The safety of appearing at the day of judgement, in the righteousness of Christ

Answer.

Such reasonings are but the conjectures of mens hearts, who are ignorant of God: there is no foundation in the Word of God for such thoughts; they are but the imaginations of men who know not God: God can find in his heart to show mercy to whom he pleaseth: he could show mercy to devils if he would: there is nothing in him to restrain the exercise of grace but his own pleasure: For, 1. There is nothing in God to compel him to destroy the sinner: what should force God to damn you, if you be never so bad, yet God is not necessitated to reject you; his holiness does not compel him: the holiness of God is no impediment to the exercising of pardoning grace: there is a Scripture that looks that way, Josh 24.19. ye cannot serve the Lord, for he is an holy God, he is a jealous God, he will not forgive your transgressions, nor your sins: but the meaning of it is, that they were such a perverse people that they could not ⟨p. 294⟩serve God so, but that they would bring his judgments on them; for he is so holy as that he will punish his visible people while they go on in ways of degeneracy: but his holiness and his grace don't thwart one another: for it is no prejudice to the interest of holiness that God pardons great sinners: for when God pardons he sanctifies too: 1 Cor. 6.11. neither is the Justice of God any hinderance to the exercise of pardoning mercy: justice forbids pardon without satisfaction made, but not if there be satisfaction, if the Law which is the rule of Justice be attended, there is nothing contrary to the justice of God: the Law makes no distinction between great and little sinners, great ones are capable of pardon as well as others if there be satisfaction: the law admits of the pardon of no sin without satisfaction, but it admits of the pardon of any sin if there be satisfaction: neither does Gods care of his glory hinder him from pardoning of great sinners, for he can turn that to the advantage of his glory: the pardoning of such is greatly subservient unto that design, Eph. 1.7