Doct. God in and by the Gospel freely offers Jesus Christ, with all the Banefits of his Death, to all that are willing to come to him and receive him upon Gospel-Terms.

[Page 6]In speaking to this Heavenly Truth, I shall endeavour these five things.

First, Shew who it is that makes this Offer to Sinners, God the Father.

Secondly, What is offered, Jesus Christ.

Thirdly, Wherein is Christ offered (viz.) in the Gospel.

Fourthly, To whom doth God offer Christ, (viz.) To all that are willing to come to him.

Fifthly, What is it to come to, and receive, and accept of Christ.

Q. First, Who it is that offers Christ and Salvation to Sinners?

Ans. It is the Great God of Heaven: Joh. 3.16. God so loved the World, as to give his only Begotten Son to die. Christ indeed is the Re­deemer by whom we are saved from Wrath to come; 'tis by him that we have Redemp­tion, Ephes. 1.

But this way of Salvation was of the Fa­ther's Contrivance; he calls Christ forth and employs him in the great work of Redempti­on: Isa. 49.5. And now, saith the Lord that formed me from the Womb, to be his Servant, to bring Jacob again to him. These are the words of Christ ^*, wherein he shews, that the glorious Work of Redemption, and bringing back the Elect to God, was a Work to which he was called and fitted by the Father. And [Page 7] therefore the Work of Redemption is some­times attributed to the Father; Col. 1.12, 13. Giving Thanks to the Father, &c. And you and I should be much in adoring the Infinite Goodness and free Mercy of God that hath remembred us in our low Estate; because his Mer­cy endureth for ever. Psal. 136.23. We were sinking into Hell, and eternal Perdition: had not the Father pitied us and contrived our Sal­vation, we had perished without remedy for ever. Look upon that new and living way to the Father by Christ, and see the Father's eternal Love in it. 2 Cor. 5.18, 19. All things are of God, who hath reconciled us to him­self by Jesus Christ; and hath committed unto us the Ministry of Reconciliation; to wit, that God was in Christ reconciling the World to him­self. O, I beseech you adore, admire, and sing the Father's Praise for giving you a Christ!

Q. Secondly, What is it God freely offers us?

A. It is the Lord Jesus Christ. And this may be matter of Wonderment to Men and Angels, that God should give us his Son, one who was in the form of God, and thought it no robbery to be equal with God, Phil. 2.6. Him who was the Brightness ^* of his Father's Glory, and the express Image ^† of his Person, and up­holding [Page 8] all things by the Word of his Power. Him who is Alpha and Omega, the beginning and the ending, which is, and was, and is to come, the Almighty, Rev. 1.8. A Lord of Lords, and King of Kings, Revelat. 17.14. The Image of the invisible God, Col. 1.15. The only Begotten of the Father, Joh. 1.14. Him in whom all Ful­ness dwells, Col. 1.19. Him who is white and ruddy, the chiefest of ten thousand, Cant. 5.10, 11. altogether lovely, ver. 15. A glorious in­finitely compleat Person! search Heaven and Earth none can be found like Christ.

But to illustrate this Greatness of God's Love in giving Christ, let us consider by what Notions, and in what Relations Jesus Christ is held out to us.

1. Jesus Christ is a Redeemer, and, as such, he is offered us. Isa. 59.20. The Redeemer shall come to Zion. Ephes. 1.7. We have Re­demption through his Blood, the Forgiveness of Sins. Now Christ's being a Redeemer, inti­mates two things to us.

(1.) That we are by Nature in a State of Bondage; if it were not so, we should not need a Redeemer: one that is already free, needs not one to make him free. And hence it is that the Carnal World sets so light by Christ, and all the Offers of his Grace, be­cause they are not sensible of their Bondage and Slavery. Now by Nature we are Slaves to Sin; 2 Pet. 2.19. They are the Servants of Corruption; Tit. 3.3. serving divers Lusts and Pleasures. And not only so, but we are the Devil's Slaves, Ephes. 2.2. wherein in time past ye [...]alked.

[Page 9](2.) The Consideration of Christ as a Re­deemer, intimates to us, that there was a Price paid to redeem lost Man from the Sla­very of Sin and Satan, and this was the Blood of Christ the Redeemer, 1 Pet. 1.18, 19. Ye were not redeemed with corruptible things, as Silver and Gold, but with the precious Blood of Christ, as of a Lamb without Blemish, and without Spot.

Now Christ is offered to you to be your Re­deemer from Hell and Wrath. But who a­mongst you are willing to receive him, to come to him? It may be you will say, We are all willing to have Christ our Redeemer. No, no, there's none willing but only such as are sensible of their Slavery: The poor Sinner that finds himself bound with the Chains of Sin, led by Satan Captive at his Will, and so ready to drop into Hell, O for a Redeemer for such a poor Soul! such a Soul will cry and beg for Christ.

2. Christ is a Mediator, 1 Tim. 2.5. There is one Mediator between God and Man, the Man Christ Jesus; and this shews us, that faln Man can have no Access to God immediately by himself, there is so great a breach between God and him. Psal. 7.11. God is angry with the Wicked every day. Let a Man in an unrege­nerate Estate do what he will, God is angry with him. If thou art out of Christ, while thou eatest, sleepest, walkest, yea, when thou pray­est, God is angry with thee: the Sacrifice of the Wicked is abominable to him. Thou canst not come near him, he is a consuming Fire.

[Page 10]Therefore we must have a Mediator, a mid­dle Person to reconcile an offended God, and a rebellious Sinner to take up the Quarrel be­tween God and Man, Isa. 27.5. Let him take hold of my Strength, that he may make Peace with me, and he shall make Peace with me: No way to make Peace with God, but by Christ, Ephes. 2.14. He is our Peace. Now who will have Christ a Mediator? None but those that are sensible of the Breach that Sin has made be­tween God and their Souls.

3. Jesus Christ is a Saviour, and as such he is offered to us, Luke 2.10, 11. Behold I bring you good Tidings of great Joy, which shall be unto all People: For unto you is born a Saviour, which is Christ the Lord.

Now this supposes we were all by Nature lost, otherwise no need of a Saviour, Mat. 18.11. Jesus Christ came to seek and to save that which was lost. Sinner, dost thou see thy self lost? dost thou see thy need of Christ a Savi­our? then a Saviour will be welcome: this is sweet News to a poor lost Soul, that sees he is undone by Sin.

4. Jesus Christ is an Advocate, 1 Joh. 2.1. If any Man sin, ( i. e. any of the Elect, and of those that Christ died for, he did not die for all, but for the Elect only) we have an Advocate with the Father, Jesus Christ the Righ­teous. And he is not only an Advocate, but an Intercessor, Isa. 53.12.

Now this supposes, that we were accused to the Father: if we had not been accused, there had been no need of an Advocate [Page 11] or Intercessor. We were accused,

1. By Satan, Rev. 12.10. The Accuser of our Brethren is cast out; he accused Job and Joshua the High Priest.

2. We are accused by our own Consciences, Heb. 2.14.

3. The Word of God, so far as we violate any of its Precepts, accuseth us; Joh. 5.45, 46. Think not (saith Christ) I will accuse you to the Father, there is one that accuseth you, even Moses, in whom ye trust, i. e. The Scriptures that Moses writ.

4. The wicked World they accuse the Peo­ple of God, cry out against them for their Ho­liness, Strictness, Heavenliness, 1 Pet. 3.16. They speak evil of you, as Evil-doers —and falsly accuse your good Conversation in Christ.

Now Christian, art thou sensible of these several Accusations? O then a Christ to speak for thee will be exceeding welcome! Well, here he is tender'd to thee: if thou hast felt the Cries and Accusations of Conscience a­gainst thee, then the Tidings of an Advocate will be welcome.

5. Jesus Christ is a King, and Lord, and as such he is offered to us, Rev. 17.14. King of Kings, but particularly he is King of his Church. A King is to govern; so Jesus Christ he gives Laws to his People, and he will see that his Laws are executed. Isa. 33.22. The Lord is our Law-giver, the Lord is our King, he will save us. And herein Christ has the Prehemi­nence above all earthly Kings: their Laws and Government reaches but to the outward Man, [Page 12] but the Government of Jesus Christ is over Hearts, he rules in the Souls of his People; Psal. 110.3. Thy People shall be a willing People in the day of thy Power. Sirs, are you willing to be Christ's Subjects, to let him rule in your Hearts? it is the sweetest Government in the World: Mat. 11.28, 29. Come unto me—my Yoke is easy, and my Burden is light.

But none will come to Christ in this respect, but only they who are sensible of their own unruly Passions and Carnal Affections, that they are in no-wise able to rule and govern themselves: which was St. Paul's case, Rom. 7.23. But I see another Law in my Members re­belling against the Law of my Mind, and leading me into Captivity to the Law of Sin and Death. And finding it thus with him, he flies to Christ, who by his Kingly Power was able to rule and subdue them, ver. 24, 25. O wretched Man! who shall deliver me from this Body of Sin and Death? Ver. 25. I thank God through Jesus Christ our Lord; Chap. 8.2. The Law of the Spirit of Life in Christ Jesus, hath made me free, from the Law of Sin and Death.

6. Jesus Christ is a Priest, and as such offer­ed to us in the Gospel. The High-Priest un­der the Law was a Type of Christ, as like­wise all those Offerings and Oblations were typical of Christ, and his offering up himself to the Father. Heb. 2.17. In all things it be­hoved him to be made like unto his Brethren, that he might be a merciful and faithful High Priest, in things pertaining to God, that he might make Reconciliation for the Trangressors.

[Page 13]Now who amongst you are willing to have Jesus Christ as a Priest? None but those who see their Sin and Misery; for the Work of Christ as a Priest, is to make Reconciliation: O Sinner, dost thou see Sin, and that the Breach between God and thy Soul is so great, that none but Christ can make God and thee Friends? He must bear thy Sins, Isa. 53.5, 6. 2 Cor. 5.21. He himself is both Altar, Priest, and Sacrifice: if so, then Christ will be wel­come to thee.

7. And lastly, Jesus Christ is the Spiritual Husband and Bridegroom of his Church; so he is held out in this Parable. We are not on­ly invited to the Marriage of the Son, but we are invited to come and marry with the Son; not as Bride-maids only to wait on the Son, but to be the Spiritual Bride, to come and marry with, and lie in the Bosom of the Son. Thus as the Churches Spiritual Husband, the Lord Jesus Christ is often so spoken of, as in the Parable of the ten Virgins, Mat. 25.1.— So Ezek. 16.8. Now when I passed by thee, and looked upon thee, behold, thy time was a time of Love, and I spread my Skirt over thee, and co­vered thy Nakedness; yea, I swear unto thee, and entered into a Covenant with thee, and thou becamest mine. So throughout the Book of Canticles, Christ and Believers convene in this sweet Relation. Christ owns the Church for his Spouse, Cant. 2.16. My Beloved is mine, and I am his; these are the Churches words, own­ing her Relation to Christ. And Cant. 4.8, 9, 10, 11. in these four Verses the Church is [Page 14] four times called Spouse, tho the World dis­owns the Believer, Jesus Christ owns him. Here's a sweet, a heavenly Match, Christ and the Believer are married! And this is not a for­ced Match, no, Jesus Christ accepts of sincere Souls in this Relation with a glad Heart. Cant. 3.11. Go forth, O ye Daughters of Zion, and behold King Solomon ( i. e. Christ, of whom Solomon was a Type) with the Crown wherewith his Mother ( i. e. the Church) crowned him in the day of his Espousals, (to his Elect in a Holy, Gracious, Heavenly Union) and in the day of the Gladness of his Heart.

Now my dear Friends, here's an offer for you, an Heavenly Husband; O be not so unkind and cruel to your selves, as to deny Christ; I am one of these Servants, I have a Commission from Christ, yea and from the Father also, to assure you, that if you are willing, Christ is yours; this is my business, the Errand I come on, to invite you to come to Christ, Come, all things are ready on Christ's part, he has died, made his Soul an Offering for Sin: Will you not come, will you be damn'd rather than part with your Sins? O come, Rev. 22.17. The Spirit saith, Come; and the Bride saith, Come, whoever will, let him come. But I shall speak further to this, when I come to a Use of Exhorta­tion.

Thirdly, Wherein, or by what means, doth God offer Christ to lost Souls in the Gospel? The Law requires perfect Obedience, and [Page 15] curses every one that continueth not in all things, Gal. 3.10. Cursed is every one that con­tinueth not in all things written in the Book of the Law to do them. This is terrible News: for where is the Person under Heaven, that has continued in all things, that hath fulfilled the Law, and may expect Eternal Life upon Law-Terms? Who ever kept one Commandment of God? No, we have all sinned and come short of the Glory of God: So that by the works of the Law (or by our Obedience to God's Law, or keeping his Commandments) shall no Flesh be justified in his sight, Rom. 3.20. Therefore we are all by Nature under the Curse of the Law; the Law speaks nothing to the Sinner but Wrath and Terrour, it brings the Sinner to the Bar, and there pronounceth Sentence of Condemnation against him, and there leaves him in the Hands of Justice, to expect the Ex­ecution of that fearful Sentence, Go ye cursed, Matth. 25.41. The Law gives no ground of hope to a poor Sinner to expect Salvation. But now the Gospel that brings the glad-tidings of a Saviour, Luk. 2.10. Behold, I bring you good tidings of great Joy, which shall be unto all People: For to you is born a Saviour, which is Christ the Lord.

As if the Angel had said, Come, you that are under the Curse and fiery Sentence of the Law, do not despair, the great God hath in infinite Mercy contrived a way to save you from your Sins and Fears; there's a Saviour born for you, who is able and willing to save to the utmost all those that come unto God by [Page 16] him. This blessed News of a Saviour was re­served for Gospel-Times in a great measure, 2 Tim. 1.10. Life and Immortality is brought to light by the Gospel. And therefore this is the ve­ry business of a Gospel-Ministry to preach Christ to Men, and to invite Persons to come to Christ, 2 Cor. 5.20. We are Ambassadors for Christ, we pray you in Christ's stead, be ye reconciled to God. And that great Apostle Paul, who had well considered what he was to preach, sums up the whole of his Ministerial Office in a little compass, 1 Cor. 2.2. I resolved to know nothing among you, but Christ, and him crucified; i. e. I had no purpose to teach any other Do­ctrine than the most necessary and only saying Doctrine, the way of Salvation by a crucified Christ. For indeed this is the only saving Knowledg, as in that Saying, ^† If thou knowest Jesus Christ well, 'tis enough, tho thou art ig­norant of all other things; but if a Man know not Jesus Christ, all other knowledg will do him no good.

Accursed then be that Platonical way of Preaching, that cries up Vertues, and puts Peo­ple upon legal Performances, but hides from People the Pearl Jesus Christ. O bless God for the Gospel, and for a Gospel-Ministry! and hear those Ministers that preach Jesus Christ. Were it not for the Gospel, and a Gospel-Mi­nistry, wherein would England differ from America?

[Page 17] Q. To whom doth God freely offer Christ in the Gospel.

A. 1. Jesus Christ is not offered to faln Angels, they are in a fearful State, inevitably sentenc'd to Perdition. God could have recovered them if he had pleased. Jesus Christ might have been their Saviour, and not ours: They are a nobler Order of Creatures than we; but it seemed good to the Wisdom of God to pass them by; when they turned their backs on God, he let them go: Heb. 2.16. For verily he took not on him the Nature of Angels, (or he took not hold of Angels) but the Seed of Abraham.

2. The Jews who had the first offers of the Gospel, but refused, are by the alwise God for the present passed by, he has withdrawn his Offers from them, and left them at present to sit in Darkness, and in the Regions of the shadow of Death. There is indeed a time when the blindness shall be plucked from off their Hearts, and they turned to the Lord, they shall be converted, Rom. 11. tot. Zac. 12.10. O let us beg that God would hasten it.

3. There's abundance of the Gentile World yet sit in darkness, and in the Regions of the shadow of Death, that never yet had the Gospel preached to them. O what vast Coun­tries are there in the East and West Indies that never heard of a Saviour, that never had any Books to read, but the Creatures, Sun, Moon and Stars! these we should pity, and pray for their Conversion. 'Tis a dreadful case not to have the Gospel: Lord, send out thy Light, [Page 18] and Truth, Psal. 43.3. There is a day when the fullness of the Gentiles shall come in, as may be seen by well considering these Scriptures, Isa. 49.6. Isa. 61. throughout; This will be then a golden time, when Jews and Gentiles shall be converted, and the Earth filled with the Knowledg of the Lord, as the Waters cover the Sea. O beg and pray for such a time, that Jesus Christ may be glo­rified upon Earth as he is in Heaven.

4. There are abundance even in the Christi­an Church, that are baptized and called Christians, and make some kind of a profession of Religion, that have so often and so long resisted the saving Offers of Christ in the Gospel, and trampled on that sweet and bles­sed Blood of Jesus, that Jesus Christ has done with them: He has sworn in his Wrath that they shall never enter into his rest, Heb. 3.11. O it's dreadful for a Person to outstand his Day of Grace. Be afraid Sinner lest it should be thy case; if Jesus Christ should say, I have done with that Swearer, I've done with this Drunkard, with that Worldly, Proud, scof­fing carnal Wretch: I've oft invited him, warned him, but to no purpose; I have done with him, he shall never be call'd more for me. These indeed have Christ offered in the Word, but the Spirit is gone; God saith of these, as once he did of Ephraim; Ephraim is joined to Idols, let him alone: this is a dreadful case!

Of such as these the Apostle speaks, Heb. 6.4, 5, 6. For it is impossible for those who were once enlightned, and have tasted of the Heavenly [Page 19] Gift, and were made Partakers of the Holy Ghost; and have tasted the good Word of God, and the Powers of the World to come: If they fall away, to renew them again unto Repentance; seeing they crucify to themselves the Son of God afresh, and put him to an open shame.

This is a hard Scripture, and doth much stumble some weak, but upright Christians, therefore I'le anatomize it to you. ^*

1. Some, as Novatus and his Followers, from this Scripture broached his pernicious Opi­nion, That those that sinned after Baptism, could not be renewed to Repentance. But this Opinion is long ago out of doors.

2. Others would hence infer the falling a­way from Grace; taking these Expressions (to be once enlightned, to taste the heavenly Gift, to taste the good Word of God, and the Powers of the World to come) to intimate a sound Work of Conversion and Regeneration: but that cannot be the sense, because true Grace, and the Seed of Regeneration can never be lost, neither can a Person in Christ finally fall away from Christ, as appears from that one Text, which I shall now only name among many others to that purpose, 1 Pet. 1.23. Be­ing born again, not of corruptible Seed, but of in­corruptible, by the Word of God which liveth and abideth for ever.

[Page 20]And this cannot be better expressed than in the Words of that Learned and Godly Divine, Mr. William Pemble in his Book, called Vindiciae Gratiae.

‘For the habit of Grace in the Regenerate, we affirm that it is constant, abiding for ever in them, in whom it is once planted; so that he that is once converted, cannot so shake off the Grace of his first, as to need a second Conversion; and a Sinner once raised from Death unto Christ, through the infu­sion of spiritual Life, he dies no more, but lives for ever to the Glory of God.’ As ap­pears from that of the Apostle, 1 Pet. 1.2, 3. What is this Seed by which we are born again? 'tis not the Word either alone or principally considered, because that is the Instrument; no, it's by the power of the Spirit, without which the Word is but a dead Sound: So then this Seed is the Power or Vertue of the Holy Ghost. But why is this Seed called incorrup­tible? in respect of itself it is so, but it's so stiled in this place, in respect of the effect it produces quatenus Semen, it produceth Fruit like it self, incorruptible and immortal. We are not born of corruptible Seed, for that pe­risheth, and what is born of it; but of incor­ruptible, that lives and endures for ever; and so what ever is born of it, is immortal: this quickning Power of the Spirit lives for ever; not only in it self, but in us also; therefore a Soul once in Christ by renewing Grace, can never finally fall away.

[Page 21]3. Others say, That the Apostle speaks here only by way of Supposition, If these fall away, it's impossible to renew them, &c. but they can never fall away. But,

4. Others say, These were but the common workings of the Spirit upon the Hearts of Hypocrites: and these come nearest to the Sense; and it must be confest, Hypocrites may go a great way in Religion, and have even some Taste and Relish of the Things of God in their Spirits, as appears in the Stony-ground-Hearers, (take heed Reader thou beest not an Hypocrite!) Mat. 13.20. they are said to receive the Word with Joy, and yet not any saving Grace in their Souls. But,

5. Others expound this Scripture of those extraordinary Gifts of the Spirit Christians had in the Apostles days, such as the Gift of Heal­ing, speaking with Tongues, &c. These extra­ordinary Gifts were from the Spirit: And no doubt, such as had any of these miraculous Gifts were much pleased and delighted with them, and many that had them perished, as may appear from comparing these Scriptures, Mat. 7.21, 22, 23, 24. Gal. 3.3, 4. And this I humbly conceive to be the Sense of this Scripture. O it's dreadful to sin against Light, against Convictions; to live under a Gospel-Ministry, and get no good by it!

But now, these excepted, Jesus Christ is offered to all in the visible Church, and all are freely invited to come in, as in the Text. Now these free and general Offers see in these two Scriptures, Isa. 55.1, 2, 3. Ho, every one that [Page 22] thirsteth, come ye to the Waters, and he that hath no Mony; come ye, buy and eat, yea, come, buy Wine and Milk, without Mony, and without Price, &c. and Rev. 22.17. The Spirit saith, Come; and the Bride saith, Come; and whoever is athirst, and will, let him come, and take of the Water of Life freely.

5thly, But in a peculiar manner, tho Jesus Christ be offered in general to all, yet he is particularly offered to such as are wounded, and afflicted in Soul for Sin, and these alone are the Persons that will welcome a Saviour. Luke 5.31, 32. The whole need not a Physician, but those that are sick; 'tis the wounded Soul that needs a Plaister, the sick Soul that needs a Physician; the Prisoner that needs a Re­deemer; the lost Sinner that needs a Saviour. Now if there be in this Congregation any trembling, bleeding, wounded Spirits, that are with the Jaylor crying, What shall I do to be saved! O ten thousand Worlds if I had them for a Christ! &c. To such is the Word of this Salvation sent; Poor Soul! here's a Christ for thee! be of good chear, arise, he calls thee, hear what he saith unto thee, Mat. 11.28. Come unto me all ye that labour, and are heavy laden, and I will give you rest.

Thirdly, What is it to come to Christ, to believe in Christ, to receive and accept him upon Gospel-Terms?

This coming to Christ 'tis not a meer dog­matical and opinionative Faith, a meer Per­swasion of the truth of Scripture, to believe the Articles of your Creed, and profess your [Page 23] selves Christians, this is very common; but this coming to, and believing in Christ, it is a saving Grace, wrought in the Hearts of Persons by the Word and Spirit of God, whereby being awakened to see their Sin and Misery, that Hell and Wrath due to them for Sin; they despair in themselves, and all other Creatures, and speedily fly from their Sins and themselves to Jesus Christ, resting on him alone for Justification, Pardon and Eternal Life.

This is coming to Christ; and not a Person under Heaven, that hath not such a particular Faith as is here described, did ever yet come to Christ.

1. You have here the nature of it, it is a saving Grace, i. e. not what is common to Be­lievers and Unbelievers, but peculiar to Be­lievers only; there is a common Faith, a com­mon Love, a common Repentance, and com­mon Obedience, which Hypocrites may have; and there's a special saving Faith, a heavenly new-distinguishing Work of the Holy Spirit on the Heart, which is peculiar to a Saint, and none but a Saint hath it; you have both these expressed in that one Scripture, Heb. 10.39. We are not of them which draw back to Perdition; but of them which believe to the saving of the Soul. Here's, first, common Faith. Some that draw back, i. e. were unsound, rotten-hearted Professors, who had a common Faith, enough to make them profess and own Christ in time of Peace, but not enough to go through with their Profession; and here's a saving Faith, a [Page 24] belieVing to the saving of the Soul. O look to it, that your Grace be more than what's common!

2. Here's the necessary Preparation to it, and that is, the Heart awakened, and hum­bled, and broken for Sin; this Brokenness of Heart for Sin it is not Faith, nor coming to Christ; but it is a necessary Preparative to it, an unbroken Heart, unhumbled Soul will never come to Christ. Luke 5.31, 32. The whole need not a Physician, but they that are sick. 'Tis Ne­cessity that drives Men to Christ, when they see themselves undone, ready to drop into Hell; the Law curses them, and they are beset on every side: like those, Acts 2.37. when they were pricked at the Heart, then they cried out, What shall we do to be saved? now ver. 38. the Apostle directs them to Christ; the Sinner must first despair in himself, before he will come to Christ.

People cry out against spiritual, lively, quick preaching: but why? O this drives People to Despair. There's two sorts of De­spair.

(1.) To despair of getting to Heaven in a state of Sin, while a Man is unregenerate, un­sanctified; and truly such a Despair as this we do preach. I tell you from the Lord Jesus Christ, that every one of you living and dy­ing in a Christ-less State, you will be as surely damned, as if you were in Hell already. Joh. 3.3. Except you are born again, you cannot see the Kingdom of God.

[Page 25](2.) There's another kind of Despair, and that is, when Men despair of ever obtaining Mercy tho they do repent, and leave their Sins. We do not preach any such Despair as this: But on the contrary, do all we can to draw, and to encourage Men to come to Christ with an assurance of Pardon. Isa. 55.7. Let the Wicked forsake his Way, and the unrighteous Man his Thoughts; and turn to the Lord, and he will have Mercy upon him, and to our God, for he will abundantly pardon.

3. There's the Instrumental Cause of this blessed Work upon the Soul, and that is, the Word of God, Rom. 10.17. Faith comes by hearing, and hearing by the Word of God: If you would be drawn to Christ, wait upon a Gospel-Ministry.

4. There is the Efficient of this Heavenly Work, the blessed and holy Spirit of God. Ephes. 2.8. Faith is the Gift of God: The holy Spirit is called the Spirit of Faith, 2 Cor. 4.13. because the Spirit, by the Word, can draw a Soul to Christ: Therefore wait on the Mi­nistry, but beg, as the Church doth, the Draw­ings of the Spirit, Cant. 1.4. Draw me.

5. Here is the Terminus à quo, or what a Man flies from in the day when he thus comes to Jesus Christ.

(1.) He flies from Sin: Now the Wicked for­sakes his Way, and the unrighteous Man his Thoughts, Isa. 55.7. Now is the time when a Man hath right Apprehensions of the hellish destructive nature of Sin; he sees Sin now to be worse than Plague, Famine, Sword, or any [Page 26] Temporal Evils, and therefore flies from it, as Lot out of Sodom, or the Jews out of Egypt, he hastens now as for his Life, to cleanse his Hand, and his Heart from all Pollution, both of Flesh and Spirit; now Sin appears what it is in it self; he flies from Heart-Sins, secret Sins, vain Thoughts, as well as open Sins, Psal. 119.113. Psal. 139.23.

(2.) He flies from himself. Whatever high Thoughts he might have of himself formerly, he now sees himself one of the filthiest and loathsomest Creatures under Heaven, and this especially in the Vileness of his Heart and Na­ture, by reason of that Fountain of Original Sin and Corruption which is in him; he now sees the Plague of his Heart, 1 Kings 8.38. And hence he now loaths himself, condemns and judges himself in the sight of God, Rom. 7.28. O wretched Man that I am! who shall de­liver me from this Body of Death?

6. Here is the Terminus ad quem, that to which the poor awakened Sinner flies, and that is, to Jesus Christ. Indeed Faith in general looks to the whole Word of God, and believes whatever is revealed therein to be true upon the Divine Authority of the Word it self, yielding hearty Obedience to every Command, trembling at the Threatnings, Isa. 57.15. ^* [Page 27] But the principal and especial Act of saving Faith, is a receiving Christ, and a resting upon him alone for Justification, Sanctification, and Eternal Life. And altho this special Act of Faith, as leaning, resting, hanging upon, and trusting in Christ crucified, be so much exploded in this corrupt Age, by Men of corrupt Minds, yet it is, and ever will be, a sweet and hea­venly Truth, prized by the Church of Christ, more than all the World besides, and clearly proved from the holy Word of God. Joh. 1.12. As many as received him, to them gave he Power to become the Sons of God. Cant. 8.5. Who is this that cometh up from the Wilderness, leaning upon her Beloved? So Ephes. 1.13. In whom also ye trusted, after that ye believed.

This leaning, trusting, resting upon Christ, is the proper Act of justifying Faith, and it hath three degrees, Adherence, Recompence, Assurance.

1. Adherence, which singles out Christ and holds him, and as it were, by the hand of Faith, takes him by the hand, for the Stay and Support of the Soul. The poor Sinner seeing his own Nothingness, he flies to Christ, hangs on him, cleaves to him, looks to him in every Strait, when he has no-whither else to look, nor none else to trust to: 2 Chron. 20.12. We know not what to do, but our Eyes are unto thee.

2. Recombence, which is an acquiescence on Christ, the Soul resolves to rest upon Christ, let the Issue be what it will, as Job, Chap. 13.15. Tho he slay me, yet will I trust in him. Or as Hester, Ch. 4.16. I will go in unto the [Page 28] King, and if I perish, I perish. So saith the Be­liever, I will hang upon Christ's Skirts, believe in him, follow after him, if I perish, I perish; tho he frown upon me, I will not leave him, tho he kill me, yet will I trust in him. Psal. 37.5. Commit thy way unto the Lord, wait pati­ently for him, and he will bring it to pass.

3d. Degree of Faith, is the Faith of Assu­rance: this is rare, and but few Christians have it. When the Spirit of God so shines in upon his own Work in the Soul, as to inable a Christian to speak triumphingly with the Church, Cant. 2.16. My Beloved is mine, and I am his: Or, with the Apostle, 2 Cor. 5.1. We know that when this Earthly House is dissolved, we have an House in Heaven.

Now poor complaining Soul, thou hast not this Faith of Assurance, yet if thou hast the Faith of Adherence and Recombence thy case is good: Assurance is not essential to justifying Faith.