Works of John Bunyan: JUSTIFICATION BY AN IMPUTED RIGHTEOUSNESS; OR, NO WAY TO HEAVEN BUT BY JESUS CHRIST. 317

Two Positions.

Now, from this proposition, I draw these two positions—FIRST.

THAT MAN IS JUSTIFIED FROM THE CURSE OF THE LAW BEFORE GOD WHILE SINNERS IN THEMSELVES. SECOND. THAT THIS CAN BE DONE BY NO OTHER RIGHTEOUSNESS THAN THAT LONG AGO PERFORMED BY, AND RESIDING WITH, THE PERSON OF JESUS CHRIST.

[FIRST POSITION]

FIRST. Let us, then, now enter into the consideration of the first

of these—namely, THAT MEN ARE JUSTIFIED FROM THE CURSE OF THE LAW BEFORE GOD WHILE SINNERS IN THEMSELVES. This I shall manifest, FIRST, By touching upon the mysterious acts of our redemption;

SECOND, By giving of you plain texts which discover it; and, THIRD,

reasons drawn from the texts.

FIRST. For the first of these; to wit, the mysterious act of our redemption: and that I shall speak to under these two heads—First, I shall show you what that is; and, Second, How we are concerned therein.

First. [What that is.] That which I call, and that rightly, the mysterious act of our redemption, is Christ's sufferings as a common, [4] though a particular person, and as a sinner, though always completely righteous.

That he suffered as a common person is true. By common, I mean a public person or one that presents the body of mankind in himself. This a multitude of scriptures bear witness to, especially that fifth chapter to the Romans, where, by the apostle, he is set before us as the head of all the elect, even as Adam was once head of all the world. Thus he lived, and thus he died, and this was a mysterious act. And that he should die as a sinner when yet himself did 'no sin,' nor had any 'guile found in his mouth,' made this act more mysterious (1 Pet 1:19, 2:22, 3:18). That he died as a sinner is plain—' He hath made him to be sin. And the Lord laid upon him the iniquity of us all (Isa 53). That, then, as to his own person, he was completely sinless is also as truly manifested by a multitude of scriptures. Now, I say, that Christ Jesus should be thus considered, and thus die, was the great mystery of God. Hence Paul tells us, that when he preached 'Christ crucified,' he preached not only the 'wisdom of God,' but the 'wisdom of God in a mystery,' even his 'hidden wisdom,' for, indeed, this wisdom is hidden, and kept close from the 'fowls of the air' (1 Cor 1:24, 2:7, 8; Job 28:20, 21).

It is also so mysterious, that it goes beyond the reach of all men, except those to whom an understanding is given of God to apprehend it (1 John 5:20). That one particular man should represent all the elect in himself, and that the most righteous should die as a sinner, yea, as a sinner by the hand of a just and holy God, is a mystery of the greatest depth!

Second. And now I come to show you how the elect are concerned therein; that is, in this mysterious act of this most blessed One—and this will make this act yet more mysterious to you.

Now, then, we will speak of this first, as to how Christ prepared himself thus mysteriously to act. He took hold of our nature. I say, he took hold of us, by taking upon him flesh and blood. The Son of God, therefore, took not upon him a particular person, though he took him a human body and soul; but that which he took was, as I may call it, a lump of the common nature of man; and by that, a hold of the whole elect seed of Abraham; 'For verily he took not on him the nature of angels, but he took on him the seed of Abraham' (Heb 2:16) Hence, he, in a mystery, became us and was counted as all the men that were or should be saved. And this is why we are said to do, what only Jesus Christ did.