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act of understanding what God is, how good, that he is our center, and we receive him by love and good-will, and account ourselves accomplished by

him.

3. God in this motion of reconciliation accommodates himself to human principles; which are two, intelligence and freedom. By these we stand head and fhoulders higher than the whole creation below us : by these we bear the image of God and walk in an equipage with the angels. And to thefe principles God applies himself. This you have in the words.

God calls upon us to be reconciled in the name of Chrift, and his ambaffadors speak in his name: fo it begins on God's part: and this declares his great goodness to us.

There must be a concurrence on our part: be ye reconciled to God. For it is a vain thing to perfuade a man to that which is not at all in his power: be ye reconciled to God. This calls for an act from us, for the consent of our minds for that which we have. This is plain in the words. For there were no cause of such a call, if there were not an ability in us to do something on our part.

God doth in this motion accommodate himself to human principles. Here is addrefs made to a person that hath intelligence and understanding; and alfo liberty and freedom: be ye reconciled to God. He gives us that fupply of grace that is neceffary. God moves gently and fairly: but he doth not mean, neither will he move with reasonable creatures forcibly; he will never use violence. For it is not poffible to be reconciled to God without our con

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fent, no more than for a perfon to enter into matrimony, faying no, or faying nothing. There cannot be an act of faith, or repentance without us. Thus God is the active party, and moves fuitable to our principles. But here is an expectation of what is to be done on our part. You will fay, this is ftrange; is there any act of ours that is fo confiderable? It is the reason of the cafe: the contrary is as if you should tell us of dry water, or cold fire; things that are repugnant and contradictory. It is faid, awake thou that fleepest, and arife from the dead, and Chrift fhall give thee light. Eph. v. 14. God doth awake; but we are thofe that are awakened doth import God's precedency, and our concurrence. Again work out your falvation with fear and trembling for it is God which worketh in you both to will and to do of his good pleasure. Phil. ii. 12, 13. To will and to do, expreffes all; and yet we work out our own falvation with fear and trembling. First God doth awaken mens minds, and difpofe their wills, and then ftrengthens them with further affiftance, that they may not will in vain. Thus faith St. Auflin : a man would never move towards God, if God did not move him; but being once moved, we are to proceed.

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Now to give you some instances that God is the firft active party in the business of reconciliation.

1. And the first inftance to make it appear as matter of fair belief, that God is the leading party and most forward in bringing about the reconciliation of God and man, is from the confideration of the divine nature, which is goodness, infinite good

nefs.

nefs. God is as good as good can be, and will not fail in any act of goodness: he will do as much as goodnefs requires to be done, Now the effect of goodness is to communicate. We cannot conceive any inftance of goodness that is truly fo, that is wanting in God: and the natural effect of goodnefs is to be communicative.

2. The voluntary declaration that God hath made of his mind and will. And this we have abundantly in fcripture. Why will ye die, O houfe of Ifrael! Ezek. xviii. 31. And, what could I have done more for my vineyard that I have not done in it, Ifa. v. 4. And in the new teftament: God fo loved the world, that he gave his only begotten Son, that whosoever. believeth in him fhould not perish, but have everlasting life, John iii. 16. God is not willing that any should perish; but would have all men to be faved, and come to the knowledge of the truth, 1 Tim. ii. 4. I could produce many more scriptures concerning this matter, man's recovery and reconciliation to God.

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And this I further add; you need not fear, nay you do not do God right, unless you amplify and enlarge his fayings to the uttermost of your understanding in the words of his grace, there is more in God's understanding than our form of words can contain, or our imperfect apprehenfion can conceive. Therefore fear not to amplify and enlarge the words of God's grace, if you keep with. in the confines of the cafe that God fpeaks to. And God promises to compaffionate any compaffionable cafe. Not the impenitent and contumacious; but the penitent, and thofe that leave off to fin, and re

turn

turn to their duty, go to God for forgiveness in and through Chrift.

Now, that the declarations of God are infallibly true and certain, you have these three demonftrations.

1. God cannot lie. It is as neceflary that God be true, as that he be God: for if not true, he is not God. It is impoffible that God fhould lie, Tit. i. 2. faith the holy fcripture, and God that cannot lie. Heb. vi. 18.

2. To diffemble, proceeds from narrowness of fpirit: whosoever doth diffemble, is a person of a narrow and a bafe fpirit, hath nothing generous in him, and drives on a petty defign, and fome forry end. And these things are too low, too mean, and too fhallow, to have any place in God. He is too great, and too big, to drive on a petty defign. He is univerfal goodness.

3. No imaginable reafon can be given that God fhould deceive his creature. It is too unworthy to have any place in God, to triumph over mifery: these things are below him ; they are unworthy of him. It is loathfome and abominable, and fhews the emptiness of a person. Far be it from God to be fo idly bafe to be declaring, when he is not intending.

I will make this appear in three particulars, that God doth not deceive his creatures in the invitation that he makes by the promises of grace.

1. God hath no neceffity at all to flatter or to deceive. God is not in danger from all, or any of his creatures, that he fhould be put upon fuch a

thing, to keep them from rebellion. This is the cafe of fome princes; but it is not God's cafe. His felf-fufficiency and fovereignty puts him out of all fear; he is always cloathed with omnipotency. 2. God hath no interest against his creatures good: for God is not the lefs happy, nor fuffers any thing for the creatures being happy; no more than a parent is unhappy by his child's thriving and growing great, which is his own glory. I dare fay of God, that it is highly pleasing to him, to see his creatures thrive under him. If ye then, being evil, i. e. lefs good, know how to give good gifts unto your children; how much more fhall your heavenly father give the holy Spirit to them that ask him? Luke xi. 13. You that are evil; if you know how to give good things to your children, how much more will God give his holy fpirit to those that ask him? God there faith, it is as unnatural to him to deny his fpirit to any one that afks it, as for a parent to give a fcorpion for a fish, or a stone for bread.

3. Clearness and fairness pleases God beft. It was grievous to God, that there was a miscarriage in paradife and goodness could not reft till there was a remedy, and a declaration of it to mankind. For the gospel was preached by God's own mouth to them in paradife, in thefe words; The feed of the woman fhall break the serpent's head.

But, to close this matter in five particulars ; viz. to reconcile thefe things, the influence of God's grace in our converfion, with the freedom of man's mind, notwithstanding the impotency of our nature contracted by the fall.

1. Abandoned

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