SERMON XIII. MATT. VI. 12. And forgive us our Debts, as we forgive our The Seventh Sermon on the Lord's Prayer. W E are now come to the fifth Petition of the Lord's Prayer, which is the second of those which relate more immediately to our felves and our Neighbours. The firft was, Give us this Day our daily Bread. If any fhould wonder why the Petition for Temporals should go before the two other Petitions for Pardon of Sin, and Grace to refift Temptations, which are of much greater Dignity, there are these two Accounts I think may be given of it. First, that the natural Life being prior in Time, though not in Dignity, to the fpiritual Life, is provided for, and wants to be provided for in the first Place, and therefore it is no way improper that the Petition for it should precede. Secondly, on the Account of Devotion it may be of ufe that the Petition for Temporals fhould first briefly be difpatched, that the Mind being cleared from those worldly Cares, may apply itself so much more intenfly intenfly to the greater Concerns of the Soul. As Divines, when they find a Man in Sicknefs, with his Mind diftracted, and diverted from his main Bufinefs with worldly Cares, advise him to put all his worldly Bufinefs afide, and to make his Will, that fo he may have nothing to do, but to mind his Soul and fpiritual Concerns. So much for the Order and Method of this Petition. But now to come to the Petition itself, And forgive us our Debts, as we forgive our Debtors. In it I fhall confider thefe two Things. I. The Bleffings we are here taught to pray for; namely, the Pardon of Sin for our felves and others. II. The Qualifications of the Perfons, who are to put up this Petition. Their charitable Affection towards others is exprefly taken Notice of, but there are other good Qualifications likewife very clearly implied. For it is implied here that the Perfon putting up this Prayer, is very fenfible of his Sins, and the Demerit of them: That he believes too that God is to be prevailed with to pardon Sin: And thirdly, that it is fit to come to him in the quality of an humble Penitent confeffing his Sins, and duly humbled for them: And fourthly, that though God is well difpofed to be reconciled to us in Chrift, we are to fue out this Pardon by inceffant Prayer. All which will deferve a more particular Confideration. I. I begin with the Bleffing we are here taught to pray for, the Pardon of Sin: Forgive us our Debts. Here they are called Debts; and by and by at the 14th Verfe Trefpaffes; and St Luke calls them Sins. They are all one and the fame Thing, viz. both original and actual Sin; both the Sins of our unregenerate and regenerate State. Wonder not that I reckon original Sin among our Debts; for as a Man who is Heir to his Father's Eftate, takes upon him likewise the Burden of his Debts, fo that his Father's Debts, being tranfmitted to him, become his Debts fo it is with original Sin; it is an heavy Debt tranfmitted to us from our Father Adam, which if we had not a Friend to help us out, and to discharge it for us, would utterly fink and ruin us. ; But if we had no other Debt but this of our Father's contracting, this original Sin, though we may be reduced to Mifery thereby, yet we fhould be great Objects of Mercy, as we are all apt to pity a Gentleman who has his Eftate ruined, not by his own, but his Father's Mifmanagement. But alas! our Cafe is not fo good, we have followed our Father's Steps, and have infinitely encreased this Debt by our own bad Conduct, to that Degree, that if the Creditor will deal rigidly with us, we must be utterly miferable to all intents and purpofes; and can never of our felves, or out of our own Eftates raife wherewithal to defray this immenfe Debt. And therefore we are represented here as pleading in forma pauperis, and applying our felves to God's Mercy, not for a Compofition, but a Pardon. Forgive us our Debts. And indeed there is Mercy and Compaffion enough in God to forgive this immense Debt, if it were not that there are infuperable Obstructions in the Way, that all the Skill of Mankind could never have removed. But it has pleased God out of his infinite Wisdom and Goodness to contrive a Way for it, as far beyond the reach of Man's Man's Invention, as the Mercy itself is beyond the Bowels of any human Mercy. Namely, that the only Son of God fhould affume our human Nature, but without Sin; and that in that Nature he should merit as much by his most perfect, both active and paffive Obedience, as being by him applied to his Brethren of the finful Race of Adam, fhould atone for not only that original Tranfgreffion of our firft Parents, but the actual Tranfgreffions and Demerits of all Mankind to that Degree that it is put into his Hands to fave us all upon what Terms and Conditions he himself thinks most just and reasonable. And accordingly he has directed us in this Petition, upon very gracious Terms to pray for, and expect pardon of Sins, both original and actual, of Almighty God. And this leads me to the fecond Thing I propofed to confider. Namely, ; II. The Qualifications of the Perfons who are allowed to put up this Petition. And I need not go out of the Text to find them, being all here either clearly implied or expreffed. For 1. If we confider this Petition with the Context, we may eafily discover Faith in Chrift; for every where in the New Teftament we find that our Priviledge to call God our Father, or to expect Forgivenefs of Sins from him, is folely in and through Chrift. Rom. viii. 15. it is afcribed to our Adoption that We cry Abba Father. And Gal. iv. 5. one of the Ends of fending Chrift is faid to be, That we might receive the Adoption of Sons. This Liberty then of addreffing God as his adopted Children, and the Liberty of afking Forgiveness of our Sins, is owing to Faith inChrift. 2. We are taught here to come unto God as humN° 3 ble ble Supplicants confeffing our Sins, and begging Pardon; fo here is the Qualification of Repentance. 3. We are taught here that though God is now rendred propitious to Mankind in Chrift, yet it is requifite that we continually fue out our Pardons by inceffant Prayer. 4. We are put in mind here of the Neceffity of Charity, particularly that highest kind of it, confifting in the forgiving our Enemies, by putting it exprefly into our Prayers. Forgive us our Debts, as we forgive our Debtors. Now it will be fit that we confider these Qualifications fomewhat more particularly. 1. First then, towards the putting up this Petition for pardon of Sin, Faith is neceffary. We muft look upon God as a reconciled Father in Chrift, and addrefs him as Our Father for the Pardon of our Sins. For without Chrift it is impoffible to confider him in this Capacity: He is The beloved Son, in whom God is well pleafed. And we are accepted in the Beloved, Eph. i. 6. Let us not entertain fuch a Thought then, that it is for any Thing we have deferved, that we are allowed thus confidently to draw near to God, or to fue out our Pardon. It is By Chrift that we have Access by Faith. Rom. v. 2. And Eph. iii. 12. It is in him we have Boldness and Accefs with Confidence by the Faith of him. Where is boasting then? it is excluded. By what Law? of Works? nay, but by the Law of Faith. O let us admire this wonderful Way of Mercy, how we that were exterminated by wicked Works, came to have Accefs to God again in Christ. 2. Towards the putting up this Petition for pardon of Sin, Repentance is as neceffary as Faith; as by Faith we are to believe God propitious thro' |