William Perkins On The Imputation Of Christ’s Active Obedience
“[A]n untruth, namely, that we are justified only by the passion of Christ. But if this were so, we should be justified without fulfilling the law. For (as I have said) we owe to God a double debt: one...
View ArticlePerkins: Christ Did Not Obey And Die To Make Our Works Meritorious
Objection 2. Christ by His death, merited that our works should merit life everlasting. Answer. That is false. All we find in Scripture is that Christ, by His merit procured pardon of sin, imputation...
View ArticlePerkins: Learning And Wit Is For Nothing If One Is Outside Of Christ
[I]t is a privilege to be endued with all kinds of learning, of arts and tongues, but alas, all is nothing; for if a man had all wit, wisdom, and learning, and could speak in all matters with the...
View ArticlePerkins: Civil Righteousness Will Not Do
[S]uch persons as live an honest and civil life, and stand upon this, that they are no thieves, no murderers, no adulterers, no blasphemers, but in outward duties show love to God and man, they must I...
View ArticlePerkins On The Threefold Use Of The Law
[W]hy the Lord says, “He that doeth the things of the law shall live,” considering no man since the fall can do the things of the law? Answer. The Lord since man’s fall repeats the law in his [its] old...
View ArticlePerkins: Justification Is The Greatest Question In The World
Two things are generally to be considered, the occasion of this [Galatians] epistle and the scope. The occasion that moved Paul to write this epistle was because certain false apostles slandered him...
View ArticlePerkins: Justification Is The Foundation Of The House
A man breaks down the windows of his house. The house stands. He breaks down the roof or the walls. The house yet stands, though deformed. He pulls up the foundation— the house itself falls and ceases...
View ArticlePerkins: Rome Confuses Law And Gospel
The Church of Rome in a manner confounds the law and the gospel, saying that the gospel, which is the new law, reveals Christ more clearly than Moses’ law did, which they call the old law. But this is...
View ArticleWilliam Perkins On Infant Baptism
Infants of believing parents are likewise to be baptized. The grounds of their baptism are these. First, the commandment of God, “Baptize all nations” (Matt. 28:19), in which words the baptism of...
View ArticleWilliam Perkins: Both Justification And Salvation Are Through Faith Alone
“Faith therefore justifies because it is an instrument to apprehend and apply that which justifies, namely, Christ and His obedience. As the Israelites stung of fiery serpents were cured, so are we...
View ArticleWilliam Perkins On Nicodemism
“First, among the Gentiles at Antioch, he uses Christian liberty in eating things forbidden by the ceremonial law. Yet after the coming of certain Jews from Jerusalem, he separates himself from the...
View ArticlePerkins: Your Good Works Are All Imperfect And Mixed With Corruption
The child of God is like a lame man that goes the right way, but yet halts at every step. Abraham and Sarah desire issue, that is from the Spirit; but they desire issue by Hagar their handmaid, that is...
View ArticlePerkins: We Are Not Justified By Our Works Either Before Or After Our...
“[I] answer, that not only works done before faith are excluded, but also works that follow faith and are done in the estate of grace. For Paul here reasons thus: If no flesh be justified by works,...
View ArticlePerkins: Want Heaven? Go To Church
We must in this world come as near heaven and the happiness of life everlasting as may be (Phil. 3:14). And for this cause we must join ourselves to the assemblies where the word is preached, prayer is...
View ArticlePerkins: Eternal Life Is By Grace Alone, Through Faith Alone
If the inheritance of life eternal be by the law, it is no more by the promise. But it is by the promise because God gave it unto Abraham freely by promise. Therefore it comes not by the law. The...
View ArticlePerkins On The Pedagogical Use Of The Law
If life and justice come not by the law, the law then is in vain. And this objection is expressed by way of interrogation, ‘Wherefore then serves the law?’ The answer is in the next words, ‘It is added...
View ArticlePerkins: The Remedy For Our Need Is To Be Clothed With Christ
For the King of heaven has long invited us to the marriage of His Son. We have yielded ourselves to be His guests. And there is a time when the King will take a survey of all His guests, whether they...
View ArticlePerkins On The Order In Which To Read The New Testament
“[P]roceed to the reading of the Scriptures in this order:…read first the epistle of Paul to the Romans [and], after that, the Gospel of John (as being indeed the keys of the New Testament).” William...
View ArticleWilliam Perkins On Justification
Perkins objected to Rome’s sacrifice of the Mass. For Perkins, this doctrine was attached to erroneous views of Christology, Christ’s propitiatory suffering unto death, and in turn the doctrine of...
View ArticleWilliam Perkins On Justification (2)
In connection with Trent and Bellarmine’s stance on purgatory and the sacrifice of the Mass was Rome’s doctrine of a second justification. Bellarmine’s Scriptural basis for a second justification was...
View ArticlePerkins: The Sum Of Covenant Of Grace Was Given In Paradise
[G]od gave the covenant of grace in the beginning to our first parents in paradise, the sum whereof was this: ‘The seed of the woman shall break the serpent’s head.’ William Perkins | Commentary on...
View ArticlePerkins: As Soon As One Believes
For so soon as a man believes, he is presently justified. For every believer has... Continue reading →
View ArticleWilliam Perkins: Grace Admits No Partner
. . . the Galatians are removed not only from the doctrine of Paul, but also from the grace of God. And the reason is because they joined the works of the law with Christ and His grace in the cause of...
View ArticleFaith: The Cause Of Love
The third conclusion is that true faith works by love. Hence the papists gather that love is the form and life of faith, not because it makes faith to be faith but because it makes it to be a true...
View ArticleCatholicity, Confusion, And A Correction
In the mid-1970s, the original cast of Saturday Night Live featured a regular character as part of the Update sketch. The character’s name was Emily Litella. She was played by the late Gilda Radner. It...
View ArticlePerkins: The Doctrine Of A Two-Stage Justification Is A “Popish Device”
That popish device of a second justification is a satanical delusion for the Word of God does acknowledge no more but one justification at all, and that absolute and complete of itself. There is but...
View ArticlePerkins: Two Natures, One Christ
The second question is, how Christ could obey, being God, and satisfy for us, being man? Answer. Christ must be considered, not merely as God, or as man, but as God-man or man-God. For the Godhead does...
View ArticlePerkins On Self Love
Men’s hearts are so possessed with self-love, and they are so addicted to their own praise, that it is grief to them to hear any praised beside themselves; whereas love binds us as well to take care...
View ArticlePerkins: Worshiping God Outside of The True Christ Is Idolatry
The Jew worships God out of Christ; and so does the Turk; yea and the papists worship God, but yet outside of the true Christ; for (as has been shown elsewhere) the Christ of the papists is a...
View ArticlePerkins: Salvation, All Of It, Is By Grace Alone, Through Faith Alone
As part of my response to the claim that some Reformed orthodox theologians taught that salvation was not only in two stages but also, in some way, through works, I appealed to a quotation from William...
View ArticlePerkins: To Follow Paul We Must Preach Christ
The third point is the end of Paul’s conversion, in these words: “that he might preach him among the Gentiles.” [Gal. 1:16] Here I consider what he must preach, namely the Son, Christ. And to whom?...
View ArticlePerkins: Christ Is Given To Us In Word And Sacrament
The third question is, how the obedience of Christ should be made ours? Answer. By the free donation of God. For Christ is really given unto us in the word and sacraments; and consequently the...
View ArticlePerkins: The Use Of Sola Fide
This doctrine is of great use. First, we learn hence that a man is justified by the mere mercy of God, and that there is excluded from justification all merit of congruity,* all meritorious works of...
View ArticleReview: The Labors of a Godly and Learned Divine, William Perkins: Including...
The English Reformed theologian William Perkins (1558–1602), is perhaps the most prominent and influential of all English-speaking divines. As preacher and lecturer at Great St. Andrews and Christ’s...
View ArticlePerkins: That Christ Was Cursed For Us Demonstrates Our Sinfulness
That Christ became a curse for us, it shows the greatness and horribleness of our sins; it shows the grievous hardness of our hearts that never almost mourn for them. It shows the unspeakable love and...
View ArticlePerkins: Christ Voluntarily Became Accused For Us
. . . how Christ was a curse, or accursed, who is the fountain of blessedness? Answer. He is not so by nature. For He is the natural Son of God. Not by His own fault, for He is the unspotted lamb . . ....
View ArticlePerkins: Justification By Works Is Nature, Not Grace
Whereas Paul says that “they are under the curse, that will be of works,” we see the whole world almost walks in the way of perdition. It is a conclusion of nature that we must be saved and justified...
View ArticlePerkins On How Good Works Work
Again, it may be demanded (considering we cannot fulfill the law), how our works can please God? Answer. In every good work, there is something that is God’s and something that is ours alone. The...
View ArticlePerkins: Christ Is The Ground And Fountain
If Christ be the ground of the promise, then is He the ground and fountain of all the blessings of God. And for this cause, the right way to obtain any blessing of God is first to receive the promise,...
View ArticlePerkins: Christ’s Curse Brings Abraham’s Blessing
Whence comes the benediction of Abraham? Answer. From the cursed death of Christ. For thus are the words, “He was made a curse for us, that the benediction of Abraham might come on the Gentiles.” Mark...
View ArticlePerkins On Paul’s Distinction Between Law And Gospel In Galatians
When Paul says, “The law is not of faith,” he sets down the main difference between the law and the gospel. The law promises life to him that performs perfect obedience, and that for his works. The...
View ArticlePerkins On The First Use
When Paul says [in Gal. 3:22], “We are all shut up under sin,” he puts us in mind of our most miserable condition that we are captives of sin and Satan, enclosed in our sins as in a prison, like...
View ArticlePerkins Opposed Two-Stage Justification
. . . we must here observe the opposition between the law and the free promise of God in the justification of a sinner. “For if life come by the law, it comes not by the promise,” says Paul. And, “If...
View ArticlePerkins: Salvation Is A Public Donation
Lastly, in that Paul says, God “gave” and freely bestowed the “inheritance by the promise,” it must be considered that this giving is no private but a public donation. For Abraham must be considered as...
View ArticlePerkins: The End Of The Law Is Conviction
Mark further, the end of the law is conviction. And the end of our conviction is that the promise of mercy may be given to them that believe. Here is notable comfort, with encouragement to all good...
View ArticlePerkins In Defense Of Particular Redemption
Whereas Paul says that “the promise is given to believers,” [Gal. 3:22] it is manifest that the promise is not universal in respect of all mankind, but only indefinite and universal in respect of...
View ArticlePerkins On The Civil Use Of the Law
Again, here we see the use of God’s laws, which serve to prevent, restrain, and cut off sin, into which otherwise men would fall unless they were compassed and guarded by laws. Some object for freedom...
View ArticlePerkins: What Does Paul Mean By “Schoolmaster”?
Here by “schoolmaster” understand one that teaches little children or [minors] the first rudiments or elements, A, B, C. And the law is “a schoolmaster to Christ,” for two causes. One, because it...
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