Chapter 2: On The Nature Of Repentance

EARNESTLY CONTENDING FOR THE FAITH:
REPENTANCE EXPLAINED AND ENFORCED
by
JOHN THORNTON
Chapter 2: On Nature Of Repentance
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THE LORD JESUS CHRIST IS
GOD MANIFEST IN THE FLESH.
THAT IS WHY HE IS GOD

CHAPTER II.

On the Nature of Repentance.

In the last chapter, I proved that all are by nature, in a state of spiritual darkness and distance from God, defiled with sin and exposed to future punishment. It is no easy matter to believe a doctrine, so grating to all the feelings which self-love fondly cherishes. Yet this is necessary, as a first step in religion; and without it, we stumble at the threshold. Having opened the way, I shall now proceed to shew the nature of repentance. It is of the highest importance that we should have right sentiments on this subject. There are few persons but sometimes hear or speak of repentance. The vilest reprobates will in their more sober moments own the need of repentance. While men are in the very act of sinning against God, the mind is now and then struck with a thought of repentance. But we have reason to fear, there are not many who have just ideas of what the scriptures mean by this term. Some take the name for the thing, the shadow for the substance. Others think of nothing more than a slight reformation. If the wound be skinned over, they conclude it is healed. If the wild beast be chained, they are not concerned that it should be tamed. What numbers are there, who vainly imagine they have a power to produce the change required by themselves! Strangers to the corruption of the heart, and the strength of evil habits, they suppose they can forsake vice and become virtuous when they please, and leap out of Delilah’s lap into Abraham’s bosom. Sin first deceives, next stupefies, and at last destroys. While men entertain such loose, erroneous notions, trusting to their own power, and despising or neglecting the grace of God, it may be truly said, they put their repentance in the place of Christ. It is necessary therefore that we should carefully guard against every thing which leads to such delusions.
I shall endeavour to shew the nature of true repentance.
That repentance which issues in life eternal, is a change of mind, contrition of heart, and deep self-abhorrence.
A change of mind.
While a sinner is in a carnal state, his views and sentiments, his hopes and fears, his aims and motives, are directly contrary to what they ought to be. He scorns substantial blessings, and catches at shadows. He refuses the heavenly manna, and according to the language of the prophet, feeds upon ashes. He rejects the pearl of great price, and rakes up despicable rubbish. The things of the spirit of God, in which alone there is true wisdom, appear foolishness to him. As his imagination gilds every thing with false colours, he is pleased where he should be disgusted, and disgusted where he ought to be pleased. He is like a hungry man that dreameth, and behold he eateth, but he awaketh and his soul is empty; or a thirsty man that dreameth, and behold he drinketh, but he awaketh and he is faint Isaiah 29:8.
But in repentance, a happy change takes place. He who is brought under the saving influence of divine grace, is renewed in the spirit of his mind. The eyes of his understanding are enlightened, to see the vanity of the world, the evil of sin, and the value of eternal possessions. Whatever relates to God, to Christ, and to the immortal soul, now appears in a new light.
The sincere penitent has right views of God. Once he did not like to retain God in his knowledge. He had a revolting and a rebellious heart. The law of God, requiring perfect obedience, was thought too strict. The justice of God, preparing; a cup of indignation for the wicked, was thought too severe. The worship of God was felt to be a weariness and an intolerable burden.
While such was the frame of the sinner’s mind, no wonder he should turn away from religion with hatred and scorn. Job describes the wicked in prosperity, in the following remarkable language; Therefore they say unto God, depart from us; for we desire not the knowledge of thy ways. What is the Almighty, that we should serve him? and what profit should we have if we pray unto him? Job 21:14-15. One of this character hates the light, because his deeds are evil. But he who has undergone a thorough change, has new thoughts of God. He sees that he is supremely great, and infinitely gracious, worthy of the highest love and reverence, from every creature in earth and heaven. He is convinced, that the law is holy, just, and good, and when it condemns himself, goes not a jot too far. He is ready to own, that if he had been compelled to drink the cup of wrath, and wring out its bitterest dregs, he should not have had a drop more than he deserved. In short, he perceives that God is a rock, his work is perfect, his word is pure, and all his ways are wonderful, and past finding out. And is it not evident, that the more the holiness and goodness of the Lord are seen, the blacker and viler sin will appear? “The carnal man,” as a good writer observes, “is apt to think God ought to repent of making such hard laws, rather than that he himself should repent of breaking them.” Instead of changing his course, and turning out of the broad into the narrow way, he acts as if God would change his councils, and give blessings where he has threatened curses. Now every true penitent has quite different views. He honours God, and abases himself in the dust. Far from fretting and murmuring against the Lord, he stands amazed at his long suffering.
A sincere penitent has right views, and new thoughts of Christ.
Once Jesus appeared to him as a root out of dry ground, having no form or comeliness, to make him desired. But now his divine excellency and glory are discerned and acknowledged. He bows himself at the feet of Jesus, and looks to him as the great Shepherd, Surety, Saviour, and Redeemer of his people. He beholds the brightness of the Father’s glory, the express image of his person, and the fulness of the Godhead in Christ. He sees all the promises and provisions of the gospel, as well as the keys of death and of hell in the mighty and faithful hands of Christ. What words can truly set forth the astonishing condescension and kindness of the Saviour? “If”, said Austin, “the whole sea were ink, and every blade of grass a pen, we could not fully describe the love of Christ.” It is impossible to have clear views, or spiritual discoveries of the adorable Redeemer, and not be in a considerable degree affected by them. Mr. Flavel calls repentance the tear that drops from the eye of faith, while looking to Jesus. Who can behold the Son of God coming in the flesh, laying down his life as a sacrifice, and conquering death and the powers of darkness for us, without feeling a glow of love to him? To them that believe, he is precious.
The sincere penitent has new thoughts of his own soul.
Once the body engaged all his care. That it might be adorned and admired, pleased and pampered, he spared no pains or costs. What shall I eat, what shall 1 drink, and wherewith shall 1 be clothed, if not the cry of his lips, was the language of his heart. But now being enlightened from above, he beholds the unspeakable worth of the immortal soul, and his chief concern is its salvation. O, says he, I have played the fool, and erred exceedingly in providing for the flesh, and neglecting the better part — the never dying spirit! How shall I be delivered from the wrath to come? What shall I do to be saved? If my house were burnt down, I might get another; if my Friends were cut off, I might procure new ones; if my health were destroyed, it might be restored; but if my soul be lost, it can never be recovered, and shall be utterly undone. Such are the views of a true penitent!
And let me ask, are your thoughts of God, of Christ, and of your own soul, very different from what they once were? Without such a change of mind, there cannot be genuine repentance. If any man be in Christ, he is a new creature: old things are passed away: behold all things are become new. 2 Corinthians 5:17. I do not say that repentance is always produced by the same means, or in the same manner. In one instance, the mind is changed, as a river gradually drawn into a fresh channel; and in another, as a river turned into a new course, by the shock of an earthquake. Such was the difference between the conversion of Saul of Tarsus, and that of Lydia.
Repentance is contrition of heart.
The prophets of old called the Jews a stiffnecked, stout-hearted, and rebellious people. How many in the present day answer to this description! Though we warn them, admonish them, intreat them, and thunder aloud in their ears the threatenings of the law; though we shew them the nearness of death, the certainty and solemnity of the last judgment, the transporting happiness of heaven, and the endless, unutterable misery of hell—they remain unaffected and unconcerned! They sleep like Jonah! while the tempest, which their own sins have raised, threatens them with instant destruction. How awful is it to see this daring presumption—this unfeeling stupidity, continued to the last hour of life!” There are some persons,” says Mr. Simpson, “so hardened in sin, and so totally given up of God, that neither sickness nor death can make any impression on them.” He mentions one of this unhappy description in Essex, not far from the place where I now write; whom he both visited during his illness, and interred after he was dead. He was of a good family, and possessed good abilities; but wasted all his property and ruined his constitution, in a course of riot and excess. Among his bottle companions, he made a jest of hell, and turned every thing sacred into ridicule. In this way he lived, and died a martyr to spirituous liquors; cursing and blaspheming to the last, notwithstanding all that could be done to bring him to a better mind (Simpson’s Plea for Religion, p. 256). O the blinding and hardening nature of sin!
What poison is so subtle, so dangerous, so deadly? How does it brutalize and ruin the soul! How does it warp the judgment, pervert the will, and stupify the heart!
If you work all uncleanness with greediness, you will in a short time be past feeling. Reproofs will have no edge to wound; warnings, no weight to move you. And is there any thing on earth more to be dreaded than such a state? There is truth in the saying of a good author, “It is better to have a burdened conscience than a benumbed conscience: you had better be over-fearful, than have no fear of God before your eyes.” The words of the apostle to the Hebrews are never out of season: Exhort one another daily, while it is called to-day; lest any of you be hardened through the deceitfulness of sin. Hebrews 3:13.
Now, true repentance is a state of mind, directly opposite to that which I have just described. It is in the scriptures called a broken heart, or a contrite spirit. Psalm 51:17. The sacrifices of God are a broken spirit; a broken and a contrite heart, O God, thou wilt not despise. Men, as one observes, despise broken things; but God does not despise a broken heart; so far from it, that he accounts the sorrow of a penitent sinner more valuable than the most costly sacrifice. When the word of God is applied by the power of divine grace, the flinty heart melts into tender grief, and the eyes overflow with floods of tears. What anxious thoughts! what strong and cutting convictions are now felt! When the fountains of the great deep are broken up within, what agonies wring the soul! O, says the sinner, I have rebelled against that God whom angels adore! I have broken his laws, defied his judgments, and despised his mercies. I have neglected the great salvation, and ungratefully slighted that compassionate and glorious Redeemer, who gave his life a ransom for me! I have turned a deaf ear to the joyful sound of the gospel, and done despite unto the Spirit of grace! Such thoughts as these are the arrows of the Almighty, which pierce the heart with the keenest anguish, and make those deep wounds, which nothing but the balm of Gilead can heal. What is pain of body, compared with distress of mind? The spirit of a man will sustain his infirmity, hut a wounded spirit who can bear? Yet we may truly say, he who thus sincerely mourns over his sins, shall not eternally sink under them.
Behold David, that broken hearted penitent! How deeply he laments his sin. How fully and feelingly he confesses it. How humbly and earnestly he prays for pardoning and renewing grace.
Psalm 51:3- 4. For I acknowledge my transgression, and my sin is ever before me. Against thee, thee only have I sinned, and done this evil in thy sight. Purge me with hyssop, and I shall be clean; wash me, and I shall be whiter than snow. Make me to hear joy and gladness; that the bones which thou hast broken may rejoice. He did not cast a hasty glance at sin, and soon forget it again. No, wherever he went, it seemed to haunt him as a frightful monster. It was not the injury done to men, so much as the offensiveness of his crimes to God, that filled him with bitterness. There are few, who do not sometimes feel a pang of remorse, but the contrition of David’s heart is compared to the anguish of broken bones.
Behold the penitent publican, mentioned Luke 18:13. Pressed beneath the load of his guilt, he goes to the temple to pray. But he stood afar off, and would not so much as lift up his eyes to heaven, but smote upon his breast, crying, God, be merciful to me, a sinner! His distance, and humble posture, betoken the sense he felt of his own unworthiness, conscious that he might have been, in justice, everlastingly banished from the holy temple, and all the means of grace. His smiting upon his heart, silently, but expressively said, here lies my guilt, my greatest burden; here are deep fixed the barbed and bitter arrows of remorse. His short, but solemn and fervent prayer, flew up to heaven, and speedily brought down pardon, so that he went down to his house justified. Do not think his case was a singular one. While you remain on earth, you will need daily to put up the same petition to God. That excellent man, Archbishop Usher, often said, he hoped to die with the language of the publican in his mouth, and he who wrote his life, tells us, his wish was fulfilled; he died saying, God be merciful to me, a sinner.
Behold the penitent prostitute, Luke 7:37. She goes uncalled into the house of Simon the pharisee, to carry her broken heart, and her box of ointment to Jesus. Had she continued in her old course of sin, instead of seeking Christ, she would have shunned him, saying with the devils, art thou come to torment me? But now, as Bishop Hall observes, “those eyes which had been fires of lusts, are become fountains of tears; and those hairs which had been nets to catch her wanton lovers, are made a towel to wipe her Redeemer’s feet.” And though Simon murmured, the meek and merciful Saviour said, her sins, which are many, are forgiven her. In the last two instances, humility and penitence are set in a more striking light, by being opposed to the disgusting pride, presumption, and uncharitableness of the self-righteous pharisees.
I might easily produce many more examples, but I shall only mention one. Hear the confession of that well known penitent, the Earl of Rochester, who had been a worthless profligate. On his death-bed, he cried out, “ O blessed God, can such a horrid creature as I am be accepted by thee, who have denied thy being, and contemned thy power? Can there be mercy and pardon for me? Will God own such a wretch as I? In the midst of his sickness, he said still farther; shall the unspeakable joys of heaven be conferred upon me? O, mighty Saviour, never but through thine infinite love and satisfaction! O, never, but by the purchase of thy blood! adding, that with all abhorrence he reflected upon his former life, that from his heart he repented of all that folly and madness, of which he had been guilty.”
And now, reader, ask yourself as in the sight of God, whether you know any thing of this godly sorrow. Has your heart been touched and dissolved by the goodness of God? Have you, like David, cast your soul at the footstool of Jehovah? Have you smitten your guilty bosom like the publican? Have you sighed and wept over your transgression, and prayed as in an agony for pardon and peace? Be assured, repentance is no such light thing as many have supposed. The bars of unbelief and prejudice must be broken, and the heart of stone turned into a heart of flesh. Think not a few words of confession, or drops of grief, are all that is required. The conscience once softened, must never lose its tenderness. Till we cease from sinning, the stream of repentance must not cease from flowing. “Tears,” said Bishop Hopkins, “are the inheritance of our eyes, either our sufferings call for them, or our sins; and nothing can wholly dry them up but the dust of the grave.”
Repentance is deep self-abhorrence.
When the covetous and wretched Achan, who was a troubler of Israel, was drawn by Lot, Joshua said to him, My son, give, I pray thee, glory to the Lord God of Israel, and make confession to him; and tell me now what thou hast done; hide it not from me. Joshua 7:19. It is no easy matter to bring down the proud looks and high thoughts of vain man. Very few are willing to give glory to God, and take shame to themselves. No sooner, however, does a man come to his right mind, than his self-flattering notions vanish. Instead of boasting, he lays his hand upon his mouth, and bows his soul to the dust, before the most high God. While he views his sins, he is abased and confounded, with a consideration of their number, their greatness, and their fruits.
The penitent is abased and confounded with a view of the number of his sins.
He looks back, and sees what negligence, ingratitude, and rebellion have run through the years of past life. He looks within, and sees legions of vain thoughts, thick as motes in the sun, and shoals of hateful lusts and vicious passions, working as in a troubled sea. He finds he has been adding folly to folly, and sin to sin, till his guilt rises as a mountain, and shuts out the prospect of heaven. He owns that the corruption of his nature has been pouring forth, without ceasing, streams of actual transgression and abomination, from the beginning of life to the present moment. How sincerely then can he adopt the words of the Psalmist, My iniquities have taken hold upon me, so that I am not able to look up; they are more than the hairs of my head; therefore my heart faileth me. Psalm 40:12.
Do you exclaim, it is not so with me? Perhaps you fix your thoughts on two or three glaring crimes, and overlooking the rest, think your sins are but few. To remove your error, let me desire you to consider, for a moment, the sins of the tongue only. Even in this little member you will find a world of iniquity. Not only for every oath, and every lie, but also for every idle word, men must give an account to God. And “ if,” as the pious Bishop Beveridge observes,” all our vain and idle words had been written, how many vast volumes would they make!” Who then can number the millions and millions of his sins, in thought, speech, and conduct? It is well for us, that the free gift is of many offences unto justification of life. However great the sum of our transgressions, the multitude of God’s mercies is still greater. Though the catalogue of our sins were long enough to reach from earth to heaven, the ample roll of new covenant blessings would stretch beyond it. Where sin abounded, grace does much more abound.
The penitent is abased and confounded with a view of the greatness of his sins.
We must not be guided by the loose prevailing opinions of the world. The worst men have generally the least sense of the heinousness or evil of sin. If the prisoner, who is tried for his crimes, were to fix the measure of his guilt, rather than the Judge set to enforce the laws, who would be condemned or punished? Now let it be remembered, every sin is blame-worthy, just in the degree that it opposes the truth, holiness, and goodness of God. Suppose you saw a man go to a just and amiable prince, and begin to revile him in abusive language, spit in his face out of contempt, and strike him with malice, would you not reckon such conduct highly blameable? Bat should you be told, that the same person had received from the prince, whom he so reviled and injured, a thousand favours, would you not think him a monster of ingratitude and wickedness? And let it be considered, that God is the glorious King of kings, your Creator and Preserver, who has all your life loaded you with benefits. Every wicked deed, every profane word, and every vile thought, casts contempt upon the Majesty of heaven. The bold transgressor is up in arms of rebellion against God, and is continually either striking at his authority, or trampling on his goodness. Who then can describe the horrid nature and heinous evil of sin? The infinitely holy and glorious Jehovah himself says, O do not that abominable thing which my soul hateth! He has given us his law, that sin, by the commandment might appear exceeding sinful. Romans 7:13.
When a true penitent has a full view of the evil and odiousness of sin, he cannot but he abased before God. He takes up as his own, the words of Job, Lo ! I abhor myself, and repent in dust and ashes. He can heartily join with Ezra and say, O my God, I am ashamed and blush to lift up my face to thee, my God ; for our iniquities are increased over our heads, and our trespass is grown up to the heavens. Ezra 9:6. When I look at thy mercies, I am confounded and covered with shame. What tender calls and solemn admonitions have I neglected! What early and abundant advantages have I lost! What precious privileges and opportunities have I despised! If I look to the beasts, they reproach me, and cover me with shame and confusion. Even the dull ox knoweth his owner, and the stupid ass his master’s crib; but I have not known God, nor gratefully considered his manifold favours. Isaiah 1:3. Surely my sin is written as with a pen of iron, or the point of a diamond, and nothing but the blood of Christ can blot it put.
The penitent is abased and confounded with a view of the fruits and effects of his sins.
God declares, that the wicked shall eat the fruit of his own doings. Now as there is bitterness in every drop of gall, and in every branch of wormwood, so there is misery in every sin. The man who is brought to true repentance, will freely acknowledge this. Ask him, What fruit have you in those things whereof you are now ashamed? He replies, bitter fruit indeed! I dishonoured and offended my God, wronged and ruined my own soul, encouraged and emboldened my friends and neighbours in their evil ways! O that my head were waters, and mine eyes a fountain of tears, that I might weep day and night for my sins! The fire which I could easily kindle, I cannot quench. The bad seed I have sown has already taken root, and spreads against all my endeavours to prevent it. Much of the evil I have done, can never be undone. O, my God, if thou art reconciled to me, how can I be reconciled to myself? Even the riches of thy free forgiving grace only shew me in a clearer light, my own utter unworthiness and vile depravity.
Do you think these expressions of self-abhorrence too strong? Do you cry out, this is carrying the thing too far? Let it however be settled whether it be so or not, by an appeal to the scriptures. If what has been said be not agreeable to them, let it be condemned and rejected. Hear what the Lord says to Israel by the prophet Ezekiel, And ye shall remember your ways, and all your doings wherein you have, been defiled; and ye shall loathe yourselves in your own sight, for all the evils that ye have committed. Ezekiel 20:43. It is not possible to use stronger expressions than these. And as we live amidst greater light, can it be supposed that our sins are less hateful, and less hurtful than those of the ancient Jews? It appears also from other parts of the same prophecies, that this kind of silent soul-softening grief and humiliation, is necessary even when God declares himself pacified towards us. Ezekiel 16:63. There is nothing in the world can cast down self-love, and stir up self-loathing, like a believing regard to a pardoning God, and a sin-atoning Saviour.
Having shown the nature of repentance, I shall conclude this chapter with a few needful cautions.
1. Do not put confession of sin in the place of repentance.
I grant, indeed, we ought to confess with our mouths, as well as believe with our hearts. A humble soul is ready to join with David, I will declare my transgression, I will be sorry far my sin; but these two do not always go together. It is probable you have often united with others in saying, O Lord, we have offended against thy holy laws; we have left undone those things which we ought to have done, and have done those things which we ought not to have done. Have not these words passed through your lips, without one serious thought ever passing through your mind? You have hundreds of times declared yourself one among miserable sinners, and yet perhaps never truly felt your misery. Shall I say such confessions are empty, unmeaning sounds? a mere waste of breath? This would be even saying too little, for when careless arid impious men utter such things, it is downright hypocrisy. Be not deceived, God is not mocked. Is it not shocking to think of men pouring out prayers one hour, belching out horrid oaths the next? Doth a fountain send forth at the same time sweet water and bitter? The pharisees made long prayers in the synagogues and in the streets to be seen of men, not to be heard of God. I have read of Romish priests teaching their blind and bigotted followers, that one confession in a year, if well paid for, would prevail with Peter to open the gates of heaven. Others have taken care to repeat a certain number of prayers everyday, as regularly as the clock, strikes, and made this the ground of their hope. Can you think the great God is pleased with mere lip-service and formality? No, if you were to condemn yourself in the most abasing language, and sit down in sackcloth and ashes, all this would avail nothing, while the heart remained unaffected and unhumbled.
2. Do not mistake the occasional meltings of natural affection for repentance.
Some, from their constitutions, are more soft and yielding than others. When a sermon is warmly addressed to the passions, they dissolve into tears. When a death takes place in their family, they weep and seem much affected; but in a very short time it is all gone. Their tears are scarcely dried up, before they return to their former follies. Their goodness is like the morning cloud or the early dew. Yet is not this natural tenderness often mistaken for real repentance? Beware that you are not so deceived. If you are possessed of soft and lively feelings, this caution is highly necessary. You may hear of death, and resemble a man starting from his sleep, who almost instantly falls back upon his pillow, and is never quite awake. You may hear of your sins, and make confession, but never hate them or abhor yourself for committing them. You may read the mournful history of a Saviour’s sufferings, and weep just as you would over any other moving story. Such feelings as these are no sure signs of repentance. Ice may be a little thawed on the surface, while the warm sun-beams dart upon it, and yet be soon frozen again as hard as a stone. A poet observes, “that tears rise from different causes, as if from separate cisterns in the soul.” There is but one spring from which evangelical repentance can flow, and that spring, which is in a state of nature shut up and sealed, can be opened by none but the Holy Spirit. When his power touches the heart, as the rod of Moses smote the rock, the waters gush out, and continue to run through the whole wilderness. Doubtless a man may mourn and murmur, but never come to a right mind. See the worn-out reprobate. He repents, of what? not that he has sinned against God, but that his fortune is squandered, his family ruined, his health destroyed. His will is the same, if he had but the means to pursue his old ways. Esau cried earnestly, and wept bitterly, when he sought his father’s blessing; and yet he was a profane person; there was not a drop of godly sorrow in all his tears. Hebrews 12:16.
3. When you begin to feel some serious concern, be not eager to get rid of your uneasiness by improper means.
Too many try to banish their fears, and bury their convictions, amidst the tumults and cares of the world. This is sure to make what is bad still worse. If you banish your fears, they will return as an armed host, increased both in number and force. If you bury your convictions, they will most likely soon rise again, and haunt you in every place. When Felix sent for Paul, to hear him concerning the faith in Christ, it was perhaps to gratify his curious humour. But while Paul reasoned of righteousness, temperance, and judgment to come, Felix trembled. A very remarkable instance of the power of conscience. It is common enough for prisoners to tremble at the sight of the judge, but it was a new thing for a judge to tremble at the words of a prisoner. It would have been a favourable sign, had the governor cried, O Paul! these are the weightiest things I ever heard in my life. Open and explain to me these doctrines at large. There is no time to be lost. If there is a judgment to come, how shall I give up my account? How can I be pardoned and accepted ? Unhappy Felix! instead of taking this method, he said, Go thy way for this time, and when I have a more convenient season I will send for thee. Many, says an old divine, are glad to get rid of the shaking ague, though it should leave them in a deep decline. While Paul was relating his own conversion, Agrippa cried, Almost thou persuadest me to be a Christian. O beware you do not act over again the foolish part of Felix, and the timid halting part of Agrippa. If you flee from the avenger of blood, and stop short, though but a few steps from the refuge, you will be assuredly apprehended and punished. O, do not trifle with eternal things, or labour to smother those convictions which sometimes seize the conscience. Do not throw down the book which makes you uneasy, or shun the face of a faithful reprover. It is to avoid present pain, that many rush into eternal punishment. To imagine you can gain ease, by mixing with the giddy multitude, is quite as absurd, as to think of healing a wound by laying on a plaister, before the thorn is removed.
4. Do not rest contented with what the world calls morality.
This is too often put in the place of repentance. Many build up a wall, and daub it with untempered mortar, and because it looks well, conclude all is safe. Ezekiel 13:10-11. But as the materials are bad, and the foundation sandy, however it may be plaistered and adorned, when the sapping rains descend and the violent winds blow, it will fall, and bury the foolish builders under its ruins. If you seem troubled about your sins, and the prospect of future misery, false teachers will tell you to live a good life and make yourself quite easy. But the apostles always directed sensible, inquiring sinners, at once to Christ. You have no hope left you, but what is centred in Christ. You must renounce your own, to trust in his righteousness. You must determine to know nothing, save Jesus Christ and him crucified. All who are forgiven, are forgiven for Christ’s sake. All who are accepted, are accepted in the beloved. As God spared not his own Son, but delivered him up for us all, he will with him freely give us all things. Romans 8:32. But without Christ, he will bestow nothing. Do not think God will sell you eternal blessings for your poor, maimed, moral duties. By grace are ye saved. Ephesians 2:8. Neither think you will make yourself fit, and then come to Christ. If you come at all, you must come as you are. Suppose, as a good writer observes, a man to be lame and wounded, would it not be absurd to recommend him to enter the service of some great prince, to run his errands, and do his work? Ought he not first to be led to a skilful surgeon, to have his wounds cleansed and healed? Thus a sinner must be brought to repentance, before he can be trained to obedience. A moral life can flow only from a renewed heart. Elijah, says Boston, would have done the inhabitants of Jericho but little good, had he purified the bad water contained in all the vessels of their city, if he had not cast his salt into the spring. Let your constant cry be, Lord, save me, or I perish. Plead for the forgiveness of sins, and an inheritance among the saints. Pray to be justified freely, and sanctified wholly by the rich grace of our Lord Jesus Christ. Do not begin to make excuse. Now hath God granted to the Gentiles repentance unto life. May you rejoice in this grant, and live the rest of your time to him who died for you.