Yea, a Believer who is one with Chrift, not only doth good works, but doth them continually: for Chrift in him is always active; and whilst he is in Chrift, he must be always active, and therefore, faith Chrift, Joh. 15. He that abideth in me, and I in him, the fame bringeth forth much fruit: For through this mutual abiding of Chrift and a Chriftian in each other, a Chriftian as naturally and as necessarily doth the works of God, as the fire burns, or the Sun fhines.

And these are fome of the Advantages a Chriftian hath, through faith in the Son of God.

By all which we may perceive, that true faith is a greater matter than the most are aware of. For men ufually think, that when they hear the Gospel in the outward Ministry, and affent to it, that it is true, that this is Faith, and that then they do believe; but the true faith of Gods elect is a greater matter than fo; for through that we are truly made one with the Son of the living God, and do abide and live in him for ever. And fo this right faith is a moft high and precious grace, and is the firft manifeftation of the Fathers eternal love to the Soul, and the first grace whereby we have entrance into the Kingdom of God: it is the Sabbath of Sabbaths: it is the greatest and highest worship of God: it is infinite and everlasting righteousness; it is the mortification of the flesh, the quickning of the Spirit; our mighty victory over the Law, Sin, Death, Hell, the World, and Devil; it is the first and last, and all in all, in the Kingdom of the Son: And he that believes as the Scriptures have faid, is already truly passed from fin to righteoufnefs, from death to life, and Satan to God.

So that right Faith is a moft precious grace, and is found in very few of the common Profeflors of the worldly Church; So that Chrift himself

makes

makes this question, The Son of man when he comes hall be find faith upon earth? And therefore it concerns all to inquire, and try, Whether we partake of this Faith or no? And whether the life we live in the FLESH, be in the Faith of the Son of God? otherwife we must know, that as he that believes shall be faved, fo he that believes not shall be damned.

It follows,

Who Loved Me, and gave himself for me.

The Apofle having fhewed that all true Chriftians are truly crucified with Christ, and are also truly quickened with him, by the fame living Word and Spirit of life which crucified them; and fo do receive a Spiritual and Divine life, instead of their humane and carnal life: and having also fhewed the Means by which they attain to this bleffed death, and bleffed life, and that it is by faith in the Son of God: Here he proceeds to fhew us two main and chief things, which faith regards and apprehends in Chrift; to wit, his infinite love, and the incomparable fruit of it; faying, Who loved me, and gave himself for me.

It is the nature of true Faith, to apply Christ and all his Works to the believer, and to make them his own; for faith puts on Chrift, and cloaths us with Chrift; yea, it eats and drinks him who is the Son of the living God, and fo makes Chrift its own indeed.

Through faith Chrift is formed in us, and we again are formed in him; and Christ and we are fo made one another through faith, that Chrift Appropriates us to himself, and we again appropriate Chrift to us.

Other men content themselves with a General conceit that Chrift loved them; but a Chriftian hath a Particular faith. Other men believe that he loved Paul, and Peter, and John, and fuch eminent Saints; but true faith faith in our hearts, he loved Me,

even Me together with them, and that with the felf fame love; and gave himself for Me, as he did for them,

But fome will fay, Had not Paul a fpecial Revela- Queft. tion of this love of Chrift befides faith?

I Answer, Paul had a special Revelation of this Anfw. love, but yet no other than all believers have who have received the Spirit, as the fame Apostle fhews, I Cor. 2. 12. where he faith, We have not received the Spirit of the world, but the Spirit that is of God, that we may know the things that are freely given to us of God: So that the Spirit of God within us, fhows us the things that God hath freely given us; among which Chrifts Love and Redemption are the chief. And the fame Apostle prays for the Ephefians, that God would give them the Spirit of wisdom and Revelation to know Chrift. Now this Spirit of Revelation doth not only fhow us that there is a Chrift, and what he is, but also that this Chrift is Ours, whatsoever he is; and that he hath loved Us, and given himself for Us. And this Revelation all the Faithful have together with Paul.

And thus having anfwered this Objection, we fhall proceed to make fome Ufe of this Point alfo.

And firft we may obferve what an excellent appre-fe 1. benfion, and vifion of Chrift true faith hath; namely, it looks on Chrift, not as a Severe Judge, or Law-giver, but as one who hath truly loved us, and given himself for us, And fuch a Difcovery and Vifion of Chrift as this, will uphold our Souls mightily in all our faddeft, and darkest hours; and will preferve us, that we be not swallowed up of Despair. Yea when we fee Chrift thus, nothing is fo fweet, Lovely, and defirable to us, as He is.

Now Satan and our evil Confciences, will ever be representing Chrift otherwife to us, to make him Dreadful and Terrible to our Souls: as Luther re

ports

Use 2.

ports of a certain Doctor in his time, who apprehended that Chrift stood at the right hand of his Father accufing him for his fins; and with the very horror, and agonie of this apprehenfion, he pined away and died.

Wherefore let us not fee Chrift as Satan and our evil Confciences represent him in the hour of Temptation, but as the Gospel holds him forth, and then we fhall fee him to be fuch an one who hath loved us, and given himself for us: And fuch a knowledge of Chrift will fupport, and establish us again in the worst aflaults that fin, and death, and hell can make against us.

2. We may learn, That faith carries nothing to Chrift of its own, but it goes empty, and naked to him, and expects to receive all things from him: Faith faith, Chrift loved me, and gave himself for me, when I did not love him, nor give my felf for him; yea when I was an Enemy to him, and Crucified him. Faith faith, I have no righteousness, nor wifdom, nor goodness, nor any worth at all to carry to Chrift; but 1 expect all from him, being my felf poor and miferable, and blind, and na

in

ked.

Unbelief is altogether looking at what we have done for Chrift; but faith is altogether beholding what Chrift hath done for us.

Unbelief would fain bring something to Chrift; for which Chrift might accept it; but faith brings us unto Chrift, deftitute of all good, and full of all evil, and even then cafts us with confidence and aff rance, on his free love and mercy.

Unbelief when it finds no good in it felf, dares not go to Chrift, nor trust in him: but faith can truft in Chrift in the midst of all fin and evil, as well as in the midst of all graces and vertues; for else no FLESH could be faved. And thus unbelief makes void the Gospel, but faith establishes it.

For

For when a man would firft find in himself a love to Chrift, and readiness to give himself for him e're he can conceive any hope that Chrift did love him, and gave himself for him, this man abolifhes the Gospel, and makes Christ void, who came to fave finners, and to juftifie the ungodly. But now he that feels nothing but Sin, and Death and Hell in himself, and all manner of evil and enmity against God; and yet notwithanding all this, can go to Chrift by Faith, and can believe that Chrift hath loved him even in this Condition, and given himself for him, this is the man that magnifies the Gospel, and hath the right understanding and knowledge of Chrift: Yea this is the Man that gives God the greatest glory that any Creature on Earth can give him, yea greater than all the Angels in Heaven can give him; for they being full of the righteousness of their first Creation, believe the Love of God to them; but for men that have loft all that righteoufnefs, and 1 are befides filled with all manner of Sin, even then to believe the love of God in Chrift, this is the precious Faith of the Gofpel, and the greatest glorification of God that can be. Wherefore Paul faith here, he loved me, and gave himself for me: As if he had faid, he found in me no Free-will, or Natural abilities; no good defires, affections or ends; but he faw me wholly eftrayed from God, wicked, abominable, and the Captive of the Devil; and yet fuch was his goodness, that notwithstanding all this, he loved me, and gave himself for me. And this was the victory and triumph of Pauls Faith.

Now by this that hath been laft faid, we may perceive that every man naturally would find fomething in himself to bring to Chrift, to make him acceptable unto him; and that very few

can