to fave Siimers, &c. .:nd bcfccc!l them through him to be reconciled to God. .Now that this fuould be of fKh tOn.:c as to pcrfwadc Confcicnce to bre~k the ~e.:rt, to ranfa~k the Bowels C\'Cil of rhofe very linncr"1 who perhaps came with preJUdices,_ contemj)t and fcorn, what is this hut a plain and ev ident demonftration of the Alm1ghty Po~er.ofGod, who by rhe jOo!ijlmcJS of pm1~hi!!g (avcth thoft that do be_Jic1.1e, thereby convu~cmg. the World [hat there is nothmg fo weak and contemptible hut God can by lt bnng to p3.fs thiugs wonderful and miraculous. That is the firft thing whereby it doth appear that Chrilt is All-fnfficicnt to fave finners, the grearnefs of the number, and the heinou lilcfs of the nature of tbofc fins from which he is able to deliver, and from the pollut ion of them, as I have fhewed in thefe three Particulars. 2. Chr~{t is ablr to fave , not only from the pollution of the fouleft, but frort1 the guilt and cmdcmnation o(the grrarcft Sins , and that by a free Pa:don and Rcmijfion of t~em. _What greater fins than Bltr(phcmy and Pcrfccution? Yet farth St. Paul concernmg hrmfelf, 1 'Jim. I. 13. I 11/tU before a bLafpbcmer, and a pcrfccutor, but I obtained mercy; therefore we c~nnot E1y with Gtiu :.IS the Marginal Note rcn~ers lt_, A1j ini~uity U greater than. can be (orgi-vcn, I h.wc om-finncd Mercy, and there IS nothmg rcmams tor me but the fe1rfl1l exp..::Ctation of the licr}' Indigtu.tion wh ich will certainly devour me. Is not tint Blood of Infinite V:! lue which God fhed for thee? Hath not this All-fi.1fficient S1v iou r born the whole \.Vr2th wl1ich thou Jhouldft have born? Hath he not brought li(e t~n,: imwwtali.ty '" /~!!"ht,and wilt thou be fo injurious as to think thy fin's more vile tllln his blood is prcLiot~s? Or that there is more VenC?m in them to deftroy thee tlnn there is Vcrtne in his Blood to f<1 vc thee? Let n~t the D evil perfwade thee before the comm iflion of thy fins that they are fo little that they need no Pardon, :md after the commifllon of them, they are fo heinous that they cannOt be pardoned; l\13 J i~t in nothing Ill Ore provoking to God than when he believes th<it his fins cannot he pa.rdoncd. There arc bnt t_wo fins which are unpardonable, the one is the dreadful s.·n ttlf <:in{t the t-l.;(y G'hojf, and the other is Final Vnbelief, Final Unbelief cannot be pardOned, hccaufc the Death of Cbrifr, by which an pardon is obtained, can be app!icd to the Sou l by no other means than Faith. The Sin againft the HolyGh1 ft canno t he pardonedl bccaufe it is a malicious rejeCtion of the Blood ofChrift, and all pardon by it. Haft thou reafon to think thy felf guilty of either of thefc fins? Thou onft not Cw thou art guilty of Fit~al Vnbelief, for that cannot be until the lafi: moment of thy Life; but tint which mofi: of all troubles the defpairing Soul is, left i t hath committed the Vnpardonabie Sin againft the Holy Gho{f, and this many are af- ·tJictecl \".' ith, this rhcy fc:~r , and fo in the extream, anguifh and horror of their Souls, t hey cry nut tint the}' :1.re loft, th:1t they are Damned, that there is no hope, no pardon f')r them . If it he fo indeed that there is no pardon for thee, yet this Outcry coafu t<:'i it fclfl for the Sin aga in ft the Holy Ghoft is of all others the leaft jealous and fitn>ic inu.;:, I :1111 pcrrwaded that the conlideration of the Nawre of this Sin will perEvade us tint there is no Man guilty of it, but he that is alfo given up by God to <.! n: prolutc Mind, to a fc:J.rcd Confcicnce, and grown quite paft feeling, and fo as ne ver w cnmpltin of his miferable condition. So then thy very Troubles, thy very dcfpairing ~1 hou;~hts fhcw that thon haft no reafon to defpair, and that thy Sins arc not unp.l rdon, tblc 1 and therefore be .thcy what they will, the deformity of them never f(, Hglv, the {!: tlil t of them as ghaftl r as thy gu ilty Confcicnce reprefents them, yet there is an Al l-fu fficicucy in Ch rift to fave thee fully: Is it the numberlefs numher of them that .:tfl i·ights thee? Were they yet more Chrifl: can fave thee from them, 1 John I. 7· The blood of Cbr~{f clennfcrh from all Sin. Doft thou complain, Oh Soz4, that thy lins arc .1s many in number as the Sand upon the Sea-lhore? Yea, but dofi: thou not _kno~ likcwife that the Sea can cover the Sands? So the overflowing Blood of ~.hnfl:, tt can reach the uttermoft Borders and Extent of all thy .fins, and keep them trom the fi ght ofGod , that they !hall never more appear. Well then, is it the greatncfs and the heinous Nature of thy fins that affiiCb thee? Poffibly thou miO'ht'ft t hink 1 ftattc r thee, to tell thee thou fhouldft gather ground of hope rather0 than of_defpair; for thou b~fl: now a plea for pa~don. See how the Prophet David urgeth th1s as anArgumeot Wtth G.od for the Forgn•enefs of them. For thy name fake, 0 Lord, p.-1rdan n_ry Iniquity ; (why ) 1t may be they are fo great that they cannot in Ju fticc be pardoned, Yta, 0 /,.,ord, pardon min1 iniquityforitisgreat. It is a very fl:rangc Argument, one would think, thus to plead with Men. Pray pardon me bccaufe I !.1:ve done you a great injury, and yet with God, whofc Thoughts are 'not as the I houghts ofMen, and whofc Ways are not as the Ways of Men., this ftrange Ar- • Y y y y 2 gument
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