Enjoyment in a way of Preparation for the Holiness of that High and Holy Place, for the immediate Enjoyment of the Holy, Holy, Holy Lord God. Holy Communion, holyWork and Employment, are altogether disagreeable to the Unholy Unsanctified ones; nor are they capable of it. It is true, Believers are but in Part sanctified; but they groan to be freed from Sin, and made perfectly holy.

Further, Sanctification is to the Soul the Passive Evidence of his Title to Heaven; the Spirit himself is the Active Evidence thereof: So that they who have no Meetness for the Inheritance will be found at last to have no Title to it. There are some who speak of being justified by Faith from a Charge of Infidelity; by Repentance, from a Charge of Impenitency; by Sincerity, from a Charge of Hypocrisy: The Sum is, at this Rate, we are justified by Sanctification, from a Charge of being unsanctified, and by every Work and Duty, from a Charge of Non-performance. Surely, this is very uncouth Doctrine among Protestants: For it proposes unto us Justification to be obtained in a Way of Pleading what is in us, in Answer to a false Charge brought in I know not by whom. A false Charge it is in the Main, as to every Believer: And if in some Things it is not so, his Justification is by fleeing for Refuge to Jesus Christ. Let us remember how the Pharisee came off with his Pleading; he pleaded Performanceagainst a Charge (perhaps) of Non-performance. The Publican had nothing to plead but Mercy, and went home justified, the other

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unjustified: And so will every one succeed that takes the same Course. Gospel-Justification is not by pleading what we have done, to shuffle off a Charge; but by owning the Charge of the Law, and fleeing to the Obedience of Christ. Moreover, To account a Man a Believer, or penitent, or sincere, who is so, this is not gracious Imputation: But what is due, and what the Nature of the Thing requires: Nor does it more belong to Justification, than for God to account a Saint in Glory a perfect Saint. For Justification is God's Acceptance of an ungodly Sinner, as righteous in his Son, Rom. iv. 5.

I would hope the Meaning of some may only be, that Sanctification also is necessary unto Salvation; that we must be made holy, or shall not be eternally happy. But I wish they spake more of it as a Work of the Spirit of God; and not as a Performance of ours, having the Nature of a pleadable Condition. It is true, a Soul that is renewed by the Spirit of God, is thereby enabled to live upon Christ, and so to live to him; and this is the infallible Effect of what Christ hath done for us.

Some there have been, and those (I confess) sound Divines, who have used the Terms of Commands, Threatenings, and Punishments of the Gospel: But that they did not mean thereby to introduce any New Law, or establish another Righteousness than that of Christ, is clear from that of Dr. Owen, who sometimes used these Terms: That [Duty] which (saith he) in respect of Motives unto it, the Ends of it,

'with the especial Causes of its Acceptance 'with God, is evangelical; in respect of its original Prescription, Rule, and Measure, is legal. When any can instance in any Act 'or Duty, in any Habit or Effect of it, which ' are not required by that Law which injoins 'us to love the Lord our God with all our 'Heart, Soul, and Mind, and our Neighbour as 'ourselves, they shall be attended to.' Owen on Justification, p. 534. Therefore, although Christians ought not to fall out merely about the Use of Names and Terms where there is Soundness of Judgement; yet where it is otherwise, and a New Law, and Justification by Works, are introduced, the Difference is not about Words.

People may be much imposed upon by such a plausible Way of arguing, Does not God accept of the Performances and Services of his People, tho' there is much Weakness and Imperfection in them? Should God stand upon Perfection, how sad would it be for us! Who should be saved? for who comes up to this? Will not he overlook the Weaknesses. and Imperfections of his People, if there is Sincerity of Heart? Answ. (1.) The Services of Believers, done in Faith, are accepted; but are not the Ground of the Acceptation of the Person, but follow it. They are the Object of Acceptance, but not the Cause why the Person is accepted. They are accepted, but not to the End of Justification, nor doth Justification consist therein; but is freely by Grace, through the Redemption of Christ Jesus, Rom. iii. 24. God had respect first to Abel,

then to his Offering, Gen. iv. 4.; See Mal. iii. 3, 4. (2.) Our Services are accepted in Jesus Christ, as well as our Persons., I say, both our Persons and Performances must be wrapped about in his most perfect Righteousness, that they may be accepted. And tho' God does not find a perfect Righteousness in us, yet he finds this in Christ, else he could not bear with our Weaknesses, and none could be saved.

Lastly, Did these New Methodists own, (1.) That Christ suffered under the same Law which we were under, as properly bearing the Curse thereof, and not only under a mediato-rial Law to procure a new one for us to obey for Justification; (2.) Did they own, that Christ's Obedience, not our own Faith and Gospel-Works, takes the Place of what we were to have done under the Covenant of Works, which required perfect Obedience; and that his Obedience is the Matter, and not only the meritorious Cause, of our Justification; even though they ascribed not a distinct. Efficacy to the Active Obedience, but gave to the Passsive what we give to both; there were more Reason to bear with them, than at present there is; and their Scheme were much better than at present it stands. O that God by his Spirit might enlighten them thus far to amend it! For the Path of the Just is as the shining Light, that shineth more and more to the perfect Day, Prov. iv. 18. But when, according to their present Scheme, they bring. the Obedience of Christ to so narrow a Com

pass as that of his Sufferings and Death, and that also to a somewhat instead of the same, or the very Curse of the Law for Sin; and then allow it no other Use in justifying, than to procure. that our imperfect Obedience and good Works should justify us; this is to rob the Son of God of almost all his Glory, both as to the Obedience performed by him, and the USE thereof as to us.