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putting his written word of the Old and New Testament in our hands, and sending men in his name to preach the gospel unto us. By these means he speaks to sinners, intimating and offering them the covenant and so he carries on the work, to the salvation of those that believe, and rendering unbelievers inexcusable, 2 Cor. v. 20; Rev. iii. 22; Luke x. 16. Wherefore the offer of the covenant made to us in the gospel, is his offer: and though the word is sent to us by men, they are but his voice in the matter, he is the speakThen " see that ye refuse not him that speaketh," Heb. xii. 25. 2. His making the intimation and offer of the covenant effectual to the elect, by the Spirit, 1 Pet. i. 12, "By them that have preached the gospel unto you, with the Holy Ghost sent down from heaven." The great Prophet of the covenant can effectually teach the most unteachable sinners of mankind; causing light not only to break forth in a dark world, by his word, but in dark hearts, by his Spirit: for the fulness of the Spirit of light is in him, and he hath eye-salve for the spiritually blind, Rev. iii. 18. He knoweth who are his, in whose name he contracted with the Father, and received the promise of the Spirit and, sooner or latter, he so enlightens them, that he rescues them from under the power of their spiritual darkness, and renders the administration of the covenant effectual to them, however ineffectual it be to others, Col. i. 13. And this he doth, by bringing his word to them with power, through the efficacy of his Spirit opening their eyes. In the first place, by his Spirit acting upon them, as a Spirit of bondage, he sets home on their consciences, the holy law in the commands and curse thereof, as of divine authority, and binding on them in particular. Hereby they are convinced of their sin and misery, seeing their sin as henious in the sight of God, and his wrath due to them for their sin: they are filled with remorse, terror, and anxiety; are made to pant for relief, feel an absolute need of. Christ and his righteousness, and despair of relief by any other way, Acts ii. 37, and xvi. 29, 30. And then, by the same Spirit acting within them as a Spirit of life, and communicated unto them from himself, in the word of the gospel, he sets home on their hearts and consciences, the glorious gospel in its free promise of life and salvation to sinners through Jesus Christ, as it stands in the holy scriptures; clearing and demonstrating the same unto them, to be the infallible word of the eternal God, and his word to them in particular: 1 Thess. ii. 13, "Ye received it not as the word of men, but (as it is in truth) the word of God." Chap. i. 5, "For our gospel came not unto you in word only, but also in power, and in the Holy Ghost, and in much assurance." This demonstration of the Spirit is that which immediately cleareth to them the ground of their

believing in particular; as saith the apostle, 1 Cor. ii. 4, 5, "My preaching was in demonstration of the Spirit, and of power: that your faith should not stand in the wisdom of men, but in the power of God." And it is an internal attestation of the word of the gospel unto them, distinct from the clearest external or ministerial attestation of it; according to the saying of our Saviour, John xv. 26, "The Spirit of truth, which proceedeth from the Father, he shall testtfy of me." Ver. 27, "And ye also shall bear witness." By the power hereof, getting, by way of spiritual sight, John vi. 40, a knowledge of Christ in his transcendent glory and excellency, exhibited to them in the free promise of the gospel, they are infallibly brought to believe. The Spirit thus applying the word of the gospel to them, they greedily embrace it, and apply it to themselves by faith; as may be seen in these converts, Acts ii. 38, "Then Peter said unto them, repent, and be baptized every one of you in the name of Jesus Christ, for the remission of sins." Ver. 39, "For the promise is unto you." Ver. 41, "Then they that gladly received his word, were baptized."

3. Lastly, His teaching and instructing them by his word and Spirit, from thenceforth, as children, of the covenant, his own disciples. The whole plan of salvation is laid down in the covenant, being a mystery of the manifold wisdom of God, whereof there is still more and more to be learned: and Christ is the great Prophet to teach it. And "the secret of the Lord is with them that fear him; and he will shew them his covenant," Psalm xxv. 14. The saints, by reason of the remains of darkness in their minds while here, are apt to lose sight of the parties in the covenant: but the great prophet is to shew them the Father, and to manifest himself unto them, by the Spirit. The condition of the covenant, the Mediator's own righteousness, the sole ground of all their hopes, cannot be kept in view, but by means of the light of life from himself. And in his light only can they have a believing view of the promises and privileges of the covenant. The duties of the covenant, whereof the exceeding broad law of the ten commands is the rule, are many; and though they be clear in themselves, yet are they often so dark and perplexed to us, that we cannot distinguish between sin and duty: but the children of the covenant have an infallible teacher, whom they may consult in all cases, and of whom they may learn how to steer their course in every point; and "the meek will he guide in judgment, the meek will he teach his way," Psalm xxv. 9.

The darkness brought on mankind by sin, nothing but the grace of the new covenant can effectually dispel. The true light is

a benefit of that covenant, purchased by the blood of Christ, and lodged with him among the rest of the benefits of his great trust: and he hath the dispensing of it, as the great Prophet of the covenant. To him then must we have our recourse for light in all cases, whether we be under the midnight darkness of a natural state, or under the twilight-darkness of the present imperfection of a state of grace yea, in the mid-day light of glory, the Lamb is the light of the heavenly city, Rev. xxi. 23.

And thus Christ is the Prophet of the covenant.

IV. CHRIST THE KING OF THE COVENANT.

The covenant of grace is a matter of so vast importance, both to the honour of God, and the good of souls; and of such a diffusive and general concern to mankind, that the administration thereof required one invested with kingly power and authority for that effect. And the disposition of the parties, objects of the administration, together with the nature of the thing itself, which concerns the inner man chiefly, and the disposal of the choicest of Heaven's favours, at once laid aside the greatest of men, and the highest of angels, as no more fit to bear that office, than to produce another world out of nothing. Wherefore the Father's choice in that matter natively fell on his own Son, the Second Adam: and he was made King of the covenant.

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God as Creator of the world, is King of the same, by an original, underived right and so he hath the supreme power over it, of which he can no more divest himself, than of his being. This is the essential kingdom, common to the three persons in the glorious Godhead, the Father, the Son, and the Holy Ghost.

But the kingdom of the covenant, whereof we speak, is a derived, delegated one, which the Mediator Christ holds of his Father, by the tenor of the covenant, for the administration thereof; as is declared, Psalm. ii. 6, "Yet have I set my King upon my holy hill of Zion." Now, the great design of that administration, is to gather together sinners of mankind into one body, under the bond of the covenant; and to make them happy, in the enjoyment of the privileges thereof, in grace and glory, the which body, the church, is the kingdom of the covenant, a kingdom that was to be won, and raised out of the rebel-world of mankind, lying in wickedness; and whereof Christ was, by his Father, constituted the alone King and Head.

In subserviency to this kingdom, the kingdom of providence throughout the world was also committed to him, being made the head over all things to the church, which is his body, Eph, i. 22, 23, VOL. VIII.

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he was appointed to rule, not only over his willing subjects, but in the midst of his enemies, Psalm cx. 2. The management of the wheel of providence, throughout the whole world, was put into the hand of Zion's King. Into the same hand that the Father hath committed the government of the church, he hath also committed the government of the world for there is no exception. "The Father hath committed all judgment unto the Son," John v. 22, "all power in heaven and in earth," Matth. xxviii. 18. So he is "Lord of lords, and King of kings," Rev. xvii. 14, and "by him kings reign-princes rule, and nobles, even all the judges of the earth," Prov. viii. 15, 16. This headship over the world was necessary to his administration of the covenant, as head of the church; necessary for compassing the ends thereof. Being vested therewith, he sets up and pulls down, in the world, as he sees meet for the great purposes of the covenant : and of what use this is, in the administration thereof, may be learned from Isa. xliii. 14, "For your sake" (namely, for the sake of the church) "I have sent to Babylon, and have brought down all their nobles, and the Chaldeans." Ver. 15, “I am—your King." Thus the King and Head of the church manageth all things by his providence, as well without as within the church; though in a very different manner, because in a very different relation, as to his own people, and to strangers. The which was typified in David, who for the benefit of his own kingdom, the kingdom of Israel, was made "the head of the Heathen," Psalm xviii. 43. For David smote the Philistines, and subdued them, 2 Sam. viii. 1, and the "Moabites." ver. 2, "and the Syrians," ver 6," and all they of Edom became David's servants," ver. 14, " And David reigned over all Israel, and David executed judgment and justice unto all his people," ver. 15. Now, the chief acts of Christ's administration of the covenant, as he is King thereof, are these.

1. His appointing ordinances of his kingdom, both for bringing sinners personally into the covenant, and for confirming and strengthening the covenanted; as also officers of his kingdom, to administer these ordinances in his name and authority. Both the one and the other were different, under the Old Testament, and under the New; which hath made two different forms of external administration of the covenant; the old, which is passed away, and the new, that will continue to the end of the world: but both were from the same authority, and for compassing the same great designs of the covenant, agreeable to the different times for which they were appointed; and are all of them to be found in the scriptures of the Old and New Testament, the book of the manner of the kingdom. It was the same Lord Jesus, the angel of the covenant which spake to

Moses in the mount Sinai, Acts vii. 38, who instituted the new testament church and ordinances, and " gave some apostles, and some prophets, and some evangelists, and some pastors and teachers; for the perfecting of the saints, for the work of the ministry," Eph. iv. 11. 12. The Saviour, King, and Lawgiver of the church, are one, Is. xxxiii. 22, "The Lord is our Lawgiver, the Lord is our King, he will save us."

Emitting his royal proclamations into the world, by the hand of his messengers, in the gospel; bearing, that whosoever will come unto him, and unite with him as the head of the covenant, by faith, shall be readily received into it, and have a right to all the privileges thereof, in him: Mark xvi. 15, "Go ye unto all the world, and preach the gospel to every creature." Ver. 16, "He that believeth and is baptized, shall be saved.". Therein the covenant is published, and offered in his name to every sinner of mankind unto whose ears this voice reacheth and they are called, commanded, and charged to come into it, and submit to his royal sceptre. His call and offer is their warrant to come: his command obligeth them, that they cannot refuse, but in rebellion and disobedience against his royal authority. The promises are set before them indefinitely, that whosoever will, may, by believing, apply them to themselves. The king's proclamation meddles not with the secrets of the eternal election, to reveal them. But the promises of the covenant, infallibly to be accomplised in some, are, in Christ's testament, as indorsed to sinners of mankind indefinitely, to be fulfilled unto all and every one who shall by faith embrace them: and the proclamation makes lawful intimation of the testament, This intimation is the appointed means of begetting faith, and of bringing sinners into the covenant thereby; for faith cometh by hearing, Rom. x. 17. And it is made effectual to some, by the Spirit, through the grace of the covenant secured by promise for them.

And hence it is, that the covenant being thus administered to all promiscuously, there is an use of conditional phrases in the administration thereof: though in the covenant itself there are no conditions, properly so called, but what were fulfilled by Jesus Christ in his own person. The word of the covenant coming with alike warrant to the elect and the non-elect; to them who certainly will believe, and to them who will continue in their unbelief; the administering of it equally to both in the gospel-proclamation, must needs be by proposing the promises indefinitely as to persons; the which must at length be resolved into conditional phrases. So it is proclaimed in the ears of all, "I will betrothe thee unto me," and "I will be to them a God." And one believes and applies the

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