to it-The import of those words, "As for me"-To whom this promise is made-That farther cleared-Not to all Israel according to the flesh-Mr G.'s objections answered-The testimony of the Son given to the perpetual abiding of the Spirit with believers-John xiv. 16 opened-The promise in those words equally belonging to all believers-Mr G.'s objections answeredNo promise of the Spirit abiding with believers on his principle allowed-The promise given to the apostles personally, yet given also to the whole church— Promises made to the church made to the individuals whereof it is constituted -The giving of this promise to all believers farther argued from the scope of the place, and vindicated from Mr G.'s exceptions—The third testimony, of the Holy Spirit himself, proposed to consideration-His testimony in sealing particularly considered, 2 Cor. i. 22; Eph. i. 13, iv. 30-Of the nature and use of sealing amongst men-The end, aim, and use, of the sealing of the Holy Ghost-Mr G.'s objections and exceptions to our argument from that sealing of the Spirit considered and removed-The same farther carried on, etc. THERE remains nothing for the confirmation of the first branch or part of the truth proposed, but only the consideration of the oath of God; which, because it ought certainly to be "an end of all strife," I shall reserve the handling of it to the close of the whole, if God be pleased to carry us out thereunto, that we may give the oath of God its due honour, of being the last word in this contest. The order of our method first proposed would here call me to handle our steadfastness with God, and the glory created upon our grace of sanctification; but because some men may admire, and ask whence it is that the Lord will abide so steadfast in his love towards believers as hath been manifested upon several accounts that he will, besides what hath been said before of his own goodness and unchangeableness, etc., I shall now add that outward consideration which lies in the mediation of Christ, upon the account whereof he acts his own goodness and kindness to us with the greatest advantage of glory and honour to himself that can be thought upon. Only I shall desire the reader to observe, that the Lord Jesus is an undertaker in this business of perfecting our salvation and safeguarding our spiritual glory not in one regard and respect only. There is one part of his engagement therein which, under the oath of God, is the close of the whole, and that is his becoming a surety to us of his Father's faithfulness towards us, and a surety for us of our faithfulness to him: so that, upon the whole matter, the business on each side as to security will be found knit up in him, and there we shall do well to leave it, though the handling of that suretiship of his be not of our present consideration. Men will scarce dispute him out of his faithfulness. "Henceforth he dieth no more; death hath no dominion over him; he sits at the right hand of God, expecting to have his enemies made his footstool." This, then, I will do, if God permit. And [as] for the steadfastness of his saints in their abiding with God, I shall, I fear, no otherwise insist peculiarly upon it but VOL. XI. 19 as occasion shall be ministered by dealing with our adversary as we pass on. That which I shall now do is, to consider the influence of the priesthood of Christ in those two grand acts thereof, his oblation and intercession, into the perseverance of saints, according to that of the apostle: Heb. vii. 25, "Wherefore he is able also to save them to the uttermost that come unto God by him, seeing he ever liveth to make intercession for them." And I will do it the more carefully, because though it be one of the greatest strengths of our cause, yet I shall walk in a path wherein none shall meet me, for the most part of the way, to make any opposition. My entrance into the consideration of the procurement of our glory by Christ shall be with that whereby he came into his own, namely, his oblation, which hath a twofold influence into the perseverance of the saints, or into the safeguarding of their salvation to the utmost: I. By removing and taking out of the way all causes of separation between God and those that come unto God by him; that is, all believers. Now, these are of two sorts: 1. That which is moral, and procuring such separation or distance, which is the guilt of sin; 2. That which is efficient and working, as the power of Satan and of sin;-the first of these being that alone for which it may be supposed that God will turn from believers, and the latter that alone whereby they may possibly be turned from him. Now, that both these are so taken out of the way by the oblation of Christ that they shall never actually and eventually work or cause any total or final separation between God and believers, shall be demonstrated : 1. He hath so taken away the guilt of sin from believers, from them that come to God by him, that it shall not prevail with the Lord to turn from them. He hath "obtained eternal redemption for us," Heb. ix. 12, eternal and complete; not so far and so far, but "eternal redemption" hath he obtained,-redemption that shall be completed, notwithstanding any interveniencies imaginable whatever. This redemption, which he hath obtained for us, and which by him we obtain, the apostle tells us what it is, and wherein it doth consist: Eph. i. 7, "In whom we have redemption through his blood, the forgiveness of sins." He hath obtained for us everlasting forgiveness of sins. As to the complete efficiency of the procuring cause thereof, absolutely perfect and complete in its own kind, not depending on any condition in any other whatsoever for the producing the utmost effect intended in it, there shall be no afterreckoning or account for sin between God and them for whom he 1 Isa. lix. 2. ↑ Eph. i. 10, ii, 18-16; Col. i. 20-22; 2 Cor. v. 19, 20; 1 John 1 7. - so obtains redemption. And the apostle, in the 10th chapter of the Epistle to the Hebrews, disputes at large this difference between the typical sacrifices and the sacrifice of the blood of Christ. He tells you those were "offered year by year," and could "never make the comers to God by them perfect," or acquit them from sin, for then they "should have had no more conscience of sin," being once purged; but now, saith he, "there was a remembrance made again of sins every year," verses 1-4. If sin had been taken away, there would have been no more conscience of it; that is, no such conscience as upon the account whereof they came for help unto or healing by those sacrifices, no more conscience condemning for sin. Conscience judges according to the obligation unto punishment which it apprehends upon it. Conscience of sin,—that is, a tenderness to sin, and a condemnation of sin,—still continues after the taking of the guilt of it away; but conscience disquieting, judging, condemning the person for sin, that vanisheth together with the guilt of it:' and this is done when the sacrifice for sin is perfect and complete, and really attains the end for which it was instituted. And if any sacrifice for sin whatever do not completely take away that sin for which the oblation is made, and the atonement thereby, so that no after-charge might come upon the sinner, it is of necessity that that sacrifice be renewed again and again. The reason the apostle gives of the repetition of the legal sacrifices is, that they made not the comers to them perfect; that is, as to the taking away of their sins, and giving them entire and complete peace thereupon. All this, the apostle informs us, was done in the sacrifice of Christ: Verse 14, "By one offering he hath for ever perfected" (or made perfect that work for them as to this business of conscience for sin) "them that are sanctified." His one offering perfectly put an end to this business, even the difference between God and us upon the account of sin; which if he had not done, it would have been necessary that he should have been often offered, his sacrifice having not obtained the complete end thereof. That the efficacy of this sacrifice of his cannot depend on any thing foreign unto it shall be declared afterward; also, that the necessity of our faith and obedience, in their proper place, is not in the least hereby impaired, shall be manifested. That they may have a proper place, efficacy, and usefulness, and not be conditions whereon the effects of the death of Christ are suspended, as to their communication unto us, is by some denied; how weakly, how falsely, will then also appear. Now, this Christ doth for all that are sanctified, or dedicated, or consecrated unto God (which is almost the perpetual sense of that word in this epistle), in and by that offering of his. And this the apostle farther confirms from the consideration of the new covenant with us, ratified in, and whose effects were pro 1 Rom. v. 1. cured by, the blood-shedding and offering of Christ: Verse 17, “Their sins and their iniquities will I remember no more." Saith God, Upon the account of the offering of Christ, there is an end of that business and that controversy which I have had with those sanctified ones; and therefore let them, as to this, as to the making satisfaction for sin, trouble themselves no more, to think of thousands of rams, or the like, for there is no more offering for sin required," Mic. vi. 6, 7. And on this foundation I may say there doth not remain any such guilt to be reckoned unto believers as that with regard thereunto God should forsake them utterly, and give them over unto everlasting ruin. And this is the sum of the apostle's discourse in that chapter, as it looks upon the matter under present consideration: That sacrifice which so taketh away the sins of them for whom it is offered as that thereupon they should be perfect, or perfectly acquitted of them, and have no more conscience (which is a judgment of a man's self answering to the judgment of God concerning him) of sin, so to judge him and condemn him for it as not to have remedy of that judgment or condemnation provided in that sacrifice, that, I say, doth so take away the guilt of sin as that it shall never separate between God and them for whom and whose sin it was offered; but such was the sacrifice of Christ: ergo, etc. The reason of the consequence is clear from the very form of the proposition, and nothing is assumed but what is the express testimony of the apostle in that and other places. So Dan. ix. 24. The design in the death of Christ is "to finish the transgression, and to make an end of sins, and to make reconciliation for iniquity, and to bring in everlasting righteousness." Christ makes an end of sin: not that there should be no more sin in the world, for there is yet sinning to the purpose, in some respect much more than before his death,' and there will be so to eternity, if those under the ultimate sentence may be thought to sin; but he makes an end of it as to the controversy and difference about it between God and them for whom he died, and that by making reconciliation on the part of God, atoning him towards us' (which atonement we are persuaded to accept), and by bringing in for us a righteousness which is everlasting and will abide the trial, which God will certainly accept.3 Now, when God is satisfied for sin, and we are furnished with a righteousness exactly complete and answering to the utmost of his demand, whence can any more contest arise about the guilt of sin, or the obligation of the sinner unto punishment that from the justice and law of God doth attend it? This also the apostle urgeth, Rom. viii. 34, "Who is he that condemneth? It is Christ that died." He argueth from the death of Christ to the ablation or removal of condemnation for sin, because by his death he hath "made 1 Heb. vi. 4-6, x. 26–31. Isa. xxvii. 3-5, xlv. 24, 25. Rom. v. 10. an end of sin," as was showed, "and brought in everlasting righteousness;" Heb. x. 14-18. To suspend the issue of all these transactions between God and the Mediator upon conditions by us to be accomplished, not bestowed on us, not purchased for us, and as to their event uncertain, is disadvantageously to beg the thing in question. 1 Now, because it appears that, notwithstanding the death of Christ, many for whom he died are kept a long season under the guilt of sin, and are all of them born in a condition of wrath, Eph. ii. 3, I shall crave leave a little to insist on this instance, and to show that notwithstanding the truth thereof, yet the guilt of sin is so taken away from all those for whom Christ died, by his death, that it shall never be a cause of everlasting separation between God and them. In the obedience and death of Christ, whereby, as a completely sufficient and efficacious means, he made way for the accomplishment of his eternal purposes, in such paths of infinite wisdom as brought in all the good he aimed at by it, in that order which the very frame and nature of things by him appointed required for the exaltation of his glory, God is satisfied, well pleased, and resolved that he will not take his course at law against those in the behalf of whom he died, 2 Cor. v. 18-20. Though an arrest was gone forth against all mankind, yet the Lord suspended by his sovereignty the utmost execution of it, that room and space might be given, according to the eternal thoughts of his heart, for the deliverance of some. A reprieve is granted mankind, out of reasons and for purposes of his own. After the sentence of death was denounced against them, God being pleased to magnify his grace, according to his eternal counsel and purpose in Jesus Christ, innovates the law, as to the obligation of it unto punishment, on the behalf of some, by the interposition of the Son of his love in such a way as to undergo what was due unto those on whose behalf the interposition was made. And by this undertaking of Christ, in the very first notion of it, as it was satisfactory, thus much is done and accomplished:— (1.) The vindictive justice of God is satisfied. That is, whereas such is the natural right, sovereignty, and dominion of God over his creatures, and such his essential perfections of holiness, purity, and righteousness, that if his creatures cast off his yoke and their dependence on him (which they do by every sin, what in them lieth), it is then of indispensable necessity that he render unto that sin or sinner guilty thereof a meet recompense of reward; Jesus Christ hath so answered his righteousness, that without the impairing of his right or sovereignty, without the least derogation from his per 1 Cor. vi. 11; Eph. ii. 11, 12. x. 9, 10; 2 Cor. v. 21. 4 Eph. i. 5, 6, 11; 2 Tim. i. 9; Heb. vii. 22, Gen. xviii. 25; Josh. xxiv. 19; Ps. v. 4-6; Hab. i. 13; Vide Diat. de Just. Div. |