use of them all of the Word Prayer Sacraments Meditation c. It 's by these that the Lord begets Grace and by neglecting of them ye may make your selves guilty of destroying your own Souls 3. Beaware of quenching the Spirit in any of His Operations or Motions of smothering or putting out any Challenges or Convictions If the Conscience be at any time touched or the Affections tickled go not away as the temporary Believer doeth sitting down there without going any further Fear to strangle the beginnings of the life of Grace for Grace may begin at little and if ye quench any Motion Conviction or Challenge ye know not if ever ye shall meet with the like again because when He knocked hard at your Heart ye held Him out and keeped Him at the door and ye may be in hazard of that terrible charge Acts 7.31 Ye uncircumcised in heart and ears ye have always resisted the Holy Ghost as your Fathers did so do ye 4. Seing this work is not common to all the Hearers of the Gospel but peculiar to some labour to have it made sure to your selves by putting it to proof and tryal in good earnest Use 3. The third Use is for you that are Believers and would God there were many such to whom I would also speak three or four words 1. Learn from this to be humble What hast thou man but what thou hast received and if thou hast received it why doest thou boast as if thou hadst not received it O! but it 's unsuitable to Believers who are Free-Graces-Debtors and Beggers whereof yet none need to think shame to be proud and forget themselves Thou hast nothing Believer to boast of but that He hath shamed thee with His Grace and shouldest thou be proud of that as if thou had made thy self thus therefore guard watchfully against all puffing up self-conceit and high-mindedness and study to be humble and to carry a low Sâ—il else thou mayest break out into some scandâ—lous offence and may become a shame and reproach to the Gospel We commend Humility to you above many things for we think that in these days Folks pride is like to break their Necks for when once Conceit creeps in they begin to think they are so far advanced in Holiness that they must not keep Company with others nor joyn in Worship with them and from that they go to another thing and from that to a third that it is hard to tell where they wilâ— halt or end they grow so giddy that they are scarcely like to leave so much Ground as themselves may stand upon O! think shame of Pride it 's a most intollerable thing to be proud of that which God hath given wherein ye have no more hand and whereof ye can no more boast then they who never had it 2. Be thankful and give God the praise of that ye have gotten It becomes the upright to be thankful It 's no little matter to have God's Power manifested in the working of Faith and conferring Grace The temporal Throne and Kingdom and great things in the World are nothing to this it 's peculiar to the Lord 's own and not common Many get their fill of the World who never get nor will get this The World is of so little value with the Lord that to speak so He doeth not much regard who get it though it be exâ—ctly distributed by His Providence but converting and upbuilding Grace is peculiarized to His Favourites Being therefore clear that He hath bestowed Grace on you O how should ye exult in blessing God as David did for giving you counsel to make choice of such a portion and for His powerful determining of your Heart by His Grace to embrace it for which ye have not your selves to thank but God 3. Be compassionate and tender towards others considering that it is only Grace that hath made the difference betwixt you and them and not any good nature in you which was not in them as some foolishly fancy Be not puft up at the faults and falls of any but rather mourn for them as well as for your own and be the more humble when ye think of the difference that Grace hath made lest ye fall and since your standing is by Grace be not high-minded but fear of all Persons it worse becomes you to look lightly on let be to mock at the falls of others considering who and what hath made the diffâ—rence 4. If it be so peculiar a priviledgâ— to be pâ—rtakers of this powerful and spâ—ciâ—l Grâ—ce of God that is put sorth in the great work of Conversion Then sure there is â—omething peculiar called for in your Conversation even that it may in all things be as it becometh the Gospel and answerable to this Grace bestowed on you O! what manner of Persons ought ye to be in all holy Conversation and Godliness SERMON XIV ISAIAH LIII I And to whom is the arm of the Lord revealed THE way of the Grace of God is a very difficult Subject to be thought on or spoken of suitably and as it becomes Grace having a soveraign and unsearchable Channel of its own wherein it runs yet no doubt it is very useful now and then to consider it if we knew how to make use of it aright yea even these steps of Grace that are most cross and contrary to carnal Reason may not a little profite when duely pondered Thus when the Prophet hath been looking on the scarcity of Faith and on the paucity of true Believers he looks a little further then on the external preaching of the Gospel even in upon the way of God's Grace not out of any curiâ—sity nor from a fretting humour because of the unsuccessfulnesse of his Ministry but that he may thereby get himself stayed and composed and that he may bring both himself and others to reverence and adore the holy and soveraign way of God therein To whom saith he is the arm of the Lord revealed It 's a word like that which Christ had on the like occasion John 6.44 Murmure not among your selves no man can come to me except the Father who hath sent me draw him We opened up the meaning of the words the last day In short they come to this as if he had said how few are they that believe the Gospel and who take the Word off the hand of His sent Ministers and how few are they on whom the Grace of God that only can make men believe does effectually work the Prophet pointing at a higher hand then that of the Ministers in the success and fruitlessness of the Gospel and coupling these two together the Preaching of the Word and the Power of God's Grace in the working of Faith and Conversion in Sinners We proposed these three Doctrines to be spoken to from the words 1. That in the work of Conversion and begetting of Faith beside the preaching of the Word there is a powerful internal immediat work of the
choise in time of the Service of this Righteous Servant for your Justification and Salvation SERMON L. ISAIAH LIII XI Vers 11. By his knowledge shall my righteous servant justifie many c. IF we had such thoughts of the Salvation of our own Souls as the Lord had and still hath of the Salvation of Souls we could not but be more seriously concerned about them and more taken up how to get them saved This Work of the Salvation of Sinners did before the World was to speak so with reverence take up the Persons of the Glorious Godhead and was singled out and made choise of as an imployment worthy of the Son of God who was chosen for this very Work that by Him many might be Justified and Saved For the accomplishment of which He became a Servant Must it not then be an excellent Work that none but He could be trusted with who is Heir of all things and by whom the World was made We shew you the meaning of these Words the last Day and Observed two things from this Designation that Our Lord gets here 1. That Our Lord Jesus in the Work of Mediation and of the Redemption of Sinners was Gods Servant not so much to denote His being inferiour as Mediator to the Father as to hold forth His being Commissionated for this Service and the Lord accepting of Him in it 2. That Our Lord Jesus did excellently discharge this Trust committed to Him Therefore He is not only called a Servant but my righteous servant as having most Faithfully acquitted Himself and as being fully approven and accepted in the Trust committed to Him When the Lord speaks so of Christ It ought mightily to ingage us to be much in love with God who hath given such a Faithfull Mediator aad Servant and with Jesus Christ that condescended to take the Trust of poor Sinners Salvation and that doth so kindly discharge it There are somethings here that may be passingly hinted at and then we shall come more closely and particularly to the Words 1. Then Observe That it is a Priviledge and Prerogative to be Gods Servant Therefore it 's mentioned here as a Piece of the Mediators Priviledge It is true He was Singularly and Eminently a Servanr even the Lords Choice Servant in whom His Soul delighted and does delight above what any others can be capable of yet to be a Servant to God to take direction from Him to do His Will to seek His Honour to give obedience to Him in what He calleth for is certainly a Priviledge and a great one yea it is spoken of as a Priviledge of Glorified Saints in Heaven Revel 22.3 His servants shall serve him And if it be a Priviledge in Heaven we would think it so here on Earth and yet if the Language of our hearts were known there would be found a secret disdaining of and repyning at service to God and a saying on the matter Let us break his bonds asunder and cast away his cords from us But know ye what ye are doing Even disclaiming and despising that which is your great Priviledge all those that are in Heaven and all those who are in a right frame on Earth count it their Priviledge to be His Servants and we are commanded to pray Thy will be done on Earth as it is done in heaven Or be thou served on Earth as thou art in Heaven Therefore it ought to be accounted of as a Priviledge as a great and glorious Priviledge to be His Servants 2. Observe That the Lord can tell exactly and infallibly how every Servant carries himself Who are ill and sloathfull and who are good and faithfull Servants Who are righteous Servants according to their measure and who not Will He take notice how Christ carries Himself in His Service and Trust and will He not take notice of others Most certainly He will and therefore Matth. 25. and Luke 19. He calls the Servants to a Reckoning to whom the Talents are given and as they have made use of them and improved them or not so doth He commend and reward them or not There are none of us but have gotten some one Talent and Trust or an other and no doubt there will be much to Reckon for I am afraid that when He calls us all to an accompt though there will be some to whom it will be said Well done good and faithfull servant There will be many to whom it will be said Thou evil and sloathfull servant and the Sloathful servant will be found to be the Ill Servant and amongst other Aggravations of his guilt this will be one that he was unlike to Christ the Righteous Servant 3. Observe That the right improvement and discharge of the Trust committed to us and of our service to God is a commendable and honourable thing It is Recorded here to Christs Commendation that He was a Righteous servant even Faithfull over the House of God in all things and Proportionably is the Commendation of the ordinary under-servants when they in their Places and Stations perform their Service honestly and faithfully so as they may be accepted of God on His account The day is coming when every mans work will be rewarded and as we Sow so shall we Reap In that Day if we had all the World we would give it to hear that Word from Christs mouth Well done thou good and faithfull servant But iew will get that Testimony ye think it much now to get a name of Fidelity amongst Men and to be esteemed such as keep your Word and will not break your Promise nor Parrol and it 's good in so far that it be so but many such will be found to have broken many a Word to God and falsified many a Promise think upon it and lay it to heart that it will be better to have a Word of Testimony from God in that Day and to have it said to you by Him Faithfull Servant thou improved wel the little that I gave thee it was laid out and expended not so much to buy and to put on brave Cloaths nor to buy or build fine houses as it was for Me and for My Honour Whatever Place Station Capacity or Imployment thou was in thou indeavoured to do good in it and when thou couldest not do for my Work for my People and for my Honour thou was Praying for them and when thou had an opportunity to hear my Word thou didst not slight nor let that slip This I say will be better than a great Name and Testimony from and amongst Men But alace we fear that it shall be said of many ye had many opportunities of getting and doing good but what use made ye of them It had been better that ye had never had them it had been better that ye had never had a Groat or two Pence then to have had all these Riches and to have had none rather then to have had such and such a Lucrative or Gainfull Place and Imployment which
believing spoken of here to that saving Faith whereby folk believe and rest upon Jesus Christ 5. Consider that though there be no expresse Party named to whom the Prophet complaineth yet no doubt it is to God therefore Joh. 12.38 and Rom. 10.16 when this Scripture is cited it is Lord who hath believed our report so it is the Prophet's complaint of the little fruit himself had and that the Ministers of the Gospel should have in preaching of the Gospel regrating and complaining of it to God as a sore matter that it should come to so many and so few should get good of it so few should be brought to believe and to be saved by it Though these words be few yet they have four great things in them to which we shall reduce them for speaking more clearly to them 1. That the great subject of Preaching and Preachers great errand is to report concerning Jesus Christ to bring tydings concerning Him 2. That the great duty of Hearers implyed is to believe this Report and by vertue of it to be brought to rest and rely on Jesus Christ 3. That the great though the ordinary sin of the generality of the Hearers of the Gospel is unbelief Who hath believed that is it 's few that have believed it 's a rare thing to see a Believer of this Report 4. That the great complaint weight and grief of an honest Minister of the Gospel is this that his Message is not taken off his hand that Christ is not received believed in and rested on this is the great challenge Ministers have against the generality of People and the ground of their complaint to God that whatever they report concerning Christ He is not welcomed His Kingdom thrives not That we may speak to the first considering the words with respect to the Scope we shall draw five or six Doctrines from them The first whereof is more general that the discovery of Christ Jesus and the making him known is the greatest News the gladest Tydings and the most excellent Report that ever came or can come to a People there is no such thing can be told them no such Tydings can they hear this is the Report that the Prophet speaks of by way of eminency a Report above and beyond all other Reports these are News worthy to be carried by Angels Behold saith one of them Luke 2.20 I bring you good tydings of great joy which shall be to all people And what are these Tydings so prefaced to with a Behold for unto you is born this day in the city of David a Saviour which is Christ the Lord these are the good Tydings that Jesus Christ is come and that he is the Saviour by Office We shall not insist on this onely 1. We will find a little view of this Subject in the following words which hold forth clearly Christ God and Man in one Person so compleatly qualified and excellently furnished for His Offices 2. It 's also clear if we look to the excellent effects that come by His being so furnished as His satisfying of Justice His setting free of Captives His triumphing over Principalities and Powers His destroying the works of the Devil c. there cannot be more excellent works or effects spoken of 3. It 's clear if we look to Him from whom this Report cometh and in whose Breast these News bred if we may speak so they are the result of the Counsel of the God-head and therefore as the Report here is made in the Lord's Name so He is complained to when it is not taken off the Prophet's hand And 4. it 's clear if we look to the mysteriousness of these News Angels could never have conceived them had not this Report come these things tell that they are great glorious and good News glad Tydings as it is in the end of the former Chapter That which hath not been told them shall they see and that which they have not heard shall they consider The first Use is To draw our hearts to be in love with the Gospel and to waken our estimation of it Peoples ears are itching after Novelties and ye are much worn out of conceit with these News but is there in any News such an advantage as in these when God sendeth News to Men they must be great News and such indeed are these Use 2. Therefore be affrayed to entertain loathing of the plain substantial Truths of the Gospel if ye had never heard them before there would belike be some Athenian itching to hear and speak of them but they should not be the less thought of that they are often heard and spoken of Use 3. Therefore think more of the Gospel seeing it containeth the substance of these good News and glad Tydings and think more of Gospel-ordinances whereby these good Tydings are so often published and made plain to you 2. More particularly Observe that Jesus Christ and what concerneth Him the glad and good News of a Saviour and the reporting of them is the very proper work of a Minister and the great subject of a Ministers preaching his proper work is to make Him known or take it thus Christ is the native subject on which all preaching should run this is the Report the Prophet speaketh of here and in effect it was so to John and the other Apostles and should be so to all Ministers Christ Jesus and what concerns Him in His Person Natures and Offices to know and make Him known to be God and Man to make Him known in His Offices to be Priest Prophet and King to be a Priest in His suffering and satisfying Justice to be a Prophet in revealing the Will of God to be a King for subduing folks Lusts and Corruptions and to know and make Him known in the way by which Sinners both Preachers and Hearers may come to have Him to themselves as follows in this Chapter This this is the subject of all Preaching and all Preaching should be levelled at this mark Paul is 1 Cor. 2.2 peremptory in this I determined to know nothing among you but Jesus Christ and him crucified as if he had said I will meddle with no other thing but betake my self to this not onely will he forbear to meddle with civil Employments but he will lay aside his Learning Eloquence and Humane Wisdom and make the preaching of Christ crucified his great work and study the reason of this is because Christ standeth in a fourfold relation to preaching 1. He is the Text to say so of Preaching all Preaching is to explain Him Acts 10.43 To him give all the Prophets witness and so do the four Evangels and the Apostolick Epistles which are as so many Preachings of Him and that Preaching which standeth not in relation to Him is beside the Text and Mark 2. He is holden out as the Foundation and Ground-work of Preaching so that Preaching without Him wants Foundation and is the Building as it were of a Castle in the Air
in seeking any ground of boasting to themselves yet they would seek to be so far distinct and clear anent their spiritual Case and Condition as they may know how to speak suitably to it and how to speak of it to God that they may say as they have ground for it that in such a Place among such a People a great door and effectual was opened unto us as the Apostle saith 1 Cor. 16.8 And in such another Place and among such a People Who hath believed our report as here the Prophet doeth It 's said Luk. 10.17 and Mark 6.30 the Disciples returned and with joy told Christ all that they had done and how the Devils were subject to them they made acccount what success they had in their Ministry so it 's necessary that a Minister know what success He hath among a People that he may know 1. How to carry before God in reference to them what to Praise for what to Lament for and what to Pray for 2. It 's necessary as to the People that he may carry right to them for the gaining of Strangers to God and helping forward these who are entered into the Way and that he may know what report to make of them 3. It 's necessary for a Minister himself though noâ— simply as to his Peace for that depends on his faithful discharge of his Office yet as to his Joy and Rejoycing to know when he labours in vain and when not among a People We would not then as a passing word of Use have you to think it curiousity though something be said now and then and asked at you that some of you may possibly think impertinent For it becomes a Physician to seek to know the state and condition of these whom he hath under his Hand and Cure and ye would not take it ill though after observation we now and then speak and tell you what we conceive to be your condition Observ 2. The second Observation is That it is most sad to a tender Minister and will much affect him to see and observe Unbelief and Unfruitfulness among the People that He hath preached the Gospel to This must be a certain and clear Truth if we consider what it was that put Isaiah to this even to cry Who hath believed our report Though a Minister should have never so great exercise of Gifts never so much countenance and respect among a People if he be tender he will be more grieved and weighted with their Unbelief and Unfruitfulness then with Stripes and Imprisonment there will be no suffering to this in his esteem nothing so sad a ground of Complaint This makes the Prophet Mic. 7.1 to cry alace and wo is me I am as these who have gathered the summer-fruits as the grape-gleanings after the vintage there is no cluster to eat the good man is perished and there is none upright among men and he insists in this Complaint How often was our Lord Jesus the most excellent tender Preacher that ever preached put to this Complaint All the Affronts and Reproaches He met with grieved Him not so much as the Unbelief and Hardness of Heart that were in the People It 's said Mar. 3.5 that He looked round about on them with anger and was grieved for the hardness of their hearts And it 's said Mar. 6.6 that He marvelled because of their unbelief yea it so affected Him that Luk. 19.42 it 's said that when He came near the city He wept over it saying O that thou hadst known in this thy day the things that belong to thy peace There is a fourfold Reason of this that hath a fourfold Influence on the sadning of a serious and tender Minister of the Gospel 1. Respect to Christ Jesus his Master in whose stead he comes to bespeak and woo Souls to Christ What would an Ambassadour think of personal Respect and Honour if his Master were reproached and his Message rejected and despised and can an honest and faithfull Ambassadour of Christ look on and his Heart not be wounded to see the Gospel Fruitless the Lord's pleasure as it were Marred and the work of Gathering in of Souls Obstructed in his hand and his Lord and Master Affronted and Slighted 2. The Respect that a Faithful Minister hath to the Peoples Souls hath influence on this A tender Shepherd will watchfully care for and wish the Sheep well and be much affected when they are in an evil condition and where the relation is of a more Spiritual nature and the Flock off far very far greater worth and concernment what wonder the Shepherd be more affected as Paul bespeaks the Galatians 4.19 My little children of whom I travel again in birth till Christ be formed in you To be travelling and bringing forth but Wind cannot but prick and wound an honest Minister of the Gospel at the very Heart so 2. Cor. 11.29 Paul saith Who is offended and I burn not The very hazard of a Soul will be like a Fire burning the Heart that is tender and zealous of the spiritual good of Souls 3. The respect that a Faithful Minister hath to the Duty in his Hand hath influence on this for such a one loves to neat his Duty and to go neatly and lively about it and the Unbelief and Unfruitfulness of the People clogs him in his Duty and makes him drive heavily hence it 's said Mat. 13.58 and Mark 6.5 that our Lord could not do many mighty works there or among that People because of their unbelief Unbelief straitens and shuts the Door and makes Preaching become a very Burthen to a Faithful Minister therefore the Apostle exhorts Heb. 13.17 Obey them that have the rule over you and watch for your souls that they may do it with joy and not with grief for that is unprofitable for you A necessity lyes upon Ministers to go about their Work but when the Word does no more but buff on them so to speak it makes them to cry as this same Prophet doeth Chap. 6.11 How long Lord And 4ly This also hath influence on their being so much weighted even the concern of honest Ministers own Joy and Comfort It is true as we hinted before that neither a Faithful Minister's Peace nor his reward of Grace doeth depend on it simply I have spent my strength in vain says Isaiah chap. 49.4 yet my labour is with the Lord and my reward from my God As to that there is no necessary connection and it 's of Grace it is so yet as to a Minister's Satisfaction and Joy there is a connection as we may see Philip. 2.16 where Paul saith That I may joy in the day of Christ that I have not run in vain and laboured in vain And from his expostulation with the Galatians chap. 4.9 10 11. I am affraid of you lest I have bestowed upon you labour in vain I shall not prosecute the Use of this neither only see here that it is no marvel though sometimes
we be necessitate to complain of you and to expostulate with you and considering the Case of People generally if our Hearts were suitably tender it would make us even burst for Grief to see so many sleeping securely and senslesly in their Sins and in that pitiful posture posting to the Pit if God prevent not Observ 3. The third Observation is That a Minister may and sometimes will be put to it to make report to God of what Fruit his Ministry hath and sometimes to complain to Him of the Unbelief and Unfruitfulness of the People among whom he hath long preached the Gospel Isaiah sure is not carried to this Complaint out of hatred to the People neither from any pleasure he hath in it nor any delight to tell ill Tales to speak so of them The Lord needs no Information yet he complains and that to the Lord as we shew from Rom. 10.16 where it is said Lord Who hath believed our report So then Prophets and Apostles complain of this It 's Ezekiel's Complaint no doubt to God as it was the Lords to him This people are a rebellious house and they will not bear And Isaiah speaks here in his own name and in name of other Ministers of the Gospel that they may joyn with him in this Complaint and there is reason for it if we consider 1. The Relation that a Minister stands in to God He ought to give an account to Him who gives Obedience and who not and what Is done by his Embassage there being no Talent given but a Reckoning how it was imployed will be called for 2. The Subordination that a Minister stands in to Christ wherein it is requisite he be keeped as knowing the Work is the Lords and not his pleads for this 3. That a Minister may be keeped from Carnalness and Vanity on the one hand and from Discouragement on the other he ought to be acquaint with and to hold up both the Fruitfulness and Unfruitfulness of the People to God 4. It 's meet for the Good of the People it be so not to irritate but kindly to affect the People that when he complains to God they may be convinced that it is to get the Evil complained of amended if so it may be This complaining will we fear be the result of much Preaching among you for either there must be more Faith and Fruits else ye will have the moe Complainers and the moe Complaints against you Observ 4. The fourth Observation is That it is and ought to be a very sad and weighty thing to a Minister and also to a People when he is put to complain to God of their Unbelief amongst whom he is labouring It 's the last thing he hath to do and he can do no more and it 's the greatest and highest of Witness and Ditty against them when a Minister hath been Preaching long and observing the Fruit of his Ministry and is out-wearied with their Unfruitfulness and forced to cry Lord there are none or but very few that have believed the Report that I have brought to them It 's the heaviest and hardest word that Christ hath to say to Jerusalem Mat. 23.37 and Luke 19.31 when He complains of their Unfruitfulness harder and heavier then all the Woes He pronounced against the Scribes and Pharisees or on other accounts and at least equivalent to them pronounced on the same account for the same Woe and Wrath follows both O! saith He that thou hadst known in this thy day the things that belong to thy peace but now they are hid from thine eyes This comes as the last and sadest word holding out the desperateness of their Condition when the powerful preaching of the Gospel hath no gracious Force nor saving Effect following it when Directions prevail not when no sort of Ministerial Gifts do a People good when it comes to that Mat. 11.16 Whereunto shall I liken this generation it is like children sitting in the market-place crying to their fellows we have piped to you and ye have not danced we have mourned to you and ye have not lamented when both the sweet Offers of Grace and the terrible Threatnings of the Law come forth to a People and both are followed for a long time without Fruit then comes out that word Whereunto shall I liken this generation John came neither eating nor drinking and ye say he hath a devil his austere way of Living and Preaching did you no good ye could not away with it The son of Man came eating and drinking in a familiar way and ye say behold a man gluttenous a wine-biber a friend of Publicans and Sinners They stumble on both unjustly and so it is still even to this day many stumble at the Messenger cast at the Message and then followeth the sad Complaint It 's meet that now we speak to a word of Use but we profess we know not well how to follow it there is so much ground to Complain and we are not alace suitably sensible of our own unfitness to follow the Complaint which makes us think that it would become another better But what shall we say It 's the Word of the Lord and it were needful that both ye and we should forget and take our eyes off Man and remember that it is the Lord God and some commissioned from Him that we have to do with that so we may accept of the Message 1. Then We may say that it is no pleasure to us to be hewing you and speaking sadly to you the Lord knows would to God there were moe that needed Healing-Medicines and that fewer had need of Hewing and Wounding but the truth is Carnal Security Spiritual Pride Hypocrisie and Formality are so rife and become so much the Plague of this Generation that People believe not their hazard Neither 2ly Is it our desire nor design to speak to all of you indifferently and without Discrimination for as the Lord saith Mat. 11.19 Wisdom is justified of her children Though the Generality despise this Word yet we are confident the Lord hath some that He allows not to be grieved and we shall desire that such may not wrong themselves nor mar our freedom in speaking the Word of the Lord to others 3ly We shall not desire to speak peremptorly as to the Case of particular Persons though we will not deny nor conceal our Fears and sad Apprehensions as to many of you only what we have to say ye would know and be assured that it is not spoken at random by us but as having some acquaintance with many of your Conditions and we may gather from these what is very probably the Condition of others And now as to what we would say to you Some have been preaching this Gospel to you who are flitted and removed to another part of the Vineyard other some are gone to another World and some are yet continued Preaching to you but what Fruit is brought forth by the Ministry of all If we
think we must report can we report any other way then it is with you Shall we or dare we say that such a Man was a fine civil Man and that therefore he will not be reckoned with though he believed not in Christ No no but this must be the report that such a Man and such a kind of Men though Christ was long wooing them would not embrace Him though He invited them to the Wedding yet they would not come nay they mocked and spurned at it they trode the Blood of the Covenant under Foot and counted God a Liar in all His Offers and said by their Practice that they should be happy though they took not this way many of you who would not take it well if we should speak this to you in particular will find it to be a Truth one day And if ye shall say What would we be at The answer is at hand Believe in the Lord Jesus Christ and ye shall be saved This is the End of the Gospel and the mean of your Happiness it 's the great and the main thing that we call for which if it be not obtained the ground of the Complaint will continue And do you think this any strange hard or uncouth thing that when we bring to you the Offer of Christ in the Gospel we bid you receive it and flee in to Him to hide you from the Wrath to come and yet this is all we seek of you it 's neither your Shame nor your Skaith that we seek but that ye may take with your Sin that ye may judge and condemn your selves that your Mouth may be stopped before God and that ye may flee to Jesus Christ in earnest and close with Him on His own Terms As therefore ye would prevent the greatly aggravated Sin to wit sinning against the Gospel and the Complaint of the Ministers thereof against you and the terrible Vengeance of the Mediator Kiss the Son cast open the everlasting Doors of your Hearts and let the Gospel and Christ the King of Glory have access We pray you stand not in the way of your own Happiness refuse not to do Him that much pleasure and satisfaction for all the travel of His Soul as to give Him your Souls to be saved Now God Himself keep you from this Folly and Soul-destroying madness SERMON X. ISAIAH LIII I Who hath believed our report And to whom is the arm of the Lord revealed WE have spoken somewhat these days past to sundry Doctrines from this part of the Verse and particularly of the sad Complaint which Isaiah hath in his own name and in the name of all the Ministers of the Gospel that the savoury Report concerning Jesus Christ is not received and that though Life and Salvation through Him be offered to many yet there are but few scarce here one and there one that do embrace it this is the sad result Lord who hath believed our report Words that being spoken by such a Prophet and so often mentioned in the New-Testament may and should as often as we speak hear or reâ—d them put both Ministers and People to a holy demur and to look what becomes of all our Preaching and Hearing when this was all the Fruit even of Isaiah's Preaching as to the greatest part of his Hearers Ere we leave this part of the Verse it will not be unmeet that we speak a little to these three First To what may be the Causes why when the Gospel is powerfully Preached there are so few Believers Secondly How it comes to pass seeing so few Believe that generally so many think they Believe and so few suspect their own Faith And Thirdly To the necessity that lyes on the Hearers of the Gospel to enquire at and try themselves concerning their Faith and to have some solid Satisfaction in it Although we mention no particular Doctrines now yet considering the Doctrines we spoke to before these things will not be unsuitable to them nor impertinent to you For the first The Causes why so few believe the Gospel we cleared to you already That generally the powerful Preaching of the Gospel hath been with little Fruit so that Isaiah hath this sad Complaint Lord who hath believed our report and our Lord Jesus hath it also on the matter Mat. 11.7 We have piped to you and ye have not danced we have mourned to you and ye have not lamented and in the same express words John 12.38 And when it is so with sweet Isaiah in the Old Testament and with our blessed Lord in the New that spoke with such Power and Authority ye may see there is reason for us to enquire into the Causes why it is that so few Believe In speaking to which 1. We intend not to touch on all the Reasons that may be gathered together of Peoples not profiting under the Gospel but of these that ye have most reason to look to and that are most obstructive of Faith in you 2. Though we might speak of Reasons on the side of them that speak to you for who is sufficient for these things and we shall not deny but we have culpable accession to your Unfruitfulness yet it were not much to your edifying to insist on these 3. Neither will we speak to these soveraign Causes on God's part who in His Holy Justice gives up People to Unfruitfulness when they receive not the Truth in Love Neither 4ly Shall we insist on these Causes that may arise from the Devil who waits on wherever the Word is preached to mar the Fruit of it as we may see Mat. 13.19 the evil Spirits like as many Crows when the Seed of the Word is sowen waiting on to pick it up and ye would know that ye never come to hear the Word but there are as it were Flocks of Devils attending you Hence it is that some are rocked and lulled asleep some have their Minds filled with worldly Thoughts some forget all that they Hear ere they go out of Doors thus it is with many Hearers of this Gospel their Hearts are trode upon as the Way-side by Devils and Foul-Spirits that never a word takes impression on them and though ye may think such expressions uncouth-like and strange yet they are sadly true Satan waited on when Christ preached and sure he will scar no more to do so at our Preaching than he did at His if he stood at Joshua's right Hand to resist him he will no doubt be at ours But we say we will not insist on these But 5ly We shall speak a little to these Causes that are common in you which ye your selves mâ—ght know if ye would observe them and we would exhort you to take notice of them when we tell you of them First Then we offer or rather assert this for a Cause The want of serious minding the great concernment of the work of your Salvation and that this preached Gospel is the Word of the Lord by which ye must be saved Alace
War with his Corruption That is a sound Faith that makes the Sinner to make use of Christ in every thing he is called to that yoaks him I mean Christ to work on every occasion and particularly when it comes as it were to grapling and hand blows with this formidable Enemy the Body of Death this Monster whereof when one Hâ—aâ— is cut off another as it were starts up in its place For a close of this Purpose I beâ—eech and obtest such of you as are strangers to Saving Faith who are I fear far the greatest part to consider seriously all I have spoken of the nature and native evidences of it that you may be undeceived of your Soul-ruining Mistakes about it and let sincere and sound Believers from aâ—l be more cleared confirmed and comforted in their Faith SERMON XIII ISAIAH LIII I And to whom is the arm of the Lord revealed THere are many mistakes in the way of Religion wherewith the most part are possâ—ssed and amongst the rest there is one that generally the Hearers of the Gospel think it so easie to Believe that there is no difficulty in that by any thing they think it hard to Pray to keep the Sabâ—ath to be Holy but the most part think there is no difficulty in Believing and yet Unbelief is so rife and Faith so rare and difficult that the Prophet Isaiah here in his own name and in name of all the Ministers of the Gospel crys out Lord who hath believed our report he complains that he could get but very few to take the Word off his hand and because it weighted him to find it so and because he would fain have it to take impression on his Hearers he doubles expressions to the same purpose and to whom is the arm of the Lord revealed which in sum is there is much Preaching and many Hearers of the Gospel but little believing of it few in whose Heart the work of Faith is wrought It 's but here one and there one that this Gospel hath efficacy upon for uniting of them to Jesus Christ and for working a work of Saving Grace in them the effectual working of God's Grace reaches the Hearts but of a few For opening the words we shall speak a little to these three 1. To what is meant by the Arm of the Lord. 2. To what is meant by the revealing of the Arm of the Lord. 3. To the scope and dependance of these words on the former For the first In general know the Arm of the Lord is no to be understood properly the Lord being a Spirit hath no Arms Hands nor Feet as Men have But it 's to be understood figuratively as holding out some Property or Attribute of God By the Arm of the Lord then we understand in general the Power of God the Arm of Man being that whereby He exerceth His Power performeth Exploits or doth any Work So the Arm of the Lord is His Power whereby He produceth His Mighty Acts as it 's said in the Psalms The right hand of the Lord hath done valiantly His hand and his arm hath got him the victory and because the Power of God is taken either more generally for that which is exerced in the Works of common Providence or more particulâ—rly for that which is put forth in the Work of Saving Grace We tâ—ke it here in short to be the Grace of God exercing its Power in and by the Gospel for the converting of Souls and causing them savingly to Believe so Rom. 1.16 I am not ashamed of the Gospel of Christ for it is the power of God to salvation to every one that believes not simply as it consists in speaking of good sweet and seasonable words but as it cometh backed by the irresistable Power of the Grace of God as the word is 1 Cor. 1.23 24. We preach Christ to the Jews a stumbling block and to the Greeks foolishness but unto them who are called both Jews and Greeks the power of God and the wisdom of God and that it is so to be taken here the conâ—â—â—â—ion of these words with the former will make it clear for sure he is not speaking of the Power of God in the works of common Providence but of His Power in the conversion of Souls to Christ even of that Power which works Saving Faith in the Elect. For the second The revealing of the Arm of the Lord By this we do not understand the revealing of it objectively as it 's brought to light by the preaching of the Gospel for thus it 's revealed to all the Hearers of the Gospel it 's in this respect not keeped hid but brought forth clearly to them in the Word And therefore secondly The revealing of this Arm or Power of the Lord is to be understood of the subjective inward manifâ—sting of it with efficacy and life to the Heart by the effectual operation of the Spirit of the Lord as it 's said of the great things prepared for them that love God 1 Cor. 2.10 But God hath revealed them unto us by his Spirit it 's that which is called 1 Cor. 2. the demonstration of the spirit and of power which makes plain and powerful to the spirit of the Hearer inwardly that which the Word preacheth outwardly to the Ear which without this would strick only on the Ear and yet remain still an hidden Mystery This is the revealing of the Lord's Arm that is here spoken of because it is that on which Believing dependeth and of the want whereof the Prophet sadly complaineth even where there was much Preaching For the third to wit the Scope Dependance and connexion of these words with the former We conceive they come in both for Confirmation and for Explication of the former words 1. For Confirmation There are as hath been said but few that Believe for there are but few that have this saving and effectual work of God's Grace reâ—ching their Heart though they have the Word preached to them yet they have not the Arm of the Power of God's Grace manifested to them and so He confirms His former Doctrine concerning the paucity of Believers under the preaching of the Gospel First By asserting the fewness of them that are brought to Believe to be converted and effectually called by the Gospel which comes to pass through their own Unbelief And Secondly By asserting their fewness in respect of God's soveraign applying of His Grace in the Gospel which is but to few it 's but few that Believe for it 's but few that He makes effectual application of His Grace to 2. We say it comes in to clear and explicate the former words whether we take it by way of a Reason or of an answer to an Objection For if it be said how can it be that Isaiah Paul yea and our Lord Jesus Christ himself should preach so powerfully and yet that so few should Believe he answers it 's not to be marvelled at in respect of God as if he
were frustrate of his design no such matter It 's because the Power of Jesus Christ is revealed but to few and we take this the rather to be the meaning of these words because when Christ is preaching and many take offence and stumble Joh. 6.43 44. he says Murmure not among your selves no man can come to me except the Father which hath sent me draw him there must be an effectual work of the Grace of God put forth on the Heart else none will believe on me So it s said Joh. 12.37 38. that they believed not on Him that the saying of Isaias might be fulfilled which he spoke Lord who hath believed our report and to whom is the arm of the Lord revealed therefore they could not believe because that Isaias said again He hath blinded their eyes c. he speaketh not so to appologize for or to excuse their Unbelief but to shew the connexion that is betwixt these two the not revealing of the Arm of the Lord and their not Believing even so here the Lord shews the connexion that is betwixt the efficacy of the work of Grace and believing or turning to God that where the powerful and effectual work of His Grace goeth not forth with the preached Gospel there will be then no believing nor conversion no saving change of the Person from Nature to Grace That which we would say from these words may be drawn to three Doctrines which I shall first propose and then clear and apply them for use The first is That in the work of Conversion and begetting of Saving Faith there is requisite and necessary beside the preaching of the Word a distinct inward peculiar real immediate efficacious and powerful work of the Spirit of the Lord on the Hearts of as many Hearers as are converted by this Gospel 2. That it is but few of many Hearers in whom the Lord thus efficaciously and effectually works by His Spirit and the Power of His Grace it 's but here one and there one a very few who are thus wrought upon and converted 3. That there is a necessary and inseparable connexion betwixt this inward and efficacious work of the Spirit and Faith or Conversion Where this work of Grace is not there cannot be Faith and where it is Faith necessarily must be otherways these two could not be commensurable of equal extent and reciprocal Who hath believed our report and to whom is the arm of the Lord revealed He is not neither can be a Believer to whom it is not revealed and he is and cannot but be a Believer to whom it is revealed For the first We say there is in the work of Conversion and begetting of Faith beside the preaching of the Gospel a distinct inward peculiar real immediate efficacious and powerful work of the Spirit of the Lord requisite and necessary for Conversion and begetting of Faith to convince of Sin and to humble for it to enlighten the Mind in the Knowledge of Christ to renew the Will and Affections and to perswade and enable the Soul of the Sinner to embrace and receive Jesus Christ as He is offered in the Gospel We shall first take notice of and clear some words in the Doctrine and then confirm it First For clearing of some words in the Doctrine we say 1. It is a distinct work of the Spirit distinguished and separable from the Word though it goes along as He pleaseth with the Word yet it is not as if there were some Power infused into the Word and went always and necessarily along with the Word which is the foolish and groundless conceit of some for albeit it accompany the Word yet it 's from a distinct Agent working and a distinct work and is separable as I said from the Word though it be wrought on the Heart of the same Sinner to whose Ear the Word is preached 2. It 's an inward work of the Spirit for beside the outward and external preaching and calling by the Word there is an inward powerful effectual work and calling of the Spirit in the conversion of a Sinner which speaks to the Heart as well as the Word speaks to the Ear so that this work of the Spirit that goes along in Conversion is much more then any external perswasion of the preached Word can produce 3. We say it 's a peculiar work to difference it from what is common to the Hearers of the Gospel for it 's a work that is peculiar to them whom the Lord converts and is applied to none other but to those in whom He works Faith and whom He effectually calleth by His Grace It 's a peculiar work then and not common for if it were common to all the Hearers of the Gospel and not peculiar to some these two could not go together and be commensurable as we said Who hath believed our report and to whom is the arm of the Lord revealed 4. We say it 's a real work as well as powerful A real work of the Spirit that is not only able and powerful to produce the effect and to convert the Sinner but real and powerful in producing and bringing of it about and to pass by a real influence of the Spirit actually renewing the Will infusing and creating the habits of Grace particularly the very habit of Faith amongst others in the Soul which is quite an other thing then the supposing and saying that a Man hath power to Believe and be Converted that there is no more requisite to his Conversion but to perswade him to put forth that Power or Strength which he hath into Exercise or Practice It 's a real work of the Spirit and a powerful bringing about of the conversion of the Sinner in a physical way as they say in the School 5. We say it is an immediate work of the Spirit on the Heart to difference it from a mediate perswasion or moral swasion as it 's called as if there were no more requisite in Conversion but God's enlightening of the Mind and by that perswading the Will to close with Jesus Christ without any immediate work of the Spirit on the Will it self In this Doctrine we take in all these according to the Scripture in opposition to the several Errors vented by Men of corrupt Minds anent the work of Conversion and of Saving Faith God's Arm and Hand must be revealed the work and power of His efficacious Grace must be put forth for moving and enclining the Heart and Affections and for determining the Will it self We might farther clear and confirm all these from that famous instance of Lydia Act. 16.14 where Paul preaching to some Women it 's said of her Whose heart the Lord opened that she attended to the things which were spoken of Paul where we find these things differenced 1. The Lord 's powerful work on her heart from Paul's preaching to her Ear the Lord opened her Heart 2. It 's an inward work for it 's on the Heart 3. It 's a
peculiar work it 's not all who hear Paul preach whose Hearts are opened but it 's the Heart of one Lydia 4. It 's in the nature of it a real work that makes a real inward change on her 5. It 's an immediate work for the Lord not only enlightens her Judgment but goes down to the Heart and opens it and works a change in it immediatly Paul indeed by his preaching opens the way of Salvation to all that heard him from which though many go away with their Hearts unopened yet the Lord hath a secret mysterious real inward work on her Heart which is evidenced by the effect for He not only enlightens her Mind but makes her willingly yield to the call of the Gospel by opening of her Heart In the second place To speak a little for confirmation of the Doctrine we would consider these four or five Grounds or Reasons to shew that there is such a work of the Spirit wherever Faith is begotten and that most intelligibly in them that are at Age. 1. It 's clear from these places of Scripture where there is an express distinction and difference put betwixt the outward Ministry of the Word and this inward powerful efficacious work of Grace on the Heart and wherein the great weight of Conversion is laid on this inward work and not on the outward Ministry of the Word as Deut 29.4 where the Lord by Moses tells the People how many things they had seen and heard and yet says he The Lord hath not given you a heart to perceive and eyes to see and ears to hear unto this day They had the outward Means in plenty when they wanted in the mean time the inward Power The gift of a spiritual Life and the making them spiritually active to exerce it was with-holden and therefore they did not savingly perceive see nor â—ear Joh. 6.44 Murmure not among your selves no man can come to me except the Father which hath sent me draw him It 's written in the Prophets and they shall be all taught of God every man therefore that hath heard and learned of the Father cometh unto me where there is very clearly a distinction put betwixt the outward teaching and the Father's drawing betwixt the Ministers teaching and God's teaching It was one thing to be taught outwardly by Christ as the Prophet of His Church and another thing to be drawen and taught inwardly of the Father This inward teaching is called drawing to shew that it is not external Oratory or Eloquence consisting in words to perswade that can effect the business but a powerful draught of the Arm of the Lord reaching the Heart There are several other Scriptures full and clear to this purpose as Psal 110.3 and Acts 11.21 A second Ground of kin to the former Is from the many and various expressions that are used in the Scriptures for holding forth this work of the Spirit of God in Conversion that point out not only an Hand working and an work wrought but an inward powerful way of working and bringing about the woâ—k as Jeâ— 31.34 I will put my law in their inward parts and write it in their hearts Ezek. 11.19 I will give them one heart I will put a new spirit within them and will take away the stony heart out of their flesh Ezek. 36.26 27. A new heart will I give unto you and a new spirit will I put within you c. Jer. 32.40 I will put my fear in their heart that they shall not depart from me It 's called the Father's drawing John 6.44 as I shew In the Saints Prayers as Psal 51. it 's called even as to further degrees of this work or restoring of lost degrees creating of a clean heart and renewing a right spirit within And many moe the like expressions there are which shew not only Mans impotency and inability to convert or savingly to change himself but also that to his Conversion there is necessary an inward real peculiar efficacious powerful work of the Spirit of Grace 3. It 's clear and may be confirmed from the Power of God which He puts forth and applys in the begetting of Faith and in working Conversion It 's not a mediate work whereby He only perswades congruously as some love to speak but an immediate and efficacious work whereby with mighty Power He works Conversion It is God saith the Apostle Phil. 2 13. that worketh in you both to will and to do of his good pleasure and as he not only perswadeth but effectually worketh so he not only works on the Judgment to the enlightning of it but on the Will to encline and determine it by curing it of its crookedness and perversness backwardness obstinacy and rebellion and the Power whereby He worketh this great work is said Eph. 1.19 To be that same mighty power which he wrought in Christ when he raised him from the dead that ye may know saith the Apostle what is the exceeding greatness of his powâ—r to us-ward who believe according to the working of his mighty power which he wrought in Christ when he raised him from the dead and set him at his own right hand c. It is such a Power that works Faith and so exercised in the working of Faith as it was in the raising of Christ from the Dead Now could there be use for such a Power if there were no more requisite to Conversion but an objective swasion or a bare proposal of the object with external perswasion to embrace it wherein the Soul is left to it self to choise or refuse as it pleaseth certainly if there were no more considering our natural enmity at God â—nd His Grâ—ce the Devil and Corruption would have much more influence and a far greater stroak upon the Heart to closing up of the same in Unbelief then any outward perswasion would have as to the opening of the Heart and the begetting of Faith therefore His Power is necessarily called for and the Lord addeth it in converting Sinners else the work would for ever ly behind and if Men be spâ—ritually dead in Sins and Trespasses as all Men by Nature are as real a Power must be exerced in raising and quickening of them as there is exerced in raising and quickening of the Dead 4. It may also be cleared from some in whom this Power is exerced as some Children some deaf Persons and others whom we cannot deny to be reached by the Grace of God and yet there can be no other way how thâ—y are reached but by this effectual efficacious and immediate powerful work of the Spirit they not being capable of reasoning or perswasion by force of Argument We shall only add two Reasons further to confirm and some-way to clear why it is that the Lord works and must work thus distinctly inwardly really powerfully and immediatly in working Faith and converting of Sinners The first is drawen from the exceeding great deadness indisposition averness perversness impotency inability and
impossibility that is in us naturally for the exercising of Faith in Christ If Men naturally be dead in Sins and Trespasses if the Mind be blind if the Affections be quite disordered and if the Will be utterly corrupted and perverted then that which converts and changes and renues them must be a real inward peculiar immediate powerful work of the Spirit of God there being no inward seed of the Grace of God in them to be quickened that seed must be communicate to them and sowen in them ere they can believe which can be done by no less nor lower Power then this Power of God's Grace It 's not Oratory as I said nor excellency of Speech that will do it it 's such a work as begers the Man again and actually renews him The second is drawen from God's end in the way of giving Grace comunicating it to some and not to others If God's end in being gracious to sâ—me one and not to others be to commend His Grace solly and to make them alone in Grace common or debt then the work of Grace in Conversion must be peculiar and immediate and wrought by the Power of the Spirit of God leaving nothing to Man's Free-will to diffâ—rence himself from another or on which such an effect should depend But if we look to Scripture we will find that it's God's end in the whole way and conduct of His Grace in Election Redempâ—ion Calling Justification c. to commend His Grace solly and to stop all Mouths and to cut off all ground of boasting in the Creature as it is 2 Cor. 4.7 Who makes thee to differ from another and what hast thou that thou hast not received now if thou didst receive it why doest thou glory as if thou didst not receive This being certain that if the work of Grace in Conversion were not a distinct inward peculiar real immediate work and did not produce the effect of it self by its own strength and not by vertue of any thing in Man the Man would still be supposed to have had some Power for the work in himself and some way to have differenced himself from another but the Lord hath designed the contrary and therefore the work of Grace in Conversion must be suitable to his design Use 1. The first Use is for the refutation of several Errors and for the confirmation of a great Truth of the Gospel which we profess It serves I say First For the refutation of Errors which in such an Auditory we love not to insist on yet we cannot here the Ground being so clear and the Call so cogent forbear to say somewhat briâ—fly this way and the rather that the Devill hath taken many waâ—s and driven many dâ—signs to weaken the estimaâ—ion of God's Grace among Men and to exalt proud Nature and that there is here a collection and concatenation of these designs and ways against the Truth which this Doctrine holds forth vented by corrupt Men. As 1. They will have nothing to be necessarily applyed for the working of Conversion buâ— the preaching of the Word taking it for granâ—ed that all Men have universal or common Grace which God by His Soveraignty say they was obliged to give else he could not not reasonably require Faith of them and upon this comes in the pleaded for Power of Free-will and Mans ability to turn himself to God others by pleading for this notion of a Light within Men become to be Patrons of proud and petulant corrupt Nature as if there were need of nothing to beget Saving Faith but that common Grace within and Oratory or Swasion of Mouth from without And hence they came to maintain the foulest Errors which have not only been condemned by the Chuâ—ch of God in all Ages bâ—t have even by some Papists been abominated and many of these same Errors are creeping in even in these times wherein we live the design whereof is to tempt Folk to turn loose vain and proud and to turn the Grace of God into wantonness as if they needed not at all to depend on God and His Grace having a sufficient stock within themselves on which they can live well enough And it 's not only the Errors of Papists Pelagians Socinians Arminians or Errors in the Judgment that we have to do with but of such as overturn the very foundation of the work of Man's Salvation and who though pretending to higher notions do yet go beyond all these But if it be true that in the work of Conversion beside the preaching of the Word there is a distinct real inward peculiar immediate efficacious work of the Spirit necessary for bringing about such an effect Then there is no common and universal Grace that all the Hearers of the Gospel have nor is there any Power or Ability in Man to believe of himself otherwise there were no necessity of such a work as this for the converting of a Sinner the Prophet needed not to cry Who hath believed our report and to whom is the arm of the Lord revealed And Christ needed not say No man can come to me except the Father draw him for Men might come without drawing and believe without the revelation of God's Arm But in opposition to that we say and have made it clear that the work of Conversion is brought about by a distinct peculiar powerful real and immediate work of the Spirit on the Heart whereby he not only enlightens the Mind but renews the Will and rectifies the Affections 2. There is another Error that this refutes which seems to be more subtile for some will grant a necessary connexion betwixt the effect and the Grace of God who yet say that it is swasion or perswasion for here we take these for the same so and so trysted to prevail with some that brings about the effect or work of Conversion in them and not in others where that perswasion is not so trysted but this opinion lays not the weight of Conversion on the Arm of the Lord but on some circumstances accompanying the work and leaves still some ground of boasting in the Creature 3. A third Error which this Doctrine refutes is that of some others who will have Grace necessarily to go alongs with the Word in the working of Faith but so as it reacheth not the Will but that the Will necessarily determines it self as if the Will were not corrupt or as if that Corruption that is in the Will were indeed no Corruption as if that Corruption that is in the Will could be any more removed from the Will without the immediate work of the Spirit upon it then Darkness can be removed from the Judgment without the Spirits immediate work on it But seing the Will is the prime seat of Man's perversness while in Nature and the principal part to be renewed It 's a strange thing to say that in the work of Conversion other faculties and powers of the Soul must be renewed and yet that this which comes nearest to
the life of the Soul shoâ—ld be neglected or not stand in need of renovation But from this Text it is clear that in Conversion the Arm of the Lord must be revealed and that there is a powerful work of Grace that not only presents reasons from the Word to move the Will but really regenerates and renews the Will Now what is for the refutation of it these Errors serves also to confirm us in the Truth of the Doctrine opposite to these Errors 2. It serves to refute something in Folks Practice and that is their little sense of the need of Grace Most part come and hear Preaching as if they had the habit of Faith and as if it were natural to them and pretend to the exercise of Faith never once suspecting their want of Faith nor thinking that they stand in need of such a work of Grace to work it in them as if it were impossible for them not to Believe Hence many think that they have Grace enough and if they Pray it 's that they may do well never minding the corruption of Nature that is in them and indeed it is no wonder that such Persons fall readily into Error when their Practice says plainly they think they have Grace enough already The second Doctrine is That this distinct real inward efficacious powerful work of the Grace of God in Conversion is not common to all the Hearers of the Gospel but is a rare thing applied but to few it 's even as rare as Faith is And what we touched on to evidence the rarity of Faith will serve also to evidence the rarity of this work of Grace in Conversion It 's on as many as are Believers and are saved that the work of Grace is revealed and no moe Jer. 3.14 I will take one of a city and two of a family and bring you to Zion saith the Lord It 's two or three in the corner of a Paroch or in the end of a Town to speak so who are converted and the rest are suffered to ly in black Nature If the reason hereof be erquired after this might be sufficient to stop all Mouths which the Lord gives Mat. 11.28 Even so Father for so it seemeth good in thy sight It is of the Lord who is Debitor to none and who as it is Rom. 9.15 shews mercy on whom he will and whom he will he hardens and here we must be silent and lay our hand on our Mouth and answer no more all being found guilty He is just in what He doeth in calling or not calling effectually as He pleâ—seth And yet secondly The Lord hath thought good to call few of many for holy and wise ends As 1. To hold forth His own Soveraignty and that He is free and will walk freely in the dispencing of His own Grace Hence He not only takes few but ordinarily these that are the most mean contemptible silly and in a manner foolish of the multitude of Hearers It is not many noble not many wise according to the flesh not many rich not many learned that He chooseth and converteth very ordinarily He hides His Grace from these It 's but seldom that He calls and takes the stout and valiant Man and the learned Scholler but it 's this and that poor mean Man the Weaver the Shoomaker the simple Plough-man c. whom most ordinarily He calls when He suffers others to continue in their Sin 2. That He may make all the Hearers of the Gospel walk in holy fear and awe of Him He reveals His Grace in few It 's not the multitude that believes but here one and there one that all that have the Offer of Grace may fear lest they miss it and receive it in vain and may be careful to entertain and make right use of the Means of Grace and may withall cherish the Spirit in His motions and not grieve Him O! if ye knew and believed what a rare thing the work of the Spirit of Grace is ye would be feared to quench extinguish or put out any of His motions 3. As to the Godly He does thus To make them admire adore and praise His Grace and the Power of it so much the more The Uses are three 1. It serves to move all to reverence adore and admire the Grace of God and His soveraign way in it Presume not to debate or dispute with Him because there are few that believe and few that He hath determined His Grace for it 's an evidence of His dread a proof of His soveraignty in which he should be silently stooped unto and reverently adored and not disputed with we ought to bound all our reasoning within His good pleasure who might have taken many and left few or taken none as pleased Him And we should not think strange nor fret that the Gospel is powerful but on few here is the reason of it that may quiâ—t us the Lord hath determined effectually to câ—ll but few and yet he will not want one of His own All that the Father hath given to Christ shall come to Him though none come but as they are drawen in A thing that we should be sensible of but yet calm and quiet our Spirits rather wondering that He hath chosen and calleth one then fret because he hath past by many Use 2. The second Use is to exhort you that are Hearers of the Gospel and have not had this distinct and powerful work of Grace begetting Faith in you to be perswaded of this Truth that Faith and the work of Grace is no common thing The most part alace think that they have Grace and that it is not one of many that want it they will readily say it 's true I cannot believe of my self but God hath given me the Grace But I would ask you this question Do you think that Grace is so common a thing that it comes to you and ye never know how or so common that never a Body wants it If not how cometh it then to pass that ye think and speak of Grace as ye do we would think it a great length if many of you could be perswaded of your Gracelesness It 's not our part to point particularly at the Man and Woman though the deeds of many of you say within our Heart that there is no fear of God before your eyes and that many of you think ye have Grace who never had it And therefore we wouâ—d say these three or four words to you 1. Begin and suspect your selves that matters are not right betwixt God and you we bid none of you despair but we bid the most part of you be suspicious of your condition suspect nay be assured that Hypocrisie is not Grace and that your Presumption is not Faiâ—h for if but few get Grace then many should suspect themâ—elves and seing Grace is so rare a thing do not ye think it common 2. Neglect no means that may bring you through Grace to believe but be diligent in the
Grace of God exercised within Mens Hearts as well as the Word is preached outwardly to the Ear wherever Faith is begotten these two go together the Word without and the power of Grace within the one of which is distinct from the other 2. That this powerful internal and immediate work of Grace within is not common to all the Hearers of the Gospel but a rare and peculiar thing to some to whom is the arm of the Lord revealed it's but one or few of many to whom it 's revealed To these we have spoken already 3. The third is which indeed holds out the scope of all that there is an inseparable connexion betwixt these two the begetting of Faith in the Hearers of the Gospel and the application of this powerful work of the Grace of God for working of it so that where this powerful work of Grace is not there is never Faith nor Conversion wrought and where this powerful work of Grace is there is Faith and Conversion The Prophet makes them reciprocal and commensurable who is the Believer he to whom the Arm of the Lord is revealed and who is the Unbeliever he to whom the Arm of the Lord is not revealed These two are so conjoyned and knit together as they are never separated and so they must stand or fall together That we may be the more clear we shall take up the Doctrine in two distinct Branches The first whereof is That except the powerful work of God's Grace concur the most powerful preaching of the Gospel will never beget Faith in the Hearts of the Hearers of it The second is That where-ever this powerful work of Grace goes along with the preaching of the Gospel or wherever the Lord applyes His Grace with the Word preached there Faith is begotten in the Heart and that Soul is effectually united to Christ and savingly changed The one of these Branches serves to shew the necessity of God's Grace from the consideration of our sinfulness and impotency or inability and of the emptiness and ineffectualness of all outward Means in themselves and so to stop all Mens Mouthes as being utterly unable to contribute any thing to their own spiritual Good or Conversion that being the product of the Grace of God The other Branch serves mightily to commend the Grace of God as being the powerful Arm of the Lord that brings to Believe that calls and converts such and such Persons according to a prior engagement and transaction betwixt the Father and the Son As for the first of these It will easily be believed among Men and Women that have any true sense and feeling of the Corruption of their Nature and find dayly somewhat of the Law of the Members warring against the Law of the Mind and we are perswaded if all that ever received Faith were brought to depone in this matter they would bear witness that there is no Mean that without the effectual Power of the Grace of God can bring a stranger Sinner to close with Christ and believe on Him and if all that are now before the Throne of God in Heaven were called to speak to this great Truth they would put their seal to it and say Not unto us but to thy Name be the glory of our believing we had never believed if it had been left to the power of our own Free-will and if the power of thy Grace had not wrought in us the very Will as well as the Deed or Act of believing Yet because this Doctrine as we said serves to discover the sinfulness and impotency of Nature and how little we are obliged to our selves in this great work and to hold forth the absolute necessity of the Grace of God and how much we are obliged to it in the work of Faith and Conversion and to hold forth withall the emptiness and ineffectualness of all outward Means without this Grace and because it wants not its own considerable opposition from the enemies of the Truth we shall give you some Grounds for confirmation of it The first whereof is drawen from these express instances of Scripture wherein it is clear That there hath been much powerful Preaching and by the most eminent Preachers and yet the generality of People have been fruitless under it and their fruitlesness hath been brought to this very Ground to wit that the work of God's Grace and His out-stretched Arm went not along with it The first instance is Deut. 29.4 That Moses was a skilled Preacher who will deny he being faithful in all the House of God yet says he after much and long Preaching and after many Signs and Wonders wrought the Lord hath not given you an heart to perceive nor eyes to see nor ears to hear unto this day where he not only puts a difference betwixt the preaching of the Word without and the work of Grace within but shows the necessity of the concâ—rrence of the work of Grace and lays the great weight of the Peoples profiting or not profiting on the wanting or having of that A second instance is in this Prophet Isaiah were there any among all the Preachers before or since that preached in a more Evangelick strain then he did and yet when he hath complained of the paucity of Believers saying who hath believed our report he fixes and stays on this as the cause to whom is the arm of the Lord revealed And Chap. 6.9 10. he gives an account of the sad Commission he had from the Lord who said to him Go and tell the people Hear ye indeed but understand not and see ye indeed but perceive not make the heart of this people sat c. where there is also a clear distinction made betwixt the inward working of Grace and the outward Ministry A third instance and one that is beyond all exception is in our bless'd Lord Jesus who spake as never man spoke and preached with such power and life that even carnal Hearers wondered at the gracious words which proceeded out of his mouth for he preached with Authority and not as the Scribes and yet Joh. 6.44 when they begin to murmure at Him what says He Murmure not at these things none can come to me except the Father draw him none can Believe except the powerful Grace of God work Faith in him there must be a higher hand then ought ye see or hear a more powerful work then any external Preaching of mine as Prophet of my Church ere a Soul can believe on me and though his Hearers were not free of the guilt of this their Unbelief but had their own sinful accession unto their continuing in it yet our Lord looks in on the soveraign way and work of Grace and holds there telling them that his external Ministry will not do the turn but there must be an inward powerful immediate work of Grace for the working of Faith We add a fourth instance and it is of that chosen Vessel Paul who laboured more abundantly then all the rest of
the Apostles and yet when he is Preaching Acts 28.25 and some believed and others believed not before he dismisses the multitude he adds this one word Well spake the Holy Ghost by Isaiah the Prophet unto our fathers saying Go unto this People and say Hearing ye shall hear and shall not understand and seeing ye shall see and not perceive c. where he expressly differenceth his external Preaching from God's inward working and tells that so long as there was a judicial stroke on the Hearts of the People untaken away no external Preaching could do the turn as to their Conversion and bringing of them to Believe which he also does to guard against any offence that might be taken at the unsuccesfulness of his Ministry by any who would be ready to say what aileth these Folk that they will not receive the Gospel to whom he answers Isaiah long before told the reason of it to wit that there is a Plague on their Hearts and Minds which God must remove ere they can receive it 2. To these plain and clear instances we may add two or three Grounds or Reasons As 1. The exceeding greatness of the work of Conversion O how great and difficult is it Therefore it 's set out by the similitudes and expressions of raising the dead creating a new heart of removing the stony heart and the like all tending to set out the necessity of an omnipotent Power or a powerful work of Grace in the begetting of Souls to Christ and if it be so great a work what can the outward Ministry do if the Power of God be not added or what can the Man himself do here can a Mâ—n quicken raise creat or beget himself it's true these comparisons are not to be extended and and applied in every respect yet they hold out that Man being naturally dead can no more contribute to his own quickening and raising and to the bâ—getting of spiritual life in himself then a dead Mâ—n can contribute to his own quickening and raising to his natural life for which cause the Holy Ghost hath made choice of these expressions even to hold out the exceeding greatness of the work 2. Consider the condition that Mâ—n are in when this work is wrought and we will see they can contribute nothing to it thâ—t they have no aptitude for it except that they are subjects capable to be wrought upon being as it is Eph 2.1 dead in sins and trespasses being as to their Souls estate and as to their Spiritual condition like Adam's Body before the Lord breathed in it the Breath of Life and made him a living Soul as his Body could not move stir nor act till then no more can the Natural Man stir or act in the ways of God till a new principle of Spiritual Life be put in him To clear it further we would consider that the Scripture speaks of these three in the Natural Man 1. Of an utter inability and deadness as to that which is Good Dead in Sins Eph. 2.1 We are not sufficient saith the Apostle 2 Cor. 3.5 of our selves as of our selves to think any thing not so much as a good thought 2. The Scripture holds him out not only as unable for good but perverse and bent to every thing that is Evil Col. 1.21 Alienated and enemies in our minds by wicked works the carnal mind being enmity against God Rom. 8.7 it 's plainly opposite to any thing that is Good and so to the way of Faith 3. Man's Mind is not only naturally perverse and stuffed with Enmity but in an incapacity to be healed while it remaineth such Rom. 8.7 It is not subject to the law of God neither indeed can be and therefore in the work of Conversion there is not only an amending but also a renewing of our Nature called for there is more requisite then the rectifying of something in the Man even the creating of new Habits and the infusing of the Principles of Spiritual Life and Motion into the Soul It is true in some Sense the whole Image of God is not absolutely removed the faculties of the rational Soul still remain for Man hath an Understanding and a Will and some sort of Reason but without any tendency to Spiritual Life or to any action for God he hath an Understanding but it 's wholly darkened he hath a Will but wholly perverse and not in the least enclined to Good he hath Affections but wholly disordered and corrupted and set wholly upon wrong Objects so that it 's with Man's Soul as to Good as it is with spoiled Wine Wine when wholesome serves to cheer and refresh but when it 's spoiled it 's quite another thing not only not conducing to Health but it 's noisome and hurtful It 's just so we say with Man's Soul it 's by the Fall quite spoiled and corrupted it is not indeed annihilated or made to be nothing for it retains the same faculties still it hath to speak so the same quantity still but as to it's qualities it 's utterly corrupted and carried closs contrary to God it 's not subject to the law of God neither indeed can be and renovation by Grace is the taking away of the corrupt qualities in part in this Life and wholly in the other Life and the bringing in of new qualities for recovering the beauty of that Image of God which Man hath lost 4. Consider the end that God hath in the administration of His Grace and the Glory that He will needs have it getting in every gracious work and more especially in the work of Conversion and the silence as to any boasting that He will have all put unto that shall partake of it His end in the administration of His Grace is to bring down Pride to stop all Mouths and to remove all grounds of boasting from the Creature that He only may have the glory of Conversion that when ever that question is proposed What hast thou O man but what thou hast received and if thou hast received it why doest thou boast who made thee to differ from another the Soul may answer it was not external Preaching nor my own Free-will nor any thing in me but the power of God's Grace I have nothing but what I have received It is on this ground that the Apostle Phil. 2.12 13. presseth and encourageth Christians to their great work Work out saith he your own salvation in fear and trembling for it's God that worketh in you both to will and to do of his good pleasure the Lord leaveth not to Man the working of the Will in himself and of him saith the same Apostle 1 Cor. 30.31 are ye in Christ Jesus who is made of God unto us wisdom righteousness sanctification and redemption that he that glorieth should glory in the Lord as he said before vers 29. that no flesh should glory in his presence there is one ground of boasting that the Lord wiâ—l have removed in a Sinner's Justification and
obtaining the Pardon of Sin by the imputation of the Righteousness of Christ but there is another ground or matter of boasting that Man might have if he could reach out the Hand to believe and receive that Righteousness and so put difference betwixt himself and another which in Effectual Calling the Lord puts to silence and quite removes that Man may hâ—ve it to say I have not only Pardon of Sâ—n but Grace to Believe freely bestowed upon me God made me to differ and He only He opened my Heart as He did the Heart of Lydia Thus the Lord will have all the weight of the whole work of our Salvation lying on His Grace that the Mouths of all may be stopped and that His Grace may shine gloriously that we may have it to say with the Psalmist Psal 57.2 It 's the Lord that performs all things for me and with Paul 1 Tim. 1.13 14. I obtained mercy and the Grace of God was exceeding abundant towards me The Uses are these 1. It writes to us in great and legible Letters the great emptiness and sinfulness of all Flesh who not only do not good but have sinned themselves out of a capacity to do good all Men and Women have brought themselves thus lamentably low by Sin that now if Heaven were to be had by a wish sincerely and singly brought forth yet it is not in their power to perform that condition and though it now stands upon the streatching forth of the hand of Faith to receive Jesus Christ yet of themselves they cannot even do this how ought then Sinners to be deeply humbled who have brought themselves to this woful pass I am afraid that many of you do not believe that ye are such as cannot Believe nor do any Good till His Grace work effectually in you 2. It teacheth you not to idolize any instrument or mean of Grace how precious and promising soever No Preaching if it were of a Prophet or an Apostle yea of an Angel will do the turn without Grace come with it there is a necessity of the revelation of God's Arm and of the assistance of His Grace not only to your Conversion but to every duty ye go about Ye should therefore fear and tremble when ye go about any Ordinance lest the Arm of the Lord be not put forth in it 3. It should make you more serious in dealing with God for His effectual blessing to every Mean and Ordinance seing without that no Ordinance can profite you 4. It serves to reprove and repress Pride 〈◊〉 to promove Humility in all such who 〈◊〉 â—â—tten good by the Gospel Have ye Faith or any measure of Holiness what have ye but what ye have received from whence came your Faith and your Holiness ye have them not of your selves these are not Fruits that grow upon the Tree of Nature or in its Garden but on the Tree and in the Garden of Free-Grace and ye have not your selves to thank for them 5. The main Use of it is for confirming and establishing you in the Faith of the Truth proponed in the Doctrine and for confuting and overturning the contrary Error that as it were in contempt of the Grace of God exalts proud Nature and gives Man's Free-will so great a hand in the work of Conversion That the main thing that makes the difference shall not be attributed to the Grace of God but to the Free-will of the Creature which of it self choised the Grace of God offered when another rejected it It may indeed seem strange that the Devil should so far have prevailed with Christians that profess the Faith of Original Sin and of the necessity of a Saviour as to make them look at Grace as useless in this prime step of Conversion and renewing of a Sinner that when the Grace of God and Man's Free-will come to be compared Man's Will should have the preference and preheminence the highest place and commendation in the work and that the great weight of it should ly there and that proud Nature should be thus bolstered up that it shall stand in need of nothing for the Man's Conversion but the right use-making of what it hath in it self And yet it 's no wonder that the Devil drive this design vigorously for what shorter cut can there be taken by him to ruine Souls then to make them drink in this Error that Nature and Free-will will do their turn and so take them off from all dependance on Free-Grace and on Jesus Christ and give them ground of boasting in themselves for when it is thus of necessity they must ruine and perish this should sure make you loath this Error the more And we are perswaded that the day is coming wherein the Truth opposite to this Error shall be confirmed on the Souls and Consciences of all the Opposers of it and wherein the maintaining of this Error shall be found a confirmation of Mans Enmity at Gods Grace which is not subject to His Law nor indeed can be But there are three Questions that may be moved here to which we would speak a word 1. If the Preaching of the Gospel cannot beget Faith without the powerful work of Gods Graâ—e what is the use of the Gospel or wherefore serves it 2. If Men cannot Believe without the work of Grace which the Lord soveraignly dispenseth why doth He yet find fault and expostulate with Men for their not Believing 3. If Grace perform all and Men can make no mean effectual nor do any good without it what then should Men do to come by Believing and this work of His Grace For the first We shall not say much unto it only seing the Lord hath made choice of the Gospel to be the ordinary external Mean of Grace and of the begetting of Faith there is no reason to say that it 's useless for though it be not the main and only thing that turns the Sinner but the Lord hath reserved it to Himself as His own Prerogative to convert and change the Heart of a Rebel-sinner yet he hath appointed it to be made use of as He hath appointed Baptism and the Lords Supper for many good and notable ends uses and advantages that are reached and come by the preaching of it As 1. By it the Righteousness of God is manifested that before lay hid Ye may by the preaching of the Gospel come to the knowledge of the Covenant of Redemption and of the great design that the Lord hath laid down for bringing about the Salvation of lost Sinners Rom. 1.17 Therein is the righteousness of God revealed from Faith to Faith 2. By it the Lord revealeth the Duty He calleth for from Men as well as His Will concerning their Justification and Salvation He lets them know what is wrong what is right what displeaseth Him and what pleaseth Him Yea 3. By the preaching of the Gospel He holdeth out what Mens ability is or rather what is their inability and by His external Calling gives
them in it occasion to know this their inability in not giving obedience to His call and this is no small advantage when by it they have occasion to know the necessity of a Mediator and to seek after another way of Justication then by their own works for so it proves a notable mean to humble Men to stop their Mouths and to make them plead guilty before God 4. It 's profitable as the Lord is pleased to make use of it to call and gather in so many as He hath ordained to Eternal Life for though in it self it be not able to convert yet having the Power of God going along with it it is the instrument of Conversion and the Lord ordinarily makes use of it to the begetting of Faith in them that Believe as it is Rom. 10.17 Faith comes by hearing and hearing by the word of God preached and 1 Cor. 1.24 it 's called the power of God to salvation and it hath pleased God by the foolishness of preaching to save them that believe for though God can work without it yet He hath thought good to make use of it to inform the Judgment and to stir up the Affections of Hearers and so it proves instrumental to the begetting of Faith in them 5. If it do not promove the Salvation of all the Hearers of it yet it promoves it in all the Elect and serves to make others the more inexcusable and in this respect it triumphs always 2 Cor. 2.15 16. In some it is the savour of life unto life in others the savour of death unto death leaving them the more inexcusable and the more obnoxious to Wrath by their rejecting of the Counsel of God against themselves I know this will be excepted against We come therefore to consider the second Question which is this How can the Call of the Gospel make Men inexcusable seing they cannot without the effectual Power of the Grace of God Believe as Christ saith John 6.44 No man can come to me that is no Man can believe in me except the Father who hath sent me draw him yea why doth God find fault with Men for their Unbelief for answer it hath been no new thing for Men to start Questions and Objections against the Grace of God and to be always striving to rub affronts and disgrace upon it see Rom. 9.13 14 c. where this same Objection is started and answered again and again for when the Apostle hath said vers 13. Jacob have I loved and Esau have I hated the Objection is moved Is there unrighteousness with God then Folks readily think that there is a sort of unrighteousness in God when He takes one and leaves another especially considering that the leaving of the other infers though it be not any culpable cause of the ruine of the Mans Soul he answers first with a God forbid as if it were an absurd thing so to assert and then endeavours to answer it from Gods Soveraignty as being Debtor to none I will have mercy on whom I will have mercy and it 's not in him that willeth nor in him that runneth but in God that shews mercy In Gods administration of Grace He is Debtor to no Man nor hath He any rule by which He proceedeth but His own Soveraign Will and if it shall yet be said if God doth walk by His own Soveraign Will in giving Grace Why doth he yet find fault or condemn for who hath resisted his will Why is God angry that Men will not Believe since none can come to Christ against the Will of God His Indignation riseth at this proud and petulant Objection and He answers But who art thou O man that repliest against God shall the thing formed say to him that formed it why hast thou made me thus hath not the potter power over the clay to make of the same lump one vessel to honour and another to dishonour By the Apostle's doubling of this answer and his not setting of himself to satisfie carnal Reason and Curiosity there is ground given to silence us here It 's the Lord He is our Potter and we the Clay it 's He in whose Hand we are who can do us no wrong and this may sufficiently serve to put a stop to all reasoning and disputing against Him Yeâ— we may add a word further seing the Apostle proceeds to another Reason Therefore 2. Consider whence it is that this inability to believe or turn to God doth come not from God sure for if He had not made Man perfect there might be some ground for the Objection but seing He did make man upright and he hath sought out many inventions who is to be blamed hath the Lord lost His right to exact His Debt because Man hath played the Bankrupt and debauched and turned Dyvour and unable to pay doth not this very objecting prove us guilty and evidence that we have lost that which God gave to us and made us with at the Beginning When God made Adam he had power to believe and give God credit as to every word revealed or to be revealed and that now after the Fall he and his Posterity want that power they have not this privation from Gods creating of them but from their Fall they by their Fall utterly incapacitating themselves for these Duties that they owe to God and for this among the rest 3. If there were no more but simple inability among them that hear this Gospel they might have some pretext or ground of excuse though it were not any real nor just excuse as hath been shewed but it never comes to this as the only or main cause of their not Believing There is always some maliciousness perversness and pravity in the Will it 's not I cannot but I will not it 's a wiful and some way deliberate rejecting of the Gospel that is the ground of Folks not Beliâ—ving and what excuse I pray can ye have who do not believe the Gospel when it shall be found that ye maliciously and deliberatly choosed to reject it To make this out consider but these few things 1. Mens neglecting of the very outward Meaâ—s that through Gods blessing prove instrumental in the begetting of Faith as of Hearing Reading Prayer Meditation Self-searching stirring up themselves to Repentance c. whereby the Lord ordinarily brings about and furthers the work of Faith 2. Consider the carnal careless and lazy manner of Mens going about these Means and Duties which to their own conviction are within the reach of that power which they have ye might hear oftener and more attentively ye might pray more frequently and more seriously then often ye do ye want even much of that moral seririousness in Hearing Prayer Reading c. that ye have in other things of less concernment ye will hear a Proclamation at the Cross with more attention then a Preaching of the Gospel ye will hear a Threatning from Man with more fear then ye will hear a Threatning from God's
Word ye will be more serious in seeking somewhat from Man then in asking Grace from God the reason is because your Heart is more to the one nor to the other can ye then rationally think that ye are excusable when Believing is not a thing that is in your Heart and that takes you up but ye go about the Means that lead to it unconcernedly carelesly and negligently 3. Consider how often ye do willingly choose some other thing then Christ to spend your Time and set your Affections upon laying obstructions and bars in the way of Gods Grace setting up idols in the Heart and filling Christs room before hand with such things as are inconsistent with His Company and all this is done willingly and deliberately ye have said in your Hearts as these did Jer. 2.25 We have loved strangers and after them we will go and will ye or dare ye make that an excuse why ye could not come to Christ because your Hearts were taken up with your Lusts and Idols So then the matter will not hold here that ye were unable and had not power to believe but it will come to this that your Conscience will have it to say that ye willingly and deliberately choosed to ly still in your Unbelief and that ye preserred your Idols to Christ Jesus 4. Consider That sometimes ye have met with some more then an ordinary touch motion and work of the Spirit that hath been born in upon you which ye have slighted and neglected if not quenched and put out which is your great guilt before the Lord Is there any of you but now and then at Preaching or when in some great hazard or under sickness or some other sad cross ye have been under Convictions of Sin and have had some little glances of the hazard ye were in of the Wrath of God more then ordinarly ye had at other times and I would ask you have these been entertained and cherished or rather have they not been slighted and worn out by you and may ye not in this respect be charged with the guilt of resisting the Spirit of God and marring the work of your own Conversion and Salvation These things and many moe which will cry loud in the Consciences of Men and Women one day will quite remove and take away this objection that ye could not do better Ye might have done better then ye did ye might have abstained from many Evils that ye committed and done many Duties that ye ommitted and done them with more moral seriousness then ye did but ye were perverse and did willingly and deliberately choose to continue in your Natural condition rejecting Christ and the Offer of Salvation through Him This also serves to refute and remove that prophane Principle or Tenet that many have in their Minds and Mouths That they have no more Grace then God hath given them will ye dare to come before God in the great Day with any such Objection no certainly or if ye dare God will aggrege your guilt by it and beat it back again into your Throat then O! then all such Subterfuges will be no shelter to you before Him nor in the least able to insconce your Souls against the strong Batteries of the Wrath of God that will be as a Storm against the Wall SERMON XV. ISAIAH LIII I And to whom is the arm of the Lord revealed MInisters have not done with their work when they have preached and People have not done with their work when they have heard That which is of greatest concernment follows which either hath in the want of it influence on the sadning of both Ministers and People or in the obtaining of it on their Consolation This is the thing that we find Isaiah upon here who having preached the Gospel looks what Fruit it hath and when he beholds the general unfruitfulness it had in his own time and should have in our time it weights him exceedingly and indeed it 's very sad that Isaiah should be so much weighted in foreseeing the unfruitfulness of the Gospel in our days and that we our selves should be so little weighted with it and so sensless under it He casts in this word To whom is the arm of the Lord revealed partly to confirm the former word Who hath believed our report and partly to help to make the right use of it by drawing Men to the discovery of the Soveraign Hand of God in the matter and of the necessity of His Grace for making the Gospel effectual in the Hearers of it wherever it comes Who saith he hath believed our report To whom is this preached Gospel made effectual for Faith and Salvation It 's but to very few even to as many as have the Arm of the Lord the effectual Power of His special Grace revealed to them and no moe The last Doctrine we proposed and began to speak of as the Scope was That believing and receiving of the Gospel and the Lord 's exercing a powerful work of His Grace with it are ever still knit together they are of equal extent as many Believe as He stretcheth out His Hand of Power with the Word to work Faith in them and as many ly still in Unbelief as His Hand of Power is not revealed unto This is his Scope We took up this Doctrine in two Branches First That the most powerful Means cannot work nor beget Faith in the Hearers of the Gospel except there be an inward powerful work of Grace on their Hearts accompanying them and this we cleared and spoke a little to â—â—o Qâ—estions in the Use and left at a third to wit What the Hearers of the Gospel should do that have the Call and Offer of the Gospel seing without the effectual work of the Grace of God they cannot Believe which we shall forbear to speak to till we open the second Branch of the Doctrine because this Question relates to both The second Branch then of the Doctrine is That wherever the Lord applieth the powerful work of His Grace there necessarily Faith and Conversion follow or the stretching forth of God's Arm in the work of His Grace hath always the work of Faith and Conversion and the engaging of the Soul unto Jesus Christ following on it and indeed if it be true that we cleared bâ—fore to wit That there are as many Unbelievers as there are Persons on whom Grace doth not thus powerfully work or that they are all such that this work of Grace is not manifested on then the work of Conversion and Believing is as broad as this work of Grace is for the Prophet maketh them of equal extent who is he that believeth even he to whom the Arm of the Lord is revealed and on the contrary who is he that believeth not even he to whom the Arm of the Lord is not revealed and on whom this work of Grace is not manifested By which we may see it to be very clear that the Prophet hangs the Believing of
the Gospel on the Lord 's manifesting His Arm so that where it is not manifested this work of Faith is not brought forth and where it is manifested necessarily it is brought forth This being a Doctrine concerning the Efficacy of God's Grace which ought not to ly hid from the Lords People we shall a little first clear it and then secondly confirm it to you First For clearing of it's Meaning 1. Ye would not take up our meaning in it so as if we made every common work that lively means may have on the Hearers of the Gospel to be Conversion The preaching of the Word will sometimes make Folks tremble as we see in Felix and will waken Convictions and Terrors in them and put them into an amazement and yet leave them there for all these Convictions may be and often are resisted as to any Saving Fruit at least which we conceive to be that which Stephen points at Acts 7.51 while he saith Ye stiff-necked and uncircumcised in heart and ears ye do always resist the Holy Ghost as your fathers did so do ye and what he means by this is explained in the words following Which of the Prophets have not your fathers persecuted c. even their contending with the Word of the Lord in the mouths of His Servants Yea in that same place where it 's said that they gnashed upon him with their teeth it 's insinuated that they came over the belly of the cutting Conviction which his Preaching had upon them Nor do we 2. mean That every common operation of the Spirit whether illumination of the Mind or a touch on the Affections such as may be in Temporaries and Apostates as is clear Mat. 13.20 21. Heb. 6.4 and downward is Conversion There is a great difference betwixt a common work or gift of the Spirit which in a large Sense maâ— be câ—â—â—ed Grace because freely given anâ— the â—â—vâ—ng work of Grace which before 〈◊〉 â—â—â—â—eâ— a peculiar work And oft-times tâ—â—t câ—mmon operation of the Spirit is quenched and pâ—t out therefore the Apostle 1 Thess 5.19 exhorteth thus Quench not the Spirit 3. When we speak of an effectual bringing forth of Faith by this Grace of God we would not have you thinking that we suppose no reluctancy to be in the Man in so far as he is unrenewed for though where Grace effectually worketh Faith follows necessarily yet Corruption being in the Man it 's disposed and apt to thwart with and to oppose Grace and the Will hath its aversness to yield But the meaning of the Doctrine is this That though there be such a strong power of Corruption in the Man to whom Grace comes and on whom it is put forth yet the power of Grace is such that it powerfully masters and overcomes Corruption and wins the Heart to believe in and to engage with Christ though to speak so there be something within that strives to keep the door shut on Christ yet when it comes to that Cant. 5.3 He puts in his fingers by the holl of the lock and makes the myrrhe to drop the Heart is prevailed with so as it is effectually opened as the Heart of Lydia was to receive the Word that Paul preached Thus notwithstanding of Corruptions opposition Grace gains its point and the Lord never applys His Grace of purpose to gain a Soul but he prevails 4. When we speak of the power and effectualness of Grace in conquering and gaining the Heart and Will of the Sinner to believe in Jesus Christ we do not mean that there is any force or violence done to the Will or any exerting of a coactive power violenting the Will contrary to its essential property of freedom to close with Christ But this we mean that though Corruption be in the Heart yet Grace being infused and acted by the Spirit the pravity in the Will is sweetly cured and the Will is moved and made to Will willingly and upon choice by the power of the Spirit of Grace taking in that strong hold This great work is wrought by an omnipotent swavity and by a sweet omnipotency and it needs not at all seem strange for if Man in Nature be by the power of habitual Corruption made necessarily to will Evil so that notwithstanding he doth freely and willingly choose Evil why should it be thought strange oâ— absurd to say that when a principle of the Grace of God is infused into the Soul and acted by the Spirit of God If hath that much influence power and efficacy as to prevail with the Will it keeping still its own freedom to make it willing to embrace Jesus Christ and yet not at all thereby wrong that essential property of the Will sure Grace is as powerful as Corruption and the Lord is as dextrous a worker and can work as aggreeably to the nature of the Creature in this gracious work as the Creature can in its own sinful actings So then we say when the Lord is pleased to apply the work of His Grace to convert a Sinner that work is never frustrated but it always hath necessarily the work of Faith Renovation and Conversion following on the back of it Secondly We shall a little confirm the Doctrine and the grounds of Confirmation are these The 1. whereof is The express Scriptures wherein this Truth is asserted as John 6.44 45. It is said in the 44. Verse No man can come to me except the Father draw him and on the contrary it is as expressly set down vers 45. It is written in the Prophets they shall be all taught of God every man therefore that hath heard and learned of the Father cometh unto me and this being contradistinguished to external Preaching and being that which is called drawing v. 44. he knits Believing to it and makes Believing called coming a necessary effect of it that to whomsoever God gives that inward Lesson they shall come which confirms the Doctrine that whomsoever the Lord teaches and schools by His Grace and calls effectually they do necessarily Believe Another passage we have Phil. 2.12 13. Work out the work of your salvation in fear and trembling for it is God that worketh in you both to will and to do of his good pleasure where the Apostle makes the work of Grace not only to work ability to will and to do but to work also to will and to do actually and Grace never worketh to will and leaves the Man unwilling but necessarily supposeth the Man's closing willingly with Christ with whom He worketh thus A 2. Ground of confirmation is drawen from these Expressions whereby this work is set forth and the Promises comprehending it in God's Covenant wherein it 's called the giving of a new heart a heart of flesh the writing of the law in the heart the putting of his Spirit within his people and causing them to walk in his statutes c. Jer. 31.33 Ezek. 36.26 27. and it is impossible to conceive aright of the fulfilling of these
Promises without the including of the effect the giving of the new Heart is not only a perswading to Believe but the actual giving of the new Heart whereof Faith is a special part which Promise is peculiar to the Elect though the offer of it be more large and be further extended and what can that Promise of Gods writing the Law in the Heart be but an effectual inclining of the Heart to the Will of God or inward renovation contradistinguished to the external Ministry that can only hold out His Will in a Book and speak it to the Ear. 3. This may be cleared and confirmed from the nature of the work of Grace which is such a mighty work and so powerful as it is impossible it can be frustrated or disappointed unless we could say that Grace in God or the Grace of God is not so powerful as Corruption in us which were Blasphemy to this purpose the Apostle prayeth in behalf of the Christian Ephesians chap. 1.19 20. that they may know what is the exceeding greatness of his power to us-ward who believe according to the working of his mighty power which he wrought in Christ when he raised him from the dead he speaketh so in this high strain to set out both the exceeding stubbornness of our Nature that needs such a work and the exceeding great power of the Grace of God that worketh irresistably not only in the Conversion of the Elect at first but in all the after-acts of Believing so Eph. 3.7 the same Apostle hath it according to the gift of the Grace of God given unto me by the effectual working of his power and Col. 1.29 according to his working which worketh in me mightily The Power that worketh in Believers is Gods omnipotent Power which worketh effectually and mightily and if this Power be exercised in the continuing and promoving of Faith as is said before it must be much more exercised in the begetting of Faith yea and what need is there that He should exercise it if not for this end that where He exerciseth it it may also prevail A 4th ground of Confirmation may be drawen from the Lords great end which He hath before Him in this work and that is the gaining of glory to His Grace and to have the whole work of Conversion attributed to it and if this be His end He must and will prevail by His Grace in throughing the work in order to this end if it were left indifferent to Man to yield oâ— not to yield to God as he pleaseth the whole weight of the work of Conversion should not ly upon Grace Mans Mouth should not be stopped but when that question should be asked who hath made thee to differ and what hast thou O man but what thou hast received he should still have something to boast of and the work of his Conversion should at best be halfed betwixt Grace and his own Free-will this would necessarily follow if Grace did not through the work and so God should miss of His end A 5th ground of Confirmation is taken from the consideration of Gods Decree of the Covenant of Redemption betwixt Jehovah and the Mediator and of the Power and Wisdom of God in carrying on this work which we put together for brevities cause From all which it will be clear that there is and must be a necessary connexion betwixt the work of Grace on Believers and the Effect and that it is not in the power of Mans Free-will to resist it which indeed is not freedom but bondage 1. Then We say That if we consider the Decree of Election we will find that where Grace is applied Faith and Conversion must follow otherwise if the work of Grace were not effectual to convert Gods Decree should be suspended on the Creatures Free-will and be effectual or not effectual according as it pleased and is that any little matter to make His Decree depend upon and be effectual or not according to Man's pleasure that which sickereth His Decree and makes it infrustrably to take effect is that He hath effectual Means to bring about His Decree 2 If we consider the Covenant of Redemption betwixt Jehovah and the Mediator we will find that upon the one side the Mediator particularly undertaketh for them that are given to Him that He shall loss none of them and upon the other side we have to speak with reverence of the Majesty of God after the manner of Men the Father's Obligation to make such Persons in due time Believers that Christ the Mediator may see of the travel of His Soul and be satisfied according to that Promise made to Him Psal 110.3 In the day of thy power thy people shal be willing and that other Isa 53.11 He shall see of the travel of his soul and be satisfied by his knowledge shall my righteous servant justifie many c. and accordingly Himself saith John 6.37 All that the Father hath given to me shall come unto me where it is clear that these who are given must necessarily come and He also saith John 10.16 Other sheep have I which are not of this sold them also I must bring and it cannot be supposed without horrour and blasphemy that this determinate solid and sure transaction having all its midses included in it and being as to its end so peremptory shall as to these midses and that end and as to their throughing not be in Gods hand but in the hand of Mans Free-will if it were there O! how unsicker and loose would the bargain and God's design in begetting Faith and in bringing Souls through Grace to Glory be 3. If we consider the Lords Power in beginning and promoving and His Wisdom in carrying on of this work His Power whereby he raiseth the Dead and His Wisdom whereby He leads from Death to Life is it possible to conceive or imagine these to be applied by the Lord in the Conversion of a Sinner but this Doctrine must needs hold that the work of His Grace powerfully applied hath always Faith and Conversion following on it and that the Lord leaveth it not to the option of Elect Souls to believe or not to believe as they please He must not He cannot be frustrate of His end and design but He must bring them to a cordial closure with Christ by Faith in order to their Salvation Use 1. The first Use serves to fix you in the Faith of this great Truth and though we use not neither is it needful to trouble you with long Questions and Debates yet when the like of this Doctrine comes in our way especially in such a time wherein the pure Truths of God and this among the rest are troubled and called in question it is requisite that a word be spoken for your confirmation and establishment and we would hence have you fixed in the Faith of these two 1. Of the impotency of Nature in the beginning or promoving ought of the work of Grace which belongs to
the first branch of the Doctrine 2. Of the effectualness and irresistableness of Grace that wherever God begets and brings in a Soul He does it by His own powerful Grace and wherever He applies that work Faith and Conversion necessarily follow which belongs to the second branch of the Doctrine and we would the rather speak a little to this because it is questioned by the Enemies of the Grace of God then which there is nothing they set themselves more to dethrone and debase and to exalt and cry up Nature and Free-will as if it did sit on the Throne and Grace behoved to come and supplicate it and as if it might accept or reject its Bill at pleasure as to the Conversion of a Sinner In opposition to which this Doctrine holds good that wherever the Lord applies His Grace He effectually throughs the work of Faith and Conversion and there is no Soul that can utterly resist it and wherever the Lord applies this Grace the Grace that converts one cannot be frustrated by another These things we hold in opposition to the direct assertion of the Enemies of Grace whereby they make the work of Conversion not ultimatly to terminate on Grace but on Man's Free-will and how dangerous and damnable this Error is may easily appear For 1. It overturns and runs cross to the whole strain of the Gospel for if we loose but this one Pin in making Faith and Conversion not to depend on Grace but on Free-will then the whole Fabrick of Grace falls down flat then God should elect us because we were to elect Him contrary to the Scripture which tells us that He elects us not we Him and that our closing with Him by Faith depends on His electing of us It overturns our free Justification by Grace for supposing Faith comes in in Justification as it doth none being justified but by Faith and that Believing is of our selves and that it is in the power of Man's Free-will to close the Bargain all is not here of Grace our Justification is not free but some-way depends on Free-will It overturns the Perseverance of the Saints for if Believing depend on Free-will then our Perseverance depends on it also for if the Mans Free-will change he may fall back and break his neck in a manner at the very threshold of Heaven whereas if it be the work of Grace as indeed it is that brings forth Faith and carries it on and if this work of Grace cannot be frustrated or restrained by the malice and hardness of any Heart to which it is applied because it cures the hardness and removes that malice then certainly this Error cannot stand and we are perswaded when we plead thus for Grace we have the best end of the Debate and the surest Ground to go upon most for God's Honour and most for the comfort of Believers 2. This Error thwarts with the Glory of the Grace of God for it is an Error that strikes at the richest and most radiant Diamond of the Crown of the Glory of Christ it hangs Election and the effectualness of God's Decree as to effectual Calling Faith Justification and Perseverance on the Person himself and makes God and Christ to be in the Man 's common debt and reverence to make His Decree effectual whereas it is the glory of Grace to have all Flesh allanarly in its debt and common as having loved freely elected called justified sanctified and carried on the work of Grace til it end and be perfected in Glory freely which is the Song of the redeemed Rev. 1.5 6. Unto him who hath loved us and washed us from our sins in his own blood and hath made us kings and priests unto God and his Father to him be glory and dominion If eternal love be free then the expression or manifestation of it in making us Kings and Priests unto God is also free 3. This Error is exceeding destructive to the consolation of God's People Is it not a comfortless Doctrine that founds their Believing and Perseverance on their own Free-will if ye were to make the bargain of Grace whether would ye think it more comfortable and sure that the effectualness of Believing and Perseverance should hang on the Grace of God or on your own Free-will especially considering the pravity of your Will doleful would your condition be if Free-will were the Base or Foundation and God used no more but external perswasion how specious soever this opinion seem to be because it puts it in Mans option to believe and convert himself or not as he pleaseth yet it overturns the whole strain of the Gospel and quite eclipseth the glory of Grace and cuts the very throat of your Consolation and is the great ground of Popery Pelagianism and Arminianism to which ye would therefore so much the more advert and we do the rather speak to it that ye may be guarded against it and that ye may be setled in the Truth especially since the same Errors are a-reviving in another shape in these days as is manifest in that foolry of Quakers who talk of a Light within them and talk so of that Light as if it were of power sufficient to convert and guide them if it be not resisted As also that other conceit of being above Ordinances implys something of this same Error which ye would set your selves to abhor as that which the Devil is again labouring to sow the Seed of amongst us and labour to be confirmed in the Truth For if there be any truth at all in Christianity these are two main Truths the utter inability that is in Mens Hearts by Nature to exercise Faith in Christ and the efficacious and irresistible power of the Grace of God in the begetting of Faith where it is begotten which when we shall all appear before the Tribunal of God will be found to be so and none will have a Mouth opened to oppose them And what absurdity I pray is there here notwithstanding all the clamour of corrupt Men that God hath reserved this work of converting Sinners by His Grace to Himself and hath not put it in the hand of their own Free-will which supposeth Men to have a stock within themselves and hath many fearful effects following it tending to the depreciating of the Grace of God and to the drawing Men off from dependance on Christ and to the giving of them ground of boasting in themselves and of vanity and security all which this Doctrine of Gods Grace overthrows and stops the Mouth of the Creature from all vain boasting to the high exaltation of Gods free soveraign and efficacious Grace and to the great comfort of His People Use 3. The second Use serves to commend the Grace of God to the Hearers of the Gospel and especially to Believers There cannot be a greater commendation given to it than this that it works effectually and indeed it could not be called Grace I mean Saving Grace if it should want this effect even to
save such as it is applied to but this highly commends Grace that if there be mighty Corruption in us there is a strong arm of Grace put forth by Him for perfiting of that which concerns us notwithstanding of this great strength of Corruption And if ye think your selves not to be Believers and think this Doctrine to be hard that ye cannot Believe without this Grace and yet would fain Believe consider that as none can believe neither can Believers stand without Grace so Grace can help you to do that which ye cannot do which is the commendation of Grace and should make it more lovely to you this gives encouragement to any poor Soul that is as it were in the place of the breaking forth of Children and layeth greater ground of confidence that they shall come speed than if they had it in their own hand and serves to obviat that grand objection of Souls that would fain be at closing with Christ and cannot come to Him here is a powerful Arm reached forth to draw them Use 3. The third Use serves to humble Believers who have any thing of the work of Grace and so to work them up to thankfulness to Him that hath communicate ought of it to them Is there any of you that have Grace who hath made you to differ from others it was not your selves but free Grace and therefore ye have reason to acknowledge it with thankfulness and to say if this same Doctrine had not been true I would have been a stranger to God all my days and remained under the dominion of Satan and Sin with these that are in Nature and with David Psal 16.7 to say I bless the Lord who hath given me counsel my reins also instruct me in the night seasons This counsel was not the common advice that all got from the Word preached but the inward counsel of the Spirit that made his reins Instruct him and made him inwardly to follow the advice that the Word gave him outwardly and it is this inward work of the Spirit that keeps in the life of Grace as well as begets it as it is Psal 73.23 24. Nevertheless I am continually with thee thou hast holden me by my right hand thou shalt guide me with thy counsel and afterward receive me to glory whom have I in heaven but thee c. my flesh and my heart faileth but God is the strength of my heart and my portion for ever the Psalmist glorieth in this that the work of his throw-bearing did not depend on his own flesh and heart but on God who was the strength of his heart and his portion for ever If Believers would consider what they were in their natural condition and how much they are obliged to the Grace of God that with power was applied in their Conversion it would stop their Mouth as to boasting make them admire Grace and sound forth its praise And they would think Graces sweet way of prevailing to be no co-active forcing of their Will but the greatest part of their freedom and so far would it be from being look'd on as a violenting or wronging of their Will that it would be esteemed their truest and greatest liberty We are perswaded that the Saints in Heaven count it no bondage that God hath so fully fred them from all Corruption that they serve Him with delight and do so necessarily and shall any sojourning-Saints here below count it a wronging of their Will that God takes such pains on them to subdue Corruption and to bring them to some measure of conformity to them who are above God forbid Use 4. The fourth Use of it is To let us see what great ground of encouragement there is here for the Hearers of the Gospel to set about the work of Believing and what ground there is to make them all utterly inexcusable who shall continue in their Unbelief which may be thought somewhat strange when we say that no means can be effectual for working of Faith wâ—thout the effectual Grace of God be applied But let these two be put together 1. That though we be insufficient of our selves and though all outward means be of themselves ineffectual that yet there is a sufficiency in the Grace of God And 2. That this Grace shall be powerful to work Faith in the Hearers of the Gospel if they make not themselves guilty of frustrating this Grace in the offer of it as they may do These then who will not believe will be found most inexcusable But to return to the main intent of this Use We say that the encouragement lies here that though we be unable we have an able Mediator and Grace is powerful and therefore we should with the greater encouragement set about the work of Believing as the Apostle reasons Phil. 2.12 13. Work out your own salvation with fear and trembling for it's God that worketh in you both to will and to do of his good pleasure Ye might possibly think it had been more encouraging to have said ye are able of your selves to will and to do but certainly Grace is a more encouraging motive then any thing in the Creature say not then ye cannot will nor do for that excuse is taken away by God's offering to work both in you by His Grace But let me exhort all both these that are begun to be Believers and these that are to begin to believe to be so far from disputing themselves from it as that they rather encourage themselves to work out the work of their own Salvation with fear and trembling because God's Grace which ye have in your offer is so powerful to work the work and will admit of no utter opposition from Corruption in you if ye receive not the Grace of God in vain that is offered to you in the Gospel If Grace were so weak as we might cast it back at our pleasure and if it were but a helper in the work of Faith and Conversion as Arminians make it what encouragement could we have from it and as to Practice is not this Doctrine as encouraging what advantage or comfort is it to undertake any thing in our own strength which is none at all is not this much more encouraging to undertake in the strength of Gods Grace knowing that the same work of Grace that begets Faith is as effectual to carry it on and to make us to persevere in it and to enable us to every good word and work let Grace work then and take a proof of it and ye shall find it powerful The Lord Himself give you wisdom so to do for your Salvation and Consolation SERMON XVI ISAIAH LIII I And to whom is the arm of the Lord revealed IT 's much to walk evenly and stedfastly under the pure Doctrine of Grace and neither there-from to take occasion to give way to loosness and carnal liberty nor to become faint and discouraged and fearful at the way of God corrupt Nature is ready to abuse the
best things That word which we have 2 Pet. 3.16 that there are many that wrest and pervert the Scriptures to their own destruction holds true not only of doctrinal Heresies but it holds also true in respect of Mens Practice or practical Errours for some hearing of the impotency of Nature and of the power and perfection of Grace in bringing about its designed effect are ready to think that they need to do nothing alledging that if Grace undertake the work it will be wrought and if not it will not be wrought and thus Atheism and Prophanity steal in secretly upon the Heart and the sweet Doctrine of Grace is abused and perverted by such to their own destruction There are others again who it may be will not dare so to top with God who yet have their own fainting and discouragement when they hear of this Doctrine and think it hard that they themselves can do nothing and fear that they will never win to believe because they cannot do it of themselves these also fail and make not the right use of Grace Ye remember the Question which we proposed to speak a little to on the last Doctrine to wit That seing both these branches of it are true That except Grace concur the most powerful preaching of the Gospel will not beget Faith and that wherever the work of Grace goes along with the Gospel there Faith is begotten what is called for from the Hearers of the Gospel as the Use of this Doctrine Bâ—fore we come to answer this Question more particularly we would 1. Premit this word in general That none would account the Preaching or Hearing of the Word of God to be useless or fruitless albeit that without the work of Grace Men cannot yield the Fruit which it callâ—th for from them for our blessed Lord Jesus Isaiah and Paul preached this Doctrine of Grace and the necessity of the Lords Arm to be revealed in the Conversion of Souls and yet they taught the Word in season and out of season and were gathering in some and to some this Doctrine was made the savour of life unto â—ife though to others through their enmity and corruption it became the savour of death unto death To conclude therefore the inconsistency or to deny the consistency of these two to wit Of the necessity of Preaching the Doctrine of Grace and of the pressing in Preaching the practice of holy Duties and the use of ordinary appointed Mâ—ans would reach this dreadful length even to condemn the Prophets of old yea and our blessed Lord Jesus Himself who says John 6.44 after He h d preached long No man can come to me exâ—ept the Father who hath sent me draw him and vers 65 Therefore I said unto you that no man can come to me unless it be given him of my Father And will any think that His Hearers who accounted this with some others Hard sayings and from that time went back and walked no more with him were excusable in their doing so or that His Preaching was useless needless or impertinent as having a tendency to tempt Men to abandone all use of Means because He preached this Doctrine of the impossibility of believing in Him without this pull and draught of His Fathers Arm But secondly We shall a little more particularly in answer to the Question speak First To what Uses Folk would not make of this Doctrine or what things they would abstain from as tending to a wrong use of it Secondly To some Considerations for pressing this Doctrine and removing from it the construction of hardness that we are ready to put upon it Thirdly To what is the native Use it calls for And Lastly to some Considerations to press this For the first When we say to all that hears this Gospel that there is a necessity of a powerful work of Grace ere this Word can be profitable ye would 1. Abstain from and lay aside curiosity in seeking satisfying Answers to all these Objections that are moved against it and absurdities that it 's loaded with by the Devil and Mans proud Nature and learn to stoop to and reverence the soveraign Dominion of God and His deep and unsearchable Wisdom and Knowledge in this soveraign way of His Grace as the Apostle doth Rom. 11.33 O the depth of the riches both of the wisdom and knowledge of God how unsearchable are his judgments and his ways past finding out ye would also consider that other word Rom. 9.20 Who art thou that repliest against God or expostulateth with Him Shall the thing formed say to him that formed it why hast thou made me thus It 's good to enquire and to seek to know the use the Lord calls for of this Doctrine with sobriety but there is an enquiring to satisfie curiosity which the Lord abhorreth as we may gather from Exod. 19 21. where the Lord being to deliver His â—â—â—l saith to Moses Go down charge the people 〈◊〉 word of peremptory command left they break thorow unto the Lord to gaze and many of them perish The Lord is not displeased that His People should endeavour to behold and take Him up aright but when their end is not good but to satisfie an itch of Curiosity it displeaseth Him This may be useful in many cases and particularly in this we have in hand to teach us sobriety in seeking to know the way of God's Grace as the Lord would have His People Exod. 19. waiting for as much of His Mind as He thought fit to acquaint them with and to write on the two Tables of Stone but He would not have them breaking in over the Boundary or March which He did set to them lest He should break thorow on them and they should be made to perish So would He have Men in their studying the knowledge of His Ways and particularly of the way of His Grace to keep His Measures and to contain themselves within the limits that He pleaseth to set to them 2. Abstain from carnal freting at and expostulating with the way of God whether in the highest degree of upbraiding Grace and snarling at it that ye should not have the Stock in your own hand or in an inferior degree having a Heart inwardly discontent that ye are not more able of your selves then ye are to believe which is the thing that the Apostle opposeth Rom. 9.20 21. Should the thing formed say to him that formed it why hast thou made me thus Hath not the potter power over the clay c. especially since none can answer that question with any just reflection upon God who is to be blamed for that defect or inability or whence did that inability or defect in Mans Nature proceed God was gracious free and liberal in making Man perfect and whose Fault is it that it is otherways 3. Abstain from and beware of drawing desperate conclusions as to the giving over the use of the Means or of becoming more lazy and secure in the duties of Holiness and
in the practice of Piety because of the necessity of this Grace but on the contrary be the more diligent and serious that ye have so much need of Grace and that of your selves ye can do so little or rather nothing that is truly good without it I know that prophane Hearts are very fertile and broody of Arguments to plead this point of neglect of Means and will readily say what is the fruit of diligence and the prejudice of laziness the one will do us no good and the other can do us no ill seing it's Grace that doth all the work But 1. By your laziness ye mar your own fruitfulness and that through your own fault and make this addition to your guilt that ye not only continue graceless but do so through your sin wilfully 2. Ye may draw on to your natural impotency habitual and judicial hardness of Heart and blindness of Mind it 's on this very ground that many Ears are made heavy many Eyes made blind and many Hearts made fat and is that a little or light matter 3. Though ye may think this little yet that which will bear the weight of your sentence at the Day of Judgment will not be your natural impotency or that Gâ—ace was not made efficacious to yâ—ur Conversion but this will be it that when God sent out His Word to win you and offered His Grace for inabling you to yield ye did maliciously and deliberatly reject it So that it will never be suffered to come to this I was unable because the Word was wilfully rejected before it came to this But secondly Because there are some others possibly that have more seriousness in the use of Means who though they dare not quarrel with Grace yet it weights and discourâ—ges them because they can do so little and they are made heartless to essay and hopeless to come speed and it may be that this is in some whom the Lord allows not to draw any such conclusion but would rather have encouraged we would say to such that they would beware of fainting or being discouraged as if that were impossible to God and His Grace which is impossible to them they would by all means beware of sitting up and â—ackning their hand in Duty because they can do so little We know there are some that need not much to be spoken to for satisfying of them in this point but there are others who are weighted with this Doctrine to whom the Lord allows more tender usage and would not have them to faint nor be discouraged you that are such if any be may know that there is ground for us to press this and that we may remove the construction of hardness from this soveraign way of Gods Grace wherein He hath thought fit to draw Men unto an absolute dependance on Himself In the dispensing of it we shall propose these few Considerations 1. That which was hinted at before never a Man that hath heard this Gospel when he comes to count with God shall have it to say that the reason why he did not receive and embrace it was his impotency and inability but the real reason shall be found to be his wilful rejecting of it and upon the contrary it shall be found that there was never one that would in earnest have had strength to run the way of Gods Commandments and Faith to grip to and embrace Jesus Christ offered in this Gospel that for want of ability came short and if so what reason is there to complain if none want Faith but such as would not have Him and if none that would have Him can complain of their want of Him upon these two we have great ground of encouragement to them that have a sincere affection to be at Him and there is no ground for Folk to sit up or fall lazy in pursuing after union and communion with Him in the use of Means None shall have cause to complain of their want of Him but such as with their own consent gave Him over and any that would fain have had Him shall not miss Him for this real willingness to close with Christ being a work of the Grace of God and it being no less power that works this Will than the power which doth effectuate the work of Conversion and bring it to perfection He that begins the work will perfect it according to His Promise seing there is nothing that He does begin but He does perfect it and therefore in this case Folk had more need to reflect upon their willingness to have Christ and to close with Him on His own terms than to dispute their impotency and inability 2. Consider what they have been whom the Lord hath brought thorow were they not such as had as much need of Grace as ye have had they not the same corrupt Nature that ye have were they not as impotent and unable to do for themselves could any of themselves do more than ye can consider them all that are before the Throne was it not this same Grace of God and not their good Nature nor their Free-will that did the work and they were not expressly or by name included in the Promises more than ye are and ye are not expressly excluded more than they were the Lord brought forward the work of Grace in them that same way that He dealeth with you by the preaching of His Word He brought them first to know their sinfulness impotency and weakness to know that there was need of a Saviour that their Salvation was not of themselves neither was it in them to make right use of the Saviour and Salvation offered but in the power of His Grace and what if He be doing so to thee and if that condition be hard and hopeless now it had been a hopeless and hard condition to these many that are now before the Throne 3. Consider That there is no question but Grace is effectual to carry on the work and to make it go thorow all the difficulty and dissatisfaction is because God keeps the application in His own Hand which the Man's Heart would have in its Hand and which of them do ye think is most sure and encouraging all your fainting and discouragement resolveth in this because ye can do so little If ye be in good earnest desirous to have Grace throughing the work of Faith and Conversion would ye possibly make choise of another or better Hand than God's to put it in is it not as suitable and sure that His Wisdom should contrive and lay down the way as it is to His Power to set it forward and to the freedom of His Grace to make application of it and all more suitable and sure than if it were in your own Hand may ye not think shame to be discouraged on this ground because any thing ye do ye must needs get it from God and that that should be an obstruction in the way of Godliness which is a main encouragement to it
is enough in God and in His Grâ—ce to do their turn How is it then or what can be the reason that we in our Hearts do draw the just contrary conclusion to that which the Spirit of God draws here from this ground when we have the offer of Grace and hear of the power and efficacy of it it should as to our part provoke us to be more busie reasoning thus with our selves that though our Corruption will soon overcome us yet it wi l not it cannot overcome Grace and though the exercise of Faith be above our reach yet it is not above the reach of Grace though we be weak yet Grace is strong and therefore we will work it out And upon the other side we ought to conâ—inue humble and in fear and trembling work it out bâ—cause it 's not we but Grace that doth the work If Grace were well considered there is nothing that would more strâ—ngthen Folks hands to work and upon the other hand there is nothing that would make Folks more watchful and to walk in holy fear considering that we are poor Beggers and thorow our unwatchfulness or conceit and presumption may mar the outlettings of His Grace especially if we grow secure and ungrately forget what we receive from Him 2. I come now to some steps or particular directions implied in this Use because it will be asked What then should Folk do And before I touch on particulars take these two Caveâ—ts in the entry to them 1. That we can propose nothing to be done by you nâ—ither can ye do any thing of your selves that is a gracious act or deed 2. That we understand not that any thing can be done by Men in their Natural state that doth infer or procure and far less deserve the giving of Grace to any but seing God hath given direction to us how to walk in order to the working out of our Salvation we say 1. That it 's safe to us to walk in the way He hath directed us to walk in and in the use of the Means He hath prescribed and much more safe then to lay them aside 2. That there is greater suitableness betwixt the use of the Means and the finding of Grace then there is betwixt the neglect of Means and the finding of it 3. That it aggrees well with Gods way in bringing about the Conversion of Sinners to bring them piece and piece forward sometimes bringing them to the use of external Means and to the performance of outward Duties sometimes convincing them of Sin and letting them see their need of Christ sometimes discovering the worth that is in Christ and bringing them to fall in love with Him ere they actually close with Him and making them in their practice to follow any peep or glimmering of light that is let out to them and to go the length that light discovereth the way and makes it plain as to their duty Now for particular Directions we would 1. Bid you study to be fixed and established in the Faith of these general Truths that relate to Mans Sinfulness and Misery and Insufficiency in Himself that in us that is in ouâ— flâ—sh dwelleth no good thing that naturally we are dead in Sins and Trespasses and cannot quicken our selves and in the Faith of the necessity and powerfulness of Grace and that it 's Christ that must give and work Faith and that Grace can do the turn and prevail where it is put on work ye would also consider and believe the great hazard of missing Grace and the advantage that cometh by it ye would meditate on these things and on the Scriptures that hold them out and on the experiences of the Saints that confirm them that ye may not only have a glance and transient view of them but may be confirmed in the Faith of the truth of them 2. Content not your selves with a general Faith of the truâ—h of this Doctrine but labour to be suitably affected with these things that ye believe and though every affectedness be not special Grace yet I speak to them that are ready to lay the blame and fault on the Grace of God and yet were never affected with their own gracelesness Ye would study to be affected with the gracelesness of your Nature and let it put you to some sanctified disquiet and trouble till with Ephraim ye be made to smite upon your thigh and till ye be put to a holy deliberation and consultation about your own condition a Man that is under the hazard of a civil penalty will think on it again and again it will affect him and he will not be at rest till he be without the reach of it much more should ye be with the hazard that your Souls are in through Sin ye are not excusable so long as ye come not this length 3. Add to this Diligence in the use of all outward Means and Duties whereby and wherein the Lord useth to communicate His Grace abounding always in the work of the Lord as the Apostle exhorteth 1 Cor. 15.58 Be diligent in secret Prayer Reading Meditation Conference Self-examination Hearing keeping good Company and the like which indeed Hypocrites may do yet they cease not for that to be Duties 4. Be sincere and serious in the use and performance of these Means and Duties that which I mean is a moral sincerity and seriousness such as a Man will readily have in a civil Cause that he hath depending before a civil Judge or in hearing of News or the like which is a thing that may be and is often found in Men that are void of a principle of Grace and yet Folk are very often defective in this and make themselves exceeding guilty before God because they come not this length 5. Take heed and beware of entertaining any thing that holds and bars out Grace or of doing any thing that may mar or quench the working or moving of Grace If ye cannot get Christ entertained in your Heart as ye should be sure to give it to no other if ye cannot get Corruption thrust out nor mortified watch against the rising or harbouring of that which ye know to be Corruption and against the incoming or rising of such evils as ye know will keep or put away the Beloved guard also against the neglecting of such Means as by the neglect whereof ye may grieve His Spirit 6. Study and seek after a composed frame of Spirit in your ordinary walk and especially in Duties of Worship Carnal Mirth and Jollity loose Company and suffering the Heart to go a whoring after the things of the World do not only provoke Christ as they are sins but indispose us for Duty and mar the exercise of Grace where it is and keep it back where it is not therefore the wise man saith Eccles 7.3 that sorrow is better then laughter for by the sadness of the countenance the heart is made better carnal Sorrow is not to be commended but sober sadness or a
grave and composed frame of Spirit is better then a light and unsettled frame it being very hard if not impossible to keep the Heart right even where there is Grace but where there is some counterpoise or wither-weight and it must be far more impossible to keep it right where the work of Grace is not or but in the very first beginnings of it and though I do not call this composedness of frame Grace yet it keeps Folk in some capacity as it were to receive Grace It 's said Lam. 3.27 28. That it 's good for a man that he bear the yoke in his youth he sitteth alone and keepeth silence because he hath born it upon him he puts his mouth in the dust if so be there may be hope for though Crosses are not always blessed to Conversion yet we may see now and then that sad times are the beginnings of better times and even in Hypocrites their sad times ordinâ—rily are their best times I neither desire nor allow any to bring Crosâ—es upon themselves yet I would desire all to make the best use of any Cross they are under and to be acquainting themselves with their Sin and Infirmities and with their Hazard and with such other things as may weight and compose them without fostering discouragement and aâ—xiety and to love as well to speak and hear such things spoken of as may provoke to sighing and sadness as these that may provoke to laughter I said of laughter saith Solomon Eccles 2.2 it is mad and of mirth what doth it and Prov. 14.13 Even in laughter the heart is sorrowful and the end of that mirth is heaviness though oft times our Laughter may not be so sinful yet it readily more indisposeth us for any spiritual Duty then Sorrow doth the Heart is like a Clock whereof when the inner wheels are set a reeling it is not soon righted and setled 7. I would propose Ephraim's example to you Jer. 31.18 19. and desire that ye would in the fight and sense ye have of your sinfulness weakness fecklesness be bemoaning your selves and your sad condition to God putting up that Prayer to Him Turn thou me and I shall be turned These words flowing from suitable sense are good and then follows after that I was turned I repented It 's observable that in the very entry he is graciously taken notice of by the Lord Surely I have beard Ephraim bemoaning himself thus so it is with God's People when they consider how great Strangers they have been to God how sinful and stubborn and how impossible it is for them to mend themselves of themselves they retire themselves into some corner and there bemoane their case and cry out O! what a sinful nature is this and when will it be got amended I am as a bullock unaccustomed to the yoke says Ephraim and the Lord tells He heard and observed it when possibly he thought he was scarcely if at all Praying but rather sighing out as it were a short ejâ—culation to God O! that I were amended the last word of his Prayer is Turn thou me and I shall be turned or convert me and I shall be converted he sees that when all is done he must cleanse his hands and leave the matter to God I cannot but thou canst work the work and it ends sweetly in words of Faith for thou art the Lord my God and where words of Faith are after serious exercise that exercise hath oft times Faith going alongs with it hence are these words Lam. 3.20 If so be there may be hope Psal 119 Incline mine heart open mine eyes c. and Luk. 9.13 How much more will your heavenly Father give his Holy Spirit to them that ask him it's good to pray for the efficacy of Grace and to offer our selves Subjects to be wrought upon and Objects to receive what Grace offers to us As we began these Directions with a word of Caution so we would close them Do not think that these things in a Natural Man following this sinful course will bring forth Grace neither conclude that where these things only are discerned and no more in some Persons that there Grace is wanting it being to help such forward that we mainly speak to them Only in sum 1. Keep clean and clear the Light ye have 2. Improve the strength bestowed And 3. What ye have not put it over on God and seek from Him who hath Grace to give for working that in you and it would seem that in reason ye should refuse none of these three 1. We say Keep clean and clear your Light for if ye detain the Truth of God in unrighteousness and make as it were a Prisoner of it by setting a guard of corrupt Affections about it ye may bring on blindess 2. Improve what strength ye have for if ye improve not your strength were it but in Natural parts and endowments that makes you inexcusable when Spiritual and gracious qualifications are denied to you for ye have procured this to your selves are there not many things that ye thought your selves able for that ye never seriously once essayed much more might have been done as to Repentance Love to God Charity to others and the like and when ye have not stretched your selves to the yondmost in these there are sure many things left undone that ye might have done 3. What ye dow not do or find your selves unable to do put it on God to do for you seriously humbly singly and self-deniedly for if ye come not to God with that which ye are unequal and unable for ye are still on this side your duty and without excuse Take these then together Improve any strength ye have according to any measure of Light God hath given you and coming to God through Jesus Christ seek that ye want from him and leave the acceptation of your Persons and of your Performances on Him This is the result of all that we have spoken of this Doctrine of Grace that ye may not take occasion from the way of Gods dispencing Grace to continue graceless which if ye do it will be ground of a most grievous challenge against you but that ye may see an excellent consistency betwixt the soveraignty of Grace and your going about the means appointed of God in order to Faith and Conversion and the study of Holiness and that ye may go on in the use of these Means with an Eye to Grace in the sense of your own insufficiency to think as of your selves so much as a good thought leaving all your Duties at Christ's feet walking before him with a stopped Mouth when any thing is wanting standing at his Door and begging it from him and when any thing is received cleansing to say so your own Hands of it and giving him all the Thanks Praise and Glory of it To him be Praise for ever SERMON XVII ISAIAH LIII II III. Verse 2. For he shall grow up before him as a tender plant
so that as he himself saith Luke 24.26 O fools and slow of heart to believe all that the Prophets have spoken ought not Christ to have suffered these things and to have entered into his glory therefore he behoved to be in an Agony and to sweat great drops of Blood to be crucified and die and to be laid in the Grave 2. These things which we call accidentally due to Sin are mainly two 1. That horrible desperation of the damned in Heâ—l where they gnaw their tongues for pain and blaspheme God This we say is not properly and essentially the desert of Sin but only accidental 1. In respect of the Creatures inability to bear the wrath that Sin deserveth and hence ariseth not only a sinless horrour which is natural but a sinful desperation 2. Add to this inability of the Creature the enmity thereof whereby it cometh to thwart with and contradict the will of God hence the desperation not only ariseth but is increased Now our Lord Jesus not being simply a Creature or a Man but God and Man in one Person he was able to bear the sorrow and wrath due to the Elect for their Sin and and there being no quarrel nor ground of any quarrel betwixt God and him on his own account though he had a natural and sinless horrour at the cup of his Fathers displeasure when put to his head yet he had no sinful desperation The 2d thing accidentally due to Sin is the eternal duration of Wrath or of the Curse because the Sinner being a meer Creature cannot at one shoke meet with the infinite Wrath of God and satisfie Justice at once therefore the Lord hath in his Wisdom and Justice found out a way of supporting the Creature in its beeing and continuing it for ever under wrath because it cannot being finit satisfie infinite Justice But our Lord being God and Man being of infinite worth or value and of infinite strength was also to satisfie Justice and bear at once that which the Elâ—ct could never have born yet he had the essentials of that which sin deserved to wit death and the curse to meet with and did actually meet with them as the hiding of his Fathers face and the suspending and keeping back of that consolation that by vertue of the personal union flowed from the God-head to the Man-head And he also had the actual sense and feeling of the wrath of God the awaked Sword of the Justice of God actually smiting him so that men wondered how he could be dead so soon We shall only add a word or two of reasons for clearing and confirming the Doctrine and for proof of it these three things concur 1. That sins deserving by God's appointment is to have sorrow following on it 2 That by God's appointment according to the Covenant of Redemption the Son of God undertook that same very debt that was due by the Elect. And 3. That it was God's design not to pass one of their sins without satisfaction made to Justice but to put at the Cautioner for them all for the declaration of the riches and glory of the free grace of God when the sinner is liberat and not put to pay Anâ— for the declaration of the holy severity and justice of God when not one farthing is owing but the Cautioner must needs pay it and that both these meeting together there may be to all generations a standing and shining evidence of the unsearchable riches both of Gods Grace and of his Justice This is a sweet Doctrine and hath many massie substantial and soul refreshing uses Out of this eater comes meat and out of the strong comes sweet This being the very marrow of the Gospel holding out not only Christs sufferings but that he suffered not at randome or by guess but that he suffered the sorrows and griefs that we should have suffered and though the equivalent might have been received yet he would needs undergo the same sufferings in their essentials Which may exceedingly confirm the Faith and Hope of believers in him of their exemption and freedom from the wrath and curse of God seing he suffered the same that they should have suffered had not he interposed betwixt them and it as their Cautioner and Surety Use 1. Hereby we may know what an evil and bitter thing sin is that hath such effects Would God we could once prevail this far with you as to make you take up and believe that sin hath sorrow and grief inseparably knit to it and that the sinner is miserable and liable to death and to the curse of God and there is no difference but this that sinners are insensible how miserable they are and so in greater capacity to be made obnoxious to that misery Do ye mind this O sinners that God is angry with you every day That indignation and wrath tribulation and anguish is to every soul of man that does evil That God will by no means clear the guilty Tremble to think upon it Many of you pass as gay honest folks who will be found in this Roll And would ye know your condition and the hazard that ye run It 's of wrath and of the curse of God eternally with desperation and blasphemy And if that be misery sin is misery or brings it And the day comes when there shall be a storm from Heaven of Fire and Thunder that will melt the Elements above you and not leave a stone upon a stone of these stately buildings on earrh about you in which day sinners will be confirmed in the belief of this truth That it is an evil and bitter thing to depart from the living God To press this Use a little There are two sorts of sinners who if they would soberly let the truth of this Doctrine sink in their minds they would see their folly The 1. sort are these whoâ—ly quietly under bygone guilt unrepented of as if the sorrow were past becâ—use the Act is so but think not so will the just God avâ—nge sin on his Son and will he let it pass in you Ye that will grant ye are sinners and are under convictions of sin ye had need to take heed what is following it As ye treasure up sin ye are treasuring up wrath against the day of wrath O! wrath is a heaping up in store for you A 2. sort are these that go on in sin whatever be said to the effects of it and will confidently put their hand to it as if there were no sting in it at all and drink it over as so much sweet liquor but of these stoln drinks that seem sweet in secreet will be vomited up again with pain torment and sorrow and either it shall be grief and sorrow to you in the way of repentance or eternal grief and sorrow when the cup of Gods wrath shall be put in your hand and held to your head for evermore Use 2. By this ye may see a necessity of making use of the Mediator
were laid on him he did certainly bear them the sins of all the Elect trysted on him as to their punishment And this shews how that Christ behoved not only to suffer but to suffer all that he suffered So in the 8. vers it is said He was cut off out of the land of the living and for the transgression of my people was he stricken That which is here called the bearing of iniquity is there called being cut off and stricken for the transgression of his people And this may be the 2d reason of the Exposition as we have given it because when iniquities are spoken of they are not called Christs as inherent in him but they are called his peoples iniquities they being formally theirs but his judicially and legally only Even as the debt is formally the Bankrupts but legally the Cautioners A 3d. reason is drawn from comparing this Text with other parallel places of Scripture that which is called bearing of iniquity here is called Gal. 3.13 His being made a curse for us so that his bearing of our iniquity is his being made a curse for our iniquity and his bearing the wrath of God due to us for our sin I shall illustrat it by a compaâ—ison whence the 4. reason will clearly result our iniquities become Christs as his righteousness becomes ours for these two are parallel 2 Cor. 5. ult He was made sin for us who knew no sin that we might be made the righteousness of God in or through him Where 1. it 's clear that Jesus Christ is so the sinner in our room as we are righteous in his room and contrarily we are righteous in his room as he was the sinner in our room 2. That righteousness is not â—o derived to us that it is formally made ours and to be inherently in us but is ours only by imputation it self or the vertue of it being imputed to us And it is upon this ground that Rom. 4. Imputed righteousness is often mentioned that is when God accounteth a man to be righteous though he be yet a sinner in himself even so our sin is imputed to Christ and reckoned his because he became our Surety And though Antinomians have a vain notion to elude this yet the Scripture is very clear as holding forth a legal procedour the debt is accounted his because of his obligation to be answerable for it and in Juâ—tice and Law he is lyable to it And there is no other way that we can rationally imagine how our blessed Lâ—rd can bear our iniquities For 1. It cannot stand with his absolute purity to have any spot of sin or to be formally the sinner Neither 2. is it necessary that he should be the sinner but only that he should pay the penalty due by us it being the nature of Contracts among men that where the Principal Debtor succumbs the Cautioner comes in his room so is it here Yea 3. If Jesus Christ were the sinner formally it would incapacitat him to be our Cautioner to pay the penalty or to satisfie Justice the debt of our sins We would not have spoken so much to this were it not that this same place is pressed in a most fastidious manner by the abusers of the grace of God to maintain their errour So then we take this in short to be the meaning of this part of the verse that Jesus Christ did bear the punishment due to us for our sins 3. The three parties that have some acts about iniquity are 1. Us all 2. Him 3. The Lord Jehovah 1. Us all and here we meet with the Aminians another party that abuseth and perverteth this place as if it were to be extended to all Men and Women that ever sinned or went astray For say they it 's the iniquity of all them that went wrong that is laid on Christ and that is the iniquity of all Men and Women in the World But as we shew before the scope of the words is not so much to shew the universality of all Men and Womens sinning as to shew that all the Elect as well as others went astray and turned every one of them to their own way therefore it 's restricted All we And the word All is no broâ—der then the word We now the We that â—s here meant is the We who in the former words are healed by his stripes And that sure is not all Men and Women that sin but the Elect only And vers 11. it 's they that by his knowledge that is by Faith in him are justified It 's these All whoâ—e iniquities he bare and no moe So that in short Us all is not all men simply considered but Us all that are Elect and thus it is necessarily to be restricted to the Prophets scope The meaning of both parts of the verse together then is this We all even the Elect as well as others went astray and turned every one of us to our own sinful way and the Lord Jehovah made him to bear the punishment of all our sins and it could not be but a mighty great punishment and a most huge and horrible suffâ—ring when the Lord made the iniquities of Us all his Elect to meet upon Christ There is not much debate about the other two parts The 1. whereof is Him that is the Mediator Jâ—sus Christ the eternal Son of the eternal Father the brightness of the Fathers Glory and the express Image of his Person who remaining God became Man to perform and bring about the work of our Redemption according to his under taking The other Party is the Loâ—d Jehovah the Judge and the Party offended as we are the Party offending and Jesus Christ â—he satisfier And the Lord is here considered essentially as Father Son and Holy Ghost having one common Essence and Justice and who being all three one God are to be satisfied He is Jehovah But how is this punâ—shment of our iniquities laid on Jesus Christ And here Socinians make as great abuse and business the Devil intending if he could effect is to blow up the very foundation of the Gospel bends all his Forces against such places as do most lively hold it forth But the words are clear and most significant as they are rendered according to the Hebrew on the Margent thus The Lord hath made the iniquity of us all to meet on him The inâ—quities of the Elect are as so many Brooks and R volâ—ts any one of which is hard and diffiâ—ult for them to pasâ— over But O! when Christ comes to satisfie for them they are brought and gathered into a great Lake or rather into a vast Sea or Ocean together they all collected and combined met on him and he did meet with them in a mighty shock and sure they could not but be great sufferings that he endured when he had such a Sea to pass thorow Or the sins of the Elect were like so many Companies or Regiments of Men any one whereof they could never have
and preferring a Robber to him But in all this they were fu fi ling what God had before determined to be done which we say is mâ—tter of great consolation both as to our own particular case as to God's general guiding of the World and especially of his Church therein There is nothing wherein the malice of men seems to be most prevalent but our Lord is still gaining his point upon and by them They are all the while executing God's determination though to their own ruine 2. See here an exact correspondency betwixt all the circumstances of our Lord's sufferings and God's determination and a concurrence of all of them for the promoving of it in the History of the Gospel A bone of him is not broken when the bones of the two Thieves crucified with him are broken a Spear is run at him and his side is pierced when they are not pierced And all this because it was prophesied of him that A bone of him shall not be broken and they shall look upon him whom they have pierced and when it comes to his burial Pilate wots not what he is doing when yet he is fulfilling the Lords design in giving his body to a rich man Joseph of Arimathea when he asked it from him to be buried by him whereby the Prophesie of the Text is fulfilled The wickedness of some the contingent actions of others and the ignorance of many concurr all together to make out the same holy and unalterable design and purpose of God And therefore 3dly Let us stay our faith here that our Lord is yet still working in all these confusions and when matters return'd up-side down to humane appearance our blessed Lord is not non-plussed and at a stand when we are he knows well what he is doing and will make all things most certainly infallibly and infrustrably to work for his own glory and for the good of his people From its being said that He gave his grave with the wicked as holding forth Christ's willingness to be buried as he saith of his death John 10.17 No man taketh away my life from me but I lay it down and take it up again Observe That in the whole performance of the work of Redemption even in the lowest and most shameful steps of it our Lord was a most willing condescender He gave his grave with the wicked He was a most free and willing undertaker when as it were the Question was put Who will satisfie for Elect sinners He comes in and sayes as we hâ—ve it Psal 40. Lo I come in the volume of thy book it is written of me I delight to do thy will O my God I am here Father as if he had said I offer my self and accept of the terms heartsomly and delightsomly I rejoyced saith he Prov. 8.28 in the habitable parts of the earth before the foundation of the world was laid my delight was with the sons of men So it may be made evident that in all the parts of his sufferings and in every step thereof he did most exactly and also most willingly perform whatever was carved out to him He preached and wrought miracles and did all with delight as himself sayes John 4.32 It is my meat and my drink to do my Fathers will and to finish his work It refreshed him when his body was hungry and faint to be carrying on the work of Redemption in speaking to a poor straying sinner If we yet look a little forward we will find that he so longed for the saddest part of this exercise that he is pained till it be accomplished Luke 12.50 I have a bâ—ptism to be baptized with and how am I straitned till it be accomplished His heart longed so much to be at it that he would approve nor admit of nothing that might stand in the way of it therefore he rejected Peters advice with holy detestation with a Get thee behind me Satan He knew well what was in Judas mind and yet would not divert him but bid him do what he was about quickly He went to the Garden where he was known to resort and gave his enemies opportunity to rake him and would not suffer his Disciples to draw a Sword to oppose them When he was before Pilate he would not open his mouth When he was buffetted he gave his back to the smiters and his cheeks to him that plucked off the hair and hid not his face from shame and spitting Because he knew what was aimed at in all this and accordingly saith Matth. 20.20 The Son of Man came not to be served but to serve and to give his life a ransome for many When His Holy Humane Nature scarred at the Cup and when he was thereby put to pray Father if it be possible let this cup pass from me he sweetly subioyns but for this cause came I unto this hour And the nearer it came to his death he vented his desire after it the more With desire have I desired saith he or with special desire have I desired to eat this Passover with you before I suffer Even when he was to eat the last Passover and to take his last good night and to be in readiness for what was coming What could have been the mean or motive to bring it about if he had not been willing It was this willingness that Jehovah was pleased with and that made his Sacrifice to smell sweetly to his Father who loveth a cheerful giver and it had never been satisfactory if it had not been willing but extorted and therefore saith he Joh. 10. No man taketh my life from me but I lay it down And I delight to do thy will Psal 40. Use 1. See here a great evidence of the love of God and of the Mediator Behold what manner of love this is that when it was not required he should offer and freely give himself to death and to the grave this is the love of a friend and beyond it that he should have so loved his Church as to give himself for her to death and to the grave Well may he say as he doth John 15.15 Greater love hath no man then this c. 2dly It shews what great ground of consolation and encouragement a sinner hath that would fain be at Christ to believe on him and to expect Life and Salvation through him Our Lord was most willing to lay down his life and to come to the grave for that end and is it possible that he will refuse a sinner that comes unto him and that would fain share in the benefite of his sufferings which was his great end in suffering This one thing to wit the willingness that he had to suffâ—r and the delight that he had in suffering to purchase Redemption to sinners may be as a strong cordial to strengthen the heart of a swoâ—â—ing Sinner and a great motive and encouragement to come forward to him Thou wilt it may be say I wot not if Christ loves me O!
counsel and fore knowledge of God ye have taken and by wicked hands have crucified and slain The Lords hand was supream in the businesse and we may gather the Supream and Soveraign Iâ—fluence of the Lords hand in these three respects in Christs Pufferings 1. In respect of His appointing them It was concluded in the Counsel of God what He should Suffer what should be the Price that Jehovah would have and the Sâ—crifice that he would accept of from His hand 2. In respect of the Ordering and Over-ruling of His Sufferings when it came to the execution of His Ancient Decree He who governs all the Counsells Thoughts and Actions of Men did in a special manner govern and over-rule the Sufferings of the Mediator though wicked men were following their own designe and were stirred and acted by the Devil who is said to have put it into the heart of Judas to betray Christ yet God had the ordering of all who should betray Him what death He should die how He should de pierced and yet not a bone of Him broken 3. In respect of His having had a hand actively in them and as he was the chief Partie that pursued Christ it was He that was exacting the Elects Debt of Him therefore the Lord looks over Pilat and Herod to Him and sayes to Pilat thou couldest have no power over me except it were given thee from above and to His Father Father take this cup from me and my God my God wby hast thou forsaken me He was pursued as standing Cautioner in our room in which respect it is said Rom. 8. He that spared not his own Son He spared Him not when He cryed but would have Him drinking out the Cup and Zach. 13.7 Awake O sword against my shepherd and against the man that is my fellow smite the shepherd The Message comes from Him and He gives the Sword a charge and orders it to smite Him In all which respects it 's said The Lord bruised him and he hath put him to grief It was this more then Sword or Naills or Speir or Whipe that made Him cry out another and a higher hand brought his sinless Soul to more bitterness then all the Sufferings He endured from Men. Use This leads us in to the vendicating of the Soveraign and Holy Providence of God in that wherein Men have a most sinful hand and are most unexcusable though Judas that bettayed and Pilat that condemned the Innocent Son of God acted most sinfully yet the Lord himself hath an active over-ruling Hand in carring on His own design and what Judas and Pilat with other wicked Men did was so far from being by guess that they were the executions of His Ancient Decrees and He is most Pure and Spotless in venting and manifesting Grace Holiness and Justice when men were venting their Corruptions Impiety and Injustice most Therefore the Holy Providence of God mixeth n more as to any sinless participation with mens sin in their sinfull and wicked actings than the Covenant of Redemption mixed it self with the sinfulnesse of them that crucified Christ Nay this is a principal Diamond in His Crown that He cannot only govern all the natural second Causes that are in the World in their several Courses and Actings and order them to His own glory but even Devils and wicked Men and Hypocrites their most corrupt and abominable Actions and make them infrustrably subservient to the promoving of His own holy ends and purposes and yet be free of their sin for which they shall count to Him And as it was no excuse to Judas nor to Pilat that they did what before was decreed of God so it shall be no excuse to any Man in a sinful course that God hath a hand in every thing that comes to passe who yet is just and holy in all It may also stay our hearts when the Devil and his Instruments as it were are runing mad that they can do no more then what God permits â—ay some way commissionateth them to do The Devil could not so much as touch a tail of one of Job's sheep without leave â—sked and given O! the deepth both of the knowledge and of the wisdom of God how unsearchable are his wayes and his judgments pasi finding out 3. As we may see here the concurrence of the Persons of the blessed Trinity Father Son and holy Ghost the concurrence of Jehovah with the Mediator for carrying on the same design the work of Mans Redemption for it pleased them all So taking the Lord Jehovah essentially as comprehending all the three Persons we may Observe That the Lord is well willed to and hath delight in prosecuting the work of Redemption though even to the bruising of the second Person of the God-head considered as became Man and Mediator not that He delighted in the Sufferings as such of His Innocent Son for he affects not willingly the children of men but considering the end and the effects that were to follow to wit the Seed that He should beget ro Eternal Life and the Captives whom He was to redeem In that respect it was not only against His will but it pleased Him well or as the word is in the New Testament It was his good pleasure alluding as â—â—is like to this of the Prophet Hence when Christ speaks of the work of Redemption He calleth it the Fathers will and work the Fathers will when He sayes I came not to do my own will but the will of him that sent me The Fathers work while He sayes I have finished the work thou gavest me to do And here it is called His pleasure for there was nothing without Himself to move Him to it when He might have suffered all fallen Mankind to lye still in their forlorne condition It pleased Him to give His Son of His own good will to redeem several of them Use If we put these Doctrines together they affoord us wonderful matter of Consolation 1. That we have an able Saviour that hath given a sufficient ransome for us a price that cannot be overvalued 2. A willing Mediator that gave himself no man took His Life from Him but He laid it down of Himself and took it up again 3. A willing Jehovah contriving and taking pleasure in contriving the Redemption of Elect Sinners through the Death of His own Son Which reproves and gives check to the wonderfully strange mistakes that are often found with some poor Souls concerning the way of Peace as some will be ready to say if Câ—rist were as willing to take me as I am to take Him as willing to welcome me as I am to come to Him But is not this a proof of His willingnesse that He was content to be bruised and put to grief about the work of your Redemption others have a secret apprehension that if God were as willing to receive and save them as Christ is they would have more confidence but sayes the Prophet here that it pleased the father
by the Elect And to be avenged on Him for their wrongs and His being to step in into their Room and to be smitten with that awaked and furbished Sword and to Offer Himself the Sacrifice as He had long before ingadged Here O! here was the heat and strength of the Battel Use This shews 1. What a Dear Price Christ payed for Sinners 2. The severity of the Justice of God in exacting the Elects Debt of the Cautioner 3. How much we are oblidged to the Cautioner who so willingly undertook the Debt and was so ready to pay it though it cost Him not only External and Bodily Sufferings but Soul-suffering and put Him to encounter with Gods Curse and Wrath We are perswaded could we conceive and speak aright of these Sufferings that there is a great Mystery here And really it is a wonder that we are not more affected wiâ—h it even to consider that such miserable Creatures should be pursued by Justice that can do nothing to avert the Stroak of it And that such a great and gâ—orious Person as the Son of God should Interpose Himself And that the Father should spare the poor sinfull Enemies and make a way for them to escape by the Diverting of His Justice from pursuing them and by making it take hold of the Son of His Bosom Exacting the Debt severely from Him O! what a wonder is this That the Lord should passe by the Enemy and satisfie Himself of His own Son Yea that God should take on Himself the place of a Mid-man and Satisfie Himself That God should be in Christ reconciling the world to himself This this is the Wonder Herein Infinit Wisdom Pure and Spotless Justice Holiness and Faithfulness Grace and Mercy to the Admiration of Men and Angels appear and shine forth most Radiantly It can hardly be known in which of these the Glory of God shines most in this Great and Glorious Work of Redemption But of them all we may say to you Elect and believing Sinners what could our Lord Jesus do more for your Salvation I say what could He do more then to Offer up Himself a Propitiatory Sacrifice for your Sins In the Gospel He calleth upon you to make use of it that by Vertue of His Sacrifice your Peace may be made with God as it is 1 John 2.1 2. If any man sin we have an advocat with the Father Jesus Christ the righteous and then follows He is the propitiation for our sins This may give abundant ground to Sinners to go upon in their Application to God for Pardon and Peace even this that He hath made Himself a Sacrifice for seting of them free For whom He Offered Himself a Sacrifice O! Sinners admire Him employ and make use of His Moyen and Court in Heaven Improve and Welcome these glad Tydings and let it never be said nor heard of that He was Offered up a Sacrifice and that ye would not admit of the benefit of it that ye would not accept of Him to be a Days-man and Tryster betwixt God and you to remove all grounds of quarrel O! for Christ's sake and as ye love your Souls step to and seek Grace to make the right of use His Sacrifice in order to the obtaining of the Pardon of your Sin and the making of your Peace with God Let Himself powerfully perswade you to and prevail with you in this incomparably greatness of all concerns SERMON XXXIX ISAIAH LIII X Vers 10. When thou shalt make his Soul an offering for sin He shall see his seed He shall prolong his dayes And the pleâ—sure of the Lord shall prosper in his hand WHere there is any Light and Knowledge of a God-head amongst Men There is this impression on them that it is a dreadful thing to have a Contraversie lying over betwixt God and them unremoved And upon this ground it is that as naturally the Conscience doth challenge for the provoking of God so Men according to the Light they have are set on to seek after this and that and the other Mean and Way to get God appeased and the Conscience quieted and it 's like that this hath descended to Men from Noah that the most part of them have thought on the Mean of Sacrifices by them to make their Peace with God So the Lord taught the Family of Adam after the Fail and Noah renewed it after his coming out of the Ark and it is probable as I said somewhat of this hath abiden with and stuck to Men even when they Degenerated and Apostatized from God and offered Sacrifices to Devils though not intentionally but unto God in their account And indeed it is no marvel that Flesh and Blood be here at a stand and made to say wherewithal shal we come before God But we have this advantage by the Gospel That in it the Lord hath shewed to us what it is that satisfieth Justice and takes away Sin and the Curse and that it is even this in the Text Thou shalt make his foul an offering for sin There is no other thing that a Sinner can bring with him that can be accepted or that can make him to be accepted of God We have hinted at some things from the Words already and shew that Christ's Sacrifice is called an offering for sin as excluding all others and as expressing the Nature and Ends of it We shall now speak to one thing more which is the 4th implyed in this expression And it is this That though Atonement and Satisfaction to God can be made by no other Sacrifice or Offering yet there is an Atonement and Satisfaction that may be made by Christ's Offering Hence He is called an offering for sin not only because it excluds all others but also because he is accepted for that very end as a Propitiation for the Sins of them for whom He Suffered and Offered Himself in a Sacrifice as this is denyed to all other things as we just now said so it is Applyed and Appropriated to Him and His Offering as Heb. 10. v. 10. By the which will we are sanctified through the offering of the body of Jesus Christ once for all v. 12. This man after he had offered one sacrifice for sins for ever sat down on the right hand of God And v. 14. For by one offering he hath perfected for ever them that are sanctified This is the great thing that the Apostle aims at in that Dispute not only to cast the Leviticall Offerings as to the removing of Sin and the Curse and making of Sinners Peace with God but to commend this one offering as able to save to the uttermost all that come unto God through it And according to this we have that great Question answered to poor Sinners wherewithall shall we come before the Lord and bow our selves before the most high God He hath shewed O! man what is meet and what the Lord requireth of thee That there is nothing but this one Sacrifice of Christ that
and come to that which follows in the 11. Verse In this Verse then There are these three 1. An offer and promise made to the Mediator That if He will accept of the proposall and lay down His Life for Redeeming of the lost Elect it shall not be fruitless He shall see of the travell of his soul and shall be satisfied 2. The way how this satisfaction shall be brought about By his knowledge shall my righteous servant justifie many That is by Faith in Him His Purchase shall be applyed to all these for whom He should suffer who thereby should be justified 3. The ground of this which also shews the way how He shall justifie many For he shall bear their iniquities That is by His undertaking and paying of their Debt He should meritoriously procure their Absolution and the setting of them free In the first part we have these three things implyed 1. A supposed condition or restipulation on the Mediator's side That His Soul shall be put to travell which expresses both the Nature of His Sufferings that they shall not only be Bodily but also and mainly Soul-sufferings and Conflicts with the Wrath of God which the Elect's sins deserved as the main and principall thing Articled and that wherein the Price of their Redemption lay And the Greatness and Extremity of His Sufferings here called Travell from the similitude of a Woman in Travell and the Travell of his Soul This being the way foretold how Christ should be used He should Travell in His Sufferings to procure Life to His People 2. A Promise made to Him That He shall see the travell of his soul That is He shall not bring forth wind but shall have a large Off spring which in the 2d part of the verse is called a Justifying of many by his knowledge This is the Fruit He shall have of His Soul-travel 3. The extent of this which is His being Satisfied and quiet Which looks to two things 1. To the certain and infallible success of His Sufferings Not one of the Elect shall be amissing None that He hath bought Life to shall want it He shall get as many Justified and Saved as He conditioned for 2. To the great delight and complacencie that our Lord hath in performing the Work of Redemption and in Sinners getting the benefit of it He shall think all well bestowed when they come to get the Application thereof and by Faith in Him to be Justified From the first of these Observe That the Mediator in performing the Work of Redemption and in satisfying the Justice of God for the Debt of Elect Sinners was not only put to Externall and Bodily but also and mainly to Inward Spirituall and Soul-sufferings Or the Redeeming of lost Sinners cost our Lord Jesus much Soul-travell and Suffering we have hinted at His Sufferings often before but this place especially speaks out His Soul-sufferings and the Inward Anguish and Agony that He was brought under We shall therefore speak alittle to this it being most useful and extensive in the Fruits and Benefits of it to the People of God And shall 1. confirm it by some places in the Gospel where we have the fulfilling of this Prophesie clearly holden out to us And 2dly By a fourfold Reason Only take this for an advertisement that when we speak of the Soul-sufferings of Our Lord we do no mean of any Sufferings after Death as Papists falsly calumniat us but of these Sufferings especially that were about the time of His Passion when He got the full Cup of the Fathers Wrath put in His hand towards His approaching to the Cross and when He was upon it when He was araigned and when He was exacted upon for the Elect's Debt The first passage to confirm it is that of John 12.27 Now is my soul troubled and what shall I say Father save me from this hour Here His Soul-suffâ—rings begin clearly to shew themselves when there was no Cross nor Suffering in His Body yet He is put to such a pinch considered as Man that He is in a manner non-plussed and put to say what shall I say the horror of that which was begun and was further coming on Him being beyond all expression whereupon follows that prayer Father save me from this hour His Sinleâ—s Humane Nature scarring some way to enter on it The 2d passage is that of John 13.21 where it 's said That He began to be troubled in spirit and testified c. But let us come forward and put Matthew Mark and Luke together and we shall see what an inexpressible and unconceivable hight and heap of sorrows His Soul-trouble and travell will amount to Matthew sayes Chap. 26.37 38. That He began to be sorrowful and very heavy And in the next words my soul is exceeding sorrowfull even unto death and what made Him so sorrowfull The next words Father if it be possible let this cup passe from me shew that it was the Cup of His Fathers Wrathfull Justice put in His hand Mark sayes Chap. 14.33 Thar when He came to the Garden He began to be sore amazed and very heavy A wonderfull expression to be used of the Son of God that the Person that was God should be amazed yet being considered as Man he was so Luke sayes Chap. 22.44 That being in an agony he prayed more earnestly There is a sore Exercise and sad Soul-travell indeed when the Sword of Gods Justice awaked against the Man that was Gods fellow and when He hath the Curse that was due to all the Elect to encounter and meet with This was such a Combat the like whereof was never in the World And the effect of it is His sweat as great drops of blood falling down to the ground when there was no hand of Man stirring Him nor any Man to trouble Him by Him but God as a severe and holily rigid exactor puting Him to pay the Debt which He had undertaken to pay according to His Obligation The inward pressour of His Soul presseth great drops of Blood from His Body And if we will yet look a little forward to Math. 27.46 we will find Him brought to that extremity on the Cross that He cryes My God my God why hast thou forsaken me Which though it say that there was still Faith in the Mediator in adhering to the Father as His God yet it sets out that great horrour which He had inwardly to wrestle with when there was some restraint on the sensibly comforting influence of the God-head Now when all the Evangelists concur so massilie emphatically and significantly to express this wealing out and pitching upon such weighty Words to set it forth by We may see it to be designedly holden forth as a speciall Truth thâ—t the Faith of the People of God may be strongly confirmed therein To confirm it yet further put these four together 1. The estate that the Elect are naturally lying in for whom Christ undertakes they are naturally under Sin lyable
trust in Him SERMON XLIV ISAIAH LIII XI Vers 11. He shall see of the travell of his soul and shall be satisfied by his knowledge shalâ— my righteous servant justifie many for he shall bear their iniquities ALL Scripture is given by inspiration of God and is profitable for doctrine for reproof for correction for instruction in righteousness that the man of God may be made perfect throughly furnished unto all good works and that His People may be made wise unto salvation Yet these Scriptures wherein our Lord Jesus is holden forth more clearly are eminently usefull He being the Foundation and Ground of all To whom the Law and the Prophets bear witness and they are only profitable to us in the Estate wherein we are in so far as they relate to to Him and point Him out to us And we may further say that these Scriptures wherein His Sufferings and Death are holden forth in the Richness and Fruitfulness of them are singularly so that being the very Life of the Covenant and the very Door by and through which we step from Death to Life And whatever they be to others sure they have a speciall Sweetnesse in them to sensible Sinners And therefore the Sum of the Gospel and of Saving Knowledge is by the Apostle 2 Cor. 2.2 Compended in the knowledge of Christ and of him crucified which unfolds His very Heart and Bowells to us The Prophet hath been pointing out this in severall Verses and hath hinted at the effects of His Sufferings in the former verse And now in these Words he puts a new Title on them calling them the travel of Christ's soul Not only to set out the exceeding greatness of them but with respect to thâ— foregoing Words wherein it 's said He shall see his seed Which is repeated here when it 's said He shall be satisfied So that as a Mother is in Travell for bringing forth of a Child So sayes he shall Christ be put to Soul-travell for bringing Life and Immortality to the Seed given to Him to be saved by Him And seing He is put to Travell He must needs bring forth and see his seed Here we may allude that of Isaiah 66.9 Shall I bring to the birth and not cause to bring forth saith the Lord shall I cause to bring forth and shut the womb saith thy God We have spoken of the Nature and Greatness of these Sufferings Now ere we proceed to any moe Observations we would speak a Word further to the Use of this It being indeed an Eater out of which comes Meat and a Strong out of which comes Sweet These pangs having calmed and quieted the Pangs and Showres to speak so of many Travelling Souls and brought forth a Birth at last And therefore beside what I spake to in the Use the last day I would add this That we would endeavour to have the solid Faith not only of His Sufferings but of the Greatness of His Sufferings imprinted deeply on our hearts That I say the Sufferings of a Dying Blood-sweating Christ Wrestling and Strugling even to His being in an Agony with the Wrath of God and puting up strong Cryes with Tears may be born in on our hearts and that we may throughly be perswaded of the greatness of the Work of Redemption and that it was a most Dear and Coastly Bargain to Christ For it was not Gold nor Silver it was not Kingdoms nor visible Worlds nor Angells that were given as a Price for Elect Sinners but it was the precious Blood of the Son of God Nay it was the bitter and sharp Soul-travell Sâ—dness Sorrow and Agony of our Lord Jesus which to speak comparatively was beyond the shedding of His Blood And what a Price do ye think this to be That He that made all and preserved all in their Being and was before all things should come thus low as to be a Man and a mâ—an sorrowfull suffering and dying Man yea to be a cursed Man and to go out of â—his Life as being under a Curse yet being alwayes the beloved Son of the Father And being even then when at His lowest the Prince of the kings of the earth and shining forth gloriously in the Powâ—r and Riches and Freeness of His Love and Grace sure this wonderfull low stooping and humbling of Himself Preaches out the Love that straitned and constrained Him to run upon that which was His own Death there being no hands that could have taken away His Life had He not willingly laid it down which He did with delight Could we make use of this there is much here to be said for our use We shall draw what we would say on it to these four heads 1. To something for Instruction 2. To something for Consolation 3. To something for Exhortation 4. To something for Reproof and Expostulation I say 1. It serves for Instruction and ye would from it be Instructed in several things 1. How to think aright of the great Severity of the Justice of God and of the Horrour of Wrath and of the dreadfull Consequ nts of Sin which it will most certainly have following on it May it not make your Souls to tremble to think upon and consider that our Lord Jesus was brought to such a pass as to be in such an Agony to be so exceeding sorrowfull and even amazed To be so troubled in Soul that he was thereby made to sweat great drops of blood and to be wrestling with somewhat that His holy Humane Nature had a scarring at O! the desert and wages of Sin is dreadfull when the Law pursues its Controversie and when Justice exacts what a broken Covenant deserves Alace The most of men believe not this but it s here that may convince us whâ—â— an evil thing Sin is and what a dreadfull thing it is to fall into the hands of an angry God O! that ye would think upon it that ye may beware of Sin by all means and may alwayes be minding that Word which our Saviour hath If these things be done in the green tree what shall be done in the dry If it was so done with Him who in the Action if I may so call it was performing His Fathers will and giving an admirable proof of His respect to the Honour of God What wiâ—l He do to the dry Sticks the Damned Reprobat who have slighted the offer of His Grace despised the Sufferings of a Mediator and disdained to be reclaimed Hear it and tremble and be perswaded that the Horror that Sin shall bring upon the Sinner when God comes to reckon with him is inexpressible 2. Be Instructed and see here how great the difficultie is of making peace with God when once His Law is broken A thing that is little believed by most who are disposed to think that they will get God sooner pleased and pacifiâ—d thâ—n they will get their Neigâ—bour or Master pacified and pleased which sayes That either they they think nothing or but very little of His
Wrath or that they will soon get it put by that a word will do that Hence it is that they think that an equivalent Price is not necessary for Satisfying the Justice of God and for prevâ—nâ—ing of His Wrath but if it be so easie a thing to pacify God and to satisfy His Justice Why did Our Lord undertake the Debt Why did He become so low and pay so dear a Price to procure a Discharge of it Why was His Soul put to such travel when no Shame nor Râ—proach nor Pain on His blessed Body could do it but Hâ—s Soul in the sore travel thereof behovâ—d to be made a Sacrifice for Sin Sinners grosly ignorant mistakes of the Justice of God appear palpably in this There was never a Person that was called to it and did undertake to remove God's Wrath from others but our Lord Jesus And ye see here what it cost Him And what do ye imagine will be the lot of others who shall lye under it eternally 3. See here the Worth and Weight of a Soul and the great moment of the Salvation of a Soul Immortal Souls are of much worth and though Men often sell them at an cheap and easie Rate yet our Lord Jesus bought Souls dear It 's true Souls considered in themselves are not worthy of the Price laid down for them But being considered with respect to the end for which they are designed to wit the glorifying of the Riches of the Grace and Mercy of God and their injoying of Him They are of much worth Ah! that men should sell that Soul so very cheap when our Lord bought Souls so very dear 4. See here the Solidity Fulness and Satisfactoriness of the Price that Jesus Christ gave to Justice for the Souls of His People It cannot sure but be a fully satisfying Price that such a Person should Suffer and Suffer so much Even to be put to Soul-travel for which there could be no Reason neither could it have any other End but the satisfying of Divine Justice for the Sins of the Elect And considering these His Sufferings in the Degrees of them which was so very high And in the use of them in Gods Purpose and Decree and in the End of them which was to satisfy the Justice of God and to make His Grace Glorious It cannot but be a most Solid Full and Satisfying Price So that a Soul may have here a sufficient ground to build its Salvation upon And the more low-that the Mediator was brought by His Sufferings the more solid and sicker is the ground of our Faith yea this is the End why He came so low 5. See here how greatly we are in Christ's Debt That when Justice was provoked and Sinners had losed themselves and when nothing else could be admitted but all other Sacrifices were rejected He was graciously pleased to yeeld Himself to be the Sacrifice by His extream and most exquisit Sufferings most pleasantly and heartsomly saying Lo I come in the volum of thy book it is written of me I delight to do thy will O my God By the which will sayeth the Apostle Heb. 10. We are sanctified And by it we have access to Eternall Life It had been much if He had made a New World for Believers to dwell in nay it had been much if He had provided Angels to Mollify and Mitigat their Sufferings and to give them drops of water to cool their Tongues in Hell But that He His own blessed self should decline no Soul-travel beside Bodily Sufferings to redeem them from the Curse How much how unspeakably much are they oblidged to Jesus Christ If we were suitably sensible of our hazard and clear as to our Interest in these Sufferings it could not be but our Souls would leap someway within us as the Babe did in Elizabeths womb on this consideration that a Cautioner and Saviour hath come and payed the Price that was due by us to the Justice of God This is a greater obligation then His making of the World for an habitation to Sinners Nay a greater obligation then His giving of Heaven to us if abstracted from Christ O! So well as it would become us in reading of these Words to stand and pause and to say Is it so indeed that Christ gave Himself thus for Sinners and for me This is it which opens the door of Access to God and makes a Bridge over the Gulf that is betwixt God and Sinners He was smitten that by His Stroaks and Strips health might be brought to us He was content to undergo sore Soul-travel that thereby Life might be brought to us That which we mainly aim at in this Branch of the Use is That ye would look to the Mercy purchased by this Soul-travel as your great obligation And at what a Rate you have the Offer of Grace and access to Heaven When He made the World Heaven and Earth Sun Moon Stars c. He spake the Word and it was done their needed no more but let such a thing be and it was but the work of Redemption was of another sort and brought about at a high and dearer Rate Therefore among all the things which the Gospel holds out put a speciall Price on these things that are the fruits of Christs Soul-travel and consider what a flight it will be and what guilt it will involve you in that He should purchase Redemption so dear and make offer of it so freely and ye should care little or nothing for it 6. Be Instructed anent the absolute necessity of being in Christs Debt for the Use making and Application of His purchase is there any man that can merit it or render Him a recompence for it If not And if there be a necessity of making Hâ—aven and Salvation then sure there is a nâ—cessity of being in Christs Debt and of making use of His purchase for the attaining of that which He hath purchased And men are not hardly delt with nor ill come to when this blessed necessity is imposed upon them not to satisfie for themselves For what can they bring that will be an equivalent Price but to acquiesce in His Satisfaction made to Justice for them and the rather that they cannot bind Him to make application of it Folk are very readily given to one of these two either to misken and pass by the Mediator and so to presume to make a new bargain for their Peace by offering to drink themselves for themselves of that Cup which Christ drank of for that only was the Price of Souls Or if they esteem of Christs Satisfaction they think to oblidge Him and to procure from Him the Application of His Purchase by their Prayers and good Living But what is there in this more then is in the former What Price is there that can be given to Him that is equivalent to His Sufferings It must therefore of necessity come to this That as it was freely purchased so it is freely applyed and it were very
His Purchaâ—e since He lives to make it it will no doubt be great ground of Challenge against you who slight His Sufferin s and keep at a distance from Him since He is alive and since what is much accounted of by Him even the Fruit of His Sufferings is by you set at nought who Neglect Râ—fuse or Despise Him and the â—enâ—fiâ— of His Sufferings O! what an aggrâ—vâ—tion of your Guilt will this be when He is looking on to sâ—e what comes of the Fruit of His Sufferings and Soul-travel To be found thus to slâ—ght and in a manner to affront Him He knows and takes notice of the breathings of Faith where they are and is well pleased with them and with the least mintings at it He knows also who despise Him and refuse to believe in H m and hath all put on record God give us wisdome to make the right chose SERMON XLVII ISAIAH LIII XI Verse 11. He shall see of the travell of his soul and shall be satisfied by his knowledge shall my righteous servant justifie many for he shall bear their iâ—iquities AS it is a most wonderfull Work that Our Lord Jesus hath in hand and a mighty great Bargain that cost Him the Travel of His Soul So it may be thought that it must be a very great Price that Our Lord Jesus hath to expect as His Satisfaction for all that sore Labour and Travel This is it that the Text holds forth He shall see of the fruit of the travel of his soul Which in Sum is this He shall see poor Sinners getting good of Him Justified by His Grace and admitted to friendship with God and that to His Satisfaction as the Words following clear He shall be satisfied to wit as to that Fruit and shall acquiesce in it as His Satisfaction for all the Travel of His Soul We told you that there were three things in these Words 1. The Price that is called for from the Mediator in performing the Work of Redemption and making Reconciliation betwixt God and Sinners to wit The travel of his soul The sad and sorely pinching Straits and Pressures that He was put to and brought under not only in His Body but also in His Soul 2. The Promise made to Him upon His undertaking and paying of the Price He shall see of the travel of his soul That is the Fruits and Effects of His Soul travel It shall not be for nought but shall certainly have Fruit He shall have a numerous Seed and Issue 3. There is here holden forth the Mediators acquiescence in the Bargain so proposed That He undertaking the Condition of laying down His Life on these same Terms that He shall see a Seed He requires no other Satisfaction and therefore He accepts of it and acquiesces in it as the Result of this Designe and shal be satisfyed Having spoken of the former Two We come now to speak of the Third And we may consider it in these three Respects 1. As it looks to Christ's Designe Who is like to one that is running a Race and hath the Prize before him and in his eye and this is implyed here That He hath something before Him in laying down of His Life which He shall not miss but shall reach and be Satisfied in it so many are given Him for whom He enters Cautioner on Condition that His Righteousness shall be made furthcoming to them and that none of them shall be without or want it 2. As it looks both to the number and certainty of the Effects and Fruits in respect of them that are given to Him He shall be satisfied He shall have though not all Men and Women yet a sufficient number even as many as shall satisfie and content Him And whatever was intended by Him in the laying down of His Life He shall want nothing of it but shall be satisfyed in it and thus the Words are to be Actively understood to wit of Gods Actual performing of that which shall be Satisfying to the Mediator 3. It may be looked on as the Effect and Consequent following upon the former Promise and so it is to be understood Passively for the delight that He takes in the Fruit of His Sufferings and in the seing of Sinners getting the good of them and the so meaning is That He shall be fully contented and throughly well Satisfied with yea even delighted and to speak so comforted in this for all the Travel of His Soul when many shall be brought to believe in Him and to get good of Him To clear it furder We may take the Words as alluding to severall Similitudes As 1. To that of hungry and thirsty Persons who are said to be satisfied when their hunger and thirst are removed by meat and drink which implyes That Jesus Christ in His pursuing and performing the Work of Redemption had a Holy Hunger and Thirst and this His Hunger and Thirst Is Satisfyed in their Salvation and what leadeth to it As Himself saith John 4.32 Where He makes use of this same Similitude I have meat to eat that ye know not of 2. It may allude to a Man's taking pains in planting of an Vine-yard or Orchard to whom it is a Satisfaction when all the Trees grow thrive well and bear Fruit and so the meaning is That Our Lord Jesus shall be at vast Expence and great Labour and Pains in making Sinners to become Trees of righteousness but that all these for whom He Suffered and was at all this Expence and Pain shall hold so well and be so Fruitfull at length that He shall be fully Satisfied in them and think all well bestowed Or 3. We may take it in allusion to a Woman in Travel who is said John 16.21 To have sorrow while her pains are upon her but so soon as she is delivered she no more remembers her sorrow for joy that a man child is born And this Similitude is here especially alluded unto therefore Our Lords Sufferings are called Travel because of the Pains that He was put unto in them and because the End of them was to bring forth Children before called His seed As if the Prophet had said Our Lord Jesus shall be put to great Sorrow in Suffering but He shall bring forth And as a Woman hath Joy in the Man-child brought forth so shall He have more comfort and delight in the bringing forth of Believers then He had sorrow in the procuring of Life to them though that was very great From the Words thus considered and explained take these two Observations 1. That Our Lord Jesus is exceedingly delighted satisfyed and well-pleased with poor Sinners making use and getting good of His Sufferings It 's a thing most Satisfying and Well-pleasing to Him 2. That seing Our Lord Jesus is so well-pleased with Sinners making use of Him there is all equity and reason for it that He should have this Satisfaction and this follows not only on the former but clearly riseth from the Words For
the Majesty of God It would say this to you let not Our Lord Jesus rue of His Sufferings for as many as hear of this Offer and do not credit Him with their Souls they do what they can to make Him repent that ever He became Man and Suffered so much when He is thus shifted and unkindly requited by them to whom He makes the Offer and this is very home and urgent pressing of the necessity of making use of Him when such an Argument is made use of for thus it stands with you and His Offer speaks this Either make use of Christ and of His Soul-travel for saving of your Souls that so He may be satisfied or if ye slight Him ye not only destroy and cause to perish your own Souls but ye refuse to Satisfie Chirst for His Soul-travel and do what in you lyes to marr and defeat the End and Designe of His Sufferings and is not this a great and strongly pushing dilemma The result of your receiving or rejecting of Christ will be this if ye receive Him ye satisfie Him if ye reject Him ye say ye are not content that He should be satisfied and what can be expected to come of it when Christ Suffered so much and when all that was craved of you was to make use of Him and when it was told that that would satisfie Him and yet that was refused What a horrible challenge will this be in the Great Day And therefore to presse this Use a little we shall shew you here 1. What it is that we exhort you to And 2. What is the force of this Motive 1. We would commend to you in general that ye would endeavour the Salvation of your own Souls This is it He cryes to you Prov. 1.22 How long ye simple ones will ye love simplicity and ye scorners delight in scorning turn ye at my reproof c. He aims at this that ye should get your Souls saved from Wrath and this should not be prejudicial nor at the long run unsatisfying to your selves and it will be very satisfying to Him 2. It is not only to aim at Salvation simply but to aim at it by Him to aim at Pardon of Sin and Justification through His Righteousnesse and Satisfaction And that ye would bring no other Argument before God to plead upon for your Peace with Him but this and that ye would aim at Holinesse as a Fruit of His Death He having purchased a peculiar people to himself to be zealous of good works As it is Tit. 2.14 And that ye would aim to do holy Duties by His strengthning of you and that ye would live by Faith in Him which is your victory over the world and the very Soul of the practice of all holy Duties And 3. That ye aim to have a Comfortable Refreshfull and Chearfull Life in Him and by what is in Him as if it were your own it being legally yours by Faith in Him To be stoping your own mouth as having nothing in your selves to boast of and as I just now said to be chearing and delighting your selves from that which is in Him And as it is Psal 147. Even to be hoping in his mercy In a word It is to be studying peace with God through Him to be studying Holiness in His strength and to be studying a Comfortable and Chearfull walk through the grounds of joy that are given you in Him which is very reasonable would ye then do Him a favour and have Him Delighted and Satisfied do but this give Him your Souls to be saved by Him in His own way come to Him sensible of Sin and founding your Peace on Him though weak in your selves yet strong in Him On whom as the mighty one God hath laid help And studying holiness in His strength drawing vertue from Him only to moritify your lusts That it may be known that Christ hath died and is Risen again because Grace shines in such a Person And be Comforted in Him He that glories let him glorie in the Lord having given up with Creature-comforts and Confidences with your own Gifts Parts Duties c. And having betaken your selves to the Peace Strength and Consolation that are in a Mediator and which run through the Covenant of Grace and flow forth from Him as the Fountain from whom all the Grace and Comfort that come to us are derived 2dly For the force of the Motive consider seriously if this be not a pinching strait that ye are put to if this be it wherein Our Lords Satisfaction lyes and wherein the Salvation and Edification of your own Souls consist we pose you if it be any great difficult or unreasonable thing that is called for from you and if the Motive whereon it is prest be not most just and reasonable that these who have or profess to have the Faith of this that it will be Satisfaction to Him for all His Soul-travel that Sinners make use of Him should yeeld it to Him And whether in the Day of the Lord it will not be a most hainous shamefull and abominable Guilt that when the business of your own Salvation stood on this even on your Satisfying of Christ by yeelding ye refused disdained and scorned it and would not make use of Him for your Peace and would noâ— in His strength study Holiness though your own Souls should never be saved nor He satisfied or His Soul-travel This of all other Challenges will be the sharpest and most bitting and upon the other hand it may be most comforting to a poor bodie that is sensible of Sin and afraid of Wrath is there or can there be hazard to do Christ a pleasure by believing on Him It 's a thing delightsome to Him and therefore let this be one great Motive to press believing in Christ among the rest which though it be cross and thwarting to the unbelieving heart and may look like presumption to look a Promise in the Face and to offer to make application of it to the poor Sinners self Yet seing it's a thing so pleasing to Christ that it satisfies Him for all His Sufferings essay it upon this very account remembring alwayes that He delights in them that hope in his mercy and to him be praise for ever SERMON XLVIII ISAIAH LIII XI Vers 11. He shall see of the travel of his soul and shall be satisâ—â—â—d by his knâ—wledge shall my righteous servant justifie ma y for he shall bear their iniquities IT 's a great Work that Our Lord Jesus hâ—th undertaken in Satifying the Juâ—tice of God for the Sins of tâ—e Elâ—ct and He hath at a dear Raâ—e and with great Expence and Travel performed it Now it is but reason that He should again be satisfied that so Jehovah's Satisfaction and the Mediator's Satisfaction may go together and that is the thing that is promised here in these Words What this Satisfaction is which is promised to Him as the great thing in which He delights and by which He
His Sufferings if this Covenant had not been which gives them warrand to lay hold on the same Ere Faith can Act on Christs Sufferings it must have this Ground laid down That it hath a warrand by Vertue of this Covenant to lay hold on them 3. The knowledge and offer of this Mysterious Contrivance of Grace is also necessary and doth concur to bring about the Freedom This must be manifested that there is such a Saviour such a Satisfaction and such a Covenant wherein the Ground is laid down and a Warrand given by Vertue of this Covenant to make Use of Christ's Satisfaction and to come by the Benefit of it This is implyed in that Word His knowledge So Rom. 10. It 's said How shall they believe in him of whom they have not heard which sayes plainly That there can not be Faith except knowledge preceed I observe this the rather because many think to come to Heaven without Knowledge and so continue still in their Ignorance But ere their can be sound Faith there must necessarly be some measure of Knowledge of these things that are necessary to be known As that we are Sinners and that we are lost in our selves That Jesus Christ is the alone Propitiation for Sin and that according to the Covenant of Grace they that believe on Him shall be Absolved and set Free 4. There is a concurring of Faith for taking hold of this Benefit of Offered-salvation through Christ how Faith concurres with Christs Satisfaction in order to the making of our Peace with God We shall not now stand to speak particularly only in general it is by His Knowledge that it Justifies For though He have sufficient Righteousnesse and though the Covenant give warrand to take hold of it yet if there be not an actual taking hold of it It will not profit us Therefore Rom. 3.22 and 9.30 It is called The righteousness which is by faith in him And Rom. 4.5 The Apostle saith To him that worketh not but believeth on him that justifieth the ungodly his faith is counted to him for righteousness It is not Faith without it's Object Christ nor the Object Christ without Faith But it is Faith taking hold of Him as it's Object by which we have access to plead for Absolution without Christ our Faith will do us no good and without Faith Christ will not profit us For without Faith we have no Title to Christ And each of these would be put in their own Room and Place Christ in His Room and Faith in it's Room as the condition on which His Purchase is made offer of to us More particularly Let me First consider the Title that Christ gets in these Words He is called the Lords Servant and His Righteous servant 1. As for Servant It looks to Him as Mediator as this whole Chapter with Chapter 42.1 and 52.13 do abundantly clear Christ Jesus then as Mediator is the Lords Servant or He in performing the Office of Mediator is His Fathers Servant so the Lord calls Him Psal 89.19 When He says I have laid help upon one that is mighty I have found David my servant c. For He is there speaking of Jesus Christ with whom the Covenant of Grace as with the head of the Confederated Party is principally made It imports these Four which may be as so many Reasons of this Designation 1. An Humiliation and Inferiority in respect of God as it 's said Phil. 2. He humbled himself and became of no reputation In which respect He Himself sayes that the Father is greater then he And that He is sent That He came not to do his own will but the will of him that sent him This holds forth a great Wonder in the dispensation of Grace That the Fathers Fellow and Equal He that was Lord and Master of all should become a Servant in the Work of Redemption for the saving of Souls This must sute be a great Work wherein the Son becomes a Servant As it must be a greater Wonder that Grace so far condescended as to make Him who is the Prince of Life to become a Servant And we would look at it as a much greater and far more momentuous business then we use to do to get a Soul saved 2. It imports His Prerogative as being Singularly and Eminently Gods Servant He is called Heb. 13.20 The great shepherd So may He be called the great Steward and Deputy over all the Lord's House So then He is a Singular Choise and Non-such Servant Behold sayes Jehovah Isa 42.1 My servant whom I uphold mine elect in whom my soul delighteth Though all be Gods Servants yet in this respect He is Singularly and Solly a Servant as He is Great Lord Deputie made head over all things to the Church who was before all things and is preferred to all things This is very Comfortable to Believers to consider that though Our Lord Jesus be a Servant yet He is a Choice and Singular Servant Administrator and Steward for their Good it being for them that He becomes a Servant 3. It imports the particular Task or Work that is laid on Him and the Commission that He hath gotten to follow forth and prosecute that Work which is the main Reason of this Designation of a Servant Because He is intrusted with carrying on the Great Work of the Redemption of Elect Sinners Therefore He sayes I came not to do my own will but the will of him that sent me and to finish his work And I have finished the work which thou gavest me to do Because He is particularly intrusted with the bringing about of that Work He hath gotten so many given Him to Redeem and Save to whom He is appointed a Shepherd a Head and Overseer or Bishop Therefore He calls Himself the good shepherd And is called by the Apostle the Shepherd and Bishop or Overseer of Souls And of all that are given Him He loseth none but maketh accompt of them all And this is yet more Comfortable when we consider that Christ is not a Servant simply but a Servant Commissionat to gather in Souls to bring home the lost Sheep of the House of Israel This is His Office and Service even to satisfie for the Sins of such to destroy the power that the Devil hath over them and so subdue Sin in them 4. It imports this that the Work which He performs in the Redeeming of Souls is so acceptable to God and doth so mightily concur and Co-operat to the promoving of His Design that the Lord owns every thing that He performs as performed by His Great Ambassadour and by Him who hath the Trust of all the affairs of His House committed to Him So that Our Lord Jesus in performing the Work of Redemption cannot but be acceptable to Jehovah because it is a performing of that with which He hath intrusted Him Therefore John 4. He sayes that it is his meat to do his fathers will and to finish His Work And to this
out and established whereby we have such an high Priest that manages all so Well and so Dexterously O! have ye ever suitably Prized this That God hath given such a Righteous and Faithfull Mediator and Servant I fear many suffer this most observable Dispensation to passe without due Observation Though the Lord Jehovah speaks not of Him without commending Him yet wretched and ingrate we can Alace speak of Him and hear Him spoken of with hearts very little affected Believers may be ashamed of this we think lamentably little of Him we esteem not suitably of Him when we see Him there is scarce any Form or Beauty seen in Him wherefore we should desire Him we do in a great measure undervalue this way of Graces Administration that should be in a special manner Ravishing to us that we are thereby brought under such a Tutory The 2d Use Is for Believers Comfort and Incouragement O! but they are happy that have committed themselves to Him as to a Faithful Shepherd and Overseer They may be sure that He is a notable and non-such Overseer As might be more fully cleared if we would descend to the particulars of Believers need Have they little Grace Is it scarce smoaking He is not a rigid Task-master like to the Egyptians nay nor like to the Law He quenches not the smoaking Flax Are they staggering because of apprehended or real Weakness and their hearts shaking as the Trees in the Wood or rather like so many Straes They may with Comfort give Him the Over-sight of them He will not break the bruised Reed He will bear the heaviest end of His own Yoke Have they a straying Disposition Are they like young wanton Lambs leaping out from the rest He will gather them with His Arme and when He takes a rougher way yet Grace shines still in it Are they Fainting and Swooning He will take them into His Bosom He will lead the Blind He bears the Weak He hath a way of Supporting His own that is most Tender My grace sayes He to Paul is sufficient for thee my strength is made perfect in weakness Are their any of them with Child to speak so Or is their bringing forth quick and lively He gently leads those that are with young and will not suffer them to miscarry in the bringing forth He will not put new wine into old bottles he will not cause to travel and not make to bring forth The Lord hath given Believers such a Servant as they stood in need of even a Righteous Servant suited every way to their Condition who will not be behind nor wanting in looking to the lest wrigling to speak so under His Care and Oversight It serves therefore In the 3d. Place to reprove the Suspitions and Jealousies that Believers have often of Christ who are disposed to say with the Psalmist Psal 77. I said my hope and my strength is perished from the Lord will the Lord cast off for ever will he be favourable no more is his mercy clean gone for ever doth his promise fail for evermore hath he forgotten to be gracious c. Nay the Jealousie and Misbelief of some serious Souls will sometimes talk it this Rate I may give it over this work will never go with me beware I beseech you of this for the language of it is That Our Lord is not a Righteous Servant Let therefore your Spirits be calmed and pray the Lord to command a calme in them which are committed to Him Bespeak your Souls as David did his Psal 42. Why art thou cast down O my soul And why art thou disquieted in me Trust in God For He is Faithfull as if he had said that hath the oversight of me And essay with Paul to be in case to say I know whom I have believed and so shall not be ashamed I am perswaded that he is able to keep that which I have committed to him against that day I know that He is such a Christ that I commit my self to who is so Skilfull Dexterous Tender and Faithfull in keeping that which is given Him And is not this most comfortable and a notable ground of quietness That Our Mediator is such as cannot miscarry And may it not shame Believers when either they adventure upon any thing their alone without Him or when they commit themselves to Him and yet do not so intirely Trust Him but entertain Suspitions and Jealousies of Him and think because their Spark is not a Fire or a Flame but Smoaks only that therefore it will die out and be utterly quenched as if He could not keep it in and increase it and because they cannot guide themselves think that they will utterly miscarry as if He had not Armes to carrie them indeed Presumption is to be abhorred but such as are fled in to Him would trust in Him so far as to keep up their hearts in Him and would studie to be cheerfull in Him and to walk up and down in His strength this is certainly called for from you therefore be content to be born by Him where ye cannot go your alone Use 4. Is He such a Righteous Servant Then let me say are there any of you that need to fear or to have the least hink or hesitation to commit your selves to Him And should it not be a Motive to press you to give Him credit For He sayes John 6.39 40. That it 's His Commission and Service to keep them which are committed to Him and to raise them up at the last Day and to give them Eternal Life And He is Righteous and Faithfull in Performing of it If so then credit the Salvation of your Souls to this Righteous Servant Commit your souls in well-doing to him as unto a faithfull creator Never be at peace nor at ease till ye be under His Charge and Keeping and though ye be as little Lambs as weak Wriglings or heavy with Young it 's the less matter if ye be of His Flock ye shall be preserved Is it possible that ye can be right if ye be from under His Care and Custody Nay it 's utterly impossible that ye can be secure but under His Care And it 's as impossible but that ye must be safe if ye be under His Care and Oversight And therefore endeavour to be within the reach of it and to count your selves happy when ye do sincerely give Him credit and to believe that ye are in greatest hazard when ye take most on your selves What a shame will it be to many who have heard that Christ was such a Servant and yet they would not take His Service to bring them through to heaven Thus it stands with you to whom He is spoken of in the Gospel ye shall be found either to have accepted or rejected Him according as by Faith ye yeeld your selves to Him or by unbelief ye refuse to close with Him Let not this word slip as many have done And the Lord Himself make you wise to make
ye improved not for God It 's a sore matter that we should Preach and ye should hear these general Truths of the Gospel from day to day and that yet they do not sink into your hearts Ye will not readily denâ— that there is a day of Reckoning coming and that it will be a great favour to be commended of Him in that day and yet how few do by their Practice evidence that they lay weight on it It 's very sad that Religion should be so triffled in Many of you will come to the Church and seem there and in your other carriage as if ye were going to Heaven when in the mean time ye have few serious thoughts either of Heaven or of Hell But in that Day wherein ye shall stand trembling before His Tribunal and shall there receive the Sentence of an evil and sloathfull Servant ye will find to your cost That there was weight in these Truths that now ye take but little notice of 4ly In General Observe That it 's Singular Proper and Peculiar to Our Lord Jesus to be Gods Approven Servant so as to be without all ground of Challenge in the Discharge of His Duty and Trust and indeed there is no Righteous Servant in this sense but He only who according to the very Rigor of the Law was such the Law could not charge Him with any the least violation of it or want of Conformity unto it For He fulfilled all righteousness We spoke to this on v. 9. and shall not now insist on it Only it 's a sore matter that this Truth should be called in question and called an untruth in these dayes and that Men should say that this Designation and Title is not proper to Christ but that it 's common to all true Christians as if they were all free of Sin and that not by the imputation of Christs Righteousness to them but by their own doing of Righteousness Lord save us what a high injury is this to the Son of God And what gross ignorance is here of the corruption of Mans Nature which in the best and holiest of meer Men is never in this Life finally expelled as the Scriptures of the Old and New Testament most convincingly clear and what a wronging is this of the Truth of God which holds forth Our Lord Jesus as singled out to be and who is designed by this Name The Lords righteous servant Now if there were any moe properly so called we could not say that it were meant of Him But it 's not very profitable to insist in speaking of these Dottages and Foolries But to come more particularly to the benefits that flow from and come by this Righteous servant and from the service intrusted to Him and so faithfully managed and discharged by Him By his knowledge saith Jehovah shall he justifie many That is His Service is to absolve Sinners and set them free from the guilt of Sin and from the Curse that Naturally they are under and lyable to Looking on these Words in the Connexion with the former we shall Oâ—serve Three or Four things ere we come to the more closs and particular Consideration of the Words in themselves The 1. of which is this That the Justifying of many Sinners even of all the Elect is the speciall Trust committed by Jehovah to the Mediator It is in this especially wherein His Service consists Would ye then know what is the imployment of this Righteous Servant It is even this He shall justifie many He shall procure their Absolution from the Guilt of Sin and from the Curse of God and shall set them free from the Judgement which the Law hath against them whereby they are oblidged to the Curse for disobedience thereunto This we may consider 1. As it relates to God and so it imports that the justification of a Sinner is very acceptable to Him For it is that for which He hath given a Commission to the Mediator and what He hath Commissioned Him in the performance of it must needs be acceptable to Him Therefore that which is here called the Lords Service is called The Lords pleasure v. 10. To wit to see a poor Sinner brought in by the Mediator and on the accompt of His Satisfaction Justified He is pleased with and takes it well 2. It may be considered as it looks to the Mediator And so it speaks out the Mediators Design and Work it 's that wherein He is imployed and with which He is taken up even to get Elect Sinners brought from under the Curse of God and freely Justified through Himself So that if ye would know what is the Sum and Effect of Christs Errand and Work in the World here it is He came to save sinners as it is 1 Tim. 1.15 He came to seek and save that which was lost To bring home the lost sheep on His shoulder to seek and find the lost Groat to reclaim Prodigals As it is Luke 15. This is His Meat and His Drink His Work and Businesse as Himself sayes John 4.34 My meat is to do the will of him that sent me and to finish his work And Luke 2. Know ye not that I must be about my Fathers business Which is to rescue poor Sinners from the Devil and to ingage them to God that their Sins may be Pardoned 3. It imports the Mediators Meetnesse for this Service that He is Furnished Fitted and Qualified for as well as taken up with the Justifying of Sinners and setting them free before the Throne of God He hath a full Purse to speak so to pay their Debt Therefore Revel 3.19 He bids Sinners Come and buy of him eye-salve gold and white rayment He hath Eye-salve for the Blind Gold to Inrich the Poor Garments for the Naked and in a Word every thing that is needfull for Sinners It is comfortable to hear that Christ is a Servant But to hear that this is His Service to Justifie Sinners and that He is so well fitted for it makes it so much the more comfortable And were we suitably sensible of Sin and did we throughly believe this Truth our hearts would Laugh within us as Abraham's once did to know that this was given to Christ in Commission to Justifie Sinners and that He is so well fitted for this Businesse that He is Commissioned about and imployed in especially now when He is so bussie about His Work and Imployment for though He be ascended on high yet He hath received gifts for and given them to men even for the rebellious that God the Lord might dwell among them As it is Psal 68. compared with Ephes 4. This is the End of the Ministry and Ordinances even to further this Work of the Justification of Sinners that by acknowledging and making Use of Christ this Work may be brought about and this Effect made to follow this is the End of Fasts and Communions even to Arrest perishing Sinners a while to Tryst and Treat with Him about the concerns of their
Justification before God seclude his own Righteousnesse and betake himself to Christ's Righteousnesse alone as Contra-distinguished to his own 4ly We say That Christ's Righteousness is in Him and imputed to us or made ours by imputation is the alone Meritoritorious Cause of our Justification and Salvation so as that which He hath purchased is reckoned and accounted the Sinners as if it were His own inherently and personally This I also gather from the Words By his knowledge shall my righteous servant justifie many for he shall bear their iniquities Would ye know as if the Prophet had said how Christ is the Meritorious Cause of Justification Thus it is because He shall bear their iniquities if He hath taken on the burden of their Sins and had their Sins imputed to Him then it will follow by proportion that they are Justified by the imputation of His Righteousnesse to them and there is nothing that the Scripture doth more inculcat then this That we are Justified by the Righteousnesse of Christ without us and imputed to us or reckoned ours we by Faith laying hold upon it and Gods accepting of it for us mak s it become ours and yet there is nothing that we do more particularâ—y erre in and which Papists do more scoâ—n and flout at wholly enervating the way and contrivance of Grace by excluding and shouldering out the Righteousnesse of Christ calling it in derision a Putative or meerly fancied and â—maginary Righteousnesse as if there were â—o reality in it and by bringing in and establishing their own Righteousnesse though it be very clear from this and many other Scriptures that Christs Righteousnesse must be ours by imputation because He â—are our iniquities He became our Righteousnesse by paying of our Dâ—bt as our Cautioner and no otherwayes the Scripture never speaks of His being our Righteousnesse by procuring ability to us to pay our own Debt I shall clear this 4th Branch a little further because it will serve to clear the rest That is thâ—t Christ's Righteousnesse as it is in Him and imputed to us is he only Meritorious Cause of our Justification And if we consider 1 The way of Justification that is used among men this will be the more plain There being two Covenants by the one of which Life was once attainable and by the other of which it is only now attainable 1. The Covenant of Works which absolves a man that never brake it which is as when one among men or before mens Court is declared to be free because he was never oâ—ing the Debt 2. The Covenant of Grace that provides a Cautioner to pay the Sinners Debt upon whose payment thereof had recourse to by Faith there is access in Law to the Sinner to call for absolution even as it is in mens Courts though the principal Debter hath nothing to pay yet if the Cautioner pay the Debt it is the principal Debtors clâ—aring and if he should be again charged to pay the Debt his immediat deâ—ence would be that the Cautioner had payed it already So is it here the Lord hath borrowed and made use of this way that is used among men to make the Mystery of Justification which passeth in the Court of God the more clear to us it is as if one should alleadge that such a Person is owing so much and he should say I cannot be charged with it and upon what ground Not because I was not owing the Debt but because such anone has payed it for me So sayeth the Apostle Rom. 8.34 Who shall lay any thing to the charge of Gods elect it is God that justifies who shall condemne it is Christ that died c. The defence proposed before the Tribunal of God is Chritis dying and that is as much as he hath payed the Price or Debt who then can charge it on the principal Debtor And the frame and contexture of the words shews that it is a judicial precedour for they suppose a charge or lybel and a sentence and the Meritorious Cause of the Sentence of Absolution is that Christ hath died 2ly If we consider the nature of the two Covenants and compare them together it will be clear the Papists confound the two Covenants For works to them is the condition of both Covenants making use of that place Matth 19.17 2â— Keep the commands if thou will be perfect sell all thou hast and give to the poor quite contrary to the scope of it for therein Christ is putting the man to a thing impossible to himself to bring him to see the necessity of a Mediator and discover his unsoundnesse when he will not forgoe his great Possâ—ssions for him But the Scâ—ipture doth so clearly difâ—ereâ—ce the Covenant of Grace and â—he Covenant of works that they are opposed For the Covenant of works sayeth do this and live and the Covenant of Grace sayeth If thou shall believe with thy heart in the Lord Jesus and conâ—â—sse with thy mouth thou shalt or saved And therefore the account of ones being Juâ—â—ified in tâ—e Covenant of Grace must be different from the account whereon one is Justified in the Covenant of Wâ—rks otherwayes they would not be opposit The Covenant of Works respects inhâ—rent Righteousnesse as the condition The Covenant of Grace respects Faith taking hold of the Righteousnesse of Christ and therefore H s Righteousnesse must Justifie as being in Him without us and as imputed to us it cannot be our Righteousnesse within that Justifies for so it should be the same with the Covenant of Works for though Christ did procure inherent Righteousnesse to us it makes no difference in the condition it self which is works 3ly It will be clear if we consider how the Scripture speaks of Christ's Righteousnesse becoming ours even as our Sins became Christ's and was the cause if we may so speak of His condemnation that is as He became lyable to the Curse that as He stood a Legal Person in our Room He became guilty and lyable to the payment of our Debt For otherwayes it is abominable once to speak of His condemnation and if His Righteousnesse become ours as our Sin became His then certainly His Righteousnesse is the cause of our Justification as it is in Him inherently and in us by imputation only The blasphemy of Antinomians is most detestable and not at all pleaded for even by Papists and therefore we stand not on it here Now our Sin became Christ's by imputation therefore His Righteousnesse must be ours the same way If it then were asked How we are Justified The Text answers He shall justifie many because he shall bear their iniquities The Prophet makes his Sufferings to be the antecedent whereof our Justification is the consequent for His bearing of our iniquities is given as the reason of our Justification this is also clear 2 Cor. 5. ult He was made sin for us who knew no sin that we might be made the righteousnesse of God in him In which words the Spirit of
the Lord doth so explain bound and inculcat this that there can be no rational exception against iâ— nor evasion from it He was made sin that is a Sin offering or an Oâ—â—ering for our Sin though there was no guide â—ound in His mouth though He had no Sin neither was capable of Sin yet He was made a Sacrifice for our Sin as He was made Sin so are we made the righteousness of God in him If any should ask what is it to be made righteous The Apostle answers even as Christ was made Sin the sâ—me way are we made righteous and that is by imputation of Christs Righteousnesse to us and not by our own merit we have no more merit then He had sin but as He was accounted to be the Sinner though free of Sin in His own Person so a believing Sinner is accounted righteous though without any merit in Himself because God hath ingaged in His Covenant to make Christ's Righteousnesse forth-coming to the Believer Though that were enough yet the Spirit of the Lord addeth a further Word in him to answer that question whether Christ hath procured inherent holinesse to us that thereby we may be Justified no sayeth he that is not the way Our Righteousnesse is in him and not inherent in us even as the sum imputed to Christ is inherently in us so the Righteousnesse whereby we are Justified is inherently in Him 4ly It may be clear from this That frequently it is called a Righteousnesse that is attained by Faith and that is opposed to our own Righteousnesse and working now it cannot be conceived how we can get a Righteousnesse by Faith but by pleading that His Righteousnesse may be imputed unto us Rom. 3.22 It is called the righteousness which is by faith and v. 25. Whom God hath set forth for a propitiation through faith in his blood and cap. 4. v. 5. To him that worketh not but believeth on him that justifieth the ungodly his faith is counted for righteousness Faith taking hold of His Righteousnesse offered to Sinners in the Gospel His Righteousnesse so taken hold of becomes a propitiation to pacifie God towards the Sinner as if He had satisfied in His own Person Even as if a company of men had been out in Rebellion and a Proclamation of Pardon comes forth from the King because he is Satisfied by a great friend who hath payed their Ransome Which Proclamation of Pardon runs on these Terms whoever will lay down Arms and come in and accept of the Kings Pardon that is procured and made offer of shall be acquitted of the guilt of Rebellion and received into favour Who when ever they are challenged will plead their Absolution on that friends procurement and offered such Terms in the Proclamation Now suppose as I hinted before not long agoe that when these Rebells have yeelded themselves and accepted of the Terms if any of them should be called to answer at the Bar or the Kings Bench as being challenged for his Rebellion his answer and defence would be that such a Proclamation was made to us and I said down my Arms and accepted of the Pardon this in Justice would be admitted and sustained as Relevant because that procurement or procured Pardon becomes the Persons according to the Terms of the Proclamation It is even so here we are Rebells to God Christ Jesus steps in as the great friend of Sinners and Satisfied Justice and thereupon the Proclamation comes out as it is Act. 13.38 39. Be it known unto you men and brethren that through this man is preached unto you the forgiveness of sins and by him all that believe are justified from all things from which ye could not be justified by the law of Moses When the Sinner is arraigned before the Tribunal of God He hath two Acts of H s Faith One that submits to God and to His way of absolving Sinners and another that pleads for Absolution â—ot on the Terms of his own innocency but on the Terms on which Christs Satisfaction is made offer to him and so Faith Justifies as it takes hold of the Meritorious Cause and builds it's defence at Gods Bar on Christs Righteousnesse alone It 's the procurement of the Mediator that it pleads upon and in this sense the imputed Righteousnesse of Christ and the Righteousnesse of Faith are one and the same because Faith takes hold of the Righteousnesse without us which can be no other but the Righteousnesse of Christ 5ly It 's clear from the plain and direct expressions of Scripture to this purpose Take but these few as Rom. 4.3 and 22. compared with Gen. 15.6 Abraham believed God and it was counted to him for righteousnesse he had the promise of Christ to come and received and rested on it it was not his Faith but the promise of the Messiah rested on by Faith that was imputed to him for Righteousness and v. 6. Even as David described the blessedness of the man to whom God imputeth righteousness without works It is not blessed is the man who is holy though such a man is seriously studying to be holy albeit not in order to His Justification thereby but blessed is he to whom righteousness is imputed without works and he confirms it from Psal 32. Blessed is he whose transgression is forgiven and whose sin is covered Blessed is the man to whom the Lord imputeth not iniquity Blessed is the man to whom the Lord imputs Righteousnesse though he have it not in himself and to whom he imputs not Sin though he have it in himself So 2 Cor. 5.19 God was in Christ reconciling the world unto himself not imputing their trespassâ—s unto them Jesus Christ is the reconcileâ— of the World to God by His own Merit being God and Man in one Person the efficacy of His Sufferings reconcileth the World of the Elect and how is this purchased Reconciliation applyed By not imputing their trespasses unto them That which here is called Justification is there called not imputing of transgression through that Righteousnesse which Christ hath purchased or through off ring up of Himself in a Sacrifice to God to satisfie His Justice 6ly We might say That this way of Justification through the imputation of Christ's Righteousnesse ought to â—he admitted according to Papists own grounâ—â— For 1. They grant that young Children who cannot Merit are justified and admitted to glory by Christ's Merit as the immediat and proxime cause of their Justification and why not also of these that are at age Is He not the common Cause what absurdity is in the one more then in the other Is not the Justification of both alike free though there be a difference in the manner of Application yet in the Meritorious Cause there is no difference and seing to Children Christ is the Meritorious Cause of their Justification why not also to these come to Age 2. They will grant an imputation of the Righteousnesse and Merits of other Saints to them that want of
Children who can help you make use of such Means and Persons and that would both help your Knowledge and evidence your Love when sincerely gone about to the Communion of Saints 4. Be about the use of the Means with an eye to God for His blessing on them pray to Him for opened eyes and that He would give you an understanding to know Him There is a stupidity in many of you that makes all that ye hear to go by you and as it were to slyde off you So that if it were known some would wonder how there could be such Ignorance amongst them that frequently hear the Gospel 5. Any light of Knowledge that ye have be tender of it in your practice God ordinarly refuseth to give more where that which He hath given is not used well where Men do not like toretain God in their knowledge or where the truth is detained in unrighteousness it provoketh God to give up to a reprobate mind as the Apostle tells us Rom. 1. If ye continue in my word sayes Christ John 8.31 32. then are ye my disciples indeed and ye shall know the truth and the truth shall set you free And John 7.17 If any man will do his will he shall know of the doctrine whether it be of God or whether I speak of my self He that goes conscientiously and constantly about the Duties of Holinesse that he knows For he must make conscience of all else he will thrive in none he shall increase in Knowledge There are also some things that more generally conduce to Knowledge as that Magistrats Ministers Elders Parents Masters of Schools and Masters of Families do their respective Duties 1. Then let me desire you to see to the Education of the youth I mean of the Children of the meanest and worst to bring them up at Schools Iâ—'s sad to consider how many young Ones of Graceless Carelesse and Ignorant Parents are brought up to the Devil it were no great business to help them that cannot entertain them at School O! that we were all willing to contribute for such a work It might help them to know somâ—thing of God or to be civil at least It would also remove the excuse that we frequently meet with from many to wit that they cannot read And if Parents will not be seriously concerned in this themselves God requires us to take some course to bring up their young Ones in the Knowledge of God and truely if this external easie mean be neglected we can expect little of other means if this were minded it might be an ornament to the City and the burden would not be so very great if it were once put to the tryal will ye that are Parents and able be induced to put your Children to the School if ye be not able make it known I know there are some who will drink more in one day sometimes then would keep their Children at the School for many dayes and I suppose that there are but few who can say that it is meer necessity that lets them are there any of you that can say ye would fain bring up your Children at School and ye spake to Magistrats or to Church-session for help and that it was refused you It 's your part to seek for help that are really unable And it lyeth on you to see to it your selves who are able And while ye neither do your selves nor seek help from others ye are utterly in-excusable 2. I would commend to you the necessity of using privat means and that ye would not lay all the weight of your profiting on your being in the Church and on your coming to be Catechised or to hear others Catechised but give diligence in privat to come to Knowledge else it will be long ere ye thrive and profit ye that are in one Family when ye come home from Sermon confer together now and then and be speaking of what ye hear on the Sabbath betwixt Sabbath-dayes and when ye can get any to answer a Doubt or Question to you make use of the opportunity though we could go through you all twice a year in Examination and Catechising it will not do your turn if this be neglected But as ye would be careful to keep your Children at School so ye would be busie in your Families at all Familie Duties This was wont to be the old way of Gods People and it would make hearing of Sermons profitable 3. I would commend to you careful attendance on and conscientious use making of the Ministry of the Word the great ordinary mean of Knowledge and that ye who are most concerned would be thinking of the great conveniency if not necessity of moe Labourers If it were known how numerous a People we are how many hundereds every one who Labours among you hath under his charge how little time we have to go through you all particularly and what abounding Ignorance there is in the greatest part of the People I suppose it would be thought that the charge of any one of us might require two to discharge it suitably which we do not preâ—â—e to spare our own Labour and Pains but to stir you up to a necessary Dutie the effecting of the thing is not impossibly and it is a Work and Dutie well becoming you and worthy of you The Lord Himself perswade you to mind it I shall close up all with a Caveat or two 1. Beware of placing over much Religion in Knowledge or of being puft up with your Knowledge when ye attain to any measure of it 2. Beware of counting meer Knowledge to be Faith but when ye come to know and discern the Object be sure that ye take hold of and rest upon that which the eye of Faith discerns the Land is to say so afar off and within the Vail cast therefore the Anchor of Hope there 3. Beware of thinking that ye meerly of your selves can acquire any sound and saving Knowledge or pumpe it out of your selves we bid you not study the Knowledge of God as ye study other common things There are here requisit Humility Fear Reverence Love to the Truth dependence on God Prayer to Him and acknowledgement of Him Let me again seriously commend this study to you and through it let me commend Christ unto you whom to know is life eternal To Him be praise for ever SERMON LVII ISAIAH LIII XI Vers 11. By his knowledge shall my righteous servant justifie many For he shall bear their iniquities IF any thing should be studied with diligence sure this should be even to be clear how we may come to be at peace with God how we may be Absolved and Justified when we come to reckon before Him It is no curiosity singly and diligently to make inquity here although the unfaithfulness and pride of some unhappy men have made the study of it unpleasant by corrupting and making crooked Gods plain and straight way of making of our peace with Him and of our being Justified
that way of Preaching most that layes open the mistery of Faith in Christ and of Hearers to love that way of Preaching best not so much that which fills the head with Notions as that which serves to help to close a Bargain betwixt God and you This was Pauls great design in Preaching as we see 1 Cor. 2.2 and 1 Cor. 1.23.24 He no doubt taâ—ght other things but he compended all in this or levelled all at this as the scope and this was his main Design in his Preaching and Pressing of other things The 3d. Use Serves To make a sad discovery of many of you is this Gospel the external mean of Justification Then see if ye ever knew any benefit ye got by it ye will belike say that ye are in friendship with God but how I pray you came ye by it There is little châ—nge to the better in your Knowledge and as little odds in your Practice ye are as much given to Covetousnesse Tipling Lying Swearing Pride Vanity c. as evâ—r and are these think ye the Fruits of Justification do ye think that to be Justification which is neither from the Word nor conform to it If God would commend this to your hearts I think it might alarm you to more serious thoughts of your Condition I put it to your Conscience if ye can conceive any difference betwixt you and these that never heard the Gospel ye are baptized and hear preachings c. But alace it 's none of these that Justifies they are only useful as they lead you forward to the use making of Jesus Christ Again let me ask you what effect hath Preaching upon you Hâ—th it convinced you of Sin â—o how then can it convince yâ—u of Righteousnesse Therefore if ye would make sure Justification indeed try it by the Word 1. What was it that put you to seek after Righteousnesse and Justification was ye ever convinced of the need of it and if ye have been convinced was it by Preaching of the Word 2. If ye have been convinced of your Sin and misery where sought ye for a remedy was ye led in through the Word to seek a Plaister to heal that wound of Conviction 3. What was it that warranted you to take hold of that Word or that gave you right to it I know that ye will say that it was Christ holden out in the Word that ye did betake your selves to but what weight laid ye on Gods call in the Gospel warranding you to lay hold on the Promise of Righteousnesse and Pardon of Sin through Christ I know there are many who though there had not been a call from God would have confidently stepped forward to the Promise but were ye ever like to Peters hearers pricked in your hearts and made to say men and brethren what shall we do Or being some way pricked was it Gods call holding out the Promise to be to you and your children and to as many as our God shall call that brought you to rest on the Promise God hath designed preaching for this end and ye would try if ever ye was put to it to look to Gods call that gâ—ve you warrand to believe for there is nothing more certain then this that wherever Faith is sicker and well built it 's grounded on Gods call and doth take His Faiâ—hfulnesse for it's Back-bond to say so and warrand More particularly we come to speake of this Word as it respects the inward mean or the inward instrumental cause of Justification which is Faith for there is this order and method 1. The Sinner is convinced and made sensible of Sin and brought to reckon for it in his own Conscience before God 2. There is Christs being holden forth interposing himself to take on Sinners Debt and satisfyâ—ng the Ju â—ice of God for it which is the meritorious Cause 3dly There is Gods Offer in the Gospel holding our Christs Righteousnesse to lost Sinners and calling them to make use of it 4ly Upon this there is Faith's receiving of the Offer and resting upon Christ and His Righteousnesse for Life which to speak so is the inward instrumental Cause taking hold of the external and as I said of Christ in it 5. And lasty follows Gods imputing the Righteousnesse of Christ to the Sinner and absolving him by vertue of that Righteousnesse from the guilt of his Sin as if he had never Sinned In speaking of this inward instrumental Cause Five things would be cleared which we suppose are implyed in the Words 1. The necessity of Faith holden out as the Mean by which Justification is come by 2. The immediat Object of Justifying Faith and that is Christs Sufferings or Jesus Christ as Suffering Travelling in Soul and paying our Debt 3. The Act of this Faith on this Object which is not a bare speculative Knowledge or a meer Historical Faith but something that really Acts on Christ with respect to His Sufferings 4. The effect of this Faith taking hold on Christ and His Sufferings and that is Justification which is not the making a Sinner to be Just by inherent Righteousnesse but the Actual absolving of him from the Guilt of Sin and from God's Curse the changing of his State and the bringing him from under the Curse into good terms with God 5. The manner how Faith concurres in proceeding or bringing about this effect wherein we have this general That Faith hath a peculiar influence in the Justification of a Sinner that no good work nor any other Grace hath There is none of all these things but it is in this miserably declined generation wherein the Devil sets himself mightily to obscure Truâ—h as the Lord by the Gospel doth clear it contraverted I shall only endeavour to clear the positive part and let you see what is Truth in these things whereby ye may be brought to discover and abhore the errors that are contrare thereto The 1. Doctrine than is this That before a man can be Justified and Absolved from the Curse of God due to him for Sin there is a necessity of Faith in our Lord Jesus Christ This is clear from the Words and from what hath been said in the opening of them up If it be by his knowledge or the knowledge of him that many are justified then it cannot be that they are Justified before they come to the Knowledge of Him or from Eternity only in passing take two or three words of Advertisement and then we shall confirm the Doctrine 1. When we speak of Justification it 's in respect of our being absolved and fred not from the pollution of Sin but from the guilt of it as it makes us obnoxious to the Curse the clearing of the effect will clear this more 2. When we speak of Faith it 's not to be understood as it were a Declaration or Manifestation of our Justification Or it is not to be understood of Faith in the hight of full assurance and as it is a plezophory but of
becoming ours The Uses are several 1. For information and conviction and we would 1. be informed in and understand well the meanining of this Doctrine when we say that Faith is necessary to Justification and concurreth in attaining of it as no other thing doth that ye may give it it 's right place and may make no confusion of these things that are distinct 1. We deny not Works notwithstanding of all that we have said to be necessary more then we do Faith but the great difference is anent the giving of Faith and Works or Faith as it is a work on equal share in respect of causality in our Justification And therefore we would beware with Papists to attribute a sort of condignity to Faith as if it merited eternal Life which flowes from their ignorance of Gods Covenant For they think that since He commands us to believe and promiseth Life to believing that there is a merit in believing as they fancie there is in Prayer Almes-deeds and others Duties or good Works but in this respect as it is a Work in us the Apostle excludes Faith and makes our Justification free whereas if Faith in Justification were considered as a Work meriting our Justification it should not be free and although there be no Papists in profession here amongst us yet it may be there are some and that not a few that think God is obliged to them because they believe and that expect Heaven and life Eternal on that ground even as when they pray they think they should be heard for their Praying and when they give Almes that they should be rewarded for the same as a meritorious Work 2. Neither do we understand when we say that Faith is necessary to Justification and concurreth in the attaining of it That by believing we are disposed to be holy and so more enabled to Justifie our selves which is also a Popish Error wherein I fear many professors of the Gospel amongst us ly who think they are obliged to their Faith because it disposes them to hear read pray and the like and so enableth them to work out a Righteousnesse to themselves whereby they expect to be Justified This is another fault and Error to be guarded against For though we give Faith a radical vertue to keep Life in other Graces yet so considered it is still a piece of inherent Holiness and pertains to Sanctification and not to Justification 3. When we say that Faith concurres in the attaining of Justification we do not say that it concurres in the same manner that Repentance Prayer and good Works do concur But it may be said here seing we grant that good Works and Duties are necessary what then is the difference I answer in these two 1. Faith is the proper and peculiar condition of the Covenant of Grace and not our Works or Holiness whereof Faith considered as a Work is a part Works is the condition of the Covenant of works for it sayes in this manner The man that doth these things shall live by them but the Covenant of Grace in opposition to it sayes If thou believe with thy heart in the Lord Jesus and confess with thy mouth that God raised him from the dead thou shalt be saved as it is Rom. 10. What Works is in the one Covenant Faith is in the other Covenant and that as it is opposed to Works and to Faith it self as it is a Work in us 2. There is a peculiarness in Faith's concurring for the attaining of Justification in respect of it's instrumentalness in taking hold of Christ for our Justification or in receiving and resting upon Him as we said before for that end For when Christ is offered in the Gospel Faith flees to Him receives Him takes hold of Him and rests on Him neither Repentance nor Prayer nor any good Work hath an aptitud and fitness to receive Christ and present His Satisfaction to God as the ground of the Sinners defence as Faith hath And therefore it 's so often said by Divines according to the Scripture that Faith is the instrumental cause of our Justification which we shall clear in two or three similitudes which the Scripture makes use of 1 Christ compares Himself to the brazen Serpent lifted up in the wildernesse John 3.14 Man by Sin is stung deadly as the Israelites were by the fiery Serpents Christ Jesus as suffering and hung or lifted up upon the Cross is proposed to our Faith to look upon as the brazen Serpent was proposed to them that were stung and put up on a poll for that end and as there was no healling to the stung Israelites except they looked to it and the cure followed to none but to these who did behold it So Christ Jesus proposed as the Object and meritorious Cause of Justification Justifies none but such as look to Him by Faith and although they were to look to the Brazen Serpent yet their look gave no efficacy to the cure but it flowed from Gods ordaining that as a mean of their Cure even so it is not from any efficacy in Faith considered in it self that Sinners are Justified but it is from Jesus Christ the Object that Faith eyeing Him lifted up as the Saviour of the elect and His Satisfaction as appointed of God for that end doth Justifie and therefore it may well be called an instrumental cause because it is not Christ abstractly considered that Justifies more then it was the Serpent considered abstractly without their looking to it that did cure but Christ considered and laid hold on by Faith and in this respect Faith is said to Justifie even as the e e looking to the Brazen Serpent put them in capacity of the Cure though the Cure flowed from Gods appointment and not from their looking So is it in Faith's concurring for the attaining of Justification A 2d Similitude is that of miraculous Faith We find it often said by the Lord in His working such Cures Thy faith hath made the whole There was no efficacy in Faith it self for producing the Cure but it was the mean by which the Cure was transmitted to the Person under such a disease So it is in believing in order to our Justification It is by believing on Christ that our Spiritual Cure in Justification is transmitted to us and we are said to be Justified by Faith as they were said to be cured by Faith because by Faith it is convoyed to us A 3d. Similitude for clearing that Faith may well be called the instrumental Cause of Justification may be this even as the Advocats pleading may be called the instrumental Cause of the Clients absolving As suppose a man whose Cautioner had payed his Debt were cited to answer for the Debt his Advocat pleads his absolution and freedom from the Debt because his Cautioner hath payed it although the Debt was payed yet the man had not been absolved if it had not been so pleaded on this behalf So the concurrence of Faith in the
to take Christs Righteousnesse and the pardon of Sin through Him freely and what matter of boasting I pray is here none at all Thus this Doctrine contributes both to make these who are seeking pardon and these who have gotten pardon humble Where is boasting then sayes the Apostle it is excluded by what law by the law of works no but by the law of faith as it is Rom. 3.17 The believing Sinner does nothing and hath done nothing towards the procuring of His own Justification but gets all freely We can never think nor speak aright of Justification but it layes our vain humour and stops the mouth from boasting while it saith What hast thou O! man but what thou hast received and if thou hast received it why dost thou boast as if thou hadst not received it We shall close and shut up the whole of this Doctrine by proposing some few considerations as conclusions from it 1. See here a necessity of being acquainted with the Truths of the Gospel and with this Truth in particular concerning Justification whereof alace many are very ignorant seing there are so many wayes to go wrong and so many do go wrong about it we had need to be the more clear in the right way If there were more knowledge of this and of other Truths we might speak and hear with more profite and if ye did not please your selves with meer and airy notions but sought to be settled in what ye hear of other Truths and of this in particular it would contribute much to your peace and rid you of many doubts and difficulties A 2d Consideration is That there is much need to walk in holy fear in studying this and other Truths there are so many wayes to err and a wrong step here is very dangerous It were exceeding profitable to be more in the study of Justification that is of the very marrow of the Gospel and is deservedly accounted to be articulus stantis aut cadentis ecclesiae but ye would come to it in fear being jealous of your own ignorance and shallownesse of capacity rightly to take it up especially when new questions are rising and started concerning it And as Paul and David studied this way and held it forth to others as the way whereby they went to heaven and whereby others must come to it So we commend it to you to follow them A 3d. Consideration is If Faith be so necessary to Justification as without it ye cannot be Justified is there not reason that ye should study to be distinct and clear that ye have Faith and that ye are indeed Believers This is one of the great Uses of all this Doctrine If there be no way but Faith and if in studying this one way many go wrong then as ye would make your calling and election sure study to make this sure by puting your selves to the tryal if ye be taking this way as the Apostle most pathetically exhorts 2 Cor. 13.5 Examine your selves if ye be in the faith prove your own selves c. It 's truly matter of wonder to think how so many men and women are so soon satisfied in the matter of their believing which yet is so tickle and difficult a businesse we would have none to be jumbled and confounded about it who desire to be serious in the thing yet we would have all wakened and put to diligence many men have taken pains to be wrong in this matter of Justification and how few of you have taken pains to go right in it and how is it that many of you win so easily at it Seing the Apostle Rom. 9. calls it a stumbling stone to many and a rock of offence Surely 〈◊〉 it be so your coming at it by guess and ignoranly is to be suspected And therefore on this consideration ye would be awakened to put your selves more seriously to the study of it and to try your selves if ye be come well to it for it 's the special yea the only-ground of your peace before God There are many of you who in a manner think it impossible to miscarry in this For ye know that there is no way to be Justified but by Faith and yet if many of you were put to it ye know not the manner nor way how Faith Justifies which shews that it is not so easie a matter as ye take it to be A 4th Consideration is this That in speaking of Justification and Faith's peculiarnesse or peculiar way of concurring in it ye would beware of crying down Works as to their usefulness or necessity This was an error that soon entered in the Church as soon as Paul cleared and pressed the Doctrine of Justification by Faith some arose who as James shews in the 2d Chapter of his Epistle affirmed that Works were not needful but Faith would save them no sayes James that faith is dead and vain that wants works And therefore remember 1. That although we tell you that Works are not properly the condition of the Covenant of Grace yet we say that Faith and Works are never separat in a Justified Person sound Faith cannot but work and put on to the study of Holinesse 2. We say although Works concur not in the obtaining of pardon of Sin yet we say they are needful to Salvation and to folks entry in to Heaven For the Apostle saith Heb. 12.17 That without holiness none shall see the Lord Though it's Faith that makes our friendship yet it 's by holinesse that it 's entertained and it 's holinesse whereby our communion is keeped up with God Therefore Col. 1.12 We are said by it to be made meet to be partakers of the inheritance of the saints in light For it transforms us to Gods Image 3. Works are necessary though not to procure our peace yet for the entertaining of our peace and except we have Works we cannot have a solid proof that our Justification by Faith is real and in this respect James sayes Chap. 2. that Abraham was Justified by Works That is by his Works he was declared to be a justified person As to the Justification of his person he was justified by Faith before Isaac was born but by his offering up of Isaac and other Fruits of his Faith he was declared and manifested to be a Justified man and made suitable to the Covenant that he was ingaged in with God Therefore as the sum of all be exhorted to study the exercise of Faith and Holinesse so as every one of them may have it 's own room and place for that will be your advantage and without this no other thing will advantage you Now God himself that calleth for both Sanctifie and enable us for both SERMON LXII ISAIAH LIII XI Vers 11. For he shall bear their iniquities IT 's a thing that can neither be easily believed nor yet understood how by Christs knowledge or by Faith in Him many shall be justified In these Words the Prophet adds a Reason that both confirms
thing that the only begotten Son of God should be loved on this account accepted and glorified in this Work even because He poured out his soul unto death out of zeal to His Fathers Glory in prosecuting the Work of Sinners Redemption 4. And he made intercession for the transgressours Which points out His making application of His Death and the benefit thereof to the many whose Sins He bare He died to take their Sins away and interceeds to have His purchase made effectual For though this be applyed usually to His Prayer on the Cross yet that is but one particular of His intercession which is of larger extent and therefore it 's noted as a condition required of the Mediator that He must not only die but also intercâ—ed that the benefits of His death might be made forthcoming for them for whom He died Thus ye see we have the sum of Gods Covenant here as if the Lord were proposing to the Mediator Now Son if thou wilt pour out thy Soul unto death and thereby bear the Sins of my Elect People and make intercession for them thou shalt losse nothing by it thou shalt have a notable Victory and Triumph and a great Spoil In the Words before The Mediator having accepted the Terms of the Covenant and performed them though not actually at that time but in the Purpose and Decree of God which now are actually performed therefore the Promises are turned over in a concluded Covenant and in an absolute Right to Him What needs further explication we shal endeavour to reach it as we speak to the Observations and because the Words for the most part yeeld the same Doctrines that have been spoken to before we shall not insist in them 1. Then from the repitition Observe in general That the nature and terms of the Covenant of Redemption betwixt God and the Mediator is a profitable Doctrine and useful to be understood and believed by the People of God Therefore it is so clearly proposed and again and again repeated and laid before their eyes and summed and repeated in this verse to keep them in mind of it These that know the Covenant of Redemption as that which hath in it the sum of all the Foundations of our Faith and the ground of our access to God and of our peace with Him they will easily grant that that it 's very necessary to be studied known and believed For First by it we know what we may expect from God because what we are to expect is promised to Christ in this Covenant as to our head This portion with the great and this dividing of the spoil with the strong He hath it as our head 2. Because we know by this Covenant how we come by these things promised And that is by pouring out of his soul into death bearing of our sins and interceeding for us Which supposes and includes our betaking of our selves unto Him by Faith 3. Because by this Covenant the rich and free Grace of God hath it's due Glory For there is nothing considered here as the reason of setting captives free but Christs paying of the Price it comes freely to us as a gift bestowed 2dly And more particularly Observe That though our Lord Jesus Christ in the Work of Sinners Redemption had a sore Combat and Fight yet He hath a glorious Out-gate Triumph and Victory It was the greatest fairest and most serious onset and assault that ever was heard of that our Lord Jesus encountered with As the remembrance and consideration of what hath been spoken of His being in an agony and sweating drops of blood of his praying that if it were possible that cap might depart from him Of His crying my God my God why hast thou forsaken me c. Will most convincingly make out the Justice of God pursuing Him for all the guilt of the Elect Principalities and Powers being in His tops The Devil the Prince of this World having all His Instruments yocked and at Work some to nod the head some to mock and scourge Him c Yet He did abide it all out He gave his back to the smiters and his cheeks to them that pulled of the hair and hid not his face from shame and spitting And had a most glorious Victory and Triumph over all what we said in exponing of the Words clears it somewhat and that Word John 12.31 Now is the judgment of this world now shall the prince of this world be cast out to point out His Victory over the World and the Devil and that Word Col. 2.14 15. He spoiled principalities and powers He uncloathed them and left not as we use to speak a whole rag on them He by a strong hand pulled all the Elect from them and left none of them in their possession He brake open the prison doors and set them all at liberty This was indeed a great Victory He hath also a great spoil of many Captives and great Glory being exalted in our nature At the right hand of majesty on high having a name above every name that at the name of Jesus every knee might bow and that passage Ephes 1.20 21. Is to the same purpose He hath put all things under his feet c. If we look to Reason it cannot be otherwayes 1. If we consider what our Lord Jesus was in His Person being the Son of God He cannot but be glorious John 17.5 He proves Father glorifie me with the glory which I had with thee before the world was Though by being Man He became of no reputation and a vail was drawn over the declarative Glory of the God-head in His Person for a time yet He remained still the Son of God and Glorious in Himself and it cannot be but He that is God must be Glorious in His Exâ—ltation when that vail that obscured His Glory is taken away 2. His Office as Mediator and head of the Elect proves it He that waâ— appointed head ovâ—r all things to the Church could not but be great and glorious and therefore when that of Psal 16.10 Is cited by the Apostle Act. 2.24 and 13.35 It 's said That it was impossible that death could keep him 3. It will be clear if we consider the Work it self wherewith He was intrusted it being a Work that was so well liked of and approven by God He could not but have a Glorious Victory and Out-gate Therefore sayes He John 10. My Father loveth me because I lay down my life for my sheep and Philip. 2.8 It 's said Because he humbled himself and became obedient unto death therefore God hath highly exalted him It was the contract betwixt God and the Mediator that He should first become low and then to be exâ—lted and therefore He behoved to be exalted and made very Glorious Use 1. Learn not to underâ—â—lue nor to vail and obscure the Glory of 〈◊〉 Mediator from the consideration of His Sufferings for though He was low yet He is now exalted He had a most
the Mediators performing according to His undertaking as well as there is faithfulnesse in Gods performing whatever He hath spoken of Him or promised to Him Ye shall only take two or three testimonies for this The 1. is Matth. 3.14 and 17.5 This is my beloved Son in whom I am well pleased He undertook to satisfie for the Elects Debt and hath accordingly performed it so that the Father is well pleased A 2d is John 17.4 Where He appeareth before the Father and useth it for an argument for His Glorifying him with the same glory he had with the father before the world was I have glorified thee on earth I have finished the work which thou gavest me to do I have gotten a task and piece of Work committed to me and now it 's performed And that other Word which He hath on the Cross is remarkable to this purpose It 's finished Now the task and work is ended and I have no more to do but presently to passe to the Victory and to the dividing of the Spoil And a 3d. Testimony is our Lord Jesus His ascension to Heaven and the glory that He will appear in at the day of Judgement when His Kingdom shall be consummat That shall be a proof and testimony that He left nothing undone that was given Him to do that He bare the Sins of many that He gave His back to the smiters and His cheeks to them that pulled of the hair and that He satisfied justice freely and ascended to Heaven as it is 1 Tim. 3.16 Great is the mystery of Godliness saith the Apostle God was manifested in the flesh justified in the spirit fully absolved as having performed all whatsoever He undertook Seen of Angels and raised up unto glory Use This is also though a general yet a very comfortable Doctrine to the People of God in as far as from it they may know that there is no more to be payed to the Justice of God for the Sins of the Elect It hath gotten full Satisfaction The Cautioner hath payed all their Debt and is now exercing His Offices for applying to them His purchase making intercession for them overseeing them proving a Tutor to them guiding them and all that concerns them and His Church even doing all things well managing the affairs of His Fathers house as a Son and He cannot but guide all well Other sheep saith He I have which are not of this fold them I must bring in and they shall hear my voice and I give them eternal life and they shall never perish A most pregnant ground of comfort to the Believer that his eternal well-being cannot but be sure and sicker because it hath the Father and the Mediator their faithfulnesse ingaged for it If Jehovah perform the Promises made to the Mediator and if the Mediator perform His ingagement to Jehovah and raise up Believers at the last day then it must follow that their Salvation is sure This is the main ground on which Believers peace is founded and here we may allude to that Heb. 6. He hath sworn by two immutable things wherein it is impossible for God to lie that the heirs of promise who are fled for refuge to lay hold on the hope set before them may have strong consolation even so here There are two immutable things to wit Gods promise to the Mediator and God will and must keep His Word to Him and the Mediators ingagement to God and He will and must keep His Word to Him And indeed we have good proof of both already For it was this ingagement that made the Father send the Son of His Love out of His bosome to be incarnat and to undergo the work of Elect Sinners Redemption and it was this ingagement that made the Mediator die of whom the Father exacted the Price till He declared Himself Satisfied and well pleased Now when these things that seemed most difficult are accomplished what can fail 1. Then there is here ground to fix our Faith upon and indeed there is need to fix it rightly The ground that our Salvation and Perseverance in the Faith is founded on is not our continuing to Pray to Believe and to Love God but this ingagement betwixt the Father and the Son and it is the cause procuring the other as an necessary and infallibly certain effect It 's mainly on this that believers shuld rest quiet and confident 2. It should make Believers humble and cheerful seeing though they be weak in themselves yet here they have a grip and hold for every hand as it were Jehovah's Word and the Mediators Word for their through bearing 3. It should much commend believing and the state of a Believer who have such ground of assurance The greatest Monarch on earth hath not such ground of assurance for his Dinner or Supper as the poor Believer hath for eternal Life For the Word spoken by Jehovah to the Mediator and the undertaking of the Mediator to Jehovah cannot fail and the Believer hath that to rest upon as the ground of his assurance More particularly The Articles on the Mediators side are as I said in these Four exprâ—ssions He hath poured out his soul unto death He was numbred with the transgressours he bare the sins of many and made intercession for the transgressours 1. He must die expressed in these Words He poured out his soul unto death Which implyes Three things 1. That it is an Article of the Covenant of Redemption and of the Mediators undertaking that he should die for Sinners And so it is a needlesse curious and unwarrantable dispute whether fallen man might have been redeemed any other way or whether a drop of His blood was not enough to redeem man because we see here it is Determined and Articled in the Covenant of Redemption that He should die Jehovah will have the Mediator dying And be possible what may to Gods Soveraignity which we would not make to clash with His Justice nor His Just ce with His Soveraignity this may bound and limit us that it 's concluded in this Covenant of Redemption that the Mediator shall lay down His Life and it being concluded It 's certain 1. That God hath given man a Law threatning him that if he should break that Law he should die 2. That all Mankind and so the Elect have broken that Law and so are lyable to the Threatning and Curse 3. That the Mediator became Cautioner and undertook to satisfie for the Elects Debt it was necessary that He should die because He undertook to pay their Debt and to satisfie for their Sin which was death by the Law to them and so the Justice of God is vindicat He cannot be called unjust nor partial nor unholy though He do not actually punish every Sinner that hath Sinned in his own Person because Gods holinesse and Justice appears conspicuously that He would rather execute what was due to the Elect on His own Son then that their Sins should go unpunished
nature of Christs Intercession and how we may make use of it And how particularly we should beware of a carnal mistake in many about his Intercession as if he were praying in heaven as a distinct partie from God It 's true he is a distinct Person of the glorious Trinity but not a distinct Partie in interceeding as some ignorantly conceive of him and therefore think him easier to have access to then the Father and therefore will pray him to pray the Father for them as if when they prayed to him they were not praying to the Father or as if there were not on object of Worship This flows from ignorance of the nature of Christs Intercession and â—s unbecoming a Christian for supposing â— man to rest by Faith on Christ the Father is content and well pleased to pardon him as well as the Son is because he is ingaged in the Covenant of Redemption so to do and if he be not a Believer neither the Father nor the Son will respect him our use making of Christs Intercession doth consist rather in the founding of our hope of speeding with God on it as on his Satisfaction then inputing up words of prayer to him to interceed for us as if he were to pray in heaven as â—e did on earth or as one man interceeds for another The point is sublimly spiritual and some way tickle and I indeed fear to enter on moe Uses at least for the time only remember that he is an Intercessour And learn to make right use of him as an Intercessour And the Lord himself make the benefit of his Intercession forthcoming to us SERMON LXVI ISAIAH LIII XII Verse 12. And he made intercession for the transgressours IF Christ were known in the greatness and vast extent of his worth O! how lovely would he be How incomprehensibly full are his Offices of grounds of consolation to his people But the mean and low thoughts we have of him and the poor consolation we feed on do evidence much ignorance of him and much unbelief of the solid worth and fulnesse that is in him and in his Priestly Office in particular and yet O! how full of consolation is it Such a high Priest became us Heb. 7.26 Even such a High Priest â—s Sinners had need of There hath been much spoken of one part of his Priest-hood to wit his Sacrifice and offering up of himself in the former verses of this Chapter Now ere the Prophet close he gives a hint of the other part of his Priestly Office to wit of his Intercession a main commendation of Christs fulnesse It 's that which evidenceth him to be a Saviour able to save to the uttermost such as come â—nto God through him because he lives for ever to make intercession for them as it is Heb. 5.25 And it 's a piece of the consolation of Gods People that Jesus Christ hath this Office by the Fathers allowance and that it is Articled in the Covenant of Redemption betwixt the Father and him That as he shall pour out his soul unto death be numbred with transgressours bear the sins of many So he shall make intercession for the transgressours Therefore Heb. 7.21 He is said to be made an high Priest with an oath by him that said unto him Psal 110.4 The Lord sware and will not repent thou art a Priest for ever after the order of Melhisedeck He was a Priest on earth by offering himself in a Sacrifice and by interceeding for Elect Sinners and he is a Priest in heaven by his Intercession and therefore is preferred to all the Priests on earth Who did not continue by reason of death but he continues for ever and none can start him wrong to speak so with reverence of him We shew in our entring on this verse that this his intercession is not to be a stricted to his prayer on the Cross that was but an evidence or particular instance of it but it takâ—s in his whole Intercession Because the Scope of the Prophet here is to hold out as what God promised to him on the one hand in the Covenant of Redemption so on the other what he interceeds for and so his Intercession looked on in the Covenant of Redemption takes in his whole Intercession especially as it is gone about in heaven by vertue of his Sacrifice once for all offered up when he was on earth We Observed the last day That according to the Covenant of Redemption our Lord Jesus Christ behoved not only to die but to be an Intercessour or that it belongs to our Lords Priestly Office agreed upon in the Covenant of Redemption not only to offer up himself in a Sacrifice and to die but to make intercession for his people He made intercession for the transgressours or as all the rest may be read in the future time so this He shall make intercession for the transgressours but for the certainty of the thing it 's set down in the preterit or by-past time The Father did take his word and so it past as done in the Court of Heaven We cleared this point and proposed Four Uses of it The First whereof was to inform uâ— anent Christs fulnesse to discover his insearchable riches and to let us see what an excellent high Priest we have that continues an Intercessour Not only hath he once for all offered up his Sacrifice as the high Priest under the Law did once a year but hath entered within the vail to interceed and thereby to make the benefits of his purchase effectual and forthcoming to them for whom his Sacrifiâ—e was offered Even as Levit. 16. where the rules for the high Priests offering are given after he had offered the Sacrifice he took the blood and entered within the vail and by the Sacrifice and his going in to pray he made atonement for the People typically answerable to this our Lord Jesus by his once offering hath perfected for ever these who are sanctified and by his going within the vail he executes this part of his Priestly Office in interceeding for transgressors In prosecuting this Use we answered some Questions which now we shall not insist to repeat Only there is a short Question or two that further may be asked which wil clear the former ere we go to the next Use And the 1. is if our Lord before he came in the flesh discharged this part of his priestly Office The reason of the question or doubt is because in the new Testament his intercession is alwayes at least very ordinary subjoyned to his Ascension The 2d is How his Intercession now difers from his Intercession before his Incarnation or in what respects the consolation of Believers that flows from his intercession is stronger now then the consolation of Believerâ— flowing there from was before he was Incarnat As for the First It cannot be denyed but Christ was Intercessour since he had a Church in the World for it 's a part of his priestly Office and
〈…〉 keeped from many 〈◊〉 or when they asault thaâ— they prevail not utâ—erly over us Tâ—e Devil lyeâ— alwayes aâ— the waâ— and we are often secure but our Lord Jeâ—us to say so watch â—n the stor or rebound of the tentation and 〈◊〉 it off as to the designed prejudice Luke 22 32. Simon Simon Satan hath desired that he may have you that hâ— may winnow you but I have prayed for thee that thy saith fail not There are many tentations that he keeps off that they beat not on us and when they assault us he breaks the power of them tha the Believer succumbs not under them Hence it is that we are keeped on our feet otherwayes what would become of us when David fell in adultery and Peter denyed his Master what would have become of them had it not been for this there would be no living for us in the multitude of tentations if he were not interceeding for us what could we forsee of Satans snars what strength have weak and witlesse we to resist tentations what could we do with the spear of corruption when it rises like a flood upon us and Satan inforceth his assaults upon us a if he were speaking with mans voicâ— or mouth hiding us do this and that But there is an Intercessour that pleads our cause 3. We have by this Intercession the preventing of many Judgements temporal and spiritual when tâ—e ax is laid to the root of the tree and it is found barren and juâ—â—ice cryes and the command comes out Cut it down why cumbers it the ground How comes it that the ax strikes not why is it not hewed down There is an efficacy in Christs Intercession for paring of it a while longer as it is Luke 13.6 The dresser of the vineyard sayes spare it for this year and it 's granted O! but we would have a most sinful and miserable life if there were not an Intercessour at Gods right hand 4. Disposition for dutie and help in the performance of dutie flows from his Intercession It 's this that makes us pray and that gives us boldnesse in prayer and in other duties that there is such an high Priest over the house of God as it is Heb. 10.19 20.21 Iâ—'s this that gives us ground of approaching to God and to expect a hearing and as it is Luke 13.7 8. It is his digging and pains that makes the barren fig tree fruitâ—ul 5 It flows from this that our prayers are heard though there be much I firmâ—â— in them and that they are not call back in our â—aces as dung but are made s voury to Goâ— it 's through the efficacy of his Intercession We have a type of his Revel 8.4 5. where John sees an Angel come and â—and at the Altar having a golden censer and there was given unto him much incense that he should offer it up with the prayers of all faints and the smoak of the incense which came up with the prayers of the sâ—ints ascended up before God It was savoury and acceptable to God and made the prayers of all Saints acceptaâ—le for the weight of Gods accepting their prayers is laid on the smoak of his incense It 's he that takes the â—â—â—gled and halfe prayers of his People and presents them to God and when they would be cast back as the supplication of an enemy He as great Master of Râ—quists through the acceptation that he hath with God makes them acceptable We should have no ground to pray with confidence nor acceptation to be heard if there were not a golden censer in his hand 6. We have from his Intercession an answer to all challenges There is much debt on our score the Law pursues hâ—rd and curseth us for our habitual enimity and all the particular Acts of it and his Intercession is the last defence on which the triumph of Faith rises by the other stepâ— Rom 8 43. Who shall lay any thing to the charge of Gods elect Is it because they want a chaâ—ge No for there is the Devil the Law and the Conscience to charge them But it's God that justifies who shal condemne It 's Christ that died yea rather is risen again who is at the right hand of God and maketh intercession for us We have a high Priest there that hath payed our Debt and pleads that the application of his purchase may be made forthcoming and who I pray will lay any thiâ—g to our charge in that Court where God is Judge and Christ is Advocat 7. More particularly our Lord by his Intercession taketh away the guilt of our holy things for when we approach to God in worship there is a carnalness and pollutedness in the best things we do much irreverence much unbelief much want of humility zeal sincerity and tendernesse So that all our righteousnesses are but as filthy rags But the high Priest Exod. 28.38 hath on his fore-head Holiness to the Lord And his Oâ—â—ce is to bear the iniquitie of the holy things of the children of Israel â—hat they may be accepted before the Lord and in this he was a Type of Christ the great high Priest going in unto Heaven to make Intercession for his Peoplâ— who bears not onâ—y their iniqâ—â—ties but the iniquity of their holy tâ—inâ—s Aaron answers for them as the Type Our Lord Jesus as the anti-râ—pe He being emâ—nently holiness to the Lord and having holiness on his forehead and being so well pleasing to the Father however our prayers anâ— praises and other parts of service be but little worth yeâ— he makes them acceptable and procures that they be not rejected when he is for this end imployed and made use of 8. We will find that strength to bear through under a Cross and a good oâ—tgate from under the cross comes from him as Intercessour O! so advertant as he is when his own are under the cross his bowels are then moved though not as they were on earth yet certainly they want not their own holy motion suitable to the glorious estate whereunto he is exalted Therefore Acts 9. He cryes from Heaven Saul Saul why persecuts thou me And Stephen when a stoning to dâ—ath sees him standing at the right hand of God executing this part of his Priestly Oâ—â—ice One part whereof is to keep off a cross and another part whereof is to help to get it honourably born and to a victory over it 9. Our perseverance in the Faith and perfect glorification is a fruit of Christs Intercession so that his own cannot but persevere and be glorified because he interceeds for them This is it that is spoken to several times John 17. especially verses 15. and 24. In the 15. v. I pray for them that they may be keeped from the evil He prayes for them that they may be keeped from the evil of sin especially he prayes for them that they may be keeped that they fall nor from the truth And v. 24. Father I will that these whom thou
hast given me be where I am to behold my glory That longing and effâ—ctual desire â—nd will of his presented by him in heaven is continuing still effectuall for all the Saints in the Câ—urch militant There is ground of quieâ—nesse anâ— comfort from his Intercession â—nd by verâ—ue of it to have hope that not only presenâ— but coming snares and tentations shall not prevaiâ— Therefore the Apostle Rom. 8.38 â—o his speaking of Christs Intercession â—ubjoâ—nes his highest triumph I am perswaded that neither death nor life principalities nor p wers things present nor things tâ— come and because it 's impossible to numâ—â—r all things hâ— sayes nor any other creature shal be able to separat us from the love of God which is in Christ Jesus our Lord Now if all â—hese be put together beside many moe that may be gatherâ—d from Scripture what wants a Beâ—iever for his own privat and particular consolation which this one word That Christ is an intercessour doth not answer But 2. There is not only consolation for a Believers particular condition from this ground but also in reference to the publick case of Gods Church Thâ—re are Four things especially that seem very heâ—â— to the Church and publick work â—f God in reference to all which we will find consolation from this ground The 1. is the fear of a scarcity or weakness of the puâ—â—ick Ministry that being the great gift wâ—ich he hath given for the edifying of hiâ— body and it being a prejudice to the Church when she hath not Pastors accordâ—ng to Gods own heart But compare Psal 68 18. with Ephes 4.8 12 13 14. and we will find that his Intercession answers that fear In the Psalm it 's said Thou hast ascended on high thou hast led captivity captive thou hast received gifts for men wâ—ich suppoâ—es his seeking of or making suite for them or as the word is thou hast received gifts in the man that is being in our nature he procured them And Ephes 4. It 's said he gave gifts to men and compare these Two places with a Third to wit Acts 1.4 Where he bids his Apostles tarry at Jerusalem till he send the promised spirit and immediatly after his ascension as it is Acts 2. He poured it out which abode on them in the likness of cloven tongues of fire It 's likewise said John 11.39 That the spirit was not given for Jesus was not yet glorified All which shew an influence that Christ's ascension hath on the pouring out of the Spirit and on the gifts given to men whether Ministers or others There is nothing amongst men readily lesse cared for then a Ministry some would have none at all others would have them of such a stamp as would please and humour them But our Lord haâ—h received gifts to give unto men And he that poured out such gifts on the Apostles and others haâ—h what gifts he pleaseth and sees needful for his Churches edification yet to give And that he gives such gifts to men that his people are not praying much for whence is it but from his Intercession Therefore Revel 1. we will find that he delights in this propertie as a piece of his spiritual state and grand our That he holds the stars in his right hand such is his respect to them and his it is to dispose of them 2. It 's a greatly exercising difficultie to the Church of God to think of the mighty opposition that is made by enemies Mahomet Heathens Antichrist false Brethren threatning to swallow up the little flock the Church of Christ which is like a bush burning with fire and not consumed But for this there is a consolation in Christs intercession according to that word Heb. 10.13 He sat down on the right hand of God from henceforth expecting till his enemies be made his footstool He hath this for his suite at the Fathers Bar and is backing it upon this it followed and as a fruit of it that all the first persecutions were broken On this it hath come to pass that Antichrists kingdom is tottering and it 's on this ground that his bearing down and utter breaking wi l be accomplished Hence it 's most emphatically said 1 Cor. 15.24 That He must reign till he hath put all enemies under his feet According to the promise made by Jehovah to him Psal 110. 1. The Lord said to my Lord sit on my right hand till I make thine enemies thy footstool He cannot be an Intercessour but his enemies must down For who I pray wiâ—l be able to stand when he gives in his complaint against them who will plead Antichrists and other persecutors cause when he appears against them â—nd he is so certain of his enemies being mâ—de his footstool that he is waiting till he see it done he must reign till then maugre all the malice and might of Devils and Men. 3. It 's a difficultie to the Church and people of God to think on such great confusions as are in the world there are but few Judicatories that are for Châ—ist but few Governours higher or lower that do consult his honour or regard him It 's others that have the Throne and Court and the guiding of things thâ—â— friends and fâ—vourers of his interest for most part But here the consolation lyes that there is a Court in Heaven that gives out orders where the Church hath an Agent constantly lying where the Devil and the World hath none Jesus Christ is the Churches Agent and Intercessour there Daniel Chap. 10.13 Hath a word to this purpose The prince of the kingdom of Persia withstood me one and twenty dayes but Michael the chief prince came to help me And v. 21. There is none in all the court of Persia that holdeth with me in these things but Michael your Prince The great Intercessour was at Court looking that nothing went wrong seeing that no decree were past to the prejudice of the people of God and his work in the time when they were building the Temple He Zech. 6.13 is said to build the temple of the Lord to bear the glory and to be a Priest sitting and ruling on his throne having the government committed to him what hazard then is there here when heaven guids all when the Church hath an Agent at the Court to see as I said that nothing go wrong when Michael the Prince is there and sees all the Acts and Decrees of the Court and readeth them yea draweth them and looks well that there be nothing in them hurtful to his Church And O! may we not and should we not thank God for this 4. A Fourth thing that troubles the Church of God is the abounding of offences in her self and the spreading of errour which like a flood threateneth to drown the Church and great stormy winds come that are like to blow down the house of God offences and stumblings abound and errour which I just now said as a flood is like to drown all when the
were the practice of Believers dayly they would see a necessiâ—y of thinking much of him O! when will we be serious and constant in the use-making of this part of his Office 5. Because it may serve also for ground of conviction to many that are called Christians and who go through many cases and d ffiâ—ulties and yet know not what it is to acknowledge him in his intercession O! It 's a sad thing for folk to bear the name of Christians and yet if they want any good thing and can get it another way they neglect and misken him And if it be well with them and if they obtain what they would have they sacrifice to their own net and he is slâ—ghted The next thing in order is to remove some Objections and to answer some Questions conâ—erâ—ing this improvement of Christ intercession in the manner that we have spoken of And there will readily be store of them in our carnal minds Now for the removing of these Objâ—ctions or Doubts I shall lay down some grounds for direction that may answer any Doubt of that kind which may arise partly from the Doctrinal partly from the practical part of this Doctâ—â—â— It being a puzling piece of exercise to â—omâ— that they think they know not how to improve Christs Iâ—tercession or that they never did it aright or possibly both these maâ—â—e their exeâ—cise The 1. grounâ— I would lay down is this That ye would remember that there is an unsearchablenesse in this mystery of the God head in the mystery of Gods becoming man and in the mystery of the Mediator his takiâ—g on of these Offiâ—es to exercise them in our nature and in speaking or thinking of them there is a necessity to silence that which our curiosity would propose for Satisfaction about them as namely how there are or can be three Persons in the God head and yet but one God how one of these Persons can be man and how it is that by him we have access to God the Father Son and holy Ghost There is silence required in the how of these things which leads to the next derection 2. We would study Satisfaction in the matter of the truth it self rather then to be poring into the m nner or how of profound Mysteries especially such as concern the blessed God-head Which is higher then the heavens broader then the earth and deeper then the sea That is as we hinted before we would study rather to know that there is such a thing then how it is as in this particular we know that the Son of God became man took on our nature and in our nature died rose again ascended to heaven sat down on the right hand of God and makes Intercâ—ssion for us These are clear But if we ask how these things can be That God can be man and that two natures can be in one person and how God can interceed they are things much above our reach and not to properly the object of our Faith I say as to the how of them â—â—d our consolation lyes not so much in knowing how such a thing is as in knowing that it is and I make no question but there are many who pray in Faith because there is an Intercessour who if the question were asked how he performs that work They could not tell well if at all These that can tell most of it are very ignorant of it and can tell but little The Lord in his goodnesse hath so ordâ—red the matter that he hath given grounds for the Faith of his people to walk on in their duty but will not satisfy their curiosity and truly if we will seriously reflect we will find that these things which most readâ—ly vex us are questions about the manner and not abouâ— the matter of things we do not doubt that the Son of God is God that the holy Ghost is God and that he procâ—eâ—s from the Father and the Son that the second Person of the Trinity became Man c. But the perplexing question is how these things are or can be The Lord hath made it necessary to be believed that there is one God and three Persons in the God head but to be in reason satisfied as to the how or manner of their subsistance and operations that is not required as necessary So is it here in this matter of Christ's Intercession And therefore this second direction is that ye would study clearness in the grounds that ye are to go upon in the use-making of his Intercession but ye would not be curious in seeking satisfaction about the how or manner of it 3. In our addresses to God and in our improving of Christ's Intercession we would beware of imagining or framing in our imagination representations to our selves of him who is the object of our worship or of the manner of the Mediators Intercession as if we had seen him or heard him with our bodily eyes or ears a thing that sometimes is fashions and troublesome as well as it is sinful and which we are not called to yea if it were possible to attain to any representation of this kind yet it 's but a representation of our own forming and so a breach of the second Command And therefore in going to God through the Mediator never represent to your selves one party standing beside or by another For that is but a diverting of the Soul from the exercise of Faith on a purely spiritual and simple object and derogatory to the majesty of God and when ever such representations are made or rise in the imagination or in the mind God would be looked to for crushing of them It 's from this that many of our doubts and questions arise and there is no loosing of them but by â—he abandoning of them If there were a-possibility to conceive something like God yet the Lord abhorreth that and Deut. 4.15 and 12.30 All Similituds and Representations of God are discharged 4 In our addresses to God through the Mediator we would rest our Faith on what is revealed in the Word seeking rather to take up God and Christ â—s they are revealed in it then without the Word to seek Satisfaction to our curiosity we would from the Word study to take up the attributs of God his omniscience omnipotency omni presence wisdom grace and mercy purity and holinesse soveraignity and absolute dominion in guiding all and as being at such an infinit distance from and infinitly above all creatures that thereby a right impression of God may be wrought in the heart we would likewise study clearness in the promises and concerning Christ and his Offices And in applications to God we would fix our Faith on these known grounds believing we shall be heard and being quiet on that Moses Exod. 33. Is under a vehement longing to see God I beseech thee saith he shew me thy glory The Lord tells him that he cannot see it and live but he will make his goodness pass before him
they put up their prayers to God on the account of their own righteousnesse and not on the account of Christs Intercession Or 3. They are such as have something of God in them and so are Believers and even in such there is often a great defect as to this as Christ sayes to the Disciples John 16.24 Hitherto ye have asked nothing in my name He chargeth them not simply for not praying he grants that but ye have not asked in my name That is ye have not made use of my Intercession as ye should have done although there be not such a defect in them as there is in the former two sorts yet there is a great short-coming and not an improving of Christs Intercession as they should And therefore 3. It will be more clear if we consider the particular cases incident to Believers wherein we will find that but very scarcely Christs Intercession is improven in any of them As 1. If the Believer hath liberty in prayer he is ready to sit down on it and to conclude that he cannot but be heard because he hath liberty and there is not so single an eye had to Christs Intercession and ofâ—en it 's more difficult to hold off this Sin when liberty is injoyed then when it is wanting because though liberty be good and desirable in it self yet through our corruption and pride it 's often abused even as when Christians win to some good measure of holiness it is in some respect more difficult to rest upon Christs Righteousness then if that measure were not attained So is it here more difficult some way to rest upon Christs Intercession when we have liberty in prayer then when we are in bonds and under restraint 2. Upon the other hand if we look to a Believer when he is straitned and it goes not well with him in prayer there is then ordinarly a great defect in making use of Christs Intercession as if it could not in that case avail us and upon this follows anxiety and fretting and the Believer is ready to conclude he will be nothing the better of prayer and that it is better to pray none then to pray so whereas an eye to Christs Intercession would give the mind some quietness 3. If there be an ill and very necessitous case or if there be challenges and some commotion discomposure and disquiet be in the spirit there is readily little respect had to Christ If quietness and calmnesse be there is also hazard of sitting down on that and we readily forget that we hold it of him And indeed it will be found difficult either to have or to want and in either the one case or the other to be making right use of his Intercession Now when I speak of this Sin it not only reproves them that pray none at all which smells of grosse Atheism but also these who shuffle by Christ and step forward at the nearest as if they were not to come to God by him As it is Heb. 7.25 and John 14.6 2. The Causes of this Sin and whence it comes to passe that folks so slight the use-making of Christs Intercession 1. There is a great difficulty in the thing it 's tickle 2. There is an natural aversnesse from and enmity at that thing in us 3. There is a readiness to pitch on some other thing and to misken and over look this now let all these Three be put together and we will see the reason and way how folk slide and fall into this fault 1. I say There is a difficulty in the thing It being one of the most purely spiritual sublime and denyed things in all the Gospel one of the greatest exercises of Faith and we know that all such things have to our nature a great difficulty 1. It 's a difficulty to bring a man to be but formal in Religion 2. There is a difficulty when he is made formal to make him serious even in a legal manner and to be any thing affected in the exercise of Repentance and of other duties So that he be not grosly dessembling 3. When he is made thus serious it 's a difficulty to bring him over that seriousness and to draw him from resting on these duties which he hath been drawn to I say it 's a great and difficult work to get a man brought to the performance of holy Duties and as great a work to get him brought over them and from resting on them to rest on Christ's Righteousnesse for his Justification and on Christs Intercession for the acceptance of his prayers And therefore when the Lord hath once gotten His Disciples to pray and honestly yoaked and ingaged therein He trains them on to pray in His Name and so to get their prayers rightly qualified 2. If we consider our nature we will find that there is an aversness backwardness therein to it as there is an aversnesse in us to all things that tend to the making us deny our selves and lay the weight of every thing on Christ That which thwarts with our pride stands and sticks at our stomacks to speak so and goes not well down with us of such nature is this For our use-making of Christs Intercession implyes that we of our selves are at a distance with God that we have broken Covenant and are not to be trusted without a Mediator and there is in our nature a secret sort of disdain at this We cannot naturally indure it Hence Rom. 10. It 's said of the Jews that being ignorant of Gods Righteousnesse they did not submit nor stoop to the same but sought to establish their own Righteousnesse 3. There is a readinesse to pitch and condescend almost on any other Sin rather then on this And therefore folks may be longer under it then under many and yet not be challenged for it They will readily be challenged for Lying Swearing Sabbath-breaking and the like but they sleep more securely in this Sin then in most others It is a Sin easily fallen into and a Sin not easily recovered from or win out of Because it is a Gospel-sin that the light of nature reacheth not and that the Conscience hath not such an aw iâ— convincing of It 's against natures light to neglect prayer or to take Gods name in vain but this runs in the Channel of the Gospel to pray in the name of Christ and to make all our addresses to God through Him The sinful neglect whereof cannot be discovered but by Gospel-light And we find by experience that many will be convinced of and have challenges for out-breaking Sins who yet wil have no challenges for the neglect of this duty Even as it is easier to convince folks of a breach of the Law then of not believing in Christ many will grant that ignorance of God is a Sin and that irreverence and wandering in prayer are Sins who yet will stand and stick at this and cannot be gotten convinced but that they still believe in Christ