Scribes and said I have sinned in betraying innocent blood If Judas took advantage so much upon the awakening of conscience to confesse sin then a beleever hath much more helpe Beloved the main use of conscience in man is to bring him upon his knees to make him humble in the confession of his waies conscience serves to excuse me when I do well but the main use of conscience is to accuse me when I do ill and so to put me on confession to God therefore mark saith David I roared all the day there was the noyse of Davids conscience for his Adultery then I said I will confesse my transgressions when conscience roars by accusation then let the heart confesse to God I do earnestly beg you to take these fit Seasons you are in a good plight to confesse sin when God doth lay you under afflictions when God doth make conscience accuse you that you do deceive in your trades that you are ingulphed under lust O then pursue these accusations of conscience then you are in a fit plight to confesse sin to God Seas 3 A third Season wherein a man is in a good plight to confesse sin to God is when God sets home the reproofe of the Ministers of the Word upon the the soul with conviction thus you know David in 2 Sam. 12. 13. And David said unto Nathan I have sinned against the Lord And this was after that Nathan had said to David thou art the man The reproofe of Nathans Ministery did so prevail on Davids heart that David said I have sinned and have done very foolishly Could you goe home after every Sermon you hear when ever you hear your sins reproved and pursue that reproofe and blesse God that the Word hath checkt you that the Word hath met you that the Word hath found you out as an enemy could you goe home and pursue a Ministerial reproofe with confession your hearts would then be in good plight to confesse sin unto God Vse The Application First see hence that not only wicked men must confesse sin but regenerate men pardoned men It is no servile no slavish no legal work Though the lowest Beleever be above the power of sin yet the highest Beleever is not above the confession of sin because not above the practice of sin As long as men continue acting of sinne men must never leave confessing of sin as long as sinne leaks into thy soule thou must so long be pumping confession is to the soule as a pump to the ship O what leaks into thy heart by heedlesnesse and carelesness pump out by confession Till thou art above the actings of sinne thou art not above the confessing of sinne as long as the body natural doth gather corrupt humours so long there must be Purges and Vomits if the body should still be gathering corrupt humours nature woulb bestfled by these humours thou art gathering sin to sin thou art adding iniquity to iniquity confession is a spiritual Purge it doth cleanse and purge the heart see therefore the great need that even pardoned men have to confesse their faults Secondly when the Scripture saith that justified persons must confesse sin take notice that every confession of sin will not serve mens turns Lorinus observes out of Bernard on these words I confess my transgressions That Saul made the same confession that David made when Nathan reproved David sayes David I have sinned when Samuel reproved Saul saith Saul I have sinned here is the same confession but here was not the same event David said I have sinned and Nathan said The Lord hath taken away thy iniquity but Saul said I have sinned too but Samuel told him the Lord hath taken away thy Kingdom from thee Saul confest sin yet had his Kingdom taken away but David confest sin and had his sin taken away Beloved thou mayest confesse sin with Saul yet not have thy sin taken away thou mayest lose thy soul as he lost his Kingdome though he confest his sinne The third Quere is this What Theological rules may be given to guide you in your confession of sinne unto God Answ There are seven Rules which I shal lay down to you Rule 1 First Rule in confession of sin unto God is this single out some bosome and master lust that doth most frequently enslave thee and make confession and complaints against that to God do not onely confesse sin in the lump and general but single out the most beloved lust those sins which for the present do most subject and enslave thy spirit which do most overcome thee and prevail over thee in thy Christian course against those thou shouldest bend most of thy complaints and confessions this wisedome Gods people of old did expresse they singled out the present corruptions that they were guilty of Judg. 10. 10. And the Children of Israel cryed unto the Lord saying We have sinned against thee both because we have forsaken our God and also served Balaam We have sinned there is a general complaint but we have also served Balaam they singled out their idolatry more especially 1 Sam. 12. 19. And all the people said unto Samuel Pray for thy servants unto the Lord thy God that we dye not for we have added unto all our sinnes this evil to aske us a King They were not contented with their old government but they would alter and change it that sin being their particular sin they were guilty of they would single out that sin Thus in 1 Chron. 21. 17. And David said unto God is it not I that commanded the people to be numbred even I it is that have sinned and done evil indeed but as for these sheep what have they done c. He singles out a particular sin that he then lay under the guilt of I may say to you as the King of Assyria said to the 32. Captains fight neither against small nor great but against the King of Israel so bend your confession not against small or great onely but against thy kingly lusts against thy captain lusts that do spring from thy constitution Thy Agag thy Dalilah single out them and combat against them and bend most of thy confessions and complaints against them do as men in a garrison though they watch all the Battailments and guard every passage yet to that place where the breach is 〈◊〉 widest and where the storm is most hot they will bend most of their strength doe thou thus watch every sinne and watch every failing of thy life but bend most of thy confession to God against those lusts that do most enslave and subject thee Rule 2 A second rule to guide thee in the matter of confession of sin to God is this Make conscience to confesse your small and secret evils as well as your open and grosser sins Our secret sins saith the Prophet are in the light of thy countenance Psal 90. 8. Thou hast set our iniquities before thee our secret
the mountains David cut off the lap of his garment saith David well I have sinned and Saul thou art more righteous then I when Nathan came to David David said I have sinned and Nathan told him the Lord hath taken away thy iniquity Saul said I have sinned yet the Prophet Samuel told him the Lord hath taken away thy Kingdom here is not the same result for David had his sin taken away and Saul had his Kingdom taken away therefore do not depend on your confessions Thirdly Take this Direction that when you confess sin to God and are the most vile in your own eyes you are then most amiable in Gods eye Cant. 1. 6. Look not upon me becaus I am black becaus the sun hath looked upon me The Church there confest to Christ I am black and not comely she was sun-burnt as she thought I but in verse 8. My Love my Dove thou art the fairest among women Christ lookt on her as the fairest among women so likewise in Cant. 2. 14. O my Dove thou art in the clefts of the rock in the secret places of the staires let me see thy countenance let me hear thy voyce for sweet is thy voice and thy countenance is comely When the poore Dove the Church lay in a hole under the staires bewailing and mourning like a Dove for her sinfulnesse O saith Christ to her let me see thy face and let me hear thy voyce Christ doth love to hear the moan-makings of his people Jer. 31. 18. I have surely heard Ephraim be moaning himself thus Thou hast chastised me and I was chastised as a Bullock unaccustomed to the yoke turn thou me and I shall be turned thou art the Lord my God It is worth your notice Job when he was afflicted by God in having botches and boyles all over his body it is said Job made his complaint to God Chap. 7. vers 20. I have sinned what shall I doe unto thee O thou preserver of men I have sinned saith Job but what doth God say of Job in all this Job sinned not Job 1. 22. In all this Job sinned not nor charged God foolishly It was not spoken absolutely he sinned not but the meaning is he sinned not so as other men sinned The more you bewaile condole confesse sinne to God are by reason thereof vile in your own eyes the more amiable you are in Gods eyes And thus I have done with the first part of the Text I said I will confesse my trangression unto the Lord. I have been all this while in these Sermons on Davids Act I said I will confesse my transgression unto the Lord. I am now come to Gods Act and thou forgavest the iniquity of my sinne Thou forgavest c. that is not only my sinne but the malignity of it with all its agravations all its hainous circumstances Now here touching Gods Act two things are to be observed First the manner of bringing in this Act of God the Psalmist doth not bring it in thus with an Ergo I said I wil confesse my transgression to the Lord therefore he forgave the iniquity of my sinne but it is with an et a conjunctive particle and not a causall I confesse 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 and thou forgavest Secondly Observe this further the manner of the expression the confession was in purpose and intention but the forgivenesse is actuall observe from hence this note That God doth recompence the very gracious purposes as well as performances of his own servants God forgave but David did but purpose to confesse I said I will confesse and thou forgavest O beloved what a God doe yee serve your masters are not pleased with your purposes to work if you doe no labour with your hands you serve a God which takes will for work God takes purposes if they be reall for performances The Lord doth recompense not onely gracious performances but also gracious purposes in his owne servants The Vse or corollary from hence is this That wicked men looke to it God will not onely punish their wicked practices but their wicked purposes Didst thou ever purpose to be uncleane or to deceive and it may be thou wast interrupted that thou couldst not have secrecy opportunity Why God will punish thee for thy purpose though thou never dost act it Beloved it is not onely what evill thou hast done but what evill thou wouldst have done Wouldst not thou have been an oppressour if the World would not have cry'd shame on thee wouldst not thou have been a drunkard if the world would not brand thee with infamy God will punish wicked men for evill purposes Further to godly men Thou canst not mourn but wouldst thou mourn thou canst not confesse sinne but wouldst thou confesse sinne thou canst not break thy heart but wouldst thou break thy heart God looks on your purposes with approbation as well as your practises As here David I said I will confess my sin thou forgavest Thirdly God doth not onely look on wicked mens purposes to punish them for them and good mens purposes to reward them for them but God doth looke on the purposes of devils to doe hurt for to prevent them A notable passage Luk. 21. Peter Peter saith Christ Satan hath desired to winnow thee like Wheat I have actually prayed the hurt was only the devils purpose and the devils desire but when the temptation was but in the desire then saith Christ I have actually prayed for thee O fall down and admire the condescension of Christ he doth crown your purposes and endeavours and desires I said I will confesse my transgression and thou hast forgiven the iniquity of my sin From the connexion of confession and forgivenesse of sinne And thou forgavest which is by way of connextion not causation with an et not an ergo The Doctrine I hence observe is this That there is a necessary connexion between a penitentiall confession of sinne and forgivenesse of sinne I confessed and God forgave You have frequent testimonies that inculcate this on your thoughts Prov. 28. 13. He that covereth his sinnes shall not prosper but whoso confesseth and forsaketh them shall have mercy Job 33. 27. He looketh upon men and if any said I have sinned and perverted that which was right it profited me not Vers 28. He will deliver his soule from going into the pit and his life shall see the light In the handling of this point there are these particulars which I shall dispatch Part. 1 First What is meant by forgiving sin To explicate this there are three things which are needful to be spoken to First for the varieties of names and expressions of forgivenesse First pardon of sin is a casting of sinne behind the back Isaiah 38. 17. Behold for Peace I had great bitternesse but thou hast in love to my soul delivered it from the pit of corruption for thou hast cast all my sinnes behinde thy back In Scripture to cast a thing
the greater the person is that sins the sinne is the greater 2 Sam. 12. 8 9. A Third Circumstance to aggravate his sin it was that he did commit the sin after God had given him manifold mercies so Nathan telleth him 2 Sam. 12. 8. Fourthly Consider this that David had a Wife of his own nay many wives of his own that did greaten Davids sin and so Nathan told him for saith Nathan There was a poor man who had but one Lamb and a rich man that had many Lambs which killed the poor mans Lamb his meaning was that David should commit adultery with the wife of that man that had but one wife when he had many of his own Fifth Circumstance if you consider the time when David committed this sin it was when Davids Armies were lying in the fields this was done then which was enough to provoke God to make them turn their backs upon their enemies Sixth Circumstance It was a great injury to a faithful Commander in his Army as to Vriah Seventhly Which is the chiefest Circumstance of all that David should commit many sinnes to hide that one sin that was an aggraving Circumstance David did commit six-six-sins to hide that one sin of Adultery 1. He sent for Vriah Bathsheba's husband to leave the Army when they were storming a place this might have endangered the whole Army 2. The Text saith that David made Vriah drunk thinking thereby to make him go in to his Wife 3. He used a meanes for Vriah to father his bastard that he had gotten in uncleanness 4. When that Plot would not take David did conspire and consult how to kill Vriah 5. David sent a letter by Vriah wherein Vriah was a messenger of his own death unknown to him 6. When Vriah was dead the Text saith that David said The sword makes no difference for the sword destroyeth one man as well as another he laid Vriahs death on Gods providence onely when it was he himself did plot how he should be slain O where was Davids conscience all this while where was Davids conscience that should thus fall to commit those sins to hide one sin you account that a hainous aggravation of sin when servants have done an ill turn if they shall doe many ill turns to hide one this iniquity was found in David to hide one sin he fell to commit many Eighth Aggravation which greatens Davids sin was this that David should marry Vriahs wife first killed the husband then married the wife Ninthly and lastly To make his sin out of measure sinfull David continued under this sin with all these aggravations for nine moneths together without repentance or remorse of conscience I do not name this to boulster any man in sin I onely mention this for a distressed conscience that though thy sin be an aggravated and a great sin cloathed with many hideous and hainous circumstances yet God did forgive such a sin as that and therefore well may David say The Lord forgave the iniquity of my sin not onely sin but the iniquity of sin Inst. A second Instance is of Peter you all know the story but it may be you have not lookt narrowly into the circumstances that made Peters sinne to be great In Peters sinne First Consider that Peter should deny Christ when he did make more confident professions that he would cleave to Christ then all the other eleven Disciples when Christ told them You shall be offended because of me this night saith Peter Though all men should forsake thee yet will not I yet none forsaked Christ but Judas and he in so shameful a manner as they this was a great aggravation Secondly It is observable that Peter did deny himself to be Peter Joh. 18. 25. And Simon Peter stood and warmed himself they said therefore unto him Art not thou also one of his Disciples He denied and said I am not Thirdly He said he did not know Jesus Christ what a horrible fault was that that he said he did not know Jesus Christ Luke 22. 57. And he denied him saying Woman I know him not Fourthly He did not only deny Christ to a single Maid but the Text saith he denyed Christ to the Maid and before all the people there was an open denyal of Christ Matth. 26. 69. Now Peter sate without in the Palace and a Damosel came unto him saying thou also wâ—st with Jesus of Galilee vers 70. But he denied before them all saying I know not what thou sayest Fifthly When another Damosel came and she said Verily thou art one of them and a follower of Jesus Christ be said a second time Woman I doe not know the man Luke 22. Sixthly He did not onely deny but Matthew saith he denyed with an Oath Matth. 26. 72. And again he denied with an oath I doe not know the man to swear to a lye is abominable Seventhly It is observable It is said that a third time there came a man to Peter about an hour after and saith Of a truth thou art Peter and to the man saith he I do not know him Eighthly This is not all that Peter did not onely speak a falshood not onely swear a lye but Peter did curse himselfe if so be he knew Jesus Christ the Text saith he began to curse as well as to swear Mark 14. 71. But he began to curse and to swear saying I know not this man of whom ye speak he wisht some direful judgement to befall him if he knew Jesus Christ Some Interpreters think that he did not onely curse himselfe but he curst Jesus Christ to make the people think that he did not care for Jesus Christ therefore did use some execration to curse Jesus Christ And O that pardoning grace should reach such a hainous sinner as this was A third Instance was in Paul you shall see many circumstances to aggravate and greaten Pauls sin Acts 9. 10 11. I verily thought with my self that I ought to do many things contrary to the name of Jesus of Nazareth Which thing I also did in Jerusalem and many of the 〈◊〉 did I shut up in Prison having received authority from the chief Priests and when they were put to death I gave my voice against them And I punished them oft in every Syâ—â—gogâ—e and compelled them to blaspheme and being exceedingly and against them I persecuted them even unto strange Cities There are no lesse then ten aggravating circumstances to greaten Pauls sin First It was one circumstance to greaten his sin if you consider the quality of the persons that he did injure they were not ordinary men but they were the Saints of Christ he put the Saints of Christ into prison Secondly If you consider the number that he wronged they were many of the Saints Thirdly If you consider the kind of wrong he did them he put them into prison Fourthly If you consider his severity towards them he did shut them into prison Fifthly If you consider the place where this
and will say unto him Father I have sinned against heaven and before thee Though he was a Prodigal yet he would goe to God as to a father In confession you are to go to God hopefully as to a displeased father confessions when they come to God as a Judge create fear horrour and amazement on the conscience but when confessions are mingled with hope and come to God as a Father they work a holy brokennesse of heart a holy tendernesse and remorse on the conscience We should confesse our sins to God as a Patient confesseth his disease and bodily distemper to his Physician in hope of Cure Rule 5 A fift Rule in confession of sin unto God is this Content not your selves with slight and superficial confessions of sin unto God but leave not confession till you find sorrow for sin Psal 38. 18. For I will declare mine iniquity I will be sorry for my sin Dan. 9. 8. O Lord to us belongeth confusion of face to our Kings to our Princes and to our fathers because we have sinned against thee we blush and are ashamed to look up Leave not confessing of sin until shame hath filled your face and sorrow hath filled your heart it is a great fault in many people if they confesse their sin in crying God mercy in a general way they think they have made God a compensation for all the injuries they have done him though they never have any godly sorrow for their sins but beloved you are not to content your selves with such confession We should in this part of prayer imitate that holy Martyr Bradford who never gave over praying till his heart was somewhat affected and warmed in the duty Rule 6 A sixt Rule in confession of sin is this If thou findest thy heart straitned in confessing present guilt and present sins upon thee then labour to review recollect ancient guilt and ancient sins This is a very useful thing in a mans Christian course It may be a man or woman professing Christianity may not know the sins he or she hath done this last week for want of heedfulnesse and observation of their waies in that case let them recollect what they have done many years agoe recollect old sins when new sins do not come to remembrance and be humbled for them thus David did in Psal 51. 3. For I acknowledge my transgressions and my sin is ever before me It was meant his old sin of adultery that was his sin that he would now call to remembrance so when he found his heart dead he saith Lord remember not the sins of my youth he would go so far back as his youth I prescribe this rule not that a godly man who is under trouble of minde should take this course to collect old sins this may lead him to despair but in case of barrennesse if any man wants matter in respect of present sinnes and findes his heart hard and very insensible in secret prayer unto God in that case he is bound to let conscience recoyle upon himself and recollect sins of past years go back as far as his youth and see what conscience will bring in to provoke him to make humble confession unto God in his secret retirements Rule 7 Lastly take this Rule take more freedom in confession of sin in secret before God then in publick before men To provoke you to practise this Rule consider two things 1. First it is not fit to confesse all the evils you have done before men and if there were no argument to prove secret prayer this were enough that it is not fit for a man to confesse all the sins of his life before men Zach. 12. 12. And the Land shall mourn every family apart the family of the house of David apart and their wives apart the family of the house of Nathan apart and their wives apart c. They are to go to God and confesse their sins apart Thou art a poor professor that dost confesse what thou confessest in publick onely and never in private thou art but a barren professor 2. Again consider this that though we read of wicked men that have made great confession of sin unto God yet we never read in the Scripture that wicked men ever made conscience to confesse sin to God in secret Pharaoh you know the story confest his sin unto Moses and unto Aaron but we never read that Pharaoh confest his sin unto God Exod. 9. 27. And Pharaoh sent and called for Moses and Aaron and said unto them I have sinned this time c. Saul confest his sin unto Samuel but we never read of his confessing sin unto god 1 Sam. 15. 24. And Saul said unto Samuel I have sinned for I have transgressed the Commandement of the Lord c. Verse 30. Then he said I have sinned c. Judas confest his sin but to whom was it to the High Priest and to the Pharisees but Judas never went into a corner and in secret to bewail bloodshed wicked men have made publick confessions of sin but in secret between God and their own souls they never made acknowledgment and confession of their evils unto God thus much for the third Quere The fourth Quere is this Wherein appears the difference of a gody mans making confession of sin unto God and between those confessions of sin in wicked men and there are these eight differences First Holy confession in godly men makes the soul to be more active and inquisitive after cure remedy and pardon for sin holy confession makes the soul industrious I confesse sin but how shall I subdue sin I acknowledge sin but how shall I get pardon for sin It makes it enquire how to get cure and remedy for the evils which before were confest Job 7. 20. I have sinned What shall I do unto thee O thou preserver of men c. I have sinned there is his confession Lord what shall I do there is his industry Thus the Jewes they were convinced by Peter of their great sin insomuch as they cryed out What shall we do to be saved But false confession leaves men idle and carelesse confesse they do but they are not inquisitive how to get pardon for those sins they do confesse Secondly Holy confession of sin unto God in godly men is attended with remorse of conscience and with grief of heart Psal 38. 18. For I will declare mine iniquity I will be sorry for my sin there is confession and sorrow joyned together Hos 12. 4. Yea he had power over the Angel and prevailed he wept and made supplication unto him Whilest confessions are in the mouth there will be either tears in the eye or sorrow in the heart if confession be true The wicked confesse sin but tey never grieve for the sins they have committed they are not ashamed neither can they blush in the Prophets language Thirdly A godly man in confession of sin hath more freedom of spirit
greatly comfort you Object 3 A third Objection is this Surely I have misgiving thoughts that God hath not forgiven me my sin because after I have committed sin I do not discern that my conscience checks me for my sin therefore I may fear if there be no remorse after the commission of sin I may fear that there is no remission This is the strongest Objection to make a man â—â—ar his pardon As I would say nothing to make a deluded wretch to presume so I would keep back nothing that might any way establish a troubled minde thou sayest thou dost fall into sin yet thou hast no check remorse of conscience for sin therefore thou fearest if sin hath no remorse on thy part it hath no remission on Gods part For answer First in the generall know your case is dangerous but yet it is not desperate Answ 1 First it is possible the conscience of a good man may be so disordered through the impetuousnesse of passion and lust that he may think he doth well when he doth ill therefore his conscience never smites him As it was with Paul Act. 26. 9. I verily thought with my self that I ought to do many things contrary to the Name of Jesus of Nazareth Paul sinned he had his doubts before conversion even as after conversion yet this sin troubled him not he thought he was bound to do many things c. so may thy conscience be so far disordered as to think that thou doest well when thou doest ill Jonah 4. 9. And God said to Jonah doest thou well to be angry for the gourd he said I do well to be angry even unto the death Could Jonahs conscience smite him for his anger when he said he did wel Lord how far wil a godly man go to the very suburbs of hell if God shall let him alone I doe well saith Jonah to be angry even unto death Answ 2 Secondly Thou that makest this Objection take this for thy comfort consider that many pardoned sinners through heedlesnes and in-observancy have not their judgements inlightned to discern sin and if the judgement hath not an eye to see sin the conscience wil never have an hand to smite for sin it is a Proverb What the eye sees not the heart rues not nothing that is unknown can be the object of desire neither can any thing that is unknown be the object of sorrow unknown miseries we weep not for but miseries we know those we mourn for if a mans judgement be not inlightned to see sin he can never mourn for it he may live and dye in a sin that his judgement is not convinced of to be a sin thus the godly in the Old Testament lived in the sin of Polygamie marrying of many wives they knew not it was a sin but they took liberty to take as many wives as they would A godly man that holds an error conscience may never smite him for it because his judgment is mistaken his judgment thinks he holds the truth and therefore conscience cannot smite him for holding an error Answ 3 Thirdly take this by way of answer that the conscience of a pardoned sinner may be so farre benummed that a man may continue under the guilt of known sins and conscience never check him for it for a long time this is a further gradation that when he knoweth he sins against God yet I say conscience may be so far benummed that for a season not be tortured and smitten in conscience for his sin David could not be so ignorant of Gods Law that lying with another mans wife was a sin yet David did continue nine moneths at least without remorse for it when Nathan came and reproved him then said he I have sinned I have sinned O beloved if God doth but let a sinners conscience alone though he be a good man yet he may continue for a long time under a known sin and conscience not work remorse or trouble in him And the like instance we have in the sons of Jacob who were not sensible of their sin in selling Joseph untill 20. yeares after they fell into trouble for it in Egypt Answ 4 Fourthly take this for comfort that there is nogodly mans conscience in the world that is alwayes alike in office but sometimes it may be in office sometimes out of office sometimes a roaring gawling awakening conscience and sometimes a stupified a benummed and a â—eared conscience no mans conscience is alwaies alike in office it is sensible at one time and â—eared up another time Pregnant instances David at one time his heart smote him for but the appearance of an evill viz. Cutting off Sauls lap yet at another time his conscience did not smite him for murdering Vriah Again at another time Davids conscience smote him but for vainglory in numbring the people it was onely vainglory that he would please himself in a mustered Army yet at another time Davids conscience did not smite him for adultery O beloved how wil a mans conscience lye asleep not trouble him for an evill if God lets him alone Answ 5 Fifthly a step further It is possible that the conscience of a pardoned sinner may be in so deep a sleep and so much out of office for a while that he may rather put his wits a work to hide his sin then his conscience on work to check him for sin to give you an instance for this plain in the case of David David committed adultery with Bathsheba but he did not put his conscience on work to check him for his sin but he did put his wits on work to hide the sin Four projects David had to hide the sin First He sent for Vriah Bathsheba's husband that so Vriah might come and lye with his wife that so he might hide Davids uncleannesse 2. Sam. 11. Secondly He made Vriah drunk and so thought that surely when he was drunk that drunkennesse would provoke him with a desire to go to his own house Thirdly He did plot Vriah's death that so there might be no clamour on his part for the defilement of his wife Lastly David would have fathered his plot on providence for David himself had plotted the death of Vriah mark Davids project a good man did put his wits on work and made shifts to hide his sin yet all this while did not put conscience on work to check him for his sin O how near the suburbs of hell may a godly man go and yet go to heaven Sixthly This is the furthest step of all take this for thy comfort it is possible that the conscience of a pardoned sinner may not smite him for those very sins that a Heathen man by the light of a naturall conscience may be ashamed of and this is clear in the case of Abraham Gen. 20. 9. Then Abimelech called Abraham and said unto him What hast thou done unto us and what have Loffended thee that thou hast brought on me on my kingdom a great
condition Sixthly and lastly There was murder in this sin for Adam kill'd himselfe and all his posterity For by one man sin entred into the World and death by sin so that in him all have sinned and so all dyed therfore Adams sin was so cloathed with hainous aggravations that made it very great Look on Davids sin in numbring the people it was a very small sin and indeed interpreters justifie the fact in it selfe it was no sin for a King to number his Army yet there were some circumstances with which this fact was cloathed that made Davids fact very sinfull there were six hainous aggravations in that fact of Davids numbring the people First of all there was pride and vain glory this Tostatus saith that pride and vain glory was Davids sin Secondly There was carnal dependance in his sin he would number his people that seeing how strong he was he might depend on the multitude this saith Zanchius was Davids sin too Thirdly There was covetousnesse in the sin too Zanchius saith this was Davids sin It is observable that when in Israel the souldiers were mustered and the subjects numbred there was a tax by pole that every one should pay this was Davids sin that he would needlesly number the people for covetousnesse sake Fourthly There was curiosity for David did a needlesse act for what need David know every particular man in his kingdome Ioab said to David 1 Chron. 21. 4. Why doth my Lord require this thing why wilt thou muster up thy forces in a time of peace we are all true and loyall to thee yet vain curiosity made David do it Fifthly there was the sin of sacriledge this Zanchius notes for when the people were numbred there was to be given for the use of the Sanctuary halfe a shekel as you have the story Exod. 30. 12. When thou takest the sum of the children of Israel after their number then shall they give every man a ransome for his soule unto the Lord when thou numbrest them that there be no plague amongst them when thou numbrest them Vers 13. This they shall give every one that passeth among them that are numbred halfe a shekel after the shekel of the Sanctuary compare this with Exod. 38. 25. And the silver of the that were numbred of the Congregation was an hundred talents and a thousand seven hundred and threescore and fifteen shekels after the shekel of the Sanctuary c. David some suppose did defraud the Sanctuary of that mony Sixthly In this sin there was an express breach of Gods Law this Deodat saith for his Law was the people should not be numbred that were under 20 years but only those above 20 years now David did number those that were under 20 year Exo. 30 14 Every one that passeth among them that are numbred from 20 years old and above shall give an offering unto the Lord Numb 1. 3. From 20 years old and upward all that are able to goe forth to war in Israel Now David numbring those that were under those years did transgresse the command of God That is a third consideration to you that say you never run into scandalous sins yet consider that little sins may bee so aggravated by circumstances as that they become grievous suppose thy sin be secret lust and passion and secret pride thy sins may have such circumstances as to make them great suppose thy sins be against checks of conscence they are great sins because they are against Gods officer in man Conscience is Gods officer in thee and Gods Register and Vicegerent in man and for thee to controll thine own conscience against the accusations and against the convictions and checks of thy conscience though the sin be but a smal trifie yet it is very great He that doubteth is damned if he eats The Apostle saith it is no sin to eat meat but if thou thinkest it is a sin to eat meat and dost it thou sinnest against conscience If thy conscience telleth thee that it is unlawfull to do this or that and yet thou wilt venture on it the Apostle saith He that doubteth is damned if he eats If thou doest any any thing against the rebukes of conscience it is a great crime because conscience is Gods Officer in thee to eat meat is but a trifle the Question was whether they might eat meat offered to an idoll the Apostle saith they might do it I but suppose conscience in a man might say I am perswaded that if I should eat this meat that was offered to an Idoll I should approve of Idolatary then saith the Apostle thou art damned if thou eat to shew that if in so small a thing as eating flesh then in other matters also if thy conscience telleth thee that thou sinnest if doest it and yet doest it thy little sin is become a great sin Secondly the smallest sin may be aggravated if there be a complacency in thy heart to a small sin A small sin that is indulged is a more aggravating sin then a greater sin thou doest fall into with resistance It is very observable in Lev. 13. 12. And if a leprosie break out abroad in the skin and the leprosie cover all the skin of him that hath the plague from his head even unto his foot wheresoever the Priest looketh Ainsworth admires and wonders what God intends by this Law the meaning is the leprosie betokens sinne Now if the leprosie or the plague or the small pox if it comes out into a scab and comes into the flesh and strikes outward there is no disease within but then there is danger when sores strike inward and do not come out in the flesh this Law hath this use in it if the leprosie were onely on the skin the man was not unclean though there was sin in his life yet sin was not in his heart I but saith God if the scab be in sight deeper then the skin then pronounce him unclean to shew if sin be in thy heart and in thy life too though it be but a small sin yet it is a sin that will damn thee If I regard iniquity in my heart Psal 66. 18. the Lord will not hear me Therefore you that are morall men that say you thank God that you have not broke out into grosse sins consider though sin be small yet your small sins may have such circumstances as may make them very great sinning against your consciences or else sin seising upon the heart Fourthly to morall men that a great and grosse sinner may be pardoned when morall men who never brake out into such grosse wickednesse may live and dye in an unpardoned estate I will give you tow instances the one of the Pharisee and the other of the young man in the the Gospell First of the Pharisee in Luk. 18. I thanke God saith he I am no extortioner no drunkard no adulterer I am not this nor that the Pharisee was a man that never broke out into
her own pardon Mary was weeping for her sin and it was first revealed unto another that she was pardoned to shew that when men fall into grosse sins God doth many times hide comforts from them other men shall have good hope of their pardon more then they have of themselves let this be admonishment and a check to you to take heed of falling into grosse evils for God may keep you long without manifestation of pardon Fourthly to admonish thee consider that thou doest run a very dangerous and desperate hazard to venture upon the commission of sin upon presumption of pardon Wilt thou sin that may be as painfull to thy conscience as the breaking of thy bones because Christ can set thee in joynt again Wilt thou sin and cut gashes in thine own flesh because thou knowest the Bloud of Christ to be a soveraign balsam to cure thy wounds for by his stripes we are healed I now come to give you something by way of direction Hast thou been a man that God hath left to thine own hearts lust thou hast not onely sin but the iniquity of sin sin aggravated then First take this rule Labour in the residue of thy dayes to be as eminent in grace as thou hast been formerly notorious in sin have thy lusts been strong labour now that thy affections may be strong God-ward and Heaven-ward has thy sin been cloathed with many hainous circumstances to make it great let thy graces be cloathed with many holy circumstances to make them great though this cannot make a compensation to the most High for nothing thou hast or dost can recompense God for the wrong sin doth him yet is this something by way of a Holy revenge on thy selfe the more thou hast been notorious in evill thou shouldest labour now to be more eminent in good Secondly Hast thou fallen into any grosse and aggravated guilt follow this Rule Labour that the greater thy sin and thy unkindnesse hath been to God thou express now the greater love to Jesus Christ for pardoning mercy O labour thou that hast great sins pardoned that thou mayest have great love issued out to Jesus Christ Christ did not simply aske Peter Simon Peter lovest thou me out goeth higher Peter doest thou love me more then these there was this reason why Christ shold aske him this Question because Peter had sinned against Christ more then all the disciples had therfore Peter must love Christ more Do I speak to any that have been taler by the head in sin then any of their neighbours have been O! if thou hast sinned much love much the greater the sin the greater the pardon must be and therefore on thy part the greater must thy love be to Jesus Christ this is held out plain in that familiar parable that Christ useth Luk. 7. 41. There was a certain creditor Which had two debtors the one ought five hundred pence and the other fifty Vers 42. Aud when they had nothing to pay he frankly forgave them both Tell me therefore which of them will love him most Vers 43. Simon answered and said I suppose that he to whom he forgave most and he said unto him thou hast rightly judged The meaning of this is the two debtors are two sorts of sinners he that owed a little sum he could not pay his debt though thou hast but few little sins yet thou canst not satisfie for it He that owned much was a great sinner as Mary Magdalen It may be God hath forgiven thee thy hundred of sins thy five hundred of sins O make good this Parable that he that hath most forgiven him love most the greater thy sin hath been the greater thy love most bee It is thus with Mary Magdalen Luk 7. 47. wherefore I say unto thee Her sins which are many are forgiven her for shee loved much Her love doth hold proportion to her pardon much pardon on Christs part and much love on her part O beloved let me here inculcate this on your thoughts have any of you been great sinners have you been guilty of aggravated and hainous circumstances now finde that your love doth carry some proportion to your pardon Thirdly hath God suffered thee to fall into the iniquity of sin observe this direction the greater thy sin hath been to God labour that thy humiliation may be greater that it may carry some proportion to the greatnesse of thy transgression It is observable of what you read of three men in Scripture of David Manasses and Peter these all sinned greatly and their sorrow and lamentation did carry proportion to their sin in some measure Manasses sinned greatly and the Scripture saith of him That he humbled himself greuly before the Lord. Peter did deny Christ shamfuly and Peter went out and wept bitterly You know David sinned notoriously and he mourned exceedingly rivers of tears ran from his eyes he watered his couch with tears all this teacheth you that the greater thy sin hath been the greater thy humiliation should bee An observable Law you read of in Lev. 11. 24 25. And for these you shall be unclean whosoever toucheth the carkasse of them shall be unclean untill the Even And whosoever beareth ought of the carkasse of them shall wash his clothes and be unclean until the Even touching an unclean thing a man was unclean but if a man carried an unclean thing any length of time then saith God he shall be unclean till Even and he shall wash his clothes This law shews that touching an unclean sin requires an humiliation but if thou hast born a sin and hugged a sin in thy armes then there is greater worke required of thee he was to wash his clothes He that hath continued in sin must wash his heart by humiliation and must take more pains with his heart that hath fallen into a grosse evil then those who have not fallen so foulely and frequently Fourth Direction In case thou expectest to have a high esteeme of pardoning grace labour thou to find out all the aggravated and hainous circumstances in thy sin Do not fear that the seeing of the sinfulnesse of sin will do you hurt first look on pardon and then look on the aggravation of thy sin this is the way to heighten Christ merrits and greaten Gods mercy and extoll Gods pardoning grace It is notably mentioned of two men that were famous this way It is reported of Eusebius when he came to confesse sin he used these words Lord there is none have sinned as I have sinned the Devil sinned Judas sinned grievously but none sinned as I The Devil indeed sinned but Christ never dyed for the Devill as he dyed for me therefore my sin is a greater sin then the Devils Judas sinned greatly but Judas never had the pardon I had Achan sinned too but I sinned further then he O labour to finde out what aggravations there are that thy evils are capable of that so thou mightst come to magnifie and greaten the grace
of pardon they may sympathize with and carry more tenderness of compassion towards them that are troubled in minde it was one end of Christs sufferings his soule was in an agony and under a desertion crying My God my God why hast thou forsaken me what was the end of it it was for this that Christ might carry more compassion and more bowels of tendernesse towards persons that are under deep desertions Let a scholar that studies many things read in a Booke of the storms and distresses that sea-men are subject unto yet by all he reads he cannot pity men in a storm if he have never been in a storm himselfe let one read what the scripture mentions of the pangs of a woman in travell she cannot so compassionate a woman in travell unlesse shee hath had the pangs her selfe so in Divine things it is experience that makes men have compassion Secondly It is for this reason to raise up in mens hearts a higher esteem of pardoning grace things hardly come by are highly set by what is the reason that birds do chirp and sing more sweetly in the spring then in any other part of the year it is for this because after the vanishing away of a long and tedious winter the refreshing Spring comes in Beloved The Lord makes his people chirp and sing in the sense of pardoning grace rejoycing in that the more the longer the winter of desertion hath been when God lets them have long desertion then they doe the more rejoyce and sing when pardons are attained Men do then prize the shore when they have been tossed by a tempest on the sea Those that have been tossed on the waves of spirituall trouble that have had a storm and tempest in their conscience they will prize pardoning grace most Thirdly God doth sometimes pardon a mans sin yet not tell him of it and it is for rebuke to him because he hath not lived in the exercise of grace thou keepest back obedience from God and God keeps back comfort from thee this is a main reason why sometimes God pardons a sinner and yet doth not tell him of it in his own conscience It is done in heaven the pardon is written there but it is not done in the conscience it is not written here It is to give thee a rebuke a check in thine own heart surely I have not exercised grace therefore surely God will not give me the comforting work of his Spirit when thou art not much in grace then thou shalt be but little in peace it is just with God so to doe Fourthly the Lord pardons a sin when he doth not tell that it is pardoned it is to make the repentance of men more visible and satisfactory to the world that hath been offended by their sin The Lord will make the world see that if men will sinne notoriously they shall smart bitterly to make the world see that repentance is no slight worke and to make peace with God is not easie Fifthly to make men to taste the evils and bitternesse of sin should a man that is notoriously wicked presently attain the sense of pardon it may be he would not tast the bitternesse of sin 6. Another reason is this to teach doubting Christians that assurance is not essentiall to pardon it is separable from pardon it is separable from faith therefore from pardon A man may beleeve yet know not that he doth beleeve The Lord doth it for that end to teach doubting Christians that though they have not assurance yet they may have faith though they want the sense of pardon they may be pardoned there cannot be fruit but there must be a tree yet there may be a tree when there is no fruit there may be grace in the heart when there is no peace in the conscience to have peace is additionall to grace now the Lord for these holy ends doth sometimes pardon a sin in heaven when the pardon is not sealed to the conscience Thus much for the first case A second Case of conscience is this if God pardons a sin whether or no doth he afflict and punish men for it after it is forgiven this is an usefull question and the reason is because there are errors and mistakes about it mistakes on the right hand and on the left The Antinomians say that a pardoned sinner is never afflicted for sin and say they to say that a man whose sin is forgiven is afflicted for sin doth derogate from the satisfaction and sufferings of Christ Then the Papists say that men are afflicted and punished for sin and that these punishments are for satisfaction to divine Justice and they are meritorious and on this ground they bottome Purgatory that after a man is dead he must for some years lye in Purgatory to satisfie for some notorious grosse sin done in his life Now Beloved to keep you from swerving either way I shall lay down the true genuine state of this Question and resolve it to you First consider this That God doth not afflict any man but where sin is that is my first position God doth not cruciate an innocent creature indeed the Schoolemen have a question whether God by his soveraignty may torment an innocent creature but that is but a nicety but this is most certain that God in the dispensation of his Judgements doth punish no man but where sin is sin entred into the world and death by sin Secondly though God afflicts none sinlesse yet sometimes it may be for triall and not for any particular sin so was Jobs affliction it was not for sin but for triall to try Iobs grace Thirdly and chiefly it is apparant from the Scriptures that pardoned sinners may be punished for their sins Would not this be partiall for a father to beat the servant for a fault yet not beat the child for a worse fault Now the Lord will not leave such a plea as this in any wicked mans heart In all the Kingdomes of the world where sword where pestilence where famin and where plagues have been the good have fallen with the bad the righteous have fallen by the sword as well as the wicked the reason is that the world should not say that he is a partiall God Now to satisfie and to establish your thoughts in this point I shall give you two expresse testimonies in the Scripture that God doth punish his people for sin though their sins be pardoned The one is of David 2 Sam. 12. 14. Howbeit because by this deed thou hast given great occasion to the enemies of the Lord to blaspheme the childe also that is born unto thee shall surely dye I will punish thee in thy child I will pardon thy sin yet I will punish thy sin so likewise in 2 Sam. 7. 14. 15. I will be his father and he shall be my son If hee commit iniquity I will chasten him with the rod of men and with the stripes of the children of men but my mercy shal
of sinne Tenthly Sin is aggravated when it is done by eminent and publick persons whose example draw other men to sin and this did aggravate Jeroboams sin 2 Kin. 17. 21. For he rent Israel from the house of David and they made Jeroboam the son of Nebat King and Jeroboam drave Israel from following the Lord and made them sin a great sin Thou that hast sinned a sin and art a publick person thy sins are other mens sins thine is a greater sin then another mans sin is for every act that thou hast done will be an imboldning and encouragement of others to do the like It aggravates sin when God doth punish other men for thy sin this makes the sins of Rulers to be great sins because for their sins God may punish the people as for Davids sin in numbring the people there did thousands of Israel die of the plague when thou sinnest in thy family God may punish all the house for that sin this you shall find an aggravation of Abrahams sin Gen. 20. 9. Then Abimelech called Abraham and said unto him What hast thou done unto us and what have I offended thee that thou hast brought on me and on my Kingdome a great sin thou hast done deeds unto me that ought not to be done Sin is an aggravated sin when it is done by a man that lives under much means of grace where the Gospell is preached where sin is reproved there to live in a way of wickednesse greatens thy sin that made a woe to be pronounced by Christ against Chorazin and Bethsaida because they had the Gospell it should be worse with them then with Sodom and Gomorrah Sin is aggravated when they are against many vows purposes and prayers and many holy resolutions thou addest perjurie to thine iniquitie and that aggravates thy sinne Oh then admire the riches of Gods pardoning grace that he forgives sins cloathed with many aggravated circumstances O then what remains there are two things to be done by you First If at any time you find that you are under these aggravations that you can call your sins the iniquity of sin O then you should admire and magnifie the multitude of Gods mercy that great sins cannot out-vie Gods mercy but Gods mercy out-vies thy great sins Magnifie pardoning grace the more Paul saith 1 Tim. 1. 13. I was before a blasphemer and a persecutor and injurious but I obtained mercy c. O do thou say so I have been thus vile and thus wicked I have thus abounded in sin yet through the abundance of grace and love I have obteined mercie O let this inhance the value of Christs blood Secondly Labour to greaten thine own graces hast thou been notorious in sin why shouldst not thou be great in humiliation great in repentance And thus I have by the good hand of God in these Sermons handled two Doctrines to you the one touching Davids penitentiall act confessing sin and the other of Gods gracious act The Lord forgave him the iniquity of his sin FINIS JOHN 14. 3. And if I goe and prepare a place for you I will come againe and receive you unto my selfe that where I am there ye may be also THis Chapter out of which my Text is taken is counted famous by most Interpreters because in it begins the Legacy that Christ gives and the last Will and Testament that Christ made when he was to leave the world and this Wil and Testament of Christs begins in this 14. Chapter and continues to the 18. Chapter of this Book The scope and drift of this Chapter is to comfort his Disciples both against their fears of persecution in the World as also against their sorrowes upon this consideration that Christ was shortly to leave this world and Christ doth here mention many comfortable considerations to fence them against their fears for this much troubled them It went ill with them when Christ was with them and they thought it would have been worse with them when he was gone and he doth encourage them therefore by these Arguments First He saith I am but going to my Fathers house and the 28. verse of this Chapter he saith ye have heard how I said unto you I go away and come again unto you If ye loved me ye would rejoice because I said I go unto the Father for my Father is greater then I. Againe secondly he would not have them troubled because of his departure because saith he I do not intend to go to my Father alone but intend for to have all you with me though you shall not go with me now Though you shall not die with me now though you shall not go to Heaven with me now yet you shall be with me another day In my Fathers house there are many mansions I do not intend to go to heaven alone for there is room for you as well as for me and room for every beleever in the world Heaven first is a Mansion a place which notes a duration of Saints in Heaven Heaven is not a moveable place but a Mansion an abiding place Againe there are many Mansions in Heaven there is room enough for Christ for his eleven Apostles and room enough for all the Beleevers in the world it notes the largenesse and amplitude of heaven Heb. 11. 12. therefore sprang there even of one and him as good as dead so many as the stars of the skie in multitude and as the sand which is by the sea shore innumerable And besides these there is an innumerable company of Angels Heb. 12. 22. To this add Rev. 7. 9. A great multitude which no man could number of all nations and kindreds people and tongues You have here also the duration and continuance implied The word is here not our tent or tabernacle but our Mansion Thirdly form the certainty of it It is no poeticall fiction these are no hyperbolicall expressions as it followes in the Text If it were not so I would have told you Christ doth not speake more then there is if there had been no such thing Christ would not have said so much as if he should say I do not feed you with the false hopes of an Utopian happinesse as the Devill deals by his whom he brings into a fools paradise Fourthly from the end Say the Disciples but Lord thou art going to thy Fathers house and what shall become of us therefore Christ comforts them and saith I go to prepare a place for you As if he should have said I go to Heaven to make ready Heaven for you against you die as Grossiâ—â— observes that the phrase is borrowed from a company of Travellers which send one man before as a harbinger to provide the Inne and take up rooms and make provision ready for them against they come so Jesus Christ is gone to Heaven that he might be as a harbinger to take up Heaven for you to take up room for you in Heaven Fifthly He comforts them by a promise
THE Penitent Pardoned A TREATISE Wherein is handled the duty of confession of Sin and the priviledge of the pardon of Sin Together with a Discourse Of Christs Ascension into Heaven and of his coming again from Heaven Wherein The opinion of the Chiliasts is considered and solidly confuted Being the sum and substance of several Sermons preached by that faithful servant of Christ Mr Christopher Love late Minister of the Gospel at Lawrence Jury LONDON 1 John 1. 19. If we confesse our sins he is faithfull and just to forgive us our sins and to cleanse us from all unrighteousnesse Heb. 9. 28. Unto them that look for him shall he appear the second time without sin unto salvation Qui dat peccanti poenitentiam dat poenitenti veniam Veniet judicaturus qui venit judicandus London Printed for John Rothwell at the Bear and Fountain in Cheapside and for Nathanael Brooks at the Angel in Cornhil 1657. To the Christian Reader THE extraordinary acceptance which Mr Love's books have found with sober and solid Christians as it hath occasioned the publishing of more treatises of his then was at first intended so it hath imboldned some without our knowledge and consent to thrust forth some imperfect Copies under Mr Love's name concerning which we will only say that the want of our attestation to whose care the publishing of his sermons were intrusted is ground enough to render them as suspected and suppositious to the serious and deliberate Reader Amongst some other Sermons of Mr Love 's which have been printed by imperfect Copies These two Treatises had the unhappinesse to be very hastily and unhandsomely published being never perused by any of us or compared with his own Notes Now that these two very useful tracts may be fit to be joined with the rest of Mr Love's works the Reader is desired to know that they have been diligently compared with the Notes written with Mr Love 's own hand and have been corrected from very many faults with which the former Edition abounded and most of them materiall We will add no more but this that in the Polemicall part of these discourses as we approve the authors judgement to be sound and orthodox so we beleeve that had he lived to publish his own labours this and other books had come forth more answerable to the learning piety and vigorous parts of the Author We commend thee to God and the word of his Grace which is able to build thee up and to give thee an inheritance amongst those that are sanctified London April 27. 1657. Edmund Calamy Simeon Ashe William Tailor William Whitaker The Table AFflicted people fit to confesse sin pag. 9 10 Aggravation of sin 16 Antinomians confuted 24 Aggravation of sin by circumstances 85. 109 Austins confession and aggravation of sin ibid. Godly afflicted for sin 94 95 Antinomians confuted 96 All sins not alike 108 Christ ascended into Heaven 116 117 Time of Christs Ascension 126 What we gain by Christs Ascension 134 B. BEnummed conscience 55 Boldnesse in sin 57 Christs body in Heaven and why 119 120 Hereticks confuted that denied Christs body to be in Heaven 121 Believers went to heaven before the incarnation of Christ 131 132 Bodies of Saints shall go to Heaven 197 Endowments of a glorified body 199 Of sin against the body 208 C. God loves to have his people confesse their sins 7 Confesse our bosome sin to God 12 Small sins must be confessed 14 We must confesse sin to God 19 We must confesse our sins to God 20 35. and our particular sins 22 Of auricular confession 19 24 In what cases we must confesse our sins to men 21 23 Cofession of sin must be affectionate 36 We must confesse all sin 39 Confession must be free 37. and voluntary 38 Confession is not needlesse as to God 41 Conscience checking for sin 53 54 Of a sensless sleeping Conscience 56 Comfort against the fear of death 123 Comfort from the consideration of Christs comming to judgement 137 Manner of Christs second comming 173 of Communion with Christ it Heaven 210 D. DEfects in our confession 33 Greatnesse of Davids sin 65 We must not feare Death 196 E. SOul eased by confession 6 Extenuation of sin 87 F. FEar of the godly to sin 24 47 Christs comming the dread and fear of wicked men 180 G. GOD pardons great sins 61 62 Of grosse and heinous sins 80 Directions to great and heinous sinners 82 Great sins great humiliation 86 How God makes the sinnes of his people turn to their good 92 93 Christ ascended to give the Holy Ghost 123 The glory of Christs second comming 176 177 H. HOpe of pardon 17 Humbled sinner amiable to God 40 Christ in Heaven his Heart on Earth 125 The Godly die and go to Heaven 188 I. IUstified persons must confesse sin 5 Impenitency exempts from pardon 89 Infants and grown people not under the same necessity of repentance 101 Christ will come to judge the world 137 L. LAw of God discovers sin 37. of little sins 73 74 Love of God to penitent sinners 87 88 Limbus Patrum confuted 129 Of Christs comming at the last day and not before 151 M. WE must confess our Master-sin 34 Mortification of sin 46 50 51 52 Infinite mercy in God 70. merit in Christ 71 72 Meditation of Christ 123 Millenaries confuted 150. unto 172 VVhat scriptures those Millenaries urge 160 166 169 O. OLd sins 18 Gods children have fallen into the same sin oftner then once though this is not usuall 102 103 104 Comfort against Oppression 141 P. PUblick sins publick confessions 22 Of good and wicked purposes 32 of pardon of sin 33 Pardoned sinners love God 45. and they forgive aâ—â—thers ibid Pardon and repentance joined ibid VVhat a pardoned sinner shuns 61 62 Peters sin aggravated in denying Christ 67 Aggravation of Pauls sin 68 69 God pardons and yet punisheth 96 Pardon not before faith and repentance 97 98 99 Saints justified must pray for pardon 107 Prophesies of Christs ascension 117 Christ prepares heaven for believers 127 VVe should prepare for heaven 133 Comfort against persecution 140 Paradice a type of Heaven 189 R. AFter reproof for sin we must confess sin 11 Remorse of conscience 20 Of those that are angry at reproof 36 Remembrance of sin 38 Remission of sin and renovation of the heart join'd together 44 Relapses into sin dangerous 105 Of the reproches of ChristiaÌ„s coÌ„fort against theÌ„ 140 Resurrection of the body proved 204 S. Confession works sorrow for sin â— Sorrow for sin T. 17 49 5â— T. TYpes of Christs ascension 11â— Christ triumph over our enemies 10â— Transubstantiation confuted 128 Time of Christs comming unknown 148 W. Witnesses of Christs ascension 11â— SERMON 1. Text PSALM 32. latter part of Vers 5. I said I will confesse my transgressions to the Lord and thou forgavest the iniquity of my sin THis Psalme treats of the blessednesse of a justified of a pardoned sinner touching which
several particulars are handled First the Psalmist handles wherein the forgivenesse of sin consists that he mentions under two expressions Verse 1. Blessed is he whose transgression is forgiven whose sin is covered the forgivenesse of sin consists first in the covering of sin the covering of sin not from God but by God so it is explained by God himselfe Psal 85. vers 2. Thou hast forgiven the iniquity of thy people Thou hast covered all their sin It is sin in us to hide our sins as it is sin to hide our talents so it is sin to hide our sin therefore when the Psalmist saith the forgivenesse of sin consists in the covering of sin this covering is understood of Gods covering Which is not to be understood of a totall abolition or Extirpation of sin but of such a covering of it as it shall never be imputed for condemnation and that is a second expression to set out Gods pardoning sin viz. 2. This forgivenesse is set out by not imputing of sin vers 2. Sin shall not be imputed unto a justified person though still it shall be inherent in him Secondly The Psalmist shews the Character of that man whose sin is pardoned vers 2. Blessed is the man in whose spirit there is no guile If sin be pardoned to the soule guile will never be harbored and indulged in the soule Thirdly Here is laid down the happinesse of a pardoned man vers 3. When I kept silence my bones waxed old through my roaring all the day long yet for all this David cals him blessed though Gods hand was heavie upon him yet his heart was still towards him yet a blessed man though an afflicted man Fourthly Here is laid down the course that the Psalmist took to procure pardon of sin that is in my Text I said I will confesse my transgressions to the Lord and thou forgavest the iniquity of my sin Thus I have brought you by the hand to the Text. I shall give you a short paraphrase of the words I said this word implies in Scripture phrase three things First it notes a deliberation or consideration of the minde Psal 14. vers 1. The fool hath said in his heart there is no God that is he hath thought so in his minde that there is no God Psal 30. vers 6. And in my prosperity I said I shall never be moved that is I thought so Saying is not alwaies an act of the tongue but sometimes of the minde I said I will confesse my sin that is I have bethought my selfe and considered in my minde that it is meet for me to get pardon and to confesse my sin to God I said It notes secondly the purpose and the resolution of the wil so you have it Psal 119. v. 57. Thou art my portion O Lord I have said that I would keep thy words There saying is explained to be purposing or resolving of the will Thirdly I said it implies the execution or practice of what the minde resolves upon Psal 39. vers 1. I said I wil take heed to my waies c. that is I did look to my waies and I am put upon the practice of taking care unto my steps and to my waies the meaning of the phrase is this I said I will confesse my transgression I have bethought it so in my minde and it is good and meet so to do I have purposed and resolved in my will and am actually put on the practice of it I said I will confesse my transgression The Septuagint interpret this place thus 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 I said I will confesse my transgression I will confesse against my selfe upon which one hath this note Many confesse their sins but they blame not themselves but God the stars and what not It is worth your notice that sin is exprest by three words in this Text first transgression secondly iniquity and thirdly sin I will comfesse my transgression and thou forgavest the iniquity of my sin There are but four places as I remember in the Scripture where in these three words are joyned together in one verse Transgression Iniquity and Sin Exod. 34. vers 7. Keeping mercy for thousands forgiving iniquity transgression and sin Micha 7. v. 18. who is a God like unto thee that pardoneth iniquity and passeth by the transgression of the remnant of his heritage he retaineth not his anger for ever because he delighteth in mercy Levit. 16 vers 21. And Aaron shall lay both his hands upon the head of the live Goat and confesse over him all the iniquities of the children of Israel and all their transgressions in all their sins c. And it is likewise used in Job 13. vers 23. How many are mine iniquities and sins make me to know my transgression and my sin In these four places the words are used in Scripture and in my Text but not else as I remember throughout the word of God and because these three words are here used Interpreters take much pains to finde out some material distinction between them her is Transgression Sin and Iniquity I have consulted with many and the truest account I can give you is this 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 Transgression signifies in the Hebrew Rebellion say interpreters it notes sin with extensions and aggravations sin increased to a great height Secondly 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 Sin signifies evils that are of the lesser degree that are not so hainous and so notes onely by sin evils of infirmity and common incursion Thirdly 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 Iniquity signifies sin of nature that pravity of nature wherein a man was born But Grammarians in the Latine distinguish these words otherwise Iniquity they make to be that which is done against another man Sin that which is done against a mans selfe and Transgression that which is done immediately against God But beloved the Scripture in many places makes them all one Therefore we need not make further curious enquiry after the distinction of these words And thou forgavest the iniquity of my sin The iniquity of my sin There is some disagreement about the sense of these words what it is for God to forgive the iniquity of sin By the iniquity of sin some do understand the punishment that sin deserves the Hebrew word 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 that signifies Iniquity signifies Punishment the same word here is spoken of Cain My punishment is greater then I can bear there is the same word 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 therefore in some translations it is read thus Thou for gavest the punishment of my sin Secondly others here do understand by the iniquity of sin with whom I do concure sin with all its aggravations with all its hainous circumstances sin with all its malignity Thou dost forgive the iniquity of my sin most Interpreters go this way and so make the phrase to be very emphatical Thou hast forgiven me my sin that is all hainous circumstances
that might greaten my sin thou host forgiven them all J shal onely make a short entrance at this time into the first part of my Text I said I will confesse my transgression to the Lord These words contain in them a holy purpose in the Psalmist to set up the practise of a necessary and Christian duty to wit secret confession of sin to God In them five parts are observeable First the duty it selfe Confession Secondly a deliberate purpose to set on the practise of this duty I said Thirdly the subject matter of this duty Transgression and Transgression with a propriety my Transgression not of other mens sins but my sins I said I will confese my transgressions J remember Ainsworth he saith it should be translated thus more agreeable to the Hebrew 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 I will confesse adversum me against my selfe my transgression to the Lord. Many men confesse sin but they do confesse sin as against God that is they do confesse sin as if God were the author of sin that charge him to be the patron of their impiety and wickednesse I said I will confesse my transgression against myselfe Fourthly The object of this duty I will confess my transgression to the Lord and this beloved takes off Auricular confession used and stood on much in the Church of Rome Confession that God cals for and the Scripture cals for is in secret between God and your own souls when conscience shall suggest guilt to you in reference to your former misdoings when you can pour out your soul in complaint to God I said I will confesse my transgression unto the Lord. Fifthly and lastly The issue and event of this duty and thou forgavest the iniquity of my sin observe the connexion here is a connective particle and thou forgavest he doth not come with an Ergo or a Quare not with a causal but with an et a copulative and thou forgavest not J confesse sin therefore I am forgiven but I confesse sin 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 and thou hast forgiven me Forgivenesse of sin is not laid down as an effect flowing from a cause but as a consequent flowing from an antecedent Indeed the Papists plead much for merit because sometimes causal particles are used but this is beyond my Text thus much for the explaining of the words Doct. At this time J shall onely raise a Doctrine from the first part of this Text J said J will confesse my transgression unto the Lord. The point of Doctrine is this That justified persons who have their sins forgiven are yet bound to confesse sin to God And here the confession J am to speake of is a private confession of our evils to God between God and our own souls and though it be but a familiar subject yet as God shall enable me J shall labour to make it useful and profitable for your edification in a Christian course in a holy confession of sin before your God There are many Queres to be dispatcht in the handling of this point The first Quere is What are the reasons why persons justified and pardoned are yet bound to make confession of sin unto God in private The Reasons are these following Reas 1 First They are to confesse sin unto God because holy confession gives a great deale of case and holy quiet unto the mind of a sinner concealed and indulged guilt contracts horror and dread on the conscience As wind when it is disperst and diffused through the air doth little hurt but when it is concealed in the bowels of the earth it makes ruptures and earthquakes overthrows things up and down Sin when it is unconfest concealed and indulged makes heart-quakes in the conscience and contracts a great deal of horror and terror Psal 32. vers 3. When J kept silence my bones waxed old through my roaring all the day long Meaning David when he kept close his sin he roared by reason of horror when he did not pour out his soul in confession to God but when a man shall with an ingenuous clearnesse confesse his evils unto God this doth alleviate his minde and lighten his burden and ease his conscience and quiet his spirit Origen doth call confession of sin to God the souls spiritual vomit Now you know vomiting doth give ease to a burdened stomach when the stomach is pained and burdened and opprest A man is sick at the heart when meat doth not digest the vomiting of the load off of the stomach doth ease the stomach when the conscience is burdened when a mans spirit is troubled pouring out of complaints and confession to God doth ease the mind A sinner is like a vessel of new wine filled and stopt up close till it hath vent it is ready to burst so is a godly man filled with sin till he can vent by confession to God his heart is ready to burst Psal 119. vers 25. My soul cleaveth unto the dust quicken thou me according to thy word Vers 26. I have declared my waies and thou heardest me teach me thy Statutes As if he should have said My soul cleaves to the dust I am in a very low and sad condition but I have declared my waies I have confest my sins then God heard me then I had peace then I had quiet then I had comfort that is the first Reason secret confession to God it doth give a great deal of ease and holy quiet to the minde Reas 2 A second Reason why justified persons must confess sin is because God loves to hear the complaints and confessions of his own people lying on the face the best gesture and the mourning weed the best garment that God is well pleased with Jer. 31. vers 18. I have surely heard Ephraim bemoaning himselfe c. that is confessing his sin unto God Cant. 2. vers 14. O my Dove that art in the clefts of the rock in the secret places of the staires let me see thy countenance let me hear thy voice for sweet is thy voice and thy countenance is comely God delights to see and hear the complaints and the confessions of his servants unto him so David speaks I declared my waies and thou heardest me with pity and complacency God had rather see men come with ropes about their necks and with sackcloth about their loins by a humble confession as the servants of Benhadad did then to see ornaments about their necks by a self-justification Christ loves to hear and see the mourning condition of a justified person Reas 3 A third Reason why justified persons must confesse sin to God is because confession of sin doth help to quicken the heart to strong and earnest supplication to God Psal 32. vers 6. For this shall every one that is godly pray unto thee in a time when thou mayest be found surely in the floods of great waters they shall not come nigh unto him Confession quickens supplication in Dan. 9. vers 20. And
whiles I was speaking and praying and confession my sin and the sin of my people Israel and presenting my supplication before the Lord my God for the holy mountain of my God c. that Gabriel came and touched him c. Confession is to the soul as the whet-stone is to the knife that sharpens it and puts an edge upon it so doth confession of sin confessing thy evils to God doth sharpen and put an edge on thy supplications that man will pray but faintly that doth confesse sin but slightly Solemn and secret confession of they evils unto God doth greatly help to quicken strong supplications unto God Reas 4 A fourth Reason why justified persons must confesse sin unto God is because confession of sin will worke a holy contrition and a godly sorrow in the heart Psal 38. vers 18. For I will declare mine iniquities I will be sorry for my sin Declaration doth work compunction confession of sin is but the causing of sin to recoyle on the conscience which causeth blushing and shame of face and grief of heart Reas 5 A fifth Reason why justified persons must confesse sin unto God is because their secret confession of sin doth give a great deal of glory to God it gives glory to Gods Justice I do confesse sin and do confesse God in justice may damn me for my sin it gives glory to Gods mercy I confesse sin yet mercy may save me it gives glory to Gods omnisciency in confessing sin I do acknowledge that God knoweth my sin confession of sin gives glory to God Josh 7. vers 19. And Joshua said unto Achan My son give I pray thee glory to the Lord God of Israel and make confession unto him and tell me now what thou hast done hide it not from me It is a giving glory unto God Reas 6 A sixt Reason why justified persons must confesse sin unto God is because holy confession of sin will imbitter sin and indear Christ to them when a man shall let sin recoyle on his conscience by a confession These after reflexions and these after recollections of sin do greatly imbitter sin and do indear Jesus Christ the stronger desires that a sinner hath after Jesus Christ the more he doth inhaunce the price of Jesus Christ And thus much for the first Quere to wit the Reasons of the point The second Quere is But when is a man in the best plight to have freedome of spirit to make secret confession of sin unto God I will name but three Seasons As Seas 1 First When God doth bring a beleever under some grievous outward affliction then is a fit time for him to confesse sin to God It is a saying of Gregory Sins do blinde the eyes of men when they sin yet those eyes come to be opened by the punishment the punishment openeth those eyes which the fact hath shut As you read of Josephs brethren they did remain 20 yeares without having conscience recoyle on themselves to confesse their vils in selling their brother Joseph but when Joseph laid them in a prison then they confest their evill Gen. 42 21. And they said one to another we are verily guilty concerning our brother in that we saw the anguish of his soule when he besought us and we would not hear therefore is this distresse come upon us It may be now thou art in health thou dost not now confesse thy uncleannesse and thy drunkennesse and thy pride and thy prophanenesse but what wilt thou do when God brings thee on a death-bed when God hedges in thy waies with thornes the conscience will reflect on thee and suggest guilt to thee and draw out confession from thee it is a fit season when God doth bring a man under any outward affliction then he is in good plight to confesse sin It is worth your notice in the 38. Psalme it was made when David lay on his sick-bed as he thought his death-bed you shall finde it is a complaint of a very strong disease David lay under in the 3. vers Vers. 3 There is no soundnesse in my flesh because of thine anger neither is there any rest in my bones because of my sin Vers 5. My wounds stink and are corrupt because of my foolishnesse Vers 7. For my loines are filled with a loathsome disease and there is no soundness in my flesh Here he was lying on a sick-bed and Interpreters say that he made this Psalme when he was sick It is worth your notice of the title that David gives this Psalme A Psame of David to bring to remembrance David when he was on his death-bed as he thought he said it shall be a Psalm of remembrance to bring sin to remembrance to confess to God my uncleannesse with Bathsheba to bring to remembrance the evils of my life it was a good plight David was in when he lay on a sick-bed he would make this title of the Psalme A Psalme to call to remembrance men are in a fit plight to make confession to God when they lye under any bodily sicknesse call to remembrance thy pride call to remembrance thy passion call to remembrance thy vain dalliance whatever thy fin be it may be I may not hit of it but when ever God brings thee under affliction thou art then in a fit plight to confesse sin unto God and call to remembrance thy sins As it was with the Marriners in the storme with Jonah when there was scarce any hope to be saved then they fell a calling each one on his God Which occasioned the Proverbe He that hath not yet learnt to pray let him goe to sea So Jer. 2 vers 24. A wilde Asse used to the wildernesse that snuffeth up the winde at her pleasure in her occasion who can turn her away all they that seek her will not weary themselves in her moneth they shall finde her The men of Israel are there compared unto an Asse an unruly creature that runs up down the wilderness and kicks up the heel but saith God Though men weary themselves to take her yet in her moneth they shall take her that is when she brings forth young then they shall take her referring it to the people of Israel they in their prosperity would not be ruled but when they were in their moneth in their captivity in their sufferings then they should take them and they would then come to be more pliant in confessing their guilt more to God then in former time A second Season wherein a man is in a good plight to confesse sin is when the conscience of a man is set in office by God to persue him with clear and with strong accusations When God puts the conscience of a man in office to persue him with strong accusations touching evils he hath omitted then that man is in a fit plight if he will take hold of it Even Judas himselfe when conscience awakened him went and confessed to the High Priest and the
sinnes in the light of thy countenance Psal 19. 12. Who can understand his errors cleanse thou me from secret faults David did not onely confesse his murder of Vriah his adultery with Bethsheba but he confest smaller sins Davids heart smote him for cutting off the lap of Sauls garment it was onely the appearance of revenge he had his knife neere his throte that which had the appearance of a sin Davids heart smote him for Conscientions men do not onely bewail and confesse open and grosser evils but the secret and the smallest corruptions of the heart they bewaile to God they confesse their secret pride their secret worldlinesse and secret murmurings against God they confesse their secret and smaller evils Indeed wicked men fall short of this wicked men confesse their Grosse and their open sins but do dot take notice of their lesser and secret evils there are two instances for this one is in Cain Cain confest his murder his was greater then it could be forgiven speaking of the murder of his brother Abel Gen. 4. 13. And Cain said unto unto the Lord My punishment is greater then I can bear He did not confesse his emnity that made him murder his brother he confest his grosse sin but did not confesse more slie and secret evils Thus you read likewise of Judas Judas confest his betraying of Christ a grosse sin but he never confest his covetousnesse a secret sin that made him betrry Jesus Christ saith he I have sinned in betraying innocent blood he that did bewaile and confesse his murder in betraying Christ did not confesse and bewail his covetousnesse and hypocrisie that were more lurking and secret evils That is a second Rule make conscience to confesse small and secret evils as well as open and grosser sins Rule 3 Third Rule touching confession of sin unto God is this When you confesse and acknowledge secretly your sins unto God labour to greaten your sins with all the heinous circumstances and heart-humbling aggravations you can imagin Thus the servants of God used to do when they confest sin unto God they would confesse sin with all the heinous circumstances 1 Kings 8. 47. Saying We have sinned and have done perversly we have committed wickedness Saith Lorinus Mark what a heap of words a heart-humbled soul will lay together in confessing of sin We have sinned there is one word We have done wickedly there is a second and we have done perversly there is a third A notable instance you have of Paul in Act. 26. 10 11. Which thing I also did in Jerusalem and many of the Saints did I shut up in prison having received authority from the chief Priests and when they were put to death I gave my voice against them And I punished them oft in every Synagogue and compelled them to blaspheme and being exceedingly mad against them I persecuted them even unto strange Cities Here Paul comes to aggravate his sin there are eight aggravations that here Paul doth lay down of his sinne wherby he would greaten sin unto himself that he might be the more humble First of all they were not ordinary men that he cast into prison but they were Saints and to wrong them is a sacriledge the Saints have I cast into prison Secondly To cast a man into prison for debt is no injustice if the man be able to pay but many have I cast into prison why for professing the name of Jesus of Nazareth meerly for professing Christ Thirdly If it had been but one or two Saints it were not much but they were a greater number Many of the Saints did I cast into prison Fourthly he aggravates his sin further to cast them into prison and give them in prison liberty is not much but he shut them up in prison and kept them close prisoners Fifthly If he had rested there it had not been much but he gave his voyce against them to put them to death Nay Sixthly He goeth higher for he did wrong to their souls too for he compelled them to blaspheme God Seventhly To aggravate it further he was mad against them and I was exceedingly mad against them hee was mad with rage and with passion and with fury against the Saints of God Eighthly I did persecute them to strange Cities them I did not kill I made them leave their Wives and Children and made them run and shift for their lives into strange corners This is the nature of a true penitent not to confesse sin slightly and carelesly but in confession of sin to cloath his sins with all aggravations that can be In confession of sin we should aggravate it that we have sinned against mercies correction warnings resolutions checks of conscience motions of the Spirit c. and this is a good Rule if you will follow it You have the like instance in the book of Daniel chap. 9. v. 5. We have sinned and have committed iniquity and have done wickedly and have rebelled even by departing from thy precepts and from thy judgements Vers 6. vers 6 Neither have we hearkened unto thy servants the Prophets which spake in thy name to our Kings our Princes and our Fathers and to all the people of the Land There are seven circumstances that Daniel useth in confessing of his sin to aggravate his sin how doth Daniel cloath his confession First We have sinned there is one Secondly We have committed iniquity Thirdly We have done wickedly Fourthly We have rebelled against thee Fifthly We have departed from thy precepts Sixthly We have not hearkned unto thy servants Seventhly Nor we nor our Princes nor all the people of the Land There are seven aggravations which Daniel reckoned up to his confession Thus David when he would beg pardon prayed for thy names sake pardon my iniquity for it is great that is a third Rule about confession Rule 4 A fourth Rule in confession of sin is this In your confessions look not discouragingly on God as an angry Judge but hopefully as on a displeased Father to confesse sin to God as an angry Judge is to make you but condemned Malefactors in your confessions therefore make confession to God only as a displeased Father converted men do confesse sin to God as a Father whilest you have an eye of sorrow upon sin you are to have an eye of hope upon pardon thus Gods people did in their confessions To confesse sin to God as a Judge is to howl like dogs because you shall be beaten but to confesse sin to God as an angry Father is child-like with a fiducial confidence of pardon Dan. 9. 9. To the Lord our God belong mercies and forgivenesses though we have rebelled against him And thus Shechaniah confesseth sin unto God Ezra 10. 2. And Shechaniah the Son of Jehiel one of the Sons of Ellam answered and said unto Ezra We have trespassed against our God c. And thus the Prodigall in Luke 18. 18. I will arise and goe to my Father
to confesse his particular sins in secret then he hath in publick I have powred out my soul before God saith the Psalmist confession of sin is a pouring out of the soul before God he that can pour forth complaints against sin in secret more then in publick is a grecious man The wicked are only for confession of sin before men and not before God 4. Fourthly Godly men confesse sin freely out of a willingnesse they have to be rid of sin wicked men confesse sin with confessions extorted and drawn from them as men on a rack whether they will or no. Godly men confesse sin freely they are freely willing to part with their lusts therefore they confesse them to God Job 32. 18. For I am full of matter the spirit within me constraineth me Verse 19. Behold my belly is as wine that hath no vent it is ready to burst like new bottles Verse 20. I will speak that I may be refreshed I will open my lips and answer Thus a godly man in confessing sin his belly is as ready to burst with new wine he must needs have vent else he is broken he must needs confesse sin his sin drives him to God But confession is extorted and wrested from wicked men It was the plagues of Egypt upon Pharaoh that wrung confession from him before these he would say Who is the Lord It was pangs and horrour of conscience in Judas that forced him to acknowledge he had sinned in betraying innocent blood Mariners cast over their goods not that they hate them but as they are forc't to do it to escape drowning when there is a storm and a tempest in their consciences then men are forc't to confesse sin it is by compulsion it is not voluntary Fifthly A godly man is conscious to confesse secret and small sins as well as grosse wickednesse David confest his pride and carnal confidence in numbring the people as well as his adultery with Bathsheba David confest the cutting off the lap of Sauls garment as well as spilling the blood of Vriah But hypocrites confesse their grosse sins but not their small sins Cain confest his murder but not his bad offering they confesse their grosse sins but not their smaller Pharaoh confest his oppression of the children of Israel but he did not confesse the hardness of his heart But godly men though they have not so many grosse and open evils yet small and secret evils pinch their consciences and trouble their spirit Those evils which will not break a wicked mans sleep will break their hearts what though they have not uncleannesse in the flesh what though they have escaped the pollutions of the world yet they know they have secret and inward defilements on the spirit and these they bewaile and these they acknowledge to God A sixth difference is this that godly men are distinct and clear to confesse their particular special evils that have most predominancy over them Beloved observe this Wicked men in their confessions are confused and only run in general that they are sinners Just like Ahimaaz when he would bring tydings to David touching the issue of the battel with Joab and Absalom saith he I saw a tumult and I heard a noyse but I know nothing Wicked men will tell you that their sins do make a noyse within them but they can tell you nothing distinctly and nothing particularly but only go at randome Wicked men in confessing sin are like Nebuchadnezzar Dan. 2. He dreamt something but he could not tell what it was Wicked men dream of sins and think of them as confusedly as a man in a dream but when how and where and with what aggravating circumstances they know not they have not a distinct and clear view of their corruptions The people of God do in their confessions single out their special lusts and say thus did the people of Israel Judg. 10. 10. Thus Belarmine did shew his wickednesse in saying he was not wicked when he was on his death-bed and his Confessor came to him to have him confesse his sin to him saith Bellarmine I do not know any sin in my self to confess This was not the holinesse of the man but the heedlesnesse that he did not observe his waies Donatus the great ringleader of the Donatists saith O Lord I have nothing that thou shouldst pardon me Beloved this doth arise from stupidity that men see not sin it doth not arise from holiness but from heedlesness and carelesseness It is an observation that one hath on Iob saith Iob I have sinned and cause me know wine iniquity and my transgression and my sin Whilst Iob made this complaint that he had sinned God saith in all this Job sinned not that is not absolutely but meaning comparatively Beloved to be free in complaints and to be full in confession of sins doth not argue that you have more sin then other men have but it argues that you have more sight then other men have and the less sin you have in you Seventhly Godly men confesse sin out of a sight and sense of sin as it is dishonourable to God rather then as it is a shame and reproach unto themselves Confess thy sin rather for the foul nature of it that it doth dishonour God then for the evil consequence of it that it deserves damnation to the sinner In Psal 51. saith David Against thee thee only have I sinned it was not against Vriah that he had sinned but against thee thee onely have I sinned for thou wast dishonoured by my sinne When the Apostle speaks of repentance he calls it repentance towards God Acts 20. 21. Testifying both to the Jewes and also to the Greeks repentance toward God and faith toward our Lord Iesus Christ To note That where sorrow and confession of sin is true it is more out of a sense of sin as it is against God then as it is against self But wicked men never confess sin as it is a dishonour to God but as it contracts a guilt and a shame on themselves Lastly Holy confession of sin in godly men leaves a holy awe and a dread upon the heart making them afraid to commit the sin after they have confest it making them afraid to come into the occasion of that sin which they have confest thus you read Acts 19. 18. And many that believed came and confessed and shewed their deeds Verse 19. Many also of them which used curious Arts brought their books together and burned them before all men c. He speaks of their sorcery and witchcraft they would burn their books that there should not be an occasion of committing again that sin which they confest unto God Beloved this is holy confession when thou shalt come to God on thy knees in secret and there bewail a lust and thy confession leaves a holy awe and dread on thy soul to take heed on that sin thou hast confest A godly man may commit a sin which
and to give you absolution these goe currant with them about Auricular confession That you might see this is blame-worthy and worthy of reproof I shall confute it by these Confiderations First Consideration of the time when Auricular Confession came first in use in the Church For 800. yeares after Christ there was no such practise in the Church of God and that the Law of Auricular Confession was not enacted until Pope Innocent the Third which was about 1200. years after Christ and the first Councel that did establish Auricular Confession was the Laterane Councel and after that the Councel of Trent The Church of God in the Primitive times having no such practise it may be exploded from being now in the Church of God Secondly Why did the Popes invent Auricular confession One doth demonstrate this First there is this Reason It is a notable invention to discover the secrets of mens thoughts and intentions and designes both in Church and State Secondly It is a means to get money for the Pope for according as the sin confessed is more capital and notorious so the more money must be given for indulgence and pardon thus a reverent Divine calls it the pick lock of Sacramental confession this being enacted meerly out of State policy to know mens secret thoughts and temper and likewise to bring in profit and revenues to the See of Rome which doth shew the practise to be unjustifiable Thirdly Consider what the Scripture doth press concerning confession unto men mark the Text Jam. 5. 16 Confess your faults one to another and pray one for another that you may be healed The Scripture doth not tie us to a Priest as the Popish Religion ties them but it ties us that in anguish of conscience and trouble of minde we confesse to any who are abce to give us wholsome counsel from the Lord. We are to confesse our sin to any Christian freind or member of the Church whom we judge fittest to advise us for their wisdome faithfulness compassion and experience A good note our Protestant Interpreters have against the Papists the Apostle bids if a man be sick call for the Elders of the Church and they were to pray for him but he doth not bid them confesse sin to the Elders but confesse sin one to another which doth no way tie to confesse sin to a Priest But this is a point of controversie and blessed be God this Church is not tainted with this erour therefore I shall leave it this is the second sort that is to be reproved to wit those of the Popish Religion who instead of confession of sin unto God bring in auricular Confession to the Priest Thirdly This Doctrine reproves those who to avoid the Popish Auricular Confession unto the Priest deny all kind of confession of sin unto men there are many faulty many who keep the Devils counsel who groan under strong corruptions yet will never open their minds to have counsel and prayer from other men There are some peculiar and select cases wherein we are not onely bound to confess sin unto God but to confesse sin unto men but before I handle this take these two Cautions Caut. 1 First Caution is this That you are not to confesse sin needlesly to men but when there is a great and an urgent necessity when you are exceedingly troubled in conscience and cannot be comforted in such a case you may go to men to acknowledge what sins trouble your consciences but to confesse sin needlesly to men you are not called God doth not love saith Chrysostom that we should not go to men to reveal our shame but go to God unless the case be very urgent that by all the means ye can use ye cannot ease your selves then are ye to confesse sin in that case Caut. 2 Secondly That when ye are to confesse sin to men you are not to confesse sin to every one you are to confess sin to those that are compassionate that are of ability to pray for you to those who have wisedom and can counsel you to those who have pitty that can compassionate you to those who have experience that can advise you to those that can give counsel and keep counsel you are not to confesse your faults to any but to those you think are tender hearted to be able to pray for you Beloved if a man should be in discredit and lavish in confession and confesse his sin to every body it may be some would jear and reproach him Chrysostom in his Homilie on Dives and Lazarus hath this expression If thou confess thy sin in some mens ears they will cast thy sins in thy face in a way of scorn Some men would deal with you as the Pharisees did with Judas Judas when he was smitten in conscience for sin came to the Pharisees and said unto them Here is your money again for I have sinned in betraying innocent blood say they What is that to us look you to it for what you have done so men will express no pitty and will give no counsel therefore there must be wisedome in revealing of your sins to other men Thus you have the Cautions prescribed unto you Now in what cases is it meet that men should confess their sins to men as wel as unto God I shall resolve this to you in four Cases Case 1 First In case of publique scandal given to the Church whereof thou art a member by falling into some notorious and known sin when thy sin becomes scandalous and known to all that live about thee and the Congregation where thou dost communicate is blemished by thy fall in that case thou art bound to make a confession to confess thy sin to the Church David fell into the sin of Adultery and the sin was known among all the Gentiles insomuch that the enemies of God spoke ill of Religion and spoke ill of God what doth David doe to recompence the wrong done to the Church he makes the 51. Psalm which was not for his private use onely but for publique use mark the Title of it To the chief Musitian A Psalme of David when Nathan the Prophet came unto him after he had gone in to Bathsheba This Psalm was permitted to be sung in the Sanctuary and in the Temple that so the Church of God being scandalized by Davids sin should be satisfied by Davids publick confession and repentance Beloved this is equitable because the Communicants of a Congregation of a Church are offended by thy scandal and whilest thy sin is notorious they are scrupled therefore there must be a publick repentance And besides publick scandal given by any member of the Church may bring Gods wrath on the Congregation if the offender doth not confesse his sin Josh 22. 20. Did not Achan the son of Zerah commit a trespass in the accursed thing and wrath fell on all the congregation of Israel and that man perished not alone in his iniquity Achan sinned alone but did not
have done evil in thy sight but cannot call to minde any particular sin they have done Was it never thus with you that ye did not know what to bewaile to God and what to lament of in his presence this is a Defect that godly men are often guilty of Defect 2 A second Defect in the confession of sin to God is this when men in prayer do confesse many sins to God yet do leave out their master and predominant sins many men are large in confession yet do leave out their master sins Moses though a good man yet was faulty in this regard God commanded him to go to Egypt to deliver his people but saith Moses I am not eloquent I am of a slow speech he did complain of a natural defect but he did not complain of a spiritual defect but God did answer all his pleas in Exod. 4. 19. And the Lord said unto Moses in Midian Go return into Egypt for all the men are dead that sought thy life Vers 20. And Moses took his wife and his sons and set them upon an asse and he returned to the land of Egypt So that God here put his finger upon the sore Moses complained of the peoples incredulity of his own natural infirmity but Moses did not complain of his slavish fear that if he should go to Egypt there were men that would kill him till God did assure Moses that those men that sought to kill him were dead Moses would not go here a good man would not confesse his slavish fear that he did fear death therefore he would not go on Gods command Beloved this is a Defect that doth many times cleave to godly men to leave out their predominant sins and to confesse only those sins which are sins of infirmity and herein men do but dissemble with God and like the lapwing crie lowdest when farthest from the nest Defect 3 A third Defect in confession of sin to God is this to have the heart to hanker after the committing of those sins you do confesse Austin doth ingenuously acknowledg this of himself saith he I did often beg strength of God against the sin of incontinency yet had often an unwillingnesse in my heart that God should hear my prayers lest I should leave my sins Indeed conviction of conscience doth force to a confession of sin yet the strength of thy depraved affection doth make thee hanker after the sin and cause a lothnesse to leave it Defect 4 A fourth Defect in confession of sin to God is this to confesse to God the sins of your life but not the sins of your nature many men will be large in confessing the sins of their life but seldom or never bewail the sins of nature that vicious inclination in the heart to sin very few but David in the Old Testament and Paul in the New who did sufficiently confesse original sin David in the Old Testament Psal 51. there he begins to bewail the root of those sins which he was guilty of So Paul in Rom. 7. bewails the body of sin many men bewail actual sin but not habitual sin but not original sin many men bewail bad actions but never confesse unto God their vicious inclination This Defect good men many times are guilty of Defect 5 A fifth defect is this to confesse grosse and open sins but not to confesse small and secret evils we are commanded to keep the Law as the apple of our eye Prov. 7. 2. Keep my commandements and live and my Law as the apple of thine eye Now you know a man that keeps his eye will not only keep his eye from great blowes but from small motes which may put out the eye as well as a great blow men should not only take heed of great blowes great transgressions but they should take heed of lesser motes small sins Now beloved good men many times commit those sins that are infamous that the natural light of conscience can control them for why those evils are complained of and confest but secret evils wandring thoughts in duties vanity of minde the deadnesse of the heart emptinesse of spiritual meditations inward distrust these evils are seldome bewailed and confest this is many times a Defect found in good men good men are not so apt to confesse omission of good as commission of evil Defect 6 A sixt Defect in confession of sin to God is this to confesse sin more because of its guilt then of its spot my meaning is more because sin hath a damning power then a defiling nature more because sin damns thy soul then defiles thy conscience A child would touch a coal though it be smutty and soily but he forbears to touch it meerly because it is a burning coal we forbeare sin because sin is a burning coale but we doe not forbear to touch it because it is a defiling coal that is a defect in many godly men to be found But we should confesse sin and bewaile it not because it wil damn us but because it doth dishonour God Defect 7 A seventh defect in confession of sins to God is this to confesse those sins to God which if men should charge us with we should deny and be angry This holy Greenham doth take notice of in mens confession of sin thou wilt confesse thy pride to God but if a man should say that thou art proud thou wouldst be angry with him thou wilt confesse thy waies to God but if men should tell thee of thy sins thou wouldst be angry with them this shews there is much defect in your confession Defect 8 The eighth defect in confession of sin unto God is this not to have the heart sensibly affected with those sins that are confessed to God many confesse as if they were telling stories rather what other men did then what themselves did there are few that confesse sin as the Prodigall did that he was ashamed to be called the son of his father We should confesse sin as Daniel did Dan. 9. and as David did Psa 51. But many confesse sin like Pharaoh Exod. 9. 27. And Pharaoh sent and called for Moses and Aaron and said unto them I have sinned this time the Lord is righteous and I and my people are wicked Vers 34. And when Pharaoh saw that the rain and the hail and the thunder were ceased he sâ—nned yet more and hardned his heart 〈…〉 Defect 9 The ninth defect in confesâ—ion of sin to God is this to content your selves with slight ordinary and generall confessions of sins to come into Gods presence and say you are sinners just as 〈◊〉 the eleventh king of France who when he had blasphemed would take his Crucifix and kisse and cry God forgive me and then sweare again this is the fault which Christians many times are guilty of many men rest contented with a confused and a generall confession of sin when they doe not come to any distinct view of their particular sins there is a tumult in the
conscience some noyse they make in prayer but they know nothing distinctly but like Nebuchadnezzar in a dream he knew he dreamt but he forgot what his dream was many men doe confesse sin but they know not what they doe confesse You are to be humbled for these defects that may be found in youâ— in your confessing sin to God Defect 10 A tenth defect in confession of sin to God is this that they are bold to commit the sin again which they have confest they confesse passion and afterward are bold and adventrous to run into a rage and fury When a man shall confesse on his knees he hath done thus and thus and hath been thus and thus yet afterwards all the impressions of these confessions are defaced and he is bold to adventure on the commission of the sin again This is also a defect that may be found amongst good men in their confession of sin unto God Me thinks I hear you ask me But seeing these defects are found amongst us in confession of sin unto God what should we doe to be healpt against these defects For answer that ye may not be guilty of these defects in confession of sin Rule 1 First Get a cleare insight into Gods Law that it may discover sin to you by the Law is the knowledge of sin Rom. 3. 20. Therefore by the deeds of the Law there shall no flesh be justified in his sight for by the Law is the knowledge of sin Jam. 1. 23. For if any be a hearer of the Word and not a doer he is like unto a man beholding his natural face in a glasse Vers 24. For he beholdeth himse lf and goeth his way and straight way forgetteth what manner of man he was The looking-glasse will shew you the blemishes in the face which the eye cannot else discern beloved get a knowledge of the spiritualnesse of Gods Law of the extent of Gods Law that the Law doth reach the inward man that Gods law reacheth to those very first motions of the soul those very inclinations to sin that are in thine heart be acquainted with the Law and by that thou wilt come to the knowledge of sin Physicians have used this remedy to their Patients In a Convulsion Fit they would wish them at that time to look their face in a glasse that when the Patient doth see what an ugly countenance he hath and what an ugly posture he is in at that time he might strive the more against it So doe you look your face in a looking-glasse to see those deformities that are within you this will make you confesse and this will bring you on your knees Secondly If you would confesse sin aright observe diligently your own waies and hearts Prov. 4. 25. Let thine eyes look right on and let thine eye-lid look straight before thee Vers 26. Ponder the path of thy feet and let all thy waies be stablished Look right before you and ponder the waies of your feet and that is the way to have the heart so affected with the evil of your waies as you will particularly confesse your sins Thirdly Keep fresh in your remembrance some particular sin or other when you come to prayer it will help you in confession it is barrennesse as I told you that you do not see what matter you have to confesse that makes you so scanted in you confession would you but present some particular sin when you come to God you would be in better plight to confesse sin to God this the Psalmist doth 51. vers 3. For I acknowledg my transgessions and my sin is ever before me He means the sin of Adultetery When David came to prayer he would put before his eyes the sin of adultery now set thy sin before thee Art thou a drunkard set they drunkenesse before thee art thou an adulterer set thy uncleannesse before thee art thou an extortioner then set thy oppression before thee set sin before thine eyes when thou commest to prayer and that is the way to feed thy spirits with confessions to God in a prayer Fourthly Call to remembrance some old transgression of many yeares past before thy conversion and muster up these sins together that so thou mightest have matter of complaint and confession before God Suppose present guilt doth not come up before thee then recollect and review old transgressions sins of an old date this David did when he found his heart dull and sluggish he would call to minde the sins of his youth Psal 35. 9. When you see that your hearts grow barren of spiritual matter through heedlesnesse go then and ransack your old waies what did you 20 years agoe let conscience gawle you for that that so you may have matter enough to confesse unto God This rule doth not appertain to Christians under trouble of conscience but only to those Christians that are sluggish and barren of any spiritual complaints and confessions in Gods presence A word of Use further for direction If it be so that Justified persons are bound to make secret confessions unto God then First Christians keep a heedfulnesse over your hearts that you may not let sin go unconfest make conscience and be heedful that sin committed by you may not be unconfest a sin unconfest as to the apprehension may be unpardoned a sin unconfest cannot be mourned for cannot be actually repented of Observe that a lesse sin unrepented of may damn a man when a greater sin that is confest to God may be pardoned if you compare Saul and David together 1 Sam. 15. 9. But Saul and the people spared Agag and the best of the sheep and of the oxen and of the fallings and of the lambs and all that was good and would not utterly destroy them but every thing that was vile and refuse that they distroyed utterly Saul did there commit a farre lesse sin then Davids was to wit adultery Saul did only for his private use spare the fattest of his sheep and oxen it was little or nothing in comparison of Davids sin yet behold David was pardoned and Saul damned David had his sin pardoned and Saul not why David did confesse sin and Saul not Saul did delude the reproof of Samuel and told him the people did it and not I Sauls sin unconfest ruined him therefore take heed of letting sin go unconfest a lesse sin unconfest may damn a man when a greater sin that is confest may not damn him A second Direction is this Depend not upon the most inlarged and the most sensible confessions that ever you have made to God suppose thou hast poured out thy soul to God thou art never the better thou O man when thou doest confesse sin thou doest but like a begger shew God thy sores thy botches and scabs do not depend upon your confessions as you must not depend upon your righteousnesse so not upon confession of your sinfulnesse It is worth your observation Saul pursuing David like a Partridge over
connexion with forgivenesse of sin I confest and thou forgavest For answer in the generall it is not every kind of confession that carries a connexion of pardon Saul confest his sin but God did not take away his sin but tooke away his Kingdom It is not every kind of confession that hath a connexion with forgivenesse of sin but that confession which hath connexion with pardon of sin it hath six concomitants joyned with it First it is a free and ingenuous confession not extorted by force not with sinfull reserves but a free a full and ingenuous confession that is the meaning of that Phrase Psal 32. 21. Blessed is the man to whom the Lord imputeth not iniquity and in whose spirit is no guile Guile is not there taken largely in opposition to Hypocrisie but for a sinfull reserve of sin when a man will not be free and open in confessing his sin unto God David would freely and fully open himselfe and confesse his evils unto God that confession that is a free and ingenuous confession it hath pardon of sin annexed to it the confessions of them that rowle sin under the tongue as a sweet morsell that they would not part with have not justification entailed on them those confessions onely are connected with forgiveness that are ingenuous and free Secondly that confession which hath pardon annexed to it is a penitential confession a confession that hath sorrow of heart mixt with it Ps 38. 18. For I will declare mine iniquity I will be sorry for my sin True confession of sin is rather a voice of mourning then a voice of words it hath ever a sorrow and grief of heart joined with it That prescription that God gave to the Leper in the Law that he should be cleansed from his leprosiâ— and in Levit. 13. 45. And the Leper in whom the plague is his clothes shall be rent and his head bare and hee shall put a covering upon his upper lip and shall cry unclean unclean is worth your notice he was to cry twice I am unclean Lam unclean there was this confession but what was joined with his confession before hee could be cleansed Two things he must do First he must rent his clothes to note that there must be brokennesse of heart and sorrow of heart joyned with confession of sin Secondly he must cover his lip to note shame that must be mingled with his sorrow to shew that to us that have an unclean leprosie of sin in us the crying I am unclean unclean is not enough but there must be the renting of the heart and shame of face these must be mingled with those confessions that have a connexion with forgivenesse Third Concomitant of confession that hath pardon annexed to it is this That there must be a voluntary and a free leaving of those sins which we doe confesse To confess sin yet to have a lothnesse in the spirit to part with it is no reall confessing of sin Prov. 28. 13. He that covereth his sin shall not prosper but whoso confesseth and forsaketh them shall have mercy Confession is there joyned to be with a forsaking of sin in case mercy be to be obtained One â—cals confession a spirituall vomit you know a man that is burdened in the stomack would be willingly rid of that load on his stomach that doth oppresse nature a man that doth confess sin truly would as willing be rid of sin on his Conscience as a man that is sick at his Stomach would be rid of that burden which doth oppresse it such a confession hath pardon annexed with it Fourthly that confession that hath pardon annexed to it is joyned with a holy aw and fear of running into the commission of those sins that we do confesse to God Psal 38. 18. compared with Psal 39. 1. For I will declare mine iniquity I will be sorry for my sin I said I will take heed to my wayes that I sin not with my tongue Davids confessing sin did worke in him a holy awe and a holy care to take heed of those sins he had confest to confesse sin and to be bold and adventurous to run into sin hath not such a connexion with pardon Fifthly That confession that hath pardon annexed to it doth quicken the soul to strong earnest supplication to prayer David confest sin his confession quickened Prayer Daniel confest sin and confession quickened supplication Daniel 9. 20. And while I was speaking and praying and confessing my sin and the sin of my people Israel c. Beloved when confessions of sin are to prayer as the whet-stone to the knife when you sharpen your affections and put a keen edge on your hearts in prayer this is an evident token that such confession hath a connexion with forgivenesse of sin So much for the second particular Part. 3 The third particular is to shew you how doth this connexion between confession of sin and forgivenesse of sin consist with the feernesse of Gods grace in pardoning of sin in placing a connexion between pardon and confession How doth this consist with the freenesse of of Gods grace in pardoning of sin For answer Ans 1 First if we should place a causality or a merit in confession of sin to procure pardon as the Papists doe this would overthrow the free Grace of God in forgiving sin though wee do place a connexion between confessing sin and pardon of sin yet wee do not place any merit in those confessions we do not place any worth any causality in those confessions that is my first answer Ans 2 Secondly The Scripture makes a fair consistency between mans confessing sin and Gods free Grace in forgiving sin the Scripture makes a double consistency First in regard of the Precept that doth enjoyn and command confession 2. In regard of the means that this is a way to procure pardon First In regard of the command God doth command us to confesse sin Now no command of God that he would have us doe can derogate from his free grace therefore surely this command can no way eclipse the freenesse of grace in what he will doe Secondly In regard of means as a way to get pardon God is the efficient cause and Christ is the meritorious cause of pardon but yet confession of sin is that cause which Logicians call causa sine quâ non without which pardon of sin shall never be obtained I confest and thou forgavest Answ 3 A third answer Though no man can be pardoned for his confession yet no man shall have pardon without confession Repent that your sins may be blotted out Act. 3. 19. No blotting out of sin without repentance there must be a sorrow bewailing of sin before it can be pardoned and that Christ was broken for sin it will no ways exempt you from being broken for sin though Christ was a man of sorrow all in a way of satisfaction yet you must shed teares for sin in a way of
before a sin can be pardoned it did cost Christ much and will cost himself much it did cost Christ much bloud to expiate the guilt of that sin it will cost the sinner many teares to destroy the power of that sin now that sin which he hath smarted for and Christ hath suffered for he will not easily commit Psal 38. when the Psalmist said he would declare his iniquity then in Psal 39. he saith I will take heed to my wayes as if he should have said I am sorry for my sin and the Lord hath forgiven me mine iniquity but here is the result of it I will take heed to my ways and of my sinning another time there is no man that knoweth his sin to be pardoned that can easily run into the commission of it again it is an exeellent expression in the book of Job If I sin then thou markest me and thou wilt not acquit me from mine iniquity If I sin it is not here spoken absolutely and simply for what man is he that lives and sinneth not but if I sin as I am charged that I should sin murmuring and maliciously against God and persist in my sin saith Job If I sin as yee charge me what followes then God will not take away mine iniquity he will not pardon my sin as Job said of himself you may say of your selves if I sin obstinately and pertinaciously God will not pardon thou hast been wicked thou wilt be so thou hast been prophane and thou wilt be so This is inconsistent with a pardoned state Char. 3 A third Character of a person whose sin is forgiven is this to have unfained sorrow and remorse of heart for the commission of sin sins forgiven are steept in bloud and soakt in teares sorrow before pardon is servile and legal none can sorrow in an Evangelical manner but he who is brought into a pardoned estate Indeed there may be a fore't and a constrained sorrow which may come from the eyes of unpardoned men there is this difference between the one and the other Teares in an unpardoned sinner come from him like water in a Still but Tears in a pardoned sinner come from him like water from the clouds water will drop from the Still but it is forc't by keeping close the Still and by the heat of the fire the fire of hell may make a wicked man agast but sorrow for sin in a pardoned man is like water from the clouds that is not forced but doth naturally drop down Char. 4 A fourth Character He in whom sin is pardoned is a man in whom is no guile Psal 32. some do take guile in a particular sense others extend it more largely as a comprehensive word opposed to sincerity he is a man in whose spirit is no guile that is an upright man Thus much for the use of Triall I now come to answer the Objections Obiect 1 The first Objection me thinks I hear a doubting Christian say Woe and alas what state am I in I have misgiving thoughts that God hath not pardoned mine iniquities because I cannot find that I have a heart to mourn for my iniquity And is it imaginablâ— that Christ should shed blood for those sins which I never shed a tear for I can mourn for outward small crosses but I cannot mourn for great inward corruptions this makes me doubt whether ever God hath pardoned my sin I shal resolve this Objection in these four particulars Ans 1 First of all consider that all men have not a like naturall tendernesse and softnesse of disposition many are of soft dispositions are naturally inclined to tears this is not grace but the ingenuousnesse and softnesse of Nature all cannot sorrow a like there may be grace in a man if his disposition be hard and rugged yet he cannot shed tears as those that have a tender disposition Ans 2 Secondly You that make this Objection know this that there may be greater sorrow for sin in the heart when there is no tears for sin flowing from the eye tears from the eye doth ease and lighten the minde there may be the greatest sorrow when it can have no vent from the eye Thirdly You that make this Objection know you must distinguish of a two-fold sorrow for sin First there is a judicious sorrow and secondly a sensitive sorrow First There is a judicious sorrow and this consists in an apprehension in the judgement that sin is the greatest evil in the world and most to be lamented branded opposed and resisted Divines doe place more strength and height of grace in having an indignation stirred up in the understanding against sin touching the evil of sin this is more then to shed a few teares for sin Now if thou hast a judicious sorrow to apprehend sin to be a great evil though it hath not vent at the eye yet this is godly sorrow for sin A man that hath the Tooth-ache he will cry out and complain more and shed more teares happily for the exquisite pain of the Tooth-ache then he will doe in the burning Feaver yet ask him which he had rather have he will tell you the Tooth-ache the reason is because the pestilential Feaver is more hazardous to life so bad you rather lose your children then lose the sense of Gods favour Which had you rather have afflictions in the world or willingly commit sin against God The judgement of a man if he be a regenerate man tells him he had rather a thousand times lose the dearest relation then the manifestation of Gods love unto his soul he had rather endure the greatest affliction then to venture willingly on the least sin Ans 4 Fourthly Consider that Gods own people have oftentimes exprest more sorrow for outward afflictions then they have done for inward corruptions there is great reason for it because things of sense doe more affect us then things of faith doe lay a man upon the Rack and he shall more roar and cry then any man in the world shall doe in the sense of sin because the pain is sensitive and it will have more sense of sorrow it was thus with good men in Scripture We read much of Davids sorrow he had no rest in his bones by reason of his sin yet mark when David lost Absolom O what a fit of sorrow was he in crying out O my son Absolom my son my son Absolom would God I had dyed for thee O Absolom my son my son Wee do not read of such cryes O my soul my soul O what shall I doe for thee my soul because the sorrow was sensitive the losse was sensitive Now beloved Gods people do expresse more sensitive sorrow for outward crosses then for inward corruptions A late Author doth quote an instance out of Jerome a godly woman lost her children she wept even to death yet she could not weep so for her sin the reason is because things of sense do more affect a man then
great labour taken before his dead conscience will hear the rebukes of the Word there is more adoe with a wicked man to have his conscience in office then with a godly man Eightly There is this difference though the conscience of a good man be asleep for a time and doth not smite him for sin yet some time before he dyes his conscience shall smite him for sin there is no godly man in the world but under known sins if his conscience hath not smitten him his conscience shall smite him before he dyes but wicked men live dye in sin never have the controll or rebuke of conscience Ahaz was troubled by affliction from God yet conscience never troubled him for he did yet more wickedly against God Ninthly Though the conscience of a pardoned sinner may be asleep for a time and may not reprove him for sin committed yet a good mans conscience when it doth reprove him it doth check him more out of a sense of sin and the dishonour done to God then out of fear of hell or any outward judgements but wicked men are asleep in their consciences and if conscience doth ever awake it is not because sin is sin and because God is dishonoured but because there is hell for sin because there are outward grievous judgements when God breaks men by his judgements then they will put conscience on work but never doe it out of sense of sin Take this comparison of Ducks in a pond of water cast but a little peble stone into the water and it will make them dive but let it rattle and thundeâ—â—n the heavens the Ducks fear not a Divine makes this a fit embleme of a wicked mans conscience cast but a little pebble stone some present affliction neer a wicked man and that will make him dive that will trouble conscience and perplex the man but let God thunder from heaven let the Lord declare all the threatnings of his spirituall judgements against sin how evill sin is how God is dishonoured by sin and how the soule is indangered all these thundrings from heaven cannot make him startle And thus I have run hastily over the answering of this third Objection I have done it meerly for the relief of a perplexed Conscience thus I have done with this doctrine I confest thou forgavest Thou forgavest to forgive saith Musculus is a word of favour or grace not merit Thou forgavest It notes pardon of sin is not vouchsafed to men by way of debt but of gift I confessed and thou forgavest thou forgavest what Thou forgavest the iniquity of my sin the sin of my sin Interpreters have various apprehensions touching the meaning of these words what it is for God to forgive the iniquity of my sin I will bring it to a two fold channell Some there are that by iniquity understand the punishment of sin I acknowledged my sin and thou forgavest the iniquity of my sin That is thou forgavest the punishment of my sin the reason of that interpretation is because in the Hebrew language the same word 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 that signifies iniquity signifies punishment and therefore they understand the iniquity of sin the punishment of sin but Interpreters generally go against this interpretation for usually the word is taken for sin it self Again the whole scope of the Psalm is not in seeking the outward punishment to be forgiven but the forgivenesse of sin is referred to eternall guilt Thirdly Here is in the Text a 〈◊〉 which is a note of admiration annexed to his expression Thou hast forgiven c. surely that would be no wonder to God to passe by an externall punishment for that he might do to men whose sins were never pardoned What is it for God to forgive the iniquity of sin I answer the iniquity of sin is meant that God out of his free grace doth not onely simply forgive a sin committed but he forgives the iniquity of that sin all the malignity of that sin all the hainous aggravated circumstances that may any wayes make it great A Learned Author having a whole Tract upon this Psalme hath these words the Psalmist useth this kind of speech To forgive the iniquity of sinne that he might touch us that it was no light fault that was pardoned it was sin and it was the iniquity of sinne sin upon sin and sin greatned by many hainous circumstances Yet Behold the great mercy of God Thou forgavest the Iniquity of my sin thus much for the explaining of the words Doct. The Observation is this That such are the riches of Gods pardoning grace that he forgives his people not onely sin in the general but their great sins such as are cloathed with many aggravated and hainous crying circumstances Thou forgavest the iniquity of my sin In the handling of this point I shall proceed in this method First To prove the point to you by an Induction of particular instances then the application of it by several uses It is a pointfull of comfort and indeed I know not such a Text in all the Bible that speaks of Gods grace in pardoning aggravated sinnes more clearly then this Text doth First of all I shall give you an induction of instances that God doth not onely forgive his people a bare sin committed but God doth out of the riches of his Grace forgive his people those sins that you may call the iniquity of sin sins cloathed with many hainous aggravated circumstances to prove this take the instance of David that speaks the words an instance of Peter another of Paul many men that have sinned against light love sinned against checks of conscience and against mercies are these sins forgiven Yes that is my work to prove that Gods grace doth forgive sins that are cloathed with many hainous and aggravated circumstances to make them great First I begin with David because it is the instance in hand will you consider Davids sin the sin of Adultery and ransack the bowels of it you shall finde Davids sin cloathed with great hainous and aggravated circumstances to make it great and grievous and yet for all this that sin forgiven him First Circumstance to aggravate Davids sin if you consider the quality of it the kind of it What sin was it it was the sin of Adultery now of all sins the sin of Adultery is an aggravated sin there are five circumstances 1. He that commits adultery he sins against his own body 2. He sins against the body of the woman he is unclean with 3. It is a wrong to his own Wife 4. It is a wrong to the Adulteresses Husband 5. It is a wrong to the child that is illegitimately begotten in adultery that an ignominy should be on him when he is borne and therefore that David should fall to that sin it was one great sin to aggravate Davids sin Secondly If you consider the dignity and quality of Davids person that did commit this sin He was King Now
was at Jerusalem it was where Paul should have learnt to know better things for there the Apostles were and taught the Doctrine of Christ and of Christianity Sixthly If you consider the extent of Pauls malice saith he When they were put to death I gave my voice against them Pauls vote was against the Christians to put them to death Seventhly Pauls rage did goe against their soules as well as their bodies for saith he I did compell them to blaspheme Christ he laboured to damn their souls as well as destroy their bodies Eighthly saith he I was exceeding mad against them he was even mad with rage and exceeding mad with rage Ninthly He drove them from house to house I drove them into strange Cities And then Tenthly which was worst of all he did through their sides strike at the honour of Jesus Christ for why did Paul doe this to the Saints saith he I thought with myself to doe many things contrary to the name of Jesus of Nazareth there was the person he aymed at yet Paul a man forgiven for all this for he saith when he aggravates his sin in 1 Tim. 1. 11 12 13. According to the glorious Gospel of the blessed God which was committed to my trust And I thank Christ Jesus our Lord who hath enabled me for that he counted me faithfull putting me into the Ministery who was before a blasphemer and a persecuter and injurious But I obtained mercy because I did it ignorantly its unbelief Thus I have done with the Doctrinal part of my Text laying down to you an induction of instances I am the larger in this because I know perplexed consciences in trouble of mind are apt but to greaten their own sins but can you aggravate it worse then David Paul or Peter could do yet behold those sinnes and those aggravated sinnes were forgiven by Jesus Christ I have four words to say in this Sermon by way of Application there may be in such an Assembly as this is whom God might suffer either before conversion or after conversion to be unclean with David to deny Christ with Peter it may be to swear to a lye to swear to a falshood nay it may be to engage to a lye to a falshood O take heed of false Oathes it may be to persecute the Saints of Christ with Paul Four Consolations First O know it for thy comfort O thou disconsolate heart let thy sin be never so great yet the mercies of God are greater A learned Interpreter gives to my hand which is his instance Lord my fault is great but thy mercies are greater Beloved I may say to you though thy sin be great yet the mercy of God is greater then thy sin and thou canst not have so many circumstances to greaten thy sin as can be produced in God to greaten his own mercy you shall read what he saith himselfe in Isa 44. 22. I have blotted ouâ— as a thick cloud thy transgressions and as a cloud thy sins return unto me for I have redeemed thee Suppose thy sin be not onely a little cloud but suppose it be a great cloud a thick cloud saith God I doe not only blot sins out like a little cloud but I will blot ouâ— transgressions that are like a thick cloud great sins as well as small doth the mercies of God cover The Sea can as well cover great rocks as little peble stones high mountaines as well as mole-hills Gods mercy is an Ocean that can cover great enormities as well as lesser infirmities The glorious body of the Sun in the Heavens can scatter the greatest mist as well as the thinnest vapours great sins as well as small are pardoned by infinite mercy It is worthy your notice what Moses speaks of the Mercy-seat It covered the whole Ark wherein the Law was kept To note saith a Divine though thou art a man or a woman guilty of all the Lawes breach not onely of one command but of all the commands yet the Mercy-Seat covered all the commands to teach you this that the mercy of God can pardon the greatest violation of the Law therefore that wherein the Law was kept was all covered by the Mercy-Seat 2. Take this for thy comfort O thou perplexed Conscience it may be when thou art in a corner none but God and thine own soule together thou dost aggravate thy sin and thinkest no mans sin so grievous as thine then take this for thy comfort let thy sin be never so great yet the satisfaction and sufferings of Christ are far greater The blood of Christ saith the Apostle cleanseth us from all sin the Red Sea did with as much ease drown Pharaoh and all his hoast as it could doe a single man the red Sea of Christs blood can drown a whole hoast and a huge multitude of sins as well as a small lust Though thou hast need to shed more teares for sin in a way of contriâ—ion yet Christ need not shed more blood for sin in a way of redemption for he hath saved them to the utmost that come unto God by him the Apostle triumphing in the 5. of the Romans he meanes there that there is not so much evil in sin to damn us as there is good in the gift in Christ for to save because thy sin is he guilt of a creature and Christs satisfaction is the satisfaction of a God thy sin the sin of a finite creature and his sufferings the sufferings of an infinite Mediator Third Consolation is this to you that are perplexed in conscience that you have committed hainous and aggravated sinfulnesse yet that Jesus Christ doth wipe away the infamy and the ignominy of thy most horrid and scandalous sins committed before conversion Suppose thou hast been a notorious infamous creature yet Christ takes off the ignominy and the infamy of thy sin when he justifies thy person and doth sanctifie thy nature It is observable of Mary Magdalen as is conceived she was a notorious whore every one that saw her knew she was a common harlot there was a woman that was a sinner the meaning was she was an infamous notorious harlot What is done when Christ converted this woman Luk. 7. 47. Wherefore I say unto thee her sins which are many are forgâ—ven for she loved much Christ did delight to wipe away the ignominy of her harlotry in her after-life It is worthy observation that four women are reckoned in the Genealogy of Christ what women were they they were women that were infamous the best of them did fill into much scandal and gave much offence there you find mention of Thamar Rachab Ruth and Bathsheba no more in the Genealogy but these what were all these women Begin with Thamar she committed uncleannesse with her Father in Law an infamous woman as you have the story in Gen. 38. 18. And he said What pledge shall I give thee and she said thy Signet and the Bracelets and thy Staffe that is in thine hand and be
gave it her and came in unto her and she conceived by him Then you read of Rachab a common harlot in Heb. 11. 31. By faith the Harlot Rachab perished not with them that beleeved not when she had received the spies with peace Matth. 1. 5. And Salmon begat Boaz of Rachab c. A third woman mentioned in the Genealogy is Ruth what was she she was not so infamous as the rest were yet she ran into a grievous scandal Ruth came of Moab whom Lot begat of his own daughter you have the story in the Book of Genesis 19. 36. Thus were both the daughters of Lot with child by their Father vers 37. And the first borne bare a Son and called his name Moab What was she for her person she was a good woman but as all Divines observe of her she did an action that had appearance of evill what did she read the story in the third of Ruth beginning at verse 5. c. the story saith that she came alone at midnight to Boaz there was an action full of infamy which was a shamefull thing that a woman should come to a man lying alone Secondly she came and lay by him in the night season but it is true the Scripture câ—ears her for any thing following vers 14. And she lay at his feet untill morning and she rose up before one could know another there was no vanity no folly and no evill yet it was a grievous scandall for a woman to be with a man and Boaz did fear the scandall of it too yet this woman is reckoned in the Genealogy of Christ The fourth woman is Bathsheba she was unclean with David What is the Mystery of this truely all Interpreters give this There are but four women named in the genealogy al of them blame-worthy some in a higher and some in a lower degree and it is recorded that Christ came from these four to take off the ignominy and infamy of your sins that you have fallen into before conversion suppose God should suffer thee to fall into execrable villanies reall and sound conversion to God takes off the reproach and ignominy therefore Christ to take off the ignominy and reproach from these women would honour them so far as to reckon them in his own Genealogy The point was this That such are the riches of Gods pardoning grace that hee forgives his people the great sins that are cloathed with many hainous and aggravated circumstances Now lest any might abuse this Doctrine and suck poyson from these flowers that are mâ—st sweetly scattered up and down the Scripture I shall labour so to handle the matter as to keep off presumptuous men that they be not emboldned in a wicked course of sin Therefore my use shall be to two sorts of men Use 1 First of all it shall bee directed to morall and civill honest men if God doth forgive men great sinnes cloathed with many hainoâ—s and aggravated circumstances as Davids sinne was as Peters sinne was and Paul sinnes were then I have great hopes of pardon mine are but sinnes of an ordinarie incursion therefore I have hopes my sinnes are pardoned because they have not been crying great sins First of all consider That God hath shewn as much displeasure against small and little sins as against greater and grosser enormities I will give you some instances First of the neglect of Moses to circumcise his son one would think that for forbearing the circumcising of a childe when a man was in a journey and had urgent businesse lying upon him his businesse should have been a plea to excuse him yet for the bare omission of that on the eight day the Lord met him and would have killed him Exod 4. 24. And it came to passe by the way in the Ione that the Lord met him and sought to kill him Another time thâ— Psalmist tels us of Moses sin in the wilderness Moses spake unadvisedly with his lips onely a rash word and what was the issue of that sin the Lord would never suffer Moses to enter into the land of Canaan Another instance of Uxzah one would thinke it but â—mail thing for Vzzah to put his hand to uphold the falling Arke it was out of a good intention that the Arke should not fall yet you know how the hand of God smote Uzzah for it So likewise of David you would thinke it but a small matter for a King to number his people yet you know how many thousands in Israel God did take away by the Plague for that very sin so that beloved suppose thou hast not fallen into hideous and hainous wickednesses yet thou seest little sins displease God as well as great because sin though little yet is against a great God and little sins displease as well as great Secondly That though grosse sins may carry a greater infamy yet little secret sins may carry a greater guilt in them to God Beloved the sin of Angels it was but a small sin a spirituall sin onely one sin and a sin in thought too not of act yet you know that for that sin God did tumble the Angels out of heaven Indeed gross sins carry a greater infamy but little small sins may carry as great a guilt Third Consideration is this That small and little sins may be aggravated and cloathed with such cricumstances as may make them great two instances in Adams sin and Davids sin First Adams sin you would account it a small matter to eat an apple or some other fruit but yet that small fact of eating the forbidden fruit was so cloathed with many circumstances which made it a great and grievous sin for First if you consider the state of Adam he was not as we are but Adam was a perfect and an innocent creature and it is a greater evill for a perfect creature to sin then for us that are imperfect Secondly Consider the place where Adam was it was in Paradise and yet there to sin Thirdly Consider the publicknesse of his person hee did not sin for himself but in his sin we all sinned for a private man to sin is an evill but for a publicke person representing other men his sin is other mens sin Fourthly How many aggravations were in the bowels of Adams sin there are six First There was unbliefe in his sin God did not tell them with an if or an and but told them peremptorily they should dye Secondly There was this aggravation that Adam did believe the Devil before God Thirdly there was pride in this sin for saith the Devill Ye shall be as Gods and that pleased them it was not enough to be man and woman but they must be gods Fourthly There was curiosity in that sin You shall be as gods knowing good and evil now out of meer curiosity to know more then they did know though they knew enough to make them happy and blessed did they plunge themselves into this sin Fifthly They were not contented with their
scandalous sins what was the conclusion saith Christ that he that justified himself was not justified but the Publican was justâ—fied rather then the Pharisee the Publican that had fallen into extortion by his office he was tempted unto much extortion he was a wicked liver and yet went away justified O! a civill honest Pharisee a Pharisee that never brake out into scandall yet was not justified a Pulican that was a known and infamous sinner went away justified 2 The progidal sonne that ran away from his father spent all his substance and went to live among hogs and swine in this world that is wicked men yet this man a pardoned man The young man who told Christ that he kept al Gods commands from his youth was an unjustified man yet the prodigal that was riotous from his youth confessed his sin became a justified man I am perswaded the very intent of these Scriptures is for this end that civil moral men should not presume on pardon meerly on their civil morality Fifthly consider That what your sins do want in regard of others mens in bulk and magnitude you may make up in number Suppose thou hast not been a drunkard an adulterer an oppressor yet thou hast many small sins thou hast many secret and small failings now remember many small sins may sooner damn thee then a few greater sins I may make use of that pertinent Scripture in Jer. 5. 6. Wherefore a Lion out of the forrest shall slay them and a Wolfe of the evenings shall spoil them a Leopard shall watch over their cities every one that goâ—th out hence shal be torn in pieces because their transgressions are many and their back-slidings are increased Vers 7. How shall I pardon thee for this c. Because their transgressions were many therefore God comes with a question How shall I pardon Beloved Suppose thy sins be not great yet if they be many small sins God may put this question to you How shall I pardon you Let me tell a paradox that small sins are as hardly yea more hardly pardoned then greater sins are And the reason is because a man is not so apt to repent for small sins as he will be for great because they are not so visible and therefore conscience not so apt to do its office to put a man upon repentance that is the reason of Christs speech Verily I say unto you that Publicans and harlots shall goe to heaven before them why because the Pharisees did depend upon their righteousnesse and did not see their little small sins a Publican a harlot that could not but by the light of nature see their extortion their wickednesse and harlotry they should go to heaven before them Christ told them of their sins and they repented of them Therefore though your sins be but small yet they may be many and that will greaten your sins a many small sins may run thee into deeper arrearages unto God then a few grosser evils As in Arithmetick many smal sigurs put together amount to agreater sum then a few great ones So it is in respect of little sins O then let me perswade you that none of you would presume on pardon because you have not fallen into greater and grosser evils Thus much for first branch of the Use Use 2 The second follows and that is this To those that can say of their sins as David did Thou forgavest the iniquity of my sin sins cloathed with many hideous and hainous circumstances First something by way of admonishment First consider though your grosse sins cannot bring your persons into a state of damnation yet they will bring you into a state of sequestration though they cannot keep thee from heaven yet will they keep thee from comfort God will suspend and withdraw the manifestations of his grace he will turn his smiles into frownes upon thee Beloved this is sad a grosse sin will keep thee from the comforts and joyes of heaven though it cannot keep thee from the possession of heaven A child of God that sins though hee bee not under ejection but of his heritage yet he is under an interdiction thou mayest have a right to heaven a right to salvation yet God hath shut thee up that thou mayest not have the manifestations of a reconciled God towards thee this is astonishment to thee Secondly to admonish thee though thou beest pardoned yet such wofull commotions such dismall fears will arise in thy conscience that will make thee verily think thou art not pardoned Beloved if you fal into grosse sins and repel the sanctifying work of the Spirit God will withdraw the comforting Work of the Spirit The spirit of God is compared to a Dove the Dove loves to bee in clean places but if the house be nasty the Dove goeth away and will not stay there Gods Spirit is like a Dove it loves to have the house of thy soule kept clean but if thy soul be filled with noysome and nasty lusts the Spirit of God will not descend on thee the greater thy sins are the greater thy sorrowes anguish and tortures of thy conscience will bee Philosophers say the more vapours are drawn from the earth the more the light and lustre of the Sun is eclipsed the more sin doth arise from thy heart to thy life the more thou darkenest the rising of the Sun of righteousnesse that glorious beams shall not reflect on thee thy falling into grosse sins may cause wofull commotions dismal horrors in thy conscience Consider is not this grievous thou pardoned sinner to think though this grosse sin may not damn my soule yet before I dye it will torture my conscience If I do speak to a troubled conscience there is none in the world wil say that the sweetnesse and pleasure of sin can compensate the anguish and torture of conscience which smarteth for sin Thirdly Consider thou that fallest into a grosse sin though a justifyed person yet it will be a harder work and a longer time for thee to attain assurance of pardon then for other men the deeper a wound is and the longer it is festering and rankling the harder and longer it will be before it be healed again David did pour out a river of tears before God did pour in a drop of the oyle of joy and gladnesse into his heart David brake Gods Law God broke his bones therefore he prayed Lord restore to me the joy of thy salvation that the bones which thou hast broken may rejoyce It is worthy observation of what you read of Mary Magdalen a notorious sinner there was a woman which was a sinner that is as some expound it a knwn harlot a known strumpet saith Christ her sinnes which are many are forgiven her but did Christ tell these words to Mary no Christ spake these words to Simon in whose house Christ was at supper mark the method Divines make much use of this Mary fell into a grosse sin but Mary must not first know
he sent a messenger to Peter particularly by name Goe tell my Disciples in generall and tell Peter that I am risen Mark 16. 7. But goe your waies tell his Disciples and Peter Peter was crying weeping and be wailing that he should deny his Master and saith Christ Goe tell Peter that I am risen 3. Christ doth single out Peter after he rose from the dead Christ hath more discourse with Peter then hee hath all with his Disciples else Joh. 21. Thus you see that Jesus Christ manifests love to those sinners that sinned foully after they have repented and are sufficiently humbled for their sin Thus it is with Mary Magdalen after she repented what expressions of love doth Christ to her First we read that hee cast out of her seven Devils Luk. 8. 2. Then he appeared first to Mary shee was the first that saw him when he was risen Mark 16. 9. Now when Jesus was risen early the first day of the week he appeared first to Mary Magdalen Again Christ commanded that where ever the Gospell came to bee preacht the fame of Mary should be made known Matth. 26. 1 3. Verily I say unto you wheresoever this Gospell shall be preached in the whole world there shall also this that this woman hath done be told for a memoriall of her what a great honour was this to Mary Magdalen Thus it appears that God doth manifest to those persons that have sinned the grossest sins if afterward they shall have the more serious and through humiliation the clearest evidences and the strongest comforts Thirdly Take this for your comfort It is not the greatnesse of that sin thou committest but onely the hardnesse and impenitency of thy own heart that can exempt thee from pardon Divines doe generally say that the reason of that saying in Scripture All sin and blasphemy shall be forgiven but the blasphemy against the Holy Ghost shall not be forgiven neither in this world nor in the world to come It is not that there is not more merit in Christ to save then there is guilt in that sin but it is because that man cannot will not repent of the sin Therefore that sin cannot be forgiven because he cannot repent Suppose thy sin be blasphemy this doth not exempt from pardon It is not the greatnesse of thy sin but the Judiciall hardnesse and finall impenitency of thy heart that can exempt thee from pardon when Peter preached to the Jewes that had a hand in crucifying the Son of God yet saith he repent and your sins shall be blotted out O what sin could be greater then their embrewing their hands in the bloud of Christ yet doe but repent and your sins shall bee blotted out It is not for want of great mercy on Gods part and great merits on Christs part that men are unpardoned but it is want of repentance on thine owne part Fourthly That no grosse sin committed by a justified person can make void his former pardon A rule among the Shoolemen the worke of God cannot bee made void or frustrated by the worke of man Election is a work of God Redemption the work of God Justification the worke of God which cannot be made void by the work of man therefore if God hath elected thee redeemed thee justifyed and pardoned thee the incursion of grosse evills cannot restrain thee of former pardon It is true sinne may make void thy former comforts thy former evidences gross sins may lay wast thy conscience but they cannot lay wast the grace and the mercies of God herein you may be greatly comforted and established Fifthly Take this for thy comfort though thou dost fall into grosse and aggravated guilt yet such is the goodness and mercy of God that he orders thy very falling into sin to turn to thy good I doe not mention this to any that they should be imboldened to fall into sin because it may turn to good O it is God that orders a mans fall for his good A threefold good that God doth to his people out of their very sins God doth not onely doe good to his people by their afflictions but he doth good to his people by their very sins First Sometimes God doth so order that the falling of a godly man into sin shall abate pride in his heart men of great parts are apt to be proud God many times will let strong lusts attend strong gifts the more to abate and keep under the exaltation of spirit therefore saith Paul I have the messengers of Satan to buffet me that I might not be exalted above measure God doth many times to keep under pride let a temptation loose on a man so God doth him good that way Austin saith I am not afraid to say that it is profitable sometimes for good men to fall into sin Secondly It will prevent many other sins here is Gods great mercy the putting of a man to pain takes away pain God sometimes suffers a man to sin that sin might keep out another sin one sin may be so ordered by God to keep out another sin Thirdy Falling into sin sometimes doth renew the work of repentance the Lord sometimes lets them sleep that so he might awaken them by a greater humiliation and to tast the more of the bitternesse and fruit of sin here then is Gods goodnesse to a sinner that by letting him fall into a sin he doth thee good and makes thee to renew repentance and greatens humiliation in thy heart Now for the finishing of this subject there are seven Cases of conscience that in this Doctrine are needfull to be resolved First Whether God may forgive a man his sin and yet the man himselfe not know it here David had sin forgiven him and David did know it I acknowledge and thou forgavest but whether may a man have sin forgiven him and yet not know he is pardoned I answer in the affirmative that a man may have sin forgiven him and yet not know that his sin is pardoned though David did know his pardon at this time yet he did not know his pardon at other times Psal 51. Restore unto me the joy of thy Salvation God broke Davids bones for his Adultery and David was driven to shed a River of tears before God did pour in one drop of joy Job 33. 10. Behold hee findeth occasions against me he counteth me for his enemy Job thought that God was an enemy unto him and you have not onely the confession of one man but the doubts and fears of the Church in generall Lament 3. 42. We have transgressed and have rebelled thou hast not pardoned we have rebelled c. Yet God had pardoned and God had forgiven them yet here was their fear and their doubt they lay under suspense of pardon God may pardon a sinne unto the Elect and yet they not know that they are pardoned and in the manifold Wisdome of God there are divers reasons for it first by keeping them under a suspense
a strange and a powerful manner can implant and impresse grace in the heart of a sucking babe yet there is grace in elect children in an elect child there is seminall grace and habituall grace As there is sin seminall in a childes nature that before a childe can act sin it hath sin so by the same reason they are capable of grace you that will deny grace to children will fall into the Pelagian error that a childe hath no sin but a childe hath a depraved nature a nature enclining to sin therefore when it comes to years though it should never see a sin cōmited yet would it sin a child cannot act grace cannot act faith repentance that is true but a child may have grace habituall therefore Christ took children in his arms and blest them surely they must be gracious children such children are pardoned we know not how to express their faith but they have an habituall faith And thus much for the answering of that third case of conscience The fourth Case to be handled is this Whether it be consistent with the state of pardon to commit often the same grosse sin over and over again It is needfull to touch upon this case because it perplexeth troubled mindes I shall speak to this point two wayes First by way of comfort Secondly by way of Caution First by way of Comfort The first answer is this That it is clear by an induction of particular instances in Scripture that pardoned men have fallen often into the same sin this is most clear First if you referre it to spirituall sins to evils that are of daily incursion evils that are inward and spirituall spirituall pride distempered passion omission in duties a pardoned man may many times fall in such sins as these Further it is clear by induction of instances in Scripture that a pardoned man may fall into grosse sins oftentimes into the same sin some instances one is of Ioseph it was a grosse sin for Joseph to swear an heathenish Oath by the life of Pharoah Gen. 42. 15. Hereby ye shall bee proved by the life of Pharaoh ye shall not go forth hence except your youngest brother come hither Send one of you and let him fetch your brother and ye shall be kept in prison that your words may be proved whether there be any truth in you or else by the life of Pharaoh surely ye are spies Yet the Jewes were so well instructed and had such prohibitions against swearing one should thinke that they should not be guilty of so grosse an evill yet Joseph being in Pharoahs court among heathens he swore twice by the life of Pharoah And thus you read of Jehosaphat he fell twice into the same sin he made a league with Ahaziah King of Israel he loved them that were enemies to God 2. Chron. 20 35 36 37. And after this did Jehosaphat King of Judah joyn himselfe with Ahaziah King of Israel who did very wickedly And he joyned himself with him to makships to go to Tarshish and they made the ships in Ezion Geber Then Eliezer the son of Dodanah of Mareshah prophesied against Jehosaphat saying because thou hast joyned thyselfe with Ahaziah the Lord hath broken thy works and the ships were broken that they were not able to go to Tarshish Twice he ran into the same sin If there were no more spoken of Sampson in the New Testament then in the Old it were questionable whether he was a good man or no but what read you of Sampson You read of him first of al that he maryed a heathenish woman which was against Gods command Nay he fell to the same sin when the Philistims killed her then he maryed a whore chap. 16 1. then went Samson to Gaza and saw there an harlot and went in unto her Nay again you shall finde him fall three times into the same sin He did three times tell a lye one after another when Daliah came to inveagle him on the instigation of the Philistims that she should learn where Sampsons strength lay first saith Sampson If they bind me with seven green wit hs that were never dryed then shall I be weak and be as another man But when he was bound he broke the wit hs as one would break the thred in two when it toucheth the fire then saith she why hast thou deceived me and told me a lye then hee told her againe If thou wilt binde me with new ropes that were never used then I shall be weak like another man but he broke the ropes Nay he tels her a third lye he said unto her If thou weavest the seven locks of my head with the web then my strength will goe from me and this she did also and his strength remained But the fourth time hee told her truth saith he If I bee shaven then my strength will go from me and I shall become weak and be like another man and she caused the seven locks upon his head to be shaved off and his strength went from him I speake this to a perplexed conscience that good men may be so overborn that they may frequently act over the same sin again and again Then Peter that did lye thrice as Sampson did Peter did deny Christ three times with an oath and a cursing Therefore this should be something to stay the doubting and desponding heart that not only sins of an unavoidable infirmity secret spiritual sins but also sins that are more obnoxious to infamy and scandal good men have fallen into and yet have been pardoned Another answer that Jesus Christ Christ bids us to forgive our brother that sins against us in one day seventy times seven if Jesus Christ cals for this at our hands who have hardly a drop of bowels surely God that hath a sea and a vast Ocean of mercies can forgive a sin and will forgive a sin though it be often reiterated Thus much for the answer to that question as to the comfort of troubled souls Now by way of Caution that this comfort the scripture gives be not abused The first Caution is this That though it be possible a man may fall often into the same sin yet it is not usuall so to doe it is a note that Mr Hildersham hath on Ps 51. touching Davids foul sin I doe not read of any expresse example in all the Scriptures of a godly man falling oft into the same grosse sins after repentance and after humiliation for that sin Observe this further that though it be possible yet it is but very rare and though there be instances that some men have done so yet there are not more plentifull instances that good men have not done so I will give you a few instances Jehosaphat entred into a sinfull league with Ahaziah as he had done before with his father but when the Prophet rebuked him read the story 1 King 22. He had sinned a once with his father but he would not sin a second
time with his Son so that here you see a good man would not second time joyn with an Ahaziah So likewise you have the instance in Judah that was in father in law to Thamar Gen. 28. 26. And Judah acknowlegded them and said she hath been more righteous then I because that I gave her not to Shelah may son and he knew her again no more It was not again done he knew her again no more so as Divines do usually urge it Noah was drunke but never but once and that before he knew the strength of the grape David was adulterous but never but once This therefore shall be one caution Secondly Take this caution that you might not bee emboldned to run often into the same sin if a man doth often commit the same grosse sin it argues a greater strength and prevalency that sin hath over him then all other sins Physitians say that a disease that a man doth often relaspe into argues the strength of these peccant humours that feed the disease if thou often fallest into lusts it argues the prevalency of a lustfull temper In the third place Relapses into the same grosse sin are very dangerous and deadly symptomes of a man in a lost condition I do not say they are such symptoms that infalibly conclude a man to be an unpardonable man I may say as Physitians say of a relapse into the same disease the second time is more dangerous then the first the reason is because the first sicknesse feeds on the ill humours but relapse into the same sickness feeds on the vitall spirits Beloved the falling and relapsing into the same sin is a dangerous symptome it is a clear symptome of the prevalency of that sin It is worth your notice what symptomes the Lord doth give of the plague of leprosie for the Priest to judge that disease by Levit. 13. the first symptome was when the hair was turned white in the fore Divines accommodate that to a continuance in sin to old age that argues you are unclean Lepers Another symptome was when there was raw flesh in the scab Divines accommodate that unto a man being adventurous to sin against a raw a troubled and a wounded Conscience A third sign of the plague of leprosie was when after the sore was healed there should a new scab arise in the place thereof thus when after thou hast healeda sin by vows by fasting and prayer by holy purposes in Christs strength and after the healing the same sore breaks out and the same lust breaks in upon thee this is a dangerous symptome Fourthly that you might not be adventurous on sin and so acuse this comfort consider that falling often into the same sin doth more harden the heart then any thing in the world habituating and indulging a mans selfe into the same road of wickednesse there is nothing in the world doth more harden the heart then when the same sin hath an usual inroad into thy conscience life then all tendernesse and remorse of conscience wil be taken away I speak meerly on this ground that seeing you have instances that men may often fall into the same grosse evils yet let these four considerations keep you from abusing this comfortable point I but you will say if I do fall often into the same sin what may be to stay my heart up that I may be in a pardoned state for all this I say this to you though thou dost fall often into the same sin yet if thy conscience bears thee witnesse thou dost exercise the same grace often in opposition to the same sin thou mayest have a great deal of comfort that thou art in a state of pardon Case 5 The fifth case follows But whether may a godly man that is pardoned pray for pardon of sin Antinomians account this to be needless they account all prayer for pardon to be onely in this sense to wit of pardon and a manifestation of pardon Answ First though it be true that God doth not call a man to pray for those things that are perfectly done so as never to be done again as election and creation yet God doth command us to pray for those things that are still a doing I am not to pray to God to create the world it is perfectly done I am not to pray for Election it is so done as never to be done more I am not to pray for the incarnation of Christ Christ is come into the flesh but though I am not to pray for these things that are so fully and perfectly done yet I am to pray for those things that are still adoing pardon of sin is an act of God that is still in doing therefore the Apostle referrs pardon Rom 3. 24 25. Being justified freely by his grace through the redemption that is in Jesus Christ whom God hath set forth to be a propitiation through faith in his bloud to declare his righteousnesse for the remission of sins that are past through the forbearance of God And as sin is remitted and repented of it is pardoned therefore that reason is not valid to take off men from praying for pardon of sin the Scripture doth express it I acknowledged my transgression and thou forgavest Math. 6. 12. and forgive us our debts as we forgive our debters That Plat-form according to which we are to model our prayers the Antinomians would evade the Text and pretend that in that Text and such Scriptures we onely pray for a sense and manifestation of pardon in the conscience and not for actuall exhibition of pardon in regard of God To take off this first the next words in the Petition are to be taken for a reall forgivenesse not a forgivenesse in sense and feeling for consider the whole Petition Forgive us our trespasses as we forgive them that trespasse against us there can be no reason shewen why the first part of the Petition should be taken for sense and feeling of forgivenesse and the other should not be taken so Secondly consider this that in the same sense you must understand a sin to be forgiven as in Scripture language it is spoken not to be forgiven a sin is said not to be forgiven when there is an actuall guilt lies upon a man a guilt abiding upon the person of a wicked man that is not taken away Mat. 12. 32. And whosoever speaketh a word against the son of man it shall be forgiven him but whosoever speaketh against the Holy Ghost it shall not bee forgiven him neither in this world neither in the world to come They that understand forgiving only in sense and feeling must understand this clause not forgiving onely in sense and feeling and so no reall guilt to lye upon the man so that It is against the nature of forgivenesse to be only forgiving sin in a mans own conscience Case 6 A sixt case is this Whether when a man in suing for pardon ought to make any difference between great sins and small
sins The Stoicks say all sins are alike and there is no difference It is true in regard of the object all sins are against God yet when you come to beg pardon for sin according as your sins are greatned you are accordingly to behave your selves in seeking for pardon God can pardon great sins as well as small in regard of God there is no difference nor in regard of the merits of Christ but yet in your behaviour in seeking for pardon of sinne you are to make a great difference between the greatnesse and the smallnesse of your evils For consider the scripture makes a difference between sins therefore we must doe so The Scripture compares some sin to Camels and some to Gnats The Scripture compares some sin to beams and some to motes some sins as talents and others but as pence and in Amos there is mention made of mighty sins Amos 5. in John of greater sins Joh. 19. 11. Jesus answered Thou couldest have no power at all against me except it were given thee from above therefore he that delivered me unto thee hath the greater sin It is true every sin deserves hell yet there is more of the punishment of hell inflicted on some sinners then others the reason why I speak of this case is to let you know that as God hath suffered any of you to fall into aggravated and hainous evils so he requires more of you then of other men Consider That God requires of you more humiliation then he requires of other men In the Law you read that if a man toucht the unclean thing he was unclean till evening but if a man bare an unclean thing he was to wash his cloths to shew that the touch of sin requires humiliation but the bearing of a sin in thy bosome thy continuing in sin requires more work then meerly the touch of sin Peter wept bitterly for his deniall he did more for that sin then for an ordinary sin So that you are to consider that though in regard of Christ there is no difference between a great sinne and a small as the red Sea could drown Pharaoh and his host as well as a single man so Christs blood can drown a huge host of sins but yet you must encrease your humiliation on the aggravation of your guilt thus much for the sixth case of Conscience Case 7 The seventh is this What are those great and hainous circumstances that doe greaten sin that so I may see whether I have aggravated my sin or not here are these circumstances which do aggravate and greaten sin Ans 1 First Sinning against the frequent manifestation of Gods love to thy soule this greatly aggravates sin this did aggravate Solomons sin 1 King 11. Solomon was the beloved of the Lord yet he provoked him to anger after he had appeared to him twice Secondly To sinne against the rebukes and checks of thine own Conscience doth greaten sin Jam. 4. 17. Therfore to him that knoweth to do good and doth it not to him it is sin It is sin to another man that doth not know it but to him that knoweth it it is a greater sin this Christ refers to and speaks of Judas that would betray him and yet knew that he was the Son of God What my Disciples to betray me his sin was the greater Conscience is Gods Officer in man it is a greater fault to strike a Constable then an ordinary man out of Office for thee to sin against the rebukes and checks of Conscience aggravates sinne Thirdly To sin against Gods judgements upon other men is an aggravated evill for thee to sin when God hath given thee warning of sin from other mens blood this did aggravate Belshazzars sin Dan. 5. 22. 23. And thou his son O Belshazzar hast not humbled thine heart though thou knewest all this But hast lifted up thy selfe against the Lord of heaven c. Thou that knowest how a man is plagued for his uncleannesse thou that knowest how a man is plagued for riotous living yet thou wilt live riotous and thou wilt live adulterous that thy sin is the greater thou sinnest against the monument of the eie as well as against the warning of the eare Fourthly Sin against Gods judgements upon our selves doth weighten sin this did aggravate Abaz sin 2 Chron. 28. 22. And in the time of his distresse he did trespasse yet more against the Lord. Fifthly To sinne against mercies is an aggravation of sin 2 Sam. 12. I delivered thee out of Sauls hand I gave thee thy Masters house I gave thee the house of Israel and if all this had been too little for thee I would have moreover given thee such and such things Wherefore hast thou despised c. What thou sinne David and hast been loaden with a heap of mercies this greatens thy sin Sixthly It greatens sin when the sinne is immediately against God 1 Sam. 2. 25. If one man sin against another the Judge shall judge him but if a man sin against the Lord who shall intreat for him If a man sinnes against God O who shall plead for him Seventhly To sin against the motions of Gods spirit aggravates sin when the spirit of God shall in thy Conscience perswade thee that thou wouldst not follow such wicked waies as thou art walking in when the Spirit of God shall come and wooe thee to be reconciled to alter thy course and to walk in better paths when not only the voice of conscience but the motions of Gods Spirit shall be stifled this aggravates sin Hence it is that Scripture in setting out the wronging and withstanding the spirits motion whether to good or from evill doth ascend by gradations sometimes it is called quenching the spirit Quench not the Spirit a higher degree there is a grieving the Spirit when there are frequent acts to withstand divine motions that is a grieving the Spirit And then there is an higher aggravation then this that is resisting the Spirit Act. 7. 51. Ye stiffe necked and uncircumcised in heart and eares yee doe alwaies resist the Holy Ghost as your Fathers did so do ye This is caused by pertinaciousnesse in withstanding the spirits motion And then the scripture speaks of vexing the spirit Isa 63. 10. But they rebelled and vexed his holy spirit therefore he was turned to be their enemy and fought against them This is not only by one single act but when continually throughout thy course thou hast a wilfull and a gainsaying heart against all the motions of Gods spirit within thee Must not this be a great evill in thee when thou dost quench grieve resist and vex the spirit all these circumstances must needs aggravate and greaten thy sin Eightly Sin is aggravated when thou dost frequently fall into the same sin Ninthly Sin is aggravated when it is done in a way of complacencie that it is not onely acted by thee but loved by thee the acting of a sin is not so much as a loving