Truth and Innocence Vindicated, Part 1 · Subpart 5
Animadverſions on the foregoing Head.
IT is Remarkable, Accuſations under this Head, tend to ſupport theſe Two following Principles. (1.) That Divine Illumination is not of the Eſſence of Saving-Faith. (2.) To over-turn the Faith of Aſſurance, or to ſet up one that's not known in the Scripture; and that can be of no uſe to Believers.
But I ſhall prove that Divine Illumination is of the Eſſence of Saving-Faith. For,
1ſt. None can believe on what they know not: None can ſee a need of Chriſt, nor fly unto him, but they whoſe Eyes have been opened by the Spirit, to ſee the Beauty, Excellency and Neceſſity of Chriſt Jeſus: Therefore Faith is not a blind Conſent to the Will only.
2dly. As the Spirit does work in this Faith, he is called the Spirit of Wiſdom and Revelation, in the knowledge of him that is Christ, Eph. 1. 17. His Office is, to open and enlighten the Eyes of the Underſtanding, ver. 18. As alſo, to take the things of Chriſt, and ſhew unto the Soul, Joh. 16. 14. And, to make known unto Believers the Myſtery of his Will, Eph. 1. 9. Having made known unto us the myſtery of his will, according to his good pleaſure, which he hath purchaſed to himſelf.
3dly. Faith it ſelf is called, a Revelation of Chriſt in the Soul, Gal. 1. 15, 16. But when it pleaſed God to ſeparate me from my mother's womb, and called me by his Grace, ver. 16. To reveal his Son in me, is alſo called, the Aſſurance of Underſtanding, Col. 2. 2. That their hearts may be comforted, being knit together in love, and unto all riches of the full aſſurance of underſtanding, to the acknowledgment of the myſtery of God, and of the Father, and of Chriſt.
I might add more Reaſons, but I judge theſe ſufficient. But obſerve, I do not make Faith to be only a Divine, Natural Illumination, or Underſtanding; but alſo an Act of the Will divinely perſwaded, accepting of, and leaning on Chriſt. As to the Second thing, I muſt confeſs, the new coin'd Faith of Aſſurance, I do not underſtand; to wie, That it is, when a Chriſtian can find ſuch and ſuch Marks in himſelf and theſe in ſincerity; then he may be aſſured of his Salvation: and this without any mention made of looking to Chriſt, or leaning on him, in the very Act of Aſſurance.
But I find no Foot ſteps of ſuch a Faith in the Scripture: Theſe are my Arguments againſt it.
Arg. 1. The Object of Saving-Faith, is Chriſt, once Crucified, now at the Father's Right-Hand: But this ſort of Faith of Aſſurance, ſets up a Chriſt within, a Quaker's Chriſt, as the Object of Faith.
Arg. 2. If it be granted, that this Faith of Aſſurance, takes its Grounds and Denomination from as Reflect Act of Faith; yet a Reflect Act of Faith, is but a Repercuſſion upon the Conſcience of that Light that ſhines in a direct Act of Faith: ſo that there can be no true Marks and Signs without Faith in that moment exercis'd: He that doth truth, cometh to the light, that his deeds may be made manifeſt that they are wrought of God, Joh. 3. 21. So then, they that bid People try their Faith, by looking within, and not bidding them at that time look to Chriſt, and that firſt; put them, in my Judgment, upon an impoſſible Teſt.
Arg. 3. As there can be no real Marks and Signs, without Faith exercis'd upon the Object; ſo, to put People upon examining the Sincerity of their ſuppoſed Marks and Signs, is yet to make the Matter ten times more difficult and perplexing to the Soul. Goſpel-Sincerity, I find in Scripture to be this, viz. To mix nothing with Chriſt, and his Righteouſneſs, in our Juſtification … and to have right Principles, Means, Aims, and Ends, in carrying of Sanctification. 1 Pet. 2. 4, 5. comp together.
Arg. 4. They that would examine their Faith, whether it be ſincere, by Marks and Signs, without Faith in the Exerciſe, muſt have a Second Mark to know the Firſt, a Third to prove the Second, and a Fourth to prove the Third; and ſo, ad infinitum. Hence it is that poor Souls are quite be, wilder'd, to bring the Matter to a determinate iſſue; ſo that deſpairing of making their Calling and Election ſure, they content themſelves with lazy, faint and languid Hopes, which have no good bottom; or elſe, what is worſt of all, they embrace a Cloud inſtead of this Aſſurance. I ſhall humbly offer my Judgment of Faith of Aſſurance, as I find it in Scripture.
1. I do not deny, but that when we ſenſibly feel our inward Grace ſhining in the Light of Faith, we may from thence, together with the Evidence of Faith, inferr the Certainty of our Believing; as when we ſenſibly perceive our Love to Chriſt flowing from our Faith in him, we may thence conclude we have the Faith of God's Elect; and ſo of other Graces. But perhaps this is but ſeldom the frame of a Believer's Spirit; and yet he ought, when he walks in the dark, to hold faſt his Confidence: Therefore there muſt needs be that that is, true Aſſurance, though not ſo high and ſo ſenſible as this. And,
1ſt. I find in Scripture, it is a ſtrong and conſtant reliance upon the Ability and Faithfulneſs of Chriſt, as to the Grace promiſed: This you have inſtanced in Abraham's Faith, Rom. 4. 20, 21. He ſtagger'd not at the promiſes of God, through unbelief; but was ſtrong in faith, giving glory to God. And in ver. 21. And was fully perſwaded, that what he had promiſed, he was alſo able to perform. So alſo inſtanced in the Faith of Sarah, Heb. 11. 11. Through faith alſo Sarah her ſelf received ſtrength to conceive ſeed, and was delivered of a child when ſhe was paſt age; becauſe ſhe judged him faithful that had promiſed. So therefore, in both theſe Inſtances, you may ſee that this their Aſſurance was grounded upon the Ability and Faithfulneſs of the Promiſer: It is the ſame with that called the Plerophery of Faith, Heb. 10. 22. And that is founded upon, (1ſt.) The Means of Admittance to the Father, by the Blood of Jeſus, ver. 19. (2dly.) The Way of Admittance to the Father, viz. The new and living way, conſecrated through the vail; that is to ſay, the fleſh of Jeſus, ver. 21. Who is our Common Head and Repreſentative, through whom we are admitted to the Father, viz. ſuch an High-prieſt over the houſe of God, ver. 21. So that I conclude, the more ſtrongly, purely, unmixtly, and frequently we behold and lean upon Chriſt; the more Light cometh in from the Object, to evidence our Faith it ſelf. The more an Infant exerciſeth his Legs, the more he knoweth he hath them, and alſo knows their Uſefulneſs, and the more veturous he is of walking on them.
2. I find this Faith of Aſſurance, called foreign, freedom of ſpeech, or acceſs; ſo it is called, Heb. 3. 6. & 10. 35. 1 Job. 3. 21. & 5. 14. Which is going to God in Chriſt with great freedom, as a Friend to a Friend; and asking the things we have need of, with great freedom of ſpeech. And this alſo is grounded upon their Repreſentative, who is entred to repreſent us above, even Jeſus, the Son of God; who alſo is above, touched with the feeling of our Infirmities here below. Heb. 4. 16. compared with ver. 14, 15.
3. I find this ſort of Aſſurance in the Scripture, viz. The Sealing of the Spirit after Believing, Epheſ. 1. 13. called, The Earneſt of our Inheritance, viz. The Beatifical Viſion above; ſtiled alſo, The times of refreſhing from the preſence of the Lord, Act. 3. 19. In which the Spirit of the Lord, in one Promiſe or other ſuited to the Believer's Caſe, doth give an undeniable and irreſiſtible Aſſurance unto the Soul, that Chriſt is his, and that he is Pardoned and Juſtified, and conſequently an Elect Veſſel, though it laſts but for a little ſeaſon
In theſe ſorts of Aſſurance, I find none of them built upon our inherent Qualifications, but on Jeſus Chriſt, the Corner-ſtone; and all Three of them caſt anchor within the vail, upon the great fore-runner that is enter'd for us, even Jeſus, made an High-Prieſt for ever, after the order of Melchizedeck.
[He preaching, ſaid, How came the Covenant of Works? and the Elect under it? It was to illuſtrate the Electing Love of God, and not to make the Elect Haypy: The Law enter'd, that the Offence might abound; the Law was too weak, when Man was in his beſt Eſtate, to reign over him to Eternal Life.]
1. It is an undeniable Maxim, That all things toward the Elect, are made to ſubſerve the Deſign of Electing Love and Grace.
2. That it appears, ab eventu, as well as from God's Word, That Electing Grace was only deſign'd to make the Elect Happy: Therefore it undeniably followeth, That the Covenant of Works, with its Breaches, came in to illuſtrate and agrandize Electing Love and Grace; and I think that Scripture, Rom. 5. 10. proveth it. Though Moſes's Law be there intended, yet the Covenant of Works, made with the Elect in the firſt Adam, is not thereby excluded; nay, I think, chiefly deſigned: For to me it's plain, that the Law of Moſes was but a manifeſtative Copy of the Covenant of Works made with Adam. I judge this is paſt Contradiction, That the Covenant of Works could never have ſecur'd the Elect in Eternal Happineſs: This is manifeſt from God's Word, and from the Event; for it did not ſecure their ſtanding One day. This Honour therefore is to be given to the Covenant of Redemption, of which the Lord the Redeemer is the Surety. None but a rank Arminian will deny this; therefore I wonder to what purpoſe this is ſent as a Charge.
[That Believers under the Law, had their Life from their Doings; and they had no longer Life, than when they were crying, and weeping, and groaning. Witneſſed by Mr. Robert Page; who entring into a Conference with Mr. Davis about it, objected Iſai. 53. 5. He was wounded, &c. and therefore the Prophet believed on Chriſt. To which Mr. Davis replied, The Prophet did not underſtand what he ſaid.]
This I have anſwer'd pretty largely in the Anſwer to the Libel, therefore I ſhall not inſiſt much on it now: Only this I ſhall obſerve, That the whole current of the Epiſtles written by the Apoſtles, is to ſhew an extraordinary Difference between the Two Adminiſtrations. And this is made the main thing, That now the Juſt live by Faith. Not that this excludes the Faith of the Old-Teſtament-Saints, but only makes that of the New-Teſtament-Saints far to exceed it. The Inſtances of David, and others of the Prophets, overturns not that general Rule, allowed in the former Diſpenſation, they were rare, ſingular and extraordinary; beſides, the Holy Ghoſt ſaith expreſly, what they ſaid was but Prophetical of what ſhould be in Goſpel-Days, For they did not miniſter unto themſelves, but unto us the things which are now reported unto us, by them that Preach the Goſpel, 1 Pet. 1. 12. And this was it which I ſaid, in Anſwer to Mr. Robert Page,. (how invidiouſly ſoever he curtails it,) when he affirmed, that the Prophet Iſaiah underſtood the Meaning and Goſpel of his own Prophecy, as well as the Apoſtle Paul; from which aforementioned Scripture, I obſerved, that the Grace and Salvation Propheſied of by them in its Clearneſs and Diſpenſation belonged to the New-Teſtament-Saints, for it is ſaid, (who Propheſy'd of the Grace that ſhould come untoyou.)
2. It is Evident from the Words, that in their Prophecies they did not miniſter to themſelves at all—thus, not unto themſelves, but unto us they did miniſter the things, which are reported unto you, by them that Preach the Goſpel unto you. But if they had ſeen into it, as clear as New-Teſtament-Saints, they would certainly have miniſtered unto themſelves; which, the Holy Ghoſt ſaith, they did not doe.
3. It is manifeſt from that Place, that they ſearched and enquired diligently, what was the meaning of their own Prophecies; for they not only ſearched what they Propheſied, but after what manner the things Propheſied ſhould be accompliſh'd, and when? ver. 11. Searching what or what manner of time (i. e. what Manner of Diſpenſation it ſhould be.) The Spirit of Christ, which was in them, did ſignifie, when it teſtified before hand, the Sufferings of Chriſt, and the Glory that ſhould follow.
What need all this diligent ſearch and enquiry into theſe Matters, and yet, after all, could not adminiſter them unto themſelves; if the Spirit had revealed unto them the meaning of their own Prophecies, as clearly as he did to the Apoſtle Paul, afterwards? To this Robert Page made no Anſwer, but that that Place of Scripture, muſt needs have another Meaning; but what that other Meaning is, he hath not told me to this Day.
[Believers under the Law, had no real Sight of Chriſt.]
Mr. Chandler here alſo witneſſeth very corruptly: For what I ſaid, was this, which is ready to be atteſted by ſeveral, That Believers under the Law, had no clear Sight of Chriſt: for it was Chriſt manifeſted in the Promiſe, and not in the Fleſh, that they had immediately to Eye: This is ſo clearly to be prov'd by many Teſtimonies of Holy Writ, beſides that in 1 Pet. 10, 11, 12. that I need not add any more, for I think it will not be denyed.
This I obſerve of Mr. Chandler's Teſtimony, that he ſtill offereth to corroborate it with Mr. Acok as his faithful Second; whereas there were divers others always preſent as well as he, and yet ſcarcely any mentioned, but he alone, becauſe he is filled with as much prejudice as himſelf