Christ Inviting Sinners to Come to Him for Rest, Treatise · Chapter 4
CHAP. IV.
Two Cautions touching the Burden of ſin, 1. That 'tis no condition of the Covenant of Grace. 2 That it doth not intereſt the ſoul in Chriſt, nor give it reſt in him. Whereunto certain Conſequences are annexed.
NOW I muſt lay down two Cautions before I come to give the Reaſons of the Point.
Object. You will ſay, What do you ſpeak of theſe burdens, of the neceſſity of the ſouls being burdened with the weight of ſin, that it may come to Chriſt for eaſe and reſt? ſurely there is no ſuch thing required.
Anſw. To that I anſwer, That al this burden of the ſoul for ſin, is not any Condition of the Covenant of Grace, that muſt be granted; there is no other Condition but beleeving in Chriſt; it is not looked upon as a Condition.
In the ſecond place, you muſt know, That all this burden of the ſoul for ſin, it doth not intereſt the ſoul in Chriſt, nor give it reſt in Chriſt. I may be thus burdened for ſin, yet except I do beleeve indeed, that there be an act of faith beyond this, I ſhall not obtain reſt. Then hence, we muſt not ground our faith upon being burdened for ſin, to think, becauſe we are burdened, therefore we ſhal be pardoned and ſaved; we muſt not lay the ſtreſs and weight of our faith, upon the feeling the weight of our ſin, that which we muſt pitch our faith upon, is not our trouble, the trouble of our ſouls for our ſins; but thoſe troubles that the ſoul of Jeſus Chriſt ſuffered for ſin. It is a note of great uſe, and I beſeech you obſerve it; you muſt know this, That when your hearts are troubled for ſin, you muſt not think that this is the Condition of the Covenant of Grace; nor you muſt not make this the object of your faith, as to think thus, becauſe I am thus troubled, therefore I may beleeve that my ſin is pardoned, no, I muſt not pitch my faith upon my own trouble, but upon the trouble of Jeſus Chriſt; thoſe troubles that the ſoul of Jeſus Chriſt did endure by way of ſatisfaction.
Firſt: Then hence will follow, That it is not any degree of trouble for ſin, how much ſoever one hath been troubled for ſin, or how little ſoever that gives them intereſt, or not intereſt in Chriſt. I ſay, it is not the meaſure of it; for certainly if we could come to Chriſt without any burden or ſence of our ſin; if it were poſſible that we could come to Chriſt (I ſay) without any ſuch being burdened for ſin, we might; but becauſe that Jeſus Chriſt doth work upon the heart in a rational way, as a rational Creature, although he doth work above Reaſon, and conveys ſupernatural Grace that is beyond Reaſon; yet ſtill he doth work upon the heart as a Rational Creature. Now therefore the work of Reaſon muſt be made ſubſervient to the work of Gods Grace, uſually, when the Lord works upon a ſoul, he makes uſe of the work of Reaſon, to make that ſubſervient to the Work of his Grace. Now becauſe no man can come to a Savior, but he muſt know what need he hath of a Savior; therefore if I come to Chriſt as a Savior to ſave my ſoul from ſin, I muſt apprehend what ſin is, that I may be ſenſible of it.
Secondly: If God doth work upon the ſoul as a Rational Creature, then he makes uſe of this to be a means to ſtop the ſoul in the courſe of ſin; for before the ſinner is made ſenſible of the evil of his ſin, he goes on in a full carear as it were, and nothing wil ſtop him in his courſe. But now when the ſoul comes to be thus burdened, the ſoul it ſtopped, and doth not run in that full ſtream of wickedneſs as it did before, and that is one good means to help the ſoul towards Chriſt, the very ſtopping of it in the courſe of ſin.
Thirdly: This is the means in a Rational way to make the ſoul attend to any call of Chriſt, for before Chriſt may call to ſinners out of his Word, Come to me, and beleeve in me, but they do not feel the burden of their ſin, and therefore they do not come; if a man be under a heavy burden in a dark night, if he hears the leaſt noiſe of the feet of any man, then he cries out for help. So the ſoul under the heavy burden of ſin, doth rejoyce to hear of any direction out of the Word to come to Chriſt.
Fourthly: The ſoul comes to prize mercy, and mercy will take a deep impreſſion upon the heart that is burdened; when the heart is burdened with ſin; Oh, how dear, and ſweet, and precious, are mercies then.
Fiftly: And further, When the ſoul is burdened with ſin, it is in a Rational way prepared to take the yoak of Chriſt. Before it did caſt it off, but now feeling ſin to be a heavier burden than any other whatſoever, it is more prepared to take upon it the yoke of Jeſus Chriſt; now when the ſoul is under this burden, then Chriſt calls in love to eaſe and give reſt to thoſe ſouls that are under ſuch a burden.