approve of him as such See that the desire of your Souls be indeed towards him above all others View him till you fall in love with him yea till you fall sick of love for him and be sure not to rest till you get your Wills sweetly and powerfully determined upon him so determined upon him as to make a free solemn deliberate choice of him passing by all other Lovers and taking him alone into the bosom and embraces of your Faith and Love Now that you may be sure to make a right choice of Christ such a choice of Christ as may make him yours and tie the Marriage Knot between him and you observe herein these five or six great Rules 1. Be sure that you chuse and embrace Christ himself and not somewhat else instead of him 'T is a great and awakening saying which a worthy Divine has Many now sayes he take Christ by guess but be sure that it be he and onely he whom ye embrace his sweet Smell his lovely Voice his fair Face his gracious working in the Soul will soon tell if it be he or no. So say I be sure that it be he many mistake the Object they close with somewhat else instead of Christ at best they chuse Christ's Portion his Benefits his Priviledges his Purchases but not his Person But my advice to you is pitch on nothing short of the Person of Christ then is our Raith beyond all doubt rightly pitch't upon Christ when Christ himself not his Benefits and Priviledges onely are chosen and embraced by us A Marriage if right is between Person and Person not between Person and Portion Person and Estate that being a resulting thing So here in this Spiritual-Marriage Faith does not marry the Soul to the Portion Benefits and Priviledges of Christ but to Christ himself True I don't say first but that true Faith gives the Soul an interest in all the Benefits Priviledges and Purchases of Christ Nor secondly do I say that the Soul may not have an eye to these and a respect to these in his choice of and close with Christ yea usually these are the first thing that Faith has in its eye The first thing the Soul looks at and is taken with when he is drawn to Christ usually is that Peace that Pardon that Righteousness that deliverance from Sin Death and Hell which he sees is found and treasured up in Christ for Souls But though these things be so yet the Soul does and must go higher he must look at and pitch upon the Person of Christ or his Faith is not so right and compleat as it ought to be Alas 't is the Person of Christ that is the great Fountain of all Grace and all Manifestations from God to us and Faith accordingly does close in with his Person The Spouses Faith seems so to do Cant. 5.10 She had her eye upon the personal Beauty and Glory of Christ and accordingly embraced him with her Faith and Love Hence also you have so often those expressions I sought him whom my Soul loved and saw you him whom my Soul loveth Her love and so her Faith was fixt upon Christ himself and thus do you fix your Faith and Love upon him so shall you be sure not to miss of a Conjugal-Union and Communion with him 2. Be sure that you chuse a whole Christ and not a part of him only My meaning is see that you chuse and embrace Christ in all his Offices as a King as well as a Priest as a Lord as well as a Saviour and as in all his Offices so for all those ends and uses for which God has designed him and the Gospel revealed him to us for Holiness as well as Righteousness for Sanctification as well as Justification I need not tell you that Christ is a Lord and King as well as a Saviour and that as such he is revealed and offered in the Gospel to our Faith Him hath God exalted a Prince and Saviour to give repentance unto Israel and remission of sins Acts 5.31 and they that will have him as a Saviour to give them pardon must have him as a Prince to give them repentance And you know Christ's Rest and his Yoke go together in the Gospel-Offer Mat. 11.28 29. Nor need I tell you that God has appointed him and the Gospel reveals him to be our Sanctification as well as our Justification So you have it expresly 1 Cor. 1.30 Accordingly then do we chuse Christ and embrace him aright when we chuse and embrace him under each notion when we chuse and embrace him not as a Saviour only but as a Lord too not onely as a Priest to procure pardon and reconciliation for us but also as a Prince to rule govern and command us not only as our Righteousness to justifie us but as a Fountain of Grace to make us holy and thus true Faith does chuse and embrace him Isa 45.24 Surely shall one say in the Lord have I righteousness and strength Mark Faith chuses Christ not only for Righteousness but for Strength too Righteousness for Justification Strength for Holiness and Sanctification Christ's language to the Soul in the tender of himself is such as this Poor Soul thou art in a dead lost undone condition God is wroth with thee Hell gapes for thee Justice calls aloud for vengeance against thee and there is no hope no help no salvation for thee but in and by me and union with me And loe I am willing to bestow my self with all my fulness upon thee But remember this that I 'le rule and command thee If I be thy Saviour I 'le be thy Lord and King too If thou wilt share in my Redemption thou must be content to bear my Yoke to bow to my Scepter to submit to my Laws and Kingdom Accordingly Faith's answer if right is this Content Lord 't is but fit that he that Saves should rule and reign that he that Redeems should be bowed and submitted to and I do willingly give up my self to thy holy and spiritual Government thy Yoke is easie thy Scepter is Righteouss thy Kingdom is full of Peace and Joy and I desire to come under them I would have thee to make me holy as well as righteous to subdue this rebellious heart of mine and to rule in me by thy pure Spirit as well as to save me by thy perfect obedience O see that thus you chuse and embrace whole Christ else your Faith is not right nor are you like to attain unto a Conjugal-Union and Communion with him 3. Be sure that you chuse Christ singly and alone and not joyn somewhat else with him Some are for compounding with Christ they would joyn somewhat else in Partnership with him but as Christ must not be divided so neither will he be compounded he will be all or nothing at all to Souls and so true Faith closes with him Hence with the new Creature Christ is said to be all and in all Col. 3.11
into Prison whence there is no redemption until we have paid the utmost farthing which can never be Matth. 5.26 Now sinner wouldst thou have thy Debts paid thy Sins Pardoned and thy Soul freed from the danger of those Arrests then give up thy self to Christ in a Marriage-Covenant O this is the only way to discharge all Christ sayes to Justice concerning all his Spouscs as Paul sometimes did to Philemon concerning Onesimus If he hath wronged thee or oweth thee any thing put that upon my account So sayes Christ to God concerning thee immediately upon thy close with him Father if this Soul hath wronged thee and oweth thee any thing place it on my account I have taken all his Debts upon me I 'le be responsible to thee for all Father this Soul I bled and dyed for this Soul I was made sin and a curse for whereby thy Justice is fully satisfied let him therefore be discharged O Soul how should this draw thee to Christ Canst thou be content to lie under so great a Debt And is it a small thing to thee to be in danger of so terrible an Arrest as that of Justice which we have spoken of is Suppose a man owed ten thousand pounds and had nothing wherewith to pay and he saw himself in danger every moment of being cast into Prison how sad wouldst thou look upon his case to be and how gladly thinkest thou would he embrace an offer from any to discharge him from all Soul thy case is ten thousand times more sad and how gladly shouldst thou embrace the Lord Jesus who would and who alone can discharge all for thee In short we read of Spirits already in Prison 1 Pet. 3.19 Justice has already clapt its Arrest upon thousands and ten thousands and lodg'd them in the Prison of eternal darkness and what canst thou expect from it but to be dealt with in the like manner speedily unless thou closest with Christ as thy Righteousness to make satisfaction for thee His Righteousness is such as makes a full satisfaction and is every way answerable to the strictest demands of Law and Justice and by it he being closed withal by thee all thy Debts are paid at once II. He supplies all their Wants and makes blessed provision for them 'T is the part of an Husband to supply the wants of his Wife and to make provision for her And this Christ does for all his Spouses he supplies all their needs according to his riches in glory They have Wants and he has Fulness they have Needs and he has Riches and he brings his Fuiness to their Wants and freely communicates of the one to the other Truly we are full of Wants of all sorts Wants in the Soul and Wants in the Body We are poor and miserable and blind and naked Rev. 3.17 Yea our Wants are such and so prinching upon us that with the Prodigal we are even perishing with hunger Luke 15.17 Even the Saints themselves are a poor and needy people full of wants Isa 40.17 Now how shall these Wants be supplyed Only by Christ and do but close with him and he will supply all plentifully Liet it be but a day of Espousals between Christ and you and all your Wants are supplyed for ever The truth is Christ is all He is the great All as one calls him Heaven and Earth Time and Eternity Grace and Colory are all in one Christ He supplies the Spiritual Wants of his Spâ—â—ses Do you want Life He that hath the Son bath Life 1 Joh. 5.12 Do you want Grâ—oe Close with Christ and he will give you Grace abundance of Grace John 1.16 Do you want Peace Close with Câ—wisti and he will give you Peace John 14.27 Do you want Strength and Righteousness Rightteousness for Justification and Strength for Sanctification and Obedience Close with Christ and he will supply you with abundance of both Isa 45.24 Do you want Joy and Consolation Close with Christ and he will in due season fill you with joy and consolation he will comfort your hearts 1 Thes 2.16 17. He supplies all the outward Wants also of his Spouses and that so as that they want no good thing Psal 34.10 They want no outward good thing but what the want thereof is better for them than the enjoyment of it would be True they may and often have but a little of outward Comforts but yet then they have much in a little much Love much Blessing much of Christ and the Covenant And therefore a little which they have is said to be better than the riches of many wicked Psalm 37.16 Besides wherein they are cut short in Temporals Christ often makes it up to them in Spirituals They are poor in this World but rich in Faith Jam. 2.5 They have not much of the Streams it may be but they have the more of the Fountain more love and the sweeter communion with Christ In a word what-ever either Heaven or Earth affords so far as they need it they shall have it The Lord will give Grace and Glory and no good thing will he withhold from them that walk uprightly Psal 84.9 O who would not close with this Christ Soul why standest thou off from him Is there any can supply thy Wants but he Is there any can give thee Life and Peace and Pardon and Righteousness and Salvation but he Or hadst thou rather die in thy Wants than come to this Fountain to be supplyed Hadst thou rather perish in thine own poverty than come to this Treasury to be enriched III. He heals all their Wounds and cures all their Maladies He is a Physician to his Spouses and such a Physician as that though the Wound be never so deep and the Disease never so desperate yet he never fails to work the Cure for them O how should this allure us to him We my Beloved have our Wounds as well as our Wants we are full of Maladies and Diseases of Soul The truth is from the sole of the foot to the crown of the head there is no soundness in us Isa 1.6 The Saints themselves have their Wounds yea wounds many times that stink and are corrupt as David speaks Psal 38.5 Indeed they are apt to get fresh Wounds every day Wounds in their Grace and Wounds in their Peace Wounds in their Comforts and Wounds in their Consciences Wounds that smart sorely and which many times bleed as if they should bleed to death of them Well but Christ heals all their Wounds and do but close with him in a Marriage-Covenant and he will heal all thine too who ever thou art He is that good Samaritan that has Oyl and Wine his Blood and Spirit to pour into the Wounds of his People for the healing of them By his stripes we are healed Isa 53.5 His Blood and Spirit are a sovereign Balm which can heal the deepest Wounds and deadliest Discases His Spouses find it so He restoreth my Soul sayes David Psal 23.3 His Soul was
them that if they will have any thing of their own to bear share with Christ in the matter of their Salvation they are Debtors to do the whole Law If they will have their obedience to the Law to have any share in their acceptation with God then they must keep the whole Law for else all were nothing 'T is a great Speech of a Learned Interpreter upon these words Qui debitor est totius legis faciendae mortem nunquam effugiet quia semper manebit sub reatu Nemo enim unquam reperietur qui legi satisfaciat talis igitur obligatio certa est damnatio hominis Id. Whoever sayes he is a Debtor to do the whole Law can never escape death because he will alwayes remain under guilt for no one will ever be found who will be able to fulfil or satisfie the Law such an Obligation therefore is the certain damnation of the man that lies under it Thus you see there must be nothing else of our own joyned with Christ in the matter of our Righteousness and Justification with God but our Faith must cleave singly and nakedly to Christ alone The truth is Christ's Righteousness alone is sufficient to save and justifie the worst of sinners 't is the Righteousness of God 2 Cor. 5.21 and the Righteousness of the Law Rom. 8.3 A Righteousness every way adequate and commensurate to the strictest demands of Law and Justice a Righteousness as long as broad as deep as high as the sin and guilt of the most Scarlet Crimson Sinners can be and why should any think of joyning any thing therewith Truly so to do is to reflect great dishonour upon it and upon the Wisdom and Grace of God in ordaining it for our Justification and Salvation And as we must joyn nothing with Christ in the matter of Righteousness and Justification so neither must we joyn any thing with him in the matter of our Sanctification and Holiness We should look for no Grace no Holiness but what comes from him and is wrought in us by him Nor indeed will God own any thing for Grace and Holiness in us at last that does not come from him In all respects therefore let the language of your Souls be O none but Christ none but Christ 4. Be sure that you chuse Christ and embrace him as your Rest and Happiness and not only as one that is to bring you unto Rest and Happiness Christ my Beloved is not only the way and means to bring men unto Happiness but he also is himself their Happiness and as such he is tendered to us and should be chosen and embraced by us I am the Way the Truth and the Life sayes he John 14.16 that is as one glosses upon it I am the Beginning the Progress and Perfection of a Christians Happiness Sure I am as Christ considered as the Way is the Means and what leads us unto Happiness so Christ considered as the Life is himself our Happiness our supream Happiness and indeed we come to Christ as the Life by Christ as the Way Sweet is that saying which I have read in one of the Ancients on this place We thy People sayes he Nos populus tuus sequamur te per te ad te quia tu es via veritas vita via in exemplo veritas in promisso vita in praeâ—nio Bern. speaking to Christ do come by thee to thee because thou art the Way the Truth and the Life the Way in thy Example the Truth in the Promise the Life in the Reward I am the Way the Truth and the Life i. e. Ego sum via rectissima veritas suprema vita vera vita beata vita increata Tho à Kemp. lib. 3. de imitat Christi as another expounds it I am the onely right Way the supream Truth the true Life the blessed Life the increated Life And sutable hereunto is Calvin's observation upon these words Summa hujus sententiae est quisquis potitur Christo nihil illi deesse idioque ultra ultimam perfectionem eniti quisquis eo uno contentus non est Et siquis a Christo deflectas nihil poterit quam errare siquis in eo â—on acquiescat nihil quam vento vanitate alibi pascetur Siquis ultra eum rendat mortem vita loco inveniet Calv. in loc The sum sayes he of this Sentence is this He whoever he be that obtains and possesses Christ can want nothing whoever therefore is not content with him alone aspires after something beyond the ultimate and highest perfection And then he concludes thus If any one turns aside from Christ he can do nothing but err if any one does not rest in him he else-where feeds upon nothing but wind and vanity If any one makes out after any thing beyond him he will find Death instead of Life O there are infinite Beauties Delights and Perfections in Christ whereby he is able to fill and satisfie us and make us happy And for my own part as I desire never to be happy if Christ be not able to bring me to happiness so I desire no better or greater happiness than what Christ is or can be to me O there 's all in him all to fill all to comfort all to delight and ravish all to solace and satisfie the largest faculties of eternal Souls May I have but Christ sayes Rutherford I shall think my self as well Heaven'd as any whatever Truly he and he alone is centrum quietativum as the Schools speak the quieting resting center of the Soul And so the Psalmist tells us Psal 116.7 Indeed he in his presence and our enjoyment of him is Heaven and Happiness 'T is the highest happiness which Christ promises his People here Joh. 14.21 and 't is the highest happiness which his People reckon upon or hope for hereafter Phil. 1.23 Answerable whereunto is the Observation of one upon those words of Christ to the Thief upon the Cross Luke 23.43 Mecum eris in Paradiso mecum inquit mira benignitas non dicit simpliciter eris in Paradiso vel cum Angelis erâ—s sed mecumeris satiaberis eo quem desiderias Bern. de Pass Dom. This day thou shalt be with me in Paradise With me sayes he O wonderful goodness he does not say simply thou shalt be in Paradise or thou shalt be with Angels but thou shalt be with Me thou shalt be satisfied with him whom thou desirest Thus Christ is the Rest and supream Happiness of Souls and accordingly our Faith should chuse and embrace him I will not say there is not true Faith where the Soul does not come up to such a choice of Christ as this is But this I 'le say That though Faith at first may not thus chuse Christ yet afterwards as it grows up more towards perfection it does come to chuse Christ under this notion And the more distinct it is in chusing Christ as the supream Rest and Happiness of the Soul the
order to life and happiness by him John 6.53 54 55. What doth eating his Flesh and drinking his Blood signifie but an Union with his Humanity And therefore in vers 56. he addeth He that eateth my Flesh and drinketh my Blood dwelleth in me and I in him which is an expression of Union and without this we have we can have no Life no Grace from him In a word as the humanity hath nothing to give or communicate to us no Life no Grace no Spiritual Blessing without the Divinity so the Divinity is incommunicable to us without the Humanity and therefore were our Union with the one only without the other it must needs he ineffectual I will close this with the saying of an eminent Divine Etsi tota salus vita a Deitatis plenitudine pendet quae est in Christo interim tamen nobis non communicatur nisi in carne per carnem Christi Deitas enim est ceu fons unde fluunt omnia bona vita salus sed caro atque humanitas est ceu canalis per quem ad nos derivantur omnia haec bona omnesque gratiae nisi quis igitur canalem hunc apprehendat eique uniatur aquarum certè quae è fonte profluunt particeps fieri non potest Zanch. in Thes de connubio Spirituali Although all Life all Salvation floweth from the fulness of the Deity that is in Christ yet notwithstanding it is not communicated to us but in the flesh and by the flesh of Christ For the Deity is as the Fountain whence all good things flow Life and Salvation but the flesh or humanity is as the Channel by which all these good things and all Gifts and Graees are derived unto us therefore unless a man apprehendeth this Channel and be united to it he cannot possibly be made a partaker of these Waters which do flow from this Fountain 2. On the other hand the whole Person of the Believer is united to Christ not his Soul onely without his Body nor yet his Body onely without his Soul but his whole Person consisting of both Soul and Body in conjunction As Christ is the Saviour so he is the Head of the whole Person of every Believer for he saves none but those whom he is a Head unto And as Christ is the Head of so he must have union with the whole Person of every Believer for his being an Head implies union and that union must extend as far as his Headship doth even to the whole Person In short the Believers Soul is united to Christ therefore saith the Apostle 1 Cor. 6.17 He that is joyned to the Lord is one Spirit and the Believers Body is united to Christ and therefore the Bodies of Believers are said to be Members of Christ 1 Cor. 6.15 thus this union is a full union And as it is a full so it is a very near union Next to those two great Unions the essential Union the Union of the three Persons in One and the same Divine Essence and the Personal Union the Union of the two Natures Divine and Humane in the Person of Christ this is the nearest Union Hence it is expressed sometimes by their being in each other John 14.20 Ye shall know that I am in the Father and ye in me and I in you sometimes by their dwelling in each other John 6.56 He that eateth my Flesh and drinketh my Blood dwelleth in me and I in him And what can be nearer than to be and dwell in each other It is a nearer Union than that between the Husband and the Wife for that Union may be broken and is at last but this never is never can be broken as in its place will be shewn III. This Espousal or Marriage-relation between Christ and Believers carries in it full and lasting communion In Marriage-relations there is a full and free communion between the Parties both in what they are and what they have The Husband admits the sife into a participation in all he is and hath on the other hand he communicates with her in all she is and hath and indeed union is in order to communion So here in the Espousal or Marriage-relation between Christ and Believers there is a full and free communion between them in all they are and have On the one hand Christ communicates himself unto the Believer he admits him into a fellowship and participation with him in all his riches and fulness hence is that John 1.16 of his fullness have all we received and that Grace for Grace vers 14. He is said to be full of Grace And what Grace is that Why all Grace Personal Grace Purchased Grace Grace of Priviledge and Grace of Influence And here it is said that of his fulness have all we received not some onely but all great and small have received and that not in a low poor scanty measure onely Gratiam super gratiam h. e. accumulat issimam copiosissimam omnem gratiam nempe justitiam remissionem peccatorum sanctitatem renovationem spiritus c. Glas Gram. Sacr. but in great abundance therefore it 's added and Grace for Grace or Grace upon Grace heaps of Grace Grace in a plentiful manner all Grace needful for the Soul Righteousness Remission of Sins Sanctification Renovation of the Spirit and the like Look what-ever Christ is or hath which Believers are capable of it is all theirs and they all hold communion with him therein His beauty is theirs and how black and deformed soever they are in themselves yet they are fair and comely in him Nigra per naturam formosa per gratiam Aug. Hence saith the Spouse I am black but comely Cant. 1.5 that is black in my self but comely in Christ black by Nature but comely by the Redeemers Grace comely through the comeliness which he puts upon me Ezek. 16.14 His Righteousness is theirs and how guilty and unrighteous soever they are in themselves yet in him they are Righteous and do stand perfectly righteous in the sight of God Hence his Name is said to be The Lord our Righteousness Jer. 23.6 and they are said to be made the Righteousness of God in him 2 Cor. 5.21 His Priviledges and Dignities are theirs and how vile and base soever they are in themselves yet in him they are highly dignified and advanced Is he a Son so are they through him To as many as received him to them gave he power to become the Sons of God to as many as believed in his Name John 1.12 Is he an Heir an Heir of God so are they they are Heirs yea coheirs with him of God Rom. 8.17 Is he beloved by the Father and that with a choice and singular love so are they they are beloved in him Ephes 1.6 yea they are beloved with the same love wherewith he is beloved by the Father John 17.23 Is he a King so are they he hath made them and doth make them all Kings and they do
1st in that he gave him for us he gave him to be incarnate to suffer to bleed to dye to be made sin and a curse for us he gave him as an Offering and a Sacrifice for us and secondly in that he gives him also to us he gives him to be an Head and Husband to us Hence 't is said That he gave him to be Head to the Church and such an Head as has the command and dispose of all things He gave him to be Head over all things to the Church Ephes 1.22 both in the Counsel of his Will from Eternity and also in the Act or Worlt of his Grace here in Time he thus gives Christ to us And O how richly and gloriously doth his Grace shine forth herein In giving Christ to us he gives his best and his dearest for he has nothing better nothing dearer to him than his Christ as afterwards may be shewn Secondly He gives the Soul for a Bride or Spouse to Christ Believers you know are often said to be given by the Father to Jesus Christ My Father which gave them me sayes Christ concerning Believers is greater than all Joh. 10.29 And thine they were and thou gavest them me Joh. 17.6 with many other places which might be mentioned God gives all the Elect to Christ to be his Spouse he gives them to him first in the eternal purpose and counsel of his Grace in the day of everlasting love when God first set his heart upon his chosen onâ—s then gave he them to his Son and will'd their union to him in a Marriage-Covenant and he gives them to him also secondly in the work of Vocation which makes way for the working of Faith in Christ in the Soul Fater hanc 〈…〉 The Father sayes one hath given this Spouse to his Son speaking of his Church and joyns her to him by his Spirit And my Beloved without this Act of Grace put forth by God towards us the Match would never be made between Christ and any poor Soul for this indeed is that which brings the Soul to Christ So much Christ himself tells us John 6.37 All that the Father giveth me shall come to me Mark 't is the Fathers giving us to Christ that brings us to him and were we not by the Father given to him we should never come to him by believing and if we never came to him by believing there could never be a Marriage-union and relation between him and us III. Christ readily approves and accepts of the Fathers Gift being willing yea longingly desirous to espouse them unto himself whom his Father gives him in order thereunto In the making up of a Marriage 't is not enough that the Father gives such or such an one to his Son and his Son to her but there must also be the consent of the Son he must approve and accept of the Fathers Gift and so does Christ here he approves and accepts of the Fathers Gift the Father wills his taking such and such poor sinners to Wife and accordingly gives him to them and them to him and the Will of Christ falls in with and is conformed to the Will of the Father herein and so the Match goes on this you have clearly held forth John 6.37 All that the Father hath given me cometh unto me and him that cometh unto me I will in no wise cast out Mark Here are among others two things 1. Here is the Fathers giving of poor sinners to Christ and therein his will and consent that they should be espoused to him that in these words All that the Father hath given me 2. Here is Christs approbation and acceptation of this Gist of the Father with his will and consent to espouse them to himself that in these words And him that cometh unto me I will in no wise cast out that is I will assuredly receive him and accept of him I will take him into a conjugal union and relation to my self Christ here plainly declares his acceptance of the Father's Gift giving poor sinners to him to be his Spouses 'T is a great Saying and sutable to this I am speaking which I have read in a great Divine Praecedit aeterna Dei voluntas Christus vero sponus non potest non velle quod vult Pater ideo nos â—ccipit ut sponsam suam The eternal will and good pleasure of God precedes sayes he but Christ the Bridegroom cannot but will the same thing which the Father wills his Will is conformed to the Fathers and therefore does he accept us as his Spouse In a word in this Act of Grace Christ's Language is such as this Father dost thou give such and such poor sinners to me and is it thy Will that they should be espoused to me Content I do freely accept of them and am willing to espouse them to my self for ever 't is true they are poor worthless Creatures altogether unsutable to my dignity and greatness but Father they are thy Gift and I accept of them as such true there is no beauty in them that I should desire them but they are thy Gift and I will marry them and make them beautiful and Oh what Grace is this IV. The Lord Jesus Christ not onely approves and accepts of the Fathers Gift but moreover he redeems them thus given to him with the price of his own Blood he ransoms them from Sin and Death and Hell whereunto in themselves they were all in bondage which also necessarily concurs to the accomplishment of the espousal between him and them 'T is observed by some that in the Eastern Countries it was the manner for men to buy their Wives and indeed so much seems to be intimated in that Message of Saul to David 1 Sam. 18.25 where when he would perswade David to marry his Daughter in pretence at least he sends him word that he desired not any Dowry but so and so It seems then that it was usual to expect a Dowry The same also appears by the practice of Shechem Gen. 34.11 12. where being in love with Dinah Jacobs Daughter he profered to give a Dowry for her Give me sayes he but thy Damosel to Wife and ask me never so much Dowry and Gift and I will give it thee To be sure so 't is here Christ buyes all his Spouses and gives a vast Gift for them Christ indeed is in love with poor sinners given him by the Father and desires to marry them to himself but he must buy them if he means to have them and buy them he does and at a dear rate he gives a great Dowry for them even his Life his Blood his Glory and all for a time Hence he is said to give himself for us Ephes 5.25 and to purchase us by his Blood Acts 20.28 Hâ—nâ—e we are said to be bought by him with a price with a great price a price of inestimable value even his own most precious Blood 1 Cor. 6.20 The case lies thus the
as one who has not onely an infinite fulness and sufficiency in him to redeem and save but also an infinite sutableness and amiableness in him to indear and delight the Soul and accordingly the Soul accepts and imbraces him he cleaves to him and fastens upon him resolving to have none but him alone his language of him now is There is none like Christ no head like this Head no husband like this Husband no saviour like this Saviour for my Soul This is the Head the Husband the Saviour that I need and that indeed my Soul defires No love like his Love no beauty like his Beauty no blood like his Blood no righteousness like his Righteousness no fulness like his Fulness He therefore and he alone shall be my Head my Husband my Saviour and my All for ever Sweet Jesus sayes he dost thou tender thy self for an Head and Husband to me and art thou willing to be imbraced by me Lo then I do with my whole Soul accept of thee and that for all times and in all conditions with all thine Holiness as well as thy Love with all thine Inconveniences as well as thy Priviledges to suffer for thee as well as to reign with thee and this the Soul does upon the deepest counsel and most mature deliberation and accordingly he abides by his choice for ever II. An Act of Trust or Dependance As in the Work of Faith the Soul is by the Spirit of God made to chuse Christ so also to trust and depend upon him for all Grace Righteousness and Salvation Now it bottoms upon Christ anchors upon Christ rests and relies upon Christ for all Life and Peace for all Grace on Earth and Glory in Heaven He layes the whole weight and stress of his Salvation upon him He commits all to him ventures all upon him expects all from him This the Scripture calls sometimes a trusting in Christ Ephes 1.13 sometimes a leaning upon Christ Cant. 8.5 sometimes a hoping in Christ 1 Cor. 15.19 And in this respect Christ is called our Hope 1 Tim. 1.1 our Hope that is the Object of our Hope and Trust as to Life and Salvation The Soul has no hope in himself no hope in the Creature no hope in the Law or first Covenant no hope in any thing in Heaven or Earth on this side Christ He looks here and there to this and that but he can find no solid ground of hope no bottom to build or rest upon for Life and Salvation but then he turns his eye upon Christ and there he sees abundant ground of hope he beholds him upon the Cross and there 's hope he beholds him upon the Throne and there 's hope he looks upon him dying and there 's hope he looks upon him rising ascending sitting at the Father's right Hand making intercession for us and there 's hope He looks upon the infinite vertue of his Blood the infinite efficacy of his Spirit the infinite fulness of his Grace the infinite dimensions of his Love the infinite freeness and faithfulness of his Promise and in these he sees infinite ground of hope and trust and accordingly he rolls and ventures all upon him Here I 'le build sayes he here I 'le bottom here I 'le rest here I 'le hang and depend here I 'le live yea and if die I must here I 'le die His language to Christ now is like that of the Psalmist to God in another case Psalm 39.7 Now Lord what wait I for my hope is in thee This is to cast anchor within the Vail Heb. 9.6 And indeed 't is with poor Souls many times as with persons at Sea the Storm arises the Waves lift up themselves which beating upon them they are ready to sink every moment and their very Soul is melted because of heaviness but anon they sound bottom cast anchor and are at rest So poor Souls are under storms of sin guilt and wrath perishing in their own apprehension every moment but anon they drop an anchor of hope upon Christ and do rest upon him or 't is with them in this case as 't was with the Dove when she was first sent out of the Ark she found no resting place abroad for the sole of her foot but at length returned to the Ark and there found rest Gen. 8.8 9. So the poor guilty Soul finds no rest any where else but in Christ His language in this Act of Faith is such as this I am a poor lost sinful distressed Creature and there is but one door I can expect relief from and that is Christ and at this door I 'le lie and wait I know he is able to help me for he can save to the uttermost and surely he hath bowels great bowels towards poor sinners he is a merciful High-Priest He sayes concerning him as they sometimes did concerning the King of Israel Behold we have heard that the King of Israel is a merciful King peradventure he will save us yea he has bid me look to him and be saved and he invites all that are weary and heavy-laden to come to him and promises them rest Why then should I not rest and rely upon him 'T is true I am a mighty sinner but he is a more mighty Saviour Have I sinned to the utmost He has satisfied to the utmost What shall I say True I am Death but Christ is Life I am Darkness but Christ is Light I am Sin but Christ is Holiness I am Guilt but Christ is Righteousness I am Emptiness and Nothingness but Christ is Fulness and Sufficiency I have broken the Law but Christ has fulfilled the Law and his Life is infinitely able to swallow up my Death his Light my Darkness his Holiness my Sin his Righteousness my Guilt his Fulness my Emptiness on him therefore I 'le lean and live and hope 'T is true I am utterly unworthy of any Life any Grace any Favour but Christ does all for sinners freely he loves freely he pardons freely he saves freely how vile therefore and unworthy soever I am yet I will rest and depend upon him Who knows but he may cast an eye of love upon me This is that Act of Faith which is held forth Isa 45.24 Surely shall one say in the Lord have I righteousness and strength I have neither strength nor righteousness of my own but I have all righteousness and strength in Christ all righteousness for Pardon and Justification and all strength for Holiness and Sanctification this is that the Apostle calls a rejoycing in Christ Jesus having no confidence in the flesh Phil. 3.3 To draw towards a conclusion of this Head Which way soever the Soul looks on this side Christ he meets with nothing but discouragement If he looks to himself there he sees nothing but sin and guilt blackness and deformity in his heart he sees a Fountain of sin an Abysse of sin a very Hell of sin and wickedness in his life he finds innumerable evils sins of a crimson-die
of excuse or apology for themselves Verily nothing but will be Speechless as he is said to be Mat. 22.12 They can't say they were not warned of the evil of sin They can't say that pardon and Salvation were not offer'd them They can't say that the offer was not full and free and clear They can't say they had to do with an hard Master nor can they say that sin is not worthy of death They will have nothing to say Secondly it leaves you without the least room or place of appeal for ever I may say here as 't is said in anorher case 1 Sam. 2.25 If one man sin against another the judge shall judge him but if a man sin against the Lord who shall intreat for him So if a man sin against the Law by transgressing of it he may appeal to the Gospel and the grace of Christ there But if a man sin against Christ and his Grace offer'd in the Gospel where then shall he appeal Verily there is no appeal to be made no relief to be found for him If a man be condemn'd at the seat of justice as having sinn'd against the Law he may appeal unto the mercy-seat the throne of Grace and sind sweet relief but if he sin against the mercy-seat and the throne of Grace then he has nothing to appaal to that may administer relief to him Now by refusing of Christ we sin against the Throne of Grace we pull down what in us lies the mercy-seat and where then shall we appeal O consider these things and learn by them to dread this sin of refusing Christ I might say much more to convince you of the hainous evil of it but let this suffice Sure I am 't is enough to and had we the due sense of it upon our Spirits it would make us tremble at it for ever 3. Wouldest thou indeed be Espoused to Christ Then give not way to the discouragements of sense but bear up thy Soul upon the encouragements of Faith upon such Gospel-principles considerations as do tend to draw sinners to Faith in Christ Possibly upon reading and considering the woeful misery of thy condition without Christ and the dreadful hainousness of thy sin and guilt in thy long and frequent refusing of him discouragements not a few may arise within and indeed no sooner usually does a poor Soul look towards Christ or think of closing with him in a Marriage-Covenant but presently multitudes of discouragements arise to deter him there from O says he what a monstrous sinner am I How have I despised Christ and his grace How long have I stood it out against him I have serv'd my lusts all my dayes and rejected his calls To what purpose do I now talk of closing with him These and multitudes such like discouragements do arise in the Soul which being given way to do effectually keep him from Christ But if ever Soul thou wouldest attain to Union and communion with him thou must shut thine eyes and heart too against all discouragements of this nature and though they press in upon thee again and again yet thrust them out fixing thine eye and heart upon the encouragements of Faith dwell much in the thoughts of them and bear up thy soul upon such Gospel principles and considerations as do tend to weaken unbelief beget Faith in the soul and for thy help herein I shal mention some of these encouragements of Faith or Gospel-principles which I would have thee to be serious and frequent in the contemplation of 1. The first Gospel-principle or encouragement of Faith which thou shouldst bear up thy Soul upon and be frequent in the contemplation of is this that there is a rich a glorious and an overflowing fulness of all good treasured up in Christ for poor Sinners and that his Grace does abundantly exceed both our wants and sins 'T is the work and nature of unbelief to little and limit the fulness of Christ in the eye of the soul It shews the soul the multitude of his sins and wants but it conceals and Locks up Christs treasures and fulness And whatever we pretend the ground of our not closing with Christ at least one principal one is this that we doubt of his fulness we do not see enough in Christ to supply our wants and relieve our distresses Unbelief perswading us that Christ is not the Christ the Scripture represents him to be But Soul away with all such apprehensions and dwell thou in the contemplation of Christ's infinite fulness Look to him as one infinitly able to supply thy wants to pardon thy sins to healthy maladies to subdue thy lusts to sanctifie thy heart and to save thy Soul eternally Look upon him as the Scripture represents him The Scripture tells thee That it pleased the Father that in him should all fulness dwell Col. 1.19 All fulness of Grace and life all fulness of peace and pardon all fulness of Righteousness and Salvation There is in Christ not onely a fulness of abundance but of redundance an over-flowing fulness a fulness infinitly superabounding our sins and wants The Scripture tells us That he is able to save unto the very uttermost all that come unto God by him Heb. 7.25 Save able to save able to save to the uttermost and that not one or two but all that come unto God by him The Scripture speaks of Christs unsearchable riches Eph. 3.8 The Ocean of his Grace is not to be sounded by the longest line of the largest created understanding Paul experienced the superabounding fulness of his Grace and has left it upon record for our encouragement 1 Tim. 1.14 The Grace of our Lord was exceeding abundant it was more then enough I found more Grace in Christ as one expresses it then I knew what to do withall and yet what was this Paul Himself tells you in the very v. before and after he was a Blasphemer a Persecutor and the chief of Sinners a man every way of as many sins and wants as thou art Accordingly view him and bear up thy Soul in the face of all discouragements Reason thus with thy self True my condition is sad my wants are exceeding many and my sins exceeding great But what then Is there no Balm in Gilead Is there no Physitian there Is not Christ able to save me and that to the utmost notwithstanding all Look O my soul yonder is sweet Jesus upon the Throne at the Fathers Right Hand full of Grace and truth look upon him and consider What are all thy wants to his Riches and fulness What are all thy miseries and distresses to his Bowels of Mercy What are all thy sins to the merit of his Blood thy provocations to his fatisfaction Were thy wants more and greater then they are his fulness could supply them all were thy sins greater and more hainous then they are his Blood could cleanse thee from all The Blood of Jesus Christ cleanseth from all sin 1 Jo. 1.7 There is infinitly
and peculiar in his Love and respects as great Persons use to be He will know his distance and he will make Sinners know theirs But Soul deal with this as from the devil and unbelief reject it as a reproach thrown upon Christ and dwell much in the contemplation of his infinite willingness to receive and save the worst of Sinners that come to him Reason it a little with thy self Why did he become incarnate Why did he bleed and die Why does he woo and wait and offer and call and strive with poor Sinners to win them to himself Does it not all argue a willingness and readiness in him to give forth both himself and his fulness to them 4. The Fourth Gospel-principle or encouragement of Faith which thou shouldest bear up thy soul upon and dwell much in the contemplation of is this That the onely spring and principle of all that ever Christ does for poor Sinners from first to last is his own Soverain Grace and Love 'T was his Love that brought him down from Heaven and that led him out to Bleed and die for them Hence Eph. 5.25 he is said to Love his Church and give himself for it 'T is his Love his free Love that first draws them to himself and allures them into Covenant with him I have loved thee with an everlasting love therefore with loving kindness have I drawn thee Jer. 31.3 'T is his Love that receives them that pardons them that bestows life and Salvation upon them Hence all is said to be of Grace even the whole of our Salvation Eph. 2.8 Hence he is represented to us as sitting upon a Throne of Grace and there 't is that he invites us to come to him and from thence give out all to us Heb. 4.16 and therefore to that Throne we though Sinners may come boldly He is upon a Throne and therefore we may assure our selves that he will do great things for Sinners coming to him he will act like a King pardon like a King save like a King do all with Kingly greatness and magnificence And 't is a Throne of Grace a Throne that reigns Grace a Throne whereon Grace sits in imperial Majesty and decrees all for poor Sinners coming to it and so does all freely all in a way of Soverain Grace and Love Hence that Language I will have mercy because I will have mercy I will pardon because I will pardon and I will save because I will save Now what an encouragement is this to Faith and how if rightly weighed and consider'd would it dash all the pleas of unbelief to pieces and sweetly draw the Soul on to a close with Christ in a Marriage-Covenant For pray consider what is the nature of Soverain Grace and Love The nature of it is to act from it self to itself without any consideration of any thing in us without respecting either the worthiness or the unworthiness of the creature at all The nature of it is such that 't is neither constrain'd to nor restrain'd from doing good to souls by any thing either of good or evil in them but all runs freely And therefore no matter what I am though never so vile and wretched in my self while I have to do with such love and such love is the spring of all Christ's dealings with me and Carriages towards me 5. The Fifth Gospel-principle or encouragement of Faith which thou shouldest bear up thy self upon and dwell much in the contemptation of is this That the great design of Christ in all his undertakings for and dispensation towards Sinners is the illustrating and enthroning of his own Grace and the more vile sinful and forlorn a wretch thou art the more will his Grace be enthroned and illustrated in thine acceptance with him Christ in his dealings with and for Sinners does not onely act from a principle of Soverain Grace but in all he carrie on a design to enthrone that Grace of his and to make it Glorious for ever yea and he acts and will act sutably to such a design 'T is not what such and such Sinners do or do not deserve says Christ that I am to mind but what my Grace can do for them and what will make most for the Glory of that Grace what will set the brightest Crown upon its Head This is evident Eph. 1.6.12.14 Which was open'd before upon another occasion Hence those whom he saves he saves in such a way as may most lift up his own Grace his design therein being that Grace might reigh as you have it Rom. 5.21 Hence you read of his justifying the ungodly Rom. 4.5 He will have his Grace triumph over every Soul whom he saves Now what an encouragement is this to Faith Christ not onely sits upon a Throne of Grace but also his design in dealing with Sinners is to set his Grace upon the Throne Sinner the more vile and sinful thou art the more sutable it is to Christ's design to save thee for the more vile and sinful thou art the greater name and Glory will his Grace get in thine acceptation and Salvation by him The more vile and sinful thou art the greater will be the declaration of Grace on Christ's part in thine acceptance and Salvation O when Christ shall pardon a soul so guilty receive a soul so sinful reconcile a soul that is such an enemy as thou art how will this declare the Glorious riches of his Grace in the view both of men Angels This will shew forth the exceeding riches of his Grace as the the Expression is Eph. 2.7 And the morevile and sinful thou art the greater will be the admiration of Grace for ever on thy patt Where much is forgiven there will be the return of much Love much praise Luk. 7.47 O who am I sayes the soul when once received to mercy though more then ordinary vile and sinful who am I that I should find Grace in Christ's sight What such a rebell and yet pardon'd Such an enemy and yet reconcil'd Such a Black devil and yet washt and made white in the Blood of the Lamb Such a Fiend of Hell and yet made a Favourite of Heaven Such a filthy deformed wretch and yet taken into the pure and Lovely Bosome of sweet Jesus O Grace Grace How rich and free is Grace And O what praise and Hallelujahs will there be tuned upon the Tongues and spirits of such to God and the Lamb for ever When therefore thou wouldst go to Christ and discouragements arise to keep thee back from him thou shouldst dwell in the thoughts of and bear up thy soul upon this consideration reasoning thus with thy self True I am a vile wretch the chief of Sinners one on all accounts worthy to be abhor'd and cast off by Christ But what then Christ acts towards Sinners purely from a principle of Grace and Love he regards neither worthiness nor unworthiness whether a great sinner or a little sinner 't is all one to him as to his
accepting of me Moreover his design is to Crown his Grace and render that Glorious and the more vile I am the more that design of his will take in mine acceptation and Salvation How vile therefore soever I am I will cast my self upon him and put in for an Espousal with him 6. The sixth Gospel-principle or encouragement of Faith which thou shouldest bear up thy self upon and dwell much in the contemplation of is this That 't is the Glory and perfection of Christ as Mediator to receive Sinners and to give out himself and his fulness to them when they come to him This if rightly weighed will mightily help on Faith and list the poor soul over his discouragements into the Bosome and embraces of Jesus Christ To understand it aright you must know that Chist has a two-fold Glory and perfection The Glory and perfection of his Person as he is the Son of God and the Glory and perfection of his office as he is Mediator and head of the second Covenant the Glory and perfection of his person as the Son of God that is infinitly compleat and full that admits neither of diminution nor augmentation being unchangeably the same for ever But the Glory and pefection of his Office as Mediator that in a great measure arises from his receiving Sinners and bestowing himself and his Grace upon them when they come to him and the more Sinners he receives and the more Grace he gives out to them the greater his Glory and perfection in this respect is and it may be truly said that Christ in receiving and giving our Grace to Sinners when they come to him does increase the revenue of his own Glory and more and more compleat and perfect himself as head and Mediator Hence the Church is called his fulnes Eph. 1.13 God gave him to be head over all things to the Church which is his Body the fulness of him that filleth all in all Now if the Church is Christs fulness then the more that is filled and compleated by his receiving Sinners to himself and giving out Grace to them the more full and compleat he himself as to his Mediatorie honour and perfection growes Hence also Saints are said to be the Glory of Christ 2 Cor. 8.23 As Christ alone is their glory so they also are his glory And how his glory Not onely because they do or should actually glorifie him but also because he has received them and laid out his grace upon them and 't is his grace onely that shines forth in them Hence that observation of Galvin upon the place They sayes he that excell most in grace and holiness Quicunque pietate sanctimonia exceluut sunt Christi gloria quid nihil habent nisi dono Christi Calv. they peculiarly are the glory of Christ because they have nothing but by free gift from Christ Hence also Christ tells us that he is Glorified in them Jo. 17.10 And he sayes Expresly that the Spirit shall Glorifie him because he shall receive of his and give it unto us Jo. 16.14 By all which it appears that 't is the glory and perfection of Christ as Mediator to receive Sinners coming to him and to bestow himself and his grace upon them In short my beloved all that ever Christ has done for and is made of God to poor Sinners all his acts and all his offices as Mediator do receive their ultimate perfection in their sull influences on us and our Salvation And as Christ receives his name and Denomination of a Saviour from his Relation to and acting for poor Sinners to redeem and save them so the perfection of this office and those acts of his do lye in the full accomplishment of our Salvation And indeed they would all be but vain and weak acts should he not fully save us coming to him O what encouragement is here to Faith and how must unbelief sink and die before this consideration if rightly improv'd True may the soul say I am vile sinful and unworthy but 't is the honour of Christ to receive me 't is his glory to bestow himself and his grace upon me 't is his prefection as Mediator to accept and save me and such as I am and therefore why should I be discouraged I will go to him and cast my self upon him Thus bear up your souls upon and encourage your Faith with these Gospel-principles which is greatly necessary and will not a little conduce to an Espousal between Christ and you 4. Would'st thou indeed be Espous'd to Christ Then take heed of all jealousies of him and prejudices against him and be sure ever to maintain right thoughts of him One of the great designs of Satan and one of the most cursed workings of unbelief is to prejudice souls against Christ and to fill them with hard jealous thoughts of him which if they can prevail in they infallibly keep the soul from closing with him in a Marriage-Covenant If a woman has jealousies and hard thoughts of a man and be filled with prejudices against him she is never like to enter into a Marriage-Covenant with him And no more will a soul close with Christ in a Marriage-Covenant as long as he is filled with hard thoughts of him and prejudices against him Watch therefore against this The Devil together with the unbelief of our own hearts will frame up a thousand strange Notions and representations of Christ in the soul thereby to prejudice us against Christ but take heed of all these and be sure to maintain right thoughts and apprehensions of him particularly here take onely two things 1. Be sure to maintain honorable thoughts of his Person Look upon him as a Person of glory and as having all excellencies in him 'T is the work and nature of unbelief to darken and obscure the Person of Christ to make that appear vile and contemptible in the eye of the soul whereby it does effectually strengthen it self with in him and indeed there is nothing more prevalent to keep the soul from Christ then an ignorance of or prejudice against his Personal worth and excellencies This was that which made the Jewes so generally reject him They saw no Beauty in him for which they should desire him nor did they discern form or comliness in him and therefore rejected him Isa 53.1 2. They Look't no surther then the outward form the veil of his flesh they saw not his Divine Beauty and glory and so despised him And my beloved unless we look within this veil and come to view and contemplate him as a Person of glory we also shall reject him to our eternal perdition Pray observe 't is the Person of Christ that puts worth and veâ—tâ—e into all his doings and all his sufferings all his offices and all his promises 'T is the worth and excellency of his Person that makes his Blood so precious his Promises so sweet his Righteousness so glorious his Grace so efficacious his Love so
Christ is to come too Are there Tryals to come Christ is to come too Are there Difficulties and Temptations to come Christ is to come too Are there Storms and Tempests to come Christ is to come too And while Christ is to come fear not only close with him in a Marriage-Covenant and make him thine then come what will come come what can come all will be well Thus Christ is every way acceptable and infinitely acceptable and as ever Soul thou wouldst be indeed espoused to him dwell much in the study and contemplation of his acceptableness Labour to be possest with a deep and daily renewed sense of it which will sweetly draw and allure thy Soul to him VI. Wouldst thou indeed be espoused to Christ then be sure that thou pitchest thy Faith aright upon him and closest in effectually with him in a way of believing 'T is Faith that is both the great uniting and the great interesting Grace it unites us to Christ and interests us in Christ 'T is that as has been formerly declared and evinced that puts Christ and the Soul into the bosom and embraces of each others love and by which the Marriage-Knot is tyed between them If ever therefore thou wouldst be indeed espoused unto him look well to thy Faith see that thou dost pitch that aright upon him closing with him and embracing of him not by halves but throughly not feignedly but intimately and cordially But here some may say How may we do to pitch our Faith aright upon Christ so as to get conjugal Union and Communion with him Three things must be done in order hereunto which I desire you to look well to I. See that you wholly quit and renounce your selves II. Labour to get a right notion and apprehension of Christ III. Be sure to make a right choice of him being so apprehended I. Would you pitch your Faith aright upon Christ and be indeed espoused to him Then see that you wholly quit and renounce your selves Self and believing are at the utmost distance from and enmity with each other that is imaginable they are irreconcilably opposit each to other and where Faith takes place there Self vanishes and dies away and that in all its notions and with all its accomplishments Hence sayes Christ If any man will come after me believe on me be espoused to me let him deny himself Mat. 16.24 Let him deny himself renounce himself go out of himself let Self become nothing with him And indeed the Soul that believes in Christ does go quite out of himself he sees and feels himself to be a poor empty Nothing in all respects he sees and finds his Strength to be Weakness his Wisdom Folly his Beauty Blackness his Righteousness Sin his All Nothing And thus must we if ever we indeed believe and get Union with Christ O my Beloved one of the great things which stands between Faith and us Christ and us is Self This indeed is the Souls Darling the first Born as one calls it of his Love and Delights and he is loth to part with it but part with it he must and renounce it he must or he can never believe aright nor is he ever like to have any part or lot in Christ Every step out of Self is a step towards Christ and Faith in Christ and we must be divorced from the one if ever we be married to the other particularly you must quit and renounce Self especially in this three-fold Notion Self-Will Self-Worth Self-Interest 1. You must quit and renounce Self-Will He that indeed believes must in a sort have no Will of his own but his Will must be wholly melted and resigned up into the Will of Christ Hence the Church is said to be subject unto Christ Ephes 5.24 We are apt to live in our own Wills and are exceeding fond of and set upon having our Wills and that how cross and contrary soever they be to the Will of Christ But if ever we believe so as to get union with Christ our stubborn Wills must bow our proud Wills must down and must in all things as much as is possible be refer'd and resign'd into Christ's Will and good reason for his Will is the rule of goodness as well as the first cause of all things We must not think to say we are Lords but we must bow to Christ as the great and only Lord. 2. You must quit and renounce Self-Worth Self-Rightcousness you must renounce all Worth and Righteousness of your own in point of justification and acceptation with God 'T is a great word which I shall speak Mens duties living under the Gospel keep almost as many from Christ and believing as their sins do My meaning is as the love of sin keeps some so confidence in Duties a confidence in Self-Worth Self-Righteousness keeps multitudes of others from Christ and believing And the truth is my Beloved this piece of Self is the great Idol of the Soul and that which men are marvellously loth to quit and renounce and indeed 't is oftentimes so painted and as it were spiritualliz'd acted with so much state and set out with so many ornaments that it would make any one in love with it but yet this Idol so dear as 't is to the Soul must be denyed and renounced this Darling must be cast off and that with loathing and abomination in respect of Soul-saving if ever you believe and are united to Christ And the Soul that indeed does believe looks upon himself to be the poorest despicablest and undonest Creature in the World notwithstanding all he throws away not only his Rags but his Robes too all his Priviledges all his Performances all his moral Excellencies and Attainments as to a dependance upon them for Life and Salvation as you know Paul did Phil. 3.8 9. of which more hereafter The Soul's language in the Work of believing is such as this I am a poor vile empty nothing in my self I am nothing I can do nothing and I deserve nothing I am nothing but sin I can do nothing but offend and provoke God and I deserve nothing but frowns and death from him If ever I be saved 't is Free Grace must save me if ever I find favour in Gods sight it must be purely from Grace in Christ Alas I have walked contrary to God all my dayes my heart and life both have been full of eumity and provocation against him and my very Duties are damning my best Righteousness being as filthy Rags Isa 64.6 And indeed till it comes to this with us we are like to remain strangers to Christ and Faith in Christ I shall only say this further as to this particular That no men in the World are further off from Christ and union with him through believing then such as trust in their own Worth their own Righteousness Christ himself tells us That Publicans and Harlots do enter the Kingdom of Heaven before such Mat. 21.31 3. You must quit and renounce