love saith the Apostle He will remember the good works of men borne of God at the great day of judgement The good workes of some are manifest before-hand and they that are otherwise cannot be hid 1 Tim. 5.15 They cannot for ever be hid because God will make mention of them at that day But hee hath engaged himselfe by oath to remember our sins and sinfull actions Hebr. 8. And therefore the works of the spirituall man are not sin or sinfull Arg. 8. There is no law against the workes of a spirituall man or the fruits of the spirit of grace and therefore they are not sin because where there is no law there is no transgression But there is no law against these This is plain by that passage of the Apostle Gal. 5.22 The fruit of the spirit is love joy peace long-suffering gentlenesse goodnesse faith meeknesse temperance against such there is no law Object They are here considered as they are precisely the fruits of the spirit and as they ought to be done by us and so they are no sins but consider them as acted by us even with the spirits assistance and so they are defective and sinfull Answ The Apostle doth not speake of the fruits of the spirit as Tully of his Oratour Plato of his Common-wealth Moor of his Utopia as of things no where to be found But be speaks of the spirit as in us and the fruits of it as in us And doth plainly tell us that if we are led by the spirit we are not under the law and that there is no law against the fruits of the spirit But I shall have occasion hereafter to speake more fully of some places where the Apostles and servants of God doe speak plainly of these works as done in us that so I may break the neck of this distinction which is made as a Catholicon or salve for every sore Arg. 9. God doth give a testimony concerning his Saints that they are righteous and holy which is spoken in reference to their spirituall nature and actings and therefore they are righteous and holy The judgment of God is according to truth hee being the God of truth Doth not God give this testimony of Job Job 1.1 That he was a perfect man and upright one that feared God and eschewed evill And though man may oppose this yet it feemeth by Gods speech to Sathan that the Devill could not contradict it Job 2.3 And the Lord said unto Sathan hast thou considered my servant Job that there is none like him in the earth a perfect man upright one that feareth God and escheweth evill Did any thing which was sin or sinful procure this honourable title to David that he was a man after Gods owne heart 1 Sam. 13.14 Doth not the Scripture of truth inform us concerning Zacharias and Elizabeth his wife that they were both righteous before God walking in all the Commandements of God blamelesse Luke 1.6 They did not onely walk in the great Commandement of God concerning faith for Justification but in all the Ordinances and Commandements of God Is not Lot called a just and righteous man who was vexed with the filthy conversation of the wicked 2 Pet. 2.7 And was his sinfull soule vexed with their evill deeds or his righteous soul speak in the language of Gods Word and ye must acknowledge that it was his righteous soule vers 8. God is not like unto some indulgent parents who by their fond indulgency doe account that to be a vertue which is the fault of their children and them to be vertuous who are vile God calleth nothing righteousnesse which is sin or sinfull Nor those to be perfect and upright which are not so indeed and therefore seeing God doth call his children righteous holy and perfect wee may not be affraid to call them so unlesse wee will be affraid to follow his judgment Object They were righteous before God by Justification and before men by holy walking Ans We deny not their justification before God by faith but with all we affirme that they were righteous before him by their holy walkings As these places doe sufficiently prove with others which we shall hereafter speak of Let us not delude ous soules to think that righteousnesse sanctification is to the eye of men only The purest sanctification of a Saint is not so visible to men as unto God Pure religion and undefiled before God and the Father is this to visite the fatherlesse and Widowes in their affliction and to keepe himselfe unspotted from the world which will be further manifested by our next argument Arg. 10. Almighty God is a God of pure eyes who cannot behold any iniquity any sinfull thing or sin with an eye of approbation But this God who cannot approve what is sin and sinfull this God approveth and professeth that he is well pleased with the performances of his Saints therefore the performance of the Saints cannot be sin or sinfull The Apostle in Philip. 4.18 Professeth that the worke of the Philippians in sending to relieve his wants was an odour of a sweet smell a sacrifice acceptable well pleasing to God God hath pure eyes and pure nostrils and therefore if it had been sin or sinfull it could not have pleased his eye nor have beene an odour of a sweete smell unto his nostrills Object They are so but not in their owne nature Answ If they be not so in their own nature they are filthy and odious in their own nature and yet accepted by grace If one thing which is filthy and odious in its owne nature be accepted why should not other things which are filthy and odious in their owne nature be accepted for good workes If this can be made good Whoredome and Adultery will prove good works which hath been asserted by some who have said that the filthinesse of whoredome being done away the action is well-pleasing to Almighty God as well as any good work Arg. 11. One end and intention of God in electing of us was that he might make us holy that he might make us good trees to bring forth good fruit Though God doth not elect us because wee doe believe or because wee doe love yet hee hath elected us that wee may believe and that we may love So that wee frustrate one end that God hath in electing us if we doe not grant that God gives us a new nature and new hearts According to that of the Apostle 2 Thes 2 13. We are chosen unto salvation through sanctification of the Spirit and belief of the truth And in Eph 1.4 He hath chosen us in him that we should be holy and without blame before him in love Object We doe apprehend our election imperfectly which is the cause of the sinfulness of our works Answ By reason of that which is in the flesh we cannot so perfectly see our election as wee shall doe hereafter Yet in the spirit for the present we doe so fully apprehend it
fearing our rejoycing our praying If so then are we in this working either perfect or imperfect Agents If perfect agents then is there no ignorance in our understandings no depravation in our wills no perversenesse in our affections The contrary whereof all the truly faithfull find by experience and the Scripture abundantly testifieth But if we be imperfect agents then cannot perfection come out of imperfection no effect can be better than its cause Ans 1 The efficiency of the first cause doth not take away the efficiency of the second cause In God we live move yet it is not God that moveth he though he moveth all things cannot be moved himself immobilis movens omnia Aug. So it is not God that repenteth but we repent The ignorance of which truth hath been the cause of the wicked mistery of Familisme which my soule abhorreth And therefore we shall agree in the truth which is implicitely laid down in the first part of your Dilemma 2ly Whereas you say that all the faithfull grant that man is an imperfect agent I answer that if we take perfect here in this point as it is opposed to that which is sinfull so many Saints doe grant and all should and will as more light is beamed into their soules grant it that the sanctified and spiritual man considered as farre forth as he is a spirituall man doth work as a perfect Agent not as an unholy but an holy man And therefore according to your rule his action must be spirituall and holy And this may give an answer to that argument which is brought from Job Who can bring a cleane thing out of an uncleane Job 14.4 3ly Whereas you say that no effect can be better than its cause c. This is not universally true A man imperfect by the want of his armes or legs may beget a childe which is perfect and hath its limbs But this not being much to the purpose I shall not contend about it Arg. 12. If the new man never sin Christ came not to save the new man for he came only to save sinners Answ The new man taken in this spirituall and theologicoll sence is not the object of salvation but an elect person guilty and sinfull in himselfe And the new creation is a blessed consequent of our redemption by Christ but I have sufficiently answered this before Arg. 13. That which is not in its owne nature agreeable to the holy law of God is not perfect and without sin for sin is the transgression or disagreement with the law of God 1 John 3.4 But the best of a regenerate mans actions are not agreeable to the law of God being not done with all the heart with all the soule with all the understanding and with all the strength Mat. 22.37 Deut. 6.5 Ans 1. By this argument you would bring the spirituall man to judge himselfe by the law or old covenant but hee is better taught by the Spirit And as hee doth not put his person under the old covenant so doth he not judge his actions by the old covenant but by the new covenant of grace According to that of the Apostle Gal. 5.18 If ye are led by the Spirit ye are not under the law And thus looking upon what is wrought by the Spirit under the new covenant he seeth it in its own nature agreeable to the law as it is delivered unto him in the hand of the Lord Jesus Not that Christ doth require lesse holinesse than is required in the old covenant but because he giveth us more grace enabling us to keepe his Commandements by the keeping of which we known in the light of the Spirit that we truly know him And the Commandements of Christ are kept by the Saints Evangelically two manner of wayes 1. By believing for justification 2. By holy walking for sanctification not that we can keep them by holy walking but as we walk in the light of our justification And thus he is as well able to keep the commandement of love as the commandement of faith Suppose a King should pardon a Traytor and should give him an assurance of pardon for all future Treason which he might run into and had power to enable him in some things and sometimes to be obedient unto him as a loyall Subject would you not say that this Subject were a loyall Subject all his trayterous acts forgiven and his loyall obedience to the command of his Soveraigne being accepted Thus it is between God and us He forgiveth all the treasons of the flesh and accepteth of the obedience of the spirit God doth account that all the commands of the Law are fulfilled by us when that which is not done is pardoned Omnia tunc facta deputantur cum id quod non fit ignoscitur which is true in a sense in reference to sanctification as well as to justification And a spirituall man thus looking upon himselfe in the glasse of the covenant of grace doth know that he is a keeper of the Commandements of God and can say with the Psalmist Ps 119.10 With my whole heart I have sought thee O let me not wander from thy Commandements All his defects and imperfections with the committing of evil and omitting good in the flesh are done away and that which is good is accounted so by the law of God as it is presented unto him in this Covenant So speake ye and so doe as they that shall be judged by the law of liberty saith James Jam. 2.12 As God doth judge our persons by the law of liberty or the law of the new Covenant so he doth judg our actions and thus they are perfect And the law of the new Covenant is not only faith for justification but love for sanctification And thus this place is expounded by the learned Paraeus Arg. 14. Paul did not think himself to have fully apprehended or to be already perfect but strove forward Phil. 3.12 13. which cannot be said of the olde man but only of the new man for the old man doth not strive forward for the prize of the high calling Answ Though Paul had not attained to that perfection which he looked for at the resurrection Yet hee had attained to a perfection of parts which is opposed to sinfulnesse Which doth appear by what followeth in the 15. vers of the same Chap. where he doth acknowledg the Saints in this sence to be perfect with which verse I shall put a period to my answers to your objections As many as be perfect be thus minded if in any thing ye be otherwise minded God shall reveale even this unto you Vse 2. The lessons which God hath taught me from these meditations have beene very powerfull by his grace for the convincing mee of sin in a Gospel-way and for the humbling of my soule under his mighty hand by seeing the huge masse of corruption which is in the flesh that little quantity of pure gold which is in the Spirit It
folly and curiosity of my nature I have beene tempted to reach forth my hand unto it I have rune over the bogges of Familisme but have not beene swallowed up in them Yet that I may not be mistaken in this relation notwithstanding all this By the grace of God I am what I am And though the world hath looked upon mee as an Heretique I have seene my selfe so fast in the armes of God that I am confident that neither men Devills Errours sinnes nor temptations shall ever be able to pull mee thence I have beene dead by the law to the law and am alive by the Gospell I have ceased from works and yet am created to good workes I am not under the Law and yet in my minde I serve the Law of GOD. I can doe nothing and yet can doe all things in CHRIST which strengthneth me And though I can doe all things I am an unprofitable servant I care not much what men can say of mee seeing GOD doth daily assure mee in the Spirit of Christ that I am his Sonne It doth not too much afflict mee if any men refuse to have fellowship with mee as a SAINT seeing I have fellowship with the Father and his Sonne JESVS and thy selfe and have liberty in my Conscience to have fellowship with all SAINTS My greatest sorrow and most delightfull griefe at this present is this That I am not more holy being so strongly assured by truth that I am happy I hope that thou wilt further this worke of purity in mee by thy spirituall prayers presented to the Throne of our FATHERS grace for mee where I doe desire that thou wouldst know mee one with thy selfe being one SPIRIT with JESVS though I cannot but subscribe my selfe The greatest of SINNERS and lesse then then the least of all SAINTS John Simpson TO The two and fifty Parish-Ministers within the new Province of London who have subscribed unto that Pamphlet which is wickedly and unjustly called by them A Testimonie to the truth of Jesus Christ and to our solemn League and Covenant SIRS WHen I reade your un-scripture-like termes which you make use of in presenting your new modalled Government to the world as the government of Jesus Christ I wonder with what faces in these times of light ye should dare to hold it forth as the unquestionable government of CHRIST by divine right and should so uncharitably censure all men as Schismaticks or superstitious persons who doe expresse their dislike of it or refuse to be conformable unto the same Not to runne farre for an instance of one of these termes It seemeth that the strange and hidden vertue of your Presbyterian-government hath suddenly turned our famous Citie into a Province and made you Ministers of this Presbyterian Province Did ever CHRIST or his Apostles turne free Cites or Countreyes into Provinces by bringing in any Ecclesiasticall government upon those who were converted to the faith What is any Province to speake properly but a Region or Countrey subdued by force of Armes and kept under jurisdiction by a Lieutenant sent thither with Commission to governe as the Schoole-boyes know very well who know the meaning of that phrase in Caesare Commentaries in provinciam redigere To turne such a free Countrey into a Province to the Romans I know that it is the designe of some to turne our Shires and Countreyes into Provinces and to wrest power from the Civill Magistrate by which they may set up their Lieutenants to enslave the Magistrates and all the people of the Kingdome to their Preabyterian Command and Dominion But I cannot yet remember when London was turned into a Province unlesse some of you did secretly and cunningly contrive the plot with some of the Armie that the Armie should march throughout the Citie for the bringing of LONDON into the condition of a Presbyterian Province Friends finde words in Scripture for your government by Parochiall and Classicall Presbyteriall Provinciall and National Assemblies or else the people of England will not believe that your government is by divine right untill you shall make Captaines over them and inforce them to returne againe into Aegypt Where this shall he all the liberty of the King Princes Nobles Parliament and people of England to believe that every thing is schisme or Heresie which doth oppose that as erâ—rour which the children of the Adulterer and Whore I mean the sonnes and posterity of the Pope and Popish Bishops shall enjoyne thonto receive as the truths of the Lord Jesus But I touch now upon an unpleasing string I shall therefore leave it with a sad Aposiopesis and shall entreate you seriously to consider some things which I shall acquaint you with in relation to my selfe and your dealing with mee willingly acquitting those among you and as farre as I may who having subscribed to those Articles against mee and yet never read or heard of my name in the Booke Among whom Master Downham doth acknowledge himselfe to be one who doth professe that if hee had seene mee there among the impeached Delinquents and Heretiques that he would rather for what he hath heard and known of me have pleaded my excuse then have subscribed to my censure And shall leave it to your selves to enquire among your selves concerning the miscarriage in this particular In the first place I doe suppose that some of you upon mature deliberation may apprehend that you have beene too rash in censuring mee upon Master Gatakers testimonie if it shall appeare unto you that I was freed by Master Marshall whom I name in thankefulnesse unto him for his love unto mee and to let men know that I have found more of the Spirit of Christ sincerity and love in him then in any who have beene favourers of the Presbyterian government To shew my willingnesse and readinesse to free my selfe from misapprehensions which men had entertained concerning those things which I held I did voluntarily goe unto him and discoursed with him concerning my judgement in the things with which I had beene charged who did receive such fâ—ll satisfaction from mee that upon my request bee was willing to write unto Master White the Chaire-man that though I did differ from him in my phrases and expressions concerning the Law Justification and free grace yet that I held nothing but what was maintained by many godly and faithfull men concerning those points And this was done many months before Master Gataker did fling his fire-brands at me to charge me with those things in which in his judgement I had cleared my selfe And lest any should make nothing of this uncharitably supposing that I might hold one thing in my heart and write another thing to him I am willing if he please that he shall Print what I delivered unto him and make it publique If this be considered by men of tender consciences if that character of a good man be not odious unto you some of you who knew of this may read your maliciousnesse
sight of himselfe his sonne and grace the mouth of conscience is stopped and wee see all our sins swallowed up in his love Shew us the Father and it sufficeth us saith Philip. Joh. 14.8 When God sheweth us himselfe our spirits are at rest When Grace is discovered and Gods light doth shine upon the soule Sin death damnation cannot terrifie the soule But they are filled with a spirit of joy in beleeving their free justification who before through feare of death were subject to bondage Heb. 2.15 Grace appeareth greater and stronger to bring salvation then sinne powerfull to bring damnation Our sins the sins of all the man of the world being the acts of creatures are finite but grace that justifieth us is the grace of an infinite God and is boundlesse and infinite Men are unassured of their salvation unlesse this Grace be presented to the eye of their spirits And men and Devills cannot prevaile against us to enforce us to question our justification and salvation when wee looke upon it That peace which the world cannot take from us nor give unto us that joy which neither the Law nor the workes of the Law can convery unto us nor bereave us off that salvation which damned Feinds can never rob us of is communicated to us by the beholding of Gods grace in the face of the Lord Jesus The soule when it hath a sight of this grace it stands with boldnesse at the Throne of Grace and though it feele hellish sin in it selfe yet it is able to dispute with all the Divels in Hell and to maintaine the freenesse fulnesse and compleatnesse of its own justification from all sin by the grace of God in Jesus Christ If the Divell shall then suggest this to a man that he is a sinner The beleeving soule will make this answer It is true I am a sinner but I am not terrified to desparation because I am ungodly but I rejoyce in this that God justifieth the ungodly by his grace Rom. 4.5 If the Divell shall reply But thou art a great sinner and there is a great damnation The believing soule will returne I am not tormented by the great damnation prepared for great sinners but comforted by the great salvation Heb. 2.3 which is for the greatest and cheifest of sinners by Gods grace in Jesus Christ 1 Tim. 1.15 If the Divell shall still assault a man to perswade him that he is a damned soule having mispent his time and strength in the service of sin having no good workes to commend him unto God that he may finde favour from him The beleeving soule will be easily able in the strength of God when it is upon the mountaine of his Grace to silence the Accuser by lying downe in the lap of that God who maketh him the object of his Grace who worketh not for justification Rom. 4. but beleiveth in God who justifieth sinners in his Grace without workes And because wee are justified and comforted in the Court of our owne Consciences by grace The spirit which is given forth in the Ministry of the Gospel is called a spirit of grace It being the worke of the Spirit to reveale the grace of the Father for the comfort of his children according to that of the Apostle 2 Thess 2.16 17. Our Lord Iesus Christ himselfe and God even our Father which hath loved us and given us everlasting consolation and good hope through grace comfort your hearts Heere the Apostle sheweth us that the Saints have consolation and that this consolation is everlasting and that this everlasting consolation is only by grace Goe to all the true Saints in the world and aske them how they received the Comforter whether by the observation of moral precepts or by the doctrine of grace they will informe you that they received him by the Gospel of grace and not by the law of works Some Saints are able to acquaint you with their own experience can tell you how they laboured for holiness to bring them to happinesse to love God that they might assure themselves that they were in the love of God and that they found darknesse instead of expected light death instead of life horrour bondage instead of joy and liberty untill they were enabled to come unto God as sinners without workes disclaming their owne righteousnesse deserts and endeavours and laying the head-stone of their peace and happinesse in the free favour of God crying Grace Grace Zech 4 7. Exalting the free grace of God in their justification and overthrowing overturning their own works and legal righteousnesse It is grace and grace alone which bringeth salvation Tit 2.11 and therefore not our workes Grace and workes are inconsistent in this point of justification they can no more stand together then the Arke of God and Dagon Let grace stand up in its glory workes will quickly be overthrown and set up works and yee destroy the doctrine of grace By eternall grace wee were elected and made vessells of mercy from eternitie by grace we were saved before God in heaven in the presence of the Lord Iesus by grace wee were saved in the person of Christ before faith By the revelation of grace unto us through faith wee are saved in foro conscientiae in the Court of our owne consciences By grace salvation is inchoated here and compleated and perfected hereafter Rom. 6. ult The gift of God is cternall life through Jesu Christ our Lord. The word is 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 which signifieth a gift flowing from Grace or free favour In these severall acceptations of the word grace we are saved by grace I might now lay downe many reasons for the proofe of this poynt but those which I gave to proove that wee are not justified by workes will bee sufficient for the confirmation of this And when I shall handle the doctrine of beleiving some reasons will fall in which will more fully illustrate this truth I shall therefore for the present onely present unto you a reason or two and hasten to the use 1 Reason First it being supposed that man is a sinner it is impossible that man should bee saved by any thing but by the knowledge of Grace The Law in this particular would not deale with us considering what good hath bin done by us but what evill And therefore when the Apostle had proved Bom. 3.23 that devout Jews as well as prophane Gentiles had sinned and come short of the glory of God he takes it for granted as a thing undeniable and unquestionable that wee are justified freely by his grace through the redemption that is in Iesus Christ And if we could bring our selves into a state of perfection after we have once sinned wee could not be justified by that perfection in us which is required by the Law but should be condemned for our sinnes and imperfections in breaking of the Law If a man have done good service for the Common-wealth and yet be found guilty
his command The fayling is not from the new but the olde man The whole man or person is under the command so that a man yea every man doth sin because he doth not doe in his person as he is a man what is commanded Charge the fault where it is to be charged upon the flesh which is the cause of a mans sin and then look upon grace which hath abolished sin and you shall finde the new man conformable to the will of God and the man good and holy in part to wit in his regenerated part It is further objected that Christ biddeth us to cleanse our selves from all filthinesse of flesh and spirit which no man doth It is granted and therefore we deny not but that every man sinneth if we take him physically But as farre as we are in the Spirit Wee are cleansed from all filthinesse of flesh and spirit so that the new man doth fulfill it and Christ doth reign in him though the flesh prove a Traytor and rebellious against his commands Arg. 18. Another argument may be brought from the consideration of the Image of Christ If this were true that all the works of the Saints were in their formalitie sinne this would follow that the Image of Jesus Christ were an Image of unholinesse and sin I ground my argument upon that place of the Apostle 2 Cor. 3.18 Wee all with open face beholding as in a glasse the glory of the Lord are changed into the same Image from glory to glory even as by the Spirit of the Lord. Here the Apostle shewes that the Saints are changed into the Image of Christ Now if there were nothing but sin and unholinesse sinfulnesse in those who are looked upon as spirituall as some conceive it wil follow that the Image of Christ into which they are changed must be an image of unholinesse If my love be unholinesse I am changed to that image of love which is in Christ and so it would follow that the Image of Christ doth consist in unholinesse Object If there be perfect sanctification in the new man then wee may bee justified by it Answ I deny that it doth not follow We shall have perfect sanctification at the resurrection and yet you will not say that we shall be acquitted from our sinnes by it which wee have committed upon earth but by the grace of God in the blood of Christ 2. We are justified before sancification and therefore it will not follow that we are justified by it Because that is done before the other is wrought in us 3. That a man may be justified by his sanctification It is necessary that a man should be so wholy sanctified that there should be no sin in the man Our good works will not make satisfaction for our bad works A Traytor for an act of treason might be condemned by his Prince though he hath done him much good service If a man would seeke justification by the law who is sanctified in part the law would condemn him for his sin in his unregenerated part taking no notice of any sufficiency in his sanctification to free him from condemnation for his sinne in the unregenerated part Arg. 19. This opinion that the good works of the justified man are sin or sinfull do make divers places of Scripture irreconcileable Men shall never be well able to reconcile many places of Scripture who swallow this as a trueth that whatsoever workes are now done in the Saints are nothing but sinne or sinfull For instance in one place we are bound to disclaime our works and to account all our righteousnesses as filthy ragges to believe in him that justifieth the ungodly And in another place we are said to be redeemed from all iniquity that we might be zealous of good workes Tit. 2. And we are the work manship of God created in Christ Jesus to good workes Eph. 2. By what I have delivered they are easily reconcileable To wit by distinguishing as the Scripture doth concerning good works thus That all the works of man under the Law are but splendid and shining sins and that the spirituall workes of a spirituall man are good and not sin or sinfull in their nature Not that the Scripture makes these good workes that flow from the spirituall man the cause or the matter of our justification but the fruits of the Spirit and the consequents of our justificationâ— It is a speech of Luthers worthy to be writteâ— in letters of gold that the whole world with all the riches of it are of no worth in comparison of good works flowing from faith and wrought by the Spirit of God in the hearts of his people Which how it can be made good I know not if that be true which he and some other Protestant Writers affirme that Omnâ— bonum secundum judicium dei est mortale peccatum every good worke of a regenerate man according to the judgment of God is a mortall sin That which is morally evill is not so good as any thing which is not morally evill That being the greatest evill which is morally evill I have known some professors of the Gospel who have fallen to Familisme and Atheisticall opinions and being asked why they did leave the Gospel they have answered that they could never reconcile the Scriptures concerning works to other places while they were professors of the Gospel Their meaning is while they were professors upon these principles by which they were taught to look upon the works of the spirit in them as sin and sinfull That which is frequently asserted by some Mr. Eatoon Honycomb and others that they are good to men-ward will not make up the breach The Apostle Peter speaking of a meeke quiet spirit which is the ornament of the hidden man of the heart saith that it is of great price in the sight of God 1 Pet. 3.4 The Apostle speaking of his sincerity in preaching the Gospel is not affraid to bring it into the sight of God 2 Cor. 2.17 And John saith 1 Joh. 3.22 That whatsoever we aske we receive of him because wee keepe his Commandements and doe those things which are pleasing in his sight And that he doth not meane believing only is plain by the next verse where he saith That this is his Commandement that wee believe on the name of his Sonne Jesus Christ and love one another And to stop the mouth of the objection which is usually brought against this truth to wit that he speaketh of doing as in Gods precept or command and not as done by us He saith that we receive what we aske because wee doe what is pleasing in his sight I must professe to the glory of God that this distinction hath given me a great light in the understanding of the Scripture And by this I am informed that I am justified without holiness or sanctification and yet that without holiness no man shall see the Lord Heb. 12.14 Arg. 20. This opinion that the good worke
confirmation of the truth Give mee leave to give an answer to their arguments as I have already presented unto you answers to their objections Arg. 1. Paul was a regenerated man yet he confesseth that he was not able to performe that which is good Rom. 7.18 Therefore no regenerate man is able to performe that which is good Answ Paul doth give a sufficient answer to this objection in the preceding words of the same verse where he saith in me that is in my flesh dwelleth no good thing by which it is evident that he speaketh of himselfe in reference to his flesh And this is a truth which with all the faithfull I willingly subscribe unto But when he plainely speaketh of a man in the spirit freed from the clouds of temptations and power of the flesh in the last verse of the same Chapter he saith With the minde I my self serve the law of God but with the flesh the law of sin It is good to serve the law of God but Paul in the Spirit had attained unto this and therefore Paul was enabled to performe that which is good According to that of the Apostle Phil. 2.13 It is God who worketh in us to will and to doe of his owne good pleasure Arg. 2. There is none that doth good no not one Rom. 3.9 10 11. which is meant aswell of the regenerate as unregenerate as is evident by vers 23 24. because it is meant of all who are justified freely by his grace as appears further by the instances of Abraham and David which were regenerated Ch. 4.2.6 Therefore no workes of the regenerate are without sinne Answ It is plain that the Apostle speaketh here of a man under the law and of an unregenerate man by the things which are spoken of him Hee saith that none seeketh after God can you affirme this of a regenerated man when the same Prophet who in the 14. Psame doth give us a character of a wicked man out of which this is taken in the 24. Psalme doth give us this character of a man truly godly that hee is one of the generation of those who seeke God 2. The Apostle saith that there is none that understandeth But blessed be God the sonne of God is come and hath given us an understanding that we may know him 1 John 5.20 3. They are all gone out of the way But we can blesse God who through Jesus Christ hath brought us into the way of salvation 4. There is none that doth good no not one and there is none that is righteous But hearken unto the speech of John 1 John 3.7 Let no man deceive you hee that doth righteousness is righteous even as he is righteous I might runne over all the other particulars there laid downe but I shall content my selfe with what is spoken in the 17.18 it s said that the way of peace have they not known and there is no feare of God before their eyes Is a regenerate man an enemie to the way of peace and doe not they feare God to whom God hath sworne Jer. 32.40 That he will put his feare in their hearts that they shall not depart from him Again secondly you would prove it by this argument because hee speaketh of all those who are justified But let me tell you that we must distinguish of a man before and after his Justification Every man is such a man before Justification and in this respect he speaketh of all men but after justification there is a charge wrought in a man as I have formerly proved at large unto which I refer the Reader But thirdly you instance in David and Abraham who were regenerated men Answ Wee are not to forget that the Scriprure dosh acquaint us that there is a two-fold righteousnesse of a regenerate man The righteousnesse of Justification and the righteousnesse of sanctification Of the first of these the Prophet speaking saith that a man is blessed to whom sin is not imputed of the latter where hee saith of the same verse And in whose spirit there is no guile which the learned Zanchius doth apprehend to be spoken in reference to that sanctification which is in the unregenerated part understand the distinction rightly and you cannot want an answer to this Objection Arg. 3. Wee believe not so stedfastly nor love so perfectly as we ought therefore is our faith love imperfect and sinfull Ans 1. If we should grant the antecedent we may deny the consequence It is true that if a man doth not believe so stedfastly and love so perfectly as he ought that then the man doth sin consider him physically And this wee have alwayes granted but it doth not follow that his faith and love is sin but that which is in the flesh is sin which is the cause that he doth not believe so stedfastly and love so perfectly as he ought Amesius doth give a sufficient answer to this in answering an argument which Bellarmine doth bring against the Protestants to wit that sins doe not please God in Christ It is true saith he that sin doth not please God but the stain of sin being done away the good which remaineth is pleasing unto God Sane quidem certe sedpeccati maculâ in Christo deletâ bonum substratum placet Tom. 4. l. 6. c. 8. 2ly We say that a regenerate man looked upon in the new Covenant doth believe stedfastly and love perfectly His unbeliefe and hatred of God which is in the flesh being covered with the rich mantle of Gods grace and mercy as far as he doth believe truly he doth believe stedfastly and as far as he doth love he doth love perfectly Let not this offend any man that I say he doth love perfectly It is granted by most Protestant writers that a regenerate man hath a perfection of parts though not of degrees A childe may have an humane nature and the parts of a man as well as a man of forty yeares old A sparke of fire hath the true nature of fire a drop of water hath the nature of water in it as wel as all the water in the Sea So a sparke or drop of love hath the divine nature of love in it as well as that which burnes in the breasts of a Seraphim and therefore is not sin or sinfull And for this reason it is said that Abraham was not weak in faith though it is unquestionable that hee had his weaknesse in the flesh as well as other men and that hee staggered not at the promise of God through unbelief but was strong in faith giving glory to God Rom. 4. And this is the meaning likewise of Amesius in the place formerly cited where hee saith That the good works of the faithfull are not only good by the object of them but in reference to all the causes of them the efficient materiall formall and finall cause Opera fidelium non tantum sunt bona ex objecto sed etiam quoad omnes causas efficientem materiam
and all of you your rashnesse who have condemned me by your Censures When Constantius desired Liberius to subscribe to the Proscription and Excommunication of Athanasius he made him this answer O Emperour Ecclesiasticall censures are not to be passed without a great deale of justice O Imperator inquit judicia Ecclesiastica decet cum maximâ proferri justitiâ Trip. Hist l. 3. c. 17. Let me speake plainly unto you not to shame you but to convince you of your fault When I am most serious and free from all turbulency of passion I have apprehended that I should have found more justice in the High-Commission Court then among my Brethren The Civilians say that wee must not passe our judgement upon a law by one line of it De lege non judicandum ex solâ lineâ And Christian justice and equity will teach us not to censure Gospel-Sermons by one line maliciously or ignorantly taken out of it knowing that a spirituall man now as well as Paul formerly may have some things hard to be understood 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 which they who are unstable and unlearned may wrest as they doe the Scriptures to their owne destruction Secondly Give me leave to enquire of you whether spirituall prudence would teach you to be so violent against godly men who differ in some notions expressions and circumstantialls from you When there are so many Sepulchers wide open against you and them ready to devoure you both It was the policy of some barbarous people when Alexander came to contend with them for a Conquest as Curtius doth relate it to put an end of the wars and differences which were among themselves that so they might be strengthned against the common enemy And the like policy was used by the ancient Inhabitants of the Land when Caesar came to invade them whether Christian wisdome will make us lesse prudent and politicke for our own preservation I shall be willing that it may be determined by the man who liveth in the cleare light and liberty of the Gospel In the mean while I hope that you will not reject the Apostles caution Gal. 5.16 If yee bite one another take heed lest ye be devoured one of another 3 dly Let me tell you one thing which hath been revealed unto me by the Lord. If ye shall deal with tender-hearted Christians who cleave to Christ and are part of his mysticall body though they differ from you in some opinions in the way of Bonner and Canterbury leaving the example of Christ and his Apostles the Lord will blow upon you lay your honour credit and greatnesse in the dust while the heavens shall rejoyce saying Thou art righteous O Lord who hast judged thus 4 ly Let me beseech you not to suffer your uncharitable practises to give the lye to your zeale and professions for the maintaining the Law Walk not contrary to love professing your selves to be for the law because love is the fulfilling of the law Labour to be such as Ruffinus doth report Gregory Nazianzen was who did those things which hee taught and condemned not himselfe by doing things contrary to what he taught Qui fecit ea quae docuit seipsum minime condemnavit contraria agendo quam docebat Ruffin in vitâ Naz. Remember who they are who make a man an offender for a word and turn aside the just for a thing of nought Isa 29.21 And let none of you imagine evill against his brother in your heart Zech. 7.10 Be not so uncharitable towards me as you have been who doe assure you that I am able to speak it to the glory of Gods grace that though I may erre I shall never be an Heretique Errare possum haereticus esse nolo Endeavour not to perswade the world that I am a patron of Libertinisme for if you doe I hope that I shall be able by the power of grace to give you such an answer as an old man of Alexandria did to some who said that be was no Christian because he could work no miracles This saith hee doth prove mee a Christian That I am not moved with the injuries which ye have done unto me Hoc ipsum ut ijs quas insertis non moverer injurijs Cassian So I hope that the free spirit of Christ will so dwell in me that it will sufficiently prove that I am no patron of Libertinisme or looseness who at this present notwithstanding all the wrongs done unto me am able to subscribe my selfe Yours as far as you are for Christ his wayes and the liberty of his Saints JOHN SIMPSON Truth breaking forth through a mist and cloud of Slanders Section 1. THe first Errour which is charged upon me is this That the morall law is of no use at all to a believer no rule for him to walk by And that Christians are free from the mandatory power of it Delivered by Mr. Simpson witnesse Mr. Gataker This Article doth consist of four branches The first That the law is of no use at all to a believer Answ When some either through ignorance mis-apprehending or through malice mis-reporting what I had delivered in opening the Doctrine of the Law and Gospel had spread this abroad to wit that I denyed the use of the Law To stop the mouth of lying fame I preached at Algate where I was then an unworthy Steward of the mysteries of God upon these words of the Apostle 1 Tim. 1.8 Wee know that the Law is good if a man use it lawfully and did wholly disavow this tenet proving the usefulnesse of the Law and shewing what use Believers and the Preachers of the Gospel might make of it A believer is a creature spiritua ly intelligent and rationall and by the helps and light of grace can make a good use of every thing and so consequently a good use of the Law So that to my best remembrance I was never so much as tempted to think that the Law is of no use unto him And what I then delivered concerning the law the usefulnesse of it might have prevented this charge If my Father had not seen it good for me for a time to lye under a cloud of slanders reproaches that so I might be made conformable unto my head It is usual with ignorant and malicious hearers of the Gospel to draw wilde and loose conclusions from good premises and sound truths which they heare from the mouths of their teachers and then to fasten them upon them as though they were their own tenents Thus some did slanderously report concerning Paul that he affirmed that men should doe evill that good might come Rom. 3.8 And thus the Papists have charged the Protestants and first instruments which God did make use of to bring us from Popish and Antichristian darkenesse as men who opened a gap to all loosenesse and licentiousnesse of life and conversation because they asserted that Christians might be and ought to be assured of their salvation and denyed the falling
cary in his eye those distinctions and cautions which I have already laid down while we shall more largely prove that a believer is not under the mandatory power of the law of the olde Covenant but under the mandatory power of the law in the new Covenant of grace It is impossible that a believing Christian should live under the Covenant of grace as it is delivered unto us in the clear light of the Spirit and should at the same time be under the mandatory power of the law as it was delivered in Sinai It is impossible that a man should in the Spirit doe good works freely because hee is justified and yet doe good works that he may be justified But the law of Sinai doth command me to work that I may live and be justified and in the covenant of grace I am informed that I am freely justified therefore it is impossible that I should be under grace and under the mandatory power of the law as delivered in Sinai at the same time Again it is impossible that I should do good works because I see my self free from condemnation and doe good works for feare of condemnation But the law commandeth me to doe good works for feare of condemnation the Gospel because I am free from condemnation and therfore it is impossible that I should be under the Covenant of grace in spirit and under the mandatory power of the law as delivered in Sinai I shall draw the strength of these arguments into a few words Gods justified children are not under the commands of a Covenant of works But the commands of the law as delivered in Sinai are the commands of a Covenant of works Therfore they are not under the commands of the law as delivered in Sinai 2ly It is a contradiction to say that a man is under the commands of the law of Sinai but 〈◊〉 under it for justification or condemnation For the Law as it was there delivered doth 〈◊〉 command without promises of life to the 〈◊〉 and threatning of death to the disobedient 2 Cor. 3. for that it ceaseth to be the law 〈…〉 delivered if you take from it the proâ—â—â—â— threatnings 3ly Lawes are distinguished by their rewâ—â—â— and penalties And though the same 〈…〉 commanded in severall laws yet wee say 〈◊〉 are severall lawes because they have severall rewards penalties annexed to them Suppose the punishment of death which is due to thieves should be changed into the penalty of restoring of what he hath stollen foure-fold or working in a Gallyseven years We should say that the olde law is repealed and that there is a new law made concerning theft and hee that after all the Gospel-light which hath broken forth is not able to see a change of the rewards and penalties of the law of Sion from those of Sinai doth for his wilfull and affected ignorance deserve to be more blinded 4 ly The Covenant of which the Prophet prophesied Jer. 31.31 is new in reference to the commands of holinesse which appeareth by Heb. 8.10 And therefore Christians are not under the commands of the old covenant of Sinai as they were there delivered but under all Commandements as delivered in the new covenant of Sion Musculus and Zanchius doe both make use of this place for the proving of this point 5ly A believing Christian is commanded to doe all good workes in faith of his free justification But the law doth not command him to doe good workes in faith of his free justification And therefore a believing Christian is not commanded to do good workes by the law I suppose that the first proposition will passe without an exception For the second it is evident by Gal. 3.12 The law is not of faith but the man that doth them shall live in them 6 ly The Apostle plainly saith Gal. 3.18 That if wee be led of the Spirit wee are not under the law But if wee are under the mandatory power of the law as delivered in Sinai we are under it according to that of the Apostle Rom. 3.19 Wee know that whatsoever the law saith it saith to them who are under the law that every mouth may be stopped and all the world may become guilty before God Ye cannot put a man under the commanding power of the law as delivered in Sinai but ye must put him under the commanding power Reas 7. The approved distinction betweene legall and evangelicall obedience in point of sanctification will be sound unsound For all the obedience of the Saints which they yield unto God by their holy walking wil be by legal principles and not Evangelicall if we place them under the mandatory power of a covenant of works I hope by this time that the judicious and spirituall Reader doth begin to see that I am no enemy to the law by establishing it for justification by believing and sanctification by holy walking and that my expressions are justifiable by the Scripture of truth And if I am to be blamed for any thing it is because I have been so bold in these Anti-christian and Anti-scripturian dayes rather to keep close to Scripture-expressions than to tye my selfe up to the forme and methods of men in speaking of these covenants which I hope will further appeare by what shall be delivered in answer to the second article Sect. 2. The second thing which Mr. Gataker doth charge upon mee are these exclamations in the Pulpit Away with the law away with the law Is this such a strange and hereticall speech to one that professeth himselfe a Teacher in Israel that with all his learning and love hee cannot possibly make a favourable construction of it Might not love which thinketh no evill but beareth all things and hopeth all things 1 Cor. 13.7 have suggested this unto the spirit of a consciencious Christian that something which either preceded or followed it in my discourse had such an influence upon it to free it from the poyson and venome of false doctrine and heresie What an easie thing were it to gather many such speeches out of the bookes of Ancient and modern Writers which may sound as harsh to a tender eare as this doth and doe yet make a delightfull sound to the eare of Truth as they lye in their bookes To instance in a few Ambrose upon the 7. of the Romans hath these words Nec enim legis erit adulter sed Evangelij qui mortuà lege vinctus Evangelio post redit ad legem Mortua enim lex dicitur cum cessat ejus authoritas Hee is not an adulterer by the law but by the Gospel who being bound to the Gospel the law being dead doth return unto the law For the law is dead when its authority ceaseth And a little after this Mori legi Deo est vivere To dye to the Law is to live to God Luther upon the 5. chap. of the Galatians hath these words Habes pulcherimum et optimum librum omnium legum in corde tuo
that the law killeth a man or cutteth off his legs Friends I am perswaded that some of you have experimentally found as I have done that the law killeth And when ye were slaine and killed by the law were you freed presently from the mandatory power of it I am perswaded that some of you can professe in truth with mee that ye were not The law then did command you to doe and walke What horridnesse is there more in this if I may make the comparison to affirme that the law cutteth off a mans legs and then biddeth him to walke then in this To affirme that the law killeth a man doth yet bid him to doe it and walke Object But some may say that Paul saith that the letter killeth because it giveth not strength to fulfill it Litera occidit nempe quia non consert vires ad praestandum Answ I spake it in this sense too and is it not lawfull for me to imitate Pauls expressions Unlesse the ignorant world must be made to believe that my speeches and exclamations are horrid and blasphemous I might multiply arguments from this Chapter if I should runne over all the expressions of the Apostle especially these where he calleth the law 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 A ministration of death a ministration of condemnation 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 and 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 a thing to be abolished or abolished and done away And whatsoever is spoken by any of the godly for the making good of these expressions I might make use of the same for the justifying of mine seeing I spake them in the same manner as Paul did But that it may appeare that I speake not this for the reproaching of you but the vindicating of wronged abused truth and knowing that a word is sufficient to a wise man when a thousand stripes will not enter into a foole I shall not insult over your weakenesse but rather cover it as farre as I may without injury to the truth Let mee only leave this word to your consideration which in this place is very seasonable to wit That it is the mind of God that we should be as favourable in interpreting the expressions of spirituall men in their writings and speakings now as in interpreting the expressions of those spirituall men who are now with the Lord knowing that they both speak by the same spirit which spirit doth retain his liberty to speake in us as it did in them 2. Compare this speech with that of the Apostle Rom. 7.5 The motions of sinne which were by the law which will sound as harsh as to affirme that the law doth cut off the legs of sinners But if some say this is only occasionally and accidentally men running the more into sinne by how much the more they are forbidden to commit sinne According to that of the Poet. Tendimus in vetitum wee have a tendency in us to that which is forbidden I answer that the same exposition will sufficiently qualifie my speech to take away from it the least appearance of evill The law doth cut off a mans legs occasionally and accidentally A man by reason of the corruption which is in him findeth by experience that he is of lesse strength to run in the wayes of God the more he doth endeavour to get strength by the law of workes Musculus compareth it in this respect to a chaste Matron in a Brothel-house which by her good advice doth prove an occasion to some impudent whores to be more bold and shamelesse in their impiety Had the spirit of love without which wee are nothing taught you something concerning this speech you would have been favourable in interpreting it and not rigidly censorious in condemning it Oh that you who seeme to he zealous for the law would consider that this commandement to wit that we should love our neighhour as our selves is one of the great Commandements upon which all the Law and Prophets doe hang Mat. 22.40 And then how would you dare to be so rigid and uncharitable in your censuring of your Brethren If indeed you have received the law from Moses may I not say as my Saviour did to the Jewes John 7.19 Did not Moses give you the law and yet none of you keepeth it And then remember what the Apostle saith Rom. 2.13 That not the hearers or preachers of the law are just before God but the doers of the law shall be justified Brethren I am not such an enemie to the law but I can with freedome of spirit make use of that pertinent portion of Scripture unto you Jam. 2.8 9. If yee fulfill the royall law according to the Scripture Thou shalt love thy neighbour as thy selfe yee doe well But if ye have respect to persons in your censuring judging them And the same thing in effect delivered by one man shall be accounted sound by you and shall be a horrid error if delivered by another man ye commit since and are convinced of the law as transgressors 3 dly Looke seriously upon those words of Paul Rom. 5.20 The law was given that the offence might abound And then tell me whether there be not the same figure in my expression which is in Pauls And why may I not make use of a figurative expression as well as Paul expounding my meaning more plainly afterwards as he doth which I also did in my discourse Calvin saith that by these words Paul doth simply signifie the encreasing of the knowledge and pervicacy Designatur hic simpliciter incrementum notitiae et pervicaciae And another saith that it it said that it aboundeth by the law because it aboundeth in our knowledge of it ut abundare agnoscetur And will not this which is usually spoken upon this place by Expositors make our speech passeable too And as Paul saith that the Commandement which was to life he found to be unto death Rom. 7.10 So may not I say that the law which was for holy walking I found to cut off my legs because being under it I was no more able to walke in the way of it than a man is able to walke without legs I leave it to the spirituall man who judgeth all things 1 Cor. 2.15 to judge of this thing betweene us And that you may not any farther to the dishonour of God and your profession the prejudicing of the worke of the Lord in my Ministery vent forth slanders and reproachas against me I do professe that I am not conscious to my selfe of denying the use of the law in any way in which it is held forth in the new Testament But know that the law is good if a man use it lawfully Knowing this that the law is not made for a righteous man but for the lawlesse disobedient for the ungodly and for sinners for the unholy and prophane for murtherers of fathers and for man-slayers for whoremongers for perjured persons and lyars and if there be any other thing that is contrary to sound
me that I should deliver in a Sermon these words Let Believers sinne as fast as they will there is a fountaine open for them to wash in But it being demanded by some whether I did deliver it by way of exhortation the accuser was so ingenious to acknowledge that it was not delivered as an exhortation And therefore it is probable that your Brethren of the new Province have had so much grace to leave it out in their charge though it be in the same page in which they have taken out the other Articles and it will be for your credit more then for mine to leave it out in your next Edition You may as well take out that part of a verse in Revel 22.11 He that is unjust let him be unjust still and he that is filthy let him be filthy still and conclude that God in Scripture exhorteth men to be unjust and filthy as to draw out scraps and fragments out of my discourses to perswade the world that I in my preaching exhort people to commit sin which I doe desire to destroy in my selfe and those who heare mee by preaching the grace of God in Christ Your learning if not love might have taught you to have put a more favourable construction upon these words The word let is not always used by way of exhortation as appeares by those words Rev. 22.11 But sometimes by way of supposition and doth frequently signifie as much as the word though doth And take it in this sence it is as seasonable a truth as I can in desire of your good leave upon your spirit Though you who professe your selfe a believer have sinned as fast as you can in my apprehension against the lawes of love and the Commandements of the Lord Jesus yet there is a fountaine opened in which if God give you faith you may wash your selfe from these sins In the meane while I shall comfort my selfe that there is nothing charged upon mee but the same hath beene charged upon those who were more filled with the Spirit for preaching then I am They were charged with the same thing by some ignorant or malicious hearers as appeareth by Rom. 3 8. And not rather as we be slanderously reported and as some affirme that wee say Let us doe evill that good may come whose damnation is just You may now expect that before I put a period to my answer I should speak something to your reproachfull railing speeches against me But you know who said men have learned to reproach me and speak evill of me but I to suffer reproaches Didicerunt illi maledicere ego pati And I shall learn of the Angel to say this to all my defamers The Lord rebuke you Zech. 3.2 And shall intreate God for his Sons sake to give grace and patience to his afflicted and oppressed servant Amen Mans legall righteousnesse is no cause or part of his justification EPHES. 2.8 9. For by grace are yee saved through faith and that not of your selves it is the gift of God Not of works lest any man should boast THERE are two things which men ought chiefly to know Their misery by sin and their happinesse by the grace of God in Christ And by the wicked unfaithfulnesse of our memories wee are more apt to forget these two things then to forget any other points whatsoever 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 Know thy selfe is a lesson as difficult as it is old and common How hard a matter is it for a man to remember himselfe as to know what he is in himselfe The King of Macedonia thought it needfull that his Page should every morning put him in remembrance that he was a mortall man And every spirituall man doth finde it necessary that the Spirit daily should become his remembrancer to put him in mind that he is a sinful man So likewise it is a hard matter without the power assistance of the Spirit alwayes to know the rich full and free grace of God as it is held forth in the Gospel to poore sinners The last of these as it is the most sweet and excellent lesson so with the greater difficultie it is retained in our memories This is a Doctrine which if it were preached unto us every day wee should forget it every day The daily teaching and hourely learning of it cannot wholly free us from the ignorance of this truth But as farre as we are carnall and fleshly wee are strangers to the knowledge of it So that he that thinkes he perfectly knowes the doctrine of justification by faith alone I dare professe to that man that he knows nothing of this doctrine of justification as he ought to know As long as we live upon the earth we may be learners of this doctrine Paul after he had been a scholler and an aged teacher in the schoole of Christ many yeares did then professe that he endeavoured to forget his own workes and legall righteousnesse in reference to his justification and pressed forward to know more of the mystery of Christ labouring to be found in the righteousnesse which is of God by faith Phil. 3.10 Therefore though I have formerly spoken of the chiefe point that lieth in these verses yet I know it is needfull and necessary for mee to speake of it againe that you that have heard it opened may heare more of it as well as for those who have not heard the point so clearly fully unfolded unto them to whom God may make my discourse beneficiall if he accompany mee with his presence Wherefore I have pitched upon this subject at this present in which the summe of all divinitie is comprized For faith and love is the summe of all that we preach Faith towards the Lord Jesus and love towards God and all those that are united to him in the same Spirit with our selves And the Apostle layeth down both these in these verses shewing first clearly the doctrine of justificatiō through faith alone without works and then shewing that though we are justified without workes yet how in the Spirit wee are carried forth to performe all good works for he saith Wee are created the workmanship of God unto good works ver 10. In these words these particulars present themselves to your best attentions First that salvation and justification is by grace that is by the free favour of God Tee are saved by grace Secondly He sheweth how we are saved by grace in a way of beleeving not working Yee are saved by grace through faith Many pretend that they look on grace but it is thorough the spectacles of their own works but he that doth truly eye grace he looks on grace in an act of beleeving and not through working Thirdly The Apostle discovers the nature of true faith which is the unfained faith of the Elect. First negatively he informeth us that this faith is not of our selves There is not a fountain in our selves from whence a true and lively faith springs it floweth not
Devill If it were in our power God should not reigne and be King in the world but the Devill This is in the heart of wicked flesh it brings forth nothing else it loves it self and the devill but hates loaths and abhorres God and had rather that the Devill should sit on the throne then God the Father and the Lambe at his right hand So that a man being unable to obey the Law of God God cannot justifie him by his Law but must pronounce him a rebell for sin is rebellion and spirituall high treason against God In Ezek. 2. when God sent the Prophet to teach the people he tells him what people he should meet with he saith they were such as would not heare him such as would sleight him and would not indure to heare sound and good doctrine and calleth them rebells And he said unto me Son of man I send thee to the children of Israel to a rebellious Nation that have rebelled against me even to this very day You see sinne is called rebellion in the Word of God But some will say certainly I was never such a rebell as you make me I apprehend not that I ever hated God in such a manner Answ If thou dost not see how thou abhorrest God and how in the flesh thou lovest the Devill more then God thou hast not to this day a sight of the just and pure will of God For it is not enough that thou abstaine from grosse sins and prophanenesse that makes a man scandalous to the eye of the world but thou must abstaine from every sin from every vaine thought or else the Law will passe the sentence of condemnation on thee as a rebell If it were possible that a man could so live on earth that he should never dishonour God in any action that he should never dishonour God by any word of his mouth but all his words should be to the glory of that God that made him and to the glory of that wisdome of the Father by which he made all things yet if this man should have but a sinfull ungodly rising in his heart against God the Law would take no notice of all the good deeds of this man all the good words that he hath spoken to the glory of God but the Law would condemne him for that sinfull thought in his spirit Therefore you shall finde that not onely sinfull words and actions are called trayterous words and rebellious actions in Scripture but evill thoughts concerning God are treason against God the Law of God reacheth the heart spirit of a man so that if there be a sinfull thought the spirituall and holy Law of God condemnes a man as a rebell for that thought Jer. 5.23 This people hath a revolting and rebellious heart The Law doth not condemne a man onely for rebellion in words and actions but for rebellion in the heart It is not enough for us outwardly to conform to what the Law requires but we must have obedient hearts if there be any rebellion in the heart we are condemned as though wee had sinned against God in words and actions The Law doth not only condemn a man for adultery by which he defiles his neighbours wife A man may be an adulterer and yet an Eunuch if a man have but an adulterous glance with his eye at the sight of a woman if he have but a sinfull thought arising in his heart the glorious Law of God thunders in the face of that man and lightens in the countenance of that man and will utterly destroy him for his sin The Law is like the Priest and Levite Luk. 10. that past by the man which was robbed and wounded by theeves It is Christ alone who powreth in the oyle of his Gospel into the wounds of sinners for to heale and refresh them The Law rightly and spiritually understood is a Ministery of death Languorem ostendi non aufert Aug. It is the Gospel which is the Ministery of life and salvation And if we thus look upon the Law of God rightly understand it it is cleare and evident that there was never any man that loved God Sin is a hatred of God so many sins as thou committest so much hatred of God thou discoverest Our love is shewed by keeping the Commandements of God so by breaking the commandements of God we discover and manifest that hatred that is in us against the most holy God So that if you consider this that you never loved God yet you cannot comfort your selves in your love to God but must abase your selves for your neglecting of the doctrine of justification When God shall give you light to see himself and his Son you will find that that which you call love to God in your blind ignorance is hatred of God and rebellion against him Secondly Consider that there is no man that ever loved his neighbour as he ought The Law of nature and the written Law of God require that every man should doe to others as he would that they should do to him But there was never any man that did so If it were possible for a man to live so as that he should never wrong his neighbour or his brother by any unjust action or by any word spoken against his brother But where is the man that can stand forth and truly affirme it yet he may be charged by the Law if he hath had any evil thoughts against him in his heart For the Law is spirituall the Law reacheth the heart and the Law will condemne this man as a man that hates his brother for the Law takes notice of this in this particular As you shall find Zech. 7.10 Oppresse not the widdow nor the fatherlesse nor the poore and let none of you imagine evill in your hearts against his brother The Law forbids imagining evill against our brother in our hearts So that if once in all the dayes of thy life thou hast had but one uncharitable thought of any man when thou hadst no ground at all for it thou hast imagined evill in thy heart against thy brother and art a transgressor of the Law for thou walkest contrary to thy rule and light I appeale to thee wouldest thou have a man think evill of thee when he hath no just cause Thou wilt say I would have no man thinke evill of me or harbour an uncharitable thought in his breast against me so then if thou have an uncharitable rising in thy spirit against any man or woman in the world thou comest short of the righteousnesse holinesse and perfection of the Law and so there is no salvation for thee by the Law If a man consider what the Law is he shall find no comfort in the world by looking upon himselfe and his best performances in the glasse of the Law but he shall find that all have sinned are haters of God fighters against God haters of his children and enemies to their neighbours That as Christ said to
the Scribes and Pharisees Joh. 7.19 Did not Moses give you a Law and none of you keepe it So I may speake to all men and women in the world the just and righteous God as the creator that may require obedience from his creature hath given us a just and holy Law all that he commands is consonant to reason and equitie Thou canst not deny but that it is equall that thou shouldest doe to all men as thou wouldest that they should doe to thee But we have all sinned and have broken this just and righteous Law of God therefore by this it appeares that there is no justification for a man by the Law or his own works Thirdly Another Consideration may be drawne from this it is not any whit necessary that any man should have any works at all to bring with him unto God for his justification There is a fulnesse and sufficiency in the grace of God and in Jesus Christ so that there is no need of any works that we should bring for our justification The robe of Christs righteousnesse is such a compleat garment that there needs no patches of our own to be sowed to it You shall find God speaking of his own grace in Isaiah Isa 43. For mine own Names sake I will forgive thy sinnes and will remember thy iniquities no more It is not for our works sake if it be onely of his grace He saith His arme is mightie and strong As the arme of Gods justice is a mightie arme by which he crushes and breaks in pieces all wicked and ungodly men so his arme is mightie to bring salvation And he hath laid help upon one that is mightie Psal 89. Seeing the mightinesse of Gods arme is to bring salvation to his people he is mightie to save Zeph. 3.17 and he will save to the utmost the worst and chiefe of sinners without any righteousnesse or holinesse of their owne Therefore it followes that it is not needfull nor necessary that a man doe good works that he may be justified and saved We have a rule in Philosophy that it is vaine frivolous to doe that by many things that may be done by few seeing God hath discovered an alsufficiency in his own grace it is vaine therefore to seek justification by many things Psal 130.7 There is mercy with God and plenteous redemption No need therefore of mans righteousnesse If thou hast been a slave to many sinnes to vile lusts and base corruptions pride vaine-glory hypocrisie swearing and uncleannesse c. There is plenteous redemption God can redeeme thee from all thy sinnes that thou hast been accustomed unto many yeares He is able to redeeme thee out of the hands of all thy corruptions that hold thee fast in bondage and slavery Wherefore there being such a sufficiency in grace it is not needfull or necessary that a man doe good works that he may be justified The fourth consideration may be this Almightie God doth not require us to doe good works that they should justifie or save us I confesse in the letter of the Word God seemes to require them When he speaks in the language of the Law he saith Doe this and live c. But in the Ministery of the Gospel which is the only Ministery of salvation God doth not require thee to do any thing that thou maist be saved or justified The Law sets thee to work and is never satisfied but the Gospel bids thee doe nothing at all This is the tenour of the Gospel Beleeve in the Name of the Lord Jesus and be confident to be justified onely by his Name The Apostles when they preached endeavoured to beat men off from their own works and performances in the point of justification When the Gaoler said What shall I do to be saved Paul bids him not to work but to beleeve in the Lord Jesus So in Isai 55.3 God reprehends men that spend their time for that which is worth nothing laying out so much time in acting doing for justification and salvation in the mean while neglecting the glorious and precious Gospel of grace by his Son Wherefore doe yee spend money for that which is not bread Wherefore doe yee spend the strength of your bodies spirits in working labouring and tyring out your dayes under the spirit of bondage that yee may be justified and saved You spend your money for that that is not bread you shall never have a piece of bread from the Law for this you shall never satisfie the Law it will not give you a crumb of comfort worke and doe what you can Hearken unto me and eat that which is good and let your soule delight it selfe in fatnesse Foolish and ignorant people they take paines to satisfie their spirits and to get comfort by making long prayers and observing fasting dayes and giving almes to the poore endeavouring to love God and Saints that they may be saved but they labour for that that will not profit for that that is not bread If duties could satisfie why did Christ die If we could be saved by the Law why was the Gospel made knowne Therefore he points them to the Gospel Heare and your soule shall live That is heare the Word of Gods grace beleeve that God will pardon your sinnes for his Name sake and not for any works or righteousnesse in your selves Beleeve that Christ came to save sinners ungodly sinners the worst of sinners the chiefe of them beleeve this and your soules shall live If any bid thee worke that thou maist be justified to get love to the brethren to get a good conscience to God and men he setteth you upon a labour that will not profit you The voyce of God is Heare and your soules shall live Beleeve that which is reported concerning this Christ who was borne of a woman though the eternall Son of God and was manifested in the flesh and hath borne the sinnes of sinfull flesh and hath made an end of all iniquitie and brought in everlasting righteousnesse In beleeving this doctrine we are assured of his love And this God bids us preach and nothing else for justification ceasing from our selves our works our righteousnesse our performances resting on his love setting foot on his grace disclaiming our doings not coming to him in the sight of our works and our love but of his goodnesse as it is displayed in Christ Fifthly It is positively forbidden and God reproves men for it he shews them that they undoe their soules to eternitie if in a secret way they rest upon their owne works Israd which followed after the Law of righteousnesse hath not attained to the Law of righteousnesse Wherefore Because they sought it not by faith but as it were by the works of the Law Rom. 9.31 32. He doth not say that they did directly seek salvation by the Law but indirectly 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 sed tanquam operibus legis as it were by the works of the Law Works are not onely
purification He hath redeemed us from all iniquitie to purifie us to himselfe a peculiar people zealous of good works Faith which looketh upon the grace of him who is invisible is the mother-grace Radix bonorum operum fides Faith is the roote good works are the fruit there must be the roote before the fruit But some man may say may wee not see the fruit before wee see the roote as wee see some fruit upon trees while the root lies hid and from the beholding of the fruit may wee not very rationally conclude that there is a root so from the beholding of our good works the fruit of true faith may wee not conclude that there is faith though it be not in it selfe visible unto us To this I answer That this similitude proves not the thing for though it be a truth that good works may appeare first to men yet faith is first visible to us in our own spirits and it is impossible that I should see the truth of good works except I first see the truth of faith Evident sanctification doth evidence unto us the truth of our justification but sanctification is not evident our justification being not evidenced to us in the first place If it be manifested in our spirits to us that our works are good it will presently be manifested unto us that we have true faith But this is not manifested in our spirits that our works are truly good works and such which cannot be done by an hypocrite untill the truth of our faith be manifested unto us I will make this evident by this reason A man must see his good works as done either under the Law or under the Gospel and look upon them either in the glasse of the Law or the glasse of the Gospel if a man look upon them in the glasse of the Law and doe rightly and spiritually understand the Law he shall be so farre from drawing an assurance of his justification from them that he shall behold himself cursed and damned with all his good works For the Law curseth every man that cōtinueth not in the doing of all things which are commanded by God It is indeed a divine looking-glasse in which things to be done or avoyded are discovered Lex est divinum speculū in quo facienda fugienda refulgent Aug. but it will sentence us to death for the least spot or wrinkle which it doth discover so that it is impossible that a man should see himselfe justified in the glasse of the Law But thou wilt say he may look upon his love sinceritie and works in the glasse of the Gospel And to this I answer that if he look upon them in the glasse of the Gospel which is Jesus Christ then he must put himselfe under the Gospel and look upon himselfe as a man in Christ that so he may see his works good by Jesus Christ which he will never be able to see without the eye of faith which seeth things invisible Heb. 11. and by which wee look upon Christ 1 Joh. 2.1 dwell in Christ Ephes 3.17 Live in Christ Gal. 2.19 And doe living works acceptable to God by the life of Christ in us Heb. 11.4 By faith with open face wee behold as in a glasse the glory of the Lord and are changed into the same Image from glory to glory 2 Cor. 3.18 and see that our good works are the effects of Christs love discovered in himselfe and in his Gospel to our soules And therefore when John doth informe us that we shall know that wee know him if we keep his Commandement He doth propose beleeving as the first Commandement of God without which we cannot assure our selves that we are obedient to his other commands 1 Joh. 3.23 This is his commandement that we beleeve in him whom he hath sent Good works after a man hath faith are not the cause of justification but the consequent they follow a mans justification they doe not precede the act of justification they neither precede the act of Gods grace by which he justifieth a sinner neither doe they precede justification in the Court of Conscience But being justified by faith we have peace Rom. 5.1 in our Consciences This was the doctrine which was frequently preached by those heavenly Carpenters which did first strike at the hornes of the beast Vt dilectio oriatur necesse est praecedere fidem hoc est fiducia misericordiae It is necessary saith Melancthon that faith which is a confidence of Gods morcy doe precede love And in another place Non nititur fides nostra dilectione sed tantum misericordia promissa ut constat nec existere dilectio potest nisi sit apprehensa remissio Faith is not grounded upon our love but the promised mercy of God so that it is manifest that there cannot be true love unlesse remission of sinnes be first apprehended Another reason is from the imperfection of workes wrought by a man after he is justified If any man that is justified look on his works and doe not behold them in the glasse of the Gospel he shall reade his own condemnation for his works There is an imperfection in our works seeing wee doe not love God so perfectly as we should with all our heart all our minde and all our spirit but while the regenerate part through the power of the Spirit runs after God and loves God the fleshly part runneth after sinne and hates God Therefore seeing there is such imperfection in the works that we performe that the best of us are unprofitable servants and that the most holy amongst us doe that for which he may be damned every day if God should not deale with us in the Gospel but in the Law it will follow that a man cannot be justified by the works that he doth after he hath faith and is converted doth works which are wrought by the Spirit of grace It may here be objected that the good works of Saints are perfect For an answer to this I referre the Reader to what shall be delivered from those words That he which is borne of God sinneth not I come now to the next Consideration which is this That wee are not justified by the practise of any Gospel-Ordinances which are commanded by the Lord Jesus Christ There are some who it may be are convinced that they are not justified by works yet I know not what new kinde of Popery they have found out for they thinke to please God by submitting to Ordinances and finding out the true Discipline and government of Christs Church therefore you shall finde a kinde of spirit of bondage in them if they be not satisfied concerning the true discipline government Ordinances of the Lord Jesus Christ Wherefore I shall endeavour to demonstrate this and shew clearly that as we are not justified by works before or after conversion so we are not justified and saved by the submitting to any Ordinance of the Lord Jesus Christ Salvation is not in
please God And as when wee see good fruit upon a tree we use to say this is a good tree Not that the good fruit doth make the tree good but the tree being good doth bring forth the good fruit So God having made us good trees by justifying of us by his Grace doth enable us to bring forth good fruit and speaking 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 after the manner of men to us men doth approve us to be good trees bringing forth good fruit And thus much for the reproofe of these men and in answer to their objection Secondly This doth serve to discover and reprove such who would seeme to be no Papists who yet in a more refined and subtle way do preach forth the same doctrine which the others doe maintaine and preferre some Popish bookes which are wrought with a fine and curious thread before any bookes which have been published by any who have been eminent for the knowledge of Gods Grace in Christ through faith for justification These are they who if it were possible would deceive the very Elect laying siege against the Gospel and the doctrine of justification while they pretend that they are fighters for it And these preach that wee are not to locke so much upon a Christ without us for justification as a Christ within us And that we are not justified by a Christ that is in heaven but by Christ within us which Christ of theirs is nothing else when yee are well acquainted with him but the workings of their own spirits in zeale and love to God and when they have high thoughts of God their will is conformable to the will of God and they thinke the same things that God thinkes and submit to God in their wayes They looke upon these workings as their perfection and justification and this is Christ within them Such kinde of Doctrines as this is are the first rudiments and principles by which the Politique and Civilized Familists doe leaven their pupills leading them from the plaine and simple doctrine of the Gospel The spirit of error and delusion which was in H. N. the first father of the Familists which have lived of late or are yet living did worke mightily in him to pervert the Gospel and to bring in Antichristianisme in this way of flaming zeale love and holinesse And if he were now alive he would wonder at his numerous off-spring and progeny which he hath now amongst us But that you may avoid this first rock before yee be engulfed into the deepe and bottomlesse pit of Familisticall Atheisme and Antichristianisme let what hath been spoken to reprove them establish you in the truth of the Gospel and looke upon the best piece of Familisme but as upon refined Popery For wee are not saved by Christ working in us and making us obedient to his Fathers holy will but wee are saved by the righteousnesse of Christ who hath shed his bloud for us And though we deny not but that wee have Christ within us and the Spirit of Grace to subdue our sinnes Yet this is denied that the workings of the Spirit are our justification for wee are justified before wee have these workings which wee feele within us Wee are not justified because we love God and Christ and desire to walke in sinceritie to glorifie God but because wee apprehend the Grace of God in Christ and therefore we love God and Christ and desire in sincerity to walke in all the wayes that God hath made knowne to us in Christ Wee are not justified by the conformitie of our will to Gods will or the onenesse of our will with his but wee are justified by faith before any of those works are wrought in our hearts by the Spirit of Grace He that denies this is ignorant of Christ and the Gospel and is not an honourer of Christ but a Minister of Satan and Antichrist and a deluder of the people Thirdly This is for the reproofe of the hypocriticall Protestant who professeth the doctrine of justification by faith without works with his tongue but denieth it with his heart not daring to trust his soule in the armes of a Saviour unlesse he brings good works along with him to procure his welcome and entertainment This man stumbles at the thresh-hold of the doore of Grace being never able to enter into the house of love because he will not adventure his salvation upon the promises of Grace which are made to sinners that have no workes or righteousnesse inherently in themselves He will not goe to God or close with a promise of Grace unlesse he have the sight of righteousnesse in himselfe in the first place He will tell you that good works are not the matter of our justification and yet he will not conclude that he is a justified man untill he see good works in himselfe This man following the law of righteousnesse doth not attaine to the law of righteousnesse because he seeketh it not by faith but as it were by the works of the Law Rom. 9.31 32. The Apostle speaks against this pharisaicall opinion when he saith Wee are justified by Grace through beleeving not through working I am not bound to love God and the brethren that I may be beloved of God but I must beleeve that I may love God and my brother The preposterous preaching of sanctification before justification for the evidencing of justification is that which keepeth many poore creatures in bondage for many yeares and ruines many soules How many are gone to Hell who thought they were going to Heaven deceiving themselves with false and unsound assurances And fetching their comforts from the sight of their own works and not from the Grace of God in Christ by a pure act of beleeving If this were the right path to justification we should not be justified in beleeving but in loving and working For I seeing my love to God should conclude Gods love to me But herein is love not that wee loved God but that God loved us and sent his Sonne to be the propitiation for our sinnes 1 Joh. 4.10 And true love is wrought in us by the sight of Gods free love to us in an act of beleeving Therefore if thou hast no assurance of the love of God but that which thou hast gotten from the sight of thine own works and from the conclusions of thine own base and deceitfull heart as the ordinary way of some hath been thou hast no assurance at all When thou shalt lie under a great temptation thou wilt finde no comfort in this assurance And thou shalt finde at the great day when thou shalt appeare before God and Christ that this assurance will not be worth a Rush This building upon thy love to God and not upon Gods free love to thee is to build upon a sandy foundation and not upon Christ by faith And if the Lord convince thee of thy folly thou wilt lay a better foundation of joy and comfort then this can be unto
thee For other foundation can no man lay then that which is laid which is Jesus Christ 1 Cor. 3. Though a spirituall man can make a good use of marks and signes as of love to God and Saints when he seeth them in the light of the Spirit as fruits proceeding from faith as the roote yet by drawing a conclusion from the sight of such things which we apprehend to be in our selves of our happinesse and good estate before God wee shall not so truely comfort as certainly deceive our selves Fourthly This is for the reprehension of blind ignorant Formalists who place Religion rather in conformity to outward formes of Government and submission to externall Ordinances then in the faith of the Gospel which is operative by love Justification doth not lye in our obedience to the Ordinances of Jesus Christ but in Jesus Christ Wee are not made Saints by being made members of any Church or Congregation but by faith in the head of the Church Woe to him that maketh his obedience and submission to any Ordinance the ground of his comfort as too many zealous Formalists do who run from Congregation to Congregation from one Ordinance to another to get solid comfort to their soules apprehending that they are undone creatures and cannot be true Saints unlesse they be under the true practise of all Ordinances whereas it is a plaine truth revealed in the Gospel of truth that neither submitting to an Ordinance can make a true Saint nor the want of Ordinances un-saint any man that is made one with Christ in beleeving He is not a Jew which is one outwardly neither is that Circumcision which is outward in the flesh But he is a Jew which is one inwardly and Circumcision is that of the heart in the Spirit and not in the Letter whose praise is not of men but of God Rom. 2.28 29. So he is a true Saint who is not a visible member of a Congregation but he whose life of faith is hidden in Jesus Christ He is baptized not whose body is washed with water but whose soule is washed in the bloud of Christ 1 Pet. 3.21 He is a good Communicant and breaks bread who doth not breake bread outwardly but by faith doth inwardly feed upon the bread of life Wee are not justified by works of the Law done before or after justification nor by yeelding obedience to any command concerning outward Ordinances but by our submitting in our Judgements to the truth of Gods Grace in Jesus Christ for justification without these I would not here be mistaken as though I did speake against any Saints or any who are spirituall and faithfull in the observation of any externall Ordinances But against zealous Formalists who doe make Saintship and fellowship to depend upon these things and are not spiritually acquainted with the truth of Gods Grace but are perverters of the Gospel In the next place here lyeth Consolation for all that heare me this day in that which I have delivered if God shall give unto them beleeving hearts Hast thou never done any good worke hast thou hated the wayes of God and his people hast thou never looked after the discipline government and ordinances of Christ Yet here is a ground for thee to come in unto Christ we are justified by grace through believing not through working Therefore let it be supposed that thou art without works yet thou hast good ground to take comfort in that which hath bin delivered believe and thou art in a happy condition though thou hast never done a good worke Thou art not to come to Jesus Christ as a righteous man But thou are to come unto him that thou maist be made a righteous man If thou seest thy selfe a vile sinner cast thy selfe into the armes of the grace of the Father by Jesus Christ and thou shalt be made the righteousnesse of God in him 2 Cor. 5. Promises of Grace are left by God upon record in the Scripture of truth for sinners for ignorant sinners Isa 29.24 They that erred in Spirit shall come to understanding For sinners that murmure against him his wayes truths Prophets as it followeth in the same verse They that murmured shall learne Doctrine For backsliding sinners Hosea 14.4 I will heale their back flidings I will love them freely Him that cometh unto him he will in nowise cast out 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 Here are two Negatives in the Greeke which doe strengthen the Negation Iohn 6.37 By which speech our Saviour doth assure poore sinfull creatures that if in truth they come unto him they shall not be rejected by him or ejected from the armes of his love and mercy Christ's invitation is to all sinners All that will may lay hold of him not only the righteous but the unrighteous If thou canst not love God thou maist looke on the Grace of God and take comfort that God loves thee Christ came not to call the righteous but sinners the cheifest and vilest of sinners to repentance Therefore come as a sinner as the cheifest of sinners come I say and welcome The Lord Jesus keeps open-house for all commers the blinde the lame shall not finde the doores shut upon them They shall be wellcome as sinners that cannot be entertained as Saints It is reported of Romes first Founder that wanting Subjects he sent forth some to make known his will to all people who lived about him that if any malefactors or such who were oppressed in the places where they lived did come in unto him they should live peaceably in his Kingdome and he would protect them against any that should pursue them and by this meanes he became suddenly the King of a numerous people So Christ doth send forth his Proclamations to assure sinners and vile malefactors that if they will come under his Scepter they shall live peaceably under his Government and that hee will safe-guard them from all their enemies which shall pursue them and by this meanes his dominions are enlarged from Sea to Sea and sinners doe rejoyce in the King of Sion This doctrine if it were received would answer all the objections which are raised in the hearts of men against their happinesse by Jesus Christ Is there any sad comfortlesse soule which would not be comforted if this truth were received What canst thou object against thy selfe to bereave thy selfe of peace which would not be removed if this were throughly believed Art thou a sinner Christ offereth himselfe to sinners Art thou an old sinner An old sinner is but a sinner Hast thou bin a Pharisee like Paul persecuting Christ and the doctrine of Grace A persecuting Pharisee is but a sinner And Paul was received to mercy that such might not be without hope of mercy 1 Tim. 1.16 Art thou an Hypocrite An Hypocrite may come as a sinner to Christ Bring what objection thou canst and a perswasion concerning the truth of Gods grace shall answer it and if thou doest believe thou hast as good
of high Treason against the State the Law will condemne him for the Treason his good service not being availeable to make satisfaction to the justice of the Law for this Treason So if it were possible for us to keepe the Law for a time wee should be condemned if it can be proved that wee have broken it at any time Acts of obedience will not make satisfaction for acts of disobedience We cannot satisfie the justice of the Law by doing what the Law requires if we have once broken it If we could sometimes doe what the Law requires us we should not be able to free our selves from the guilt and punishment for doing that which it forbiddeth us at all times because it requireth obedience from us at all times And it is unreasonable to thinke that God if he deale with us as under the Law and not under Grace should give us a pardon of our disobedience in consideration of our obedience If a wife live honestly as becomes a wife some few yeares if her huband finde that she committed Adultery some yeares before the time of her honesty obedience the Law takes no notice at all that she hath lived in her latter time as became a wife but condemnes her she must be divourced from her husband for her adultrous act committed before her obedience So if it were possible that wee could keepe the Law and doe what is required in it and live under the obedience of it in every branch and point of it yet if we have once broken the Law the Law taking no notice of our obedience would condemne us for our disobedience What the Roman hystorian saith of the Roman Law that it is dura et inexorabilis severe and inexorable it is true of Gods Law The Law heareth no cry or begging for mercy No man shall finde favour or pardon from the Law by any acts of obedience to the Law who hath once disobeyed the Law The paying of a new debt will not make satisfaction to a man to whom an old debt is owing so if wee could pay the debt that the Law requires for the present it makes no satisfaction at all for our breaking it before for our old debt By this consideration in the first place it will be evident to every man who hath any spirituall knowledge of the purity and justice of the Law that it is impossible for sinfull man to finde out any way but the good old way of Grace to happinesse and salvation Secondly wee are justified by grace that God may have the glory of his grace Man fell by pride therefore God will not estate him in happinesse but by humbling him by bringing him upon his knees to the Throne of Grace that he may have the glory of his grace Naturally we are full of pride and would rise by that by which wee fell wee would be made happy by workes as wee are made unhappy by workes Every man that sees himselfe sees how that the whole streame of corrupt nature runs this way man will be doing working and acting that he may be justified But God will not suffer sinfull man to glory before him in his owne workes least he should loose the glory of grace Rom. 4.2 and therefore there is no salvation for us untill wee lie downe at the doore of grace If God enter into judgement no man living shall be justified in his sight Psal 143.2 God doth stop up all other waies to salvation but the way of grace that he may have the glory of his grace in justifing the objects and vessells of his grace God doth not so much intend mans salvation by grace as his owne glory and praise He formeth his people for himselfe that they may be happy in himselfe and with himselfe and they may shew forth his praise Psal 43.21 It is the minde and pleasure of God that every man should glory in himselfe therefore he justifies and saves us onely by that Grace which is in himselfe In the Lord shall all the seed of Israel be justified and shall glory And the Apostle when he had dicoursed of the grace of God in our election predestination and adoption doth sweetly acknowledge that grace doth streame forth unto us in all these particulars that it may be to the praise of the glory of his grace Ephes 1.5 6. He maketh us objects of grace that he may receive from us and wee be enabled to give unto him the glory of his grace All the Saints are brought forth standing before the Throne and singing forth this truth Rev. 7.10 Salvation to our God which sitteth upon the Throne and to the Lambe They ascribe salvation not to their owne workes merits deservings or worthynesse but to the grace of God and blood of the Lambe As earthly and grose bodies cannot mount up to Heaven which is a place of puritie and perfection but they fall downe by their owne weight to the earth unable to ascend thether So our works fall downe to the ground as unable to ascend up to the place of Gods purity and glory to justifie us in his sight that salvation may be attributed onely to his owne grace And he will not justifie us in the court of our owne consciences wee shall not read our names written in heaven till hee bring us from our owne workes righteousnesse performances and endeavours to rest upon the strong arme of his grace that we may give him the glory of his grace in our free justification and salvation Thirdly God saves us by Grace because if it were not by grace it had beene needlesse that the Lord Iesus Christ should have beene given to us If it had been possible for man to have wrought out his owne salvation by his own workes there had been no need that the Son of God should have disroabed himselfe of his glory and been made man like us Why should he have lived a life of sorrow and died a death of shame had it been possible for us to have gotten salvation by our own works Therefore the Apostle concludes that if righteousnesse had been by the Law then Christ had dyed in vaine And thus have I opened to you and shewed you the reasons why wee are saved by grace In aword now to make a little use of it and so I shall conclude for the present In the first place that which I have delivered concerning the eternall grace of God sufficiently confutes that error which is in the spirits of many men who thinke that workes and actings of the creature is the cause of Gods love to the creature God doth not love us because wee love him but we love God because he first loved us from eternity God doth not begin to love us when wee are made new creatures but God loveth us that we may be new creatures Faith is not the Antecedent cause but consequent of election Tit. 3.5 Not by workes of righteousnesse which wee have done but according to his mercy he
sinner faith hath made thee just it found thee wicked whom it should make just The second reason why it is thus by faith alone is because it is by grace unlesse we were justified by faith we were not we could not be justified by Grace This reason the Apostle lays downe Rom. 4.16 Therefore it is of faith that it might bee by Grace As if he should have said unlesse you hold that there is a justification by faith alone without workes you deny Grace if you will bee justified by faith and workes conjoyned you destroy Grace Therefore it is by faith alone that it may be by Grace When we have a true sight of Grace wee see a sufficiency in that Grace to doe us good for our justification and salvation soe that there is nothing needfull necessary besides grace In which respect Luther saith that workes are not necessary to justification but pernitious to salvation the gospell requiring faith only according to that of the Apostle Gal. 3.12 The Law is not of faith the law hath nothing to doe with beleeving that doctrine which bids a man to beleeve that he may bee saved that is the doctrine of the gospell the law biddeth us not to beleeve but the man that doth it shall live in it The law bids us worke but the Gospell bids us beleeve not worke and beleive but beleive only We confound the Covenant of workes and the Covenant of Grace if wee presse an absolute necessity of doing good workes for justification This was the Divinity of the blood-sucker Bishop Bonner who in a Sermon propounding this quest How grace is to be applyed to us for justification doth answer by beleeving rightly and living uprightly joyning faith and holinesse for justification by grace whereas by the Scripture of truth it is manifest that faith alone doth lay hold of Christ and doth appropriate him unto us And that holinesse doth flow and streame from the apprehension of our free justification by grace through faith alone though faith is not alone but is accompanyed with other fruits of the Spirit which follow it This must be well understood or else we shall nullifie the grace of God wherefore God enableth true beleevers to see this truth plainly and clearly Vilesceret redemptio sanguinis Christi nec miserecordiae dei humanorum operum praerogativa succumberet si justificatio quae sit per gratiam meretis precedentibus deberetur Ambros Redemption by the blood of Christ would be vilified the prerogative of mans workes would not stoop to Gods mercy if justification which is by grace were due to preceding workes A man that truely beleives he sees not any holinesse or qualification in himselfe that makes him more worthy of salvation then another man he sees that he hath deserved damnation as well as any one who is now in the place of torment and yet hee sees that such is the Grace the unspeakeable grace of God to his poore souâ—â— that though he deserve to lye as low in hell as Iudas for his sin yet he shall be raised as high as heaven by the grace of the father made knowne to him in Iesus Christ Brethren if upon examination you finde that your joy comfort and assurance have in the first place proceeded from any workes which you have in your selves which make you conclude that you shall rather be saved then another man your assurance is not a right assurance But if your assurance be right it is by beleeving that which is reported concerning the grace of God that so salvation may be by grace It is possible for men to deceive themselves in obtaining an assurance of Gods love and their happinesse therefore I will a little digresse to open this to the ignorant It may be thou takest comfort to thy selfe by looking on workes wrought by thy selfe and not by looking on Christ it may be thou conceivest that thou lovest God and from thence concludest that God loveth thee though thou hast not seen his free love to sinners this is a bastardly assurance brought forth by thine owne lying spirit and not the true assurance of the Spirit of grace in beleeving In a true assurance by faith God hath the glory of his grace But in this kind of assurance God hath not the glory of his grace therefore it is not a true assurance Another deceiveth his soule and thinketh hee is in a good condition because he resteth upon a promise of God Christ saith Mat. 11.28 Come unto me all ye that labour and are heavy laden and I will give you rest A man doth apprehend himselfe to be heavy laden and from the sight of his burthen doth conclude hee hath rest and is in a good condition but hee deceiveth himselfe with a false perswasion for the promise is not made to the qualification of wearinesse but the promise is made to the commers to Jesus Christ Cain was heavy laden with his sin and it lay so heavy on him that he concluded that the punishment was greater then he was able to beare or else that his sin was greater then it could be forgiven and yet died miserable without mercy Wee find that the sin of Judas lay so heavy on him that he repented that he had shed innocent blood yet for all this hee went to his owne place Therefore if thy comfort and assurance come from a sight of what is in thy selfe and not from the discovery of grace as it is layd forth in the Spirit of grace thy assurance will not advantage thee in the day of wrath Though God hath convinced thee of sin and there may be some legall repentance reformetion wrought in thee and something which thou mayst miscall a true love to God thou canst not from the sight of these things rightly conclude that thou art in the love of God before a discovery of free love be made forth to thee a sinner For God doth not apply his grace or his Sonne to any man for justification but through beleeving that justification may evidently appeare to the sons of men to bee by his owne grace Which will appeare if in the third place we doe more fully consider that God doth save us through beleeving that hee may have the glory of his grace God as hee is glorious in his grace by which hee justifies sinners so he will be glorified in the hearts and consciences of those who are justified by grace that he may have the ful glory of his grace when he hath justified them Non est quò gratia intret ubi jam meritum occupavit Bern. There is no roome for the glory of Gods grace where the worthinesse of our workes hath filled up the place Where the creature may have glory in his owne workes there God loseth the glory of his grace Where God doth any thing for the creature by grace there it is not of our works otherwise grace is no more grace If it be of workes then it is no more of grace
temptation and all his other fierie darts we may hold forth this buckler of truth That wee are saved by grace through faith Answer him therefore from this truth and he will be silenced Resist him in believing this trueth and hec will flee from thee Jam. 4.7 And the spirit will flie into thy soule to comfort thee So long as Abraham lived he lived as a justified man by faith So long as Paul lived he lived by faith in the Son of God Gal. 2. We dye rather then live when we are not under the power of the spirit enabling us to beleeve We lye downe either in the bed of carnall security or Familisticall Antichristianisme or fal under the bondage of the Law when we step aside from the plaine Doctrine of salvation by faith in our Lord Jesus And therefore the flesh and the Devill the great enemies to a Saints comfort doe joyne themselves together to oppose the doctrine of faith Sathan knoweth that faith and works are inconsistent in point of justification And when hee observeth that we are in some measure convinced that salvation is by faith he endeavours to perswade us that it is by faith and workes And would divide our Justification between faith and works As the harlet cryed out 1 King 3.26 concerning the child Neither mine nor thine but divide it So the Devill would have us divide our Justification attribute halfe of it to faith and give the other part to workes But the beleeving man seeth that there is salvation in Christ and not in any other and that no other name under heaven is given among men whereby they must be saved Acts 4.12 And that we rest upon this name for salvation only by faith In Christ we have boldness accesse with confidence by the faith of him Ephesians 3.12 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 Wee are manuduced and lead by the hand as it were with perswasion of Christs goodness to us by faith in Christ Continue in that faith by which Paul was justified who believed that Christ loved him and gave himselfe for him and thy comforts and peace shall be continued unto the. It it Melancthons observation that the word 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 which we translate faith doth most usually signifie a firme assent unto a thing usitatissimum est 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 pro firma ascensione dicere doubting is that which is contrary to faith Jam. 1.6 Believe therefore strongly and thou shalt have a strong peace Rom. 5. Beleeve that there is no remission of sinne but by Gods indulgence but beleeve this withall that by him thy sins are forgiven thee sed adde ut credas et hoc quod per ipsum peccata tibi donantur Bern. This is the faith which bringeth peace and consolation to the soule By this we are brought from fin to Christs righteousnesse from mount Sanai to mount Sion from the dominion of the Law to the region of grace from bondage to liberty from death to life from the feare of hell to the assurance of heaven and happinesse Archimedes was so delighted in the study of the Mathematiques that when the enemie who besieged the place where he lived broke in unto it he heard not the noyse and shouting of the souldiers nor the cries of the people So the soule that by faith liveth in Jesus Christ shall be carryed above the noise and troubles of the world and shall enjoy peace in Jesus Christ Let us therefore waite in the heavenly Hierusalem for more of the spirit by faith This lesson will appeare to be very necessary for the Saints if wee consider that the spirit of grace may be so quenched in Saints that they may not for the present be able to goe into the presence of God as Saints but as poore sinners And by the beliefe of this Doctrine a Saint doth easily get out of temptation For hee is taught of God in the Gospell to come unto him as a sinner without works when he cannot come as a Saint And in this way his joy with all the gifts of Gods grace are restored unto him And when they are restored hee doth keepe them by the resting upon God who saveth sinners by grace through faith And therefore the Apostle Peter when hee exhorted Saints to grow in grace doth adde and in the knowledge of Jesus Christ 2 Pet. 3.18 By which he doth seem to inform them that there can be no growing in grace unlesse there be a growing in faith which is the knowledge of Christ and the love of his Father in him In the last place here is a foundation of Salvation for all that have eares to heare and hearts to entertaine the report which you have heard of Gods grace which is manifested to sinners through faith Let not any man goe away with a heart of unbeliefe but the Lord open your eares and hearts as he did Lydia's that you may believe what is reported For truly if you believe what I have delivered you may goe away rejoycing and assured of Gods grace beholding your names written in the booke of life The true Gospell believed will remove all objections against your peace and all doubtings out of your spirit If as children of Abraham ye believe as he did Salvation will lye down in your bosomes and the true God in Jesus Christ will give you an answer to whatsoever you can object bring against your own salvation and justification It is not the sight of sinne that shall take away your comfort but you shall rejoyce that Iesus Christ did dye for sinners It is not the want of works that shall send you away without assurance or justification but you shall see that you have good right to lay hold upon Jesus Christ though you have no works because hee justifies none but those that have no works before justification The true God is not a justifier of the holy and righteous but of the ungodly God knoweth that the wisdome of the proud flesh doth strongly perswade sinners to seeke salvation in themselves and their own works The Jaylors question Acts 16. What shall I doe to be saved and the Rulers quaere Luke 18.18 What shall I doe to inherit eternall life is in the heart of every naturall man who is perswaded that there is an eternall life Man thinketh that as he became miserable by his evill works that so hee must be made happy by his good works And therefore God hath given his Law which requireth perfection to bring downe the pride of the flesh ad domandam Superbiam Aug. and confidence in our own works and discovered his free favour to the worst of sinners in the Gospel God hath blocked and stopped up all other ways to life besides the way of his grace in Christ and hath left this way open for the worst of sinners to turne in unto it for salvation So that as good works cannot save us without Christ being but glittering and gilded sins so evill works cannot prejudice the
men out of their wits cannot restore to themselves the use of reason so men spiritually mad cannot bring themselves to the light of grace By which expressioons it is plain that faith is not of our selves My last argument to prove that true faith is not of our selves is derived from the Word in which it doth acquaint us with the wickednesse and deceitfulnesse of mans naturall heart Our hearts are deceitfull and hypocriticall and therfore unfeigned faith cannot come from them and no credite is to be given to the perswasions of them our spirits they will deceive us therefore we are not to give any credite to any perswasion that comes from them a perswasion that is a perswasion meerely of our owne spirit is not a true faith or perswasion Who will believe a common cheater cozener lyar or impostor that cares not what he saith or speaks The heart naturally is like unto such an impostor or deceiver according to that of Jeremiah Ier. 17.9 The heart is deceitfull above all things and desperately wicked who can know it That faith therefore cannot be true which proceedeth from a naturall heart and that comfort cannot be sound which springeth from such a faith By which and the preceding arguments it doth appeare that the true faith of the Gospell is not of our selves Give mee leave now in a few words to make some deductions from this and so I shall commend what I have delivered and you to the blessing of she Almighty In the first place this may confute the Doctrine of Papists Arminians and Popish protestants that conceive that a man is able to do something to the furtherance of his owne justification and salvation This that hath been delivered being seriously weighed in our spirits is sufficient to overthrow this lying Doctrine which would attribute any thing to man or to the strength wisdome understanding will or affections of the naturall man in point of conversion justification and spirituall renovation One of the Ancients who was more enlightned by the spirit then any of his fellowes for the beholding of the truth of GODS grace doth as boldly as truly assert that whosoever shall pull downe the Doctrine of free grace by exalting mans free will is deceived with an haereticall spirit Haeretico fallitur spiritu Aug. And who will suffer himselfe to be so farre blinded as not to see that magnifiers of free-will doe overthrow the Doctrine of Gods grace and mercy which Paul preached when they shall hear him plainly concluding against all the free willers in the world Rom. 9.16 That it is not in him that willeth nor of him that runneth but of God that sheweth mercy The free grace and mercy which the Scripture acquainteth us with is inconsistent with mans free will to doe good of himselfe As Dagon was tumbled down when the Arke which was a type of Christ and Gods grace in him was brought into the place where Dagon was set up so when Gods grace by the power of the spirit appeareth it tumbleth downe and overthroweth the dagonish conceits Idolatrous apprehensions which men have of the strength which is of themselves to make themselves happy The spirits of men truly perswaded of the strength of grace and their owne weakenesse disclaime their owne strength and selfe-confidences for the making of themselves good And crye out with those in the Prophet Lam. 5.2 Turne thou us unto thee O Lord and we shall be turned But that these men may not say that wee deale unjustly with them in condemning them and not hearing what they can say for themselves let us heare what they doe usually thinke for themselves that so their mouths may be stopped by the truth of God And thus light may shine more gloriously by the dispelling those mists foggs and clouds of errour which would darken it The Scripture that some of them object against this truth is Revel 22.17 The spirit and the Bride say come And let him that heareth say come And let him that is a thirst come And whosoever will let him take the water of life freely From whence they conclude that there is a power in free will to take Christ and that if a man will he may take the water of life freely To this I thus answer that they draw more from the words then the words do hold forth The words say whosoever will may take the water of life freely but the word doth not tell us that any man is able to will this of himselfe It is true whosoever will may take the water of life freely but it is as true that a man of himselfe is not willing God alone enabling us to be willing to take this water of life freely Phil. 2.13 And thus yee see that if this argument be well weighed in the ballance of the Sanctuary it will be found too light to prove that for which it is alleadged But they are ready to reply againe and to demand of us the reason why God doth finde fault with men for unbeliefe reproving them for not comming unto Christ if they are not able of themselves to believe and come to Christ Answ Why should these men thus cavil against the goodnesse of God May not God with good reason and without offence inform us of our sinne though we are not able of our selves to forsake it It is a conclusion spiritually irrationall to say that we have power to amend our fault because God doth reprove us for our fault In these reproofes and the like God sheweth unto us his goodnesse in reproving us for our conviction he doth not inform us of our ability savingly to believe for our conversion But me-thinkes I see them returning upon us againe and making a new assault by another argument with which they thus oppose us or rather the truth and power of Gods grace Why doth God command entreat beseech the creature to beleeve if the creature have no power of himselfe to beleeve Ans Passages to this purpose which wee fiind in Scripture do acquaint us with Gods goodnesse to the creature in his revealed will and the creatures duty towards God they do not acquaint us with the secret effectuall and irrectable Rev. 9.19 will of God concerning the salvation of a creature nor of the creatures power in himselfe to believe of himselfe The conclusions of these men from such precepts exhortations and entreaties are very absurd and irrationall If wee shall seriously weigh them in the scales of right and sanctified reason God say they doth command exhort and entreat men to believe therefore men are able of themselves by some power in themselves to believe May they not upon as good grounds conclude that a carnall man may fulfill the whole Law and be saved by doing of the Law seeing hee is commanded in Scripture to fulfill the whole Law and exhorted and intreated to doe it I shall shut up this use with a sweet speech of a devout and spirituall man seeing man without the
that by Gods grace in the apprehension of it wee are made unblameable and holy before him in love which is all that I contend for I may adde this that if God had chosen us to love joy sanctification and the like which are sin and sinfull that then he had chosen us to sin or to something sinfull which conceit in my apprehension doth carry such an absurdity in the face of it that it needeth not a Confutation Object They are not sin in their morall nature as they ought to be done but they are so as done by us Answ God hath not chosen us unto them as they are considered onely in his command But he hath chosen us unto them as they are to be acted and done by us as it is plain by the words of the Text and therefore this objection hath no strength in it to weaken our argument Arg. 12. If the new creature were sinfull worke his sinful or sin it would nullifie Gods intention in our Justification who doth justifie us when we are unholy that he may make us holy Ephes 2.10 Wee are his workmanship created in Christ Jesus unto good workes which God bath before ordained that we should walke in them Wee are not ordained to walke in any thing which is sin or sinfull but to walke in good workes We are redeemed from sin that we might be purified unto himselfe a peculiar people And grace teacheth us to live soberly righteously and godly in this present world not sinfully but righteously God maketh us good trees by justification and then enables us to bring forth good fruit There must be a root before there can be fruit So God gives us a roote or seed of holinesse before wee can bring forth holy fruit and righteous actions And when the good seed is sown in good ground it cannot but bring forth good fruit Mat. 13.23 which place may give more light for the clearing of that objection where it was said that there could not bee good fruit though the seed were good because the ground is not good Arg. 13. God doth free us from the law of works and doth bring us under the covenant of grace that we may by grace be enabled to doe those works which we are not able to doe by vertue of morall commands The covenant of grace and Gospel-promises should be as ineffectuall for sanctification as the law if all that were wrought in us under that covenant were sin or sinfull And therefore it will follow that a man under grace hath a purity of sanctification in him God brings us from Moses who was the Law-giver and delivers us from the Covenant of works in giving us to Jesus Christ who is the giver of grace that he may make us holy in a gracious life and conversation The Apostle sets this forth unto us Rom. 7.6 But now wee are delivered from the law that being dead wherein we were held that we should serve in newnesse of spirit and not in the oldnesse of the letter We are freed from the service of God in the law of works under which wee serve as slaves till wee be brought to Christ that wee may serve as sonnes in obedience to all morall commands under the sweet gracious glorious government of the Lord Jesus Christ who is as well a Law-giver Isa 33.22 to write his lawes of faith and love in our hearts Hebr. 8. As a Saviour to save us from our sins And to cut off all objections against this argument wee may take notice that the fruits of the spirit are not onely called good and holy as they are in the promise or command but they are good and holy and called fruits of righteousnesse as they are wrought in us and by us with the omnipotent help and assistance of the holy Spirit We are called the trees of righteousnesse Isa 61.3 and feare and love are fruits of righteousness as wrought in us Jer. 31. Hebr. 8. The 14th Argument may be drawn from the oath of God If God should not performe this for the Saints God should be perjured which is blasphemy to speak The oath of God binds him God in his word which is the character of his mind hath discovered his hatred of perjury and false swearing we cannot think that God who hates perjury in others should forsweare himselfe but we have not only the promise but the oath of God for this so that unlesse we will say that God for-sweares himself we must subscribe to this truth to witt that God gives his Saints his Spirit and in the Spirit holinesse and righteousnesse I will give you a place for this Lu. 1.73 74. The oath which be sware to our Father Abraham What hath he sworne That he would grant unto us that we being delivered out of the hands of our enemies here is our Justification we are delivered out of the hands of sin death and the Devill But is this all No He hath delivered us out of the hands of our enemies that we might serve him without fear that is without slavish fear in holinesse and righteousnesse before him all the dayes of our life Some acknowledge that the people of God shall live holily and righteously to men-ward as they speake but that the righteousnesse of anctification is not to God-ward This place overthrowes this distinction he saith not that wee shall walk holily and righteously before men only as hypocrites may but he â—aith that we shall serve in holinesse and righteousnesse before him We shall not do such works which Luther and others have called vices vitia affirming that all the works of the regenerated man are vices nor such works which are sinfnl vitiata as some others speak buâ—uch workes which God who cannot lye cals righteous works nay righteousnesse in the abstract we shall serve him without feare in holinesse and righteousnesse not only in the sight of men for oft-times they look on good works as though they were bad but good in the sight of God they come from a sweet fountain therefore the water cannot be bitter or brackish from the fountaine of his owne Spirit in his Saints If the works of the Saints were nothing but sin or sinfull how could the Oath of God be fulfilled that they shall serve him in holinesse and righteousnesse all the dayes of our life Object Before him in this place as in other places doth meane under his protection Gen. 17.1 Answ Though it may be granted that sometimes before him may signifie under his protection yet it doth not appear that it should be the meaning of the holy Ghost in this place But he doth rather informe us how Saints doe approve themselves before God by sanctification As Paul laboured in godly sincerity to have his conscience void of offence towards God and towards men According to that speech of Hezekiah Isa 38.3 Remember O Lord how I have walked before thee in truth and with a perfect heart and have done that which is good in
it for the maintaining of the light thereof so we say that a Christian doth daily stand in need of spiritual oyle to be powred into his soule by Jesus Christ that he may shine forth in the light of truth Will you dare to say that the soules of the Just made perfect have no need of the teaching of Christ and that they have no dependance upon him because they are perfect Againe it is necessary in respect of the old man who is filled with hellish darknesse ignorance that Christ be looked upon as the great Prophet that wee may put off the ignorance which is in him may be more in the Spirit of Christ which will lead us into all truth It being the way of Gods working to shine into our dark hearts to enlighten them with the knowledge of his grace in Jesus Christ You may begin to see by what hath been delivered that this doctrine doth not overthrow the offices of Jesus Christ but doth sweetly to the glory of his Father confirm him in them Arg. 9. If the regenerate man work perfectly then is the wages reckoned unto him not of grace but of debt Rom. 4.4 But this cannot be that the wages either of the blessings of this life or the life to come should be of debt unto him and not of free grace seeing the Apostle testifieth that God of his free grace gives us his beloved Sonne and together with him all things Rom. 8.32 Answ This first place which is alleadged doth not reach the point in hand because the Apostle doth there speak of works done under the law for Justification and doth thence conclude that if a man be justified by those works which he doth under the law that then the reward is not of debt but grace because the law being not of faith Gal. 3.12 doth give nothing unto us in a way of grace But we are speaking of workes done and accepted under a Covenant of grace The principall cause of mens errour and mistake in this controversie is because they examine the new man and his workes by the law of works and not by the law of sanctification holinesse and love in the new Covenant of grace If wee did examine his workes by the law of holinesse which is in the new covenant we should plainly perceive that it is by the Spirit of grace that his workes are freely wrought in him and by this means all legall glorying and carnall boasting is taken away According to that of the Apostle 1 Cor. 4.7 Who maketh thee to differ from another And what hast thou that thou didst not receive Now if thou didst receive it why dost thou glory as if thou hadst not received it By which you may plainly see that the argument will not hold good to say that if a man work perfectly under a covenant of grace that his reward is not of grace but of debt I shal therefore give you a short answer to the first part of this argument by distinguishing of a two-fold working 1. under a law of works and there it is true that if a man worke perfectly his reward is of debt 2. Under a covenant of grace where a mans sin is freely forgiven him and by free grace he is enabled to worke righteously and there his reward is not of debt to speak properly but of grace Secondly Though we deny that God giveth any reward to a spirituall man as a debt due unto him for his merits and deservings yet wee affirme that God giveth rewards to a spirituall man who doth good works And therefore it is said that Christ commeth with his reward with him to give every man as his worke shall be Revel 22.12 And Mose esteemed the reproach of Christ greater riches than the treasures of Aegypt for he had respect unto the recompence of reward Hebr. 11.26 And this reward may be called a debt not in reference to mans merrit but in reference to Gods promise of grace as a man by his promise may make himself a debter to a beggar And therefore the Apostle speaking unto the Saints Hebr. 6.10 saith That God is not unrighteous to forget the worke of the Saints and labour of love And John exhorteth us that wee lose not those things which we have wrought but that we receive a full reward 2 John And in this sense something may be given unto us as a reward of that work of grace which is given unto us before it Our confidence in Gods grace may have a great reward in this respect According to that of the Apostle Heb. 10.35 Cast not away your confidence which hath great recompence of reward And this may be an answer to the second part of this argument Arg. 10. If the workes of the regenerate be not evill because the holy Ghost worketh them Then the works of the unregenerate as his love and obedience to his parents are not evill Answ There is a generall concurrence of God as the prime cause in the doing of some things by wicked men and thus God may concur to the doing of a thing yet the thing as done by the wicked man may be evill because not done in faith And it is no solid argument to conclude from hence God did concur in the doing of this thing and therefore it is not sin or sinfull 2ly There is a speciall concurrence of Gods grace and Spirit in the doing of a thing as hee is the principall agent in working good spiritually in the Saints who are under a covenant of grace And when God doth concur w th the speciall powerfull assistance of his grace for the effecting of a thing in a Saint it is safe to draw a conclusion to prove the goodnesse of the thing from the considering of the principall agent which did concurre in the doing of the thing As John doth in these words maintaining that a spirituall man considered as a spirituall man and acting as a spirituall man cannot sin because his seed remaineth in him By which distinction you may see the weakness of your argument with which you would prove the unsoundnesse of my arguing from God considered as the principal agent to the effect And the disparity of Gods working in the regenerate and unregenerate When God doth work in a spirituall man that which is spirituall it is not only good substantially and materially but formally and circumstantially by the grace of God as I have proved at large And therefore this argument is not strong enough to overthrow what hath beene delivered Arg. 11. Either the holy Ghost workes the works of the regenerate man wholly as the sole cause and then it is not wee but the holy Ghost that believes that loves that fears God that repents that prayes for the forgivenesse of his sin c. which were absurd to imagine or else we also work with him in some kind of causality to the producing of those workes that so the works may be said to be ours our loving our