313 / 514
sriem.
xvin.]
FAITH
THE WAY
TO
SALVATION.-
305
desire towards this salvation, and
some
distant
hope
of
obtaining
it.
When
the
poor perishing creature
believes
and beholds the
glorious
influence
of
the death
and righ-
teousness
of
Christ
to
justify
a
sinner
in
the sight
of God
:
when he surveys the
love,
the
wisdom,
the grace, and
the
power
of
Christ, answerable to
all
his
wants, he
than
comes to
determine thus
with himself,
This
salvation
is
glorious
and desirable
;
the
methods proposed, even
for
my
own
attainment of
it are practicable and
sufficient,
and
why-
should
not
I
apply.
myself
to this-Saviour,
and
seek
this
unspeakable happiness
?"
2.
Affiance
or
trust
in
Jesus
Christ
the
Saviour
is
the
next degree of
faith.
When
we
are
willing
to
be
deli-
vered from
the
condemning guilt
of
sin,
and
from
the
de-
filing
power
of
it,
and have seen an
all
-
sufficiency
of
atonement,
grace,
and
power
in.
Christ, then
we
commit
our
souls into the hands
of
Jesus, the
Mediator
for this
blessed purpose,
and
make
a
solemn
surrender of our
whole
selves
into
his
charge and care,
that
we
may
be
pardoned
for the sake
of,
his
death,
that
we
may
be
ac-
cepted
of God
through his
righteousness,
that
we
may
be sanctified and made
holy
by his
grace and Spirit, and
that
we
maybe
fitted for and
preserved to
his
heavenly
kingdom. We reflect
upon our past
iniquities,
and
mourn
to
think
that
we
have
been rebels
so
long
:
we
are
ashamed
and grieved for
our
rebellions, and
we
now
most earnestly desire
to be
made
willing
subjects
to his
holy
government; and therefore
we
entrust our
souls
with
him,
and
beg
that
he
would take
us
under
his
care
for
this end, and bring
us
into the
Father's
presence
with
comfört and joy. This
is
the
soul's coming to
God
by
Jesus
Christ.
Now such
an
act
of
faith
as this
is,
has some sensible
tendency
'to
promote the peace
of a
distressed consci-
ence,
the sanctification
of
a sinful
nature, the
solid
hope
of
heaven,
and a
preparation
for it.
But
still
it
must
be
acknowledged,
that
its
original and chief influence arises
from
divine
appointment.
The
gospel
is
the power
of
God
to
salvation, and
it
is by
divine promise and power
that
faith
saves
the
soul. Such
á
faith,
or
trust
in
Christ,
has all
the promises
of
gospel-
blessings
belong-
ing
to
it.
God
has
appointed
in
his
word,
and
it
is
the
v
o
L.
I.
X