him to each poor member of his Church there to dwell for ever both in grace and glorie Now to conclude I demand what one link of this chain were not strong enough to draw the heart to settle it self upon it And yet I must say this That the word and promise of God is the immediate thing which faith relie's upon although strengthned with all the rest To this consideration two things generally are required The one to gage the promise and offer of God as a Marriner would sound the depth of the sea least his ship should bee on ground so see whether it bee able to bear the weight of the soul or no and answer all her distempers and fears fully The second if it appear that it is able to sustein it then to relie and cast it self upon it confidently for her own pardon and salvation Although the Marriner cannot himself by his own fadom touch the bottom of the sea yet by his line and plummet hee can sound it as well as if hee could reach it with his hand and so fasten his Anchor upon it So here the plummet and cable of the Word wherein this strength and depth lie's will help us out so far as may serv our turn The hand of faith touche's the depth of mercie conteined in the offer by the direction of the Spirit in the Word which tell 's us what is conteined therein Three things the Soul must look at to bottom it self upon the promise of reconciliation and deliverance First the Wisdom of the Lord. Secondly the Strength Thirdly the Faithfulness All which are sure grounds the Lord hath hidden in the promise of mercie to a poor sinner that is under the condition 1. Wisdom of the promiser I may say of it as the holy Ghost said of Salomon when hee called for a sword to cut the childe All Israel saw that God had put the Spirit of Wisdom into him to do justice So God hath shewed all wisdom in the promise to settle the soul And that in two respects First of himself Secondly of us in respect of himself becaus in revealing his heart of love to the soul onely hereby and no other way hee teacheth us that hee who is God onely wise 1 Tim. 1. 17. could in the depth of his counsel finde out no other way so wise and sufficient as this to ground the soul in sure peace towards him Christ and the promise in him was that which seemed the wisest of all waies in the thought of God especially to us under the Gospel See Heb. 1. 1. After sundrie waies the Lord spake unto our Fathers in dark times as dreams Urim visions but now by his Son and Word the engraven form c. Note how this course is called the best wisest and holdingest of all as haveing more in it then all the rest Oh! wee would think in our shallowness that one from the dead Angels or revelations were better But wisdom it self hath pitch't upon this way all things considered as the wisest of all Secondly in respect of us for it is such a way as call's us to faith a promise haveing relation to believing it without which it cannot profit us Now if it bee without us how wise a way is it to quash and damp our base spirit of self-conceit and self-endeavor and to abase our Pride that hee who boasteth might boast in the Lord So that the promise is like a Map which a wise man shewed once to a fool that boasted of his lands bidding him to point out his lands in the Map which being narrow hee could not do and so went away ashamed Note then for this First wee all would bee counted wise many in these daies chuse to bee counted rather dishonest then unwise Well let us then bee wise for our selvs and wise to salvation in chusing this way of a promise to ground our souls upon Wee see not the Lord But if this bee a wiser way then that think there is somwhat in it then at first might seem more and fasten upon it 2. The strength of God Read 1 Sam. 15. The strength of Israel cannot lie meaning in his word So then in the Word of God is his strength also enough to bear up the poor soul in believing Heb. 1. 3. Hee bear's up all the weight of the World by the word of his power How much more the weight of a weak soul See Esay 27. 5. Anger is not in mee there is a word What follow 's Or take hold of my strength and make peace q. d. if I bee reconciled there is strength enough and that for a sinner to take hold of either this or nothing Read 2 Cor. 1. 20. For all the promises of God in him are Yea and Amen that is sure and strong but mark how In him the words that I speak are spirit and life But wherein is this strength Surely in the forenamed grounds of this second part Christ's satisfaction the Father's acceptation are those pillars of strength to a promise without which it would not avail to go to a promise Weigh seriously that noted text 2 Corin. 5. 20 21. The Ministers of God in his Name offer and seal up in the Word and Sacraments that word bee reconciled to God What saith the soul to this I dare not God is a consuing fire True saith Paul but anger is not in him Why becaus hee hath made and accepted him that knew no sin to bee sin that wee might bee the righteousness of God in him hee that said In him I am well pleased Shall a poor soul bee then as Noah's dove upon the waters Why say yee to my soul flie to the hils if God bee his strong hold If thou bee under the condition of the promise hee is no less in his promise Take a similitude A man lie's in prison for debt of an hundred pound A friend com's to him and bid's him com out hee answer's I cannot I lie here for debt and then there appear a strength unto him and laying hold of it hee com's out Read that in Rom. 3. 25. God hath set him forth to bee propitiation that hee might bee just in justifying him who is of the faith of Jesus What saith the poor sinner to this Oh! but it is just with God to punish sin wheresoever Nay haveing made and accepted him the propitiation for a broken soul it is even just to pardon him It was mercie to grant such propitiation but haveing so don it is also justice to pardon even as it is not just to take one debt twice Therefore David plead's Pardon mee according to thy righteousness Christ haveing turned just wrath into just mercie To conclude this note yet a second strength in the promise for the poor soul still cavill's But this is to a believer I believ not I answer But the promise by the power of the spirity of our Advocate is able to do that which it required it 's not a killing
works commending her to God but as sparkles of the Spirit of Grace which by these steps drawe's her home to God becaus hee will save her Vse I. Terror to all that dream of their estate to bee good when yet they lie in their sins as whole men they think Christ is offered them barely Bee reconciled to God bee they what they will bee And in this they are the more strengthened by the opinion of such Divines as dislike these preparations The which opinion as it take's away the benefit of triall and comfort from many poor souls who would fain finde the least seed of faith to bee begun in them and keep 's them long at a dead point with themselvs for lack of faith it self so it nuzzle's many hypocrites in a conceit of themselvs that bee they what they will yet they may be reconcil'd at their pleasure Again all such as remain blinde and dead-hearted blocks in the midst of this grace of the Gospel they see no light nor feel any warmth therefrom but still are cold Snakes and are neither affected with good nor evil Where is the hope of your faith where no dram of the condition of it is wrought Thirdly to all dalliers with the season of this grace and putting off this rich offer of God pinn'd on their sleev thinking they might have God tied to them and becaus they have tasted of his grace with the tip of their tongue therefore they may have it at their command wheras haveing once despised it they grow further and further from it daily They should have learned that the condition of faith is the preparation to faith Dallie with the one and forego the other Fourthly to all hypocrites that rest in som appeareance of these preparations not wrought in them by the spirit of Grace but from their own principles which appear's in this that if they bee reprooved they cannot endure it dare not enter into the triall of their mournings desires and proov them to com from the spirit of Grace but love their own eas better then the rules of God and while their own pangs last who but they but when their own sparkles bee out then full of sorrow No constancy plainness self-denial can bee found in them grace is nothing worth of it self except som mixture of their own concur with it A sign they have felt little sweetness in it and therefore are far from beleeving it Vse II. Let this doctrine remove those fears objections which arise in weak consciences as touching the greatness measure of preparations But let them know first that in these stand not their happiness but in Christ beleeved in Secondly if they had these in the measure they would they would bee readie to rest too much in them as Peter in his tabernacles Thirdly that the truth of these not the greatness hath the promise even the smoaking flax and the bruised reed Yea commonly such honor God soonest by beleeving And with these cautions let them go on and prosper Vse III. Exhortation to poor souls whom God hath truly brought under the condition of faith to bless him for that handsel I say first to acknowledg it great mercie although they have many doubts and fears and distempers to hinder them and the divel to com between cup and lip that they might not drink of that cup of salvation Oh remember it 's mercie to bee brought within these suburbs of heaven Bee thankfull for any thing especially a pledg of faith nay bee humble and say Lord what ever is not hell is from mercie I will rather comfort my self that the Lord meane's mee the fulness of this earnest rather then grudg that presently I have not my will and so wax wearie of waiting And secondly this should expell slavish fear from them becaus the Lord hath given them a condition of faith Beware yee do not abuse it Pledges are well kept by honest men not spoiled Do not tempt God by your distrust nor suffer the good preparations of the Spirit to die or wane through boldness loosness worldliness pleasures least God make them as bitter to you as Samsons dallying with his harlot Vse IV. It discover's the ignorance and vanitie of such Ministers and people who though they bee not leavened with Poperie yet partly from confounding mourning and sorrow with repentance and partly from blindeness and error of the common sort teach and think that repentance must goe before faith and here they flourish exceedingly for say they What doth not Peter say Repent and believ Think you that Christ will dwel where corruption is Must wee not repent becaus the kingdom of heaven is near Will God meddle with such as live in their sins Hence they mightily urge mortification of Lusts before wee dare apply Christ c. But Oh yee blinde guides of the blinde See you not how under colour of your devotion you overthrow Christ What use is there of Christ if our sins before wee believ must first bee mortified shall Christ die for sin alreadie mortified can wee dispose our selvs to grace when as all that is in us is graceless No Christ must bee not onely before our mortification but also before our believing yea before our preparation to beleiv Oh! but John the Baptist bid's the people to repent becaus the Kingdom was at hand I answer This objection com's from meer ignorance of the text For that Repentance there signifieth onely a penitencie of heart irking the soul for sin And yet Christ onely is the worker of it And it is a preparing grace of the Kingdom raised in the hearts of all that God will save It confound's the order of sanctification w th the order of Regeneration For although Mortification go before Vivification yet repentance never goe's before faith Now to cast the soul upon a promise or to believ is the last work of the calling spirit of God whereby an humbled sinner doth cast himself upon this word of God Bee reconciled com and drink com and I will eas you or the like offer will charge or promise of God for pardon and life This point is of all others the chief and therefore I chuse to refer it to this place as the use of all that hath been spoken jointly considered for wee know a five-fold cord is not easily broken and yet no one twist thereof might well bee spared Five divers grounds have been handled in this second part 1. God the Father our enemie hath cut off his plea and found out our deliverance 2. The Lord Jesus accordingly hath satisfied the justice of God that mercie might have free cours by the procuring of a righteousness 3. God the Father accept's this for a poor sinner as if hee in person had satisfied and therefore offer 's it to the soul most unfeignedly without hook or crook 4. Hee offer 's him not nakedly but with all his rich furniture to draw the soul to fasten upon him 5. Hee offer 's
don are to bee preferred to duties of pietie at that season as the Physician doth attend the Patient wee help the Ox out of the ditch rathen worship God first and suffer these to despair the whilest obedience in such cases is better then sacrifice and the omission of a duty is no contempt with God Vse I. This Doctine teacheth us to abhor the audaciousness of Popish and Heretical and Scismatical ones as forgetting this scope of God in establishing one eternal immutable and pure Rule of righteousness dare take upon them to controll this Law of God and to diminish it cutting off the Second and Tenth Commandements so that if they may prevail not the Moral Law but their Commands must bee our rules It is no wonder if theevs might have their will they would suffer no watches to bee kept or that deformed women lothe or break al true Glasses Let us so much the rather abhor them as odious enemies to God and under pretence of the Law of Libertie walk as lawless libertines and overthrow the Law of Conversation Vse II. Let us consider how dangerous a thing it is to worship God according to our own fancies and inventions It was a good speech of old They are the best Laws which give least power to the Judg. God will have no Judg to bee his Chancellor to make or interpret or change Laws hee know's our boldness and sacriledg in this kinde Vse III. If the Law bee the director of our Conversation Let it bee use of exhortation to all God's people to embrace it and to submit to this Scepter of Christ to establish his Law in our souls and to lift up him in the honor of our hearts who hath honored us w th his royal Law to bee our direction It is reported by Mr. Fox of one Crow a Seaman that beeing in Shipwrack and haveing cast all his tacklings and wares and five pounds of money into the Sea hee kept his New Testament about his neck so swimming upon his broken Mast and after four daies all his company being drowned yet hee was at length by passengers discovered and taken up all frozen numb'd and sterv'd but yet his Book hee held close to him If wee in the shipwracks of this World would keep our souls from wrack what cours should wee take Surely keep this Law to us close and not suffer it to depart from us lose money wares ship and all ere wee forego that least wee lose our conscience and disorder our conversation And in all our doubtful cases whether vows oaths marriages dealings with men entercours with God or any difficultie go to the Law and testimonie Esay 8. 20. for a resolution Vse VI. Let all that finde themselvs to com short of this platform I say let them live the life of faith in duties They that know a Command shall fear it Fear not him who when hee hath kill'd the bodie can go no surther But him fear whose will is righteousness and whose power is revenge yea who can cast both bodie and soul into hell God's people are taught Obedience from their youth up both to do and suffer without cavils distinctions or exceptions The first lesson they learned in the school of Christ was self-deniall and naked obeying the Promise That obedience to Christ hath taught them obedience to God the Father Christ hath made their yoke easie and burden light so that now they delight in the Law being made Christ's Law Vse V. This convince's all hypocrites obedience to the Law Alas It 's no direction for their lives they look at the Law still as a whip and bondage They dare not suffer themselvs to bee informed of the Law When they cannot resist it yet they are not convinced in conscience they think it bootless to obey Esa 58. Mal. 3. They wish the Law were according to their own scantling or els were not at all Hence all their life is nothing but a study to interpret the Laws of God with favor to their own corruption Vse VI. Let this teach us to live by faith for abilitie in Christ to all performances trust wee God upon a promise for each part of his cours to God men our selvs in solitariness company calling in Sabbaths subjection to superiors and common life Say thus Lord these duties are above mee I can do nothing to purpose enable mee to do what thou biddest and bid what thou wilt els the number and weight of them will tire and clog mee Thou hast eased me O Lord of the burden of Moses but still even in my libertie from Christ I carrie old Adam's burden about mee Therefore write these laws in my heart I beseech thee that I may delight in the Law in my inner man and that I may run thy commandements with cheerfulness ARTIC IV. The LORD hath given helps to his Church to uphold her in Obedience REad 2 Pet. 1. 3. Eph. 4. 11. Mat. ult Joh. 14. 26 1 Cor. 12. 4 5 6 7. in which Scriptures wee have the order of this provision of God and that in four degrees 1. In our outward Ordinances themselvs as Preaching receiving the Sacraments c. 2. The Instrumens and lively organs serving to minister therein as Pastors Teachers Ministers of the Gospel 3. Gifts and Administrations vouchsafed unto them for the be better dispensing and officiciateing those services 4. The Spirit of God to assist and enable them to all these performances These helps are of 2 sorts Private or Publick both are Extraordinarie 1. Fasting 2. Thanksgiveing Ordinarie 3. The Word preached 4. Baptism 5. The Supper 6. Praier 7. Meditation 8. Conference 1. Fasting is a solemn ordinance of God attended with rest and abstinence wherein the Church lawfully assembled powre's out her self in affliction and supplication with importunitie for turning away of som great present or imminent sin danger 2. Thanksgiveing is a solemn ordinance of God wherein the Church lawfully assembled powre's out herself in praises and thanks for som rare blessings and deliverances And let this also bee understood of private in both extraordinarie kindes terms beeing observed 3. The Word preached is a publick eminent ordinance wherein the Minister lawfully deputed doth distinctly and soundly read the Word give the sens ground the doctrine and convinceingly applie it by instruction reproof confutation exhortation and admonition 4. Baptism is the former sacrament of the New Tastament wherein by due application of Water to the infant all Christ is sealed up to the soul for regeneration 5. The Sacrament of the Supper is the second in order in which by due giveing and receiving of bread and wine the Lord Jesus is wholy given and taken by the believing soul to bee nourished to eternal life 6. Praier is a lifting up of the heart to God in the name of Jesus Christ in confession and supplication for pardon of sin the granting of all good things and acknowledging of mercies already received with thankfulness 7 Meditation is a serious
desperate and refractorie sinners that they may com under God's chain but as are bound in it already must not bee oppressed more as if there were no succor for them no Balm in Gilead Vse II. Let such as are to receiv their counsel beware of beeing stout and obstinate by melancholie and sullenness Many people make their chains heavier then God make's them and will not suffer a thought of hope to enter through the anguish of bondage All such as becaus they cannot feel so strong comforts as they fancie therefore quarrel with God and reject such as hee offer 's them No let not God bee tempted by thy frowardness when hee seek's to trie thy humilitie Vse III. It 's exhortation to all poor troubled souls First to get and pray for readie and willing hearts to hear and see God's voice and steps for for eas and do not devour their own flesh Prov. 9. 12. Get Abraham's wisedom Gen. 22 13. who although Isaac had the knife at his throat yet had an ear to hear the Angel and an eie to see the Ram caught in the bush instead of his son Secondly although your hope bee small yet becaus your streight is great consider whether it bee not better to venture upon uncertain hope then upon assured wo 2 King 7. 4. Vse IV. Suffer not bondage to swallow you up in legall sorrow think not hell an heaven custom but as speedily as you can get out at this privie door blessing God for such a mitigation of miserie that in the discharge of the duties of your places you may attend upon the further work of God abhorring to think your selvs well becaus the Law hath you under bondage till the Gospel hath comforted you THE SECOND PART ARTIC I. That there is a deliverance ordained and granted to miserable Man out of this thraldom TItus 3. 4 5 6 c. But after that the kindeness and love of GOD our Savior toward Man appeared not by works of righteousness which hee had don but according to his mercie hee saved us through the washing of Regeneration and renewing of the Holie-Ghost which hee shed on us abundantly by JESUS CHRIST our Savior Here is a cleer view of a deliverance of a Sinner from this miserie together with the use of it to all that want it The scope is to oppose deliverance to miserie q d. Thus indeed it was by our deservings and God's justice but yet the Lord could not finde in his heart to let us lie in this woful and shiftless estate but when hee saw none to save himself saved us as a man seeing a perishing creature in a ditch and readie to despair for lack of present help himself stepped forth to help it out hee of dutie the Lord of meer goodness hee found out a way to set man on drie land out of the gulf of miserie so that the one was not so hideous as this is pretious and gracious So that First note that in this woful ruine of man there is a deliverance Eph. 2. 1. 1 Thes 1. vlt. Luke 1. 74. Esay 63. 5. Secondly it is appointed by the LORD out of the uusearchable treasure of his wisedom And this appear's partly by his eternal purpose within himself and partly by that expression of himself to his Church and to his elect Both these the intention of his heart towards them and the declaration thereof to them in his word do shew that it was not the will of God that man sunk in the dungeon of wo should lie there still and perish but recover out of it and live and this hee would have no secret in his own bosom nor hidden from us but known and revealed The Lord from eternitie purposed with himself to exempt a number known to himself out of this destruction and out of his justice to pass by others as not bound to rescue them and leav them in their corruption still and this to manifest his infinite justice against sin The Covenant of Grace is the promulgation and publishing of this his purpose in and by his word i e. by his Son the eternal word of the Father And this Covenant reache's equally to Election and no further and the sum of it is that GOD will bee their God to pardon sanctifie protect and save them will not bee ashamed to bee so called by them nor of them to bee his own beloved but hold them in this everlasting Covenant of his till hee receive them to immediate fruition of himself There is another general Covenant of ordinary calling by the ofter of the Gospel and the common badg of Baptism which is made to all without exception who exclude not themselvs but differeth from the former and is much larger then Election This offer must bee universal 1. Because whom the Lord call's hee call's and cull's out of the universal world those who receiv it shew themselvs elect those who finally reject it perish by their own unbelief and shew themselvs to bee none of God's number 2. His Ministers beeing his ordinarie instruments cannot put difference between the elect and the not-elect therefore they are to publish it generally to all 3. If the Covenant should bee dispensed with restraint this might strengthen the rebellious in their cavilling against the decree and fasten the caus of their perdition upon God which is onely from themselvs Vse I. It should teach us to adore the wisedom of God in this manner of manifesting himself This Covenant was darkly before shadowed by ceremonies but in due time revealed clearly Vse II. Break off thy league with sin and embrace the Covenant of mercie the sure mercies of David Vse III. Thouh Redemption bee the undivided work of the whole Trinitie yet even in this there bee several and incommunicable works of everie person concurring The Son merit's and work 's out the way of redemption The holie-Ghost work 's the perswasion of it in the soul But God the Father is the first mover and ordainer of it as the wel-spring whence the purpose and also the manifestation thereof proceeded Beware then least wee either confound these three actions or yet exclude any of the persons from their own operations But let us adore them all The Spirit in the work of applying Christ and the Father in the work of giveing Christ and in that love of his from which both Christ and the satisfaction came Vse IV. Behold in the Father an infinite depth of love and mercie toward sunken man thus to repair him Here is love not that wee loved him first but hee loved us haveing nothing but odiousness in us even that hee might shew what was in his heart and what hee could do Therefore judg aright of this first love and secondly profit by the meditation of Judg of it to bee the very fulness of all in all to bee a length depth height and bredth neither to bee reached unto searched into comprehended or attained but onely by faith embraced and rested upon
Mediator to stand between wrath and us not by arbitrement as in humane sequesterships but by paiment for us Lo therefore hee take's our person upon him becom's piacular that is first seazed with our sin by imputation that by his righteousness hee might deface it and fulfil the Law broken by us and secondly seazed with our curs that by his suffring death hee might quit us of the fear and punishment thereof His Suffering or Passion hath two parts the Sacrifice it self or Passion and the Conquest or Victorie ensuing it whereby hee gave the Passion a full power to becom or rather to bee declared satisfactory The Applying part is the act of his intercedeing Mediation here on earth and especially in heaven serveth to settle the merit of Redemption upon all the Elect in the due season thereof These are called well-springs of salvation Esay 12. 3. becaus they are so many grounds of justifying faith Their number is seaven 1. Incarnation 2. Divinitie 3. Personal union with anointing attending it 4. Actual obedience 5. Passive 6. Conquest 7. Applying all to the Elect. I Branch Incarnation By the power of the holy Ghost sanctifying the flesh of the Virgin the Lord Jesus beeing conceived in and born of the poor Virgin did submit himself to such unspeakable abasement as to take upon him the nature of man that in and by it hee might obey and suffer those things which the divine nature could not beee capable off Touching this point observ further three things 1. The realness of the flesh of the Lord Jesus hee took verie flesh of verie flesh and not as som Hereticks thought a similitude and shadow of it 2. The differences of his incarnnation I. In respect of his father hee was not ordinarily begotten by man but by the holie Ghost who fulfilled the work of a father 2. In regard of his mother a Virgin before and in and after his Incarnation Divines make the Four differences of Generation I. When man is made man without father or mother as Adam in his creätion 2. When man is made without a woman as Eve was 3. When man is made both by man and woman and so are all her posteritie made 4. The last when man is made without either man or woman and so was the flesh of Christ made Thirdly hee took our nature the seed of Adam and caused it to subsist in the second person of Godhead 3. Resolution of som doubts about it as I. Why was it necessarie that our Saviour Jesus should bee flesh That hee might thereby bee fitted and accommodated for the work of suffering The Godhead could not suffer the manhood could not merit infinitely the Godhead therefore must merit by a flesh that could suffer 2. Why must the flesh of a man and his nature bee taken to satisfie The flesh of a person could have reached onely to a personal satisfaction but the flesh of our nature might satisfie for natue it self and all persons contained under it 3. Why must the second person in Trinitie take flesh 1. becaus the word of creätion and first subsisting in creäted goodness must also bee the instrument of the uncreäted 2. It behooved that as Christ is the engraven form of his fathe'rs likeness and the brightness of his person therefore so hee should bee the instument to bring us to partake the same image after wee had lost it 3 It was fit that the righteous servant and naturural son of God should make us his servants and obedient children Vse 1. To confute Hereticks and Papists who destroy the realness and truth of the bodie of our satisfier by their Ubiquitie which destroye's the properties of the true bodie and so the bodie it self Vse 11. Of instruction teaching us to magnifie this mysterie of Godliness Jesus incarnate It 's a modell of the unspeakable justice love wisedom of God in one a far greater excellencie is in it then in the creation It was and is the song and wonderment of Angels it was then and still is that which bring 's glorie to God peace to the earth good will to men It caused Mary to exult and to magnifie God the Shepheards to report it the Wise-men to travail after it Herod and Jerusalem to tremble Simeon and Anna to rejoice and all the Church of God to triumph and and shall wee hold our peace and want affections and admirations Again it should teach us to cast off all base carnal reasons and distrusts either touching our salvation or protection Hereafter judg not God by outward apparences in the fulness of 4000 yeers flesh came If the bodie of all promises bee com how shall the branches bee performed Hee that hath given us this deliverance what can hee denie us Vse 111. Let us learn whither to go when wee want any preferment in priveledges or any grace to to furnish our hearts or lives or to fill us for our places duties and callings or for use of odinances especially when wee are under streights and bitter enemies Let us bee perswaded that our flesh glorified in heaven bear 's such stroak with the Father that hee will hear him in all his requests yea let us remember that hee therefore took flesh and felt all our ailes and infirmities that hee might pitie us and bee afflicted with us in all our affictions and temptations as Esay 63. 9. and will not let us lie under any streights which hee can rid us off For hee count's ours his and our selvs his and will do for us in this as in all other things as for his own flesh Vse IV. To exhort us to sundrie duties 1 In the difficultie which wee finde in the life of our faith let us draw neer to the flesh of our Mediator for influence and succor oh how far off do promises seem to bee unto us Christ is our peace in guilt of conscience strength to sustein us with patience in our crosses libertie from all bondage sufficiencie to enable us to walk with God to crucifie corruption to persevere to attain the resurrection of the dead 2. Again it should encourage our faint timorous hearts so many as are loden with our burden to com to the flesh of this Mediator for eas For first in this flesh of Christ there is a general fitness in him to receiv every one whose nature hee beareth for in that nature each person is enclosed Secondly it should help our weakness in coming to God the father by coming by this flesh of the Lord Jesus Thirdly let us com and plead our part in the Lord Jesus for our portion of forgiveness and mercie Fourthly by faith com and draw waters from this well-spring of salvation II Branch the Divinitie of Christ The Lord Jesus our Mediator was true God also It was not onely the second Person and no other who took flesh but a Divinitie which enabled an Humanitie to obey and suffer that God's justtce might except against neither as insufficient The Acts and sufferings
spared us when wee have broke them pressing in upon us with renuing of good motions and affections which wee had quenched as being loth to lose us giveing us helps and means even out of season after long contempt confessing himself to mean as hee speak's Why lay you out your money and not for bread and your silver for that which profit's not Hearken unto mee eat good things So somtimes by his protestations of his loathness that any poor soul should perish Why will yee die oh yee hous of Israel Anger is not in mee why should flame consume the stubble What should I do to my vine that I have not don Somtimes by his passions and lamentations Luke 19. 42. Oh! that thou hadst seen even in that day the things that concern thy peace but now they are hidden Those tears and mournings over Jerusalem for her hard heart and contempt have been and are still over thee If there bee any dampings and streightnings of spirit thou hast caused them by thy dalliance and heart that would not repent But the Lord for his part still crie's How oft would I have gathered thee as the Hen doth her chickens Somtimes by his writeings to this feast of his Son somtimes by his contestation somtimes by his entreaties and earnest exhorting somtimes by his allurements to perswade and toll on the heart that hang's off by the promise of all the good things which hee offereth somtimes by his severe threats to all that refuse his offers all these shew how willing and cordial hee is to part with his grace and lastly somtimes by the universalitie of it that hee dispenceth it without all respect of persons age sexes states and conditions who exempt not themselvs But the special properties of this offer are three 1. Libertie 2. Simplicitie 3. Fidelitie First hee offer 's to whom hee pleaseth passing by millions of people in the world so that it is meerly unconditional and free as when Paul came to Athens or Ephesus who had never heard of the Gospel before Secondly the Lord beeing truly pacified in Christ offer 's it simply hithout grudging with an open heart meaning as hee speak's Thirdly Fidelitie whereby hee doth most readily and fully perform whatsoever hee offer 's to all who put him to the triall and accept it This is the main hinge whereupon the door of Hope and Faith turneth For an Offer is no otherwise differing from a promise then as a general out of which a particular issueth the promise is included in an offer but yet in special expressing the covenant of God to all that express the offer that hee will receiv them bee their God both in pardon and all-sufficiencie Into these the soul doth wholy powr out herself which that wee may understand consider this that wee have to do with the Father immediately but with our Lord Jesus onely mediately as a mean to lead us with confidence to him The Father properly look's at the Son as our Suretie and us for his sake but wee look at him directly and to our Lord Jesus as our Mediator So that look what wee can shew for our reconciliation must com from the Father and that is his offer and promise oath and covenant of mercie Into that therefore the poor soul is to resolv it self all her doubts fears temptations and distempers whatsoever Vse 1. This teache's us to adore the depth of God's justice against sin that hath still left so many Nations in their utter darkness and brutish ignorance of the Gospel How should this woful desertion provoke us to prize the revelation of this Mysterie to us as for them how should we pittie them Vse II. Secondly this is terror to all Papists that maliciously hide and darken this precious offer of God in the Gospel from the eies of the blinde people terror to all profane scorners who reject the Gospel and prize their swine their pottage their pleasures eas and pomp more then the Gospel reproof of all Non-discerners of this Grace of the Gospel the feet of a Minister shoul bee beautiful in this main respect though others also beecaus hee bring 's glad tidings of peace Vse III. Reproof to all that sleight the Gospel in the offer thereof prefer their oxen and farms their self-love ends and liberties before it Vse IV. Advertisement to God's Ministers to magnifie their Ministerie in deed and practice by beseeching the people to bee reconciled to God Vse V. This should scare all from infidelitie and contempt of God's offer Oh! it 's free and from meer good will the Lord is tied to none Hee hath rejected millions of Jewes and Turks and Baptized ones and chosen to offer grace to thee And shall the contempt of the free offer of that which thousands would have been glad of upon the price of going from sea to sea for it bee pardonable Do but consider what woful punishment will lie upon thee who refusest such an offer laid in this lap When as many poor souls would rejoice if the spending of dayes and nights might procure them a tender and believing heart to receiv it and yet complain that they cannot com by it Oh tremble at the freedom of this offer Bee humble and base in thy self to consider but this I am a poor wretch standing to the mercie of a free God who hath it to give where hee will and to denie it at his pleasure If hee give it to a prodigal son and denie it to a moral civilian if hee give it to one that came into the vineyard at the eleventh hour and denie it to him that came in at the seventh if hee denie it to the willer and runner and bee found of such as sought him not who shall alledg against freedom May hee not do with his own as him please's Oh! despise none least the Lord make the despiser seek to the despised and bee glad of their portion Oh! turn all emulation and scorn into humilitie and deep adoring of this freedom Vse VI. Dallie not with this offer of grace There is a while of it a season annexed to the offer The same breath which urgeth to receiv the grace of God add's a charge For hee hath said In an accepted time I have heard thee and in the day of salvation have I succored thee Oh that in that thy day thou hadst seen Now when is this day Surely it is not the day of possible mercie but of seasonable mercie Then when as besides health means and the offer of grace the Lord putt's a special spirit into the Ministerie of the Word so that it pierce's into the heart with perswasion when the terrors of it are weightie and serious the promise it is as the early fruit in Summer welcom and savorie when sin is bitter to the soul and when it is irksom to it to bee out of God's favor When the heart break 's and mourn's after God and can spend nights after dayes in seeking and it cannot bee