Exposition of Romans 8-11, Chapter 10 · Verses 9-10
VERSE 9. That if thou ſhalt confeſſe with thy mouth the Lord Ieſus, and ſhalt beleeue in thy heart that God hath raiſed him from the dead, thou ſhalt be ſaued.
10. For with the heart man beleeueth vntounto righteouſneſſe, and with the mouth confeſsion is made vntounto ſaluation.
OVr owne righteouſneſſe and the righteouſneſſe of Faith hauehave beene compared. The righteouſneſſe wee attaine by doing, is vncertaine and impoſſible: the righteouſneſſe we attaine by beleeuing, is certaine and poſſible. Certaine, becauſe it expels doubts: poſſible, becauſe the Word of Faith is neere vsus in our mouth and heart.
This of Faith, hee explaines in theſe two verſes, ſhewing that in the righteouſneſſe of Faith, it is onelyonly required that wee ſhould heartily beleeue and confeſſe the Reſurrection of Chriſt, verſe 9. which is amplified by an Apoſtolicall determination, verſe 10.
If thou ſhalt confeſſe with thy mouth, and beleeue with thy heart. There are two things required of him that would be ſaued: The confeſsion of the mouth, and the beleeuing of the heart: and we hauehave in theſe verſes two things to be conſidered: 1. The duty required. 2. The end.
The duty is two-fold: Of the mouth, which is called Confeſſion; of the heart, which is named Beleeuing. In the duty of the mouth, wee hauehave three things. Firſt, the Action, Confeſſion. Secondly, the Subiect, the Mouth. Thirdly, the Obiect, the Lord Ieſus. Auricular Confeſſion is not here meant. Tho. Aquin. in locum.Confeſſion is three-fold. Of ſinnes, of Benefits, of the Truth: this laſt is here vnderſtood; namely, that mayne Truth, Saluation onelyonly by Chriſt. To confeſſe Chriſt hath a large ſence: to acknowledge him to be our Lord, and ſo to vſe him: that is, to ſubmit our affection to him, as to our chiefe Lord, by right of Creation, Prouidence, Redemption, to call vponupon him, to obey him, and if neede bee, to reſtifie our acknowledgement vvith our beſt blood.
And ſhalt belieue, &c. Here are alſo three things: 1. The Action, Beleeuing. 2. The Subiect, the Heart. 3. The Obiect, That God raiſed vp Chriſt, &c. This is not onelyonly to aſſent to the truth hereof, which the Iewes doe not, the diuells doe not denie; but to embrace the benefits, and to rely vponupon it. Reſurrection; not excluſiuely, but by a figure, comprehending things Antecedent, and Conſequent: but this principally is named, not as adding to the price, but as ſealing to the conſcience the ſufficiency of his death. The confidence of a good Conſcience beeing grounded vponupon the Reſurrection of Chriſt. 1. Peter 3.21.That Chriſt died, the Iewes and Heathens do belieue; Chriſtians onelyonly belieue that he roſe againe.
Thou ſhalt be ſaued. That is, thou ſhalt be iuſtified, as before; Thou ſhalt liue: for both the righteouſnes of the Law, and of faith, hauehave eternall life, as the end propounded and promiſed vntounto them, but with a different ſucceſſe. By that, none attaine the end, becauſe it hath a condition poſſible to none. By this, all the Elect doe attaine, becauſe it is poſſible for all whom GOD purpoſes to ſaue, to confeſſe and beleeue. Neither is ſaluation without iuſtice, nor righteouſnes without ſaluation. So farre iuſt, ſo farre ſaued.
For with the heart, &c. Faith brings righteouſnes. Confeſſion is an infallible ſigne of faith. Righteouſnes, Confeſſion, Saluation, are the effects of faith; but faith and all, are the gifts of God.
In the 9. verſe, Confeſſion is ſet before: in this verſe, Faith. In Nature, and in the order of Compoſition, faith of the heart goes before confeſſion of the mouth; 2. Cor. 4.13.I belieued, therefore I ſpake. But in order of Reſolution, Confeſsion of the mouth precedes: for we know not the faith of the Brethren before they make confeſsion.
doctrine Faith and Confeſsion are neceſſary to ſaluation. Faith, by the neceſsity of the meanes, and of the precept: Confeſsion by the neceſſity of the precept. Of the neceſsity of faith, Math. 16.16. Iohn 3.18. Eph. 2.8. Of Confeſſion. Math. 10.32,33. 1. Iohn 4.15. Therefore is Chriſt called the Apoſtle of our Confeſsion. Heb. 3.1.
Vſe 1.If Thou. Miniſters hauehave here a patterne of Application in teaching.
Vſe 2.If Thou. The Papiſts ſay that none can be certaine of Saluation by the certainty of a ſpeciall faith: vvhichwhich is cleane contrary to this of Paul, and wholly takes away his Argument, which he brings from the aſſurance of faith. One of their chiefe reaſons is, Becauſe it is no where written, Peter, Iohn, &c. ſhall be ſaued; and that which is not written, is not to be beleeued.
To this I anſwere: Firſt, It is not neceſſary that eueryevery particular Beleeuers name ſhould be written. It is enough if the promiſes be vniuerſally deliuered, becauſe vniuerſalls include all particulars. All Belieuers ſhall be ſaued, therefore I alſo belieuing, ſhall be ſaued.
Secondly, here is a particular promiſe. If thou: ſpeaking to eueryevery one as by name, as is the tenour of the Law, and eueryevery one takes himſelfe to be meant.
Thirdly, whereas they ſay, that our faith is not written in the Bible: I anſwere, that faith is taken two waies; for that which I doe beleeue, or for that with which I doe beleeue: for the obiect, or for the vertue of faith. The firſt is neceſſary to be written; The ſecond is not, nor can be written: for the grace of faith is not belieued, but felt. By the power of my Conſcience I know that I belieue, as I know vvhat I thinke.
Vſe 3.This Scripture ſpeakes to thee face to face, to comfort thee if thou belieueſt, & to terrifie thee if thou belieueſt not: for as it is true that if thou belieueſt, and confeſſeſt, thou ſhalt be ſaued; ſo if thou doeſt not, thou ſhalt be damned.
Ʋſe 4.As Faith, ſo Confeſsion is neceſſary. There are many who vnderſtand not the doctrine of Chriſt, which they ſhould confeſſe; let ſuch learne to make confeſsion, if they would be ſaued. EueryEvery one is bound to belieue the Principles and Articles of faith, explicitè, that is, plainely, vnderſtanding what he belieues, as ſaith the Schoole.
Vſe 5.Teſtifie thy faith by thy Confeſsion; which is either Verbal or Real. Verbal is of the mouth, when wee ingenuouſly profeſſe him in whom wee belieue, and are not aſhamed. As Chriſt liues in thy heart, ſo let him dwell in thy mouth. Who will endure ſuch a ſeruant who is aſhamed to acknowledge his Maſter?
Real Confeſsion, is either of Action, or Paſsion. Of Action, in our whole conuerſation, that our manners may ſpeake and confeſſe Chriſt, that wee be not in the number of them, who profeſſe they know God, but deny him in their liues. Of Paſsion, that we be ready to ſeale that without bloud, which we profeſſe in word and action, from whence, ſuch are called Martyrs in excellence, that is, excellent vvitneſſes. For the moſt excellent, is that, which is confirmed without death, as Paul ſpeakes to Timothy of our Sauiour.1. Tim. 6.16.
Here are diuers to be reprehended, 1. Our Ignorants, as in the 4. Vſe. 2. Nicodemites, who account it ſufficient to belieue with their heart, taking liberty to confeſſe vvhat they liſt. 3. Hypocrites, who cōfeſſe faire, but belieue nothing. But it is no Confeſsion if it be not of Faith: for to confeſſe, is to vtter that which is in the heart. It thou haſt one thing in thy heart, and vttereſt another with thy mouth, thou ſpeakeſt, but cōfeſſeſt notkSi aliud in corde habes, et aliud dicis, loqueris, nō confiter is. Anſel.. 4. Our profane perſons, who deny Chriſt with their works, which is the worſt deniall: for ſtronger is the teſtimony of the life, then of the lippes, and workes hauehave their eloquence in the life, then of the lippes, and workes hauehave their eloquence in the ſilence of the tongue. Our Sauiours works did more teſtifie of him then the witneſſe of Iohn lIohn 5.36.. Its a great madnes not to belieue the Goſpel to be true; but a greater, whē thou belieueſt it to be true, ſo to liue as though thou didſt belieue it to be falſemMagna eſt inſania, non credere Euangelio, &c. ſed longe major inſania, ſi de Euangelij veritate non dubitas, viuere tamen quaſi de cius falſitate non dubitares. Picus Miran..
We would readily ſay, that he which denies Chriſt, is a wretch: take heed thou findeſt not the wretch in thine own boſome, if thou liueſt profanely, thou art he. Thou muſt both belieue, and confeſſe; in word, in action, by paſsion.
As that creature is not a man, which though it hath ſome ſimilitude of a man, yet hath not a reaſonable ſoule; ſo that man is not a true Chriſtian, which hath not both the faith and confeſsion of Chriſt.