Brief Exposition of Galatians and Ephesians, Exposition 2 · Chapter 1 · Verse and explication 6
Vers. 7. In whom we have redemption through his bloud, the forgiveness of sins; according to the riches of his grace.
THe Apostle (having already spoken of those spiritual blessings, mentioned ver. 3. as they were prepared, and appointed for Believers in God's eternal decree of Election) doth now speak of them, as they were purchased by Christ in that great and marvellous work of redemption, by shewing, first, That Jesus Christ hath given a ransom, even his own bloud, in satisfaction to divine justice for our wrongs, whence floweth our redemption from sin, Satan, and God's wrath, which is begun here, Rom. 6. 22. and shall be compleated hereafter at the last day, Rom. 8. 23. Secondly, he explaineth this great benefit of redemption by the forgivenesse of our sins in justification, which is an effect of redemption, as redemption is taken for the laying down of the price by Christ, and a principal part of redemption, as it speaketh our actual delivery and freedom through vertue of that price. Thirdly, he sheweth the impulsive cause which moved God to bestow such a benefit, even the riches of that same grace and free-favour in God formerly spoken of: By all which he carrieth on his main scope, which is, to confirm those Ephesians, that salvation and all the steps leading to it do flow from God's free-grace in Christ. Doct. 1. All men, the Elect themselves not being excepted, are by nature under slavery and bondage to sin, Joh. 8. 34. Satan, Eph. 2. 2. and to God's wrath, Joh. 3. 36. for, redemption presupposeth bondage; In whom we have redemption. 2. There was no delivery to be had from this bondage by prayer and intreaty, nor by exchange of prisoners, as in wars, nor yet by strong hand and meer force; but by paying of a price, not to Satan, who detaineth the Elect in slavery, as a rigid Tyrant, or mercilesse Jaylor, from whom they are delivered by force, Heb. 2. -14. but to God, Eph. 2. 2. whose justice was wronged by the sins of the Elect, and therefore behoved to be satisfied: for, redemption, according to the force of the original word, is a delivery by ransom and price. 3. Jesus Christ is that Person by whom we have redemption from the fore-mentioned slavery; this work by the counsel of the whole Trinity being put over upon Him, as one, who not only had right both of property to redeem the Elect being His creatures, Heb. 1. 10. and of kinred, Lev. 25. 48. as being our brother, and of the same nature with us, Heb. 2, 14-. but was also fitted to be our Redeemer, (a price, to wit, His humane nature being put in his hands to lay down, Heb. 10. -5.) and was able to redeem, as being also God, whereby His sufferings, as man, became a ransom of infinit value, Act. 20. -28. for, by saying, In whom, or, in Christ we have redemption, he saith, that we have it by Him. 4. We have this redemption not only by Christ, but also in him, which holdeth also in forgivenesse of sins; He being the common store-house, wherein the Elect have all their spiritual blessings treasured up, even before they take their spiritual being from Him, or get those blessings actually applied unto them, as Adam's posterity have their original guiltinesse, whence all actual transgressions flow, treasured up in Him, before they take their natural being from Him, Rom. 5. 12. As also because this redemption and the fruits of it are not actually applied to the Elect until they be in Christ, and by faith united to Him, Joh. 3. 36. for, saith he, In whom, meaning Christ, we have redemption and forgivenesse of sins. 5. The wrong done to infinit justice by our sin was so great, that nothing performed by Christ could be a sufficient ransom in order to our redemption, except he had crowned all his other actions and sufferings by laying down his life and undergoing a bloudy and violent death: for, We have redemption through his bloud, to wit, not as excluding his former obedience, Rom. 5. 18, 19. nor yet his other sufferings, especially his soul-sufferings, Isa. 53. 10. but as being the head-stone and compleating of all, Joh. 19. 30. Doct. 6. Sin is a debt, as being a wrong done against God, obliging the sinner to repair God in his honour, or otherwayes to underly the wrath of a provoked God for ever, Rom. 6. 23-. for, the word forgivenesse, in the Original, and as it is used in Scripture, is taken from those who are loosed out of a prison for debt; The forgivenesse of sins. 7. There is no delivery from this debt of sin, and obligation to wrath because of sin, but by pardon and forgivenesse. It is an infinit debt, and so cannot be satisfied by finit creatures: for, thus doth Paul expresse the way how the debt is removed, even by forgivenesse of sins. 8. Though the guilt of sin be removed by forgivenesse, and therefore freely, as to us; yet, that sin might be thus freely forgiven with the good leave of provoked justice, forgivenesse of sin was purchased at a dear rate by Christ: for, as we have redemption through his bloud, so also forgivenesse of sins. 9. Jesus Christ hath this rich treasure of forgivenesse of sins, which he hath bought by his bloud, laid up in himself; so that whensoever a sinner sensible of this weighty debt doth lay hold upon Christ by faith, and is thereby ingraffed in Him, his sins are freely pardoned, and his debt remitted: for, In him, saith he, we have forgivenesse of sins. 10. As that grace, favour and good-will, which God manifested in the salvation of sinners is a rich, copious and abundant grace: so nothing argueth the riches of this grace more, than that from it do flow such excellent effects, as, the giving of Christ the Son of God to redeem slaves and rebels, together with forgivenesse of sins; they being infinit wrongs, and there being many of them in every pardoned sinner, Psal. 19. 12. And those not only ordinary infirmities, but sometimes also heinous transgressions, Psal. 51. 14. and yet free-grace pardoneth all, and this not only in one, but in all Believers, in all ages, and doth yet remain as full and overflowing in God, to pardon self-condemned sinners as ever; all which, doth argue no lesse than a copious, rich and abundant grace: for, the Apostle, speaking of grace with relation to those two, redemption and forgiveness, which flow from it, he calleth it a rich grace; According to the riches of his grace, saith he.