CHAPTER II. The Blessedness of Sin's Pardon
May it not be said of you, Where is the sense of the Evil of Sin you spake of? Where is that bitterness upon your hearts, on the convictions you had of the evil of sin? Where is it? What is become of it? As St. Paul says, the blessedness you spake of, Where is it? What is become of all that strength and power the Doctrine of Remission of Sin had upon your hearts? Take another Scripture, Remission of Sin is the special Blessedness of the second Covenant that God made with Abraham ; when he came to Abraham and told him, In his Seed all Nations-should be blessed, Gal. 3.17. compared with the 24. in the 17. verse he speaks of the Covenant made with Abraham, and that the Law that was 430 years after, could not disannul the Promise that it should be of none effect, verse. 24. Wherefore then served the Law? why says he, It was our Schoolmaster to bring us unto Christ: The scope of the Apostle is to show, that there is a Covenant of Grace beyond that of the Law, and that the Covenant of the Law is to bring us to the Covenant of Grace; and the principal thing in the Covenant of Grace is in the 24. verse. The Law, says he, was our Schoolmaster to bring us unto Christ ▪ That we might be justified by faith, and thereby receive remission of our sins, if the Scripture places blessedness in the remission of sin: That it is so, I suppose is clear enough, the main business we have to do, is to show how it is so; that is, to open unto you wherein the blessedness of the pardon of sin consists, and show you in what particulars the blessedness of pardon of sin may appear unto you: and to that there are many things may be said.
CHAPTER II:
The Blessedness of Sin's Pardon
1. That, that hath been lately delivered of the Evil of Sin, may be of great concernment to discover wherein the blessedness of pardon of sin lies, the deliverance from so great an evil, as you heard, the evil of sin was; surely, Blessed is the man whose sins are forgiven. If sin be so dreadful an evil as you heard, surely, Blessed is the man that is delivered from all that evil: if it remain fresh upon your minds, what the evil of sin against God was, and what it brought upon yourselves; you cannot but say, this is one principal thing wherein it appears, that man or woman is blessed that hath his sin pardoned: If any man or woman be in any great danger, or under any great evil or misery; and if he be delivered from it, we say, that man is a blessed man, or a blessed woman that is quit from such a woeful evil that was upon them; you account yourselves happy to be delivered firm any dangerous storms, and to have a calm; Are not they then happy that are delivered from the evil of sin? Let me speak a little to a poor sinner that understands what the meaning of sin is, and that understands somewhat of the dreadful evil of it: I would ask of thee oh poor sinner; What seest thou? the answer will be, What see I? Oh
I see the angry Countenance of an Infinite God against me, whose eyes are as a flaming fire looking with indignation upon me! I see a black dismal cloud of the displeasure of the Almighty hanging over me! I see a most hideous and dreadful sentence of wrath ready to fall upon me! I see woe, misery, and destruction pursuing of me! I see blackness of darkness and desolation even surrounding me! I both see and feel the woeful accusations of a guilty Conscience within me, condemning me; continually grating upon my soul, and terrifying me with dreadful Visions of eternal miseries to betide me! I see the chain of black guilt and horror on my soul, that I carry with me wheresoever I go! I see the bottomless gulf of eternal horror and dispair with the mouth of it wide open ready to swallow me up! Now then, this sight being presented before an enlightened and awakened
Conscience; Now comes in the pardon and forgiveness of sin whereby this dreadful cloud is dispelled, the tempest is gone; the darkness and misery vanishith away, and all evil whatsoever the soul is set free from, sin, and from all the dreadful consequences of it. Is not this a blessed man, comparing his former condition with his
present state, looking on him as even now, having the sense of the dreadful evil of sin upon his Conscience, and the heavy burden of it on his back, ready to sink under it, into the gulf of misery, and now pardon of sin comes; O what a blessed change is this! O blessed is the man whose sin is pardoned. Now what God had laid unto his charge, or his own Conscience, the Law, the Devil, or the World, 'tis all done away, all is discharged and gone, blessed is the man that is thus delivered; Old things are past away, and all things are become new, 2
Cor. 5.17. it is meant not only of Sanctification, but of Justification also, he is a new creature; Old things are past away, and all become new. Brethren, by reason of the sin of man, there is a curse upon the whole Creation, and this old Creation must come to confusion: therefore it is an evil thing for any man to seek his happiness in anything here in the old Creation, for there is a curse upon it, and it will come to confusion. But there is a new Creation of all in Christ, of all spiritual things in Christ: Now a sinner when he comes to have his sin pardoned and be justified, he come's into a new state, that comes in by the new Creation; the happiness of the Children comes by, and consists in the new Creation; old things are done away, and he comes to be seated in the new creation in Christ; this is the first thing wherein a man or woman is blessed, Negatively, in being delivered from so great an evil.
2. Of the Positive Blessedness of the Pardon of Sin.
Secondly, Positively, he's a blessed man whose sins are forgiven, if we consider, the excellency of that mercy God makes that soul partaker of, whose sins are forgiven, Dan. 9.9. To thee Lord our God belong mercies and forgivenesses, forgiveness is the fruit of glorious mercies, Exod. 34.6. The Lord is merciful and gracious, long suffering and abundant in goodness and truth, keeping mercy for thousands, forgiving iniquity. Now I shall open this positively, and show the riches of mercy in forgiveness of sin. When the Scripture applies mercy to forgiveness of sin, it hath divers expressions, sometimes calls it riches of mercy, Ephes. 1.7. sometimes, plenteous
mercy, Psal. 86.8. sometimes, God's fullness of compassion, Psal.
78.38. sometimes, multitude of mercies, Psal. 51.1. I might give divers other places, but those may suffice; it is rich, plenteous, fullness of compassions, and multitude of mercies; When God forgives sin, he shows mercies in all these expressions. For the opening of it unto you, I shall show you what abundance of mercy
God shows in the forgiveness of sin, consider merry 1. in the Efficient. 2. in the final cause of it.
1. Of the Efficient Cause of Mercy in forgiveness of Sin.
First for the Efficient Cause: there is abundance of mercy God manifests in the forgiveness of sin, he abounds in his mercy, there is a Sea, an infinite vast Ocean of mercy, in which, the sins of the Elect come to be swallowed up, though their sins be many, and great, and committed with many grievous aggravations: yet when they come to an act of Justification, to God, to be forgiven; I say, God comes to the soul as an infinite Ocean of mercy, that swallows up all the evil in sin, attend unto it, Look as in the mighty Ocean, whether you cast in a load or a shovel full of earth, the vast Ocean makes little difference of either; so when a soul comes to God in Christ, when it comes to Pardon and Justification, whether sins be little or great, 'tis all one, the mercy of God makes no difference at all; take heed to what I say, while I am speaking of forgiveness of sin, I shall make known so much grace, that if you abuse it, it will be one of the most dreadful things that ever you did, and therefore while I go along, take heed of abusing it, especially you that desire to hear of the pardoning mercy of God; whether your sins be little or great, when you come to pardoning mercy, it is an infinite Ocean that swallows up all; those that have not their sins pardoned, whether their sins be little or great, it makes no difference, they are truly damned for little as well as great sins, both sinks down into Hell, and the infinite Ocean of wrath and horror swallows up all; so in point of Justification, whether your sins be little or great, it matters not, pardoning mercy swallows up all.
2. Of the Final Cause of Mercy in forgiveness of Sin.
Secondly, but further, as Mercy is an infinite Ocean that swallows up Sin, so Mercy is the Final Cause. It is to this end that God might manifest the riches of his grace; when God forgives any one sin, this forgiveness comes from God's mercy, and it is to this end, That God may declare before Men and Angels, to all eternity, what the greatness and infinite riches of his grace is, what the grace of God is able to do when God comes to pardon sin; 'tis for this end as if he should say, Well, I am about now to pardon thy sin, and this work I am about to do, it is for this very end, that it may be known to Men and Angels to all eternity, what the infinite riches of the infinite grace of God is able to do for poor sinners. Now certainly, that man is a blessed man, if the man whose sins are pardoned hath such mercy shown to him, and such a blessed work upon him, as is to that end, that God may declare to all eternity what the glorious riches of grace of an infinite God is; surely this is a great blessedness, when God shall separate a man or woman for this end, it must be very glorious; certainly therefore pardon of sin is no light and mean thing, but it must be a most glorious work of God wheresoever it is: And this
Consideration is a mighty Argument to uphold a poor soul under trouble of sin, and a great encouragement for him to come in for pardon: Dost thou see O troubled soul God's wrath against thee, and dost thou stand quaking at the apprehension of the evil of sin? let not thy heart sink, come in, and cast thyself on the free grace of God, there is a possibility for the pardon of thy sin; for when God comes to pardon sin, the mercy God shows in pardoning of any one sin, he does it to the end that he might magnify the riches of his grace to all eternity, and such mercy that serves to that end must needs be glorious; And will not such mercy serve thy turn, as must set out the infinite rich grace of God? God is pleased to manifest thus much mercy for the forgiveness of thy sin; and where a sinner is forgiven, it is this mercy that is manifested: when men judge of God by themselves, they think slightly of him, when they judge of God's thoughts by their own: What is the reason that makes sinners have