John Gill
Pardon of sin, and
justification from it, are very closely connected; the one follows upon the
other; according to the position of them in some passages of scripture, pardon
is first, and justification next; as in #Ac 13:38,39 26:18 though they are not,
the one, in reality, prior to the other; they are both
together in the divine mind, and in the application of them to the conscience
of a sinner; indeed, according to the order of causes, justification by the
righteousness of Christ, imputed, may be considered as before pardon; since God
forgives sin for Christ's sake; that is, for the sake of his righteousness
imputed. Now that for the sake of which a thing is, must be before
that for which it is, as the cause is before the effect. Some take them to be
the same, and that justification lies solely in the remission of sins; and
others more rightly make the imputation of Christ's righteousness, and
forgiveness of sins, the two parts of justification, distinct ones; while
others think they are not two integral parts, really distinct, but only one
act, respecting two terms, "a quo et ad quem"; just
as by one and the same act darkness is expelled from the air, and light is
introduced; so by one and the same act of justification, the sinner is absolved
from guilt, and pronounced righteous; hence they suppose such express the whole
of justification, who say, it consists in the remission of sins, and those that
say it consists in the imputation of righteousness; because when God forgives
men their sins, he pronounces them righteous, through the
imputation of Christ's righteousness to them; and when he pronounces them
righteous, by that he forgives them their sins; remission of sin supposes the
imputation of Christ's righteousness; and the imputation of Christ's
righteousness infers the remission of sin.
But though these are not to be separated, yet they are to be
distinguished; and I should choose to consider them, not as
distinct parts of the same thing, but as distinct blessings of grace; for
though pardon and justification agree in some things, in others they differ. In
some things they agree.
1. In their efficient cause,
God: as God only can and does forgive sin, it is his prerogative,
it is peculiar to him; so it is God that justifies the sinner, and he only;
"there is one God, who justifies the circumcision by faith, and the
uncircumcision through faith"; that is, that justifies both Jews and
Gentiles, who believe in Christ, #Mr 2:7 Ro 3:30.
2. In their
moving cause, the free grace of God: pardon of sin is owing to the riches of
God's grace, and the multitude of his tender mercy; and justification is
ascribed to the grace of God, and is said to be freely by his grace, #Eph 1:7
Ps 51:1 Tit 3:7 Ro 3:24.
3. In their
procuring cause, the blood of Christ: the blood of Christ was shed to procure
the remission of sins, and it is by it; and so likewise justification is by the
same blood, #Mt 26:28 Ro 5:9.
4. In the objects of it: the
same persons that are pardoned are justified, and the same
that are justified are pardoned; to whom God imputes the righteousness of
Christ, to their justification, to them he gives the remission of sin; and to
whom he does not impute sin, but forgives it, he imputes righteousness without
works, #Ro 4:6-8.
5. In their
commencement and completion: pardon and justification commence together, and
both are finished at once, "simul" and "semel"; and are not
carried on in a gradual and progressive way, as sanctification is, #Col 2:13 Ac
13:39.
6. In the manner of actual
enjoying them, which is in a way of receiving, and that by faith;
it is by faith men receive the forgiveness of sins; and by it they receive
abundance of grace, and the gift of righteousness to justification of life;
and, this is what the Scriptures call justification by faith, #Ac 26:18 #Ro
5:1,17,18. But though they agree in these things, in others they differ.
1. Pardon
is of men that are sinners, and who remain such, and may be called so, though
pardoned sinners; but justification is a pronouncing persons righteous, as if
they had never sinned; it is one thing for a man to be arraigned at the bar as
a criminal, and be tried, cast, and condemned, and after that be pardoned; and
another thing for a man to be tried by law, and to be found and declared
righteous by it, as though he had not transgressed it.
2. Pardon takes away sin from
the sinner, but does not give him a righteousness, as justification does;
pardon takes away the filthy garments; but it is justification that clothes
with change of raiment, with the robe of Christ's righteousness; these are two distinct things, #Zec 3:4.
3. Pardon frees from
punishment, and an obligation to it, as it takes away guilt; "the Lord
hath put away thy sin; thou shalt not die", #2Sa 12:13 but does not
entitle to everlasting life, happiness, and glory: that justification does, and
therefore is called "justification of life"; and
in consequence of which men are made heirs, according to the hope of eternal
life, #Ro 5:18 Tit 3:7. When a king pardons a criminal, he does not by that act
entitle him to an estate, much less to his crown and kingdom; but if he will,
when he has pardoned him, take him to court, and make him his son and heir, it
must be by another distinct act of royal favour.
4. More is required for
justification than for pardon; the blood of Christ was, sufficient to procure
pardon, and did procure it: but to the justification of a sinner, the holiness
of the human nature of Christ, the perfect obedience of his life, and his
bloodshed, and sufferings of death, are and must be imputed.
5. The righteousness of
Christ, by which men are justified, is the fulfilling of the law; Christ came
to fulfil it in the room of his people; and he is the fulfilling end of it to
them, for righteousness; whicb is inherent in hhn, the author of it: not so
pardon; that does not fuifil the law, gives no righteousness; nor does it
reside in Christ, as righteousness does, #Ro 10:4 Isa 45:24.
6. Pardon lies in the
non-imputation of sin; justification in the imputation of righteousness:
righteousness is imputed, but pardon is not, #Ro 4:6,7.
7.
Justification passed on Christ, as the head and representative of his people;
but not pardon: Christ having had the sins of his people imputed to him, and
having made satisfaction to the justice of God for them, he was acquitted,
discharged, and justified; but not pardoned: we may truly say, Christ was
justified, and that God justified him, because the Scriptures say so; but not
that he was pardoned; such an expression would sound harsh,
and be very unwarrantable; see #Isa 50:8,9 1Ti 3:16.
8. An innocent person, falsely
charged, may be acquitted and justified, when he cannot be said to be pardoned;
yea, such who need no pardon, as Adam did not in his state of innocence, and
the elect angels in heaven; yet may be said to he justified, that
is declared to be just and righteous: so men, in the present state, could they
perfectly fulfil the law, as they cannot, would be justified by it; for
"the doers of the law are justified; he that does these things shall live
by them", #Ro 2:13 10:5. Moreover, if justification and pardon are to be
considered as cause and effect, as before observed, they must be distinct, and
are not to be confounded.
The doctrine of justification
by the righteousness of Christ is a doctrine of great importance; the apostle
speaks of it as if the essence of the gospel lay in it; and calls the opposite
to it, justification by the works of the law, another gospel; see #Ga 1:6,7 #Ga
3:8 it is a fundamental article of the gospel; some have called it, the
"basis" of Christianity; it was the great
doctrine of the reformation; what our first reformers made their chief study;
and by it cut the sinews of "popery", the antichristian doctrines of
penance and purgatory, of pardons and indulgencies, of the merit of good works,
works of supererogation, &c. Luther used to call it, "articulus
stantis vel cedentis ecclesiae" the article of the church, by which it
stands or falls; as this is, the church is; if this
obtains, the church is iu a well settled and prosperous state; but if this
loses ground, and is rejected, it is in a ruinous one: if this is a rule to
judge by, it may be easily discerned, in what case the church, and interest of
religion, now are. This doctrine is the ground and foundation of all solid joy,
peace, and comtbrt, in this life, and hope of eternal glory hereafter.
I have, in a former part of
this work, see "Justification" 853, treated of justification, as an
immanent and eternal act in God; and so it may be said to be from eternity, and
before faith; and in what sense it is so, with a removal of objections, has
been shown in the place referred to; and therefore shall only now discourse
concerning justification, as it terminates in the
conscience of a believer; and which the scriptures style justification by
faith. I shall,
1. Consider the act of
justification, and in what sense the word is to be taken. And,
1a. It is
not to be understood of instructing men in the scheme and method of
justification, whether in a legal or evangelical way, #Ac 15:1 1Ti 1:7 Da 12:3.
1b. Nor is it to be understood
of making men righteous, by infusing righteousness into them; for this is to
confound justification and sanctification together, which are two
distinct things, #1Co 1:30, 6:11 this is sanctification: the righteousness by
which men are justified, is imputed to them; but the righteousness of
sanctification is inherent in them; that by which men are justified, are the
obedience and blood of Christ; but infused holiness is neither of these.
The word
"justify" is never used in a physical sense, for producing any real internal
change in men; but in a forensic sense, and stands opposed, not to a state of
impurity and unholiness, but to a state of condemnation; it is a law term, and
used of judicial affairs, transacted in a court of judicature; see #De 25:1 Pr
17:15 Isa 5:22 Mt 12:37 where justification stands opposed to condemnation; and
this is the sense of the word whenever it is used in the
doctrine under consideration; so in #Job 9:2,3 25:4 so by David, #Ps 143:2 and
in all Paul's epistles, where the doctrine of iustification is treated of,
respect is had to courts of judicature, and to a judicial process in them; men
are represented as sinners, charged with sin, and pronounced guilty before God,
and subject to condemnation and death; when, according to this evangelic
doctrine, they are justified by the obedience and blood of Christ, cleared of
all charges, acquitted and absolved, and freed from condemnation and death, and
condemned to eternal life; see #Ro 3:9,19 5:9,16,18,19 #Ro 8:1,33,34 Ga 2:16,17
Tit 3:7.
1c. Justification
is to be understood in this doctrine, not of justification before men, before
whom men may appear righteous, #Mt 23:28 but in the sight of God, in whose
sight they cannot be justified by the works of the law, #Ro 3:20. Nor of the
justification of a man's cause; or of his vindication from the calumnies of
men, #1Sa 12:5,6 Ps 7:8 Job 13:18. Nor of the justification of a man's faith by
his works; thereby proving the genuineness and sincerity of
it: so the faith of Abraham, and of Rahab, was justified by their works; or
their faith in the promises made unto them, was proved to be genuine and
sincere; the one by offering up his Son; and the other by hiding the spies,
#Jas 2:21-25. But of the justification of the persons of men before God; and
this is either legal or evangelical: legal, on condition of a person's fulfilling the whole law, or yielding perfect obedience to it;
which, in man's present state and circumstances, is impossible, #Ro 2:13 10:5
8:3,4. Evangelical; which is an act of God's grace, accounting and pronouncing
a person righteous, through the righteousness of Christ imputed to him, and
received by faith; so "by the obedience of one many are made
righteous"; and, Christ is of God, "made righteousness to them"; and they are "made the righteousness of God
in him"; are reckoned perfectly righteous through him, and so stand
justified and accepted in the sight of God, #Ro 5:19 1Co 1:30 2Co 5:21 and this
is the justification we are treating of; concerning which further observe,
2. The
causes of it. The "moving cause" is the grace of God; it was the
sovereign grace, favour, and goodwill of God, which put him upon forming the
scheme and method of justification; which moved him to appoint and send his
Son, to work out, and bring in a righteousness for the justification of his
people; and then to accept of it as their justifying righteousness, and to
impute it freely to them, without works: the procuring,
meritorious, or material cause of justification, is the righteousness of Christ
imputed, which will be treated of more largely, when we come to consider the
matter of justification; or what that is, for the sake of which, any of the
sons of men are justified before God. At present I shall only attend to the
efficient cause of justification, who is God; "It is God that
justifies", #Ro 8:33 3:26,30 Ga 3:8 which is marvellous;
since,
2a. He is the Judge of all the
earth, who will do right, and will by no means clear the guilty. Judges among
men, by his orders and instructions, and as they would forfeit his displeasure,
were not to justify the wicked; and yet he, who is Judge himself in the earth, "justifies the ungodly": but then it
should be observed, that he does not justify them without a righteousness, but
upon the foot of Christ's righteousness; so that though he justifies the
ungodly, yet not as ungodly, but as righteous, through the righteousness of his
Son; hence it is, that it is one of the privileges of such persons, that they
can "come to God, the Judge of all", without fear and dread, appearing before him perfectly righteous in Christ the
Mediator, #Heb 12:23,24.
2b. Whose law is the rule by
which he judges, and that law broken by men, and yet he justifies them. The law
is holy, just, and good, and requires perfect, sinless obedience of men, but is
broken by them in ten thousand instances; and he that offends
in one point, is guilty of all, and the law pronounces him guilty, and curses
and condemns him; and yet God, who judges according to this law, justifies
them, #Ro 2:12 but then it should be observed, that Christ has fulfilled the
law, in the room and stead of these persons; so that "the righteousness of
the law" is said to be "fulfilled in them"; and it is considered
as if it was fulfilled by them; and on this account they
are legally acquitted, discharged, and justified, according to this law; its
demands being fully satisfied by Christ.
2c. Sin, the breach of the law
of God, is committed against him, and is hateful to him, and yet he justifies
from it; every sin, being a transgression of the law, is against
God, the Lawgiver, and cannot but be resented by him, and be an abomination to
him; he hates it, and the workers of it; well then might Bildad say, "How
then can man be justified with God?" #Job 25:4 and yet he is.
2d. It is that God that
justifies, who will not admit of an imperfect righteousness, in the room of a perfect one: man's righteousness is imperfect,
and cannot be reckoned as a perfect one by him, whose judgment is according to
truth; nor will it stand in judgment, nor answer for the sinner at the bar of
God, and justify in his sight; and yet God justifies; but then it is through
the perfect righteousness of Christ, who is "the end of the law for
righteousness to everyone that believes", #Ro 10:4.
2e. That God, who is the
Lawgiver, and is able to save and to destroy, who has power to destroy both
body and soul in hell, and would be just in so doing, and into whose hands it
is a fearful thing to fall, yet he justifies. Now this act of justification, as
ascribed to God, belongs to all the three Persons in the Godhead; they are all concerned in it, Father, Son, and Spirit.
2e1. First,
God the Father; who, in many places where he is
spoken of as
a justifier, is distinguished from Christ; as
where it is
said, "It is God that justifieth----who shall
condemn? It is Christ that died!" Again, God is said
to "be
just, and
the justifier of him that believeth in Jesus",
#Ro 8:34
3:25,26 the same that justifies the head,
justifies
the members; now it is the Father that justified
Christ, the
head of his elect, of whom Christ says, He is
near that justifieth me, #Isa 50:8.
2e1a. God
the Father contrived the scheme and method of
justification;
it would have been a puzzling question to
angels and
men, had not he resolved it; "How should man",
sinful man, "be just with God?" But God, in his
infinite
wisdom,
"found a ransom", a Ransomer, a Redeemer of his
people, to
bring in everlasting righteousness for them, and
thereby
acquit and discharge them, and "deliver them from
going down
to the pit" of ruin and destruction; "God was in
Christ reconciling the world to himself"; was, with
him,
forming the
scheme of their peace and reconciliation, of
their
redemption, justification, and salvation; "not
imputing
their trespasses", but the righteousness of his Son
unto them,
#Job 33:24 2Co 5:19.
2e1b. He
sent his Son, in the fulness of time, to execute this
scheme; he
sent him in human nature, "made under the law",
subject to
it, in the room and stead of his people, and to
yield a
perfect obedience to it; and he sent him "in the
likeness of sinful flesh", with their sins imputed to
him;
and by
making him a sacrifice for sin, through his
sufferings
and death, he bore the penalty of the law, that
so the whole
"righteousness of the law", or all it could
demand, both
with respect to precept and peualty, "might be
fulfilled in" them; they being represented by him,
#Ga 4:4 Ro
8:3,4.
2e1c. A
perfect righteousness being wrought out by Christ,
agreeable to
the requirements of law and justice, by which
the law is magnified and made honourable, and justice
satisfied;
God the Father approves of it, is well pleased
with it, and
accepts of it as the justifying righteousness
of them that
believe in Christ.
2e1d. He imputes this righteousness to believers as their
own:
this is the
Father's act of grace, #Ro 4:6. "Of Him", that
is, of God
the Father, "are ye in Christ Jesus", chosen in
him, and
united to him; "who, of God" (the Father) "is made
unto us righteousness";
which is done by his act of
2e2.
Secondly, God the Son, the second Person, is concerned in
the
justification of men; "By his knowledge", says Jehovah
the Father,
"shall my righteous Servant justify many",
2e2a.
Christ, as a divine Person, as he has power to forgive sin,
so to
absolve and justify from it; of which we have some
instances,
even when he was here on earth, in human nature,
as to the man sick of the palsy he said, "Thy sins are
forgiven
thee!" and to the woman taken in adultery, "Neither
do I condemn
thee!" which was a full acquittance and
discharge;
and to his apostles he said, "Ye are clean",
every whit
clean, free from sin, and fully absolved from it,
"Through the word 1 have spoken to you"; the
sentence of
justification
by his blood and righteousness he had
pronounced
upon them, #Mt 9:2 Joh 8:11 15:3 13:10.
2e2b. As
Mediator, Christ is the author of that righteousness by
which sinners are justified; as he was to bring in an
everlasting
righteousness, he has brought in one; hence he
is called,
The Lord our Righteousness, the Son of
righteousness,
and the end of the law for righteousness; and
men are made
righteous by his obedience, and justified by
his blood, #Jer 23:6 Mal 4:2 Ro 10:4 5:9, 19.
2e2c. As the
head and representative of his people, they are
justified in
him; as Adam's natural posterity, sinning in
him, were
condemned in him, judgment came upon them all unto
condemnation: so all Christ's spiritual seed and offspring
are
justified in him; for "in the Lord shall all the seed of
Israel be
justified, and shall glory"; as he was "delivered"
into the
hands of justice and death "for their offences", to
make
satisfaction for them, so he was "raised again for
their justification"; and when he was raised, he was
justified,
acquitted, and discharged himself from all the
sins of his
people, imputed to him, having satisfied for
them; and
then they were justified in him, #Isa 45:25
#Ro 4:25 1Ti
3:16.
2e2d. As
Christ has wrought out a righteousness for is people, so
he actually
puts it upon them, clothes them with it: says the
church,
"He hath covered me with the robe of righteousness":
he is that
Angel of the Lord before whom Joshua was brought,
and accused Satan; and to whom he himself said, "I
will
clothe with
change of raiment", #Isa 61:10 Zec 3:4.
2e2e. As it
is to faith the righteousness of Christ is revealed,
and by faith
it is received, hence believers are said to be
justified by faith; so this faith, as well as
righteousness,
is of
Christ; as he is the object of it, "Ye believe in God,
believe also
in me"; so he is the "author" and "finisher" of
it, #Joh
14:1 Heb 12:2.
2e3. Thirdly, The Holy Spirit of God, the third Person, has
also
a concern in
the justification of sinners.
2e3a. He
convinces men of righteousness, of their want of
righteousness;
of the weakness, imperfection, and
insufficiency of their own righteousness, that they have
none that
can be called a righteousness; and that unless
they have a
better righteousness than that, they will never
enter into
the kingdom of heaven, #Joh 16:8.
2e3b. He brings near the righteousness of Christ; not only
externally,
in the ministry of the word; but internally, by
the
illumination of his grace; this is one of the things of
Christ he
takes and shows to souls enlightened by him; he
shows them
the fulness, glory, and suitableness of the
righteousness of Christ, how perfect it is, how adequate to
all the
demands of law and justice, and how suitable to
them; to
cover their naked souls, to secure them from
condemnation
and death, to justify them before God, and
render them
acceptable in his sight, and entitle them to
2e3c. He
works faith in convinced and enlightened persons, to look
at the
righteousness of Christ, and take a view of its
glories and
excellencies; to approve of it, desire it, and to
lay hold on it, and receive it as their justifying
righteousness.
Such a faith is of the operation of God, of
the Spirit
of God; it is what he works in the saints, and
enables them
to exercise it; hence he is called, "the Spirit
of
faith", #Col 2:13 2Co 4:13.
2e3d. He
bears witness to their spirits, that they are interested
in the
righteousness of Christ, and are justified by it; and
he
pronounces the sentence of justification in their
consciences,
or declares them justified, in the name of
Christ, and on account of his righteousness; and which is
the meaning
of their being justified "in the name of the
Lord Jesus,
and by the Spirit of our God", #1Co 6:11.
3. The objects of
justification; and they are the elect; ."Who shall lay anything to the charge of God's elect? It is God that justifieth!" that
is, the elect, #Ro 8:33 for who else can be meant?
3a. Elect men, and not elect
angels; for though there are elect angels, and these are holy, just, and
righteous; and so may be declared to be what they are, just and righteous, and in that sense justified; yet, since they never
laboured under the suspicion of a crime, nor were ever chargeable with any,
they cannot, in a strict sense, be said to be justified. But elect men, who are
sinners in Adam, as chosen in Christ their Head, are reckoned righteous; for
justification is a branch of election, in which the elect are reckoned as
righteous, through the righteousness of Christ: and these
being the objects of justification, show the eternity of that act, since
election was from the beginning, and before the foundation, of the world; and
the specialty of it, since the elect are a special and peculiar people; and the
security of it, for it is certain, being closely connected with predestination,
whom God predestinates, he calls and justifies; and its being a security from
wrath and condemnation; for whom he justifies he glorifies,
#Ro 8:30.
3b. Redeemed ones are the
objects of justification; all that are chosen are redeemed; and all that are
redeemed are justified; justification proceeds upon redemption; "Being
justified freely by his grace, through the redemption that is in Christ
Jesus", #Ro 3:24 by which they are redeemed from all
their iniquities, and from all the curses of the law due unto them, and so are
acquitted and discharged.
3c. Pardoned ones; for all
that are chosen and redeemed are pardoned, and those are justified: the chosen
are pardoned; for the Lord says, "I will pardon them whom I
reserve", #Jer 50:20 that is, whom he has reserved for himself by the act
of election: and the redeemed are pardoned; for forgiveness of sin is a branch
of redemption; "In whom we have redemption, through his blood, the
forgiveness of sin", #Eph 1:7 and whose sins are forgiven, they are
justified, #Ro 4:6,7.
3d. Hence
it appears, that the objects of justification are not all men; for all men are
not chosen; they are only a renmant, according to the election of grace: nor
are all men redeemed; for those that are redeemed, are redeemed from among men,
and out of every kindred, tongue, people, and nation: nor are all pardoned; for
there are some whose sins go beforehand to judgment, and are never forgiven:
nor do all men believe; faith is peculiar to God's elect:
nor are all men saved from wrath, as they would be, if justified by the blood
of Christ; some will go into everlasting punishment, when the righteous shall
go into everlasting life: and so all are not justified; though there is an all
that are justified, even all the seed and offspring of Christ, the seed of
Israel on whom the gift of righteousness comes to justification of life, #Isa 45:25 Ro 5:18.
3e. Yet they are many, #Isa
53:11 Ro 5:19 for whom Christ gave his life a ransom; and whose blood was shed for
the remission of their sins; those are said to be many, #Mt 20:28 26:28.
3f. The objects of
justification are described as sinners, and ungodly: "sinners", #Ga
2:17 "ungodly", #Ro 4:5. So they are, in their unregenerate state:
but when converted, they are described as believers in Christ; for the
righteousness of Christ is "unto all, and upon all them that
believe"; it is applied unto them, and put upon them;
and they have a comfortable sense and perception of their justification by it;
they "believe in Jesus Christ, that they might be justified by the faith
of Christ"; by Christ, the object of faith, and through believing in him,
have a comfortable view of their justification before God, and acceptance with
him; hence it is said, that "by him all that believe are justified",
openly and manifestatively, and have the testimony and
comfort of it within themselves; and these may be said to be "justified by
faith"; by Christ, and his righteousness received by faith, #Ro 5:1 3:22
Ga 2:16 Ac 13:39 and such are not nominal believers, who only have a notional,
historical faith, or who only profess to believe, as Simon Magus did; but who,
"with the heart, believe unto righteousness"; who truly and bearlily
believe in the righteousness of Christ for their justification
before God; and such shall never come into condemnation, #Ro 10:10 Joh 5:24.
4. The charges, or sins, such
are justified from. "Who shall lay any thing to the charge of God's elect?
It is God that justifieth", #Ro 8:33 from all charges, all that may be truly brought against them, all criminal charges they
are chargeable with.
4a. They are chargeable with
original sin, the sin of the first man; they were, seminally, in his loins,
when he eat the forbidden fruit; as Levi was in the loins of Abraham, when be
paid tithes to Meichizedek: they were federally in him, as their covenant head and representative, and sinning in him, they
became chargeable therewith; and judgment so far proceeded against them, as to
bring them under the sentence of condemnation and death; but God justifies and
acquits them from that offence, through the gift of his Son's righteousness,
which comes unto them to justification of life; and he frees them from the
charge of that disobeclience by which they were made
sinners, through the imputation of Christ's obedience to them, #Ro 5:12,18,19.
4b. They are chargeable with
impurity of nature, and a want of original righteousness; which Adam, by
sinning, lost, and all his posterity are without it; they
are conceived in sin, and bring an impure nature into the world with them;
which is the case of all, even of God's elect. The law requires purity and
holiness of nature, and charges with the want of it; but God justifies from
this charge, through the imputation of the holiness of Christ; human nature to
them, which is a branch of their justification; and is thought, by some
divines, to be "the law of the Spirit, of life"
in him, which "frees from the law of sin and death"; and who is made,
to his people, "sanctification" and righteousness; and was typified
by the high priest, having an inscription on his forehead, "Holiness to
the Lord", #Ro 8:2 1Co 1:30 Ex 28:36.
4c. They
are chargeable with actual sins, before conversion, and those many, and some
very heinous; and yet God justifies from them all; as Saul was chargeable with
blasphemy, persecution, and doing injury to others; but obtained pardoning
mercy, and a justifying righteousness: the Corinthians were guilty of some of
the blackest crimes, and most enormous sins, yet were justified, in the name of
the Lord Jesus, and by the Spirit of our God: the apostles,
and others, before conversion, were disobedient, serving divers lusts and
pleasures; and yet were justified, by the grace of God, and made heirs,
according to the hope of eternal life, #1Ti 1:13 1Co 6:9-11 Tit 3:3, 7.
4d. They
are chargeable with a multitude of sins, after conversion; with many
revoltings, and sometimes with great backslidings; their failings and
infirmities, errors and mistakes, are innumerable; yet all are forgiven, and
they are cleansed and justified from them, #Jas 3:2 Ps 19:12 Ho 14:4.
4e. They
are justified from all their sins, of whatsoever kind, that they can be charged
with; for they that believe in Christ, "are justified from all
things", from all sins, from all criminal charges; God forgives all their
trespasses, for Christ's sake, and his blood cleanses from all sin, #Ac 13:39
Col 2:13 1Jo 1:7.
4f. They
are justified by the righteousues of Christ, "from all things, from which
they could not be justified by the law of Moses"; for there were some sins
which the law made no provision of sacrifice for, as adultery and murder; such
therefore that despised Moses's law, by breaking it in such instances,
"died without mercy"; but God justifies from all such sins, as well
as others, through the righteousness of Christ, #Ac 13:39
Heb 10:28 #Heb 9:15,26.
4g. God justifies his elect
from all charges brought against them, from what quarter soever, and whether
true or false; do they bring charges against themselves, as they often do?
conscience, which is as a thousand witnesses, accuses and condemns them; but though their hearts and consciences condemn them, God is
greater than their hearts, and knows all things; what provisions he has made
for them in covenant, what a righteousness his Son has wrought out for their
justification; and though as on one hand, if a good man knows nothing by
himself, yet he is not hereby justified; so on the other, though he knows much
by himself and against himself, yet God clears him from
all. Do saints bring chargers one against another, sore crimes rightly, and
sometimes wrongly, whether privately or publicly: and do not forgive one
another, as they should do, since God, for Christ's sake, forgives them? yet
God forgives all, and clears from all charges, true or false. Does the world
bring charges against them, as they frequently do, even speak all manner of
evil of them falsey, for Christ's sake, as Tertullus the
orator, against the apostle Paul? yet every tongue that riseth up in judment
against them God will condemn; for their "righteousness is of me, saith
the Lord"; plainly suggesting, that he would justify and acquit them from
all, #Isa 54:17. Does Satan go about the earth to pick up charges against the
people of God, and then accuse them to him, as he did Job, whence he is called,
"the accuser of the brethren?" Jehovah repels his
charges, and rebukes him for them; an instance of this we have in the vision of
Zechariah, #Zec 3:1-4. In a word, whatever charges the law of God brings
against the elect, which is broken by them, and for which it accuses,
pronounces guilty, curses and condems, and whatever charges the justice of God
can produce against them, the mouth of the one, and of the other, is stopped by the righteousness of Christ; by which the one is
honoured and magnified; and the other is satisfied and well pleased; and so a
full justification from all charges takes place, and God is Just while he is
the ustifier of him that believes in Jesus.
5. The
matter and form of justification, the righteousness of Christ imputed: the
matter of justification, or that for the sake of which a sinner is justified,
is the righteousness of Christ; the form and manner in which it is made over to
such an one, and becomes his, is by imputation.
5a. First,
The matter of justification, the righteousness of Christ; and everything else
must be removed from it, and denied of it. As,
5a1. First,
a man's own righteousness, or his obedience to the
law; this is
expressly denied to be that by which a sinner
can be justified; "By the deeds of the law, there
shall no
flesh be
justified in his sight", in the sight of God; that
is, by works
done in obedience to the law; and which is
meant, not
of the ceremonial, but the moral law; that law by
which is the
knowledge of sin, and which pronounces a man
guilty of it before God, and stops his mouth, as the
context
shows; and
is opposed to grace, which the ceremonial law is
not, being
of grace, given to relieve, under a sense of sin,
by pointing to
the Saviour, and his propitiatory sacrifice;
and hence
this conclusion is drawn, "Therefore we conclude,
that a man is justified by faith"; by Christ and his
righteousness,
the object of faith; "without the works of
the
law"; being joined to Christ, and fis righteousness, or
considered
as any part of a justifying righteousness,
#Ro 3:20,28.
And to the same purpose are the words of the
apostle, in #Ga 2:16. The reasons why a man's own
righteousness
cannot be the matter of his justification
before God,
are,
5a1a.
Because it is imperfect, and the law will not admit of an
imperfect righteousness for justification; it requires
perfect,
sinless obedience; and not anything short of that
will it
allow to be a righteousness; "It shall be our
righteousness",
says Moses, "if we observe to do all these
commandments,
before the Lord our God, as he hath commanded
us", #De 6:25 so that if there is any failure, either
in the
matter or
manner of obedience, it is no righteousness; and
such
obedience and righteousness, men, since the fall, were
never
capable of; the people of Israel, in general, followed
after the
law of righteousness; but did not attain to it,
seeking it not by faith in Christ, in whom it is only
found;
but, as it were,
by the works of the law, in which there is
a
deficiency, and so no righteousness:
5a1a. And
those among them who made the largest pretensions to
righteousness, fell short of it, as the Scribes and
Pharisees;
insomuch, that if a man's righteousness does not
exceed
theirs, he cannot enter into the kingdom of heaven;
nay, even
the works of the truly just and good, are not
perfect;
"There is not a just man upon earth, that doeth
good and sinneth not", #Ec 7:20 hence good men,
sensible of
the insufficiency
of their own righteousness, decline and
deprecate
entering into judgment with God upon that foot,
acknowledging
the impurity and imperfection of their
obedience;
on account of which, they know they could not be
just with God, #Job 9:2,3,20,32 Ps 143:2 Isa 64:6.
5a1b. If
justification was by the works of men, it could not be
by grace;
for grace and works are opposed, and cannot
consist
together in the busness of justification; for if it
is of grace, then not of works; but justification is by
grace, and
therefore not by works; "Being justified freely
by his
grace", #Ro 3:24 not only by grace, but freely by it;
or by grace
that is altogether free; and, indeed, as Austin
says, it
would not be grace if it was not so, or was any
ways clogged with the works of men.
5a1c. If
justification was by man's obedience, it would not be by
a
righteousness withoutworks, and that imputed, as it is; if
it is by a
man's own righteousuess, then not by a
righteousness without works, for that consists entirely of
works; and
if a man's own, then not imputed; whereas, the
blessedness
of justification, lies in the imputation of a
righteousness
without works, #Ro 4:6.
5a1d. If justification could be by mens obedience to the
law,
then there
would have been no need of the righteousness of
Christ, nor
of his coming into the world to work out one; it
would have
been an unnecessary thing for God to send his
Son, that
the righteousness of the law might be fulfilled in
us, by him, if we could have fulfilled it ourselves; and
not
only his
life, and the obedience of it, would have been
useless, but
his death also; for, as the apostle argues, "If
righteousness
came by the law, then Christ is dead in vain",
#Ga 2:21.
5a1e. If
justification was by the works of men, boasting would be
encouraged;
whereas, God's design in the whole scheme of
salvation,
and so in this branch of it, is to prevent it,
lest any man
should boast; "Where is boasting then? It is
excluded. By what law? of works? Nay, but by the law of
faith";
that is, not by the doctrine of justification, by
the works of
men, that would establish boasting; but by the
doctrince of
justification by faith in the righteousness of
Christ,
which leaves no room for it, #Ro 3:27.
5a2.
Secondly, Nor is man's obedience to the gospel, as to a new
and milder
law, the matter of his justification before God.
It was a
notion, that some years ago obtained, that a
relaxation of
the law, and the severities of it, has been
obtained by Christ; and a new law, a remedial law, a law of
milder
terms, has been introduced by him, which is the
gospel; the
terms of which are, faith, repentance, and new
obedience;
and though these are imperfect, yet being
sincere,
they are accepted of by God, in the room of a
perfect righteousness. But every article of this scheme is
wrong; for,
5a2a. The
law is not relaxed, nor any of its severities abated;
there is no
alteration made in it; neither with respect to
its precepts, nor its penalty; it requires the same holy,
just, and
good things, it ever did; Christ came not to
destroy it,
but to fulfil it: nor is the sanction of it
removed;
though it is not made for, or does not lie against,
a righteous
man; yet it is made for, and lies against, the
sinner and transgressor; and as it has the same commanding,
so the same
condemning power, to them that are under it; it
accuses,
pronounces guilty, condemns, and curses, even such
who continue
not in all things to observe it.
5a2b. Nor is the gospel a new law; there is nothing in it
that
looks like a
law; it has no commands in it, but all
promises; it
is a pure declaration of grace and salvation by
Christ;
therefore called, the gospel of the grace of God,
and the
gospel of our salvation.
5a2c. Nor
are faith, repentance, and new obedience, the terms of
it, and
required by it, as conditions of mens acceptance
with God;
faith and repentance, as doctrines, are gospel
doctrines, and
parts of the gospel ministry; and as graces,
are not terms and conditions required in it, to be
performed
by men of
themselves; they are blessings of grace, declared
in it, and
are gifts of grace bestowed on men; faith is the
gift of God,
and repentance is a grant from him; and both
they, and
new and spiritual obedience, are provided for in
the covenant of grace, #Eze 36:26,27.
5a2d. If
these were terms and conditions, required of men, in the
gospel, to
be performed by them, in order to their
acceptance
with God, the gospel would not be a remedial law;
nor these milder terms than those of the old law; for it
was
easier for
Adam, in a state of innocence, to have kept the
whole law,
than it is for man, in his fallen state, to
repent and
believe in Christ, and perform new and spiritual
obedience of
himself; till God takes away the stony heart,
and gives an heart of flesh, and gives grace, as well as
time and
space, to repent, men never will nor can repent of
their sins:
and faith is not of a man's self; no man can
come to
Christ, that is, believe in him, unless it be given
to him, and
the Father draws him; and without Christ, his
Spirit and grace, a man cannot do any good thing.
5a2e. Nor is
it true, that God will accept of an imperfect
righteousness
in the room of a perfect one: nor can any
thing more
highly reflect upon the justice and truth of God,
who is the Judge of all the earth, and will do right, and
whose
judgment is according to truth, and can never account
that a
righteousness which is not one.
5a3.
Thirdly, nor is a profession of religion, even of the best
religion, the Christian religion, the matter of
justification
before God;
men may have a form of godliness without the
power of it;
they may submit to the ordinances of Christ,
baptism, and
the Lord's Supper, and attend every duty of
religion,
and yet be far from righteousness: and even if a
profession of religion was taken up upon right principles,
on a good
foundation, and held and maintained in an
honourable
manner, and even though a man may be ever so
sincere in
it, it is not the matter of his justification.
For,
5a4.
Fourthly, sincerity itself, in any religion, even in the
best
religion, is not a justifying righteousness. There may
be sincerity
in a bad religion, as well as in a good one; a
man may be
sincerely wrong, as well as sincerely right; may
be a sincere Pagan, a sincere Papist, and a sincere
Mahometan,
as well as a sincere Christian; yea, a man may be
a sincere
blasphemer of Christ, and a sincere persecutor of
his
followers, as the apostle Paul was, before conversion,
and as the
persecutors of Christ's disciples, #Ac 26:9
#Joh 16:2 and taking sincerity in the best sense, as a
grace
of the Spirit
of God, which accompanies all other graces, and
denominates
faith unfeigned, hope without hypocrisy, and
love without
dissimulation; it belongs to sanctification,
and not
justification; and is not the whole, nor any part of
5a5.
Fifthly, nor faith, the to "credere", or act of believing;
this is, by
some, said to be imputed for righteousness; but
is not so;
for,
5a5a. Faith,
as a man's act, is his own; and is called "his"
faith,
"thy" faith, and "my" faith, #Hab 2:5 Mt 9:22 15:28
#Jas 2:18
whereas, the righteousness by which a man is
justified,
is not his own, but another's, and therefore not
5a5b. Faith
is imperfect; it is so in the greatest believers; the
disciples of
Christ saw need to pray, Lord, "increase our
faith!"
whereas, a righteousness to justify must be perfeet;
nothing else can be accounted a righteousness.
5a5c. Faith
is not everlasting; as to its use; is only for the
present
life; it will be changed into vision: but the
righteousness
by which sinners are justified before God, and
which was brought in by Christ for that purpose, is
"everlasting
righteousness", #Da 9:24.
5a5d. Faith
and righteousness are manifestly distinguished; "The
righteousness
of God is revealed from faith to faith"; and
therefore faith cannot be that righteousness. "With
the
heart man
believeth unto righteousness"; and therefore
righteousness
must be a distinct thing from faith; which
"righteousness
is unto all, and upon all them that believe";
and
therefore must be different from that faith with which
they believe, #Ro 1:17 10:10 3:22.
5a5e.
Something else, and not faith, is said to be that by which
men are made
righteous, and justified; as "the obedience of
one",
Jesus Christ, by which "many are made righteous"; and
the blood of Christ; "being justified by his
blood",
#Ro 5:9,19.
Now faith is neither the one nor the other; and
though men
are said to be "justified by faith", yet not as
an act of
men; for then they would be justified by works,
contrary to
express scripture; nor by it as a grace of the
Spirit in men; for this would confound justification and
sanctification
together; but by the object of it, Christ,
and his
righteousness, apprehended, received, and embraced
by faith.
And though believers are said to be justified by
faith, yet
faith is never said to justify them.
5a5f. The
passages produced to establish this notion, that faith
is a man's
righteousness, are insufficient; "Abraham
believed
God, and it was counted to him for righteousness",
#Ro 4:3. And
again, #Ro 4:5. "His faith is counted for
righteousness". And in #Ro 4:9. "We say, that
faith was
reckoned to
Abraham for righteousness". Now this can not be
understood of
the act of Abraham's faith; but of the object
of it, or
that which he believed in, the righteousness of
Christ,
which God imputes, without works, #Ro 4:6 and that
this must be the sense is clear, from this one single
consideration,
that the same "it" which was imputed to
Abraham for
righteousness, is imputed to all those who
believe in
God, who raised up Christ from the dead,
#Ro 4:22-24.
Now supposing Abraham's faith was imputed to
him for a iustifying righteousness; it cannot reasonably be
thought that
it should be imputed also for righteousness to
all that
believe in all succeeding ages.
5a6.
Sixthly, Nor is the whole of sanctification the matter of
justification; these two are distinct things, and not to be
confounded;
the one is a work of grace within men, the other
an act of
God's grace towards and upon men; the one is
imperfect,
the other perfect; the one is carried on
gradually,
the other done at once.
But the sole
matter of justification, or that for the
sake of
which a sinner is justified before God, is the
righteousness
of Christ; and which is,
5a6a. Not his essential righteousness, as God; the
righteousness
by which men
are justified is the righteoushess of God,
which was
wrought out by Christ, who is God as well as man;
but it is
not that righteousness which is essential to him
as God; he
that is their righteousness is Jehovah, but the
righteousness by which he is Jehovah, or which belongs to
him as such,
is not their righteousness, as Osiander
dreamed; for
this would be to deify them.
5a6b. Nor
his righteousness, integrity, and fidelity, which he
exercised in the discharge of his mediatorial office; that
was personal
and respected himself, and not relative to
others; he
was faithful to him that appointed him to that
office, and
he did his work in so upright a manner, that he
obtained the
character of God's "righteous servant",
#Isa 11:5 53:11 but though it is a righteousness he wrought
out as
mediator, which is imputed for justification, yet it is
not his
mediatorial righteousness, or the righteousness of
his office,
or that by which he showed the discharge of it.
5a6c. Nor does it consist of all the actions and works he
did
here on
earth, nor of what he is doing in heaven; it wholly
consists of
those he wrought in his state of humiliation
here on
earth, yet not all of these; not his extraordinary
and
miraculous works, these were proofs of his Deity, and of
his Messiahship; they were done and recorded to engage men
to believe
in him, and in his righteousness; but were no
ingredients,
as one observes {3}, in that righteousness on
which they
were to believe. Nor is his work in heaven,
appearing
for his people there, interceding for them, and
preparing mansions of glory for them, any part of the
righteousness
wrought out for them, and imputed to them.
But,
5a6a. What
he did and suffered in their nature on earth, and in
their room and stead, and as their substitute and
representative,
commonly called his active and passive
obedience; to
which may be added the purity and holiness of
his nature,
and which altogether made up the
dikaiwma tou
nomou, "the righteousess of the law", which was
"fulfilled" by him, as their head and
representative,
#Ro 8:4 for
whatever the law required is necessary to a
sinner's
justification before God; and that requires of sinners
more than it
did of man in innocence. Man was created with a
pure and
holy nature, conformable to the pure and holy law
of God; and it was incumbent on him to continue so, and to
yield in it
perfect and sinless obedience; and in failure
thereof he
was threatened with death; and now having sinned,
whereby his
nature is vitiated and corrupted, and his
obedience
become faulty and imperfect, suffering the penalty
of the law is required; and all this is requisite to the
justification
of a sinner, purity of nature, perfection of
obedience,
and sufferings of death; all which meet in
Christ, the
representative of his people, in whom they are
justified.
5a6a1.
Holiness of nature: some consider this only as a
qualification
for his office, and the due performance of it
in human
nature; whereby he was capable of yielding sinless
obedience to
the law, and was qualified as an high priest to
offer himself a spotless sacrifice, and to be a proper
advocate for
sinners, being Jesus Christ the righteous; but
this not
only fitted him for his work, but made him suitable
to us,
"Such an high priest became us, who is holy,
harmless";
the law required an holy nature in conformity to
it; it is wanting in us, it is found in Christ, "who
is of
God made to
us sanctification"; see more of this under the
"fourth
head".
5a6a2. The
obedience of Christ's life, commonly called his active
obedience, which was sinless and perfect; his whole life
was
in perfect
conformity to the law, and was a continued series
of holiness
and obedience; the holiness of his nature
appeared in
all his actions, throughout his whole state of
humiliation,
from his birth to his death; in all which he
was the representative of his people; what he did, he did
in
their room
and stead, and therefore was reckoned as if done
by them, and
is imputed to them as their righteousness:
there are
some divines {4} who exclude the active obedience
of Christ
from being any part of the righteousness by which
men are justified; they allow it is a condition requisite
in
him as
mediator, qualifying him for his office; but deny
that it is
the matter of justification, or that it is
imputed and
reckoned for righteousness to men. They suppose
that Christ
was obliged to this obedience for himself as a
creature, and that it is unnecessary to his people, because
his
sufferings and death are sufficient for their
justification.
But,
5a6a2a. Though
the human nature of Christ being a creature, and
so considered, was subject to a law and obliged to
obedience;
yet it was not obliged to a course of obedience
in such a
low, mean, and suffering state, being entitled to
glory and
happiness from the moment of its union to the Son
of God; this
was voluntary: besides, the human nature being
taken into personal union with the Son of God, the person
of
Christ, who
was not subject to the law, but was above it,
and Lord of
it; it was an act of his will to submit to it,
and a
wonderful instance of his condescension it was;
moreover, as
Christ being made of a woman, and was made
under the law, he was made both for the sake of his people;
he became
man for their sake, "to us or for us a child is
born",
#Isa 9:6 and for their sake he became subiect to the
law, that he
might yield obedience to it in their room and
stead, and
that he might redeem them from the curse of it;
and this was the kind and gracious design of his divine
Father in
sending him in the likeness of sinful flesh, that
he might
both obey and suffer for them, that so the whole
righteousness
of the law might be fulfilled in them,
#Ga 4:4 Ro
8:3,4.
5a6a2b.
Without the active obedience of Christ the law would not
be
satisfied, the language of which is "Do and live"; and
unless its
precepts are obeyed, as well as its penalty
endured, it
cannot be satisfied; and unless it is satisfied,
there can be no justification by it; Christ, as a surety,
in
the room and
stead of his people, must both obey the
precepts of
the law and bear its penalty; his submitting to
the one,
without conforming to the other, is not sufficient;
one debt is
not paid by another; his paying off the debt of
punishment did not exempt from obedience, as the paying off
the debt of
obedience did not exempt from pnnishment: Christ
did not
satisfy the whole law by either of them separately,
but by both
conjunctly; by his sufferings and death he
satisfied
the threatenings, the sanction of the law, but not
the precepts of it thereby; and by his active obedience he
satisfied
the preccptive part of the law, but not the penal
part; but by
both he satisfied the whole of the law and made
it
honourable.
5a6a2c. It is by a righteousness that men are justified,
and that
is the
righteousness of Christ; now righteousness, strictly
speaking
lies in doing, in actual obedience to the commands
of the law,
"This shall be our righteousness, if we observe
to do",
&c. #De 6:25. Christ's righteousness lay in doing,
``all righteousness, as one
says {5}, is either an habit or an act; but sufferings are neither, and
therefore not righteousness; no man is righteous because he is punished; if so,
the devils and damned in hell would be righteous in proportion to their punishment; the more severe their punishment, and the
more grievous their torments, the greater their righteousness must be; if there
is any righteousness in punishment, it must be in the punisher, and not in the
punished.''
If therefore
men are justified by the righteousness of
Christ imputed to them, it must be by his active obedience,
and not
merely by his sufferings and death; because these,
though they
free from death, yet, strictly speaking, do not
make men
righteous.
5a6a2d. It is expressly said, that "by the obedience
of one shall
many be made
righteous", #Ro 5:19 which cannot be meant of
the
sufferings and death of Christ; because, properly
speaking,
they are not his obedience, but the effect of it;
besides, the
antithesis in the text determines the sense of
the words; for if by one man's actual disobedience, which
was the
case, many were made sinners, so by the rule of
opposition,
by one man's actual obedience, which is
Christ's,
many are made righteous, or justified.
5a6a2e. The reward of life is not promised to suffering,
but to
doing; the
law says, "Do this and live"; it promises life,
not to him
that suffers the penalty, but to him that obeys
the precept;
``there
never was a law, as an excellent divine observes {6}, even among men, either
promising or declaring a reward due to the criminal, because he had undergone
the punishment of his crimes.''
Christ's
sufferings and death being satisfactory to the
comminatory or threatening part of the law, are reckoned to
us for
justification, that so we may be freed and discharged
from the
curse of it, and from hell and wrath to come; but
as they do
not constitute us righteous, they do not entitle
us to
eternal life; but the active obedience or righteousness
of Christ being imputed to us, is "unto justification
of
life",
or is what gives the title to eternal life.
5a6a3.
Nevertheless the sufferings and death of Christ, or what
is commonly
called his passive obedience, are requisite to
our justification before God. Passive obedience is a phrase
that may be
objected to as not accurate, being a seeming
contradiction
in terms; suffering and obedience convey
different
ideas, and belong to different classes; suffering
belongs to
the predicament or class of passion, obedience to
that of action; yet as Christ's sufferings flow from his
obedience,
and were the effect of his submission to his
Father's
will, with respect to which he said, "Not my will
but thine be
done"; and as he was obedient throughout his
life, in all
the actions and in all the sufferings of it,
even to the moment of his death; and was also obedient in
death,
laying down his life at the command received from his
Father;
"For though a Son, yet learned he obedience by the
things he
suffered"; and was even active in his sufferings;
he laid down
his life of himself, he poured out his soul
unto death, and gave himself an offering, and a sacrifice
for sin;
considering these things, the phrase, passive
obedience,
may be admitted of; especially as it is well
known what
is meant by it, the voluntary sufferings and
death of
Christ, which are most certainly ingredients in the
It may be
asked, if Christ was the representative of his
people in his
active obedience, which constitutes them just
or
righteous, and is their justification of life, or what
entitles to eternal life, what need was there of his
sufferings
and death? to which it may be answered, that it
was necessary
that Christ, as the surety and representative
of his
people, should satisfy the law in everything it
could
require of them, both as creatures, and as sinful
creatures. As creatures, the law could require of them
purity of
nature, and perfect obedience to it, which were in
their first
parents, but were lost by them, and are wanting
in them; as
sinful creatures, it could require of them to
endure the
penalty of it. Christ now as the surety of his
people, represented them as creatures, in the purity of
his
nature and
in the perfection of his life, or in his active
obedience;
and presented that to the law for them which it
could
require of them as creatures: and as it is certain he
represented
them in his sufferings and death, hence he is
said to die for them, that is, in their room and stead,
and
they to be
crucified and buried with him; in these he
represented
them as sinful creatures, and bore the penalty
or curse of
the law; and in both obediences he satisfied the
whole of it;
and as by the one they are freed from death the
sanction of the law, so by the other they are entitled to
life, and by
both Christ is the fulfilling end of the law
for
righteousness unto them. For that the sufferings and
death of
Christ, as well as his active obedience, are
requisite to
the complete justification of a sinner,
5a6a3a. That
without these the law would not be satisfied, and
all its
demands answered; and unless it is satisfied; there
can be no
justification by it; and it cannot be satisfied
unless its penalty is endured; for,
5a6a3b. The
law, in case of disobedience to it, threatened with
death, and
death is the just wages and due demerit of sin;
and
therefore this must be endured, either by the sinner or
a surety for him, or else he cannot be discharged by the
law.
5a6a3c. The
justification of a sinner is expressly ascribed to
the blood of
Christ, which is put for the whole of his
sufferings and death, #Ro 5:9.
5a6a3d.
Justification proceeds upon redemption, "being justified
freely by
his grace, through the redemption that is in
Christ
Jesus", #Ro 3:24 now redemption is by the blood of
Christ, and through his sufferings and death, #Eph 1:7
#1Pe 3:18,19
Re 5:9.
5a6a3e. It
is upon the foot of Christ's satisfaction that
justification
takes place, and satisfaction is made by
Christ's doing and suffering all the law requires; and so
as
by his
obedience, likewise by his blood and death, to which
it is more
frequently ascribed, peace is made by his blood,
reconciliation
by his death, atonement and expiation by his
sacrifice,
which is of a sweet smelling savour to God,
#Col 1:20 Ro 5:10 Heb 9:26 Eph 5:2.
5a6a3f. The
complete justification of a sinner, does not seem to
be finished by
Christ until his resurrection, after his
obedience
and sufferings of death; for he "was delivered for
our offences, and was raised again for our
justification",
#Ro 4:25. In
short, the righteousness by which we are
justified,
as Dr. Ames {7} says, is not to be sought for in
different
operations of Christ, but arises from his whole
obedience,
both active and passive; which is both
satisfactory and meritorious, and frees from condemnation
and death,
and adjudges and entitles to eternal life; even
as one and
the same disobedience of Adam, stripped us of
original
righteousness, and rendered us obnoxious to
condemnation.
So much for the matter of justification.
5b. Secondly, The form of it,
is imputation; or the manner in which the righteousness of Christ is made over
to a sinner, and it becomes his, is by imputing it to him; "Even as David
describeth the blessedness of the man unto whom God imputeth righteousness
without works", #Ro 4:6. The words used both in Hebrew and
Greek, bvx and logizomai, ellogew, &C signify, to reckon, repute, estimate,
attribute, and place something to the account of another {8}: as when the
apostle said to Philemon, concerning Onesimus, "If he hath wronged thee,
or oweth thee ought, put that on my account", touto emoi ellogei, let it
be reckoned, or imputed to me. So when God is said to impute the righteousness
of Christ to any, the sense is, that he reckons it as
theirs, being wrought out for them, and accounts them righteous by it, as
though they had performed it in their own persons: and that it is by the
righteousness of Christ, imputed to his people, that they are justified, is
clear, when it is observed,
5b1. That those whom God justifies, are, in themselves,
ungodly;
for God
"justifieth the ungodly", #Ro 4:5 if ungodly,
then without
a righteousness; and if without a
righteousness,
then, if they are justified, it must be by a
righteousness
imputed to them, or placed to their account;
which can be no other than the righteousness of Christ.
5b2. They
that are justified, are justified either by an
inherent, or
by an imputed righteousness: not by an
inherent
one, for that is imperfect, and so not justifying;
and if not by an inherent righteousness, then it must be
by
one imputed
to them, for there remains no other.
5b3. The
righteousness by which any are justified, is the
righteousness
of another, and not their own, even the
righteousness of Christ; "Not having on mine own
righteousness",
says the apostle, #Php 3:9. Now the
righteousness
of another, cannot be made a man's, or he is
justified by
it, any other way than by an imputation of it
to him.
5b4. The
same way that Adam's sin, became the sin of his
posterity,
or they were made sinners by it, the same way
Christ's
righteousness becomes his people's, or they are
made
righteous by it. Now the former is by imputation; and
so the latter; "As by one man's disobedience many
were made
sinners";
that is, by the imputation of it to them; "so by
the
obedience of one shall many be made righteous"; that is,
by placing
it to their account, #Ro 5:19.
5b5. The same way that the sins of Christ's people became
his,
his
righteousness becomes their's. Now their sins became
Christ's by
imputation only; the Father hid them on him, or
made them to
meet upon him, imputed them to him, placed them
to his
account; and he took them upon him, and looked upon
himself as answerable to justice for them; and so, in the
same way,
his righteousness is made over to, and put upon
his people;
"For he who knew no sin, was made sin for us",
by
imputation, "that we might be made the righteousness of
God in
him"; accounted righteous in him, through his
righteousness imputed, #2Co 5:21. Now there are several
things which
are said of this imputed righteousness of
Christ,
which serve greatly to recommend it, and set forth
the
excellency of it; as,
5b5a. That it is called "the righteousness of
God", #Ro 1:17 3:22
being
wrought by Christ, who is God as well as man; approved
and accepted
of by God, and freely imputed by him to
believers,
as their justifying righteousness.
5b5b. It is called, "the righteousness of One",
#Ro 5:18 of one
of the
Persons in the Trinity, the Son of God; of him, who,
though he
has two natures united in him, is but one Person,
and who is
the one common Head to all his seed; and though
his
obedience, or righteousness, serves for many, it is "the
obedience of One", #Ro 5:19 and therefore they are
justified,
not partly by their own obedience, and partly by
Christ's,
but by his only.
5b5c. It is
called, "the righteousness of the law", #Ro 8:4 being
wrought by Christ in conformity to the law; so that this
righteousness
is a legal righteousness, as performed by
Christ,
being every way commensurate to the demands of it;
though
evangelical, as made over to his people, and revealed
in the
gospel; for it is manifested without the law, though
witnessed to by law and prophets.
5b5d. It is
called, "the righteousness of faith", #Ro 4:13 not
that faith
is righteousness, or imputed for it, or is the
matter of a
justifying righteousness, or any part of it; but
because the righteousness of Christ is revealed to faith,
and that
lays hold on it, receives it, rejoices in it, and
boasts of
it.
5b5e. It is
called, "the gift of righteousness", and "the free
gift", and "the gift by grace", #Ro 5:15-17
because freely
wronght out
by Christ, and freely imputed by God the Father;
and faith is
freely given to receive and embrace it.
5b5f. It is
called, "a robe of righteousness", a garment down to
the feet, which covers the whole mystical body of Christ,
#Isa 61:10
Re 1:13 it is signified by gold of Ophir, of
wrought
gold, and raiment of needle work; setting forth the
preciousness
of it, #Ps 45:9,13,14. It is said to be
change of
raiment, and the wedding garment, #Zec 3:4
#Mt 22:12 yea, the "best robe", #Lu 15:22 a
better robe
than Adam
had in Eden, or the angels in heaven; theirs, at best,
being but
the righteousness of a creature, and that
loseable, as
the event showed; but Christ's righteousness is
the
righteousness of God, and an everlasting one; it may
rendered, the "first robe" {9}, being first in
designation,
and in the
provision of the covenant of grace; though Adam's
robe of
righteousness was first in wear and use.
6. The effects of
justification bv the righteousness of Christ may be next considered, which are as follow.
6a. An entire freedom from all
penal evils, in this life and in that which is to come. Justified ones are not
freed from all evils; they have their evil things now, as Lazarus had, but they
are not brought upon them by way of punishment; afflictions are
evils in themselves, being not joyous but grievous; but then they are not penal
ones; they are fatherly chastisements, they are fruits and evidences of the
love of God to them, and not of his vindictive wrath, #Re 3:19 1Co 11:32 death
was threatened as a punishment for sin, and is the just demerit of it, and as
such is inflicted on unrighteous ones, but is no penal evil to justified ones;
it is their privilege and not their punishment, #1Co 3:22
Re 14:13 and therefore their death is desirable, even by wicked men, as it was
by Balaam: nor will any penal evil befall the justified ones after death; for
"being now justified" by his (Christ's) blood, they "shall be
saved from wrath through him"; from wrath to come, the vengeance of
eternal fire: should any penal evil be inflicted on them here or hereafter, it
would highly reflect upon the justice of God, in punishing
twice for the same offences, once in their surety, and again in themselves;
since the chastisement, or punishment of their sins has been laid on Christ,
and he has endured it; and therefore it would be a lessening of the value of
Christ's satisfaction, as if it was not made to full content, should punishment
be inflicted in any degree upon those for whom it is made; and it would be contrary to the gospel declaration, that they that
believe in Christ are justified, and shall not enter into condemnation.
6b. Peace with God is another
fruit and effect of justification; being "justified by faith, we have
peace with God", #Ro 5:1 peace with God is made by the blood of Christ, and reconciliation by his death; and besides that,
there is a peace of conscience which is had in a way of believing, and through
a comfortable sense and perception of an interest in the righteousness of
Christ, the effect of which is peace and quietness, #Isa 32:17.
6c.
Access to God through Christ; for having a comfortable view by faith of
interest in the righteousness of Christ unto justification, it follows,
"by whom also we have access by faith into this grace wherein we
stand", #Ro 5:2 access to God as the God of grace, to him as on a throne
of grace, to all the blessings of grace which come from God through Christ; and
through the blood and righteousuess of Christ justified
ones have great freedom, boldness and confidence, to go to God, and present
their supplication to him for what they want; not for their righteousness sake,
but in their requests making mention of the righteousness of Christ, and only
pleading the worth and virtue of that.
6d.
Acceptance with God through Christ follows upon justification by his
righteousness; there can be no acceptance with God upon the foot of a man's own
righteousness, which cannot render him acceptable to God; but through the
righteousness of Christ there is an acceptance both of persons and services;
first of persons and then of services; as God had respect to Abel, and so to
his offering, and accepted it; so he has respect to the
persons of his justified ones, as considered in Christ; he has respect to him,
and is well pleased with him, and with all that are in him; they are accepted
of God in the beloved, being clothed with the robe of his righteousness, and
the garments of his salvation; and their services being done in the strength of
Christ, and through faith in him, and to the glory of God by him, and their spiritual sacrifices being offered up by him their
great high-priest, they become acceptable to God through him.
6e. The well being of God's
people here and hereafter depends upon their justification, and is a consequent
of it; "Say ye to the righteous", one that is justified by the righteousness of Christ, "that it shall be well
with him", #Isa 3:10 it is well with the justified ones in life; be it
with them as it may, all is well with them and for the best; all things work
together for their good, adversity and prosperity; what they have of worldly
things, though but little, #Ps 37:16 Pr 15:16,17 are blessings to them: it is
well with such an one at death, he has hope in it, and rejoices in hope of the glory of God; peace is the end of the perfect and upright
man, who is perfectly righteous through the righteottsness of Christ imputed to
him; and it is well with him at judgment, he has a righteousness that will
answer for him in that time to come; and he shall have an abundant entrance
into the everlasting kingdom and glory of our Lord Jesus Christ; and it will be
well with him to all eternity; he that is righteous will
then be righteous still, and ever continue so, and shall go into everlasting
life.
6f. Glorying, or boasting, is
another effect of justification; not in a man's self, in his own righteousness;
not of his duties, services, and performance; nor of blessings of goodness enjoyed through his own merit; nor of heaven and
happiness, as his own acquisition; all such boasting is excluded, by the
doctrine of justification by faith in the righteousness of Christ; but such as
are justified in Christ glory of him, in whom they are justified; and glory in
this, that he is "of God, made to them righteousness", #Isa 45:25 1Co
1:30.
6g. Justified ones have an
undoubted title to eternal life; hence justification by Christ's righteousness
is called, "justification of life", because it entitles to it; and
such are "made heirs, according to the hope of eternal life"; are
heirs of the inheritance, incorruptible and undefiled, and reserved in the
heavens, and shall be possessed of it, #Ro 5:18 Tit 3:7.
For,
6h. Certainty of salvation may
be concluded from justification; such as are justified, shall most assuredly be
"saved from wrath"; there is an inseparable connection between
justification and glorification; "Whom he justified, them he also
glorified", #Ro 5:9 8:30.
7. The properties of
justification.
7a. It is an act of God's
grace, of pure grace, without any consideration of merit, worthiness,
and works of men; grace is the moving cause of it, as has been already
observed; it was according to the purpose and grace of God, that he resolved
upon the justification of any of the sons of men; "The scripture
foreseeing that God would justify the heathen through faith", #Ga 3:8 the
scripture foresaw, or predicted, the justification of them; because God, of his
sovereign grace and good will, determined on it; grace set
wisdom at work to find out a proper way and method of making men just with God,
which could never have been found out by men or angels; and having found a way
to impute their sins, not to themselves but to Christ, and to impute his
righteousness to them; he was "gracious, and said, Deliver them from going
down to the pit". Grace put him on calling Christ to be their surety, to
bring in an everlasting righteousness for them; and it was
grace in Christ to accept the call, and say, "Lo, I come to do thy
will!" one part of which was, to work out a righteoushess for his people;
and it was grace in God to send his Son to obey, suffer, and die for them, in
their nature, that the righteousness of the law might be fulfilled in them; and
it was grace in him to accept of that righteousness as if done by them, and to impute it to them freely without works, and to give them
faith to lay hold upon it for themselves; and it appears the more to be an act
of grace, in that they are "ungodly" whom God justifies, sinners,
even some, the chief of sinners, #Ro 4:5 #1Co 6:11.
7b. It is
an act of justice, as well as of grace: God is righteous in all his ways and
works, and so in this; the law being perfectly fulfilled by Christ, the surety,
both with respect to precept and penalty; justice is fully satisfied, and so
God is "just, and the justifier of him that believeth in Jesus", #Ro
3:26.
7c. It is
universal, as to persons, sins, and punishment: as to persons, all the seed of
Israel are justified; that is, all the elect of God and seed of Christ; as
there was an "all" on whom judgment came to condemnation, through the
offence of the first Adam, even all his natural posterity; so there is an all
on whom the free gift by the righteousness of Christ comes, to the
justification of life; even all the children of God, and
offspring of Christ, the second Adam, whose righteousness is "unto
all", and "upon all" them that believe, #Isa 45:25 Ro 5:18 #Ro
3:22. And with respect to sins, they that are justified, are justified from all
sins whatever; Christ has redeemed his people from all their iniquities; all
are forgiven for his sake; his blood cleanses from all, and his righteousness
clears and acquits them of all: and as to punishment, they
are entirely secure from it, even to the least degree; they are saved from
wrath; they are secure from all condemnation; they are delivered from the curse
of the law; nor shall they be hurt by the second death, the wages of sin; it
shall not have any power at all over them: the whole righteousness of Christ is
imputed to them; a whole Christ is made to them righteousness; and in such a
manner, that they are made the righteousness of God in
him; and they are complete in him, are perfectly comely through his comeliness
put upon them, a perfection of beauty, all fair, and without spot.
7d. It is an individual act,
done at once, and admits of no degrees; the sins of God's elect
were altogether and at once laid on Christ, and satisfaction for them was made
by him at once; he removed the iniquity of his people in one day, and by one
sacrifice put away sin for ever; all sins were pardoned at once, upon this
sacrifice offered, and satisfaction made; and the righteousness of Christ was accepted
of, and imputed to his people at once. The sense of justification, iudeed,
admits of degrees; "The righteousness of God is
revealed from faith to faith"; from one degree of faith to another; from a
lesser, and lower degree of it, to an higher; it is gradually that faith rises
to a full assurance of interest in it, so that a man knows with certainty, that
he is and shall be justified; the manifestations of it are various and
different, at different times; but the act itself, as in God, is always the same,
perfect and complete. Indeed, there are fresh declarations
and repetitions of the sentence of it was first conceived in the divine mind
from all eternity; it was virtually pronounced on the elect in Christ, their
representauve, at his resurrection from the dead; and it is afresh pronounced
in the conscience of a believer, by the Spirit, and he bearing testimony to it;
and it will be again notified at the general judgment, before angels and men; but justification, as an act of God, is but one, and
done at once, and admits of no degrees; and is not carried on in a gradual,
progressive way, as sanctification is.
7e. It is equal to all, or all
are alike justified, that are justified; the price of redemption,
on which justification proceeds, is the same, the precious blood of Christ;
even as the ransom price, and atonement money paid for the children of Israel,
was the same, an half shekel for the rich and for the poor: and it is the same
righteousness of Christ that is imputed to one as to another; it is a garment
down to the feet, and covers the whole mystical body, the lowest and meanest
members of it, as well as the more principal; it is unto
all, and upon all them that believe; there is no difference, they have all the
same righteousness, and the same precious faith, though not to the same degree;
yet the weakest believer is as much justified, as the strongest believer; and
so the greatest, as well as the smallest sinner, thohgh one may be justified
from more sins than another, having committed more: yet one is not more justified than the other; though one man may have
more faith, and more sanctifying grace than another, yet no man has more
righteousness, or a more justifying righteousness than another.
7f. It is irreversible, and an
unalterable act; it is according to the immutable purpose
and grace of God, which can never be frustrated; it is part of that grace
given, and one of those spiritual blessings wherewith the elect were blessed in
Christ before the world began; it is one of those things which God does, and
are for ever. Neither the righteousness by which they are justified, nor the
faith by which they receive the justifying righteousness from the Lord, ever
fail. The righteousness is an everlasting righteousness;
and faith fails not; Christ is the author and finisher of it. Though a
righteous man falls, he never falls from his righteousness: a man that is only
seemingly and outwardly righteous, may turn away from his own righteousness,
and go into a course of sin, and die; but one that is truly righteous, through
the righteousness of Christ, can never turn and fall from that, nor shall ever enter into condemnation; but shall be eternally saved
and glorified.
7g. Though by the act of justification,
persons are freed from sin, and from obligation to punishment for it, sin is
not thereby taken out of them. They are, indeed, so freed from it, that God
sees no iniquity in them, to condemn them for it; he sees
all the sins of his people in the article of providence, and chastises for
them; but in the article of justification he sees none in them; they are
acquitted, discharged, and justified from all; yet sin dwells in them, as it
did in the apostle Paul, who, undoubtedly, was a justified person; yea,
"There is not a just man upon earth"; one that is truly righteous, in
an evangelic sense, "that doth good and sinneth
not", #Ec 7:20.
7h. Through justification by
the righteousness of Christ, neither the law is made void and of none effect,
nor is the performance of good works discouraged. The Law is not made void;
"Do we make void the law through faith?" that is, through the doctrine of justification by faith in the righteousness of
Christ; "God forbid! yea, we establish the law"; by presenting to it
a righteousness every way commensurate to its demands, by which it is magnified
and made honourable: nor does this doctrine discourage duty, but animates to
it; and is to be constantly preached for this end, "That they which have
believed in God, might be careful to maintain good works", #Tit 3:7,8.
{3} Dr. Goodwin, his Works,
vol. 3. par. 3. p. 336.
{4} Wendelin, Piscator,
Pareus, Lubbertus, Forbes, and others.
{5} Molinaeus apud Maccov.
Loc. Commun. c. 69. p. 613.
{6} Dr.
Goodwin, ut supra, p. 338.
{7} Medulla Theolog. l. 1. c.
20. s. 13. & c. 27. s. 27.
{8} bvx "putavit,
imputavit, reputavit, aestimavit", Buxtorf. logizomai "aestimo,
reputo, item imputo, et alicujus veluti rationibus infero, tribuo",
Scapula.
{9} thn golhn thn prwthn,
"stolam primam", V. L. Arias Montanus.