Orthodoxy and Charity United, Essay 6
ESSAY VI. A View of the manifold Salvation of Man by JESUS CHRIST, repreſented in order to reconcile Chriſtians of different Sentiments.
INTRODUCTION.
MAnkind by Nature lies under the Ruins of the Fall; both as Guilty and as Sinful. We are guilty in our Perſons, and expoſed to the divine Anger, as well as ſinful in our Natures, and ever ready to break his holy Law. Whoſoever therefore becomes our complete Saviour muſt relieve us under both theſe Diſtreſſes.
As we are guilty in the Sight of God, we are condemned in the Court of his Law and Juſtice, we are liable to bear the Puniſhment due to our Sins, and we have loſt all Pretence of Right to the Favour of God and Eternal Life. Now our bleſſed Lord Jeſus Chriſt, who has undertaken the Work of our Salvation, is an all-ſufficient Saviour in every Reſpect; by his Obedience, Death and Interceſſion, he relieves us from the Guilt of Sin, and ſo delivers us from all Obligations to the Puniſhments of Hell: He reconciles us to God, and gives us a Right to Life and Salvation in the heavenly World.
As we are ſinful Creatures we are ever ready to offend God afreſh, and are utterly unfit for his heavenly Preſence: And Chriſt ſaves us in this Reſpect, by changing our vicious Nature and Temper, ſanctifying us by his Grace or Holy Spirit, ſo that we may be prepar'd for the Enjoyment of God in heavenly Places.
In theſe two things the Subſtance of our Salvation chiefly conſiſts: And ſince theſe divine Affairs could not be ſo well underſtood by us, according to thoſe ſublime Ideas by which God the Father and his Son tranſact them in their Eternal Counſels and their ſubſequent Diſpenſations, therefore God has been pleaſed to reveal them to us under ſuch Ideas or Repreſentations, and in ſuch Forms of Language, as are borrow'd from our common Affairs in human Life; and that not only by one Figure or Emblem, but by many Repreſentations thereof, that we might view them on all Sides, and have a fuller Knowledge of them, ſo far as is ſufficient for our preſent State, or neceſſary to our Salvation.
SECT. I. The Characters of Chriſt as our Deliverer from the Sinfulneſs of our Natures.
Firſt, Let us take a very brief Survey of this Matter, as our Lord Jeſus Chriſt delivers us from our ſinful Natures, or the Power of Sin that works in us, for he is our Sanctification as well as our Righteouſneſs. 1 Cor. i. 30.
Our bleſſed Saviour in this Reſpect, is ſometimes repreſented as our almighty Redeemer, who reſcues us from the Power of Satan, and of our own Luſts, by the more powerful Influences of his Spirit: He is our Sanctifier, who renews the Image of God in us, which was loſt by our firſt Apoſtacy, and this he does by his ſovereign creating Power, for we are created anew to good Works, in or by Chriſt Jeſus. He is ſometimes ſet forth as our Prophet, to give us Light and the Knowledge of God, and of the way of Salvation, by the divine Inſtructions of his Goſpel. He is our Example to go before us, and to mark out for us the Path of Duty and Holineſs by his own Footſteps, and to encourage our walking therein by his Precedency, and ſo he is alſo our Forerunner to Heaven. Chriſt is alſo our King to give us Laws and Rules of Life, and to rule in our Hearts by giving us an Inclination to obey his Laws: By his royal Power alſo in his exalted State, he ſubdues Sin in us, he mortifies our unruly Appetites and Paſſions which are his Enemies, he brings every Power of our Nature into Obedience and Subjection to himſelf. He fits us for the heavenly Kingdom, and actually beſtows upon us this final Happineſs. He is alſo repreſented in Scripture as our Vital Head, or Head of ſpiritual Life, and Believers are his Members; and ſo his Spirit becomes the Spring of ſpiritual Life in us, renews our ſinful Nature, raiſes us from Death in Treſpaſſes and Sins, conveys a new and divine Life to us, and will at laſt, by the ſame Spirit, raiſe our Bodies from the Dead to live forever with him.
Thus much concerning one Branch of our Salvation, (viz.) the Recovery of our Nature from the Sinfulneſs thereof, which I ſhall no longer inſiſt upon here.
SECT. II. The Characters of Chriſt as our Deliverer from the Guilt and Puniſhment of Sin.
The other Branch of our Salvation is, that which I chiefly have in View at preſent, (viz.) that which conſiſts in the Deliverance of our Perſons from the Guilt of Sin, from Condemnation and Puniſhment, and in that Right to Eternal Life which is provided and given us by our Lord Jeſus Chriſt. There are many Repreſentations thereof in Scripture, borrow'd from the Affairs of Men; and the Characters which our bleſſed Lord ſuſtains, together with the Reſpects that our Faith and our Salvation bear to him, under theſe Characters, are chiefly ſuch as theſe.
I. The firſt and moſt general Character which our Lord Jeſus Chriſt aſſumes, is that of a Saviour, by which Name he is moſt frequently called in the New Teſtament. This is the very Signification of his proper Name Jeſus, in the Hebrew, Matt. i. 21. Thou ſhalt call his Name Jeſus, for he ſhall ſave his People from their Sins. He ſaves or delivers us from Sin, and from all the painful or criminal Effects and Conſequences thereof: He delivers us from the Wrath to come, 1 Theſſ. i. ult. he ſaves us by withholding the divine Anger from us, and taking away every thing that provoked it, or might provoke it.
Salvation is the natural Word to expreſs the Bleſſings we receive from Chriſt, as he is our Saviour, i. e. Salvation from the Guilt of Sin and Puniſhment thereof, partly in this World, and chiefly in the World to come.
Faith *'Tis granted that the Word Faith in Chriſt, in its moſt ſtrict and proper Senſe, ſignifies a Truſt in him, according to the ſeveral Diſcoveries made of him in hte Goſpel: But if taken in its moſt large and general Senſe, as it implies the Addreſs or Application of a Sinner to Jeſus Chriſt for Salvation, it includes in it thoſe various Actions of the Soul which are Attendants on this Truſting, either with it, before it, or after it, as many Scriptures ſufficiently manifeſt.gives us a ſpecial Intereſt in theſe Bleſſings, by chuſing him or receiving him as our Saviour, by looking to him from the Ends of the Earth, from the Borders of Hell, that we may be ſaved, Iſa. xlv. by calling upon the Name of the Lord, that we may be ſaved, Rom. x. and by yielding Obedience to him; So Faith in a large Senſe may be repreſented, for Heb. v. 9. He is the Author of Eternal Salvation to them that obey him, or accept of all the Bleſſings of Salvation in his own appointed way.
II. the next Title which is given to our Lord Jeſus, on this Account, is a Mediator, to make Peace between an offended God and offending Man, 1 Tim. ii. 5. There is one God and one Mediator between God and Man, even the Man Chriſt Jeſus. He is that Days-Man as Job ſpeaks, Chap. ix. 33. that great Reconciler, that Umpire or Perſon who can argue for us with the bleſſed God, who is able to lay his Hand upon both, to come between God and Man, and to remove this dreadful difference betwixt them. And this he did by all thoſe Methods which God has appointed in the Covenant of Redemption made with his Son Jeſus Chriſt, i. e. by his Incarnation, his Obedience, his Sufferings, his Death, his Interceſſion, &c.
Our Salvation under this Character is called Peace, Rom. v. 1. Jeſus Chriſt himſelf, for this Reaſon, is called our Peace or Peace-maker, Eph. ii. 24. and Iſai. xxvii. 5. where a Sinner is repreſented as taking hold of the Strength or Arm of the Lord, in order to make Peace with him. It is called Reconciliation to God, 2 Cor. v. 18. and the Goſpel is called the Word of Reconciliation: And let it be obſerved, that our Mediator not only takes away the Difference between God and Man, but has alſo proceeded ſo far as to obtain an Intereſt in the Love and Favour of God forever, inſtead of his former Wrath, and Diſpleaſure, and Condemnation.
Faith applies this Salvation to us, or ſecures to us an Intereſt therein, by our humble Acceptance of Jeſus Chriſt for ſuch a Mediator as God has propoſed him in his Word. Now this Acceptance of him as our Mediator, implies in it an earneſt Deſire of Reconciliation to God by him, as St. Paul beſeeches the Corinthians to be willing to be reconciled: It is an inward and hearty Approbation of what Chriſt has done, and what he does for our Reconciliation in his mediatorial Offices, attended with ſincere Repentance for paſt Offences, and a Submiſſion to God for Time to come, which is neceſſarily, and in the very Nature of Things required of all that would be reconciled to God, by the Mediation of Chriſt, *The perſonal Miniſtry of our Lord Jeſus Chriſt, was Repent and believe the Goſpel, Mark i. 5. The Meſſage with which he ſent his Apoſtles to the Jews was the ſame, Mark vi. 12. Luke ix. 6. and the Buſineſs of St. Paul among the Gentiles, was to teſtify to them Repentance toward God, and Faith in our Lord Jeſus. Acts xx. 21.and hereby we become Partakers of thoſe Bleſſings of Pardon, Peace and Grace, which are procured by our great Mediator.
III. Chriſt is ſet forth as our High-Prieſt in the New Teſtament, as he was typified under that Character in the Old Teſtament; and eſpecially in the Epiſtle to the Hebrews, Chap. iv. viii. and ix. Now in fulfilling this Office, he offered a Sacrifice acceptable to God upon Earth, even a Sacrifice of Atonement, or Propitiation by his own Blood, and he aſcended to Heaven to preſent it there before the Throne of God, Heb. viii. 3. and ix. 12, 22, 24. He went thither, not without Blood, to appear for us in the Preſence of God, and to intercede for us in the Virtue of his Sacrifice, Chap. vii. 25. which, in the Language of Scripture, is repreſented as carrying his Blood into Heaven, and as it were appearing with it there before the Throne of God: all which was ſhadowed out by the High-Prieſt carrying the Blood of the Sacrifice into the Holy of Holies, and ſprinkling it there at the Mercy-…eat.
Our Salvation under this Character is called alſo Peace, Pardon or Remiſſion of Sins, Reconciliation and eternal Redemption, and the Promiſe of the eternal Inheritance. Heb. ix. 12, 15.
Faith in…itles us to the ſaving Benefits of the Prieſt-hood of Chriſt by the Acceptance of him, as our high Pr…ſt and Interceſſor, to make our Peace with God, by appearing before God for us in the Virtue of his Sacrifice, and making Interceſſion for us there. Or Faith may be repreſented as our coming to God the Father by Jeſus Chriſt, as our high Prieſt, or applying to the Throne of Grace for Mercy under the Umbrage and Encouragement of Jeſus our High-Prieſt, who is gone thither for us, Heb. iv. 14—16.
IV. Our Lord Jeſus Chriſt is deſcribed not only as our High-Prieſt, but he himſelf was alſo the very Sacrifice of Propitiation or A…ment, to take away our Sins, Heb. ix. 12, 26. He offered himſelf up to God for us as a Sacrifice, Eph. v. 2. and his Blood was ſhed for the Remiſſion of our Sins, as in the Words of the Inſtitution of the Lord's Supper, recited by the ſeveral Evangeliſts, and by St. Paul, 1 Cor. xi. Iſa. liii. 16. God the Father was pleaſed to make his Soul an Offering for Sin.
Our Salvation this way has the ſame Names as under the former Head, viz. the waſhing away our Sins by his Blood, Rev. i. 5. The Forgiveneſs of Sin, Reconciliation to God, &c.
Our Faith is called Faith or Truſt in his Blood as our Propitiation, Rom. iii. 24. It is a Dependance on the Virtue and Efficacy of this Blood of Chriſt, for the procuring our Pardon: It is a ſort of Confeſſion of our Sins over the Head of the Sacrifice which was an ancient Ceremony in the Levitical Law, ſometimes performed by the Offender, and ſometimes by the Prieſt, whereby Sins were transferred to the Sacrifice who was to ſuffer for them, either by being ſlain, or by being ſent into the Land of Separation and Deſtruction, Lev. i. 4. and iii. 13. and v. 6. and xvi. 21. It is as it were a putting our guilty Souls under the ſprinkling of this atoning Blood, that we may be cleanſed from every Defilement; and it doth, as it were, preſent to God the Father, that Blood on which our Hope is placed.
V. Chriſt is yet farther repreſented to us as an Advocate, which Idea is a very different thing from his Interceſſion as a High-Prieſt. 1 John ii. 2. If any Man ſin, we have an Advocate with the Father, Jeſus Chriſt the Righteous. The proper Deſign of an High-Prieſt is to tranſact Affairs between God and Man, for Reconciliation and Divine Favour, &c. An Advocate is a Perſon appointed and choſen to plead before a Court of Juſtice againſt a Charge or Accuſation, and by his Pleading to bring off his Client with Honour, or to defend one who is charged with a Crime, from the Condemnation and Death which might be due to it. So our Lord Jeſus Chriſt, our Advocate, pleads againſt the Charges which the Law of God, or which Satan, our Adverſary, may bring againſt us; not by pretending that we are not guilty, but by pleading the Atonement made by his Blood for our Sins, by pleading our Pardon in the Court of Heaven, and by pleading his own Righteouſneſs, as the Foundation of our Hope; and therefore as the Apoſtle in this very Text calls him Jeſus Chriſt the Righteous, in Rev. xii. 10, 11. Satan is repreſented as accuſing the Saints Day and Night before God. Jeſus Chriſt is their Advocate, repreſenting his own Blood, and in this Senſe they are ſaid to caſt down the Accuſer by the Blood of the Lamb, which pleads and ſpeaks better Things than the Blood of Abel. i. e. it pleads for Mercy, whereas the Blood of Abel pleaded for Vengeance.
Our Salvation, in this Senſe, is called Freedom from Guilt, Abſolution or Acquitment from the Penalty, and a Vindication of Chriſtians from the Charge of Sin, and the Condemnation thereof, which is obtained by the prevailing Power and Intereſt which Jeſus Chriſt our Advocate has at the Court of Heaven, and by repreſenting before the Throne of God our Pardon purchaſed by his Blood, ſo that Satan has no further Charge againſt us.
By Faith we commit our Caſe and Circumſtances to this great Advocate, and we become his Clients, Dependants upon him; and in this Senſe Faith may be ſaid to caſt down our Accuſer by the Blood of the Lamb, by truſting in this great and bleſſed Advocate, or reſigning the important Concerns of our Souls to his Care and Faithfulneſs, to be tranſacted by him before the Bar of God in Heaven.
VI. Our Lord Jeſus Chriſt is ſet forth as our Sponſor or Surety, Heb. vii. 22. Jeſus was made a Surety of a better Teſtament, i. e. the new Covenant of Grace, as manifeſted in the Goſpel. A Surety is properly one, who undertakes for another to do or ſuffer ſomething for him, or who undertakes that this other Perſon ſhall do ſuch Services, or ſuffer ſuch Penalties, or enjoy ſuch Privileges. So our Lord Jeſus Chriſt has undertaken to anſwer the Demands of the Law of God for us who had broken it, to pay a Compenſation for our Violations of the Law, and to make Peace betwixt God and us. He has alſo undertaken, that all his People ſhall be ſanctified and brought ſafely to the heavenly World. So Judah became a Surety to his Father Jacob for his Brother Benjamin, whom he took with him into Egypt. Gen. xliii. 9. I will be Surety for him; of mine Hands ſhalt thou require him. Reuben in the foregoing Chapter was in like manner a Sponſor for him, v. 37. Deliver him into my Hands, and I will bring him to thee again: and Joſeph bound Simeon in Egypt as a Surety for the Return of his Brethren, and Benjamin with them, v. 19, 36.
Now as Chriſt was our Surety, ſo our Salvation may be called a Freedom from our Obligation to the Penal Law of God, which our Lord Jeſus took upon himſelf to anſwer, Rom. vii. 6. We are deliver'd from the Law, that being dead wherein we were held: Gal. iii. 13. Chriſt hath redeemed us, or freed us from the Curſe of the Law, being made a Curſe for us. Nor is this Obligation of Chriſt as a Sponſor, quite fulfilled till he has brought us all to Heaven, and can ſay to his Father, Lord, here am I, and the Children which thou haſt given me, as Heb. ii. 13. and ſhall preſent us before the Throne without Spot or Blemiſh, Jude 24, &c. and Epheſ. v. 25, 26, 27.
Now Faith gives us an Intereſt in all that Jeſus Chriſt has done as our Sponſor by truſting ourſelves with him intirely under that Character, and accepting him as the Surety of this everlaſting Covenant.
VII. Chriſt is exhibited in Scripture as the ſecond Adam, as a common Head of his People, as a publick Perſon, and their Repreſentative. This has ſome Difference in it from the former Character, though in many reſpects they agree and coincide. Adam was the Head of all his Offspring, a common Perſon and Repreſentative for them, but not ſo properly their Surety in every Senſe. Chriſt is what Adam was, Rom. v. 14. 1 Cor. xv. 47. Chriſt is not a common Perſon or Repreſentative in his Interceſſion or his Advocateſhip, tho' he is properly a Surety therein, for he has undertaken as a Surety for us, to Plead in the Court of Heaven, and to bring us off with Safety and Honour: But in his Obedience, in his Death, and his Appearance for us in Heaven, he is our common Head and Repreſentative.
Our Salvation in this Senſe, may be called the Glory of God. Rom. v. 2. We rejoice in hope of the Glory of God: And it may be called Eternal Life. Both theſe deſcribe the Happineſs which was promiſed to Man upon his perfect Obedience to the Law at firſt. Rom. ii. 10. and iii. 23. By Sin we are fallen ſhort of the Glory of God; but we obtain by Jeſus Chriſt Salvation with eternal Glory. In this Senſe Chriſt is our Forerunner into Heaven, and he, as our public Repreſentative, appears there for us, and has taken up Places or Manſions in our Name, Heb. vi. laſt. We ſhall ſit on his Thrones. Rev. iii. 21. 'Tis alſo called an Inheritance, and we are Heirs of God and joint Heirs with Chriſt, Rom. viii. 17. as we are one with him.
Faith accepts of Chriſt as our common Head, or great Repreſentative, and gives us an Intereſt in this Salvation, by uniting us to Chriſt, and making us one with him. Chriſt is the Original Son of God, and we are alſo the Sons of God by Faith in Chriſt Jeſus, Gal. iii. 26. and thus we are Coheirs with Chriſt, he as the Head, and we as the Members; and Faith ſaves us as it has been called the Bond of Union between Chriſt and us. When we become Believers in Chriſt, whatever was done to Chriſt as a Head or a common Perſon, is then applied to us, either in the Right to it, or in the Poſſeſſion of it. Chriſt was juſtified from Sin, i. e. from all imputed Sin, at his Reſurrection, and when we become the Seed of Chriſt by Regeneration through Faith, we are juſtified in him, much in the ſame manner as we were condemned in Adam, i. e. as ſoon as we become the Sons of Adam by a natural Birth: As there is no new actual and particular Sentence of Condemnation paſt upon us at our Birth, but we fall under the general Condemnation, when we become the Sons of Adam; ſo there is no new Act of Juſtification paſſed by God upon the Creature at his Regeneration or Believing, but the Word of God, which is his Sentence, pronounces us juſtified at our Faith, or our New Birth; and our Condemnation is taken away as ſoon as we are in Chriſt. Rom. viii. 1. There is no Condemnation now to them that are in Chriſt Jeſus.
VIII. Another Character which Chriſt ſuſtains, is that of a Redeemer, and it is generally repreſented, both in the Scripture and by our Divines, as one who redeems us both by Power and by Price. Now the Redemption of us by his powerful Grace out of the Slavery of Satan, and our own Luſts, and our Reſcue from the Temptations of this World, belong rather to the other Part of this Salvation, wherein his ſanctifying Influences are neceſſary and requiſite: But when Chriſt is conſidered as a Redeemer by Price, he frees us by the Price of his own Blood as a Ranſom, chiefly from the Hands of the vindictive Juſtice of God, and from the Bonds of the Guilt of Sin and Condemnation, whereby we are held as Breakers of the Law of God. Yet our Redemption from the Slavery of Sin and Satan may be alſo attributed to the Blood of Chriſt which purchaſed ſanctifying Grace for us. The Name of a Redeemer is very applicable to both Parts of our Salvation. So he gave his Life a Ranſom for many. Matth. xx. 28. He redeemed us from the Curſe of the law, by being made a Curſe for us, Gal. iii. 13. He redeemed us alſo by his precious Blood as of a Lamb without Blemiſh or Spot from our vain Converſation or Slavery to Sin, 1 Pet. i. 18, 19. and Thou art worthy, for thou …ſt ſlain, and haſt redeemed us to God by thy Blood, Rev. v. 9.
Salvation in this Reſpect is called Redemption, Rom. iii. 24. Eternal Redemption, Heb. ix. 12. and we are ſaid to be bought with a Price, 1 Cor. vi. 20. and therefore we are the Lord's and not our own.
Faith applies this Benefit to us by our accepting the Lord Jeſus Chriſt under this Character as a Redeems of our Perſons from this Condemnation, or as our great Friend who ranſom'd our Souls from Impriſonment under the Bonds of the condemning Law and Juſtice of God, who purchaſed and ranſomed us from our Captivity, Bonds and Miſeries in every Senſe.
IX. To ſum up all other Characters, I add in the laſt Place, Chriſt is repreſented as our great Friend and Benefactor, one who came down from Heaven to ſeek and to ſave loſt Sinners here on Earth: He made a viſit to our World to take ſpecial Notice of all our Wants, in order to relieve them all, and to do, and to procure for us whatſoever we ſtood in need of, in order to our Eternal Happineſs. Under this Character he firſt inſtructed or taught us the Doctrine of our loſt Eſtate, and acquainted us with the Methods of his Salvation; he procured or purchaſed for us, by his Death, not only pardon of Sin and future Bleſſedneſs, but every Grace and every Bleſſing which was neceſſary, in order to our full Poſſeſſion of Heaven, and no greater Friendſhip can any Man ſhew to another, than to lay down his Life for him, John xv. 13.
Under this View Salvation or Eternal Life is called the Gift of God by Jeſus Chriſt, Rom. vi. 23. Abundance of Grace and the Gift of Righteouſneſs in order to reign in Life, Rom. v. 17. He bought again for us our forfeited Inheritance in Heaven.
Obſerve this Notion of Chriſt as a Benefactor reſpects his doing every Kindneſs, and procuring or purchaſing every Bleſſing for us, and beſtowing it upon us; whereas in the Character of a Redeemer he bought or purchaſed our Perſons from Impriſonment and Condemnation.
Faith gives us an Intereſt in theſe Bleſſings of Chriſt as a Benefactor, when it comes to him, and ſeeks them at his Hand, when it humbly depends upon Chriſt for them, and truſts in him to beſtow them. Thus our Faith is like a Hand, whereby we receive theſe Bleſſings which Chriſt has to beſtow, or like the Feet whereby we come or fly to Chriſt to partake of them; or it may be liken'd to the Voice of Petition, whereby we ſeek them at his Hands, and call upon the Lord to beſtow them.
Thus I have briefly run through many of the Scriptural Characters or Offices, whereby our Lord Jeſus Chriſt is repreſented to us, whereby our Salvation is ſet forth, and whereby our Faith is deſcribed as the appointed Means of our Intereſt in them. 'Tis evident enough they often run into one another, nor did the Goſpel ever deſign that theſe ſeveral Repreſentations of Chriſt, of his Salvation and of our Faith, ſhould be kept ſo ſeparate by exact logical Forms of Expreſſion, as to pleaſe Scholaſtic Readers only; but that plain ſincere Souls under a Senſe of Guilt and Condemnation, might ſee and view them on every Side, and might find ſomething in Chriſt, ſuited to their Senſation of their own Wants and Miſeries, and apply themſelves to him for Relief; but this ſhall be the Subject of the next Section.
SECT. III. The Reaſons why Chriſt and his Salvation may be repreſented to us under theſe various Characters.
The Great God was pleaſed to ſend his own Son Jeſus Chriſt to ſave us by theſe various Characters or Offices, and to repreſent him to us under ſo many Relations, Emblems or Figures borrowed from the Things of Men, perhaps for ſuch Reaſons as theſe.
Reaſon 1. That thoſe Attributes of the Divine Nature, viz. his Wiſdom, his Power, his Juſtice, his Mercy, his Faithfulneſs, &c. which could not have ſo full an Illuſtration one way, or under one Expreſſion or Metaphor, might have another. God is ſaid to be juſt and kind, and faithful in the Forgiveneſs of our Sins through the Blood of Chriſt. He is juſt in beſtowing this Bleſſing upon us, ſince Chriſt has become our Sacrifice of Atonement, and made full Satisfaction for our Offences: He is kind or merciful in appointing ſuch a Forgiveneſs for us, and ſending his own Son to purchaſe or procure it: He is faithful in fulfilling his Promiſe made to Jeſus Chriſt, in the Covenant of Redemption, and beſtowing upon us what Chriſt our Benefactor has purchaſed for us. His Wiſdom alſo and his Goodneſs are render'd more conſpicuous to us in contriving and effecting our Salvation, in aſſuring it to us, and beſtowing it upon us in ſo many different ways and manners.
Reaſon 2. That our Lord Jeſus Chriſt might be the better known by us, and the more endeared to us, by ſuſtaining theſe various Offices and Relations; and that we might be able to borrow ſome further Ideas, and ſome clearer Knowledge of theſe divine and important things of our Salvation, from many of the common Affairs and Occurrences of Life. When the bleſſed God has taken ſo much care to provide ſuch a Saviour for us, and ſuch as illuſtrious Salvation, he is very deſirous that we ſhould view it on all Sides, and be more thoroughly acquainted with it, as well as with that bleſſed Perſon by whom he prepares and beſtows it.
Reaſon 3. That all ſorts of Perſons, of whatſoever Temper or Capacity, whatſoever Want or Difficulty, they are in, might have wherewith to ſuit them and their Circumſtances; that every Son and Daughter of Adam, in their various Ranks of Life, might all learn the way to receive this Saviour, and lay hold on this Salvation of Chriſt, and that he might render it eaſy and familiar to us by ſo many common Similitudes, or Parallels drawn from the things of common Life: And thus thoſe who know not how to apply themſelves to Chriſt one way, might do it another.
As for Inſtance, ſome poor feeble Creatures who are convinced of Sin, and ready to periſh, perhaps may not know how to apply or addreſs themſelves to Chriſt, as a Surety or as a Sacrifice, or as a Redeemer, &c. for theſe things are done already, and in a great meaſure were finiſhed long ago; but the meaneſt and pooreſt Creatures can eaſily learn how to apply to Chriſt as a Mediator, to do ſomething for them that is yet to be done, to reconcile them to God, and to bring them into his Preſence with Comfort; or as an High Prieſt of Interceſſion, or as an Advocate to plead for them before the Throne of God, and their Faith can wait on Chriſt, can call upon him, and truſt in him to make Interceſſion for them in the Virtue of his Blood, or to preſent his Blood before the Father as an Atonement for their Sins, to appear before God for them as their great Friend in Heaven, to become their Mediator, Peace-maker or Reconciler, to bring them into the Favour of God.
Thoſe who are Infants, or Babes in Chriſt, may thus be nouriſhed by the ſincere Milk of the Word, and with Diet fitted for their feeble Capacity, when they are not ſufficiently grown to bear ſtrong Meat, as the Apoſtle expreſſes himſelf, Heb. v. 12, — 14. whereas thoſe who are well grown Chriſtians, and, in the Senſe of the Apoſtle, may be called perfect, may know better how to converſe with Chriſt as their great Repreſentative, they may know and rejoice in him, and in the Power of his Reſurrection, and the Fellowſhip of his Suffering, and be made conformable unto his Death; but thoſe that are in a lower Form may not have their Apprehenſions ſo well cleared, and ſo much raiſed at preſent, although afterwards God may reveal alſo theſe things unto them, Phil. iii. 10, 15.
Reaſon 4. Chriſt is ſet forth under theſe various Characters, that as our Underſtanding in the Things of Religion, and in the Graces and Glories of Chriſt increaſes, we might take the faſter hold of Chriſt, if I might ſo expreſs it, and that we might have more various Exerciſes of our Faith, and more numerous Evidences of the Truth of our Faith, and ſecure to ourſelves more ſolid ground of Hope, when we can view him in all theſe Relations, and our Faith can receive or lay hold of him under all theſe Forms. Thus we may hereby obtain double and treble Confirmation of our Faith and Comfort, Heb. vi. 17, 18. God gives us both his Promiſe and his Oath, to ſecure Salvation to us; he ſwears, in order to confirm what he had promiſed, that by ſeveral immutable things, in which it is impoſſible for God to lie, we might have ſtrong Conſolation, who have fled to lay hold of the Hope ſet before us.
Thus has God been pleaſed alſo to do in the various Repreſentations he has made of Chriſt Jeſus our Saviour, that our Meditations and Prayers, our Hopes and Dependencies, and indeed all the pious Exerciſes of our Souls towards Chriſt, might have a rich Variety for our Entertainment, Support and Joy; and therefore the Apoſtles have written theſe things unto the Diſciples of Chriſt, that their Joy might be full. 1 John i. 4.
I add 5thly, another Reaſon is, that God our Father and Jeſus Chriſt out Saviour might have the larger Revenues of Glory from us, and receive Honour from our Hands in a rich Variety; that we might have our Thank-Offerings riſing up to God and the Lamb, in many Forms of Adoration and Expreſſion; that we might bleſs our dear Redeemer, rejoice in him, and do Honour to his Name under all thoſe happy Repreſentations of his Grace and Glory, in which he has ſet himſelf before us in the Goſpel.
The laſt Reaſon I will add, ſhall be this: That in all Ages the Followers of Chriſt might have a more clear and eaſy Relief, from thoſe Difficulties and Controverſies which may attend theſe great Doctrines of our Salvation, and which might darken and perplex the Way whereby God has appointed us to be made Partakers of this Bleſſing.
SECT. IV. The Difficulties which are relieved by this various Repreſentation of the Salvation of Chriſt.
Since God has ſet forth our bleſſed Saviour with his Salvation, and our Faith which intereſts us therein, under ſo many various Characters and Expreſſions, the following Difficulties will be very much relieved hereby, and ſeveral Controverſies aboliſhed.
1. A Chriſtian who reads theſe things in his Bible, cannot ſay that Chriſt has ſaved us in this particular manner, and therefore he did not ſave us in the other; as for Inſtance,
When we read or aſſert that Chriſt was put to Death for us, as a Sacrifice for our Sins, we cannot ſay, therefore he did not ſave us as a High Prieſt: Or when we read or aſſert that he ſaved us as our High-Prieſt, we cannot ſay, therefore he was not a Sacrifice; for the Scriptures aſſure us, Chriſt himſelf is both the High-Prieſt and the Sacrifice alſo, Eph. v. 2. Chriſt hath given himſelf for us as an Offering and Sacrifice to God.
Again, One Chriſtian will perhaps be ready to maintain, that Chriſt ſaves us as a great Friend and Benefactor, who has, by the Price of his Blood, purchaſed the Bleſſings of Grace and Glory for us, and beſtows them upon us; another may chuſe to fix his Eye more upon Chriſt as a Redeemer, and ſay he has bought or purchaſed our Perſons from the Hands of divine Juſtice, or he has redeemed us from the Curſe of the Law, and from the Bonds wherein we, as Criminals, were held by the Law of God: But neither of them ſhould dare to ſay, he bought or purchaſed theſe Bleſſings for us, and therefore he did not purchaſe our Perſons; for he has done both theſe under different Characters.
Yet further, one Chriſtian may delight more to fix his Eye and Hope on Chriſt, as a Surety or Repreſentative of his Elect, or of thoſe whom he certainly and finally ſaves, and on that account he ſuffered Death particularly in their room and ſtead, and ſecured to them certain Deliverance and Salvation; yet he cannot therefore affirm, that Chriſt did not, in any Senſe, die for all Men, as a general Friend of Man, or ſuffer Death for their Good; nor can he ſay, that the Benefits of his Death do not any way reach to all Mankind. Another perhaps will ſay, ſince all are dead, he died for all as a common Mediator betwixt God and Man, or as a general Benefactor to procure conditional Salvation for all Men, and offer it to them if they are willing to come to him and receive it; but he cannot ſay, that he was not a proper Surety, or Repreſentative of his Elect, vhereby he has ſecured certain Salvation to them only: For as I have ſhewn in former Papers, that he by his Righteouſneſs and Death has directly and abſolutely procured this Salvation for his Elect, as their Head and Repreſentative, but yet he has alſo procured Salvation, with all the Glories of it, conditionally, for the reſt of Mankind, upon which Foundation theſe Bleſſings are offer'd to all Men in the Goſpel.
2. There is another ſort of Difficulty from which theſe various Repreſentations of the Salvation of Chriſt may deliver and relieve us, (viz.) The Actions or the Sufferings of our Lord Jeſus Chriſt, have not preciſely the ſame Relation, Character or Effect, with regard to one of his Offices, as they have with regard to another; and therefore what is pronounced ſafely, with regard to the Death of Chriſt under one Character, cannot be with Safety pronounced concerning it under another. As for Example,
When ſo glorious and illuſtrious a Perſon as Jeſus Chriſt appears as our Friend and Benefactor, he paid ſo ſublime a Price by his Death and Sufferings, as in a ſtrict Senſe to ſatisfy or make full Recompence for all our Violations of the Law of God, and to merit Pardon and Eternal Life at the Hand of God for us: But when we conſider him merely as our Repreſentative, or our Surety, and to anſwer what the Law demanded of us, he cannot be ſo properly ſaid to merit our Pardon, or to make full and abundant Recompence to the Juſtice of God for our Offences; for this might lead or incourage Perſons to infer, that we ourſelves have ſatisfied God, or made Recompence to him in the Perſon of Chriſt, or that we have merited our Pardon and our Salvation, becauſe what he did intirely as our Repreſentative, we may in ſome ſort be eſteemed to have done in and by him.
Again, the Death of Chriſt as a Surety and the ſecond Adam was his ſuffering of the Curſe of the Law, and the Penalty thereof in our ſtead, which we had incurred; and in this View his Death and his Dereliction, or being forſaken of the Father, was the Idem, or Same, which Sinners ſhould have ſuffer'd; tho' in other Reſpects, and when we conſider him as a glorious Mediator, or ſuper-eminent Benefactor, then he appears with all the Dignity of his indwelling Godhead, and in this Senſe he paid a Price of ſuperior Value, his Death is the Tantundem; and more, he makes an abundant Compenſation for Sin, and a Satisfaction to the Demands of the Law, and honours the Juſtice of God more than our everlaſting Puniſhment could do, and hereby he merits for us thoſe Bleſſings which are above all our Reach, or Pretences, or Obligations to procure or merit for ourſelves.
Again, as he was a Redeemer, his Death is a Price paid for our Souls to Divine Juſtice, in order to releaſe us from the Bonds of Condemnation: But his Death as a Benefactor, may be rather conſider'd as a Price for the Bleſſings which he purchaſed for us, and of which we are made Partakers thro' him.
3. There are other Difficulties which are ſtarted among the ſeveral Controverſies of Chriſtians with regard to our Faith, and the way and manner whereby this Faith intereſts us in Chriſt and his Salvation: And ſince Chriſt has ſuſtained ſo many Characters and Offices, and ſtands in ſo many Relations to us, our Faith is exerciſed towards him in a Correſpondency to each of theſe Relations and Characters; and therefore when we read or aſſert that our Faith ſaves us in this way, or under this Logical Relation, we dare not therefore aſſert, that it cannot ſave us in any other way, or under another Logical Relation. I would endeavour to make this thing a little more clear, becauſe there have many Controverſies ariſen upon this Head.
Let us then briefly recollect or take a ſhort Survey of the ſeveral Repreſentations which are given us of Faith in Chriſt, according to theſe different Characters of our bleſſed Saviour.
Faith in its moſt general Senſe, Nature and Deſign, as it refers to Jeſus Chriſt, is the Application or Addreſs of the Soul to Chriſt, or to God by him, under any or all theſe Characters, whereby he and his Salvation are ſet forth in Scripture. Now theſe Characters being ſo very different and various, require different manners of Addreſs to him, which are repreſented in Scripture, which perhaps may be all included in Faith taken in its largeſt Senſe, together with thoſe neceſſary Acts of the Soul which muſt accompany, attend, or follow it.
Particularly then Faith is ſometimes repreſented by believing his Goſpel, Mark i. 15. Repent and believe the Goſpel: But here it is to be ſuppoſed, that all the proper and ſanctifying Effects of this Faith muſt attend it, and it muſt not reſt in a mere Aſſent.
'Tis a Knowledge of Chriſt, John xvii. 3. This is Life Eternal, that they might know thee the only true God, and Jeſus Chriſt whom thou haſt ſent. Iſai. liii. 11. By his Knowledge, or the Knowledge of him, ſhall he juſtify many: And here I might add, that this our Knowledge requires a correſpondent Practice, otherwiſe it will be of no more avail towards Salvation, than the Knowledge of Devils, who believe and tremble.
'Tis a Believing in Chriſt, which perhaps ought rather to be render'd Truſting in Chriſt. Iſai. ii. 10. compar'd with Rom. xv. 12. In him ſhall the Gentiles truſt, 2 Tim. i. 12. I know whom I have believed, or truſted, Eph. i. 12, 13. who firſt truſted in Chriſt, or hoped in him, as in the Original.
Believing in his Name, John i. 12. To them gave he Power to become the Sons of God, even to as many as believed on his Name.
Seeking to him, Iſai. xi. 10. To him ſhall the Gentiles ſeek.
Receiving Chriſt, John i. 12. To as many as received him, &c. Coloſſ. ii. 6. As you have received Chriſt, ſo walk in him.
Laying hold of Chriſt, Iſai. xxvii. 5. Let him take hold of my Strength that he may make Peace with me. Heb. vi. 18. Thoſe who have fled for Refuge to lay hold of the Hope ſet before them.
Hearing of Chriſt or hearkening to him, Luke ix. 35. This is my beloved Son, hear ye him, or hearken unto him.
Calling upon Chriſt, Rom. x. 12, 13. Whoſoever ſhall call on the Name of the Lord ſhall be ſaved.
Coming unto Chriſt, Matt. xi. 28. Come unto me all ye that Labour, &c. John v. 40. Ye will not come unto me that ye may have Life.
Flying to him for Refuge, Heb. vi. 18. as before.
Looking unto Chriſt, or beholding him, Iſai. xiv. 25. Look unto me all ye Ends of the Earth and be ſaved. Iſai. lxv. 1. I ſaid, behold me, behold me, to a Nation not called by my Name.
Obeying Chriſt, Heb. v. 9. He became the Author of Eternal Salvation to them that obey him.
Believing in God through Chriſt, 1 Pet. i. 21. Who by him do believe in God.
Coming to God by Chriſt, John xiv. 6. No Man cometh to the Father but by me.
Thus you ſee Faith, together with its various Concomitants, or conſequent Exerciſes of Soul, is repreſented as our Addreſs or Application to Chriſt for Salvation by and with almoſt all the Senſes or Powers of Nature: 'Tis looking to him with the Eye, 'tis hearkening to him with the Ear, 'tis receiving or laying hold of him with the Hand, 'tis coming to him with the Feet, 'tis Knowledge of him in the Head, truſt in him with the Heart, calling upon him with the Tongue, and obeying him with all the Powers of Soul and Body.
Now 'tis well known, that there have been great Diſputes about the particular Influence which this Acts of Faith has, in order to intereſt us in the Salvation of Chriſt: And here I will readily grant, that the Word Faith primarily and chiefly implies ſuch a Knowledge of Chriſt, ſuch a Belief of his Goſpel, ſuch a Senſe of our Wants, and his Sufficiency to ſupply them, as leads the Soul to receive him under any of thoſe Characters in which the Goſpel ſets him forth, and more particularly to truſt in him for this Salvation*It may be obſerved here, that almoſt every Character or Action, whereby Faith in Chriſt is repreſented in Scripture, carries in it the Notion of Truſt, Hope or Dependance, ſo that the original and moſt proper Senſe of the Word Faith is ſtill maintained, and every Sinner who ſincerely applies himſelf to Chriſt for Salvation, does certainly put forth an Act of Truſt or Hope in him, though he may not always ſo evidently and diſtinctly apprehend and judge of the inward Acts of his own Soul, or diſtinguiſh them ſo exactly.: But there are many poor Souls who have learnt ſincerely to addreſs themſelves to our Lord Jeſus Chriſt, by one or two of theſe Characters and Repreſentations of Faith, but were never carried on ſo far as explicitely to make an Addreſs to Chriſt under all his diſtinct Relations, or to perform every one of theſe Actions in their Addreſſes to Chriſt: And can I ſuppoſe where the Soul is very ſincere in its Deſires of the whole Salvation of Chriſt, both in the Holineſs and the Happineſs of it, and ſeeks it from him, that ſuch Souls ſhall be excluded, becauſe they have not well learnt all the Metaphors and Figures under which theſe ſacred Things are exhibited in the Goſpel?
Again, on the other hand, if one ſhould ſay, Faith ſaves us as it is an Eye to look to Chriſt that we may be ſaved, he cannot thence infer it does not ſave us as an Ear to hearken to him, as an Hand to lay hold of him, or as a Tongue to call upon him, or a Heart to truſt in him.
Again, if another ſhould ſay, Faith ſaves us as an Inſtrument *Perhaps there have been no greater Quarrels upon this Subject than amongſt thoſe who have maintain'd that Faith ſaves us as it is an Inſtrument, whereby we receive Chriſt and his Righteouſneſs, and thoſe who aſſert it is a Condition upon which Chriſt has appointed us to be intereſted in his Bleſſings: And tho' I think they may both be true, according to the Repreſentation I have made in this and other of theſe Eſſays; yet we have no great Reaſon to be fond of either of theſe Terms, eſpecially when they are made a Matter of Controverſy, becauſe they are neither of them the Expreſſions of Scripture, which is our ſupreme Rule of Inſtruction in the Matters of our Salvation.to receive Chriſt, and his Righteouſneſs and Grace, he cannot argue that it does not ſave us, as it is a Condition, or a Term of our being accepted of God thro' him; or if another ſhould ſay, Faith ſaves us, as it is a laying hold of his Perſon, or as a Bond of Union between Chriſt and us, yet he cannot argue, therefore Faith does not ſave us, as it is a Looking or Seeking to him from afar off, or as it is a Calling upon the Name of the Lord.
God has been pleaſed in many Ways to manifeſt theſe moſt important Things of our Salvation, and revealed them to us in a variety of human Expreſſions, Similitudes, Actions and Relations, that the pooreſt and the weakeſt Chriſtian might have Support and Encouragement for his Hope.
Concluſion: 'Tis confeſſed, that theſe Thoughts are not ſufficiently digeſted into perfect Form, nor put together with all that Accuracy as Theological Controverſies require; but my Senſe and Meaning in them is pretty obvious and evident: Perhaps this Deſign might be more improved and promoted much farther by a wiſer Head, and a better Pen; and it might aſſiſt the Solution of many Difficulties, and relieve the Quarrels and Contentions of different Parties to a greater degree; for 'tis evident, that the Characters which our Bleſſed Lord ſuſtains, and the Exerciſes of our Faith on him are very various, and we are made Partakers of this Salvation, perhaps as many ways as our Acts of Faith bear different Reſpects to the ſeveral bleſſed Characters and Offices which Chriſt ſuſtains, in order to our Salvation. Now, to him who has redeemed us by Power and by Price; to him who has ſaved us by his Blood and his Spirit; to him who has purchaſed our Souls from the Bondage of the Law, and from Death and Hell, and has purchaſed for us the Bleſſings of Grace, the Pardon of our Sins, and an Inheritance in Heaven, be Glory and Honour in endleſs Varieties, and eternal Praiſes from all the Redeemed. Amen.