1. For that their highest acts of holiness are tainted therewith, and made imperfect thereby. (Isa. 64:6; Psa. 143:2; Heb. 12:15; Matt. 6:23) This is manifest, because they still are afraid to shew themselves before God in their own works, and because they betake them for acceptation with God, to the priestly office of Christ, and pray by him, 'forgive us our trespasses.'
2. This is clear also, because we are, while in this world, nowhere by the word said to have attained to the mark and point of absolute perfection; but are bid to grow, to follow on, to press forward, and to perfect holiness in the fear of God. (2 Peter 3:18; Heb. 6:12; Phil. 3:12-14; 2 Cor. 7:1) Yea, the best of us all, even the apostles and prophets, have not only made it manifest by their imperfections, that as yet they have not departed from iniquity as they should; but they have confessed, and denied not, that they were yet in the pursuit of righteousness, and had not already attained.
3. This is clear also, for that the righteousness, by the which the best of saints are justified in the sight of God, is a righteousness of another, not their own; the righteousness of another man, for that there is not any upon earth that doth good and sins not. And what need we pray, 'forgive us our trespasses,' approach God in the perfections of another, and be bid 'to perfect holiness,' if we had already attained, or were already perfect, or were so departed from iniquity as we should.
4. Alas, the complaints of God concerning this matter, doth sufficiently testify the truth of what I say. When God came to his people in Egypt, and bid them forsake the idols of Egypt, they did not. But they rebelled against me, says he, and would not hearken unto me; they did not, every man, cast away the abominations of his eyes, neither did they forsake the idols of Egypt. Well, he saved them out of Egypt, and brought them into the wilderness, and said to them there, Obey my laws, and my commandments; but the house of Israel rebelled against me in the wilderness, they walked not in my statutes, they despised my judgments. Well, then he had them from the wilderness to Canaan, and then said to them, Keep my laws. (Eze. 20) But when he had brought them into the land, then they also polluted themselves, and sinned, against him as before. Again, when God brought them out of captivity, both they, and every thing that they did, was unclean. (Hag. 2:14)
To be short, what says Paul in the seventh to the Romans? what says James in the third chapter of his epistle? (ch. 3:2) And what says John in his first epistle, and first chapter? (1 John 1:9) Do they not all confess, though themselves were apostles, and so for grace and gifts beyond any that breathe in this world, that sin and iniquity was yet with them; and so consequently, that there was not as yet that departing by them therefrom, as there should. And the reason, as I have said, is, because grace is weak, weak in the beat and most strong of the saints of God. Hence the greatest saints use to complain, when much assaulted with corruptions, or attended with very hard service for God, of their weakness and insufficiency, as to a completeness of doing the will of God.
(1.) Moses, when God did but bid him nourish and succour Israel in the wilderness, and carry them in his bosom, as the nursing-father beareth the sucking child, was stricken with such fear of miscarrying, through the weakness of his graces and the power of his corruptions, that he cried to God, saying, 'I am not able to bear all this people alone, because it too heavy for me. And if thou deal thus with me, kill me, I pray thee, out of hand,—and let me not see my wretchedness.' (Num. 11:14, 15)
(2.) Job, when he was, for a proof of his integrity, to be exercised a while with some of the judgments of God, cries out, in a sense of his weakness to bear them, and to go through as he should, 'Is my strength the strength of stones? or is my flesh of brass?' And again, 'Am I a sea, or a whale, that thou settest a watch over me? Wilt thou break a leaf driven to and fro? And wilt thou pursue the dry stubble?' (Job 6:12; 8:12; 13:25)
(3.) So Daniel, when he was but to stand and talk with the angel, how weak did he find himself; 'There remained,' saith he, 'no strength in me;' and, '0 my Lord, by the vision my sorrows are turned upon me, and I have retained no strength. For how can the servant of this my Lord talk with this my Lord? for as for me, straightway there remained no strength in me, neither is there breath left in me.' (Dan. 10) Some may say, but this is natural weakness. But I ask, how came nature to be so weak, but through sin? the remains whereof abiding still upon the best of saints, make them, not withstanding their graces, incapable to do any thing as they should.
(4.) Paul, a man of men, who had so much grace, revelation of grace and communion with Christ, that sometimes he knew not whether he was in or out of the body, and yet you find him making bitter complaint of the weakness of his grace, and of the power of his corruptions. 'I am carnal,' saith he, and what I hate that do I. 'How to perform that which is good I find not;' 'when I would do good evil is present with me.' 'But I see another law in my members, warring against the law of my mind, and bringing me into captivity to the law of sin, which is in my members.' '0 wretched man that I am,' &c. What complaints, what confessions, what bewailing of weakness is here? And what need was there of any of this, if Paul could, as he would, have departed from iniquity? (Rom. 8)
I have instanced in these four men, because as to failings and miscarriages they are as free—by what the holy record saith—as any four of whose lives you shall read in all the Bible; but you see that they were too weak to do good and depart from iniquity as they would.