4. The sins of godly men cease not to be sins, though they are justified. We may not say, that in Cain killing of another is murder, but in David it is not: We may not say, denying of Christ in Judas, is indeed a sin, but in Peter it is not. No privilege they have by justification, can alter the nature of a sin. He that receiveth unworthily, is guilty of the body and blood of the Lord, whether he be a wicked man or a Believer. It is not with a Believer and a wicked man, as with a man and a beast comparatively. If a beast kill a man, it is not sin, because the subject is not reasonable, but a man if he do so, whether godly or ungodly, it is a sin, because against Gods Law. It is not safe to say, that God doth with the Believer and wicked, as if a Magistrate should make a Law, that whosoever committeth such a crime, if he be a free-man he shall only be imprisoned, but if a servant, he shall be put to death: so God, whosoever murdereth or committeth adultery, if he be a Believer, the wages due to his sin, is only temporal chastisements, but to a wicked man, it's eternal death. I say this is not safe: for although a Believers sin shall not actually damn him, yet God hath made the same Law to both, and repentance as a means is prescribed, so that we may by supposition say, If the wicked man repent, his sin shall not damn him; If the justified person do not, his sin will damn him. It's true, it is not proper to say of sin in the abstract, it shall be damned, no more, then that grace shall be saved; but we are to say, the person shall be damned or saved. Yet the guilt of the sin will cause the guilt of the person, if not taken off by Christ as the meritorious, and faith as the instrumental cause. The sins then of Believers ⟨p. 74⟩and ungodly are both alike, only that the guilt of them doth not redound upon the persons alike, is because the one takes the way appointed by God to obtain pardon, and the other doth not. Not that the godly man makes himself to differ from the wicked, but all is the work of grace. In some respects the sins of godly men are more offensive to God, then those of wicked men; because committed against more light, and more experience of the sweetness of Gods love, and the bitternes•e of sin. What is the cause, Heb. 10.28, 29, 30.
4. The sins of godly men cease not to be sins, though they are justified. We may not say, that in Cain killing of another is murder, but in David it is not: We may not say, denying of Christ in Judas, is indeed a sin, but in Peter it is not. No priviledge they have by justification, can alter the nature of a sin. He that receiveth unworthily, is guilty of the body and bloud of the Lord, whether he be a wicked man or a Beleever. It is not with a Beleever and a wicked man, as with a man and a beast comparatively. If a beast kill a man, it is not sin, because the subject is not reasonable, but a man if he do so, whether godly or ungodly, it is a sin, because against Gods Law. It is not safe to say, that God doth with the Beleever and wicked, as if a Magistrate should make a Law, that whosoever committeth such a crime, if he be a free-man he shall only be imprisoned, but if a servant, he shall be put to death: so God, whosoever murdereth or committeth adultery, if he be a Beleever, the wages due to his sin, is only temporal chastisements, but to a wicked man, it's eternal death. I say this is not safe: for although a Beleevers sin shall not actually damn him, yet God hath made the same Law to both, and repentance as a means is prescribed, so that we may by supposition say, If the wicked man repent, his sin shall not damn him; If the justified person do not, his sin will damn him. It's true, it is not proper to say of sin in the abstract, it shall be damned, no more, then that grace shall be saved; but we are to say, the person shall be damned or saved. Yet the guilt of the sin will cause the guilt of the person, if not taken off by Christ as the meritorious, and faith as the instrumentall cause. The sins then of Beleevers ⟨p. 74⟩and ungodly are both alike, only that the guilt of them doth not redound upon the persons alike, is because the one takes the way appointed by God to obtain pardon, and the other doth not. Not that the godly man makes himself to differ from the wicked, but all is the work of grace. In some respects the sins of godly men are more offensive to God, then those of wicked men; because committed against more light, and more experience of the sweetnesse of Gods love, and the bitternes•e of sin. What is the cause, Heb. 10.28, 29, 30.
