Secondly, Every sinner at his first believing and closing with Christ, 'isjustijied in the court of glory from all his sins, both guilt and pun- ishment. Acts xiii. 39. Justification doth not increase or decrease, but all sin is pardoned at the first act of believing. All who are jus- tified are justified alike. There is no difference amongst believers, as to their justification ; one is not more justified than another, for every justified person hath a plenary remission of his sins, and the same righteousness of Christ imputed ; but in sanctification there is differ- ence amongst believers. Every one is not sanctified alike, for some are stronger and higher, and others are weaker and lower in grace. As soon as any are made believers in Christ, all the sins which they have committed in time past, and all the sins which they are guilty of, as to the time present, they are actually pardoned unto them in general, and in particular, 1 Cor. xii. 12-14 ; 1 John ii. 1, 12-14. Now, that all the sins of a believer are pardoned at once, and actually unto them, may be thus demonstrated.
[1.] First, All phrases in Scripture imply thus much. Isa. xHii. 25, ' I, even I, am he which blotteth out thy transgressions for mine own sake, and will not remember thy sins.' Jer. xxxi. 34, ' I will forgive their iniquity, and I will remember their sin no more.' Jer. xxxiii. 8, ' And I will pardon all their iniquities whereby they have sinned, and whereby they have transgressed against me.' Ezek. xviii. 22, 'AH his transgressions that he hath committed, they shall not be mentioned unto him.' Heb. viii. 12, ' I will be merciful unto their unrighteous- ness, and their sins and their iniquities I will remember no more ;' ergo, all is pardoned at once. But,
[2.] Secondly, That remission of sins that leaves no condemnation to the party offending, is the remission of all sins ; for if there were any sin remaining, a man is still in the state of condemnation ; but justifi- cation leaves no condemnation. Kom. viii. 1, ' There is no condemna-
^ Eccles. xi. 9, and xii. 14 ; Mat. xii. 36, and xviii. 23 ; Luke xvi. 2; Kom. xiv. 10, 12; 2 Cor. v. 10 ; Heb. ix. 27, and xiii. 17 ; 1 Pet. iv. 5.
62 SERIOUS AND WEIGHTY QUESTIONS
tion to them that are in Christ Jesus,' and ver. 33, ' Who shall lay anything to the charge of God's elect ? It is God that justifieth ;' and ver. 38, 39, ' Nor things present, nor things to come, shall be able to separate us from the love of God, which is in Christ Jesus our Lord ;' and John v. 24, ' He that heareth my word, and believeth on him that sent me, hath everlasting life, and shall not come into condemna- tion, but is passed from death to life ;' ergo, all sins are pardoned at once, or else they were in a state of condemnation, &c. i Thus you see it evident that there is no condemnation to them that are in Christ Jesus. Therefore there is full remission of all sins to the soul at the first act of believing. But,
[3.] Thirdly, A believer, even lohen he sinneth, is still united to Christ, John xv. 1, 6, xvii. 21-23; 1 Cor. vi. 17, 'And he is still clothed with the righteousness of Christ which covers all his sins, and dischargeth him from them, so that no guile can redound to him,' Isa. Ixi. 10; Jer. xxiii. 6; 1 Cor. i. 30; Phil. iii. 9, &c. But,
[4.] Fourthly, A believer is not to fear curse or hell at all, which yet he might do if all his sins were not pardoned at once ; but some of his new sins were for a while impardoned, &c. But,
[5.] Fifthly, Our Lord Jesus Christ, by once suffering, suffered for all the sins of the elect, past, present, and to come. The infinite wrath of God the Father fell on him for all the sins of the chosen of God, Isa. liii. 9 ; Heb. xii. 14, and x. 9, 10, 12, 14. If Christ had sufi'ered for ten thousand worlds, he could have suffered no more than he did ; for he suffered the whole infinite wrath of God the Father. The wrath of God was infinite wrath, and the sufferings of Christ were infinite sufferings ; ergo. Look, as Adam's sin was enough to infect a thousand worlds, so our Saviour's merits are sufficient to save a thousand worlds. Those sufferings that he suffered for sins past, are sufficient to satisfy for sins present and to come. That all the sins of God's people, in their absolute number, from first to last, were laid upon Christ, who in the days of his sufferings did meritoriously purchase perfect remis- sion of all their sins, to be applied in future times to them, and by them, is most certain, Isa. liv. 5, 6. But,
[6.] Sixthly, Repentance is not at all required for our justifi- cation— tuhere our pardon is only to be found — but only faith; therefore pardon of sin is not suspended until we repent of our sins. But,
[7.] Seventhly, If the remission of all sins be not at once, it is either because my faith cannot lay hold on it, or because there is some hindrances in tJie loay : but a man by the hand of faith may lay hold on all the merits of Chrnst, and the icord reveals the pardon of all; and the sacrament of the Lord's Supper seals and confirms the pardon of all ; and there is no danger nor inconvenience that attends this assertion, for it puts the highest obligation imaginable upon the soul, as to fear and obedience : Ps. cxxx. 3, ' If thou, Lord, shouldest mark iniquities, 0 Lord, who shall stand ?' ver. 4, ' But there is
^ At a sinner's first conver8ioi\ his sins are truly and perfectly pardoned. 1. All as to sin already past ; 2. All as to the state of remission. They had a perfect right to the pardon of all their sins, past, present, and to come, though not an equal investure.
CI.EARLY AND SATISFACTORILY ANSWERED. 63
forgiveness with thee, that thou mayest be feared.' Forgiveness makes not a Christian bold with sin, but fearful of sin, and careful to obey, as Christians find in their daily experience.^ By this argument it appears clear, that the forgiveness of all sins is made to the soul at once, at the first act of believing. But,
[8.] Eighthly, If neiu sins loe^-e not pardoned until you do repent, then we should be left to an uncertainty whiles our sins he pardoned, or when they icill he pardoned; for it may be long ere we repent, as you see in David, who lay long under the guilt of murder and adultery before he repented, and you know Solomon lay long under many high sins before he repented, &c., audit may be more long ere we do, or can know that we do truly repent of our sins. But,