reainmending them to God 455 As God is infinitely able, fohe is infinitelygraciouS, and faith- ful. See his Name in Exod. 34. Full ofpower, aU tender mercy. Is not God willing for the conversion ofpoorfinners, willing as Mini- fters ? yea, a thoufand, ,and ten, thoufand times mere. Hear how patheticallyGod fpeaks, Turnye, why will ye dye, hear, and live. He calls upon all men.every where to repent. Secondly, God' cloth not only defire it, but purpofe it, and re- folves. God that bath begun a good work, he will finifh it ; and fo for their prefervation, he bath laid, That the Gates of Hell shall never prevail apinft them. Ofall thou bafl giVen me Ihave loft none, Joh. 17. r i . Though. God may fuffer his people to be led away for a time, yet they 'hall be brought back again, and Thal! be 'kept through the power of God unto falvation : Heaven and earth iball pafs away, rout not one jot it tittle which God. bath .> token. Howwilling is God to comfort all his coanfortleffe ones ? what Mother can be mere pittiful to her lick child, than God is to them that are'under afflidion : Though a Mother forget her fucking yet God cannot forget his people. And then he is the Father ofall comfort, and there are many gracious promifes God bath made to this purpofe, that they may be as fo many Aqua vitae pledges of cort4- folation to his people : So that this will appea, That it is the heft Office of a Mintfler, both to Minitier and people, To commend them to God. t . ToMinifters, it is the higher{ exprdion of their love ; what greater tegimony of their loVe can they Phew to their people, to do all thatfor them, that he would willingly have done, and ten thou- fand times more ? Is it not an expreflion of love from a dying Fa- ther to his children, Dear chiVren, I am now dying, I canprovide for you no more, I shall leave you fuck a friend that (ball provide for you in a more abundant meafure than if I hadbeen with you. It is the bell demonaration of their faith. i. That he will not leave them to the wide world ; and Mien a. He .will not take any one , he wilt tru'l his people with none but God; who is able andwilling to give accountof them. . 3. It is the greaten fat'saaion to his heart. A ers leaving his people can never be satisfied in his own breail, that he should leave them and commit them, and not to know to whom.: but when he knows with whom he bath commit tied them, when he bath delivered them over to that first comin'tted tnem to him, this is ass, rat. quietinent. and fatisfaftion to. a Minifiers fpirit : Every Minil;ter takesa care of fouls ;. 'God layer the people as a depoifitiim, Nnn and
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