Now all these feveral unions take their rife from, and have their foundation in the everlasting love of. Chrift to his people; which is the grand, original, ftrong, and firm bond of union between him and them, and is the fpring of all that fellowship and communion they have with him in time, and fhall have to all eternity. It is from hence that the Spirit of God is fent down into our hearts to regenerate and renew us, and faith is wrought in our fouls by the Spirit. Faith does not give us a being in Chrift, or unite us to him; it is the fruit, effect, and evidence of our being in Chrift and union to him. It is true, indeed, that God's elect do not know their being in Chrift, and union to him, until they believe; then what was before fecret is made manifeft; and becaufe... things are fometimes faid to be, when they are only manifefted to be, hence. the people of Christ are said to be in Chrift, when they are made new creatures; If any man be in Chrift, he is a new creature. Being a new creature, does not. put a man into Chrift, but is the evidence of his being there; and without which he neither knows, nor ought he to profefs himself to be in Christ: And so likewise, in another place, it is faid, If any man have not the Spirit of Chrift, he is none of his. He may be one of his chofen and redeemed ones, though he has not the Spirit of Chrift as yet; but he cannot know this until he has the Spirit of Chrift; for no man can fay that Jefus is the Lord, that is, his Lord, but by the Holy Ghost. The apostle Paul takes notice of fome that were in Christ before him: all God's elect were chofen together in Chrift, not one before another: They had all together a being in him; but this in converfion is made known to one before another. There are different manifeftations. of union to different perfons, and to the fame perfons at different times; for which Chrift prays, when he fays, that they all may be one, as thou, Father, art in me, and I in thee; that they also may be one in us, that the world may believe that thou haft fent me; and the glory which thou gavest me, I bave given them, that they may be one, even as we are one; I in them, and thou in me; that they may be made perfect in one, and that the world may know that thou haft fent me, and haft loved them, as thou baft loved me. The full manifeftation of it will be in heaven, when the faints fhall be with Chrift where he is, and behold his glory, and enjoy uninterrupted communion with him, as the fruit of their eternal union to him. I should now, Sir, have clofed this letter, were it not for a paffage in your difcourfe Of the Do&rine of Grace, as it encourages Holiness; in which, I apprehend, you have poured much contempt on feveral valuable and excellent truths of the gofpel: I will repeat your words, and take leave to make some few strictures on them. They are these: "There have been fome, who, by "their 2 Cor. v. 17. * John xvii. 21-23. • Rom. viii. 9. d 1 Cor. xii. 3. • Ram. xvi. 70 their life and converfation, have fhewed, that they were far from being ene"mies to holiness, who have amufed themselves with fancies about God's loving and delighting in his elect, while they were in a state of nature; of his feeing no fin in his people, and good works not being necessary to salva"tion; and who have been forward to condemn preffing men to duty, as legal "preaching; and to speak of exhorting to repentance, mortification, and self"denial, as low and mean ftuff." I. I obferve that you efteem the doctrine of God's loving his elect, while in a state of nature, a fancy; and that those who hold this doctrine do but amufe themselves with a fancy. I muft beg leave to say, that if it is a fancy, it is a fcriptural one: I would not willingly fay or write any thing that is contrary to the purity and holiness of God, or has a tendency to embolden vicious perfons in a course of fin and wickedness; and yet cannot help faying, that the doctrine of God's everlasting, unchangeable, and invariable love to his elect, through every ftate and condition into which they come, is written as with a fun-beam in the facred writings. 1. God's love to his elect is not of yesterday; it does not begin with their love to him, We love him, because he first loved us". It was bore in his heart towards them long before they were delivered from the power of darkness, and tranflated into the kingdom of his dear Son. It does not commence in time, but bears date from eternity, and is the ground and foundation of the elect's being called in time out of darkness into marvellous light; I have loved thee, says the Lord to the church, with an everlasting love; therefore with loving-kindness bave I drawn thee'; that is, in effectual vocation. Many are the inftances which might be given in proof of the antiquity of God's love to his elect, and as it is antecedent to their being brought out of a state of nature. God's choosing them in Chrift before the foundation of the world, was an act of his love towards them, the fruit and effect of it; for election pre-supposes love. His making an everlasting covenant with his Son, ordered in all things, and sure, on account of those he chofe in him; his setting him up as the Mediator of the covenant from everlafting; his donation of grace to them in him before the world began; his putting their perfons into his hands, and so making them his care and charge, are so many demonstrative proofs of his early love to them; for can it ever be imagined that there should be a choice of perfons made, a covenant of grace fo well formed and stored, a promise of life granted, and a fecurity made, both of perfons and grace, and yet no love all this while? 2. The * See a Defence of fome important Doctrines of the Gospel, by feveral Minifters, vol. II. P. 512. h▲ John iv. 19. Jerem. xxxi. 3. 2. The love of God to his elect is unchangeable and unalterable; it is as invariable as his own nature and being; yea, God is love, and he that dwelleth in love, dwelleth in God, and God in him. Hence it is that the bleffings of his grace are irreversible, because they are the gifts of him, who is the Father of lights, with whom there is no variableness, nor fhadow of turning. Hence alfo it is that the falvation of God's elect does not ftand upon a precarious foundation, as it would, if his love changed as theirs does; but he is the Lord, who changes not, and therefore the fons of Jacob are not confumed. The feveral changes the elect of God pafs under, through the fall of Adam, and their own actual tranfgreffions make no change or alteration in the love of God. The love of God makes a change in them when he converts them, but no change or alteration is made in God's love; that does not admit of more or lefs; it cannot be said to be more ardent and intenfe at one time, than at another; it is always invariably the fame in his heart. Love produced a wonderful and surprising change in him, who was afterwards the great apoftle of the Gentiles, and of a blafpheming, perfecuting, and injurious Saul, made a believer in Chrift, and a preacher of the everlasting gospel: but then this produced no change in God, nor in his love.. God fometimes changes the difpenfations of his providence to his people, but he never changes his love; he fometimes hides his face from then, and chides them in a fatherly manner; but at all times he loves them: he loves when he rebukes and chaftens, and though be bides his face for a moment from them, yet with everlasting kindness will be have mercy on them; for he has faid, The mountains shall depart, and the bills be removed; but my kindness shall not depart from thee, neither shall the covenant of my peace be removed!. There is, indeed, no fenfible manifeftation of God's love to his elect before converfion, or while they are in a state of nature; and it must be allowed, that the manifestations of it to their fouls after converfion, are not always alike; and that God's love appears more evident in fome inftances and acts of it, than in others; yet ftill this love as in his own heart, is unchangeably and invariably the fame, as it needs muft be, if he is God. Since then God's love to his elect is from everlafting, and never changes upon any confideration whatever, why fhould God's love to his elect, while in a ftate of nature, be accounted a fancy, and those who maintain it, be reprefented as amusing. themselves with a fancy? 3. There are inftances to be given of God's love to his elect, while they are in a state of nature: I have already obferved fome inftances of it to his elect, from eternity. I will just mention one or two inftances of it to them in time; time, and which respect them, while in a state of nature. Chrift's coming into this world, and dying in the room and ftead of the elect, are, at once, proofs, both of his own and his Father's love, to them; God fo loved them, as to give his only begotten Son; and Chrift fo loved them as to give himself for them, in a way of offering and facrifice for their fins; at which time they were confidered as ungodly, as being yet finners, as enemies in their minds, by wicked works, and without love to God: for the apoftle fays ", When we were yet without ftrength, in due time Chrift died for the ungodly. God commendeth his love towards us, in that while we were yet finners, Chrift died for us; for if when we were enemies we were reconciled to God by the death of his Son, much more being reconciled, we shall be faved by his life. Now certainly these persons were in a state of nature, who are faid to be "without strength, to be ungodly, finners, " and enemies ;" and yet God commended his love towards them, when and while they were fuch, in a matchless inftance of it: and fo the apostle John makes ufe of this circumftance, refpecting the ftate of God's elect, to magnify, to set off, and illustrate the greatness of God's love": Herein is love, says he, not that we loved God, but that he loved us, and fent his Son to be the propitiation for our fins. From whence it may ftrongly be concluded, that God loved his people while in a state of nature, when enemies to him, deftitute of all grace, without a principle of love to him, or faith in him. Again, the quickening of God's elect, when dead in trefpaffes and fins, the drawing of them to Christ with the cords of powerful and efficacious grace in effectual vocation, are instances of his special grace and favour, and fruits and effects of his everlafting love to them. God, who is rich in mercy, for the great love wherewith he loved us, even when we were dead in fins, bath quickened us together with Chrift The time of the effectual vocation of God's people being come, fixed in his everlasting counfels and covenant, it is a time of open love to their fouls, and that time becomes a time of life; for feeing them wallowing in their blood, in all the impurities of their nature, fulfilling the defires of the flesh, and of the mind, be fays unto them, when in their blood, live; yea, when in their blood, be fays unto them, live. The Spirit of God, as an inftance of God's love, is fent down into their hearts in order to begin, carry on, and finish a work of grace, when he finds them in a state of nature, dead in fin, devoid of all grace, impotent to all that is fpiritually good: We ourselves alfo, fays the apostle, ", were fometimes foolish, difobedient, deceived, ferving divers lufts and pleafures, living in malice and envy, hateful and bating one another, or, when the kindness and love of God our Saviour toward man appeared; not by works of righteousness which we have done, but according to his mercy be faved us, by the washing of regeneration, and renewing of the Holy Ghoft, which he fhed on us abundantly, through Jefus Chrift our Saviour. If God did not love his elect, while in a state of nature, they must for ever remain in that state, since they are unable to help themselves out of it; and it is only the love, grace, and mercy of God, which engage his almighty power to deliver them from thence. There are three gifts, and inftances of God's love to his people before converfion, which are not to be matched by any inftance or inftances of love after converfion; the one is the gift of God himself to them in the everlasting covenant; which covenant runs thus: I will be their God, and they shall be my people: The other is the gift of his Son, to fuffer and die in their room and ftead, and fo obtain eternal redemption for them: the third is the gift of his Spirit to them, to convince them of fin, of righteousness, and of judgment. And now what greater inftance is there of God's love to his people after converfion? If the heavenly glory, with all the entertaining joys of that delightful state, should be fixed upon, I deny it to be a greater inftance of God's love, than the gift of himself, his Son, and Spirit; and, indeed, all that God does in time, or will do to all eternity, is only telling his people how much he loved them from everlasting; all is but as it were, a comment upon, and an opening of that ancient act of his; nor has this doctrine any tendency to licentioufnefs, or to difcourage the performance of good works. The confideration of this, that God loved me before I loved him, nay, when I was an enemy to him; that his thoughts were employed about my falvation, when I had no thoughts of him, nor concern for myself, lays me under ten thousand times greater obligations, to fear, serve, and glorify him; than such a consideration as this, that he began to love me when I loved him, or because I have loved him, can poffibly do. Why then should this doctrine be accounted a meer fancy, which has fo good a foundation, both in the word of God, and in the experience of his people; and the maintainers of it, traduced as amusers of themselves with fancies? II. Perhaps you will fay, it is not merely the notion of God's loving his elect in a state of nature, but his loving them fo as to delight in them, while in that state, that you condemn as a fancy, and the defenders of it, as amusing themselves with a fancy; fince you join love and delight together, when you express yourself fo freely on this head. There is a diftinction which you may imagine will help you, which is that of a love of pity and benevolence, and of complacency and delight; with the first of thefe, fay fome, God loved his elect before converfion, and while in a state of nature, but not with the latter. is an idle and ill-grounded diftinction of fome ignorant, trifling, popish VOL. III. schoolmen, E e |
