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ous opinion, that a man is justified by his works? I believe he will. But do ye know that the most of you, while they know not what they do, walk in the paths of the legalist, and seek their righteousness by their works; and thus justify by their conduct, the false doctrine of our adversaries? it is certain, that all men are by nature children of the covenant of works, born under the law, and after the flesh, and that they do therefore seek life by their own works. Our living under, the ministration of the covenant of grace, of the gospel, and of the Spirit, doth not translate us into the state of grace, and into Christ, and it doth not furnish us with a justifying faith; and we cannot all say, that "we are not under the law, but under grace," as Paul speaks of believers only, Rom. vi. 14. Now it cannot be otherwise, but that those, who are yet under the covenant of works, under the law, and after the flesh, must work agreeably to their nature and state, and therefore seek righteousness by works. Luther, considering this, said that every man had a Popish priest in his own bosom.

Many will not believe this concerning themselves, because they are not Papists; but suffer me to discover it to you, that ye may have a palpable demonstration of it.

1. Ye know that ye have sinned against God, and have deserved death and hell; why are ye not concerned and disturbed at this, and fearful that the wrath of God will light on you every moment? is it not because ye think that ye are not so ungodly as this and that person, that ye do many things, are civil, honest, devout, and zealous after your manner? have ye committed a sin, for which your conscience reproves you, ye soothe yuurselves with a little sorrow, and with a purpose to amend your conduct, and to repent, and upon this ye bless yourselves, and think that God will forgive your sin. Is it not then your own doing and work, that renders you so unconcerned, and banishes fear out of your hearts? do Papists seek righteousnes by their works otherwise than ye do? Surely the Pharisee did not act otherwise, Luke xviii. 11, 12.

2. Ye say, we know indeed that we must not be justified by our works, but only by the merits of Christ. It is true, ye know this, but doth this knowledge influence you so, that it effects a change of your condition and behaviour, that it drives you, from a concern on account of your damnable condition, out of yourselves to the Mediator and that ye accept of him and his righteousness truly, heartily, and frequently, and that to be sanctified, as well as justified and saved, and are ye urged thereby to "pursue after perfection," with Paul? Phil. iii. 7-14. Is it true, that ye are implanted into Christ

by a sincere faith, and that it is impossible for you not to bring forth fruits of thankfulness; ye are then surely justified by his merits But how few are there, who conduct in this manner! Many have heard others speak concerning Christ, and his merits, and they de pend upon this, especially when they are moral, civil and devost, thinking that though their works are not perfect, they will not how. ever be condemned on account of that imperfection; that God will wink at their defects, as the Socinians talk; or that Christ will sup ply that which they lack with his merits; and so they have a part of the righteousness, as the Papists speak. In this manner the Jews also had "a zeal for God, but not according to knowledge; for they, being ignorant of God's righteousness, and going about to establish their own righteousness, did not submit themselves to the righteousness of God." Rom. x. 2, 3. Once more:

3. To what doth it lead many of you, that they know that they are not justified by their works, but only by the merits of Christ? Our doctrine doth not make men careless and profane, but your imagination, that ye are justified through Christ, although ye have never truly passed into him, nor been implanted into him, makes you careless and profane. If ye did not imagine this, but were con vinced of your damnable condition, would ye not be more engaged, and bestir yourselves more for your souls, that ye might not by any means perish, but be saved? But now ye have heard of Christ and bis merits only with the hearing of the ear, therefore ye leave all to him without concern, and busy yourselves only with the things which are visible, and with your lusts, yea, many indulge in excess of riot, every one for his own ends. And when they must die, then Christ must save them, and take them to heaven. But is not this "making Christ a minister of sin?" Ga'. ii. 17, is it not allowing the slander of our adversaries, when they rail at our doctrine, and say that it makes men careless and profane? And tell us, what is the reason of your reproaching and slandering as legalists and Pharisees, persons who separate themselves from the world, and pursue a different conduct from the generality, and who endeavour to shine as lights in a crooked and perverse generation? is it not, because their behaviour convinces you? because ye cannot endure such goads in your sides, and such thorns in your eyes? because ye wish to become careless and profane by this doctrine, at least, because ye endeavour to persuade yourselves that men need not be so precise? What think ye, shall a person, who is implanted inte Christ, conduct only like a civil person, and a man of common morality? ought not the image and Spirit of Christ to shine forth in him? And why do

ye look upon such persons as hypocrites, legalists and Pharisees is it not not on account of their modest appearance, their discourse, which is agreeable to godly persons, and seasoned with salt, or their decent behaviour? must justified persons then conform themselves to the world, be loose and disorderly? Ye will say, No, but we hate their hypocrisy, and those outward things are the whole of their religion and merit. How do ye know this? do ye know the heart? no, but ye are not willing that their behaviour should shame and condemn you; therefore "judge not, that ye be not judged," according to Matt. vii. 1.

Let each one now inquire how he conducts with respect to these matters. Do ye rest in your own works? is your religious zeal the foundation of your hope, and would it appear strange to you, if God should not bestow heaven upon you, and do ye with the Jews “exact all your labours?" Isaiah Iviii. 3. Know then that ye are yet under the law and the broken covenant of works, and therefore "under the curse," Gal. iii. 10. And so God "will not clear you," according to Exod. xxxiv. 7. Do not flatter yourselves with the merits of Christ, for ye have surely no interest in them by an active faith, which would implant you into him; for ye would then reckon all your own doings as loss and dung; but ye are now so exceedingly pleased with your own works; and therefore ye are yet without the Mediator; "Christ is become of no effect to you, whosoever of you are justified by the law; ye are fallen from grace," Gal. v. 4. When God will enter into judgment with you, consider whether all your works will then justify you.

Do ye say, We trust not in our works, but in the merits of Christ through faith? But are ye implanted into Christ by faith, and do ye therefore bring forth fruits of thankfulness? this is well; but do ye think that works will not avail to save you, but faith only and do ye therefore live as ye list, ye are then a reproach to our holy doctrine, and "the name of God is blasphemed through you, as it is written," Rom. ii. 24. Your faith is without works, is a dead faith, as James speaks James ii. 17. Verily, your outward ado, and saying, Lord, Lord, will not procure you an entrance into the kingdom of God: "Faith only, which worketh by love, avails in Christ Jesus," Gal.

v. 6.

O that ye would all of you see your misery with anxiety, and that ye cannot deliver yourselves, that ye might cry out with concern, "What shall we do?" as those did, Acts ii. 37. Rest not, before ye are in the Son of God; he is willing and able to bestow a sufficient righteousness on you. Hear him cry to you, Isaiah xlv. 22 "Look

unto me, and be ye saved, all the ends of the earth: Surely shal one say, In the Lord have I righteousness and strength: to him shall men come.”

But, believers, who, according to your evidences exhibited in the former Lord's day, have indeed been justified before God freely, without works, by faith, and who must still daily seek justification and reconciliation for your daily offences, this leaven of working with your own righteousness is not wholly purged out of you, any more than your natural depravity is wholly rooted out of you: for ye also are frequently driven to pursue your own righteousness. This is evident, (a) because ye often dare not believe, that ye have grace, and are justified, unless ye have just such a measure of holiness. If ye depended only upon the righteousness of Christ. would ye suffer yourselves to be shaken on account of the degree of your sanctifica tion? it would humble you, that ye had not made a greater progress, but it would not cause you to reject your state, since your justified state is not fouuded upon any measure of sanctification, but upon the perfect righteousness of the Mediator. (b) It appears also from this. that a greater or less progress in virtue causes you to draw near more or less boldly to the throne. When ye have done your duty tolerably well, ye will then venture to draw near; but when ye have behaved improperly, ye then wander about, and seek for excuses, only in order to remain aloof: and when ye dare not neglect to draw near, ye are possessed with a prejudice, that God will not hear you, ye dare not persevere, but make short work, and wait until ye have behaved yourselves better. It is proper to go to God, with a holy awe, with a deep humility and shame, on account of your misbehaviour; but to forbear altogether to draw near, or to draw near only with such an unbelieving trembling, when we have misbehaved our selves, and courageously only when we have done well, evidences that we found our right to draw near, not upon the righteousness of Christ, but on our own works. (c) This is also evident, because mea are often urged to holiness by fear, as if they stood near mount Horeb. "The Lord hath delivered you, that ye might serve bim without fear," Luke i. 74. But a slavish fear, proceeding from the covenant of works, sometimes possesses the soul, and urgeth her to do this or that, as a command of God, as if every misdeed subjected her to the curse. Yea, this renders the soul so scrupulous and anx ious, that she sometimes looks upon certain actions to be sinful. which a Christian may perform freely. (d) This is still more evident, because men sometimes pursue holiness, in order to seek and find rest for their souls. They have made a breach in their spirits by

sin, this they will heal, what do they do? embrace the righteousness and atoning blood of Christ, in order to pacify their minds? no, they will bewail it, and reform, and thus their work, and not Christ will afford them rest. Further, (e) Men dare not embrace the proffered and promised grace, and Christ, because they are not so contrite as they imagine beside the word of God that they ought to be. And thus they attend to their own doings, and not to the perfect righteousness of Christ, and they do not surrender themselves to him, as altogether wretched, and seek his favour only. It appears also, (f) because they sometimes become impatient, when they do not obtain their desire, after great earnestness: what doth this deuote but that they imagine, that their earnestness obliges God to be favourable to them.

But God doth not approve of all this selftormenting, it dishonours Jesus, it keeps the soul from her rest, and confounds the grace and righteousness of God and Christ with our unclean and filthy works: "If it be by grace, then is it no more of works: otherwise grace is no more grace: but if it be of works, then is it no more grace : otherwise work is no more work;" thus speaks Paul; Rom. xi. 6. A Christian must part with all that is his own, he must count it loss and dung, that he may be found wholly in Christ: he must be stripped, naked and bare, as one who is dead, and he must surrender all that is his own, as one who is become a bankrupt, that he may be completely clothed and enriched with the righteousness of Christ only. All that he hath in himself is but rags and tatters, it can nei thef clothe nor feed him.

Shall a Christian then, as if he were not obliged to any duty, sit still, and be careless, and think now I have nothing to do. Christ hatlı done all for me? No, this is impossible: his looking off from his own righteousness doth not teach him this Justification by the righteousness of Christ alone through faith obligeth him to prize this truth, to thank the Lord for it, to conduct himself humbly and worthily of this truth by a dilligent pursuit of holiness, which we have urged on the foregoing Lord's day. But we must see that we pursue sanctification, as those who are implanted into Christ, and therefore,

1. As justified persons in-him by faith: for how can sanctification be acceptable to God, as long as he hath aught against the soul on account of her guilt, by which the Father is justly incensed against her? How can she draw near him boldly with her sacrifice of thanksgiving, except she be delivered from doubts. and able to acquit herself? We must "draw near with a true heart, and a full