The Works of the Rev. Hugh Binning

Name: The Works of the Rev. Hugh Binning
Author: Binning, Hugh

Binning, Hugh

Presbyterian Church -- Sermons; Sermons, English; Theology -- Early works to 1800; Theology -- History -- 17th century

Now, the faith of a Christian is no fancy, it is not a light vain
imagination of the brain, but it dwells in the heart,—“with the heart man
believes,” and it dwells with love. Faith and love, we need not be curious
to distinguish them. It is certain that love is in it, and from it. It is
in the very bosom of it, because faith is a soul embracing of Christ, it
is a choosing of him for its portion and then upon the review of this
goodly portion, and from consideration of what he is, and hath done for
us, the soul loves him still more, and is impatient of so much distance
from him. We find them conjoined in Scripture, but they are one in the
heart. O that we studied to have these jointly engraven on the heart! As
they are joined in the word, so our heart should be a “living epistle.”
Faith and love are two words but one thing under different notions. They
are the outgoings of the soul to Christ for life,—the breathings of the
soul after him, for more of him, when it hath once tasted how good he is.
Faith is not a speculation, or a wandering thought of truth, it is the
truth, not captivated into the mind, but dwelling in the heart, and
getting possession of the whole man. You know a man and his will are one,
not so a man and his mind, for he may conceive the truth of many things he
loves not, but whatever a man loves, that and he in a manner become one
with another. Love is unitive, it is the most excellent union of distant
things. The will commands the whole man, and hath the office of applying
of all the faculties to their proper works _Illa imperat, aliæ
exsequuntur_. Therefore when once divine truth gets entry into the heart
of a man, and becomes one with his will and affection, it will quickly
command the whole man to practise and execute, and then he that received
“the truth in love” is found a walker in the truth. Many persons captivate
truth in their understandings, as the Gentiles did, they hold or detain it
in unrighteousness, but because it hath no liberty to descend into the
heart, and possess that garrison, it cannot command the man. But oh! it is
better to be truth’s captive than to captivate truth, saith the apostle,
“Ye have obeyed from the heart that form of doctrine which was delivered
you,” Rom. vi. 17. O a blessed captivity! to be delivered over to
truth,—that is indeed freedom, for truth makes free, John viii. 32. And it
makes free where it is in freedom. Give it freedom to command thee, and it
shall indeed deliver thee from all strange lords; and thou shalt obey it
from the heart when it is indeed in the heart. When the truths of
God,—whether promises, or threatenings or commands,—are impressed into the
heart, you shall find the expressions of them in the conversion. Faith is
not an empty assent to the truth, but a receiving of it “in love,” and
when the truth is received in love, then it begins to work by love. “Faith
worketh by love,” saith Paul, Gal. v. 6. That now is the proper nature of

Public-domain text, read in full here on John Shaqi.

Opening the text

The Works of the Rev. Hugh BinningBinning, Hugh

Religion

The Works of the Rev. Hugh Binning

Binning, Hugh

Presbyterian Church -- Sermons; Sermons, English; Theology -- Early works to 1800; Theology -- History -- 17th century

Now, the faith of a Christian is no fancy, it is not a light vain
imagination of the brain, but it dwells in the heart,—“with the heart man
believes,” and it dwells with love. Faith and love, we need not be curious
to distinguish them. It is certain that love is in it, and from it. It is
in the very bosom of it, because faith is a soul embracing of Christ, it
is a choosing of him for its portion and then upon the review of this
goodly portion, and from consideration of what he is, and hath done for
us, the soul loves him still more, and is impatient of so much distance
from him. We find them conjoined in Scripture, but they are one in the
heart. O that we studied to have these jointly engraven on the heart! As
they are joined in the word, so our heart should be a “living epistle.”
Faith and love are two words but one thing under different notions. They
are the outgoings of the soul to Christ for life,—the breathings of the
soul after him, for more of him, when it hath once tasted how good he is.
Faith is not a speculation, or a wandering thought of truth, it is the
truth, not captivated into the mind, but dwelling in the heart, and
getting possession of the whole man. You know a man and his will are one,
not so a man and his mind, for he may conceive the truth of many things he
loves not, but whatever a man loves, that and he in a manner become one
with another. Love is unitive, it is the most excellent union of distant
things. The will commands the whole man, and hath the office of applying
of all the faculties to their proper works _Illa imperat, aliæ
exsequuntur_. Therefore when once divine truth gets entry into the heart
of a man, and becomes one with his will and affection, it will quickly
command the whole man to practise and execute, and then he that received
“the truth in love” is found a walker in the truth. Many persons captivate
truth in their understandings, as the Gentiles did, they hold or detain it
in unrighteousness, but because it hath no liberty to descend into the
heart, and possess that garrison, it cannot command the man. But oh! it is
better to be truth’s captive than to captivate truth, saith the apostle,
“Ye have obeyed from the heart that form of doctrine which was delivered
you,” Rom. vi. 17. O a blessed captivity! to be delivered over to
truth,—that is indeed freedom, for truth makes free, John viii. 32. And it
makes free where it is in freedom. Give it freedom to command thee, and it
shall indeed deliver thee from all strange lords; and thou shalt obey it
from the heart when it is indeed in the heart. When the truths of
God,—whether promises, or threatenings or commands,—are impressed into the
heart, you shall find the expressions of them in the conversion. Faith is
not an empty assent to the truth, but a receiving of it “in love,” and
when the truth is received in love, then it begins to work by love. “Faith
worketh by love,” saith Paul, Gal. v. 6. That now is the proper nature of

Public-domain text, read in full here on John Shaqi.

The Works of the Rev. Hugh Binning

The Works of the Rev. Hugh Binning

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