a sinner is not justified as long as he continues in sin; and a sinner is justified when he repents, and when he is pardoned; and an innocent person is justified when he is declared to be no criminal; and a righteous man is justified when he is saved; and a weak Christian is justified when his imperfect services are accepted for the present, and himself thrust forward to more grace; and he that is justified may be justified more; and every man that is justified to one purpose, is not so to all; and faith, in divers senses, gives justification in as many; and, therefore, though to every sense of faith there is not always a degree of justification in any, yet when the faith is such that justification is the product and correspondent, as that faith may be imperfect, so the justification is but begun, and either must proceed further, or else, as the faith will die, so the justification will come to nothing. The like observation might be made concerning imputation, and all the words used in this question; but these may suffice till I pass to other particulars.

4. Not only the word faith,' but also charity,' and 'godliness,' and religion,' signify sometimes particular graces; and sometimes they suppose universally, and mean conjugations and unions of graces, as is evident to them that read the Scriptures with observation. Now when justification is attributed to faith, or salvation to godliness, they are to be understood in the aggregate sense: for, that I may give but one instance of this, when St. Paul speaks of faith as it is a particular grace, and separate from the rest, he also does separate it from all possibility of bringing us to heaven: "Though I have all faith, so that I could remove mountains, and have not charity, I am nothing" when faith includes charity, it will bring us to heaven; when it is alone, when it is without charity, it will do nothing at all.

5. Neither can this pawóμevov be solved by saying, that though faith alone does justify, yet when she does justify, she is not alone, but good works must follow; for this is said to no purpose:

1. Because if we be justified by faith alone, the work is done, whether charity does follow or no; and, therefore, that want of charity cannot hurt us.

e 1 Cor. xiii. 2.

2. There can be no imaginable cause why charity and obedience should be at all necessary, if the whole work can be done without it.

3. If obedience and charity be not a condition of our salvation, then it is not necessary to follow faith; but if it be, it does as much as faith, for that is but a part of the condition.

4. If we can be saved without charity and keeping the commandments, what need we trouble ourselves for them? If we cannot be saved without them, then either faith without them does not justify; or if it does, we are never the better, for we may be damned for all that justification.

The consequent of these observations is briefly this :1. That no man should fool himself by disputing about the philosophy of justification, and what causality faith hath in it, and whether it be the act of faith that justifies, or the habit? Whether faith as a good work, or faith as an instrument? Whether faith as it is obedience, or faith as it is an access to Christ? Whether as a hand, or as a heart? Whether by its own innate virtue, or by the efficacy of the object? Whether as a sign, or as a thing signified? Whether by introduction, or by perfection? Whether in the first beginnings, or in its last and best productions? Whether by inherent worthiness, or adventitious imputations? "Uberiùs ista, quæso:" (that I may use the words of Cicero d) "hæc enim spinosiora, prius, ut confitear, me cogunt, quam ut assentiar:" these things are knotty, and too intricate to do any good; they may amuse us, but never instruct us; and they have already made men careless and confident, disputative and troublesome, proud and uncharitable, but neither wiser nor better. Let us, therefore, leave these weak ways of troubling ourselves or others, and directly look to the theology of it, the direct duty, the end of faith, and the work of faith, the conditions and the instruments of our salvation, the just foundation of our hopes, how our faith can destroy our sin, and how it can unite us unto God; how by it we can be made partakers of Christ's death, and imitators of his life. For since it is evident, by the premises, that this article is not to be determined or relied upon by

d Tuscul. i. 8. Davis.

arguing from words of many significations, we must walk by a clearer light, by such plain sayings and dogmatical propositions of Scripture, which evidently teach us our duty, and place our hopes upon that which cannot deceive us, that is, which require obedience, which call upon us to glorify God, and to do good to men, and to keep all God's commandments with diligence and sincerity.

For since the end of our faith is, that we may be disciples and servants of the Lord Jesus, advancing his kingdom here, and partaking of it hereafter; since we are commanded to believe what Christ taught, that it may appear as reasonable as it is necessary to do what he hath commanded; since faith and works are in order one to the other, it is impossible that evangelical faith and evangelical works should be opposed one to the other in the effecting of our salvation. So that as it is to no purpose for Christians to dispute whether we are justified by faith or the works of the law, that is, the covenant of works, without the help of faith and the auxiliaries and allowances of mercy on God's part, and repentance on ours; because no Christian can pretend to this,-so it is perfectly foolish to dispute whether Christians are to be justified by faith, or the works of the Gospel; for I shall make it appear that they are both the same thing. No man disparages faith but he that says, faith does not work righteousness; for he that says so, says indeed it cannot justify; for he says that faith is alone it is 'faith only,' and the words of my text are plain: "You see," saith St. James, that is, it is evident to your sense, it is as clear as an ocular demonstration," that a man is justified by works, and not by faith only."

My text hath in it these two propositions; a negative and an affirmative. The negative is this, 1. By faith only' a man is not justified. The affirmative, 2. 'By works also' a man is justified.

When I have briefly discoursed of these, I shall only add such practical considerations as shall make the doctrines useful, and tangible, and material.

1. By faith only a man is not justified. By faith only, here is meant, faith without obedience. For what do we think of those that detain the faith in unrighteousness? They have faith, they could not else keep it in so ill a cabinet: but yet the apostle reckons them amongst the reprobates; for

the abominable, the reprobates, and the disobedient, are all one; and, therefore, such persons, for all their faith, shall have no part with faithful Abraham: for none are his children but they that do the works of Abraham. Abraham's faith, without Abraham's works, is nothing; for of him "that hath faith, and hath not works," St. James asks, “Can faith save him?' meaning, that it is impossible. For what think we of those, that did miracles in Christ's name, and in his name cast out devils? Have not they faith? Yes, omnem fidem,' all faith,' that is, alone, for they could remove mountains:' but yet to many of them Christ will say, " Depart from me, ye workers of iniquity; I know you not." Nay, at last, what think we of the devils themselves? Have not they faith? Yes; and this faith is not fides miraculorum' neither; but it is an operative faith, it works a little; for it makes them tremble; and it may be, that is more than thy faith does to thee: and yet dost thou hope to be saved by a faith that does less to thee than the devil's faith does to him? That is impossible. For "faith without works is dead," saith St. James. It is manus arida,' saith St. Austin; it is a withered hand;'—and that which is dead cannot work the life of grace in us, much less obtain eternal life for us. In short, a man may have faith, and yet do the works of unrighteousness; he may have faith and be a devil; and then what can such a faith do to him or for him? It can do him no good in the present constitution of affairs. St. Paul, from whose mistaken words much noise hath been made in this question, is clear in this particular: "Nothing in Christ Jesus can avail, but faith working by charity f;" that is, as he expounds himself once and again, "nothing but a new creature, nothing but keeping the commandments of God." If faith be defined to be any thing that does not change our natures, and make us to be a new creation unto God; if keeping the commandments be not in the definition of faith, it avails nothing at all. Therefore deceive not yourselves; they are the words of our blessed Lord himself: "Not every one that saith unto me, Lord, Lord," that is, not every one that confesses Christ, and believes in him, calling Christ Master and Lord, shall be saved; " but he that doth the will

⚫ Chap. ii. 14.

VOL. VI.

f Gal. v. 6.

T

Gal. vi. 15. 1 Cor. vii. 19.

of my Father which is in heaven." These things are so plain, that they need no commentary; so evident, that they cannot be denied and to these I add but this one truth; that faith alone without a good life is so far from justifying a sinner, that it is one of the greatest aggravations of his condemnation in the whole world. For no man can be so greatly damned as he that hath faith; for unless he knows his Master's will, that is, by faith be convinced, and assents to the revelations of the will of God, he can be beaten but with few stripes:' but he that believes, hath no excuse; he is avтonaтángitos, condemned by the sentence of his own heart,' and, therefore, onλaì πnyai, many stripes,' the greater condemnation shall be his portion. Natural reason is a light to the conscience, but faith is a greater; and, therefore, if it be not followed, it damns deeper than the hell of the infidels and uninstructed. And so I have done with the negative proposition of my text; a man is not justified by faith alone, that is, by faith which hath not in it charity and obedience.

2. If faith alone will not do it, what will? The affirmative part of the text answers; not faith alone; but works must be an ingredient: "a man is justified by works;" and that is now to be explicated and proved. It will be absolutely to no purpose to say that faith alone does justify, if, when a man is justified, he is never the nearer to be saved. Now that without obedience no man can go to heaven, is so evident in holy Scripture, that he that denies it, hath no faith. "There is no peace, saith my God, unto the wicked;" and I will not justify a sinneri," saith God; unless faith purges away our sins, it can never justify. Let a man believe all the revelations of God; if that belief ends in itself, and goes no further, it is like physic taken to purge the stomach; if it do not work, it is so far from bringing health, that itself is a new sickness. Faith is a great purger and purifier of the soul," purifying your hearts by faith," saith the apostle. It is the best physic in the world for a sinful soul; but if it doesnot work, it corrupts in the stomach, it makes us to rely upon weak propositions and trifling confidences, it is but a dreaming μετὰ πολλῆς φαντασίας, ' a phantastic dream, and introduces pride or superstition, swelling thoughts and presumptions of