Wesley Corpus

"He brings this specious hypocrite to the test." How does it appear that he was an hypocrite? Our Lord gives not the least intimation of it. Surely he "loved him," not for his hypocrisy, but his sincerity Yet he loved the world, and therefore could not keep any of the commandments in their spiritual meaning. And the keeping of these is undoubtedly the way to, though not the cause of, eternal life. "'By works his faith was made perfect: Appeared to be true." No.: The natural sense of the words is, "By" the grace superadded while he wrought those "works, his faith was" literally "made perfect." "'He that doeth righteousness is righteous:" Manifests the truth of his conversion." (Ibid.) Nay, the plain meaning is, He alone is truly righteous, whose faith worketh by love. "St. James speaks of the justification of our faith." Not unless you mean, by that odd expression, our faith being made perfect; for so the Apostle explains his own meaning. Perhaps the word justified is once used by St. Paul for manifested. But that does not prove it is to be so understood here. - "'Whoso doeth these things shall never fall' into total apostasy." How pleasing is this to flesh and blood! But David says no such thing. His meaning is, "Whoso doeth these things" to the end "shall never fall" into hell. The Seventh Dialogue is full of important truths. Yet some expressions in it I cannot commend. "'One thing thou lackest,' the imputed righteousness of 322 PREFACE To Christ." You cannot think this is the meaning of the text. Certainly the "one thing" our Lord meant was, the love of God. This was the thing he lacked. "Is the obedience of Christ insufficient to accomplish our justification?" Rather I would ask, Is the death of Christ insufficient to purchase it? "The saints in glory ascribe the whole of their salvation to the blood of the Lamb." So do 1; and yet I believe "he obtained for all a possibility of salvation." "The terms of acceptance for fallen man were a full satis faction to the divine justice, and a complete conformity to the divine law." This you take for granted; but I cannot allow it. The terms of acceptance for fallen man are, repentance and faith.