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elements, into all the several apartments. Faith is very particularly distinguished from the righteousness which justifies. We read of " the righteousness which is of faith," and of "the righteousness which is through the faith of Christ, the righteousness which is of God by faith." These forms of expres sion put an apparent difference between the faith of the gospel, and the righteousness of Jesus Christ; because, whatsoever is by another and of another cannot, without the greatest violence to reason and language, be reckoned that other. Besides, the objection goes upon a gross and dangerous mistake concerning the nature of faith in Christ. It supposes, contrary to any thing which the Scripture teaches, that faith is a work of the law, which recommends the person who performs it to the favour of the supreme Lawgiver.

Obj. 3. "God justifieth the ungodly ;" and therefore it would seem, that the objects of divine favour must be justified, in order of nature, before they believe in Christ; because believers are new creatures, and cannot be denominated ungodly sinners.

Answ.

The folly of this way of reasoning is manifest enough from the text itself, which runs in these terms, "To him that worketh not, but believeth on him that justifieth the ungodly, his faith is counted for righteousness." Whatever else is implied in this passage, it evidently proves, that the objects of this gracious act are in themselves ungodly and guilty criminals; and further, that the act of justification only terminates on them as believers in the righteousness of Christ, in whom God declares himself well pleased. Whatever difficulty there may be in reconciling the

ideas of an ungodly character to those of a real believer in Christ, yet the text itself obliges us to think that they are perfectly consistent. But the difficulty is not so great as some imagine. Even in natural things we may find many examples that help to illustrate this supposed contradiction. Does not an indigent person receive the seasonable alms contributed for his relief merely in the character of an indigent man? Does not a condemned malefactor receive his pardon merely in that criminal character? And why should not a sinner receive the free gift which comes upon him, as an ungodly creature, unto justification of life? A person that believeth in Christ for righteousness, cannot be considered in any other character than as an unrighteous, sinful, guilty criminal in himself. It is only upon this view of himself that he can say, "Surely in the Lord have I righteousness." A believer, in the exercise of faith, always acts in that character, and in that view of his character, which corresponds to the saving and life-giving declarations of the gospel of the grace of God; consequently, he can only act in the character of an ungodly sinner, while he "believeth on him that justifieth the ungodly."

Obj. 4. If sinners are justified by believing on Christ, will it not follow, that their justification may vary according to the degrees and measure of their faith? Answ. If their acts of faith were their justifying righteousness, this consequence would be necessary and inevitable; but as the perfect, immutable, and everlasting righteousness of the Redeemer, is their justifying righteousness in the sight of God, which they believe in for pardon and acceptance unto eternal

life, the consequence stated in the objection is altogether false, and foreign to the doctrine we maintain.

Obj. 5. If sinners are justified in the court of their conscience, whenever they are justified in the sight of God, and if the Scripture always means our justification in the court of our conscience, whenever it speaks of being justified in the sight of God by believing in Christ-will it not follow, that believers fall under condemnation, and cease to be in a justified state, when their consciences condemn them? Answ. The sentence of justification, so far as a Christian can improve it for the purpose of his comfort, and holiness, and salvation, is pronounced in the gracious and powerful word of the God of truth; it is only received and heard by "the hearing of faith;" and the justifying sentence which is pronounced in the word, and received in that word by the hearing of faith, is recorded in the conscience of the believer by the demonstration of the Holy Ghost. In that happy moment the sinner is justified, pardoned, and accepted; he ceases to be under the law of works, and enjoys a new and firm standing in the grace of God, as a real member of Christ; and he is complete, as to all the righteousness of the law, in his glorious Surety and new-covenant Head. If the hearts of believers afterwards condemn them, and lose all comfortable views of their peace with God through our Lord Jesus Christ, this is no proof that they are fallen from a justified state, but only that they have forgotten their resting-place," and are not acting upon the principles of their new and unchangeable state in the favour of God, unto whom they are reconciled by the death of his Son.

REFLECTIONS.

1. The knowledge of the law of God is necessary and important to every sinner. Hereby we perceive the holiness of the divine character, the malignity of sin, and the invariable standard of moral righteousness. By attending to the law of God, unbelievers may discern the folly of going about to establish a righteousness of their own, and the fatal error of resting their hopes of eternal life upon the general. goodness of a holy and righteous God. Hereby, also, believers may see upon what honourable and advantageous terms they stand in the favour of God the judge of all, being "made the righteousness of God in Christ," and having" the righteousness of the law fulfilled in them," by their union to Jesus, "the end of the law."

2. Since sinners are justified in the sight of God by believing in Christ as the Lord their righteousness, it is plain, that the Arminian doctrine concerning the effect of the death of Christ must be false and dangerous, namely, that God is hereby become reconcilable to all mankind; that a new law is thereby procured for the benefit of sinners, requiring only faith, and repentance, and sincere endeavours, to constitute an evangelical righteousness; that mankind are now in a state of probation, according to this new law; that God becomes actually reconciled to as many of them as perform the terms of justification prescribed in this law; and that he pardons and justifies them by reputing their conformity to this new law, their gospel righteousness. Thus have

they most presumptuously changed the truth of God into a lie, and taught men to seek justification by '. works of a law.

3. Behold, in the method of justifying sinners by faith in Christ, an awful display of the severity of God, and a most comfortable discovery of his goodness, upon the most harmonious principles. He declared his righteousness as a Lawgiver and a Judge, by subjecting his own Son to the law which man had violated, that he might show the exceeding riches of his grace by justifying the original transgressors.

4. Faith has a more important office in the justification of a sinner, than merely to be an evidence of a justified state. The blessing of perfect and everlasting justification is heard from the mercy-seat of God speaking in his word, and enjoyed in hearing it, by means of faith. It is a strong presumption against all the schemes of speculative minds concerning eternal justification, evidenced to the souls of the heirs of promise by believing, that the Scripture so expressly says, "A man is justified by faith, without the works of the law." If faith bear no other office in justification, than to evidence that a man is justified, why does the apostle say, that he is justified" without works?" Should he not rather have said, with respect to evidences, "A man is" thus

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justified by works, and not by faith only." But from all the accounts of justification recorded in the sacred writings, it appears, that a sinner is never justified before God, until the divine sentence is received into his conscience by the hearing of faith.

5. The distinction which some make between a first and second justification is unscriptural and dan