Volume 13 Number 644
SALVATION is of all subjects the greatest, of all wonders the most astonishing, of all jewels the most precious, of all glories the brightest, and of all matters the most important; and while the world abounds with professors of various sorts, under different names, and stepping forward in different forms, each one contending for his own creed; and as they so widely differ as to contradict each other, it follows that some must be wrong.
A good man is a man that is born of God, whose soul is the habitation of God, hence it was said of Barnabas, that he was a good man, and full of the Holy Ghost and of faith, Acts 11:24. Nothing short of this can constitute what the scripture calls a good man; let men say what they may in praise of human nature, God's testimony of it is that there is none good, no not one: sin was so infused into our nature by the fall, that it fulfilled the awful declaration; “The day you eat thereof, you shall surely die.” Thus, man became dead in sin, a willful transgressor against God, and a willing slave to the devil.
Man, being in this state, does not desire the presence, but the absence of God; so that he does not fear God, nor love him, nor seek him, nor know him, neither does he wish to know him, while the thoughts of his heart are evil, and only evil, and that continually. Our stock of religious thoughts with which we are born into the world, runs like this: First. We think we are not so far fallen, but that we can help ourselves if we like; but God says, “Can the Ethiopian change his skin, or the leopard his spots, then may you also do good, that are accustomed to do evil,” Jerimiah 8:23. Secondly. We think we have got such a freedom of will, as to come to God or leave it alone, but truth says, “No man can come to me except it were given him of my Father,” John 6:65. Thirdly. We think that God loves the whole race of Adam, and that he would save them all if he could, but through their acting so contrary to his desire he cannot do as he desires, but truth says, “And what his soul desires, even that he does,” Job 23:13. Fourthly. We think that Christ has died for all, and that they might all be saved if they would but accept his offered help, but truth says, “It shall be given to those for whom it is prepared,” Matthew 20:23. Fifthly. We think that a righteous life before man distinguishes us before God, and that God loves that person most that behaves best, but truth says, “The children being not yet born, neither having done any good or evil, that the purpose of God according to election might stand, not of works, but of him that calls, it was said unto her, The elder shall serve the younger. As it is written, Jacob have I loved, but Esau have I hated.” Romans 9:11-13. Sixthly. We think that God is not so irrevocably determined to save any, but what they may twist themselves out of his hand, and be lost at last, but truth says, “My sheep shall never perish, neither shall any pluck them out of my hand,” John 10:28. Seventhly. We think it an act of injustice for God to save one part of the human race and leave the other to perish, but truth says, “Who are you, O man, that replies against God, shall the thing formed say unto him that formed it; why have you made me like this?” Has not the potter power over the clay, of the same lump, to make one vessel to honor and another to dishonor?” Thus, we see man's aversion to God's truth; and well might the Lord say, “My thoughts are not your thoughts,” neither can anything short of Almighty grace quicken his soul, illuminate his mind, and give him such a knowledge of himself as to cause him to feel himself to be such a sinner as God says he is; viz., that by nature he is spiritually dead, blind, helpless, in bondage, earthly, sensual, and devilish.
The Holy Spirit having quickened his soul, and taught him his need of the gospel in the school of the law: and as his (the Holy Spirit's) great business, in the economy of grace, is to glorify the Lord of life and glory, he blessedly does it, first, by convincing the sinner that he is a sinner from top to toe, inside and out; for, as Mr. Hart well observes,
“He never moves a man to say,
Thank God I am so good;
But turns his head another way,
To Jesus and his blood.”
And as his attention is, by the Holy Ghost, turned to the covenant provision of a triune God, he is led by degrees to discover that infinite wisdom has contrived a plan of mercy, on such terms as engages every divine perfection, secures every claim of justice, maintains the honor of the law, and renders the promise sure to all the seed. The union of the two natures, divine and human, perfect God and perfect man, is the house which wisdom built, in which all fulness dwells; while his own attributes are the pillars that bear up and preserve the house and them that are in it. The glorious doctrines of grace are the maidens that wisdom has sent forth to tell the sinner of Zion's provision; one tells us that wisdom has furnished her table, the gospel of grace is the table, but the grace of the gospel is the food; however they all unite to describe Zion's provision; of which I cannot now speak particularly, suffice it to say, one speaks of eternal love; “I have loved you with an everlasting love;” another speaks of atoning blood, “You were redeemed by the precious blood of Christ;” another speaks of justifying righteousness, “He shall be called the Lord our righteousness;” another speaks of predestination, “Having predestinated us to the adoption of children by Jesus Christ to himself, according to the good pleasure of his will;” another speaks of eternal election, “He has chosen us in him before the foundation of the world;” another speaks of certain calling, “Your people shall be willing in the day of your power;” another speaks of certain victory, “Her warfare is accomplished, her iniquity is pardoned, and she has received at the Lord's hand double for all her sins;” another speaks of certain perseverance, “They go from strength to strength, every one of them in Zion appears before God;” another tells us how we persevere, “He that has begun the good work will carry it on to the day of Jesus Christ;” another speaks of gospel liberty, “Stand fast in the liberty wherewith Christ has made us free, and be not again entangled in the yoke of bondage;” another speaks of eternal salvation, “Israel shall be saved in the Lord with an everlasting salvation,” & etc.; thus the body of heavenly sisters in the hand of the Holy Ghost, with one harmonious voice, attend the Lamb's wife, and proclaim the love of his heart; the native dignity of his person as God; the stability of his person as God man; the perfection of his suretyship work; the fullness of his grace; the freeness of his mercy; and the stability of his covenant; all which is wrapped up in that precious yea and amen declaration, “Because I live you shall live also;” thus the gospel comes forth arrayed in covenant authority, on the high terms of “I will,” and “they shall;” this is the high place of the city, so that salvation is unconditional; as Mr. Burnham says,
“The gospel scorns conditions,
And breathes salvation free as air.”
When the sinner is brought, by divine teaching, to a discovery of these truths, the language of his soul is, “One thing have I desired of the Lord, that will I seek after, that I may dwell in the house of the Lord all the days of my life, to behold the beauty of the Lord, and to enquire in his temple;” however, the Lord in his own good time leads the poor prodigal to the banqueting house, Christ Jesus; here he is entertained with the royal bounties of heaven; eternal love displays its conquering power, gains the heart, moves the affections, charms the soul, delights the mind, casts out his fear, removes his doubts, fixes his attention, engages his thoughts, informs his judgment, turns his prayer into praise, his night into day, his bitterness into sweet, his sorrow into joy, and sends the voice of love through every faculty of the soul. Thus faith lays hold of the rock, love embraces the truth, light adores the Lamb, repentance lies at his feet, humility submits to his righteousness, zeal is devoted to his service, wisdom makes choice of his ways, godly fear cleaves close to the Lord, gospel hope blossoms with pleasure, holy anticipation burns with fervency, spiritual desires run with rapture, expectation enlarges, divine consolation abounds, while the soul is overwhelmed with wonder, and filled with astonishment that ever he should be called to a knowledge of such precious truths, and find that dear refuge where he is safe, and all is well; here he may sing with the poet,
“Amazing grace! how sweet the sound,
That saved a wretch like me;
I once was lost, but now am found;
Was blind, but now I see.”
Thus, he has received the spirit of adoption, whereby he is favored to claim the subsisting relation, and say by happy experience, my beloved is mine, and I am his. In this large room of gospel liberty, he is sweetly assured of his eternal election of God; rejoices in Christ Jesus and has no confidence in the flesh; here he feels the benefit of atoning blood, which heals his diseases, speaks peace to his soul, gives rest to his mind, victory over his enemies, and nearness of access to the Lord; thus, he is washed from his sins in the blood of the Lamb, while he stands justified and beautified in the royal apparel of Zion's house. Being thus washed, justified, and sanctified, he is made meet to be a partaker of the inheritance of the saints in light. This child of light, while pressing through the wilderness of this world, is taught of the Lord. Kept by Almighty power, he and all his affairs, both spiritual and temporal, are all controlled by infinite wisdom, fed with rich grace, followed by goodness and mercy, and sometimes delighted with the presence of the Lord; thus, grace makes a good man. “Who,” says the text, “shall be satisfied from himself;” it does not say he shall be satisfied with himself, but from himself. The one who has been travelling the path I have been describing has a five-fold satisfaction from his own experience.
First, he is satisfied not only that he is a wretch, but a vile wretch. “Behold,” says Job, “I am vile.” Secondly, he is satisfied that God is a just God, and that he will not, yes, from the perfection of his nature he cannot, show mercy at the expense of his justice.
“God is merciful, tis true,
But he is just and holy too.”
Thirdly, he is satisfied that Christ is natively God, properly man, and truly God Man in one mysterious union of two natures; and that he has by his obedience and blood established the law, wrought salvation, and brought life and immortality to light.
Fourthly, He is satisfied with the characters and relations of Christ. Is he the believer's life? He is eternal life. Is he his light? He is an everlasting light, a sun that will never go down. Is he his justifying righteousness? He is an everlasting righteousness that will never wear out. Is he his exceeding joy? He is an everlasting joy that will never leave the sinner to lie down in sorrow. Is he a Savior? He is a great one; his salvation is everlasting and shall not be abolished. Is he a prophet? He is infinite in knowledge, and teaches with authority; for,
“Oft he commands their fears to fly
Removes their doubts, and brings them nigh;
Does charm their souls with love divine,
And they can say ‘my Lord is mine.'”
Is he a priest? He has put away their sins by the sacrifice of himself and pleads their cause with his own meritorious obedience and blood. Is he a king? He has obtained victory, confounded his foes, and made a footstool of his enemies; however, a footstool is useful in its place, and so are the enemies of the cross; and when he has done with this footstool, he will drive it down to perdition, seeing it is fit for nothing but the fire. Thus, the Lord is king, and goes forth in the purpose of his heart, and takes the objects of his love captive by his grace, brings them to Zion, clothes them with royalty, crowns them with honor, fills them with wonder, and delights them with his presence; while they are brought under the high character of kings and priests unto God, their royalty lies in covenant relationship, they are the king's children; by him they conquer, in him they live, and with him they reign; they are called priests to God, because their eternal employment will be to offer the sacrifice of praise, and ascribe salvation to him that sits upon the throne, and to the Lamb forever; thus the believer is abundantly satisfied with the goodness of the Lord's house, even his holy temple.
Fifthly. He is satisfied, from his own experience, that he is an heir of salvation, the Holy Spirit bringing the gospel home with power; unfolding the beauties of the dear Redeemer, and enrapturing the heart with the melody of truth, witnessing to his spirit that he is a child of the Most High. Thus, a good man is satisfied from himself. However, this last part of his satisfaction, namely, his oneness with Christ is a summit of spiritual delight which the Lord does not favor all his people with, no not to the day of their death; as they are not all brought the way I have here described, and indeed all their experiences are marked with divine sovereignty; for although they are all the same in matter, yet they all differ in manner, as our natural faces are all alike with respect to their members, yet differ in their features, so it is with the children of God; the Lord blesses them with eyes to see, a nose to smell and approve of the truth, a mouth to pray and feed on the royal dainties of the gospel.
We do not much wonder they should so differ in features, when we consider that although all come into the kingdom of grace by regeneration, yet one is brought in by the north gate of severe conviction and law terrors, thus he is driven by the storm: another comes in by the south gate of attracting mercy, and perhaps can give scarce any account when, where, how, or by what means the Lord was pleased to begin his work. However, John, who was drawn by love, and Paul, who was arrested by terror, stand with their faces Zion-ward; both forsake Moses, fly to the Lamb, rejoice in Christ Jesus, and have no confidence in the flesh. Indeed it is a good thing we do differ in the features of our experience, for what a confusion would there be in nature if all faces, voices, and statures were alike, we should not know one from the other; what confusion then would there be in the church if every experience were exactly alike; it is hard to discern between him that serves God and him that serves him not, as it is; and if all were alike, the doctrine of experience would go forth as one unequivocal creed, which might be learned by any novice; we should be worse plagued with hypocrites than we are now. Behold, then, the wisdom and goodness of God in this branch of his covenant conduct also. However, let them differ where they may, they are all brought to see the spirituality of the law; their distance from God, and their need of Christ; so that the one who comes in at the south gate of gospel light shall go forth out of self into gospel liberty by the north gate of tribulation; and the one who comes in by the north gate of law terrors shall go into gospel liberty by the south gate of covenant promise; thus they are brought to a knowledge of law and gospel, and God and themselves, while Jesus surrounds them behind and before on the right hand, and on the left goodness passes before them and leads the way, mercy follows after them to lift them up when they fall, divine power on the left hand to keep them from the errors and snares of the world. “Salvation on the right hand that leads to God,” Ezekiel 46:9,10; this is their right hand subject, thus, “a wise man's eyes are in his covenant head, and his heart at his right hand,” Ecclesiastes 10:2. As Christ is their treasure, their heart is there also; thus they are enclosed by Zion's walls: dwell on high, and have for their defense all the divine perfections of a triune God; while their employment is to contemplate the high towers of eternal truth; the bulwarks of covenant promise, and the palaces of divine glories. Thus, God has appointed salvation for walls and bulwarks, yes, the Lord has chosen Zion, he has desired it for his habitation; “Here will I dwell,” says Jehovah, “this is my rest for ever, for I have desired it; and whatsoever his soul desires, that he does in heaven and in earth,” Psalm 132.
“In heaven the plan of grace was fixed
Before the world began;
'Twas Jesus came to do the work,
And lives to make it known.”
God's plan of mercy renders the church his everlasting rest, therefore called “Our Spiritual Solomon's bed” which we are called upon to behold with sixty valiant men around it.
I am inclined to view the sixty valiant men as fifteen fruits of the Holy Spirit, fifteen doctrines of grace, twenty-one covenant characters of the Trinity, and nine divine perfections. These are the guards of the church, all engaged in the great business of salvation; these are all expert in war, handle the sword well, and are always ready to repel the enemy.
It is going a little out of my intended way, but I will just mention the names of these sixty valiant men, or else perhaps my reader will say, my views of this text are equivocal. First, the fifteen fruits of the Holy Spirit; which are knowledge, faith, humility, love, patience, hope, godly fear, Gospel zeal, prayer, repentance, peace, joy, liberty, gratitude and praise. Secondly, fifteen doctrines of grace; which are the doctrines of atoning blood, justification, sanctification, regeneration, eternal love, predestination, election, complexity, the Trinity, marriage union, final perseverance, complete victory, safety, the resurrection, and glorification. Thirdly, twenty-one covenant characters of the Trinity: viz., a father, husband, brother, life, light, comforter, guide, keeper, shepherd, remembrancer, deliverer, a rock, a refuge, a way, a house, a head, a home, a rest, a prophet, a priest, and king. Fourthly, nine divine perfections; viz., his eternity, his love, his power, his wisdom, his justice, his faithfulness, his holiness, his sovereignty and immutability. Thus, our spiritual Solomon may rest in his church for she is well guarded and well secured, yes, he is her security; but to return, I further observe, with respect to the nature of a work of grace, that it quickens the soul, conforms it to the image of the Son of God, and renders it holy, even as he is holy, this truth the Bible is clear; however, in order to get at it, I first consider what we are as creatures, which is needful for us to know, at least as far as the Lord has, and is pleased to reveal it. First, we have an immortal soul; this renders things of futurity matters of importance to us; we also have a mortal spirit, and material body; thus, we are made up of three, an immortal soul, an animal spirit, and material body. That we have a mortal or animal spirit is clear from divine revelations, as well as from experience; although the immortal soul is often called a spirit; as when Stephen said, “Lord receive my spirit;” and again we read of “the spirits of just men made perfect;” but with respect to the animal spirit it is mortal, and therefore must die. In this sense, excluding the immortal soul, a man has no pre-eminence above the beast; “For that which befalls the sons of men befalls the beast, even one thing befalls them, as the one dies, so dies the other, yes, they have all one breath; so that a man has no preeminence above the beast,” Ecclesiastes 3:9. Man is earthly, sensual, and devilish, so are beasts, for it is very clear that sin has so infected their spirits, that if they had but rationality, they would do after their kind as man does, viz., contrive all manner of schemes to gratify the abominations of their nature.
It is a self-evident truth, that there is something evil in their spirits, which they did not possess before the fall; there was no fighting and devouring each other as there is among them now; but as they only possess sensitive imaginations, passions, dread, spite, & etc., and are not in possession of rationality, therefore not capacitated to be under a law that would bring them under the character of sinners, as there is no judicial law against them, of course there is no transgression; their law is their own nature, so that they are what they are, and act as they do from necessity, so that you see the beasts are necessitarians, and so is every man and woman in the world, whether they know it or not.
Thus, as necessitarians, man has no pre-eminence above the beast, for it is from necessity man is what he is, whether sinner or saint, foolish or wise, weak or strong, tall or short, thin or stout, high or low, rich or poor, learned or unlearned, dead or alive, cursed or blessed; yea, necessity rules the whole course of all created things. Perhaps my reader will say I carry the doctrine of necessity too far, to which I answer, I never carry it at all, it is that carries me, necessity is the white steed, I shall ride forever, but to return, I hesitate not to assert, that regeneration makes no more alteration in the animal spirit than it does in the material body; all the alteration there is with respect to the animal spirit and material body amounts to this, that when the man is dead in sin, the body is actuated more or less by the evil dispositions of the mind, which makes the man to yield his members as instruments of unrighteousness; but when mercy meets the man it quickens his soul, which brings his material body and body of sin into subjection; as it is written, “The elder shall serve the younger;” this old man of sin being thus in subjection, distinguishes them from the profane world; this consistency of conduct in the world, as becomes the illustrious family of Zion, is what Paul calls, “a being sanctified or separated wholely, body, soul and spirit; thus thousands of them are favored to live blameless as the sons of God in the midst of a crooked and perverse generation:” Thessalonians 5:3, yes, their consistency as Christians is their left hand armor, which, if they lose, they will be sure to have some shots from the Egyptian battery, levelled at that part of the body which this little piece of armor should instrumentally defend; however many of the Lord's dear people have been suffered to lose this part of their armor, and no doubt those who lose it deeply feel it; for we cannot consider the Christian soldier in his militant state to be arrayed in full dress, without this little piece of tin on his left arm; even this is the gift of God, and unless he preserve it, the devil is sure to run away with it, they being sensible of this, their language is, “Hold you me up, and I shall be safe;” however the devil cannot touch the gold, for our life is hid with Christ in God; and when Christ, who is our life, shall appear, then shall we also appear in glory with him.
The believer feels he still retains all the same natural propensities which he always had, and that his animal spirit, and not his immortal soul, is the seat, the house, the place and den where all these lord's dwell; these are the old parliament men which King Beelzebub placed there in subjection to the God of this world; formed a law in soul and spirit, to hate Christ, reject the truth, despise the Gospel, and delight in iniquity, transgression and sin; which law has been awfully and diligently attended to. Thus, this old and foolish king that will no more be admonished, has come out of the bottomless pit to reign in the souls of men; “and he also that is born in his kingdom becomes poor;” Ecclesiastes 4:13 and one part of his business is, to deceive and persuade the man that he is not so vile, and so ruined, but that he can help himself if he please; this lie goes down very sweet, and makes him tolerably contented with the idea, that he can turn and be religious when it suits him; and those who are mere squeamish professors are content with a mere creature religion, that can be put on today and off tomorrow; thus man is the devil's palace, while he is the strong man that “keeps the soul in false peace as well as he can,” Luke 11:21. However he can deceive the elect no longer, when God comes to claim them as vessels for his mercy; monuments for his grace; jewels to his crown, and objects of his love.
When the Lord thus comes the enemy must fly his four-fold bed, viz., death, darkness, enmity, and unbelief are turned out of the soul, so that the soul that was an habitation for dragons, consequently a barren wilderness, is now blessed with the grass of spiritual thoughts; the reeds of Gospel desires; and the rushes of deep reflections; thus it becomes a pasture for the lamb, a house for the Lord, and a palace for the King of Zion, wherein he comes; dissolves parliament; turns all the old ministers out; disannuls their law; claims the soul for himself; and brings in a whole body of new ministers; such as faith, prayer, humility, godly fear, Gospel hope, & etc., these are actuated entirely by the King of Zion; which leads the soul to exclaim, that “although other lords have had dominion over me, I will own them no more, they are all deceivers, therefore by you alone will I make mention of your name,” Isaiah 26:13. Thus the soul becomes the King's palace, while nothing but the King's furniture, his law, and his ministers, are allowed to dwell there; he comes in his glory, opens parliament, and makes his speech; which is, “This is my rest forever, here will I dwell for I have desired it.” This is the law of Zion, which he, according to his promise, writes in their minds; as for their sins and iniquities he will remember them no more, but dwells in the soul and preserves it from sinning; so that the soul thus born of God sins not, for “The promised seed, Christ Jesus, remains in him and he cannot sin, because he is born of God,” 1 John 3:9. The soul thus having new life, new light, new faith, new hope, new desires, and so on, is rendered a new creature in Christ Jesus; the soul being brought from death to life, common sense must allow it is not what it was before; but perhaps my reader will ask, what is the soul? to which I answer, it is an immortal spirit, “God breathed into his nostrils, and man became a living soul,” Genesis 2:7. It is this that gives man the preeminence above the beast; for God did not breathe into the nostrils of the brute creation; however, God created the beast with a mortal spirit from the dust of the earth; man also was created from the dust of the earth; but whether Adam was created with animal life, previous to his being blessed with an immortal soul, is a point the Bible does not decide: still it is clear that it is the animal spirit, and not the immortal soul, that is the life of the body, for if the immortal soul was the life of the body, it must of necessity be immortal, and incapable of death; so that whether Adam had an animal spirit given him in his creation, or in his immortalization, it is clear that it is the animal spirit that is the life of the body, and gives motion to the blood; so that “without this animal spirit the body is dead,” James 2:25; and when this animal spirit ceases to act, nature dies, and the soul, with its rationality, reasoning capacity, and immortal faculties, returns to God who gave it; and, if a child of God, it enters into the full liberty of its Father's house, and if the soul of the believer, which it is, made meet to be a partaker of the inheritance of the saints in light, it must be holy; for nothing that defiles or makes a lie can enter there. The apostle does not say he will make us meet, but “he has made us meet,” Colossians 1:12. This is another proof that all the sins of the believer dwell in his animal spirit, for when nature dies, all the evils of nature die also; and while mortal nature lives, sin lives in it; and as mortal and vile nature and the quickened sanctified soul both dwell in one body, it follows that the one is contrary to the other; and as Christ is pardon and justification to the soul, so he is the life, light, strength, and sanctification in the soul; this conforms the soul to the image of the Son of God, and renews it in knowledge after the image of him that created him, which work makes it choose the Lamb. Thus, it is made willing, yes, blessed with a new will it never had before; this new life, new will, new affection, and desires, is the new heart which the Lord has promised; but although the soul be thus quickened and sanctified, yet old mortal nature is still the same as before; as the regeneration of the soul has made no difference to the body, so it has made no difference to the animal spirit, or to the evils that dwell therein; and indeed the believer is a witness to this fact, for he feels he has a will to sin, as well as a will against it, a love to it as well as an hatred, yes, a carnal as well as a spiritual mind; and when the carnal mind is in exercise, which it mostly is, more or less, he feels dead, wretched, and miserable; but the mind of the new man is spiritual, and when the Holy Ghost is pleased to bring it into exercise, then life and peace is enjoyed. (Romans 8:6).
I am not much acquainted with the opinions of the present age on this great subject of sanctification, and indeed if I was ever so familiar with the opinions of even the great men of the present day, I should not feel myself called upon to make their opinions a standard for my faith, seeing that it is to stand in the power and truth of God; and while I have the word of God, it is my privilege to go by it as a standard of my faith and experience; for “wherewithal shall a young man cleanse his way, but by taking heed thereto, according to your word,” Psalm 119:9. And as we are sure that the work of God is in perfect harmony with the word of God, it therefore becomes an unerring rule to try all doctrine and experience by; and if they speak not according to this word, it is because there is no light in them. However, the free-willers, with their fleshly perfection, are a long way off, for their testimony of what they call experience is very different to Scripture testimony; they say they have no bad thoughts, but it is much to be questioned whether they ever had any good ones. But let men say what they may, the testimony of those who had the spirit of Christ is as follows: says one, “the transgression of the wicked says, within my heart there is no fear of God before his eyes;” by the heart, as here mentioned, I understand to be the mortal spirit, where the old man of sin dwells, as perfect in his members as ever he was, for he is said to have no fear of God before his eyes; indeed he was king, and the soul was his throne; but he has lost that, grace has taken it away. However, he is still in the body, but, having lost his throne, he cannot reign, he can only flatter himself, until his iniquity be found hateful to the soul; for his wisdom is confounded, the world is his bed, yes, he abhorrers not evil; but still he is useful, for he is the means in the Lord's hand of making the soul prize the covenant mercy and faithfulness of God. This may be seen in Psalm 36:5. Says another champion for truth, “I find a law that when I would do good, evil is present with me; so that the evil which I would not, that I do, now it is no more I that do it, but sin that dwells in me,” Romans 7. We read that man is drawn away of his own lust; and if he has not any evil in him he cannot be drawn away by it; still it is clear that the soul, although dwelling in the same body, is not defiled with sin, neither will it consent to sin; the conscience of the quickened soul will not approve of it, it is insulted by it, and mourns because of this enemy; “Why go I mourning all the day because of the enemy;” the soul is cast down by it, “Why are you cast down by it, O my soul;” the soul is shut up in prison by it, “Bring my soul out of prison, and I will praise your name.” The soul is vexed, both with the evil of the old man and the filthy conversation of the world. We read that Lot's righteous soul was vexed from day to day with the filthy conversation and unlawful deeds of the wicked (his righteous soul, notice1); now his soul being a righteous soul, cannot mean merely his justification before God, by the obedience of the Redeemer, for justification before God, and preparation for God, are two things; the great Redeemer's obedience and blood is a judicial acquittance from guilt and condemnation, while sanctification is a blessing of the everlasting covenant that comes to the church on the ground of his suretyship work.