Sidor som bilder
PDF
ePub

knew them, that they had not the love of God in them. He also told them, that they hated God, both the Father and the Son. The perfect, and universal sinfulness of the human race, is abundantly taught in the epistle to the Romans. Read the whole epistle, with a special view to discover what is said in it concerning the natural state of man. Do this without prejudice, and I am persuaded you will rise from the perusal with full conviction, that if a doctrine can be clearly revealed, and incontrovertibly proved, total depravity is thus revealed and proved in this epistle.

II. The entire sinfulness of an unrenewed state appears by this, that while in that state we cannot please God. Nothing can be more evident, than that an unrenewed state is meant by being in the flesh, Rom, viii. 8: "So then they that are in the flesh cannot please God." God is pleased with every thing which is good. If there were any good thing in an unrenewed man, he might please him. The smallest degrees of goodness are as really pleasing to him as the greater degrees of it, though not equally so. If gold be in itself valuable, a small piece, yea, even a grain of it, has some value. If they who are in the flesh cannot please God, it must be, because that while they continue in this state, they have not the least degree of unfeigned love to the divine character. The passage now under consideration is an inference from this dreadful description of the natural heart, viz. That it is enmity against God, not subject to his law, neither in, deed can be. The reason why unregenerate men

cannot please God is manifestly this, Their whole hearts are in opposition to him.

III. Our total depravity may be argued from the dreadful crimes of which we are guilty. God charges sinners with having spoken and done evil things as they could. (Jer. iii. 5.) We are guilty of the most designed falsehood and fraud ---we are guilty of the most shameful excess, and of all manner of uncleanness. We rise up against our neighbor and destroy his life. There have even been murderers of fathers and murderers of mothers. And this is not all; we have not merely sinned against one another; we have sinned, and that with a high hand, against our Maker. We have greatly polluted his holy sabbaths; we have treated with utter contempt his holy word; we have scoffed at all his holy institutions; and not only refused to worship him, but have in the directest terms blasphemed his holy name. Finally, we have been guilty of as evident, and as perfect hatred of God, and of all that is good, as the devils themselves. Christ said, "Ye are of your father the devil, and the lusts of your father ye will do." How has the devil made it more manifest, that he was a perfect enemy to God, and to holiness, than some of the children of Adam have done? But I am aware, that there are some, who know not the plague of their own heart, who are wishing for an opportunity to object against this mode of reasoning. They are ready to say, Can this be fair, to hunt up all the impious deeds and enormities which have been committed by a few of the race of Adam, and then charge these upon the whole race? To this

it may be replied, The scriptures consider all mankind as possessing one character, which they have derived from their apostate parents. "What then? are we better than they? No, in no wise; for we have before proved both Jews and Gentiles, that they are all under sin; as it is written, There is none righteous, no not one: there is none that understandeth, there is none that seeketh after God." Without excepting any, either Jews or Gentiles, the apostle goes on to say, "They are all gone out of the way, they are together be come unprofitable, there is none that doeth good, no, not one. Their throat is an open sepulchre ; with their tongues they have used deceit; the poison of asps is under their lips: whose mouth is full of cursing and bitterness: their feet are swift to shed blood: destruction and misery are in their ways: and the way of peace they have not known there is no fear of God before their eyes." Rom. iii. 9---18. Although all unconverted men do not have their mouths filled with cursing; and all of this character are not guilty of the overt act of murder, or being swift to shed blood, still these crimes are charged upon all mankind, since they all possess one common depraved nature, which, in different persons, has different ways of manifesting itself. The most expressive descriptions of total depravity, which we have in the word of God, are not confined to any individuals, but applied to mankind in general. A few of these will be mentioned. Solomon says, "The heart of the sons of men is ful

ly set to do evil,” Here all the sons of men are represented as having but one heart, and that is

E

fully set to do evil. Again he testifies, "Yea, also the heart of the sons of men is full of evil, and madness is in their heart while they live.” In the prophesy of Jeremiah it is said, "The heart is deceitful above all things, and desperately wicked." The apostle uses the same method of speaking in his epistle to the Romans, The carnal mind is enmity against God. If these descriptions of depravity are not applicable to all the human race, in their natural state, I do not see who will have any right to apply them; for no individual sinner, nor any class of sinners, is distinguished.

IV. The entire sinfulness of an unrenewed state may be argued from the bible description of the most specious works, which are performed in that state. They are illustrated by him, who knew what was in man, by our attempting to make the cup and platter clean by a mere outside scouring, while the inward filth is suffered to remain; also by our attempting to get good fruit from a bad tree. He also illustrated such good works by a whited sepulchre, which outwardly appears beautiful to men, but is within, full of dead men's bones and all uncleanness. In the book of Proverbs it is said, "The plow, ing of the wicked is sin." No reason can be given why their plowing is sin, only such as will prove that all they do is sin. In the same book it is said, "The sacrifice of the wicked is an abomination to the Lord." There is another place where the same idea is repeated with this addition, "How much more when he bringeth it with a wicked mind." This proyes that all the

[ocr errors]

sacrifices, or religious performances of the wicked, i. è. of the unregenerate, are wholly unaccept. able to the Lord; and also, that these perform. ances are aggravatedly wicked, when they are done with a view, to enable them to accomplish some wicked design; as was the case with Jeze bel's fast, which she proclaimed, to enable her to destroy the life, and plunder the vineyard of Naboth. Paul.seems to suppose, that deeds appa. rently the most generous and pious may be per formed; even the giving of all our goods to feed the poor, and our bodies to be burned, and still we be nothing. From what has been said under this particular branch of the discourse, it will appear clear to those who give full credit to the scriptures, that total depravity cannot be disproved by the apparently good works, and moral lives of the impenitent.

V. The perfect depravity of the natural heart may be proved, beyond all contradiction, by what is every where said in the scriptures concerning the necessity of a change of heart. Except a man be born again, he cannot see the kingdom of God." "Except ye be converted and become as little children, ye shall not enter into the kingdom of heaven." If the unregenerate are not totally depraved, even up to the moment of their regeneration, how can they need any such change? Paul felt that he needed more holiness of heart and life; for he said he was not already perfect; he reached forth to the things that were before. But does a sinner need a change of heart in no sense different from what the apostle did, when he was going from one degree of grace to anoth

« FöregåendeFortsätt »