The Sinners Sanctuary, Sermon 32
SERMON XXXII.
Rom. 8.12.
Therefore brethren, we are debters, not to the flesh, to live after the flesh, &c.
ALL things in Christianity have a near and strait conjunction; it is so intire and absolute a piece, that if one link be loosed, all the chain falls to the ground; and if one be well fastned upon the heart, it brings all alongs with it: some speak of all truths, even in nature, that they are knit so together that any truth may be concluded out of every truth, at least by a long circuit of deduction and reasoning; but whatsoever be of that, certainly Religion is a more intire thing, and all the parts of it more nearly conjoyned together, that they may mutually enforce one another, Precepts and promises are thus linked together, that if any soul lay hold indeed upon any promise of grace, he draws alongs with it, the obligation of some precept to walk suitable to such precious promises. There is no encouragement you can indeed fasten upon, but it will joyn you as nearly to the commandment; and no consolation in the Gospel, that doth not carry within its bosome an exhortation to holy walking. Again, on the other hand, there is no precept but it should lead you straight way to a promise, no exhortation but it is invironed before and behind with a strong consolation, to make it pierce the deeper, and go down the sweeter. Therefore you see how easily the Apostle digresseth from the one to the other, how sweetly and pertinently these are interwoven in his discourse. The first word of the Chapter is a word of strong consolation, there is no condemnation to them that are in Christ: and this like a flood carries all down with it, all precepts and exhortations, and the soul of a believer with them; and therefore he subjoyns an exhortation to holy and spiritual walking upon that very ground: and because commandments of this nature will not float (so to speak) unlesse they have much water of that kind, and cannot have such a swift course, except the tide of such encouragements flow fast; therefore he openeth that spring again in the preceeding words; and letteth the rivers of consolation flow forth, even the hope of immortality and eternal life: and this certain…y will raise up a soul that was on ground, and carry him above in motion of obedience; and therefore he may well in the next place, stir them up to their duty, and mind them of their obligation, Therefore brethren we are debters, not to the fl…sh. To make this the more effectual, he drops it in with affection, in a sweet compell…ion of love and equality, Brethren: There is nothing so powerful in perswation as love, it will sweeten a bitter and unpleasant reproof, and make it go down more easily: though it maketh lesse noise than threatnings and severity and authority; yet it is more forcible; for it insinuats it self, and in a manner surpriseth the soul, and so preventeth all resistance: as when the Sun ma…e the traveller part with his cloak, whereas the wind and rain made him hold it faster; so affection will prevail, where authority and terrour cannot: it will melt that, which a stronger power cannot break: the story of Elijah, 1 King. 19. may give some representation of this, the Lord was not in the strong wind, nor in terrible earth-quake, nor yet in the fire, but in the calm still voice: The Lord hath chosen this way of publishing his grace in the Gospel, because the sum of it is love to sinners, and good-will towards men: he holds it forth in the calm voice of love, and these who are his ambassadors should be cloathed with such an affection, i… they intend to prevail with men, to engage their affections: O that we were possessed with that brotherly love one towards anot…er, for the salvation one of another! especially, that the Preachers of the Gospel might be thus kindly affectioned towards others, and that ye would take it thus, the calling you off the wayes of sin as the act of the greatest love. But then consider the equality o… this obligation, for there is nothing pressed upon you, but what lyeth as heavily upon them that presseth it: this debt binds all: O that the Ministers of the Gospel could carry the impression of this on their hearts! that when they perswade others, they may withall perswade themselves; and when they speak to others, they may sit down among the hearers. If an Apostle of so eminent dignity levelleth himself in this consideration, Therefore brethren we are debters, how much more ought Pastors and Teachers come in the same rank and degree of debt and obligation with others: Truly, this is the great obstruction of the successe of the Gospel, that these who bind on burdens on others, do not themselves touch them with one of their fingers; and while they seem serious in perswading others, yet withall declare by their carriage, that they do not believe themselves what they bear upon others; so that preaching seemeth to be an imposture, and affections in perswading …f othe… to be borrowed as it were in a scene to be laid down again out of it. But then again, there is a misconceit among people, that this holy and spiritual walking is not of common obligation, but peculiar to the preachers of the Gospel. Many make their reckoning so, as if they were not called to such high aims and great endeavours; but truly, my beloved, this is a thing of common concernment, the Holy Ghost hath levelled us all in this point of duty, as he hath equally exalted all in the most substantial dignities and priviledges of the Gospel: this bond is upon the highest and upon the lowest, greatnesse doth not exempt from it, and meanness doth not exclude from it; though commonly great persons fancy an …munity from the stricknesse of a holy conversation, because of their greatnesse, and often mean an… low persons pretend a freedom from such a high obligation, because of their lownesse; yet certainly all are debt-bound this way, and must one day give accompt. You that are poor and unlearned, and have not received great things of that nature from God, do not think your selves free, do not absolve your selves; for there is infinit debt besids that: you will have no place for that excuse, that you had not great parts, were not learned and so forth: for as the obligation reaches you all, so there is as patent a way to the exercise of Religion in the poorest cottage, as in the highest Palace: you may serve God as acceptably in little, as others may do in much: there is no condition so low and abject, that layeth any restraint on this noble service and imployment: this jewel loses not its beauty and vertue, when it lyeth in a dung-hill, more then when it is set in gold.
But let us inquire further into this debt, we are debters, saith he, and he instanceth what is not the creditor, by which he giveth us to understand, Who is the true creditor: not the flesh, and therefore to make out the just opposition, it must be the Spirit: we are debters then to the Spirit. And what is the debt we owe to Him, we may know it that same way, we owe not to the flesh so much as to make us live after its guidance and direction, and fulfill its lusts; then by due consequence, we owe so much to the Spirit, as that we should live after the Spirit, and resign our selves wholly to Him, his guidance and direction. There is a twofold kind of debt upon the creature, one remissible and pardonable, another irremissible and unpardonable (so to speak) the debt of sin, and that is the guilt of it, which is nothing else then the obligation of the sinner over to eternal condemnation by vertue of the curse of God: every sinner cometh under this debt to Divine Iustice, the desert of eternal wrath, and the actual ordination by a divine sentence, to that wrath. Now indeed, this debt was insoluble to us, and utterly unpayable, untill God sent His Son to be our Cautioner, and he hath payed the debt in his own person, by bearing our curse, and so made it pardonable to sinners, obtained a relaxation from that woful obligation to death: and this debt you see is wholly discharged to them that are in Christ, by another sentence repealing the former curse; vers. 1. there is no condemnation to them that are in Christ. But there is another debt which I may call a debt of duty and obedience, which as it was antecedent to sin, even binding innocent Adam; so the obligation of the debt of sin hath been so …r from taking it away, that it is rather increased exceedingly, and this debt is unpardonable and indispensible, the more of the debt of sin be pa…doned, and the more the curse be dispensed with, the more the sinner owes of love and obedience to God, she loved much because much was forgiven; and the more was forgiven of …in, the more she owed of love, and the more debt was discharged, the more she was indebted to Him: and therefore after this general acquitance of all believers, vers. 1. he presseth this obligation the more strongly, therefore brethren we are debters: It is like that debt spoken of, Rom. 12. Owe no man any thing, but to love one another, which is not meant that it is unlawful to be debters to men, but rather, what ye owe, or all things else, pay it, and ye are free, your debt ceases, and your bond is cancelled; but as for the debt of love and benevolence, you must so owe that to all men, as never to be discharged of it, never to be freed from of it; when you have done all, this hath no limitation of time or action: Even so it is here, other debts when payed, men cease to be debters, then they are free, but here the more he pay, the more he is bound to pay, he oweth, and he oweth eternally, his bond is never cancelled as long as he continues a creature subsisting in God, and abides a redeemed on in Christ; for these continuing his obligation is eternally recent and fresh as the first day: and this doth not at all obscure the infinit g…ace of God, or diminish the happinesse of Saints, that they are not freed from this debt of love and obedience, but rather illustrats the one, and increases the other, for it cannot be supposed to consist with the wisdom and holinesse of God to loose his creature from that obligation of loving obedience and subjection, which is essential to it, and it is no lesse repugnant to the happinesse of the creature to be …ee from righteousnesse, unto sin.
Now, this debt of duty and obedience hath a threefold bond, which because they stand in vigor un…ancelled for all eternity, therefore the obligation arising from them is eternal too, The bond of Creation, the bond of Redemption, and the bond of Sanctification, these are distinguished according to the Persons of the Trinity, who appear most eminently in them.
We owe our beeing to the Father, in whom we live and move and have our being; for He made us, and not we our selves, and we are all the works of his hands: Now the debt accruing from this, is infinit, if men conceive themselves so much oblidged to others for … petty courtesie, as to be their Servants: if they owe more to their Parents the instruments of their bringing forth into the world, O how infinitly more owe we to God, of whom we are, and have all! Doth the Clay owe so much to the Potter, who doth not make it, but fashion it only? and what owe we to Him that made us of nothing, and fashioned us while we were yet without form! Truly, all relations, all obligations evanish when this cometh forth; because all that a man hath it lesse then Himself, then his immortal spirit, and that he oweth alone to God; and besides whatsoever debt there is to other fellow-creatures in any thing, God is the principal creditor in that bond: all the creatures are but the Servants of this King, which at his sole appointment bring alongs his gifts unto us; and therefore we owe no more to them, then to the hands of the messenger that is sent. Now, by this accompt, nothing is our own, not our selves, not our members, not our goods, but all are His, and to be used and bestowed not at the will and arbitrement of creatures, but to be absolutly and solely at his disposal, who hath the sole soveraign right to them: and therefore, you may take up the hainousnesse of sin, how monstruous and misshappen a thing it is, that breaks this inviolable Law of creation, and withdraws the creature from subjection to Him, in whom alone it can subsist. O how disordered are the courses and lives of men! men living to themselves, their own lusts, after their own will, as if they had made themselves, men using their members as weapons of unrighteousnesse against God, as if their tongues and hands and feet were there own, or the devils, and not Gods. Call to mind this obligation, Remember thy Creator, that memento would be a strong engagement to another course then most take: how absurd would you think it, To please your selves in displeasing Him, if you but minded the bond of creation. But when there are other two superadded, what we owe to the Son, for coming down in the likenesse of sinfull flesh for us, and what we owe to the Holy Ghost for quickening our spirits, and afterward for the resurection of our bodies, whose hearts would not these overcome and lead captive to his love and obedience.