the merit of which, you may be faved from deferved and impending ruin. He offers himself as a guide, to direct your feet in the way of peace to ftand by you in the difficulties and dangers to which you are expofed, and to give you, by his communicated ftrength, a complete victory over all your enemies.'

What reply doth the unconvinced finner make to all this? Why he faith, I know nothing of this misery you suppose; wherefore then a Saviour? I fee no fin; what neceffity then for an atonement? I fear no wrath; therefore will feek for no interceffor. My

eyes are open, therefore I will have no guide. 'I know of no enemies, and therefore will not < enter into contention with a fhadow, or flee when no man purfueth.'

Thefe, my brethren, are either directly or implicitly the thoughts of men, in a secure and unconvinced state; and while they are fo, they can fee no form nor comelinefs in the Saviour, nor any beauty that they fhould defire him.

It is otherwife with the broken in fpirit. He fees his own vilenefs and unworthinefs, and therefore cannot lift his eyes to God, but through the atoning blood of Chrift. He fears the avenger of blood, and therefore flies to the city of refuge'-The meffage of the gospel is to him indeed glad tidings of great joy, and he counts it a faithful faying, and worthy of all ⚫ acceptation.'

The

The juftice of this reprefentation you may fee from what our Saviour himself fays, of the end of his coming: They that be whole need not a < phyfician, but they that are fick : But go ye and learn what that meaneth, I will have mer

cy and not facrifice; for I am not come to call the righteous, but finners to repentance.'

See alfo the terms of his invitation.

• Come

unto me all ye that labour and are heavy laden, • and I will give you rest.'

Appetite and knowledge of neceffity is first required, or fupposed to the bestowing of gospel bleffings. Ho! every one that thirfteth, come

" ye to the waters."

I fhall only add, that we find by the inftances recorded in fcripture, of fuch as were converted by the preaching of the gofpel, that their converfion took its rife from conviction of fin. Now when they heard this, they were pricked in their hearts, and faid unto Péter, and to the • rest of the apoftles, Men and brethren, what 'fhall we do? See also the inftance of the jailor

Then he called for a light, and fprang in, and came trembling, and fell down before Paul and Silas and brought them out, and faid, Sirs, what must I do to be faved?'

Repentance unto life, and the return of the finner to God, proceeds from the fame cause in every age. Who are the perfons who believingly apply to Chrift for the pardon of their fins, but those who see they are undone without him? Who

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Who are the perfons in whofe eyes he is moft precious, and who maintain the most habitual dependence upon him? Are they not those who have been moft effectually humbled, and fee their own infufficiency for any thing that is good?

From all this I conclude, that none can come to Chrift by faith, but thofe who fee themselves to be wretched, and miserable, and blind, and 'naked.'

Let us now make fome improvement of what hath been faid upon this fubject for your inftruction and direction.

1. I would improve what has been faid on this fubject, for difcovering the danger of many among us who have never yet been brought to a juft fenfe of their character and ftate. Even the general belief that fuch often have in the fcriptures, may fhew them what they have to fear. I might, no doubt, first of all obferve, how very guilty and miferable those are, who are most notorious for fins of the groffeft and most shameful kind. But my fubject leads me more directly to confider who are in general unrenewed, than to mark the feveral degrees of guilt in particular finners. From the text, therefore, and the illuftration of it, I am authorised to declare to you, and I beseech you to hear it with application,' that all fuch as were never brought to a real difcovery and inward fenfe of their miferable condition by nature, are still in a state of wrath, and ftrangers to the power of religion, whatever may

be

be their profeffion, and whatever may be their prefent peace. Oh! how eafy is it to lay asleep a natural confcience, and to keep a deceitful corrupt heart in a state of ease and security? Some formality in outward duty, fome moderation in fin, foto speak, the natural decay and weakness of human paffions or youthful lufts, in a character formed by human prudence, and regulated by health, credit or gain, is often made to fupply the place of a heart renewed by the spirit and grace of God. But confider, I beseech you, that though fome may be ten-fold more the children of the devil than others, yet all by nature are the fervants of fin; and except a man be 'born again, he cannot fee the kingdom of 'God.'-It is not only fuch as are prophane or unclean fuch as riot in brutish fenfuality; fuch as are the plagues of human fociety; who live in brawls and contention, but all in whom an effential change has never been wrought, that are thus included under condemnation..

It is ufual for men to take encouragement, from feeing others worfe than themselves; and to confider all the threatenings in fcripture, as levelled against the chief and capital offenders; but my text is chiefly directed to fuch as fay they are rich, and increased with goods.' Can you fay then, my brethren, that you have been brought under genuine convictions of fin? Have you been obliged to fall down proftrate before God, when fitting upon the throne of his holi

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nefs

nefs? Have you found the fentence of death in yourselves, and difcovered no remedy but in Chrift? If this has never been your cafe, you have reason to fear, that you are yet' in the gall of bitterness, and in the bond of iniquity.'

But I must tell you also, that this is matter of feeling, more than of profeffion. It is not enough to fpeak honourably of Chrift or of his works. Many do fo, who never felt their neceffity, or feriously and in good earnest applied to him. It were a happy thing, if all among our hearers, who call for evangelical preaching, who quarrel with us when they think we do not preach the Saviour's cross, the loft state of man, and the doctrine of free grace, were experimentally acquainted with thefe truths. Many fuch have only been accustomed to hear the Redeemer spoken of with reverence. They may be able to imitate the language of fome of his fervants, though they know very little of that brokennefs of spirit which accompanies true repentance.

But left this fhould be in any measure mistaken, I must make thefe two obfervations :-The firft is, that a lively fenfe, and deep conviction of fin, is, properly speaking, but a negative mark of true religion; giving us to know, that the unhumbled are yet impenitent.-For it is certain, that many have been under very strong convictions, nay, have been driven to the very borders of defpair with terror, who yet never were effectually changed, but ftifled their convictions

and