“ All the powers in nature cannot get up so high in a storm of sin and guilt, as really to believe there is any grace, any willingness, in Christ to save. When Satan charged sin upon the conscience, then for the soul to bring it to Christ, that is gospel-like. That is to make him Christ, he serves for that use. To accept Christ’s righteousness alone, his blood alone, for salvation, that is the sum of the gospel. ”

“ Looking at the natural sun weakens the eye. The more you look at Christ, the Sun of righteousness, the stronger and clearer will, the eye of faith be. Look but at Christ, you will love him, and live upon him. Think on him continually,——— keep the eye, constantly upon Christ’s blood, or every blast of temptation will shake you. If you see sin’s sinfulness, to loath it and mourn, do not stand looking upon sin, but look upon Christ first, as suffering and satisfying for it. ”

“ Thou mayest offend Christ by duties as well as sins. Look at Christ, and do as much as thou wilt. Rest with all thy weight upon Christ’s righteouness; take heed of having one foot on thine own righteousness and another on Christ’s. Till he come and sit on high, upon a throne of grace in the conscience, there is nothing but guilt, terror, secret suspicions, the soul hanging betwixt hope and fear, which is an un-gospel-like state.
He that fears to see sin’s utmost vileness, the 'utmost hell of his own heart, suspects the merits of Christ. Be thou never such a great sinner, 1 John, ii. ”

“ A Christian never wants comfort but by breaking the order and method of the gospel, looking on his own, and looking off Christ’s perfect righteousness, which is to choose rather to live by candlelight than by the light of the sun. The honey that you suck from your own righteousness will turn into perfect gall; and the light that you take from that to walk in will turn into black night upon the soul. Satan is tempting thee, by putting thee to plod about thine own grace, to get comfort from that ”

“ Think every little of the earth much, because unworthy of the least. Think much of heaven, not little, because Christ is so rich and free, Think every one better than thyself, and ever carry self-loathing about thee, as one fit to be trampled upon by all saints. ”

“ Whatsoever is of nature’s spinning must be all unravelled, before the righteousness of Christ can be put on; whatsoever is nature’s putting on, Satan will come and plunder it every rag away, and leave the soul naked and open to the wrath of God. All that nature can do will never make up the least drachm of grace, that can mortify sin, or look Christ in the face even for one day.
Thou art a professor, goest on hearing, praying, and receiving, yet miserable thou mayest be. ”

“ Christ’s infinite satisfaction, not thy sanctification, must be thy justification before God. When the Lord shall appear terrible out of his holy place, fire shall consume that as hay and stubble. This will be sound true religion, to rest all upon the everlasting mountains of God’s love and grace in Christ; to live continually in the sight of Christ’s infinite righteousness and merits, (they are sanctifying; without them the heart is carnal,) and in those sights to see the full vileness of sin, and to see all pardoned ”

“ Sin will hinder from glorying in the cross of Christ, Omitting little truths against light may breed guilt in the conscience, as well as committing the greatest sins against light. If thou hast been taken out of the belly of hell into Christ’s bosom, and made to sit among princes in the household of God, oh how shouldst thou live as a pattern of mercy ? ”

“ Fitter for Christ if thou hast nothing but sin and misery. Go to Christ with all thy impenitence and unbelief, to get faith and repentance from him———that is glorious. Say unto him Lord, I have brought no righteousness or grace to be accepted in or justified by; I am come for thine. We would be bringing to Christ, which must not be; grace will not stand with works, Tit. iii. 5; Rom. xi. 6. Self-righteousness and self-sufficiency are the darlings of nature, which she preserves as her life; that makes Christ obnoxious to nature; nature cannot desire him ”

“ Leave behind thy holiness; sanctification, duties, humblings, &c., and bring nothing but thy wants and miseries, else Christ is not fit for thee, nor thou for Christ. Christ will be a whole Redeemer and Mediator, and thou must be an undone Sinner, or Christ and thou will never agree. It is the hardest thing to take Christ alone for righteousness: that is, to acknowledge him Christ. Join any thing to him of thine own, and thou dost on-Christ him. Whatever comes in when thou goest to God for acceptance besides Christ, call it anti-Christ: bid it begone ”

“ Look upon Christ only as shining in the firmament of the Father's love and grace, you will not see him but in his own glory, which is unspeakable. Pride and unbelief will put you upon seeing somewhat in yourself first, but faith will have to do with none but Christ, who is unexpressibly glorious, and must swallow up thy sanctification as well as thy sin: for God made him both for us, and we must take him for both, 1 Cor. ”

“ Keep not guilt in the conscience, but apply the blood of Christ immediately. God chargeth sin and guilt upon thee, to make thee look to Christ. Judge not Christ’s love by providences, but by promises. Bless God for shaking off false foundations, and for any way thereby he keeps the soul awakened and looking after Christ. Better sicknesses and temptations than security and slightness.
A slighting spirit will turn a profane spirit and will sin and pray too. Slighting is the bane of profession ”

“ To a secure soul Christ is but a table, the scripture but a story. Mourn to think how many there are under baptism and church order, that are not under grace, looking much after outward duties, little after Christ, little versed in grace. ”

“ There must be a divine nature first put in the soul, to make it lie on him, he lies so infinitely beyond the sight or reach of nature.
That Christ, which natural free will can apprehend, is but a natural Christ of a man’s own making, not the Father’s Christ, nor Jesus the Son of the living God, to whom none can come without the father’s drawing, John vi. ”

“ That opinion of free will, so cried up, will be easily confuted, as it is by scripture, in the heart that hath had any spiritual dealings with Jesus Christ, as to the application to its merit, and subjection to his righteousness. Christ is every way too magnificent a person for a poor nature to close withal or to apprehend. Christ is so infinitely holy, nature durst never look at him; so infinitely good, nature can never believe him to be such, when it lies under a full sight of sin. Christ is too high and glorious for nature so much as to touch. ”

“ He that builds upon duties, graces, &c., knows not the merits of Christ; this makes believing so hard, so far from nature. If thou believest, thou must every day renounce as dung and dross, (Phil. iii. 7, 9,) thy privileges, thy qualifications, thy baptism, thy sanctification, thy duties, thy graces, thy tears, thy meltings, thy humblings, and nothing but Christ must be held up. Every day thy workings, thy self-sufficiency must be destroyed. Thou must take all out of God’s hand. Christ is the gift of God, John, iv. ”

“ Christ will look at the most abominable sinner before him, because to such a one Christ cannot be made justification———he is no sinner. To say in compliment, I am a sinner, is easy; but to pray with the publican indeed, Lord be merciful to me a sinner, is the hardest prayer in the world. ”

“ He that sets up his sanctification to look at, to comfort him, he sets up the greatest idol, which will strengthen his doubts and fears. Do but look off Christ, and presently, like Peter, you sink in doubt. ”

“ It is Christ’s own glory and happiness to pardon. Consider, whilst Christ was upon the earth he was more among publicans and sinners, than among scribes and pharisees, his professed adversaries, for they were righteous ones: it is not as thou imaginest, that his state in glory makes him neglected, scornful to poor sinners; No. He hath the same heart now in heaven; he is good, and changeth not; he is the Lamb of God that taketh away the sins of the world, John, i. 20. He went through all thy temptations, dejections, sorrows, desertions, rejections, Matt. ”

“ Watch against constitutional sins, see them in their vileness, and they shall never break out into act. Keep always an humble, empty, broken frame of heart, sensible of any spiritual miscarriage, observant of all inward workings, fit for the highest communications. ”

“ Judas may have the outward privilege of baptism, the supper, church-fellowship, &c., but John leaned on Christ’s bosom, John, iii. 23; that is the gospel-ordinance posture, in which we should pray and hear, and perform all duties. Nothing but lying in that bosom will dissolve hardness of heart, and make thee to mourn heartily for sin and cure lightness and indifference of spirit, that gangrene to profession; that will humble indeed, and make the soul cordial to Christ, and sin vile to the soul; yea, transform the ugliest place of hell into the glory of Christ. ”

“ Be faithful to others’ infirmities, but sensible of thy own. Visit sick beds and deserted souls much, they are excellent schools in experience, Abide in your calling, Be dutiful to all relations as to the Lord. Be content with little of the world ”

“ Never think thou art right as thou shouldst be, a Christian of any attainment, until thou come to this, always to see and feel thyself lying in the bosom of Christ, who is in the bosom of his Father, John, i. ”