Dadball
Member
To him that worketh not, but believeth on him that justifieth the ungodly, his faith is counted for righteousness.
Romans 4:5.
1. How a sinner may be justified before God, the Lord and Judge of all, is a question of no common importance to every child of man. It contains the foundation of all our hope, inasmuch as while we are at enmity with God, there can be no true peace, no solid joy, either in time or in eternity. What peace can there be, while our own heart condemns us; and much more, He that is greater than our heart, and knoweth all things? What solid joy, either in this world or that to come, while the wrath of God abideth on us?
2. And yet how little hath this important question been understood! What confused notions have many had concerning it! Indeed, not only confused, but often utterly false; contrary to the truth, as light to darkness; notions absolutely inconsistent with the oracles of God, and with the whole analogy of faith. And hence, erring concerning the very foundation, they could not possibly build thereon; at least, not gold, silver, or precious stones, which would endure when tried as by fire; but only hay and stubble, neither acceptable to God, nor profitable to man.
3. In order to justice, in far as in me lies, to the vast importance of the subject, to save those that seek the truth in sincerity from vain jangling and strife of words, to clear the confusedness of thought into which so many have already been led thereby, and to give them true and just conceptions of this great mystery of godliness, I shall endeavour to show,
First. What is the general ground of this whole doctrine of justification.
Secondly. What justification is.
Thirdly. Who they are that are justified. And,
Fourthly. On what terms they are justified. I. I am, First, to show, what is the general ground of this whole doctrine of justification.
1. In the image of God was man made, holy as he that created him is holy; merciful as the Author of all is merciful; perfect as his Father in heaven is perfect. As God is love, so man, dwelling in love, dwelt in God, and God in him. God made him to be an image of his own eternity, an incorruptible picture of the God of glory. He was accordingly pure, as God is pure, from every spot of sin. He knew not evil in any kind or degree, but was inwardly and outwardly sinless and undefiled. He loved the Lord his God with all his heart, and with all his mind, and soul, and strength.
2. To man thus upright and perfect, God gave a perfect law, to which he required full and perfect obedience. He required full obedience in every point, and this to be performed without any intermission, from the moment man became a living soul, till the time of his trial should be ended. No allowance was made for any falling short: As, indeed, there was no need of any; man being altogether equal to the task assigned, and thoroughly furnished for every good word and work.
3. To the entire law of love which was written in his heart, (against which, perhaps, he could not sin directly,) it seemed good to the sovereign wisdom of God to superadd one positive law: Thou shalt not eat of the fruit of the tree that groweth in the midst of the garden; annexing that penalty thereto, In the day that thou eatest thereof, thou shalt surely die.
4. Such, then, was the state of man in Paradise. By the free, unmerited love of God, he was holy and happy: He knew, loved, enjoyed God, which is, in substance, life everlasting. And in this life of love, he was to continue for ever, if he continued to obey God in all things; but, if he disobeyed him in any, he was to forfeit all. In that day, said God, thou shalt surely die.
5. Man did disobey God. He ate of the tree, of which God commanded him, saying, Thou shalt not eat of it. And in that day he was condemned by the righteous judgment of God. Then also the sentence whereof he was warned before, began to take place upon him. For the moment he tasted that fruit, he died. His soul died, was separated from God; separate from whom the soul has no more life than the body has when separate from the soul. His body, likewise, became corruptible and mortal; so that death then took hold on this also. And being already dead in spirit, dead to God, dead in sin, he hastened on to death everlasting; to the destruction both of body and soul, in the fire never to be quenched
6. Thus by one man sin entered into the world, and death by sin. And so death passed upon all men, as being contained in him who was the common father and representative of us all. Thus, through the offence of one, all are dead, dead to God, dead in sin, dwelling in a corruptible, mortal body, shortly to be dissolved, and under the sentence of death eternal. For as, by one mans disobedience, all were made sinners; so, by that offence of one, judgment came upon all men to condemnation. (Romans v. 12)
7. In this state we were, even all mankind, when God so loved the world, that he gave his only-begotten Son, to the end we might not perish, but have everlasting life. In the fullness of time he was made Man, another common Head of mankind, a second general Parent and Representative of the whole human race. And as such it was that he bore our griefs, the Lord laying upon him the iniquities of us all. Then was he wounded for our transgressions, and bruised for our iniquities. He made his soul an offering for sin: He poured out his blood for the transgressors: He bare our sins in his own body on the tree, that by his stripes we might be healed: And by that one oblation of himself, once offered, he hath redeemed me and all mankind; having thereby made a full, perfect, and sufficient sacrifice and satisfaction for the sins of the whole world.
http://www.ccel.org/ccel/wesley/sermons.v.v.html
Romans 4:5.
1. How a sinner may be justified before God, the Lord and Judge of all, is a question of no common importance to every child of man. It contains the foundation of all our hope, inasmuch as while we are at enmity with God, there can be no true peace, no solid joy, either in time or in eternity. What peace can there be, while our own heart condemns us; and much more, He that is greater than our heart, and knoweth all things? What solid joy, either in this world or that to come, while the wrath of God abideth on us?
2. And yet how little hath this important question been understood! What confused notions have many had concerning it! Indeed, not only confused, but often utterly false; contrary to the truth, as light to darkness; notions absolutely inconsistent with the oracles of God, and with the whole analogy of faith. And hence, erring concerning the very foundation, they could not possibly build thereon; at least, not gold, silver, or precious stones, which would endure when tried as by fire; but only hay and stubble, neither acceptable to God, nor profitable to man.
3. In order to justice, in far as in me lies, to the vast importance of the subject, to save those that seek the truth in sincerity from vain jangling and strife of words, to clear the confusedness of thought into which so many have already been led thereby, and to give them true and just conceptions of this great mystery of godliness, I shall endeavour to show,
First. What is the general ground of this whole doctrine of justification.
Secondly. What justification is.
Thirdly. Who they are that are justified. And,
Fourthly. On what terms they are justified. I. I am, First, to show, what is the general ground of this whole doctrine of justification.
1. In the image of God was man made, holy as he that created him is holy; merciful as the Author of all is merciful; perfect as his Father in heaven is perfect. As God is love, so man, dwelling in love, dwelt in God, and God in him. God made him to be an image of his own eternity, an incorruptible picture of the God of glory. He was accordingly pure, as God is pure, from every spot of sin. He knew not evil in any kind or degree, but was inwardly and outwardly sinless and undefiled. He loved the Lord his God with all his heart, and with all his mind, and soul, and strength.
2. To man thus upright and perfect, God gave a perfect law, to which he required full and perfect obedience. He required full obedience in every point, and this to be performed without any intermission, from the moment man became a living soul, till the time of his trial should be ended. No allowance was made for any falling short: As, indeed, there was no need of any; man being altogether equal to the task assigned, and thoroughly furnished for every good word and work.
3. To the entire law of love which was written in his heart, (against which, perhaps, he could not sin directly,) it seemed good to the sovereign wisdom of God to superadd one positive law: Thou shalt not eat of the fruit of the tree that groweth in the midst of the garden; annexing that penalty thereto, In the day that thou eatest thereof, thou shalt surely die.
4. Such, then, was the state of man in Paradise. By the free, unmerited love of God, he was holy and happy: He knew, loved, enjoyed God, which is, in substance, life everlasting. And in this life of love, he was to continue for ever, if he continued to obey God in all things; but, if he disobeyed him in any, he was to forfeit all. In that day, said God, thou shalt surely die.
5. Man did disobey God. He ate of the tree, of which God commanded him, saying, Thou shalt not eat of it. And in that day he was condemned by the righteous judgment of God. Then also the sentence whereof he was warned before, began to take place upon him. For the moment he tasted that fruit, he died. His soul died, was separated from God; separate from whom the soul has no more life than the body has when separate from the soul. His body, likewise, became corruptible and mortal; so that death then took hold on this also. And being already dead in spirit, dead to God, dead in sin, he hastened on to death everlasting; to the destruction both of body and soul, in the fire never to be quenched
6. Thus by one man sin entered into the world, and death by sin. And so death passed upon all men, as being contained in him who was the common father and representative of us all. Thus, through the offence of one, all are dead, dead to God, dead in sin, dwelling in a corruptible, mortal body, shortly to be dissolved, and under the sentence of death eternal. For as, by one mans disobedience, all were made sinners; so, by that offence of one, judgment came upon all men to condemnation. (Romans v. 12)
7. In this state we were, even all mankind, when God so loved the world, that he gave his only-begotten Son, to the end we might not perish, but have everlasting life. In the fullness of time he was made Man, another common Head of mankind, a second general Parent and Representative of the whole human race. And as such it was that he bore our griefs, the Lord laying upon him the iniquities of us all. Then was he wounded for our transgressions, and bruised for our iniquities. He made his soul an offering for sin: He poured out his blood for the transgressors: He bare our sins in his own body on the tree, that by his stripes we might be healed: And by that one oblation of himself, once offered, he hath redeemed me and all mankind; having thereby made a full, perfect, and sufficient sacrifice and satisfaction for the sins of the whole world.
http://www.ccel.org/ccel/wesley/sermons.v.v.html