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erroneous opinion of the nature of Adam before the Fall. consider him as then to have been temptible in all points as we are tempted; that he was capable of suffering; and, though not liable to natural death, might yet undergo a violent death. With those who hold these sentiments I have very little disagreement, except in the opinion of the nature of the unfallen Adam, which I consider both unscriptural and absurd.

What seems to me as necessary to be known and believed regarding our Lord's humanity, is, 1st, That he was perfectly holy, and without sin either original or actual; and, 2dly, That he was tempted in all points as we are tempted; that he truly endured pain and sorrow; and that he suffered all the torture which to mankind generally accompany the cruel death of crucifixion. He who fully and unequivocally assents to this, is in my opinion substantially sound in the faith, whether he suppose that Christ came in fallen or unfallen nature.

I do not expect to experience any better treatment than others who have advocated the views which I shall endeavour to justify; but expect that an attempt will be made to fasten upon me the detestable doctrine that Christ was a sinner; and if so, I commit my cause to God, who will certainly call to account those who propagate the odious slander. If those who differ with me prove to my satisfaction, from the word of God, that the views I advocate necessarily involve the doctrine of Christ's sinfulness, I will abandon them; but until this be done, and so long as I am persuaded that they are agreeable to the Scriptures, I trust I shall be enabled to uphold them, even to death. I believe that the doctrine, that Christ came in unfallen nature, if correctly viewed, would necessarily establish the heresy that Christ has not come in the flesh: but while it is my duty to attempt to prove this, I would consider myself uttering a gross slander if I charged my opponents with holding such a heresy.

While I hold this doctrine, that Christ came in our fallen nature, I do not acquiesce in every statement which has been made on that side of the question. I cannot but consider it both unscriptural and unsound to maintain that Christ was peccable, or that in any conceivable circumstances he would have fallen into sin. Such statements are extremely dangerous, and ought always to be avoided. The doctrine of our church, that Christ's body was in its own nature both mortal and corruptible, is, in my opinion, directly stated in Scripture, as I shall have occasion to shew; but it is no where said that he was in any supposable circumstances fallible; and it becomes us neither to be wise above, nor speculate beyond, what is written. As I do not find in Scripture any thanksgiving offered up to God for keeping back his Son from sin, I think such should be avoided: but I cannot see that such thanksgiving necessarily involves

VOL. III.-NO. 1.

heresy. In many parts of the Psalms Christ is represented, when struggling against the powers of darkness, as attributing all his deliverance to God; and to bless God, for any work which the Scriptures represent him as having performed, cannot surely be accounted heresy. Although Christ had power to lay down his life, and power to take it up again, yet in innumerable passages of Scripture God is said to have raised him up from the dead; and it surely could not be charged as heresy for a man to offer him thanks for accomplishing that glorious event: yet, as no such thanksgiving, that I remember, is found in Scripture, I should think it wiser to avoid rendering it.

Nothing but an imperious sense of duty could at this time have induced me to engage in this controversy; and no one, I think, can be more impressed with my unfitness for the task I have undertaken than I am myself. In God alone is my confidence and strength.

I could anxiously desire to see some one enter upon the investigation of this subject, in whose judgment the country has confidence, and who would be under no temptation to indulge in personal invective, nor, for the sake of victory, to give perverted and false views of the sentiments of his opponents. The well-being of our established church, which is at present in imminent danger of striking a death-blow to its purity and orthodoxy, calls loudly for this.

In reading the New Testament, nothing is more calculated to strike even the most superficial observer, than the exalted character for purity and holiness which is every where ascribed to our blessed Redeemer. As God manifest in the flesh, it seems, indeed, a contradiction in terms to impute any sin to Him: but, in addition to this, such language meets us in every page as could only be employed concerning one who was wholly without blemish and without spot. It was said to Mary his mother, concerning him, "The Holy Ghost shall come upon thee, and the power of the Highest shall overshadow thee: therefore also that Holy Thing which shall be born of thee shall be called the Son of God" (Luke i. 35). God himself testifies of him, "This is my beloved Son, in whom I am well pleased." He is styled, "the Holy One of God," "the holy Child Jesus," "the Lamb of God," "the good Shepherd," " the Just One." It is said of him," in Him is no sin," and, that " he offered himself without spot to God." We also find many such passages as the following: Forasmuch as ye know that ye were not redeemed with corruptible things, as silver and gold, from your vain conversation received by tradition from your fathers, but with the precious blood of Christ, as of a lamb without blemish and without spot." For such an High Priest became us, who is holy,

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harmless, undefiled, separate from sinners, and made higher than the heavens." "Who did no sin, neither was guile found in his mouth; who, when he was reviled, reviled not again; when he suffered, he threatened not, but committed himself to him that judgeth righteously." It would be basphemy to attribute any sin, either original or actual, to one of whom the Holy Spirit testifies such things.

With this great doctrine of the immaculate purity of our Lord fully on our minds, let us proceed to examine what is revealed to us regarding his human nature.

It is said of him "The Word was made flesh; " that he was "God manifest in the flesh;" "the Seed of David according to the flesh," &c. Now what does the word " flesh" in such passages signify? We are fully justified in rejecting every signification which necessarily includes personal sinfulness; such as that which occurs Romans viii. 8, "They that are in the flesh cannot please God: but ye are not in the flesh, but in the Spirit, if so be that the Spirit of God dwell in you." It is impossible for a moment to suppose that the only begotten Son of God, in whom he is well pleased, was, in that sense," in the flesh." The expression is evidently equivalent, in this passage, to that of walking after the flesh," or living in the practice of sin.

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Nothing can be more manifest, to those acquainted with the language of Scripture, than that the word translated "flesh" has in the original a much wider acceptation than is generally allowed for the English word. It cannot, in general, without evident absurdity, be limited to the mere bodily frame; but must be extended to our whole natural constitution, and be understood as including all our natural desires and affections.

We shall not take time to prove that these affections have, since the introduction of sin into the world, been so disordered and perverted by Satan that from our birth they are attracted to what is evil, with such irresistible power as completely to enslave the soul, and render deliverance hopeless, excepting through the power of the Spirit of God. On this subject we and our opponents in this controversy are in perfect harmony.

In looking over Cruden's Concordance, I find that, of one hundred and seventeen times in which the word "flesh" occurs in the New Testament, exclusively of eighteen times in which it is used concerning our Lord's humanity, seventy-nine times it necessarily includes our natural constitution, with all its propensities and infirmities, as it at present exists, under the dominion of sin; and only about ten times in which its signification is limited to the literal flesh-as in such passages as "the fowls did eat of their flesh."

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Any one, I think, who will examine all the passages in which the word "flesh occurs in the New Testament, will be constrained to admit, that, to a person whose judgment was not in

part influenced by the common acceptation of the term, and who was only acquainted with the Scripture use of it, it must appear to be the doctrine of revelation that our Lord had come in that nature in which the law in the members warred against the law of the mind.

I can well sympathize with those who are startled at the suggestion of such being the meaning of Scripture; for, although I was always convinced that our Lord had come in our fallen nature, and could not believe it possible that any intelligent man could for a moment think otherwise, I shrunk from the idea of his being in" sinful flesh," which at first sight seemed to attach personal guilt to him, the thought of which I abhorred. It was not till I had maturely considered the subject, and examined the Scriptures regarding it, that I became fully persuaded, not only that this is the true meaning of the term "flesh," when applied to our Lord's humanity, but that in this truly consists the great "mystery of godliness, God manifest in the flesh;" and that, so far from this acceptation of the term attaching sin to him, it is by this that his surpassing holiness and righteousness are most illustriously manifested, as well as the unfathomable depths of

his love.

Before proceeding further, I think it necessary to state, that I consider the doctrine of Scripture on the human nature of our Lord to be, that he truly assumed a nature in all respects that of his own fallen but regenerate people; but never was, nor could be, in the condition of the natural man before conversion. In order to clear my way for the establishment of this truth, I shall first endeavour to remove the great stumbling-block which stands in the way of its general reception; and may God guide me, and keep me from all error, and enable me plainly and boldly to illustrate the truth!

As I shall have frequent occasion, in what follows, to speak of "the lusts of the flesh;" and as there is, to some minds, an ambiguity in the expression, on account of the ordinary use of both these words; I consider it necessary to state, that I always use it in the Scripture sense, which includes all our sinful desires, passions, and propensities, as "hatred, variance, emulations, wrath, strife, seditions, heresies, envyings, murders, drunkenness, and such like," as well as all "uncleanness and lasciviousness."

I shall now endeavour to prove from the Scriptures, that sin is in no respect chargeable upon God's regenerate people because they are liable to temptation through the lusts of the flesh, if they mortify those lusts, and do not walk according to them. Indeed, it seems evident, as soon as the mind is directed towards the subject, that the child of God who lives according to the commandments of his God while he is beset with tempta

tions from the world without and his own evil passions within, is in some respect holier than he who walks in the same course without the same temptations. Who does not see that Joseph has acquired a more exalted character for purity by instantly resisting a temptation to which he was fully alive, than if he had been incapable of feeling its power? Eve had no sin because she had a natural desire for what was pleasant to the eye, and would have continued innocent, if she had not yielded to the temptation of gratifying her natural desire in a manner displeasing to God.

Our Lord says (Luke viii. 15), "That on the good ground, are they which, in an honest and good heart, having heard the word, keep it, and bring forth fruit with patience." No one will say that those referred to are not still open to the assaults of Satan, through means of the lusts, which, our Saviour (Matt. xv. 19) declares proceed out of the heart,-" murders, adulteries, fornications," &c. It is by the armour of God alone that their evil passions are kept under subjection; but, though latent in the flesh, their hearts are said to be good, when they do not yield to their influence*.

The Apostle Paul declares, 1 Cor. ix. 27: "I keep under my body, and bring it into subjection; lest that by any means, when I have preached to others, I myself should be a cast-away;" and, Rom. vii. 18, "In me, that is, in my flesh, dwelleth no good thing" and yet he says, Rom. viii. 1, that "there is no condemnation to them who are in Christ Jesus, who walk not after the flesh, but after the Spirit ;" and, ver. 13, "If ye live after the flesh ye shall die; but if ye through the Spirit do mortify the deeds of the body, ye shall live; for as many as are led by the Spirit of God, they are the sons of God." Now I can conceive of no stronger manner in which it could be expressed that he was not accounted a sinner, because in his flesh dwelt no good thing, if at the same time he mortified the deeds of the body. He sinned not because there was a law in his members warring against the law of his mind; but if he ceased to war with the law of his members, and yielded to its influence, then he became a transgressor.

To prevent misapprehension, I may observe, once for all, that such expressions as goodness or holiness are, 1st, never applied to any mere man, but to one regenerate by the Holy Ghost; and, 2dly, that they are, even then, to be understood as not implying absolute, but only comparative goodness; for while we are in the body we are always liable to sin. The more a child of God is enabled by the power of the Holy Spirit to mortify his carnal affections, the holier he becomes; and if it were possible for him to resist every temptation and evil, in thought, word, and deed, his holiness would then be perfect.

+ Every transgression brings a man, whether he is a saint or sinner, under condemnation, from which nothing but the atoning sacrifice of Christ can deliver him; but there is no condemnation to those who live after the Spirit.

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