did perfonally fulfil the whole law, and difcharge the debt his Father's juftice called for; becoming at once an atonement for fin, and the author of a new principle of life in us. Thus truly may we defcribe the great mystery of redemption, in these words of David, Pfalm lxxxv. 10. Mercy and truth are met together, righteousness and peace have kiffed each other.

Now concerning the union of God's justice and mercy in this grand myftery, which exceeds the prefent conception of weak and finful mortals; St. Paul fpeaks largely in feveral places. In the third chapter of the Epistle to the Romans, and the words of the text, 23, 24, 25, he fays, All have finned and come Short of the glory of God, but are juftified freely by his GRACE, through the redemption that is in Chrift Jefus, whom God bath fet forth to be a propitiation (or peace offering) through faith in his blood, to declare his righteousness for the remission of fins, that are past, through the forbearance of God. And in the viiith chapter, and 3d verfe, we fee the neceffity of the ranfom, for what the law could not do, in that it was weak, through the flesh, God fending his own fon in the likeness of finful flefb, did for fin, condemn fin in the flesh, that the righteoufness of the law might be fulfilled in us, who walk not after the flesh, but after the spirit †. And again, in the xth chapter and 4th verfe, he declareth, That Chrift is the end of the law for righteoufnefs, to every one that believeth.

That is, the favor fhewn them by becoming their ranfom, and the power afforded them of living religiously:-this is what is understood by grace, here.

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+ Or, in other words, who by the above grace; or power, afforded them, do, through faith in Chrift; clofe with the influence of this bleffed fpirit, to mortify the deeds of the flesh; not building on their own righteoufnefs (i. e. placing any merit in what they can do, by mere conftitutional fortitude of body, or mind), but in the righteoufnefs of God, or the grace of God working in us to do good; but not an imputed righteoufnefs to thofe, in whom no fruits of grace appear.

In thefe paffages it is evident, the Apostle defigns to point out three things particularly, which muft go together in our juftification. First on God's part, his free mercy and grace; fecondly on Chrift's part, the fatisfaction of God's juftice, or the price of our redemption, by the facrifice of himself, and the fulfilling of all all righteousness; and thirdly on our part, a true and lively faith in the merits of this Saviour, which will appear in humility of mind, and purity of life; but which is not ours, in the fenfe of an inherent natural poffeffion, but is effected by God's working in us. From all which it is evident, that no lefs provifion has been made to fatisfy God's juftice, than to exalt his mercy. The ranfom, or as St. Paul expreffes it, the propitiation which God bath fet forth, doth effectually establish BOTH. God's infinite juftice hath in no fhape fuffered by the exertion of his abundant grace; which only lowereth the juftice of man's performances, as to any intrinfic merit, or original cause of pardon*. And it is for this reafon that St. Paul declareth nothing on the part of man, towards his being juftified, but a true and lively faith, because he fpeaketh of the ground and caufe of pardon. And even this faith is the gift of God, and not man's own work, independant of regenerating grace.

But here we must carefully attend in what fenfe this faith is to be understood to justify ALONE, left we fhould be led into the dangerous fecurity of a dead faith, and many other pernicious errors. Now this faith the apoftle fpeaks of, does by no means exclude the works of repentance, hope, love, and the fear of God, to be joined with it, in the perfon juftified; thefe being the effential fruits of a lively faith, and the only certain marks of it; but it only

* Juftification, or pardon of finful duft and afhes, is doubtlefs an act of infinite mercy towards us, fhewn only for the fake of what Chrift has done for us, and enables us by his grace to do.

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taketh from them the office of juftifying, that is, it denies their being the primary pure caufe of pardon, which we cannot too often affirm, is the free mercy of God in Chrift; so that although they all unite in them that are juftified, yet are they not what wholly and truly effect their juftification.

Again; this faith doth in no degree leffen the expediency, or the reward of our good works, which are pofitively neceffary to be done upon the religious principle of ferving God, in the manner he has exprefsly commanded us in Holy Scripture, all the days of our life. It only depriveth them of fuch an abfolute virtue to obtain God's favour, as may guard us from depending on them folely for that end; and the reason they can have no fuch virtue appears most clearly, because we must be senfible all the good works that we can do, are miserably imperfect, on account of the frail nature in which they are manifefted, and therefore no way able to deserve being juftified; for we are all at best unprofitable fervants; and though it is pofitively needful for a tree to bear fruit, or we cannot determinė its kind, and excellence, yet ftill as the cause, of fruitfulness proceedeth from the root that conveyeth fap and vital power to the branches, fo our juftification may be truly faid to come through the mere mercy of God, and that fo great and free, that when the whole world (by reafon of its degeneracy) was quite unable to contribute any thing towards their ranfom, it pleafed our Heavenly Father, without the fmalleft merit in the creature, to renew a capacity of falvation, by preparing for us that most precious ranfom laid down by Jefus Chrift, which in the riches of God's love and wisdom, fhould be fufficient to fatisfy for the debt our tranfgreffions had incurred; and to reconcile, redeem, and regenerate the fallen race of man. Thus Chrift is become the righteoufnefs of all who truly believe in him; and in him, and by him, every real chriftian may be called a fulfiller of the law, because it

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is for his fake we are accepted, and that he fupplieth the grace to work out our falvation; for when we were in fin, and of courfe incapable of pleafing God, Chrift died for us, by which atoning act of mercy, Divine juftice was appeafed, and that amends made, which man's infirmity could never have effected *.

THE SECOND PART.

You have now heard of whom all men ought to feek their juftification and righteoufnefs; and that this is derived to them through the merits and death of Chrift; you have been fhewn likewise, that three things are required to the obtaining this righteousness, Ift, God's mercy; 2d, Chrift's justice (or the fatisfaction he has made); and 3d, a true and lively faith on our part; out of which faith good works do naturally proceed. It has also been abundantly proved, that no man can be juftified, pardoned, or accepted of God in confequence of his own works, (however moral) but for the fake of Chrift, who is the caufe of any degree of good in human nature, under every difpenfation of God to man; and in refpect to chriftians this is the ge

We do not receive this doctrine as if Chrift had done one part, and we of ourselves alone, were fufficient for the other; but we apprehend it to mean, that He hath obtained for us the power to become the fons of God, by our partaking of the Divine nature thro' grace; if we do not refift, but co-operate with the motions or influence of his Holy Spirit. In this fenfe, we take the words of the Homily, He paid the ransom by his death, he for them fulfilled the law in this life. In this fenfe, he must truly be confidered as our righteousness, that we fhew forth his life in us, and not that we must expect to be faved by his righteoufnefs, independent of its gracious éffects upon the foul, i. e, while we continue in fin, which he came to deftroy.

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nuine principle that muft urge and encourage them to do their duty. And that no man can fulfil the law, according to its ftrict demands, appears ftill further evident, by this argument of St. Paul in the third chapter of the Gal. 21 verfe, For if there had been a law given, which could have given life, verily righteoufnefs fhould have been by the law. And again, in the fecond chapter and last verse, he confirms his affertion in these words, If righteoufnefs came by the law, then Chrift is dead in vain; that is to fay, unnecessarily, as man might in that cafe have fatisfied God's justice by fulfilling the law; whereas, he now needeth Chrift's aid, to do any thing acceptable to God, Without me, Jays he, ye can do nothing: further the Apostle adds, Gal. v. and 4. Whosoever of you are (or would be) justified by the law, ye are fallen from grace, that is, ye clearly deny its power and ufe, in that ye truft to your own performances, flighting the affiftance of grace, and relying upon your own ftrength; and he continues to defend the doctrine in his epiftle to the Ephefians, fecond chap. 8th verfe, for by grace are ye faved through faith, and that not of yOURSELVES, (it was through no merit or ability of your own that ye obtained it) for it is the the gift of God, and not of works, left any man should boast; left any man fhould want that fpirit of humility which is requifite for the difcerning and tafting the power, wisdom, and goodness of God in his redemption; and to be short, the fum of all the Apostle's reasoning is this, that if juftification cometh of works, then it cometh not of grace, and if it be by grace, it then cannot be of works. In plain words, man's own virtue and the grace of God are two very different things, the one puffeth up, the other purifieth, but the fruits of the fpirit which are the effects of a faving faith, they nourish unto life. And St. Peter eftablishes this doctrine in these words of the xth chap. of the Acts, and 43d verfe, To Him give all the prophets witnefs, that through his name, whefoever believeth in him, fhall receive remiffion of fins: not barely by believing or

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