Salvation from Sin by Jesus Christ, Chapter 6
CHAP. VI.
LAſtly, If this Salvation from Sin be the Work of Chriſt, then this is matter of conſolation to all ſuch as are in a ſtate of Salvation, in divers reſpects, eſpecially in theſe two, which I ſhall particularly mention. 1. Here is comfort againſt the fear of falling away. 2. In aſſurance of full freedome at laſt from all their ſins.
1. Againſt the fear of falling away. Pſal. 34.19Many indeed are the troubles and temptations of the righteous; but the Lord will deliver them out of them all. Satan & his Inſtruments are very powerfull, they do, and ſhall, deceive many, eſpecially in ſuch times as theſe: But the Elect of God (and ſuch onelyonly are effectually called) ſhall not be deceived: For, ſaith our Saviour Chriſt, Mat. 24.24. There ſhall ariſe falſe Chriſts, and falſe Prophets, and ſhall ſhew great ſignes and wonders, inſomuch that (if it were poſſible) they ſhall deceive the very Elect. The Elect may be long deceived before their converſion, they may after their converſion alſo be brought off, for a time, from ſome of the ſound principles they have profeſſed; and from much of the practice of Chriſtianity, wherein they were forward (as I am perſwaded, many are in theſe dayes, whom God will cauſe in his good time to remember, from whence they are fallen, and repent, and do their firſt Works.) And the moſt faithfull of Gods Elect are deceived all their dayes in leſſer matters, both in judgment and practiſe. But the Elect of God ſhall not be utterly deceived in thoſe things, that are eſſentially neceſſary to be known and done.
Whoſoever then thou art, that ſincerely feareſt God, rejoyce in thy firme, and ſetled condition. The Love, wherewith the Lord hath loved thee, is everlaſting love. Jer. 33.3. his mercy he will keep for thee for evermore, Pſal. 89.28. the kindneſſe of thy Redeemer is everlaſting kindneſſe, Iſa. 54.8. The Covenant that God hath entred with thee, is an everlaſting Covenant, Iſa. 55.3. Heb. 8. 8, 9. c 13.20. The ſpirit iScriptura non uno loco inculcat Spiritū S. electis datum, inhabitare corundem corda. Si autem inbabitat, igitur domicilium, fixamque ſedem ibi deligit; neq zimaginabimur cum excurrere, vagari, redire, quod malum spiritum facere conſucviſſe Chriſtus, Mat. 12. teſtatur. Zanch. Epiſt. l. 1. Datur electis Spiritus S. ut arrbabo haereditatis coeleſtis, Eph. 1. Nemo autem, qui promiſsis pactiſve vult ſtare, arrbabonem repoſcit, quin potius in hoc totus eſt, ut promiſſa ſive pacta praeſtet, ne tum quidem ubi illa praeſtiterit, arrhabonem repetiturus. Conſequitur ergo & Spiritum S. apud cum, cui ſemel datus eſt, relinqui. Quod eo quoque comprobatur, quod Eph. 4. dicuntur credentes per Sp. Sanctum in diem redemptionis obſignari. Zanch. ibid.of Sanctification, already given thee, is the earneſt of thy Inheritance, Eph. 1.14. Thou art ſealed by it to the day of redemption. Eph. 4.30. It is ſent unto thee, not as a wayfaring man to tarry but for a night, but to abide with thee for ever. Joh. 14.16. The ſeed of grace is an incorruptible ſeed. 1. Pet. 1.23. The life of grace is everlaſting life: For he that truely believeth, hath everlaſting life, Joh, 3.36. Ch. 5.24. Thou believeſt the record, that God hath given of his Son; and this is the record, that God hath given us eternal life, and this life is in his Son. He that hath the Son hath life. 1 Joh 5.11, 12, Everlaſting life is already begun in thy ſoule, and the Lord is faithfull, who will eſtabliſh thee to the end. 2. Theſ. 3.3. Satan indeed deſireth to have thee, that he may ſiſt thee as wheat: but Chriſt hath prayed for thee, that thy faith may not faile, Luke 22. 31, 32. The powers that are againſt thee are great, but the power that is for thee is kNemo fallit redemptorem tuum, nemo circumvenit, nemo premit. Aug. in Pſal. 103. v. 3.greater. Thou ſhalt be kept by the power of God, through faith unto ſalvation, 1 Pet. 1.5. The Lord, that hath already reſcued thee out of the jawes of Satan, that was ready to devour thee (as David reſcued the Lamb out of the mouth of the Lion) will carefully watch over thee, that thou maiſt no more become a prey. He that keepeth thee, will not ſlumber. Behold, he that keepeth Iſrael ſhall neither ſlumber nor ſleep The Lord is thy keeper, the Lord is thy ſhade upon the right hand. The Lord ſhall preſerve thee from all evil, he ſhall preſerve thy ſoule; the Lord ſhall preſerve thy going out, and coming in, from this time forth, and for evermore. Hear how Chriſt, the great Sheepherd of thy Soul, ſpeaks for thy comfort, John 10.27, 28, 29, 30. My ſheep hear my voice, I know them, and they follow me, and I give unto them eternall life, and they ſhall never periſh, neither ſhall any man pluck them out of my hand. My Father, which gave them me, is greater than all, and no man is able to pluck them out of my fathers hand. I and my Father are one. And how confidently doth Paul triumph againſt all oppoſition, Rom. 8.35, 37, 38, 39. Who ſhall ſeparate us from the love of Chriſt? ſhall tribulation, or diſtreſſe, or perſecution, or famine, or nakedneſſe, or perill, or ſword? Nay, in all theſe things we are more than conquerours, through him, that loved us. For I am perſwaded, that neither death, nor life, nor Angels, nor principalities, nor powers, nor things preſent, nor things to come, nor height, nor depth, nor any other creature, ſhall be able to ſeparate us from the love of God, which is in Chriſt Jeſus our Lord. Thou haſt cauſe indeed to feare Satans, and the Worlds temptations, and thine own inbred corruption, with a feare, begetting care for the prevention of the evil; but let not thy feare cauſe thee to cast away thy confidence in Chriſt thy Saviour; but in aſſurance of his help and protection, fly unto him at all ſeaſons, and ſay as David did in another caſe. Pſal. 66.3. What time I am afraid I will truſt in thee. Forſake not him, and he will not forſake thee. In this caſe I may ſay, as Azariah ſaid to Aſa, and all Judah and Benjamin. The Lord is with you, while ye be with him: yea, the Lord hath ſaid, I will not faile thee, nor forſake thee. A repetition of the ſame thing in Scripture, is like Pharaoh's doubled dream, which ſheweth that the thing ſhall certainly come to paſſe, which is foretold or promiſed. Now we have here the Lord doubling his promiſe, I will not faile thee nor forſake thee. Note alſo, that, whereas two negatives in the Greek Language, deny the more ſtrongly, we have here no leſſe than five negatives, two in the former, and three in the latter clauſe of this promiſe, foreign. If we ſhould tranſlate the words literally, it would be thus, I will not not faile thee, neither will I not not forſake thee. Enemies indeed thou haſt, and the worſt are in thine own houſe, I meane, (which is worſe) in thine own heart; Feare with a cautious, but not with an incredulous feare. Remember, thou art here a member of the Church-militant among many Enemies, warre thou muſt, and adventure hazards, and difficulties, yet be not diſmayed: lEiſi diabolus, peccatum caeterique hoſtes noſtri videntur nos premere, vincere tamen non potuerunt, quia coercentur imperio Chriſti dutis noſtri ſub cujus pedibus protriti jacent, & conculcati. Daven. in Col. c 2. v. 15. Permittuntur tentare fideles, & oppugnare, ſed nunquam expuguare, ibid.Troubled thou ſhalt be on every ſide, yet not diſtreſſed; perplexed, but not with cauſe of deſpaire; perſecuted, but not forſaken; caſt downe, but not deſtroyed. Thine Enemies, like Pharaoh, and his hoſt, may purſue after thee, and bring thee to a ſtrait, that the power of Chriſt thy Saviour may appeare; but they ſhall not bring thee back again to thy former bondage. OnelyOnly be ſtrong, and very couragious, and fight the Lords battels: Be ſtrong, I ſay, in the Lord and in the might of his power, and he ſhall preſerve thee by his grace, that thou maiſt not be of them that draw back unto perdition, but of them that believe to the ſaving of the ſoule. Set the Lord then alwaies before thee: becauſe he is at thy right hand thou ſhalt not be moved. Therefore let thy heart be glad, and thy tongue rejoyce, and feare not thy ſtate, while thou truly feareſt ſin, as the worſt of evils. Feare nothing ſo much as a feareleſſe and careleſſe condition.
2. Here is comfort to ſuch, as are in a ſtate of Salvation in aſſurance of their full deliverance from ſin at the laſt. Whoſoever thou art that findeſt thy ſelf to be delivered from a ſtate of ſin, learne to rejoyce in Chriſt thy Saviour: Rejoyce in the Lord alway, and againe I ſay rejoyce, Phil. 4.4. Thou many times bewaileſt the blots, blemiſhes, and deformities, that are upon thee, and doſt therefore (and not without cauſe) abhorre thy ſelf in duſt and aſhes. O rejoyce in this, that it is but a little while, ere all theſe ſhall be wholly taken away, and thou ſhalt be abſolutely without ſpot, or blemiſh. Are not the reliques of thy ſin, which now abide within thee, the remainder of Satans image? and will the Lord ſuffer it to remain upon any of his ranſomed ones? Is not the work of grace a draught (although imperfect) of the Divine nature upon thy ſoule? hath not the Lord, as it were, begun to draw his own image, or picture, upon the table of thine heart? are not the lineaments, and proportion of what it ſhall be, already traced out? and will the Lord leave it ſo? No, no, he will certainly come over it again, and again, he will ſhadow, and beautifie it, till he hath made it a moſt glorious and beautifull piece.
Thou waſt formerly in bondage to Satan, and thy own corruption, but, through the mercifull power of thy precious Redeemer, thou art reſcued from the bondage, wherein thou waſt held. Be confident of this very thing, that he that hath begun a good work in thy ſoule, will compleat and finiſh it unto the day of Jeſus Chriſt, Phil. 1.6. And in that day ſhalt thou ſee thy corruptions, as the Iſraelites did their Egyptian enemies, dead upon the ſhore. Look back upon them now, are not their chariot wheeles already taken off, which maketh them drive more heavily than heretofore? and is not this a forerunner of their utter overthrow? Satan (indeed) many times furiouſly rageth, and thy corruption ſtrongly worketh, becauſe their time is but ſhort; and what provoketh them, ſhould rejoyce thee. The God of peace ſhall bruiſe Satan under thy feet ſhortly, Rom. 16.20. And thy (now) corrupt heart ſhall then ceaſe from all ſinful motions and conceptions. Thou ſhalt then have not ſo much as a lingring deſire, or inclination after evil. That unruly corruption that now vexeth thee, intruding into all thy actions, and intermixing it ſelf with all the beſt of thy ſervices, ſhall then be removed as far from thee, as hell is from heaven, and thou ſhalt be able to ſerve God perfectly, without difficulty or diſtraction. That heavenly ſervice will be ſo pleaſing and delightful to thee; that thou wilt never be weary of it, nor find a more pleaſing object than God to ſet thy heart upon: Then thou ſhalt have no need to watch, pray, or fight againſt thy corruption any more. When there is no open enemy againſt a nation, nor malignant party within it, there is no need of Centinels, or Guards, nor uſe of Arms; So in Heaven thy ſpiritual enemies ſhall be ſo perfectly deſtroyed from within, and ſo far removed from without, as that thy praying and fighting ſhall be turned into triumphing and praiſing; and thy watchfulneſſe into perfect spirituall ſecurity, and the whole armour of God (as armour) ſhall wholly become uſeleſſe. Thou ſhalt there need neither offenſive, nor defenſive arms; and the time of the accompliſhment hereof, is nigh at hand. Lift up thy head then with joy, knowing that thy redemption draweth nigh. In the midſt of thy feares lift up an eye of faith, and behold Christ ſitting at the right hand of God, who ſhall there abide, till he hath made all thine enemies thy footſtoole. And when thou groaneſt (with Paul under the burden of thy remaining corruptions, and crieſt out, O wretched man that I am, who ſhall deliver me from this body of death? Learn (with him alſo) to rejoyce in Chriſt thy perfect Saviour, and ſay, I thank God through Jeſus Chriſt our Lord.