though they be never so many and great But also such a Covenant upon my coming in that God will discharge all sins that shall be committed for time to come though I be ready to fall into sin dayly yet I shall not come into condemnation O what will so infinitely ingage a gracious and ingenious spirit as this does surely nothing like this Now if this be true that man that is forgiven is thus forgiven not only for time past but also for time to come Then blessed is the man whose transgressions are forgiven and whose iniquities are pardoned Of the tenth Mystery God pardons a sinner not because he is but that he might be chang'd 10. The tenth Mystery is this for I would endeavour to shew you what a mighty work Pardon of Sin is and raise up your hearts to have higher thoughts of it than ever you had before God does not pardon because a sinner hath his heart and nature changed but that he might be changed And thus the pardons of God differ from all other pardons a Prince pardons a Malefactor or a Father a Child but upon what terms a Prince expects his Subject should be changed as far as he can discern and a Father though never so tender will not pardon a Child unless he come in and manifest a change of his disobedient spirit and then he pardons God doth not pardon because we are chang'd but that we might be chang'd his Pardon comes first Rom. 4.5 a very strange place for this and may incourage any poor soul that is troubled for sin to come in and lay hold upon Gods mercy in Christ But to him that worketh not but believeth on him that justifieth the ungodly his faith is counted unto him for righteousness Mark when God comes to justifie a sinner he looks upon him as ungodly he stays not till the sinner be made godly and then justifies him as a Prince stays till a Malefactors heart be changed and he become a loyal subject and then pardons him God is not so in justifying souls he justifies the ungodly one that is ungodly coming to him he justifies This is a mighty Argument I name it for this end because I would teach people that notwithstanding any sin or guilt that lies upon their spirits yet they have a liberty to come in and lay hold upon Christ for Justification do not say I am ungodly I am a great sinner and have a vile heart and I find not my nature changed and therefore How dare I lay hold upon Gods grace for mercy and pardon yea thou may'st because God justifies the ungodly though thy nature be not chang'd and sanctified as thou say'st take it thus Thou must lay hold of Gods grace for Justification that thou may'st be sanctified not only pardoned but sanctified Come but thus with thy heart affected to close with the grace of God that thou may'st be sanctified as well as pardoned though for the present thou feelest not any Sanctification yet thou may'st have right to lay hold upon Christ as well as any one whatsoever Will not this be presumption for a sinner thus to lay hold on Christ If faith were meerly a perswasion that Christ dyed for them or as many men think thus Well God is merciful and he will pardon me Christ having dyed there may be presumption in laying hold on Christ But now as Justification is a great mystery so is faith and faith is a mighty work of the Spirit of God in the soul that causes the soul to roul and cast it self on the free grace of God in Christ and venture it self and all its hopes for good and happiness on him there is not only a coming to Christ for pardon but for grace holiness light good and happiness here and for whatever it doth expect hereafter it looks for all from him Now when there is such a work of God upon the soul in casting it self on God in Christ though there be nothing at present but ungodliness in him appearing yet such a one may and hath right to come unto God for pardon for God justifies the ungodly Rom. 5.6 Christ died for the ungodly and vers 10. If when we were Enemies we were reconciled by the death of his Son when we were Enemies and had base hearts full of enmity against God yet then Christ died to reconcile us unto God thou may'st then venture to come to him for pardon and it is no presumption though thou seest no change in thy self yet he pardons that thou may'st be chang'd now here 's a glorious work of God in pardoning a sinner that God should pardon justifie and reconcile us when we were Enemies to him here is a glorious work of God for a sinner to be justified and reconciled and yet when the sinner was an Enemy unto him Of the eleventh Mystery God himself purchases the Pardon 11. When God pardons a sinner he himself is fain to purchase the pardon and this is different from the manner of pardons among men A Prince pardons a malefactor but the Prince himself doth not purchase the pardon and if one have offended you you pardon the offender but you that are offended do not purchase a pardon for the offender possible some friend may come and purchase a pardon at the Kings hands for an offender but the King himself doth not purchase it yet thus it is with God God doth not pardon any one sin but it costs God himself dear before he gets it therefore 't is not such a slight thing to be pardoned you must not think to go to God and cry mercy and that he will pardon 〈◊〉 thus in a natural way God never pardons sin but it costs God dear yea that which is more worth than all the world if that could have done it God would rather have dissolved Heaven and Earth than have given that that he did give What was that It was the bloud of his own Son God gave him up to death for the sin of mankind and for the purchasing a pardon for man But some may say What need God have purchast a pardon for man Could he not have forgiven him by his absolute Prerogative I answer there was need because of the satisfaction of Justice he did purchase it out of the hands of Justice God was fain to lay down a price to Justice before he himself could pardon one sin Justice must be satisfied before he could give out one pardon Well take all these together Christ must be our Surety take the debt upon himself and suffer as much punishment as we should have done in Hell to all eternity and to make the soul stand righteous before God yet this righteousness to be in another yea a near union is made between Christ and the Soul And yet further 't is by faith and yet boasting is excluded and God is infinitely merciful and yet infinitely just and when he pardons one sin he lays in a pardon for al
sin for time to come justifies the ungodly pardons sin yet purchases the pardon These eleven Meditations about the Pardon of Sin make it appear to be a wonderful work of God put these together and then the result according to the point will be clear and full that Blessed is that man whose sins are forgiven And surely if there be such a mysterious and glorious work of God in pardoning sin that man for whom God shall work such a glorious work is a blessed man indeed And now having done with this Argument of the great mystery of Godliness in forgiveness of Sin I proceed to another and it is this CHAP. IV. That Pardon of Sin not only is a Mercy in it self but the Foundation of many other Mercies PArdon of Sin makes a mâ—â— blessed Why Because it is the Foundation of abundance of other Mercies it is an inlet to many other mercies therefore a great mercy it is a leading mercy it is as the Queen of Mercy that hath a great and glorious train of other mercies attending on her indeed it is the very foundation of all the mercies of the Covenant of grace 't is the principal mercy and the very foundation of all the mercies that are in the Covenant and the inlet and opening to them all the Covenant of Grace is a rich Treasury hath abundant store of mercy in it and this opens to them all The current of all Gods mercies was stopt by mans sin though God had an infinite Ocean of mercy yet the sourse and vent of all Gods mercies was stopt Now when God pardons sin he takes away the stop and opens the sluce that his infinite grace and goodness may flow forth plentifully and sweetly to the soul body and state yea to all that belongs to a believer You may conceive Gods mercy to be as an infinite stream of goodness running with a full current towards his creatures for God delights in the Communication of himself to his creatures But now mans sin made a dam and stopt the pipe that not one drop of mercy could come forth not a drop of all that mercy that in the eternal purpose of God he hath appointed in time shall come forth to such and such a poor creature but when he comes to Pardon and Justification he pulls out the plug and pulls up the flood-gates and sluces and then mercies come flowing in amain when sin is pardoned then the full streams of all the mercies in the Covenant of grace come flowing into the soul well then if it be thus that pardon of sin is an inlet to other mercies then he that hath his sin pardoned is a very blessed man I shall open this That Pardon of Sin is the foundation to and opens the sluce to let in all other mercies Jer. 31.31 Behold the days come that I will make a new Covenant with the house of Israel and the house of Judah here God opens his goodness and tells them he will make a new Covenant not like that he made with their fathers vers 32. but this shall be the Covenant vers 33. and he instances in some particulars I will put my Law into their inward parts and write it in their hearts and they shall teach no more every man his neighbour and every man his brother saying know the Lord for they shall all know me c. But what is the foundation of all this at the end of the 34. For I will forgive their iniquity and remember their sin no more I will make a new Covenant with them and put my law into their inward parts and they shall all know me I will come in with all my mercies and blessings Illumination and Sanctification he mentions these instead of the rest as in a grant of great things some particulars are mentioned but then he comes in with a general For I will forgive their iniquity and remember their sin no more As if it should be said Why Lord wilt thou come in thus to thy people in such an abundant way of mercy more than formerly and let in these graces of thy Covenant Why here 's the ground of all for I will forgive their iniquity so that forgiveness of iniquity is the special inlet of the mercies of the Covenant Now more particularly I shall shew you what are those special mercies Pardon of sin is an inlet to and that will further shew the blessedness of those souls that have their sins pardoned because pardon of sin is an inlet to many other mercies As Of Peace with God that Pardon of Sin is an inlet to 1. Peace with God Rom. 5.1 being justified that is pardoned through faith what follows we have peace with God through our Lord Jesus Christ the ground of our Justification and Reconciliation it is not our Humiliation no nor our Sanctification Observe it the very bottom and foundation of our Justification and Reconciliation it is neither of these though we ought to be in the use and exercise of them but pardon of sin is through the free grace of God applyed by faith this is the ground of all our Peace and Reconciliation with God And thus men and women should seek their peace with God the main thing they should lay the waight of obtaining peace of God upon it is the work of faith applying the Righteousness of Christ for pardon rather than any work of Humiliation or Sanctification by the Spirit of God yet both these are sweet and comfortable when we found the bottom and main foundation of all our peace on the free grace of God pardoning our sin and justifying of us through faith in Christ Cod does not say you that are great sinners stay till you are humbled and are brought to hate sin and you shall have peace with God No you may be much troubled for sin and may leave it and reform in many things and live better lives than before and yet your peace not made up with God How then shall it be thus being justified by faith looking up to the free grace of God in Christ for pardon of sin we come to have peace with God and this is a great priviledge but if you consider on the other side a creature not reconciled cannot look upon the infinite Creator without terror and shakings and tremblings of spirit he cannot have any thoughts of God but he thinks of him as his Enemy and that all the excellencies of God are working misery and ruine to him this is a sad thing But when pardon of sin comes God is reconciled and all fears and terrors from the Almighty are gone those fears whereby the soul was afraid God was secretly working ruine to it are dispell'd and if any judgment of God come close and near and befal any in the sight and hearing of a guilty soul he would be thinking God is coming to me next But a justified soul may say though the judgments of God be never so terrible in the world and in
of God and therefore to say boasting is excluded by faith because faith is the gift of God will not serve the turn therefore the mystery of Justification is a great mystery that notwithstanding faith is such a glorious work as it is one of the gloriousest works that ever any creature did yet that this should be excluded by this I cannot but be perswaded that there is more in the work of Faith than in any thing Adam ever had and that faith the power of believing was not in Adam in the state of Innocency Why Because it is now made such a grace as excludes all kind of boasting For were it but the stirring up of any power we had in Adam it would no more exclude boasting than if God stirr'd up any other grace as Love Hope Fear and the like But that it excludes boasting this may be the most satisfactory answer Works they could not exclude boasting Why though they were from the grace and gift of God yet they belong'd to mans nature for if God will make a rational creature he must give it those perfections that are due to that nature Now the Image of God was in some regard due to such a nature But now God when he comes to give faith he gives a higher thing than ever was due to the nature of man hence there is a greater mystery in faith than in any other grace and therefore it is a great mystery that God should justifie a man by faith and yet this excludes boasting more than any other thing I but the Scripture says God imputes faith for righteousness and when God inables us to believe Is it not our own Yea when we have it it is our own and when we are justified it is imputed to us for righteousness but mark what I shall say it will be useful for the understanding that Text in Rom. 4.22 Where it says faith was imputed to him for righteousness ye must not understand it thus that is that God did through the grace of Christ now accept of Abraham's faith as his righteousness whereby he should stand to be justified by it in the sight of God he did not thus accept of faith for righteousness no not through the mediation of Christ nor by vertue of any Covenant made by God with Christ God did never make any Covenant with Christ that whereas man did owe obedience to all the Law and that should have been his righteousnes had he continued in it but man now being unable to perform it that God would be now so favourable to him as that he would accept of faith for righteousness that is not the meaning of it for the word in the Original translated for righteousness it is thus it was imputed unto righteousness it is the same word used in Rom. 10.10 With the heart man believeth unto Righteousness and with the mouth Confession is made unto Salvation Now Confession with the mouth is not made Salvation it self but unto Salvation so faith is not the righteousness it self but unto righteousness that is by faith we come to get righteousness But why says the Scripture God imputed it unto righteousness I take it thus that forasmuch as faith is so glorious a Principle infused of God above any thing of our own God is pleased to account of it as if it were our own and so imputes it unto righteousness the truth is it is not our own no not so our own as other graces are our own but God in point of Justification is pleased to impute it as our own that we may come to have righteousness by it as if it were our own Now this is a great mystery that God in the work of pardon of sin should do it by the grace of faith and that this excludes all boasting and yet righteousness imputed to it as if it were our own Hence by the way let us take heed of the Opinion of those that say faith it self is imputed for righteousness and that God through Christ accepts of faith as the matter of our righteousness The Papists say we are justified by works and that God is pleased through Christ to accept not of Faith only but of Humility Fear Love Repentance Joy c. though they be imperfect yet he is pleased to accept of these for our righteousness says the other opinion faith is our righteousness though God might require exact obedience to the whole Law yet he is pleased to accept of faith both these Opinions are besides the truth and therefore there is the same danger in the one as in the other and therefore both to avoided Of the eight Mystery God is infinitely Just and yet infinitely Merciful 8. The eighth particular is this that shews pardon of sin is a great mystery because where-ever God pardons sin he is infinitely just and yet infinitly merciful there is an admirable reconciliation between Gods Justice and Mercy which shews it to be a great mystery There are three great mysteries in Religion 1. The great mystery of the Trinity that there should be divers Persons and yet but one God The second is that in the Person of Christ there should be two Natures and yet but one Person And then the third is the reconciliation of the mercy and justice of God in the forgiveness of a sinner Many people when they seek for pardon of sin they only think of Gods infinite grace and mercy but not of his justice But certainly who ever he be that comes to be pardoned God shews himself infinitely just as well as merciful that he is merciful that is clear to every one But how does it appear he is so infinitely just for that there is a clear Text for it Rom. 3.26 To declare at this time his righteousness that he might be just and the justifier of him which believeth in Jesus so that God in the justifying of him that believes in Christ is just as well as merciful Now then poor sinner lay these together that God should work so strangely in bringing about the pardon of thy sin in such a mysterious way as this is certainly it does demonstrate that thou art a blessed man I beseech you think of what hath been said and lay it in your breasts go away with this upon your spirits Lord I indeed heard much of the evil of sin and that it was a greater evil than ever I thought it to be and now I have begun to hear of the mighty work of God in pardon of sin I hope I shall for ever retain higher thoughts of it than before Brethren there is nothing in the world that people have slighter thoughts of than of the pardon and forgiveness of sin they think it a slight matter But if there were any work that ever took up the heart of God from all eternity and shews God to be a God it is this about the pardon of sin this is a great doctrine the doctrine of the work of God in
in the free pardon and remission of his sin by faith in Christ this is the blessedness spoken of Now because the Galatians at the first hearing of this doctrine were so mightily taken with it that they cry'd out O this is a blessed doctrine Remission of Sin by the free grace of God through faith in Christ O this is the blessedest doctrine that ever we heard they were so taken with it that if possible they would have pluckt out their eyes for Paul that brought them such a doctrine as this at their first hearing and receiving of it But afterwards the Galatians were turn'd aside by false Teachers that had taken off the edge of their affections to this blessed Truth Now Paul coming to reprove them says Where is then the blessedness you spake of there was a time when I first taught you the Doctrine of the free forgiveness of sin by faith in Christ and you said it was a blessed Doctrine and your hearts were mightily taken with it where is it now How comes it to pass that your hearts are so taken off from the esteem you then had of it Where is then the blessedness you spake of Thus 't is usually the Ministers of Christ come and preach Doctrine to People that their hearts are taken with their spirits stir'd and they mightily affected with the first hearing of it but afterwards by some sin or the company of carnal friends their hearts are taken off though while they were hearing such and such a Truth their hearts glow'd and burn'd within them God grant it may not be so with some of you who when you heard lately the Doctrine of the Evil of Sin your hearts were mightily affected and you said O what a dreadful evil is there in sin in the least sin and being convinced of it you began to reform yet afterwards you fell off again May it not be said of you Where is the sence of the Evil of Sin you spake of Where is that bitterness upon your hearts on the convictions you had of the evil of sin Where is it What is become of it As St. Paul says the blessedness you spake of Where is it What is become of all that strength and power the Doctrine of Remission of Sin had upon your hearts Take another Scripture Remission of Sin is the special Blessedness of the second Covenant that God made with Abraham when he came to Abraham and told him In his Seed all Nations-should be blessed Gal. 3.17 compar'd with the 24. in the 17. verse he speaks of the Covenant made with Abraham and that the Law that was 430 years after could not disanul the Promise that it should be of none effect vers 24. Wherefore then served the Law why says he It was our Schoolmaster to bring us unto Christ The scope of the Apostle is to shew that there is a Covenant of Grace beyond that of the Law and that the Covenant of the Law is to bring us to the Covenant of Grace and the principal thing in the Covenant of Grace is in the 24. vers The Law says he was our Schoolmaster to bring us unto Christ That we might be justified by faith and thereby receive remission of our sins if the Scripture places blessedness in the remission of sin That it is so I suppose is clear enough the main business we have to do is to shew how it is so that is to open unto you wherein the blessedness of the pardon of sin consists and shew you in what particulars the blessedness of pardon of sin may appear unto you and to that there are many things may be said CHAP. II. Of the Blessedness of the Pardon of Sin which appears 1. Negatively in the Evil it frees us from 1. THat that hath been lately delivered of the Evil of Sin may be of great concernment to discover wherein the blessedness of pardon of sin lyes the deliverance from so great an evil as you heard the evil of sin was surely Blessed is the man whose sins are forgiven If sin be so dreadful an evil as you heard surely Blessed is the man that is delivered from all that evil if it remain fresh upon your minds what the evil of sin against God was and what it brought upon your selves you cannot but say this is one principal thing wherein it appears that man or woman is blessed that hath his sin pardoned If any man or woman be in any great danger or under any great evil or misery and if he be delivered from it we say that man is a blessed man or a blessed woman that is quit from such a woful evil that was upon them you account your selves happy to be delivered firm any dangerous storms and to have a calm Are not they then happy that are delivered from the evil of sin Let me speak a little to a poor sinner that understands what the meaning of sin is and that understands somewhat of the dreadful evil of it I would ask of thee oh poor sinner What seest thou the answer will be What see I Oh I see the angry Countenance of an Infinite God against me whose eyes are as a flaming fire looking with indignation upon me I see a black dismal cloud of the displeasure of the Almighty hanging over me I see a most hideous and dreadful sentence of wrath ready to fall upon me I see woe misery and destruction pursuing of me I see blackness of darkness and desolation even surrounding me I both see and feel the woful accusations of a guilty Conscience within me condemning me continually grating upon my soul and terrifying me with dreadful Visions of eternal miseries to betide me I see the chain of black guilt and horrour on my soul that I carry with me wheresoever I go I see the bottomless gulf of eternal horrour and dispair with the mouth of it wide open ready to swallow me up Now then this sight being presented before an enlightned and awakened Conscience Now comes in the pardon and forgiveness of sin whereby this dreadful cloud is dispel'd the tempest is gone the darkness and misery vanish't away and all evil whatsoever the soul is set free from sin and from all the dreadful consequences of it Is not this a blessed man comparing his former condition with his present state looking on him as even now having the sense of the dreadful evil of sin upon his Conscience and the heavy burden of it on his back ready to sink under it into the gulph of misery and now pardon of sin comes O what a blessed change is this O blessed is the man whose sin is pardoned Now what God had laid unto his charge or his own Conscience the Law the Devil or the World 't is all done away all is discharg'd and gone blessed is the man that is thus delivered Old things are past away and all things are become new 2 Cor. 5.17 it is meant not only of Sanctification but of Justification also he
the justification of a sinner 't is one of the greatest Doctrines in Divinity and therefore that you might sanctifie the Name of God in it and give him that glory that is due in this great work it is needful to search that we may find out what is the work of God in it Of the ninth Mystery When God forgives sin for the present he forgives all to come 9. The ninth mystery is this and this may seem one of the strangest of all When God forgives a sinner any one sin for the present he likewise forgives him all the sins that ever he shall commit afterward this is a mighty mystery for God when he takes a poor soul and forgives him his sin he does not only forgive him his present and past sins but lays in a pardon for all the sins that ever shall be committed by him afterwards this is a way of pardoning sin proper to God alone there is no creature pardons the offence one of another so as God pardons here therefore the Prophet cries out Micah 7.18 Who is a God like unto thee that pardoneth iniquity and passeth by the transgressions of the remnant of his heritage Who is a God like to thee who in all the world can pardon sin as God doth No Father pardons the sin of a Child no Prince the sin of a Subject as God doth Now because this is a point of admirable comfort to all the Saints of God 't is fit it be opened and made out that when God pardons sin at first he gives in a pardon for all they shall commit afterwards I manifest it thus in Rom. 8.1 the Apostle says There is now no condemnation to them that are in Christ Jesus from whence I argue Except God did pardon whatsoever sins should be committed when he justifies a sinner then at any time when a justified person sins until he renew an act of faith for pardon there must be condemnation to him for whosoever is in such an estate as hath any sin unpardoned for that instant he is in the state of condemnation But there is no instant of time when it can be said of any justified person that he is in the state of condemnation I say no instant of time for though a justifi'd person may fall into sin after he is justified yet at that instant when he falls into that sin there is by God apply'd a pardon that was laid in before although an act of faith be not renewed in regard of that particular sin that is the point I would make good though it be true there is required as our duty an act of faith to lay hold on our pardon yea also it is required in respect of comfort too for we cannot have comfort of the pardon of a new sin committed except there be a renewal of an act of faith But yet this renewal of an act of faith though it be necessary because commanded and for our comfort yet no absolute necessity to free us from condemnation but being once justified by Christ there is a pardon laid up so that upon any act of sin newly committed this pardon is apply'd by God himself though we be not able by the renewal of a present act of faith to sue out pardon anew unto our selves Nay the truth is if this were not so there could be no instant of time wherein a believer was not in the state of condemnation for there is no instant of time wherein a believer doth not some way or other sin against God Further it is apparent and undeniable that there is not a necessity of renewing an act of faith upon every sin committed for the pardon of it this Argument cannot be denyed because otherwise there must be a necessity of renewing an act of faith after the last act a believer doth for in the last action a believer doth in this world there is some sin it Now if there be some sin in the last act of all then there cannot be of necessity required another act for the applying of the pardon of that sin a believer did do in the very last act he did in this world those that hold a believer cannot finally fall away yet say he may totally many hold that if once a man be justified he can never go to Hell but yet this they hold that he may so sin that he may be brought into a state of condemnation he may be brought into such a state that if he should die at that present he should perish but say they God doth take care that he shall not die till there be a renewing of an act of faith for pardon I answer there is nothing in Scripture to prove there is not any instant of time wherein a believer may not die and yet if he do die he must then perish because an act of faith was not renewed true say they further that all sins bring not into the state of condemnation there may be pardon of course for sins of infirmity but other sins that wast a mans Conscience there a believer is brought into the state of condemnation till there be a new act of faith renewed for pardon I answer If any one sin bring a believer into the state of condemnation after Conversion where shall we put the limits as to say if you go but thus far you are not in a state of condemnation but if you go a letter further you are God puts no such limits in Scripture but all sin in its own nature brings into a state of condemnation and yet no sin brings a believer into the state of condemnation therefore this is a great mystery of God in the pardoning of sin when God pardons the sin of a believer he does not only pardon what he hath done at present but for what he shall do he lays in a pardon and Christ hath purchas 't it for us for all sins yet to come 't is like a Son running into arrears his Father comes and pays his debts but because he sees his Son will run further into arrears he lays in so much as will pay all for time to come that if he run into arrears he shall not be cast into Prison just so it is with God God pardons all our sins at first and then he lays up a Pardon that if we run into arrears we shall not lie in Prison to be condemn'd and suffer for them This is a great mystery and they that teach otherwise rob the people of God of abundance of comfort that otherwise they might have were this Truth made clearly known unto them Is not this Doctrine a Doctrine of Liberty If they have knowledge that God when he pardons for what sins are past and lays in a Pardon for what sins are yet to come May not People hence take liberty to sin May not they say that though they do sin yet there is a Pardon laid in before hand for them Here thou speakest as one that understands not
the Word which before terrified my Conscience yet now my sin being pardoned my soul is reconciled and the Word of God speaks nothing but good unto me and all those fears that before so terrified me are dispell'd But may not a pardoned man have these fears or somewhat of the nature of them resting on his spirit after he is pardoned Yea he may but the ground of them is dispel'd and gone it is not the work of Gods Spirit that causes these fears as it did before Rom. 8.15 You have not received the spirit of bondage again to fear but the Spirit of adoption whereby ye cry Abba Father may be you may have some fears but being justified by faith you have not again received the spirit of bondage if hereafter you have any fears of Gods judgments and wrath against you it is not the spirit of bondage the Spirit of God that causes these fears your own selves may mistake the matter for those that once receive the spirit of bondage never after receive it you may have fears through your own mistakes but not by the Spirit of God as the spirit of bondage shewing us our bondage by our sins and working terrors on the soul for it these fears are dispell'd for in our peace with God in the pardon of sin the matter of enemity between God and the soul is taken away there is this in it which might have been added in the mysteries When a Prince pardons a malefactor he gives him his life and he is glad goes away but the Prince regards him not any more and possibly he may yet have enmity in his heart against the Prince still But God when he pardons a sinner not only is the enmity taken away but forthwith that soul is brought into the state of infinite friendship he receives the soul into his very heart so that there shall be a greater and more intimate love and friendship between his Majesty and that Soul than ever was between the greatest and dearest friends in the world this is wonderful and yet this is so for as when God comes to pardon sin there is not only taking away the guilt of sin but the soul is made actually righteous in Justification so also there is not only a taking away of the enmity between God and the soul that was there before but he receives the soul into infinite love and takes him into infinite friendship with himself Oh the sweetness and blessedness of that mans state whose sins are pardoned Reconciliation with God follows thereupon and he takes the soul into his bosome-love Further upon this there follows two things Peace in Conscience and with the Creatures being justified by faith he hath peace with God and as the immediate consequence thereof peace in Conscience and with all the Creatures 1. Peace in Conscience those fears and grating terrors that arose on guilt of Conscience are gone those dismal accusations of Conscience are still'd though 't is true a mans Conscience may trouble him after Pardon and Justification but it is through mistake the ground of all those troubles of Conscience are gone 't is with trouble of Conscience after pardon of sin as with the Sea you that are Marriners may see the wind at Sea raising the boisterous waves on high yet after the wind is quite down 't is a great while before they be still and quiet so in mens souls it is guilt of sin that causes woful disturbances but when God pardons sin he comes into the Soul as Christ in the Ship and bids all be still and though through our weakness after the sting and guilt is removed Conscience is troubled yet is God pleased to help the weakness of his People sooner or later not only to pardon sin in the Court of Heaven but in the Court of Conscience too and then all fears and troubles are gone certainly those that know what the burnings throbbings and ailings of an accusing Conscience means they know what a blessing it is to have Peace of Conscience a great blessing to have all well there because the Soul hath much to do with Conscience and Conscience hath much to do with God yea only to do with God and if all be well with that which hath so much to do with the Almighty it is a great blessedness blessed is the man that is thus pardoned 2. There follows this also Peace with the Creatures If I should meet with these in a full Text each of them might require a Sermon themselves to shew the excellency of a quiet Conscience and peace with the Creatures But I must but touch it here God is Lord of Hoasts and all the creatures stand armed ready to avenge Gods quarrel and not only do they stand in readiness but there is a kind of cry in the creatures to God to make them the Executioners of his wrath Shall I go and strike this Drunkard says one and shall I strike this Blasphemer says another All the creatures in heaven earth cry against thee every day But when God pardons thy sin all the creatures presently become thy friends when the Judge hath quitted a Malelefactor the under-Officers have nothing to do with him Conscience and the Creatures they are under-Officers and when God is at peace they are at peace too When Joab came and stab'd Absalom the ten young men that were his Armour-bearers did so too so if God come to a sinner unpardoned and give him a stab all the Creatures will be ready to stab him too but when God comes and pardons thy sin He makes a league with thee and the stones of the field as the Scripture speaks that is the first great mercy that flows in to the Soul upon pardon of sin and peace with God Of Gods Revealing his Secrets to those whom he Pardons 2. This follows upon pardon of sin God comes in a wonderful gracious way to reveal himself to that soul he comes to reveal his secrets to that soul he pardons and pardon of sin is the very ground of the Revelation of the Secrets and Mysteries of God by the Spirit to that Soul Jer. 31.33 among other particulars in the New Covenant God promiseth they shall be all taught of God in Heb. 8. that Text is quoted something more fully than in the Prophet vers 10 11. They shall not teach every man his neighbour and every man his brother saying know the Lord for they shall all know me from the least to the greatest Mark For I will be merciful to their unrighteousness and their sins and iniquities will I remember no more Pardon of sin is made the ground of Gods teaching them his Covenant They shall know me from the least to the greatest you little ones and young ones if God please to bring you to Christ and pardon your sin a glorious light shall come into your souls God will shew himself in a glorious manner to you there shall be another manner of light
shine into your hearts than ever before the mysteries of God will be opened to you and you shall understand more than many of your fathers who have not had this mercy to be rightly acquainted with the Justification of a sinner and therefore you young ones that much desire knowledge the main thing to be acquainted with is this great Doctrine of Justification and pardon of sin as Luther said Three things Prayer Meditation and Temptations make a Divine so I say the right knowledge of Justification makes a Christian and they that have not a clear knowledge in this point do but bungle and are extream weak in all other points of Religion but when once the soul comes to be justified what a glorious light is let into the soul as you all know that have been made partakers of this grace And you young ones you may come to have sin pardoned as well as others and to have the knowledge of the mysteries of God revealed unto you 1 Joh. 2.12 compared with the 13. I write unto you little Children because your sins are forgiven for his Name sake even little children I write to you your sins are forgiven oh 't is a happy thing for young children to have faith wrought in them and to have their sins forgiven them betimes and then in the 13. verse I write unto you little Children because you have known the Father Oh what an admirable light springs up in the souls of little Children when their sins are pardoned they come to the knowledge of the Father and this is the reason why many great and learned men that are men of excellent understanding in the knowledge of natural things are not acquainted with the mysteries of godliness and think but meanly of them marvel not at it for the knowledge of the mysteries of godliness comes in by pardon of sin when God pardons sin and justifies a soul by faith in Christ then God opens the Covenant and all the glorious mysteries of it to such a soul A Prince reveals not the secrets of State to a Traytor that lies under bolts and chains but if a Prince please to pardon him and knock off his bolts and chains and raise him unto favour bring him into his Privy Chamber and open his whole heart and all the mysteries of the Kingdom to him here is a great change thus does God to poor sinners that he pardons A soul that lies under the guilt of sin is just for all the world like unto a Malefactor that lies in a dungeon that hath bolts and fetters on him the guilt of sin is like bolts and fetters on thy soul Well thou lyest there fast bound but when God comes in with pardoning mercy God sends to thee in this dungeon and knocks off thy bolts by pardon and not only so but calls thee into his Privy Chamber and opens his heart and bosome unto thee and reveals those things that were kept secret from the beginning of the world Princes do not always deal so with Malefactors if they pardon them they think they have done enough for them they may afterwards go and shift for themselves they are not call'd into the Privy Chamber to have the King open his secrets unto them but it is certainly so to every soul God pardons he pardons none but whom he calls into his Privy Chamber and reveals unto him the great Councels of his will and what has been the great thoughts of his heart for the good of that soul from all eternity though some souls have more light than others yet to no soul that is pardoned but God comes in with a great and glorious light and in respect of the light of Nature it may be call'd a glorious light there 's not the weakest and poorest creature in the world that is pardoned but he understands more of the light of Gods grace and Covenant than the greatest Doctors or Rabbins in the world and though he cannot speak or talk so much of these things yet he dares venture his soul on those thoughts he hath of Gods good will made known unto him in the Covenant no Rabbin in the world though he can talk much of these things yet he dares not venture his soul for the eternal welfare of it and his estate upon God to do with him as he pleases but a believing soul dares venture his Name his Estate his Life yea his eternal life on God he dares to put them all into his hands and to such a soul God will repeal his Covenant Psal 25.14 God will grant this mercy that he will reveal his Covenant and all the secrets of it shall be made known unto him you that complain of dulness of understanding you say you hear excellent mysteries and do not understand them there is surely much in them I see some weight and excellency in them to be found out and I hope God in time will discover them unto me but little I know for present you take a course to get understanding by attendance on the outward Ordinances it is good to use all means as reading and conferring with other Christians and pray over what you hear these are excellent But the great and special means to get saving understanding in the mysteries of the Gospel is this Cast down your souls at the footstool of God and cry for pardon of sin it may be guilt of sin is upon thy heart let that be thy work to get of the guilt of sin and cry for Gods justifying mercy in Christ guilt being removed God will let out to thy soul the Revelation of his Covenant in a glorious manner he will reveal his secrets to thee so that upon this there is a holy boldness a sinner comes to have in the presence of God Suppose a Malefactor come to Court under his guilt being not pardoned alas he dare scarce look in at Court-gate and when he comes he keeps in some out-room and dares not stir any further than he is call'd but take another that is pardoned he comes in boldly and goes from one room unto another yea into the very Presence-Chamber and there can open his mind fully to the King and speak out all his heart and this is a great difference between one under the guilt of sin and another that is pardoned one under the guilt of sin he dare scarce go to Prayer and thinks God casts away his person and his services and that nothing is regarded but when God comes to pardon he calls the poor sinner that was under trouble before to come and draw near to him and saith fear not open thy mind and heart to me Lam. 3.55 56 57. I called upon thy Name O Lord out of the low dungeon 57. In the day that I called upon thee thou drewest near and said'st fear not Every poor soul that is justified may say God knows when I was under the guilt of sin I was cast into the low dungeon and the chains of guilt were upon me
there but through thy grace thou hast heard my voyce hide not thy ear at my breathing at my cry thou can'st not cry yet if thou beest one whom God hath received to mercy thou may'st have confidence that God will hear the voyce of thy breathing thou com'st to Prayer and can'st not tell what to say mark can'st thou breath Gods ear lies open to the breathings of a soul he hath received to mercy thou cam'st to me I was a great way off shaking trembling and thou drew'st near to me and said'st fear not v. 57. so a poor soul under the guilt of sin he stands shaking and trembling but when God comes to pardon he says to thee fear not and because thou dar'st not come to him he comes to thee and says peace be to thee fear not Heb. 10.16 the Apostle speaking of the Covenant that God will make in the 17. verse says Their sins and iniquities will I remember no more and 18. verse Where remission of sin is there is no more offering for sin in the 19. verse he infers that now therefore We have boldness to enter into the holiest by the bloud of Jesus and vers 21. Having an High Priest over the House of God let us verse 22. draw near with a true heart in full assurance of faith God having made a new Covenant and said Their sins and iniquities I will remember no more therefore we have boldness says the Apostle to enter into the Holy of Holies In the time of the Law under the Jewish Pedagogy none might enter into the Holy of Holies but the High Priest there was but little access into the Holyest in the time of the Law but now when the Gospel comes Christ having offered up himself a Sacrifice there needs no more Sacrifices he at once having purged away sin by his own blood has opened a new and a living way that we may come with boldness now into the Holiest so that a believing soul need now not stand a far off shaking but may come in to the Privy-Chamber and enter into the Holy of Holies and draw near with a true heart in full assurance of faith and this comes from sin pardoned Oh blessed is he that hath his sin pardoned that has such a priviledge following thereupon Ephes 3.12 In whom we have boldness and access with confidence by the faith of him Christ being our High Priest we have boldness liberty of speech so the Original a great many know not how to pray and they think all the Prayers of the Saints have nothing in them but a great deal of Non-sense because they understand not what the work of God is in the hearts of his people the Saints have by faith in him liberty of speech there is a blessed freedom a gracious heart hath being once justified by Christ to open his soul unto God which connot be done by any other way in the world to have liberty to pour out our whole souls into his bosom is from faith and comes in as a fruit of Justification David pardoned Absolon but would not let him see his face but God never pardons any soul but he gives free liberty for that soul to come into his presence and open it self fully unto him this is a second priviledge Pardon of sin is an inlet to many other mercies Of Pardon of Sin making all other Mercies to be Mercies 3. Pardon of sin is not only an inlet to many other mercies but it is such a mercy as makes all other mercies to be mercies and without which no other mercies would be mercies by this all other mercies are mercies when once a soul comes to be pardoned it may look upon all it hath in a far more sweeter way than ever it could before by this he may look upon House and Land Wife and Children Estate and Friends he may look upon these as mercies indeed Why for he has a pardon his sins are pardoned as a man supposing he is charged found guilty and condemned having a fair house rich furniture sweet yoak-fellow and children and all things he could desire but says he What are all these to me seeing I am a condemned man Well he goes and gets a pardon unexpectedly and now he returns to his House Wife and Relations again and all are sweet unto him when he injoys them with a pardon he looks upon them with another manner of eye than he did before thus there is this difference between the enjoyment of outward comforts in this world when sin is pardoned and before it was pardoned thou hast Houses and Land sweet Yoak-fellow and Children trading at Sea and Land and all things thou canst desire but what is all this to thee while guilt of sin lies grating on thy Conscience Well God comes into thee with pardoning mercy and takes away thy sin the guilt of which lay corroding on thy Conscience then thou may'st look upon thy Estate Wife Children and all thy comings in to thee as coming from the same eternal Fountain of Gods eternal love that Jesus Christ himself came from this is a mighty Argument to perswade men to seek after the pardon of their sin that you may have your comforts and enjoyments in this world in outward things sweet unto you and if there were no other reason to perswade you to seek after forgiveness this might be enough that you may have all your outward mercies in mercy to you you may have an Estate a sweet Yoak-fellow and sweet Children and all thou canst desire and these are mercies but they are but such mercies as God may give to those that are Enemies unto him they are but outward mercies at the best coming not to thee as fruits of the Covenant and so are not the sure mercies of David nay not worthy to be accounted mercies Consider but two things First The guilt of sin upon thy soul is so great an evil that take all these things at the best they are but as a grain of Sugar put into a tun of Gall a tun fill'd up with bitter Gall and one grain of Sugar put into it would not all the sweetness of it be swallow'd up in the tun of Gall so were the Monarchy of the whole World made over to thee yet if thy sin be unpardoned there is so much evil in it as all that thou canst enjoy is but as one grain of Sugar put into a tun of Gall the evil of sin would swallow it all up Secondly Thou know'st not what thou hast whether it be out of Gods love or hatred Nay thou hast rather cause to conclude it is out of Gods anger and hatred than out of Gods love How canst thou then account it a mercy when all the comforts thou hast may come out of Gods infinite anger and hatred to thee rather than out of love therefore till thou art assured of pardon thou hast no mercy thou canst be assured of is in mercy to thee This shews 1. The
and pains and did all you could do here 's a great difference between Gods forgiveness and mans a King may forgive but he cannot change and heal but when God forgives he heals and takes away that evil disposition from thee that did so weaken thee for all good Christ when he comes he comes with healing in his wings now blessed is the man whose sins are forgiven for that there follows deliverance from the power of sin and a healing of the soul Of comfort against Death following on Pardoning Mercy 6. Blessed is he whose sins are forgiven because such a man may look in the face of Death and Judgment with comfort Death when he comes to a Natural Man he comes as a Messenger of God to arrest the Soul at Gods suit but where sin is forgiven Death is made a means to bring thee to rest that that would have arrested thee is a means to bring thee to thy rest Heb. 2.14 15. Christ came to die Now what was the great business he came to die for it was to purchase a pardon for sin and by his death to take away the power of the Devil and deliver them that through fear of death were all their life time subject to bondage through the fear of death and nothing in all the world can deliver from the fear of death but forgiveness of sin and then this makes a man look on the day of Judgment with comfort for one special end of that day is that there may be a Declaration of the Infinite Mercy of God in forgiving of sin Act. 3.19 Repent and be converted that your sins may be blotted out when the times of refreshing shall come from the presence of the Lord when he shall send Jesus again which before was preached to you Certainly assoon as ever a man comes to believe his sins are blotted out I but when the times of refreshing shall come they shall appear to your own selves and to all the World Men and Angels more fully than ever before some Interpreters think and I dare not deny it but that there will be a time of refreshing in this world before the great and terrible day that Christ will make it appear that the sins of the Elect Believers are blotted out in another manner than now it doth but however it will fully appear at that day and then that day that will be so terrible to the ungodly will be refreshing to the Saints Why because they shall find their sins blotted out then and that will make that day a refreshing day unto them Although the Heavens be all on fire and shrivelled up like a Scrowl and there be dreadful shriekings of ungodly men yet it shall be a day of refreshing to the Saints because their sins are blotted out Oh blessed is the man that hath his sins pardoned now for he shall have that day to be a day of refreshing to him but woe be to thee O soul who ever thou art that hast not thy sin pardoned if but one sin stand upon the score not blotted out woe woe will betide the for ever more but they that find their sin pardoned shall find that day to be a day of such refreshing as ever they beheld and therefore blessed is the man that hath his iniquities forgiven Of Security against the worlds Reproaches the fruit of Pardoning Mercy 7. Where God hath forgiven sin such a one need not care for the censures of all the world and the reproaches they cast upon him the men of the world cast many reproaches on the Saints and say they are hypocrites that though they will not swear yet they will lie that they are false proud and the like Why now the soul that finds it self acquitted before the Lord need not care for all the censures and condemnations that can be cast upon him from the men of the world Rom. 8.33 Having spoken before of the great grace of God in Justification in vers 33. he speaks as if he had made a challenge to all the world let them all come in let me see Who can lay any thing to the charge of Gods Elect Why because it is God that justifies many will charge them of grievous things I but it is God that justifies What will a man care if the Prince have given him a pardon though some kitchin boy some shakeril about the Court should rail against him so long as the King hath pardoned him Bernard hath a notable speech concerning David when Shimei railed David was not troubled says he he did not feel the injury heapt upon him because he had felt before the grace of God towards him the feeling of Gods grace towards him in pardoning made him not feel the railings of Shimei so Christ himself Isai 50. ver 7. he said before I gave my back to the smiters and hid not my face from shame and spitting they spit upon him this is apparently spoken of Christ but what upheld him vers 7. For the Lord God will help me therefore shall I not be confounded for all this therefore have I set my face like a flint against all scorns railings and accusations in the world but what was the bottom of all this mark vers 8. He is near that justifies me who will contend with me let us stand together Who is my Adversary let him come near to me let my Adversary come and do his worst he is near that justifies me true Christ had no sin personally to be pardoned but he had the sins of all the Elect charg'd upon him and upon that he suffered death Now we are to know Christ is justified as well as Believer and the very ground why a Believer is justified it is because Christ is justified himself Christ being justified a Believer comes to be justified this might have been opened in the mysteries of Pardon of Sin There is a justifying first in Christ as in a common publick person and then by faith in our own persons Now though in the Fathers Justification of Christ he justifies us yet not as particular persons but in him as a common person in the Name of all the Elect and faith that comes in that we might be justified in our own particular persons as before we were in Christ as a common person Now Christ is justified first and acquitted from all our sins and this acquittance is made the ground of his challenge to all his Adversaries in the world though the Prince of Devils come with all his power yet says Christ he is near that justifies me and he will make my face as a flint it is God that acquits me who is my Adversary let him come near Oh it s a blessed thing when thou hast got the pardon of thy sin thou needest not care for all the reproaches the world can cast upon thee thou may'st go up and down and challenge any in the world to come in against thee 1 Cor. 4.3 I pass not for mans judgment he that judgeth
to God and make them enquire after Christ and stir up their hearts to take away those things that do hinder from Christ but it does not interest the soul in Christ you do not understand the way of the Gospel if you think that sorrow interests the soul in Christ no that must be by faith laying hold on him for Justification and then comes sorrow of repentance after thou may'st see thy self an undone wretch for sin and lost for ever and nothing in the world can quiet thee all this may be by the work of the Law but then God comes and shews thee his grace in Christ and enables thee to close with it for Justification and then comes in Evangelical sorrow mourning and melting sorrow more than ever before but now it comes in another way from the Spirit of God melting the soul because it hath sinned against Jesus Christ who hath so graciously appeared to it in his pardoning mercy to the soul so that now you sorrow because you are pardoned for it comes as a fruit of faith laying hold of the pardoning grace of God and then there is no such argument in the world to melt the heart with sorrow as when faith tells the soul that sin is pardoned and though thy sorrow was little before and now is greater thou need'st not be troubled if God make thy humiliations greater for sin after the knowledg of thy pardon for the revelation of Gods grace in the pardon of thy sin is the most excellent means to humble the soul in the world the sorrows of Gods Children after pardon as they work on their own hearts so on Gods heart too God is mightily taken with it when once thy sins are pardoned then God makes thy heart melt to him as his does to thee but the sorrow of one that is an Enemy to God does not soften Gods heart there is a great deal of difference between the sorrow of Gods Children and the sorrow of others they make sorrow the ground of pardon this God accepts not 't is true you may sorrow for sin because it may be a means to bring you to Christ but that that justifies the soul is Union with Christ by Faith and all that sorrow that works Repentance to Salvation flows from Gods grace in Christ having justified you Justification is the first thing that estates thee in blessedness sorrow does not first state thee in a blessed condition but is meerly a fruit of that blessedness thou art stated in certainly these things are the Truths of God so that when you look for blessedness any other way you look for it meerly in a natural way or as a Heathen may do a Heathen knows he ought not to offend God and he knows he had need to have mercy from God and that he ought to be sorrowful for his sins I might give you many examples for it but I must hasten those then that seek after pardon of sin this way do but seek for it meerly in a natural way Secondly Others say I am not only sorry for my sins but I reform and is not this a ground of pardon Know likewise that there may be a leaving of sin and yet sin not pardoned for that take the example of Herod 't is said He heard John Baptist gladly and reformed in many things he was a great deal the better for John's Ministry and yet Herod was not pardoned this is a notable example for you that come to hear Sermons and seem to be much affected let me ask you in the Name of God and let Conscience answer What is it you reformed since you heard all those Sermons of the Evil of Sin and now of the Pardon of Sin What Evils have you reformed in your families and in your own hearts I cannot but hope that many of you may say through grace these and these evils were in my family before but now I have reformed them and these evils I did before but now I have left them I hope many can say so and blessed be God for this fruit of our Ministry if any thing be reform'd if Sabbaths be better kept and Duties in family set up and private Exercises of Religion performed that you are not so proud passionate and froward as before O that it may be said so 't is worth our labour to restrain sin that God may not be so much dishonoured if there were no more done but we preach for further and higher ends that souls would not stay in reforming for Herod heard John Baptist and did many things and Judas cast away the money he repented and would not keep the money there was a kind of reformation in both Herod and Judas but this is no ground to build upon for pardon of sin As those that depended on their sorrow for pardon built on the quagmire so those that depend on their reformation build upon the sand the one by his sorrow and trouble for sin seems as it were to be in the work of humiliation is like a man that digs deep for a foundation but does not cast out the old mould but builds upon it the other seems like one that not only digs deep but casts out the old rubbish and brings in new mould new earth lays by and casts away his former sins and does the contrary good but now though they go further than the former in casting out the old rubbish and bringing in of new earth yet after all this is done they build upon it and do not build upon the Rock Christ they bring in the new earth of their own Performances and Duties and this they build upon and do not build upon the Rock Christ for the pardon of their sins and Justification of their souls before God and here they fail and this is their undoing their mistake in this and yet it is most sure that every one of us would mistake in this if God did not reveal in the Gospel another way to receive Pardon and Justification in his Son we should certainly all of us rest here and go no further no man or woman in the world that never heard the Gospel went further than this and so far one may go without the Gospel we may dig deep cast out the old rubbish and bring in new earth this we may do and not hear of the Gospel And therefore we have a great deal of cause to bless God that we may hear the mysteries of the Gospel opened unto us for certainly we should else go no further and if we go no further we should certainly perish and therefore if we go but thus far it is not building on the Rock Christ hence the ground and bottom of faith for Justification cannot be in Reformation or in any thing in the creature it must be in something above and without us and yet by faith wrought in us though without us I mean the Rock Christ and the Foundation that is laid for the forgiveness of our sin in Christ that
must be the Foundation of our faith and not in what we do our selves For 1. Know that all Reformation in the world will not satisfie for the evil that you have done for the time past this I would convince you of and be you willing to hear it it may be of great use unto you when we preach Christ and free grace it is to bring you to Christ our preaching down of works is not to keep you from doing of them but from resting in them that which I aim at is to bring you into an enquiring frame of spirit a restless condition that so we may bring you to that which is the true rest and we shall be as glad to bring you into the true rest as now to bring you into restlesness Know all Reformations for time to come will not satisfie God for time past it will not amongst men if you have run into arrearages with your Landlord for Rent and you bring him a quarters Rent when there 's three or four quarters behind or may be two or three years if you should think to pay the Rent of two or three years with bringing the last quarter it would be accounted a foolish conceit so would it be if with God you should think the duties you do at present should satisfie for all the arrearages you have run into for time past you do not understand Gods way if you think that God will be satisfied for all that is past by what you do at the present Suppose what you do now were perfect and for all time to come you never committed one sin against God any more yet all this would not satisfie for time past this looks but at time to come and does not at all take off any thing for the time past Besides you may see matter enough in your best Reformations for God to condemn you not only for your former sins but sins in your reforming but if there were no sin in that that would be no satisfaction for that which is past Mark this That which must be the ground of the pardon of thy sin must be that that must satisfie for thy sin past and for all thy sins to come and that was opened unto you in opening the mysteries of godliness in the Pardon and Justification of a Sinner 2. Know this that God accepts of duties not for the duties themselves but because he accepts of the person that performs them God does not accept of the duties and then of the person that is not Gods way but he accepts first of the person and then of the actions God never accepts of what we do till he accepts of our persons As Abel God had regard to Abel 's person first and then to his offerings so God has first regard to the person of any man and then to his Offerings thou thinkest thou art a poor wretched creature and then thou thinkest it may be if I had such and such parts and could do thus and thus then God would accept of me I tell thee all thy parts and performances are cast away till God accept of thy person St. Paul was blameless according to the Law and yet he accounted all loss for Christ for he knew that when God revealed the Gospel to him that he could not be accepted for his righteousness but his person must first be accepted and then his righteousness So that the way of new Obedience and the work of Sanctification are the qualifications of the man that is justified but not the conditions required for the Justification of his person 't is not that that justifies the soul the Justification of the soul comes not through these but these flow from Justification and until a soul understands this he never rightly performs duties Therefore further to conclude this though good Works and new Obedience are good Nurses unto Faith yet if you make these the Mother of your Faith your faith is but a Bastard faith these are not the right Mother of Faith if your faith be begotten out of your Duties and Performances and your faith have no other Mother than these then your faith is illegitimate and not true born it has not the right Mother The right Mother of Faith is the manifestation of the freeness of Gods grace in the Covenant of the Gospel shewed unto the Soul through the mediation of the Son of God this laid open to the eye of the soul by the mighty work of the Spirit of God raises and creates faith in the soul this is the generation of true saving faith the faith of Gods Elect as the Scripture speaks Duties and Performances cannot be the Mother of it it is of a higher birth than that birth that arises out of Parts Duties or Performances whatsoever thy faith will not inherit if it be base born through faith we come to inherit the Promises and if thy faith hath no other foundation than thy sorrows and reformation thy faith is illegitimate and not that that shall inherit 't is not of the right kind that will bring thee unto Salvation thus you see what mistakes there may be in this great Point of the Justification of a Sinner and in being made blessed and therefore we had need look to it to be sure that what we rest upon will hold least when we come to lay claim and make challenge of blessedness our hold deceive us Many think the main matters of Religion to be nothing but believing in Jesus Christ and crying God mercy you see by these things that I have spoken that there had need be much workings of spirit in the way of Religion and mighty strong teachings of the Holy Ghost to lead the soul for there may be many mistakes and to prevent and remove those mistakes that lie in the way to get peace with God 't is a matter of great concernment and not a slight business to be done suddenly 3. Others say we trust in the mercy of God and in this I am to speak to two sorts First Those that are most grosly ignorant that have no other ground to hope for pardon of sin but because they hear that God is a merciful God Know thus much that notwithstanding what you hear of God that he is merciful and not willing that men should perish yet the Scripture reveals clearly to us that notwithstanding God is gracious and merciful yet the greatest part of the world perish in their sins there is nothing more clear then this that most people in the world do perish and therefore to say God is merciful is not enough you may be sorry for sin reform and say God is merciful and yet perish if these three were enough what needed the son of God to come and take our nature upon him and be made a curse for Mans sin lay down his life and shed his precious blood why might not these three have been joyned together and so Christ never have come for though Christ had never come I
might have been sorrowful and I might have reformed and said God is merciful though Christ had never come those that never knew Christ nor heard of him yet they may be sorrowful reforme and say God is mercifull I beseech you consider this note I can never be pardoned and saved in such a way as it might be done though Christ had never come I can then never be pardoned and saved by all the means I take for pardon and Salvation if those things might be done though Christ had never come and if you have nothing else but them to rest upon then you can never be saved put this to your hearts what have I wrought in my heart that I might not have had if Christ had not come into the world certainly the most things that most people have to rest upon for pardon and salvation they might have had though Christ had never come into the world Further Thou saist God is merciful True the mercy of God is sweet and a blessed argument and our souls much delight to open the grace and mercy of God and I have endeavoured to open to you what is revealed in the Gospel yet Gods mercy is free though he delight to glorifie his mercy and he hath thousand thousands of Subjects to glorify his mercy in though thou perish eternally Though thou perish eternally yet God may be glorious in the blessedness of his mercy God hath others to magnifie his mercy unto besides thee a beggar comes and asks an almes of a man and he gives him none that is not an argument the man is not merciful for he hath other objects that are more suitable and fit though he give not to every one t is no dishonour to his compassion so it is with God he hath thousands of objects to bestow his mercy on though thou perish Further Thou saist God is merciful and thererefore thou hop'st for pardon Why God is and hath been merciful to thee beyond all that thou canst conceive God hath shew'd his mercy to thee already thou saist God is merciful true or else thou hadst not been alive at this present that thou shouldst hear and see and have all thy members whole and the use of all thy sences and that thou shouldst stand here this day under the meanes of grace and that thou shouldst hear God call on thee to repent and believe in his Son while thou walk'st on in thy sin and art dead in sins and trespasses he sends his son and spirit to thee to tell thee that he would rescue thee and give life unto thee again is not here rich mercy perhaps thou hast had thy portion of mercy already that God intends for thee yea so much mercy that all the Angels and saints will give acclamations to God for that mercy thou hast had though thou perish God hath many waies shewd mercy to thee in so much as that the very devils themselves will acknowledge that God was very good to his poor creatures Further Thou speakest of mercy hast not thou abused and turn'd mercy into wantonness perhaps the mercy thou speakst of now is at this very present pleading to God against thee saying how have I been abused by this wretched man the more my beauty excellency hath been displayed the more wicked he hath grown what if mercy be now pleading against thee even those mercies that thou hast abused and therefore thou hadst need to look for somewhat else to settle thy soul upon then this to say that God is merciful this is to the first sort those that are grosly Ignorant Secondly There are others that mourne pray and reform and then have some kinde of relyance on God to pardon them for his mercies sake and therefore to them I shall say thus much Know the mercy of God must be received after Gods own way he hath appointed the communications of it and so it must be received otherwise it can never attain to such an effect as the pardon of thy sin note this that all the mercy in God considered as he is creator of Heaven and Earth and not let out through the Mediator Christ Jesus God-man it never wrought to the pardon of any one sin and therefore if you looke upon the mercy of God and do not look to the right way of the conveyance of it you may most dangerously mistake The ground and bottom of faith that justifies is not meerly to cast ones self on the mercy of God for there is none but in a natural way know that God is a merciful God but the main ground of Justification or of justifying faith is the free grace of God through Jesus Christ That God is merciful through a Mediator Otherwise the ground of your faith is but on a meer confused notion of the mercy of God which will certainly faile you a heathen may have as much to be the ground of his faith that the great creator of Heaven and Earth pitties those that are in misery and I am a poor creature in misery I le cry to him and I le reform my life and I le relye on him thus far a heathen may go but the ground and bottom of faith is not the mercy of God in general but the mercy of God in and through a Mediator observe a little further the ground of justifying faith is not thus that God for Christs sake will forgive me for what Christ hath done to purchase my pardon but there is another work of faith in the souls of believers though the soul apprehend it not t is not the work of faith in justification to believe that Christ hath paid so much as my debt comes to but thus the work of faith is to bring the soul unto Christ and to pitch it upon the person of Christ to be made mine first and then the righteousness of Christ to be mine T is not thus I believe this is my debt and there is so much money to pay it but this is the work of faith to bring thee to be marryed to such a person and so the debt is transacted on him to whom thou art marryed and he will discharge the debt because thou art marryed to him so that the ground of faith is not to look unto God meerly through his son that so I may have pardon but thus I must come to have Christ to be mine I must be marryed with Christ and so through my union with the person of Christ I come to have all that Christ hath done and suffered to be made over to me and therefore when I come to look upon the riches of the grace of God in the mediation of his son I must come with an eye of faith to be marryed unto Christ and Christ with me the riches of Gods grace in Christ was opened before we now make use of it as a trial to shew the danger of false grounds in relying upon God for pardon Further Though it be through the mercy of God to
hope their sins are pardoned Do you so then you know the love of God in Christ for this is a special work of the love of God in Christ to pardon sin now the Apostel says when you come to know this you come to be filled with all the fulness of God What is the fulness of God as faith increases with the rest of the graces so you grow fuller and fuller in Gods fulness and so you grow more into a fuller assurance of pardon of sin now the soul can say as I find more assurance of the love of God in his Son so I find my soul more filled with this grace of the fulness of God Alas when I was under the Law God and I were strangers I felt little of God in me but now I begin to know the love of God in the Gospel I begin to have my soul filled with fulness of God not with chaff and dross and filthy things which heretofore my thoughts will and affections were filled withal but now 't is otherwise with me my soul is now filled with all the fulness of God certainly that soul that can say thus may well go a way with that word of Christ spoken to the woman Luk 7.50 Go in peace thy faith hath saved thee Rom. 5.1 The Apostle speaks of pardon of sin being justified by Faith we have peace with God that is God revealing justification by Faith in Christ it brings peace with it and by whom we have access and rejoyce in hope of the glory of God and not only so but we glory in tribulation knowing that c. What knowledge is this It 's this that we are justified by Faith and so come to have peace with God How does this cause the heart to be inlarged we rejoyce in the hope of the glory of God and not only so but we are strengthened and can glory in tribulation our hearts grow up to that strength that whatsoever tribulations we meet withal we are able to bear them with patience and not only so but to glory in them we not only grow up to bear that which many cannot but to rejoyce in them that is more and then to glory is above rejoycing Now Do you find that the assurance that you have of the love of God brings strength in to your soul to inable you to rejoyce in hope of the glory to come as if the Apostle had said let what will become of us for the present what though the world scorn us hate persecute us yet we rejoyce in hope of the glory that is to come and this makes us glory in tribulation knowing that tribulation works patience patience experience and experience hope Here 's a working of several graces together and this may help many a poor soul O says the soul at such a time I had a great deal of assurance of pardon of sin and much joy thereupon But have not Hypocrites joy yes certainly a Hypocrite may have wonderful ravishments of spirit and flashes of pardon of sin but yet there is somewhat wanting in other graces but how shall I know that my assurance of pardon of sin is right thus according to the degree you have of assurance of pardon you have an answerable degree in the growth of other graces as Humility Patience Heavenly-mindedness Self-denyal and the rest according as your faith grows so you have a proportionable growth in all other graces faith is as the root and the more sap there is in the root the more will the branches grow those people that are so full of assurance and never doubted as they say but as for other graces they are empty as the Fear of God Meekness Patience Self-denyal Heavenly-mindedness and the like certainly if thy faith be so high and thy other graces so low thou hast much cause to fear thy faith is not right 't is not the faith of Gods Elect as the Scripture speaks it is not pretious faith for according to the degree you have of that all other graces will grow you hope that your sins are pardoned How come you by it the soul that hath true pardon of sin hath fetch 't it from Heaven in a right way in Gods own way How is that it is on this wiâ—e the soul that sees it self lost and undone through the guilt of sin God revealing his infinite riches of grace in the Gospel such a soul seeing God on his Throne holding out his Son God-Man as Mediator to make an attonement it by a mighty work of faith closes with that glorious way of Reconciliation by the Son that it sees God the Father tender to him and so fetches grace out of the Treasury of Gods bounty in the way of the Gospel in an Evangelical way that was before opened Examine now Have you fetcht out your pardon through the way of the Gospel that the soul by a mighty act of faith hath been willing to venture its self and its eternal station on the Son of God Have you look't on Christ as a mighty Mediator as one able to save you then you have acted faith in a Gospel way and your sins are pardoned Again Are you pardoned then you are sealed that you heard likewise of there is the Broad Seal of Heaven that stamps the Image of God upon the soul as the Image of the King is on the Seal of the Kingdom so the Image of God the Broad Seal of Heaven is stampt upon the soul which I mention that you may make use of it in examination Ninthly Whomsoever God pardons there will be an answerable work in thy soul unto the work of God in justifying thee as in Election and Vocation so in Justification How is that thus that as God notwithstanding all thy sin accepts of thee to his grace and love so notwithstanding all the trouble and afflictions that are in Gods ways thou wilt accept of God and his ways he accepts of thy soul notwithstanding thy sin thou wilt accept of him and his wayes notwithstanding all evils and afflictions that accompany company them there are woful evils of sin that accompany thy soul yet God will accept of thee so there are great evils in the ways of God Afflictions that accompany them yet thou wilt accept of them and think it reasonable What shall God accept of my soul notwithstanding all the evil of sin and shall not I accept of Gods ways notwithstanding all the evil of affliction and trouble certainly the soul that is pardoned cannot but answer God so far as this Will God justifie me notwithstanding my sin I will justifie God notwithstanding any trouble affliction difficulty or sufferings that may befal me in his ways and I will justifie the ways of God this is both an Evidence and a duty God justifies our souls though they be very sinful we have cause to justifie Gods ways though they be very troublesom if thou dost not so thou art none of Gods child for wisdom is justified of her Children