Secondly, And it is as evident, it doth not justify us in the Armi- nian sense, viz. as the to credere, the act of believing is imputed or accepted by God, as our evangelical righteousness, instead of per- fect legal righteousness. In the former opinion you have the dregs of Popery, and here you have refined Popery. Let all Arminians know, we have as high an esteem for faith as any men in the world, but yet we will not rob Christ to clothe faith. We cannot embrace their opinion, because,
First, We must then dethrone Christ to exalt faith : we are willing to give it all that is due to it, but we dare not despoil Christ of his glory for faith's sake : " He is the Lord our righteousness,'1 Jer. xxiii. We dare not set the servant above the master. We acknowledge no righteousness but what the obedience and satis- faction of Christ yields us. His blood, not our faith ; his satis- faction, not our believing it, is the matter of our justification be- fore God.
Secondly, We dare not yield this point, lest we undermine all the comfort of Christians, by setting their pardon and peace upon a weak imperfect work of their own. Oh how tottering and un- stable must their station be, that stand upon such a bottom as this ! What alterations are there in our faith, what mixtures of unbelief at all times, and prevalency of unbelief at some times ; and is this a foundation to build our justification and hope upon ? Dcbilcjiin- damcntum fallit opus : If we lay the stress here, we build upon very
120 THE METHOD OF GRACE. SERM. VI,
loose ground, and must be at a continual loss both as to safety and comfort.
Thirdly \ We dare not wrong the justice and truth of God at that rate, as to affirm that he esteems and imputes our poor weak faith for perfect legal righteousness*. We know that the judgment of God is always according to truth ; if the justice of God require full payment, sure it will not say, it is fully satisfied by any acts of ours, when all that we can do amounts not to one mite of the vast sum we owe to God. So that we deservedly reject this opinion also.
Thirdly, And for the third opinion, That it justifies as the con- dition of the new covenant ; though some of great name and worth among our Protestant divines seem to go that way, yet I cannot see, according to this opinion, any reason why repentance may not as properly be said to justify us as faith, for it is a condition of the new covenant as much as faith ; and if faith justify as a condition, then every other grace that is a condition must justify as well as faith. I acknowledge faith to be a condition of the covenant, but cannot allow that it justifies as a condition. And therefore must profess myself best satisfied in the last opinion, which speaks it an instrument in our justification : it is the hand which receives the righteousness of Christ that justifies us, and that gives it its value above all other graces ; as when we say a diamond ring is worth one hundred pounds, we mean not the gold that receives, but the stone that is set in it, is worth so much. Faith, considered as an habit, is no more precious than other gracious habits are, but con- sidered as an instrument to receive Christ and his righteousness, so it excels them all ; and this instrumentality of faith is noted in these phrases, an rr, visa, Rom. iii. 28. and ha rr,$ m&us, Rom. iii. 22. By faith, and through faith. And thus much of the nature and excellency of saving faith.
* Because faith receives Christ our righteousness, and ascribes all to the grace of God in him ; therefore we are said to be justified by it, only on account of Christ, and not as it is our work. Confes. Uelv.
SERM. VII. THE METHOD OF GRACE. 121
But as many as received him, to them gave he power to become the sons of God ; even to them that believe on his name.
X HE nature and excellency of saving faith, together with its relation to justification, as an instrument in receiving Christ and his righteousness, having been discoursed doctrinally already ; I now come to make application of it, according to the nature of this weighty and fruitful point.
And the uses I shall make of it will be for our,
1. Information, 3. Exhortation, and,
2. Examination, 4. Direction.
First Use of Information.
Use 1. And in the first, this point yields us many great and useful truths for our information : As,
Irference 1. Is the receiving of Christ the vital and saving act of faith, which gives the soul right to the person and privileges of Christ ? Then it follows, That the rejecting of Christ by unbelief, must needs be the damning and soul-destroying sin, which cuts a man off from Christ, and all the benefits purchased by his blood. If there belife in receiving, there must needs be death in rejecting Christ.
There is no grace more excellent than faith ; no sin more exe- crable and abominable than unbelief. Faith is the saving grace, and unbelief the damning sin, Mark xvi. 16. " He that believeth " not shall be damned." See John iii. 18, 36. and John viii. 24.
And the reason why this sin of unbelief is the damning sin is this, because, in the justification of a sinner, there must be a co-opera- tion of all the con-causes that have a joint influence on that blessed effect. As there must be free grace for an impulsive cause, the blood of Christ as the meritorious cause, so, of necessity, there must be faith, the instrumental cause, to receive and apply what the free grace of God designed, and the blood of Christ purchased for us. For where there are many social causes, or con-causes to produce one effect, there the effect is not produced till the last cause be in act.
" To him give all the prophets witness, that through his name, " whosoever believeth in him shall receive remission of sins," Acts x. 43. Faith in its place is as necessary as the blood of Christ in its place : " It is Christ in you the hope of glory/1 Col. i. 27. Not Christ in the womb, not Christ in the grave, nor Christ in heaven> except he be also Christ in you.
122 THE METHOD OF GKACE. 5ERM. VII.
Though Christ be come in the flesh ; though he died and rose again from the dead ; yet if you believe not, you must for all that die in your sins, John viii. 24. And what a dreadful thing is this ! better die any death whatever than die in your sins. If you die in your sins, you will also rise in your sins, and stand at the bar of Christ in your sins : you can never receive remission, till first you have received Christ. O cursed unbelief, which damns the soul : dishonours God, 1 John v. 10. slights Jesus Christ, the wisdom of God, as if that glorious design of redemption by his blood, the triumph and master-piece of divine wisdom, were mere foolishness, I Cor. i. 23, 24. frustrates the great design of the gospel, Gal. iv. 11. and consequently it must be the sin of sins ; the worst and most dangerous of all sins ; leaving a man under the guilt of all his other sins.