SERMON XVIII.
Faith the Way to Salvation.
Rom. i. 16.——The gospel of Christ,—it is the power of God unto salvation to every one that believeth, to the Jew first, and also to the Greek.
Salvation is a frequent and familiar word in the mouth of all who call themselves christians. It is a sort of asseveration or oath among the looser and meaner part of mankind: As I hope to be saved. But little do they know what salvation means. All the notion they have of it is this, that they would be saved from going down to hell, a place of fire and torment, and that they would go up to heaven when they die, to some unknown shining place above the skies, where they shall be free from all pain and uneasiness. This is the utmost point to which their idea reaches, and I think I have hit their sense exactly in this description. Alas! poor ignorant creatures! They have no thought of being saved from sin, of having their hearts made holy, their sinful inclinations rectified, their passions subdued or refined, their love turned toward God and things spiritual, and their desire and delight fixed upon things divine and holy, instead of their sensual entertainments of flesh and blood. They have no concern about the pardon of the guilt of sin, and restoration to the favour or image of God, and not so much as a wish for the joys that arise from his love, or from the blessed presence of our Lord Jesus Christ in the world to come.
I have shewn you therefore in the foregoing discourse what this salvation is, and made it appear that the gospel is the power of God to salvation, that is, it is a powerful means in the hand of the Spirit of God to save us from the guilt of sin, and to give us a right to heaven; to save us from the power of sin, to fit us for the business and the joys of heaven, and ensure to us the actual possession of it.
There are two things yet remain to be considered in discoursing on this subject:
I. The place or influence that faith, or believing, hath in this salvation; for the gospel provides this blessing only for believers. It is called the power of God to salvation to every one who believes.—II. The wide extent of this glorious benefit: It belongs to every one that believes, whether Greek, or Jew.
I shall treat of each of these particularly:
First, Since the gospel is the power of God to the salvation of them that believe, let us enquire, what place or influence has our faith in this concernment?
To answer this, we may consider faith in its various acts or degrees of exercise as it begins in assent, as it proceeds to affiance, and as it is completed in assurance; and shew what influence each of them hath in the work of salvation.
1. An assent to the truths of the gospel must begin the work of salvation in us: There must be a belief and inward conviction of our sinful and dangerous state, which is more clearly revealed under the gospel, and that there is an atonement made for sin by the blood of Christ: We must believe, that there is forgiveness to be found with God, for the sake of this atonement; and that there is grace enough in our Lord Jesus Christ, to renew our sinful natures, and to fit us for heaven. This usually begets in the sinner, who is truly awakened, some desire toward this salvation, and some distant hope of obtaining it. When the poor perishing creature believes and beholds the glorious influence of the death and righteousness of Christ to justify a sinner in the sight of God; when he surveys the love, the wisdom, the grace, and the power of Christ, answerable to all his wants, he then comes to determine thus with himself, “This salvation is glorious and desirable; the methods proposed, even for my own attainment of it are practicable and sufficient, and why should not I apply myself to this Saviour, and seek this unspeakable happiness?”
2. Affiance or trust in Jesus Christ the Saviour is the next degree of faith. When we are willing to be delivered from the condemning guilt of sin, and from the defiling power of it, and have seen an all-sufficiency of atonement, grace, and power in Christ, then we commit our souls into the hands of Jesus, the Mediator for this blessed purpose, and make a solemn surrender of our whole selves into his charge and care, that we may be pardoned for the sake of his death, that we may be accepted of God through his righteousness, that we may be sanctified and made holy by his grace and Spirit, and that we may be fitted for and preserved to his kingdom. We reflect upon our past iniquities, and mourn to think that we have been rebels so long; we are ashamed and grieved for our rebellions, and we now most earnestly desire to be made willing subjects to his holy government; and therefore we entrust our souls with him, and beg that he would take us under his care for this end, and bring us into the Father’s presence with comfort and joy. This is the soul’s coming to God by Jesus Christ.
Now such an act of faith as this is, has some sensible tendency to promote the peace of a distressed conscience, the sanctification of a sinful nature, the solid hope of heaven, and a preparation for it. But still it must be acknowledged, that its original and chief influence arises from divine appointment. The gospel is the power of God to salvation, and it is by divine promise and power that faith saves the soul. Such a faith, or trust in Christ, has all the promises of gospel-blessings belonging to it. God has appointed in his word, and it is the standing rule of the gospel, He that believeth shall be saved; Mark xvi. 15, 16.
All the parts of salvation come by faith: Justification, and favour in the sight of God; Rom. v. 1. Being justified by faith, we have peace with God. Adoption comes also by faith; Gal. iii. 26. Ye are the children of God by faith in Christ Jesus. Sanctification is ascribed to the same principle: Acts xv. 19. The Gentiles had their hearts purified from sin by faith. Joy and hope come in this way also; Rom. xv. 13. The God of hope fill you with all joy and peace in believing, that you may abound in hope through the power of the Holy Ghost. And you may read several of these benefits of the gospel, these divine ingredients of our salvation put together, and all attributed to faith; Acts xxvi. 18. I send thee now to the Gentiles, saith the Lord Jesus to St. Paul, to open their eyes, to turn them from darkness to light, and from the power of Satan unto God, that they may receive forgiveness of sins, and inheritance among them who are sanctified, by faith that is in me.
Faith, or affiance in Jesus Christ, is an acceptance of this salvation, it is a trust in the offered grace, it is a dependance on the promises of the gospel confirmed by Christ, it is the surrender of a sinful soul to Jesus the Saviour to perform his whole work of grace for him and to him; and thereby the believing sinner, according to the appointment of God in his gospel, partakes of all the benefits that are treasured up in Christ.
Faith in the gospel relieves the distressed soul under a sense of the guilt of sin, and the humble weary sinner finds mercy to forgive, and strength to subdue it. Faith appropriates and applies the blood of Christ, that sovereign medicine, to the wounds of a guilty conscience, and the conscience finds ease and refreshment. It applies the grace of Christ, that powerful antidote, to expel the venom of in-dwelling sin, and the soul is healed in some measure, and the poison is expelled. It lays hold on the power of Christ to assist in the performance of every duty, and it obtains divine assistance. Every true believer has experienced something of these benefits by a sincere surrender of himself to Christ in such a way of trust and holy dependance.
Can the thirsty soul taste of the running water, and not find refreshment, since God, who created water, has ordained it to refresh the thirsty? Can weary limbs lie down on a bed, and not find ease, since a bed is made to give ease and rest to the weary? Can a fainting creature drink a divine cordial appointed to give life, and yet feel no revival? No more can a guilty, distressed, and penitent sinner believe the truths of the gospel, and trust in Jesus the Saviour, and yet find no relief: for this is the will and settled law of the God of heaven, that peace and holiness shall be obtained this way.
3. When faith grows up to assurance, it approaches towards complete salvation. Then the christian can say, I know I have believed on the Son of God, I know I enjoy his favour. Then the holiness and the joy increase, for the salvation enters into the soul in fuller measures: The nearer faith arises to assurance of our own interest in the grace of Christ, the more it supports the soul, the more it comforts, the more it sanctifies, and the more evidently doth the gospel appear to be divinely powerful to save us from sin and hell.
“Can I believe God has pardoned me, so vile a rebel, and forgiven me so many and aggravated offences, and yet is it possible I should not love him, and rejoice? Can I be assured he loves me, and not make him a return of my highest and warmest love? Can I believe that Christ the Son of God died for me, and shall I not consecrate myself and all the powers of my nature to him, that I may live devoted to his service? He has bought me with a price, a dear and valuable price, that of his own blood, and I must glorify him with my body and with my soul, which are his; 1 Cor. vi. 20. Can I believe that I am redeemed from hell and destruction, and shall I dare to walk in the road that leads to it? And not rather run with patience and joy the race that is set before me, till I arrive at the gates of heaven? Am I not assured that Jesus the beloved of God suffered death for my sins, and shall not I hate sin, which caused his suffering? Sin, which was the occasion of his agonies, and the very sting of his sorrows! I am crucified and dead to sin, and to this world, by my union with a crucified Saviour, yet I live, saith the divine apostle, and the life that I now live in the flesh, I live by the faith of the Son of God, who hath loved me, and given himself for me; Gal. ii. 20. How is it possible that I should hope to be made like Christ in glory, with a full assurance of arriving thither, and not purify myself as he is pure; 1 John iii. 2, 3. While I believe and am persuaded that the promise of the joys of heaven shall be fulfilled to me, I would awaken myself hourly to the joyful prospect, and be ever preparing for the possession of that blessedness.”
Thus when faith arises to a sublime and eminent degree in this world, the believer may be said to rejoice with joy unspeakable, and full of glory, and to receive the end of his faith, even the salvation of his soul; 1 Pet. i. 8, 9.
Before I pass to the second head, I desire leave to make these few remarks.
Remark I. Though the first degree of faith or assent to the gospel be necessary to salvation, yet it is not of itself sufficient; and though the last degree of faith or assurance be gloriously useful in this work, yet it is not absolutely necessary.
A mere assent to the truths of the gospel is not sufficient to save; for there are many who by the force of education, or by the force of argument, yield their assent to the doctrine, and believe it to be true, yet it is a cold, feeble, languid assent; it begins and ends in the head, and never reaches the heart; it does not awaken them thoroughly, nor make them long after the pardon and the grace promised: They seem to sit still contented with the forms of their catechism, and a general belief of the christian religion, so far as they know it; but are under no painful solicitude, or concern of soul, about the forgiveness of their sins, the sanctification of their natures, their interest in the favour of God and eternal happiness; and therefore they proceed no farther, they never heartily apply themselves to Jesus Christ the only Saviour, and they fall short of the blessing. The devils believe as much as they do, but are in a state of damnation still.
Again, consider that a full assurance of our own interest in the favour of God through Jesus Christ, is the highest degree of attainment on earth; but it is not necessary to the being of christianity, nor doth it belong to every christian. It is true indeed, that every one ought to seek after it by the frequent exercise of faith and love, and every grace, thus brightening the evidences of his saving interest in the blessings of the gospel daily; and where assurance is obtained upon solid grounds, holiness and joy will rise by swift degrees, and the soul will make glorious advances towards the heavenly state and complete salvation: But some christians scarce ever arrive at this attainment all their days.
Since therefore a mere assent to the gospel in general is not sufficient for salvation, and a full assurance of our own interest is not necessary, it follows, that an affiance or trust in Christ as a Saviour is the most essential and important act of faith. This is that sacred and appointed duty of a convinced soul, whereby it is made partaker of the blessings of salvation according to the gospel, if it be practised in the way which I have just before described.
II. Take notice here of the difference between the law and the gospel, between the covenant of works, and the covenant of grace. The one gives us life upon our working, the other saves us from death, and gives us a right to heaven upon our believing, therefore one is called the law of works, and the other the law of faith; Rom. iii. 27,
It is proper here to observe, that the scripture sometimes speaks of two covenants; the old and the new: and means chiefly the œconomy or dispensation of the Jews under Moses, and the œconomy of Christ, or the dispensation of the gospel since the Messiah came. But by the two covenants I now speak of, I would be understood to mean the law or constitution of innocency, and the constitution of grace.
By the constitution, or law of innocency, man was to have obtained eternal life before his fall; and as this law or covenant was given to Adam as the head and representative of all mankind, so every son and daughter of Adam continues under it till they accept of the covenant of grace, or the offers of the gospel, either in the darker or brighter discoveries of it: And therefore all mankind, Jews and Gentiles, are laid under condemnation by it in the writings of St. Paul, in the second and third chapters to the Romans. By this law of works, every mouth is stopped, and the whole world is become guilty before God; Rom. iii. 19. Though the nations of the Jews and christians, and perhaps the greatest part of the heathen world, have had some revelations of the gospel or covenant of grace, and have been under the outward offers of it; yet Jews, heathens, and national christians, are all under the sentence of the covenant of the law of works, till they enter into the covenant of grace by repentance and faith in the mercy of God.
But the covenant of grace, or the gospel is a new constitution, which God hath ordained for the relief of poor fallen miserable man, condemned and perishing under the curse of the law of works. It is a constitution of grace, whereby alone fallen sinners can obtain salvation.
The law of works demands universal obedience to all the commands of God, obedience perfect and persevering; for this is the language of it; the man that doth them shall live in them; Rom. x. 5. and it curses every sinner without hope or remedy; cursed is every one that continueth not in all things that are written in the book of the law to do them; Gal. iii. 10, 12. But the voice of the gospel, the righteousness of faith, or the way of justification by Christ, speaketh on this wise, With the heart man believeth unto righteousness, and with the mouth confession is made unto salvation; for the just shall live by faith; Rom. x. 10. Gal. iii. 11. The one proclaims eternal life to all that perfectly obey, the other publishes salvation to all that believe, though their obedience be very imperfect.
I grant indeed, that the apostle cites these descriptions of the law of works out of the books of Moses, and therefore some persons would suppose him only to mean the particular law given to the Jews at mount Sinai, and not the general covenant of works made with Adam, and with all mankind in him.
But to this I give these two answers:
1. The laws of works, which the apostle speaks of in the epistle to the Romans, particularly in the second and third chapters, cannot signify merely the Jewish law; for it is such a law as includes all the heathen world, as appears plain; Rom. ii. 14, 15. and by which the heathens as well as the Jews were condemned, and could never be justified; Rom. iii. 20. By the deeds of the law shall no flesh he justified in his sight, for by the law is the knowledge of sin; therefore this must be a law that extended to all mankind, since it stops every mouth, and proclaims the whole world guilty before God.
2. The law given to the Jews, or the covenant of Sinai, so far as it is purely political, was indeed a covenant of works; and their continuance in, or rejection out of the land of Canaan, depended upon their own works, their obedience or disobedience to this law, as it is often expressed in the writings of Moses: And upon this account it is used sometimes by the apostles as a very proper emblem or representative of the covenant of works made with our first father Adam, who was to have enjoyed or forfeited some earthly or heavenly paradise, according to his obedience or disobedience. It is plain then, that though St. Paul may cite the law of Moses to shew the nature of a law of works in general, yet it does not follow that he means only the law or covenant of Sinai; and it is as plain, by his including the Gentiles under it, that he does not mean the law of Sinai, but the original law or covenant of works made with all mankind in Adam their father and their head, and of which the law of Sinai was a proper emblem or figure.
All laws of works therefore are insufficient for the salvation of sinful man, and his restoration to God’s favour and image, and eternal life. The law of Sinai was a law of works, promising an earthly Canaan to the obedient Jews. The law of innocency in Eden was a law of works, promising life and immortality to obedient mankind. But they have been both wretchedly broken; man was turned out of paradise, and the Jews out of Canaan, because of disobedience. But now the gospel whereby the Jews or Gentiles are to be saved, or to obtain eternal life, requires faith in the mercy and promises of God in and through Jesus Christ; and by this means it saves us, though our obedience be far short of perfection: This was the way whereby the Jews themselves were saved under the Old Testament: for the gospel was preached to them as well as unto us; Heb. iv. 2. though it was in darker hints, and types and figures. And in this way were Abraham and David justified as the apostle teaches; Rom. iv. 3, 4, 5, 6.
Though the Jews’ enjoyment of the land of Canaan depended on their good works and obedience to the law of Moses, yet their hope and enjoyment of heaven depended on their faith or trust in the mercy of God, which was to be farther revealed in the days of the Messiah. And it is the same gospel by which we are to obtain salvation, since Christ is come in the flesh; but with this difference, that we are now more expressly required to make Jesus Christ the object of our faith, and we have a thousand clearer discoveries of his righteousness and grace than ever the Jews were favoured with.
Happy mankind! though fallen and ruined in Adam, yet recovered and raised to righteousness, grace, and glory by Jesus Christ. How dreadful is that law which pronounces a curse and death upon every transgressor! Tribulation and wrath, indignation and anguish upon every soul that doth evil, to the Jew first and also to the Gentile; Rom. ii. 9. But how sweet and reviving is the grace of that gospel, which becomes the power of God to the salvation of every one that believeth, to the Jew first, and also to the Greek!
The great and blessed God saw the frailty of his creature man, how ready he was to ruin himself under a law of works; therefore he appointed his recovery by the law of faith. And what the law could not do, in that it was weak through the infirmity of flesh, that he has sent his own Son Jesus Christ in the likeness of sinful flesh, to do for us, to fulfil all the demands of the law, both in the penalty and the precept, to finish transgression, to made an end of sin, by his own sufferings, and to bring in an everlasting righteousness, that whosoever believes on him shall be saved. Blessed God! How kind and condescending are thy ways to the children of men! How full of compassion to rebels, who had destroyed themselves! How gentle are the methods of thy recovering mercy! If we will but confess our sins, mourn over our own follies, return to the Lord our God by humble repentance, and put our trust in an almighty Saviour, there is peace and pardon, there is grace, and life, and glory provided for us, and laid up in the hands of Jesus Christ our Lord.
III. Though the gospel offers us salvation by faith and not by works, yet it effectually secures the practice of holiness since holiness is a part of that salvation. We are saved from sin as well as from hell by this gospel; and we must have our souls prepared for heaven, as well as brought to the possession of it. He that pretends to trust in Christ, for a deliverance from hell and has no desire to be made holy, he has no desire after such a salvation as Christ proposes in his gospel, nor is he like to attain it.
We must be sensible then of the corruption of our natures, the perverseness of our wills, the vanity of our minds, the earthliness of our affections, our inability to do that which is good for time to come, as well as our guilt, condemnation and misery, because of our transgressions past: We must desire that a thorough work of repentance may be wrought in our hearts, that the power and reign of sin may be broken there, and that we may become new creatures as well as desire to escape the wrath of God, and hell, and eternal death, if ever we would be partakers of that salvation which the gospel proposes. Christ will not divide one part of his salvation from the other: And in vain do we presume to trust in him for happiness, if we are not willing to be made holy too.
How false and unreasonable are all the reproaches that are cast upon the doctrine of salvation by faith, as though it tended to promote looseness of life, and to indulge iniquity; when that very salvation includes in it a freedom from the power of sin, and a delight in all that is holy? This is the very character of Christ our Saviour, and the reason of his name Jesus, that he should save his people from their sins; Mat. i. 21. If we are delivered by Christ, it is from this present wicked world; Gal. i. 4. If we are redeemed, it is from all iniquity, that we might be a peculiar people purified to himself, zealous of good works; Tit. ii. 14.
IV. Though the gospel is such a glorious doctrine of grace, that there is no reason to be ashamed of it, yet since it saves us by faith, and not by works, there is no reason for us to boast when we are saved. We may glory indeed in the cross of Christ and make our boast in the Redeemer all the day long; but the gospel for ever cuts off all ground of boasting in ourselves. Here the justice and mercy of God shine forth gloriously; here the righteousness of God is declared, sinners find remission or pardon, God is just, and a justifier of him who believeth in Jesus. Where is boasting then? It is excluded. By what law? Of works? Nay, but by the law of Faith; Rom. iii. 25, 26, 27. By grace ye are saved through faith, and that not of yourselves, it is the gift of God; not of works, lest any man should boast; Eph. ii. 8, 9.
The gospel concurs with the law in this respect, that it shews us our own guilt and vileness, our ruin and our impotence to restore ourselves, and therefore it has put all our help upon another. God has laid our help upon one that is mighty to save; Ps. lxxxix. 19, and he has ordained that the way whereby we should derive this salvation, is by renouncing all dependance upon self, and trusting in Christ and grace for all that we enjoy and hope for. This is the business of faith; this is the very nature of that Christian virtue, to disclaim all self-sufficiency, and receive all from mere mercy; and therefore it is appointed to be the means of our justification under the gospel; therefore it is said so often in scripture, that we are justified by faith, that divine grace may have all the glory; Rom. iv. 16. Therefore it is of faith, that it might be of grace. We are ignorant and foolish, and must derive wisdom from Christ: We are guilty, and must receive righteousness from him: We are unholy, he is the spring of our sanctification: We are captives and slaves to sin and Satan, and we must have redemption from him: He is made of God to us wisdom, righteousness, sanctification, and redemption, that no flesh might glory in his presence, but he that glories, must glory in the Lord; 1 Cor. i. 29, 30.
Man, innocent man, had power and righteousness, and life put into his own hands; but the first Adam grew vain in his self-sufficiency, and he foolishly sinned, and lost it all: Therefore God, in order to our recovery, would put power, and righteousness, and life into the hands of another, even his own Son, the second Adam, that we might go out of ourselves, and seek it all from another hand. Now faith, or trust, is the proper act of the soul, to express our own emptiness, and our dependance on another for all.
This is the language of faith, “Lord, I am a sinful and guilty creature; I have no righteousness, no merit, to recommend me to thy favour; I have no power to change my unholy nature, and rectify the criminal disorders of my soul; I am unable to subdue the sins that dwell in me, or practise the required duties of holiness; I deserve condemnation and death, and I am by nature walking in the way to hell: helpless and hopeless for ever in myself, but in thy rich grace is all my hope: I rejoice in the discoveries of thy mercy; I come at the call of thy gospel, upon the bended knees of my soul I accept of the proposals of thy grace; I give up myself to thy power and mercy, as it is revealed in Jesus Christ, thy Son, that I may be saved from sin and hell. To me belongs nothing but shame and confusion of face; I renounce for ever all self-sufficiency, and if ever I am saved, thy grace shall have all the glory.” Now when a poor humbled sinner is brought thus far, and receives the salvation of God in this lowly posture of soul, the great God has obtained a good part of his designs in the gospel upon him; self is humbled, grace is glorified, and the sinner is saved by faith.
V. Heaven is made up of believers. The whole number of the saved were once sinners, and obtained salvation by faith.
The holy angels indeed never sinned, and yet whether their confirmed state of holiness and glory is not secured to them by trust or dependance on Christ, may be a reasonable enquiry; for all things in heaven and earth are said to be gathered together, and reconciled in him; Eph. i. 10. Col. i. 20. But this we are sure of, that not one of all the race of Adam hath been restored to the love of God, or raised to heaven, by their own works but all by faith. It is sovereign and glorious grace that has saved them all, and that by the gospel too, in the various editions of it, from the promise in Eden, till the full discovery of grace at the day of pentecost after the ascension of Christ.
O it is a pleasing entertainment of soul to send our thoughts forward to the last great day, or to send them upward to the courts of heaven and glory, and to hear how the millions of redeemed sinners shout and sing to the honour of divine grace! How all that happy world of believers assist the melody, and dwell upon the delightful sound. “Not unto us, O God our Father, not unto us, but to thine own name”, and to thy mercy be all our honours paid though the ages of eternity. We were a race of guilty and perishing rebels, who had sinned against thy majesty, and ruined our own souls: We lay upon the borders of death and hell without help, and without hope: We could do nothing to procure thy love, nor merit any thing by the best of our works: But thou hast called us to believe thy gospel, to trust in thy grace, and to lay down the arms of our rebellion, and to receive the blessings of salvation by faith: We have nothing to boast of, for we are mere receivers: Thou hast put forth thine almighty arm, and hast made thy gospel the instrument of thy power to save us; and while we feel and taste the complete salvation, thy power and thy mercy shall have all the praise.
Not unto us, O Lord Jesus our Saviour, not unto us is any honour due; but to thy condescending love; to thy compassion and death shall our honours be paid, and our acknowledgments made for help. We saw ourselves helpless, and were directed to thee for ever: We trusted in thee, and thou hast saved us: it is thy sufferings that have procured our pardon; it is by faith in thy blood we find an atonement; it is through thy righteousness that we are justified and accepted of God, and made partakers of these heavenly glories that shine all around us. All our sacred comforts, our excellencies, and our joys are thine. Pride is hidden from our eyes for ever, and boasting is banished from all our tongues: It is thou hast fulfilled the law: it is thou hast suffered the curse; it is thou hast purchased, and promised, and bestowed the blessing. We believed thy word, we received thy grace, and behold, we, dying sinners, are raised to life, and advanced to glory. There is not a soul of us but delights to join in these sublime anthems of worship; Worthy is the Lamb that was slain to receive power, and riches, and wisdom, and strength, and honour, and glory, and blessing: Blessing, and honour, and glory, and power be to him that sits upon the throne, and to the Lamb for ever. Amen.