595 / 652
ORDINARY
MEANS TO
DISCOVER
SINS.
339.
again
;
he
:is afraid
of
new
contention, and
knows
the
worth
of reconciliation
with
God, and
so
would
be
at
peace
with
him.
These
are
some
of
the reasons
why
a
child
of
God
is
willing to know
why his
father corrects
DOCTRINE V.
It
is
God
only can
effectually
convince
us
of
the sin
for
which he
corrects
us,
and therefore
Job
desires
that God
would
shew
him
wherefore
he
contended
with him.
Here
we
shall
First
consider what are the ordinary
means
that
God
uses to discover
sin
to
us
under
áflíic-
tion,
Secondly prove
that it
is
none but the Spirit
of
God
can effectually convince us
of
it
:Thirdly,
in
what
manner
the
Spirit
of God
discovers
it,
And
fourthly,
apply.the
subject.
First,
What
are the common
and
ordinary means
whereby
God under
afflictions discovers sin to
the soul
?
1.
By
the
word
of
his law
and gospel, and
that
both
written
and preached
:
the
law is
on
purpose
to
'discover
sin,
"
"By
the
law
is
the
knowledge
of
sin
;"
and
the gos-
pel,
the book
of
the
New
Testament
since
our
Saviour's
coming
in
the
flesh
has discovered
it
mnch
plainer
than
before.
Let
us
not
then
refuse
the conviction
of
the
word,
nor
put
our
sins
out
of
the
way to
hide them from
the
light
of
it.
If
when
we
hear
discourses
delivered to
us
upon
such subjects
as
may
convince
u,,
we
then
con
-
.ceal our
sins,
this
is
not the
way
to remove
sorrows;
for
till
we
remove
sin,
God
does
not
often remove
our
afflic-
tions:
he
shewed
Job
why
he
contended
with him,
and
then
he
removed
his
sorrow..
Under
any afflictive
pro
-
vidence whatever,
you
are
called
in
a more special
man-
ner
to
attend
to the word
of God.
Afflictions
themselves
have a convinc.ing.nature
in
them, and when the word has
any
thing
of
conviction
in it,
this
is
a
double
call to
the
soul,
and ought
to have a
stronger
force upon
us
when
God
is
pleased
to
call
us
to
repentance.
2.
The admonition
of
a
friend,
is
another
way
whereby
God
is
pleased to discover
sirs
in afflictive
providences
there
is
not
one friend
pays
a visit to
another but God's
over
-
ruling .providence
has
an
eye
over
it,
and
a
hand
in
it;
and
perhaps God
has sent
one friend
to
another
with
a message
of
conviction. Many times others
can
dis-
.cein more
than
we
.text,
especially
of
sin in
us
;
because