The Dead Saint Speaking to Saints and Sinners Living, Treatise 3 · Royalty 1
5 What are the Royalties and Priviledges of Faith? Firſt Royalty.
1. Royalty of Faith. Its an heart-clearing Grace.1. Faith is an heart-clearing Grace.
When wee are under the guilt of ſin, Faith doth juſtifie us. And it is one of the Royalties of Faith, one of the Peculiars of Faith. that Faith alone doth juſtifie: As the Apoſtle, Rom. 3.28.—Therefore wee conclude, that a man is juſtified by Faith, without the deeds of the Law And this Faith clears the heart of the guilt of ſin.
1. By procuring a ſufficient Pay-maſter; Chriſt, who hath ſatisfied Gods Juſtice to the full; anſwered all Bills, Bonds; paid our debt to the utmoſt farthing. Hence, John 16.10. — I will ſend the Spirit, and hee ſhall convince the World of Righteouſneſs; becauſe I go to my Father, and you ſhall ſee mee no more; — That is; hee ſhall convince the World, That Perfect Righteouſneſs is wrought for them. That Gods Juſtice is compleatly ſatisfied. But how ſhall wee know that? Becauſe — I go to my Father, and you ſhall ſee mee no more. — That is, you ſhall ſee mee no more in this kind, you ſhall ſee mee no more to come to ſuffer, or ſatisfy for ſin; for I have done that already, I have compleatly ſatisfied Gods Juſtice for ſin. And therefore you ſhall ſee mee no more in this kind.
Indeed, If Juſtice had not been compleatly ſatisfied: If there had been but one ſin upon the file unſatisfied for, wee ſhould have ſeen him again. Heaven could not have held him. But now ſeeing hee is gone, and wee ſee him no more an humbled, a ſuffering-Saviour; this ſhews all is done.
To this I might adde, Col. 2.14. — Hee hath blotted out the hand writing of Ordinances, that was againſt us, which was contrary to us, and hath taken it out of the way, and nailed it to his Croſs. — where, by hand-writing of Ordinances, is not meant the Ceremonial-Law only; but whatever did binde us over to the Curſe: whatever did binde us over to death. — All which Chriſt hath removed by his death.
And the Apoſtles Gradation is obſervable here. In the 13th. verſe hee had ſet down, that our ſins were forgiven. — Yea, but that is not enough, may ſome ſay. Though the debt bee diſcharged, yet the writing is to ſhew. — No, ſaith the Apoſtle. The Hand-writing of Ordinances is blotted out. — But, may ſome ſay again; it is not ſo blotted out, ſo defaced, but it may bee read, and put in ſuit again; a new quarrel may ariſe. No, ſaith the Apoſtle, — It is taken away. Oh! But (you will ſay) it is not ſo taken away, but as it is laid aſide for a time: it may be produced hereafter. No, ſaith the Apoſtle, there is no fear of that—it is nailed to the Croſs; it is torn in peeces, it ſhall never be ſeen again; never ſhall a new quarrel ariſe for the ſame. Chriſt hath not only paid the debt, but canceld, and torn in peeces whatever might witneſs or teſtifie▪ againſt us.
If a Debtor did know his Debt were anſwered; yet if hee have his Bonds and Bills uncall'd in; hee is ſtill in fear: But, when hee hath all things which acknowledged his debt, croſſed, torn in peeces, made utterly void; then hee is ſafe, hee knows there is a diſcharge.
Why Chriſt did not only diſcharge our debt, but defaced and aboliſhed all ſuch things, as made acknowledgement of our debt; hee left nothing, that might witneſs againſt us untaken away.
And this is the firſt way whereby Faith doth clear us; viz. by producing, and bringing forth Chriſt, who hath cleared all, who is called a Suerty, Heb. 7.22. Not only in paſſing his word for us; but paying the Debt for us, anſwering all, and cancelling all, that was againſt us. But Faith doth not clear us only by producing of a ſufficient Pay-maſter, but
2. By making us one with Chriſt, by which this payment is ours; is all for us. So that wee may ſay with Ambroſe — Pro me natus, pro me vixit, pro me mortuus. Faith will ſay, hee was born for mee; hee lived for mee; hee dyed for mee: for mee hee fulfilled all Righteouſneſs, ſatisfying both Gods Commanding, and his Condemning Juſtice; doing my ſervices, bearing my ſcourges. Hence hee is called, Jehovah Tſidkenu. The Lord our Righteouſneſs: by Faith having communion with this Righteouſneſs, as if it were our own; a Righteouſneſs wrought by us. Hence Job 33.26 — God ſhall render to man his Righteouſneſs; that is the Righteouſneſs of Chriſt, which is called ours by Faith, and is as much ours to juſtifie and ſave us, as His, to glorifie him. Hence the Apoſtle, Rom. 8.1. — There is no condemnation to them that are in Chriſt; that is, to ſuch as are Beleevers: for they are all one. And why no condemnation? They are ſinners as well as others. It's true, they are. And therefore the Apoſtle doth not ſay — There is nothing worthy of condemnation in them: But — There is no condemnation: Becauſe Chriſt hath taken away the guilt, and condemning power of ſin; hee hath anſwered all our debts, canceld all Books, ſatisfied for all our ſins, which did binde us over to condemnation, and wrath of God. So that wee may ſay, — There is no condemnation to ſuch.
As for the Law, it cannot condemn us; becauſe wee appeal from the law to the Goſpel, from the Court of Juſtice, to the Court of Mercy▪ So that the Law hath nothing to do with us.
And, as for the Goſpel, that cannot condemn us; becauſe wee are Beleevers. The Goſpel doth not require what ſinners wee have been, what ſins wee are guilty of: but whether the appealer do beleeve; whether wee bee Beleevers or no, which being once cleared, wee are juſtified.
You ſee this in the poor Publican. Hee was dragged forth into the Court of Juſtice, and was there caſt: Yet the ſentence took no hold of him, becauſe of his appeal to the Throne of Grace, the Court of Mercy, where by Faith pleading nothing but Gods Mercy, and his own miſery — God bee merciful to mee a ſinner: hee went away juſtified, ſaith the Text, Luk. 18.14.
And this is the firſt Royalty of Faith.
It is an Heart-clearing-Grace, which it doth, by producing one, who hath cleared all, and by making us one with him, in all hee hath done, giving us an intereſt in all.