Chapter 71. The Eleventh Argument: Manifesting the Exceeding Willingness of God and Christ to Be Rec
For the love He bears to poor souls, let this be made known to all.
Now, if God were not strongly inclined to do good to souls, surely He would not risk the damnation of other souls in this way. But God says, "Let their souls go, rather than My willingness to be reconciled to others should not be declared unto them."
Chapter 71.
The Eleventh Argument: Manifesting the Exceeding Willingness of God and Christ to Be Reconciled to Sinners
The next argument that shows the willingness of God to be reconciled unto sinners is this: the Lord, in His word, uses very powerful and strong arguments to draw the heart to come in to be reconciled. This is evidence, I say, that the Lord is willing, as demonstrated by the strong reasons that God employs in His word to gain the hearts of sinners and bring them to reconciliation. He does not merely offer mercy or simply set His mercy before the soul.
Instead, the Lord labours with strong reasons, motives, and arguments to persuade and gain the hearts of sinners unto Himself, to come and be reconciled to Him.
Now, when a man offers peace, that is significant, and when he does it in a generous, loving way, it is even more so. But when he sends strong arguments to persuade and is not easily deterred, considering beforehand what might be most likely to persuade the heart of that person, saying, "What can I think that will gain his heart the most?
That I will certainly use to persuade him," undoubtedly, this is how
God acts. God looks upon the children of men and considers which arguments will most affect their hearts.
The Scripture is exceedingly full of prevalent and powerful arguments to persuade the hearts of men to come in and be reconciled unto God. These arguments are sometimes taken from the equity of God's ways towards them and their unequal ways towards
Him: "Are not my ways equal?" saith God, "and your ways unequal?
Is there anything I require of you but righteousness? Do not I speak righteously?"
At other times, He uses arguments from the absolute necessity that lies upon sinners to come and be reconciled to God, showing them that they will certainly be lost, undone, and eternally damned if they do not come in: "He that believeth not, the wrath of God abides upon him." You are lost and undone creatures unless you come in.
Sometimes, the arguments are taken from the excellency of the benefit and profit that there is in coming to God and being reconciled to Him. All the glorious promises of the Gospel serve as powerful arguments to draw sinners to run to be reconciled unto God. I could elaborate greatly on this, showing the particular arguments that God uses, but let us take one full argument that we have to persuade sinners to come in, found in Proverbs 1:23: "Turn you at my reproof; behold, I will pour my spirit upon you; I will make known my words unto you."
He speaks here to simple ones, scorners, and fools: "Turn you at my reproof; behold, I will pour my spirit out upon you," saith God. As if God should say, "Though you are scorners, the truth is, my heart works towards you, my heart yearns for you, and if you would but turn to me, I would pour forth my heart to you. You shall have my very spirit, my very heart let out unto you if you will turn unto me."
What an argument is here to prevail with the hardest hearts in the world! For God Himself to come and say unto a sinner, to one who has scorned Him and His ways, and to a fool who has gone on in ways of folly and wickedness, "Oh, wretched sinner! Come in, come in, turn to me, turn to me, for my heart is full, my heart is overflowing. Turn to me; I will pour forth my heart to thee."
All those promises of giving rest to your soul, of granting eternal life, eternal salvation, glory, peace, comfort, and a kingdom, shall all be made good to you. The Lord, therefore, suits Himself to us with such arguments, so closely as to outbid other comforts that we have in the world in any ways of sin. Hence, He speaks of honey, milk, raiment, gold, silver, and all such things as are precious in the eyes of men, such things as are esteemed by us, and He offers His Son to us with such notions that each of them might serve as a compelling argument to gain the hearts of sinners to come unto God.
This is the way of God: He comes to the hearts of His people with the most persuasive arguments, such reasons as one might think impossible to refute. I appeal to the hearts of those who have experienced the work of God upon them. How did God come to your hearts? Did He not come with mighty, strong arguments to you?
The Devil tempts with strong arguments, and God, too, tempts with strong arguments. The Devil draws, and God draws, but God's mercies draw stronger than the Devil can. Oh, it was mercy that won that soul! And, indeed, when the Lord pleases to work effectively upon the soul, He can present stronger arguments to draw the heart of a sinner to Him than it is possible for the Devil to prevail against.