The Sound Believer, Chapter 1 · Section 2
SECT. II. First Act of Christs power, which is Conviction of sinne.
NOw for the more distinct explication of this, I shall open to you these 4 things.
1. I shall prove that the Lord Christ by his Spirit begins the actuall deliverance of his elect here.
2. What is that sin the Lord convinceth the soule thus first of.
3. How the Lord doth it.
4. What measure and degree of conviction he works thus in all his.
1. For the first, it is said, Iohn 16.8, 9. that the first thing that the Spirit doth when he comes to make the Apostles Ministery effectuall is this, it shall reprove, or convince the world of sinne; it doth not first work faith, but convinceth them that they have no faith, as in verse 9. and consequently under the guilt and dominion of their sin; and after this, he convinceth of righteousnesse, which faith apprehends, verse 10. It is true that the word conviction here, is of a large extent, and includes compunction and humiliation for sin, yet our Saviour wraps them up in this word; because conviction is the first, and therefore the chiefe in order here: the Lord not speaking now of ineffectuall, but effectuall and thorow conviction exprest in deep sorrow and humiliation. Now the Text saith, the Lord begins thus not with some one or two, but with the world of Gods elect, who are to be called home by the Ministery of the word; which our Saviour speaks (as any may see who consider the scope) purposely to comfort the hearts of his Disciples, that their Ministery shall be thus effectuall to the world of Jews and Gentiles; and therefore cannot speak of such conviction as serves onelyonly for to leave men without excuse for greater condemnation; (as some understand the place) for that is a poore ground of consolation to their sad hearts. Secondly, I shall hereafter prove that there can be no faith without sense of sinne and misery, and now there can be no sense of sinne without a precedent sight or conviction of sin; no man can feel sin, unlesse he doth first see it; what the ey sees not, the heart rues not. Let the greatest evill befall a man, suppose the burning of his house, the death of his children, if he doth not first know, see, and hear of it, he will never take it to heart, it will never trouble him; so let a poor sinner lye under the greatest guilt, the sorest wrath of God, it will never trouble him untill h… sees it and be convinced of it, Act. 2.37. When they heard this, they were pricked; but first they heard it and saw their sin, before their hearts were wounded for it; Gen. 3.7. they first saw saw their nakednesse before they were ashamed of it. Thirdly, the maine end of the law is to drive us to Christ Rom. 10.4. if Christ be the end of the law, then the law is the means subservient to that end, and that not to some, but to all that beleeve, now the law though it drive to Christ by condemnation, yet in order it begins with accusation. It first accuseth, and so convinceth of sin, Ro. 3.20. and then condemneth: it's folly and injustice for a Judg to condemn & bring a sinner out to his execution before accusation & conviction; and is it wisdom or justice in the Lord or his law to doe otherwise? and therefore the Spirit in making use of the law for this end first convinceth as it first accuseth, and layes our sins to our charge. Lastly, look as Satan when he binds up a sinner in his sin, he first keeps him (if possible) from the very sight and knowledge of it; because so long as they see it not, this ignorance is the cause of all their woe; why they feele it not, why they desire not to come out of it; the Lord Jesus (who came to unty the knots of …atan, 1 Iohn 3.8.) begins here, and first convinceth his, and makes them see their sin; that so they may feele it, and come to him for deliverance out of it. Oh consider this all you that dreame out your time in minding only things before your feet, never thinking on the evills of your owne hearts; you that heed not, you that will not see your sins, nor so much as ask this question, What have I done? what doe I doe? how doe I live? what will become of me? what will be the end of these my foolish courses? I tell you, if ever the Lord save you, he will make you see what now you cannot, what now you will not, he will not only make you to confesse you are sinners, but he will convince you of sinne, this shall be the first thing the Lord will doe with thee.
But you will say,Quest. what is that sin which the Lord first convinceth of? which is the second thing to be opened.
I answer in these three Conclusions.Ans. Con. 1.
1 The Lord Jesus by his Spirit doth not only convince the soule in generall, that it is a sinner and sinfull; but the Lord brings in a convicting evidence of the particulars; the first is learnt more by tradition (in these dayes) by the report and acknowledgement of every man, rather then by any speciall act of conviction of the spirit of Christ; for what man is there almost but lies under this confession, that he is a sinner? the best say they are sinners; & if we say we have no sin we deceive our selves, and I know I am a sinner; but that which the Spirit principally convinceth of, is some sinne or sins in particular: the Spirit doth not arrest men for offences in generall, but opens the writ, and shewes the particular cause, the particular sins; Rom. 3.9. we have proved, saith the Apostle, that Iewes and Gentiles are under sinne, but how doth the Apostle (being now the instrument of the Spirit in this worke of conviction) convince them of this? marke his method, verse 10, 11, 12, 13, 14, 15, 16, 17, 18. wherein you you shall see it is done by enumeration of particulars; sins of their natures, there is none righteous; sins of their minds, none understandeth;Rom. 3. sins in their wills and affections, none seek after God; sins in their lives, all gone out of the way; sins of omission of good duties, there is none that doth good; their throats, tongues, lips, are Sepulchres, deceitfull, poysonfull; their mouthes full of cursing, their feet swift to shed blood, &c. And this is the state of you Jewes, (verse 19.) as well as of the Gentiles;Quest. Answ. What those particular sinnes are, which the Lord convinces men of in thei… conversio… that all flesh may stand convinced as guilty before God. If it be here demanded, What are those particular sins which the Lord convinceth men of? I answer, in variety of men there is much va…iety of speciall sins, as there is of dispositions, tempers, and temptations; and therefore the Lord doth not convince one man at first of the same sins of which he doth another man, yet this we may safely say, usually (though not alway) the Lord begins with the remembrance and consideration of some one great, if not a mans speciall and most beloved sin; and thereby the spirit discovers gradually all the rest: that arrow which woundeth the heart of Christ most, the Lord makes it fall first upon, the head of the sinner that did shoot it against heaven, and convinceth, and as it were hits him first with that: How did the Spirit convince those 3000, those patterns of Gods converting grace? Acts 2.37. did not the Lord begin with them for one principall sinne, viz. their murder and contempt of Christ by embruing their hands in his blood? there is no question but now they remembred other sinfull practises, but this was the Imprimis, which is ever accompanied with many other Items which are then read in Gods bill of reckonings where the first is set downe: Israel would have a King, 1 Sam. 8.19. Samuel for a time could not convince them of their sin, herein, what doth the Lord doe? surely he will convince them of sin before he leaves them, and this he doth by such a terrible thunder as made all their hearts ake; and how is it now? what sin doe they now see? they first see the greatnesse of that particular sin, but this came not to mind alone, but they cryed out, 1 Sam. 12.19. We have added unto all our evills this, in asking to our selves a King. Look upon the woman of Samaria, Iohn 4. the Lord Christ indeed spake first unto her about himselfe the substance of the Gospell, about the worth of this water of life; but what good did shee get untill the Lord began to convince her of sin, and how doth he that? he tels her of her secret whoredome she lived in, the man that now shee had was not her husband; and upon the discovery of this, shee saw many more sins; and hence verse 29. she cries out, Come see the man that hath told me all that ever I did in my life. And thus the Lord deales at this day; the Minister preacheth against one sin, it may be whoredome, ignorance, contempt of the Gospell, neglect of secret duties, lying, Sabbath-breaking, &c. This is thy case, saith the Spirit unto the soule, remember the time, the place, the persons with whom you lived in this sinfull condition; and now a man begins to goe alone, and to think of all his former courses, how exceeding evill they have been; it may be the Lord brings upon a man a sore affliction, and when he is in chaines crying out of that, the Lord saith to him as to those, Ier. 30.15. Why criest thou for thy affliction? for the multitude of thine iniquities I have done this; it may be the Lord sometimes strikes a mans companion in sinne dead, by some fearfull judgement: and then that particular sinne comes to mind, and the Lord reveales it, arm'd with multitudes of many other sins; the causes of it, the fruits and effects of it; as a father whips his child upon occasion of one speciall fault, but then tells him of many more which he winked at before this, and saith, Now sirrah remember such a time, such a froward fit, such undutifull behaviour, such a reviling word you spake, such a time I called, and you ran away and would not heare me; and you thought I liked well enough of these wayes, but now know that I will not passe them by, &c. Thus the Lord deales with his; and hence it is many times, that the elect of God civilly brought up, doe hereupon think well of themselves, and so remaine long unconvinced of their wofull estates, the Lord suffers them to fall into some foule, secret, or open sin; and by this the Lord takes speciall occasion of working conviction and sorrow for sinne, the Lord hereby makes them hang down the head and cry uncleane, uncleane; Paul was civilly educated, he turned at last a hot persecutor, oppressor, blasphemer; the Lord first convinced him of his persecution and cryed out from heaven to him, Paul, Paul, why persecutest thou me? this struck him to the heart, and then sin revived, Rom. 7.9. many secret sins of his heart were discovered, which I take to begin and continue in speciall in those three dayes, Acts 9.9. wherein he was blind and did (through sight of sin and sorrow of heart) neither eat nor drink. As a man that hath the plague not knowing the disease, he hopes to live; but when he sees the spots and tokens of death upon his wrist, now he cryes out, because convinced that the plague of the Lord is upon him; so when men see some one or more speciall sins break out, now they are convinced of their lamentable condition: yet it is not alway, (though usually thus) for some men the Lord may first convince of sinne by shewing them the sinfulnesse of their owne hearts and wayes; the Lord may let a man see his blindnesse, his extreame hardnesse of heart, his weaknesse, his wilfulnesse, his heartlesnesse; he cannot pray, or look up to God, and this may first convince him; or that all that he doth is sinfull, being out of Christ: the Lord may suddenly let him see the deceipts of his owne heart, and the secret sinfull practises of his life; as if some had told the Minister, or as if hee spake to none but him; that he is forced to fall down being thus convinced, and to confesse, God is in this man: 1 Cor. 14.25. Nicodemus …ay first see and bee convinced of the want of regeneration, and thereby feel his need of Christ; the Lord may set a man upon the consideration of all his life past, how wickedly it hath been spent; and so not one, but a multitude of iniquities compasse him about: a man may see the godly examples of his parents, or other godly Christians in the family or town where he dwels, and by this be convinced; that if their state and way bee good, his own (so far unlike it) must needs be starke naught: the Lord ever convinceth the soule of sins in particular, but hee doth not alway convince one man of the same particular sinnes at first as hee doth another; whether the Lord convinceth all the elect at first of the sin of their nature, and shewes them their original sin in and about this first stroake of conviction, I doubt not of it; Paul would have been alive, and a proud Pharisee still, if the Lord had not let him by the law see this sin, Rom. 7.9. and so would all men in the world, if this should not bee revealed first or last, in a lesser or greater measure, under a distinct or more indistinct notion: and hence arise those confessions of the Saints, I never thought I had had such a vile heart; if all the world had told me, I could not have beleeved them; but that the Lord hath made me feel it, & see it at last; was there ever such a sinner (at least in heart, which is continually opposing of him) whom the Lord at any time received to mercy, as I am?
2 The Lord Jesus by his Spirit doth not only…on. 2.… convince the soule of its sinne in particular, but also of the evill, even the exceeding great evill of those particular sins. The Lord Jesus doth not onelyonly convince of the evill sinne, but of the great evill of sinne. Oh thou wretch, saith the Spirit, (as the Lord to Cain, Gen. 4.10.) what hast thou done, whose sins cry to heaven, who hast thus long lived without God, and done this infinite wrong to an infinite God, for which thou canst never make him amends? That God who could have long since cut thee off in the midst of thy sins and wickednesse, & crusht thee like a moth, and sent thee down to those eternall flames where thou now seest some better then thy self mourning day and night, but yet hath spared thee out of his meere pity to thee, That God hast thou resisted and forsaken all thy life time; and therefore now see and consider what an evill and bitter thing it is thus to live as thou hast done, Ier. 2.19. Look as it is in the wayes of holinesse, many a man void of the Spirit may see and know them in the literall expressions of them, but cannot see the glory of them but by the Spirit, and hence it is hee doth not esteeme and prize them and the knowledge of them above gold; So in the wayes of unholinesse, many a man void of the spirit of conviction of sin, may and doth see many particular sins and confesse them, but he doth not, cannot see the exceeding evill of them, and thence it is though he doth see them, yet he doth not much dislike them, because he sees no great hurt or evil in them, but makes a light matter of them; & therefore when the Spirit comes, it lets him see and stand convinced of the exceeding greatnesse of the evill that is in them, Ioh. 36.8, 9. In the time of affliction (which is usually the time of conviction of a wild unruly sinner) he shews them their transgressions, but how? that they have exceeded, that they have been exceeding many and exceeding vile. Oh beloved, before the Lord Jesus comes to convince, we have cause to pray for a pity every poore sinner, as the Lord Jesus did, saying, Lord forgive them, they know not what they doe. You godly parents, masters, how oft doe you instruct your children, servants, and convince them of their sinfulnesse, untill they confesse their faults? yet you see no amendment, but they goe on still; what should you now doe? oh cry out for them, and say, Lord forgive them, for they know not what they doe. Their sins they know, but what the evil of them is, alas! they know not; but when the Spirit comes to convince, he makes them see what they doe, & what is the exceeding evill of those sinnes they made light of before; like mad men that have sworne, and curst, and struck their friends, when they come to be sober againe, and remember their mischievous wayes and words, now they see what they have done, and how abominable their courses then were. Oh you that walk on in the madnes of your minds now, in all manner of sinne, if ever the Lord doe good to you, you shall account your wayes madnesse and folly, and cry out, Oh Lord, what have I done in kicking thus long against the pricks?
Con. 3.The Lord Jesus by his Spirit doth not only convince the soule of the evill of sin, but of the evill after sin, I meane of the just punishment which doth follow sin, and that is this, viz. that it must dye, and that eternally for sin, if it remaines in this estate it is now in. Rom. 4.15. The Law works wrath, i. e. sight and sense of wrath, Rom. 7.9. When the Law came, sin revived, and I dyed: i. e. I saw my selfe a dead man by it; so the soule sees cleerly God hath said, The soule that sinneth shall dye: I have sinned, and therefore if the Lord be true I shall dye, to hel I shall, if now the Lord stop my breath and cut off my life, which he might justly and may easily doe. Death is the wages of sin, even of any one sin, though never so little; whan then will become of me who stand guilty of so many, exceeding the number of the haires on my head, or the stars in heaven? Whoremongers and adulterers God will judge, the Minister hath said so, the Lord himselfe hath told me so, Heb. 13.4. I am the man, my conscience now teares me and tells me so, what will become of me? The Lord Iesus will come in flaming fire to render vengeance against all that know not God; and that obey not the Gospell. This I beleeve, for God hath said it, 2 Thes. 2.7, 8▪ 9. and now I see I am he that hath lived long in ignorance, and know not God; I have had the Gospel of grace thus long wooing and perswading my heart, and oftentimes it hath affected me, but yet I have resisted God and his Gospel, and have set my filthy lusts, my vaine sports, my companions cups and queanes at a higher price then Christ, and have loved them more then him; and therefore though I may be spared for a while, yet there is a time wherein Christ himselfe will come out against me in flaming fire. To this purpose doth the Spirit worke; for beloved, the great meanes whereby Satan overthrew Man at first in his innocencie, was this principle, although thou dost eate, and so sin against God, yet thou shalt not dye. Gen. 3.4. Ye shall not surely die; the Serpent doth not say, Ye shall not die, for that is too grosse an out-facing of the Word, Gen. 2.17. but he saith, Ye shall not surely die: that is, there is not such absolute certainty o… it; it may be you shall live, God loves you better then so, and is a more merciful Father then to be at a word and a blow. Now look as Satan deceived and brought our first parents to ruine by suggesting this principle; so at this day he doth sow this accursed seed, and plant this very principle in the soyl of every mans heart by nature, they do not think, they cannot beleeve that they are dead men, & condemned to dye, and that they shall dye eternally for the least sinne committed by them. Men nor Angels cannot perswade them of it, they cannot see the equity of it, that God so mercifull will be so severe, for so small a matter; nor yet the truth of it, for then they think no flesh should be saved. And thus when the old Serpent hath spit this poyson before them, they sup it up, and drink it in, and so thousands, nay millions of men and women are utterly undone. The Lord Christ therefore when he comes to save a poore sinner, and raise him up out of his fall, convinceth the soule by his Spirit, and that with full and mighty evidence, that it shall dye for the least sin, and tels him as the Lord told Abimelech in another case, Gen. 20.3. Thou art but a dead man for this; and if the Spirit set on this, let who can claw it off. I tell you beloved, never did poore condemned Malefactor more certainly know and hear the sentence of condemnation past upon him by a mortall man, then the guilty sinner doth his, by an immortall and displeased God: & therefore those three thousand cry out, Act. 2.37. Men and brethren, what shall we doe to be saued? We are condemned to dye, what shall we doe now to be saved from death? Now the soule is glad to enquire of the Minister, Oh tell me, what shall I do? I once thought my selfe in a safe and good condition as any in the Town or Countrey I lived in, but now the Lord hath let me heare of other newes; dye I must in this estate, and tis a wonder of mercies I am spared alive to this day. There is not onelyonly some blind fea…es and suspitions that it may possibly be so, but full perswasions of heart, dye I must, dye I shall in this estate; for if the Spirit reveale sin, and convi…ce not of death for sin, the soule under this work of conviction being as yet rather s…nsuall then spirituall, wil make a light matter of it, when it sees no sensible danger in it; but when it sees the bottomlesse pit before it, everlasting fire before it, for the least sin, now it sees the hainous evill of sin; the way of sinne though never so peaceable before, is full of d…nger now, wherein it sees there are endlesse woes and everlasting deaths that lye in wait for it, Rom. 6.21. And now saith the Spirit, you may goe on in these sinfull courses as others doe, if you see meet, but oh consider what will be the end of them; what it is to enjoy the pleasures of sinne for a season, and to be tormented for ever for them in the conclusion, for be assured that will be the end: and hence the soule seeing it selfe thus set apart for death, looks upon it selfe in a farre worse estate then the bruit beasts, or vil…st worme upon the earth; for it thinks when they dye there is an end of their misery; but oh then is the beginning of mine for ever: hence also arise those feares of death & of being suddenly cut off, that when it lyes downe, it trembles to think I may never rise againe, because it's convinced, not only that it deserves to dye, but that it is already sentenced for to dye: hence also the soule justifies God, if he had cut him off in his sin; and wonders what kept him from it, there being nothing else due from God unto it: hence lastly, the soule is stopt and stands still, goes not on in sin as before; or if it doth, the Lord gives it no peace: Ier. 8.6. Why doth the horse goe on in the battell? because it sees not death before it; but now the soule sees death, and therefore stops: oh remember this all you that never could beleeve that you are dead condemned men, and therefore are never troubled with any such thoughts in your mind; I tell you, that you are far from conviction, and therefore far from salvation: if God should send some from the dead to beare witnesse against this secure world concerning this truth, yet you will not beleeve it, for his messengers sent from heaven are not beleeved herein; woe be to you if you remaine unconvinced of this point.
But you will say, how doth the Lord thus convince sin, and wherein is it exprest? which is the third particular.
All knowledge of sin is not conviction of sin,Answ. all confession of sin is not conviction; there is a conviction meerely rationall, which is not spirituall; there are three things in spirituall conviction.
There is a cleare, certaine, and manifest light, so that the soule sees its sin, and death due to it clearely and certainly; for so the word, Ioh. 16.9. foreign signifies to evidence a thing by way of argumentation, nay demonstration; the Spirit so demonstrates these things as that it hath nothing to object, a mans mouth is stopped, hee hath nothing to say but this; behold I am vile, I am a dead man: for if a man have many strong arguments given him to confirme a truth, yet if he have but one objection or doubtfull scruple not answered, he is not fully as yet convinced, because full conviction by a cleare sun-light scatters all dark objections; and hence our Saviour Iude 15. will one day convince the wicked of all their hard speeches against him, which will chiefly be done by manifesting the evill of such wayes, and taking a way all those colours and defences men have made for such language: before the Spirit of Christ comes, man cannot see, will not see his sin nor punishment; nay, he hath many things to say for himselfe as excuses and extenuations of his sin; One saith, I was drawne unto it, (the woman that thou gavest me) and so layes the blame on others: A…other saith, It is my nature; Others say, All are sinners, the godly sinne as well as others; and yet are saved at last, and so I hope shall I: Others professe they cannot part with sin, they would be better but they cannot, and God requires no more then they are able to performe; Another saith, I will continue in sin but a little while, and purpose hereafter to leave it; Others say, We are sinners, but yet God is mercifull and will forgive it; Another saith, Though I have sinned, yet I have some good, and am not so bad as other men; endlesse are these excuses for sin. In one word, I know no man, though never so bad, though his sin be never so grievous, but he hath something to say for himselfe, and something in his mind to lessen and extenuate sin; but beloved when the Spirit comes to convince, he so convinceth as that he answers all these, pulls down all these fences, teares off all these fig-leaves, scatters all these mists, and pulls off all these s…ales from the eyes, stops a mans mouth, that the soule stands before God, crying, oh Lord guilty, guilty; as the Prophet Ieremy told them, Ier. 2.23. Why dost thou say, I am innocent? looke upon thy way, &c. so the Spirit saith, why dost thou say thy sin is small? it is disobedience, (as Samuel said to Saul, 1 Sam. 15.) 23. which is rebellion, and as the sinne of witchcraft; and is that a small matter? the Spirit of conviction by the cleare evidence of the truth, binds the understanding that it cannot struggle against God any more; and hence let all the world plead to the contrary, nay let the godly come to comfort them in this estate, and think and speak well of them; yet they cannot beleeve them, because they are certaine their estates are wofull: hence also we shall observe the soule under conviction, instead of excusing sin, it aggravates sinne, and studies to aggravate sinne; did ever any deale thus wickedly, walke thus sinfully, so long, against so many checks and chidings, light and love, meanes and mercies, as I have done? And it is wonderfull to observe that those things which made it once account sin light, make it therefore to think sin great: ex. gr. my sin is little; the more unkind thou (saith the Spirit) that wilt not doe a small matter for the Lord: my sin is common; the more sinfull thou that in those things wherein all the world rise up in arms against God, thou joynest with them: God spares me after sin; the greater is thy sin therefore that thou hast continued so long in, against a God so pitifull to thee; the dearest sins are now the vilest sins, because though they were most sweet to him, yet the Spirit convinceth him, they were therefore the more grievous unto the soule of God; you poore creatures may now hide, and colour, and excuse your sins before men, but when the Lord comes to convince, you cannot lye hid; then your consciences (when Jesus Christ the Lord comes to convince) shall not be like the Steward in the Gospell that set down 50. for a 100 l. no, the Lord will force it to bring in a true and cleare account at that day.
There is a reall light in spirituall conviction, rationall conviction makes things appear notionally; but spirituall conviction, really: the Spirit indeed useth argumentation in conviction, but it goes farther and causeth the soule not only to see sin and death discursively, but also intuitively and really: reason can see and discourse about words and Propositions, and behold things by report, and so deduct one thing from another; but the Spirit makes a man see the things themselves, really wrapt up in those words; the Spirit brings spirituall things as well as notions before a mans eye, the light of the Spirit is like the light of the Sun, it makes all things appeare as they are; Iohn 3.20, 21. It was Ierusalems misery, she heard the words of Christ, and they were not hid from them, but the things of her peace shut up in those words were hid from her eyes. Luk. 19.4….Discourse with many a man about his sin and misery, he will grant all that you say, and he is convinced, that his estate is most wretched, and yet still lives in all manner of sin; what is the reason of it? truly he sees his sin only by discourse, but he doth not, nay cannot see the thing sin, death, wrath of God, untill the Spirit come; which only convinceth or sheweth that really. A man will not bee afraid of a Lyon when it is painted only upon the wall, why? because therein he doth not see the living Lyon: when he sees that, he trembles. So men heare of sin, and talke of sin and death, and say they are most miserable in regard of both; yet their hearts tremble not, are not amazed at these evills; because sinne is not seen alive, death is not presented alive before them, which is done by the Spirit of conviction only, revealing these really to the soule; and hence it is that many men in seeing see not, Esay▪ 6.9.How can that bee? thus, in seeing things notionally, they see them not really. And hence many that know most of sin, know least of sin, because in seeing it notionally, they see it not really▪ And therefore happy were it for some men, Schollers and others, that they had no notionall knowledge …f sin, for this light is their darknesse, and makes them more uncapable of spirituall conviction: the first act of spirituall conviction is to let a man see clearly that he is sinfull and most miserable; the second act is to let the soule see really what this sin and death is. Oh consider of this, many of you know that you are sinfull, and that you shall dye; but dost thou know what sin is, and what it is to dye? If thou didst, I dare say thy heart would sinke; if thou dost not, thou art a condemned man, because not yet a convinced man.How God gives a reall sight of sinnes If you here aske, how the Lord makes sin reall? I answer. By making God reall, the reall greatnesse of sin is seen by beholding really the greatnesse of God who is smitten by sin; sin is not seene because God is not seen, Iohn 3. ep. v. 11. He …hat doth evill hath not seen God. No knowledge of God is the cause why blood toucheth blood:H…s. 4.4 the Spirit casts out all other company of vain and foolish thoughts, and then God comes in and appeares immediately to the soul in his greatnesse and glory, and then the Spirit saith, Lo, this is that God thy sins have provoked. And now sin appeares as it is, and together with this reall sight of sin, the soule doth not see painted fire, but sees the fire of Gods wrath really, whither now it is leading, that never can be quencht but by Christs blood: and when the Spirit hath thus convinced, now a man begins to see his madnesse and folly in times past, saying, I know not what I did. And hence questions, Can the Lord pardon such a wretch as I, whose sinnes are so great? Hence also the heart beginnes to bee affected with sinne and death, because it sees them now as they are indeed, and not by report only. A man accounts it a matter of nothing to tread upon a worme, wherein there is nothing seen worthy either to bee loved or feared; and hence a mans heart is not affected with it: before the Spirit of conviction comes, God is more vile in mans eye then any worme; as Christ said in another case of himselfe, Psal. 22. I am a worme and no man; so may the Lord complaine, I am viler in such a ones eyes then any worme, and no God: and hence a man makes it a matter of nothing to tread upon the glorious Majesty of God, and hence is not affected with it; but when God is seen by the Spirit of conviction, in his great glory; then as he is great, sin is seene great; as his glory affects and astonisheth the soule, so sin affects the heart.
There is a constant light; the soule sees sinne and death continually before it; Gods arrowes stick fast in the soule, and cannot be pluckt out; My sinne is ever before me, Psal. 51.3.said David, (in his renewing of the work of conversion.) For in effectuall conviction, the mind is not onelyonly bound to see the misery lying upon it, but it is held bound; it is such a Sun light as never can be quenched, though it may be clouded. When the Spirit of Christ darts in any light to see sin, the soule would turne away from looking upon it, would not heare on that eare, Felix-like. But the Spirit of Conviction sent to make thorow work on the hearts of all the Elect, followes them, meets them at every turne, forceth them to see and remember what they have done, the least sinne now is like a moath in the eye, its ever troubling. Those gastly, dreadfull objects of sinne, death, wrath, being presented by the Spirit neare unto the soule, fixe the eye to fasten here; they that can cast off at their pleasure the remembrance and thoughts of sinne and death, never prove sound, untill the Lord doth make them stay their thoughts, and muse deeply on what they have done, and whither they are going. And hence the soule in lying downe, rising up, lyes downe and rises up with perplexed thoughts, What will become of me? The Lord somtimes keeps it waking in the night season, when others are asleep, and then tis haunted with those thoughts, it cannot sleep; it looks back upon every day, and week, Sabboth, Sermon, Prayer, speeches, and thinks all this day, this week, &c. the goodnesse of the Lord and his patience to a wretch hath been continued, but my sins also are continued; I sin in all I doe, in all my prayers, in all I think, the same heart remaines still not humbled, not yet changed.
And hence you shall observe, that word which discovered sin at first to it, it never goes out of the mind; I think saith the soule I shall never forget such a man, nor such a truth. Hence also if the soule grow light and carelesse at some time, and casts off the thoughts of these things, the Spirit returnes againe, and falls a reasoning with the soule, Why hast thou done this? what hurt hath the Lord done thee? will there never be an end? hast not thou gone on long enough in thy le…d courses against God, but that thou shouldst still adde unto the heap? hast thou not wrath enough upon thee already? how soone may the Lord stop thy breath? and then thou knowest thou hadst better never to have beene borne; was there ever any that thus resisted grace, that thus adventured upon the swords point? hast thou but one friend, a patient, long-suffering God, that hath left thy conscience without excuse long agoe, and therefore could have cut thee off, and dost thou thus forsake him, thus abuse him? Thus the Spirit followes; and hence the soule comes to some measure of confession of sinne; Oh Lord I have done exceeding wickedly; I have been worse then the horse that rusheth into the battle, because it sees not death before it; but I have seen death before me in these wayes, and yet goe on, and still …inne, and cannot but sinne: Behold mee, Lord, for I am very vile. When thus the Spirit hath let into the soule a cleare, reall, constant light, to see sinne and death, now there is a thorow conviction.
But you will say, In what measure doth the Spirit communicate this light?
I shall therefore open the fourth particular, viz. The measure of spirituall conviction in all the elect, viz.
So much conviction of sin as may bring in and work compunction for sinne, so much sight of sinne as may bring in sense of sinne, so much is necessary and no more. Every one hath not the same measure of conviction, yet all the elect have & must have so much: for so much conviction is necessary as may attaine the end of conviction. Now the finis proximus, or next end of conviction in the elect, is compunction, or sense of sinne; for what good can it doe unto them to see sin, and not to be affected with it? What greater mercy doth the Lord shew to the elect herein, then unto the Devils and Reprobates, who stand convinced, and know they are wicked and condemned; but yet their hearts altogether unaffected with any true remorse for sin?Lam. 3.51. Mine eye, saith Ieremy, affecteth my heart. The Lord opens the eares of his to instruction,Job 33.16, 17. that he might humble. Some think that there is no thorow conviction, without some affection. I dare not say so, nor will I now dispute whether there is not something in the nature and essence of that conviction the elect have different from that conviction in reprobates and devils; tis sufficient now; and that which reacheth the end of this question, to know what in asure of conviction is necessary, I conceive the cleere discerning of it is by the immediate and sensible effect of it, viz. So much as affects the heart truly with sin.
But if you aske, What is that sense of sin, and what measure of this is necessary? that I shall answer in the doctrine of companction.
Let not therefore any soule be discouraged, and say, I was never yet convinced, because I have not felt such a cleare, reall, constant light to see sin and death as others have done: consider thou, if the end of conviction be attained, which is a true sense and feeling of sin, thou hast then that measure which is most meet for thee, more then which the Lord regards not in any of his; but you that walke up and downe with convinced consciences, and know your states are miserable and sinfull, and that you perish if you dye in that condition, and yet have no sense nor feeling; no sorrow nor affliction of spirit for those evills. I tell you the very devills are in some respect nearer the Kingdome of God then you be, who see, and feele, and tremble; woe, woe to thousands that live under convicting Ministeries whom the word often hits, and the Lord by the Spirit often meets, and they heare and know their sins are many, their estates bad, and that iniquity will be there ruine, if thus they continue, yet all Gods light is without heat, and it is but the shining of it upon rocks, and cold stones; they are frozen in their dregs: be it knowne to you, you have not one drop of that conviction which begins salvation. Before I passe from this to the second work of compunction, let me make a word of application.
Vse 1.If the Spirit begins thus with conviction of sin, then let all the Ministers of Christ co-work with Christ, and begin with their people here; bee faithfull witnesses unto Gods truth, and give warning to this secure world, that the sentence of death is past, and the curse of God lyes upon every man for the least sin; Lift up thy voyce like a Trumpet, was the Lords words to Isaiah. Isay 58.1. and tell them of their sin; Those Bees wee call drones that have lost their sting. When the salt of the earth (the Ministers of Christ, Matth. 5.) have lost their acrimony and sharpnesse, or saltnesse, What is it good for but to be cast out? your hearers will putrify and corrupt, by hearing such doctrines only, as never search. When the Lord inflicted a grievous curse upon the people, Ezek. 3.26. the Lord made Ezekiel dumbe that hee should not be a reprover to them; What was the lamentation of Ieremy? Lam. 2.14.thy Prophets have seen vaine and foolish things for thee, and have not discovered thine iniquity: how would you have the Lord Jesus by his Spirit to convince men? must it not bee by his word? verily you keep the Spirit of Christ from falling down upon the people, if you refuse to indeavour to convince the people by your word.Prov. 1.23 Other doctrines are sweet and necessary; but this is in the first place most necessary. Beware of personating, beware of bitternesse and passion, but oh convince with a spirit of power and compassion; and hee that shall bee instrumentall unto Christ in this or any other work for Christs sake, unto him the Lord will be the principall agent, and by him will attaine his own ends, finish his great work, gather in his scattered sheep, who are in great multitudes throughout the Kingdome scattered from him; if once they be throughly convinced, that they are utterly lost, and gone out of the way.
May not this also be sad reproofe and terrourVse 2. to them that stand it out against all means of conviction, and will not see their sin, nor beleeve the fearfull wrath of God due to them for sin; not a man scarce can be found, that will come to this conclusion; I am a sinfull man, and therefore I am a dead, I am a condemned man: but like wild beasts fly from their pursuers into their holes, and thickets, and dens; their sinfull extenuations, excuses, and apologies for sin, and for themselves; and if they bee hunted thither, and found out there, then they resist, and article against that truth which troubles them; They flatter themselves in their owne eyes, Psal. 36.2.untill their iniquities be found most hatefull. Many a man dislikes the text, the use, especially the long use wherein his sinne is toucht, and his conscience tost; especially if it be his darling sin, his Herodias, his Rimmon; especially, if withall he thinks that the Minister meanes him, he will not see it nor confeste it; especially if hee apprehends he shall lose his honour, or his silver shrines and profit by it; he will not see his …in, that he may not be troubled in conscience for his sin, that so he may not be forced to confesse and forsake his sinne, and condemne himselfe for it before God and men. Oh Lord, I mourne that I can scarce meet with a man that either cares to be, or will be convinced; but hath something alway to say for himselfe, their sins are not so great, they are not so bad, but have some good, and therefore have some hope; and if God be mercifull, it is no great matter though they be exceeding sinfull, or some such thing; their mouths are not stopped to say nothing for themselves, but guilty. There is lesse conviction in the world in this age, then many are aware of. For I believe that all the powers of hell conspire together to blind mens eyes and darken mens minds in this great work of Christ: Principiis obsta, it is policy to stop Christ in his entrance, in this first streake upon the soule; but oh, little doe you think what you doe herein, and what woe you work to your selves hereby; dost thou stifle and resist the first breathings of Christs Spirit when he comes to save thee? what hurt will it be to know the worst of thy condition now, when there is hope hereby of comming out of it; who must else one day see all thy sins in order before thee to thy eternall anguish and terrour? Ps. 50.21. When the Lord shall say to thee as unto Dives, Remember in thy life time thou hadst thy good things; remember such a time, such a place, such a sin; which then you would not see. But now thou shalt see what it is to strike an infinite God. Remember thou wast forewarned of wrath to come, but thou wouldest not beleeve thy selfe accursed, that so thou mightest have felt thy need of him that was made a curse to blesse thee; and therefore feele it now: oh you will wish then that you had knowne this evill in that your day. What dost thou talke of grace? thou thinkest thou hast grace, when as thou hast not the first beginning, nay not the most remote preparation for it in this work of conviction; what should wee doe for such as these, but with Ieremy Ier. 13.17. if you will not heare, my soule shall weep in secret for your pride?
Vse 3.Oh be perswaded therefore to remember your sins past, and to consider of your wayes now. All the prophanenesse of thy heart, and life, all the vanity of thy youth, Eccles. 11.9. all your secret sins, all your sinnes against light and love, checks and vowes; all that time wherein thou didst nothing else but live in sin; thus Gods people have done, Ezek 6.9. thus all the elect shall doe; oh consider the Lord remembers them all, and that with griefe of heart against thee, because thou forgettest them, Hos. 2.7. Hee that numbers thy haires, and tels the sparrowes that fall, numbers much more thy sins that fall from thee; they are written down in his black book. They are not trifles, for hee minds not toyes; the bookes must bee opened: oh reckon now, you have yet time to cal them to minde, which it may be shall not continue long; it is the Lords complaint, Ier. 8.6. of a wicked generation, that hee could heare no man say, What have I done? Winnow your selves, (as the word is, Eph. 2.1.) Oh people not worthy to be beloved. I pronounce unto you from the eternall God, that ere long the Lord will search our Ierusalem with candles, he will come with a sword in his hand to search for all secure sinners in city and country, unlesse you awaken; hee will make inquisition for blood, for oaths, for whoredomes which grow common; for all secret sins we are frozen up in; oh be willing, be but willing that the Lord should search you and convince you, now in this evening time of the day, before the night come, wherein it wil be too late to say, I wish I had considered of my waies in time; of all sins, none can so hardly stand with uprightnesse, as a secret unwillingnesse to see and be convinced of sin, Iohn 3.20.21. The helps and meanes for attaining hereunto are these.
Bring thy soule to the light;1. Help. desire the Lord in prayer as Iob did, What I see not, oh Lord, shew me, Iob. 34.32. Set the glasse of Gods law before thee, look up in the ministery of the word unto the Lord, and say, Oh Lord search me: the Sunne of this holy word discovers motes: on the Sabbath day attend to all that which is spoken, as spoken unto thee, then examine thy selfe when thou hast leisure. When David saw (Psal. 19.) how pure the law was, he cryes out, Who knowes his errors?
2. Help.Look upon every conviction of thy conscience for sin, as an arrest and warning given from the Lord himselfe; for sometimes the word hits, and conscience startles, and saith, This is my sinne, my condition; yet how usuall is it then for a man to put a merry face upon a foule conscience? how oft doe men think this is but the word of a man who hath a latitude given him of reproving sin in the Pulpit, and wee must give way to them therein? or else their hearts rise and swell against the man and word also; and why is it thus? because hee thinks it is man only that speaks; whereas did he see and believe that this was a stroke, a warning, an arrest, a check from the omnipotent God, would he then grapple think you with him? would it passe lightly by him then? When Eli heard Samuel denounce sad things against his house, It is the Lord said Eli, 1 Sam. 3.18. when Paul saw Jesus speaking, Why pers…cutest thou me? Acts 9. he falls downe astonished, and dares not kicke against the pricks any longer: An arrest in the Kings name comes with authority, and awes the heart of the man in debt.
3. Help.Doe not judge of sinne by any other rule, but as God judgeth of it according to the rule of the word by which all mens wayes shall be judged at the last day: what made Saul, 1 Sam. 15. extenuate his sin to Samuel? he judged not of it as the Lord in his word did: For had hee done so, hee would have seen disobedience to a command as bad as witchcraft, as Samuel told him; which also made his proud heart sink, and say, I have sinned: remember for this end these Scriptures, Rom. 1.18. Rom. 2.9. Rom. 6.23. Gal. 3.10. by which thou maist see, either I must dye, (in the state I am) or God himselfe must lye. Remember that an angry look, or word is murder in Gods account; a wanton eye, an unchast thought is Adultery before a holy God; before whose Tribunall thou must give an account of every vaine thought and word.2 Cor. 5.10. And therefore doe not judge of sinne by the present pleasure, gaine, honour, or ease in it; for this is a false rule: Moses forsook the pleasures of sin for a season, Heb. 11.25. Nor yet by not feeling any punishment for it, for God reserves wrath, Nahum 1.2. till the day of reckoning; Nor yet by the esteem that others generally have of it, who make no more of wounding the Sonne of God by sin, then they doe of crushing vermine under their feet: Nor yet by the practise of others, Every man sins, and therefore I hope I shall doe as well as others: Nor yet by seeing thy selfe better, and thanking God thou art not as other men; it may be so, thou didst never steale, nor whore, nor murder as yet; that is not the question, but hast thou had any one vaine thought in prayer? hast thou heard one Sermon unprofitably? hast thou sinned? then know God spared not the Angels that sinned, and how wilt thou escape, unlesse the Lord dye for thee? Nor yet lastly judge of it by thy own opinion of God, in thinking God is like unto thee, that as thou makest light of it, so hee maketh lesse; Psal. 50.21. Oh take heed of judging the evill of sin by any of these rules: oh remember all men are apt to thinke of themselves better then they are, Are we also blind? say the Pharisees: take heed that by judging of sin by these false rules, you deceive not your selves.
Vse 4.Let this lastly be a use of thankfulnesse, to all those whose eyes the Lord hath opened to see, and so convinced you of your sinnes. When David was going in the heat of his Spirit to kill Nabal, and Abigail met him and stopt him, what said he? Oh blessed bee the Lord for thy counsell;1 Sam. 25.32, 33. so when thou wert going on in the heate and pursuit of thy sin, toward eternall death; that the Lord should now meet thee in thy way, and convince thee of thy folly, and so stop thee; what a world of sin else wouldst thou have committed, how vile wouldst thou have bin? oh say therefore, Blessed be that Minister of the Lord, and blessed for ever be the name of the Lord that gave me that counsell. It is said, Christ will send the Comforter to convince of sinne;Joh. 16.7. is it a comfortable thing to see sin? yes, it shall one day bee matter of unspeakable comfort to you that ever you saw sin; that ever he shewed thee that mystery of iniquity in thy heart and life, those arcana imperii, those secrets of the power and dominion of sinne over thee:Levit. 19.17. Thou shalt not hate, but reprove thy brother. If the Lord should secretly keep thy sinne glowing in his owne bosome against thee, and never reprove thee for it, nor convince thee of it; no greater signe of Gods everlasting hatred against thee. Oh it is infinite love that he hath called thee aside and dealt plainly and secretly with thee, and will you not be thankfull for this? The Lord might have left thee in thy brutish estate, and never made known thy latter end; never have told thee of thy sinne or stood before it comes.
It may be you will say,Obj. If I felt my sinne, and were deeply humbled for it, I could then be thankfull that ever I saw it; what is it to see sin?
This is a favour the Lord shewes not to all mankind,Ans. 1. many have no meanes to bring them to the knowledge of it, and those that have yet are smitten with a deep sleep under those meanes that they know not when death is at their doores, nor what sin meanes; and this it may be is the condition of some of thy poore friends and aquaintance, that think it strange that thou runnest not with them in the same way as they doe.
2.Suppose some Reprobates doe see sin, yet the Lord puts a secret vertue in that work of conviction upon thee, which makes thee cry to heaven for a Spirit of brokennesse for sin; which without this sight of sinne, thou wouldst never so much as have desired; and this they have not.
3.However, conviction is a work of the Spirit, though it should be but common; and wilt not be thankfull for common mercy, suppose it be but outward? how much more for this that is spirituall, though it should be common? especially considering that it is the first fundamentall work of the Spirit, and is seminally all. Sense of sin begins here, and ariseth hence; as ignorance of sin is seminally all sin: Remember that the discovery of Faux in the Vault, was the preservation of England; we use to remember the day and houre of the beginning of some great and notable deliverance; oh remember this time wherein the love of Christ first brake out in convincing thee of thy sin, who els hadst certainly perished in it; And thus much of this first work of Conviction; now the second followes, Compunction.