An answer to the discourse of Mr. William Sherlock, touching the knowledge of Christ,…

3. A man in Justification is presumed to stand at God's Bar, and to answer to somewhat; and what must he answer to, to the Gospel only, or to the Law also? If to the Gospel only, I confess Faith answers to the Terms of it; but mean while all the Pagans in the World must be in a justified State: They as well as others are only to answer to the Gospel, and to that, because unrevealed, they need make no answer at all; and having nothing to make answer unto, they must needs be in a justified condition: And mean while also, all true Believers must be in a state of Perfection, the defects of their Graces must be no sins; for the truth of Grace in them answers to the Terms of the Gospel, and to more than these they are not to answer: But if in Justification a man be to answer to the Law also, nothing less than the perfect Righteousness of Christ (and that made his by Imputation) ⟨p. 304⟩can possibly serve his turn; nothing else is an answer to the pure perfect Law, nothing else can stand before the divine Tribunal of Heaven: Hence the Reverend Bishop Andrews saith, with respect to that Name (Jehovah our righteousness) we may say, Esto justitia, ¹& fac justitiam; esto justitia, & intra in judicium cum servo tuo: With this Righteousness, with this Name, we may without fear appear before the King executing Justice. If any here reply, we are Christians, the Moral Law delivered by Moses obliges not us, I answer, I conceive it obliges all Christians, the Scripture urges it upon them: St. Paul presses the Romans, though no Jews, to love, as the fulfilling of the Law, Rom. 13.8, 9. and the Ephesians, though no Jews, to honour their parents, because it is a commandment with promise, Eph. 6.2. St. James in his Epistle, which is general to Gentiles as well as Jews, would have them fulfil the Royal Law, according to the Scriptures, Jam. 2.8. The Matter of the Moral Law is perpetual, and why should God put a temporary obligation upon it? If the Moral Law bind us not, then all the excellent Morals in the Prophets, (which are but as so many ⟨p. 305⟩