Page images
PDF
EPUB

2. Every fin is a breach of the law; and he who breaks it in one point, is guilty of all, Jam. ii. 10. He who is guilty of all deferves the wrath of God both in this life and that which is to come. The commands of the law have all one author, whose majesty is offended by whatsoever breach; they all meet in one command, viz. love, and every fin is against that; the law requires univerfal obedience.

3. Chrift died for all the fins of all his elect, 1 Pet. iii. 18, 1 John i. 7. Wherefore, fince he fuffered God's wrath and curse for them, they certainly deferve it.

4. The leaft fin will condemn a man, if it be not forgiven, Matth. v. 19.; even idle words, Matth. xii. 36, 37.; and all must be forgiven graciously, Pfal. ciii. 2.; wherefore God might in justice not forgive them; and if never forgiven, they may be ever punished.

IV. I come to fhew, why every fin deferves fo much. The reason is, it is a kind of infinite evil; and therefore, fince the punishment is deservedly proportioned to the offence, it deferves infinite punishment. Sin is an infinite evil in two respects.

1. In respect that the guilt and defilement of it is never taken away, but endures for ever, unless the Lord himself in mercy do remove it. The party offended is the eternal God, whose being never comes to an end; the finner never being able to expiate and put away his offence, Rom. v. 6. it ever remains, unless the Lord himself do remove it, as in the elect, by his Son's blood; wherefore the party offended, and the offence ever remaining, the punishment must needs be eternal; for no unclean thing can ever enter heaven, therefore the finner must be for ever excluded and punished.

2. In refpect it wrongs an infinite God. It is evident among men, that the demerit of a crime rifes and falls according to the quality of the person against whom it is committed; fo that a crime against one's prince is punished with death, that would not be fo, if against a perfon of meaner condition. Since God, then, is of infinite dignity and ma jefty, the offence against him deferves infinite punishment. And because the creature, being finite, is not capable of punishment infinite in value, therefore it is neceffarily infinite in duration. There is a manifold wrong to God in the least fin.

[ocr errors]

(1.) It wrongs his infinite fovereignty, Jam. ii. 10, 11. He is Sovereign Ruler of his creatures; his will must be their law, fince by his will they were created. But every fin cafts off the natural yoke of his fovereign authority, and fets up the finner's will against it. So that it is accounted a fighting against God, Acts v. 39.

(2.) It wrongs his infinite goodness, Exod. xx. 1, 2. All the good, natural, moral, or fpiritual, which the creature has, it has it from God, who is the fountain of all good. So that fin is a doing ill for good, the worst of ills for all the good one ever at any time enjoyed. Yea, it is a turning of the good received from God against him; as if one advanced from the dunghill by his prince, fhould use all his favours in rebellion against him.

(3.) It wrongs his holiness, Hab. i. 13. He cannot endure unholinefs. He is omnifcient and omniprefent; fo fin brings into the presence of the great King, that which by all things he cannot endure to look at. It fets up the worst of defilement before his spotless holiness; and does in its own nature tend to deface the glory of it.

(4.) Lastly, It breaks his law, the eternal rule of righteoufnefs, 1 John iii. 4. It is all right, and of perpetual equity, and is the hedge which God has fet about his rational creatures: but fin breaks down that hedge, and breaks over it. And the finner is a rebel against the King's law, 1 Sam. xv. 23.; and in effect fets God at defiance, inafmuch as it breaks the law, to which fuch a penalty is annexed.

I fhall now deduce fome inferences.

Inf. 1. Let this commend the love of Christ in dying for finners, Rom. v. 8. O matchless love, which made him willing to be made a curse for us, that we might be delivered from the curfe of the law! Every fin deferves God's wrath and curfe. What a flood of wrath behoved them to come on him, when he stood in the ftead of a whole elect world!

2. Let this convince you of the ill that is in fin. There is more ill in the least fin than the greatest sufferings. There fore never fay, in compliance with a temptation, It is but a little one; for the leaft fin will make you eternally miserable in hell and can ye account that a little evil which expofes to God's curfe here and hereafter?

3. Inexpreffibly terrible is the deferving of many fins, and

grofs fins, when the leaft of them deferves God's wrath. If one do so, how great must that wrath be, which thousands and millions deferve? If an idle word deferves God's wrath and curse, what must deliberate lying words deferve, but a deep footing in the lake that burneth with fire and brimstone.

4. Let believers admire free grace, pardoning mercy, and atoning blood, Pfal. xxxii. 1. that fecures them from bearing the defert of their fin. Let them live to the Lord, by whom they live. Think not little of your fins, O believer, though there be now no condemnation for you, being in Christ Jesus, Rom. viii. 1.; for every one of your fins deferves, though they cannot bring on, God's wrath and curfe. Yet tremble at the thoughts of fin; for ye are like the three children in the fiery furnace, compaffed with a fire of fin that would burn you up, but the effect of it is stopped by the mediation of Chrift.

Lastly, Sinners, be convinced of your abfolute need of Christ. Ye must be in him, or ye are ruined for ever. Can ye bear that wrath which incenfed justice will inflict on all that are out of Chrift? Can ye get free of it without him? Wherefore be alarmed, and exhorted to flee from the wrath that is to come, by fleeing to the Lord Jefus, who delivereth all his people from it.

OF THE MEANS OF SALVATION IN GENERAL.

HEB. ii. 3.-How fhall we escape, if we neglect so great falvation ?

A SINNER having heard that fin deferves God's wrath

and curfe, the question that natively follows, is, What way one may escape them? This is answered by the weighty question in the text, How fhall we escape, if we neglect fo great falvation? Which we may take up in these two things (1.) There is no escaping for finners, if they neglect the great falvation; they perish without remedy. (2.) They that do not neglect it, shall furely escape. Here let us confider,

1. The danger finners are in by their fin. They are in hazard of perishing under God's wrath and curfe; for that is the just recompenfe of every fin, Heb. ii. 2.; of God's wrath confuming them, and his curfe binding them down under it for ever. He intimates, that all are liable to God's wrath and curfe, while he fays, How fhall we efcape, &c.

2. The way how they may escape; namely, by not neglecting, but falling in with the great falvation. The words intimate, (1.) That there is a poffibility of escaping; finners are not fhut up hopeless under the curfe. (2.) The way of efcape is not by fleeing from the Judge, and the execution of his fentence: nay, he is omnifcient and omniprefent; one cannot outwit him, or get away from his fight, or out of his reach. Nor is it by refifting, for he is omnipotent, and none can outbrave him, nor make head against him. But he may efcape by falling in with the means of escape appointed by himself, and required by him to be made ufe of by us. He has provided us with a falvation, a great one; i. e. the gospel, which teaches the way of eternal falvation. He requires us, not to neglect it, but to improve it for our escape. It is neglected by unbelief, impenitency, and not using the means prescribed. On the contrary, then, he requires of us faith and repentance, which are the fubftance of the gospel, Acts xx. 21. "Teftifying to the Jews, and alfo to the Greeks, repentance towards God, and faith towards our Lord Jefus Christ ;" and he requires of us the use of the means by which the salvation held forth in the gospel is obtained, Prov. viii. 34. "Bleffed is the man that heareth me, watching daily at my gates, waiting at the posts of my doors:" for furely they neglect and flight the gofpel, who do not believe, repent, or use the ordinary means of obtaining the falvation.

The text affords the following doctrine.

DOCT. "Whofo would escape God's wrath and curse, muft not neglect, but fall in with the great falvation." Or, "To escape the wrath and curfe of God due to us for fin, God requireth of us faith in Jesus Christ, repentance unto life, with the diligent use of all the outward means whereby Christ communicateth to us the benefits of redemption."

For explaining of this, I fhall fhew,

I. The neceffity of faith in Jesus Christ, in order to one's efcaping the wrath and curfe of God.

II. The neceffity of repentance, in order to the fame end. III. Answer the queftion, Are faith and repentance in men's power, fince God requires them of them?

IV. Shew the connection betwixt faith and repentance, and escaping the wrath and curse of God.

V. The neceffity of the diligent ufe of all the outward means whereby Christ communicates to us the benefits of redemption.

VI. Deduce an inference or two.

I. I fhall fhew the neceffity of faith in Jefus Chrift, in order to one's escaping the wrath and curfe of God due to him for fin. It is abfolutely neceffary; no man can escape God's wrath and curfe without it. For,

1. There is no pleafing of God without it, Heb. xi. 6. The reason is, because he is only pleased with Jefus Christ, and those who are in him, or united to him, Matth. xvii. 5. If one should weep for his fins till no moisture were left in his body, fast his flesh to a skeleton, and watch ever so carefully against his fin, if he have not faith, he is a lost man; he cannot please God, but muft lie for ever under his dif pleasure.

2. It is the great duty of the gofpel, whereby one is made partaker of the remedy provided, and without which neither your perfons nor performances can be accepted. It is "the work of God," John vi. 29.; "the command of God," 1 John iii. 23. Your perfons will ever be under condemnation without it, John iii. 18. And all your other duties will be but ciphers in God's account, multiply them as ye will, if faith be not at the head of them.

3. It is that which enters one into the covenant of peace; unites him with Chrift, and by which he comes to partake of all faving benefits. If ye would efcape God's wrath, ye must be within the covenant; ye must believe, that is, confent to the marriage-covenant, John vi. 35. There is no efcaping wrath without being in Chrift, and united to him, Rom. viii. 1. That union is by faith, Eph. iii. 17. We must be justified, and that is by faith, Rom. v. 1.; and fanctified, which is by faith too, Acts xv. 9.

4. Salvation and damnation turns upon this very point. VOL. III. No. 26.

Dd

« PreviousContinue »