And the less able you will be to live unto God: For saith the Apostle, Gal. 2.19. I through the Law, am dead to the Law, that I might live unto God. Till ye be dead unto the Law, you will never live unto God; and in the Rom. 7. Ye are become dead to the ⟨p. 368⟩Law, by the body of Christ, that ye should be married to another, even to him, who is raised from the dead, that we should bring forth fruit untr God. Dead unto the Law, That ye may bring forth fruit unto God: Never think of bringing forth fruit unto God, while you are upon a legal ground, and come not off fully to Jesus the Mediator of the New Covenant.— 'Tis observed, that the Law was given out twice in Tables of Stone. And the first time that they were given out, God did cut out the Tables of Stone, and he himself did write the Law with his own Finger in those Tables. The second time Moses cut out the Tables of Stone, and Moses wrote the words of the Commandment upon those Tables. In the 34. of Exod. Hew thee two Tables of Stone, like unto the first, saith God: Well, so he did: at the 28. v. And he wrote upon the Tables, the words of the Covenant, the Ten Commandments. The first Tables were of Gods own making, and the writing was of Gods own Finger: The second Tables were of Moses framing, and Moses writing, and yet the first were broken, the second kept.— What should be the Reason? One would think that the first Tables should have been kept as a holy thing, rather then the second; but the first were broken, and the second kept— why— For a good reason, saith Austin, because when the Commandment was given in the first Tables, then God appeared in a dreadful way, with Thundering and Lightning: When God gave out the Commandments again; the Lord appeared in a way of Grace: The Lord proclaimed unto Moses, Exod 34. The Lord, the Lord God, merciful and gracious, long-suffering, and abundant in goodness and truth, keeping mercy for thousands. Thus God proclaims himself as a gracious and merciful God, and when the Law comes out now, 'tis kept. No such way ⟨p. 369⟩to keep the Commandments of the Law, as from the consideration of the free grace and mercy of God. When the Law comes out with a Gospel hand, I then it's kept, and the Commandment not broken. So that I say, the more Legal you are, the more sinful you will be, and the less able you will be for to live unto God.
And the less able you will be to live unto God: For saith the Apostle, Gal. 2.19. I through the Law, am dead to the Law, that I might live unto God. Till ye be dead unto the Law, you will never live unto God; and in the Rom. 7. Ye are become dead to the ⟨p. 368⟩Law, by the body of Christ, that ye should be married to another, even to him, who is raised from the dead, that we should bring forth fruit untr God. Dead unto the Law, That ye may bring forth fruit unto God: Never think of bringing forth fruit unto God, while you are upon a legal ground, and come not off fully to Jesus the Mediator of the New Covenant.— 'Tis observed, that the Law was given out twice in Tables of Stone. And the first time that they were given out, God did cut out the Tables of Stone, and he himself did write the Law with his own Finger in those Tables. The second time Moses cut out the Tables of Stone, and Moses wrote the words of the Commandment upon those Tables. In the 34. of Exod. Hew thee two Tables of Stone, like unto the first, saith God: Well, so he did: at the 28. v. And he wrote upon the Tables, the words of the Covenant, the Ten Commandments. The first Tables were of Gods own making, and the writing was of Gods own Finger: The second Tables were of Moses framing, and Moses writing, and yet the first were broken, the second kept.— What should be the Reason? One would think that the first Tables should have been kept as a holy thing, rather then the second; but the first were broken, and the second kept— why— For a good reason, saith Austine, because when the Commandment was given in the first Tables, then God appeared in a dreadful way, with Thundring and Lightning: When God gave out the Commandments again; the Lord appeared in a way of Grace: The Lord proclaimed unto Moses, Exod 34. The Lord, the Lord God, merciful and gracious, long-suffering, and abundant in goodness and truth, keeping mercy for thousands. Thus God proclaimes himself as a gracious and merciful God, and when the Law comes out now, 'tis kept. No such way ⟨p. 369⟩to keep the Commandments of the Law, as from the consideration of the free grace and mercy of God. When the Law comes out with a Gospel hand, I then it's kept, and the Commandment not broken. So that I say, the more Legal you are, the more sinful you will be, and the less able you will be for to live unto God.
