1 had led an ill Courfe of Life, falling very fick, I was defir'd to come to him. Being come I plainly put him in mind of his former Wickedness; whereupon his Wife began to be in a fort of a Rage, not sticking to wifh, She had never fent for me. I took the occafion hereupon to tell her, that it was neither confistent with the Duty of a Minister to flatter Perfons, especially in fuch Cafes; nor was it for the Benefit of her Husband's Soul to be flatter'd. I then ask'd the fick Man, Whether it would not have been much more comfortable to him now in his Sickness, had he never led an ill Life, or had he but repented and left it off, for fome confiderable time afore? He anfwer'd to this effect, That, had he ten thousand Worlds, he would willingly give them all to be freed from that Terror of Mind he was at prefent under. I ask'd him, Whether it would not have been particularly a great Comfort to him, had he liv'd fo as to have been fit to receive the Sacrament of the Lord's Supper, and not to have neglected, if not fighted it, fo as never yet to have receiv'd it in his whole Life, tho' then about forty; and tho' he had enjoy'd the opportunity of receiving it any Month, for the feveral Years fince I had brought up a monthly Sacrament in the Parish? His Anfwer was to the fame effect as afore, only adding that his never receiving the Sacrament was now a great Trouble to him. Upon my asking him, Whether he was willing to receive it now in his Sickness? He presently reply'd, With all his heart. Whereupon I told him, I was forry that his Cafe was fuch, as I could not judge it proper to give him the Sacrament, forafmuch as neither he nor I could judge of the Sincerity of his Repentance, as things flood; and that the great Concern he was in, might proceed only from the Fear of Death and Hell-fire quickly feizing him, and not from a true batred of Sin and Love of God, and Sorrow for having fo long and heinously of fended him. That as God only knew the Sincerity of his Repentance, so if it was fincere, he might be aẞur'd, that God would accept it; and would alfo accept bis Will to receive the Sacrament for the Deed. So that if Part II. Chap.11. Part II. Chap. 11. he dy'd, my judging it not proper to give him yet the Sacrament, would be no Difadvantage to his future State. But if it pleas'd God that he recover'd, and if he would come to the Sacrament at Church, as foon as he was able, I would then gladly give it him; forafmuch as his fo Coming would be a Proof of his present Willingness proceeding from a proper and good Principle or Motive, and fo a Proof of the Sincerity of his prefent Repentance. He anfwer'd to this effect, That, if God fhould be fo gracious to him as to let him recover, he would certainly come to the Sacrament, as foon as he was able; or elfe he should be the worst of Creatures, and neither deferve nor expect any more Mercy from God. Thus highly did he judge of the Sincerity of his prefent feeming Repentance. But the first Sacrament-day that he came to Church after his Recovery, Sermon being ended, instead of coming up into the Chancel with fuch as ftay'd to receive the Sacrament, He went out off the Church with the others Home. I was willing to put the most charitable Construction upon his fo doing, and therefore fuppos'd it was occafion'd by his not being yet fo well recover'd, as to be able to stay at Church any longer than to the end of the Sermon. But the next Sacrament-day, tho' a Month after, he came to Church, and went away again without receiving the Sacrament. I was willing however to try, what he would do once more, before I would take any notice of the Matter to him. The third Sacrament-day being come, and he doing as he had done twice afore, I fent my Clark to him after Evening-fervice to ask him, If he did not remember, what folemn Refolutions and Promises he made, when fick, that he would certainly come to the Sacrament, as foon as he was able, if it pleas'd God be recover'd. The Clark brought me word that his Answer was, That he did not remember, that he made any fuch Refolutions and Promifes; but if he did, he was Lightbeaded when he did, and fo did not know what be faid. I was not furpriz'd at this Anfwer, being much fuch an one as I expected; not only in refpect to this Man's Part II. particular Behaviour afore related, but also in respect to the general Notion or Judgment I had afore, upon ma- Chap. 11. ture Deliberation fram'd to my felf, of what is call'd Death-bed Repentance, viz. that there is great Reason to fear, that it is very feldom, if ever, fincere, especially when the Perfon has liv'd in a long continu'd Courfe of Impiety, even to the very time that his Sickness feiz'd him. On which account I can't but judge, that the holy Sacrament of the Lord's Supper ought not to be proflituted, as it were, by fo readily giving it in fuch Cafes, as is ufual. And greater Perfons than I have been of the fame Judgment. It may be of ufe to obferve further, that within two Years or thereabout, the forefaid Perfon was feiz'd of a fudden with a fort of a very violent Fever, infomuch that he dy'd in a very few Days or Hours, and that in a fort of raving Madness. So foon did God's Punishment overtake him, and in fo remarkable a Manner. CHA P. XII. of Sanctification. T having been shewn, what is Sin against the Go fpel-law, and how manifold it is; thence will more eafily be understood Gospel Sanctification, forafmuch as thereby I understand a Man's Freedom, both from the Dominion of all Sin in general, and alfo from all Commiffion of any mortal Sin, together with his continual Growth in Grace and in all good Works unto his Life's End. II. Hence Sanctification is to be distinguish'd into the firft or more imperfect, and into the fecond or more per- twofold. fect. The former is that whereby Faith and Repentance is produced in us, and which therefore is requir'd as an abfolutely neceffary Difpofition to obtain justification; the latter is that whereby are produced the Fruits of Faith and Repentance or good Works, and which are requir'd in order to retain Juftification. For III. Part II. For that Opinion is to be rejected, according to which Chap. 12. Juftification is fuppos'd to be wholly antecedent to or before Sanctification. For altho' God for Chrift's fake Sanctification is juftifies the Ungodly, Rom. 4. 5. that is, him that was before Juftification. once Ungodly, but has now by Repentance ceas'd to be fuch an one; yet he will by no means clear the Guilty, (or juftify the Ungodly, as it may be render'd, Exod. 34.7.) that is, fuch an one as fill continues to be Ungodly. That Sanctification, at least the first and more imperfect, do's go before Juftification in the Divine Ordering of Things, may be clearly enough infer'd, as from other places of Scripture, fo especially from these two, 1 Cor. 6. 11. and I Pet. 1. 2. In the former Place the great Apoftle of the Uncircumcifion or Gentiles writes thus: But ye are wafb'd, but ye are fanctify'd, but tye are juftify'd. Where doubtlefs the Order of the Words was intended to fhew the Order of the Things themselves, and to teach us that Sanctification is before Juftification. The fame is likewife clearly fhewn by the great Apostle of the Circumcifion or Jews in the latter Place, where he thus defcribes the Order of Man's Salvation: According to the Foreknowledge of God the Father, thro' Sanctification of the Spirit unto Obedience, and Sprinkling of the Blood of Jefus Chrift. Here the SanEtification of the Spirit unto Obedience, is mention'd in the first Place, and then follows the fprinkling of the Blood of Jefus Chrift, viz. unto Juftification. 'Tis very obfervable that St Peter here writing to the newly converted Jews, puts Obedience before fprinkling of the Blood of Christ, with Allufion to what Mofes did of old to their Fathers, when they were newly come out of E. gypt; of which fee an Account Exod. 24.4-8. For as Mofes did not then sprinkle the Blood of the Covenant made there by Sacrifice on the People to the Cleanfing of the Flesh, till the People had afore promis'd Obedience to all that the Lord had faid: fo like wife we can't have our Hearts Sprinkled from an evil Confcience, as Hebr. 10. 22. nor will the Blood of Chrift -purge our Confcience from dead Works, as Hebr. 9. 14. until we have first firmly refolv'd in our Hearts, and promis'd promis'd with our Mouths Obedience to the Laws of Chrift. Whence St John alfo fays, 1 Joh. 1. 7. If we walk in the Light, -the Blood of Jefus Christ cleanfes us from all Sin. And hence it came to pafs, that from the very first Beginning of the Chriftian Church, no one was sprinkled with the Blood of Chrift by Baptifm, unless he had first promised Obedience to the Commands of God; which is what St Peter calls the Anfwer of a good Confcience toward God, 1 Pet. 3.21. In like manner no one is or ever was permitted to drink the Blood of Christ in the Sacrament of the Lord's Supper, but who has firft promis'd Obedience or Holiness of Life. So that Obedience every where precedes the fprinkling of Chrift's Blood, and confequently precedes Juftification. Part II. Chap. 12. IV. Now it is to be obferv'd, that altho' our Sanctifica- San&tification ation as well as Juftification is owing to the Blood of fcrib'd in ScriChrift, forafmuch as Chrift by his Blood or Death ob- pture more peculiarly to the Holy tain'd for us, not only the Grace of Juftification, but Ghost. alfo of Sanctification; yet in the holy Scripture our Sanctification is more peculiarly attributed to the Spirit of Chrift; and the Forgiveness of our Sins, and fo our Juftification, is more peculiarly attributed to the Blood. of Chrift and the Sprinkling thereof. to Sanctification, on one But it is to be well obferv'd, that our Sanctification Two Errors to be is not in Scripture attributed to the Holy Spirit in fuch avoided, relating a manner, as to take away from us Free-will, and the viz. Pelagianifm Co-operation of our own Industry. Namely, as to the or the Denial of Bulinefs of Sanctification, there are two Errors to be Grace, the Neceffity of avoided. On one fide we must be very careful, not to hand: fall into the heretical Opinion of Pelagius; and therefore the Freedom of Man's Will is no farther to be believed or afferted, than is consistent with our Acknowledging fincerely and from our heart, that the Affiftance of the more powerful Grace of God is altogether neceffary to our Sanctification, or to make us become truly and inwardly Holy, and fo Juft. It is from the Grace of God, that proceeds the Beginning, Growth, and Com pleatment of our Holiness and Righteousness. It is the Grace of God, that gives to Sinners Faith and Repen tance; |