I know no othodox divine in the world, that presumes to thrust in any work of man's into the covenant of grace, as a condition, which, in the Armenian sense, he may or may not perform, accord- ing to the power and pleasure of his own free will, without the pre- venting or determining grace of God ; which preventing grace is contained in those promises, Ezek. xxxvi. 25, 26, 27, &c. Nor yet that there is any meritorious worth, either o^ condignitij or congridty in the Popish sense, in the very justifying act of faith, for the which God justifies and saves us. But we say. That though God, in the way of preventing grace, works faith in us, and when it is so wrought, we need his assisting grace to act it, yet neither his assisting nor preventing grace makes the act of faith no more to be our act ; it is we that believe still though in God's strength, and that upon our be- lieving, or not believing, we have or have not the benefits of God's promises ; which is the very proper notion of a condition.
If all the promises of the new covenant be absolute and uncondi- tional, having no respect nor relation to any grace wrought in us, nor duty done by us, then the trial of our interest in Christ, by marks and signs of grace, is not our duty, nor can we take comfort in sanctification, as an evidence of our justification.
But it is a Christian's duty to try his interest in Christ hy marl's and signs ; and be may take comfort in sanctification, as an evi- dence of justification. Ergo,
The sequel of the major is undeniably clear : so that can never be a sign or evidence of an interest in Christ, which that interest may be without ; yea, and as * Dr. Crispe asserts, according to his Antino- mian principles, ' Christ is ours (saith he) before we have gracious qualifications; every truemark and signmust beinseparable from that it signifies.' Now, if the works of the Spirit in us be not so, but an interest in Christ may be where these are not, then they are no pro- per marks or signs ; and if they are not, it cannot be our duty to
• Dr. Crispe, 2d Vol of Christ exalted, Serm. 14,
S5js A REPLY TO MR. CARY's SOLEMN CALL.
make use of them as such, and consequently if we should, they can yield us no comfort.
The mmor is plain in scripture ; 1 John ii. 3. " Hereby we do know that we know him, if we keep his commandments.''^ The meaning is, we perceive and discern ourselves to be sincere believers, and consequently that Christ is our propitiation, when obedience to his commands is become habitual and easy to us ; So 1 John iii. 19. '' Hereby we know that we are of the truth, and shall assure our hearts before him ;'" i. e. by our sincere cordial love to Christ and his members, as ver. 18. this shall demonstrate to us, that we are the children of truth ; and again, 1 John iii. 14. "We know that we are passed from death to life ; because we love the brethren :" With multitudes more to the same purpose, which plainly teach Christians to fetch the evidences of their justification out of their sanctification, and to prove their interest in Christ, by the works of his Spirit found in their own hearts.
And this is not only a Christian's liberty, but his commanded duty to bring his interest in Christ to this touchstone and test ; 2 Cor. xiii. 5. Examine yourselves, prove yourselves," &c. 2 Pet. i. 10. " Give all diligence to make your calling and election sure.'*''' i. e. your election by your calling. No man can make his election sure^i priori, nor can any make it surer than it is in se ; therefore it is only capable of being made sure to us a posteriori ; arguing from the work of sanctification in us, to God's eternal choice of us.
And as the saints in all ages have taken this course, so they have taken great and lawful comfort in the use of these marks and signs of grace; 2 Kings xx. 3. 2 Cor. i. 12.
I am sensible how vehemently the Antinomian party, Dr. Crispe, Mr. Eyre, and some others, do oppugn this truth, representing it as legal and impracticable (forthey are for the absolute and unconditional nature of the new cove?ia7it, as well as you) ; but by your espousing their principle, you have even run Anabaptism into Antinomianism ; and must, by this principle of yours, renounce all marks and trials of an interest in Christ, by any work of the Spirit wrought in us. You must only stick to the immediate sealings of the Spirit ; which, if such a thing be at all, it is but rare and extraordinary.
I will not deny but there may be an immediate testimony of the Spirit ; but sure I am his mediate testimony by his graces in us, is his usual way of sealing believers. We do not affirm any of these his works to bemeritoriouscausesof our justification; or that, considered abstractly from the Spirit, they can of themselves seal, or evidence our interest in Christ; Neither do we affirm, that any of them are complete and perfect works ; but this we say, that they being true and sincere, though imperfect graces, they are our usual and standing evidences, to make out our interest in Christ by. And I hope you, and the whole Antinomian p«?%, will find it hard, yea, and impossi- ble, to remove the saints from that comfortable and scriptural way of
A REPLY TO MR. CARY S SOLEM\* CALL. 3oo
examining their interest in Christ, by the graces of his Spirit in them ; iis the saints, who are gone to heaven before them, have done in all
If the covenant of gracehe altogether absolute and unconditional, requiring nothing to be done on our part, to entitle us to its bene- fits ; then it cannot be man's duty in entering covenant with God, to deliberate the terms, count the cost, or give his consent by word or writing, explicitly to the terms of this covenant.
But it is man's duty in entering covenant with Grod, to deliberate the terms, and count the cost ; Luke xiv. 26, to 34. and explicitly to give his consent thereunto, either by word or writing : Ergo.
The sequel of the major is self-evident : For where there are no terms or conditions required on our part, there can be none to deli- berate, or give our consent to ; and so a man may be in a covenant without his own consent.