Psal 32. 5. I said I will confess my transgressions unto the Lord and thou forgavest the iniquity of my sin And this confession hath been full and free and without any covers for he there saith Mine iniquity have I not hid It is a false heart that petitions help against sin and in praying for it pleads excuses and extenuations This proceeds from â— spirit of bondage and not from a spirit of Adopâ—ion 5. Have you humbled your selves to Gods foot in your Prayers to him A spirit of Prayer is a Soul humbling a Soul-abasing spirit hence that Psal 9. 12. He forgetteth not the cry of the humble and 10. 17. Lord thou hast heard the desire of the humble thou wilt prepare their heart thou wilt cause thine ear to hear He that prays as he ought to God for pardon and acceptance in Christ is deeply sensible of his great vileness by reason of sin and of his utter unworthiness of mercy and hence he goes with â— rope on his head and sackcloth on his loyns i. e. He reâ—â—gns himself to God with all the Testimonials of his acknowledging that he hath no dependence on any thing but free Grace that he hath nothing of his own nor can he oblige God he therefore carries that with him in Dan. 9. 8. 9. To us belongs confusion of face to the Lord our God belong mercies and forgivenesses And his address is in that form Psal 25. 11. For thy name sake O Lord pardon mine iniquity for it is great 6. Have you Prayed for the Purging as well as earnestly as for Pardon Doubtless he that knows what it is to be Guilty before God will be very importunate in asking forgiveness and well he may for who can stand before Gods angâ— But a kindly resentment of Guilt so as to justify God who condemns will be accompanied with an apprehension of the vileness of sin and that will make us weary of the presence of it and to loath our selves for it which will draw out our cryes to have it taken away both these therefore are included in that Hoâ— 14 2. Take away all iniquity 7. Are your Prayers importunate or in good earnest There are many that pray in good words and it may be with much of noise too and yet not from a Spirit of Supplication they are not importunate and cordial requests which they put up He that is in earnest will take no denial but will press with greatest urgency and resolution One of the Ancients complains of himself that when he prayed against his Lusts he was afraid lest God should answer him this was not from the Spirit of Grace and if you are in good â—arnest you will watch the answer of your prayers to see what return there is of them Psal 85. 10. I will hear what God the Lord will say 1â—0 5. My Soul waiteth for the Lord more than they that watch for the morning 8. Do you persevere in Prayer As it is the duty of all Gods People so to do Eph. 6. 18. Praying always c. watching thereunto with all perseverance So it is one property of the Spirit of Prayer and there is a double perseverance to be eyed in this you are constant and unwearied in your duty you pray without ceasing 1 Thes 5. 17. You resolve as Psal 116 2. I will call upon him as long as I live And you hold on in it against all that would discourage you If you have not a present answer according to desire it doth not beat you off but quickens your ardour and you say as Isa 8. 17. I will wait on the Lord who hideth his face If he repulse you you turn his very repulses into arguments as that poor woman did Mat. 15. 25 26. 9 And doth the sense of sin always drive you to Prayer Do your Consciences at any time reflect and charge Guilt on you Doth this always bring you upon your knees and cause you to pour out your hearts in supplication Do you find the stirrings of inward Concupiscence and the Law in your members warring against the law of your mind What course do you take to get it mortified Is prayer now not neglected These are the motions of a Spirit of Supplication in a Child of God This course we find David is on all occasions taking in the Psalms USE III. For Exhortation in several particulars 1. Let this point awakened Sinners in what way to seek after Christ Certainly when God sets Sin home upon the Conscience of a Sinner it calls aloud to him to repair to the fountain And would you go to it so as to participate in the saving efficacy of it then 1. Do it mournfully Dry addresses to God are insignificant things and will find no acceptance Beg of God then to bestow such a Spirit upon you and labour to express it with all suitable deportment Labour therefore to embitter your Sin to your selves with all the proper considerations that may make it vile and fill you with the deepest sense of your misery by reason of it This is the only way for you to give God his glory both of his Righteousness in condemning you and his rich mercy in pardoning and healing you You will never come humbly unless you come mourning and this is the way to obtain the blessing from him God takes distinct notice of this and he is pleased with it see Jer. 31. 18 with 20. I have surely heard Ephraim bemoaning himself c. Is Ephraim my dear Son c. And we find that Christ was anointed purposely for the relief of such Isa 61. begin 2. Do it with Supplications If ever God giveth you the experience of the vertue of the Fountain in you for the taking away of your Sin and Uncleanness he will make you to pray for it he hath said Ezek. 36. 37. I will be sought to c. Seek his face and favour confess your sins and keep not silence seek to him in Christ's name and present your petition before him this is the right returning to God Joel 2. 12. By thus doing you will acknowledge Christ to be the Fountain of Grace when you do seek it of him and call upon him for it And for your encouragement know it that if you do indeed thus seek him you shall find him If a persecuting Saul prays to him he observes it and accepts it of him Acts 9 11. Behold he prayeth Yea he hath said Psal 50. 15. Call upon me in the day of trouble I will deliver thee and thou shalt glorify me 2. Let this stir up mourners to pray Are there any whose sins are made their burden and they are in bitterness by reason of them instead of nourishing despondent and despairing thoughts in you and making you to hide away from God let it drive you to him to seek his face and favour his pity and pardon let it draw forth that request from you in Psa 41. 4. Heal my Soul for I have sinned against
be undone for ever and surely such a thought as this if duly meditated upon cannot but stir you up to enquire and make you restless in seeking where and how you may obtain the supply by which you may escape the woâ—ul misery which is upon you 2 You will be miserably disappointed if you go my whither else for it You will have many solicitours who will say to you Turn in hither and will promise you fair but all is a cheat believe them not if you will not be miserably disappointed If you seek to the world there is not one drop of the waters of life to be found in it it hath nothing but poysoned waters which however they may please your carnal appetites will not satisfie an immortal Soul The Worlds Cup may inâ—oxicate you but it will never slack your â—hirst mans misery began in his turning to it Jer 2. 13. They have dug to themselves broken â—â—sterns thar can hold no water If you seek it in your own Righteousness and take much pains in queâ—â— of it by that course it will deceive you God expostulates thus with all that will not come to these waters Isa 55. 2. Wherefore do ye spend your money for that which is not bread and your labour for that which satisfieth not 3. There is enough in Christ to answer all your wants Let them be never so many or never so great yet know it that fountain hath an immense fulness in it and can never be drawn dry Millions of Souls have been satisfied at it and it is still as full as ever Eph. 3. 20 He is able to do exceeding abundantly above all that we ask or think All other waters will dry up but these never will Isa 58. 11. Thou shalt be like a watered Garden and like a spring of waters whose waters fail not The Psalmist therefore presumes on this Psal 36. 8. Thou shalt make them to drink of the River of thy Pleasures And for your Direction 1. Be affected with your own Necessity The reason why this fountain is no more repaired unto why Jesus Christ is so greatly neglected by the Children of men is not because they have no need of him but because they do not rightly resent their need Were you in the case of those poor Lepers that sat in the gate of Samaria of whom you read in 2 Kings 7. begin or of the poor Prodigal in his far Countrey where he was ready to famish Luke 15. You would soon bestir your selves Consider then what Sin hath made you take the Word of God and believe it and there read what a forlorn condition you are in starving fainting dying 2. Renounce all trust in broken cistâ—râ—s and seek to him alone for Supply As long as you look elsewhere he will not hear you we are told in Jon. 2. 6. They that embrace lying vanities forsake their own mercies And accordingly we are acquainted how it shall be when God comes to be the portion of the Soul Hos 14. 8. Ephraim shall say What have I to do any more with Idols And hence we are directed to come with a declared rejection of other objects verse 2 3. Ashur shall not save c. And one would think your own experience how often you have been defetaâ—d in seeking to them were enough to make you thus to do 3. Plead his ability or sufficiency Believe it and let it be your encouragement and make use of it in your petitions argue with your selves as the Prodigal did Luk. 15. 17. In my fathers house is enough and to spare and I perish and let it make you to arise and when you come tell him your thirsty Souls are ready to expire and you can find nothing to refresh them that he hath enough with him and that he can afford it to you and how it will be for the glory of his Grace thus to do when he shall so save a perishing Soul and make it a monument of his mercy and power to all Eternity 4. Now resign your selves up to his mercy Resolve that because you have found all the pâ—â— in the World empty and that here is a fuâ— fountain able to supply you you will go noâ— whither else but wait for the communicatioâ— of grace to you acknowledging of his Supremacy adventuring on his mercy and beg ofâ— him his Grace to establish this purpose in you and fear not this Fountain will open unto you which is the next thing DOCTRINE II. Jesus Christ is an Opened fountain in the days of the Gospel OUR Prophet is speaking of and predicting about Gospel times and tells us that in that day there shall be a fountain Opened Under the former Doctrine we had Christ commended to us as a fountain of saving good whose fulness of all Grace and Goodness may invite the poor and needy Soul to repair to him to have all its wants supplied In this we have a farther commendation given him by the Epithet added viz. That he is a Fountain Opened which mightily adds to the encouragement of indigent ones to come to him Under the former Metaphor he was exhibited as an All sufficient Saviour and by this he is set forth as a free ready and willing Saviour that shews what he is in himself this tells us what he is willing to be to us if we would so make use of him In pursuit of this Doctrine we may enquire 1. What is included in the opening oâ— this Fountain 2. How it comes to be thus opened 3. In what respect it is said to be opened in the days of the Gospel 1. What is included in the opening of this Fountain A. Opening and shutâ—ing are contraries and when it is opened it supposeth that before it was shut either it was not known or it was inaccessible There is therefore a double opening of this fountain which is here intenâ—ed viz 1. By Revelation or Discovery A thing that is hidden or secret is said to be shut but when it is published or made known then it is opened and it is to be observed that the discovery of this fountain is by Revelation all the wisdom and understanding of Angels and men which they had in them by nature could never have found this out natures light afforded not a key to unlock this mystery When it lay in the Cabinet of God's Eternal Counsel it was a sealed thing there was no meer Creature that could open it but God hath made known this glorious fountain and set it forth manifestly before us Now the things which God hath opened to us by it are 1. That there is such a fountain provided for mans use God had fore-appointed it in thâ— days of Eternity and made it ready in thâ— fulness of time but these things were in themselves secret nor had man ever known that there is such a supply laid in for him if God haâ— not told him of it Gods counsel about it waâ— in his own breast and the way in which
When we were without strength in due timâ— Christ died for the ungodly Gal. 4. 4. When thâ— fulness of time was come God sent forth his Soâ— c. Had not man plunged himself into mâ—sery and helplessness in himself or in the whole Creation there had been no occasion for it Hence we have Christ himself declaring the design of his coming in our nature Mat. 9. 13. I am not come to call the righteous but sinners to repentance and our Prophet acquaints us what the Blood of the Covenant was for Zech. 9. 11. By the Blood of thy Covenant I have sent forth thy prisonerâ— out of the pit where there is no water and that blood was no other than what our Text and Doctrine call a fountain 2. That Sinners may obtain Salvation by it they must partake in it There must not only be a remedy suitable and sufficient provided but there must be an application made of it if ever the Creatures misery be removed by it Let there be never so full a fountain never so much plenty of living waters yet if the man do not drink of them his thirsty Soul will not be satisfied therewith but he must perish for all It is not enough that there is a Christ who is able to give eternal life who is able to save to the uttermost but we must have him if we live by him 1 Joh. 5. 12. He that hath the Son hath life and he that hath not â—he Son hath not life Except the man drink of these waters they will never profit him what else is the reason why so many perish tho there be enough in Christ to save the whole world Christ himself hath told us a reason of it in regard of such as live under the Gospel viz. they will not come to him that they may have life Joh. 5. 40. For it is by participation in it that the vertue of Christ's Redemption becomes ours 3. It is by being united to Christ by faith that they come to partake in him Union with Christ is the foundation of Communion with him and faith is the bond of that Union on our part he must dwell in us in order to his communicating of his saving benefits to us and how that is we are told Eph. 3. 17. That Christ may dwell in your hearts by faith Hence the Apostle propounds that solemn case 2 Cor. 13. 5. Know you not your own selves how that Christ is in you except ye are reprobates It is by faith that we receive Christ unbelief shuts him out and so hinders us of all saving good by him if we believe not in him we shall never receive the waâ—ers of liâ—e from him 4. That they may thus believe in him they must have him Opened to them Faith is the act of a reasonable creature and so it must have a ground for it Paul can say I know whom I have trusted 2 Tim 1. 12 Hence 1. He must be opened by Revelation There must be a discovery mâ—de oâ— him to and inâ— the Soul by which it may be certified of his fulness and suitableness that he is able to answer the Souls wants and to supply its needs to fill its cravings and remedy its miseries what else should move it to adventure its all upon him it is therefore said Psal 9. 10. They that know thy name will put their trust in thee and in Rom 10. 14. How shall they believe in him of whom they have not heard 2. He â—ust also be Opened by Encouragement Sin hath brought Guilt and a Curse upon the Sinner the awakened Sinner apprehends the Wrath of God that is out against him and how shall he believe that God will shew him mercy or that though he be able yet he is willing to apply this power to him for his Salvation Certainly there must be a free offer an earnest invitation or else he will never dare to adventure to come to him whom he apprehends to be a consuming fire here lieth the encouragement Mat. 10. 49. Be of good comfort rise he calleth thee 5. That he might accommodate this to their nature 1. He hath revealed these truths to men extraordinarily inspired As they are to come to us by Revelation so God chose such to whom he would make it and by whom he would communicate it to others and on this account we read 2 Pet. 1. 21. Holy men of God spake as they were moved by the Holy Ghost and 2 Tim 3. 16. All Scripture is given by inspiration of God 2. He hath recorded them in his written Word In that he hath commended his mind to us and hath bidden us to Search the Scriptures as we hope to have Eternal Lâ—â—e and hath given us this reason why we should thus do because they testifie of him Jâ—h 5. 39. And it is evident that whatsoever God would have to be known concerning Christ and the way to life by him in this life is recorded in the Scriptures and there are we to seek for it and no where else 3. He hath appointed the Ordinances of the Gospel in which these truths are to be dispensed He hath instituted the Preaching of the Gospel and sent his Ambassadors Commissioned by him for this very end and that is the great business which they are to intend and nothing else but what is in subordination to this Cor. 2. 2. I determined to know nothing among you but Jesus Christ and him Crucified and how doth Paul glory in this Eph 3. 8. Unto me who am less than the least of all Saints is this grace given that I should preach among the Gentil s the unsearchable riches of Christ They are to declare this â—ountain and to commend it unto meâ— and pray them to come to it and thus iâ— stands open for all that will repair to it 3. In what respect it is said to be opened in the days of the Gospel A We are by the days of the Gospel to understand all that time from Christ's having appeared in the Flesh and accomplished the work of Redemption till the day of Judgment which is called the Gospel day in opposition to the times of the dispensation of the Law of Moses else it is certain that it hath been a Gospel day ever since the Revelation which was made to our First Parents of the womans seed breaking the head of the Serpent Gen. 3. 15. And here we may observe three things 1. It is clear from the Word of God that this fountain was opened to man before Christ came in our Flesh There was a way of Salvation discovered unto man presently after he had undone himself by sin and there were a great many saved by the vertue of this fountain in the times of the Law there were then holy men who were the Friends of God men after his own heart men that trusted in him and waited for his Salvation There were Prophesies and Predictions about Christ from the beginning and those that then believed
wherein he will gain the greater glory to himself according to 2 Cor. 4 7. We have this treasure is earthen vessels that the excellency of the power may be of God and not of us It was for this end that Jesus Christ gave such gifts to men when he ascended as Eph. 4. 10 c. For the perfecting of the Saints c. And the Apostle gives us to understand that ordinarily there is no other way for us to come to faith in Christ and obtain Salvation by him Rom. 10. 14 15. How shall they believe in him of whom they have not heard and how shall they hear without a Preacher 6. That these cannot distinguish between those that are given to Christ and others They are not acquainted with the secret counsels of God concerning men in particular they find men equally lying in the rubbish of the Apostasy and have not been admitted to look into the Lambs Book of Life and there to read whose names stand upon record so as to apply themselves to them and to no other Those whom God hath purposed to shew his special Grace upon are alike with others in their natural estate being children of wrath as they Eph. 2. 3. There is no difference between them in their frame and disposition Rom. 3. 9. They are all under sin In their natural state they are held under the power and dominion of their lusts and are as ill conditioned as the most and possibly have run themselves into as great exorbitancies Tit. 3. 3. We our selves were sometimes disobedient serving divers lusts c. Nay they may have â— themselves so prodigiously against God aâ— Christ that these may doubt of them aâ— object against them so did Ananias with râ— spect to Paul when God bad him to visit him Acts 9. 13. Lord I have heard by many of tâ— man how much evil he hath done to thy Saints â— Jerusalem c. Before God cometh with hâ— power to accompany their ministry to effecâ— his Servants may meet with more discouragâ— ment from such whom God will bring hoâ— to himself by their Ministry at last than froâ— any others 7. Hence they are to open and offer this Grâ— to all that hear them It is true those offâ— are to be made upon Gospel terms they aâ— to preach it as a Covenant and not only â— tell Sinners that there is mercy to be had wiâ— God but to shew them in what way aloâ— they may come by it However they arâ— thus to exhibit this fountain and bid all without exception to come to it they must endeâ— our to make all that hear them sensible oâ— their need of it and then to give them all encouragement to come to it they are to repeat their invitation to the thirsty to come tâ— the waters Isa 55. 1. they are to tell the weaâ—ry and heavy laden that if they do come Christ will give them rest Mat. 11. 28. They are to invite the most wicked to set the hopes oâ— mercy before them and assure them that iâ— â—ey comply with the proposals of the Gospel they shall be welcome and need not to â—espair they are to tell the wicked that if â—e will forsake his way and return to the Lord â—e will abundantly pardon Isa 55. 7. To let them â—now that Christ came to save chief sinners â— Tim. 1. 15. Nor are there any sins or Sinâ—ers exempted but such as have committed â—e unpardonable sin which is hard to know â—nd ought not easily to be charged upon any 8. And there shall a glory redâ—und to God from â—â— those to whom this fountain is thus opened It â—s not to be expected that all that are invited â—ill come we read Mat. 22. 5 6. They made â—ght of it and went their mays one to his farm â—nother to his Merchandize and the remnant â—ok his Servants and entreated them spitefully â—nd slew them There are some that will hearâ—ly accept of the Call and come to Christ with all their hearts and there are others who will bid him depart and return â—corn â—nd contempt to all the invitations which he â—ives them However God will be no loser â—y these either the one or the other Despiâ—ers indeed will lose the benefit which they might have been made happy by had they complied with the Treaty but God will make his word to obtain its end Isa 55. 11. Mâ— word which goeth out of my mouth it shall not return unto me void but shall accomplish that which I please c. Paul longed for the Conversion of all his Hearers but he found it fall out otherwise in many of them not withstanding he comforted himself in this that â— labour should not be lost but God would glorified in the issue whatever the efficaâ— were 2 Cor. 2. 15. We are unto God a sweet â—vour of Christ in them that are saved and them that perish 9. But yet if it had not been for this seed Christ this fountain had not been thus openâ— Christ was exhibited for the discovery Gods Grace and though they that despise shall-smart for their so doing yet the priâ— design of sending the Gospel and revealiâ— Christ in it unto any is mans Salvation â— him and but for this there had been â— Christ and so no offer of him Mans relaâ— on to the Covenant of Works exposed him suficiently to Revenging Justice the New Coâ—nant was for the display of Grace If Goâ— sends his Gospel to any it is because he haâ— some there to be made partakers of his savinâ— mercy this was the reason why Paul muâ— tarry at Corinth Acts 18 9 10. Be not afraiâ— c. for I have much people in this City anâ— we may suppose the reason why the Spirit for had him to preach the Word in Asia and woulâ— not suffer him to go into Bythinia Chap. 16. 6 7. was because there were none there to â—â— Converted by his Preaching 10. Hence these and only these shall partake â— â—e saving good of it Others partake in the â—utward benefit of it but through their sin â— turns to their greater Condemnation but â—hese are made to enjoy the efficacy of this â—ountain and all the vertue of it derives to â—hem for their everlasting good and in this â—egard it is opened only for them i. e. for â—heir real good in the event It is indeed the â—thers fault that they are not savingly beneâ—ted by it but the peculiar grace and favour â—f God appears to these not only in affordâ—ng the fountain to be opened to them but â—lso in bringing of them to it and making â—hem drink of it and live for ever and it is â—ertain that there must be besides the outâ—ard offer of it to men by the Word and the Ministry of it the powerful operation of the â—pirit of God to perswade and enable sinful â—en thus to forsake their broken cisterns at which they dwelt contentedly and betake â—hemselves to the fountain of living waters Christ saith
whom God imparts the largest measure of a spirit of mourning and supplication Where God intends to build highest he will lay the foundation lowest The greatest spiritual mouâ—ners are appointed for the more abundant consolations They are the humble and contrite whom God delights to dwell with and to revive Isa 57. 15. Christs anointing had a special regard for such as these and therefore his applications will be eminently made to them Isa 61. begin The Lord hath anointed me c. to bind â—â— the broken hearted to appoint unto them that mourn in Zion to give unto them beauty for ashes the oyl of joy for mourning the garment of praise for the spirit of heaviness c. Doth God then bring you into Godly Sorrow Doth he make Sin bitter to you Doth he fill you with grief at and cause you deeply to bewail your Sins before him be not discouraged but take iâ— as a good Omen and wait for the Consolations of his Spirit remember what he hath said Psal 126. 5. They that sow in tears shall reap in joy It is also certain that when God excites in us an heart to pray to him and fills us with ardent desires and groans unutterable after him for his grace for his pardoning for his cleansing of us and we cannot let him alone it is a sign that he hath great mercies to bestow on us which in this way he will communicate to us God who hath promised that his shall pray unto him and it is he who giveth prayer to his own hath assured us of a gracious audience and a good return to our prayers Jer. 29. 12 13 14. Then shall ye call upon me and ye shall go and pray unto me and I will hearken unto you and ye shall seek me and find me c. Be not then discouraged and though you may not at present experience those sensible apprehensions of the efficacy of the Fountain for the taking away of your Sin yet doubt not that God will in the best way do it for you and give you the experience of it to your abundant Consolation God will exalt his Grace on you in this way and make it to appear how great is his kindness to you in taking off your Guilt and washing away your pollution And when you are suitably prepared so to glorifie him he will fill you with the discoveries of his love for which you shall admire him for ever USE II. For Examination Let us hereby prove whether ever this Fountain were savingly Opened to us and it concerns all to put themselves upon this Trial. For Motive then Consider 1. You are all by Nature under the guilt and defilement of Sin Sin and Uncleanness are hereditary to all Adams Children and they derive to them in the Channel of Natural Generation for this we are told Eph. 2. 3. We â—e Children of wrath even as others and he demands and resolves Job 144 Who can bring a clean thing out of an unclean not one This then is the condition in which every one is born Adams First Transgression was ours by a legal Imputation and his corrupt Image which he contracted instead of Gods Image which he lost is ours by Propagation and thus we come into the world guilty and filthy Creatures Psal 51. 5. Behold I was shapen in â—â—iquity and in Sin did my Mother conceive me And this Guilt and Defilement are encreased by all the actual sins that we have committed since we came into the World 2. Except this be done away it will be your ruine All Sin in its own nature and operation is deadly Sin and Death are closely connected each with the other Rom. 5. 12. By one man sin came into the world and death by sin The guilt that ahderes to sin binds the man under the Curse and that is Death Ezek. 18. 4. The Soul that sinneth it shall dy The Law â—â—ath already past the Sentence upon the man and unless it be removed it will without fail take place on him and the defilement of sin is it self the very spiritual death of the Soul it hath deprived the man of the life of Sanctification and he can no more perform a gracious action than a dead man can a life action hence that expression Eph. 2 1. Ye were dead in trespasses and sins So that as long as it abides on him he cannot at all answer the end of his Creation 3. Nothing else can do it for you but this Fountain There is a sufficiency of vertue in it for this end God provided it for this very purpose and he doth nothing in vain it therefore never failed of producing this effect where it was savingly applied But except you repair hither all your other attempts will prove lost labour this Salvation is no where else to be had Acts 4. 12. There is nothing else that can expiate the Guilt of sin or make atonement to the Justice of God for the remission of it but this one Sacrifice of Christ thousands of rams will not procure it God therefore blows upon them with contempt Mic. 6. 6 7 8. Nor will all the waters of Abana and Pharpar cleanse this Leprosy it is only the Blood of Christ is cleansing and that Blood doth cleanse from all sin 1 Joh 1. 7. 4. Except it be applied to you it will not have this saving efficacy Christ doth not profit all although his vertue be sufficient yet all are not pardoned and healed by him there are multitudes that perish in their sins notwithstanding and that not only of those to whom he was never revealed in the Gospel but of such also who have been told of and invited to come to him and whence is this but because application hath not been made of him to them for this end Sinners that are outwardly called perish as well as others and the reason â— because they do not answer the Call and come to the waters the threatning is therefore declared against such Prov. 1. 24. c. Because I have called and ye refused c. I will also laugh at your calamity and mock when your fear 〈◊〉 c. 5. Till then you know that he hath been thus applied to you your condition must needs be dubious It is from the work of Application that we â—â—e to fetch our evidence of our safe estate It is not enough that there is a Christ and that he is a Fountain of Salvation but is he â—â—rs for this reason Professors are put upon it to prove and try themselves and the enquiry is not whether there be such a Fountain and there be a fulness in it but whether Christ be in us 2 Cor. 13. 5. Know ye not your own selves how that Christ is in you except ye be Reprobates And hence we have such an expression Col. 1. 27. Christ in you the hope of Glory And though if the thing be so your state is out of danger yet till you know that it is so you cannot enjoy inward
detestation He that mourns for one sin and can in the mean while hug another in his bosome and dally with it doth not mourn aright for any 6. Hath your sorrow lookt back to the sins of Youth Where God doth indeed give a spirit of mourning he will make a thorough work of it he will lead the Soul into a soaking consideration of all that hath been grievous to his holy spirit he will bring to mind old sins those that had been forgotten before and embitter them to us and the reason is because those sins also must be repented of for which there must be a suitable sorrow Time will not wear off the Guilt of any sin but Christ must cleanse it with his blood and in order thereto we must carry it to him for cleansing and we cannot do so aright but by bemoaning our selves before him for it David therefore in his address to God runs up hither Psal 25 7. Remember not the sins of my youth nor my transgressions 7. Have you in you an habitual frame of spiriâ—â—al mourning Godly sorrow is not a land-flood that is raised by some storm and is dried up again soon after that is over but it is a living spring it is an habitual Grace in the Soul and for that reason it is called a Spirit of Grace Chap. 12. 10. And this appears in a constant promptitude to mourn for sin upon every occasion Every sight of sin stirs up this Godly sorrow When ever you feel any stirrings of Concupiscence within it makes you to cry out Oh wretched man who shall deliver me Rom. 7. 24. If at any time you are over taken with any sin it makes you to groan and bewail your selves and say as he Psal 38. 18. I will declare mine iniquity I will be sorry for my sin Nay if you see others to sin though they commit it without remorse yet you cannot but mourn for it as he Psal 119. 136. Rivers of waters run down mine eyes because they keep not thy law And Verse 158. I beheld the transgressours and was grieved because they kept not thy word 8. Have you been duly affected in particular with the Affronts which you have offered to Jesus Christ This is specifyed Chap. 12. 10. They shall look upon me whom they have pierced they shall mourn for him as one mourneth for his only son and be in bitterness for him as one that is iâ— bitterness for his first born There is nothing more bitter to one that is truly Converted than the ill entertainment that he hath given to a Saviour who came to him and offered himself to be one to him It may be you have led a sober life and cannot charge your selves with the immoralities which others have fallen into but you have lived under the Calls of the Gospel and have been many a time invited and sollicited to come to Christ to take him for a Saviour but you have made light of it neglected him been content without him you have often been inwardly striven with by the motions of the Spirit but you have quenched them and grieved him thereby You have lived in your unbelief and been contented so to do you have had a low esteem of him and of his Salvation you have relied on your own Righteousness and not submitted to his you sought him not would not come to him for life and thus you went on from year to year till he came to awaken and bring you home to himself Now all these things come to mind and they carry an emphatical consideration in them to make you vile in your own eyes and bewail your impenicence If ever you looked to Chrisâ— with an eye of faith it hath been with a mournful eye 2. Have you experienced a spirit of Supplicatiâ— We observed that it is inseparable from â— former and would you be rightly inâ—med about this prove your selves by these â—ings 1. Have you found kindled in you a restless â—esire to be delivered from Sin True prayers â—e the offering up of our real and cordial deâ—es unto God and hence by discovering the â—uth of our desires we may come to know â—hat our Prayers are Now there is none â—at prays aright against sin but he that longs â—satiably to be rid of it There are many 〈◊〉 pray to have those miseries removed which â—ey undergo for sin but this is but Howling â—d not Praying that is a right expressing of â—ur request on this account Hos 14. 2. Take â—ay all iniquity But the heart must go with â—â— which it will never do till we are weary â—â— sin and the presence of it is an heavy burâ—en to us 2. Have you found that this deliverance is no â—here else to be had The right prayer which â—od hears and accepts is the prayer of the â—edy the poor and the destitute Psal 102. 17. Christs Office is to Succour him that hath no â—elper Psal 72. 12. As such therefore he exâ—cts that we come saying as Hos 14. 3. Ashur all not save us c. For in thee the fatherless â—leth mercy And that we may thus pray it requisite that we have a deep sence imprinted on us that this is our condition God makes the Soul to despair of any succour from any other hand he is not only in a pit where therâ— is no water but his eyes fail him Isa 41. 17. He finds himself to be engulphed in the waves oâ— destruction and cryes out as they when jusâ— ready to be swallowed up Math 8. 25. Lord save us we perish 3. Have you been encouraged to go to God Iâ— Prayer for this with hope A spirit of Supplication is a gracious frame that is put into the heart by the spirit of God and there are the Graces that are used in the exerting of it the principal of these is Faith and the first stirring of it is usually in Hope which hope is alwayâ— at work and moveth in the genuine prayers oâ— the people of God This hope hath not always alike strength in it but yet it hath thaâ— degree of it whereby we are enabled to looâ— with some expectation of receiving the good we ask for at the hands of God In youâ— distress by reason of sin you resolved to go to God for help against it and what was it thaâ— drew out this resolution was it not an apprehension that Christ was such a â—ountain foâ— sin and at least a resolve that the thing iâ— not impossible thus therefore he argued Jâ—â— 3 9. Who can tell if God will turn and repent turn away from his fierce anger that we perish not 4. Have you freely confessed your sins in the Aggravations of them Right conâ—ession alwayâ— â—â—ows from a spirit of Prayer God expects it Jer. 3. 13. Only acknowledge thine iniquity that thou hast transgressed against the Lord thy God c. David therefore tells us in what way he went for and how he obtained a pardon and the healing of his sins
great mercies And for this reason the sense of these defects attending them makes them oftentimes to tremble at the thoughts of Gods displeasure Psal 119. 120. My flesh trembleth for fear of thee and I am afraid of thy Judgments 8. It is their duty dayly to Pray for Forgiveness Prayer is One part of Natural Worship and it is not appointed for a Complement but as a necessary duty for the upholding of Communion between God and men it being the way in which we are to seek and obtain the good we need and give him the due acknowledgments of it In the petitionary part of it then we are to ask him only for such things as we want And the apprehension of our want and his ability to succcour us is the motive of our so seeking to him Now there is such a Petition which Christ hath directed his Disciples and such as can call God their Father to present dayly to him Math. 6. 12. Forgive us our debts i. e. Our Sins And there is ever implied in such a petition a confession of our debts else we cannot in earnest ask the forgiveness of them We then daily want forgiveness not only a further confirmation of the pardon we received in our Justification but new forgiveness and there is none so holy in this life as to be discharged from the obligation of making this petition in prayer And yet there are many of Gods Children that are kept from precipitating themselves into atrocious sins nor do any truly gracious ones make a dayly trade of it This therefore plainly intimates that the very remaining imperfection which makes them in their whole lives to fall behind in regard of that absolute perfection which consists in a compleat conformiâ—y to the Rule hath that in it which needs forgiveness to be applied to it by the free Grace of God It therefore hath sinfulness in it otherwise it could noâ— stand in need of a pardon and whatsoâ—ever in us stands in need of that tells â—â— that we ought to labour indefatigably tâ— get it taken away as a thing which is evil and bitter 9. One great design that God aims at in his Ordinances and Providences which he dispenseth to his people is to purge away these imperfections to lead them on towards Perfection The Gospel Ordinances which Christ hath appointed to be dispensed to his people were not only designed for the bringing about the Conversion of Sinners though that also is purposed in them we are therefore said to be begotten by the word of truth Jam. 1. 18. And Paul was sent to open mens eyes and turn them from darkness to light and from the power of Satan to God Acts 26. 18. But God also aimed at the Edification of Saints by them They are therefore Christ's Ascension Gifts which he hath bestowed on his Church to help them forward to a sinless perfection till when they are not to cease Eph. 4. 10 c. There are also the many Afflictive Providences which God seeth meet to exercise his own Children withal in this world and among other purposes which he intends to bring about hereby we are told that this is one great thing that he aims at by them Isa 27. 9. By this shall the iniquity of Jacob be purged and this is all the fruit to take away his sin On this account the afflictions that the Children of God are visited withal are compared to a farnace and to a reâ—iners fire in which remaining dross is separated from the good metal to make it yet more pure This good effect Job encouraged himself that he should obtain by his afflictions Job 23 10. When he hath tried me I shall comâ— forth as gold And surely that which God useth such courses with us to take away from us must needs be a thing that we should endeavour the removal of Job was a perfect man as to integrity Chap. 1. 1. And yet he needed this trial 10 They must be fully perfected in order to their perfect Glorification Though the body of death attends them through the present life and giveth them no little molestation in it yet it shall be wholly put off with it and they shall no more be pestered with it for ever There shall be perfection of holiness enjoyed by us when we come to perfect glory nor indeed can our glory be perfect without it we are told how Christ will present his Church to himself at last Eph. 5. 27. A glorious Church not having spot or wrinkle or any such thing None are admitted into the assembly above but Just men made perfect Heb. 12. 22 When we come there we shall sin no more nor have any dregs of pollution abiding in us but be entirely conformed to the Image of God now that which is the perfection which God will bring us to at last is that which we all ought to be aspiring after and restless in purâ—â—it of till we come to obtain it And truly Inchoate Holiness makeâ— us capable only of partaking in Inchoate Blessedness our vessels are not prepared to be filled with glory nor can we have that near Communion with God in Christ which is requisite to give us compleat and uninâ—â—rmixed satisfaction till we are compleatly holy in the highest degree which our natures are able to receive If then God hath appointed us to Salvation and there can be none without this it must needs be our duty not to take up with any thing short of this and consequently it must be that which is promised to us in the Covenant of Grace and we ought to pursue it and endeavour to go from â—â—rength to strength in it till we arrive at the fulness of it which is not to be expected till we get to the Eternal Kingdom USE Be we then Exhorted not to place our hope in God for the sake of any Righteousness of our own when we must confess our best so short of what it ought to be which needs a pardon and therefore cannot command his favour but let the sense of our duty and our defect pâ—t us upon relying on Christ alone and his Righteousness as the mâ—ritorious and material cause of our acquittance from the condemnation of the Law and being made the Owners of a title to eternâ— life Let us look hither for a sure foundatâ—on to build our hope upon to receive the reward of Eternal Glory and not to any thing of our own Let our dependence be here for the acceptance of our poor imperfect duties acknowledging that but for this they could not but be rejected Let us in sense of our own imperfection be ever bewailing of it and go to Christ to have it sprinkled with his blood Let us press hard all our lives after more Holiness prosecuting it with utmost reachings and let every new acquest by Divine help make us the more earnest after further degrees of it and more vigorous in the use of all means to reach them Nor let us tire and give in so long as we are any whit behind those who are now totally freed from sin and in whom Grace is arrived at its full stature in Glory THE END A Brief Account of principal matters contained in the foregoing Treatise DOCTRINE I. THat Jesus Christ is a Fountain of Saving Good page 7. How he came to be such a Fountain p. 13. DOCTRINE II. Jesus Christ is an Opened Fountain in the days of the Gospel p. 22. How this fountain comes to be Opened p. 28. In what peculiar respect it is said to be Opened in the days of the Gospel p. 32. DOCTRINE III. They are the Seed of Christ and the Church of God for whose sake this fountain is Opened p. 44 How the Opening of this Fountain had a peculiar respect to these p. 46. DOCTRINE IV. The great design of Opening this Fountain to Gods people is for sin and uncleanness p. 64. How mans sin and uncleanness gave occasion for this p. 65 Of what use this fouutain is for the taking it away p. 77 Trials of our interest in this fountain p. 95 DOCTRINE V. There will be a more peculiar Opening of Christ as a Fountain of life when the Jews are called p. 106 That there is such a Calling of the Jews yet to come ibid. The glorious state of those times p. 114 DOCTRINE VI. When God hath brought his Chosen to bewail their sins especially the affronts which they have offered to Christ and to pray for his mercy he will then make a gracious discovery of this Fountain to them p. 127 How God produceth a Spirit of mourning and supplication in men in order to his Opening of this Fountain to them p. 130 How to judge of the efficacy of the Gospel p. 140 Rules of Trial to know whether this Fountain hath been savingly Opened to us p. 146 In the Sermon annexed to the former Treatise This great question is discussed viz. Whether that personal perfection which God requires of his people under the Covenant of Grace be the same for kind and degree with that which was required in the Covenant of Works or any thing short of it ERRATA PAge 82. line 17. for parties r. parts p. 137. l. 25. dele and. p. 150. l 24. f. God by r. Godly p. 198. l. 17 add for