MEN DISBELIEVE GOD'S FORGIVENESS. 227 about it in the blood of Christ ? We have showed how away is made by his blood for the exercise of mercy, in consistency with the glory and honor of the jus- tice of God and of his late ; how pardon is procured and purchased thereby ; with the mysterious reconcilia- tion of..love and law. What have you to say to these things ?_ Have you seen pardon flowing from the heart of the Father through the blood of the Son ? - Have you looked upon it as the price of his life and the purchase of his blood? Or have you only general thoughts that Christ .. died, for sinners, and that on one account or other forgiveness relates to him, while you are a stran- ger to the mystery of this great work ? Forgiveness, as we have showed, is manifested, tendered, exhibited in the covenant of grace and promises of the Gospel; and the rule of their .efficacy is, that theybe mixed with faith, Heb. 4 : 2.; but if you area stranger to the things before mentioned, you are no less to this also. You know not, then, what forgiveness is, nor wherein it con- sists, nor whence it comes, nor how it is procured, nor by what means given to sinners. It is to no purpose for such persons to pretend that they believe that to which they are such utter strangers: VI. Another inquiry into this subject regards thestate in which souls must be before it be possible for, them to believe forgiveness. If therebe such a state, and it can be shown that very many of the pretenders to whom we refer, Were never brought into it, it is then evident that they neither do nor can believe forgiveness, how- ever they may delude their own souls. It has been shown that the first discovery made of pardoning grace was to Adam, presently after the fall. What was then his condition l How was he prepared for the reception of . this great mystery in its first dis- covery l . He was convi iced of sin; afraidof punishment, he lay trembling, before God. Then was forgiveness
RkJQdWJsaXNoZXIy OTcyMjk=