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in constant and wilful disobedience. This would be a mere prostitution of his grace to the service of sin, and the encouragement of farther disobedience. This would be to make God the patron of iniquity, and Christ the minister of sin; Gal. ii. 17. This would be turning the grace of God into wantonness; Jude, verse 4. And this exceeding great mercy of God, the holy apostle supposes, should be a sufficient guard against wilful sin, while we hope to be justified by faith. If we are justified by faith in Christ, what shall we say then? Shall we continue in sin, that grace may abound? God forbid; Rom. vi. 1, 2. III. Besides this same apostle assures us, "that we are chosen, adopted, and forgiven, for this very end, that we might be holy and without blame before God in love; Eph. i. 4,6. Therefore is our conscience purged by the blood of Christ, from dead works, that we might serve the living God; Heb. ix. 14. Therefore are we redeemed from sin and hell by the precious blood of the Son of God, that we might be freed from the power of our iniquities, and become a peculiar people zealous of good works; Tit. ii. 14. Our holiness is one chief design of God, in all the exercises of his grace: And as we seek to frustrate his design, if we hope for his acceptance without pursuing holiness, so he will frustrate all our hopes.

IV. And, it is upon this account, that holiness of heart and good works in life, where there is opportunity for them, are insisted upon as necessary to our fiual salvation through all the bible; and perhaps in one or two places of the New Testament, it is mentioned as necessary, even to our justification, as well as to final salvation: Not that our best works of holiness are such a complete righteousness as to answer the present demands of God, under the gospel, but because they are necessary to shew the truth of our faith, and to render it a living justifying faith, which could not justify us if it were a dead faith, or without works. It is a working faith that must justify us, as good works evidence and prove the truth and life of our faith.

V. The apostle James argues this matter particularly in the last half of his second chapter. viz. That works must be joined to our faith to make it a justifying faith. From all which it is plain, that in whatsoever scriptures faith is said to justify us without works, it can mean no more than this, viz. that we are pardoned and accepted of God through our faith, trust or dependance on divine mercy, and on the mediation of Christ, under a sense of the imperfection of our best works, and their insufficiency

*Yet it is not amiss to observe here, that the apostle James, where he treats on this matter, in the second chapter of his epistle, speaks of that faith, which is a mere assent to the truth revealed, for it is such a faith as devils have, and it does not arise to a serious and humble hope or trust in the mercy of God for complete salvation, according to the gospel, which alone is supposed to be productive of good works.

to answer the demands of any law for righteousness or justification. But still in other scriptures we are told, it must be such a faith as works by love, purifies the heart, and wheresoever there is opportunity, it produces the fruits of holiness in our lives; and therefore good works in this sense are needful to secure our justification, as well as they are very necessary, on many accounts, to honour God in this world, and to make us meet for final salvation. Thus the free grace of God in our justification is honoured, and yet holiness is effectually secured in all them that are saved.

VI. To conclude this head, let it be remembered, that since faith and repentance, and holiness of heart and life, are all necessary, in order to our salvation under the gospel, it is of infinitely more importance to see to it, that we pursue and practise this faith, repentance and holiness, than to be nicely and critically skilled in adjusting the logical relations of these christian virtues to our salvation, or our justification, or in ranging them artificially in their proper place and order. The most skilful, most zealous, and most orthodox person, will certainly fall short of justification and salvation, if he has not these good qualities of faith and holiness found in him; and the weakest in knowledge shall be justified and saved, in whom these qualities and characters are found.

CHAP. X.-The Commencement of the Christian Dispensation;

or, when was Christianity set up in the World.

I. This last and best dispensation of grace, viz. the christian religion was not properly set up in the world, during the life of Christ, though he was the illustrious and divine Author and Founder of it: And the reason is plain and obvious, viz. because many of the peculiar glories, duties and blessings of it, as they are described in the Acts, and in the sacred epistles, did really depend upon those facts, which had no existence in Christ's own life-time, viz. his death, resurrection, ascension, and exaltation. It was not proper therefore, that Christ should publicly preach these doctrines of his atonement for sin, of faith in his blood, of his royalties and intercession in heaven, and our living upon them, &c. in too plain and express a manner in his own life-time, because it would have given too much offence to his hearers; and his wisdom taught him to preach the truths of his gospel to men, as they were able to bear it; Mark iv. 33.

John xvi. 12.

II. Therefore it was but seldom that he mentioned these things in his own personal ministry; and it was but just at the end of his life, that he instituted the second sacrament, or the Lord's supper, which discovers plainly, and in most express language, the blessed doctrine of his atonement for sin; and it was

after his resurrection he completed the form of the first sacrament or baptism, wherein our regeneration by the Holy Spirit is represented, and the Holy Spirit is expressly named.

III. The kingdom of Christ, therefore, or the christian dispensation was not properly set up in all its forms, doctrines and duties, till the following day of Pentecost, and the pouring down of the Spirit upon the apostles from our risen, ascended and exalted Saviour. It was just before his ascension, that our Saviour told them, that they should preach his gospel to all nations, when they had received the promised Spirit, and they were to tarry at Jerusalem, till they had received this power; Luke xxiv. 42. The preaching of Christ, and his life, his death and his resurrection, laid the foundations of his kingdom, but it was the preaching of the apostles, after he ascended to the throne in heaven, that actually set up his kingdom here on earth.

IV. The three or four years of Christ's personal ministry upon earth, were a sort of medium, or a hour of twilight between the darkness of Jewish veils or types, and the clear daylight of the gospel or christianity: It was rather a removing away the rubbish of traditions, superstitions, and corruptions of truth and duty, &c. as a preparation for the kingdom of Christ, in the world, than the very constitution of that kingdom. Accordingly the preaching of Christ ran thus; Mat. vi. 17. Repent, for the kingdom of heaven is at hand. And the petition in the Lord's prayer corresponds with it. Mat. vi. 10. Thy kingdom

come.

This

He himself preached only to the Jews and Samaritans, and forbid his apostles to go quite so far at that time; for as he would not suffer them to preach to the Gentiles; so neither to carry their ministry into Samaria; Mat. x. 5. whereas his gospel was designed for the heathens also, even for all mankind. he often intimated in parables, during his public ministry on earth. He foretold them also, that he had many things to say to them, which they could not bear at that time. See John xvi. 12. And several other things which they heard and saw in secret, which related to the setting up of his kingdom, they were charged not to declare, till the Son of man was risen from the dead. Mat. xvi. 20. and xvii. 9. and what they heard from him then in the ear, they should afterwards publish, as upon the house-tops.

V. Thence it follows, that in order to learn all the doctrines and duties of the christian religion completely, we must not only consult the history of the four gospels, which contain the life of Christ and his personal ministry, but we must also consult the Acts of the Apostles after his ascension, together with their epistles to the churches: for therein, this our holy religion is more completely discovered and explained in many particulars, rela

ing to Christ's atonement for sin by his death, our pardon and justification by faith in him, his intercession, his headship of the church, his kingdom over all, his final judgment, &c. For all this was more fully revealed to the apostles, by their conversation with Christ about his kingdom, forty days after his resurrection; Acts i. 2. and by the large effusions of the gifts of the holy Spirit upon them, when he ascended to heaven, and sent them to plant and propagate the christian church throughout all the world.

VI. And though the apostle Paul was the last of the apostles, that is, was called by Christ himself, after his ascension to heaven, yet we who are of the Gentile nations, are more particularly to learn our religion, in the several doctrines and duties of it, from his writings, who was in a more especial manner commissioned to be the apostle of the Gentiles; Gal. ii. 7, 8. and who had this mystery of preaching the gospel to the Gentile world, revealed to him before the other apostles well understood it. He received his gospel from Jesus Christ himself, by revelation, as he tells us; Gal. i. 1, 2. And he came not a whit behind the very chiefest of the apostles, either in knowledge or gifts, or labours, in success, or in sufferings; but was more eminent and glorious, in his active and passive services for Christ, than any other, and perhaps than they all. 1 Cor. xv. 10. and 2 Cor. xi. 5, 6. And he hath left more of his epistles behind him, for the use of the Gentile churches, than all the rest put together.

It is moreover evident, from several of this apostle's writings, that he had a most peculiar insight into the various and different dispensations of God to man, from the beginning to the end of the world. His writings, therefore, eminently demand our perusal, if we would learn our lessons of christianity.

CHAP. XI.

The Gradual Change from Judaism to Christianity; and the Jewish and Gentile Christians at last united in One Body.

I. It is also from the writings of St. Paul, this great apostle, and from his practice and conduct, that we must chiefly learn the gradual procedure of God, in the abolition of the Jewish dispensation, and the complete introduction of christianity into the world, or among all nations, both Jews and Gentiles, which thing has some difficulties attending it; but I think may be made easy by the following account.

II. Let us first take notice, that among all the former dispensations of grace, there was none but that of Adam and Noah, who were the two common fathers of all mankind, which was designed for all the nations of the earth, till the dispensation of Christ was introduced. By this last dispensation, the heathen nations, as well as the Jews, even all mankind, wheresoever the

gospel comes, are called to repentance and salvation. Mat. xxviii. 19. Go teach all nations. Acts xvii. 30. Ile now commands all men every where to repent. Rev. xxii. 17. Whosoever heareth let him say, come; and whosoever will, let him come. As for the two dispensations of Abraham and Moses, they were more confined to a particular family, and to their posterity, which made up the Jewish nation. The nations of the Gentiles, had indeed, some acquaintance with these transactions of God with Abraham and the Jews, partly by their traffic, but chiefly by their captivities and dispersions. These were greatly useful indeed, to preserve and restore the knowledge of the one true God, not only among the neighbouring heathens, but among distant countries, Greece, Persia, Assyria, Egypt, &c. And as these things prepared the way for their receiving the gospel, so many prophecies of old did plainly foretel that the last dispensation, or the kingdom of the Messiah, should extend to all nations.

III. Though the apostles by the general words of their com mission, which was given them at Christ's ascension; Mat. xxviii. 18-20. had an early right to preach the gospel to the heathen nations, yet this was made evident to them, by slow degrees, and consequently, their execution of this commission was gradual, according as divine wisdom saw proper, to enlighten them, and as divine providence conducted them.

IV. The first public ministration of the gospel in its glory, was to the Jews only: It began at Jerusalem in the days of Pentecost, when the Spirit was poured out on the apostles, and other disciples, in the form of cloven tongues. As they were ordered to begin at Jerusalem; Luke xxiv. 47. so it was a most illustrious success, which attended the first opening of their commission: For, on this great day, three thousand souls were converted, that is, among the native Jews, and the proselytes of the temple, or complete proselytes, who were reckoned as natives, though they came from various nations, as appears, Acts ii. 5— 11. Some time after this, five thousand more were converted at Jerusalem; Acts iv. 4. and the number of believers still increased, and many priests received the faith; chapter vi. 7.

V. After this, the gospel was preached to the Samaritan Jews, whose predecessors were a sort of mingled people, and derived partly from Jews, and partly from heathens; Acts viii. 5. Then the christian converts proceeded to preach the same gospel in foreign countries, but still to the Jews only, though they dwelt at Phenice, Cyprus, Antioch, &c. Acts. xi. 19.

VI. The next sort of converts, who were received into the christian church, were such as the scripture calls the devout or worshipping Gentiles, or men fearing God; many of whom

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