and the same essence and so the same essential glory with himself should take upon him that frail vile despicable nature of Man 2. In regard the Father deprived himself for a season of his highest delight his most infinite contentment for the effecting those Gospel mercies The Fathers delight is in Communion and the higher degree of Communion the higher is the delight of God Therefore it is said Prov. 8.31 That he delights in the habitable parts of the Earth and with the Sons of Men that is because there are Creatures capable of Communion with God there are empty Vessels that he may be pouring out of his transcendent fulness into Now God deprived himself of his own highest delight in withdrawing the communications of himself from that his dearly beloved Son that he was forced to complain My God my God why hast thou forsaken me 3. It cost the Father the very death yea the accursed death of the most dearly beloved of his Soul the Lord Jesus He delivered him up to death for us saith the Apostle Yea it cost the Father the suffering the execution of his full wrath and indignation upon the dearly beloved of his Soul Secondly It must be opened that the Father was at the highest cost and charge in effecting that mercy for Souls that shall embrace the Lord Christ tendered on purpose to make it the surer to Souls apprehensions to give them the fuller security of all that the Gospel discovers This will appear in three things I. In regard there was no absolute necessity in respect of God himself to effect that which the Gospel discovers for Souls embracing Christ in that way at such high cost and charge to himself That will appear in two things 1. In regard there was a fulness of power in the Lords mercy to give absolute pardon unto sinners irrespectively to satisfaction The Lord being the high Soveraign of Heaven and Earth whose sole incommunicable property is that his will is the original of all Law the original of the being of all goodness he hath an absolute power in his own mercy to have given an absolute pardon to every transgression committed against his own Law The Lords Will being the only rule that he walks by and that Will of his being altogether independent hath a power within it self to have given an absolute pardon to every transgression against his Will 2. In regard the Lord in the effecting of the love and mercy that the Gospel discovers to Souls did not proceed according to the exactest rule of Justice Do not mistake me I mean not according to the height and rigor of Justice as Justice which of necessity must have been had the Lord been bound to his Justice to proceed that way That appears in two things First The highest exact rule of Justice admits of no surety in capital Crimes It requires the individual person to be the sufferer of the evil threatned for the breach of the Law that was the transgressor of the Law The voice of exact Justice was only in this wise The Soul that sinneth shall die without any admission of any Surety Now it is apparent that the Lord himself in the bringing about or effecting the Love and Mercy that the Gospel discovers unto Souls he propounds this way to admit of a Surety Those that were the offenders of Justice were not sufferers under Justice but another steps in and bears the stroke of Justice that in regard of his own personal transgression was not guilty of the breach of the Law or of the Offence against Justice Secondly Were it possible for exact Justice to admit a Surety yet not possible for exact Justice to find out a Surety working still as Justice Justice never looks further than the Transgressor himself to exact Justice upon unless it be to lay the merit and desert of the transgressor in some degree upon all that have dependance upon him Never came a thought into Justice as Justice of remitting the least degree of punishment of the Transgressor yet you see in the way that he proceeds he casts about in his own thoughts to find out one sufficient to bear all the burden of wrath and indignation that is due to Transgressors themselves The Lord in his design of glorifying his Justice in effecting Love and Mercy for Souls discovered in the Gospel he proceeds only according to Love it self yea according to nothing else but Love in respect of Souls it being an act of simple absolute pure Love to impute the transgression of the poor guilty Spirit to the spotless Lamb the Lord Jesus as if he had been to have pardoned those Transgressors and to have delivered them clearly from Sin without the imputation of those Transgressions to another Therefore observe the whole Work of Salvation though contrived by the infinite Wisdom of God that Mercy and Justice might meet together and kiss each other it is attributed to Love alone Eph. 2.5 By Grace or Love ye are saved So Tit. 3.4 5. Not by Works of Righteousness which we have done but according to his Mercy he saved us Still the whole Work is attributed to the Fathers Love 2. There was no absolute necessity of Gods being at that cost and charge to procure Love and Mercy for Souls that would embrace him in respect of the Souls themselves that were to be partakers of it That will appear in two things 1. In regard Souls partaking of that Love and Mercy that the Gospel discovers were not the Objects of that Love and Mercy primarily by that cost and charge that the Lord was at in the Death of Christ to effect that Love and Mercy If you observe the whole Current of the Scripture it runs thus God so loved the World that he gave Christ To us a Child is born to us a Son is given So that Christ being a Gift of Love unto the Soul it could not be that they should be made objects of Love primarily by that Gift that is originally in the first place Christ was therefore given because they were first beloved not they beloved because Christ given seeing the Love of God was fixed upon all its peculiar objects that ever it should be fixed upon in that Gift and then Christ himself came forth as a Gift of that fixed Love it could not be that they should be primarily made objects of Love by the Lords effecting that Love and Mercy for them through his great Cost of giving the dearly beloved of his Soul for them 2. Those Souls that shall embrace Christ tendered in the Gospel were the Objects of that Gospel-Love and Mercy discovered in order of nature before the Lords intention to effect that Gospel-Love and Mercy for them by that his own cost in giving his own Son The Lord Christ is discovered as the Means by which God brings about the conveyance of his Love unto his beloved ones and the End is discovered in the Gospel to be the Glory of his own Love
Exod. 3.15 This is my Name for ever and this is my Memorial to all generations That is to say this is the distinction whereby I will be known to all generations that I am the God that send out a Redeemer to lost sinners which implicitly and virtually includeth thus much as if God should say Mine own honour the highest Title of my glory should fail if I fail of embracing every loveless sinner through the Lord Jesus that will accept me And thence you shall observe when the Lord made the clearest Revelation of himself to Moses Exod. 34.6 7. The very Name whereby he calls himself is that which includeth all that the Gospel of Christ reveals to sinners The Lord passed by him and proclaimed The Lord merciful and gracious long-suffering slow to anger and abundant in goodness and truth keeping mercy for thousands forgiving iniquity transgression and sin Here is the whole Mystery of the Gospel of Jesus Christ and nothing else but the Mystery of the Gospel that the Lord owns to be the Name of his Honour that the Lord would have to be his Title whereby he would be distinguished from others and whereby he would be known unto Souls Two things must be opened for the clearing of it sufficiently to the satisfaction of Souls First It must be opened that the whole mystery of the Gospel of Jesus Christ is vertually contained in the name of God Secondly That particular Souls may have security unto themselves from that name of God and may safely through believing look upon the honour of his name as engaged to them to fulfil what the Gospel reveals First It must be opened that the whole mystery of the Gospel or whatever the Gospel reveals is included in the name of God We shall open it from that of Exod. 34.6 7. which God owns as his name There are eight titles that the Lord assumes to himself that make up in the Lords account his name wherein he will be known unto Souls I. The first Title of his honour that concurs to the making up of his name is Merciful the Lord Merciful which includes two things 1. That there are bowels of pitty and compassion in the bosom of God that there are pretious dispositions unto infinite compassions naturally dwelling in God The word is the same with that in Jer. 31.21 which may be rendred Bowels 2. It includes that the Lord is ready to act those bowels of compassion towards Souls drowned in the depths of the most extream misery Misery and Mercy are Relatives and according to the depths of Misery so is the height of the working of Mercy Now under that very one title is comprehended the sum and substance of all that the Gospel discovers There is but one voice that the Gospel of Jesus Christ speaks in and that is this that the Lord is full of bowels of pitty and compassion towards every loveless sinner that will accept his compassions tendered II. The second Title of God is Gracious This implies two things 1. The Lords acceptance of loveless sinners into favour 2. The acceptance of miserable ones into favour meerly out of the freedom of the workings of his own favour from motives out of his own bosom without respect to any desert Therefore the whole voice of the Gospel is by Grace ye are saved III. The third Title that concurs to make up the honourable name of God is The Lord long Suffering or as it may be rendred he is Slow to anger Here are two things included 1. It implies a long time of forbearance in God to execute Judgment upon sinners according to their own demerit 2 Pet. 3.9 2. It implies that that forbearance to execute Judgment upon sinners according to their sins is on purpose that sinners might be accepted into love and favour and prevent the execution of Judgment Isa 30.18 IV. The fourth Title of the Lords honour is The Lord abundant in Goodness or excelling in Kindness That implies three things 1. The compleat fulness of all Goodness that can be necessary for a Soul to be treasured up by God in the bosom of Christ for Souls 2. It implies a transcendency of all supply for empty Souls to be in himself through Christ It implies a Superlative Fulness a Fulness that is more then sufficient a Fulness that infinitely exceeds what ever a Soul can want 3. It implies the readiness and facility of God to be dispensing that goodness unto Souls V. The fifth Title of the Lords name is That he is abundant in Truth Truth doth not here imply Justice and Righteousness but it implies Faithfulness in God to be true according to the Revelation of himself So that Truth implies the certainty the infallibility of the Lords fulfilling unto Souls whatever he promised to be treasured up in himself for them VI. There is a sixth Title that concurs to make up the Lords Honour that is his reserving or his Keeping Mercy for thousands This implies two things 1. A large comprehensiveness of love and mercy to be comprehending multitudes of miserable undone sinners Keeping Mercy for Thousands It is a Synechdochical Speech a finite Number is put for an infinite VII There is a seventh Title that concurs to make up the Lords Honour and that is Forgiving Iniquity Transgression and Sin Here are three several Expressions that in a large sense point at the same thing every iniquity being a transgression and every transgression being a sin yet certainly something is intended by the Blessed God in proclaiming his Name thus Some have conceived by Iniquity to be meant Sins against God himself by Transgression to be meant Sins against our Neighbour and by Sin to be meant Sins against our own Souls Others have made them to be sins of Malice and sins of Infirmity and sins of Ignorance Others conceive by Iniquity because the word comes from a Root in the Original that signifies Crookedness to be meant the Corruption of Nature and by Transgression to be meant the Breach of the Law through infirmity and by Sin to be meant Stubbornness against God However thus much we may affirm to be the meaning of the Holy Ghost that under these three are comprehended all Sins whatever of what nature and degree soever Then this Title of the Lords Honour implies thus much an impossibility for any degree of Sin whatever to hinder the Lord from shewing mercy and being gracious in that way of fulness of Love that he reveals himself to be inclined to and to be his own Nature VIII The eighth Title of the Lords Honour includes a Gospel-Discovery too and that is in those words That will by no means clear the guilty visiting the Iniquity of the Fathers upon the Children and upon the Childrens Children unto the third and to the fourth Generation This seems indeed at first view to have little of Gospel in it But I dare not consent here to the Paraphrase the Translators have given upon the words But the words are to
reveal'd a fulness of all goodnes and so strength it self to the Soul but he may behold the Lord to have called himself by that Name of Abundant in Goodness 2. The Soul is secured by the Credit of the Lords Name against all fears of his not prevailing with God in Christ to be partaker of that Mercy and Love and Goodness that the Gospel discovers He may behold the Lords Name to be Abundant in Goodness not only goodness but abounding having more than a fulness so that it should run over into empty Souls like Rivers abounding with water freely overflowing his Banks 5. The Credit of the Lords Name is engaged to a compleat perfect fulfilling of his revealing mercy and goodness towards loveless Sinners His Name you see is Abundant in Truth So that God must lose that Beam of the glory of his blessed Name which is Abundant in Truth should the least Tittle the least Iota of any word revealing Mercy and Love to loveless Sinners fall to the ground 6. The Credit of the Lords Name is engaged for the accepting every Soul into grace and favour discovered in the Gospel without making any exception against any one Soul whatever The Lords Name you see is the Lord keeping Mercy for thousands that is for infinite numbers That is to say his Name is he that is ready to shew mercy to every Soul without exception 7. The Credit of the Lords Name is engaged to secure Souls that no kind or degree of wickedness can be a prevention of his acceptance of a Soul into his favour and love His Name you see is the Lord forgiving iniquity transgression and sin that is forgiving all kinds and degrees of sin 8. The Credit and Honour of the Lords Name is engaged that the ground of his receiving Souls into love and favour shall be only his own precious will His Name is He will have mercy upon whom he will have mercy Exod. 33.9 So that when the Souls confidence begins to waver about the Lords willingness to accept him into love and favour because he beholds no ground or argument of love then the Soul may behold the blessed Name of God that hath mercy upon whom he will have mercy looking for no Arguments of his love and mercy but his own Will Thus you see that the Credit of the Lords blessed Name is engaged for assuring Souls of whatever the Gospel discovers And that 's the Sixth Particular Seventhly The Spirit reveals the Lord to have given in his blessed word Presidents Examples and Patterns sutable to the Case and State of every Soul upon whom the Lord hath already effected whatever mercy and love the Gospel discovers to forlorn despicable loveless Sinners The Lord hath so abounded and superabounded in the riches of his own love that out of the bowels of those his compassions towards loveless Sinners he hath condescended beneath himself and his own super-excellent Majesty to give all kind of securities whatever are possible to be given to poor doubting Spirits concerning his Gospel-love There are eight particular Cases wherein the Lord hath given Paterns and Examples unto Souls which Cases comprehend all kinds of Estates and Tempers that it is possible for any Soul to be under I. In the case of the superlative height of Souls wickedness the being plunged into a bottomless Ocean of all kind of abominations and pollutions that are imaginable In this case the Lord hath given eminent patterns First If you look into that place 1 Cor. 6.9 10. and read over the black bill of almost all kind of abominations that are there reckoned up Fornicatours Idolaters Adulterers Effeminate abusers of themselves with mankind Theeves Covetous Drunkards Revilers Extortioners And you shall see v. 11. that some that are contained in the black bill of all pollutions were Washed Sanctified Justified in the name of the Lord Jesus all Gospel mercy and love was discovered unto them for saith the Text Such were some of you Another pattern the Lord left 2 Chron. 33.11 12 13. of Manasseh who heaped up wickedness upon wickedness yet the Lord made him a pattern of Gospel-love and mercy Another you have in Paul in 1 Tim. 1.15 One drinking up the blood of Saints like water one blaspheming Jesus Christ offering all kind of injuries and indignities to the name of Christ and yet the Lord did shew forth all long-suffering that is all kind of love manifested in patience and forbearance and admitted him into union and communion with himself through Christ and this he did on purpose that he might leave it as an experiment of his Love and Mercy to them who should hereafter believe on him to life everlasting So Act. 2.30 those that had washed their malicious and envious Hands in the innocent blood of the Lord Jesus were not excluded from Gospel Mercy and Love So if you look into the doleful story of our first fall by Eve who did first provoke the anger and indignation of God yet she was made a pattern of Gospel Mercy and Love Gen. 3.15 II. The second case wherein God hath given patterns is in the case of unbelief the potency and prevalency of unbelieving dispositions I shall propound but two patterns to you in this case First of David who under the rage of unbelief Psal 116.11 said in his hast all men are liers that those Prophets that had revealed to him from the mouth of God that he should inherit the Kingdom were but dissemblers notwithstanding he had been satisfied of the truth of the message coming from God The second pattern is in unbelieving Thomas John 20.24 25 26. that would not believe the resurrection of Christ except he should see in his Hands the print of the nailes and thrust his Hands into his side yet Gospel Love and Mercy was discovered to him vers 27. under this case come in these two cases of Souls wherein they are much perplexed 1. In case of the Souls not feeling the Lord by his Almighty power drawing their Hearts to believe Saith the poor perplexed Soul surely the Lord draws all that he intends should come to Christ through believing but alas saith the Soul I do not see that God hath drawn my Heart therefore surely God hath not chosen me to be an object of Gospel Grace and Love now the Spirit may witness from hence that there hath been a Soul as much under the dominion of unbelieving dispositions as his unbelieving Spirit yet the bowels of Love and Mercy revealed in the Gospel were not restrained from them 2. Here comes in that case of the weakness of affections and desires towards believing and of the strong inclination of the Spirit to receive security of the Lords willingness to make him the object of Gospel Mercy and Love from something that should be visible and sensible to the Soul That 's also a common case of Souls that they cannot discern any disposition in their Hearts to believe the Lords willingness to receive them into the bosom