of God by Reason bringing down all spiritual Expressions to the level of Man's Understanding And if no more be intended by them things are strangely worded in the Bible 't is not the manner of men to speak so to cloath their natural Notions with such Phrases and Words peculiar only to the Scriptures as do not at all symbolize with any mere humane conception and therefore must needs signifie something higher something beyond all that ever entred into the heart of a Natural Man if not then farewel all Revealed Religion it seems nothing is revealed in Scripture but mere words Natural Theology is the thing into which all Scripture must be interpreted all the use we are to make of the Scriptures according to them is only to borrow some peculiar words and expressions as so many new Terms of Art appropriated to Religion by Divine Authority What a strange conceit is this to borrow from the Scriptures new Bottles to put our old Wine into our Sense into Gods word so spoiling both God's Words are too big for our sense and our sense too low and mean to fill up such high Expressions which can never by any rule of speech be brought down and contracted to so narrow a signification so that whilst we accommodate the Word of God to our own false Conceptions of Divine Things we understand neither God nor our selves we think absurdly and speak improperly But those who understand the pure Lauguage of the Gospel they see a suitableness between the Words of the Holy Ghost and the things of the Holy God. I have read to you out of my Text the Words of the Holy Ghost 't is God only who must shew both you and me the thing it self intended and meant by these words And now to come a little nearer let me begin with the Context Iohn 3. 3. One would have thought the high Opinion Nicodemus had of Christ ver 2. As a teacher come from God a worker of miracles and one whom God was with And Christs earnestness in asserting the truth of what he laies down so positively ver 3. under a solemn Asseveration that it was certainly so should have led Nicodemus to the belief of what Christ affirmed but 't is not the Opinion we have of the Preacher nor his earnestness in Preaching nor the certain truth of what he delivers will perswade us to receive this Doctrine of Regeneration till God enlighten our minds and give us experience of the thing in our selves Observe All natural Men have strange gross Apprehensions of the Doctrine of Regeneration Nicodemus applies all that Christ said to natural Generation mistakes the Mystery of the new Birth not comparing Spiritual things with Spiritual but with Natural He cannot rise higher than a natural Generation and thinks that must be repeated in Regeneration if any such thing be though never so often repeated 't is still the same thing done the same way by entring the second time c. And how can a man be born when he is old But suppose there were such a thing as a natural Regeneration in Nicodemus's Sense this would not mend the matter in making us more fit for Heaven for we should be sent again into the World in the same corrupt Nature as we had before whatever is born of the Flesh is but Flesh still omne simile generat simile therefore a natural Regeneration supposes no change but reproduces a man in the same State Form and Nature as he had before If a Man were ten thousand times Born naturally he would be the same Man still But the Regeneration Christ speaks of makes him a new man and therefore could not be by entring a second time into his mothers womb Nicodemus knows nothing of any such new Birth that should bring forth a new Kind or Race of Men into the World of a different Genius Complexion and Principle from all that are Born of a Woman but because the Scripture does so plainly speak of such a thing they who read the Word dare not deny it altogether and therefore place the whole Mystery of it in external Baptism do suppose it always compleated there of course and will hear no more of it ever after they count it absurd to call upon grown baptized Persons especially old Men and Women to labour after a Regeneration that they think is past and over long ago when they were baptized Observe None but a regenerate Person understands the true nature of Regeneration Others can never reach it because they don't feel it in themselves 't is a personal Change wrought in every individual Saint men may see our outward Profession our outward Walking our Praying Hearing Preaching our Moral and Religious Practices but the Principle from which we Act and by which we are carried out in all these things is infallibly known to none but God and our own Souls we may search into our own Hearts so far as to discern this new Birth and we should not rest till we have found it out That we might the better understand the Nature of Regeneration let us consider the several Names given it in Scripture Regeneration Renovation New Creation Conversion are Synonimous terms in Scripture and do all signify the same thing do all imply the Corruption of Mans Nature that produceth nothing but what is like it self how specious soever it may seem to be 't is but Flesh therefore all fleshly Wisdom Beauty and Glory must be mortified and abolished the Scripture calls for a new Birth a new Creation after the Image of God that Man may be enabled to do good created in Christ Iesus unto good works Ephes. 2. 10. Baptism is the Sign and Symbol of Regeneration and does imply the thing it self when the inward Work of the Spirit goes along with the outward washing of Water which it does not always do this Wind bloweth where it listeth Regeneration is of a larger Extent and Signification than Justification and Sanctification 't is initially all that belongs to a state of Grace 't is fully described Tit. 3. 5. by washing and renewing there is a double washing from Sin. First From the guilt of it by the blood of Christ 1 Iohn 1. 7. Rev. 1. 5. Rev. 7. 14. This washing is Justification therefore called Baprism unto remission of sin Mark 1. 4. Acts 2. 38. Gal. 3. 27. This is Baptism unto Justification by the blood of Christ. Secondly From the filth of sin by the Spirit of Christ 1 Cor. 6. 11. 1 Cor. 12. 13. This is commonly called Regeneration Tit. 3. 5. Ioh. 3. 4 Born of water this is baptism unto sanctification Rom. 6. 3 4. Col. 2. 12. These two internal Washings are always joyned together 1 Cor. 6. 11. the one perfect the other imperfect Justification in nature only precedes Sanctification and being the Act of God upon us and towards us is perfect but in Sanctification God takes us along with him we concur in every Act of Sanctification he works in us to
will and to do but 't is we that will and do I conceive it lies something wide from the truth to put as some do Regeneration for Sanctification lying in the mortification of sin and newness of life which is rather an effect of Regeneration than that in which it consists the renewing of our Nature supposes a union to Christ an ingrafting into him who is the Root that bears us communicating all spiritual virtue and sap to those Branches that are vitally joined to him Therefore I shall describe Regeneration or at large define it thus viz. 'T is a wonderful work of God begetting the Elect again unto himself by implanting them into Christ from whom they derive a spiritual being and in whom they live spiritually for ever and ever growing up daily into his likeness till they come to the stature of a perfect man in him In Regeneration there is a supernatural form of true holiness impressed upon the Soul that the preternatural form of sin and ungodliness brought in by the Devil may be abolished nothing that is physically natural is abolished by Regeneration which takes not away any natural faculty or affection of the Soul only sets them upon right Objects Regeneration produces a new spiritual being in the Soul draws the Image of God upon the heart sets the Soul into a holy order and rectitude when the natural faculties of the rational Soul are brought under the power of supernatural Principles that man is regenerated Regeneration implies the beginning of the new Life or new Creature birth is the beginning of life we are born of God Iohn 1. 13. This is caused by God's quickning of us Eph. 2. 5. in and through our union to Christ by faith who is our life a quickning Spirit in us and to us 1 Cor. 15. 45. They who are born of God are not still-born but born alive quickned by the Spirit of Christ. This new life appears most in the Will by its real tendency towards God Phil. 2. 13. Where you see the will of a man turned to God and Christ you may be confident God hath been at work in that Soul this great quickning work of Regeneration usually appears first in the Will in the gracious motions and inclinations of the will of man towards God and Christ there may be an illumination of the Mind without any conversion of the Will the darkness of the Understanding is sooner removed than the corruption of the Will there may be many strong convictions wrought before there be any true conversion of the Will that stands it out to the uttermost before it consents to come to Christ and cast the Soul upon him by an act of faith and when the Father has drawn the Will to that act of faith repentance is always joined with it Acts 19. 4. Mark 1. 15. Faith principally respects Christ but Repentance is towards God himself whom we have offended by our sins Acts 20. 21. therefore Repentance turns us into the Will of God seeks to please him by doing only what he approves of Works meet for repentance Acts 26. 20. These Works are an effect of Gospel-repentance that flows from faith in Christ. Legal Terrors that accompany a legal Repentance are before Faith and cannot be removed but by faith in Christ Jesus an unregenerate man may attain to a Legal-repentance and be much terrified but he cannot attain to a Gospel-repentance in turning from sin as contrary to God's holiness Indeed this Gospel-repentance that flows from Faith may be sooner perceived than Faith it self a Sinner cannot easily perswade himself that he is reconciled to God in Christ before he finds in himself that he hath left those sins that separated him from God. Regeneration lies in creating in us a habit and vital principle of Faith which disposes and inclines us to actual believing this very principle denominates a man a Believer in the sight of God before he actually believes so regenerate Infants may be said to be Believers In Regeneration there is a power put into a man to believe and repent which are acts of the new Creature so that a man must first be a new Creature and that which makes him so is Regeneration before that an unregenerate person is called an old man the old man is distinct from our selves as men we must distinguish between the corruption of humane Nature and humane Nature it self which Regeneration does not destroy but perfect it implies a change of state and a change of nature the foundation of both is laid in our Regeneration by virtue of our incorporation into Christ who of God is made unto us righteousness and sanctification the efficacy of his Blood and Spirit does reach our Souls being one with him we die with him and rise with him are discharged from sin upon the account of his Satisfaction and are raised up unto newness of life by vertue of his Resurrection We pass through all the states that Christ passed through we die with him are crucified with him we rise with him ascend into Heaven with him are glorified with him there is nothing that God requires of Believers in a way of faith and hope but he hath given some instance already in his Son Jesus Christ of the actual accomplishment of that thing We hope to be justified from our sins because Christ is justified from 'em they were laid upon him but he has freed himself now from the imputation of them and therefore will appear the second time without sin Heb. 9. 28. We hope for a resurrection of the Body because Christ is risen we hope for glory because Christ is ascended and glorified So the Apostle argues 1 Pet. 1. 21. Who by him do believe in God that raised him up from the dead and gave him glory that your faith and hope might be in God. There is as much reason for the justification of a sinner believing in Christ as for the Justification of the Person of Christ himself it is upon the same account so that our case is an adjudged case already upon record in Heaven it is no new thing for God to pass by our sins he having passed them all by in Christ no new thing for God to justifie such sinners as we are having already justified Christ admitted him to Glory and set him down at his Right Hand These are all instances of what you may expect from God the Father The Covenant of Grace requires no other Righteousness for your Justification but that of Christ therefore I would perswade you to keep up a high value and esteem for the Righteousness of Christ it will support you under the greatness of your own sins and under all the defects of your own Righteousness What is it that troubles poor souls their sins are great and their Righteousness small and what will become of them they know not Set the Righteousness of Christ against the greatness of your sins and against all the Imperfections of your own Righteousness raise up
repent He calls them a generation of Vipers tells them of the wrath of God and preaches the Baptism of Repentance for the remission of sins He points to Christ Behold the lamb of God that takes away the sins of the world that was Iohn's subject Peter converted the Iews by Preaching Christ and Remission of sin in his name the remedy must not be concealed Though Peter denounces a heavy Judgment against Simon Magus yet he lays down some ground of comfort had he had Grace to consider it we must keep back nothing God would have spoken to sinners we must not be always affrighting your consciences with Legal Terrours 't is necessary sometimes to draw the Sword of the Law that sinners may see their danger but we must tell them also whither they must fly for refuge else we preach not the Gospel we don't know how far the Sword of the Law may enter how deep it may cut into the Conscience of a convinced sinner it may be dangerous to leave the wound bleeding one night without applying some Gospel-Lenitive pouring in some oyl our first Faith in Conversion sometimes takes more after the Law sometimes more after the Gospel as the Spirit sets it a work either for Terror or Comfort we must not limit the Spirit of God in one or the other we must not say such a one shall be humbled to such a degree shall lie so long under Terrours of Conscience before comfort be spoken to him the Spirit is the best judge of this and knows our frame better than we do and what way of procedure is most suitable to the inward sense and feeling of such a one's Soul this must be left to God to speak Comfort or Terror when and in what degree he pleases We who are Ministers must lay down the ground of both in our Preaching and insist upon one or t'other as we see occasion But God may do as he will. If I see a broken humble sinner a little revived under a sense of Mercy and Pardon I would not check his comfort nor seek to bring him under terrors again but if I see a hardened impenitent sinner going on in his sins I would lay the Law before him in the most terrible manner I could and shew him the dreadful consequence of a Course of sin persisted in that the wrath of God is revealed from Heaven against all such who do not repent and turn to God that they may find Mercy we cannot Preach the Gospel but we must refer to the Law the Gospel shews how we may be delivered from the curse of the Law and therefore must needs mention it and I am sure we ought not to Preach the Law alone without any discovery of Gospel Grace 6. We must not limit the Spirit of God in converting sinners to such or such degrees of humiliation contrition or terror as we think necessary for we are not competent Judges in that matter so much Contrition of sin as causes a loathing of sin a desire to leave it and to obtain Mercy of God in the Pardon of it is sufficient for conversion God may carry on this Humbling work farther or farther to a higher or lower degree as he thinks fit as the present frame of our hearts may require Saving Conviction is the first thing in order belonging to Conversion but that conviction to such a degree of Repentance Humiliation and Terror should always be a fixed constant Preparatory work antecedent to all beginings of true Conversion is not so evident That all true Converts are convinced of their Sin and Misery by Nature I no way doubt and that the Law is of excellent use to work and heighten these Convictions is not to be denied and that many be under meer Legal Convictions and Terrors who may or may not be afterwards converted is not disputed neither the Spirit of God may improve a common work those terrors or any other afflicting providences to lead a sinner to Christ but it does not therefore follow that such Legal Terrors must always go before Conversion no more than such or such awakening Providences made use of by God to Convert some should necessarily befall all who are converted Saving Gospel Conviction of sin includes in it all that is in a mere Legal Conviction with this difference that under a Gospel Conviction of sin we see the folly of it as well as the danger and always have an eye to Christ which does alleviate the sinking overwhelming Terrors of a meer Legal Conviction only which is as the nethermost Hell a dark dungeon indeed without the least cranny for any beam of Gospel light to shine in upon a poor distressed Soul trembling under a sence of eternal vengeance It is not the design of Christ that any so concluded under wrath by Law should be left one moment without any tender of Gospel grace which if they do reject and despise God may and does sometimes judicially give them up to a final Tormenting despair We cannot rationally urge upon sinners that which is the consequence of final unbelief till we have first Preached the Gospel to them and then at their peril be it if they believe it not Some Convictions of sin that issue in Conversion will be found to have their beginning with it i. e. some Convictions that issue in a visible Conversion may have their beginning in an inward latent and yet invisible Conversion to us that does not at present appear under that name To our discerning the Soul may be in travel some time before the New Creature appears before we can say such or such a one is born of God and yet the Converting act of the Spirit of God may be truly passed in that Soul before it is manifest to us in the sensible effects of it Let us not separate saving Conviction from true Conversion and look upon it as only Antecedaneous and Preparatory to it when indeed 't is a real part of it and essentially belonging to it A true Gospel saving conviction of sin is a higher work of the Spirit of God in a regenerate Soul than a meer Legal Conviction of sin is in a Natural man let it run up into never such Frights Fears and Terrors There are some common lower works of the Spirit that may be and are sometimes mistaken for saving grace and there are some special saving works of the Spirit that go but for a common work with some Common works are not always in the intention of God so much as Preparatives for Conversion it may be said to be finis Operis but not Operantis God not giving them Grace to improve their Legal Convictions either they wear off or else they sink under them into despair The Law may terrifie a sinner but till his heart comes to be affected with the love and mercy of God he will never turn from sin but then his Soul melts within him he looks unto him whom he has pierced and is
Law as killing another I speak this to shew how legal convictions may hurry a man from one sin to another but they never lead him into a constant setled way of true Holiness whence I infer that Convictions purely legal will never work Repentance unto Life How Repentance unto Life is wrought by the Gospel Because God hath appointed the Gospel to be the means of Repentance Luk. 24. 47. Rom. 16. 25 26. to the Glory of his Free Grace as Justice is glorified in the Damnation of an impenitent sinner so Grace is glorified in his Conversion Evangelical Repentance is from a Discovery of Gods Love and Free Grace His goodness leads us to Repentance Rom. 2. 4. 2 Pet. 3. 9. Psal. 130. 4. A true Penitent fears least he should miss of Mercy and come short of it he rejoyces at the good News of the Gospel begins to lift up his head in some expectation of a blessed Redemption he serves God chearfully being perswaded that his Duties and Services will be pleasing to him and accepted by him for Christ sake Psal. 130. 4. Hos. 6. 1 2. a sence of love and mercy quicken up a drooping trembling sinner to return unto God the Prodigal remembred what a kind Father he had Luk. 15. 18. 't was Pauls Argument Rom. 12. 1. 2 Cor. 7. 1. 'T is a sad thing that the Grace of the Gospel which is intended to keep men from Despair should be some be made an encouragement to presumption God forbid we should continue in Sin because Grace abounds 2. The Grace of the Gospel is not only an appointed Means but is in its own nature a fit means to work repentance suited and adapted to that end the goodness of God leads us to repentance the Schoolmen tell us that amor est congregativus and they give this reason for it because it does congregate and gather in our roving scattered thoughts from those various lesser Objects after which they go fixing our Minds upon God the only soul-satisfying Object Love is conciliative when God doth through Faith let in any sense of his intended grace towards sinners the heart melts under it a sinner does not repent that he may believe but because he does believe something of the Love of God to sinners in Christ Jesus some inkling of this is come to his ear hath touched his very heart before ever he sets upon repentance and now he can hold no longer the love of Christ constrains him great is the power of Love when it commends it self to us in some signal expressions of kindness to our visible advantage and benefit 3. Because Christ gives repentance Act. 5. 31. he purchased this and all other graces for us by dying for us he not only obtained pardon of Sin in our Justification but all inherent Graces in the Saints come from Christ he procured them for us he works them in us his sufferings being not only satisfactory for sin but meritorious of grace to be bestowed upon us though the Law can't sanctify a sinner yet Christ can and 't is an act of special grace towards us when he doth but he will first satisfie the Law and Justice of God that being brought under grace by our free Justification we may answer to the Law of grace in our sanctification denying all Ungodliness and Worldly Lusts living soberly and righteously here below as the redeemed of the Lord ought to do the Law commands perfect Obedience but in case of Failure the Gospel Promises Faith and Repentance Zach. 12. 10. Acts 11. 18. 4. Because God hath annexed a quickning Spirit to the Gospel to make way for his Grace and to give it a prevailing efficacy in the Hearts of men they are drawn by the loving kindness of God and cannot resist it the Spirit opens the Mystery of the Love of God in Christ and so charms the Soul with it that it is impossible to withstand the allurements of it 5. Because the ways and means of bringing a sinner to life are all supernatural the Law speaks nothing of this the Law never puts us upon any thing that is supernatural I mean that originally was so to man in his perfect state for then it had been quite above the reach and capacity of Mans Understanding but God suited his Law to those inbred Notions and Principles of Truth that were concreated in us the way of salvation through Faith and Repentance being supernatural we must apply our selves to the Gospel to know this 3. The necessary Connection that is between Evangelical Repentance and saving Faith. I prove it thus 'T is so in the first production of Repentance and in all the subsequent acts of Repentance therefore 't is alwayes so In the first production of Repentance if you consider how this was wrought by Iohns Ministry Mat. 3. and Luk. 3. these two things will evidently appear First That Repentance alwayes presupposes Faith. Secondly That Repentance rises out of Faith. And how I will clear up this by a brief Paraphrase upon those words Repent ye for the kingdom of heaven is at hand Iohn is brought in inviting sinners to Repentance the Argument he uses is plainly this God is inclined to Pardon you therefore Repent I come as a forerunner to prepare the way that by bringing you the first newes of Gods intended grace and favour towards you I might soften and mollify your hearts and dispose you to a ready thankful acceptance of Christ this offer of Grace is called the Kingdom of Heaven because it is inclusive of all the happiness that Heaven can afford all good comes along with Pardoning Grace I see says Iohn you are all lying under the sad damning circumstances of your own sins in a very woful miserable condition compassed about with Hell and Death with horror and darkness all things round about you look very black and dismal I am come to put you into a better state to offer you a Kingdom which will shortly appear in all its Glory 't is at hand 't is coming toward you Heaven it self is come to look after you to lend a helping hand to lift you out of this horrible Pit before it shut its mouth upon you see that you refuse not this grace that you put not from you the word of the Gospel least you judge your selves unworthy of Eternal Life as Acts 13. 46. i. e. it will as plainly appear to be so as if it had been so declared in open Court upon a fair hearing of your Cause if Heaven and Earth were to sit in Judgment upon you they would conclude you most unworthy of Everlasting Life and by putting the word from you you have in effect passed this judgement upon your selves or you have done that now which your own Consciences will so interpret at the last day they will then tell you you might have had life and pardon but would not you would not come to Christ that you might have life therefore your damnation is just you deservedly
stand behind the whole Creation of God and blush at the mischief he hath done the World groaning with all his fellow Creatures to be restored to the glorious Liberty of the Children of God. Serious thoughts of our lapsed estate must needs beget this self-abhorrency in us that we should thus unman our selves and become like the Beasts that perish nay worse than they because we cannot so perish as to cease to be the immortality of our Souls making us naturally capable of a miserable Eternity how should we then be consounded in our own sight and be yet more vile in our own Eyes We cannot presently take in the full sense of our wretched state the grossest sins of our Lives are not to be compared to the sins of our Nature they might pass for particular acts of folly which we were hurried into by the violence of some sudden Temptation we might hope that Nature would recover it self but that being poysoned and turned into a root of Bitterness what fruit unto Holiness can ever grow upon such evil Trees as we naturally are 'T is not any improvement of Nature by Art or Industry that will recover us there must be a real Change of Nature wrought in us and how few are convinc'd of the necessity of this A Toad may as soon complain of his Poysonous Nature as Fallen Man of his Corrupt Nature we are reconciled to every thing that is natural to us else it could not be natural whatever is a part of our selves can be no burden to us 'T is a sign the Spirit of God hath been at work in that Soul who is grown into a dislike of himself hating what he is and what he doth from a carnal Principle T is a sign there is another Spirit and Principle stirring in him 'T is impossible there should be true Grace in that Man who hath no afflicting sense of indwelling sin The flesh is flesh still even after Regeneration the New Creature is raised up in the presence of the old man they live together awhile tho' at continual variance till the fleshly part be abolished then the new creature will stand up by it self in a perfect state of Glory in the stature of a perfect Man in Christ. Sin tho it cannot hinder the Birth of the New Man yet it hinders his growth and depresses that for a season till Mortality with all that belongs to it be quite swallowed up of that Eternal Life which we derive from Christ in our Regeneration if we dye strangers to this life of God and Godliness we with all our Forms Names and specious Pretences to Religion shall be swallow'd up of Eternal Death and never see the Kingdom of God. Verily verily except a man be born again he cannot see the Kingdom of God. T. C. A DISCOURSE OF Regeneration c. From IOHN iii. 3. The Introduction THE Sound of these Words at the first reading may convince any Considering Person That Christian Religion is a great Mystery the way to understand it aright is to look into the internal Parts of it not into the Words but Power of Godliness Many and various are the outward Forms by which Professors are unhappily distinguished pleasing themselves with different Superstructures upon the same supposed Foundation But let every man take heed how he buildeth thereupon 1 Cor. 3. 10. There is Gold Silver and Precious Stones in some Buildings and too much Wood Hay and Stubble in others Before I set fire to this by a spirit of Judgment and Burning let us all examine our Foundations and see whether the whole House is not to be pulled down and built anew we had better pull down a House weakly founded than suffer it to fall upon our heads then we perish in the ruins My Text leads me to this search I hope you will all join with me in feeling for the Rock if we find it we may with more comfort and success set upon the mending and repairing what is amiss otherwise The Text speaks of the Nativity or first Original of a Christian and derives his Descent from above from Heaven from God from the Holy Spirit this is very high we may look for something extraordinary in such a Birth which is here called Regeneration or our being Born again or a second time This is a great Mystery and cannot be understood till it is in some measure felt Regeneration is not a Notion but a Nature not a mere empty Speculation floating in the Brain but an inward living Principle rooted in the Heart I am not speaking of things without you at a distance from you that are foreign and extrinsecal to your souls but of that which is essential to the Being and Constitution of a Christian as such you are not only my Auditors this day but each of you the subject of my present Discourse I am not only speaking to you but of you 't is what you are or are not in the inward state of your souls that I am now enquiring after By comparing your selves with the word you may know how far you do or do not answer to the Character that is given there of the New-born soul the essential Properties of that Nature in which we live must needs be owned by us they are in us they are of us bone of our bone and flesh of our flesh they are our very selves no sensible considering man can be without this knowledg of himself he cannot deny his own Image which he sees with his own Eyes In a glass face answers face so 't is with the heart of a Man describe it as it is in its present Actings Motions Principles and Inclinations 't will fall in with you to a tittle I would not speak a word and I hope God will so guide me that I shall not utter any thing concerning this new Birth which falls not under the experience of the weakest Christian who is really born of God If I shoot over the heads of others 't is none of my fault we must speak of Divine Things as they are laid down in the Scriptures whether we are understood or not understood Preachers do only explain the Object they cannot enlighten the Faculty they may open the Text but they cannot open the Hearts of those that hear them to understand the Scriptures this is God's work Faith cometh by hearing therefore he that hath ears to hear let him hear I cannot bespeak your Attention by a stronger Argument than that in my Text Except a man be born again he cannot c. That which the Word of God so plainly puts as a bar to our entrance into the Kingdom of God we are all concerned to see that bar removed who have any hope of entring into that Kingdom Give me leave to reason with you out of the Scriptures about this great Point of Regeneration Some place it in that which a mere natural man may pretend unto passing over the whole Mystery of the Gospel they construe the Word
unaccountable Contingency nor can ever be brought about by any mere humane contrivance what remains but that we ascribe it as the Scripture does to the Divine Will of him to whom all things are possible beginning at the Eternal Purpose of God in Election so proceeding downwards through all the methods ways and means appointed by God for the carrying on this great work of his in the hearts of men The truth is the first breaking forth of Electing Love upon us is in our Regeneration 'till something of it appears we cannot know any thing by all that is before us of God's Eternal Love to us Our actual taking any thing up into our hands argues a previous choice that our eye was upon it before So here God has from Eternity made choise of some for Salvation his Eye was upon them from Eternity and when his Grace takes actual hold of them we may then through our present effectual Vocation see up to our Eternal Election and by these visible streams go back to the invisible Fountain of Free-grace in the heart of our Heavenly Father By what he does in time we know what he intended from Eternity Let none despair of this Grace who wait upon God for it all those who have already passed the streights of the new-birth were once under as discouraging circumstances as any now can be but God had mercy on them and so he may on thee he breathed the breath of Spiritual life into them and so he can and may into thee he is a God that raises the dead dead Souls as well as dead Bodies We may see in the eye-lids of some the very shadow of Eternal death but God can turn that shadow into the morning and cause the day-spring from on high to visit them Election alters no Man's state till it issue in Conversion then you may see your names written in the Book of Life from a sence and feeling of that life in your selves to which you were fore-ordained 'Till we are regenerated we cannot tell whether ever we shall be God knows but we do not The Election shall obtain Rom. 11. 7. Therefore all that have obtained must ascribe it to Election That the purpose of God might stand according to election Rom. 9. 11. The cause of this great change that Regeneration makes must be resolved either into the Will of God or Will of the Creature there is no medium between God and the Creature whatever is done is by one or the other Some resolve Conversion and Regeneration into Man's own power derived from that general sufficient Grace purchased by Christ for all men But if man in his perfect state fell under that general sufficient Grace which he was certainly endowed with at his first Creation How can we now suppose any such general grace to be sufficient to recover fallen Man and to keep him for ever from a relapse Therefore we must place fallen Man under some stronger influence even that of Effectual Grace which does not only shew unto Man the way of Salvation by Christ but effectually draws his heart to an actual closure with Christ joyning him to the Lord in one spirit This Effectual Grace in saving some does no injury to others they perish justly from the demerits of their own sins these are saved freely through the merits of Christ. Let us not be too curious in enquiring why God saves one and not another there is a covering upon the face of this great deep The ways of God are unsearchable and his judgments past our finding out all must be resolved into the Soveraign Will of God Why should our eye be evil because his is good who does what he will with his own and gives no account of his matters Because God has purposed from Eternity to shew mercy to some not telling us who let every own study his own Salvation and put in for his share of this Free Grace which is offered to all intended for some and why not for thee Those who embrace the Promise and believe in Jesus will never find any Decree in Heaven against them hindering their Salvation and those who refuse the Promises will not come to Christ when called shall never be saved by virtue of any mere Decree Faith and Repentance are as much under the decree of God as Salvation it self if the Decree of God bring not forth such things in you now as accompany Salvation 't will never bring forth Salvation it self The Doctrine of Election is a comfortable Doctrine if we apply it to the Means as well as to the End They who deny this Doctrine and plead so much for Man's Free-will they do and must hold a falling from Grace tho God loves them now they are not sure to continue in his love nor never will be 'till they run up all their hopes into Electing Love. When once they see that God has loved them from everlasting which they may do by resolving all the present fruits of the spirit into election as the Scripture teaches us they can strongly argue from the unchangeableness of God That he who has loved them from everlasting will love them to everlasting for whom he so loves he always loves to the end Let me make some use of this Point there may be some difficulties in it but I hope God will clear them up to your Souls If the Subjects of Regeneration be the Elect only the Elect and all the Elect Then prove your Election by your Regeneration you cannot prove Regeneration by your Election for bare Election if you know it alters no Man's state Many of the elect of God lie long in an unregenerate state Election is never in Scripture brought in as a proof of Grace in us but Grace in us is brought in as a proof of our Election To prevent mistakes in some convinced tho yet unconverted sinners ay and in some weak trembling Believers too whose convictions of sin do put them into no small fright When I say Regeneration is a good proof of your Election let not any say Then my unregenerate state is as good a proof of my Reprobation it does by no means follow for these Reasons 1st Because an unregenerate state or a state of sin and unregeneracy has not that dependance upon or relation to eternal Reprobation as Regeneration or a state of Grace has to our eternal Election A state of Grace flows from eternal Election but a state of sin and unregeneracy does not flow from eternal Reprobation but from the fall of Adam God permitting it as a means through which his electing love would effectually work for the more glorious restauration of Man. They who are regenerated are elected Rom. 8. 29 30. but those who are not yet regenerated cannot be said to be not elected or reprobated 2dly A state of sin and unregeneracy is common to all both elect and reprobates but a state of Regeneration peculiar only to the Elect. We are all born in sin all by nature the
Children of wrath all the Saints here on Earth and all the Saints now in Glory above were once in an unregenerate state 3dly An unregenerate state is alterable we may pass out of it into a better state but a state of Grace is unalterable We may rise up out of a state of sin but we cannot fall out of a state of Grace we may even in a state of Grace fall into many particular sins out of which God will recover us by repentance but we can never fall quite out of it into Hell. The Decrees of God are unalterable and so is a state of Grace flowing directly from thence but a state of sin and unbelief is alterable I speak this to the support and comfort of all convinced sinners that none may sink into utter despair because there is yet hope concerning them The Scripture does not put us upon proofs of Reprobation but Election We are commanded to make that sure 'T is true final Unbelief and Despair are the certain consequent of Reprobation but we must stay till the end come we can positively determine nothing till then God calls some at one hour and some at another hour till the day of Grace be quite spent and the last minute of the last hour quite run out We can conclude nothing of any Man's Reprobation There are certain Men ordained of old to condemnation I do not doubt of it God may and doth sometime swear against such and such totally withdrawing for ever from them and yet 't is hard for any man to know this of himself or any other for we see some who in their own judgments have been left to a total final despair have yet been recovered those who in their own and others apprehensions have been under invincible hardness and unbelief of heart yet that also has been overcome and they brought to a better frame and temper Secret things belong to God Let us not be too rash in this matter 't is enough for a terrified sinner to know the badness of his present state should he know more 't would quite overwhelm him he would be fit for nothing but Hell. God hides this usually from the wicked'st men upon earth to see how they will carry it under the means of Grace that they may be the more inexcusable at last who lived so long in the view of their danger and of the only way of escape by Christ and would not come unto him for Life The best way to know your Interest in the decree of Election is to study your present state well You 'll say What are we to understand by the present state of our Souls And how shall we know what that is Answ. The present state of our Souls lies in the relation we stand in either to Heaven or Hell in that capacity we are in for eternal Salvation or eternal Damnation if we should dye this Instant To know this aright we must consider how God has stated it every Man 's present state is stated by God in the Word mark well what his declared judgment is of such as we are who live as we live do as we do think as we think I stand not much upon the judgment of a Man concerning his everlasting state unless it fall in with the judgment of God in the Scriptures many will judge themselves as their fears or hopes do lead them without any reference at all to the Word of God. We that are Ministers must join with the Word whether it be for you or against you If you come not up to the terms of the Covenant you are cast by the Word we shall quickly understand your Case but if you 'l make new terms for your selves and say If I have not such gifts such degrees of Grace such enlargements and sensible comforts if I still remain under such temptations such afflictions I will never believe I am a Child of God you may say and believe what you please but I know no Word of God from one end of the Bible to the other that says as you say There is no end of these Objections you 'l be sure to hold to your Opinion you give so much credit to your self and so little to the Word in that case that all we say from thence in answer to your doubts signifies nothing whereas if you grounded your scruple upon any Word of God we could answer you by some other Word of equal authority with you and then we should be heard and be able to satisfy you by reconciling Scripture with Scripture and consequently you to your self It may be some fearful Saint or some secure sinner will object and say I am not like to understand my present state this way for I can't believe the Word against my own sense and experience as I think to the contrary Having already spoken to doubting Saints I 'll suppose this Objection to be made by some secure sinner I Answer Admit this viz. That you can't Believe c. yet however be persuaded to draw up your case out of the Word and say what you cannot but say if you mind what you read If the Word of God be true I am in a lost state but I have a better opinion of my condition than so Could we bring secure sinners thus far the time may come and will come if you belong to God when his Word will have more weight with you than your own present thoughts and imaginations and then you 'l judge of your selves as the Word judges and no otherwise What ever your present hopes or fears may be you 'l come over to the Word and be of the same mind with that concerning your Eternal state Don't say as some generally do If I am Elected I shall be Regenerated and saved at last so putting off all from your selves upon God's Decrees as if they left no room for your Duty as if the Decree of Election had no determining influence upon your wills to bring forth what is decreed in a way agreeable to your rational nature by inclining you to the free use of all means appointed by God in order to your Salvation Whereas you say if you are Elected you shall be Regenerated and Saved pray follow that thought home pursue it a little further bring it to an issue don't stop in the midst of a thought in the midst of your reasonings but come to some conclusion If I am elected I shall be regenerated c. But I am not Regenerated therefore I am at present in a state of wrath and for ought appears yet in me I may be in a state of Reprobation And is this a state to be rested in Do you make so light of it Can you eat and drink and sleep so securely under it Methinks your own Hypothesis should lead you whether you will or no to some consideration of that dreadful conclusion which may follow upon on it since God has comanded you to make your calling and election sure
acted either according to the natural capacity of the subject or the efficacious assistance of the Spirit for let our rational faculties be never so quick and strong they cannot carry out a Child of God much less others to the least act of Faith without the help of the Spirit 2dly In respect of their Temptations Those who have been exercised with strong Temptations born down by the power of strong Corruptions when converting Grace comes it comes with an actual strength proportionable to the actual resistance that 't is like to meet with so pulling down the strongest holds of Satan Habitual Grace infused at our first Conversion is the seed of God. The Spirit sets home the Word and causes a spiritual conception in the heart raises up the living Image of the living God in the Soul of a dead Sinner This Immortal Seed or Eternal Principle of Grace has the strength of Christ in it and is able to cope with original corruption But when it opposes strong acts of sin in those who have been accustomed to do evil and by their frequent practise do sin with a stronger hand than ordinary in this Case a principle of Grace must be drawn out into acts of a proportionable strength to these mighty acts of sin to put a stop to them for the future and to turn the sinner from them God said to Paul My grace is sufficient for thee my strength is made perfect in weakness the power of Christ did rest upon him That degree of Grace may prevail over one sinner that may not so soon prevail over another I speak in respect of acquired habits or acts of sin which hardens the heart the more besides the Devil does not always make the like furious assaults upon all God knows how to suit the dispensations of his Grace to the present necessities of the Soul A Disease the further it spreads the deeper root it has taken in the Body requires stronger Physick and more effectual Remedies to remove it So 't is with the Soul and Christ the great Physician applies himself accordingly with a sufficiency of actual effectual Grace As he took notice how many years the Daughter of Abraham was bowed down and bound by Satan So he observes what power the Devil has got over such or such a Soul if his name be Legion Christ will cast him out being able to save to the uttermost Christ is more put to it to save some sinners than others in comparison There is in this respect a greater difficulty in saving some than others How hard is it for them that trust in riches to enter into the kingdom of God 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 It signifies one who has a nauseating stomach a 〈◊〉 swallow he kecks at every thing nothing will go down with him you may as soon draw a Camel through the eye of a Needle as bring a rich Man to Heaven But with God all things are possible God is here brought in acting according to the utmost possibility of his power in saving a Rich Man This may be another Reason why some are regenerated into a higher degree of Grace and spiritual strength than may be found in some others All have the same habit of Grace in the principle all have a sufficiency of actual Grace but all have not the same measure neither is it needful they should and so comparatively one Saint may be stronger or weaker than another in the first moment of Regeneration 3dly In respect of their Employments and Callings which may render them capable of higher service for God in the World than others may be called unto I instanced in Paul before so I may in Magistrates and Ministers now God in Conversion gives in Grace suitable to their Stations and Callings in the World. Saul when anointed King was turned into another Man tho that was but a civil Conversion yet it holds true in saving Conversion Also the Spirit of God divides to every man severally as he will and sets the Members every one of them in their proper place in the body under their proper peculiar gifts and qualifications that may render them useful to each other The Head cannot say to the Feet I have no need of you yet the Head is the most honourable part of the Body And you should covet earnestly the best Gifts There is a gradual difference in the Gifts and Graces of the Saints according to the several Offices they bare in the Body of Christ as Eyes Hands Feet and according to the several opportunities that Providence puts into their hands of serving the interest of Christ in their Generation Thus much of the Manner of Regeneration in a more general way I shall now speak to the Manner of Regeneration with a peculiar respect to the Gospel Notion and Nature of Regeneration as it consists in the Souls ingrafture into Christ by a vital Union to him through Faith Christ being the proper Fountain of that New Life which we derive from him in Regeneration and which is ever after maintained by him in all his true Members abiding under the quickning Influences of Christ their Living Head. The particular Manner of Regeneration in this Gospel-Notion of it will further appear in the right stating of this following Question viz. Quest. Whether the first step in Regeneration be from Sin to Holiness or from a sinful state and nature to Christ that we may be made holy by him I affirm the latter There can be no Change made in our Nature by the Spirit of Christ in our Sanctification but upon a Change of State from our closing in with the Blood of Christ for Justification The Spirit of Christ doth always follow the Blood of Christ 't is the Purchase of that Blood so that the sanctifying Spirit of Christ extends himself in all his saving Operations no further than the Body of Christ none but Members vitally joined to Christ their Head can be quickned by him therefore no man or woman can be savingly wrought upon by the Spirit of Christ who continue in a state of separation from him I grant many changes may be wrought in a mere natural man which amount to no more than a Moral Reformation and do all lye within the verge of an unregenerate state Were there no more in Regeneration or Conversion than a turning from Sin to Holiness than a change of Life and Manners arising as some would have it from that General Sufficient Grace purchased for all and which we may make effectual when we please this puts Regeneration and Conversion into Man's Power But Regeneration implies more than all this amounts to not only a Change of Life and Manners but of Nature and Principle we must first fix the Principle before we talk of doing we may as well do the Actions of a living Man without Life as act like Christians without Christ Christ is our Life a quickning Spirit in all his Members Therefore I state the Question
up pure Legal Preaching under the New the Law of it self works no saving Conviction of sin in any further than the Spirit of the Gospel goes along with it We may tell men their doom according to a Covenant of Works but we are bound at the sametime to preach Christ to them and not leave them under the Law in hopes of a Preparatory work that may fit them for the Gospel The Law alone works too violently we cannot stand under the terror of it Heb. 12. 18. We are not called to Preach Damnation to sinners but Repentance Christ came not to condemn the world but to save it We do indeed preach Damnation to impenitent unbelievers but first we preach Repentance which we cannot do from the Law alone therefore something of the Grace of the Gospel must be mingled with the severity of the Law for if that alone be pressed we may drive men to utter despair I mean an absolute despair of Salvation which prepares none for the Gospel but quite alienates their minds from it as an offer made too late Indeed a despair of Salvation by the works of the law may prepare for Christ but then we must Preach Christ too I think we ought not no not for a Moment to conceal all Intimations of Gospel-Grace from convinced sinners purposely to keep them under the terrors of the law till they are as we judg sufficiently broken and humbled Some have been put into such a fright by that way of proceeding that has distracted them all their days Certainly a Gospel-Ministry is the only Ministry appointed by Christ there is law enough in that to bring us to the knowledg of sin the Gospel does hold forth the danger and the remedy too and so must the Preachers of the Gospel God is so far from expecting any preparations in Man that he calls men of all sorts which shews that Conversion is not limited to such or such antecedent qualifications in us God knows best when to begin his work in us we must leave it to his Infinite Wisdom to chuse the season wherein he will shew us this Mercy he that gives the gift knows the fittest opportunities and moments to bestow it upon us How many are surprized with a sudden Conversion in a time when they looked not for it when their Friends and Relations did little expect it when they seemed to be in a frame farthest off from it breathing out Cruelties and Threatnings as Paul but when the time comes according to the purpose of God of their effectual Calling the Work is done in an instant the heart is suddenly struck and the Sinner turn'd into another Man to the wonder of all who behold it God prevents us by his Grace turning us to himself sometimes in the height of our obstinacy and when we are without all previous Dispositions to such a Conversion Isa. 65. 1. He finds a heart of Stone in us and turns it into a heart of Flesh. Conviction of Sin is always included in Conversion 't is a part of the Call it self while a Sinner is in his way to Christ actually coming to him he comes every step he takes under a Conviction of his Sin and Misery that Mercy may be the sweeter to him this is but as the opening of a Wound when a healing Medicine is to be applied some Wounds may be longer in opening and dressing than others we must leave this to the Wisdom of our heavenly Physitian Conviction of Sin is not only necessary to our first Conversion but to all Acts of after Conversion in the Saints themselves when they have fallen into any foul sin God made David feel the burthen of his sins We must be made to know what God in justice may do against us before we come to him for Salvation he is a just God and a Saviour Mercy is most acceptable when we see our selves in misery I was brought low and the Lord helped me says David 3. The Law is of excellent use to work this Conviction that is absolutely necessary to Conversion The Law is our School-master we are under the tuition of the Law but not under the dominion of the Law not at the disposal of the Law. The Law is our Counsellor and Director but not our Lord and Master it has not power of life and death as formerly it had The Law was given after the Fall to another end than 't was before the Fall. The Law was a Covenant of Life to Adam standing declaring the justification of a Righteous Man but now 't is as loud in condemning the Sinner The Law speaks to Man according to the different state he is in of Innocency or Sin The condemning voice of the Law is kept up in the ears of sinners to provoke them to come to Christ. The Law was Four hundred and thirty years after the promise made to Abraham and could not disannul the Covenant of Grace but only serves as a School-master to lead us to Christ. The great Lesson we are now to learn is Christ faith in Christ The Law serves to evince the necessity of this the Law teaches the same thing with the Gospel but not by the same argument It argues from love not wrath 4. There is Law enough comprehended in the Gospel to work this preparatory conviction of sin we have an authentick Copy of the Law in the New Testament 't is kept there on record in terrorem Cursed is every one c. Do you not hear the Law says Paul Thus the Gospel sets life and death before us Death to all who are under the Law and Life to those who are under Grace therefore let us study the Gospel and study the Law in the Gospel 5. The Law is to be Preached but never alone by it self without any mention of Gospel Grace nothing purely legal can prepare a sinner for Conversion the Law must be Preached not legally but Evangelically as 't is in the Hand of our Mediator who knows how to use it for Conviction for Humiliation and Repentance The Law tempered with the Gospel is an excellent means for the Spirit of Christ to work by the Law is now appendant to the Gospel so much of the Law is taken into the Gospel as is sufficient to produce Conviction Humiliation and Terrour too if need be but the Law alone is not to be Preached That is not in our Commission as we are Ministers of the New Testament This Preparatory work I am speaking of is principally ascribed to the Gospel as appears by Iohn's Ministry Iohn the Baptist was the greatest Legal Preacher in all the New Testament yet a true Gospel Preacher too viz. his special business was to carry on this Preparatory work in order to conversion and how does he do this observe his method he proclaims the coming of Christ draws arguments from thence to bring them to Repentance Repent ye for the Kingdom of Heaven is at hand therefore
not say that all are unregenerate who see not all these marks in themselves but those who have them not to be wholly defective in any one of them overthrows our state These marks are so linked together as to the certainty of their being that they are inseparable tho as to our perceiving 'tis otherwise we may not so clearly discern some of these in our selves as we may some others I would carry it with as gentle a hand as I can I perceive these marks in the right application of them will bear hard upon us all and it may be leave us under a godly jealousy of our selves examining our state with trembling Truly this I aim at I am sure we shall suffer no loss or damage by it in the end God has put his own stamp upon his own workmanship that it may be known to be his Shew me your Regeneration under God's seal and mark and I shall rejoyce with you in it and pronounce it to be his workmanship indeed And now Brethren produce your evidences such as the Word of God calls for I shall begin with the first Mark 1. He doth not commit sin he cannot sin He sinneth not but doth righteousness Here is a Negative and a Positive Mark what he doth and what he doth not I shall first speak joyntly of them both together and then separately of each apart by themselves The sense in general of this Scripture is That he who is born of God does so far express his Image and take after his Holy Nature as to hate that which is evil and to love that which is good he has put on the new man which after God is created in righteousness and true holiness Escaping the corruption that is in the World through lust If ye know that he is righteous ye know that every one that doth righteousness is born of him He proves the new-born Soul to be a true Child of God because he so much resembles his Heavenly Father in Righteousness and true Holiness we cannot be partakers of his Nature but we must be also partakers of his Holiness they are inseparable But to keep to the Negative mark He commits not sin c. The common interpretation of this Text is That such who are born of God sin not with full consent and allowance they go not on in a course of sin they sin not the sin unto death c. All this is true and does belong to the interpretation of this Text yet I conceive there is something further intended as the ground of all this viz. That he who is born of God as such sins not at all He that is a new creature may sin but not as a new creature this is an absolute truth contained in the Text. Under all the distinctions limitations and soft interpretations that are given of this Scripture we must be sure to maintain the words of the Text as they are expressive of a certain absolute truth else we shall quite lose the mark here laid down by the Holy Ghost of Regeneration and therefore I shall first fix that and make it as plain as I can that we may the better judge of our state by it 't is matter of Life or Death all is now upon Tryal your eternal Interest lies at stake therefore in so great a case we had need go by sure marks and signs and none so sure as those that are in express terms laid down by the Holy Ghost of Regeneration as we must not raise them too high in contradiction to other Scriptures so neither must we sink them too low lest we lose that Characteristical difference that the Holy Ghost here puts between the Regenerate and Unregenerate the mark lies here viz. That there is in every Regenerate Soul an inward living Principle of Grace and Holiness inclining us to good but never to evil always giving check to sin never approving or allowing of it A Regenerate person may fall into acts of sin through humane Infirmity but cannot give himself over to sin in a constant habitual way he cannot go on in sin 't is against his Nature he may be surprized into an act of sin but the new Nature will quickly recover it self and cast out that sin by Repentance A good tree cannot bring forth evil fruit sin is not so connatural to a Regenerate Person he can't brook it his heart rises against it from the Antipathy he has to it when he does sin he would not sin and this we say is from the Grace of Regeneration The assertors of Free will do hold That man cannot incline to good without the general assistance of the Spirit of God but they own only such an assistance as may be resisted by us and leaves it to our option whether we will do good or evil but that the will of man should be determined by God to a good act and yet act freely under that determination is that which some will not understand supposing such an overruling efficacy of Divine Grace to be inconsistent with the liberty of man's will. The prevailing efficacy of sin in fallen man is undeniable whose thoughts and imaginations are evil only evil and that continually yet those thoughts and imaginations with all outward acts proceeding from them are free so that what they deny to the efficacy of grace they allow to the efficacy of sin That it seems does not destroy the liberty of mans will but the efficacy of grace does the mistake lies in a misapprehension of the Nature of Irresistibility grace is irresistible not because it cannot be resisted but because it cannot be overcome else 't would not be effectual the efficacy of Saving Grace lies in gaining over the free consent of the will to follow its motions and inclinations God made man perfect and that he might not impose upon his rational Nature left him a free agent giving him liberty to good or evil his Perfection did not lye in having liberty to evil but in not using it in abstaining freely from evil out of choice when he fell God withdrew and left him perpetually inclined to his own first choice which nothing can draw him off from but effectual Grace not by forcing but changing his will. It was never the intent of God in our first Creation that man should exert his power both ways to do good and evil but that he should freely chuse his own way at his first setting out and be delivered up into that Power which he should first Exercise By his obedience he would have been confirmed in good never to have fallen from it so by his disobedience he was confirmed in evil never to be recovered out of it till free Grace of its own accord relieved him And this it does gradually not all at once which is the reason why the Saints in their imperfect state here do both good and evil being flesh as well as Spirit Grace has the Predominancy because it enters in
against the full Power of reigning sin breaks in upon corrupt Nature whether it will or no sows immortal seed where never good fruit grew before the Predominancy of sin lies in a total exclusion of Grace but the Predominancy of Grace lies in its gradual entrance into the Soul because it opposes the whole body of sin or indwelling corruption in making this forcible entrance forcible in respect of corruption that would keep it out free in respect of the renewed will through which it passes by consent God in opening the heart makes the heart to open it self Believing is our act but the power of doing it is God's They who are endued with this Divine Power cannot do the evil they would do and are inclined to by nature Gal. 5. 17. They are no more servants of sin Rom. 6. 17. But have ceased from it 1 Pet. 4. 7. They cannot sin there is something in them called here the seed of God that cannot sin 1 Iohn 3. 9. They are born of God but he that committeth sin is of the Devil ver 8. a Child of the Devil To clear up this further There are two different Natures two contrary Principles in the Saints Flesh and Spirit the Scripture speaks of them sometimes according to one Principle sometimes according to the other and sometimes according to both as Flesh so no good thing dwells in us we all sin he is a liar that says he has no sin as Spirit so we don't commit sin we can't sin are inclined only to good by that Divine supernatural Principle as Flesh and Spirit so not a just man upon Earth but sins tho he be just and holy truly sanctified in his Regenerate part yet he is unjust unholy unsanctified in his unregenerate part there he fights against God the law of the Members wars against the law of the Mind the sense of this remaining enmity against the Law of God makes the Saints complain of their wretchedness O wretched man that I am Rom. 7. 24. What carefulness what clearing of themselves what Indignation and Revenge 2 Cor. 7. 11. Tho God has forgiven them they cannot they will not forgive themselves they cut off their right hands and pluck out their right eyes The Scripture speaking of a Saint according to one or other of these two Principles speaks of him personally as two Men each distinct from the other as if a Saint when acted by a carnal Principle were not the same Man with himself when acted by a spiritual Principle Physically and substantially he is the same Man under both Principles but spiritually considered under those Divine Qualifications belonging to him as a new Creature he is not the same Person in God's account nor by his own reckoning not I but Sin that dwells in me Could we keep up this distinction under a prevailing Temptation clearing our selves and laying Sin at its own door not I but Sin 't would afford much comfort to us and quicken us up to a speedy Repentance An unregenerate Man when he sins he can't say 't is not I he lies if he says so he sees nothing in himself that opposes Sin as Sin no 't is his own proper doing his own act his whole Will is in it he can't say the Evil I do I would not do Can we in any sense say That we do not commit Sin that we cannot Sin do no iniquity Is there such a Principle within us that we can say from our Consciences we would not Sin even when we do Sin That 't is against our Inclinanation 't is a force upon the new Creature we are in Pain and cry out under that Act of Violence committed upon us 't is an unwilling Captivity that we are led into I have done with the Negative part what a regenerate Person does not He does not commit Sin. I come to the Positive part He doth righteousness Negative holiness in abstaining from such and such Sins will never prove a Man to be born of God we cannot conclude safely and strongly from this negative Mark That we are born of God unless it be from the universality of it if we can truly say We hate every evil way do fly all appearance of Evil cannot suffer Sin in our selves or others without a holy Indignation against it this indeed has something in it is very significant we may infer from hence that we are born of God that which makes this Mark so conclusive and significant is not only the universality of it but chiefly this that where-ever this negative Mark is there is also the positive Mark to be found he that escheweth Evil does Good. The force of one Mark is best understood in Conjunction with some other one single Mark is but a slender evidence of a state of Grace unless it run into some other which is the inseparable consequence of it The Positive part is He doth Righteousness what do ye more than others Opèratio sequitur esse all things have their active qualities especially where there is Life there must be active Faculties and an active Principle life it self is an act the life of a Christian is a life of the highest activity from Principles truly Divine and Heavenly that have their energy virtue and efficacy from God himself who is a most Pure Simple Eternal Act the Fountain of all Action and Motion to his Creatures as he pleases more or less to communicate himself unto them Since we are made partakers of the Divine Nature surely 't is in order to a godly life that it may appear whose off-spring we are whose image we bear being born of the Will of God we must do the Will of God which is the only rule and measure of all Righteousness in doing which we must respect the matter what God commands and the manner of doing what is commanded What is materially good is obvious to all who know but the Moral part of Religion all the difficulty lies in the manner of performing it the spirituality of the action lies here that it be done from a Gospel principle and to a Gospel end it must be done in Faith and in a constant dependance upon Christ for strength doing what we do as unto the Lord out of a Religious respect to his Holy will whatever we do we must do to his Glory 't is below a Christian to seek himself to live to himself God hath set a part the man that is Godly for himself These are sure marks of Regeneration Hold the glass of the word close to your Consciences look again and again upon these Scriptures examin your selves strictly by them Can you prove your Regeneration by these marks as they are proper and peculiar only to the Regenerate 'T is not every forbearance of sin nor every outward act of righteousness that will come up to this mark these Scriptures speak something to the experience of every one who is born of God that no Unregeneman in the world understands The ear
' tries words as the mouth tastes meat the word has a peculiar rellish and savour in it to a Spiritual pallate The secret of the Lord is with them that fear him the word reveals it it opens the heart of God to man and laies open a man to himself discerns the thoughts and intents of his heart 't is 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 a discerner a critical judge of the frame of a mans heart and of the state of his Soul shews a Child of God how and wherein he differs from an unregenerate person and by this discerning Word we must judge of our selves He that is born of God commits not sin cannot sin but does righteousness you who are born of God do know what God means by these words I am sure you know it there is a strong spirit in these words they are critical words discerning distinguishing words and if there be any true life in you they will more or less affect you you cannot but be concerned at the hearing of them Hold the highest Spirits to the Nose of a dead Man rub him all over with them yet no heat no motion no lively colour because he has not a natural principle of life to mingle with them to feed upon them I would commend my self to your Consciences this day I hope you feel me as well as hear me When you drink any strong spirits they heat within the vital spirits do take them in feed upon them are raised by them so when spiritual truths are held close to the Conscience if there be any life there the Spirit of God within thee will close with the Spirit of God without thee in the Word there will be an inward burning in the heart the Leaven works strongly and under these inward workings of spirit I desire to leave you debating the matter between God and your own Souls till you have brought it to an issue and can say by the light of these Scriptures that you are or are not born again 2. He doth righteousness Every one that doth righteousness is born of him and Whosoever doth not righteousness is not of God. The more we resemble Christ in righteousness and true holiness the more evident it is both to our selves and others that we are born of him descended from him and therefore cannot but take after him a true Christian is and will be a follower of Christ this genius or disposition to all practical righteousness flows from our new Birth rises out of the new Nature which the Apostle ascribes to the Death and Resurrection of Christ as the procuring cause of all newness of life in us which is but our likeness to his Resurrection we die with Christ that we may live with him being freed from sin not serving it any more but yielding our selves unto God as those that are alive from the dead and our members as instruments of righteousness unto God. This plainly proves every regenerate person as such to be a doer of righteousness inclined to all holiness by virtue of his Regeneration which casts in a new leven makes us a new lump as original Sin infected the whole man so Regeneration sanctifies the whole man in Body Soul and Spirit The fruit of the spirit is in all goodness righteousness and truth Regeneration inclines us to follow Christ the filth of the Soul is carried off by the washing of Regeneration and renewing of the Holy Ghost hence we are said to be born of water and of the Spirit There is a natural inclination in a regenerate man to do good he does it willingly not by constraint Grace is got into his nature the Law is written in his heart therefore his heart inclines him to keep the Law. As Sin entred so Grace enters Sin entred into all the powers and faculties of the Soul weakning the whole man so Grace diffuses it self through every part of the Soul strengthning the whole man in every part In Regeneration we are renewed after the Image of Christ growing up into his likeness like in judgment and affection not that our natural Faculties are altered but only brought under the power of a supernatural principle we don't cease to be men only we become new men men of other minds spirits and dispositions than before taking after the second Adam not after the first being by Faith implanted into Christ we are made partakers of his Divine Nature this is called a second Birth or a new Creation though out of the same physical materials of Flesh and Blood the change is only spiritual as the Wild Olive when engrafted into the True as to its materials remains still the same 't was wood before so 't is still only there is a new sap secretly convey'd through the pores of it which make it bring forth more kindly and pleasant Fruit so the Sinner as to his physical substance was Flesh and Blood before conversion and so he is still yet there is an inward spiritual change wrought in him by his implantation into Christ who infuses his Nature Spirit and Grace through the Man so making him a new Creature not taking away his Manhood but sanctifying his Nature God is the Fountain of all Holiness 't is essential to him it goes along with his Nature is entail'd upon all who are born of God being partakers of the Divine Nature they must needs be holy as God is holy God appropriates goodness and righteousness to himself in the abstract and is the original Spring of all righteousness in the Saints Let us exert and put forth our new birth and live a life of faith The life which I now live in the flesh I live c. We are created in Christ unto good works that we should walk in them Let us then abide in Christ that we may bring forth much fruit for without him we can do nothing Corruption indeed is always active in a Saint because it acts naturally without any cessation but Grace does not always act at least so sensibly in a Saint because it must be first acted by the Spirit who is a free Agent should Grace always be as active in us as Corruption we should mistake it for Nature and ascribe all to our selves the Spirit of God is always in Believers but does not always work so effectually so sensibly the operations of it are not so manifest to us as sometimes they are This righteousness that is said to be done lies not so much in the perfection of the Deed as in the perfection of the Doer he aims well though he cannot always hit the mark he cannot do the good he would yet he wills it and that is doing in God's account who accepts the will for the deed The inclination or tendency of a new-born Soul to holiness appears three ways First Before the Temptation i. e. not before the being or existence of a Temptation for there is no such season we are always compassed about
with many Temptations a regenerate Soul is aware of this and fears always But before we enter into this or that particular Temptation that we see coming towards us or have reason to suspect from the present circumstances we are under here a regenerate person watches and prays that he may not enter into that Temptation that God would some way or other divert the Temptation or fortify our hearts against it that we may repel it A Temptation may enter into us when we don't enter into it then it goes as it comes and makes little or no impression upon us when a Temptation shews it self to us at some distance the Seed of God in a regenerate Soul presently takes the alarm puts on the whole armour of God. Secondly Under the Temptation when the Flesh has betrayed the Soul into the hands of a Temptation has been tampering with it then does Grace struggle and fight and cry out unto God for help all this shews the activity of Grace in a way of righteousness how loth it is to be overcome of evil Thirdly After the Temptation when 't is ended or finished then it issues either in the commission of the Sin or conquest over the Temptation Grace shews it self both ways First After the commission of Sin what repentance what godly sorrow what shame what indignation what revenge Secondly After the conquest over the Temptation what rejoycing what thanksgiving what triumphing in the Grace of Christ So that you see here lies the manifest difference between the Children of God and of the Devil An unregenerate man cannot do righteousness his skill lies not that way he is wise indeed to do evil but to do good no knowledg he is a meer Bungler at a good work his hand is always out because his heart is never right with God. He may do what is materally good but always fails in the manner those spiritual Ingredients which the Gospel requires to a work truly holy are wanting Thirdly Whosoever believeth that Iesus is the Christ is born of God. And every spirit that confesses that Iesus Christ is come in the flesh is of God. They prove each other being inseparable The going forth of the Soul by Faith unto Christ as the anointed of the Lord sent and sealed by the Father to undertake the great work of Man's Redemption is a sure evidence of Regeneration All unregenerate men are strangers to Christ they know him not they desire him not they think they can shift well enough without him None know the Son of God but those who are born of God. When the Spirit comes into us then we confess that Christ is come in the flesh Christ conveys himself through our nature to our persons the Divine and Humane Nature must be first united before our persons can be admitted to any communion with him The Humane Nature of Christ is the foundation of all our Communion with God our access to God is through the veil of his flesh Being born of the Spirit we stand related to the Person of Christ he is not ashamed to call us Brethren we can then call God our Father as he is the Father of Christ our elder Brother God was the Father of Christ before his Incarnation and continues still to be so after his Incarnation not only to him but to all who are born of his Spirit The Spirit of Christ being the Spirit of him who is God and Man knows how to raise up a seed of godly men and women The Infinite Eternal Spirit of the Son of God being poured out without measure upon the Man Jesus Christ operates through both his Natures hypostatically united in his Divine Person in whom all the fulness of the Godhead dwells bodily without any diminution of its infinite excellencies and Divine properties from the assumption of our finite humane nature so the same Eternal Spirit of Christ dwelling in us in a lower way of union to our persons does act indeed Divinely but yet according to our finite capacities all intellectual acts are finite or infinite as the persons are that do them the Person of Christ being infinite so are his spiritual actings notwithstanding his finite nature as Man so the actings of the Spirit of God in the Saints are finite because their persons are so Actiones sunt suppositorum Actions are personal of greater or lesser degree of efficacy and power as the persons are that do them Faith in Christ Jesus being the birth of the Spirit must needs be an infallible mark of Regeneration the design of the Spirit of God in working Faith in us is to bring us to the knowledg of Christ and through him to the knowledg of God wherein consists our true happiness This is life eternal to know thee c. Faith is the beginning of Eternal Life in the Soul and the manner of conveying this Eternal Life from God unto our Souls is called Regeneration Thus you see how he that believes that Jesus is the Christ is born of God. The next inquiry will be how Faith does this or how believing in Christ does work that universal change in the Soul which the Gospel calls Regeneration Tho the beginning or rather all the essentials of Regeneration are found in the first principle of Faith created in us by the Spirit of Christ yet this does not appear to us but by those lively operations of this Faith put forth by us We have an inward feeling of these operations the sense of which does lead us to some discerning of that spirit and principle from whence they flow 'T is actual Faith Iohn means in this Epistle therefore he joyns it with Confession he lays the Mark upon actual Faith for that only falls under our discerning God indeed sees the first seeds and principles of Grace but they are known to us only by the sense we have of their powerful actings in us and therefore I shall consider the regenerating Power of actual Faith and shew how it does discover that new birth that came in with a principle of Faith at first The Regenerating power of Faith both in the principle and in the act is very great it makes a marvellous change in us So strong are the impressions of Faith about Christ and our everlasting concernments in him that we must needs be much affected with the discovery which lies in two things 1. In a convicting knowledg of our sin and misery by Nature 2. In an astonishing discovery of God's Grace and mercy to us in Christ. The Spirit of God demonstrating both unto us with such clearness and evidence that we cannot but be persuaded of the truth of them in our own case and being so persuaded we must be concerned about them Faith draws in the attention of the mind to those things we believe in reference to our selves fixes our thoughts upon them dwells upon the consideration of them there is no evading the serious thoughts of Faith no getting them out of
are Born of God do thus live by Faith here below they consult not with Flesh and Blood their affections are suited to the apprehensions of their Faith they are filled with Joy unspeakable and full of Glory by believing they see good days a coming when all Tears shall be wiped from their Eyes they wait patiently till then rejoycing in the hope of the Glory of God. Till we get into this frame walking in the evidence of things not seen we shall never overcome the World for the things that are seen conceive them in what shape or posture you please have their emptiness and vanity in them will never satisfy they are but finite and temporal the present Fashion of this World be it what it will passes away into something else while we are a beholding it all things here below moulder and crumble away in our hands perish in the using are always the worse for wearing which shews they cannot last long when they are in their best state they are altogether vanity the highest degree of Perfection in the Creature tends to corruption and indeed disposes to it 't is as Natural to Die as to be Born there is an 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 a turning point that stops the further growth of the Creature and makes it to decline ever after till its fading Glory be quite extinguish'd therefore labour not for the meat that perishes but for that which nourishes unto Everlasting Life Till we come to Live upon Eternal unseen things we live but meanly in the midst of our Earthly sufficiencies we are in straights still wanting something till Christ be ours and then all is ours There is no room left then for any further designs in him we have plenary satisfaction and perfect rest we shall never have true hearts ease till then But the difficulty lies in bringing over our hearts to this Newness of Life to this Noble Life of Faith that fetches all its Comforts from Heaven casting up its anchor within the Vail which is sure and stedfast Flesh and Blood cannot do this there is nothing in Nature that disposes us to it therefore we must be born again be made New Creatures before we shall favour the things of heaven and such is the power of Religion upon the minds of men where it is in truth that it always works this change in them they find it and feel it in themselves Whether it be so with us whether we have any certain experience of such a thing in our own Souls we should do well to consider that even upon our knees and give God no rest day nor night till we see some better symptoms of Eternal Life in our selves we may judge of our life whether it be Eternal or no by the things we live in and live upon they who are of the Earth are Earthly they who are born from above are heavenly to be carnally mindedis death but to be Spiritually minded is life and peace The inward frame of the mind discovers what kind of Creatures we are whether old or new flesh or spirit the issues of life are from the Heart as the pulse of your Souls beats upwards or downwards so you may judge of your state as you find your selves most concerned in things above or things below till you have got above the world and have overcome it you are not born again Fifthly Every one that loveth is born of God and knoweth God. That which is intended here is First Love to the Saints as such Unfeigned love of the Brethren is a sign of a pure heart and that we are indeed born again Secondly Love to all men 't is due to all Owe no man any thing but love that we owe to all every man may challenge it every man is our Neighbour in that sense to be the object of our Love we must extend it to our very Enemies 't is the fulfilling of the Law the duty of man to man prescribed in the Second Table cannot be performed without it Love is above all Illumination and Knowledge a more sure mark of Regeneration He that dwelleth in love dwelleth in God and God in him Love is one of the communicable Attributes of God shed abroad in our hearts by the Holy Ghost we are followers of God when we walk in love Common Professors have some love one to another but if you trace it up to its original you 'll find it a selfish mercenary love in which they rather respect themselves than Christ 't is not for his sake but for some outward respects of relation neighbourhood or usefulness in the common concerns of this life it may be for their agreement in opinion about some lower matters of Religion this is but the friendship of the World and may be consistent with real enmity against God and good men as such but perfect love i. e. real sincere Christian Love is for God's sake because he has so loved us and given us a new Command to love one another There is no true love among men till we are born again He exhorts those who have put off the old man and are renewed in spirit to put away all bitterness wrath c. Before Regeneration we are foolish disobedient living in malice and envy hatesul and hating one another Biting devâ—uring consuming one another It looks rather like a description of Wild Beasts than men so savage and fierce are we by nature nothing but a spirit of Regeneration will sweeten and mollify the hearts of men that which unites us to Christ unites us one to another we are all one in Christ but we shall never be all one among our selves till we are united to Christ then the Peace of God rules in our hearts to which we are called in one body There is no true good nature among men but what flows from Grace Sin hath so poysoned and sowred man's Nature that till that Serpentine Venom be purged out and a better Spirit be put into us there will be little harmony or concord among men Having put on the new man put on therefore as the elect of God c. Vide Loc. Were this mark of Regeneration more visible in our days it would be a token for good of a more effectual work of the Gospel among us than for ought I see does yet appear Hatred variance c. are reckoned up among the Works of the Flesh as directly opposite to the Fruits of the Spirit I will shew how this loving disposition arises out of Regeneration that the fundamental ground of it is our conformity to Christ which necessarily follows upon our Regeneration Christ is the express Image of his Father the Saints are in their finite capacities the express Image of Christ in whom they see the Father who as God is one with the Son whilst they behold the Son as God-man they see their humane Nature hypostatically united to the Divine they see their humane persons
we of our own Tenents even when we put darkness for light and evil for good things must be as we have put them At this rate the truth and power of Religion will quickly be lost amongst us unless both be better exemplified in our Lives and Conversations The Gospel is set before us as a new mould into which we our selves must be cast it comes to work a great change in us not of our opinions only but of our Hearts and Nature to create us again in Christ Jesus unto good works Is this done where this is not done that man's pretended interest in Religion will deceive him and come to nothing You may be of this or that Persuasion of this or that Party have excellent notions of Divine things in your heads and yet not have one tittle of the truth writ upon your hearts I don't ask what you hold or what you profess or what you know but what you are what Newness of Spirit do you find in your selves My Text speaks of something to be done in you and upon you Is that done Art thou born again Art thou a new creature I speak the Language of God to you a new creature is that which you must be before you die else you 'l be undone for ever it concerns you to look what that is do you look to that A new creature you must be else you perish eternally better you had never been born if you are not born again before you die Let not the strangeness of the expression nor the mystery of the thing it self take you off from seeking after this Regeneration in the Text 't is something must be wrought in you you need not go further than your own selves for a proof of it let every one view his own heart well wait for a change there carry thy old carnal unbelieving heart to God and say Lord create in me a clean heart take away this heart of Stone I lay it down at thy feet I dare not take it back again I dare not go from thee in my old sinful corrupt nature O let thy creating power pass upon me this instant that I may become a new creature Did we come with raised expectations of such a work we should see the Glory of God in some inward astonishing effects of his mighty power upon our hearts He that commands light to shine out of darkness and calls things that are not as tho they were gives them a being by his creating power Things that are not do answer to this call of God as if they had been there before they come forth out of their own nothingness deriving a real being and existence from the operative Word of the Lord he speaks and it is done So able is God to raise up Children unto Abraham even out of Stones a Stone may as soon turn it self into a living creature as a natural Man turn himself into a new creature only there is this difference a Stone has no sense to perceive any such change brought upon it but a natural Man has he is a living Soul and when converting Grace comes upon a Man living in sin to turn him from it he must needs feel the opposition that is made to the whole course of his corrupt nature the conflict that is between two living contrary principles is felt on both sides Sin feels it and Grace feels it the Flesh lusts against the Spirit and the Spirit against the Flesh the Flesh is hindred from doing all the evil it would do and the Spirit from doing all the good it would do they retard each others motions one pulls one way and the other another these two are contrary they never agree in any thing A sinner finds himself dying to sin under the quickning regenerating influence of the Spirit of God though corrupt nature perceives not the beauty and glory of Grace yet it sees and feels the contrariety of Grace to it self and is full of enmity against it as the Spirit of God does assist our dying graces so the Devil that evil spirit does what he can to keep alive our dying sins he would fain prevent the utter mortification of sin in Believers if it were possible You see what striving and strugling there is in every regenerate Soul two living men contending with each other the old man and the new there is a mighty strength in the old man but the new man is stronger than he enters in upon him by an irresistible force binds him and at last casts him quite out Let us either throw away our Bibles and resolve never to look into them more or else submit to the judgment of the Scriptures in so great a Case as this is Verily Verily c. THE END A DISCOURSE OF FAITH IN TWO POINTS VIZ. I. How Faith comes by Hearing II. How we are Justified by Faith. By Thomas Cole Minister of the Gospel LONDON Printed for Thomas Cockerill at the Three Legs over against the Stocks-Market 1689. A DISCOURSE OF FAITH ROM 10. 17. So then Faith cometh by hearing and hearing by the word of God. THE Apostle towards the close of the Ninth Chapter speaking of a twofold Righteousness of Works and of Faith tells us that the Gentiles did attain to the Righteousness of Faith but the Iews did not attain to the Righteousness of Works which they so much trusted in for they being ignorant of Gods Righteousness and going about to establish their own have not submitted themselves to the Righteousness of God Rom. 10. 3. Hence the Apostle takes an occasion to compare the Righteousness of the Law with that of Faith calling one our own Righteousness the other the Righteousness of God which the Law do's tacitly point to promising Life to perfect Obedience this not being found in any mere Man since the Fall we are directed to seek it in Christ who is the end of the Law to every one who believes ver 4. he brings in Moses verse the 5th describing the Righteousness which is of the Law that the man which doth thsoe things shall live by them Such doers of the Law we are not therefore can look for nothing but Death by Law. Verse 6th He brings in the Righteousness of Faith by a Prosopopeia speaking it self to an afrighted dejected sinner who is also brought in musing upon his wretched Condition full of sad thoughts saying over many dismal things to himself in his own Heart about his Eternal State how shall I get to Heaven how shall I escape Hell how shall I dwell with everlasting Burnings which I see no way to avoid by Law the righteousness of Faith meets this convinced Sinner in this great distress of Conscience communes with him discourses of Christ to him minds him of his Resurrection from the dead and Ascension into Heaven you seem says the Righteousness of Faith to deny both in talking at this rate your way to Heaven is plain Christ is ascended you shall as surely go to Heaven if you
I shall now shew you how God thus appearing to us in hearing the Word does open the heart enlighten the mind and throughly perswade the will to a through closure with Christ upon Gospel Terms Naturally our hearts are shut up against the Gospel our Minds are blinded 2 Cor. 4. 4. till God shines into our hearts to give the light of the Knowledge of the Glory of God in the face of Jesus Christ ver 6. Enlightning the eyes of our Understandings Eph. 1. 17 18. Quest. What is this Light of Faith and how does it differ from the Light of Reason Answ. The Light of Reason lies in the evidence of the thing it self as it falls under a Humane Understanding arguing from the cause to the effect drawing certain conclusions from undeniable premises granted and acknowledged by all men to be Truths in Nature Upon such Concessions they build all their acquired Knowledge and do put the stamp of Truth upon all fair inferences from thence which they judge agreeable to those first principles and notions of Truth that pass for currant under that name among credulous men who do but think they know and do rather ghess than judge so great is the uncertainty of all humane Knowledge we have little cause to glory in it The light of Faith lies in the infallible certainty of Divine Testimony faith sees not the causes of things in the things themselves but in God alone to whom all things are possible faith excells all other knowledge in as much as it sees and knows all things in their first Cause God and takes hold of them by the very root from whence they first spring arguing from the Veracity of God to the Truth of all his sayings we know that God has spoken thus and thus as Ioh. 9. 29. we know the Doctrine is of God Ioh. 7. 17. and that no prophesie of the Scripture is of private Interpretation 2 Pet. 1. 20 21. under this conviction we cannot but yield the obedience of faith to every word of God I do not deny but experience may and does give Believers some Evidence of the things themselves but this belongs rather to their after Edification then to the first act of Faith in their Conversion by which they close in with Christ upon the credit of a bare word of promise from him who cannot lie Object Since these sublime supernatural Misteries of the Gospel are so much above and so seemingly contrary to humane Reason how comes it to pass that any man should own them for Truths and be brought under the power of them Answ. 'T is by a Divine Faith I call it Divine because 't is the work of God that we believe his Testimony Ioh. 6. 29. Quest. Does not this Operation of God upon the Hearts of men in working faith in us offer violence to mans Nature and force the Will to consent to that which is above the Understanding Or how can the efficacy of Gods Grace in determining Mans Will to such a Spiritual Act of Faith in Christ Jesus be consistent with the liberty of the Will. Answ. Many intricate disputes there are about this Point managed by subtil heads not without some shew and appearance of Reason who to secure the liberty of Mans Will have denied the efficacy of Gods Grace placing the power of believing in man himself to avoid the force that otherwise they think must be offered to his Will. But to clear the efficacy of Gods Grace from this imputation I need say no more but this viz. That the Grace of God enters the Soul of man as a New Nature and therefore cannot put any force upon him Nature works kindly in all by Inclination not by Violence as Nature is from Generation so the new Nature is from Regeneration one is the birth of the Flesh the other of the Spirit as we are born Men by our first birth so we are born Christians by our second birth Artificial Christians are all name without any living Nature answerable to it being not truly born of God and thereby made partakers of his Divine Nature The breathing in of this new Nature into the Soul of man by the Spirit of God is that new Creation spoken of in the Gospel 't is the first Act of God in our Conversion 't is solely the Act of God without any concurrence of ours we have only a passive obediential power to receive the impression 'T is God that makes it upon this supernatural Principle are grounded all after proceedings in bringing the Soul forward to an actual closure with Christ all the natural powers and faculties of the Soul are gathered into this supernatural Principle do act under it are moved by it and directed in all their free motions to a supernatural end which they could not of themselves tend unto and let it not seem incredible to us that God should do this he can do no evil from the perfection of his Nature and for the same reason all good must needs be in the power of his hand the greatest good that can be done to fallen Man is thus to restore him In this new Nature are wrapped up the seeds of all Grace which by the efficacy of the Spirit are drawn out into act with the free consent of Mans Will Should God determine the Will of Man to a good act whilst it is in a bad state and under a corrupt nature this would imply force and violence but to lead out a man according to his new Nature is not to put a force upon him If Sin had that efficacy upon Man in his perfect state to encline his Will to Evil why should not Grace have the like efficacy upon Man fallen to encline his Will to good Though an inclination to Evil in Man standing was possible from the liberty of his Will in which he was created yet such an actual inclination was inconsistent with his perfect state and left such an inherent crookedness in his perverted Nature that nothing but Grace can rectifie and make streight again What is a principle of Grace but liberty to Good restored to fallen man from whence an actual inclination to choose what is good do's follow of course when God calls and excites him thereunto here is no force put upon mans Will it acts freely in the choice of good and it cannot be otherwise since Grace enters as a new Nature ingenerating a powerful Principle of Holiness in the Soul that do's incline a man freely to comply which the efficacious grace of God exciting him to those acts of Holiness so agreeable to the Nature of the new Creature as Sin reigns unto Death so Grace will reign through Righteousness unto Eternal Life Rom. 5. 21. Shall not he that raises the dead be able to quicken a dead Soul but we are more sensible of that power that God puts forth upon the bodies of Men then of that which he puts forth upon their Souls that you may know that the Son of man
hath power to forgive sins Take up thy bed and walk Mat. 9. 6. This you all see but the actings of my saving power upon the souls of men that power that works within Eph. 3. 20. you see not let this that you see convince you of that which you see not and never dispute my power more to forgive sin I can heal the diseases of the Soul as well as those of the Body the power that God has to forgive sin is the great prerogative of God belonging to the soveraignty of his grace God walks invisibly thorow the World doing his mighty works of Grace he touches some mens hearts not others he draws some and not others by the sweet yet irresistable force of his Grace we see nothing but man mans Will mans Choice mans Act and therefore conclude all is by mans own power because we see not the wheel within the wheel the Spirit of God setting the whole soul in motion towards Christ This arcanum Iehovae this secret of the Lord is with them that fear him Psal. 25. 14. The way of the Spirit of God in the hearts of men is discerned by few 't is a very hard matter to understand how God works in us to will and to do because we find it to be our own act to believe repent and turn to God we ascribe all to our selves as if our own arm had saved us The truth is God in all the efficacious operations of his grace upon the hearts of men loves to conceal himself he will not be seen by others to do what he do's in and for his Saints no noise in the streets Matth. 12. 19. The kingdom of God comes not with observation Luke 17. 20 21. All is done within secretly and silently non are privy to this heart-work but they that feel it this is the hiding of his power from the observation of those whom he never intends to work upon and for the hardening of their hearts that they may still retain an opinion of their own ability to do that which they see others so freely and willingly addicting themselves unto Though this be a cause of stumbling to many who boast of a supposed power and freedom of will to believe and repent when they please yet such in whose hearts God has wrought these mighty works of his grace they see and feel the weight of his Arm revealed upon their souls they know it is Gods doing that a divine power has touched their hearts and carried them out to all these acts of Faith that they put forth they openly acknowledge this 1 Cor. 15. 10. Phil. 4. 13. 2 Cor. 3. 5. Gal. 2. 20. Not I but Christ. When they feel themselves most strengthned by Christ they are then most sensible of their own self-insufficiency and weakness I can do all things through Christ yet not sufficient of our selves to think a good thought when I am weak then am I strong 2 Cor. 12. 10. They would not say so if they did not find a power more then humane exerting it self within them and strengthning them with might in their inward man I live yet not I but Christ lives in me till we can thus distinguish between Nature and Grace and see God influencing our Wills in all their free motions to that which is good we shall vainly assume to our selves a power that never yet reduced it self to the least real act of Faith in any man whatever 't is easie talking of a power to believe before we come to believe in good earnest then our strength fails us if God do not support us and help our unbelief I believe help my unbelief q. d. I can't hold it my faith will fail if God do not put his Everlasting Arms underneath if we consider what difficulties what strong Objections unanswerable by Reason Faith Acts against in keeping up a lively hope of Pardon in the Conscience of a convinced sinner we must needs say 't is the work of God that we believe we may wonder at our selves as men when we consider what we believe as Christians I have spoken all this to shew that God is the Author and Finisher of our Faith 't is he only can open the heart and dispose it to give Credit to the Word of his Grace Application By way of Discovery viz. How we may know when Faith comes by Hearing even at the time of Hearing and whether it be yet come into your hearts by all you have heard hitherto Faith is a secret and a sudden work when it comes it gives some sense of it self to an observing Christian that quickly convinces us of a change in our selves a heart truly turned to God is not the same it was before not in the same posture not in the same disposition and frame there is something new appears in every new Creature that do's not belong to the Old Man but rises up in opposition to him this newness do's not lye in some one corner of the heart but every where 't is universal in every faculty all things are become new though the old leaven be not totally cast out any where but left as an occasional provocation and challenge to the Grace of God to act in more opposition to those motions of sin that put a force upon the New Creature are directly contrary to the bent and genius of our renewed Nature till Faith comes we are never sensible of any such inward Conflicts between the flesh and the Spirit but then the fight begins the good fight of Faith 'T is Faith strikes the first stroke makes the first assault upon our reigning sin and corruptions and will never cease contending with them till it has got a full Victory over them and throughly mortified them But how shall we know in the very time of hearing when Faith comes When the word Works effectually after hearing it usually gives some powerful touch upon the heart at the time of hearing so 1 Cor. 14. 24 25. he speaks there of the occasional Conversion of an Unbeliever who came into the Assembly where there was Prophesying and Preaching 't is probable some such are come in hither to day Oh that God would meet with them that they might be convinced and fall down upon their Faces worshipping God acknowledging that he is among us of a truth so Acts 2. 37. their Hearts were prick'd they cry out in the midst of the Sermon Men and Brethren what shall we do We want such publick Conversions had we more of these New Births in our Congregations we should have more of these out-cries which would be very awakening to us all if God would honour his Ordinances with such visible signs of his presence as in the Primitive Times the Word was preached with that power that it wrought a great consternation and astonishment in the whole Assembly there was a great impression upon their minds which had various effects some blasphemed and some believed but all were moved and stirred struck inwardly
though many saw not the hand that struck them 't is otherwise now hearers are more unconcern'd in a more drowsie frame we can hardly keep them waking all Sermon time they say these were extraordinary cases not applicable to us now I must tell you Conversions wrought by ordinary means now are extraordinary things have extraordinary effects the Light into which we are brought is and ought to be as marvellous in our Eyes now as 't was in theirs heretofore they who find nothing of this neither in nor after Conversion would do well to make a stricter inquiry into their state sometimes we bring down Grace as low as we can for the sake of weak ones but we must not make nothing of it to please some who would rest in a silent easie Conversion and think to go Heaven by the charitable Opinion others have of them that so great a change as Conversion is should make so little appearance as it doe's in many pretending to it is that we should not easily digest Let every one examine himself Should God come upon any of you with a through Conviction of Sin and give you a real sight of Christ as your only Saviour you would not be able to contain your selves under this marvellous Light 't will be like Fire in your Bones Ier. 20. 9. you 'l immediately spring up as the Goaler did Acts 16. 29. 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 he did not consider which soot he should put foremost but leaped up on a suddain broke out into a passionate inquiry after the way of Salvation Faith especially at its first entrance when it first comes into our Hearts is alwaies accompanied with a through Conviction of our lost undone Estate I don't speak now of those legal Convictions that in some may be preparatory to Conversion but of that saving Evangelical Conviction that is of the Essence of saving Faith alwayes accompanying it it is the reason of Faiths earnestness in its first actings upon Christ Master save us we perish In the Acts we have several instances of Faith wrought in the time of hearing Acts 10. 44. While Peter yet spake the Holy Ghost fell on all them which heard the word So Acts 14. 1. Acts 18. 8. Acts 28. 24. Paul perceived Faith in the Cripple by his attentive hearing Acts 14. 9. When Faith does not make this publick entrance into the Hearts of those who hear the word as it did in the Primitive times in the view and face of the whole Congregation and 't is much to be lamented that it does not I fear it portends more than I am willing to tell you yet I hope Faith may and does come in a more silent manner into your Hearts at the time of hearing this you may know by a sudden astonishment and trembling that sezes upon the Soul Luke 4. 33. Acts 13. 12. Acts 9. 6. When a discovery of the Evil of Sin and of the Grace of Christ do meet together in one saving Conviction in the Conscience of an awakened Sinner we must needs be variously affected with horrour and hope Grace clothes it self with contrary passions at the same time as it looks at Sin and at Christ loathing the one and embracing the other this may be perceived at the first opening of the Heart to believe the Gospel a present act of Faith is and will be the present sense of the Soul in and about what it believes there is no putting the word from us when once we believe it in our Hearts Men may talk of Gospel-Truths under a formal profession of Faith and not be affected with them but the Word works effectually in them that believe Faith touches the Soul in the most sensible part of it gathers up the Mind and Thoughts of a Man into a close and serious debate with himself about those things which he believes in reference to himself his Heart waxes hot within him this is the Power and Dominion that Faith has over us being the highest principle in Man it overcomes all contradictions from the Flesh answers all Carnal Objections throughly perswades a Man firmly establishes the Heart in the belief of the present Truth so that we become unmovable from the hope of the Gospel These are the inward Commotions that Faith makes in the Soul at its first entrance you cannot so slight the impressions of Faith as not to be greatly concerned about them 't is not come to real believing till it comes to this you are and must be serious in and about that which with your hearts you believe concerning your Eternal State. Whether you now are or ever have been in such a frame God and your own Consciences know best they are not trifles that you believe but matters of that moment that you cannot but be concerned in them and there is nothing required to fire your Hearts with a zealous solitude and thoughtfulness about them but only your believing them you can no more step over such an act of Faith than you can cease to think while you are actually thinking or cease to move while actually moving An act of believing is the Soul in actual motion towards Christ flying for refuge to the hope that is set before him This is the way of the Spirit in working Faith at the time of hearing and if you observe such a one whose heart the Word has reached he goes home musing upon what he has heard Suppose one standing in the Spirit of Isaiah at the Meeting-door as you go forth crying out Who hath believed our report to whom has the arm of the Lord been revealed this day how experimentally would such a one say I have believed to me hath the Arm of the Lord been revealed follow him further into his House into his Chamber or Closet behold he prayes as the Word brings down the sense of God into the Soul so Prayer carries up the sence of the Soul concerning that word to God above Prayer especially just after Conversion is but a Holy enlargement of the Heart about those things that God first speaks to us by his Word I will say 't is my people they shall say the Lord is my God. In hearing expect no other reason for Faith but the bare testimony of the Word of God search the Scriptures whether things are so or no as Ministers declare if you find them so charge them upon your Consciences as most worthy of all acceptation and belief Religion now a dayes is branched out into so many speculations and subtle questions wrapped up in such terms of art under such nice distinctions that the power and simplicity of the Gospel is almost lost ordinary Professors know not what to believe while the Pulpit gives such an uncertain sound There is not so much Rational Knowledge required to the obedience of Faith as some imagine leave others to dispute to produce their Reasons pro and con do you quote Scripture and believe begging of God to direct your faith into right apprehensions
the Devil Must we be set upon a fresh by him No no after death he hath done with you for ever he will not dare to look you in the face at the last day He draw up a charge against you You shall accuse judge and condemn him and all the Devils in Hell 1 Cor. 6. 3. Never fear you that dye in the Lord shall rise up under those denyable evidences of a state of Grace that neither the Devils nor wicked Men shall dare to gain-say What must poor Christians who have lived under doubts fears under buffetings and temptations under accusations and challenges from the Devil and their own Consciences must they rise so Is this to be raised in power with our Spirits made perfect Surely Paul was out in his triumph Rom. 8. 33. Who shall lay any thing to the charge of Gods elect Do you make good your Title to Christ now and never fear any charges afterwards at that day it will be a joyful day to Believers Look up saith Christ lift up your heads for your Redemption draweth nigh Luke 21. 28. And therefore comfort one another your Witness is in Heaven and your Record is on high as Iob speaks God Christ Angels Conscience will all be on your side Aye but if this feigned process be not observed some mens notions will fall to the ground Aye and let them fall no matter how soon for they are not grounded upon the Word of God that endureth for ever Brethren we must not draw Schemes and Models from our own Brain and when we have done impose them upon God and make his proceedings in every particular exactly to suit the methods of Humane Judicatures The natural notion of these things is so strong in some mens heads that it doth carry them out beyond the line of the Gospel Good works certainly do best furthest off from the judgment seat of God. They are good and comfortable evidences here but they will make but a sorry Righteousness there for us to plead Though God may and will take notice of all the fruits of his Grace appearing in our words or works when he passeth the solemn declaratory Sentence at the last day which is but a fuller manifestation of our justification God will personally and publickly own that which he hath secretly in our Consciences done by his Word and Spirit in us God doth now act mediately by his word then he will act immediately by himself we shall hear the sentence of our Justification from his own mouth which now we hear only from the mouths of his Ministers that speak to us in his name Secondly The second ground they go upon is this they say that it is a conditional service imposed upon us by God in the new Covenant and therefore the performance of it must needs be part of our Justifying Righteousness which is very specious and very suitable to Humane Reason as most things are that contradict the Mysteries of the Gospel but it is of like sound and significancy with the other Alas At how little a hole will self-Righteousness creep in How apt are we in the pride of our hearts to distinguish our self-Righteousness into our Justification that we may have somewhat whereof to glory To prevent mistakes I will premise one thing that is this I do not deny but that to believe in God in Christ is an eminent piece of service a great act of Divine Worship the greatest act of Worship we can perform to God on this side Heaven But I deny that it is a service done in order to the procuring or purchasing those benefits which we receive from Christ as his free gift Faith receives what Christ hath already procured Faith doth not come to Christ to desire him to dye for us but having dyed for us it comes for the fruit of his death It comes on no other Errand but to receive what is already prepared Faith hath no causality or efficiency at all in contriving compassing constituting the great act of Grace wherein the pardon of our sin and our justification is held forth unto us Our Faith did not move God to promise pardon but finding all this Grace in Jesus Faith applyes it lays hold on it and God gives us leave nay commands us to do this So that Faith is a service we owe to God by way of duty in complyance with his free Grace towards us but it is not a service done by us in way of procuring that which is freely given No no we owe that to Christ and not to Faith. Brethren In common acceptation when we say come to me and I will do this and that for you pray who is the doer he that comes to have the thing done or he that doth it Certainly if coming be a service in this case it is a service done to a Mans self and can never be urged as a service done to God. But they further say that this is a conditional service Why Because God hath commanded us to believe that we may be justified Commanded us to believe and pray what is that I told you before the meaning of an act of Faith even to renounce our own Righteousness to come in our nakedness and poverty to Christ without Money or without Moneys worth that we may be enriched by him in all things Is not this the old honest plain down-right notion of believing And is this the Conditional service required Why don't you do it then Who is against it Only let them attend to the sense of Faith and not be carried away with the meer word and talk of Faith as their own act never regarding the inward sense and signification of the thing it self Hath God required us to believe in Jesus let us know what that means and do it no body is against it If that be the Conditional service let them lye low before God and seem more vile in their own eyes and cast themselves upon Christ for all Let them learn to come without Money This is the proper Obedience of Faith that Obedience which the Doctrine of the Gospel doth require and since you will call this a condition I say why don't you perform it Is this the performance of such a condition of believing according to the sense and meaning of believing to tell the World that Christ is not our only Justifying Righteousness that we must seek for something in our selves to joyn with him if ever we will be saved Is this the condition Doth God mean this when he bids me believe in Jesus Sirs Let us not read our Bibles backwards wresting Scripture to our own destruction It is strange to me that Faith which is all along in Scripture opposed to Works in our Justification and is appointed by God to shut all good works out of Justification should be thus made an inlet to bring all good works into Justification Oh! That we were more under the powerful actings of true Justifying Faith it would then open it self more fully
know it displeases God yet he likes it never the worse for that might he but escape the punishment 't is not the wrath of God in it self that he fears but only as it goes forth in the penal effects of it against himself else he could suffer God to be angry and not be troubled at it whereas this goes most to the heart of a Child of God that he has incurr'd his displeasure There is no soundness in my flesh because of thine anger Psal. 38. 3. The Law alone never works any real Sanctification in a sinner 't is indeed the rule of Judgement it judges us according to what we are but cannot make us better 4. Repentance is a turning unto God but the Law gives no encouragement to a sinner to turn to God it holds forth the Wrath of God against him that makes him run from the presence of an angry God and hide himself as Adam did how can dry stubble stand before a consuming Fire but God out of Christ is a consuming Fire to a sinner he dares not come near him 5. The law by it self can't work a saving Conviction 't is very Instrumental in conjunction with the Gospel to do this but of it self it cannot Saving Conviction is of the essence of Evangelical Repentance Saving Conviction hath these four properties 1. It apprehends upon Scripture grounds a possibility of a sinners Salvation and not only so but a fair probability of it upon the due use of those means appointed by God in order thereunto and leads out the sinner to seek relief in Christ under some hope of obtaining it 2. It works a hatred of sin as sin strongly inclines and disposes the heart of a sinner to break off from his sins and to betake himself to a strict course of Holiness God offers Grace to sinners because he intends to give Faith and Repentance to as many as are ordained unto Life Faith inclines us to beg Repentance disposes us to it laies open the foulness of sin so plainly so convincingly that we cannot but repent of it under such a saving Conviction as Faith works in us I call it a saving Conviction because it puts us upon the diligent use of all means tending to Salvation a man is so convinced that he cannot rest till he has found out an effectual remedy to cure so deadly a disease nothing will satisfie him but Christ we see not all that is in sin till we see an absolute necessity of Christ to save us from it Here is a deep discovery of sin indeed when we know nothing but the Blood of Christ can take it away Behold the Lamb of God c. a Sacrifice of Gods providing all the Bulls Goats Sheep and Lambs of Mans procuring will never expiate sin nothing that is among men can do it but God has a Lamb cherished in his own bosom from Eternity this Lamb must be slain to take away the sins of the World 't is very astonishing to think what God parted with from himself to satisfie his own Justice his Attributes conspire together to heighten and advance each other infinite Grace lays out it self to satisfie infinite Justice and satisfied Justice gives way to infinite Grace to glorifie it self in mans free Redemption 3. It convinces us not only of particular sins but of the general Corruption of our Nature 't is by a Divine supernatural Light that we discern this we have a feeling of it in our selves from an inward Principle of a higher Life raised up in us by the power of God in our Regeneration which will not suffer us to walk any more after the flesh we cry and complain of that proneness that is in us to evil O wretched man that I am c. Rom. 7. No unconverted man is brought in complaining of the Corruption of his Nature only David and Paul and such like but none else When we look upon the old man with the eyes of the new we see that deformity that never appared to us before 4. It Convinces us not only of the severity of the Law in punishing but also of the Holiness of the Law in all its just and reasonable Commands Rom. 7. 12. This is a main difference between Legal and Evangelical Repentance that Conviction and Sense that is in a Legal Repentance of the Holiness of the Law is very small next to none at all and that which is proceeds chiefly from the remainders of light in all natural Men left on purpose in the Conscience that all reverence of God and his Law might not be quite cast off and something of this may now and then appear under strong legal Convictions of sin as in Iudas but all this never begets any true love to Holiness for still they go on in their sins and have pleasure in them that do so Rom. 1. 32. which is a great demonstration of the absolute Dominion sin has over fallen man in carrying him on not only against the known Law of God written in the Word but against all the natural Notions of the Law written in his own heart nothing can hold him in he despises God and man and his own Conscience he will not be a Law to himself Legal Convictions come short in all these properties of saving Conviction Legal Convictions are either such as are antecedent to the Commission of Sin or such as follow upon it which are properly called Convictions Convictions antecedent to sin are all one with the knowledge of the Law by which we understand what is morally good or evil in it self what is sin and what is not Adam and Eve in innocency were under this Conviction they knew what God had forbidden viz. to eat of the Tree of Knowledge of good and evil and that to eat of it in opposition to Gods express command to the contrary was a high act of Disobedience to be punished with Death but by the subtilty of the Devil they yielded to the Temptation and did eat if their perfect knowledge of the Law could not keep them in Innocency from falling how can we expect that our imperfect knowledge of the Law from any Convictions of that kind which we may be under should keep us And for those legal Convictions subsequent to the commission of sin by which we see the obliquity of our own actions and know our selves to be Transgressors of a holy righteous Law they fall short in all the forementioned properties of saving Conviction they leave us without hope of Mercy work no renovation of nature in us they may disturb us in the present act of sin and terrifie us much about that laying some present restraint upon us but they work no real Reformation in us Iudas was in great horror of Conscience for betraying his Master was much troubled that he should have a hand in shedding innocent blood and yet under the light and power of this Conviction how evil it was to Murder another he hangs himself which was as contrary to
perish may thank your selves for it how speechless will sinners be then as to remain in impenitency under the outward Light of the Gospel does argue the height of unbelief so to be brought to Repentance by the Preaching of the Gospel does necessarily imply Faith in the Gospel 't is impossible that a Tender of Grace should work Repentance till 't is believed 't is of no force makes no impression upon the Mind of a Man till then therefore Faith must be presupposed I make it out thus That which is brought as a motive for the doing of a thing must be first understood received and believed before the thing can be done upon that motive there is in the Gospel a general offer of Mercy to sinners this proves an effectual means to beget Faith in all that are ordained unto life upon their believing this general offer of Grace their hearts begin to melt under it and some inclination to Repentance is wrought in them this Faith and this Repentance wrought in a more general way at first do form themselves into more particular and distinct acts afterwards thus the principles of the Doctrine of Christ viz. Repentance from dead works and Faith towards God are first laid and then there is in the light and power of these principles a going on unto perfection Heb. 6. 1. Our first Faith is a more general Faith and so is our first Repentance rather an inclination and tendency to believe and repent then actual Faith or actual Repentance Our first Faith wrought in us upon the general proposal of Gospel Grace contains in it a saving Conviction of Sin 't is impossible to receive grace without it grace is nothing to us of no signification to us but as it gives relief against sin which we must have some sense of before we apply our selves to the grace of God for Pardon we must see something in our selves that wants a pardon and which we are willing to repent of and forsake in Case of a pardon Repentance is as true an effect of Faith as Pardon and Comfort Faith first brings a sinner to Christ under some hope of Pardon and then busies it self in working Repentance in order to a comfortable sense of Pardon The Spirit lets in some sense of Gospel Grace tendred unto sinners and affects the heart with it as very desireable as a very seasonable offer by no means to be slighted the Soul begins to be taken with it conceives some hope from it and this is the begining of Faith and with our first Faith Light comes in giving us some Gospel Conviction of sin in order to Repentance I call it a Gospel Conviction because it is wrought by means of the Gospel all after acts of Faith and Repentance have their rise from this first work which brings me to the second Point viz. That Faith is not only joyned with Repentance in the first production of it as has been shewed but in all the subsequent acts of it ever after which I make out thus Faith and Repentance do constantly refer to each other in their several actings Faith to Repentance and Repentance to Faith he that believes repents because he believes and he that repents believes because he repents i. e. as Faith is the cause of Repentance so Repentance is the reason of every particular act of Faith put forth upon Christ for Pardon 't is impossible to make up the full sense of an act of Faith on our part if you fetch not the reason of it from Repentance Why do we go to the Physitian is it not because we are sick weary and faint ready to die of such a Disease So why does a weary Soul come to Christ is it not to be eased of his Burden that insupportable burden of sin that is ready to sink him into Hell. If Faith and Repentance be thus always joyned together does it not follow that we are justified by our Repentance as well as by Faith I Answer No. Though we are not saved without Repentance it does not therefore follow that we are justified by our Repentance but some to make good this Assertion have coyned many subtle distinctions relating to both Before I give a particular reply to this let me say something in general Religion may be considered either in its primitive purity and simplicity as it was laid down in the Fundamental Principles of it by Christ and his Apostles Or as it has since been drawn through the various Discourses Reasonings and Writings of Men for so many Centuries past this has so much overcharged Religion with so many nice distinctions intricate questions and endless disputes that it seems to be quite another thing then it was in the Apostles dayes The best way is to return to the primitive simplicity of the Gospel especially in judging of Fundamentals which are plainly and clearly laid down there in Terms very intelligible Though Faith be the Gift of God and is given of meer Grace but to a few yet all who live under the Light of the Gospel may know what they ought to believe which will render their unbelief more inexcusable did we dwell more upon what is plainly revealed as fundamentally necessary to Salvation we should better discern by the light of those Fundamentals the just consequences of them in any deductions from them which may not be so particularly and expresly spoken unto in Scripture But now to answer the query whether we may not be said to be justified by our Repentance as well as by Faith since we are not saved without Repentance Answ. There is a great deal of difference between Justification and Salvation Salvation includes all qualifications belonging to that state Justification lets us into that state gives us right to Life from whence spring all Qualifications becoming that Life Besides Saving Graces are so called not that they are the Causes of Salvation but because they accompany it we cannot be saved without them Faith it self as a Grace inherent in us is no meritorious Cause of our Justification 't is that which carries us out of our selves to Christ for Righteousness upon the account of which we are justified in the sight of God when we say we are justified by Faith we don't mean we are justified by any thing in our selves we can't understand it so but the contrary that we must be beholding to Christ for all He that receives all from another gives nothing to himself he does indeed apply to himself to his own use and benefit what is freely given to him by another but he cannot in any propriety of Speech be said to ascribe any thing to himself or to owe himself thanks for what he receives from another Faith in its justifying act does not look to it self as our grace but unto Christ as our Righteousness the inherent grace of Faith is not our justifying Righteousness though it lead us out to him who is Faith is the hand but Christ is the gift nay the hand
it self is the gift of God as well as that which is put into it God gives us not only what we believe but he gives us to believe the habit and act of faith are both from God that he that glories may glory in the Lord only And if it be so with faith if that be shut out from being any part of our justifying Righteousness 't will hold true much more in all other saving graces that spring from faith whether Hope Love Fear Repentance c. Repentance proves our Faith to be saving such a faith as gives us an Interest in Christ faith adds nothing to the Righteousness of Christ but applies it as it is it only gives us an Interest in it and makes it ours by vertue of the Promise tendring it to us by receiving the Promise we have a sure interest in the thing promised and may ever after count it our own and if we are not justified by our graces themselves much less by our good works which are the fruits and issues of them we must resolve all our graces into faith and faith it self into Christ and his Righteousness before we can be clear in the matter of our Justification 4. The real distinction that is between them notwithstanding this necessary Connection Faith and Repentance are frequently joyned together in Scripture and sometimes each of them singly put for the whole work of Conversion and then they do alwayes include each other and imply the whole work of grace in the Soul as Luk. 13. 5. Luk. 15. 10. Acts 3. 19. Acts 11. 18. Though they cannot be separated yet they may be distinguished not only nominally but really they are spoken of Act. 20. 21. as two distinct things as Faith and Hope are inseparable yet two distinct Graces so 't is with Faith and Repentance they grow together as different Branches from the same Root that bears and feeds them both they are the two Vital Constituent parts of a Christian which have their distinct Offices and Influences Repentance is the same in Principle with Faith though they receive different denominations from the different objects and occasions about which they act A principle of Grace is that immortal Seed or that Spirit that is born of the Spirit the fruits of the Spirit are not the Spirit it self but something produced by him all Graces are the fruits of the Spirit and are specified by their different objects All Graces are but so many expressions of that holy Disposition that is wrought in us by the Holy Ghost To Repent of Sin is as true Holiness as not to sin at all a sinner has no other way to express his Love to Holiness than by a declared Hatred of his Sins They differ in their Objects faith as justifying hath Christs Righteousness for its Object Repentance has mans unrighteousness for its Object as Faith acts upon Christ for an Interest in his Righteousness so Repentance acts towards God acknowledging our own Unrighteousness and bewailing it we cannot rejoyce in the Righteousness of Christ till we mourn for our own sins Christ reconciles God to us by the attonement offer'd 2 Cor. 5. 20 21. and us to God by working Repentance in us who were Enemies to him in our Minds by wicked works Col. 1. 21. alienated from the life of God Col. 4. 18. This Enmity against God and alienation from him is removed by Repentance Faith works upwards to appease Gods Wrath by holding up the Blood of Christ Repentance works downwards upon our selves changing our Minds towards God that we may be conformable to his Will and rebel no more against him Besides All Graces do not imploy at least equally the same Affections there is more joy and hope in Faith more sorrow and fear in Repentance faith lists up and comforts a guilty sinner upon one account Repentance humbles him and lays him low upon another account filling him with godly sorrow for his sins 5. Reasons why the Professors of this Age who are so much for Faith do mind Repentance so little are so seldom found in the Exercise of it 1. Because they rest in general Notions of Faith and of Justification by Grace through Christ they say they have faith and think this will save them we may have right notions of faith in our Heads and yet be under no real actings of faith in our Hearts we may be Orthodox in our Judgements sound in the Doctrine of Faith and yet be strangers to the Grace of Faith we may hold the Truth dispute for it preach it up maintain it in our Discourses as our Opinion and yet be rotten at Heart for all this under the power of unbelief if you know these things happy are ye if ye do them Faith must be done as well as talked of it must be really acted by us in our own case 't is not the doctrine of faith but your faith in or according to that doctrine that saves you the just shall live by his own faith the doctrine of faith is an external thing laid down in the letter of the word but the grace of faith is an inward living principle found only in the hearts of real Saints this is that I am inquiring after and pressing upon you as that that will certainly produce Repentance Zach. 12. 10. 'T is one thing to have a Notional Knowledge of the doctrine of faith as contained in the letter of the word another thing to be under the power of the grace of faith as it passes thorow the heart in the lively actings of it Notions of things may be separated from those effects that alwayes attend the things themselves when they are in being we may shake and freeze under our notions of fire but we cannot stand before fire it self and not be warmed by it were there more real faith I mean of the grace of faith among professors there would be more Repentance let us not flatter our selves in the good opinion we have of our faith and of our supposed Interest in Christ 't is all false our faith is vain and we are yet in our sins if Repentance do not accompany our faith The visible neglect of Repentance in the Professors of this age has brought a reproach upon the doctrine of faith and caused it to be evil spoken of that faith that does not sanctifie will never justifie and without Repentance there can be no Sanctification not that we make Repentance any Meritorious Cause of Pardon or that it is to be rested in as any satisfaction for sin only we affirm that justifying faith alwayes works Repentance 2. Because they rest in a general Repentance which they took up at their first Conversion and that must serve all their lives long 't is enough they have once repented that work is over they have done with it now and care not to return to it again but because you have once repented you must always repent you entred into Covenant with God for your whole lives to repent of
every sin you should fall into and shall we begin in the Spirit and end in the Flesh. 3. Because they have long since reformed what was amiss in their Lives and refrained from the outward acts of those sins they lived in heretofore all this may be without any true Repentance you say you have forsaken your sins that is a gross mistake for till you repent of them you have not forsaken them in Gods account but are still looked upon as those who justifie your selves in those very sins if not why don't you repent of them you alwayes abide under the guilt of that sin which you have not repented of the turning of the heart to God can never be without Repentance till then you still retain the good opinion you had of your sins your heart is set upon them still nothing but Repentance turns the heart another way There can be no real Reformation of Life without a change of Heart Men may for a spurt force themselves to an outward Course of Holiness but they can never hold it the heart will go its own way and carry the man after it nothing but repentance makes a man a better man than he was before a man is the same that ever he was till he repents then indeed he is another man of another Mind 4. Because they reckon all their particular sins among their Infirmities and therefore a slight Repentance will serve the turn they think they will be pardoned of Course to them without any more ado I look upon it as a great Error to hold that all sins committed in a state of Grace are sins of Infirmity Saints themselves may be guilty of wilful presumptuous sins and when they are they must not think to shift them off as common Infirmities I grant those grosser acts of sin that a Saint may be surprized into do argue an infirm imperfect state their state may be good though imperfect there may be some good thing in their Hearts toward God when they fall foul as David and Peter did but I am not now inquiring what is in their hearts but what is in those grosser acts of sin viz. Murder Adultery and the like I say there is nothing but Evil in them they are all over and throughout sinful now what is morally evil and sinful in its own nature cannot properly be called a sin of Infirmity because an Infirmity in the true Notion of it is the deficiency of a good Action 't is not so good as it should be absolutely evil in it self it is not v. g. a Child of God prayes but not so fervently as he should he hears the Word but not so attentively as he should he believes in Christ but not so firmly so strongly so stedfastly as he would this is his Infirmity here the action it self or the thing done is for the substance and matter of it good in it self what God has commanded but when we do that which is materially Evil in its own nature and forbidden by God this is more than an Infirmity the whole action is naught 't is not a weak action but a wicked one He that is an infirm man is a living man a dead man is more than infirm he has no life at all in him that is capable of infirmity if a Child of God should swear be Drunk or commit Whoredom c. I would not say as some do Oh the Infirmities of the Saints but I would say oh the Wickedness the Leudness of the Saints you 'l think these hard words hard things must have hard words they that do well shall hear well and they that do ill must hear ill Sin is not the less sinful because a Godly Man commits it it falls under greater Aggravations in him than in another there may be some good thing in his heart but there is nothing in these sinful acts but what is morally Evil and abominably wicked This should awaken us to Repentance are there not sins even mong us against the Lord our God 6. The Application Repentance being the plainest and surest Evidence of Saving Faith let us be much in the exercise of this Grace We should repent as often as there is new matter for Repentance I do not say we should alwayes be grieving and mourning for the same sin Repentance may have its perfect work in reference to some particular sin which God has sufficiently humbled us for There is a time to set broken bones we may rejoyce in the Cure in that Ease and Rest that God gives us when he speaks peace to us By believing we enter into Rest till some new sin disturb our rest and then Repentance is to be renewed By a new sin I don't mean common unavoidable Infirmities but some grosser wilful Miscarriage We ought to be humbled under our Infirmities to confess them and so to pass on by a present act of Faith into our wonted serenity and peace of Conscience not doubting but God will overlook them for Christs sake Faith is not so put to it does not labour so much to take in the pardon of them as it does and must do to obtain the pardon of grosser sins which put the Soul at a greater distance from God then common Infirmities do which are pardoned of Course to Believers upon their humble acknowledgement of them but in case of any particular wilful sin we must renew our Repentance in a more solemn manner and afflict our souls for it how long God may keep us mourning before he restore to us the joy of our Salvation must be left to him who knowes when to administer comfort to us in the fittest season When we are about this work 't is good to reflect upon former sins already pardoned there sinfulness appears thorow the Pardon We may join our old scores to this new reckoning and carry over all to the present Account that having the sum Total before us we may bewail the late addition we have made to it When we see how high it rises every new offence receives an aggravation from so many that went before 't is some Extenuation of a Fault to say 't is the first time but frequent relapses into the same sin do heighten the guilt of it and in such Cases there is nothing but Repenting or perishing The more you are in the Exercise of this Grace of Repentance the less inclinable will you be to any sin I am perswaded were the Devil sure you would Repent he would not be so forward to Tempt you to any sin nothing does so enrage the Devil as the Repentance of the Saints could he keep them always in that Mind they are in in the hour of a prevailing Temptation he might Glory over them but when they come to themselves and consider better of it how do they inveigh against the Tempter and cry down the sin as an abominable Practise and what does the Devil get by this he loses more by their Repentance then ever he got by their