The Life of Justification Opened, Chapter 36
CHAP. XXXVI.
Of the Interest of Repentance in the Pardon of after-sinnes.
WE spoke before Chap. 29. of Repentance in order to the first pardon of sinnes, or to justification; and in the foregoing Chapter we shew that the continuance of Justification did not depend on our works, as the Condition thereof: But now the question will be moved touching Repentance; Whether it may not be said to be required, as a Condition of the Continuance of Justification; or at least, as a Condition of the Pardon of sins committed after justification. Concerning which we would premit these things.
1. It is granted, that Repentance is not only necessary, at the first Conversion of a sinner, but is a Grace, that is constantly to be exercised, by a Beleever, so long, as he liveth; both in respect of its terminus a quo, & of its terminus ad quem, or both in respect of its aversive, & of its conversive part; for he is still more & more to depart f…om sin, and to turne unto God, and to all the wayes of his Commandements Psal. 119: 59. The very body of death is constant matter of groaning and mourning unto him Rom. 7: 24. & his dayly iniquities & transgressions ought to keep him low, and to put him to this exercise. Beside what at extraordinarie times of publick wrath or judgment against the Land, Church, or Place he liveth in, or judgments upon his own neer Relations, Familie &c. or upon occasion of his own more hainous out breakings: as in David. Psal. 51.
2. It is also granted. That where is no Repentance, or no true Repentance, for sinnes committed, there is no ground for that man to suppose, that his sin is pardoned: I do not here speak of the measure or expressions of Repentance; for there may be mistakes on both hands; some thinking their Repentance is naught, because not in such a sensible measure, as they think is required; may therefore inferre that their case is worse, than indeed it is, others, upon the other hand, may suppose they have repented, when it is not so; & so inferre pardon, when they have no ground. But this is granted, that where true & sincere Repentance is not, there is no Pardon from God of sins, whereof such are guilty: for to such, as he mindeth to Pardon, he giveth also a Spirit of Repentance, as both Scripture & Experience proveth:
3. Yet notwithstanding of this, it is true, that an outward Repentance; where there is no inward, real & sanctified change wrought, may hold off for a time, or prorogue the inflicting of temporal strokes; as we see in Aabh, Nineveth & others.
4. It will be granted also by all the orthodox, that Repentance is no proper, meritorious cause of pardon; not doth it make any Satisfaction to God, or appease his wrath & anger.
4. I shall also grant, that where there is true & unfeigned Repentance, after some sin committed, there that person may saifly inferre that his sin is pardoned: Repentance is a good signe of Remission; because it is a good evidence, that the man hath run to the fountaine, to the blood of Jesus, and there hath washen himself, & made himself cleane. See Esai. 1: 16, 17, 18.
5. The Exercise of Repentance is very usefull, to make sin become bitter, mercy welcome, & to make the soul more careful & watchful in time to come.
But the Question is, whether Repentance be a proper Condition of Pardon of sins, committed after Justification: or not? And when we speak of Repentance here, we consider it by itself, & not as being the sensible signification & expression of Faith; for the Question is not, whether Faith acting in & through Repentance, or working the soul up unto unfaigned Repentance, be the Condition of Remission; for that is not Repentance, but Faith, accompanied with, & acting the soul to Repentance; but the Question is of Repentance considered in itself, & as a distinct grace from Faith: And speaking of Repentance, as such, & considered in itself, I say, that it is not the Condition of Remission of after sins; but faith only, acting in a Gospel manner, on Jesus Christ, & his Bloud & Merites.
And the reasons are. 1. Because it is Faith & not Repentance, that carrieth the sinner away to the Bloud of Jesus Christ, & to his Merites, through whom, & by which alone Remission is had Ephes. 1: 7. Col. 1: 14. Zach. 13. 1. Heb. 9: 14, 22. Revel. 1: 5. Repentance as such, layeth not hold on Christ, grippeth not his Merites, maketh no application of these; but is wholly exercised about another object, about sin.
2. This would give man too great ground of boasting in himself: if upon his Mourning, Sorrow & Repentance, Pardon were to be had; and would give occasion to think, that there were some merite & worth, in that work, & some thing satisfying or appeasing to God: for the man hereby is keeped within himself: & upon the account of something within himself, or done by himself, is he pardoned, as he might suppose.
3. This should be derogatorie to the Bloud & Merites of Christ, by which alone we have pardon first & last; and the Gospel is so contrived, as that Christ must have all the Glory; and all the methodes, meanes & order of the Gospel, and new Covenant, are in like manner framed, so that man may be abased, free grace exalted, Christ acknowledged the only Redeemer; But if our Repentance were made such a Condition, there should be no application made of Christ & of his bloud by the sinner; No acting on him, & on his merites, in order to the obtaining of Pardon; and so, no occasion of exalting free grace, and Love in Christ; no occasion of wondering at the wise contrivance of the Covenant of Grace, in all points: If it be said, There is no derogating from Christ & his Merites here; because it is by vertue of his Merites, that Repentance is made such a Condition: I Ans. This is not cleared from the Scripture; nor is it sutable to the frame of the Gospel-Covenant; for the whole of it is so contrived, as that Christ is immediatly to be made use of: But this way keepeth the soul off all immediat going to, applying of, and resting upon Christ, in order to Remission of new sinnes; & setteth them only upon the exercise of Sorrow & Repentance within themselves.
4. The Apostle Iohn pointeth out the way to beleevers of obtaining Remission-of sins 1. Ioh. 2: 1, 2. - And if any man sin, we have an Advocat with the Father, Iesus Christ the righteous. And he is the Propitiation for our sins. Now, Repentance doth not make use of Christ, as an Advocat, & as a Propitiation; but Faith doth. And it is the proper work of Faith, in order to Remission, to make use of Christ, in his Priestly office, & to carry the soul away to his Propitiation & Intercession.
5. The dayly experience of the Saints evidence this, when upon conviction of sin, they betake themselves to the free Mercy of God, in Christ, to the Bloud of sprinkling, crying out for Pardon for the Lord's sake, and seeking to be washen, in his blood. It is not their Repentance, or Sorrow, that they flee to, as the ground of their hope of Pardon; but the merites of Christ, held forth in the new Covenant, is that fountaine, wherein they must wash & be cleane. See Psal. 25: 11. & 51: 7.
6. This was sufficiently held forth under the Law, when for their Errours, Failings & dayly Transgressions, the people were to bring their Sacrifices to the Priest, which were to be offered up, as types of Christ & they were to lay their hands upon the head of the Sacrifice, in signe of their resting upon the Sacrifice typified, & of rolling their sins upon that only Sacrifice, & of expecting Acceptance & Pardon, through it alone. See Levit. 4: 20, 26, 31, 35. & 5: 10, 13, 16, 18. & 6: 7, 19, 22.
7. If Repentance be the Condition, then this must either be said of that part of Repentance, which preceedeth the acting of faith, or of that which followeth: This last cannot be said; for then it would follow, that upon the acting of faith, that preceedeth, there were no Remission; & so faith laying hold on Christ & his Merites, should be utterly excluded from having any Interest in the pardon of sins. Nor can the first be said, for then there should be Remission, before & without all application made of Christ by Faith: Yea & the very imperfect beginnings of Repentance should be judged sufficient for Remission: which cannot be said. If it be said, that this is meaned of compleat Repentance. I Ans. Compleet Repentance cannot be without Faith: & it is against what is said, to make Repentance, considered alone & by itself, or as abstracted from Faith, the only Condition; seing this would be a manifest exclusion of Faith altogether. If it be said, that Repentance & Faith may be considered together, & as joyned together called the Condition of Pardon. I Ans. Seing it is manifest, that both do not, neither can act one & the same way on Christ; they cannot be considered as equally sharing in the place & interest of a condition: And therefore, I judge it saifest to say, That faith, acting in & by Repentance, or so discovering itself to be true & lively, is the sole Condition of Pardon.
8. As at first, so alwayes that holdeth true, which Peter saith Act. 10: 43. To him (i. e. to Jesus) give all the Prophets witness, that through his name whosoever beleeveth in him, shall receive Remission of sins. As the stung Israelit was alwayes, in order to his cure, to look to the brazen serpent: so is the Beleever, that would be cured of the guilt of new transgressions, to have his recourse by Faith unto the Mediator, crucified & lifted up Ioh. 3: 14, 15.
Obj. 1. It is said, that Repentance is necessary both as commanded, and as a meane appointed for attaining Remission of sins: And therefore must be the Condition of Remission. Ans. The consequence is not good; for this same may be said of Prayer, and other Duties; which yet cannot be called proper Conditions of Pardon. That prayer is a commanded duty, none will deny; That a praying sinner may be said to be using the meanes to attaine unto Pardon, and to be in the way of obtaining of it, will also be granted: and so in that respect, prayer may be accounted a meane: and yet it cannot be called the Condition; for then every one that prayeth should have pardon, though he act not faith: And if it be said, that it must be prayer in faith Iam. 5: 15. I Ans. True, but then the Condition is not Prayer, but Faith exerting itself, and acting in & through Prayer: And the same we say of Repentance, and so keep it in its due place, and presse it in the Gospel way & methode.
Obj. 2. It is said. That there is a kind of congruity & sutablness, in this order, by subjoining the promise of pardon to it; for it is more sutable that a penitent sinner should have Pardon, than an impenitent. Ans. So this same may be said of Prayer; for it is also more sutable, that a praying sinner, be pardoned, than a sinner that nev… once asketh pardon: And this tendeth more also to the exalting of free grace. But the truth is, in pardon there is not only a declaration & exalting of Grace & Mercy; but also of divine Justice Rom. 3: 25, 26. and unto this, Faith is singularly fitted, because it layyeth hold on the Propitiation, and on bloud, for the declaration of God's Righteousness for Remission of sins; and hereby is the Lord declared to be just, when he is the Justifier & Pardoner of the beleever. So that neither prayer, nor Repentance, nor Self-searching &c. can be properly called the Condition, but Faith acting in & by these.
Obj. 3. It is said, that Repentance qualifieth the sinner, in reference to the promise of pardon, or putteth him within the reach of the promise; so that he may take hold of the promise of pardon: And it disposeth him to accept the offered Salvation freely, and to rest upon Christ alone, for that end. Ans. (1) What disposeth to accept of Salvation &c. cannot for that cause be called the Condition of Pardon, unless we speak improperly; as felt poverty in a beggar, though it disposeth him to receive an offered almes thankfully, Yet it is not the proper Condition: No more self conviction, in our case, a Condition of Pardon. (2) If it qualifieth for the receiving of the offered Salvation; then it qualifieth immediatly for Faith, & but mediatly & remotly for Pardon. (3) The promise of Pardon is not made to the penitent properly, & as such; but to the Penitent beleever; that is, to faith acting & exerting itself in & by Repentance.
Obj. 4. Esai. 1: 15, 16. put away the evil of your doings, cease to do evil, &c. this is Repentance: & then vers. 18. full pardon is promised, though your sins be as scarlet, they shall be as white, as snow &c. Ans. Yet with all he bids them wash & make cleane; which could only be, by the blood of the Messiah, for that only cleanseth. 1. Ioh. 1: 7. and this they had neglected, in going about their Sacrifices, which therefore were abominable in the eyes of the Lord vers. 11, 12, 13. because not accompanied with Faith, that purifieth the heart Act. 15: 9.
Obj. 5. 2. Chron. 7: 14. the Lord promiseth to forgive sin, if his people would turne from their wicked wayes. Ans. But with all it is required there, that they seek the face of God, & that was in & through the Messiah, typified by the Temple, to which their prayers were to be directed, as we see Chap. 6: 20, 24, 26, 29, 31, 34, 38.
Obj. 6. Prov. 28: 13. - He that confesseth his sin & forsaketh it shall finde mercy. Ans. True, because none will do that a right, but the beleever; who laith hold on the Merites of Christ. And so this & the like places, are not exclusively to be taken, but principally to be understood of Faith so acting, and evidencing itself to be true & lively, and of the right stamp, by its acting so.
FINIS.