distemper with you, it had the same symptoms, the same effects, and by his skill and care we are cured. Oh, saith the sick man, bring him unto me, I will venture my life in his hand. Now all the saints of heaven stand about a sin-sick soul; for in this matter 'we are compassed with a cloud of witnesses; Heb. xii. 1. And what do they bear witness unto? What say they unto a poor guilty sinner? As thou art, so were we; so guilty, so perplexed, so obnoxious to wrath, so fearing destruction from God. And what way did you steer, what course did you take to obtain the blessed condition wherein now you are? Say they, We went all to God through Christ for forgiveness, and found plenty of grace, mercy, and pardon in him for us all. The rich man in the parable thought it would be a great means of conversion, if one should rise from the dead' and preach. But here we see that all the saints departed, and now in glory, do jointly preach this fundamental truth, that there is forgiveness with God.'

Poor souls are apt to think that all those whom they read or hear of to be gone to heaven, went thither because they were so good and so holy. It is true, many of them were eminently and exemplarily so in their generations. All of them were so according to their degrees and measures: for without holiness no man can see God.' And it is our duty to labour to be like unto them in holiness, if ever we intend to be so in happiness and glory. But yet not one of them, not any one that is now in heaven, Jesus Christ alone excepted, did ever come thither any other way but by forgiveness of sin; and that will also bring us thither, though we come short of many of them in holiness and grace.

And this evidence of forgiveness I the rather urge, because I find the apostle Paul doing of it eminently in his own person, 1 Tim. i. 12-16. I thank Christ Jesus our Lord, who hath enabled me, for that he counted me faithful, putting me into the ministry; who was before a blasphemer, and a persecutor, and injurious: but I obtained mercy, because I did it ignorantly in unbelief. This is a faithful saying, and worthy of all acceptation, that Jesus Christ came into the world to save sinners; of whom I am chief. Howbeit for this cause I obtained mercy, that in me first

Jesus Christ might shew forth all long-suffering, for a pattern to them that should hereafter believe on him to life everlasting.' A great sinner, saith he, the chiefest of sinners I was, which he manifests by some notable instances of his sin. I was, saith he, 'a blasphemer,' the highest sin against God; 'a persecutor,' the highest sin against the saints; 'injurious,' the highest wickedness towards mankind. But, saith he, 'I obtained mercy;' I am pardoned; and that with a blessed effect. First, that he should after all this be so accounted faithful as to be put into the ministry; and then that the grace of our Lord Jesus Christ in him and towards him was exceeding abundant. And what was the reason, what was the cause, that he was thus dealt withal? Why, it was that he might be a pattern, an evidence, an argument, that there was grace, mercy, forgiveness, to be had for all sorts of sinners that would believe to life everlasting.

To conclude then this evidence. Every one who is now in heaven hath his pardon sealed in the blood of Christ. All these pardons are, as it were, hanged up in the gospel; they are all enrolled in the promises thereof, for the encouragement of them that stand in need of forgiveness to come and sue out theirs also. Fear not then the guilt of sin, but the love of it, and the power of it. If we love and like sin better than forgiveness, we shall assuredly go without it. If we had but rather be pardoned in God's way, than perish, our condition is secure.

Fifthly, The same is evident from the patience of God towards the world, and the end of it. For the clearing hereof we may observe,

1. That [on] the first entrance of sin and breach of that covenant which God had made with mankind in Adam, he might immediately have executed the threatened curse, and have brought eternal death upon them that sinned. Justice required that it should be so, and there was nothing in the whole creation to interpose so much as for a reprieve or a respite of vengeance. And had God then sent sinning man, with the apostate angels that induced him into sin, immediately into eternal destruction, he would have been glorified in his righteousness and severity, by and among the angels that sinned not; or he could have created a new race of innocent creatures to have worshipped him and glorified him

for his righteous judgment; even as the elect at the last day shall do, for the destruction of ungodly men.

2. God hath not taken this course. He hath continued the race of mankind for a long season on the earth; he hath watched over them with his providence, and exercised exceeding patience, forbearance, and long-suffering towards them. Thus the apostle Paul at large discourseth on, Acts xiv. 15-17. xvii. 24-30. as also Rom. ii. 4. And it is open and manifest in their event. The whole world is every day filled with tokens of the power and patience of God. Every nation, every city, every family is filled with them.

3. That there is a common abuse of this patience of God visible in the world in all generations. So it was of old; God saw it to be so, and complained of it, Gen. vi. 5, 6. All the evil, sin, wickedness, that hath been in the world, which no heart can conceive, no tongue can express, hath been all an abuse of this patience of God. This with the most is the consequent of God's patience and forbearance. Men count it a season to fulfil all the abominations that their evil hearts can suggest unto them, or Satan draw them into a combination with himself in. This the state of things in the world proclaims, and every one's experience confirms.

4. Let us, therefore, consider what is the true and proper end of this patience of God towards the world, enduring it in sin and wickedness, for so long a season, and suffering one generation to be multiplied after another. Shall we think that God hath no other design, in all this patience towards mankind in all generations, but merely to suffer them all and every one, without exception, to sin against him, dishonour him, provoke him, that so he may at length everlastingly destroy them all? It is confessed that this is the consequent, the event of it with the most, through their perverse wickedness, with their love of sin and pleasure. But is this the design of God? his only design? hath he no other purpose but merely to forbear them awhile in their folly, and then to avenge himself upon them? Is this his intendment not only towards those who are obstinate in their darkness, ignorance, and rebellion against him, whose damnation is just, and sleepeth not; but also towards those whom he stirs up by his grace to seek after a remedy and deliverance from the state of sin and death? God forbid; yea, such an apprehen

sion would be contrary to all those notions of the infinite wisdom and goodness of God which are ingrafted upon our hearts by nature, and which all his works manifest and declare. Whatever therefore it be, this cannot be the design of God, in his patience towards the world. It cannot be, but that he must long since have cut off the whole race of mankind, if he had no other thoughts and purposes towards them. 5. If this patience of God hath any other intention towards any, any other effect upon some, upon any, that is to be reckoned the principal end of it, and for the sake whereof it is evidently extended unto some others, consequentially unto all. For those concerning whom God hath an especial design in his patience, being to be brought forth in the world after the ordinary way of mankind, and that in all ages during the continuance of the world from the beginning unto the end thereof, the patience which is extended unto them must also of necessity reach unto all, in that variety wherein God is pleased to exercise it. The whole world therefore is continued under the patience of God, and the fruits of it, for the sake of some that are in it.

6. Let us therefore see what is the end of this patience, and what it teacheth us. Now it can have no end possible but only that before rejected, unless there be forgiveness of sins with God. Unless God be ready and willing to forgive the sins of them that come to him according unto his appointment, his patience is merely subservient unto a design of wrath, anger, severity, and a resolution to destroy. Now this is an abomination once to suppose, and would reflect unspeakable dishonour upon the Holy God. Let a man but deal thus, and it is a token of as evil an habit of mind, and perverse, as any can befall him. Let him bear with those that are in his power in their faults, for no other end, or with no other design, but that he may take advantage to bring a greater punishment and revenge upon them and what more vile affection, what more wretched corruption of heart and mind, can he manifest? And shall we think that this is the whole design of the patience of God? God forbid.

It may be objected that this argument is not cogent, because of the instance that lies against it in God's dealing with the angels that sinned. It is evident that they fell into their transgression and apostacy before mankind did so;

for they led and seduced our first parents into sin. And yet God bears with them, and exerciseth patience towards them to this very day; and will do so unto the consummation of all things, when they shall be cast into the fire' prepared for the devil and his angels.' And yet it is granted, that there is no forgiveness in God for them; so that it doth not necessarily follow, that there is so for man, because of his patience towards them.

I answer, That this must be more fully spoken unto when we come to remove that great objection against this whole truth which was mentioned before, taken from God's dealing with the sinning angels, whom he spared not. At present two or three observations will remove it out of our way. For,

1. That the case is not the same with the sinning angels, and the race of mankind in all generations. There are no other angels in this condition, but only those individuals who first sinned in their own persons. They are not in the providence and patience of God, multiplied and increased in ensuing times and seasons; but they continue the same individual persons who first sinned, and no more. So that immediate execution of the whole punishment due unto their sin, would not have prevented any increase of them. But now with man it is otherwise; for God continues his patience towards them to the production of millions of other persons, who were not actually in the first sin. Had not God so continued his forbearance, their being, and consequently their sin and misery, had been prevented; so that the case is not the same with sinning angels and men.

2. Indeed God exerciseth no patience toward the angels that sinned; and that because he had no forgiveness for them. So Peter tells us, 2 Epist. ii. 6. God spared not the angels that sinned, but cast them down into hell, and delivered them into chains of darkness.' Immediately upon their sin they were cast out of the presence of God, whose vision and enjoyment they were made for, and which they received some experience of. And they were cast into hell, as the place of their ordinary retention, and of their present anguish under the sense of God's curse and displeasure. And although they may some of them be permitted to compass the earth, and to walk to and fro therein to serve the