Rom. 16. 25 26. even the Mystery which hath been hid from ages and from generations but now is made manifest unto his Saints Col. 1. 26. Though others sit in darknesse and see no light yet unto you through Christ there ariseth light in darknesse and your eyes shall and do see the salvation of the Lord and the glory of the Lord the light shines in your hearts the light of the knowledge of the glory of God in the face of Jesus Christ 2 Cor. 4. 6. he makes known unto you the true life and the true way of life the mystery of salvation 2. He hath it in his commission to instruct and teach you the whole minde and will of To instruct and teach us the while mind and will of God God in every thing which concerns your salvation all things that I have heard of the Father I have made known unto you Joh. 15. 15. As he discovers unto us infallibly the reality and the quality of our salvation so there is not any one truth nor any one path necessary unto that salvation but he opens it and reveales it whether it respect our faith or our obedience he is the annoâ—nting which teacheth you of all things and is truth and is no lye 1 Joh. 2. 27. 3. He is that Prophet who doth teach not only by his word but also by his Spirit others can speak only to the eares of men but he can speak to the hearts of He teacheth not only by his Word but by his Spirit men he can imprimere in mentem as well as mentem exprimere write his Law in the heart as well and as easily as he can deliver and make it known to our mindes when he teacheth you that you must believe he doth by his Spirit cause you to believe when be saith that you must be born again he doth by his Spirit make you new creatures there is not any one grace or duty or path of liâ—e which he sets before you who are in covenant with God but he works in you those very graces and puts forth a strength to perform all those duties and to walke in those paths 4. As a Prophet he is annointed to preeah good tydings Isa 61. 1. the Apostle calls it preaching of peace Ephes 2 17. and not only the Prophet Isaiah in that He is anointed oâ— preach good tidings place but also Christ himself in Luke 4. 18. tells you what those good tydings are what that Gospel is namely to hinde up and heale the broken-heared liberty and deliverance to the captives sight to the blinde to give beauty for ashes the oyle of joy for mourning the garment of praise for the spirit of heavinesse O what comfort is here for you who are the people of God and have Christ to be your Christ and your Prophet Here are glad tydings for you and your Christ is annointed to preach them unto you when your hearts are broken and bruised you have a Christ to binde them up and to heale them with his own precious blood I dyed for you saith Christ this is my blood which was shed for you for the remission of your sins to reconcile you to make peace for you saith Christ and when you finde your selves captives and as it were shut up on prison Christ your Prophet comes to you by his Spirit and breaks open the prison doores and sets you at liberty from your sins from Satan from your fears and tears and all the powers and chaines of darknesse and when your soule sits in darkness and sees no light when they feed on tears and are overwhelmed with sorrows and heaviness your Christ who is your Prophet can and will speak words of life unto you and words of joy unto you why are your hearts troubâ—ed said he to his Disciples woman why weepest thou said he to Mary daughter go in peace so to another son be of good comfort There is no Prophet like your Prophet who knows so much of the minde of God who reveals it so fully so faithfully so infallibly so powerfully so sweetly so savingly Christ is a Priest and your Priest Jesus Christ is a Priest and he is annointed to be your Priest Psal 110. 4. The Lord hath sworn and will not repent Thou art a Priest for ever after the order of Melchisedeck vide Heb. 6. 20. Heb 7. 17. Cap. 4. 14. we have a great High Priest that is passed into the heavens Jesus the Son of God I shall not insist on this Argument to tell you how Christ was called and qualified for his priestly Office nor of the differences 'twixt him and all other Priests nor how that his Sacrifice was his humane nature and the Altar was his Divine Nature and himself according to both these natures was the Priest My intention is only in few words to touch at this Office of Christ as our Mediatour and then to expresse unto you the chief comforts from your interest in him as to this his Office of Priesthood There are two Acts wherein his Priestly Office consisteth Two acts of his Priestly Office Oblation 1. One was the oblation of himself once for all as a perfect Sacrifice for the expiation of sin and reconcilâ—ng us to God Heb. 9. 14. Through the eternal Spirit he offered himself without spot to God verse 26. he appeared to put away sin by the Sacrifice of himself verse 28. Christ was once offered to bear the sins of many Rom. 5. 10. when we were enemies we were reconciled to God by the death of his Son Col. 1. 20. He made peace though the blood of his Crosse Heb. 2. 17. a merciful and faithful High Priest to make reconciliation for the sins of the people 2. The other is His Intercession for us This man saith the Apostle because Intercession he continueth ever hath an unchangeable Priesthood Heb. 7. 24. wherefore he is able to save them to the uttermost that come unto God by him seeing he ever liveth to make intercession for them and therefore as to this interceding part of his Priestly Office Christ is said to appear for us in the presence of God Heb. 9. 24. as the Atturney appears for his Client in Court to answer for him and likewise he is called our Advocate with the Father 1 Joh. 2. 1. to plead for us and to obtaine for us c. But some may now reply We know all this that Christ is a Priest and a Mediatour of Redemption and of Intercession that he offered up himself that he died shed his blood was sacrificed and that he ever lives to make Intercession Quest But where lies the comfort of this to them that are in Covenant with God and have Christ to be their High Priest Sol. What câ—mfort we have by this I will shew you what comfort you have by this and I pray you mark it There are four unspeakable comforts unto you who are Christs from this that he is
a happinesse is all this to know Jesus Christ and as present in my soul To know the love of God in mine heart To know the exceedingly exceeding weight of glory prepared and prepared for me and to know all that God hath freely given me in order unto that exceeding glory This c. 4. He fits us for that salvation which Christ hath purchased for us As the He fits us for that salvation which Christ hath purchased for us blood of Christ did purchase our salvation so the Spirit of Christ doth fit us for the enjoyment thereof He makes us meet to â—e partakers of the inheritance of thâ— Saints in light The Apostle speaking of this salvation under several expressions in 2 Cor. 5. 1 2 3 4. he addes in the fifth verse Now he which hath wâ—oughâ— us for the self-same thing is God who hath given unto us the earnest of his Spirit And this fitting work of his upon us for the salvation purchased by Christ he doth execute Partly by cleansing and purifying ouâ— sinful hearâ—s and mortifying those lusts which otherwise would render us unfit and uncapable of that glorious salvation Partly by endowing and beautifying the soul with Christ and his righteousnesse and his graces that thereby an enterance may be made for us into the everlasting Kingdome of our Lord and Saviour Jesus Christ 2 Pet. 1. 11. Partly by leading and upholding us in all the wayes of Christ untill we come to receive the end of our faith even the salvation of our souls 5. I will adde but one work more of the Spirit on your behalf which is this He works all our works in us and for us He works all your works in you and for you Consider your works either of faith or obedience your works of faith in reference to the promises of God and your work of obedience in reference to the precepts of God although you are the persons who do believe the one and obey the other yet it is the Spirit of Christ which is the cause and the powerful principle of those in you He it is who doth make your hearts to believe and who doth cause you to walk in his Statutes and do them Ezek. 36. 27. 4. The Spirit is yours in respect of his help or vertue The Spirit helpeth our The Spirit is ours in respect of his help and vertue infirmities Rom. 8. 26. And there are six things wherein the Spirit is an help unto all the people of God 1. In all their Communions with God 2. In the weaknesses of all their graces 3. In the actings of every grace 4. In the conflicts of grace 5. In the darknesse upon their spirits 6. In the 〈◊〉 of their souls 1. The Spiri◠〈◊〉 them in in all their communions with God in their Meditations He help them in all their communions with God of God in their hearing of the Word of God in their addresses of prayer unto God and as to this the Apostle gives a special instance in that Rom. 8. 26. Likewise the Spirit also helpeth our infirmities for we know not what we should pray for as we ought but the Spirit it self maketh intercession for us with groanings which cannot be uttered When we are to pray there is in us sometimes an infirmity of ignorance we know not what to pray for either for the matter or for the manner and there is in us sometimes an infirmity of deadnesse and dulnesse we cannot pray with that fervency as we should or as we would But now the Spirit helps these infirmities by way of instruction Teaching us what especially to pray for and by way of causation in making intercession for us that is in quickening and enabling us to pray with groanings that is with such full and strong affections of heart as cannot be uttered or expressed by words Our streightened and narrow and barren hearts are many times by the influence and assistance of Gods Spirit enlarged and opened and filled with a Spirit of supplication with such an ardency with such an earnestnesse with such a copiousnesse that after we have long insisted with God yet we have not opened half our minds and desires unto God it excites all our graces and sets them a work such an help is the Spirit unto us in praying unto God 2. The Spirit helps them in the weaknesse of their graces He waters the plants In the weakness of their graces and blows upon the buds and draws on his works of grace towards perfection He doth as it were Nurse them up and breed and brood them up He helps your â—imme knowledge by adding light unto light and opening more and more the eyes of your understanding to know the things of God in Christ He helps the weak and staggering faith by adding faith unto faith in answering your doubts and evidencing your grounds and interests in Jesus Christ He is the wind which blows upon your garden and makes the Spices there of to flow out Cant. 4. 16. 3. The Spirit helps them in the actings of every grace You know In the actings of every grace the distinction of gratia praeveniens gratia subsequens gratia operans gratia cooperans It is the Spirit which works grace in us and it is the Spirit which makes grace wrought in us to work You are not able of your selves to use the graces given unto you when you please without the influence and assistance of the Spirit of God 1 Cor. 15. 10. By the grace of God I am that I am and his grace bestowed upon me was not in vain I laboured yet not I but the grace of God in me Can you trust when you will and mourn when you will and fear when you will and command your thoughs and passions when you will and patiently bear the hand of God when you will The light if it were cut off from the influence and presence of the Sunne would not be light nor give light at all The arme if it were cut off from the body it could not stirre at all Though the arme be grafted into the body yet it stirres by influence from the head No grace that we have could move or act at all were it not acted and moved by the Spirit of Christ and therefore when you are to believe he helps you to believe and when you are to repent he helps you to repent and when you are to blesse he helps you to blesse and when you are to suffer c. His hand is upon your hand his strength is upon your strength his grace is upon his own grace As all your graces have their being from his power of life so they have their working from his power of influence too He it is who worketh in you to will and to do 4. The Spirit helps them in the conflicts of grace when inward temptations arise In the conflicts or grace out of your own hearts and when outward temptations 〈◊〉 in from
the times of the New Covenant which excels the other It is to me a very considerable Mystery that the Jews who were if I may so expresse my self the Original people of God the first fruits of the creature That they should have the largest time How should we Gentiles blesse the Lord who are reserved for the times of the new Covenant under the Old Covenant And we who are Gentiles that came in as it were at second hand should have all our time under the New Covenant That they by unbelief were so quickly broken off and the Gentiles have been for so many hundred years graffed in whatsoever the mystery of this dispensation may be certainly we who are sinners of the Gentiles have wonderful cause to blesse our God who hath given us so long a day in the day of his grace and have singular cause to improve such a mercy with fear and trembling As we may see the greatness of the freeness of Gods grace and the exceeding riches thereof to us so should we both lay hold on the grace revealed and walk with more faith and humility not be high-minded but fear for we stand by faith Remember saith Paul to the Ephesians Chap. 2. 12. That at that time ye were without Christ being Aliens from the Common-wealth of Israel and strangers from the Covenants of promise having no hope and without God in the world But verse 13. now in Christ Jesus ye who were sometimes afar off are made nigh by the blood of Christ. CHAP. VI. Isaiah 55. 3. And I will make an everlasting Covenant with you even the sure mercies of David I Have now discoursed of the Covenant of Grace as it stands in The condition of the Covenant opposition to the Covenant of Works and I have discoursed of the Covenant of Grace as to the vital nature of it what it was and I have discoursed of the Covenant of Grace as to the Properties and Adjuncts of it Now I shall proceed unto a fourth General consideration of this Covenant of Grace and that is the condition of it The Covenant of Grace herein agrees with all other Covenants that it is a mutual obligation God bindes himself and his people binde themselves there is something which he will do and there is something which we must do I will bring you into the bond of the Covenant Ezek. 20. 37. and surely theâ—e is a condition in that Bond. God hath his part in the Bond and we have our part in the Bond If you trace the Covenant from Abraham even unto Christ successively you shall all along finde a condition expressed and annexed unto the Covenant Abraham he believed Gen. 15. 6. And he was to walk uprightly Gen. 17. 1. and the many Rites in Moses time took in a condition of faith and obedience and so it did in Davids time and the like with the people of Israel in and after the Babylonish Captivity and so in Christs and the Apostles time SECT I. Object I Know there is a great dispute How any condition can be allowed in a Covenant of Grace And some are very eager against it and think that if any condition be admitted then presently we are Legalists and are setting up a Covenant How any condition can be allowed in the Covenant of Grace of works instead of a Covenant of Grace Sol. But I humbly conceive that there is no need of such heat nor fear of such an inconveniency in this Point if parties would but patiently hear one another and calmly consider the matter Therefore first I think it necessary to distinguish of that word condition which may be taken in a three-fold sense Distinguish of the word condition No such condition as to work any one grace in our own hearts 1. For such an Act which we may or may not perform according to the power and pleasure of our own free will without the preventing or determining grace of God And truely in this sense I know no godly Christian who doth or dare to thrust in a condition to the Covenant of Grace as if there were something to be done by us that is by the sole power of our free wills upon the drawing out of which a Covenant is made up and accomplished twixt God and us 2. For the doing of some work which hath in it a meritorious reason on our part either for the acceptance of our persons with God or for the performance of No such condition as merit and self-worthiness his promises unto us so as wages are due to a workman no such condition as merit and self-worthiness Neither in this sense dare we admit of a condition in the Covenant of Grace for the thirsty drink of the water of life freely and the poore buy without mony and without price Both our graces and our rewards are only of the grace of God in Christ 3. For some qualifications in the sinner not wrought in him by his own power but by the sole power of Gods grace without which he cannot stand in an actual relation But a qualification wrought by God without which we cannot stand in Relation to God unto God as his God nor can apply the promises of pardon and salvation by Christ unto himself In this sense we do hold a condition in the Covenant of Grace namely That something there is required of us which yet God doth promise to work in us and which he doth work effectually in the hearts of all the Elect in time therefore Faith is called the operation of God Col. 2. 12. and the work of his power 1 Cor. 2. 5. without which they cannot look on God as their God nor can apply the Promises of forgiveness and eternal life and which when they do finde wrought in themselves by the power of Gods grace they can and may apply both unto themselves In this sense there is a condition Look as to make up a conjugal Relation there is something required on either party The woman must be willing to take and receive the man for her husband as well as the man is willing to take the woman for his wife So it is in the making up of the Spiritual marriage which is the Covenant twixt God and us as he is willing to be our God so must we be willing to be his people And as be therein takes us to be his people so do we therein take him to be our God Only with this difference That in the civil Covenant of marriage our own will leads us to that but in the Spiritual God doth by his Such a condition as it is simply necessary so it is expresly deteâ—mined in Scripture Spirit work in us that will which is a condition necessary to make the Covenant between himself and us 2. A condition as thus interpreted as it is simply necessary to the Covenant of Grace being a mutual compact and not a meere promise so it is expresly determined in
by the Grounds By the grounds and causes and order of attaining that certainty and Causes and Order of attaining unto that certainty of knowledge and perswasion that Christ died for him For your help in this take notice of three Particulars 1. A right and undeceiving assurance that Christ died for us hath two sure Grounds One is the Testimony of the Word the other is the Testimony of Conscience renewed The Word saith Whosoever believes shall not perish but have everlasting life Renewed conscience saith but thou believest yea thou believest aright thy faith work by love Ergo. 2. A right and undeceiving knowledge it hath very choice causes it ariseth from Faith and it ariseth from the Spirit of Christ no man can give himself this assurance or certain knowledge that Christ died for him As no man can say that Christ is the Lord but by the Holy Ghost So no man can say Christ is my Lord and my Saviour but by the Holy Ghost 3. A right and undeceiving assurance that Christ died for me is attained in an orderly way It is not the first work to be found in us but it follows many precedent works in the soule as the sealing follows the writing viz. it follows 1. Deep sense of sin and misery 2. A Spiritual Conviction of our own impotency and insufficiency and absolute need of Christ 3. Earnest desires after Christ and for faith to lay hold on Christ 4. Many conflicts 'twixt weak faith and doubtings and fears 5. Peculiar supplications for the evidencing of the love of Christ and for particular perswasions of our interest in him and in the benefits of his death 6. Attendance upon God in the Ordinances of Christ c. Seventhly You may know that Christ died for your sins by the concomitant presence of some choice qualities in every person rightly assured of Christs dying By the concomitant presence of some chief qualities for him v. g. 1. A tender mournfulness of heart Zech. 12. 10. They shall look on him whom they have pierced and shall mourn as a man mourns for his only child Never did the child mourn more c. There is a two-fold mourning and both necessary one from sense of sin as grieving God the other from the sense of love in pardoning sin 2. An exceeding joy Rom. 5. 11. We joy in God through our Lord Jesus Christ by whom we have received the Atonement 3. An inflamed love Luke 7. 47. Her sins which are many are forgiven for she loved much For is not Causal but Illative q. d. therefore she loved much None so loved as this loving Christ 4. A sweet Peace and Tranquillity Rom. 5. 1. Being justified by Faith we have peace with God through our Lord Jesus Christ when we know that our peace is made by Christ presently peace ariseth in the conscience the storm is over and we are at land Now conscience excuses comforts supports answers c. all is well the Sword is sheathed 8. Lastly you may know that Christ died for you by the fruits and effects By the fruits and effâ—cts which flow from it which do flow from that certaine knowledge and that particular assurance v. g. 1. Singular loathings of sin Rom. 6. 1 2. Shall we continue in sin that grace may abound God forbid How shall we that are dead to sin live any longer therein 2. Utmost service for Christ 2 Cor. 5. 14. The love of Christ constraineth us acts us fills us carries us on as men possessed or as a ship with the winde Act. 21. 13. I am ready not to be bound only but also to die at Jerusalem for the Name of the Lord Jesus 3. Special delight in Christ and in the word of Christ 1 Pet. 2. 3. As new born babes desire the sincere milk of the word that ye may grow thereby If so be that ye have tasted that the Lord is gracious as if he had said the man that knows that the Lord is gracious and gracious to him and hath tasted of the sweetness of his love to his soul must needs delight in and long after the Word as the Babe doth after the milk of the breast 4. Yet more desires to partake of more from Christ Phil. 3. 10. That I may know him and the power of his Resurrection and the fellowship of his sufferings being made conformable to his death verse 12. Not as though I had already attained or were already perfect but I follow after if that I may apprehend that for which I also am apprehended of Christ Jesus 5. Watchful fear by no means to offend or displease Christ so loving a Christ so kind so good a Christ so unwilling and so affraid is the assured person to sin against Christ any more that he could be content presently to dâ—e and to be with Christ where there is no more a possibility to offend him c. 6. Answerable returns unto Christ who suffered and died for me v. g. He loved me and I therefore love him He abased himself for me and I abase my self for him He gave himself for me and I give my self to him He obeyed his Fathers will for me and I obey his will He suffered for me and I am willing to suffer for him in my name in my body in my life He rose for me and I live to him He justified me and I justifie him He pleades foâ— me in Heaven and I plead for him on Earth He hath purchased glory for me and I give glory to him c. Thus have you heard the Decision of this great Practical Question how a person may know that Christ died for him Now beâ—â—re I shut up this Discourse I will propound and give answer unto some Cases of Conscience in relation to this Point in which I am â—iscoursing 1. How one may know that he is deluded in his Conscience that Christ dyed for him 2. What one should do who as yet cannot certainly affirm that Christ died for him 3. Whether every one for whom Christ effectually dyed doth sometime or other in this life attain unto the certain evidence thereof 4. Whether a person having attained to the certain knowledge of Christs dying for him may ever after that doubt and question the same again and whether new doubtings overthrow a certainty of knowledge 5. What advantage any Christian hath by the certain knowledge that Christ died for him as his Mediatour Case 1. How one may know that he is deluded in his Confidence that Christ How one may know he is deluded in his confidence of Christs dâ—ing for him A twofold confidence dyed for him There is I confess a two-fold confidence about the Application of the Death of Christ One arising from Faith and the Spirit of God who beareth witness with our spirits that we are the Children of God The other ariseth from presumption and the spirit of Delusion wherein a person dreams that he eats but he is empty and dreams that he
2 Pet. 1. 4. They are in Christ and new creatures 2 Cor. 5. 17. They are a Chosen Generation a Royal Priesthood an Holy Nation a Peculiar People 1 Pet. 2. 9. A peculiar treasure unto him Exod. 19. 5. A people from whom he will with-hold no good thing Psal 84. 11. Therefore unquestionably he will bestow upon them spiritual gifts and blessings and doth so or else none of these things could be affirmed of them Fifthly God will do more for his people in Covenant then he will for any out of God will do more for his people in Covenant than for any Covenant else what is the advantage of being in Covenant or where is the strength of Argument to perswade any man to disanul all other inconsistent Covenants and to submit unto the Covenant of God if he cannot better himself by being in this Covenant Now God doth give other things temporal things the things of and for this life many times to wicked men to men out of Covenant Thou fillest their bellies with thy hid treasure And if his children if the people of his Covenant who stand in near relation unto him should not have spiritual blessings and mercies given unto them if they should have after all but a common portion gain little more then what the worst of men wicked men his enemies have what advantage should they have yea thus it should be all one with them who love and fear God and with them that hate him and fear him not Sixthly Whatsoever Jesus Christ hath purchased for the people of Gods Covenant What Christ hath purchased for them God will give them that will God give unto them the purchases of Christ and the promises and performances of Gods Covenant are parallel but Jesus Christ hath by his death purchased all spiritual blessings you cannot think of any one of them which Christ hath not purchased they partake of Christ and with and by him partake of all spiritual blessings 1 Cor. 1. 30. Ephes 1. 3. Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ who hath blessed us with all spiritual blessings in heavenly places in Christ Seventhly His people are to differ from all other people in the world in their His people are to differ from all other people present disposition and frame of heart as Joshua and Caleb had another spirit different from them who brought a false report upon the Land of Canaan but unlesse the Lord did give unto his people spiritual blessings there would be no intrinsecal difference as to the frame of heart 'twixt his people who are in Covenant and other people who are not in Covenant for without the reception or participation of these blessings their hearts would still remain wicked and unconverted and they would lie in the same state of condemnation with others for only spiritual blessings do make the difference Now this would be exceedingly absurd that the people of God in Covenant with him should remain in the same state of wickednesse and curse as people out of Covenant this would be 1. A dishonour to God that he should be a God in Covenant with ungodly and wicked persons and so continuing 2. A dishonour to his Covenant which is a Covenant of love and mercy and peace and life that God should in a singular manner love the wicked and assure mercy to them and make peace with them and give assurance of life and blessednesse unto them Vse 1 Are spiritual blessings promised expresly by God unto all his people in Covenant with him why this is wonderful comfort and encouragement unto any of the Comfort to the people of God in Covenant people of God being sensible of their spiritual wants and oft-times fearing and doubting and questioning spiritual helps and supplies O say we if they were lesser matters and ordinary mercies then we should not fear to go to God and rely on him and expect from him but our greatest wants are of the greatest mercies a Christ forgivenesse holinesse heaven it self and what shall we do in this case But I beseech you hearken and consider four things First Spiritual blessings are promised as well as temporal that God who Spiritual blessings are promised as well as temporal promiseth health doth likewise promise grace that God who promiseth food convenient doth likewise promise Christ and that God who promiseth deliverance from trouble doth likewise promise deliverance from hell and wraâ—â— and that God who promiseth outward peace doth likewise promise forgivenesse of sins and peace in conscience and that God who promiseth to subdue enemies doth likewise promise to subdue iniquities and that God who promiseth to give earth doth likewise promise to give heaven Is it nothing unto you that the great blessings which your souls do need are laid up and are to be found in Gods promises if you had more faith those spiritual blessings which you find in Gods promises you might quickly feel in your own hearts Secondly All spiritual blessings are promised there is not any one spiritual blessing All spiritual blessings are promised which any of the people of God do need or may need but God hath promised the same Consider spiritual blessings as in the end and means and causes God hath promised all of them He hath promised glory and he hath promised grace and he hath promised himself the cause of all He hath promised all that belongs to faith to Christ to Justification and he hath promised all that belongs to Conversion to Sanctification to Obedience and to Comfort and to Rest Thirdly God himself hath promised them If Men or Angels had promised God himself hath promised them them it were nothing for none of them are able to give any one spiritual blessing the collating of the least drop of grace and mercy and inward peace is above the power of any creature but this is the comfort that God himself hath promised to give all spiritual blessings unto his people I say God himself 1. Who is able to performe and make good whatsoever he hath promised Is any thing too hard for him is not his power more then commensurate with his Word is he not sufficient to do what he speaks he is mercifulnesse it self and holinesse it self and life it self and blessednesse it self is not the God of all grace able to give you grace is not the God of all power able to subdue your iniquities is not the God of all mercy able to forgive is not the God of all comfortable to comfort you is not the God of peace able to speak peace 2. Who is willing to do good in his promises I beseech you what are Gods promises but the expressions of his gracious will concerning us in all the good which he purposeth to confer upon us I will blesse I will heal I will shew mercy I will save I will pardon I will give grace and glory I will hear and help I will do you good these
Christ and why do you not go to God freely to give you Christ What can you say or object when God promiseth to give you all and to give you all upon gracious terms how would you have God to frame and form his Covenant better or otherwise to encourage your hearts to come unto him and rely upon him 〈◊〉 you be wholly beholding to God or would you not are you contented that God should have all the glory of mercies or are you not Is it any disadvantage to the working of your faith that God will pass by all your sins and unworthiness and will love you freely and justifie you freely and save you freely Is there any more reason to distrust God when he saith he will do you good for his own sake then when he saith I will be merciful to your transgressions and will freely bless you Had you rather be under a Covneant of works than of grace would it please you better to come by your mercies upon harder terms You find that you have nothing of worthiness and yet you are not content to receive all from Gods graciousness why do you pray that God would do you good for his own sake and yet you will not believe that that is reason enough to prevail and enjoy I will say no more but this 1. The blessings of the Covenant are worth our enjoying 2. God doth promise to give them 3. His own graciousness is the price or reason of it 4. Upon better or other terms it is impossible to attain them 5. It is for want of faith that we do not justifie this unspeakable loving-kindness of God towards us O beg for faith to believe a God Covenanting to give all good and all good though not for our sake yet for his own Name sake Ezek. 36. 25. Then will I sprinkle clean water upon you and you shall be clean from all your filthinesse and from all your Idols will I cleanse you HAving finished those four general Conclusions I shall now handle the Gifts of the Covenant in particular mentioned in this verse and in the subsequent verses In this verse there is promised unto the people of God the Remission of their sins concerning which you may observe 1. The Efficient I will c. 2. The Matter clean water 3. The Form or Manner I will sprinkle upon you 4. The Power and Efficacy And ye shall be clean 5. The Quantity or Extent from all your filthinesse and from all your Idols will I cleanse you From these parts there are these four Points which do offer themselves to our consideration 1. That forgiveness of sins is promised and one of the first mercies promised by himself unto all his people in Covenant with him 2. Gods promise of forgiveness of sins doth extend to all the sinnes of all his people 3. Though the sins of people have been exceeding great yet when they become Gods people in Covenant even those sins also are forgiven 4. The blood of Christ is the cause and the only cause for which many and great sins are pardoned 5. That God will make unto the Conscience of his people a particular application of forgiveness by the blood of Christ CHAP. II. Doct. 1 THat forgivenesse of sins is promised and it is one of the first promised mercies by God himself unto all his people in covenant with him I will sprinkle c. This is a very comprehensive Assertion Forgiveness of sins one of the first mercies promised by God to all his people in Covenant consisting of many Particular Branches For the opening of it I shall shew unto you 1. What forgiveness of sins is wherein it doth consist 2. That God himself doth make promise of it unto his people 3. That it is promised unto all and every one of his people 4. That it is one of the first mercies promised by God unto his people SECT I. Quest 1. VVHat is forgiveness of sins and wherein doth it consist Forgivenesse of sins described Sol. It is a gracious act or work of God for Christs sake discharging and absolving believing and repenting persons from the guilt and punishment of their sinnes so that God is no longer displeased with them nor will he ever remember them any more nor call them to an account and condemn them for their sinnes but will look on them and will deale with them as if they had never offended him Here we must pause awhile and consider six things First That forgivenesse of sinnes is a gracious act of God there be some acts It is a gracious act of God of God which have a special reference unto his power as the Creation of the world and the resurrection of the dead There be other acts of God which have a special reference unto his Justice as the condemnation and destruction of unbelieving and impenitent sinners And there are some acts of God which have a special reference unto his meer goodness and graciousness there being no Reason or Cause of them on our parts such an act is his Remission or forgiveness of our sins Isa 43. 25. I even I am he that blotteth out thy transgressions for my Name sake Eph. 1. 7. The forgivenesse of sins according to the riches of his grace Psal 51. 1. Have mercy upon me O God according to thy loving kindnesse according to the multitude of thy tender mercies blot out my transgressions Rom. 3. 25. Being justified freely by his grace Not that Repentance is not required in the sinner who is to be pardoned For the Scripture speaks expresly of a turning from darknesse to light and from the power of Satan to God that we may receive forgivenesse of sinnes Acts 26. 18. Not that Believing is not required in the sinner to be forgiven for the Apostle Peter saith also expresly Whosoever believeth in him shall receive remission of sins Acts 10. 43. but because these are not Reasons or meritorious causes for whose sake God doth forgive any man his sins they declare the effect who are pardoned not the cause why they are pardoned Secondly The forgivenesse of sinnes hath foundation in Christ and in him only It hath foundation in Christ as the Mediatour as the meritorious cause thereof Hebr. 9. 22. Without shedding of blood is no remission Matth. 26. 28. This is my blood which is shed for many for the remission of sins Ephes 1. 7. In his blood we have redemption even the forgivenesse of sins 1 Joh. 2. 12. I write unto you little children because your sins are forgiven you for his Names sake Forgiveness of sins hath a double respect One unto our selves so it comes unto us freely from the grace of God as a free gift Another unto Christ so it comes by way of purchase and merit it doth cost us nothing but it did cost Jesus Christ his precious blood to obtain the remission of our sins and to make peace for us Now Christ comes in as the cause of
and to rest on his Arm acknowledging that our standing and safety is not in our strength but in the presence and influence of his grace 2ly The Means how to compass a soft and tender heart The Means First You must go to the Lord by Prayer for it a sinner can harden his own Beg it by prayer heart but God only can soften the heart If four things were wrought in the heart it would be soft and tender viz. 1. An experimental Sensation 2. A mournful Humiliation 3. A spirit of Fear 4. An yieldingness and plyableness of the heart to the will of God Object True will some say but who can work these things in the heart Sol. That can God and he hath promised to work every one of them in our hearts if we do earnestly and unfeignedly seek him 1. He can make us to see to feel to remember to consider our sins and our doings which have not been good Job 34. 32. That which I see not teach thou me c. Job 13. 26. Thou makest me to possesse the iniquities of my youth Ezek. 16. 61. Then shalt thou remember thy wayes and be ashamed 2. He can make the heart mourning and humbling and lamenting Zac. 12. 10. They shall look on him whom they have pierced and they shall mourn c. Ezek. 7. 16. All of them mourning every one for his iniquity 3. He can put his fear in their hearts Jer. 32. 40. I will put my fear in their hearts And Hose 3. 5. They shall fear the Lord and his goodness 4. He can make the heart yielding and plyable unto his Word and Will Psal 68. 18. Thou hast received gifts for men yea for the rebellious also that the Lord God might dwell amongst them Acts 9. 6. Lord what wilt thou have me to do Jer. 31. 33. I will put my Law in their inward parts and write it in their hearts Secondly You must to his Word which is the hammer to break and the fire to Attend the Word melt the heart Acts 2. 37. When they heard this they were pricked in their hearts and said unto Peter and the rest of the Apostles Men and brethren what shall we do 2 Chron. 34. 27. Thou diddest humble thy self before God when thou heardest his Word c. Object But many men hear the Word and that a long time and yet their hearts are not at all softned by it therefore it cannot be a means to soften the heart Sol. I answer 1. It is true that many men do hear the Word and for many years and are not softned but their hearts are more hardned under it nevertheless this induration comes not from the Word which is a means to soften but from the pride and perverseness of the hearts of men who do hear the Word but will despise and reject the Word 2. It is also true that though many men have not their hearts softned by the Word yet many others have their hearts softned by it Simile as although many who take Physick are nothing better by it yet many who do so are recovered by it and this we find by experience that though the Word be the savour of death unto death unto some yet it is the savour of life unto life unto others And as we must not conclude that the Word is not the means of saving faith because all that hear the Word do not believe so neither must we deny the Word as a means to soften the heart because many who do hear it do remain hardned but if we find First that God hath instituted his Word for such a purpose and end Secondly That God hath blessed his Word and made it effectual to that purpose Thirdly Doth call even sinners to come and attend that they may attain that blessing depending upon this Word And lastly that without the attendance upon the Word there is no enjoyment of that softness of heart but a greater access and confirmation of hardness of heart Thence we may confidently conclude that the Word of God is a means to soften the heart But 3. You must know that the efficacy of spiritual means doth not depend upon the meer presence of the means but upon the concomitancy and influence of the Spirit of God who sometimes doth put forth his power through those means and sometimes doth not so The Word by its own natural and proper vigour doth not convince nor convert nor soften the heart for then every one that hears it should be convinced and converted and softned nor then should it be a means but a principal efficient but those effects it doth work on all who hear it when the Spirit of God comes with the Word unto their hearts in his mighty power working that grace in us which the Word commands from us And therefore when we come to hear the Word to have our hearts softned we should look on the Word as the means but withall on the Spirit of God as the principal cause who works that effect by the Word nor should we ever hear the Word without special prayer and requests that the Lord would by his Spirit make his Word a lively and effectual means of knowledge of faith of all grace unto us and if we did do so the Lord would be found of us and he would give this softness of heart which he promiseth in his Covenant Thirdly If you would have softness of heart you must then get newness of Get newnesse of heart heart Your hearts can never be softned untill they be renewed and if they were renewed certainly they would be softned The old heart is an hard heart and the new heart is a soft heart You may as well expect that a dead man should weep and mourn and go and come as that an old sinful heart dead in trespasses and sins should be a soft and mournful heart for sins or be willing and ready to obey the will of God why hardness in all the causes of it and in all the effects of it is predominant and raigning in an unconverted graceless heart But if the heart were once changed by renewing grace then softness must needs fall into it Forasmuch as the change made by renewing grace brings into the soul another nature quite contrary to our sinful nature and other principles quite contrary to all our old principles Light contrary to darkness and humblenesse contrary to pride and yieldingness contrary to stubbornnesse and softnesse contrary unto hardness Fourthly if we would have softnses or tenderness of heart then we must get Faith for faith is indeed the foundation of a soft and tender heart and the Get Faith more of Faith the more of tenderness Quest What Faith will some say Sol. I answer a Faith 1. Of Knowledge or Credence that God is that he is a great God the living God the Almighty God the dreadful God most knowing most holy most righteous and faithful who will be so to us as his Word
many times we know not what to do and cannot do any good that we would and now the Spirit of God comes and strengthens our feeble hands and supports our fainting spirits and puts out his power upon our hearts and carries us on in our wayes and works You do find it thus in several cases viz. 1. Frequently when we are to pray we are at a loss and cannot go on with Gods spirit helps us in prayer the heavenly work our ignorance our unbelief Satans temptations and distractions all these hold us down and bind us up and we cannot help and free our selves But then the Spirit of God comes in with his strength and with his help and stirs up our hearts and enlargeth our hearts and new desires flow and groans abound and affâ—â—ctions work and faith works with confidence to the throne of grace to find grace and mercy to help in time of need 2. Alwayes in our spiritual warfare with our own corruptions with Satans temptations In our spiritual warfare in these conflicts we feel our own weakness and their power and violence so that we many times cry out O wretched men that we are who shall deliver us Rom. 7. 24. Or as Jehoshaphat in another case We have no might against this great company that commeth against us neither know we what to do 2 Chron. 20. 12. And verily we may say concerning our own corruptions what he spake of his enemies If it had not been the Lord who was on our side if it had not been the Lord who was on our side when men rose up against us then they had swallowed us up quick Psal 124. 1,2,3 so if the Spirit of the Lord had not been with us and if the Spirit of the Lord had not strengthened and helped us sin had been too hard for us But in those conflicts the Spirit of God hath made us strong still to pray still to believe still to wait still to resist and at length to conquer 4ly The spirit of God which is given unto us is a reconciling and a restoring spirit He is a restoring spirit he restoreth my soul saith David Psal 23. 3. Even the people of God sometimes are circumvented by Satans temptations and are overpowered by sin that dwelleth in them what I hate that do I saith Paul Rom. 7. 15. They do many times fall very grievously and sadly and are not able by their own strength to rise again but there they lye with their weakness and losses and complaints and tears Now in this condition the Spirit of God puts forth his hand and recovers and raises them up again he doth not leave them when they are fallen but by the power of his assisting grace 1. He awakens them out of their sleep by a quick conviction upon their consciences He awakens out of spiritual sleep to see the great evil which they have done I have sinned saith David as soon as Nathan said Thou art the man 1 Sam. 12. 2. He melts their hearts into singular grief for that evil which they have done Melts their hearts into grief David watred his couch with tears Psal 6. 6. And Peter goes out and weeps bitterly Luk. 22. 62. he makes them to mourn and to be ashamed and to loath themselves 3. He stirs up their hearts to confess and acknowledge their sinnings and to judge themselves before the Lord for their unfaithful dealings and unworthy walking Stir them up to confess their sins and likewise earnest wrestlings and strivings with the Lord by prayer for pardoning mercy and restoring grace and a more stedfast spirit Psal 51. 9. Blot out all mine iniquities Ver. 10. Renew a right spirit witbin me Ver. 12. Vphold me by thy free spirit 4. He enables them by faith to lay hold on Christ to be their peace and to Enables by Faith to lay hold on Christ make Reconciliation and thus doth the Spirit of God recover and restore their fallen souls and assures them that their sin is pardoned Fifthly the Spirit of God which is given unto you is a comforting Spirit Christ He is a comforting spirit himself calls him the Comforter Joh. 14. 16. and you find him actually comforting the people of God Acts 9. 31. They walked in the comforts of the Holy Ghâ—st He is called the Comforter by way of Eminency and Excellency there is no such Comforter as the Siprit of God Psal 77. 2. For 1. He can comfort your very souls with proper comfors and consolations Thy Comforts the soul comforts delight my soul Psal 94. 19. 2. He can comfort you against all your discomforts 2 Cor. 1. 4. Who comforteth Comforts against all discomforts us in all our tribulations 1. From Conscience 2. From the Divel and the world 3. From Providence when it seems to be cross to us 3. He can comfort you under all absences when there is neither Father nor In all absence and wants Mother nor Husband nor Wife nor Child nor Friend nor Land nor House yet he can comfort you he alone can shew you the salvation of the Lord speak peace and joy and assure you of mercy and cause you to rejoyce in believing Psal 27. 10. When my Father and my Mother for sake me then the Lord will take me up 4. He can comfort you and none can hinder him nor men nor Divels nor fears nor doubts for he can create you peace and create you joy and create He cannot be hindred in comforting us you comfort he himself alone is a sufficient cause of comfort Object How so how doth the Spirit comfort Sol. 1. By opening all the springs of comfort unto you the fountain of mercy How the Spirit comforts By opening the springs of comfort By actuating our Faith Zech. 13. 1. the Fountain of grace the Fountain of the blood of Christ and of justification 1 Joh. 2. 1 2. Rom. 5. 11. We joy in God through our Lord Jesus Christ by whom we have received the attonement 2. By actuating your faith to behold all these fountains of joy and to dig water out of the wells of salvation and making you to suck the brests of consolation 3. By applying them to your very souls clearing and witnessing your right unto By opplying them to our souls them your propriety in them that Christ dyed for your sins that God is reconciled to your souls that you are justified and accepted unto life and that you are the children of God Rom. 8. 4. By enabling conscience to testifie 2 Cor. 1. 12. Our rejoycing is this By enabling Conscience to testifie the testimony of our Conscience that in simplicity and godly sincerity we have had our conversation Sixthly The Spirit which is given unto you is dwelling and an abiding spirit He is a dwelling spirit in all the people of God Rom. 8. 11. By his Spirit that dwelleth in you Joh. 14. 16. I will pray the Father and he
us in you As a Parent who begers the children he looks unto those children and maintains and keeps them All your graces are the births of the Spirit of grace and as they are the effects of his power so also are they the objects of his care and therefore as they receive life from his presence in the Ordinances so shall they receive strength and growth and stability from his continual influence upon them We are sâ—rengthened with might by his Spirit in the inner man Ephes 3. 16. As we are changed from our shameful condition to glory by the Spirit so by the same Spirit are we changed from glory to glory 2 Cor. 3. 18. 3. The Spirit is yours in respect of his works or operations And truly this The Spirit is theirs in respect of his works and operatioÌ„s consideration makes out an exceeding happinesse unto the people of God in as much as the participation of all their happiness depends upon the workings of the Spirit of God in whom they are interested by this Covenant of grace There are five choice works which the Spirit doth for all the people of God Five choice works which the Spirit doth for all Gods people He doth unite Christ and them who have God to be their God 1. He doth unite Christ and them Although the benefits by Christ are unexpressibly precious yet the fruition of them is impossible withâ—ut a precedent union with Christ forasmuch as union is a necessary foundation for Communion you must be in Christ and being his himself and all his benefits become yours Now it is the Spirit which makes up this union as love makes the union 'twixt Christian and Christian and as faith makes up the union from us to Christ for we are planted into Christ and are espoused unto Christ and live in Christ by faith so the Spirit makes the union 'twixt Christ and us there being no other way for him to be joyned unto us and to become Relatively ours but by his own Spirit it is the Spirit which doth let out the heart of Christ to us and who doth bring in our hearts unto Christ it is the Spirit by whom Christ applies himself unto us and apprehends us and by whom we also do apprehend and apply Christ by his Spirit he takes hold of us and by the same Spirit it is that we take hold of him In a word it is the Spirit by whom Christ speaks to our hearts and by whose light we see the excellencies of Christ and the great love of Christ and who gives Christ as it were into our hands and mightily allures and prevails upon our hearts to give themselves unto Christ again as Christ had never been effectually revealed unto you but by the Spirit so you had never been effectually brought to Christ but by the Spirit you had been Christlesse for ever without him And now consider the happiness in having this Spirit which hath wrought so effectually as to unite Christ and you and you and Christ that Christ is yours and you are his by him are you perswaded and drawn and brought into the possession of Christ and all the benefits by Jesus Christ 2. He doth conform us unto Christ We all saith the Apostle in 2 Cor. 3. 18. beholding as in a glasse the glory of the Lord are changed into the same Image He doth conform us unto Christ from glory to glory by the Spirit of the Lord. As by the Spirit we do discern a most glorious nature of holinesse in Christ so by the Spirit we are changed into the same image of holinesse Hence are we said to be born again bâ— the Spirit John 3. 5 6. and to be renewed by the holy Ghost Tit. 3. 5. And to be sanctified by him 1 Pet. 1. 2. You read that Christ was conceived by the holy Ghost and he was anointed by the Spirit So is every Christian he becomes a Christian by the Spirit and he is anointed by the Spirit The oyntment indeed is first poured upon our head and then upon us but as it is the same spirit in us which is in Christ so it is the same anointing only it is in Christ as the head and without measure and as in the pattern unto which we are conformed by the Spirit As by the unction of the Spirit we become like Christ in nature so also in Relation God hath sent forth the Spirit of his Sonne into your hearts crying Abba-Father Gal. 4. 6. Now judge of the blessednesse of having the Spirit He is the cause of our union and he is the cause of our unction he brings us into Christ and he anoints us with the same grace wherewith Christ himself was anointed so that we are like Christ himself we are anointed with the same Spirit and therefore we must needs be excellent and choice persons and very lovely in the eyes of God 3. He doth reveal unto us the highest and the choicest things of salvation He is called the Spirit of Revelation Eph. 1. 17. because he opens He revealeth to us the choicest things of salvation and reveals those things unto the people of God which are hid from the eyes of others There are five precious things which the Spirit reveales unto you He reveals 1. The mystery of life unto you even Jesus Christ who cannot be known The mystery of life or acknowledged but by the Spirit Flesh and blood cannot reveal him No man can confesse him No man can say that Jesus is the Lord but by the holy Ghost 1 Cor. 12. 3. But we speak the wisdome of God in a mystery even the hidden wisdome which God ordained before the world unto our glory 1 Cor. 2. 7. 2. The love of God unto you The love of God is shed abroad in our hearts The love of God by the holy Ghost which is given unto us Rom. 5. 5. He makes the greatnesse of the love and your propriety in it known unto you and the exceeding riches of grace c. 3. The presenc of Christ within you Hereby we know that he abideth in us by the Spirit which he hath given us 1 John 3. 24. Christ without nay Christ The presence of Christ within us is not discerned by us without the Spirit 4. The wonderful glory prepared for us Eye hath not seen nor ear heard neither have entered into the heart of man the things which God hath prepared The glory prepared for us for them that love him But God hath revealed them unto us by his Spirit for the Spirit searcheth all things yea the deep things of God 1 Cor. 2. 9 10. 5. The most precious gifts bostowed on us In this life we have received the The most precious gifts bostowed on us Spirit which is of God that we might know the things that are freely given us of God 1 Cor. 2. 12. The sight of your own graces is by the assistance of the Spirit O what
as accepting of us in Christ as shining in his favour on our souls as our God in Covenant how satisfying how delightful a portion is this The small Ring with the rich Diamond cannot that delight and please you Object O but I have very little of these outwards Sol. A little of them is enough much is but a superfluity and is like the water that runs besides the Mill. Though but a little yet It is enough It is blest 2. Your little is blest it is the cluster of grapes with the blessing of the Lord a little wholsome food is better than a feast that is poysoned so c. 3. Your little will last As the Widows Oyle ran out still and ran out so much It will last as served to sustain her all the time of Famine so God by little and little will preserve you all your dayes 4. Though little in hand yet still sufficient and of the best in promise which will There is sufficient in the promise rain Manna down upon you all the time of your journying and travelling untill you come to Canaan 9. You who are the people of God should walk with all humility before God Walk with all humility before God Micah 6. 8. What doth the Lord require of thee but to do justly and to love mercy and to walk humbly with thy God There are four goodly sights 1. To see a pardoning God and a mournful sinner 2. To see a promising God and a believing sinner 3. To see a good God and a thankful sinner 4. To see a gracious God and an humble sinner No people are raised so high as the people of God and no people with such lowliness and humbleness as these To walk humbly is to walk 1. With a sense of our own unworthhyness I am not worthy of the least of all the With a sense of our own unworthinesse mercies of all the truth which thou hast shewed unto thy servant said Jacob Gen. 32. 10. Who am I and what is my house that thou hast brought me hitherto said David 2 Sam. 7. 18. 2. With a sense of our own insufficiencies we are not sufficient of our selves to With a sense of our own insufficiency think any thing as of our selves but our sufficiency is of God 2 Cor. 3. 5. O Lord I know the way of man is not in himself It is not in man to direct his steps Jer. 10. 23. 3. With a full acknowledgement of the grace of God as the reason and cause of With a full acknowledgement of the grace of God our all By the grace of God I am what I am And I laboured more abundantly then they all yet not I but the grace of God which was with me said Paul 1 Cor. 15. 10. 4. With a low opinion of our selves as 1 Cor. 4. 6. That not one of you be puffed up With a low opinion of our selves for one against another verse 7. For who maketh thee to differ and what hast thou that thou didst not receive Now if thou didst receive it why dost thou glory as if thou hadst not received it Why they should walk humbly Because They are saved by mercy Their enjoyments are the gifts of grace And there are five Reasons which the people of God have to walk humbly 1. Because they are all saved by mercy and brought into their high relation by the meere love of their God In his mercy he saved them and in your blood he set his love upon you and said unto you live 2. Because all the great enjoyments which they have they are the meere gifts of grace Ye are called by grace and justified by grace and adopted by grace and renewed by grace and saved by grace 3. Because you continually live in a dependance upon God All your actings are in his strength and all your communions with him are by his presence and by his power They live in dependency upon God your graces and your comforts and particular abilities would die in your hands if he should but withdraw and leave you 4. Because your God is a great God and you are but Dust and Ashes before him Their God is a great God And besides that he knows so much of you that you have cause to be vile in your own eyes and to lie low before him 5. Because you do so little for so good a God You make but poor returns in proportion They do so little for so good a God to your exceeding great receits your best performances and acts of obedience are so short to his mercies that you need mercy still to passe you by You should walk with all chearfulness and gladnesse of heart before your blessing Walk with all chearfulness and blessed God Psal 100. 2. Serve the Lord with gladnesse Deut. 28. 47. Because thou servedst not the Lord thy God with joyfulnesse and gladnesse of heart for the abundance of all things O how chearful should your life be who enjoy such a God to be your God This enjoyment should be like a good conscience which is a continual feast yet God is my God and Christ is my Christ and mercy and glory are mine Yea it should make you exceeding forward and chearful in the services of your God not calling them your burdens but delights you should rejoyce in him and rejoyce to obey him and delight to do his will account it your meat and drink and you should a bound in the work of the Lord. 11. You should be constant in walking before him you should never be weary of him nor of his works you should think a short life too short for the serving Be constant in walking before him and the honouring of such a God as the Martyr was troubled because he had but one life to part with for Christ so should we because we have no more lives or no longer time of life to blesse and praise our good and gracious God you should serve him in holiness and righteousness all your dayes Luke 2. Surely goodnesse and mercy shall follow me all the dayes of my life and I will dwell in the house of the Lord for ever Psal 23. 6. 12. You who ate the people of God should walk before him in all zeale for the honour of that God who hath so much honoured you as to make you his Walk before him in all zeal people What shall I do for my God! you should deny your selves and extend your selves and improve all your gifts and graces and powers for the services of his glory you should not count your time nor riches nor honours nor lives dear unto you so that you might honor and glorifie such a God as your God is and is to you you should speak and pray and study and act and enact for him who is so good a portion and will be your everlasting and blessed God SECT XV. Use 4 THere is yet one Use more
sure also you have sure possessions and you have sure promises Beloved though nothing out of the Covenant is sure yet all things in the Covenant is sure not only sure certitudine veritatis in a way of ttuth but also sure certitudine haereditatis in a way of performance not only sure quoad causam ratione pacti as to the cause and the nature of Gods Covenant but sure also quoad effectum ratione facti as to the effect and fruition of them you shall have all the mercy and all the grace and all the glory which God promiseth You may have a mans promise and a mans Bond and yet you may not be sure for the man may die or his estate may faile and break but it is not so here in Gods Covenant with you he never dies and he never breaks he is an eternal infinitenesse and al-sufficiency and his Word abides the same for ever yea one may be an heire to a great estate yet he may not be sure to enjoy that great estate either death or miscarriages or violence may deprive him of the right but the people of God are sure heires of all the promised good in the Covenant and they shall not fail to enjoy all they have the promises of all good and they have promises that God will assuredly performe all his promises and they have his Oath annexed unto those promises Heb. 6. 13. when God made a promise to Abraham because he could sweare by no greater he sware by himself Ver. 14. Saying Surely blessing I wâ—ll blesse thee as if he should say Surely surely as I am God I will blesse thee now what shall we say to these things how good is our God! how rich is his Covenant how blessed are the people who have the Lord to be their God in Covenant The Covenant is good and the Covenant is full and the Covenaâ—t is sure Then if the Covenant be a Covenant of blessings and blessednesse you who are in Covenant are blessed and shall be surely blessed Vse 4 Is the Covenant which God makes with his people a sure Covenant then you who are the people interested in this Covenant hearken unto a few instructions Instructions 1. In the apprehension of your wants and of the sutable good which God In the apprehension of your wants be much in prayer hath promised unto his people pray and never cease seek and ask and knock if you finde your names written in the Covenant and your supplies written in the promises now pray without ceasing pray without fainting you are sure to speed and therefore be sure to pray your labour is not in vain in the Lord said the Apostle 1 Cor. 15. â—8 So say I your prayers unto the Lord shall not be in vain consider that place in Isa 45. 19. I said not to the seed of Jacob Seek ye me in vain I the Lord speak in righteousnesse as if he should say I never did put you upon fruitlesse service you never lost your labour when you sought me whensoever you sought me you did finde me I have been still as good as my word I the Lord speak righteousnesse I do not deceive any but what I promise to be unto them that seek unto me to do for them that I will be and that I will certainly do for them There are three reasons why we should make our requests known unto God why we should pray unto him and hold and keep up prayers 1. One is because he is only the fountain of all good 2. A second is because he hath promised all good 3. A third is because he will surely performe all the good which he hath promised Psal 57. 2. I will cry unto God most high unto God that performeth all things for me Verse 3. He shall send from heaven and save me God shall send forth his mercy and his truth Mark the place David is resolved to pray unto God to draw nigh and to call upon him for help and why will he do so because God is the most high God he is able to help me and because God hath promised me help and he will performe all that he hath promised me yea he will certainly do so for he will send forth his mercy and his truth that is I shall certainly enjoy the mercy which he hath graciously promised and will truly performe A beggar will many times ask where he is not sure to receive an almes he will hazard many a request but it is not so with you who are the people of God you never hazard one prayer which you make if it be grounded upon the promise made to you and the reason is because the Covenant is sure and God is faithful who hath promised what the Apostle spake about well-doing in Gal. 6. 9. Let us not be weary of well-doing for in due season we shall reap if we faint not that I say of praying be not weary of praying say not it is in vain but continue praying for the mercy for the grace for the help for the comfort which your souls do need for in due season you shall reap if you faint not when you sowe the seed in the earth you shall finde it to come up and bring forth in the season of it not as soon as you sowe it yet in the due season you shall hear of it again so sowe your prayers in heaven prayers are the seed which the soul doth sowe and you shall reap in due season though you be not presently answered yet when the season of answering comes you shall certainly be answered 2. Look out for more than as yet you have received and do enjoy Beloved Look out for more than as yet you have received this you shall experimentally finde that the more you do study your own hearts the more wants and weaknesse you shall finde in them and the more that you study the Covenant of grace the more riches of grace and mercy and glory you shall finde in it As the Queen of Sheba though she heard much of the wisdome of Solomon yet she found more than as much more when she came and conferred with him so besides all the good which you have heard in the Covenant or have received from the Covenant if you would search further into it you should yet finde those unsearchable riches of Christ and such depths and heighths of love and mercy that you never espied before there is much more grace and much more love and much more mercy and much more peace than ever your souls as yet tasted of you shall finde greater things promised than ever you as yet have partaken of Object You will confesse so there are Sol. And sit you still and stand you complaining and will not you make out for them do not you know 1. That the whole Covenant is your portion that God hath promised to give all unto you to give grace and glory and to with-hold no good thing from you
Holy Ghost is the eternal Spirit Heb. 9. 14. and he abides with us for ever John 14. 16. 4. The mercy of God is everlasting Psal 100. 5. his mercy is everlasting and Psal 103. 17. it is from everlasting to everlasting upon them that fear him and Psal 136. from verse 1. to 26. six and twenty times it is there said his mercy endures for ever 5. The goodnesse of God is everlasting it endureth continually Psal 52. 1. 6. The love of God is an everlasting love Jer. 31. 33. I have loved thee with an everlasting love 7. The kindnesse of God is everlasting Isaiah 54. 8. with everlasting kindnesse will I have mercy on thee saith the Lord thy Redeemer 8. The righteousnesse of the Covenant is an everlasting righteousnesse Dan. 9. 24. 9. The forgivenesse in the Covenant is everlasting Jerem. 31. 34. I will forgive their iniquity and I will remember their sinnes no more Micah 7. 9. Thou wilt cast all their sinnes into the depth of the Sea 10. The grace or holinesse of the Covenant is everlasting it is called abiding seed 1 John 3. 9. and the immortal seed 1 Pet. 1. beiâ—g born agâ—in not of corruptible seed but of incorruptible it is living water John 4. 10. springing up to everlasting life ver 14. 11. The joy of it is everlasting Isa 51. 11. and none shall take it from us John 16. 22. 12. So is the Consolation of the Covenant 2 Thess 2. 16. Who hath given us everlasting Consolation and good hope throuâ—h grace 13. The life of the Covenant is everlasting Jâ—hn 3. 16. he that believes shall not perish but have everlasting life 1 John 2. 25. This is the promise which he hath promised us even eternal life For the opening of this excellent and comfortable adjunct of the Covenant remember 1. That the word everlasting hath two acceptions it doth denote Thâ— word everlasting aâ—eâ— for Aâ—ong duration A perpetual duration This Covenant is everlasting 1. Sometimes a long duration in which respect the old Covenant cloathed with figures and ceremonies is called everlasting because it was to endure and did endure a long time 2. Sometimes a perpetual duration and a duration which shall last for ever in this respect the new Covenant is everlasting it shall never cease never be broken never be altered 2. And it is an everlasting Covenant in a twofold respect 1. Ex parte faederantis in respect of God who will never break Covenant In respect of God with his people but is their God and will be their God for ever and ever 2. Ex parte confaederatorum in respect of the people of God who are brought In respect of his people into Covenant and shall continue in Covenant for ever and ever you have both these expressed in Jer. 32. 40. I will make an everlasting Covenant with them that I will not turn away from them to do them good but I will put my fear in their hearts that they shall not depart from me Mark the place it shews that the Covenant is everlasting on Gods part and also on our part on Gods part I will never turn away from them to do them good and on our part They shall never depart from me how so I will put my fear in their hearts that they shall not depart from me even that fear spoken of in ver 39. that they may fear me for ever There are three things which I would deliver concerning the everlastingnesse of the Covenant 1. Some clear demonstrations of it from the Scripture 2. The reasons why the Covenant of grace is and must be everlasting 3. Some useful applications of this unto our selves 1. The demonstrations of the everlastingnesse of the Covenant in respect of the The everlastingnesse of the Covenant demonstrated From the consideration of God himself in relation to his people The election of God people in Covenant I shall present unto you four arguments to demonstrate that it is so 1. The first argument I will take from the consideration of God himself in relation unto his people as 1. his election of them 2. His love to them 3. His power for them 4. His presence with them 5. His promises to them 1. The election of God all the people in the Covenant are the elect of God thine they were and thou gavest them me saith Christ John 17. 6. As many as were ordained to eternal life believed Acts 13. 48. Now there are three things in election 1. It is a gracious decree not depending on any forinsecal causes 2. It is an unalterable decree not raised on any mutable causes 3. It is an effectual decree letting forth and communicating all the things which will infallibly bring unto salvation Rom. 8. 30. Whom he did predestinate which if it be so then certainly the Covenant is everlasting forasmuch as everlasting life and all that conduceth thereunto is unalterably decreed in Gods election and from that effectually communicated unto all in Covenant 2. The love of God that God doth love his people is most clear in the Scriptures The love of God After what manner God loves his people As he loves Jesus Christ but after what manner doth he love them we read five things of Gods love to his 1. That God doth love his people after the same manner that he loves Jesus Christ himself and with the same love John 17. 23. That the world may know that thou hast sent me and hast loved them as thou hast loved me Ver. 26. I have declared unto them thy Name that the love wherewith thou hast loved me may be in them and I in them 2. That God doth love his people with an insuperable and with and inseparable With an insuperable and inseparable love love Rom. 8. 35. Who shall separate us from the love of Christ shall tribulation or distresse or persecution or famine or nakedness or perills or sword Ver. 37. Nay in all these things we are more than conquerors through him that loved us Ver. 38. I am perswaded that neither death nor life nâ—r Angels nor principalities nor powers nor things present nor things to come Ver. 39. Nor heighth nor depth nor any other creature shall be able to separate us from the love of God which is in Christ Jesus our Lord. 3. That God doth love his people with a most gracious love with a love With a most gracious love kindled only from love Deut. 7. 7 8. The Lord did set his love upon you because the Lord loved you Hosea 14. 4. I will love them freely that is upon the sole account and reason of my own love unto them yea his love was the only impulsive cause why he entred into Covenant with them and by oath engaged himself unto them Ezek. 16. 8. Now when I passed by thee and looked upon thee behold thy time was the time of love and I sware unto thee and entred into Covenant with thee saith the Lord
not sinners need mercy 3. Can mercy be found anywhere but in this Covenant of mercy or peace anywhere but in the Covenant of peace or life anywhere but in the Covenant of life 4. And doth not this Covenant hold out mercy unto you yea the best mercy and upon the best terms The other Covenant affords you no mercy it easts you off it condemns you to death and wrath And this Covenant yet offers you mercy and life and salvation and no Covenant but this doth so What and yet to refuse to come into it surely either you know not that you are sinners and what will befall you for your sins or else you are desperately wicked to slight and refuse the mercy and grace of God in this Covenant Ezek. 24. 13. Because I would have purged thee and thou wast not purged thou shalt not be purged from thy filthiness any more till I have caused my fury to rest upon thee So may the Lord say unto some of us Because I would have shewed you mercy but you would not accept of mercy therefore you shall never have mercy And because I would have taken you into Covenant and you would not come into my Covenant of grace and life and peace I will never be a merciful God to you nor a gracious God to you but you shall dye in your sins and perish for ever Heb. 2. 3. Vse 2 How shall we escape if we neglect so great salvation Heb. 12. 25. See that ye refuse not him that speaketh for if they escaped not who refused him that spake on earth Then how injurious are many broken-hearted sinners to God and themselves much more shall not we escape if we turn away from him that speaketh from heaven Is the Covenant of Grace the best Covenant better then any other Covenant which God made with man Then how injurious are many broken-hearted sinners both unto themselves and unto God! who lay the Covenant of grace so low and impose such opinions upon it as if there were no difference twixt a Covenant of grace and a Covenant of works Surely it is either temptation which lies upon them or ignorance or unbelief that they thus stand off and fear and dispute and except and question and many times conclude against all encouragements to be taken into this Covenant and there to finde mercy and rest for their soules truely they do many times turn the Covenant of Grace into a very Covenant of Works O but there is no mercy to be had O but not for such great sins O but for me O but I can deserve nothing and bring nothing O but the sentence is past against me O but I have nothing to make my peace And thus they make the Covenant of Grace a very Covenant of Works no better then so a Covenant without mercy without grace without a Mediatour without a tender compassionate God and Father no City of refuge at all nor help to the poor sinner at all And when they are convinced of mercy in it and possible reception into it yet they think that God will not come off to this but upon very hard and difficult terms usually annexing the Legal condition to the promises of the Covenant of Grace Why sirs what do you mean thus to wrong God and his Covenant and your distressed souls Either there is a Covenant of Grace or there is not either that Covenant of Grace is a better Covenant than the Covenant of works or it is not If it be a better Covenant then the fallen and undone sinner may finde relief there and help there which he could not finde in the Covenant of Works for if the sinner can be no more relieved by this than by that Covenant it is then no better Covenant And now see what a slurre you cast upon the wisdome of God and upon the goodness of God and upon Jesus Christ and upon all the promises of God O distressed sinner If the merciful God if the gracious God if the giving God if the forgiving God if the freely loving God if the Lord Jesus as Mediatour and Surety if all the promises of God in Christ if all the offers of grace if all the calls of the Gospel may suffice to convince thee that this Covenant is the best Covenant that ever was or can be made for sinners with all suitableness and tenderness to the sinners condition Then dispute no more but pray for faith to give God the glory of his exceeding grace in this Covenant c. Use 3 Is the Covenant of Grace the best Covenant What a comfort is this to all believers who are effectually brought into this Covenant Is it no comfort to be Comfort to all Believers brought into such a good estate as better cannot be found or enjoyed If the Covenant of Grace be the best Covenant better then any other Covenant Then all in that Covenant are in the best condition of all other men It was a special kindness in Joseph to give his Father and his Brethren a pâ—ssession in the land of Ramesis what kindness then is that in God to make you to be his people and to become your God and to settle such a portion such a possession upon your soules as in heaven and earth a better Covenant cannot be how should you hearts rejoyce and blesse God for the Covenant of Grace and for bringing of you into that Covenant of grace where A Redeemer is only to be found and you have an interest in that Redeemer A reconciled God is only to be found and you have a propriety in that reconciled God pardoning mercy is only to be found and you have your shares in that pardoning mercy Renewing grace is only to be found and you have your portion in that renewing grace Salvation is only to be found and you have your possession of that salvation Others perhaps cry out O that we might have mercy and O that we might have Christ and O that God would be pacified towards us and reconciled to us and O that our sins might be forgiven and our soules accepted into life why you have all this and more than this Have you not cause to rejoyce who are brought into such a Covenant where you have a propriety in God and Christ and the Spirit and mercy and grace and glory yea into such a Covenant where you may finde relief and support for every want and against every fear and against every sin and against every temptation where all the sorts of mercies and helps and comforts are yours Yea unto such a Covenant where there is not only mercy but fulnesse and not only fulness but freenesse and with all these a certainty and unchangeablenesse Here is as much mercy and goodnesse and happinesse as you need and you shall surely have it and it shall continue unto you for ever Adam and God parted but you and your God shall never part you and Christ shall never part you and mercy and
to believe a falshood for verily Christ did not die for those who remain unbelievers and impenitent and the Gospel is so far from promising life by the death of Christ to impenitent and unbelieving persons that it threatens and seals death and wrath and condemnation on them Joh. 8. 24. If ye believe not that I am he ye shall dye in your sins Joh. 3. 36. He that believeth not the Son shall not see life but the wrath of God abideth on him ver 18. He that believeth not is condemned already because he hath not believed in the Name of the only begotten Son of God 3. The immediate Object of that faith which God at first requires is not this Proposition Christ dyed for me But Christ who dyed And the first command of Faith in the Gospel is to accept Christ and rest on Christ and then follows a fiduciary perswasion that Christ died for me And indeed no man can come to that degree of Faith to be perswaded or confident that Christ died for him untill he first by faith receive Christ offered unto him Argument 2 Vnbelievers are damned for rejecting the grace of Christ offered unto them by the Gospel shall they be so punished if that grace were never purchased for them and never did belong unto them Answered Sol. To this I answer First That Christ with his grace of Redemption is Indefinitely offered unto sinners by the Gospel and that all who do by their infidelity refuse that grace are deservedly damned not because they reject the grace offered belonging to them as unbelievers and impenitent but because they neglect and despise that condition upon which grace was offered unto them Christ and his grace were offered unto them upon this condition If they would believe and receive him and it But they will not believe You will not come unto me that you might have life Joh. 5. 40. And though light be come into the world yet they will not receive it Secondly Unbelievers who do reject Christ with his grace offered unto them do not reject him and that grace because they know that neither Christ nor his grace do belong to them this neither is nor can be the reason à priore of their rejection because no particular sinner unto whom the Gospel comes can know that Christ hath simply excluded him and tends no good to him and he sees that to others in the same condition and depth of sin and unworthiness with himself Christ and his grace offered by the Gospel are effectual But therefore they do reject Christ because they love him not they love darkness rather than light Joh. 3. 19. and are led by their perverse will so as utterly to refuse communion with Christ and subjection to him for which they are deservedly punished Argument 3 Thirdly they argue thus That if Christ did not dye for all and eveâ—y man Then every man must remain in a doubtful suspence whether he be concerned to believe in Christ or not Answered Sol. 1. And why so I pray you Is this to be set up as the only ground why we must believe in Christ because Christ hath died for all and every man when yet themselves do say though Christ hath so died for all and every man yet no man is the better for this untill and unless he believe Or doth the Gospel when it calls upon sinners to believe on Christ propound this as the inducement unto the soul Christ died for all men and for every man therefore you should believe on Christ and untill you be sure that Christ did thus dye and obtain Reconciliation for all and every man and Remission of sins and eternal life for all you may not and must not believe When Peter called upon those Jews to believe Acts 2. and Paul upon the Jaylor believe and you shall be saved Chap. 16. did they usher this duty in with imposing this Precedent certainty to them that they must subscribe firist unto that Point That Christ dyed for all and every man therefore you should believe Secondly But there is no cause of this suspence or doubting at all whether a person should believe on Christ though Christ did not die for all men because the Gospel without that error affords Grounds or Reasons enough for any man to whom it is preached to believe on Christ 1. It reveals Christ as the Saviour of sinners 2. It offers this Saviour freely unto sinners 3. It commands him particularly to believe on Christ 4. It promiseth him life upon believing Is here now any reason to doubt whether I ought to believe 5. It assures him that Christ will in no wise reject him 6. But will accept and that it is so far from being a sin in him to believe in Christ that it is his great sin if he doth not believe on Christ who then graciously offers himself and Commands him to believe and assures him of Reconciliation and pardoning mercy and eternal life upon beleeving Argument 4 If Christ did not dye for all and every man then one of these Absurdities must necessarily follow either that those for whom Christ dyed not are free of Adams sins as the Angels in Heaven are and so have not need of Christ to be their Reconciliation or else they are in the same condition with the Divels and so must despair of all hope of Salvation Answered Sol. I answer neither so nor so neither the one nor the other absurdity will arise necessarily out of that Doctrine that Christ dyed not for all that some of Adams Posterity are no sinners and so need no Reconciliation by Christ or that else they must despair being in the same condition with the Divels themselves 1. For first most certain it is that in Adam all sinned Rom. 5. 12. And by reason of sin all do stand in need of Reconciliation by Christ but hence it will not follow because that all men are sinners and do stand in need of such a Reconciliation by Christ therefore God must and doth give Christ as a Reconciliation for them all No more then this will follow because that so many Malefactors are in peril of their life therefore the Prince against whom they have offended must either pardon or offer pardon to every one of them for though there be a common necessity of pardon as unto all of them because of their guilt yet the giving of pardon is an act of meer grace and therefore the Prince offended may bestow it on some of them only and not on all of them Thus stands the case 'twixt God and us we have all sinned against him and therefore come short of the glory of God and stand in need of mercy and Reconciliation by Christ and God saith I will have mercy on whom I will have mercy some of these sinners I will save by Christ namely all them that believe Joh. 3. 36. others of these I will not save namely those that believe not though there be a need of
know any solid objection to the contrary for though many believers yet complain and yet doubt and yet seek for this assurance Yet some of these may have had assurance and pursue only an higher degree or if they never yet had yet they shall at length finde it and their longing and seeking after it are the means to attain to it Case 4. Whether the assurance or certain knowledge that Christ is ours Whether assurance be of any spiritual advantage to him that hath it and dyed for our sins and made our peace and purchased our salvation be a matter of any special advantage unto him that hath it Sol. I am willing to speak something to this case because it may serve much to excite the hearts of believing persons to strive after this assurance when they shall hear the singular advantages and benefits thereby There are nine admirable advantages and benefits by it First This assurance silenceth all the trouble of the soul all the doubts and Nine advantages by it It silenceth all trouble fears and terrors and sad suspitions and apprehensions in the soul you are presently off the Sea and off the Rack when this assurance comes in the very nature of it and in the inseparable effects of it it is a present cure and discharge unto all the anxiety and perplexity of the soul Fears and doubts and troubles of minde may consist with faith but they cannot consist with assurance if I be once assured that Christ is mine that he dyed for me that my sins are pardoned in his blood my heart is presently at ease my conscience ceaseth to accuse God appears not as a Judge but as a Father all enmity is slain what is there to fear or to trouble me Who shall lay any thing to the charge of Gods Elect it is God that justifieth Who is he that condemneth it is Christ that dyed Rom. 8. 33 34. Secondly This assurance as it silenceth all troubles so it supplies the heart It supplies the heart with all comforts with all comforts David speaking of the light of Gods countenance saith that it put exceeding gladnesse into his heart Psal 4. 7. and made him to lie down in peace ver 8. Such comfortable operations come from this assurance of our interest in Christ and in the benefits of his death it makes us to rejoyce with joy unspeakable and glorious and it produceth a peace that passeth all understanding And the reason of these comfortable effects is this because the certain knowledge of a mans happinesse and of his propriety in it necessarily fills the soul with joy and peace Simile When the Israelites were drawing towards the red Sea they look't back upon their enemies and were sore afraid but when they were past the red Sea and look't back and saw all their enemies drowned they bowed and blessed and rejoyced their sighs were turned into joys and their fears into peace and they rejoyced exceedingly Before assurance we look on our sins and fear after assurance when we see and know them to be drowned in the blood of Christ now we rejoyce God is reconciled sin is pardoned my soul shall be saved Doth not this will not this cause us to rejoyce We joy in God through our Lord Jesus Christ by whom we have received the atonement Rom. 5. 11. Thirdly This assurance doth quicken all our graces it is their spring-time It quickens all our graces they act highly upon it as Solomons garden of spices did when the South wind blew upon it Cant. 4. 16. There is not one grace in the soul but is revived and enlarged by it Godly sorrow now fills the Pools with water see Zach. 12. 10. They shall mourn as a man mourneth for his only son c. love is enflamed by it To whom much is forgiven the same will love much Luke 7. 47. All the motions of love are in assurance here is love and mercy and kindnesse and goodnesse and bounty to me and all known by me And faith riseth by it in stronger confidence and dependance upon God whom I now know to love me to be mine to be reconciled unto me c. Fourthly This assurance sets on all our duties and services with such life It sets on all our duties with life with such affections with such alacrity oh how full is the soul with praising of God admiring him in Christ blessing him and his Christ Blesse blesse bless the Lord O my soul who forgiveth all thy iniquities Psal 103. 1 2 3. O how quick is the heart become in prayer it makes haste it takes delight to draw near to God it is enlarged in confidences and desires Fifthly This assurance is a strong preservative against sin and all temptations It is a strong preservative against sin and temptation thereto How can I do this great wickednesse and sin against God O I have seen the face of God the love of Christ the sweetnesse of mercy Should such a man as I flee said Nehemiah So should such a man as I sin saith the assured Believer Should I so requite the Lord Should I make such a return unto my loving Christ c Sixthly This assurance sweetens all our other blessings it is the Sugar in the It sweetens all other blessings Wine This land is mine this house is mine and this husband and this wife and these riches this plenty c. yea and Christ is mine and God is mine and peace with God is mine and forgivenesse of sins and salvation and I know that they are mine Although a man enjoys all these outward blessings yet if his conscience tells him Thou hast no part in Christ nor portion in his death all thy sins are unpardoned and Gods justice is unsatisfied c. O what a sinking is this unto him under all his abundance or if a man be still doubtful whether he hath a part in Christ this imbitters all his possessions I know not what will become of me at the last Seventhly This assurance sweetens all losses and crosses Job 9. 2. O that It sweetens all losses and crosses I were as in months past as in the days when God preserved me Ver. 3. when his candle shined upon my head and when by his light I walked through darknesse here the light of Gods favour made him walk even in darknesse Rom. 8. 55. Who shall separate us from the love of Christ Shall tribulation or distress or persecution or famine or nakednesse or peril or sword Ver. 37. Nay in all these things we are more than Conquerors through him that loved us Rom. 5. 3. And not only so but we glory in tribulations c. 2 Cor. 4. 17. Our light affliction which is but for a moment worketh for us a far more exceeding and eternal weight of glory 2 Cor. 5. 1. For we know that if the earthly house of this Tabernacle were dissolved we have a building with God not made with hands eternal in
I will heal their back-slidings I will love them freely Zac. 12. 10. I will poure upon the house of David and upon the inhabitants of Jerusalem the Spirit of grace and of supplication c. Here only two Questions for the illustration of this Point 1. Why God himself undertakes to give the Covenant-blessings unto his people 2. After what manner he undertakes to bestow them upon his people Quest 1. Why God himself undertakes the Donative of all the blessings in Reasons of it the Covenant unto his people Sol. Reasons thereof are First No creature whatsoever can give them therefore it belongs to God alone Two things at the least are required for the giving of blessings No Creature can give them 1. One is Authority there must be a right in them as ours for what hath any one to do to give that which is none of his 2. The other is Sufficiency or ability to pass them over unto another and to make the blessings to be his Now no creature hath Authority to give any blessings why so because God only is the Lord of all blessings whatsoever they are his and of right belong unto him only Consider all sorts of blessings they are his he is the Lord of them Spiritual blessings are his mercy is his he is the God of mercy and grace is his he is the God of all grace and comfort is his he is the God of all consolation and peace is his he is the very God of peace and love is his God is love the Spirit is his and Christ is his Anointed and glory is his he is the God of glory And so for temporal blessings though they be ours many times for possession and use yet they are his for Right and Donation The earth is the Lords and the fulnesse thereof saith David Psal 24. 1. Thine O Lord is the greatnesse and the power and the glory and the victory and the Majesty for all that is in the heaven and in the earth is thine 1 Chro. 29. 11. Both riches and honour come of thee and thou reignest over all and in thine hand is power and might and in thine hand it is to make great and to give strength unto all ver 12. And no Creature hath Sufficiency or Ability to convey or passe over blessings for Spiritual blessings can any man give them unto himself or unto another Can any man give faith unto himself It is the work of God saith Christ it is the gift of God saith Paul Can any man give Repentance unto himself no it was God that gave repentance unto the Gentiles and the Church prayed Turn thou me and I shall be turned Can any man make his own heart holy no it is God himself which sanctifies us can any man forgive his own sinnes no who can forgive sinnes but God only And for temporal blessings can we give rain or plenty or safety or health or life or ease or quietness can we make the Cloudes to drop down or the sword to be at rest or the sick to be at rest No Creature can do any thing of itself and therefore God himself undertakes to give all the blessings in the Covenant unto his people otherwise they could never have them Secondly God will have the glory of whatsoever blessing we do receive from him God will have the glory of all our blessings He allows unto us the benefit of them and the comfort of them but he reserves all the glory of them unto himself alone Thine is the glory saith Christ Matth. 6. 13. Now upon a double account doth the glory of all appertain to God viz. 1. In that he is the End of all his works and gifts and blessings all that God manifests about the salvation of sinners is to the praise and glory of his grace Eph. 1. 6. He himself is the ultimate End of all his works and of himself 2. In that he is the Efficient Cause of all good and blessings the Apostle joynes these two together in Rom. 11. 16. For of him and through him and to him are all things to whom be glory for ever Amen Mark the place let glory be given to God for ever and unto him alone why so because 1. All things are of him and through him he is the Efficient Cause 2ly All things are to him he is the Final Cause for which they are You have another place to this purpose in 1 Cor. 1. 30. But of him are ye in Christ Jesus who of God is made unto us Wisdom and Righteousness and Sanctification and Redemption ver 31. That according as it is written he that glorieth let him glory in the Lord. If any man could be of himself the cause unto himself of any good then he might glory in himself and bless himself and say This hath mine own hand wroughâ— for me I gave life unto my self and grace to my heart and peace to mine own conscience and I wrought mine own Redemption No saith the Apostle you can do nothing it is of God that ye are in Christ and it is of God that Christ is made unto you wisdom c. therefore you may not glory in your selves but only in the Lord. If I be made high only by the favour of another and if I be made rich only by the bounty of another should I give the glory of these unto my self well then God hath a right unto all glory therefore he himself will give all grace Thirdly God himself undertakes to give unto his people all Covenant-blessings God would have the hearts of his people fâ—x't on him alone because the hearts of his people should be fixed and fastened on him alone There are two things which God cannot endure especially in his own people 1. One is a distrust of himself Why sayest thou O Jacob and speakest O Israel My way is hid from the Lord and my judgement is passed over from my God! Isa 40. 27. 2. The other is a trusting upon the creature and now What hast thou to do in the way of Egypt to drink the water of Siber Or what hast thou to do with the way of Assyria to drink the water of the River Jer. 2. 18. Cursed be the man that trusteth in man and maketh flesh his arme and whose heart departeth from the Lord Jer. 17. 5. No but this is it that the Lord doth require of his people viz. to take off their hearts their hopes and expectations and dependances from all other besides himself and to settle and fix them only upon himself Isa 45. 22. Look unto me all ye ends of the earth and be saved for I am God and there is none else Psal 62. 8. Trust in him at all times ye people poure out the heart before him God is a refuge Selah In the Covenant God engageth his heart to us and one reason thereof is to engage our hearts to him in the Covenant he engageth his power and goodnesse and all-sufficiency
time he gives faith and Christ and Justification and Sanctification all at once as soon as the person believes he is united to Christ and hereupon justified and sanctified And others of them are of a comfortable consequence as assurance joy peace c. God doth not give these blessings first of all but after he hath given the former Ephes 1. 13. In whom after ye believed ye were sealed with that holy Spirit of promise mark the sealing follows the believing 1 Pet. 1. 8. In whom believing ye rejoyce with joy unspeakable and full of glory here rejoycing follows believing Rom. 5. 1. Being justified by faith we have peace with God peace with God follows justification and therefore is it a preposterous course for any troubled souls to presse God or to expect from God the comforts and joys and assurances promised before they have faith and are in Christ for though God doth promise these things yet he promises to give them in an orderly way the graces first and then the comforts of grace faith and union with Christ first and then the joys and peace depending upon that union 5. When God undertakes to give all blessings unto his people in Covenant this He gives according to the proportions and measures he knows best for us in our places and conditions must be understood according to the proportion and measure which he knows best for us in our places and conditions There is a measure of apprehension of Christ and of our justification by Christ and of our salvation by Christ God gives a greater and clearer and more fixed measure of the apprehension or reflexive knowledge of these to some of his people then he doth to others of them And there is a measure of holinesse some have higher and some have weaker degrees of grace now in Gods undertaking to give all spiritual blessings you must not think that God intends to give every measure or degree of grace at once nor yet the like degree of grace unto every one nor yet the like measure of comfortable evidences or apprehensions of interest in Christ and remission and salvation by him no but God will give all Covenant-blessings unto all his people in such a proportion and measure in this life as may conduce most to his glory and may most fit them in their private and publick conditions for his better service Vse 1 Strive to believe and acknowledge this truth that God himself doth undertake to give all the blessings of the Covenant which do concern his Believe and acknowledge this truth people Object Why will you say no man doubts it or scruples it but it belongs to God and to him alone to give all c. Sol. I wish that â—â—me were true but if indeed this were so then 1. Why do not we in all our wants and necessities make our prime applications unto God Why do we think least of him and last of him we run to this creature and to that creature set up one friend and look upon another try all the powers and abilities here below as if God were least of all concerned in the donation of our mercies and blessings if we did indeed believe that God himself undertakes all blessings for us then our first addresses would be unto him our first work and our great work would be with himself alone to do us good 2. Why do our hearts go and come rise and fall according to the presence and absence of visible means and helps in the prevalence of them our hearts are raised up with hopes and in the absence of them they are distracted and cast down with fears Would it be thus with us if we did indeed believe that God himself undertook to give us all our blessings certainly we place our hopes and expectations below and besides God himself when inferiour causes have such a command and such an influence upon our hearts If we did believe that God himself that he alone were sufficient and faithful it would be all one to us whether the creatures smile or frown incline toward us or fall from us 3. Why do we not only for temporal supplies but also for spiritual mercies undertake for our selves and as it were discharge God from undertaking for us How often do we undertake the spiritual charge of our hearts and to make our own hearts to repent and to believe and to subdue our own sins and to do such and such commands of God by our own free-will and by our own strength if we did believe that God himself undertakes for all these and that it belongs unto him alone to give them would we presume upon our selves thus would we take his work out of his hands 4. Why dare we not in our exigency commit all unto him and quietly rest on him but when our helps and hopes are reduced only unto him so that unlesse he himself appears we can cast Anchor nowhere else and although in such cases he doth plainly appear in his Covenant graciously undertaking and faithfully promising to help and blesse us yet this is nothing to us it doth no way affect or support us assuredly either we do not know this God aright or else we do not believe that he himself doth undertake for us or else that he will performe and Not to believe and acknowledge this truth is a great sin Wherein the sinfulnesse of it lies make good what himself hath undertaken Beloved Consider what I say this is a very great sin thus to fall short in the belief and acknowledgement of this truth for 1. You deny God to be God in the Covenant you do as it were shut him out from being a party there and concerned there though indeed he be the confederating party and we are the confederated party yet you include him and deny him to be so when that you believe not that it belongs to him to be the suscipient party and your selves to be the recipient party only for I beseech you what will you make of Gods covenanting with you more than a cypher if you do not grant and acknowledge him therein as engaging himself to give us all the good which we do need What other work is there which can or doth concern him 2. And you do hereby deny all homage unto him for how can you 〈◊〉 unto him for any one good that you want or trust on him for any one â—â—â—cy if you do not acknowledge this truth that he himself undertakes to give all blessings and mercies unto you and where will you put your mite of thankfulnesse for all your receits of blessings if God himself did not undertake to give you the blessings what ground have you to undertake to give him the praise of them Therefore earnestly strive by faith to assent unto this truth which I have delivered it is of more consequence than you are aware of it is that which gives life unto you in all your dealings with God and which may
repentance be not a cause yet it is a means of pardon which God hath ordained for us to enjoy the forgivenesse of sin of the which his grace only is the efficient cause and the blood of Christ only is the meritorious cause Though God doth freely forgive yet he enjoyns repentance on us for besides the many reasons on our part there is reason for this in repect of Gods own grace which did it expresse itself in a free forgivenesse of wicked and impenitent persons it would be exceedingly undervalued and despised as an unjust act and besides that it would be improved to all licenciousness and profanenesse Whether justified persons may charge themselves with sin Fourthly Whether justified persons may charge themselves with sin seeing God hath graciously discharged them of sin Answered How far justified persons have charged themselves with sin Sol. I will speak something unto this Case also wherein I shall shew unto you two things First How far the children of God have charged sin upon themselves we read in Scripture that they have charged themselves 1. With the matter of sin that they have been guilty of Original sin Psal 51. 5. Behold I was shapen in iniquity and in sin did my Mother conceive me Rom. 7. 20. Sin that dwelleth in me And with Actual sin as David I have sinned 2 Sam. 12. 13. I have sinned against thee said Job Chap. 7. 20. and so David Ezra Nehemiah c. 2. With the manner of sinning as to the Circumstances of it against mercies warnings judgements on others Dan. 9. Neh. 9. 3. With the merit of sin that if the Lord should deal with them according to their sins there were no abiding If thou Lord shouldest mark iniquities O Lord who shall stand Psal 130. 3. Psal 143. 2. Enter not into judgement for in thy sight shall no man living be justified Job 9. 2. How should a man be just with God Ver. 3. If he will contend with him he cannot answer him one of a thousand Dan. 9. 8. O Lord to us belongs confusion of face 4. So far forth as to acknowlegde no hope nor help of discharge but in Jesus Christ and in Gods free grace O save me for thy mercies sake 5. So far forth as to quicken all penitental works they have remembred their sins Lam. 3. 20. My soule hath them still in remembrance and is humbled within me They have considered their sins Psal 119. 59. I considered my wayes and turned my feet to thy testimonies Mark 14. 72. Peter thought on the words of Christ and went out and wept bitterly They have mourned for their sins Zach. 12. 10. They shall look upon him c. and shall mourn we read of Davids tears and Peters tears and Mary Magdalens tears c. They have reformed their sins Hose 14. 8. What have I any more to do with Idols They have been earnest with God for the pardon and for the assurance of the forgivenesse of their sins Psal 51. 1 c. and Dan. 9. O Lord hear O Lord forgive and Hose 14. 2. Take away my iniquity Secondly How far forth they may not charge sin upon themselves I answer Wherein they may not charge sin upon themselves briefly they may not charge sin on themselves First As to conclude that God will damn them for their sins For there is no condemnation to them c. Rom. 8. 1. And he that believes shall not perish but have everlasting life Joh. 3. 16. Though they must acknowledge that by reason of sin they are worthy of condemnation yet they are to believe that Christ hath dyed for them and they shall not be condemned Secondly As to undertake any self-satisfaction to God for their sins you read of their confessions and tears and prayers but not of their satisfaction All our righteousnesses are as filthy rags Isa 64. 6. Wherewithall shall I come before the Lord shall I come before him with burnt-offerings will the Lord be pleased with thousands of Rams or with ten thousands of Rivers of Oyle c. Mich. 6. 6 7. If I justifie my self mine own mouth will condemn me if I say I am perfect it shall also prove me perverse Job 9. 20. Thirdly As to disanull their relation to God of Sonship c. Isa 64. 8. But now O Lord thou art our Father Ver. 9. Be not wroth very sore O Lord neither remember iniquity for ever behold see we beseech thee we are all thy people Having thus opened and cleared the nature of the forgiveness of sins I proceed to the other part of the description of it SECT II. THE second thing in the Proposition of forgivenesse of sins is this viz. That God himself undertakes this work and he undertakes it by promise First God undertakes to forgive sins Luk. 5. 21. Who can forgive sins but God alone Isa 43. 25. I even I am he that blotteth out thy transgressions for mine own sake Exo. 34. 6. The Lord the Lord God merciful and gracious long suffering and abundant in goodnesse and truth Ver. 7. Keeping mercy for thousands forgiving iniquity transgressions and sin Dan. 9. 9. To thee O Lord God belongeth mercy and forgivenesse Forgiveness of sin is indeed one of his Royal Prerogatives therefore you find his people making their addresses unto him for forgiveness of their sins Exod. 32. 32. Oh this people have sinned a great sin yet now if thou wilt forgive their sin c. Psal 25. 18. Forgive all my sins Dan. 9. 19. O Lord hear O Lord forgive Hose 14. 2. Take away all iniquity Act. 8. 22. Pray God if perhaps the thoughts of thine heart may be forgiven thee There is a forgiveness 1. By way of charity wherein we forgive the offence and trespass against us If thy brother repent forgive him Luke 17. 3. And forgive one another as God for Christs sake hath forgiven you Eph. 4 32. 2. By way of Ministry thus the Apostles as Christ delivers it in Joh. 20. 23. Whose sins ye remit they are remitted 3. By way of immediate and absolute authority thus it belongs to God and to him alone God in Scripture is stiled a Judge Shall not the Judge of all the earth do right Gen. 18. 25. And to the Supreme Judge it belongs to condemn or to acquit A Creditor there was a certain Creditor which had two debtors Luk. 7. 41. who can forgive the debt but the Creditor A Lawgiver There is one Lawgiver who is able to save and to destroy Jam. 4 12. who can forgive the transgressions of the Law but the Lawgiver Now God himself undertakes to forgive sins and none but he must do so Reasons of it God himself undertakes this work First Because all sins are offences against him and deviations from his righteous will and injuries to his glory even those sins which are wrongs unto men are injuries also unto God for his Will is slighted and his Law is violated in them therefore the remission
but unto our merits and deserts of forgiveness God forgives sins freely and graciously i. e. without any merit or desert of ours Isa 43. 25. I even I am be that blotteth out thy transgressions for mine name sake but God doth not forgive sins freely i. e. without our repenting and believing for these he doth require of us that we may receive the forgiveness of our sins Secondly When God is said to forgive sins freely the meaning is not that he forgives every sinner in the world freeness notes the means not the extent of forgiveness with such a free unlimited largeness he doth not forgive but the meaning is that all those sinners who are forgiven they are freely forgiven God doth not put them upon any personal satisfactions nor doth he agree with them for any work of theirs as a cause or desert of the forgiveness of their sins Jer. 3. 12. Return thou back-sliding Israel saith the Lord and I will not cause mine anger to fall upon thee for I am merciful saith the Lord. Ver 13. Only acknowledge thine iniquity that thou hast transgressed against the Lord thy God c. Therefore take heed that you deceive not your selves with a confidence that your sins are forgiven because God is gracious and forgives freely for God is gracious to whom he will be gracious and they whom he graciously forgives are only the people of his Covenant even believers and penitents The death of Christ for all Thirdly A third false ground upon which some do absolutely conclude the forgiveness of their sins is the death of Christ that he shed his blood for the remission of sins and that he dyed as to that purpose for all and every one therefore their sins amongst the rest are unquestionably forgiven Answered Sol. That Jesus Christ did shed his blood for the remission of sins is most true he himself hath delivered it Matth. 26. 28. This is my blood which is shed for the remission of sins but that his blood did procure an actual remission of sins for every sinner in the world this is most false for Christ himself hath said Mark 16. 16. He that believes shall be saved and he that believes not shall be damned Joh. 10. 15. I lay down my life for the sheep Joh. 8. 24. If ye believe not that I am he ye shall dye in your sins and the Angel to Mary Mat. 1. 21. Thou shalt call his Name Jesus for he shall save his people from their sins But for your help and direction in this point take my mind in these three conclusions 1. That there was a necessity for Christ to shed his blood that so our sins might be forgiven Hebr. 9. 22. Without shedding of blood there is no remission 2. His death did purchase the forgiveness of sins Ephes 1. 7. In whom we have redemption through his blood the forgiveness of sins 3. This remission purchased though illimited as to the sins forgiven yet it is limited as to the persons forgiven 1. By the Decree of God to the Elect. 2. By the Covenant 3. And by the intention of Christ 4. And by the Gospel to whosoever believes that the shedding of his blood for the remission of sins did so illimitedly procure the same That every sinner in the world enjoys the fruit thereof whether he believes or not or whether he repents or not as I know no man living of so wicked an opinion so the Scripture delivers no such matter but the quite contrary Luke 24. 47. That repentance and remission of sins should be preached in his Name among all Nations Acts 10. 43. To him give all the Prophets witness that through his Name whosoever believeth in him shall receive remission of sins Acts 13. 38. Through this man is preached unto you the forgiveness of sins Ver. 39. Then Peter said Repent and be baptized every one of you in the Name of Jesus Christ for the remission of sins Rom. 3. 25. Whom God hath set forth to be a propitiation through faith in his blood to declare his righteousness for the remission of sins that are past It is true that remission of sins hath foundation in the blood of Christ as in a meritorious cause but our enjoyment of that merited and purchased remission takes in faith and repentance for neither God nor Christ ever intended nor promised the application thereof unto any but such as believe and repent therefore do not venture absolutely upon this that Christ dyed for the remission of sins therefore your sins are forgiven for as God did ordain the death of Christ as the meritorious cause of forgiveness of sins so did he ordain that all who have the benefit thereof should repent and believe Fourthly A fourth false ground from which some do absolutely conclude that their sins are forgiven is this their sins are but small and little sins which The smalness of sin God marks and regards not and will never take notice of but will pass them by indeed if they were guilty of great transgressions then they had reason to doubt whether they were within the compass of forgiveness promised but alas their sins are small c. Answered Sol. For answer unto this deceit remember these four particulars 1. No sin is simply little or small 2. Those sins are not little or small which people do ordinarily count so 3. God hath severely expressed himself against persons for those sins which we look on as small sins 4. This very conceit that sins are little and are past by in course may lose a man the forgiveness of his sins First No sin is simply or absolutely little or small though comparatively when we set on sin by another we find them to be of different magnitude some to be great abominations and others to be lesser transgressions yet absolutely no sin is little but as there is a greatness in the least mercy so there is a greatness in the least sin for every sin whatsoever is a transgression of the royal Law and it is committed against a great God sin is to be considered as to the object as well as to the act how were ye not afraid to speak against my servant Moses Every sin doth expose to a great curse even the curse of the Law Cursed is every one who continues not in every thing that is written to do it Is that a small offence which may cost a man his life nay it cannot be taken off but by the death and blood of Christ there is an infinite offence and merit in any sin you read in the Mosaical Law that the blood of the beast was to be shed for the expiation of sins of ignorance and inadvertency which did signifie the shedding of the blood of Christ for the expiation of the least sins and surely that offence may not be reputed little or small which cannot be put away but by the death of the Son of God Secondly Those sins are not little or small which people
ordinarily do count so people do look on it as a very small offence 1. To omit praying and reading in their Families but God threatens to poure out his wrath upon the Families that call not upon his Name Jer. 10. 25. Though this be spoken of the Heathens yet it is much more true of Christians 2. To pass by Christ offered unto them but the Scripture saith He that believes not shall be damned and that he shall not see life but the wrath of God abideth on him Mark 16. 16. 3. To despise the Ministers of Christ but Christ saith He that despiseth you despiseth me Luk. 10. 16. 4. To come unworthily to the Lords Table but the Scripture saith He that eats and drinks unworthily doth eat and drink damnation to himself 1 Cor. 11. 5. To be proud and speak lies but the Scripture saith that a proud look and lying tongue are an abomination to the Lord Prov. 6. 16 17. 6. To speak idly and vainly but Jesus Christ saith Matth. 12. 36. That every idle word that men shall speak they shall give an account thereof in the day of judgement for by thy words thou shalt be justified and by thy words thou shalt be condemned 7. To wound the name of others behind their backs whisperingly and cunningly and privately but the Scripture saith Deut. 27. 24. Cursed be he that smiteth his neighbour secretly 8. To give way to wicked thoughts and sins of heart but the Scripture shews that these are no small sins Acts 8. 22. Pray God if perhaps the thoughts of thine heart may be forgiven thee 9. To make mention of the Name of God vainly and rashly and irreverently on any occasion in ordinary discourse O God! O Lord but the Scripture doth not look on this as a small sin Exod. 20. 7. Thou shalt not take the Name of the Lord thy God in vain for the Lord will not hold him guiltless that takes his Name in vain 10. To profane the Sabbath by buying and selling but God threatens to send a fire for this Jer. 17. 27. Thirdly God hath expressed himself very severely against persons for those sins which we perhaps look upon as small Adam eating of the forbidden fruit it lost him Paradise and brought an exceeding misery on mankind Vzzah did but put out his hand to stay the Ark and he dyed for it on the place Vzziah would be medling with the Priests office and he was immediately struck with a leprofie to the day of his death 2 Chron. 26. 19 21. Korah Dathan and Abiram misliked the authority of Moses and Aaron and the earth opened her mouth and swallowed them up Ananias and Sapphira for a lye are struck dead Fourthly This very conceit that sins are so little and small that God will pass them by in course may lose a man the forgiveness of sin for it is a means 1. Of carnal security 2. Of impenitency 3. Of neglect of Jesus Christ 4. To implore God by prayer for the forgiveness of sins like the proud Pharisee who sought not for mercy and missed of mercy because he took no notice of his sins at all the greatest sin is pardoned upon repentance the least sin will damn without repentance Secondly I now come to the second position which is this That some do put Some put themselves out of a capacity of forgiveness themselves out of a capacity of the forgiveness of their sins and there are eight sorts of these persons 1. They who sin the sin against the Holy Ghost 2. They who will not repent and forsake their sins 3. They who delay and defer Repentance 4. They who do repent feignedly and hypocritically 5. They who do not believe on Christ and refuse to be his 6. They who do absolutely despair 7. They who do rest on their own works as reasons and causes of the forgiveness of their sins 8. They who are unmerciful and unplacable and will not forgive others who trespass against them They who sin the sin against the Holy Ghost First They do put themselves out of a capacity of forgiveness of their sins who do sin the sin against the Holy Ghost Matth. 12. 31. All manner of sin and blasphemy shall be forgiven unto men but the blasphemy against the Holy Ghost shall not be forgiven unto men Ver. 32. And whosoever speaketh a word against the Son of man it shall be forgiven him but whosoever speaketh against the Holy Ghost it shall not be forgiven him neither in this world nor in the world to come Here you find it expresly and peremptorily delivered from the mouth of Jesus Christ himself that the sin against the Holy Ghost shall never be forgiven Quest But will some of you say What is this sin against the Holy Ghost What that sin is which never shall be forgiven Sol. It is a wilful and malicious and reproachful opposition of the Gospel attended with a total and final Apostacy from it after and against the clear convictions of the Holy Ghost First It is an opposition of the Gospel the Gospel must be preached and the Gospel must be opposed by such as hear it else it is not the sin against the Holy Ghost they therefore who are charged with this sin are said to hate the light Joh. 3. 20. and to hate Christ and to hate the truth Joh. 15. 25. and to be disobedient unto the Gospel and to be a gain-saying people Rom. 10. 21. and to reject the Corner stone Acts 4. 11. and to refuse to hear Acts 13. 46. and to put the Word from them who resist the truth and contradict it 2 Tim. 3. 8. as you may read of the Pharisees and other of the Jews Secondly It is a peculiar kind of opposition not of ignorance not of inadvertency not of passion but 1. A wilful opposition therefore they who commit this sin are said to sin wilfully Hebr. 10. 26. If we sin wilfully after we have received the knowledge of the truth there remaineth no more sacrifice for sin A man sins wilfully when the reason of his sinning rests solely in the perverseness of his will though his judgement be disarmed of all Apology and his conscience be convinced yet he will sin and oppose the Gospel because he will do so 2. A malicious opposition it ariseth from a bitter hatred against Christ and rage against the truth therefore they who sin this sin are said to offer or do despite unto the Spirit of grace Hebr. 10 29. as if they did sin on purpose to vex and affront the Spirit of God 3. A reproachful opposition hence it is affirmed of these sinners that they speak evil of the ways of Christ and blaspheme his Word The Jews were filled with envy and spake against those things which were spoken by Paul contradicting and blaspheming Acts 13. 45. that they mock at Jesus Christ Matth. 27. 41. The chief Priests mocking him with the Scribes and Elders c. Ver. 29. When they had
blood hath satisfied you and mercy longs to help and pardon the poor sinner it shall come saith Christ for my blood hath purchased it Secondly Jesus Christ must make good his bargain and agreement he did agree with Christ must make good his bargain his Father to be a Surety for all his people and was content to stand in their stead and to have all their iniquities laid upon himself and to answer for them and to suffer for them and to clear and discharge them and to reconcile and save them by his death and therefore even upon that account it was necessary that Christ should dye and shed his blood that the agreement 'twixt him and the Father might be performed Thirdly It was necessary also in this respect To convince us of the hainousness To convince us of the hainousness of sin of sin we ordinarily look on sin as a small matter as if God were not offended and provoked by it and if he be â—et a small matter will serve the turn to satisfie God to pacifie him towards us and get forgiveness but we do extraordinarily delude our selves for without shedding of blood there is no remission it cost Jesus Christ the Son of God his precious blood and if that had not been shed never could any have got the forgiveness of any one sin Fourthly It was necessary likewise as to the acquiescing quieting or satisfying To satisfie conscience of conscience which would never come to any rest or peace unless Jesus Christ had shed his blood for still the conscience cries out Gods justice must be satisfied and who will undertake that great work Lo I come saith Christ I have laid down a price I became sin I was made a curse I wrought redemption I have satisfied the just God and purchased the forgiveness of your sins and now conscience is quieted Who shall condemn it is Christ that dyed How it may be demonstâ—ated Quest 3. How it can be demonstrated that the blood of Christ is the cause of forgiveness of our sins though many and great Answered Sol. Besides the clear Scriptures already mentioned these Arguments may help us to demonstrate it First We are set free by the blood of Christ Zach. 9. 11. By the blood of thy Covenant I have sent forth thy prisoners out of the pit Secondly We are justified by his blood and saved from wrath Rom. 5. 9. Much more being justified by his blood we shall be saved from wrath by him Pray tell me what is it to be justified but to be pardoned and what is it to be saved from wrath but to be delivered from all punishment and both these depend upon the blood of Christ Thirdly So we are said to be made nigh by the blood of Christ Ephes 2. 13. and to be reconciled through the blood of his Cross Colos 1. 20. Secondly Now I come to the second Branch of the Assertion that as Jesus Christs blood the only cause of pardon Christs blood is the cause so it is the only cause for which God forgives the sins of his people Yet let me distinguish causes of forgiveness are of two sorts First Internally moving God and that is his own free grace only Secondly Externally meriting and that is the death or blood of Christ only Isa 63. 3. I have trodden the wine-press alone and of the people there was none with me Acts 4. 12. Neither is there salvation in any other Name for there is none other Name under heaven given amongst men whereby we must be saved Acts 13. 38. Through this man is preached unto you the forgiveness of sins Ver. 39. And by him all that believe are justified from all things from which ye could not be justified by the Law of Moses 1 Cor. 3. 11. Other foundation can no man lay than that which is laid which is Jesus Christ The truth of this will easily appear if you consider Demonstrated First The works of God the Father who laid on Christ and none but Christ the iniquities of us all Isa 5. 3. 6. and sealed him John 6. 27. and set him apart authoritatively commissioned him and set him forth to be a propitiation Rom. 3. 25. Secondly The office of Christ amongst the rest to be our High Priest and in this respect two things are proper unto him 1. The oblation of himself for sin 2. His intercession for transgressions Thirdly The nature of merit which 1. Must be opus indebitum for he who doth do no more than he ought to do or suffers but what he deserves to suffer merits nothing by his doing or by his suffering 2. Must be opus perfectum against which no exception can be taken nothing is meritorious which is short and faulty 3. Must be opus infinitum a work of infinite value and worth which cannot only stand before justice but plead also with it and challenge it for the dignity of what is done or suffered Now these qualifications not to mention any more set the Crown on the head of Christ alone and strike it off from us and all our works yea the best for they are 1. But debts our best obedience is but so and our best repentance is but so 2. But imperfect when we have done all we are but unprofitable servants and so much iniquity accompanies our holy offerings that we need Jesus Christ to be our Aaron to bear them and have need to pray as he that mourned for his sins Domine Lava lachrymas me as 3. Were they perfect yet they are but of a finite worth and rise not to the far more exceeding mâ—rit in sin nor yet to the surpassing worth of Divine mercy If Jacob were not worthy of the least of mercies much less are we of the greatest of mercies Fourthly The purpose of grace which is universally to be exalted in the forgivenâ—sâ— of sins with which though Christs merits can well consist Rom. 3. 23. Being justified freely by his grace through the redemption that is in Christ yet our merits are contradictorily repugnant Rom. 11. 6. If by grace then it is no more of works and if it be of works then it is no more grace SECT II. Vse 1 BUT let us now make some useful Application of all this unto our selves Is the blood of Christ the cause and the only cause for which the people of God come to have their sins forgiven from thence let us learn two things Hence learn To judge of the hainousness of sin First To judge in another manner of our sins than in former times we have done how hainous they are and how high the â—uilt of them is There are five glasses in which we may behold the hideous guilt of our sins of which yet many persons do but yet make a work of pastime 1. One is the dreadful threatnings of the Law of God which reveals and discharges the wrath of God and all sorts of curses corporal and spiritual and eternal
gave himself for me said Paul Gal. 2. 20. 2. Another is evidence of the propriety a knowledge that Christ is mine and that he washed my soul from my sins in his own blood without these what joy and comfort can there be Rom. 15. 13. The God of peace fill you with all joy and peace in believing that ye may abound in hope through the power of the Holy Ghost A good prayer for believers for joy for peace for hope yea and God hath promised every one of these unto them and therefore he applies unto them the blood of Christ for the forgiveness of their sins and assures them of the same Rom. 5. 11. We joy in God through our Lord Jesus Christ by whom we have now received the Atonement Thirdly God will be praised and blessed by his people for Christ and for all the God will be praised for Chrâ—st blessings accruing unto them by Christ and his servants do bless him for them Ephes 1. 3. Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ who hath blessed us with all Spiritual blessings in heavenly places in Christ Psal 103. 2. Blesse the Lord O my soul ver 3. which forgiveth thy iniquities But unless the Lord did impute the blood of Christ for the forgiveness of their sins and did give them some assurance thereof how could they praise and bless him 3. Quest. I now come to the last Question viz. Why the Lord himself doth Why the Lord himself doth undertake it undertake to impute the blood of Christ unto his people for the forgiveness of their sins and to assure them thereof I will sprinkle Sol. There may be these Reasons given for it First The difficulty nay the impossibility of this work unless the Lord himself undertake it There are three things which you can never attain unless the Lord The difficulty of the work himself doth undertake for them 1. To forsake your sinnes Jer. 31. 18. Turn thou me and I shall be turned 2. To believe in Christ Ephes 1. 19. 3. To gain assurance that Christ is yours and that God hath for Christs sake forgiven you your sins As Christ spake to Peter when he confessed his Diety Flesh and blood hath not revealed this unto thee but my Father which is in heaven So say I about the particular application and assurance of your forgiveness of sins it must be God himself by his spirit which must raise us to that and make us to know that Take me a person rightly sensible of his sins although he be converted although he hath faith although he studies the promises although he hath all the grounds made clear unto him upon which he may conclude that God hath forgiven him although others can evidently discern his particular interest and propriety yet unless the Lord himself let in a special light by his Spirit to make him to see the special love of God towards him in this he cannot see it so as to be assured thereof Therefore you find in experience that this assurance is one of the longest and last and most questioned works in the soul The glory that comes to God by it Secondly The glory which God doth reserve unto himself of all the effects of his Covenant he will be known to be the Cause and Author of them all he will be acknowledged to be the God of grace and the Father of mercies and the God of love and the God of comfort and the God of joy and the God of peace I the Lord create peace the fruit of the lips peace Isa 57. 19. As none in the world can give trouble but God so none can give peace but God Job 34. 29. None can cast down the heart but he and none can raise the heart but he none can make sin known to the Conscience but he and none can make mercy known to the conscience but he All the Covenant-gifts come from him and all the knowledge and assurance that we have of those very Covenant-gifts come from him all the promises are of him and all the evidences of our propriety in them are from him in his light we see light our graces our abilities our comforts our assurances are from him Thirdly That the effect might he certain unto his people O what great things doth God promise unto his and for which he alone undertakes And if he That the effect might be certain did not so his people could never enjoy them Neither grace nor comfort c. If the Lord himself did not work the grace in our hearts which he promiseth whose soul should ever partake of it And if the Lord did not bring in that comfortable assurance of his forgiving mercy who should ever taste the sweetness of it Object Why will you say what doth hinder it what doth stand in the way but that we way enjoy it though God appears not to our help for it Sol. I will tell you what doth hinder and what will hinder unless the Lord himself remove them 1. Your own unbelief of heart doth and will hinder with such continual fears and doubts and exceptions and reasonings that unless the Lord himself doth silence that unbelief it will never be assured nor will your hearts be quieted with assurance 2. Satan will and doth hinder it by his many and subtile and strong suggestions and puzlings of your weak faith that none but the Spirit of God can answer them and settle your hearts with perswasion and assurance But now because God himself undertakes to sprinkle clean water upon them they shall be sprinkled if he will make Christ thine and forgive thy sinnes for Christs sake and make this known to them they shall certainly enjoy all for who is too strong for God who can resist his will he is too hard for our unbelieving hearts and Satan If he saith to the heart be of good comfort be at peace and it shall be so 1. Vse Doth God himself promise and undertake to sprinkle clean water upon his people so to apply unto them the blood of Christ as that every one of them shall have forgiveness and assurance of forgiveness by it Then in the first place let this serve to stir up the hearts of all the people of God Not to be sluggish or rest contented without this but to give all diligence Rest not contented without this untill they do attain the knowledge and certain evidence or assurance that their sins are forgiven to them in particular for Christs sake You have attained to much already but strive also for this The Reason why I would press this duty upon you are these 1. Many of the people of God are not yet come unto this sprinkling of assurance Reasons of it 2. Many of them are too remisse and negligent about the attaining of it 3. By reason of the want of it they are in a very uncomfotable condition 4. There is a possibility to compasse this assurance 5. The
man fancieth that his sins are pardoned Of the pardon of our sins and yet his sinful heart remains he deceiveth himself for when God pardons sins he changeth the sinner Jer. 33. 8. I will cleanse them from all their iniquity and will pardon all their iniquities Mal. 4. 2. The Son of righteousness shall arise with healing in his wings 1 Cor. 6. 11. But ye are washed but ye are sanctified but ye are justified 6. Of the hope of glory Christ is the hope of glory as a meritorious Of hope of glory cause Colos 1. 27. And renewing grace is the hope of glory as a testifying means 1 Pet. 1. 3. Who hath begotten us again to a lively hope Ver. 4. To an inheritance incorruptible c. 1 Joh. 3. 2. We know that when he appeareth we shall be like him for we shall see him as he is Ver. 3. And every man that hath this hope in him purifieth himself even as he is pure Secondly Newness of heart is an unquestionable effect of our union with Christ It is an effect of our union with Christ Is it no comfort to you that you belong to Christ that Christ is yours that you are in him of a truth hear what the Apostle saith 1 Cor. 1. 30. Of him are ye in Christ Jesus who of God is made unto us wisdome righteousness sanctification c. 2 Cor. 5. 17. If any man he in Christ he is a new creature Beloved this is most certain that unction flows from union you are not first sanctified and renewed and then brought into Christ but you are first brought into Christ and so are you sanctified and renewed by the Spirit of Christ partaking of him you do partake of life none have their hearts renewed by grace but such as are in Christ and all that are in Christ have their hearts renewed by grace Joh. 1. 16. Of his fulness have all we received and grace for grace Thirdly Newness of heart is the noblest and highest elevation of our hearts It is the highest elevation of our hearts As the degenerate and corrupt nature is of all other the worst and basest for there is nothing more vile than that which is most sinful so the renewed nature which is directly opposite unto it is of all other the most excellent and raising it is therefore called the Divine Nature 2 Pet. 1. 4. The image of God Col. 3. 10. The image of his glory 2 Cor. 3. 18. There are three things which may convince any Christian that renewing grace or newness of heart is our highest elevation and perfection 1. One because it is the nearest resemblance of that nature which is in God himself when you are renewed by grace then you are like unto God himself 1 Pet. 1. 16 Be ye holy for I am holy 2. Another because it is the choisest work or effect of the Spirit of God who though he produceth many other works yet this is the chiefest of them herein is his Arm revealed and in this doth his glory most appear and shine 3. A third is because it is our nearest conformity to Christ our Head in whom the image of God doth most appear The image of God doth consist in knowledge holiness and righteousness as you may see if you compare Col. 3. with Ephes 4. and this image was perfect in Christ who was the image of his Father and unto this are we conformed in our proportion when we are renewed by grace for we are then changed into the same image 2 Cor. 3 18. And upon this one account are they said to be one Spirit with him who are joyned with him 1 Cor. 6. 17. Fourthly Newness of heart enables you for all heavenly communion and serviceableness It enables for heavenly communion to Divine glory Now you may aproach and come near and stand in the presence of your God and he will take delight in you and impart himself unto you when you call he will answer you and say Here I am and when you hear his Word he will meet you and teach and guide and rejoyce your heart When God renews our hearts he doth then set us apart for himself owns us as his jewels looks on us as his Hephziba and Beulah as his beloved as such in whom he delights as his friends as his favourites you may open all your wants and desires and conditions unto him and he will open all his goodness and kindness and mercies unto you Your hearts are now become his temples in which he will dwell and walk and appear with glorious manifestations of his love and grace and help Besides this newness of heart makes you serviceable unto his glory you can glorifie him in your hearts by believing on him in your lives by heavenly upright humble obedient faithful walking Fifthly God will own and accept of it and the fruit of it though but little and God owns and accept of it though little and weak weak As the least degree of newness doth denominate the condition so the weakest expressions of it are accepted He will not despise the day of small things Zach. 4. 10. The bruised reed he will not break nor will he quench the smoaking flax Matth. 12. 20. But he will spare his people as a man spareth his son that serveth him Mal. 3. 17. Sixthly Nay he will stand by it and uphold it and strengthen it and perfect it When you are under spiritual conflicts with your corruptions and temptations He will stand by it he will be present with you he will put forth his strong hand upon your weak hand he will make his power to appear in your weakness he will strengthen what he hath wrought and finish what he hath begun Seventhly Certain blessings and special cares are for all whose hearts are renewed by grace No people on earth have such a title to earth nor such a Special blessings are for 〈◊〉 sure revenue nor such tender care for them as renewed and regenerate persons The Lord is near unto them he is round about them he is in the midst of them he will do them good he will surely bless them no good thing shall be wanting to them he will never leave them nor forsake them he will be a present help unto them in the time of trouble he will know their souls in adversity and will contend against all who do contend against them Eighthly Renewing grace will at the last bring you to the enjoyment of eternal It will bring us to eternal happiness happinesse Matth. 5. 8. Blessed are the pure in heart for they shall see God Rom. 6 22. But now being made free from sin and become servants to God you have your fruit unto holiness and the end everlasting life Why It is the first fruits of the Spirit the earnest of the Spirit the seal of the Spirit holiness is happiness begun grace is glory begun already c. SECT VI. Vse 5. DOth God
you all things Joh. 15. 26. But when the Comforter is come whom I will send unto you from the Father even the Spirit of truth which proceedeth from the Father c. Whence it is thus argued That Comforter which proceedeth from the Father and the Son is the person of the Holy Ghost but that Comforter dwelleth and abideth in us Ergo the person of the Holy Ghost doth dwell in us 2 Tim. 1. 14. That good thing which was committed unto thee keep by the Holy Ghost which dwelleth in us Hence it is also argued the Holy Ghost that keepeth the good gift or gifts in us dwelleth in us but the Holy Ghost which keepeth these gifts is not the gifts but the person of the Holy Ghost distinguished from them Ergo it is the person of the Holy Ghost and not his gifts only that dwelleth in us Rom. 8. 11. If the Spirit of him that raised up Jesus from the dead dwelleth in you he that raised up Christ from the dead shall also quicken your mortal bodies by his Spirit that dwelleth in you Hence also 't is thus argued the Spirit that dwells in us is the Spirit that raised Christ from the dead and shall likewise quicken our mortal bodies But it is not the gifts and graces of the Spirit but the person of the Spirit himself that raised up Christ from the dead and that shall quicken our mortal bodies Ergo the person of the Spirit himself dwelleth in us Thirdly Some do hold that the putting of the Spirit within the heart of the Some say it denotes only the gifts and graces of the spirit given to us people of God denotes only the donation of the gifts and the graces of the Spirit And so is the Spirit often taken in Scripture by a Metonymie of the Cause for the Effect Luke 1. 15. He shall be filled with the Holy Ghost even from his Mothers womb Act. 6. 3. Look you out among you seven men of honest report full of the Holy Ghost and of wisdom Ver. 5. And they chose Stephen a man full of faith and of the Holy Ghost 1 Thes 5. 19. Quench not the Spirit i. e. the gifts or graces of the Spirit for the Spirit in himself either Essentially or Personally considered is not capable of being quenched there is no abating or remission or vacation possibly incident unto him Fourthly Some do hold that the giving of the Spirit unto the people of God is only the letting in of his vigour and assistance for the works which they are to do Some for the letting in of the vigour and assistance of the spirit and not any Inherent presence of the Spirit in the people of God either as to his person or as to his graces But as a Bowle moves from that power and strength which the hand lends unto it so do the people of God act and move from the vigorous influence which the Spirit of God puts into them and not from any inherent principle of grace which they deny to be in them But this Opinion is not sound for the people of God do possess the Spirit not only in way of assurance to do good but also in way of inward influence to make them good Therefore they are said to be born of the Spirit Joh 5. 6. And to be washed and renewed Tit. 3. 5. And sanctified by the Spirit 1 Cor. 6. 11. which notes an inward change made by the Spirit and not a bare assistance only And besides here in the Text the Lord saith that he will put his Spirit within us which certainly is something more than external assistance Again They who do hold the donation of the Spirit as to assistance only hold likewise free-will to supernatural good that there is in the will of man such a power unto the same that it needs not any renovation by the Spirit but only the assistance of the Spirit to that purpose c. which is a dangerous Error Well then the meaning of this expression I will put my Spirit within you is principally to be understood of the person of the Spirit It is principally meant of the person of the spirit And there are three Reasons which incline me thus to think 1. One is because the graces of the Spirit were promised before in the 26. ver A new heart will I give you and a new Spirit will I put within you which unquestionably takes in the renewing graces of the Spirit and if in this 27. vers by putting his Spirit within us should be meant only the graces of the Spirit then one and the same thing only should be promised But this is no way probable or congruous to affirm q. d. I will give you the graces of my Spirit and I will give you the graces of my Spirit c. 2. Another is because the Spirit here in this verse promised is that Spirit which doth cause us to walk in the Statutes of God and to keep them which cause of such walking cannot well be attributed to any but the Spirit himself 3. Unto which I may add a third viz The usual way of tryal and evidencing whether we have the Spirit here promised namely by the graces of the Spirit which were very improper if by the Spirit in the place were meant the graces of the Spirit q. d. you may know that you have the graces of the Spirit if you do find in you the graces of the Spirit How it may be demonstrated Quest 2. How may this be demonstrated that all the people of God in Covenant have the Spirit of God within them Sol. Besides these Scriptures already produced which do bear witness unto this truth it may be further demonstrated thus First All that are Christs have the Spirit of Christ for saith the Apostle Rom. 8 9. If any man have not the Spirit of Christ he is none of his And 1 Cor. 6. 17. He that is joyned to the Lord is one spirit But all who are in Covenant are Christs because all that are in Covenant are believers and all believers are Christs Ergo all that are in Covevant have the Spirit Secondly All that are in Covenant are the Sons of God God is their Father and they are his sons and daughters 2 Cor. 6. 18. Now saith the same Apostle in Gal. 4. 6 Because ye are Sons God hath sent forth the Spirit of his Son into your hearts crying Abba Father Nay Thirdly all the people of God have a fellowship and communion with every person of the Trinity and so high is that fellowship that every person of the Trinity doth as it were take up his mansion and make his abode and dwelling in them They have a fellowship with every person of the Trinity 1 Joh. 1. 3. Our fellowship is with the Father and with his Son Jesus Christ Phil. 2. 1. If there be any fellowship of the Spirit c. Every person of the Trinity dwells and abides in them
thou him or what receiveth he of thine hand v. 8. Thy wickedness may hurt a man as thou art and thy righteousness may profit the son of man Psal 16. 2. My goodness extendeth not to thee q. d. Thou art not benefited by any good works of ours c. I cannot add any thing thereby unto thee we receive all from thee but can give nothing unto thee by which thou mayest be bettered for thou art an infinite being and therefore we can add nothing to thee Secondly You must not do any good work thinking thereby to satisfie God for your evil works Many people when they have committed sin and injured Nor to satisfie God for our sins and dishonoured God then they fall a praying and a reading and a hearing and put on to works of piety and charity and their intention or end in doing of these duties is to make God amends and to make up the wrong which they have done him supposing that the good which now they do will ballance the evil which they have done and satisfie God Now though this be true that our sinnings do injure God and therefore its reason that after our sinnings we should be much humbled and be more circumspect in our walking and more diligent and upright Yet to act all these as satisfactions to God for the sinful injurious workes which we have done against him This is 1. Foolish 2ly Sinful First It is foolish forasmuch as nothing that we can do can amount unto It s foolish a satisfaction for the evil that we can do Because 1. All the good which we now do we ought still to have done and that which Reasons of it was still a duty can never be a satisfaction 2. There is more evil in the evil that we have done than there is good in the good which we do our sinful evil is perfectly evil and our best good is but imperfect good The evil that we do against God deserves hell and the good which we do deserves nothing the evil which is done needs infinite mercies to pardon it and the good which we do is so mixt with our sinfulness that that also needs mercy to pardon and accept it and that which needs mercy cannot be a satisfaction Secondly It is sinful For this is to take upon us the work of a Mediatour to whom alone that work of satisfaction doth pertain and he must be both God and It s sinful man or else he could not have satisfied for our sins Now to presume that our own imperfect obedience is able to satisfie God for our sins and to clear all our accounts and reckonings between him and us what is this but to lay aside the perfect satisfactions of Christ the only Mediatour and to set up our own weak righteousness as sufficient to compensate the Justice of God Thirdly You must not offer up any performances of yours as causes of mercy and Nor as causes of mercies and blessings blessings you must pray and you must mourn and you must repent and you must obey the voice of the Lord your God and you must walk in his statutes and do them and if you do so with upright hearts God will meet you with mercy and blessings Nevertheless you may not look on any performance of yours as causes meriting and purchasing any blessing unto you remember that excellent passage in Psal 25. 10. All the paths of the Lord are mercy and truth unto such as keep his Commandements and his testimonies Yet Ver. 11. For thy Name sake pardon mine iniquity for it is great Here is mercy and truth for them that keep his Commandements and then here is not our obedience but his Name the cause of our mercy not for my obedience sake but for thy Name sake pardon mine iniquity c. So when Daniel fasted and prayed in an extraordinary way for mercy and for deliverance out of the Babylonian captivity he impleads not those works as causes of them nay as so he rejects them Dan. 9. 17. Now therefore O our God heâ—r the prayer of thy servant and his supplications and cause thy face to shine upon thy sanctuary that is desolate for the Lords sake Ver. 18. O my God encline thine ear and hear open thine eyes and behold our desolations and the City that is called by thy Name for we do not present our supplications before thee for our righteousness but for thy great mercies There are four things to be observed about mercies and blessings What is to be observed about mercies and blessings 1. The Efficient Cause and that is only Gods own love and grace and mercy his own glorious love is the only efficient cause of all our blessings whether spiritual or temporal 2. The Final Cause and that is only Gods own glory all is from his mercy and all is for his glory he is the first and he is the last out of the sea of his mercy they come and into the sea of his glory they do return 3. The Meritorious Cause and that is Jesus Christ who by his blood hath purchased all things for us pertaining to life and godliness 4. The means by which not causes for which they are obtained and enjoyed They are means whereby blessings are obtained and such are our holy performances and walkings unto which God hath promised abundance of mercies and blessings and we shall enjoy them not Ratione facti for the worthiness of our doings but Ratione promissionis for the goodness and faithfulness of his promise unto our upright doing and walking Therefore take heed of looking on any doing and walking as meritorious causes of mercies and blessings For 1. All the good we can do is but what we ought to do and no duty of man can Why they cannot merit mercies be meritorious with God 2. All the good we do is done by the strength of Christ therefore it cannot merit seeing it is done not by our own strength but Christs 3. All the good we do finds acceptance only in and for Christ our prayers are accepted in him and our services are accepted in him and therefore they merit nothing of themselves 4. All good services must be done in faith or else they cannot be pleasing to God Heb. 11. 16. Now Faith and the merit of mans works are utterly inconsistent 5. Lastly All the blessings which you shall ever enjoy you must take them out of Gods promises or Covenant of grace and no gift flowing from that Covenant of grace but it is freely given unto us Fourthly You must not look upon any performances services acts of obedience They cannot make peace with God done by you as propitiations as able to make peace with God for the sins which you have committed against God When we have sinned against God we must humble our souls and repent and pray unto the Lord to pardon us and to be reconciled unto us and to take away iniquity and
run to hell 3. If you would enjoy liberty indeed then become the servants of God and walk in his wayes If the Son shall make you free then are you free indeed Joh. 8. 36. Now your shackles and fetters and prison doores are broken open we are freemen in a spiritual sense when we are freed from sin Rom. 6. 18. Being then made free from sin we became the servants of Righteousness We are freed from all slavish fears by reason of sinne when we receive the free spirit of liberty we become a voluntary people to serve the Lord with newness of spirit and freeness of spirit Dsal 116. 16. O Lord truly I am thy servant thou hast loosed my bonds 4. Object But men will disesteem us neglect us cast us out of their favour and But then we shall be disesteemed reproach us if c. Sol. 1. It is their sin to do so but it is our duty to walk as God would have us to walk 2. What men will do so none but ungodly men who speak evil of us because 1. we run not with them to the same excess of riot 2. A goodly conversation is a reproach to their ungodly life and shames them 3. Regard not the praises of men but the praise of God this you shall be sure to meet with he will own you and honour you though men do not Psal 27. 10. When my Father and my Mother forsake me then the Lord shall take me up The Pharisees reviled and cast out the blind man cured by Christ but Christ met with him and owned and saved him Joh. 9. 35 36 c. 4. You will give a fair account to God that you feared man more than God Lord I should have walked in thy wayes but c. 5. Object Then I will walk in these statutes hereafter Then I will do it hereafter Sol. 1. Hereafter may be too late Gods command is for all our dayes and for the set time whiles it is called to day c. Secondly Continuance in sinful wayes will harden your hearts in them keep up the love of sinne and render the wayes of God more distastful unto you Thirdly And God may in judgement give you up to your own hearts lusts to walk in the counsels of them because you do not hearken unto him See Psal 81. 11 12. 6. Object But I have assayed aad can make no work of it But I find I cannot do it Sol. First Because you assayed slightly and not with all your heart Secondly And because you assayed in your own strength 7. Object But it is a great work however to walk in Gods statutes and How shall we get power to do it what shall I do for power to enable me to walk in them Sol. God who requires us to walk in his statutes doth promise to give us power I will cause you to walk c. Ezek. 36. 27. And cause you to walk in my Statutes and ye shall keep my Judgements and do them THese words as I have heretofore observed contain in them two parts 1. The work or duty which concerns the people of God viz. to walk in his statutes c. this Subject I finished the last Lords day 2. The help or sufficiencies for all that work and duty I will cause you to walk in my statutes whence observe CHAP. XV. Doctr. TThat the people of God have the promise of God to enable them to God will enable his people to walk in his wayes walk in the statutes of God I will cause you c. Zech. 10. 12. I will strengthen them in the Lord and they shall walk up and down in his Name saith the Lord. Phil. 2. 13. It is God which worketh in you to will and to do of his good pleasure Isa 26. 12. Thou hast wrought all our works in us Chap. 45. 24. Surely shall one say In the Lord have I righteousness and strength For the opening of this excellent and comfortable Truth I will shew unto you five things 1. The many parallels 'twixt Gods command of our duties and Gods promise of help for these duties 2. The parallels 'twixt promises to and instanceâ— in Gods people 3. The several wayes how God doth cause or enable his people to walk in his statutes and do them 4. How far the Lord doth engage his strength of grace to enable his people to walk in his statutes 5. The Reasons both in respect of God and in respect of his people why he will cause them to walk in his wayes or statutes c. 1. The parallels 'twixt Gods commands and his promises or 'twixt the Parallels betwixt Gods commands and his preceps duties commanded by him and the helps promised to enable his people First The Lord commands his people to know him and his wayes 1 Chron. 28. 9. Know thou the God of thy Father c. And God doth promise to cause them to know him Jer. 24. 7. I will give them an heart to know me that I am the Lord. And Jer. 31. 34. They shall all know me from the least of them to the greattest of them saith the Lord. Secondly The Lord commands his people to trust upon him Psal 62. 8. Trust in him at all times Isa 26. 4. Trust ye in the Lord for ever c. And God doth promise to enable his people to trust on him Zeph. 3. 12. I will leave in the midst of thee an afflicted and poor people and they shall trust in the Name of the Lord. 3ly The Lord commands his people to fear him Deut. 6. 13. Thou shalt fear the Lord thy God and serve him So Deut. 8. 6. Thou shalt keep his Commandements and walk in his wayes and fear him This likewise hath God promised unto his people Jer. 32. 40. I will put my fear into their hearts that they shall not depart from me Fourthly The Lord commands his people to love him Deut. 11. 1. Thou shalt love the Lord thy God Psal 31. 23. O love the Lord all ye his Saints and God doth promise to give them an heart to love him Deut. 30. 6. The Lord thy God will circumcise the heart and the heart of thy seed to love the Lord thy God with all thine heart and with all thy soul Fifthly The Lord commands his people to pray unto him and to call upon his Name Call upon me Psal 50. 15. Pray without ceasing 1 Thes 5. 17. I will that men pray everywhere 1 Tim. 2. 8. And the Lord hath promised to give unto them a spirit of prayer Zech. 12. 10. I will poure upon the house of David and upon the inhabitants of Jerusalem the Spirit of grace and the Spirit of supplication Sixthly The Lord commands his people to mourn for their sinnes and to loath their sins and to turn from their sins Isa 22. 12. In that day did the Lord call to weeping and to mourning Jam. 4. 10. Humble your selves in the sight of the Lord And
obedience the Lord requires of me suppose it be to mortify sin or to walk in some parts of new obedience and I finde my self insufficient and without strength thereunto hereupon I do by faith 1. Apply my self unto Jesus Christ in whom is fulness and who filleth all Lord Jesus without thee we can do nothing and if thou be pleased to strengthen me I can do all things O give strength unto thy servant Simile thou art my head and the head is to give help and strength to the members of the body for all the works which they are to do I rely upon thee thy grace is sufficient let thy power be made manifest in my weakness Why such an act of faith as this such a living by faith on Christ will finde strength to cause us to do the work which God requires at our hands 2. Unto the Promise of God wherein God hath graciously engaged himself to be an alsufficiency unto his people and to be their strength and to strengthen them and to work all their works in them and for them Hereupon the weak Christian goes to God when he is to perform any work of obedience and he relies upon him by faith my God will help me I have his promise to subdue iniquity and I have his promise to cause me to walk in his Statutes and to do them Lord faithful art thou who hast promised and thou art able and willing to perform whatsoever thou hast promised I have no might nor power to do this which thou commandest but in the Lord there is righteousness and strength O Lord remember thy promise Remember thy word upon which thou hast caused thy servant to hope Be thou the help and strength of my soul work in me to will and to do of thy good pleasure Psal 119. Upon this the Lord hears and answers his servants and fulfills their desires and becomes their strength and alsufficiency Thirdly By meeting them in their way and work with special Evidences and Testimonies and fruits of Love and Peace and Acceptance and Joy Isa 64. 3. Thou meetest him that rejoyceth and worketh righteousness those that remember thee in thy wayes 56. 7. I will make them joyful in my house of prayer their burnt offerings and sacrifices shall be accepted upon mine altar Joh. 14. 21. He that hath my commandements and keepeth them he it is that loveth me and he that loveth me shall be loved of my father and I will love him and will manifest my self unto him Now when the travailer in the wayes of Gods Statutes meets with these sweet fruits and tasts and manifestations of love and peace and joy they do make a strong impression upon his heart they do contribute a speciall strength unto him to walk on in those good wayes Nehem. 8. 10. The joy of the Lord is your strength Psal 116. 2. Because he hath enclined his ear unto me therefore will I call upon him as long as I live Fourthly By holding out unto them and assuring them of the great reward of happiness for all who do walk on in his Statutes Beloved three things are certainly true 1. That there is a Reward for the righteous God will render eternal life to them that continue patient in wel-doing Rom. 2. 7. 2. That it is lawful for the Christian travailer to look at the great Reward Moses had respect unto the recompence of reward Heb. 11. 26. What God doth promise freely to give unto his people upon that they may lawfully look 3. That great Reward propounded and promised and assured hath an influence upon their hearts it doth work strongly upon their heart that they faint not that they give all diligence unto the end that they take heed unto their wayes that they keep on in the path of life it makes them to run and to strive that they may obtain an incorruptible crown 1 Cor. 9. 25 26. and that eternal weight of glory 2 Cor. 4. 17. Fifthly By Revealing his Arme in his Ordinances and blessing them with Power and Strength unto his people David speaking of the Ordinances saith Psal 84. 5. Blessed is the man whose strength is in thee in whose heart are the wayes of them Ver. 7. They go from strength to strength You finde many Attributes given to the Ordinances of God they teach and direct us they enlighten and convert us they uphold and strengthen us they quicken and comfort us they animate and encourage us they raise and revive us they edifie and build us up all these effects they do produce when the Lord is pleased to accompany them with his presence and blessings And experimentally we finde them unto our souls God teacheth us by his word heales us by his word helps us by his word revives and quickens and enlargeth and strengthens us by his word we walk in the light of it and run in the strength of it and conquer in the power of it and renew our might in the comfort of it and hold up by the promises of it and are still more and more able to do the work of God by the several influences from the word of God The ordinances of God do weaken our corruptions and strengthen our graces and comfort our consciences and bear down all discouragements and oppositions they do enable faith in God and inflame love to God and preserve fear of God and kindle zeal for God and increase our delight in God and all these do cause us to walk in the Statutes of God and still to do them 4ly How far forth God doth in his promises engage the strength How far God engages himself to keep his people to walk in his wayes of his grace and help to cause his people to walk in his Statutes and do them To this I thus answer When God doth promise to cause his people to walk in his Statutes and to do them he doth thus far engage himself First To shew them his wayes and to teach them what they are to do and how they are to walk Esa 2. 3. Many people shall go and say Come ye and let us go up to the mountaine of the Lord to the house of the God of Jacob and he will teach us of his wayes and we will walk in his wayes Psal 25. 8. Good and upright is the Lord therefore will he teach sinners in their wayes Ver. 9. The meek will he guid in judgment and the meek will he teach his way 32. 8. I will instruct theâ— and teach thee in the way that thou shalt go I will guid thee with mine eye Esa 30. 21. Thine ears shall hear a word behind thee saying This is the way walk ye in it Nay he teaches in particular what they are to do Titus 2. 11. The grace of God that bringeth salvation hath appeared to all men Ver. 12. Teaching us that denying ungodliness and worldly lusts we should live soberly righteously and Godly in this present world Nay and he teaches them not only
in the wayes of Gods Commandements and to hold on in their walking all their dayes O say they this is impossible and who can walk thus But what Christ spake to another purpose may be safely applied here That which is impossible with men is possible with God or what Chrysostome replied about the work of turning the heart from sin that it was impossible Tu non potes sed Dominus tuus potest thou canst not turn thy heart but yet the Lord can turn thy heart that I say in this case It is impossible for any man by his own strength to walk in all Gods Statutes nevertheless it is possible so to do with Gods strength I can do all through Christ that strengthens me saith Paul Phil. 4. 13. And Take my yoak upon you saith Christ Math. 11. 29. for my yoak is easie and my burthen is light ver 30. How comes it to be easie and light surely because you have Christ help as well as Christs Command And thus it is with all the wayes of God they are possible and passable why so because you have Gods Promise as well as Gods Command Indeed if they were wayes under a command then there were no possible walking in them because then the acting of obedience unto them would rest upon our own strength which is none at all but being wayes also under a promise of God who saith that he will cause us to walk in them now they are possible For beloved what God promiseth to do for us that rests not upon our strength but his strength to make us to do and he is able to make all strength to abound and increase within us Sixthly Then it is nothing else but a foolish and proud conceit in men to delay Of such as defer walking in Gods wayes and defer works of obedience until they 1. Have compassed so much of the world 2. Come to be old 3. Come to be sick then they will consider their wayes and then they will humble their hearts and then they will repent and then they will lay hold on Christ and then they will lead new lives and then they will make their peace with God c. Not knowing that it is God only who causeth us to walk in his Statutes and to do them and not knowing that we are not of our selves sufficient to think any thing and not knowing that supernatural power must be the foundation and cause of all supernatural works and not knowing that God justly may and often times doth deny his grace and help to them who have refused it and doth leave the refusing sinner forever to his own lusts and wayes SECT II. 2 Use DOth the Lord God himself undertake to cause his people to walk Take heed of self-confidence in his Statutes and to do them This may serve for caution unto all the people of God especially unto strong Christians that they take heed of all self-confidence Beware of all self-confidence when you are to do any duty or any work which the Lord requires from you see that you do not attempt it or set upon it in the power of self There are many sorts of a mans self there is 1. His Natural self the strength of natural knowledge and judgement and will How many sorts of self there be and resolution 2. His Learned self the strength of acquired parts and abilities of understanding of wisdom of tongues of utterance and of other gifts 3. His Gracious self the strength of a renewed minde and of a renewed will and of renewed affections Now hear my advice When you are to do any work for God beware that you rest not on any of these self strengths Jer. 9. 23. Let not the wise man glory in his wisdom neither let the mighty man glory in his might neither let the rich man glory in his riches So say I let not the prudent Christian rest on his wisdom and let not the knowing Christian rest upon his parts and let not the renewed Christian rest upon his graces and let not the forward Christian rest on his resolutions and let not the experienced Christian rest on his comforts as if those were able and enough to furnish and enable him to do the work or works which God requires of him There are three Reasons why I would seriously press this caution upon you that fear God First The exceeding aptness and propension in the best to be and to do something All are proue to trust too much in self of themselves there is scarce any thing concerns us but self is inteâ—mixed with it and justles in it self and we are hardly taken off from it until by woeful experience we finde much mischief and misery in it Take us in any spiritual work why something of self is appearing in repentance men will not forsake their own strength in the work of faith men will undertake to believe by their own strength in the work of justification men are apt to look upon their own righteousness in active duties men are many times of their minde in Jeremiah The Lord be a faithful witness between us if we do not according to all things which the Lord thy God shall send thee to us Jer. 42. 5. And in passive duties there also we presume many times too much upon our own self strength Lord said Peter I am ready to go with thee both into prison and to death Luk. 22. 33. And although all shall be offended yet will not I Mar. 14. 29. Secondly The exceeding greatness of this sin self-confidence or a trusting Trusting in self is a great sin and relying upon our own strength and sufficiency it is a very great sin which thus appears 1. It is the pride and unbeliefe in departing from God that man who makes not God his whole confidence departs from him Pâ—ide of heart and which is worse the spiritual pride of heart which God abhors and is utterly contrary unto but humility of heart is that which God doth much value and regard 2. It is a kind of Atheism the creature which would be a self-sufficiency unto it self denies God in his Al-sufficiency it is proper to God as God to be a being of himself and to give being unto all besides himself to be independing on any for being and working 3. At least you take the work of God out of the hand of God his work it is to make us good by his preventing grace and his work it is to enable us to good by his subsequent grace and yet you will undertake by your own strength and by your own arme to conquer sins to resist temptations to perform acts of obedience 4. You take the course to set up your selves and to lay aside your God to magnify your selves and to nullify him to glory in your selves and to take glory from God if you will be the efficient causes of doing good without God you will make your selves the final cause of good Thirdly The
work it I say 1. No man on earth can by the sole strength of his parts set forth any one good work indeed a man of much learning and of great endowments and of good utterance may in the virtue of these say and do many good works which we call good he may make a Sermon he may utter a Prayer he may be much in the outward part of duty nevertheless this strength that is in him is nothing as to the spiritual performing of any duty he is not able with all the parts which he hath to look only at Gods glory nor to set out his duties with holy and heavenly affections nor with faith in Christ 2. Therefore if you finde this concurring frame which have mentioned in any of your works or duties assuredly you have attained grace and strength from God to enable you the Spirit of God hath been present with you to help you Secondly By the Antecedents that go before any work or duty of yours of which the performance of it is a consequent or fruit e. g. if it be the fruit following 1. The sense and acknowledgment of your own insufficiency 2. An earnest desire of God to engage his help and assistance 3. The actual and particular application of the promise of God resting on him and expecting Gods assistance now the work that is done is not done in any confidence of our selves but only upon the accâ—unt of Gods strength but to this I have hinted already Thâ—rdly By the Consequents of your duties performed in the strength of By the consequents of our duties God which are quite different from those that are performed in our own strength whether we look unto God or unto our selves First Unto God there is acceptance and answer of all the duties or works done by his strength and assistance but not so of the works done in our strength Secondly Unto our selves where we shall experimentally finde four admirable effects 1. After all the duties or works performed by us in the strength of God we grow more humble as David in 1 Chron. 29. 14. But who am I and who is my people that we should be able to offer so willingly â—fter this sort for all things come of thee and of thine own have we given thee But after works done in the strength of our own parts we grow more proud as the Pharisees â— 2. After the duties performed in the strength of God we do more exalt and bless the grace of God as Paul 1 Cor. 15. 10. I laboured more abundantly than they all yet not I but the grace of God which was with me And David Psal 115. 1. Not unto us O Lord not unto us but unto thy name give glory for thy meâ—cy and for thy truths sake Whereas when we do act in the streâ—gth of our own parts we will rob God of his glory and give praise and blessing unâ—o our selves unto our own wisdom and unto our own zeal and unto our own dexterity and learning 3. When we have performed our work in the strength of God and have indeed discerned his presence with us this will drâ—w out our hearts to depend more upon God for our future works and services It will sweetly raise our hearts uâ—to him O I will trust on him another time for I relied on his power aâ—d sufficiency and he graciously helped and strengthened me Psal 63. 7. Becausâ— thou hast been my help therefore in the shadow of thy wings will I reâ—oyâ—e But it is not thus when we act in our own strength for after such performances we are still more apt to rely upon our selves 4. When we have done our work by the strength of God hereupon our hearts are more endeared to God and so are our resolutions more and more to pray unto God Psal 116. 1. I love the Lord because he hath heard my voice and my supplication Ver. 2. Because he hath enclined his ear unto me therefore wâ—ll I call upon him as long as I live Thus have I finished the third duty which was to depend upon God for his strength seeing he doth promise to cause us to walk in his Statutes and to do them Fourthly Now follows the fourth and last duty which concerns the people Give the praise of all unto God of God which is to give the praise of all the good which they do unto God alone I may not slightly pass this therefore I will enquire first why secondly whither 1. Quest Why the people of God should be carful to give unto God alone the praise and glory of all the good which they do Sol. Reasons for it briefly are these First His grace is the only cause of all the good which we do it is true that we are the subjects who do repent and who do believe who do love and fear and serve and obey him and walk in his Statutes O but who is the cause that we do all this or any of this from whom is all our fruit found Excellent is that passage of Austine Certum est nos velle cum volumus sed Deus facit ut vellemus certum est nos facere cum faciamus Deuâ— facit ut faciamus we do will good but it is God that makes us to will that good and we do good but it is God who makes us to do that good it is God who works in us to will and to do And hereupon in another place he ingenuously confesseth that his good works were rather Gods works then his own works Quaecunque sunt bona opera mea tua magis quam mea sunt Now if God works all our works for us is it not just that he should have all the glory from us Secondly We should else be injurious unto God who saith Glory is mine 1 Chron. 29. 11. And my glory will I not give unto another Esa 42. 8. Glory if I may so speak is the Lords portion and revenue out of all his works of power and grace and he is very tender of it and therefore we cheat him when we withhold any part of his glory from him nay it is plaine theft to take any part of glory from God unto whom all the glory doth belong Psal 96. 8. for you lay hands of that which is none of your own and without the consent of another who is the true owner and he professeth that he will not part with it it being indeed so properly essential to the crown of his diety Thirdly We do but proudly dishonour our selves in a vain-glorious boasting of that which is none of our own for which God will certainly abase us 1 Cor. 4. 7. For who maketh thee to differ from another and what hast thou that thou didst not receive Now if thou didst receive it why dost thou glory as if thou hast not received it Esa 2. 17. The loftiness of men shall be bowed down and the haughtiness of men shall be made low Luk. 18. 14. Every one that exalteth
inherently and subjectively in us as it is in Christ then indeed no sin were to be seen in us But that Righteousness is ours only Relatively and not formally it is imputed only to us and notwithstanding that imputation there is sin in us Secondly It is one thing to be considered in our selves and another as cloathed with Christs Righteousnesse In the former respect our sins appear and in the latter respect they are covered How Gods displeasure and anger against his people is consistent with his discharging of their sins Quest 2. How can it be affirmed that by forgivenesse of sins any person is discharged and freed so that God remains no more offended and displeased and will not proceed against him seeing that we read of his displeasure and anger and proceedings against his people for sinning against him Answered Sol. For answer unto this I shall briefly shew you three things 1. That God is displeased with the sins of his own people 2. That his anger for their sinnings hath broken out very sharply upon them 3. Notwithstanding all this they have a singular discharge from special wrath and Gods judicial proceeding against them which is all that is required in forgivenesse of their sins First God is displeased with the sins of his own people See this in David 2 Sam. God is displeased with the sins of his own people 11. 27. But the thing that David had done displeased the Lord. In Solomon 1 King 11. 9. The Lord was angry with Solomon because his heart was turned away from the Lord God of Israel who had appeared unto him twice Ver. 10. And had commanded him concerning this thing that he should not go after other gods but he kept not that which the Lord commanded In Jehoshapbat 2 Chron. 19. 2. Shouldest thou help the ungodly and love them that hate the Lord therefore is wrath upon thee from the Lord. Secondly His anger hath broken out very sharply upon them because of their sinnings His anger hath been sharp against them because of their sins Deut. 3. 25. O Lord God said Moses I pray thee let me go over and see the good land that is beyond Jordan c. Ver. 26. But the Lord was wroth with me for your sakes and would not hear me c. 2 Sam. 12. 9. Wherefore hast thou despised the Covenant of the Lord to do evil in his sight Thou hast killed Vriah the Hittite with the sword and hast taken his wife to be thy wife c. Ver. 10. Now therefore the sword shall never depart from thy house Ver. 11. I will raise up evil against thee out of thine own house c. 1 Sam. 2. 22. For Elies remisness towards his wicked children how heavy was the hand of God upon him in his sons and family 1 Pet 4. 17. Judgement must begin at the house of God 1 Cor. 11. 30. For this cause many are weak and sickly among you and many sleep Nay his anger hath gone higher than external losses it hath come upon them also in a Spiritual way which is of all other the most heavy and that both Privatively in taking away the sense of his favour and joy of his spirit and Positively in breaking of his bones as you read in David Psal 51. Thirdly But notwithstanding all this Gods judicial wrath or dspleasure is removed Gods judicial wrath is removed All hostile anger ceaseth upon Remission of sins no displeasure of God as hating remaines and no fruit of displeasure which is a part of the curse either doth or shall befall them Christ hath removed that although a Pathetical anger be on them yet no Judicial anger is towards them Though corrections befall them yet destruction shall not though sharp affliction yet no malediction and under all their corrections which still God sanctifies unto them for their good Isa 27. 9. by this shall the iniquity of Jacob be purged and this is all the fruit to take away his sin And which is a testimony of his Fatherly love they still remain sons of mercy and heirs of glory Psal 89. 31. If his children break my Statutes and keep not my Commands Ver. 32. then I will visit their transgressions with the rod and their iniquities with stripes Ver. 33. Nevertheless my loving-kindnesse will I not utterly take from him nor suffer my faithfulnesse to faile Whether there be any reason to repent of our sins that are forgiven Quest 3. If God doth graciously forgive our sins whether now there be any reason for us to repent of them Answered Nothing that we do can untye the bond of sin Sol. This is I confesse an excellent Quere how our duty to repent doth consist with Gods free grace in forgiving concerning which give me favour to say a few things First Nothing that we do no mourning for sin no repenting for sin doth or can untie the bond of sin release and acquit and discharge or absolve from guilt Although God doth not discharge us from repenting yet our repenting doth not discharge us from our guilt and condemnation that is the work of Gods grace in Christ if any presse repentance upon that ground as if forgiveness of sin were the natural effect of repentance that had a merit to deliver us from condemnation he erres exceedingly because 1. Forgivenesse of sinnes is an act only of God repealing the sentence of condemnation against us it is only the Creditors act to discharge the debt 2. There is not any sufficient causality in our work of repentance for such an effect as forgiveness of sin For 1. Our repentance is imperfect and stands in need of the blood of Christ Bonum meum neque pure bonum est neque meum est 2. Suppose it were perfect yet that could not take away the guilt of sin committed because sin is an infinite offence and dishonour to God and our repentance can never bear that proportion in satisfying which sin hath in offending It must be clearly acknowledged that to set up repentance as a cause meriting forgivenesse of sins cannot consist with Gods free forgivenesse of them Secondly Although forgivenesse of sin be not the effect of mans repentance Yet repentance is required to the obtaining of forgiveness for then we should forgive our selves Yet repentance is required to the obtaining of forgivenesse Isa 55. 7. Let the wicked forsake his way c. and let him return unto the Lord and he will have mercy upon him and unto our God for he will abundantly pardon Ezek. 18. 21. If the wicked will turn from all his sins that he hath committed c. ver 22. all his transgressions which he hath committed shall not be mentioned unto him Luke 24. 47. That repentance and remission of sins should be purchased in his Name Acts 3. 19. Repent ye and be converted that your sins may be blotted out Thirdly Although repentance be not a cause of forgivenesse yet it is the means Though