78 FORGIVENESS OF SIN. from its sentence. Here conscience labors to keep its whole dominion, and to keep the power of forgiveness from being enthroned in the soul. Nor indeed is it any easy work to deal with it. The apostle tells us, that all the sacrifices of the law could not do it, Heb. 10:2; they could not bring a man into that state in which he should have " no more con- science of sin ;" that is, conscience condemning the person; for conscience, in causing a sense of sin, and the condemnation of it, is never to be taken away. And this can be no otherwise done but by the blood of Christ, as the apostle at large there declares. It is no easy thing, then, to make a discovery of for- giveness to a soul, when conscience lies in opposition to it. Hence is the soul's great desire to establish its own righteousness, whereby its natural principles may be preserved in their power. Let self- righteousness be enthroned, and natural conscience desires no more; it is satisfied, and pacified. The law it knows, but as for forgiveness it says, Whence is it 1 Unto the utmost, until Christ perfects his conquest, there are, on this ac- count, secret strugglings in the heart against free par- don in the Gospel, and fluctuations of mind about it. Yea, hence are the doubts and fears of believers them- selves : they are nothing but the strivings of conscience to keep its whole dominion, to condemn the sinner as well as the sin. More or less, it keeps up its preten- sions against the Gospel whilst we live in this world. It is a great work that the blood of Christ hath to do upon the conscience of a sinner; for whereas it bath a power, and claims a right, to condemn both sin and sinner, the one part of this power is to be cleared, strengthened, made more active, vigorous and watch- ful; the other to be taken quite away : it shall now see more sins than formerly, more of the vileness of all sins than formerly, and condemn them with more ab-
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