352 FORGIVENESS OF SIN. the soul's interest in forgiveness with God, or its being made partaker of the pardon of sin. I confess the me- thod of the Gospel is, that absolution, acquittance, or the pardon of sin, is the foundation of the communica- tion of all saving grace to the soul, and so precedes all grace whatever in the sinner. But, because this absolu- tion or pardon of sin is to be received by faith, where- by the soul is reallymade partaker of it and all its bene- fits; and faith also.is the radical grace which we re- ceive in our regeneration ; for it is by faith that our hearts are purified, as an instrument in the hand of the great purifier, the Spirit of God ; I place these two to- gether, and shall not dispute as to their priority in na- ture; but in time the one doth not precede the other. 2. It is hence evident that an assurance of being re- generate is no way previously necessary to the believing of an interest in forgiveness; so that if a man have not the assurance, it is his duty to trust in Divine forgive- ness. When convinced persons cried out, What shall we do to be saved 1 the answer was, Believe, and you shall be saved. To believe in Christ, and in the remis- sion of sin by his blood, is the first thing that con- vinced sinners are called to. They are not directed first to assure their souls that they are born again, and then afterwards believe; but they are first to believe that the remission of sin is tendered to them in the blood of Christ, and that by him they may be justified from all things from which they could not be justified by the law. Nor is it the duty of men to question whe- ther they have faithor not, but actually to believe; and faith in its operation will evidence itself. See Acts, 13 38, 39. Suppose, then, that you do not know that
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