statement of the doctrine in the following words: "And surely it belongeth to God to appoint what conditions or means of justification seemeth to him good. Now that he hath actually made faith and works, not separately, but jointly, the condition of justification, both Paul and James have declared." But Dr. Macknight understood justification to mean, not the pardon of sin in this world, but the sentence of acquittal to be pronounced upon the righteous at the day of final judgment. Hence, according to him, justification is a blessing which no man can attain in this life.

Others, however, who have held to justification by faith and works, have admitted that it takes place in this life; and not a few have attached peculiar importance to some particular works, especially to the ceremony of Christian baptism. This, by some has been considered the great sine qua non in order to justification. It is true, they have not considered baptism available for justification in an adult, except it be preceded or accompanied by faith; but when connected with faith, they have considered that ordinance not only as the prescribed means, but also as the only legitimate evidence of justification. Indeed, so much importance has been attached to that ordinance in this connection, that it has been strenuously contended that without baptism there can be no remission of sin. It is difficult to determine, from the manner in which a certain class have expressed themselves, whether it would not be more correct to say that they hold to justification by works; for they certainly attach far more importance to baptism than they do to faith, inasmuch as they say that a proper faith may exist without justification, but a proper baptism cannot.

Closely allied to this notion is the doctrine of the Roman Catholics on the subject of satisfaction, penance, &c. They not only hold that works are essential to the complete remission of sin, but they teach that they are meritorious. They confound justification with sanctification, and contend that we must be inherently righteous before we can be just in the sight of God; and this inherent righteousness, according to them, is derived from the merit of good works. Hence, their peculiar views on the subject of penance, indulgences, purgatory, &c. But the full refutation of all these variant schemes of justification by faith and works united, we trust will be sufficiently apparent in the discussion of the scheme of justification by faith only. We would, however, remark at this time, that the prima facie evidence of Scripture is against them, as we read nothing there in reference to justification by faith and works taken together; to be justified "by faith," and to be justified "by works," are both terms used in Scripture; but justification by faith and works is a phrase not found in Holy Writ. We presume the advocates

for this doctrine will not pretend that it is taught by St. Paul, and unless they can find something to sustain it in the Epistle of St. James, we know of no text in the Bible upon which they can predicate a plausible defence of their theory. But as that passage will be particularly examined in the discussion of justification by faith only, we would close the present lecture by presenting one leading objection to all these schemes of justification by works, and by faith and works; it is this:- All these schemes are either based upon an entire misapprehension of the nature of justification as presented in Scripture, or else they labor under most of the difficulties connected with the schemes of imputation already exhibited.

We have already shown that, in the Bible acceptation, to justify is to pardon or forgive sin; or, in other words, it is a sentence by which the punishment due to sin is remitted. This is a great and prominent truth, most clearly presented in the New Testament; and most of the difficulties and inconsistencies on the subject of justification may be traced to a disregard of this leading principle; therefore, we should, while on this subject, endeavor to keep it still in view. The proofs on this point already presented we think are very conclusive, but as there is scarce an erroneous scheme of justification but what must necessarily battle with this truth for its own existence, we beg leave at this time to ask a careful attention to the concluding part of the fourth chapter of 2 Corinthians. Here we learn that "reconciliation to God," the "non-imputation of trespasses," and being "made the righteousness of God," are phrases that are all used as expressive of the same thing, and as synonymous with justification. The passage admits no other sensible interpretation. If, then, we admit that to justify means to pardon or forgive sin, the schemes now in question are involved at once in inextricable difficulties.

1. As justification means pardon, then, as the Scriptures declare, "God justifieth the ungodly," for none others can need pardon. Hence, we must be pardoned before we become righteous by personal obedience or inherent holiness; therefore, we cannot be justified by those works of obedience which none but the righteous can perform. This would be to require us to do, in order to justification, what can only be done by such as are already justified, which is absurd.

2. If we are justified by works at all, these works must either embrace perfect obedience to the law of God, or they must not; if they do, then the law can demand no more, and we have no need for the death of Christ; if they do not, then we cannot be justified by them; for the law saith, "Cursed is every one who continueth not in all things which are written in the book of the law to do them."

3. If we are justified by faith and works taken together, then these

works must be either performed before or after justification. If they are performed before justification, then they must be performed while we are in unbelief;" for all that believe are justified;" and if in unbelief, they must be sinful; for "whatsoever is not of faith is sin;" and if so, it would follow that we are justified by sin, which is absurd. But if the works are performed after justification, then it will follow that the effect precedes the cause, which is also absurd. Indeed, if we are justified by works of evangelical obedience in connection with faith, it would seem inconsistent to say that we can be justified in this life; but if, with Dr. Macknight, we deny this, we deny the Scriptures. But we reserve the full refutation of these schemes for the next lecture.

LECTURE XXV.

JUSTIFICATION BY FAITH ONLY.

In the preceding lectures we have considered and endeavored to refute all the different methods proposed for the attainment of justification, except the last, viz., justification by faith only, which we named as the method presented in the Scriptures. The present lecture, therefore, will be devoted to the consideration of justification by faith only. We think the evidence already presented contains a satisfactory refutation of all the different schemes of justification which we have considered; but if we can succeed in establishing the position which we now propose, that is, that justification by faith only is the only scheme which the Scriptures authorize, all other schemes will necessarily be thereby disproved, and should be discarded as being doubly refuted. If we can select any doctrine contained in the Scriptures as occupying in the scheme of salvation a more prominent and important position than any other, it is the one now proposed to be established. The great principles upon which it is founded, and with which it is connected, extend throughout the entire gospel system, insomuch that a misapprehension of this leading doctrine will necessarily interrupt the harmony of the parts. and destroy the symmetry of the entire scheme of redemption. As if with a special eye to the importance of the subject, and as if God would exhibit a peculiar concern to render a serious error on so vital a point almost impossible, we find this doctrine not only plainly stated in the Scriptures, but it is repeated again and again in various places; it is particularly dwelt upon, presented in a diversity of aspects, and sustained by a variety of arguments.

But notwithstanding the explicitness and fulness of the Scriptures upon this point, as we have already seen, it is a subject on which there has, from the apostles' day to the present time, been much controversy. St. Paul complains of the Jews of his day, that "they being ignorant of God's righteousness, and going 'about to establish their own righteousness," were unwilling to "submit themselves to the righteousness of God," or to God's plan of justification. Even so, it has been the case, up to the present time, that the plan of salvation revealed in Scripture,

which proposes unmerited pardon to the ungodly but penitent sinner, upon the simple condition of evangelical faith in the vicarious sacrifice of Christ, has not only had to contend against the settled enmity of the human heart, but many of the most learned and pious have, to some extent, misunderstood the true scriptural doctrine of justification by faith. Upon this, as well as upon every other doctrine of Christianity, the teachings of inspiration must be our guide; and we now appeal to their infallible testimony, with the strongest confidence of finding a satisfactory account of the doctrine before us.

I. We propose showing that the Scriptures do expressly teach the doctrine of justification by faith only.

That we may perceive clearly the force of the testimony by which we would establish this proposition, we will first briefly define the sense in which we understand that justification is by faith only. And we cannot do this better than in the clear and forcible language of Mr. Wesley. In his sermon on "Justification by Faith," he speaks thus:-"Surely the difficulty of assenting to the proposition that faith is the only condition. of justification, must arise from not understanding it. We mean thereby thus much, that it is the only thing without which no one is justified; the only thing that is immediately, indispensably, absolutely requisite in order to pardon. As on the one hand, though a man should have every. thing else without faith, yet he cannot be justified; so on the other, though he be supposed to want everything else, yet if he hath faith, he cannot but be justified. For suppose a sinner of any kind or degree, in a full sense of his total ungodliness, of his utter inability to think, speak, or do good, and his absolute meetness for hell fire; suppose, I say, this sinner, helpless and hopeless, casts himself wholly on the mercy of God in Christ, (which indeed he cannot do but by the grace of God,) who can doubt but he is forgiven in that moment? Who will affirm that any more is indispensably required, before that sinner can be justified?" We now proceed to the proof.

1. The first class of texts on which we rely embraces those passages in which faith is directly and expressly presented as the condition or means of justification.

In Acts xiii. 39, we read, "And by him all that believe are justified from all things, from which ye could not be justified by the law of Moses." Here, justification is promised to "all that believe," which clearly implies (if none can be justified without faith, as all will admit) that faith is presented as the condition.

In the Epistle to the Romans, St. Paul treats expressly of the subject of justification. From that masterly discourse, we next make some quoRom. iii. 26, 28, 30. "To declare, I say, at this time, his

tations.