Anne Dutton's Declaration of Evangelical Calvinism, 1743

The following is taken from Part 1 of Dutton's important work, A Brief Account of the Gracious Dealings of God, with a Poor, Sinful, Unworthy Creature, relating to the Work of Divine Grace on the Heart, in a Saving Conversion to Christ, and in some Establishment in Him. By A. D. [Anne Dutton] (London: printed by J. Hart: and sold by J. Lewis; and E. Gardner, 1743), pp. 50-72. Parts 1 and 2 appeared in 1743; Part 3 appeared in 1750. 

Overview

The excerpt below by Dutton, describing her ideas about faith, repentance, and regeneration, is remarkable for its scope and specificity and its foreshadowing of the evangelical Calvinism espoused a few decades later by Andrew Fuller. Here we see Dutton the Calvinist (she had read the writings of and sat under the ministry of at least six staunch Calvinist ministers by this time: Joseph Hussey, John Hunt, John Moore, John Skepp, William Grant, and her husband, Benjamin Dutton) embedding the sovereignty of God within an Edwardsian (and later Fullerite) depiction of “duty” faith that is far removed the High Calvinism attributed to her by some earlier commentators. Raymond Brown viewed her as part of a trinity of High Calvinists, joined by John Gill and John Brine, that were antagonistic to evangelism (The English Baptists of the Eighteenth Century [London: Baptist Historical Society, 1986], 79). This passage clearly belies that claim. H. Wheeler Robinson saw Dutton as a relic of a outworn period that was excessively “artificial and self-absorbed. The moral of her story is drawn for us by history. The new life came through the new evangelism, liberated from outworn dogma, and the new duties which that evangelism inspired” (The Life and Faith of the Baptists [London: Kingsgate Press, 1946; first edition, 1927; reprinted, Wake Forest NC: Chanticleer, 1985], 60), a tacit acknowledgment, on his part, that Dutton was not a participant in that “new evangelism,” another assessment belied by the following passage.  Michael Haykin comes closer to the truth about Dutton when he asserts that if she “did have Hyper-Calvinist leanings, they were not so prominent as to prevent her from being deeply appreciative of what God was doing through men like Whitefield” (“Anne Dutton and Calvinistic Spirituality in the Eighteenth Century,” The Banner of Sovereign Grace Truth [July/August 2002], 156). 

It seems likely Dutton knew of Jonathan Edwards through her associations with Whitefield and other Evangelicals in the 1730s and ’40s, and may have read some of his writings, though she does not refer to him in any of her publications. Whether others in her circle or among her readers held to the views she expresses below about both election and human responsibility, grace and faith, being present in the act of regeneration is not known (although it seems likely many did). Nevertheless, the fact remains that the pasage below places Dutton among the earliest Particular Baptist writers to express such a full statement regarding what would become the essential characteristics of evangelical Calvinism as expressed by the writings and the ministries of Andrew Fuller, John Ryland, Jr., John Sutcliff, and many others from the 1780s onward. Such passages below as “For tho’ saving Faith, is always attended with its Fruits; yet it’s not the Fruit of thy Faith, but the Faithfulness of Christ in his Word, that ought to be the first, and principal Ground of thy Persuasion of Life and Safety in him” and “Infinite Faithfulness must fail, before thou that look’st to Christ for Life, and tak’st him at his Word, canst perish. The Rock of Ages must sink beneath thee, before thou that art built thereon canst be lost” are apropos of her evangelical thrust, foreshadowing not only the work of Fuller but also the magnificent hymn of Augustus Toplady.

It is hard not to hear the voice of the evangelist speaking through Dutton as she gives one of the most succinct calls to faith, repentance, and assurance in eighteenth-century Baptist literature:

Hast thou (whoever thou art, that hast these Thoughts) been convinced of the Misery of thy natural State, that thou wast in a perishing Condition without Christ? And hast thou had a Discovery of Christ’s Beauty, Excellency, and Suitableness to thee, in all thy Wants: So as to draw out thy Soul into earnest Desires after an Interest in this precious Jesus? And under a deep Sense of thy perishing Condition, hast thou been encouraged by God’s Free Grace in Christ, to cast thyself at his Feet, to find Mercy: To commit thyself into the Arms of his Grace and Power, for all Life, and Salvation: with an holy Venture, saying, as Esther, ‘I will go in unto the King; and if I perish, I perish. I see there is no other Way of Salvation: Here therefore I’ll wait as an undone Sinner; it may be Free-Grace will save me; but if not, I can but die: And if I perish, it shall be at the Foot of God’s Free Mercy in Christ.’ Hast thou, I say, at any Time experienc’d such Resolutions wrought in thy Soul? Thou art then exceeding safe, and thy State eternally secure.

She later adds a note about God's calling of the sinner to repentance and the quickening by divine grace of the soul dead in trespasses and sins:

I know thou canst not quicken thy own Heart: But there is an Almighty Energy attends the Gospel: The All-creating Power of God goes forth in the Words of this Life, to quicken dead Sinners, tho’ like the Bones in the Valley, very dry, and to make them stand up upon their Feet, an exceeding great Army of God, John v. 23. Ezek. xxxvii. 2, &c. And Now is the accepted Time, now is the Day of Salvation: God is now about this Work of saving Sinners by the Gospel of his Son: Therefore be encouraged to wait where God works; thou art not sunk too [63] low for an Almighty Arm to reach thee. All Things are possible with GOD! There is nothing too hard for Jehovah. He can save thee, he is infinitely all-sufficient to do it; and he delights to be gracious: Wait therefore where he works, for who can tell but he may be gracious unto thee? Waiting is thy Duty, as well as thy Privilege, this thou mayst do, this thou canst do[.]

Only the grace of God through the sacrifice of Christ, not human works, can satisfy a holy, sovereign God, depicted by Dutton in language not easily distinguished from that used by Edwards in his famous sermon, Sinners in the Hands of an Angry God (1741), which appeared three years prior to Dutton's Brief Account:

But God, having from the Beginning chosen me to Salvation, he did not leave me to rest upon this sandy Foundation, but set my Feet upon Christ, the Rock of Ages. And when God came to shew me the infinite Purity of his Nature, and the Spirituality of his Law; that it required perfect Obedience in Heart as well as Life, and that for the least Failure, even so small, as a wandring Thought in Duty, the Law accursed me: I soon found all my own Righteousness to be but as filthy Rags. . . All thy Hope of Safety from any of thy own Performances, shall be cut off, and thy Trust herein shall be as the Spider’s Web; soon swept away, as poisonous Dust, by the Bosom of Destruction, Job viii. 14, 15. Never think then to stand before God in the filthy Rags of thy own Righteousness; for if thou dost, thou wilt surely be found naked . . . Poor Soul, there’s nothing will stand thee in stead in that Day, but the compleat Righteousness of Christ; his active and passive Obedience; if thou art not found under the Redeemer’s Blood and Righteousness, if He is not thy Covert from the Storm, thy Hiding-place from the Wind; the Whirlwind of God’s Wrath will drive thee away like Chaff into everlasting Burnings; and the Storm of his Indignation, as an overflowing Scourge will sweep thee into the Gulph of eternal Misery.

Just as Edwards closed his sermon with a call to all under his voice to repent, so Dutton closes with an open call to all who would read her Account to close with Christ:

I found Jesus Christ to be as infinitely willing to save me, as he was able. Be encourag’d therefore to come unto the Throne of Grace, unto God in Christ, where Thousands have found Mercy: Yea, where never any Soul was deny’d its Suit. . . Be encourag’d therefore to come unto the Throne [67] of Grace, unto God in Christ, where Thousands have found Mercy: Yea, where never any Soul was deny’d its Suit. Whoever thou art therefore, that seest thyself to be undone by Reason of Sin, and utterly unable to help thyself out of this dreadful Condition, and hast a longing Desire after Jesus Christ, and his Salvation: Thou mayst come and receive Christ, and all Grace and Life in him, as the Father’s free Gift to the Chief of Sinners. I say, thou mayst come, as it is a Grant from the Throne, the Royal Proclamation of Heaven, Unto whosoever will, Rev. xxii. 17. . . Oh, Believe it, the Willingness of Christ’s Heart to save thee, doth infinitely surpass the largest Desires of thy Soul, after his Salvation. What should hinder thee then, from an immediate running into Christ’s Bosom since there is such Room for thee in his Heart? I dare say, nothing but thy Unbelief: And, blessed be God, that shall not hinder thee, always, neither. Would it be an unspeakable Joy to thee, to get into Christ’s Arms: let me say, it would be much more so to him. The Day of his Espousals with a poor Sinner, is the Day of the Gladness of his Heart, Song iii. 21. But if thou still doubt his Willingness to embrace thee: I’ll only say, as Philip to Nathanael, Come and see: Come and try his boundless Grace; and see if it be not every Way as large as the omnipotent Power of his Arm! John i. 46. Oh come and cast thyself at the Saviour’s Feet, and say, as that poor Man did, who was full of Leprosy, Lord if thou wilt, thou canst make me clean. And Jesus, in the Infinity of his Grace, will answer thee, as he did him, and say, I will, be thou clean, Luke v. 13.

Complete Text

         But perhaps some poor Soul may say, I don’t question the Salvation of Believers; but I am afraid that I do not believe. Why, believing, is the Soul’s looking to Christ for Life, as the only Saviour of God’s providing, lifted up in the Gospel. This was typ’d out by the Israelites looking to the Serpent of Brass in the Wilderness. And canst thou look to Christ, Soul? thou’lt live. It came to pass when a Serpent had bitten any Man, that when he looked to the Serpent of Brass, he lived, Numb. xxi. 9. And it’s the Father’s Will, that hath sent Christ, that whosoever seeth the Son, and believeth on him, should have everlasting Life, John vi. 40. Christ says, look unto me: He bids thee look, poor Soul, to Him for Life, as a perishing Sinner. In Obedience then to his Command, cast up an Eye to Jesus, as the great Ordinance of God for Salvation. And immediately [51] hereupon, take Christ at his Word; he says, be ye saved. Canst thou believe it, Soul? Thou must either believe that thou shalt be saved, in looking to Christ, or give him the Lie. Oh then, learn to believe thy Salvation upon Christ’s naked Word: And stay not to see the Effects of Faith in thy Heart and Life, before thou wilt credit the Word of Christ, and the Testimony of his Spirit therein. For tho’ saving Faith, is always attended with its Fruits; yet it’s not the Fruit of thy Faith, but the Faithfulness of Christ in his Word, that ought to be the first, and principal Ground of thy Persuasion of Life and Safety in him. And if thou art help’d to believe thy Salvation, in looking to Christ, merely because He hath said it, thou wilt soon find the blessed Effects thereof in thy Soul. Let but Faith look to Christ, and Salvation in him, and Love will straightway be upon the Flow; and every Grace of the Spirit, will be answerably exercised. Which in the Holy Ghost’s Light, will become a subordinate Evidence, and serve to corroborate thy Faith: But put not that first, which ought to be second. The Grace and Faithfulness of Christ in his Word, is a firm Basis for thy Faith to rest on, amidst the greatest Shakings. Hath He said, and shall he not do it? Or hath He spoken, and shall he not make it good? Numb. xxiii. 19. Infinite Faithfulness must fail, before thou that look’st to Christ for Life, and tak’st him at his Word, canst perish. The Rock of Ages must sink [52] beneath thee, before thou that art built thereon canst be lost. Go on therefore to honour Christ, by looking to him daily, and believing thy Salvation stedfastly in the Face of ten thousand Difficulties, and seeming Contradictions. ’Tis the Excellency of Faith, to believe without Sight, John xx. 29. Abraham consider’d not his own Body now Dead, nor yet the Deadness of Sarah’s Womb. He stagger’d not at the Promise of God thro’ Unbelief, but was strong in Faith, giving Glory to God:” Being fully persuaded that what he had promis’d, he was able also to perform, Rom. iv. 19, 20, 21. And Abraham’s Children are call’d to exercise Faith in the same Way; believing in Hope, even against Hope, or in the Face of the greatest Improbabilities. Therefore let us not cast away our Confidence, which hath great Recompence of Reward. But to return from this Digression.

         The Lord having brought me to some Stability and Rest of Faith, upon the Rock of Immutability, when I had not Frames to lean on, he was graciously pleas’d to make my Joy full, by casting in a rich Overplus of spiritual Sense. And tho’ I now did not take up my Faith of Interest, principally from Frames; yet I had abundant Experience of the rich Overflowings of God’s Love upon my Soul, and of the blessed Fruits of it in my Heart and Life. The Holy Ghost open’d to me such glorious Views of all that vast Grace wherein I stood, gave me to see my everlasting Standing in it, and to have frequent Access into it. I [53] was indeed led into green Pastures, and made to lie down. The Doctrines of the everlasting Gospel were daily opened to me in their amazing Glory; every of which was a pleasant Pasture for me to feed in. And oh, how my Heart burn’d within me, while my dear Lord opened to me the Scriptures, in their Glory and Consistency! Now one was open’d to me, then another, and oft-times many, to explain one. Delightfully I view’d over the Wonders of infinite Grace display’d therein, and feasted upon all, as my own, as having an entire, and eternal Interest in the God of all Grace, and in all the glorious Provisions of his Grace, for the Salvation of Sinners thro’ Jesus Christ. Thus kindly the Lord dealt with me, when he stablished me in Christ, anointed me with the Oil of Gladness, seal’d me with the Holy Spirit of Promise, and gave him into my Heart, as an Earnest of the Inheritance of the Saints in Light!

         And in vain do the Enemies of the Grace of God, malign it with their old odious Calumny, That it leads to Licentiousness. For so long as God has a People in the World, he will have Witnesses to stand on the Side of Free-Grace, as it constrains to Holiness. And among them, I’ll cast in my Mite, and bear my Witness for God: that the more his glorious Grace, in my Salvation, did appear to my Soul, the more was I efficaciously taught to deny Ungodliness and worldly Lusts, and to live soberly, righteously, and godly in this present World; looking for that blessed Hope, and the glorious Appearing of the great GOD, and our Saviour Jesus Christ: Who gave himself for us, that he might redeem us from all inquity, and purify unto himself a peculiar People, zealous of good Works, Tit. ii. 11, &c.

         Thus, as enabled, have I given some Account of the Lord’s loving Kindness to my Soul: In a few brief Hints, of my Manner of Life from my Childhood: Of the Work of Divine Grace upon my Heart, in a saving Conversion to Christ, and of my being brought to some Establishment in Him. And now I come to the last Thing propos’d, which was,

         Fourthly, Somewhat by Way of Reflection. And,

         Ist, To the People of God, under two Ranks,.

  1. To such of the Saints, who have a comfortable Knowledge of the Work of Grace in their own Souls, I would say with the Psalmist, O magnify the Lord with me, and let us exalt his Name together. I sought the Lord, and he heard me, and delivered me from all my Fears, Psalm xxxiv. 3, 4. You have heard something of the Lord’s loving Kindness to my Soul: Glorify God in me, Gal. i. 24.

  2. To such of God’s People, that have not, as yet, a full Persuasion of a special Work of Grace in their Hearts. You also have heard what the Lord has done for me; and I know you are apt to listen how it has been with [55] others, which you judge are Believers; and to compare your Experience with theirs; in order to form a Judgment, whether the Work of God upon your own Souls be indeed saving. But, dear Hearts, be not too critical herein; for the Experience of the Saints, in many Particulars may vary, tho’ in the general it agrees. Don’t say then, upon reading this Narrative, ‘I have not been in all Respects thus: And therefore I fear I am not right.’ Hast thou (whoever thou art, that hast these Thoughts) been convinced of the Misery of thy natural State, that thou wast in a perishing Condition without Christ? And hast thou had a Discovery of Christ’s Beauty, Excellency, and Suitableness to thee, in all thy Wants: So as to draw out thy Soul into earnest Desires after an Interest in this precious Jesus? And under a deep Sense of thy perishing Condition, hast thou been encouraged by God’s Free Grace in Christ, to cast thyself at his Feet, to find Mercy: To commit thyself into the Arms of his Grace and Power, for all Life, and Salvation: with an holy Venture, saying, as Esther, ‘I will go in unto the King; and if I perish, I perish. I see there is no other Way of Salvation: Here therefore I’ll wait as an undone Sinner; it may be Free-Grace will save me; but if not, I can but die: And if I perish, it shall be at the Foot of God’s Free Mercy in Christ.’ Hast thou, I say, at any Time experienc’d such Resolutions wrought in thy Soul? Thou art then exceeding safe, and [56] thy State eternally secure: Tho’ thou mayst not have so much Comfort in it, or Satisfaction about it, as some of God’s Children enjoy. Hast thou been brought to Christ? What Matter how? Whether exactly in all Respects in the same Way that another was brought, or not? Is Christ thy Foundation, doth thy Soul rest upon Him? Thou’rt founded upon a Rock that will never fail thee, or sink under thee. Christ will be thy supporting Rock, to preserve thee from sinking into the Deluge of eternal Misery, notwithstanding all the Weights of Sin, Guilt, and Fear that are upon thee: Thy defending Rock, from the Danger, and real Hurt of all the Storms and Tempests which may pass over thee: And thy advancing Rock too, from the Depths of Misery, to the Heights of Glory. And what tho’ thy Father may not have indulg’d thee with such Love-Feasts, such sensible Mirth and Rejoycing, that some of thy Brethren, poor Prodigals, have met with at their Return: Yet, thou art ever with him, and all that He hath is thine! Thou hast Christ, and thou hast All! All Life, Light, and Glory in the Right of it now; and thou shalt have the Enjoyment of it ere-long. Be content then that infinite Wisdom should carve out thy Time-Portion of Comfort. What tho’ some of the Saints are favour’d to walk in the Light, and thou art call’d to walk in Darkness: Yet trust in the LORD, and stay thyself upon thy God, Isa. l. 10. Believe that he leads thee [57] in a right Way, that’s best for thee now: Thou shalt see it to be so erelong. It’s but a little while ere the Sun will rise upon thee, and no more go down: Ere thou, that as yet hast had, but as it were, the Day-Star arising in thy Heart, shalt behold the Sun, in its Meridian Brightness. For Night and Darkness shall be swallow’d up in eternal Day, Isa. lx. 20. Mean-while, labour to live by Faith: To go on trusting thy Soul in the Hands of Christ, taking him at his Word, as to thy eternal Salvation, as counting him faithful that hath promis’d: Thus glorifying of him in the Dark, until taken up to be glorified with him, in the Enjoyment of thy Inheritance in Light.

         2dly, I would say somewhat to poor Sinners: And that of three Sorts.

1. To such that are openly prophane: If any such may read these Lines. Ah poor Souls, your Condition is exceeding miserable; and so much the more, because you know it not. I have declared somewhat of that Concern I was under about my eternal State: What think you of yours? I had not run such Lengths in Sin as perhaps you have done: And yet I saw I must perish for ever, if the exceeding Riches of God’s free Grace and Mercy in Christ were not extended to my poor Soul. What think you then of your own Condition, that have openly prophaned the Name of God, and run on in a Course of Ungodliness; committing Iniquity with Greediness? How do you think to escape the Wrath to come? Remember, the End of these Things is Death. [58] Ah poor Souls, how dreadful is your Case! You are awfully estranged from God, without him in the World; you desire not the Knowledge of his Ways: But count it your Happiness to fulfil the desires of the Flesh and of the Mind; yielding yourselves as willing Servants to Sin and Satan: And the Wages of Sin is Death, Rom. vi. 23. Every Sin, even the Sin of a Thought deserves no less than eternal Death: How great a Death then doth all thy Sins deserve, that art running on in a Course of Wickedness! And as Death is the Desert of sin, so, if thou continue herein, and abide an Unbeliever, Death will speedily, and inevitably seize upon thee. First, natural Death: Thou shalt die in thy Sins, and under the Curse of God. And then follows the second Death, which consists in an everlasting Banishment from God, to suffer the Vengeance of eternal Fire, with the Devil and his Angels. Thou art therefore in a very dreadful Condition.

         But it may be thou wilt say, ‘I know that Hell will be my Portion, if I live and die in my present Case: But after I have had a little more Pleasure in Sin, I purpose to leave my sinful Course, to amend my Ways, and make my Peace with God.’

         But, poor Soul, what if Death should overtake thee suddenly, and Hell swallow thee up in a Moment? Therefore boast not thyself of T0-morrow; thou knowest not what a Day may bring forth, Prov. xxvii. 1.

         But if, through the infinite Forbearance of [59] God, thou shouldest be spared a while longer; yet, if thou hast no Mind to leave thy Sins now, thou wilt have less then. For every Sin thou committest, strengthens the Chains of Darkness in which thou art held. Poor Soul, thou art under the Dominion of Sin; thy Lusts are so many Lords over thee. Yea, thou art in Bondage unto Satan: The Devil the Prince of Darkness, possesseth thy Heart as his Throne; and holds thee fast under his Government by the Cords of thy own Sins: And thou art so far from groaning under thy Bondage, that thou likest it, and yieldest thyself a willing Slave to the Drudgery of Hell. So that it is a great Mistake to think thou hast Power to leave thy Sins when thou wilt. Alas, poor Soul, there is such a Power in the Kingdom of Darkness, in which thou art held; that no Power in thy self, nor in any other Creature, can rescue thee from it. So that thy Case is exceeding miserable: And so much the more, as thou art insensible of it. Thou hast destroy’d thyself by thine Iniquity, and if thy Help is not in the Lord, in that God thou resolvest to sin against, thou art undone for ever. Thou art sunk too low for any created Arm to reach thee: And if the omnipotent Arms of Divine Grace and Mercy don’t snatch thee from the Power of Darkness, as a Brand out of the Burning, thou wilt perish for ever in thy own Deceivings.

         But suppose thou couldst reform, and amend thy Ways: Yet by the Deeds of the Law, shall no Flesh be justified in the Sight of God, Rom. iii.20. The best Righteousness of the holiest Saint [60] on Earth, is insufficient to be his justifying Robe; yea, it is but as filthy Rags, Isa. lxiv. 6. What abominable Stuff then, must all thy Doings be, that hast no Faith in Jesus? For without Faith it is impossible to please GOD, Heb. xi. 6.

         But suppose thou couldst from this Time, even to thy dying Moments walk exactly, as the holy Law of God requireth; (which is indeed an utter Impossibility for any fallen creature to do: But) suppose it, I say, yet what wilt thou do with thy past Sins? Thou art deep in Debt, thou owest ten thousand Talents to Divine Justice, and hast nothing to pay. All thy future Obedience, couldst thou obey perfectly, is but thy Duty; and can’t pay a Mite towards thy old Debt. In vain then dost thou think to bring thy external Reformation, and legal Repentance to stand before God, and make thy Peace with him. God out of Christ is a consuming Fire; and all thy best Doings are but as Briars and Thorns: And who would set the Briars and Thorns against him in Battle? He will go thro’ them, and burn them up together. Such is the flaming Holiness, and Justice of his Nature, as well as of his Law, that he can’t endure the least Sin, but will break forth like devouring Fire upon every Soul where it is found. Hadst thou, in thy whole Life-Time, been guilty but of one Sin, even the Sin of a Thought; such is the Purity of God’s holy Law, that it would call thee a Transgressor, and lay thee under the Curse, as a wicked Person: And there is no Peace to the [61] wicked, saith my God, Isa. lvii. 21. No, the Work of making Peace with a Sin-revenging God was too great for all the Creatures, either in Heaven or Earth, to perform. So that thy Condition, in and from thy self, and from any other Creature, is both helpless and hopeless.

         But yet, poor Soul, don’t despair of Salvation. Tho’ thou art under the Dominion of Sin and Satan, and can’st by no Means deliver thyself from this hellish Slavery; tho’ thou hast no Righteousness to stand in before an holy God; and tho’ thou canst not by all thy best Performances in the least wise appease offended Justice for any of thy Sins: Yet there is still Hope for such as thee in God.

         There is a full, free, and an everlasting Salvation, already wrought by Jesus Christ, for poor Sinners, that every Way suits the Case of the very Chief of them all, I Tim. i. 15. Christ has fulfill’d the Law perfectly: And thereby wrought out a complete Righteousness for Law-breakers, in which they may stand blameless before a God of infinite Purity, with the highest Acceptance: Peace is already made by the Blood of his Cross, an everlasting Peace between God, and poor Sinners. And Victory, a most complete Victory over Sin and Satan, is already obtained by Christ, the Captain of Salvation, for poor Bond-slaves in this Thraldom, which could by no means deliver themselves.

         And this complete Salvation is proclaimed in the glorious Gospel, as free, for the Chief of Sinners: And this Gospel of a crucified Jesus, is the Power of God unto Salvation, Rom. i. [62] 16. That Jesus that once died for poor Sinners on the Cross, now lives to intercede for them on the Throne: And as a Fruit hereof, the holy Spirit of God is given to attend the Ministry of the Gospel, and make this glad Tidings efficacious for the Salvation of Multitudes of as great Sinners as thou art.

         Be encouraged therefore to wait at Wisdom’s Gate, to attend the Ministry of the Gospel, (that Ministry, which exalts the free Grace of God alone, as the Foundation of a Sinner’s Salvation, the Righteousness of Christ alone, as the Matter of his Justification, the Blood of Christ alone, for the Satisfaction of Divine Justice, and cleansing the Sinner from all Sin, and the Spirit of Christ alone, as the Applier of this great Salvation) for who knows but this Gospel may be the Power of God unto thy Salvation? Wait therefore under the Ordinances of Divine Appointment, for the efficacious Workings of the Holy Ghost: as the impotent Folk at the Pool of Bethesda, for the Moving of the Waters, John v. 3. I know thou canst not quicken thy own Heart: But there is an Almighty Energy attends the Gospel: The All-creating Power of God goes forth in the Words of this Life, to quicken dead Sinners, tho’ like the Bones in the Valley, very dry, and to make them stand up upon their Feet, an exceeding great Army of God, John v. 23. Ezek. xxxvii. 2, &c. And Now is the accepted Time, now is the Day of Salvation: God is now about this Work of saving Sinners by the Gospel of his Son: Therefore be encouraged to wait where God works; thou art not sunk too [63] low for an Almighty Arm to reach thee. All Things are possible with GOD! There is nothing too hard for Jehovah. He can save thee, he is infinitely all-sufficient to do it; and he delights to be gracious: Wait therefore where he works, for who can tell but he may be gracious unto thee? Waiting is thy Duty, as well as thy Privilege, this thou mayst do, this thou canst do: And know, that if thou dost it not, and herein neglectest this great Salvation, if thou perish at last, it will increase thy Guilt, and aggravate thy Condemnation. It will be dreadful perishing for such that have been Despisers of the Gospel in a Land of Light; that have preferred Trifles before the Words of this Life: Doubtless it will be a Sting that will eternally wound the Conscience. Be perswaded therefore to improve thy present Opportunities of Praying, Reading, and Hearing the Word: for God may take the Gospel from Thee, or Thee from the Gospel, before thou art aware. And if this Gospel, which thou despisest, doth not reach thine Ears, and the Power of it reach thy Heart; thou wilt die in thy Sins, and be cast, as a Vessel of Wrath, into the vast Abyss of unutterable, and eternal Misery.

    2. A Word or two to you, poor Sinners, who are Self-Righteous. I have told you somewhat of my Experience: That I had religious Education, and was kept back from those gross Evils, which many run into. I attended Divine Worship in Publick, and oft-times in Private, and had some notional Knowledge of the Truths of the Gospel. I found also, at [64] Times some Stirrings of my natural Affections in reading God’s Word, and other good Books, and in Learning of Hymns, and I had a Sort of Pleasure when I could pray with Enlargement. And upon these Accounts, I thought myself to be fair for Heaven, and better than others: And if infinite Mercy had not prevented, I had gone down to Hell with this Lie in my Right Hand. But God, having from the Beginning chosen me to Salvation, he did not leave me to rest upon this sandy Foundation, but set my Feet upon Christ, the Rock of Ages. And when God came to shew me the infinite Purity of his Nature, and the Spirituality of his Law; that it required perfect Obedience in Heart as well as Life, and that for the least Failure, even so small, as a wandring Thought in Duty, the Law accursed me: I soon found all my own Righteousness to be but as filthy Rags. The Spirit of the Lord blow’d upon all my Performances, and those which look’d green and beautiful before, soon wither’d as the Grass. My Comeliness was turned in me into Corruption: And a Sight of God’s infinite Holiness made me to cry out, Wo is me, I am undone, because of my Uncleanness. And how doest thou, poor self-righteous Creature, think to stand before this holy Lord God? Whatever are thy Performances, esteem’d by thee, either as Moral, or Evangelical; yet, if thou trustest to these, as the Matter of thy Righteousness before God; thou wilt one Day find it insufficient: either here, in Mercy, or hereafter, to thy eternal Misery. For the Bed is shorter [65] than that a Man can stretch himself on it: And the Covering narrower than that he can wrap himself in it. The approaching Storm of God’s Wrath will sweep away this Refuge of Lies, the Waters of his Indignation will overflow this Hiding-Place: Isa. xxviii. 17, 20. Thou mayst lean upon this House, thy own Doings, which thou hast rais’d, in thy Imagination, as a Shelter from the Storm, but it shall not stand, and hold it fast, but it shall not endure. All thy Hope of Safety from any of thy own Performances, shall be cut off, and thy Trust herein shall be as the Spider’s Web; soon swept away, as poisonous Dust, by the Bosom of Destruction, Job viii. 14, 15. Never think then to stand before God in the filthy Rags of thy own Righteousness; for if thou dost, thou wilt surely be found naked: All thy Sins will be charged upon thee, and this, as an additional Weight, will increase thy Condemnation, that thou hast rejected the Righteousness of Christ, hast not submitted to this glorious Appointment of God, for the Justification of a Sinner; but hast went about to establish thy own Righteousness. And thy House, thy Hope of Life, built upon this sandy Foundation, shall fall; thro’ the amazing Storms of Divine Vengeance that shall beat upon it in the awful Day of Judgment, and great shall be the Fall thereof, Mat. vii. 27. Ah! Poor Soul, there’s nothing will stand thee in stead in that Day, but the compleat Righteousness of Christ; his active and passive Obedience; if thou art not found under the Redeemer’s [66] Blood and Righteousness, if He is not thy Covert from the Storm, thy Hiding-place from the Wind; the Whirlwind of God’s Wrath will drive thee away like Chaff into everlasting Burnings; and the Storm of his Indignation, as an overflowing Scourge will sweep thee into the Gulph of eternal Misery. They that are incensed against Christ shall then be ashamed, they shall go to Confusion together that are Makers of Idols: That have set up the Idol of their own Righteousness, instead of submitting to the Righteousness of God: But Blessed are all those that put their Trust in him. For in Him shall all the Seed of Israel be justified, and shall glory. They shall be saved in the Lord (The Lord our Righteousness) with an everlasting Salvation, they shall not be ashamed, nor confounded World without End, Isa. xlv. 16, 17, 24, 25.

  3. A few Words to such poor Sinners, that are in some Measure sensible of the Misery of their natural State; and have had some Discoveries of Jesus Christ, the glorious Remedy, as infinitely able to save lost Sinners: And yet are afraid that he will not save them in particular. Dear Souls, I have told you that this was once my Case. I saw myself to be a chief Sinner; and in my perishing Condition I came to the Throne of Grace, to find Mercy, allur’d by some Hopes that I might, attended with innumerable Fears that I should not; and yet I obtained Mercy: I found Jesus Christ to be as infinitely willing to save me, as he was able. Be encourag’d therefore to come unto the Throne [67] of Grace, unto God in Christ, where Thousands have found Mercy: Yea, where never any Soul was deny’d its Suit. Whoever thou art therefore, that seest thyself to be undone by Reason of Sin, and utterly unable to help thyself out of this dreadful Condition, and hast a longing Desire after Jesus Christ, and his Salvation: Thou mayst come and receive Christ, and all Grace and Life in him, as the Father’s free Gift to the Chief of Sinners. I say, thou mayst come, as it is a Grant from the Throne, the Royal Proclamation of Heaven, Unto whosoever will, Rev. xxii. 17. But I know thy Weakness, thy Fears, and the Weights that hang upon thee, greatly hinder the Swiftness of thy Motion unto Jesus Christ, and to God in Him. But as Christ, and all his Grace, was prepar’d on Purpose for such as thee, yea, on Purpose for Thee: So, in the Lord’s own Time, he will strengthen thy weak Faith, encourage thy Hope, and take off thy Burdens; and give thee Access, with Freedom to Christ, and thro’ him by one Spirit to the Father. And mean while, come as thou canst: Tho’ with a trembling Heart, attended with ten Thousand Fears, under the Guilt of innumerable Transgressions; and from thy Knowledge of Christ the great Saviour, ask him for thy own Salvation; and He will give thee living Water to thy present Satisfaction, and everlasting Consolation, to thy Joy and Peace here, and to thine eternal Life and Glory hereafter. [68]

         There’s an infinite Ability in the Redeemer to save: He can command thy Deliverance from Sin, Death, and Hell, in the Virtue of his own Death; and bid thee live, both by a creative and authoritative Voice. Yea, by one Word of his Mouth, he can speak full Salvation to thee in an Instant: Enough to take up an Eternity of Time for thy Enjoyment of it. Come then, with all thy Wants, and prostrate thyself at this Feet; there’s enough in Christ to supply them all. Yea, there’s infinitely more than enough! Were thy Wants ten Thousand Times greater than they are, it’s all one when thou comest to this infinite Ocean. It’s in a Manner all one for the natural Sea to fill the largest Vessel as the smallest Cockle-shell; because of that vast Body of Waters which meet in it. But the Fulness of Christ is properly an immense, inexhaustible Ocean; that can never be drawn dry, or in the least wasted, by all the innumerable Multitudes of needy Sinners, that have been supply’d thence, are now, and shall be to an endless Eternity. The Saviour is God: And as such he calls poor Sinners to look to Him for Salvation. He is the eternal Son of the eternal Father, that has all the essential Glories of the Godhead in Him; and therefore He is an Over-match for all our spiritual Enemies. And He is Emanuel, God with Us, God in our Nature; and as such He is a fit Saviour, the anointed Saviour, and able to save to the Uttermost, even all them that come u to GOD by HIM. There [69] is an infinite Merit in his Blood, to cleanse thee from all Sin, I John i. 7. A Merit that far surpasseth all the Demerit of thy Sin: The Blood of Christ hath a louder Cry in the Ears of Justice for Peace and Pardon, than all thy Sins have for Condemnation and Wrath; Where Sin hath abounded, Free Grace, thro’ this Blood, doth much more abound, Heb. xii. 24. Rom. v. 20. There’s an infinite Fulness in his Righteousness for Justification. A Fulness that’s large enough to cover all thy Nakedness, and to present thee Faultless, with the highest Acceptance, before a God glorious in Holiness. A Fulness that every Way answers the infinite Purity of Jehovah’s Nature, and the Perfection of his holy Law. A Fulness that will make thee Out-shine, not only perfect Adam in his innocent State, but even the glorious Angels in Heaven. For poor Sinners are made, no less than, the Righteousness of God in him, 2 Cor. v. 21. There is also an infinite Fulness of Grace and Holiness in the Person of Christ, to present thee Unblameable before the Presence of Jehovah’s Glory, notwithstanding all the Filth and Impurity of thy Nature: For this holy Jesus is made unto us Sanctification, I Cor. i. 30. And in him, likewise, there’s an infinite Fulness of all Grace and Glory, to be communicated to thee thro’ Time, and to Eternity: To make thee holy and happy here, and perfectly glorious for ever! But oh, who can conceive, much less express, the unsearchable Riches of Christ’s Ability [70] to save Sinners! To know it fully, is beyond the Reach of created Understanding.

         And as Christ is able to save to the Uttermost all them that come unto God by him, Heb. vii. 25. So, he is as willing as he is able. The infinite Willingness of his Heart is as large as the Almighty Power of his Arm. The High-Priest’s Breast-Plate and Ephod, under the Law, was to be fastened together by a Lace of Blue, Exod. xxviii. 28. To shew, that the Heart and Arm, the Grace and Power of Christ, are inseparably join’d in a Sinner’s Salvation. What Encouragement then hast thou to come to Christ, who has promis’d to give thee Rest? To cast thyself into his Arms, and stay upon his Grace, Power, and Faithfulness, who has declar’d, that he will in no wise cast out any poor Sinner, that comes unto him, the great Saviour? Matt. xi. 28. John vi. 37. He has given thee his great Word, that he is willing to save thee. Canst thou believe it? Or darest thou, thro’ Unbelief, give him the Lie? Ah poor Soul, Christ has been before-hand with thee in Willingness. If he had not been first willing to save thee, thou hadst never been made willing to be sav’d by him. His Love has been a Love preventing thee: He did not stay for thy Willingness; but began thy Salvation, in giving thee a new Nature, before thou began’st to breathe after it: That so thou might desire Life, and come to him for it. How welcome then shalt thou be to his gracious Heart and open Arms! Thou canst not please him better, than to come to him just as thou [71] art, a miserable, helpless, undone Sinner; for all the Mercy, Grace, and Salvation thou wantest. He will not send thee away empty. He has said, Open thy Mouth wide, and I will fill it, Psal. Lxxxi. 10. Thou canst not ask more Grace than he has to bestow, and is willing to give. He delights to fill such needy, empty Souls, as thou art. This was the great End of his Death: His Heart was so willing to save thee, that he died for thee, that he might accomplish it. Yea, so intense was his Desire to save thee, that thy Salvation was Part of the Joy set before him, for which he endured the Cross. He took Pleasure in the Thoughts of it, so long since: And the Joy of it fore-view’d, carried him thro’ the Agonies of Death. And now the bitter Work is over, and He’s advanc’d to the Right Hand of God, having all Power in Heaven and Earth given him, that he might give eternal Life to Sinners: Dost thou think his Heart is chang’d? No, as he dy’d for thee on the Cross, so he lives for thee on the Throne: He is Jesus Christ the Same, in his boundless Love, Grace, and Mercy, Yesterday, To-day, and forever, Heb. xiii. 8. He is not now to die for thee: Tho’ such is his unchangeable Grace, that if it was yet to do, he would go thro’ Death to save thee: But, blessed be God that Work is done, for ever done, and full Salvation, eternal Redemption obtain’d: And having entered into Heaven with his own Blood, on Purpose to save thee by the Almighty Power of his Arm: Dost thou think he will [72] now deny thy Request; when to do it, would be to deny himself; not only in the Grace of his Heart, but in the very End of his Death? And canst thou think that his Love that is strong enough to die for thee yet, was there need; will not give thee Life, when he can save thee now, with a Word of his Mouth! Oh, Believe it, the Willingness of Christ’s Heart to save thee, doth infinitely surpass the largest Desires of thy Soul, after his Salvation. What should hinder thee then, from an immediate running into Christ’s Bosom since there is such Room for thee in his Heart? I dare say, nothing but thy Unbelief: And, blessed be God, that shall not hinder thee, always, neither. Would it be an unspeakable Joy to thee, to get into Christ’s Arms: let me say, it would be much more so to him. The Day of his Espousals with a poor Sinner, is the Day of the Gladness of his Heart, Song iii. 21. But if thou still doubt his Willingness to embrace thee: I’ll only say, as Philip to Nathanael, Come and see: Come and try his boundless Grace; and see if it be not every Way as large as the omnipotent Power of his Arm! John i. 46. Oh come and cast thyself at the Saviour’s Feet, and say, as that poor Man did, who was full of Leprosy, Lord if thou wilt, thou canst make me clean. And Jesus, in the Infinity of his Grace, will answer thee, as he did him, and say, I will, be thou clean, Luke v. 13.