Henry Peckwell

“ A Christian never wants comfort, but by breaking the order and method of the gospel, looking on his own, and looking off from Christ's perfect righteousness, which is to chuse rather to live by candle light 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 on the soul. Satan is tempting thee, by putting thee to plod about thy own grace, to get comfort from it. ”

“ WHATEVER thy situation in life may be, there is but one refuge for thy soul—one sacrifice for thy sins—one advocate with thy God, Jesus Christ the Righteous. By men of pleasure he is despised and rejected, to the Jew a stone of offence, to the Gentile an object of ridicule; but to them who are called, Christ, the power of God, and the wisdom of God—to them he is made righteousness, sanctification, and redemption. ”

“ Thou thinkest it easy, to believe-was thy faith ever tried with an hour of temptation, and a thorough sight of sin? Was it ever put to resist Satan, and to feel the wrath of God lying upon thy conscience? When thou wert apprehensive of hell and the grave, then did God shew thee Christ a ransom, a righteousness, &c. Then couldst thou say, Oh! I see grace enough in Christ?' If so, thou mayest say that which is the greatest word in the world, I BELIEVE. Untried faith is uncertain faith. ”

“ Looking at the natural sun weakeneth 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 on him. ”

“ Think every one better than thyself; and ever carry self-loathing about thee, as one fit to be trampled upon by all saints. See the vanity of the world, and the consumption that is upon all things, and love nothing but Christ.- Mourn to think how many are under baptism and ordinances who are not under grace, looking much after duty and obedience, little after Christ, or grace. Prepare for the cross, welcome it, bear it triumphantly as Christ's, cross, whether scoffs, mockings, jeers, contempt, imprisonment, &c. But see it be Christ's cross, not thine own. ”

“ To believing, there must go a clear conviction of sin and the merits of the blood of Christ, and of Christ's willingness to save a man, considered merely as a sinner. A thing more difficult than to make a world. All the power in nature cannot get so high, in a storm of sin and guilt, as really to believe there is any grace, any willingness in Christ to save. ”

“ Nature can afford no balsam fit for soulcuse. Healing from duty, and not from Christ, is the most desperate disease. Poor ragged nature, with all is highest improvements, can never spin a garment fine enough (without spot) to cover the soul's nakedness. Nothing can do it but Christ's perfect righteousness.
If thou hast seen Christ truly, thou hast seen pure grace, pure righteousness in him, every way infinite, far exceeding all sin and misery. If thou hast seen Christ, thou wilt trample upon all the righteousness of men and angels, as to thine acceptation with God. ”

“ Men talk much about believing whilst hole and sound; few do it-Christ is the mystery of Scripture; grace is the mystery of Christ. Believing is the most wonderful thing in the world. Put any thing of thine to it, and thou spoilest it, Christ will not esteem it believing. When thou believest, and comest to Christ, thou must leave behind thee thine own righteousness (O! that is hard!) all thy holiness, sanctification, duties, tears, humblings, &c. and bring nothing but thy sins, thy want and miseries, else Christ is not fit for thee nor thou for Christ. ”

“ Think on him continually:- keep the eye constantly upon Christ's blood, or every blast of temptation will shake you. If you would see sin's sinfulness to loath it, and mourn, do not stand looking upon sin, but look upon Christ first, as suffering and satisfying. If you would see your graces, your sanctification, don't stand gazing upon them; but look at Christ's righteousness in the first place -see the Son, and you see all-Look at your graces in the second place. In believing, what you first look at you expect stability from, and make the foundation of your hope. ”

“ See that the wound which sin hath made in thy soul be perfectly cured pray the blood of Christ, it will poison the sore. Thou wilt find that sin was never mortified truly, if thou hast not see Christ bleeding for thee upon the cross Nothing can kill it but a sight of Christ's righteousness. ”

“ Sin will hinder from glorying in the cross of Christ. Omitting little truths against light may harden the conscience, as well as committing the greatest sin 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 should thou live as a pattern of mercy! ”

“ Nature cannot endure to think the gospel is only for sinners. It will rather chuse to despair, than to go to Christ upon such When nature is put to it by guilt or wrath, it will go to its old haunts of self-righteousness, self-goodness, &c- An infinite power must cast down those strong holds. None but the self-justiciary stands excluded by the gospel. ”

“ If nature had been to contrive the way of salvation, it would rather have put it into the hands of saints and angels to sell it, than into the hands of Christ, who gives freely, whom therefore it suspects. Nature would set up a way to purchase by doing: therefore it abominates the merits of Christ, as the most destructive thing to it. ”

“ Self-righteousness and self-sufficiency are the darlings of nature, which she preserves as er life. That makes Christ seem ugly to nature. Nature cannot desire him. He is just opposite to all nature's glorious interest. Let nature but make a gospel, and it would make it quite contrary to Christ, it would be to the just, the innocent, the holy, &c. Christ makes the gospel for thee, that is, for needy sinners, the ungodly, the unrighteous, the accursed. ”

“ Be dutiful to all relations, as to the Lord. Be content with little of the world; little will serve. Think every little of the earth much, because unworthy the least. Think much of heaven, not little because Christ is so rich and free. ”

“ That will humble indeed, and make the soul cordial to Christ, and sin vile to the soul, yea transform it into the glory of Christ.- 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 the Father.' Come, and move the Father, for near views of Christ, and you will be sure to speed.- You can come with no request that pleaseth him better. ”

“ Woeful, miserable professor! who hast not the gospel within. Rest not on the judgment of thy fellow-creatures. Thou mayest be applauded by them, and cast away in Christ's day of trial. Thou mayest come to baptism, and never ' come to Jesus and the blood of sprinkling,' Heb. xii. 24. Whatever workings or attainments are short of Christ's blood, merits, righteousness, (the main object of the gospel,) fall short of the gospel, and leave the soul in a condition of doubtings and questionings. ”

“ He that sets up his sanctification to look at for comfort, sets up a great idol, which will but strengthen his doubts and fears. Do but look off from Christ, and presently, like Peter, you sink in doubts. ”

“ That Christ which the natural man can apprehend, but a Christ of his own making, not the Father's Christ, not Jesus, the Son of the living God, to whom none can come without the Father's drawing, John vi. ”

“ Watch against constitutional sins, Psalm lix, 5.; 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. ”