ftanding, to hear, that the ftrength of fin is the law. If the apostle Paul had been living and preaching in our day, it is likely, upon his delivering fuch doctrine as this, he had been taxed as a ring-leader of Antinomians and enemies to the law: and it is plain from his epiftle, he did not efcape this reproach, which therefore we find him wiping off, Rom. iii. 31. Do we then make void the law through faith? God forbid; yea, we establish the law. Why, but is it poffible to establish the law, and yet affert, that the ftrength of fin is the law? How can this be? Yea, it may be afferted in a confiftency both with the honour of the law, and with a cafting the greatest contempt upon fin: and therefore it is an effay to open this mystery, that, through grace, I would endeavour at this time, namely, That the ftrength of fin is the law. After a communion folemnity, the battle is to be expected; for even in the banquetting-houfe, the banner of love fuppofes a battle at hand; yea, a battle prefent, as well as a battle to come: now, the ftrength of the battle, to be sure, is to be against the ftrength of fin. Believers, that know what it is to be brought to the banquetting-houfe, do alfo know that fin is the great enemy they have to combat with: and if it be asked, on the one hand, Where the believer's ftrength lies? Surely it lies in the Lord Jefus, his righteoufnefs and ftrength, and in the banner of love and grace that he spreads over his people, who are not under the law, but under grace. And, fince the apoftle fets the law and grace in oppofition to one-another, and fince the love and grace of God in Christ, is the banner and strength of the believer, it is no wonder if it be asked, on the other hand, Where the ftrength of fin lies? Then the apoftle anfwers it in this manner, faying, The strength of fin is the law. Hence Chrift and the law are the two main ftrengths here oppofed: The Strength of fin is the law; but thanks be to God, that giveth us the victory, through Jefus Christ our Lord. Surely there is a greater myftery in fin than the world can imagine, particularly in that it could, in a manner, get the law of God upon its fide, and fet the law and the Law-giver at variance, infomuch, that the main battle ftands betwixt them, as being the two great contending E 4 tending parties and oppofing powers; for, as the ftrength of the believer is Chrift's, fo the ftrength of fin is the law. *** Having elsewhere finifhed the first doctrine, I laid down from thefe words; I come now to the fecond doctrine propofed which was, DOCT. "That the ftrength of fin is the law :" Or thus, "That the law of works, is the ftrength of fin to the finner that hath violate and broken it." The method I premife, after proving that the law is the ftrength of fin, is the following, I. To enquire what law is the ftrength of fin. II. What ftrength it is that fin hath from the law. IV. How and in what refpect the law is the ftrength of fin. V. Whence it is that the law is the strength of fin. VI. Make application of the whole in feveral uses. I am first to prove that the law is the ftrength of fin. You may fee a cluster of proofs for it, Rom. vii. 5,-9. compared with Rom. vi. 14.; where you fee, that the reason of man's being under the dominion of fin, is his being under the law; which plainly proves, that the ftrength of fin is the law: But it is needlefs to infist in proving what is exprefly afferted in the facred text. I. The firft queftion I propofed was, What law is it that here is faid to be the ftrength of fin? For underftanding this, you would confider, that the law is taken two ways; 1. More largely, for the whole revelation of the will and mind of God in the word; To the law and to the teftimony; if they speak not according to this, it is because they have no light in them, Ifa. viii. 20. It is not in this fenfe that you are to understand the law here; for thus the law is not the ftrength of fin, but is rather the means of light, life, and frength againft fin, Pfal. cxix. 1, 2, 3, &c. For, in this refpe&t, it contains not only pre precepts to obey, but alfo promifes of ftrength; and the whole covenant of promife, which is the mean of conveying fpiritual life and ftrength. Now, in this fenfe, it is not oppofed to the gofpel of the grace of God, but contains the gofpel in it; and therefore the law, under this confideration, is not here intended. 2. More ftrictly, the law is taken for the old-covenant rule of perfect obedience; and under this form, Do, and live. In this fenfe it is the ftrength of fin, as being oppofite to the gofpel, or to grace, which believers are faid to be under; Ye are not under the law, but under "All men befides are under the power, rule, grace. "conditions, and authority of the law as a covenant, fays Dr. Owen; even all men who are not inftated "in the new covenant through faith in Christ Jesus, "who fet up in them and over them the rule of grace: "for all men must be, one way or other, under the "rule of God; and he rules only by the law, or by grace and none can be under both at the fame "time." But, for further clearing what this law is, that is here called the ftrength of fin, you may confider it, (1.) In its diftinction: it is to be viewed formally, as a covenant of works; and materially, as a rule of life. The law, materially confidered, is the matter of the covenant of works, the fimple precept of obedience relating to the abftaining from what is evil, and doing what is good; this is continually and eternally binding upon all rational creatures. The law, formally confidered, is the form of the covenant of works, commanding all duties, with a promife of life upon our obedience; and forbidding all fin, with a threatening of death in case of difobedience. Thus it is a covenant of life or death, upon doing or not doing. In this refpect, the believer is not under it; it is not binding upon him: he is, indeed, bound to do what is good, and fhun what is evil, becaufe he is ftill under the law, materially confidered as a rule of life; but under no obligation to it formally as a covenant, as if he were to be juftified upon his obedience, or condemned upon his difobedience: No; he is not under the law as a covenant, to be either justified or condemned. But then, (2.) Confider it in its parts, namely, the command, and the fanction: the command of it, as a covenant, is not fimply Do, or yield obedience; for this was incumbent on man before ever there was a covenant of works made with him, the law as a rule of holiness being written on the table of his heart, in his first make and conflitution, before ever God entered into covenant with him but the command of the covenant of works was that fame Do, in its connection with the fanction of the promife of life upon doing, and threatening of death upon not doing; Do and live: if thou do not, thou fhalt die. (3-) Confider it in its properties: it is holy, juft and good, fays the apostle, Rom. vii. 12. Holy, in its command; juft, in its threatening; and good, in its promise. The command of holinefs is a holy command, the threatening of death is a juft threatening, the promife of life is a good promife. The holinefs of the command, requiring perfect perfonal obedience, flows from the holiness of God, and the purity of his nature; the juftice of the threatening of eternal death against fin, flows from the justice of God, and the demerit of fin; the goodness of the promife of eternal life upon man's obedience, issued from the fovereignty of God, that was pleafed to make fuch a promife, not from the merit of that perfonal and perfect obedience, though it had been performed: no creature-obedience, whether of man or angel, hath any merit of condignity; all the merit that could take place, even in a state of innocence, was a merit of paction: for, though man had obeyed perfectly, he did no more than what he was bound to do, and fo could never merit; and therefore the promise of life, annexed to obedience, was a good promife, fhewing forth the fovereign goodness of God. Now, before this law was violated and broken by fin, it could never be the ftrength of fin to man in these circumftances; nay, it was rather, in every part and property of it, a bulwark against sin : the command was a bright glafs wherein the beauty of holinefs fhined; the threatening of eternal death was a flaming flaming fword to make fin terrible; and the promise of eternal life, upon obedience, was a golden bait to make duty delectable. But now, (4.) Confider this law in the violation of it, and as it is a broken law, a violated covenant; and under this confideration it is, that the law is the ftrength of fin, namely, to the finner that hath violated and broken it: and fo it became the ftrength of fin to Adam upon his fall, and to all his poflerity, for failing in the obedience and righteousness therein required. We have forfeited the life therein promifed, and incurred the death therein threatened; "By one man fin entered into the world, and death by fin; and fo death paffed upon all men, for that all have finned," Rom. v. 12. And thus the life of God in man being loft, thro' his being alienated from it, the life and strength of fin muft fucceed. The law then, that is the ftrength of fin, is the law of works, violated by the finner. It could not be the strength of fin to the keeper; but it is fo to the breaker of it. To the perfect keeper of it, it is life; but to the leaft breaker of it, it is death: and if the law be death to the breaker, it must be, of confequence, the fting and ftrength of fin, according to our apostle here, The Sting of death is fin, and the strength of fin is the law. Now, the fting and the strength of fin is much the fame, even as the ftrength of the bee lies in the fting of it; and therefore the ftrength of fin must be the law, which, to the leaft breaker of it, is death. The perfect keeper of the law is fafe, if fuch an one could be found; for it fays, "The man that does these things fhall live by them," Rom. x. 5. And this fafety and life flows from the promiffory fanction of it, Do, and live. But every breaker of the law is a dead man; the law that he breaks is his death; for it fays, "Curfed is every one that continueth not in all things, written in the book of the law, to do them," Gal. iii. 10.; or, the man that does not these things, fhall die in and by his fin and difobedience: and this death iffues from the minatory fanction of the law; "If thou do not, thou fhalt die." The ftrength of fin then, is that violated law, that made death the wages of fin, by the penal fanction of it. But more of this fin afterward. II. The |