The Works of John Bunyan, vol 3, John Bunyan [ebook reader color screen TXT] 📗

because poor souls are asleep in sin, though the wrath of God, the curse of his law, and the flames of hell have beset them round about, yet they do not believe it, because they are asleep in sin. Now, as he that is awakened and sees this, sees that through this he is a dead man; even so they that do see their state by nature, being such a sad condition, do also see themselves by that law to be dead men naturally.

But now, when didst thou feel the power of this first part of the Scripture, the law, so mighty as to strike thee dead? If not, thou dost not so much as verily believe that part of the Scripture that doth contain the law in it, to be the truth of God. Yet if thou shouldest have felt something, I say, something of the killing power of the law of God in thine heart, this is not an argument to prove that thou believest all the things contained in Scripture, for there is gospel as well as law, and therefore I shall speak to that also, that is, whether thou hast felt the power of the gospel, as well as something of the power of the law.

Second. Then thou hast found the power of the gospel, and so believed it, thou hast found it thus with thy soul.

1. Thou hast been showed by the Word or truth of the gospel, in the light of the Spirit of Christ, that by nature thou wert without the true faith of the Son of God in thy soul. For when He, the Spirit, is come, he shall show men that ‘they believe not in me,’ saith Christ (John 16:9). Mark, though thou hast, as I said before, felt somewhat of the power of the law, letter, or ten commandments, yet, as thou hast not been brought to this, to see by the Spirit in the gospel, that thou art without faith by nature, thou hast not yet tasted, much less believed, any part of the gospel. For the gospel and the law are two distinct covenants.

And they that are under the law or first covenant, and yet in the meantime to be a stranger to the covenant of promise, that is, the gospel, and so have no hope in them (Eph 2:12). There is not any promise that can be savingly believed, until the soul be by the gospel converted to Jesus Christ. For though men do think never so much that they believe the things or the Word of the gospel of our salvation; yet unless they have the work of grace in their souls, they do not, cannot rightly believe the things contained in the Scriptures. Again,

2. As the law killeth those that believe it, even so the promises contained in the gospel do, through faith, administer comfort to those that believe it aright. My words, saith Christ, My words, ‘they are Spirit, and they are life’ (John 6:63). As if he had said, the words contained in the law as a covenant of works, they wound, they kill, they strike dead those that are under them. But as for me, ‘The words that I speak unto you, they are spirit, and they are life.’ That is, whosoever doth receive them believingly, shall find them full of operation, to comfort, quicken, and revive their soul. For as I did not come into the world to destroy men’s lives, so the words that I speak, as I am sent to preach the gospel, they have no such tendency unto those that believe them. The promises that are in the gospel, O how do they comfort them! Such a promise, and such a promise, O how sweet is it! How comfortable to those that believe them! Alas! there are many poor souls that think they believe the Scriptures to be the Word of God, and yet they never enjoyed anything of the life and promises; they come in upon the heart to quicken, to revive thee, to raise thee from the sentence of death that is passed on thee by the law. And through the faith that is wrought in thy soul, by the operation of God’s Holy Spirit, though once killed by the law or letter, thou art made alive in the Lord Jesus Christ, who is presented to thy soul in the promises.

Third. Dost thou in deed and in truth believe the Scriptures to be the Word of God? Then the things contained in them, especially the things of the gospel, are very excellent to thy soul; as the birth of Christ, the death, resurrection, intercession, and second coming. O how precious and excellent are they to thy soul!

insomuch that thou regardest nothing in comparison of them! O! it is Christ’s birth, death, blood, resurrection, &c., according to the Scriptures, that thou dost rejoice in exceedingly, and abundantly desire after! ‘Whom having not seen, ye love; in whom thou now ye see him not, yet believing ye rejoice, with joy unspeakable, and full of glory’ (1 Cor 15:1-6, compared with Phil 3:6-8; 1 Peter 1:8).

Fourth. Dost thou believe the Scriptures to be the Word of God?

Then thou standest in awe of, and dost much reverence them. Why, they are the Word of God, the true sayings of God; they are the counsel of God; they are his promises and his threatenings. Poor souls are apt to think, if I could hear God speak to me from heaven with an audible voice, then sure I should be serious and believe it. But truly, if God should speak to thee from heaven, except thou wert converted, thou wouldst not regard, nor really believe him. But if thou dost believe the Scriptures, thou seest that they are the truth as really as if God should speak to thee from heaven through the clouds, and therefore never flatter thyself, foolishly thinking, that if it were so and so, then thou couldst believe. I tell thee, saith Christ, If they believe ‘not Moses and the prophets, neither will they believe though one should rise from the dead.’ But,

Fifth. Dost thou believe the Scriptures to be the Word of God?

Then, through faith in Christ, thou endeavourest to have thy life squared according to the Scriptures, both in word and practice.

Nay, this I say, thou mayest have though thou do not believe them all. My meaning is, that if thou believe none but the ten commandments, thy life may be, according to them, a legal holy life; and if thou do believe the gospel too, then thy life will be the faith of the Lord Jesus Christ; that is, either thou wilt live in the blessed and holy enjoyment of what is testified in the Scripture concerning the glorious things of the Lord Jesus Christ, or else thou wilt be exceedingly panting after them. For the Scriptures carry such a blessed beauty in them to that soul that hath faith in the things contained in them, that they do take the heart and captivate the soul of him that believeth them into the love and liking of them, believing all things that are written in the law and the prophets, and have hope towards God that there shall be a resurrection of the dead, both of the just and unjust.

‘And herein do I exercise myself, to have always a conscience void of offence toward God and toward men’ (Acts 24:14-16).

Sixth. He that believes the Scriptures to be the Word of God, if he do but suppose that any one place of Scripture doth exclude him, and shut him out of, and from a share in the promises contained in them, O it will trouble him, grieve him, perplex him. Yea, he will not be satisfied until he be resolved, and the contrary sealed to his soul; for he knows that the Scriptures are the word of God, all truth; and therefore he knows that if any one sentence doth exclude or bar him out for want of this or the other qualification, he knows also that not the word alone shuts him out, but he that speaks it, even God himself. And, therefore, he cannot, will not, dare not be contented until he find his soul and Scripture together, with the things contained therein, to embrace each other, and a sweet correspondency and agreement between them. For you must know that to him that believes the Scriptures aright, the promises, or threatenings, are of more power to comfort or cast down, than all the promises or threatenings of all the men in the world. And this was the cause why the martyrs of Jesus did so slight both the promises of their adversaries, when they would have overcome them, with proffering the great things of this world unto them, and also their threatenings, when they told them they would rack them, hang them, burn them (Acts 20:24). None of these things could prevail upon them, or against them; because they did most really believe the Scriptures, and the things contained in them, as is clearly found, and to be seen in Hebrews 11, and also in Mr. Fox’s records of their brethren.

Seventh. He that believeth the Scriptures to be the Word of God, believeth that men must be born again, and also be partakers of that faith which is of the operation of God, according as he hath read and believed, or else he must and shall be damned. And he that believeth this aright will not be contented until, according as it is written, he do partake of and enjoy the new birth, and until he do find, through grace, that faith that is wrought by the operation of God in his soul. For this is the cause why men do satisfy themselves with so slender a conceited hope that their state is good, when it is nothing so, namely, because they do not credit the Scripture; for did they, they would look into their own hearts, and examine seriously whether that faith, that hope, that grace which they think they have be of that nature, and wrought by that spirit and power that the Scripture speaketh of.

I speak this of an effectual believing, without which all other is nothing unto salvation.

[FIVE USES BY WAY OF SELF-EXAMINATION.]

Now then, because I would not be too tedious, I shall at this time lay down no more discoveries of such an one as doth savingly believe the Scriptures, and the things contained in them, but shall speak a few words of examination concerning the things already mentioned. As,

First USE. Thou sayest thou dost in deed and in truth effectually believe the Scriptures: I ask, therefore, wast thou ever killed stark dead by the law of works contained in the Scriptures—killed by the law or letter, and made to see thy sins against it, and left in a helpless condition by that law? For, as I said, the proper work of the law is to slay the soul, and to leave it dead in a helpless state. For it doth neither give the soul any comfort itself when it comes, nor doth it show the soul where comfort is to be had; and therefore it is called ‘the ministration of condemnation,’ as in 2 Corinthians 3:9, ‘the ministration of death,’ verse 7. For though men may have a notion of the blessed Word of God, as the children had, yet before they be converted it may truly be said of them, Ye err, not knowing the Scriptures, nor the power of God (Mark 12:24).

Second USE. You say you do believe the Scriptures to be the Word of God. I say again, Examine, wast thou ever quickened from a dead state by the power of the Spirit of Christ, through the other part of the Scripture; that is to