plea thou hast no other and art resolved against any other If thou shalt to Hell pleading the blood of a Saviour be it so but I am resolved to plead it to the utmost yea tell him and cry to him that it cannot repent him that he hath ordained the sacrifice of the blood of his own Son and therefore why should'st thou be rejected Yea Come to this Issue through the Spirit of Faith upon thee that if it can be that a Sinner crying out for pardon upon the account of the death and blood of Jesus Christ and for sanctification may go to Hell then thou wilt willingly lay thy hand upon thy mouth and open it no more but sink under Divine Vengeance to Eternity Oh! That every poor sinner might go home with this plea in his heart written there by the Holy Ghost and peirce Heaven with his or her crys and groans and put the blood of Jesus Christ before him and plead for mercy and holiness to be pardoned and sanctified till God say Go in peace thou art pardoned redeemed and blessed for ever Yet a little to excite a poor drowsie sinner to this eternal Concernment 1. Consider thou art under the guilt of thousands of Sins one whereof is enough to sink thee to Hell Guilt if continued is Hell begun and wants nothing but the execution of Vengeance upon thee Oh what should a guilty sinner do but close with a Saviour and get an interest in Redemption from it 2. Especially considering that all the Duties and Obedience thou hast performed towards God or ever shall have not made nor ever will the least payment to God for thy sins thou art as much in debt to God as ever thou wast as much behind with him All the Items for the sin of thy Nature thy thoughts words and actual Wickedness and thy sinful neglects stand uncancelled all ready to be charged upon thee and nought will be accepted for payment but the Death of Jesus Christ the only price that God will hearken to Nothing will cancel the Book where all thy sins are recorded Nothing will blot out the Hand-writing that is against thee but the Blood of Jesus Christ Col. 2.13 14. 3. God is resolved never to forgive you the Debt till you have put in this Plea and it be recorded in Heaven and you have it in a Gospel-way No forgiveness of Sins but by Redemption pleaded claimed possessed and sealed by the Holy Spirit Ephes 1.7 14. 4. Thou art yet under the Bondage and Reign of thy sin and therefore under condemnation the Law is gone out against thee thy Sentence pronounced Cursed is every one that transgresseth c. saith the Law and thou art in bondage yet and hast not procured actual deliverance from it If a Prisoner be condemned and lye in Fetters in a Dungeon and hears of a Ransom paid for him what 's this to him till he have Liberty So for a Sinner to be in the Fetters of his Lusts held fast by them a Bond-man to the Devil and hear of a Christ laying down a Ransom what is this to him unless he sue it out and get actual deliverance and liberty the liberty of the Sons and Daughters of God and have a Spirit of Adoption to cry Abba Father Gal. 4.4 5. That being made free from sin the Reign and Power of it by the Power of the Lord Jesus revealed in him you may become servants to God and have your fruit unto Holiness and the end everlasting Life Rom. 6. 5. Consider as thou standest in thy filth and uncleanness of thy Sins thou art unfit for God either to please him in any thing thou doest or to be with him in Heaven hereafter thy person and services are loathsom to the Soul of God therefore get washed and purified in the blood of Jesus Christ Go on to cry and wait and beg a heart to do it and that in Faith till thou shalt feel Peace coming in by thy constant Plea of the blood of Christ till thou shalt feel cleansing vertue of it upon thy Soul till thou shalt experience the power of his death destroying Sin in thee and so shalt find thou hast fellowship with him and so a part in this blessed Redemption we have been treating of 6. Now to encourage a poor Sinner to this coming to God with the Plea of Christ's blood in his heart and mouth and to draw forth the Faith of a poor humbled doubting Soul Consider the All-sufficiency and worth of the price of the Death of Jesus Christ to satisfie the justice of God and procure Pardon and Sanctification for a poor Sinner which may appear from such like Scriptures The Apostle in the 7th of the Hebrews having been opening the excellency of Christ's Priesthood which is chiefly conversant in this Work of Redemption in the offering up of himself a Sacrifice concludes ver 25. of that Chapter Wherefore he is able to save them to the utmost that come to God by him To the utmost that is with a perfect Salvation that nothing more can be desired to it So in the 9th Chap. ver 11 c. The Apostle reasoning from the Levitical Sacrifices to this of the blood of Christ argueth the full perfection of it By his own blood he entred in once into the holy place namely into Heaven having obtained eternal Redemption for us
an infinite unchangeable love upon thee Rom. 5.5 which love he bore thee from Eternity but will now manifest it to thee and estate thee in it for ever 3. Thou shalt have boldness of access to God Rom. 5.2 even into his intimate presence to speak with God face to face and ask of God what thou wilt according to his will Heb. 10. 4. All the Promises of Mercy Grace and all blessings here and for ever shall be thine made over sealed in the blood of Christ 5. Thou shalt rejoyce in the hope of the Glory of God Rom. 5.2 with all Saints and see thy self an heir of Heaven 6. Thou shalt be still a washing and purifying and fating for Heaven till thou shalt be taken up unto God and live in the Ocean of his Love to all Eternity Now if ease in thy sin and the world can do better for thee than this that I have named then keep in but if not as most certain it cannot Arise and come to this blessed Redemption and get thy part and portion in it and thou shalt say Blessed be thy counsel and advice for evermore But now upon this Redemption of Jesus Christ how is a sinner said to be justified that is to be put into an actual Possession of the Redemption of Jesus Christ through the Free-Grace of God 1. When the compact was made between God the Father and Jesus Christ as to the Salvation of those that the Father gave to Jesus Christ and Jesus Christ undertook the fulfilling of the Condition of the Covenant God did purpose in himself to justifie them from Eternity and look'd upon them as in Christ 2 Tim. 1.9 Ephes 1.4 So they were justified as to the purpose of God from all Eternity 2. When Jesus Christ performed the Condition of Obedience in his dying and paid unto God what he required at his hands for the sinners redemption then did God as in the Court of Heaven discharge the sinner though not in the Court of Conscience and when Christ arose and came to Heaven the Father gave him in an absolution of them all from the guilt of sin and obligation to death and so at the death of Christ all the Elect were meritoriously justified inasmuch as the price was paid and accepted of the Father Rom. 5.10 3. When according to the purpose of God through the purchase of Jesus Christ a Sinner is called by grace hath Faith given him as purchased also for him to embrace Jesus Christ in the Promise to receive him as offer'd in the Gospel and with him all spiritual blessings then is the Soul put into the actual possession of what God in his purpose and love determined to give him and Jesus Christ by the purchase of his blood gave him a right to before and so there is an Act of God's pardoning Mercy passeth upon the sinnner he hath an actual discharge given in unto his Conscience hath the Obedience of Jesus Christ imputed to him and so is look'd upon by God not as a Sinner under guilt but as righteous in the Righteousness of Christ which bespeaks him justified that is made just and righteous before God by the imputation and making over Christs Righteousness to him as if righteous in his own person Upon which Act of God there is a full Remission of sin as in the Text and the believer is put into another State a State of justification unto life through Jesus Christ Rom. 8.1 who before was in a State of Death and Condemnation Before I speak of that Faith which through Grace puts a Soul in his pardoned and justified State I will briefly apply this to the capacity of the weak 1. It may inform and instruct you in this great Mystery that any sinner that is saved must be thus justified made righteous by the Obedience of Jesus Christ he must come to see the justice of God made up a price paid unto God and this to be actually made over to him As we shall presently shew most of sinners 't is to be feared do not consider this that speak of mercy and pretend they hope in mercy but are never convinc'd of the Righteousness of Jesus Christ and what it is to pass from a state of guilt to a state of righteousness by Jesus Christ from a state of condemnation to a state of justification without which there can be no Salvation Oh be convinced sinners of this great matter of the necessity of the righteousness of Christ his obedience in fulfilling the Law to be made over to you to be brought into a justified state or you can never have pardon of sin and be accepted with God you can never stand before God but in the righteousness of Jesus Christ Say If I do not get the righteousness of Christ made mine If I do not get thus justified I must never expect pardon of my sin and acceptance of my poor soul at the great day of the Lord. This is the Work of the Spirit to be savingly convinced of this John 16.8 Oh look up to the Father for the Spirit thus to convince you not only of sin and the damnableness and sinfulness thereof but of your infinite need to get not only some general hope of Mercy and Pardon but the righteousness of the Son of God to bring you into a state of Pardon Reconciliation Peace with God 2. It may further clear unto you that your justification before God is not within you but without you wrought forth by Jesus Christ for such as are or shall be called by grace and imputed to them not inherent or wrought in them 'T is not grace in you that doth or can justifie you though renewing grace shall be wrought in all that are so pardoned and justified Therefore though thou must be changed in thy self pray and be holy and obey God in all things yet thou canst not be hereby justified but still thy justifying righteousness is in Christ and not in thy self as the only procuring meritorious cause of Pardon and Peace with God Jeremiah 33.16 Isaiah 54. last 3. The great question therefore that should come upon thy heart is Whether thou art in a state of condemnation or justification If not justified thou art still as I have shewed under the condemnation of the whole Law Nothing thou hast yet done or shalt ever be able to do will stand between Wrath and Hell and thy poor soul till thou comest to be justified in the blood and righteousness of Jesus Christ Oh sinners ponder of this great thing that is now laid before you Can you say from a Testimony within you Oh! I was thus and thus once under the reign power guilt condemnation of sin but now now blessed be rich and free grace I am washed justified in the Name of the Lord Jesus Christ See that Word 1 Cor. 6.10 11. And such were some of you but ye are washed but ye are sanctified but ye are justified in the name of our Lord Jesus