Fellowship with God, Sermon 17
SERMON XVII·
1 Joh. 1.9.
If we confesse our sins he … faithful, and just to forgive us our sins, &c.
THE current of sin dryes not up, but run… const…ntly while we are in this life; it i… t…ue, it is much diminished in a believer, and it runs not in such an universal flood over the whole man, as it is in the unbeliever, yet there is a living spring of sin within the godly, which is never ceasing to drop out pollution and defilement, either upon their whole persons, or at least, to intermingle it with their good actions. Now, there is no comfort for this, but this one, that there is another stream of the blood of Iesus Christ, that never dryes up, is never exh…usted, never emptied, but flows as full and as free, …s clear and f…esh as ever it did: and this is so great, and of so great vertue, that it is …ble to swallow up the stream of our pollutions, and to t…ke away the daily filth of a believers convers…tion. Now indeed, though the blood of Iesus Christ be of such infinit vertue and efficacy, that it were sufficient to cleanse the sins of the whole world, it would be an over-ransome for the souls of …ll men, there i… so much worth in it: that flood of guiltinesse that hath drowned the world, this flood of Christs blood that gushed out of his side, is of sufficient vertue to cleanse it perfectly away; not withstanding of this absolute, universal sufficiency, yet certain it is, that i… is not actually applyed unto the cleansing of all mens sin…, but yet the mo… part of men are still drowned in the deluge of their own wickedness, and lyeth intomb'd in darkness; therefore it concerns us to know the way of the application of this blood, to the cleansing of sinners; and this way is set down in thi… verse, If we confesse our sins, he is just to forgive. There was something hin…ed at obscurely in the preceeding verse, for when he shews, that such as say they have no sin, who either by the disposition of their hearts, or carriage of their wayes, do by interpretation say, they want sin, such deceive themselves, and the truth is not in them; and so they have no benefit o… that blood that cleanseth from all sin, and so it is imported here, that though the blood of Christ be fully sufficient to cleanse all sin, yet it is not so prostituted and basely spent upon sinners, as to be bestowed upon them who do not know their sins, and never enter into any serious & impartial examination of themselves; such, though they say they are sinners, yet never descending into themselves to search their own hearts and waye…, and so never coming to the pa…ticular knowledge of their sins, and feeling of them, they cannot at all make application of that blood to their own consciences, either seriously or pertinently: Though the river and fountain of Christs blood run by them, in the daily p…eaching of the Gospel, ye… being destitute of this daily self-inspection, and self-knowledge, being altogether ignorant of themselve…, they can no more wash here, then thes… who never heard of this blood, they being strangers to themselves, sets them at as great distanc… …nd estrangement from the blood of Christ, … if they were wholly strangers to the very preaching of this blood. Let us then have this first established in our hearts, that there is no cleansing from sin, without the knowledge o… sin, and there is no true knowledge of sin, without a serious soul-examination of sin; these are knit together in their own nature; for how should our sins be pardoned, when we know nothing of them but in a confused generality, that can n… ver affect the heart? How should our sins not b… opened and discovered before the holinesse of God, when they are alwayes covered unto us, a…d hid from our eyes? Certainly, the righteousnesse and wisdom of God requires, that such … monstruous thing, so great an enemy of Gods …olinesse, be not wholly past away in sile…ce wit… out o…servati…n. If we do not observe, he will; for to what purpose should pardon be so lavished upon them who …re not capable to know what savour … grace i… in it? And ce…tainly, that none c…n know, without the feeling knowledge of the hight …nd hainousnes…e of sin. Now▪ I p…ay you, how should ye know your sins, when ye will not allow …ny time for the sea…ching of your selves? Many cannot say that ever they did purposely …nd deliberatly withd…aw from the world, and separat their spirits for this businesse of self-examination: and therefore you remain perpetually strangers to your selves, and as great stranger… to the power and vertue of this blood.
Now in this vers. he declare… it plainly, in what way and method sin is pardoned by this blood▪ By the former vers. we have so much, that it …s necessary we must search and t…y our waye…, that so we may truly know our sins, and charge them upon our selves; and here it is superadded that we must confess them to him: And the promise …s annexed, he is just and faithful to forgive. Now this confession of sin is very fitly subjoyned, both to that which he declared of that great end of the Gospel, communion with God, and that which was immediatly holden sorth of the remaining vertue of Christs blood; for might a poor soul say, How shall I come to partake of that blessed society? I am … sinner, and so an enemy to G…d, How shall this enmity be removed? And if the …nswer be made, The blood of Iesus Christ cleanseth from all sin, and so maketh accesse for a …inner to enter into this society; Yet a question remains, And how shall the vertue of that be applyed to my soul? It is sufficient I know for …ll, but what way may I have the particular benefit of it? Here it is …ully satisfied, If we confesse our sins, God is just and faithful to forg…ve. H… lyeth under some obligation to pardon us. Now, many of you may think▪ if this be the way, and these be the te…ms …f pardon, then we hope all shall be pardoned, fo… i… there be no more but to con…esse our sin…, who will not willingly do that, and who doth not daily do it? as one said, if it be sufficient to accuse, none will be innocent: Si accusasse sufficiat▪ nemo innocens erit. So you may think, Si confiteri sufficiat, nemo re… …rit. If it be sufficient to con…es…e, none will be guilty. But, my beloved, let us not deceive our selv…s with the present fi…st apprehensions of words that occur in this kind; it is true, as ye take confession, there is nothing more ordinary, but if it be taken in the true Scripture meaning, and in the realest sense, I fear there is nothing among men so extraordinary: I desire you may but consider how you take this word in your dealings with men, you take it certainly in a more real sense then you use it in Religion. If any had done you some great wrong or injury, suppose your servant, or inferiour, what acknowledgment would you take from him of his wrong? If he confessed his wrong only in general amb…guou… te…m…, if he did it either lightly, or without any sense or sorrow for it, if he did withal excuse and ex…enuat hi… fault, and never ceased notwithstanding of all his con…ession to do the like wrong when occasion offered, would you not think this … mockery? And would it not …ather provoke you, then pacifie you? Now, when ye take words in so real and deep significations in your own matters, what gros…e delusion is it, that you take them in the slightest and emptiest meaning… in these things that relate to God? And I am sur… the most part of mens confessions are of that …ature which I have described, general, ignorant, senslesse, without any particular view, or lively feeling of the vilenesse and loathsomn…sse o… sin, and their own hearts; when ever it come… to particulars, there is a multitude of extenuations and pretences, to hide and cover the sin; and generally men never cease the more from sinning, it puts no stop in their running, as the horse to the battel: to day they confesse it, and to morrow they act it again with as much delight as before. Now, of this I may say, offer it to thy Governour, and see if he will be pleased with thee, or let another offer such an acknowledgment of wrong to thee, and see if it will please thee: and if it will not, why deceive ye your selve… with the outward visage of things, in these matter… that are of greatest soul-concernment? Should they not be taken in the most inward and substantial signification that can be? lest you be deceived with false appearances, and while you give but a shadow of confession, you receive but a shadow of forgiveness, such a thing as will not car…y and bear you out before Gods Tribunal. Therefore we must needs take it thus, that confession of sin is the work of the whole man, and not of the mouth only. It is the heart, tongue, and all that is in a man, joyning together to the acknowledgment of sin, and Gods righteousnesse: Therefore it includes in it, not only a particular knowledge of our offences, and the temper of our hearts, but a sensible feeling of the loathsomnesse and hainou…nesse of these: and this i… the spring that it flows from, from a broken and contrite heart, that is bruised under the apprehensions of the weight of guiltinesse, and is imbittered with the sense of the gall of iniquity, that possesseth the heart. Here then is the great moment of confession and repentance, What i… the inward fountain it flows from: If the heart be brought to the distinct and clear view of it self, and to discern the iniquity and plague of it, and so to fall down under the mighty hand of God, and before his Tribunal, as guilty, as not being able or willing to open his mouth in …n excuse or extenuation of sin, or to plead for compassion from any consideration in himself; a soul thus plac…d, between iniquities set in order and battel array, on the one hand, …nd the holy Law and righteousnesse of God on the other hand; the filthinesse of the one, filling with shame and con…usion, and the d…ead…ulnesse of the other, cau…ing fear and t…embling; in this pos…ure, I say, for … …oul to come and fall at the Iudges feet, and make supplicat…on to him in his Son Christ; thus being inwardly pressed to vent and pour out our hearts before him, in the confession …f ou… sin…, and to flie unto the City of refuge, his mer…y and grace that i… declared in Iesus Christ; this, I say, is indeed to confesse our sins: For then confe…ion is an exone…ation and disburdening of the hea…t; it flows from the abundance of the inward cont…iti…n of it: And as this must be the spring of it, so the…e is another stream that will certainly flow f…om the ingenuous c…nfession of our sins, that is, a forsaking of them: these are the two st…eams that flow from one head and spring, the inward fountain of contrition and sorrow for sin; there is a holy indignation kindled in the hea…t against sin, and an ingagement upon such a soul, as indeed flie… to mercy, to …enounce sin; and here is the compleat nature of true …epentance. Solomon joyns them, He th…t confesseth and forsaketh shall have mercy, Prov. 28.13. And this is opposed to coverin… of sins, For he that covereth his sins shall not prosper. And what is that to cover hi… sin? Conselling them in a general confused notion, without any distinct knowledge, or sense of particular guiltinesse, that is a cove…ing of sins, or confessing sin, and not forsaking of it, that is a covering of sin; for, to act sin over again, with continual …esh delight and vigour, is to ret…act our confessions, and to bury and cover them with the mould of new transgressions. Now, take this unto you, you shall not prosper, what can be said worse? For you are but in a dream of happinesse, and you shall one day be shaken out of it, and that fancied pardon shall evanish, and then your sins that you cove…ed in this manner, sh…ll be discovered before the Judge of the world, and you shall not stand in judgment.