SERMON CLIX. The neceffity of repentance and faith. ACTS XX. 21. Teftifying both to the Jews, and alfo to the Greeks, repentance toward God, and faith toward our Lord Jefus Chrift. T O have seen St. Paul in the pulpit, was one of thofe three things which St. Auguftine thought worth the wishing for. And fure it were very defirable to have feen this glorious inftrument of God, who did fuch wonders in the world, to have heard that plain and powerful eloquence of his, which was fo mighty through God, for the cafting down of ftrong holds, and the fubduing of men to the obedience of the gospel; to have beheld the zeal of this holy man, who was all on fire for God, with what ardency of affection, and earneftness of expreffion, he perfuaded men to come in to Chrift, and entertain the gospel. This were very defirable; but feeing it is a thing we cannot hope for, it should be fome fatisfaction to our curiofity, to know what St. Paul preached, what was the main fubject of his fermons, whither he referred all his difcourfes, and what they tended to. This he tells us in the words that I have read to you, that the main fubftance of all his fermons was repentance toward God, and faith toward our Lord Jefus Chrift. The occafion of the words was briefly this; St. Paul being in his journey to Jerufalem, and intending to be there by the day of Pentecoft, that he might not be hindered in his journey, he refolves to pafs by Ephefus, and only to call to him the elders of the church, to charge them with their duty, and the care of the church; and, to engage them hereto, he tells them how he had carried and demeaned himself among them, ver. 18. with what diligence and vigilance he had watched over them, with what affection and earnestness he had preached to them, ver. 19. 20. And here in the text he tells them what had been the fum of his doctrine, and the fubftance of those many fermons he had preached among them, and what was the end and defign of all his difcourfes, viz. to perfuade men to repentance toward God, and faith toward our Lord Jefus Chrift; teftifying both to the Jews and Greeks, &c. I fhall explain the words a little, and then fix upon the obfervations which I intend to fpeak to, because I design this only as a preface to fome larger difcourses of faith and repentance. For explication. Teftifying, the word is apapu Puevos, which fignifies to teftify, to prove a thing by teftimony; fo it is used, Heb. ii. 6. But one in a certain place teftifieth, faying. In Heathen writers the word is often ufed in a law fenfe, for contefting by law, and pleading in a caufe; and from hence it fignifies, earneftly to contend or perfuade by arguments and threatenings. In the use of the LXX, it fignifies to protest, to convince, to prefs earnestly, to perfuade. It is used most frequently by St. Luke in a very intenfe fignifica tion, and is fometimes joined with exhorting, which is an earnest perfuading to a thing, A&s ii. 40. And with many other words did he testify and exhort, faying, fave your felves from this untoward generation; and with preaching, Acts viii. 25. And when they had teftified and preached the word of the Lord; and fo, Acts xviii. 5. Being preffed in fpirit, he testified to the Jews, that Jefus was the Chrift. Being preffed in fpirit fignifies intention and vehemency in teftifying to them, that he did vehemently endeavour to convince them; it feems to be equivalent to the expreffion, ver. 28. where it is faid Apollos did mightily convince the Jews that Jefus was the Chrift; That is, did ufe fuch perfuafions and arguments as were fufficient to convince; and, to mention no more, Acts xxviii. 23. He expounded and teftified the kingdom of God, perfuading them concerning Jefus. St. Paul, in his epistle to Timothy, ufeth these words in a most vehement fenfe, for giving a folemn charge, 1 Tim. v. 21. I charge thee before God, and the Lord Fefus Jefus Chrift, the word is rauapripoμas; and fo, 2 Tim. ii. 14. charging them before the Lord, that they strive not about words; and fo, 2 Tim. iv. 1. Icharge thee before God, and the Lord Jefus Chrift; and here, in the text, the word feems to be of a very high and intense fignification, because of the circumstances mentioned before and after; he tells us before, that he taught them at all feafons, ver. 18. publickly, and from houfe to houfe, ver. 20. And afterwards, at the 3 1ft verfe, that he warned them day and night with tears. So that teftifying to the Jews repentance and faith, muft fignify his preffing and perfuading of them with the greateft vehemency, to turn from their fins, and believe on the Lord Jefus Chrift; his charging on them thefe things as their duty, his pleading with them the neceffity of faith and repentance, and earneftly endeavouring to convince them thereof. Repentance toward God, and faith toward our Lord Jefus Chrift: what is the reafon of this appropriation of repentance and faith, the one as properly refpecting God, and the other our Lord Jefus Chrift? I anfwer, repentance doth properly refpect God, because he is the party offended, and to whom we are to be reconciled; the faith of the gofpel doth properly refer to the Lord Jefus Chrift, as the chief and principal object of it; fo that, by testifying to them repentance toward God, &c. we are to understand that the Apostle did earnestly prefs and perfuade them to repent of their fins, whereby they had offended God, and to believe on the Lord Jefus Christ, as the Meffias, the person that was ordained of God, and fent to be the Saviour of the world. From the words thus explained, this is the obfervation that doth naturally arife, That repentance and faith are the fum and fubftance of the gospel; and that minifters ought with all earnestnefs and vehemency to prefs people to repent and believe, to charge them with these as their duty, and, by all means, to endeavour to convince them of the neceffity of them. In the handling of this I fhall do these two things. 1. Shew you what is included in repentance and faith, that you may fee that they are the sum of the gospel. And, 2. Shew 2. Shew you 1. Repentance; this properly fignifies a change of mind, a conviction that we have done amifs, fo as to be truly forry for what we have done, and heartily to wish that we had not done it. To repent, is to alter our mind, to have other apprehenfions of things than we had, to look upon that now as evil, which we did not before; from whence follows forrow for what we have done, and a refolution of mind for the future not to do again that which appears now to us to be fo evil, that, we are alhamed of it, and troubled for it, and with we had never done it. So that repentance implies a conviction that we have done fonicthing that is evil and finful, contrary to the law we are under, and thofe obligations of duty and gratitude that lie upon us, whereby God is highly provoked and incenfed against us, and we in danger of his wrath, and the fad effects of his difpleafure; upon which we are troubled, and grieved, and afhamed for what we have done, and with we had been wifer, and had done otherwife; hereupon we refolve never to do any thing that is finful, that is contrary to our duty and obligations to God, and by which we may provoke him against us. These two things are contained in a true repentance, a deep fenfe of and forrow for the evils that are paft, and the fins we have committed; and a firm purpose and refolution of obedience for the future, of abstaining from all fin, and doing whatever is our duty; the true effect of which refolution, is the breaking off the practice of fin, and the courfe of a wicked life, and a conftant courfe of obedience. 2. Faith in Chrift is an effectual believing the revelation of the gofpel, the history and the doctrine of it; the hiftory of it, that there was fuch a perfon as Jefus Chrift, that he was the true Meffias, prophefied of and promised in the Old Teftament, that he was born, and lived, and preached, and wrought the miracles that are recorded, that he was crucified and rofe again, and afcended into heaven, that he was the Son of God, and fent by him into the world, by his doctrine to instruct, and by the example of his life to go before us in the way to happiness, and by the merit and fatisfaction of his death and fufferings, to appeafe and reconcile God to us, and to purchafe for us the pardon of our fins and eternal life, upon the conditions of faith, and repentance, and fincere obedience; and that to enable us to the performance of these conditions, he promised and afterward fent his holy Spirit, to accompany the preaching of his gofpel, and to affift all Chriftians to the doing of that which God requires of them; this is the hiftory of the gospel. Now the doctrine of it contains the precepts, and promifes, and threatenings of it, and faith in Chrift includes a firm belief of all thefe; of the precepts of the gofpel as the matter of our duty, and the rule of our life; and of the promifes and threatenings of the gofpel, as arguments to our duty, to encourage our obedience, and deter us from fin. So that he that believes the Lord Jefus, believes him to be the great guide and teacher fent from God, to bring and conduct men to eternal happiness, and that therefore we ought to hearken to him and follow him; this is to believe his prophetical office. He believes that he is the author of falvation, and hath purchased for us forgiveness of fins, ranfom from hell, and eternal life and bleffednefs upon the conditions before-mentioned; and therefore that we ought to rely upon him only for falvation, to own him for our Saviour, and to beg of him his holy Spirit, which he hath promised to us, to enable us to perform the conditions required on our part; this is to believe: his priestly office. And, laftly, he believes that the precepts of the gofpel, being delivered to us by the Son of God, ought to have the authority of laws upon us, and. that we are bound to be obedient to them; and, for our encouragement, if we be fo, that there is a glorious and eternal reward promifed to us; and, for our terror, if we be not, there are terrible and eternal punishments threatened to us; to which rewards, the Lord Jefus Christ at the day of judgment will fentence men, as the great Judge of the world; and this is to believe the kingly office of Chrift: and this is the fum of that which is meant by faith toward the Lord Jefus Chrift, which the Apoftle faith was one fubject of his preaching. VOL. VII. T And |