Sermon 15

Isaiah 53:1 — And to whom is the arm of the Lord revealed?

Ministers have not done with their work when they have preached, and people have not done with their work when they have heard: that which is of greatest concern follows, which either has, in the want of it, influence on the saddening of both ministers and people, or in the obtaining of it, on their consolation. This is the thing that we find Isaiah upon here, who having preached the Gospel, looks what fruit it has, and when he beholds the general unfruitfulness it had in his own time, and should have in our time, it weighed him exceedingly, and indeed it is very sad that Isaiah should be so much weighed in foreseeing the unfruitfulness of the Gospel in our days, and that we ourselves should be so little weighed with it, and so senseless under it.

He casts in this word, To whom is the arm of the Lord revealed? partly to confirm the former word, Who has believed our report? and partly to help to make the right use of it, by drawing men to the discovery of the sovereign hand of God in the matter, and of the necessity of His grace for making the Gospel effectual in the hearers of it wherever it comes. Who (says he) has believed our report? To whom is this preached Gospel made effectual for faith and salvation? It is but to very few, even to as many as have the arm of the Lord, the effectual power of His special grace revealed to them, and no more.

The last doctrine we proposed, and began to speak of as the scope, was, that believing and receiving of the Gospel, and the Lord's exercising a powerful work of His grace with it, are ever still knit together; they are of equal extent; as many believe as He stretches out His hand of power with the Word to work faith in them, and as many lie still in unbelief as His hand of power is not revealed to. This is his scope.

We took up this doctrine in two branches, first, that the most powerful means cannot work nor beget faith in the hearers of the Gospel, except there be an inward powerful work of grace on their hearts accompanying them; and this we cleared, and spoke a little to [reconstructed: two Questions] in the use, and left at a third, to wit, what the hearers of the Gospel should do that have the call and offer of the Gospel, seeing without the effectual work of the grace of God they cannot believe? Which we shall forbear to speak to, till we open the second branch of the doctrine, because this question relates to both.

The second branch then of the doctrine is, that wherever the Lord applies the powerful work of His grace, there necessarily faith and conversion follow; or the stretching forth of God's arm in the work of His grace, has always the work of faith and conversion, and the engaging of the soul to Jesus Christ following on it. And indeed if it be true that we cleared before, to wit, that there are as many unbelievers as there are persons on whom grace does not thus powerfully work, or that they are all such that this work of grace is not manifested on, then the work of conversion and believing is as broad as this work of grace is, for the prophet makes them of equal extent. Who is he that believes? Even he to whom the arm of the Lord is revealed. And on the contrary, who is he that believes not? Even he to whom the arm of the Lord is not revealed, and on whom this work of grace is not manifested. By which we may see it to be very clear, that the prophet hangs the believing of the Gospel on the Lord's manifesting His arm; so that where it is not manifested, this work of faith is not brought forth, and where it is manifested, necessarily it is brought forth.

This being a doctrine concerning the efficacy of God's grace, which ought not to lie hid from the Lord's people, we shall a little, first, clear it, and then secondly, confirm it to you.

First, for clearing of its meaning. 1. You would not take up our meaning in it so, as if we made every common work that lively means may have on the hearers of the Gospel, to be conversion; the preaching of the Word will sometimes make folks tremble, as we see in Felix, and will waken convictions and terrors in them, and put them into an amazement, and yet leave them there; for all these convictions may be, and often are resisted, as to any saving fruit at least, which we conceive to be that which Stephen points at (Acts 7:51), while he says, 'You stiff-necked and uncircumcised in heart and ears, you do always resist the Holy Ghost, as your fathers did, so do you;' and what he means by this is explained in the words following, 'Which of the prophets have not your fathers persecuted,' etc., even their contending with the Word of the Lord in the mouths of His servants: Indeed, in that same place, where it's said, that they gnashed upon him with their teeth, it's insinuated that they came over the belly of the cutting conviction which his preaching had upon them: Nor do we 2. mean, that every common operation of the Spirit, whether illumination of the mind, or a touch on the affections (such as may be in temporaries and apostates, as is clear in Matthew 13:20-21; Hebrews 6:4 and downward) is conversion; there is a great difference between a common work or gift of the Spirit (which in a large sense may be called grace because freely given) and the saving work of grace, which before [reconstructed: is] a peculiar work: and oftentimes that common operation of the Spirit is quenched and put out, therefore the Apostle (1 Thessalonians 5:19) exhorts thus, 'Quench not the Spirit.' 3. When we speak of an effectual bringing forth of faith by this grace of God, we would not have you thinking, that we suppose no reluctancy to be in the man in so far as he is unrenewed, for though where grace effectually works, faith follows necessarily, yet corruption being in the man, it's disposed and apt to thwart with, and to oppose grace; and the will has its averseness to yield: but the meaning of the doctrine is this, that though there be such a strong power of corruption in the man to whom grace comes, and on whom it is put forth, yet the power of grace is such, that it powerfully masters and overcomes corruption, and wins the heart to believe in, and to engage with Christ; though (to speak so) there be something within that strives to keep the door shut on Christ; yet when it comes to that (Song of Solomon 5:3), He puts in his fingers by the hole of the lock, and makes the myrrh to drop; the heart is prevailed with so, as it is effectually opened, as the heart of Lydia was to receive the Word that Paul preached: thus, notwithstanding of corruption's opposition, grace gains its point, and the Lord never applies His grace of purpose to gain a soul, but he prevails. 4. When we speak of the power and effectualness of grace in conquering and gaining the heart and will of the sinner to believe in Jesus Christ, we do not mean that there is any force or violence done to the will, or any exerting of a coactive power, violenting the will contrary to its essential property of freedom, to close with Christ; but this we mean, that though corruption be in the heart, yet grace being infused and acted by the Spirit, the pravity in the will is sweetly cured, and the will is moved and made to will willingly and upon choice, by the power of the Spirit of grace taking in that strong hold; this great work is wrought by an omnipotent suavity, and by a sweet omnipotency; and it needs not at all seem strange, for if man in nature, be, by the power of habitual corruption, made necessarily to will evil, so that notwithstanding he does freely and willingly choose evil; why should it be thought strange or absurd to say, that when a principle of the grace of God is infused into the soul, and acted by the Spirit of God, it has that much influence, power, and efficacy as to prevail with the will, it keeping still its own freedom, to make it willing to embrace Jesus Christ, and yet not at all thereby wrong that essential property of the will? sure, grace is as powerful as corruption, and the Lord is as dextrous a worker, and can work as agreeably to the nature of the creature in this gracious work, as the creature can in its own sinful actings. So then we say, when the Lord is pleased to apply the work of His grace to convert a sinner, that work is never frustrated, but it always has necessarily the work of faith, renovation, and conversion following on the back of it.

Secondly, we shall a little confirm the doctrine, and the grounds of confirmation are these, the first of which is, the express Scriptures wherein this truth is asserted, as John 6:44-45. It is said in verse 44, "No man can come to me except the Father draw him," and on the contrary, it is as expressly set down in verse 45: "It is written in the Prophets, they shall be all taught of God; every man therefore that has heard and learned of the Father comes to me," and this being contradistinguished to external preaching, and being that which is called drawing in verse 44, he knits believing to it, and makes believing, called coming, a necessary effect of it, that to whoever God gives that inward lesson, they shall come; which confirms the doctrine, that whoever the Lord teaches and schools by His grace, and calls effectually, they do necessarily believe. Another passage we have in Philippians 2:12-13: "Work out the work of your salvation in fear and trembling; for it is God that works in you both to will and to do of his good pleasure;" where the Apostle makes the work of grace not only to work ability to will and to do, but to work also to will and to do actually; and grace never works to will, and leaves the man unwilling, but necessarily supposes the man's closing willingly with Christ, with whom He works thus. A second ground of confirmation is drawn from these expressions whereby this work is set forth, and the promises comprehending it in God's covenant, wherein it is called the giving of a new heart, a heart of flesh, the writing of the law in the heart, the putting of His Spirit within His people, and causing them to walk in His statutes, etc. (Jeremiah 31:33; Ezekiel 36:26-27), and it is impossible to conceive aright of the fulfilling of these promises without the including of the effect; the giving of the new heart is not only a persuading to believe, but the actual giving of the new heart, whereof faith is a special part, which promise is peculiar to the elect, though the offer of it be more large, and be further extended; and what can that promise of God's writing the law in the heart be, but an effectual inclining of the heart to the will of God? Or inward renovation contradistinguished to the external ministry, that can only hold out His will in a book, and speak it to the ear. Third, this may be cleared and confirmed from the nature of the work of grace, which is such a mighty work and so powerful, as it is impossible it can be frustrated or disappointed; unless we could say that grace in God, or the grace of God is not so powerful as corruption in us, which were blasphemy; to this purpose the Apostle prays in behalf of the Christian Ephesians (chapter 1:19-20), that they may know what is the exceeding greatness of His power to us-ward who believe, according to the working of His mighty power which He worked in Christ when He raised him from the dead; he speaks so in this high strain, to set out both the exceeding stubbornness of our nature that needs such a work, and the exceeding great power of the grace of God that works irresistibly, not only in the conversion of the elect at first, but in all the after-acts of believing, so Ephesians 3:7, the same Apostle has it — "according to the gift of the grace of God given to me by the effectual working of His power;" and Colossians 1:29, "according to His working which works in me mightily;" the power that works in believers is God's omnipotent power, which works effectually and mightily; and if this power be exercised in the continuing and promoting of faith, as is said before, it must be much more exercised in the begetting of faith; indeed, and what need is there that He should exercise it, if not for this end, that where He exercises it, it may also prevail? A fourth ground of confirmation may be drawn from the Lord's great end which He has before Him in this work, and that is the gaining of glory to His grace, and to have the whole work of conversion attributed to it; and if this be His end, He must and will prevail by His grace in carrying through the work in order to this end; if it were left indifferent to man to yield or not to yield to God as he pleases, the whole weight of the work of conversion should not lie upon grace, man's mouth should not be stopped, but when that question should be asked, "Who has made you to differ, and what have you, O man, but what you have received?" he should still have something to boast of, and the work of his conversion should at best be halved between grace and his own free will; this would necessarily follow if grace did not carry through the work, and so God should miss of His end. A fifth ground of confirmation is taken from the consideration of God's decree, of the covenant of redemption between Jehovah and the Mediator, and of the power and wisdom of God in carrying on this work, which we put together for brevity's cause; from all which it will be clear, that there is, and must be a necessary connection between the work of grace on believers and the effect, and that it is not in the power of man's free will to resist it, which indeed is not freedom but bondage. First, then, we say, that if we consider the decree of election, we will find that where grace is applied, faith and conversion must follow; otherwise, if the work of grace were not effectual to convert, God's decree should be suspended on the creature's free will, and be effectual or not effectual according as it pleased, and is that any little matter to make His decree depend upon, and be effectual or not according to man's pleasure? That which secures His decree and makes it infrustratably to take effect, is, that He has effectual means to bring about His decree. Second, if we consider the covenant of redemption, between Jehovah and the Mediator, we will find that upon the one side the Mediator particularly undertakes for them that are given to Him, that He shall lose none of them; and upon the other side, we have (to speak with reverence of the Majesty of God after the manner of men) the Father's obligation to make such persons in due time believers, that Christ the Mediator may see of the travail of His soul and be satisfied, according to that promise made to Him (Psalm 110:3): "In the day of your power your people shall be willing;" and that other (Isaiah 53:11): "He shall see of the travail of his soul and be satisfied, by his knowledge shall my righteous servant justify many," etc., and accordingly Himself says (John 6:37): "All that the Father has given to me shall come to me," where it is clear, that these who are given must necessarily come; and He also says (John 10:16): "Other sheep have I, which are not of this fold, them also I must bring;" and it cannot be supposed without horror and blasphemy, that this determinate, solid, and sure transaction, having all its [reconstructed: intermediary steps] included in it, and being as to its end so peremptory, shall as to these [reconstructed: intermediary steps] and that end, and as to their carrying through, not be in God's hand, but in the hand of man's free will? If it were there, O! how uncertain and loose would the bargain and God's design in begetting faith, and in bringing souls through grace to glory be! Third, if we consider the Lord's power in beginning and promoting, and His wisdom in carrying on of this work, His power whereby He raises the dead, and His wisdom whereby He leads from death to life; is it possible to conceive or imagine these to be applied by the Lord in the conversion of a sinner, but this doctrine must needs hold, that the work of His grace powerfully applied, has always faith and conversion following on it, and that the Lord leaves it not to the option of elect souls, to believe, or not to believe as they please? He must not, He cannot be frustrated of His end and design, but He must bring them to a cordial closure with Christ by faith in order to their salvation.

Use 1. The first use serves to fix you in the faith of this great truth, and though we use not, neither is it needful to trouble you with long questions and debates; yet when the like of this doctrine comes in our way, especially in such a time, wherein the pure truths of God, and this among the rest, are troubled and called in question, it is requisite that a word be spoken for your confirmation and establishment; and we would hence have you fixed in the faith of these two. 1. Of the impotency of nature in the beginning or promoting anything of the work of grace, which belongs to the first branch of the doctrine. 2. Of the effectualness and irresistibleness of grace, that wherever God begets and brings in a soul, He does it by His own powerful grace, and wherever He applies that work, faith and conversion necessarily follow, which belongs to the second branch of the doctrine; and we would the rather speak a little to this, because it is questioned by the enemies of the grace of God, than which, there is nothing they set themselves more to dethrone and debase, and to exalt and cry up nature and free-will, as if it did sit on the throne, and grace was obliged to come and supplicate it, and as if it might accept or reject its bill at pleasure as to the conversion of a sinner. In opposition to which, this doctrine holds good, that wherever the Lord applies His grace, He effectually [reconstructed: carries through] the work of faith and conversion, and there is no soul that can utterly resist it; and wherever the Lord applies this grace, the grace that converts one cannot be frustrated by another. These things we hold in opposition to the direct assertion of the enemies of grace, whereby they make the work of conversion not ultimately to terminate on grace, but on man's free-will, and how dangerous and damnable this error is may easily appear. For 1. It overturns and runs cross to the whole strain of the gospel, for if we lose but this one pin, in making faith and conversion not to depend on grace, but on free-will, then the whole fabric of grace falls down flat; then God should elect us, because we were to elect Him, contrary to the Scripture, which tells us, that He elects us, not we Him; and that our closing with Him by faith depends on His electing of us. It overturns our free justification by grace, for supposing faith comes in in justification, as it does, none being justified but by faith, and that believing is of ourselves, and that it is in the power of man's free-will to close the bargain, all is not here of grace, our justification is not free, but in some way depends on free-will. It overturns the perseverance of the saints; for if believing depend on free-will, then our perseverance depends on it also, for if the man's free-will change, he may fall back and break his neck in a manner, at the very threshold of heaven. Whereas if it be the work of grace (as indeed it is) that brings forth faith, and carries it on, and if this work of grace cannot be frustrated or restrained by the malice and hardness of any heart to which it is applied, because it cures the hardness and removes that malice; then certainly this error cannot stand. And we are persuaded when we plead thus for grace, we have the best end of the debate, and the surest ground to go upon, most for God's honor, and most for the comfort of believers. 2. This error thwarts the glory of the grace of God; for it is an error that strikes at the richest and most radiant diamond of the crown of the glory of Christ, it hangs election and the effectualness of God's decree as to effectual calling, faith, justification, and perseverance on the person himself, and makes God and Christ to be in the man's common debt, and reverence, to make His decree effectual. Whereas it is the glory of grace to have all flesh solely in its debt, as having loved freely, elected, called, justified, sanctified, and carried on the work of grace till it end and be perfected in glory, freely; which is the song of the redeemed (Revelation 1:5-6): "To him who has loved us, and washed us from our sins in his own blood, and has made us kings and priests to God and his Father, to him be glory and dominion." If eternal love be free, then the expression or manifestation of it in making us kings and priests to God, is also free. 3. This error is exceedingly destructive to the consolation of God's people; is it not a comfortless doctrine that founds their believing and perseverance on their own free-will? If you were to make the bargain of grace, whether would you think it more comfortable and sure, that the effectualness of believing and perseverance should hang on the grace of God, or on your own free-will? Especially considering the corruption of your will; doleful would your condition be, if free-will were the base or foundation, and God used no more but external persuasion. However specious this opinion may seem to be, because it puts it in man's option to believe and convert himself, or not, as he pleases; yet it overturns the whole strain of the gospel, and quite eclipses the glory of grace, and cuts the very throat of your consolation, and is the great ground of Popery, Pelagianism, and Arminianism. To which you would therefore so much the more pay attention, and we do the rather speak to it, that you may be guarded against it, and that you may be settled in the truth, especially since the same errors are reviving in another shape in these days, as is manifest in that foolery of Quakers, who talk of a light within them, and talk so of that light as if it were of power sufficient to convert and guide them, if it be not resisted. As also that other conceit of being above ordinances implies something of this same error; which you would set yourselves to abhor, as that which the Devil is again laboring to sow the seed of among us, and labor to be confirmed in the truth. For if there be any truth at all in Christianity, these are two main truths: the utter inability that is in men's hearts by nature to exercise faith in Christ, and the efficacious and irresistible power of the grace of God, in the begetting of faith where it is begotten; which when we shall all appear before the tribunal of God, will be found to be so, and none will have a mouth opened to oppose them. And what absurdity, I pray, is there here, notwithstanding all the clamor of corrupt men? That God has reserved this work of converting sinners by His grace to Himself, and has not put it in the hand of their own free-will; which supposes men to have a stock within themselves, and has many fearful effects following it, tending to the depreciating of the grace of God, and to the drawing men off from dependence on Christ, and to the giving of them ground of boasting in themselves, and of vanity and security. All which this doctrine of God's grace overthrows, and stops the mouth of the creature from all vain boasting, to the high exaltation of God's free, sovereign, and efficacious grace, and to the great comfort of His people.

Use 3. The second Use serves to commend the grace of God to the hearers of the gospel, and especially to believers; there cannot be a greater commendation given to it, than this, that it works effectually, and indeed it could not be called grace, I mean, saving grace, if it should lack this effect, even to save such as it is applied to; but this highly commends grace, that if there be mighty corruption in us, there is a strong arm of grace put forth by Him for perfecting of that which concerns us, notwithstanding of this great strength of corruption. And if you think yourselves not to be believers, and think this doctrine to be hard, that you cannot believe without this grace, and yet would gladly believe, consider that as none can believe, neither can believers stand without grace; so grace can help you to do that which you cannot do, which is the commendation of grace, and should make it more lovely to you; this gives encouragement to any poor soul that is as it were in the place of the breaking forth of children, and lays greater ground of confidence that they shall come speed, than if they had it in their own hand; and serves to obviate that grand objection of souls that would gladly be at closing with Christ, and cannot come to Him, here is a powerful arm reached forth to draw them.

Use 3. The third Use serves to humble believers who have anything of the work of grace, and so, to work them up to thankfulness to Him that has imparted aught of it to them: Is there any of you that have grace, who has made you to differ from others? It was not yourselves but free grace, and therefore you have reason to acknowledge it with thankfulness, and to say, if this same doctrine had not been true, I would have been a stranger to God all my days, and remained under the dominion of Satan and sin with these that are in nature; and with David (Psalm 16:7), to say, I bless the Lord who has given me counsel, my reins also instruct me in the night seasons; this counsel was not the common advice that all got from the Word preached, but the inward counsel of the Spirit that made his reins instruct him, and made him inwardly to follow the advice that the Word gave him outwardly; and it is this inward work of the Spirit that keeps in the life of grace, as well as begets it, as it is (Psalm 73:23-24). Nevertheless I am continually with you, you have held me by my right hand, you shall guide me with your counsel, and afterward receive me to glory; whom have I in heaven but you, etc. My flesh and my heart fails, but God is the strength of my heart and my portion forever: the Psalmist glories in this, that the work of his through-bearing did not depend on his own flesh and heart, but on God, who was the strength of his heart and his portion forever. If believers would consider what they were in their natural condition, and how much they are obliged to the grace of God, that with power was applied in their conversion, it would stop their mouth as to boasting, make them admire grace, and sound forth its praise: and they would think grace's sweet way of prevailing, to be no co-active forcing of their will, but the greatest part of their freedom; and so far would it be from being looked on as a violenting or wronging of their will, that it would be esteemed their truest and greatest liberty. We are persuaded that the saints in heaven count it no bondage that God has so fully freed them from all corruption, that they serve Him with delight, and do so necessarily; and shall any sojourning saints here below count it a wronging of their will, that God takes such pains on them, to subdue corruption, and to bring them to some measure of conformity to them who are above? God forbid.

Use 4. The fourth Use of it is, to let us see, what great ground of encouragement there is here for the hearers of the Gospel, to set about the work of believing, and what ground there is to make them all utterly inexcusable who shall continue in their unbelief; which may be thought somewhat strange, when we say that no means can be effectual for working of faith, without the effectual grace of God be applied. But let these two be put together, 1. That though we be insufficient of ourselves, and though all outward means be of themselves ineffectual, that yet there is a sufficiency in the grace of God: And 2. That this grace shall be powerful to work faith in the hearers of the Gospel, if they make not themselves guilty of frustrating this grace in the offer of it (as they may do); these then who will not believe, will be found most inexcusable. But to return to the main intent of this Use, we say, that the encouragement lies here, that though we be unable, we have an able Mediator, and grace is powerful; and therefore we should with the greater encouragement set about the work of believing, as the Apostle reasons (Philippians 2:12-13), Work out your own salvation with fear and trembling, for it's God that works in you both to will and to do of his good pleasure. You might possibly think it had been more encouraging to have said, you are able of yourselves to will and to do; but certainly, grace is a more encouraging motive than anything in the creature. Say not then, you cannot will nor do, for that excuse is taken away by God's offering to work both in you by His grace. But let me exhort all, both these that are begun to be believers, and these that are to begin to believe, to be so far from disputing themselves from it, as that they rather encourage themselves to work out the work of their own salvation with fear and trembling, because God's grace which you have in your offer, is so powerful to work the work, and will admit of no utter opposition from corruption in you, if you receive not the grace of God in vain that is offered to you in the Gospel. If grace were so weak as we might cast it back at our pleasure, and if it were but a helper in the work of faith and conversion, as Arminians make it, what encouragement could we have from it? And as to practice, is not this doctrine as encouraging? What advantage or comfort is it to undertake anything in our own strength, which is none at all? Is not this much more encouraging, to undertake in the strength of God's grace? Knowing that the same work of grace that begets faith, is as effectual to carry it on, and to make us to persevere in it, and to enable us to every good word and work; let grace work then, and take a proof of it, and you shall find it powerful. The Lord Himself give you wisdom so to do for your salvation and consolation.