Chapter II
That the mere assurance of the object, or a general assent to the truth of the pro
mises, is not the act offaith justifying, bat application is necessary. This proved by several reasons.
As I have explained the nature of the act of faith in the understanding, so now I will shew that true justifying faith includes more in it, or that it is not a bare general assent to the truth of the promises, though never so spiritual ; for still in Scripture the act of faith that justifies is called believing on him, so Rom. iv. 5, and everywhere almost we find it thus : He that believes on him that justifies the ungodly; it is not he that believes only that God will justify the ungodly. It is an ancient received maxim of divines, dliud est credere Deum, ct in Deum ; for to believe on him implies a par ticular application. Those that are for general assent urge those scriptures most, Rom. x. 9, If thou believe with thine heart that God raised up Christ from the dead, thou shalt be saved ; and that in 1 John v. 5,
< He overcometh the world that believeth that Jesus is the Son of God ; and ver. 10, He that believeth not the record God hath given of his Son, makes God a liar. But it is observable that, in both places, believing on him, which is an act of application, is added, as that which makes this general assent a complete act of faith. Thus Rom. x. 11, he confirms his saying by the Scripture, which withal interprets his meaning
: For the Scripture saith, He that believeth on him shall not be ashamed ; and so in 1 John v. 10, He that believeth on the Son of God. He leaves it not, therefore, in a general assent. I shall now give the reasons of my assertion. Reason 1. Faith doth not consist merely in assent, because a man, in
believing, comes not in simply as a witness to a truth, for so the angels do
believe, and testify the truth, and might be said to have faith justifying, Rev. xix. 10. They are said to have the testimony of Jesus ; they testify that God is true in his promises. But when men believe, they come not in barely as witnesses to the New Testament, but as legatees for a portion in it ; they therefore rest on it for themselves, and so their faith makes an
application of it. When some have reasoned against general assent to be
faith, in that the devils believe, as James says, it hath been answered that the devils assent, though it is operative to cause terror, yet it is not a
spiritual assent and sight of it, such as a believer in the general hath of the things he believes. And they say true, for there is a difference in a regenerate man s believing there is a God, and it is another sight than devils have. But yet still the argument will hold, if fetched from the good angels, for they do in as spiritual a manner as the saints believe the truth of the promises, and assent to their goodness, and see the excellencies of
Christ, and adore them, and yet do not believe with a justifying faith. And why? Because these promises not concerning their salvation, they trust not in them; they come not in as legatees, but as witnesses and ad mirers. Now, then, if an act of general assent spiritual be common to them with believers, surely God hath not put the act of justifying upon what is common to both (whenas it is in them, it justifies them not), but rather upon such an act as is proper to man, and not in them ; and that is
trusting, relying on the promises, and on that Christ whom they believe to be the Son of God, for their salvation.
CHAP. II.] OF JUSTIFYING FAITH. 273
ficason 2. Justifying faith is seated in the whole heart, as he said in Acts viii. 37, If thou believest with thy whole heart, thou shalt be saved.
Yea, and so it is in this Rom. x. 9, If thou shalt believe with thy heart that God hath raised up Jesus, &c. Now, if only a general assent, though never so spiritual, in the understanding, which is but one faculty in the
heart, were that act that justified, then the will should be excluded, which,
if faith be with the whole heart, it is not. And now, if the will come in to
put forth an act, then an act of application must be also added to that
general assent, such as indeed is to trust in Christ, to cast myself on him, to wait upon him, which are all acts of the will. It is true indeed that in the
understanding part, there is no other act of faith required absolutely unto
justification, than a spiritual sight of, and assent to the truth and goodness
of the things believed. This is all God exacts of the understanding, for an assent or assurance that these things are mine is not of the essence of faith, but there are acts of the will besides that go to make up faith ; therefore, Heb. xi. 13, there are three things attributed to faith : First, A real sight of the promises
: They saw them. Secondly, A persuasion or assurance of their truth and goodness
: they were persuaded of them ; and these two make up a spiritual general assent in the understanding. But then,
thirdly, is added their embracing them: they embraced them, which is an act of the will, or an act of application ; so, Horn. iv. 5, to believe that God
justifies the ungodly, is the act of general assent, but to believe on him that
justifies the ungodly, is an act of application ; it is an act of the will, rest
ing on him for a man s own particular salvation.
Reason 3. Yea, by this act of the will is the union on our parts com
pleted between Christ and us, and we are thereby made ultimately one with him. Now one main end of faith is to make an union with Christ on our parts, and that, as it is done without assurance that Christ is mine, so
it is not chiefly made by a general assent ; and to the union made on Christ s part, it is not necessary I should then apprehend it when Christ
first doth it, because it is a secret work done by his Spirit, who doth first
apprehend us ere we apprehend him, as he first loves us ere we love him,
Philip, iii. 12. But for the making a real union with him (so far as on our part it is made), it lies not primarily in believing Christ is mine, or that Christ is, but in joining myself to his person in the shooting in of my will into him, in taking him, and consenting to be his ; to believe he is mine is indeed to apprehend that union, and to believe spiritually he draws in the heart to it, but to have my will drawn to him, to rest in him, to cleave to him as the fountain of life, Deut. xxx. 20, it is that makes the
real union. As in marriage, consent makes the match, so the consent of the will to have Christ as my Lord, king, head, husband, makes the union ; for the main subject by which we are united to Christ is the will, for by the will we cleave to those things we apprehend good, and shoot our souls into them. But if that which united on our parts were such apprehensions whereby we perceive we are made one with Christ, it should be in the
understanding most, and so that which makes the union should be assensus de
Deo, a believing something of God, not a cleaving to God, and that which I am united to should mainly be a proposition. Indeed, when I apprehend myself united unto Christ, then my will cleaves more to him, is drawn out more to him, as those that are new married, when a man can say, I am my beloved s, and he is mine ; but he must be my beloved afore. As he that lusts after a woman commits adultery, and so is made before God one
flesh with her, though not afore men, so he whose heart is taken with the
beauty of Christ, and cleaves to him, hangs on him, is united to him, for a VOL. VITI. s
274 OF THE OBJECT AND ACTS [PART II. BoOX I.
marriage-glance makes afore God a union with Christ. Such acts of faith make the union, and therefore upon such acts of recumbency Christ sheds
grace and life into the soul, having recourse to him as the only fountain of
life ; but when assurance comes, then a man can plead this union, to fetch
strength from Christ by virtue of it, and so then a man discerns the con
nection between Christ and his grace, how it flows from him ; but it flowed
before.