A Treatise of Faith and Repentance, Treatise 2
A TREATISE OF REPENTANCE.
There is a two-fold Repentance.
1. A Repentance that is call'd a Care of mind, ſuch a one foreign.as conſiſts in Sorrow under Terrors for Sin, the effect of a troubled Head, and may be found Mat. 27. 3.in Hypocrites.
Many were ſtung in the Wilderneſs, that never receiv'd Healing; and Numb. 21. 6.many have been humbled for Sin, and yet never ſaved from it.
2. A Repentance that is call'd a Change of Mind, ſuch a one as conſiſts foreign.in a turning from Sin, the effect of 2 Cor. 7. 10.a wounded Heart, which from this Repentance receives the Name of a New Heart, (not phyſically in regard of Secundum animam ſumus, ſecundum hanc benè ſumus.the Subſtance, but morally in regard of the Qualities of it) and is found in none but thoſe that are ſincere.
We may be humbled for Sin, and yet periſh in it, and ſhall, unleſs we are ſo humbled under it, as wholly to depart from it.
Repentance is an Evangelical Grace, neceſſary in order unto Pardon.Acts 2. 38.
The Law knows neither Repentance for Sin, nor Remiſſion of it, but the great Work of the Goſpel, is to call us to Repentance.
It comes with quickning Motives to it: For,
It gives clear and ſtrong Convictions Rom. 13. 12. John 16. 8.of Sin, clearer and ſtronger than thoſe under Nature and the Law.
It produces ſtrong Arguments to it: For,
It reveals Chriſt crucified for Sin; and thoſe Hearts are hard indeed, Zech 12. 10, 11that will not be ſoftned by his Blood ſhed for it.
It reveals Repentance, and accepts it.Mark 6 12.
The Law promiſed Life to the Righteous, but the Goſpel aſſures it to the Unrighteous, repenting.
It works Repentance.
It is not only a Light to diſcover it, John 17. 17. …. 1. 11, 12.but a Covenant-will to give it; and teaches it as a Worker, as well as a Tutor, viz. by Efficacy, as well as by Doctrine.
It pronounces a Curſe upon the neglect of it.
The Goſpel has a terrible Voice, as well as the Law, a Curſe for our Luke 13. 3.Sins, (except ye repent, ye ſhall periſh) a Curſe, more terrible than that of the Law; there is no condemnation Heb. 2. 3. & 10. 28, 29.like to that in the Court of Mercy.
Repentance was a part of the ſum of Chriſt's Doctrine, (he taught the neceſſity Mat. 3.2. 4.17. …8.20. Mark 6.12. Luke 24.47. Acts 20.2….of it) and of the Apoſtles Doctrine: and all that laid the Foundation of Chriſt's Kingdom right, laid this, not only as a Stone in the Building, but as a Foundation-ſtone.
It is the Foundation of all Goſpel-Righteouſneſs, that which diſpoſes for the receipt of Goſpel-Grace, (for without it we are uncapable of it) and that which ſhall continue as a neceſſary means (on our part) in order to it, as Luke 24. 47.long as the Goſpel ſhall continue.
Repentance is not matter of Dignity, but Duty, whereby God is glorified to our Benefit, not to his; and neceſſary, not as a Satisfaction to Juſtice, but as a Qualification for Mercy; not to merit it, (for Adam, before he ſinn'd, could not merit, much leſs then can we by our Repentance for it) but to diſpoſe to it, and goes neceſſarily before it.
Not in the accidental Properties of it (they are uſually Antecedent, but not neceſſary): for, God by his Prerogative Royal, can in a moment work on the Heart.
Nor in the exerciſe of it, (as in the Caſe of Children and Lunaticks): for, the Promiſe is made to the Principles of Grace.
Nor in the ſeveral Meaſures of it: for, the Promiſe is made, not to the degree, but truth of Repentance; and it is not the weakneſs, but want of it that ruins.
But in order of Nature, (the Sun is before the Beams, in order of Nature, and ſo is Repentance before Pardon) and as the Subject before the Adjunct: for, Repentance qualifies the Subject for Pardon, and makes it meet for it; not in a way of Merit, but Condecency, both to receive and prize it.
The Means are before the End, (viz. in Execution; as the End is before the Means, in Intention); Union is before Mark 1. 4. Acts 3 19.Communion, (for all Communion flows from it); Vocation is before Juſtification, and a Real Change before a Relative, (we are not juſtified, until converted; adopted, until renew'd; nor ſav'd, unleſs ſanctified); that which is neceſſary to the renewing of Pardon (as Repentance is) is no leſs to the firſt procuring of it; and the contrary of that which makes us uncapable of Pardon, (as impenitency does) muſt neceſſarily (as Repentance does) go before it: For,
There can be no Remiſſion without Repentance; no more than there can be any Salvation without Remiſſion.
To aſſert the contrary,
Deprives God of the Deſign of his Elective Love, (for Election is to Holineſs, as well as to Happineſs, and ſaves none without it) diveſts Chriſt of one of his Offices, (viz. his Regal Office) makes void the Office of the Spirit, as to its ſanctifying and comforting Work, (for, it gives neither Peace nor Joy in a way of Sin) robs Heaven of its greateſt Royalty, viz. Holineſs, (the Condition required on our part to make us meet for it); and declares, That God loves us better than himſelf, and ſaves us in contradiction to himſelf, (in that he loves and ſaves us in our Sins) and that Chriſt juſtifies Sinners to his own reproach, or rather juſtifies Sin than Sinners.
It concerns us therefore, in all our Supplications for Mercy, to have an eye to the End of Mercy, to ſeek Mercy upon the Terms of Mercy, viz. the Terms upon which it is offer'd, leſt we make Patents of Mercy to our ſelves, that God will never confirm: For,
As his Juſtice is wrong'd by a diſtruſt of Mercy upon Repentance; ſo his Mercy is abus'd by an expectation of it without it.
1. We ſhould then admire the diſtinguiſhing love of God to us.
He paſſed by the Fallen Angels, (more excellent Creatures than we) and left them to periſh in their Sin, but has found out an Expedient for us by Repentance, to eſcape the Wrath due to it.
The Devils cannot repent, nor are they aſſur'd of Pardon if they could; but ſinful Men are (the more happy they, and the more aſtoniſhing the freeneſs of Grace to them); they are not call'd to Repentance, but theſe are, and aſſur'd of Pardon if they do repent, but not unleſs they do: for, as Devils, and impenitent Sinners are alike in Nature, viz. in their ſinful, not in their created Nature, (alike as to kind, tho' not as to degree; both ſinful, but one more than the other) ſo they ſhall fare alike as to puniſhment. They are now reſerv'd in everlaſting Chains, unto Jude 6.…the Judgment of the great Day; and theſe are upon a Chain, that if not broken, will lead them captive to Hell; they are ſhut out of Heaven, theſe are not, unleſs their own Wills keep them John 5. 40.out; they are without hope of Pardon, theſe are under a poſſibility, yea, a certainty of it, upon Repentance; for, God has ratified the Promiſe of Pardon upon it.
As a God of Mercy, he made the Promiſe; and as a God of Truth, he will perform it.
2. Since Repentance is the firſt Leſſon that we are to learn under the Goſpel, (it was the firſt in St. Paul's Catechiſm Heb. 6. 1.) and a Duty that we are daily to perform, and never to neglect, we ſhould no more dare to live, than we would dare to die without it.
They that look upon Repentance as a Legal Duty, and flee from it, as that which is more likely to ſcare them out of their Wits, than Sins, will at laſt find more terror in the Neglect than ever they would have found in the practice of it.
The neglect of it will make two Hells, viz. within and without, here and hereafter; but a ſerious and daily exerciſe of it, will make two Heavens, viz. without and within, above and below, in Heaven, and in our own Souls.
1. In Heaven: For when Sinners repent, Luk. 15. 7, 10.God the Father rejoices,
As a Father in the Birth of an Heir.
God the Son rejoices.
He died big with love to Sinners, and cannot but rejoice to ſee of the travel of his Soul, in the Converſiof Iſa. 53. 11.of theirs.
God the Holy Ghoſt rejoices.
He who has ſo long and ſo often been grieved by Sinners, rejoices, and is made glad, that now he ſhall be a Comforter to them.
Angels rejoice,
As having one Companion more join'd to their Heavenly Quire.
It ſhould be our Joy, to promote Heaven's.
2. In our own Souls.
The Song of Lamentation muſt be ſung, here or hereafter: Therefore,
If we have not mourn'd for Sin, or reſolve not to do it, we would do well to remember, that the more is behind, and that the time of mourning for Sin will come, for it is (like Jabez) brought 1 Chron. 4. 9.forth with Sorrow, its Iſſue will be ſorrow here, or hereafter; and we muſt either begin or end in it, in Time or Eternity.
But if we are in Sorrow, we may be D…o de peccatis poenitens, & de dolore gaud…o.glad at our Heavineſs; there is a Song of Joy, that attends the Song of Lamentation, (Sun-ſhine with our Rain) God will give us joy of our Repentance; and the greater our Sorrow is, the greater ſhall our Joy he.
The deeper the Wound, the farther the Balm ſhall go in.
Of the Nature of Repentance.
REpentance,
| Is not a bare ſuſpending the Acts of Sin, | It is more than that, |
| It is not a deſtroying the Being of Sin, | It is leſs than that. |
1. It is not a bare ſuſpending the Acts of Sin.
All are alike evil by Nature, tho' not by practice; and there is ever a proneneſs in us to ſin, (the more unhappy we); but we are not always actually in it: yet ſome Acts may ceaſe, not from any inward Principle, either of Love to God, or hatred to Sin, but from a Principle of ſlaviſh Fear, or through the want of a Supply for Sin, or an occaſion to it; and when ſo, can no more be called Repentance, than that can be ſaid to be a Merciful Fire, that goes out through want of Fuel.
The Influence of the Sun may, by an Eclipſe, be ſuſpended, and yet its Light not extinguiſh'd; and Sin for a time depreſt, and yet not deſtroy'd.
2. It is not a deſtroying the Being Rom. 7. 9. Patitur, non facit. Bern.of Sin.
It is true, when Penitent Perſons commit Sin, it is uſually contrary to the purpoſe of their Will, but to ſome particular Acts only, and ever attended with ſhame and grief, but yet commit it, they both do, and may, even then, when they have truly repented of it: for, tho' Sin by Repentance receives its Death's Wound, yet it has a ſtrong Heart, and will be long a dying.
A Being it will have in them, while they have a Being.
So that Repentance is neither a ſuſpenſion of the Acts of Sin, nor the deſtruction of its Being; it is more than the firſt, and leſs than the ſecond, viz.
That Work of the Spirit, whereby an humbled Sinner, being made ſenſible of the Evil of Sin in the general, and the Miſery due to it, and of his own Sins in particular, and of the Mercy of God in Chriſt ready to pardon them, does moſt affectionately mourn for them, and moſt effectually turn from them unto God.
1. It is the Work of the Spirit.
Our Times are in God's Hands, and Pſal. 31. 15. Rev. 2. 21.ſo are our Hearts too; one for the Space, the other for the Grace of Repentance: for, it is in his Soveraign Power alone to give both, viz. the Time, (without which we cannot well repent with any comfort to our ſelves, or others) and the Grace, without which we cannot repent at all, neither begin nor proceed in it; for it is a ſupernatural Work, and falls not within the Love, Deſire, or Power of Nature. Water came not out of the Rock in Horeb, until Moſes ſmote it with his Exod. 17. 5, 6.Rod: Nor will ever the Waters of Repentance flow from our Hearts (more hard than that Rock) unleſs they are ſmitten, not only with the Rod of the Law, but the Staff of the Acts 2 27.Goſpel. It was God's ſtanding upon Pſal. 78. 15, 16. 105. 41.the Rock, more than Moſes's ſmiting with a Rod, that cauſed the Waters to run down like Rivers; and the Spirit more than the Staff, that cauſes Tears (the Blood of a wounded Heart) to flow from us; for without it, it will (like the Staff of Eliſha in Gehazi's 2 Kings 4. 31.Hand) prove ineffectual to it.
When God cauſeth the Wind (viz. the Wind of his Spirit) to blow, then, Pſal. 147 18.and not before, will thoſe Waters flow.
2. That Work of the Spirit, whereby a Sinner is made ſenſible of the Evil of Sin in the general, and the Miſery due to it.
The Devil, when he tempts to Sin, holds the wrong end of the Proſpective Glaſs, that Sin may not appear as it is, but in a diſguiſe, under the falſe repreſentations, either of Pleaſure, or Profit, the uſual Vermilion he paints moſt Sins with.
But the Spirit, when convincing of Sin in order unto Repentance, pulls off Sin's Viſard, waſhes off that Jezabel's Paint, and ſhews the evil of it; it is a Iſa. 4 4. Jer. 31. 19.Spirit of Judgment, and it's Office is to convince, as well as comfort, and to convince of Sin in order to it; and where the Conviction is right, the ſight it gives of Sin, is clear, not through thick Mediums, but in the Chryſtal Glaſs of the Word, a true, not flattering Pſal. 19. 8.Glaſs, pure, enlightning the Eyes, to behold Sin as it is, viz. in its own proper Nature, and native Deformity, original and actual Sin, (the Fleſh, and the Luſts of the Fleſh); and both in their Filthineſs and Depravation, Folly and Diſingenuity, and Demerit too, viz. the Wrath deſerved by them, and due to them.
The Degree is not alike in all, (tho' the more, the better); yet a leſs Degree will not ſerve, than that which diſcovers the great Evil of Sin, and the Wrath due to it: for tho' Sin is J…. 2.19.an evil and bitter Thing, evil in it Self, and evil in the Cauſe; yet unleſs ſo apprehended, it will not be bitter in the Effects, or not ſo bitter as it ſhould be to us.
3. That Work of the Spirit, whereby a Sinner is made ſenſible of his own Sins in particular.
Sin lies hid in the Heart of an Impenitent Sinner (it plays leaſt in ſight) but the Spirit in the Work of Repentance brings it to Light, (when the Rom. 7▪ 9.Commandment came, Sin revived, viz. in ſenſe and appearance) by giving ſometimes a particular, but ever a full and laſting ſight of it.
Sometimes the Spirit makes uſe of one particular Sin, as an entring Wedg (as one ſays) to rend the Heart of a Sinner aſunder. It was that particular Sin of crucifying Chriſt, when made known, that wounded the Penitent Jews through and through, (as the Word Acts 2. 37.notes) and ſtuck as an Arrow ſo faſt in their Hearts, that no Hand but that which wounded them, could pull it out.
But it ever gives (whether a particular or no) a full and durable ſight of Sin, viz. in the extent and latitude, and in the aggravating Circumſtances of it, as under, with, and againſt both Judgments and Mercies: little Sins are made great and heavy, forgotten Sins are brought to mind, and ſecret Sins (either as ſecretly committed, or kept ſecret from the Underſtanding) Pſal. 19. 12are brought to light, and all with their particular Aggravations, that Sin may appear (as it is) exceeding ſinful; and this, not in a glance only, or in tranſitu, (like a flaſh of Lightning, that is as ſoon gone as come) but ſo as ever to have them in his Eye, and always upon his Heart, as Job, who poſſeſſed Job 13. 26.his Sins; and David, who had his ever Pſal. 51. 3.before him.
If Sin comes not to our remembrance here, it will hereafter to God's: if not to ours, to conviction; it will to his, to our condemnation.
4. That work of the Spirit, whereby a Sinner is made ſenſible, not only of his Sins, but of the Mercy of God in Chriſt ready to pardon them, Chriſt Acts 5. 31.having purchaſed for, and God promiſed to all that repent, the pardon, 1 John 1. 9.not of one Sin only, (viz. the firſt) nor of many Sins (the leſſer) but of all both great and ſmall. The greatneſs of Mercy reveal'd, ſhews the greatneſs of our Miſery, (as much Phyſick prepar'd ſhews many Diſeaſes) and the greatneſs of Miſery, the need of great Mercy; and a ſenſe of both is neceſſary in order unto Repentance; one, that he may tremble before God; the other, that when afraid, he may put his truſt in him: one, that we may ſee his need of Mercy; the other, that he may ſeek after it. None but Sinners need repent, and none but they that are thus ſenſible, will; therefore ſuch a ſenſe is neceſſary, without which they would rather flee from God, than to him.
If God did not hate Sin, Repentance would be needleſs; and if he would not pardon it, it would be hopeleſs.
5. That Work of the Spirit, whereby a Sinner made ſenſible of his Sins, and the freeneſs of Mercy to pardon them, does moſt affectionately mourn for them, and moſt effectually turn from them, to God.
1. Moſt affectionately mourn for them.
Some count it the Perfection of Grace, not to be troubled for Sin; but Jer. 31. 18. Joel 2. 13. Zech. 12. 10.it is a curſed Piety that denies it: they that have had the greateſt aſſurance of Divine Love, have been moſt deeply concern'd in ſorrow for Sin, (Paul after he had been in Heaven, mourn'd for it); and all that ever truly repented of Sin, have been ſo too: for, true Repentance is never without Sorrow, tho' Sorrow may be without that; it is not Repentance, (for, that lies in the turn from Sin to God) but a neceſſary adjunct of it, and as neceſſary to it, as Joy is to Thankfulneſs.
Sorrow is good for little elſe; and all Joy to be ſuſpected, that is not founded on it.
2. Moſt effectually turn from them.
Purpoſes are no Deeds; a Purpoſe to give, is no Gift in Law; nor a bare reſolution to forſake Sin, Repentance: for, that ſeconds Purpoſes with Endeavours, and follows Reſolution with Action; and all that are ſincere in it, not only confeſs and bewail the Sins committed, but forſake the Sins bewail'd: They do not, as ſome, barely confeſs, and not forſake; nor as others, confeſs, and Sin the more, (as if by Iſa. 1. 16.that they had obtain'd a Diſpenſation to it) but ceaſe to do Evil, and depart from all Iniquity; not from ſome Sins only, but all, viz. againſt God and Man, themſelves and others, Perſonal and Relative, Publick and Secret, Great and Small, Inward and Outward, of Heart and Life, and, as Ephraim from his Idols, ſo as never to have any more to Hoſea 4. 18.do with them.
One Commodity, as well as many, makes a Trader; and one Sin (though the leaſt) indulg'd, an impenitent Sinner.
3. And ſincerely turn to God.Jer. 4. 1. Acts 26. 20.
Sin is a turning from God, Repentance is a turning to him; and all that exerciſe a Repentance toward God, turn from the Love of Sin, to the love Iſa. 55 7.of Him as their chief Good; and from the ſervice of Sin, to his Service, as their Sovereign-Lord, and ſo to it, as 1 Theſſ. 1. 9.never to depart from it.
All God's Covenant-Servants, are his for their Lives.
1. Then they are much miſtaken, that look upon Repentance as an abſtracted Notion from a Holy Life.
Impenitency is a doing of that which Dan. 4.27. Titus 2.1…. Rom. 7.15. 1 Cor. 11.31. Iſa. 30.22. Job 42.6. Pſal. 97.10. Iſa. 1.16,17. Rom. 12.9.is Evil, and continuing in it; Repentance is an undoing of it, a facing about, (a happy Apoſtacy) a turning from it; the Work of the whole Man, viz. of the Judgment (in denying, diſallowing, and condemning of Sin) of the Will, (in declining it, and reſolving againſt it); of the Affections (in loathing, hating, and abhorring of it) Mutatio voluntatis & rei.and of the Life in forſaking it, and turning from it; it begins in the Heart, but ends in the Life.
It is abomination to Fools to depart from Evil; but none repent truly Prov. 13. 19.unleſs they do.
2. And as much miſtaken are they, that think it an eaſy thing to repent, as foreign.if it was (as Alexandrinus notes) rather the turning of a Shell than a Soul.
To repent, is to accuſe and condemn our ſelves, to charge upon our ſelves the deſert of Hell; to take part with God againſt our ſelves, and to juſtify him in all that he does againſt us; to be aſham'd and confounded for our Sins, to have them ever in our Eyes, and at all times upon our Hearts, that we may be in daily ſorrow for them; to part with our right Hands and Eyes, thoſe pleaſurable and profitable Sins, that have been as dear to us as our Lives, ſo as never to have to do with them more, and to hate them ſo, as to deſtroy them, things that by Nature we are wholly averſe from: For,
We naturally love, and think well of our ſelves; hide our Deformities, leſſen and excuſe our Faults, indulge our ſelves in the things that pleaſe us; are mad upon our Luſts, and follow them, though to our own deſtruction; but yet, though difficult in themſelves, and things that we of our ſelves cannot do, yet ſuch as God has promiſed, if we are not wanting to our ſelves, to enable us to do; for, what is a Command in one place, is a Promiſe in another: The Command bids us, Waſh, and be clean: The Promiſe ſays, We Iſa. 1. 16, 18. Ezek. 36. 25, 26, 27.ſhall be cleanſed: One bids us put away Evil; the other ſays, it ſhall be taken away: One, bids us convert our ſelves; the other ſays, We ſhall be converted: One injoins Repentance; the other aſſures it. Now, we muſt not be frighted by the Precept, but allur'd by the Promiſe; not driven from our Obedience to it, (becauſe of difficulty) but driven by it to the Promiſe, or rather to him that made it; with a deſire, that ſince by his Command he has made it our Duty, he would, by fulfilling his Promiſe, enable us to it, by giving his Da domine quod jubes, da prius poenitentiam, poſtea indulgentiam.Spirit to us, that only can work it in us.
The Grace of Repentance goes before the Grace of Indulgence, but they are both from God.
What St. Auſtin ſays concerning the Ni nihilo facitius, ni nihilo p… riculoſius erratur; plures damnat poenitentia quam ipſum peccatum.Trinity, may be ſaid here as to Repentance, viz. that Miſtakes are both eaſy and dangerous; that we may not therefore be miſtaken in it, it concerns us to enquire, What our Repentance is? viz. Whether a dead Repentance, or a Repentance unto Life, toward God or Acts 11. 18. 20. 21. 2 Cor. 7. 10.our ſelves; a Repentance to be repented, or not to be repented of; and this, by conſidering theſe four things, that are either neceſſary in order unto it, or comprehended in it, viz.
1. Confeſſion of Sin.
2. Sorrow for Sin.
3. Hatred to Sin.
4. Departure from Sin.
1. Confeſſion of Sin.
Supplication precedes Remiſſion, and Pſal. 32. 5. Prov. …8. 13. Hoſ. 14. 2.words of Confeſſion (take with the words) muſt go before words of Petition and Supplication; which Confeſſion is then right,
When full, and without reſerve.
We confeſs none truly, unleſs fully; none, unleſs all: for, what is partial, is hypocritical.
When free, and not forc'd.
Forc'd Confeſſions are of little credit on Earth, of none in Heaven.
When with Humiliation and Deteſtation, Job 4. 26. Ezek. 20. 43.viz. of our Sins, and of our ſelves too for them.
Caligula boaſted that he could not be aſham'd, (tho' he could not that he was never afraid) but it is the Glory, and honour of all penitent Sinners Perit homo, cui perit pudor.to be ſo: for, true Confeſſion, is an acknowledgment with diſlike, and is ever accompanied with ſhame.
Silence (or ſaying little) in other Caſes, will do us no hurt; but here it will: for thoſe Sins only that are condemned Agnoſcit reus, ignoſcit Deus.by us on Earth, are pardon'd by God in Heaven.
2. Sorrow for Sin.
Sorrow for Sin is not Repentance, yet there is no true Repentance without it: for, as Sorrow worketh Repentance, (it is not Repentance, but 2 Cor. 7. 10.that which worketh to it) ſo Repentance worketh Sorrow; which Sorrow is then right,
When free, and without conſtraint.
Not as a Water from a Still, but from a Fountain that flows freely.
When Conſtant.
This Heavenly Dew muſt fall upon us Morning and Evening, Day and Night.
When Genuine.2 Cor. 7. 10. foreign. Godly Sorrow, as reſpecting God, and ſo oppos'd to worldly Sorrow, which has a reſpect only to evil.
The Sorrow, not of a Slave, but of a Child, more out of Love, than Fear; more, becauſe God is offended, than Hell deſerv'd.
When proportionable to the Meaſure of Sin. Proportionable to the Nature of Sin, it cannot be, but to the Meaſure of it (ſo far as we can) it muſt.
Great Sorrow (like Naaman's ſeven 2 Kings 5. 14.times waſhing) for great Sins.
Manaſſes ſorrow for Sin was great.2 Kings 33. 12.
He had greatly ſinn'd, and was greatly humbled.
David's Sorrow for Sin was great:
Tears were his Meat and Drink, the Night (a time appointed for reſt) as Pſal. 6. 6. 32. 34.well as the Day, was to him a time of Sorrow; and the Flood roſe ſo high, that it made his Bed to ſwim.
And ſo was Peter's: For,
His Eyes were (as Nicephorus ſays) red with Tears, died red with daily Sorrow: for, (as Clemens his Scholar ſays) whilſt he liv'd, upon the hearing of a Cock crow, he wept.
His Faith was great, when he threw himſelf into the Sea to go to Chriſt; but his Sorrow was greater, when he threw himſelf into a Sea of his own Tears for ſinning againſt him. Once he was nothing but words, (tho' all be Mat. 26. 33.offended, yet will I never be offended) but then he was nothing but Tears; the remembrance of his Sin was bitter, and ſo was his Sorrow, for he wept bitterly; and ſo muſt all that are true Penitents, riſing up, and lying down, Mat. 26. ult. Pſal. 38. 6.with mournful Confeſſions of Sin, and with inward, hearty, and daily ſorrow for it.
Ever fearing leſt they ſhould Sin, and Semper in timore, ſemper in dolore.ever ſorrowing becauſe they have.
The Heathen wiſh'd that he might ever laugh; but inſtead of wiſhing one another much Joy, we may better (for juſtly) wiſh one another much Sorrow; we have been impudent in ſinning, and muſt be humble in ſorrowing for it; we cannot be found in Innocency, it is fit therefore we ſhould be found in Tears: We cannot (with the Purifier under the Law) offer up a Lamb of Innocency, we muſt therefore a pair of mournful Turtles, it being all the amends we can make for our ſinning, the beſt way we can teſtify our Love to Chriſt, (who ſhed Blood as well as Tears for our Sins) and the moſt acceptable Sacrifice we can offer unto God, who has an Eye, an Ear, and a Bottle for our Tears.
An Eye.
Tears blot our Book, but they are Iſa. 38. 5.written in God's, he ſees them, and takes notice of them.
An Ear.Mutae ſunt, & loquuntur, dearſum cadunt, & ſurſum petunt, ponders vocis habent.
Sighs and Tears are the Rhetorick of an humbled Heart; they are words, they deſcend, and yet aſcend; they are dumb, and yet ſpeak, and God hears their Voice.Pſal. 6. 8.
A Bottle.
Tears of godly Sorrow are Angels Lachrymae poenitentium angelorum vinum. Bern.Wine; and none of that noble Liquor ſhall be loſt, nor fall to the Ground: For, Chriſt the Sun of Righteouſneſs will exhale them, God will bottle them up, and the Spirit the Comforter will turn them (as Chriſt did the Water) into Wine: For,
They that mourn (and they only) Mat. 5. 4.ſhall be comforted.
Since then God has an Eye for our Tears, let our Eyes be daily filled with them: ſince he has an Ear for them, let the Voice of our weeping go daily up into it, to drown the cry of our Sins, Gen. 18. 20, 21.that is great, and gone up to Heaven: and ſince he has a Bottle for them, let Job 14. 17.us who have filled his Bag with our Sins, fill his Bottle with our Tears, pouring out floods of Tears, for thoſe floods of Sins we have poured down.
Muſick on the Water, and Repentance with Tears, are ever moſt pleaſant.
3. Hatred to Sin.
Contrition, if true, riſes up to Deteſtation, and then Deteſtation is Pſal. 97. 10. Rom. 12. 9right,
1. When it is to Sin, as Sin.
To the Intrinſecal Evil, more than the Extrinſecal, the Evil of Sin more than the Evil of Puniſhment; the Filth, more than the Guilt; and the defiling, more than the damning Nature of it; not only becauſe of Hell, but worſe than Hell; more to the Hell that is in it, than the Hell that comes by it.
2. When Univerſal.
Anger is againſt Individuals, but Hatred foreign.is to the whole kind; and if right here, it is to all Sin, and eſpecially to the Sin that once we loved moſt.
3. When implacable.
We never hate Sin truly, unleſs we hate it to the Death.
Some are angry with Sin, (when it has impair'd their Credit in the World, and made a breach upon their Peace within) but are ſoon pleaſed with it again, (for Anger is a mixt Paſſion) and ceaſe from the Act of Sin for a time, and yet love it; but hatred to Sin, if right, is irreconcileable.
A thing that is poiſon'd we pity, but a thing that is poiſonous we hate; the Serpent is hated above all Creatures, and of all, and ſo muſt Sin (of a far more venemous Nature) be hated by us.
The Iſraelites hated every Canaanite.
4. Departure from Sin.
Humiliation, if right, leads to, and iſſues in Reformation.
Repentance conſiſts of two parts, viz. Averſion from Sin, and Converſion to God.
1. Averſion from Sin.
Repentance is a Covenant-Engagement againſt Sin, in the uſe of all means to keep that Covenant.
And is then right,
When Univerſal, viz. from all Sin; forſaking groſs Sins, and bewailing unavoidable Infirmities.
Hypocriſy turns from ſome Sins, or from one Sin to another; true Repentance departs from all.
When perpetual.
True Repentance ſues out a Bill of Divorce, with a reſolution never to return to folly more.
When out of hatred to it.
We may ceaſe from the Act of Sin, while we love it; indulge the Luſt, even then when we deny the Act; and hate the evil Conſequence of Sin, and yet never hate the Evil in it: but as no hatred to Sin is right, unleſs it is to the Evil that is in it; ſo no departure from it neither, unleſs it ariſes from a hatred to it.
When a Traveller changes his way, it is out of diſlike.
2. Converſion to God, from whom, and againſt whom we have turn'd by Hoſ. 6. 1. Iſa. 1. 16, 17. Titus 2. 12. 1 Pet. 2. 11, 12. Rom. 8 1, 13. 1 Theſſ. 1 9.Sin.
Ceaſing to do Evil, is not a learning to do well; nor departing from Evil, a doing Good: nor is it enough to deny Ungodlineſs, unleſs we live godly; not to walk after the Fleſh, unleſs we walk after the Spirit; to ceaſe to bring forth the Fruits of the Fleſh, unleſs we bring forth the Fruits of the Spirit, (Fruits meet for Repentance); nor that Mat. 3. 8.we turn from Sin, (for we never truly repent) unleſs we turn to God; nor turn to God truly, unleſs univerſally, viz.
In all the ways of Righteouſneſs and Holineſs.
Perpetually,Optima poenitentia nova vita.
Wholly and for ever.
To him we cannot in this Life fully turn, and therefore muſt daily ſo to him, as never (willingly) to turn from him.
Once, is above any Indulgence granted.
Of the Danger of delaying Repentance.
SOme reject Repentance as a legal and needleſs thing; ſome counterfeit and diſſemble it; ſome miſtake it, but moſt neglect and delay it. Miſtakes and Delays are two great Impediments to it; yet more delay, than refuſe it. Our Paſſage to Heaven is dangerous, we either ſplit on the Rock of Preſumption, or fall into the Gulph of Deſpair; and all Delays are grounded, either on Deſpair, or Preſumption.
1ſt, Deſpair; which ariſes,
Either from a ſenſe of Sin's Greatneſs as Impardonable; or a fear of the loſs of time as Irrevocable.
1. From a ſenſe of Sin's Greatneſs as Impardonable.
The great Policy of the Devil is, (as one ſays) either to enlarge God's Mercy above the Bounds of the Law, or his Juſtice above the Bounds of the Goſpel; he either preſents God's Mercy in a falſe Glaſs, to make Sinners preſume, or his Juſtice to bring them to deſpair, (and he is better able to do this than the other: for, he feels and knows what his Juſtice is, but ſhall never ſo know the other); before Sin is committed, he tells them it is little, and will eaſily be pardon'd; but when committed, then it is great, too great for Pardon; and tho' he is the Father of Lies, they give credit to him, and conclude, that their Sins, their many and great Sins, will never be pardon'd, at leaſt not ſo freely, or upon ſuch eaſy tearms as (to Naaman, Go waſh and be clean) repent and be ſav'd. A great hinderance to the Work of Repentance; but may be remov'd by a ſerious conſideration;
(1.) Of God's Mercy.
(2.) Of Chriſt's Merit.
(1.) Of God's Mercy.
The Sanctuary of Diſtreſſed, the Balm of Wounded, the Refuge of Burden'd, the Cordial of Fainting, the Hope of Living, the Joy and Reviving of dying Sinners: Manifold as to Kind, and Abundant 1 Pet. 1. 3. Iſa. 55. 7.as to Degree; abundant Mercy that can abundantly pardon, not ſome Sins only, ſmall and few, but all; therefore, when Sin abounds in their ſenſe and feeling, they ſhould eaſily be drawn by theſe Cords of Mercy to the In miſericordia divina, divina omnipotentia.God of Mercy, whoſe Mercy is above all his Works, and ours too.
Infinite Mercy knows no bounds.
(2.) Chriſt's Merit.
The Sun can diſpel thick Clouds, as well as thin Vapours; and Chriſt, the Sun of Righteouſneſs, can ſcatter multiplied Sins, that make Heaven look black upon us; many, as well as few, and great, as eaſily as ſmall: for, there are as great Dimenſions in his Merit, as there are in Sin; yea, greater, for they are incomprehenſible, and cannot be meaſured; the leaſt Sin requires as much, the greateſt needs no more; one Sin is mortal without it, but none, no not all, if intereſted in it; therefore the greatneſs of Sin ſhould rather ſend us to him, than from him. That we may be ſo,
We muſt be great Sinners, either as to act, or ſenſe, before he will appear as a Saviour to us.
2. From a fear of the loſs of Time as Irrevocable.
The Devil tells none, that it is not their Duty to repent, (tho' ſome he does, that it will be to no purpoſe if they do) but that it is not abſolutely neceſſary in ſuch a limited time; hereafter will do as well as now; ſoft and fair will go far; they may indulge themſelves in Sin a little longer, and repent at laſt; a little more folding of the hands to ſleep, before they ſtretch Prov. 6. 10.them out to Heaven for Mercy; a little more ſlumber, and ſleep, before they awake to Righteouſneſs: and hereby lulls many ſo faſt aſleep in Sin, that they never awake; firſt, he tells them there is time enough, and then that there is none; firſt, there is more time to come, (many Years ſaid the Fool) and then time is paſt; firſt, it is too ſoon, and then too late: and as he ſuggeſts, ſo thoſe he has deluded believe, and conclude their Caſe to be deſperate, which they ſhould not: for, tho' our Times are in God's Hands, (both of Nature and Grace, for this Life and a better) all Times are not alike to all; ſome may, and do out-live their Time; and a ſad Judgment it is (a Hell upon Earth) when it is ſo; yet it cannot be known to any, either of themſelves or others; for it is a Secret Arcanum Imporii. Mat. 25. 10.known to none but God: Where the Goſpel is Preach'd, a Door of Hope is ſet open to all; but when it is ſhut to any particular Perſon, none can know, and therefore of dangerous Conſequence for any to conclude it, yea, groundleſs and irrational too: for, tho' the longer the Seaſon of Grace has continu'd, the more Mercy is heightned on God's part, and Sin aggravated on the Sinners; yet ſo long as they have a Heart, or a Will to repent, their Time is not paſt, God is willing if they are willing; for, he waits to be gracious.Iſa. 30. 18.
There were never any that in a ſinking condition (with Peter) cried heartily out to him, but he ſtretched out his hand of Mercy, and ſaved them.
2ly, Preſumption is grounded; either,
On the Length of God's Patience, the Greatneſs of God's Mercy, the Hope of long Life, the Power of Repenting at pleaſure; or the Examples of thoſe that found Mercy upon a late Repentance.
1. The length of God's Patience.
Preſumptuous Sinners look on Sin, not as it is in it ſelf, but as wrapt up in the gild of God's Patience; and becauſe Sentence againſt their evil Works is not ſpeedily executed, nor they deſtroy'd (as Zimri and Cosbi) in their Eecleſ 8. 21. Numb. 25. 6, 7, 8.Sins, their Hearts are ſet in them to do wickedly; not conſidering that the End of his Patience was to make them, not Petulant, but Penitent; and that therefore,
When God is patient that they might repent, they ſin the more if they do not repent, becauſe he is patient.
2. The Greatneſs of God's Mercy.
Preſumptuous Sinners behold God, not in his Juſtice, but in his Mercy only; they ſee nothing but Mercy in God, but in their Imaginations only it is, if any where ſo; for he is juſt as well as merciful: It is true, he is abundant in Mercy, but he is not all Mercy, nor any of it will he ſhew to them that continue in ſin, but to them only that repent, and turn from it; Mercy is but one Attribute in God, and we deny him to be God, if we deny his Juſtice; and God muſt deny himſelf in his Truth, if ſuch be pardon'd, which he will never do; for he pardons none but in a way of Juſtice, as well as Mercy.
It is folly to think God is Cruel, if Juſt, and a high affront to him; for if not Juſt, he is not God, viz. as juſt to puniſh the Preſumptuous, as merciful to pardon the Penitent.
3. The Hope of long Life.
The Young look on themſelves as growing up to Strength, and going forward to Time. The Middle-aged ſay, They find no decay in their Strength, they are as ſound and ſtrong as ever. The Old or Aged, think not their ſtrength ſo far weakned or abated, but that they may live longer, (if but one in a Town or Family live to old Age, they think they ſhall do ſo too) and make long Life, which is in it ſelf a Bleſſing, and ſhould be a Motive to a ſpeedy Repentance, an Argument againſt it, deferring the Work when call'd to it; as Antipater (with his foreign) when a Treatiſe of Happineſs was offer'd to him. Antigonus his foreign in the future; or as Foelix put off Paul to a more convenient time, (tho' we read not that ever that time Acts 24. 25.came) and linger with Lot, as unwilling to come out of Sodom: So that unleſs God be merciful to them, (as he was to him) and by his Omnipotent Power reſcue them from their ſtate of Sin and Miſery, they are like to periſh in it.
To pray againſt ſudden Death, and Bp Ʋſher.not to prepare for it, is to add contempt to preſumption.
4. A Power to repent at pleaſure.
Preſumptuous Sinners look on Repentance as a thing within their reach, and that which they can come at when they pleaſe; but it is not, for it is God's Gift, that which he muſt give to Acts 5. 31.us, before we can offer it up to him; and that we may, we muſt receive it when offer'd; for it is not in the Power of any to receive that when they will, that they muſt only and freely receive from another.
Free Gifts muſt be taken when the Donor (and not when the Receiver) will.
5. Examples of thoſe that found Mercy upon late Repentance.
Deſpairing Sinners (as is uſually ſaid) will not take a thouſand for one; for if but one of a thouſand miſcarry, they preſently conclude they ſhall be the next: but preſumptuous Sinners encourage themſelves by one of a thouſand; for if but one of a thouſand repent at laſt, they conclude they ſhall do ſo too: but it is prodigious folly for any to think ſo, and the next way to their ruin to preſume upon it: In that,
Such Inſtances only ſhew what God can do, not what he will.
How great the folly of ſuch Preſumptions; how abſurd and irrational ſuch Concluſions from theſe Premiſes are, will appear by conſidering,
That preſent Repentance,
1. Is the beſt for Eaſe.
2. Is the beſt for Acceptance.
3. Is the beſt for Safety.
4. That ſingular Examples conſtitute no general Rule.
Life is the only Time for Repentance, and the preſent Time the beſt.
Life is the only Time.
The Day of Grace may continue as long as the day of Life, and may end before it; but it ever ends with it; when the Sun of our Life ſets, that Eccleſ. 9. 10. Iſa. 38. 18.more glorious Sun ſets as to us too: Repentance is not a Doctrine taught in another World, nor a Work to be done by us in the Grave; for it is the Work of the whole Man, and cannot be done when the Soul and Body are parted, the Manicles of Death are to keep the Priſoners of Death in the ſtrong Hold and Priſon of the Grave, until the Day of Judgment (the great Aſſize) come, when a Sentence, either of Abſolution or Condemnation, ſhall paſs upon all; then ſhall the Kingdom be given up to the Father; the Work of Mediation ſhall ceaſe, and all impenitent Sinners ſhall be put into an unalterable ſtate of Miſery, and ſet at an irrecoverable diſtance from God; all means, (both outward and inward) either of doing or receiving Good, ſhall be taken from them, they ſhall neither have the grace nor ſpace of Repentance, nor any Spirit but the Evil One to torment them, nor any Conſcience but a guilty one to accuſe them.
There is no Repentance in Hell, but ad Poenas.
Life is the only Time for Repentance; and the preſent Time in Life is the beſt.
1. For Eaſe.
2. For Acceptance.
3. For Safety.
1. The beſt for Eaſe.
Preſumptuous Sinners think they can repent with as much eaſe, as he who with one daſh of his Penſil turn'd a Smile into a Frown; but their Experience upon Trial, will confute their Belief, and ſhew them to be as much miſtaken, as Sampſon was, when he Judges 16. 20.went out to ſhake himſelf as at other times, when the Philiſtines were upon him, and God was departed from him: if ſo eaſy, why did not Cain and Judas repent? And why do ſo many complain, when dying, that they cannot, and wiſh that they could?
The ſooner a ruinous Building is repair'd, the leſs difficult and chargeable will its Repairs be: The ſooner a Diſeaſe or Wound is undertaken, the ſooner it will be cured; the ſooner thoſe Wounds and Breaches made upon us, and in us by Sin, are under Cure, with far more eaſe will they be heal'd, than when Sin (as a Diſeaſe) is grown upon us with our Years; Jer. 4. 3. 13. 23.the ſooner the fallow-Ground of our Heart is plou'd up, the leſs pains will be required to it, leſs than when our Hearts by cuſtom in Sin are become hard, like the high-way by conſtant treading upon it; floods of Tears may, not ſoften it then, which at firſt a few might have done; and this partly in reference to Conſcience, and partly in reference to Sin.
Partly in reference to Conſcience, which by delay grows more blind, hard, Epheſ. 4. 18.and deaf.
More blind, and ſo cannot ſee Sin.
The older we grow, the dimmer our Sight.
More hard, and ſo cannot feel Sin.Omne peccatum vileſcit conſuetudine, & fit quaſi nullum.
Cuſtom in Sin, takes away the ſenſe of it.
More deaf,
And ſo leſs able to hear the Call to Repentance, by reaſon of the clamorous and continued Voice of Sin.
Partly in reference to Sin, which hereby becomes more ſweet, multiplied and firm.
More ſweet;
And the ſweeter Sin is, the more bitter the Repentance will be: For, every Sin is as a drop of Poiſon into this Cup, which will make it the more bitter to us.
More multiplied: For,
Every Act of Sin adds a Figure to the Sum.
More firm: For,
Every Act of Sin confirms and ſtrengthens the habit of it, and cannot without great difficulty be removed.
Late Repentance is always difficult, and ſo is early Repentance, but leſs difficult of the two; for the longer it is deferr'd, there will be more Sins to repent of, and leſs time to repent in.
2. The beſt for Acceptance.
The Lawyer ſays, When no particular Time is expreſt, the preſent Time is meant.
The Grammarian ſays, The Imperative Mood has no Future Tenſe; and all God's Commands are in praeſenti; and ſo muſt our Obedience in this, and in all things be; nothing muſt come betwixt the Command and Obedience.
It is now (viz. not only the preſent now of Life, but of Youth, Strength, Acts 17. 30.Health, and of the Spirit's ſtriving with us) that we are commanded to repent, and therefore muſt (with David) make Pſal. 119. 60.haſte, and not delay; it is now that we are commanded to mortify our Luſts; therefore muſt not beg a Reprieve for them, that they may live a little longer in us, but (with Abraham when commanded to ſacrifice Iſaac) ariſe early Gen. 22. 2.and ſlay them. It is to day that we are call'd to hear God's Voice, and live; therefore muſt not lie down to Pſal. 95. 7, 8. Heb. 3 7, 13. 1 Sam. 34, 10.ſleep, nor wait for a ſecond, third, or fourth call, nor ſtay till are anſwer'd, but ariſe, and caſt away all that may hinder us, (as blind Bartimeus Mark 10. 49. 50did his Garment) and go unto him that calls us.
Not to do it,
1. Is Ingratitude to God.
2. Inconſiſtent with a true purpoſe of Heart ever to repent.
1. It is Ingratitude to God, viz. Father, Son, and Holy Ghoſt.
1. To God the Father,
In giving our firſt Fruits to Sin, that he by right ſhould have, and above all deſerves, for he lov'd us with a primary and ancient Love, a Love before we were.
2. To God the Son,
Who delay'd not the Work of our Salvation, but was early at it; and in his full ſtrength, and the prime of his Years, laid down his Life to ſecure it.
3. To God the Holy Ghoſt,
Who has not only ſtriven with us by importunity, but waited upon us with Patience, that we might repent.Rev. 3. 20.
2. It is inconſiſtent with a true purpoſe of Heart ever to repent.
Repentance is a Debt that we all (as Sinners) owe to God, a Debt that muſt be paid: God is indeed a kind Creditor, and waits with patience; but his Forbearance is no Diſcharge, nor are we the leſs indebted, by not paying it, but appear by ſo much the more unwilling to it. It is a ſign of a deſperate Debtor, not to reckon with his Creditor; and of his unwillingneſs to pay the Debt, in that he delays it; and no leſs of a curſed Reſolution in all, never to repent, a ſign, that they either intend it not, or have little or no mind to it, in that they defer it.
They that will not repent this day, would never repent, if they might have their choice; or they that wilfully remain impenitent this day, would (if they might with ſafety) be everlaſtingly ſo; for, the ſame reaſon for delay this day, would be ſo the next, and the ſame for ever.
3. The beſt for Safety.
The Phyſician's Rule to avoid the Plague, is to flee ſoon enough, far enough, Fuge cit, longè, tradè.and to return ſlowly: and to prevent Death by Sin, (of all Diſeaſes the moſt dangerous) the beſt Remedy is to flee ſoon enough, (and it can never be too ſoon) far enough; and it can never be too far, nor is it far enough, unleſs the flight be to God; nor right to him, unleſs with a reſolution never to return back to it more; and the ſooner, the better.
In many things haſte makes waſte; the more haſte, the worſe ſpeed: but if here we make haſte, we can never ſpeed amiſs.
Sickneſs, or old Age, are the Times that preſumptuous Sinners ſet apart for Repentance; their youthful ſtrength, they make a Bulwark againſt Repentance: Sorrow for Sin, they think a fit Companion for old Age only; their Sighs and Groans, they reſerve for a ſick and dying hour, and never think it ſeaſonable to die to Sin, but when they can live no longer in it; prodigious Fools, that flee to theſe, as a Sanctuary to ſhelter them from the Wrath of God, when they cannot be ſure,
1. That they ſhall be ſick before they die.
2. That they ſhall live to be old.
3. That when either ſick or old, they ſhall have a Heart to repent.
4. That what they then think is Repentance, will be accepted of God.
1. That they ſhall be ſick before they die.
Death does not give warning to all by ſickneſs, for ſome die ſuddenly: Now that which befalls one, may happen to many; and that which has Luke 13. 1, 2, 3, 4, 5.been the Caſe of many, may betide any one.
Since then that is uncertain, Repentance can never be unſeaſonable, but the ſooner the better.
2. That they ſhall live to be old.
Death is not ſlow-pac'd to all, but ſwift in its motion to ſome, it does not always ſtay till gray Hairs (the ſign of old Age) are upon them.
All haſten alike to Death, but ſome have a leſs way to go than others.
3. That when either Sick or Old, they ſhall have a Heart to repent.
When Sick:
None can be ſure that they ſhall have time when Sick to repent, (they may have but juſt ſo much time left, as to tell their Companions in Sin, that they are going to Hell): if they have time, they cannot be ſure of eaſe, whereby they may be fit to attend it; Reaſon, Senſe, and Speech may fail; or pains (the Companions of Sickneſs) may ſo ſeize on them, that neither their Bodies, nor Souls, may be much at eaſe; nor they (with the Iſraelites) be able to hearken to any thing for Exod. 6. 9.anguiſh of Spirit; if not, yet they may not have a Heart then to repent.
The Duty of Repentance is ours, but 2 Tim. 2. 25.the Grace is God's.
When old.
There are no Examples in Scripture of any (as ſome obſerve) converted in their old Age: Manaſſes, and the Thief on the Croſs, were not (as is ſuppos'd) old; or if they were, the Repentance of one was more than ordinary, and of the other no leſs than miraculous: and from a Miracle, nothing can be concluded, no Perſon ſhould neglect it then, leſt he prove felo de ſe, and bring deſtruction upon himſelf; nor put it off till then, leſt it come too late to prevent it.
It is never too late, when true; but ſeldom true, when late.
4. That what they then think Repentance, will be accepted of God?
The ſad Effects of ſick-bed Repentance in many, (whoſe Repentance prov'd as ſick and unſound, as their Bodies were then) ſhews reaſon to ſuſpect that Repentance, that is extorted from any by Pain, when ſick; or by Fears, when dying: were ſickneſs, and the thoughts of Death a little farther off, and not ſo cloſe and preſſing upon them, perhaps they would neither bewail their Sins, nor leave them; therefore God may (and juſtly if he ſhould) reject their Repentance, and forget them in ſickneſs, who forgat him in their health, and make them Warnings to others, who diſregarded Gal. 6. 7, 8.ſo many from him.
Delays of Repentance to a time of ſickneſs, are uſually puniſh'd, with a not caring to ſeek, or not ſo as to find.
It is uſually but an untoward Repentance that is exerted in Age, decrepit, weak, and impotent, as feeble as old Age, (like the dim flaſhes of a Taper, when ſunk in the ſocket) and may juſtly be rejected by God, and the Penitent (as one when repenting in old Age by a Voice was) bid to ſpend his Bran, where he had ſpent his Flower; his Evening, where he had ſpent his Morning.
We ſhall have (as Solomon ſays) but Eccleſ. 12. 1.little pleaſure in the days of old Age; and God may take as little pleaſure in the repentance of them.
5. That ſingular Examples conſtitute no general Rule.
Some draw an Argument for Preſumption from thoſe in the Parable, that came in at the eleventh hour, (and receiv'd a Reward equal with Mat. 20. 1, 6, 7, 9.them that came early in the morning) but without any Reaſon; for though it be granted that Parables do more than illuſtrate, or ſhew the Soveraign freedom of Grace to ſome only, (which many deny); yet that Parable affords no ground of Preſumption, Theologia parabolica non est argumentativa.in that they ſtood idle for want of Work, not for a want of a Will to work; they were not call'd at the third or ſixth Hour, and ſTaid till the eleventh, but came as ſoon as they were call'd, and went to labour, as ſoon as they were hired: They come early, that come when they are call'd; come when they can; they do a thing early, that do it when they are bid to do it; and they repent early, that repent as ſoon as they have the means of Repentance; though it be late before they have them: This rather condemns than juſtifies thoſe that have long enjoy'd the Means of Repentance, and reject them; that have had many Calls, and yet are deaf to them, and refuſe to labour, when they are not only hired, but redeem'd, and dearly bought for it: and ſhews the folly of all that defer their Repentance to the eleventh Hour, who cannot be ſure they ſhall live to the third or ſixth; or that (if they do) they ſhall be call'd to it, have Ears open to liſten to the Call, or a Will and a Power to come if they are.
It is the higheſt Wiſdom, to do God's Work in God's Time.
Others conclude a Reaſon for Preſumption, from the Example of the Thief on the Croſs, who liv'd a Thief, but died a Saint, and aſcended from a Croſs to a Crown; but abſurdly if,
| The Repentance it ſelf | be all duly conſider'd. |
| The Time when | |
| The Perſon repenting |
The Repentance was Eminent.
The Time was Extraordinary.
The Perſon but One and Alone.
1. The Repentance was Signal and Eminent; as appears,
(1.) In the ſmallneſs of the means uſed; compar'd with what they have, that live under the conſtant preaching of the Goſpel.
(2.) In the ſpeedineſs of the Work.
It is very probable he never heard of Chriſt nor Religion before: for, he with his fellow Thief at firſt rail'd at Chriſt, (the Thieves alſo caſt the ſame in Mat. 27. 44.his teeth) ſo that he believ'd in Chriſt as ſoon as he knew him, and repented as ſoon as he was call'd to it.
(3.) In the wonderful Effects of Luke 23. 40.it, as many, and as great as that condition was capable of: For,
He rebuked his Fellow Thief and Companion in Sin and Suffering. Doſt not thou fear God, who art in the ſame condemnation?
He own'd his own Guilt, became his Luk. …3 40, … 42.own Judg, condemn'd himſelf, made good the Evidence, juſtified and approv'd the Sentence paſt againſt him, (we are juſtly condemn'd, I as well as you, and receive the Reward of our Deeds); he called Chriſt, Lord, (and this when ſuffering as a Slave); he … 4. Inſam… …gnum ſervile ſupplicium.own'd him as God, for he pray'd to him (Remember me) and this when the Scribes and Phariſees mocked at his Prayers, (Let us ſee if Elias will come and ſave him); he believ'd in him for Salvation, and this when the Scribes and Phariſees ſaid he could not ſave himſelf, (He ſaved others, he cannot ſave himſelf); he honoured him as the King of Heaven, (Remember me when thou comeſt into thy Kingdom); he proclaimed his innocency, (This Man hath done In medio latronum, tanquam dux & latrenum immaniſſimus.done nothing amiſs); and this when he was ſuffering the death of a Malefactor, numbred among Tranſgreſſors, and crucified between them, as if he was the chief of them.
Since then none can imagine that Chriſt will be ſo near to them when dying, as he was to this Thief on the Croſs; nor that they ſhall ever do ſuch a publick Act of Honour for him, as he did, (in owning him ſo openly, when the Jews deſpiſed him, and his own Diſciples forſook him); nor can any way be aſſur'd that their Repentance at laſt ſhall be like his, (which was quick and operative, though not long-liv'd) nor be ſo honour'd by Chriſt, as his Repentance was: For, it was crown'd with aſſurance of Heaven, ratified and confirmed by Oath, (Verily I ſay unto you, To day thou ſhalt be with me in Paradiſe); none ſhould think on the lateneſs of his Repentance, to preſume or defer theirs; but by its great and glorious Effects, be ſtirred up to a ſpeedy and daily exerciſe of it.
It is wiſdom to do that betimes, that muſt needs be done; can never be too ſoon, but may be too late.
2. The Time was Extraordinary.
Not only in that then his Fellow Thief rail'd on him; they that paſſed by revil'd him; the Prieſts, Scribes, Elders, and People (that ſtood beholding) deriding him; the Souldiers mocked him, and almoſt all his Friends forſook him, (of his Diſciples, but Mat. 27. 39, 40. Luke 23. 35, 36, 37. M… 23. 39, 41. …. 19. 2…, 26.one that we read of; and but four of the Women ſtood by his Croſs, out of Love, and religious Obſervation); all or any of which, might have prov'd a hindrance to it.
But in that it was a time, when the greateſt Act of Mercy that ever was ſhewn to the world, appear'd, viz. Chriſt, God-Man dying upon the Croſs to ſave the World, it was no ordinary Time, nor no ordinary Mercy; they therefore that preſume upon it, may as well expect to ſee the like occaſion and inſtance of Mercy, viz. Chriſt again, or another Chriſt to be crucified, as to think it will ſucceed well to them, becauſe it did ſo to him.
To which this alſo may be added, viz. That this Repentance of the Thief is reckon'd among the Wonders and Miracles that were then wrought, (viz. the rending of the Vail of the Mat 17. 5…, 52, 53. L… 23. 44, 45Temple, the riſing of the Dead, the rending of the Rocks, and darkning of the Sun); and well it may, for it was a Miracle it ſelf, (without any viſible means to work it) a miraculous Mercy wrought, to ſet forth the Glory of Chriſt's Divinity, and the Riches of Free Grace, and therefore can be no ſure Ground of Hope to any in an ordinary way; for none can with any more Reaſon diſpute,
From a Miracle againſt Heaven, than from a Monſter againſt Nature.
3. The Perſon was but One and Alone.
It is an Example without a Promiſe, (there is a Promiſe of Mercy to all upon true Repentance, though late, but no Promiſe of Repentance to any that delay it) and it is an Example without a Precedent too; one ſingle Inſtance, without a ſecond. Now from an extraordinary to draw an ordinary Direction; or from one Particular to conclude a General, is as irrational, as to think, we may make an Aſs ſpeak, becauſe once Balaam's did; that we may throw our ſelves into the Sea, and not be drown'd; walk in the Fire, and not be burnt, becauſe ſome that did, were not; that every time 1 King. 17. 46.we are hungry, we ſhall be fed immediatly from Heaven, becauſe Elijah was; that we ſhall be tranſlated, and not die, becauſe Enoch was; wrapt up into the third Heavens, before we die, becauſe Paul was; or be rais'd to Life, when dead, becauſe Lazarus was; as to find Mercy upon a late Repentance, becauſe this dying Thief did. Who that rightly underſtand themſelves, would venture their Lives in that Phyſician's Hands, that never cured but one of all that he undertook the cure of; eat of that Food, of which all but one that eat, died; turn Thieves, becauſe one of thoſe many that did, was pardon'd; much leſs run the hazard of a late Repentance from this ſingle Inſtance, becauſe at the ſame time there was an Inſtance of Mercy in him; there was one of Juſtice in the other: one ſav'd, that none ſhould deſpair; and but one, that none ſhould preſume.
And yet, how many are there, viz. of the Gentiles, to whom the Croſs of this Thief has prov'd a ſtumbling-block, (as that of Chriſt's in 1 Cor. 1. 23.another ſenſe was to the Jews) at which they have ſtumbled and fallen into Hell? and this great Inſtance of Salvation, through an ill uſe of it, prov'd an occaſion of Damnation?
Some through prophaneneſs, caſt off all thoughts of Death and Repentance; and ſome through Preſumption, the Thoughts of a ſudden Death, and early Repentance.
Some caſt off all thoughts of Death. Though they are hourly departing, as faſt as the Heavens can turn about, Day and Night, yet think not of it; this day they have no thoughts of it, nor to morrow. They do not ſay as thoſe Epicures, Let us eat and drink, Iſa. 22. 13.for to morrow we ſhall die, (no more than they did believe it, though they ſaid ſo); but with them (in St. James) Jam. 4. 13.To morrow we will go into ſuch a City, and continue there a Year; buy, and ſell, and get Gain: Or as they, Let us fill Iſa. 56. 12.our ſelves with Wine, and ſtrong Drink; and to Morrow ſhall be as this Day, and much more abundantly. This Day we live, to morrow we ſhall live alſo, and the next day too; and thus in their vain Imaginations dream of an endleſs Life here; eke out Time to Eternity, and live as if they ſhould never die; or never think their Time is come, until it is almoſt gone; nor believe themſelves Mortal, until Death ſtrikes its Dart into their Hearts, and gives them their mortal Wound.
Some caſt off all thoughts of a ſud
Death, and early Repentance.
They know they are Mortal, and ſuch as muſt die, and may ſuddenly too, (for ſome they ſee die ſo); but yet hope that they ſhall die, not by a violent, but natural; not by a ſudden, but lingring Death: Upon which they preſume, that either they ſhall not die until they are old, (as if with Achilles they were only mortal in the Heel of their Age); or if they do, that then it ſhall be by a waſting Diſeaſe, that ſhall give them a ſufficient warning to prepare for Death, to go out and meet it half way.
They believe, that unleſs they repent, they ſhall periſh; therefore intend to repent before they die, but put it off as the laſt Work of their Lives: in worldly Matters, they act with Reaſon; Matters of Importance, they diſpatch after the beſt manner, and in the fitteſt time; they ſend to a Phyſician as ſoon as they are ſick; bind up a Wound without delay; ſow their Seed in ſeaſon, (they do not put it off to the time of Harveſt); gather in their Fruits when ripe; quench a Fire as ſoon as it breaks out, (they do not ſtay to ſee if it will go out of it ſelf); riſe early when to go a long Journey; and deſire Security when they lend out their Mony, becauſe they are mortal: But when called to Repent, then they conclude they are immortal, or that they have time enough to conſider of it, and that hereafter may do well enough, and never think of begging Mercy, till they In articulo mortis.have but one breath to fetch: They lie on the River's ſide, until the Waters are riſen ſo high that there is no paſſing over; and neglect their Cauſe, until the Court is riſen, and God gone from his Mercy-Seat, with a reſolution never to return to it more.
A folly to be bewail'd (if it could be) with Tears of Blood.
They that would have their Watches go true, muſt ſet them, not by the Clock, but by the Sun-dial; and they that would walk regularly and ſafely, muſt walk, not by Example, but by Rule: for, though Rules in other Arts are from Example, yet here Examples are regulated by Rules.
The Rule we are to be guided by, directs to preſent Repentance: This Example of the Thief repenting, ſecures none in the neglect of it: for, though he did not repent till he came to die, yet it cannot be prov'd that he did deſperately and wittingly put it off till then: Therefore none ſhould defer it to the laſt moment of Life; nor ſay of it (as Diogenes of Marriage when young) That it is too ſoon; leſt they ſay (as he) when old, That it is too late.
Nor think, that they have time enough, leſt God leave them, and then they find that Time is paſt: Nor reſolve that as yet they will not repent, leſt God ſay, They ſhall not; and they at laſt, by ſad experience, find they cannot; as Hannibal when he wanted a Will to conquer, when he had a Power; and a Power, when he had a Will.
It is better to repent a day too ſoon, (ſi modo fiat) than an hour too late.
FINIS.
End of the text · Francis Fuller, A Treatise of Faith and Repentance (1685)