Creature now he designing Life for Life therefore he pitch'd upon blood wherein the life did lye The Apostle tells us Heb. 9.22 And almost all things are by the Law purged with blood and without shedding of blood is no remission and if you look into the Levitical Sacrifices you 'l find what he saith to be true In the Burnt-offering for private Persons there was killing and blood Levit. 1.5 the same in the Peace-offerings Levit. 3.2 8 13. the same in the Sin-offerings Levit. 4.7 16 17 18. and so in the rest And the observation of these commands which run so much upon blood was so necessary that should any of the Priests have dared to have entred into God's presence in any other way than by Sacrifices and the blood thereof he would not have taken it well at their hands yea should they have brought into the Temple never so many Bullocks Rams Goats c. and not have slain them or having slain them had not presented their blood before him according to his Institution they would have done no good either to themselves or others for God to shew his Justice Hatred of Sin c stood upon blood and blood he would have From all this we may infer that those old Sacrifices did not expiate as bare Antecedents or Conditions without which God would not pardon or as the offering of them carried in it some Obedience to God's Commands both of which were common to many other things as well as to them surely there was more in it than so Dr. Stillingfl against Crell p. 516 c. for can we reasonably think that God would have been so positive and so express in his Injunctions about somany Sacrifices so severe in the punishing the neglect of them have ordered the taking away the lives of so many Creatures and have so much insisted upon their death and blood in order to expiation had he look'd upon them only as pre-requisite and remoter Conditions of pardon or common acts of Obedience and that as such only they should be expiatory Certainly had there been nothing in them more than this the merciful Creator would have spar'd the blood of the poor Creatures and would have pitch'd upon some other course which might have seem'd at least more consistent with his Wisdom and Goodness We may conclude them therefore to be Means instituted by God in order to atonement and expiation to the effecting of which by virtue of his own institution and the mevit of the great Sacrifice to come they had a direct and effectual tendency This foundation I have laid for the better understanding of the destroying killing shedding of blood that was in the typical Sacrifices I come now to build upon it with respect to the real Sacrifice Christ Jesus In conformity to them therefore Christ was slain died upon the Cross his body broken his blood spilt c. all which speaks him to be a true expiatony Sacrifice Had he not died and suffer'd he could not have been such but upon that he is not only such a Sacrifice really but eminently the dignity of his Person putting a superlative worth and â—fficacy upon his Death and Sacrifice O what was the death of Greatures to the death of God's Son what was the blood of Beasts to the blood of him who was God Acts. 20.28 for such aâ—person to die to shed his blood for the expiation of Sin here was a Sacrifice indeed And surely one great end of God in ordering the death of the old Sacrifices was to convince the World of the necessity of the death of this far greater Sacrifice by them he designed in ways best known to himself to lead men to a dying and bleeding Christ How much doth the Scripture spake of his blood and though his whole humiliation must be taken in as making up his Sacrifice yet in special what a stress and emphasis doth it put upon his Death and Blood wherein his greatest humiliation lay with respect to their influence upon the good of Sinners Eph. 1.7 In whom we have redemption through his blood the forgiveness of sins Rom. 3.25 whom God hath set forth to be a propitiation through faith in his blood c. Rom. 5.9 Much more then being now justified by his blood we shall be saved from wrath through him 1. Joh. 1.7 and the blood of Jesus Christ his Son cleanseth us from all sin Rev. 1.5 Vnto him that loved us and washed us from our sins in his own blood 1 Pet. 1.19 but with the precious blood of Christ as of a Lamb without blemish and without spot Mat. 26.28 This is my blood of the New-Testament which is shed for many for the remission of sins Heb. 9.12 c. Neither by the blood of Goats and Calves but by his own Blood he entred in once into the holy place having obtained eternal redemption for us For if the blood of Bulls and of Goats c. Col. 1.14 having made peace through the blood of his Cross Surely there must be some special reason why this blood of Christ is so often mention'd and why the great benefits which Sinners receive by him are in such a way of eminency ascrib'd to it of which some account will be given in the following particular O the severity of God's Justice which nothing could satisfie but the blood of his own Son O the love of Christ who thought not the best blood in his veins too good for Sinners O the truth of his Satisfaction for what could such blood be spilt for but for that what end could be proportionable to such a medium but Satisfaction O the admirable harmony between type and antitype the shadow and the substance Sacrifice and Sacrifice under the Law 't was blood under the Gospel ' t was blood too only that was common blood but this excellent and precious The Fourth Head of the Ends Effects of the old expiatory Sacrifices and how they are applicable to Christ 4. Fourthly if we compare Christ with the Jewish Sacrifices in their Ends and Effects that will further demonstrate him to be a true expiatory Sacrifice What were they atonement and expiation by them God was to be atoned and Sin to be expiated now both of these were designed and admirably effected in and by Christ therefore he was what I am proving That those Sacrifices were of an atoning nature and appointed for that end what can be more plain Here the so often cited Text which indeed is the key to the whole body of the Levitical-Sacrifices doth recur Levit. 17.11 I have given it to you upon the Altar for what end to make an atonement for your Souls where the word used as in very many other places is Caphar which signifies to * This sense of the word justify'd by all Anti-Socinian Writers Franz Disp 15. th 38. Turretin de Satisf p. 208. Grot. de Sat. p. 39. Hoorneb Socin Confut. p. 607. Dr. Stillingfl p. 509. c. pacify
appease or assuage the anger of one that is incens'd so it s taken Gen. 32.20 I will saith Jacob concerning his brother Esau appease him with the present that goeth before me so 2 Sam. 21.3 it signifies also to †Psal 32.1 cover to ‖ Psal 49.7 8. redeem c. but this of atoning or pacifying is most usual Now in order to this atoning God appointed Sacrifices the shedding of whose blood was to make an atonement saith the Lord here and he goes over it again for it is the blood that maketh an atonement for the Soul All along in the several kinds of Sacrifices it runs it shall be accepted for him to make atonement for him the Priest shall make an atonement for them c. this alwayes comes in as the great end or effect of the Law-Sacrifices Whence they are said to be of a sweet savour unto the Lord not only because of their pleasingness to God but also because they made him propitious to and well-pleased with such as had offended him so Levit. 1.9 13 17. 'T is the same word but sometimes 't is rendred by reconciling as Levit. 6.30 No Sin-offering_ to reconcile withal in the holy place Levit. 8.15 to make reconciliation upon it We find when at any time in some particular judgments the anger of God did break forth either against the people or against particular persons presently they betook themselves to Sacrifices thereby to atone and propitiate him Numb 16.46 And Moses said unto Aaron take a Censer and put fire therein from off the Altar and put on incense and go quickly unto the Congregation and make an atonement for them for there is wrath gone out from the Lord the plague is begun 2 Sam. 24 25. And David built there an Altar unto the Lord and offered Burnt-offerings and Peace-offerings so the Lord was intreated for the Land and the plague was staid from Israel As to the other End or Effect viz. Expiation that also belong'd to Sacrifices they had a power or virtue in them to cleanse and purifie from Sins guilt to procure pardon and remission whence they were called Expiatory and had it not been for this effect they could not have passed under that denomination A full proof of it you have in that one Sacrifice the Heifer which was to be offered for the cleansing of the people when murder had been committed but the acter of it was conceal'd Deut. 21.7 8. And they shall answer and say Our hands have not shed this blood neither have our eyes seen it Be merciful O Lord unto thy people Israel and lay not innocent blood unto thy people of Israels charge and the blood shall be forgiven them So shalt thou put away the guilt of innocent blood from amongst you c. was not here expiation and wherein did that lie but in the putting away of the guilt of innocent blood and in the obtaining of pardon for 't is said and the blood shall be forgiven them This is that which is set forth by cleansing from sin Levit. 16.30 For on that day shall the Priest make an atonement for you to cleanse you that you may be clean from all your sin before the Lord Numb 3.5 for blood defileth the band and the land cannot be cleansed of the blood that is shed therein but by the blood of him that shed it The Apostle sets it forth by purifying of the flesh Heb. 9.13 by which he means the taking away of that ceremonial ritual or civil guilt which any did lie under And he puts it out of all doubt that expiation in the old Sacrifices did not point to the abolition of Sins power but to the ablation of Sins guilt for having said that * Heb. 9.22 almost all things are by the Law purged with blood he tells you what he meant by that purging adding without shedding of blood is no remission or expiation of sins guilt and this is the notion which alwayes he drives at in that Epistle in those several words which he there uses viz. sanctifying purifying purging c. Indeed this was the * Vide Essen Tri. Crucis l. 1. sect 4. c. 8. p. 6. chief and most proper effect of Sacrifices other things might be done by them but this was the main therefore it so often comes in upon this account And the Priest shall make an atonement for them and it shall be forgiven them Levit. 4.20 so Vers 26. 31 35. * Causa cur noluerit Deus alteri Sacrificari quam sibi ea potissimum videtur quod Sacrificia imprimis fierent ad expiandâ peccata solus verò Deus jus habeat ea condonandi Vossius de Idol l. 1. p. 977. And this might be one Reason why God prohibited the offering of Sacrifices to any but to himself because the end of them being the forgiveness of sin and none being able to reach that end but himself therefore none should be sacrific'd unto but himself Four things laid down concerning Atonement and Expiation by Sacrifices For the better understanding of this double Effect of the Law-Sacrifices I desire four things may be considered 1. That the atonement and expiation effected by those Sacrifices must be conceived of as done by them in that notion which was proper to them as Sacrifices None can deny but that they did atone and expiate but how did they so do there 's the question I answer this was done by them as they were substituted in the place of Offenders and were slain in their stead and for their sake other accounts I know by some are given of this but that now set down is the true as appears by what hath been already spoken under the two foregoing Heads 2. That this atoning and expiating virtue was not limited only to the Sacrifices us'd at the anniversary great Expiation but it belong'd to the other Sacrifices For instance to Burnt-offerings I take in those that were made use of before the giving of the Law about Sacrifices see Job 1.5 42.8 after the giving of the Law to Free-will-offerings Levit. 1.3 4 c. to the Meat-offering and Drink-offering Levit. 2. per tot Levit. 23.13 Numb 15.7 10 13 14. to the Peace-offering Levit. 3.15 16. to the Sin-offering and Trespass-offering Levit. 4.6 to the Ram which was therefore call'd the Ram of atonement Numb 5.8 there 's no end of such instances 3. That yet the atonement and expiation proper to those Sacrifices is to be limited according to the bounds which God himself was pleas'd to set for 't was but in such cases and for such sins wherein he did admit of them in order to these effects of which more by and by 4. That these effects were not produc'd by any inherent or innate virtue in the Sacrifices themselves but only as they were instituted by God and as they derived efficacy from the Sacrifice to come Christ himself Take away these two things and what could these Sacrifices have done
place our whole confidence in Christ's meritorious death for if we rely partly upon that and partly upon something else we spoyl all Gospel-Conditions to be per formed on the Sinners part notwithstanding Christ's Sacrifice 5. Fifthly you must so confide and relie upon Christ's one most perfect and all-sufficient Sacrifice as yet withal to be careful that you on your part do perform those Gospel-conditions which God enjoyns and requires of you in order to remission justification glorification this word of advice is so necessary that 't is by no means to be passed over Christians 't is a thing of very high importance for you rightly to understand your selves in this matter therefore take it thus All your trust and relyance is solely to be bottomed upon the Death and Sacrifice of the Lord Jesus but yet you canâ—ot regularly and warrantably act this trust and relyance upon this â—nly ground or foundation unless in your own persons you perform those conditions which God prescribes in his Word The whole business of merit and satisfaction lies upon Christ that is wholly out of your hands and only in his but as to believing and repenting the two grand Gospel-conditions they lie upon your selves I speak with respect to the act not to the power and must be done by your selves yea and the doing of these is as necessary on your part under the notion of Conditions as suffering and dying was on Christ's part under the notion of merit And 't is most certain that the latter without the former will not profit you because Christ never design'd to impute or make over his merit to any further than as they should make good these Conditions of Faith and Repentance We have here two dangerous rocks before us and it must be our care and skill to shun both of them the one is the setting of inherent grace or duty too high as when we make it to share with Christ in merit and trust the other is the setting of inherent grace or duty too low as when upon the pretence of Christ's alone merit and full satisfaction we quite throw it off and are altogether careless about it as supposing it now to be a thing wholly unnecessary Now we are exceedingly prone to dash upon the one or the other of these rocks either we run our selves upon POPERY in the former or upon ANTINOMISM and LIBERTINISM in the latter O what need have all to beg the guidance of the unerring Spirit that thereby they may eavenly steere betwixt both and avoid each extreams which they shall most happily do if Christ and his Sacrifice be only eyed by them in the way of relyance and yet Holiness Obedience Faith Repentance have also that respect which is due to them as means and conditions Much hath been said concerning the perfection and sufficiency of Christ's Sacrifice that he hath thereby put away all sin fully expiated its guilt perfected for ever them that are sanctified c. shall any now from hence infer that all is done by Christ that the Creature hath nothing to do but only to receive the benefits prepared and purchased God forbid True Christ's Sacrifice was perfect in suo genere but not in omni genere 't was perfect as to what was meritorious and satisfactory so as to exclude all other Sacrifices and supplements whatsoever upon that account but not so as to exclude all Conditions which God will have the Creature to perform which though they can add nothing to the perfecting of the believers great Sacrifice yet they do prepare and fit Sinners for the participation of the benefits merited thereby To instance in all these Conditions or to enlarge upon any one of them would be a long work briefly therefore as ever you desire to be the better for a dying Saviour to share in the great and blessed effects of his Sacrifice look to it that you repent and believe O if you be found at last in the number of the impenitent and unbelieving all that Christ hath done or suffered will be a very nothing to you notwithstanding all that you will eternally perish Here is indeed an expiatory Sacrifice I but yet as to you no repentance no expiation here is Sin condemned by Christ's oblation of himself I but yet if the Sinner doth not penitentially condemn â—n in himself and himself for sin for all this hee 'l be judicially condemned at the great day The Scripture every where makes repentance the way to and condition of remission of sin Acts 2.38 Repent and be baptized every one of you in the name of Jesus Christ for the remission of sins Acts 5.31 Him hath God exalted with his right hand to be a Prince and a Saviour for to give repentance to Israel and forgiveness of sins with very many other places to this purpose The Apostle having said 1 Joh. 1.7 The blood of Jesus Christ his Son cleanseth us from all sin presently subjoyns Vers 9. If we confess our sins he is faithful and just to forgive us our sins and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness great is the efficacy of Christ's blood but 't is upon condition of the Sinners Repentance if we confess our sins c. At the JEWISH anniversary Expiation all the sins of the people were by the Sacrifices done away yet God would have them then to afflict their Souls Levit. 16.29 and the High Priest was in their stead to confess their iniquities and all their transgressions in all their sins Vers 21. we under the Gospel have our great expiation by the death of Christ but this also must be attended with penitential abasement and humilation So likewise as to Faith this too is a grace or condition indispensably necessary to the partaking of the benefits of Christ's propitiatory Sacrifice Therefore the Apostle speaking of propitiation brings in our Faith as well as Christ's blood it having an instrumental as well as that a meritorious influence thereupon Rom. 3.25 Whom God hath set forth to be a propitiation through faith in his blood c. To the blessings of the new Covenant as the blood of Christ was necessary that thereby there might be * Grotius de Sat. p. 141. impetration so Faith also is necessary that thereby there may be application Our Lord's Sacrifice is every way sufficient for atonement yet he that believeth not the wrath of God abideth on him Joh. 3.36 so also 't is sufficient for expiation yet 't is only whosoever believeth on him shall receive remission of sins Acts 10.43 Under the Law the blood of the Sacrifice was to be so and so * Exod. 12.22 Heb. 9.19 sprinkled with a bunch of hyssope to which custom David alludes Psal 51.7 Purge me with hyssop and I shall be clean now answerably to this Paul speaks of the blood of sprinkling Heb. 12.24 't was not enough for Christ only to shed his blood but that must be sprinkled upon the Sinner how why by Faith which under
shall it be condemn'd and you too shall Christ suffer the penalty due to it and you too O no! as God was just to punish it once so he is gracious and just too not to punish it twice What this condemning of sin is you have heard if you follow the word the comfort lies thus a condemnatory Sentence is by God upon Christ's account pass'd upon it he hath adjudg'd it to die for all the mischiefes done by it both against himself and against you too this cursed Tyrant this heinous Malefactor is under a sentence to be cut off that it may no longer either dishonour God or hurt you and should not you rejoyce in this who fears a condemn'd person what do the accusations of a condemn'd man signifie sin is a condemned thing fear it not If you leave the Word and come to the main import of it then the comfort lies thus the guilt of all your sins is fully done away and expiated by Christ's Sacrifice this Lamb of God as offered hath taken it all away his blood hath cleansed you from all sin your Scape-goat hath carried all your iniquities into the land of forgetfulness Oh your guilt was charg'd upon Christ and it shall not be charg'd upon you too you are to mourn over it but yet know he hath fully satisfied for it what would you have more You have in the former Verse the power of sin abolish'd by the Law of the Spirit in this the guilt of sin abolished by the Sacrifice of Christ O how compleat is your redemption the plaister is every way as large as the sore What holy triumphs may you now make over all which may seem to endanger you Rom. 8.34 Who is he that condemneth it is Christ that * Mortuum Caesarem quis metuat sed morte Christi quid efficacius Cyprian de dupl Martyrio died c. 4. Observe 't is Sin that was condemn'd The Apostle speaks of it in the lump and mass and so he saith 't is expiated Our Lord's Sacrifice did not take off the guilt of this or that particular sin but of all sin his expiation was totall and universal Under the Law-Sacrifices the blood was to be sprinkled * Levit. 16.19 seven times thereby to prefigure the thoroughness and perfection of the expiation of sin by Christ's Sacrifice 5. This is brought in as God's act God sent his own Son and for sin condemned sin He that was the persona laesa the injur'd person the just Judge against whom sin was committed and who therefore was to punish it he who is the supream and authoritative Agent in and about the great concerns of Souls he appointed Christ to be a Sacrifice owned and accepted his sacrifice and upon that acquits Sinners from all guilt Oh there 's much in this to encourage the drooping Christian Rom. 8.33 Who shall lay any thing to the charge of God's Elect it is God that justifieth The Father cannot but be well-pleased with Christ's propitiatory Sacrifice since this was of himself Rom. 3.25 Whom God hath set forth to be a propitiation c. 6. This was done too in Christ's Flesh which also hath great sweetness in it 'T is added saith * Deodat inloc One for our further assurance to the end that we may not doubt of the forgiveness of our sins which are destroy'd in our proper Nature which the Son of God took upon him Had Christ done and suffered what he did in the Nature of Angels we might have question'd whether any good would thereby have accrued to us but all being done in * Addit Paulus in came quo certior sit nostra fiducia dum videmus peccatum in ipsâ Naturâ nostrâ fuisse devictum abolitum sic enim sequitur naturam nostram vere fieri participem ejus victoriae Calvin our Nature surely he did it for us and we shall reap the benefit thereof 7. To all this let me add one thing further and 't is a great one namely That by this Sacrifice of Christ you have not only the bare condemnation or expiation of sin but with that you also have a right and title unto and collation of all Gospel-blessings and priviledges whatsoever Was it only the taking off of guilt and the appeasing of divine wrath that would be very much but over and beyond these there is Christ's active fulfilling the Law being taken in a positive righteousness made over to you an interest in God's fatherly love the purchase of Heaven and in this sense we are for a redundancy of Christ's merit The benefits of Christ's Sacrifice to Believers are not only those which are privative such wherein they are freed from all evil but there are also those which are positive such wherein they are intitled to and instated in the possession of all good yea even of the heavenly blessedness it self Heb. 5.9 And being made perfect he became the Author of eternal salvation unto all them that obey him Heb. 9.12 having obtained eternal redemption for us it comes in as the effect of Christ's blood and Sacrifice In his great undertaking to redeem and save Sinners we may suppose him to have two things in his eye the one was that he should have a people in the world the other was that through him this people should partake of all blessings requisite to their happiness now both of these were effected and secured by his Sacrifice As to the first that was made sure by this according to that promise or prediction Isa 53.10 11. When thou shalt make his soul an offering for sin he shall see his seed c. He shall see of the travel of his soul and shall be satisfied in relyance upon which he himself said And I if I be lifted up from the earth will draw all men unto me Joh. 12.32 and that upon his death and Sacrifice he had a people and a numerous people too the Evangelical History doth abundantly testifie Then as to the second that also was promoted and secured by his Sacrifice inasmuch as thereby the Covenant of Grace the summary of all blessings was ratify'd and confirmed 'T was an * Et caesâ jungebant foedera portâ Virgil. See Mr. Medo on Mal. 1.11 ancient custom used amongst men at the sanction and ratification of their Covenants to make use of Sacrifices as we find Gen. 21.22 23 24 c. Jer. 34.18 Exod. 34.7 8. in allusion to which custom 't is said Psal 50.5 Gather my Saints together unto me those that have made a Covenant with me by Sacrifice Answerably now to this Christ by his Sacrifice confirm'd and ratify'd the Covenant of Grace 'twixt God and Believers wherefore he said This cup is the new Testament in my blood i.e. the seal and ratification of the new-Covenant Matth. 26.28 1 Cor. 11.25 and the Apostle doth in special insist upon this in Heb. 9.15 16 c. Well then by Christ's Sacrifice the blood of the Covenant as
God dreads it for the Hell that is in it me thinks all should dread it for the Hell that is procured by it Now therefore what 's your Course every mans Sentence shall be according to his Course where 't is an holy course it shall be the Sentence of Life where 't is the opposite course it shall be the Sentence of Death Bring it down to your selves do not you live in sin may be you are not Drunkards Swearers c. but is there not some other some secret way of wickedness in which you walk some bosom Lust hid and cherished do you endeavour after Vniversal Holiness these things must be enquired into for the No-Condemnation depends upon them Mistake me not I do not say if No Sin then No Condemnation as if to be Sinless was the condition of or way to the future blessedness God forbid I should go so high for then I should condemn every man in the World but this I say no allowed sin no reigning sin no presumptuous sin no course in sin and then 't is No-Condemnation That God who is just to punish for known and presumptuous sins is gracious also to pardon sins of infirmity So that upon the whole as ever you desire to see the Face of God with comfort to lift up your heads before your Judge at the Great day with joy to be freed from the Sentence of Condemnation I say as ever you desire these blessed things be holy live a godly life keep sin at a great distance do not allow your selves in it but rather condemn it that it may not condemn you If any think that the present good of sin preponderates the future evil of Condemnation or that they may live in sin and yet relye upon Gods mercy as if he would not condemn them for it I heartily beg of God that he will convince them of these soul-destroying mistakes that they may not persist in them till Condemnation it self will be a sad confutation to them Secondly 2. Dir. Condemn your selves and God will not condemn you Self-condemnation prevents Gods Condemnation There is a Self-condemnation which is judicial and penal which pains and torments but yet doth no good such was that of Cain and Judas O there is in some that condemnation from their own Consciences which is but a Prolepsis to the condemnation of God at the great day But then there is gracious and penitential self-condemnation such as that of David upon his numbring of the people and also upon his commission of other sins now this is that which I would urge upon you Where the Sinner upon the sense of the hainousness of sin condemns himself God will not condemn him too * 1 Cor. 11.31 If we would judge our selves we should not be judged of the Lord and so here as to Condemnation The penitent self judger is safe the * Luk. 18.14 self condemning Publican went away justified when the Sinner justifies God condemns but when he condemns then God justifies This signifies but little in the Courts of Men let the criminal person repent and judge himself never so much that 's nothing for all this the Law must be executed upon him but this always carries it in the Court of God O saith God there 's a Sinner but he is a penitent Sinner he hath sinned but he is angry with himself for it he arraigns and condemns himself for it well upon this I 'le acquit him he condemns below and therefore I 'le absolve above Thirdly 3 Dir. As you desire No-Condemnation speedily get your peace made with God through Christ Jesus A pacified God is never a condemning God First our Apostle saith * Rom. 5.1 Being justified by faith we have peace with God and then he infers There is now no Condemnation c. Your first work is to look after the atoning of God through the blood of Christ if it be not reconciliation it will be Condemnation Are God and you reconcil'd is your peace made with him you have a reprieve for some time but have you sued out your pardon is the breach which sin hath made healed and made up betwixt God and you O as Christ speaks * Math. 5.25 26. Agree with thine adversary quickly whilst thou art in the way with him lest at any time thy adversary deliver thee to the Judge c. this is a thing which admits of no procrastination Fourthly 4 Dir. Pray that it may be to you exemption from Condemnation You would have Others your Selves delivered from it but are you often with God and earnest with God about this matter Of all evils deprecate this as the greatest evil tell God you are willing he should do any thing with you burn cut lance modò in aeternum parcat if he will but save you from eternal misery This is the thing you should every day with the greatest ardency be begging of God Ah Lord do with us what thou pleasest but for thy mercy sake do not condemn us You are to pray daily that you may not * Luk. 22.40 enter into temptation surely much more that you may not enter into condemnation O be often upon your knees pleading with God and saying Lord Psal 30.9 what profit will there be in our blood why should such souls be lost forever what will follow upon our Condemnation but cursing and blaspheming of thy sacred name whereas if thou wilt pardon and save we shall bless adore and magnifie thy name forever If God give you an heart thus to pray for this mercy the mercy of mercies 't is to be hop'd he will not with-hold if from your 'T is good to pray now whilst prayer will do you good when the Sentence is once pass'd it will then do you no good at all Is it not much to be lamented that there are so few who go to God to plead with him about the everlasting concerns of their immortal souls many go from day to day from week to week nay from year to year without prayer let it be Salvation or Damnation 't is all one to them O this dreadful How seldom are the most of men at the throne of Grace beseeching the Lord for Christ Jesus his sake to deliver them from wrath will be very sad the end of the prayerless cannot be good Nay I have too just occasion to go higher there is a sort of persons amongst us who instead of humble serious calling upon God to free them from condemnation in their hellish imprecations they dare to call God to damn them O prodigious amazing astonishing profaneness I tremble to speak of it but O that it was not too common in our ears What do men defie God and even bid him do his worst is damnation a thing to be desired or wished for do they know what they say what if God should take them at their word and do that in his greatest wrath which they seem to wish for with the greatest
it doth 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 c. bridle and command the affections and put forth its power over sensual pleasures This is certain the Spirit of God doth authoritatively lead and govern the Children of God in their course and by virtue of that constant regency which it keeps up in and over them Sins power is kept down here also is the Law of the Spirit freeing from the Law of Sin VSE 1. It informs as of the greatness and glory of the Spirit I have done with the Doctrinal part let me make some short Application Where first we see what a great and glorious person the Spirit of God is he 's the Spirit of Life by a mighty power he delivers from the Law of Sin the corrupt nature with all its strength and advantages cannot stand before him that which to the Creature is invincible he overcomes with ease ô he that doth such great things must needs be a great Spirit the excellency of the effect proves the excellency of the agent Some from this very passage fetch an Argument to prove the Godhead of the Holy Ghost (a) 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 c. Cyril Alexandr in Thesaur Assert 34. p. 235. t. 5. Cyril from his being the Spirit of Life (b) 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 c. 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 Chrys de Spir. Sanct. p. 206. Chrysostome from his making free from the Law of Sin Hast thou not saith he heard Paul saying the Law of the Spirit c. doth the Spirit make slaves free it not having liberty in its own nature if it be created and in subjection it self it cannot make others free The Argument may be thus drawn up He that in the way of primary efficiency is the Spirit of Life to quicken the dead Soul and the Spirit of Liberty to free the enslaved Soul he is God but the Holy Spirit of God in this way is and doth all this ergo I put in these words in the way of primary efficiency because other things as means or instruments by a derived and subordinate power may have some influence upon these things and yet not be God but whoever doth produce them by an immediate primary underived power as the Spirit doth certainly he is more than a bare Creature he is truly God To make free from the Law of Sin is work for a God and for a God only for to this infinite knowledge is requisite in order to the finding out of all the secret recesses and close workings of Sin and also infinite power for none below that is fit to grapple with so great a power as that of Sin so long as 't is finite against finite the match is but equal and so there would be no victory if therefore the Spirit carries through such a work as this it speaks him to be infinite in his knowledge and in his power and consequently to be God But this I do but touch upon here hereafter if the Lord give leave I shall have occasion to speak more fully to it VSE 2. The true Cause of the Sinners being made free from the Law of Sin 2. Secondly we have here the assignation of the true and only Cause of freedome from Sins bondage Mistakes about this are very dangerous and yet nothing more common than for men to run themselves upon such mistakes The Apostle here speaking of his being made free from the Law of Sin what doth he fix upon as the proper Cause thereof doth he resolve it into the power of Nature alas that 's a thing so feeble and weak that corrupt Nature despises it not fearing that that will ever do any great thing against it Doth he resolve it into his own * Neque liberum arbitrium quicquam nisi ad peccandum valet si careat veritatis viâ August de Sp. Lit. c. 3. liberum arbitrium captivatum non nisi ad peccatum valet Aug. adversus duâ—s Pelag Ep. l. 3. c. 3. Free-will no that he understood little of I challenge the whole world to give me one instance of a Sinner that was ever by the power election and determination of his own Will made free from the reign of Sin The Will as now constituted is so corrupted that 't is rather for the continuance than for the shaking off of Sins dominion ô 't is loath to be delivered even by a foreign power it likes its bondage so well One of the greatest things that the converting Spirit when it so works hath to do is to bow and incline the Sinners Will so as to make it willing to accept of deliverance from Sins yoke and he 's never brought to this till the day of Gods power dawn upon him Psal 110.3 Thy people shall be willing in the day of thy power The Evangelist setting down the proper Causes of Regeneration first removes the false ones among which mans Will is one and then assigns the true one Joh. 1.13 Which we born not of blood nor of the will of the flesh nor of the will of man but of God the same holds true of that which is a Consequent upon regeneration viz. being made free from the Law of Sin How can he that is a captive himself deliver others out of their captivity how can that bring down Sins power which is it self most under that power This was not the thing in Pauls eye when he was giving an account of his happy state 't was * De corpore mortis hujus non liberum hominis arbitrium neque Legis Sanctum jusiumque mandatum sed sola nos liberat gratia Dei per Jesum Christum Lex euim Spiritus vitae c. Fulg. de Incarn Grat. c. 16. Free-grace and not Free-will that he magnified Again doth he resolve it into any thing out of himself as the Word Ordinances the means of Grace c. no! 't is very true that these God having set his divine stamp upon them he also being pleas'd to accompany them with his own presence and blessing may be productive of high and great things yet as consider'd in themselves they are but means or instruments and therefore do not operate from any natural or instruments and therefore do not operate from any natural or inherent virtue but onely as they are us'd by the first Cause and as the Spirit of Life puts energy and power into them * 2 Cor. 10.4 Our weapons saith the Apostle are not carnal but spiritual and mighty through God to the pulling down of strong holds c. the same may be said of all Gospel-institutions O how many live under the most effectual means the Ordinances of God in the most lively and powerful administration thereof and yet Sin stands its ground and keeps up its full power in and over them 'T is not Goliah's Sword that makes execution upon the Enemy unless it be wielded with Goliah's arm the Word is the * Eph. 6.17 sword of the Spirit which
as the One is to be filled up so is the Other also The Preposition 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 signifying of or for accordingly 't is rendred both wayes Some reading it of Sin as the Old Version Anselme the Greek Interpreters generally c. they making the Words to run thus Of Sin God condemned Sin Parallel to which 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 is elsewhere so rendred as Joh. 8.46 Which of you convinceth me of sin Joh. 16.8 9. He will convince the world of sin c. Of sin because they believe not on me in all 't is 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 just as it is in the Text They who follow this Reading make the sense of the Words to be this God sending his own Son in the likeness of sinful flesh in that flesh of his Son as suffering and dying he condemned sin of sin in as much as by that strange and wonderfull course he made it to appear to the world that sin was full of sin highly guilty and criminal * Rom. 7.13 exceeding sinful as the Apostle speaks upon another account Now though I shall not follow this Exposition yet it containing nothing in at but what is true for the matter of it and it being given by some Authors of great repute I will so far insist upon it as to give a double illustration of it 1. As 't is applicable to Sin in the general Take the whole body of Sin or Sin in its utmost extent 't was all condemn'd of sin in Christ's flesh as first assum'd and then crucify'd how why by that it was prov'd and judg'd to be a thing out of measure evil and faulty thereby God let the world see what sin is what an excess of poyson and malignity there is in its nature Did he send his own Son to be incarnate yea to appear in the likeness of sinful Flesh so to be abased suffer and die and was Sin the meritorious Cause of all this was all this done and suffered for the making of satisfaction for the mischiefs and injuries which Sin had been guilty of O what a condemnation was here of Sin Never was there such a demonstration of Sins Evil what an heinous and capital Offender it is as in Christ's being made Man and dying upon the Cross the strangeness of the remedy shows the malignity of the disease the high terms of satisfaction the greatness of the crime God's severity laid upon the Flesh of his own Son in such unparallell'd sufferings made it apparent to the world that sin is a quite other thing than what men generally take it to be had it not been evil desperately evil God had never dealt with Christ as he did therefore in his flesh sin was condemned of sin 2. This may more particularly be apply'd to that sin of killing and murdering the Lord Jesus God did not only condemn sin of sin in the gross but in special that sin which was committed against and upon the Flesh of Christ in the crucifixion of him here 't was the Sin of Sin here Sin was sinful indeed That it should so boldly so injuriously so wickedly fasten upon a Person so near and dear to God so inoffensive and innocent so holy and gracious what an aggregation of Sins and what an aggravation of Sins guilt was there in this Sin never was more sin than in this act here 't was in its highest stature and fullest dimensions this was its master-piece the vilest thing that ever it did all its other crimes were but dwarfish things in comparison of this gigantick and over-grown crime Well! according to its acting and carriage herein so God judg'd it to be very guilty and sinful and accordingly pass'd Sentence upon it And as to those that had an hand in this horrid fact whether Satan to whom some (a) Damnavit peccatum i. e. Satanam de peccato quòd nempe Christum innocentem in Cruce interfeciset Ambros So also Hilarius in Psal 67. apply the Words or the Jews O 't was in all sin full of sin their offence was superlatively great in doing what they did to the flesh of God's own Son Sin in this act did rise exceeding high Now the (b) Vide Chrysost in loc very largely insisting upon this Greek Expositors are very large upon this notion of sin God condemned sin c. that is say they God judged the sin of the Jews according to what it was in its own nature to be very (c) c. 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 Oecum great it or rather they were guilty of a most unparallell'd offence (d) 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 Theodoret. high injustice prodigious cruelty inexpressible ingratitude strange impudency upon their crucifying of the Holy Jesus the Lord of Glory And in the pursuance of this Explication these Expositors bring in Sin as a Person as a person arraign'd by God for this particular crime after tryal and process sentenc'd to be highly guilty and accordingly to be dealt with And they also insist upon God's way and method in his dealing with Sin which was not in the way of Power but of Justice he did not down-right subdue it by plain force but he condemn'd it after the hearing of that plea it could make for it self as also upon God's order (e) 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 Chrysost first he condemn'd it and then he punish'd it This Interpretation some (f) Haec Chrysostomi Expositio convenientissima inter omnes accommodatissima videtur Tolet. Haec Graecorum Expositio ita placet ut eam caeteris anteponâ—ndam cum Toleto censeam Estius Vid. Alap Catharin c. latter Writers do fall in with and much applaud Bneer himself at first was taken with it but aftâ—wards he altered his thoughts (g) Haec Expositio nihil aliud est quam subtilis argutia Beza Beza passes a severe censure upon it The truth is the Apostle in the Words seems to look at another thing this was not the condemnation of Sin which he had mainly in his eye viz. the heightening or aggravating or proving of its guilt and then passing sentence upon it according to that no but there was another condemnation which he drove at viz. the abolition and expiation of its guilt God so condemned sin as that it might never condemn the Sinner that 's the Apostles proper and principal scope as I humbly conceive (h) In loco prius citato Austine though he reades it too de peccato condemnavit c. yet he opens it in a different sense he making this of sin to be as much as by sin and so he thus glosses upon it By the sin of the Jews in their putting of Christ to death God abolished and took out of the way all the sin of all the Elect he so over-ruled the matter that even by sin sin was destroy'd by the greatest sin that ever was committed sin it self was condemned had not the blood of Christ been spilt though that in
which some understand that of David Psal 51.16 Thou desirest not Sacrifice else would I give it c. so the Adulterer Levit. 20.10 the Idolater and so in several other cases Here now was a limitation set by God himself and therefore here could be no expiation in the external and ordinary way indeed upon repentance there might be the doing away of the moral guilt which made the offender lyable to God and to eternal death but as to political guilt which made the offender lyable to temporal death that if publick and known could not by Sacrifices be taken off when therefore you hear so much spoken of the virtue and efficacy of the old Sacrifices as expiatory you must alwayes understand it according to this stating of it 3. Those Sacrifices may be considered absolutely or relatively Absolutely and in themselves and so their expiation reached only to some sins and to the removal of some guilt viz. that which was ritual and ceremonial Relatively with respect to Christ who was typified by them and so by virtue of his great Sacrifice to come which they prefigur'd to persons duly qualified their expiation was general of all sins and of all guilt I mean of all moral guilt before God though not of all political guilt before Men But though there be this difficuly as to the type as to the antitype there 's none by Christ's offering up of himself to be sure all sins are expiated even the greatest are wash'd away by his blood none can stand before his infinite merit and satisfaction former Sacrifices were weak but Christ the grand Sacrifice he is strong * Heb. 7.25 able to save to the utmost all that come to God through him He is not only a Sin-offering to remove the guilt of lesser sins but a Trespass-offering to remove the guilt of the greatest sins therefore as he is set forth by the former in the Text so by the latter in Isa 53.10 Where final impenitency and unbelief do not hinder the death of Christ is sufficient to acquit from all guilt by it all who perform the Gospel-conditions have a full and universal discharge Application I have now gone through the several things necessary to be spoken unto for the explaining and confirming of the Point the Vse follows Vse 1. Of Information Was Christ a Sacrifice for sin and did he thereby condemn sin I shall from hence infer something 1. by way of Information 2. of Exhortation 3. of Consolation 1. Of the truth of Christ's Satisfaction First for Information and so this great Truth may be useful in the informing of our judgements in sundry particulars As 1. We learn from it the truth of Christ's satisfaction Here amongst many others is a very considerable Argument to prove that Christ did really satisfie Gods Justice for Mans sin which therefore all who write upon and for the verity of his Satisfaction do in special insist upon with great evidence and advantage to the Cause which they defend And indeed it carry's such light and conviction in it as that the grand Opposer of this Satisfaction was more troubled to get off from it than from any other Argument whatsoever for when he came to answer COVETVS arguing for it from the legal Sacrifices as prefiguring Christ he was forc'd to say c * Socin de Servat p. 2. c. 9. in quo major vis esse videtur in which head of Testimonies there seems to be greater strength than in any of the former And the annual great Expiation being urg'd as to that he saith ‖ Ibid. c. 12. difficilis sanè nodus solvendus restat one hard knot remains to be untyed 't was an hard knot indeed which he might endeavour to loose but could not The word Satisfaction 't is very true we have not 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 expressly * De Servat p. 3. c. 6. Ego quidem etiamsi non semel sed saepe id in sacris monumentis Scriptum extaret non idcirco tamen ita rem prorsus se habere crederem ut vos opinamini in so many letters and syllables in the whole Bible but the thing we have yea as to that the Scripture is so copious and full that 't is not in any one other thing more copious and full But suppose we had there the Word as well as the Thing what would that signifie to those with whom I have now to do when SOCINVS is so bold as to say For my part although I should find that meaning Christ's Satisfaction asserted in Scripture not once but often yet I should not therefore believe the thing to be as Dissenters do hold wherein he comes but little short of what his friend SMALCIUS dared to speak concerning the Incarnation of the Son of God of which you had an account before 'T is not for me here to launch out into that vast Controversie of Christ's satisfaction in the opening stating proving defending of which so many Volumes have been written I must confine my self to that one thing which lies before me And there 's enough in it to stablish you in the belief of what we contend for for was Christ truly and properly a Sacrifice for sin were our sins the meritorious cause of his sufferings did he put himself into the Sinners stead taking his guilt upon him and undergoing that punishment which he should have undergone did he die shed his blood that he might thereby atone God and expiate sin all of which have been proved out of the unerring Word and doth not all this amount to a demonstration of the truth of Christ's satisfying the Justice of God for Sin do we mean any thing by his Satisfaction but these things and are not they clear enough from Scripture-light The truth is all the other Arguments brought for the proof of Christ's Satisfaction I say all of them do either run into or fall under this one of his being a Sacrifice for sin If God would pardon sin be appeased towards the Creature c. absolutely and without the intervention of any Satisfaction why did he appoint Sacrifices under the Law why must so many Creatures die why must so much blood be spilt quorsum perditio haec he whose * Psal 145.9 tender mercies are over all his works who hath pity and goodness for all that he hath made would he unnecessarily or meerly to shew his absolute dominion have ordered so many Creatures to be killed slaughtered destroyed from day to day why did he so peremptorily stand upon this that †Heb. 9.22 without shedding of blood there should be no remission But I go higher if God had not required satisfaction why must * Si non fuisset peccatum non necesse fuerat Filium Dei agnum fieri necâ—opus fuerat â—um in carne positum jugulari sed mansisset hoc quod erat in principio Deus Verbum Verum quoniam introiit pecatum in mundum peccati autem