You, therefore, who have been swearers and cursers, you, who have been harlots and drunkards, you, who have been thieves and robbers, you, who have hitherto followed the sinful pleasures and diversions of life, let me beseech you, by the mercies of GOD in CHRIST JESUS, that you would no longer continue therein, but that you would forsake your evil ways, and turn unto the LORD, for he waiteth to be gracious unto you, he is ready, he is willing to pardon you of all your sins; but do not expect CHRIST to pardon you of sin, when you run into it, and will not abstain from complying with the temptations; but if you will be persuaded to abstain from evil and chuse the good, to return unto the LORD, and repent of your wickedness, he hath promised he will abundantly pardon you, he will heal your back-slidings, and will love you freely. Resolve now this day to have done with your sins for ever; let your old ways and you be separated; you must resolve against it, for there can be no true repentance without a resolution to forsake it. Resolve for CHRIST, resolve against the devil and his works, and go on fighting the LORD’s battles against the devil and his emissaries; attack him in the strongest holds he has, fight him as men, as christians, and you will soon find him to be a coward; resist him and he will fly from you. Resolve, through grace, to do this, and your repentance is half done; but then take care that you do not ground your resolutions on your own strength, but in the strength of the LORD JESUS CHRIST; he is the way, he is the truth, and he is the life; without his assistance you can do nothing, but through his grace strengthening thee, thou wilt be enabled do all things; and the more thou art sensible of thy own weakness and inability, the more ready CHRIST will be to help thee; and what can all the men of the world do to thee when CHRIST is for thee? thou wilt not regard what they say against thee, for you will have the testimony of a good conscience.
Resolve to cast thyself at the feet of CHRIST in subjection to him, and throw thyself into the arms of CHRIST for salvation by him. Consider, my dear brethren, the many invitations he has given you to come unto him, to be saved by him; “GOD has laid on him the iniquity of us all.” O let me prevail with you, above all things, to make choice of the LORD JESUS CHRIST; resign yourselves unto him, take him, O take him, upon his own terms, and whosoever thou art, how great a sinner soever you have been, this evening, in the name of the great GOD, do I offer JESUS CHRIST unto thee; as thou valuest thy life and soul refuse him not, but stir up thyself to accept of the LORD JESUS, take him wholly as he is, for he will be applied wholly unto you, or else not at all. JESUS CHRIST must be your whole wisdom, JESUS CHRIST must be your whole righteousness, JESUS CHRIST must be your whole sanctification, or he will never be your eternal redemption.
What though you have been ever so wicked and profligate, yet, if you will now abandon your sins, and turn unto the LORD JESUS CHRIST, thou shalt have him given to thee, and all thy sins shall be freely forgiven. O why will you neglect the great work of your repentance? do not defer the doing of it one day longer, but to-day, even now, take that CHRIST who is freely offered to you.
Now as to the _causes_ hereof, the first cause is GOD; he is the author, “we are born of GOD,” GOD hath begotten us, even GOD, the Father of our LORD JESUS CHRIST; it is he that stirs us up to will and to do of his own good pleasure: and another cause is, GOD’s free grace; it is owing to the “riches of his free grace,” my brethren, that we have been prevented from going down to hell long ago; it is because the compassions of the LORD fail not, they are new every morning, and fresh every evening.
Sometimes the instruments are very unlikely: a poor despised minister, or member of JESUS CHRIST, may, by the power of GOD, be made an instrument in the hands of GOD, of bringing you to true evangelical repentance; and this may be done to shew, that the power is not in men, but that it is entirely owing to the good pleasure of GOD; and if there has been any good done among many of you, by preaching the word, as I trust there has, though it was preached in a field, if GOD has met and owned us, and blessed his word, though preached by an enthusiastic babbler, a boy, a madman; I do rejoice, yea, and will rejoice, let foes say what they will. I shall now
_Thirdly_, Shew the reasons why repentance is necessary to salvation.