Truth that is after godliness EDVV. HIDE Junior CHAP. I. Some sweet Discoveries of CHRIST in us out of Rom. 10. 6 7 8 9 10 Vers 6. But the righteousness which is of faith speaketh on this wise Say not in thine heart Who shall ascend into heaven That is to bring Christ down from above 7. Or who shall descend into the deep That is to bring up Christ again from the dead 8. But what saith it The word is nigh thee even in thy mouth and in thy heart that is the word of faith which we preach 9. That if thou shalt confess with thy mouth the Lord Jesus and shalt believe in thine heart that God hath raised him from the dead thou shalt be saved IN the Thirtieth and One and thirtieth Verses of the Ninth Chapter to the Romanes there are two Nations spoken of that is to say the Gentiles and the Jews The Gentiles were those which followed not after righteousness yet had attained to righteousness even the righteousness which is of faith and the Jews otherwise Israel were those which followed after the Law of righteousness but had not attained to the Law of righteousness The first reason of it is set down in verse 32. Wherefore because they sought it not by faith as the Gentiles did but as it were by the works of the Law The second reason of it is Because they stumbled at that stumbling stone v. 33. As it is written Behold I lay in Sion a stumbling stone and rock of offence and whosoever believeth on him shall not be ashamed Jesus Christ is a great stumbling block and rock of offence to those professors that do not openly nor professedly but as it were seek righteousness by the Law Quest But what is it to seek righteousness as it were by the Law Answ. It is to seek righteousness partly by believing and partly by doing Those that do so stumble at Christ and know not what to make of him and are offended at him and in the end they split themselves against him just as those glorious professors the Scribes and Pharisees did by reason of their not knowing him Now in the first Verse of the tenth Chapter to the Romanes Paul tells his brethren the Jews what a hearty desire he had and how he prayed that they might be saved Brethren my hearts desire and prayer to God for Israel is that they might be saved And the reason of this prayer he tells them vers. 2. For I bear them record that they have a zeal of God but not according to knowledge They were mighty zealous for God but it did not proceed from true knowledge as the Scribes and Pharisees were mighty zealous and strict in keeping the Sabbath praying giving of alms and the like but it proceeded not from a right knowledge it did not proceed from a true principle And there are many Zealots in our days Oh how full of zeal they are for God in praying speaking preaching and the like but yet not agreeable to true knowledge And the reason of this is in the third verse For they being ignorant of Gods righteousness and going about to establish their own righteousness have not submitted themselves unto the righteousness of God As the not seeking righteousness by faith keeps those from attaining to the Law of righteousness that follow after the Law of righteousness so ignorance of Gods righteousness makes many go about to establish their own and so by that means do not subject to God's righteousness In the fourth verse Paul sheweth that Christ is the end of the Law for righteousness to every one that believeth which the glorious Israelites Scribes and Pharisees follow after thinking to be justified thereby The righteousness of which Law Moses describes in the fifth verse that the man which doth those things shall live in them Which saying Satan many times makes use of against poor souls thereby to stir them up to follow after the righteousness of the Law And he makes use of it thus Saith Satan If you do the things that the Law commands you you shall live by them this is Scripture saith the devil If you perform the Law you shall live for there is life wrapped up in keeping of the Law And poor souls set upon the keeping of it and trouble and perplex and wear out themselves and the more they strive to keep it the further off are they from keeping of it And the devils design in it is to keep poor souls from submitting to the righteousness of God the devil knowing well that as many as are of the works of the Law are under the curse for it is written Cursed is every one that continueth not in all things that are written in the Book of the Law to do them Gal. 4. 10 11. And that no man is justified by the Law in the sight of God is evident for the just shall live by Faith Now in the 6. ver. which is that I intend to speak to Paul describes the righteousness of Faith But the righteousness which is of Faith speaketh on this wise Say not in thine heart Who shall ascend into heaven that is to bring Christ down from above c. The words are the voice of the righteousness which is of Faith they are what the righteousness of Faith speaketh and there are in the words these things to be considered First What Faith is Secondly What the voice of the righteousness of Faith is Thirdly What it speaks Fourthly To whom it speaks The first thing to be considered is What Faith is that is what the Faith of Christ is as it is in the original It is a supernatural divine work of God upon the Spirit which enables the soul to believe above all that natural Faith and Hope that is in the soul and above all fear and questionings and against all grounds that are in the soul to the contrary it is that which letteth us into God into the righteosness of God it is the key that unloks the Cabinet where righteousness is and lets us in into the mysteries of the kingdom Gal. 3. 7 9. Know ye therefore that they which are of Faith the same are the children of Abraham and are blessed with faithful Abraham Or faith in this place may be taken for Christ Gal. 3. 23. But before Faith came we were kept under the Law shut up unto the Faith which should afterwards be revealed The second thing to be considered is what the righteousness which is of Faith is It is the righteousness which is by believing But what is the righteousness which is by believing It is the righteousness of God But you will ask me What is that See in Rom. 3. 25 26. Whom God hath set forth to be a propitiation through Faith in his blood to declare his righteousness for the remission of sins that are past through the forbearance of God to declare I say at this time his righteousness that he might be just and the justifier of him which
him while Joseph made himself known to his brethren And he wept aloud and the Egyptians and house of Pharoah heard And Joseph said unto his brethren I am Joseph Doth my Father yet live And his brethren could not answer him for they were troubled at his presence And Joseph said to his brethren Come neer me I pray you And they came neer I am Joseph your brother whom ye sold into Egypt This Joseph is a Type of Christ and his discovering himself to his brethren is the manner that Christ takes to reveal himself to his brethren Christ cannot many times refrain himself he cannot forbear but discover and reveal himself to his brethren that have sold him into Egypt he must discover himself to his brethren as Joseph did as Joseph wept to see his brethren so doth Jesus Christ to see his brethren he weeps aloud to see us yea he weeps for joy to see his brethren before he discovers himself to them and afterwards he saith I am Ioseph I am your Ioseph one of your fellow-brethren Doth my Father yet live in you When Christ speaks thus to the soul the Soul cannot answer him because it is troubled at his presence And as Ioseph said to his brethren Come neer so Christ bids us come neer We are ready when we have a discovery of Christ to stand afar off and to be afraid of him and then Christ saith Come neer as if he should say Why stand you a loof off Come neer and to encourage them to come neer he speaks more plainly to them now I am Joseph your brother whom ye sold into Egypt but before he said I am Joseph onely and then the soul comes neer to Christ O how sweet this is Christ shall not no will not onely reveal himself but he can do no otherwise he cannot refrain himself and therefore Christ saith unto them Be not grieved nor angry with your selves that ye sold me into Egypt for God did send me before you to preserve life See how Christ endeavours to take away all grief and anger from his brethren by telling them that God sent him into Egypt to preserve life Selah So that confess him to be in you though you do not feel him within you yet if you believe he is in you you may confess him But what is it to confess him To confess him is to acknowledge him come in the flesh and come within you 1 Joh. 4. 2. Hereby know yee the Spirit of God every spirit that confesseth that Jesus Christ is come in the flesh is of God 1 Joh. 4. 15. Whosoever shall confess that Jesus is the Son of God God dwels in him and he in God Confessing there is acknowledging Phil. 2. 11. And that every tongue shall confess that Jesus Christ is Lord to the glory of God the Father There is the same word So that to confess him is to acknowledge him How Thus thou art within me I do subscribe to the truth of it that it is so even so But yet I cannot confess him saith the soul The word of faith is in thy mouth to make thee to confess that Christ is within thee and to say It is true Lord as I have believed thou art within me There is the acknowledgement of the soul There is not onely a confession of the mouth required of the soul but a belief of the heart likewise that God raised Christ from the dead which I do intend a little to speak to Dead here is to be understood grave hell that state that Jesus Christ was in of whom it was said Thou wilt not leave my soul in hell neither wilt thou suffer thy holy One to see corruption Psal. 16. 10. It is not enough to confess Christ to be within us but to believe in our hearts that God raised him from the dead if we would be saved our Faith must reach further then Christ in us it must reach to the Father also See 1 Pet. 1. 21. Who by him do believe in God that raised him from the dead and gave him glory that our faith and hope might be in God See further in Act. 13. 32 33 34. And we declare unto you glad tidings how that the promise which was made to our Fathers God hath fulfilled the same unto us their children in that he hath raised up Iesus again as it is also written in the second Psalm Thou art my Son this day have I begotten thee And as concerning that he raised him up from the dead now no more to return to corruption he said I will give him the sure mercies of David A faith that saves that is a faith that is accompanyed with Salvation is in God as one that raised Christ from the dead for there is in Gods raising Christ Remission of sins and justification from all things as sin iniquity and the like from which we could not be justified by the Law of Moses Act. 13. 38 39. And besides to us there is an imputation of righteousness which was imputed to Abraham if we believe on him that raised up Iesus our Lord from the dead who for this very end was raised from the dead that is to say for our justification Rom. 4. 24 25. God would have us believe in him as one that raised Christ from the dead because in Gods raising Christ he raised us through the faith of the operation of God who hath raised him from the dead and the uncircumcision of our flesh hath he quickened together with him having forgiven us all trespasses blotting out the hand-writing of ordinances that was against us which was contrary to us and took it out of the way nayling it to the cross and having spoyled principalities and powers he made a shew of them openly triumphing over them all A glorious slaughter of all our enemies is to be seen in Gods raising Christ from the dead And then that in Eph. 2. 5 6. In Gods raising Christ we though we were dead in sins yet were quickened together with him and were raised up together with him and made to sit together in heavenly places in Christ Iesus which was Gods rich mercy and great love and his end in it was That in the ages to come he might shew the exceeding riches of his grace in his kindness towards us in Christ Iesus Eph. 2. 4 7. Now God many times suffers us to have the sentence of death in our spirits he suffers us to be pressed out of measure beyond strength insomuch that we despair of life that we should not trust in our selves but in God that raised the dead Quest But you will ask me First How God raised Christ from the dead Secondly What it is to be believe it Answ. For the first how God raised Christ It was 1. By the glory of the Father Rom. 6. 4 9 2. By the Spirit Rom. 8. 11. 3. By his mighty power Eph. 1. 20. The second thing to be enquired into is What it is to believe that God
raised his Son from the dead There are divers sorts of faith spoken of in Scripture There is a believing from the relation of another Ioh. 4. 42. As the Samaritans did meerly upon the report of the woman but afterwards they believed because they had seen Christ and there is a believing as I said before that is not accompanied with salvation which Simon Magus had and there is a believing that is accompanied with salvation Heb. 10. 39. But we are not of them who draw back unto perdition but of them that believe to the saving of the soul This is the belief that is intended here Now that faith that saves is the faith of Christ which consisteth in yeelding up hearty obedience and subjection to this truth that God raised Christ from the dead We have obeyed from the heart that form of doctrine that hath been delivered unto us Rom. 6. 17. This believing in God that he raised Christ from the dead is nothing but a souls lying down under the power and authority of it and saying It is so It is so Lord Lie down therefore under the power of this truth that God raised his Son say it is a truth and thou shalt be saved it is a truth Lord it is even so thou art saved Quest But you seem to make no difference between confession of the mouth and belief with the heart Answ. Yes but I do Faith in the heart believes this is a glorious truth that God raised Jesus Christ from the dead and that Christ is within us Confession with the mouth declares and publisheth nothing but what saith in the heart believes is truth CHAP. II. The Parable of the rich man's flocks and herds and the poor man's ewe-lamb unfolded out of 2 Sam. 12. 1 2 3 4 5 6 7. Vers 1 And the Lord sent Nathan unto David and he came unto him and said unto him There were two men in one city the one rich and the other poor 2 The rich man had exceeding many flocks and herds 3 But the poor man had nothing save one little ewe-lamb which he had bought and nourished up and it grew up together with him and with his children it did eat of his own meat and drank of his own cup and lay in his bosom and was unto him as a daughter 4 And there came a traveller unto the rich man and he spared to take of his own flock and of his own herd to dress for the wayfaring man that was come unto him but took the poor mans lamb and dressed it for the man that was come to him 5 And Davids anger was greatly kindled against the man and he said to Nathan As the Lord liveth the man that hath done this thing shall surely die 6 And he shall restore the lamb fourfold because he did this thing and because he had no pity 7 And Nathan said unto David Thou art the man IN the first verse of this Chapter there is the Lord sending Nathan unto David with a Parable in his mouth It was the Lord that sent him unto David and that put the Parable into his mouth to declare to David From part of the first verse to the fifth verse Nathan makes known the Parable A Parable you know is to be taken otherwise then is set down in the letter of it and is much like an Allegory The first words of the Parable are these There were two men in one city the one rich and the other poor The City are the Saints see Heb. 12. 22. But ye are come unto mount Sion and unto the city of the living God the heavenly Jerusalem and to an innumerable company of angels And Eph. 2. 22. Matth. 27. 53. Rev. 21. 2 The rich man is David who had exceeding many flocks and herds The poor man is Christ see Eccles. 9. 15. There was a little citie and few men in it and there came a great king against it and besieged it and built great bulwarks against it Now there was found in it a poor man and he by his wisdom delivered the city See likewise 2 Cor. 8. 9. For ye know the grace of our Lord Jesus Christ that though he was rich yet for our sakes he became poor that ye through his poverty might be made rich See Psal. 34. 6. This poor man cried and the Lord heard him and saved him out of all his troubles And in another place he is called The man Christ Jesus Now the rich man's and poor man's living in one city was their enjoying each other and having fellowship with each other in the city of God The rich man's flocks and herds are those exceeding many spiritual blessings that God had blessed David with which are those blessings that God blesseth many of his people with see Ephes. 1. 3. Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ who hath blessed us with all spiritual blessings in heavenly places in Christ The poor man's ewe-lamb is the beloved disciple of Christ as John was see Luke 13. 23. Now there was leaning on Jesus bosome one of his disciples which Jesus loved This ewe-lamb the poor man bought with a price even with that price he bought the rest of his people with 1 Cor. 6. 12. Ye are bought with a price therefore glorifie God in your body and in your spirits which are Gods And then that in 1 Cor. 7. 23. Ye are bought with a price be not ye the servants of men Jesus Christ did not onely buy this ewe-lamb but nourished it up himself with the milk of himself it grew up together with him that is Christ brought it up with himself as he was brought up with the Father see Prov. 8. 20. And it grew up with his children that is with Christ's children Who are those Such that are of faith and so are blessed with faithful Abraham and are Gal. 3 7 9. Those which are born of the free woman that is born after the Spirit or by promise It did not grow up with Christ alone but with the rest of his children who grew up with him And it did eat of the poor man 's own meat and of the poor man 's own drink which is Christ himself That which nourished the lamb and which the lamb fed upon was the meat and drink of Christ which is his flesh and blood See in Joh. 6. 53 54 55 56. Then Jesus said unto them Verily verily I say unto you Except ye eat the flesh of the Son of man and drink his blood you have no life in you Whosoever eateth my flesh and drinketh my blood hath eternal life For my flesh is meat indeed and my blood is drink indeed He that eateth my flesh and drinketh my blood dwells in me and I in him That which Christ fed this Lamb with was Life and Spirit which is his flesh and blood O glorious food Friends it is the best food Christ hath or that he can feed a soul with Christ did not onely buy this
believeth in Jesus His righteousness consisteth in this in that he can remit sin and yet be faithful in that he can justifie the ungodly and yet be just or the righteousness of Faith is the righteousness of Christ for Faith is called Christ as I said before He is made of God unto us Wisdom Sanctification Justification Redemption Righteousness and the like But what is the righteousness of Christ or in what doth the matter of it consist In the Active and Passive obedience of Christ That is in what he hath done and suffered for us The third thing to be considered is What the voice of the righteousness of Faith is or what it speaketh It speaketh these following things that is to say Say not in thine heart That is Do not speak secretly It speaks this to us our readiness to speak that secretly which haply we would not speak openly that others may take notice of what we say Quest But what should I not say in my heart Answ. These two things following First Who shall ascend into heaven What is that That is to bring down Christ from above We are ready to speak it in our hearts though not in our mouthes Who shall ascend into heaven We want Christ he is not in our hearts surely he is in heaven and our souls are troubled with care for one to go up into heaven to fetch him down into our hearts O how we have endeavoured to fetch him down by prayer and striving As I my self have done O how I have gaped for him to come down from heaven into my mouth and heart when I was many times praying And when I could do no good this way I have been much inquisitive in my spirit for one to fetch him down from out of the skies and out of the deep into my heart Answ. 2. Say not in thine heart Who shall descend into the deep What is that That is to bring up Christ again from the dead For want of a feeling of Christ within us we are ready to say in our hearts though not with our mouthes Who shall descend into the deep We conclude many times in our spirits that either he is in the heavens or in the deep But first we are carried out with much care for one to fetch him from above And if Jesus Christ come not down from thence into our hearts then we conclude he is not there but in the deep and we are very inquisitive who shall fetch him from the dead We think that either he is above us or beneath us among the dead in the grave in hell Sometimes we think he is risen and ascended above and sometimes we think that he is not Thus much for that which the righteousness of faith would have us not say Now we are to speak of that which the righteousness of faith saith What is that First The righteousness of faith saith The Word is nigh thee But what word The word of faith which we preach What word is that Christ Why is he called the word of faith Because he it is that begets faith in souls The righteousness of faith saith That word is nigh thee Oh that God would give us ears to hear it is good news that the righteousness of faith speaks We will hear thee what thou sayst therefore speak Lord The Word is nigh Whom Thee us them him her all Friends Christ is nigh us he is on our right hand and on our left hand though we see him not Job 23. 9. The Word of God is nigh us But why is Christ called the Word of God in Scripture Because as the word of a man is that whereby a man expresseth himself his minde so Christ is called the Word of God in this respect he is the minde of the Father expressed That by which we know the minde of a man is his words that by which we know the minde of God is by his Word So that Christ is the minde of God discovered the Word is God made known revealed This Word was God and was with God Joh. 1. 1. Christ is called the Word of Truth likewise in Scripture Who hath begotten us to himself by the Word of Truth But why is he called the Word of Truth Because he begets Truth in the soul This Word is nigh thee How nigh me Very nigh thee Deut. 30. 14. For the Word is very nigh unto thee Where is it In thy mouth I do not finde him there Though you do not yet he is there Secondly He is in thine heart I do not feel him there and therefore he is not there That will not follow he is there though you feel him not that Jesus which you look for from above and beneath is exceeding nigh to thee even in thy mouth and in thine heart he is as nigh as possible can be he is not far from every one of us Acts 17. 27. We many times disquiet our selves for one to fetch him from above and from the deep whenas poor souls our Christ is within us We are carried out after more Sense then Faith and that is the reason that we no longer then we feel Christ to be in us do conclude him to be in our hearts The next thing to be enquired into is To whom the voice of the righteousness of faith speaketh That is to those who by reason of the want of feeling Jesus Christ within them are carried out to enquire who shall ascend into the heavens and who shall descend into the deep to fetch Christ from thence into their hearts which were the Jews Israel and in them the Saints And the words indeed are spoken to prevent all Objections in them and others against this truth Christ in them And there is not an Objection that they can make or that we and others can make but it is there answered The voice of the righteousness of faith speaks so fully to all Objections that I cannot but subscribe to the truth of what it saith That Christ is in me I am forced to do it by reason I have nothing to say against the truth though my base heart together with the devil is ready to question every truth of God though it be never so plain The words being explicated there will arise naturally this Corollary that is to say That there is an aptitude in the spirits of those who feel not the Lord Jesus within them to enquire who shall ascend into heaven or who shall descend into the deep to fetch Christ from thence into their spirits whenas Christ is within them This is clear from the words The grounds of this Doctrine are two 1. Ignorance 2. Unbelief First Ignorance We are ignorant of the Omnipresencie of Christ that he is present in every place and in our hearts as in every place I have heard many professors subscribe to this truth but yet have denied it a truth in their particular souls Secondly Unbelief We cannot believe that he is in our hearts we will give
Christ a being in every place but not in our hearts The cause of Unbelief is Ignorance we are ignorant of this truth Christ in us and therefore cannot believe it If it be so that there is a readiness in those who feel not the Lord Jesus in them to enquire who shall ascend into heaven and who shall descend into the deep to fetch Christ from thence into their hearts Then say not in your hearts Who shall ascend and who shall descend to fetch Christ from heaven and the deep into your hearts it is the voice of the righteousness of Faith Why do you say so what is the reason of it Because saith the soul I do not injoy him nor possess him within me How do you know that you do not injoy him Because I feel him not I should feel him within me if he were there Poor soul he may be within thee though thou feelest him not and it is thy being carryed out after more Feeling then Faith that blindes thine eyes 2. If it be so This may serve to discover what manner of spirit we are of it discovers the baseness of our spirits that though the righteousness of faith saith Say not in your hearts Who shall go up into heaven and who shall go down into the deep to fetch Christ from thence into our hearts yet we will say so and do say so often in our hearts though we have no ground to say so seeing Christ is within us A second Corollary from the words is this That that Christ which we take care for who shall ascend into the heavens and who shall descend into the deep to bring him into our hearts is within us even in our hearts This is cleer from the words They enquired who shall ascend and who shall descend to bring Christ into their hearts whenas he was within them To prove this truth further we shall bring divers places of Scripture See that in Joh. 15. 4. Abide in me and I in you he speaks to his Disciples that were offended at his fleshly departure from them and that in Joh. 17. 23. I in them and thou in me and then that in 2 Cor. 13. 5. Examine your selves whether ye be in the Faith prove your own selves know ye not your own selves how that Jesus Christ is in you except ye be reprobates That is unapproved or rejected As if the Apostle should say You are reprobates if Christ be not in you and therefore he puts them upon trying proving whether he be in them or no And that in Eph. 4. 6. One God and Father of all who is above all and through all and in you all And that in 1 Joh. 4. Ye are of God little children and have overcome them because greater is he that is in you then he that is in the world speaking of Christ that he is in us and is stronger then he that is in the world which is the devil It is very sweet to consider this well and the right consideration of it will take away the fear that is many times in our spirits of the devil and of Christ not being in us And that in Gal. 2. 20. I am crucified with Christ nevertheless I live yet not I but Christ lives in me I am crucified and yet I live This is a paradox a strange thing how can a man be crucified and yet live The meaning of it is he was crucified to the world and lived to God And in Psal. 46. 5. God is in the midst of her she shall not be moved Friends God will not suffer us to be moved away from the hope of the Gospel but will help and that early when a temptation seizeth upon us because he is in the midst of us And that in Jerem. 14. 9. Why shouldst thou seem to be as a man amazed with us and as a mighty man that cannot save us They ask God this question Yet that is Though it be so thou art in the midst of us thou art neer to us we are called by thy Name that is We are thine and therefore leave us not Just so poor souls many times say to God when he seems to their souls as a man amazed and as one that cannot save them Why art thou so Lord tell us the reason of it notwithstanding this thou art in the midst of us thou art ours and we are thine we are called by thy Name do not forsake us And that in Zeph. 3. 5. The just Lord is in the midst thereof speaking of his Sanctuary he will not do iniquity that is sin Friends the holy Lord is within us see the fifteenth verse The Lord is in the midst of thee thou shalt not see evil any more Therefore in the fourteenth verse he calls upon his people to sing Sing O daughter of Zion shout O Israel be glad and rejoyce with all the heart O daughter of Jerusalem Is not this good news Friends why do ye not sing and shout for joy seeing the Lord is within you And in the seventeenth verse he speaks of the same thing The Lord thy God in the midst of thee or he that is thy God is in the midst of thee he is mighty that is he is strong he will save thee nothing shall hinder him neither sin nor devils he will rejoyce over thee with joy that is he will spend his joy upon thee thou shalt have his joy he will love thee and he will rest in that love he will lie down and take his ease in that love wherewith he hath loved thee He will not onely rejoyce over thee with joy but he will joy over thee with singing he will sing and joy over thee thou shalt be the subject of his joy and rejoycing Now in the sixteenth verse it is said In that day it shall be said to Jerusalem Fear thou not I am in the midst of thee and to Zion Let not thy hands be slack that is be not unbelieving The reason why I mentioned all these places of Scripture was that so the Objections might be fully satisfied concerning this truth Christ in them If it be so that that Christ which we take care for who shall ascend into the heavens and who shall descend into the deep to bring him into our hearts is within us that is in our hearts Then Friends be peswaded of this truth that Christ is within you But who is it that saith that Christ is within us The righteousness of faith and the Scriptures say so that he is in us in the midst of us nigh to us even in our hearts O glorious truth O excellent truth This is sweet sweet But you seem to make no difference between Christ's being in all the world and his being in the Saints Yes but I do there is a great deal of difference He is in all the world more generally he is in his Saints more particularly If it be so then this may serve to discover this truth to us O