His next is, " Is it the tenor of the gospel that we should live uprightly in expectation of the hope hereafter?" . Doubtless, neither shall I need to give any answer at all to this part of the inquiry but what lies in the words of the scripture produced for the proof of our catechist's intention, " The grace of God that bringeth salvation hath appeared to all men, teaching us that, denying ungodliness and
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worldly lusts, we should live soberly, righteously, and godly, in this present world; looking for that blessed hope, and the glorious ap- pearing of the great God and our Saviour Jesus Christ," Tit. iL 11-13. Christ, the great God our Saviour, having promised an in- heritance to us with himself, at his glorious appearance, raiseth up our hearts with a hope and expectation thereof; his grace, or the doctrine of it, teacheth us to perform all manner of holiness and righteousness all our days; and this is the tenor and law of the gos- pel, that so we do. But what this is to Mr B/s purpose I know not.
His last attempt is upon the exposition of some (I know not whom) who have minced the doctrine so small, it seems, that he can find no relish in it. Saith he, " Finally, ought we to suffer for the kingdom of God, or from the kingdom of God? " His answer is, 2 Thess. i. 5, " That ye may be counted worthy of the kingdom of God, for which ye also suffer." I confess, " suffering /rom the kingdom of God" is something an uncouth expression, and those who have used it to the offence of this gentleman might have more commodiously delivered what they did intend; but " the kingdom of God " being sometimes taken for that rule of grace which Christ hath in the hearts of be- lievers, and thereupon being said to be " within us," and the word " from ■" denoting the principle of obedience in suffering, there is a truth in the expression, and that very consistent with " suffering/o?- the kingdom of God," which here is opposed unto it. To ''suffer from the kingdom of God " is no more than to be enabled to suffer from a principle of grace within us, by which Christ bears rule in our hearts ; and in this sense we say that no man can do or suffer any thing, so as it shall be acceptable unto God, but it must be from the kingdom of God; for they that are in the flesh cannot please God, even their sacrifices are an abomination to him. This is so far from hindering us as to suffering for the kingdom of God, that is, to endure persecu- tion for the profession of the gospel (" for," in the place of the apostle cited, denotes the procuring occasion, not final cause), that without it so we cannot do. And so the minced matter hath, I hope, a savoury relish recovered unto it again.
His next questions are, first, —
Q. Have you any examples of keeping the commandments under the law? What saith David of himself? A. Ps. xviii. 20-24.
And secondly, —
Q. Have you any example under the gospel ?
A. 1 John iii. 22, "Because we keep his commandments."
All this trouble is Mr B. advantaged to make from the ambiguity of this expression of " keeping the commandments." We know full well what David saith of his obedience, and what he said of his sins; so that we know his keeping of the commandments was in respect of
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sincerity as to all the commandments of God and all the parts of them, but not as to his perfection in keeping all or any of them. And he who says, " We keep his commandments," says also, " If we say we have no sin, we he and deceive ourselves, and the truth is not in us.'' He adds : —
Q. Have you not examples of the choicest saints who obeyed God in hope of the reward, both before, under, and after the law ? A. Heb. xi. 8-10, 24-26, xii. 1, 2; Tit. i. 1, 2.
To obey in hope of eternal life is either to yield obedience in hope of obtaining eternal life as a reward procured by or proportioned to that obedience, and so no saint of God since the fall of Adam did yield obedience to God, or ought to have so done ; or, to obey in hope of eternal life is to carry along with us in our obedience a hope of the enjoyment of the promised inheritance in due time, and to be encouraged and strengthened in obeying thereby. Thus the saints of God walk with God in hope and obedience at this day, and they always did so from the beginning. They have hope in and with their obedience of that whereunto their obedience leads, which was purchased for them by Christ.
Q. Do not the Scriptures intimate that Christians may attain to perfection of virtue and godliness, and that it is the intention of Ood and Christ and his ministers to bring them to this pitch? Rehearse the texts to this effect.
A. Eph. i. 4, etc.