File 4: Hassall family, correspondence, volume 1, pp. 8096-8750, ca. 1825-ca. 1900

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Christians that except their righteousness The reasons are simply these 1 Their right -eousness was very defective; both in what they taught & what they practised. They set up "their own traditions" in the place of the word of God & hence their directing men after the rudiments of men and not after Christ - But it is written to the law & to the testimony let us come & tend in their prac -tice though they did many things "They left others undone" - The charge against them is very heavy - You pay tythe if mint, anise & cummin and have om -mitted the weightier matters of the law judgment mercy & truth "-

Their principles or motives were wrong & hence whatever they did was not pleasing or acceptable to God - For the motive is that which determines the nature or quality of an action - If thine eye be single thy intention pure, thy whole body shall be full of light but if thine eye be evil thy whole body shall be full of dark= ness. Instead of a principle of love to God, they did all to be seen of men. Hence their best righteousness was filthy rags; their most beautiful actions were but splendid sins - They wanted faith & without faith it not possible to please God - They wanted that Charity or love without which all our doings are nothing worth -

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3 A third reason was that they built upon their own righteousness for acceptance with God & an admission into the kingdom of heaven - This was completely opposed to the will of God & the plan of Salvation formed by Him. He was of purer eyes than to behold iniquity therefore He had sent his Son into the world to die in their stead & to redeem them by his blood - Nothing can be more absurd or insolent than for creatures who are daily & hourly sinning & utterly depraved to expect their services to be rewarded - It is an insult upon his wisdom his goodness & grace in providing so costly a sacrifice for

for his creatures who according to their own views can save themselves - This leads us more particularly to that wherein the Scribes & Pharisees were wanting and without which all their sacrifices & duties were nothing worth so that our Lord declared that publicans & harlots should go into the kingdom of heaven before them" They wanted an interest in the Lord Jes Christ - They wanted a knowledge of themselves as sinful [indecipherable]" They wanted to know & to feel that they were self righteous sinners - They wanted their sins forgiven their hearts renewed & their consciences purified

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they wanted faith in Christ - supreme love to God - a new spirit or a new heart - Do men gather grapes of them or figs of thistles? A good tree cannot bring forth evil fruit neither can a corrupt tree bring forth good fruit It was because of this carnal mind this corrupt principle remaining in them: because they never were corrup -ted, that Jesus bid them "cleanse the inside of the cup & platter & compa -red them to "whited sepulchres which appear beautiful outward but within are full of dead mens bones and of all uncleanness" -

And thus we are led to the emaning of the text to see wherein our righteous ness must exceed that of the scribes & Pharisees if we want to enter the king domof God - We want to remark that there are two kinds of rightousness belonging to the faithful servant of Jesus Christ - One imputed which is the righteousness of Jesus Christ & made ours by faith - The other is imparted righteousness called our own & wrought in us by the spirit of grace

To the first of these: these Scribes & Pharisees were utter [indecipherable] & in consequence they had the latter only in appearance & not in reality

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For one is the natural consequence attendant upon the other as will appear from the following considerations - As every child of Adam is born in sin and as it advances in years hourly offending: his own obedience cannot save for by : The deeds of the law no flesh can be justified " To re lieve us from this lost & miserable state has Christ the son of God took our nature upon him and became obedient to the law for us. He died under the curse & fulfilled all its requirements - This obedience under death is called the righteousness of

of Christ and is completed to all that believe - so that every sinner coming in unfeigned penitence to Jesus Christ for pardon & grace - coming to Him as all is hope all his salvation find, a perfect or complete righteousness wrought out for him & hence he is accepted in the sight of God & justified through the work of merits of Jes Christ. Thus you read of Abraham the father of the faithful. He believed in God & it was counter to him for righteousness & thus all things but loss for the excellency of the knowledge of Christ Jesus my Lord for whom I have suffered loss of all things and do count them

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but dross that I may win Christ & be found in him not having in mine own righteousness which is of the law but that which is through the faith of Christ the righteousness which is of God by faith - The other righteousness of the true Christian is that which is produced in his soul, at his conver sion by the grace or spirit of God - or imparted righteousness. Some call this an inherent righteous -ness but I think improperly: For it is in fact a principle of holiness or the love of God implanted in the heart & shining forth in the whole life conversation by which in the language of Scripture he becomes spiritually minded and walks no longer after the flesh but

after the spirit. The heart being renewed his life & conversation is as becometh god liness: his works of piety integrity & benevolence to man are the fruits & evidence of his faith & constitute "that holiness without which no man shall see the Lord". Hence we may perceive in what respects it exceeded the righteousness of the Pharisees & Scribes I. It was agreeable to the word of God & not after the traditions of men. It is written to the law & the testimony if they speak not according to this word it is because there is no life in them. II. It was sincere and no hypocrisy was in it. The wisdom

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