LECT. I. History of the Doctrine in the Old Testament, II. History of the Doctrine in the Apostolic Age, III. History of the Doctrine in the Times of the Fathers and IV. History of the Doctrine at the Era of the Reformation, V. History of the Doctrine in the Romish Church after the Reformation, 127 VI. History of the Doctrine as a subject of Controversy among Protestants, 151 VII. History of the Doctrine in the Church of England, 192 PART II. EXPOSITION OF THE DOCTRINE OF JUSTIFICATION. INTRODUCTION, 221 LECT. VIII. Justification; The Scriptural Meaning of the Term, 226 IX. Justification; The Proper Nature of the Blessing, 250 X. Justification; Its Relation to the Law and Justice of God, 268 PAGE LECT. XI. Justification; Its Relation to the Mediatorial Work of Christ, Righteousness of Christ, XIII. Justification; Its Relation to Grace and Works, 292 314 339 XIV. Justification; The Nature and Reason of its Connection with XV. Justification; Its Relation to the Work of the Holy Spirit, APPENDIX OF NOTES TO EACH LECTURE, Index to the Lectures, 413 511 THE DOCTRINE OF JUSTIFICATION. IT INTRODUCTION. T may be thought by some that the subject of Justification is trite and exhausted; that, as one of the 'commonplaces' of Theology, it was conclusively determined and settled at the era of the Reformation; and that nothing new or interesting can now be introduced into the discussion of it. It is not necessary to say in reply to this, as some might be disposed to say, that 'what is new in Theology is not true, and what is true is not new;' for we believe, and are warranted by the whole history of the Church in believing, that Theology, like every other science, is progressive,-progressive, not in the sense of adding anything to the truth once for all revealed in the inspired Word, but in the way of eliciting and unfolding what has always been contained in it,—of bringing out one lesson after another, and placing each of them in a clearer and stronger light,-and discovering the connection, interdependency, and harmony, of all the constituent parts of the marvellous scheme of Revelation. In this sense, Science and Theology are both progressive, the one in the study of God's works, the other in the study of God's Word; and as human Science has not yet exhausted the volume of Nature, or reached the limit of possible discovery in regard to it, much less has human A Theology fathomed the depths of Scripture, or left nothing to reward further inquiry into 'the manifold wisdom of God.' There may be room, therefore, for something new, if not in the substance, yet in the treatment, even of the great doctrine of Justification,-in the exposition of its scriptural meaning, and in the method of adducing, arranging, and applying the array of its scriptural proofs. But apart from this, and looking to the character of our current literature, may it not be said that, to a large class of minds in the present age, nothing could well be more new than the old Theology of the Reformation? The Gospel is older than Luther; but, to every succeeding generation, it is still new,-good news from God,—as fresh now as when it first sprung from the fountain of Inspiration. It was new to ourselves,-surprising, startling, and affecting us strangely, as if it were almost too good to be true,-when it first shone, like a beam of heaven's own light, into our dark and troubled spirits, and shed abroad a peace which passeth all understanding.' It will be equally new to our children, and our children's children, when they come to know that they have sins to be forgiven, and souls to be saved; and to the last sinner who is convinced and converted on the earth, it will still be as good tidings from a far country,' 'cold water to a thirsty soul.' It can never become old or obsolete, for this obvious reason, that while it is 'the everlasting Gospel,' and, as such, like its Author, unchangeable, the same yesterday, and to-day, and for ever,'-yet it comes into contact, in every succeeding age, with new minds, who are ignorant of it, but need it, and can find no peace without it; and when they receive it as 'a faithful saying, and worthy of all acceptation, that Christ came into the world to save sinners,' they will learn from their own experience that the old truth is -as still the germ of a new creation'-the spring of a new life, a new peace, a new hope, a new spiritual existence, to which they were utter strangers before. There are many, even in Protestant communities, who have long been familiar with the sound of the Gospel, to whom this inward sense of it, in its application to their own souls, would be nothing less than a new spiritual revelation. The doctrine of Justification, by grace, through faith in Christ, is the old doctrine of the Reformation, and the still older doctrine of the Gospel; yet the vivid apprehension of its meaning, and the cordial reception of its truth, must be a new thing in the experience of every one, when he is first enabled to realize and to believe it. The free pardon of all sin, and a sure title to eternal life, conferred by the mere grace of God, and resting solely on the redemption and righteousness of the Lord Jesus Christ,-this, as the actual and immediate privilege of every sinner, on the instant when he begins to rely on Christ alone for salvation, as He is offered to him individually in the Gospel,-may come home, with all the freshness of new truth, even to many who bear the Christian name; and a realizing sense of them, in the conscious experience of their own souls, will be the best safeguard against the prevailing errors of the times, and the danger to which so many are at this moment exposed, of being 'tossed about with every wind of doctrine.' If we take a calm survey of the state of religious sentiment in the present crisis, for it is a crisis, and a very solemn one,-we can hardly fail to observe, that the minds of many are uneasy and unsettled; that there is a wide-spread feeling of unrest and dissatisfaction; and that this feeling manifests itself mainly in two apparently opposite tendencies, which have been so strikingly de |