The vindication of Christ and his ordinances: from the corrupt and false glosses made thereon by the subtil and deceivers of these times. By Christopher Pooly, minister of the word at great Missingham, in Norfolk.

The truth of Faith, AND Believing, manifested.

BEcause the Apostle saith, therfore we conclude that man is justified by faith, without the works of the Law, and the like otherwhere. Some take it, and hold forth, that a man is justified and made righte∣ous by his faith by believing. That he was not be∣fore his faith righteous before God; it is his faith that doth him that good to make him righteous with God, before faith, he is an unjust man, a wicked and ungodly man, and one of the children of wrath before God, without mercy and for∣givenesse of sin before faith and repentance performed of him. There is no justification of man before God, before Faith.

This taking and holding forth of this Scripture, although it seem to these to be according to the history, yet it is quite contra∣ry to the mystery of faith, and of Christ (as the Apostle calleth it:) For it crosseth all the most clear and comfortable Scriptures of Gods free grace and love in Christ to corrupt weak and sinfull man before the world. As also the Scriptures of Gods everlasting love to those he pleased before the world and in continuance. And the Scriptures of Gods election of those which he pleased and lo∣ved, out of the company of the children of wrath before the foundations of the world in Gods sight, to be holy and without blame before him for ever in love. And the Scriptures of Gods predestination to adoption through Christ, and ordination to eter∣nall blisse before the world of those which he elected in Christ be∣fore the world. And further, of his calling, justifying and glori∣fying of those which he predestinated before himself, before the world (as the Scripture speaks.) And the Scripture of the Pro∣phet

Esay, that saith, God hath laid the iniquities of us all upon Christ (meaning of the Elect) not that he will (saith the Prophet) but hath done it before the world, when he loved, elected, and ad∣opted his Elect, &c.

And it crosseth the Scripture, which saith, that Christ justifieth the ungodly, which must needs be understood of such as were un∣godly, & the children of wrath by the first general sin, who (being elected before the world out of the same company, to be holy and without blame before God in love, ordained to eternal life, and adopted Gods children) are then justified before God, although in themselves and before men, they be still ungodly, corrupt, sinfull and carnall, as Paul said he was in his best estate, I am carnall, sold under sin: Paul could not be loved of God, elected in Christ, and adopted to be Gods child, ordained to eternall life before the world, and be the child of wrath, and unjustified before God still, although he did sin in the flesh before men. And it crosseth the Scripture of the same place, where it is said, A man is justified by Faith without the works of the Law.

To Believe is a work of the Commandement of the Law, as, to love, fear, obey, to be humble, meek, sober, and temperate, are works of the Commandements of the Law, and Faith and Belie∣ving done, then is the work of the Law, as loving, fearing, obey∣ing, humiliation, meeknesse, sobernesse, and temperance, and the rest of that sort commanded to man in the law of works, as Paul instances, are all works of the law, so that if a man be justified and made righteous before by his faith and believing commanded, he is justified by the works of the law, which (the Apostle saith) no man, no flesh wall be justified by. And here he saith, A man is justified by faith without the works of the law.

Certainly no man is justified by any work of his own, not be∣cause if he did the work commanded righteously, the just God would not justifie him therefore: but because no man doth or can do the work of the law commanded righteously, therefore no man is justified (saith the Apostle) by the works of the Law.

But (they say) faith and repentance are works of the Evangeli∣call law, and the commandements thereof are the commande∣ments of the Evangelicall law to be performed of man.

Solut. if these take the Evangelicall law to command faith and rep••ntance to believe and ••••pent in the ••orm of the law and covenant of works to be performed of man before God, then

they are the works of the law, by which no man can be justified before God. But if they take this Evangelicall law (as the term holds it forth indeed) to be the law and commandement of the covenant of grace, whereof Christ the gracious undertaker for the elect of God, did undertake to do the whole will of God for them, when he said, Lo I come to do thy will O God: And that Christ hath done, doth, and ever will do the same of the law, com∣mandement and covenant of grace for the elect of God, which are not, nor were ever able to do any part thereof sithence the fall of man▪ and that Christ hath fully performed all to be perform∣ed in himself already, to the full satisfaction of God for the justification, peace and salvation of the elect; so that they are justified before God, and have peace with God, as the Apostle saith, being justified by his blood we shall be saved from his wrath through Christ. And Christ died for our sins and rose a∣again for our justification; therefore the elect are justified before they believe, then, when Christ rose again before God: and God loved Iacob before he was born, or had done good or evill before men, therefore Jacob was justified before God before he was born, for God could not love him being still the child of wrath, wicked and unrighteous before him: and God elected Paul and the rest in Christ before the world to be holy and without blame before him; they could not have been holy and without blame before God, which God elected them unto, if they had not then been justified before God. They could not be elected out of the children of wrath, and be still 〈◊〉〈◊〉 children of wrath before God: they could could not be elected to be holy and without blame before God, and be wicked and unjustified before God still. And when God predestinated those he pleased to eternall life, he then called, ju∣stified and glorified them before himself, saith the Apostle.

How then can these hold forth that a man is justified and made righteous by faith, that it is faith that doth him that good that there is no justification to man, before faith.

And if they take it, that Christ the gracious undertaker for the elect, in the Evangelicall law, or covenant of grace, hath not only done the will of God, and performed all to be performed, in him∣self, for the justification of the elect, but also hath done, doth and will do the will of Mod to the end in the elect, in inlighten∣ing their dark hearts and souls by his spirit sent unto them, and in manifesting and witnessing by his spirit to their hearts and soules,

that they are the children of God, elected in Christ, ordained to eternall life, and justified before God by Christs performances, and the free grace and love of God in Gods sight before the world, and in giving understanding, knowledge and believing to their dead hearts and souls, of their justification, and the rest, wrought for them by Christ, as David said, Give me understanding and I shall live, that is, I shall know that I live in Christ, and that Christ li∣veth in me: then they must needs take it that the performances of Christ in the elect are but the witnesses and manifestations of the performances of Christ in himself for the justification of his elect, not their justifying. Christ saith, I am the vine, and he saith to his elect, you are the branches. The fruit of the vine, there bred, is conveighed by the spirits of the vine to the branches, the branches bear the fruits of the vine, and hold them forth as instruments pre∣pared and fitted of the vine and spirits thereof.

The fruits that the branches bear and hold forth are not the fruits of the branches, bred of the branches, but the fruits of the vine (so Christ called them, Luke 22. 18.) bred of the vine, and conveighed by the spirits thereof to the branches to be born and held forth. The branches cannot bear nor hold forth any good fruit without the vine, and the spirits of the vine: And the good fruits do shew and manifest the good vine, whereof they are bred, and that the branches that did bear them did abide in the vine.

So the fruits of the spirit, as love, joy, peace, faith &c. are bred of Christ, and conveighed by the spirit of Christ to the elect bran∣ches of the vine Christ, and the elect (as Christ pleaseth to do the will of God in them as his branches) do bear and hold them forth. But the fruits of the spirit are not bred of the elect, but of Christ, & by his spirit conveighed to them, and therefore called the fruits of the spirit, to be born and held forth by them, as fitted branches and instruments of Christ the vine, and his spirit; and the elect cannot beare them of themselves, without Christ and his spirit breed them and conveigh them; and therefore Christ faith, VVith∣out me you can do nothing: that is, you cannot bear the fruits, nor hold them forth without me; and the fruits of the spirit, born and held forth in man do witnesse and evidence Christ in him that bare them, and do also witnesse that that man is elected in Christ, and a∣bideth in Christ the vine (as the Apostle saith) his spirit witnesses, and faith is the evidence of things not seen.

All that which Christ doth of the will of God in the elect, doth

not justifie them, or make them the children of God, but onely doth witness and manifest to them that they are justified and made the children of God, by the performances done in himself, and that (of grace) by the imputation of his Righteousness, and the Righteousness of his performances in himself to them, they are made Righteous, the children of God, and saved.

As it is said, Abraham believed God, and it was imputed to him for Righteousness.

It could not be Abraham's believing according to the Com∣mandment of the law of Works, that was imputed to him for Righteousness, for Abraham, no doubt, was a corrupt sinful man, as all the Elect are in themselves, and and his believing was cor∣rupt and sinful as himself was; and God that did never call evil good, did never impute sin for Righteoulness; and if Abrahams Righteousness had been of his believing according to the Com∣mandement, then it had been of his works that he was justified; contrary to the Scripture.

The faith and believing, the fruit of the spirit of Christ, that Abraham did bear, as a branch of the Vine Christ, did onely wit∣ness and manifest to him that he was justified by Christ, and his performances they did not justifie him; But Abraham being one of Gods Elect in Christ, for whom Christ had undertaken, and in himself performed all Righteousness before God, it, that is the Righteousness of Christs performances was imputed to him for Righteousness by grace.

The Elect in Christ, the Adopted through Christ, those who are ordained to eternal life, whose sins were laid upon Christ from the beginning, which Christ hath performed all for in him∣self, to the full satisfaction of God, are justified before God, before Faith, before they believe, (of grace) by the imputation of Christs Righteousness to them: Their work of Faith cannot justi∣fie them, the grace of Faith wrought in them by the spirit of Christ doth not justifie them, but witness and•• manifest that they are justified by the Righteousness of Christs performances for them in himself.

The Elect of God in Christ are justified by the imputation of Christs Righteousness to them of free grace, and this is the blessed∣ness of Faith the Prophets and Apostles held forth to them.

Ob. But the deceiving spirit and the deceived will object, that these predecations and and openings of Faith, are a great deroga∣tion

and undervaluing of faith, which in the history of the Scrip∣tures is so highly extolled to have done, and do great things for man, and that man hath done great things by faith; a man (faith the Apostle) is justified by faith; Christ saith to the woman, Thy faith hath saved thee; by faith Peter walked upon the Sea, untill he doubted; by faith, faith the Apostle, the just shall live, Abel, E∣noch, Noah, Abraham, Jsaac, Jacob, Joseph, Moses did great things by faith; by faith the walls of Jericho were overthrowne, and fell down.

An. All these and the rest spoken of the faith of Gods Elect in the Scriptures, do not intend to shew, that by the power of Faith these great things are or were done, but to shew, that these great things done of, and by the power of our great God and his good∣nesse were made known to them, manifested, evidenced, and wit∣nessed to them, when they believed them so done of him. Joshua and the Priests did believe the Walls of Jericho fell downe by the power of God, the walls fell not downe by their believing, al∣though they were not down to them before they believed the same. The woman believed that she was saved by the mercy and performance of Jesus Christ, she was not saved by the power of her believing, yet she knew not her self saved untill she believed it. So a man that believeth that he is justified by Christ, and the righ∣teousnesse of his performance, imputed to him, is not justified to himself; before his believing he knoweth not that he is justified, untill he believe••h it. His believing is the first Gospell Messenger that bringeth to him the glad tidings of his Justification by Christ, and his righteousnesse, yet not justified by his believing: and this is the reason why Faith is so much extolled in the history of Scrip∣tures. If a man were in the prison of a dark dungeon, and there should come a messenger to him, and assure him of his inlarge∣ment, and to be setled in a Kingdome, would he not ever make much of, and extol this messenger that brought him this first good tidings? Faith is the first Messenger of Christ that he sendeth to poor corrupt man (sitting in darknesse and the shadow of death) of his inlargement, of his Justification, Adoption and Salvation in the heavenly Kingdom; this Faith therefore must needs be high∣ly extolled of all men, and all the Penmen of Christ.

Yet it may not be Idolized, set up above our God, Christ, nor equalized to or before Christ, to justifie a man before God, which is only in the power of Christ, and the gracious work of Christ.

This is Antichrist, the man of sin that doth this, it is therefore the deceiving Spirit, and those which are deceived, that hold forth, that it is faith that first justifieth a man, and maketh a man righte∣ous before God, and that doth him that good.

Ob. But the deceiving Spirit, and the deceived, do further object; By the grace of Christ, by the help of Christ, Christ strengthning me, I am able to do the ••ommandement of the Law of God, that commandeth me to believe, to love, to repent, &c. so Paul said (say they) I am able to do all things through the help of Christ that strengthneth me.

Ans. Paul said the truth, that he (being a Branch of the Vine Christ) was able by the help of Christ the Vine to bear, and hold forth the fruit of the Spirit of Christ (being strengthned by Christ) as faith, love, repentance, and the rest; but not to be the worker and doer of the fruits of the Spirit, faith, love, and repentance, which belongeth to Christ and his Spirit only (as the Apostle saith) Jesus is the author and finisher of our faith, and the rest, that we bear and hold forth by his help and strengthning: Paul said he was able to do all things by the help and strengthning of Christ, belonging to the branch and instrument of Christ, to bear and hold forth love, faith, repentance, and the rest of the works of the will and commandement of God wrought up in him by Christ the undertaker and his Spirit to be born and held forth of him, & other branches, & these are the all things intended of Paul.

Man cannot do, nor be a doer of the will and Commandement of God, (as to believe, love, repent, and the rest) by the help and strengthning of Christ; for if he could, and should do, or be a doer of the work, he should have wages, and might challenge a debt of God, a share in the work: To him saith the Apostle that worketh, the wages is not accounted off vor or grace, but of debt.

Now the Apostle saith, all the goodnesse of God to man is of grace, not of debt for his work & doing of the wil and Comman∣dement of God: we (saith he) are justified freely by his grace, by the grace of God I am that I am (saith Paul) by Christs grace ye are saved (saith Paul) And Paul said, I find no means to perform that which is good, that is▪ no help, no strengthning by Christ to perform the will and commandement of God, which Christ hath undertaken to do, and which only is able to do the same, J am carnall sold under sin, the good which I would do, that J do not, and the evill which J would not do, that J do; when J would do good, evill is present with me, (saith Paul.)

And further, these saying that they are able to do the will and Commandement of God by the help of Christ, &c. do much exalt themselves, and dishonor Christ, and his undertaking of doing the whole will of God for poor corrupt and unable man: for they make themselves the principal doers of the will and Commande∣ment of God, and Christ but their helper, their auxiliary: a helper is not the principall in any thing.

Thus they would make Christ a helper of their faith and belie∣ving, of their justifying and saving, but themselves the principall: This is the man of sin, the Antichrist exalting himself above our gracious undertaker and God, Christ, Babes keep your selves from Idolls.

The mystery of the Gospell of Faith and Christ, is hid to none but those which are lost, and to those which are lost, it is hid.

Notes

• Rom. 3. 28 Rom. 5. 1.
• 1 Tim. 3. 9
• Hos. 14. 4. Isa. 31. 3. Rom. 9. 11 13.
• Eph. 1. 4. See Eph. 1 4. 5. 6. Act. 13. 48. Rom. 8. 30.
• Isa. 53. 6.
• Rom. 4. 5.
• Rom. 7. 14
• The doers are justifi∣ed. Rom. 2. 13.
• Heb. 10. 9.
• Rom. 5. 9.
• Rom. 8. 29 30.
• Psal. 119. 24.
• Iohn 15. 〈◊〉〈◊〉.
• Gal. 5. 22.
• Rom. 8. 16 H••b. 11. 1.
• See Rom. 4. 5, 6.
• Rom 4 6.
• R•••• 3. 2. 8 L••ke 7. 50 Ma••. 14. 29 3••. H••b 10. 38. H••b. 11 4. 5. 7. 〈◊〉〈◊〉. 〈◊〉〈◊〉. 20. 2••. 22. 23 29.
• 〈◊〉〈◊〉 Fh••s. 2.
• Phil. 1. 13.
• Heb. 12. 1.
• Rom. 4. 4.
• Rom. 3. 24 1 Cor. 15. 10. Epb. 2. 5. 8
• Rom. 7. 18.
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