4

against you. Presume not to fight in your own strength, your own wisdom; but go forward "in the strength of the Lord God;" and make mention of his righteousness, even of his only. His strength is made perfect in the weakness of his people; and by a happy experience do they find as St. Paul found: "When I am weak, then am I strong." In dependence upon divine strength to support you, and of divine counsel to guide you, and with earnest prayer, strive to "perfect holiness in the fear of God:" and shortly your warfare will end, your victory will be gained, you will be "more than conquerors through Him who loved you ;" and "who gave himself for our sins that he might deliver us from this present evil world."

5

4 Ps. lxxi. 16.

5 2 Cor. vii. 1.

Rom. viii. 37.

SERMON XII.

ON THE CONNEXION BETWEEN FAITH AND

OBEDIENCE.

HEB. XI. 7.

By faith Noah, being warned of God, of things not seen as yet, moved with fear, prepared an ark to the saving of his house; by the which he condemned the world, and became heir of the righteousness which is by faith."

THE faith which appropriates to its possessor for his justification, the righteousness which the Lord Christ hath wrought out, and "which is unto all and upon all them that believe," is a faith which also effects a moral renovation of the whole man. The faith which instrumentally justifies or delivers from wrath, is a faith which also sanctifies or delivers from sin. The faith which embraces the Lord Christ in his priestly office, is a faith which embraces him in his kingly office. The faith which beholds Jesus agonizing and dying for sin, is a faith which views sin as an evil, a bitter, an ac

cursed thing,-as the fertile source of all the evils, moral and punitive, which overspread the whole earth, and which feed the eternal flames of hell. Hence, the subject of this faith is so far from viewing the doctrine of Christ's imputed righteousness for justification, as a doctrine which permits or authorises men to live as they list, if they only believe, that in that doctrine he perceives how the holy law of God is magnified and made honourable; how lofty and unbending is that law, how awful and indispensable is its sanction, how uncompromising is the divine justice, how certainly divine wrath, on account of sin, must flow in its righteous course, and fall upon the head of some victim or other, whether guilty by fact, or guilty by imputation; whether the original transgressor or the voluntary surety. Hence, he fully enters into the apostolic reasoning; and with abhorrence rejects the damnable doctrine of antinomianism that we may continue in sin that grace may abound: "What shall we say then? Shall we continue in sin that grace may abound? God forbid. How shall we that are dead to sin, live any longer therein ?" While the true believer rejects the law as a covenant for life, he embraces the law as a rule of life, he loves that law as a law which is holy; as a law, to a perfect conformity with which, he de1 Rom. vi. 1, 2.

1

sires and labours to attain. Though he is not under the law as a covenant of works, he is " under the law to Christ." And the same Holy Spirit of God which opens the mind to perceive the broad extent and spirituality of the law, so as to cut off from the man all hope of being saved "by the deeds of the law;" exhibits to the mind the excellency of that law, and sweetly inclines the will to choose it as a rule by which to model and regulate both the inward and the outward man: and the Christian can truly adopt the apostle's declaration; "I delight in the law of God after the inward man.' "Do we then make void the law through faith? God forbid, yea we establish the law.” 3

992

Of the connexion between faith and obedience, or of obedience as the fruit of faith, the apostle adduces several instances in the eleventh chapter of the epistle to the Hebrews. He commences the chapter with a brief definition of faith: and points out afterwards its power in regulating both the mind and the life of its possessors. In the text, the faith of Noah is adduced to exhibit the power of faith, as an operative principle of obedience to God's blessed word. By faith Noah, being warned of God of things not seen as yet, moved with fear, prepared an ark to the saving of his house; by the which he condemned the world,

66

2 Rom. vii. 22. See also Ps. i. 2. 3 Rom. iii. 31.

and became heir of the righteousness which is by faith." Let us contemplate the faith of Noah,

I. IN ITS POWER;

II. IN ITS FRUIT OR EFFECT, and,

III. IN ITS REWARD.

We propose to contemplate the faith of Noah,

1. IN ITS POWER.

Noah was warned of God of things not seen as yet, and being warned, he was moved with fear. What were the things not seen at the time? They were the things which God threatened to bring upon an ungodly world, and which are mentioned in Genesis: "And God said unto Noah, The end of all flesh is come before me; for the earth is filled with violence through them: and, behold, I will destroy them with the earth.” 5 Noah believed God's threatening; believed that God would destroy mankind, and he was moved with fear; he feared because he believed God's word. Here we see the influence of faith in producing fear. Noah was moved with fear. Such an event as destroying the world with a flood of water, would appear to human reason very improbable. Such an event had never Unbelief would argue,

been before heard of.

"What, can so good and just a Being as God

5 vi. 13.