2. The Continuation of our Juftification, is before God, or in the fight of God, no less than our Juftification itself; whatever is the means, condition, or cause hereof, is pleadable before God, and ought to be pleaded to that purpose. So then the inquiry is, this: "When a juftified perfon is guilty of fin, (as guilty "he is, more or lefs every day) and his confcience is "oppreffed with a fenfe of it, as the only thing which "can endanger his juftified ftate, his favour with God,. "and title to glory, What is that which he ought "to refort to for the continuation of his ftate, and the pardon of his fins ?" I answer, That it is not his own obedience, as the condition of the covenant, which is evident from the Experience of believers-the Teftimony of Scripture-and the Examples recorded therein. Let the Experience of believers be confulted, for their confciences are continually exercifed herein. What do they plead with God for this purpofe? Is it any thing but fovereign grace and mercy through the blood of Chrift? Are not all their pleas taken from the name of God, his mercy, grace, faithfulness, covenant and promifes, as manifefted in the Lord Chrift and his mediation alone? Does any other thought enter their hearts? Do they leave the prayer of the Publican, and ufe that of the Pharifee? And is it not of Faith alone, which is that grace, whereby they apply themselves to the mercy of God through the mediation of Chrift? The Scripture alfo exprefsly declares this to be the only way of the continuation of our Juftification, 1 John ii. 1, 2. "Thefe things write I unto you, that you fin not and if any man fin, we have an Advocate with the Father, Jefus Chrift the righteous; and he is the propitiation for our fins." It is the duty of jus tified perfons not to fin; but it is not fo required, as that if they fail therein, they should immediately lofe the the privilege of Juftification. Wherefore, on a fuppofition of fin, what way is prefcribed for them to take? The apoftle directs--The application of our fouls by faith to the Lord Chrift, as our advocate with the Father, on account of the propitiation he made for our fins. In this double at of his jacerdotal office, his oblation and interceffion, he is the object of our faith in our abfolute Juftification, and fo he is as to the continuation of it. It is no part of our inquiry, what God requires of juftified perfons. There is no grace, nor duty required, either by the law or the gospel to which they are not obliged; when these are omitted, guilt is contracted and hence believers are conftantly exercised in repentance and godly forrow. And thefe duties are fo far neceffary to a juftified state, that it cannot confift with their oppofire fins and vices. "If we live after the flesh we fhall die." He who doth not carefully avoid falling into the fire or water, cannot live; but these are not the things on which his life depends. The best of our duties have no other refpect to the continuation of our Juftification, but that in them we are preferved from things deftructive of it. The fole queftion is, upon what does this continuation depend? not what duties are required of us. If thofe, who affirm that obedience is the condition of it, mean that God indifpenfably requires it, and that the neglect of it is inconfiftent with a juftified Rate, we readily grant it. But if it be afked, What is that, whereby, in a way of duty, we concur to the continuation of our Juftification? we fay, it is Faith alone; "for the just fhall live by his faith," Rom. i. 17. And as the Apostle applies this divine teftimony to prove our first or abfolute Juftification to be by faith; fo he applies it (Heb. x. 38, 39.) to the continuation of it. "Now the juft fhall live by faith: but if any man draw back, my foul shall have no pleasure in him. But we are not of them that draw back to perdition, but of them that believe G 3 believe to the faving of the foul." "Drawing back to perdition," includes the lofs of a juftified stare, really fo, or in profeffion: the Apoftle oppofes to this -"believing to the faving of the foul;" that is, to the continuation of Juftification to the end. So Gal. ii. 20. " The life which we now live, in the flesh, is by faith; that is, the continuation of our Juftification ; a life of righteoufnefs, in oppofition to a life by the works of the law, ver. 21. and this life is by faith in Christ," as he loved us and gave himself for us;” that is, as he was a propitiation for our fins. This, then, is the only way, means, and caufe, on our part, of the prefervation of this life, of the continuance of our Juftification. The Examples of justified persons recorded in Scripture bear witness to the same truth. The continuation of the Juftification of Abraham was by faith only, Rom. iv. 3. for the inftance of his Justification given by the Apostle, from Gen. xv. 6. was long after he was juftified abfolutely: and if our firft Juftification, and the continuance of it, did not depend on the fame cause, the inftance of the one could not be produced as a proof of the way and means of the other. And David, when a justified believer, not only places the bleffedness of man in the free remiffion of fins, in oppofition to his own works in general, Rom. iv. 6, 7. but in his own particular cafe afcribes the continuation of his Juftification to grace, mercy, and forgiveness alone; all which are received by faith. Pfal. cxxx. 3--5. Pfal. cxl. 2. All other works and duties of obedience accompany faith in the continuation of our juftified ftate, as neceffary fruits and effects of it; but not as the caufes, means, and conditions on which that effect is fufpended. Wherefore there is but one Fuftification, and that of one kind only; nor can we admit of any other; for if there be a fecond, it must either be of the fame kind with the firft, or of anothers EVANGELICAL PERSONAL RIGHTEOUSNESS. 67 ther; if it be of the fame kind, then the fame perfon is often juftified with the fame kind of Juftification; if it be not of the fame kind, then the fame perfon is juftified before God with two forts of Juftification, of both which the Scripture is utterly filent. And the continuation of our Juftification depends folely on the fame caufes with our Juftification itself. CHAP. VI. Evangelical Perfonal Righteousness confidered. Final Judgment, and its Respect to Juftification. IT "The T is apprehended by fome, that there is an Evangelical Fuftification upon our Evangelical Perfonal Righteoufness, which they diftinguish from that Juftification which is by faith; for, fay they, "Righteoufnefs of Chrift imputed to us is our legal "righteousness; thereby we are acquitted from the fen"tence of the law: but as there is a perfonal inherent "righteoufnefs required of us, fo there is a Juftifica"tion by the Gofpel thereon. By our faith we are "juftified from the charge of unbelief; by our fincerity, from the charge of hypocrify; and fo by all "other graces and duties from the charge of contrary "fins," &c. With refpect to this we may obferve, 1. That God doth require of all believers a fincere obedience to be performed by their own perfons, through the aids of grace fupplied unto them by Jefus Chrift, Eph. ii. 10. 2. Believers are, from the performance of this obedience, denominated righteous in the Scripture, and are perfonally and inherently righteous; but they are fo called not with refpect to grace habitually inherent, but to the effects of it in duties of obedience. Thus "Zacha "Zacharias and Elifabeth were both righteous before God, walking in all the ordinances and commandments of the Lord blameless *." The latter words give the reafon of the former, or their being esteemed righteous; and he that doth righteousness is righteous :" the denomination is from doing. 3. This inherent righteoufnefs, taking it from that which is habitual and actual, is the fame with our Sanctification; for this is the inherent renovation of our nature, exerting itself in newness of life, and works of righteoufnefs. But Sanctification and Juftification are in Scripture always distinguished. 4. By this inherent perfonal righteoufnefs, we may be faid to be juftified: (1) In our own confciences, as it affords an evidence of our intereft in Chrift, and fo contributes to our peace: " our rejoicing being this, the teftimony of our confcience," &c. † (2.) Before men; hereby we are acquitted of evils laid to our charge, and approved as righteous and unblameable 1. (3.) Against the charges of Satan, the accufer of the brethren. Now, admitting these as the proper ufes of our perfonal righteousness, I cannot fee that there is an evangelical Juftification on account of it in the fight of God: for, 1. None have it but those who are antecedently juftified; it is merely the obedience of faith. " Works before faith" are by general confent excluded; and we have before proved, that they are neither conditions of it, difpofitions to it, nor preparations for Juftification. But every believer is immediately justified on his believing; nor is there any moment of time wherein he is not juftified. This perfonal righteoufnefs cannot, then, be the condition of Juftification, feeing it is confequential thereto. 2. Juftification before God, is an abfolution from a charge before God; the inftrument of which charge is Luke i. 6. John iii. 7. iii. 16. +1 Cor. i. 12. either 1 Pet. i. 12. and |