Christ, ye shall die in your sins, John viii. 24; and he that dies in his sins must to judgment and to hell in his sins. Every unbeliever is a condemned man; He that believeth not is condemned already, because he hath not believed in the name of the only begotten Son of God. He that believeth not the Son, shall not see life, but the wrath of God abideth on him, John iii. 18, 36. Ah, sinners, the law, the gospel, and your own consciences, have passed the sentence of condemnation upon you, and there is no way to reverse the sentence, but by believing in Christ: and therefore my counsel is this-stir up yourselves to lay hold on the Lord Jesus; and look up to him, and wait on him from whom every good and perfect gift comes, and give him no rest, till he has given you that jewel faith, which is more worth than heaven and earth, and which will make you happy in life, joyful in death, and glorious in the day of Christ.

And thus much for the remedies against this first device of Satan, whereby he keeps off thousands from believing in Christ.

Dev. 2. The second device that Satan has to keep poor sinners from believing, from closing with a Saviour, is by suggesting to them their unworthiness. Ah,' says Satan,

as thou art worthy of the greatest misery, so thou art unworthy of the least crumb of mercy. What, dost thou think that Christ will ever own, receive, or embrace such an unworthy wretch as thou art? No, no. If there were

any worthiness in thee, then indeed Christ might be willing to be entertained by thee. Thou art unworthy to entertain Christ in thy house; how much more unworthy art thou to entertain Christ in thy heart.'

Now the remedies against this device are these

Rem. 1. Consider that God has no where in the scripture required any worthiness in the creature before believing in Christ. If you make a diligent search through all the scripture, you will not find, from the first line in Genesis, to the last line in the Revelation, one word that speaks out God's requiring any worthiness in the creature

before the soul's believing in Christ; before the soul's leaning and resting upon Christ for happiness and blessedness; and why then should that be a bar or hinderance to your faith, which God does no where require of you before you come to Christ, that you may have life? Ah, sinners, remember, Satan objects your unworthiness against you, only out of a design to keep Christ and your souls, asunder for ever; and therefore in the face of all your unworthiness, rest upon Christ, come to Christ, believe in Christ; and you are happy for ever.

Rem. 2. Wisely consider that none ever received Christ, embraced Christ, and obtained mercy and pardon from Christ, but unworthy souls. Pray what worthiness was in Matthew, Zaccheus, Mary Magdalene, Manasseh, Paul, and Lydia, before their coming to Christ, before their faith in Christ? Surely none. Ah sinners, you should reason thus; Christ has bestowed the choicest mercies, the greatest favours, the highest dignities, the sweetest privileges, upon unworthy sinners; and therefore, O our souls, do not you faint, do not you despair; but patiently and quietly wait for the salvation of the Lord. Who can tell but that free grace and mercy may shine forth upon us, though we are unworthy, and give us a portion among those worthies that are now triumphing in heaven.'

Rem. 3. The third remedy against this device of Satan, is, that if the soul will keep off from Christ till it be worthy, it will never close with Christ; it will never embrace Christ; It will never be one with Christ; it must lie down in everlasting sorrow. God has laid up all worthiness in Christ, that the creature may know where to find it, and may make out after it. There is no way on earth to make unworthy souls worthy, but by believing in Christ. Believing in Christ, of slaves, will make you worthy sons; of enemies, it will make you worthy friends. God will count none worthy, call none worthy, carry it towards none as worthy, but believers, who are made worthy by the worthiness of Christ's person, righteousness, satisfaction, and intercession.

Rem. 4. Solemnly consider that if you make a diligent search into your own hearts, you will find that it is the pride and folly of your own hearts, that put you upon

bringing a worthiness to Christ. O you would fain bring something to Christ that might render you acceptable to him; you are loath to come empty-handed. The Lord cries out, Ho, every one that thirsteth, come ye to the waters; and he that hath no money; come ye, buy and eat; yea, come buy wine and milk without money and without price. Wherefore do ye spend money for that which is not bread? and your labour for that which satisfieth not? Isa. lv. 1,2. Here the Lord calls upon moneyless, upon pennyless souls, upon unworthy souls, to come and partake of his precious favours freely; but sinners are proud and foolish, and because they have no money, no worthiness to bring, they will not come, though he sweetly invites them. Ah, sinners, what is more just than that you should perish for ever, who prefer husks among swine before the milk and wine, the sweet and precious things of the gospel that are freely and sweetly offered to you? Well, sinners, remember this, it is not so much the sense of your unworthiness, as your pride, that keeps you off from a blessed closing with the Lord Jesus.

Dev. 3. The third device that Satan has to keep poor sinners from believing, from closing with a Saviour, is by suggesting to them the want of such and such preparations and qualifications. Says Satan, Thou art not prepared to entertain Christ; thou art not thus and thus humbled and justified; thou art not heart-sick of sin; thou hast not been under horrors and terrors as such and such; thou must stay till thou art prepared and qualified to receive the Lord Jesus.'

Rem. 1. The first remedy against this device, is solemnly to consider, that such as have not been so and so prepared and qualified, as Satan suggests, have received Christ, believed in Christ, and been saved by Christ. Matthew was called, sitting at the receipt of custom, and there was such power went along with Christ's call, as made him follow him. We read not of any horrors or terrors that he was under before his being called by Christ. Pray, what preparations and qualifications were found in Zaccheus, Paul,

the jailer, and Lydia, before their conversion? God brings in some by the sweet and still voice of the gospel; and usually such as are thus brought to Christ, are the sweetest, humblest, choicest, and fruitfulest Christians. God is a free agent to work by law or gospel, by smiles or frowns, by presenting hell or heaven to sinners' souls. God thunders from Mount Sinai upon some souls, and conquers them by thundering. God speaks to others in a still voice, and by that conquers them. You who are brought to Christ by the law, do not judge and condemn them that are brought to Christ by the gospel; and you who are brought to Christ by the gospel, do not you despise those that are brought to Christ by the law. Some are brought to Christ by fire, storms, and tempests; others by more easy and gentle gales of the Spirit. The Spirit is free in the work of conversion, and as the wind, it blows when, where, and how it pleases. Thrice happy are those souls that are brought to Christ, whether it be in a winter's night, or in a summer's day.

Rem. 2. Solemnly dwell upon these following scriptures, which clearly evidence that poor sinners who are not so and so prepared and qualified to meet with Christ, to receive and embrace the Lord Jesus Christ, may notwithstanding that, believe in Christ, and rest and lean upon him for happiness and blessedness according to the gospel. Read Prov. i. 20-33; viii. 1-11; ix. 1-6; Ezek. xvi. 1—14; John iii. 14—18; Rev. iii. 15—20. Here the Lord Jesus Christ stands knocking at the Laodiceans' door; he would fain have them to sup with him, and that he might sup with them; that is, that they might have intimate communion and fellowship one with another. Now pray tell me, what preparations or qualifications had these Laodiceans to entertain Christ? Surely none; for they were luke-warm; they were neither hot nor cold; they were wretched, and miserable, and poor, and blind, and naked; and yet Christ, to shew his free grace and his condescending love, invites the very worst of sinners to open to him, though they were no ways so or so prepared or qualified to entertain him.

Rem. 3. Seriously consider that the Lord does not, in all the scripture, require such and such preparations and qua

lifications before men come to Christ, before they believe in Christ, or entertain or embrace the Lord Jesus. Believing in Christ is the great thing that God presses upon sinners throughout the scripture; as all know, that know any thing of scripture.

'But does not Christ say, Come unto me all ye that labour and are heavy laden, and I will give you rest?' To this I shall give these three answers

1. That though the invitation be to such as labour and are heavy laden, yet the promise of giving rest is made over to coming, to believing.

2. I answer, that all which this scripture proves and shews, is, that such as labour under sin as under a heavy burden, and are laden with the guilt of sin and sense of God's displeasure, ought to come to Christ for rest: but it does not prove, that only such must come to Christ, nor that all men must be thus burdened and laden with the sense of their sins and the wrath of God, before they come to Christ. Poor sinners, when they are under the sense of sin and wrath of God, are prone to run from creature to creature, and from duty to duty, and from ordinance to ordinance, to find rest; and if they could find it in any thing or creature, Christ would never hear of them: but here the Lord sweetly invites them; and to encourage them, he engages himself to give them rest. Come and I will give you rest. 'I will not shew you rest, nor barely tell you of rest, but I will give you rest. I am faithfulness itself, and cannot lie; I will give you rest; I who have the greatest power to give it, the greatest will to give it, the greatest right to give it. Come, laden sinners, and I will give you rest. Rest is the most desirable good, the most suitable good, and to you the greatest good. Come, that is, believe in me, and I will give you rest. I will give you peace with God and peace with conscience. I will turn your storm into an everlasting calm. I will give you such rest as the world can neither give to you, nor take from you.'

3. I answer, no one scripture speaks out the whole mind of God; therefore do but compare this one scripture with those several scriptures that are laid down in the second remedy last mentioned, and it will clearly appear, that