John Owen · 42 of 123
Chapter V. The filth of sin purged by the Spirit and the blood of Christ. · Part 4
7. Our blessed Head is not only pure and holy, but he is also gracious and merciful, and will not presently cut off a member of his body because it is sick or hath a sore upon it. He is himself passed through his course of temptations, and is now above the reach of them all. Doth he, therefore, reject and despise those that are tempted, that labour and suffer under their temptations? It is quite otherwise, so that, on the account of his own present state, his compassions do exceedingly abound towards all his that are tempted. It is no otherwise with him as to their sins and defilements. These he himself was absolutely free from in all his temptations and sufferings, but we are not; and he is so far from casting us away on that account, while we endeavour after purification, as that it draweth out his compassions towards us. In brief, he doth not unite us to himself because we are perfect, but that in his own way and time he may make us so; not because we are clean, but that he may cleanse us: for it is the blood of Jesus Christ, with whom we have fellowship, that cleanseth us from all our sins.
Lastly, To wind up this discourse, there is hence sufficiently evidenced a comprehensive difference between a spiritual life unto God by evangelical , and a life of moral virtue, though pretended unto God also. Unto the first, the original and continual purification of our nature and persons by the Spirit of God and blood of Christ is indispensably required. Where this work is not, there neither is nor can be any thing of that holiness which the gospel prescribes, and which we inquire after. Unless the purification and cleansing of sin belong necessarily unto the holiness of the new , all that God hath taught us concerning it in the Old Testament and the New, by his institution of legal purifying ; by his promises to wash, purify, and cleanse us; by his precepts to get ourselves cleansed by the means of our purification, namely, his Spirit and the blood of Christ; by his instruments and directions of us to make use of those means of our cleansing; by his declarations that believers are so washed and cleansed from all the defilements of their sins, — are things fanatical, enthusiastic notions, and unintelligible dreams. Until men can rise up to a confidence enabling them to own such horrible blasphemies, I desire to know whether these things are required unto their morality? If they shall say they are so, they give us a new notion of morality, never yet heard of in the world; and we must expect until they have farther cleared it, there being little or no signification in the great swelling words of which have been lavished about it. But if they do not belong thereunto, — then is their life of moral virtue (were it as real in them as it is with notorious vanity pretended) cast out from all consideration in a serious disquisition after evangelical holiness. And what hath been spoken may suffice to give us some light into the nature of this first act of our by the Spirit, which consists in the cleansing of our souls and consciences from the pollutions of sin, both original and actual.
