Senn. CXIX. 'where theGofpel is Preach'd. a o 7 IL I obferve likewife from our Saviour's Difcourfe, that God is not always ob- liged to work Miracles for the Converfion ofSiuners. It is great goodnefs inhim to afford fufficient Means of Repentance to Men, as hedid toTyreandSydon, in calling them to Repentance by his Prophet ; though fuch Miracles were not wrought among them, as God thought fit to accompany our Saviour's, Preaching withal'. This I obferve, to prevent a kihd of bold and fancy Ob7e&ion, which tom would perhaps be apt to make; If Tyreand Sidonwould have repented, had fuch Miracles been wrought among them, as our Saviour wrought in Choraeln and Bethfaida, why were they not wrought, that they might have repented ? To which it is fufficient Anfwer to fay, That God is not obliged todo all that is pof- fible to be don; to reclaim Men from their Sins; he is not obliged to overpower their Wills, and to work irrefiftibly upon their Minds, which hecan eafily do ; be is not obligedto work Miracles for every particular Man's Convi&ion ; nor where he vouchfafeth to do this, is he obliged always to work the greateft and moil Convincing Miracles ; his Gooduefs will not fuffer him to omit what is ne- ceffary and fufficient to bring Men to Repentance and Happinefs, nay beyond this he many times does more ; but it is sufficient to vindicate the Juftice and Goodnefs of God, that he is not wanting tous, in affording the Means neceffary to reclaim us from our Sins, and to bring us to Goodnefs. That which is pro- perly our part, is tomake nfe of thofe Means which God affords uS to become bet- ter, and not to prefcribe to him how much he Should do for us ; to be thankful that he bath donefo much, and not to find fault with him for having donenomore. lÌl. I obferve farther from our Saviour's Difcourfe, That the external Meansof Repentance which God affordsto Men,' do fuppofe an Inward Grace of God ac- companying them, fufficiently enabling Men to repent, if it be not their own Fault; I fay a fufficient Grace of God accompanyingthe outward Means of Re- pentance, till by our wilful and obffinate negle& and refiftance andoppolition of this Grace, we provoke God to withdraw it from the Means, or elfe to withdraws both`the Grace and theMeansfromus : other wifeImpenitence after fuch External Means afforded, would be no new and fpecial Fault. For if the Concurrenceof God's Grace with the outward Means be neceffary to work Repentance, then the Impenitence of thole to whom this Graceis not afforded, which yet is neceffary toRepentance, is neither any new Sin, nor any new Aggravationof their former Impenitence. For no Man can imagine that the jail God will charge Men with new Guilt, and increafe their Condemnation, for remaining impenitent iá facia Circumftances in which it is impoffible for them to repent. IV. I obferve from this Difcourfeof our Saviour's, That an irref lible degreee of Grace is not neceffaryto Repentance, nor comnronlyafforded to thofe whodd repent. God maywhere he pleafeth, without injury to anyMan, over-power his Will, and flophim in bis Comte, and hinderhim from making himfelf miferable, and by an irrefiftible Light convince him ofhis Error and the Evil of his ways; and bring him to a betterMind : But this Gad feldorn does ; and when he does it, it is very probable it is not fo much for their own fakes, as to make them In- ftruments of Good to others. Thus by a fecretbut over- powering influente he over- ruled the Difciples to follow our Saviour, and to leave their Callings and Relati- ons, and all their temporal Concernmentsto do it. But one of the mots remarka- ble Examplesof this extraordinary Grace of God, is St. Paid, who was violently ftopt in his Courfe of perfecuting the Chriftians, and convinc'dof his Sin, and brought over to Chriffianity; in a very extraordinary and forcible manner. And ofthis miraculous and extraordinary Converfion, God himfelfgives this account, That he was a chofen Vetl unto him, to bear his name before the Gentiles, and Kings, and the ChildrenofIfrael, A&s 9.15. And St. Paul tellsus, Gal. i. r 5, id. That for this end God had feparated himfrom his Mother's Womb, and call'd him by his Grace, and revealed his Son to him in that extraordinarymanner, that he mightpreach him among the Heathen. But generallyGod does not bringMen thus to Repentance ; nor is, it neceffary he Should. For if an irrefiftibla degree of Grace were always neceffary to bring Mento Repentance, there couldbe no difference between the Impenitence ofCho- ruin and Bethfaida, and of Tyre and Sidon. For according to this Do&rine of P 3 thg'
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