ys of the gospel, and of the Son of Man
a-coming (and who can tell how soon this night shall be at an end?) that
all these doctrines of nature shall receive a more conspicuous and
shameful dash than they have received for these many ages. Hithertil
when Satan raised up and sent forth his qualified instruments for this
desperate work, God always prepared carpenters to fright these horns,
and thus gospel truth came forth, as gold out of a furnace, more clear
and shining: And who can tell but there may be a dispensation of the
pure grace of God, in opposition to these perverting ways of Satan, yet
to come, that, as to the measure of light and power, shall excel
whatever hath been since the apostles' days. Even so, come, Lord Jesus.
However, Madam, the grace of God will be what it is, to all the chosen
and ransomed ones, they will find in it, which will make whatever cometh
in competition therewith or would darken it, contemptible in their eyes:
And happy they, of whom in this day wherein darkness covereth the earth,
and gross darkness the people, it may be said, the Lord hath arisen upon
them, and his glory hath been seen upon them: For whatever others,
whose understanding is yet darkened, and they alienated from the life of
God through the ignorance that is in them, because of the blindness of
their hearts, imagine of the gospel-grace, and however they discern
nothing of the heavenly and spiritual glory of the grace of God; yet
they, being delivered or cast into the form and mould of the doctrine of
the gospel which they have obeyed from the heart, through the powerful
and irresistible efficacy of the mighty grace of God, have seen such an
alluring excellency in that gracious contrivance of infinite wisdom, to
set forth the unparallelableness of the pure grace of God, and are daily
seeing more and more of the graciousness and wisdom of that heavenly
invention, in its adequate suitableness to all their necessities, that
as they cannot but admire and commend the riches of that grace that
interlineth every sentence of the gospel, and the greatness of that love
that hath made such a completely broad plaister to cover all their sores
and wounds; so the longer they live, and the more they drink of this
pure fountain of heavenly nectar; and the more their necessities press
them to a taking on of new obligations, because of new supplies from
this ocean of grace, the more they are made to admire the wisdom and
goodness of the Author