From p. 185^ of my book he retires, upon his new triumph, unto IX 176,^ as hoping to hook something from thence that might contri- bute unto the furtherance of his ingenious design, although my dis- course in that place have no concernment in what he treaiteth about. But let him be heard to what purjDose he pleaseth. Thus, therefore, he jjroceeds, p. 815, "The doctor makes a gTeat flourish with some Scripture phrases, that there is almost nothing that Clirist hath done but what we are said to do it with him ; wc are cmcified with him, we are dead with him, buried with him, quickened together with liim. In the actings of Christ there is, by virtue of the compact > P. 1G2. ' P.. 154 of this volume.
THE PRECEDING DISCOURSE. S61
between him, as mediator, and tlie Father, such an assured founda- tion laid, that by communication of the fruit of these actings unto those ui whose stead he performed them, they are said, in the parti- cipation of these fruits, to have done the same things with him. But he is quite out in the reason of these expressions, which is not that we are accounted to do the same things which Christ did, — for the things here mentioned belong to the peculiar office of his mediation, which he told us before were not reckoned as done by us, — but be- cause we do some things like them. Our dying to sin is a conformity to the death of Christ; and our walking in newness of life is our con- formity to his resurrection : and the consideration of the death and resurrection of Christ is very powerful to engage us to die to sin, and to rise unto a new life. And this is the true reason of these phrases."
Any man may perceive, from what he is pleased here himself to report of my words, that I was not treating about the imputation of the righteousness of Christ, which he is now inveighing against; and it will be much more evident unto every one that shall cast an eye on that discourse. But the design of this confused rambling I have been forced now frequently to give an account of, and shall, if it be possible, trouble the reader with it no more. The present difference between us, which he was ambitious to represent, is only this, that whereas it seems he will allow that those expressions of our being " crucified with Christ, dead with him, buried with him, quickened with him," do intend nothing but only our doing of something like unto that which Christ did; I do add, moreover, that we do those things by the virtue and efficacy of the grace which is communicated unto us from what the Lord Christ so did and acted for us, as the mediator of the new covenant, whereby alone we partake of their power, communicate in their virtue, and are conformed unto him as our head ; wherein I know I have, as the testimony of the Scripture, so the judgment of the catholic church of Christ on my side, and am very little concerned in the censure of this person, that I am " quite out in the reason of these expressions."
For what remains of his discourse, so far as I am concerned in it, it is made up of such expositions of some texts of Scripture as issue, for the most part, in a direct contradiction to the text itself, or some express passages of the context. So doth that of Gal. iv. 4, 5, which he first undertakes to speak unto, giving us nothing but what was first invented by Crelhus, in his book against Grotius, and is almost translated verbatim out of the comment of Schlichtingius upon the place; the remainder of them corruptly Socinianizing against the sense of the church of God. Hereunto are added such pitiful mistakes, with reflections on me for distinguisliing between obeying and suffer-
362 A VINDICATION OF
ing (which conceit he most profoundly disproves by showing that one may obey in suffering, and that Christ did so, against him who hath written more about the obedience of Christ in dying, or laying down his life for us, than he seems to have read on the same subject, as also concerning the ends and uses of his death ; which I challenge him and all his companions to answer and disprove, if they can), as I cannot satisfy myself in the fcurther consideration of; no, not with that speed and haste of writing now used : which nothing could give coun- tenance unto but the meanness of the occasion, and unprofitableness^ of the argument in hand. Wherefore, this being the manner of the man, I am not able to give an account unto myself or the reader of the misspense of more time in the review of such impeilinencies. I shall add a few things, and conclude.
First. I desire to know whether this author will abide by what he asserts, as his own judgment, in opposition unto what he puts in his exception against in my discourse : — P. o'20, " All the influence which the sacrifice of Christ's death, and the righteousness of his life have, that I can find in the Scripture, is, that to this we owe the covenant of grace ; " that is, as he afterward explains himself, " That God would for the sake of Christ enter into a new covenant with mankind, wlierein he promiseth pardon of sin and eternal life to them that believe and obey the gospel." I leave him herein to hLs second thoughts ; for as he hath now expressed himself, there is no recon- ciliation of his assertion to common sense, or the fundamental prin- ciples of Christian religion. That God entered into the new covenant originally only for the sake of those things whereby that covenant was ratified and confirmed, and that Christ was so the mediator of the new covenant, that he died not for the redemption of transgres- sions under the first covenant, whereby the whole consideration of his satisfaction and of redemption, properly so called, is excluded; that there is no consideration to be had of his purchase of the in- heritance of gi'ace and gioiy, with many other things of the same importance ; and that the gospel, or the doctrine of the gospel, is the new covenant (which is only a perspicuous declaration of it), ai'o things that may become these new sons of the church of England, which the elder church would not have borne withal.