under his hand and seal made a full and free deed of gift, to you and all sinners, of Christ, and with him of pardon and salvation? And all this on condition of your acceptance or consent? I know the despisers of Christ shall be miserable for all this. But for you that would fain have Christ, is it no comfort to know that you shall have him if you will? And to find this to be the sum of the gospel? I know you have often read those free offers, Rev. xxii. 17, "Whosoever will, let him take of the water of life freely." "Ho, every one that thirsteth, come and drink," &c. Almost all that Í have hitherto said to you is comprised in that one text, John iii. 16, "God so loved the world, that he gave his only-begotten Son, that whosoever believeth in him should not perish, but have everlasting life."

And as I have showed it you in the causes, what comfort even general mercy may afford, so let me a little show it you in the effects. I mean, not only in that God is now satisfied; but as to yourself and every sinner, these three things are produced hereby.

1. There is now a possibility of salvation to you. And certainly even that should be a very great comfort. I know you will meet with some divines, who will tell you that this is no effect of Christ's death; and that else Christ should die for God, if he procured him a power to save which he had not before. But this is no better than a reproaching of our Redeemer. Suppose that a traitor had so abused a king, that it will neither stand with his own honor, nor justice, nor laws, to pardon him; if his compassions were so great, that his own son shall suffer for him, that so the king might be capable of pardoning him, without any diminution of his honor or justice; were it not a vile reproach, if this traitor should tell the prince that suffered for him,' It was for your father that you suffered, to procure him a power of pardoning; it was not for me?' It is true, the king could not pardon him, without satisfaction to his hon or and justice. But this was not through any impotency, but because the thing was not fit to be done, and so was morally impossible. For in law we say, dishonest things are impossible. And it had been no less to the king if the traitor had not been pardoned. So it is in our case. And therefore Christ's sufferings could not be more eminently for us, than by enabling the offended Majesty to forgive us; and so taking the greatest impediment out of the way. For when impediments are once removed, God's nature is so gracious and prone to mercy, that he would soon pardon us when once it is fit to be done, and so morally possible in the fullest. sense; only men's own unwillingness now stands in the way, and makes it to be not fully fit to be yet done. It is true, in a remote sense, the pardon of sin was always possible; but in the nearest

sense, it was impossible, till Christ made it possible by his satis

faction.

2. Nay, though you were yet graceless, you have now this comfort, that your salvation is probable as well as possible. You are very fair for it. The terms are not hard in themselves, on which it is tendered. For Christ's yoke is easy, and his burden is light, and his commands are not grievous. "The word is nigh you,' even the offer of grace. You need not say, "Who shall ascend to heaven, or go down to hell?" Rom. x. But this will appear

in the next.

3. Yea, this exceeding comfort there is, even for them that are graceless, that their salvation is conditionally certain, and the condition is but their own willingness. They may all have Christ and life if they will. Now I desire you in all your doubts, that you will well consider and improve this one truth and ground of comfort. Would you, in the midst of your groans, and complaints, and fears, take it for a small mercy, to be certain that you shall have Christ if you will? When you are praying for Christ in fear and anguish of spirit, if an angel or voice from heaven should say to you, 'It shall be unto thee according to thy will; if thou wilt have Christ and live in him, thou shalt ;' would this be no comfort to you? Would it not revive you and overcome your fears?

By this time, I hope you see what abundance of comfort general mercy or grace may afford the soul, before it perceive (yea, or receive) any special grace; though few of those that receive not special grace can make use of general, yet it is propounded to them as well as others.

1. All the terrifying temptations which are grounded on misrepresentations of God, as if he were a cruel destroyer to be fled from, are dispelled by the due consideration of his goodness, and the deep-settled apprehensions of his gracious, merciful, lovely nature, (which indeed is the first work of true religion, and the very master radical act of true grace, and the chief maintainer of spiritual life and motion.)

2. All these temptations are yet more effectually dispelled, by considering this merciful divine nature dwelling in flesh, becoming man, by condescending to the assumption of our human nature; and so come near us, and assuming the office of being the Mediator, the Redeemer, the Savior of the world.

3. All your doubts and fears that proceed from your former sins, whether of youth or of age, of ignorance or of knowledge, and those which proceed from your legal unworthiness, have all a present remedy in the fullness and sufficiency of Christ's satisfaction, even for all the world; so that no sin (except the excepted sin) is so great, but it is fully satisfied for; and though you are unworthy,

yet Christ is worthy; and he came into the world to save only the unworthy, (in the strict and legal sense.)

4. All your doubts and fears that arise from an apprehension of God's unwillingness to show you mercy, and to give you Christ and life in him, arise from the misapprehensions of Christ's unwillingness to be yours; or at least from the uncertainty of his willingness; these have all a sufficient remedy in the general extent and tenor of the new covenant. Can you doubt whether God be willing to give you Christ and life, when he had given them already, even by a deed of gift under his hand, and by a law of grace? 1 John v. 10-12.

6

Object. But yet all are not pardoned, and possessed of Christ, and so saved.'

Answ. I told you, that is because they will not; so that (I pray you mark it well) God hath, in these four means before mentioned, given even to the graceless so much ground of comfort, that nothing but their unwillingness to have Christ is left to be their terror. For though sin be not actually remitted to them, yet it is conditionally remitted, viz. If they will but accept of Christ offered them. Will you remember this, when your doubts are greatest, and you conclude, that certainly Christ is not yours, because you have no true grace? Suppose it to be true, yet still know, that Christ may be yours if you will, and when you will. This comfort you may have when you can find no evidences of true grace in yourself. So much for that direction.

Direct. VIII. The next thing that you have to do, for building up a stable comfort, and settling your conscience in a solid peace, is this; Be sure to get and keep a right understanding of the nature of saving faith.'

As you must have right thoughts of the covenant of grace, (of which before,) the want thereof doth puzzle and confound very many Christians; so you must be sure to have right thoughts of the condition of the covenant. For indeed that grace which causeth you to perform this condition, is your first special saving grace, which you may take as a certain evidence of your justification. And this condition is the very link which conjoineth all the general foregoing grace to all the rest of the following special grace. The Scripture is so full and plain in assuring pardon and salvation to all true believers, that if you can be sure you are a believer, you need not make any doubt of your interest in Christ, and your salvation. Seeing therefore that all the question will be, Whether you have true faith? whether you do perform the condition of the new covenant? (for all other doubts God hath given you sufficient ground to resolve, as is said,) how much then doth it concern you to have a right understanding of the nature of this faith?

Which that you may have, let me tell you briefly what it is. Man's soul hath two faculties, understanding and will: accordingly the objects of man's soul (all beings which it is to receive) have two modifications; truth and goodness, (as those to be avoided are evil.) Accordingly God's word or gospel hath two parts; the revelation of truth, and the offer and promise of some good. This offered good is principally and immediately Christ himself, to be joined to us by covenant, as our Head and Husband. The secondary consequential good is pardon, justification, reconciliation, adoption, further sanctification and glorification, which are all offered with Christ. By this you may see what saving faith is: it is, first, a believing that the gospel is true; and then an accepting of Christ therein offered to us, with his benefits; or a consenting that he be ours, and we be his; which is nothing but a true willingness to have an offered Christ. Remember this well, that you may make use of it, when you are in doubt of the truth of your faith. Thousands of poor souls have been in the dark, and unable to see themselves to be believers, merely for want of knowing what saving faith is. The Papists place almost all in the mere assent of the understanding. Some of the Reformers made it to be either an assurance of the pardon of our own sins, or a strong persuasion of their pardon, excluding doubting; or (the most moderate) a persuasion of our particular pardon, though mixed with some doubting. The Antinomians strike in with them, and say the same. Hence some divines conclude, that justification and remission go before faith, because the act doth always suppose its object. For they thought that remission already past was the object of justifying faith, supposing faith to be nothing else but a belief that we are pardoned. Yea, ordinarily, it hath been taught in the writings of our greatest refuters of the Papists, 'That this belief is properly a divine faith, or the belief of a divine testimony, as is the believing of any proposition written in the Scripture (a foul error which I have confuted in my Book of Rest, part iii. chap. vii.) Most of late have come nearer the truth, and affirmed justifying faith to consist in affiance, or recumbency, or resting on Christ for salvation. No doubt this is one act of justifying faith, but not that which a poor, troubled soul should first search after and try itself by, (except by affiance, any should mean, as Amesius doth, election of Christ, and then it is the same act which I am asserting, but very unfitly expressed.) For, (1.) Affiance is not the principal act, nor that wherein the very life of justifying faith doth consist, but only an imperate allowing act, and an effect of the vital act, (which is consent, or willing, or accepting Christ offered;) for it lieth mainly in that which we call the sensitive part, or the passions of the soul. (2.) It is therefore less constant, and so unfitter to try by. For

or

many a poor soul that knows itself unfeignedly willing to have Christ, yet feeleth not a resting on him, or trusting in him, and therefore cries out, 'O, I cannot believe; and think they have no faith. For recumbency, affiance, or resting on Christ, implieth that easing of themselves, or casting off their fears, or doubts, cares, which true believers do not always find. Many a poor soul complains, 'O, I cannot rest on Christ; I cannot trust him!' who yet would have him to be their Lord and Savior, and can easily be convinced of their willingness. (3.) Besides, affiance is not the adequate act of faith, suited to the object in that fullness as it must be received, but willingness or acceptance is. Christ is rested on not only for ourselves as our Deliverer, but he is accepted also for himself as our Lord and Master. The full proof of these I have performed in other writings, and oft in your hearing in public, and therefore omit them now. Be sure then to fix this truth deep in your mind, That justifying faith is not an assurance of our justification; no, nor a persuasion or belief that we are justified or pardoned, or that Christ died more for us than for others. Nor yet is affiance or resting on Christ the vital principle, certain, constant, full act; but it is the understanding's belief of the truth of the gospel, and the will's acceptance of Christ and life offered to us therein; which acceptance is but the hearty consent or willingness that he be yours, and you his. This is the faith which must justify and save you.

Object. But, May not wicked men be willing to have Christ? And do not you oft tell us that justifying faith comprehends love to Christ and thankfulness, and that it receiveth him as a Lord to be obeyed, as well as a Deliverer? And that repentance and sincere obedience are parts of the condition of the new covenant?'

Answ. I will give as brief a touch now on these as may be, because I have handled them in fitter places.

1. Wicked men are willing to have remission, justification, and freedom from hell, (for no man can be willing to be unpardoned, or to be damned;) but they are not willing to have Christ himself in that nature and office which he must be accepted; that is, as an holy Head and Husband to save both from the guilt and power, and all defilement and abode of sin, and to rule them by his law, and guide them by his Spirit, and to make them happy by bringing them to God, that, being without sin, they may be perfectly pleasing and amiable in his sight, and enjoy him forever. Thus is Christ offered, and thus to be accepted of all that will be saved; and thus no wicked man will accept him, (but when he ceaseth to be wicked.) 2. To cut all the rest short in a word, I say, That in this fore-described willingness or acceptance, repentance, love, thankfulness, resolution to obey, are all contained, or nearly implied, as I