doth go before the actings of any other holy quality in those Souls Faith being the first habit in order of nature though not in time that 's infused into any Soul It doth also in order of nature work and manifest it self in acting before any other habit whatsoever And therefore the acting of Faith in that particular application of the absolute promise must be before there be a manifestation of any other holy quality to be in the Soul And thence in regard this particular way in applying these absolute promises is without any holy quality in Souls there can be no other word but only the Lords absolute promise to be the ground from whence this faith can arise This is generally granted of all And from thence take notice of these two things 1. That the absolute general promise of God that is holden forth as made unto the people and Church of God alone that is a particular ground of the Souls first confidence or adherence unto Jesus Christ 2. That the general absolute promise of God doth speak particularly to every Soul who attains any right or interest in it Secondly I shall answer affirmatively That it is a particular ground of Faith of assurance or a particular evidence to assure a Souls Faith that he is united unto Jesus Christ And that I shall open in two Conclusions Conclu 1. The absolute promise is sufficient to reveal to a Souls Faith a certainty of his Union in regard there is an equivalency in the absolute promise of God that runs to all Souls to any particular promise that could be made Paul manifested as full a certainty of his acceptance into Union with Christ to be holden forth to him in the absolute promise as if he had had a particular word from heaven saying thou Paul shalt be accepted into union with Christ In 1 Tim. 1.15 This is a faithfull saying and worthy of all acceptation What is that That Jesus Christ came into the World to save Sinners Here is as far off a remote promise as can be That Jesus Christ came into the World to save Sinners What then Of whom I am chief As if he should have said The Lord Christ came to save me where he makes Christ sent into the world particularly to save his Soul And certainly the same promise were able to give the Soul that particular certainty that Paul did receive did the same light appear from the promise as did to Paul But that there is such an equivalency in what the absolute promise can give to testifie union to what a particular promise gives appear in two things 1. In the latitude or largeness and extensiveness of the promise it self The promises that are of absolute mercies and are declared to be the absolute will of God concerning his peoples Souls they are all propounded as indefinite propositions that is without any certain bounds In that promise Christ came into the World to save Sinners there is no bounds set to it neither this kind of Sinner or that kind of Sinner such as are thus and thus rebellious but Sinners So Mark 16.15 Go Preach the Gospel to every creature Preach the Gospel What is that Preach the glad tydings of Salvation It is as much as if Jesus Christ should have said Go and tell every Soul my Father is willing to accept their rebellious souls into union with my self And unless this be receive tendered the Gospel is not Preached Exclude the declaring of Gods will to every particular Soul to receive him into Union with the Lord Christ and you exclude the Preaching of the Gospel And that 's the reason the Angel Luke 2.10 when he brings the glad tidings of Jesus Christ saith I bring glad tidings To whom To such a Nation or People No I bring glad tidings to all people There is no other bounds set but the World it self If a man comes under the notion of a creature he comes under the notion of the promise he cannot say but it is the will of God to receive his Soul into Union if he will embrace the Lord Christ 2. It appears in regard of the expresness of the command to every Soul particularly to apply the promise 1 John 3.23 This is the command of God that ye believe in the name of his Son Jesus Christ And again this is the Word of God that ye believe in the name of Jesus Christ Now believing can contain but two things Either a giving credit to the truth of what the promise holds forth And surely this cannot be meant for the Devils themselves believe as much Or else a receiving unto their particular Souls what the Lord there tenders in Christ Jesus and if you observe it the Scripture phrase generally holds forth believing in this sence Thence it is that believing and receiving in Scripture are put both for one 1 John 1.12 Now that the extent of this command of believing reaches thus far to a particular application of those absolute promises to themselves will be cleared by two particulars 1. In regard all unbelief and the fruits of it is vertually and eminently forbidden in this command of believing When any positive duty is enjoyned by God the contrary must needs be forbidden by the same law vertually and all the evil consequences of whatever is contrary to the duty enjoyned Now believing being enjoyned virtually unbelief and all the fruits of unbelief are forbidden The fruits of unbelief is doubting and so all doubting of the Lords will to fulfill his promise of accepting the soul into union with the Lord Jesus that 's content and willing to receive Christ into Union with him all this doubting of the will of God is there forbidden vertually in regard it is contrary to the duty commanded because it proceeds from the root unbelief which is directly contrary unto faith 2. In regard the strength of Faith must needs be the extent of the command The Soul is to give credit to the Lord as a thing unquestionably certain that the Lord is willing to receive his poor loveless Soul into Union with the Lord Christ So that in effect the Lord doth in that command to the Soul to believe enjoyn the Soul to receive fulness of assurance from the very promise that the Lord is willing to receive his Soul into union with the Lord Christ Yet do not mistake me I do not say the command is of such an extent that it doth expresly command every one to believe that he is one in Christ for then the promise should command him to believe a lye in regard the greatest number are at enmity But the extent of the command is to assure the Soul of the Lords willingness to receive him into union with Jesus Christ if he be willing to receive him And this the Lord enjoyns the most rebellious wretches wherever the Gospel comes the first command to such rebellious Souls is to believe that God is willing to receive their rebellious Souls into union
actings till this mortal shall have put on immortality Fourthly There is a want of an absolute nothingness in the Soul in the precious holy actings of the Soul That vile principle of Self-confidence is so firmly rooted in our natures that when the sanctifying Spirit of Jesus Christ hath had a blessed work upon the unholy heart yet then the bitter root of Self-confidence will be sending forth some cursed sprigs be will sprouting forth in some unholy actings even in the midst of the Souls actings the Soul being never perfectly and absolutely nothing in himself in his holy actings Thence you may observe from your experience an infinite difficulty that you find after great enlargements of heart in a holy duty then to think no better of your selves for the duty It must be a mighty power of the spirit that must draw forth from a Soul at such a time that voice in sincerity saying not I but the grace of God that was in me Now that Light that discovers unto a believing Soul those unholinesses of his whereof the believing Soul is constantly guilty in some degree in all his holy actings is an unseparable attendant upon the Spirit of Light evidencing to the Soul its union with the Lord Jesus There is only the light of the Lords Love in Christ to the worthless nothing-like Soul that discovers the want of pure Love in the Souls actings of holiness It is the vision of the Lords Love unto the Soul that excites and stirs up actings of Love in the Soul unto God So likewise the vision of the Lords Love in Christ unto the Soul enables the Soul to discern the want of pure perfect Love in his Soul unto God It is then when a Soul sees that Love of God in Christ unto his unlovely unspeakable soul that he apprehends deeply that the most superlative actings of his Love are due from him unto God again and then doth the Soul discern the great evil of the imperfection of the actings of his own Love so as to answer the actings of the Lords will out of pure Love only Thence it is when the Spirit of Jesus Christ doth evidence unto it his union with Christ then any slavish workings of fear are tedious and burdensom unto the Soul whereas before the Soul thought those actings of fear if they brought sorth but some Tears to be precious actings but now it loaths them So likewise it is only the Light of the Lords Love in Jesus Christ to the worthless soul that discovers clearly the want of freedom and liberty in the heart in its holy actings Then indeed the soul groans not only for the want of his heart answering the Lords will in obedience and so for want of holy actings but he groans under the want of freedom of spirit in those holy actings also So likewise the want of perfect rest and complacency of the Soul in his holy actings is made manifest only through the light of the glorious Love of the Lord in Jesus Christ to the loveless Soul No Soul can discern matter wherein he may take up a fulness of rest only in obedience to the Lords will till he discerns God as he is in Jesus Christ to his unlovely Soul and therefore the want of the Souls fulness of contentment in the actings of holiness can never be made clearly manifest till the light of the Lords love in Jesus Christ shines upon it yea the lively beauty excellency and glory that is in the bare fulfilling of the Lords holy will only shines clearly to the Soul through the light of the Lords love in Jesus Christ Yea the want of an absolute nothingness in himself in his holy actings is made apparent to the Soul through the light of the Lords Love in Jesus Christ shining upon him Never can a Soul apprehend that all that he is and all that the powers and possibilities of his Soul can perform and infinitely more is due from his Soul unto God till the glorious light of the Lords love in Christ shine upon him It is only when the light of that love shines that the heart says in sincerity to it self what thinkest thou O my heart is due to thee though now thou hast been enlarged by the assistance of the Spirit of Christ in this holy duty Art not an unprofitable Servant not having given to the Lord the hundred thousandth part what thou dost owe to him IV. When the Spirit evidenceth unto any Soul his union with the Lord Jesus sensible free acknowledgements of an infinite disproportion in the most holy actings of the Soul to the Lords holy blessed will are necessarily drawn forth in regard the unholiness that constantly attends in some degree the actings of holiness in Souls are at the same time most cross and opposite to the Souls desires The desires of the soul being but the reachings forth of love and the highest actings of love being the necessary effect of those highest discoveries of the Lords love to the soul thence necessarily the highest desires of the soul are raised to a superlative height after fulness of unity and perfect communion with God in Christ when the spirit evidenceth to the soul his union with Jesus Christ V. When the spirit evidenceth to the soul its union with Christ the spiritual sense of the soul is then most lively The spirit of Jesus Christ being constantly a quickening spirit where he is a comforting spirit the soul being filled with comfort cannot but be filled with life and when the soul is filled with life sense is also lively so that thence the soul at that time is most sensible of his own unholiness and thence necessarily is constrained to acknowledge sensibly the disagreement of his will in his most holy actings to the Lords most holy blessed will 2. The spirit evidencing to any soul its union with the Lord Jesus doth certainly draw forth free declarations from the soul that the least transgression of the Lords blessed will is just occasion of incensing the wrath of God infinitely and eternally against the soul and just occasion of unspeakable perplexipy and grief to the soul So that through this a soul declares that blessed will of God to be so absolutely so perfectly holy that the least opposing of that blessed will might justly deprive him of acceptance Thus you may observe when the spirit of Jesus Christ stirred up the heart of the Church to precious believing Acts Lament 3.22 23 24. then did the same spirit draw from their mouths sensible declarations that the least of their transgressions did justly expose them to the everlasting burning to be consumed in the fire of the Lords Indignation then she cries out It is of the Lords mercies that we are not consumed because his compassions fails not So likewise in Psal 130.3 when the heart of the Psalmist was up in believing actings then saith he If thou shouldest mark iniquity who shall stand The least iniquity that remains in the most sanctified souls
performing of that duty by a soul that the Lord requires of it in communicating grace mercies and favours to it is the Lords fulfilling his own Covenant of grace in and to the soul Jer. 31.33 Ezek. 36.27 Now that which is a part of Gods fulfilling the Covenant cannot go before the Covenant it self So that from thence are two things that you must conclude First that the performing those duties that God requires do give no soul any title or interest in any one promise of the Covenant of grace Secondly that the Lords promise to the Soul hath no dependance upon the souls performance of the duty that God requires him to perform in reference to Gods communicating mercy to the soul Yet I pray here be cautelous I do not say that God requires no duty from souls whilest he is thus communicating his free grace and mercy unto them I do not exempt souls from duty but I only exempt Gods promise from a dependence upon the duty and establish Gods own promise upon its right Basis and Foundations which is only his own will and absolute determination II. The second thing you are to observe for the clearing of these Scriptures is this That those duties required by God from souls in communicating mercies must of necessity go before the Lords intituling the soul to many mercies Though they cannot in order of nature go before any promise of the Covenant of grace yet in order of nature at least if not in order of time they go before the Lords intituling the soul to very many mercies mercies almost of all sorts That is till souls have performed those duties God requires they can claim no right nor title nor have any right nor title unto many mercies And all the right their souls enjoy to many mercies may and must be conveyed to them through the performance of these duties As for example in 1. Kings 8.47 48. God promiseth deliverance to them out of captivity and restauration of them into their own land and many priviledges yet those duties there described by the Holy Ghost to be the way of his peoples approach to him and seeking his face for their return out of captivity could not but of necessity go before at least in order of nature to the Lords intituling that people in the mercy of deliverance so that while those duties were not performed by the soul there could be no right nor title claimed of that deliverance by those persons But now there are four or five things to be observed for the clearing of this 1. That the duties here required by God though they do and must go before the Lords intituling the soul to many mercies yet they do not nor cannot go before the Lords intituling the soul to any absolute mercies Those absolute mercies are conveyed to the soul through the Covenant of grace absolutely without any respect or reference to any duty whatever performed by the soul so as the promise of them should have dependence upon the duty in the least degree But these relative mercies are only included in the Covenant of grace with limitation so as they are mercies considered with such circumstances considered as being communicated to such persons in such order in such manner in such degree Now it is of these mercies only that these duties required by God may go before in order of nature to the Lords intitling the soul to the mercy 2. Observe Though these duties may go before and ordinarily must go before the Lords intitling the soul to such mercies yet it is not the duty that gives the soul the right to those mercies thus to be injoyed Suppose those relative mercies to be conveyed to any particular soul at a sutable time in a sutable manner order measure and degree every way sutable so as they are mercies and then all these mercies are as absolutely promised in the Covenant of grace as those absolute eternal mercies that cannot but be mercies however they are communicated 3. It is not the duty nor the performance of it that gives the soul the right and title to the promise So that the duty is neither the immediate ground of the souls right to the mercy nor the remote ground that is the furthest off ground The furthest off ground is the promise The immediate is that which gives them right to the promise Now the soul must be in the Covenant of grace before the duty be performed and being in the Covenant of grace he hath right to the promise through which he partakes of such relative mercies 4. Though there be an ordinary necessity of these duties required by God preceeding or going before the souls injoying such mercies yet it is not the duty simply considered in its own nature as a duty upon which this necessity lies that it should go before the souls injoyment of the mercies I mean thus it is not prayer that God requires of thy soul that waits for the communication of any mercy or grace considered only as prayer which is to be considered as a duty that this of necessity must go before the souls injoyment of the mercy that is as though the Lord would have this necessity to be upon the performing of the duty because he would have something done by the soul before he will make it partake of his mercies Only the performance of the duty so disposeth the heart as a mercy shall be a mercy to the Soul 5. Observe further That the rise and exercise of the duties thus required by God sometimes to go before the Lords vouchsafing such mercies to souls can be only from the vertue of some promise contained in the Covenant of grace which the Lord fulfills in a soul For without influences from the Covenant of grace were there the most exquisit prayers the most continual strong wrastlings of a soul with God the most powerful Mourning and Weepings and Cryings after God all could not dispose a soul rightly for the injoyment of any of those relative mercies so as they should be mercies unto them when they are communicated 3. There is a third thing also to be observed for the clearing of these Scriptures and that is That these duties that are sometimes precedent in souls before their enjoyment of such relative mercies are absolutely promised to those that are in the Covenant of Grace to be effected by God in their souls This you may see apparent Ezek. 36 comparing v. 27. with v. 37. In v. 37. he saith I will be enquired of by the house of Israel to do it for them but v. 27. he saith I will put my Spirit in you and cause you to walk in my Statutes and my Judgments to do them And Jer. 31.33 saith the Lord I will write my Law in their hearts and they shall not depart from me The Lord doth even engage himself absolutely to work that in their hearts that he doth require to be done by their souls in his communicating mercies to them Now these
I shall desire to clear from divers particulars 1. In regard the immediate ground of the certainty of the promise or of the Covenant of Grace unto the Soul can be nothing else but the gift of God Therefore saith the Apostle Rom. 4.16 It is of faith that it might be by grace to the end that the promise might be sure to all the seed And that the immediate ground of the certainty of the promise must be gift alone appears in two things First In regard the foundation of all must be Grace Eph. 1.6 7. That we might be to the glory of his Grace Therefore in Ezek. 16.62 63. I will establish my Covenant with thee and thou shalt know that I am the Lord There 's the absolute promise What is the end That thou mayest remember and be confounded and never open thy mouth any more because of thy shame when I am pacified towards thee for all that thou hast done saith the Lord. This is strange one would think that they should be ashamed and consounded when God is pacified and reveals himself to be pacified But here is the mystery of it The Lord lays Grace as the foundation of all his ways towards them purposely that the glory of all that God communicates to Souls might be to himself alone Secondly In regard there can be nothing else the object of faith There are but two things that can be grounds of certainty It must be either Grace in God or Grace in the Soul Either the love of God or the effects of the love of God in the Soul Now the effects of the love of God in the Soul are things seen ad therefore not the objects of Faith Heb. 11.1 2. The discovery of the absolute will of God must be the only ground of assurance in regard faith can discern no certainty of Gods differencing one soul from another but what the Word of God reveals Now the Word of God reveals no other ground of the Lords differencing one soul from another but only his own will Rom. 9.12.18 3. In regard the sight of the certainty of the souls right of receiving Christ into union with himself doth wholly depend upon a sight of the certainty of the Lords will to recieve the soul into union with Christ Though the Spirit of God hath secretly allured the heart from those dark Visions of Christ to embrace him truly so as there is a real union between Christ and the soul yet the soul cannot judg aright of his receiving the Lord Christ so tendred to be given to his soul till he sees that he did receive the Lord Christ upon the right ground 4. In that it is the souls duty to receive the gifts of God in that order wherein the Lord manifests his giving of his gifts Now the order wherein the Lord propounds his gifts is first the gift of the Lord Christ and then the gift of all graces as the adjunct of the gift of the Lord Christ And thence the Lord invites the soul and commands the soul first in order to receive Christ that so it might partake of all the graces of Christ and all those dispositions of Holiness the soul longs for 5. In that the Lord judgeth it sufficient for assuring the Wavering Trembling soul of a poor sinner fearing the indignation of God against him for his sin You shall read Gen. 3.15 That all the promise that God gave to Adam when out of question the poor man was in great distress was only this That the Seed of the Woman should break the Serpents Head A meer discovery of his absolute free will without respect to any thing in souls themselves that he would deliver solely by a way devised by his own Wisdom by a Mediatour by taking upon him the humane nature and conquering the powers of Hell that did then hold poor souls captive Could Adam have received no evidence nor no assurance of the Lords accepting his soul into union with himself again in Christ from that promise the soul of Adam had been left altogether comfortless there being no description given by God of any graces that his own spirit did communicate to the souls of such that he had accepted into union with himself 6. In regard the patterns holden forth in Scripture of such as have received their union with Christ received the evidence of their union from the Lords absolute promise from the discovery of his will alone to do good unto their souls In Gen. 15.6 7 8 compared with Rom. 4.18 19. you shall see Abraham the Father of all believers he received the evidence of the Lords blessing him in Christ which is all one with taking into union with Christ only by the discovery of the Lords absolute will towards him Another pattern you see Isa 6.5 6 7 In the sense of his own wretchedness crying out Wo is me I am undone c. A Seraphim flew unto him having a live coal in his hand which he took off the Altar and laid it upon his mouth you must conceive it was done in a Vision and said loe this hath touched thy lips and thine Iniquity is taken away and thy Sin purged Here is an absolute promise of the Lords free love to Isaiah It gives him no Characters at all but tells him his Iniquity is taken away and this satisfied the soul of Isaiah as you may see v. 8. by his readiness to obey the command of God here I am send me And the case is every way parallel only this particularizeth the person of Isaiah whereas other promises are holden forth generally but yet every particular soul is as fully included and the promise is as absolutely spoken to every soul receiving it as it was unto Isaiah And it is the light of the Spirit that shines forth in the promise that doth put as much particularity and doth as much particularize the promise to any one soul as this promise was particularized to Isaiah in a Vision So that it is from the Lords absolute will alone that the soul receives a full ground of his union with Christ That 's the first branch of the 5th Conclusion The second branch of the fifth Conclusion was That it was not the discovery of the graces of the scrupulous soul doubtful of his union that did thus evidence unto the soul his union Now the discovery of graces in the soul still dark in his union cannot be in order the first ground from whence the soul doth receive the evidence of his union Though at the very same instant the soul may by the discovering of those graces see his union and conclude his union from the sight of those graces yet in order of nature this is not the immediate ground that gives the certainty to the soul And that will appear I. In regard the gift of the Lord Christ cannot be first received of a soul by Faith as a soul is gratious or by the soul being considered under the notion of a soul that
distinctions about causes or means that are necessary to be understood for understanding this question By what means the promise is made sufficient to evidence to the soul his union with Christ 1. The soul must understand the distinction between the Principal instrumental efficient cause and the less principal instrumental efficient cause Though there be properly unto every action but one principal cause yet in respect of instrumental causes there may be many things that may have the respect of efficient causes for the producing one and the same thing though there can be but one principal instrumental efficient neither unless it be co-ordinate 2. You must understand That the means or instrumental efficient causes are divided again into Natural instrumental efficient causes and Artificial The natural instrumental cause is that which works by its own natural in-bred vertue that is by a proper disposition of its own and by a power that it hath in it self without dependance upon any created cause though nothing that is an instrumental cause can be said to work by his own vertue in respect of the principal efficient cause 3. You must understand That instrumental efficient causes are to be considered again either as those that are mediate causes or immediate causes The mediate efficient cause is that which contributes something to the producing the effect That is that which hath some influence into the great effect of the souls assurance either directly or indirectly though it be but a far off there being many immediate things that come between that make up the souls evidence The immediate cause that 's the cause that works so immediately that nothing intervenes between the effect which is the souls assurance and the cause That which hath the last stroke as I may say that 's properly the immediate cause That which being once effected in the soul the soul doth immediately and without intermission of time draw the conclusion that he is united to Jesus Christ that 's the immediate efficient cause 4. Instrumental causes are such as either solitary efficient causes or combined efficient causes That is such causes as work by themselves without others to produce such an effect Or else such as work by other causes not without respect There is an efficient cause alone and a concause with another and both contribute assistance to the same thing 5. These efficient instrumental causes are divided again into subordinate causes or co-ordinate causes That is such instrumental causes that though they work together are in a subordination to one instrumental efficient cause Or else such as produce an equal power joyntly together for the effecting the same thing It s then that efficient instrumental causes are subordinate when one hath the supremacy and all have dependance upon one though many things have influence into the same thing And they are co-ordinate when they have equal dependance one upon another one not being able to work without another Now all these distinctions of causes must be understood for a right clear understanding of this question By what means a soul doth attain the evidence of his union Now these things being premised I shall lay down the answer in positive conclusions Answ 1. First I answer directly to the question That there are divers mediate and less principal causes that do afar off help something for the evidencing to the soul his union with Christ from the absolute promise There are divers such causes that are partly artificial and partly natural Of this nature I may reckon up divers As the ministry of the word in the opening and clearing the nature the largeness of the extent and the excellency of those absolute promises to a soul Likewise the dispensation of the Sacraments either of Baptism or the Lords Supper The element of water in one being appointed by Christ himself in the use of it to discover the souls partaking of the death of Christ by being buried in the water And to signifie the souls partaking of the resurrection of Christ by rising out of the water and so consequently communion with Christ in all the effects of his death and life Consequently sealing to the soul that Jesus Christ died for him and lived for him So the other Sacrament the elements of bread and wine being appointed by Jesus Christ to signifie to the soul the breaking of the body of Christ and the effusion of his bloud And the application of those elements to him being elements by which his body shall be refreshed and cleared being appointed to shew the life and nourishment of his soul to be from Christ alone These Sacraments in their right institution may be instrumental immediate causes afar off to contribute to a soul something of his union So Prayer Meditation and Christian Conference enquiring into the freeness of the promise and the latitude of it and every spiritual ordinance of God wherein the promises of God are brought to any remembrance may contribute something to the Souls union with Christ which are properly artificial causes not natural but of a mixt kind partly artificial and partly natural And all these being in this kind instrumental efficient causes they may be said to be means by which the Soul attains the infallible evidence of his union And it is very seldom if I may not say never but God useth one of these means to clear up to the Soul his union with Christ in the absolute promise Answ 2. Secondly I answer That it is commonly â—â—â—eived that there are three more immediate joynt concurring causes to make up to the soul the evidence of his union from the promise Though those forenamed means do work Instrumentally for that end yet there are some that do work more inwardly that are commonly received to be joynt causes working for one and the same end I mean for assuring the soul from the promise of his union with Christ As I. The Irradiation I mean the bright shining light of Faith That is set up as a precious Heavenly Lamp that shines so clearly into the dark soul that it makes the soul see in a sensible way that he doth receive the promise and embrace the Lord Jesus given in that promise Faith gives the soul such a feeling experience that it doth receive the promise of Jesus Christ given even when it is receiving of it his soul graspeth Jesus Christ so powerfully as he feels his arms grasp Jesus Christ in the promise II. There is the Conclusion renewed conscience draws by the strength of spiritual and experimental reasons that the promise is unto his particular soul and that he is united unto Jesus Christ as appears from the promise The truth of it appears from Rom. 8.16 The Spirit of God beareth Witness with our Spirits that we are Sons of God There is a two fold Witness the Witness of the Spirit and our Spirits which can be nothing but the renewed understanding or conscience that gives the Testimony and both of them Witness at one
to the soul too soon yet it is dangerous and destructive to many souls that they do believe their own salvation by Christ too soon They do fancy to themselves that though they be vile Sinners yet the Lord Jesus is a Saviour and they hope to be saved by Jesus Christ This indeed is the common principle that the Devil useth as his grand snare wherein he catcheth many souls Now there are two ways whereby souls may conceive dangerously and destructively their own salvation by Christ too soon 1. When they conceive they shall certainly attain heaven and glory by Jesus Christ without having an eye or respect to any other benefit by Christ Now indeed doth the soul conceit his salvation by Christ too soon when it neglects all the benefits that are propounded by Jesus Christ and neglects the beholding the manner how Jesus Christ is propounded and confusedly looketh unto the end alone which is heaven and glory and fancies to himself that he shall attain these by him Though indeed the eye of the souls faith may be fixed upon one particular benefit that is propounded in Jesus Christ in order of nature before his eye is fixed upon another benefit and thereupon it is truly said that Jesus Christ as he is a Saviour and as he saves is the primary object of faith that is the very first object of the first acting of the souls Faith yet this is still but only in order of nature and not in order of time That is thus the soul cannot rightly have his eye of faith upon one benefit to be attained by Jesus Christ but he must have his eye upon all other benefits also propounded in Jesus Christ that are sutable to his poor needy soul 2. A soul conceiteth his salvation by Christ too soon when he conceives that he shall attain Heaven by Christ without looking for any thing to be effected by Christ upon the soul That 's the reason why nothing can dash in sunder their confidence and hope though their consciences tell them their nature is the same and their practice the same that ever it was Yet you must conceive it is only herein that this conceiting salvation by Christ is said to be too soon 1. In that it is preposterous It is a drawing Conclusion without Premises that is without any thing to draw the conclusion upon Then a soul conceiveth rightly when he conceiveth first it is Gods will that Jesus Christ should mediate between God and his soul and take away all the cause of offence and displeasure and then the soul concludes therefore I must needs be saved by Jesus Christ 2. If this conceit of the souls salvation by Christ doth arise from the souls giving credit to any word of God upon which he doth build this conceit then it is only said to be too soon in regard of order that is in regard of order of nature for indeed as for order of time this giving credit to such a word of God as holds forth salvation to him by Christ might and ought to have been at the same time at the giving credit to the other word of God in revealing his union to be effected by the father through Christ 2. Observe That this conceiting their Salvation by Christ is no application of Christ to their own Souls tendered or offered as a Saviour by God A Soul may conceit Salvation by Christ and yet never receive him as a Saviour And that will appear in two things 1. God offers the Lord Jesus as a compleat Saviour Heb. 7.25 He is able to save to the uttermost all that come unto God by him To the uttermost even unto perfection that is to save them exactly in all things from all evils and from all fears and dangers that can possibly accrue Now he that conceiteth not that the Lord Jesus should save him from all kind of evils guilt and misery that his Soul is cast into doth not conceit Jesus Christ to be his compleat Saviour and so applys Christ too soon 2. The Salvation that God tenders by Jesus Christ when he tenders him as a Saviour is two-fold First From the guilt of sin That is the delivering and redeeming the Soul from his obligation unto punishment Now this Salvation in Scripture is called reconciliation which is the removing the displeasure of God that should bind it over to everlasting punishment and bring the Soul into a state of amity and unity and love to God And this is the primary cause why Christ received his name Mat. 1.21 His name shall be called Jesus for he shall save his people from their sins Secondly God tenders by Christ to save Souls from the pollution of sin So that the Soul that applies Christ rightly as a Saviour applies him thus He sees the Lord tenders the Lord Christ as one that hath triumphed over sin and obtained a glorious conquest over Hell and Death and then he seeth the Lord inviting his Soul to receive the Lord Jesus that he might be partaker of the conquest and thereupon his heart closes with the tender and gives credit to it There is a Seventh Principle of Darkness and that is this That the Lord Christ must not be applied to the Soul too much in a way of comfort Principle of Darkness It is commonly received by many that comfort is more dangerous for the Soul to meddle with than lying under horrour and terrour still They commonly illustrate it by this similitude say they some drops of Aqua-vitae may be exceeding helpful to a poor fainting spirit it may revive a man in a swoun but pouring in of much may overcome a man and choak the natural vital heat and so indangers a mans life just thus say they it is with the Soul when the heart is sinking and fainting and prest down through fears of the anger and displeasure of God against him for sin it may be good for the Soul to have some drops of the precious water flowing down from the bosom of Jesus Christ but say they if you pour in too much you may indanger the Souls life to eternity This is another Hell-bred principle to prevent the Souls sight of Union with Christ There are two grounds of this principle First That the applying the Lord Jesus too much for comforting the Soul may make the soul presumptuous Thus they prove it Say they the applying the Law too much to the soul and opening the terrible Wrath and Indignation of God too much may make the soul despair so on the contrary the opening and applying the glorious Priviledges of Jesus Christ for the comforting the soul too much may put it upon a desperate Rock of Presumption Secondly a second ground is this that the applying the Lord Jesus for the comforting of the soul too much will too soon dry up the Penitent Tears it will soon seal up the Springs of Sorrow and Mourning that were broken up in the soul Now for the clearing of this to be a
secondly it evidenceth the sutableness of the satisfaction and that in two things 1. In regard of the things suffered by Christ to give satisfaction Those things every way sutable to what Justice could require from the Soul it self in regard of his sin Two things sin declareth the Soul hath merited to suffer for ever First The Death of the Body wherein sin is acted and committed Secondly The Death of the Soul it self in the separation of it from God which was the chief actor in the transgression of the Law Now the Spirit evidences the Death of Christ a sutable satisfaction in regard of the things suffered by Christ First In regard the humane Body died that stood in the stead of those that had been the transgressors of the Law he took upon him flesh and so died for sin in the flesh in the same nature in the same kind of Body that sin was acted in Secondly In that there was a separation of the Soul of Christ from injoyment of communion with his Father as appears Matth. 27.46 My God my God why hast thou forsaken me That is why hast thou deprived me of communion with thee And though indeed the separation was not eternal yet in regard of the person bearing the separation it was equivalent to an eternal separation One moment of separation was as great an evil inflicted upon such a person as an eternal separation could have been to have been inflicted upon a poor finite Creature 2. The Spirit evidenceth the sutableness of satisfaction to the Father in regard of the sins themselves laid to the charge of Christ in his suffering what Justice could require should be suffered by the transgressor and that both in the kind of sin and also in the degree of sin yea and also in the circumstance of sin too That which was equivalent to all kind of sin was imputed to Christ to be suffered that should have been suffered by transgressors Apostacy from God was imputed to him by being imputed to be a Devil Enmity to God in the highest degree was imputed to him in that he was imputed the Prince of Devils All kind of fighting against God was imputed to him in that he was imputed a Blasphemer and a striver to sit down in the Throne of God himself and an impostor and deceiver So that no kind of sin that Conscience can object against the Soul but the Spirit can and doth evidence at such a time was imputed to Christ and Christ suffered for such a sin that was equivalent to that kind of sin II. In the Spirits evidencing the Lord Christ to have fully and everlastingly taken away all the wickedness of what kind soever from every Soul that shall embrace him it evidenceth the resurrection of Jesus Christ from the Dead This is clear Rom. 8.34 It is Christ that died yea rather that is risen again In this the Spirit evidenceth three things to the Soul 1. It evidenceth the Fathers acknowledgment of his own satisfaction for the sins of all the persons that should ever embrace Christ and believe on him The Spirit evidenceth to the Soul Christ having once taken upon him as a surety to bear the transgressions of all that should believe on him having entred into Bond to pay all their debts and suffered himself to be arrested by the Justice of God yea to be carried to the prison of the Grave by the Hand of Justice for those transgressions he must never have come out till he had paid the uttermost farthing And that 's the reason that in 1 Cor. 15.14 the Apostle tells them That their Faith is vain and their Preaching of Christ is vain unless Christ be risen Whence the Apostle noteth That though the Death of Jesus Christ was the matter of sattisfaction to the Justice of the Father for the Justifying of all the persons that Christ sustained yet there is no evidence unto Faith that God the Father is satisfied for those transgressions by the Death of Christ unless Christ be risen 2. The Spirit evidenceth to the Soul Christs own triumphant victory over sin and all the concomitants and consequents of sin Now therein the Spirit evidenceth Christs removal of all kind of sin from every Soul that shall hereafter embrace him in regard he hath now captivated sin he hath got sin under his own power to trample under his Feet and to do with as he please he hath taken sin and tied it to his Chariot wheel as the word imports 3. The Spirit doth evidence in and from the resurrection of Jesus Christ from the dead as he was a surety that the Lord doth account his acquittance given to Jesus Christ for sin that was charged upon him to be an acquittance of all those that ever should embrace Christ through believing and also that Christ in receiving that acquittance from God did receive it in the room and in the stead of all that ever should embrace him And thence the Spirit evidenceth to the Soul that the Scripture attributes unto every believer a participation of the resurrection of Christ yea that it attributes to them a Co-resurrection with Christ Col. 2.13 You being dead in your sins hath he quickned together with him that is hath made you partakers of the vertue of his resurrection and raised you with himself and vers 14. Blotting out the hand writing of Ordinances that was against us which was contrary to us and took it out of the way nailing it to his cross that is Justifying our Souls from all that ever Sin Conscience the Law or the Devil could bring against us III. The Spirit evidenceth to the Soul the Ascension of Jesus Christ to the right Hand of the Father as he was a surety and as he did represent sinners that should receive him to be their Mediator Thus Rom. 8.34 Paul through the Spirits manifestation of Jesus Christ at the right Hand of the Father had such a full evidence as he could make a challenge to the Law and to Sin and Hell and the Devil to bring all their accusations and see if they could lay any thing to his charge Who shall condemn saith he Jesus Christ is gone to the right Hand of the Father Now from Christ's Ascension to the right Hand of the Father the Spirit is wont to evidence these four things 1. That the Lord Christ as a surety for all sinners that should embrace him as their Mediator hath now received an acknowledgment in Heaven that he hath fully taken away all the sins of all that ever so receive him The Spirit brings to the Souls remembrance what welcom as it were Jesus Christ had into Heaven It shews the Soul from such a place as that Psal 110.1 The Father said to Christ when he came into Heaven Well done thou obedient Son sit thou down at my right Hand There are two things observable in that First In that welcom given by the Father there is an evidence that the Father acknowledgeth the work
to make his Love glorious in those objects Therefore the End must in order of Nature according to our conception be before the Means though all things are at once and by one Act done by God so that according to our conceptions the Love must be first fixed and setled upon Souls in order of nature I mean the intention of Love must be first unto Souls before the conveyance of that Gift of Love through Christ Thence 't is that the Scripture speaks of Christ not only as given but also called out to the work of Mediatorship Heb. 5.1 He was ordained to be the High Priest by God the Father to offer Sacrifice for Souls 3. There can be no End of the Lords being at that high charge for the effecting of the Love and Mercy that the Gospel discovers to Souls that will embrace him but his own praise and his peoples comfort Seeing there was no necessity I speak of absolute and indispensable necessity all this while I would not be mistaken in a thing of so high a nature I say seeing there was no absolute simple necessity for the Lord to be at such high cost in respect of himself and in respect of Souls to partake of this Mercy but it is done freely of God according to his own wisdom Thence it appears there can be no higher End than the Lords own praise the manifesting the Beams of the Lords transcendent Glory more abundantly in the Eyes of Saints and Angels And this you shall find to be the very End of it Eph. 1.4.6 Saith the Apostle He hath chosen us in Christ That is He hath chosen us as the Members of Christ the first Elect of God and that Head of the Mystical Body that God hath glorified himself in This he hath done saith he before the foundation of the world and therefore he destinated us to the adoption of Children by Jesus Christ Here is the Fathers Love in the Means and in the End v. 6. To the praise of the Glory of his Grace that is of his own Love wherein that is in which Love he hath made us acccepted in the Beloved that is in Christ Now this may be taken rwo wayes Either for his praise actively to be given to him by the Soul that partakes of that Love and Mercy that the Gospel discovers Or else passively to be manifested through this way unto those that partake of that Love and Mercy that the Gospel discovers In both ways the Lord intended to have his glorious Love admired and adored and himself sanctified in the beholding of it through the effecting and conveying of that his Love and Mercy unto Souls through such cost and charge in giving his dearly beloved Son Now observe it There are especially two wayes how the partaker of that Love and Mercy the Gospel discovers doth actively give the Lord the praise of the glory of his Love 1. In admiring the unmeasurable dimensions of his Love in gazing upon the height and depth and length and breadth of his Love so as to see it unmeasurable and bottomless and to adore God in beholding it 2. In their Souls relying with a fulness of confidence upon God for that his Love in Christ It is alwayes in the same degree wherein a Soul takes up its rest in God for any thing that a Soul sanctifies God in his heart therefore Is 8.13 when the Prophet exhorts them to sanctifie God he saith Fear not their fear but make him your fear and your dread as if he should say therein you shall sanctifie him when your spirits take up their rest in him alone Now as God is thus sanctified in the heart in general so he is sanctified in the heart in respect of every particular Attribute of his in this way only when a Souls confidence is in him alone And thus in particular in respect of his Love God hath the praise of the glory of his Love from the Soul when the Heart takes up its full rest in God with a fulness of confidence for all Love through Christ Now observe these being the two special wayes how the Lord hath the praise of his glorious Love from Souls that partake of the Love that the Gospel discovers and then both these proceeding from a Souls apprehension of the certainty and infallibility of the Lords Love in Christ thence it must needs appear that the Lords being at the high cost to effect all that Love and Mercy discovered in the Gospel for Souls through the death of that dearly beloved of his Soul that this must be on purpose done by God for the making that his Love and Mercy that the Gospel discovers more sure and certain unto Souls embracing it in their own apprehensions Thirdly The Spirit discovers the Lords own Bond given out to the persons themselves that shall embrace the Gospel for their assurance of all that the Gospel discovers All the Promises written in the Lords Blessed Book are but as so many Bonds of Gods own writing by the hand of the great Secretary of Heaven the blessed Spirit of God on purpose to confirm and assure Souls of all that the Gospel discovers The Spirit reveals Promise upon Promise to seal to and confirm the same thing as you may see Heb. 6.12 13 14 15. The Promise is said to be given there as a Discovery of the Immutability of the Lords Counsel that is of the infallible and unchangeable certainty of all that the Gospel discovers Fourthly The Spirit riseth higher he adds the confirmation of his own Oath the highest Oath that was possible for God to swear which was by himself that the Soul might have security upon security to his weak apprehension Fifthly The Spirit reveals the adding of the Blood of Christ as the Seal to the Bond. The Spirit manifests the Lord to have employed Jesus Christ to be the Testator to Souls that by the Death of the Testator the Testament or the Will of God revealed in the Gospel might be made unquestionably certain that the Soul might have fulness of security to his poor scrupulous Spirit now security comes in upon security to a superabuddance of it Sixthly The Spirit reveals the Lord to have engaged the Honour and Credit of his ever-blessed Name for the better securing Souls and fuller assuring them of all that the Gospel discovers to them This you shall see in Exod. 33.19 I will proclaim the Name of the Lord before thee saith God to Moses and will be gracious to whom I will be gracious and will shew mercy to whom I will shew mercy which doth both include a disposition to be gracious and a free disposition to be gracious and it includeth that Grace of his to be ordered only according to his own will Now did not the Lord freely love loveless sinners upon no other ground but his own will which is the very Sum of all that the Gospel saith then this Title of Gods Honour should be defaced and blemished But God saith
hath any Graces or Holy Habits or Qualities inherent in him But the first sight of the gift of the Lord Christ to the soul formerly dark about his union must have respect and relation to the necessities of the soul to whom the gift is manifested else the gift cannot be closed with as sutable Thence it must be manifested as a gift of a Mediatour to a poor despicable and desperate Rebellious Wretch against the highest Majesty of Heaven to mediate with the great Commander of Heaven for pardon to such a poor despicable Rebel It must be received as a gift of a days man that may lay his hand upon both partaies upon God and the Soul as at difference to make up an union Whence it is that the Apostle in opening the work of receiving the Lord Christ by Faith considers the soul under the notion of an Ungodly one in the receiving of it Rom. 4 5. II. It cannot be that the discovery of graces should be first in order to such a soul in regard the first manifestation of the gift of God to the soul that hath hitherto set in darkness must be a manifestation unto his Faith of the gift of those very graces And the graces themselves considered as given are no proper objects of Faith and therefore can give no assurance unto Faith But it is only the promise wherein the Lord holds forth his free will both to Christ and those Graces that must be the only ground from whence the soul can receive the evidence unto his Faith of his union with Christ Thus you have the first question opened the ground from whence souls receive the evidence of their union The second thing to be opened is the means by which What means the Lord useth to make the promise efficacious for this end to give the soul assurance of his union with Christ But before we come to answer this question there is another question to be opened that arises from the former Quest But saith the Soul can the Lords absolute promise be the ground from whence the Soul can have the first infallible evidence of his union seeing there is no absolute promise of God wherein he discovers his own will to accept any one particular soul into union with the Lord Christ All the absolute promises saith the Soul are made to the Church and people of God But the Lord in those absolute promises doth not reveal the particular Souls that are his own Therefore How can I or any other know that I am the particular soul in the promise there being no particularizing of any soul Answ For Answer to this Question I shall first open what is generally granted by every soul by way of premise for the right understanding of things And then lay down two Conclusions for the full answer of the question Pre. 1. First it is generally granted by all that it is by vertue of the Lords absolute promise of accepting souls into union with Christ that souls are united unto Christ The absolute promise alone is like Jacobs Ladder it is the Heavenly Ladder upon which the Lord Christ alone comes down into any soul It is the absolute promise that is the precious Golden Chain that binds the Lord Christ to the soul and the soul to Christ That the precious Marriage knot of union is only knit by that Chain of the absolute promise This will appear in three things 1. If it were not by vertue of the absolute promise that the soul were united to Jesus Christ then the absolute good will unto souls were not the primary or first ground of union between Jesus Christ and souls For the promises are nothing else but the Revelations or Discoveries of the Lords good will concerning souls Now thence it is if it were not by vertue of the Lords absolute promise that souls were united then it were not primarily and in the first place by vertue of the determination of the Lords will from eternity And so union with Christ should not be a mercy flowing down from the Fountain of the Lords elective love but rather the first and primary cause of the souls union should be from something in the soul it self and so quite contrary to the stream of Scripture truth it should be of him that willeth and runneth and not of him that sheweth mercy 2. If it were not so then there must be some grace acceptable to God presupposed to be in the soul before union with Christ unto which the Lord hath made some promise of union with him It must be either by vertue of a conditional promise or an absolute promise that the soul is united Now if by vertue of any condition or holy quality in the soul then such a holy quality must be conceived to be in the soul as is acceptable unto God Now if it were possible there could be any holy quality conceived to be in the soul acceptable to God before union then either the soul must receive some holy quality that flows not from Jesus Christ and so deny the fulness of Christ which is contrary to that in Col. 1.9 and John 1.16 Or else we should conclude that some graces some holy qualities should be conveyed into the soul that should not be conveyed by vertue of the souls union and so there should be a Communication of the graces of Christ unto the soul when the soul still remains a stranger to God 3. If there were the least quality acceptable unto God before union then the soul should be a beloved one of God out of Jesus Christ and it should not be by his dearly beloved Son alone in whom the Lord is well pleased Pre. 2. That the first proper actings of Faith in union are ever by or in the way of the application of those absolute promises unto their particular souls That will appear in two things 1. If the first actings of Faith in union were not by particular application of those absolute promises then the Devils Faith should hold equal proportion to the Faith of souls united to Jesus Christ The Devils themselves do as fully believe the truth of all those pretious absolute promises as any united soul and do as fully expect the certain accomplishment of them unto the Church of God 2. Then should the souls dependance upon Jesus Christ be without the sight of the sutable ground for the dependance The first act of Faith can have no ground but the absolute promise of God in regard all those graces that are described in any word of God that should seem to be conditional promises those are not discovered at the first actings of Faith and therefore unless the absolute promises prove a particular ground to the souls apprehension that the soul in that absolute promise sees the Lord particularly tendring himself to accept it into union with Jesus Christ there should be no ground for that dependence Prem 3. It is also granted that this particular application of the absolute promise unto Souls