The Institution of Christian Religion

Now as the hatred of sin, which is the beginning of repentance,§20 openeth us the first entry unto Christ, which showeth himself to none but to miserable and afflicted sinners,¹ which groan, labour, are laden, are hungry and thirsty, and pine away with sorrow and misery: so must we endeavour toward repentance, throughout all our life apply it, and follow it to the end, if we will abide in Christ. For he came to call sinners, but to repentance: he was sent to bless the unworthy, but so that every one should turn himself from his wickedness. The Scripture is full of such sayings. Wherefore when God offereth forgiveness of sins, he likewise useth to require on our part repentance, secretly declaring thereby, that his mercy ought to be to men a cause to repent them.² (Do saith he) judgement and righteousness, because salvation is come near at hand. Again. There shall come to Zion a Redeemer, and to them that in Jacob repent from their sins. Again. Seek the Lord while he may be found: call upon him while he is near. Let the wicked leave his way & the wickedness of his thoughts, & be turned to the Lord,³ & he shall have mercy on him. Again. Turn ye & repent, that your sins may be done away. Where yet is to be noted, that this condition is not so annexed as though our repentance were a foundation to deserve pardon, but rather (because the Lord hath determined to have mercy upon men to this end that they should repent) he teacheth men whether they shall travail if they will obtain grace. Therefore so long as we shall dwell in the prison of our body, we must continually wrestle with the vices of our corrupt flesh, yea with our own natural soul.⁴ Plato saith in certain places, that the life of a Philosopher is a meditation of death. but we may more truly say, that the life of a Christian man is a perpetual study and exercise of mortifying the flesh, till it being utterly slain, the Spirit of God get the dominion in us. Therefore I think that he hath much profited, that hath learned much to mislike himself: not that he should stick fast in •hat mire and go no further, but rather that he should haste and long toward God, that being grafted into the death & life of Christ, he should study upon a continual repentance: as truly they can not otherwise do, that have a natural hatred of sin: