THE TRUE PENITENT. 499 believing thoughts. 'Get scriptural views of his par- doning love, and true discoveries of his redeeming power. To guess aright at the prodigious extent of his mercy, lift up the dim eyes of thy struggling faith, and behold a great multitude, which no man can number, standing before the throne, with their robes washed and made white in the blood of the .Lamb. Among those countless monuments of divine mercy, . those illustrious trophies of free grace, see David, who, after having been admitted to close communion with God, plunged for ten months in the horrible guilt of adultery treachery, hypocrisy, and murder ! See Paul, one so fierce an enemy to the truth, so fiery a blasphemer of Jesus, so raging a persecutor of the saints, that his very breath was threatenings and slaughter against. them ! See, Peter, who after a great profession of faithfulness, and upon an appa- rently slight temptation, denied three times his Mas- ter, his Saviour, and his God, in his very presence Peter, guilty of lying, cursing, and perjury ; imme- diately after he had been apprised ofthe imminent temp- tation, and armed againgt it, both by receiving the holy sacrament at our Lord's own hand, and being admitted to see his wonderful agony, and glorious miracles ! These and thousands more agree to tell thee, For this cause we obtained mercy, that in us first Jesus Christ might spew forth all long- suffering, for a pattern to them which should hereafter believe on him to life everlasting. If all these witnesses do not silence thy doubts, and encourage thy hopes, Jesus himself. the faithful and true witness, will yet plead the cause, of his dying love, against thy unbelieving fears : thy gracious Ad- vocate with God, will yet be God's condescending Advocate with thee. O.let thy clamorous conscience keep silence, while he preaches to thee the everlasting gospel.of his grace. And if to-day thou hearest his voice, harden not your heart, come out of the cave of unbelief, wrap thyself in the mantle of divine mercy, and worship the pardoning God, the God of never - failing truth and everlasting love.
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