mercy, but contemning them, trampling them under foot as embittered
against him. As also, there must be a conviction of our actual
transgressions, whereby we have corrupted our ways yet more, run farther
away from God, brought on more wrath upon our souls, according to that
sentence of the law, "Cursed is everyone that abideth not in all things
that are written in the law to do them," Deut. xxvii. 26. Gal. iii. 10.
What way this conviction is begun and carried on in the soul, and to
what measure it must come, I cannot now stand to explain; only, in
short, know, That upon whatever occasion it be begun, whether by a word
carried home to the heart by the finger of God, or by some sharp and
crossing dispensation, fear of approaching death, some heinous
out-breaking, or the like, it is a real thing, a heart-reaching
conviction, not general and notional, but particular, plain, and
pinching, affecting the heart with fear and terror, making the soul
seriously and really to mind this matter, to be taken up with the
thoughts of it, and anxiously and earnestly to cry out, "What shall I do
to be saved?" and finally, will make the soul willing to hearken and
hear what hopes of mercy there is in the gospel, and to embrace the way
of salvation which is there laid down. And the reason of this is,
because Christ himself tells us, "The whole needeth not the physician,
but the sick," Matt. ix. 12. "He is not come to call the righteous,"
that is, such as are righteous in their own eyes, "but sinners," that
is, such as are now no more whole at the heart, as seeing no evil, no
hazard or danger, but pricked and pierced with the sense of their lost
condition, being under the heavy wrath and vengeance of the great God,
because of sin; and seeing their own vileness, cursedness, wickedness
and desperate madness. Because naturally we hate God and Christ, John
xv. 23-25, and have a strong and natural antipathy at the way of
salvation through Jesus, therefore nothing but strong and inevitable
necessity will drive us to a compliance with this gospel device of love.