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fins; repent, that your fins may be blotted out; that is, upon this condition that ye repent of your fins, they fhall be forgiven, and not otherwife. Can there be any plainer condition in the world, than this in thofe words of our faviour? If ye forgive men their trefpaffes, your heavenly father will also forgive your trefpaffes; but if ye forgive not men their trefpaffes, -neither will your heavenly Father forgive your trefpaffes.

This is fo far from being any prejudice to the freenefs of God's grace, who is infinitely gracious in offering fuch great bleffings to us upon any condition that we can perform; that it were one of the abfurdeft things in the world to imagine that God fhould grant to men forgiveness of fins, and eternal life, let them behave themselves as they will.

IV. The laft thing I propofed for the explaining of this doctrine of the promifes of God, was to confider when men may be faid to have a right to these promises, fo as to be able upon good grounds to apply them to themselves: And the answer to this is very plain and eafy: namely, when they find the conditions of these promises in themselves; and not till then.

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When a man hath truly repented of his fins, fo as to forfake them, and lead a new life; and when he does from his heart forgive those who have offended him, and hath laid down all animofity against them, and thoughts of revenge; then hath he a right to the promise of pardon and forgivenefs, and may apply to himfelf in particular what the fcripture faith in general, that God will blot out all his trangreffions, and remember his iniquities no more. man doth conftantly and earnestly implore the af fiftance of God's Holy Spirit, and is ready to yield to the motions of it, and does faithfully make ufe of that strength and affiftance which God affords him, then he may expect the continuance of his grace, and further degrees of it. When a man makes it the conftant and fincere endeavour of his life, to please God, and to walk in all the ordinances and commandments of the Lord blameless, and is effectu

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ally taught by the grace of God to deny ungodli nefs and worldly lufts, and to live foberly, and righteously, and godly in this prefent world, then he may with comfort and joy wait for the blessed hope, and the glorious appearance of the great God, and our Saviour Jefus Chrift; then he may with confidence depend upon God, in fure and certain hope of that eternal life, which God, that cannot lie, hath promifed. When he can fay with St. Paul, I have fought a good fight, I have finished my course, I have kept the faith, then he may likewife triumph as he did, henceforth there is laid up for me a crown of righteoufness, which God the righteous judge shall give me in that day.

Upon these terms, and in thefe cafes, men may upon good grounds apply to themfelves thefe exceeding great and precious promifes of the gofpel; and fo far as any man is doubtful and uncertain of the performance of the conditions which the gofpel requires, fo far he must neceffarily question his right and title to the bleffings promifed. And if any man think this doctrine too uncomfortable, and be willing to reject it upon this account, I fhall only fay this, that men may cheat themselves, if they pleafe, but most certainly they will never find any true and folid comfort in any other. This is a plain and fenfible account of a man's confidence and good hopes in the promifes of God; but for a man to apply any promife to himself, before he finds the condition in himself, is not faith, but either fancy or prefumption.

And therefore it is a very prepofterous courfe which many take, to advife and exhort men, with fo much earneftnefs, to apply the promises of God to themfelves, and to tell them that they are guilty of great unbelief in not doing it. That which is proper to exhort men to, is to endeavour to perform the condition upon which God hath promifed any bleffing to us; and when men find the condition in themselves, they will without any great perfuafion take comfort from the promife, and apply it to themfelves; but till they difcern the condition in themselves, it is impoffible for a man that understands himself, to apVOL. V.

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ply the promise to himself; for till the condition be performed, he hath no more right to the promise, than if fuch a promife had never been made. And it is fo far from being a fin in fuch a man, to doubt of the benefit of fuch a promife, that it is his duty to do fo; and no man that understands himself and the promises of God, can poffibly do otherwife.

Therefore it is a vain and groundless trouble which perplexeth many people, that they cannot apply the promifes of God to themfelves; whereas the true ground of their trouble fhould be this, that they have not been careful to perform the condition of those promises which they would apply to themselves; the other is an endless trouble; let them but look to the condition, and the promise will apply itself. I fpeak all this on purpose to free men from thofe perplexities wherewith many have entangled themfelves, by falfe apprehenfions of the promifes of God, either as if they were not made to us upon certain conditions to be performed by us, or as if any man could comfortably apply them to himfelf, before he hath performed thofe conditions upon which God hath made fuch promifes. For if men will believe that which is not true, or expect things upon fuch terms as they are not to be had, they may trouble themselves eternally, and all the world cannot help it.

I have now done with the first thing I propounded to fpeak to, namely, the promises which are here fpoken of. The fecond thing (viz.) what influence these promises ought to have upon us, that by them we may be made partakers of the divine nature, I fhall referve to another opportunity.

SER

SERMON XCVIII.

The nature and influence of the promises of the gospel.

2 PETER I. 4.

Whereby are given unto us exceeding great and precious promifes; that by thefe ye might be partakers of the divine nature.

I

The fecond fermon on this text.

Made entrance into thefe words the laft day, in the handling whereof I proposed to do these two things:

Firft, To confider the promises here fpoken of; Whereby are given unto us exceeding great and precious promises.

Secondly, The influence which thefe promifes ought to have upon us; That by thefe ye might be partakers of a divine nature.

The first of these I have done with, and proceed now to the

Second, viz. The influence which thefe promifes ought to have upon us; Whereby are given unto us exceeding great and precious promises; that by these ye might be partakers of a divine nature. Not that we can partake of the effence and nature of God, as fome have blafphemously affirmed, pretending, in their canting and fenfelefs language, to be godded with God, and chrifted with Chrift. In this fenfe it is impoffible for us to partake of the divine nature; for this would be for men to become gods, and to be advanced to the ftate and perfection of the Deity. But the word ours doth frequently in fcripture fignify a temper and difpofition; and to be partakers of a divine nature, is to be of a divine temper and difpofition, to have our corrupt natures rectified and

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purged

purged from all finful lufts and irregular paffions, and from all vicious and corrupt affections; and therefore it follows in the text, having escaped the corruption that is in the world through luft; and befides this, giving all diligence, add to your faith virtue, and to virtue knowledge, and to knowledge temperance, and to temperance patience, and to patience godliness, and to godliness brotherly kindness, and to brotherly kindness charity. So that we are made partakers of a divine nature, as the Apoftle here explains it, thefe two ways; by cleanfing ourselves from the lufts of the flesh, which the Apoftle here calls the corruption or defilement which is in the world through luft; and by a diligent endeavour after all Chriftian graces and virtues, faith and temperance, and patience, a fincere love of the brethren, and an univerfal charity and good-will towards all men.

And that this is the proper influence and efficacy of the great promifes of the gospel upon the hearts. and lives of men, the Apoftle St. Paul fully declares to us, 2 Cor. vii. 1. Having therefore these promises, dearly beloved, let us cleanse ourselves from all filthiness of the flesh and fpirit; that is, from the lufts of the flesh, and of uncleannefs, and from all evil and corrupt affections of the mind, fuch as wrath, envy, malice, hatred, ftrife, revenge, cruelty, pride, and the like, perfecting holiness in the fear of God; that is, continually afpiring ftill more and more after further degrees of holiness, and virtue and goodnefs, which are the great perfections of the divine nature. And thus by a conftant and fincere endeavour to cleanse ourselves from all impurity of flesh. and fpirit, and by practifing all the virtues of a good life, we fhall by degrees raife and advance ourfelves. to a god-like temper and difpofition, imitating in all our actions the goodnefs, and mercy, and patience, and truth, and faithfulness of God, and all those other perfections of the divine nature, which are comprehended under the term of holiness. This is that which the Apostle here calls partaking of a divine nature; or, as our bleffed Saviour expreffeth it, to

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