God's Will revealed) thy Spirit is good (there is David's Wind, that enabled him to steer his Course according to it) the Spirit of Life doth free us from the Law of Sin and Death, but not from the holy, and pure, and good, and righteous Law of God, Rom. 8.1, 2, 3. The Blood of Christ by the Spirit cleanseth us from dead Works, to serve the living God, Heb. 9.14. not to serve our own Selves, or Lusts, or Wills, to do what we please: The Law indeed is not a Rule of that by which we are to obey, viz. of our Faith, yet it is the only Rule of what we are to obey: We are not to perform Acts of Obedience now as Adam was to do, viz. by the sole Power of inherent Grace, but we are to live by Faith, and ⟨p. 248⟩act by Faith, (for without me you can do nothing, John 15.5.) We are not united to Christ our Life by Obedience, as Adam was to God by it, but by Faith: And therefore as all Action (in living Things) comes from Union, so all our Acts of Obedience are to come from Faith, from the Spirit on Christ's Part, and from Faith on our Part, which make our Union: Noah built by Faith, Enoch walked with God by Faith, Joshua and his Soldiers fought by Faith, Abraham travelled, dwelt in his Tents, lived and died by Faith; they acted according to the Rule, but all by the Power of Faith. It is a weak Reasoning, to imagine a Man is not bound to pay his Debts because he is to go unto another for the Money: Obedience is our Debt we owe to Christ, Luke 17.10. tho' we are to go to Christ poor, and weak, and feeble, to enable us to pay: 'Tis true, Christ hath kept the Law for us, and are we therefore free from it as our Rule; No verily, Christ kept the Law for Satisfaction to Justice, and so we are not bound to keep the Law; he kept the Law also for Imitation, to give us a Copy and an Example of all Holiness and glorifying God in our Obedience; and thus Christ's Obedience is so far from exempting us from the Law, as that it engageth us the more, having both Rule and Example before us, 1 John. 2.6. He that saith he abideth in him ought to walk as he walked, 1 Pet. 1.14, 15, 16. 'Tis true, the Law is writ in a Believer's Heart, and if he hath a Law within, what need he (say some) look to the Law without? When as our Saviour & David argued quite contrary, Psal. 40.7, 8. I come, I delight to do thy Will, it being written of me that I should do it, because thy Law is within my Heart;
God's Will revealed) thy Spirit is good (there is David's Wind, that enabled him to steer his Course according to it) the Spirit of Life doth free us from the Law of Sin and Death, but not from the holy, and pure, and good, and righteous Law of God, Rom. 8.1, 2, 3. The Blood of Christ by the Spirit •leanseth us from dead Works, to serve the living God, Heb. 9.14. not to serve our own Selves, or Lusts, or Wills, to do what we please: The Law indeed is not a Rule of that by which we are to obey, viz. of our Faith, yet it is the only Rule of what we are to obey: We are not to perform Acts of Obedience now as Adam was to do, viz. by the sole Power of inherent Grace, but we are to live by Faith, and ⟨p. 248⟩act by Faith, (for without me you can do nothing, John 15.5.) We are not united to Christ our Life by Obedience, as Adam was to God by it, but by Faith: And therefore as all Action (in living Things) comes from Union, so all our Acts of Obedience are to come from Faith, from the Spirit on Christ's Part, and from Faith on our Part, which make our Union: Noah built by Faith, Enoch walked with God by Faith, Joshua and his Soldiers fought by Faith, Abraham travelled, dwelt in his Tents, lived and died by Faith; they acted according to the Rule, but all by the Power of Faith. It is a weak Reasoning, to imagine a Man is not bound to pay his Debts because he is to go unto another for the Money: Obedience is our Debt we owe to Christ, Luke 17.10. tho' we are to go to Christ poor, and weak, and feeble, to enable us to pay: 'Tis true, Christ hath kept the Law for us, and are we therefore free from it as our Rule; No verily, Christ kept the Law for Satisfaction to Justice, and so we are not bound to keep the Law; he kept the Law also for Imitation, to give us a Copy and an Example of all Holiness and glorifying God in our Obedience; and thus Christ's Obedience is so far from exempting us from the Law, as that it engageth us the more, having both Rule and Example before us, 1 John. 2.6. He that saith he abideth in him ought to walk as he walked, 1 Pet. 1.14, 15, 16. 'Tis true, the Law is writ in a Believer's Heart, and if he hath a Law within, what need he (say some) look to the Law without? When as our Saviour & David argued quite contrary,
