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When thou fearest the multitude of thy sins, apply, "You shall be clean from all your sins."

If you fear God will remember your sins beforecommitted, to punish you for them.

"I will remember his sin no more.a His transgressions which he hath committed shall not be mentioned to him; but in the righteousness which he hath done, shall he live.b

"None of his sins that he hath committed shall be mentioned to him."c

If often-sinning cause thee to doubt of pardon.

"He looketh upon men, and if any say, I have sinned and perverted that which was right, and it profiteth me not, he will deliver his soul from going into the pit, and his life shall see the light. Lo all these things worketh God oftentimes with man."d

Wherefore, believe not Satan that persuades the contrary: nor let thy corruptions make thee bold to presume of pardon; for though God promise pardon, yet it is to the penitent, not to the presumptuous.

If thou despair.

When thou art at the pit's brink of despair, and art dried up with sorrow, then go to some

a Jer. xxxi. 34. b Ezek. xviii. 22. c Ezek. xxxiii. 16. d Job xxxiii. 27, 28, 29

faithful preacher that is able to preach Christ unto thee; and apply, "Then he is gracious unto him, and saith, deliver him from going down to the pit; I have found a ransom. He shall return to the days of his youth. He shall pray unto God, and he shall be favorable unto him, and he shall see his face with joy: for he will render unto man his righteousness.a

"I create the fruit of the lips; peace, peace to him that is afar off, and to him that is near, saith the Lord, and I will heal him."b

When thou comest to the uttermost extremity for sin, apply, "I will have mercy on him, and deliver him, that he go not down to the pit."

When thy sorrows have withered thee up, apply, "He shall return as in the days of his youth."

If in this estate thou fearest God will not hear prayers for thee, apply, "He shall pray to God, and he will be favorable to him."

When thou fearest thou shalt not be able to look upon the Lord with joy, apply, "He shall see his face with joy.”

When thou seest not any thing in thyself, that should cause thee not to believe this, apply, "He will render to man his righteousness:" which is, (I think) Christ's righteousness, for whose sake he will do it.

a Job xxxiii. 24, 25, 26. b Isa. lvii. 19.

If theu findest sin a heavy burden, and Satan

pursuing.

When thou feelest sin a heavy burden, and Satan pursuing thee with many fears by reason of the same, fly to Christ, and apply, "Come unto me, all ye that labor and are heavy laden, and I will give you rest. He shall save his people from their sins.b

"And the God of peace shall bruse satan under your feet shortly.

"And a man shall be as a hiding-place from the wind, and a covert from the tempest; as rivers of water in a dry place, as the shadow of a great rock in a weary land."d

Thus doth Christ to the soul that flies to him. If satan pursue thee, apply, "He is a hidingplace."

If storms of temptations and afflictions do arise, apply, "He is a refuge against the tempest."

If thy soul be ready to faint with weakness, apply, "He is a river of water in a dry place," to revive thy spirits; "and as the shadow of a great rock,"-under which thou mayest safely repose thyself.

When thou findest thy sins very heavy, apply, "I will ease you."

When thou hast no rest in thy soul because of

a Matt. xi. 28, 29. b Matt. i. 21. d Isa. xxxii. 2.

c Rom. xvi. 20.

sin, apply, "You shall find rest to your souls. He shall save his people from their sins,"-both from the punishment and the power.

If thou fearest length of time in temptations, apply, "The God of peace shall bruise satan under your feet shortly."

If thou turn from sin, and yet doubt of pardon.

"Though your sins be as scarlet, they shall be as white as snow; though they be red like crimson, they shall be as wool.a

"Let the wicked forsake his way, and the un righteous man his thoughts; and let him return unto the Lord, and he will have mercy on him; and to our God, for he will abundantly pardon.b

"Who is a God like unto thee, that pardoneth iniquity, and passeth by the transgression of the remnant of his heritage? He retaineth not his anger for ever, because he delighteth in mercy. He will turn again, he will have compassion upon us; he will subdue our iniquities, and will cast our sins into the depths of the sea. that confesseth and forsaketh his sins, shall find mercy. If we confess our sins, he is faithful and just to forgive us our sins, and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness."e

He

When thou seest thy soul of a sinful color.

a Isa. i. 18. b Isa. lv. 7. c Micah vii. 18, 19. d Prov. xxviii. 13. e 1 John i. 9.

apply, "Though they be red like crimson, they shall be white as wool."

If thou fearest God will hardly be entreated, apply, "He will have mercy, for he is ready to forgive."

If we fear that our sins have taken such strong hold upon us, as we shall never get from them, apply, "He will cleanse us from all our unrighteousness." Seeing God promiseth to be the cleanser, fear not the hardness of the work.

If thou wouldst have thy manifold rebellions subdued.

When thou feelest many rebellions in thine heart and life, and wouldst have them not only pardoned, but subdued, apply, "I will heal their backslidings: "a Which promise (as I think) contains this much-that God will not only pardon, but heal us; and, instead of rebellious hearts and lives, will give us obedient hearts and lives. For as healing followeth the curing of sickness, so obedience doth the curing of rebellion.

"He will subdue our iniquities." When thou feelest sin very strong, fly to this promise; and apply the strength of him that promiseth against the strength of sin. It is the Lord that hath promised to subdue it. What! though sin and

a Hosea xiv. 4. b Mic. vii. 19.

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