Chapter 7: Of God's Covenant
1. The distance between God and the creature is so great, that
although reasonable creatures do owe obedience to him as their creator, yet
they could never have attained the reward of life but by some voluntary
condescension on God's part, which he hath been pleased to express by way
of covenant.
(
Luke 17:10;
Job 35:7,8
)
2. Moreover, man having brought himself under the curse of the law by
his fall, it pleased the Lord to make a covenant of grace, wherein he freely
offereth unto sinners life and salvation by Jesus Christ, requiring of them
faith in him, that they may be saved; and promising to give unto all those
that are ordained unto eternal life, his Holy Spirit, to make them willing
and able to believe.
(
Genesis 2:17;
Galatians 3:10;
Romans 3:20, 21;
Romans 8:3;
Mark 16:15, 16;
John 3:16;
Ezekiel 36:26, 27;
John 6:44, 45;
Psalms 110:3
)
3. This covenant is revealed in the gospel; first of all to Adam in
the promise of salvation by the seed of the woman, and afterwards by
farther steps, until the full discovery thereof was completed in the
New Testament; and it is founded in that eternal covenant transaction
that was between the Father and the Son about the redemption of the elect;
and it is alone by the grace of this covenant that all the posterity of
fallen Adam that ever were saved did obtain life and blessed immortality,
man being now utterly incapable of acceptance with God upon those terms
on which Adam stood in his state of innocency.
(
Genesis 3:15;
Hebrews 1:1;
2 Timothy 1:9;
Titus 1:2;
Hebrews 11;6, 13;
Romans 4:1, 2, &c.;
Acts 4:12;
John 8:56
)
Back to the 2nd London Baptist Confession of Faith
