Christ inviting sinners to come to him for rest

APPLICATION.

Now for a word of Application: doth Christ call for burdened Souls; to come to him that they may have rest? Then those that are burdened should hearken to what Christ saith in this Congregation this morning; Is there any poor soul that is ready to perish under the weight of sin, that goes under the Load of it; Christ calls to that Soul to come to him. It were a grievous thing for Christ to ⟨p. 27⟩come and call into such a Congregation, and there should be none there. Nay, I cannot but think, there may be many in this Congregation that shall hear the call of Christ. Christ many times calls where there are none to answer: we may say in this case as our Saviour Christ said in another, the harvest is great, but the Labourers are but few; So we may say, the harvest of sin is great, but the Labourers under the burden of Sin, are but very few: many there are that would cast the burden of sin upon Christ, but they do as the Pharisees did, cast heavy burdens upon others, but they themselves will not touch them with one of their fingers. So many would cast the burden of sin upon Christ, but they will not feel it themselves. O! let me speak to you, What Chamber, or Closet can witness that you have been sending strong cries unto God, as being under that grievous burden. A beast if it lies under a burden, it will roar and cry out for help. So certainly if your souls were pressed with the burden of sin, there would be mighty cries to God to ease you of that burden: But to most people in the world, sin is very light: Well, know, That as Christ himself felt sin to be a heavy burden, so one way or other they must feel it, either here, or hereafter; but blessed is that man or woman, that feels the weight of sin while he may be delivered from it, that he be not hereafter pressed under the weight of it. We read of Pharaoh, when the people of Israel came for ease, he bids them go to their burdens; that, that he did unjustly, Christ might do to many righteously hereafter, when you upon your sick beds, or death beds hereafter, shall cry for mercy, Christ may say to you, go to your burdens; when any thing of the Word came to press sin upon your souls, you cast it off. O! 'tis a dangerous Condition, when men and women cannot only sin enough: