and that as soon as God revealed the gospel to them, and had wrought in them the faith thereof, they were sanctified, and led other lives. So witnessed the noble Lord Cobham, who suffered in K. Henry V.'s time, above an hundred years before Luther. His words at his examination before the Archbishop of Canterbury, and his clergy, were these. "As for "that virtuous man, Wickliff, (for with his doctrine he was "charged), whose judgment ye so highly disdain; I shall say " of my part, both before God and man, that before I knew "that despised doctrine of his, I never abstained from sin; "but since I learned therein to fear my Lord God, it hath "otherwise, I trust, been with me. So much grace could I "never find in all your glorious instructions." Fox's book of Martyrs, vol. 1. p. 640, col. 2. edit. 1664. And since I am on that excellent book, I entreat you to read Mr Patrick Hamilton's little treatise, to which Frith doth preface, and Fox doth add some explication, vol. 2. p. 181,-192.; where ye will find the old plain Protestant truth about law and gospel, delivered without any school-terms. To this, add, in your reading, in the same vol. 2. p. 497,-509. Heresies and Errors falsely charged on Tindal's writings; where we will see the old faith of the saints in its simplicity; and the old craft and cunning of the Antichristian party, in slandering the truth. I must, for my part, confess, that these plain declarations of gospel-truth have a quite other favour with me, than the dry insipid accounts thereof given by pretenders to human wisdom.

But passing these things, let us look to principles, and that with respect to their native and regular influence on sanctification. And I am willing that that should determine the matter, next to the consonancy of the principles themselves to the word of God. It can be no doctrine of God, that is not according to godliness. Some think, that if good works, and holiness, and repentance, be allowed no room in justification, that there is no room left for them in the world, and in the practice of believers. So hard seems it to be to some, to keep in their eye the certain fixed bounds betwixt justification and sanctification. There is no difference betwixt a justified and a sanctified man; for he is always the same per

son that partakes of these privileges. But justification and sanctification differ greatly, in many respects; as is commonly known. But to come a little closer:

The party here suspected of Antinomianism, do confidently protest, before God, angels, and men, That they espouse no new doctrine about the grace of God and justification, and the other coincident points, but what the reformers at home and abroad did teach, and all the Protestant churches do own. And that in sum is: "That a law-condemned sinner is free"ly justified by God's grace, through the redemption that is "in Jesus Christ; that he is justified only for the righteousness of Christ imputed to him by God of his free grace, "and received by faith alone as an instrument; which faith For guarding against licenout of God's word, "That

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is the gift of the same grace." tiousness, they constantly teach, "without holiness no man can see God: That all that believe "truly on Jesus Christ, as they are justified by the sprinkling "of his blood, so are they sanctified by the effusion of his "Spirit: that all that boast of their faith in Christ, and yet "live after their own lusts, and the course of this world, have "no true faith at all; but do, in their profession, and contradicting practice, blaspheme the name of God, and the "doctrine of his grace; and continuing so, shall perish with "a double destruction, beyond that of the openly profane, "that make no profession." And when they find any such in their communion, which is exceeding rarely, they cast them out as dead branches. They teach, "That as the daily study "of sanctification is a necessary exercise to all that are in Christ; "so the rule of their direction therein, is the holy spotless law "of God in Christ's hand: That the Holy Ghost is the be"ginner and advancer of this work, and faith in Jesus Christ "the great mean thereof: That no man can be holy till he "be in Christ, and united to him by faith; and that no man "is truly in Christ, but he is thereby sanctified. They preach "the law, to condemn all flesh out of Christ, and to shew "thereby to people the necessity of betaking themselves to "him for salvation." See the savoury words of blessed Tindal, called the apostle of England, in his letter to John Frith, written Jan. 1533; Bock of Martyrs, vol. 2. p. 308.

Expound the law truly, and open the veil of Moses, to con"demn all flesh, and prove all men sinners, and all deeds "under the law, before mercy have taken away the con"demnation thereof, to be sin, and damnable; and then as "a faithful minister, set abroach the mercy of our Lord Je "C sus, and let the wounded consciences drink of the water of "him.. And then shall your preaching be with power, and "not as the hypocrites. And the Spirit of God shall work "with you; and all consciences shall bear record unto you, "and feel that it is so. And all doctrine that casteth a mist "on these two, to shadow and hide them, I mean the law of "God, and mercy of Christ; that resist you with all your << power." And so do we.

What is there in all this to be offended with? Is not this enough to vindicate our doctrine from any tendency to licentiousness? I am afraid, that there are some things wherein we differ more than they think fit yet to express. And I shall guess at them.

1. The first is about the imputed righteousness of Christ. This righteousness of Christ, in his active and passive obedience, hath been asserted by Protestant divines, to be not only the procuring and meritorious cause of our justification; for this the Papists own; but the matter; as the imputation of it is the form of our justification: though I think, that our logical terms are not so adapted for such divine mysteries. But whatever propriety or impropriety be in such school-terms, the common Protestant doctrine hath been, That a convinced sinner seeking justification, must have nothing in his eye but this righteousness of Christ, as God proposeth nothing else to him; and that God in justifying a sinner, accepts him in this righteousness only, when he imputes it to him.

Now, about the imputed righteousness of Christ some say, "That it belongs only to the person of Christ: he was under "the law, and bound to keep it for himself; that he might "be a fit Mediator, without spot or blemish. That it is a "qualification in the Mediator, rather than a benefit acquired "by him, to be communicated to his people." For they will not allow this personal righteousness of Christ so be im"puted to us any otherwise than in the merit of it, as pur

chasing for us a more easy law of grace; in the observa"tion whereof they place all our justifying righteousness:" understanding hereby our own personal inhérent holiness, "and nothing else." They hold, "That Christ died to merit "this of the Father, viz. that we might be justified upon "easier terms under the gospel, than those of the law of inno "cency. Instead of justification by perfect obedience, we are "now to be justified by our own evangelical righteousness, "made up of faith, repentance, and sincere obedience." And if we hold not with them in this, they tell the world, we are enemies to evangelical holiness, slighting the practice of all good works, and allowing our hearers to live as they list. Thus they slander the preachers of free grace, because we do not place justification in our own inherent holiness; but in Christ's perfect righteousness, imputed to us upon our believing in him. Which faith, we teach, purifies the heart, and always inclines to holiness of life. Neither do we hold any faith to be true and saving, that doth not shew itself by good works; without which no man is, or can be justified, either in his own conscience, or before men. But it doth not hence follow, that we cannot be justified in the sight of God by faith only, as the apostle Paul asserts the latter, and the apostle James the former, in a good agreement.

2. There appears to be some difference, or misunderstanding of one another, about the true notion and nature of justifying faith. Divines commonly distinguish betwixt the direct act of faith, and the reflex act. The direct act is properly justifying and saving faith; by which a lost sinner comes to Christ, and relies upon him for salvation. The reflex act is the looking back of the soul upon a former act of faith. A rational creature can reflect upon his own acts, whether they be acts of reason, faith, or unbelief.

A direct act of saving faith, is that by which a lost sinner goes out of himself to Christ for help, relying upon him only for salvation. A reflex act ariseth from the sense that faith gives of its own inward act, upon a serious review. The truth and sincerity of which is further cleared up to the conscience, by the genuine fruits of an unfeigned faith, appearing to all men in our good lives, and holy conversation. But for

as plain as these things be, yet we find we are frequently mistaken by others and we wonder at the mistake; for we dare not ascribe to some learned and good men, the principles of ignorance, or wilfulness, from whence mistakes in plain cases usually proceed. When we do press sinners to come to Christ by a direct act of faith, consisting in an humble reliance upon him for mercy and pardon; they will understand us, whether we will or not, of a reflex act of faith, by which a man knows and believes, that his sins are pardoned, and that Christ is his: when they might easily know, that we mean no such thing. Mr Walter Marshall, in his excellent book, lately published, hath largely opened this, and the true controversy of this day, though it be eight or nine years since he died.

3. We seem to differ about the interest, and room, and place, that faith hath in justification. That we are justified by faith in Jesus Christ, is so plainly a New Testament truth, that no man pretending never so barely to the Christian name, denies it. The Papists own it; and the Socinians, and Arminians, and all own it. But how different are their senses of it? And indeed you cannot more speedily and certainly judge of the spirit of a man, than by his real inward sense of this phrase, (if you could reach it), A sinner is justified by faith in Jesus Christ. Some say, That faith in Jesus Christ justifies as it is a work, by the ò credere; as if it came in the room of perfect obedience, required by the law. Some, that faith justifies, as it is informed and animated by charity. So the Papists who plainly confound justification and sanctification. Some say, that faith justifies, as it is a fulfilling of the condition of the new covenant, If thou believest, thou shalt be saved. Nay, they will not hold there; but they will have this faith to justify, as it hath a principle and fitness in it to dispose to sincere obedience. The plain old Protestant doctrine is, That the place of faith in justification is only that of a hand or instrument, receiving the righteousness of Christ, for which only we are justified. So that though great scholars do often confound themselves and others, in their disputations about faith's justifying a sinner; every poor plain believer hath the marrow of this mystery feeding his heart; and he can readily tell you, That to be justified by faith, is to be justified by Christ's righteousness, apprehended by faith.