Owen, A Vindication... File 5
(... continued from File 4)
"In general "This is the will of God, even your
sanctification," or holiness, 1 Thess. 4: 3. This is that
which God wills, which he requires of us, - that we be
holy, that we be obedient, that we do his will as the
angels do in heaven. The equity, necessity, profit, and
advantage of this ground of our obedience might at large
be insisted on; and, were there no more, this might
suffice alone, - if it be the will of God, it is our
duty: -
"(1st.) The Father has ordained or appointed it. It
is the will of the Father, Eph 2: 10. The Father is
spoken of personally, Christ being mentioned as mediator.
"(2dly.) The Son has ordained and appointed it as
mediator. John 15: 16, "'I have ordained you, that ye
should bring forth fruit' of obedience, and that it
should remain." And, -
"(3dly.) The holy Ghost appoints and ordains
believers to works of obedience and holiness, and to work
holiness in others. So, in particular, Acts 13: 2, he
appoints and designs men to the great work of obedience
in preaching the gospel. And in sinning, men sin against
him.
"2dly. Our holiness, our obedience, work of
righteousness, is one eminent and especial end of the
peculiar dispensation of Father, Son, and Spirit, in the
business of exalting the glory of God in our salvation, -
of the electing love of the Father, the purchasing love
of the Son, and the operative love of the Spirit: -
"(1st.) It is a peculiar end of the electing love of
the Father, Eph 1: 4, "He has chosen us, that we should
be holy and without blame." So Isa. 4: 3, 4. His aim and
design in choosing of us was, that we should be holy and
unblamable before him in love. This he is to accomplish,
and will bring about in them that are his. "He chooses us
to salvation, through sanctification of the Spirit, and
belief of the truth," 2 Thess. 2: 13. This the Father
designed as the first and immediate end of electing love;
and proposes the consideration of that love as a motive
to holiness, 1 John 4: 8-10.
"(2dly.) It is so also of the exceeding love of the
Son; whereof the testimonies are innumerable. I shall
give but one or two: - Tit. 2: 14, "Who gave himself for
us, that he might redeem us from all iniquity, and purify
unto himself a peculiar people, zealous of good works."
This was his aim, his design, in giving himself for us;
as Eph. 5: 25-27, "Christ loved the church, and gave
himself for it; that he might sanctify and cleanse it
with the washing of water by the word; that he might
present it to himself a glorious church, not having spot,
or wrinkle, or any such thing; but that it should be
holy, and without blemish" 2 Cor. 5: 15; Rom. 6: 11.
"(3dly.) It is the very work of the love of the Holy
Ghost. His whole work upon us, in us, for us, consists in
preparing of us for obedience; enabling of us thereunto,
and bringing forth the fruits of it in us. And this he
does in opposition to a righteousness of our own, either
before it or to be made up by it, Tit. 3: 5. I need not
insist on this. The fruits of the Spirit in us are known,
Gal. 5: 22, 23.
"And thus have we a twofold bottom of the necessity
of our obedience and personal holiness: - God has
appointed it, he requires it; and it is an eminent
immediate end of the distinct dispensation of Father,
Son, and Holy Ghost, in the work of our salvation. If
God's sovereignty over us is to be owned, if his love
towards us be to be regarded, if the whole work of the
ever-blessed Trinity, for us, in us, be of any moment,
our obedience is necessary.
"3dly. It is necessary in respect of the end
thereof; and that whether you consider God, ourselves, or
the world: -
"(1st.) The end of our obedience, in respect of God,
is, his glory and honour, Mal. 1: 6. This is God's
honour, - all that we give him. It is true, he will take
his honour from the stoutest and proudest rebel in the
world; but all we give him is in our obedience. The
glorifying of God by our obedience is all that we are or
can be. Particularly, -
"[1st.] It is the glory of the Father. Matt. 5: 16,
"Let your light so shine before men, that they may see
your good works, and glorify your Father which is in
heaven." By our walking in the light of faith does glory
arise to the Father. The fruits of his love, of his
grace, of his kindness, are seen upon us; and God is
glorified in our behalf. And, -
"[2dly.] The Son is gloried thereby. It is the will
of God that as all men honour the Father, so should they
honour the Son, John 5: 23. And how is this done? By
believing in him, John 14: l; obeying of him. Hence, John
17: 10, he says he is glorified in believers; and prays
for an increase of grace and union for them, that he may
yet be more glorified, and all might know that, as
mediator, he was sent of God.
"[3dly.] The Spirit is gloried also by it. He is
grieved by our disobedience, Eph. 4: 30; and therefore
his glory is in our bringing forth fruit. He dwells in
us, as in his temple; which is not to be defiled.
Holiness becometh his habitation for ever.
"Now, if this that has been said be not sufficient
to evince a necessity of our obedience, we must suppose
ourselves to speak with a sort of men who regard neither
the sovereignty, nor love, nor glory of God, Father, Son,
or Holy Ghost. Let men say what they please, though our
obedience should be all lost, and never regarded (which
is impossible, for God is not unjust, to forget our
labour of love), yet here is a sufficient bottom, ground,
and reason of yielding more obedience unto God than ever
we shall do whilst we live in this world. I speak also
only of gospel grounds of obedience, and not of those
that are natural and legal, which are indispensable to
all mankind.
"(2dly.) The end in respect of ourselves immediately
is threefold: - [1st.] Honour. [2dly.] Peace. [3dly.]
Usefulness.
"[1st.] Honour. It is by holiness that we are made
like unto God, and his image is renewed again in us. This
was our honour at our creation, this exalted us above all
our fellow-creatures here below, - we were made in the
image of God. This we lost by sin, and became like the
beasts that perish. To this honour, of conformity to God,
of bearing his image, are we exalted again by holiness
alone. "Be ye holy," says God, "for I am holy," 1 Pet. 1:
16; and, "Be ye perfect" (that is, in doing good), "even
as your Father which is in heaven is perfect," Matt. 5:
48, - in a likeness and conformity to him. And herein is
the image of God renewed; Eph. 4: 23, 24, therein we "put
on the new man, which after God is created in
righteousness and holiness of truth." This was that which
originally was attended with power and dominion; - is
still all that is beautiful or comely in the world. How
it makes men honourable and precious in the sight of God,
of angels, of men; how alone it is that which is not
despised, which is of price before the Lord; what
contempt and scorn he has of them in whom it is not, - in
what abomination he has them and all their ways, - might
easily be evinced.
"[2dly.] Peace. By it we have communion with God,
wherein peace alone is to be enjoyed. "The wicked are
like the troubled sea, that cannot rest;" and, "There is
no peace" to them, "saith my God," Isa. 57: 20; 2]. There
is no peace, rest, or quietness, in a distance,
separation, or alienation from God. He is the rest of our
souls. In the light of his countenance is life and peace.
Now, "if we walk in the light, as he is in the light, we
have fellowship one with another," 1 John 1: 7; "and
truly our fellowship is with the Father, and with his Son
Jesus Christ," verse 3. He that walks in the light of new
obedience, he has communion with God, and in his presence
is fulness of joy for ever; without it, there is nothing
but darkness, and wandering, and confusion.
"[3dly.] Usefulness. A man without holiness is good
for nothing. "Ephraim," says the prophet, "is an empty
vine, that brings forth fruit to itself" And what is such
a vine good for? Nothing. Saith another prophet, "A man
cannot make so much as a pin of it, to hang a vessel on."
A barren tree is good for nothing, but to be cut down for
the fire. Notwithstanding the seeming usefulness of men
who serve the providence of God in their generations, I
could easily manifest that the world and the church might
want them, and that, indeed, in themselves they are good
for nothing. Only the holy man is commune bonum.
"(3dly.) The end of it in respect of others in the
world is manifold: -
"[1st.] It serves to the conviction and stopping the
mouths of some of the enemies of God, both here and
hereafter: - 1. Here. 1 Pet. 3: 16, "Having a good
conscience; that, wherein they speak evil of you, as of
evil-doers, they may be ashamed that falsely accuse your
good conversation in Christ." By our keeping of a good
conscience men will be made ashamed of their false
accusations; that whereas their malice and hatred of the
ways of God has provoked them to speak all manner of evil
of the profession of them, by the holiness and
righteousness of the saints, they are convinced and made
ashamed, as a thief is when he is taken, and be driven to
acknowledge that God is amongst them, and that they are
wicked themselves, John 17: 23. 2. Hereafter. It is said
that the saints shall judge the world. It is on this, as
well as upon other considerations: their good works,
their righteousness, their holiness, shall be brought
forth, and manifested to all the world; and the
righteousness of God's judgements against wicked men be
thence evinced. "See," says Christ, "these are they that
I own, whom you so despised and abhorred; and see their
works following them: this and that they have done, when
you wallowed in your abominations," Matt. 25: 42, 43.
"[2dly.] The conversion of others. 1 Pet. 2: 12,
"Having your conversation honest among the Gentiles;
that, wherein they speak against you as evil-doers, they
may, by your good works, which they shall behold, glorify
God in the day of visitation," Matt. 5: 16. Even
revilers, persecutors, evil-speakers, have been overcome
by the constant holy walking of professors; and when
their day of visitation has come, have glorified God on
that account, 1 Pet. 3: 1, 2.
"[3dly.] The benefit of all; partly in keeping off
judgements from the residue of men, as ten good men would
have preserved Sodom: partly by their real communication
of good to them with whom they have to do in their
generation. Holiness makes a man a good man, useful to
all; and others eat of the fruits of the Spirit that he
brings forth continually.
"[4thly.] It is necessary in respect of the state
and condition of justified persons; and that whether you
consider their relative state of acceptation, or their
state of sanctification: -
"First. They are accepted and received into
friendship with a holy God, - a God of purer eyes than to
behold iniquity, - who hates every unclean thing. And is
it not necessary that they should be holy who are
admitted into his presence, walk in his sight, - yea, lie
in his bosom? Should they not with all diligence cleanse
themselves from all pollution of flesh and spirit, and
perfect holiness in the fear of the Lord?
"Secondly. In respect of sanctification. We have in
us a new creature, 2 Cor. 5: 17. This new creature is
fed, cherished, nourished, kept alive, by the fruits of
holiness. To what end has God given us new hearts, and
new natures? Is it that we should kill them? stifle the
creature that is found in us in the womb? that we should
give him to the old man to be devoured?
"[5thly.] It is necessary in respect of the proper
place of holiness in the new covenant; and that is
twofold: -
"First. Of the means unto the end. God has appointed
that holiness shall be the means, the way to that eternal
life, which, as in itself and originally [it] is his gift
by Jesus Christ, so, with regard to his constitution of
our obedience, as the means of attaining it, [it] is a
reward, and God in bestowing of it a rewarder. Though it
be neither the cause, matter, nor condition of our
justification, yet it is the way appointed of God for us
to walk in for the obtaining of salvation. And therefore,
he that has hope of eternal life purifies himself, as he
is pure: and none shall ever come to that end who walketh
not in that way; for without holiness it is impossible to
see God.
"Secondly. It is a testimony and pledge of adoption,
- a sign and evidence of grace; that is, of acceptation
with God. And, -
"Thirdly. The whole expression of our thankfulness.
"Now, there is not one of all these causes and
reasons of the necessity, the indispensable necessity of
our obedience, good works, and personal righteousness,
but would require a more large discourse to unfold and
explain than I have allotted to the proposal of them all;
and innumerable others there are of the same import, that
I cannot name. He that upon these accounts does not think
universal holiness and obedience to be of indispensable
necessity, unless also it be exalted into the room of the
obedience and righteousness of Christ, let him be filthy
still."
I confess this whole discourse proceedeth on the
supposition of the imputation of the righteousness of
Christ unto us for our justification. And herein I have
as good company as the prelacy and whole church of
England can afford; sundry from among them having written
large discourses in its confirmation, and the rest
having, till of late, approved of it in others. I wish
this man, or any of his companions in design, would
undertake the answering of Bishop Downham on this
subject. No man ever carried this matter higher than
Luther; nor did he, in all his writings, more positively
and plainly contend for it than in his comment on the
Epistle to the Galatians; - yet was that book translated
into English by the approbation of the then bishop of
London, who also prefixed himself a commendatory epistle
unto it. The judgement of Hooker we have heard before.
But what need I mention in particular any of the rest of
those great and learned names who have made famous the
profession of the church of England by their writings
throughout the world? Had this man, in their days,
treated this doctrine with his present scoffing
petulancy, he had scarce been rector of St George,
Botolph Lane, much less filled with such hopes and
expectations of future advancements, as it is not
impossible that he is now possessed with, upon his
memorable achievements. But, on this supposition, I do,
first, appeal to the judgement of the church of England
itself as to the truth of the doctrine delivered in my
discourse, and the principles which this man proceedeth
on in his exceptions against it. 2. Though it be but a
part of a popular discourse, and never intended for
scholastic accuracy, yet, as to the assertions contained
in it, I challenge this author to take and allow the
ordinary, usual sense of the words, with the open design
of them, and to answer them when he can. And, 3. In the
meantime I appeal unto every indifferent reader whether
the mere perusal of this whole passage do not cast this
man's futilous cavils out of all consideration? So that I
shall only content myself with very few remarks upon
them: -
1. Upon my asserting the necessity of good works, he
adds, "A very suspicious word; which, methinks, these men
should be afraid to name." And why so? We do acknowledge
that we do not seek for righteousness by the works of the
law; we design not our personal justification by them,
nor to merit life or salvation; but retake ourselves unto
what even Bellarmine himself came to at last as the
safest retreat, - namely, the merits and righteousness of
Christ: but for attendance unto them, performance of
them, and fruitfulness in them, we are not afraid nor
ashamed at any time to enter into judgement with them by
whom we are traduced. And as I have nothing to say unto
this author, who is known unto me only by that
portraiture and character which he has given of himself
in this book; which I could have wished, for his own
sake, had been drawn with a mixture of more lines of
truth and modesty: so I know there are not a few who, in
the course of a vain, worldly conversation, whilst there
is scarce a back or belly of a disciple of Christ that
blesseth God upon the account of their bounty or charity
(the footsteps of levity, vanity, scurrility, and
profaneness, being, moreover, left upon all the paths of
their haunt), are wont to declaim about holiness, good
works, and justification by them; which is a ready way to
instruct men to atheism, or the scorn of every thing that
is professed in religion. But yet, 2. He shows how
impotent and impertinent our arguments are for the proof
of the necessity of holiness. And as to the first of
them, from the commands of God, he saith, "That if, after
all these commands, God has left it indifferent whether
we obey him or no, I hope such commands cannot make
obedience necessary." Wonderful divinity! A man must
needs be well acquainted with God and himself who can
suppose that any of his commands shall leave it
indifferent, whether we will obey them or no. Yea, "But
will he damn men if they do not obey his commands for
holiness?" Yes, yes; no doubt he will do so. Yea, "But we
may be, notwithstanding this command, justified and saved
without this holiness." False and impertinent: we are
neither justified nor saved without them, though we are
not justified by them, nor saved for them.
Unto my enforcement of the necessity of holiness
from the ends of God in election and redemption, he
replies, p. 127, "The Father has elected us to be holy,
and the Son redeemed us to be holy; but will the Father
elect and the Son redeem none but those who are holy, and
reject and reprobate all others? Does this election and
redemption suppose holiness in us, or is it without any
regard to it? For if we be elected and redeemed without
any regard unto our own being holy, our election and
redemption is secure, whether we be holy or not."
Wonderful divinity again! Election and redemption suppose
holiness in us! We are elected and redeemed with regard
unto our own holiness that is, antecedently unto our
election and redemption; for holiness being the effect
and fruit of them, is that which he opposeth. Not many
pages after this, he falls into a great admiration of the
catechism of the church of England, which none blamed
that I know of, as to what is contained in it. But it
were to be wished that he had been well instructed in
some others, that he might not have divulged and obtruded
on the world such crude and palpable mistakes. For this
respect of redemption, at least, unto an antecedent
holiness in us (that is, antecedent unto it), is such a
piece of foppery in religion, as a man would wonder how
any one could be guilty of, who has almost "pored out his
eyes" in reading the Scripture. All the remaining cavils
of this chapter are but the effects of the like fulsome
ignorance; for out of some passages, scraped together
from several parts of my discourse (and those not only
cut off from their proper scope and end, which is not
mentioned by him at all, but also mangled in their
representation), he would frame the appearance of a
contradiction between what I say on the one hand, that
there is no peace with God to be obtained by and for
sinners but by the atonement that is made for them in the
blood of Jesus Christ, with the remission of sin and
justification by faith which ensue thereon (which I hope
I shall not live to hear denied by the church of
England), and the necessity of holiness and fruitfulness
in obedience, to maintain in our own souls a sense of
that peace with God which we have, being justified by
faith. And he who understands not the consistency of
those things, has little reason to despise good
catechisms, whatever thoughts he has had of his own
sufficiency.
The whole design of what remains of this section, is
to insinuate that there can be no necessity of holiness
or obedience unto God, unless we are justified and saved
thereby; which I knew not before to have been, nor indeed
do yet know it to be, the doctrine of the church of
England. But be it whose it will, I am sure it is not
that of the Scripture, and I have so disproved it in
other discourses, which this man may now see if he
please, as that I shall not here again reassume the same
argument; and although I am weary of consulting this
woeful mixture of disingenuity and ignorance, yet I shall
remark somewhat on one or two passages more, and leave
him, if he please, unto a due apprehension, that what
remains is unanswerable scoffing.
The first is that of p. 131. "But, however, holiness
is necessary with respect to sanctification: 'We have in
us a new creature, 2 Cor. 5: 17. This new creature is
fed, cherished, nourished, and kept alive, by the fruits
of holiness. To what end has God given us new hearts, and
new natures? Is it that we should kill them, stifle the
creature that is found in us in the womb? that we should
give him to the old man to be devoured?' The phrase of
this is admirable, and the reasoning unanswerable; for if
men be new creatures, they will certainly live new lives,
and this makes holiness absolutely necessary, by the same
reason that every thing necessarily is what it is: but
still we inquire after a necessary obligation to the
practice of holiness, and that we cannot yet discover."
The reader will see easily how this is picked out of
the whole discourse, as that which he imagined would
yield some advantage to reflect upon; for, let him
pretend what he please to the contrary, he has laid this
end too open to be denied; and I am no way solicitous
what will be his success therein. Had he aimed at the
discovery of truth, he ought to have examined the whole
of the discourse, and not thus have rent one piece of it
from the other. As to the phrase of speech which I use,
it is, I acknowledge, metaphorical; but yet, being used
only in a popular way of instruction, is sufficiently
warranted from the Scripture, which administers occasion
and gives countenance unto every expression in it, the
whole being full well understood by those who are
exercised in the life of God. And for the reasoning of
it, it is such as I know this man cannot answer: for the
new creature, however he may fancy, is not a new
conversation, nor a living homily; but it is the
principle, and spiritual ability, produced in believers
by the power and grace of the Holy Ghost, enabling them
to walk in newness of life and holiness of conversation.
And this principle being bestowed on us, wrought in us,
for that very end, it is necessary for us, unless we will
neglect and despise the grace which we have received,
that we walk in holiness, and abound in the fruits of
righteousness, whereunto it leads and tends. Let him
answer this if he can, and when he has done so, answer
the apostle in like manner; or scoff not only at me, but
at him also.
The last passage I shall remark upon in this section
is what he gives us as the sum of the whole. P. 135, "The
sum of all is, that to know Christ is not to be thus
acquainted with his person, but to understand his gospel
in its full latitude and extent; it is not the person,
but the gospel of Christ which is the way, the truth, and
the life, which directs us in the way to life and
happiness. And again, this acquaintance with Christ's
person, which these men pretend to, is only a work of
fancy, and teaches men the arts of hypocrisy," etc.
I do not know that ever I met with any thing thus
crudely asserted among the Quakers, in contempt of the
person of Christ; for whereas he says of himself
expressly, "I am the way, the truth, and the life," to
say he is not so (for Jesus Christ is his person, and
nothing else), carries in it a bold contradiction, both
parts of which cannot be true. When the subject of a
proposition is owned, there may be great controversy
about the sense of the predicate; as when Christ says he
is the vine: there may be so also about the subject of a
proposition, when the expression is of a third thing, and
dubious; as where Christ says, "This is my body:" but
when the person speaking is the subject, and speaks of
himself, to deny what he says, is to give him the lie. "I
am the way, the truth, and the life," saith Christ; - "He
is not," saith our author, "but the gospel is so." If he
had allowed our Lord Jesus Christ to have spoken the
truth, but only to have added, "Though he was so, yet he
was so no otherwise but by the gospel," there had been
somewhat of modesty in the expression; but this saying,
that the "person of Christ is not, - the gospel is so,"
is intolerable. It is so, however, that this young man,
without consulting or despising the exposition of all
divines, ancient or modern, and the common sense of all
Christians, should dare to obtrude his crude and
undigested conceptions upon so great a word of Christ
himself, countenanced only by the corrupt and false
glosses of some obscure Socinians: which some or other
may possibly in due time mind him of; I have other work
to do.
But according to his exposition of this heavenly
oracle, what shall any one imagine to be the sense of the
context, where "I," and "me," spoken of Christ, do so
often occur? Suppose that the words of that whole verse,
"I am the way, the truth, and the life, no man comes to
the Father but by me," have this sense, - not Christ
himself is the way, the truth, and the life, but the
gospel; "No man comes to the Father but by me;" that is,
not by me, but by "the gospel," must not all the
expressions of the same nature in the context have the
same exposition? as namely, verse 1, "Ye believe in God,
believe also in me;" that is, not in me but in "the
gospel;" - "I go to prepare a place for you;" that is,
not I do so, but "the gospel;" verse 3, "I will come
again and receive you to myself;" that is, not I, but
"the gospel" will do so; and so of all other things which
Christ in that place seems to speak of himself. If this
be his way of interpreting Scripture, I wonder not that
he blames others for their defect and miscarriages
therein.
Owen, A Vindication...
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