BOOK 5. THE MESSAGE.
CHAPTER 4.
5.4.3. Of the Holiness of Christ's Nature.
Of the Holiness of Christ's Nature.
Now, in the first place, for the holiness of his nature, the Psalmist tells us, Psal. xlv. 2. "Thou art fairer than the children of men, and grace is poured into thy lips," Which is all one with that description of Christ by the spouse, Cant. v. 10. "My beloved is white and ruddy, the chiefest of ten thousands." As in the fairest beauty, there is a mixture of these two colours of white and ruddy, so in Christ there is a gracious mixture and compound of all the graces of the Spirit; there is in him a sweet temper of gentleness, purity, righteousness, meekness, humility, and what not? Col, ii. 3. "In him are hid all the treasures of wisdom and knowledge:" and I may add, of all other gifts and graces; not a grace but it was in Christ, and that in an higher way than in any saint in the world, and therefore he is called, "fairer than all the children of men." Observe, "there was more habitual grace in Christ than ever was, or is, or shall be in all the elect, whether angels or men." He received the spirit out of measure; there was in him as much as possibly could be in a creature, and more than in all other creatures whatsoever. As the sun is the prince of stars, as the husband is the head of the wife, as the lion is king of the beasts, so is this Sun of righteousness, this head of the church, this lion of the tribe of Judah, "the chiefest of ten thousands." If we look at anything in heaven or earth, that we observe as eminently fair, by that is the Lord Jesus in respect of his inward beauty set forth in scriptures, "He is the Sun of righteousness, the bright morning star, the light of the world, the tree of life, the lily and the rose;" fairer than all the flowers of the field, than all the precious stones of the earth, than all the lights in the firmament, than all the saints and angels in heaven.
You will say, What is all this to us? Certainly much every way; the apostle tells you, Rom. viii. 2. "That the law of the Spirit of life, which is in Christ Jesus, hath freed me from the law of sin and of death;" let us enquire into these words, "the law of the Spirit of life;" the Spirit of life is here put for life as elsewhere, "After three days and an half, the Spirit of life coming from God shall enter into them," Rev. xi. 11. Now, life is that whereby a thing acteth and moveth itself, and it is the cause and beginning of action and motion; and this "Spirit of life," or life itself, being here applied to Christ, it is that in Christ, which is the beginning and cause of all his holy actions, and what was that but his original holiness, or the holiness of his human nature; but why is the holiness of Christ's nature called "the Spirit of life?" I answer,
1. Because it was infused into his manhood by the Spirit of God, "The Holy Ghost shall come upon thee, -- therefore also that holy thing which shall be born of thee shall be called the Son of God," Luke i. 35.
2. Because it is a most exact, and absolute, and perfect holiness; the scripture-phrase setting out things in perfection or fulness, usually adds the word spirit unto them; as the spirit of pride, the spirit of truth, and the spirit of error; so then the meaning of the Spirit of life is all one with the most absolute and most perfect purity and holiness of the nature of Christ. It is briefly as if the apostle had said, The law of the Spirit of life, or the power of the most absolute and perfect holiness of the nature of Christ, "hath freed me from the law of sin and death;" hath acquitted me from the power of my sinful nature, and from the power of death due to me, in respect of my sinful and corrupt nature. We might draw from hence this conclusion, "That the benefits of Christ's habitual righteousness infused at his first conception, is imputed to believers to their justification." As the obedience of his life, and the merit of his death, so the holiness infused at his very conception, hath its influence into our justification, it is by the obedience of his life, that we are accounted actually holy, and by the purity of his conception, (or habitual grace) that we are accounted personally holy. But I must not stay here; thus much of the holiness of Christ's nature.