tercede with the Father for a comforter. Thus you see the first thing. The Spirit as a comforter hath his office from the Gospel-covenant, and could never have spoken a word of comfort, but upon this Gospel account. Hence. it is, when the Father sends him as a comforter, he sends him in Christ's name, who hath made up the breach betwixt him and sinners, John xiv. 26. that is, for his sake, and at his entreaty; yea when the Spirit doth comfort, what is it he saith? the joyful news he brings is Gospelintelligence: "he shall not speak of himself, but whatsoever he shall hear, he shall speak;" John xvi. 13, 14. the meaning is, when he comes to teach, he shall not bring new light different from what shines in the Gospel, but what truth Christ preached in the Gospel that he shall teach; when he comforts, the ingredients which his soulreviving cordials shall be made of are what grow in the Gospel-garden, as verse 14. "He shall glorify me, for he shall receive of mine, and shew it to you," that is my death, my merit, my resurrection, my ascension and intercession, my promises purchased and sealed with my blood; these he shall take and make report of them to you, for your eternal joy and comfort; so that, if it had not been for these, the Spirit, who is Christ's messenger, would have wanted an errand of this comfortable nature to have brought unto poor sinners: yea instead of a comforter, he would have been an accuser and a tormentor; he that now bears witness with our spirits for our reconciliation, adoption, and salvation, would have joined in a sad testimony with our guilty consciences against us, for our damnation and destruction..

Secondly, I am to shew the admirable fitness of the Spirit for this comforting office, which the Gospel reveals him to have for the pacifying and satisfying the consciences of poor disconsolate sinners. You have heard the Gospel affords an argument sufficient to satisfy the most troubled conscience in the world: to wit, the full satisfaction which Christ by his precious blood hath made to God for sinners. But if poor man had been left to improve this as well as he could for his comfort, he might have lien long enough roaring in the horror of his scorched conscience without ease, for want of one to drop this

cooling healing balm into it. But as both the wisdom and love of God appeared in providing an able Saviour to purchase eternal redemption for us; so also a mete comforter, as able to apply this purchased redemption to us; his consolations are called "strong consolations.' Christ shewed his strength, when he unhinged the gates of the grave, and made his way out of that dark prison by his glorious resurrection. By this "he was declared to be the Son of God with power," as the Apostle hath it. Rom. i. 4. And truly, it requires no less power to break open the dungeon, wherein the guilty conscience lies shut up, as one free among the dead in his own despairing thoughts; for if you observe it well, the same stone and seal are upon the sinner's conscience to keep him down from a resurrection to comfort as was on Christ's grave, to keep him down from a resurrection to life. What was the heaviest stone, the strongest seal, upon dead Jesus to keep him from rising? not the stone man rolled upon him, not the seal the Jews thought to fasten the grave with; but the curse of the Law for sin, which divine justice rolled upon him; this prest the heaviest upon Christ without all compare. The angel himself that rolled away the stone, could not have removed the curse. Now, look in upon the distressed conscience's grave, where its own guilt hath laid it; what is that? no other than the lowest Hell in its fears and present dismal apprehensions. I am damned, I am for ever an undone creature, is the language such a one rings continually in his own ears. But enquire what is it that keeps him down in this grave, what hinders but the poor wretch may be helped out of this pit of horror, and receive some comfort? Alas! he will tell you, that it is but in vain to comfort him, this ointment is all wasted to no purpose, which you pour upon his head. No: he is an undone sinner; the curse of God sticks like a dagger in his heart; the wrath of God lies like a mountain of lead on his conscience; except you can put your hand into his bosom, and pluck out the one, or by main force roll off the other, it is impossible that he should be raised to any peace or comfort in his miserable conscience. You see it is the same grave-stone on both. But, for thy eter

nal comfort know, poor heart, that art thus fast laid under the sense of the curse due to thy sins: as the weight is the same that keeps thee from comfort, which lay on Christ to keep him from life; so the same power and strength is sent to raise thee to comfort that enabled Christ to rise to life. That Spirit who kept the Lord Jesus from seeing corruption in the grave, that restrained death, when it had Christ in its very mouth, so as it could no more feed on him than the whale could digest Jonah in her belly, yea that quickened his dead body, and raised him with honour, not only to life, but immortality also, is he that Christ sends for his messenger to come and satisfy the trembling consciences of his poor children on earth concerning his love, yea his Father's love to them for his sake. This blessed Spirit hath all the properties of a comforter; "he is so pure and holy, he cannot deceive;" called therefore the Spirit of truth," John xiv. If he tell thee thy sins are pardoned, thou mayest believe him, he will not flatter; if it were not so, he would have brought another message to thee: for he can chide and reprove as well as comfort, convince of sin as well as of righteousness. He is so wise and omniscient that he cannot be deceived. Never did the Spirit of God knock at the wrong door, and deliver his letters into a wrong hand, as a man may do, especially where persons are very like. The Spirit exactly knows the heart of God to the creature, with all his counsels and purposes concerning him: "the Spirit searcheth all things, the deep things of God." 1 Cor. ii. 11. And what are those deep things of God the Apostle means, but the counsels of love, which lie deep in his heart, till the Spirit draws them forth and acquaints the creature with them? as appears by verse 9. And also he knows the whole frame of man's heart; it were strange, if he that made the cabinet should not know every secret box in it. Some few men have compassed that we call the greater world; but the little world of man, as we call him, never did any creature encircle with his knowledge, no not the devil himself, who hath made it his work so many thousands of years to make a full discovery of it. But the Spirit of God doth know him, intus est in cute

(as we say) thoroughly; and knowing both these, he cannot be deceived.

In a word, he is so irresistible, that none can hinder the efficacy of his comforts. The pardon brought by Nathan to David did not lie so close as the holy man desired; and therefore away goes he to beg comfort of the Comforter, Psalm li. where you find him on his knees praying hard to have his lost joy restored, and his trembling heart established by the free Spirit of God. Though thou canst baffle man, and through thy own melancholy fancy, and the sophistry of Satan, who coins distinctions for thee, evade the arguments that Christians and ministers bring for thy comfort, yet when the Spirit comes himself, all disputes end: the devil cannot chop logic with him. No: then the lying spirit vanisheth, and our own fears too, as the darkness flees before the sun; so sweetly and powerfully doth the comforting Spirit overrun the heart with a flood of joy, that the soul can no more see her sins in the guilt of them, than Noah could the mole-hills when the whole earth was under water.

CHAP. IX.

A REPROOF TO THREE SORTS OF PERSONS THAT OFFEND AGAINST THIS PEACE WHICH THE GOSPEL BRINGS.

USE 1. First, Is peace of conscience the blessing of the Gospel? This reproves three sorts of persons.

SECT. I.

First, The Papists, who interpretatively deny this, in denying that any person can know in this life, unless by an extraordinary revelation, that he is a child of God, and one that shall be saved; which, if true, would stave all to pieces the vessel in which the Christian's joy and inward peace is kept. Whence comes the peace we have with our own consciences, but from the knowledge we

have of our peace with God?" Being justified by faith, we have peace with God, by whom we have access by faith into this grace wherein we stand, and rejoice in hope of the glory of God." Rom. v. 1. If the poor soul be left at uncertainties here, and the Gospel cannot resolve it what its state is, for Hell or Heaven, farewel to all in

ward peace; the poor Christian then may say of himself,

with a trembling heart, what St. John saith in another case of him that hateth his brother, 1 John ii. 11. "He walketh in darkness, and knoweth not whither he goeth." Truly then it might rather be called the Gospel of fears and doubts than the Gospel of peace. But is that the top of the blessing the Gospel brings to saints, which was almost the bottom of the curse that the law denounced against sinners? Deut. xxviii. 66. that “their life should hang in doubt before them, and they should fear day and night, and should have no assurance of life." Bold men, that dare so wretchedly disfigure the sweet face of the Gospel; making Christ in his precious promises speak as doubtfully to his saints as the devil did in his oracles to his devotees. Because their hypocrisy makes them justly question their own salvation, and will not suffer them to apply the comfort of the promises to themselves, must they therefore seal up these wells of salvation from those that are sincere, and then lay the blame on the Gospel, which is due only to their own wickedness? But there is a mystery of iniquity which hath at last been found to be at the root of this uncomfortable doctrine of theirs: they are a little akin to Judas, who was a thief, and carried the bag. These have a bag too, into which they put more gold and silver, that this doctrine brings them in, than ever Judas had in his; though the doctrine of Gospel-grace to poor sinners would bring more peace to others' consciences, might it be seen in its naked glory among them, yet the superstitious fear which they keep ignorant souls in, brings more money to their purses; and this lies so near the heart of their religion, that, Gospel, Christ, Heaven, and all, must bow unto it.