Serin. CVII . -Tke I óng'fuffering ofGod. would not reprieve a Sinner for one Moment, but would' execute Judgments. up- on him to foon as ever he had offended e This our Saviour declares torus by the Parable of the Figtree, Luke 13. 6: Were it not that God expels from us the Fruit of Repentance, he would cutus dowuand not fuller us to cumber theground ; after he had waited threeyears, feekingfruit andfinding none, he(pares it oneyear mare, to fee if it wouldsear fruit: z. The Long-fuller ing of God is a great Encouragement to Repentance. We fee by his Patience that he is not ready to take Advantage againft us ; that he (pares us when we offend, is à very good fign that he will forgiveus ifwe repents Thus natural Light would reafon, and fo the King of Nineveh, a Heathen, rea- `fons, Who cantell if Godwill turn and repent ? But we are fully affured of this by the gracious Declarations of the Gofpel, and the way of Pardon and Forgivenefs which is therein eftablifh'd through faith in the blood of Jefus Chrift , who was made a propitiationfor the f ns of the whole world. Therefore the Long- fuffering of God fhould be a powerful Argument to us to break off ourfins by repentance : For this is the end of God's Patience ; He is long- fujfering to us-ward, not willing that anylhouldperifh , but that allfhould come to re- pentance. He hath no pleafure in the death of the wicked, but that the wickedfhould turn from his way and live. God every where expreffeth a vehement delire and earneft Expectation of our Repentance and Converton ; ter. 4. 14. 0 9erufalem ! wafh thy heart from wickednefs, that thoumayelt befaved. And Chap. 53. z7. tiro unto thee 7erufalem ! wilt thou not be made clean? when /hall it once be ? He who is fo patient as to the punithment of our Sins, is almoft impatient of our Repen- tance for them ; Wilt thou not kmade clean ? when 'ball it once be ? And can we ftand out ,againft his cornett Delire of our Happinefs, whom we have fo often and fo long provoked to make us miferable ? Let us then return into our felves, and think ferioufly what our Cafe and Con- dition is ; howwe have lived,' and how long the Patience of God hath fujfered our manners, and waited for our Repentance, and how inevitable and intolerable the mifery ofthole mutt be who live and die in the Contempt and Abufe of it ; let us heartily repent of our wicked Lives, and fay , What have we done ? How carelefs have we been of our own Happinefs , and what pains have we taken o -unto our felves ? Let us fpeedily fet about this Work, becaufe we do not know how long the Patience of God may loft, and the Opportunites of our Salvation be continued to us. This dayof God's Grace and Patience will have an end, therefore as the Prophet exhorts, Ifa. 55. 6. Seek the Lordwhile he maybefound, andcall upon him while he is near. Now God gracioufly invites Sinners to come to him, and is ready to receive them ; nay, if theydo but move towards him , he is ready to go forth and meet them halfway ; but the time will come, when he will bid them departfrom him, when they ;hall cry, Lord, Lord, open unto us , and the door of Mercy (hall be Jhut againft them. All the while thou delayeft this neceffary Work, thou ventureft thy immor- tal Soul, and putteft thy eternal Salvation upon a defperate hazard ; and fhould God fnatch thee fuddenly away in an impenitent State, what would become of thee? Thou art yet in the way, and God is yet reconcileable, but Death is not far oft, and perhaps much nearer to thee than thou art aware ; at the beft thy Life is uncertain, and Death will infallibly put a period to thisday of God's Grace and Patience. Repentance is a Work fo necefïary, that methinks no Man fhould lofe fomuch time as to deliberate, whether he fhould fet about it or not ; denece_(Jariis nulla'eff deliberatio; no man deliberates about what he mull do, or be undone if he do it not. 'Tis a Work of fo great Confequence and Concernment, and the delay of it fo in- finitely dangerous, that no wife Man could entertain a Thought of deferring it: What greater Folly and Stupidity can there be, than for Men tò venture their im- mortal Souls,and to run an apparent hazard in matters of everlafting Confequence f Thisday of God's Patience is the great Opportunity of our Salvation, and if we let it flip( it is never to be recovered : If we mif-improve this time of our Bbbbb a, Liftii i39
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