fer mercy; to invite them, in common with others, to return; and to assure all that he that believeth shall be saved; and to use means with them more or less, according to his pleasure; but finally, they being obstinate, he designed to leave them to themselves, to take their own course, and, in the end, to deal with them according to their deserts. Mat. xxiii. 37, 38. and xxii. 1-7. And this being the case, the objection from the Apostle's words is evidently groundless.

As to the opinion of the Arminians, that God equally designed salvation for all men, purposing to offer salvation to all, and use means with all, and leave all to their own free, will, and save those, and those only, who, of their own accord, will become good men; as for this opinion, I say, I think they never learnt it from the Bible: but rather, they seem to have been led into it from a notion that mankind are so goodnatured that all might, and that at least some actually would, under the enjoyment of the common means of grace, become good men of their own accord, i. e. without any such thing as special grace. Convince them that this is an error, and they will soon give up their scheme, and acknowledge their need of sovereign grace, and see the reasonableness and truth of the doctrine of election. Or rather, I may say, convince them, first of all, what God is, and what the law is, and what the nature of true religion is, that they may know what conversion means, and what it means to be a good man, and there will be no difficulty then to convince them of the depravity of mankind: for what leads them to think it so easy a thing to become a good inan, and that men may be brought to it merely by the force of moral suasion, is, their wrong idea of the nature of true religion. If religion be what they suppose, then, no doubt, any body may easily become good; for corrupt nature can bear with such a religion. But if religion, or a conformity to God's law, be what I have endeavoured to prove it to be in the former discourse, then, no doubt, mankind are naturally diametrically opposite thereto in the temper of their minds; even all mankind, Arminians as well as others and all do, or might know it, if they would seriously and honestly weigh the matter; for it is plain fact. The Arminians are wont mightily to cry up works, and plead for the

moral law, as though they were great friends to it: but if their mistakes about the moral law might once be rectified, and they be brought really and heartily to approve it, as holy, just, and good, one principal source of all their errors would be dried up; and particularly their wrong notions about election and universal redemption.

"But where was there any love," (will the objector say,) " in God's giving his Son to die for the non-elect; or sincerity in his offering them mercy, if he never designed to bring them to glory, but from eternity, intended to leave them to perish in their sins ?"

And where was there any love, I answer, in God's bringing the Israelites out of Egypt, or sincerity in his offering to bring them to Canaan, if he never designed eventually to bring them there; but, from eternity, intended to leave them to murmur and rebel, and to have their carcasses fall in the wilderness? The solution in both cases is the same, and is plainly this: as it was the Israelites' own fault that they did not come to Canaan at last, so it is the sinner's own fault that he finally falls short of glory. However, the Israelites were often in a rage, and ready to sav, The Lord hath brought us into the wilderness to kill us here; and they murmured against God, and against Moses, for which they were struck dead by hundreds and thousands: and just so sinners do; and the same punishment do they deserve. But had the Israelites felt at heart that it was their own voluntary wickedness which was the sole cause of their ruin; and did sinners feel it at heart too, there would be no murmuring in one case or the other; but every mouth would be stopped. But I have spoken to this before.

To conclude; if this representation of things which I have given be according to truth, hence, then, we may learn these two things, which, indeed, were what I had principally in view in dwelling so long upon this subject, and labouring to answer objections; I say, we may learn, 1. That any poor sinner, all the world over, who hears the gospel and believes it, has sufficient grounds of encouragement, from the freeness of God's grace, and the sufficiency of Christ, and the universal calls of the gospel, to venture his eternal ALL in this way of

:

salvation, and may safely return to God through Christ, in hopes of acceptance; and that without any particular revelation that he is elected, or that Christ died for him in particular. "Any may come, the vilest and the worst; and therefore I may come:" and therefore such a particular revelation is per fectly needless nor could it do any good; for the truth of the gospel may be depended upon; but the truth of such a particular revelation cannot. 2. That any poor, sinful, guilty, broken-hearted backslider, who groans under the burden of sin as the greatest evil, and longs to have the power of sin taken down, and his corruptions slain, and himself thoroughly subdued to God, may look up to the infinite free grace of God through Jesus Christ, and pray, "Lord take away this heart of stone, and give me a heart of flesh. Turn me, and I shall be turned. Lord, if thou wilt, thou canst make me clean.O create in me a clean heart, and renew in me a right spirit, and restore to me the joy of thy salvation! To thy sovereign grace and self-moving goodness I apply myself, through Jesus Christ. God be merciful to me, a sinner:" and that whether he knows himself to be a child of God, or no; and so whether he knows that he belongs to the number of the elect, or not. Nor does he need any particular revelation that Christ died for him in particular, or that he is elected, or that he is beloved of God: nor would these things do any good to clear up his warrant to come for mercy; because God may, through Christ, give his holy spirit to any that ask him. All who are athirst are invited to come and take of the waters of life freely. "Any may come; and therefore I may come, although the vilest creature in the world." And I appeal to all the generation of God's children, whether this has not been their way of coming to God through Christ, ever since the day they first came to know the Lord. Sure I am, this is the scripture-way. God has sent out a proclamation through a sinful, guilty world, inviting all to come to him, through Jesus Christ, for all things; and given many encouragements, by representing how free his grace is, how sufficient Christ is, and how faithful his promises, and that whosoever will, may come, &c. But no where in all the Bible has he revealed it that such and such in particular, by name, among mankind,

are elected; and that for these individuals Christ died in particular, by way of encouragement to those particular persons, in order to let them know that they might safely trust in Christ, and come to God through him. But then must we be right, when we understand the gospel and believe it, and, upon the very encouragements which God has given, are emboldened to return, in hopes of acceptance: and this must be agreeable to God's will; and to this must the influences of the true spirit tend. But to venture to return and look to God for mercy, merely upon any other ground, is anti-scriptural; and whatsoever spirit influences thereunto cannot, therefore, be from God.

And thus we see how the door of life is opened by Christ, our great Mediator and high-priest. And hence, Christ calls himself the door. John x. 9. I am the door: by me, if any man enter in he shall be saved. And hence, also, he calls himself the way to the Father. John xiv. 6. I am the way, the truth, and the life. No man cometh to the Father but by me; for through him, (saith the Apostle, Eph. ii. 18.) we both have an access, by one spirit, unto the Father; and also, through him, God is reconciling the world to himself, sending ambassadors, and beseeching them to be reconciled. 2 Cor. v. 19, 20. Which leads me to the next thing proposed.

SECTION VI.

A VIEW OF THE METHODS OF DIVINE GRACE WITH MANKIND, FROM THE BEGINNING OF THE WORLD.

4. I am to show what methods the great Governor of the world has entered upon, in order to put in execution those designs of mercy which he had in view when he contrived to open this poor, in such a wonderful and glorious manner, by the interposition of his own dear Son.

The most high God is conscious of his own infinite excellence; his right to, and authority over the children of men: He sees mankind as being under infinite obligations to love and obey him, and that the least defect is an infinite evil. He judges the law to be holy, just, and good: and mankind whol

ly to blame for their non-conformity thereto, and worthy to be dealt with according to it. He knows their contrariety to him, to his law, and to his gospel. He sees all these things as they really are. His infinite wisdom sees how it is fit for such an one as he is, now, through a mediator, to conduct towards such a world as this is. He sees what conduct is most becoming, and, all things considered, most meet and suitable: and to this conduct the perfect rectitude of his nature prompts and inclines him. Upon the whole, he necessarily, and freely determines to act like himself; i. e. like an absolute sovereign, infinite in wisdom, holiness, justice, goodness, and truth. This was his determination from eternity; this is his determination in time; and according to this rule he actually proceeds, in all his methods with a sinful, guilty, obstinate world; working all things according to the counsel of his own will, Eph. i. 11.; sovereignly, and yet wisely; holily and justly, and yet as the Lord God gracious and merciful, slow to anger, and abundant in goodness and truth. As is his nature, such is his conduct; and hence his conduct exhibits to us the very image of his heart. Thus it is in the impetration, and thus it is in the application of our redemption, and in all the methods he takes with a guilty world in general. And hence, all his ways are calculated to exalt God, and humble the sinner; to honour the law, and discountenance sin; to exclude boasting, and to glorify grace; as we shall more fully see in what follows:

(1.) As being the supreme Lord and sovereign Ruler of the whole world, he does, through Jesus Christ, the great Mediator, the Lamb slain from the foundation of the world, by whom his honour has been secured; he does, I say, through him, grant, and, by an act of grace, confirm to the world of mankind, a general reprieve from that utter ruin which was threatened by the law, and to which an apostate world were exposed. Total destruction was threatened in case of disobedience. Gen. ii. 17. In dying thou shalt die ; i. e. thou shalt die with a witness: thy ruin shall be complete. And now nothing could be expected but a dreadful doom, and to be sealed down under everlasting despair. But, instead of this, the great God dooms the tempter, and threatens utter ruin to his new-erected kingdom. Gen.iii. 14, 15. Because thou hast done this, thou art