Front matter
NIOHOL S SERIES OF STANDARD DIVINES,
PUEITAN PEBIOD,
THE
WOBKS OF THOMAS GOODWIN, D.D,
VOL. IV.
COUNCIL OF PUBLICATION.
W. LINDSAY ALEXANDEK, D.D., Professor of Theology, Congregational
Union, Edinburgh.
JAMES BEGG, D.D., Minister of Newington Free Church, Edinburgh.
THOMAS J. CRAWFORD, D.D., S.T.P., Professor of Divinity, University,
Edinburgh.
D. T. K. DRUMMOND, M.A., Minister of St Thomas s Episcopal Church,
Edinburgh.
WILLIAM H. GOOLD, D.D., Professor of Biblical Literature and Church
History, Reformed Presbyterian Church, Edinburgh. ANDREW THOMSON, D.D., Minister of Broughton Place United Presby
terian Church, Edinburgh.
(Seneral (Sfct tor.
REV. THOMAS SMITH, M.A., EDINBURGH.
THE WORKS
THOMAS GOODWIN, D.D.,
%\>.
SOMETIME PRESIDENT OF MAGDALENE COLLEGE, OXFORD.
itjr (Stmral
BY JOHN C. MILLER, D.D.,
LINCOLN COLLEGE; HONORARY CANON OF WORCESTER; RECTOR OF sx MARTIN S, BIRMINGHAM.
twr
BY ROBERT HALLEY, D.D.,
PKIKCIPAL OF THE INDh.PEM>JiNT NEW COLLEGE, LJNDOX.
VOL. IV.
-&.! yf CONTAINING :
CHRIST SET FORTH
THE HEART OF CHRIST IN HEAVEN TOWARDS SINNERS ON EARTH
AGGRAVATION OF SIN ENCOURAGEMENTS TO FAITH
THE GLORY OF THE GOSPEL A DISCOURSE OF THE GLORY OF THE GOSPEL-
THE KNOWLEDGE OF GOD THE FATHER, AND HIS SON JESUS CHRIST.
EDINBURGH : JAMES NICHOL. LONDON : JAMES NISBET AND CO. DUBLIN r W. ROBERTSON.
M.DCCC.LXII.
KDTNBCROH
PRINTED BY JOHN GREIG AND SO*
OLI> PHYSIJ GA.HDEXS.
CONTENTS.
PAGE
CHRIST SET FORTH, on Rom. viii. 34, . . . . 1
THE HEART OF CHRIST IN HEAVEN TOWARDS SINNERS ON EARTH, . 93
AGGRAVATION OF SIN, . . . . . .151
. . 163
Aggravations of Sinning against Knowledge,
. . .188
Aggravations of Sinning against Mercy,
ENCOURAGEMENTS TO FAITH, . . . . 205
Sermon I. on Col. I. 26, 27, .... 227
THE GLORY OF THE GOSPEL, . . . . .225
Sermon II. on do., .... 241
A DISCOURSE OF THE GLORY OF THE GOSPEL, . . . 259
THE KNOWLEDGE OF GOD THE FATHER, AND HIS SON JESUS CHRIST, 347
Book I. Of the Godhead, and the three Persons within it
self. That there is but one God. That in the divine
nature, or one Godhead, there are three Persons conversing
with, speaking to, and glorifying one another. Which
any mere creature. ..... 849
union and communion of the three Persons between them
selves is peculiar to the Deity, and incommunicable to
Book II. Of the Son of God, the second person in the Trinity. What his person is, considered in himself. He is the
eternal Son of the Father, one God in essence with him. The Son, the second person, took the man Jesus into
joined into one person, ...... 404
personal union with himself; and so Christ is God-man
Book III. Of the glories and royalties that belong unto Jesus
Christ, considered as God-man in one person (besides what accrued to him from his performance of the work of
our redemption), and which were appointed for him, by
VI CONTENTS.
his Father, from all eternity. The apparent manifestation
of the divine attributes in the person of Jesus Christ Godman. The designation of him in God s first decrees, as
the end for whom all the creatures were made. The part that he bore as God-man in the creation, as by him all
things were created. The appointment of him by God to
be one Lord over all, under him one God ; and to be in
a more special respect the head of the elect, on whom they were to hold the tenure of all the blessings bestowed on them above the dues of creation, . .454
CHRIST SET FORTE
VOL. IV.
[OEIGINAL TITLE ]
CHRIST SET FORTH
f Death, \ /CAUSE
Resurrection, of Justification, 7-7-1 Ascension, In kis
As the
] Sitting at God s f
] B J E c T
right hand, of Justifying \ Intercession, / \ Faith.
Upon ROM. 8. VEE. 34.
TOGETHER WITH A TREATISE
DISCOVERING
The Affectionate tenderness of
CUEISTS HEAET now in Hea
ven, unto Sinners on Earth.
Bij Tuo : GOODWIN", B. D.
LONDON, Printed by J. G. for R. Dawlman, 1651.
TO THE EEADEE.
WHAT the scope of this treatise itself is, the title-page and the table that
follows will sufficiently inform you
: I shall only here acquaint you with
what was mine, in a few words. I have by long experience observed many
holy and precious souls, who have clearly and wholly given up themselves
to Christ, to be saved by him his own way, and who a^ their first conver
sion (as also at times of desertion) have made an entire and immediate close
with Christ alone for their justification, who yet in the ordinary course and
way of their spirits have been too much carried away with the rudiments of
Christ in their own hearts, and not after Christ himself; the stream of their more constant thoughts and deepest intentions ranaiing in the channel of
reflecting upon, and searching into the gracious dispositions of their own
hearts, so to bring down, or to raise up (as the apostle s words are, Rom.
x. 8), and so get a sight of Christ by them. Whereas Christ himself is
nigh them (as the apostle there speaks), if they would but nakedly look
upon himself through thoughts of pure and single faith..
And although the use of our own graces, by way of sign and evidence of
Christ in us, be allowed us by God, and is no way derogatory from Christ,,
if subordinated to faith ; and so as that the heart be not too inordinate and
immoderate in poring too long or too much on them, to fetch their comfort
from them, unto a neglect of Christ : yet as pleasures that are lawful are
unlawfully used when our thoughts and intentions are too long, or too fre
quent, or too vehement in them, so as to dead the heart, either to the pre sent delighting in God, or pursuing after him, with the joint strength of our
: so an immoderate recourse unto signs
souls, as our only chiefest good
(though barely considered as such), is as unwarrantable, when thereby we
are diverted and taken off from a more constant actual exercise of daily
thoughts of faith towards Christ immediately, as he is set forth to be our
righteousness, either by the way of assurance (which is a kind of enjoyment of him), or recumbency and renewed adherence in pursuit after him.
And yet the minds of many are so wholly taken up with their own hearts,
that (as the Psalmist s&js of God) Christ is scarce in all their thoughts. But let these consider what a dishonour this must needs be unto Christ,
4 TO THE EEADER.
that his train and favourites (our graces) should have a fuller court and
more frequent attendance from our hearts than himself, who is the King
of Glory. And likewise what a shame also it is for believers themselves, who are his spouse, to look upon their husband no otherwise but by reflec
tion and at second hand, through the intervention and assistance of their own graces, as mediators between him and them.
Now to rectify this error, the way is not wholly to reject all use of such
evidences, but to order them, both for the season, as also the issue of them.
For the season, so as that the use of them go not before, but still should
follow after an address of faith first renewed, and acts thereof put forth upon
Christ himself. Thus whensoever we would go down into our own hearts, and take a view of our graces, let us be sure first to look wholly out of our
selves unto Christ, as our justification, and to close with them* immediately; and this as if we had no present or by-past grace to evidence our being in
him. And if then, whilst faith is thus immediately clasping about Christ,
as sitting upon his throne of grace, we find either present or fore-past graces
coming in as handmaids, to attend and witness to the truth of this adherence
unto Christ (as after such single and absolute acts of faith it oftentimes falls
out) ; the Holy Ghost (without whose light they shine not) bearing wit
ness uith our spirits, that is, our graces, as well as to our spirits ; and
then again, for the issue of them, if in the closure of all, we again let fall
our viewing and comforting ourselves in them, or this their testimony, and
begin afresh (upon his encouragement) to act faith upon Christ immediately with a redoubled strength ; if thus (I say) we make such evidences to be
subservient only unto faith (whilst it makes Christ its Alpha and Omega, the
beginning and the end of all), this will be no prejudice at all to Christ s
glory, or the workings of faith itself; for by this course the life of faith is
still actually maintained and kept upon wing in its full use and exercise
towards Christ alone for justification. Whereas many Christians do habi
tually make that only but as a supposed or taken for granted principle, which they seldom use, but have laid up for a time of need ; but actually
live more in the view and comfort of their own graces, and the gracious
workings thereof in the duties towards Christ.
The reason of this defect, among many others, I have attributed partly to a barrenness (as Peter s phrase is) in the knowledge of the Lord
Jesus Christ, and of such things revealed about him, as might be matter
: as also to a want of skill (whilst men want assurance) to bend and bow, and subjugate to the use of a faith for mere adherence, all those things that they know and hear of Christ as made
for faith to work and feed upon
justification unto us. It being in experience a matter of the greatest diffi
culty (and yet certainly most feasible and attainable), for such a faith as can yet only rely and cast itself upon Christ for justification, yet rightly to
take in, and so to make use of all that which is or may be said of Christ, his being made righteousness to us, in his death, resurrection, &c., as to
quicken and strengthen itself in such acts of mere adherence, until assurance
* Qu. him ? ED.
TO THE READER.
itself comes, for whose use and entertainment all truths lie more fair and
directly to be received by it. They all serve as a fore-right wind to assu
rance of faith, to fill the sails thereof, and carry on with a more full and
constant gale (as the word used by the apostle for assurance *
imports), whereas to the faith of a poor recumbent, they serve but as a half side
wind, unto which yet, through skill, the sails of such a faith may be so turned
and applied towards it, as to carry a soul on with much ease and quietness unto Christ the desired haven ; it notwithstanding waiting all that while for
a more fair and full gale of assurance in the end.
Now to help or instruct believers in that latter, namely, the use of such a
skill, is not directly the drift of this treatise, I having reserved that part (if God assist me and give leisure, and this find acceptance) unto another about
the Acts ofjustifying faith, wherein this art now mentioned is to be the main
scope. That which I have here endeavoured, is, to set forth to all sorts of
believers (whether they have assurance or not) Christ as he is the object of
our faith as justifying, and as the cause of justification to us ; and so I send
forth this as a premise and preparatory to that other. And to that pur
pose I have run over some few articles of our faith or creed, as I found
them put together in one bundle by the great Apostle, namely Christ, in
his death, resurrection, ascension, sitting at God s right hand, and interces
sion, and have handled these no further than as in all these he is made
justification unto us, therein having punctually kept unto the apostle s
scope. By all which you may (in the mean time) see, what abundant pro
vision God hath laid up in Christ (in the point of justification) for all sorts
of believers to live upon
: every thing in Christ, whatsoever he was, or
whatsoever he did, with a joint voice speaking justification unto us. You
may see also that God hath in Christ justified us over and over ; and
thereby come to discern what little reason you have to suffer your hearts
to be carried aside to other comforters, and so be spoiled and bereft of these
more immediately prepared, and laid up for us in Christ himself. To have
handled all those considerations, which his obedience unto death affords
unto the justification of a believer, and his comfort therein, in this small
tractate, would have made that part too disproportioned to the rest : it
alone deserves, and will require a distinct tract, which therefore I have cast
into another method ; and so in this treatise have touched only upon what
may for the present be sufficient to furnish that part, to keep company with
its fellows. Only when I had thus presented Christ along from his death,
resurrection, and ascension, unto his sitting in heaven, and there performing that great part of his priesthood, the work of intercession, I judged it both
homogeneal to all these, and conducing to the greater encouragement of
believers in the exercise of their faith, to subjoin that other treatise, How
Christ s Heart, now he is in Heaven, stands affected to us Sinners here below. And a better token (take the argument itself, if I could have fully repre sented it) how to present unto his spouse I know not, than a true character
of her Husband s heart, now he is in glory
: and (but for method s sake) I
* Viz. <7rX7j20>op/a. ED.
6 TO THE HEADER.
would have placed it first, it being more suited to vulgar capacities, whose
benefit I aim at. Now in that discourse I confess I have not aimed to keep so strictly unto the matter of justification only, as in the other I have done; but have more generally discussed it, and shewn how his heart stands
towards us, under all sorts of infirmities whatsoever, either of sin or misery,
yet so as it will serve for the matter of justification also. The Father of
our Lord Jesus Christ grant us according to the riches of his glory, that
Christ may dwell in our hearts by faith, and that we may know the love of
! Amen.
Christ, which passeth knowledge
THO. GOODWIN.
CHRIST SET FORTH.
SECTION I.
SHEWING BY WAY OF INTRODUCTION THAT CHRIST IS THE EXAMPLE
AND OBJECT OF JUSTIFYING FAITH.
Who is he that condemneth ? It is Christ that died, yea rather, that is risen
again, who is even at the right hand of God, who also maketh intercession
for us. ROM. VIII. 34.