only the infinit power of the great god that can help it and give it ease The seventh Burden of sin Seventhly And then in the next place the soul that is truly burdened with sin had rather ten thousand times have any burden upon it then the burden of sin there was a time that sin was delightful to me but now I would rather have any burden upon me then this I did before think that those that wanted the comfort of the creature and were outwardly poore and mean were miserable but now had I al the outward miseries in the world upon my back I had rather bear them al then this burden I have felt much affliction in my dayes but this burden and this weight is most greivous and heaviest of al Oh! if the lord would but take off this weight and this burden from me let him lay what weight and burden upon me he wil. Thus the soul that is rightly burdened with sin is affected The Eighth Burden of sin Eighthly Again Though it feels much weight of sin upon it Yet in al this it Justifies God and doth not think hard thoughts of God notwithstanding the heavy hand of God is upon him It s true I feel Gods heavy hand is upon me and presseth me sore but yet Gods hand is just he is righteous in al this let him have glory whatsoever becoms of me for the truth is I have brought this burden upon my self there was a time that I heaped up one sin after another as if I could never have had weight enough upon me but now I find it heavy Oh! the Sins of my youth they lie heavy now upon my soul my lying and Swearing And the Loss of my time and my Saboth-breaking Oh! the Lord is righteous in al his waies And in this manner doth the heart work that is burdened in Such a way as the Lord doth intend good unto The Ninth burden of Sin Ninthly And lastly though it be under such a burden as is almost intollerable Yet it is not Sunk down in Despare under its burden as a beast while it is under a burden for a little while it wil strugle and strive under it but afterwards it wil lie down and be sullen and die under it But now those that are burdened with sin in such a manner as the Lord doth use to prepare the heart for his Sonn by they feel the weight indeed of it but so feel the weight as they labor that is their hearts are yet active and stirring and working attending stil upon any directions that God hath to give them out of his word their hearts do keep active and crying to God and waighting to know what the mind of God is towards them and are willing to do any thing that God shal require of them they do not lie Sullen and dead as it were under the burden of their Sinns Now if there be any Soule in this condition expressed in the nine particulars before mentioned if there be any such as these Know that these are they that Christ doth in a more especial manner cal unto and Saith Come to me yee that are thus weary and heavy Laden and I wil give you rest CHAP. IV. Two Cautions touching the Burden of sin 1. That 't is no condition of the Covenant of Grace 2 That it doth not interest the soul in Christ nor give it rest in him Whereunto certain Consequences are annexed NOW I must lay down two Cautions before I come to give the Reasons of the Point Object You will say What do you speak of these burdens of the necessity of the souls being burdened with the weight of sin that it may come to Christ for ease and rest surely there is no such thing required Answ To that I answer That al this burden of the soul for sin is not any Condition of the Covenant of Grace that must be granted there is no other Condition but beleeving in Christ it is not looked upon as a Condition In the second place you must know That all this burden of the soul for sin it doth not interest the soul in Christ nor give it rest in Christ I may be thus burdened for sin yet except I do beleeve indeed that there be an act of faith beyond this I shall not obtain rest Then hence we must not ground our faith upon being burdened for sin to think because we are burdened therefore we shal be pardoned and saved we must not lay the stress and weight of our faith upon the feeling the weight of our sin that which we must pitch our faith upon is not our trouble the trouble of our souls for our sins but those troubles that the soul of Jesus Christ suffered for sin It is a note of great use and I beseech you observe it you must know this That when your hearts are troubled for sin you must not think that this is the Condition of the Covenant of Grace nor you must not make this the object of your faith as to think thus because I am thus troubled therefore I may beleeve that my sin is pardoned no I must not pitch my faith upon my own trouble but upon the trouble of Jesus Christ those troubles that the soul of Jesus Christ did endure by way of satisfaction First Then hence will follow That it is not any degree of trouble for sin how much soever one hath been troubled for sin or how little soever that gives them interest or not interest in Christ I say it is not the measure of it for certainly if we could come to Christ without any burden or sence of our sin if it were possible that we could come to Christ I say without any such being burdened for sin we might but because that Jesus Christ doth work upon the heart in a rational way as a rational Creature although he doth work above Reason and conveys supernatural Grace that is beyond Reason yet still he doth work upon the heart as a Rational Creature Now therefore the work of Reason must be made subservient to the work of Gods Grace usually when the Lord works upon a soul he makes use of the work of Reason to make that subservient to the Work of his Grace Now because no man can come to a Savior but he must know what need he hath of a Savior therefore if I come to Christ as a Savior to save my soul from sin I must apprehend what sin is that I may be sensible of it Secondly If God doth work upon the soul as a Rational Creature then he makes use of this to be a means to stop the soul in the course of sin for before the sinner is made sensible of the evil of his sin he goes on in a full carear as it were and nothing wil stop him in his course But now when the soul comes to be thus burdened the soul it stopped and doth not run in that full stream of wickedness as it did before and
and Earth upon the Frame or keeping it in being the Lord doth not appear more to be an almighty God in keeping Heaven and Earth in being then he doth appeare to be an Almighty God in keeping grace alive in the heart notwithstanding al the remainder of Corruption so that in this God hath Glory in another way then he hath from the Angels in heaven the power of God appeares in upholding of the Angels for if he did not uphold them they would fal into evil as Adam and the other Angels did but therein appeares Gods glorious power to uphold the Angels but the glorious power in upholding the Angels doth not so much appeare as the glorious power of God in upholding the hearts of the Saints in the midst of their corruptions this shal be a special argument that the Saints shal praise God for to al eternity when they shal look back and see what a condition they were in before their conversion yea in their conversion that though God granted them some grace yet what abundance of Corruption was in their hearts al that time and what a deal of stir they had to maintain that little grace they wil stand and admire to consider that it should be kept alive in the midst of sin that a little sparke should be kept alive in the midst of the Sea not only in the midst of the Sea but when the sea is tempestuous you yil say it is no great wonder that the fire be kept burning when the sea is calme but when al is in a storme and yet a spark of fire shal be kept alive in the midst of al the tossings of the waves you wil grant here is a mighty power now the keeping alive of grace in thy heart in the midst of so much corruption doth argue as mighty a power in God 2. The Lord doth so order it that stil his own people shal be under the burden of much coruption in this regard because that hereby the Lord draweth forth the exercise of faith in his son in which his soul takes infinite delight the soule of God takes infinite delight in beholding the working of the glorious grace of faith in Jesus Christ But you wil say wherein doth it appeare to be so glorious in regard of our corruption Thus for the Angels in heaven to believe in God that he wil be eternally good to them it is not so much as for a poor soul in the midst of al his corruptions yet to be able to Triumph in the free grace of God in Jesus Christ notwithstanding I am so vild filthy loathsome and abominable to myself and justly God and his Saints may count me a burden to them and cast me off for ever yet for al this my soul shal cling to him I wil cast my self upon him and look upon him as a gracious father a merciful God a God that loves me a God that rejoyceth in doing Good to me for the soul to exercise faith in the Grace of God in Christ it is a glorious thing only take heed you do not mistake it for presumption Object You wil say For men notwithstanding al their sin to beleeve in Gods mercy this is rather presumption then faith Answ True it is presumpion in many they mistake themselves but in others it is true faith and God delights in it and you shal know it by this it doth draw the heart to God and the soul never finds such a prevalent way to overcome those corruptions that are in it as to exercise their faith in the grace of God in Christ I beseech you mark the difference between presumption and faith in Christ presumption wil trust in Gods mercy notwithstanding their sin but that doth indeed foment their sin and makes them secure in their sin makes them the more secure in their sin but now when the soul shal by the true geminine act of faith rest in the free grace of God notwithstanding corruption if it be right such a soul feels no means in the world of greater efficacy to cure and prevail against corruption then this to trust in the free grace of God notwithstanding corruption and if thou findest it thus thou hast no cause to feare trust in Gods grace with confidence for it is that which is wel pleasing unto God and that which the Lord delights in and that which gives as much content to Gods heart as the exercise of any grace whatsoever and in that regard because the Saints shal never exercise such an act of Faith in Heaven â—s this God wil have this in this world 3. This is that that God sees doth drive his own people to him in prayer nothing drives the Saints to God with more earnestness in prayer then the feeling of the weight of Corruption upon them then they goe to God above al God never heares such strong cryes come up to heaven in regard of any affliction as this and by the way you may find by this how your hearts are when the hand of God is upon you in afflictions then you wil cry to God but I put this to you hath there not come as strong cryes to heaven upon the sence of your Corruptions as upon the sence of any Affliction whatsoever 4. The Lord hath glory in this in the exercise of the work of repentance and humility the keeping the Souls of his people in humility and the contrition of their Spirits that is exceeding pleasing to God the Lord is neer to a broken contrite heart a melting mourning spirit the Lord doth delight in the evangelical workings of repentance this pleaseth the Lord the work of humiliation mourning and sorrow for sin in an evangelical way is a grace that is acceptable to God God shal have none of that in heaven and he hath it therefore here 5. God hereby exerciseth his wisdome exceedingly in bringing light out of darkeness God doth many times turne not only the afflictions of his people to their good but he workes good many times out of sin not that hereby we should be bold and presumptuous in our sins we must take head of tempting God yet know this that God doth many times work exceeding much good unto the Saints even out of their sins by occasion of sin though their sin hath no efficacy in this but God takes occasion in this in otherwaies of his providences and workings of his grace to work good unto them 6. There is Gods justice in it also to lay a stumbling block before wicked and ungodly men for when they shal see that the godly that have the most grace they have much corruption in them stil they rejoyce perhaps in it and they little think that God aimes at the execution of his just judgment upon them that it should harden their hearts many wicked men they think their condition to be very good because they see so much corruption in the hearts of the godly and they are hardened therby but they little think
for the principle of life out of my self This is the second thing that is here noted Come to me that is first behold me see and beleeve that I am the great mediator that is come into the world to save your souls and then secondly let there be an unsetling of your hearts a taking your hearts off from whatsoever you were setled upon heretofore that so you may be removed from thence and that you may take another course for your life in Christ and happiness in him Thirdly Come unto me that is let there be a working and a stirring of your hearts after me Christ calls for the heart of sinners after he comes to be revealled to them they should be in a working stiring disposition making after the Lord Jesus Christ for union with him to the utmost that possibly they can the thoughts should be working and the conscience working and the wil opening it self to receive in the grace of God and the affection should he stirring and the whole soul should be in a working disposition after him Incline your eare and come as if Christ should say though you are under great burdens yet do not you sink under them in a discouraging way and lie down in a dul and a heavy way No but let your hearts be stirring working and acting after me continually have a care of this to keep your hearts in a stirring and working way after Christ and the grace that is offered to you in Christ this is that which young beginners should observe in a special manner if God be beginning to work upon your hearts you should have a great care to keep your hearts in a stir-working acting frame and disposition after Christ and above al things in the world take heed of a dul heavy dead spirit at this time when God cals you to come to Christ as the Apostle saith of himself in Phil. 3.14 I press hard after the mark so it should be with every poor soul that God is drawing after Christ it should be alwaies in a comming disposition and they should press hard toward the mark of the high prize of the calling that is set before them Christ is set before thee God sets his son before thee with the treasure of grace and thou shouldest press and follow hard after God as it is the expression of David in one of the Psalmes 63 8. a hard following stirring and working of the soul after the Lord as David said to his son Solomon in 1. Chron. 22.16 Vp and be doing and the Lord wil be with thee so I say to al unto whom the grace of God is offered they must not be dul and sullen but up and be doing As the Apostle speakes in 1. Phil. 20. According to the earnest expectation the word that is translated earnest expectation in the original signifies to stretch out the neck to look after some good that I would fain have come that is the propriety of the word in the original text so this should be comming to Christ that is when Christ is propouned in the gospel there should be the stretching out of the soul in looking after the Lord Jesus and a working of the soul after Jesus Christ keeping the soul working and stirring after Christ Many poor souls whom God is beginning to work his grace upon loose abundance of time and comfort for want of this of keeping their hearts in a working and stirring frame after Christ they spend their time in the afflicting of their soules but they do not keep their hearts working towards Jesus Christ As Jacob said to his sons when they wanted bread in Cannaan saith he We have heard that there is corn in Egipt and why do we stand looking one upon an other saith Jacob to his sons had you gon saith he you might have been come back again and brought us bread by this time so I say to many burdened souls hast thou not heard that there is grace and mercy in Jesus Christ had thy soul bin working stirring and kept in an acting frame after Jesus Christ thou mightest have bin returnig and have gotten rest to thy soul by this time thou standest looking unto this thing and the other thing and poring upon thy corruptions hadst thou kept thy heart continually stirring in a working frame after Christ the work might have been done by this time Fourthly Come to me that is saith Christ come and lay al your burdens upon mee come and role your hearts upon mee whatever burden it is either of your soules or afflictions outwardly what ever your feares and troubles are yet come and do you cast al your burdens upon me I am content to beare them al. That is a special work of faith for the soul to role it self upon Jesus Christ to cast it self with al its burdens upon the infinite rich free grace of God in Jesus Christ as if Christ should say is it the burden of sin I have borne the burden of sin already Is it the wrath of God that is a burden to you come and cast this burden upon me I have born the wrath of God Or is it the burden of the Law I have borne that burden for you I was made an offering for you I was made under the law to deliver you from under the law Is it the burden of any affliction That was upon me It is true the burden of corruption was not upon him but Christ wil deliver us from that too Come to me and whatever burden is upon your souls cast it upon me role your souls al your burdens upon me saith Christ and I wil give you rest Fifthly and lastly Come to me that is come and leave your soules with me and commit them to me for life for salvation for peace for whatsoever good you would have be willing to betrust me with your souls be willing to betrust me with al your comforts be willing to betrust me both with your present and with your eternal estate in al your transanctions with God and dealing with God trust me withal that is comming to Christ When Christ bids us come to him it is as much as if he should say come to me and leave your souls leave al your care and commit to me al that you have and whatsoever you are commit your selves wholly to me to be disposed of by me for al good whatsoever and I wil take charge of you I wil ingage my self and al my faithfulness to have a care of you and suply you in al your wants and strengthen you under al your burdens and carry you through al difficulties and bring you at length to life and salvation and perfect rest together with my Father and my self that is the meaning of Christ when he saith Come to me So the Apostle in 1. Tim. 2.12 I know in whom I have beleeved and that he is able to keep that which I have committed to him That which I have committed to him what is that
of the name of God there was a time that my soul was under these as wel as any but now the Lord hath delivered me and brought me under another Covenant brought me to his son to Christ and he hath undertaken to satisfie the Law for my soul and so the beleever stands upon the shoar and prayses God and this makes him love Christ so much the more prize Christ so much the more and bless the name of God that ever he heard the voice of the Gospel sounding in his eares and therefore it is not tedious and grievous to him to heare the dreadful threatnings of the Law he knowes how to make a holy use of them his heart is drawn neerer to God by it as wel as by the promises of the Gospel It is an ill signe when men and women cannot indure to heare the threatnings of the Law a dangerous signe that they are under those threatnings if they were not under them it would not be troublesome to them to heare them but they that are delivered from them they know how to make use of them Many men and women wil say when they hear of the terrors of the Law what doth this but harden us the hearing of the terrors of the Law doth more harden us but if thou wert acquainted with the Gospel thou wouldest be softened by hearing of the terrors of the Law because thou wouldest prize Christ more And therefore beleevers must not look upon them as things that no way concerne them though they be not under them to be cast by them yet they do concerne them nearly and therefore God would have those things revealed even to beleevers because of many gracious uses that beleevers are to make of those things The 2. Lesson Secondly from what hath been delivered both from the burden of the law and the rest in being delivered from it this Lesson may be learned Here we may see how beleevers are in the course of their lives to mix humility with confidence they may learne how to be humble and yet how to be confident how to rejoyce and yet how to tremble there is no such way to learne the mixture of humility with faith and confidence and the mixture of joy and trembling as this is know the Law and the bondage under it and then the rest that is to be had in Christ this wil teach thee to be sensible of thy own wretchedness and what a condition thou art in naturally and yet how to be confident in the grace of God in Christ This wil teach thee how to feare in regard of what thou art in thy self and yet to rejoyce in regard of what thou art in Jesus Christ in the rest thy soul hath Got in Jesus Christ Many people do not know how to mingle these two together if so be they be humbled for their sins then they are dejected in their spirits they cannot tel how to exercise humiliation for their sins and faith and confidence in Gods grace together they think the humiliation for sin wil hinder Gods grace and therfore they cannot indure to hear of such things as tend to beat them down to humble them for their sins but they say they must beleeve altogether in Gods grace aad the other wil bring them to despair Certainly thou art not acquainted with the mystery of Godliness if thou doest not understand how these two may stand together to be deeply humbled for thy sins and yet at the same instant of time the soul to be raised with the Mercy of God in Christ both together It is true vices are opposite one to another but graces are never opposite one to another those that understand the Mistery of Godlyness they know how to mingle these two together at one and the same time You know that the scripture saith that Godliness is a mistery Great is the mistery of Godlyness and indeed Godliness consists in the skil that a Christian comes to have to know at the same time how to be humbled and yet to be confident yet to be beleeving and one the other side to rejoyce and yeat to feare many cannot rejoyce but they grow loose and wanton with their joy and others cannot feare but their hears grow lumpish and dead if they do feare now the heart that understands what it is to be under the Law naturally and what rest Christ hath brought unto us in delivering us from the Law can tel how to rejoice in trembling and to beleeve in humiliation and there is no such way to make such a mixture of both as to understand what it is to be naturally under the Law and what the rest is that we have in Christ I confess these things wil not perhaps come so ful upon the hearts of those that do not in some measure remember what we have said hertofore both from the burden of the Law and the rest that we have in Christ those wil not be able to make so much use of this that I am speaking of I could wish these things would have come altogether but we cannot do al things at once The Third Lesson Thirdly A further thing that is to be learned from the deliverance we have in Christ from the Law it is this here appeares plainly that the way of Life and salvation is above nature it is supernatural for that that I have opened in the rest we have in Christ from the law teacheth you that beleevers are not to stand or fal for their eternal estates by any worke of the Law if they performe any worke of the Law this doth not bring them to eternal life if they breake the Law this doth not cast them down unto death therefore the way of life and salvation is supernatural for nature can teach a man no further then this that he must serve God if he do thâ— God wil bless him and love him and if he sin against God God wil afflict him and chastise him nature can tel of no way how a man should be saved but only by serving of God and by doing the workes of the Law nature teacheth a man nothing else but this together with the other that if he doth that that God forbids he must expect the wrath of God and to ly under Gods wrath and beyond this nature cannot go Now then for to heare of such a thing as this is that my soul shal not depend upon what I neglect nor my eternal life shal not depend upon what I do that is a high mystery that is infinitely above nature I do not say what the neglect of Gods wil doth deserve of eternal perishing yea even in beleevers but now they are under the Covenant in Christ they have the rest in Christ that their souls shal not be cast one way or other by what they do or what they leav undon though if they neglect his wil the Lord may make them to know it here while they live in this world And if upon this any
that is one good means to help the soul towards Christ the very stopping of it in the course of sin Thirdly This is the means in a Rational way to make the soul attend to any call of Christ for before Christ may call to sinners out of his Word Come to me and beleeve in me but they do not feel the burden of their sin and therefore they do not come if a man be under a heavy burden in a dark night if he hears the least noise of the feet of any man then he cries out for help So the soul under the heavy burden of sin doth rejoyce to hear of any direction out of the Word to come to Christ Fourthly The soul comes to prize mercy and mercy will take a deep impression upon the heart that is burdened when the heart is burdened with sin Oh how dear and sweet and precious are mercies then Fiftly And further When the soul is burdened with sin it is in a Rational way prepared to take the yoak of Christ Before it did cast it off but now feeling sin to be a heavier burden than any other whatsoever it is more prepared to take upon it the yoke of Jesus Christ now when the soul is under this burden then Christ calls in love to ease and give rest to those souls that are under such a burden CHAP. V. The Reasons of the former Doctrine 1. Christ hath all mercy in him 2. The end why he came into the world was to give rest to burdened souls 3. Christ himself was once under some kind of this burden 4. He is to have the glory of all the ease which is given to sinners THe Third thing is Reasons why Jesus Christ doth desire and invite souls to come to him REASON I. First Because that all is given to Christ Christ hath all the mercy of the Father in him for the fulness of the Godhead dwels in him and therefore he must needs pitty such a soul There is a Law in Deuteronomy That if a Beast be under a burden and ready to perish God requires that you should not withdraw your self from the Beast though it be the Beast of your Enemy but to help it Now if God would have us to be so merciful who have but drops of mercy in us when we see a beast and that of our Enemies under a Burden Then surely the Lord Christ that hath the fulness of the mercy of the infinite God in him when he shall see an immortal soul under such a burden and ready to perish and it cries to him for Help certainly Christ will ease and help that soul REASON II. Secondly We know that Christ came into the world on purpose Christ was anointed and sent for that end to bind up the broken hearted and give them ease Christ is designed by God the Father for this very work and therefore he wil do it he is appointed by God the Father for to ease burdened Souls it is his work therefore when Christ sees any poor soul burdened under sin saith Christ here is work for me He came not to cal the Righteous but sinners to Repentance Here is that that I came from Heaven for it is the very business that I was sent from my Father to do it is the work my Father sent me into the world for REASON III. Thirdly Christ himself once felt some burden of this kind and he knows what it is to be burdened with Sin He was made sin for us So the Scripture saith in the 2 Cor. 5.21 He was made Sin Christ had the weight of al the Sins of the Elect upon him and did feel what the weight of sin was Christ hath experience what it is to be burdened with sin and with the wrath of God the Father for sin Certainly when Christ lay groveling with his Face upon the ground and sweated drops of blood then he was under a great burden Christ had the great burden of mans sin upon him and of the wrath of God that was due to mans sin and he had it upon him til he sweat under it Now Christ himself having been under it certainly he cannot but pitty poor burdened Sinners REASON IV. Fourthly It is Christ that is to have the Glory of the ease of sin and those souls that are burdened for sin if ever they have ease they wil give the Lord Jesus al the Glory Now first Christ having al the Mercy of God the Father and being sent into the world to bind up al broken hearts and having experience of the burden of sin And fourthly knowing that he shal have al the Glory in delivering and easing of Souls certainly Christ doth account it worth al his sufferings that he might have the Glory in easing of troubled Souls as many Chyrurgions account it to be their Glory to have the Honor of curing desperate cures the Lord Jesus wil Glory in this to al eternity When al the poor burdened Souls that ever he did ease shal be brought before him and shal be acknowledged before God and his Angels Oh! here are those many thousand Souls that were under their burdens and were ready to perish and I have eased them and here they shal rest from al their labors for ever Christ cals Sinners upon these groâ—ds CHAP. VI. The Application Exhorting Sinners to come unto Christ with Answers unto certain Objections APPLICATION NOw for a word of Application doth Christ cal for burdened Souls to come to him that they may have rest Then those that are burden'd should harken to what Christ saith in this Congregation this morning Is there any poor soul that is ready to perish under the weight of sin that goes under the Load of it Christ cals to that Soul to come to him It were a grievous thing for Christ to come and cal into such a Congregation and there should be none there Nay I cannot but think there may be many in this Congregation that shal hear the cal of Christ Christ many times cals where there are none to answer we may say in this case as our Saviour Christ said in another the harvest is great but the Laborers are but few So we may say the harvest of sin is great but the Laborers under the burden of Sin are but very few many there are that would cast the burden of sin upon Christ but they do as the Pharisees did cast heavy burdens upon others but they themselves wil not touch them with one of their fingers So many would cast the burden of sin upon Christ but they will not feel it themselves O! let me speak to you What Chamber or Closet can witness that you have been sending strong cries unto God as being under that grievous burden A beast if it lies under a burden it wil roar and cry out for help So certainly if your souls were prest with the burden of sin there would be mighty cries to God to ease you of that burden But to most people in
to Christ thy comming to Christ doth give thee right to Jesus Christ If thy grace the grace of God doth make thee come that very act of thine in coming gives thee interest and right in him though thou hadst none before There needs no other right and challenge to Christ but Gods offering of Christ in the Gospel to thee and thy comming to him But now for it is pitty to let this pass it may be some may think wil not this tend to looseness to say it s nothing else but to Come to Christ I know it is extreamly abused many wayes many wil abuse it thus when we are preaching the Gospel that if at any time we preach the miserable condition of men to humble them they wil say it is a contradiction but I beseech you take heed of these vain Spirited men who seek not Jesus Christ in the way of the Gospel And though it may be through their weakness or the distemper of their hearts they wil not or do not see the way of the Gospel but they wil come to young people and weake Christians and say there 's contradiction in this for if this be true how can the other be true But these things that seem contradictory they are very agreeable one with another if you would seem to give judgment upon what we apprehend we shal make the Scripture to contradict it self But now those that are versed in Scripture and understand the mind of God in the Scripture can tel how to joyn these together though others think they contradict one another As that of Paul to the Romans That we are justified by faith without the works of the Law And that in James he saith we are Justified by workes A stranger would think these contradict one another but they that are acquainted with the way of the Scripture they can understand what this meanes So these men that would make contradiction in the preaching of Gods Ministers in the Gospel they are strangers to the way of God in the Gospel did they understand the way of God cleerly in the Gospel they would know how to make a sweet agreement of such things as they would make poor young ones and weak beleevers to beleeve there is a contradiction in them And therefore this I would hold and hope we shal for ever hold as a strong principle That the condition of the Gospel is only comming and that which the weight of our soules and eternal estates lies upon is not our humbling but it is the comming to Jesus Christ Do not say that this tends to loosness for that soul that sees Christ as the glorious mediator to come to save him this sight of Christ hath a great deale of power to sanctifie the heart for when I see this I see first that I have to doe with God and that there must be a mediator between God and me my sins have made such a breach between God and my soul this tends not to looseness And then as you were taught before comming notes a removing from one condition to another Then it notes secondly that my heart is taken off from the world from my lusts from my corruptions my comming implies this And thirdly when I consider the end of my comming what the soul aimes at when it comes thus I come to Christ to save me from the power of my sins as wel as the guilt of my sins I come to Christ as the fountain of al my happiness I come to him for life and grace and all good I come to him that I might live in him and that I might live to God by him Certainly to say that Christ requires only to come to him this doth not tend to loosness I come to Christ that I may commit my whole soul to him is not this a sanctifying grace Indeed to preach thus that you may come to Christ and no more this pleaseth Libertines but when we consider what is the way of the Gospel I must first know what it is to come and then I must know that it is to leave somewhat to know wherfore I come that I may have al my happiness in him I come to him for life for salvation for union with God the father that I may enjoy communion with him to everlasting here is no liberty to looseness in comming but a blessed maintaining of the condition of the Gospel in the way of the soules coming unto Christ 4. It followes from hence that the weakest and the least degree of Faith that is wil give us interest in Christ because that nothing but comming to him is required It is not run to me or come strongly to me if I can but get to him though it be crawling though it be never so poorly never so weakely that doth it by comming and closing with Christ If that be the condition to come to such a place for a pardon though they come creeping upon their hands and feet through weakeness yet if they be but there they shal have that that is promised so say I though the soul in coming to Christ creep as it were upon hand and feet come with much weakeness it is that that gives interest in Christ not such and such degrees of Faith and confidence as some have It may be some poore weake Christians are troubled at this that they have not such confidence and assurance as others have they are ful of doubts and feares We are to know that it is not the degree and strength of Faith that is required in coming but comming to Christ Come to me though it be with shaking with trembling though with mixture of much feare yet come to me and you shal have rest 5. It follows from hence That the work of faith and bringing true rest unto the soul is a supernatural work it is comming to him that is it s the looking forward by a righteousness that is beyond our own it is a leaving our own righteousness not resting upon that and confiding in what we have are or can be inabled to do by the power of God I say that the way of the souls getting rest in Christ by faith it is supernatural for it is by such a way wherein the soul comes to deny it self in whatever it hath whatever it doth whatever it can be inabled to do by the power of God It rests not upon any thing that is in it or done by it no nor in any thing that God himself by his grace and infinite power can do in it I do not say do for it for that is in Christ but do in it beyond what is in it self or Gods infinite power is able to inable it to do it is comming to Christ and therefore going out of our selves this is supernatural for there is nothing more natural to mankind then this to rest upon his own bottom to desire the staff in his own hand to leane upon some worthiness and some good in himself this though he wil
Christ takes upon himself al the sin of them that come to him and stands charged with them before his Father 2. He Satisfieth for Sin 3. The wrath of God is appeased 4. He is continually at the right hand of his Father to intercede for Sinners that come to him 5. Their Souls are sprinkled with the Blood of Christ 6. The Soul at the first coming to Christ is made perfectly righteous before God 7. Christ not only undertakes for all the Sins past but also for Sins to come 8. Guilt shall never return when it is once taken off 9. The Soul at its first coming to Christ is cloathed with the Righteousness of Christ 10. Such are sure that the day of judgment shal be the Solemnity of their absolution NOw we are but beginning the great point of all the Rest of the Soul in Christ what it is and in this I shal take the Method that I followed in the opening of the Burdens of Laden Sinners that were heavy Laden I spake of five loades that were upon sinners that Christ cals to him that they might come to him for Rest now answerable to those five shal we speak of the Rest that is to be had in Christ The first Load was the sence of the guilt of sin that was the first Load that was upon sinners that Christ cals to come unto him that they might have Rest Now concerning the Rest that the soul hath by Christ in the deliverance of it from the woful trouble of conscience in respect of the guilt of sin I shal not shew here what those troubles are for that was done in the former point about those that were weary and heavy Laden Now if there be any that find their souls Laden under the burden of the guilt of their sins and that apprehend nothing but the wrath of God that is following and pursuing of them that if you should speak to them and say Christian what see you Oh I see an angry God above and I see within me a guilty conscience and round about me I see nothing but the wrath of God ready to seize upon me and underneath I see nothing but the bottomless Gulf ready to receive me now to such Christ saith Come unto me and I will give you ease and Rest from al these fears from al these troubles and I will give you ease from all those throws of your conscience from al those grievous achings of your Soul Come to me Now What ease is it to a beleever to be freed from the throbs of Conscience and the trouble of Heart that ariseth from the guilt of sin Now this will be the first thing this wil be ease to every beleever that comes to Christ to consider I. First That the Lord Jesus Christ takes all the sins of those that come to him and is willing to stand charged with them before the Lord is willing that they should al be set upon his Score and laid to his charge and therefore the Scripture tels us that Christ was made sin in 2 Cor. 5.21 He hath made him to be Sin for us Upon which Luther takes the boldness to say that Christ was the greatest sinner in the world not that he had sin that he committed himself but that he had all the sins of all beleevers upon him there is a transaction of all the sins of those that come to Christ upon Jesus Christ and this is presently upon thy coming to Christ I say at the first instant of thy coming to Christ al thy sins are transacted upon Christ and he stands charged with them to God As it is with a poor Woman that is in great debt that is afraid of Sergeants attending upon her she is a widow and she marries a Rich man Oh! What ease hath she Why For now all her debt is charged upon her Husband Yet this may cause trouble too if he do not know it before but if she tel him before and he saies well this shal not hinder the match I am content to pay all but yet here is trouble stil til the day of marriage but when that is come Oh! What ease is this to her Now al the debt is charged upon her Husband and she knows her Husband is able to pay and discharge all So saith Christ I know all your fears and sorrows and all your guilt and what it is my father hath to charge upon you I know it al and it is not that that hinders me from being willing to be matched with you Nay the truth is it is that that makes me willing and it is that that makes me cal you Come to me Come to me and the first moment you come to me there shal be a discharge of al you shal not stand charged but I will stand charged with all Here now is ease and Rest here is other manner of ease and Rest than to Eate and Drink and injoy the pleasures and contentment that this world affords II. Yea Secondly Christ is Rest from the guilt of Sin by actual Satisfaction the Lord Christ doth satisfie the justice of his Father and this is applied to every beleever at the first moment that he comes to Christ there is a ful satisfaction made so that a beleever now hath made satisfaction When we come to Christ our sins are not so pardoned as if God had no Satisfaction but the Lord though he pardons us and it is free Grace to us yet notwithstanding our surety gives satisfaction the Lord Christ tenders up his Blood and merit unto his Father as a ful satisfaction for all ouâ— debts for al our sins the truth is he hath paid it already and upon your coming to him it is accounted yours for Jesus Christ hath satisfied the justice of God the Father that thy Soul doth so much fear What dost thou fear in regard of thy sins Oh! My sins make me liable to the justice of God saith Christ I have given satisfaction unto the justice of my Father to the very ful and it was for thy sins in Particular Oh! The Rest and ease that comes to the Soul by this when the Soul can see that all his sins are done away if we had but strong Faith upon our first coming to Jesus Christ we might actually see all our sins charged upon Jesus Christ III. Thirdly Upon this the wrath of God is come now to be appeased and satisfied the Lord did look with an angry countenance upon thee before but now upon thy coming to Jesus Christ the Lord imbraceth thy Soul and wellcomes thee and looks upon thee as a friend as a Child and this doth ease the Soul from the trouble it hath by the guilt of sin IV. Fourthly Besides all this Christ taking our sins upon him satisfying divine justice and divine wrath Jesus Christ is continually at the right hand of the Father to be thy advocate that if the Devil or any shal accuse thee for any thing thou hast done before Nay
look upon their faith as legal As thus because their faith doth not come up so fully to the perfection that they do desire yea to that perfection that the Law requires in any thing that we tender up to God For though the Law doth not mention any thing of our beleeving in Christ yet thus much the Law requires that what we do should be tendered up to God and what we tender up to God With perfection Now beleevers looking upon what they tender up to God as imperfect this makes them to make their faith Legal The Sixth Lesson Sixthly another Lesson that beleevers are to learn from the Rest that they have in Christ from the burden of the Law is this that if they find any way or meanes to be delivered from the terrors that come by the Law certainly then they need not be troubled with al the terror that possibly can come from any creature from any men If thy faith can deliver thee from the terror of the Law and give rest to thy soul notwithstanding al the terrible things in the Law threatned against thy sin then thy faith may deliver thee much more from the terror of men for take al the rage and power of al the men in the world and devils in hel they are not so terrible as the threates of the Law Now if God hath given thee such a grace into thy heart as thou by that comest to know a way to deliver thee from the terror of the threatning of the Law and to give Rest unto thy soul from that then thou needst not be afraid of al terrors from wicked men do but set that grace of thine a work set it in exercise upon such promises as have given thee Rest from the Law and this wil free thee from the terrors of wicked men in the world Truly if beleevers did understand the reality of this point there is nothing in the world could be terrible to them but they would have â—est in their souls in the midst of al the terrors in the world for they might reason thus through the grace of faith that God hath given to mee my soul hath rest when I heare the terrors of the Law dreadfully in my eares yet I have that within me that gives me rest from them and I am sure that al the terrors of al the men in the world and devils in hel cannot be more terrible than the threates of the Law therefore as thou hast made use of thy faith to believe in Christ to get Rest from those terrors in the like manner put forth thy faith when thou hearest the terrors of wicked men to deliver thy soul from them let there be never so much rumors in the world yet thou mayest say my soul returne unto thy Rest The seventh Lesson Seventhly Another Lesson that beleevers are to learn from their deliverance from the law which is of marvelous use to them in their life and conversation is this That certainly it is the most unbecoming thing in the world to see a beleever to be rigorous towards his brethren Christ hath delivered thee from rigor then wilt thou be rigorous Christ hath given thee Rest wilt not thou do what thou canst to give thy brother rest too If Christ hath delivered thee from great troubles burdens and bondage that thou wert under why shouldest thou not endeavor with al thy might to deliver thy brother from burdens troubles any thing that might grieve thy brother Oh! what an unworthy thing is it that a Christian that hath received so much rest from Christ yet should be a troublesome man or woman to his brother or sister Christ doth therefore give Rest to thee that thou mayest be of a quiet disposition towards others that thou mayest be pitiful towards others To see one that professes to have deliverance from the Law and to have Rest in Christ to be rigorous to those under him rigorous to his servants rigorous to his Children it is miserable remember what rigor Christ hath delivered thee from and remember to be quiet spirited to thy brother Hence it follows in the next words to my text Learn of mee for I am meek and lowly in heart and ye shal find rest unto your soules I wil give rest to your soules that so you may be of a meeke and quiet disposition towards your brethren but of that when we come to those words that follow we shal then speake of the weakness and quietness of spirit that should be in Christians Now these things are necessarily the consequences that do follow upon the rest that we have in Christ from the Law many other things might be raised but because they are but consequences of what hath been delivered I resolved not to be large upon them CHAP. 33. Of the rest from Legal Performances and the several waies how this rest comes from Christ viz. duties are delightful to the soul because Christ renders God unto the soul in a gracious way 2. They are not performed as satisfactory but as testimonies of love and thankfulness 3 Christ himself offers up the duties to God 4. They are performed from the Law in the heart 5. They have the Promises joyned with them NOw to make some entrance into the next thing which hath great affinity to the other aad that is the rest that is in Christ from the trouble of spirit that there is in many in regard of Legal performances that you know I opened at large the great burden that there is in the spirits of many people who have convinced Consciences and there Consciences pul and hale them to duty and they dare not but performe duty but when they do their duty their very duties are a burden to them for they do them in a legal way There are many I know that are acquainted with this it is impossible to speak of such a subject but that there are divers that know what I meane though others know not to be under so much power of Conscience as not to dare to omit a duty though the duty be burdensom to them There be many that are not under so much command of Conscience but though conscience require them to do such a duty they dare omit the duty and they are not troubled at it but but there are others who have not felt the Grace of the Gospel to set their souls at liberty they are under so much command of conscience that they dare not but do what Conscience requires and yet the Lord knows the duties that they have performed have been girevous burdens them they have gone under the command of their Consciences as under a grievous burden Now to these Christ speaks come ro me and I wil give you rest in the beleeving in Christ in the exercising of faith in Christ there is deliverance from this burden and many poor souls that for many yeares have gone on under this burden whom the Lord hath opened to them the grace of Christ their hearts
not go upon such mean and low arguments as you do meane and low arguments may keep men in an orderly course to live quietly with their Neighbors and keep them from thievery drunkenness swearing and the like arguments that the heathen had skil of may keep them from those things But the saints beleevers that are acquainted with the wayes of Christ they have higher arguments they behold him with the eye of faith and so they come to have power against their sin and to have ease in their souls Thus saith Christ come to me you have Corruptions prevailing over you and you perhaps strive with them with such and such arguments but come to me and I wil give you such things you shal see so much against sin and so much for holiness as that that I shal discover to you shal help you against your corruptions and further you in the way of holiness and so you shal have rest unto your souls CHAP. XL. Shewing how Sanctification comes from Christ in six Particulars more 1. It is he that reveals the Father to the Soul 2. Through Christ the Love of God is shed abroad into the heart 3. All the Promises are made to us through him 4. In him all the Ordinances are effectual 5. He sends the Spirit into the heart 6. Christ Rules in the heart SEventhly Christ comes to be our Sanctification we have the rest of sanctification in Christ thus It 's Christ that doth make known the Father unto the soul No man knows the Father saith Christ but the Son and him to whom the Son reveals him I suppose you know the Scripture And if you have seen me saith Christ you have seen the Father in John 14. It is Christ that makes known God unto the soul and there is a mighty power to work Holiness in the heart by the knowledg of God Saith the Apostle St. John in 1 John 2.4 He that saith I know him and keepeth not his Commandements is a lyar The knowledg of God cannot stand with the neglect of Gods Commandements There is a mighty power in the knowledg of God for the Sanctifying of the heart the very looking upon Gods Holiness hath a great deal of power to sanctifie the heart and the reason of al the wickedness and prophaness in the world it is because men know not the Lord know not what an infinite blessed glorious God they have to deal withal They that know thy Name will trust in thee saith the Psalmist So may we say Those that know thy Name O Lord will fear thee they will serve thee they will walk before thee in obedience and Holiness Now the knowledg of God it is in Christ there may be some kind of Natural knowledg of God out of Christ in beholding the Works of God we may know somwhat of him But as the Scripture saith in 1 Cor. 1.21 After that in the Wisdom of God that is in the Creature in the Glory of God that shines in the Creature the World by Wisdom knew not God The World by Wisdom that is the World by all their Natural Understanding by al Learning that Phylosophers had that saw much of the Glory of God shining in the Creature yet saith the Text by al their wisdom they knew not God but yet it pleased God by the foolishness of preaching to save them that beleeve And what preaching was this verse 23. We preach Christ crucified c. So that there is no saving knowledg but only in Christ when the Soul comes to Christ then the Lord Jesus Christ reveals the Father to him reveals the Counsels of God unto the Soul reveals the very heart of God unto the soul and hence it is that many poor people that are very ignorant before they come to know Christ know little or nothing of God at al but had strange thoughts of God yet as soon as ever the things of the Gospel come to be revealed to them they begin to have high thoughts of God high and honorable thoughts of God and those high and honorable thoughts of God do mightily prevail upon their hearts to purge out sin and sanctifie their hearts exceedingly Do but consider of those places where the preaching of the Gospel hath been but very little what poor thoughts they have of God they know not God and therfore they live in all manner of Ungodliness But now when the preaching of the Gospel comes to any place and God comes to be known there the Devil is cast out and the hearts of people being filled with the knowledg of God they come to be sanctified unto the Service of God That is another thing It is Christ that reveals the Father unto the Soul and so comes for to sanctifie the heart Eighthly It is through Christ that the love of God is shed abroad into the heart of a beleever and that hath a mighty power to sanctify the heart the shedding abroad of the love of God into the heart this only can be in Christ There may be though out of Christ common fruites of Gods bounty general patience goodness and the like but the special love of God that hath a sanctifying power that goes along with it it is that only that is in Christ and when the soul comes once to have union with Christ there flowes the sweet sence of the love of God unto the heart it is shed abroad according unto the scripture Phrase that the heart being filled with the sweetness of Gods love and comes to be sanctified thereby then al base love of the creature and the love of sin comes to be eaten out and the heart comes to be carried on in a blessed sweet and gracious manner after the Lord. Al the terror of the Law cannot sanctifie so as the shedding abroad of the love of Christ in the heart can Indeed by the terror of the Law sin may be restrained but by the terror of the Law the heart can never be sanctified This is a certain truth the terror of the Law may restrain from sin but it can never sanctifie the heart the terrors of the Law are useful to be preached in that way for to restrain Sin but when we preach them we do not think that we can thereby possibly sanctifie the heart corruption may be restrained for a while but that which must sanctifie the heart must be the love of God in Jesus Christ As I remember Fulgentius compares the love of God in Christ in the heart of a beleever to the fire that is within the furnace and the love of God in his common bounty to a few sparkes that fly out at a distance from the mouth of the furnace take al the love of God that is in the creature suppose the Lord should give unto you the possession of al the world and should make a thousand worlds and give thee possession of them al this were but as a spark from the furnace but the love of God in Christ is as the
heat of the furnace and as the heat you know consumes stubble combustible matter put into it so there is that heat in the love of God shed abroad in the heart by Christ that consumes the lust of the heart and the soul growes up into holiness thereby It is with the heart of a Beleever as it is with the fruites of the earth you know that the frost may keep down some weeds but it is the sun-shine it is the beams of the sun and the warme beames that makes the fruit to ripen and to grow up that fruit that growes in the sun is soonest ripe your grasse that growes in the orchard is sowre and the beast wil not eate it and other herbs that grow in the shade comes to no maturity nor to be so good as those that grow in the sun fruit that growes upon the wal how quickly doth that grow ripe whereas the other that grows in the shade withers so there are some that live altogether under Legal feares and trouble of conscience perhaps they have somtimes fruite but it is sour fruit it is not so sweet fruite as comes from those that are under the sun-shine of the Gospel that have the shine of the love of God upon their hearts their fruite is sweet and they thrive better and looke more lovely and live a more amiable and lovely life then the lives of others And this is another way how Christ comes to be our sanctification in shedding abroad the love of God into the heart and that the scripture is ful of how the love of God is shed abroad in Jesus Christ Ninthly Christ is our Sanctification in this respect becaus al the promises of the Gospel are made to us in him he is the foundation of al the promises that are in the Gospel they are al made good in him they have a boundance of sanctifying power in them Christ is our sanctification I say because it is through him that the promises are made which hath a mighty sanctifying power As for the First In 2. Cor. 1.20 For al the promises of God in him are yea and in him Amen unto the glory of God by us Al the promises of God in him are yea in him amen al Gospel promises are made unto us by christ that is a very useful a notable meditation to consider of al promises that they come unto us from Christ an excellent meditation to set out the excellency of Jesus Christ that in him are al the promises they are in him yea what is the meaning of that That is they are confirmed to us in Christ in him they are made certain to us they are made good in him or as some of your books read it thus For al the promises of God in him are yea and I find it is I know not whether it be in your books but Calvin Beza and other interpreters say it is read in some copies thus Therefore in him let them be yea and Amen unto the glory of God by us Al the promises of God in him are yea that is they are made certain things in Christ as the foundation therefore 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 so Beza saith it is read therefore let them be Amen in him unto the praise of God That is as God hath made al promises in him as certain so let us look upon Christ and see the promises of God in him and beleeve in them and so by our faith say Amen unto the promises that are made in him unto the glory of God so shal we Glorifie God when we shal look upon the promises by our faith and say Amen unto our soules Now the word Amen signifies firme and sure that is the meaning of the word Amen Sometimes it signifies at the end of our prayer so be it Amen it is an Hebrew word that signifies so be it let it be O Lord as we have prayed and according to thy promise that is the meaning of the word Amen when you conclude your prayer with Amen It is a word that is used for faith and it is the expression of faith after we have made our prayer and that is the meaning here therefore al the promises in him are yea they are made in Christ and affirmed in Christ as certain therefore in him let them be Amen unto the soul let them be as firme and certain things unto us for us to rest upon unto the glory of God by us and thereby shal we glorifie God ye have so many precious promises in Christ but now they are unto the glory of God by us we by faith say Amen to them and we make them as firme and sure unto our soules by the exercise of our faith upon them So you may understand in some measure this scripture which hath exceeding much in it thus you see by Christ the promises are made to us Quest I but you wil say How doth this help our sanctification Answ I answer exceeding much there is nothing helps the sanctification of the soul of a beleever more then the promises of the Gospel those that are exercised in the promises of the Gospel they grow more abundantly in sanctification then others The promises of the Gospel are channels not only of mercy for our salvation but of holiness for our sanctification and for that you have a most excellent scripture 2. Cor. 7.1 Having therefore these promises dearly beloved let us clense our selves from al filthiness of flesh and spirit perfecting holiness in the fear of God It is as ful a scripture as I know any here you may see what use the holy Ghost would have you make of the promises of the Gospel and of mercy It may be you think that seeing there is such promises of mercy you may take more liberty to the flesh but that is not the reasoning of the spirit he would not take more liberty therby but seeing we have such promises saith he let us clense our selves from al filthiness filthines cannot stand with beleeving of promises And marke he saith from al filthiness of the flesh and of the spirit So that it is not enough for you to say you have as good a heart towards God as any others I thank God my heart is right my spirit is right I but you must clense from al filthiness of the flesh as wel as of the spirit and these promises if you have the right use of them they wil be mighty clensing And marke from al filthiness it is not enough to clense from some gross filthiness that is that you do not live in the grost sins that others of the world live in and that your neighbors live in that you are not whoremungers drunkards cheaters prophaners of the saboth and the like but these promises wil cleanse from al filthiness that is there shal be no filthiness that shal stick to you as to the wicked and ungodly but it wil clense gradually by degrees from al Filthiness of
they come unto us if out of Christ I say they are part of the curse Now the main trouble and burden of an affliction it is the curse the secret curse that is in them but now when thou art come to Christ though the outward bulk of affliction may be as big as it was before yet the curse shal be taken away the worm the trouble that did eat thy heart that shal be taken away and therefore there must be rest in that way Suppose there were a Snake that should wind about thine arm that would affright thee but if thou didst come to know certainly that the sting were taken out thou wouldest be quiet if thou wert a wise man though perhaps a child or a weak woman might be affrighted but a wise man that understands what he doth if he knew that the sting is out would not be affraid now know O thou beleever that upon thy comming to Christ the sting of al affliction is taken out there is nothing of the sting in it Affliction may make a noise as the Bee doth when the sting is out though there were never so many bees about your eares if you knew the stings were out you might be quiet The core of affliction is taken out as soon as thou art come to Christ As some soares in the body do put the body to a great deal of pain there is some core in a wound some malignant humor that runs in a wound that puts a man or woman to a great deal of pain But now if this core this malignant humor be taken out by the Chyrurgeon there wil be ease and rest So I say by thy coming to Christ the core the malignant humor of affliction is taken out the sting the curse is taken away and thou must exercise faith for the taking away of this and the way to exercise faith to take away the sting and core of every affliction is this to look upon Christ under al his afflictions as being made a curse for thee for that indeed may trouble those paines that were upon Christ that were in his body and the poverty that he endured and the dishonor that he suffered there was a curse in them and Christ he takes away the curse by bearing the curse As you know when a Bee stings many times it leaves its sting behind it so the curses of the Law the Law came to sting Christ as it were and left the curse behind it upon him so that now the curse is removed from beleevers It is a good observation that one hath about the burnt offering in the Law we read of the burnt offering that it was to continue burning al night So now beleevers in the night of their affliction they should exercise their faith upon Christ for burnt offering Oh consider though thou hast sad nights sad and very greivous nights and thou liest tossing and tumbling canst not sleep art in pain and trouble what shal give thee rest Now if thou couldst but exercise faith in Christ who typified out the burnt offering that was to burn al night I say this was typified that Christ is to be looked upon as burning under the wrath of God al the night of thy affliction to take away Gods wrath in thy afflictions and there 's no such rest as this Perhaps in the time of affliction sickness losse of estate and spoil of goods there comes one friend and another and saith you must be content and it is the hand of God and others are afflicted as wel as you and it is the portion of Gods children these are some things to quiet the heart I but these are but poor cold consolations to tel them they must be content and it must be so and they must endure it these can never give rest to the soul except you can put your friend upon exercising of faith in Jesus Christ here is the way to comfort your friends when you go to visit them in sickness loss of estate or spoiling of goods to put them upon this to exercise faith upon Christ that hath born affliction and by his death hath taken away the curse of al afflictions It is true there is a night of affliction now upon you I but there is Christ that is the burnt offering that burnes al night to take away the wrath of God in thy afflictions There is no such way to worm your affliction to take away the sting of affliction as to exercise faith upon Christ in whom the curse of affliction is taken away and when that is gone now there is rest to the soul A sick man that lies tossing and tambling and cannot Rest and is in such distemper in his flesh and hath such a Malignant humor in his body when the Chyruâ—geon comes and applies any salve to take away that malignant humor he sayes when the Chyrurgeon comes again Oh Sir now I can Rest And so saith a Christian when he hath been vexed with such and such afflictions and he hath gone and excercised faith in Jesus Christ for he sees he was under the curse of the Law and Christ hath taken away the curse of al afflictions when he hath thus acted faith upon Christ now he can be at rest and he can say now I see the sting taken away As I said in the rest of sanctification Christ was appointed as the Brasen serpent was the great ordinance of God for the healing of them that were stung by the fiery serpents that if they did but look upon it they were healed those that were stung with the fiery serpents the very looking upon the Brasen Serpent were healed it being the ordinante of God appointed for that end So I may apply it here those that are stung with affliction Christ is set up as the ordinance as the Brasen serpent to take away the venom of the sting of thy affliction No question but those that were stung with the fiery serpents they felt an intolerable pain and when they looked upon the brasen serpent they had rest and they could say now I have ease now I have rest So the curse of God in affliction is the venom and those that are ready to rave and are almost mad in affliction and are so extreamly discontented it is to be suspected concerning them that the curse of God is upon them But now another that is under as great an affliction as thou art can lie sweetly and contentfully and blessing God under any affliction thou wonderst at it that he can lie so joyfull blessing of God under so much affliction the Lord hath taught him a way to worm his affliction the Lord hath taught him a way to deliver his soul from the curse of the affliction the curse is gone and he by exercising faith upon Christ hath comfort in removing of the curse and this gives him Rest in time of affliction Thirdly Come to Christ and thou shalt have Rest in thy affliction because that then not only the
CHRIST Inviting SINNERS To come to Him for REST. Wherein is shewed FIRST 1 The Burden of Sin 2 The Burden of the Law 3 The Burden of Legal performances with the Misery of those that are under them 4 The Burden of Corruption 5 The Burden of Outward Affliction SECONDLY Christ Greciously offers to them that come to him REST from al those Burdens Wherein is shewed 1 What it is to come to Christ 2 That Christ requires nothing but to come to him 3 Several Rules to be observed in in right coming to Christ 4 Means to draw Souls to Christ 5 That in coming to Christ God would have us have respect to our selves 6 That there is No REST for souls out of Christ And the Reasons therefore with some conclusions from it THIRDLY There is shewed 1 The Rest Believers have from sin 2 The deliverance from the Law by Christ is 1 Privatively 2 Positively 3 The Rest Believers have from the Burden of the Law by coming to Christ 4 How Christ gives Rest from the Burden of Legal performances 5 How Christ gives Rest from the Burden of Corruption wherein is shewed how Sanctification and Holiness comes from Christ only And encouragments to come to Christ for Holiness 6 How Christ gives Rest from outward Afflictions 7 Some Directions how to get Rest from Christ in Spiritual desertions By JEREMIAH BURROUGHS Preacher of the Gospel at Stepny and Cripple-Gate London London Printed by Peter Cole Printer and Book-seller and are to be Sold at the Sign of the Printing-Press in Cornhill near the Royall Exchange 1659. A Testimony to the Reader WHAT we have by way of Preface set before the several Books already published of this Reverend Author Mr. Jeremiah Burroughs may sufficiently serve for all that are come forth So that we only need now give Letters Testimonial to the World that these viz. The Sermons on Matthew the 11. Chapter 28 29 and 30. verses We avouch likewise to be the painfull and profitable Labors of the same Author and published by the best and most Authentick Copies Thomas Goodwin William Greenhil William Bridge Sydrach Sympson Philip Nye John Yates William Adderley Books Printed by Peter Cole Printer and Book seller of London at the Exchange Four New Books of Mr. Jer. Burroughs VIZ. THE FIRST BOOK Christs call to all those that are Weary and Heavy Laden to come to him for Rest Wherein is shewed First 1 The Burden of Sin 2 The Burden of the Law 3 Ths Burden of Legal performances with the Misery of those that are under them 4 The Burden of Corruption 5 The Burden of Outward Affliction Secondly Christ Graciously offers to them that come to him REST from all those Burdens Wherein is shewed 1 What it is to come to Christ 2. That Christ requires nothing but to come to him 3 Several Rules to be Observed in right coming to Christ 4 Meanes to Draw Soules to Christ 5 That in coming to Christ God would have us have respect to our selves 6. That there is No REST for souls out of Christ And the Reasons therefore with some conclusions from it Thirdly There is shewed 1 The Rest Beleevers have from sin 2 The deliverance from the Law by Christ is 1 Privatively 2 Positively 3 The Rest beleevers have from the Burden of the Law by coming to Christ 4 How Christ gives Rest from the Burden of Legal performances 6 How Christ gives Rest from the Burden of Corruption wherein is shewed how Sanctification and Holiness comes from Christ only And encouragments to come to Christ for holiness 6 How Christ gives Rest from outward Affliction 7 Some Directions how to get Rest from Christ in Spiritual desertions THE SECOND BOOK Christ the Great Teacher of Souls that come to him Wherein is shewed 1 What Christs Yoak is 2 That beleevers must take Christs Yoak on them 3 The more we are under the Yoak of Christ the more REST we have 4 Christ is the great Teacher of his Church and People 5 In what manner Christ Teacheth 1 He is a Meek Teacher 2 An Humble Teacher 6 The Learners of Christ must be MEEK 7 The Learners of Christ must be humble 8 Christ teacheth by his EXAMPLE 9 Wherein Christs EXAMPLE is to be followed 10 What kind of Pattern Christ is 11 We must not follow the Example of the World We must imitate Christ in MEEKNES 1 What Meekness is 2 Learn of Christ to be Meek towards God And the Reasons thereof 3 The Dreadful Evil of Anger and frowardness towards God 4 Meekness towards God Exemplified from scripture Examples 5 Meekness towards Men which consists in ordering Anger 1 To the right Object 2 To the right Time 3 To the reight measure 4 To the right end c. 6 The sad Effects of Anger 7 The Excellency of Meekness 8 Promises made to Meekness 9 Many Vaine Reasons and Pleas for Anger Answered 10 Exhortations to Meekness 11 Means to get and keep Meekness New Books of Mr. Jeremiah Burroughs THE THIRD BOOK Christ the Humble Teacher of those that come to him Wherein is shewed 1 What Humility oâ— Lowliness is Not. 2 What that Lowliness of Heart is that Christ would have us to Learn of him 3 Arguments from the Lowliness of Christ to work Lowliness of spirit in Us. 4 The properties of an humble heart towards God 5 The Properties of an Humble and Lowly heart in respect of Our selves 6 The properties of humility in respect of others 1 It is fearful of giving or taking offence 2 It gives due honor to all 3 It is tender to others 4 It 's not needlesly singular from them 7 The Excellencies of Humility 8 Humility brings REST unto the Soul 9 Means to get Humility THE FOURTH BOOK The only Easie way to Heaven Whereâ—n is shewed 1 The way to Heaven that Iesus Christ Teacheth is an Easie way six Evidences thereof 2 The Difference between the EASE a Carnal heart hath and the EASE a gracious Soul hath in Religion 3 The Reason why some gracious Souls complaine of difficulty in Gods waies 4 What it is that Makes the waies of God so Easie 5 Consequences from the easiness of Gods waies 6 Directions how we may make the waies of God Easie New Books of Mr. Sydrach Simpsons viz. I Of Faith Or That beleeving is receiving Christ And receiving Christ is Believing II Of Covetousness In the First Book is shewed besides many other things 1 That Persons that are beleevers are Receivers 2 That to Receive is the Principal use of Faith 3 That nothing should hinder our Receiving 1 Not our Sins 2 Nor Gods delaies 3 Nor the smalness of our receipts 4 Nor the greatness of our Wants 4 How Faith Receives 5 That Faith Receives Christ 1 In the understanding 2 In the Will 6 The temper of a man that hath faith 7 The necessity of Faith 8 Though Faith be smal yet it makes us the Sons of God 9 The Nature of True Faith 10 There are
report upon the waies of God 5. They keep no proportion therein 6. They are kept off from Christ Page 65 Chap. 11. Of the Burden of Corruption And that there is Corruption in the Saints Being a Burden 1. Of Grief 2. Of Shame 3. Of Fear 4. Of Care 5. Of Labor and Toyl Page 72 Chap. 12. The Burden of Coruption set forth in eight particularâ— 1. It is a Sole burden 2. It hath al other burdens in it 3. It is a Continual burden 4. It makes al other things to be a burden 5. It is a burden to God himself 6. It makes the sins burdensome to all others 7. It makes him burdensome to himself 8. How greivous soever we cannot be rid of it in this life Page 81 â—hap 13. In what respects Corruption is a Burden 1. In that our nature is opposite unto the very nature of God 2. It presseth down every holy duty 3. It affords matter for any Temptation 4. Iâ— hath a Root from whence all kind of sin may spring 5. It dampeth all the activity of our Graces Page 87 Chap. 15. In what respects the stirrings and motions of coruption are very burdensom 1. They contitinually fight against the Spirit of Grace in the heart 2. They are sudden 3. They are full of confusion and disorder 4. They work very Malitiously 5. They watch opportunity to do mischief 6. They are very unseasonable 7. They are very prevalent Page 92 Chap. 15. The Reasons of the former point 1. Because corruption when it prevails weakens the heart 2. By it God is dishonored 3. By it our holy profession is scandalized 4. By it they over whom it prevails are made useless in their places 5. Thereby the means of grace are made unprofitable 6. Thereby our peace with God is disturbed 7. Thereby the assurance of our Salvation is shaken Page 98 Chap. 16. Why the Saints feel these things so burdensome Namely 1. Because the life of grace is a tender and delicate thing 2. Because grace keeps the Soul in continual acting And why God suffers corruption notwithstanding the burdensomness thereof to remain in the Saints Namely 1. That hereby be may shew forth his own power 2. Hereby their Faith be exercised 3. Hereby they are driven unto Prayer 4. Hereby stirred up unto Repentance 5. Hereby make known his Wisdom 6. Hereby manifest his justice in laying a stumbling block before the wicked 7. Hereby the Saints may be induced to long more after Heaven With two Consequences issuing from hence 1. The differences between the sins of the godly and the wicked 2. Why the Saints go on so sadly in their waies Page 103 Chap. 18. Of the Burden of outward affictions and the grievousness thereof laid open in three Particulars 1. In themselves they are a part of the curse of the Law 2. They hinder much in doing Service to God 3. They often help forward many strong Temptaions Why God wil have his Saints to be under this Burden Namely 1. Because he wil have his Servants to honor and obey him meerly out of Love 2. Because he knoweth that thus their corruptions may be best mortified 3. To be a stumbling block to the wicked Page 111 Chap. 18. Christs Invitation of Sinners laid down in these words Come unto me Opened in five Particulars 1. It is to look to Christ as an All-sufficient Savior 2. It implieth an unsettledness upon the Creature 3. A stirring of the heart after Christ 4. A laying of all our burdens upon Christ 5. A leaving of the Soul with Christ for life Page 116 Chap. 19. How Christ cals Sinners unto him set forth in two Particulars Namely 1. By an outward and general cal 2. By a Particular call to Particular Sinners And how to know the voice of Christ Page 124 Chap. 20 That there is nothing required of Sinners but to come to Christ with mne Consequences arising from hence and what hath been laid down in the two former Chapters 1. There it not any worthiness required in such as come to Christ 2. The Soul needs not to be troubled about the time and and measure of its Humiliation before its coming to Christ 3. Nor about what interest it hath in Christ before its coming to him 4. That the least degree of Faith will give the Soul interest in Christ 5. That the work of Faith is supernatural 6. That Faith is an humbling Grace 7. That Beleevers after their coming to Christ should be willing to do and suffer much for Christ 8. That they wrâ— are once in Christ shal never be east off 9. That they know not what to do when they loose their interest in Christ Page 130 Chap. 21. Nine Rules to be observed in right coming to Christ 1. Rest not in outward means that lead to Christ before Christ himself be enjoyed 2. Pitch rather upon Christ himself than upon the good things of Christ 3. Come with the whol soul 4. Keep Christ continually in thine Eye 5. Be convinced that whatsoever keeps thee from Christ comes not from God 6. Take heed and beware of all discouragements and hindrances 7. Keep the Heart stil tending to Christ 8. Give up thy self to Gods Spirit 9. Often renew the act of coming come often to Christ Page 143 Chap. 23. Nine means to draw Sinners to Christ namely That 1. He that caâ—s us is the Son of God 2. He is our neer Kinsman wherein three strong arguments are included First the terror of Gods glory is taken away Secondly He is infinitly inclined to do good unto the Sons of men Thirdly In uniting the divine nature with the humane he hath done a greater work than to save a soul 3. He is the mediator 4. He deserves that we should come to him 5. The soul gets infinite good by coming to Christ instanced in four particulars 6. We are miserable in our selves 7. Christ will certainly receive them that come to him which is opened in three particulars 8. We stand in great need of Christ 9. The not coming to Christ will aggravate all other sins With an answer unto some Objections Page 156 Chap. 23. The Doctrine arising from the dependance of the promise upon the Invitation That God will have us when we are coming to Christ to have respect to our selves Page 179 Chap. 24. Of the rest promised by Christ in general And that there is no Rest for a Soul out of Jesus Christ Page 186 Chap. 25. Six Reasons of the former Doctrine 1. The soul out of Christ is departed from God 2. Every man by nature is an enemy to God 3. Every man by nature is bound over to the justice of God to answer to what be can charge him with 4. In a mâ—n out of Christ there is every thing to disquiet him 5. Every one out of Christ is condemned 6. Such every moment may be plunged into a gulf of Wrath. Page 196 Chap. 26. Containeth I. A further consideration of the restless condition of men
their duty only conscience hales them to it and tells them that they must do it and if they do neglect it conscience flyes in their Faces and tells them they must perish eternally and they seek therefore to pacify their Consciences only by the performance of Duties and by their obedience to the Law and so seek it by the righteousness of the Law that 's the only way that they do take to pacifie their Consciences and get rest and peace unto their souls Alas al this while they are laboring and toyling but cannot do it for while men seek Righteousness by the Law it must needs be a toyling labor that will not give rest The First Burden of the Law First The Law gives no strength at all to enable me to perform duties and therefore the Children of it must needs be under bondage as Pharaoh's Task-masters commanded so much Brick to be made but would afford them no straw no means to do it So some set forth the bondage and servitude of the Law commanding such things as it gives no strength at al to perform Quest But you will say Is this the Law of God is God so hard to his Creature as to command that which he gives no ability to perform Answ We must know that God did once give strength to perform Duties but certainly now the Law of God commands Duties but gives no strength to perform them there is no strength enabling us to perform duties until the Spirit of Jesus Christ doth come into the Soul we may perform the outward part of them but not perform duties in such a spiritual manner that they should be suitable to our hearts so as to bring ease and quiet unto our souls and though the soul do seek to get rest and ease to it self yet it wil not come that way The Second Burden of the Law Secondly The Law requires perfect obedience in every thing and denounceth a Curse against him that doth not continue in every thing that is written in the Law to do it Now when men and women are seeking to get rest to their souls by the works of the Law they cannot perform duties as they ought and therefore they have no rest but they see the Law to condemn them because they do not perform duties in a perfect manner and yet they think they must go on and do as wel as they can I but still Conscience hath matter to accuse them of you have not done enough you still come short and though you do some duties you neglect other duties so that Conscience hath them at advantage every day and they are continually under the bondage of an accusing and condemning Conscience that they can have no rest to their souls they perform duties but question with themselves how can I know that the infinite holy God wil accept of what I do and although they may get quiet for a little while yet Conscience comes upon them again and disquiets them and casts fears and doubts â—to their souls insomuch that many poor Creatures have gone seven or perhaps twice seven years under trouble of Conscience and never had any rest or peace and yet still have gone on making Conscience of their waies but withal ful of fears and doubts lest al should not be wel with them at last The Third Burden of the Law And besides Whiles the soul goes on to seek quiet and rest by the works of the Law there is an unsuitableness between the duties that are performed and the heart of such a man or woman so that the very works that they do and duties they perform are grievous and tedious unto them I but now saith Christ O! Come to me such as these are Is there any of you that have had your consciences troubled and have desired O! that there might be peace between God and my soul that I might have assurance of Gods Love what course have you taken to get it have you not sought to bring it about by the works of the Law and have thought to get rest and peace to your souls that way Indeed it is better to go on that way than in the waies of sin but to think to have rest and peace that way hath a great deal more evil in it than you are aware of if men shal think to quiet themselves that way and thereby put off the Righteousness that comes by Faith they may come to be hardened before they be aware But is there any of you that are seeking rest and peace unto your souls in such a way by the righteousness of the Law saith Christ know That this is not the way for you to have rest to your souls it 's true you must abstain from sin and perform duties O! but if you would have rest to your souls you must come to me it is by the souls rowling of it self upon the perfect righteousness that there is in Jesus Christ that only can bring true rest unto the soul Many a poor sinner that hath been seeking rest many years hath not got it but when the Lord hath been pleased to come in with one promise of the Gospel setting it home upon their souls they have got more rest and quiet to their souls in one day yea in one hour than they did before in many years there is a great deal of art and skil to get rest and quiet to the soul that is troubled The Gospel is a mystery in this thing and when God acquaints the soul with the mystery of the Gospel in this thing then rest comes on in a sweet and gracious manner It 's true it is the hardest thing in the world for to close with Christ and to get true ease and rest to the soul it is hard in it self til God make known the mystery of Faith to the soul but when that is done then the soul finds abundance of ease and rest and that in a little while As it is with a man that thinks by main strength to do some work that indeed can only be done by Skil and Art he may be toyling laboring and tiring himself but yet cannot do it whereas another man that understands the mistery of it he comes in and in a little time by his skil and art can do that with ease that the other man was toyling and laboring about a long while and yet could not do it As you know in al Trades that have a mistery in them You that are Navigators that understand the mistery of that Art if any unskilful man should come and think to do some of your work by his main strength he may labor and toyl even his Heart out and not do that work that you can do easily in a little time So many poor Souls are laboring and toyling that these troubled Souls of theirs might be but quiet they are laboring and they wil perform duties and fast and pray so many times in a day and so go on in a tiresome way whereas after the
where it is indeed heaviest 6. Feels the weight of Sin to be such as that no Creature is able to remove it 7. Had rather be under any burden then the burden of Sin 8. Doth notwithstanding the weight thereof justifie God 9. Doth not lie sullenly and dispair under it but attend for direction from God how it may be freed there from NOw you that are Burdened with Sin and labor under this you are those that Christ calls to himself to come to him that you may have rest unto your Souls For the opening of this I shal shew you First How the Soul is burdened with Sin in a right way so as Jesus Christ looks upon it and doth invite it to come to him How the Soul is wrought upon and what it feels in the burden of Sin that is here spoken of that Christ doth cal unto himself for to receive rest Secondly Why it is that the Lord wil have the Soul burdened for sin Thirdly Upon what ground it is that Jesus Christ hath such a desire to have the Soul come in to him and doth invite the Soul And so apply it For the Frst You that are weary and heavy laden Christ invites the heavy laden heavy laden what is that The first Burden of Sin First Those notions or truths that before lay floating as it were in the understanding Those truths of God and apprehensions of the evil of Sin that lay before as it were aloft in the understanding of a man now the Lord causes them to sink down within the heart And doth press the evil of Sin upon the Soul making the soul now not only to apprehend but to be sensible of Sin of the evil of it in the reallity of it it feels I say those truths that were but hovering in the understanding before now to settle upon the heart and to press the heart with the real apprehension of sin saith the Soul I heard talking of it before and I could speak of it before but now I feel it now saith the soul those things that were as notions before are the greatest realities that are in the world the Lord presseth them down upon the heart so as they are heavy upon the Soul so heavy as to be crushed as it were under them now al those vain reasonings al those vain hopes those shiftings that before the Soul had for to quiet it self they are now quite crushed under the real apprehensions of sin If there should be a Mill-stone upon the ground and a few light things put on the top of it and an other Mill-stone should be let fal upon them it would even grind them to pouder so before there were vain Hopes and vain reasonings in the heart But when God causeth those truths and the realities of them to press upon the heart it crusheth al those vain Hopes and vain reasonings to nothing The Second Burden of Sin Secondly The soul that finds al those Comforts that did attend sin before to vanish and come to nothing there is scarce any man or woman in the world or very few so vild as to delight in sin meerly because it is sin without any other consideration but sin as it hath some comforts attending upon it is pleasing unto the hearts of men as now there comes in perhaps som gain or pleasure to men and that gives content to them but when the heart is burden'd with sin the Soul feels sin so weighty as it is sensible of it as a dreadful evil notwithstanding al the comforts that do attend it Al the comforts that attend upon sin do vanish and come to nothing now the Soul can take no further contentment in any thing that comes in by sin that is the second thing it is so burdened with sin as it can take no contentment with any thing that comes in by sin whatsoever gain comes in that way it casts it off or whatsoever pleasure or other seeming accomodation sin is attended with the soul looks upon them al with disdain The third Burden of Sin Thirdly The Soul that is burdned with sin doth so feel the weight of it as that the back is bowed down and tyred at least makes it look upon it self as a vild and loathsom Creature and fit to be dealt withal as a vild and loathsom creature it is burdened so as the heart is in some measure tired with it The fourth Burden of Sin Fourthly Yea so burdened with sin as that it now trembles at the least thought of sin or temptation to sin fearing that if it should willingly comit any further known sin that it would so ad unto the burden as that it would press the soul down to eternall misery it is so burdened that it dares not ad any one sin more as far as it can at least it is afraid of adding any more sins least one more should sink it to Hell The Fift Burden of Sin Fiftly The soul Feels Sin heaviest where indeed it is heaviest when it is rightly burdened it Feels it heavy because of the wrath of God that is due to it But it is most heavy because it is against the Infinit Holy God and rule of righteousness there lieth the weight of al that by it I have Struck at the infinit holy God and bin an enemy to him as you have had opened to you at large Now when the heart is truely burdened with sin it feels Sin heaviest there as it is against Such an infinit blessed holy God that is so infinitely worthy of al honor from me The sixt Burden of Sin Sixtly When the heart is truely burdened with sin it is so burdened and feels such a weight as it clearly apprehends that no creature in heaven or earth is able to remove and take it away it is made so sensible of the weight of sin that it feels apprehends it self to lie under such a weight as no Creature in Heaven or Earth is able to take away if there comes not some power beyond the power of any Creature here must I lie downe and be prest eternally under this weight As suppose a poore man Should lie under a greivous burden in some ditch or the like and there comes it may be a child to him or there flies a Bird over him or there runs a dog by him But alas he thinks with himself I may lie long enough notwithstanding al these there must come some other Strength to help me or else I must surely perish So the soule lies under the burden of Sin and thinks Lord what a burden have I brought my self under so great that if al the men in the world or al the Angels in heaven should come to me they cannot help me they may speake good words to me but they cannot help me it is only the almighty power of god that is able to help me now the soul feels sin to some purpose when once it feels that there is no created power no finite power but
the world sin is very light Well know That as Christ himself felt sin to be a heavy burden so one way or other they must feel it either here or hereafter but blessed is that man or woman that feels the weight of sin while he may be delivered from it that he be not hereafter prest under the weight of it We read of Pharoah when the people of Israel came for ease he bids them go to their burdens that that he did unjustly Christ might do to many righteously hereafter when you upon your sick beds or death beds hereafter shal cry for mercy Christ may say to you go to your burdens when any thing of the Word came to press sin upon your souls you cast it off O! 't is a dangerous Condition when men and women cannot only sin enough but now when any truth of God should lay sin upon their hearts they cast it out and they think hardly of those Truths of God that would come and â—ind their sins to their Consciences and so burden them with their sins but it should be otherwise with us If those that be thus laden with their sins be those that Christ doth call to him we should not think so hardly of those Truths of God that doth reveal the evil of sin unto us but rather let us joyn with those Truths of God and labor to burden our own hearts for you see that those that are burdened Christ cals them to him that they might have rest there is no other burdens that we are to bring upon our selves but rather seek to avoid them but as for the burden of sin we are to burden our hearts with that and to labor to lay our sins to our hearts and to press them there and to charge them upon our own Spirits with all the aggravations we can and to joyn with the work of Gods Spirit when the Spirit of God comes to lay sin upon the soul to joyn with it and to say Lord I begin to be more sensible of my sins than I was before Lord humble me through it let me be under thy hand as long as thou pleasest only work thy good work upon me Object But you wil say We may sink under the burden of Sin Answ O no those that cast off the burden of sin they are most like to sink under it now can you think that the Lord wil Suffer such a soul to sink under the burden that doth burden it self that God might have glory But those that are unwilling and are forced to be burdened that never are sensible of the burden of sin til al the props and Comforts of the creature are taken away Upon their sick beds and death beds then men are burdened with Sin and why because the props are taken away before they had comforts and estates and such things which are as so many props but now God comes and takes the props and down they fâ—l upon us That is the reason that many upon their death beds lie Roâ—ring and Crying out so bitterly for their sins and why because the Lord hath cut asunder the props and now it lies heavy upon their hearts Now Christ cals come to me you that are weary and heavy laden come to me saith Christ Know that you are in a faâ— better condition than you were when you went on with delight in sin you are now in the way that God doth use to bring them in that he hath a purpose to do good unto I remember in the Gospel where the poor blind man cryed to Christ O Son of David have mercy upon me and stil cryed at length Christ heard the cry of the blind man and asked what it was Now those that were by him they go to the poor blind man and say to him be of good comfort he calls he might say I but my eyes be not opened I but be of good comfort he calls So I say to al burdened Sinners be of good comfort troubled soul Christ calls thee he saith come to me al ye that are weary and heavy laden he doth not say thou that art so much laden Christ cals thee to him Object I but thou wilt say I have no ease if I were sure that my sins were pardoned I should be saved then I should have ease and comfort Answ I but poor soul be of good comfort thou art called he doth not say thou art a wretched wicked creature and depart from me thou cursed as he wil say to sinners hereafter that might have been thy condition but thou didst not heare the voice from Christ this day depart from me but thou doest heare this voice this day from Christ Come to me al you that are weary and heavy laden Christ is neer to you the Lord is neer to the broken heart he is neere to the contrite spirit And know this the longer thou art under the burden of thy sin there wil come the more comfort hereafter Now there is a burden of sin upon thee and there wil be a weight of glory hereafter So the Scripture speakes of a weight of glory as wel as of a weight of Sin be willing to beare the weight of sin quietly say with the Prophet I wil be willing to beare the indignation of the lord because I have sinned against him So say thou 't is fit my soul should beare a burden be content to wait now do you the same thing that Christ did when he was under his burden mark what he did in Heb. 5.7 See how the heart of Christ was affected when he felt the weight of our sins upon him In the dayes of his flesh he offered up prayers and supplications with strong Cryes and teares unto him that was able to save him from death and was heard in that he Feared Goe thy way O Soul and get into the presence of God and tel God of thy burdens that thou feelest make thy moan unto him and let it be with praiers and supplications and strong Cryes and tel him Lord I fear least my soul should be prest down to eternal death under this burden tel him of thy feares this way and it is very probable that thy soul shal be heard and according to this invitation here surely there is rest for thee as wel as for any while thou art crying out under thy burden for ought thou knowest or any Angel in heaven the pardon of thy sins may be sealling in heaven and therefore do not make any desperate Conclusion against thy own Soul for thy pardon may be a sealing and then the Lord wil send a messenger to tel thee of this Nay do I tel thee that theâ—e wil a messenger come Behold here in this text the Lord Jesus Christ comes the Angel of the Covenant cryes to thee Come O Come come freely though thou hast no good at al in thee there is enough in me to give rest unto that soul that doth most labor under the greatest burden of sin that ever
fathers were able to beare and that it is not only meant Ceremonial but moral it appeares at the 11. verse We beleeve that through the grace of our lord Jesus Christ we shal be saved even as they Now the grace of our lord Jesus christ is not only opposite to the ceremonal law but to the moral Law when it is taught in way of Justification to life So that this law that is such a yoke is that that is opposite to the grace of Christ that brings salvation it is that law that reveales Sin it is that law which is the minister of death by which the mouths of al come to be stopped so that it is a heavy yoke those that are under this Law that is such as are under the first covenant the Covenant of works that seek for Justification by that they are under a greivous burden they are the children of the bond woman for the law requires that that is impossible for them to do Now when a soul comes to see and understand it self to bee under the law such a Law as requires things impossible to be done this burdens the soul so by this means it comes to see the need it hath of Christ and Christ cals to such to come to him as if he should Say So long as you continue unbeleivers in your natural condition you are under Such a covenant for life as requires that of you which you cannot possibly do and therefore there is no resting in that condition Come therefore to me take my yoke my easie yoke the other is a heavy yoke But I wil shew you a way for ease and rest to your soules That is the first But though the law may require hard things impossible things yet it may remit in some other things Wherefore 2. In the second place this is the yoke and bondage of the Law that in every thing that it doth command it doth require absolute perfection accepts of nothing but absolute perfection in every thing that it doth Comand it doth not onely comand hard things but whatsoever the law requires it doth require an absolute perfection in it or otherwise casts the Soul if there be but a failing on any particular in any degree of that which the Law requires the Law casts the Soul by it It requires not only that the thing should be done but that it should be done in a right manner that it should be done out of a right principle that it should be done in the perfection of degrees to the uttermost that is required that there should not onely be a direction of our lives according to the rule but that we come up fully to the Rule this the law requires Now what a miserable yoke and burden is this for a poor soul to look upon the Law as requiring first things that I cannot do And secondly absolute perfection admitting of no imperfection at al this is a heavy yoke this neither we nor our fathers could beare and those that come to be sensible of this must needs be under a greivous burden and so se a need of Jesus Christ Christ cals those that do understand this It is true if it were thus and people were left without any help and remedy it were a sad condition truly if christ had not come into the world to put himself under the law we had been left thus and al those that do not understand the Gospel that have not had Christ preached unto them they are al thus they are al in this Condition they are under a law that they cannot performe that law which doth require absolute and perfect obedience in every thing or else casts them Thirdly The Burden of the Law is this you may say though it doth require perfect obedience but wil it accept of no endeavours at al suppose we do endeauor to obey to the uttermost that we can There are many men wil require things that are hard and beyond strength I but when there are endeavours to do that that is required that wil be accepted wherefore we are to know this that the Law accepts of no endeavours though a man or woman should strive their hearts out to obey to come to the height of the perfection of the Law the Law doth not accept of those endeavors It is true when the Soul comes unto Christ in the Gospel when the Soul comes under the covenant of Grace endeavors are accepted therefore do not say that God wil not accept of our endeavors and why should we endeavor Yes if you come unto Christ your endeavors wil be accepted as we shal shew you when we come to discourse the rest that the Soul hath in Christ But now here is an argument to drive poor souls to Christ to consider that while you are out of Christ your endeavors are not accepted you are not in away of life for life and Salvation it is not to be had in the condition you are now in for the Law requires obedience it must have the work done you can be but either under the covenant of works or the covenant of grace so long as you are under the covenant of works there the work is called for and not meerly endeavors that wil not do therefore the Apostle saith in the Rom. 10.5 For Moses describeth the righteousness of the Law that he which doth those things shal live by them You must either be Righteous by the Righteousness of the Law or by the Righteousness of Christ now if you would be Righteous by the Righteousness of the Law hear what it is he that doth these things shal live by them If you do them Moses doth not say he that endeavors to do these things he that strives to do these things No but Moses saith he that doth them he that doth these things shal live by them it must be doing and not endeavoring that the Law accepteth and that is the third thing wherein the bondage of the Law consists Saith Christ come to me and you shal have rest it is by beleeving in Christ that you must have rest There can be no rest but a grievous burden upon the soul til it doth come to Christ if it doth understand things and if it doth not understand these things it is in so much the worse condition though perhaps it be not sensible of such a burden through ignorance as most people spend off al their daies and through ignorance do not come to be sensible of it but when the Soul comes to understand what tearms there are between God and it and how it must stand before God that it must either stand by vertue of a Covenant of Works or a Covenant of Grace and that al naturally are under a Covenant of Works and so long as I am in my natural Condition I am under such a Law that accepts of no endeavors this must needs be a great burden unto the Soul and make it to see an absolute necessity of going to
do their duty but with blowes and slashes they are set upon their duty now this is very burdensom if indeed they might be put upon it with love gentle and fair cariages they should do as much as they do with a great deale more ease but when al meanes that is used is rigorous and forcible this makes their lives burdensome unto them so it is here they that are legal performe duties but how the terror of the law the flashes of hel fire in their conscience and the fear of the Judgments of God come unto them except you do this you may fear that the Judgments of God wil pursue and follow you In the night season when they are in the darke they are filled with terror and when this terror comes upon them then they must go to prayer though they have no mind to go to prayer for their conscience else wil fly in their faces in the day time these are just like the Children of Israel in Egypt the taske masters put them upon their worke with rigor that their very lives were tedious to them whereas those that are sanctified they go to performe duties out of love and so their duties are sweet and delightful to them The 6. Burden of legal performances 6. From hence follows that those that are meerely legal in their performances they do their duty with much straitness of spirit they have no inlargment of heart usually very rarely in any thing they do but they do it if they do do it in a dul manner a dead way meerly the work done and no more their spirits are excedingly strait pray they must so much time they spend in prayer but when they are risen from prayer they find their harts are as strait as ever I do not say but a godly man or woman may be so at sometimes but when duties are performed in a legal way this is constantly so and Oh what a burden is this to a soul to think that I can never go into the presence of God but I have stil a dead straight heart others have enlarged hearts but I do the duty and nothing comes of it I feel my heart altogether straitned in the duty and so I go on in the rounds but stil am straitened dead and dul in the performance of the duty The 7. Burden of Legal Performances 7. Those that performe duties in a meer legal way find nothing to come of their duties but are meerly as a horse in the mil go the rounds or as if a man were to rive or cleave a knotty peice of wood he strikes but the knottiness of the wood gives the rebound to the axe and wedges and he can make no marke of it though a man strive and work hard yet if he findes his work goes on here is some comfort but when he works and works and it continues so stil this is burdensome If a man should be set to pull a logg out of a ditch and injoyned to work from morning to night and he pulls and pulls al the day and it stirs not is no further on in his work at night then he was in the morning and he must go to it the next day and nothing comes of his work this is very tedious so it is with those that are meerely legal in their performances they find little or nothing comes of al their performances and this must needs be very burdensome you that have been thus burdened know this very text concernes you and Christ hath thoughts of you and cals you to himself and saith Come to me as if Christ should say certainly there is another way for you to have ease and rest to your souls it is true you must go on and do your duty but you must come to know me in the gospel before yo◠〈◊〉 have ease and rest to your souls The 8. Burden of Legal Performances 8. Those that performe duties in a meer legal way the the truth is let them â—oll never so much in that way they can never attain to their end let them â—oil never so much performe duties never so many increase their duties a thousand fold yet they can never attain unto their end Their end what is that you wil say Their end is that they might have peace with God live and have eternal life it is true base hipocrites look at profit many wil make a show of religion get into houses and talk of good things that they may get good cheere meat and drink and a little gain being of a poor and unworthy Spirit but I speake of those that are grown higher then thuâ— those that performe duties out of conscience and yet never attain to their end nor never wil attain to their end in this way til they come to know more of Christ I speake of such as desire rest to their souls yet in this way of legal performances never gain this rest to their souls and and therefore it must needs be burdensome unto them The 9. Burden of Legal Performances 9. Those that performe duties in a meer legal way they goe on and performe duties but whether God accepts of them yea or no they cannot tel do them they must but whether God be their enemy or their friend they canot tel tender up duties to God they do every day but whether they tender them up to an enemy or a friend they do not know sometimes they have perhaps some good hopes that God accepts them but never come to any knowledg of Gods acceptance they go up and down continually with Jealous thoughts of God fearing leaâ—â—od wil take advantage of them at the last this musâ—â—e burdensome Many poor souls have gon on in tâ—â—tion one seven yeares after another and al for thâ— of coming to Jesus Christ for rest unto their soules then comes rest to the heart of a sinner when it knowes and can say upon good ground though my heart have much corruption though my duty have much imperfection yet through a covenant of grace what I do the Lord accepts of me whereas the other never comes to know that God doth accept them though they performe their duties never so wel The 10. Burden of Legal Performances 10. Those that performe duties in a meer legal way their spirits are hurried on to do the work to do the thing that conscience requires although in regard of their weakness the doing of such a thing at such a time wil hinder the doing of other duties that God requires of them but yet do it they must I do not say duties are not to be done at this time but such things as conscience tels them are good they are hurried on to do them presently though in regard of their weakness the doing of them now doth hinder them from doing other things of more consequence as we find by experience many that are weake yet under the command of conscience and are in a legal way suddenly there comes such a thing into their
minds I must spend so much time in praier saith conscience you cannot do too much for God and why should you not spend so much time for God now by this means they are hurried on to do the duty though by the doing of it at that time they shal hinder themselvs in the performance of many other duties afterwards and I have known by experience many that have been greivously burdened this way what they presently apprehend to have any good in it that they think they must do although they by that be hindred in the performance of many other duties afterwards whereas now if we were acquainted with the liberty we have in Christ we would be able to satisfie our selves this way though I am weake now yet I can appeale to God that my heart is upright and though I do forbeare the doing of such a thing that in its owne nature is good yet my conscience tels me it is not through a wilful neglect of what may glorifie God nor because I would neglect any duty that God would have me do but because I know through my weakness the doing of this at this time wil hinder me in the Service of God otherwaies therefore I beleeve that God wil accept of me in Christ and pardon my infirmities thus the Soul can do that is in Christ but those that are Legal conscience puts them upon Duties without regarding their strength and so puts them upon strong Duties when they are in the weakest Capacity when they are weakest conscience wil put them upon the strongest Duty now this is for the want of the knowledg of their liberty in Jesus Christ for they have this liberty in Christ that Christ accepts of them according to what they are able to do the Gospel holds forth this acceptance that let them go on to do what they are commanded in uprightness and though they cannot do such Duties because they are weak yet God accepts of them for Christ sake which one that is Legal cannot do but conscience hurries him on to do rhe Duty when he is most weak and so he doth less for God then otherwise he would or should do The 11. Burden of Legal Performances 11. Those that perform Duties in a meer Legal way go on toyling but stil they do not know whether they shal hold out or no I go on and do my Duty but what wil become of me God knows I do not know whether I shal hold out or no I am afraid that when I have done al labored and toyled what I can that I shal prove an apostate a backslider at last thus they have many such jealousies of themselves as they are ful of jealousies of God so of themselves they are afraid of themselves wel if troubles and afflictions come I shal fal off and turn and manifest that I was but an Hypocrite and alwaies unsound now these very thoughts makes their lives and Duties burdensome unto them whenas one that hath the benefit of the freedome of the Gospel one that is in Christ he can go on wel though I am but weak yet I have an everlasting principle that wil hold for I do it by the strength that is everlasting though I be weak yet I am fastened to that that is everlasting I am carryed on by such a principle that wil hold on to everlasting life and Oh! what a rest is this here is rest indeed for the soul to know that though I am weak yet I shal hold on to everlasting life whenas one that is Legal he is ever jealous and he thinks what do I this for I shal fal off at last and so goes on heavily and is troubled in his thoughts and this makes both his Duties and his life burdensome stil I say Christ cals upon al these to come unto him stil there is a rest in Jesus Christ it is impossible we should speak of all these things at once but now I would only find out those that Christ cals you that find it thus that are ready to say just as it is said in the word I find it in my heart I only speak to you to raise up your Hearts to attend to what is further to be said afterwards only remember that of the poor blind man when Christ called him they comforted him with this be of good comfort he called thee so I say to you that Labor under this burden and long to know the true liberty of spirit that the Saints have in Christ Christ cals to you and saith Come unto me al ye that are weary and heavy Laden and I wil give you Rest The 12. Burden of Legal Performances 12. Those that are thus Legal their consciences put them upon performances of Duties but their Humiliation and trouble for not doing of what they ought to do doth hinder them from doing what God requires and this is a sad condition that when I have not done my Duty and am troubled for not doing my Duty that doth hinder me from doing my Duty whereas those that have Evangelical Humiliation it makes them more fit to do duty the other it makes them more unfit their hearts are more sullen fretful and untoward and this is a sad condition that not only they fail in other Duties but when they are troubled for this they fail moâ—e first they fail of their Duties and their hearts are hardned a great while and then they Complaine that their Hearts are hardened and that they cannot be Humbled for their sin after this complaint they begin to be troubled for their sin and then on the other side when they are troubled after such away as they grow sullen and discontented vexing and fretting of themselves and by this they come to be hindered as much in the performance of their Duty as by the hardness of their hearts before some are hindred by their hardness of heart from performing of Duty and others by their humility now this is a very great burden you may some of you find it in your own experience that the trouble of your Heart hath rather hindered you then furthered you in Duty as in Exodus when Moses came to the Children of Israel the text saith they did not harken unto him because of the anguish of their hearts so there is many people that have such Legal trouble in their Hearts and that for their sins as it doth hinder them from harkening unto the blessed sound of the Gospel it makes them more unfit to harken to the invitation of Christ to come unto him yea such kind of trouble they have for their sin that makes them as it were reason away the blessed comfort in the Gospel to their Soul CHAP. X. The Sad condition of such as are under the Burden of Legal Performances set forth in Six Particulars 1. That which should be accounted their happiness is their Misery 2. It is a means to cause hard thoughts of God 3. It causeth great discouragement 4. They bring an
It implieth an unsetledness upon the Creature 3 A stirring of the heart after Christ 4 A laying of all our burdens upon Christ 5 A leaving of the Soul with Christ for life NOW then we come to the Invitation it self Come to me saith Christ Come to me that is Beleeve in me For among many other expressions of beleeving in Christ or of accepting of the Condition of the Covenant of Grace the Holy Ghost doth express this beleeving and acceptation of the Covenant of Grace by coming to Christ Beleeving in Christ is exprest very often by coming to Christ In John 5.40 You will not come to me that ye might have life They did come to Christ in his outward presence Christ conferred with them and they with him but yet saith Christ ye will not come to me that ye might have life And so in John 6.37 Those that the Father hath given to me come to me and I will in no wise cast them out All that the Father hath from Eternity given me to redeem they come to me that is they beleeve in me And in verse 44. None can come to me except God the Father draw him That is none beleeves in me except my Father draw them and so He that hath heard and learned of the Father comes to me That is beleeves in me And that is the meaning of the 55. of Isai Ho every one that thirsteth come to the waters buy wine and milk without money and without price that is beleeve in me that is the meaning All you that labor under al these several Burdens come to me beleeve in me and I wil give you rest But this must be opened more largely And in this Invitation there are these Five things that I desire to open unto you and to work them upon you First What Christ would have us do more particularly when he bids us Come to him Secondly What kind of Invitation it is that Christ doth make to those that the Father gives to him that shal indeed come to be saved by him what kind of invitation they have from Christ how Christ calls them to him for this is a calling and an inviting Thirdly That all that Christ requires as a Condition of the Covenant of Grace for rest unto our souls is to come to him nothing else is the Condition of the Gospel by which we come to have Christ to be ours but this to come to him Come to me saith Christ that is the great Condition of the Gospel only to come to Christ Fourthly There are some Rules to be propounded and observed for our Coming unto Christ Fiftly The Laboring to draw your Souls unto Christ For the first Come to me what is that what would Christ have you to do For the opening of that in particular it is this When Christ calls you to come to him you are to know this notes a motion from Christ to come to him First It implies a beholding a looking unto Jesus Christ as being the All-sufficient Savior to save our souls from al the evils that are upon us and to supply unto us al good we stand in need of As if Christ should say when he saith Come to me That is O! poor troubled sinners that are under these burdens Do you behold me to be the great Mediator that is come into the world to stand between all the wrath of my Father and your souls and to bring life and salvation to you that is imployed when I would go I must know whither I must go to whom I must go so saith Christ I am the greaâ— redeemer sent into the world by my father to that very end that I may ease poor soules of their burdens and such soules as you are look unto Christ therefore as the great reconciler of God and man the great mediator between God and man having the fulness of al mercy and goodness in him the great meanes of conveyance of al the grace and riches of God the father to sinful souls that is the first work of beleeving in Christ for to look unto him to be such a one as God the Father hath tendred unto us that is imployed but yet the soul comes not Secondly But then the second is this which goes further To come to Christ implies an unsetledness when we come to a thing there is the Terminus a quo and the terminus ad quem we come from something so saith Christ you have setled your hearts upon creature comforts and you have looked upon them heretofore as those things wherein your good and happiness doth consist but now your hearts must be taken off from those you must come to me that is there must be a removing from that station you were in from that kind of settlement you were before in I cannot go to another place and stay in the place where I was too and so the heart cannot come to Christ and stay in the state it was in before therefore that implies that whereas you poor creatures have settled your hearts upon creature comforts and setled your hearts upon sinful things heretofore O! now let your hearts be taken off from al those things know that your good your happiness your peace is not here if you abide here and settle here you are lost and undone creatures for ever Let it not grieve your souls to part with the comforts that are here below in the creatures for certainly you mistake here doth not lie your good and happiness so that when the soul is beginning to stir after Christ it is taken off from the creature taken off from al creature comforts looks upon every thing as vanity O! Saith the soul I am cleerly convinced that my happiness lies higher then the things here below these are the reasonings of the heart that is in motion to go to Christ And not onely to be unsetled from the creature but I must be taken off from my self too from al my righteousness and duties I must not think to satisfie God by any thing that I can do no but I must be convinced that there is a greater thing required to make up my satisfaction with God then any thing that I can do and therefore my heart must be taken off from these things Heretofore I rested in duties that I was not so bad as others but now I see there is another manner of righteousness that I must have in a mediator these though they be good in themselves yet they are not the things that can ever save my soul but if ever I have peace with God and stand before him at the great day it must be through another meanes then ever yet I have had if I had gon on and had thought to make up my satisfaction with God by what I have done I had been an undone creature yea my heart must be taken off from mine one bottome not to rest in any thing that is in my self but I must go out and deny my self and so look
that is his very soul his life his peace his comfort al his happiness he had committed to him and so left al with him Now then take al these together and when Christ cals the sinner to come to him that is O! Sinner first beleeve this that I am the great redeemer that is come into the world to stand between Gods wrath and your soules and to make up peace between God and you and let there be an unsettling of your hearts from whatsoever heretofore your Souls did Rest in Creature comforts your own Righteousness Duties self respects and ends whatsoever they are let your hearts be taken off from them all and let your hearts now be in a stirring working disposition towards me let all your whole Souls be stretching forth to me and come and cast all your burdens upon me and leave your Souls with me and I will take care of them thus come to me Now then when any soul that is thus Laden shall answer to this cal of Christ and shal say Lord I come here is the very voice and answer of Faith when the Soul can say Oh! Lord I come I see thee to be the blessed Mediator between God and my Soul and for whatsoever my heart hath setled in heretofore Oh! Lord it shal be no more and my heart begins to stir after thee and I stretch forth my Soul to thee O Blessed redeemer and here I cast my burdens upon thee none can ease me but thy self and I leave my self with thee I commit all to thee and betrust all that I have or can do my eternal estate with thee Lord I come here is the soul that comes to Christ Then may the Soul be said to come to Christ when there is an answer in these five Particulars All this is contained in this word COME though you cannot apprehend it til it be unfoulded as a piece of needle work when it is foulded up there is all the work indeed within but we cannot see it til it be laid open and spread before us then we can see all that is in it So though there be many expressions in the Scripture that we understand not yet there they be but this is the work of the Ministry to spread them and to lay them before you and lay them open to you that you may see the Grace of God in another manner when they be unfolded now thus doth Christ call those that are Laden to come to him CHAP. XIX How Christ calls Sinners unto him set forth in two Particulars Namely 1. By an outward and general call 2. By a Particular call to Particular Sinners And how to know the voice of Christ YOu will say how and in what manner doth Christ call to me Christ is in Heaven I cannot hear Christ call to me Now for the call of Christ First There is a general cal in the word there Christ calls under the sound of the Gospel to come to him but this call is rather a command of Christ then an invitaion to shew unto al what is their Duty to do rather then to invite them But now there is a more special call unto those whom the Father hath given to Christ and though they make use of the general call in the word yet there is a special call to them that is Christ by his Spirit doth open the Riches of the Gospel of the Grace in him to their Souls by his Spirit inwardly he doth shew them to their Souls Others come and hear the outward cal that is when a Minister of God shal come and open the Gospel and there shew how God hath given his Son to us he hath taken our Nature upon him and died for sin and tel them that God requires all here in the Gospel to beleeve in his Son they hear his outward cal I but they whom the father gives to Christ have the Spirit of God sent together with the word to open the Riches of Christ that though they have heard it a hundred times before Yet when the spirit comes there is a shewing of the beauty and Riches of the Gospel more then ever that allures their Souls to come to Christ Secondly Not only this but the Lord when he cals such as shall indeed have mercy by Christ and have his invitation to be effectual he doth give a Particular cal unto that Soul besides the general cal God doth not only in the word cal sinners and saith Christ came to save Sinners and those that were lost but Christ comes in Particular to such and such Souls and cals them in a Particular special manner For the Ministers of God they are bound in the Preaching of the Gospel to give a general invitation to come to him but God beside the general hath a Particular cal there is a voice of God in Particular to the Soul that he intends to bring to his Son such a one hears a voice behind him as the Scripture speaks saying this is the way to Salvation the way you have gone all this while is not the way to life you will perish in that way Christ is the right way As thus I will open it in the general and Particular call by this similitude A Prince that hath had many of his subjects Traitors yet he is pleased to send forth a general Proclamation makes a Proclamation to those subjects and makes it in general tearms that though you have been thus and thus Traiterous against me yet I am content every one that will come to such a place at such a day and submit himself he shall have a pardon here is the general Proclamation and this is incouragement to come But now suppose there were some poor Traitor that because sensible of his wickedness and how unreasonably he hath dealt with his Prince and may be sits alone bemoaning his condition and troubled in his spirit and thinks with himself how shall I be able to see the Face of my Prince Oh! woe to me for the wickedness of my waies Suppose the Prince should come by and behold such a one take notice of him that is got into some corner or other and is there smiting of his Breast and lamenting his condition that he should so provoke his Prince as he hath done And should call this poor creature and say to him Oh thou poor Creature that art in such a place come thou to me For so is the work of faith God comes in particular to the soul doth not only come in general but after his general Call when he doth see the soul troubled the Lord doth give a particular Call to him and saith O! thou poor Creature thou art under this burden and thus sensible of it and lamentest that thou hast lived thus and thus and made such a breach between me and thy soul do thou come to me And the truth is till God speak in particular to the soul the proclamation of God in general will not bring in sinners so Christ doth
saith to it regard not the stuff let your Heart be wholly taken off from all Creature comforts that are most dear unto you it is all but stuff here is Heaven here is the Riches of Heaven the Riches of Christ is yours and then doth the Soul come to Christ indeed when it laies all upon Christ and is satisfied with him alone RULE IV. Fourthly When thy Soul is making towards Christ labor to keep him continually in thine Eye and look upon him in his excellency Glory and beauty keep the object before thee all the while thou art coming towards him As it is in any journey if I am going to a place and I can see the journeys end it is in mine eye I can see the steeple before me of the place that I am going unto when the Marriner can see the harbour that he is going unto this is comfortable So the Soul that comes to Christ must resolve and say I must keep him in mine Eye in his lustre Beauty and Glory that so I may see a greater good in Jesus Christ than in all things else that the goodness that is in him doth out-bid all good whatsoever Now this is a great help to come to Christ for one of the greatest hinderances of the Soul in coming to Christ is this that it looseth the sight of Christ in coming and the Devil propounds other spectacles before its Eyes in coming and so it lookes into the deep pit of its own Heart and sees no other matter but discouragement whereas it should keep up its Eyes upon Christ the Son of God who is opening his Arms ready to imbrace it And there is a secret power and influence that comes from Christ unto the Soul to draw the Soul to him So long as the Soul keeps Christ in his Eye as the poor Woman said If I can but touch the hem of his Garment Nay you may go further then so and have a degree of Faith Nay If I may have but a sight of Christ I say there is that in the sight of Christ that will draw the Heart unto Jesus Christ As they say of some kind of creatures the very sight of them will kil a Man that if they do but see you or you them there will come poyson from them that wil kill you say the Naturalists But I am sure it is true of this that if you can keep Christ in your Eye the very sight of the excellency of Christ wil be of excellent vertue to draw the Soul to Christ And therefore you that are coming to Christ observe this some that are coming to Christ it fares with them as with the Children of Israel when they were going to Canaan they had gone a pretty way and made some progress but then they fel into discontent when they found a little discouragement and upon that they were brought back again and wandred forty Years up and down in the Wilderness and this was the punishment of their murmuring and discontent So it is with many that are going out of their natural State unto Jesus Christ they are come very near to him many times and then fal into fits of discontent pining fretting and discouragement and so are brought back again and made to wander in the Wilderness of discouragement for many Years together RULE V. Fifthly Labor throughly to convince thy Soul of this thing that whatsoever sorrow for sin whatsoever humiliation whatsoever trouble of spirit keeps thy Heart from Jesus Christ it is not of God but rather from thine own corruption it is not of God in thee except you will say it 's of God as an affliction it is not of God but suffering the Devil to try thee but whatever sorrow it be for thine own wretchedness or unworthiness if this keep thee off from Christ and discourage thee from coming to Christ convince thy Soul of this that it is not the gracious work of God in thee but the troubling of the Devil in thee The truth is many poor sinners when they are once troubled for their sins they take a kind of Satisfaction in this they think this is a good thing and they are glad of it I grant you trouble for sin is a good thing and you are to be glad of it but if your trouble for sin hinder you from coming to Christ and makes you think because you are so unworthy you may not come to him this trouble is not mixt with godly sorrow be convinced of this RULE VI. Sixthly Take heed of all kind of discouragements and hinderances in your coming to Christ but then take heed especially of all determinations take heed of insnaring your Souls by determining against your selves as saying surely the Lord will never shew mercy to me the time is past the Lord hath forsaken me I have used so much meanes so long time and God is not yet come to me No The Lord never intends good to me Oh! Take heed of these determinations for they are sinful wherever they are there can be no just cause in thy Heart be it as vile as it will for such determinations as these are and know when thou givest way to such determinations as these thou dost but insnare and fetter thy Legs by this and then thou sayest thou canst not come to Christ Christ calls to thee and thou art infettered with thy own thoughts for so one may lay fetters upon ones own Legs by ones own thoughts to hinder this spiritual coming to Christ As if a man should tie fetters about his Legs and say when he is called to come to such a place I cannot come Do not sit down and say I shall never have Mercy and I am one that belongs not to the election of Grace and I shall never come to Christ take off such thoughts when thou art about coming to Jesus Christ RULE VII Seventhly At those times when thou canst not feel thy Heart active as thou desirest to go after Christ yet keep thy Heart stil towards Christ keep it tending that way Why cannot I go to Christ Christ calls me to go to him Oh! I have a dead Heart and a heavy dull Heart yet I know I am neerer Christ there than if I should neglect his Ordinances I wil present my Soul where Jesus Christ is and may be he may cast in some Vertue into my Heart to make it more stirring after him but however I am resolved upon this I will not turne away from Christ I will keep my Heart where I am howsoever If I can go no further and here I will stand and here I wil look and I will cry to him and cry to God as the Church doth Draw me and I will run after thee and though I cannot beleeve yet here I will stand and sigh and cry and cal and if I perish I will perish crying to God that God would draw my Heart Oh draw draw our Hearts and we will run after thee Blessed Redeemer dost thou cal us
send forth somwhat of thy spirit that may draw our Hearts and then we will run after thee Keep thy Heart in such a frame for this is a great discouragement about coming to Christ in the Hearts of many Christ calls and we have many sweet incouragements in the word to come I but it is to them that have their Hearts stirring and working towards Christ to go to him But I have a dead and dull Heart and cannot work towards him I but if thou canst not stir and work after him yet set thy Soul in sight of Christ and look towards him and waite til Gods time come when he will let some influence into thy Heart this will be a mighty help this way And take heed of listening to any temptation that may draw away thy heart from coming to Christ It is a notable Scripture that you have in 1. Sam. 12.20 it is of Samuel Speaking to the people of Israel that had sinned against the Lord and were troubled for their sin and Samuel said unto the people Fear not you have done this wickedness yet turn not aside from following the Lord but feare the Lord with al your hearts and turne ye not aside for then should ye go after vain things which cannot profit nor deliver for they are vain You have sinned against the Lord and you are troubled what shal we do Saith Samuel though you have thus sinned yet do not turne aside to vanity So do I say you have sinned against the Lord and Christ cals you to come to him and you complain you have a dead and dul heart I but then do not turne from Christ to vanity set your selves stil in the sight of God and attend upon him in those Ordinances that he useth to present himself in RULE VIII Eighthly When thy heart begins to come to Christ give up thy self to the stream of Gods spirit for the spirit of God wil be stirring ever and anon though not at al times alike Thou art attending upon the Ordinances and waiting when the spirit of God should come to draw thy heart to Christ wait upon this stirring and if thou feel the Spirit beginning to draw thy heart to Christ in any measure Oh! then joyn with the work of the spirit of God and give up thy soul to the stream of Gods spirit do not thou draw back it may be Gods spirit is drawing thy heart to Christ and thou presently drawest back with discouraging thoughts upon consideration of thy Vileness and that thou art not humbled now when thou feelest Gods spirit stirring in thee give up thy soul to the strength of Gods spirit As when a man goes to learne to swim he is not to lay down himself and keep a padling with his hands and feet but there must be a giving up of himself to the water Sometimes a man keeps ten times more stir to keep himself from drowning then another that can swim one that hath got the art of swimming while the other sinkes to the bottom the water helpes him and he keeps himself above water Just thus is the difference between some that are troubled in their consciences for their sins and others between some that are coming to Christ and others Some that are coming to Christ and have not the right art of giving up themselves to Christ they are sinking and in mighty confusion of spirit and keep such a do with their own hearts and strange confused thoughts they have and horror of spirit and al because they fear they shal sink down to the bottom of destruction Now there are others that are afraid of sinking and drowning as wel as they but coming to understand what the way of Christ is and what it is to come to Christ though they have nothing in themselves to keep them from sinking yet they come to learn how to give up their souls to the stream of Gods spirit that carries them on to Jesus Christ in a more solid way and with a great deal less trouble they come to Jesus Christ and there they get into the arke and so are safe for ever Whereas others they skrabble on the outside of the arke as if a poor man should be skrabbling upon the ship no body lookes after him he fals down and is drowned at last So those that skrabble and do not give up themselves unto the arke they fal down again and at the last perish You have a scripture for this in 1. Kings 20.33 The Servants of Benhadad they diligently observed whether any thing would come from the King of Israel and they say thy brother Benhadad this is the thing they go in a way of seeking to the King of Israel for his brother Benhadad and this is the way they watch for any word that might pass from the King of Israel whereby they might have any hope and at last he said my brother Benhadad and they take hold of this presently So it should be with a sinner that is seeking after Christ he should diligently watch what may come from the Spirit of Christ that may give any incouragement doth the Spirit move in thee and begin to work in thee to draw thee to Jesus Christ Oh! thou mightest have got a great way thither it may be thou mightest have been in his bosom and in his armes by this time if thou hadst taken this course RULE IX Ninthly The soul that is about coming to Christ that doth not yet know whether it is truly got to Christ it should often renew the act of coming for certainly there are many that are at Christ but do not know it It may be some soule may say I had thought I had got to Christ before but I see my Corruptions prevail and I am afraid I am not come to Christ wil not these soules think that they must not come to Christ til they have overcome their Corruptions wheras the best way to overcome thy corruption is to come to Christ to renew the act of thy coming to Christ and the longer thou staiest from renewing this act of thy coming to Christ the more strong thy corruptions grow in thee Certainly do thou ly down as long as thou wilt in any sullen mood and say my Corruption is thus and thus and I am afraid I never went to Christ thy corruptions would grow stronger in thee thou must not stay til thy corruptions be subdued before thou goest to Christ but renew the act of coming to Christ again say I wil try it again may be I did not do it aright at first and if I miss it the second time I wil try it again and again and the hundredth time Do not say if I had overcome sin thus and thus I would come to Christ it is as much as to say if I were first sanctified by Christ then I would come to Christ for justification and is this the right order No thou must come first to Christ that thou mayest have thy corruptions subdued
It would seem a strange thing that if a king should come to a woman and tel her he would be married to her and she should say no if I were a Queene I would take him but she must first be married to him and that makes her to be a Queen So here the soul must not first say if I were first sanctified and had overcome such and such corruptions I would come to Christ no but by coming to Christ renewing thy act of coming to Christ that sanctifies thee That is a rule that I would leave with al young beginners spend more time and more strength in renewing the very act of beleeving of rolling thy soul upon the grace of God in Christ and casting thy burden upon him then in any other worke what soever there is no other thing that thou canst spend thy time thy strength more profitably in then the renewing the act of coming to Christ Come saith Christ saith the soul I had thought I had come but I was deceived saith Christ yet come again and come again and again this is the onely way to overcome any corruption in thy heart So that when Christ cals thee to come remember these rules Oh! that you would lay them up to make use of them at al times When you heare such things out of Gods word remember what hath bin said in this text what is implyed in the coming what way you would come and O! that the Lord would help poor soules thus to come to him and know for your incouragement that if God give you a heart to answer to his cal to come to his Son this is an evident signe of your predestination for whom he cals he hath elected yea do but think thus with your selves what an infinite mercy is it to me that I am in such a condition as that God calls me to come I might have had my eares filled with this depart from me ye cursed Thus many are cast off from God and God bids them depart from me ye cursed thou art as great a sinner may be as they are now whereas God might have said depart from me thou vild soul thou passionate soul thou filthy unclean soul I say this sound might have been in thin eares but instead of that sound there is the spirit of Jesus Christ in the ministry of this word calling to thee come to me yea he doth not onely cal thee but he hath given thee many rules how thou shouldest come to him If a Prince shal first make a proclamation for a rebel to come to him for pardon and shal send to him and make out many rules how he shal come and direct him to such a place what a mighty incouragement would this be to such an one to come in Now this the Lord Christ hath done to thee he hath not only proclaimed that he is mediator between God and thee but he hath sent his spirit to cal thee and he hath sent his messenger to give thee rules how to order thee that thou shouldest take heed of such a by way and such a turning and observe these and these things for thy help thus Christ hath done for thee If the Lord doth give thee a heart to answer to Christs cal know that this calling to thee by Christ in his word wil be no other but a forerunner of that cal that Christ shal make to thee another day There 's a cal come to me al ye that are weary and heavy Laden and I wil give you rest Inherit the kingdome prepared for you This is worth ten thousand worlds and when the soul answers to his cal such a soul may go away and be comforted that Christ wil cal you after another manner He cals the poor laden soul to give you now rest but he wil cal you afterwards before men and Angels to receive the inheritance Come not to rest only but come to an inheritance the kingdom prepared for you before the beginning of the world CHAP. XXIII Nine means to draw Sinners to Christ namely That 1. He that cals us is the Son of God 2. He is our neer Kinsman wherein three strong arguments are included First The terror of Gods glory is taken away Secondly He is infinitely inclined to do good unto the Sons of men Thirdly In uniting the divine nature with the human he hath done a greater work than to save a soul 3. He is the mediator 4. He deserves that we should come to him 5. The soul gets infinite good by coming to Christ instanced in four particulars 6. We are miserable in our selves 7. Christ wil certainly receive them that come to him which is opened in three particulars 8. We stand in great need of Christ 9. The not coming to Christ wil aggravate all other Sins With an answer unto some Objections NOW that which followes to be spoken unto in this second part of the text the invitation it self is the drawing of the hearts of sinners to come to Christ the work that we have to do is that in Luke 14.17 He sent his servants at supper time to say to them that were bidden Come for al things are now ready There the gospel is set out unto us by a rich mans making a great wedding supper and when he had prepared al his dainties he sends his servants to invite the guests saying al things are ready this wedding is nothing else but the excellent things in the Gospel the excellent things that are in Christ and the servants are the Ministers of the Gospel they are sent out to cal sinners to cal the guests to come for all things are ready So then in the name of Christ I cal unto al laden sinners to come to Christ And for the drawing of the soules of those that are thus laden these several things are to be propounded ARG. I. First consider who Christ is that calls and what he is Come to me saith Christ What is Jesus Christ that doth cal you to come to him The very knowledg of him what he is would be a mighty argument to prevail with the heart to come to him he that cals you to come to him is the Son of God the second person in the Trinity the brightness of the glory of God the character and image of his person as he is said to be in Heb. 1.3 He is equal with the Father he hath the glory of the Father in him he is the glory of heaven and earth the adoration of Angels he hath al fulness of al good in him If a great Prince should cal to you as you go in the streets and say come to me would not you presently adress your selves to make towards him to go to him know when Christ calls you to come to him it is more than if al the Angels in heaven should stand together to cal you to come to him When once the soul comes to know who it is that cals to know the voice of Christ and
God but there is somthing comes between God and you all things are yours and you are Christs and Christ is Gods so that God himself is the infinite Fountain of all good Christ is as it were the Cisterne into which all the mercy and goodness of God is to be conveyed and beleevers by Faith have every one a Pipe as it were put into this Cisterne so they come to have conveyed all good the fullness of the divine Nature they are united unto Christ and so have all Mercy conveyed from God unto them here is a strong argument to draw the heart to come to Christ because Christ is the great conveyance of all good from the â—her unto the Soul is not the mercy of God sweet unto a Soul that is Laden with the Burden of Sin This mercy you must have in me saith Christ or else you shall never have a drop of it We are to know therefore that by our sins the conduit Pipe of all the Mercy in God is stopt so as not one drop of saving mercy for eternity can be let into the Soul and though we should cry for mercy never so much and shreeke out yet we are to know that the Pipe is stopt by sin and there is no other way to open this pipe but only by Jesus Christ he is the opener of the pipe of Gods infinite Grace let out to the Children of men Now if we look upon the Grace of God we are first to consider that by our sins we have stopt the current of al the Grace of God and it is only Christ that lets out this current and now Christ saith come to me all you that would have mercy Would you have Mercy O yes it is true we would have mercy but we find this Mercy of God is stopt by our sins Now saith Christ come to me and by me all the sluces of the Grace and mercy of God are opened to poor Souls we know God is a God of mercy the God of all consolation in himself the Father of mercies he is infinitly merciful so that when we come to God we come to the God of mercy the God of all consolation we come to the Father of mercies we come to him who is infinite in mercy whose Nature is mercy to him that is imfinitely above all creatures in mercy All the merciful creatures in Heaven and Earth in comparison of him are nothing Yea take all the merciful Saints in the world the most merciful dispositions that were in all the creatures in the world and put them into one man you would say this were a merciful man If all the mercies in all the bowels of all the Saints that ever were from the beginning of the world were put into one man would not you think him to be a merciful man if he called you to come to him for mercy would you not come Such a man that hath all mercies of all the Saints that ever were in the world put into him yet this man would be a most cruel man in comparison of the infinite mercy that is in God If we were in cruel straites and had to deal with such a man that had the bowels of the mercy of all the men in the world those that are in misery they go to their friends and say Oh! it is wel I did fal into such a merciful mans hand But now thou that art a poor troubled sinner if thou comest to Christ thou comest into the Arms into the bowels of the infinite God that is infinitely above the bowels of all mercies that are either in Heaven or Earth and therefore come to him Secondly Further not only come unto the bowels of mercy but by coming to Christ thou comest to God as a Father Come to me saith Christ thou shalt not only come to the Father but the first moment you come to me I shall present you to God as a Child and God to you as a Father the infinite God is a deadly enemy to all out of Christ but by coming to Christ there is peace with him you come to have union with him and you come to be made one with God into the neerest union with God next unto the Hypostatical union There is divers sortes of union with God there is the Hypostatical union but next unto that is a Mistical union and such a union have the Saints the Soul that was before an enemy unto God and cast out from him the first moment that such a Soul comes to Christ it hath such a union with God that is the neerest union that any creature can have next unto the human Nature of Jesus Christ Thirdly Yea Not only to be united to him but thou shalt come presently to have his Image stamped upon thee his Spirit put into thee to live the Life of God to have communion with him here and thou shalt be saved the very moment thou comest to him thou shalt have Righteousness to stand in the presence of the infinite Holy God I You will say if we come to God we come by Christ but God is a Holy and a Righteous God and how shall we be able to stand before him being a Righteous God and we such sinners Therefore this is answered by this that the first moment thou comest to Christ he will put the holy Robes of his Righteousness upon thee that shall make thee able to stand before the infinite God so that whatever thou art in thy self it is impossible but God should be wel pleased with thee and should take delight in thee as his own thou may'st walk up and down in the presence of God and all because He sees thee in the Robes of Christs Righteousness Fourthly And further The first moment thou comest to Christ thou shalt be safe to eternity for all the hazard of miscarrying to eternity is over at the first moment thou comest to Christ this thou shalt have in the first moment of thy coming to Jesus Christ this is for the comfort of those that come to Christ More of these Particulars we shall have when we come to the promise that is here made in the Text And you shall have Rest ARG. VI. Sixtly For a further argument of drawing the Heart unto Jesus Christ when he cals to come to him consider what a poor wretch thou art in thy self a vile base forlorne Deformed Miserable Succourless Helpless Shiftless Creature a Beggar If a Prince as he goes along in the Streets seeing a poor Beggar lying upon the ground in the durt should be pleased to call to such a creature and say to him come to me would it not reviue his Spirit If one should tel him the King the Prince cals how would he stir himself Now thou art the poorest Creature in the world never any poor creature that lay groveling in the durt ful of Sores and wounds was in a worse condition then thou art when thou seest such a one think that thy condition is far
worse then his If the King were going in his Robes to the Parliament a long the streets and should see such a poor creature lying by the Walls and should take special notice of him and call him to him and say let that poor creature come to me it would incourage him exceedingly this invitation from Christ is just the very same for the Lord Jesus Christ sees thee lying in thy gore blood as it is described in Ezekiel 16. where the miserable condition of them that are in their Natural estate is most elegantly set down they lay in their blood none Eye pittyed them then I came saith God and said unto thee live and this time was the time of Love so when thou liest in thy poor wretched miserable condition in thy filth in thy baseness in the Gall of bitterness and bond of iniquity this blessed Redeemer this great Prince of al the world he cals to thee and saies Oh! thou poor creature Come to me I You will say this is the discouragement of all I would be glad to go to Christ the Lord knows this is that my Soul pants after that I might go to Christ but I am such a poor vile creature so Wretched so Miserable that it is impossible for me to be accepted you tel me that for an argument that is the greatest discouragement of my Heart because I am so vile and because I am so Wretched this is that discourageth me from coming to Christ ARG. VII To that I answer in the Seventh place Come to me and I will certainly receive you whatever you are Christ will certainly receive all those that come to him whatever they are and for that consider these three things that may make it plain First The Solemn expression of Christ for this purpose that you have in John 6.37 All that the Father giveth me shall come to me and him that cometh to me I will in no wise cast out He doth not say he that hath been such a great sinner such a vile wretched sinner but he speaks indefinitly he that comes to me I will in no wise cast out Now this that is translated in your Books In no wise cast out it hath a greater force in the Greek there is two Negatives for though we in English say two Negatives make an affirmative it is not so in Greek for it is for a stronger confirmation of a thing and so it may be read He that cometh to me I will not not cast out as if so be Christ should say he that comes to me I will not I will not cast out As we when we would express the fervency of our Spirits we double our speech so doth Christ he would express the Fervency of his spirit and therefore he saith he that cometh to me I will not I will not cast out Secondly Whoever thou art upon coming to him he will not cast thee off for this was the great errand that Christ came into the world for to receive poor troubled souls and to ease poor Laden sinners it was the very business that Christ came into the world about it is the work that God the Father hath sent his Son into the world about that he might receive such poor wretched sinful creatures as thou art and if it were not that he should receive those that come to him he should lose the end that he came into the world for and therefore he will receive you when you come for Christ saies I shal else lose the end of that that was the greatest work that ever was done since the world began or shal be done to al eternity that is my undertaking the Mediation between God and you if I should not receive poor Souls that come to me that great work would be lost that work wherein my Father and my self is so much glorified for this is the glory of Christ to do so and Christ saw there was so much glory to be had this way that it did move Christ to come into the world to take such a course as this is to save Souls Christ knows that he should to all eternity be magnified by Angels for the saving such Souls as thou art Yea Christ knows that the Father wil love him more for he saies The Father loves me because I laid down my life for the Sheep John 10.17 It is that that will delight God the Father it is that that wil make God the Father to delight in the Son it is that whereby Jesus Christ gets the very end of his death til he had laid down his life till he had made his Soul an offering for sin he was not satisfied This is it that satisfied him that he should see his Seed and amongst others thou art one thou that comest to Christ thou art of the Seed that Jesus Christ is so satisfied with that he gaines the very end of laying down his life for thee and certainly Christ will not cast thee off but wil receive thee and therefore come to him Thirdly He will receive thee for he hath heretofore received as vile wretches as thou art You will say There was never any so vile as we are It s true we may and ought to judg our Selves as vile as the worst though we have not committed such vile sins outwardly as others have yet because we know not the Hearts of other men nor do we know what means others have had therefore we are to judg ourselves as vile as any but know that Christ hath received as bad as thou art those that pierced Christ that shed his blood Christ received 3000. of them in one day he received three thousand in one day of those that had inbrued their hands in his blood and the story stands in the Scripture for an everlasting Monument to incourage poor sinners to come to Christ And besides though thou art a vile sinner and a wretched creature yet know the greater thou hast been in thy sin the more will the Grace of God in Christ be magnified and certainly there is in Christ such a Grace as is able to swallow up great sins as well as little as the infinite Ocean of the Sea is able to swallow up great Vessels as well as smal were it not a silly thing when we were to cast a Vessel into the Sea to say it is too great a Vessel God is willing to have his Grace magnified to thee though it be to the hardening of many thousands If there is an infinite Ocean in God to swallow up great as well as smal sins so long as this keeps thee off from coming to Christ so long thou dishonorest this infinite Grace of God in Christ Were Gods mercy only such as his common bounty is to other of his creatures this might keep thee off but now it being the infinite Ocean of mercy in his Son and purchased by Christ it is an infinite dishonor to the Grace of God in Christ to stand upon tearms and not to come to
Christ what dost thou think that mercy is worth that cost the Blood of Christ Thou thinkest thou art a great sinner and that it must be wonderful mercy that must save thy Soul It s true and it 's well thou thinkest So but now consider further sinner what dost thou think of the mercy that shall be as much worth as the Blood of the Son of God For him to be made a curse for sinners will that do it If that will do it thou mayest come to him How much dost thou think the mercy of Christs coming to take Mans Nature upon him is worth to take our sinful Nature upon him If he will do it thou mayest come to Christ Yea Further know That the Lord Jesus Christ never receives any that come to him but Beggars none but Beggars none but miserable creatures none but those that are wretched that are vile and Christ did never yet from the beginning of the world receive any man upon these tearms because he was not so vile as another man as thus here is one that is thus vile here is another that is not altogether so vile I will receive him upon this ground because he is not so vile this was never the ground but when he receives them he receives them upon free Grace and therefore it is not how vile thou art for that is the Glory of Christ to save vile creatures and he saves none but those that come as Beggars those that come and do see themselves as vile wretched worthless unworthy miserable damned dust and Ashes in themselves Only such are objects for the Heart of Christ to be set upon rather make it an argument to drive thee more to him as David did in the 25. Psalm O Lord have mercy upon me pardon my Sin for it is great So Lord I am vile I am wretched I am unworthy and therefore Lord receive me Lord therefore I come unto thee do not say as Peter once did Master depart from me I am a sinful Man No but the truth is he should rather have said thus Master Come to me or Master I come to thee because I am a sinful man So thou shouldest not say O Lord depart from me because I am a sinful creature Or Lord do thou come to me because I am a sinful wretch And know that upon thy coming to him thou wilt have wonderful welcome wonderful great entertainment above all that thy Heart can think of O the great imbracing by Jesus Christ of those Souls that come to him and this is the very Reason why poor sinners at their first conversion have their Hearts so filled with joy because at their first coming to Christ Christ doth give them such wonderful imbracements til they come to be more Strengthened and then perhaps Christ will have them live rather by Faith than by sence It is in the new Birth as in the Birth of Nature Children when they are first born they shoote up mightily take a Child that comes very little out of the Womb come to it a quarter of a Year after the Child is shot up a great deal you may see it a great deal taller and bigger every Limb increased but take it at ten years Old and it grows not so much then as at the first and the Reason is because it coming out of the worm Womb it could not subsist if Nature did not hasten to strengthen it self at first so men when they come to Christ at first they shoote up and grow to such inlargement of Spirit and they do so sensibly perceive Yea and others do so sensibly perceive a greater growth at their first coming than afterwards because when they first come Christ will Strengthen them against all discouragements Christ will use you tenderly Christ will not upbraid you for your former sins and say What! you that have lived a prophane life a prophaner of my ordinances a scorner at my waies and at my people Christ will not upbraid the Soul but he wil be render of you he will pass by your sins and heal your weakness He will not break the bruised Reed nor quench the smoaking Flax. ARG. VIII Eightly Further Consider The infinite need thy Soul hath of Jesus Christ and therefore that should drive thee to him if the other Arguments do not draw thee Oh! Let that drive thee to Jesus Christ thou art an undone creature for ever without Jesus Christ all the mercy in Heaven can do thee no good without Christ all the Ordinances can do thee no good without Christ all the duties thou performest can do thee no good without Christ for before thou comest to Jesus Christ there is no Prayer no Duties that ever thou tenderest up to God that can be accepted and this is a sad condiâ—ion that all my Duties my Prayers my services are all cast away till I come to Jesus Christ Certainly this is so for thou must know that Jesus Christ is not only the great conveyer of all good from God to us but also all that comes to us from God must go through him and therefore there is cause thou shouldest hasten to Christ and never be at quiet all thy Life til thou hast some comfortable evidence that thy Heart hath closed with Jesus Christ there is an infinite necessity because al Ordinances Duties services whatever thou dost doth thee no good til thou come to Christ ARG. IX Ninthly Yea Further Christ is such a one as all the creatures one day will see a need of him Yea all that live under the sound of the Gospel they shall see a need of him and they shal curse themselves that when they lived under the sound of the Gospel and were called to come to Jesus Christ that yet notwithstanding they would satisfie themselves in the lusts of their spirits Christ came from Heaven once to us in the daies of his flesh but know that Jesus Christ shall come again in his Glory with all his Angels all his Saints about him and then how happy will those appear that in the time of their lives when they were called by the Ministery of the Gospell did come to Jesus Christ When Christ comes thus in his Glory perhaps you would then all go to Jesus Christ no friend if you will stay till then you will heaâ— another voice from Christ he will not come to call sinners to come to him then but he will come to bid them depart from him for all that the father gives him do come to him before then ARG. X. Yea and yet further let me tel you this that while you have heard the word of God by a poor minister in the name of Christ to cal you unto him to draw you to come unto him if you shal reject this invitation and other invitations that you have by the ministers of the Gospel know that of al the sins that ever you committed in al your lives this wil prove to be the greatest that you have stood
out against this invitation it is that that wil aggravate al your sins It may be some of you may think wel this is an incouragment to sinners we are called to Christ and we are tould that the vilest may come to him and Christ wil receive them This is wel but yet if thou wilt reject this invitation and shalt yet let out thy heart to other vanities and to the satisfying of thy sinful lusts this I say this invitation of Jesus Christ wil be the greatest aggravation of al thy sins that ever thou Committedst in al thy life thy whoredome thy drunkenness thy swearing al thy sabbath breaking wil not be so heavy upon thee wil not be so deep upon the score as one rejection of Jesus Christ calling thee to come to him and therefore take heed of abusing the grace of Christ in calling you to come to him For know if there could be any sign given to know who are Reprobates and who not I would rather pitch upon this signe one that should go away after the grace of God is opened to him and he invited to come to Christ one that should go away notwithstanding hardned in sin I say I should rather pitch upon this than any other signe There is no sin hardeneth the heart of God more than this I wil give you one Scripture for this In Luke 14.16 17. When God as the master of the great feast sends his servants and invites men to come to the wedding that is in truth to do that that I have been doing al this while to invite poor sinners to come to Christ Now divers make excuses some had bouhgt oxen others had bought farmes and others had married Wives wel marke at the 24. verse the doom of those that did not come in upon their invitation Verily saith God those men that were bidden shall never taste of my supper What! saith God to his servants have ye invited them to come in and wil they not No they have other things in their heads their Farmes their Yoke of Oxen their profits and pleasures what wil they reject such grace and favour when I invite them to come to the marriage of my son verily saith God they shal never have any good by Jesus Christ Oh! it were a dreadful doom to be past upon any soule God forbid it should be past upon any soul and yet when we come to open the grace of God in Jesus Christ in the ministry of the Word we cannot speake of it without trembling hearts without feare least some should be hardened and so God provoked by their resisting of thiâ— grace of his this man and this woman that sits upon such a stool that is not taken with this grace of God offered in Jesus Christ they shal never tast of my supper Beloved Sermons of mercy are more quicker than any other sermons whatsoever men and women may sit under a minister of the word that may preach many wholsome points of Divinity and many moral truthes against drunkenness swearing prophaning the sabbath deceit cozening and cheating they may sit along time under such a minister and God may be patient with them though they do not obey the voice of the minister but now when the Lord comes to invite men and women to come to his son let them look to it then God expects that they should fal down before that infinite grace of his and should admire it and their hearts should be taken with it and they should joyne with him and say Oh! Lord we come and our hearts do close with this bountifulness of thine in thy son the neglect of our not profiting by such sermons and casting out what we heare letting of it pass from us doth the quickest seal up mens hearts to condemnation Ye wil not come to me that ye might have life Wherfore take in what hath been spoken to you and labor to work it upon your hearts Quest You wil say Here are many things that have been spoken to poor sinners to come to Christ if these things be so what is the reason then that there is no more that come to Christ how comes it to pass that the hearts of men and women can stand out against such offers as these Ans Would you know the reason Christ himself gives it you in John 6.43 after he had been inviting some to come to him and told them that he was the bread of life Jesus answered and said unto them murmur not among your selves there were some murmured against Christ â—nd Christs words did not prevail with them no marvel that the ministers of Christ do not alwaies prevaile when Christs words Christs own preaching did not prevail with many but they did murmur at him and went away from his sermons and did reject his sermons at the 44. verse saith Christ There can no man come to me except the father which hath sent me draw him Quest You wil say then why are you speaking al this while to exhort people to come to him we are dead and you had as good speake to dead men Ans To that is answered God the father doth use to draw those soules that belong to his eternal election by the ministry of the word by such exhortations as these God the father doth make use of the ministry of man to set before poor miserable souls the excellency of Jesus Christ and so to draw their soules to him and therefore if you do belong to Gods election God wil make use of his ministry to draw your hearts to come to Christ Doth God begin to draw you by the ministry of his word have you found God by the ministry of his word begin to draw your soules Oh! do not you draw back again as loth to leave your sins to leave such a sweat pleasure such a profitable lust but if God hath taken hold of your hearts to draw you to him Oh! do not you draw back again Indeed the scripture saith many are called but few are Chosen few do come to Christ but you are al called to come to Christ Oh! let not that scripture be made true that many are called but few chosen if thou findest God drawing thy heart and thy heart ready to answer unto the Lord that is an argument that thou art not onely called but one of the Chosen ones of the Lord. There are three waies that God the father drawes those to his son that he intends shal be saved for ever by him First he draws them by the cord as I may so speak of Illumination by enlightning their minds by shewing them what his son is Secondly He draws them by the cords of mercy Thirdly he drawes them by setting conscience upon them to put them forward when the Lord is drawing the soul to Christ he makes use of the consciences of men and women to put them on to come to Christ O! thou wretched soul is not that that thou hearest in the word the truth of God is
it not the word of the Lord hast thou not now a gracious offer Is it not a mercy that thou art out of hel this day and is it not a mercy that thou art not drowned in the sea that thou art brought to land to heare one more offer to come to Christ Wilt thou yet go on in thy sins Wilt thou yet prize thy lusts before al that infinite good that is in Jesus Christ dost thou think this wil be peace in the end How wilt thou be able to look God in the face another day It s mercy thou needest and Mercy thou must have or else thou art for ever miserable and wilt thou reject this mercy Oh! that the Lord would cal in your consciences to help on this work There hath been I hope by al that hath been said some Illumination about Christ yea and some cords of Mercy have been fastened upon your hearts Now if God would but stir up conscience give a command to conscience and say never suffer this man or this woman to be at quiet til they come to my son til their hearts be taken off from al things that hinder them from coming to my son let them never be at quiet til then it were a happy thing if God would give this command to conscience that so many might answer to this invitation of Christ that when Christ saith come to me ye that are laden the soul answers Lord I come Quest I but you wil say Suppose God hath been calling me and I have rejected him I have been in some forwardness to come to Christ and my lusts have drawn my heart back again for you tel us that the Lord useth to be quick with sinners when they have rejected his grace now have you any word of comfort for such if these shal come that have abused Gods grace and mercy and turned back upon him have you any comfort for such Ans I wil onely give you one scripture for those and that is in Jeremiah 3. and the 22. verse and Oh! that the Lord would fasten this scripture upon your hearts Returne ye back-sliding children and I wil heale your back-slidings Mark here is the answer Behold we come unto thee for thou art the Lord our God This scripture in the name of God do I present to you that have drawn back from the grace of God that once were in a good frame and now are back-sliders once more in the name of God do I cal to you Oh! returne thou back-slider the Lord Jesus Christ is ready now to healthy back-slidings now then secretly say Lord I come and when thou comest into thy closet in a more solemn manner and art al alone resigne up thy soul to Jesus Christ and say Lord thou hast invited me this day to come to Christ now Lord I give up my self and all that I have and am to thee my estate my Body my honor and all that I have to come to thee and then not only those good things shall be made good but the promise likewise then Christ shall give you Rest These times are times of distress and therefore seasonable to hear of Rest whatever troubles fal out yet if thou come to Christ thou shalt be safe thy self Christ doth ingage himself to give Rest unto thy Soul And so much for the Invitation it self CHAP. XXIII The Doctrine arising from the dependance of the promise upon the Invitation That God will have us when we are coming to Christ to have respect to our selves NOw the next thing that follows is the promise that Christ makes to poor Laden sinners that do come unto him He will give them Rest And I will give you Rest It is too much for any creature to say thus Yea it were too much boldness and presumption for all the Angels in Heaven to make these words as their own for them all to say thus Come unto us all ye that Labor and are heavy Laden and we will give you Rest Yet here in this text there is not only one that is greater than Solomon but one that is greater than all the Angels in Heaven and men that ever lived upon the Earth that saith Come unto me all ye that Labor and are heavy Laden and I will give you Rest They are the words of the Lord Jesus Christ the Son of the Father that is equal with the Father God blessed for ever He saith Come unto me ye that Labor and are heavy Laden and I will give you Rest This is that that now we are come unto The gracious promise that Christ makes to draw Souls unto himself he will give them Rest And I will give you Rest And what more fit Argument and seasonable can there be at this time this time we know is a time of trouble a time of disturbance there is much perplexity and distress in our Nation and what will be more acceptable unto us than this to hear of Rest this is that that Christ doth promise to al them that come to him that beleeve in him he saith he will give them Rest Before I come to open this gracious promise which is exceeding ful of marrow and fatness as we shall find when we come to the opening of it I shall first give you one note briefly from the connexion of these words with the former Come to me ye that Labor and I will give you Rest You see Christ that he might draw sinners to himself makes a gracious promise of that that he knows will do good to sinners at the Heart he will give them Rest From hence the note is this in the general That God would have us even when we are coming to Christ have some respect to our selves and Christ encourageth us in coming to him even to have some aime at our own good That is the note cleerly from the Connexion of the words Before we open the promise I will give you Rest saith he if you come to me in that Christ doth propound that which he knows will take the Hearts of sinners as a great good unto them to draw them to himself hence I say the note it cleer That in our coming to Jesus Christ it is lawful for us to have some aime at our own good Yea not only lawful for us but we ought so to do for we are to look upon Christ so as Christ propounds himself unto us not only lawful I say to look upon Christ so as he propounds himself to us but it is our duty so to look upon him Now when Christ propounds himself unto us as an object to draw our Hearts to him he doth propound himself as one wherein our souls shal gaine abundance of good one that we shall get much by Now though it is true we should Labor to be above our selves as much as may be we should Labor to deny our selves in some sence yet not so but that we are to look at our own good even in our coming unto Jesus Christ
Now this I might shew you in abundance of Scriptures in the very first commission that Jesus Christ gave unto his Apostles after his Resurrection to go and Preach throughout the world he saith unto them in Mark 16.15 verse Go ye into all the world and preach the Gospel to every creature he that beleeveth and is Baptized shal be saved This is cleer that Christ would have us in our first beleeving to have an aime at our own good And so we find such a kind of promise as this is in the Text In Jer. 6.16 verse Thus saith the Lord stand in the waies and see and ask for the old paths where the good way is and walk therein and ye shall find Rest for your Souls Inquire after the good waies and you shall find Rest for your Souls So that you see God propounds duties together with promises the Lord knows what is best for us and what wil work most upon us and therefore for us to think that we must have no aime at all of any good to our selves in coming to Christ and that it is no grace but self-love to come to Christ for our own good this is a temptation I speak the rather this point because I know how useful it is unto many poor Souls whom the Lord is drawing unto Jesus Christ the Lord hath taken off their Hearts from sinful self they would not enjoy themselves in the lusts of the flesh as formerly the Lord hath made them willing to deny their own opinion their own wills their own affections their former waies to deny themselves in the comforts of the things of this world so as to prize him and Christ and his waies the way of Christ more than they prize their very lives here in this world and yet for all this there comes a temptation upon them I but you seek Christ only to free you from Hell and to save you and therefore it is but self-Love it is no true Grace because that you ayme at your selves rather than Christ the Devil cannot prevaile with a Heart that is drawing to Christ thus telling of it Oh! but you prize your lusts more than Christ or you prize your ease more than Christ or you prize your estate and your liberty more than Christ or your life more than Christ if so be that the Devil shal come thus and tempt such a soul could in some measure be able to answer and to appeal unto God and say Lord thou that knowest all things knowest it is otherwise that howsoever my Heart heretofore went after my lusts after the world after my ease and liberty and I followed the common course of the world and made those things to be my greatest good and comfort yet Lord thou knowest it is otherwise with me now my Heart is set for Christ and I can say from the bottom of my Soul with that blessed martyr Lambert None but Christ none but Christ Now when the Heart is got thus farr one would think thou mightest be above the Devil and come to get assurance I saith the Devil though you be taken off thus far that you dare not commit any known sin and you seek after Christ more than your estate and your liberty yet there is one thing more that your hearts is not taken off from you do not prize Christ most of all you seek Christ to save you from Hell and bring you to Heaven that is it that you seek Christ for and therefore I know your Heart is not right all this while this is a temptation that seizeth upon many men Now I confess it is a temptation that is beyond many men they do not know what this temptation is that I prize Christ only to deliver me from Hell and bring me to Heaven this temptation is above the highest form of the course of the world then ordinary professors Now the Spirit in the Text thus answers this temptation the Soul thus answers It is true I do seek Christ to save me from Hell and bring me to Heaven the fear of the wrath of the great God under which I saw my self to be and the displeasure of God was mighty upon my Spirit the Lord hath made my Soul to be sensible of the dreadful breach that sin hath made between him and my Soul and the Lord hath caused the fear of eternity to fall upon my soul and I come to be convinced of this that such is the breach between God and my soul that there is none but Jesus Christ the Mediator of the second Covenant that is able to make up the breach and my soul makes after him as the Mediator as he is propounded in the word in the Gospel to be a Mediator between God and mankind so my soul makes after him and closeth with him and what can the Devil say to this For my heart doth close with Christ in the way that Christ is tendred unto me in the Gospel for so he is tendered God himself saith thus God so loved the world that he sent forth his only begotten Son that whosoever beleeveth in him should not perish but have everlasting Life Thus God sets forth his Son as if God should say thus Be it known unto you O poor wretched sinful creatures that are in danger of eternal perishing that I have sent forth my only begotten son into the world and tender him unto your souls to the end that your souls may not perish but have everlasting Life Thus God tenders his Son Now then when a soul shal be made sensible of the danger of eternal perishing and the Lord shall make it apeare to the soul what the excellency and the glory of eternal life is and the soul shal come to see that the being delivered from perishing and the obtaining of eternal Life is only to be had in Christ and upon this doth close with Jesus Christ and cast it self upon him and adventure it self to lay the weight of its eternal estate upon Christ the soul that doth thus receive Christ according as he is tendred in the word whatever objection may be to the contrary this is to receive Christ according as he is tendred in the word Yet further for the helping against this temptation it fals ful in this Text Come unto me and I wil give you rest Now many poor souls do come to Christ that they might have rest but then the devil puts this in Oh! but you come to Christ for your owne good Now for the helping against this temptation know 1. That the Lord at the first conversion doth ordinarily make use of the creatures self-love but it is of self-love for eternity and that is a higher degree of self-love than the most people in the world do attaine unto Some people in the world they love themselves only for this present life but when God makes a man or woman to love himself for eternity it is a good signe that the hand of God is upon the heart and
that the Lord doth intend good unto that soul when the Lord begins to make thee to love thy self truly for eternity to love that that is true and of eternal good it is a good signe that the Lord doth intend good unto thy soul 2. When the Lord proceeds not only to make thee to begin to love thy self for eternity that is to love that immortal soul that the Lord hath put into thee but when the Lord comes to shew thee wherein thy true good for eternity lies that it doth lye in this that thou shalt be delivered from the wrath of God and shalt not be cast out of his presence but shalt come to have union with God and live in his presence to the praise of his Grace to all eternity this is thy good this thou dost account thy happiness that thou maist be delivered from being cast out of Gods presence and that the Lord would bring thee unto himself to live with him and to joyn with the Angels and Saints to the praise of his infinite Grace in Christ eternally Thou accountest this to be the good that thou wouldest have in thy salvation I say the revealing of this to thee and the carrying of thy Heart unto Christ upon this ground this is faith it is true Grace for here God hath so twisted as I may so speak the glory of his own Name and the good of his creature together as they both are joyned in one and so the Heart may be carryed to both of them at one time to joyn in one 3. Yea further Let me tell you when thy Heart looks at this as thine own good and this is the Rest that thou wouldest have whereas I see that by my sins I am cut off from God and so I can have no peace nor Rest and I see my happiness and the Rest of my soul is to have union with that God that my sins hath cut me off from and that I might live for ever to the praise of the infinite and glorious first being of all things I say herein though thou aimest at thy own good before thou art aware of it and thou dost it may be explicitly Reason with thy own Heart but I do regard God above any good in my self yet in that thy Heart is upon it to that end that thou mayest have union with the Father and live eternally with him to the praise of his Grace in his Son I say in this act though thou art not able explicitly to conceive how thou lookest at God above thy self Yet God sees it there is that work of God in thy Heart to raise God there above thy self and therefore those poor sinners that are much afflicted under the Burden of their sins let them but Labor and Eye God so as to look at Christ as one that is a Mediator between God and them to bring God and their souls together to ayme at this and they need not trouble themselves with answering any further that temptation O! I come to Christ but it is only that I might be saved I do not know that in all the Book of God to give you this one note about it and then we pass from this point that we find this as a note of an Hipocrite that he doth love his own salvation too much we never find it as a note of an Hipocrite that he doth come to Christ that he might be saved and seeing the word of God doth not set it out as the note of an Hipocrite let not us nourish this temptation in our own Hearts so as to hinder us from coming to Christ thy Heart would have Rest in coming to Christ therefore come to him that thou mayest have Rest And thus much for this note from the Connexion of the promise Come to Christ for Rest CHAP. XXIV Of the Rest promised by Christ in general And that there is no Rest for a Soul out of Jesus Christ BUt now for the promise it self We read in the 16. of Isai the first verse that Christ saies The Spirit of the Lord God is upon me because the Lord hath anoynted me to Preach good tydings unto the meek he hath sent me to bind up the broken Hearted to proclaim liberty to the Captives and the opening of the prison to those that are bound to proclaime the acceptable Year of the Lord and the day of Vengeance of our God to comfort all that Mourne c. Here we have a prophecy of Christ and in this my Text this prophecy of Christ is fulfilled Christ is come here in the Text to Preach good tidings to the meek to bind up the broken Hearted to proclaime liberty to the Captives and the opening of the prison to them that are bound all this is contained in this promise I wil give you Rest Rest is that that all creatures in the world desire the end of all motion is Rest so the Philosophers say the end of motion is quietness it is the end of all motion whatsoever if the creature were where it would be and had what it would have then it had Rest But now in motion what is the Reason that the fire ascends upwards but because the proper place of the fire is above and that the Earth and all heavy things fal downward But because their proper place is below but let them be where they would be and have what they would have and then they are at Rest So it is with the rational creature when the rational creature is in its proper place that that is the proper place for an immortal Soul and when an immortal soul comes to have the Capacity of it to be filled when it comes to have what an immortal Soul is capable of then it comes to have Rest and this is a Rest that Christ doth promise here in the Text and I will give you Rest that is thus If you come to me you shall first be delivered from all your burdens from all misery whatsoever And Secondly you shal be where you would be and injoy what you would have so that indeed this promise containes the freedome from all evil and the enjoyment of all good there cannot be Rest until there be a freedome from evil and an injoyment of all good that is the general here in this promise I will give you Rest There is a great deal of difference between the Rest that Christ here promiseth to give and that that men seek after in the world We read of the Rich Glutton in Luke 12. saith he Soul take thine ease Soul be at Rest for the word there in the Greek it is of the same that here this word is in my Text of Rest Soul take thine ease or Soul be at Rest Why For thou hast goods laid up for many Years Now mark the difference of the Rest of the Soul of a worldling and the rest of the Soul of a Christian A worlding saies Soul take thy Rest for thou hast meat and drink and
thou hast goods laid up for many Years A Christians Rest is this Come saith Christ to me and I will give you Rest the Rest of a Christian it is in the Son of God it is in the Mediator of the second Covenant it is in him that brings the Soul unto the Father and brings all the treasure and Riches of the Grace of the Father unto the soul it is in him that a Christian finds rest and a worldling only in meat and drink and other things as we shall see more afterwards Thus in general what the meaning is Now in this promise of Christ there are two things to be handled the First implyed the Second exprest That which is implyed is this That there is no rest in the Souls of the Children of men out of Jesus Christ that is plainly implied Come to me and I will give you rest So that here is plainly implied That there is no rest for an immortal Soul out of Jesus Christ it can have no rest out of Christ And then that that is exprest is this That in Jesus Christ as soon as the Soul comes to have union with Jesus Christ it shall have true rest indeed there is ful rest to be had in Christ Now for the first That out of Jesus Christ there can be no rest unto the soul As we read of the Dove that Noah sent forth when his Ark was floating up and down on the Water he sent forth a Dove and you find in the story of Noah there in Genesis 8.89 That when the Dove was sent forth she flew up and down but she had not whereon to rest the Sole of her Foot and therefore she comes flying to the Arke again so it is with a soul that is not in Christ for the Arke was a type of Christ it may floate up and down in the world here but certainly there is nothing for the soul to rest it self upon out of Christ Indeed we read that when Noah sent forth a Raven out of the arke the Raven came no more but the dove came again and the difference between the Dove and the Raven doth elegantly express the difference between those souls that God hath an intent to do good unto in Christ and those that are left by God and have no other portion appointed for them than the things of this world men of this world whom the Lord intends no higher good than the things of this world they are like the Raven they flutter up and down in the world but never come to the arke never come to Christ the other that the Lord hath an intent to do good unto although they may for a while be floating up and down here in this world yet so wil God order things that their soules shal never have any rest and quiet til they come to Jesus Christ nothing in this world shal satisfie them but the Lord wil make them seek to be sensible of any emptiness that they have not that good that their soules were made for no rest to be had out of Christ There is a Scripture or two that is very observable I might Name multitudes But I shal content my self with one or two That place in Isa will be sufficient if I Name no more it is in the 57. Chapter of the prophecy of Isa and the two last verses There you shal see al men that are out of Christ described in this of having no rest the 20. verse But the wicked are like the troubled sea when it cannot rest whose waters cast up myre and dirt there is no peace saith my God to the wicked or there is no rest saith my God to the wicked yee that are mariners know what a troubled sea doth meane a sea that is troubled casts forth myre and dirt and just thus is a wicked mans heart it is like the troubled sea it casts forth mire and dirt And as when the sea is most troubled it casts forth most dirt so it is with wicked men when wicked men are most troubled then they cast forth most wickedness So somtimes it may be you find it when you are in a storme at sea some kind of men instead of seeking God and praying unto God they fal a cursing and swearing and railing and so their hearts are more troubled than the troubled sea and thereby cast out more filth and dirt out of their hearts than is cast out by the troubled sea Or if not at sea yet when they are here at land as men that have no rest and peace with God every thing troubles them having not rest in Christ they are troubled in their family and with their neighbors they do cast forth nothing but mire and dirt oaths swearing and blaspheming Oh! how do they come forth of wicked men when they are crost at any time when you see at any time the husband or the wife to be crost and troubled when you see them in a distemper and hear them swearing cursing railing blaspheming speaking wicked speeches in their passion remember this text of the 57 of Isa the 20. verse That a wicked man is like the troubled sea that casts forth mire and dirt Oh! that you would remember it and apply it to your own hearts is it thus with my heart I fear that there are many whose consciences tel them that this text doth lively set forth their hearts their consciences tel them that when they are troubled they cast forth mire and dirt Oh! what mire and dirt hath been cast forth by many when they have been in trouble now that the Lord would settle this text upon your hearts for the Lord saies it is the wicked man and woman when they are troubled that do cast forth this mire and dirt But the special thing I aime at is in the next verse There is no peace saith my God to the wicked no peace no rest this is a truth that doth belong unto al men and women that are out of Jesus Christ there is no peace no rest unto their soules and as he doth deny al kind of rest that such a one can have so you may observe what a confirmation there is Saith my God It is God that saith it as if the prophet should say I am now preaching unto you about the restless condition that you are in remaining in your natural estate as unconverted to God while I am preaching of this it wil be a sad thing to you it is a sad argument you wil say the prophet tels us there is no rest no peace but as if the prophet should say it is not I that saith it it is my God that saith it God doth pronounce this upon every ungodly man and woman that there is no peace no rest unto such let the world have never so much rest and peace though there should be no war abroad in the world yet there is no peace unto wicked men no rest unto their soules I shal demonstrate this more cleerly
afterwards that there is no rest nor peace to any wicked men in the world though they seem to others to live in never so much ease rest and peace Further there is no peace to the wicked saith my God it is not I saith the prophet but God that saith it wherby he would teach us this note That when any ministers of God preacheth that which is hard to us we should consider that it is not their words but Gods that speakes to them that God that wil make al good that he speakes by them which is according to his word according to what he saith in his word there is no peace saith my God Further there is no peace saith my God it may be that many would flatter you and say there is peace and these ministers do but trouble people trouble consciences and what needs so much stir what needs so much a doe no question the prophet did aime at these false prophets as there were many that we reade of in Isaiah and Jeremiah that cryed peace peace when there was no peace There was many false Prophets that lived in those times that said the prophet Isaiah preacheth to you things that are too hard God is merciful and have we not al infirmities and therefore it is but trusting in Gods mercy and do we not do as others do and we hope it shall be with us as with others at the last and it is but repenting at last now in opposition to al these saith the prophet Isaiah there is no peace saith my God let all the fals prophets plead what they will let them say what they please yet my God saith to every wicked and ungodly man and Woman there is no peace to their Souls Further It may be there are some that their own Hearts would say peace peace as many men and Women that when they hear out of the word those things that are very dreadful and do come very near to their Consciences their Consciences tel them this word of God neerly concernes them yet they will be ready to bless themselves in their own thoughts and say notwithstanding it shall be peace to them just as we read in 29. of Deut. 19 and 20. verses saith the Lord It shal come to pass that if any man when he heares the words of this curse shall bless himself in his Heart and say I shall have peace though I walk in the imagination of mine own Heart the Lord will not spare him but then the anger of the Lord and his Jealousie shal Smoake against that man and all the curses that are written in this Book shall lie upon him and the Lord shall blot out his Name from under Heaven How dreadful doth God speak and to whom To that Soul that shall hear out of Gods word that there is no peace no Rest unto them in that condition in the way that he is now in yet it may be saith the Lord when you shall hear pronounced this day in my word against them you shal have many in your auditory shall say I shall have peace though I walk in the imagination of my own Heart Now we do not find such a dreadful expression in all the Book of God against any as we do against those that shall say they shall have peace though they walk in the imagination of their own Heart Now hear saith the prophet may be some of you will say in your own Hearts I shall have Rest I shal have Peace but saith the Prophet there is no Peace to the wicked saith my God though your own Hearts say you shall have Peace and what need we trouble our selves with the Ministers words but my God saith there is no peace to the wicked methinks here we have a place that speakes of wicked men directly in opposition to that which the Church speaks of her self in Lamen 3.24 The Lord is my portion saith my soul therefore wil I hope in him Now let us observe at this time when the Church speakes this and saith the Lord is her portion she was in a very afflicted estate and condition and it may be that her enemies would say that the Lord had forsaken her and neglected her I but against al the enemies in the world her faith prevailes and sayes Let al the devils in hel say what they wil let al the world say what they wil yet my soul shal say the Lord is my portion that is that faith that Gods spirit hath wrought in my soul shal inable me to say that the Lord is my portion So on the contrary when wicked men are in prosperity and feel not the hand of God upon them perhaps friends may flatter them false prophets wil flatter them may be their own hearts wil flatter themselves but now to answer al saith the prophet there is no peace to the wicked saith my God my God saith it Further there is no peace saith my God no rest to any out of Christ this is to note from whence it comes that wicked men can have no peace why they can have no rest it is from God it is God that wil not give it God is against them There are many wicked men and women whose consciences are begun to be inlightened and they many times have trouble of spirit and when they awake in the night they are troubled and when they go about their business in the day they are troubled and when they come home they are troubled and so troubled as they scarce know what it is that troubles them Now perhaps you have not known what it is that troubles you but this text in Isa 57 and the last verse tels you what it is that troubles you it is the Lord that is out with you it s the anger the displeasure of the almighty that is upon you in those wayes that you have walked in and therefore it is that the prophet brings the name of God to shew whence it is that wicked men can have no peace Further It is observable that he adds it is My God he doth not say there is no peace that God saith though that had been enough but my God that is thus as if the Prophet should say through the mercy of God the Lord hath revealed this mercy to me and my Soul hath some interest in this God and since I knew God in Jesus Christ my soul hath found peace and Rest in him and he is my God and hath revealed himself to me he whose mind my soul is in some measure acquainted with my God saith there is no Peace to the wicked And though however others may think it is a strange thing to tel ungodly men that they are in a condition wherein they can have no peace when they hear of the dreadful wrath of God against all ungodlyness to be revealed out of the word yet those who are acquainted with the waies of God those who know the holiness and justice of God those who understand the mind
of God those who are acquainted with the secrets of the mind of God those men know that there is a reality in what is declared against such and such wicked men they can say that to such there is no Peace they can wonder how it is possible that such men can go on quietly in their way they wonder how they can eat their meat in quiet they wonder how they can sleep in quiet they that know what a breach sin hath made between God and the Soul and know what a wonderful work it is to make up the breach between God and the Soul that sin hath made those men can understand this and so wonder at their security That is the meaning of the prophets words in Isaiah There is no peace to the wicked saith my God as he instanceth in those words in the relation he hath to God saith my God because he knew the way of God he knew a wicked man could have no peace others that know not the way of God they think wicked men may have peace as now come to some men and speak of the natural mans Estate and how we are all Children of wrath and of sin and of the severity of Gods justice and holiness now a carnal heart who knows not God he thinks strange of this and thinks people are troubled more than needs but now come to another that understands what the way of God is and knows what the way of God is in making peace between God and them come to one to whom God hath made himselfe known in Christ such a one wil presently subscribe to al that is revealed of the wrath of God and of the holyness of God and of the righteous judgment of God thus the prophet doth My God that God that hath revealed himself to me he saith there is no peace to the wicked Further there is yet a further note there is no peace to the wicked saith my God there is this note from it That it is a sad thing when such as are wise Godly and gracious that are acquainted with the wayes of God shal think others conditions to be naught when such men shal be suspicious of it much more if they were able to say certainly what their estates are but when such as are wise and holy and walk close with God when they shal say to you there is no peace you had need look to it is there any godly friend of yours whom in your conscience you beleeve is truly godly that walks close with God and faithfully with him and enjoyes communion with him if such a friend shal but think your condition to be naught it is a sad thing thus it is when the prophet saith there is no peace to such and such wicked men saith my God that is through Gods mercy I have an interest in him and in his name pronounce this that there is no peace to such and such wicked men CHAP. XXV Six Reasons of the former Doctrine 1. The soul out of Christ is departed from God 2. Every man by nature is an enemy to God 3. Every man by nature is bound over to the justice of God to answer to what he can charge him with 4. In a man out of Christ there is every thing to disquiet him 5. Every one out of Christ is condemned 6. Such every moment may be Plunged into a Gulf of Wrath. WELL Because this text hath taken up some time in the opening of it and hath much in it I wil name no other than this for this indeed is sufficient to prove that al out of Christ can have no peace nor rest unto their soules Would you know why and how it comes to pass that None that are out of Christ can have Rest unto their soules I shal not spend much time in opening what I have to say but those that are to be delivered for the opening of this point are exceeding dreadful they speake dreadfully to those that are out of Christ but now because you have already heard so much of the willingness of Jesus Christ to be reconciled to you and his invitation of you to come to him and I have so much afterwards to deliver to you about the true rest that a beleeving soul hath in Jesus Christ therefore I may take the more liberty to shew unto you the restless condition that every soul is in that is out of Jesus Christ I wil do it very breifly in these particulars First Certainly a soul out of Christ can have no rest because it is departed from God know this and Oh! that the Lord would make you to know it that every man and woman naturally is departed from God is gone from God from the womb we have departed from him there is a great distance between God every one of our souls naturally al the union we come to have with God it is in his son it is in Christ therfore til we come to be in Christ there is a great chasma a gulf a depth a vast distance between God and al our soules and this is one of the first things that the Lord is pleased to shew and to convince a soule that he is about to save of the great distance that there is between God and the soul natturally now it is impossible for a soul to have rest that is departed from God for God is the proper Centre of an immortal soul as Moses saith in Psalm 90. Thou art our habitation the soul can have no rest but in God for God is the proper place of an immortal soul the true good of an immortal soul it is the injoyment of an infinite good now if the soul be separated from that which is the true good and proper place of it it is impossible it should have any rest In the 12. Psalm the latter end it is said of the wicked The wicked walk round about the words are termed in the old Latin in a circuit up and down but now a godly man walkes in a strait line he goes to the center in a strait line to God as the center and there it finds rest but when it is in its natural condition it walkes in a circle up and downe seeking for rest and finding none as it is said of the uncleane spirit in the Gospel that walks up and down seeking rest but finds none so it is with men in the world they would fain have rest and seek somewhat that is good but finds none for they are departed from God that is the only rest of an immortal soule Secondly not only so but every man by nature is an enemy to God and therefore cannot look upon God the infinite eternal first being of al things without terror if he knowes him no man or woman that knowes what God is that is able to look upon him without terror in his natural estate and therefore it is not possible they can have any rest so long as they continue enemies to God
delivered from condemnation They are those that walk not after the flesh but after the Spirit Shall it be cast upon this now I do challenge every Soul to put it upon the tryal to see whether they dare venture their Souls and eternal estate upon this Scripture look to it it is the word of God it is that word of God that must stand for ever when thou and I am fallen There is no condemnation to them that are in Christ Jesus who walk not after the flesh but after the spirit Now then thy eternal estate lies upon this thy soul lies upon it that if thou be a man or Woman that doth walk after the flesh that is look what pleasure the flesh desires what lusts of the flesh are delightful to thee thy Heart walks after them thou livest accordingly and it is thy great care to make provision for the flesh the care of thy life to make provision for the flesh and when thou hast made provision for the flesh thou givest liberty to thy spirit to satisfie it self in the lusts of the flesh thou art the man and woman that yet art not in Jesus Christ and therefore art certainly under condemnation and is this a time to Rest now in Is there Rest for such a Soul that is in this condition All those therefore whose consciences tell them that hitherto they have walked after the flesh and not after the spirit not after those truths that they find in the word perhaps they can go to the word and say it is true what the Minister saith if we could do what he saith and in the mean time cast off the thoughts of those truths that are according to the word and cast off what God speaks in his word for what he speaks in his word should be as real to thee as if he spake it from Heaven and therfore thou art out of Christ and I speak in the name of God of all these things that I might the more effectually draw mens hearts to come unto Christ for Rest For I do not mean to leave you thus to tel you that you have no Rest out of Christ but I intend to tell you how you may have Rest in Christ Only first I would convince you that out of Chirst there is no Rest for the Soul and if you have had Rest all this while out of Christ it hath been a cursed a vile a wretched Rest it hath been no other but such a Rest as this of a man that is condemned to die Nay Let me tel you all out of Christ are not condemned to die a temporal but an eternal Death But you wil say they have Rest enough it doth not trouble them I answer What Rest just as if a condemned man shal go to bed and fal asleep and dream that he is at home in his House with his Wife and Children about him at home with his friends at his work at his meat and O poor man how he rejoyceth that he is at home and hath got his Wife and Children and all is safe and wel this man pleaseth himself in his dream al this while and at length poor man he awakes and he sees he is in the prison he sees the shackles about his heels and the watch at the door and for ought he knows he may die the next day Certainly this sets forth as lively the condition of natural Men in the world as can be they are al condemned but they are in a dream and they think they are out of al danger al wil be safe that there shal no misery befal them O but when the Lord shal come to awake them out of this dream they wil see themselves in prison under the sentence of condemnation and then they wil wonder that they have been so quiet al this while Sixthly Yea Let me say further if thou beest out of Christ thou are not only under the sentence of Condemnation but for ought thou knowest every moment thou mayest be plunged into the Gulf of the wrath of the infinite God it is true God hath spared thee along time God hath continued thy Life in his Patience perhaps twenty forty fifty years well but how dost thou know but that may fal out in one night or day or moment that never fel out in al thy life though thou hast been spared a long time yet thou knowest not but before morning thou maiest be among the damned in Hell and is this a condition to rest in For a man and Woman to be in such a condition as when he comes to examine how doth things stand between God and my Soul How stand I to God What reference have I to God Or what reference hath God to me How do I know but I may be swallowed up in the Gulf of the eternal wrath of the infinite God and there lie under it for ever What do I know to the contrary And if this prove to be my portion it had been better ten thousand times I had never been borne and is this a condition to rest in Certainly if God hath revealed any truth in his word these are the truths of God The condition of one out of Christ is like one that hath suffered Shipwrack and perhaps he gets one of the Bords that are broken off from the ship and is floating up and down the Sea upon it and yet in such danger that every wave coming he is in danger to be drowned do you think it is possible for any one to sleep there It s true You are not drowned yet but you see your selves in danger by every wave that comes to be swallowed up and to be sunk to the bottom It may be it hath been the case of some of you that have suffered Shipwrack that you have been dilivered in a boate I beleeve when you have been there you could hardly sleep quietly if you should nestle down in your boate and say wel here I wil take my rest would not every one think you a mad man Just thus for al the world it is with men in their natural estate they take up their rest whereas they know not but there wil come presently some dreadful wave of the wrath of God and swallow them up and so they are undone for ever certainly there is no peace to the wicked saith my God if this be so There are divers other particulars that might set forth for the opening of the condition of al men that are out of Jesus Christ no rest can come to them and al to make Jesus Christ precious to you that you might seek the happy condition that is to be had in Christ Oh! that any thing that hath been spoken might be settled upon your hearts that you might go with that poor wretched sinner that you read of in the Acts of the Apostles Chap. 16.30 and say Men and bretheren what shal we do to be saved The Lord hath shewn me my restless condition I see the rest I
have had hath been a restless condition And Oh that it might make you but to inquire after Christ but to put your souls into an inquiring condition after Jesus Christ that you may hearken unto what shal be delivered unto you about the blessed rest that Christ doth here promise in this invitation when he saith Come unto me You that are laden and I wil give you rest be not afraid to apply your selves to those things that have been delivered whenas these things are spoken out of such a text as doth sufficiently hold forth to you the true rest that is in Christ for this promise of rest it is made to them that do labor are heavy lade Now if these truths of God that have been delivered to you do ly as a load upon your spirits if you go away with your hearts burdened with it be not discouraged for you that are burdened with such truths as these are come to Christ and he wil deliver you from this burden and you shal have in this that quiet that shal remain everlastingly al the quiet that you can have with putting off these truths that have been delivered cannot hold long but there is a storm a coming that wil try every man and womans quiet of what nature it is whether true quiet or false whether true rest or false do not therefore cast off what hath been delivered but apply it to your souls that so you may be the more prepared to heare further of the blessed rest that Christ doth here promise unto you CHAP. XXVI Containeth I. A further consideration of the restless condition of men out of Christ from Prov. 23.34 II. Five Reasons thereof 1. They are under the curse of God 2. Al creatures are their enemies 3. Al the wayes of Gods providence are against them 4. Al their best Services are rejected 5. They have no refuge for comfort III. Two conclussions from the premises 1. Most men live and perish in blindness 2. There is insufficiency in al things out of Christ to give rest with the Reasons thereof BUt I shal now go on a little further in this similitude that I have been speaking of the holy Ghost hath another like this in Prov. 23.34 He compares wicked men that are secure unto a man that sleeps upon the top of a mast he speakes there of drunkards and of the Whoremaster but it is true also of al unconverted ones though the holy Ghost instanceth in those two only the words are thus Yea thou shalt be as he that lies down in the midst of the Sea or as he that lieth upon the top of a Mast So that here you have both the similitudes you have the first that I spake of as if a man had only a plank in the midst of the Sea and he lies down and seeks for rest there or the other upon the top of a mast and he lies down and sleeps there this is the restless condition of of ungodly men I will Name breifly some few Reasons and so proceed Certainly there is no Rest unto them that are ouâ— Christ 1. For he is under the curse he is under the curse of the law and the curse of God under the curse of the law of God whatever befalls him in this world whatever affliction it is a part of the curse and for ought he knows every sorrow is but as the beginning of eternal sorrow to him there is the venom of the wrath of God in every affliction to every unconverted man he his in danger to have the execution of al temporal curses upon him there is nothing but the patience of God to keep him from al this and what rest then can he have The saints of God they have Gods covenant and Gods promise other men have nothing but Gods patience to keep them A mallefactor in prison is not executed many times Why Because the Judg may out of favor reprieve him for a while I but is this a condition to rest in A man that is wise is never at rest with a repriev but wil have his pardon before he can rest there is no man hath any ground in their natural estate for their rest and quiet but meerly their reprieval but the saints they see what a sad thing this is and therefore nothing wil give them rest til they have their pardon 2. There is no rest out of Christ because al creatures are their enemies thou sleepest in the midst of an army of enemies to sleep in the midst of an army of enemies it would be a strange thing al ungodly men have no other rest but as in the midst of the armies of their enemies for al the armies in the world and al the creatures in the world are their deadly enemies 3. Yea al the waies of Gods providence is against thee thy prosperity workes towards thy misery towards thy ruine and so whatsoever passage of providence there is though thou mayest rejoyce much in it yet it works towards thy ruin Prov. 4.32 4. There is nothing that thou canst do can be accepted al thy services al thy performances out of Christ are cast off al thy prayers til thou come to Christ til God do reveal the mysteries of the Gospel to thee al thy duties prayers exercises of religion are al rejected and yet thou must perform them upon pain of damnation and yet not accepted what a restless condition is this for one to be in such a condition I am bound to pray to hear the word and perform duties upon pain of damnation and yet al my prayers and duties are cast as dung again into my face this is the condition of al those that are in their natural estate I speak this that you may al see what infinite need you have of Christ Much might be said of the sinful condition of al out of Christ for we must know than in sin there is a jarring against God against the infinite glorious God there is noâ—hing but confusion nothing but distemper in sin and therefore a sinful condition can be no condition to rest in 5. In what affliction soever any one is in that is out of Christ he hath no where to go for comefort for there can be no stay nor comfort to a soul out of Christ he is like a man in the midst of a wildernes that hath nothing to protect him no hedg no bush if the storm comes never so dreadfully he hath no where to go for protection he is like a marriner in the sea that hath lolt his anchor when a storm comes and he is driven to the shore and hath no anchor to pitch him upon This and much more might be said to shew the restless condition of al men out of Christ Oh! then the blindness security and hardness of heart that there is almost in al the world if this 〈◊〉 the truth of God and indeed this is the condition of al out of Christ we may from hence conclude that
most in the world do live and die and perrish in blindness and in woful disperate hardness of Heart for where almost is the Man and Woman that is convinced of this Restless condition That ever were in this Restless condition This I dare undertake to aver concerning every one that you were once in such a condition as I have now spake of how you have got out of it that you must look to and what argument you have that you can be able to rest your Souls upon for your deliverance out of this condition do you examine but this condition every one is in naturally Abraham Isaac and Jacab was in this condition once and therefore every one must look unto it now while this Rest is opening unto you and here indeed is the Reason of the tumultuousness of spirit that is in most people What is the Reason that people hurry up and down in seeking after the things of this world That they are in a Restless condition Their Souls have not union with God in Jesus Christ and therefore they are hurried up and down here in this world to seek after comfort this way and that way but the truth is as with the unclean spirit in the Gospel they seek for Rest but find none as I tould you before the Dove sought up and down for Rest but she found none til she came to the Arke and so the Reason of the disturbance of the Spirits of Men and Women is from hence that they are not acquainted with the true Rest that there is in Christ but we let this pass Only one thing more in this point before we shal come unto the next and that is to shew the insufficiency that there is in al things in the world to give Rest unto the Soul til we come to Christ Al men out of Christ are in a Restless condition There is an insufficiency in al things in the world to give Rest til we come to Christ And for that I shall give two or three Reasons I. First Because the Rest of an immortal Soul must needs be in the reference it hath to God Now al the Transactions between God and us are only in the hand of Christ it is not committed unto any creature to transact any thing between God and us for any good but through Christ now then if al our Rest must needs be in our reference unto God and al the Transactions between God and us must be in the hand of Christ the Mediator then certainly there is an insufficiency in al things in the world to give Rest unto our souls II. Secondly There is an insufficiency in all things in the world to give Rest unto the Soul because the misery that we are in is so deep and the happiness that our Souls are capable of is so high that it is impossible that any creature can reach the one or the other either to deliver from the one or to raise up unto the other only Jesus Christ in whom we have Rest can do it because that there was never any thing that came to that depth of humiliation nor hath that height of Glory put both together Christ hath subjected himself to the lowest degree of humiliation that ever creature could subject it self unto and Christ is in the highest degree of Glory that it is possible for any creature to be in above al creatures his subjection unto sorrow and trouble was such as no creature can subject unto and his glory is higher than any creature is capable of therefore he and only he is able to deliver from the depth of misery in which the Children of men are and raise them to the true happiness and Glory that their Natures are capable of III. Thirdly There is an insufficiency in all creatures to give Rest unto the Soul because all ceatures here in this world that we have to do withal except the Angels in Heaven are under the curse and the Angels are only ministring spirits to attend upon Christ and to be sent upon Christs errand they do nothing but in order to Christ now all other creatures are under the curse and being under the curse through mans sin it is impossible that those creatures that are under the curse should give Rest unto our Souls and I do not know any argument in the world of greater strength to take off the Hearts of men from resting in creature comforts than this to understand cleerly that al creatures here in this world are under the curse through our sins the whole world that is under the curse by our sins cannot make us happy and therefore there is an insufficiency in al things in the world to give Rest unto our Souls Do but consider then what are the things that most people Rest in Particularly and then we shal see the vanity of men in seeking for Rest out of Christ CHAP. XXVII The insufficiency of every thing besides Christ to give Rest to the Soul is further enlarged with several Choice Considerations FIrst There are some that are so vile as the cheifest Rest and comfort of their Souls is in the pleasure of sin in the delight that they do take in satisfying of their sinful lusts that is the comfort and Rest of their Souls if they be troubled at home Wife Children or Servants do but trouble them what do they do to ease themselves they go abroad among company and there drink and play and swear and perhaps be unclean And others when they are crossed how do they ease themselves by venting their passion and the truth is it is a most holy truth I am speaking of Oh! That ever it should enter into the Heart of a creature to make it to be the greatest quiet ease and Rest of his Soul to satisfie himself in sinning against the blessed God and yet I appeal unto you do not your consciences tel you some of you that this is your condition And do you not know Men that the greatest comfort ease quiet and Rest of heart that they have in this world is in the satisfying of their sinful lusts How far is this from seeking out Rest in Christ in the Son of God in the great Mediator of the Covenant yet this is the condition of most people take away the satisfaction of their Souls in their sinful lusts and they have nothing to quiet their Hearts with but when they are there now they are safe now they are quiet Do but consider of this one thing that now I am speaking of That to have Rest and quiet in any way of sin it is no other but just as if a man had a burning Feaver and he cals for a pot of Water gets it to his mouth and drinks it up every drop now in the very time he is pouring this down his Throat he hath some Rest some ease he finds some ease from the fit of the feaver while he is drinking down the pot of Water but do you think this wil be Rest
to him Do but stay a quarter of an hour or may be an hour or two then you wil find him in his scalding burning fit then he burnes ten times more than he did before and it is like to cost him his life but he finds trouble and disquiet and that gives him ease and therefore he drinks it down and this indangers his Life afterwards So it is with men that seek after ease and Rest unto their Souls in any way of sin thy pleasure in thy sinful waies take all the pleasure of thy Life from thy youth to the day of thy death and put it altogether yet in respect of eternity it is but just like the ease that a poor man in a Feaver hath while the water is going down his Throat all thy pleasure is no more and thou art like to be scalding and burning in Gods wrath to al eternity for that one draught of thine for the ease and Rest that thou hadst in the way of sin I am sure when Christ had the burden of our sins upon him he found it no Rest and therefore it cannot be ease to thy Spirit Secondly There are others though not so vile yet they Rest not in the act of sin but in the creature if they can have good trading quick voyages and have as their neighbors have then they are ready as the rich man in the Gospel to say Soul take thine ease eat and drink for thou hast goods laid up for many yeares and this is the rest that most people in the world do seek after they think that if they might have as such and such have then they had rest enough but be it knowne unto you that this is an argument that thou doest not understand nor savor the things of God if thou thinkest that al the creatures in the world yea if God should give thee the possession of al the creatures in heaven and earth if thou shouldest think that they would give thee rest I say thou dost not savour at al the things of God but those that understand what God is yea those that have but one sparke of true saving grace this spark of grace doth so inlarge the soul that al the creatures in heaven and earth cannot give rest cannot give quiet but stil it hath a higher good to seek after than al the creatures in al the world There is a notable text of Scripture which we have in the book of Job in the 26. of Job and 7. verse He Stretcheth forth the north over the empty place and hangeth the earth upon nothing Wilt thou seek thy rest in that which hangs upon nothing the whole earth hath nothing to rest upon and therefore nothing in the earth can be rest unto thy soul In Micah 2.10 as it is said there in that place so I may say of creatures Arise ye and depart for here is not your rest The whole world is as a wheel in a continual motion and therefore in James 3.6 Where the text speakes of the course of nature or the wheel of nature the whole world is as a wheel running up and down and therefore there can be no rest in the enjoyment of the creature Wel but there are some yet would fain have rest there having got good estates some of you have got good voyages and God hath prospered you in your young dayes and having got great estates now you would have rest that is to live idlely and to live uselesly and to keep at home and let al things go which way they wil it is good to be quiet in ones old dayes when God hath delivered you from many dangers at sea now you think the only way is to live quietly at home and to meddle with nothing and this is the rest of your souls this is the rest that many men have after their yonger time is past and how then to live and do nothing this is their rest now Oh! that God would but speak to the hearts of these men 1. Do but consider this That by living thus idlely and unusefully thou comest to have al thy parts and thy spirits to corrupt just as a standing water as waters in a pond do corrupt and putrifie by their standing so men that live uselesly and are not active for God and for the publique good according to the opportunities that God puts into their hands their hearts do putrifie and grow corrupt there is a corruption that comes upon al their parts the beauty the excellency the quickness the liveliness of their parts are taken away and they begin to putrifie more and more because they are not imployed for God what ever we have that we imploy not for God and are not active in for God it putrifies and however many men think it a great happiness because they have estates and they may live and do nothing there is not a greater misery to a gracious heart than to be useless for God and for God to lay them aside as such as are useless not to use them in his service it is the greatest affliction to a Godly heart in the world if God should take away their estates it would not be such a great affliction as to lay them aside and do nothing for God and therefore let no man think because he hath got a great estate that therefore he may ly stil do nothing Oh! what wil this man do when he shal be called to account for al his time for al his opportunity for al his estate certainly this wil not be sufficient that he can say he did no hurt no but thou shouldest have been active for God God is active for thee in saving thy soul al the Atributes of God is working for thee and al the passages of his providence is working for thee if thou be saved and therefore this is a wretched condition for men to think no higher rest but meerly freedome from outward trouble and if there be any whose conscience tels them this is the truth this is my condition and God speakes to my heart this day this is the rest that I have sought after know that thou art not acquainted with the wayes of God for certainly the rest of an immortal soul is a high thing Jesus Christ came into the world from the bosom of his father and laid down his life to purchase rest for the soul and dost thou think that Christ did this only to purchase this that thou mayest be freed from some outward trouble in this world and that we might sit in the â—himny corner and do nothing Oh! there is another rest for the Children of God than this Object I but some go further some wil say We trust in the mercy of God for rest for our soules Answ Now for that though this be better than al the other yet a man and woman may mistake in this thou trustest in Gods mercy for rest to thy soul what hath God revealed to thy soul concerning the mediator
of the covenant this may seem difficult to some and that is this that al the mercy of God in heaven cannot be sufficient for the rest of any soul but through a Mediator in Christ the soul must be brought to this mercy by the hand of Christ the mediator thou must first come to Christ the mediator before thou canst have any rest even in the mercy of God it self You must know and if you know any thing of the mistery of the Gospel you must know this that though God be an infinite current of mercy yet al the current of Gods mercy is stopt by mans sin so as it can only be opened by the blood of Jesus Christ and therefore thou must know God in Christ and you must know how you come unto God in and through Christ before you can rest upon the mercy of God this is that which doth undo many soules those that are of the better sort they think to rely upon Gods mercy think to rest in that and that is a sure rest to their soules but they little understand how al the current of the mercy of God is stopt and there is no coming to it but by the hand of a mediator between God and man Others they wil say they do many good things they do many good actions they serve God and they rest in this they do not commit the gross sins of the world and they do performe duties they pray in their families and in their closets this is that they rest in but the rest of an immortal soul must have a better foundation than this than al the duties than al the sorrows for their sins than al that God himself works in them it must be somewhat without them that must be rest to their souls and nothing wrought in us no not the grace of God in us can be rest to our souls it must be the perfect righteousness of a mediator though it be wrought in us by faith can be rest to our souls yet nothing in us So that you may mistake and performe duties in a formal manner but suppose you performed them in a gracious manner yet you must not rest in them you must go higher than al the best duties that ever you performed Wo to Abraham Isaac and Jacob if they had no other rest but what their duties brought them you must look higher than whatever you are or can be inabled to do for your rest You wil say what is there that can be higher than what we are inabled to do by God There is a righteousness in Jesus Christ by which you must come there is an insufficiency in al the creatures in the world to give rest and yet the truth is the greatest part of the world make al their rest in these things much might be spoken concerning the danger of this and much of the signes when our soules have true rest in Christ but we shal meet with that in the other point in handling the Rest that we have in Christ I wil therefore pass over this about the insufficiency of the Rest in al other things only with this one thing Know this That that Heart that is touched with Jesus Christ as the Iron is with the Load-stone can never be quiet either in creature comforts or in hope of mercy or in any Duty or performance it can never be quiet til it gets union with Jesus Christ Just as it is with a Needle that is touched with a Load-Stone shake it which way you wil it wil never be at Rest til it come to the North and when it gets North then it stands there so it is with a heart that is touched with Jesus Christ there is the touch of the spirit of Jesus Christ upon the Heart of a beleever and when the Heart is but touched with Jesus Christ it shakes is ful of fears and doubts and offer it this creature comfort and the other creature comfort it wil not do it the Heart is not at rest But now when there is the manifestation of Christ unto the Soul let them come to a Sermon where some blessed promise to the Gospel is opened to them and Jesus Christ presented to them and they find this to be the Rest of their Souls their Hearts come presently and close with this and they are able to lay the weight of their eternities upon the promise of the Gospel upon the free Grace of God in Christ they are able to lay the weight of their eternal estates here however others think that the promise of the Gospel is but a notion yet here they are able to lay the weight of their eternal estates and they can say with Simeon Lord now lettest thou thy Servant depart in peace for mine Eyes have seen thy Salvation Here I see Rest for my Soul my Heart was ful of Terrors fears and doubts and I sought for Rest and ease in this and the other creature comfort and could not find it But now Christ is made known to me and here is the Rest of my Soul It is true Godly people may be troubled for a while but it is as the trouble of the shaking of a Needle in the compass and other men they are troubled too there are some people troubled in conscience for their sins they come to a Sermon and hear the evil of sin opened and God meets with their Particular sin some secret sin that they live in they are troubled and they shake too I but they are like a fals Needle not rightly touched that shakes as the other doth but it wil stand at any point do but put it this way or that way and it wil stand here and there would marriners give any thing for such a Needle that would stand at this point and the other point So it is with wicked men when they are troubled the Devil the world and their corruptions come and quiet their consciences out of Christ and so indeed this hinders them from coming to Jesus Christ because they find quiet some where else The Saints they are troubled but their trouble and shaking in the world is like the trouble of a ship that is in the Haven at shore that lies at Anchor a ship that lies at Anchor though the waves toss it up and down yet it is tost up and down at Anchor So here is the difference for al the world between al the troubles of the Saints and the trouble of ungodly men Now when you have a ship at Sea and have no Anchor and the storm drives it any way when there comes a mighty Tempest and hurries it up and down and you do not know but you may light upon a Rock and be split you are troubled But the Saints they are at Anchor and you count your selves at Rest though you are tost by the Waves when you are at Anchor CHAP. XXVIII Of the Rest that a Beleever hath by Christ from the Guilt of Sin laid out in ten Particulars 1.
in case thou fearest any of thy sins should come up in the presence of of God to accuse thee Jesus Christ stands at the right hand of his Father to be thine advocate what is the office of an advocate But if there be any accusation brought against such a man the advocate stands to answer to the accusation Jesus Christ he stands at the right hand of his father thus to do In John 2. and the first verse My little Children these things I write unto you that ye sin not and if any man sin we have an advocate with the father Jesus Christ the righteous A comfort it is to have one stand to plead at the right hand of the father to be thine advocate Christ is as real an advocate at the right hand of God for al beleevers as ever any had any advocate in this world I find often in scripture this if you read in the 4. chapter of the Epistle to the Hebrews you shal find there that the holy Ghost speakes of a rest of God the rest of the saints of God Gods people and mark what is the first incouragment he gives and what ground he makes of the rest they have in two or three places he speakes of the rest of Gods people now the foundation of it is For we have not an high Priest that cannot be touched with the feeling of our infirmities but was in al things tempted like as we are yet without sin let us therefore come boldly unto the throne of grace that we may obtain mercy and find grace to help in time of need for we have a high Priest that is the ground of the rest of the saints of God V. Fifthly Come to me saith Christ and I wil give you rest from al the trouble that you have by the guilt of sin thus I wil sprinkle your consciences by my blood that you shal be able to give an answer to al temptations that can come to you not onely I wil stand before my father but you shal have your consciences sprinkled with my blood that you shal be able to give an answer to what accusation shal be made by Satan to disturb your rest to disquiet your soules In Heb. 10.22 Let us draw near with a pure heart in ful assurance of faith having our hearts sprinkled from an evil conscience and our bodies washed with pure water Having your hearts sprinkled from an evil conscience whereas before you came to me you had an evil conscience that was ready to fly in your face and that did fear you vex you and trouble you I appeale unto you that understand what God is and what it is for the creature to have to do with God have not your consciences kept you from sleeping a nights an evil conscience that hath layen grating within you you have layen upon your beds and could not sleep when your wife was asleep by you now to such is this said Let us draw neer upon this ground here is the ground Let us draw neer with a pure heart in ful assurance of faith having our hearts sprinkled from an evil conscience that is the blood of Christ comes now to be sprinkled upon our soules and consciences and that is it that takes away the worme of our conscience perhaps other things may trouble conscience for a while but now the blood of Christ can wash you from that now when you come to Christ the conscience comes then to be able to answer what shal be laid to its Charge Perhaps those who are beleevers and are come to Christ the devil wil be ready to object and labor to disturb them usually after they first come to Christ there is as great a disturbance in the heart of a sinner as before But mark that text you have in the first of Peter the 3. and the 21. The like figure whereunto even baptisme doth also now save us not the putting away of the filth of the flesh but the answer of a good conscience towards God by the resurrection of Jesus Christ Through Christs Resurrection a beleever comes to have a good conscience having been sprinkled by his blood before through this resurection he is able to answer the conscience that is whatsoever accusation the Devil shal lay against the soul the soul that is sprinkled with the blood of Christ is able to answer it and this is the comfort that such have that we find our conscience satisfied in the blood of Jesus Christ perhaps at the first coming thou doest not feel it but at the first coming thou beginnest to be able to do it VI. Sixthly the rest that is to be had against the trouble of the guilt of sin is this That upon the first coming of the soul to Christ it is made as perfectly just before God as ever Abraham Isaac and Jacob as al the Patriarchs Prophets Apostles Martyrs thou comest off as cleerly from the guilt of thy sin as ever Abraham Isaac and Jacob did It s true thou hast not at thy first coming to Christ thy sanctification made perfect but this I dare avouch that at thy first coming to Jesus Christ thou hast thy Justification made as perfect as ever the Justification of Abraham Isaac and Jacob was and what a mighty ease and rest is this what I a vile creature so defiled I that have had such a dreadfulness upon my Spirit now to be able to see my self stand as clear before the Throne of God as Abraham Isaac and Jacob did and as the Apostles and Prophets did Oh! this is a comfort We ought to labor to come to be equal with Abraham Isaac and Jacob in sanctification as we are equal with them in Justification this is the ease that the soul finds that comes to Christ VII Seventhly The rest that is to be had in Christ in point of Justification in freedome from the trouble that ariseth from the guilt of sin it is that Christ undertakes not only for that thou hast done but for whatever thou shalt commit al thy life O! that none but those that are believers might heare me did I say so But this is a certain truth You wil say though I by coming to him might stand Justified before my father yet I am a poor creature I shal sin again and again and bring guilt upon my conscience Yet come to Christ here is free Grace in Christ and know that Christ laies in pardon for thee against whatsoever guilt thou shalt again contract unto thy Soul There is mercy with thee that thou maiest be feared with thee there is forgiveness Christ laies in for the Guilt of sin that thou shalt afterwards contract to thy Soul so as thou shalt never be condemned Perhaps thou shalt deserve condemnation a hundred times over and over again but Christ will take care that thou shalt never enter into condemnation thou shalt never be in the state of Condemnation Oh the Rest that here is VIII Eightly When the Soul comes to
Christ there is no returne of any guilt if Christ doth undertake for them that come to him though Christ doth undertake for what is past and what is to come yet as it is with a malefactor though perhaps he hath his pardon and be received into Favor yet he may think there is some alteration again but now the guilt that was upon thee shall never return upon thee again Though a man hath a pardon if he do not carry himself wel the former Guilt returnes again but when once the Soul is pardoned the former Guilt never returnes again the Lord wil blot out all their sinnes and remember them no more As when you cast a thing out of your Ship into the bottom of the Sea you never look for it again so it is with God all your sins shall be cast into the bottom of the Sea and shal be so far from you as the Guilt of them shall never come more to you when once you are come to Christ IX Ninthly There is not only deliverance from guiltiness our justification is not only privative but it is a clothing of the Soul with the Righteousness of Christ we have a perfect Righteousness that is the great Mediator of the new covenant here is a righteousness that I am not only pardoned but I have a perfect Righteousness to stand before the great God withal X. Yea Tenthly and Lastly The Rest we have in Christ is this that we are sure upon our coming to him that the great work of the day of judgment shal be the solemnity of our absolution the solemnity of thy pardon One of the great works that God intends to do at the great day of judgment it is certainly this to make thy pardon to be solemnized by men and Angels thou hast now thy pardon but the great work of God at that day shall be the solemnity of the absolution and pardon of the Saints then shal their sins be put away anew as the Scripture speakes and in the time of refreshment then shal your sins be done away they are done away before but then they shall be done away before men and Angels thou shalt not fear at the day of Judgment that God shal come and upbraid thee with thy sins al the while thou wentest under the guilt of sin what was more terrible to thy Soul than the thoughts of the day of Judgment Oh how can I stand before the Holy God at the great day and have all these sins charged upon me No come to me saith Christ and you shal never need to fear that great day of judgment any more for the great work of that day shal be to make your pardon to be solemnized so that you need not to fear any longer the day of Judgment but to long for that day and if the great day of judgment be not terrible yet the Particular day of Judgment may be terrible the Lord hath a Particular day of Judgment for every Soul in which God doth cast every man one way or other but then there shal be a great day of Judgment wherein all the world shal solemnly be judged Now then lay al these together Christ undertakes Christ satisfies the justice of his Father Christ satisfies the wrath of his Father Christ is an advocate at the Right hand of his Father Christ sprinkles thy Conscience with his own blood and thou standest as perfect in the point of justification as Abraham Isaac and Jacob and the Guilt of thy sins shal never return again And Christ undertakes for thee that thou shalt not come into Condemnation And thou hast a perfect Righteousness besides thy freedom from Death Christ clothes thee with his righteousness and so God the Father looks upon thee and Christ doth assure thee that the great work of the day of judgment shal be to solemnize thy pardon Thus saith Christ come to me all you that lie under the sence of the Guilt of your sins come to me and you shall have rest here I make all this good to you and all this rest is in thy coming to Jesus Christ all the rest in the world is worth nothing to this O therefore let us be willing to indure any trouble it is no great matter what trouble we indure in this World so we may come to Christ and this is but one branch this is but the easing of the Soul from the first Burden and yet even this to the Soul of a beleever will God make good if God give thee but a heart to make al these things real to thy Soul thou maiest depart in peace and go away and bless God and even say with the Psalmist in Psalm 116. And now my Soul return unto thy Rest The words are in the original Rests and now my Soul return unto thy rests Oh here are rests ten several rests for a Laden Soul that is under the guilt of sin do not think it much that we that are the Ministers of the Gospel should speak to you about the Restless condâ—on that you are in by reason of sin be willing that we should trouble you in a sinful way being we have so much rest to bring you to Do not think the Minister troubles you do not complain of the word that troubles mens consciences I appeal to you if there be any thing in Gods word to trouble mens Souls is there not again as much in Gods word to ease mens Souls and give Rest unto them Now this is Gods rest that is purchased by the blood of Christ our desire is that you might not cry Peace Peace unto your Souls when there is no peace and now when you hear but the beginning of the excellency that there is for the Soul in Christ Now you should even upon this cry to God Lord O that I might be partaker of this rest and still to desire to hear further and further of this blessed Rest that is to be had in Jesus Christ And thus much for the Rest that is to be had in Jesus Christ from the Burden of the guilt of sin CHAP. XXIX The deliverance from the Law by Christ set out 1. Privatively in five Particulars 2. Positively in five Points more THe next burden that was upon Laden sinners that Christ cals unto him it was the burden of the Law you that are under the burden of the Law come to me and I wil give you Rest I shewed in many Particulars wherein the burden of the Law consisted when I opened the former Point of the Load of sinners but now I am to come to shew how Christ doth deliver sinners from the burden of the law for so certainly he doth we are redeemed from the Law by Christ this is a great Point and the right understanding of this will help us exceeding much in the understanding of many truths in religion Wherefore first I shall shew you how far Christ hath not delivered us from the Law that is where it is where it is
may have rest in him for in Christ there is an undertaking by a surety through the grace of the gospel in him thou hast revealed to thee that there is an undertaking by surety this is a deliverance from the Law whereas the Law requires perfect obedience at our hands in our owne persons their Law requires of the soul that it shal pay the debt in its own person the soul that sins shal die Now the grace of the Gospel comes and tels thee of a surety and such a surety as God himself professes he is wel pleased to accept of and is as contented with him as he is to have the debt paid by the creature by the debtor himself and this is a great ease Would it not be a great ease to any of you that when a creditor shal come upon you for a debt layhold upon you or put you in prison and afterwards the debt should be paid by another and layd upon him and the creditor shal accept of him and the creditor shal say wel wil this man be your surety and pay the debt if so then saith the creditor I am satisfied I am contented what ease is this unto the debtor Thus it is with the soul that comes to Christ when he hath been laden under the Law and the Law comes to the soul for the payment of the debt now coming to Christ imediately Christ is entertained as the surety by God the father and so there is the transaction of the debt upon him th◠ease from the Law in this relation Ninthly 〈◊〉 al this there is this ease from the Law that the sinn◠〈◊〉 Christ is delivered from al this rigor bondage and other things that I spoke of in the Law and yet so delivered from the Law by satisfaction to the Law and this is further ease to the soul I am delivered from the Law But how by satisfaction to the Law there is satisfaction to the Law that is such satitfaction as the Law-giver himself doth accept of which is only in Christ not al that I can do can possibly do it if I could conceive that God were so merciful as to accept of any thing I can do yet it could not be satisfaction to the Law but now our deliverance from the Law is in a way that is satisfaction unto the Law and here now is ease that the soul is freed so as the Law is satisfied too Tenthly Wheras the law required constant obedience and if there were obedience to the end to the last act and the last act were sin al the other would be forgotten so as the soul would yet perish notwithstanding and the Law could not assure any man of continuance to the end the law could never do it could not assure any so long as they were under the power of it though they had ability to obey and they went on according to their ability went on divers yeares yet they could never have assurance but that they might fal at last and so perish Wel but now coming to Christ there is not only satisfaction for what is past but an assurance of holding out unto the end an assurance that this covenant that thou art now come under in Christ that there shal never be any forfiture of it and that is a mighty ease and rest the ground and foundation of divers of these things were opened before when I shewed how in Christ we were freed from the guilt of our sins but now these are things that do flow from thence and the presenting of these further shewing the consequences of what then was said may be further rest unto the soul For though I did al the other things as the principle of them yet every poor soul is not able to draw forth every of these particulars now that is the help of those that are weake to see the several steps of Gods grace in Christ not only to see it in the lump but see how it streames in the particulars of it to have these presented before their souls it is a mighty help to their faith and comfort and this last that I have spoke of it is not less then the rest but indeed it is the compleating of al the former that the soul that comes to Christ hath this rest in Christ that it is brought into a covenant and with assurance that there shal never be any forfiture of that covenant for it is a part of the covenant that God should give Grace unto the soul so as is shal never come to forfeit to loose the blessing of the covenant they may for the present loose some comfort of the Covenant but to be put from the blessing of the Covenant it shal never be It is a part of the purchase of the blood of Christ that al that come to him shal never be cast off from him again it cost the blood of Christ and this is a priviledg that beleevers have more then ever Adam had Adam was under a covenant of workes and he was able to keep the Covenant I but Adam never had this promise from God that he should never forfeit it that he should never so break the Covenant as to be undone Adam never had that promise But now all beleevers that are come to Christ they have this ingagement upon a sure ground for it is upon a dear purchase Christ hath laid down his blood for thee for this thing as well as any other thing that thy Soul may come into an everlasting Covenant never to be forfeited And now if all these Particulars be put together and these things be made cleer to the Soul by the Eye of Faith if there be an Eye of Faith to behold the reality of all these things that I have persented to you I appeal to you is there not Rest to those that come to Christ Is it not worth a great deal of pains to come to Christ Is there not that that will recompence all at last whatever trouble there is at first the work of humiliation and the like yet when you come to Christ there is that that wil recompence al your former trouble As I said before in the concluding of the other Particular so may I say of this as it is in Psalm 116. And now my Soul returne unto thy Rest So may all beleevers say upon good ground if these things be true that we have now heard Then my Soul returne unto thy Rest for the Lord hath dealt bountifully with thee indeed Oh therefore be in Love with the Gospel study it much look unto the depth of it and prize Jesus Christ that hath purchased such a Rest unto your Soul And you who are about coming to Christ be Restless in your Spirits til you come to have this Rest and it were a lamentable thing that any thing in the world should meet with you in the way and quiet your Hearts that any thing should quiet your Souls but Christ And you that are beleevers improve this
have been at liberty so as they have been as conscientious in performing of duty as before but now their duty is made the joy and delight of their souls they have gone to them with rejoycing and made the Commandements of God to be their inheritance and the joy of their hearts and their duties are as sweet to them as the hony and the hony comb Now this is the argument that we are upon that in Christ there is rest from this burden Christ gives ability unto beleevers those that are his members to performe duties with freedom of spirit and indeed evangelical duties are duties performed with freedom that is the difference between legal performances and evangelical one is done as a burden and the other is done with freedom of spirit Now I shal shew unto you how Christ gives this freedom Where the spirit of the Lord is there is liberty you know the scripture I suppose now this freedom of spirit in the performance of duty comes by Christ these waies First when the soul is come to Christ it hath rest because Christ renders God unto the soul in a gracious way Christ takes off the terror that was before of God takes off that from the heart The reason why duties are performed as a burden to those that are legal is this because they tender them up to God but so as they look upon God as a terrible judg they must do what God requires I but when they come into his presence they come into his presence as a judg being very terrible Now when the soul comes to Christ Christ renders God very amiable and loâ—ely unto the soul of a Christian renders God the father as his father or her father For so Christ saies I go to my father and your father to look upon God not only as a father but our father as being the father of our Lord Jesus Christ So beleevers in the performance of duties look upon God as a father in a double relation He is my father he hath begotten me a new to himself and so he is my father he is my father he hath adopted me to be his child but he is the father of our Lord Jesus Christ too and Christ is mine two so that I have an interest in the fatherhood as I may so speak as the father of Christ I go to my father and your father So when beleevers come to tender up any service to God as a duty they come to God as their father and as to the father of their redeemer too now this brings a mighty deale of ease unto the heart of a beleever in the performance of duty a great deal of difference there is between a fathers calling the child to him and a rigid severe master or judge calling of one to him When the child heares that his father cals him he runs and loves to be in the presence of his father but when one saith to a servant your master calls you he knows not whether he be called to be beaten with stripes or no. This is the difference between legal performances and evangelical those that are in Christ when Christ calls them to duty you must go into the presence of your father and of the father of your blessed redeemer you must go to duty in him Come go to prayer saith Conscience to one they cannot but go indeed but when they go to prayer their heart is struck with feare terror and discouragement in prayer but Conscience saith to one that is a beleever come you must go to prayer what is that but come you must go before your father and injoy communion with your father the father of your redeemer cals you to have communion with him how doth your heart spring to come into the presence of such a father So that Christ renders them lovely to his father and so delivers them from the burden that they are under in legal performances Secondly In Christ beleevers when they performed â—uties they do not tender them up unto God as satisfactory for any thing that is past but meerly to be testimonies of their love and thankfulness for what they have received now duties are a great deal more easily done this way then another It is true they wil gather arguments from their former neglect to stir them up to do the more I but now they are not called upon to their duties to make God amends and satisfy for what is past for that would be a burden for such as performe duties in a legal way and are not acquainted with the doctrine of the Gospel they know not how to satisfy God but only by doing so much the more by how much the more they have neglected heretofore I have neglected God al the time of my youth and now conscience begins to be awakned and tels me I must serve God and perform duties and I had need be more diligent now that I may make up and satisfy for what I have neglected before Now when we perform duties in this way they are very burdensom As suppose a man hath run in debt and he is set up in a trade I but whatsoever he gets it must be to satisfy what debts he is run out in before this must make him go on in much heaviness he thinks that whatsoever he gets must go to satisfy what he hath run into before But now take another man that hath run into arrerages and hath a freind a kinsman that coms and layes down al the debts that he owed and gives him a stock sayes now you are a Freeman once again go on whatever you get shal be for your self this man goes on a great dealemore livelier then the other just thus it is between the consciences of those that performe duties in a legal way and the consciences of that perform duties in an evangelical way One that is legal conscience tels him of such arrerages that he hath run into with God and whatever he can do for time to come is too little to satisfy for what he hath neglected before now conscience puts him upon it do he must serve he must obey he must I but he doth it with no heart at al I work and I obey I do but whether this wil make up the arrerages for what is past I do not know Now a beleever performes obedience but it is upon other termes Christ comes and layes down a price and discharges him of al former arrerages and puts a stock of grace into the heart and says unto him now live and imploy this your stock in the service of God and trade with it get more comfort and more grace with it and you shal have the benefit and the good of every holy duty that you performe the good and benefit shal come to your souls Now such a soul goes unto duties in a cheerful way and they are no burdens at al to it because he performes them not for satisfaction of any arrerages behind
in the 24. verse O wretched man that I am who shal deliver me from this body of death that is the remaining corruption that was in his heart Marke the very next words that follow I thank God through Jesus Christ our Lord. As if he should say the deliverance that I must have from this body of death it is from God but how through Jesus Christ our Lord The Apostle doth not only thank God for it and say al grace must come from God but he thanks God through Jesus Christ our Lord. Thus we must understand how grace comes unto us indeed God is the fountain of al but it must come from God through Jesus Christ our Lord as al mercies that we have for the pardon of our sins Now it is not from God immediately as the first person or as Creator of heaven and earth but it is from God through Jesus Christ So al the holiness that we have now it is from God through Jesus Christ our Lord. And then take one scripture more and then we shal come to the third particular which is the cheif we aimed at and that is in the 26. of the Acts. the latter end of 18. verse That they may receive remission of Sins and inheritance amongst them which are Sanctified by faith that is in Christ It is a speech of Christ unto Paul when he sent him to preach and tels him to what end it should he To open their eyes and turne them from darkness to light and from the power of Satan unto God that they may receive forgiveness of sins and inheritance among them which are sanctified by faith in Christ Multitudes of scriptures there are for this purpose CHAP. XXXVIII Sheweth how our sanctification commeth from Christ in six particulars 1. It was the end of his coming to destroy the works of the Divel 2. He is the great Ordinance appointed by God to sanctifie his people 3. His death is appointed to mortifie sin 4. By him the curse upon the heart is taken away 5. By his union with beleevers being the head of the second Covenant 6. In Christ are the strongest arguments for holiness that can be THirdly And especially we are to enquire how Christ is the rest of sanctification come to me and I wil give you rest I will give you power against your corruptions and you shall have sanctification in and by me For that 1. We are to know That a special end why Jesus Christ came into the World it was to dissolve the works of the Devil that was a special End of Christs coming into the World In 1 John 3.8 He that committeth sin is of the Devil for the Devil sinneth from the begining for this purpose the son of God was manifested that he might destroy the works of the Devil whosoever is borne of God doth not commit sin for his seed remaineth in him and he cannot sin c. It is a strange scripture whosoever committeth sin is of the devil you say you defie the Devil but the holy Ghost saith if you commit sin that is walk in any way of sin For you wil say who is there that commits not sin Well but the words are thus He that committeth sin is of the Devil Therefore it is apparent there is a kind of commission of sin that is an argument they are of the Devil for they are the words of the Holy Ghost And for this purpose the Son of God was manifested that he might destroy the works of the Devil It was the end why he came into the World yea it is a special thing that Christ is anointed to by God the Father to deliver Souls from the bondage of their corruption and to work Holiness in them That you have in Isa 61. and the beginning that notable prophesie concerning Christ The Spirit of the Lord is upon me that is upon Christ for it is a prophesie of him because the Lord hath anointed me to preach good tidings unto the meek he hath sent me to bind up the broken-hearted to proclaim liberty to the captives to Spiritual Captives that are under Spiritual bondage And then in verse 3. That they might be called Trees of Righteousness the planting of the Lord So that that is the first consideration of Christs giving the rest of sanctification that it is the end for which Christ was born and it is the end for which he was anointed by God the Father to Sanctifie the hearts of those that he shall redeem So that Christ is our Sanctification by attaining the end of his own coming into the World by fulfilling of that that God the Father hath anointed him for Secondly Christ is our Sanctification as the great ordinance that God hath set up for the Sanctifying of the hearts of his people I say Christ is set up as the great ordinance oppainted by God for this end the Lord hath set him up and filled him ful of holyness that holyness might be conveyed through him unto the souls that do belong unto him And therefore it is said in that known place As in John 1.16 Of his fullness we receive Grace for Grace Of his fulness Jesus Christ is filled ful of holiness as a cistern fild ful of precious liquor and grace must come through him unto the souls of all those that are Godly that are beleevers Faith draws grace from him grace for grace that is grace answerable to grace as print for print in a seal there is print for print in the wax look what print there is in the seal the same print is in the wax So look what grace is in Christ there is answerably in some measure the same grace in the Saints Of his fulness we receive and al the beleevers that ever were in the world have received al the grace that ever they have had from him out of his fulness and from him as the great ordinance that God hath set up for the dispensation of the graces of his spirit for the working of Sanctification in al those that shal be saved Yea Christ is such an ordinance appointed by God the father for holyness and sanctification as indeed there is so much virtue in him that the very looking upon Christ hath a power to sanctify the heart the very looking upon him As the brazen serpent in the wilderness you know was the great ordinance of God appointed for the healing of those that were stung with serpents and being the ordinance appointed for their healing those that did but look up to the brazen Serpent received virtue presently and were healed of their sting of the deadly disease that was upon them by the stinging of Serpents now this was by virtue of that ordinance Now then I reason thus if when God makes but a piece of brass an ordinance there shal be such a virtue in it that the very looking upon it shal have power to heal the body then if God shal make his own son Jesus Christ God blessed for
to have so much sin conveyed to us by Adam by propagation but thus As we may read in Rom. 5. By one man sin came into the world Now Adam he was the head of the first Covenant and by being the head of that al mankind are looked upon as members of the first Adam he being the head in that notion of the Covenant in that consideration Adam was not looked upon as a parent only as the first father but as the head and we are not looked upon only as the children of Adam but as members so that al men were looked upon as one in Adam and therefore the Scripture speakes but of two men the first Adam and the second Adam that look as sin is conveyed to us being members of the First Adam and he being the head of the First Covenant so grace comes to be conveyed unto the soul by our being members of the second Adam the Lord Jesus Christ being the head of the second Covenant here is the way of conveyance of holiness our union with Christ So that now the holiness that is in Christ comes to us by virtue of the mistical union As by virtue of the natural union of the members of the body with the head there comes animal spirits to the members of the body so by virtue of our mistical union with Christ our head there is conveyed holiness and grace to strengthen us against our corruptions As the oyntment did run from Aarons head 〈◊〉 â—to the rest of his members so Christ that is anoytâ—â—at hath the oyl not only of gladness but holiness too doth descend down to al his members by virtue of the union they have with him And for that end you have a most famous scripture in Rom. 8.2 For the Law of the spirit of life in Christ Jesus hath made me free from the Law of sin and death It is a scripture that hath very much in it What doth he mean by the Law of sin and death The Law that is the mighty power that there is in sin and so in death that comes by sin in the hearts of unbeleevers There is a Law of sin the strength of sin I speak of sin hath strength going along with it hath power with it So a Law of sin there is in the hearts of men they are compelled to sin as I may so speake as a man is compelled to a thing by a law a law of sin though this be no excuse to them And let them know that so far as they are compelled to sin they are compelled to death to But how shal this Law of sin and death be overcome Marke the words The Law of the spirit of life in Christ hath made me free from the Law of sin and death The Law of the spirit of Life here is two gradations that is the holiness that is in Christ that is likewise a Law as wel as the corruption that is in the heart The corruption in the heart hath a strength in it and the holiness of Christ hath a strength in it too So that when grace comes into the heart the heart goes on in a way of holiness in a holy kind of necessity We can do nothing against the truth saith the Apostle But yet there is a necessity of willingness goes along with it too there is a Law of Love and kindness but by this word of Law is meant a strong impetuousness a mighâ—y power that carries the soul on to holiness Again secondly it is the Law of the spirit and of the spirit of life the holiness of Christ it is a holiness that is ful of life First it is Life And secondly it is the spirit of Life Now the spiriâ— of life is a higher degree then life as the spirit of a thing hath the quickning of the thing in it beyond what the whol bulke of the thing is When the spirit of herbs or any such thing is extracted you know those spirits have much quickning in them beyond the things themselves so the spirit would express the mighty activity in the holyness that comes from Christ it is life it is the spirit of life and then it is the Law of the spirit of life Oh my brethren you see then here that Godliness is no dul thing it is no heavy thing no poor weake contemptible thing but it is the life it is the life of Christ it is the spirit of life and it is the Law of the Spirit of life he speakes of grace when it comes to that as the Law of the spirit of life There is but two things in sin the Law of sin and death and in grace there is life and the spirit of life and the law of the spirit of life and al this in Jesus Christ It is not in our owne resolutions purposes endeavours but in our union with Jesus Christ and this it is that brings grace unto the heart though there be much corruption before yet the soul being thus one with Christ and looking upon Christ as the head of the second Covenant and doth draw virtue from Jesus Christ a mighty strong virtue to help the soul against corruption and quicken it in the wayes of God and thus comes the rest to the soul by Christ in sanctification Carnal hearts they know no way in the world how to get grace they heare talking of grace and leaving of sin but they know not how to get it and they wil go and pray read heare and the like I but you must know that grace lies in another way then you think of for you think it must come from God I but it must come from God in a mistical way through Christ Perhaps some of you hearing the mysteries of the Gospel understand this that as God is the fountain of al grace so it must be conveyed by Christ as through the cisterne I but you must understand also that you must have it from God through Christ as he is a head unto you and you are the members through a mistical union that your souls must have with Christ so as you be made one with Christ you must be made one with Christ As the member can never receive any spirit from the head except it be united to the body it is not by being tied to the body If you take an arme of flesh and tie it to a mans shoulder it wil never receive life that way but it must have a natural union Just thus your common Professors that meerly have the name of Christians and are not spiritually united to Christ they are like to Armes tiâ—d on to the shoulder or to wooden legs that are fastened upon mens thighes that want legs they have some use of those legs to help theÌ„ a little to go I but those legs have not virtue and life conveyed from the head So your common Christians they have some knowledg of Christ they are only fastened to Christ as a wooden leg is fastened to a mans
that have true holiness and Sanctification Your civil man and moral man he hath restraining Grace that keeps in his Corruption and what he doth it is through strength of Reason he sees in Reason that to live in such a wicked course as others do to Lie Swear Drink be unclean Cheat and Cozen the light of Nature teacheth that this is a sin And so the Heathen the moral Philosophers that is those that by the light of Nature saw the evil of such notorious vices and saw what the Rules of Nature were for the guiding of their manners So I say your civil men they have improved somwhat of the light of Nature they see by the light of Nature that they must not live in such and such sins as others do and it is better to live justly yea and to be bountiful to the poor many reach so far I but all this goes no further then the common light of Nature then the prudence and Reason of a man as a rational creature may carry him to Quest You will say what is more Answ This is more there must be Sanctification of the Heart through the Mediation of Jesus Christ there must be a principle of Grace that must come into the Heart as a fruite of the Second Covenant that God hath made with sinners in Jesus Christ through the mistical union that the Soul hath with Jesus Christ this is higher Now when a Soul comes beyond civillity it is wrought upon by God after this manner I come now to see the breach that there is between God and my Soul what my estate is by Nature that I am a Child of wrath I am dead in sins and trespasses though I have not lived so wickedly as such and such have done yet I see my self a Child of wrath and an heir of Hell and death notwithstanding all that I have done And I see that only through the blessed Mediation of Jesus Christ this breach is made up and I can only have union with God through him and his Spirit of Sanctification that must come to my Soul through the Covenant of the Gospel I must have my Heart raised up to God in an other manner not only to live civilly but holily to have the Image of God renewed in me through the Spirit of Christ and so to live the life of Christ and feel continual supply to come to my Heart through Christ to feed upon the promises through the Covenant of Grace and thereby to have my Heart Quickned more and more and to perfect my holiness in the fear of God through the promises of the Gospel This is more then the civil and meer morral man can come unto Your civil man is known First In this that what he doth is meerly according to common prudence and light of Nature Secondly The cheif of his Religion it is in Negatives that he is not so bad as other men And Thirdly If he have any thing positive it is but in outward actions serving of God but as for being acquainted with the mystery of Godliness and power of holyness of the necessity of a Mediator of the need of continual supply of Grace from Jesus Christ this he seeth not And further This civil man he is not burdened with Corruption with the remainer of corruption but thinkes himself in a very good condition Indeed he saith he must be saved by Jesus Christ but I put this to any civil man in the world what need doest thou Find of Jesus Christ for thy sanctification art thou so burdened with those inward corruptions in thy spirit that the world can take no notice of And dost thou goe groaning under thy Corruption so as to see the need of the mediation of Jesus Christ a supply of the spirit of Jesus Christ to help thee against thy Corruption and sanctify thy heart this thou art not acquainted withal this is a point above thee and therefore in this point we come to see the difference between civility and true holiness We come to see by this that Godliness and holiness it is a mystery The scripture speakes of a mystery of Godliness and of the power of Godliness and Godliness is therefore powerful because it is a mystery If we must have our holiness from Christ as a mediator that Christ is first filled wsth holiness and our soules by faith must draw our holiness from him then certainly Godliness is a mistery the Godliness that must save soules is a mystery beyond that which ordinary men of the world understand Few understand what is the way of God in conveyance of grace unto the soules of those that he intends eternal life unto The way of God in conveyance of grace unto the soul is not this in giving you reason to understand that such and such things are naught and therefore for your own ease and quiet in the world you must live civilly but the way of God is to reveal his son to you and reveale a necessity of union with Christ to be made a member of him and to draw virtue from him as from a head and to see a fountain of life from him flowing into thy heart continually so as to repaire to Jesus Christ the second person in trinity made man for thy soul I say to repair to him as the fountain of al grace to be conveied from him unto the soul here is the mistery of holiness that is beyond al the civility and morality in the world Oh that you did but by this point understand somewhat of the mistery of Godliness and that it might cause but some suspicious thoughts in the hearts of those that have lived but civilly and morally that for many years together it may be have bin good neighbors pay every one their own and no body can accuse them for wrong but Oh that they would bethink themselves wel I have lived thus and thus long but hath my soul bin acquainted with the mystery of the Gospel to fetch virtue from Christ as a mediator And have I a stock of grace from him to trade by that what I trade by I have from him Have I found the burden of my inward corruption And have I got ease and rest by virtue of the promises of the Gospel And have I searched into the Covenant of Grace and found there promises to convey comfort unto my soul Hath my heart been exercised after this manner Certainly if thou hast not thou knowest not what the way of the Gospel is what an evangelical life is what is a true evangelical life When the soul is inabled to live upon Christ that thou feelest thy heart live upon Christ sucking and drawing virtue from Christ for the mortifying of thy corruptions and quickning thy heart in the way of holiness this is a true evangelical life and that is another consequence drawn from this That Godliness is a mystery and beyond civility and morality III. Another Consequence that may be drawn is this Hence then we may
Holiness NOW for the last thing that I propounded To exhort and draw beleevers to come to Christ and in this I shal endeavour to take away the many hinderances of the soul in comming to Christ for sanctification and also give some incouragements to the heart to come to Christ for sanctification You see here is the way to get power over corruption and to get grace namely to come to Christ Yea say you if I knew I were a member of Christ and had interest in Christ then I could come to Christ for power over my corruption and for grace but I am afraid I have no interest in him 1. For answer to that which is the main stop and hinderance of faith know that if thou hast but a heart to come to him for grace that is as good a signe of thy interest in Christ as any signe thou hast that is as good a signe of evidence of interest as any thou canst expect 2. You must come to him for grace and if thou hast not interest before yet thy very comming to him now for grace to help thee against corruption that very act of thine may give thee interest in Christ What is it that unites thee to Christ what is it that makes a member of Christ what is it that gives interest in Christ It is but the coming to him as you heard before in the point Quest Is you wil say If I had a right to him If thou comest now to Christ to get power over thy corruption and to get grace I say though thou hadst no interest before this very act may give thee interest in Christ and therefore be not discouraged but come to Christ 3. Wilt thou stay til thou dost find power against thy corruption before thou wilt come to him then thou wilt never have power against thy corruption for you have heard that it is Christ that is the foundation of thy sanctification And then for incouragements there are a great many excellent incouragements for poor sinners to come unto Christ First The consideration of the neere union that there is between Christ and us in regard of his very humane nature That place in Heb. 2.11 is a very notable scripture for our incouragement For both he that sanctifieth and they that are sanctified are al one for which cause he is not ashamed to cal them brethren He that sanctifieth and those that are sanctified are al one what is that That is Christ is of the same nature that thou art Christ hath taken our nature upon him and the fulness of the Godhead doth dwel bodily in him so that thou mayest goe with the more boldness He that is thy brother is not ashamed to be called thy brother and therefore do not look upon him as at such an infinite distance as thy judge but looke upon him as thy brother as one with him He that sanctifieth and they that are sanctified are all one Thou and Christ together are one body Now what incouragement is here to expect Sanctification from Christ to overcome corruption because Christ and you are made one body of the same Nature and so neerly united and made one Secondly Consider that if Christ did love thee so dearly as to lay down his life for thee surely he wil never suffer thee to perish in thy corruptions shall Christ come down from Heaven and lay down his life for poor Souls and shall he suffer them to die under their corruptions Now if a many should be willing to lay down his life for a Child and he should come and see the Child lie in the dirt ready to be stifled in the dirt could he go by and not regard the Child This is our case Christ hath come and laid down his life for poor sinners but yet they see themselves ready to be stifled by their corruptions and they cry to him for help surely Christ wil not pass by and let thee lie in thy filthyness to be stifled in thy corruption when thou wast so dear to him as to lay down his life for thee Thirdly Another incouragement is this know that thy corruptions are the burdens of Christ as wel as thy burdens they are burdens to thy Soul and burdens to Jesus Christ and therefore he doth certainly pitty thee under them and wil help thee Fourthly If Christ had so much pitty as to heal the bodies of poor creatures here in this world so that there was no diseased body that ever come to him but he healed them surely then Christ wil heal Souls Christ hath more regard to immortal Souls then to bodies Fifthly Christ knows what it is to be tempted for Christ had no Corruption in him yet Christ knows what it is to be tempted and Christ knows by his own experience what a Burden it is to be tempted to sin and surely Christ cannot but know what a Burden it is to be overcome with sin Now Christ himself had the Burden of being tempted unto sin and Christ knows that thy Burden is greater then his burden was and that it is more to be overcome then to be tempted to sin and therefore he knows how to pitty thee Sixthly Know it is to the Honor of the Death of Christ the Resurrection of Christ and the life of Christ to help thee against thy Corruptions and quicken thee in Grace Christ accounts his resurrection and life to be honored when he sees the virtue and power of it to be in the Hearts of beleevers Wherefore then if it be to the Honor of the Death and resurrection and life of Christ it may be incouragement to thee to go to him for help against thy corruptions And this remember when thou art upon duty and begging for help against thy corruptions carry this Rule with thee I come to pray against my sins but together with my prayer let me act my Faith I come to hear the word I but together with my hearing let me act my Faith upon Christ as Mediator to help me against my corruptions I come to the Sacrament but I come to have communion with Christ to help me against my corruptions Oh! act thy Faith in the promises of the Gospel through the blessed Covenant and thou shalt find abundance of strength against thy corruption and Rest unto thy Soul CHAP. XLIII Containes the Conclusion of the former Doctrine of Sanctification with divers directions how to come to Christ for holiness I. Be sensible of the want of it II. Be not satisfied with the ordinances further then you meet with Christ III. Come not so much for comfort and peace as for holiness IV. Be sensible of new supplies V. Converse with Christ in the Gospel I Shal now only add a word or two for the concluding of this and so go on to the next rest that is here promised Come to Christ for the Rest of Sanctification for holiness for the truth is there is no true holiness but that which we have by our coming to Christ
affliction but if he be a beleever and have the exercise of Faith then all afflictions wil be no more but as if a poor Woman were married to a great prince and had all the nobles about him and all kind of dainties upon his table and he should hear the Rain rattling upon the tiles that is in the windy wether abroad what would this be to hinder the Rest of such a ones spirit The truth is had we but the exercise of Faith all outward troubles in the world would be no more to us no more trouble then this is If thou wert come to Christ and married to him and come to sup with him there would be that satisfaction unto thy Soul in Christ that al outward troubles would be no more at all then the rattling of the Rain upon the Tiles to such a one that hath al content within dores You are not yet acquainted with such blessed things that are in Christ who are troubled at any thing in the world certainly the soul that is acquainted with that will say it hath enough let what will become of my estate of my body of my House of my Lands yet I have enough in Christ how have the blessed Martyrs cryed out of the fulness of Rest in Christ I remember one German Martyr that suffered much from his enemies he said I verely beleeve that there is not a merrier Heart in this world then my self As Jacob had more blessed visions when he lay abroad in the night and laid his Head upon the stone So the Children of God have more visions many times of God in the times of their affliction their Veins are filled with blood and bones with marrow al the capacities of their soul is filled with spiritual joy and that keeps out affliction As if a man have filled his belly with good chear and especially if his veines be ful of blood and bones ful of marrow he can bare hardness the better So when the soule comes to Christ he fils the veins ful of blood and bones ful of marrow I mean thus he fils al the capacities of the soul with heavenly consolations and that bares out any trouble or afflictions whatsoever and thus there is peace and rest unto the soul CHAP. XLVI Containeth the conclusion of the last doctrine in the two former Chapters shewing how unbeseeming a thing it is for a beleever to be troubled in affliction THere might be divers other things named as by coming to Christ there is the spirit of prayer and so the soul hath rest when it can go and power forth it selfe to God in prayer But to conclude this You see by al this how infinitely unbeseeming it is for a beleever one that professeth himselfe come to Christ to be troubled in affliction Christ makes this promise that if he comes to him he shal have rest Surely either thou art not come to Christ or thou hast not exercised faith in Christ Either thus thou chargest thy self for one not come to Christ or one that hath not exercised faith upon Christ or else thou chargest Christ with unfaithfulness by thy discontentment For Christ here professeth to the wotld that al that come to him shal have rest that thou hast not rest but that a little trouble doth disquiet thee thou either art not come to Christ or dost not exercise faith or else thou chargest Christ with unfaithfulness now if thou hast not rest which way wilt thou have it fal Oh let it fal upon thy unbeleeving heart let it fal upon this that thou dost not renew thy act in comming to Christ for it is not meant of coming to Christ at the first but of renewing the act of coming to Christ and this exhortation belongs to Godly men and women that have already come to Christ by faith I say it belongs to them to come to Christ come you to Christ again and again Now thy disquiet and trouble in time of affliction doth argue that thou art either no beleever at al or hast not renewed the act of faith My brethren the wayes of many that we hope are beleevers are such as if so be they had no use of faith at al in time of affliction or as if faith were only of use to save their soules and not to give rest unto the soul here in this world or as if it were of no other use but as a sun dial in a garden to shew the time of the day when the sun shines but in stormy cloudy weather there is no use of it And dost thou make no more use of thy faith then of the sun dyal in thy garden to shew thee how it is with thee in the day of prosperity but the truth of thy faith should be a dyal to make thee know how it is between God and thy soul in a cloudy day And therefore you having now heard where the rest in regard of outward affliction lies Oh do you repair hither for rest you vex and fret and trouble your selves Why because you have not as others others can have rich tables fine houses and accomodations and al things for their content in this world but know that now the Lord hath presented to you a way how to have rest to your souls in time of poverty Labor to know Jesus Christ that was made poor for you There is as plain a way for you to come to Christ as for the richest in the world and Christ wil be as ready to entertain you as the richest It is likely that al your endeavours may come to help you so forward as to make you rich in this world I but to give rest in this world nothing can do it but your coming to Christ And above al this may serve to help us to lay up against the time of trouble that however things go in this world yet you may have rest to your soules in Christ CHAP. XLVII Sheweth that beleevers are often under inward affliction and spiritual desertions I Shal now speak of the rest that Christ gives unto the soul in regard of inward afflictions those inward afflictions are spiritual desertions that is when the Lord shal be pleased to absent himself from the souls of his people and leave them in such darkness of spirit though they be beleevers have interest in Christ yet they may be left for a time by God so as their spirits wil be extreamly afflicted with sorrow and feare and trouble because of Gods absence from them and indeed there is no affliction like to this affliction there is no condition so restless as this condition is Now this is that that every one is not acquainted withal carnal people think that these afflictions are only conceits imaginations and melancholly but the saints know what these afflictions are that they are the most real afflictions in the world these spiritual desertions for God to withdraw himself from his people We read of such an affliction that a godly man was
offices between God and the soul and therefore let such as are in such a condition take heed of such temptations And these now are the helps to those that are under the burden of spiritual desertions there is enough in Christ to help them and these being observed they may come to have rest in Jesus Christ CHAP. XLIX Sheweth that beleevers have not only Rest in but Rest also from afflictions BUt now further besides all this Rest you have heard of there is a time when the Lord shal not only give the soul rest IN Afflictions but shal give the soul rest FROM Affliction yea it may be in this world He speaks as if there were a rest to the people of God to be delivered from affliction not only in Affliction but delivered from Affliction That place that we have in Isai 54.11 O thou afflicted tossed with Tempest and not comforted behold I will lay thy Stones with fair colors and lay thy Foundations with Saphires and I will make thy windows of Agates and thy gates of Carbuncles and all thy borders of pleasant Stones Thou art now afflicted Tossed Tempted and not comforted but it shal be otherwise with thee It is true indeed the Church ever since the beginning of the world hath been in an afflâ—cted condition tossed with tempest and not comforted not according to what is expressed but here is a promise of a glorious time when there shal be a sure Foundation laid and that Foundation of precious stones and rest there shal be And if you compare this scripture with that in Revel 21. You shall see it aims at a glorious time when Christ shal give Rest unto the Soul at vers 4. And God shal wipe away all tears from their Eyes and there shal be no more death neither sorrow nor crying neither shal there be any more pain for the former things are passed away And if you read after you shal find that he doth seem to allude unto this Isai 54. And there tels what those precious stones shal be that shal be the foundation of the happy estate of Gods Saints and that it is not to be in Heaven but here before the great and generall day of judgment It appeares plainly by this that the Text saith That the Kings of the Earth shal bring their glory and honor unto it at the 24. verse The Nations of them which are saved shal walk in the light of it and the Kings of the Earth do bring their Glory and Honor unto it It is such a time of the Church as the Kings of the Earth shal bring their glory and their Honor unto it Now after the day of judgment in Heaven the Kings of the Earth do not bring their glory and their Honor to the Saints in Heaven but they shal bring their glory and their Honor to the Saints here It is a prophesie of such a happy condition that the Saints shal be in that the Kings of the Earth shal bring their Glory and their honor to them and therefore here it is upon this Earth this promise is made of a glorious time that the Saints shall have that all tears shal be wiped away from their Eyes here in this world and it seems to be spoken of the same time that was spoken of in the Chapter before in the 20. Chapter of the first Resurrection Now after that time it appeares that the Devil shal be loosned and Gog and Magog shal gather themselves together against Gods people after that time But there is such a world here for the people of God a rest to be had from all affliction even here upon the Earth to be hoped for when the saints of God shal be honored before all the world and all wicked and ungodly men shal be subdued before them But further there is certainly a rest of Glory in the world to come and that is to be added to al the rest when the saints shal keep an eternal Sabboth before the Lord and shal there be alwaies exercised in praising Magnifying and blessing of the great God Quest You will say Shall that be such a Rest in performing of Holy Duties I that shall be a rest indeed for there shal be no weariness of the flesh but the Soul shal be in a spiritual condition and the flesh shal be subservient to the soul that there shal be no wearisomness to the flesh that it shal enjoy communion with God and be in blessed visions with God and be in his Fathers House above al enemies above sin they shal neither sin more nor sorrow more nor fear more nor doubt more nor be troubled more this is the rest that the soul shal have in Christ And I make no question but Christ means this among the rest when he saith come to me But to speak of this glorious rest is a large point elswhere I have opened it at large what the glory of the Saints shal be in Heaven and therefore I shal speak no more in this Now then put al together that I have said concerning the Rest that I have spoken of and may we not conclude of this rest and wel may it have that epithite which is spoken in Isay 11.10 In that day there shal be a root of Jesse which shal stand for an ensigne of the people to it shal the Gentiles seek and his Rest shal be glorious Here it is spoke of the Rest of Christ his Rest shal be glorious We may wel apply it to the Rest of the Saints the saints shal have a glorious rest and it hath been shewed unto you in many particulars wherein I have opened this rest unto you that you may see it is a glorious rest CHAP. L. Five markes of true rest in Christ I. It is not but upon discovery of glorious things the soul knew not before II. It comes upon the soul ceasing from its owne worke III. It makes the beleever active for God IIII. Rest in those things wherein Christ rested V. True Rest wil abide the trial of the word YOU Wil say Oh that we did but know that this was our rest that we did not presume but that we were sure that the rest that we have in Christ was a true rest Now I told you before that there was a faith of adherence that might bring rest though there were not a faith of evidence But now you wil say if we might have both a faith of evidence as wel as a faith of adherence it would ad much to our Rest Now I wil help you to some notes whereby you may come to examin whether the Rest you have is the glorious Rest here spoken of and two things I shal doe because notwithstanding al this glorious Rest many of Gods servants here in this world are under much trouble of spirit I shal give further rules how to make use of the rest that is to be had in Christ and some rules likewise how to keep the rest when the
thing is Christ invites in another manner CHAP. XX. That there is nothing required of Sinners but to come to Christ with nine Consequences arising from hence and what hath been laid down in the two former Chapters 1. There is not any worthiness required in such as come to Christ 2. The Soul needs not to be troubled about the time and measure of its Humiliation before its coming to Christ 3. Nor about what interest it hath in Christ before its comming to him 4. That the least degree of Faith will give the Soul interest in Christ 5. That the work of Faith is Supernatural 6. That Faith is an humbling Grace 7. That beleevers after their coming to Christ should be willing to do and suffer much for Christ 8. That they who are once in Christ shal never be cast off 9. That they know not what to do when they loose their interest in Christ NOw the third thing is That there is nothing else required saith Christ Come to me and I will give you Rest Blessed Christ is this all that thou requirest yes come to me and you shal have Rest You have it often exprest in Scripture thus Come and buy Wine and Milk and Honey without price it is but coming and indeed the very coming is buying And so in the 22. of the Revel and the 17. And the Spirit and the Bride say come and let him that heareth say come and he that is athirst come and whosoever will let him take of the Water of Life freely Here is nothing but come three times come and there is nothing else required nothing that thou shouldest bring with thee but only come Only in this remember how I opened it what it is to Come and then there is nothing else required but only come Then this gives light to many things 1. That there is no unworthiness of any sinner be he what he will be before this invitation that is sufficient to hinder Why Because Christ doth not say you that have been thus vild and wretched you shal do thus and thus first and then come to me No Whatever you have been the first thing that Christ requires to ease Rest and peace is to come to him It is true there are some things in the Nature of comming required that must needs be done before the compleat act of coming as I must know what Christ is and know my self c. these things of necessity are required not because these are any condition of the Gospel but because the other cannot be done without them For I would open it thus to follow the former Metaphor Suppose the King should tel a Traitor that upon condition that you come to such a place at such a time you shall have your pardon Well all that is required for his pardon is but coming to that place how if this man be at a great distance from that place and many difficulties that hinder him Sâ—ormes Tempestuous weather and many friends to hinder him this is implyed that he must have such a deep apprehension of the worth of his pardon and of his miserable condition if he be not pardoned that there must be a strong resolution in him to go through all difficulties whatsoever But marke this resolution of his and the difficulties that he meets withal in the way these are no part of the condition of the pardon all the condition of the pardon is but to be at such a place such a time but yet the other things they follow of themselves that if he doth come and there be such difficulties in the way then he must have such a sense and apprehension of the good of his pardon as may stir up in him such resolutions to pass through all difficulties But the first thing that brings him his pardon is his being there So it is here with the Soul its true the thing that bringâ— my Soul and yours to pardon Rest and Peace with God it is our coming to Christ but now because there is a great distance between Christ and us many difficulties in the way many things that would keep us from Christ the wickedness of our Hearts this temptation and that lust Now it cannot possibly be If we come to Christ but we must know and become apprehensive of the worth of the pardon which may raise up in our hearts such strong resolutions to pass through all Difficulties whatsoever and there is no Reason why God troubles any man for sin but only this that he might have such an apprehension of the Good of the pardon of his sin as may stir in him strong resolutions to get to Christ But now this resolution is not the condition of the Covenant the condition is only to come the condition is not because we are afflicted because we see our sins but to come to Christ 2. It follows likewise from hence That no Man or Woman that God is working upon to come to Christ need trouble themselves about the degree of humiliation or the time of humiliation You have a great many that are ready to take advantage and to cry out against men that they Preach legally when they say they must be humbled and the like I know no man living that ever Preached so that they must be first under the Law thus long under the Law before they come to Christ but if you would know what degree of humiliation is sufficient only so much as can bring you to Christ that is so much as can stir up your Hearts to resolve to pass through all difficulties to come to Christ then you have the measure and the time of humiliation sufficient and you need not trouble your selves any further about this I have not been humbled so long as another Man or such a time but if you come to Christ For if I come to Christ I must know what I come for for a Pardon A pardon of what for my sin my sin that I am condemned for there must be a sense of this and if you come thus far you need not be afflicted for any degree or time of humiliation or the like for you have that that is sufficient and God wil accept of your coming if once you be come to him God wil not say Oh! but Friend how have you been humbled in your comming God knows you have past through many difficulties God knows you would never have prised Christ except you had known what the worth of Christ is by knowing what a miserable creature you are without him God wil not do this but wil welcome you when you come let the sinner be what he wil Christ wil own him 3. This helps us about interest in comming to Christ you wil say come to Christ but how shal I know that I have any right to come to Christ This very point answers it that nothing is required but comming that which hath given any soul from the begining of the world any interest to come to Christ is only comming