. Covenimt of Grace~ - 23 ' Pfalm xi. 6. c Sacrifice and offering thou didfi not defire.' 1 Theff. v. 9, 10. ' Jefus Chrifi, who died r for us, that-we fhould live.~ But, how could an effectual conditional covenant for life, be made with dead finners, otherwife than a reprefentative ? Dead fouls cannot perform any condition for life at all,which can be plea{ing to God. They mufi needs have life, before they can do any thing of that natu-re ; be it ne– ver fo fmall a condition : therefore a conditional co– venant for life, could not be made with finners in their own perfon ; efpecially confidering, that the conditi– ons for life, were fo high, that man, at his befi frate, w~s not able to perform them. Wherefore, if fuch a covenant was made at al.l, it behaved to be made wit~ Chrifi as their reprefentative, Rom. viii. 3, 4· Thirdly, It was fo ordered, to the end it might be, 'Unto us poor finners, a covenant of grace imdeed. 'Tis evident fro!ll the holy Scriptures, that this cove– nant was defign'd for exalting the free grace of God ; and that 'tis {()framed,as to be a covenant of pure grace, and not of works, in refpeCl: of us, wha~ever it was in refpeCl: of Chrifl:, Rom. iv. 16. ' Therefore it is of f~it~, that it might be by GRACE.' Eph. ii. 9· ' Not of WORKs, let any man £hould BoAsT.' And at this rate indeed, it is a covenant of pure grace; and all ground of¥7oafling is taken away from us; the Lord Jefus Chrifi himfelf, as a reprefentative, being fole ·undertaker and performer of the conditions thereof. lipt it is not fo, if it is made with the finner himfelf, - fianding as principal party, contracting with God, ancf undertaking and performisg the conditions of the co– venant for life; for, how low foever thefe conditions, undertaken and wrought by the finner in his own per– !on,- are fuppofed to be, the promife of the covenant IS made to them : and fo, according to the Scripture reckoning, 'tis a covenant of works, Rom. iv. 4-- ' Now to him that W ORKETH, is the r eward not reckoned of grace, but of d~bt ~· a11d 'twixt Adam's 'ove•
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