oppose the Doctrine delivered are to be interpreted in pursuance of this design That men are justified only by pardon of sin through the Propitiation upon performing those conditions pardon is promised to and so may the Gentiles be justified without such perfect obedience to the Law or meritorious priviledges or satisfactions If I should proceed I can only repeat the same again and again with very little variation upon the places following Gal. 2. 11 12 13 14 15 16. Gal. 3. Gal. 5. 2. Paul once circumcised Timothy yet here saith Behold I Paul say unto you If you be circumcised that is upon this account else he would not have spoken so severely to make you such worthy persons as to need no pardon Christ shall profit you nothing Ver. 3. For I testifie again to every man that shall now be thus or on this account circumcised he is a debtor to the whole Law He must look to it that he fail not in the least for he virtually disclaims all pardon by Christ and so shall not have it So Tit. 3. 5. Not by works of righteousness which we have done but according to his mercy he saved us by the washing of regeneration and renewing of the Holy Ghost Ver. 7. That being justified by his grace c. This Scripture tells us what is meant by work and what by faith and plainly to any considering man James 2. 14 to the end When some had it is probable mis-understood such expressions in St. Paul's Epistles as if only believing the truth was enough for salvation the Apostle James shews that by Abraham's faith was meant his faith and obedience and saith that those words believed God mean believed God and obeyed him in offering up his son and other difficulties like that 1 Maccab. 2. 52. Was not Abraham found faithful in temptation and it was imputed to him for righteousness As Phineas executed judgment and it was counted to him for righteousness throughout all generations that is God rewarded him graciously with an everlasting Priesthood as if he had been a righteous man a deserving man when yet he was not by the Apostle Paul's argument that the word counted implieth it was not due to him so doing but of grace Ver. 22 23. When he offered up his son then the Scripture was fulfilled perfectly explained that saith Abraham believed God and it was imputed to him for righteousness that is God acquitted and rewarded him upon his faith and obedience as if he had been a righteous man in the strictest sense when indeed he was not And you may observe it would as much serve the Apostle Paul's arguing and support what he builds upon it if the very words had run thus Abraham believed and obeyed and it was counted c. and it is plain that was the meaning as you may see Gen. 22. 8. In thy seed shall all nations be blessed because thou hast obeyed my voice or if they had run thus He walked before God and was upright and it was counted c. and this is said in effect in saying If he did so God would do great things for him cap. 17. 2. Or if the words had been expresly thus Abraham feared God and it was accounted to him for righteousness and we do read as much in sense though not in express words Gen. 22. 12. For now I know thou fearest God seeing thou hast not with-held c. Ver. 16. By my self have I sworn For because thou hast done this thing and hast not with held thy son that in blessing I will bless thee It would be a poor blessing if it did not include justification I say had the words run so the Apostle is so far from excluding these things from being a condition of justification that such words would as well have proved what he is proving only they would not so occasionally have served to press them to the great difficult duty of that day the believing Christ's Resurrection FINIS
the Law for us in this sense so as it is to be imputed to us as if we had fulfilled the Law our selves then we should be freed altogether from any obligation from the Law to obedience just as we are freed from the condemnation of the Law because Christ underwent it as a Satisfaction for us we should not then sin in not-obeying the Law and we could not be pardoned by Christ for our sins in not obeying the Law for they are no sins according to this Hypothesis If there be a Law That if a servant hired for a year shall refuse to serve his year's service if his Master require he shall lye in the prison a year Suppose one hired did not serve a year but another served a year good and faithful service for him Must this hired man also serve a year for himself or he is to blame and Must this man accepted to serve a year for him also lye in prison for him What if I did not serve a year yet another served for me and better service than I can perform What need is there may he say that I should serve it my self Do I think I can mend his work do it better my self than I have done it in him I am almost ashamed to lay open the weakness of them that hold these things after such multitudes of learned Protestants have shown their absurdity How much clearer is the Scripture way of God for Christ's sake justifying and pardoning us for Christ's Satisfaction Propitiation than to talk of our fulfilling the Law yea or which is not so ill our satisfying in Him suffering in Him or redeeming our selves in Him or God accounting us to have satisfied in Him These are Phrases the Scripture is a stranger unto though if they will say as some They mean no more by such speeches but that God for Christ's Satisfaction gives us all these Gospel-mercies I shall only say They might speak plainer And our satisfying in Him is true in a figurative sense though not in a proper sense and so God's accounting us to have satisfied in Him yet in no possible sense is our fulfilling the preceptive part of the Law in Him true for this would make Christ's satisfaction needless Now since I have defined Justification by pardon of sin it is necessary that I tell you what Pardon is Pardon is a dissolution or discharge from the obligation to punishment It is none of these four things that only pretend to come in competition 1. Pardon of sin is not A making sin cease to be for that is to be ascribed to Sanctification which is a real change in opposition to relative 2. It is not making that it should be said that the sin was never committed this is impossible 3. It is not making sin that it do not in its own nature deserve damnation 4. It is not the executive taking off the penalty for this is a consequent of pardon by virtue of justice and faithfulness Yet sometimes it is used in this improper sense in Scripture But it is A dissolution of the obligation to punishment the dueness of the penalty is taken away immediately by pardon and so remotely and ultimately the penalty God being just and faithful will not inflict what is not due what he hath made not due by his Law of Grace So that Justification actively taken for God's act is an act of God whereby he pardoneth our sins or dissolveth the obligation to punishment And then Justification when taken passively for the effect of Justification is A dissolution of or discharge from the obligation to Hell and Punishment or a right to Salvation or a right to be free from Condemnation which is nothing else but a right to salvation It doth not in this Discourse concern me to speak of the further degrees of Happiness superadded for Justification of it self comprehendeth no more than right to what would have been due to us if we had been righteous without pardon had never transgressed the Law for Justification is from some thing as well as to some thing Yet this on the by Greater things than we fell from do come to man by the same Law of Grace by the same blood of Christ and upon the performance of the same condition that Justification or pardon of sin doth As for the meritorious cause of this Justification I have spoken very largely of it already for whose sake merit Cujus intuitu I told you that he justifies us through the redemption that is in Christ and I dare not ever and anon return to speak of it here lest I should confound your understandings I shall after this speak of God's working Faith in us that we might be justified and Christ's meriting of it Therefore do not in your too forward thoughts over-run me as if I denied any thing I come not yet to speak of Now I will tell you what this act of God is how God dischargeth the sinner and dissolveth this obligation to Punishment and so giveth right to salvation which we lost by our sins It is by some new Law or Constitution by some Covenant or Promise founded in Christ's Satisfaction It is some judicial juridical act and therefore by some Law-act I thus prove it 1. It is impossible that a man that is a sinner should have right to be freed from condemnation but it must be by some Law of Grace some legal discharge Such a jus or right cannot possibly pass but by some Law-act If a Rector should refuse to inflict the penalty on a man guilty or condemned this is not Pardon or Justification You may call it Suspension Impunity but the offender hath no right to the Impunity the obligation to punishment is not dissolved by it Yea suppose God should have resolved within himself never to inflict the penalty yet he might inflict it when he would without injustice though I confess not without mutability the offender hath no right to impunity by such an intention no jus the obligation is not dissolved till some lex remedians some remedying Law some Rectoral Law of Oblivion some Act of Pardon and Oblivion else it is only forbearance but no acquittance no discharge no pardon no justification 2. God will be true to his own Laws and will not leave a man unpunished to whom punishment is due by his own Constitutions all things considered but his judgment and execution will be according to Truth and Law He that condemneth Prov. 17. 15. the righteous and justifieth the wicked they both are an abomination to the Lord. He will sentence men according to his own Laws and he will not justifie or condemn pro libitu but according to his own declared Laws He will not sententially hereafter justifie nor will he account justified here any sinner but whom the new Law of Grace the Gospel founded in the blood of Christ justifieth which only justifieth Believers 3. Condemnation is by some Law therefore Justification must be by some Law for
of things and I hope you will easily be convinced what are the terms 1. There are the same terms and conditions of Justification and of Salvation Whatsoever is the condition of the one is also of the other For the Apostle argueth in the same manner against salvation by works as justification by works Yea it is apparent in the nature of the thing for Justification passively taken as I told you before is nothing else but right to salvation and we need no more for Heaven than right to it Do but get and keep right to Heaven which is Justification and we need no more on our part As for possession that is God's work by his Angels carrying away souls raising bodies Many worthy men have said That Repentance sincere Obedience are only for Possession and not for Right But we are not to work for Possession at all we need not get upon a Hill when about to dye to save the Angels a labour of carrying our souls too far Do but get and keep Right and to deny Possession to us if we have right to it by Promise would be unfaithfulness in God which we need not to fear Therefore if you will grant that all the things I have spoken of are required necessary to salvation then they are also to justification Only still it is here as in all other things of like nature Consent hearty consent to the Gospel-terms immediately instateth us in Justification and right to Heaven But if we would have continuance of our Justification and right to Heaven we must continue to consent to those terms as to the sincerity of our hearts and endeavours else we should lose our Justification and right to Heaven and the reason why we cease not to be justified is because God keeps us from departing from him by keeping in us care and watchfulness Thus we see whatsoever we may lawfully do for Salvation the same we may lawfully do for Justification 2. Whatsoever duty there is that if we do not we should have no right to salvation or justification that is a condition of our salvation and justification It is too common a saying and a great upholder of the Antinomian way Do but believe say some and by believing they do not mean as I do the whole of Christianity but some one act as believing my sins are pardoned or reliance or accepting Christ for my Saviour and such acts as accepting Christ for Lord and sincere obedience will follow but they are not conditions of Justification and Salvation but put that one act and they will naturally and inevitably follow But ask them Suppose they do not follow They will answer You must not suppose it they will for they dare not ordinarily say That if they do not follow it you will yet have right to Heaven I will shew you the vanity of such talk This is virtually to say God never made promise to these as conditions never suspended salvation on them but they will follow faith naturally This is to say Godliness hath not the promise of this life or however not of that to come else it would be a condition of the promise The instance that is usually brought of it is this There cannot be a seeing-eye without the body yet it is the eye that only sees So Faith only is the Condition only attains right but cannot be without works Now I will bring this to make it like the case in hand Suppose one promise you such a reward if you bring him and give him the seeing eye of such a Beast we are sure if the meaning be according to the words you would have right to the reward if you brought him a seeing-eye without the body though indeed you cannot yet we are sure if you did you would have right and he would be unjust in denying you the reward though you brought not the body And on the contrary Suppose we be sure this is a truth If you should bring him a seeing-eye it would not attain right without the body Then we are equally sure that we mistook his words or meaning he spake synecdochically for then it is equally a condition that the body be brought as that the seeing-eye be brought and it is equally influential into right for come to those things that do naturally and universally accompany and follow one another and where but one of them is made the condition and the other not the absence of that which is not a condition would no way hinder right and so not right to Justification and Salvation If a man become a Christian indeed it naturally and inevitably follows he shall be hated of wicked men but God never suspending Justification and Salvation upon it never making this a Condition we may truly say If a man be a sincere Christian it would not hinder his justification and salvation though the wicked did not hate him So if it be true that a man cannot be a true Christian but he must eat drink and breathe these are natural Concomitants yet these not being made Conditions though he did never eat drink nor breathe he shall be saved If you can say of any Grace or any measure of Grace as Assurance or Joy That it is not necessary to justification and salvation Then only you may say They are not Conditions of these If any one beloved sin knowingly and wilfully continued in would hinder a man's pardon justification or right to Heaven then a sincere desire and endeavour according to his ability to get rid of that beloved sin is a Condition of his Pardon and Justification 3. All Conditions of Justification and Salvation are equally Conditions equally influential into right If only an accident or mode of a thing be made a Condition with the thing it is equally a Condition with the thing it self If one promise to bring me a white Horse and you shall have such a reward It is equally a condition and as much influential into right that it be White as that it be a Horse so in any instance you can bring either in fact or fiction If I promise something upon condition you bring me a Hundred and you bring only Ninety-nine you have no more right than if you brought none and the odd one is as much a Condition as Ninety-nine If any shall say The Condition is a working Faith then that it be working is equally a Condition and equally influential into right as that it be Faith 4. There is no such thing as receiving Righteousness or Justification or Pardon Many make this their great strong hold Repentance and sincere Obedience are not receptive receiving Graces as Faith is and so cannot receive Justification and Righteousness Now this falls for there is no act of receiving these Justification Right to Heaven Righteousness cometh on Men. The free gift came upon all to justification As by the offence of one judgment came upon all men to condemnation As condemnation cometh upon men without any act of receiving it