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men of the world object against saints, that they are heavy, and sour, and melancholy men, but, in the mean time, they consider not that their swearing, revelling, and dishonoring of God hath made them so pensive. Why, sinners! your carriage grieves the very Spirit of God, "You grieve God at the heart," as it is expressed, Gen. 6:6. And therefore, no wonder if the godly cannot rejoice in your sinful society; you are the cause of their sadness; but admit them once into the company and fellowship of the saints, and they know how to be joyful.

4. If it be so, that usually they are pensive and sad, it is not because of religion, but because they are not more religious; because they find so much want of godliness in their own hearts; this was the cause of Paul's heaviness, Rom. 7:24. "O wretched man that I am, who shall deliver me from the body of this death?" and yet know, that all these sadnesses are true preparatives of joy: and therefore in the very next words, the apostle breaks out into that sweet doxology, "I thank God through Jesus Christ our Lord," Never was true sorrow for sin, but it ended in rejoicings and praises, and thanksgiving to God.

Why then be convinced, ah, deceived souls; say not that God is an hard master, reaping where he sowed not, and gathering where he strawed not; say not that his ways are tedious, and irksome, and uncomfortable ways, but rather taste, and see, and try how good the Lord is; experience the truth of these words, "My yoke is easy, and my burden is light;" what is lighter than that burden, which, instead of burdening, cheers up the party on which it is laid? just like those burdens of cinnamon that refresh those that carry them through the deep sands of Arabia. A holy divine, once endeavoring to convince men of the sweetness and pleasantness of God's ways by his own experiences, "I call heaven and earth to record (saith he) that these things are truths of God; they are not notions or conceits, but certain realities:" another flies somewhat higher, "if men would, in earnest (saith he) abandon the devil's service, and give up their names to Christ in truth, and try, I dare assure them, in the word of life and truth, they would not exchange the saddest hour of all their life afterward with the prime and flower of all their former sensual pleasures, might they have ten thousand worlds to boot;"" her ways are ways of pleasure," saith Solomon, Prov. 3:17.

Use 2. You that are convinced, I beseech you carry on the work of God sweetly, comfortably, and with delight: the Psalmist says, Psal. 1:1, 2. "Blessed is the man that delights in the law of the Lord," And Psal. 119:1. "Blessed are the undefiled in the way, who walk cheerfully in the law of the Lord. And blessed is the man that delighteth greatly in his law." And it was written upon the heart of Christ, Psal. 40:8. "I delight to do thy will, O my God, yea, thy law is within my heart;" as God loves a cheerful giver, so a cheerful server, "Come, take my yoke upon you, (saith Christ) for my yoke is easy;" it is not an iron yoke of bondage, but a chain of heavenly pearls to adorn your souls.

Quest. 1. Oh, but how should we carry on the work, the yoke, the du ty, the practice of piety, and of religion pleasantly? I answer.

Answ. 1. Be sure to keep the heart right and upright within; let all we do be in sincerity, and let all we are, in respect of the inner man, be at peace within; sense and reason can tell us, that according to the temper within, so there is the relishing of things without: he that acts in sincerity, and hath peace within, can easily go through the duties that are required without, with joy and comfort.

2. Exercise faith in the work and office of the Holy Ghost; I mean that

work and office to which the Holy Ghost is designed by the Father and the Son; both to help his people, and to be the comforter of his people. 1. The Holy Ghost is designed to help his people, Rom. 8:26. "Likewise the Spirit helpeth our infirmities;" the word in the original, (sunantilambanetai) doth properly imply such an help, as when another man of strength and ability steppeth in, to sustain the burden that lieth upon weak shoulders; why, this makes Christ's burden light: we do not bear all the weight, for the Holy Ghost puts under his shoulder. 2. The Holy Ghost is de signed to comfort his people, Christ calls him "the Spirit, the Comforter," John 14:26. and 15:26. because he brings in a kind of spiritual joy and spiritual comfort. Mark, it is not a natural, but a spiritual joy: Oh! what a vast difference is there betwixt the comforts of a carnal heart, and the comforts of the godly? The one comes from a little meat, or drink, or crea ture-vanity; but the other comes from the exercise of faith, about the of fice of the Holy Ghost, who is designed to this work. Surely here is the way to carry on duty sweetly and comfortably, and with delight, (i. e.) to be in the exercise of faith on the work and office of the Holy Ghost, as he is our helper and comforter.

3. Understand what is in Christian religion, and in the practice of it to cause delight. As,

1. In every duty and gracious acting of it there is more of the glory of God than in the whole frame of heaven and earth besides: "Herein is my Father glorified, that you bear much fruit," John 15:8. Oh, if we but thus looked at the profession and practice of Christian religion, we could not but take pleasure in it.

2. In every duty and gracious acting of it, there is the seed of glory and eternal life; sometimes there breaks out in the very exercise of duty, a joy in the Holy Ghost, a foretaste of glory; but howsoever there is the seed of glory; and though the seed of glory be not seen, but lie, as it were, under ground dead and unseen, yet in time it will spring up unto eternal life: why, thus look at the practice of religion, and it will be sweeter to us than honey, and the honey-comb; it will be more precious than gold, yea, than much fine gold.

Quest. 2. But how should we know the difference betwixt the natural pleasantness, and this spiritual pleasantness in religion? I know Christians may put a lustre upon the ways of God by their natural pleasantness and cheerfulness of spirit; but because we speak of a spiritual joy and com. fort, and not of a natural, wherein lies the difference? I answer,

Ans. 1. If it be a spiritual pleasantness, it will be serious, Eccl. 2:2. "I have said of laughter, it is mad, and of mirth, what doeth it?" There is much lightness and vanity in such breakings out of natural pleasantness, but in pleasantness spiritual, all is grave, and sober, and exceeding serious.

2. If it be a spiritual pleasantness, it can stand with repentance and humiliation, and the fear of God, Psal. 2:11. "Rejoice with trembling," saith the Psalmist: spiritual rejoicing may consist with trembling: and "Blessed is the man that feareth the Lord, that delighteth greatly in his commandments," Psal. 112:1. The fear of God may consist with these spiritual delights in the commandments of God.

3. If it be spiritual pleasantness, it is our strength, Neh. 8:10. "The joy of the Lord is our strength," saith Nehemiah: nothing animates souls more in duties than joy doth; it carries on the soul more fully: it is as oil, that causeth the wheels of Christian practice to go on more freely: we may be naturally pleasant, and then coming to spiritual duties our hearts are dead, but if our pleasantness be spiritual, our hearts will be strengthened in the ways of God.

LOOKING UNTO JESUS.

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4. If it be a spiritual pleasantness, it will bear up the heart in want of all outward pleasantness, Hab. 3:17,18. "Although the fig-tree shall not blossom, neither shall fruit be in the vines, the labor of the olive shall fail, and the fields shall yield no meat, the flocks shall be cut off from the fold, and there shall be no herd in the stalls, yet I will rejoice in the Lord, I will joy in the God of my salvation." When all is dark abroad in the world, the soul in this frame will rejoice in God alone; on the contrary, soul that hath only a natural pleasantness of spirit, when affliction comes, the it is all amort and down. I appeal to you that have the most delightful spirits, when you have friends and means, and all you like, you are jocund and merry, but when affliction comes, how quickly are your spirits down? Surely your pleasantness is not spiritual, for, if so, it would bear up your hearts joyful in affliction.

And now again "the passover, a feast of the Jews, was nigh," John 6: 4. Our English annotations on these words, can tell us, That this seems "to be the third passover after Christ's baptism." (So Aretius, and others.) And therefore here I conclude the third year of Christ's ministry: there is but one year more before Christ's death, to which now I come, and to some passages therein, most observable, in reference to our souls' salvation.

CHAPTER IV.

SECT. 1. Of the fourth year of Christ's Ministry, and generally of his actings in that year.

THIS was the last year of Christ's ministry, in which were thousands of passages: The evangelist John relates more of Christ this year than in all the former, and if I studied not brevity, we might dwell more on his actings for us this year, than hitherto we have done from the beginning of his ministry: now it was that he was transfigured, now it was that he instituted that sacrament called "the Lord's supper," now it was that after supper, he made his farewell sermon, rarely mixt of sadness and joys, and studded with mysteries as with emeralds: now it was that after sermon he blessed his disciples and prayed for them; and then having sung an hymn, he went out into the mount of Olives, where, in a garden he began his sufferings. On these passages I thought to have enlarged, but I see the book swells under my hands, and now that I am drawing near Christ's sufferings, I shall only touch one point, which hitherto I have pretermitted, and is the most comprehensive of any passage I can touch.

Many questions are about the holiness, or righteousness, or obedience. of Christ; as, whether it belongs to us? And whether it be the matter of our justification? And, whether Christ was bound to observe the law of works, as a Mediator, or only as a mere man? And whether we are not justified by the passive righteousness of Christ only? And seeing now we are discovering Christ's actings, in reference to our soul's salvation, we cannot pass this main business, whereof much relates to Christ's life, as well as to his conception, or birth, or death, or sufferings.

SECT. II.

Of the Distinctions, or several Divisions of Christ's righteous

ness.

For the better understanding of Christ's righteousness, we usually distinguish, that Christ's righteousness is either that righteousness inherent in him, or performed by him: the righteousness performed by him, is

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either his fulfilling the commandments, or his satisfying the curse of the law. The same distinction is given by others, in these terms, Christ's righteousness is either his original conformity, or his active and passive obedience unto the law: his original conformity, is that gracious inherent disposition in Christ, from the first instant of his conception, whereby he was habitually conformable to the law; and this original righteousness an swered for our original unrighteousness? his active obedience, is his do ing of legal obedience unto the command; and his passive obedience, is his suffering of punishment due unto us for our sins. I shall yet a little further enlarge this distinction of the righteousness of Christ, and give it in thus, viz. The righteousness of Christ, is either negative, (if I may so speak) or positive. By the negative, I understand the absence of all sins and vices forbidden in the law. By the positive, I mean both a presence of all virtues and duties required to the perfect fulfilling of the law, as also a voluntary suffering of the penalty, to satisfy the commination and curse of the law.

1. The negative righteousness, is that which we call the innocency of Christ: we read often in scriptures, that he was both blameless and spot. less. 1. Blameless, free in himself from all imputation of sin: to this pur pose Christ challenged the Jews, John 8:46. "Which of you convinceth me of sin?" In all his life he was unblamable and unreprovable; and there. fore now, towards the end of his life, he asks the people with whom he had conversed, Which of you convinceth me of sin? 2. Spotless, free from all infection of sin. Peter calls him, 1 Pet. 1:9. "A Lamb without blemish and without spot." And Paul, Heb. 7:26. “An high Priest, ho ly, harmless, and undefiled;" one who never did evil; nor spake evil: "he did no sin (saith the apostle) neither was guile found in his mouth," 2 Pet. 2:22. One who never offended so much as in thought, but was absolutely, and in all respects (choris amartias) " without all sin," Heb. 4:15.

2. The positive righteousness of Christ is two fold, his perfect fulfilling of all things commanded, and his perfect satisfying of the punishment threatened: the former is the holiness of Christ; this also is two fold, the holiness of his nature, and the holiness of his life and conversation: the former is that we call his habitual righteousness; the latter is that we call his actual obedience. And thus much of the distinction of the righteousness of Christ.

SECT. III. Of the Holiness of Christ's nature.

Now, in the first place, for the holiness of his nature, the Psalmist tells us, Psal. 45:2. "Thou art fairer than the children of men, and grace is poured into thy lips." Which is all one with that description of Christ by the spouse, Sol. Song 5:10. "My beloved is white and ruddy, the chiefest of ten thousands." As in the fairest beauty, there is a mixture of these two colors of white and ruddy, so in Christ there is a gracious mixture and compound of all the graces of the Spirit: there is in him a sweet temper of gentleness, purity, righteousness, meekness, humility, and what not? Col. 2:3. "In him are hid all the treasures of wisdom and knowledge:" and I may add, of all other gifts and graces; not a grace but it was in Christ, and that in a higher way than in any saint in the world, and there. fore he is called "fairer than all the children of men." Observe, "there was more habitual grace in Christ than ever was, or is, or shall be in all the elect, whether angels or men." He received the spirit out of measure; there was in him as much as possibly could be in a creature, and more than in all other creatures whatsoever. As the sun is the prince of stars,

as the husband is the head of the wife, as the lion 13 king of the beasts, so is this Sun of righteousness, this head of the church, this lion of the tribe of Judah, "the chiefest of ten thousands." If we look at any thing in heaven or earth, that we observe as eminently fair, by that is the Lord Jesus in respect of his inward beauty set forth in scriptures, "He is the Sun of righteousness, the bright morning star, the light of the world, the tree of life, the lily and the rose;" fairer than all the flowers of the field, than all the precious stones of the earth, than all the lights in the firmament, than all the saints and angels in heaven.

You will say, What is all this to us? Certainly much every way; the apostle tells you, Rom. 8:2. "That the law of the Spirit of life, which is in Christ Jesus, hath freed me from the law of sin and death:" let us inquire into these words, "the law of the Spirit of life;" the Spirit of life is here put for life as elsewhere, "After three days and an half, the Spirit of life coming from God shall enter into them," Rev. 11:11. Now, life is that whereby a thing acteth and moveth itself, and it is the cause and beginning of action and motion: and this "Spirit of life," or life itself, be ing here applied to Christ, it is that in Christ, which is the beginning and cause of all his holy actions, and what was that but his original holiness, or the holiness of his human nature; but why is the holiness of Christ's nature called "the Spirit of life?" I answer, 1. Becuuse it was infused into his manhood by the Spirit of God, "The Holy Ghost shall come upon thee, therefore also that holy thing which shall be born of thee shall be called the Son of God," Luke 1:35. 2. Because it is a most exact, and absolute, and perfect holiness; the scripture-phrase setting out things in perfection or fulness, usually adds the word spirit unto them; as the spi rit of pride, the spirit of truth, and the spirit of error; so then the mean. ing of the Spirit of life is all one with the most absolute and most perfect purity and holiness of the nature of Christ. It is briefly as if the apostle had said, The law of the Spirit of life, or the power of the most absolute and perfect holiness of the nature of Christ, "hath freed me from the law of sin and death;" hath acquitted me from the power of my sinful nature, and from the power of death due to me, in respect of my sinful and cor rupt nature. We might draw from hence this conclusion, "That the benefits of Christ's habitual righteousness infused at his first conception, is imputed to believers to their justification." As the obedience of his life, and the merit of his death, so the holiness infused at his very con ception, hath its influence into our justification, it is by the obedience of his life, that we are accounted actually holy, and by the purity of his con. ception, (or habitual grace) that we are accounted personally holy. But I must not stay here; thus much of the holiness of Christ's nature.

SECT. IV. Of the Holiness of Christ's Life.

2. For the holiness of Christ's life, the apostle tells us, "That by the obedience of one, many shall be made righteous," Rom. 5:19. Here is the obedience of Christ, and its influence on us. 1. The obedience of Christ, is that whereby he continued in all things written in the book of the law to do them; observe, Christ's life was a visible commentary on God's law. For proof, Matth. 5:17. "Think not that I am come to de stroy the law, or the prophets, (saith Christ) but to fulfil them." And, John 8:29. "The Father hath not left me alone, (saith Christ) for I do always those things that please him." Hence Christ in the scripture is called, Acts 3:14. " Holy and just," and Acts 2:27. "The holy One," Dan. 9:24. "The most holy." By his actual holiness Christ fulfilled in

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