any fo far bewitched and inchanted into fo grofs and impudent a Delusion, as to affert his own Perfection and Vacancy from Sin, and Freedom from Obligation to any divine Command; (as this Time is fruitful of fuch Monsters) yet I dare be bold to fay, that in the fecret and quiet Reflections on themselves, they find that which they will not confefs: Inwardly they feel what outwardly they deny, and cannot but fome Time or other be filled with Horror and Anguish in their Confciences, by that inwardly witneffing and checking Principle, when God fhall give it Liberty to exerce its. Power over them. The End of fuch will be, as of profeffed Atheists; they pretend the fecureft Contempt, and fearlesseft Mifregard of God; but then, when he awakes to Judgment, or declares himfelf in fome Thing extraordinary, they are fubject to the moft panick Fears and Terrors, becaufe then there is a Party armed within against them, which they had difarmed in Security, and kept in Chains: So, whenfoever fuch Men, of fuch high Pretensions, and fublime Profeffions, who love to speak nothing but Myfteries, and prefume to fuch glorious Discoveries of new Lights of fpiritual Myfteries; when thefe, I fay, have flattered themfelves for a Seafon, in the monftruous exorbitant Conceit of their own Perfection, and Immunity from Sin, and, it may be, deceived fome others too; when they have lived fome Time in this golden Dream of Innocency; the Time will come, either when the mighty Hand of God is on them here, or when they must enter Eternity, that they Thall awake, and find all their Iniquities in Battle array, mustered by the Lord of Hofts, in their Conscience against themfelves; and then they fhall be the rareft Examples of Fear, Terror and Unbelief, who pretended to the greatest Confidence, Clearnefs and Innocency. My Beloved, let us eftablish this as an infallible Rule, to difcern the Spirits by, and to know what Religion is, if it tend to glorifie God, and abase Man, to make him more humble, as well as holy; if it give the true and perfect Discovery of God to Man, and of Man to himself, that is true Religion and undefiled: But away with thefe fublime Speculations, these winged and airy Myfteries, thofe Pretenfions to high Discoveries and new Lights, if they do not increase that good old Light of bumble walking with thy God, &c. if they tend to the lofing of the Obligation of divine Commands off thee; if they ravih Man fo high, that he feeth not himself any more to be a poor miferable and darkned Creature, certainly, that is no Fellowship with the pure Light, which. is not continually the Discovery and further Manifeftation of more Sin and Darknefs in us: For, what is a Man's Light in the dark Night of this Life? but the clearest Light of that Darkness that is in Man; and his Holiness, What is it? but the abhoring of himself for that. It is true, fomething further is attained than the knowing of this; but it is always fo far fhort of that original Pattern, that the beft Way of expreffing our Conformity to it, is by how much we apprehend our Diftance and Deformity from it. But, my Beloved, this is not all that is here meant, nor muft we take it so grofly, as if this did only check the open Profeffors of a finless, fpotless Sanctity; nay certainly, there is another Way of faying this, than by the Tongue, and many other Ways of felf-deceiving, than that grofs one, many more univerfal and more dangerous, because less difcernable. There is fomething of this, that even true Be lievers lievers may fall into, and there is fome thing of it more common to the Gènerality of profeffed Chriftians. Among Believers in Chrift, there is much Difference in felf-judging; extreme Contrarieties, both between diverfe Perfons, and in one and the same, at diverfe Times. You know that fome are kept in the open View of their own Sins and Infirmities, and while they aim at Holinefs, they are wholly disabled to that worthy Endeavour, by their Difcouragements, arising from the Apprehenfion of their own Weakness, and infinite Shortcom ing. Now to elevate and ftrengthen fuch Spirits, that Word was feasonably caft in, And the Blood of Jefus Chrift cleanfeth from all Sin: For it properly belongs to the Comfort of fuch fainting Souls; and it is all one, as if he had faid, Up, and be doing, and the Blood of Cbrift fhall cleanse your evil Doings. He goeth not about to perfwade them to have better Thoughts of themselves, or lower Apprehenfions of their Sins, but only to have higher and more fuitable Thoughts of Chrift, and the Virtue of his Blood; And this is the only Cure, not to abate from that low Efteem of ourselves, but to add to the Efteem, and grow in the lively Apprehenfion of Chrift. I would not counsel you to think yourselves better, but to think better of him, that all your Confidence may arife from him. have attained any Fervency of Defires, and Height of Design after Holiness, and walking with God, and this is feconded with any lively Endeavours, and this confirmed and strengthned with these Prefences of God, and Acceffes into the Soul, that fills it with fome Sweetness; then, I fay, they are ready to apprehend too highly of themselves, as if they had attained, and to look below upon others with fome Difdain; then there is not that prefent Discovery of themselves, that may intermingle humble Mourning with it, but a Kind of unequal measuring their Attainments by their Defires, which in all true Chriftians are exceedingly mounted above themselves. Now indeed, this is in Effect, and really to say, we bave no Sin. Herein is a Delusion, a felf-deceiving Fancy, that begets too much felf-pleafing. Let us know where our Stance is, infinitely below either our Duty, or our Defire; and re-mind this often, that we may not be in Hazard to be drunk with Self-love, and Self-deceit in this Particular. Besides, are there not many Chriftians, that having been once illuminated, and had fome ferious Exercifes in their Souls, both of Sorrow for Sin, and Fear of Wrath, and Comfort by the Gofpel; and being accustomed to fome Discharge of religious Duties in private and publick, they fit down here, and hath not mind of further Progrefs; they think if they keep that Stance they are well, and fo have few Designs or Endeavours after more Communion with God, or Purification from Sin. Now this makes them degenerate to Formali Now there are others, and it may be that fame Perfon at another Time, (for the Wind of Temptation winds about, and is fometimes in one Corner, fometimes in another; our Adverfary ufeth many Stratagems, and will feem to fleety, they wither and become barren, and before us, in yielding us the Victory over our Unbelief, that he may in his Flight return, and throw fome other Dart upon us unawares,) when they are expofed by this to many Temptations which overcome them. But, my Beloved, is not this really and indeed to say, we have no Sin? Do not your walking. and and the Pofture of your Spirits import than your own ordinary Clearings and Let me add moreover another Inftance; do you not so live, and walk in Sin fo fecurely, fo impenitently, as if you had no Sin, no Fear of God's Warth? Do not the moft Part contentedly and peaceably live in fo much Ignorance of the Gofpel, as if they had no Need of Chrift? and fo by Confequence, as if they had no Sin: For if you did believe in the Heart, and indeed confider, that your Hearts are Sinks of Iniquity and Impurity, would you not think it neceffary to apply to the Physician? And would you not then labour to know the Physician, and the Gofpel, which is the Report of him? Certainly, in asmuch as you take no Pains for the Knowledge of a Saviour, you declare that you know not your Sin; for if ye know the one, ye could nos not but search to know the other. What, is the Voice of moft Mens walking? Doth it not proclaim this, that they think there is no Sin in them? For if there be Sin in you, is there not a Curfe upon you, and Wrath before you? And if you did really fee the one, would you not see the other? And did you fee it, would it not drive you to more serious Thoughts? Would it not afright you? Would it not cause you often to retire in to yourselves, and from the World? And above all, how precious would the Tidings of a Saviour be, that now are common and contemptible? Would you not every Day wash in that Blood? Would the Current of Repentance dry? But, forafmuch as you are not exercised this Way, give no Thoughts nor Time for Reconcilement with, God, walk with out any Fear of Hell, and without any earnest and ferious Study of changing your Ways, and purifying your Hearts; in a Word, though ye confess Sin in the general, yet your whole Carriage of Heart and Ways declare fo much, that you think it not a Thing much to be feared, or that a Man fhould bufie himfelf about it; that a Man may live in it, and be well here, and hereafter. And is not this to deny the very Nature of Sin, and to deceive your own Souls? 1 John. i. 9. If we confess our Sins, he is faithful, and just to forgive us our Sins, &c. T HE Current of Sin dries not up, but runs conftantly while we are in this Life. It is true, it is much dimnished in a Believer, and it runs not in fuch an univerfal Flood over the whole Man, as it is in the Unbeliever ; yet there is a living Spring of Sin within the Godly, which is never ceafing to drop out Pollution and Defilement, either upon their whole Perfons, or at leaft, to intermingle it with their good Actions. Now, there is no Comfort for this, but this one, that there is another Stream of the Blood of Jefus Chrift, that never dries up, is never exhausted, never emptied, but flows as full and as free, as clear and fresh as ever it did; And this is fo great, and of fo great Vertue, that it is able to fwallow up the Stream of our Pollutions, and to take away the daily Filth of a Believer's Converfation. Now indeed, though the Blood of Jefus Chrift be of fuch infinite Vertue and Efficacy, that it were fufficient to cleanfe the Sins of the whole World, it would be an Over-ranfom for the Souls of all Men, there is so much Worth in it: That Flood of Guiltinefs that hath drowned the World, this Flood of Chrift's Blood that gushed our of his Side, is of fufficient Vertue to cleanse it perfectly away; notwithstanding of this abfolute Iii un univerfal Sufficiency, yet certain it is, that it is not actually applyed unto the cleansing of all Mens Sins, but yet the moft Part of Men are ftill drowned in the Deluge of their own Wickedness, and lie intomb'd in Darkness; there fore it concerns us to know the Way of the Application of this Blood, to the Cleaning of Sinners, and this Way is fet down in this Verle, If we confels our Sins, be is just to forgive. There was fomething hinted at obfcurely in the preceeding Verfe; for when he fhews, that fuch as fay they have no Sin, who either by the Difpofition of their Hearts, or Carriage of their Ways, do by Interpretation fay, they want Sin, Such deceive themfelves, and the Truth is not in them, and fo they have no Benefit of that Blood that cleanfeth from all Sin. And fo it is imported here, that tho the Blood of Chrift be fully fufficient to cleanse all Sin, yet it is not fo proftituted and bafely spent upon Sinners, as to be bestowed upon them who do not know their Sins, and never enter into any serious and impartial Examination of themselves. Such, though they fay they are Sinners, yet never defcending into themselves to search their own Hearts and Ways; and fo never coming to the particular Knowledge of their Sins, and Feeling of them, they cannot at all make Application of that Blood to their own Confciences, either ferioufly or pertinenly: Though the River and Fountain of Chrift's Blood run by them, in the daily preaching of the Gospel, yet being destitute of this daily Self-infpection, and Selfknowledge, being altogether ignorant of themselves, they can no more wash here, than thefe who never heard of this Blood, they being Strangers to themselves, fets them at as great Distance and Eftrange ment from the Blood of Chrift, as if they were wholly Strangers to the very preaching of this Blood. Let us then have this firft established in our Hearts, that there is no cleanfing from Sin, without the Knowledge of Sin; and there is no true Knowledge of Sin, without a ferious Soulexamination of Sin, these are knit together in their own Nature; For how should our Sins be pardoned, when we know. nothing of them but in a confused Generality, that can never affect the Heart? How fhould our Sins not be opened and difcovered before the Holinefs of God, when they are always covered unto us, and hid from our Eyes? Certainly, the Righteoufnefs and Wisdom of God requires, that such a monftruous Thing, so great an Enemy of God's Holiness, be not wholly paft away in Silence without Obfervation. If we do not observe, he will; for to what Purpose fhould Pardon be fo lavished upon them who are not capable to know what Favour and Grace is in it? And certainly, that none can know, without the feeling Knowledge of the Height and Hainoufnefs of Sin. Now, I pray you, how should ye know your Sins, when ye will not allow any Time for the fearching of yourselves? Many cannot say that ever they did purposely and deliberately withdraw from the World, and separate their Spirits for this Business of Self-examination; and therefore you remain perpetually Strangers to yourselves, and as great Strangers to the Power and Vertue of this Blood. Now in this Verfe, he declares it plainly, in what Way and Method Sin is par doned by this Blood. By the former Verse, we have fo much, that it is ne ceffary we muft fearch and try our Ways that fo we may truly know our Sins, and charge them upon ourselves; and here |