if thou art unclean, remember Magdalen; if thou art a thief, a man-slayer, muse on that thief that was crucified with Jesus Christ; if thou art a blasphemer, ⟨p. 438⟩call to mind the Apostle Paul, who was first a Wolf, and then a Shepherd; first lead, and then gold; first a Saul, and then a Paul; if thou art faithless, diffident, an unbeliever, one that hast turned thy back on Christ, fled away from thy colours, look on Thomas, he fled away from Christ, as soon as any, and he is longest from Christ, after his Resurrection of all the rest; and though his fellow Disciples say, They have seen the Lord, and that he was risen indeed; yet this will not sink into his head, he will not acknowledge it,1 but is most peremptory; Except he see in his hands the print of the nails, and put his fingers into the print of the nails, and thrust his hand into his side, he will not believe; Why should any sinner despair of Mercy? thou sayest, I am wicked; and God saith to thee, As I live saith the Lord God, I have no pleasure in the death of the wicked, but that the wicked turn from his way, and live: thou sayest, I am an unbeliever, 2I am shut up in the prison of unbelief, under bolts, and fetters, that I cannot stir one inch towards Heaven; Why? so was Didymus, and yet he obtained mercy; and the Apostle tells us, that God hath concluded all, or shut up altogether in unbelief, that he might have mercy upon all. 3He despiseth none, rejects none, abhors none, unless they continue to despise, reject, and abhor the Lord: Oh what a sweet point is here to gain sinners, to move, to melt, to thaw hard hearts? the incredulity of this Disciple turns to our profit; and tends more to the confirmation of our faith, if we are but weak, than the very faith of all the other Disciples of Jesus Christ, had not Thomas disbelieved, we had not received so great encouragements, to have believed in Christ, as now we have.
if thou art unclean, remember Magdalen; if thou art a thief, a man-slayer, muse on that thief that was crucified with Jesus Christ; if thou art a blasphemer, ⟨p. 438⟩call to mind the Apostle Paul, who was first a Wolf, and then a Shepheard; first lead, and then gold; first a Saul, and then a Paul; if thou art faithless, d•ffident, an unbeliever, one that hast turned thy back on Christ, fled away from thy colours, look on Thomas, he fled away from Christ, as soon as any, and he is longest from Christ, after his Resurrection of all the rest; and though his fellow Disciples say, They have seen the Lord, and that he was risen indeed; yet this will not sink into his head, he will not acknowledge it,1 but is most peremptory; Except he see in his hands the print of the nayles, and put his fingers into the print of the nayles, and thrust his hand into his side, he will not believe; Why should any sinner despair of Mercy? thou sayst, I am wicked; and God saith to thee, As I live saith the Lord God, I have no pleasure in the death of the wicked, but that the wicked turn from his way, and live: thou sayst, I am an unbeliever, 2I am shut up in the prison of unbelief, under bolts, and fetters, that I cannot stir one inch towards Heaven; Why? so was Didymus, and yet he obtained mercy; and the Apostle tells us, that God hath concluded all, or shut up altogether in unbelief, that he might have mercy upon all. 3He despiseth none, rejects none, abhors none, unless they continue to despise, reject, and abhor the Lord: Oh what a sweet point is here to gain sinners, to move, to melt, to thaw hard hearts? the incredulity of this Disciple turns to our profit; and tends more to the confirmation of our faith, if we are but weak, than the very faith of all the other Disciples of Jesus Christ, had not Thomas disbelieved, we had not received so great encouragements, to have believed in Christ, as now we have.
- 1Joh. 20.25.
- 2Ezek. 33.11.
- 3Rom. 11.32.
