Faith No Fancy

The great errand of the gospel is to propose to people Jesus Christ as the object and ground of faith, and to represent Him as the only One to be rested on for that very end.

To the acting and exercise of faith two things are necessary: the one is objective, when the Object is proposed in the preaching of the gospel; the second is subjective, when there is an inward, spiritual, and powerful quickening and framing of the heart to lay hold on the Object of faith.

Though it is true that not all to whom the Object is proposed are quickened, yet to all to whom the gospel comes, Christ is proposed to be believed on by them, so that when the gospel is preached, we may say, as Christ said to His hearers, “The kingdom of God is come near unto you.”

It may be objected, how can this gospel come to all alike, seeing so many do not get the saving fruit of it? It cannot be that those that never get good of the gospel have it as near to them as these that are saved. I answer: Not to speak of God's purpose, or what He intends to make of it, nor of the power and fruit that accompanies it to some and not to all; it is certain that the gospel objectively reveals the same glad tidings to all, with the same command and encouragement, and certification in threatenings as well as promises.

In these respects Christ is brought alike near to all, and when God comes to reckon, He will let sinners know in that day that the gospel came to their door and was refused. Yea, it comes, and where it comes, it will take hold of some to pluck them out of the snare and be a ground of faith to them; and to others it will be a ground of challenge and so the savor of death unto death. For though it takes not effect as to its promises in ALL, nor in its threatenings in ALL, yet as to either death or life, it will take effect in everyone, so as if life be refused, death comes in the room of it.

For the clearing of our subject we shall speak a word to these two things: 1) to the ordinary distinctions of faith, and 2) to some differences between this saving faith and false or counterfeit faith; or to these acts of true faith, more generally taken, which yet are not saving.

When we speak of faith, we shall draw it to these four kinds ordinarily spoken of, and shall not alter nor add to the common distinctions of faith, though more may be given. The first is historical faith, which may be called true, being that whereby we assent to the truth of a thing because of the supposed fidelity of the one who tells it. It is as when an author writes a history; we give it credit upon report that he who wrote it was an honest man. So historical faith is, when people, hearing the Word preached or read, assent to the truth of it all, and do not question but that Christ came into the world, that He was God and man in one Person, that He died and rose the third day, and ascended to heaven, that they that believe on Him shall be saved, etc. And taking the Word of God to be God's Word, they may give to it a higher assent than they give to any man's word, because God is worthy, infinitely worthy, of more credit than any man, yea, than all men, and angels, too.

There may be, I say, in this historical faith of divine truths a higher or greater assent than there is in believing of any human history, which may be the reason why many overvalue historical faith, and yet it is but of the same kind, and a thing which many reprobates have. See this in John 2, at the close, where it is said, “Many believed in His Name, when they saw the miracles which He did. But Jesus did not commit Himself unto them.” They were brought to believe, from the signs which they saw, that He was more than a mere man and that it was the Word of God which He spoke, and yet it was but a historical faith. Yea, this faith may be, and is, in devils, who are said to believe and tremble.

There are many who, if they believe Christ to be God and man, and the Word to be true, think it enough; yet James, having to deal with such, tells them that the devil believes as much as that, and more thoroughly than many who have this historical faith. Satan knows God to be true and One that cannot lie, and he finds it so to his loss; he knows that such as believe cannot perish, for he cannot get one of them to hell. He knows that there is a time set when Christ will come to judge the world, and therefore he says often to Him, “Torment me not before the time.”

And as the devil has this faith, so there are many in hell that have this, too. The rich glutton had it, therefore he bids go tell his brethren, that they come not to that place of torment; and it was told him, “They have Moses and the prophets,” which implies that he then felt the truth of many things he would not believe before.

This I speak, that you may know that this historical faith is the first step of faith, but it may be in hell, and so in many in whom saving faith is not. It is really a wonder that people who are called Christians should own this to be saving faith, and think they are well advanced when they are only come the devil's length in believing; yea, there are many who never came this length, else they would tremble more.

The second sort of faith is the faith of miracles, which is often spoken of in the New Testament, as when the Lord says, “If ye had faith as a grain of mustard seed, ye should say to this mountain, Be thou removed and cast into the sea, and it should be done.” There was an active faith to work miracles, and a passive faith to receive the particular effect that the miracle did produce: some had the faith of miracles to heal, others to be healed. This is an extraordinary thing, and people may go to heaven without it, and go to hell with it, though they cannot go to heaven without historical faith. Hence it is said, “Many shall come to Me in that day, and shall say, We have cast out devils in Thy Name,” to whom He will say, “Depart from Me, ye workers of iniquity.” And Paul says in 1 Corinthians 13, “Though I have all faith, so that I could remove mountains, and have not charity, I am nothing.”

This faith of miracles alone avails not to salvation, because it acts not on Christ held forth in the promises as a Savior to save from sin, but it acts on Christ as having power and ability to produce such an effect; which may be where there is no quitting of a man's own righteousness; and if there be not grace in the person who has the faith of miracles, it is an occasion of pride. We call you then to historical faith as necessary though not sufficient, but not to this faith of miracles, it being neither necessary nor sufficient.

The third sort of faith is temporary faith, spoken of in Matthew 13 and set forth under the parable of seed sown on stony ground, which soon springs up, but withers. So some hearers of the gospel receive the Word with joy and are affected with it, but endure not. The difference between this and historical faith is this: historical faith, as such, resides in the judgment and reaches not the affections; at best it reaches not the affection of joy, for though the devils tremble, yet they are never glad.

Temporary faith reaches the affections and will make a man to tremble at the threatenings (as Felix did), or to delight himself in the promises of the gospel, and to snatch at them, as it were, from the apprehension of the sweet taste and relish he finds in them. It is even here as when it is told a healthy man that a physician is come to town. He is neither glad nor sad at it. But tell it to a sick man, and he is pleased, from the apprehended possibility of a cure. Yet this apprehended possibility of a cure never sends him to the physician nor puts him to apply the cure.

— to be continued —

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