The second use is to quicken us to put in for a share in this blessed privilege. I have spent my time in presenting to you what a blessed thing it is to have our sins pardoned- Christians, a man that flows in wealth and honour, till he be pardoned, is not a happy man. A man that lives afflicted, contemned, not taken notice of in the world, if he be a pardoned sinner, oh, the blessedness oi tiiat man ! Tiiey are not happy that have least trouble, but they that have least cause ; not they that have a benumbed conscience, but they that have a conscience sound, established, and settled in the grace of God, through Jesus Christ our Lord, and bottomed upon his holy covenant, and that i)eace and grace be offers to us ; this is the happy man. By these and such like argu- ments I would have you put in for a share of this [jrivilege. But what must be required ? I would fain send you away with some directions.
Let me entreat you, if this be such a blessed thing, to make it your daily, your earnest, }our hearty prayer to God, that your sins may be jiardoned, Mat. vi. 12. Our Lord hath taught us to ])ray (for we make but too much work for pardoning mercy every day), ' Every day lorgive us our trespasses.' To-day, in one of the petitions, is common
Ps. XXXII. 1, 2.] THE SECOND SERMON. 189
to all that follow ; as we beg daily bread, we must beg daily pardon, dai ly grace against temptations, tjnder the law, they had a lamb every morning and every evening offered to God for a daily sacrifice, Num. xxviii. 4-G. We are all invited to look to the Lamb of God, that taketh away the sins of the world. Surely we have as much need as they — more cause than they ; because now all is clear, and openly made known unto us. God came to Adam in the cool of the day ; he would not let him sleep in his sins: before night came, he comes and rouseth his conscience, and then gives out the promise of the seed of the woman that should break the serpent's head. In reconciliation with God, let not the sun go down upon God's wrath, Eph. iv. 26. A man should not sleep in his anger, nor out of charity with man ; surely we should make our peace with God every day. If a man, under the law, had contracted any uncleanness, he was to wash his clothes before evening, that he might not lie a night in his uncleanness. We should daily e^irnestly come to God with this request. Lord, pardon our sins. But what! mu«t those that are already adopted into God's family, and taken into his grace and favour, daily pray for pardon of sin ? Though upon our first faith our state be changed, and we are indeed made children of God, and heirs of eternal life by faith in Christ Jesus ; yet he that is clean, need Avash his feet. We contract a great deal of sinful de- filement and pollution by walking up and down here in a dirty world; and we must every day be cleansing our consciences before God, and begging that we may be made partakers of this benefit. The Lord may, for our unthankfulness, our negligence, our stupid security, revive the memory of old sins, and make us look into the debt-book (that hath been cancelled) with horror, and make us ' possess the sins of our youth.' An old bruise is felt upon every change of weather. When we prove unthankful, and careless, and stupid, and negligent, and do not keep our watch, the Lord may suffer these things to return upon our consciences with great amazement. Guilt raked out of its grave is more frightful than a ghost, or one risen from the dead. Few be- lievers have, upon right terms, the assurance of their own sincerity ; and though God may blot sins out of the book of his remembrance, yet he will not blot them out of our consciences. The worm of con- science is killed still by the application of the blood of Christ and the Spirit. This short exhortation I would give you, the other would take up too much time.
SERMON XL
Blessed is he wJwse transgression is forgiven, whose sin is covered. Blessed is the mom, unto ivhom the Lord imputeth not iniquity, and in whose spirit there is no guile. — Ps. XXXII. 1, 2.
In this text I observed, that it is a great degree and step towards, yea, a considerable part of our blessedness, to obtain pardon of our sins upon the account of Christ's righteousness. I showed the
190 THE SECOND SERMON. [Ps. XXXII. 1, 2.
necessity whicli lies upon men, who are all become guilty before God, to look after this pardon ; and thereui)on took occasion to represent the excellency of the Christian religion, that hath provided a salve for the great sore that runs upon all mankind, above that of the l)agans, and also that of the Jews, to whom this mystery was but darkly revealed. To proceed to another use, to exhort you to put in for a share in this blessedness, to persuade you to it, let me use a few motives.