---- CHAPTER IV: How good works are not slighted by exalting faith alone to have an interest in our
set out the excellency of faith to you. It is the great work of God; so Christ said when they asked him, what they should do that they might work the works of God? 'This,' saith he, 'is the work of God, that ye believe on him whom he hath sent.' Our Saviour Christ, when the apostles said unto him, 'Lord, increase our faith,' Luke 17:5, he did presently on purpose fall on the commending it yet more to them, and setting out the excellency of faith, and told them what great things it could and would do, to the end he might make them inflamed yet more after believing, and that their hearts might be set yet more upon endeavouring after it. You say well, saith he, to say,
'Lord, increase our faith;' for of all graces else it is good to seek the increase of that, because it is such a grace as can do all things, that can set on work all that is in God, and set a-work likewise all other graces.
CHAPTER IV
How good works are not slighted by exalting faith alone to have an interest in our justification.
The second thing which I propounded, was to invalidate a false corollary, that corrupt minds are apt to deduce from our putting so much of the power of godliness to faith, and attributing so much to it, as that it should be the sole instrument of justification, of union on our parts, and communion with Christ, and more to be looked out for than all works else. Hence men take occasion to think, that inherent holiness and obedience issuing thence, are hereby slighted, and that this tends to have works of holiness neglected. But for answer,
1. As for slighting of works and inward holiness, we are bold to profess, that take faith when it beholds with open face the glory of Christ, who is the desire and delight of faith's eye, and when it is aviewing over the beauty of Christ from top to toe, and every part of his righteousness wrought for it and imputed to it; and then when it casts its eye upon its own inherent holiness wrought in itself, and all the good works of holiness wrought by itself, which to eternity it shall be enabled to do, it will think meanly of them all. Yea, if the rich and glorious righteousness of all the angels in heaven should offer to present itself to a believer's thoughts with a supposed imagined offer of exchange, it will and doth slight them all in comparison of this of Christ's, which faith hath in its eye. As the sun puts out the lesser stars, so doth the righteousness of this Sun put out the glory of the obedience of all the morning stars, saints and angels. What says Paul,
Phil. 3:8, 9, when faith is broad awake, and the Sun of righteousness arisen on him? Then he accounts all the righteousness and conformity to the law but as dung and dross, which our divines interpret rightly of his righteousness and works done after conversion as well as before. 'But what' (says Bellarmine) 'doth he account the fruits of the Spirit, which are for God's relish, and pleasing to him? doth he call these dog's meat? It is a blasphemy to do so, if that be his meaning.' But take these two things with you, and you will not say so: 1st, That it is but a comparative contempt, not simply; he slights indeed his own righteousness, but how? For the super-excellent knowledge of Christ Jesus my Lord, and in comparison of winning Christ, and being found in him, which faith can only help you to. And he not only slights but also renounceth his own righteousness for the righteousness of faith, that is, the righteousness that faith hath in its eye and keeping, not his own. And in this manner (comparatively, namely), we find Paul seeming to slight the law. It would stumble a man to hear how he speaks of it, as when he calls it 'a schoolmaster' and 'a prison,' Gal. 3:23, 24; and 'beggarly weak elements,' Gal. 4:9; 'the ministry of death,' 2 Cor. 3:7; and 'engendering to bondage,' Gal. 4:34. But these were spoken but comparatively to the glorious things that are revealed in the gospel, not simply, for otherwise he commends the law as 'holy and good,'
Rom. 7:12, as 'ordained for life,' ver. 10. 'The law is good,' says he, 'if a man use it lawfully,' 1 Tim. 1:8. But if they would set it in competition with the gospel, then it is Paul slights it; and though he says that in itself it is glorious, 2 Cor. 3:7, yet says he, in comparison with the gospel, the ministration of righteousness, it loseth its lustre, and hath no glory in this respect, by reason of this glory that excelleth, ver. 10. And, 2dly, this is only in the point of justification, and in relation thereunto. If the statute law offers to be brought into that court, or works be impleaded there, then faith casts them out with indignation. If they will stand at the bar and give in witness, they may be heard, and their witness is not slighted; but if they would have a hand in the sentence of justification, then they are cried down, and bidden to stand by, and hear faith alone to plead a man's case.
2. Then a thing is slighted, when the respect that is due to it is not given it; but when more than is due is denied, it is not slighted. A man slights not an inferior magistrate if he gives him not the honour due unto a king, nor a king if he gives him not the spiritual honour due to a minister. As the priests slighted not the king when they drove him out of the temple, and denied him to offer sacrifice, so we slight not works nor inward holiness, if we attribute not that to them which God is pleased to attribute to faith, or to Christ rather (for faith is but Christ's instrument to glorify himself by), if we say they cannot help to justify or unite to Christ; nay, if when they will presume to do faith's office, we slight them not if we drive them out of the court, for all honour that is due to these in their places we give to them. Indeed, because love had once the honour to unite us to God as the primary and immediate tie of union, and works had the prerogative of justifying,—'Do this, and thou shalt live,'—therefore, they are apt to look for the same respect still; but sin broke the covenant of works, and made void that covenant, and then God put these out of commission, and out of these great offices, and substituted faith; and if they will be content with their places, and give Christ and free grace the throne, they shall have honour enough under him. We will acknowledge the new creature to be worth all the
creatures else; and though the soul be more worth than a world, yet inward holiness in the soul is worth all men's souls devoid of it, though but an accident; and so, though a logician would reckon it less worth than the meanest substance, yet a poor soul and a believer esteems it more worth than millions of worlds, and thinks a dram of grace, a shred of this, in value above all rubies, as Solomon speaks.
Yea, and if they could be severed (as yet in imagination and supposition they may), grace is more worth than superadded glory, and a Christian prizeth it, values it more than simply happiness.
Glory is the embroidery of grace, and the stuff is of more worth than this embroidery, if they could be severed; yea, indeed, grace itself is glory, 2 Cor. 3:18. It is the image of Christ, and called glory, and makes the church all glorious within. As sin is worse than hell, so grace is more worth than heaven, take heaven only for our joy and happiness there. Paul was content to part with heaven for ever (if you take heaven for a comfortable communion with Christ), but no offer could have been so great as to have bought of him one dram of grace and inward holiness, and of the love which he had to Christ in his heart, or of one good work that he had done for him. It was the saying of an holy man, that he would willingly of the two rather have more grace here, and exchange it for and abate of degrees of glory hereafter. 'But yet hereby,' says Paul, 'I am not justified.' Yea, though
God justifies us not for inward holiness, yet he prizeth us the more for it, and every degree of holiness added makes us more lovely in the sight of God, and more amiable, 1 Peter 3:4. 'A meek and quiet spirit is before God of great price;' it is that which makes our persons beautiful in his eyes, and makes him greatly desire us, and to have communion with us, and to delight in us: 'So shall the king greatly desire thy beauty,' Ps. 45:11. That God delights in one more than another, is because he hath bestowed more holiness, more beauty on them. It is not indeed that which caused him to set his love on us, but it is that which draws it out: Cant. 4:9, 'Thou hast ravished my heart, my sister, my spouse,' says Christ of the graces in his church. It is true, we are 'accepted in the beloved,' in Christ through free grace,
Ephes. 1:6, and it is faith makes the match; yet inward holiness doth cause him to delight in us, and to take more pleasure in us. And so as
to every act of obedience we acknowledge a great deal of worth in it, as that it is a fruit of the Spirit, a child begotten by Christ, Rom. 7:4,
5, and therefore if the soul prizeth Christ, it must needs prize the begotten by him (as John says, 1 John 5:1, in case of loving our brother), and the soul will desire still to have more children by him.
And likewise as it is fruit by Christ to the glory of God, it glorifies him though it justifies not us; and what is grace but making God's glory our end? and if so, then a man desires to be filled with works; and that being his end, his desire of holiness is infinite, as the desires of a man's end are to be. And likewise he prizeth it as a rich treasure for himself laid up in store against that day, 1 Tim. 6:19, when he shall receive bills of exchange in heaven; therefore a man is said to be rich in good works there, as well as rich in faith elsewhere, James 2:5.
3. Neither may anything we attribute to faith cause a neglect of holiness and obedience. 1st, Indeed it is true, if we attributed all this to an idle faith, to a faith that had no efficacy to change a man's heart and life, and thought true faith might be without other graces, as the papists do, and that it might stand with a reigning sin, and then made such a faith the instrument of our union with Christ, &c., then this calumny might justly be laid upon our doctrine, and that which we profess. But on the contrary, we profess that so much faith as there is, so much holiness and obedience too, and that it doth as necessarily follow upon it as light doth from the sun. When we say
(as the apostle doth), that in Christ nothing availeth anything but faith, we add withal, 'which worketh by love,' Gal. 5:6, and that that faith which is without holiness is dead (as James says), as you say, that is a dead drug that works not. If we made faith an idle hand to receive pardon only, then it were something; but we make faith a labouring and a working hand also: 'Remembering,' says the apostle,
'your work of faith,' 1 Thes. 1:3, John 6:28, 29. It is full of works, as Chrysostom says, it hath all good works in the belly of it; and therefore Col. 2:7, the being 'established in faith hath 'abounding in thanksgiving' joined with it, for fulness of faith makes the heart full of thanks, and therefore full of obedience. We profess that he that lies in any known sin, or neglect of any duty, doth deny the faith, 1
Tim. 5:8, that is, denies really what in words he affirms, and he shews he wants faith, and grace, and all. Yea, we say that the way to increase in holiness, is to increase in faith: 2 Peter 3:18, 'Grow in grace, and in the knowledge of Jesus Christ.' This is the root; water that, and you will be fruitful. The more faith there is, the more love there is too; and the more love, the more a man is constrained to love
God again, and that love is laborious and desirous to please him, so as works do necessarily follow faith, not necessitate infallibilitatis only, as fruit doth from a good tree, and these are fruits of the Spirit, but in a sweet manner, necessitate coactionis, for 'love constrains.'
And as the grace revealed teacheth the understanding by a logical illation to deny ungodliness, Titus 2:12, so it teacheth the heart by a physical instinct to love God when believed, and to mortify sin, and to put off corruption. 'If you have learned and been taught the truth as it is in Jesus,' you will put off the old man; for if you know Christ as in truth he is to be known, that will follow, Eph. 4:21, 22. And indeed not Christ only, but Christ apprehended by faith, doth it, and must needs do it when he is beheld by faith. As the sun heats through a burning-glass, so doth Christ, when he is let into the heart by faith, change it; and therefore, 2 Cor. 3:18, we are said to be changed into his image by beholding his glory, by the Spirit that is in him. And that is one reason among others why we make faith to be the primary grace, because it virtually contains all the other in it. As love is said to be 'the fulfilling of the law,' Rom. 13:8, and so contains all the commandments,—'Thou shalt not kill, thou shalt not steal, &c., and if there be any other commandment, it is comprehended in this word,
Thou shalt love thy neighbour' (as the apostle says), it is recapitulated, reduced to those as to the head, the sum of all, that virtually contains all,—so I say of believing, that it alone is the fulfilling of the gospel, and it virtually contains love and all works else. For the object of faith is Christ as he is presented to us in the gospel. Now he is presented not as justification only, but as sanctification also; therefore he that takes Christ as he is given, takes
Christ for both, and Christ is made both, and he doth turn to him as well as believe in him in that very taking him. Therefore faith is receiving Christ as a Lord, and repentance is walking in him, Col.