An answer to the discourse of Mr. William Sherlock, touching the knowledge of Christ,…

When Men feel this Compunction, the great danger is, lest they should seek ease, by Repentance and Reformation; if they can repent and reform, they have some hopes (as well they may if they do so) that this will heal their wounds, and pacify the Lord towards them, when they see no peace in a sinful course, they will try a good one: But this is a dangerous mistake; for while it is thus with the Soul, he is uncapable of Christ: For he that trusts to other things to save him, or makes himself his own Saviour, or rests in his duties without a Saviour (that is according to this Author, all those who repent and reform) he can never have Christ to save him: So that true Humiliation is this; when the Soul feels its ⟨p. 489⟩own inability and unworthiness, that it may lye under God to be disposed of; that is, contented to be saved or damned, as shall please God; and when the Soul is at this pass, it is vas capax, a vessel capable of Grace: And now they are made thus hollow and empty by Humiliation, they are capable of receiving Christ, as an hollow vessel is of receiving any thing. This is a new notion of our union to Christ, that it is a receiving Christ into us, as an hollow vessel receives any liquor poured into it: This is a Philosophical account of the nature of Humiliation, that a man must have such a sense of his inability to please God, that he shall never dare to be so profane as to attempt it, but must leave repentance and reformation to carnal christless men; and that he may be so sensible of his unworthiness, that he shall contentedly submit to God to be damned or saved, as he pleases: And now the Soul being thus hollow, is fit to receive Christ; and being grown careless of its Salvation, and indifferent whether it be saved or damned, (for it is impossible thus to submit without being indifferent in some measure which God shall choose) it is a fit object for mercy; certainly it is a very hard thing to bring ⟨p. 490⟩any man in his wits to this; and I find by this Author, that God is very hard put to it to humble the Soul thus: For he is forced to irritate and stir up original corruption, to stir the dunghill (a very unfit office for an Holy Being) that so men finding themselves sensibly, grow worse and worse, may despair of growing better, and leave off such vain attempts, and sit down humble under God:

When Men feel this Compunction, the great danger is, lest they should seck ease, by Repentance and Reformation; if they can repent and reform, they have some hopes (as well they may if they do so) that this will heal their wounds, and pacify the Lord towards them, when they see no peace in a sinful course, they will try a good one: But this is a dangerous mistake; for while it is thus with the Soul, he is uncapable of Christ: For he that trusts to other things to save him, or makes himself his own Saviour, or rests in his duties without a Saviour (that is according to this Author, all those who repent and reform) he can never have Christ to save him: So that true Humiliation is this; when the Soul feels its