sin unto death, and there is a sin not unto death: there is a sin which may stand with grace, and there is a sin which cannot stand with grace: there is the spot of the godly, and there is the spot of the wicked: there is a gross sin, a reigning sin; and there is a sin of infirmity: there is a sin, for which God will leave and cast off the sinner, witness Judas's sin, the sin of the false disciple: and there is a sin for which God will not cast one off; witness the sin of these true disciples: oh, then what cause have we to make it out to our own souls, whether our sins be sins of infirmity or not.

But it seems that all the sins of the godly are not sins of infirmity, and God will not cast off a godly man for any sin: what advantage, therefore, hath this sin of infirmity above other sins; or what disadvantage do the other sins of the godly labour under, which this sin of infirmity doth not?

Much, very much: for though my sin be great; yet if it be a sin of infirmity, it shall not hinder the present acceptance of my duty. Hezekiah and the people were not prepared according to the preparation of the sanctuary, that was his and their weakness; but he prayed, and the Lord heard his prayer: so David said in his haste, "I am cast out of thy sight;" this was his infirmity, yet he prayed withal; and saith he, "Nevertheless thou heardest the voice of my supplication." But if a man, a good man, do fall into a foul, gross, and scandalous sin, though the Lord pardon it to him afterward, yet it will suspend his present communion with God.

Although my sin be great, yet if it be but an infirmity, it shall not hinder the sense of my justification. A foul and scandalous breach upon our sanctification, will make a breach upon the sense of our justification: but though the sin be great, yet if it be but an infirmity, it shall not make a breach upon the sense of our justification.

Though my sin be great, yet if it be but an infirmity, there is a pardon that lies in course for it; and though it be good to repent of every sin, with a distinct, and particular repentance, yet it is not necessary that there should be a particular repentance for every sin of infirmity. If a man, though a good man, do commit a gross, foul, and scandalous sin, there must be a particular repentance for it; and without that,

there will be no peace, no true peace in his soul: but if the sin be only a sin of infirmity, a general repentance may, and will serve for that; "Who knows the errors of his life?" saith David; "Lord cleanse thou me from my secret faults." Though a man's sin be great, yet if it be but an infirmity, it shall never bring a scourge upon his family. It is a great misery to a good parent, to see his family scourged for his sin. Possibly the sins of a godly man may bring a rod on his family: "Because of this," saith the Lord to David, "the sword shall never depart from thine house." But now if the sin be only a sin of infirmity, my family shall never be scourged for that.

And though my sin be great, yet if it be but a sin of infirmity, it shall never spoil my gifts, nor make them unprofitable: if a man have great gifts, praying, exercising gifts, and his life be scandalous, what saith the world? Aye, this man hath exceeding good gifts indeed, but do ye see how he lives? A scandalous life soils and spoils his gifts, and doth make them unuseful. But now if my sin be only a sin of infirmity, it shall never soil my gifts, so as to make them unuseful and unprofitable unto others. Surely then, there is a great, and a vast difference between this sin of infirmity, and another sin; and therefore why should we not labour to make it out with clearness to our own souls, what kind of sins our sins are? Every man almost thinks that his sin is a sin of infirmity: come to the drunkard, swearer, adulterer, opposer, and these will tell you, that their sins, are but sins of infirmity; they will rail at and oppose the people of God, and yet their sins are but sins of infirmity; swear, and swear daily, yet their sins are but sins of infirmity; go to the taphouse, play-house, whore-house, and yet their sins but sins. of infirmity: the vilest of men think their sins are only infirmities. But is there such a great difference between sins and sins; this, and the other sins? Then why should we not look wishly into our condition; consider our ways, and labour to make it out with clearness to our own souls, whether our sins, be sins of infirmity, or not?

But suppose that upon due search and examination, I find that my sin is no other than a sin of infirmity, which will not cast me off, although through my weakness, I do fall into it again and again, what then?

Then several duties follow, and accordingly you are to take up these, and the like gracious resolutions.

If my sin be a sin of infirmity, and no other, then through grace, will I observe what God's design is, in suffering and leaving such infirmities in me, and will labour what I can and may, to promote and advance that design: God could have freed me from all sin, these infirmities as well as the greater; but God had some great designs in leaving of these infirmities, as that I may be always humbled, that I may be always upon the work of mortification, that Jesus Christ may be the more sweet and precious to me, that I may live in continual dependance on him, that I may not gather up the assurance of my salvation only from my sanctification, but from the free grace of God, and his absolute promise, that I may be weary of my present state, and groan after heaven, where no imperfections are; and that I may learn to pity others, and therefore through grace, I will do what I can to help on these designs.*

If my sin be but a sin of infirmity, and God will not cast me off for it, then, through the grace of God, will I never believe these false reports of Christ, and those misrepresentations of him which Satan would put upon him, whereby he would persuade me and others, that our Lord Christ is an hard master: as Satan doth labour to present himself to me as an angel of light, so he would represent Christ as an angel of darkness. But is this true, that the Lord will not cast me off for my sins of infirmity? then will I never believe that my dear Saviour is an hard master.

If the Lord Christ will not cast me off for my sins of infirmity, then, through the grace of God, I will not question my spiritual estate and condition for every sin; I will grieve for every sin of infirmity because it is a sin, but I will not question my condition, because it is but a sin of infirmity.

Then will not I cast off myself and others for the sins of

* Deletur iniquitas manet infirmitas. Augustin.

Sed quare Deus talia peccato sinit fieri a suis, cur sic impingere eos permittit? respondetur ex effectis, ideo ita permittit Deus ut occasionem accipiat multarum bonarum rerum non enim labantur sancti ut pereunt sed ut copiose eis Deus benefaciat. ut lapsus principio operatur humiliatem, deinde invocationem ut nos excitat ut nobis ipsis irascamur et nos damnemus, ut majori studio caveamus. Luth. in Gen. cap. xx.

infirmities. Shall Christ's eye be good and shall my eye be bad? Will not Christ cast me off for mine infirmities, and shall I cast off others for their infirmities? God forbid.

Then will not I cast off the things of Christ because of any infirmity that may adhere to them, or the dispensation of them. When Christ took our nature on him, his deity was veiled under our humanity, his excellency under our infirmity. So now, his grace and his dispensations are veiled under the infirmity of our administrations: as for example: preaching is an ordinance of Christ, yet the sermon may be so delivered, with so much weakness of the speaker, that the ordinance of Christ may be veiled under much infirmity. So the admonition of a fallen brother is an ordinance of Christ, yet it may be so administered, with so much passion in the speaker, that this ordinance may be veiled under much infirmity. Scarcely any ordinance but is veiled under some infirmity in regard of its administration. But is this true, that the Lord will not cast me away because of mine infirmities? surely, then, I will never cast away the ordinances, or things of Christ, because of those infirmities which may adhere or cleave unto them.

And if the Lord will not cast me off for my infirmities, then, through grace, I will never be discouraged from the performance of any duty. I will pray as I can and hear as I can, and though I be not able to pray as I would, I will pray as I am able; and though I am not able to examine mine own heart as I would, yet I will do what I am able, for the Lord will not cast me off for infirmities, and therefore I will not cast off my duties because of them.

And, lastly, if the Lord Jesus Christ will not cast me off for mine infirmities, then will I never sin because the sin is but a sin of infirmity. Will the Lord pardon my sin because it is but an infirmity, and shall I commit sin upon that ground, because it is but an infirmity? then shall I walk contrary to God, then shall I turn the grace of God into wantonness. Surely, therefore, I will never sin upon that account, because it is but a sin of infirmity. Thus ye see what we are to do, and what gracious resolutions we are to take up from the consideration of this great truth.

But though the Lord will not cast us off for our sins of infirmity, yet there is much evil in this sin, especially if we

fall into it again and again; what shall we therefore do that we may not fall into this same sin so often?

Be sure that you do not forget your former sins; the slumber of grace is a preparation to sin, and the forgetfulness of a former sin is a preparation unto future sin. When we forget our old sins, then God leaves us to fall into new sins. As long as the sense of old sins abide upon your heart, so long you will be kept from new sins; and as the sense of old sins doth wear off, so the lust after new sins will come on. Would you not, therefore, fall into the same sin again and again? then take heed that you do not forget your old sins, or lose the sense thereof.

If you would be kept from relapses into your infirmities or other sins, then take your sin and quench it in the blood of Christ by a fresh act of faith, over and beyond all your resolutions and acts of humiliation. You know how it is with a candle; if it be blown out only, it is easily lighted again, but if you quench it in water, it is not so easily lighted again: so in regard of sin; if a man blow it out with a resolution, it will be soon recovered, but if besides a man's resolutions and humiliations, he takes his sin, and by an act of faith doth quench it in the blood of Christ, it will not be lighted again with that ease and facility.

And if you would not fall into the same sin again and again, then watch and pray. Our Saviour Christ here saw that his disciples were like to sleep again and again; and, I pray you, what direction doth he give them? only this, "Watch and pray" as if watching with prayer, and prayer with watchfulness, were the only or chief means to keep us from falling into the same sin again and again. And indeed it is not all our habitual strength that can keep us from falling, for then Adam in the state of innocency would have been kept from falling; nor is it want of temptation that can secure us from falling, for then the angels in heaven should not have fallen, for they had no temptation there; but we are kept by continual dependance upon God in Christ: it is not therefore enough to watch, but we must watch in prayer; neither is it enough to pray, but we must pray with watchfulness. What I say, therefore, to one, I say to you all, and to mine own soul, Let us watch and pray, and pray and watch, that we enter not into this temptation.