The real Christian, or, A treatise of effectual calling wherein the work of God…

The real Christian willingly, freely, receives this King: the Office likes him, he is well pleased with it; yea, so well pleased is he with it, that a great part of his comfort dependeth upon it. Christ were but half a Redeemer to him, not so glorious, so beautiful to him, were he not such a King, To destroy the works of the devil in him, 1 John 3.8. and redeem him from all his iniquities, Tit. 2.14. The believer answers his temptations from guilt of sin with the Priesthood of Christ; he answers all his temptations from the power of sin, with this Kingly power of Christ; were I left alone to grapple with my corrupt heart, strong lusts, and the worlds temptations, I must give up all hopes and comfort, and resolve to meddle no more with Religion, saith the Believer.

See then, Christian, how thy heart answers here, and let ⟨p. 262⟩me advise thee to look to two things in the receiving of Christ as Lord and King.

First, When the heart is not so well pleased with this; but yet rather than I will not have Christ for my Priest, I will have him for my King: rather than I will not have him for my Saviour, to deliver me from hell, I will have him for my Lord: You had best look to this, keep your eye upon your heart, for here may be a deceit that will undo all: I do not say absolutely there is the deceit as yet, for I know at the first, fears of hell, wrath, guilt, work strong, and a Christian under the sense of these will yield too much, rather than to fall under that misery which he fears: Now if this be the sense of thy heart, that it looks on the receiving of Christ as King, to be a hard term; but as we say, of two evils choose the least, so the Soul will choose this evil, rather than hell, which is the worse: so that Christ as King is not looked on as good, the work that he doth, in turning out of lusts and idols in thy heart, and subduing thy will to his will, working up thy Soul to an obedient, holy conversation before him, and walking with him, this is not pleasing, it would not be chosen if I knew how to help it, but I submit to it, rather than to go to hell, though it be a hard condition: now look to your self, for if the fears of hell once draw off, if Conscience come to be quieted again, that no trouble be felt: the next news we may fear will be, thy heart will go back to its old lovers again. I know this is the great Argument to make the Soul at first coming home (in those whom God works upon when adult) to accept of Christ as Lord and King, that it may have him for a Saviour, and God may carry on the work more afterwards, and so make the Soul see an excellency in Christ as King, as well as Saviour; so make Christ appear yet more lovely and higher prized; this Christians know experimentally: therefore at first I do not condemn it; but yet, I say, look to thy self, for if all that God hath made Christ to be, for lost man, do not please thee, if less than complete Redemption will serve