Wilson on Article XXXI: Of the one Oblation of Christ finished upon the Cross

»> With the one only sacrifice of his death he satisfied for our sins before God, and, appeasing the wrath of God, made us at one with him. With his blood, as with most pure washing-, he hath washed and cleansed away all the filth and spots of our souls ; and defacing with everlasting forgetfulness the memory of our sins, that they shall no more come in the sight of God, he hath cancelled, made void, and done away the hand-writing whereby we were bound and convicted, and also the decree, by the sentence whereof we were condemned. All these things hath he done by his death, both for the living and for the dead that trusted in him while they lived. Nowell, p. 51.

Almighty God, our heavenly Father, who, of thy tender mercy, didst give thine only Son Jesus Christ to suffer death upon the cross for our redemption ; who made there (by his one oblation of himself once offered) a full, perfect, and sufficient sacrifice, oblation, and satisfaction for the sins of the whole world ; and did institute, and in his holy Gospel command us to continue a perpetual memory of that his precious death, until his coming again. Communion Serv.

■ Christ hath loved us, and given himself for us an offering and a sacrifice to God for a sweet smell- ing savour. Eph. v. 2. Christ hath once suffered for sins the just for the unjust, that he might bring us to God. 1 Pet. iii. 18. Once in the end of the world hath he appeared to put away sin by the sacrifice of himself. Heb.ix. 26.

b God sending his Son in the like- ness of sinful flesh, and for sin, condemned sin in the flesh. Rom. viii. 3. Now once in the end of the world hath he appeared to put away sin by the sacrifice of himself. Once offered to bear the sins of

many. Heb.ix. 26, 28. Tofinish

transgression, and to make an end of sins, and to make reconciliation for iniquity, and to bring in ever- lasting righteousness. Dau. ix. 24.

He is the propitiation for our sins : and not for ours only, but also for the sins of the whole world. 1 John ii. 2. God was in Christ recon- ciling the world to himself, not imputing their trespasses unto them. 2 Cor. v. 19. One mediator be- tween God and men, the man Christ Jesus; who gave himself a ransom for all. 1 Tim. ii. 5, 6. Being jus- tified freely by his grace through the redemption that is in Christ Jesus, whom God hath set forth to be a propitiation through faith in his blood, to declare his righteous- ness for the remission of sins that are past. Rom. iii. 24, 25. How much more shall the blood of Christ, who through the eternal Spirit offered himself without spot to God, purge your conscience from dead works to serve the living God! a a 2

original and actual : and there is c no other satis- faction for sin but that alone. Wherefore the d sacrifices of masses, in the which it was com-

We must apprehend the merits of Christ’s death and passion by faith, and that with a strong and stedfast faith ; nothing- doubting but that Christ, by his own oblation and once offering of himself upon the cross, hath taken away our sins, and hath restored us again into God’s favour, so fully and perfectly, that no other sacrifice for sin shall hereafter be requisite or needful in all the world. Horn. xxv. 2.

We must trust only in God’s mercy, and that sacrifice which our High Priest and Saviour Christ Jesus, the Son of God, once offered for us upon the cross, to obtain thereby God’s grace and remission, as well of our original sin in baptism, as of all actual sin committed by us after our baptism ; if we truly repent, and turn unfeignedly to him again. Horn. iii. 2. See also Article II. and XVI.

d The Lord’s Supper was not ordained to this end, that Christ’s body should be offered in sacrifice to God the Father

Heb. ix. 14. Christ loved the church, and gave himself for it; that he might sanctify and cleanse it with the washing of water by the word, that he might present it to himself a glorious church, not having spot or wrinkle or any such thing; but that it should be holy and without blemish. Eph. v. 25—27. We are sanctified through the offering of the body of Jesus Christ once for all Heb. x. 10. By one offering he hath perfected for ever them who are sanctified. Heb. x. 14. In whom we have redemption through his blood, even the forgiveness of sins. You hath he reconciled in the body of his flesh through death, to present you holy and unblameable and unie- proveable in his sight. Col. i. 14, 21, 22. God hath blessed us with all spiritual blessings in Christ. Eph. i. 3. In him dwelleth all the fulness of the Godhead bodily, and ye are complete in him. Col. ii. 9, 10. The riches of the glory of this

mystery is Christ in you the

hope of glory : whom we preach, warning every man, and teaching every man in all wisdom ; that we may present every man perfect in Christ Jesus. Col. i. 27, 28.

c I will make a new covenant, &c. Jer. xxxi. 31. This is the co- venant that I will make with them, saith the Lord : I will put my laws into their hearts, and in their minds will I write them; and their sins and iniquities will I remember no more. Now where remission of these is, there is no more offering for sin. Heb. x. 16—18. There remaineth no more sacrifice for sins. Heb. x. 10. Messiah shall

be cut off, but not for himself

and he shall cause the sacrifice and the oblation to cease. Dan. ix. 26, 27. Almost all things are by the law purged with blood; and with- out shedding of blood is no remission. Heb. ix. 22. The blood of Jesus Christ his Son cleanseth us from all sin. If we confess our sins, he is faithful and just to forgive us our sins, and to cleanse us from all un- righteousness. 1 John i. 7, 9. I am he that blotteth out thy transgres- sions for mine own sake. Is. xliii. 25. As for our transgressions, thou shalt purge them away. Ps. lxv. 3. There is forgiveness with thee, that thou mayest be feared. Ps. cxxx. 4.

d Nor yet that he should offer himself often, as the high priest

monly said, that the priest did offer Christ for the quick and the dead, to have remission of pain or guilt, were e blasphemous fables and dangerous deceits.

for sins. For he, when he did institute his Supper, commanded us to eat his body, not to offer it. As for the prerogative of of- fering for sins, it pertaineth to Christ alone, as to him which is the eternal Priest, which also when he died upon the cross, once made that only and everlasting sacrifice for our salvation, and fully performed the same for ever. For us there is nothing left to do, but to take the use and benefit of that eternal sacrifice bequeathed us by the Lord himself, which we chiefly do in the Lord’s Supper. Nowell, p. 111.

e When they say, and sometimes do persuade fools, that they are able by their masses to distribute and to apply unto men’s commodity all the merits of Christ’s death : yea, although many times the parties think nothing of the matter, and understand full little what is done, this is a mockery, a heathenish fancy, and a very toy. For it is our faith that applieth the death and cross of Christ to our benefit, and not the act of the massing priest. ” Faith had in the sacraments,” saith Augustine, ” doth justify, and not the sacraments.” And Origen saith, ” Christ is the Priest, the propitiation and sacrifice : which propitiation cometh to every one by mean of faith.” And so, by this reck- oning, we say that the sacraments of Christ, without faith, do not once profit these that be alive ; a great deal less do they profit those that be dead. Jewell. See Art. XXVIII.

entereth into the holy place every 25, 26. After he had offered one

year with blood of others : for then sacrifice for sins, for ever sat down

must he often have suffered since on the right hand of God. Heb. x.

the foundation of the world : but 12. Ye are built up a spiritual

now once in the end of the world house, an holy priesthood, to offer

hath he appeared to put away sin up spiritual sacrifices, acceptable

by the sacrifice of himself. Heb. ix. to God by Jesus Christ. 1 Pet. ii. 5.