The Revelation Revealed, Chapter 3 · Verse 4
Verſ. 4. Thou haſt a few names even in Sardis, which have not defiled their garments, and they ſhall walke with me in white; for they are worthy.
It may be firſt demanded who the perſon is that hath theſe few names in Sardis? Doubtleſs it is meant of the Angel, Paſtor, or Miniſter of the church, who principally receives this charge, and to whom the whole is directed, to be made known unto the church to, and over which the Holy Ghoſt had made him Overſeer, Paſtor, or Angel.
Thou haſt, that is, under thy charge, a few Names even in Sardis. Names are here put for Perſons, Act. 1.15. The number of the Names (that is, of men or perſons) that were in one place, were about an hundred and twenty: and Rev. 11.13. it is ſaid, that in the Earth quake were ſlain of men ſeven thouſand, in the Greek it is foreign The names of men that were ſlain were ſeven thouſand: And I conceive this word Names, is not uſed by the Spirit ſimply, to denote the perſons of men, as thus, Thou haſt a few perſons in Sardis which have not defiled &c. but alſo to demonſtrate the quality of the perſons, they were a few Names, that is, a few perſons of Name and Quality, they were Names of men, or men of Name, of excellent ſpirits, tempers, weight, and quality, for they had not defiled their garments, they were not ſo much as outwardly tainted by the common wickedneſs and iniquities of Sardis: And thoſe poor ſouls ſhall walk with me in white: To walk with Chriſt is to be ſharer and partaker with him in his Heavenly enjoyments: With whom we walk we communicate with him, enjoy his diſcourſe, councel, preſence, familiarity, friendſhip, and all other comforts whatſoever, that is poſſibly to be enjoyed by him: And they ſhall not only ſo walk with Chriſt, but they ſhall walk with him in white. A white raiment was uſually ſet by antiquity, on the acquited, innocent, abſolved perſon; but a black on the guilty, and condemned: This hath ſome alluſion to the former white Stone, which was given either to the conquering, or to the innocent abſolved Saint: So to walk with Chriſt in white, is no more then to partake with Chriſt, either a free abſolution at the laſt day, o… to be with him as white, innocent conquering Saints, at the reſurection; for they are worthy, that is, thoſe pure undefiled ſouls are accepted by me as worthy of ſuch happineſſes. Note hence from the perſon that had theſe few names in Sardis.
Obſerv. 1. That Chriſtians of the beſt Quality and Name, are under the charge and overſight of their Pastors and Angels.
Thou haſt a few names in Sardis: Chriſt is the ſupream ruling, teaching and influencing head over his church; but the Paſtor or Miniſter is the ſubordinate organical head to every particular church: And ſo the hand or eye cannot ſay unto the head, I have no need of thee, a body without a head will be but a trunck unfit for lively motion: So a church without a Paſtor or Miniſter, may be a body, but very liveleſs and uſeleſs unto its operations and offices. I can but judge them very immorigerous unto the ſweet and eaſy yoak of Chriſt, that will not endure a Paſtor, an Angel, a Miniſter over them, to precede in all official duties unto the flock of Chriſt: It is unto ſuch that the Holy Ghoſt hath committed the overſight of the flock; and therefore all are to ſubmit unto them, as unto the Lord: For though I ſhould grant many things unto the members in common with their Officers, yet not to be Officers or Paſtors in common with them; for there are none ſuch as Paſtors of Paſtors in the Goſpel of Chriſt, but Paſtors of the flock of Chriſt: And therefore as I could never brook a lawleſs community, or leveling in the churches of Chriſt, all to be Rulers and Teachers, and none to be taught and ruled; ſo neither would it comport with truth, according to my judgment, to admit of Paſtors over Paſtors, or one Presbitery over another, no farther then prudence will lead unto, but not of Divine right and equity. It is evident theſe ſeven Aſian churches, and all the other the Primitive Apoſtolical ones, were Paſtoral, Epiſcopal, Independent ones. I think it no Paradox to aſſert, that an Epiſcopal church may be Independent; for I take ſuch a one to be of Divine right indeed, whilſt the Prelatical Epiſcopal church hath loſt its jure divino, by exalting it ſelf beyond Chriſt's bounds, and taking too much upon it.
Obſerv. 2. That the pure undefiled Saints of Chriſt, are perſons of high eſteem and account with God.
They are men of Name and Quality; God takes notice of them, as men of moſt excellent and eminent ſpirits; all the reſt of Sardis beſides them, are but ſuch that had the name that they were living, but are dead: Thoſe are they that ſhall walk with Chriſt in white; for they are worthy: All the reſt of the world are not of the ſame valew with theſe in the ſight of God; for they are thoſe for whom the world was made; yea, God reproves Kings for their ſakes, ſaying, Touch not mine Anointed, Pſal. 105.15. They are God's Jewels, his Precious ones which he makes up in ſafty and ſec…rity: When all the world is on fire, and combuſtion beſides, they are in a Land of Goſhen, of light, peace, and comfort, Mal. 3.17. And the great reaſon of this is, in that they have the image and likneſs of God upon them, and his ſpirit dwelling in them, and every thing does love and highly eſteem its like; for likneſs is the root of love, much more God's, who is love it ſelf, will highly eſteem and love his Saints, being the workmanſhip of his own hands.
Even in Sardis thou haſt a few Names. Hence Note,
Obſerv. 3. That in the most corrupted Church ſtate, Chriſt may have ſome choſen and precious Saints.
Sardis had but the name that ſhow as living, and was dead; and yet in this nominal, dead, formal church, God had a few Names there that were precious to him. The church of God did never totally fail upon the earth, nor never ſhall; though the viſibility thereof may fail, yet the inviſible church will never fail: When all fleſh had corrupted its ways, and wickedneſs of man grown great, and the earth filled with violence, before the Floud, Gen. 6.11, 12. yet then was Noah undefiled, and a faithful Preacher of righteouſneſs; yea he was juſt and perfect in his generation, and walked with God. In the corrupted church ſtate in the days of Ahab. when Jezebel cut off the Prophets of the Lord, and ſet up Idolatries in the room of them, true worſhip of God, and the godly and righteous, ſo vexed and waſted, that Elijah the Prophet thought none but himſelf left in Iſrael: Even then the Lord tells him there were ſeven thouſand which had not bowed the knee to Baal, 1 Kings, 1.18.
In the time when Chriſt came in the fleſh, which was in an exceeding bad and corrupted church ſtate, and in a time when the Jewiſh church was never more corrupt then when he came; yet there was then a Joſeph, a Mary, a Zachariah, and Elizabeth, a Simeon, and Anna, and ſome few others that truly feared God. In the darkeſt and deepeſt night of Popery, there were ſome faithfull witneſſes unto the truth; The Waldenſes, the Abigenſes, Pauperes, Lugdunenſes, &c. of whom ſome of the Popiſh Writers themſelves teſtifie, that they were upright in their carriages, and believed aright concerning God; only they blaſphemed the church of Rome: So there was a Huc, a Jerome of Prague; a Wickliff, Berengarius, Peter de Bruis, Luther, Oecolompadius, Melancthon, &c. in a time and ſtate bad enough: So here in England, when the church was exceeding corrupt under the Prelacy, yet then appeared here a Cartwright, Hooker, Ames, Parker, Bolton, Robinſon, Reynolds, Aynſworth, Baynes, and many other pretious Saints and faithful Witneſſes unto the truths of Chriſt.
Obſerv. 4. God accepteth the pure and undefiled as worthy of eternal life.
at. 5.8. Bleſſed are the pure in heart, for they ſhall ſee God: They are thoſe that ſhall walk in white with Chriſt, and inherit the Kingdom with him.
Queſt. But if it be demanded, Doth not this aſſert a merit in workes; or that purity in the life doth exact from God in the way of Juſtice, ſome anſwerable compenſation to it.
I anſwer, firſt, and aſſert, That holineſs or purity of heart is the deſcriptive quality of thoſe that ſhall ſee God; they and they only (of Adult perſons) are accepted by God to that high priviledg.
Secondly, I grant too, that the eternal life of happineſs is ſet forth and given as a prize, as a reward, as a crown to the conquering Saints; ſo in this and the laſt chapter it is often promiſed unto ſuch holy ones under ſuch a notion of a crown and reward.
Thirdly, but I utterly deny that it hath the leaſt proportion to ſatisfie Divine Juſtice, or merit the leaſt in ſtrict Juſtice from God, towards eternal life.
1. Becauſe eternal life is the free gift of God, and he giveth it to whom he pleaſeth, Joh, 17.2. 1 Joh. 5.11.
2. Becauſe Divine Juſtice requires exact obedience, which ſaith that he that is guilty of the breach of one tittle of the Law, is guilty of the tranſgreſſion of the whole: For the beſt Saints being ſo imperfect in their obedience, that they come far ſhort in obtaining any thing at the hands of God in ſtrict Juſtice.
3. Becauſe our ſanctification and holineſs is the alone work of God's own grace and ſpirit, and therefore improperly ſaid to merit at his own hands. A child may merit from his Father in Juſtice, by his filial obedience, the parent being under a natural Law of compenſation, as well as the child is under the law of obedience towards him: But God our heavenly Father is tied up unto no ſuch Laws, being a free agent, and giveth life to whom he pleaſeth.
4. And therefore Laſtly, Becauſe man hath forfeited his firſt covenant of merit and life by righteouſneſs in Adam, and that being made null, God hath inſtituted a moſt gratious one, wherein he hath freely given eternal life to all his choſen ones; merited by the blood of his Son, and received here in the firſt fruits thereof by faith and the ſanctification of the ſpirit.
Object. But here comes the Sophiſtical Ieſuites, and ſay, 'Tis true, in rigor or Iuſtice we cannot merit at God's hands, we cannot give him quid pro quo; but in his favorable acceptance we may give him ſome ſatisfaction, wherein there is a kind of imperfect proportion to divine juſtice, and accepted by God in his goodneſs and mercy, as good payment from us; and if you will take it rather in their own words whome they deſigne, and ſay there is either, 1. Sat is factio Juſticiae, ex rigore Juſticiae, ad abſolutam & perfectam equalitatem quantitatis. Or, 2. Acceptationis facti ex gratia donante ad imperfectam aequalitatem proportionis & ex condigno. The firſt ſatisfaction they deny, but the latter they grant, and aſſert that our own works though imperfect in themſelves to anſwer ſtrict Iuſtice, yet being now dyed in the blood of Chriſt, becomes currant for good payment; and Chriſt having merited to ſet a valew upon them, now they are able to ſtand by themſelves, and merit upon their own account at the hands of God. Theſe are ſome of Belarmines's expreſſions.
I anſwer, This diſtinction of ſatisfaction in ſtrict Iuſtice, and ſatisfaction in favorable acceptance; is but vain and ſophiſtical unto this Queſtion: I grant that our good works and holineſs done out of faith, are pleaſing to God and accepted of him; but where doth it appear that God accepts them as the leaſt ſatisfaction to his Iuſtice in Scriptures? God is not like man in humane ſatisfaction, ready to take twenty Pounds for one hundred Pounds from his debtor, where no more is to be had; God will make no ſuch complemental compoſitions with his debtors: Divine Iuſtice will exact the utmoſt farthing; either it will have full ſatisfaction of the ſinner, or of his ſurety: either of our ſelves, and upon our own perſons, or upon Chriſt for us: And therefore it is vain to imagine ſuch a facility or partiality in Divine Iuſtice, as to be ſatisfied with a few poor unworthy raggs of our own imperfect righteouſneſs. No ſatisfactions will ſuit and comport with Divine Iuſtice, but ſuch as are by the ſame Iuſtice reputed ſufficient, ſuch as are Chriſt's ſatisfactions, and they only can do the work: And therefore thoſe pure undefiled names at Sardis are accounted worthy to walk with Chriſt in white, not out of their own merits, or the leaſt ſatisfaction that they can render unto Divine Iuſtice; but out of God's meer gratious acceptation and free love towards them: They are worthy not out of Merit and Iuſtice, but out of fitneſs, aptneſs, and excellency, in compariſon of others: And ſo God accepts them as gratious, lovely, and worthy to be in his preſence for ever and ever.