The gospel hath as strong encouragements, and stronger, to be good and gracious, than the law. Grace enforceth strictness of life more sweetly and strongly than- the law. The law saith, * We must not take the name of God in vain,' Exod. xx. 7 ; and we must be subject to our superiors, and to live chastely, &c., under a curse. Doth not the grace of God teach this as well as the law, and from a higher ground ? It teacheth the same thing by arguments taken from love and grace. A man perisheth by the law in such sing, but then there is a pardon offered, if men will come under the government of Christ, and lead new lives. But if men refuse, thei-e is a super-added guilt. Not only justice condemns such wretches, but mercy itself ; because they refuse mercy upon these terms rather than they will leave their sinful courses. Mercy and justice both meet to condemn such persons. Let us take heed therefore of abusing the mercy and love of God. For then we quite overthrow God's end in the gospel. For why doth he convey all to us by love and mercy and grace, but that it may work the same disposition again in us to him ? Or else we overturn the end of the gospel. Let us take heed of this, as ever we will find interest in this grace, without which we are the miserablest wretches that live. It were better for us that we had never heard of Christ and the gospel, than to live in sins against conscience, under the manifestation and publication of grace.
520 THE CnURCH's EICHES.
Doci. 6. Now, together with the grace of Christ, the apostle hnvgs (he exarri]>le of Clirifit, that huth maij stir thou up to tlie dulies of mercy and huimty andJniUfidness. Indeed, the grace of Christ makes his example more sweet. Men wilHngly look upon examples.
The examples of great and excellent persons ; the example of loving and bountifial persons ; the example of such as are loving and bountiful to us in particular ; the example of such as we have interest in, that are near and dear to us, and we to them — these four things commend examples. Now is there any greater or more excellent person than Christ ? Is there any fuller of love and mercy and grace than he, that hath made himself poor to make us rich ? And all of us, if we be Christians indeed, we have interest in this. Our hearts and consciences by the Spirit of God have some per- suasion of this. And then again he is dear and near unto us. lie is our head and husband ; he is ' all in all unto us,' 1 Cor. xv. 28. Therefore the example of Christ joined with his grace, it is a wondrous forcible example.
Quest. How shall we make this example of Christ profitable to us ?
Ans. (1.) First of all, let us look often into the t/race of Christ ; the grace and free mercy of God in giving Christ. Consider how God hath laid forth all his riches in Christ, and consider how miserable we had been without Christ, even next unto devils in miser}'. A man is the most miserable creature under heaven if he have not interest in Christ ; he is a lost crea- ture. Let us dwell tipon the meditation and consideration of this till we feel our hearts warmed. If one pass through the sunshine, it doth not much heat ; but if the sun beat upon a thing, there will be a reflection of heat. So let us stay upon this consideration of the infinite love and mercy of Christ to us wretches, and this vrarming the heart, it will transform us to the likeness of Christ ; as the apostle saith, 2 Cor. iii. 18, ' We all as in [a] mirror beholding the glory of God ' (he means the glory of God's mercy in Christ), ' we are transformed and changed from glory to glory,' from one degree of grace to another. The serious consideration of the love and mercy of God in Christ, it is a wondrous sweet thing, and it hath a transforming power with it. And that is the reason why the gospel converts men, and not the law. The law never converts a man; but, together with the Spirit, it will cast him down. But the gospel, which is the promulgation of grace and mercy to penitent sinners, that confess their sins and forsake them, and come under a new government of grace, the publishing of this hath the Spirit of grace with it to work conversion. Therefore it is called the ministry of the Spirit ; because the Spirit goes with the doctrine of grace, to change us and make us gracious, to persuade us that God loves us, and to stir us up to perform all duties in that sweet afi'ection that God requires in the gospel, the afiection of love. Therefore if we be or ever were converted, it is this way. Our hearts are wrought on by the consideration of the love and mercy of God in Christ ; so that love begets love, and mercy begets a sweetness in us to God again. In the nature of the thing it cannot be otherwise, when the soul stands con- vinced of the sweet mercy of God in Christ, and of the sweet love of Christ, who being God became man, to take our nature, and sutler the punishment that was due to us, and is now in heaven appearing and making intercession for us, it cannot be but the soul will be stirred up to a desire of conformity to this blessed Saviour. Therefore let us let go all disputings of election, concerning God's decree, and let us do our duty, and depend upon God in the use of means. Let us labour to see the love of God in Christ, and that will put all questions out of question (though in