6. The last end is, that he might shew that our salvation is exactly wrought, that God is perfectly satisfied to the full, else he should never iave risen, much less ascended to heaven. And therefore if we once believe in Christ for forgiveness of sins, and yet say, I doubt of salvation, it is all one as if you should go about to pluck Christ from heaven. The doubtful, distrustful heart, till it be subdued by a spirit of faith, saith, ' Who shall ascend to heaven, to tell me whether I shall go to heaven ?' or • Who shall enter into the deep, to tell me I am freed from hell ?' I am afraid I shall be damned, saith the guilty heart, till the Spirit of God hath brought it under and persuaded it of God's love in Christ. Say not, ' Who shall ascend up to heaven ? for that is to bring Christ down from heaven,' Rom. X. 7. And what an injurious thing is it to bring Christ down from heaven, to sufier on the cross ! This is a great indignity, though we think not of it, to doubt of our salvation, and not cast ourselves on his mercy. For as verily as he is there, we shall bo there. He is gone to take up a place
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for US. He is there in our name, as the hushand taketh a place for his spouse. And if we doubt whether we shall come there or no, we doubt whether he be there or no. And if we doubt of that, we doubt whether he hath wrought salvation or no, and so we bring him down to the cross again. Who shall descend to the deep ? that is, to bring Christ from the dead again. Such is the danger of a distrustful heart. So that by Christ's ascending into. heaven, we may know all is done and accomplished ; all our enemies are subdued ; God is appeased and fully satisfied, heaven is taken up in our room, and therefore labour for a large heart answerable to the large unchangeable grounds we have, for faith to pitch and bottom itself upon it. Therefore make this farther use of this ascension of Christ, and thereupon his intercession in heaven for us. He is there to plead our cause. He is there as our surety to appear for us, and not only so, but as a coun- sellor to plead for us ; and not only so, but one of us, as if a brother should plead for a brother ; and not only so, but a favourite there too. All favourites are not so excellent at counselling perhaps, but we have one that is favourite in heaven, and is excellent at pleading, that can non-suit all accusations laid against us by the devil. He is the Son of God, and he is one of us ; he appeareth not as a stranger, for a stranger, as the counsellor is perhaps for his client, but he appears as our brother, Apoc. xii. 10. Let us think of the comforts of it. He appears for us to plead our cause, with acceptation of his person and cause. For he, before whom he pleadeth, God the Father, sent him to take our nature, die, and ascend into heaven for us, to sustain the persons of particular ofienders. He must needs hear Christ, that sent him for that purpose. Where the judge appoints a counsel, it is a sign he favoureth the cause. Perhaps we cannot pray, are disconsolate, and vexed with Satan's temptations. The poor client hath a good cause, but cannot make a good cause of it. But if he get a skilful lawyer, that is favourable to him, and before a favoui-able judge, his com- fort is, his advocate can make his cause good. If we would confess our sins, as that we must do, we must take shame to ourselves in all our dis- tress and disconsolation of spirit ; and we must lay open our estates to God, and complain ; and then desire God to look upon us, and Christ to plead our cause for us and answer Satan ; and when Satan is very malicious and subtile, as he is a very cunning enemy to allege all advantages against us, to make us despair, remember this, we have one in heaven that is more skilful than he ' that is the accuser of brethren,' Rev. xii. 10, that accuseth us to God and to our own souls, that accuseth every man to himself and maketh him an enemy to himself. But we have a pleader in heaven that will take our part against the accuser of our brethren, and quiet us at length in our consciences. Perhaps we may be troubled a while, to humble us ; but remember that he is in heaven purposely to plead our cause.
It is a good plea to God, * Lord, I know not what to say ; my sins are more than the hairs of my head. Satan layeth hard to me. I cannot answer one of a thousand. I confess all my sins. Hear me, and hear thy Son for my sake. He is now at thy right hand, and pleadeth for me.' And desire Christ to plead for us. We have not only all the church to pray for us, * Our Father ;' but we have Christ himself to plead for us and make our cause good, if Christ saith, I shed my blood for this person, and [he] appears now by virtue of my redemption. And the condition of the covenant is, if we confess our sins, he is merciful to forgive. And if we sin, we have an advocate in heaven, to whom we must lay claim, 1 John ii. 1. The party hath confessed the debt; and therefore the bond must