Chapter
Ten
That
we may be prepared by the comforts of the gospel to perform sincerely the
duties of the law, we must get some assurance of our salvation in that very
faith by which Christ Himself is received into our hearts. Therefore, we must
endeavour to believe on Christ confidently, persuading and assuring ourselves,
in the act of believing, that God freely gives to us an interest in Christ and
His salvation, according to His gracious promise.
It is evident that
those comforts of the gospel that are necessary to a holy practice cannot be
truly received without some assurance of your interest in Christ and His
salvation, for some of these comforts consist in a good persuasion of our
reconciliation with God, and of our future heavenly happiness, and of strength
both to will and to do that which is acceptable to God through Christ, as has
been before showed. Thus it will clearly follow that this assurance is very
necessary to enable us for the practice of holiness, as those comforts that
must go before the duties of the law, in order of nature, as the cause goes
before the effect, though not in any distance of time. My present work is to
show what this assurance is, that is so necessary unto holiness, and which I
have here asserted we must act, in that very faith by which we receive Christ
Himself into our hearts, even in justifying saving faith. This doctrine seems
strange to many that profess themselves Protestants in late days, whereas it
was formerly highly owned by the chief Protestants whom God made use of to
restore the purity of the gospel, and to maintain it against the Papists for
many years. They commonly taught that 'faith was a persuasion or confidence of
our own salvation by Christ; and that we must be sure to apply Christ and His
salvation to ourselves in believing'. And this doctrine was one of the great
engines by which they prevailed to overthrow the popish superstition, of which
doubtfulness of salvation is one of the principal pillars. But many of the
successors of those Protestants have deserted them, and left their writings to
be shamefully insulted by the Papists. And this innovation has been of longer
standing among us than several other parts of our new divinity, and maintained
by those that profess to abhor that corrupt doctrine which the Papists have
built upon such principles. Modern divines may think they stand on the
shoulders of their predecessors, whose labours they enjoy, and that they can
see farther than they, as the schoolmen might have like thoughts of the
ancient fathers, but, for all this, they may not be able to see so far, if the
eyes of their predecessors were better enlightened by the Spirit of God to
understand the mystery of the gospel. And why may we not judge that it is so
in the present case? The eyes of men in these late years have been blinded in
this point of assurance by many false imaginations. They think because
salvation is not promised to us absolutely, but on condition of believing on
Christ for it, therefore we must first believe directly on Christ for our
salvation and, after that, we must reflect in our minds on our faith and
examine it by several marks and signs, especially by the fruit of sincere
obedience, and if, upon this examination, we find out certainly that it is
true saving faith, then, and not before, we may believe assuredly that we in
particular shall be saved. On this account, they say that our salvation is by
the direct, and our assurance by the reflex act of faith, and that many have
true faith and shall be saved that never have any assurance of their salvation
as long as they live in this world. They find, by Scripture and experience,
that many precious saints of God are frequently troubled with doubtings
whether they shall be saved, and whether their faith and obedience are
sincere, so that they cannot see assurance in themselves; therefore they
conclude that assurance must not be accounted absolutely necessary to
justifying faith and salvation, lest we should make the hearts of doubting
saints sad and drive them to despair. They account that former Protestants
were guilty of a manifest absurdity in making 'assurance to be of the nature
and definition of saving faith', because all that hear the gospel are bound to
saving faith, and yet they are not bound absolutely to believe that they
themselves shall be saved; for then many of them would be bound to believe
that which is not declared in the gospel concerning them in particular - yea,
that which is a plain lie, because the gospel shows that many of those that
are called are not chosen to salvation, but perish for ever (Matt. 20:16). No
wonder if the appearance of so great an absurdity move many to imagine that
'saving faith is a trusting or resting on Christ as the only sufficient means
of salvation, without any assurance, or that it is a desiring and venturing to
trust or rely on Him, in a mere state of suspense and uncertainty concerning
our salvation, or with a probable opinion or conjectural hope of it at best'.
Another objection
against this doctrine of assurance is that 'it destroys self-examination,
bringing forth the evil fruits of pride and arrogancy, as if they knew their
places in heaven already, before the day of judgement, causes carelessness of
duty, carnal security, all manner of licentiousness'. And this makes them
commend doubtfulness of our salvation, as necessary to maintain in us
humility, religious fears, watchfulness, much searching and trying our
spiritual state and ways, diligence in good works and all devotion.
Against all these
contrary imaginations, I shall endeavour to maintain this ancient Protestant
doctrine of assurance, which I have expressed in the direction. And, first, I
shall lay down some observations for the right understanding of it, which will
be sufficient to turn the edge of the strongest objections that can be made
against it.
1. Observe
diligently that the assurance directed to is not a persuasion that we have
already received Christ and His salvation, or that we have been already
brought into a state of grace, but only that 'God is pleased graciously to
give Christ and His salvation to us, and to bring us to a state of grace,
though we have been altogether in a state of sin and death until this present
time', so that this doctrine does not at all tend to breed presumption in
wicked and unregenerate men that their state is good already, but only
encourages them to come to Christ confidently for a good state. I acknowledge
that we may, yea, many must be taught to doubt whether their present state is
good; and that it is humility so to do; and that we must find out the
certainty and sincerity of our faith and obedience by self-examination, before
we can have as well-grounded assurance that we are in a state of grace and
salvation already; and that such an assurance belongs to that which they call
the reflex act of faith (if any act of faith can be made of it, it being a
spiritual sense of feeling of what is in myself), and is not ?the essence of
that faith by which we are justified and saved; and that many precious saints
are without it, and subject to many doubts that are contrary to it; so that
they may not know at all that it shall go well with them at the day of
judgement; and that it may be sometimes intermitted, if not wholly lost after
it is gotten; and that we should strive to walk holily, that we may attain to
it, because it is very useful to our growth and increase in faith, and in all
holiness. Most Protestants among us, when they speak or write of assurance,
mean only that which is by reflection. And I have said enough briefly to show
that what I assert is consistent with the doctrine which is commonly received
concerning it, and destructive to none of the good fruits of it, therefore not
guilty of those evils that some falsely charge it with. This kind of
assurance, which I speak of, does not answer the question: 'Whether I am
already in a state of grace and salvation?' There is another great question
that the soul must answer that it may get into a state of grace: 'Whether God
is graciously pleased now to bestow Christ and His salvation on me, though I
have been until now a very wicked creature?' We must be sure to resolve this
question comfortably by another kind of assurance in the direct act of faith,
in which we are to persuade ourselves (without reflecting on any good
qualifications in ourselves) that God is ready graciously to receive us into
the arms of His saving mercy in Christ, notwithstanding all our former
wickedness, according to that gracious promise: 'I will call them My people,
which were not My people; and her beloved, which was not beloved. And it shall
come to pass that in the place where it was said to them, You are not My
people, there shall they be called the children of the living God' (Rom.
9:25, 26).
2. The assurance
directed to is not a persuasion of our salvation, whatever we do, or however
we live and walk, but only in a limited way, through mere free grace in
Christ, by partaking of holiness as well as forgiveness and by walking in the
way of holiness to the enjoyment of the glory of God. We shall not heartily
desire or endeavour to assure ourselves of such a salvation as this is, if we
be not brought first to see our own sinfulness and misery, and to despair of
our own righteousness and strength, and to hunger and thirst for the
sanctifying as well as justifying grace of God in Christ, so that we may walk
in His ways of holiness to the enjoyment of heavenly glory. The faith by which
we receive Christ must have in it, not only a persuasion of happiness, but
these and the like good qualifications that will make it a most holy faith.
Certainly an assurance thus qualified will not beget any pride in us, but
rather humility and self-loathing, except any account it pride to rejoice and
glory in Christ, when we have no confidence in the flesh (Phil. 3:3). It will
not destroy religious fear and breed carnal security; but rather it will make
us fear going aside from Christ our only refuge and security and walking after
the flesh. Noah had cause to enter into the ark and to abide there with
assurance of his preservation; yet he might well be afraid to venture out of
the ark, because he was persuaded that continuance in the ark was his only
safety from perishing in the flood. And how can a persuasion of salvation in a
way of holiness breed slothfulness in duty, carelessness and licentiousness?
It rather mightily allures and stirs us up to 'be always abounding in the work
of the Lord, forasmuch as we know, that our labour shall not be in vain in the
Lord' (1 Cor.
15:58
).
They that are
persuaded of the free grace of God towards them in Christ are not, indeed,
solicitous about earning their salvation by their own legal works. And Satan
is ready to suggest to them that this is a sinful carelessness and tends to
licentiousness. But they that will believe this false suggestion of Satan show
plainly that they do not yet know what it is to serve God in love, and that
they are held in to all their obedience by the bit and bridle of slavish fear,
'as the horse and mule that have no understanding' (Ps. 32:9).
3. Beware of
thinking so highly of this assurance as if it were inconsistent with any
doubting in the same soul. A great reason why many Protestants have receded
from the doctrine of their ancestors in this point is because they think there
can be no true assurance of salvation in any that are troubled with doubtings,
as they find many be, whom they cannot but own as true believers and precious
saints of God. True, indeed, this assurance must be contrary to doubtings in
the nature of it and so, if it be perfect, in the highest degree, it would
exclude all doubting out of the soul; and it now excludes it in some degree.
But is there not flesh, as well as spirit, in the best saints on earth? (Gal.
5:17.) Is there not a law in their members warring against the law of their
minds? (Rom. 7:23.) May not one that truly believes say, 'Lord, help my
unbelief?' (Mark 9:24.) Can any on earth say they have received any grace in
the highest degree, and that they are wholly free from the contrary
corruption? Why then should we think that assurance cannot be true, except it
is perfect and free the soul from all doubtings? The apostle counts it a great
blessing, to the Thessalonians, that they had much assurance; intimating that
some true assurance might be in a less degree (1 Thess. 1:5). Peter had some
good assurance of Christ's help when he walked on the water at Christ's
command, and yet he had some doubtfulness in him, as his fear showed when he
saw the wind boisterous. He had some faith contrary to doubting, though it
were but little, as Christ's words to him show: 'O you of little faith, why
did you doubt?' (Matt. 14:29-31.) It is strange if the flesh and the devil
shall never oppose a true assurance and assault it with doubtings. A believer
may be sometimes so overwhelmed with doubtings that he may not be able to
perceive an assurance in himself. He is so far from knowing his place in
heaven already (as some scoffingly object) that he will say that he does not
know any assurance that he has of being there, and needs diligent
self-examination to find it out. Yet, if at that time he can blame his soul
for doubting, 'Why are you cast down, O my soul? and why are you disquieted
within me? Hope in God; for I shall yet praise Him' (Ps. 42:11); if he can
condemn his doubtings as sinful, and say with himself, 'This is my infirmity'
(Ps. 77:10), these doubtings are of the flesh, and of the devil; if he still
endeavour to call God 'Father', and complain to Him that he doubts whether He
is his Father, and pray that God will give him the assurance of His fatherly
love, which he is not sensible of, and dispel those fears and doubtings; I
say, that such a one has some true assurance, though he must strive to grow to
a higher degree, for, if he were not persuaded of the truth of the love of God
towards him, he could not rationally condemn his fears and doubts concerning
it as sinful; neither could he rationally pray to God as his Father, or that
God would assure him of that love that he does not think to be true.
Do but grant that it
is the nature of saving faith thus to resist and struggle with slavish fears
of wrath and doubting of our own salvation, and you grant, in effect, that
there is, and must be something of assurance of our salvation in saving faith,
by which it resists doubtings, and you are, in effect, of the same judgement
with me in the assertion, however strange my expressions seem to you. If this
that I have said concerning our imperfection in assurance, as well as in other
graces, were well considered, this ancient Protestant doctrine would be freed
from much prejudice and gain more esteem among us.
4. In the last
place, let it be well observed that the reason why we are to assure ourselves
in our faith that 'God freely gives Christ and salvation to us particularly'
is not because it is a truth before we believe it, but because it becomes a
certain truth when we believe it, and because it will never be true, except we
do, in some measure, persuade and assure ourselves that it is so. We have no
absolute promise of declaration in Scripture, that God certainly will or does
give Christ and His salvation to any one of us in particular; neither do we
know it to be true already by Scripture, or sense, or reason, before we assure
ourselves absolutely of it: yea, we are without Christ's salvation at present,
in a state of sin and misery, under the curse and wrath of God. Only I shall
prove that we are bound by the command of God thus to assure ourselves, and
the Scripture sufficiently warrants us that we should not deceive ourselves in
believing a lie but, according to our faith, so shall it be to us (Matt. 9:29). This is a strange kind of assurance, far different from other ordinary
kinds; and therefore no wonder if it be found weak and imperfect, and
difficult to be obtained, and assaulted with many doubtings. We are
constrained to believe other things on the clear evidence we have that they
are true, and would remain true, whether we believe them or no, so that we
cannot deny our assent, without rebelling against the light of our senses,
reason or conscience. But here our assurance is not impressed on our thoughts
by any evidence of the thing; but we must work it out in ourselves by the
assistance of the Spirit of God, and in this way we bring our own thoughts
into captivity to the obedience of Christ. None but God can justly require of
us this kind of assurance, because He only calls those things that are not, as
though they were (Rom. 4:17). He only can give existence to things that yet are not, and make a thing to
be true, on our believing it, that was not true before. He only can make good
that promise: 'What ever things you desire, when you pray; believe that you
receive them, and you shall have them' (Mark 11:24). 'Who is he that says, and it comes to pass, when the Lord does not command
it!' (Lam. 3:37). Therefore, this faith is due to God only and greatly
redounds to His glory. Men will often require a believing something like it,
as when one says, 'I will forgive your offence, and be your friend, if I can
find that you believe it, and that you take me for a friend.' But their
fallible word is not sufficient ground to make us persuade ourselves
absolutely that we shall have their promised favour.
The faith of
miracles gives us some light in this matter. Christ assured them on whom they
were wrought, and who had power given them of working them, that the miracles
should be wrought, if they believed without doubting of the event (Mark 11:22,
23). And there is a reason for this resemblance, because the end of working
miracles was to confirm the doctrine of the gospel of salvation by faith in
Christ's name, as the Scriptures clearly show, and, indeed, the salvation of a
sinner is a very great miracle. It is reported that wizards often require
those that come to them that they should believe they shall obtain what they
desire of them, or at least that they are able to fulfil their desires;
whereby the devil, the master of those wizards, shows himself to be God's ape,
and that he would feign have that honour and glory ascribed to himself that is
due to God alone.
Having thus
explained the nature of that assurance which I have directed to, I shall now
produce several arguments to prove that 'there is, and must necessarily be,
such an assurance or persuasion of our salvation in saving faith itself'.
1. This assurance of
salvation is implied in the description before given of that faith by which we
receive Christ and His salvation into our hearts. I described faith to be a
grace of the Spirit, by which 'we heartily believe the gospel, and also
believe on Christ, as He is revealed and freely promised to us in it, for all
His salvation'. And I showed in the explanation that believing on Christ is
the same with resting, relying, leaning, staying ourselves on Christ, or God
through Christ, for our salvation. It may be some will like the description
the better, because faith was there described by terms that are ordinarily
used, even by those that deny the necessity of assurance; but these ordinary
terms do sufficiently include assurance in the nature of faith, and they
cannot stand without it. And this shows that many hold the doctrine of
assurance implicitly, and profess it, though they think the contrary.
Believing on Christ for salvation, as freely promised to us, must needs
include a dependence on Christ with a persuasion that salvation shall be
freely given, as it is freely promised to us. Believing with a divine faith,
grounded on the infallible truth of the promise, if it did not in some measure
exclude a mere suspense and wavering opinion or conjecture, were not worthy to
be so called. Some may be so absurd as to say that fait is only a believing
that we shall be saved by Christ, if we perform such conditions as He
requires, and then, indeed, it will leave us where it found us as to any
certainty of salvation, until those conditions are performed.
But I have already
prevented such an absurdity by showing that this believing on Christ is
itself, not only the condition of our salvation, but also the instrument by
which we actually receive it. Believing, being the proper act of faith, must
needs have the same contraries to it, as staggering (Rom.
4:20); wavering (Heb. 10:23); doubting (Matt. 14:31); fearing (Mark
5:36). These contraries do much illustrate the nature of faith and do show that
believing must have some confidence in it, else it would have doubting in the
very nature of it; for what man that understands the preciousness of his
immortal soul, and his danger of losing it, can ever avoid fear, doubting and
trouble of heart by any believing whereby he does not at all assure himself of
his salvation? The other terms of 'trusting' and 'resting' on Jesus Christ,
etc., by which faith is often described by orthodox teachers, must include
assurance of salvation, because they signify the same thing with believing on
Christ. The soul must have its sufficient support to bear it up against
oppressing fears, troubles, cares, despair, that it may thus trust and rest.
The right manner of trusting and hoping in the Lord is by assuring ourselves,
against all fears and doubtings, that the Lord is our God, and He is become
our salvation. 'I trusted in You, O Lord: I said You are my God' (Ps. 31:14).
'The Lord is my rock, and my fortress, and my deliverer; my God, my strength,
in whom I will trust' (Ps. 18:2). 'Behold, God is my salvation; I will trust
and not be afraid' (Isa. 12:2). 'O my soul, hope in God, who is the health of
my countenance, and my God' (Ps. 42:11). True hope is grounded in God only,
that He will bless us, that He may be an anchor for the soul, sure and
steadfast (Heb. 6:17-19). If you trust, rely and stay yourselves on Christ, or
hope in Him, without assuring yourselves at all of salvation by Him, you make
no better use of Him than if He were a broken reed and, if you would stay
yourselves on the Lord, you must look upon Him as your God; as the prophet
teaches, 'Let him trust in the name of the Lord, and stay upon his God' (Isa.
50:10). If you will rest in the Lord, you must believe that He deals
bountifully with you (Ps. 116:7), or else, for ought you know, you may make
your bed in hell. And you will show little regard of Christ and of your soul
if you dare to rest under the wrath of God, without any persuasion of a sure
interest in Christ. People may please themselves with such a trusting or
resting, etc. when they are at ease; but in time of temptation it vanishes
away and appears to be no true faith, but is turned into shame. The soul that
lives in such wavering and doubting concerning salvation does not stay itself,
nor rest at all, but is 'like a wave of the sea, driven with the wind, and
tossed; he is a double minded man, unstable in all his ways' (James 1:6, 8).
If you continue on
the mere suspense and doubtfulness of salvation by Christ, your desire to
trust is but a lazy woulding, without any fixed resolution, and you dare not
yet venture to persuade and assure yourselves of your desire to trust and rely
on Jesus Christ, I may answer that you cannot do this much in a right manner,
except you desire and venture to persuade and assure yourselves of your
salvation by Christ, notwithstanding all the causes that you have to doubt and
fear the contrary. If it is objected that we may trust on Christ only as a
sufficient means of salvation, without any assurance of the effect, I shall
acknowledge that the sufficiency of God and Christ is a good ground for us to
rest on; but we must understand by it, not only a sufficiency of power, but
also of goodwill and mercy towards us, for what have we to do more with the
sufficiency of God and Christ's power than fallen angels, without His goodwill
towards us? And if this be truly believed, it will exclude doubtfulness
concerning your salvation.
2. Several places of
Scripture declare positively and expressly that we are to be assured of our
salvation in that faith by which we are justified and saved. I shall produce
some instances. We are exhorted to draw near to God with full assurance of
faith (Heb. 10:22). Many apply this text to that which they call the reflex act of faith,
because they imagine that all assurance must needs be by reflection. But the
words of the text clearly touch us to understand it of that act of faith by
which we draw near to God, that is, the direct act, and it is that very faith
by which the just do live - even justifying, saving faith (v. 8).
And this assurance
must be full, at least in the true and proper nature of it, in opposition to
mere doubtfulness and uncertainty, though we are yet further to labour for
that which is full in the highest degree of perfection. And the same faith by
which we are exhorted to draw near to God, and by which the just lives, is, a
little after (Heb. 11:1), affirmed to be the substance of things hoped for,
and the evidence of things not seen. Why should saving faith have these high
titles and attributes given to it, if it did not contain in it a sure
persuasion of the great things of our salvation hoped for, making them to be
evident to the eyes of our mind, as if they were already present in their
substance, though yet not visible to our bodily eyes? That faith by which we
are made partakers of Christ and to be Christ's house must be worthy to be
called 'confidence', and accompanied with rejoicing hope: 'Whose house are we,
if we hold fast the confidence, and rejoicing of the hope firm unto the end'
(Heb. 3:6, 14). What is confidence concerning anything, but trusting
concerning it with a firm persuasion of the truth of it? If we have only a
strong opinion concerning a thing, without any absolute certainty, we use to
say that we are not altogether confident of it. The faith by which we are
justified must be in a measure like to the faith by which 'Abraham, against
hope, believed in hope, that his seed should certainly be multiplied according
to the promise of God; though, by reason of the deadness of his own body, and
Sarah's womb', he could have no evidence from his own qualifications to assure
himself of it, but all appearances were rather to the contrary, as the apostle
teaches clearly (Rom. 4:18, 19, 23, 24). As absolute as this promise was, thus
made to Abraham, yet it was not to be fulfilled without this assurance of
faith and, by the like faith, the free promises of salvation by Christ will be
absolutely fulfilled to us.
The apostle James
expressly requires that we should ask good things of God in faith, nothing
doubting - which includes assurance manifestly, and he tells us plainly that
without it a man ought not to think that he shall receive anything of the
Lord. Therefore we may firmly conclude that without it we shall not receive
the salvation of Christ (James 1:6, 7). And that which the apostle James
requires us not to doubt of is the obtaining the things that we ask; as we may
learn from an instruction to the same purpose given to us by Christ Himself:
'Whatever you desire, when you pray, believe that you receive them, and you
shall have them' (Mark
11:24
).
More places of
Scripture might be alleged to the same purpose, but these are sufficient to
evince that we are bound to assure ourselves of our salvation in faith itself,
or else we are never likely to enjoy it; and that it is not humility, but
rather proud disobedience, to live in a state of mere suspense and
doubtfulness concerning our salvation; and that this assurance must be in the
direct act of faith by which we are justified and saved. For, as for that
which is called the reflex act of faith, it is a certain truth, and generally
owned, that it is not absolutely necessary to salvation to any, and that it is
sinful and pernicious to many to believe that they are already entered into a
state of grace and salvation.
3. God gives us
sufficient ground in Scripture to come to Christ with confident faith at the
very first, trusting assuredly that Christ and His salvation shall be given to
us, without any failing and delay, however vile and sinful our condition has
been before. The Scripture speaks to the vilest sinners in such a manner as if
it were framed on purpose to beget assurance of salvation in them immediately
(Acts
2:39;
3:26). This promise is universal that 'whoever believes on Christ shall not be
ashamed', without making a difference between Jew and Greek (Rom.
10:11, 12). And this promise is confirmed by the blood of Christ, who was given for
the world and lifted up upon the cross for this very end, that 'whoever
believes on Him should not perish, but have everlasting life' (John
3:14
-16). His invitation is free to any: 'If any man thirst, let him come to Me
and drink,' and this drink is promised to everyone that believes (John 7:37, 39). The command of believing is propounded, not only in general, but in
particular; and the promise of salvation on believing is also applied
personally, and that to such as have been before in a state of sin and wrath,
as to the wicked, persecuting, self-murdering jailer: 'Believe on the Lord
Jesus, and you shall be saved, and your house' (Acts 16:31). God commanded
them that walked altogether in sin before to call Him their own Father, in
their very first returning (Jer. 3:4). So God saith He will say, 'You are My
people; and they shall say, You are my God' (Hos.
2:23
), confidently averring their personal interest in Him. God has joined
confidence or salvation inseparably together: 'In returning and rest you shall
be saved; and quietness and confidence shall be your strength' (Isa. 30:15).
What a poor slender
use and improvement do many make of these discoveries of the rich grace of God
towards sinners, who say that, if we see that we have performed the condition
of believing, then we may take Christ confidently as our own? They skip over
the first principal use they ought to make of them. The very performance of
the condition is to take Christ as our own immediately, and to eat and drink
Him by believing confidently on Him for our salvation. If an honest rich man
say to a poor woman, 'I promise to be your husband, if you will have me; say
but the word, and I am yours,' may not she presently answer confidently, 'You
are my husband, and I claim you for my husband'? And should she not rather say
so, than say, 'I believe not what you say'? If an honest man say, 'Do but take
this gift, and it is your own; do but eat and drink, and you are freely
welcome,' may not I take the gift and eat and drink at first without any
further ado, and with assurance that it is mine freely? If I do it doubtingly,
I disparage the honesty and credit of the donor, as if he were not a man of
his word. In like manner, if fearing to be too confident, lest we should
believe a lie, we should come to Christ doubtingly and in mere suspense
whether we should be freely entertained, after all God's free invitations and
promises, should we not disparage the faithfulness of God? And should we not
be guilty of making God a liar? As the apostle John teaches, because of our
not believing the record which God gave of His Son, 'And this is the record,
that God has given to us eternal life: and this life is in His Son' (1 John
5:10, 11).
And what if the
salvation promised is not absolutely intended for all to whom the gospel
comes? It is enough that God gives us His faithful word that they that believe
shall have it, and none else; and has absolutely intended to fulfil His word
that none shall find it to be a lie to them, and has joined believing and
salvation inseparably together.
On this ground God
may justly cause the promise of this salvation to be published to all, and may
justly require all to believe on Him assuredly for their own salvation, that
so it may appear whether they will give Him the glory of His truth; and if
they will not, He may justly reject them, and punish them severely for
dishonouring Him by their unbelief. In this case, we must not look to the
secret decrees of God, but to His revealed promises and commands. Thus God
promised to the Israelites in the wilderness that He would give them the land
of Canaan, and would fight for them against their enemies, and required them
not to fear or be discouraged, that so the promise might be fulfilled to them;
yet God never absolutely decreed or intended that those Israelites should
enter in, as the event did quickly manifest (Deut. 1:20, 21, 29, 30). Yet were
they not bound in this case to trust confidently in God to give them victory
over their enemies, and to give them the possession of the land? Had they not
sufficient ground for such a faith? Was it not just with God to consume them
in the wilderness for their unbelief? 'Let us therefore fear, lest a promise
being made of entering into this everlasting rest through Christ, we should
come short of it, and fall after the same example of unbelief' (Heb. 4:1, 11).
4. The professors of
true godliness that we read of through the Scriptures of the Old and New
Testament commonly professed their assurance and persuasion of their interest
in God and His salvation, and were directed by the Word of God so to do, and
true saints had still some true assurance of it. And we have no cause to judge
that this assurance was grounded on the certainty of their own good
qualifications, but rather on the promises of God by the direct act of faith.
We may judge of the ordinary profession of the frame of spirit that was in
saints by some instances. I shall begin with the profession that the church
made when it was very corrupt, at its first coming out of Egypt, when few of
them could assure themselves by their own good qualifications that they were
in a state of grace already - which many now imagine to be the only way of
assurance. Even in that corrupt time the children of
Israel
sung that triumphant song of Moses, 'The Lord is my strength and my song, and
He is become my salvation; He is my God,' etc. (Exod. 15:2). Moses taught them
in this song to assure themselves of their own personal interest in the
salvation, and he guided them to the practice of their duty. And they did not
find fault with Moses, as some do with ministers in these days, for putting
them to express more confidence in their song than they can find ground for
from their qualifications; but they applied themselves to the exercise of
their faith, agreeably to the song and, doubtless, this faith was unfeigned in
some few of them, though but feigned in others, for it is testified of them,
that when 'they believed His words, they sang His praise' (Ps. 106:12).
Several other psalms
and songs that were by divine appointment in common use under the Old
Testament are as clear an evidence as we can desire of that assurance of faith
which is commonly professed, and that people were generally bound to, under
the Old Testament, as Psalms 23, 27, 44 and 46. Many other psalms, or
expressions in psalms, might be alleged. The spirits of few in comparison
could have thoroughly complied with such psalms, though they were true
believers, if all the assurance of love of God must altogether depend upon the
certain knowledge of the sincerity of their own hearts.
We have a great
cloud of witnesses gathered out of the whole history of the Old Testament
(Heb. 11) who did, and suffered and obtained great things by faith, whose
examples are produced on purpose that we follow them in believing to the
saving of our souls (Heb. 10:39). And, if we consider these examples
particularly, we shall find that many of them do evidently guide us to such a
saving faith as has an assurance of the effect contained in the nature of it.
I confess we read several times of the fears and doubtings of the saints under
the Old Testament; but we read also how they themselves condemned them as
contrary to faith, as in the Psalms (Ps. 42:11, 31:22; 78:7, 10). The most
mournful psalm in Scripture begins with an expression of some assurance (Ps.
88:1). And we may note that the doubtings that we meet with of the saints of
old were commonly occasioned by some extraordinary affliction, or some heinous
transgression, not by common failings, or the common original depravation of
nature, or the uncertainty of their election, or any thought that it is
humility to doubt and that they were not bound to be confident of God's
salvation, because then many might be bound to believe a lie. It is hard to
find any of these occasions of doubting under the Old Testament, though they
are grown too rife among us now under the New Testament.
In the time of the
apostles we may well expect that the assurance of faith grew higher, because
the salvation of Christ was revealed and the Spirit of adoption poured forth
plentifully and the church made free from its former bondage under the
terrifying legal covenant. Paul could prove to primitive Christians, by
appeals to their own experience, that they were the 'children and heirs of
God, because they had not received the Spirit of bondage again to fear, but
the Spirit of adoption, by which they cry, Abba, Father. The Spirit itself
bearing witness with our spirits [or, bears our spirits witness] ,' as the
Syriac and vulgar Latin render it, and as the like Greek phrase is rendered
(Rom. 9:1), 'that we are the children of God. And if children, then heirs'
(Rom.
8:15
-17; Gal. 4:6). And the apostle tells the Ephesians that after they believed
'the were sealed with the Holy Spirit, which was the earnest o7their
inheritance' (Eph.
1:13
, 14), that is, they were sealed from the same time that they believed, for
the original words are in the same tense. If this witness, seal and earnest of
the Spirit had not been ordinary to believers, it would not have been
sufficient to prove that they were the children of God, and such manner of
arguing might have driven some to despair that wanted this witness, seal and
earnest.
Let us enquire now
whether the Spirit bears witness that we are the children of God and enables
us to cry, 'Abba, Father', by the direct act, or by that which they call the
'reflex act' of faith? For we must not think that it is done by an enthusiasm,
without any ordinary means; nor can we reasonably imagine that no true
believers can call God 'Father', by the guidance of the Spirit, but only those
few that are so sure of their own sincerity that by reflecting on it they can
ground an act of faith concerning their own interest in Christ. No, surely.
Therefore we may judge rather that the Spirit works this in us by giving us
saving faith itself, by the direct act of which all true believers are enabled
to trust assuredly on Christ for the enjoyment of the adoption of children;
and all His salvation, according to the free promise of God, and to call God
Father, without reflecting on any good qualifications in themselves, for the
Spirit is received by the direct act of faith (Gal. 3:2); and so He is the
Spirit of adoption and comfort to all that receive Him. They that assert that
the Spirit witnesses our adoption, only by assuring us of the sincerity of our
faith, love and other gracious qualifications, and by the reflex act of faith,
teach also commonly that you must again try whether the Spirit thus witnessing
is the Spirit of truth or of delusion, by searching narrowly whether our
inward grace be sincere or counterfeit; so that in this way the testimony of
the Spirit is rendered so hard to be discerned that it stands us in no stead,
but all our assurance is made at last to depend on our own certain knowledge
of our own sincerity.
There are several
other evidences to show that believers generally were persuaded of their
salvation in the apostles' time. They loved and waited for the coming of
Christ to judge the world (1 Cor. 1:7; 2 Tim. 4:8). They loved all the saints
for the hope that was laid up for them in heaven (Col. 1:3-5). The
Corinthians, that were very carnal and but babes in Christ, were persuaded
that they should judge the world and angels, and that their bodies were
members of Christ and the temples of the Holy Ghost (1 Cor. 6:2, 3, 15, 19).
The very first coming of the gospel to the Thessalonians was 'in the Holy
Ghost', and 'much assurance', so 'that they received it in much affliction,
with joy of the Holy Ghost,' when as yet they had no considerable time to get
assurance by reflecting on their good qualifications (1 Thess. 1:5, 6).
Likewise, the believing Hebrews, when they were luminated at their first
conversion, 'took joyfully the spoiling of their goods, knowing that they had
in heaven a better and an enduring substance,' and this was their confidence,
which they were not to cast off, because the just lives by faith. And
therefore it appears that this confidence belongs necessarily to justifying
saving faith (Heb.
10:34
, 35, 38).
Now, let those that
allege the examples or experience of many modern Christians to disprove all
that I have asserted consider well whether these are fit to be laid in the
balance against all the Scripture examples and experience that I have produced
out of the Old and New Testament. I confess that assurance of salvation is
more rarely professed by Christians in these times than formerly; and we may
thank some teachers for it, that have deserted the doctrine of former
Protestants in this point, and vented against it several errors, such as have
been already named, and now would take advantage to confirm the truth of their
doctrine from those doubtings in Christians that have been chiefly occasioned
by it. But, however, the nature of saving faith is still the same. And I
assert that, in these day s as well as formerly, it always has in it some
assurance of salvation by Christ, which does and will appear at least in
resisting and condemning all doubtings, and praying against them, and
endeavouring to trust assuredly, and to call God, 'Father'; except in
extraordinary desertions, by which our case must not be tried.
We are not to trust
the judgement of many concerning themselves. They will judge falsely that they
have no assurance at all, because they know not yet, by marks and signs, that
they are in a state of grace already, or because they think that there is no
assurance when there are many doubtings, and because it is so weak, and so
much oppressed with doubting, that it can hardly be discerned, as life in a
fainting fit. But, if their judgements are better informed, they may be
brought to discern some assurance in themselves. We are also to take heed of
mistaking those for true believers that are not so, and for judging this point
by their experiences, which is a vulgar error. The blind charity of some moves
them to take all for true believers who are full of doubts and troubles
concerning their salvation, though it may be they only are convinced of sin
and brought to some zeal of God that is not according to the knowledge of the
way of salvation by Christ; and they think it duty to comfort such ignorant
persons by persuading them that their state is good, and their faith right,
though they have no assurance of salvation. Thus they are brought to judge
falsely concerning the nature of faith, out of their blind charity to such as
are yet in ignorance and unbelief and, instead of comforting such, they rather
take the direct way to harden them in their natural state, and to divert them
from seeking consolation by saving faith in Christ, and to ruin their souls
for ever.
5. The chief office
of this faith in its direct saving act is to receive Christ and His salvation
actually into our hearts, as has been proved; which office cannot be
rationally performed except we do, in some measure, persuade our hearts and
assure ourselves in the enjoyment of Him. As the body receives things into
itself by the hands and mouth, so the soul receives these things to itself,
and lays actual hold on them, by the faculty of the will, making choice of
them and embracing them in a way of present enjoyment and possession, as it
does by the faculty of the understanding, see and apprehend them. Thus the
soul receives comfort from outward things, as a righteous person cannot
receive inward comfort from outward things, as from worldly estate, wife,
husband, friends, etc., except he choose them as good, and account them his
own by a right and title. This is the only rational way by which the soul can
actively lay hold on Christ, and take actual possession of Him and His
salvation, as He is freely offered and promised to us in the gospel by the
grace of faith, which God has appointed to be our great instrument for the
receiving of Him and closing with Him. If we do not make choice of Christ as
our only salvation and happiness, or if we be altogether in a state of
suspense and doubting whether God will be pleased to give Christ to us or no,
it is evident that our souls are quite loose from Christ, and have no holdfast
or enjoyment of Him. They do not so much as pretend to any actual receiving,
or laying hold, or choosing of Him, neither are they fully satisfied that it
is lawful for them so to do; but rather they are yet to seek whether they have
any good ground and right to lay hold on Him or not.
Let any rational man
judge whether the soul does or can put forth any sufficient act for the
reception and enjoyment of Christ as its Saviour, Head or Husband, while it is
yet in doubt whether it is the will of Christ to be joined with it in such a
near relation? Can a woman honestly receive anyone as her husband, without
being assured that he is fully willing to be her husband? The same may be said
concerning the several parts of Christ's salvation which are to be received by
faith. It is evident that we do not aright receive the benefit of remission of
sins, for the purging of our consciences from that guilt that lies on them,
unless we have an assured persuasion of God's forgiving them. We do not
actually receive into our hearts our reconciliation with God and adoption of
children and the title to an everlasting inheritance, until we can assure
ourselves that God is graciously pleased to be our God and Father, and take us
to be His children and heirs. We do not actually receive any sufficient
strength to encourage our hearts to holiness in all difficulties, until we can
steadfastly believe that God is with us, and will not forsake us.
Thus then we may
firmly conclude that whoever seeks to be saved by faith, and does not seek to
have assurance or confidence of his own salvation, but deceives himself and
deludes his soul with a mere fancy instead of saving faith and, in effect,
seeks to be saved in his corrupt natural state, without receiving and laying
actual hold of the Lord Jesus Christ and His salvation.
5. It is also a
great and necessary office of saving faith to purify the heart, and to enable
us to live and walk in the practice of all holy duties by the grace of Christ,
and by Christ Himself living in us, as has been shown before; which office
faith is not able to perform, except some assurance of our own interest in
Christ and His salvation be comprehended in the nature of it. If we would live
to God, not ourselves, but by Christ living in us, according to Paul's
example, we must be able to assure ourselves as he did, 'Christ loved me, and
gave Himself for me' (Gal. 2:20). We are taught that 'if we live in the
Spirit, we should walk in the Spirit' (Gal.
5:25). It would be high presumption if we should endeavour to walk above our
natural strength and power by the Spirit, before we have made sure of our
living by the Spirit. I have showed that we cannot make use of the comfortable
benefits of the saving grace of Christ, by which the gospel engages and
encourages us to a holy practice, except we have some confidence of our own
interest in those saving benefits. If we do not assuredly believe that we are
dead to sin, and alive to God through Christ, and risen with Christ, and not
under the law but under grace, and members of Christ's body, the temple of His
Spirit, the dead children of God, it would be hypocrisy to serve God on the
account of such privileges as if we reckoned ourselves to be partakers of
them.
He that thinks he
should doubt of his salvation is not a fit disciple for this manner of
doctrine, and he may reply to the preachers of the gospel, 'If you would bring
me to holiness, you must make use of other more effectual arguments, for I
cannot practise upon these principles, because I do not have faith enough to
believe that I have any interest in them. Some arguments taken from the
justice and wrath of God against sinners, and His mercy towards those that
perform the condition of sincere obedience, would work more powerfully on me.'
O what a miserable, worthless kind of saving faith is this, that cannot fit a
believer to practise in a gospel manner on the most pure and powerful
principles of grace, but rather leaves him to work on legal principles, which
can never bring him to serve God acceptably out of love! And as such a faith
fails wholly in the right manner of obeying upon gospel principles, so it
fails also in the very matter of some great duties, which are of such a nature
that they include assurance of God's love in the right performance of them;
such are those great duties of peace with God, rejoicing in the Lord always,
hope that does not make ashamed, owning the Lord as our God and our Saviour,
praying to Him as our Father in heaven, offering up body and soul as an
acceptable sacrifice to Him, casting all our cares of body and soul upon Him,
contentment and hearty thanksgiving in every condition, making our boast in
the Lord, triumphing in His praise, rejoicing in tribulation, putting on
Christ in-our baptism, receiving Christ's body as broken for us and His blood
as shed for us in the Lord's Supper, committing our souls willingly to God as
our Redeemer whenever He shall be pleased to call for us, loving Christ's
second appearance and looking for it as that blessed hope.
When we fall into
any sudden doubting whether we are in a state of grace already, when we are
called to any present undertaking, as to partake of the Lord's Supper, or any
duty that required assurance to the right performance of it, we must relieve
ourselves by trusting confidently in Christ for the present gift of His
salvation, or else we shall be driven to omit the duty, or not to perform it
rightly or sincerely. Can we judge ourselves already in a state of grace, by
the reflex act of faith, if we do not find that we perform these duties, at
least several of them, sincerely, or if we do not find that we have such a
holy faith as enables, or inclines us to the performance of them? And can we
be thus enabled and inclined by any faith that is without some true assurance
of our salvation? Therefore, I conclude that we must necessarily have some
assurance of our salvation in the direct act of faith, by which we are
justified, sanctified and saved, before we can upon any good ground assure
ourselves that we are already in a state of grace by that which we call the
reflex act.
Give me such a
saving faith as will produce such fruits as these. No other faith will work by
love, and therefore will not avail to salvation in Christ (Gal. 5:6). The
apostle James puts you on showing your faith by your works (James
2:18). And in this trial, this faith of assurance comes off with His praise and
honour. When God called His people to work outward miracles by it, all things
have been possible to them, and it has frequently brought forth such works of
righteousness as may be deservedly esteemed great spiritual miracles. From
this has proceeded that heroic fortitude of the people of God, whereby their
absolute obedience to God has shined forth in doing and suffering those great
things which are recorded in the Holy Scriptures and in the histories of the
church. And if we be ever called to the fiery trial, as Protestants formerly
were, we shall find their doctrine of assurance will encourage us in suffering
for the sake of Christ.
7. The contrary
doctrine, which excludes assurance out of the nature of saving faith, brings
forth many evil fruits. It tends to bereave our souls of all assurance of our
salvation and solid comfort, which is the life of religion, by placing them
after sincere universal obedience; whereas, if we have them not first, we can
never attain to this obedience, nor to any assurance that depends on it, as
has been proved. And this, as far as it prevails, makes us subject to
continual doubtings concerning our salvation, and to tormenting fears of
wrath, which casts out true love to God and can produce no better than slavish
hypocritical service. It is one of the principal pillars by which manifold
superstitions in Popery are supported, as their monkish orders, their
satisfactions for sin, by works of penance, bodily macerations, whippings,
pilgrimages, indulgences, trusting on the merits of saints, etc. When once men
have lost the knowledge of the right way to assure themselves of salvation,
they will catch at any straw, to avoid drowning in the gulf of despair.
There is no way to
administer any solid comfort to the wounded spirits of those that see
themselves void of all holiness, under the wrath and curse of God, dead in
sin, not able so much as to think a good thought. You do but increase their
terror and anguish, if you tell them they must first get faith and obedience
and, when they find they have done that, they may persuade themselves that God
will receive them into His grace and favour. Alas! They know that they cannot
believe, nor obey, except God assist them with His grace and favour. And what
if they be even at the point of death, and struggling with death's pangs, so
that they have no time or leisure to get good qualifications, and examine the
goodness of them? You must have a more speedy way to comfort such, by
discovering to them the free promise of salvation to the worst of sinners by
faith in Christ, and by exhorting them to apply those promises and trust on
Christ confidently for remission of sins, holiness, and glory; assuring them
also that God will help them to believe sincerely on Christ, if they desire it
with all their hearts, and that it is their duty to believe, because God
commands it.
Several other evils
are occasioned by the same doctrine. Men are unwilling to know the worst of
themselves and prone to think their qualifications better than they are, that
they may avoid despair. Others please and content themselves without any
assurance of their interest in Christ, because they think that it is not
necessary to salvation, and that but few attain to it; and in this they show
little love to Christ, or to their own souls. Some foster doubtings of
salvation as signs of humility, though they will hypocritically complain of
them. Many spend their time in poring upon their own hearts to find out some
evidence of their interest in Christ, when they should rather be employed in
receiving Christ and walking in Him by a confident faith.
Some are troubled
with doubts whether they should call God 'Father', and what apprehensions they
should have of Him in prayer; and are offended at ministers that in their
public prayers use any expressions that the people cannot loin in, as when
they do own God as their God and Father, and Christ as their Saviour, and on
the same account they are offended at the public singing of many of David's
psalms, and avoid partaking of the Lords Supper, because they are not
satisfied about their interest in Christ.
Though true
believers have some assurance of salvation in saving faith itself, yet it is
much weakened in many by this contrary doctrine and assaulted with many
doubtings; and then other good qualifications must needs be low and weak
together with it, and so obscure that it is very hard to discern them. How
hard a thing then will it be for true believers to assure themselves, by the
certain knowledge of their own sincerity, that they are in a state of grace
already, which some say is the only assurance of faith? Some prescribe such
marks and signs to distinguish sincerity from hypocrisy that believers cannot
sufficiently try themselves by them, except they have more knowledge and
experience than ordinary.
Thus
many believers walk heavily in the bitterness of their souls, conflicting with
fears and doubtings all their days. And this is the cause that they have so
little courage and fervency of spirit in the ways of God, and that they so
much mind earthly things, and are so afraid of sufferings and death; and if
they get some assurance by the reflex act of faith, they often soon lose it
again by sins and temptations. The way to avoid these evils is to get your
assurance, and to maintain it, and renew it upon all occasions by the direct
act of faith, by trusting assuredly on the name of the Lord, and staying
yourself on your God, when you walk in darkness, and see no light in any of
your own qualifications (Isa. 50:10). I doubt not but the experience of choice
Christians will bear witness to this truth.
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