book of God ; as " an eye for an eye, a tooth for a tooth,"" i. e. one in lieu of another. Just as those whom the Greeks called ■avr^v^joi} men that exchanged their lives, or gave life for life, staking down their own to deliver another's, as Philumene did for Aristides. And so the poet Virgil speaks ;
Sijratrem Pollux alterna morte redemit*
And indeed, this very consideration is that which supports tli6 doctrine of imputation, the imputation of our sins to Christ, and the imputation of Christ's righteousness unto us, Itom. v. 19. For how could our sins be laid on him, but as he stood in our stead ? or his righteousness be imputed to us, but as he was our surety, performing it in our place * ; so that to deny Christ's sufferings in our stead, is to lose the corner-stone of our justification, and over- throw the very pillar which supports our faith, comfort and salva- tion. Indeed if this had not been, he would have been the righte- ous Lord, but not the Lord our righteousness, as he is stiled, Jer. xxxiii. 16. So that it was but a vain distinction, to say it was^/or Our good, but not in our stead: for had he not been in our stead, we could not have had the good of it.
3. The internal moving cause of Christ's satisfaction for us, was his obedience to God, and love to us. That it was an act of obe- dience, is plain from Phil. ii. 8. " He became obedient unto w death, even the death of the cross." Now obedience respects a command, and such a command Christ received to die for us, as himself tells us, John x. 18. " I lay down my life of myself; I j* have power to lay it down, and power to take it again : this *c commandment have I received of my Father." So that it was an act of obedience with respect to God, and yet a most free and spontaneous act with respect to himself. And that he was moved to it out of pity and love to us, himself assures us: Gal. v. 2. " Christ loved us, and gave himself for us an offering and a sacri- " fice to God." Upon this Paul sweetly reflected, Gal. ii. 20. " Who loved me arid gave himself for me." As the external moving cause was our misery, so the internal was his own love and pity for us.
4. The matter of Christ's satisfaction, was his active and passive obedience to all the law of God required -(*. I know there are some that doubt whether Christ's active obedience have any place
* This special imputation is the admission of the merit of another instead of that which ought to be in the criminal himself. Bradsliaw on Jiist. p. 47.
f For if through Christ's passive obedience alone imputed, we are accounted free from all the guilt, of the sins of every one of us of whatever kind, whether of com- mission or omission ; to what purpose should the active obedience of the same person be further imputed for justification, Bradshaw. in epjs. lib. de Justif.
THE FOUNTAIN OF LIFE, 181
here, and so whether it be imputed as any part of our righteous- ness. It is confessed, that scripture most frequently mentions his passive obedience, as that which made the atonement, and pro- cures our redemption, Matth. xx. 28. and xxvi. 28. Rom. hi. 24, 25. and elsewhere: but his passive obedience is never mentioned exclusively, as the sole cause, or matter of satisfaction. But in those places where it is mentioned by itself, it is put for his whole obedience, both active and passive, by an usual trope ; and in other scriptures it is ascribed to both, as Gal. iv. 4. he is said, " to be " under the law, to redeem them that were under the law." Now his being " made under the law" to this end, cannot be restrain- ed to his subjection to the curse of the law only, but to the com- mands of it also. So Rom. v. 19. " As by one man's disobedience, " many were made sinners ; so by the obedience of one, shall " many be made righteous." It were a manifest injury to this text also, to restrain it to the * passive obedience of Christ only. To be short, this twofold obedience of Christ, stands opposed to a twofold obligation that fallen man is under ; the one to do what God requires* the other to suffer what he hath threatened for dis- obedience. We owe him active obedience as his creatures, and pas- sive obedience as his prisoners. Suitably to his double obligation, Christ comes under the commandment of the law, to fulfil it actively, Matth. iii. 15. and under the malediction of the law, to satisfy it passively. And whereas it is objected by some, if he fulfilled the whole law for us by his active, what need then of his passive obe- dience ? We reply, great need ; because both these make up that one, entire, and complete obedience, by which God is satisfied, and we justified. If Is a good rule of Alsted, obedientia Christi est una copulativa; the whole obedience of Christ, both active and passive, make up one intire perfect obedience ; and therefore there is no reason why one particle, either of the one, or of the other, should be excluded.
5. The effect and fruit of this his satisfaction, is our freedom, ransom, or deliverance from the wrath and curse due to us for our sins. Such was the dignity, value, and completeness of Christ's satisfaction *[-, that in strict justice it merited our redemption and full deliverance ; not only a possibility that we might be redeemed and pardoned, but a right whereby to be so, as the learned Dr. Twiss judiciously argues. If he be made a curse for us, we must
* There is a twofold obedience of Christ, answering man's twofold obligation since the fall : the active for the fault committed ; the passive for the penalty incur- red, or both the former answering for both the latter. Trel. as above.
f Christ acquired a right to give forgiveness of sins ; but not such a right by which merely they may be forgiven, but such that, in justice they ought to be all forgiven to those for whom satisfaction is made by his death. See TwUse de permits, lib. 2,
18& THE FOUNTAIN OF LIFE. SERM. XIV.