can have no respect for them; there can be no fuch Chap. 11. thing as an impenitent Faith: We fee by these things what a Faith that is, by which we are justified.

Secondly, The next thing is, How we are justified by Faith. Faith may be confidered under a double notion; either as it refpects Chrift, or as it refpects the condition of the Gofpel: As it refpects Christ,it unites us to him; it makes us Members of his Myítical Body; thus it is a Sacred Medium to have Chrift's Righteousness imputatively become ours, that we may be justified against the Law; nothing can justifie us against it but Christ's Satisfaction; that cannot do it unless it become ours; ours it cannot be, unless we are Believers. Hence the Apostle faith, That the Righteousness of God is upon the Believer, Rom. 3.22. That Chrift is the end of the Law for Righteousness to the Believer, Rom. 10. 4. Here Faith doth not justifie us in it self, but in its object, Chrift; to whom it fo unites us, that his Righteoufness so far becomes ours, as to justifie us against the Law. As it refpects the Condition of the Gofpel, it is the very thing which that Condition calls for; in the Law of Works the Condition and the Precept were coextenfive; the one was as large as the other; no Man could live by that Law, but he who had the perfect Obedience commanded in the Precept; but in the Law of Grace it is otherwife. The Precept hath more in it than the Condition; the Precept calls for Faith, not in its Truth only, but in its Statures and gradual Perfections; it would have us aspire after a mapinoía, a fiducial Liberty, a manggogía, a perfuafion with full fails towards the great things in the Promife, as if they were fenfibly prefent with us; but the Condition calls only for a true Faith, and no

Chap. II.

more; the leaft Faith, if true, though it be but as
a little fmoak or wick in the focket; though it be but
à little spark or feed of Faith latent in a Defire or
Willing Mind; is performance of the Condition.
Hence the poor in Spirit, who seem to themselves
to have nothing of Grace at all in them, have a Blef-
fedness entailed on them; which could not be, unless
they had performed the Condition; woe would it be
to Chriftians, if all that is in the Precept were in the
Condition alfo; if their Justification were fufpended
till they had reached the top and highest altitude of
the Precept; in reference to the Precept, Faith hath its
Degrees and Statures; it comes up more or lefs to the
Precept; but in reference to the Condition, Faith hath
no Degrees, but ftands in puncto indivifibili; it hath
no magis or minùs in it; the least true Faith doth as
much perform the Condition as the strongest. Cru-
ciger who prayed thus, Invoco te, Domine, languida
& imbecilla Fide, fed Fide tamen, did as much per-
form the Condition, as he who hath the strongest
confidence in God's Mercy. The verity of Faith is
all that the Condition calls for; these things, as I
have learned from Mr. Baxter, being fo, I conclude
thus; as to the Precept,true Faith falls fhort; it is not
as it ought to be, it justifies not; nay, in respect of
defects and imperfections, it felf wants to be juftified
and covered with the Righteoufnefs of Chrift; but
as to the Condition, it fully comes up; it is as it ought
to be; it is in it felf the very thing required; it is in
this point a particular Righteoufnefs, answering for
us, That we have performed the Condition: Yet ftill
we must remember, that this particular Righteousness.
is fubordinate to Chrift's Satisfaction, which is our
univerfal Righteousness.

There

There is yet one thing behind,viz. To confider how Chap. 11. or in what Respect Obedience or Good Works are neceflary unto Juftification: I fhall fet down my thoughts in the following particulars.

á

First, Our good Works do not come in the room of Chrift's Righteousness to justifie us as to the Law; to fecure this, the Apoftle often concludes, That we are not justified by the Works of the Law; our good Works are full of imperfection; the pureft of them come forth ex læfo principio,out of an Heart fanctified but in part; and in their egrefs from thence gather a taint and tincture from the in-dwelling fin; never any Saint durft stand before God in his own Righteoufnefs. Job, though perfect, would not know his own Soul, Fob 9.21. David, though a Man after God's Heart, would not have him mark iniquities, Pfalm. 130.3. Anfelm upon this account cries out, Terret me Vita mea, My own Life makes me afraid; all of it was in his Eyes fin or barrennefs; our Good Works did not, could not fatisfie the Law; no, this was that which nothing but Chrifts Righteousness could accomplish: We find not the Saints in Scripture ftanding upon their own bottom,but flying to aMercy feat; and, as the expreffion is, Hebr. 12, 2. apogärtes, looking off from themfelves unto Jefus the Author and Finisher of their Faith, in whom alone perfect Righte ousness is to be found.

Secondly, Our Good Works have not the fame ftation with Faith; this appears upon a double account; the one is this, Faith unites us to Chrift. And fo it is a Divine Medium to have his Righteousness made ours; but Good Works follow after Union; we are by Faith married to Chrift, that we might bring forth fruit to God, Rom. 7. 4. Before Faith, which Ccc 2

is

Chap. 11.

4.04

is our Efpoufal of Chrift; we bring forth no genuine
Obedience; GoodWorks are the progeny of a Man in
Christ; one who by Union with him is rightly fpi-
rited to do the Will of God: not of a Man in Adam,
one who stands in the power of Nature: the other is.
this, In the very inftant or first entrance into Justifi-
cation, Faith is there, but fo is not Obedience; a
Believer, in the very inftant of believing, before any
Good Works fpring up in his Life, hath a true title
to the promises of the Gofpel; the Righteousness of
Chrift is upon him; the Spirit of Grace is communi-
cated to him; Obedience is a bleffed fruit, which
enfues upon
these.

Thirdly, Obedience is neceffary,though not to the firft entrance into Juftification, yet to the continuance of it. Not indeed as a Cause, but as a CondiDe Juft. tion: Thus Bishop Davenant, Bona opera funt necefActual. fol. faria ad Justificationis ftatum retinendum & confervandum; non ut caufæ, quæ per fe efficiant aut mereantur hanc confervationem; fed ut media feu conditiones, fine quibus. Deus non vult. Juftificationis Gratiam in hominibus confervare. If a Believer, who is inftantly justified upon believing, would continue juftified, he must fincerely obey God. Though his Qbedience in measure and degree reach not fully to the Precept of the Gospel; yet in truth and substance it comes up to the Condition of it; elfe he cannot continue juftified; this to me is very evident; we are at first justified by a living Faith, fuch as virtually is Obedience; and cannot continue juftified by a dead one, fuch as operates not at all. We are at first justified by a Faith which accepts Christ as a Saviour and Lord; and cannot continue juftified by fuch a Faith as would divide Christ, taking his Salvation from guilt, and

by

by disobedience cafting off his Lordship; could we Chap. 11. suppose that which never comes to pass, that a Believer fhould not fincerely obey: How fhould be continue juftified? if he continue juftified, he muft, as all juftified perfons have, needs have a right to life eternal; and if he have fuch a right, how can he be judged according to his works? no good works being found in him after his believing, how can he be adjudged to life? or how to death, if he continue juftified? These things evince, that obedience is a condition neceffary as to our conti→ nuance in a state of Juftification: Nevertheless it is not neceffary, that obedience should be perfect as to the Evangelical precept; but that it should be fuch, that the truth of Grace,which the Evangelical condition calls for, may not fail for want of it: Bleffed are they that do his Commandments, that they may have right to the tree of life; and may enter in through the gates into the City, Rev. 22. 14. The first fundamental right to Heaven they have by the Faith of Chrift only; but fincere obedience is neceffa

ry that that right may be continued to them: In this fence we may fairly conftrue that conclufion of St. James, Te fee then how that by works a man is justified, and not by Faith only. Fam.2.24. Faith brings a man into a juftified eftate: But may he reft here? No; his good works muit be a proof of his Faith, and give a kind of experiment of the life of it: Nay, they are the Evangelical condition, upon which his blessed estate of justification is continued to him; in foro legis, Chrift and his Righte oufness is all; neither our Faith nor our Works can fupply the room of his Satisfaction to justifie us a gainst the Law: But in foro gratiæ, our obedience

anfwers.