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2. This spiritual and divine light lays the foundation for a new kind of belief of the gospel. A sight of the divine beauty and glory of the gospel-scheme, convinces and assures the heart that it is divine, and indeed from God, and not a cunningly devised fable. This is an evidence peculiar to the regenerate, and, of all others, it is unspeakably the most satisfactory.-(See this largely explained and proved in Mr. Edward's treatise on religious affecions, p. 182, 199.)

3. Regeneration, faith, repentance, and conversion, are, in their own nature, connected together, and so they are in this representation. In regeneration we receive this divine light.... this new spiritual sense of things. Our eyes are opened, and we are brought out of darkness into this marvellous light; and so come to have a right view of God....of ourselves....of Christ ....and of the gospel-way of salvation by free grace through him. This spiritual illumination lays the foundation for faith, repentance, and conversion: It discovers the grounds of faith, of repentance, and conversion; and we believe, we repent, and convert. Repentance towards God, and faith towards our Lord Jesus Christ, always go together....Acts xx. 21: and the gospel calls sinners to repent, and be converted, as well as to believe in Christ....Acts iii. 19. Those, therefore, who seem to have much light, and faith, and joy, but have no repentance, nor do turn to God with all their hearts, are deluded.

4. Spiritual light and true faith are always in proportion. A spiritual sense of God....of ourselves....of Christ, and of the gospel way of salvation by free grace through him, lays the foundation for faith; and faith naturally results therefrom-as has been observed, and as is evident from John vi. 45: and therefore, from the nature of the case, they must be in equal degree in the heart: And therefore, those who pretend to live by faith, when they are spiritually blind and dead, do but deceive themselves. Nor is what they plead from Isai. l. x. at all to the purpose: Who is among you that feareth the Lord...that obeyeth the voice of his servant...that walketh in darkness, and hath no light? Let him trust in the Lord, and stay upon his God.

Because, 1. The persons here spoken of were not spiritually blind and dead, but had a spiritual sense of God and divine things on their hearts; for they feared the Lord, and obeyed his voice; so that they lived in the exercise of grace, and walked in the ways of holiness, which, without spiritual light, had been impossible. And, 2. What they were in the dark about, was, how, or by what means, the children of Israel should ever be brought out of the Babylonish captivity, back again to Zion: which they knew God had promised, but they could see no way wherein it could be brought about. In this respect they walked in darkness, and could see no light, and therefore they are exhorted to put their trust in the Lord, whose wisdom, power, and faithfulness are infinite. This is evidently the meaning of the words, as is manifest from the scope and tenor of the prophet's discourse through all the ten preceding chapters, which was calculated for the support and comfort of the godly in the Babylonish captivity, by assuring them of a return.*— Nor is what is said about Abraham, that against hope he believed in hope....nor what is said by St. Paul-We walk by faith, and not by sight, any thing to their purpose; unless they suppose that Abraham and Paul, and the primitive christians in general, were as dead, and blind, and carnal, as themselves. The truth is, that this blind faith is the very thing which the Apostle fames calls a dead faith.

5. Evangelical humiliation and true faith are likewise always in proportion. Evangelical humiliation consists in a sense of our own sinfulness, vileness, odiousness, and ill-desert, and in a disposition, thence resulting, to lie down in the dust full of

The three first verses of the next chapter, (Isai. li. 1, 2, 3) do, I think, confirm the above interpretation of Isai. 1. 10-although, I doubt not, the prophet's discourse, through the abovesaid ten chapters, has a farther look to the Messiah's kingdom, and our redemption cut of mystical Babylon: But let the words be considered in either view, or only considered in themselves absolutely, it is plain they never were designed to comfort stony-ground hearers, when their religion is all worn out, and they become dead, blind, and carnal, and so full of doubts and fears: Nor do they mean to embolden such " firmly to believe they are in a good state, "though ever so much in the dark, i. e. though they see no grace in their "hearts, nor signs of any:" For the words are directed only to those who fear the Lord, and obey the voice of bis servant.

self-loathing and self-abhorrence, abased before the Lord, really accounting ourselves infinitely too bad ever to venture to come into the divine presence in our own names, or to have a thought of mercy from God on the account of our own goodness: And it is this which makes us sensible of our need of a mediator, and makes us desire to be found, not in ourselves, but in Christnot having on our own righteousness, but his : No farther, therefore, than these views and this temper prevail in us, shall we truly discern any need of Christ, or be heartily inclined to have any respect to him as a mediator between God and us: There can, therefore, be no more of true faith in exercise, than there is of this true humility. When men, therefore, appear righteous in their own eyes, and look upon themselves as deserving well at the hands of God, on the account of their own goodness, they can feel no need of a mediator, nor at heart have any respect to Christ, under that character.... Luke v. 31. This condemns the faith of the self-righteous formalist, who depends upon his being conscientious in his ways, and upon his sincerely endeavoring to do as well as he can, to recommend him to God: And this condemns, also, the faith of the proud enthusiast, who appears so good in his own eyes...so far from a legal spirit...so purely evangelical...so full of light and knowledge, humility and love, zeal and devotion, as that, from a sense of his own goodness, and how greatly beloved he is in the sight of God, he is encouraged and elevated, and feels greatly emboldened to come into the presence of God, and draw near, and come even to his seat, and use familiarity and boldness with God, as though he was almost an equal. Such are so far from any true sense of their need of Christ, as that they rather feel more fit to be mediators and intercessors in behalf of others, than to want one for themselves: And it is the way of such, from that great sense they have of their own goodness, to make bold with God, and to make bold with Christ, in their prayers, as if they felt themselves pretty nigh upon a level. Of all men in the world, I am ready to think that God looks upon these the worst, and hates them the most....(Luke xviii.

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9-14-Isai. lxv. 5.) But did they know it, they would hate him as entirely as he does them. Hypocrites of all sorts fail in this point: they see no real need of Christ-they are not so bad but that, to their own sense and feeling, they might be pardoned and saved by the free mercy of God, without any mediator: Hence they do not understand the gospel; it is all foolishness to them....I. Cor. ii. 14.

6. It is a spiritual sense and firm belief of the truths of the gospel which encourages the heart to trust in Christ.... John vi. 45. That the goodness of God is infinite, and self-moving that Christ, as Mediator, has secured the honor of God, the moral Governor of the world, and opened a way for the free and honorable exercise of his grace-that through Christ, God, the supreme Governor of the world, is actually ready to be reconciled, and invites all, the vilest not excepted, to return to him in this way :-These truths, being spiritually understood and firmly believed, convince the heart of the safety of trusting in Christ, and encourage it so to do....Heb. x. 19....Mat. xxii. 4.

7. Saving faith consists in that entire trust, reliance, or dependance on Jesus Christ, the great Mediator, his satisfaction and merits, mediation and intercession, which the humbled sinner has, whereby he is emboldened to return home to God in hopes of acceptance, and is encouraged to look to and trust in God through him for that complete salvation which is offered in the gospel. The opposite to justifying faith, is a selfrighteous spirit and temper, whereby a man, from a conceit of, and reliance upon his own goodness, is emboldened and encouraged to trust and hope in the mercy of God....Heb. x. 19, 23 -Luke xviii. 9-14; and accordingly, when such see how bad they really are, their faith fails-they naturally think that God cannot find in his heart to show mercy to such.

8. Faith emboldens the heart. In a legal humiliation, which is antecedent to spiritual light, the sinner is brought to a kind of despair: The things which used to embolden him, do now entirely fail: he finds no good in himself-yea, he feels him

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self dead in sin; and upon this his heart dies within him. I was alive without the law once; but when the commandment came, sin revived, and I died....Rom. vii. 9: And by spiritual light, in evangelical humiliation, his undone state, in and of himself, is made still more plain. But now faith emboldens the heart....begets new courage....lays the foundation for a new kind of hope-a hope springing entirely from a new foundation. Heb. x. 19, 22... Having, therefore, brethren, BOLDNESS to enter into the holiest, by the blood of Jesus, let us draw near with a true heart, in full assurance of faith, By faith the heart is emboldened-1. To return home to God, in hopes of acceptance. A spiritual sight and sense of the ineffable beauty of the divine nature begets a disposition to look upon it the fittest and happiest thing in the world to love God with all the heart, and be entirely devoted to him forever; and enkindles an inclination to return, and everlastingly give up and consecrate ourselves unto him. "But may such a wretch as I be the Lord's? Will he accept me?" Now the believer, understanding the way of acceptance by Christ, and seeing the safety of it, ventures his ALL upon this sure foundation, and hereby is emboldened to return. Heb. xi. 6.... He that cometh to God must believe that he is, and that he is a rewarder of them that diligently seek him; i. e. first-He must see what God is....behold him in his glory, or he cannot, in a genuine manner, desire to come to him: and secondly-He must see that he is ready to be reconciled unto and to save those, who, from a genuine desire to be his, do heartily return to him through the Mediator he has appointed; or else he will not dare to come: But when both these are seen and believed, now the soul will return, and come and give up itself to God, to be the Lord's forever. 2. Faith in Christ emboldens the heart to look to and trust in the free grace of God through him, for all things that just such à poor creature wants-even for all things offered in the gospel to poor sinners. Heb. iv. 16....Let us, therefore, come BOLDLY to the throne of grace, that we may obtain mercy and find grace. Pardoning mercy and sanctifying grace are the two great benefits of the

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