[WHO ARE THEY THAT ARE UNDER THE COVENANT OF WORKS.]
Second. They are under the law and do not only break and disobey the law but follow after the law as hard as ever they can, seeking justification thereby—that is, though a man should abstain from the sins against the law. Labor to fulfill the law and give himself up to the law, yet if he looks no further than the law, he is still under the law, and for all his obedience to the law, the righteous Law of God, he shall be destroyed by that law. Friend, you must not understand that none but profane persons are under the law; no, but you must realize that a man may be turned from a vain, loose, open, profane conversation and sinning against the law to a holy, righteous, religious life, and yet be in the same state, under the same law, and as sure to be damned as the other that are more profane and loose. And though you may say this is very strange, I shall both say it and prove it to be true.
Read with understanding that Scripture in Romans 9:30-31, where the Apostle, speaking of the very thing, saith, "But Israel, which followed after the law of righteousness"; mark, that followed after the law of righteousness; they notwithstanding their earnest pursuit, or hunting after the law of righteousness, "hath not attained to the law of righteousness." It signifies thus much to us that let a man be never so earnest, so fervent, so restless, so profound, so ready, so apt and willing to follow the law and the righteousness thereof if he is under that covenant, he is gone, he is lost, he is deprived of eternal life because he is not under the ministration of life if he dies there. Read also that Scripture, Galatians 3:10, which saith, "For as many as are of the works of the law are under the curse"; mark, they that are of the works of the law. Now, for to be of the works of the law, it is to be of the works of the righteousness thereof—that is, to abstain from sins against the law and to do the commands thereof as near as ever they can for their lives, or with all the might they have: and therefore I beseech you to consider it, for men's being ignorant of this is the cause why so many go on supposing they have a share in Christ because they are reformed, and abstain from the sins against the law, who, when all comes to all, will be damned notwithstanding, because they are not brought out from under the Covenant of Works, and put under the Covenant of Grace.
Object. "But can you make these things manifestly evident from the Word of God? Methinks to reason thus is very strange that a man should labor to walk up according to the Law of God as much as ever he can, and yet that man, notwithstanding this, should be still under the curse. Pray clear it."
Answ. Indeed, this does seem very strange; I do know full well, to the natural man, to him that is yet in his unbelief because he goes by beguiled reason, but for my part, I do know it is so and shall also labor to convince thee of the truth of the same.
1. Then, the law is thus strict and severe that if a man does sin but once against it, he, I say, is gone forever by the law, living and dying under that covenant. If you would be satisfied as touching the truth of this, do but read Galatians 3:10, where it saith, "Cursed is everyone," that is, not a man shall miss by that covenant, "that continued not in all," mark, in all "things which are written in the book of the law to do them." (1.) Pray, here is a curse, in the first place, if all things written in the book of the law are not done, and that, continually too—without any failing or one slip, as I said before. Now, there is never one in the world, but before they began to yield obedience to the least command, they, in their own persons, sin against it by breaking it.
The Apostle, methinks, is very notable for the clearing of this in Romans 3:5. In the one, he endeavors to prove that all had transgressed in the first Adam as he stood an ordinary person, representing himself and us in his standing and falling. "Wherefore," saith he, "as by one man sin entered into the world, and death by sin; and so death passed upon all men," mark that; but why? "for that all have sinned" (Rom 5:12). That is, forasmuch as all naturally are guilty of original sin, the sin that was committed by us in Adam; so this is one cause why none can be justified by their obedience to the law because they have in the first place broken it in their first parents. But, (2.) in case this should be opposed and rejected by quarrelsome persons, though there be no ground for it, Paul hath another argument to back his doctrine, saying, For we have proved (already) that both Jews and Gentiles are all under sin. "As it is written, There is none righteous, no, not one." "They are all gone out of the way; they are together, "together, "and have become unprofitable. None does good, no, not one." "Their throat is an open sepulcher; with their tongues, they have used deceit; the poison of asps is under their lips." Their "mouths are full of cursing and bitterness." "Their feet are swift to shed blood."
In a word, "Destruction and misery are in their ways; and the way of peace have they not known." Now then, saith he, having proved these things so clearly, the conclusion of the whole is this, "That what things soever the law saith," in both showing of sin, and cursing for the same, "it saith" all "to them who are under the law that every mouth may be stopped, and all the world may become guilty before God" (Rom 3:10,19). So that here, I say, lieth the ground of our not being justified by the law, even because, in the first place, we have sinned against it; for know this for sure, that if the law doth take the least advantage of thee by thy sinning against it, all that ever thou shalt afterward hear from it is nothing but Curse, curse, curse him, "for not continuing in all things which are written in the book of the law to do them."
No comments:
Post a Comment