is enough in God and in His Grâ—ce to do their turn How is it then or what can be the reason that we in our Hearts do draw the just contrary conclusion to that which the Spirit of God draws here from this ground when we have the offer of Grace and hear of the power and efficacy of it it should as to our part provoke us to be more busie reasoning thus with our selves that though our Corruption will soon overcome us yet it wi l not it cannot overcome Grace and though the exercise of Faith be above our reach yet it is not above the reach of Grace though we be weak yet Grace is strong and therefore we will work it out And upon the other side we ought to conâ—inue humble and in fear and trembling work it out bâ—cause it 's not we but Grace that doth the work If Grace were well considered there is nothing that would more strâ—ngthen Folks hands to work and upon the other hand there is nothing that would make Folks more watchful and to walk in holy fear considering that we are poor Beggers and thorow our unwatchfulness or conceit and presumption may mar the outlettings of His Grace especially if we grow secure and ungrately forget what we receive from Him 2. I come now to some steps or particular directions implied in this Use because it will be asked What then should Folk do And before I touch on particulars take these two Caveâ—ts in the entry to them 1. That we can propose nothing to be done by you nâ—ither can ye do any thing of your selves that is a gracious act or deed 2. That we understand not that any thing can be done by Men in their Natural state that doth infer or procure and far less deserve the giving of Grace to any but seing God hath given direction to us how to walk in order to the working out of our Salvation we say 1. That it 's safe to us to walk in the way He hath directed us to walk in and in the use of the Means He hath prescribed and much more safe then to lay them aside 2. That there is greater suitableness betwixt the use of the Means and the finding of Grace then there is betwixt the neglect of Means and the finding of it 3. That it aggrees well with Gods way in bringing about the Conversion of Sinners to bring them piece and piece forward sometimes bringing them to the use of external Means and to the performance of outward Duties sometimes convincing them of Sin and letting them see their need of Christ sometimes discovering the worth that is in Christ and bringing them to fall in love with Him ere they actually close with Him and making them in their practice to follow any peep or glimmering of light that is let out to them and to go the length that light discovereth the way and makes it plain as to their duty Now for particular Directions we would 1. Bid you study to be fixed and established in the Faith of these general Truths that relate to Mans Sinfulness and Misery and Insufficiency in Himself that in us that is in ouâ— flâ—sh dwelleth no good thing that naturally we are dead in Sins and Trespasses and cannot quicken our selves and in the Faith of the necessity and powerfulness of Grace and that it 's Christ that must give and work Faith and that Grace can do the turn and prevail where it is put on work ye would also consider and believe the great hazard of missing Grace and the advantage that cometh by it ye would meditate on these things and on the Scriptures that hold them out and on the experiences of the Saints that confirm them that ye may not only have a glance and transient view of them but may be confirmed in the Faith of the truth of them 2. Content not your selves with a general Faith of the truâ—h of this Doctrine but labour to be suitably affected with these things that ye believe and though every affectedness be not special Grace yet I speak to them that are ready to lay the blame and fault on the Grace of God and yet were never affected with their own gracelesness Ye would study to be affected with the gracelesness of your Nature and let it put you to some sanctified disquiet and trouble till with Ephraim ye be made to smite upon your thigh and till ye be put to a holy deliberation and consultation about your own condition a Man that is under the hazard of a civil penalty will think on it again and again it will affect him and he will not be at rest till he be without the reach of it much more should ye be with the hazard that your Souls are in through Sin ye are not excusable so long as ye come not this length 3. Add to this Diligence in the use of all outward Means and Duties whereby and wherein the Lord useth to communicate His Grace abounding always in the work of the Lord as the Apostle exhorteth 1 Cor. 15.58 Be diligent in secret Prayer Reading Meditation Conference Self-examination Hearing keeping good Company and the like which indeed Hypocrites may do yet they cease not for that to be Duties 4. Be sincere and serious in the use and performance of these Means and Duties that which I mean is a moral sincerity and seriousness such as a Man will readily have in a civil Cause that he hath depending before a civil Judge or in hearing of News or the like which is a thing that may be and is often found in Men that are void of a principle of Grace and yet Folk are very often defective in this and make themselves exceeding guilty before God because they come not this length 5. Take heed and beware of entertaining any thing that holds and bars out Grace or of doing any thing that may mar or quench the working or moving of Grace If ye cannot get Christ entertained in your Heart as ye should be sure to give it to no other if ye cannot get Corruption thrust out nor mortified watch against the rising or harbouring of that which ye know to be Corruption and against the incoming or rising of such evils as ye know will keep or put away the Beloved guard also against the neglecting of such Means as by the neglect whereof ye may grieve His Spirit 6. Study and seek after a composed frame of Spirit in your ordinary walk and especially in Duties of Worship Carnal Mirth and Jollity loose Company and suffering the Heart to go a whoring after the things of the World do not only provoke Christ as they are sins but indispose us for Duty and mar the exercise of Grace where it is and keep it back where it is not therefore the wise man saith Eccles 7.3 that sorrow is better then laughter for by the sadness of the countenance the heart is made better carnal Sorrow is not to be commended but sober sadness or a
counsel and fore knowledge of God ye have taken and by wicked hands have crucified and slain The Lords hand was supream in the businesse and we may gather the Supream and Soveraign Iâ—fluence of the Lords hand in these three respects in Christs Pufferings 1. In respect of His appointing them It was concluded in the Counsel of God what He should Suffer what should be the Price that Jehovah would have and the Sâ—crifice that he would accept of from His hand 2. In respect of the Ordering and Over-ruling of His Sufferings when it came to the execution of His Ancient Decree He who governs all the Counsells Thoughts and Actions of Men did in a special manner govern and over-rule the Sufferings of the Mediator though wicked men were following their own designe and were stirred and acted by the Devil who is said to have put it into the heart of Judas to betray Christ yet God had the ordering of all who should betray Him what death He should die how He should de pierced and yet not a bone of Him broken 3. In respect of His having had a hand actively in them and as he was the chief Partie that pursued Christ it was He that was exacting the Elects Debt of Him therefore the Lord looks over Pilat and Herod to Him and sayes to Pilat thou couldest have no power over me except it were given thee from above and to His Father Father take this cup from me and my God my God wby hast thou forsaken me He was pursued as standing Cautioner in our room in which respect it is said Rom. 8. He that spared not his own Son He spared Him not when He cryed but would have Him drinking out the Cup and Zach. 13.7 Awake O sword against my shepherd and against the man that is my fellow smite the shepherd The Message comes from Him and He gives the Sword a charge and orders it to smite Him In all which respects it 's said The Lord bruised him and he hath put him to grief It was this more then Sword or Naills or Speir or Whipe that made Him cry out another and a higher hand brought his sinless Soul to more bitterness then all the Sufferings He endured from Men. Use This leads us in to the vendicating of the Soveraign and Holy Providence of God in that wherein Men have a most sinful hand and are most unexcusable though Judas that bettayed and Pilat that condemned the Innocent Son of God acted most sinfully yet the Lord himself hath an active over-ruling Hand in carring on His own design and what Judas and Pilat with other wicked Men did was so far from being by guess that they were the executions of His Ancient Decrees and He is most Pure and Spotless in venting and manifesting Grace Holiness and Justice when men were venting their Corruptions Impiety and Injustice most Therefore the Holy Providence of God mixeth n more as to any sinless participation with mens sin in their sinfull and wicked actings than the Covenant of Redemption mixed it self with the sinfulnesse of them that crucified Christ Nay this is a principal Diamond in His Crown that He cannot only govern all the natural second Causes that are in the World in their several Courses and Actings and order them to His own glory but even Devils and wicked Men and Hypocrites their most corrupt and abominable Actions and make them infrustrably subservient to the promoving of His own holy ends and purposes and yet be free of their sin for which they shall count to Him And as it was no excuse to Judas nor to Pilat that they did what before was decreed of God so it shall be no excuse to any Man in a sinful course that God hath a hand in every thing that comes to passe who yet is just and holy in all It may also stay our hearts when the Devil and his Instruments as it were are runing mad that they can do no more then what God permits â—ay some way commissionateth them to do The Devil could not so much as touch a tail of one of Job's sheep without leave â—sked and given O! the deepth both of the knowledge and of the wisdom of God how unsearchable are his wayes and his judgments pasi finding out 3. As we may see here the concurrence of the Persons of the blessed Trinity Father Son and holy Ghost the concurrence of Jehovah with the Mediator for carrying on the same design the work of Mans Redemption for it pleased them all So taking the Lord Jehovah essentially as comprehending all the three Persons we may Observe That the Lord is well willed to and hath delight in prosecuting the work of Redemption though even to the bruising of the second Person of the God-head considered as became Man and Mediator not that He delighted in the Sufferings as such of His Innocent Son for he affects not willingly the children of men but considering the end and the effects that were to follow to wit the Seed that He should beget ro Eternal Life and the Captives whom He was to redeem In that respect it was not only against His will but it pleased Him well or as the word is in the New Testament It was his good pleasure alluding as â—â—is like to this of the Prophet Hence when Christ speaks of the work of Redemption He calleth it the Fathers will and work the Fathers will when He sayes I came not to do my own will but the will of him that sent me The Fathers work while He sayes I have finished the work thou gavest me to do And here it is called His pleasure for there was nothing without Himself to move Him to it when He might have suffered all fallen Mankind to lye still in their forlorne condition It pleased Him to give His Son of His own good will to redeem several of them Use If we put these Doctrines together they affoord us wonderful matter of Consolation 1. That we have an able Saviour that hath given a sufficient ransome for us a price that cannot be overvalued 2. A willing Mediator that gave himself no man took His Life from Him but He laid it down of Himself and took it up again 3. A willing Jehovah contriving and taking pleasure in contriving the Redemption of Elect Sinners through the Death of His own Son Which reproves and gives check to the wonderfully strange mistakes that are often found with some poor Souls concerning the way of Peace as some will be ready to say if Câ—rist were as willing to take me as I am to take Him as willing to welcome me as I am to come to Him But is not this a proof of His willingnesse that He was content to be bruised and put to grief about the work of your Redemption others have a secret apprehension that if God were as willing to receive and save them as Christ is they would have more confidence but sayes the Prophet here that it pleased the father
abjectness of spirit then many of his servants the Martyrs were and to fall hudgely below that holily-heroick and magnanimous courage and resolution wherewith they adventured on extream Sufferings and most exquisite Torments which would be very unworthy of and a mighty reflection upon him who is the valiant Captain of Salvation made perfect through suffering who drank of the brook in the way Heb. 2.10 Psal 110.7 and therefore lifted up the head But here is the great and true reason of the difference betwixt his sad and sorrowful deportment under his Sufferings and their solacious chearful and joyful deportment under theirs that they through his Sufferings and Satisfaction were perswaded and made sensible of God's being pacified towards them and were mightily refreshed by his gracious comforting presence with them amidst their Sufferings while be on the contrary looked upon himself as one legally obnoxious to punishment fisted before the terrible Tribunal of the Justice of God highly provoked by and very angry at the sins of his People who was in a most signal manner pouring out upon his soul the vials of his Wrath and Curse which made him lamentâ—bly and aloud to cry out of desertion though not in respect of the persoâ—al union as if that had been dissolved nor yet as to secretly supporting yet as to such a measure at least of sensibly comforting and rejoicing presence My God my God why hast thou forsaken me here Faith was in its Meridian though it was dark Mid-night as to Joy wherewith as such his Body could not be immediatly affected spiritual desertion not falling under bodily sense Whence we may see how justly the Doctrine of Papists is to be exploded who deny all suffering in his Soul immediatly to salve their darling dream of his local descent as to his Soul while his Body was in the Grave into Hell and to Limbus Patrum to bring up thence into Heaven the souls of the Fathers whom without giving any reason or alleadging any fault on their part they foolishly fancy after their death till then to have been imprisoned there though quiet and under no punishment of sense yet deprived of all light and vision of God and so under the punishment of less the greatest of punishments even by the confession of some of themselves whereby they put these holy and perfected souls for there they say there is no more purgation from sin that being the proper work of their profitable Purgatory in worse case all that length of time after their death then they were when alive on the Earth where doubtless they had often much soul-refreshing fellowship with God and the light of his Countenance lifted up upon them Neither were these his Sufferings in Soul and Body only to confirm the Doctrine taught by him if that was at all designed by him as an end of his Sufferings so much stumbled at in the time which yet I will not debate let be peremptorily deny his Doctrine being rather confirmed by his Miracles and Resurrection and to leave us an example and pattern how we should suffer as non-christian and blasphemous Socinians over which were mightily to depretiate and disparage nay to enervate and quite to evacuate his Sufferings by attributing no more to them then is attributable to the sufferings of his Servants and Martyrs it 's true his Example was an infallible Directory the Example of all Examples but theirs not so yet this doth not at all influence any alteration of the nature of the end 2 Cor. 5 21 Gal. 3.13 1 Per. 2.24 Isa 53.5 6 8.10 12 Eph. 1.7 Col. 1.14 1 Joh. 2.2 but also and mainly by them undergone for his People and in their room and as sustaining their persons vice and place truly and properly by the Sacrifice of himself to satisfy Divine Justice for their sins And who I pray can put any other comment on these Scripture-expressions whthout manifest perverting and wresting of them He hath made him to be sin for us who knew no sin Christ hath redeemed us from the curse of the law being made a curse for us Who his own self bare our sins in his own body on the tree which is by the Apostle subjoyned as a superior end of his sufferings to that of leaving us an example discoursed by him immediatly before He was wounded for our transgressions he was bruised for our iniquities and the chastisement of our peace was upon him The Lord laid upon him the iniquity of us all For the transgression o my people was he stricken When thou shalt make his soul an offering for sin He bare the sins of many In whom we have redemption through his blood Who is the propitiation for our sins and the like Nor did he undergo these sad sufferings for all men in the world to satisfie Justice for them and to reconcile them to God but only for the Elect and such as were given unto him For First The chastisement of their peace only was laid on him who are healed by his stripes as it is v. 5. of this 53 of Isai For the iniquities of my people was he stricken saith the Lord v. 8. The same who are called the Mediators people Ps 110.3 for saith blessed Jesus to his Father Joh. 17.10 All mine are thine and thine are mine Who shall without all peradventure or possibility of misgiving be made willing in the day of his power He only bare the iniquities of these whom he justifieth by his knowledge v. ii For otherwise the Prophets reasoning would not be consequent He only bare the iniquities of as many trangressors as he makes intercession for v. 12. And that he doth not make intercession for all but for these only who are given to him that is all the Elect is undenyably manifest from Joh. 17.9 where himself expresly saith I pray not for the world but for these whom thou hast given me Now Gods eternall electing love and his giving the Elect to the Mediator in the Covenant of Redemption to be satisfied for and saved by him and his intercession for them are commensurable and of equal extent as is most clear from Joh. 17.6 Where he saith Thine they were to wit by election and thou gavest them to me to wit in and by the Covenant of Redemption Gods decree of election being in order of nature prior to this donation or gift of the Elect in the Covenant of Redemption compared with v. 9. where he saith I pray for them I pray not for the world but for them whom thou hast given me for they are thine It is observable that he saith twice over I pray for them manifestly and emphatically restricting his intercession to them and excluding all others from it Why then should not also his sacrifice the price of the Redemption of these elected and given ones agreed upon in that Covenant betwixt these two mighty Parties be commensurable with the former three Especially since he saith v. 19. For their sakes sanctifie I
Doing of it that will profite you it 's very sad that most plain obvious Duties are not at all followed as the studying of Knowledge the exercising of Repentance one of the very first Duties which is never separated from Faith the humbling of the Soul before God the loathing of your selves for all ye have done the Love of God c. for there may be Challenges for gross Evils in Heathens and Fear is not Repentance but Godly Sorrow that causeth Repentance not to be repented of A fourth Evidence is The want of that Work of God's Spirit that accompanies Faith Faith is a special Work of the Spirit and the gracious Gift of God it 's wrought by the exceeding mighty Power of God whereby He raised Christ from the Dead and by that same Power He worketh in them that Believe now knew ye ever what this Work meaned found ye it ever to be a difficult Work to Believe knew ye ever what it was to have the Spirit of God constraining your Heart to Believe I speak not of any extraordinary thing but certainly Faith is not Natural nor cometh from pure Nature and wherever it is it manifests it self by Works and evidenceth the Power of the Spirit in the working thereof There are some sad Evidences of and bitter Fruits that spring from this Root to wit Folks being Strangers to the experimental Knowledge of the Work of Faith As 1. When Men know no more difficulty to get Christ and to rest on Christ then to believe a Story of Wallace or of Julius Cesar 2. When Folks say that they believed all their Days and believed always since ever they knew Good by Ill and though their Faith be no true Saving Faith but a guessing yet they will not quite it yea it 's impossible for Men to get them convinced that they want Faith 3. When Men never knew what it is to be without Faith it 's one of the great Works of the Spirit John 16.8 to convince of the want of Faith Folks will be easily convinced that breach of the Sabbath that Stealing that bearing false Witness c. are Sins where the special Work of the Spirit is not but how many of you have been convinced of the want of Faith we are constrained to say this sad word when we look on this Text that it is lamentably fulfilled in your Eyes and in this our Congregation think not that we wrong such of you who have believed our Report Ah it 's few even very few of you that Receive and Believe this Gospel Use 2. The second Use is for Conviction If it be ordinary for the great part of the Hearers of the Gospel not to Believe let it sink in your Hearts that it is no extraordinary thing that hath befallen you are ye not such Hearers as many of these were who heard Isaiah and Jesus Christ and if so will not this follow that there are many yea even the thick and throng of the Hearers of this Gospel that Believe not and who if Christ were gathering Sinners by this preached Gospel would not be gathered if where the Gospel comes many do not Believe then here in this City where the Gospel is preached to a great multitude of professing Members of the visible Church there are readily many that do not Believe or let me ask of you a Reason why ye do except your selves either this Truth holds not so universally or many of you must fall under it or else give a Reason why you fall not under it the Truth which Isaiah preached hath been preached to you and yet ye remain Unbelieving and Dispisers of the Invitation to the Marriage of the King's Son as the Jews did we are not now speaking of Jews Turks nor Heathens nor of the Churches in general nor of other Congregations but of you in Glasgow that have this Gospel preached amongst you and we say of you that there are few that believe our Report Think it not our Word the Application flows natively from the Text not from necessity of the thing but from the ordinary course of Mens Corruption are not the same Evidences of the want of Faith which we spoke of among you how many are there in their Life Prophane how many rest on Civility and Formality is there not as little Repentance now as was in Isaiah's time as little denying of our own Righteousness and making use of Christ's though the Word be taught by Line upon Line here a little and there a little It may be though ye think that the Doctrine is true in the general ye will not ye cannot digest the Application That among so many of you visible Professors of Faith there are but few real Believers therefore we shall follow the Conviction a little further by giving you some Considerations to make it out that we have but too just ground to make Application of the Doctrine to you especially considering the abounding of Corruption that is amongst you that ye may be put to fear the Wrath that attends Sin and to flee to Christ for Refuge in time 1. Consider of whom it is that the Prophet is speaking and of what Time Is it not of the Times and Days of the Gospel had not the Spirit in dictating this Text of Scripture an Eye on Scotland and on Glasgow and do not our Lord Jesus Christ and Paul apply it in their Days and why then may not we also in ours and when the Spirit speaks expressly of the last Times that they shall be perilous and of the falling away of many should it not give us the hotter alarm 2. Do not all things agree to us as to them is not this Gospel the same is our Preaching any better than theirs nay had they not much more powerful Preaching and if that Preaching which was much more powerful had not efficacy as to many to work Faith in them what may we expect to do by our Preaching are not your Hearts as deceitful are not your Corruptions as strong are ye not as bent to Back sliding as they were what sort of Folks were they that were unfruitful Hearers were they not Members of the visible Church as ye are circumcised under the Old Testament as ye are baptized under the New was it not these who had Christ and His Apostles preaching to them yea they were not among the more Ignorant sort who did not Believe but Scribes and Pharisees and these not of the prophanest sort only but such as came to Church and attended on Ordinances as ye do yea were such as had Gifts and cast out Devils and preached in Christ's Name as you may see Luk. 13.26 Now when there are so many and of such Ranks who get no good of the Word and of such a great many that will seek to enter in and shall not be able to whom Christ will sall say depart I know you not ye Workers of Iniquity What can be the reason that many of you do so confidently
use of them all of the Word Prayer Sacraments Meditation c. It 's by these that the Lord begets Grace and by neglecting of them ye may make your selves guilty of destroying your own Souls 3. Beaware of quenching the Spirit in any of His Operations or Motions of smothering or putting out any Challenges or Convictions If the Conscience be at any time touched or the Affections tickled go not away as the temporary Believer doeth sitting down there without going any further Fear to strangle the beginnings of the life of Grace for Grace may begin at little and if ye quench any Motion Conviction or Challenge ye know not if ever ye shall meet with the like again because when He knocked hard at your Heart ye held Him out and keeped Him at the door and ye may be in hazard of that terrible charge Acts 7.31 Ye uncircumcised in heart and ears ye have always resisted the Holy Ghost as your Fathers did so do ye 4. Seing this work is not common to all the Hearers of the Gospel but peculiar to some labour to have it made sure to your selves by putting it to proof and tryal in good earnest Use 3. The third Use is for you that are Believers and would God there were many such to whom I would also speak three or four words 1. Learn from this to be humble What hast thou man but what thou hast received and if thou hast received it why doest thou boast as if thou hadst not received it O! but it 's unsuitable to Believers who are Free-Graces-Debtors and Beggers whereof yet none need to think shame to be proud and forget themselves Thou hast nothing Believer to boast of but that He hath shamed thee with His Grace and shouldest thou be proud of that as if thou had made thy self thus therefore guard watchfully against all puffing up self-conceit and high-mindedness and study to be humble and to carry a low Sâ—il else thou mayest break out into some scandâ—lous offence and may become a shame and reproach to the Gospel We commend Humility to you above many things for we think that in these days Folks pride is like to break their Necks for when once Conceit creeps in they begin to think they are so far advanced in Holiness that they must not keep Company with others nor joyn in Worship with them and from that they go to another thing and from that to a third that it is hard to tell where they wilâ— halt or end they grow so giddy that they are scarcely like to leave so much Ground as themselves may stand upon O! think shame of Pride it 's a most intollerable thing to be proud of that which God hath given wherein ye have no more hand and whereof ye can no more boast then they who never had it 2. Be thankful and give God the praise of that ye have gotten It becomes the upright to be thankful It 's no little matter to have God's Power manifested in the working of Faith and conferring Grace The temporal Throne and Kingdom and great things in the World are nothing to this it 's peculiar to the Lord 's own and not common Many get their fill of the World who never get nor will get this The World is of so little value with the Lord that to speak so He doeth not much regard who get it though it be exâ—ctly distributed by His Providence but converting and upbuilding Grace is peculiarized to His Favourites Being therefore clear that He hath bestowed Grace on you O how should ye exult in blessing God as David did for giving you counsel to make choice of such a portion and for His powerful determining of your Heart by His Grace to embrace it for which ye have not your selves to thank but God 3. Be compassionate and tender towards others considering that it is only Grace that hath made the difference betwixt you and them and not any good nature in you which was not in them as some foolishly fancy Be not puft up at the faults and falls of any but rather mourn for them as well as for your own and be the more humble when ye think of the difference that Grace hath made lest ye fall and since your standing is by Grace be not high-minded but fear of all Persons it worse becomes you to look lightly on let be to mock at the falls of others considering who and what hath made the diffâ—rence 4. If it be so peculiar a priviledgâ— to be pâ—rtakers of this powerful and spâ—ciâ—l Grâ—ce of God that is put sorth in the great work of Conversion Then sure there is â—omething peculiar called for in your Conversation even that it may in all things be as it becometh the Gospel and answerable to this Grace bestowed on you O! what manner of Persons ought ye to be in all holy Conversation and Godliness SERMON XIV ISAIAH LIII I And to whom is the arm of the Lord revealed THE way of the Grace of God is a very difficult Subject to be thought on or spoken of suitably and as it becomes Grace having a soveraign and unsearchable Channel of its own wherein it runs yet no doubt it is very useful now and then to consider it if we knew how to make use of it aright yea even these steps of Grace that are most cross and contrary to carnal Reason may not a little profite when duely pondered Thus when the Prophet hath been looking on the scarcity of Faith and on the paucity of true Believers he looks a little further then on the external preaching of the Gospel even in upon the way of God's Grace not out of any curiâ—sity nor from a fretting humour because of the unsuccessfulnesse of his Ministry but that he may thereby get himself stayed and composed and that he may bring both himself and others to reverence and adore the holy and soveraign way of God therein To whom saith he is the arm of the Lord revealed It 's a word like that which Christ had on the like occasion John 6.44 Murmure not among your selves no man can come to me except the Father who hath sent me draw him We opened up the meaning of the words the last day In short they come to this as if he had said how few are they that believe the Gospel and who take the Word off the hand of His sent Ministers and how few are they on whom the Grace of God that only can make men believe does effectually work the Prophet pointing at a higher hand then that of the Ministers in the success and fruitlessness of the Gospel and coupling these two together the Preaching of the Word and the Power of God's Grace in the working of Faith and Conversion in Sinners We proposed these three Doctrines to be spoken to from the words 1. That in the work of Conversion and begetting of Faith beside the preaching of the Word there is a powerful internal immediat work of the
the Apostles and yet when he is Preaching Acts 28.25 and some believed and others believed not before he dismisses the multitude he adds this one word Well spake the Holy Ghost by Isaiah the Prophet unto our fathers saying Go unto this People and say Hearing ye shall hear and shall not understand and seeing ye shall see and not perceive c. where he expressly differenceth his external Preaching from God's inward working and tells that so long as there was a judicial stroke on the Hearts of the People untaken away no external Preaching could do the turn as to their Conversion and bringing of them to Believe which he also does to guard against any offence that might be taken at the unsuccesfulness of his Ministry by any who would be ready to say what aileth these Folk that they will not receive the Gospel to whom he answers Isaiah long before told the reason of it to wit that there is a Plague on their Hearts and Minds which God must remove ere they can receive it 2. To these plain and clear instances we may add two or three Grounds or Reasons As 1. The exceeding greatness of the work of Conversion O how great and difficult is it Therefore it 's set out by the similitudes and expressions of raising the dead creating a new heart of removing the stony heart and the like all tending to set out the necessity of an omnipotent Power or a powerful work of Grace in the begetting of Souls to Christ and if it be so great a work what can the outward Ministry do if the Power of God be not added or what can the Man himself do here can a Mâ—n quicken raise creat or beget himself it's true these comparisons are not to be extended and and applied in every respect yet they hold out that Man being naturally dead can no more contribute to his own quickening and raising and to the bâ—getting of spiritual life in himself then a dead Mâ—n can contribute to his own quickening and raising to his natural life for which cause the Holy Ghost hath made choice of these expressions even to hold out the exceeding greatness of the work 2. Consider the condition that Mâ—n are in when this work is wrought and we will see they can contribute nothing to it thâ—t they have no aptitude for it except that they are subjects capable to be wrought upon being as it is Eph 2.1 dead in sins and trespasses being as to their Souls estate and as to their Spiritual condition like Adam's Body before the Lord breathed in it the Breath of Life and made him a living Soul as his Body could not move stir nor act till then no more can the Natural Man stir or act in the ways of God till a new principle of Spiritual Life be put in him To clear it further we would consider that the Scripture speaks of these three in the Natural Man 1. Of an utter inability and deadness as to that which is Good Dead in Sins Eph. 2.1 We are not sufficient saith the Apostle 2 Cor. 3.5 of our selves as of our selves to think any thing not so much as a good thought 2. The Scripture holds him out not only as unable for good but perverse and bent to every thing that is Evil Col. 1.21 Alienated and enemies in our minds by wicked works the carnal mind being enmity against God Rom. 8.7 it 's plainly opposite to any thing that is Good and so to the way of Faith 3. Man's Mind is not only naturally perverse and stuffed with Enmity but in an incapacity to be healed while it remaineth such Rom. 8.7 It is not subject to the law of God neither indeed can be and therefore in the work of Conversion there is not only an amending but also a renewing of our Nature called for there is more requisite then the rectifying of something in the Man even the creating of new Habits and the infusing of the Principles of Spiritual Life and Motion into the Soul It is true in some Sense the whole Image of God is not absolutely removed the faculties of the rational Soul still remain for Man hath an Understanding and a Will and some sort of Reason but without any tendency to Spiritual Life or to any action for God he hath an Understanding but it 's wholly darkened he hath a Will but wholly perverse and not in the least enclined to Good he hath Affections but wholly disordered and corrupted and set wholly upon wrong Objects so that it 's with Man's Soul as to Good as it is with spoiled Wine Wine when wholesome serves to cheer and refresh but when it 's spoiled it 's quite another thing not only not conducing to Health but it 's noisome and hurtful It 's just so we say with Man's Soul it 's by the Fall quite spoiled and corrupted it is not indeed annihilated or made to be nothing for it retains the same faculties still it hath to speak so the same quantity still but as to it's qualities it 's utterly corrupted and carried closs contrary to God it 's not subject to the law of God neither indeed can be and renovation by Grace is the taking away of the corrupt qualities in part in this Life and wholly in the other Life and the bringing in of new qualities for recovering the beauty of that Image of God which Man hath lost 4. Consider the end that God hath in the administration of His Grace and the Glory that He will needs have it getting in every gracious work and more especially in the work of Conversion and the silence as to any boasting that He will have all put unto that shall partake of it His end in the administration of His Grace is to bring down Pride to stop all Mouths and to remove all grounds of boasting from the Creature that He only may have the glory of Conversion that when ever that question is proposed What hast thou O man but what thou hast received and if thou hast received it why doest thou boast who made thee to differ from another the Soul may answer it was not external Preaching nor my own Free-will nor any thing in me but the power of God's Grace I have nothing but what I have received It is on this ground that the Apostle Phil. 2.12 13. presseth and encourageth Christians to their great work Work out saith he your own salvation in fear and trembling for it's God that worketh in you both to will and to do of his good pleasure the Lord leaveth not to Man the working of the Will in himself and of him saith the same Apostle 1 Cor. 30.31 are ye in Christ Jesus who is made of God unto us wisdom righteousness sanctification and redemption that he that glorieth should glory in the Lord as he said before vers 29. that no flesh should glory in his presence there is one ground of boasting that the Lord wiâ—l have removed in a Sinner's Justification and
Christs satisfaction or suffering and it is by the way much to be regrated that such is the ignorance of some that if a question be proponed in divers words or expressions as if it should be asked wherefore are we pardoned wherefore are we justified which is one and the same they know not how to answer but here ye are called to remember that Christs being wounded and his bearing the chastisement due to you is the cause of your Pardon and Justification 2. Healing looks to Sanctification as we hinted in the exposition so that if it be asked How comes it to pass that a Sinner is made holy we have it here answered that though efficiently it comes by the Spirit and be his work yet meritoriously it comes by Christs suffâ—rings he bought it by his stripes we are healed And under these two Words peace and healing we take in all things needful or pertaiâ—ing to Life and Godlinâ—â—s for by peaâ—e the feud and enmiâ—y is taken â—way 〈…〉 â—e reconciled to God a Eph. 2.14 〈◊〉 â—â—d to be our peace and he who ca◠〈◊〉 speak peace to all that are afar off and neâ—â—and and also by peace we under stand all 〈◊〉 effects of peace 1. Pardon of Sin Justification Adoption Communion with God here and hereafter Peace with our own Conscience and with the Creatures eterâ—â—â— Peace and Glory and all these good things purchased by Christs death For the Hebrews under peace comprehended all good things And under healing we take in Sanctification as distinguished though not divided from those other things mentioned dying to sin and living to righteousness with the several degrees of their advance and progress and the making of us to be without spot and wrinkle or any such thing So that folk have much advantage by Christs purchase and much prejudice thorow the want of it By his death we are kept out of Hell and admitted to peace with God and every thing that is good We have liberty to pray for all that is good and are brought in his own way and time to the possession of it It 's by the blood of sprinkling that we have a new and living way made patent to us unto the most holy and holiness in the way whereof we enter in thither 6. To whom hath Christ procured all these good things The Text saith it 's our and we the chastisement of our peace was on him and by his stripes we are healed to wit we Elect. Whence Observe 1. That the benefits of Christs purchase redounds only to the Elect there is a certain select number to whom they are applyed and not to all indifferently It 's only of as many as are healed whose chastisements he hath born It 's only they whom the Father hath given him to them he gives eternal life and they shall never perish John 6.45 They are Effectually Called Justifiâ—d and Sanctified 2. Observe That what Christ Jesus hath purchased and the benefits of his purchase redound and are extended to them that are guilty of hainous sins to them that are under transgressions and iniquities that are at feud with God and under many poâ—â—â—tionâ— and most loathsome spiritual Diseases to them who contemned and despised Christ and judged him smitten and plagued of God as is clear from the foregoing words and to them which have gone straying like lost sheep as is clear from the words following This points at these two or three things very useful 1. That the Elect are by nature and before Christ do them good no better than others 2. It shews the freedom of the Grace of God that comes over that and freely gives pardon peace and healing to them And 3ly It serves to strengthen a Sinners Faith who is sensible of his enmity and sinfulness and to be a ground of encouragement to him to step to and lay hold on Christs purchase because it was for such that he died he may humbly yet confidently say Christ died even for such as me for them that wounded and pierced him by their transgressions and iniquities for them that were at enmity with God c. and alace I am such and will therefore on the call of the Gospel come to him and on his own terms endeavour to cast my self on him 7. How are these benefites this Justification Pardon of Sin Peace and Healing and all that is comprehended under them derived from Christ to the Sinner that by Faith fleeth unto him for refuge Answer These two generals will clear it 1. They are derived to us justly and in a legal way Christ steps in in our room that we may come in his room 2. They are derived to us freely he was wounded and bruised that we might go free he endured stripes that we might be healed he got the buffets and bare the burden and we get the benefites there is not a grain weight of it laid on us as it is satisfactory to divine Justice To clear this a little more anent the deriving the benefits of Christs purchase to us there must be a respect had 1. To the Covenant of Redemption the ground of his suffering for us 2. To the Covenant of Grace and Reconciliation wherein the offer of these Sufferings and the benefits purchased by them to us and the terms of both is made 1. I say That respect most be had to the Covenant of Redemption wherein it 〈◊〉 acted in the Council of the God-head that the Son of God should become Man and suffer and condignly satisfie divine Justice by paying the price due by the Elect and that that price being laid down it should be made forthcoming for them for whom he payed it and be reckoned theirs and they set actually at liberty when having recourse thereto by Faith and here there is a legal ground for transferring Christs purchase to and upon us the Cautioner satisfying we the Debtors are on that account absolved in his own order and method and have a right to seek the application of the price and the benefits purchased by that price Christs stands in our room at the bar and sentence passed on him to pay our Debt he satisfied according to his undertaking for us And upon the other hand we are brought in and the sentence of Justification passed on us on that account He saith the Apostle who knew no sin is made sin for us that in him we may be accounted righteous and may be declared free as we are by vertue of his satisfaction But it may be objected here What are we then absolved from the very time of Christs death and forward For answer We would distinguish betwixt a right to the thing and a right in the thing as we use to speak betwixt jus ad rem and jus in re the Elect from Christs death forward and before too have a right to the thing but not in the thing as to the application of it to themselves an elect Person by vertue of Christs Satisfaction hath a legal right to
I will have Payment of you or else ye must Die they brought the Sacrifice to the Priest to please God Typically with an Eye to Christ Typifyed thereby Even so for Sinners to make use of Christ's Sufferings is in the thorow Conviction of Sin and of deserved Wrath to flie unto Jesus Christ and to put Him in their Room being Content and Desirous that He be their Cautioner and undertake for them and Satisfie for their Debt yea puting Him Actually to it to pay their Debt So that they have no other Answer to any Challenge for Sin but this the Cautioner that I have betaken my self to and put in my Room will pay this Debt and answer for it The 2. Act of Faith is this when they have betaken themselves to Him and to His Sacrifice they Acquiâ—sce in and Rest upon it alone for obtaining of the Sentence of Absolution which was also implyed in the People their laying their Hands by the Priest on the Head of the Sacrifice For as it implyed their acknowledging that they could not Please nor Satisfie Goâ— of themselves nor by any other Way or Mean so it Implyed that according to God's Covenant they expected His Absolving of them because of that Sacrifice and that though they were Desperat by themselves to Satisfie yet that they had Faith in God's Covenant that the Sacrifice they Offered would Typically Satisfie Him Even so the Believer draws the Conclusion from Christ's Sacrifice according to the Terms of the Covenant that He hath Absolution and rests on and acquiesces in it and this is called Trusting or Confiding in Christ when not only he casteth himself on Him but hath Confidence that the Bill which He hath drawn on him will be Answered by Him which is founded on the Covenant In which it 's said of all that come unto me I will put none away As it is John 6.37 Him that cometh to me I will in no wayes cast out and Zach. 13. There is a fountain opened in the house of David for sin and for uncleanness On which ground Believers expect the benefit of Washing on their performing of the Condition of the Covenant And when David Psal 51.7 Prayes purge me wash me It holds out the Act of Faith drawing the Bill on Christ And when he sayes I shall be clean and white as snow It holds out his Confident Resting on and acquiescing in Christ for Cleansing And this is the reason why some expresse â—aith by cleaving to Christ others by confident resting on him or by assurance and there may be a Truth in both because the one looks on Faith according to the first Act of cleaving to Him And the other takes up Faith according to the other Act of assured resting on him or confiding in him and on or in His Sacrifice offered up once for all In a Word to make Use of this once Offering for Sin is so to make Use of Him as to put Him in our Room and our selves some way in His Room Nâ—t to dare to Compt and Reckon with Justice nay not to dare as it were to Compt with Christ but leaving Christ in the stour to speak so and running away from Reckoning with Justice to hide our selves under Him who can count to the utmost Farthing Even as when God commanded Abraham to offer up his Son Isaac and and when he was lifting his hand to slay him there came a Voice from Heaven Abraham hold thy hand and a Ram is provided â—nd Isaac is loosed and taken down from off the Altar and the Ram is put in his stead and place So there is here a changing of Rooms with Christ according to that sweetest Word 2 Cor. 5. ult He was made sin for us who knew no sin that we who had no Righteousnesse might be made the righteousness of God in him 3. If it be so very difficult and yet so absolutly necessary to make Use of Christ and especially in His Offering up of Himself for the Sin of His People there is ground here for Warning and Advertisement to walk tenderly in this Matter that this Sacrifice be not flighted that this One Offering be not Neglected as we would not have Sin lying at our Door And here we shall point at three sorts of Persons who may be counted slighters and neglecters of this Offering The 1. Sort are these who think to make their Peace with God without minding the necessity of the interveening of any thing betwixt Him and them and these go on severall Grounds or are of several Sorts 1. Some are utterly carelesse how their Peace be made or whether it be made or not they hope for it and think to come at it but cannot give an account whether they will come at it or not and they are careless to know the way 2. Others go upon their presumption They think God loves them because they love themselves and though they know they have Sin yet they think God will not be so ill as to Reckon with them They think they are sure that God loves them but they cannot give a ground for it 3. Others think God is mercifull and therefore they conclude that they will be Pardoned They cannot conceive God to be like Man in His Mercy but to be far beyond Him as indeed He is infinitely in some respect and therefore because when Man is mercifull he sometime seeks no Satisfaction So neither will God think they Not considering that though God be merciful That yet He will not shew mercie to the prejudice of His Justice but will needs have it Satisfied Such think on the Matter at least that they would have gotten mercy though Christ had never died It is true if God had not been mercifull never a Sinner had gotten mercy yet that is not the ground of His shewing mercy Otherwayes all the World might expect mercy For He is and ever was Gracious and mercifull in Himself and therefore there must be some other Ground and Way for obtaining of Pardon else it cannot be expected because of the alone Simple and Abstract consideration of His Mercy And yet many will needs expect it on this Ground without respect to the Mediators Purchase A 2. Sort are they that take a Legall way for making of their Peace with God Not as if they thought to appear before God without Sin and Holy as the Covenant of Works requireth but if they Sin they will make a mends and it 's either something Negative that they have not done or something Positive that they have done or some Internal Qualification that they rest upon 1. Something Negative they have not been so ill as other Folks and if they go to Hell they think few will go to Heaven They have done wrong to none and if they were about to Die they think and it may be say that they will leave a good Name behind them on the account of their harmless Walk like that Pharisee they can say Lord I thank thee
purpose He sayes to His supposed Father and to His Mother Luke 2.49 wist ye not that I must be about my fathers business It 's His Bussiness because it is so on the matter it 's so accounted of and comes to be so in the end and therefore in the 10. v. of this Chap. it is said The pleasure of the Lord shall prosper in his hand 2. As for His being the Lord 's righteous servant He is not only a Servant but an excellent Servant not Righteous simply as He is God only nor Righteous simply as He is Man But Righteous in the Administration of His Offices and in the Discharge of the Great Trust committed to Him Whence Observe That Our Lord Jesus in performing of the Office and Work of Mediation and Redemption is most Trusty and Faithful There is not any the least Fault or Failling in His performing of it He is the Lord's Servant that never wronged His Master who never miscarried in His Commission nor Mis-managed it in the least Saith He I have finished the work which thou gavest me to do If we look a litle to the qualifications that shine eminently in the Administration of His Offices they will make out this For He Administrats them 1. Wonderfully Wisely 2. Very Tenderly 3. Most Diligently and Effectually 4. With all Faithfulnesse Thus doth He Intirely and Holily without the least touch of unrighteousnesse perform all the Trust committed to Him and that both towards God and towards the Sheep So as He is eminently by the Lord 's own Testimony His righteous servant with whom He is well pleased and cannot but be well pleased It will not be needfull to seperat these qualifications of His Service in the Administration of His Offices In speaking to them we shall only desire you to take notice of some few Places of Scripture that hold them out The first whereof is that Isai 40.11 He shall feed his flock like a shepherd he shall gather the lambs with his arme and carrie them in his bosome and gently lead those that are with young Never shepherd was so careful of his Flock for He seeds them and in Feeding them waits diligently on them and takes them to these places where it is best for them to Feed He thinks fit now and then it 's true that Dogs be hunded at them yet He is so warm to and tender of them that He gathers them with His Arme and He is so dexterous and skilfull in Conducting them that He gently leads them that are with young that is such of them as are in Pangs of the New Birth He will by no means over-drive To speak it with reverence He is as a skilfull Midwife to make these who are with Child safely to bring forth Well then may He get this Name of the Lord 's righteous servant The next place is Isai 42.1 2 3 4. Behold my servant whom I uphold my elect in whom my soul delighteth I have put my spirit upon him he shall bring forth judgement to the gentles He shall not cry nor lift up nor cause his voice to be heard in the street A bruised reed shall he not break and the smoaking flax shall he not quench he shall bring forth judgement unto truth c. Is there not here a wonderfull commendation that the Father gives to the Son and that the Gracious Master gives to the Righteous Servant in His Office He is His Elect choise Servant in whom His Soul delights He does not cry nor lift up His voice He is bussier about His Work then in making any din about it there is no frowardnesse in His way but He is tender of Souls that are like to a bruised Reed and smoaking Flax He will not break the one nor put out the other Where a Soul is weak or wounded He will not break nor bruise it by a rough touch or word and where there are the least breathings of sincere desires after Him He will not quench nor stiffle them and though the Task be great that He hath in hand He fails not is going through with it He sits not up nor is He discouraged under it notwithstanding all the Wrath He hath to meet with in His way Therefore when the Cup is put in His hand at which His holy humane Nature some way shrunk and skarred yet He takes it pleasantly saying But for this cause came I unto this hour and prosecuteth His Work Courageously and Constantly till He bring forth Judgement to Victory and till He gain His Point This shews Him to be a most Choise and Faithfull Servant A 3. Place is Isai 52.13 Behold my servant shall deal prudently c. It cannot be imagined what a Spiritual Cannie and Dexterous way He hath in the saving of Souls and how Wisely and Prudently He pursues that Work There is a 4th Place Psal 89.19 20. I have laid help upon one that is mighty I have exalted one chosen out of the people I have found David my servant The enemy shall not exact upon him c. He is so Dexterous and Powerful that the Devil shall gain no ground of Him but He shall gain ground of him and defeat him so that we come after only to gather the Spoil He is able to save to the uttermost as it is Heb. 7.26 all that come unto God through him And near the close of that Chap. It is said Such an high priest became us who is holy harmless seperat from sinners made higher then the heavens These are His qualifications He is an holy and harmless high Priest a sweet and to say so illesse Mediator by whom there was never any hurt His ill was never heard of in the place where He was He is Undefiled Pure and Spotlesse in the management of all the Trust committed to Him there was never any thing done by Him of which it could be said that it might have been done better He is seperat from Sinners and so another kind of high Priest then these who were before Him And all this both as to God so as He could say and go to Death with it It is finished And as to them that were intrusted to Him so as He couâ—d say Of all that thou hast given me I have lost none he makes a Full and Faithfull accompt of all committed to Him This is a plain and yet a most usefull Truth For Use of it Behold here and wonder at the way of Grace that not only gives a Mediator but such a Mediator who as it is Heb. 3 is faithfull over the house of God This is the very Life of our Consolation that we have an able Mediator a good Shepherd a Wise Prudent Tender One and Faithfull and indeed it would well become us to wonder more that the Lord in the way of His Grace hath thus condescended and it should exceedingly provocke us to be thankfull on this accompt that not only there is a way of Grace but such a way of Grace found
the Lord doth so explain bound and inculcat this that there can be no rational exception against iâ— nor evasion from it He was made sin that is a Sin offering or an Oâ—â—ering for our Sin though there was no guide â—ound in His mouth though He had no Sin neither was capable of Sin yet He was made a Sacrifice for our Sin as He was made Sin so are we made the righteousness of God in him If any should ask what is it to be made righteous The Apostle answers even as Christ was made Sin the sâ—me way are we made righteous and that is by imputation of Christs Righteousnesse to us and not by our own merit we have no more merit then He had sin but as He was accounted to be the Sinner though free of Sin in His own Person so a believing Sinner is accounted righteous though without any merit in Himself because God hath ingaged in His Covenant to make Christ's Righteousnesse forth-coming to the Believer Though that were enough yet the Spirit of the Lord addeth a further Word in him to answer that question whether Christ hath procured inherent holinesse to us that thereby we may be Justified no sayeth he that is not the way Our Righteousnesse is in him and not inherent in us even as the sum imputed to Christ is inherently in us so the Righteousnesse whereby we are Justified is inherently in Him 4ly It may be clear from this That frequently it is called a Righteousnesse that is attained by Faith and that is opposed to our own Righteousnesse and working now it cannot be conceived how we can get a Righteousnesse by Faith but by pleading that His Righteousnesse may be imputed unto us Rom. 3.22 It is called the righteousness which is by faith and v. 25. Whom God hath set forth for a propitiation through faith in his blood and cap. 4. v. 5. To him that worketh not but believeth on him that justifieth the ungodly his faith is counted for righteousness Faith taking hold of His Righteousnesse offered to Sinners in the Gospel His Righteousnesse so taken hold of becomes a propitiation to pacifie God towards the Sinner as if He had satisfied in His own Person Even as if a company of men had been out in Rebellion and a Proclamation of Pardon comes forth from the King because he is Satisfied by a great friend who hath payed their Ransome Which Proclamation of Pardon runs on these Terms whoever will lay down Arms and come in and accept of the Kings Pardon that is procured and made offer of shall be acquitted of the guilt of Rebellion and received into favour Who when ever they are challenged will plead their Absolution on that friends procurement and offered such Terms in the Proclamation Now suppose as I hinted before not long agoe that when these Rebells have yeelded themselves and accepted of the Terms if any of them should be called to answer at the Bar or the Kings Bench as being challenged for his Rebellion his answer and defence would be that such a Proclamation was made to us and I said down my Arms and accepted of the Pardon this in Justice would be admitted and sustained as Relevant because that procurement or procured Pardon becomes the Persons according to the Terms of the Proclamation It is even so here we are Rebells to God Christ Jesus steps in as the great friend of Sinners and Satisfied Justice and thereupon the Proclamation comes out as it is Act. 13.38 39. Be it known unto you men and brethren that through this man is preached unto you the forgiveness of sins and by him all that believe are justified from all things from which ye could not be justified by the law of Moses When the Sinner is arraigned before the Tribunal of God He hath two Acts of H s Faith One that submits to God and to His way of absolving Sinners and another that pleads for Absolution â—ot on the Terms of his own innocency but on the Terms on which Christs Satisfaction is made offer to him and so Faith Justifies as it takes hold of the Meritorious Cause and builds it's defence at Gods Bar on Christs Righteousnesse alone It 's the procurement of the Mediator that it pleads upon and in this sense the imputed Righteousnesse of Christ and the Righteousnesse of Faith are one and the same because Faith takes hold of the Righteousnesse without us which can be no other but the Righteousnesse of Christ 5ly It 's clear from the plain and direct expressions of Scripture to this purpose Take but these few as Rom. 4.3 and 22. compared with Gen. 15.6 Abraham believed God and it was counted to him for righteousnesse he had the promise of Christ to come and received and rested on it it was not his Faith but the promise of the Messiah rested on by Faith that was imputed to him for Righteousness and v. 6. Even as David described the blessedness of the man to whom God imputeth righteousness without works It is not blessed is the man who is holy though such a man is seriously studying to be holy albeit not in order to His Justification thereby but blessed is he to whom righteousness is imputed without works and he confirms it from Psal 32. Blessed is he whose transgression is forgiven and whose sin is covered Blessed is the man to whom the Lord imputeth not iniquity Blessed is the man to whom the Lord imputs Righteousnesse though he have it not in himself and to whom he imputs not Sin though he have it in himself So 2 Cor. 5.19 God was in Christ reconciling the world unto himself not imputing their trespassâ—s unto them Jesus Christ is the reconcileâ— of the World to God by His own Merit being God and Man in one Person the efficacy of His Sufferings reconcileth the World of the Elect and how is this purchased Reconciliation applyed By not imputing their trespasses unto them That which here is called Justification is there called not imputing of transgression through that Righteousnesse which Christ hath purchased or through off ring up of Himself in a Sacrifice to God to satisfie His Justice 6ly We might say That this way of Justification through the imputation of Christ's Righteousnesse ought to â—he admitted according to Papists own grounâ—â— For 1. They grant that young Children who cannot Merit are justified and admitted to glory by Christ's Merit as the immediat and proxime cause of their Justification and why not also of these that are at age Is He not the common Cause what absurdity is in the one more then in the other Is not the Justification of both alike free though there be a difference in the manner of Application yet in the Meritorious Cause there is no difference and seing to Children Christ is the Meritorious Cause of their Justification why not also to these come to Age 2. They will grant an imputation of the Righteousnesse and Merits of other Saints to them that want of
him that is true 1 John 5.20 If therefore ye would know God aright seek His blessing in the use of His own appointed means ye study the Knowledge of God even as if ye were to read a common humane History if ye seek a blessing to your Meat why seek ye not a blessing on the means of Knowledge which is as necessary to the Soul as Meat is to the Belly How often hath David such a suit to God when he sayes Psal 119. Open mine eyes that I may see the wonderous things of thy law teach me thy statutes c. He thought no shame to pray for Knowledge sure if we prayed more for it we should thrive better in it Other reasons may fall in in the Directions annent the study of Knowledge which we shall give you The 3d. Use Serves to exhort you to and to commend the study of Knowledge to you as a necessary commendable and profitable Duty can we hope to prevail with you in any thing if we prevail not with you in this even to lay the necessity of Knowledge to heart will not the excellency of the Object the Authority of God commanding it the advantages that come by it with the prejudices that attends and follows the want of it commend it to you will ye ever be perswaded to seek after Faith and Holinesse that will not be perswaded to study Knowledge It 's a wonder how many of you can have the confidence to say that ye keep your hearts to God when ye are so void of the very form of Religion which much consists in Knowledge For it 's that wherein it 's keeped and whereby through Grace it 's suitably exercised Sure ye can never have the power of Religion who want the form of it therefore let me exhort you all especially such of you as have some eminency above others to study Knowledge let the more aged study it and let these that are younger study it If the time of youth go over without it it 's one to many if ever the losse be recovered and made up again and ye that can read and have time and parts study the Knowledge of God many of you will be very sad and dreadful spectacles in the great day when ye shall be charged with this that ye never Judged Precious Jesus Christ to be of that much worth as once to put you seriously to the study to know Him This is no Fable nor Fiction but a sad truth when Men vallue and esteem any thing be it Science or Art they will be at pains and give diligence to know it because they prize it Therefore for helping you to the study of Knowledge take these few Directions and a Caveat or two in the close 1. Let none put themselves without the reach of this exhortation let none say we are too old to learn if ever ye think to be Justified by Christ knowledge concerns you greatly It were a commendable thing to see aged Men and Women carefully and conscienscious reading the Catechism and could we once but get you under the impression and conviction of this as a Duty we would think that much were gained 2. Spend some time about this in private weekly It may be it were fit that some of you did so dayly ye spend much time more idly If ye knew the hazard of Ignorance ye would even take some set time to study Knowledge and this would not need to be counted any wronging of or incroaching upon your Christian Liberty as ye stint sometime for Prayer may ye not stint sometime to read the Catechism or to go to some Family where ye that cannot read your selves may have one to read it to you And to several I may add for a help to this that ye would take a part of that time which ye spend on Tipling Is it not obvious that the person that is oftest in the Hostler-house or in the Tavern is ordinarly the most stupidly Ignorant Tell me whether is it better spent time to take an hour in two or three dayes and bestow it in Reading of the Scriptures or of some good and edifying Book whereby you may come to Knowledge and to grow in it then to take several hours every day almost in an Ale-house or Tavern many of you as it is well known will sit down in such places at four or five a Clock in the after-noon and continue till eight or nine at night how much ye drink I speak not to that but sure ye mispend much precious time and much debauch your own Spirits What if by such doings ye be laying a ground for this a challenge Sir you lived in such a place under such means and you spent your time so and so you might have been fred from the guilt of mispending of your time and of your ignorance had you taken a part or the whole time and spent it in the study of Knowledge would not this be better for your Families better for your Souls and better for your Bodies would it not prevent much Sin and much Reproach And therefore if ye lay weight on the good of Soul and Body bestow more time in the study of Knowledge that Sin of Tipling brings alongst with it many other Sins and were it not well done to put some Dutie and even this Duty in particular in the place of it Others of you that Drink and Tiple not a way so much of your time ye know what time ye spend walking on the plain stones and in prattling and talking of idle and unedifying subjects in Drolling and Jesting or in sitting over the Fire as we use to speak in your houses doing nothing when will ye take some of that time in seeking after Knowledge Others of you that follow your Callings will ye leave your Work a little sooner then ye use to do on the Saturnday evening or take the Sabbath afternoon for this Work some of you may study Knowledge in your Shops Others may do it in your Houses if ye would but give over to walk up and down the Streets when ye are not all called to do so 3. Make Conscience to improve the means of Knowledge which ye have read especially the Bible and also the grounds of Religion compendiously summed in the Catechisms lesser and larger ye have frequent preaching and Catechising at every Dyet study to get something and put every dayes lesson to another and this would through Gods blessing increase your Knowledge For instance take this Lesson to day that nothing can Justifie but the Righteousnesse of Christ laid hold on by Faith take another with you the next day and let not one dayes Lesson shoulder out another Let the Husband and the Wife the Children and Servants compare their Notes or what they remember of Sermons together Be often speaking of what ye hear in your Families ye have it may be some Neighbours who would be content that ye come in to them or it may be they have
your very hearts open to it without which ye can never expect to be Justified before the Tribunal of God Now let God Himself blesse the same Word to you through Jesus Christ SERMON LVIII ISAIAH LIII XI Verse 11. By his knowledge shall my righteous servant justifie many for he shall bear their iniquities SOme further and more serious apprehensions of our Sin and hazard would make the reading of these Words to be refreshful and welcome to us The stayed thoughts of an Arrestment laid upon us to appear before God's Tribunal and to reckon for our Debt would make us think much of a Cautioner The want whereof make the glad tydings of the Gospel to be tastlesse and without relish This is the great scope of these Words to shew how a Summonded Sinner arraigned at Gods Bar may be Justified and fred from the charge that he is lyable to For sayes the Prophet By his knowledge who is the surity of the Covenant shall many be justâ—fied That which we last left at was this That Faith in Christ receiving and resting on Him is necessary for the attaining of Justification so that in Gods way these are so linked and knit together That never one shall be Justified but a Believer Though there be a Righteousnesse in Christ yet it shall be derived and communicated to none come to Age but to these who by Faith betake themselves to Christ what way the Lord takes with infants Elect Infants I mean is not that which the Prophet aimes to speak of though it be Christs Righteousnesse that is communicated to them as well as it is to them who are at Age yet as to the manner of communicating it God hath His own way which we know not Now that we may learn in speaking to these Truths not only to get some Light for informing of our Judgement but also some help for our practice take two or three Uses ere we proceed any further The 1. Use then is To let you see the absolute necessity of believing in Christ Jesus and that it is as necessary for the attaining of our Justification as Christs dying is For our Justification is an effect flowing from several Causes and the want of any of them will mar it There must necessarly be a concurrance of them all to bring it about And therefore though their be an excellent worth in Christs Righteousnesse yet there is a necessity of Faith to lay hold upon it and to make it ours Gods order in the Covenant bears this out wherein he hath knit the Promise of Pardon of Sin and of Justification to Faith and resting on Christ and there is good reason for it As 1. The Lord will have a Sinner to know what he is obliged to Christ which Faith contributs much unto For Faith stands not in the way of the freedom of Justification but rather commends it for the Lord would have us know that we hold our Life of Him and not to receive Him by Faith is an evidence of highest presumption Therefore it 's said Rom. 4.16 It is by faIth that it might be of grace God hath chosen this way that the freenesse of His Grace in pardoning of Sin may be seen 2. The Lord by this le ts the unbeliever know that the reason of his own ruine is of himself There shall not be one unbeliever found that shall have it to say that the blame lay on God or on Christ because the offer was made to them on condition of receiving it by Faith and they not performing the condition their Guilt is aggreged by their slighting of the offer It 's true that we are not now dealling with them who down-right deny the Truth of this Doctrine but alace what better are they who do in their practice deny it and live senslesly and securely under the Gospel We conceive that there are Three sorts of Persons that have need of a Word to be spoken to them here 1. Such as live carelesly and securely as we just now said as if God required nothing of them at all as they were born they know not how so they live they know not how and when they are pressed to a change of their state and way they make excuses partly from the sinfulnesse of their Nature that they can do nothing partly from the abundant Grace of God that He must do all But it will never excuse you that ye wanted Grace and had a Sinful Nature for whom I pray can ye blame for it ye that make a bachel of His mercy if ye continue to do so shall never get good of it For He hath said that He will Justifie and save none but the Believer There is none other that hath the promise of Pardon it is not made to any thing that is to be brought forth or done by your own strength or by the strength of Nature or of free-will But God hath laid down this order and method and made it known that ye should believe and receive the offer of Christ in the Gospel renunce your own Righteousnesse and betake you to Christ's Righteousnesse otherwayes ye cannot on good ground expect to be Justified 2. Others will set about many things that are good but the Work of believing they can never be brought to mind or own they will make a sort of Conscience of Prayer of keeping the Church of reading the Scriptures c. But to give obedience to the Command of Believing they mind it not they can live and die without it This was the woful and Soul-ruining practice of the Jews of old as we are told Rom. 9. They took much pains to come by Righteousnesse but they attained it not because they sought it not by faith but as it were by the works of the law for they stumbled at that stumbling stone when they had gone part of the way as it were and come to the Stone of believing there they fell and brake their necks Hence there are many who promise Heaven to themselves and think that they have done something for it who yet never laid hold on Christ for their Justification but let me tell you that though you could go the greatest length in Holinesse that ever any did since Adams fall it will not avail you if ye neglect Faith in Christ I say not this to disswade you from the Duties of Holinesse God forbid but to divert you from seeking Justifiâ—ation by them study the Duties of Holinesse but seek alwayes by any means to be found in Christ and in His Righteousnesse and not in the Righteousnesse of your Duties as to your Justification It is true none that have any tollerable measure of Knowledge will profâ—sse down right that they lean to holy Duties yet many are so ignorant that they cannot distinguish betwixt Faith and Works and there are not a few who have a hope of Heaven such as it is who nâ—ver knew any thing of the exercise of believing A 3d. Sort are these who because of some
they put up their prayers to God on the account of their own righteousnesse and not on the account of Christs Intercession Or 3. They are such as have something of God in them and so are Believers and even in such there is often a great defect as to this as Christ sayes to the Disciples John 16.24 Hitherto ye have asked nothing in my name He chargeth them not simply for not praying he grants that but ye have not asked in my name That is ye have not made use of my Intercession as ye should have done although there be not such a defect in them as there is in the former two sorts yet there is a great short-coming and not an improving of Christs Intercession as they should And therefore 3. It will be more clear if we consider the particular cases incident to Believers wherein we will find that but very scarcely Christs Intercession is improven in any of them As 1. If the Believer hath liberty in prayer he is ready to sit down on it and to conclude that he cannot but be heard because he hath liberty and there is not so single an eye had to Christs Intercession and ofâ—en it 's more difficult to hold off this Sin when liberty is injoyed then when it is wanting because though liberty be good and desirable in it self yet through our corruption and pride it 's often abused even as when Christians win to some good measure of holiness it is in some respect more difficult to rest upon Christs Righteousness then if that measure were not attained So is it here more difficult some way to rest upon Christs Intercession when we have liberty in prayer then when we are in bonds and under restraint 2. Upon the other hand if we look to a Believer when he is straitned and it goes not well with him in prayer there is then ordinarly a great defect in making use of Christs Intercession as if it could not in that case avail us and upon this follows anxiety and fretting and the Believer is ready to conclude he will be nothing the better of prayer and that it is better to pray none then to pray so whereas an eye to Christs Intercession would give the mind some quietness 3. If there be an ill and very necessitous case or if there be challenges and some commotion discomposure and disquiet be in the spirit there is readily little respect had to Christ If quietness and calmnesse be there is also hazard of sitting down on that and we readily forget that we hold it of him And indeed it will be found difficult either to have or to want and in either the one case or the other to be making right use of his Intercession Now when I speak of this Sin it not only reproves them that pray none at all which smells of grosse Atheism but also these who shuffle by Christ and step forward at the nearest as if they were not to come to God by him As it is Heb. 7.25 and John 14.6 2. The Causes of this Sin and whence it comes to passe that folks so slight the use-making of Christs Intercession 1. There is a great difficulty in the thing it 's tickle 2. There is an natural aversnesse from and enmity at that thing in us 3. There is a readiness to pitch on some other thing and to misken and over look this now let all these Three be put together and we will see the reason and way how folk slide and fall into this fault 1. I say There is a difficulty in the thing It being one of the most purely spiritual sublime and denyed things in all the Gospel one of the greatest exercises of Faith and we know that all such things have to our nature a great difficulty 1. It 's a difficulty to bring a man to be but formal in Religion 2. There is a difficulty when he is made formal to make him serious even in a legal manner and to be any thing affected in the exercise of Repentance and of other duties So that he be not grosly dessembling 3. When he is made thus serious it 's a difficulty to bring him over that seriousness and to draw him from resting on these duties which he hath been drawn to I say it 's a great and difficult work to get a man brought to the performance of holy Duties and as great a work to get him brought over them and from resting on them to rest on Christ's Righteousnesse for his Justification and on Christs Intercession for the acceptance of his prayers And therefore when the Lord hath once gotten His Disciples to pray and honestly yoaked and ingaged therein He trains them on to pray in His Name and so to get their prayers rightly qualified 2. If we consider our nature we will find that there is an aversness backwardness therein to it as there is an aversnesse in us to all things that tend to the making us deny our selves and lay the weight of every thing on Christ That which thwarts with our pride stands and sticks at our stomacks to speak so and goes not well down with us of such nature is this For our use-making of Christs Intercession implyes that we of our selves are at a distance with God that we have broken Covenant and are not to be trusted without a Mediator and there is in our nature a secret sort of disdain at this We cannot naturally indure it Hence Rom. 10. It 's said of the Jews that being ignorant of Gods Righteousnesse they did not submit nor stoop to the same but sought to establish their own Righteousnesse 3. There is a readinesse to pitch and condescend almost on any other Sin rather then on this And therefore folks may be longer under it then under many and yet not be challenged for it They will readily be challenged for Lying Swearing Sabbath-breaking and the like but they sleep more securely in this Sin then in most others It is a Sin easily fallen into and a Sin not easily recovered from or win out of Because it is a Gospel-sin that the light of nature reacheth not and that the Conscience hath not such an aw iâ— convincing of It 's against natures light to neglect prayer or to take Gods name in vain but this runs in the Channel of the Gospel to pray in the name of Christ and to make all our addresses to God through Him The sinful neglect whereof cannot be discovered but by Gospel-light And we find by experience that many will be convinced of and have challenges for out-breaking Sins who yet wil have no challenges for the neglect of this duty Even as it is easier to convince folks of a breach of the Law then of not believing in Christ many will grant that ignorance of God is a Sin and that irreverence and wandering in prayer are Sins who yet will stand and stick at this and cannot be gotten convinced but that they still believe in Christ