It Jesus Christ having received gifts of pardon and peace, for a "peculiar," or, as we read in the margin of some bibles, for a "purchased people,”* is pleased, in the use of suitable means, to bestow them, so that of his fulness they all receive " grace for grace."+ He causes his redeemed ones to accept of the redemption, which he has procured by his sacrifice of himself. Should any one demand, "by what means is the grace of God communicated to the sinner?" an answer may be given, in one short sentence. "By grace are ye saved, through faith."| It is by the gift of justification, that an unjust or ungodly person is saved. This is the grace which God gives him, and which he embraces, through the instrumentality of faith. Christ is made of God," unto us wisdom, and righteousness, and sanctification, and redemption," through faith in his name. Therefore it is said," he who believeth, and is baptized, shall be saved." is "by faith," that Christ dwells in our hearts.§ "All have sinned and come short of the glory of God," and must be everlastingly accursed, except they be justified by some vicarious righteousness. God is gracious, and therefore provided a Saviour, who obeyed and suffered in the sinner's place; so that now, "it is God that justifieth," in consequence of the atonement by Jesus, which is the meritorious, not the originating Hence we read of "being justified freely by his grace, through the redemption that is in Christ Jesus; whom God hath set forth to be a propitiation THROUGH FAITH in his blood." It is through faith alone, that Christ becomes effectually the Saviour of any transgressor. The faith in question, is that by which we receive the gift of eternal life, so as to become, in the judgment of God, one with Christ; and which works by love, purifies the heart, and overcomes the world. It is such a belief of divine truth, revealed in some manner to the understanding, and made effectual by the Spirit, as disposes the sinner to accept of Christ for his Saviour, and obey the King of Zion as his Sovereign. This is the gift of God: for, "by grace are ye saved, through faith; and that not of yourselves; it is the gift of God."¶ cause. * 1 Pet. ii. 9. † John i. 16. § Eph. iii. 17. + Eph. ii. 8. Having ascertained, that the grace of God is gifted to the sinner through faith, and being taught that this faith is itself a gift, we come to the inquiry, By what means is faith produced? How does God 'communicate that faith, which is the grand medium by which the rebel becomes actually interested in the grace of God, purchased for him by Jesus Christ? Christ not only purchased grace, for men, but the means of conveying it to them through faith, and the means of producing that faith. On this subject, Paul says, "Who then is Paul, and who is Apollos, but ministers by whom ye believed, even as the Lord gave to every man? I have planted, Apollos watered, but God gave the increase. Now he that planteth, and he that watereth are one; and every man shall receive his own reward, according to his own labour. For we are labourers together with God: ye are God's husbandry; ye are God's building. According to the grace of God which is given unto me, as a wise master builder I have laid the foundation, and another buildeth thereon."* Paul, certainly, was an advocate for the means of grace, who, while he laboured, gave God the glory. He speaks of gospel ministers as instrumental agents, by whom God brought the Corinthian christians to the possession of the "saving grace of faith." The word of God is compared to seed, which must first be planted, and watered, before it will be caused, by divine influences, to grow. “I have planted" Paul had scattered divine truth, like seed, upon the minds of sinners. He had gained their attention, and taught them the principles of christianity. "Apollos watered." Thus a second agent was used by the Spirit, to perpetuate the influence of that truth which Paul disseminated. Then God made the truth effectual. The glorious personage here represented to be the author of spiritual life is the Holy Ghost. By his own blood, Christ purchased a right to send the Spirit, to work faith in his redeemed people. "It is the Spirit that 1 Cor. iii. 5-11. quickeneth," the Holy Ghost, who teaches, and dwells in the believer; the Spirit, who takes of the things of Christ and shows them to us, who creates us in Christ Jesus; who leads the sons of God, through progressive sanctification to peace, joy, triumph and glory. "That which is born of the Spirit, is spirit." The gift of spiritual life is compared by Paul to the bestowment of vegetable life. "God gave the increase," or the "Holy Spirit made to grow the word of life in the human heart." This mode of speaking is warranted by high authority. "Behold," said the Divine Teacher," a sower went out to sow his seed: and as he sowed, some fell by the way side," or in the path-way, "and it was trodden down, and the fowls of the air devoured it. And some fell upon a rock; and as soon as it was sprung up it withered away, because it lacked moisture. And some fell among thorns, and the thorns sprang up with it, and choked it. And other fell on good ground, and sprang up, and bare fruit an hundred fold." "Now the parable is this: The seed is the word of God." Every man, who diffuses, in any manner, the word of God, is a sower, under the providential government of the Holy Spirit. The hearts of men are compared to ground continually beaten with the foot, and to rocky, thorny, or good soil. All that soil on which the word of God is to be sown and flourish, is, in its original state, hard, thorny, and unfruitful, except in noxious plants. Before it can receive, retain, and cherish the seed, it must be prepared by the labours of God's husbandmen. Hence the scriptures speak of a preparatory work, which is not improperly denominated divine culture. "Thus saith the Lord to the men of Judah and Jerusalem, break up your fallow ground, and sow not among thorns." In the tenth chapter of Hosea we read, "O Israel, thou hast sinned." "Ye have plowed wickedness, ye have reaped iniquity." "Sow to yourselves in righteousness, reap mercy. Break up your fallow ground for it is time to seek the Lord." Fallow ground is that which has been long unoccupied, and un * John vi. 63. † 1 Cor. ii. 13. and iii. 16. John iii. 6. $ Jer. iv. 3. fruitful, except in the spontaneous production of weeds. Sometimes, that is called fallow ground, which has been once plowed, but is not yet prepared for seed, and consequently brings forth neither grass nor grain. The spiritual meaning of the command is, that we should prepare the hearts of men, which now are unfruitful, for the reception of the word of God, and the production of the fruits of faith. If they have been already once plowed, or excited, we are to plow them again, that they may become mellow: then we are to cast in the seed of gospel truth, and water it, humbly depending on God to bless our exertions, and make his own word productive of holiness. The grand instrument used by God to break up the fallow ground of the human heart is the law. This exhibits the truth, in relation to man's obligations, character, condemnation, and exposure to everlasting punishment. That divine truth, and particularly that part of it, which relates to the law, in distinction from the gospel, is the principal instrument of breaking up the fallow ground, and preparing the heart for the reception of the seed of faith, will appear from many passages of the word of God. Christ prays for all, who shall be saved, saying, "sanctify them through thy truth; thy word is truth" and adds, "for their sakes I sanctify myself, that they also might be sanctified through the truth." John xvii, 17-19. Now if the whole of sanctification, including its commencement, which is regeneration, is effected by the Spirit through the truth, it is reasonable to suppose that conviction, and what Calvin calls, the preparatory work of faith, is accomplished. by the same means. "The commandment is a lamp, and the law is light; and reproofs of instruction are the way of life." Prov. vi. 23. The law is said, (Gal. iii. 24.) to be "our schoolmaster to bring us unto Christ, that we might be justified by faith." Before we can have saving faith in Christ, we must be convinced of sin; because, until we feel that we are helpless sinners, we shall not look to the Saviour for deliverance. It is by the law that we are so convinced as to become "poor in spirit.” "By the law is the knowledge of sin.” Rom. iii. 20. "I had not known sin but by the law: for I had not known lust, except the law had said, thou shalt not covet." "I was alive without the law once; but when the commandment came, sin revi ved, and I died." This is preparatory to the commencement of the life of faith. We must be slain by the law, in order that we may be made alive by the gospel. "The law of the Lord is perfect, converting the soul: the testimony of the Lord is sure, making wise the simple: the commandment of the Lord is pure, enlightening the eyes." Ps. xix. 7, 8. 2 Peter represents grace and peace to be given to sinners, "through the knowledge of God, and of Jesus our Lord." Pet. i. 2. He considers also, that men escape the pollutions of the world, through the instrumental agency of the same knowledge. 2 Pet. ii. 20. Our Lord had previously taught the same doctrine, when he said, John xvii. 3. "this is life eternal, that they might know thee, the only true God, and Jesus Christ." When the heart is prepared, through that FEAR which is the beginning of wisdom, (Prov. ix. 10.) then God sends his gospel to the sinner, through an enlightened mind, into the affections. This, according to Calvin, is the use of the law and the gospel, in the restoration of fallen man. In the application of these it pleases the Holy Spirit to make use of that human instrumentality, which is in itself impotence, but which, in his hands, is mighty. Feeble men are commanded to speak the word of God faithfully; and concerning this same word, the Lord demands; "is not my word like as a fire, and like a hammer that breaketh the rock in pieces?" Jer. xxiii. 29. Such is the power of the gospel that it is denominated, "the word of life." Philip. ii. 16. To the Corinthian converts Paul says, "as my beloved sons, I warn you. For though ye have ten thousand instructors in Christ, yet have ye not many fathers; for in Christ Jesus I have begotten you through the gospel." 1 Cor. iv. 15. Paul had prepared them, through preaching the law, by which is the knowledge of sin, to despair of help from human aid, and from their own personal righteousness. Then he preached the righteousness of Jesus the substitute, who bare our sins in his own body on the tree, and God gave the grace of faith, which embraces the offered salvation. Paul planted the gospel seed; and afterwards, Apollos, by proclaiming the same truth, watered it. |