Gods Love to Man and Mans Duty Towards God, Part 2 · Section 4
1 Joh. 3.23.
This is his Commandment, that we ſhould believe.
Sect. 4. PROP. IV. The Covenant of Grace is ſometimes called … Law, and hath the force of a Law.
IT is called the Law of faith, Rom. 3.27. It is the Law of life, and the Law of liberty.
The will of God at any time made known to his Creatures is immediately obliging; whatſoever God revealeth to us, we are immediately bound to believe; whatever God requires of us, we are immediately bound to obey. As in the Covenant of Grace there is ſomething that God requireth, (and not only what God promiſeth,) it muſt needs have the Nature of a Law.
Since the old Original Law of works given to Man at firſt, is broken, and all Mankind laid under a curſe, under the Sentence of Death by that Law, it hath pleaſed the Lord (of his infinite mercy and …ompaſſion towards poor periſhing Creatures) to …ake and ſet forth a new Law, a remediant Law, a Law of grace, holding forth remiſſion and ſalva…on to rebel-ſinners, upon their humble ſubmiſſion, …nd hearty return to God; yet withall, threatning …eath without remedy; yea, and much ſorer con…emnation to ſinners that hear of this Law of grace, …nd come not in upon it. The Goſpel hath the …rdinary Sanction of a Law, it is backt with a …reatning. Yea, it thundreth out the moſt dread…l Anathema, denounceth the greateſt wo to thoſe …at have the Goſpel publiſhed and made known, …d yet obey not the Goſpel. Ah ſirs, this is the …ndemnation. Goſpel-condemnation will be found …ore intollerable than Law-condemnation. The …oſpel doth not only promiſe, but it commandeth, …reatneth, and condemneth. That I cannot but …onder any ſhould queſtion, whether the Goſpel …ave the Nature of a Law. I would fain know …hat is eſſential, and proper to a Law, that doth …t agree to the Goſpel.
I ſay, the Goſpel is a Law, [Believe, and thou …alt be ſaved] is properly a Law; as well as [Do …is, and live.] Do this, and live, was the old Original …aw, firſt given to Man, and the matter or con…nts of the firſt Covenant God made with Adam. Do this, and live] i. e. obey perfectly, and ſo …ou ſhalt live by thy own righteouſneſs. This was …e old Original Law. Now [Believe and thou …alt be ſayed] this is the new Law of Grace, which …od hath given to Man, as a Remedying Law, …ince the violation of the former) and this is the …atter, and ſumme of the Covenant of Grace. As when men accept, and conſent to the terms of … Goſpel, whether in heart, or in profeſſion, it becom… a formal actual Covenant. Though it binds a… Law, at leaſt in order of Nature, before men a… bound by it as a Covenant. [Believe, and thou ſh… be ſaved.] i. e. come up to Goſpel-terms, and thou… thou art a ſinner, and deſerveſt to dye, yet thy … ſhall be pardoned, and thou ſhalt live, for the righ… ouſneſs of another; thou ſhalt be ſaved by Je… Chriſt, who is a believers righteouſneſs.
Here I have given you a brief account of the … Law. And that it hath the proper binding f… and power of a Law, to me ſeems the eaſieſt th… in the world to make out. Thus, all that hear of… terms of the new Covenant, be they heathen, they ſtrangers to the Covenant, yet are immediat… bound to come up to theſe terms, and immediat… puniſhable upon this very account, if they do … come up to theſe terms. This is plain as can … Mar. 16.15, 16. Go ye into all the world, … preach the Goſpel to every Creature—and he … believeth not ſhall be damned. In this Text it is … dent, the Law of faith hath the ſanction of a thre… ning, as well as of a promiſe. And whereſoever… Goſpel is preached, all are bound to believe and according to the Goſpel upon pain of damna… So 2 Theſſ. 1.8. The Lord will take vengeance them that obey not the Goſpel] that implieth a … manding power in the Goſpel, ſure where the… no command, there can be neither obedience, diſobedience. If the Goſpel ought to be obey then it hath the force of a Law. If it be a ſin, … to obey the Goſpel, then the Goſpel hath the Nat… of a Law; for where no Law, there no tranſgre… …gain, [taking vengeance] on them that obey not …e Goſpel, implies moſt ſtrongly, that it hath the …rce of a Law; would the Lord, the righteous Lord …ke vengeance for no Law broken? would he puniſh …r no crime? Then how ſhould he judge the world righteouſneſs?
That is therefore a very groſs miſtake of him, that …lds the Goſpel "a Doctrine teaching, A. E.not a Precept binding. Do we not read the …ain contrary, 1 Joh. 3.23. This is his Command…nt, that we ſhould believe on the name of his Son …ſus Chriſt: What? is his Commandment no …ding Precept? How ſtrange is it, that this ſhould …t grate upon, & offend any Chriſtians ears? certain… to diſtinguiſh here betwixt a Doctrine teaching, …d a precept binding, is as groundleſs as that Popiſh …ſtinction of Commands and Counſels, on which …y build their monſtrouſly abſurd Doctrine of …rks of Super-errogation.
But ſayes the ſame writer, "No Man is bound …o believe abſolutely, but conditionally, viz. if he will have any benefit by Chriſt. As a man is bound within the time limitted in the pardon, to ſue it …ut under the Broad Seal; which if he neglect to do, he breaketh no Law of the Kings, but only …eprives himſelf of the benefit of the pardon, and of the Kings favour therein.
Anſwer. I will not ſay, that all are abſolutely and to believe in Chriſt; that is, whether they …er heard of Chriſt, or no; for the negative unbe… of thoſe that never heard of Chriſt, is not their …, but their miſery. But upon ſuppoſition that …n have once heard of Chriſt, and the Goſpel, …n it immediately becomes their duty to believe. And they are moſt ſeverely threatned, if they … obey the Goſpel-commands, and continue in … belief.
But to ſay we are bound to believe only con… tionally, that is, (as he explains it) if we wo… have any benefit by Chriſt; is to ſay, we are … bound to believe in obedience to Gods Comman… but only out of ſelf-love, with reſpect to … ſelves, and the benefit that comes by it. As if ſhould ſay, we ought to believe in point of pruden… as that which is good for us; otherwiſe there is … tye upon Conſcience.
He that believeth not—the wrath of God abid… on him, Joh. 3.36. That is, as he ſayes, mincing It doth not come upon him, but he remaineth un… wrath, which faith would have freed him fro… Yet v. 18. we read, he that believeth is condemn… already, becauſe he hath not believed in the Na… of the only begotten Son of God.] That unbelie… a ſin; and properly a cauſe of condemnation; y… more certainly a cauſe of condemnation than o… ſins; other ſins are damnable, this is damning. Tho… wrath came upon men at firſt by the breach of firſt Covenant; yet a further degree of wrath co… upon men by the breach of the new Covenant, by ſinning againſt this new Law of Grace.
Well Sirs, be clear in this; that the Goſpel, new Covenant hath the Nature of a Law, is a vine Law, immediately, and indiſpenſibly oblig… all to whom it is made known. By the very La… Nature, of our Creation, we all ſtand eternally liged both to believe and obey God, & in revel… & in revelandis, whenſoever God reveals his … and will to any of his Creatures, that this he requ… …f them, and on theſe terms he will be gracious to …hem, this revelation of the will of God doth neceſ…rily inferr the creatures obligation to obſerve it. …nd before a Man can be bound by any act of his …wn, he is under a previous obligation, naturally …nd neceſſarily reſulting from his very being and re…tion to God, as a creature, to attend to the will and …leaſure of God, to act and order himſelf accor…ingly. And how much more that man is bound to …ccept of, and ſubmit to ſuch a Law as this, intended …nd provided for the remedy and recovery of a poor …ſt creature: a Law of Grace, wherein Gods free race and infinite mercy ſhineth forth ſo illuſtriouſly, …s it is apter to be taken notice of, than his Sove…aignty and authority. Yet you muſt know God …oth not ſtand here to Man's courteſie, or need his …oncurrence or conſent, to make his word of force, …nd obligatory.
Nothing can be more certain, than that God in co…enanting with men, doth not forgoe or paſs away …is authority or right of commanding.
They that under pretence of advancing God's free grace, dethrone his Soveraignty; they that level or …eſſen his authority to ſet up his clemency and mercy, …eal not fairly with him; they have very low …houghts; ſhort, inadequate, and unworthy appre…enſions of him.
For my part I know no ſtronger Argument againſt Antinomianiſm, than this; that it denies that ſubjection to God, which is naturally, neceſſarily Man's duty, as he is a creature, from which he can never poſſibly be diſcharged, while he is a creature; or that …t would deprive God of his authority over his creatures. They that would have a believer free from the obligation to obey God in all things, let them ask him the Kingdom alſo.
But attend to this I beſeech you; what the Go… requires, God requires; and what God requires, creatures are bound to obſerve and perform. A… though Miniſters uſe to pray and beſeech you to reconciled, entreat you to come in to the Lord Je… Chriſt; yet we have authority alſo in the name God, to charge and command you. Now G… commandeth every one of you to repent, and this his Commandment, that ye believe, that ye rece… Chriſt Jeſus the Lord, that ye kiſs the Son. A… ſlight and deſpiſe him at your peril, reject him your peril. [Believe, and be ſaved] bindeth ev… one to whom it is publiſhed, as a Law; even ſ… as are not under the bond of the Covenant. And y… more eſpecially, who have given your conſent, leaſt by an outward profeſſion. You are bound believe, not only by vertue of a divine Command, … alſo as being under the bond of the covenant. O w… a crying ſin is your unbelief! As it is a breach o… divine Law, it muſt needs be damnable in its o… Nature; and further as it is a breach of ſuch a L… of Grace, a breach of the new Covenant, that ho… forth the only way wherein you can be ſaved, ſo… is the damning ſin indeed; not only damnable in … own Nature, but certainly damning in the eve… Sinners that are condemned by the Law of Work… yet may be diſcharged from that condemnation … hearkning to, and obeying the Goſpel, Rom. 8. But if condemned by the Goſpel, how ſhould ſu… eſcape?