1. That the Lord is graciously pleased sometimes to privilege his people with very remarkable tokens of his gracious presence. This doctrine is clear from the context, verses 3d and 4th—"For I will pour water upon him that is thirsty, and floods upon the dry ground; I will pour my Spirit upon thy seed, and my blessing upon thine offspring. And they shall spring up as among the grass, as willows by the watercourses."
Under this head of doctrine, he gave the following marks to evidence whether the present time of renewing our covenant with God was indeed to us a time of the Lord's privileging us with his gracious presence—1st, That a time of God's privileging his people with his gracious presence, and with a shower of gospel grace, is a very inviting and alluring time; wherein, as the Lord invites his people to their duty, by engaging their hearts and souls, through his Spirit's gracious influences, to fall in love with him and his commandments, so they mutually invite one another to covenant with God. 2d, That such a time proves a soul-engaging and taking time, wherein souls are engaged to fall in love with the covenant, and with Christ the Mediator of the covenant, and are taken in the net of the gospel. 3d, That a time of the letting out of God's gracious presence is ordinarily a time of many sweet and excellent resolutions, the people of God resolving to walk more accurately and circumspectly in the ways of new obedience. 4th, That this usually is a time of ridding marches, and clearing of evidences. 5th, That it is a time of many and special confirmations of God's love to the soul. 6th, That this time of God's letting out much of his gracious presence to his people, is a very uniting and healing time to them amongst themselves. Having given these marks, to show whether the Lord were, at the occasion, letting out his gracious presence, he added, by way of caution, that seeing (no doubt) the people of God would be expecting something of all these, upon the undertaking of so great a work; if so be that they found it not, they should not thence be induced to have hard thoughts of the Lord, and to conclude that he keeps not his usual method with his people, or is not so good to them as formerly he hath been: for whatever defects there are upon his people's part, there is none upon the Lord's, for he remains the same to them, providing they do so to him; the change of his dispensations towards his people being from the change of his people's deportment towards him.
The Second Doctrine, resulting more directly from the words, was, That the Lord's Spirit poured out in plenty upon his people will quickly bring them to an embracing of him, and to a public acknowledgment and avouching of the same. Thus it was with the people of God in the text—no sooner does the Lord "pour water upon the thirsty, and floods upon the dry ground," even his Spirit upon the spiritual seed of Israel, but presently they are at covenanting work and subscribing work; "One shall say, I am the Lord's," etc. In prosecuting this doctrine he shewed first negatively that he was not for that occasion largely to treat of the several ways that the Spirit useth to manage this work of engaging the hearts of his people to embrace Christ, and so to make a public avouchment of the same; whether he doth it by representing to their views the sweet and precious promises made in the covenant of grace, thereby sweetly alluring and drawing them with the cords of love to himself, or by holding forth to their consciences the terrors and threatenings of the law, and thereby powerfully constraining them to fly to him as to the city of refuge from the face of Divine Justice pursuing them: for seeing the Spirit is a free agent and blows both how and where he listeth, he may engage a soul to close with Christ by either of these ways, though most usually he doth it by a conjunction and concurrence of both. Only this ought to satisfy us, that what way soever the Spirit taketh in bringing a soul to embrace Christ upon the gospel terms, he so manageth the work as that the end is effectually and infallibly attained.
Nor Secondly, Was he to enquire into the measure of the outpouring of the Spirit's graces and operations, which is effectual for attaining the end, this being one of the deep things of God which the Spirit alone searcheth, and therefore is not necessary for us further to know, save only that we understand so much to be needful as may serve to empty the creature of all confidence in or dependence upon itself, or any other creature-helps whatsoever, and bring it to rely upon Christ alone, for acceptance with God; so much is necessary, and less cannot be sufficient.
Nor Thirdly, Was he to handle the material differences between those who are brought really and sincerely to accept, embrace and acknowledge the Lord for their Lord, and to avouch the same publicly, which presupposeth a mighty power of the Spirit manifested in the sweet impressions which he maketh upon the soul, moving them sweetly and readily to comply with and yield to Christ without any longer resistance, and these who only in semblance and shew profess to avouch Christ to be their Lord, and feign submission to him, not from the Spirit's effectual and saving operations, but either from carnal and external considerations, or at most from the Spirit's common motions and convictions; which differences commonly arise from the different natures, motives, manner or ends of this their acknowledging and avouching Christ for their Lord, and covenanting with Him.
These things, as not so immediately proper for the work in hand, though natively involved in the doctrine, being only cleared in transition; he came in the second place more positively to insist upon and handle the following heads. First, More generally to propose some considerations which make such a great work as renewing covenant with the Lord a weighty, hard and difficult work. And upon the other hand, to lay down some counterbalancing considerations which render such a work more easy and light, and may afford matter of encouragement toward the undertaking of it. Secondly, More particularly in application to ourselves and the work in hand, to lay before those who were resolved to enter into covenant with the Lord, what were the things that seemed to speak against us in the work, and might prove matter of discouragement in the undertaking of it. And what, upon the other side, might speak for us, and be ground of encouragement to us to go forward in humble and sincere endeavors to renew our covenant with the Lord. Thirdly, To give some advices and directions to such as were resolved upon the work. As for the first: The considerations which make covenanting work weighty and difficult. The first consideration was drawn from the greatness of the party to be covenanted with, the great and glorious Jehovah, the Creator of the ends of the earth, who is a holy and jealous God, and who will not forgive the iniquity of such as are false hearted and perfidious in his covenant, obstinately persisting in their false dealing; so Joshua premonisheth a people making very fair resolutions and promises to serve the Lord, that it was a harder work than at the first sight they apprehended; "That they could not serve the Lord, in regard he is an holy God, he is a jealous God, and would not forgive their transgressions nor their sins; and that if they should forsake the Lord, and serve strange gods, then he would turn and do them hurt and consume them, after he had done them good," Josh. xxiv. 19, 20. 'Tis a part of his name, Exod. xxxiv. 7. That he will by no means clear the (obstinately and impenitently) guilty.
A second consideration that makes the work of covenanting with God to appear a hard and difficult work, was taken from the nature of the work itself, which is to serve the Lord in a covenant way, and in the capacity of covenanted children, this covenant relation involving in it a walk and conversation in all things like the chosen of the Lord; and 'tis no small matter, so to walk, and so to behave as to be accounted worthy of a covenanted union with the Lord and interest in him, this covenant relation being confirmed with such awful sanctions, as in scripture we find, Neh. x. 29. "They------ entered into a curse and into an oath, to walk in God's law," &c. This consideration, that covenanting work is weighty in its own nature, was further illustrated and amplified from the difficulty both of the things to be engaged against, and of the things to be engaged unto. As for the former, the things to be engaged against, which is sin in all its kinds and degrees, and in all the inducements to it, both with reference to ourselves, and also as to participation in the sins of others. This must first be put away, if one would be a right covenanter. Well did old Jacob understand the necessity of this, who being resolved to go up to Bethel, to renew his covenant with God, that answered him in the day of his strait, advises his family first "to put away the strange gods that were amongst them, and to be clean." Gen. xxxv. 2. So David assures us, Psal. xxxiv. 14, that departing from evil must precede doing of good. A man that would lift up his face without spot in renewing covenant with God, must first "put iniquity far away, and not suffer wickedness to dwell in his tabernacles," as Zophar advises Job, chap. xi. 14, 15. They that would take on with a new master must be fairly parted from the old, there is no way of pleasing both Christ and mammon, and therefore no possibility of serving both; whence the nature of covenanting work requires, that there be an upright putting away of all sin; for if the soul have any secret reserves in favor of a beloved sin, it has no ground to think that Christ will accept it, as his covenanted spouse and bride. Nor is this all, but 2dly, it must be mourned over and truly bewailed, especially upon the account of the offence done to a gracious God thereby; which sorrow must not be of an ordinary sort, but an extraordinary and most intense sorrow, for it cannot be an ordinary kind of sorrow, provided it be in any suitable measure proportioned to the offence. And 3dly, which follows upon the former, there must be a "loathing of the person's self because of these its ways and doings that have not been good in his sight," Ezek. vi. 9, even to that degree as to fill the soul with wonder and astonishment, that ever it should have an occasion of renewing covenant with God again. 4thly, There must be a sincere and hearty resolving against all sins, consequent upon this loathing; the soul saying with a steady purpose, "if I have done iniquity I will do so no more," Job xxxiv. 32.
2dly, As to the latter, the things engaged unto render the nature of covenanting work difficult and weighty, which are duties of various kinds, such as, 1st, Holiness towards God, which is one special and chief part of the covenant, and that not for a time only, but for ever; both in regard that God, the party covenanted with, is holy and unchangeably so, and calls his people to imitate him in this attribute especially; and also in regard that the covenant itself is for its nature holy, all the articles being morally good and consonant to the royal law, the scriptures of truth; and for the extent of its duration, of perpetual force and obligation. This duty of holiness towards God, engaged to in the covenant, comprehends in it a zealous endeavor to maintain the purity of the doctrine, worship, discipline and government of his institution, in opposition to all those who would corrupt it, or decline from it. 2d, Righteousness towards our neighbor, and more especially to our covenanted brother; which righteousness should discover itself both in reference to sin and duty, by reproving him for sin; or upon his rejecting reproof, by withdrawing from him, that he may be ashamed, and so come to be reclaimed from his evil course; and by affording him all that help and assistance to covenanted duties, that may be warrantably called for, and generally by uprightness towards him in all our transactions and dealings of any kind. 3d, Faithfulness towards our nation, which comprehends a constant endeavor to advance and promote in our station the common good thereof; and a stedfast opposition to the courses that tend to take away the privilege of the same. 4th, Uprightness towards ourselves, in everything relating to the real good of our own souls and bodies; by walking in all the duties of soberness, temperance, and moderation; for as others are to have their due, so ourselves are not to be neglected.
A third consideration, whereby the duty of renewing covenant with God appears to be difficult and weighty, was deduced from the manner and way of engaging; whereunto several things of great difficulty to be attained were showed to be absolutely necessary, as, 1st, Judgment, to know, and in some measure comprehend, the nature of the duties to be engaged to, and the advantages flowing from the right entering into, and keeping of the covenant, and the losses redounding to the breakers thereof. 2d, Seriousness, which, if ever it be in exercise, will certainly then be most lively, when the soul is entering upon a work of so high import, as making a covenant with God; for then the creature has one of two things to look for, either covenant blessings, or covenant curses, according as it performs or not performs the tenor of the covenant. 3d, Deliberation; rashness in covenanting is of dangerous consequence: 'tis not the example of others only, nor raw flashes of conviction or love, nor external considerations, as gain, honor, men's approbation, &c., that must induce to this duty; but a fixed permanent purpose of heart and soul, rationally and deliberately entered into. 4th, Heart-integrity, That it be done with all the heart, 2 Chron. xv. 15, for the man brings himself under a curse, that "having a male in his flock, sacrificeth to the Lord a corrupt thing." Mal. i. 14.
A fourth consideration, from whence the work of covenanting comes to be a difficult and hard work, was deduced from the way and manner of performing the duties engaged to; which is (as 'tis expressed in the covenant) with sincerity, reality, and constancy; the difficulty of attaining to these qualifications in the performance of covenant-duties, arising partly from the strength of corruption within, the law of sin and death, which opposes the law of God; and partly from the strength of snares and temptations from without; which requires, that (as becomes covenanted children) there be a daily recourse to Jesus Christ, for light to discover, and strength to overcome these corruptions and temptations; and life, that the soul turn not dead and insensible under them.