such an Act of Faith interfere with our free Justification 5thly We say That the 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 credere or Faith as our Act justifies no Man tho we allow the instrumentality of it in Justification as that by which we apprehend the Object Jesus Christ by whom alone we are justified When we say we are justified by Faith we mean no more but this That we are justified by Christ received and applied does it therefore follow we are not justified by Christ alone Did we well consider the Nature of Faith in its Principle and Relative Essence and also in its manner of acting we should better understand the matter and clearly see that Faith excludes all Works even it s own Act out of Justification Tho it self be the Act of a Man wrought in him by God yet 't is an Act so subservient to free Grace so intirely falling in with it that it does not in the least derogate from it but declares to all the World that Christ is the Sinners only Righteousness and leaves him relying upon Christ only for his Justification This is the meaning this is the sense of an Act of Faith Novel Expressions are apt to beget strange novel Opinions and therefore we should have a care of them Faith well acted upon Christ will never injure the free Grace of God why should we run up our Regeneration and Iustification into such ignote beginnings before Faith which we can give no account of to our selves or others before we believe I see not of what use this is to soar aloft beyond the Knowledg and Experience of all Christians let us not be wise above what is written I am yet upon the Manner of Regeneration and all preparatory Works naturally running into the manner of Conversion or Regeneration I shall a little consider them The best way to understand the manner of doing a thing is by observing all Preparations made for it all Praeludiums or Introductions in order to it therefore it will be necessary to look a little into the nature of these Preparatives which some lay too great a stress upon limiting the Spirit of God to their own unscriptural Methods and Error is soon committed here We may run upon the Merit of Congruity ere we are aware if we don't hold the Ballance of Truth with an even hand keeping close to the Genius and Spirit of the Gospel in all that we say of this matter which I shall reduce to these following Heads shewing you 1. What Preparatory works are 2. Whether there be any such certain Preparatory works always antecedently necessary to Conversion and what they are how they are all comprehended under Conviction of sin 3. That the Law is of excellent use to work this Preparatory Conviction 4. That there is Law enough taken into the Gospel to do this 5. That the Law is to be Preached but never alone by it self without any mention of Gospel-Grace 6. We must not limit the Spirit of God to such or such degrees of Humiliation Repentance Contrition or Terror Upon these Hinges my whole Discourse will turn If any Word or Phrase I shall use be not to your liking you may please your selves with your own way of Expression and speak your own language if we agree in Principles and understand the same thing as I hope we shall it matters not much whether we express it in the same manner I shall keep to the method proposed and not mingle things unless it be when one Particular may borrow light from another then a looser joint discovery does best 1. What Preparatory Works are In the Sense of those who contend most for them they are certain previous Dispositions wrought in the Soul in order to Conversion yet short of Conversion it self Here are Two Opinions about this Some would have these Preparatory Works to be Saving Works I grant eventually they may be and are so sometimes but not being always so I see not how that can be called Saving under which a Soul may eternally perish or how any Saving Work can be wrought in any before they are in Christ. The Second Opinion more agreeable to Truth is of those who call these Preparatory Works yet common Works of the Spirit but always further carried on in all elect adult Persons till at last they issue in true Conversion Here we agree but for those who place this Preparatory work in such and such certain degrees of Humiliation and Contrition affirming That Conversion is not ordinarily wrought any other way than by those Legal Steps not one of which is to be bated this needs some Explication Of which more anon That God does by his Word by his Spirit by his Providence prepare all his Elect for Conversion I no way doubt but how this is done whether God does observe the same way manner and method in this Preparatory work in all that are converted as he may do in some is not so clear to me 2. Whether according to Scripture there are any such certain Preparatory Works always antecedently necessary to Conversion and what they are how they are all comprehended under Conviction of sin whether Repentance Humiliation Contrition Terror This Conviction of sin must be presupposed in all who come to Christ for Pardon The whole need not a Physitian Here we must distinguish between initial and compleat Conversion I mean between Conversion begun and Conversion rising up to a sensible Closure with Christ Conviction of Sin is always antecedent to an act of Faith upon Christ for the Pardon of sin at least it must be concomitant with it else there can be no reason given of a sinner's coming to Christ but that such or such a degree of Humiliation Contrition c. is always pre-required unto Conversion I cannot say that Conversion is a sudden secret work of God upon the Soul as the Wind blows c. If we observe how the Spirit comes upon sinners where it lists of all sorts and tempers of all conditions and circumstances drawing their hearts to Christ we shall find it a hard matter to give this Preparatory work any certain particular name I am persuaded 't is very various and different it may be not altogether the same in any two that are converted therefore to lay down a preparatory work in all its circumstances common to all that are converted is very dangerous that which hath occasioned this is mens dwelling upon a distinct work of the Law as a School-master to Christ because the Iews of old were trained up under a legal administration of the Gospel therefore the whole work was then ascribed to the Law whereas the Law was never separately propounded to the Iews but always in some dark Typical Conjunction with the Gospel tho they did not see to the end of those things yet these Types Shadows and Ceremonies had a Gospel-end What tho there was a Legal Discipline in the Church of the Old Testament This is no warrant for us to set
sin Ans. 1. Christ joins himself to nothing but the New Creature holds Communion with nothing else in the Saints Light has no Communion with darkness nor Christ with Belial Nay he does not so much hold Communion with us as takes us into Communion with himself 2. This Communion between Christ and Believers is carried on and manag'd on both sides by the Holy Spirit and therefore must needs be a Holy Communion 3. The design of Christ in uniting us to himself is to cleanse us from all sin to purge them quite out and to sanctifie us wholly in Body Mind and Spirit The Spirit of Christ is a Spirit of Burning it consumes by degrees all that is contrary to it self in our Persons and will at last make us exactly conformable to himself we shall bear the image of the Heavenly Adam and take after the perfect Human Nature of Christ i. e. Human Nature in us tho it is now corrupted yet when Regeneration has had its perfect work upon us it shall even in our Persons be reduced to that Rectitude Harmony and Perfection as 't is now in the Man Christ then we shall be men indeed Glorious Men and Women when we have derived our Human Nature from Christ in all its Perfections and under that Divine Tincture which the Hypostatical Union gives it in Christ. In Regeneration we pass over by Faith both Body and Soul into Christ some present effects of this we see in our Souls now and when our vile Bodies shall be made like unto his Glorious Body we shall to Eternity bless God who has taken us out of the First Adam and put us into the Second This Spiritual Union of Believers to the Divine Person of Christ makes a living Impression of Godliness upon their Human Persons which causes them to grow up daily into a further Conformity to the Image of Christ as God-Man till they come to the stature of Perfection in him resembling him in both his Natures in the Perfection of his and our human Nature in him and in such a spiritual Participation of his Divine Nature as Creatures are capable of and standing in this Mystical Union to the Divine Person of Christ they behold his Glory as the glory of the only begotten Son of God it shines out upon them in Heaven to all Eternity and lifts them up to the highest Communion with God that Creatures are capable of and this is their Glorification Thus I have led you from the first step in Regeneration to the last that you may see the Blessed Tendency of so great a work begun here in this World and compleated in the next I told you That Regeneration is initially and seminally all that belongs to a state of Grace ay and of Glory too therefore I may instance in any thing that lies within the Compass of a state of Grace whether Adoption Vocation Union to Christ Justification Sanctification and not recede from the Subject I am upon concerning Regeneration for all these do nearly concern it and lye close about it Some would suppose our Union to Christ and consequently by virtue of that our Justification by Christ to be before Actual Faith even in adult Persons and consequently without it they insist upon a Priority in Nature and Time and build Positions upon that distinction that will not hold they who speak with the Learned must understand with the Learned and use their terms in their sense they do not suppose this Priority or Posteriority to be in the things themselves but only in our manner of Conception we first apprehend one and then another tho we may apprehend one thing without another or before another it does not follow that those things are really without or before each other things that cannot be separated may by a precise act of the Understanding be distinguish'd but these signa or momenta rationis that men of art make use of to guide their Thoughts are too great subtilties for vulgar Heads to meddle with it may be you do not reach me in what I am now saying and it matters not whether you do or no it renders the Argument so much the stronger against the use of such Scholastick Terms in Divinity I am casting them out and perswading you from mingling vain Philosophy and Science falsly so called with the Mysteries of Faith which are best understood in their own native simplicity as they are delivered to us in plain Scripture-language They who hold Justification before Faith are afraid lest they should be betrayed into a Justification by Works if they should hold otherwise and therefore chose rather to plead for a Justification before Faith and without Faith lest they should seem to be Justified by any thing in and from themselves but how contrary is this to Scripture He that believeth not is condemned But he that believeth not is justified is no where written in my Bible They will admit of habitual Faith but are afraid of actual Faith lest that should encroach too much upon free Grace and lessen that for say they an act of Faith is Mans act and nothing that is so must have any place in Justification 1st I Answer Is not a habit of Faith a Mans habit Is it not infused by God into Man and placed in Man Is not Man the Subject of this Habit But this is wrought by God and is not every Act of Faith wrought by God in the Soul of a Believer I see no more danger in allowing actual Faith than habitual 2dly We must distinguish between an Act of Faith and Works of Faith Works of Faith are not Faith but an Effect and Fruit of Faith an Apple is not the Tree but something growing out of it and upon it as distinct from it but an Act of Faith is Faith it self 't is Faith reduced to Act or actual Faith. 'T is true an Act of Faith is mans Act deriving all its Virtue Efficacy and Signification from Christ the Object but 't is not properly a Work but Faith it self so that I see no danger of running into Justification by Works by asserting Justification by Faith. 3dly As an Act of Faith is not properly a Work in the legal Notion of a Works it is not within the Covenant of Work is it any where contained there that we should act our Faith upon Christ for the free Pardon of Sin Besides the Scripture expresly denies Faith to be a Work in this Sense To him that worketh not but believeth on him that justifieth the ungodly his faith is counted for righteousness therefore believing is not working for Justification 4thly An Act of Faith is the only Act of a Man that entirely falls in with the free Grace of God Therefore it is of Faith that it might be by Grace An Act of Faith is a receiving Act it brings nothing of our own to Christ but an empty hand receiving all from him ascribing all to him excluding all manner of boasting how can
of his revealed Will hold fast there and you are safe the greatest Scholars in the World must come down to the plain mans Faith if ever they die in peace in all Gospel Truths their consonancy not to our Reason but to the Scriptures is to be regarded Mans leaning rather to their own understanding of the thing than to their faith in the Word about that thing hath led them into Error into false notions of Divine Mysteries I grant from your faith in one Truth you may fetch Reasons for some other Truth depending upon it these are Gospel Reasons not your own we don't believe because we know but we know because we believe this is a new way of knowing things which the world is not acquainted with because it cannot receive the spirit of Truth the spirit of Truth is a spirit of Faith hearing the Word is of singular use to Believers themselves 1 Ioh. 5. 13. to confirm and strengthen your Faith that you may be built up further in it furnished with further matter to act it upon Let none be discouraged though never so ignorant and unlearned of a low mean capacity yet come to hear with an expectation of Gods working faith in thee faith will overcome all these difficulties as weak and simple and ignorant as any may be supposed to be yet be not discouraged you may be made to believe more in one moment than the greatest Scholars in the World can attain to the knowledge of in many years study It is written in the prophets Joh. 6. 45. and they shall be all taught of God every man therefore that hath heard and hath learned of the father cometh unto me Not that any man hath seen the Father 'T is not what men you hear what Ministers you follow till God the Father do's speak powerfully to your hearts by the Ministry of man. It matters not who the man is your faith consists not in the Wisdom of man but in the power of God when you have a proof of Christs speaking in any 2 Cor. 13. 3. then hearken diligently till you hear an inward Word from this invisible Teacher you 'l never come to Christ. If all the Ministers in the World should lay their heads together they could never bring a sinner to Christ till the Father speaks the word and draw him We are but Ministers by whom you believe as the Lord gives to every man So then neither is he that planteth any thing nor he that watereth but God that giveth the increase 1 Cor. 3. 5 6 7. The sum of all is this We are sent to Preach that you may Hear we carry the Letter of the Word to your Ears the Spirit brings it home in the name of God to your Consciences convincing you that it is his Word under this Conviction you see the truth of the Word in the veracity of God this word of Truth and your Souls meeting so close as they alwayes do in an act of Faith sanctifies you this sanctification lies in the ready assent of your understanding and free consent of your Will the one is founded in light the other in love so that when an enlightned Understanding receives the Truth in the love of the Truth there is a firm Principle of Holiness fixed in that Soul flowing from that Union to Christ that Faith gives us this is the beginning and progress of that Faith the end of which is the Salvation of your Souls The Second Point How we are Iustified by Faith. WE ought to be Doers of the Word and not Hearers only to maintain good Works for necessary uses Tit. 3. 14. It behoveth us therefore to know what use we should make of our works and doings in the great business of our Salvation so as not to entrench upon the Righteousness of Christ nor to degrade that from being our sole and only justifying Righteousness Some men are as much mistaken in grounding their salvation upon doing as others are in grounding it upon bare hearing and therefore these things must be warily spoken unto and warily understood When we urge the necessity of doing the Word of God Carnal Reason lies at the catch and is ready to take every thing in a wrong sense and meaning and to bring down the Mysteries of the Gospel to a low loyal vulgar Notion more suitable to humane Reason There are two extreams that men are apt to run into either they neglect good works or else they trust in good works either they do in a careless formal presumptuous manner pretend to cast all upon Christ without any serious inquiries after the Truth of Grace in themselves or ever proving it by its fruits conceiving it altogether needless to be any way active in their own salvation Secondly If upon search they find any actings of Grace in their Hearts any fruits of Grace in their Lives these are their own proper goods they think Money found in their own Purses it matters not how they came by it they have it and they are resolved to convert it to their own proper use making it nothing less than a part of their Justifying Righteousness Those of this way with whom I have now to do do state the matter thus They say that Christ is the meritorious cause of our Justification having by his Death satisfied the Law and discharged us from the Curse of it and so far we agree with them They say further That Christ to compleat our Justification hath also purchased for us strength and ability to perform the condition of the new Covenant this we assent to the performance of which according to them is to be taken in as a part of our Justifying Righteousness and this we deny We say the performance of what is required in the New Covenant is a good Justification of the Cause whether it be of Faith or of Good Works or of any particular thing or action the sincerity and truth of which may be in question But we deny that it adds any thing to the Justification of the person and therefore they speak not ad idem to the same thing when they deny Christs imputed Righteousness to be the sole Righteousness that justifies the Person because there is another Righteousness required upon another account to justifie or clear up the sincerity of our Faith and Holiness I say to clear up this to our selves and other men which we deny not For we do not admit any Faith to be a justifying Faith but upon good evidence of the Truth of it neither do we admit any works to be good works but upon full proof of the goodness of them The Sum of all is this we say Faith and obedience once proved to be true and genuine are good evidences of our interest in Christ whose imputed Righteousness is the sole and only Righteousness by which our Persons are universally justified from all charges and blame whatsoever in the sight of God and to say otherwise is in effect to say that Christ died
A Beggars receiving an Alms argues no merit in the Receiver but meer Grace in the Donor We count that he who only receives a benefit he doth nothing for it it comes freely Indeed he doth something naturally in receiving but nothing morally by way of merit for the thing received Thus it is among Men and so we understand it in all such actings of ours but when we come to deal with God how do our proud hearts put a value upon them then we put a value upon every thing upon our coming upon our adhering upon our relying upon our asking upon our receiving We grow proud of those very Acts of Grace by which we do express our Poverty and Beggary our absolute Dependance upon another as if Christ was beholden to us for our accepting of him So naturally prone are we to rest upon any thing that looks like our own doing Brethren There are two things to be considered in Faith. 1. The Motion of the Soul in receiving which is an Act naturally necessary to all manner of receiving it is as reaching forth and opening the hand 2. You may consider the passive reception it self wherein the Nature of Faith doth chiefly consist in admitting applying and owning the Gift Though the word Believing doth Grammatically imply an Action yet really and physically we are passive in believing For these Reasons First The first Reason is this They who make our Act of believing a part of our Justifying Righteousness do manifestly make Faith to contradict it self in and by its own Act If by an Act of believing we go out of our selves to Christ for all I do not see how by the same Act we can possibly settle upon any thing in our selves that is not Christ If by being justified by faith they understand the Object of faith then we agree with them then faith and Christ is all one By faith we mean Christ applyed and nothing but Christ. But if they understand the bare Act of believing in distinction from Christ the Object therein we differ from them And they must so understand it who make our Act of believing a part of our justifying Righteousness distinct from Christs Righteousness and therein I say they make faith to contradict it self in and by its own Act I do not know whether I am understood I think I understand my self in what I have said Take it thus Pray consider what is the sense of a believing Soul under a present Act of faith in Christ I appeal to you all I desire you would all be Judges in this matter who have ever been serious and in good earnest dealing with God by an act of faith for Salvation You believe in Christ what is the English of that What do you mean by it Is not this your sense you desire to cast your self wholly upon Christ to be found in Christ not having on your own Righteousness to be built upon that Foundation to lay hold on Eternal Life in Christ to go out of your selves unto Christ for Righteousness and Life to seek that in another which you have not in your selves to count all things but loss and dung that you may win Christ don't you mean this Pray what an absurdity then is it what a gross contradiction to say I am justified by something in my self by virtue of that very act of faith by which I do purposely go out of my self to Christ for all If this be Reason and Sense I have quite lost the use of both and will never pretend to understand any thing But how do some Men fight with their own shadows and lose themselves in their own expressions They cannot speak of Christ and of the way and manner of applying Christ but presently they must be Co-workers with Christ in their Justification Brethren We must not be perswaded out of our Christian Names nay out of Christianity it self by those who would impose their own notions upon us and indeed preach another Gospel let them read on and tremble But I will say this that if Paul were alive and should hear any man upon Earth or Angel from Heaven compound Faith and Works Works and Christ in the matter of our Justification I doubt not but he would curse them in the name of the Lord. Certainly we are not to be Mealy-mouthed and silently suffer the grand principles of the Gospel to be decryed as if we doubted whether they were true or no. These are the Pillars of the House all fall with them if they be taken away These are the Ancient Land marks and bounds of our Religion they must not be removed for if you suffer that you will quickly have a dead Child in the room of the living New Notions though not contrary to any received foundation should be warily uttered but supposing there is the least discrepancy or opposition it is our duty and wisdom to be silent and not break the eye of the Needle by forcing our Camel through New Notions must yield rather to antient received Truths they must be governed and over-ruled by them It is dangerous to force plain Scripture and plain principles to make good our own private interpretations 2. Our act of believing is no part of our justifying Righteousness because justification is an act of God not properly subsequent to our Faith but simultaneous with it They are concomitants so close so instantaneous that we cannot say which is first or last in time we cannot say the one takes its rise from the other I explain my self thus it is one thing for the Scripture to speak Doctrinally of Faith another thing to speak of a Believer under the actual exercise of Faith. When the Scripture speaks of the Doctrine of Faith in the Abstract it tells us the consequents of it that according to Gods order and appointment Faith is requisite unto Justification and so Faith is antecedent to Justification and Justification is spoken of as a thing to come upon our believing The Doctrine of Faith shews what shall be to all who obtain it the actual exercise of Faith shews what is to them who have it and do believe it It is not only he that believes shall be saved and justified but is justified It is true who ever believes shall be saved the just shall live by faith this is Doctrinally true But he that believes hath everlasting Life Iohn 3. 39. is justified this is experimentally true God if you rightly consider the point doth justifie us by working Faith in us It is his way of Justifying it is the way God hath chosen to communicate the Righteousness of God which is a stupendious Mystery and cannot be otherwise applied to the soul. He doth not justifie us because of any antecedent act of Faith we have lying by us and which we could now produce as a price as it were and Meritorious Means of our Justification God justifies us by working Faith in us God being willing in so great an act of Grace to speak to
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
to us and shew us its meaning I wish we could a little better understand the actings of our Faith understand the reason the sense of it the importance the intent of an act of Faith what a thing Faith is Thirdly They suppose a double Justification and a double Justifying Righteousness the first to justifie us from the accusations of the Law the other to justifie the sincerity of our Faith and Holiness and here comes in all our inherent Righteousness This is specious too But I would not have men coyn new heads of Divinity to make good their own notions We know but of one Justification I say the second Justification which they talk of it is implyed in the first and therefore needless and unscriptural For since the Revelation of the Gospel infidelity and unbelief is a sin against the Moral Law and Faith in Christ is injoyned as a duty by the Moral Law by which we take God to be our God and consequently do bind our selves over to believe whatsoever he had or hereafter should reveal to be his Will. This we are bound to by the Moral Law therefore if we are as they themselves affirm freed by Justification from the Law of Works upon the condition of Faith then we are on our first Justification absolutely freed from infidelity and our Faith is sufficiently approved to be true and what then need a second Justification unless we will suppose an error in the first Judgment which is impious to suppose as if God should acquit us from the accusation of the Law of Works upon the condition of Faith which upon after examination Christ discovers to be false and unsound So that these things do not hang together Fourthly They say that Faith and Holiness are conditions and evidences of our title to Christ and all that comes by him and therefore part of our Justifying Righteousness It is hard to understand the strength of some mens reasoning but grant all this it amounts to no more but Christ and a title to Christ so far we are agreed for we desire no more But how they will make Faith which is our title to Christ and unto which Christ and all his benefits are by the Gospel granted promised and made over how they will make this title never so well evidenced to be part of our Justifying Righteousness I see not A title adds nothing to the inheritance makes it neither more nor less but conveys it down to us according to the intrinsick value of the thing be it more or less A title to Land is no part of the Land only we are invested in it as it is by vertue of our title Now therefore if the Righteousness of Christ be not of it self sufficient to justifie us I see not how a good title mends the matter for if the Estate be never so great and we have no good title to it it is worth nothing to us and if our title be never so good we can have no more then is and belongs to the title So that after all this stir about conditions and evidences of our title to Christ the result of all is this we have a title a good title are under all the conditions and evidences of a good title but to what To an Inheritance that is not sufficient to maintain us to a Righteousness that is not sufficient of it self alone to justifie us and where are we now with our conditions and evidences of our title For ever destitute of a compleat Justifying Righteousness Is this to Preach Christ To Preach the glad Tidings of the Gospel Is this the way to quiet and settle the Consciences of poor distressed sinners surely no. Fifthly They urge the literal sense of some few Scriptures that seem to speak for them especially two and I do not know of more in the whole Bible as to the literal signification if there were we should hear enough of it I know they quote many others which add no weight at all to the Argument they would ground upon them Therefore I shall not speak to them Those two are Mat. 12. 37. By thy words thou shalt be justified and by thy words thou shalt be condemned and that in Iames where it is said Abraham was justified by works Iam. 2. 23. For that in Matthew Calvin charges the Papists with very great weakness in offering to draw an Argument from that Text for Justification by Works Maldonate a Learned Jesuite on the other hand is very angry with Calvin for supposing any of the Roman Church to be so weak and injudicious as to argue so from that Scripture for saith he we very well understand that this Text doth not speak De justificatione qua justi efficimur sed de judicis sententia qua sumpto ex verbis nostris argumento justi declaramur So saith the Jesuite we know this Text doth not speak of that which is the cause of our Justification of the thing for which and by virtue of which we become just and righteous only here is the appearance of our Righteousness by our words and we are declared to be Righteous So that this doth not touch this cause of Justification and yet this is the main Text brought for it the main proof repeated again and again to prove inherent righteousness to have an influence into our Justification I say let them take the answer from the Papists or Protestants which they please they are both against them in this thing As for the other Scripture They will take it in no other sense but what implyes a contradiction to all other Texts of Scripture in the case The whole current of Scripture is against Works in Justification and leads us to a fair construction of that in Iames that it is to be understood of a justification before men and not of a justification before God. Protestant Writers have sufficiently cleared up this to the Conviction of all but such who are resolved not to be Convinced Certainly they should have a care how they abound too much in their own sense The Learned Lord Bacon saith that a little Phylosophy makes men Atheists but a great deal will convince them of a Deity Some mens Logick and School Learning overthrows Reason which duely improved and well managed would teach them to argue otherwise Certainly in our reasoning about Divine things we should be careful not to abound too much in our own sense It is better for us to leave the Mystery of the Gospel in its Mystery where we found it than to seek to draw it out and so to explain it as to force it into the mould of Humane Reason shaping it on every side to an exact conformity to the thoughts and conceptions of our weak imperfect Understanding I say no Gospel Truth will bear this After all our Faith and Knowledge and Experience we know but in part and there is at the end of every Gospel Truth a Mystery something that is passing our Understanding that calls for
silence for an holy Admiration for an humble submission in Faith to the Will of God. Therefore I would not have men speak as if they knew all and draw particular Schemes and it must be so and no otherwise and thus and thus you must proceed in this and that way and form therefore things must be so stated I have done with the Argumentative part I will now speak a word or two in a looser way of Discourse I say then thus he may be a true Believer who doth not take his faith for any part of his Justifying Righteousness I suppose that will be granted But he cannot be a true Believer who takes not Christ for his Justifying Righteousness I do not say now for his only Justifying Righteousness because I would speak in the sense of those I oppose I say they cannot be Believers who do not look upon Christ as their Justifying Righteousness but they may be true Believers who do not look upon faith as a part of their Justifying Righteousness For the first suppose it an Error it is only about the act in our apprehension which doth not alter the nature of the thing at all The second is an Error in the act which quite destroys the very nature of faith Therefore the safer way is rather to press persons to believe to see they have faith indeed and in Truth than urge them to such an unscriptural construction of their faith putting such a title of Honor upon it to the reproach of Christ and his Righteousness They honour faith sufficiently who only prefer Christ before it No doubt God will give faith its due praise and place at the last day our not knowing or not understanding the reach and truth of our faith in all circumstances of it will be no prejudice to faith at the last day I heartily wish we were more in the Exercise of Faith than in Controversies about it more in the Practise of Good Works than in Dispute about them we should then sooner understand both the one and the other Sirs the mysterious sublime Doctrine of Justification was revealed for our comfort and proposed to our faith to be believed not to our reason to argue upon in a Quodlibetical manner and to toss to and fro for Argument sake What if we know no more of Justification then is absolutely necessary for our Justification This is the case of many plain sincere hearted Christians and if it were so with us all we may have fewer Notions in our Heads but possibly more Grace in our Hearts The Lord grant that we may know the Doctrine of Justification so as they know it who are saved by Christ. But surgunt indocti rapiunt Coelum nos cum doctrinis nostris sine corde volutamur in carne in sanguine The Learned they dispute and wrangle themselves into Hell the unlearned they believe practice and gain Heaven taking up the truth in simplicity according to the general scope of the Gospel as it is held forth to the meanest Capacity Brethren what Paul said to the Jaylor Acts 16. 31. that I say to you all Believe on the Lord Iesus Christ and thou and thy house shall be saved Don't you go home now and tell your Families that they must not understand this Text so as to look upon Christ as their only justifying righteousness but look out for something in themselves if ever they be saved No pray speak Scripture Language expound Scripture by Scripture and tell them that Christ is all in all tell them plainly that they must not be found in their own righteousness they must be found in Christ not having on their own righteousness that they must count all things but loss and dung that they may win Christ that there is no other foundation but Christ no other name under Heaven by which they can be saved but the name of Christ tell them they must not come for Justification and Life in the name of their Good Works of any thing that belongs themselves but only in the name of Christ promote this Doctrine in your Families and among your Children and Servants This is the way to save you and your Household This is good wholesome household Divinity and suited to the ordinary Capacity of all serious Professors We must not send our Hearers to intricate distinctions to learn the meaning of the Doctrine of their Justification The sense of the Gospel is plain enough in this thing they that run may read it Come come you shall never be charged at the Last Day for giving too much to Christ in the matter of Justification You are bound to ascribe all to him and you shall never be charged for giving too much And certainly if it be possible to err on that hand I had rather err in giving too much then too little to Christ. Do you think that a true Believer who doth not look upon the act of Faith or works of Holiness to be any part of his justifying righteousness but casts himself upon Christ do you think I say that God will reprove such a person at the last day for ascribing too much to Christ and not pleading his own righteousness Certainly a Believer cannot plead the righteousness of Christ without Faith his way of arguing from Christ will sufficiently evince the truth and reality of his Faith there needs no other proof and demonstration of it I should have made some Application I will tell you what I intended First To those who ground their Justification upon the sandy Foundation of their inherent Righteousness I would exhort them to pull down the house presently before it fall upon their heads and lay a better Foundation if ever they think to stand before the Son of Man in his Day Then I should exhort them and press them to study other Arguments as there are very many to promote Good Works and practical Holiness among men and not justle out Christ to make room for self Righteousness in the matter of Justification What must we work for Life still To work for Justification is to work for Life and why should we thus turn the Gospel into the Law I should speak also to those who are built upon the right Foundation and have cast themselves upon Christs Righteousness for Justification unto Life Let such be careful to maintain good Works let them be Examplary in the practise of them and bring forth fruit meet for the Kingdom of God. For as the Foundation may be too weak for the Superstructure so the Superstructure may be too mean for the Foundation And therefore down with all this Hay Wood and Stubble and labour to walk more sutable to that Holy Faith under the Profession of which you live Brethren The unsutable and uncircumspect lives of Professors have been the greatest scandal to the Doctrine of Justification by Faith it hath opened the Mouths of men against it Therefore labour to live men into a Conviction of this Truth Disputes and
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
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
thus viz. That the first step in Regeneration is from a sinful State and Nature to Christ. Or thus Regeneration is the Implantation of the Soul into Christ. Or thus Saving Conversion in the right Gospel-Notion of it is Conversion to Christ 'T is true a turning from Sin to Holiness is the effect or consequent of Regeneration but 't is not the thing it self the Tree must be made good before it can bring forth good Fruit so that Regeneration lies chiefly in our incorporation into Christ till we are joined to the second Adam we are and shall be acted by that corrupt nature which we derived from the First Adam There were but two publick men in the World and all men do take after one or other of them either after the First Adam or after the Second Adam they are the two Great Standards I will shew that this is the right Scriptural Notion of Regeneration and Conversion to this end is Christ Preached 1 Cor. 1. 23 24. No other Name under Heaven by which we can be saved Acts 4. 12. This Name must be published Acts 9. 15. Regeneration or our first Conversion what is it but a revealing Christ in us Gal. 1. 16. Drawing unto Christ Iohn 6. 44. Receiving Christ Iohn 1. 11. Following Christ Matt. 9. 9. 'T was Christ they came over to in Conversion hence those Phrases of our being in Christ and Christ's being in us living in us Gal. 2. 20. Formed in us Gal. 4. 19. Put on by us Gal. 3. 27. Rom. 13. 4. Thus you see how the New Creature or the Regenerate Person has his Life Being and whole Subsistence in and from Christ. If any man be in Christ he is a new creature We are taken up so much with Duties of Evangelical Obedience that we commit a great error in our first step do not go over to Christ and begin there thence it is that the Saints are called Christians because their Original is from Christ they bear his Image are acted by his Spirit partake of his Nature If this new Life be from Christ what is the way of its derivation from Christ unto us or how comes this Virtue from Christ into our Souls that both our state and nature should be thus changed in him and by him in order to newness of Life in our after Conversation You must give me leave often to put Questions why and how and which way because I am now enquiring after the Manner of Regeneration If you ask How Life comes to be derived from Christ into the Soul of a dead Sinner Answer I say this is effected by our vital union to Christ. We need not wonder that such a change is wrought in those who are thus joined to the Lord in one and the same Spirit we cannot come so near to Eternal Life it self and not be quickned by it we cannot remain dead when we thus enter into Life it self The main Query is How this Union is brought about between Christ and our Souls Answer The Spirit takes hold of us and joins us to Christ working Faith in us at the same instant by which we take hold of Christ improving the Grace of Union to a real Communion with Christ we dwelling in him and he in us 'T is union to Christ that gives Life at first and maintains it ever after in our souls We have our first quickning from this Union and all after increases of Spiritual Life are but so many fresh emanations from Christ the Fountain of Life flowing into our Souls Thus we have Life and have it more abundantly from Christ. I shall prove this Union between Christ and Believers as 't is productive of Life it self in its first vital Principle and also as it is the cause of all after-growth in Grace proceeding from the higher and more vigorous operations of this Life raised and kindled in the Soul by the enlivening influences of the Eternal Spirit of Life in Christ Jesus in both these respects as it causes and continues Life in the Saints is this Mystical Union between Christ and Believers spoken of in the Scriptures The glory which thou gavest me I have given them that they may be one even as we are one The Glory that was given to the Man Christ did all spring from the Union of the Human Nature to the Divine next to this is the Mystical Union between Christ and Believers the enlivening influences of this Union are set forth by an Incorporation by an Ingrafture The Ministry of the Word is an outward means of bringing this Union about making a tender of Christ to us and calling upon us to receive him Ministers are the Instrumental cause of this near Conjunction between Christ and Believers They are the friends of the bridegroom who give the Saints in Marriage unto Christ. I have espoused you to one Husband You see how the Scripture variously sets forth our Union to Christ who is our Life Regeneration is the beginning of this new Life and Nature in the Saints which shews it self more or less after an inward effectual call we know 't is God the Father's Voice who so calls us because a Spirit of Wisdom and Revelation accompanies it powerfully enlightning our Minds By our Union to Christ we stand in a spiritual Relation to him as his Brethren Spouse and Members and this spiritual Relation to him gives us a right to all that he hath purchased for us He that hath the Son hath life c. We have an Interest in his Righteousness 't is ours by Imputation we being his his Righteousness becomes ours we cannot have Christ without his Righteousness which in the Infinite Merit of it extends it self to all Believers Rom. 3. 22. Thus we are made the righteousness of God in him 2 Cor. 5. 21. Christ takes hold of us by his Spirit and by so doing enables us to take hold of him by Faith of his own operation in us such a Regeneration such a Conversion as this derives from him a Principle of Spiritual Life by which we are carried out to all good works Ephes. 2. 10. I shall further explain the Manner of our Union to Christ. Christ took our Nature upon him without the sin that cleaves to it in us this was done by a Miraculous Conception when Christ took our Nature his Eye was upon the Persons of the Elect The Hypostatical Union of the Divine and Humane Nature in the Person of Christ was in order to the Spiritual Union of our Persons to the Person of Christ Christ took our Nature abstracted from our Persons and consequently without sin super-induc'd upon it by Adam's Fall the Person corrupted the Nature in the First Adam not the Nature the Person as now it does Though Christ have taken our Nature upon him without sin yet how can we maintain this Union and Communion between Christ and our Persons in whom there is so much
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
' 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
our heads nor out of our hearts they lye close they lye next us always in our view My sin is ever before me Christ dwells in our hearts by Faith we have the whole state of our Souls before us from first to last Faith shews us where our true interest lies what is of absolute necessity to be done in order to Salvation We see all this in Christ who is God and Man made sin for us that we might be made the righteousness of God in him In Christ we see how matters stand between God and Man we see all that passed between God and Man in order to his recovery the whole method way and manner of our restauration from first to last we see the wages of our Sins and the price of our Redemption we see the Law and the Gospel both fulfill'd in Christ God's infinite Justice and Mercy highly exalted and glorified in him 'T is a pleasing ravishing sight to behold God in Christ reconciling the World unto himself to observe the mystery of his manifold hidden wisdom in carrying on the great work of Man's Redemption all this Faith discovers to us in some measure filling us with a Holy admiration of God's unspeakable kindness and love to us provoking us to pursue after the great ends of the Gospel How busie is the Soul how full of discourse with it self What secret inferences does an enlightned Conscience draw from what it believes This believing Jesus to be the Christ takes in all that belongs to the Person of Christ in all his Offices takes in the whole Doctrine of Christ all his Precepts all his Promises applies all to the Soul Thou art the Man spoken of and spoken to in the Gospel hear and thy Soul shall live Now is the accepted time now is the day of Salvation Faith admits of no delays won't give us one days respite from the work it hath cut out for us So Faith wrought in Paul when Christ was revealed in him immediately he consulted not with flesh and blood Faith changes our Counsels alters the whole frame of the Soul the Man is a new Man born again into a new World into a new Nature quite of another spirit This is the Regenerating power of Faith. Let us then judge of the truth of our Faith by the great change that it always makes in those who are brought out of darkness into this marvellous light Should we ask some Professors what effect their Faith had upon them whether upon their believing in Christ they found themselves born again made new creatures It may be they will say they hope they are the better for believing that their Faith has not been without some good effect Alas what a slender account is this how short of a new birth You may be the same Man that ever you were for all this in the same state in which you were first born Art thou born again born of God Speak to this Some outward Reformation there may be where there is no inward Regeneration Hast thou a new heart dost thou lead a new life is the whole course of thy life changed are all things become new within and without Faith in Christ changes us into the same image transforms us into his likeness le ts in the Spirit of Christ further and further into the Soul till we are so filled with the Holy Spirit that there will be at last no room for a worldly spirit to breathe in us it will be quite extinct and die away The more we see of this newness of spirit in any the more of the new creature appears in them When the Apostle would take off the Ephesians from a vain worldly course of life he shews the inconsistency of such a course with the true knowledg of Christ. You have not so learned Christ you have been taught better things by him than to walk as the Gentiles do in the vanity of their mind Faith in Christ works so great a change in all the faculties of the Soul in the understanding will and affections and in our outward conversation too that a true Believer may well be said to be born again from the newness of life that appears in him and to be born of God from the holiness spirituality and heavenly nature of that life which he now lives by Faith in the Son of God. Till the Regenerating power of Faith do thus appear in us we have no reason to think we are born again 4. Whosoever is born of God overcomes the world c. 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 Omne quod ex Deo genitum est He uses the neuter gender to comprehend all sorts states and degrees of mankind he does not say he or she that is born of God c. but whatsoever is born of God every Man Woman and Child rich or poor bond or free whosoever is born of God has power and strength from Christ to overcome the World they are assured of the Victory at their first setting out because greater is he that is in them than he that is in the World. They know they are of the strongest side Christ has overcome the World already in his own Person and will not fail to conquer it in and by the Saints he will appear so great in them that the whole World shall not be able to stand before them Be of good cheer I have overcome the world and you in me have overcome it and by me you shall personally overcome it your selves I prove this to be an evidence of Regeneration thus That which overcomes the World must be of a higher extraction of a more noble descent than the World it self in its present corrupt state it must be something distinct from the World and above it whatever is born of the Flesh is but Flesh falls in with the World to which it belongs and of which it is a part but God having chosen some out of the World and called them to a Heavenly Life has promised to give them a Heavenly Nature to beget them again unto himself to put his own Spirit into them that they may walk as New Creatures who are not of the World though they live in it they are Born of God do bear his image their hearts are moulded into the belief of his word they can do nothing against the truth but every thing for the truth these are they who overcome the World the men of the world and the Things of the World the Spirit Principles of the World the Fears and Hopes of the World the Lusts and Pleasures and Temptations of the World they are dead to all these not moved by them but do steer their course by a higher light let down from heaven into their hearts and this is their Victory even their Faith they have nothing to oppose against the World and all things in it that may disquiet and discompose their Spirits but their Faith and by believing they enter into rest all who
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
believe as Christ is gone before you as surely escape Hell and overcome Death as Christ is risen from the dead and the only way to get an Interest in Christ is to attend to the word of Faith that is preached ver 8. when once that prevails and brings you to confess with your mouth the Lord Jesus and believe in your heart that God hath raised him from the dead you shall be saved ver 9. this proved out of Isa. 28. 16. Whosoever believes on him shall not be ashamed whether Iew or Gentile ver 11 12. and because Prayer is the principal part of that outward Confession made with the Mouth and the best indication of Faith in the Heart he concludes ver 13. Whosoever shall call upon the name of the Lord shall be saved Whence Observe Observ. The chiefest thing we should now pray for is that we may have an Interest in Christ and his Righteousness desiring to be found in him c. Having spoken so much of the Righteousness of Faith he does in a certain gradation shew the way and means of attaining it it is not a Righteousness that is to be done by us to be wrought out with our own hands but prepared for us by another freely promised and given to us therefore it must be askt it must be earnestly pray'd for we must beg hard of God to impute it to us v. 13. the Law propounds the work of Righteousness to be done by us the Gospel Rom. 5. 17. propounds the Gift of Righteousness to be pray'd for and thankfully received v. 14. there can be no Prayer without Faith no Faith without Hearing no Hearing without a Preacher no Preachers unless they be sent from all which he draws this Conclusion viz. that the next immediate Cause of Faith is Hearing There is much Preaching and much Hearing in this City but what comes on 't Truely if Faith does not come nothing comes that will turn to any good Account to you The Apostles in the Primitive times so spake that many believed Acts 14. 1. with that evidence and power their words had a special Accent in the Ears and Hearts of those that heard them God gave a signal testimony to the word of his Grace than fear came upon every Soul Acts 2. 43. Those who were not savingly wrought upon were greatly astonished at the Doctrine of the Gospel 't is otherwise now how little of this astonishment does appear in our Assemblies where is this fear that came upon every Soul 't was short of Faith yet I am perswaded when Faith comes in some open eminent Conversion that the whole Assembly is usually struck with some present fear the Word comes like a mighty rushing Wind into the Congregation shakes all when 't is about to Convert one something like this may be observed in the Acts of the Apostles and other passages in the New Testament it is sit that Grace should be solemnly attended when it goes forth to the publick Conversion though but of one Soul If God intend the coming of Faith into any of your hearts this day he 'l come along with his Work he will prepare the way he 'l bless your hearing and speak something inwardly to you from himself that shall incline your hearts to believe the Gospel though God speaks by the Ministry of man yet his voice is distinct from ours and begins where that ends carrying the Word from the Ear to the Heart there leaving it under those mixtures of Faith that make it work effectually Hear I beseech you with diligence least you obstruct the coming of Faith by not attending to what shall be spoken to you in the name of the Lord. So then faith cometh by hearing c. Doct. Hearing the Word of God Preached to us is the ordinary means of begetting faith in us First What are we in a more special manner to understand by Faith here in the Text. The general Object of Faith is the whole Doctrine of God laid down in the Scriptures the special object of Saving Faith is the Free-promise of Grace in Christ Jesus this supports the former we must believe the Divine Narrative of the whole Will of God revealed in the Bible before we can pitch our Faith in any suitable actings upon any part of it 't is one thing to assent to the Truth of the Word in General a further and indeed another thing to apply the Promises he believes a Promise who do's fiducially rely upon it this is properly Trusting we believe something in reference to our selves living in a comfortable Hope and Expectation of it respecting not only the Truth of the thing but also the Goodness of it in reference to our selves under that possibility probability or certainty of obtaining it which our Faith according to its various Degrees may represent unto us Faith in the Righteousness of Christ for justification is here principally intended Secondly Why must this Faith come by hearing Hearing is alwayes antecedent to Faith though Faith be not always the consequent of Hearing ver 16. 18. all Hearers are not believers though all Believers are first Hearers I shall evince the necessity of Hearing in order to Faith from these following grounds I. Hearing is Sensus Discipline the Sense by which all Knowledge is let into the Soul. There is a two-fold Knowledge belonging to Faith one leading to it the other found in it arising from it and is the same with Faith it self The First is Litteral or Historical 't is rather notitia then cognitio a notice or particular information given us of the Contents of the Bible especially of the report which the Gospel makes of the way of Salvation by Christ we must know what we are to believe before we can be supposed to believe any thing How shall they believe in him of whom they have not heard and how shall they hear without a Preacher Words are the proper Object of this Sense of Hearing where nothing is spoken nothing can be heard the sound of Words must reach the ear before the sense of those Words can enter into the Understanding This Historical Knowledge do's not lye in Learning the Scriptures by roat without any Rational Knowledge of the Litteral Sense and Meaning of those Propositions of Truth that are contained therein this would be only Memory without any Understanding A Natural Man does not dis-believe the Scripture because he has not a Rational Conception of the common Notion of things spoken of there but because he has and finding them so uncouth so seemingly contrary to Humane Reason he rejects them as Foolishness The Second Is a Knowledge more than Historical and is of the Essence of Faith all one with it it is that which we call a Saving Knowledge it lies in the Use and Application of Gospel Truths to our own Souls when we shape our selves to a real Conformity to the Call of God in every Gospel Truth acting in a way of Duty what the Word of God
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
to justifie us that we might be justified without him or at least not only and solely by him which is highly derogatory to the death of Christ neither will their owning Christ to be the meritorious cause of our Justification salve the matter while they do in any sense require another Righteousness distinct from that of Christs for the justification of our Persons in the sight of God. And having given you this brief account of the matter in difference I shall now proceed The Point in General which I am to speak to is this That though good works are highly necessary in a justified person yet they not required in any way of causality to the Justification of the Person Or thus no part of our inherent Righteousness can be any part of our justifying Righteousness This I might prove to you many ways First From the subject of Justification an ungodly Person a believing Sinner flying in the sense of Sin unto Jesus Christ for Life and Pardon Sin is that from which we are Justified the Righteousness of Christ is that for which or by which we are Justified Act. 13. 39. Secondly Because there must be a change of state in Justification and by Justification before we can derive any saving Grace from Christ to enable us to the least good work I might also Thirdly Argue from the weakness and imperfection of all Inherent Holiness which is not able to justifie it self much less the Person And many Arguments may be brought but my design is to contract this general to a particular point concerning the 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 credere or the act of believing and I shall shew that that part of our inherent Righteousness that flows from our doing the Word of God that is the Work of Faith as done by us in an act of believing is no part of our justifying Righteousness This is that which seems to have the fairest claim to and interest in our Justification and if this be disproved the Argument will hold a fortiori against all the inferiour branches of our inherent Righteousness they must be forced to quit their claim also That which seems to intitle Faith to such an Interest in our Justification as is pleaded for by some is the phrase and manner of expression which the Scripture uses in speaking of Faith telling us that Faith is imputed to us for Righteousness that we are justified by Faith that he that believes shall be saved and the like The question is in what sense these Scriptures are to be understood whither we are to take up our standing partly in the act of Faith and partly in the object of Faith making up a Righteousness partly from our selves and partly from Christ or whether we are by Faith to go out of our selves unto Christ for our whole sole and only justifying Righteousness and this is that which I affirm and shall endeavour to make good and shew you that the Scriptures alledged do not ascribe our Justification to the Act but wholly to the Object of Faith not to our believing but to Christ believed on which I prove thus First From those Expressions of Scripture peculiar to Holy Writ by which the Holy Ghost doth of set purpose limit Faith to its Object Iohn 6. 47. Rom. 9. 33. Ephes. 1. 13. 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 to believe in into or upon Christ which plainly points out this that Faith is alwayes to be taken in relation to its Object that by Faith is meant Christ apprehended by Faith. Life is promised not simply to believing but to believing in in whom in Christ or nothing Faith is a relative term as to its whole sense and signification to the Object Christ. It must be Faith in Christ or Faith in nothing Believing is a Scripture Phrase setting forth our leaning upon Christ. Faith as our Act adds nothing to Christ doth not make his Death satisfactory it was so in its self before though by an applicatory act of Faith it is made so to us that is we do reap the benefits of his Death and satisfaction we are not united to Faith but by Faith we are united to Christ. Faith is the Medium uniens we do not trust in our Faith but by Faith we trust in Christ all that Faith signifies is in relation to Christ all that it doth is in the Name of Christ without Christ it signifies nothing it doth nothing it is nothing When we are said to be justified by the Faith of Christ or justified by Faith in Christ Gal 2. 16. pray must the meaning be that we are justified by Faith and Christ as some would have it giving the priority to Faith and making Christ but a remote cause of our Justification and our inherent Righteousness to be the next and immediate cause Were Men more willing to exalt Christ and debase themselves this would be English plain enough Faith in Christ would then signifie but one Righteousness it would not be Faith and Christ. Let Men have a care how they speak unadvisedly of Christ to the lessening and diminution of his Honour God hath said he is our Righteousness without any Limitation without any restriction Now for Men to say ay but not all our Righteousness not our only Righteousness I say 't is a bold word thus to distinguish whatever remote inferences they may gather out of Scripture to justifie their meaning yet since God hath not thought fit to drop any such diminutive expression of Christ in Scripture I say it is a bold word for Men to speak You may see how severely speaking against God was punished Numb 21. 5 6. And God complains of it Ezek. 35. 13. With your mouths ye have boasted against me and have multiplyed your words against me I have heard them We may safely deny any thing of God that implies weakness or imperfection but to deny that of Christ which tends to the Exaltation of his Name and riches of his Grace let Men distinguish how they will it is dangerous meddling here This is a tender point that is the first Secondly If the bare act of Faith without any relation to the object justifies then any act of Divine Faith will justifie us as well as Faith in Christ for the Act is specified by the Object Take away the Object and all Acts of Faith are alike equally insignificant But I proceed Thirdly To the third Argument that shall be drawn from the Nature of Faith which consists in receiving As it is the Act of a Believer it implies doing but properly as an Act of believing it consists in receiving and that with an empty hand Now the question is whether by this receiving Act of Faith there do redound to us a Righteousness of our own distinct from that which we receive from Christ I say no We are not justified by a Righteousness that we do but by a Righteousness that we receive Now the bare Act of receiving in a common Natural way is not counted morally meritorious
our Understandings and Knowledge he hath appointed Faith as a fit means by which the soul not only doth the thing but also le ts in a sense of what is done upon the soul and therefore saith the Apostle it is of faith that it might be of grace God will be understood in all the acts of his Grace towards us Now that there might be in us a sense of reception of so great a benefit God resolves to put it into the hand of Faith which hath a natural sutableness in it and fitness to receive what free Grace tenders to it and so it doth when it is in any strength Christ and our Souls would never meet were it not for Faith. There is no letting down any thing spiritual and supernatural into the soul but by Faith Faith is our modus habendi it is the way the means by which we come to have God and Christ and an Interest in the things of Heaven We have what we have from Christ by Faith and we hold it by Faith. Faith and Repentance as acted by us and reflected upon are very good Evidences of our Justifications for it is in that reflection only that they do give evidence of themselves and of any thing produced from them Therefore I say as they are reflected upon they have retrospection to our Justification of which they are very good and evident proofs but they have no antecedent causality to produce the thing signified because they signifie it as a thing already done past and perfect 3. And lastly Justification is frequently set down in Scripture without any relation to these acts of Grace in us to shew that it wholly flowes from Christ and that by our believing we add nothing to our Justifying Righteousness but do only apply it as wholly derived from Christ alone 1 Ioh. 5. 12. He that hath the Son hath life they that are in Christ there is no Condemnation to them Rom. 8. 1. Now because we cannot admit sinners to be in Christ but by faith therefore what flows from Christ is attributed unto faith which is I say our modus habendi but still the real cause of our Justification that which makes us just in the sight of God is our being in Christ and our having the Son. There is no mention made of having any thing else but faith is our modus habendi we cannot have the Son but by faith nor be in Christ but by Believing Therefore God speaks to our Understanding and hath attributed that to the act of faith which is only derivable from the Object I shall now shew you the weakness of those grounds and reasons they go upon who differ from us in this point 1. They speak much of a Charge of Infidelity Impenitency and Unholiness to be drawn up against us at the last day and therefore it concerns us to muster up all our good works all our acts of Grace and every part of our inherent Righteousness that we may be in a readiness to answer to this Charge and clear our selves A specious Argument enough to amuse the World and fright men back into the Popish Doctrine of Justification by Works Brethren I do not deny that unbelieving impenitent and ungodly Persons shall be charged with infidelity impenitency and ungodliness and be condemned but to talk of a charge of Infidelity against a Believer at the last day I say it is a groundless unscriptural Notion I do not deny that the faith of the Saints that draws them to Christ and its efficacy afterwards in all its fruits will be taken notice of by Christ when they are admitted into the Kingdom Mat. 25. 34. Come ye blessed and when that blessedness is fixed Christ doth not put them upon the proof of their faith but helps them himself to understand the former actings of their faith and love to God which they were ignorant of before When saw we thee an hungred and fed thee or thirsty and gave thee drink c. In as much as ye have done it to one of the least of these ye have done it to me I see more Grace in you saith Christ than ever you saw in your selves so and so appearing in your lives Come ye blessed Brethren Good Works are good Evidences to us to make out the Truth of Grace in us but the All-knowing God needs no such Evidences for his Information he knows what is in man and needs not that any should tell him He searches the Heart Though we see Grace only in the Fruit yet God sees it in the Root and Principle Besides I conceive the last Judgment is not to prove who is and who is not in a state of Grace but rather to pronounce the Sentence according to the state that every one shall appear in at the Resurrection There will be no doubting of any mans state at the Resurrection the method and manner of the Resurrection will decide it Christ himself will separate the Sheep from the Goats and he will do this before the Judgement Mat. 25. 32 33. You shall know a Believer then by his Station at the right hand of Christ by his Company among the Sheep The Angels are sent forth Mat. 24. 31. to gather up the Elect from the four Winds from the one end of Heaven to the other They will ransack every corner of the World to find out every Saint not only the Ninety and Nine but the whole Hundred shall be presented to God not one missing we shall all stand together Now after they are thus ranked by Christ and the Angels have declared them to be Sheep to be true Believers must they come under a charge of infidelity Who must draw up this charge and manage this false Indictment Either God or good Angels or Conscience or the Devil God he hath justified them here sealed them by the Spirit of Adoption to the day of Redemption and he will never reverse his judgment The judgment of God at the last day will be pursuant to the judgment already past by his Word and Spirit in the Hearts and Consciences of Believers here Good Angels are imployed to gather up the Elect and consequently they have a true discerning who they are Our Consciences are sprinkled with the Blood of Jesus and have an answer in readiness by the Resurrection of Christ from the dead And the Devil will have something else to do in that day when he stands at the head of the wicked to receive his sentence with them the time of his torment being then come Though he be now the accuser of the brethren day and night before God he must then Eternally be cast down True he is now our accuser and we must labour to overcome him by the Blood of the Lamb as Rev. 12. 10 11. that is by Arguments drawn from the Blood of Jesus yet I say fear him not after death The last enemy that shall be destroyed is Death saith the Apostle and must we have an after rancounter with
Words will not do it till you make it appear that the Grace of God that hath brought Life and Immortality to light through the Gospel hath taught you to deny all Ungodliness and Worldly Lusts. This is the way to promote the Doctrine of Justification by Faith alone You that are built upon the right Foundation had need be careful and circumspect The House is not yet finished we do all of us lie open more or less to Storms and Tempests here below though they cannot throw down the house yet they may shake the house the rain may beat into the house may soak through every room of the house may foul the house may greatly incommode us and distress us Therefore keep your Souls in good repair keep them as tite as you can against Wind and Weather And for your Comfort I would have told you that Heaven will mend all the Errors in the Superstructure if the Foundation be right God will then take away and separate all those weaknesses and sinful mixtures that now run along with all our Graces all Cracks and Flawes the sinkings and failings the bendings and leanings this way and that way in any part of the building Heaven will mend all will set all right and straight when we are Sanctified throughout and the Top-stone is laid FINIS A DISCOURSE OF REPENTANCE SHEWING The Difference between Legal and Evangelical Repentance AND The Necessary Connection between Evangelical Repentance and Saving 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 Repentance MARK 1. 15. Repent ye and believe the Gospel THE summe of the Gospel lies in Faith and Repentance which alwayes go together and cannot be separated though they may and ought to be distinguished one from the other I have chosen this Text to show the necessary connection that is between Faith and Repentance that I may be the better understood I shall observe this method 1. Distinguish between Legal and Evangelical Repentance 2. Shew the nature of Evangelical Repentance what it is and wherein it does consist how it rises our of faith what its use and end is 3. Shew the necessary connection that is between Evangelical Repentance and saving Faith. 4. The real difference that is between them notwithstanding this necessary connection 5. Inquire into the true cause and reason why the Professors of this Age who are so much for Faith do mind Repentance so little 6. Apply all First Distinguish between Legal and Evangelical Repentance You see the Repentance and Faith spoken of in the Text have both of them a reference to the Gospel Repent and believe the Gospel We shall better understand the nature of Evangelical Repentance by comparing it with Legal Repentance observing as we go how they differ from each 1. Legal Repentance is the work of the Law i. e. The work of the Spirit by the Law for the Law works but faintly under the influence of meer Natural Light unless the Spirit awaken the Conscience and set home the Law little will be done such a work of the Law you have Rom. 2. 15. letting in a Spirit of Bondage upon the Conscience accusing us for what we have done against the Law and leaving us so convicted without any plea for our selves Evangelical Repentance is the work of the Gospel sweetly melting the Heart by Arguments drawn from the Love of God and his free Grace in Christ towards Sinners it encourages a trembling Soul to plead with God for Mercy as the Publican Lord be Merciful to me a Sinner 2. Legal Repentance is all terrour and no hope it rises from the revelation of Gods Wrath against Sinners 't is a despairing Repentance without any hope of pardon the Curse of the Law lies hard upon a Man he knows not how to get from under it but lives in a fearful expectation of fiery indignation to devour him he is a terrour to himself But Evangelical Repentance leaves not an affrighted sinner altogether without hope as I shall shew under the next head 3. Legal Repentance is from worldly sorrow not so much for the sin as the penalty incurred thereby the apprehension of which is very dreadful to a convinced sinner he is more affected with the evil of punishment then with the evil of sin in it self 't is not for Gods sake but his own that he repents of sin he could love it well enough if it did not damn him Though I do not deny but a Repentance purely legal may have some sense of the evil of sin as sin not only as malum prohibitum but as malum in se as evil in its own nature where common notions of good and evil are not utterly extinguished it must needs be so especially under a higher conviction from the Spirit of God that gives us a farther discerning of the evil of sin then the meer light of nature under its greatest elevation can possibly do It was so in Iudas Matt. 27. 34. he was convinced not only that he had broken the Law of God but that he had sinned in so doing I have sinned in that I have betrayed the innocent blood He knew he had a hand in murdering a Man a good Man a great Man who was more then Man no doubt all this came up into his mind concerning Christ yet the knowledge of Christ that Iudas had did not reach so far as to beget the least hope of Mercy from him and here lay the legality of his Repentance it was a despairing Repentance he conversed only with the Law and so sunk under the wrath of God and the curse of the Law he had none to accuse him but his own Conscience the Rulers and chief Priests were for him had set him a work and rewarded him but seeing him under such horror of Conscience he had done their business what care they see thou to that unconvinced sinners do slight the convictions of others they may go hang themselves for all them they have no pity for them I speak this to shew that legal Repentance may take in something of the evil of sin in it self as well as the destructive nature of it to us though these legal convictions of the evil of sin in it self are far short of those more through convictions that accompany true Evangelical Repentance Though the sorrow that is in legal Repentance be but worldly yet 't is very pungent it pierces us thorow and pretends to some Devotion too as if it were for Gods sake when self is only at the bottom Pharaoh confessed his sins and desired the Prayers of Gods People Exod. 9. 27 28. Saul wept for his sins 1 Sam. 24. 16. The effects of Gods wrath are very dreadful upon convinced sinners may draw Tears from their Eyes when they see what mischief they have brought upon themselves they repent but how Not of the sin but of the punishment Alas What does that signifie how ineffectual
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
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