without believing that he is a rewarder of them that diligently seek him, which is the same with believing the gospel, or believing in Jesus Christ; but the belief of the former is first in the order of nature, and is necessarily implied in the latter. And the latter implies a true view and belief of the existence of the divine law, and the character of the sinner as has been shewn. Our Saviour makes this same distinction between believing in God and believing in him, and speaks of the former as prior to the latter, and the foundation of it, in his exhortation to his disciples, "Believe in God, believe also in me."*

It must also be observed, that what is properly called evangelical repentance, is not prior to faith in Christ. The repentance which precedes faith in Jesus Christ, respects the objects and truths, which are discerned prior to any true regard to Jesus Christ, or the knowledge of his character as the Saviour of sinners, the former being necessary in order to the latter, as has been shewn. Repentance, considered as it respects sins against Jesus Christ, and the gospel, and the great sin of unbelief, does not precede a belief of the truths of the gospel, or faith in Jesus Christ; for this is impossible. But repentance towards God, as it has been described above, is of the same nature with evangelical repentance; and implies a disposition to repent of the sin of not believing on Christ, when his character comes into view, and does always accompany, and is implied in faith in Jesus Christ.

But though these distinctions may be made in theory, and are founded in the nature of things, and the connexion of revealed truth, and dependence of one revealed object upon another; and such distinctions may be proper and necessary in order more clearly to understand the subject to which we are attending: Yet a person may doubtless be a true believer in Jesus Christ, and not distinguish his views and exercises, so as to perceive experimentally which is prior to the other, and

John xiv. 1-The words in the original, in both parts of the sentence, translated believe, are exactly the same, without any variation, and should have been so translated, not ye do believe in God, but believe in God.

in what particular order they have taken place in his mind; and may entertain notions in theory on this point, which are really contrary to the truth of things, which may have been imbibed by education and wrong instruction, or some other way. But whatever contrary opinions have been advanced in theory, on this head, it is presumed that it has been now proved from scripture, and the reason and nature of things, that repentance is implied in saving faith, and comes into the nature and essence of it; so that where there is no repentance, there is no saving faith; and that it is impossible that any person should believe on Jesus Christ in a saving manner, with an impenitent heart, which was the truth advanced, and to be supported under this head.

V. It is evident from the holy scriptures that the whole of evangelical obedience is included in saving faith. Or that saving faith implies all the holy exercises and works of a christian, and is the sum of all; so that where there is no faith, there is no true obedience, and where there is faith, there is obedience, and in this obedience, saving faith does essentially consist. Saving faith does not produce obedience, or the latter flow from the former, as the effect from the cause; but faith itself is evangelical obedience, and cannot be distinguished from it.*

When the Jews asked Jesus, "What shall we do, that we might work the works of God?" he answered, "This is the work of God, that ye believe on him whom he hath sent."+ The plain meaning of the question put by the Jews is this: What are these exercises, duties and works which God requires under the dispensation, and in the kingdom which the Messiah is to set up, in order to obtain that everlasting life which he will give? And Jesus comprised it all in believing on the Messiah. It is observable, that our Lord does not say,

"See

* When Peter says, the hearts of the uncircumcised Gentiles were purified by faith, Acts xv. 9. the meaning is not, that faith was the cause, and purity of heart, the effect; but that faith was the purity of heart itself. This is illustrated by one expression of this same apostle. ing ye have purified your souls in (or by) obeying the truth, through the Spirit." Peter i. 22. None will suppose that purity of heart, and obeying the truth, can be distinguished here, as if the former were the effect of the latter.

↑ John vi. 28, 29.

that in order to work the works of God, they must believe, so that their faith should become the foundation and principle of good works: But he says, This is the work itself. It will doubtless appear, that the natural and plain import of the words is, that faith in the Messiah, or believing in Jesus Christ, comprehends the whole of what the gospel requires, or is that in which conformity to the gospel in heart and life consists; and is therefore the sum of gospel holiness, or evangelical obedience.

Agreeable to this are the words of St. Paul, "The life which I now live in the flesh, I live by the faith of the Son of God."* The Apostle is here speaking of his life as a christian, a life of christian holiness or evangelical obedience, and says, he lived this life by the faith of the Son of God; that is, by faith in Jesus Christ. For the faith of Christ, is the faith by which men believe in Christ for righteousness and justification. Hence it appears, that the spiritual life of a christian is his faith, or it is a life of faith. Therefore, that conformity to the gospel in which christian obedience consists, is called, The obedience of Faith. "According to the revelation of the mystery which was kept secret since the world began, but now is made manifest, and by the scriptures of the Prophets, according to the commandment of the everlasting God, made known to all nations for the OBEDIENCE OF FAITH." St. Paul uses the same expression in the beginning of this epistle, though it is a little varied in our translation. "By whom we have received grace and apostleship, for obedience to the faith among all nations." He is evidently speaking here of the same thing as in the above cited words; and the words which are there translated, for obedience of faith, are exactly the same here as in the original, and should have been so translated, as such a translation is most exact and literal. And that the obedience of faith intends conformity in heart and life to the gospel revelation, or evangelical holiness or obedience, not only appears from the words themselves, in the connexion in which they stand, but also from a parallel expression in this

VOL. II.

Gal. ii. 20.

5

Rom. xvi. 25, 26,

+ Chap. i. 5.

same epistle. "I have therefore, whereof I may glory through Jesus Christ, in these things which pertain to God-to make the Gentiles obedient in word and deed."* The Apostle is evidently speaking here of the same thing, as in the above cited passages: He is speaking of the same persons, the Gentiles; of the same causes, means, and operation, the gospel preached and attended with the power of God; and therefore he is doubtless speaking of the same effect. This he here expresses by their being made obedient in word and deed. Hence it follows, that the obedience of faith, is the same with obedience to the gospel, or evangelical holiness. Agreeable to this, faith is called, obeying the gospel, in this epistle. "But they have not all obeyed the gospel; for Isaiah saith, Who hath believed our report ?" Faith then is gospel obedience; that is, evangelical obedience. Therefore, obeying Christ is mentioned as the same thing with believing in him. "And being made perfect, he became the author of eternal salvation, unto all them that obey him." The christian life of holy obedience is expressed by "Fighting the fight of faith."||

What the Apostle James says of faith serves farther to establish the point under consideration. He, speaking of saving faith, says, "Faith without works is dead." And again, "As the body without the spirit is dead, so faith without works is dead also." According to this, works, or holy exercises and obedience, are essential to true faith. They are the life of faith, by which faith lives and acts; and therefore, are faith living and acting. As the body without the spirit is not a true living man, but the spirit or life is an essential part of a man; so nothing can be called true faith, which is or can exist without works; and works, or evangelical obedience, are included in faith and essential to it, and as really, and as much faith itself, as the spirit or life of a man is essential to the man, and is indeed the man himself.

The Apostle does not say, that faith produces works, which may be distinguished from saving faith, and are

* Rom. xv. 17, 18. † Chap. x. 16. Heb. v. 9. | 1 Tim. vi. 12. S James ii. 20, 26.

the effect and consequence of it: Nor is there any thing in the Bible to warrant such a representation of the mat

Nor does he mean any thing like this; for then the similitude by which he illustrates the subject would be ill chosen, and nothing to the purpose: For the body does not produce the spirit and life of a man, but this coexists with the body, without which it would not be a man; and does itself produce every thing done by the man externally.

But it must be carefully noted, that the Apostle does not mean external actions merely; but those exercises of heart, that disposition of will, of which external actions are the proper and genuine expression; and in which all true evangelical obedience essentially and summarily consists. He does not mean mere external motions and actions, for there is no life in them, any farther than they are the fruit and expression of internal life and motion; which internal life and motion is the life of faith, or faith living and acting; and not any effect produced by faith, any more than the life and motion of the spirit of a man is the fruit and effect of a dead body.

It will farther appear that St. James includes the works of which he speaks, by which he means evangelical obedience, in saving faith, as essential to it, by attending to what he says of the faith of Abraham, the father and pattern of all believers. "Seest thou, how faith wrought with his works; and by works was faith made perfect."* If faith operates in, or together with works; then works are the operation of faith, or faith exerting and exercising itself. And if faith be not perfect without works, then works are a part of faith, and belong to it, being included in the nature of it. If faith does not include evangelical obedience, which the apostle means by works, then faith may be perfect without it, and cannot be perfected by it. But James says, faith is not perfect without this; therefore it is implied and included in faith, Evangelical obedience is saving faith, in such a sense and manner, that the one cannot be distinguished from the other; it is the obedience of faith; and where there is no such obedience, there is no faith,

* James ii, 22.