Is not this an encouragement to the biggest sinners to make their application to Christ for mercy? "Come unto me, all ye that labor and are heavy laden," doth also confirm this thing; that is, that the biggest sinner and he that hath the biggest burden, is he who is first invited. Christ pointeth over the heads of thousands as he sits on the throne of grace, directly to such a man, and says, "Bring in hither the maimed, the halt, and the blind; let the Jerusalem shiner that stands there hehind, come to me." Wherefore, since Christ says to thee, Come, let the angels make a lane and let all men give place, that the Jerusalem sinner may come to Christ for mercy.
DESPAIR OF MERCY UNREASONABLE.
Would Jesus Christ have mercy offered, in the first place, to the biggest sinners? Then this shows how unreasonable a thing it is for men to despair of mercy.
I am concerned only with the despair of those that would be saved, but are too strongly borne down with the burden of their sins. I say, therefore, to thee that art thus, And why despair? Thy despair, if it was reasonable, should flow from thee because found in the land that is beyond the grave, or because thou certainly knowest that Christ will not or cannot save thee.
But for the first, thou art yet in the land of the living; and for the second, thou hast ground to believe quite the contrary. Christ is able to save to the uttermost them that come to God by him; and if he were not willing, he would not have commanded that mercy, in the first place, should be offered to the biggest sinners. Besides, he hath said, "And let him that is athirst come, and whosoever will, let him take the water of life freely"—that is, with all my heart. What ground, now, is here for despair? If thou sayest, "The number and burden of my sins;" I answer, Nay; that is rather a ground for faith; because such a one, above all others, is invited by Christ to come unto him, yea, promised rest and forgiveness, if he come. Matt. 11: 28. What ground, then, to despair? Verily, none at all Thy despair, then, is a thing unreasonable, and without footing in the word.
"But I have no experience of God's love; God has given me no comfort or ground of hope, though I have waited upon him for it many a day."
Thou hast experience of God's love, in that he has opened thine eyes to see thy sins, and in that he has given thee desires to be saved by Jesus Christ. For by thy sense of sin, thou art made to see thy poverty of spirit, and that has laid thee under a sure ground to hope that heaven shall be thine hereafter.
Also, thy desires to be saved by Christ have put thee under another promise, Matt. 5: 3, 6; so there are two to hold thee up in them, though thy present burden be never so heavy. As for what thou sayest as to God's silence to thee, perhaps he has spoken to thee once or twice already, but thou hast not perceived it. Job 33:14, 15.
Besides, God says, "They that wait upon the Lord shall renew their strength; they shall mount up with wings as eagles;" but perhaps it may be long first. "I waited patiently," says David, "I sought the Lord;" and at length his cry was heard: wherefore, he bids his soul wait on God, and says, "For it is good" so to do "before thy saints." Psalm 40:1; 52:9; 62:5.
And what if thou waitest upon God all thy days? Is it below thee? And what if God will cross his book and blot out the handwriting that is against thee, arid not let thee know it as yet? Is it fit to say unto God, Thou art hard-hearted? Despair not; thou hast no ground to despair, so long as thou livest in this world. It is a sin to begin to despair before one sets his foot over the threshold of hell-gates. For them that are there, let them despair, and spare not; but as for thee, thou hast no ground to do it. What, despair of bread in a land that is full of corn; despair of mercy, when our God is full of mercy; despair of mercy, when God goes about by his ministers, beseeching sinners to be reconciled to him?