John Bunyan wrote:
"For faith hath joined Christ and the soul together, and being so joined, the soul is one spirit with him: not essentially; but in agreement, and oneness of design. Besides, when Christ is truly received and embraced to the justifying of the sinner, in that man’s heart he dwells by his word and Spirit, through the same faith also. Now Christ, by his Spirit and Word, must needs season the soul he thus dwells in. So then the soul being seasoned, it seasoneth the body; and body and soul, season the life and conversation.
For the true beholding of Jesus to justification and life, changes from glory to glory. Nor can that man that hath so believed, as that by his faith he hath received and embraced Christ for life before God, be destitute of good works. For, as I said, the Word and Spirit come also by this faith, and dwell in the heart and conscience." (Saving Faith - here)
If "faith" is that which "hath joined Christ and the soul," and if all the blessings of salvation follow union with Christ, then ergo, all follows faith. In fact, this latter proposition is implied in the words of Paul who said "whatsoever is not of faith is sin." (Rom. 14:23) This implies that "all is of faith."
In other article Bunyan wrote:
"Third. To be saved is to be brought to, and helped to lay hold on, Jesus Christ by faith.
2. As they must be brought to, so they must be helped to lay hold on Christ by faith; for as coming to Christ, so faith, is not in our own power; therefore we are said to be raised up with him "through the faith of the operation of God." And again, we are said to believe, "according to the working of his mighty power, which he wrought in Christ, when he raised him from the dead" (Col 2:12; Eph 1:19,20). Now we are said to be saved by faith, because by faith we lay hold of, venture upon, and put on Jesus Christ for life. For life, I say, because God having made him the Saviour, hath given him life to communicate to sinners, and the life that he communicates to them is the merit of his flesh and blood, which whoso eateth and drinketh by faith, hath eternal life, because that flesh and blood hath merit in it sufficient to obtain the favour of God.
"Saved by faith." For although salvation beginneth in God's purpose, and comes to us through Christ's righteousness, yet is not faith exempted from having a hand in saving of us. Not that it meriteth aught, but is given by God to those which he saveth, that thereby they may embrace and put on that Christ by whose righteousness they must be saved. Wherefore this faith is that which here distinguisheth them that shall be saved from them that shall be damned. Hence it is said, "He that believeth not, shall be damned"; and hence again it is that the believers are called "the children, the heirs, and the blessed with faithful Abraham;" that the promise by faith in Jesus Christ might be given to them that believe (Gal 3:6-9,26; Rom 4:13,14).
Fourth. To be saved is to be preserved in the faith to the end. "He that shall endure unto the end, the same shall be saved" (Matt 24:13). Not that perseverance is an accident in Christianity, or a thing performed by human industry; they that are saved "are kept by the power of God, through faith unto salvation" (1 Peter 1:3-6).
But perseverance is absolutely necessary to the complete saving of the soul, because he that falleth short of the state that they that are saved are possessed of, as saved, cannot arrive to that saved state. He that goeth to sea with a purpose to arrive at Spain, cannot arrive there if he be drowned by the way; wherefore perseverance is absolutely necessary to the saving of the soul, and therefore it is included in the complete saving of us—"Israel shall be saved in the Lord with an everlasting salvation: ye shall not be ashamed nor confounded world without end" (Isa 45:17). Perseverance is here made absolutely necessary to the complete saving of the soul."
Where there is no faith and trust in Christ Jesus as Lord and Savior there is no salvation. Oh how happy I am to be a believer! So thankful that the Holy Spirit convinced me of this great truth as a young man! Like the apostle Paul I can say "I know in whom I have believed and am persuaded..."
Bunyan continued:
"The Holy Spirit coming into us, and dwelling in us, worketh out many salvations for us now, and each of them in order also to our being saved for ever."
Our Hardshell brothers should pay close attention to these words of Bunyan since he references "many salvations." But, unlike our Hardshell brothers, he sees these several deliverances as "in order also to our being saved for ever."
Bunyan continued:
"4. This is he that worketh faith in our hearts, without which neither the grace of the Father nor the grace of the Son can save us, "For he that believeth not, shall be damned" (Mark 16:16; Rom 15:13)."
This was not only the view of the Baptists of the 17th and 18th centuries, but was the view of the first Hardshells.
Bunyan continued:
"1. The things that immediately concern our justification and salvation, they are offered, yea, given to us freely, and we are commanded to receive them by faith."
If this is true, then faith precedes all, because faith is what unites the soul to Christ.
Bunyan continued:
"God is the first that seeketh peace; and, as I said, in a way of entreaty he bids his ministers pray you in Christ's stead; "as though God did beseech you by us, we pray you, in Christ's stead, be ye reconciled to God." O sinner, wilt thou not open? Behold, God the Father and his Son Jesus Christ stand both at the door of thy heart, beseeching there for favour from thee, that thou wilt be reconciled to them, with promise, if thou wilt comply, to forgive thee all thy sins. O grace! O amazing grace! To see a prince entreat a beggar to receive an alms would be a strange sight; to see a king entreat the traitor to accept of mercy would be a stranger sight than that; but to see God entreat a sinner, to hear Christ say, "I stand at the door and knock," with a heart full and a heaven full of grace to bestow upon him that opens, this is such a sight as dazzles the eyes of angels. What sayest thou now, sinner?"
This is the way God has ordained that we address lost sinners. Our Hardshell brothers who think it a sin to do this are greatly deluded. The fact that they do not preach this way is the leading reason why so few are converted in their assemblies.
Bunyan continued:
"Second. If God now comes up closer to them, and begins to fasten conviction upon the conscience, though such conviction be the first step to faith and repentance, yea, and to life eternal, yet what shifts will they have to forget them, and wear them off! Yea, although they now begin to see that they must either turn or burn, [13] yet oftentimes even then they will study to wave a present conversion: they object, they are too young to turn yet; seven years hence time enough, when they are old, or come upon a sick-bed. O what an enemy is man to his own salvation! I am persuaded that God hath visited some of you often with his Word, even twice and thrice, and you have thrown water as fast as he hath by the Word cast fire upon your conscience." (Saved By Grace OR A Discourse of the Grace of God Showing - here)
Hardshells today claim that to preach "turn or burn" is a gross heresy! How unlike Bunyan and their Baptist forefathers! He also shows that conviction of sin is not an evidence of salvation, like our Hardshell brothers teach, but is only a "first step" to it.
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