Imágenes de páginas
PDF
EPUB

his future ftate, except it makes him decline his duty,; because, as I faid before, our Lord will not deal with us according to the judgment we pafs upon ourselves, nor yet according to the judgment that others pafs upon us, but he will deal with us according to the truth and reality of our cafe. So on the other fide, fuppofing a man strongly perfuaded that he is elect, if this perfuafion fhould be groundless, it might do the perfon, in whom it takes place, a great deal of hurt, in preventing his feeking and endeavouring after thofe pre-requifites which are abfolutely neceffary to his fafety, but it can do him no real fervice, becaufe our Lord will not treat men according to their prefumptuous conceit of themfelves, but according as he finds their cafe to be; and therefore, if they are deftitute of the prerequifites to God's act of grace, he will condemn them, notwithstanding their perfuafion to the contrary. This obfervation likewife fhews the groundlessnefs of fome mens fears, who because they cannot find in themfelves the forementioned ftrong perfuafion that they are elected, &c. from hence they are led to fear that they have not true faith, and confequently that they are reprobated whereas true faith, or the faith which makes men the fuitable objects of God's love, is a believing what God hath revealed, and an answering the great defign of that revelation, by conforming our minds and lives to the mind and will of God discovered to us thereby. But farther, I fay, if by faith is meant a covenant of faith or grace (faith and grace, in this cafe, being the fame thing) that is, if thereby is meant fuch a covenant which gives juftification as a favour to all thofe whofe faith and fincere obedience make them the suitable objects of this favour; and if by works is meant a covenant of works, even fuch

such a covenant as does not give juftification as a favour, but pays it as a debt to all those whofe innocency or exact obedience gives them a legal right and title to it; then it appears, from the foregoing obfervations, that chriftians are juftified wholly, and only by faith, or a covenant of faith, and not at all by works, or a covenant of works, the chriftian's juftification flowing wholly, and only from the merciful goodness of God, the lawgiver, as I have fhewn, and not from the innocency of the perfon juftified. Again,

We learn, fecondly, the groundlefsness of that opinion, that chriftians are juftified by the imputed righteousness of Chrift; because the chriftian's juftification is not founded upon the innocency or righteousness of the perfon juftified, but in the merciful goodness of God, the lawgiver, and fo it is wholly of grace, and not of debt, as I have fhewn. But if the righteousness of Chrift is made the christian's righteoufnefs, and if they are justified by virtue of the righteousness of another, which is made their own by imputation, it clearly follows, that their juftification is not of grace, but of debt. The perfon thus ftanding in the innocency or righteousness of another may lawfully demand it as his right; and it would be an act of criminal injuftice in the judge to with-hold it from him. For, whatever grace might be exercised in imputing the innocency of one perfon to another, yet when that innocency is thus imputed, then justification becomes the perfon's right, who is thus poffefs'd of it; fo that it is wholly of debt, and not of grace. I fay, if the innocency of one is imputed to another. Here I only fuppofe the thing for argument fake, because in reality there is no fuch thing in nature; for guilt and innocency are perfonal, and stick so close to him, in whom they Q take

take place, that they cannot be tranfpofed from one to another. God may, indeed, if he pleases, pardon the guilty, and treat them as innocent; and the innocency of one perfon may be an argument with him to fhew kindnefs to another perfon which is guilty; but ftill the guilt and innocence of each rest only upon the perfon who exercised them, and this is plainly the chriftian's cafe. God is pleafed to pardon believing penitents, and to treat them as innocent, and the argument or motive, which induces him to exercise this grace, is the innocency or righteoufnefs, or in other words, the humble obedience of his Son, our Lord Jefus Chrift, who is become an interceffor for us, and upon whofe account, and for whose fake, God is pleased to vouchsafe this grace to penitent believers. So that mens conceits of being juftified, by virtue of Chrift's perfect righteousness being imputed to them, has no foundation, neither in the nature of the thing, nor in the christian revelation. The christian revelation every where represents the chriftian's juftification to be of grace, and not of debt; and that God exercifes his mercy in the pardon and forgiveness of their fins'; and that they are justified by faith, or a covenant of faith, and not by a covenant of works; in which covenant of faith nothing is re quired as the meritorious caufe of juftification, because in this covenant God gives it wholly of his free grace, Rom. iv. 24. Epb. ii. 4. &c. Which excludes all merit, properly fo called, both in the perfon juftified, and in any other that might be inftrumental in procuring that favour for him, Rom. xi. 6. And if by grace, then it is no more of works (either of the perfon himfelf, or of any other that fhall work, and fo merit it for him) otherwife grace is no more grace; but if it be of works (either of the perfon himfelf, or of any other that fhall

work

work in his ftead) then it is no more grace, otherwife work is no more work,

If it fhould be here objected, that St. Paul, Rom. iv. 3. 6. faith that Abraham believed God, and it was counted to him for righteousness; and that David defcribes the bleffednefs of the man unto whom God imputes righteousness without works; feeing then that righteoufnefs is imputed, it must be the righteousnefs of another, viz. Chrift, because the perfon, to whom it it here faid to be imputed, had no perfonal righteousness of his own, he being without works, as the text expreffes it. I answer: As to Abraham's faith being accounted to bim for righteousness, this proves fully what I am pleading for, viz. that Abraham was not juftified by the imputed righteousness of another, for if he had, then there had been no room nor need for his own faith to be counted to him for rightteoufnefs; he being perfectly righteous himself, by having the perfect righteoufnels of Chrift imputed to him. But Abraham not being able to stand upon that foot, God was pleas'd to justify him freely by his grace, and to accept of his faith, and fincere obedience, as that which difpofed, and made him meet for this favour, inftead of that perfect obedience which would have given him a legal title to it. And as to the bleffednefs David fpeaks of, that did not confift in a perfon's being made righteous, by virtue of the righteoufnefs of another imputed to him; but it confifted in his having a fhare in the mercy of God, which was exercised in the forgiveness of his fins, and in receiving him into a state of favour, as if he had never tranfgrefs'd. And that this is the truth of the cafe, appears from the following words, verfe 7. 8. Bleffed are they whofe iniquities are forgiven, and whofe fins are covered, bleffed is the man to whom the Lord will not impute fin. Here we fee that this

[ocr errors]

this bleffedness doth not confift in a perfon's standing in the imputed righteoufnefs of another, but in his having a fhare in the mercy of God, who forgives him his fins, not imputing them unto him, that is, not punishing him for them, but treating him as if he had not finned.

If it should be here replied, that Isaiah faith, All our righteoufneffes are as filthy rags, chap. Ixiv. 6. and that St. Paul, Phil, iii, 9. faith, That be defired to be found in Christ, not having his own righteoufnefs, which is of the law, but that which is through the faith of Chrift, the righteousness, which is of God by faith. And that St. John faith, John iii. 7. Little Children, let no man deceive you; be that doth righteoufnefs, is righteous, even as he (viz. Chrift) is righteous. Here, if all our perfonal reghteoufnefs is as filthy rags, which stink in the noftrils of the most high, according to the Prophet's declaration, and if St. Paul defired to be found having righteousness, but not having his own righteousness, both which are expreffed in his words, it will ne ceffarily follow, that as our righteousness is unacceptable to God, fo St, Paul defired to be found in the righteousness of another, which he could not be found in, except that righteousness was made his own by imputation. Again, if he that dotb righteoufnefs is righteous even as, or to that degree in which Chrift is righteous, from hence it will follow, that righteoufnefs is made his by imputation, because his own righteoufnefs cannot make him righteous, as, or to that degree of righteoufnefs Chrift hath attained to, whith is afferted by St. John.

I anfwer, 'Tis to be observed that the good works, or righteous acts of good men, are fo far f.om being as filthy rags which ftink in the noftrils of God, that, on the contrary, they are like a fweet prefume, which is highly acceptable to him.

For

« AnteriorContinuar »