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 Seaventhly Pauls rage did goe against their souls as well as their bodies for saith he I did compell them to blaspheme Christ he laboured to damn their soules 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 Ninethly 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 hee I thought with my self to doe many things contrary to the name of Jesus of Nazareth there was the person he aimed at yet Paul a man forgiven for all this for he saith when he aggravates his sin in 1 Tim. 11 12 13. According to the glorious Gospell of the blessed God which was committed to my trust And I thank Christ Jesus our Lord who hath enabled me for that hee counted mee faithfull putting mee into the Ministery Who was before a Blasphemer and a persecutor and injurious But I obtained mercy because I did it ignorantlyin unbeleif Thus I have done with the Doctrinall 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 minde are apt but to greaten their owne sins but can you aggravate it worse then David Paul or Peter could doe yet behold those sins and those aggravated sins 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 bee unclean with David to deny Christ with Peter it may be to swear to a lye to swear to a falsehood nay it may be ingage to a lye to a falshood O take heed of false Oaths 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 bee never so great yet the mercies of God are greater Sabian 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 of himselfe in Isai 44.22 I have blotted out as a thick cloud thy transgressions and as a cloud thy sins return unto mee 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 do not onely blot sins out like a little cloud but I will blot out 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 mountains as well as mole-hils 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 vapour great sins as well as small are pardoned by mercy It is worthy your notice what Moses speaks of the Mercy-seat It covered the whole Arke wherein the Law was kept To note saith a Divine though thou art a man or a woman guilty of all the Laws breach not onely of one command but of all the commands yet the Mercy-Seat 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 move but God and thine own soul 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 bloud 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 bloud can drown a whole host and a huge multitude of sins as well as a small lust Though thou hast need to shed more tears for sin in a way of contrition yet Christ need not shed more bloud 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 hee means there that there is not so much evil in sin to damne us as there is good in the gift in Christ for to save because thy sin is the guilt of a creature and Christs satisfaction is the satisfaction of a God thy sin the sinne 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 by conversion doth wipe away the infamy the ignominy of thy most horrid and scandalous sins before conversion Suppose thou hast bin a notorious infamous creature yet Christ takes off the ignominy and the infamy of thy sin by Conversion It is observable of Mary Magdalen shee was a notorious whore every one that saw her knew shee 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 Verily I say unto you that where ever the Gospell is preached it shall be spoken what this woman hath done throughout the whole world Christ did wipe away the infamy of harlotry he would have renowned the love of that woman to Christ he would have it spoken of where ever the Gospel was preacht Luk. 7.47 Wherefore I say unto thee her sinnes which are many are forgiven 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 fall into much scandall and gave much offence there you find mention of Thamar Rachab Ruth and Bathsheba no more in the Genealogy but these what were al these women they were converted 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 hee said What pledge
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 so saith Origen That when the conscience is burdened when a mans spirit is troubled pouring out of complaints and confession to God doth ease the minde 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 sinne till he can vent by confession to God ready to burst Psal 119.25 Psal 119. vers 25. My soul cleaveth unto the dust quicken thou me according to thy word Vers 26. I have declared my wayes and thou heardst 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 wayes 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 confesse sin is because God loves to hear the complaints and the 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. Jer. 31.18 vers 18. I have surely heard Ephraim bemoaning himself 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 stairs 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 God had rather see men come with ropes about their necks and with sackcloth about their loyns by a humble confession 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. Psal 32.6 For this shall every one that is godly pray unto thee in a time when thou mayst be found surely in the flouds of great waters they shall not come nigh unto him Confession quickens supplication Dan. 9.20 in Dan. 9. vers 20. And whiles I was speaking and praying and confessing 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 Confession is to the soule as the whetstone 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 Solemne and secret confessions of thy evils unto God doth greatly help to quicken strong supplications in thy heart unto God Reas 4 A fourth Reason why justified persons must confesse sin unto God is because confession of sin will work a holy contrition and a godly sorrow in the heart Psal 38.18 Psal 38. vers 18. For I will declare mine iniquities I will be sorry for my sinne 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 sift 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 Josh 7.19 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 sinne unto God is because holy confession of sin will imbitter sin and endear 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 doe greatly imbitter sin and doe 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 it 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 a saying of Gregory Sins do blind 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 years without having conscience recoyle on themselves to confesse their evils 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 Gen. 42.21 we are verily guilty concerning our brother in that we saw the anguish of his soul 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 doe when God brings thee on a death-bed when God hedges in thy wayes with thernes 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. Psal 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 loynes are filled with a loathsome disease and there is no soundnesse in my flesh Here he
of sin to cloath his sins with all the aggravations that can be and this is a good Rule if you well follow it You have the like instance in the book of Daniel chap. 9. vers 5. Dan. 9.5 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 hearkened unto thy servants Seventhly Nor we nor our Princes nor all the people of the land there are seven aggravations which Daniel reckoneth up to his confession 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 howle like dogs because you shall be beaten but to confesse sin to God as an angry Father is child-like with a fiduciall confidence of pardon Dan. 9.9 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 Ezra 10.2 And Shecharâ—ah 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 Luk. 18.18 Luke 18.18 I will arise and goe to my Father and will say unto him Father I have sinned against heaven and before thee Though he was a prodigall yet he would go to God as to a father In confession you are to goe to God hopefully as to a displeased father confessions when they come to God as a Judge create fear horror 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 Rule 5 A fift Rule in confession of sin unto God is this Content not your selves with slight and superficiall confessions of sin unto God but leave not confession till you find sorrow for sin Psal 38.18 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 not ashamed to look up Leave not confessing of sin untill shame hath filled your face sorrow hath filled your heart it is a great fault in many people if they confesse their sin in crying God mercy in a generall 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 Rule 6 A sixt Rule in confessing of sin is this If thou findest thy heart straitned in confessing present guilt and present sins upon thee then labour to review and recollect ancient guilt and ancient sins This is a very usefull 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 wayes 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 Psal 51.3 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 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 recollect old sins this may lead him to despair but in case of barrennesse if any man wants matter in respect of present sins and finds his heart hard and very insensible in secret prayer unto God in that case he is bound to let conscience recoyle upon himselfe and recollect sins of past years goe 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 freedome in confession of sin in secret before God then in publique before men To provoke you to practise this Rule consider two things 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 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 publique only and never in private thou art but a barren professor Again confider this that though we read of wicked men that have made great confessions 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 to Moses and unto Aaron Exod. 9.27 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. 15.24.30 1 Sam. 15.24 And Saul said unto Samuel I have sinned for I have transgressed the Commandement of the Lord c. Vers 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
house Christ was at supper mark the method Divines make much use of this Mary fell into a grosse sin but Mary must not know her own pardon Mary was weeping for her sin and it was 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 astonishment 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 astonish thee consider that thou dost 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 soverain Balsam to cure thy wounds for by his stripes we are healed Directions to great sinners 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 only 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 hath 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 doest can recompense God for the wrong sin doth him yet is this something by way of a holy revenge on thy self the more thou hast been notorious in evill thou shouldst 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 expresse 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 but goeth higher Peter doest thou love me more then these there was this reason why Christ should aske him this Question because Peter had finned against Christ more then all the disciples had therefore Peter must love Christ more Do I speak to any that have been taller 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. And 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 owed much was a great sinner as Mary Magdalen It may be God hath forgiven thee thy hundred of sins and 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 must be It is thus with Mary Magdalen Luk. 7.47 Wherefore I say unto thee Her sins which are many are forgiven her for she loved much Her love doth hold equipage and 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 greatly before the Lord. Peter did deny Christ shamefully 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 sinne hath been the greater thy humiliation should be An observable Law that you read of in Levit. 11.24 25. And for these yee 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 untill the Even Beloved touching an unclean thing a man was unclean all night 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 a humiliation but if thou hast toucht a sin born a sin and hugged a sin in thine armes then there is greater work required of thee he was to wash his clothes O thou must wash thy heart by humiliation thou must take more pains with thy heart that hast fallen into a gross evil then other men should doe Fourth Direction In case thou expectest to have a high esteeme of pardoning grace labour thou to find out all the aggravated and haynous circumstances in thy sin Beloved doe not fear that the seeing of the sinfulnesse of sin will doe you hurt first look on pardon and then look on the aggravation of thy sin this is the way to heighten Christs merits 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 a holy and a tender conscientious man when he came to confesse sin he used these words Lord there is none have sinned as I have sinned the Devill sinned Judas sinned grievously but none sinned as I The Divell indeed sinned but Christ never dyed for the Devill as hee 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 hee O labour to finde out what aggravations there are that thy evills are capable of that so thou mightest come to magnifie and grraten the grace of God in thy esteem A famous story of Austin Aug. in his confessionâ— when God converted him and smote his conscience for the vanity of his youth how doth he aggravate his sin when he was a boy for robing of an Orchard he doth aggravate that sin with many circumstances First I robed an Orchard meerly out of vanity not out of need to steal for need is more tolerable though not justifiable but when he had enough that was vanity then it was not for the goodnesse of the fruit but meerly for the lust of the eye then I did not rob the Orchard alone but I got others with me then it was an unseasonable time of night then he went to rob the Orchard after he had spent all the day in vain sport then what they could not eat they gave to the hogs then saith he I wronged and injured an honest neighbour that never did me wrong O see how he clothed that sin with many hainous crimes and circumstances canst not thou cloath thy ununcleannesse thy oppression thy extortion thy unjust dealing with hainous circumstances Let me direct you a little in this rule First To aggravate thy sin consider all sins against the manifestation of Gods love are great when God speaks peace to thee if thou shouldest then warre against God Psal 58. this greatens sin it was an aggravation of Solomons sin that he sinned against the Lord after God had revealed himself twice to him 1 King 11.9 And the Lord was angry with Solomon because his heart was turned from the Lord God of Israel which had appeared to him twice Secondly It aggravates sin when you commit a sin upon a slight temptation for a man to sin when he hath little or no provocation that greatens sin What made the sin of the devill so great it was this that the Angels had no Devils to tempt them for thee to follow the stews for thee to follow thy lust when the devill doth not tempt thee to doe it when the provocation is meerly from thine owne heart this greatens a mans sin and thus in the Prophet Micah That men should sell the righteous for silver and the needy for a paire of shoes O when thou shalt recollect and say How have I dishonoured God how have I runne the hazard of an immortall soul when the Devill hath laid no temptation to me this greatens sinne exceedingly A third thing to greaten sin by is when a man doth sin against the checks and rebukes of his own conscience Conscience saith doe not sin do not wickedly and the man saith I must I must I shall lose all else When Conscience shal arrest thee and accuse thee of sin and thou shalt stifle and put by all this aggravates thy sin Fourthly The frequency of the acts of sin to commit a sin once is not so much but to fall often into the same sin this greatens sin Fifthly Complacency of heart in sin when sin is not onely the sin of thy practise and of thy life but thou delightest in sin if sin be riveted and rooted in thy heart thou art unclean Canst thou goe to God and say Lord what grace is here and what mercy is here that thou hast pardoned great transgressions and those sins that I can aggravate by many hainous circumstances I have read my pardon and yet I have now blotted my pardon canst thou say I have sinned and upon a very triviall occasion and on a small temptation I am a drudge to the Devil on an easie temptation when the Devill can draw thee by a silken thread to a sin O it is a great aggravation when Conscience arrests thee for sin and thou wilt still be stifling the cries of Conscience Would you greaten sin you are in a ready way to greaten mercy and pardoning grace that is a fourth direction Fifthly If God doth out of the riches of his grace pardon aggravated sins take you heed that when you have obtained great and gracious pardons for great and grievous sins you do not extenuate your sins doe not say of your sins as Lot of Zoar Is not this a little one doe not say of wilful enormities as Jacob did Peradventure it was an oversight doe not mince the matter and doe not lessen sin but greaten sin The reason why thou shouldst not doe it consider first by extenuating sin and making it smal and little in your eye you will lessen the greatness of gods pardoning grace who will value the skill and physick of a kitchin woman that Physitian is valued that can cure a deadly and and dangerous disease when a mans spirits are gone and strength is consumed he is prized thou by lessening thy sin dost lessen pardoning grace 2. By the extenuating thy sin thou dost lessen the value of Christs bloud 3. Thou wilt lessen thine owne repentance and humiliation for what man will labour after great humiliation for small transgressions therefore there is a world of wrong done to thine own soul when God hath pardoned great transgressions if thou shouldst extenuate and lessen the greatnesse of thy evils Sixthly Content not your selves with slight and superficiall repentance for falling into great and grosse evils bee not like Lewis the eleventh King of France when he did an evill against his Conscience he pulled off his hat and took his Crucifixe and cryed God mercy for what he had done so many men if they can but cry God mercy in ordinary and generall tearms they think they have made a Compensation to Divine Justice And thus I have done with the second branch of the use in these six particulars Vse 3 The third and the last branch shall be by way of Consolation Consolations against great sins to troubled and perplexed Consciences that by reason of their falling into aggravated and hainous sins doe entertain doubtfull thoughts of their own pardon five Consolations I shall lay down to you from the Scripture First Consider for thy Comfort that Conversion and repentance for sin before God wipes off the ignominy and the infamy of thy former miscarriages suppose thou past been an ignominious notorious foul creature yet repentance puts a vail over thy ignominious lusts Secondly Take this for thy comfort that Jesus Christ doth manifest more love to those men who have fallen into grosse sin after repentance and humiliation then he did to any other sorts of men in the world It is observable of Peter Peter did sin more then all the Disciples unlesse Judas that was the cast-away after Peter did humble himself and repent of his denyall Christ did shew more love to Peter then to all the other Disciples First Christ appeared to Peter after his Resurrection before he appeared to any other so Paul tels you in 1 Cor. 15.5 And
that he was seen of Cephas and then of the twelve there was love in Christ Peter did deny him but three dayes before and Peter must first see him Again When Christ was risen from the dead 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 wayes tell his Disciples and Peter Peter was crying weeping and bewayling that he should deny his Master and saith Christ Goe tell Peter that I am risen 3. Christ doth single out Peter after hee rose from the dead Christ hath more discourse with Peter then he hath with all 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 shee repented what expressions of love doth Christ shew to her First we read that he cast out of her seven Devils Luk. 8.2 And certain women which had been healed of evill spirits and infirmities Mary called Magdalen out of whom went seven Divels Then he appeared first to Mary she 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 wept to see Mary John 11.33 When Jesus therefore saw her weeping and the Jews also weeping which came with her he groaned in the spirit and was troubled Again Christ commanded that where ever the Gospell came to be preacht the fame of Mary should be made known Matth. 26.13 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 Thus much for the two consolations Thirdly Take this for your comfort It is not the greatnesse of that sin thou committest but onely the hardnesse and impenitency of thine owne 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 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 Sonne of God yet saith he Repent and your sinnes shall he blotted out O what sin could bee greater then their embrewing their hands in the bloud of Christ yet doe but repent and your sins shall be 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 own part Fourthly That no grosse sin committed by a justified person can make void his former pardon A rule among the Schoolemen The work of God cannot be made void or frustrated by the work 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 justified 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 grosse 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 goodnesse 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 emboldened to fall into sin because it may turn to good O it is God that orders a mans fal for his good A threefold good that God doth to his people out of their very sins God doth not only do 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 and 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 Beloved God sometimes suffers a man to sin that that sin might keep out another sin one sin may be so ordered by God to keep out another sin Thirdly Falling into sinne sometimes doth renew the work of repentance the Lord sometimes lets them sleep that so hee might awaken them by a greater humiliation and to tast the more of the bitternesse and the fruite of sin here then is Gods goodnesse to a sinner that by letting him fall into a sin hee doth thee good and makes thee to renew repentance and greatens humiliation in thy heart Now for the finishing of this subject Cases of conscience there are 7. 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 himself 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 in this Psalm yet he did not know his pardon in other Psalms 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
that is taken away Matth. 12.32 And whosoever speaketh a word against the Son of man it shall bee 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 onely 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 Thirdly It is against the nature of forgivenesse to be onely forgiving sinne in a mans own conscience A sixt case is this Whether when a man is suing for pardon he ought to make any difference between great sins and small sin 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 sinnes 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 evills For Beloved First Consider the Scripture makes a difference between sins therefore we must doe so the Scripture compares some sins to Camels and some to Gnats the Scripture compares some sins 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 couldst have no power at all against me except it were given thee from above therefore hee 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 speake 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 First 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 clothes 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 denyall 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 sin and a small as the red Sea could drown Pharaoh and his host as well as a single man so Christs bloud can drown a huge host of sins but yet you must encrease your humiliation on the aggravation of your guilt thus much for the fixth case of Conscience The seaventh 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 two circumstances which doe aggravate and greaten sin First Sinning against the frequent manifestation of Gods love to thy soul 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 Secondly To sin against the rebukes and checks of thine own Conscience doth greaten sin Jam. 4.17 Therefore to him that knoweth to doe good and doth it not to him it is sin It is sinne 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 hee 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 sin 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 bloud 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 O thou man thy sin is the greater thou sinnest against the monument of the eye as well as against the warning of the ear Fourthly Sin against Gods judgments upon our selves doth weigh ten sin this did aggravate Ahaz sin 2 Chron. 28.22 And in the time of his distresse he did trespasse yet more against the Lord. Fifthly To sin 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 litttle for thee I would have moreover given thee such and such things Wherefore hast thou despised c What thou sin David and hast been loadned with a heap of mercies this greatens thy sin Sixthly It greatens sin when the sin 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 entreat for him If a man sins against God O who shall plead for him Seaventhly 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 wayes as thou art walking in when the Spirit of God shall come and woo thee to be reconciled to alter thy course and to walk in better paths when not onely 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 Queuch 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 Thirdly There is an higher aggravation then this that is resisting the Spirit Act. 7.51 Ye stiffe neeked and uncircumcised in heart and eares ye doe alwayes resist the Holy Ghost as your Fathers did so doe yee This is caused by pertinaciousnesse in withstanding the Spirits motion Fourthly The Scripture speakes of vexing the Spirit Isa 63.10 But they rebellect and vexed his Holy Spirit therefore hee was turned to be their enemy and fought against them This is not onely by one