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

Direction, 3.

Have no dependence upon signs: it is a great fault of the people of God, that when they are called to believe they are waiting for signs: sometimes God gives his people signs, and sometimes he denies signs unto them: when God gives signs it is a duty to take notice of them: when he gives them we must improve them for the strengthening of Faith: it was a ⟨p. 343⟩sin in Ahaz to refuse a sign, Isai. 7.12. God many times considers the weakness of his people, and gives them signs, which are a strengthening unto hope, Rom. 5.4. and it is lawful to desire signs out of a sensibleness of the unbelief of our own hearts: under the sense of that, that we are easily outbid with temptation; that our unbelieving hearts are ready to take advantage from the want of such evidences; we may desire signs: but it is not lawful to desire them from unbelief: unbelief is never good, nor any natural effect of it: we have no reason to lie waiting for signs, when we have the Word of God to encourage us to believe, Mat. 16.4. God has sometimes sharply showed his anger when his people have neglected the promise, waiting for signs: he has brought sharp affliction upon them, Luk. 1.11, 20. indeed sometimes God has granted the desires of his people when they have been unbelieving, and have desired signs: but he does not therein show his approbation of those desires, he condescends because of the infirmities of his people: so he did to Gideon, but Gideons heart smote him for what he did, Judg. 6.39. so Christ condescended to Thomas, but withal reproved him, Job. 20.29