Chapter II: The spiritual marriage with Jesus Christ.
The spiritual marriage with Jesus Christ.
Neo. And truly, sir you have so declared and set forth Christ's disposition towards poor sinners, and so answered all my doubts and objections, that I am now verily persuaded that Christ is willing to entertain me; and surely I am willing to come unto him, and receive him; but, alas! I want power.
Evan. But tell me truly, are you resolved to put forth all your power to believe, and so to take Christ? [218]
Neo. Truly, sir, methinks my resolution is much like the resolution of the four lepers, who sat at the gate of Samaria; for as they said, "If we enter into the city, the famine is in the city, and we shall die there; and if we sit still here, we die also; now, therefore, let us fall unto the host of the Syrians; if they save us, we shall live, and if they kill us, we shall but die," (2 Kings 7:4); even so say I in mine heart, If I go back to the covenant of works to seek justification thereby, I shall die there; and if I sit still and seek it no way, I shall die also; now, therefore, though I be somewhat fearful, yet am I resolved to go unto Christ; and if I perish, I perish. [219]
Evan. Why, now I tell you the match is made; Christ is yours, [220] and you are his, "this day is salvation come to your house," [your soul I mean:] for, what though you have not that power to come so fast to Christ, and lay such firm hold on him, as you desire; yet coming with such a resolution to take Christ, as you do, you need not care for power to do it, inasmuch as Christ will enable you to do it; [221] for is it not said, (John 1:12), "But as many as received him, to them gave he power to become the sons of God, even to them that believe on his name?" [222] O therefore, I beseech you, stand no longer disputing; but be peremptory and resolute in your faith, and in casting yourself upon God in Christ for mercy; and let the issue be what it will. Yet let me tell you, to your comfort, that such a resolution shall never go to hell. Nay, I will say more; if any soul have room in heaven, such a soul shall; for God cannot find in his heart to damn such a one. I might, then, with as much true confidence say unto you, as John Careless said to John Bradford, in a letter to him, "Hearken, O heavens, and thou O earth, give ear, and bear me witness, at the great day, that I do here faithfully and truly declare the Lord's message unto his dear servant and singularly beloved John Bradford, saying, 'John Bradford, thou man so specially beloved of God, I do pronounce and testify unto thee, in the word and name of the Lord Jehovah, that all thy sins whatsoever they be, though never so many, grievous, or great, be fully and freely pardoned, released, and forgiven thee, by the mercy of God in Jesus Christ, the only Lord and sweet Saviour, in whom thou dost undoubtedly believe; as truly as the Lord liveth, he will not have thee die the death; but hath verily purposed, determined, and decreed, that thou shalt live with him for ever.'"
Neo. O, sir, if I have as good warrant to apply this saying to myself as Mr. Bradford had to himself, then I am a happy man!
Evan. I tell you from Christ, and under the hand of the Spirit, that your person is accepted, your sins are done away, and you shall be saved; and if an angel from heaven should tell you otherwise, let him be accursed. Therefore, you may [without doubt] conclude that you are a happy man; for by means of this your matching with Christ, you are become one with him, and one in him, you "dwell in him, and he in you," (1 John 4:13). He is "your well beloved, and you are his," (Cant 2:16). So that the marriage union betwixt Christ and you is more than a bare notion or apprehension of your mind; for it is a special, spiritual, and real union: it is an union betwixt the nature of Christ, God and man, and you; [223] it is a knitting and closing, not only of your apprehension with a Saviour, but also of your soul with a Saviour. Whence it must needs follow that you cannot be condemned, except Christ be condemned with you; neither can Christ be saved, except you be saved with him. [224] And as by means of corporeal marriage all things become common betwixt man and wife; even so, by means of this spiritual marriage, all things become common betwixt Christ and you; for when Christ hath married his spouse unto himself, he passeth over all his estate unto her; so that whatsoever Christ is or hath, you may boldly challenge as your own. "He is made unto you, of God, wisdom, righteousness, sanctification, and redemption," (1 Cor 1:30). And surely, by virtue of this near union it is, that as Christ is called "the Lord our righteousness," (Jer 33:6), even so is the church called, "the Lord our righteousness," (verse 16). I tell you, you may, by virtue of this union, boldly take upon yourself, as your own, Christ's watching, abstinence, travails, prayers, persecutions, and slanders; yea, his tears, his sweat, his blood, and all that ever he did and suffered in the space of three and thirty years, with his passion, death, burial, resurrection, and ascension; for they are all yours. And as Christ passes over all his estate unto his spouse, so does he require that she should pass over all unto him. Wherefore, you being now married unto Christ, you must give all that you have of your own unto him; and truly you have nothing of your own but sin, and, therefore, you must give him that. I beseech you, then, say unto Christ with bold confidence, I give unto thee, my dear husband, my unbelief, my mistrust, my pride, my arrogancy, my ambition, my wrath, and anger, my envy, my covetousness, my evil thoughts, affections, and desires; I make one bundle of these and all my other offences, and give them unto thee. [225] And thus was Christ made "sin for us, that knew no sin, that we might be made the righteousness of God in him," [226] (2 Cor 5:21). "Now then," says Luther, "let us compare these things together, and we shall find inestimable treasure. Christ is full of grace, life, and saving health; and the soul is freight-full of all sin, death, and damnation; but let faith come betwixt these two, and it shall come to pass, that Christ shall be laden with sin, death, and hell; and unto the soul shall be imputed grace, life, and salvation. Who then is able to value the royalty of this marriage accordingly? Who is able to comprehend the glorious riches of his grace, where this rich and righteous husband, Christ, doth take unto wife this poor and wicked harlot, redeeming her from all devils, and garnishing her with all his own jewels? So that you, through the assuredness of your faith in Christ, your husband, are delivered from all sins, made safe from death, guarded from hell, and endowed with the everlasting righteousness, life, and saving health of this your husband Christ." And, therefore, you are now under the covenant of grace, and freed from the law, as it is the covenant of works; for [as Mr. Ball truly says] at one and the same time, a man cannot be under the covenant of works and the covenant of grace.
Neo. Sir, I do not well know how to conceive of this freedom from the law, as it is the covenant of works; and therefore I pray you make it as plain to me as you can.
Evan. For the true and clear understanding of this point, you are to consider, that when Jesus Christ, the second Adam, had, in the behalf of his chosen, perfectly fulfilled the law as it is the covenant of works; [227] divine justice delivered that bond in to Christ, who utterly cancelled that hand-writing, (Col 2:14); so that none of his chosen were to have any more to do with it, nor it with them. And now, you, by your believing in Christ, having manifested that you are one, who was chosen in him "before the foundation of the world," (Eph 1:4), his fulfilling of that covenant, and cancelling that hand-writing, is imputed unto you; and so you are acquitted and absolved from all your transgressions against that covenant, either past, present or to come;
[228] and so you are justified, as the apostle says, "freely by his grace, through the redemption that is in Jesus Christ," (Rom 3:24).