in Christ 4 There is abundance of present good in affliction Page 360 Chap. 46. Containeth the conclusion of the last doctrine in the two former Chapters shewing how unbeseeming a thing it is for a beleever to be troubled in affliction Page 366 Chap. 47. Sheweth that beleevers are often under inward affliction and spiritual desertions Page 368 Chap. 48. Containeth Seven Directions how a beleever may get Rest from Christ in spiritual Desertions First Look upon Christ as once in the same condition Secondly Look to Christ as ful of Grace and Goodness Thirdly Look to Christ as an advocate at the right hand of God Fourthly Look to Christ for fulfilling the promise of sending the comforter Fifthly Go to Christ as at first in thy Conversion Sixthly Keep good thoughts of God Seventhly Resolve never to take Rest in any thing else beside Christ Page 371 Chap. 49. Sheweth that beleevers have not only Rest in but Rest also from afflictions Page 379 Chap. 50. Five markes of true rest in Christ I It is not but upon discovery of glorious things the soul knew not before II. It comes upon the soul ceasing from its own work III. It makes the beleever active for God IIII. Rest in those things wherein Christ rested V. True Rest wil abide the trial of the word Page 382 Chap. 51. Eight means to get and keep Rest in Christ 1 Beware of secret Sins 2 Be thankful for what good God hath given thee 3 Judg not thy self in time of temptation 4 In trouble wait upon God in the use of means 5 Meditate much upon the promises 6 Proportion humiliation to thy comfort 7 Be throughly grounded that thou art in Christ 8 Improve the Rest thou hast to God by doing much work to him Page 388 CHRIST INVITING SINNERS TO COME TO HIM MATTH 11.28 Come unto me al ye that Labor and are heavy laden and I will give you Rest CHAP. 1. Wherein There 's 1. The Dependance of this verse upon the former with the Scope of the Holy Ghost herein 2. The Meaning of the words 3. The Division thereof into three parts HAving opened unto you that great Doctrine of Reconciliation with God in Christ and of the willingness of God and Christ to be Reconciled to Sinners sending his Messengers to invite intreate and beseech in his Name though there was something else followed in the Chapter that I could willingly have handled yet because I would press on what hath been delivered about our Reconciliation with God in Christ and urge it further with a suitable argument I have pitched upon this text wherein we have set forth the willingness of Christ to be Reconciled to Sinners and a most gracious invitation of Jesus Christ to poor Sinners to come in unto him that they might have Rest for their Souls A Text that breatheth forth nothing but mercy and goodness to Sinners a Heart melting invitation In Jer. 31.12 we have a prophesie that Sinners shal come and flow together to the goodness Or to the bountifullness of the Lord as some of your books have it surely if there be any Scripture that holds forth the goodness and bountifulness of the Lord to Sinners so as to melt their hearts that they may flow unto it it is this in the Text. This invitation of Christ Come unto me ye that are Weary and heavy laden and I will give you Rest is that which hath been the Comfort of many a wounded Conscience of many a troubled Sinner having fastned upon it their Souls have been staied and they have been kept from sinking into the bottomless Gulf of dispaire thereby A Text that hath been of as great use unto afflicted Consciences as any in al the Book of God If ever there were a Heart breaking Scripture certainly here it is Come unto me ye that are weary and heavy Laden c. It is in it self an intire sentence if we take the 28. verse and no more it is ful of abundance of sweetness and filled up to the top with the Grace and goodness of the Lord. But â—ow if you observe the dependence of these words on the former the words that go before then you wil see that there is indeed a soul satisfying fulness of Mercy and goodness in the Lord held forth from this text and though many of you I question not have heard this Text often quoted Come unto me ye that are weary and heavy laden and I wil give you Rest yet perhaps few of you have observed how these words come in and have a sweet dependance upon the former If you compare these words with those that go before you shal see that they are very heart breaking expressions What did Christ say in the very verse before I 'll go no further Al things saith he are delivered unto me of my Father and no man knoweth the Son but the Father neither knoweth any man the Father save the Son and he to whomsoever the Son wil reveal him and then follows Come to me all ye that are weary and heavy laden and I wil give you Rest The Text seems to be so ful of sweetness alone that it is seldom observed how this comes in after it But now we should look upon them thus and consider that they are the words of Christ Who after he had said Al things are delivered to me of my Fathet and no man knoweth the Son but the Father c. Immediately saies Oh! Come to me all ye that are weary and heavy Laden and I will give you Rest We may observe in this dependance of the words on the former these two things 1. Christ saith That al things are delivered to him of the Father and therefore come to me this depends upon the beginning of the 27. verse All things are delivered to me of my Father as if Christ should say Be it known unto you poor troubled afflicted Sinners that mourne under the weight and burden of your Sins I have all things delivered by the Father to me that is al the mercy al the Riches of Grace all the treasures al the goodness and Grace that is in the Father is given to me to dispence to you and al power is given to me of the Father to do good to poor troubled Sinners And therefore come to me Oh! come to me ye poor troubled and afflicted Sinners 2. No man knows the Son but the Father neither knoweth any man the Father save the Son and he to whom the Son will reveal him that 's the second thing observable in the dependance of these words on the former saith Christ there is a most infinite communion between me and my Father and I know fully whatsoever is in the mind of God the Father what his Heart is towards sinners I know what his thoughts have been from al eternity about doing good unto poor Sinners there is a most neer conjunction between me and my Father and I alone can reveal the Father to poor sinners that are
that is one good means to help the soul towards Christ the very stopping of it in the course of sin Thirdly This is the means in a Rational way to make the soul attend to any call of Christ for before Christ may call to sinners out of his Word Come to me and beleeve in me but they do not feel the burden of their sin and therefore they do not come if a man be under a heavy burden in a dark night if he hears the least noise of the feet of any man then he cries out for help So the soul under the heavy burden of sin doth rejoyce to hear of any direction out of the Word to come to Christ Fourthly The soul comes to prize mercy and mercy will take a deep impression upon the heart that is burdened when the heart is burdened with sin Oh how dear and sweet and precious are mercies then Fiftly And further When the soul is burdened with sin it is in a Rational way prepared to take the yoak of Christ Before it did cast it off but now feeling sin to be a heavier burden than any other whatsoever it is more prepared to take upon it the yoke of Jesus Christ now when the soul is under this burden then Christ calls in love to ease and give rest to those souls that are under such a burden CHAP. V. The Reasons of the former Doctrine 1. Christ hath all mercy in him 2. The end why he came into the world was to give rest to burdened souls 3. Christ himself was once under some kind of this burden 4. He is to have the glory of all the ease which is given to sinners THe Third thing is Reasons why Jesus Christ doth desire and invite souls to come to him REASON I. First Because that all is given to Christ Christ hath all the mercy of the Father in him for the fulness of the Godhead dwels in him and therefore he must needs pitty such a soul There is a Law in Deuteronomy That if a Beast be under a burden and ready to perish God requires that you should not withdraw your self from the Beast though it be the Beast of your Enemy but to help it Now if God would have us to be so merciful who have but drops of mercy in us when we see a beast and that of our Enemies under a Burden Then surely the Lord Christ that hath the fulness of the mercy of the infinite God in him when he shall see an immortal soul under such a burden and ready to perish and it cries to him for Help certainly Christ will ease and help that soul REASON II. Secondly We know that Christ came into the world on purpose Christ was anointed and sent for that end to bind up the broken hearted and give them ease Christ is designed by God the Father for this very work and therefore he wil do it he is appointed by God the Father for to ease burdened Souls it is his work therefore when Christ sees any poor soul burdened under sin saith Christ here is work for me He came not to cal the Righteous but sinners to Repentance Here is that that I came from Heaven for it is the very business that I was sent from my Father to do it is the work my Father sent me into the world for REASON III. Thirdly Christ himself once felt some burden of this kind and he knows what it is to be burdened with Sin He was made sin for us So the Scripture saith in the 2 Cor. 5.21 He was made Sin Christ had the weight of al the Sins of the Elect upon him and did feel what the weight of sin was Christ hath experience what it is to be burdened with sin and with the wrath of God the Father for sin Certainly when Christ lay groveling with his Face upon the ground and sweated drops of blood then he was under a great burden Christ had the great burden of mans sin upon him and of the wrath of God that was due to mans sin and he had it upon him til he sweat under it Now Christ himself having been under it certainly he cannot but pitty poor burdened Sinners REASON IV. Fourthly It is Christ that is to have the Glory of the ease of sin and those souls that are burdened for sin if ever they have ease they wil give the Lord Jesus al the Glory Now first Christ having al the Mercy of God the Father and being sent into the world to bind up al broken hearts and having experience of the burden of sin And fourthly knowing that he shal have al the Glory in delivering and easing of Souls certainly Christ doth account it worth al his sufferings that he might have the Glory in easing of troubled Souls as many Chyrurgions account it to be their Glory to have the Honor of curing desperate cures the Lord Jesus wil Glory in this to al eternity When al the poor burdened Souls that ever he did ease shal be brought before him and shal be acknowledged before God and his Angels Oh! here are those many thousand Souls that were under their burdens and were ready to perish and I have eased them and here they shal rest from al their labors for ever Christ cals Sinners upon these groâ—ds CHAP. VI. The Application Exhorting Sinners to come unto Christ with Answers unto certain Objections APPLICATION NOw for a word of Application doth Christ cal for burdened Souls to come to him that they may have rest Then those that are burden'd should harken to what Christ saith in this Congregation this morning Is there any poor soul that is ready to perish under the weight of sin that goes under the Load of it Christ cals to that Soul to come to him It were a grievous thing for Christ to come and cal into such a Congregation and there should be none there Nay I cannot but think there may be many in this Congregation that shal hear the cal of Christ Christ many times cals where there are none to answer we may say in this case as our Saviour Christ said in another the harvest is great but the Laborers are but few So we may say the harvest of sin is great but the Laborers under the burden of Sin are but very few many there are that would cast the burden of sin upon Christ but they do as the Pharisees did cast heavy burdens upon others but they themselves wil not touch them with one of their fingers So many would cast the burden of sin upon Christ but they will not feel it themselves O! let me speak to you What Chamber or Closet can witness that you have been sending strong cries unto God as being under that grievous burden A beast if it lies under a burden it wil roar and cry out for help So certainly if your souls were prest with the burden of sin there would be mighty cries to God to ease you of that burden But to most people in
so much as they do It is troublesome to fight with an enemy but it is a great deale more troublesom to have an enemy prevail and get the day and though it is true that corruption shal not get the day fully that is though it may prevail for a while in some skirmishes it may prevail Praelio but not in Bello as an enemy may in some skirmishes have the better of it but yet the other may Conquer at last and may get the day the day that is when it comes to a pitcht set Battel that is the Bellum and there he prevails if I can but prevail and get the day to be mine then it is not so much It is true the Saints of God they shal get the day at last but here as long as they live their corruptions often prevail and foiles them which is very grievous and burdensome to them CHAP. XV. The Reasons of the former Point 1. Because coruption when it prevailes weakens the heart 2. By it God is dishonoured 3. By it our holy profession is scandalized 4. By it they over whom it prevailes are made useless in their places 5. Thereby the meanes of grace are made unprofitable 6. Thereby our peace with God is disturbed 7. Thereby the assurance of our Salvation is shaken NOw for that to open it a little in the particulars to shew how burdensome it is to the hearts of the Saints when they do prevaile in any measure they do not put it off as carnal people do with this we are al sinners and it is Gods grace to keep us and Lord have mercy on us and the like no but they account the prevailing of corruption the greatest burden that they can goe under in the world and that in these respects I First Because whensoever corruption prevailes in what degree soever it weakens the heart it weakens the soul it may stir in the heart and if the heart doth repulse it and get strength against it the heart is not weak as before but if it prevail in any degree it weakens the heart now we know that which is weak is sensible of a burden quickly a sick man is a burden to himself and every thing is a burden to him now when any corruption prevailes it makes the soul sick and every thing is a burden to it and I beseech you consider here is a reason why you are so weak and are able to beare no other burdens If any body crosse you when you come home wife Children or servants cross you you cannot beare it if neighbours cross you you are able to beare nothing there is a reason in this that you do not think of you have weakened your hearts by some sin or other and broke your peace with God it may be and now your hearts come to be weake you are like a sick man that cryes out upon any thing one that is sick cryes out upon every thing wheras if he were strong healthful he could bear a hundred times more so you have brought a sickness upon your souls there is some sin that hath prevailed w th you prevailed over you and by that hath weakened your heart and your spirit now being weake you can beare nothing every thing is a greivous burden to you so that the prevailing of corruption comes to be burdensome in this respect because it weakens the heart and makes every thing burdensome to them II Secondly The Saints and people of God they account the priviledge of corruption to be the greatest burden in this respect because they know that now they dishonor God especially if it prevail so as to breake forth outwardly that it comes to an outward actual sin then it must needs be burdensome to one that is gracious for the name of the blessed God suffers by this my sin that hath prevailed al the while sin was but stirring in my heart and did not prevail the name of God hath not that dishonor as now it hath now when sin hath prevailed it dishonors God and therefore it is a burden unto the Saints III Thirdly It is a burden because it may be my holy profession is scandalized by it and is not this a burden howsoever many wretched men and women wil say they care not let others say and think of them what they wil but now Godly men and women when rhey think of this they cry out O What wil the wicked say of this how wil they blaspheme the name of God and dishonor the name of God and this wil be a burden to them because thereby their holy profession is scandalized IV Fourthly ' It s a burden because hereby they come to be made useless in the places where they live many though they may have some soundness of grace in them and may go to heaven at last yet their corruption prevailing over them they come thereby to be very useless in the places where they live they may live but themselves wil be burdens upon the earth for they are never like to be used to do any great service for God in the world they have so scandalized their profession by the prevailing of Corruption V Fifthly When corruption prevailes over the Saints as it makes them unprofitable so it makes the meanes of grace exceeding unprofitable too it hardens there hearts and they come to prayer hearing the word and Sacraments and find little good many of you complain you find not profit by prayer and hearing the word and Sacrament what is the reason such and such corruptions have prevailed over you it may be there are some sins that you live in that have prevailed over you and therefore no marvel you do not profit as you desire VI. Sixthly The prevailing of Corruption is a grievous Burden in this regard because it is that that doth extreamly disturbe ones peace between God and our Soul though there be many temptations yet if the heart can conquer them it hath more peace by that means never hath the soul so much peace as when there hath been strong temptations unto sin and a conquering over those temptations but if temptation conquer then there wil be a disturbance of our peace and that is burdensome to those that do know what peace with God doth mean VII Seventhly The prevailing of Corruption is a grievous Burden because it is that many times that shakes the assurance of those that are godly I know not what those men would make of the Lords Prayer Forgive us our Sins if so be that they think whatsoever sin they fal into yet stil they can keep up their assurance as much as before I say what would they make of that petition Lord forgive us our Sins at least to pray thus Lord cleer up the evidence of the forgiveness of our sins then it must needs follow that the falling into any sin and the prevailing of any Corruption must needs shake our assurance while we live here in this world now is not this a
and Earth upon the Frame or keeping it in being the Lord doth not appear more to be an almighty God in keeping Heaven and Earth in being then he doth appeare to be an Almighty God in keeping grace alive in the heart notwithstanding al the remainder of Corruption so that in this God hath Glory in another way then he hath from the Angels in heaven the power of God appeares in upholding of the Angels for if he did not uphold them they would fal into evil as Adam and the other Angels did but therein appeares Gods glorious power to uphold the Angels but the glorious power in upholding the Angels doth not so much appeare as the glorious power of God in upholding the hearts of the Saints in the midst of their corruptions this shal be a special argument that the Saints shal praise God for to al eternity when they shal look back and see what a condition they were in before their conversion yea in their conversion that though God granted them some grace yet what abundance of Corruption was in their hearts al that time and what a deal of stir they had to maintain that little grace they wil stand and admire to consider that it should be kept alive in the midst of sin that a little sparke should be kept alive in the midst of the Sea not only in the midst of the Sea but when the sea is tempestuous you yil say it is no great wonder that the fire be kept burning when the sea is calme but when al is in a storme and yet a spark of fire shal be kept alive in the midst of al the tossings of the waves you wil grant here is a mighty power now the keeping alive of grace in thy heart in the midst of so much corruption doth argue as mighty a power in God 2. The Lord doth so order it that stil his own people shal be under the burden of much coruption in this regard because that hereby the Lord draweth forth the exercise of faith in his son in which his soul takes infinite delight the soule of God takes infinite delight in beholding the working of the glorious grace of faith in Jesus Christ But you wil say wherein doth it appeare to be so glorious in regard of our corruption Thus for the Angels in heaven to believe in God that he wil be eternally good to them it is not so much as for a poor soul in the midst of al his corruptions yet to be able to Triumph in the free grace of God in Jesus Christ notwithstanding I am so vild filthy loathsome and abominable to myself and justly God and his Saints may count me a burden to them and cast me off for ever yet for al this my soul shal cling to him I wil cast my self upon him and look upon him as a gracious father a merciful God a God that loves me a God that rejoyceth in doing Good to me for the soul to exercise faith in the Grace of God in Christ it is a glorious thing only take heed you do not mistake it for presumption Object You wil say For men notwithstanding al their sin to beleeve in Gods mercy this is rather presumption then faith Answ True it is presumpion in many they mistake themselves but in others it is true faith and God delights in it and you shal know it by this it doth draw the heart to God and the soul never finds such a prevalent way to overcome those corruptions that are in it as to exercise their faith in the grace of God in Christ I beseech you mark the difference between presumption and faith in Christ presumption wil trust in Gods mercy notwithstanding their sin but that doth indeed foment their sin and makes them secure in their sin makes them the more secure in their sin but now when the soul shal by the true geminine act of faith rest in the free grace of God notwithstanding corruption if it be right such a soul feels no means in the world of greater efficacy to cure and prevail against corruption then this to trust in the free grace of God notwithstanding corruption and if thou findest it thus thou hast no cause to feare trust in Gods grace with confidence for it is that which is wel pleasing unto God and that which the Lord delights in and that which gives as much content to Gods heart as the exercise of any grace whatsoever and in that regard because the Saints shal never exercise such an act of Faith in Heaven â—s this God wil have this in this world 3. This is that that God sees doth drive his own people to him in prayer nothing drives the Saints to God with more earnestness in prayer then the feeling of the weight of Corruption upon them then they goe to God above al God never heares such strong cryes come up to heaven in regard of any affliction as this and by the way you may find by this how your hearts are when the hand of God is upon you in afflictions then you wil cry to God but I put this to you hath there not come as strong cryes to heaven upon the sence of your Corruptions as upon the sence of any Affliction whatsoever 4. The Lord hath glory in this in the exercise of the work of repentance and humility the keeping the Souls of his people in humility and the contrition of their Spirits that is exceeding pleasing to God the Lord is neer to a broken contrite heart a melting mourning spirit the Lord doth delight in the evangelical workings of repentance this pleaseth the Lord the work of humiliation mourning and sorrow for sin in an evangelical way is a grace that is acceptable to God God shal have none of that in heaven and he hath it therefore here 5. God hereby exerciseth his wisdome exceedingly in bringing light out of darkeness God doth many times turne not only the afflictions of his people to their good but he workes good many times out of sin not that hereby we should be bold and presumptuous in our sins we must take head of tempting God yet know this that God doth many times work exceeding much good unto the Saints even out of their sins by occasion of sin though their sin hath no efficacy in this but God takes occasion in this in otherwaies of his providences and workings of his grace to work good unto them 6. There is Gods justice in it also to lay a stumbling block before wicked and ungodly men for when they shal see that the godly that have the most grace they have much corruption in them stil they rejoyce perhaps in it and they little think that God aimes at the execution of his just judgment upon them that it should harden their hearts many wicked men they think their condition to be very good because they see so much corruption in the hearts of the godly and they are hardened therby but they little think
God but there is somthing comes between God and you all things are yours and you are Christs and Christ is Gods so that God himself is the infinite Fountain of all good Christ is as it were the Cisterne into which all the mercy and goodness of God is to be conveyed and beleevers by Faith have every one a Pipe as it were put into this Cisterne so they come to have conveyed all good the fullness of the divine Nature they are united unto Christ and so have all Mercy conveyed from God unto them here is a strong argument to draw the heart to come to Christ because Christ is the great conveyance of all good from the â—her unto the Soul is not the mercy of God sweet unto a Soul that is Laden with the Burden of Sin This mercy you must have in me saith Christ or else you shall never have a drop of it We are to know therefore that by our sins the conduit Pipe of all the Mercy in God is stopt so as not one drop of saving mercy for eternity can be let into the Soul and though we should cry for mercy never so much and shreeke out yet we are to know that the Pipe is stopt by sin and there is no other way to open this pipe but only by Jesus Christ he is the opener of the pipe of Gods infinite Grace let out to the Children of men Now if we look upon the Grace of God we are first to consider that by our sins we have stopt the current of al the Grace of God and it is only Christ that lets out this current and now Christ saith come to me all you that would have mercy Would you have Mercy O yes it is true we would have mercy but we find this Mercy of God is stopt by our sins Now saith Christ come to me and by me all the sluces of the Grace and mercy of God are opened to poor Souls we know God is a God of mercy the God of all consolation in himself the Father of mercies he is infinitly merciful so that when we come to God we come to the God of mercy the God of all consolation we come to the Father of mercies we come to him who is infinite in mercy whose Nature is mercy to him that is imfinitely above all creatures in mercy All the merciful creatures in Heaven and Earth in comparison of him are nothing Yea take all the merciful Saints in the world the most merciful dispositions that were in all the creatures in the world and put them into one man you would say this were a merciful man If all the mercies in all the bowels of all the Saints that ever were from the beginning of the world were put into one man would not you think him to be a merciful man if he called you to come to him for mercy would you not come Such a man that hath all mercies of all the Saints that ever were in the world put into him yet this man would be a most cruel man in comparison of the infinite mercy that is in God If we were in cruel straites and had to deal with such a man that had the bowels of the mercy of all the men in the world those that are in misery they go to their friends and say Oh! it is wel I did fal into such a merciful mans hand But now thou that art a poor troubled sinner if thou comest to Christ thou comest into the Arms into the bowels of the infinite God that is infinitely above the bowels of all mercies that are either in Heaven or Earth and therefore come to him Secondly Further not only come unto the bowels of mercy but by coming to Christ thou comest to God as a Father Come to me saith Christ thou shalt not only come to the Father but the first moment you come to me I shall present you to God as a Child and God to you as a Father the infinite God is a deadly enemy to all out of Christ but by coming to Christ there is peace with him you come to have union with him and you come to be made one with God into the neerest union with God next unto the Hypostatical union There is divers sortes of union with God there is the Hypostatical union but next unto that is a Mistical union and such a union have the Saints the Soul that was before an enemy unto God and cast out from him the first moment that such a Soul comes to Christ it hath such a union with God that is the neerest union that any creature can have next unto the human Nature of Jesus Christ Thirdly Yea Not only to be united to him but thou shalt come presently to have his Image stamped upon thee his Spirit put into thee to live the Life of God to have communion with him here and thou shalt be saved the very moment thou comest to him thou shalt have Righteousness to stand in the presence of the infinite Holy God I You will say if we come to God we come by Christ but God is a Holy and a Righteous God and how shall we be able to stand before him being a Righteous God and we such sinners Therefore this is answered by this that the first moment thou comest to Christ he will put the holy Robes of his Righteousness upon thee that shall make thee able to stand before the infinite God so that whatever thou art in thy self it is impossible but God should be wel pleased with thee and should take delight in thee as his own thou may'st walk up and down in the presence of God and all because He sees thee in the Robes of Christs Righteousness Fourthly And further The first moment thou comest to Christ thou shalt be safe to eternity for all the hazard of miscarrying to eternity is over at the first moment thou comest to Christ this thou shalt have in the first moment of thy coming to Jesus Christ this is for the comfort of those that come to Christ More of these Particulars we shall have when we come to the promise that is here made in the Text And you shall have Rest ARG. VI. Sixtly For a further argument of drawing the Heart unto Jesus Christ when he cals to come to him consider what a poor wretch thou art in thy self a vile base forlorne Deformed Miserable Succourless Helpless Shiftless Creature a Beggar If a Prince as he goes along in the Streets seeing a poor Beggar lying upon the ground in the durt should be pleased to call to such a creature and say to him come to me would it not reviue his Spirit If one should tel him the King the Prince cals how would he stir himself Now thou art the poorest Creature in the world never any poor creature that lay groveling in the durt ful of Sores and wounds was in a worse condition then thou art when thou seest such a one think that thy condition is far
Christ what dost thou think that mercy is worth that cost the Blood of Christ Thou thinkest thou art a great sinner and that it must be wonderful mercy that must save thy Soul It s true and it 's well thou thinkest So but now consider further sinner what dost thou think of the mercy that shall be as much worth as the Blood of the Son of God For him to be made a curse for sinners will that do it If that will do it thou mayest come to him How much dost thou think the mercy of Christs coming to take Mans Nature upon him is worth to take our sinful Nature upon him If he will do it thou mayest come to Christ Yea Further know That the Lord Jesus Christ never receives any that come to him but Beggars none but Beggars none but miserable creatures none but those that are wretched that are vile and Christ did never yet from the beginning of the world receive any man upon these tearms because he was not so vile as another man as thus here is one that is thus vile here is another that is not altogether so vile I will receive him upon this ground because he is not so vile this was never the ground but when he receives them he receives them upon free Grace and therefore it is not how vile thou art for that is the Glory of Christ to save vile creatures and he saves none but those that come as Beggars those that come and do see themselves as vile wretched worthless unworthy miserable damned dust and Ashes in themselves Only such are objects for the Heart of Christ to be set upon rather make it an argument to drive thee more to him as David did in the 25. Psalm O Lord have mercy upon me pardon my Sin for it is great So Lord I am vile I am wretched I am unworthy and therefore Lord receive me Lord therefore I come unto thee do not say as Peter once did Master depart from me I am a sinful Man No but the truth is he should rather have said thus Master Come to me or Master I come to thee because I am a sinful man So thou shouldest not say O Lord depart from me because I am a sinful creature Or Lord do thou come to me because I am a sinful wretch And know that upon thy coming to him thou wilt have wonderful welcome wonderful great entertainment above all that thy Heart can think of O the great imbracing by Jesus Christ of those Souls that come to him and this is the very Reason why poor sinners at their first conversion have their Hearts so filled with joy because at their first coming to Christ Christ doth give them such wonderful imbracements til they come to be more Strengthened and then perhaps Christ will have them live rather by Faith than by sence It is in the new Birth as in the Birth of Nature Children when they are first born they shoote up mightily take a Child that comes very little out of the Womb come to it a quarter of a Year after the Child is shot up a great deal you may see it a great deal taller and bigger every Limb increased but take it at ten years Old and it grows not so much then as at the first and the Reason is because it coming out of the worm Womb it could not subsist if Nature did not hasten to strengthen it self at first so men when they come to Christ at first they shoote up and grow to such inlargement of Spirit and they do so sensibly perceive Yea and others do so sensibly perceive a greater growth at their first coming than afterwards because when they first come Christ will Strengthen them against all discouragements Christ will use you tenderly Christ will not upbraid you for your former sins and say What! you that have lived a prophane life a prophaner of my ordinances a scorner at my waies and at my people Christ will not upbraid the Soul but he wil be render of you he will pass by your sins and heal your weakness He will not break the bruised Reed nor quench the smoaking Flax. ARG. VIII Eightly Further Consider The infinite need thy Soul hath of Jesus Christ and therefore that should drive thee to him if the other Arguments do not draw thee Oh! Let that drive thee to Jesus Christ thou art an undone creature for ever without Jesus Christ all the mercy in Heaven can do thee no good without Christ all the Ordinances can do thee no good without Christ all the duties thou performest can do thee no good without Christ for before thou comest to Jesus Christ there is no Prayer no Duties that ever thou tenderest up to God that can be accepted and this is a sad condiâ—ion that all my Duties my Prayers my services are all cast away till I come to Jesus Christ Certainly this is so for thou must know that Jesus Christ is not only the great conveyer of all good from God to us but also all that comes to us from God must go through him and therefore there is cause thou shouldest hasten to Christ and never be at quiet all thy Life til thou hast some comfortable evidence that thy Heart hath closed with Jesus Christ there is an infinite necessity because al Ordinances Duties services whatever thou dost doth thee no good til thou come to Christ ARG. IX Ninthly Yea Further Christ is such a one as all the creatures one day will see a need of him Yea all that live under the sound of the Gospel they shall see a need of him and they shal curse themselves that when they lived under the sound of the Gospel and were called to come to Jesus Christ that yet notwithstanding they would satisfie themselves in the lusts of their spirits Christ came from Heaven once to us in the daies of his flesh but know that Jesus Christ shall come again in his Glory with all his Angels all his Saints about him and then how happy will those appear that in the time of their lives when they were called by the Ministery of the Gospell did come to Jesus Christ When Christ comes thus in his Glory perhaps you would then all go to Jesus Christ no friend if you will stay till then you will heaâ— another voice from Christ he will not come to call sinners to come to him then but he will come to bid them depart from him for all that the father gives him do come to him before then ARG. X. Yea and yet further let me tel you this that while you have heard the word of God by a poor minister in the name of Christ to cal you unto him to draw you to come unto him if you shal reject this invitation and other invitations that you have by the ministers of the Gospel know that of al the sins that ever you committed in al your lives this wil prove to be the greatest that you have stood
out against this invitation it is that that wil aggravate al your sins It may be some of you may think wel this is an incouragment to sinners we are called to Christ and we are tould that the vilest may come to him and Christ wil receive them This is wel but yet if thou wilt reject this invitation and shalt yet let out thy heart to other vanities and to the satisfying of thy sinful lusts this I say this invitation of Jesus Christ wil be the greatest aggravation of al thy sins that ever thou Committedst in al thy life thy whoredome thy drunkenness thy swearing al thy sabbath breaking wil not be so heavy upon thee wil not be so deep upon the score as one rejection of Jesus Christ calling thee to come to him and therefore take heed of abusing the grace of Christ in calling you to come to him For know if there could be any sign given to know who are Reprobates and who not I would rather pitch upon this signe one that should go away after the grace of God is opened to him and he invited to come to Christ one that should go away notwithstanding hardned in sin I say I should rather pitch upon this than any other signe There is no sin hardeneth the heart of God more than this I wil give you one Scripture for this In Luke 14.16 17. When God as the master of the great feast sends his servants and invites men to come to the wedding that is in truth to do that that I have been doing al this while to invite poor sinners to come to Christ Now divers make excuses some had bouhgt oxen others had bought farmes and others had married Wives wel marke at the 24. verse the doom of those that did not come in upon their invitation Verily saith God those men that were bidden shall never taste of my supper What! saith God to his servants have ye invited them to come in and wil they not No they have other things in their heads their Farmes their Yoke of Oxen their profits and pleasures what wil they reject such grace and favour when I invite them to come to the marriage of my son verily saith God they shal never have any good by Jesus Christ Oh! it were a dreadful doom to be past upon any soule God forbid it should be past upon any soul and yet when we come to open the grace of God in Jesus Christ in the ministry of the Word we cannot speake of it without trembling hearts without feare least some should be hardened and so God provoked by their resisting of thiâ— grace of his this man and this woman that sits upon such a stool that is not taken with this grace of God offered in Jesus Christ they shal never tast of my supper Beloved Sermons of mercy are more quicker than any other sermons whatsoever men and women may sit under a minister of the word that may preach many wholsome points of Divinity and many moral truthes against drunkenness swearing prophaning the sabbath deceit cozening and cheating they may sit along time under such a minister and God may be patient with them though they do not obey the voice of the minister but now when the Lord comes to invite men and women to come to his son let them look to it then God expects that they should fal down before that infinite grace of his and should admire it and their hearts should be taken with it and they should joyne with him and say Oh! Lord we come and our hearts do close with this bountifulness of thine in thy son the neglect of our not profiting by such sermons and casting out what we heare letting of it pass from us doth the quickest seal up mens hearts to condemnation Ye wil not come to me that ye might have life Wherfore take in what hath been spoken to you and labor to work it upon your hearts Quest You wil say Here are many things that have been spoken to poor sinners to come to Christ if these things be so what is the reason then that there is no more that come to Christ how comes it to pass that the hearts of men and women can stand out against such offers as these Ans Would you know the reason Christ himself gives it you in John 6.43 after he had been inviting some to come to him and told them that he was the bread of life Jesus answered and said unto them murmur not among your selves there were some murmured against Christ â—nd Christs words did not prevail with them no marvel that the ministers of Christ do not alwaies prevaile when Christs words Christs own preaching did not prevail with many but they did murmur at him and went away from his sermons and did reject his sermons at the 44. verse saith Christ There can no man come to me except the father which hath sent me draw him Quest You wil say then why are you speaking al this while to exhort people to come to him we are dead and you had as good speake to dead men Ans To that is answered God the father doth use to draw those soules that belong to his eternal election by the ministry of the word by such exhortations as these God the father doth make use of the ministry of man to set before poor miserable souls the excellency of Jesus Christ and so to draw their soules to him and therefore if you do belong to Gods election God wil make use of his ministry to draw your hearts to come to Christ Doth God begin to draw you by the ministry of his word have you found God by the ministry of his word begin to draw your soules Oh! do not you draw back again as loth to leave your sins to leave such a sweat pleasure such a profitable lust but if God hath taken hold of your hearts to draw you to him Oh! do not you draw back again Indeed the scripture saith many are called but few are Chosen few do come to Christ but you are al called to come to Christ Oh! let not that scripture be made true that many are called but few chosen if thou findest God drawing thy heart and thy heart ready to answer unto the Lord that is an argument that thou art not onely called but one of the Chosen ones of the Lord. There are three waies that God the father drawes those to his son that he intends shal be saved for ever by him First he draws them by the cord as I may so speak of Illumination by enlightning their minds by shewing them what his son is Secondly He draws them by the cords of mercy Thirdly he drawes them by setting conscience upon them to put them forward when the Lord is drawing the soul to Christ he makes use of the consciences of men and women to put them on to come to Christ O! thou wretched soul is not that that thou hearest in the word the truth of God is
it not the word of the Lord hast thou not now a gracious offer Is it not a mercy that thou art out of hel this day and is it not a mercy that thou art not drowned in the sea that thou art brought to land to heare one more offer to come to Christ Wilt thou yet go on in thy sins Wilt thou yet prize thy lusts before al that infinite good that is in Jesus Christ dost thou think this wil be peace in the end How wilt thou be able to look God in the face another day It s mercy thou needest and Mercy thou must have or else thou art for ever miserable and wilt thou reject this mercy Oh! that the Lord would cal in your consciences to help on this work There hath been I hope by al that hath been said some Illumination about Christ yea and some cords of Mercy have been fastened upon your hearts Now if God would but stir up conscience give a command to conscience and say never suffer this man or this woman to be at quiet til they come to my son til their hearts be taken off from al things that hinder them from coming to my son let them never be at quiet til then it were a happy thing if God would give this command to conscience that so many might answer to this invitation of Christ that when Christ saith come to me ye that are laden the soul answers Lord I come Quest I but you wil say Suppose God hath been calling me and I have rejected him I have been in some forwardness to come to Christ and my lusts have drawn my heart back again for you tel us that the Lord useth to be quick with sinners when they have rejected his grace now have you any word of comfort for such if these shal come that have abused Gods grace and mercy and turned back upon him have you any comfort for such Ans I wil onely give you one scripture for those and that is in Jeremiah 3. and the 22. verse and Oh! that the Lord would fasten this scripture upon your hearts Returne ye back-sliding children and I wil heale your back-slidings Mark here is the answer Behold we come unto thee for thou art the Lord our God This scripture in the name of God do I present to you that have drawn back from the grace of God that once were in a good frame and now are back-sliders once more in the name of God do I cal to you Oh! returne thou back-slider the Lord Jesus Christ is ready now to healthy back-slidings now then secretly say Lord I come and when thou comest into thy closet in a more solemn manner and art al alone resigne up thy soul to Jesus Christ and say Lord thou hast invited me this day to come to Christ now Lord I give up my self and all that I have and am to thee my estate my Body my honor and all that I have to come to thee and then not only those good things shall be made good but the promise likewise then Christ shall give you Rest These times are times of distress and therefore seasonable to hear of Rest whatever troubles fal out yet if thou come to Christ thou shalt be safe thy self Christ doth ingage himself to give Rest unto thy Soul And so much for the Invitation it self CHAP. XXIII The Doctrine arising from the dependance of the promise upon the Invitation That God will have us when we are coming to Christ to have respect to our selves NOw the next thing that follows is the promise that Christ makes to poor Laden sinners that do come unto him He will give them Rest And I will give you Rest It is too much for any creature to say thus Yea it were too much boldness and presumption for all the Angels in Heaven to make these words as their own for them all to say thus Come unto us all ye that Labor and are heavy Laden and we will give you Rest Yet here in this text there is not only one that is greater than Solomon but one that is greater than all the Angels in Heaven and men that ever lived upon the Earth that saith Come unto me all ye that Labor and are heavy Laden and I will give you Rest They are the words of the Lord Jesus Christ the Son of the Father that is equal with the Father God blessed for ever He saith Come unto me ye that Labor and are heavy Laden and I will give you Rest This is that that now we are come unto The gracious promise that Christ makes to draw Souls unto himself he will give them Rest And I will give you Rest And what more fit Argument and seasonable can there be at this time this time we know is a time of trouble a time of disturbance there is much perplexity and distress in our Nation and what will be more acceptable unto us than this to hear of Rest this is that that Christ doth promise to al them that come to him that beleeve in him he saith he will give them Rest Before I come to open this gracious promise which is exceeding ful of marrow and fatness as we shall find when we come to the opening of it I shall first give you one note briefly from the connexion of these words with the former Come to me ye that Labor and I will give you Rest You see Christ that he might draw sinners to himself makes a gracious promise of that that he knows will do good to sinners at the Heart he will give them Rest From hence the note is this in the general That God would have us even when we are coming to Christ have some respect to our selves and Christ encourageth us in coming to him even to have some aime at our own good That is the note cleerly from the Connexion of the words Before we open the promise I will give you Rest saith he if you come to me in that Christ doth propound that which he knows will take the Hearts of sinners as a great good unto them to draw them to himself hence I say the note it cleer That in our coming to Jesus Christ it is lawful for us to have some aime at our own good Yea not only lawful for us but we ought so to do for we are to look upon Christ so as Christ propounds himself unto us not only lawful I say to look upon Christ so as he propounds himself to us but it is our duty so to look upon him Now when Christ propounds himself unto us as an object to draw our Hearts to him he doth propound himself as one wherein our souls shal gaine abundance of good one that we shall get much by Now though it is true we should Labor to be above our selves as much as may be we should Labor to deny our selves in some sence yet not so but that we are to look at our own good even in our coming unto Jesus Christ
of the covenant this may seem difficult to some and that is this that al the mercy of God in heaven cannot be sufficient for the rest of any soul but through a Mediator in Christ the soul must be brought to this mercy by the hand of Christ the mediator thou must first come to Christ the mediator before thou canst have any rest even in the mercy of God it self You must know and if you know any thing of the mistery of the Gospel you must know this that though God be an infinite current of mercy yet al the current of Gods mercy is stopt by mans sin so as it can only be opened by the blood of Jesus Christ and therefore thou must know God in Christ and you must know how you come unto God in and through Christ before you can rest upon the mercy of God this is that which doth undo many soules those that are of the better sort they think to rely upon Gods mercy think to rest in that and that is a sure rest to their soules but they little understand how al the current of the mercy of God is stopt and there is no coming to it but by the hand of a mediator between God and man Others they wil say they do many good things they do many good actions they serve God and they rest in this they do not commit the gross sins of the world and they do performe duties they pray in their families and in their closets this is that they rest in but the rest of an immortal soul must have a better foundation than this than al the duties than al the sorrows for their sins than al that God himself works in them it must be somewhat without them that must be rest to their souls and nothing wrought in us no not the grace of God in us can be rest to our souls it must be the perfect righteousness of a mediator though it be wrought in us by faith can be rest to our souls yet nothing in us So that you may mistake and performe duties in a formal manner but suppose you performed them in a gracious manner yet you must not rest in them you must go higher than al the best duties that ever you performed Wo to Abraham Isaac and Jacob if they had no other rest but what their duties brought them you must look higher than whatever you are or can be inabled to do for your rest You wil say what is there that can be higher than what we are inabled to do by God There is a righteousness in Jesus Christ by which you must come there is an insufficiency in al the creatures in the world to give rest and yet the truth is the greatest part of the world make al their rest in these things much might be spoken concerning the danger of this and much of the signes when our soules have true rest in Christ but we shal meet with that in the other point in handling the Rest that we have in Christ I wil therefore pass over this about the insufficiency of the Rest in al other things only with this one thing Know this That that Heart that is touched with Jesus Christ as the Iron is with the Load-stone can never be quiet either in creature comforts or in hope of mercy or in any Duty or performance it can never be quiet til it gets union with Jesus Christ Just as it is with a Needle that is touched with a Load-Stone shake it which way you wil it wil never be at Rest til it come to the North and when it gets North then it stands there so it is with a heart that is touched with Jesus Christ there is the touch of the spirit of Jesus Christ upon the Heart of a beleever and when the Heart is but touched with Jesus Christ it shakes is ful of fears and doubts and offer it this creature comfort and the other creature comfort it wil not do it the Heart is not at rest But now when there is the manifestation of Christ unto the Soul let them come to a Sermon where some blessed promise to the Gospel is opened to them and Jesus Christ presented to them and they find this to be the Rest of their Souls their Hearts come presently and close with this and they are able to lay the weight of their eternities upon the promise of the Gospel upon the free Grace of God in Christ they are able to lay the weight of their eternal estates here however others think that the promise of the Gospel is but a notion yet here they are able to lay the weight of their eternal estates and they can say with Simeon Lord now lettest thou thy Servant depart in peace for mine Eyes have seen thy Salvation Here I see Rest for my Soul my Heart was ful of Terrors fears and doubts and I sought for Rest and ease in this and the other creature comfort and could not find it But now Christ is made known to me and here is the Rest of my Soul It is true Godly people may be troubled for a while but it is as the trouble of the shaking of a Needle in the compass and other men they are troubled too there are some people troubled in conscience for their sins they come to a Sermon and hear the evil of sin opened and God meets with their Particular sin some secret sin that they live in they are troubled and they shake too I but they are like a fals Needle not rightly touched that shakes as the other doth but it wil stand at any point do but put it this way or that way and it wil stand here and there would marriners give any thing for such a Needle that would stand at this point and the other point So it is with wicked men when they are troubled the Devil the world and their corruptions come and quiet their consciences out of Christ and so indeed this hinders them from coming to Jesus Christ because they find quiet some where else The Saints they are troubled but their trouble and shaking in the world is like the trouble of a ship that is in the Haven at shore that lies at Anchor a ship that lies at Anchor though the waves toss it up and down yet it is tost up and down at Anchor So here is the difference for al the world between al the troubles of the Saints and the trouble of ungodly men Now when you have a ship at Sea and have no Anchor and the storm drives it any way when there comes a mighty Tempest and hurries it up and down and you do not know but you may light upon a Rock and be split you are troubled But the Saints they are at Anchor and you count your selves at Rest though you are tost by the Waves when you are at Anchor CHAP. XXVIII Of the Rest that a Beleever hath by Christ from the Guilt of Sin laid out in ten Particulars 1.
thee but know this that it is the priviledg of a beleever it is not the priviledg of every one there is a generation of men that are under the Law whose desires shall not be accepted as I shewed in opening of the burden of the Law But the man that doth these things shall live by them So runs the Tenure of the Law but here is ease for thy Soul if thou doest understand how the Law runs thy Heart cannot but sink within thee but this is that that gives ease to the Soul I am now come under another condition I being in Christ Christ gives Rest and ease unto the Souls of those that come to him that their desires and endeavors shal he accepted of God as performances now this is a blessed estate Fifthly The Rest of the Soul in Christ as it hath reference to deliverance from the burden of the Law consists in this That now al the Duties that God requires at thy hand are required in a sweet and a gentle way the services that God requires are required of thee in a gentle and a loving way God indeed comes and requires the same things that the Law requires of thee I but he comes to draw thy Soul with the Cords of Love We beseech you saith the Apostle by the mercies of God Rom. 12.1 That you give up your selves a living sacrifice Holy and acceptable unto God which is your reasonable Service We beseech you by the mercies of God Now the bond-slaves that are under the Law they have not Duties required of them by such cords and bonds of Love but if thou dost these things thou shalt live if not thou shalt die do and live sin and die so the Law requires duties at your hands that are under the bondage of the Law but now beleevers in Christ their duties are required by the mercies of God We as Embassadors beseech saith the Apostle And if there be any Love any Consolation Such kind of arguments are used to them and were it that we preached only to beleevers these kind of arguments were only necessary and it becomes those that are drawn by the Gospel to be drawn by such arguments and it is a good argument that your Souls are drawn by the power of the Gospel and are come to Christ if you find the Lord doth draw your Hearts that way and that those Duties of obedience that formerly you were put upon in a rigorous way meerly by the terror of your consciences your consciences flashing Hell fire in your Faces if you did not perform them if now you find that the Grace of God in the Gospel draws your Hearts more powerfully It is true every way you should give to God obedience upon any tearms but now when you find that God draws your Souls this way it is an argument that you come to have Rest in Christ We read in the History of the Ceremonial Law a type of these things that I am now speaking of that the Book of the Law was laid under the mercy seate you shal find in the story that the Book of the Law was laid under the mercy seate between the Cherubins under the mercy seate there the Book of the Law was laid that was the place that God appointed for it to shew that even thus doth the Law of God come now upon the Hearts of beleevers it comes upon them as it were under the mercy seat in the mercy seat beleevers look upon the Book of the Law lying at the mercy seat that is every Commandement comes unto them in a gracious alluring way together with abundance of mercy to draw their Hearts unto the obedience of it Sixthly Coming to Christ you have rest from the Law in this that the Grace of God in Christ doth much melt the Heart and when it hath melted the Heart to milk out the flagons of it then this melting of Heart is accepted exceedingly by God is very precious in the Eyes of God now this comes from the Grace of God that we have in Christ and it is a mighty Rest of Soul to know this As I told you before It is not enough for any of you to say it is true we are all sinners but God knows I mourn for my sins I am troubled for my sins that is not enough for thee friend but art thou one that art delivered from thy natural condition From being under the Covenant of works Art thou one that is come to Christ and brought to Christ Art thou one that is in the state of beleevers being a member of Christ Then thy repentance and mourning is acccepted As now it is in many Cases between Men and Men some men are in such a Capacity that if they do such a thing it is accepted but if another man that is not in the same Capacity do the same thing he will not be accepted so it is here those men that are in this Capacity in Christ and have together with the sorrowes for their sins the sorrows of Christ presented to the Father Canst thou when thou art sorrowing for thy sins present the sorrows of Jesus Christ by Faith unto the Father Then thou art accepted but know this that no sorrow for sin is accepted but such as is joyned with the presentation of the sorrows of Christ unto the Father Now what an ease is this to the Soul That now the Heart hath a means to melt it for the Heart was hardened before the sorrow for sin is such that the Heart remains hardned it is no other sorrow but this as it is with Marble-stones the Marble-stone is hard but yet in wet wether it will give and be very moist but stil it is as hard as it was it is a stone stil So it is with many that are troubled for their sins being only the trouble that comes from the Law they are troubled but yet there remaines much hardness in their Heart much peevishness and frowardness against God and against men You shall find in many people who have trouble of conscience yet there is much peevishness and frowardness in them against God and against man now when you see this in the Hearts of people manifested in their expressions waies and conversations remember the stones that you see upon pavements in wet wether they give and may be water trickles down from them and yet they remain hard still But now when the Gospel comes it doth not only cause some sorrow but the Heart melts and this is accepted as very precious before God and that is the Reason that we have in Scripture so many expressions of Gods high esteem of broken Hearts and contrite Spirits and how God looks at them He that dwels on high yet looks to him that is of an Humble and contrite Spirit and that trembles at his word and let me speak this one word for the ease of them that are troubled and are come to Christ those tears that come from thy melted Heart through the
Soul comes to be acquainted with the mistery of the Gospel that it hears the voice behind him as it were saying come to me And the Soul being inabled to answer to the cal and to come to Christ it doth now perform duties as much as it did before and makes conscience of them as much as it did before but now they come to do them in another manner than they did before and they come to be easie to them over that they were before and they come to have rest to their Souls notwithstanding their imperfections in duties When you went to prayer indeed somtimes when your Hearts were much inlarged in Prayer and your thoughts were taken up wholly with the duties that you were performing then you thought you had some comfort but when you had any wandring thoughts and distractions in Prayer then you rose up with a mighty troubled Spirit and could have no rest al the day long Now when you come to be acquainted with the mistery of God in Christ though there be many imperfections in your duties yet then you shal find rest unto your Souls notwithstanding all your imperfections But that wil come to be more clearly opened when we come to that and I wil give you rest Those that have labored under the righteousness of the Law and find it toylsome and exceeding burdensom to them Christ calls them to come to him that they may have rest The Burden under Sin Secondly Those that labor and are heavy laden under the weight and burden of their Sins The trouble of Conscience that is upon them for their Sins this is another thing besides the righteousness of the Law The other labor was from under duties but this labor is from the sense of the weight and burden of Sin and we are to know that this is a great labor and burden Oh! when the Soul comes to be under the burden of sin it works to purpose it labors then indeed The thoughts they gather together and conscience being awakened makes a great disturbance and causeth fears and tremblings in the Soul the heart of a man or woman that was before slugish dull heavy and dead when God comes to make it to be sensible of the evil of Sin then it is quickned enlivened and working You that Labor and are heavy laden you that feel the weight of Sin upon your Souls and know not what in the world to do Come you to me saith Christ and I will give you Rest The Burden of Corruption Thirdly You that labor under the power of any Corruption Not only under the Guilt of your Sins but under the power of Corruption that feel your Sins strong in you and you would fain get the mastery of them You that carry about with you such a weight as makes you to cry out with St. Paul Oh! Wretched man or Woman that I am who shal deliver me from this Body of Death You that would fain overcome those strong Corruptions that are in you and it is the great burden of your Souls that you cannot overcome them Come to me saith Christ and I wil give you rest from them also First you that labor under the burden of duties and find them toylesome Secondly you that labor under the guilt of Sin and find your Souls perplexed by it Thirdly You that labor under the power of any corruption and cannot overcome it Come to me and I wil give you Rest And then The Burden of Affliction Fourthly You that labor under any outward trouble or Affliction in this world All you that are in any sad condition that have any burdens upon you outwardly if you come to Christ he wil ease you of them though perhaps he will not take them from you though you may be under the affliction as before yet you shal have rest and ease in them Have you any burden of poverty Have you any Burden in your Children Have you any burden in your Yoke fellows Or burden by reason of weakness in Body if you will have rest you must go for it to Chirst Many when they are under any outward affliction they go no futher then the creature for rest Oh! if I had but good friends I should be happy or if I had but an Estate I should be wel But if thy poverty did work upon thy heart kindly it would drive thee to Chist and make thee to say true I am poor in this world but there is enough in Christ to make me Rich there is mercy enough in Christ to make my life comfortable to make me who am for the present in a miserable Condition happy for ever Those that are poor outwardly they should go to Christ if their poverty did drive them to Christ it were a good signe that the Lord did Sanctifie their poverty unto them Now because al these Burdens if they were handled distinctly The Burden of the righteousness of the Law The burden of the sense of the guilt of sin the burden of the power of sin And the Burden of outward afflictions in this world To open these fully and to shew how Christ cals those that are under these to himself would take up much time therefore I wil pitch upon the Second at present and handle that more throughly and that is the laboring under the burden of the guilt of Sin You that Labor under the burden of the Guilt of Sin Come to me and I wil give you Rest I wil not here stand to open unto you what the burden of the Guilt of Sin is then I should soon slip into an argument that I have at large heretofore opened to you out of the Evil of sin only thus much let us know that of al burdens in the world the burden of Sin it is the greatest it is that that is a burden to the very spirit of God God complaines that he is pressed under it as a Cart is pressed that is ful of sheaves it was that which pressed down the Angels to Hel to be reserved in Chains of darkness it was that which pressed down Christ and made him sweat drops of Blood And it is that that hath been a great weight and burden upon many thousands of Gods Saints it is that that the damned in Hel lies under now and must do so eternally Cursing Blaspheming of God It is that that makes the whole creation to groan and travel in pain However many people think â—lightly and meanly of it yet when the Lord doth lay it upon any Soul such a Soul doth find it to be a burden indeed CHAP. III. The Burden under Sin laid open in nine Particulars 1. When the Soul not only apprehendeth but is sensible of the Evil of Sin in the reality of it 2. Finds all the comfort that did attend Sin before to vanish and come to nothing 3. Looks upon it self as loathsome and is in Some measure bowed to God 4. Trembles at the least thoughts and Temptations to Sin 5. Feel Sin heaviest
yet all this will not satisfie for what is past many when they have sinned and their Consciences are a little awakned for it then they think to live better and to do otherwise afterwards as if they would make amends for what is done before but you must know that this is a meer deceit and wil not satisfie you must come to me saith Christ you must come to Christ and beleeve in him or otherwise all that you can do wil never make amends you wil say If we cannot make amends what shal become of us it is true if there were not a Savior a Christ our condition were sad Certainly amends must be made but it is impossible that ever you can make amends and this you must think of you must not only think of what you are bound to do for the time that is to come but how the breach of the law shal be made up for that which is past when the sinner comes to think of these two together I have thus sinned Lord what shal I do for time to come I what shal I do to make up the breach of the law for that which is past this wil burden the soul and the soul wil feel upon this such a burden that nothing in the world can give it rest tel it come to Christ If we did apprehend this we would see that our Condition out of Christ were a restless condition and this invitation of Christ would be very acceptable Now because I was loth to tel you of rest before I had opened a little this burden for otherwise you might say as those Jewes did to Christ in an other case when Christ told them If the Son made them free they should be free indeed why Say they are we bound to any man it is in John 8.32 why do you talk of freedom to us If I should have gone on in the invitation Come to me and I wil give you rest come to Christ Why what restless Condition are we in you might have said But now when you see your restless condition then I suppose you wil be willing to harken to the invitation Come to me and I wil give you rest those things wil make you to know what it is to beleeve and to come to Christ when you come to understand what you are in being out of Christ 8. An eighth particular is this That the Law accepts of no repentance as it wil not be made amends for so it wil not accept of repentance Let the Sinner be never so sorrowful for what he hath done and lament his sin never so much if he could bewail his sin with teares of blood the Law would not accept of this You wil say this is a strange doctrine that our repentance should not be accepted of I do not say absolutely that God wil accept of no Repentance but I say that the Law wil accept of no Repentance Repentance is the doctrine of the Gospel the Law preacheth no such doctrine as the doctrin of Repentance it is an evangelical doctrine but now repentance that is merely trouble of Conscience that I see my self in such danger of the Law this may be a natural repentance and not evangelical that is I see I have undone my self by reason of my sin and now am troubled and so go no further I say this is a natural repentance and not evangelical When you do think of repenting of your sins this is a saving meditation for you to think of your Repentance thus I am now sorry and Repent and am humbled for my sin I but this is through a second Covenant through a covenant of grace that this can be accepted it is infinit mercy in God and that in Christ it is purchased by the blood of Christ that any Sorrow for any sin shal ever be accepted of God you must thank Christ for that and therefore when you come to the work of mourning for sin you should come to it as a work of the Gospel as an evangelical work and so come freely to it for that which is a work of the Gospel is a fruit of the blood of Christ and it is a great mercy of God unto you that you may be admitted to come before him to sorrow for your sins in such a way as you may be saved al your tears and trouble for sin except it be through the grace of the gospel it is not accepted and yet how many thousands of poor souls never think of this in the work of their repentance perhaps when they lie upon their sick or death beds their consciences tels them that there is a hel and misery for sinners and there they lie roaring and Crying out but the truth is they never understand the way of God in the Covenant of grace and how the Lord hath looked upon the Children of men under the Covenant of works and now hath entred into a second Covenant through his Son and there hath provided a way for their salvation which could not be in the other covenant we are to know that the law doth accept of no repentance now O! what a bondage is this that when I am sorrowful for my sins and think that God wil pardon me then I am curst by such a Law that wil accept of no repentance but when we come to Christ there Godly sorrow is accepted of and it is said to be Sorrow unto life but that is the priviledg of those that are under the covenant of grace in Christ therefore consider seriously of this point that you may make a difference between a covenant of works and a covenant of grace I know nothing in al divinity that is greater for you to understand then these two things and those people that are not acquainted with these two covenants they understand but little in those misteries of religion that may bring Salvation I say little or nothing of true divinity is understood by people that do not understand the difference between the first and the second covenant between the covenant of works and the covenant of grace and the right understanding of the difference between these two would let in abundance of knowledg I dare undertake that after people come to have the understanding of these two and to know the difference of them in one quarter of a year they wil come to have let into their hearts more knowledg in the main principles of religion then they had in many years before and for want of knowing this one thing people do most grosly mistake in abundance of points of Religion and never come to understand and to know christ at al in that way that is propounded in the Gospel And that is the eighth thing Ninthly In the Ninth place the burden of the Law appears in this that it only opens to man his misery and there leaves him as if a Chyrurgeon should open a wound and there leave it as it were in the open aire The Law tels not
the hearts of the godly that it is ready to cast them into the fire and into the water to do those things that are against their own inclination against their prayers against their resolutions against their vowes against their covenants though they see such a thing to be evil are convinced of it though they find a strong inclination against the evil though they have been at prayer to God to help them against it though they resolve with the strongest resolutions against it yea though they vow and Covenant yea they come to the sacrament and set to their seale so violent is their corruption that it carries and hurries them on in wayes of evil notwithstanding 4. Again the motions and stirring of Corruption are very burdensome unto the Saints in regard of the confused disorder that there is in the motions of their corruptions there is much disorder and confusion in the heart when corruption doth stir which causeth much disturbance what causeth more disturbance in a State in a Family in a Town then confusion and disorder nothing is more disorderly and confused then the corruption in our hearts and therefore burdensome it causes much perplexity in the hearts of the Saints because they find their corruptions working and stirring in such a confused way they find sometimes when they are in duty such strange confused working of their hearts that it is an extream burden upon them 5. Further the corruption of the heart works very maliciously and therefore the more burdensome that is it watcheth especially those times wherein it may do us most mischief then it wil be most stirring as a malicious enemy wil not only be troublesome to one that he is an enemy unto at sometimes but he watcheth if there be any time wherein he may do him more mischief then another I wil take that time saith an enemy so the corruptions of the hearts of men they watch when they may do the soul the greatest mischeif now many a christian may think though I find much corruption stirring many times yet if I could but be free when I get alone to have communion with God O! that it would let me alone at that time and so though I find it stirring at other times yet if it would let me alone at the hearing of the word but it comes at that time especially you wil have evil thoughts at prayer more then ever you had and at the hearing of the word light workings of spirit more then at other times and not only at the word but if there be but one truth that doth more neerly concerne the good of your soules then another you shal find your corruptions to hinder you then more then at another time and so at the sacrament and fasting there it wil be more working then at another time 6. yea and further if there be any time that through Gods mercy in a day of prayer fasting and the like if you can get your hearts to any comfortable frame brokenness of heart renewed resolutions to walk in the waies of God more strictly then before as many times it is in dayes of fasting and prayer above al times wil your corruptions be stirring after that more then any time thus maliciously when it may do you the greatest michief then it wil be most working Now what a burden is this to the soule as it is said of Christ in Matth. the latter end There you have the story of Christs baptisme and when he was baptised then came the holy Ghost upon him in the likeness of a dove and this manfestation of God from heaven This is my beloved sonn in whom I am wel pleased wel presently saith the text he was led into the wilderness to be tempted of the divel God was in the worke but the devil was malicious against him presently after a glorious manifestation of God the father to him As it was with Christ your savior so you must expect it wil be with you Christ when he had such a glorious manifestation of God the father from heaven to him then he was led aside then the divel presently came upon him so it wil many times be with you when at any time you have got your hearts up to God in a day of fasting prayer or the like and have got some sense of Gods love take heed of security at that time more then at al times and that is the reason that you shal find if you observe it that very often after a day of fasting after such a day that you have got most in if not the very night yet the next day you wil find strong workings of the corruptions of your herets to keep them down immediately after that time for the stirring of corruptions they are very malicious and watch for the time that they may do us the greatest mischief of al. 7. Further the stirring of the Corruptions that remain in us are very burdensome in regard of their unseasonableness by that I meane this to speak plainly to your hearts the stirrings of our corruptions if we shal gratifie them many times yeild to them as it were for peace sake as sometimes the heart of a man or woman is so troubled with the workings of corruption that they think they must needs yield that they might be quiet wel if thou shalt yeild to them to quiet them they wil come upon thee more and more with greater strength they wil come upon thee then before as now if any one that is troublesome to us in seeking to get such and such a thing of us and at length because of trouble to us we yield to them then afterwards they grow more and more upon us incroach more and more upon us and are very troublesome and burdensome to us it is so in the stirring of corruption if you yield to your corruption for one thing it comes more and more upon you so that the only quiet you can have is by being at open defiance with them now this is another thing wherby the corruptions of the hearts of Gods people are very burdensome to them 8. Lastly The Corruptions in the hearts of Gods people are very burdensome because they are very prevailing this is an higher degree they are burdensome in the root and then in the working they are more burdensome but then in the prevailing they are yet more burdensome If so be a Child of God that looks into his hearâ— and finds what a root of bitternese there is that makes him go heavily al his dayes but now when he finds such working and stirring of corruption this troubles him more he thinks though I have such a cursed nature though I cannot keep down the motions and stirrings of my corruption yet if I could keep them from working yea though I cannot keep them from working yet if I could but keep them from prevailing but alas they overcome me many times and this is the greatest burden of al that they prevail in our hearts
not only say in general Come to me but cals them in particular 3. You will say How shall we know it is the voyce of Christ that is the third particular Christ doth by the Spirit secretly perswade the soul that it is his voyce and not the voyce of delusion according to that in Cant. 2 8. The voyce of my beloved As it is when the Soul is departed from God and comes again to him the Lord Christ makes the Soul to know his voyce So when he was in this world after his Resurrection he confers with Mary a while and she thought it had been the Gardiner and Christ he speaks but a word speaks to her and saies Mary Rabboni saith she Master presently Christ did not tell her he was the Christ but he said Mary and presently Mary knew it was the voyce of Christ And so when the Spirit of Christ speaks to the soul there is such a secret instinct a perswasion and manifestation of God to it that it doth know indeed that it is the voyce of God I have been often at a Sermon and heard many good men preach Christ but I hear the voyce of Christ this day in my soul and I know it is the voyce of Christ Thus doth the soul that comes to Christ effectually 4. And further The invitation of Christ when it is indeed effectual as I know it is Christs voyce Christ comes and knocks at the door and the soul knows who it is that is to be applyed to his particular Call As Christ saith I stand at the door and knock that is to be referred to the second particular I stand and knock at the door and if any man will open to me I will come in to him and sup with him God doth not only proclaim pardon but comes to the door of the soul and stands at thy door particularly you cannot but find this by experience you that have the work of Grace upon you you have lived under the means a long time but God comes and knocks at your doors also which is a mighty condescention of a Prince that doth not only send sorth a Proclamation but knocks at the poor Traitors door and so doth Christ and when that is done before the soul doth indeed come and cast himself so upon Christ and commit himself to Christ there are some secret items and intimations that God doth intend love to it in particular that he hath thoughts of love and mercy to the soul though I have been very vile and very wretched yet partly I gather it by the way of God towards me that there is thoughts of mercy to me Quest You will say How doth that appear that there is any such intimation of Gods goâ—ness to a soul in particular when it is called to come to Christ Answ I will give you this Ground When the soul comes to Christ and casts it self upon Christ it doth it not at a meer venture and knows not whether he shall have mercy or no. It is true I come to Christ and there is no other help but I know not whether I shall have mercy or no or whether there be any mercy or no for me this is not the work of faith this way is neer to faith indeed when the soul can say thus It is true in the way I have been there is no mercy to me and I know not whether there be mercy for me but I wil try it it hath not the reflect act of faith but some secret perswasion of the soul whereby it doth cast it self upon God though not by a reflect act it can certainly say God intends mercy for me but though it be very weak yet some intimation the soul hath that there is mercy from God towards it because Faith is not a bare venture but Faith hath some kind of certainty though very weak for to say I will cast my soul upon God but I may perish I have no ground to think why God should save me this is unbelief the work of Faith according to the degree of it hath some kind of certainty in it though the soul for the present be not able to discern it 5. The invitation of Christ when it comes to be effectual hath together with the voyce of Christ an inward effectual power that goes along with it a prevailing power to draw the heart to him Christ doth not only speak to the heart and say to it Come but with the voyce he lets out a power upon the heart to come to him I express it thus When Christ was in the flesh he goes and calls Disciples to him comes to Matthew that sate at the receit of Custom saith he Come and follow me presently Matthew leaves his sitting at the Custom House leaves all his Friends and leaves all he had and comes to him presently And so when Christ comes to Peter and Andrew his Brother that were a fishing and saith to them Come to me they leave their old Father leave their Nets leave their Ship leave all and follow Christ Certainly we cannot but apprehend that there was a secret vertue went out from Christ with this his Word that did thus prevail upon their hearts As the poor woman in the Gospel that had the bloody issue she did but touch the hem of Christs Garment and she finds a secret vertue to cure her so where ever Christs invitation comes to be effectual it comes with a mighty power a secret vertue that goes together with his word to the soul to prevail upon it Come to me say many Why doth Christ call me am I able to come to him Christ saith Come to them as he did to Matthew Peter and others Christ did not call them and say Come only but he put vertue into his word and look what vertue was then the same is now in the ministry of the word when he speaks and saith come to Christ together with this word there goes a secret power to prevaile upon the Soul that they must come Now it may be the Father or Mother or friend of a poor yong man perswades him not to come but he must come to Chirst for all that the truth is it 's as strong a work of God to come to Christ now as it was then to cal Matthew and Peter to come to Christ Lastly He not only calls them but he reacheth out his hand before he comes to be joyned with Christ to have union with him Christ when he sees the Soul making after him he reacheth forth his hand to draw the Heart You will say what is that for Christ to reach forth his hand and invite that way By that I mean those gracious incouragements that Christ gives to all the beginnings of the working of the Soul after him the Lord Christ not only invites such but gives forth his hand to reach forth strength unto them he will not break the bruised Reed nor quench the Smoaking Flax. Thus you see what the second
It would seem a strange thing that if a king should come to a woman and tel her he would be married to her and she should say no if I were a Queene I would take him but she must first be married to him and that makes her to be a Queen So here the soul must not first say if I were first sanctified and had overcome such and such corruptions I would come to Christ no but by coming to Christ renewing thy act of coming to Christ that sanctifies thee That is a rule that I would leave with al young beginners spend more time and more strength in renewing the very act of beleeving of rolling thy soul upon the grace of God in Christ and casting thy burden upon him then in any other worke what soever there is no other thing that thou canst spend thy time thy strength more profitably in then the renewing the act of coming to Christ Come saith Christ saith the soul I had thought I had come but I was deceived saith Christ yet come again and come again and again this is the onely way to overcome any corruption in thy heart So that when Christ cals thee to come remember these rules Oh! that you would lay them up to make use of them at al times When you heare such things out of Gods word remember what hath bin said in this text what is implyed in the coming what way you would come and O! that the Lord would help poor soules thus to come to him and know for your incouragement that if God give you a heart to answer to his cal to come to his Son this is an evident signe of your predestination for whom he cals he hath elected yea do but think thus with your selves what an infinite mercy is it to me that I am in such a condition as that God calls me to come I might have had my eares filled with this depart from me ye cursed Thus many are cast off from God and God bids them depart from me ye cursed thou art as great a sinner may be as they are now whereas God might have said depart from me thou vild soul thou passionate soul thou filthy unclean soul I say this sound might have been in thin eares but instead of that sound there is the spirit of Jesus Christ in the ministry of this word calling to thee come to me yea he doth not onely cal thee but he hath given thee many rules how thou shouldest come to him If a Prince shal first make a proclamation for a rebel to come to him for pardon and shal send to him and make out many rules how he shal come and direct him to such a place what a mighty incouragement would this be to such an one to come in Now this the Lord Christ hath done to thee he hath not only proclaimed that he is mediator between God and thee but he hath sent his spirit to cal thee and he hath sent his messenger to give thee rules how to order thee that thou shouldest take heed of such a by way and such a turning and observe these and these things for thy help thus Christ hath done for thee If the Lord doth give thee a heart to answer to Christs cal know that this calling to thee by Christ in his word wil be no other but a forerunner of that cal that Christ shal make to thee another day There 's a cal come to me al ye that are weary and heavy Laden and I wil give you rest Inherit the kingdome prepared for you This is worth ten thousand worlds and when the soul answers to his cal such a soul may go away and be comforted that Christ wil cal you after another manner He cals the poor laden soul to give you now rest but he wil cal you afterwards before men and Angels to receive the inheritance Come not to rest only but come to an inheritance the kingdom prepared for you before the beginning of the world CHAP. XXIII Nine means to draw Sinners to Christ namely That 1. He that cals us is the Son of God 2. He is our neer Kinsman wherein three strong arguments are included First The terror of Gods glory is taken away Secondly He is infinitely inclined to do good unto the Sons of men Thirdly In uniting the divine nature with the human he hath done a greater work than to save a soul 3. He is the mediator 4. He deserves that we should come to him 5. The soul gets infinite good by coming to Christ instanced in four particulars 6. We are miserable in our selves 7. Christ wil certainly receive them that come to him which is opened in three particulars 8. We stand in great need of Christ 9. The not coming to Christ wil aggravate all other Sins With an answer unto some Objections NOW that which followes to be spoken unto in this second part of the text the invitation it self is the drawing of the hearts of sinners to come to Christ the work that we have to do is that in Luke 14.17 He sent his servants at supper time to say to them that were bidden Come for al things are now ready There the gospel is set out unto us by a rich mans making a great wedding supper and when he had prepared al his dainties he sends his servants to invite the guests saying al things are ready this wedding is nothing else but the excellent things in the Gospel the excellent things that are in Christ and the servants are the Ministers of the Gospel they are sent out to cal sinners to cal the guests to come for all things are ready So then in the name of Christ I cal unto al laden sinners to come to Christ And for the drawing of the soules of those that are thus laden these several things are to be propounded ARG. I. First consider who Christ is that calls and what he is Come to me saith Christ What is Jesus Christ that doth cal you to come to him The very knowledg of him what he is would be a mighty argument to prevail with the heart to come to him he that cals you to come to him is the Son of God the second person in the Trinity the brightness of the glory of God the character and image of his person as he is said to be in Heb. 1.3 He is equal with the Father he hath the glory of the Father in him he is the glory of heaven and earth the adoration of Angels he hath al fulness of al good in him If a great Prince should cal to you as you go in the streets and say come to me would not you presently adress your selves to make towards him to go to him know when Christ calls you to come to him it is more than if al the Angels in heaven should stand together to cal you to come to him When once the soul comes to know who it is that cals to know the voice of Christ and
as it were from the Bosome of the Father and for a time was willing to have his glory Eclipsed to come into this world to be in the forme of a Servant to be in a mean condition here in this world Christ hath suffered more in coming to you than you can possibly suffer in going to him Christ is content to come from the Father to you what is it that you can go from to come to him He is said in the Book of the Canticles to come leaping over the Mountaines he comes leaping over all difficulties to you if you think there are some difficulties in your going to Christ know that there was far greater difficulties that lay in the way in his coming to you but whatsoever there was in the way he was resolved to go through them all and did come and was here in the world in the flesh that he might save you and he that is thus come to you cals you to come to him ARG. III. Thirdly You must know That Christ is the great Mediator that is set between God and the Children of men it is he that hath undertaken the great work the greatest work that ever was in the World to Mediate between the infinite offended God and your sinful wretched Souls for through your sins there was such an infinite distance made between God and you that it was impossible you should ever have gone without this Mediator It is an argument of mighty use if rightly understood and throughly considered of the vast distance that sin hath made between God and sinful creatures that they can never come to God but through the glorious Mediator that is come into the world the Lord Jesus Christ God and man that was made by God the Father the Head of the second covenant and hath undertaken to make up all the wrongs that our sins have done unto God to pacifie the wrath of God and to satisfie the justice of God it is he that hath undertaken to make peace between the Father and you and it is he that cals unto you to come to him If there were a company of Prisoners in danger of Death and one should come to the Prince to mediate for them to make peace between the Prince and them one that the prisoners should know to be the only Son of the prince the delight of his Soul and he is sent by the Prince himself to come to make peace and undertake it for them and he comes unto the Prison doors and cals to the Prisoners lying in their dungeon and saies arise and come to me hearken what I shal bring to you observe my direction and peace shall be made between the Prince and you you shall have pardon you shall have your lives would not this stir them up to hearken unto him and greedily to come unto the grate Christ is come for this very end this was the work that God the Father sent him into the world about to be a Mediator between himself and poor wretched sinful creatures and now he comes unto them cals unto them and saies come to me If you did but know what Christ was and what his work was in coming into the world it could not but mightily draw your hearts to come to him when he cals ARG. IV. Fourthly Come to me saith Christ for if ever there were any that deserved to be hearkened unto and to come unto when he cals certainly I deserve it For I have not only come to be a Mediator but the truth is it hath cost me my blood I have manifested such Love unto you that I have laid down my Life for you I have shed my most precious blood I have been willing to be made a curse and all for the saving of your souls my Love hath been more to you then to mine own life for that was laid down for you I have undertaken indeed to mediate between my Father and you but it hath cost me much yet in Love to you I have thus done all my blood is shed the work is done the price is paid Come to me that you may have Life And this is the meaning of that forementioned place The Servant is bidden to go and invite the Guests for all is ready so here the work is done Christ hath done the work there could not be that argument to our fore Fathers Abraham Isaac and Jacob they could not have such an argument to draw them Christ could not say to them Come to me for I have not only undertaken to Mediate between the Father and your Souls but I have laid down my life for you shed my blood for you I have paid the price already for you I have purchased your Souls I have done the whol work it is finished But now there is this Argument to draw your Hearts to Christ for the work is finished the greatest work that ever was or shal be undertaken in the World the greatest work of all is finished and upon the finishing of this work Christ cals you to himself and saith Come to me ARG. V. Fifthly Consider the infinite good that your Souls shall have by Christ in your coming to him this draweth the Heart indeed not only to see who it is that calls you for commonly when we hear one cal we wil ask who cals and if it be one that we expect good from we come to him This we shewed already But this argument is from the infinite good that your Souls shall have when you come to him the very first moment you come to him you will be blessed creatures there will be an infinite change of your condition for consider First If there be any good to be had in all the mercy that there is in God himself if there be any good to be had in God the Father in the divine essence in the infinite eternal first-being of all things it is to be had by coming unto Christ for Christ saith in John 14.6 No man comes unto the Father but by me You cannot come to God but by Christ as was intimated before in regard of the distance between God and us through sin you cannot come to God til you understand Christ to be the great means of conveyance of all good from God to his creature Christ is the great means of conveyance of all good unto the creature All are yours you are Christs and Christ is Gods saith the Apostle in 1 Cor. 3. and the Last verse All things are Gods that you will acknowledg but how come they to be ours all things are yours that is the happiness of those that are come to Christ He doth not say all things are Gods and you are Gods No but all things are yours and you are Christs and Christ is Gods Whereas other people in seeking after mercy from God go this way to work they go immediatly to God and think that if ever they receive any mercy or good it must come from God they must have it from
Law a bondage unto those that are Godly being the law of God Ans It is a bondage not in it self but in regard of our inabilâ—ty for it requires of us now considering what estate we are in such things as we cannot do and that is a bondage to be put upon more than we are able to do as the Israelites were by their taskmasters but yet stil God is righteous in this because it is not more than God did at first inable us unto in our first Creation but in regard of that estate that now we are in it is a bondage in that it puts upon us what we cannot do and that upon pain of eternal death too Thirdly we are delivered from the binding over power as I may so say the power of binding over the soul to the justice of God upon every breach of the Law Now the binding-over power the power of binding them over to answer to Gods justice upon the breach of it that beleevers are delivered from in Christ as a man that is bound over to the assize and sessions to answer afterwards when he comes to take out his bond he thinks himself at much ease and at quiet when the bond is taken out by which he was bound to answer so Christ comes and takes out the bond by which beleevers were bound to answer to Gods justice for al their sins Fourthly They are delivered from the condemning power of the law that the law hath not now power to bring a beleever that sins through frailty unto condemnation this is cleere from scripture as I might shew several texts as we go along You are not under the law saith the Apostle And there is no condemnation to them that are in Christ Lastly we are delivered from the Law as the covenant for life the law at first was given as the covenant that God made with mankind for life for God deales with the rational creature according to the nature of it because it is capable of a covenant with God therefore God deals with it in the way of a covenant and as soon as man was made the Lord entered into a covenant with mankind now the covenant was no other than the law Do and live that was the covenant that God did enter into with mankind and made our first parents Adam the head of that Covenant Do and live upon thy doing shal thy life depend saith God thy present and thy eternal life Now we are delivered from the law by Christ that is that now it doth remain no more unto beleevers to be the covenant of life unto them they being once in Christ but they are brought under another Covenant a better Covenant So that in these five respects we may be said to be delivered from the Law by Christ from the rigor of it from the bondage of it from the binding-over power that is in it from the condemning power and from it as the Covenant of life Now here is enough one would think if so be that the spirits of Men were not very wild and wanton for the quieting of the soul in the deliverance of it from the law CHAP. XXX The Rest that beleevers have from the Burden of the Law by coming to Christ laid out in Ten particulars 1. They do not stand or fall for life by the Law 2. The Law-giver is the Redeemer 3. The least spark of Grace is accepted 4. Their wil shal be accepted as the deed 5. Obedience is required in a sweet and gentle way 6. The Grace of God in Christ doth melt the heart 7. Their sins make them an object of Gods pity 8. They have Christ to undertake for them as a surety 9. They are delivered and yet satisfaction is made to the law 10. They have assurance that they shal never forfeit the covenant of Grace they are under by Christ NOW then from al these we shal lay downe several propositions wherein you may see what is the ease and rest that beleevers have in Christ in being delivered thus from the law Take the ease that comes by Christ from hence in these several particulars O! thou beleever that art under the load of the law and come to Christ First Know That thou dost not stand and fal for thy eternal estate by the law that is the first Ease and Rest the law indeed may threaten thee and dreadful things may be revealed by it against thee but be of good comfort in this thy eternal estate shal not be cast by it it is ful of severity but thou art so far free that whereas before thou didst depend and rely upon that for thy eternal condition now thou art out of the power out of the reach of it so far that it hath not to do with thee to cast thy soul for thy eternal estate we would not be at the dispose of any man that we look upon as ful of severity and rigor in matters of great consequence but we do desire rather to be in such cases at the dispose of men who are ful of pitty and compassion know O! thou beleever who art in Christ that thou art not at the dispose of the Law that is ful of severity for thy everlasting condition but thou art at the dispose of the Gospel of the covenant of grace that is fild as ful with mercy and compassion as an infinite wisdom could devise it hath that fulness of compassion more then possibly al the wisdom of the angels in heaven and men upon earth could ever have devised or thought on beyond their imagination Now for one to be at the dispose of a man in matters of the greatest concernment that hath as much mercy in him as ever man had in this world yea as much mercy in him as were in al the men in the world If al the mercy that were in al the men in the world were put into one the heart of one man and you were to be at his dispose in a matter of the greatest concernment you would think your selves wel whereas before you lay at the mercy of a man that is very rigorous and ful of severity now you come to ly at the mercy of a man that hath al the bowels and tender compassions of al the men in the world would you not think this a good change this is the change and the rest that thou hast when thou comest to Christ wheras thy soul thy eternal estate lay at the dispose of the Law that is ful of rigor and severity now thy eternal estate doth depend upon a Covenant that is as ful of grace and mercy as thy soul could desire thy soul cannot desire a covenant to be fuller of grace and mercy then that covenant that thy everlasting estate depends upon and must be cast by and is not here rest now for a beleever if he doth understand this aright that is the first thing wherein the rest of a beleever consists by Christ as being freed from the Law 2
poor troubled souls whose consciences pul them on to duty but why do they performe them because conscience accuseth them for their sins and they know what need they have of Gods mercy they stand guilty before God and therefore they perform duties that they might get a pardon and they know that they were made for eternity and therefore they make conscience of duties that they might get eternal life by them as I when I opened shewed the burden that there was in legal performances But now when the soul comes to Christ it hath rest in this for the very first thing that is done in Christ is that al thy sins are discharged the pardon is granted and thou art put into an estate safe for thy eternal life and al the hazard of eternal life is now over Now then that that is required of thee is only as the fruit of the pardon of thy sin and as a fruit of thy safe condition that thou art put into for thine eternal life and here is a great deal of difference between performing of duties that I might have pardon that I might get eternal life by it and performing of duties as a fruit of my pardon and as a fruit of the assurance of my wel being to al eternity As for instance a man that is in danger of his life stands before the judg and there is no way for pardon for him but he hath his book given to him as you know the way is to have the benefit of the Clergy as we use to cal it now when he knows if he reads he shal have his life but life lies upon it and the judg is strict and sets one by him that the ordinary shal not prompt him and he wil have him read out and his life lyes upon it I suppose you have heard of some that were able schollers and able to reade wel enough at other times yet at such a time were not able to read one word for a world But suppose this man now have his pardon and you then put him to read then he can read with delight he hath freedom enough now to read his eyes that were bound before are loosned Now suppose he were to read a Psalm of mercy before he had his pardon and when he had his pardon there is a Psalm of thankfulness for his life given him to read he could read it then with delight just thus it is with those that performe duties in a legal way they stand before God as their judg and look upon what they performe as that which their souls depends upon that if I do not do such and such things that is commanded me my soul lyes upon it alas this straitens the heart and it is put into a condition of feare But now when the soul is come to Christ and the Lord hath granted pardon to it and hath quieted it by the blood of his son now sayes God read performe duties and let al the duties you performe be in way of blessing my name and praising of me for giving of you your lives And indeed this is the principal ground of al that God requires of such as are come to Christ meerly that thou shouldest go out before the Lord in way of thankfulness for pardoning thy sins and accepting of thee in his Son And so likewise if so be a man were amongst his enemies and should be set to do some work and business and is set so to it that if he do not do it he is a dead man they wil have his life if he doe not do it alas he goes about it with a great deal of dread and fear But now if this man should come home to his fathers house and his father sets him about a work and he doth it so that though he would not do the work yet he should not loose his life he should go about it with a great deal more freedom of spirit Thus it is with beleevers when they come to Christ they come to their fathers house and their father sets them about workes but so as he wil not lay their lives upon it their soul doth not ly upon their duties thy eternal estate doth not lie upon duties as heretofore you have heard in being freed from the Law so now make use of it in deliverance from legal performances That the Lord though he wil be strict to mark what is done in every duty he wil not be strict to take advantage of thee It is true it is said that the Lord spared not his owne son but he wil spare thee In Malachy 3.17 The Lord wil spare them as a man spareth his own son hat serveth him And so in the Romans it is said God did not spare his own son and yet in Malachy that he wil spare thee as a man spareth his only son that serveth him What should be the meaning of this That God should not spare his only begotten son the Lord Jesus Christ he wil not spare him but thee This is the reason he did not spare him that he might Spare thee here is the reason why God wil so spare thee in the performance of thy duties because he would not spare his son he was so exact to him that he might not be so exact to thee Indeed when Christ came to performe duties the life of al the world lay upon that that if Christ had failed in one thing the life of al the world lay upon it yet so they lay upon him that they were not grievous to him because he was most able to perform it But thou must make use of Christs performances in way of obedience so as to give thee rest ease in performance of thy duties think thus I come now to performe duties and thankes be to God my life my eternal estate lyes not upon it but Christ what he performed my soul and al the world lay uyon what he did and the weight that Christ was willing to take upon him in his obedience is that which makes any obedience so easie and comfortable to me I remember we read in the Law that in peace offerings a female was accepted in other cases ordinarily God required the male but in peace offerings the female now peace offerings was for thanksgiving and indeed the whole life of a Christian is nothing else but a peace-offering his whol conversation al the duties that God requires of any christian it is nothing else but a peace offering to offer an offering of thanks-giving for the mercy he hath received from Christ in this peace offering the Lord accepts of a female though it be but weake And this is the sixth thing wherein the rest of the soul in the performance of holy duties when it is once come to Christ doth consist Seventhly As the soul doth not performe duties that it might get life thereby it is not in that way now so the performance of duties when the soul is come to Christ is a part of
us so when we account our duties to be mercies that is an argument there is evangelical obedience in the heart and there wil be a constancy in the heart in performing of them Those that performe duties in an Evangelical way they look upon them as a golden chain about their necks for ornament and not as a chain about their necks as bonds and Fetters to tie them to them Here is the difference between one that performes duties in a legal way and one that performes duties in an Evangelical way One that performes duties in a Legal way he lookes upon duties as bonds about his neck he is bound to them as with a chain but the other that performes duties in an Evangelical way his duties are as ornaments as chains of Gold about his neck And the ground of this similitude I have in Prov. 3.22 My son keep sound wisdom and discretion so shal they be life unto thy soul and grace unto thy neck The wayes of wisdome that is the wayes of Godlyness they are life to the Godly and they are a grace to the neck that is they carry Gods commandments about with them not as a prisoner carries his chaines but as one that carries a chain about his neck and he glories in it That place is very observable likewise for this that you have in Deuter. 33. comparing ver 2. with the words that follow after Verse the second The Law of God is called a fiery Law From his right hand went a fiery Law for them But marke verse 4. Moses commanded us a Law even the inheritance of the congregation of Jacob. From hence this note plainly results that let there be never so much seeming severity in any Law of God in any commandement that requires duty yet even this commandement of God is accounted an inheritance unto the soules of the Saints of God to be as the joy of their hearts they account their riches to be in Gods commandements not only to be in heaven but the very commandement they account their riches and their happiness Many men and women take upon them the commandements of God and the duties of obedience as necessary burdens they must do them I but the Saints those that come to Christ they take the commandement of God upon them as that wherein their riches their glory the joy of their heart doth consist and therefore how often do you heare of David saying that the commandements of God were sweeter to him then hony and the hony combe That they were more delightful to him then gold and riches And so in the Proverbs Better then Rubies and precious stones He doth not say the glory of heaven is better then al these but the way of Wisdom and the commandements of God are better then al these So that here is the life of a Christian he performes duties not onely as a way to heaven but as an injoying of heaven while he is serving of God and this is the seventh particular wherein the rest of the soul in Christ doth appear in the performance of holy duties Eighthly When a Christian is brought to Christ Christ gives him rest in the performance of holy duties because that Christ doth elevate and raise his spirit to be some way proportionable to whatsoever God requires of him ther 's an elevation of spirit a strengthening of the spirit in Christ to come to some kind of proportionableness to what the Law of God requires of them It is true set a poor weake man a sick man about any hard worke and Oh! how tedious is it unto him for a sick man to go and carry such a burden or to do such a hard work it is very irksome unto him but now when this man comes to be healthy and strong to have his veines ful of blood and his arteries ful of spirits now he goes along in his work and accounts it no burden at al because he hath got strength in him So the commandements of God they are hard to those that performe them in a natural way from a natural conscience notwithstanding al the strength that can come in by a natural conscience the commandements of God are very hard unto them but when once the spirit of Christ comes there is strength As it is said where the spirit of Christ is there is Liberty so where the spirit of Christ is there is strengâ—h As the holy Ghost speakes in Isa 11.2 The spirit of the Lord shal Rest upon him the spirit of wisdom and understanding the spirit of counsel and might the spirit of knowledg and of the fear of the Lord. The spirit of counsel and Might shal Rest upon Christ and so in the measure of it the spirit doth rest upon every member of Christ the spirit of Life of Might and of counsel And therfore the Apostle St. Paul saith in the 2. of Tim. the 1. and the 7. For God hath not given us the spirit of fear but of power of Love and of a sound minde This spirit of power is in those that are come to Christ there is a power of godlyness in them They are said in Coll. 1.11 To be strengthened with al might according to his glorious power The Apostle at least prayes for that to intimate thereby to us that there is that to be had in Christ there is a strengthening with al might according to his glorious power unto al patience and long-suffering with joyfulness giving thanks to the father which hath made us meet to be partakers of the inheritance of the Saints in light Though they be weake yet they have a union with one that is strong wherein they may come to be strengthened with al might not only according to Gods power but according to his glorious power unto al patience and long-suffering with joyfulness The duties of patience long-suffering are as hard duties as any hut in Christ there 's the glorious power of Christ let out to strengthen them to the duties of patience and al long suffering with joyfulness CHAP. XXXV Two other wayes whereby the former point is cleered with some consequences from the same and the use of the whol The First way is that whilst the soul is performing duty the strength of it is continually renewed Secondly The soul hath the love of God shed abroad into the heart The first Consequence is happiness of a Christian here Secondly Hence cometh the perseverance of beleevers The use of al is to exercise much faith in Christ Ninthly The Rest that the soul hath in Christ that is to goe on in duties with freedom of spirit without making them burdensome to it is this when the soul comes to Christ it hath not only strength to do the duty but whilst it is performing of duty it hath this strength renewed and it receives in sweetness and good and strength from Christ while it is in action while it is in the performance of duty and his duty is very easy sweet and comfortable
the flesh And spirit or of spirit not to make you make conscience of wicked actions but cleanse you from your very thoughts these promises wil clense from the filthiness of the flesh I perhaps they may a little serve the turne for them I but from the filthiness of the spirit the filthiness of the thoughts the Filthiness of the affections those inward spiritual wickednesses Of pride malice and the like May be you would count it a vild thing to be accused of whordom the Filthiness of the flesh I but what say you to the filthiness of the spirit of pride malice distrust earthly mindedness and such like these promises are to clense from the filthiness of the spirit aswel as of the flesh And then perfecting holiness in the feare of God it makes them fear God more and then it perfects holiness such a one as is acquainted with the promises of the Gospel is content with no measure of holiness but growes higher and higher til he comes to perfection Here you see the use of promises what a clensing nature promises have Oh my brethren be much exercised in promises lay up promises if you would get power over your corruptions And then one scripture more for this is that in 2. Pet. 1.4 Whereby are given unto us exceeding great and precious promises The promises of the Gospel they are precious more worth then a world a beleever that knows the preciousness of the promises accounts more of them then of his estate What do you account precious that you may have your ships laden home with precious things I but to have your hearts filled with precious promises it is far better then these But now wherein do these promises appeare to be so precious It appeares by this whereby are given unto us exceeding great and precious promises that by these you might be partakers of the divine nature that by these great and precious promises you might be partakers of the divine nature that is of holiness of sanctification that is called the divine nature having escaped the corruptions that is in the world through lust By these the soul escapes the corruption that is in the world by lust and not only escapes the corruption of the world that is doth not live so wickedly as others do but comes to be made partaker of the divine nature through these promises So that Christ is the rest of sanctification because in him al promises are made they have a mighty clensing virtue to sanctifie the heart you would willingly have interest in promises and have the mercy that the promise holds forth now as you would have the interest in the promises and have the mercy that the promises holds forth so you must labor to feele the efficacy of the promises to clense your hearts and make you partaker of the divine nature Tenthly Christ is sanctification because in him al the ordinances are effectual the ordinances are effectual only in Christ Christ gave his ordinances unto his Church at first and then they come to be effectual through him It is not what you come to heare in the word but how much of Christ you have in the word you come to the sacrament it is not what you partake of there but what of Christ you get there it is not what you partake of there but what of Christ you get there it is Christ in the word sacrament and prayer that is the efficacy of al the ordinances the ordinances are but al as the vehiculum Christi the conveyance of Christ unto the soul And therefore we should when we come to any ordinance think with our selves what have we of Christ what have we of Christ here have we met with any thing of Christ here In the word prayer sacraments hath my heart been drawn neerer to Christ in them For certain it is that it is Christ that is the virtue and kernel of al the ordinances Hence it is that those that are acquainted with Christ and have been brought to him they come to profit more in one month now by the ordinances then they did in al their lives Before the ordinances were as empty things and liveless things to you but in Christ they come now to be made effectual Eleventhly Christ is our sanctification by sending the holy Ghost into our hearts for the holy Ghost comes from the father and the son we can never expect the saving work of the holy Ghost nor the sanctifying worke of the holy Ghost but through Christ for so Christ saith in that place in John 16.14 concerning the spirit He saith he wil send his spirit He shal glorifie me for he shal receive of mine The spirit the holy Ghost doth receive of Christ when he comes into the heart therefore if there be any sanctification by the Holy Ghost it must be through Christ he must receive of Christ he works from the father and from the son And therfore the scripture hath that phrase We are baptised into one spirit that is by being baptised into Christ having the inward work of baptisme we are made partakers now of that one spirit the Holy Ghost Now such is the excellency of sanctification as it cannot be wrought by any natural meanes but it must have the Holy Ghost to be sent into the heart and therefore the saints are said to be the temple of the Holy Ghost Now what ever worke of the Holy Ghost there is required for sanctification that must be in and through Christ and from Christ The Holy Ghost never comes to sanctifie any but the members of Jesus Christ for he is the spirit of Christ as wel as of the father and never comes to any but to the members of Christ in this work of sanctification There are some common gifts of Gods spirit that the heathens have but for this gift of true holiness it is only in the members of Christ that the holy Ghost doth come into Lastly Christ is our sanctification by his Kingly power swaying his scepter in our hearts and ruling there subduing our lusts as a king subdues rebels and walking and governing the hearts of his people Christ doth exercise a kingly power when any soul doth beleeve when Christ comes into any heart he comes into the heart to exercise a kingly power there to set up his throne in a kingly manner and by this he comes to sanctifie the heart and give rest And as in a kingdom there are mutinies seditions and the like so in the hearts of sinners there are mutinies and seditions even against God himselfe But now whenas the king sends forth power that very power prevailes against al things if it prevail in a way of justice al things are brought into right and due order again So here when Christ comes into the heart as king of righeousness and then as king of peace hereby he comes to bring rest and quiet unto the heart by his kingly power Carnal hearts they think that the kingly power of
curse shal be removed but there shal be this blessing upon it that there is no affliction shal befal thee but such as may stand with Gods love yea such as shal come out of Gods love and from Gods love love shal be the great principle not only of thy affliction but from thy affliction to know this that though there are these and these afflictions upon me yet I thank God there is no want of Gods love upon me for I would not know any thing of Gods love then if any spiritual judgment were upon me but these are no other but what may stand with the love of God Yea but that is not so much that they may possibly stand with the love of God but this that they come out of Gods love and come from Gods love they come as really from the love of God as any thing that thou dost injoy in this world Thou thinkest if thou hast a prosperous voyage that God loves thee if thou beest recovered out of an affliction that God loves thee but I say that the Lords bringing thee into affliction may stand with greater love to thee than deliverance out of affliction to another The afflictions that are upon the Saints now they do not come out of revenge as they do upon the wicked the same affliction that comes from the principle of love to thee may come from the principle of hatred to another and although therfore in the outward view they be the same yet they are infinitely different in the principle It is not so much what we see or what wee feel but from whence that comes that we see or feel and indeed a gracious heart is ever sollicitous about the principles of those things that do befal it if it be an outward mercy I but what is the root of it is the root of it the love of Christ to my soul there is an affliction upon me but what is the root of it is the root of it Gods displeasure Gods wrath Gods hatred Oh that were dreadful Although the affliction were vast if there were a hundred temptations if the root of it were Gods displeasure Oh that were terrible I but then when he shal come to know that the root of it were not from Gods wrath but his love that is joyful You wil say doth not God sometimes chastise his people for their sins what if the affliction comes to me for my sin can I have rest then It is true if the affliction come to me for my tryal then the root may be from his love but I have sinned against God I have abused my estate my conscience tels me I have not honored God with my estate and therefore the Lord hath taken it from me and spoiled me of al and can I look upon this as the root of Gods love Now to that I answer though this be a certain thing and will and must hold notwithstanding all the late wanton conceits of men and all the vanities of their thoughts which shal come to nothing yet this shal hold that God doth chastise his people for sins and offences that is not a part for me to enter upon yet stil it holds forth this That at that time when God chastiseth for sin at that time their afflictions come out of love from a principle of Love even when God chastiseth them for their sins But you wil say hath not Christ suffered This derogates from the sufferings of Christ when he hath suffered For this it is true Christ hath suffered and so hath swallowed up al Gods revenging wrath and the curse I but doth Gods wrath hinder me from having the fruit of Gods Love You wil say it comes from Love therefore God chastiseth not for sin No Why all Gods revenging wrath may be gone and yet God may chastise for sin and chastise out of Love too at the same instant You know it is said of Zachary because he did not beleeve the Scripture saith in Luke 1. For this Cause thou shalt be Dumb For this Cause because thou didst not beleeve And so therefore because of their sin they may be chastised Cannot a Father chastise his Child and yet do it out of Love not only it may stand with his Love but because of Love he would not meddle with him but let him go if he did not love him Certainly affliction may come out of Love though for sin but for God not at all to chastise them would be an argument of hatred therefore for him to chastise is an argument of Love rather than hatred If ye be not chastised you are bastards and not Sons so that you are to look upon him though God be displeased yet stil it is out of love These two may stand together he may be displeased with thy sin and with thee and yet he may love thee in the very act wherein he manifests his displeasure against thy sin and he may manifest his displeasure against thee and against thy sin out of love to thee And therefore the people of God may have Rest in all their afflictions because it is out of Love Here is an affliction but from whence doth it come It comes from Love now I am at Rest If thou canst exercise Faith in Christ in thy affliction that I know that through Christ God Loves me and this is the efficacy of the merit of Christ that in al thy afflictions thou shouldst injoy the Love of God this wil give Rest unto thy Soul and until this be al the arguments in the world will never do it Come to those that are afflicted and seek to pacifie and quiet them with any argument in the world it will not do it until they exercise Faith upon Christ and that makes them to know here is the love of God to my Soul in this affliction and then it is no matter whether I be in prosperity or adversity If God give me an estate there is love in that if he take it away there is Love in that if he give me health there is Love in that if he cast me into sickness there is Love in that and this indeed is the great mystery of godliness that the heathens were not acquainted with this Mystery of godliness Fourthly We have Rest in all afflictions through Christ because in his merit it is that al afflictions are proportioned both for the time of coming and the time of continuing and the measure and the manner of them they are proportioned by the infinite wisdome of God for the good of a beleever God proportions all so as shal be suitable to the condition that thou art in As a wise Physitian knows the ful condition of thee that art his patient at all times therefore he doth weigh every dram and take care that there be not one drop put into thy cup that he gives thee to drink more than shal suit with thy condition for thy good and takes care it shal be given at a seasonable time and
heart I am not able to do it but now mark how the Gospel runs in the Deu. 30.6 And the Lord thy God wil circumcise thy heart the heart of thy seed to love the Lord thy God with al thy heart and with al thy soul that thou maist live· The Lord wil do it the Lord commands me to do it and yet withal the Lord saith that he wil do it I might instance in a great many other particulars that the Lord requires first what we should do and if we be left here now it is hard indeed but then if we can find a promise where God promises that he wil do it for us this wil be easier to us And indeed this is the diffierence between the Law and the Gospel the Law commands us what to do and gives no strength but the Gospel never commands us to do any duty but there is a promise that engageth the Lord to help the soul in the performance of that duty And now is not here rest for the soul when the soul shal look upon the large extent of the duty that the Law of God requires of it The Law requires of me to love the Lord with al my heart and with al my soul and with al my might and to keep his commandements and statutes and to circumcise my heart Lord what shal I do in this Now then when the soul can look upon Christ the covenant of grace consider that that runs thus that the Lord wil circumcise my heart that I may love the lord with al my heart with al my soul that I may keep his commandements his statutes that God doth as wel ingage himself to inable me to do the duty as he doth require me to do the duty now here is rest unto the soule I wil conclude this particular with this one similitude as it is with the body Physitians observe that together with every veine where the blood runs there runs likewise an artery together with the veine now the artery is the vehiculum of the spirits that are in the body of a man that puts liveliness and quickness into the body So for al the world thus it is in regard of the commandements of the Law and the Promises of the Gospel I compare the Commandements of the Law unto the veines they are these duties required of thee in the whol course of thy life but if thou hast veines of blood and hast no arteries no spirit thou wilt be but dul though the blood be ful in the veins yet there wil be little strength But now there is the spirit that goes along in the arteries that gives life to the veines So now they that are under the Law they know many duties that they ought to do I but except they have the promises of the Gospel to goe along with them they have little life little activity to do the duty Therefore Christians when you heare any duty out of Gods word that you ought to performe consider here is the duty here is the veine I but where is the artery there is a promise in the word that goes along with the duty to inable me to performe the duty Now if I take both together I may go on in the way of Godliness with a great deal of ease and quiet and no duty needs to be troublesom to me The want of the knowledg of this one thing makes the lives of many people to be very disconsolate and makes them go on deadly and dully in the performance of duty whereas if they would make use of this one thing when they are put upon any duty to search and find out in the word the promise wherein God inables us to do the duty and plead the promise and say Lord thou requirest the performance of this duty but thou hast promised to inable me to do it I say if thou wouldst do thus thou wouldest find that thy duties would not be burdensom to thee but thou wouldest say wel I see my soul hath rest in Christ in the performance of al those services that heretofore have been very greivous and burdensom to me Object I But you wil say We have many promises in the Gospel to inable us but the promises are conditional and I may forfeit the promise by not performing the condition Answ To that I answer We have in the Gospel absolute promises as wel as conditional promises there is some promises that depend upon no condition at al but only beleeving as that promise where the Lord saith I wil take away the heart of stone and give a heart of flesh what condition is there does God say that if you first repent and performe such and such duties that I require of you then I wil take away your heart of stone No that is an absolute promise And so likewise that promise I wil put my feare into your heart that you shal not depart from me God doth not make this promise with condition You wil say Why then hath not al their stony hearts been taken from them because the promise is absolute I answer it is absolute from any precedent condition but yet God would have us come to the promise and close with the promises and cast our souls upon it he does not promise to do such and such things upon condition that if you wil do such and such things before then I wil do this and that for you no but only this do you cast your soul upon the promise and depend upon it and when thy soul is at a loss in regard of conditional promises when thy heart misgives thee and tells thee that thou hast not performed the condition of such such promises that therfore they do not belong to thee and thou canst not for the present have comfort in the conditional promises then make use of absolute promises and cast thy soul upon them and they wil bring in the conditional promises and know this that al conditional promises depend upon absolute promises in the Gospel and as when thou canst not make use of conditional promises thou maist go to absolute promises so when thou makest use of absolute promises thou shalt be inabled to do what is required of thee in conditional promises And here is the difference between the Law and the Gospel the Law requires and doth not give strength to inable to do what it requires but the Gospel requires and gives strength to performe what it requires Sixtly There is rest unto those that come to Christ in this because when they performe duties in Christ they do not performe them that they might have life or that they might have pardon that they might get life by them or that they might obtain pardon by their duties but they performe them now as the fruit of their life and as a fruit of their pardon and this is a great deale of rest and ease to the heart in the performance of duties There are many
eternal life it self and therefore there is rest in it it is so far from getting eternal life by it as it is rather eternal life it self then so much as any way to eternal life for this may be said though I performe duty it is true God hath taught me so much that now under the Gospel we must not think to get eternal life by our duty by our works this is popery yet it is the way to eternal life the way that tends to it it is via ad Regnum the way to the kingdom though not the cause of Raigning Nay I wil shew you a further thing then so the wayes of obedience and holiness in a Christians course they are rather eternal life it self then the way to it they have more excellency in them then being the way to life It is true it were a great deal of ease and rest to ones spirit to consider of holy duties but as the way to heaven if a man were going a journy and knew the ende of his journy should be very glorious to him if it were to receive a crown a kingdom though it were a boysterous day and stormy weather and the way were very foul he would not be troubled at it but he would account it very comfortable to know that he is in the right way for he thinks this wil lead me to my journeys end and when I come there that wil make amends for al. And the truth is there were ease and rest enough in the waies of God if God did reveale no more unto a soul then this these are the wayes that lead thee to life and salvation that lead thee to a kingdom to glory especially considering that before we were out of the way we were wandering in the wayes of death and destruction and God by his Almighty hand hath brought us into the right way When a man is going a Journy of great consequence and he is gone out of the way and God by his providence hath brought him into his right way O! what ease is in his spirit Before when he was out of the way what distraction and disquietness of heart but now when he comes into the way Oh! what ease and quiet is in his spirit so I say this were ease and rest enough of spirit to know that whereas before the soul was wandering in the path of death now it is in the path of life But I tel you further then so that when thou art performing of holy duties and exercising of the grace of God in the performance of those duties thou art not only in the way of eternal life but thou art in eternal life it self not only in the way to the kingdom but in the kingdom not only in the way to heaven but in heaven it is eternal life This is eternal life to know thee the true God and thy son whom thou hast sent into the world And that place in the Epistle of St. John he speakes of a murderer one that did hate his brother in the first of John 3.15 Whosoever hateth his brother is a murderer and you know that no murderer hath eternal life abiding in him Then it appeares that one that loves his brother and is Godly and gracious hath eternal life abiding in him for that must needs follow if this be the evil condition of a wicked man that hates his brother that he hath not eternal life abiding in him then by the rule of contraries it must needs be a truth that he that hath holiness and loves his brother he hath eternal life abiding in him and therefore such a one he hath eternal life already to come downe to him he is in heaven already So the scripture makes grace but the beginning of glory it is no other but the very beginning of heaven in the soul And therefore in that golden chain in Rom. 8.30 Whom God hath predestinated them he also hath called whom he hath called them he hath justified whom he hath justified them he hath also glorified Marke but where is the link of sanctification It is not whom he hath predestinated he hath called and whom he hath called he hath sanctified and whom he hath sanctified he hath glorified One would have thought the chain should have gon along in that linke but there is no mention of sanctification Why because sanctification is nothing else but glorification begun and glorification is nothing else but the perfecting of sanctification Now I beseech you observe this as a most special thing that belongs to a Christian the best duties that we performe are nothing else but the life of heaven to us nay the truth is it is the life of God And therefore it is said of ungodly men before they come to Christ they are strangers to the life of God therefore when thou art come to Christ thou hast the life of God in thee and the life of heaven in thee and the beginning of Glory Glory and eternal life thou doest live whilst thou art in performance of holy duties What is the happiness of heaven but for the Saints and Angels to be exercised in magnifying the riches of God and of Christ now thou beginnest it here and therefore if thou knowest what this is thou art not I say to look upon any duty that thou performest meerly as a duty but thou art to look upon it as a priviledg yea as part of thy wages That is a certain truth that Gods work it is wages and the improving of that principle would help us very much in our Christian course if thou didst live and account every duty that thou performest to God to be wages Oh! with what sweetness wouldest thou go on in the performance of those duties that God requires of thee thou art receiving thy wages when thou art performing of duties In Rom. 6. and the last The wages of sin is death but the gift of God is eternal life through Jesus Christ At the 22. verse it is thus But now being freed from sin and become servants unto God you have your fruit unto holiness and the end everlasting life For the wages of sin is death but the gift of God is eternal life through Jesus Christ our Lord. You have your fruit unto holiness it is the fruite unto holiness which is the gift of God and holiness it is nothing else but the gift of God and the beginning of eternal life the fulness of eternal life that indeed is the end of it but the fruit that you have for the present it is holiness and that holyness that is the gift of God it is the beginning of eternal life here in this world Then indeed is a christian wel improved in Evangelical obedience when he doth account duties to be mercies and when mercies are turned into duties as when we turne Gods mercies into duties that is an argument we receive Gods mercies from a Covenant of grace and there wil be linkes of Gods mercies towards