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up of justified sinners. Neither more nor less of the one than of the other. Art thou justified by faith, by which thou hast peace with God? then lose not thy privilege, but rejoice with thy fellow saints "in the hope of the glory of God." It is before thee; every day brings thee nearer to it, and nothing can binder thee of it at last not thy sins themselves, and I know thou fearest them most. He that paid thy great score at thy conversion, will find mercy enough in his heart surely to pass by thy dribbling debts, which thy own infirmity and Satan's subtilty have run thee into. Thou wert an enemy, when God thought of doing the first; but now thou art a friend, and this will oblige him to do the second, that he may not lose his disbursement in the first; yea, provision is made by God in his method of our salvation for the one as strongly as for the other. Christ died to make us of ene mies to God friends with him; and he lives now to bring God and us (being thus made friends) to meet in one Heaven together. Yea, the Apostle gives the advantage to this of the two for our faith to triumph in: "For if when we were enemies, we were reconciled to God by the death of his Son; much more being reconciled, we shall be saved by his life." Rom. v. 10. As if the Apostle had said, Can you believe that God hath taken you that were bloody enemies into a state of peace and favour with himself? Surely then you must needs find it easier for your faith to argue from reconciliation to salvation, than from hostility and enmity to pardon and peace; could Christ procure the one by his death, when he was weakest (as I may so say) and at the lowest descent of his humiliation? How much more shall be in the height of his court favour in Heaven (where he hath all power given him, and in particular the keys of Hell and death to open and shut as he pleaseth) Rev. i. 18. be able to save those whom he hath reconciled?

Sixthly, Art thou at peace with God? Knowing the goodness of God to thyself, do thou woo in some others to embrace the same mercy. The house is not so full, but yet there is room." Luke xiv. 22. Hast thou none thou lovest so well as to wish them thy happiness? haply thou hast a carnal husband lying by thy side,

children of thy womb or loins, neighbours in whose company thou art every day almost, and all these in an unreconciled state; who, should they die as now they live, their precious souls are lost for ever, and yet themselves think no more of this misery coming on them than the silly sheep doth what the butcher is doing when he is whetting his knife to cut her throat. Well, the less merciful they are to their own souls, the more need there is thou shouldest shew thy compassion towards them. We take most care of those that are least capable of taking care for themselves. If thou hadst a friend sick in thy house, and of such a disease that he could not help himself, should he die rather than thou wouldest look after him? if a child condemned to die, though he did himself not mind the getting of a pardon, yet surely thou wouldest run and ride to obtain it, rather than see him end his days so shamefully. In a word, didst thou but know that thy next neighbour had an intention to kill himself, and for that end had locked himself up in a room, wouldest thou not bestir thee to break open the door rather than the man should thus miscarry? But, alas! where is the holy violence that is used to save poor souls? Parents, husbands, neighbours, they can see their relations going to hell before their eyes; and who saith to them, Why do you so? O for the Lord's sake, be more merciful to the souls of others. Thou hast found a feast, let not any that are near thee starve for want of knowing where it is to be had; go and invite all thou canst see to God's house so did David, Psal. xxxiv. 8. "O taste and see that the Lord is good." Thou needest not fear a chiding from God, for sending him more guests; he complains he hath no more: "Ye will not come unto me that ye may have life." John v. 40. He threatens those that keep sinners off from making their peace with him by flattering them with a false one: called a "strengthening the hands of the wicked, that he should not return from his wicked way, by promising him life." Ezek. xiii. 22. O how acceptable a work then must it needs be to woo souls into Christ? The merchant is not angry for sending a customer into his warehouse, that will buy what he hath taken so much cost and travail to get that

he may sell; nor will the physician blame any for bringing a patient to him by whose cure he may let the world know his skill and art. And this is the great design Christ hath long had, and in particular prayed for: "that the world might believe that he was sent of God." John xvii. 21. What aims he at in the gathering in of souls by the grace of the Gospel, but "to take out a people (from the heap of sinners) for his name." Acts xv. 14. that is, cull out a number, in shewing mercy to whom he might exalt his own name gloriously.

CHAP. VIII.

THAT PEACE OF CONSCIENCE IS A BLESSING TO BE OBTAINED FROM THE GOSPEL AND ONLY THE GOSPEL, WITH A DOUBLE DEMONSTRATION THEREOF.

WE come now to the second kind of peace, and that is peace of consolation, or peace of conscience. By the former the poor sinner is reconciled to God; by this he becomes anima pacata sibi. A soul reconciled to itself. Since man fell out with God he could never be truly friends with his own conscience. This second peace is so necessary that he cannot taste the sweetness of the first, nor indeed of any other mercy, without it. This is to the soul what health is to the body; it sugars and sweetens all enjoyments. A suit, though of cloth of gold, sits not easy on a sick man's back: nothing joyous to a distressed conscience. Moses brought good news to the distressed Israelites in Egypt; but it is said, "they hearkened not to him for anguish of spirit." Exod. vi. 9. Hannah, she went up to the festival at Jerusalem with her husband, but it is said, "she wept and did not eat." 1 Sam. i. 7. Truly thus the wounded soul goes to the sermon, but doth not eat of the feast before it; hears many precious promises, but her ear is shut up from receiving the good news they bring. Tell one in trouble of conscience, Here's your dear husband, sweet children, will you not rejoice with them; alas! the throes such a one

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feels are so amazing, that he regards these things no more than Phineas's wife in her sore travail did the women that joyed her with the birth of a son. Set the most royal feast before such a soul that ever was on prince's table, and, poor heart, it had rather go into a corner and weep than sit and eat of those delicacies. "A wounded spirit who can bear?" yea who can cure? Some diseases are, for their incurableness, called ludibrium medicorum, the physician's shame and reproach. To be sure this spiritual trouble of an accusing conscience puts all the world to shame for their vain attempts. Many have attempted to conjure this evil spirit out of their own bosoms and others', but have found it at last to leap upon them, and prevail against them, as the evil spirit, Acts xix. 14. did by the sons of Sceva.

No: peace of conscience (I am now to shew) is the blessing of the Gospel and only of the Gospel: conscience knows Jesus, and the Gospel of Jesus; these, and none else, it will obey. Two particulars considered will demonstrate the truth of the point. First, if we consider what is the argument that pacifies and satisfies conscience. Secondly, what the power and strength that is required to apply this argument so close and home to the conscience as to quiet and fully satisfy it; both these will be found in the Gospel and only in the Gospel.

SECT. I.

First, Let us enquire what is the argument that is able to pacify conscience, when thoroughly awakened. Now to know this we must enquire what is the cause of all those convulsions of horror and terror with which the consciences of men are at any time so sadly rent and distorted. Now this is sin. Could this little word (but great plague) be quite blotted out of men's minds and hearts, the storm would be soon hushed, and the soul become a pacific sea, quiet and smooth, without the least wave of fear to wrinkle the face thereof. This is the Jonas, which raiseth the storm; the Achan that troubles the soul. Wherever this comes (as was observed of a great queen of France) a war is sure to follow. When Adam sinned, he dissolved another manner of jewel than

Cleopatra did; he drunk away this sweet peace of conscience in one unhappy draught, which was worth more to him than the world he lived in. No wonder that it rose in his conscience as soon as it was down his throat. "They saw that they were naked." Gen. iii. 7. Their consciences reproached them for cursed apostates. That therefore which brings peace to conscience must prostrate this Goliah, throw this troubler overboard, pluck this arrow out of the soul; or else the war will not end, the storm will not down, the wound will not close and heal which conscience labours under. Now the envenomed head of sin's arrow, that lies burning in the conscience, and by its continual throbbing there keeps the poor sinner out of quiet, yea sometimes in unsupportable torment and horror, is guilt; whereby the creature is alarmed up to judgment, and bound over to the punishment due to his sin; which being no less than the infinite wrath of the eternal living God must needs lay the poor creature into a dismal agony, from the fearful expectation thereof in his accusing conscience. He therefore that would use an argument to pacify and comfort a distressed conscience, that lies roasting upon these burning coals of God's wrath, kindled by his guilt, must quench these coals, and bring him the certain news of this joyful message that his sins are all pardoned, and God (whose wrath doth so affright him) is undoubtedly, yea everlastingly, reconciled to him. This, and no other argument, will stop the mouth of conscience, and bring the creature to true peace with his own thoughts. "Son, be of good cheer (said Christ to the man sick of the palsy) thy sins be forgiven thee." Matt. ix. 2. Not be of good cheer, thy health is given thee (though that he had also); but thy sins are forgiven thee. If a friend should come to a malefactor on his way to the gallows, put a sweet posey into his hands, and bid him be of good cheer, smell on that, alas! this would bring little joy with it to the poor man's heart, who sees the place of execution before him; but if one comes from the prince with a pardon, which he puts into his hand, and bids him be of good cheer, this and this only will reach the poor man's heart, and overrun it with a sudden ravishment of joy.

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