Ebenezer Erskine

“ Whenever the poor believer takes the righteousness of the Surety in the hand of faith, and holds it up unto God as the ransom of his own finding, he is so well pleased with it, that his frowns are turned into smiles. In a word, you shall never get ride of a spirit of bondage, till you learn by faith to improve this law biding righteousness ”

“ Wantest thou pardoning grace, to take away the guilt of sin? That is one of the gifts of God, thro' the righteousness of Christ apprehended by faith: For he is set forth to be a propitiation thro' faith in his blood, to shew forth his righteousness for the remission of sins. Wantest thou to have thy peace with God confirmed? Improve this righteousness by faith: For, being justified by faith, we have peace with God thro' the Lord Jesus Christ. Wantest thou access unto the holiest? by faith in the blood of Jesus have we access with boldness. ”

“ And whan nothing else will do, they will make their own act of believing the righteousness on which they lean for acceptance: which is still a seeking righteousness in themselves: whereas, if ever we be justified before God, we must have it in the Lord Jesus, saying, In him we will be justified, and in him alone we will glory. Faith carries the soul quite out of itself; yes, faith renounces its own act in the point of justification. ”

“ If a believer in Christ shall hear the thunderings and curses of mount Ebel, or Sinai, he has no reason to be affrighted; for Christ by his righteousness hath redeemed him from the curse of the law. Thou art not come to the mount that burned with fire or blackness, and darkness, and tempest; but thou art come to mount Zion, and to Jesus the Mediator of the new Covenant, and so the blood of sprinkling, which speaketh better things than that of Abel. The believer is dead to the law by the body of Christ, being married unto a better husband, even to him that is raised from the dead. ”

“ The redemption of the soul is precious, and would have ceased for ever, unless it had been redeemed by this righteousness: For silver, and gold, and such corruptible things could never do it. Lay heaven, and all the glories thereof, in the balance with this righteousness, they would be all light a feather compared with it. Heaven is called a purchased inheritance, and this righteousness is the price that bought it. ”

“ And the believer in a peculiar manner is bound to obey the law of a Creator, in the hand of a Mediator: But considering the law as a covenant of works, demanding the debt of obedience as a condition of life, or threatning eternal wrath in case of disobedience, the believer is indeed exalted above it by the righteousness of Christ: and if the law at any time attempt to bring the believer in bondage to it, he is to stand fast in the liberty wherewith Christ hath made him free. ”

“ Having such a great high priest over the house of God, let us come with boldness to a throne of grace.' The believer may come under the covert of this righteousness, with as great freedom unto God, as his Father in Christ, as ever Adam could have done in a state of innocence. ”

“ Others will go further than bare morality: they will abound in the duties of religion, read, hear, pray, communicate, run from sermon to sermon, from sacrament to sacrament, and upon these things they rest; all these things are good in their proper place, but if you build your hope of acceptance here, you are still upon a covenant of works bottom, seeking righteousness, as it were by the works of the law; and while you do so, you do but seek the living among the dead. All your works are but dead works, till you be in Christ ”

“ There is a blessed exchange of places between Christ and his people; he takes on our sin and unrighteousness, that we may be clothed with the white robe of his righteousness, 2 Cor. v. 21. 'He was made sin for us who knew no sin, that we might be made the righteousness of God in him.' 2dly. This imputation goes upon the ground of the mystical union between Christ and the believer. When the poor soul is determined in a day of power to embrace the Lord Jesus in the arms of faith, Christ and he do that very moment coalesce into one body. He becomes a branch of the noble vine ”

“ By this righteousness the believer is exalted above the world, Rev. xii.I. The woman clothed with the sun, has the moon under her feet; which may not only point at the believer's duty to soar heavenward in his affections, but also his privilege in Christ to trample both upon the frowns and flatteries of this lower world; according to that of the apostle, This is the victory whereby we overcome the world, even our faith. ”

“ Others rely upon a mixt kind of righteousness: they will freely own that their duties and performances will never exalt them into favour and acceptance with God; but, O, say they, it is Christ and our duties Christ and our prayers, he and our tears and repentance, that must do it. ”

“ This is an incredible paradox to a blind world, that the believer, who is sitting this moment upon the dung-hill of this earth, should at the same time be sitting in heaven in Christ his glorious head and representative ”

“ For, when the commandment came, sin revived, and he died. Others are exalting themselves in a moral kind of righteousness: they not only cease to do evil, but do many things that are materially good: They are sober, temperate, just, in their dealings, libral to the poor, good peaceable neighbours; they love every body, and every body loves them ”

“ Isaiah's lamentation may but too justly be continued with respect to the greatest part of the hearers of the gospel, Who hath believed our report? 2dly, God's Israel are a happy people, because they walk in the light of his countenance, in the close of the 15th verse: they are privileged with the special intimations of his love, which puts more gladness in their hearts, that when corn, wine, and oil doth abound. 3dly, Whatever discouragement they may meet with from the world, yet still they have ground of rejoicing in their God. ”

“ If it were by our own doings or obedience that we are exalted, we have nothing whereof to glory in ourselves. There are three questions that the apostle asks, which many silence all flesh, and put all boasters to an eternal blush, I Cor. ”

“ The righteous Lord loveth righteousness. Sometimes for his rectoral equity, or distributive justice, which he exerciseth in the government of the world, rewarding the good, and punishing evil-doers, Psal. ”

“ And therefore thou mayst roll that word like a sweet morsel under thy tongue, Hos. xiii. 14. 'I will ransom them from the power of the grave; I will redeem them from death: O death, I will be thy plague ”