That no flesh should glory in his
presence. But of him are ye in Christ Jesus, who of God is made unto us wisdom,
and righteousness, and sanctification, and redemption: that, according as it is
written, He that glorieth, let him glory in the Lord.
THOSE Christians to whom the apostle
directed this epistle, dwelt in a part of the world where human wisdom was in
great repute; as the apostle observes in the 22nd verse of this chapter,
"The Greeks seek after wisdom." Corinth was not far from Athens, that
had been for many ages the most famous seat of philosophy and learning in the
world. The apostle therefore observes to them, how God by the gospel destroyed,
and brought to nought, their wisdom. The learned Grecians, and their great
philosophers, by all their wisdom did not know God, they were not able to find
out the truth in divine things. But, after they had done their utmost to no
effect, it pleased God at length to reveal himself by the gospel, which they
accounted foolishness. He " chose the foolish things of the world to
confound the wise, and the weak things of the world to confound the things
which are mighty, and the base things of the world, and things that are
despised, yea, and things which are not, to bring to nought the things that
are." And the apostle informs them in the text why he thus did, That no
flesh should glory in his presence, etc.- In which words may be observed,
1. What God aims at in the disposition of
things in the affair of redemption, viz. that man should not glory in himself,
but alone in God; That no flesh should glory in his presence, --that,
according as it is written, He that glorieth, let him glory in the Lord.
2. How this end is attained in the work of
redemption, viz. by that absolute and immediate dependence which men have upon
God in that work, for all their good. Inasmuch as,
First, All the good that they have is in and through Christ; He is made
unto us wisdom, righteousness, sanctification, and redemption. All the good
of the fallen and redeemed creature is concerned in these four things, and
cannot be better distributed than into them; but Christ is each of them to us,
and we have none of them any otherwise than in him. He is made of God unto
us wisdom: in him are all the proper good and true excellency of the
understanding. Wisdom was a thing that the Greeks admired; but Christ is the
true light of the world; it is through him alone that true wisdom is imparted
to the mind. It is in and by Christ that we have righteousness: it is by
being in him that we are justified, have our sins pardoned, and are received as
righteous into God's favour. It is by Christ that we have sanctification:
we have in him true excellency of heart as well as of understanding; and he is
made unto us inherent as well as imputed righteousness. It is by Christ that we
have redemption, or the actual deliverance from all misery, and the
bestowment of all happiness and glory. Thus we have all our good by Christ, who
is God.
Secondly, Another instance wherein our dependence on God for
all our good appears, is this, That it is God that has given us Christ, that we
might have these benefits through him; he of God is made unto us wisdom,
righteousness, etc.
Thirdly, It is of him that we are in Christ Jesus, and come to have an interest
in him, and so do receive those blessings which he is made unto us. It is God
that gives us faith whereby we close with Christ.
So that in this verse is shown our
dependence on each person in the Trinity for all our good. We are dependent on
Christ the Son of God, as he is our wisdom, righteousness, sanctification, and
redemption. We are dependent on the Father, who has given us Christ, and made
him to be these things to us. We are dependent on the Holy Ghost, for it is of
him that we are in Christ Jesus; it is the Spirit of God that gives faith
in him, whereby we receive him,and close with him.
"God is glorified in the work of
redemption in this, that there appears in it so absolute and universal a
dependence of the redeemed on him." -- Here I propose to show, 1st,
That there is an absolute and universal dependence of the redeemed on God for
all their good. And, 2dly, That God hereby is exalted and glorified in
the work of redemption.
I. There is an absolute and universal
dependence of the redeemed on God. The nature and contrivance of our redemption
is such, that the redeemed are in every thing directly, immediately, and
entirely dependent on God: they are dependent on him for all, and are dependent
on him every way.
The several ways wherein the dependence of
one being may be upon another for its good, and wherein the redeemed of Jesus
Christ depend on God for all their good, are these, viz. That they have all
their good of him, and that they have all through him, and that they have all
in him: That he is the cause and original whence all their good comes, therein
it is of him; and that he is the medium by which it is obtained
and conveyed, therein they have it through him; and that he is the good
itself given and conveyed, therein it is in him. Now those that are
redeemed by Jesus Christ do, in all these respects, very directly and entirely
depend on God for their all.
First, The redeemed have all their good of God. God is the great author
of it. He is the first cause of it; and not only so, but he is the only
proper cause. It is of God that we have our Redeemer. It is God that has
provided a Saviour for us. Jesus Christ is not only of God in his person, as he
is the only-begotten Son of God, but he is from God, as we are concerned in
him, and in his office of Mediator. He is the gift of God to us: God chose and
anointed him, appointed him his work, and sent him into the world. And as it is
God that gives, so it is God that accepts the Saviour. He gives
the purchaser, and he affords the thing purchased.
It is of God that Christ becomes ours, that
we are brought to him, and are united to him. It is of God that we receive faith
to close with him, that we may have an interest in him. Eph. 2:8. "For by
grace ye are saved, through faith; and that not of yourselves, it is the gift
of God." It is of God that we actually receive all the benefits that
Christ has purchased. It is God that pardons and justifies, and delivers from
going down to hell; and into his favour the redeemed are received, when they
are justified. So it is God that delivers from the dominion of sin, cleanses us
from our filthiness, and changes us from our deformity. It is of God that the
redeemed receive all their true excellency, wisdom, and holiness; and that two
ways, viz. as the Holy Ghost by whom these things are immediately wrought is
from God, proceeds from him, and is sent by him; and also as the Holy Ghost
himself is God, by whose operation and indwelling the knowledge of God and
divine things, a holy disposition and all grace, are conferred and upheld. And
though means are made use of in conferring grace on men's souls, yet it is of
God that we have these means of grace, and it is he that makes them effectual.
It is of God that we have the Holy Scriptures; they are his word. It is of God
that we have ordinances, and their efficacy depends on the immediate influence
of his Spirit. The ministers of the gospel are sent of God, and all their
sufficiency is of him.-- 2 Cor. 4:7. "We have this treasure in earthen
vessels, that the excellency of the power may be of God, and not of us."
Their success depends entirely and absolutely on the immediate blessing and influence
of God.
1. The redeemed have all from the grace
of God. It was of mere grace that God gave us his only-begotten Son. The grace
is great in proportion to the excellency of what is given. The gift was
infinitely precious, because it was of a person infinitely worthy, a person of
infinite glory; and also because it was of a person infinitely near and dear to
God. The grace is great in proportion to the benefit we have given us in him.
The benefit is doubly infinite, in that in him we have deliverance from an
infinite, because an eternal, misery, and do also receive eternal joy and
glory. The grace in bestowing this gift is great in proportion to our
unworthiness to whom it is given; instead of deserving such a gift, we merited
infinitely ill of God's hands. The grace is great according to the manner of
giving, or in proportion to the humiliation and expense of the method and means
by which a way is made for our having the gift. He gave him to dwell amongst
us; he gave him to us incarnate, or in our nature; and in the like though
sinless infirmities. He gave him to us in a low and afflicted state; and not
only so, but as slain, that he might be a feast for our souls.
The grace of God in bestowing this gift is
most free. It was what God was under no obligation to bestow. He might have
rejected fallen man, as he did the fallen angels. It was what we never did any
thing to merit; it was given while we were yet enemies, and before we had so
much as repented. It was from the love of God who saw no excellency in us to
attract it; and it was without expectation of ever being requited for it. And
it is from mere grace that the benefits of Christ are applied to such and such
particular persons. Those that are called and sanctified are to attribute it
alone to the good pleasure of God's goodness, by which they are distinguished.
He is sovereign, and hath mercy on whom he will have mercy.
Man hath now a greater dependence on the
grace of God than he had before the fall. He depends on the free goodness of
God for much more than he did then. Then he depended on God's goodness for
conferring the reward of perfect obedience; for God was not obliged to promise
and bestow that reward. But now we are dependent on the grace of God for much
more; we stand in need of grace, not only to bestow glory upon us, but to
deliver us from hell and eternal wrath. Under the first covenant we depended on
God's goodness to give us the reward of righteousness; and so we do now; but we
stand in need of God's free and sovereign grace to give us that righteousness;
to pardon our sin, and release us from the guilt and infinite demerit of it.
And as we are dependent on the goodness of
God for more now than under the first covenant, so we are dependent on a much
greater, more free and wonderful goodness. We are now more dependent on God's
arbitrary and sovereign good pleasure. We were in our first estate dependent on
God for holiness. We had our original righteousness from him; but then holiness
was not bestowed in such a way of sovereign good pleasure as it is now. Man was
created holy, for it became God to create holy all his reasonable creatures. It
would have been a disparagement to the holiness of God's nature, if he had made
an intelligent creature unholy. But now when fallen man is made holy, it is
from mere and arbitrary grace; God may for ever deny holiness to the fallen
creature if he pleases, without any disparagement to any of his perfections.
And we are not only indeed more dependent on
the grace of God, but our dependence is much more conspicuous, because our own
insufficiency and helplessness in ourselves is much more apparent in our fallen
and undone state, than it was before we were either sinful or miserable. We are
more apparently dependent on God for holiness, because we are first sinful,and
utterly polluted,and afterward holy. So the production of the effect is
sensible, and its derivation from God more obvious. If man was ever holy and
always was so,it would not be so apparent, that he had not holiness
necessarily,as an inseparable qualification of human nature. So we are more
apparently dependent on free grace for the favour of God, for we are first
justly the objects of his displeasure, and afterwards are received into favour.
We are more apparently dependent on God for happiness, being first miserable,
and afterwards happy. It is more apparently free and without merit in us,
because we are actually without any kind of excellency to merit, if there could
be any such thing as merit in creature excellency. And we are not only without
any true excellency, but are full of, and wholly defiled with, that which is
infinitely odious. All our good is more apparently from God, because we are
first naked and wholly with- out any good, and afterwards enriched with all
good.
2. We receive all from the power of
God. Man's redemption is often spoken of as a work of wonderful power as well
as grace. The great power of God appears in bringing a sinner from his low
state, from the depths of sin and misery, to such an exalted state of holiness
and happiness. Eph. 1:19. "And what is the exceeding greatness of his
power to us- ward who believe, according to the working of his mighty
power."----
We are dependent on God's power through
every step of our redemption. We are dependent on the power of God to convert
us, and give faith in Jesus Christ, and the new nature. It is a work of
creation: "If any man be in Christ, he is a new creature," 2 Cor.
5:17. "We are created in Christ Jesus," Eph. 2:10. The fallen
creature cannot attain to true holiness, but by being created again. Eph. 4:24.
"And that ye put on the new man, which after God is created in
righteousness and true holiness." It is a raising from the dead. Colos.
2:12-13. "Wherein also ye are risen with him through the faith of the operation
of God, who hath raised him from the dead." Yea, it is a more glorious
work of power than mere creation, or raising a dead body to life, in that the
effect attained is greater and more excellent. That holy and happy being, and
spiritual life, which is produced in the work of conversion, is a far greater
and more glorious effect, than mere being and life. And the state from whence
the change is made -- a death in sin, a total corruption of nature, and depth
of misery -- is far more remote from the state attained, than mere death or
non-entity.
It is by God's power also that we are
preserved in a state of grace. 1 Pet. 1:5. "Who are kept by the power of
God through faith unto salvation." As grace is at first from God, so it is
continually from him, and is maintained by him, as much as light in the
atmosphere is all day long from the sun, as well as at first dawning, or
sun-rising. -- Men are dependent on the power of God for every exercise of
grace, and for carrying on that work in the heart, for subduing sin and corruption,
increasing holy principles, and enabling to bring forth fruit in good works.
Man is dependent on divine power in bringing grace to its perfection, m making
the soul completely amiable in Christ's glorious likeness, and filling of it
with a satisfying joy and blessedness; and for the raising of the body to life,
and to such a perfect state, that it shall be suitable for a habitation and
organ for a soul so perfected and blessed. These are the most glorious effects
of the power of God, that are seen in the series of God's acts with respect to
the creatures.
Man was dependent on the power of God in his
first estate, but he is more dependent on his power now; he needs God's power
to do more things for him, and depends on a more wonderful exercise of his
power. It was an effect of the power of God to make man holy at the first: but
more remarkably so now, because there is a great deal of opposition and
difficulty in the way. It is a more glorious effect of power to make that holy
that was so depraved, and under the dominion of sin, than to confer holiness on
that which before had nothing of the contrary. It is a more glorious work of
power to rescue a soul out of the hands of the devil, and from the powers of
darkness, and to bring it into a state of salvation, than to confer holiness
where there was no prepossession or opposition. Luke 11:21-22. "When a
strong man armed keepeth his palace, his goods are in peace; but when a
stronger than he shall come upon him, and overcome him, he taketh from him all
his armour, wherein he trusted, and divideth his spoils." So it is a more
glorious work of power to uphold a soul in a state of grace and holiness, and
to carry it on till it is brought to glory, when there is so much sin remaining
in the heart resisting, and Satan with all his might opposing, than it would
have been to have kept man from falling at first, when Satan had nothing in
man.-- Thus we have shown how the redeemed are dependent on God for all their
good, as they have all of him.
Secondly, They are also dependent on God for all, as they
have all through him. God is the medium of it, as well as the author and
fountain of it. All we have, wisdom, the pardon of sin, deliverance from hell,
acceptance into God's favour, grace and holiness, true comfort and happiness,
eternal life and glory, is from God by a Mediator; and this Mediator is God;
which Mediator we have an absolute dependence upon, as he through whom we
receive all. So that here is another way wherein we have our dependence on God
for all good. God not only gives us the Mediator, and accepts his mediation,
and of his power and grace bestows the things purchased by the Mediator; but he
the Mediator is God.
Our blessings are what we have by purchase;
and the purchase is made of God, the blessings are purchased of him, and God
gives the purchaser; and not only so, but God is the purchaser. Yea God is both
the purchaser and the price; for Christ, who is God, purchased these blessings
for us, by offering up himself as the price of our salvation. He purchased
eternal life by the sacrifice of himself. Heb. 7:27. "He offered up
himself." And 9:26. "He hath appeared to take away sin by the
sacrifice of himself." Indeed it was the human nature that was offered;
but it was the same person with the divine, and therefore was an infinite
price.
As we thus have our good through God, we
have a dependence on him in a respect that man in his first estate had not. Man
was to have eternal life then through his own righteousness; so that he had
partly a dependence upon what was in himself; for we have a dependence upon
that through which we have our good, as well as that from which we have it; and
though man's righteousness that he then depended on was indeed from God, yet it
was his own, it was inherent in himself; so that his dependence was not so immediately
on God. But now the righteousness that we are dependent on is not in ourselves,
but in God. We are saved through the righteousness of Christ: He is made
unto us righteousness; and therefore is prophesied of, Jer. 23:6, under
that name, "the Lord our righteousness." In that the righteousness we
are justified by is the righteousness of Christ, it is the righteousness of
God. 2 Cor.5:21. "That we might be made the righteousness of God in
him." --Thus in redemption we have not only all things of God, but by and
through him, 1 Cor. 8:6. "But to us there is but one God, the Father, of
whom are all things, and we in him; and one Lord Jesus Christ, by whom are all
things, and we by him."
Thirdly, The redeemed have all their good in God. We not only have it of
him, and through him, but it consists in him; he is all our good.-- The good of
the redeemed is either objective or inherent. By their objective good, I mean
that extrinsic object, in the possession and enjoyment of which they are happy.
Their inherent good is that excellency or pleasure which is in the soul itself.
With respect to both of which the redeemed have all their good in God, or which
is the same thing, God him- self is all their good.
1. The redeemed have all their objective
good in God. God himself is the great good which they are brought to the
posses- sion and enjoyment of by redemption. He is the highest good, and the
sum of all that good which Christ purchased. God is the inheritance of the
saints; he is the portion of their souls. God is their wealth and treasure,
their food, their Life, their dwelling- place, their ornament and diadem, and
their everlasting honour and glory. They have none in heaven but God; he is the
great good which the redeemed are received to at death, and which they are to
rise to at the end of the world. The Lord God is the light of the heavenly
Jerusalem; and is the "river of the water of life " that runs, and
"the tree of life that grows, in the midst of the paradise of God."
The glorious excellencies and beauty of God will be what will for ever
entertain the minds of the saints, and the love of God will be their
everlasting feast. The redeemed will indeed enjoy other things; they will enjoy
the angels, and will enjoy one another; but that which they shall enjoy in the
angels, or each other, or in any thing else whatsoever that will yield them
delight and happiness, will be what shall be seen of God in them.
2. The redeemed have all their inherent
good in God. Inherent good is twofold; it is either excellency or pleasure.
These the redeemed not only derive from God, as caused by him, but have them in
him. They have spiritual excellency and joy by a kind of participation of God.
They are made excellent by a communication of God's excellency. God puts his
own beauty, i.e. his beautiful likeness, upon their souls. They are made
partakers of the divine nature, or moral image of God, 2 Pet. 1:4. They are
holy by being made partakers of God's holiness. Heb. 12:10. The saints are
beautiful and blessed by a communication of God's holiness and joy, as the moon
and planets are bright by the sun's light. The saint hath spiritual joy and
pleasure by a kind of effusion of God on the soul. In these things the redeemed
have communion with God; that is, they partake with him and of him.
The saints have both their spiritual
excellency and blessedness by the gift of the Holy Ghost, and his dwelling in
them. They are not only caused by the Holy Ghost, but are in him as their
principle. The Holy Spirit becoming an inhabitant, is a vital principle in the
soul. He, acting in, upon, and with the soul, becomes a fountain of true
holiness and joy, as a spring is of water, by the exertion and diffusion of
itself. John 4:14. "But whosoever drinketh of the water that I shall give
him, shall never thirst; but the water that I shall give him, shall be in him a
well of water springing up into everlasting life." Compared with chap.
7:38-39. "He that believeth on me, as the Scripture hath said, out of his belly
shall flow rivers of living water; but this spake he of the Spirit, which they
that believe on him should receive." The sum of what Christ has purchased
for us, is that spring of water spoken of in the former of those places, and
those rivers of living water spoken of in the latter. And the sum of the
blessings, which the redeemed shall receive in heaven, is that river of water
of life that proceeds from the throne of God and the Lamb, Rev. 22:1. Which
doubtless signifies the same with those rivers of living water, explained, John
7:38-39, which is elsewhere called the "river of God's pleasures."
Herein consists the fulness of good, which the saints receive of Christ. It is
by partaking of the Holy Spirit, that they have communion with Christ in his fulness.
God hath given the Spirit, not by measure unto him; and they do receive of his
fulness, and grace for grace. This is the sum of the saints' inheritance; and
there- fore that little of the Holy Ghost which believers have in this world,
is said to be the earnest of their inheritance, 2 Cor. 1:22. "Who hath
also sealed us, and given us the earnest of the Spirit in our hearts." And
chap. 5:5. "Now he that hath wrought us for the self-same thing, is God,
who also hath given unto us the earnest of the Spirit." And Eph. 1:13-14.
"Ye were sealed with that holy Spirit of promise, which is the earnest of
our inheritance, until the redemption of the purchased possession."
The Holy Spirit and good things are spoken
of in Scripture as the same; as if the Spirit of God communicated to the soul,
comprised all good things, Matt. 7:11. "How much more shall your heavenly
Father give good things to them that ask him?" In Luke it is, chap. 11:13.
"How much more shall your heavenly Father give the Holy Spirit to them
that ask him?" This is the sum of the blessings that Christ died to
procure, and the subject of gospel-promises. Gal. 3:13-14. "He was made a
curse for us, that we might receive the promise of the Spirit through
faith." The Spirit of God is the great promise of the Father, Luke 24:49.
"Behold, I send the promise of my Father upon you." The Spirit of God
therefore is called "the Spirit of promise," Eph. 1:33. This promised
thing Christ received, and had given into his hand, as soon as he had finished
the work of our redemption, to bestow on all that he had redeemed; Acts 2:13.
"Therefore being by the right hand of God exalted, and having received of
the Father the promise of the Holy Ghost, he hath shed forth this, which ye
both see and hear." So that all the holiness and happiness of the redeemed
is in God. It is in the communications, indwelling, and acting of the Spirit of
God. Holiness and happiness is in the fruit, here and hereafter, because God
dwells in them, and they in God.
Thus God has given us the Redeemer, and it
is by him that our good is purchased. So God is the Redeemer and the price; and
he also is the good purchased. So that all that we have is of God, and through
him, and in him. Rom. 11:36. "For of him, and through him, and to him, or
in him, are all things." The same in the Greek that is here rendered to
him, is rendered in him, 1 Cor. 8:6.
II. God is glorified in the work of
redemption by this means, viz. By there being so great and universal a
dependence of the redeemed on him.
1. Man hath so much the greater occasion and
obligation to notice and acknowledge God's perfections and all-sufficiency. The
greater the creature's dependence is on God's perfections, and the greater
concern he has with them, so much the greater occasion has he to take notice of
them. So much the greater concern any one has with and dependence upon the
power and grace of God, so much the greater occasion has he to take notice of
that power and grace. So much the greater and more immediate dependence there
is on the divine holiness, so much the greater occasion to take notice of and
acknowledge that. So much the greater and more absolute dependence we have on
the divine perfections, as belonging to the several persons of the Trinity, so
much the greater occasion have we to observe and own the divine glory of each
of them. That which we are most concerned with, is surely most in the way of
our observation and notice; and this kind of concern with any thing, viz.
dependence, does especially tend to command and oblige the attention and observation.
Those things that we are not much dependent upon, it is easy to neglect; but we
can scarce do any other than mind that which we have a great dependence on. By
reason of our so great dependence on God, and his perfections, and in so many
respects, he and his glory are the more directly set in our view, which way
soever we turn our eyes.
We have the greater occasion to take notice
of God's all-sufficiency, when all our sufficiency is thus every way of him. We
have the more occasion to contemplate him as an infinite good, and as the
fountain of all good. Such a dependence on God demonstrates his
all-sufficiency. So much as the dependence of the creature is on God, so much
the greater does the creature's emptiness in himself appear; and so much the
greater the creature's emptiness, so much the greater must the fulness of the
Being be who supplies him. Our having all of God, shows the fulness of
his power and grace; our having all through him, shows the fulness of
his merit and worthiness; and our having all in him, demonstrates his
fulness of beauty, love, and happiness. And the redeemed, by reason of the
greatness of their dependence on God, have not only so much the greater
occasion, but obligation to contemplate and acknowledge the glory and fulness
of God. How unreasonable and ungrateful should we be, if we did not acknowledge
that sufficiency and glory which we absolutely, immediately, and universally
depend upon!
2. Hereby is demonstrated how great God's
glory is considered comparatively, or as compared with the creature's. By the
creature being thus wholly and universally dependent on God, it appears that
the creature is nothing, and that God is all. Hereby it appears that God is
infinitely above us; that God's strength, and wisdom, and holiness, are
infinitely greater than ours. However great and glorious the creature
apprehends God to be, yet if he be not sensible of the difference between God
and him, so as to see that God's glory is great, compared with his own, he will
not be disposed to give God the glory due to his name. If the creature in any
respects sets himself upon a level with God, or exalts himself to any
competition with him, however he may apprehend that great honour and profound
respect may belong to God from those that are at a greater distance, he will
not be so sensible of its being due from him. So much the more men exalt
themselves, so much the less will they surely be disposed to exalt God. It is
certainly what God aims at in the disposition of things in redemption, (if we allow
the Scriptures to be a revelation of God's mind,) that God should appear full,
and man in himself empty, that God should appear all, and man nothing. It is
God's declared design that others should not "glory in his presence;"
which implies that it is his design to advance his own comparative glory. So
much the more man "glories in God's presence," so much the less glory
is ascribed to God.
3. By its being thus ordered, that the
creature should have so absolute and universal a dependence on God, provision
is made that God should have our whole souls, and should be the object of our
undivided respect. If we had our dependence partly on God, and partly on
something else, man's respect would be divided to those different things on
which he had dependence. Thus it would be if we depended on God only for a part
of our good, and on ourselves, or some other being, for another part: or if we
had our good only from God, and through another that was not God, and in
something else distinct from both, our hearts would be divided between the good
itself, and him from whom, and him through whom, we received it. But now there
is no occasion for this, God being not only he from or of whom we have all
good, but also through whom, and is that good itself, that we have from him and
through him. So that whatsoever there is to attract our respect, the tendency
is still directly towards God; all unites in him as the centre.
1. We may here observe the marvellous wisdom
of God, in the work of redemption. God hath made man's emptiness and misery,
his low, lost, and ruined state, into which he sunk by the fall, an occasion of
the greater advancement of his own glory, as in other ways, so particularly in
this, that there is now much more universal and apparent dependence of man on
God. Though God be pleased to lift man out of that dismal abyss of sin and woe
into which he was fallen, and exceedingly to exalt him in excellency and
honour, and to a high pitch of glory and blessedness, yet the creature hath
nothing in any respect to glory of; all the glory evidently belongs to God, all
is in a mere, and most absolute, and divine dependence on the Father, Son, and
Holy Ghost. And each person of the Trinity is equally glorified in this work:
there is an absolute dependence of the creature on every one for all: all is of
the Father, all through the Son, and all in the Holy Ghost. Thus God appears in
the work of redemption as all in all. It is fit that he who is, and there is
none else, should be the Alpha and Omega, the first and the last, the all and
the only, in this work.
2. Hence those doctrines and schemes of
divinity that are in any respect opposite to such an absolute and universal
dependence on God, derogate from his glory, and thwart the design of our
redemption. And such are those schemes that put the creature in God's stead, in
any of the mentioned respects, that exalt man into the place of either Father,
Son, or Holy Ghost, in any thing pertaining to our redemption. However they may
allow of a dependence of the redeemed on God, yet they deny a dependence that
is so absolute and universal. They own an entire dependence of God for some
things, but not for others; they own that we depend on God for the gift and
acceptance of a Redeemer, but deny so absolute a dependence on him for the
obtaining of an interest in the Redeemer. They own an absolute
dependence on the Father for giving his Son, and on the Son for working out
redemption, but not so entire a dependence on the Holy Ghost for conversion,
and a being in Christ, and so coming to a title to his benefits. They own a
dependence on God for means of grace, but not absolutely for the benefit and
success of those means; a partial dependence on the power of God, for obtaining
and exercising holiness, but not a mere dependence on the arbitrary and
sovereign grace of God. They own a dependence on the free grace of God for a
reception into his favour, so far that it is without any proper merit, but not
as it is without being attracted, or moved with any excellency. They own a
partial dependence on Christ, as he through whom we have life, as having
purchased new terms of life, but still hold that the righteousness through
which we have life is inherent in ourselves, as it was under the first
covenant. Now whatever scheme is inconsistent with our entire dependence
on God for all, and of having all of him, through him, and in him, it is
repugnant to the design and tenor of the gospel, and robs it of that which God
accounts its lustre and glory.
3. Hence we may learn a reason why faith is
that by which we come to have an interest in this redemption; for there is
included in the nature of faith, a sensible acknowledgment of absolute
dependence on God in this affair. It is very fit that it should be required
of all, in order to their having the benefit of this redemption, that they
should be sensible of, and acknowledge, their dependence on God for it. It is
by this means that God hath contrived to glorify himself in redemption; and it
is fit that he should at least have this glory of those that are the subjects
of this redemption, and have the benefit of it.-- Faith is a sensibleness of
what is real in the work of redemption; and the soul that believes doth
entirely depend on God for all salvation, in its own sense and act. Faith
abases men, and exalts God; it gives all the glory of redemption to him alone.
It is necessary in order to saving faith, that man should be emptied of
himself, be sensible that he is "wretched, and miserable, and poor, and blind,
and naked." Humility is a great ingredient of true faith: he that truly
receives redemption, receives it as a little child, Mark 10:15. "Whosoever
shall not receive the kingdom of heaven as a little child, he shall not enter
therein." It is the delight of a believing soul to abase itself and exalt
God alone: that is the language of it, Psalm 115:1. "Not unto us, O Lord,
not unto us, but to thy name give glory."
4. Let us be exhorted to exalt God alone,
and ascribe to him all the glory of redemption. Let us endeavour to obtain, and
increase in, a sensibleness of our great dependence on God, to have our eye to
him alone, to mortify a self-dependent and self-righteous disposition. Man is
naturally exceeding prone to exalt himself, and depend on his own power or
goodness; as though from himself he must expect happiness. He is prone to have
respect to enjoyments alien from God and his Spirit, as those in which
happiness is to be found.-- But this doctrine should teach us to exalt God alone;
as by trust and reliance, so by praise. Let him that glorieth, glory in the
Lord. Hath any man ope that he is converted, and sanctified, and that his
mind is endowed with true excellency and spiritual beauty? that his sins are
forgiven, and he received into God's favour, and exalted to the honour and
blessedness of being his child, and an heir of eternal life? let him give God
all the glory; who alone makes him to differ from the worst of men in this
world, or the most miserable of the damned in hell. Hath any man much comfort
and strong hope of eternal life, let not his hope lift him up, but dispose him
the more to abase himself, to reflect on his own exceeding unworthiness of such
a favour,and to exalt God alone. Is any man eminent in holiness, and abundant
in good works, let him take nothing of the glory of it to himself, but ascribe
it to him whose "workmanship we are, created in Christ Jesus unto good
works."