Ambrose - Houston-Packer Collection BX5200 .A49 1674

J.Lool.itng unto jjefu.s. Book IV. 205 Cornrnandmem, and another thing to fuffer the punilhment; fo it is one ~hing to be freed from Hell by Chrifl his fuffermg the penalty, and another thtng to be mmle~ to Heaven, by Chritl his fulfilling the Commandments: .3: They except, that G~d ts a moll free Agent, and therefore he mJy tf he will, JUlhh·e men by the paffive nghteoufne_fs of Cbrifl only, without fulfilhng of the Law. Anfw. What God may do, tf he ~>:Ill, I will not difpute, but fure I am, that he juflifiet_h men according to. his will revealed in JJis Word . and there we find, that as we are JUf!tfied from our fms by the blood of Chrifl, fo ;lfo we are made jufl by the ~aive (though not only by the aCtive) obedience of Chrifl ; For ,,.. by one mans difobedicncc many were made finners, fo by the obedi- Rorn. >• '9· tnce of one jhall many be_ m_,ade-righteous. A~d if whe~ we were enemies, wewer~re.conciled 1\,om, s. 10, to God by the death of h,; :>on, !mtCh more bemg r~conctled_we fhal! be Javed by hu l~fe: by his life which he lived before Ius death, and by lns life whtch he hvcd, and doth hveafter his death ; by the acts of his life before his death ~·Jeritorioully, and by the acts of his "life afrer his death (as by Ins refurrectton, afcenhon, feffion, and mterceffion) effe- ~'tuatly . Chrift •! made nnt• '"of God ( f:rith t~le Apoflte) both redemption and rightc- 1 Clor. ,; 30 oufne(s: redemption to deliver us from fin ; ~ndngtueoufnefs to.bring i': everlafting righ- Dan. 9· 24, tcoufnefs. .4· They except~ thatJf we arqulbfied by Ch.nll:·h" fulfilhng the Law, then we are juflliied by a legal nghteoufnefs, but we are not JUfltfied by a legal nghteoufnefs, but by fuch a righteoufnefs as without the Law is revealed in the Gofpet. Anjiv. The fame righteoufnefs !Jy which we are jufhfied, is both legal and evangelical in divers refpeC!s; kgal in rcfpect of Chrifl, who being made under the Law, that he might . redeem os who were under the Law, perfectly fulfilled the Law for us; and evangelical in refpeCl: of us unto whom his fulfilling of the Law is imputed. And hereinflands both the agreement and difference_betwixt the Law a~d the G_ofpet; the agreem~nt, in that both require theperfeCl: fulfillmg of the Law unto J~fl,fieauon; the dtfference 111, that the Law reqttireth perteCl: obedtence to ·be performed m our own perfons; but the Gofpel accepts of perfect obedience performed by Chrifl our furety and imputed to us ; and fo it is all one as if it had been performed in our own perfons. 2. If Chrifl by his conformity to the Law fulfilled tbe Law for us, then are we jufli– fied by his habitual and actual righteoufnefs, and not meerty by his paffive ; but Chrill: by hi1 conformity to the Law, fulfilled the Law for us; for fo we read, HewM born fur Luke'·"· 1 u, Luke 2. I 1. He WM made fubjefl to the Law for~es, Gal. 4· 4, 5· and for our fakJs Gal. 4· ••f• he fan[/ified himfelf, John I 7. I9· and for OUt' fakes he did the Will of God, Then (aid John 1 7· 19· ], foe I comerodothy rvi/l 0 God; by the rvhichwillwe are J.;tnflijied, P!eb. 10.7. IO. Heb.I<>·7· 10 ' Againll: this ore divers exceptions: As, I. Ttm Chrifl obeyed the Law, or conform– ed to the Law (as need was) for himfelf, Chrift (fay they) M he w.u aman, "'"' bousd to obey the Law for himfelf. Anjiv. This Affertion decra~s from the merit of his obe– dience, and from the dignity of his P~rfon. I. From his merit, for if his obedience were of duty, then it were not* meritorious, Luk! 17. \0. and if this be true, then •vebiwm ••• have we no title to Heaven. 2. From the dignity of his Perfon, as if he needed either ejl m"i'"m. to obey for himfelf, or by his obedience were any way bettered il) himfdf. 0 that thefe men would remembet· that t~e Perfon who did obey the Law was, and is, not only, man, but God alfo; Chrifl fulfilled the Law not only as man, but as God-man, Mediator; and therefore as his blood was Gods blood, fo his obedience was the obedience of God, Who being in the form of God, thought it no robbery to be eqseal with God.--And being Alls '~· 28< found in fafl,ion "' a mtm, he humbled himfeif, aud became obedient llntodeatb, or uHti[l'hil. 2. 6.s, death. We find him here God-mm; and from hence we conclude that all the legal actions of Chrifl from his Incarnation to his Paffion inclufivdy, were theadions of Cbrill: God-man, Mediator, and Surety for us in a way of covenant; and confequently they were not performed of duty, nor forhimfelf. 2. They except, that if Chriflobeyed the Law for us, that by his obedience we might be juflified', then lltall_not we our fetves need to obey the Law; but the Confequent is abfurd, therefore the Amecedent. Anfiv. yve ne~d not to obey the Law to that end, that we m~y be juflified thereby, for this is tmpolhble to us by reafon of the Bell, and therefore our Saviour fulfilled it for us· and yet it follows not but that we may end~avour to obey the Law for other ends; as t~ glo– nfie God, to obey his Will, to teftifie our thankfutnefs, ta edifie our brethren, to af– fure our felves of our juflification, and fo to make our calling and eledion fure: in this iludy and practife of piety confi[\eth our new ob~diente, which we muO therefore be careful to perform, thooglt Chriil: ~s to juflification hath performed it for us. 3. They except, that i! Chrifl by his active obedience fulfilled the Law for us, and that fo we are - - ·· · - juflificd

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