The Christians Charter, Chapter 1 – Chapter 2
CHAP. I. The Porch or Entrance into the words, together with the Proposition.
HAppinesse is the mark, and centre which every man aimes at. The next thing that is sought, after being, is being happy; and surely, the neerer the soul comes to God who is the fountain of life and peace, the nearer it approacheth to happinesse; and who so near to God as the Beleever, who is mystically one with him? he must needs be the happy man: And if you would survey his blessed Estate, cast your eyes upon this text, which points to it, as the finger to the Diall: For all things are yours. The text may not unfitly be compared to the Tree of Life*Rev 22.2., which bare twelve manner of fruits, and yielded her fruit every monethmonth; there are many precious clusters growing out of this text, and being Skilfully improved, will yield much fruit.
In the words we have the Inventory of a Christian, All things are your; A strange paradox, when a believer can call nothing his, yet he can say, *Eae sunt fidelium opes, ut vel cum Croeso Rege certare ausint, quantum. vis summā premantur & injuriâ, & inopiâ. Weinrichius.all things are his. I have often thought a poor Christian that lives in a prison, or some old cottage, is like the Usurer, who though he goes poore, and can hardly find himselfe bread, yet hath thousands out at use: So it is with a child of God, *2 Cor. 6.10.as having nothing, yet possessing all things. What once the Philosopher said, Solus sapiens dives, Only the wise man is the rich man; give me leave to say, only the believer is the rich man; here is his estate summed up, All things are his.
Before I come to the words,Object. there is an objection must be removed, If all things are ours, there seems to be a community: what is one mans, is anothers.
Answ. Answ.The Apostle doth not speak here of civill Possessions; Paul did not go about to destroy any mans propriety; *Omniae vestra quae in sacris li…er is non excep…a. Pet. Mar.for though he saith▪ All things are yours; yet he doth not say, what any man hath is yours.
Object.Object. But is it not said, foreign; They had all things. common? Acts 2.44.
It is true: but first, This was purely voluntary:Answ. *Piscator.non fuit praeceptum, sed susceptum; there was no precept for it.
If it be objected, that this was set downe as an example to imitate.
1. I answer; Examples in Scripture are not alwayes Argumentative: The Prophet Elijah called for fire from heaven, to consume the Captaines and their fifties *… King. 1.10.; but it doth not therefore follow, that when one Christian is angry with another, he may call for fire from heaven. Thus the Primitive Saints out of prudence and charity, had all things common; it will not therefore follow, that in every age and century of the Church, there should be a common stock, and every one have a share.
2. I answer; Though the Disciples had all things common, yet still they held their propriety, as is clear by Peters speech to Ananias *Act. 5.4.Whiles it remained, was it not thine own? and after it was sold, was it not in thine own power? It is true in one sense, what the Primitive Church had, was not their own; so much as could be spared was for the reliefe of the Saints, thus all things were common; but still they kept a part of their estate in their owne hand. There is as the Schoolmen observe, duplex jus, Aquin.a double right to an estate, a right of propriety, and a right of charity. The right of charity belongs to the poor, but the right of propriety belongs to the owner. For instance, God made a law, *Deut. 23.24, 25.That a man must not put his sickle into his Neighbours corne. We reade that the Disciples being hungry when they went through the fields on the Sabbath, did pluck the ears of corne, there was charity; but they must not put the sickle into the corn, here was propriety. This I the rather speak, because there are some, that when God hath made an enclosure would lay all common: It was Satan pulled down Iob's hedg. The Lord hath set the eighth Commandment as a fence about a mans estate▪ and he that breaks this hedg, a serpent shall bite him. Thus having taken that objection out of the way, I come now to the Text.
And it falls into three parts. 1. The Inventory, foreign, All things, 2. The Proprietors, foreign, All things are yours. 3. The tenure, foreign, Ye are Christs. Which three branches will make up this one Proposition.
Doctr.Doct. That all things in heaven and earth, are the portion and prerogative of a believer. A large Inventory▪ All things: we can have but all. And the Apostle useth an ingemination, he doubles it, to take away all hesitancy and doubting from faith.
CHAP. II. The Arguments proving the Proposition.
THere are two Reasons which will serve to illustrate and confirm the Proposition, All things are a beleevers.
1. Because the Covenant of Grace is his.Reas. 1. The Covenant is our Great Charter, by vertue of which God settles all things in heaven and earth upon us. By sin we had forfeited all, therefore if all things be ours, the title comes in by a Covenant; till then we had nothing to hold by. This Covenant is the issue and birth of Gods love▪ it is the legacy of free-grace. This Covenant is enriched with mercy, it is embroydered with promises: you may read the Charter, *Jer. 31 34 foreignI will be their God. And there is a parallell to it, *Ps 5….7 foreignI am God, even thy God: This is a sufficient dowry. If God be ours then all things are ours.
He is, 1. Eminently Good. One Diamond doth virtually containe many lesser pearls: the excellencies in the creature are single, and want their Adjuncts. Learning hath not alwayes Parentage: Honour hath not alwayes Vertue. No Individuall can be the receptacle and continent of all perfections: But those Excellencies that lie scattered in the creature, are all united and concentred in God, as the beams in the Sun, the drops in the Ocean.
2. Hee is Superlatively Good. Whatever is in the creature, is to- be found in God after a more transcendent manner A man may be said to be wise, but God is infinitely so; Powerfull, but God is eternally so; Faithfull, but God is unchangeably so. Now in the Covenant of Grace, God passeth himself over to us to be our God; I am God, even thy God.
This expression, I am thy God, imports three things: 1. Pacification. You shall finde grace in my sight, I will cast a favourable aspect upon▪ you, I will put off my armour, I will take down my Standard, I will be no more an enemy. 2. Donation. God makes himself over to us by a deed of gift, and gives away himself to us: he saith to the believer, as the King of Israel said to the King of Syria, *1 King. 20.4I am thine, and all that I have: This is alvearium divini mellis, an hive full of divine comfort: all that is in God is ours: his Wisdom is ours, to teach us; his love is ours, to pity us; his Spirit is ours, to comfort us; his mercy is ours, to save us. When God saith to the soule, I am thine, it is enough, he cannot say more. 3. Duration. I will be a God to thee, as long as I am a God.
Reas. 2.2. Reason. All things are a believers, because Christ is his Jesus Christ is, foreign, the pillar and hinge upon which the Covenant of Grace turns. Without Christ, we had nothing to do with a Covenant. The Covenant is founded upon Christ, and is sealed in his blood. We read of the Mercy-seat*Exo. 25.17, which was a divine Hieroglyphick, typifying Jesus Christ. There will I meet thee, and I will commune with thee from above the Mercy-seat ▪ ver. 22. To shew that in Christ God is propitions. From above this Mercy-seat he communes with us, and enters into Covenant. Therefore it is observable, when the Apostle had said, All thing are yours, he presently adds, Ye are Christs. There comes in the title, we hold all in capite. This golden chain, Things present, and things to come, is linked to us, by vertue of our being linked to Christ. By faith we have an interest in Christ; having an interest in Christ, we have an interest in God; having an interest in God, we have a title to all things.