worthy of this advancement it is the use that the Apostle makes Walke worthie of the calling whereunto the Lord hath called you are ye the members of Christ why then behave your selves as the members of Christ are you joyned thou neerly to Christ then carrie your selves as beseemes you let the dog returne to his vomit and the sow to the wallowing in the mire but let the Saints that are knit unto a Saviour walke worthy of that mercie and union and prerogative that God hath vouchsafed unto them it is a shame to see that servants of Christs family and the plants of his vineyard doe walke after the conversation of the world what manner of persons ought wee to bee in all manner of holinesse of conversation we are knit unto Christ and therefore ought to be holy as he is holy pure as he is pure wee ought to doe nothing but that which may beseeme and content a Saviour but ye will say the world will hold up their hands at us and their mouths will bee open against us why God hates the world and ye are redeemed from the world yee are called out of the world therefore live not as if ye were in the world but as God hath called you to live with himselfe in heaven your conversation should be such as if yee were in heaven I would not have a Saint of God tamper with the least distemper or be addicted to any base course but walke exactly before the Lord. Thus wee see a faithfull soule is knit unto Christ now that which followes is this it is so knit that it is made one Spirit The point we named before it is this Doct. 2 The faithfull injoy such a union with our Saviour that they are one Spirit with him The point is difficult and the mysterie great and beyond the reach and roome of that little light I injoy onely wee shall bee desirous with sobrietie and modestie to communicate what shall be most sutable to the minde of God not being unwilling but desirous to heare any advice from another concerning the same the doctrine then is a beleever is so knit to Christ that he becomes one Spirit for the opening whereof because it is a deepe mysterie suffer mee to deale plainly and punctually and that I may expresse my thoughts and communicate what I conceive suffer mee to discover two particulars First the manner how the soule comes to be one Spirit with Christ Secondly the order thereof These two we will labour to cleare so farre as we are able First for the former the manner how the soule◠com 〈…〉 be one Spirit with Christ it is an undeniable principle and confessed by Divines on all parts that the soule comes to be one Spirit by the power of the Spirit on Gods part and by the power of faith on the beleevers part they confesse that the Spirit of God workes upon a beleever and the beleever goes out againe to God by faith but wee have now onely the termes in the generall if we come to the particular examining of these and aske a weake soule how the soule comes to be one Spirt by the Spirit on Gods part and by faith on our part wee are as far to seeke as wee were before and most of the congregation can understand little of it This is our misery we content our selves with termes in the generall and never cracke the shell that wee may see the kernell wee never dive into the truth that wee may see the intent of the Spirit therein therefore for the opening of the point viz. the manner how the soule coms so to be knit to Christ as to be made one Spirit not denying any thing of the former truth but holding thereto wee will open it so far as our light serves us Quest If the question then be how the soule by the spirit on Gods part and faith on the soules part comes to be one spirit Answ That which I intend to speake I will cast into three particulars or three conclusions Conclus 1 The first conclusion is this know that the spirit of God the holy Ghost the third Person in the glorious Trinitie he doth really and inseparably accompany the whole word that is the generall but he doth more specially accompany the pretious promises of the Gospell the Spirit of the Lord is in these in a more speciall manner though he be a God every where in regard of his providence yet hee is in a more speciall manner going with and accompanying of his Word and in a more speciall and particular fort hee is in the promises the soule comes to bee one with Christ and to bee knit unto him principally by the promise the law prepares the soule and the promise that calls the soule and knits it unto Christ God hath appointed his Word and specially the promise for the converting of a sinner and therefore the Spirit of God goes therewith and workes thereby and gives a blessing thereunto according as hee in his wisedome thinkes fit for he is a voluntary agent and therefore may use the word as he will and when hee will the Spirit doth alwayes worke in the word but not alwayes after the same manner You make nothing of the Gospell and of the Scripture I tell you the Spirit of the Lord God blessed for ever is there after an extraordinary manner and hardens the hearts of the reprobates and humbles and converts and comforts the soules of his servants and when not when I will or you will but when the Spirit of the Lord will This is that I take to be the best expression of it looke as it was with the brasen Serpent set up in the wildernesse there was an healing vertue inseperably accompanying of that brazen Serpent and it was as possible that hardnes should be separated from the brasse as his healing vertue for whosoever lookt upon it healing vertue did undoubtedly and inseparably goe with it because God had appointed this therefore hee did blesse this and undoubtedly worke by this Just so it is with the good Word of the Lord the Spirit of the Lord though he be God every where yet hee doth blesse this Word especially and goes with it and hath appointed it for the salvation of his servants therefore when the sound comes to the eare and the sense to the minde the Spirit goes with the Word when thou hearest it either to convert thee or to confound thee therefore the text saith ye stiffe necked and hard hearted ye have resisted the Spirit of the Lord they would have pluckt Christ out of Heaven and the Spirit and all Now that this is a case undeniable I prove it thus that word which is able to discover the thoughts of the heart and to raise the dead to life and can comfort a distressed soule and perswade the soule of Gods everlasting favour that word must needs have a supernaturall power goe with it for no created power can doe the former things
the union drawes somewhat neerer so that wee see first there is a holy Ghost in the promise and secondly wee see that the Holy Ghost leaves a supernaturall worke upon the soule and brings it home to Christ Conclus 3 The third conclusion is this the Spirit of grace in the promise working thus upon the heart it causeth the heart to close with it selfe in the promise the Spirit of God by the promise so works upon the soule that it makes the soule close with the promise and with it selfe in the promise and this is to be one Spirit and this I take to bee the meaning of that place Philippians 3.12 Paul saith that he was apprehended of Christ as if he should say I was not so much apprehending as apprehended not so much that he did it but Christ in him and upon him and by him for I told you the worke of the Lord in the worke of conversion is upon us by us to bring us to himselfe The Spirit of the Lord is in heaven and it is in the promise and that Spirit in the promise comes to the soule of a beleever and leaves a spirituall worke upon the soule of a beleever and the soule is moved by vertue of that Spirit to close with that promise and with that Spirit that is in the promise I would expresse my selfe by these two comparisons looke as it is with the moone the naturall Philosopher observes that the ebbing and flowing of the sea is by vertue of the moone she flings her beames into the sea and not being able to exhale as the sunne doth shee leaves them there and goes away and that drawes them and when they grow wet they returne backe againe now the sea ebs and flowes not from any principle in it selfe but by vertue of the moone being moved it goes being drawne it comes the moone casting her beames upon the waters it moves the sea and so drawes it selfe unto it selfe and the sea with it so the heart of a poore creature is like the water unable to move towards heaven but the Spirit of the Lord doth bring in its beames and leaves a supernaturall vertue by them upon the soule and thereby drawes it to it selfe or looke as it is with a claspe and a keeper take a great claspe put it thorow the keeper and being brought thorow it closeth with it selfe so it is with an humble broken heart it is like this keeper the good Spirit of the Lord is like this claspe the Spirit workes upon the soule and leaves a supernaturall vertue upon the soule and goeth with that vertue and puls the soule by the power of it selfe and knits it to its selfe it workes upon the heart in this manner and clasps the humbled sinner and brings him home and holds him to the promise and to it selfe in the promise Now I would contract these three conclusions in the former sermons into three questions to make them so familiar that weake ones which have any spirituall grace may be able to come to aprehend and understand them Quest 1 I aske therefore what is there in the promise of the Gospell or what is there in the Word of God is there nothing but letters and sillables and sentences Answ I answer Yes humane Authours have words and sentences but oh the glorious God the third person of the Trinitie the blessed Spirit of the Lord Jesus Christ is inseparably present with and accompanying of the promises of God the words are but the shell but the substance is the Spirit of grace how were your hearts comforted in the time of trouble and how were your hearts broken and brought out from your lusts Oh it was the Spirit for man was never able to doe it but Lord thy almighty hand came downe from heaven and broke this heart of mine and if Christ that Lion of the tribe of Judah had not come downe from heaven this lion-like heart of mine would never have yeelded nor come downe this is the answer to the first question Quest 2 What doth the beleever doe aske your owne hearts doe your hearts close and meet with the good Word of the Lord and doe you say Oh it is the good Word of the Lord my heart consented to it and closed with it thus Answ Oh yes saith the soule me thought I was even knit to the Word then I aske againe was thy heart knit to the Word onely and the sillable only and did thy heart close with the sentences only the soule answers No the truth is my eare did receive the sound and my minde the sense but my soule received the Lord Jesus Christ To as many as received him to them he gave power to become the sonnes of God 1 Iohn 12. the words are but only as the conduit to convey the water of life and the Spirit of grace but they lay hold upon Christ there and that it is so I prove it thus did not you finde your hearts comforted at such a time Oh yes saith the soule me thinks I see the Ministers face still and when he came to such a point and such a passage good Lord mee thought I was in heaven could words and reasons and sentences have done it No surely the Spirit of grace was there and my heart did close with the same the stomack receives not meat as the dish or vessell doth but the stomack doth receive it and is fastned to it and hath the sweetnesse of it and is made one with it Iohn 6.63 The words that I speake they are Spirit and life and this is the excellencie of the Word when all the learned Doctors and Schoolemasters shall have the tongues but shall never humble one soule nor purge nor convert one heart yet the Word and the Spirit in it will doe that which is usefull and helpfull for thee in this kinde the Words that I speake they are Spirit and they are life saith our Saviour so then you see you that are ignorant and weake you say to your selfe how shall I come to be knit to the Lord Jesus Christ seeing hee is in heaven and I am on earth Oh but quiet thy selfe in this he is in a most speciall manner in the preaching of the Word and if thou cleavest to the Word aright then thou cleavest to the Spirit of Christ Quest 3 In the third place I aske how doth the Spirit of man come to close and to be one with the Spirit of Christ in the promise Answ I answer are your owne hearts able to doe this or is nature or your wits or parts able to doe this for you No the good Spirit of the Lord wrought upon and fitted and framed the hearâ— hereunto and put this temper upon it as the workman gives a temper to the knife and another makes iron draw iron and he doth it thus he drawes the magnet or load-stone over the iron and the vertue thereof makes it able to draw iron to it selfe so the soule saith
Alas I doe it not it was the Lord that wrought this heart in mee I have seene the day when I could have beene as well content to heare the Minister preach plainly as to have a knife run to my heart but the Lord wrought my heart to it therefore the Spirit puts that magnet stone of the mercie and grace of Christ upon my heart hee puts this temper upon my heart and makes it able to close with it selfe in the promise in 2 Corin. 5.5 when Paul there had disputed of his desire to lay downe his life for the Gospell and to put his body upon suffering for the Gospels sake he was even weary of the world and would faine have beene gone how gat he this temper why the text saith Now he that hath wrought us for the same thing if God who also hath given us the earnest of his Spirit it is a great while before wee can bee brought to this temper when all the Ministers tongues are even worne to the stumps and the wicked will bee wicked still yet the Lord doth worke it so then you see that the Spirit of God by the promise works upon the soule and leaves a dint upon the heart and so brings the soule by the Spirit to close with it selfe in the promise and hence you may collect two things for your information in this kinde Colect 1 First that the beleever being moved by the stroke of the Spirit of the Father is made able to close with the Father and the Sonne because the Spirit of the Lord doth fasten fit and frame the heart hereunto in this manner and hence it is that the soule can close with the Father and the Sonne too why because the Spirit which proceeds and comes from the Father and the Sonne is able to frame the soule to close with both for the Spirit hath something of the Father and something of the Sonne and therefore is able to make the soule to close with both 1 Iohn 1.3 These things have I written unto you that you may have fellowship with us holy Iohn was a spirituall father unto them and hee writes to them that thereby they might have fellowship with the Saints and he saith Truly our fellowship is with the Father and with his Sonne Iesus Christ why doth he not say our fellowship is with the Father as well as to say our fellowship is with the Father and the Sonne because it is presumed before hand that a man must have fellowship with the Spirit before hee can have fellowship with the Father and the Sonne because it is the Spirit that hath fitted the heart and framed it to close with both Colect 2 Secondly hence it comes to passe that the person of the beleever may bee knit to the person of the Lord Jesus Christ the foot is knit to the head by the continuance of the order of the body and the members thereof as the foot is knit to the leg and the leg to the thigh and the thigh to the body and so to the head this is the meaning of that phrase Iohn 6.56 our Saviour presseth this hard upon the Disciples and saith My flesh is meat indeed and my bloud is drinke indeed hee that eateth my flesh and drinketh my bloud dwelleth in me and in him then they begun to wonder at it and to say How can this be and yet Christ saith what if you see the the Sonne of man carrying the body of his flesh into heaven you will thinke it more hard to eat my flesh then yet you must eat my flesh then too how it is the Spirit that quickneth the flesh profiteth nothing the words that I speak they are Spirit and life as if he had said my good Spirit is in the word and promise close you with my Spirit and then you draw my Spirit my flesh and my blood downe into your whole natures the words that I speake they are Spirit and Life that is my Spirit is in the Word of the promise though my body be gone up into heaven therefore close you with my Spirit in the promise and then you close with my flesh spiritually Thus much for the manner of the union Now for the order of this union how this is done and there the question will be this Whether the beleever is knit first to the humane nature of Christ or to the Divine nature Quest. 2 I am not greatly willing to meddle with this point in this popular congregation because there are many wise and orthodox Divines and godly too which are of contrary opinion they confesse both but they differ about the order but that I may bring no prejudice to the judgement of any I will shortly shew you the summe of those arguments Answ which either side hold and will shew to which I doe incline and so leave the point to the judgement of those that heare it to incline to which side they thinke best and thus I shall wrong none at all First some Divines wise holy and orthodox and many too doe goe that way all of them have it from that root they that hold that the soule is knit to the humane nature of Christ first have two reasons for it First say they as the Scripture reveales Christ to us so also our hearts embrace him and close with him but the Scripture reveales the Lord Christ more often and frequently in regard of his Manhood than in regard of his Godhead as in that place The seed of the Woman shall breake the Serpents head and such like therefore the understanding first closeth with this and the heart first receives it the second reason why they hold this is thus much If say they all the great works of our redemption both sanctification and justification and redemption were wrought in the humane nature of Christ and as by a channell conveyed to us by his humane nature then it is reason that the soule should first close with the humane nature but it is so that all the great workes of justification sanctification c. were all accomplished in the humane nature of Christ for as the text saith He died for our sins and triumphed over sin and hell and death therefore say they it is fit that the soule should first close with the humane nature of Christ and this is the life and pith of all their arguments Againe other Divines and they are wise and orthodox they hold this and though all hold the maine substantiall truths of eternall life yet they differ in this they say the beleever is first knit to the Deity and they have also two arguments and the first is this That which is the maine and the proper object of faith to that the soule first lookes and to that the soule is first united for all union comes by operation in this kinde but the Godhead is the first object of faith in beleeving the Godhead and the third person of Trinity they are the first objects of
is not my basenesse that hinders mee but my corruptions that oppose the worke of grace in my soule and that will be my bane I know that God is able to doe what is needfull and Christ is willing to doe what he is able to those that beleeve in him and rest upon him but this proud heart opposeth the worke of his grace and the operation of his Spirit my minde is so blinde that nothing in the world takes place my heart is still polluted and my distempers still hang upon mee nay sometimes my soule is wearie of the good word of the Lord that would pluck them from me insomuch that I could almost bee content to pluck out my heart and will the Lord shew mercie to mee that oppose mercie and will the Lord make mee partaker of his redemption that resists the worke of his redemption I answer God hath appointed Christ for this purpose and Christ hath undertooke this worke therefore if God hath appointed it and Christ will worke it who can hinder it thy ignorance cannot hinder the Lord Jesus Christ if hee will teach thee hee will inlighten thy blinde minde and convince that stubborne heart of thine nay all the corruptions under heaven cannot oppose this worke of God hee hath appointed it and hee hath power to pull downe a stout stomack and bee hath power to sanctifie a polluted heart corruptions are many and temptations fierce but if he will redeeme who can destroy if he sanctifie who can pollute if he justifie who can condemne this is the worke of a Saviour if Christ will doe it none can hinder it if God hath appointed it nothing can let it but it is the worke of a Christ and God hath appointed it therefore cheare up thy heart in the consideration hereof you that are the Saints of God cast off all those cavils and pretences against the power of Christ and his grace and goe out of your selves and see the privileges that God vouchsafes unto you and reason thus with your selves It is true Lord my heart is naught and I have no power my minde is blinde and I have no wisdome but I know that Christ is made wisdome to mee and thou hast appointed the Lord Jesus Christ to be made wisdome and sanctification to the soule of thy servant though sin pollute me yet Christ can sanctifie mee though the guilt be great yet the pardon of a Christ is greater than the guilt and where sinne abounds grace abounds much more therefore lift up your selves and cheare up your hearts and goe away comfortably what is awanting God will give what hee gives he will maintaine what hee maintaines hee will quicken what hee quickens hee will perfect and he will crowne you and your grace and all in the kingdome of heaven for ever what would you have in this kinde nay let mee speak one thing more Hee is the redeemer of his servants what is that why the Scripture saith the last enemy of all is death and that is the aime of all the wicked that is the worst they can doe now in Saint Matthew Christ saith Thou art Peter and upon this rock will I build my Church and the gates of hell shall not prevaile against it the gates of hell what 's that it was the fashion among the Jewes as our sessions and assises are kept in the market place so their place of meeting was at the gates so that when he saith The gates of hell shall not prevaile against it his meaning is this when Beelzebub and all the Devils in hell shall joyne together to destroy the Church all the policie of all the Devils in hell shall not prevaile the worst they can doe is to bring them unto death but Christ will bee redemption unto them art thou in captivity he will free thee art thou in persecution he will deliver theeâ— nay when thy body shall lye downe in the grave though the Heathen said when they had burnt the bodies of Gods Saints and throwne them into the water Let us now see how they will rise againe they were deceived thou must be contented for Christ will redeem that dust and say to the earth Give up and to the sea Give up thy dead deliver up the bodies of my servants let their sinews and bones come together and body and soule shall come together and enjoy happinesse in heaven together for evermore if then neither the guilt of sinne can condemne us nor the filth of sinne pollute us if neither misery nor persecution can hurt us then goe away not only comfortably but triumphantly into persecution and prison into holes and caves and dens of the earth Christ will bee all in all unto you in grace here and in glorie hereafter therefore let this comfort you Vse 3 In the third place it is the use the holy Ghost here makes Is it so that there is a conveyance of all grace from Christ to the beleever hee doth what he doth by him and hath what he hath from him then it is a word of instruction to teach us all to lye downe in the dust let no man glorie in man but let him that glories glorie in the Lord this is the maine collection the Apostle inferres God hath chosen the foolish and base things of the world that no man might glorie in flesh as who should say it is not my parts but Christ it is not my abilities but mercie it is not what I can doe but what Christ will performe therefore if Christ then bee Author of all wee have or can doe let him receive all the honour and praise of all we have or doe doth the Lord worke all our workes in us and for us then let him receive the tribute due to his Name and take nothing to your selves away with that proud heart that bars God of his honor and praise and of the due which indeed belongs unto him and ought to be performed by all his servants dost thou thinke the Lord will bestow all his favour upon thee and worke all for thee and thou in the meane time pranke up thy selfe and lift up thy crest no I charge you you Saints of God as to know your owne privileges to be thankfull for them so to know your owne unworthinesse and to lie downe in the dust and be abased for ever and to give God the honour due unto his Name Revel 4.8 The foure and twentie Elders fell downe and laid downe their crownes at the Lambes feet and said Thou onely art worthy to receive all honour and glory and praise If wee had a thousand crownes never so much honour and riches and credit and abilities fling away all at the foot of Christ let him have all the praise thou art worthy Lord we are unworthy thy assistance wee have received thy comfort thou hast continued and thou art worthy of all the honour in that thou hast beene pleased to worke any worke in us and by us to the praise of
and apprehension of the minde for what ever a man conceives his understanding closeth with it as whatever I apprehend I close with that there is a conveyance of the thing into my minde and I close with it now the union of a beleevers soule with Christ is more than this it is not a bare apprehension a wicked man will goe farre in the apprehension of Christ but this union is somewhat more and I call it a reall union because there is a knitting and a closing not onely of the apprehension with a Saviour but a closing of a soule with a Saviour Secondly I say this is a totall union the whole nature of a Saviour and the whole nature of a beleever are knit together first that it is a reall union all the places of Scripture doe intimate as much what the branch is to the vine the soule is to Christ now they are more than imagination so what the husband is to the wife the soule is to Christ Now they are more than in understanding for a man may conceive of another woman as well as of his wife but this is another union whereby the person of the one is knit unto another the bond of matrimony knits these two together This is the frame and guise of knitting the soule to Christ it is no bare apprehension but wee feed upon Christ and grow upon Christ and are married to Christ Hosea 2.20 I have married thee to my selfe in truth in judgement and in righteousnesse Secondly I say it is totall in so much that Christ is the head and a beleever a member in both these regards they are joyned Christ is the head of the Church not onely according as he is God but as hee is God and man and a beleever is a member not onely according to his body but according to his body and soule now whole Christ being the head and the whole beleever being a member therefore a whole Christ and a whole beleever must be joyned together The third is this this union is inseparable Ieremie 32.40 The Lord promiseth to make an everlasting covenant with the house of Israel and I will never part away from them to doe them good so Psalme 89.33.34 It is spoken there concerning Salomon as I conceive the Psalmist saith If he sinne against mee I will scourge him and I will visit him with stripes neverthelesse my loving kindnesse I will not take away from him nor suffer my faithfulnesse to faile my covenant I will not breake nor alter the thing that is gone out of my mouth marke that the Lord out of faithfulnesse doth establish thee to him in vocation the Lord hath made a covenant with the soule in vocation the hand of the Lord layes hold upon the soule and brings it home now though the Lord correct the soule sharply yet will be not leave it totally and finally it is inseparably knit to Christ what can it be what shall it be that can separate a poore sinner from Christ if Satan could have hindered him from comming to a Saviour hee would have then hindered him from comming to a Christ when he had his greatest dominion over him if sinne could have let him when a man had nothing else but sin he would not have forsaken that and have beene brought home to Christ If the world could have prevailed Christ should never have pluckt him from it but when Satan had his greatest power over him when a man was nothing else but sinne by nature when the world most prevailed yet then God by his good Spirit pluckt thy heart from sinne and selfe that soule is mine saith Christ Satan must give way and shall not hinder it that soule is mine saith Christ sinne shall not let it from comming to mee that soule is mine saith Christ and the world shall not stop the worke of a Saviour and if Satan in the height of his malice and the world in the top of its force could not prevaile to keepe the soule from Christ then much lesse shall these be able to pluck us from a Saviour the point then is undeniable that the soule is really totally and inseparably knit to the Lord Jesus Christ Vse 1 We may here take notice of the high and happy privilege of poore creatures how ever the poore Saints of God are despised and contemned of the world yet they are received into covenant with the Lord they are made one with Christ and are of the blood royall and this is the greatest privilege that can bee this should beare up the hearts of poore Christians yee are now in the very gate of Heaven nay let mee say as the Apostle speakes and I see no reason why a man may not say that hee is in Heaven in truth though not in that measure and largenesse of glory he shall be afterwards 1 Thess 1.17 The happinesse that a Christian shall have in Heaven is this Hee shall be ever with the Lord Iesus Heaven were not Heaven unlesse a man might bee with Christ there the place doth not make a man happy but the union with a Saviour that makes him happy and to be joyned to Father Sonne and holy Ghost that makes him happy and the beleever is now knit to them and therefore must needs be happy Deut. 33. the last verse as he said of the people of Israel so may I say of all faithfull soules Happy are thou oh Israel saith the text who is like unto thee saved by the Lord the shield of thy helpe and the sword of thy excellency so may I say Happy are ye oh beleeving soules who is like unto you yee are saved by God and are married to the Lord Jesus Christ and are the spouses of the Saviour of the world and he that is the Judge of the world is your Husband your beloved and you are his let nothing therefore dismay your hearts Vse 2 The second use is that of terrour and it is like a thunder-bolt able to breake the hearts of all those that are opposite to them that beleeve in Christ that which I would have all consider on is this that the persecution of the Saints is a sin of a high nature it is a most hainous abominable sinne in the sight of God how ever the world thinkes not so of it yet they shall bee sure one day to finde I know men thinke not then because haply the law of man provides not in this case to punish those that oppose the Lord Iesus Christ and the power of his grace because haply the Magistrate doth not or haply cannot smite those that set themselves against those that feare God and trample upon them therefore wicked men make the Saints of God the marke of their malice and the aime of their rage and all these indignation is bent that way they glory in what they have done and threaten what they will doe they will hang and draw and quarter within themselves this is that which the proud spirits of
or the like the aime of him that takes him is not to take away his life but to make him deny his colours and commander and if hee can make him doe this then he conquers him but if hee dye under the hand of the tyrant if he be more able to stand for his commander and countrie than he is to drive him from it if he can beare misery better than hee can inflict it then hee is not conquered but conquers so it is here a Saint of God is never mastered before his patience bee mastered and his holinesse crushed but when a man is more able to beare misery than the enemy to lay misery upon him if his patience hold and his courage hold and his uprightnesse hold he is not conquered in this case but he is a conquerer therefore the place is excellent Esay 58.8 see how the Lord preserves his people hee is said to be the whole army of his servants however there bee many storms yet the rivers of water make glad the people of God the text saith Thy righteousnesse shall goe before thee and the glory of the Lord shall bee thy rearward when a man doth walke uprightly and sincerly wee must presume that a man is in a combat for why doth hee speake of the rearward else there are two parts in a battell first the vant-gard which is the former part of the battell Secondly the rear ward which is the hinder part of the battell now Christ is both these you shall have enemies before you in the vant-gard and you shall have enemies behinde you to smite you in the rear-ward now righteousnesse shall goe before thee that is the vant-gard and the glory of the Lord shall be thy rear-ward that is God is all about his servants the vant-gard before them to succour them and the rear-ward behinde them to releeve them so that he doth not onely give grace but he maintaines and preserves that grace he gives to the soules of his servants The fourth part of the tenure and conveyance of grace to the faithfull soule is this and I speake but only in the generall the Lord doth not onely preserve what grace hee gives but hee quickens that grace he maintains he drawes forth that ability hee bestowes hee puts life unto that strength and succour which hee vouchsafeth to worke in the hearts of his children hence all those places are marvellous pregnant God giveth the will and the deed so that it is not onely the having but the doing that wee have need of from God and Paul professeth that hee hath not onely grace from Christ but he lives not but Christ liveth in him if Christ did all in him and this is that wee shall observe Luke 1.74 That hee would grant us saith the text that being redeemed from the hand of our enemies we might serve him without feare take notice of two things here First that the Saints of God are redeemed and justified by Christ and now one would thinke a man that is justified and hath Christ â—ght trade for himselfe no but that he would grant us that being redeemed from the hand of our enemies wee might serve him without feare it is one grant to be redeemed and it is a new grant to serve him without feare as it is a mercie for God to bestow ability before wee have it so it is a mercy to quicken that abilitie which hee vouchsafes that wee may honour him by it and he may honour himselfe by us therefore it is a most pregnant place Colos 1. last verse when Paul was there labouring what hee could yet as though hee had nothing as though hee did nothing he gives all to God for marke the manner of the sense of the words Whereunto saith he I also labour and strive the word in the originall signifies I sweat at it and take great paines according to his working which worketh in me mightily Paul laboured and strived but how comes this about his striving is by the working of Christ and by his working he works as who should say It is grace I have any grace it is hee assisting it is he co-operating it is he accompanying I know not what to say it is his worke works and hee works mightily in them that worke and strive to advance the glory of God so then we have those foure particulars that in reason almost might satisfie any man what you want Christ hath what is fit Christ will bestow if you cannot keepe it hee will preserve it for you if you bee sluggish hee will quicken it in you what would you have more one would thinke this were enough but that nothing might be wanting take a passage or two more Fiftly therefore as he quickens what hee maintains so hee perfects what hee quickens hee doth not only inable us to doe what we should but he makes us make worke of it and he brings to perfection what he bestowes Heb. 12.23 there the text speaks of the spirits of just and perfect men hee begins the worke and never leaves till hee makes the worke perfect it is Christ that puts a mans weapons into his hands it is Christ that teacheth him to fight with those weapons and it is Christ that gives him the victory in that fight 1 Corin. 15.55 O death where is thy sting O grave where is thy victorie the sting of death is sinne and the strength of sinne is the law but blessed be God that hath given us victory through our Lord Jesus Christ the weapons are Christs and the fight is Christs and the victory is Christs he will not onely bring you into the field and put weapons into your hands but give you the victory and all you Saints of God that sinke under the fiercenesse of temptations without and corruptions within hee will give you grace hee will give you weapons and you shall triumph over all your enemies therefore Ephes 4.13 it is said Hee will bring his body to a perfect stature all the Saints of God are compared to members now looke as it is in the body every member doth increase according to its measure till it come to its full bignesse so it is in the body of Christ all the members thereof shall increase till they come to be perfect hath God given thee a heart to looke towards Zion and hast thou any intimation of his love then though the word and meanes may faile he will provide help and meanes he will never leave thee till thou art a perfect man and woman till thou hast attained to bee a perfect member in the body of the Lord Jesus Christ there is no withered bow in this stock of the Lord Jesus Christ but as he gives grace so he will bring it to perfection in its measure God will never leave thee till hee hath brought thee to that perfection he hath appointed now a man would think here were enough but yet a little further and then I am as farre as I can goe
my thoughts can reach no higher Sixtly then when the Lord hath perfected that grace hee hath bestowed upon us then when a man comes to the end of his dayes he crowns all the grace he hath perfected it were enough and a childes portion to give us grace and vouchsafe us mercy but when wee come in heaven when he hath given us weapons and taught us to fight and made us conquerors then he will crowne us and is not this enough but so it is 2 Tim. 4.6 I have fought a good fight I have finished my course from henceforth is laid up for me a crowne of glory and not for me only but for all those that love the appearing of his comming he makes us worke and he rewards us for what hee hath wrought in us he inables us to doe the service and hee payes us our wages in the second commandement the text saith I will shew mercie to thousands of generations in them that love me one would thinke now that they which loved God deserved mercy no I will shew mercy what you doe it is all from Gods mercy if you love God it is mercy and if God crowne that mercy it is love also so Paul saith The Lord shew mercy to Onesiphorus for hee releeved mee one would thinke that this would have merited everlasting life no the Lord shew mercy hee hath refreshed mee in my trouble and done service of love to mee and glory to God now the Lord shew mercy to him so that the Lord gives us grace and hee crowns that grace hee gives hee makes us worke and hee rewards the worke hee gives us the victory and he makes us triumph and be more than conquerors thus then we have the tenure of this conveyance and now I may read your feofment to you you poore Saints of God you live beggarly and basely here yet this is the best match that ever you made in the world you are made for ever if you have a Saviour it is that which will maintaine you not onely Christianly but triumphantly you shall have enough here too much hereafter if too much can be conceived or received what you want Christ hath you need not goe a begging to other mens doores Secondly you need not thinke he is churlish and unkinde but whatsoever you need and is fit for you he will give you but you must not be malepart and sawcy with the Lord Jesus and say Why have not I this as well as others no you shall have what is fitting Thirdly he will maintaine what he gives and fourthly he will quicken what hee maintains and fiftly hee will perfect what hee quickens and lastly he will crowne that he perfects hee will give you an immortall crowne of glory We have read now the feofment of a faithfull soule and you see what you shall have from the hand of the Lord Jesus wee should now come to the reasons of the point but that time will prevent us and wee have had the pith of the point already in opening the tenure of the conveyance of grace to the beleeving soule we will therefore passe on to the use of the point Vse 1 Is it thus then to us saith the text to us who are those I pray inquire of it looke into the 26. verse You know your calling that is those that are called those that beleeve in the Lord Jesus Christ to us those are the people mentioned those are the persons intended therefore in the first place it is a matter of lamentation and complaint which wee shall in a word intimate to those to whom it belongs if all this good be appointed for all the servants of God and only the servants of God for the called and none but the called then it is a thunderbolt able to breake the heart and sinke the soule of every unbeleeving creature under heaven and make him shake at the misery of his condition and the evill that shall betide him you that are in the gall of bitternesse and in the bond of iniquitie that have stood it out with Christ and he could never prevaile with you but you would take up your owne courses and hee hath come and called and knocked will that proud heart never come will that drunken wretch never bee reformed you that are such whatever you be I say know this and know it to your sorrow and trouble and vexation of spirit you are shut out from sharing in you are cut off from partaking of the riches of the grace and the plentifull redemption of the Lord Jesus Christ to this day you that are unbeleevers I say to this day you are in darknesse your mindes were never inlightned to this day the guilt and curse of sinne lyes upon your consciences and the pollution of sinne lyes upon your soules and defiles them to this day condemnation hangeth over your heads Iohn 3.18 He that beleeves not is condemned already and he shall never see light but the wrath of God abideth on him I beseech you observe it this is that which one would thinke should cut a mans conscience and be a corasive to his soule whatsoever he doth wheresoever he is we thinke this should crush all his delight he that beleeves not shall never see light hee may see his gold and the profits of the world and hee may see his friends and the comforts of this life and then hee hath his portion all you drunken unbeleeving wretches all you stubborne prophane malicious creatures you have your portion much good doe you with your sops you have your part but there is no medling for you with the consolation and redemption that is in the Lord Jesus Christ the text saith He is made to us you poore Saints of God doe not suffer them to scramble and take the meat off the table he was made to us take you your portion and God refresh your hearts therewith but you that are unbeleevers have no part nor portion at all in this rich revenues and precious dowrie that God vouchsafeth to his Saints I know what they will bee ready to say but they couzen themselves we are haply naught and our courses are vile but yet I hope there is mercie and sanctification and redemption in the Lord Jesus Christ aye it is true there is enough there is rich mercie that is more and there is plentifull redemption I tell you that too but this is thy miserie thou poore creature thou hast no part nor share therein when a man that is hungrie shall see all dainties prepared when a man that is almost starved shall see abundance of provision wardrobs of clothes to cover him and abundance of meat to refresh him and yet one starves and the other famisheth this is the greatest miserie of all to see meat and not to eat it to see clothes and not to put them on now the Lord open your eyes and prevaile with your hearts there are many unbeleevers there are a world of unbeleevers but
save me another clambring upon the trees all floting and crying and dying there there was no saving but for those only that were gotten into the arke Oh so it will be you poore foolish beleevers the world is like this sea wherein are many floods of water many troubles much persecution Oh get you into the arke the Lord Iesus and when one is roring and yelling Oh the devill the devill another is ready to hang himselfe or to cut his owne throat another sends for a Minister and hee crieth Oh there is no mercy for me I have opposed it get you into Christ I say and you shall bee safe enough I will warrant you your soules shall bee transported with consolation to the end of your hopes This was that which comforted Saint Paul and made him bid defiance to all the world Rom. 8. 33. Who shall lay any thing to the charge of Gods elect as who should say shall all the angels in Heaven shall all the devils in Hell shall all the men upon the earth shall sinne within shall actions without it is God onely that justifieth not for anything we have or doe but for Christs sake This is that I conclude withall this one doctrine affords supply in all wants and courage in all trials I know what troubleth you will this blinde minde never bee inlightned I thinke I shall never be able to conceive of the truths of God aright how can the Lord accept of mee when I condemne my selfe how can the Lord shew any favour to mee when I fall out with my selfe and wonder that I am not in the bottomlesse pit such a base heart I carry about with me and such a polluted conversation and yet live and not in hell I have thought sometimes God cannot be Iust if he doe not condemne me why I say art thou burthened with thy sinnes and dost thou goe out of thy selfe for the pardon of them why goe away comforted the Lord will justifie thee not for thy workes but for Christs merits thou hast committed all iniquitie Christ hath performed all righteousnesse thou hast nothing of thy selfe Christ hath enough for thee and thou art not justified for what thou hast or dost but for the Lord Iesus sake looke up to him therefore and bring him to Gods tribunall to answer for thee that when Satan shall bring in his bils of inditement against thee and say what doe you hope to goe to Heaven doe you not consider the sinnes which you have committed doe you not remember the base courses which heretofore you have taken up and practized doe you not know that every sinner must die why answer Satan again all this is true Ay but remember the Lord Iesus it is true I can doe nothing but Christ hath done all for me what canst thou say to the Lord Iesus though I have offended hee hath never offended though I have sinned yet Christ hath fully satisfied I have deserved the wrath of God why Christ hath bore the wrath of God My God my God why hast thou forsaken mee He was once forsaken of God that I might bee for ever accepted of God goe thy wayes therefore comforted and refreshed the place is admirable Isaiah 43.25 Thou hast made mee serve with thy sinnes and wearied mee with thy rebellions but I even I am hee that blotteth out all thine iniquities and will remember thy transgressions no more The Lord takes notice of this are there any wicked they are as bad are there any vile they are as sinnefull they tired God with their wickednesse All you poore drunkards you trie God with your drunkennesse you prophaners of the Lords day you tire God with your prophanations and you swearers you trie Christ Iesus with your oaths and hidious blasphemies that you belch forth against him upon all occasions you would wonder that God should save such as you and truly so you may well enough for it is a wonder it is a miracle indeed but if you can goe out of your selves and sinnes and goe unto Christ and rest upon him the Lord saith I will blot out all those abominations of yours and Ezekiel 33.32 compare both those places together I will forget all your sinnes even for mine owne names sake as who should say it is not for your sakes no no bee it knowne to those stout hearts of yours it is not for your parts or gifts or graces no nor it is not for all the services wee can discharge but it is onely for mine owne Names sake that I will pardon you and remember your sinnes no more remember thy pride and stubbornnesse no more remember thy prophanenesse no more remember thy vanitie and loosenesse no more remember thou to bee humbled and the Lord will never remember thy sinnes any more Satan it may bee will come in and accuse thee here is a Sabbath-breaker Lord condemne him no more of that Satan saith God Christ hath suffered and satisfied for him no more therefore of that let mee heare no more of those things I have forgotten them saith God this will cheere a mans heart at that great day This also is a ground of incouragement to us against all the trials that can befall us in the course of the world we see that innocencie goeth to the wals no man can stand against envie and hatred and backbiting why though you finde hard dealing here at the hands of wicked men though you be accused here with false surmises and false accusations and slanderous speeches yet set one against the other you shall never bee condemned hereafter There is no condemnation to those that are in Christ there may bee persecutions there may bee accusations there may be oppositions here upon earth raised against thee why yet goe on cheerily there is no condemnation in Heaven if God acquit let men condemne if God approve let men disallow nay lastly here is consolation even in death also what though your bodies bee deprived of your soules and you leave all when you returne again it is but onely thus Come yee blessed of my Father you that are beleevers you shall bee for ever blessed Vse 3 The third use is of exhortation will nothing doe the deed but a Christ why Oh then above all labour for a Christ more than all labour to prize a Christ never let thy heart bee quieted never let thy soule bee contented untill thou hast obtained Christ Take now a malefactor sentence is passed execution to bee administered upon him suggest any thing to him how to be rich or how to bee pardoned how to bee honoured or how to be pardoned Ay saith hee riches are good and honours are good but oh a pardon or nothing ay but then you must leave all for a pardon why take all saith he and give me a pardon that I may live thought in povertie that I may live though in misery though in beggary this is the nature of such a poore creature So it is with a poore beleeving
what they say hee knowes that they are not Judges but hee stayes till the Judge comes and he quakes and trembles till he heares what the sentence of the Judge will be Now therefore be as wise for your spirituall estates as you are for your temporall estates Psalme 85.8 I will hearken what the Lord will say disputing there of the miseries and troubles which were like to befall the Church of God and himselfe too he lookes up to Heaven and saith I will hearken what the Lord will say for hee speakes peace to his people looke not what sense and feeling and feare and suspition say for they will speake killing words and will tell you that your condition is naught and damnable what all this vildnesse and basenesse and stubbornesse and yet goe to heaven that cannot be Good brethren hearken not to these for they are not the Judges of the court the sentence must come from God and remember that God will speake peace and comfort unto his people hee will comfort your distressed consciences and therefore let not Satan nor your owne distempered hearts be hearkned unto for though they speake never so much terrour to your consciences yet God will justifie you it is the libertie which the law allowes and every man will take it to himselfe if hee know the law when a man is questioned for his life he will not cast himselfe upon every Jurie but hee will take the benefit of the law and if there comes in one that is an ignorant person or one that is an enemy of his he may justly except against them and put them out and hee will say Good my Lord doe not cast away a poore man for no cause at all I except against these men of the Jurie they are mine enemies they have sought my blood many yeeres and they have informed against me and seeke to take away my life and I can prove it and the rest are ignorant and cannot understand the matter good my Lord let me have a good Jurie this the court of justice allowes and every man will bee sure to take it to himselfe as occasion serves in Acts 28.19 Paul was constrained to appeal into Cesar and therefore hee saith Chap. 2â— 10.11 I stand aâ— Cesars judgement seat where I ought to be judged You see beloved how wise men are for the good and safetie of their bodies oh be much more carefull for the good of your soules and hazard not your soules upon every base Jurie stand not to the triall of temptation feare and suspition but appeale to the great God of Heaven and say Lord it is an unjust Jurie you â—eele not these abilities and you feel not this assurance of Gods love and when corruption beginnes to stirre in the heart then carnall reason saith if a man had grace could he have all these corruptions if I had any grace it would not nor it could not be thus with mee Oh complaine to the Lord that they are an unjust Jurie looke up to the Throne of mercy and have your cause heard there and say Lord these have beene my profest enemies the Devill and this carnall proud froward heart of mine have beene deadly enemies both to thee and to thy grace and to the good of my poore soule and as for feare and suspition they have betrayed my comforts and â—ut the throat of them and many a time have taken away the hope of eternall life from me and as for my weaknesses and infirmities they are too ignorant they cannot passe righteous judgement because they know not what belongs to grace here or happinesse hereafter therefore appeale to the Lord and say you stand at Gods mercy seat let mercy doe what it will with you and mercy will certainly save you and let mercy be for ever honoured and be sure to lie downe at the footstoole of mercy If thou art content to goe to God and depend upon mercy and let it doe what it will with thee then mercy shall certainly save thee if thou wilt come to beleeving thou art sure to bee acquitted let the Devill come in against thee and plead and say Lord wilt thou acquit such a man that hath been a despiser of thy grace and mercy and the world saith to my knowledge he hath closed with mee and hath forsaken thee and then saith conscience I have told him of many sinnes but hee would never reforme them therefore Lord give Justice against him then the Lord makes answer and saith It skils not what he hath beene If hee will come to me and beleeve in me and repent of his sinnes I will freely acquit him of all that he hath done amisse therefore avoid the court Satan take this as an everlasting rule and you shall finde it by experience If a man might have all the favour in the world shewed him and have his owne friends to passe sentence against him and have his best duties and services to plead for him if hee should commit his case to them to be tried by them he would be for ever condemned by them there is so much pride on the one side and deadheartednesse on the other side and so much wandring in your prayers that they would cry to God for wrath and condemnation upon you 1 Cor. 4.4 I know nothing by my selfe yet am I not thereby justified you must appeale to the Father of mercies or else you will never be acquitted by them therefore stand to that judgement of God whose judgement must and shall stand when the sentence of sinne and Satan and carnall reason shall be overthrowne The cause why many poore humbled broken selfe-denying hearts goe drooping and discouraged it is because they have a bad Jurie goes upon them and they dead their owne hearts because they appeale not to that God who is willing to acquit them through the mercy of the Lord Jesus Christ Object But some may object and say how shall I know whether God will justifie me or no Answer For answer hereunto looke what the word saith if the word acquit thee it shall stand and if the word condemne thee though all the men in the world acquit thee yet thou shalt be condemned to all that beleeve not in my Gospell shall be confusion saith the Apostle and the words of Christ are He that beleeveth not is condemned already therefore looke what the word saith and cleave to that for ever Vse 3 In the third place from hence we have a ground of terrour to the wicked and it is like a thunder-bolt to breake the hearts of all unbeleevers and it is able to cut the sinewes of all their comforts and to sinke their soules to Hell to thinke that they are unbeleevers I speake not to those that have some doubtings and troubles arising in their hearts but to such as never yet beleeved in Christ howsoever a man may have parts and gifts and be advanced yet that which will be as gall and wormwood to the soule is
Saviour that lives for ever and hee is able to save for ever He hath not onely beene a Saviour in times past but hee is still you may haply live many daies and therefore goe to Christ which liveth for ever to pardon and to intercede for the comfort of the soule The wise man saith Proverbs 28.13 He that confesseth and forsaketh shall finde mercy the originall runs thus confessing and forsaking findeth mercy the best of Gods people have their sinnes their pride and other distempers therefore labour to see thy sinnes and to see thy need of Christ that thou maist finde pardon for them Fourthly thus farre the Saints of God ought to goe in charging their owne soules with their sinnes so farre see them and bee affected with them as to bring thy heart to be truly carried with hatred against them and with resolution to get power and strength against them lay thy burthen upon thy owne soule that thou maist be affected with it and be carried with a hatred to it and a resolution to get more strength and power against it Famous is that example of David herein and this was the cause of his practice it is a conceit of the Familists that if he had once gotten the assurance of Gods love he might have gone away cheared but though the Lord had pardoned his sinne yet he would not pardon sinne in himselfe the Lord shewed mercy to his soule but yet he would not shew any pittie to his sinne but shewed all the hatred and revenge against it that possibly he could As the Apostle said concerning the incestuous Corinth Ye should rather have sorrowed that the sinne might have beene removed had you sorrowed for your sinnes then you would have resisted them And when hee had shewed them their transgressions and convinced them of their sinnes see what fruit it wrought in them in 2 Cor. 7.10 For this thing that yee have had godly sorrow what great care it hath wrought in you yea what clearing of your selves yea what indignation yea what feare what zeale what revenge c The Familists scornfully and sinfully inquire and say why should a beleever goe drooping and mourning under his sinnes and corruptions and have his eyes full of tears and his heart full of griefe seeing Christ hath pardoned all as though a man did become a Mediatour to himselfe their demand is weake and their scorne is hellish and therefore I answer them thus If there be a daily need that every beleever see a necessitie of Christ then there is a daily need to repent and sorrow for sinne for if he must be more sanctified then he must bee more mortified therefore he must daily see his sinnes or else hee will never see a need of Christ nor repent nor bee more sanctified nor mortified Againe if every beleever must expresse his love unto God daily then he must hate every thing that is evill I hope you will confesse that every beleever is bound to love Jesus Christ therefore he must hate sinne and if hee must hate sinne that hee may not commit it then hee must mourne for it when it is committed If a man have any good nature it will worke trouble in his heart to thinke that hee should sinne against so good a God thus farre a Christian ought to goe and must goe in the charging himselfe with his sinne Quest. 2 Now in the second place the question is this how far may not a beleever charge himselfe with his sinne this is that which hath bred all these vaine conceits in the spirits of those Familists I say no more therefore but this they make Christ not a King of Saints but of sinne there is great weight in it and admirable comfort if Christians would but be perswaded to make conscience of the word of God You that are weake not onely be perswaded to listen to the word but also make conscience of what is revealed out of the word now how farre hee may not charge himselfe with his sinne may bee conceived of in these conclusions First a beleever should not in his judgement conceive nor in his heart be perswaded that any sinne nor all his sinnes shall ever be able to fasten the guilt of sinne upon him so as to cause revenging justice to proceed against him to his condemnation if he seriously repent and amend and forsake his old wayes for hee must not in his judgement conceive nor in his heart thinke that ever sinne repented of shall be able to fasten guilt upon him so as to draw out the execution of justice against him It is one thing to be worthie of condemnation and it is another thing to fasten guilt and condemnation upon him as many poore creatures will say I shall be condemned and I shall one day perish by the hands of Saul and these sinnes will bee my everlasting destruction take heed what you doe for if you are beleevers true penitents you sinne highly in so doing and saying walke as humbly as thou wilt and lay thy mouth in the dust and speake not a word more and say it is mercy that thou art not in hell yet know this also that all thy sinnes and all thy pride shall never bee able so to fasten guilt upon thee as to draw out Gods justice against thee sinne hath a power to make us guiltie and to condemne us but it shall never fasten its worke upon thy penitent soule remember that story of Saint Paul Acts 5.28 He went and gathered up sticks with the rest of the company to make a fire for hee tooke no great state upon himselfe being but a poore tent-maker and there came a viper out of the heat and leapt on his hand by and by the Heathens they proclaimed him to be some notorious malefactor some murtherer whom though he had escaped the Sea yet vengeance hath not suffered him to liue but marke what the Text saith Hee shooke off the viper into the fire and had no hurt this viper would have slaine him being a deadly venomous creature but Paul had a promise before that if he touched any poysonfull thing it should not hurt him This is the admirable happinesse of the Saints and servants of God oh that they were perswaded of it All thy pride and envie and malice and covetousnesse all thy sinnes are of a poysonous viperous nature but if thou art a beleever if a true penitent and convert thou hast the promise that the sting of the Serpent sinne shall not hurt thee it is taken off from thee and laid upon the Lord Jesus Christ and therefore shake off the guilt of all thy abominations and goe on cheerfully and comfortably to Christ and yet humbly too and praise his Name that hee hath beene pleased to take that guilt of sinne upon him which thou wert never able to beare therefore though all thy pride thy rebellion and other sins should come in against thee as the sinnes of Manasses if thou repentest and forsakest
them yet they shall never be able to fasten any guilt upon thee to condemne thee Looke as it was with the three children the fire in its owne nature was able to burne them therefore they that put them in were consumed by the flame but the three children had no hurt the Lord stopped the power of the flames that it burnt onely their bonds but not one haire of their head was sienged nor there was no smell of fire upon them it was not because the fire would not or could not but the Lord stopt the acting of the fire So every sinne is able to fasten guilt upon thee and to condemne thee but upon thy repentance the Lord hinders it in the act and therefore though sinne doth send the wicked and impenitent downe to hell to frie in torments yet it shall never send thee downe nor fasten guilt upon thee Thus it was likewise with Daniel Chap. 6.22 23 24. when he was put into the Lions denne the Princes of the king Darius had a spleene against Daniel because he was a holy man and had gotten some interest in the kings favour and they could get no hold against him but in the matter of his God now hee that loved God better than himselfe He opens his window boldly towards Ierusalem professing Gods truth when hee was called to it therefore they went to the king to have him to be cast into the den of Lions according to the decree now he was cast into it and though the Lions were hungrie yet God shut the mouth of the Lions they had power and were able to hurt him if they had not beene restrained but God had shut up their mouthes that they could not hurt him but when the enemies of Daniel were cast into the denne the Lions did teare them all to peeces before they came at the bottome of the denne they rent them in peeces suddenly what 's the reason of it they had as much power before and were as able and as hungry before but the Lord stopt their mouths that they could not devour Daniel Just so it is with the sinnes of the penitent and the sinnes of the impenitent the sinnes of the one though they are of a killing and a Lion-like nature for the wages of every sinne is death and there is condemnation in it yet the Lord stops the mouth of the Lion hee takes off the guilt and condemning power of sinne that though it hath power in it selfe to condemne yet it cannot doe it but now when it meets with an impenitent unbeleever the malice of the malicious shall kill him and the pride of the ambitious shall one day rend his heart but it is not so with the sins of the penitent beleevers their sinnes have teeth indeed and power to make a man worthy of condemnation but they shall never fasten condemnation upon him this is the meaning of that place Romans 8.3 That which was impossible to the Law to doe in as much as it was weake because of the flesh God sending his onely Sonne in the similitude of sinfull flesh and for sinne condemned sinne in the flesh It is an excellent place and hath much weight in it and howsoever there are many interpretations of the place yet I will follow that interpretation which I now expresse that it was impossible for the Law to acquit a man of sinne because he cannot keepe the Law and therefore he cannot bee justified by it but how comes it to passe then that the Saints of God are delivered The text saith Christ tooke flesh on him and it was sinfull flesh by similitude or imputation not actually by commission the nature of our Saviour had no evill inherent in him nor committed by him but hee was only a sinner by imputation and then he condemned sinne in the flesh what is that it is a law case and Master Calvin hath it excellently he damned sinne as a man will say when he loseth the suit hee fell from his cause and from his plea which he made he lost it utterly so Christ taking upon him our nature by imputation he made sinne lose its claime which it would make to the soule in this case hee that breaketh the Law of God is guiltie and shall be condemned by it but this man hath broken the Law of God and therefore is guiltie of condemnation thereby Now Christ takes off these and saith It is true hee is guiltie of sinne and worthy of condemnation unlesse another be contented to be guilty for him but I have undertaken the guilt for him and have paid the debt for him and therefore this soule is free from sinne thou hast nothing to doe with this soule neither shalt thou condemne him Observe it when all your sinnes shall muster in upon you and come from East to West saying thou art guiltie of pride guiltie of malice c. and shalt be condemned for them make answer and say it is true Lord I am so but Christ hath taken away the guilt and condemnation and I have repented of my sinnes therefore sinne thou hast nothing to doe with this soule of mine Christ hath taken it and redeemed it and therefore I leave it with him This is the first conclusion Vse 2 In the second place wee heare what the Doctrine saith that God the Father charged all our sinnes upon Christ and that they shall never condemne the penitent and faithfull then what will become of the faithlesse and unbeleevers thinke ye This truth is like a thunder-bolt and it is able to shake the hearts of all unbeleevers and to dash them all in peeces Hence it is evident that every obstinate unbeleever is destitute of all hope of succour and pardon of his sinne consider of this all you that are unbeleevers you must pay your owne debts and beare your owne burthens I know your hearts cannot but testifie that the condition of such poore soules is very miserable it is that which sometimes comforts a man that either hee hath good friends that will helpe him or else hee hath means of his owne by which he is able to relieve himselfe but he that hath no reliefe of himselfe nor cannot expect noâ— hope for any this man sinks downe in sorrow because hee knowes there is no way in the world to help him This is thy condition right thou that art an unbeleever what to be cast out of heaven and earth too this is miserable to be for saken of God and man too that no means in heaven nor earth will stand him in steed for his good whilest hee thus continues Consider of this you that make nothing of the sinne of unbeleefe though you have some care of other sinnes whither will you goe for succour in that great day of accounts will you goe to the Saint they dare not will you goe to the Creatures they cannot will you goe to the Lord Jesus Christ he will not succour you If you goe to any of the Saints to see
whole heavens as I may say and did darken all the Sunne-shine of Gods favour as it is with the Sun in the firmament when a little cloud growes greater and greater untill it cover the whole heaven then we thinke it is almost night so all the sinnes of all the faithfull did overspread all the whole heavens that even the star-light of Gods compassion and the lightning of Gods love and favour appeared not Now I come to the reasons of our Saviours grievous sufferings in his soule and the reasons are these First from the cause Secondly from the place to which our Saviour was called Thirdly from the love of the Lord Jesus Christ which makes it most plaine of all Reason 1 First from the cause it cannot bee that it was the Jewes and Herod and Pilate that made him crie out in this manner but the justice of God the Father came against him and the devill entred the combate with the Lord Jesus Christ upon the crosse Luke 22.53 This is your houre and the power of darknesse hell gates were set open and the devils were all let loose upon our Saviour and therefore as Divines doe wisely and judiciously observe in Coloss 2.15 Hee led captivity captive and spoyled principalities and powers and tooke the hand writing of ordinances that was against us and fastned them to his crosse hee was now in the maine combat with all the powers of sinne hell and death These were they that did make the combat with the Lord of life Reason 2 The second reason is taken from the place which he underwent he was to be a Priest and he was to offer up himselfe for a sacrifice not his body alone but also his soule as Hebrewes 9.20.24 Christ offered up himselfe for a sacrifice Reason 3 Thirdly the love of the Lord Jesus was such that of necessitie it must bee so and those that thinke that the Lord Jesus suffered nothing else but onely the death of the body they wonderfully wrong the love of the Lord Jesus Christ the like love was never seene for had he suffered only the death naturall then some of Gods people had shewed greater love than ever Christ did as Paul Romans 9.3 I could bee content to want the sense of the love of Christ for the people of the Iewes c. Now if our Saviour had onely suffered the death naturall then Paul could have beene content to doe more than Christ did Thus you see the nature of this forsaking of Christ Secondly there was also a curse which befell our Saviour which here is intimated but is fully exprest Gal. 3.13 Christ hath redeemed us from the curse of the Law why because he was made a curse for us how doth he prove that because it is written cursed is every one that hangeth on a tree He proves the truth by the Type the curse lay in this that Christ did suffer whatsoever was due unto us So the Apostle reasons that whatsoever curse was due unto us that our Saviour did suffer the curse was this the Father did not only withdraw the sense and sweetnesse of his love and favour from the Lord Jesus Christ but hee also let in his heavie indignation and wrath into his soule and that seized upon and fild the soule of our Saviour brim full and this was the curses The Scripture doth expresse it in two particulars or there are two degrees of it First the justice of God had a single combat with our Saviour in the garden and there it had three bouts with him the Lord dealt very roughly with him and the blowes were very heavie that hee laid upon our Saviour there for they went to the heart of him and yet that was but a little skirmish Esay 53.4 5. God smote him and bruised him insomuch that there was clodded blood seene to come dropping from him these heavie bouts that hee had wounded him and went to the very heart of him but now patience and forbearance and longsuffering and mercy and compassion they all come into rescue our Saviour and they afford him a little breathing and refreshing so that though the blowes were heavie and the thrusts were sore yet he did breathe and live and it was not the maine stroke of all and the reason was because patience mercy and goodnesse and bountie came in to rescue him but then the second part was this Not only Gods anger had a single combat with him but at last the justice of God gathered up all the powers of it and the wrath of God drew up all the forces together and they marched in furiously against Christ and whereas before the Father smote at him and did thrust at him now hee slew him When our Saviour came to the crosse and the heat of the battle lay upon him then all the sense and sweetnesse of Gods countenance and favour they all left our Saviour in the open field for in the garden hee had some refreshings and some breathing times and mercy and goodnesse did step in and say slay him not but let him have some refreshings but now the sense and the feeling of all these was gone Vse The use of this last branch it is a word of terrour and it is able to shake the hearts of the proudest wretches under heaven they that let themselves against God and Heaven and make nothing of the sinnes they have committed nor of the wrath of God threatned and when the Minister saith Oh the end of those sins will be bitternesse this contempt of God and grace and holy services and these oaths will be bitter in the latter end How can you beare the wrath of God and you cannot possibly avoid it tusâ— say they come let us talke of other matters and not busie our selves with these matters well saith the Minister but the word is true and the word saith it well then saith the soule and I will beare it as well as I can If I sinne I will beare it and if I come into hell I shall beare it as well as another and I shall make a shift for one Oh poore sinfull creature wilt thou beare it and make thy part good as well as another dost thou know what thou saist ler all those stouthearted men that sit in the feat of the scornfull and make nothing of God nor his wrath nor of hell nor of the sinnes that they have committed let them know that they shall never bee able to beare the indignation of the Lord see here and behold a little all you that make nothing of the withdrawing of Gods favour Psalme 97.4 5. and Revelation â— 14 15 16 17. The heavens departed away as a scrowle when it is rowled and every mountaine and Isle were removed out of their places and the kings of the earth and the great men and the rich men and the chiefe captaines and the mighty men and every bondman and every free man hid themselves in the dens and rocks and in the mountaines and said to
the mountaines fall on us and to the hils cover us from the presence of him that sitteth upon the throne and from the wrath of the Lambe for the great day of his wrath is come and who shall be able to stand If any man could beare up himselfe then it were the great ones of the world now take a scantling of your owne strength if any were able to beare the wrath of the Lord it were the kings and the mightie men and the captaines and the rich men of the world but faith the text The day of the Lords wrath is come and who shall bee able to stand It is not the soveraigntie of the king nor the skill and courage of the captaine or the libertie of the freeman or the slavery of the bondman that can deliver them but they all crie to the rocks fall on us and cover us from the presence of the Lord nay that you may yet see the vildnesse and wretchednesse of your hearts and the miserablenesse of your condition when the presence of the Lord appeares see what the text saith Psalme 114.5 7. The sea fled and the earth trembled the hils melted at the presence of the Lord nay the devils themselves tremble as in the 6. and 8. verses of the epistle of Saint Iude The Angels which kept not their first love he hath reserved in everlasting chaines under darknesse to be kept for the judgement of the last day they have their portion for the while but there is a great deale of wrath to come and there are many plagues comming and they know Gods wrath and they shake and tremble in the apprehension of it now when you see this goe home to your owne soules and let every man that would heretofore as his owne conscience can tell him flout God to his face and make a scorn of hell and of judgement and condeÌ„nation go home I say lay this to your owne hearts and say is it so that the mountains shak and the sea shrinks and the devils tremble at the wrath of the Lord good Lord then how shall I be able to beare it that am not able to coÌ„ceive of it nay if any man think that hee is able to undergoe the wrath of God and to bear it off with head and shoulders look but here upon the Lord Jesus Christ that was perfect God and perfect man he that created heaven and earth and bote up the foundation of heaven and earth yet when hee came to beaâ—t the wrath of God it forced teares from his eyes and clodded blood from his body and made him crie out My God my God why hast thou forsaken mee Doe but now compare your selves with Christ and say did my Saviour buckle under the wrath of God then certainly it will breake you therefore say thou if hee that was the Creator of heaven and earth could not beare it then how shall I be able to beare it when he comes against me for my siâ— and corruption committed by me therefore heart and feare all you stout hearted of the world rather now tremble while you may be comforted than hereafter when you shall never be eased thinke but with your selves how dreadfull that day will be when all the glorious attributes of God shall take their leaves of you he that before had a great deale of mercy and patience and the Lord hath wooed him saying Oh once at last heare and see the things that belong to thy peace there is not one of you all in this congregation but that you have beene compast about with mercies and the justice of God it would have broken out against you had not mercy stepped in to rescue you how easie were it for the Lord to dash us all into the bottomlesse pit every creature of us therefore thanke mercy and patience and forbearance that still you breathe and say blessed bee God that I have to deale with a gracious mercifull and compassionate God that hath kept mee from judgement that I have not ere now perished in it Now thinke with your selves what a day it wil be when mercy shal weep over you take his leave of you say remeÌ„ber thou poore creature how I met thee in thy walkes and kneeled downe before thee and besought thee to take mercy and to be saved and pardoned but thou wouldst not adem therefore this is the last time of asking I will never see thy face more and with that patience as it were buckles under the burthen and saith I have bond with their thus longe I have borne twenty years with some thirtie years with some fortie years with others and all this which I have borne with thee in thy pride and stubbornesse and loosenesse and uncleannesse but now adew never more patience to beare with you what no more mercy nor no more goodnesse saith the soule and they all say no and stake their hands and say adew thou rebellious heart for ever it will make thy heart shake within thee and thou wilt say I shall sinke downe suddenly there is nothing but wrath to bee expected they are all gone to heaven and you must be forever packing to hell Oh feare and feare all you whom it doth concerne this day if so bee Christ cannot beare it then you cannot suffer it but you will sinke under the same for ever Now I come to the reasons of the point in generall why our Saviour suffered paines both in body and in soule then the reasons of it are three and they are all of speciall use Reason 1 First it is taken from the divine justice of God which required this by way of satisfaction as being onely surable and agreeable to the divine justice of God by reason of sinne whereby Adam had intrenched upon the privilege of God the Father every breach of the Law of God intrencheth neerly upon God himselfe and therefore every sinne is of a provoking nature because it is committed against an infinite majestie therefore that divine justice may not be a loser there must be a punishment not onely corporall but also spirituall for justice abates not any thing of the satisfaction God is just and this is justice to give every one his due honour to whom honour belongs and punishment to whom punishment belongs therefore that justice may bee preserved she must inflict these punishments upon our Saviour being in our roome the Jesuites have devised a cavill against this reason say they it needed not that Christ should suffer these for the dignitie of the person of our Saviour may dispence with some part of the punishment and if he beare death it is sufficient he may bee freed from the other paines in his soule Now that this conceit of theirs is a thing marvellous injurious to the justice of God the Father and to the wisedome of the Lord Jesus Christ and to the death of Christ I prove it thus for by the same right that the dignitie of the person of our
and that the Pope can pardon them what will not a man give to bee freed from it this dotage is cleerly confuted with the evidence of the former truth I will onely expresse it thus If Christ suffered all the plagues which divine justice required then there is neither the punishments of Hell nor Purgatory to be suffered by the faithfull but our Saviour suffered whatsoever the justice of God required and therefore neither sinne nor hell nor purgatorie have any thing to lay to the charge of Gods chosen Secondly it not onely meets with them but it dasheth in sunder another conceit that seemes to finde acceptance with others for hence it is cleere that all the troubles and miseries and afflictions either anguish of heart inwardly or miseries outwardly they cannot properly bee called punishments inflicted upon the faithfull be they never so sharpe and bitter in themselves being laid upon the faithfull they lose that propertie and they become corrections Christ hath suffered all punishments and therefore God the Father will not require a double payment for one debt and therefore howsoever their grievances are many and great yet they are but chasticements at the worst and they lose that venome of plague and of punishment as it is with the sea water it is salt of it selfe and hath a brinish saltnesse fretting wonderfully yet when it passeth thorow the veines of the earth all the saltnesse is gone and it becomes fresh and is of a cooling nature Just so it is with the afflictions that are sometimes inflicted upon the godly howsoever in themselves they are sharpe and brinish and fretting yet the heaviest afflictions though never so sharpe and bitter yet when they passe through the merits and mercy of the Lord Jesus Christ they retaine onely their cooling cleansing and refreshing nature Object But some will say doe not these things befall alike to all as David saith Psalme 88.15 Thy terrours have I suffered from my youth upwards doe not these things come alike to all the same povertie the same misery the same anguish of heart doe not these fall alike to all as in 1 Chron. 21.12 13 14. was there not much misery befell David and doe not the same plagues that befall the one befall the other the holiest man and the prophanest man partake alike in these wherein lies the difference then Answer I answer the difference lies in two particulars First the judgements that are laid on the wicked they come from Gods anger and God requires them in way of satisfaction unto divine justice but all the corrections and chastisements and terrours and troubles that befall the godly they come from Gods love and from his Fatherly care A Physitian cuts a man and an enemy stabs a man the knife was all alike but to the one it comes from a friend and to the other it comes from an enemy so God doth send afflictions to the godly and to him they come from the hand of a Father and to the other they come as from a Judge there are no judgements are sent upon the wicked but they come in part of satisfaction and divine Justice faith thou must to hell for all those sinnes of thine and I will have something in part of payment before thou come there but to the godly the wrath of God is satisfied to the full and the debt is fully paid and therefore God never layes any thing upon the Saints so much to satisfie divine justice as to correct and amend them Secondly all the punishments and corrections that come upon the godly the Lord so orders and tempers and sweetens them by his saving graces and by the worke of his Spirit that they all worke and turne to their good the love of God is so farre shed abroad into their hearts by the power of Christs merits and so shewed therein that they procure good and comfort to their soules for ever but in the punishments and curses of the wicked they come from under the crosse more hardned and more blinded and more fierce and rebellious against God and his grace but the godly come from under the crosse more holy and more meeke and more patient and reformed in their lives and conversations as it is with the poyson that is taken in hand by a skillfull Physitian hee knowes the nature of it and knowes how to correct it and to take away the malignant qualitie of it either of the cold or of the heat so afflictions of themselves are plagues and judgements and they are able to harden the heart and to blinde the minde this is that Ahaz saith the text even wicked Ahaz this is the punishment and poyson of the wicked and it bringeth punishment upon them it blinds their mindes and hardens their hearts and therefore whensoever a wicked man doth come forth from under the curse he is farre worse than hee was before his heart more dead and more fierce and hee walkes more rebelliously against God and his grace but when they are laid upon the people of God the Lord Jesus Christ takes away the malignant qualitie of them and all the poyson of punishment and povertie and takes away all the venome of sicknesse and disgrace and it is now a preservative and it is good to be afflicted as David saith and to have the poyson thus corrected and to humble him and to purge him and to doe him good in his latter end they are the same in nature that they are unto the wicked but the difference is in the qualitie of them therefore the conclusion is thus much That all afflictions come from the hand of a loving Father upon the godly and though they come in anger to their sinnes yet they worke for their good and salvation Thus much for the point of speculation and for the information of the judgement now let us come home to the affections and cheare up our hearts a little in the application of the point Vse 2 In the second place it is a word of comfort to all you that are beleevers you that have heard the treasures of mercy and the death of our Lord Jesus Christ laid open view them take them all to your selves for your comfort Are your heartâ— perswaded that Jesus Christ suffered all the punishments and drank off all the cup and hath left none for you then me thinkes this may make you goe away cheared there is no death no hell no divine justice for you to undergoe goe your way cheared and so you may for you are delivered from wrath hell and punishment this is an incomparable chearing of soule to all the faithfull of God bee their condition never so meane and their estates never so low come all hither and take that grace and mercy that is purchased and offered in the Lord Jesus Christ Object But me thinkes I heare some beginne to cavill against this truth and say let them take mercy that have a right to it and thanke God for it those that
this thou shalt never bee justified When Simon Magus would have bought the gift of the holy Ghost with money in Acts 8.21 Saint Peter answered him thy money perish with thee and furthermore he cuts him up to the quick and saith Thou art still in the gall of bitternesse thou hast no share nor portion in this matter so you unbeleevers you have no share in this point of justification 1 Peter 4.17 If judgement that is temporall judgement begin at the house of God that is at the Saints of God which beleeve in the Lord Iesus Christ then what will the end be of all that obey not the Gospell of God and beleeve not in the Lord Iesus Christ for it is all one in the phrase of Scripture If a beleever doe come to heaven with much difficultie and trouble and perplexitie of heart and the ship is all broken and hee comes to heaven with much difficultie then what will the share of those men bee that have no part nor portion in Jesus Christ they can ruffle it out with the best for a while and the men of the world doe admire at them and acquit them many times the people of God being deluded with their smooth carriage and fair shewes and having a charitable opinion of them they do acquit them but marke the end of it thou maist be admired and acquitted here but thou shalt bee for ever condemned hereafter the sentence is gone forth and it shall never be revoked Heb. 3.18 To whom sware hee that they should not enter into his rest but unto them that obeyed not You must thinke the Lord is highly displeased when hee sweareth that such a man shall never see his face with comfort nor come to Heaven hee swears and when the sentence is past it is unchangeable unalterable So Hebrewes 6.17 God willing more abundantly to shew unto the heires of promise the stablenesse of his Councell bound himselfe by an oath When the Lord would establish the heart of Abraham he tooke an oath as it is among men an oath puts an end to all controversies so if the Lord once swears it is done in Heaven never to bee altered more and therefore aske them this question What are they and what may wee thinke of them that God swears against certainly they are unbeleevers God must make a new Gospell and must forswear himselfe or else none of these unbeleeving persons shall ever come to Heaven Hence it is that the Apostle makes the thing almost impossible That God cannot save an unbeleever Rom. 11.23 And they also if they abide not in unbeleefe shall be grafted in for God is able to graft them in againe as if he had said the poore dispersed unbeleeving Jewes may also be saved and receive sap and sweet from the grace of Christ if they abide not in their unbeleefe It is as much as to say if they doe abide in their unbeleefe God is not able to graft them in and the Apostle saith God cannot deny himselfe he will not crosse the course of his providence for never an unbeleeving wretch under Heaven Hee hath said it and if there bee ever a Devill in hell thou shalt be one if thou continuest as thou art Therefore you that are convinced in your consciences that you obey not the Gospell nor submit to the grace of God in Christ consider with your selves whether it be good continuing in that estate or no when the wrath of God hangs over your heads ready to fall upon you see your misery therefore you poore soules and take up that lamentation of Reuben Gen. 37.29 when his brother Ioseph was sold to the Ishmaelites the childe is not yonder and I whither shall I goe so say thou my comfort is lost I am an unbeleever and therefore I whither shall I goe and I poore soule whither shall I goe If I goe to the Law that condemnes me and if to the Gospell that I have abused if I goe to God the Father of mercies he will not acquit me and therefore whither shall I goe I can goe no whither but to hell if I remaine still in my unbeleefe therefore bee any thing rather than unbeleever for if thou art so and continuest so the Lord hath sworne thy misery and destruction Iohn 3. the last verse Hee that beleeveth not the wrath of God abideth on him If thou continuest still in thy unbeleefe there is nothing to bee expected but the fiercenesse of Gods wrath and indignation to be powred upon thee Thus much for the first Doctrine Now before I come to the maine proposition let me take up one point by the way to prevent all false and wicked surmizes the Text saith He hath made him sinne for us that knew no found nâ—w when the Apostle saith Hee hath made him sinne for us why may some say had Jesus Christ any sinne no saith the Apostle abhorre such thoughts for ever therefore to prevent all surâ—izes that may prejudice the Holinesse Honour and Primitie of Christ let mee lay downe a point by the way and the question shall be this Quest. What is it to know no sinne Answer Knowledge in Scripture implyes two things First a bare worke of the understanding when wee are able to pierce into a thing that is offered to us and are able to fathom what is offered to our view and thus Christ did know sinne and thus to know sinne is not evill The Minister knowes sinne when hee preacheth against sinne and thus God himselfe knowes sinne and thus Christ knew sinne and he was able to fathom the vildnesse and loathsomnesse of sinne but that is not here meant Secondly there is another namely an experimentall knowledge that is when from some good that we have or doe receive or any good that we doe of our selves or some evill that we doe commit or fearing some misery to come upon us wee read the nature of the good and the nature of the evill as when a man hath a sinfull distemper of wrath and passion and hee knowes the nature of his anger and pride because hee observes the venome of it in his owne spirit this is experimentall knowledge and they call it so because we read our owne dispositions and thereby wee judge the nature of it by judging our selves The Physitian knowes the disease and therefore he is able to apply medicines accordingly but hee knowes it not experimentally as wee use to say such a man never knew what povertie meant and such a man never knew what the gowt meant that is he never had it and such a man never knew what a prison meant that is hee never was in prison This is the meaning of it in this place Christ knew no sinne his heart never affected any and himselfe never practised any therefore he knew no sinne by his owne experience yet by his infinite wisedome being God he was able to finde out the venome and â—ildnesse of sinne So the point which I observe by the way
is this Doctrine Our Saviour Christ never yeelded the least improvement of heart to sinne neither did hee ever commit the least sinne in his life and conversation our Saviour Christ knew no sinne at all by experience this is that which all the types and sacrifices of the old Law did signifie which were all as so many severall testimonies of the holinesse and puritie of the Lord Jesus Christ therefore he was called the Lambe without blemish and it was prophesied of him in Esay 53.9 That he had done no wickednesse neither was deceit found in his mouth and his enemy Pilate said I finde no fault in him at all and our Saviour himselfe saith the Prince of this world commeth and hath nought in mee that is no sinne Iohn 14.30 The arguments are briefly these Reason Looke into the Nature of our Saviour and the Office of our Saviour looke into his Manhood as he was perfect Man for the seed of the woman was overshadowed by the Holy Ghost and was purged and sanctified and the course of originall sinne was stayed and when the body was framed the Godhead dwelt bodily in Christ and all the fulnesse of grace was in him then the point must needs bee cleere that there was no evill in him no mutabilitie to incline to any evil nor no power could prevaile with him to draw him to any evill Againe looke into the Office of our Saviour for he that came to be a sacrifice for sinne must needs want sinne or else he could not be a sacrifice for sinne so the point is cleere we come now to the application Vse 1 The first use is a word of exhortation and it ought to provoke all you that are faithfull and are beleevers to conforme your hearts and conversations answerable to the heart and life of Christ did not Christ give the least improvement of heart to any sinne nor practise the least sinne in any measure then goe thou and doe likewise be thou like thy Saviour that thou mayest have some evidence that thou hast a title unto him It is that which the Apostle makes as a speciall collection Have no fellowship with the unfruitfull workes of darknesse but bee you followers of God as deare children Ephes 5.1 Christ had no sinne nor fellowship with sinne let his course and practice bee thy copie But some will say what would you have us to bee Saints here on earth â— how can it be that we should know no sin when we have such a body of death hanging upon us yes we may know no sinne though it doe hang about us the Apostle doth not say equall God in holinesse but imitate him and he doth not say follow him fully but even as deare children Now though the childe cannot goe so fast as the father yet he will follow as fast as he can and when hee hath done what he can then he cries to his father to help him and carrie him to the journeyes end and so ought we to doe nay so we will doe if we are true children and not bastards the Father is infinitely full of holinesse Follow God as deare children doe what you can and then â—rie to him to inable you to doe what you cannot doe It was the practice of the Prophet David Psalme 63.1 My soule thirsteth for thee and my heart longeth after thee therefore in the 119. Psalme 4 5. Thou hast commanded to keepe thy Commandements diligently oh that my heart meâ— so directed thaâ— I might doe it as if hee had said I know the Law requireth it and it is my dutie to doe it helpe Lord and take Lord and carry Lord thy poore servant and lead mee into the land of righteousnesse it is an evidence of one that is borne of God 1 Iohn 5.18 Whosoever is borne of God sinneth not and the evill one toucheth him not so if you are such as have Christ Jesus formed in you you will labour to keepe your selves that the wicked one touch you not hee doth not say hee will not entertaine it but he will not keep company with it A man must doe by sinne as wee would do by a man whose coÌ„pany we shun if we would not have acquaintance with him then we carry our selves strangely to him if he call we will not answer if he knocke we will not open we keep our selves close that wee may not change a word with him so it will bee with every one of you that are borne of God you will have nothing to doe with your old pettish lusts and base humours and haunts of spirits and whomsoever it be that hath had dalliance with you heretofore you will avoid the place and presence of them and say I know not those distempers nor the place not occasions of them I will meddle with them no more I will not owne them I have done it too too much already if they come I will not yeeld and if they follow I will flee I have read an old story of a man that was carried away much by a harlot at last the Lord meets him and opened his eyes and humbled his soule and brought him out of his sinfull condition many a day after the harlot met him againe and the man would not looke on her and shee began to seft kindnesse upon him and said I am she you know wee have had much sweet dalliance together Oh but saith he blessed be God I am not I that is I am not the man that I was before so should we though wee are nothing but sinne by nature and know nothing but corruption yet if the old sluggishnesse and stubbornnes of heart and haughtinesse that we have too too much received if they come and say we are the darlings that have had much sweet fellowship and communion with you make them answer and say I am not the man I will have no more to doe with you Let every heart be here incouraged not to regard the base respects of sinne or of the world they will say it is not good to bee too holy and too precise make answer and say I cannot bee too holy Jesus Christ knew no sinne the heart and life of Jesus Christ is that which wee ought to respect and imitate Now I come to the main proposition and that is this that the debt of the sinner is charged upon our Saviour so saith the description and so say the words of the Text conceive here thus much that our Saviour had the debt of a sinner charged upon him partly by imputation and partly by personall performance he did performe the payment personally the debt was by imputation but the payment was by reall and personall performance and as our sinnes and debts were made his by imputation so the payment was his really laid downe and suffered for us Two things I must lay downe before I can open the point First what is meant by sinne Secondly why Christ is said to be made sin First what is meant by sinne Answer