SERMON I 

 Psal. xxxii. I, 2.

Blessed is he whose transgression is forgiven, whose sin is covered.  Blessed is the man unto whom the Lord imputes not iniquity and in whose spirit there is no guile.

The title of this Psalm is, A Psalm of instruction, so called, because David was willing to shew the way to happiness from his own experience.  And surely no lesson is so needful to be learned as this.  We all would be happy.  The good and bad, that so seldom agree in anything, yet agree in this, a desire to be happy.  Now happy we cannot be but in God, who is the only immutable, eternal and all-sufficient God, which satisfies and fills up all the capacities and desires of our souls.  And we are debarred from access to him by sin, which hath made a breach and separation between him and us and till that be taken away, there can be no converse and sin can only be taken away by God's pardon upon Christ's satisfaction.  God's pardon is clearly asserted by my text, but Christ's satisfaction must be supplied out of other scriptures.  As that 2 Cor. v. 19.  God was in Christ reconciling the world to himself, not imputing their trespasses to them.  Where the apostle clearly shews, that not imputing transgressions is the effect of God's grace in Christ.  And we do no wrong to this text to take it in here, for the apostle citing this scripture, Rom. iv. 6, 7, tell us that David describes the blessedness of the man unto whom the Lord imputes righteousness without works, when he saith, blessed are they whose iniquities are forgiven, whose sin is covered.  Blessed is the man to whom the Lord will not impute sin.

In the words you have, 1.  An emphatical setting forth of a great and blessed privilege, that is, pardon of sin.  2.  A description of the persons, who shall enjoy it, namely, such, in whose spirit there is no guile.

The privilege is that I shall confine my thoughts to.  It is set forth in three expressions, forgiving, transgression, covering of sin and not imputing iniquity.  The manner of speech is warm and vehement, it is repeated over again, blessed is the man.

I shall shew what these three expressions import, why the prophet doth use such vehemence in setting forth this privilege.

1.          Whose transgression is forgiven, or who is eased of his transgression.  Where sin is compared to a burden too heavy for us to bear, as also it is in other scriptures, Mat. xi. 28.  Come to me all ye that are weary and heavy laden.

2.          Whose sin is covered, alluding to the covering of filth, or the removing of that which is offensive out of sight.

3.          The third expression is, to whom the Lord imputes no sin, that is, doth not put sin to their account.  Where sin is compared to a debt, as it is also in the Lord's prayer, Mat. Vi. 12.  Forgive us our debts, as we also forgive our debtors. Thus is the act set forth.

The object of pardon is set forth under divers expressions, iniquity, transgression and sin.  When God proclaims his name, the same words are used, Exod. xxxiv. 7.  - Taking away iniquity, transgression and sin.

We have seen the meaning of the expression.  But why doth the man of God use such vehemence of inculcation, blessed is the man, and again, blessed is the man  Partly with respect to his own case.  David knew how sweet it was to have sin pardoned, he had felt the bitterness of sin in his own soul, to the drying up of his blood and therefore he doth express his sense of pardon in the most lively terms and partly with respect to those for whose use this instruction was written, that they might not look upon it as a light and trivial thing, but be thoroughly apprehensive of the worth of so great a privilege.  Blessed, happy, thrice happy, they who have obtained pardon of their sins and justification by Jesus Christ.

The doctrine then which I shall insist upon is this.  That it is a great step towards, yea, a considerable part of our blessedness, to obtain the pardon of our sins by Christ Jesus.  In order to this,

1.      I shall shew what necessity lies upon us to seek after this pardon.

2.      Our misery without it

3.      I shall speak of the annexed benefits and our happiness, if once we attain it.

1.  The necessity that lies upon us, being all guilty before God, to seek after the pardon of our sins by Christ.  That it may sink the deeper into your minds, I shall do it in this method:  First, a reasonable nature implies law, a law implies a sanction, a sanction implies a judge, and a judgment day (when all shall be called to account for breaking the law) and this judgment day infers the condemnation upon all mankind, unless the Lord find out some way, wherein we may be relieved.  This way God hath found out in Christ and being brought about by such a mysterious contrivance, we ought to be deeply and thankfully apprehensive of it and humbly and broken-heartedly to quit the one covenant, and accept of the grace provided for us in the other.

1.       A reasonable nature implies a conscience.  For man can reflect upon his won actions and hath that in him to acquit or condemn him accordingly as he doth good or evil, 1 John iii. 20, 21.  Conscience is nothing but the judgment a man makes upon his actions morally considered, the god or the evil that is in them, with respect to rewards or punishments.  As a man acts, he is a party but as he reviews and censures his actins, he is a judge.  Let us take notice only of the condemning part, for that is proper to our case.  After the fact, the force of conscience is usually felt more than before or in the fact, because before, through the treachery of the senses and the revolt of the passions, the judgment of reason is not so clear.  Our passions raise mists, which darkened the mind, and incline the will by a pleasing violence, but after the evil action is done, then guilt flashes in the face of conscience.  Judas heart lay asleep while he was going on in his villainy, but afterwards it fell upon him, thou hast sinned in betraying innocent blood.  Conscience of sin may be smothered for a while, but the flame will break forth, and our hidden fears are easily revived and awakened, except we get our pardon and discharge.  A reasonable nature implies a conscience.

2.       A conscience implies a law, by which good and evil are distinguished.  For if we make conscience of anything, it must be by virtue of some law or obligation from God who is our maker and governor, and unto whom we are accountable and whose authority gives a force and warrant to the checks of conscience, without which they would be weak and ineffectual.  The heathens had a law, because they had a conscience, Rom. ii. 15.  Which shew the work of the law written in their hearts, their conscience also bearing witness and their thoughts the mean while accusing or else excusing one another.  They have a conscience doth accuse or excuse, doth require according to the tenor of the law. So when the apostle speaks of those stings of conscience that are revived in us by the approach of death, he saith 1 Cor. xv. 56.  The sting of death is sin and the strength of sin is the law.  Those stings which men feel in a death-threatening sickness are not the fruits of their disease, but justified by the highest reason, they come from a sense of sin, and this sense is strengthened in us by the law of God, from whence conscience receives all its force.

3.       A law implies a sanction, or a confirmation by penalties and rewards, for otherwise it is but an arbitrary rule or direction, which we might disregard without any great loss or danger.  No the law is armed with a dreadful curse against all those that disobey it.  There is no dallying with God, he hath set life and death before us.  Life and good, death and evil, Deut. Xxx. 15.  The precept is the rule of our duty and the sanction is the rule of God's process, what God will do or might do and what we have deserved should be done to us.  The one shews what is due from us to God and the other what may justly be expected at God's hands, therefore before the penalty be executed, it concerns us to get a pardon.  The scripture represents God as angry with the wicked every day, standing continually with his bow ready, with his arrow upon the string, with his sword not only drawn, but whetted, just about to strike, if we turn not.  Psalm vii. 11, 12, 13.

4.       A sanction implies a judge, who will take cognizance of the keeping or breaking of this law:  For the sanction or penalty were but a vain scare-crow, if there were no person to look after it.  God that is our maker and governor is our judge.  Would he appoint penalties for the breach of his law and never reckon with us for our offences  This is a thought against the sense of conscience, against God's daily providence, against scripture, which everywhere represents God as a judge. Conscience is afraid of an invisible judge, who will call us to account for what we have done.  The Apostle tells us, Rom. i. 32, the heathen knew the judgment of God and that they that have done such things as they have done are worthy of death.  And providence shews us there is such a judge, that looks after the keeping and breaking of his law, hath owned every part of it from heavenly the judgments he executes.  Rom. i. 18.  The wrath of God is revealed from heaven against all ungodliness and unrighteousness of men.  He hath owned either table, by punishing sometimes the ungodliness and sometimes the unrighteousness of the world, nay every notable branch by way of omission or commission, every transgression and every disobedience hath been punished and God hath owned his law that is a firm authentic rule.  And surely we that are to appear before the bar of an impartial judge, being so obnoxious to him for the breach of his holy law, what have we to do but to make supplication to our judge and prevent execution by a submissive asking of a pardon, and accepting the grace of God hath provided.

5.      A judge implies a judgment day, or some time when his justice must have a solemn trial.  He reckons sometimes with nations now, for ungodliness and unrighteousness, by wars and pestilence and famine.  But there is a more general and final judgment.  Nature hath some kind of sense of in itself, and men are urged to repent, because God hath appointed a day wherein he will judge the world in righteousness, Acts xvii. 31.  God judges the world in patience now, but then in righteousness, when all things shall be reviewed and every thing restored, virtue to its public honor and vice to its due shame.

6.      If there be a solemn judgement day, when every one must receive his final doom, this judgment infers a condemnatin to a fallen creature, unless God set up another court for his relief, for man is utterly disabled by sin to fulfill the law, and can by no means avoid thepunishment due to his transgression.  I shalll prove this by three reasons, the law to fallen man is impossible, the penalty is intolerable, and the punishment (for ought yet appears, if God do n ot take another course), is unavoidable.

a.       The duty of the law is impossible.  It cannot justify us before God, it cannot furnish us with any answer to his demands, when he shall call us to an account.  Man is mightily addicted to the legal covenant, therefore it is one part of a gospel-minister's work to represent the impossibility of ever obtaining grace or life by that covenant.  Man would patch up a sorry righteousness of his own, some few superficial things.  He makes a short exposition of the law, that he may cherish a large opinion of his own righteousness, and brings it down to a poor contemptible thing, requiring a few external superficial duties.  But this is not, the loving the Lord our God with all our heart, the loving our neighbor as ourselves, or the doing all things to the glory of God, all which is to sullen man impossible.

b.      The penalty is intolerable.  For who can stand when God is angry  Ezek. xxii. 14.  Can thine heart endure or can thine hands be strong, in the day that I shall deal with thee  We that cannot endure the pain of the gout or stone, how shall we endure the eternal wrath of God  It is surely a very dreadful thing to fall into the hands of that living God that lives forever to punish the transgressors of his law.

c.       The punishment is unavoidable, unless sin be pardoned, and you submit to God's way.  For what hope can you have in God, whose nature engages him to hate sin and whose justice obliges him to punish it

1.       Whose nature engages him to hate sin and sinners.  Hab. i. 13.  He is of purer eyes than to behold iniquity.  I urge this for a double reason, partly because I have observed, that all the security of sinners and their neglect of seeking after pardon by Jesus Christ, comes from their lessening thoughts of God's holiness, if their hearts were sufficiently possessed with an awe of God's unspotted purity, they would more look after the terms of grace God hath provided.  Why do men live securely in their sins  They think God is not so severe and harsh and so all their confidence is grounded on a mistake of God's nature, and such a dreadful mistake as amounts to a blasphemy.  Thou thoughtest that I was altogether such a one as thyself.  The other reason is this, the bottom of the fear that is in the hearts of men is God's holiness, 1 Sam. Vi. 20.  Who is able to stand before this holy God  And who would not fear thee for thou art holy, Rev. xv. 4.  We fear his power, why  Because it is set on work by his wrath.  We fear his wrath, why  Because it is kindled by his justice and righteousness.  We fear his righteousness, because it is grounded upon his holiness, upon the purity of his nature.

2.       His justice obliges him to punish sin that the law might not be made in vain.  It concerns the universal judge to maintain his justice in reference to men.  Gen. xviii. 25.  Shall not the judge of all the earth do right  And Rom. iii. 5, 6. Is God unrighteous to take vengeance   How then shall he judge the world  These scriptures imply that if there were the least blemish, in point of righteousness, God could not be the judge of the world.   Therefore, God's justice, which gives to every one their due, must shine in its proper place.  He will give vengeance to whom vengeance is due, and blessing to whom blessing belongs.  In our case, punishment belongs to us, and what can we expect from God but eternal destruction  But if all this be so, if a conscience supposes a law, a law a sanction, a sanction a judge a judge some time when his justice must have a solemn trial and this will necessarily infer condemnation to a fallen creature, what then shall we do

From this condemnation there is no escape, unless God set up another court, where condemned sinners may be taken to mercy, upon terms that may salve God's honor and government over mankind.  There is a great deal of difference between the forgiving private wrongs and the pardoning of public offences.  When equals fall out among themselves, they may end their differences in such ways as best please themselves.  But the case is different here, God is not reconciled to us, merely as the party offended, but as the governor of the world, the case lies between the judge of the world, and sinning mankind, therefore it must not be ended by mere compromise and agreement, but by satisfaction, that his law may be satisfied and the honor of his justice secured.  Therefore in order to pardon man, without any impeachment of his justice the Lord finds out this great mystery, God manifested in our flesh.  Jesus Christ is made under the law, to redeem them that were under the law, Gal. iv. 5.  And is become a propitiation to satisfy God's justice, Rom. iii. 25, 26.  And so God shews mercy to his creatures, and yet the awe of his government is kept up, and a full demonstration of his righteousness is given to the world. This being done conveniently to God's honor, we must sue out our pardon with respect to both the covenants, both that which we have broken, the law of nature, and that which is made in Christ, and is to be accepted by us, as our sure refuge.

(1).  We must have a broken-hearted sense of sin, and of the curse due to the first covenant, for it is the disease that brings us to the physician, the curse drives us to the promise and the tribunal of justice to the throne of grace, it is the avenger of blood at our heels, that causes us to fly to our proper city of refuge.  So that if you extenuate sin, you hold to the first covenant and had rather plead innocent than guilty.  No, if you would have favor you must confess your sins.  1 John i. 9. If we confess our sins, he is faithful and just to forgive us our sins, and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness.  You must confess your sins, and with that remorse, that will become offences done to so great a God.  And there must not only be a sense of sin, but of the curse and merit of sin also.  For we must not only accuse, but judge ourselves, that God may not judge and condemn us, 1 Cor. xi. 31.  Self-accusing respects sin, and is acted in confession, self-judging respects the curse or punishment, that is due to us for sin, and it is a person's pronouncing upon himself according to the tenor of the law, acknowledging his guilt and this with brokenness of heart before God, when he hath involved himself in God's eternal displeasure.  The law is God's prison and no offenders can get out of it till they have God's leave and from him they have none, till they are sensible of the justice of that first dispensation, confess their sins with brokenness of heart and that it may be just with God to condemn them forever.

(2).  We must thankfully accept the Lord's grace that offers pardon to us.  For since God is pleased to try us a second time, and set us up with a new stock of grace, and that brought about in such a wonderful way, that he may recover the lost creation to himself, surely if we shall despise our remedy, after we have rendered ourselves incapable of our duty, no condemnation is bad enough for us, John. iii. 18, 19.  Therefore, we should admire the mercy of God in Christ and have such a deep sense of it, that it may check our sinful self-love, which hath been our bane and ruin.  And since God shewed himself willing to be reconciled, we must depend upon the merit, sacrifice, and intercession of Christ and be encouraged by his gracious promise and covenant, to come with boldness, that we may find grace and mercy to help in a time of need, Heb. Iv. 16.  Thus you see the need we have to look after this pardon of sin.

11.         I must shew our misery without this.  And this will be best done by considering the notions in the text.  Here is filth to be covered, a burden, of which we must be eased and a debt that must be cancelled and unless this be done, what a miserable condition are we in

  What a heavy burden is sin, where it is not pardoned  Carnal men feel it not for the present, but how soon may they feel it  Two sorts of consciences feel the burden of sin, a tender conscience and a wounded conscience.  It is grievous to a tender heart that values the love of God, to lie under the guilt of sin, Ps. Xxxviii. 4.  Mine iniquities are gone over mine head, as a burden too heavy for me.  Broken bones are sensible of the least weight and certainly a broken heart cannot make light of sin.  What kind of hearts are those that sin securely without remorse, and are never troubled.  Go to wounded consciences and ask of them what sin is, Prov. Xviii. 14.  A wounded spirit who can bear  As long as the evil lies without us, it is tolerable, the natural courage of a man may bear up under it, but when the spirit itself is wounded, with the sense of sin, who can bear it  If a spark of God's wrath light upon the conscience, how soon do men become a burden to themselves   Some in such a case have chosen strangling rather than life.  Ask Cain, ask Judas, what it is to feel the burden of sin.  Sinners are all their lifetime subject to this bondage.  It is not always felt, but soon awakened.  It may be done by a pressing exhortation at a sermon, it may be done by some notable misery that befall us, it may be done by a scandalous sin, it may be done by a grievous sickness or worldly disappointment.  Al these things and many more may easily revive it in us.  Therefore do but consider what it is to be eased of this burden, oh, the blessedness of it. It is filth to be covered, which renders us odious in the sight of God.  It is said, Prov. Xiii. 5.  that a sinner is loathsome. To whom  To God.  Certainly he is of purer eyes than to behold iniquity.  To good men, the wicked is an abomination to the righteous, the new nature hath an aversion to sin.  Lot's righteous soul was vexed from day to day with the conversation of the wicked. Nay, the sinner is loathsome to himself.  They will not come to the light, lest their deeds should be reproved.  And we are shy of God's presence, we are sensible we have something that makes us offensive to him and we hang off from him when we have sinned against him.  Oh!  What a mercy is it then to have this filth covered, that we may not be ashamed to look God in the face and may come with a holy boldness into the preference of the blessed God!  Oh! the blessedness of the man, whose sin is covered! It is a debt that binds the soul to everlasting punishment.  If it be not pardoned, the judge will give us over to the jailor and the jailor cast us into prison, till we have paid the uttermost farthing, Luke xii. 59.  Certainly, it is a strange security that possesses the hearts of men, when we are obliged to suffer the vengeance of the eternal God, and yet can sleep quietly.  Body and soul will be taken away in execution.  The day of payment is set and may come much sooner than you think for.  You must get a discharge or else you are undone forever.  Now put altogether, certainly if you have ever been in bondage, if you have felt the sting of death, and curse of the law or been scorched by the wrath of God, or knew the horror of those upon whom God hath exacted this debt in hell, you would be more affected with this wonderful grace.  Oh!  the blessedness of the man, to whom the Lord imputes not his transgressions.

111.  I am to shew, the consequent benefits.  I will name three.

1.        It restores the creature to God and puts us again in a capacity to serve and please and glorify God.  Psal. Cxxx. 4.  There is forgiveness with thee, that thou mayest be feared.  Forgiveness invites us to return to God, obliges us to return to God and encourages us to live in a state of holy state of holy friendship with God, pleasing and serving him in righteousness and holiness all our days.  Certainly, it invites us to return to God.  Man stands aloof from a condemning God, but may be induced to submit to a pardoning God.  And it obliges us to return to God, to serve and love and please him, who will forgive so great a debt, and discharge us from all our sins, for she loved much, to whom much was forgiven.  And it encourages us to serve and please God.  Heb. Ix. 14.  How much more shall the blood of Christ cleanse your consciences from dead works, that ye may serve the living God  And that in a suitable manner that ye may serve God in a lively cheerful manner.  A poor creature bound to his law, and conscious of his own disobedience and obnoxious to wrath and punishment is mightily clogged and drives on heavily.  But when the conscience is purged from dead works, we serve the living God in a lively manner, this begets a holy cheerfulness in the soul and we are freed from that bondage, that otherwise would clog us in our duty.

2.        It says the foundation for solid comfort and peace.  Till sin be pardoned, you have no true comfort because the justice of the supreme governor of the world will still be dreadful to us, whose laws we have broken, whose wrath we have deserved and whom we still apprehend as offended with us.  We may lust the soul asleep with carnal delights, but the virtue of that opium will soon be spent.  All those joys are but stolen waters and bread eaten in secret, a poor peace that dares not come to the light, that is soon disturbed by a few serious thoughts of God and the world to come.  But when once sin is pardoned, then you have true joy.  Then misery is plucked up by the roots.  Comfort ye, comfort ye my people.  Why  Her iniquity is forgiven, Isa. Xi. 1, 2.  And we joy in God, (Rom. v. 11) as those that have received the atonement. The Lord Jesus hath made the atonement and when we have received it, then we joy in God, then there is matter for abundant delight, when the love of God is shed abroad in our hearts by the Holy Ghost given unto us.

3.        When we are pardoned, then we are capable of eternal happiness.  Pardon of sin removes the impediment, takes the make-bate out of the way, removes that which hinders our entrance into heaven.  Till we are pardoned, there can be no entrance into heaven.  Now this removes the incapacity.  I observe remission of sins is put for all the privilege part, as repentance for the duties.  Acts v. 31.  Him hath God exalted to give repentance and remission of sins.  These are the two initial benefits, repentance, as the foundation of the new life, and remission of sins, as the foundation of all our future mercies.  The two chief blessings offered in the New Covenant are pardon and life, reconciliation with God and the everlasting fruition of him in glory and the one makes way for the other.  Acts xxvi. 28.  To open their eyes, and to turn them from Satan to God, that they may receive remission of sins, and an inheritance among the saints.

And thus you see the blessedness of the man, whose transgression is forgiven, whose filth is covered and unto who the Lord will not impute his sin.

To apply this, 1.  Let us bless God for the Christian Religion, where this privilege is discovered to us all in all its glory, and that upon very commodious terms, fit to gain the heart of man.  Mic. Vii. 18.  Who is a God like unto thee among all the Gods pardoning the transgressions of thine heritage  The business of religion is to provide sufficiently for two things, which have much troubled the considering part of the world, a suitable happiness for mankind and suitable means for the expiation of sin.  Happiness is our great desire, and sin is our great burden.  Now these are fully discovered to us by the Christian faith.  The last is that we are upon, the way how the grand scruple of the world may be satisfied, and their guilty fears appeased.  And that we may see the excellency of the Christian religion above all religions in the world, it offers pardon upon such terms as are most commodious to the honor of God and most satisfactory to our souls, that is upon the account of Christ's satisfaction, and our repentance, without which our case is not compassionable.  The first I here insist on.

The heathens were mightily perplexed about the way, how God could dispense with the honor of his justice in the pardon of sin.  That man is God's creature and therefore his subject that he hath exceedingly failed in his subjection to him and is therefore obnoxious to God's vengeance, are truths evident in the light of nature.  The heathens had some convictions of this, and saw a need that God should be propitiated by some sacrifices of expiation and the nearer they lived to the original of this institution, the more pressing were their apprehensions thereof. But in all their cruel superstitions there was no rest of soul, they knew not the true God, nor the proper ransom, nor had any sure way to convey pardon to them, but were still set of the distraction of their own thoughts, and could not make God merciful without some diminution of his justice, nor make him just without some diminution of his mercy.  Somewhat they conceived of the goodness of God by his continuing benefits, but yet they could not reconcile it to his justice, or will to punish sinners.  And all their apprehensions of the pardon of sin were but probabilities and what was wrought to procure merit was ridiculous or else barbarous and unnatural, as giving their first born for the sin of their soul, Mic. Vi. 7.  And all those notions they had about this apprehended expiation were too weak to change the heart or life of man.

Come we now to the Jews.  They had many sacrifices of God's own institution, but such as did not make the comers thereunto perfect, as pertaining to the conscience, Heb. Ix 9.  And the ransom that was to be given to provoked justice was known but to a few.  They saw much of the patience and forbearance of God, but little of the righteousness of God and the great propitiation, till God set forth Jesus Christ to be a propitiation, through faith in his blood, to declare his righteousness for the remission of sins that are past.  Their ordinances and sacrifices were rather a bond acknowledging the debt, or personifying the ransom that was to be paid and their sacrifices did rather breed bondage, and their ordinances were called, handwriting of ordinances that were against them.  The redemption of souls was then spoken of, as a great mystery but sparingly revealed.  Eternal redemption by Christ was a hard saying in those days, only they knew no mere man could do it.  And in more early times, in Job's he was an interpreter, one of a thousand, that could bring this message to a distressed sinner, that God had found out a ransom. This atonement then that lies at the bottom of a pardon of sin was a rare thing in those days.  Let us bless God for the clear and open discovery of this truth and free offer of grace by Jesus Christ.

The second use is to quicken us to put in for a share in this blessed privilege.  Christians, a man that flows in wealth and honor, till he be pardoned is not a happy man.   A man that lives afflicted and contemned if he be a pardoned sinner; Oh! the blessedness of that man!   They are not happy that have a benumbed conscience, but they have a conscience settled in the grace of God, through Jesus Christ our Lord and bottom upon his holy covenant and that peace and grace he offers to us, this is the happy man.

Let me intreat you, if this be such a blessed thing, to make it your daily, your earnest your hearty prayer to God, that your sins may be pardoned, Matt. Vi. 12.  Our Lord hath taught us to pray, every day forgive us our trespasses today in one of the petitions, is common to all that that follow, as we beg daily bread, we must beg daily pardon, daily grace, against temptations.  Under the law they had a lamb every morning and every evening offered to God for a daily sacrifice, Numb. xxviii. 4, 5, 6.  We are all invited to look to the Lamb of God, that takes away the sins of the world.  Surely we have as much need as they, more cause than they because now all is openly made known unto us.  God came to Adam in the cool of the day, he would not let him sleep in his sins, before night came.  He comes and rouses his conscience, and then gives the promise of the seed of the woman that should bruise the serpent's head.  In reconciliation with God, let not the sun go down upon God's wrath, Eph. iv. 26.  A man should not sleep in his anger nor out of charity with man.  Surely, we should make our peace with God every day.  If a man under the law had contracted and uncleaniliness he was to wash his clothes before evening, that he might not lie a night in his uncleanness.  We should daily come to God with this request, Lord pardon our sins.

But what must those that are already adopted into God's family and taken into his grace and favor, daily pray for pardon of sin  Though upon our first faith we are indeed made children of God and heirs of eternal life, yet he that is clean need wash his feet.  We contract a great deal of pollution by walking up and down here and we must every day be cleaning our consciences before God and begging that we may be made partakers of this benefit.  The Lord may for our unthankfulness, our negligence our stupid security, revive the memory of old sins and make us look into the debt-book (that hath been cancelled) with horror, and possess the sins of our youth.  When we prove unthankful and careless and do not keep our watch, the Lord may suffer these things to return upon our consciences with great amazement, built raked out of his grace is more frightful than one risen from the dead.  But the worm of conscience is killed still by the application of the blood of Christ.

| Thomas Manton - Preface

Preface | Sermon I | Thomas Manton - Sermon 2

Sermon II | Thomas Manton - Sermon 3

Sermon III | Thomas Manton - Sermon 4

Sermon IV | |Thomas Manton - Sermon 5

Sermon V | Thomas Manton - Sermon 6

Sermon VI | Thomas Manton - Sermon 7

Sermon VII |