Part 1
The Gospel Mystery of
Sanctification
Walter Marshall
Monergism Books
Copyright © 2023
Published by by Monergism Books
P.O. Box 491
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www.monergism.com
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Contents
1. That we may acceptably perform the duties of holiness and
righteousness required in the law
2. Several endowments and qualifications are necessary to enable us
for the immediate practice of the law
3. The way to get holy endowments and qualifications necessary
4. The means by which the Spirit of God accomplishes our union
with Christ
5. We cannot attain to the practice of true holiness by any of our
endeavours
6. Those that endeavour to perform sincere obedience to all the
commands of Christ
7. We are not to imagine that our hearts and lives must be changed.
8. Be sure to seek for holiness of heart and life only in its due order
9. We must first receive the comforts of the gospel
10. That we may be prepared by the comforts of the gospel
11. Endeavour diligently to perform the great work of believing
12. Make diligent use of your most holy faith
13. Endeavour diligently to make the right use of all means
14. That you may seek holiness and righteousness only by believing
15. The Doctrine of Justification Opened and Applied
Chapter One
That we may acceptably perform the duties of holiness and righteousness required in the law
n order to perform the duties of holiness and righteousness as required
by the law, our first task is to learn the powerful and effective means by
which we can achieve such a great goal.
This instruction can serve as a preface, preparing the reader's
understanding and attention for what follows.
Firstly, it informs you about the ultimate goal for which all those means
are intended, which will be the main subject discussed here. The aim of all
this is to teach you how to attain the practice and way of life that we refer to
as holiness, righteousness, or godliness, obedience, and true religion. These
are the qualities that God expects from us according to the law, especially
the moral law summarized in the Ten Commandments, and more concisely
in the two great commandments of loving God and our neighbor (Matthew
22:37, 39). They are further explained in detail throughout the Holy
Scriptures. My task is to demonstrate how to fulfill the duties of this law
once you know them. Therefore, do not expect me to delay my intention of
helping you understand them by providing an extensive explanation, as that
has already been done in various catechisms and commentaries. However,
to ensure that you do not miss the target due to a lack of understanding, I
will briefly highlight that the holiness I aim to guide you towards is spiritual
(Romans 7:14). It encompasses not only external acts of piety and charity,
but also the pure thoughts, imaginations, and emotions of the soul. Its
essence lies primarily in love, from which all other good works must flow,
otherwise they will not be pleasing to God. Holiness also involves
restraining oneself from giving in to sinful desires, as well as desiring and
delighting in doing the will of God, and willingly obeying Him without
complaining, being annoyed, or begrudging any duty, as if it were a
burdensome yoke to bear.
Take note that the law, which is your target, is extremely broad (Psalm
119:96), yet not easier to hit, because you must aim to hit it in every duty,
with an equally broad performance. Otherwise, you will not hit it at all
(James 2:10). The Lord is not truly loved with the love that is owed to Him
as the Lord of all, unless He is loved with all our heart, spirit, and strength.
We are meant to love everything about Him: His justice, holiness, supreme
authority, all-seeing eye, as well as His decrees, commands, judgments, and
all His actions. We are to love Him not only more than other things, but
solely, as the only source of goodness, the fountain of all goodness. We
should reject all earthly and worldly pleasures, even our own lives, as if we
despise them, when they compete with our enjoyment of Him or our
obligation towards Him. We must love Him to the extent that we surrender
ourselves completely to His constant service in all matters, and to His
control over us as our absolute Lord, whether it is for success or adversity,
life or death. And for His sake, we are to love our neighbor - every single
person, whether they are our friends or enemies - and treat them in all
matters concerning their dignity, life, purity, material wealth, reputation,
and satisfaction, just as we would want them to treat us in a similar situation
(Matthew 7:12). This spiritual and all-encompassing obedience is the
ultimate goal that I am guiding you towards. And so that you do not dismiss
my endeavor as impossible, understand that the most I promise is no more
than an acceptable performance of these duties of the law, which our
gracious and merciful God will undoubtedly take delight in and be pleased
with, considering our imperfect state in this world. Such performance will
ultimately lead to perfection in holiness and complete happiness in the
world to come.
Before I proceed further, take a moment to contemplate the great
importance and excellence of these duties of the law, so that you may strive
to perform them with such high esteem that it brings a pleasing radiance to
the forthcoming revelation of the means. The primary duties of love
towards God above all else, and love towards one another for His sake,
from which all other duties stem, are so exceptional that I cannot envision a
more noble task even for the holy angels in their glorious realm. These are
the primary works for which we were originally fashioned in the image of
God, imprinted upon humanity during the initial creation, and for which this
beautiful image is renewed within us through our new creation and
sanctification in Jesus Christ, and will be perfected in our glorification.
These works are not merely subject to the sovereignty of God's will, to be
commanded or forbidden, left indifferent, altered, or abolished at His
pleasure, as other works pertaining to the judicial or ceremonial law, or the
means of salvation prescribed by the gospel. Instead, they possess inherent
holiness, righteousness, and goodness (Romans 7:12), and are suitable for
us to perform due to our natural relationship with our Creator and fellow
creatures. Thus, they have an inseparable reliance on the holiness of God's
will, and are indispensably established by it. These works alone are
sufficient to make the doers holy in every aspect of their conduct, through
the fruits they bear, even if no other duties had ever been commanded. They
establish the performance of all other duties as soon as they are
commanded, and without them, we cannot fathom any notion of holiness in
heart and life. They are also the honored means through which the Mosaic
ordinances were fulfilled, and now serve evangelical purposes, until their
end—this unwavering charity—is perfectly attained (1 Corinthians 13).
These duties are obligations imposed on us by nature, by virtue of the
reason and understanding that God bestowed upon humanity at the time of
creation, enabling us to discern what is just and appropriate for us to do.
Even pagans remain bound to these duties by the light of nature alone,
without any written law or supernatural revelation (Romans 2:14, 15).
Therefore, they are referred to as natural religion, and the law that
commands them is known as the natural law or moral law. All individuals,
believers and non-believers alike, should conform their behavior to it, and if
they were to fully adhere, they would not fall short of eternal happiness
(Matthew 5:19; Luke 10:27, 28), under the penalty of God's wrath for its
violation. This is the true morality that God approves, consisting of aligning
all our actions with the moral law. And if those who currently emphasize
morality understand it in no other way than this, I confidently affirm that
the most morally upright individual is the greatest saint. Morality is the
primary component of true religion and the criterion by which all other
aspects are evaluated. Without it, faith is lifeless, and all other religious
practices are a hollow display and mere hypocrisy. For the faithful and
truthful Witness has testified regarding the two great moral commandments
of love for God and love for our neighbor, declaring that there is no greater
commandment than these, and that "all the law and the prophets hang on
these" (Matthew 22:36-40; Mark 12:31).
The second aspect covered in this introductory guidance is the necessity
of learning the powerful and effective means by which this great and
admirable goal can be achieved. It must be the foremost task to be
undertaken before expecting any success in endeavors to attain it.
This is an important notice, as many are prone to overlook the lesson
regarding the means (which will be thoroughly discussed in this entire
treatise) as redundant and futile. Once they grasp the nature and excellence
of the duties prescribed by the law, they believe that nothing is lacking
except for diligent performance. They recklessly rush into immediate
practice, hastening more than making progress. They readily promise, "All
that the Lord has spoken, we will do" (Exodus 19:8), without taking the
time to assess the cost. They view holiness merely as a means to an end,
namely eternal salvation, rather than an end in itself that requires substantial
means for its attainment. The inquiry of most individuals when they begin
to sense the importance of religion is, "What good deed should I do to
obtain eternal life?" (Matthew 19:16), rather than, "How can I be enabled to
do anything that is good?" Furthermore, many who are regarded as
powerful preachers expend all their zeal in earnestly urging immediate
adherence to the law, without providing any insight into the effective means
of accomplishment, as if righteous acts were akin to menial tasks that
require no skill or artistry, but only diligence and activity.
To prevent you from stumbling at the threshold of a religious life due to
this common oversight, I will strive to make you aware that it is insufficient
for you to merely comprehend the substance and rationale of your duty. You
must also learn the powerful and effective means of performance before
you can genuinely engage in immediate practice. For this purpose, I will
present the following considerations to you.
1. By nature, we are all devoid of the strength and ability to perform
the holiness and righteousness that the law demands. We are
spiritually dead, immersed in transgressions and sins, and by the sin
of our first father, Adam, we are children of wrath, as the Scripture
testifies (Romans 5:12, 15, 18, 19; Ephesians 2:1-3; Romans 8:7, 8).
This doctrine of original sin, which is generally professed by
Protestants, serves as a strong foundation for the assertion that is to
be proven now, as well as for various other assertions in this entire
discourse. If we believe this truth, it is not reasonable to encourage
ourselves to pursue a life of holiness until we become acquainted
with powerful and effective means that enable us to do so. While
humanity remained upright in the image of God, as they were
created initially (Ecclesiastes 7:29; Genesis 1:27), they could
sincerely obey God's will as soon as they knew it. However, once
they fell, they were quickly filled with fear due to their vulnerability.
Yet, they were unable to remedy the situation until God revealed the
means of restoration to them (Genesis 3:10, 15). Instruct a strong
and healthy servant to "Go," and they go; "Come," and they come;
"Do this," and they do it. However, a bedridden servant must first
learn how they can be enabled. Undoubtedly, the fallen angels
recognized the necessity of holiness and trembled at the guilt of
their sin, but they had no knowledge of any means to effectively
attain holiness and thus continue in their wickedness. It was futile
for Samson to say, "I will go out as I have done before and shake
myself," after he had forfeited his strength through sin (Judges
16:20). People display a strange forgetfulness or hypocrisy when
they profess belief in original sin in their prayers, catechisms, and
confessions of faith, yet urge themselves and others to practice the
law without considering any empowering or invigorating means—as
if there were no lack of ability, but only of activity.
2. Those who doubt or deny the doctrine of original sin may all come
to know, if their consciences are not blinded, that the perfect justice
of God stands against them. They are under God's curse and the
sentence of death for their actual sins, if God were to judge them
(Romans 1:32; 2:2; 3:9; Galatians 3:10). Is it possible for a person
who knows that this is their condition and has not learned any
means of escape to immediately practice the law, to love God and
everything about Him—His justice, holiness, power, and mercy—
and willingly submit themselves to God's will, even if God were to
suddenly bring about their death? Is there no skill or strategy
required in this situation to encourage the discouraged soul to
engage in universal obedience?
3. Although heathens may possess some knowledge of the
requirements of the law through the common light of natural reason
and understanding (Romans 2:14), the effective means of fulfilling
those requirements cannot be discovered through that light alone.
Therefore, they must be entirely learned through the teachings of
supernatural revelation. For what is our natural understanding but a
few sparks and faint glimpses of what Adam possessed before the
Fall? Even then, at its brightest, it was not sufficient to guide Adam
on how to regain the ability to walk in holiness if he were to lose it
through sin, nor could it assure him beforehand that God would
provide any means of restoration. God had only set death as the
consequence of transgression before his eyes (Genesis 2:17), and so
Adam hid himself from God when the shame of his nakedness was
revealed, not expecting any favor from Him. We are like lost sheep,
unaware of the way to return until we hear the voice of the
Shepherd. Can these dry bones live to God in holiness? O Lord, You
know, and we can only know it if we learn it from You.
4. Sanctification, by which our hearts and lives are transformed in
accordance with the law, is a grace of God that is imparted to us
through means, just like justification. It involves the process of
teaching and learning something that we cannot perceive without the
Word (Acts 26:17, 18). There are various things pertaining to life
and godliness that are bestowed through knowledge (2 Peter 1:2, 3).
A form of doctrine is employed by God to set people free from sin
and make them servants of righteousness (Romans 6:17, 18).
Additionally, there are different pieces of the whole armor of God
that need to be known and put on so that we can stand against sin
and Satan in times of evil (Ephesians 6:13). Shall we disregard and
neglect the path of sanctification when the learning of justification
has been deemed worthy of numerous elaborate treatises?
5. God, through His inspiration in the Holy Scriptures, has provided
abundant instruction in righteousness "so that the servant of God
may be thoroughly equipped for every good work" (2 Timothy 3:16,
17), particularly since "the dawn from on high has broken upon us"
with the appearance of the Lord Jesus Christ, who came "to guide
our feet into the way of peace" (Luke 1:78, 79). If God condescends
to such a great extent to teach us this way through the Scriptures and
through Christ, it must be of utmost importance for us to humbly sit
at His feet and learn it.
6. The path to attaining godliness is far from being understood without
learning from the Holy Scriptures. Even when it is clearly revealed
to us, we cannot grasp it as easily as the duties of the law, which
were partly known through natural light and therefore more readily
accepted. It is the path through which the spiritually dead are
brought to life in God. Undoubtedly, it surpasses all human wisdom
and speculations. It is the path of salvation in which God will
"destroy the wisdom of the wise and bring to nothing the
understanding of the prudent," by unveiling things through His
Spirit that "the natural person does not accept, for they are
foolishness to him, and he is not able to understand them because
they are spiritually discerned" (1 Corinthians 1:19, 21; 2:14). "Great
indeed, we confess, is the mystery of godliness" (1 Timothy 3:16).
Learning it requires double effort, as we must unlearn many deeply
rooted notions and become fools in order to become truly wise. We
must earnestly pray to the Lord to teach us and diligently search the
Scriptures to acquire this knowledge. "Oh, that my ways may be
steadfast in keeping your statutes!" "Teach me, O LORD, the way of
your statutes; and I will keep it to the end" (Psalm 119:5, 33).
"Teach me to do your will" (Psalm 143:10). "May the Lord direct
your hearts to the love of God" (2 Thessalonians 3:5). Surely, these
saints did not merely lack instruction and guidance regarding the
duties of the law to be performed, but they also sought direction and
means by which they could accomplish them.
7. The certain knowledge of these powerful and effective means is of
utmost importance and necessity for our firm establishment in true
faith and to avoid errors that contradict them. We cannot reasonably
doubt that the moral duties of love towards God and our neighbour
are absolutely essential to genuine religion, as it cannot exist
without them. From this principle, we can firmly conclude that
anything contradictory to the practice of these holy duties should not
be accepted as a point of faith delivered by the most holy God.
Conversely, whatever is truly necessary, powerful, and effective in
leading us to practice these duties should be believed as coming
from God, as it bears the imprint of His holiness and righteousness.
This serves as a reliable test and touchstone which those who are
sincerely devoted will use to examine their own spirits and
doctrines, determining whether they are from God or not. They
cannot reasonably endorse any doctrine as religious if it does not
align with godliness (1 Timothy 6:3). Christ Himself proves the
divine origin of His teachings through this touchstone, as He seeks
the glory of God in all things (John 7:17, 18). He teaches us to
recognize false prophets by their fruits (Matthew 7:15, 16), paying
particular attention to the outcomes their doctrines produce. Thus, it
becomes evident that without knowing the effective means of
holiness and distinguishing them from ineffective ones, we lack a
necessary touchstone of divine truth and may easily fall prey to false
doctrines or live in a state of uncertainty regarding the truth of any
religion, resembling the seekers. If you make the mistake of
considering ineffective means to be effective, or perceiving effective
means as weak or having an opposite effect, your error in this will
serve as a false touchstone to assess other doctrines, causing you to
readily embrace errors and reject the truth. This has been a perilous
source of numerous religious errors in recent times. Obtain a true
touchstone by learning this lesson, and you will be able to evaluate
the various doctrines of Protestants, Catholics, Arminians,
Socinians, Antinomians, Quakers, and discern the truth, confidently
adhering to it amidst the disputes and controversies of our era. In
this way, you can determine whether the established Protestant
religion among us harbours any elements of Antinomianism,
whether it suffers from any unacceptable deficiencies in practical
principles, and whether it warrants alteration and upheaval with new
doctrines and methods, as some learned individuals have concluded
using their touchstones.
8. It is also of significant importance and necessity for our
commitment to holy practice, as we cannot engage in the pursuit of
holiness with hope of success unless we have faith in divine
assistance. Such assistance cannot be expected if we do not utilize
the means that God has appointed for His work. "God meets those
who remember Him in His ways" (Isaiah 64:5), and He "breaks out
against those who do not seek Him according to the proper order" (1
Chronicles 15:13). He has chosen and ordained specific means of
sanctification and salvation that are for His own glory, and only
those means are blessed to us. He does not crown anyone who
competes unlawfully (2 Timothy 2:5).
Experience abundantly shows, both among heathens and Christians, how
detrimental ignorance or misunderstanding of these effective means is to the
practice of holiness. (i) Heathens, in general, fell short of acceptable
performance in the duties of the law they knew because of their ignorance
in this matter. (ii) Many Christians are satisfied with mere external actions
because they never learned how to engage in spiritual worship. (iii)
Numerous individuals reject the path of holiness, perceiving it as strict and
unpleasant, simply because they did not know how to make necessary
sacrifices without experiencing unbearable pain. If they knew the ways of
wisdom, they would discover that they are pleasant and lead to peace
(Proverbs 3:17). This leads to the continual postponement of repentance, as
it appears unfamiliar. (iv) Many others approach the pursuit of holiness with
fervent zeal and great speed, yet they fail to follow the right path.
Disappointed and overcome by their own desires, they eventually give up
the work and return to their former sinful ways. This has prompted
numerous treatises on how far a reprobate can progress in religious pursuits,
which discourages many weak saints who believe these reprobates have
gone further than themselves. However, most of these reprobates never
knew the right path or walked in it correctly, for "few find it" (Matthew
7:14). (v) Some zealous individuals, lacking in knowledge, harshly afflict
their bodies through excessive fasting and other severe practices in an
attempt to suppress their desires. When they realize that their desires remain
unconquered, they fall into despair and, driven by a troubled conscience,
wickedly contemplate taking their own lives, thus causing a scandal to
religion.
Perhaps, by God's grace, my exposition of the powerful means of
holiness may save someone from self-destruction. Such a result would
justify my efforts, although I also hope that God will use it to inspire many
to joyfully and gratefully embrace His commandments with enthusiasm and
dedication.
Chapter Two
Several endowments and qualifications are necessary to enable us for the immediate practice of the law
everal qualities and abilities are necessary to enable us to immediately
practice the law. In particular, we must have a desire and inclination in
our hearts towards it. Therefore, we must firmly believe in our
reconciliation with God and in our future experience of everlasting
heavenly blessings. We must also possess sufficient strength to both desire
and perform all duties in an acceptable manner until we attain that ultimate
happiness.
The means that are closest to achieving the desired end must first be
revealed so that we can learn how to obtain them through the directions
provided. Thus, I have mentioned various qualities and abilities that are
necessary to establish that holy disposition and state of the soul which
enables us to immediately practice the law, not just initially but
continuously. Therefore, take note that these qualities must remain within
us during our earthly lives, or else our capacity for a holy life will be lost.
They must precede practice, not in terms of time, but as a cause comes
before its effect.
I do not claim to have listed all the necessary qualities specifically, but I
dare say that anyone who attains these can, through the same means,
acquire any other qualities that should be included. This is a matter worthy
of serious consideration, as few understand that specific endowments are
required to equip us for a holy practice, more so than for other voluntary
actions. The first Adam received excellent endowments for a holy practice
when he was created in the image of God, and the second Adam received
even more excellent endowments to enable Him for a more challenging task
of obedience. Considering that obedience has become more difficult due to
opposition and temptations since Adam's fall, we, who are to imitate Christ,
must possess exceptional endowments, at least equal to or better than what
Adam had initially, as our task is more arduous than his.
What king, preparing for war against another king, does not first sit down
and consider whether he can confront the enemy who outnumbers him?
And yet, should we dare to enter into battle against the forces of darkness,
worldly terrors and enticements, and our own powerful inherent
corruptions, without considering whether we possess sufficient spiritual
resources to stand firm in the face of adversity? Nevertheless, many are
satisfied with an ability to desire and perform their duties that they believe
should be universally given to all people. However, this does not equip
them any better for the spiritual battle than the majority of the world, who
remain defeated under the sway of the wicked one. Therefore, their standing
is not secure at all.
It is challenging to determine what this universal ability is that so many
passionately argue for, what it consists of, and how it is conveyed to us and
maintained through means.
Bodily agility relies on spirits, nerves, ligaments, and bones for its
functioning, but this spiritual universal ability appears to be an elusive
quality that cannot be adequately explained in terms of its conveyance or
constitution. In order to prevent self-deception and failure in our pursuit of
holiness by relying on such a weak and mysterious quality, I have outlined
four endowments that are necessary to constitute a true ability for the
practice of holiness. These endowments are essential for its sustenance and
maintenance. Later, I will demonstrate how these endowments are bestowed
upon us and whether the inclination or propensity mentioned here is perfect
or imperfect. These endowments are of such a mysterious nature that some
who acknowledge the necessity of endowments for preparing us for
holiness are inclined to believe that less than these will suffice, and that
some of these endowments actually lead us towards licentiousness rather
than holiness since they are presented before any actual performance of the
moral law. They may even think that some things contrary to these
endowments would put us in a better state for holiness. Against all such
notions, I will strive to provide a clear demonstration of these endowments
that may win the assent of sound reasoning, explaining them in the same
order as I have presented them in the direction.
1. I affirm that an inclination and propensity of the heart towards the
duties of the law is necessary to shape and enable us for their
immediate practice. By this, I do not mean a blind inclination like
that of inanimate creatures and animals towards their natural
actions, but rather a fitting inclination for intelligent beings, guided
by reason, that inclines them to approve and choose their duty and
be averse to the practice of sin. Thus, I have indicated that the three
other endowments mentioned in the direction serve as supports to
this primary endowment, which are sufficient to make it a rational
inclination. This contradicts those who, out of zeal for obedience but
lacking knowledge, fervently argue for free will as a necessary and
adequate endowment to enable us to perform our duty once we are
convinced of it and our obligation to it. They exalt this endowment
as the greatest benefit bestowed upon all mankind through universal
redemption, despite considering this free will without any actual
inclination towards good. Moreover, they cannot deny that in most
people who possess it, free will is burdened with a strong inclination
towards evil. Such a free will cannot free us from the bondage of sin
and Satan or prepare us for the practice of the law, and therefore it is
not worth the effort of those who fervently defend it. The will is not
truly free in the manner necessary for holiness until it is endowed
with an inclination and propensity towards it, as can be seen from
the following arguments.The duties of the law are of such a nature
that they cannot be performed when there is a complete aversion or
mere indifference of the heart towards them, and no inclination or
propensity towards their practice. This is because the greatest
commandment of all is to love the Lord with our whole heart, might,
and soul, to love everything that is in Him, to love His will and His
ways, and to view them as good. Love must influence the
performance of all duties: we must take delight in doing the will of
God; it should be sweeter to us than honey or honeycomb. This
love, liking, delight, longing, thirst, and sweet relishing must endure
until the end. The initial involuntary movements of lust must be
guided by love for God and our neighbour, and sin must be fought
against and abhorred. If it were considered true obedience (as some
suggest) to love our duty only as a market man loves the muddy
roads to the market, or as a sick person loves an unpleasant
medicinal potion, or as a captive slave loves hard work out of fear of
a greater evil, then perhaps it could be performed with aversion or
lack of inclination. However, we must love it as the market man
loves profit, as the sick person loves health, as delicious food and
drink, as the captive loves freedom. Undoubtedly, there can be no
power in the will for this kind of service without a genuine
inclination towards the will of God, a heart that aligns with His own
heart, a turning away of our hearts from sin, and a kind of strong
dislike for sin. We know the saying, "Like loves like." There must
be a compatibility between the person or thing loved and the
disposition of the lover. Love for God must come from a clean heart,
a heart that has been cleansed from evil inclinations and tendencies.
Reason tells us that the initial movements of lust, which are beyond
our choice and deliberation, cannot be avoided without a steadfast
inclination of the heart towards holiness.
2. The image of God, in which God, according to His infinite wisdom,
deemed it fitting to create the first Adam in righteousness, true
holiness, and uprightness, consists of an actual inclination and
propensity of the heart towards the practice of holiness. It does not
merely entail the power of will to choose between good and evil, for
in itself, this power is neither holy nor unholy; it is merely a
foundation upon which the image of either God or Satan can be
drawn. Nor does it involve an indifference towards the choice of sin
or duty, for that is a wicked disposition in an intelligent creature
who knows their duty, and it only leaves us wavering between God
and Baal. Initially, God placed Adam's soul in a wholly upright
inclination, although Adam could act contrary to it if he chose, just
as we may be persuaded to do things contrary to our natural
inclinations. It is easy to fall short of our duty, despite the great
preparation and equipment required for its performance. Similarly,
the second Adam, the Lord Jesus Christ, was born as a holy being,
with a sanctified disposition of His soul and a propensity towards
goodness. Can we reasonably expect to rise to the life of holiness
from which the first Adam fell, or to imitate Christ, considering that
duty has become more difficult due to the Fall, if we are not
renewed to some extent according to the same image of God and
endowed with such a propensity and inclination?
3. Original corruption, by which we are estranged from God and
godliness from birth and become willing slaves to the commission
of actual sins until the Son of God sets us free, consists of a natural
inclination and propensity of the heart towards sin and an aversion
to holiness. Without this inclination towards sin, what can we make
of the "law of sin in our members" that wages war against the law of
our mind and holds us captive to the service of sin? What is that
poison within us that warrants us being called serpents, vipers?
What is that spirit of promiscuity in men that hinders them from
turning their deeds towards God? How does the tree become corrupt
and, as a result, bear corrupt fruit? How can man be described as
abominable and filthy, drinking iniquity like water? How could the
mind of the flesh be in constant enmity with the law of God? I am
aware that there is also a blindness of understanding and other
aspects associated with original corruption that contribute to this
evil inclination of the will. However, this inclination itself is the
great evil, the indwelling sin that gives rise to all actual sins. It must
be either removed or restrained by restoring the contrary inclination
that constitutes the image of God; otherwise, we will be averse and
unreceptive to every good work, and any freedom the will possesses
will only be employed in the service of sin.
4. God restores His people to holiness by granting them "a new heart
and a new spirit" and removing the heart of stone from their flesh,
replacing it with a heart of flesh. He circumcises their hearts,
enabling them to love Him with their entire being. Additionally, He
calls us to be transformed by the renewing of our minds so that we
may discern and follow His acceptable will. David also prays for
this same purpose, asking God to create in him a clean heart and
renew a right spirit within him. If anyone believes that this new,
clean, circumcised heart, this heart of flesh, this new right spirit,
lacks an actual inclination and propensity towards goodness, and is
merely endowed with a power to choose between good and evil,
referred to as free will without any present inclination to good, or an
indifference towards both opposites, then it may not be worthwhile
to try and convince such a judgement. However, let it be considered
whether David would deem a heart clean and right when he prays,
"Incline my heart to Your testimonies, and not to covetousness."
The second necessary endowment to enable us to immediately practice
holiness, in conjunction with the two others that follow, is to be firmly
convinced of our reconciliation with God. We must acknowledge that the
breach of friendship caused by sin between God and us is repaired through
a firm reconciliation, restoring His love and favour towards us. In this, I
include the great benefit of justification as the means by which we are
reconciled to God. This is described in Scripture either as the forgiveness of
our sins or the imputation of righteousness to us, as both aspects are
encompassed within the same justifying act. It is similar to how one act of
illumination involves the expulsion of darkness and the introduction of
light, or how one act of repentance entails the mortification of sin and the
vivification to righteousness. Every transition from one state to its contrary
is essentially one and the same, even though it may be expressed using
different terms depending on the two opposing elements involved, with one
being abolished and the other introduced. This is a profound mystery that
contradicts the understanding not only of ordinary people but also of some
learned theologians. They believe that we must be reconciled to God and
justified through the forgiveness of sins and the imputation of righteousness
before we can sincerely obey the law and be enabled to practice it. They
argue that this doctrine undermines holy practice and serves as a significant
support for Antinomianism. According to them, the only way to establish
genuine obedience is to make it a condition to be fulfilled prior to our actual
justification and reconciliation with God. As a result, some recent
theologians have attempted to reshape the doctrine of justification held by
earlier Protestants in order to make it less prone to Antinomianism and
more effective in securing holy practice. However, their efforts are futile
and harmful, as they tend towards either Antinomian irreverence or, at best,
superficial hypocrisy. Neither true nor feigned practice can be secure unless
the conviction of our justification and reconciliation with God is first
obtained apart from works of the law, enabling us to engage in such
practice. I will now prove this through several arguments and also
demonstrate in the following directions that the persuasion of God's love, as
granted to His people, leads only to holiness, although a mistaken belief in
it serves as an occasion for licentiousness in many individuals.
1. When the first Adam was created for the practice of holiness, he
enjoyed God's great favour and had no sin attributed to him. He was
regarded as righteous in God's eyes, given his upright nature in
accordance with God's image. It is reasonable to believe that these
qualifications were advantageous for his pursuit of holiness, as
God's wisdom deemed them good for that purpose. However, when
Adam lost these qualities, he fell into a state of spiritual death.
Similarly, the second Adam, in our human nature, was beloved by
the Father and considered righteous before God, with no sin imputed
to Him except for the sins He bore on behalf of others. Can we
reasonably expect to imitate Christ by undertaking obedience more
challenging than that of the first Adam before the Fall, unless we
receive similar advantages through reconciliation, the forgiveness of
sins, and the imputation of God's righteousness to us, as we have
none of our own?
2. Those who are fully aware of their natural state of spiritual deadness
under the power of sin and Satan are convinced that, if left to their
own devices, they can only continue to sin. They recognize that they
can only perform good works if it pleases God, out of His great love
and mercy, to work in them. Therefore, in order to be encouraged
and genuinely inclined towards holiness, they must have hope that
God will work salvation within them. Now, I leave it to thoughtful
individuals to judge whether such hope can be well-founded without
a firm conviction of reconciliation with God and His saving love
towards us, which does not depend on any prior goodness of our
works, but is a sufficient cause to bring about their effective
manifestation in us. Moreover, we understand (if we truly know
ourselves) that our spiritual death originated from the guilt of
Adam's initial sin and the punishment pronounced upon it. This state
of death persists in us due to the guilt of our own sins and the curse
of the law. We can never receive spiritual life to be liberated from
this dominion unless this guilt and curse are removed from us,
which occurs through actual justification.
3. The nature of the duties prescribed by the law necessitates an
understanding of our reconciliation with God and His genuine love
and favour towards us in performing them. The greatest duty is to
love God with our entire being, and this love is not a mere
contemplative affection such as philosophers may have towards the
objects of their study, with no further personal involvement beyond
satisfying their intellectual curiosity. Rather, it is a practical love
that leads us to willingly submit ourselves and the entire world to
God's absolute authority and governance, accepting His sovereign
will in relation to our present and eternal condition. It involves
viewing Him as the sole source of fulfillment and happiness for all
who are blessed. This love encompasses delighting in everything
about God as our Lord, including His justice along with all His other
attributes, without desiring Him to be different than He is. It is a
love that desires His will to be done in our lives and the lives of
others, whether it involves prosperity or adversity, life or death.
Through this love, we can genuinely praise Him in all circumstances
and find joy in our obedience to Him, even when we endure great
hardships, including the prospect of death.
Consider these matters carefully, and you will easily understand that our
spirits are not in the right state to perform these duties when we perceive
ourselves to be under God's curse and wrath, or when we harbor suspicions
that God will ultimately prove to be our enemy. Slavish fear may force
some hypocritical actions from us, akin to Pharaoh reluctantly allowing the
Israelites to go. However, the duty of love cannot be coerced or compelled
by fear; it must be won and sweetly attracted through an understanding of
God's love and goodness towards us, as that beloved disciple testifies.
"There is no fear in love, but perfect love drives out fear, because fear
involves punishment. The one who fears is not made perfect in love. We
love because he first loved us."
Note here that we cannot love God before we perceive His love for us.
Reflect on your own experience, if you have true love for God, and consider
whether it was not instilled in you by a sense of God's love for you first.
The goodness and excellence of God alone cannot make Him an object of
love for us unless we perceive Him as a good that agrees with us. I have no
doubt that the devils know the excellence of God's nature just as well as our
greatest metaphysical thinkers, but this only fills them with tormenting
horror and trembling, which is contrary to love. The greater God's
excellence and perfection, the greater evil He becomes to us if He hates and
curses us. Therefore, the innate instinct of self-preservation, deeply rooted
in our nature, prevents us from loving that which we perceive as our own
destruction. If a person is an enemy to us, we can love them for the sake of
our loving reconciled God, because His love can make that person's hatred
work for our good. But if God Himself is our enemy, for whose sake can we
love Him? Who is there that can deliver us from the evil of His enmity and
turn it to our advantage until He is pleased to reconcile Himself to us?
Our conscience must necessarily be cleansed from dead works in order
for us to serve the living God. This cleansing is accomplished through the
actual forgiveness of sin, obtained by the blood of Christ and revealed to
our consciences, as demonstrated by Christ's death for this purpose. In
Scripture, that conscience which judges us to be guilty of sin and under
God's wrath is considered an evil conscience, even though it performs its
duty accurately, because it is caused by the evil of sin and will itself lead us
to commit more sin until it can declare us justified from all sin and accepted
in God's favour. Love, which is the goal of the law, must originate from a
good conscience, just as much as from any other purity of heart. David's
mouth could not praise God until he was delivered from the guilt of
bloodshed. This guilty conscience, through which we perceive God as our
enemy and His justice as condemning us eternally due to our sins, strongly
maintains and increases the dominion of sin and Satan within us. It has
pernicious effects on the soul, fueling hatred towards God and a desire for
there to be no God, no heaven, and no hell so as to escape punishment. It
causes such aversion towards God that people cannot bear to think, speak,
or hear about Him and His law; instead, they seek to distract themselves
with worldly pleasures and activities, trying to keep God out of their minds.
Consequently, they become alienated from true religion, merely suppressing
it and silencing its voice. This guilty conscience produces zeal for outward
religious performances, as well as false religion, idolatry, and the most
inhumane superstitions in the world.
I have often pondered how any sin could effectively destroy the entire
image of God in the first Adam, and I conclude that it was by first instilling
an evil guilty conscience in him, through which he believed that the
righteous God was against him and had cursed him for that one sin. This
was enough to lead to a shameful exposure through disorderly desires, a
complete turning of his love away from God to the creation, and a desire to
hide from the presence of God. This resulted in the total destruction of the
image of God's holiness. We can infer that the continual malice, bitterness,
rage, and blasphemy of the devil and many wicked individuals against God
and godliness stem from the same cause. Some may consider Job
uncharitable for suspecting not only that his sons had sinned but that they
had been so abominably wicked as to curse God in their hearts. However,
Job understood well that if the guilt of any ordinary sin weighs on the
conscience, it will secretly lead the soul to wish that God did not exist or
that He was not such a just judge. This secret cursing of God cannot be
avoided until our consciences are cleansed from the guilt of sin through the
sacrifice of Christ on our behalf, as symbolised by Job's burnt offerings for
his sons.
God has clearly revealed in His Word that His method of bringing people
from sin to a life of holiness is to first make them aware of His love for
them and the forgiveness of their sins. When He gave the Ten
Commandments on Mount Sinai, He began by revealing Himself as their
God who had delivered them from Egypt, assuring them of His salvation
(Exod. 20:2). Throughout the Old Testament, God instituted circumcision as
the entryway into religion, which served not only as a sign but also as a seal
of the righteousness obtained through faith, justifying people while they
were still considered ungodly. This seal was administered to infants on the
eighth day, before they were capable of fulfilling any conditions of sincere
obedience, in order to prepare them for a life of holiness.
Moreover, in the Old Testament, God ordained various washings, the
shedding of animal blood, and the sprinkling of the ashes of a heifer to
purify and sanctify the people for worship in His tabernacle and temple.
These rituals symbolised the cleansing of their consciences from dead
works through the blood of Christ, enabling them to serve the living God.
This sanctification, in a broader sense, encompassed all that prepared them
for God's service, particularly the forgiveness of sin. Though in a stricter
sense, focusing solely on their conformity to the law, sanctification would
necessarily follow justification, as is commonly taught by Protestant
theologians. God also emphasized the importance of first dealing with guilt
before engaging in acceptable worship by commanding them to offer sin
offerings before burnt offerings. And to ensure that the guilt of their sins did
not defile their worship, God instituted an annual Day of Atonement, during
which the scapegoat would bear the people's iniquities into a desolate land,
providing a comprehensive atonement for all their sins (Lev. 5:8; 16:3, 11,
22, 34).
Under the New Testament, God employs the same method of first loving
us and cleansing us from our sins through the blood of Christ. He does this
to appoint us as priests, enabling us to offer sacrifices of praise and good
works to God the Father. He initiates us into His service through the
washing away of our sins in baptism. He nourishes and strengthens us for
His service by granting us the forgiveness of sins in the blood of Christ
during the Lord's Supper. He urges us to obey Him because He has already
loved us and pardoned our sins. "Be kind to one another, tender-hearted,
forgiving each other, just as God in Christ also has forgiven you. Therefore
be imitators of God as beloved children, and walk in love, just as Christ
also loved you" (Eph. 4:32; 5:1-2). "I am writing to you, little children,
because your sins have been forgiven you for His name's sake. Do not love
the world nor the things in the world" (1 John 2:12, 15). I could provide
numerous similar passages. From all this, it is evident that God considers it
of great importance and graciously provides abundant means, both in the
Old and New Testaments, for His people to be first cleansed from guilt and
reconciled to Himself in order to be fit for the practice of holiness.
Therefore, let us discard all contrary methods proposed by the new divinity!
The third necessary endowment to enable us to practice holiness, without
which a conviction of our reconciliation with God would have little efficacy
in fostering a rational inclination towards it, is the persuasion of our future
enjoyment of everlasting heavenly happiness. This persuasion precedes our
holy practice, serving as a motivating and enticing factor. Various
adversaries challenge this assertion. Some argue that a belief in our future
happiness, prior to demonstrating sincere obedience, leads to licentiousness.
They suggest that the way to perform good works is to make them a
necessary condition for attaining this persuasion. Others condemn all works
pursued out of anticipation of future heavenly joy as legalistic, mercenary,
arising from self-love rather than pure love for God. They depict genuine
godliness as a person holding fire in one hand to burn up heaven and water
in the other to extinguish hell, implying that true devotion to God must not
stem from hope for reward or fear of punishment, but solely from love. To
establish the truth asserted against these conflicting errors, I will present the
following considerations.
1. The nature of the duties prescribed by the law is such that they
cannot be sincerely and universally practised without this
endowment. I have already sufficiently demonstrated the necessity
of being convinced of our firm reconciliation with God through
justification in order to prepare us for this practice, as it includes a
belief in our future happiness. Without this conviction, all our
efforts are of little value. However, let me now consider a scenario
where a Sadducee, who believes in no happiness after death, is
asked: "Can such a person love God with their whole heart, might,
and soul?" Would it not be reasonable for them to diminish and
moderate their love for God, fearing the pain of parting with Him in
death? It is generally considered reasonable to detach ourselves
from things we must eventually let go. Can such a person find
contentment in the enjoyment of God as their happiness? Would
they not view the enjoyment of God and all religious duties as
vanity, just like everything else, since they will derive no benefit
from them after a short time? How can such a person willingly
sacrifice their life for the sake of God when, by dying, they must
part with God and other things as well? How can they choose
afflictions over sin when they will be more miserable in this life and
find no happiness in the afterlife? I concede that if afflictions befall
such an individual unavoidably, they may reasonably determine that
patience is better than impatience. However, they will be displeased
that they are compelled to practice such a virtue and prone to
complain and resent their Creator, wishing they had never existed
instead of enduring such hardships and finding solace only in
fleeting and transient pleasures. I believe I have made my point
about the inadequacy of such a person for holiness. In their attempt
to reject heaven and hell in order to serve God out of love, they
leave themselves no better equipped than the Sadducee. One denies
them, the other dismisses their relevance in this matter.
2. The confident hope of heavenly glory has been routinely employed
by God, since the fall of Adam, as an incentive for the practice of
holiness, as abundantly shown in Scripture. Christ, the great
exemplar of holiness, "endured the cross, despising the shame, for
the joy that was set before Him" (Heb. 12:2). While I cannot assert
that the first Adam possessed such a certain hope to preserve his
innocence, he did have the immediate possession of an earthly
paradise and a blissful state within it, which he knew would endure
if he continued in holiness or be transformed into an even greater
happiness. The apostles did not lose heart in the face of affliction
because they knew it would result in "an eternal weight of glory
beyond all comparison" (2 Cor. 4:16-17). The Hebrew believers
"joyfully accepted the plundering of your property, since you knew
that you yourselves had a better possession and an abiding one" in
heaven (Heb. 10:34). The apostle Paul considered all his sufferings
worthless without the hope of a glorious resurrection, stating that
Christians would be the most pitiable if this were not the case, and
that the philosophy of the Epicureans, "Let us eat and drink, for
tomorrow we die," would be preferable. He also urged the
Corinthians to abound in the work of the Lord, knowing that their
labor in Him would not be in vain (1 Cor. 15:58).
As worldly hopes motivate people in their various occupations, God
grants His people the hope of His glory to keep them devoted to His service
(Heb. 6:11, 12; 1 John 3:3). It is a certain hope that will never disappoint
them (Rom. 5:5). Those who believe it is beneath the excellence of their
love to work with the hope of heavenly reward actually elevate their love
above that of the apostles, the early saints, and even Christ Himself.
1. This conviction of our future enjoyment of eternal happiness does
not lead to licentiousness, provided we understand that perfect
holiness is an essential aspect of that happiness. Though we have a
right to that happiness through free justification and adoption, we
must pursue it in a path of holiness (1 John 3:1-3). Furthermore,
being motivated by this conviction is neither legalistic nor driven by
self-interest, considering that the conviction itself is not obtained
through works of the law, but by the free grace received through
faith (Gal. 5:5). Even if it involves self-love, it is certainly not the
carnal self-love condemned by Scripture as the source of sinfulness
(2 Tim. 3:2), but a righteous self-love that inclines us to value God
above the flesh and the world, as God instructs when He urges us to
save ourselves (Acts 2:40; 1 Tim. 4:16). Far from being contrary to
the pure love of God, this conviction enables us to love God more
purely and wholeheartedly. The more we perceive God's eternal
goodness and beneficence towards us, undoubtedly the more we will
find Him lovable, and our affections will burn even brighter for
Him. God does not desire to be loved as a barren wilderness or a
land of darkness to us, nor does He expect to be served for nothing
(Jer. 2:31). He would consider it dishonourable for us to claim Him
as our God if He had not prepared a city for us (Heb. 11:16). He
draws us to love Him with the cords of humanity, using the same
cords that human love is drawn by, namely His own love towards
us, as He presents His blessings before us (Hos. 11:4). Therefore,
the way for us to remain in the love of God is to await His mercy
leading to eternal life (Jude 21).
The final endowment, for the same purpose as the previous ones, is that
we are convinced of having sufficient strength to both desire and carry out
our duties in an acceptable manner until we attain heavenly happiness. This
stands in contrast to the error of those who believe it is enough to have the
ability to practice holiness if we desire, or to have the will to do so if we
choose. They vehemently argue that this sufficient strength is a great benefit
bestowed upon all humanity through universal redemption. It also opposes
the misconception of those who think that living a godly or wicked life is
equally easy, except for some initial difficulties in changing sinful habits
and enduring persecution, which they consider to be rare occurrences since
many kingdoms have embraced Christianity. They also believe that God
only requires individuals to do their best, that is, what they are capable of,
and it is nonsensical to say they cannot do what they are capable of.
According to their viewpoint, there is no need to concern ourselves much
about sufficient strength for a holy practice. To affirm this assertion and
refute these errors, consider the following arguments.
1. By nature, we are spiritually dead in our trespasses and sins,
incapable of desiring or doing anything that is spiritually good,
despite the redemption through Christ, until we are actually revived
by Him (Eph. 2:1; Rom. 8:7-9). Those who are sufficiently
enlightened and humbled recognize themselves to be in this state by
nature. They not only lack the ability to carry out good actions, but
primarily lack the inclination and pleasure to do so. They understand
that if God does not work in them to both desire and act, they will
neither will nor do anything pleasing to Him (Phil. 2:13). They also
acknowledge that if God leaves them to their own corruption after
initiating the good work, they will undoubtedly become vile
apostates, and their ultimate state will be worse than their beginning.
From this, we can conclude that anyone who boldly attempts to
follow the law without being firmly convinced of having sufficient
power to wholeheartedly will and perform the entire work of
obedience acceptably has never truly been humbled and come to
know the corruption of their own heart. Furthermore, they do not
truly believe in the doctrine of original sin, regardless of any formal
profession they may make.
2. Those who believe that sincere obedience to the law is incredibly
easy demonstrate their lack of understanding of both the law and
themselves. Is it an easy task to wrestle, not just against human
adversaries, but against principalities, powers, and spiritual
wickedness in high places? (Eph. 6:12) Is it simple to resist lust and
covetousness as commanded in the tenth commandment? The
apostle Paul found it so challenging to obey this commandment that
his sinful desires were actually heightened by it (Rom. 7:7, 8). Our
task is not merely to change sinful habits, but to mortify corrupt
natural affections that give rise to these habits. It involves not only
refraining from fulfilling sinful desires but being filled with holy
love and aspirations. Yet even restraining and countering the
execution of corrupt desires in many cases is comparable to "cutting
off a right hand or plucking out a right eye" (Matt. 5:29, 30). If
obedience is so effortless, how is it that the pagans generally
engaged in actions that their own consciences condemned as
deserving of death? (Rom. 1:32) And why do many of us strive to
enter through the narrow gate but fail to do so (Luke 13:24),
breaking numerous vows and commitments to obedience and falling
back into the practice of our lusts while being weighed down by the
fear of eternal damnation?
Regarding those who believe that persecution for the sake of religion is
rare in recent times, they should be suspected of being of the world, for the
world loves its own. Otherwise, they would recognize that a mere national
profession of religion does not guarantee the safety of those who are truly
godly from various forms of persecution. And even if men do not persecute
us for our faith, it is still immensely challenging to endure great injustices
inflicted by others, as well as losses, poverty, physical ailments, prolonged
illnesses, and untimely deaths through God's ordinary providence, all while
maintaining a genuine love for God and for those who harm us, and
exhibiting a patient acceptance of His will, as required by God's law. I
acknowledge that the work of God is easy and pleasant for those whom God
adequately equips for it. However, those who claim that it is easy for
individuals in their ordinary condition reveal their lack of wisdom in
contradicting the collective experiences of both pagans and Christians.
While many duties may not require significant physical or mental exertion
and could be done with ease if we were willing, it is far easier to move a
mountain than to move and incline the heart to genuinely desire and
embrace the performance of these duties. I need not concern myself with
those who believe that everyone has sufficient strength for a holy practice
simply because they can make an effort, that is, do what they can. For God
requires the actual fulfillment of His commands. What if, despite our
efforts, we cannot fulfill the commands to any significant degree? Shall the
law then be disregarded without any performance? And should such efforts
be considered sufficient holiness? Moreover, what if we cannot even make
the right kind of effort? If a person's ability were the measure of acceptable
duty, the commands of the law would hold very little significance.
1. Throughout history, the wisdom of God has always provided people
with a firm belief in sufficient strength to enable them to both desire
and carry out their duties. The first Adam was endowed with such
strength, and there is no reason to think that he was unaware of it or
needed to fear being abandoned to his own corruptions, as he had no
corruptions within him until he generated them through sinning
against that strength. Once he lost that strength, he could not regain
the practice of holiness until he became acquainted with a superior
strength by which the head of Satan would be crushed (Gen. 3:15).
Our Lord Christ, undoubtedly, knew the infinite power of His
divinity to enable Him for all that He had to do and suffer in our
human nature. He knew that the Lord God would aid Him so that He
would not be put to shame (Isa. 50:7). The Scripture demonstrates
the abundant assurance of strength that God granted to Moses,
Joshua, and Gideon when He called them to significant tasks, as
well as to the Israelites when He called them to conquer the land of
Canaan. Christ wanted the sons of Zebedee to consider whether they
were able to drink from His cup and be baptized with the baptism
that He was to undergo (Matt. 20:22). Paul encourages believers to a
life of holiness by assuring them that sin will not prevail over them
or have dominion over them, for they are not under the law but
under grace (Rom. 6:13, 14). He urges them to be strong in the Lord
and in the power of His might, so that they may be able to stand
against the schemes of the devil (Eph. 6:10, 11). John exhorts
believers not to love the world or the things of the world because
they are strong and have overcome the evil one (1 John 2:14, 15).
Those who were called by God in the past to perform miracles were first
made aware of the gift of power to work them, and no wise person would
attempt to perform miracles without knowledge of the gift. Similarly, when
people who were dead in sin are called to live a holy life, which is a great
miracle within them, God reveals the gift of power to them in order to
encourage them in a reasonable manner to embark on such a remarkable
undertaking.
Chapter Three
The way to get holy endowments and qualifications necessary
he path to acquiring the holy qualities and abilities necessary to shape
and enable us for the immediate practice of the law is to receive them
from the abundance of Christ through fellowship with Him. And in order to
have this fellowship, we must be in Christ and have Christ Himself within
us through a mystical union with Him.
Here, more than anywhere else, we have ample reason to acknowledge,
along with the apostle, that without a doubt, the mystery of godliness is
great - so great that it could not have entered into the human heart to
conceive it if God had not made it known in the gospel through supernatural
revelation. Even though it is clearly revealed in the Holy Scriptures, the
natural person lacks the ability to perceive it there, for it appears as
foolishness to them. And even if God expresses it plainly and directly, they
will still consider it as enigmatic and allegorical. I have no doubt that it still
remains a riddle and parable to many truly godly individuals who have
received a holy nature through this means. For even the apostles themselves
had the saving benefit of it before the Comforter revealed it clearly to them
(John 14:20). They walked in Christ as the path to the Father before they
fully understood Him to be the way (John 14:5). And the best among us
only grasp it partially, anticipating its perfect understanding in the next
world.
One significant mystery is that the holy disposition and inner state, which
equips and enables our souls for immediate obedience to the law, must be
obtained by receiving it from the fullness of Christ. It is already prepared
and established for us in Christ, and stored up in Him. Just as we are
justified through a righteousness accomplished in Christ and credited to us,
we are also sanctified by a holy disposition and qualifications that are first
accomplished and perfected in Christ on our behalf, and then imparted to
us. Just as our inherent corruption originated in the first Adam and was
passed down to us, our new nature and holiness are first brought forth in
Christ and derived from Him to us, as if propagated. Therefore, we do not
need to work alongside Christ in creating or producing that holy disposition
within us, but rather, we are to receive it and utilise it in our pursuit of
holiness, for it is already prepared for us. In this way, we have fellowship
with Christ, as we receive that holy disposition of spirit that originally
resided in Him. Fellowship occurs when several individuals share the same
thing in common (1 John 1:1-3). Despite the illumination of the gospel, this
mystery is so profound that we often believe we must attain a holy
disposition by generating it anew within ourselves, by forming and
cultivating it from our own hearts. Therefore, many devout individuals
exert great effort to mortify their sinful nature and generate a holy
disposition within themselves, striving earnestly to conquer their sinful
desires and strongly urging their hearts towards godliness, as if desperately
trying to extract good qualities from them, like oil from a flint. They believe
that although they are justified by a righteousness accomplished by Christ,
they must be sanctified by a holiness achieved by their own efforts. While,
out of humility, they may refer to it as infused grace, they still think they
must obtain this infusion through the same means of working, as if it were
entirely acquired by their own endeavours. Consequently, they
acknowledge that embarking on a godly life is difficult and unpleasant
because it requires arduous wrestling with their own hearts and affections to
reshape them. If only they knew that this path of entry is not only harsh and
unpleasant but entirely impossible. The true method of mortifying sin and
enlivening themselves to holiness is by receiving a new nature from the
fullness of Christ. We do not contribute any more to the production of a
new nature than we do to the generation of original sin, although we play a
role in receiving it. If they knew this, they could spare themselves from
many bitter agonies and cease their toil that is burdensome and futile,
instead directing their efforts towards entering through the narrow gate in a
way that is more pleasant and fruitful.
Another profound mystery in the process of sanctification is the glorious
manner of our fellowship with Christ in receiving a holy disposition of
heart from Him. This occurs through our union with Christ and His
indwelling presence within us. This union is not merely a general
preference of Christ as God, but rather a close and intimate union, where we
become one spirit and one flesh with Him. This privilege is exclusive to
those who are genuinely sanctified. I aptly describe this as a mystical union,
for the apostle also refers to it as a great mystery in an Epistle that is filled
with mysteries (Eph. 5:32). This indicates that it is remarkably significant
among many other mysteries. It is one of the three primary mystical unions
that are paramount in religion. The other two are the union of the Trinity of
Persons within the Godhead and the union of the divine and human natures
in the one Person of Jesus Christ, who is both God and man. Although we
cannot fully grasp the exact nature of these three unions with our limited
understanding, as the depth of these mysteries surpasses our
comprehension, we have every reason to believe in their reality because
they are clearly revealed in Scripture and serve as a necessary foundation
for other aspects of Christian doctrine. Specifically, the union between
Christ and believers is explicitly stated in various passages of Scripture,
affirming that Christ is present in believers and dwells within them, and
they in turn dwell in Him (John 6:56; 14:20). They are so closely united that
they become one Spirit (1 Cor. 6:17), and believers are described as
"members of His body, of His flesh and of His bones," emphasising the
profound oneness between Christ and the church (Eph. 5:30, 31).
Moreover, Scripture employs various comparisons to illustrate this union,
which would appear very dissimilar to the things they are used to represent.
If there were no genuine and proper union between Christ and believers,
these comparisons would only serve to obscure the truth rather than
enlighten us. It is compared to the union between God the Father and Christ
(John 14:20; 17:21-23), the vine and its branches (John 15:4, 5), the head
and the body (Eph. 1:22, 23), and bread and the eater (John 6:51, 53, 54).
Not only is it compared, but it is also sealed in the Lord's Supper, where the
doctrines of transubstantiation held by the Catholics, consubstantiation held
by the Lutherans, or the spiritual preference of Christ's body and blood by
the Protestants cannot stand without it. If we were to imagine that the body
and blood of Christ are not truly consumed by believers, either spiritually or
physically, we would reduce the bread and wine to mere empty symbols
that are more likely to mislead us than to establish us in the truth. There is
nothing in this union that is impossible or contradictory to reason, which
would compel us to depart from the plain and familiar meaning of the
Scriptures that express and illustrate it. Although Christ is in heaven and we