VOL. VII. S
274, SIN S ANTIDOTE.
hath rich jewels in it, so they are precious promises that have such precious mercies in thorn. Thus these are such things as 'eye hath not seen, nor ear hath heard,' &c.
ohj. But some man will say. If no man ever saw them, if no man ever knew them, how shall wo ever pet the knowledge of them ?
Ans. But, saith the apostle, ' God hath revealed them to us by the Spirit.' The eve of man, that is, the natural eye of man, can never see them, the natural heart of man can never conceive them, &c., yet, nevertheless, God hath revealed them to us by his Spirit; and so he goes on, ver. 14, 'The natural man knows not the things of God, but the spiritual man discerns all things.' Wliy so? Because the Spirit of God, who now causeth the light of the fTospel to shine in his heart, reveals to him those things, that with- out that light can never be discovered or discerned by any man.
Quest. But now the great question is. How the Spirit of God reveals to a man that his sins are pardoned in particular ? Every man will doubt of it.
' The same Spirit bears witness with our spirits, that we are the sons of God,' Rom. viii. IG. So there is a witness of the Spirit with the spirit of a man in the heart and conscience of a man, that he is accepted in the sight of God.
Quest. Oh, but now how doth the Spirit witness this ? and what is the testimony that the Spirit gives of this, or by what way gives he it ?
Ans. I answer, briefly, by alluding to that expression that you shall find John xvi. 7,8: 'I will send,' saith Christ, ' the Holy Ghost. And when ho is come he shall reprove the world; he shall convince the world of sin, of ri<Thteousness, and of judgment.' He shall convince the world, but of what shall he convince the world ? ' Of sin, of righteousness, aud of judg- ment. Of sin, because they have not believed in me: of righteousness, because I go to the Father : and of judgment, because the prince of this world is judged.' I say I allude to that, for there is such a work in this business that now we have in hand, as there is in that convincing the world concerning Christ ; I say, there is such a work of the Spirit con- vincing a man ' of sin, of righteousness, and of judgment,' that he may reveal to him the pardon of his sins ; there are certain works of the Spirit that wo may express by these :
1. First, I say. He convicts of sin. The Spirit that testifies to a man that his sins aro pardoned him, doth it first by convincing a man of his sins. Now, you know, there is more in conviction than bare discovery. It is a full and thorough discovery of the thing; and not only so, but an effectual discovery, such as works upon the soul ; there is not only a light in the understanding, but some heat in the affection and in the will. Now, when the Spirit convinceth a man of sin, here is the first thing now whereby he knows that his sins are pardoned. You shall see this the better in the effects of it, and that is,
(1.) First, It makes a man to see that there is no sweetness in sin; it makes a man to find that sin is the greatest burden, the greatest misery, of this life. For that which makes a man delight in sin, is because it is presented to him in false shapes ; but now when the Spirit of God comes to manifest sin, to discover sin in its own shape in the soul, and makes a man to look upon it in its own nature, as it is, then he finds it to be the most unprofitable burden that ever he bore in his life. Upon this cornea that work upon the heart, which is that oppression of spirit, that a man comes laden and heavy burdened. You know this ever goes with forgiveness of sins : Mat. xi. 28, ' Come unto me, all ye that are
sin's antidote. 275
laden and heavy burdened, and I will ease you.' That if a man would bo eased of his sins he must be laden and heavy burdened first, that is, he must find a need of ease; and when he is laden and heavy burdened, that he may be assured he shall have ease if he come to Christ. That is the first effect.
(2.) Secondly, There is another thing that goes along with this, that sin being discovered thus to a man, he comes to seek, above all thiii(/.-i in the world, to be rid and to be eased of it; as the apostle in that same 2 Cor. vii. 11 saith, 'Behold, what clearing of yourselves,' &c. He will get to bo free from it rather than his life. Now, there is no clearing of a guilty person but by confession ; for how shall a malefactor get to be cleared before the judge but by confessing his fault ? If he sue for mercy, it may be he may obtain it ; but if he stand out till it be proved against him, he will be cast. It fails with men many times, but it never fails with God ; and therefore saith David, ' I said, I will confess against myself my sin, and thou forgavest the iniquity of my sin,' Ps. xxxii. 5, 6. So it is said, ' He that confesseth his sins, and forsakes them, shall find mercy,' Prov. xxviii. 13.