not the light of his word and his Law written in the Scriptures to many Nations yet he giveth to them all the light and Law of Nature and therefore the transgressions of the Law of Nature are sins against God The Apostle saith until the Law sin was in the world but sin is not imputed where there is no Law nevertheless death reigned from Adam to Moses even over them that had not sinned after tbe similitude of Adams transgression Sin was in the world before the Law was given on mount Sinai But how can it be just to charge sin upon them who had no Law against which to sin Nevertheless death raigned from Adam to Moses even over them that had not sinned after the similitude of Adams transgression Who are they Some seem to understand Infants only who sinned not actually in their own persons as Adam did yet dying in their infancy were guilty of original sin Others take it for all that lived between the time of Adam and Moses who sinned not after the similitude of Adams transgression because they sinned not against an express Law given by revelation from Heaven as Adam did who sinned against that express prohibition of God forbidding him to eat of the fruit of the Tree of knowledge of good and evil under the pain of certain death and destruction I conceive this latter sense more probable because of that special limitation of time from Adam to Moses for the case of those that dye in their Infancy for ought I know is the same whether before or after the time of Moses before and after the Law written but the condition of those that lived between Adams time and that of Moses differed from those that lived after Now the Apostle sheweth that death the punishment of sin fell upon them so did many other judgements the flood destroying the old world the showr of fire and brimstone upon Sodom fell within the compass of that time and therefore certainly they were guilty of sin and justly punished because these calamities were the just judgements of God who is the righteous judge of all the world and therefore although these sinned not against any positive Law of God delivered to them either by word or writing yet they sinned against the light and Law of Nature which God had given them Secondly This may shew us the reason and the justice of those severe executions of God upon Heathen Nations who had no Scripture nor written Law to sin against They sinned against the Light and Law of Nature for the wrath of God is revealed from Heaven against all ungodliness and unrighteousness of men who hold the truth in unrighteousness because that which may be known of God is manifest in them for God hath shewed it unto them c. The Judgements and Calamities publick national private personal brought upon any of mankind in several ages are evidences of Gods wrath and displeasure against them and therefore proofs of their sin and guiltiness against God otherwise the Lord who is perfectly righteous would not bring these evils upon them and among the rest the death of the body is a universal declaration of the wrath of God against mankind for sin If any should be free from all other evils yet this alone would be a sufficient proof of their sinfulness and therefore the Lord said unto Adam and in him to each particular person of his posterity soon after he had sinned and they had sinned in him Dust thou art and to dust thou shalt return By one man sin entred into the world and death by sin and so death passed upon all men for that all have sinned Euery dead Corps every Funeral that ye see or hear of all the persons that have died from the beginning of the world unto this day have by their death manifested the wrath of God against sin and mens guiltiness before the Lord for though through the grace and mercy of God in Christ the death of a true believer is turned into a blessing and made an inlet or entrance into everlasting life yet in its own Nature it is a consequent of sin and sin was the original of it In special the Heathens who had not the mind of God so fully revealed to them as those within the Church yet had the Light and Law of Nature and in sinning against that Light and Law were justly punished for they held the Truth in unrighteousness This common Light and Law of Nature was the Truth of God und they by opposing their wills and lusts against it and so not following the guidance of it were found guilty of fighting against God and crossing that Light which the Lord had given them and therefore the Lord dealt with them as Enemies So the Lord punished Sodom and the Cities adjoynning with fire and brimstone So the Canaanites and Amorites were destroyed for their sins against the Light and Law of Nature and Israel was planted in their Land The Lord told Abraham that his seed should possess it but not until after four hundred years Why Because the iniquity of the Amorites was not yet full so that it was the fullness of their iniquity which was the cause of their destruction it was because their sin was come to its full height that they were rooted out So the Lord having forbidden Israel the practice of divers great sins saith Defile not your selves in any of these things for in all these things the Nations are defiled which I cast out before you And the Land is defiled therefore I do visit the iniquity thereof upon it and the Land it self vomiteth out the Inhabitants The Lord threatned divers grievous Judgements by the Prophet Amos against many Heathen Nations Syria the Philistines Tyrus Edom Ammon Moab All the miseries of war brought upon Heathen Nations what were they but revelations and reall demonstrations of the wrath of God from Heaven for their sins against the Law and Light of Nature The ruining of the Babylonish Monarchy by the Medes and Persians of the Persian by the Macedonians and Grecians the Macedonians by the Romans of the Roman by the Saracens and Turks on the one side and divers Northern Nations on the other these and the like were just Judgements of God upon Heathens for sins against the Light and Law of Nature So I conceive the cruel Spaniards were unjust executioners of the righteous Judgements of God upon the poor Indians or Americans for their sins against the same common Light and Law of Nature for the Lord executeth just Judgements by wicked men yea by Divels who aime not at all at the Lords end but either delight to exercise their malice and cruelty or act thus to make a ful conquest and utterly disable a people to make head again Thirdly This may clearly convince us that the sins of Christians are far more heinous then the sins of Infidels and Heathens because they sin against the same Law
graces of Christ derived from him to Christians are compared to that precious ointment under the Ceremonial Law that was made of principal spices pure Myrrhe sweet Cynamon sweet Calamus and Cassia sweet Aromatical choice ingredients which being artificially compounded together what a sweet and fragrant smell did it yeild But how far doth the sweet savour of that spiritual ointment the graces of the spirit derived from Christ to true Christians excel this material ointment How great is their guilt in the sight of God that profess themselves Christians that is anointed of God and yet cherish in their hearts noisome and unsavory lusts and wallow in the mire and in the stinking sinks of abominable sins who profess themselves Christians i. e. anointed with heavenly gragracâ—s and yet remain graceless and profane 3. The Name Christian signifieth a Disciple a Scholar a follower of Christ. How great is thy sin 1. If under this name thou livest in ignorance dost thou not herein cast a great reproach upon the Lord Jesus Christ Hast thou been 20 30 40 years his Disciple his Scholar and hast thou learned little or nothing all this while Hadst thou any sincere love to Christ and his doctrine how is it that thou hast profited no more 2. Wilt thou call thy self a Christian that is a Disciple or follower of Christ and dost thou not cease to act and walk contrary to him in drunkenness in riot revellings chamberings wantonness c. Dost thou not herein highly dishonour Christ in calling thy self a Christian or follower of Christ Is not this as if thou shouldst say Christ taught thee these things and walkt before thee in such ways as these Oh take heed lest thou be found guilty of a kind of real and implicite blasphemy Is it not either a mocking of Christ or an implicite blaspheming of Christ for people to call themselves Christians that is followers and scholars of Christ and to go on from time to time in lewd and wicked courses How grievous is the sin of them that live under the Gospel and are more obstinate more stubborn more hardned in their sins than divers of the Heathens So the Lord Christ sheweth that the Heathens of Tyre and Sidon would have repented in sackcloth and ashes if the same means had been afforded them which Corazin and Bethsaida had The men of Nineve shall rise in judgement with this generation and shall condemn it because they repented at the preaching of Ionas and behold a greater then Ionas is here If the Ninevites abounding in wealth and pleasure their City being the head of the Assyrian Monarchy an Heathenish people did so far relent at the preaching of Ionas who came among them from a strange Nation Oh trembâ—e to think of your account if ye continue to harden your hearts against so many sermons so many messages brought unto you in the name of Christ and confirmed by his Authority Will ye be able to hold up your faces before the men of Nineve in the day of Judgement How grievous is the sin of professed Christians living under the light of the word and Gospel of Christ who on the one side having nothing in them better then the wiser sort of Heathens And 2. Live in such practices as the better sort of Heathens abhorred and scorned 1. How many living under the Gospel have nothing in them better then some of the Heathens nothing practically better no better frame of soul no better resolutions and affections nothing of Christ his regenerating spirit nothing of his renewing grace nothing of the new creature It may be they have some more knowledge of Christ and his Gospel then Heathens so have the Divels but they have no better hearts than Heathens 2. How many such live in the ordinary practice of such sins which the wiser sort of Heathens abhorred and scorned How disgraceful was drunkenness by the light of Nature to sober Heathens and how did they despise drunkards What discourses have Seneca and Pliny against drunkenness setting it forth not only as odious but as ridiculous shewing the baseness and sillyness of such courses Yea Are there not many Turks at this day who would scorn to make themselves such sotts as many professed Christians do What notable passages hath Tully against chearing and indirect dealing in matter of Contracts Bargains c. The like may be said of many other Cases Let us then lay to heart the abounding of sin and wickedness among us against the light and Law of Nature aggravated by the light of the written Law the everlasting Gospel of Christ and yet humble our selves and cry mightily unto the Lord if it be possible that his wrath may be turned away from us and let us every one in particular exceedingly tremble to be found Christians in name and Heathens in heart and life and therefore worse than meer Heathens CHAP. VIII I Proceed now to the Moral Law concerning which the Apostle saith it is established by the doctrine of Justification through the Righteousness of Christ apprehended by faith without any consideration of the works of the Law performed by the person justified By the the Moral Law I understand the Law written in the Scripture whereof we have a brief sum or Abridgment in the ten Commandments which again is contracted into a narrower compass Thou shalt love the Lord thy God with all thy heart and with all soul and with all thy mind This is the first and greatest Commandment and the second is like unto it Thou shalt love thy Neighbour as thy self The Law thus abridged is largely unfolded in other parts of Scripture with the additions of many threatnings against disobedience and promises to obedience 1. then I intend to propose a general point of doctrine and then to point at the particulars comprehended in it The general doctrine is this That the Gospel teaching the free justification of Believers without consideration of any works of theirs done in obedience to the Law but through the Righteousness of Christ alone applied by faith doth establish the moral Law So it is shewed in this Text Through faith the Law is established That which I desire to clear unto you is how or wherein the moral Law is established by faith this may be shewed 1. Negatively 2. Affirmatively And so we may come to the several branches or special doctrines comprised in this general 1. Negatively thus The moral Law is not established but declared to be of no use for the justification of sinners in the sight of God by the doctrine of justification through the Righteousness of Christ imputed of God and applied by faith Or more briefly for help of Memory thus Iustification by faith in Christ excludeth justification by the works of the Law This ye may take as a point of doctrine implied in the Text if it be compared with the Apostles foregoing discourse to which it hath relation For the Apostle speaketh of it
and Light of Nature which Heathens did and beside against a far clearer Light and more perfect Law delivered to them in the holy Scriptures of the old and new Testament for the Light and Law of Nature though it was given to the Heathen yet it was not peculiar to them it was not limited to them alone but was common to them with others it is given also to Iews who have the old Testament also it is given to Christians who have both old and new Testament and therefore their sins are highly aggravated So the the Lord by the Prophet Amos having threatned heavy Judgements against those Heathen Nations mentioned before then turneth his speech to the people of Iudah Thus saith the Lord for three transgressions of Iudah and for four I will not turn away the punishment thereof because they have defiled the Law of the Lord and have not kept his Commandment and their lies caused them to err after the which their Fathers have walked but I will send a fire upon Iudah and it shall devour the Palaces of Ierusalem they had the written Law and Commandments of God which the other had not and therefore they despised and kept not they had the Truth of God revealed from Heaven and delivered to them by Moses and the Prophets immediately inspired by the holy spirit of God but they rather chose to walk in lyes after the example of their Fathers and therefore their sins were much more sinful than those of the Heathens Then he threatneth Israel scil the rest of Israel the Kingdom of the ten Tribes who followed the sin of Ieroboam charging them first with barbarous cruelty and oppression contrary to common humanity because they sold the righteous for silver and the poor for a pair of shoes I conceive he speaketh especially against that great sin of Judges and Magistrates in perverting justice for Bribes and withal against them which hired such corrupt officers to act unjustly by giving them rewards They sold the righteous for Silver they exposed the innocent to the lust and will of their Adversaries for mony and the poor for a pair of shooes either because being once corrupted with some considerable gains they afterward were so hardened in their sins that they would pervert justice for a pair of shooes for a triflle or else because they could not get much for giving sentence against a poor man in his Cause because their Adversaries would not offer much to have their will of them who had little to loose these corrupt judges would transgress for a petty-bribe where no more was to be had That pant after the dust of the earth on the head of the poor or as one readeth it that pant or breath after the head of the poor that they may cast it down to the dust of the earth If we take it the former way the sense may seem to be this when they have overthrown the poor and laid him in the dust such is there inhumane cruelty that they are not satisfied with his misery but desire his utter ruine and destruction 2. An other sin was abominable uncleannness that Father and Son would lye with the same woman which is set forth and heightned with this aggravation they prophaned the holy Name of God pretending to be the people of God and yet committing such lewdness this highly redounded to the Lords dishonour above the sins of meer Heathens 3. Their wicked glorying and triumphing in their oppression and prophaning that worship which themselves had embraced as religious laying themselves down upon clothes laid to pledge by every Altar keeping the garments of the poor which they had taken to pledge and being so far from restoring them according to the Law that they durst lye upon them by the very Altars and drink the wine of the condemned in the house of their God feasting themselves in the Temple of their God with the very spoils taken from those whom they had unjustly condemned these sins of Israel are aggravated divers ways in the words following There Israel and Iudah are both joyned together Hear this word that the Lord hath spoken against you O Children of Israel against the whole family which I brought up from the Land of Egypt saying You only have I known of all the families of the earth therefore I will punish you for all your iniquities The Lord had owned them above others and made himself known to them above all other people and therefore their sin was greater than others and they might expect more gievous punishments How much more are sins of professed Christians more heinous than those of the Heathens who have greater light then the people of Israel had having the new Testament added to the old who have the Lord Jesus Christ set forth before them in the Gospel not under Types and shadowes but clearly not as to come but as already come actually crucified for sin buried risen again ascended into Heaven The Lord Christ sheweth that the sins of Corazin and Bethsaida were more heinous than those of Tyre and Sidon and their condemnation would be more intolerable in the day of Judgement because they sinned against greater light The like comparison he maketh between Capernaum and Sodom And the very Name of Christian is an aggravation of the sins of those who profess themselves Christians This Name was first given to them that professed the faith of Christ at Antioch because of the great success of the Gospel there Barnabas and Saul or Paul a whole year assembled themselves with the Church and taught much people and the Disciples were called Christians first at Antioch The denomination of a Christian is derived from the blessed and glorious Name of Christ himself as he is annointed of God the Father with the spirit above measure What signifieth a Christian then but 1. A member of Christ united to him as the head of the whole mystical body of the Church How great is the sin of those that can themselves Christians and suffer themselves to be led by Satan the enemy of 〈◊〉 readily entertaining his suggestions and temptations serving this Prince of darkness in the work of darkness Saith the Apostle Shall I take the members of Christ and make them the members of an Harlot God forbid or let it not be What know ye not that he which is joyned to an Harlot is one body for two saith he shall be one flesh It is a fearful thing for a man professing himself a Christian that is a member of Christ to make himself a member of an Harlot or for a woman making the same profession to make her self the member of a fornicatour or Adulterer 2. The name of a Christian signifieth one that partaketh of the annointing of Christ of the same spirit and the same graces in some measure wherewith Christ was annointed above his fellows yea above measure He which stablisheth us with you and anointeth us is God The
own works performed in obedience to the Law cannot stand together Christ died to purchase forgiveness of sins and justification for his people but if any would be justified by the Law they go about to frustrate the grace of God as if Christ had died in vain Christ is become of none effect to you whosoever of you are justified by the Law ye are fallen from grace when he saith Whosoever c. he doth not grant that any are or can be justified by the Law but whosoever rely upon the works of the Law for justification hoping to be justified by the Law they loose the benefit of Christs death and satisfaction The Lord Christ is able to save them to the uttermost that come unto God by him and therefore none of them do save themselves or justifie themselves in any part There is a most clear place to shew that justification by works and justification by faith cannot stand together that no man is justified by the Law in the sight of God is evident for the just shall live by faith or the just by faith shall live and the Law is not of faith but the man that doth them shall live in them Justification righteousness everlasting life and salvation is obtained by faith in Christ applying his righteousness to the soul but the Law is not of faith but the man that doth them shall live in them The Law is a Covenant of another Nature the man that doth the works of the Law shall live in them There is no possibility of being justified by the Law unless a man could perfectly fulfill it this is impossible for any man to do 1. Because of the corruption of his Nature which is every way contrary to the Law 2. Because all and far more than all that he can do for the time to come is due debt to the justice of God and cannot make the least satisfaction for his sins past no not for any one of those numberless sins whereof he was formerly guilty 3. Because the best mans righteousness is imperfect and falleth short of the perfection of the Law no righteousness can satisfie the justice of God but that which is compleat and perfect and therefore the righteousness and performances of the holiest men are of no account at all in the sight of God towards their justification But it may be said that the Apostle Iames saith Ye see then how that by works a man is justified and not by faith only For Answer to this I conceive That this Apostle Iames here directeth his speech to this end sâ—il to shew the vanity and folly of those who deceive themselves with a shadow of faith presumptuously fancying to themselves an interest in Christ imagining that their sins are forgiven and their persons justified by his death satisfaction and righteousness but their faith is not sound it is not such a faith as truly receiveth Christ into the heart whereby Believers are made one with Christ possessing him partaking of his spirit which stirreth them up to conform themselves to Christ to follow him to bring forth the fruits of the spirit and therefore he saith ver 20. Faith without works is dead So it is a working faith which justifieth because such a faith alone doth truly lay hold of Christ and his righteousness On the other side holiness and good works do not at all justifie believers in a proper sense but evidence the persons to be justified because they shew that such by faith unfeigned are united unto Christ whose righteousness alone doth justifie and therefore he saith What doth it profit my Brethren if a man say he hath faith and have not works Can faith save him He speaketh of such as say they have faith not of those that have a lively saving faith indeed So ver 19. he speaketh to such Thou believest that there is one God thou dost well the Divels also believe and tremble So that he sheweth that a dead faith is but such a faith as the Divels have which is far from justifying and saving those that have it 2. I conceive his meaning is that holiness and the fruits of faith do declare and manifest true believers to be justified before men A man will say thou hast faith and I have works shew me thy faith without thy works and I will shew thee my faith by my works as if he had said Natural life shews it self by the motions and actings of life so doth spiritual life evidence it self by the motions and actings of spiritual life True faith embracing Christ and his righteousness for justification is a principle of spiritual life Thou therefore who pretendest to have this faith how canst thou make it appear how canst thou shew or declare it when thou puttest forth no motions or actings of spiritual life The use of this may be 1. To shew us the miserable and woful estat of all that are not in Christ. They are no justified they cannot be justified in that condition for there is no way for men to be justified in the fight of God by any works of their own performed in obedience to the Law and if they be not justified then they are condemned there is no middle estate between these two So the Apostle implieth where speaking of those that are in Christ he faith It is God that justifieth who is he that condemneth This sheweth that they that are justified and accepted as righteous in the sight of God are not condemned and so on the contrary they that are not justified are condemned All then that are not in Christ are in the state of condemnation so it is implied ver 1. There is therefore now no condemnation to them which are in Christ Iesus who walk not after the flesh but after the spirit So on the other side there is no justification no salvation to them that are not in Christ Jesus He that believeth not is condemned already he is condemned for his sin the sentence of condemnation is passed upon him by the Lord and he wanteth a sound saving faith to lay hold on Christ and his righteousness whereby alone he might be justified and freed from the sentence of condemnation and therefore while poor souls remain in this condition what can they do but treasure up wrath against the day of wrath and the revelation of the righteous judgement of God People may attend upon ordinances perform divers duties in publick and in private and yet still lye under the sentence of condemnation They may make some kind of reformation refraining from some outward gross acts of sin they may be civil and orderly in their conversations above many other and yet the wrath of God may still abide upon them In this case it is not enough to alter your course in some things but your state and condition must be altered nothing can help you while you are out of Christ and stand upon your