Works of John Bunyan Volume I Part 91

Third. Coming sinner, I will add another encouragement for thy help.

1. G.o.d hath prepared a mercy-seat, a throne of grace to sit on; that thou mayest come thither to him, and that he may from thence hear thee, and receive thee. "I will commune with thee," saith he, "from above the mercy-seat" (Exo 25:22). As who shall say, sinner, When thou comest to me, thou shalt find me upon the mercy-seat, where also I am always found of the undone coming sinner. Thither I bring my pardons; there I hear and receive their pet.i.tions, and accept them to my favour.

2. G.o.d hath also prepared a golden altar for thee to offer thy prayers and tears upon. A golden altar! It is called a "golden altar," to show what worth it is of in G.o.d's account: for this golden altar is Jesus Christ; this altar sanctifies thy gift, and makes thy sacrifice acceptable. This altar, then, makes thy groans golden groans; thy tears golden tears; and thy prayers golden prayers, in the eye of that G.o.d thou comest to, coming sinner (Rev 8; Matt 23:19; Heb 10:10; 1 Peter 2:5).

3. G.o.d hath strewed all the way, from the gate of h.e.l.l, where thou wast, to the gate of heaven, whither thou art going, with flowers out of his own garden. Behold how the promises, invitations, calls, and encouragements, like lilies, lie round about thee! take heed that thou dost not tread them under foot, sinner. With promises, did I say? Yea, he hath mixed all those with his own name, his Son's name; also, with the name of mercy, goodness, compa.s.sion, love, pity, grace, forgiveness, pardon, and what not, that may encourage the coming sinner.

4. He hath also for thy encouragement laid up the names, and set forth the sins, of those that have been saved. In this book they are fairly written, that thou, through patience and comfort of the Scriptures, mightest have hope. (1.) In this book is recorded Noah's maim and sin; and how G.o.d had mercy upon him. (2.) In this record is fairly written the name of Lot, and the nature of his sin; and how the Lord had mercy upon him. (3.) In this record thou hast also fairly written the names of Moses, Aaron, Gideon, Samson, David, Solomon, Peter, Paul, with the nature of their sins; and how G.o.d had mercy upon them; and all to encourage thee, coming sinner.

Fourth. I will add yet another encouragement for the man that is coming to Jesus Christ. Art thou coming? Art thou coming, indeed?

Why,

1. Then this thy coming is by virtue of G.o.d's call. Thou art called.

Calling goes before coming. Coming is not of works, but of him that calleth. "He goeth up into a mountain, and calleth unto him whom he would; and they came unto him" (Mark 3:13).

2. Art thou coming? This is also by virtue of illumination. G.o.d has made thee see; and, therefore, thou art coming. So long as thou wast darkness, thou lovedst darkness, and couldst not abide to come, because thy deeds were evil; but being now illuminated and made to see what and where thou art, and also what and where thy Saviour is, now thou art coming to Jesus Christ; "Blessed art thou, Simon Barjona: for flesh and blood hath not revealed it unto thee,"

saith Christ, "but my Father which is in heaven" (Matt 16:17).

3. Art thou coming? This is because G.o.d hath inclined thine heart to come. G.o.d hath called thee, illuminated thee, and inclined thy heart to come; and, therefore, thou comest to Jesus Christ. It is G.o.d that worketh in thee to will, and to come to Jesus Christ.

Coming sinner, bless G.o.d for that he hath given thee a will to come to Jesus Christ. It is a sign that thou belongest to Jesus Christ, because G.o.d has made thee willing to come to him (Psa 110:3). Bless G.o.d for slaying the enmity of thy mind; had he not done it, thou wouldst as yet have hated thine own salvation.

4. Art thou coming to Jesus Christ? It is G.o.d that giveth thee power: power to pursue thy will in the matters of thy salvation, is the gift of G.o.d. "It is G.o.d which worketh in you both to will and to do" (Phil 2:13). Not that G.o.d worketh will to come, where he gives no power; but thou shouldest take notice, that power is an additional mercy. The church saw that will and power were two things, when she cried, "Draw me, we will run after thee" (Song 1:4). And so did David too, when he said, "I will run the way of thy commandments, when thou shalt enlarge my heart" (Psa 119:32).

Will to come, and power to pursue thy will, is double mercy, coming sinner.

5. All thy strange, pa.s.sionate, sudden rus.h.i.+ngs forward after Jesus Christ, coming sinners know what I mean, they also are thy helps from G.o.d. Perhaps thou feelest at some times more than at others, strong stirrings up of heart to fly to Jesus Christ; now thou hast at this time a sweet and stiff gale of the Spirit of G.o.d, filling thy sails with the fresh gales of his good Spirit; and thou ridest at those times as upon the wings of the wind, being carried out beyond thyself, beyond the most of thy prayers, and also above all thy fear and temptations.

6. Coming sinner, hast thou not now and then a kiss of the sweet lips of Jesus Christ, I mean some blessed word dropping like a honey-comb upon thy soul to revive thee, when thou art in the midst of thy dumps?

7. Does not Jesus Christ sometimes give thee a glimpse of himself, though perhaps thou seest him not so long a time as while one may tell twenty.

8. Hast thou not sometimes as it were the very warmth of his wings overshadowing the face of thy soul, that gives thee as it were a gload22 upon thy spirit, as the bright beams of the sun do upon thy body, when it suddenly breaks out of a cloud, though presently all is gone away? Well, all these things are the good hand of thy G.o.d upon thee, and they are upon thee to constrain, to provoke, and to make thee willing and able to come, coming sinner, that thou mightest in the end be saved.

FOOTNOTES:

1 "My grace is sufficient for thee," and the language of the church, conscious of its own weakness and the Lord's all-sufficiency, is, "Draw me, we will run after thee" (Song 1:4).--Mason.

2 No outward profession is accepted, except it springs from inward love to Christ.--Ed.

3 How clearly is every seeming difficulty explained by Bunyan. The Father entered into covenant with the Son, in eternity, to save his elect; and, in time, as they appear upon earth, the Father giveth them to Christ by effectual calling, and he brings them to eternal glory.--Ed.

4 To come unto Christ, in its proper sense, is to receive him as he is offered to us in the Word; to believe in him, as a suitable and all-sufficient Saviour; to submit to his government, in both suffering and doing his will, with all lowly-mindedness and humility; and this by the powerful operation of the Holy Spirit upon the soul.--Mason.

5 "Salve;" relief, aid, or help.

'Which Cambell seign, though he could not salve, He done undoe, yet for to salve his name And purchase honour to his friend's behalve, This goodly counterfesaunce he did frame."

--Spenser's Faery Queen.

6 We cannot remember all G.o.d's benefits, but how p.r.o.ne we are to forget them all!--Ed.

7 Christian, in the Valley of the Shadow of Death, was thus exercised: --"I took notice that now poor Christian was so confounded that he did not know his own voice; and thus I perceived it:--Just when he was come over against the mouth of the burning pit, one of the wicked ones got behind him, and stepped up softly to him, and whisperingly suggested many grievous blasphemies to him, which he verily thought had proceeded from his own mind." See also Grace Abounding, No.

100-102.--Ed.

8 "Warm gleads;" from Saxon glow, anything heated or hot.

"My destiny to behold her doth me leade, And yet I know I runne into the gleade."--Wyatt.--Ed.

9 Many misspend their time in poring upon their own hearts, to find out some evidence of their interest in Christ, when they should rather be employed in receiving Christ, and walking in him, by a confident faith grounded on the Divine testimony.--Mason.

10 How striking are Bunyan's ill.u.s.trations! The devil, as a roaring lion, is in pursuit of the flying sinner; he would flee faster than his infirmities will let him. We cannot wonder that modern preachers borrowed so vivid and truthful a figure.--Ed.

11 A Christian is "never safe but when watchful;" he should keep a jealous eye on his own weakness, and a believing eye on the promise and power of Christ, and he shall be preserved from falling.--Mason.

12 "Let him;" hinder him. See 2 Thessalonians 2:7. Obsolete.--Imperial Dictionary.--Ed.

13 "The Scripture contains many gracious promises in behalf of the children of believing parents; but grace is not hereditary. It is the parent's part to pray with and for, admonish, and piously train up his children; but, after all, must recommend them to the tender mercies of G.o.d, which the children of many prayers often happily experience."--Mason. O that all persons may solemnly consider this searching truth! especially the children of believers. The coming of your father or mother to Christ cannot be imputed to you; come for yourself, or you must perish. As you love your souls, believe not that awful delusion, that any ceremony could make you a child of G.o.d.--Ed.

14 "While of late;" until of late.--Ed.

15 "Lie at Jesus Christ;" to lay down, lie at the feet of Jesus Christ, to persevere like the Syrophenician woman, Mark 7:25.--Ed.

16 "Ply;" to solicit importunately.--Ed.

17 "A flam;" a fable, an imposition.

18 "Most an end;" continually, perpetually.

19 How awful is the confidence of the self-righteous pharisee; he considers himself more righteous than the poor penitent, who is clothed in Christ's righteousness, the garments of salvation.

The self-righteous says:--"Stand by, I am holier than thou. Thank G.o.d, I am not like this publican." While in G.o.d's sight, poor wretched boaster, thou art clothed in filthy rags.--Ed.

20 This nation now pays some eight or ten millions sterling a year.

Had G.o.d sanctioned this diabolical trade in souls, all Christendom would have been divided into two cla.s.ses-priests and slaves.--Ed.

21 "Twitting;" taunting, or rebuking.--Ed.

22 "A gload;" a warm, eager, pa.s.sionate gazing: now obsolete.--Ed.

JUSTIFICATION BY AN IMPUTED RIGHTEOUSNESS;

OR,