unto the day of redemption, that is, of our bodies from corruption and death; he not only fanctifies our bodies, and dwells in them, but has the care of our duft, and will quicken it at the last day. What an inftruction is this doctrine. to faith, and truft in God, Father, Son, and Spirit? If God can and will raife the dead, what is it he cannot do? Faith fhould not stagger at any thing which God has promised to perform, or be difcouraged at any difficulties in its way, or any trials and afflictions it meets with. The confideration of this, that God quickens the dead, quickened Abraham's faith, so that he staggered not at the promise through unbelief; though there were difficulties attending it infuperable to nature. And when the apostles had the fentence of death in themselves, they were directed not to truft in themselves, but in God, which raifeth the dead, who, fay they, delivered us from fo great a death, and doth deliver: in whom we trust that he will yet deliver us. Moreover this doctrine may teach us, that all due, and proper care, ought to be taken of our bodies, both whilft living, and when dead. All proper care ought to be taken of them whilst living though they are not to be pampered, they are not to be ftarved: they are to be fed and cloathed, according to the bleffing of life, which God bestows upon men, provided the bounds of moderation and decency be observed; for to tranfgrefs these by luxury, and intemperance, is not to use our bodies well, but to abuse them: and when the body is dead, care ought to be taken, that it be decently interred, which may be confirmed by the examples of Abraham, Jofeph of Arimathea, and others. 2. This doctrine is of use for confolation. The day of the refurrection will be a day of confolation to the faints. Hence the Syriac version thus reads those words of Martha, I know that he shall rise again, in the refurrection at the laft day, "I know that he fhall rife again, in the confolation at the last day." Then will be the confummation of the faints joy and comfort, and a believing view of it now must be very delightful to them; as they are waiting for the adoption, namely, the redemption of the body, fo they may lift up their heads with joy, because this their redemption draweth near. The confideration of this doctrine must be a great fupport to faints under trials and afflictions, under diseases and diftempers of body, in the views of death, and the several changes the body fhall undergo after death; I fay, it must be a very comfortable confideration, that, in a little time, all these trials will be ended; there will be no more diseases, nor death: and though the body, for a while, shall be the food of worms, and return to its original duft, yet it fhall be raised. immortal and incorruptible, powerful and glorious; this mortal must put on VOL. III. U immortality, • Rom. iv. 17-20. P 2 Cor. i. 9, 10. 9 John xi. 24. immortality, and this corruption must put on incorruption; and in our flesh shall we fee God, and enjoy the company of angels and faints. To conclude, This doctrine must be of great use to support perfons, under the lofs of near relations; when they confider, that though they are dead, they fhall rife again; though they have parted with them, it is but for a time; and therefore they should not forrow even as those which have no hope; for if we believe that Jefus died, and rofe again, even fo them also which fleep in Jefus, will God bring with him; wherefore we may comfort one another with thefe words, and fo fhall we be ever with the Lord'. THE DOCTRINE OF JUSTIFICATION, BY THE RIGHTEOUSNESS OF CHRIST, STATED AND MAINTAINED. ACTS XIII. 39. And by him all that believe are juftified from all things, from which ye could not be juftified by the law of Mofes. HIS, and the preceding verfe, appear, at first view, to contain those two great doctrines of the gofpel, pardon of fin, and justification from it, the former of which I have largely infifted on, from the foregoing words, and fhall now confider the latter, which I propose to do in the following method. I. I shall explain the act of juftification, and fhew what it is, and what it is not. II. Enquire into the author of it, or who it is that justifies. III. Shew the matter of it, or what that is, for the fake of which any are juftified. IV. Say fomething concerning the form of it, which is by imputation of righteousness. V. Confider the date of juftification. VI. Point out the objects thereof, or who they are that are juftified. VII. Mention the feveral effects, which follow upon it, or are clofely connected with it. VIII. And lastly, Give fome account of the feveral properties of it. I. I shall explain the act of justification, and fhew both what it is not, and what it is. And, 1. Strictly, and properly fpeaking, it is not the pardon of fin. These two acts of divine grace are in ftrict connection with each other, and are not to be separated; that is to fay, where the one is, the other alfo is; yet, I think, they may be diftinguished. Divines generally make juftification to consist in the remiffion of fins, and in the imputation of Chrift's righteousness; which fome make different parts; others fay, they are not two integrating parts of juftification, or acts numerically and really distinct, but only one act respecting two different terms, à quo & ad quem; just as by one, and the fame act, darknefs is expelled from the air, and light is introduced into it; fo by one, and the fame act of justification, the finner is abfolved from guilt, and pronounced righteous. Hence they conclude, that those divines express the whole nature of justification, who say, that it consists in the remiffion of fins, and who say, that it confifts in the imputation of righteousness; because, say they, when God forgives us our fins, he pronounces us righteous, by the imputation of Chrift's righteousness; and when he pronounces us righteous, by the imputation of Chrift's righteousness, he forgives us our fins. I readily allow that there is a very great agreement between juftification and pardon, in their efficient, impulfive, and procuring causes, in their objects, or fubjects, in their commencement, and manner of completion: the fame God that pardons the fins of his people, juftifies them, or accounts them righteous; the fame grace, which moved him to the one, moved him to the other; as the blood of Chrift was fhed for the remiffion of fins, fo by it are we juftified; all who are justified are pardoned; and all who are pardoned, are justified, and that, at one and the fame time; both these acts are finished at once, fimul & femel, and are not carried on in a gradual and progreffive way, as fanctification. But all this does not prove them to be one and the fame, for though they agree in these things, in others they differ; for juftification is a pronouncing a perfon righteous according to law, as though he had never finned; not fo pardon: it is one thing for a man to be tried by law, caft, and condemned, and then receive the king's pardon; and another thing to be tried by the law, and, by it, to be found and declared righteous, as though he had not finned against it. Moreover, though pardon takes away fin, and therefore is expreffed by God's cafting of it behind his back, and into the depths of the fea, and by a removal of it from his people, as far as the east is from the west; yet it does not give a righteousness, as juftification does; pardon of fin, indeed, takes away our filthy garments, but it is juftification that clothes us with change of raiment. Befides, Vid. Alting. Loc. Commun. loc. 14. p. 237. Walai Enchirid. Relig. Reform. p. 72, 73. & Loc. Commun. p. 426, 428. b Vid. Wendelin. Chriftian. Theol. 1. 1. c. 25. thef. 8. P. 500. Ifai. xxxviii. 17. Micah vii. 20. Pfalm ciii. 13. Besides, more is required, and was given for our juftification, than for our pardon; the blood of Chrift was fufficient to procure pardon; but, besides, his fuffering of death, the holiness of his nature, and the perfect obedience of his life, must be imputed for juftification. Again, though pardon frees from punishment, yet, ftrictly, and properly speaking, it does not give a title to eternal life; that juftification properly gives, and is one good reafon why the apostle calls it Juftification of life. If a king pardons a criminal, he does not thereby give him a title to his crown and kingdom; if he will, when he has pardoned him, take him to court, make him his fon and heir, it must be by another distinct act of royal favour. Once more, juftification paffed on Christ, as our Head and Representative, when he rose from the dead, but fo did not pardon. We may truly fay, that Chrift was justified, because the fcriptures say fo, but we cannot say that he was pardoned; should we, it would found very harfh in our ears, as well as be, I think, a very unwarrantable expreffion; therefore pardon and justification may be confidered as two distinct things. In fine, if these two are one and the fame, the apostle must be guilty of a tautology in our text, where he speaks distinctly of justification, having fully expreffed forgiveness of fin in the preceding verfe. 2. Juftification is not a teaching, or an inftructing of men in the way and method how they are or may be justified. When Christ, as God's righteous fervant, is faid to justify many by his knowledge'; the meaning is, not that he, by his knowledge, or doctrine, should only teach men how they might be justified, or what is God's way and method of justifying finners; for this is no more than what the ministers of the gospel do, who are faid to turn many to righteousness, or, as it is in the original text, to justify many; which they do, by preaching the gofpel, wherein the righteousness of God is revealed, from faith to faith; and which, being bleffed and owned by the Spirit of God, is the miniftration of righteousness to many but the meaning is, that he should give to many a spiritual knowledge of himself, which, in other words, is faith; by which they should have a comfortable apprehenfion in their juftification by his righteousness. 3. Juftification is not an infufion of righteousness into perfons; to juftify, is not to make men holy and righteous, who were unholy and unrighteous, by producing any physical or real change in them; for this is to confound justification and fanctification together, which are very manifeftly diftinct; the one being a work of grace in us; the other an act of grace towards us; the one is imperfect, the other perfect; the one is progreffive, and is carried on by degrees; the other is compleat, and finifhed at once. Befides, juftification e 1 Tim. iii. 16. f Ifai. liii. 11. d Rom. v. 18. is |