answer and repel them ; but I shall content myself with one, which is the chief of all Satan's strength, and that is taken from the greatness and multitude of the creature's sin, which, when it is enlightened to see, and hath the hrawni- ness of its conscience pared off, and made to feel with remorse, then if God hut allows Satan to use his rhetoric in declaiming against the heinousness of sin, the poor creature must needs be in a doleful condition, and of necessity sink into the depths of despair, for all the help it can find from itself within, or any other creature witliout. Perhaps some of you, who have slight thoughts of your own sins, think it proves but a childish spirit in others, to be so troubled for theirs ; and in this you shew that you never were in Satan's stocks, pinched by his temptations : those who have, will speak- in another language, and tell you, that the sins which are unfelt by you, have pressed like a mountain of lead upon their spirits. O ! when a breach is once made in the conscience, and the waves of guilt pour over the soul, it soon overtops all the creature's shifts and apologies, as the flood did the old world. As nothing then was visible but sea and heaven, so in such a soul, nothing but sin and hell : his sins stare him in the face, as with the eyes of so many devils, ready to drag him into the bottom- less pit ; every silly fly dares creep upon the lion while asleep, at whose voice all the beasts in the forest tremble when awake. Fools can make a mock of sin, when conscience's eye is out ; they can then dance about it, as the Philis- tines did about blind Samson ; but when God arms sin with guilt, and caiiseth this serpent to put forth its sting upon the conscience, then the proudest siinier flies before it. Now it is faith alone that can grapple with sin in its strength : which it doth in several ways.
Section II. — Faith gives the soul a view of the great God. It teacheth the sold to set his ahnightiness against sin's magnitude, and his infinitude against sin's multitude ; and so quencheth the temptation. The reason why tlie pre- sumptuous sinner fears so little, and the despairing soul so much, is for want of knowing God as great ; therefore, to cure them both, the serious consideration of God, under this notion, is propoimded, Psa. xlvi. 10, ' Be still and know tliat I am God:' as if he had said. Know, O ye wicked, that I am God, who can avenge myself when I please upon you, and cease to provoke me by your sins to your own confusion. Again, Know, ye trembling souls, that I am God ; and, tlierefore, able to pardon the greatest sins, and cease to dishonour me by your unbelieving thoughts of me. Now faith alone can thus show God to be God. Two things are required to the right conception of God. First, We nuist give him the infinitude of all his attributes ; that is, conceive of him not only as wise, for that may be a man's name, but infinitely wise ; not mighty, but almighty, &c. Secondly, This infinitude which we give to God, we must deny to all besides him. Now faith alone can realize and fix this principle so in the heart, that the creature shall act suitably thereunto ; indeed, there are none so wicked, who will not say, (if you will believe them,) that they believe God is infinite in his knowledge, and omnijiresent, at their heels wherever they go : infinite in his power ; needing no more to eflect their ruin than his speaking it: but would they then in the view of these go and sin so boldly? They diu-st as well run their heads into a fiery oven, as do it in the face of such a principle. So others believe God is infinite in mercy ; but would they then carry a hell flaming in their bosoms with despair, while they have infinite mercy in their eye? No; it is plain God appears not in his true greatness to such. Despair robs God of his infinitude, and ascribes it to sin : by it the creature saith his sin is infinite, and God is not ; too like those unbelieving Israelites, Psa. cvi. 7, ' They remembered not the multitude of his mercies, but provoked him at the sea, even at the Red Sea;' they could not see enough in God to serve their turn at such a strait ; they saw a nudtitude of Egyptians to kill, and midtitndes of waters to drown them, but could not see multitude enough of mercies to deliver them. Thus the- despairing soul sees a multitude of great sins to damn, but not an infinitude of mercy in the great God to save him. Reason, alas ! is low of stature, like Zaccheus, and cannot see mercy in a crowd of sins. It is faith alone that climbs the promise ; then, and not till then, will the soul see Jesus ; faith ascribes mercy to God with an overplus ; Isaiah Iv. 7, ' He will abundantly pardon :' multiply to pardon, — so the He- brew. He will drop pardons with our sins, ' He will subdue our iniquities,
ABOVE ALL, TAKING THE SHIELD OF FAITH. 499