fin of nature, with the hardness of the heart, and univerfal depravity of the affections which flow from it; and from a view of the numerous fins of practice, with their special aggravations. This is the grief, this the diftrefs of a repenting finner. It is neceffary from the nature of a true repentance, that it must have respect both to the fin of nature and practice; though both of these are not at all times actually in the mind, and particularly thought of, and mourned for by the repenting finner.-The language of a true repentance is fuch as that; I acknowledge my tranfgreffions, and my fin is ever before me. Mine iniquities are gone over mine head, as an heavy burden, they are too heavy for me. Deliver me from all my tranfgreffions. Let not my fins have dominion over me. Innumerable evils have compaffed me about, mine iniquities have taken hold upon me, fo that I am not able to look up; they are more than the hairs of mine head; therefore my heart faileth me. Be pleafed, O Lord, to deliver me: 0 Lord, make hafte to help me.-As the true penitent longs for more and more victory over his corruptions, fo is he most watchful, prayerful, and in earneft to mortify his lufts, and to cut off all fupplies of fin. He mourns for all, he hates all his lufts; and is willing to spare none, no not fo much as a right hand, or a right eye. As there is nothing fo grievous to him as fin, fo there is nothing which he fo earnestly defires and purfues as a nearer approach to that bleffed ftate where nothing can enter which defileth, or worketh abomination.

Here you fee an apparent difference between being ftruck with fear, reftrained by terror, and driven from a courfe of finning by the lathes of an awakened confcience; between this (I fay) and loathing ourselves in our own fight, for all our iniquities and abominations, with a groaning after

grace

grace and ftrength to conquer and mortify our corruptions, and be free from the empire of fin.That is merely the fruit of felf-love, which prompts the foul to fly from danger. This is the exercise of a vital principle, which feparates the foul from fin, and engages the whole man in a continued oppofition against it.

2. A legal repentance flows from unbelief; but an evangelical repentance is always the fruit and confequence of a faving faith. I have fhewn you already, that a legal repentance is effected by fearful apprehenfions of hell and damnation. And whence is this amazing and distracting fear and terror?-Has not the gofpel provided a glorious relief for such distreffes, and opened a blessed door of hope for the greatest finners? Is not pardon and falvation freely offered to all that will accept a bleffed Saviour, and his faving benefits? Is not the blood of Chrift fufficient to cleanfe from all fins, however circumftanced, and however aggravated they may be? Why then do not they cheerfully fly for refuge to this hope fet before them?-Alas, they can fee no fafety in it! The law of God challenges their obedience, and condemns their difobedience. Confcience joins in, both with the precept and sentence of the law; and thence their only refuge is refolutions, reformations, duties, penance, or fome fuch rigorous methods to pacify God's juftice, to quiet their confciences, and to lay a foundation of future hope.-The defect of their endeavours and attainments creates new terrors: Their terrors excite new endeavours: And thus they go on without attaining the law of righteoufnefs, because they seek it not of faith, but as it were by the works of the law. They may, it is true, have some respect to Chrift in this their legal progrefs. They may hope, that God will accept them

for

for Christ's fake. They may use his name in their prayers for pardon, while they dare not depend upon the merits of his blood for the remiffion of their fins, and a freedom from condemnation. And what is all this, but a fecret hope, that the redemption of Christ will add fuch merit to their frights and fears, reformations and duties, as to make them effectual to atone for their fins, and purchase the favour of God?-So that all their penitential fhews and appearances are nothing but the workings of unbelief.

Let us now take a view of an evangelical repentance, and we fhall find the characters of it di rectly repugnant to what has been confidered. This must always be the confequence of a faving faith, and can never go before it. The finner must have a realizing apprehenfion of the purity and holiness of the divine nature, before he can loathe and hate his fins, on the account of their contrariety to God. He muft have a feeling fenfe, that there is pardoning mercy with God for finners, before he can, with courage and fincerity, apply for forgiveness to a juft and holy God.-He must have a believing discovery of the way in which God is acceffible by finners, before he can have accefs with boldnefs to the throne of grace. He muft fee and feel, that there is fafety in venturing a guilty foul in the hands of Chrift, and nowhere elfe, before he can look to his blood for cleanfing from guilt, and to his grace and ftrength for victory over his corruptions. He must be united to Chrift as a branch to the vine, before he can bring forth fruit meet for repentance.Without this, he may be driven into defponding fears, and to legal at. tempts for fafety; but he cannot fly for refuge, to lay hold on the hope fet before him. The true peni. tent, therefore, approaches God's prefence with a

M.

deep

deep impreffion of his guilt and unworthinefs, and of his juft defert of an eternal rejection from God: But then he comes before a mercy-feat.-Though he is forced to acknowledge, that if God fhould mark iniquity, he could not ftand before him; he yet remembers, that with God there is forgiveness, that he may be feared; and that with him there is plenteous redemption.-The true penitent looks to the blood of Chrift, as what alone can cleanse away his numerous and aggravated fins; and from thence he takes encouragement to mourn out the Pfalmift's language, Wafh me thoroughly from mine iniquity, and cleanfe me from my fin: Purge me with hyffop, and I fhall be clean; wash me, and I fhall be whiter than fnow. This is the profpect which both encourages and invigorates his cries for mercy, and embitters his fins to him, and which makes him loathe them all, and long for deliverance from them all." Is "God infinitely merciful and ready to forgive (fays "the penitent foul), and have I been fo bafely ungrateful, as to fin against fuch astonishing good"nefs, to affront and abuse such mercy and love! "Is fin fo hateful to God, that he has fo feverely "punished it in the perfon of his own dear Son, "how vile, how polluted and abominable muft İ "then appear, in the eyes of his holiness and ju"ftice, that am nothing but defilement and guilt ; "from the crown of my head to the foles of my "feet, nothing but wounds and bruifes and putri"fying fores! Has the bleffed Saviour fuffered "his Father's wrath for my fins! Have they "nailed him to the cross, and brought him under "the agonies of an accurfed death; and fhall I be "ever reconciled, to my lufts any more, and go on "to crucify the Son of God afresh!-Is there par"doning mercy to be had, and fhall I flight the "blood of Chrift, fet light by the gracious offer,

"

"and

"and perish in fight of a Saviour!-May I obtain "ftrength from the Lord Jefus Chrift, for victory "and dominion over my corruptions; and fhall I "not both refolve in his ftrength against them, and "lie at his foot, that the late of the fpirit of life in "Chrift Jefus, may make me free from the law of fin "and death!-Have I difhonoured God fo much "already, loaded my precious Saviour with fo ma66 ny horrible indignities, and brought fuch a weight "of guilt upon myself; and is it not now high "time to bid an utter defiance to my moft darling "lufts, the greatest enemies to God and my own "foul?"Such as this is the language of a gospelrepentance. And though there may be a fincere repentance, without full evidence of an interest in Christ, there can be none without a believing view of the infinite merit of his blood, and the fafety of bringing a guilty foul to that fountain for pardon and cleanfing, as I will endeavour to fhew you more particularly.

You cannot but fee the great diftinction, and even contrariety, between a guilty flight of foul from God, like Adam after his fall, and an humbling, felf-condemning flight to God's pardoning mercy, like the prodigal when returning to his father's houfe :-Between legal, flavish, self-righteous endeavours to atone for our fins, and make our peace with God; and repairing only to the blood of Chrift for cleansing from all our fins :-Between mourning for our guilt and danger, and mourning for our fins as they are against God, against a precious Saviour, against infinite mercy and love:And, in a word, between attempting a new life by the strength of our own refolutions and endeavours, and looking only to the mercy of our Lord Jefus Chrift for grace and ftrength, as well as pardon and freedom from condemnation.