“Yet I believe he may not know it till long after.” This also I utterly deny.
26. _Of the_ Conditions _of justification_.
“I believe, that Christ _formed in us_ ought to be _insisted on, as necessary to our justification_.”
I no more believe this than _Christian David_ does, whose words concerning it are these:
“It pleased God to shew me, that Christ _in us_, and Christ _for us_, ought to be both insisted on:”
But I clearly saw _we ought not to insist on_ any thing _we feel_, any more than any thing _we do_, as if it were _necessary_ previous to _our justification_.
“And before a man can expect to be justified, he should be humble and penitent, and have a broken and contrite heart, that is, should have Christ _formed in him_.” No; that is quite another thing. I believe every man is _penitent_, before he is _justified_; he _repents_, before he _believes_ the gospel. But it is never _before_, he is justified, that Christ is _formed in him_.
“And that this penitence and contrition is the work of the Holy Ghost.”
“Yet I believe that all this is nothing towards, and has no influence on our justification.”
_Christian David_’s words are, “Observe, this is not the foundation. It is not this by which (for the sake of which) you are justified. This is not the righteousness, this is no part of the righteousness, by which you are reconciled to God, You grieve for ♦your sins. You are deeply humbled. Your heart is broken. Well: but _all this is nothing to your justification_.” (The words immediately following fix the sense of this otherwise exceptionable sentence) “The remission of your sins _is not owing to this cause_, either in whole or in part. Your humiliation _has no influence on that_.” Not _as a cause_; so the very last words explain it.
♦ “you” replaced with “your”
“Again, I believe that in order to obtain justification, I must go strait to Christ, with all my ungodliness, and plead _nothing else_.”
“Yet I believe we should not insist upon any thing we _do_ or _feel_, as if it were necessarily previous to justification.” No, nor on any thing _else_. So the whole tenor of _Christian David_’s words implies.
_Of the_ Effects _of justification_.
27. “I believe a man may have a strong assurance he is justified, and not be able to affirm he is a child of God.”
_Feder_’s words are these: “I found my heart at rest, _in good hope that my sins were forgiven_; of which I had a _strong assurance_ six weeks after.” (True, _comparatively stronger_, though still mixt with doubt and fear.) “But I dare not affirm, I am a child of God.” I see no inconsistency in all this. Many such instances I know at this day. I myself was one, for some time.
“A man may be fully assured, that his sins are forgiven, yet may not be able to tell the day, when he received this full assurance; because it grew up in him by degrees.” (Of this also I know a few other instances) “But from the time this full assurance _was confirmed in him_, he never lost it.” Very true, and I think, consistent.
_Neuser_’s own words are, “In him I found true rest to my soul, being fully assured, that all my sins were forgiven. Yet I cannot tell the hour or day, when I first received that full assurance. For it was not given me at first, neither at once;” (not in its fulness) “but grew up in me by degrees. And _from the time it was confirmed in me_, I have never lost it, having never since doubted, no, not for a moment.”
“A man may have a weak faith, at the same time that he has peace with God, and no unholy desires.”
A man may be justified, who has not a clear heart.
28. (11) Not in the full sense of the word. This I do verily believe is _sound_ divinity, agreeable both to scripture and experience. And I believe it is consistent with itself. As to the “hundred other absurdities which _might be_ fully and fairly made out,” it will be time enough to consider them, when they are produced.
29. (12, 13.) But whether I have succeeded in attempting to ♦reconcile these things or no, I verily think Mr. _Tucker_ has. I desire not a more consistent account of my principles, than he has himself given in the following words:
♦ “econcile” replaced with “reconcile”
“Our spiritual state should be considered distinctly under each of these views.”
1. “Before _justification_; in which state we may be said to be _unable_ to do any thing _acceptable_ to God: because then we can _do nothing but come to_ Christ. Which ought not to be considered _as doing_ any thing, but as _supplicating_ (or waiting) to receive a _power of doing_ for the time to come.”
“For the preventing grace of God, which is common to all, is sufficient to _bring_ us to Christ, though it is not sufficient to carry us any _further_, ’till we are justified.”