CHAP. VI.] IN THE SANCTIFICATION OF EELIEVEES. 525
pliical notions and terms, and those the most common, obvious, and vulgar that ever obtained among the heathen of old. "Virtuous liv- ing," they tell us, "is the way to heaven ;" but what this virtue is, or what is a life of virtue, they have added as little in the declaration of as any persons that ever made such a noise about them.
2. That ambiguous term moral hath, by usage, obtained a double signification, with respect unto an opposition unto other things, which either are not so or are more than so; for sometimes it is applied unto the worship of God, and so is opposed unto instituted. That religious worship which is prescribed in the decalogue or required by the law of creation is commonly called " moral," and that in oppo- sition unto those rites and ordinances which are of a superadded, ar- bitrary institution. Again, it is opposed unto things that are more than merely moral, — namely, spiritual, theological, or divine. So the graces of the Spirit, as faith, love, hope, in all their exercise, whatever they may have of morality in them, or however they may be exercised in and about moral things and duties, yet because of sundry respects wherein they exceed the sphere of morality, are called graces and duties, theological, spiritual, supernatural, evan- gelical, divine; in opposition unto all such habits of the mind and duties as, being required by the law of nature, and as they are so re- quired, are merely moral. In neither sense can it with any tolerable congruity of speech be said that moral virtue is our holiness, espe- cially the whole of it. But because the duties of holiness have, the most of them, a morality in them, as moral is opposed to instituted, some would have them have nothing also in them, as moral is op- posed to supernatural and theological. But that the principle and acts of holiness are of another special nature hath been sufficiently now declared.
3. It is, as was before intimated, somewhat uncertain what the great pleaders for moral virtue do intend by it. Many seem to de- sign no more but that honesty and integrity of life which was found among some of the heathens in their virtuous lives and actions; and, indeed, it were heartily to be wished that we might see more of it amongst some that are called Christians, for many things they did were materially good and useful unto mankind. But let it be supposed to be never so exact, and the course of it most diligently attended unto, I defy it as to its being the holiness required of us in the gospel, according unto the terms of the covenant of grace; and that because it hath none of those qualifications which we have proved essentially to belong thereunto. And I defy all the men in the world to prove that this moral virtue is the sum of our obedience to God, whilst the gospel is owned for a declaration of his will and our duty. It is true, all the duties of this moral virtue are required of us, but in
626 THE rOSITIVE ^YORK OF THE SPIPJT, ETC. [BOOK IV.
the exercise of every one of tliem there is more required of us than be- longs unto their moraUty, — as, namely, that they be done in faith and love to God through Jesus Christ; and many things are required of us as necessary parts of our obedience which belong not thereunto at all.
4. Some give us such a description of morality as that " it should be of the same extent with the light and law of nature, or the dic- tates of it as rectified and declared unto us in the Scripture;" and this, I confess, requires of us the obedience which is due towards God by the law of our creation, and according to the covenant of works materially and formally. But what is this unto evangelical holiness and obedience? Why, it is alleged that "religion before the entrance of sin and under the gospel is one and the same ; and therefore there is no difference between the duties of obedience required in the one and the other."' And it is true that they are so far the same as that they have the same Author, the same object, the same end; and so also had the religion under the law, which was, therefore, so far the same with them ; but that they are the same as to all the acts of our obedience and the manner of their performance is a vain imagina- tion. Is there no alteration made in religion by the interposition of the person of Christ to be incarnate, and his mediation? no aug- mentation of the object of faith? no change in the abolishing of the old covenant and the establishment of the new, the covenant between God and man being that which gives the especial form and kind unto religion, the measure and denomination of it ? no altera- tion in the principles, aids, assistances, and whole nature of our obedience unto God? The whole mystery of godliness must be re- nounced if we intend to give way unto such imaginations. Be it so, then, that this moral virtue and the practice of it do contain and ex- press all that obedience, materially considered, which was required by the law of nature in the covenant of works, yet I deny it to be our holiness or evangelical obedience; and that, as for many other rea- sons, so principally because it hath not that respect unto Jesus Christ which our sanctification hath.