The advocateship of Jesus Christ clearly explained, and largely improved, for the benefit of…

2. There are many things relating to our Lives, that minister to our Accuser, occasions ⟨p. 135⟩of many Objections against our Salvation; for, besides our daily Infirmities, there are in our Lives, gross Sins; many horrible Backslidings; also we oft-times suck and drink in many abominable Errors and deceitful Opinions, of all which Satan accuseth us before the Judgment-Seat of God, and pleadeth hard, that we may be damned forever for them. Besides, Some of these things are done after Light received, against present Convictions and Dissuasions to the contrary, against Solemn engagement to Amendment, when the Bonds of Love were upon us, Jer. 2.20. These are crying-Sins, they have a lo•d voice in themselves against us, and g•ve to Satan great Advantage and Boldness to sue for our Destruction before the Bar of God. Nor doth he want Skill to aggravate, and to comment profoundly upon all Occasions, and Circumstances that did attend us, in these our Miscarriages; to wit, that we did it without a Cause, also when we had, had we had Grace to have used them, many things to have helped us against such Sins, and to have kept us clean and upright. There is also a Sin unto Death, 1 Joh. 5. and he can tell how to labour, by Argument and Slight of Speech, to make our transgressions not only to border upon, but to appear in the Hue, Shape, and Figure of that, and thereto make his Objection ⟨p. 136⟩against our Salvation. He often argueth thus with us, and fasteneth the Weight of his Reasons upon our Consciences, to the almost utter Destruction of us, and the bringing of us down to the Gates of Despair, and utter Destruction: The same Sins with their aggravating Circumstances, as I said, he pleadeth against us at the Bar of God: But there he meeteth with Jesus Christ our Lord, and Advocate, who entereth his Plea against him, unravels all his Reasons and Arguments against us, and shows the guile and falsehood of them; he also pleadeth as to the Nature of Sin, as also to all those high Aggravations, and proveth that neither the Sin in it self, nor yet as joined with all its advantageous Circumstances, can be the Sin unto Death,