None but Christ. A discourse on John VI. 67, 68. Preached privately to a religious society in Say-Brook. / By Azariah Mather, A.M. Pastor of the Church there. : [Seven lines of Scripture texts]

APPLICATION.

USE, I. By way of INFORMATION and INSTRUCTION.

Learn hence the dangerous Error of such as hope to be Saved, yet rest short of Jesus Christ, & live without God & Christ in the world; such as never go to Him, never look to Him. Some hope to be Saved, and escape Hell when they die, yet have a deep silence about JESUS CHRIST and Salvation by Him, and the Terms of the Gospel. Oh! how deceived are such as these? There is Safety of appear|ing before God only in Jesus Christ. Some build their expectation upon one thing, some upon another; but they are deceitful Foun|dations they build upon; called Refuges of Lies, because they do but deceive men and

bring fearful Disappointment in the end, Isa. 28.15, 17, 18 Which shall be swept a|way as a Spiders Web. Oh! that deluded Self-flattering Sinners would seriously Con|sider of it before it be too late, else they'll find it a dreadful thing to be deceiv'd at last.

USE, II. Of EXHORTATION.

Oh! Be Perswaded to flee to Jesus Christ for Help, in all your straits and difficulties. Tho' one wou'd think there is no need of Motives to Quicken men other than the Doctrine, yet I shall here endeavour to open and set before you sundry things for Awakening, Quickning, and Encouraging.

Motive 1. JESƲS CHRIST is a Mighty Saviour. Let your Wants be what they will, never so many, great, and mighty, He can help. Is your Heart hard as a Neither Mil|stone, and wants to be broken? Why Jesus Christ is able to melt it, mould it, & break it, for you. Tho' none else can, yet He can. He that at His Death made Rocks to rend, Earth to quake, the Graves to open, the Dead to rise, can break that hard Heart of thine. All Hearts are in His Hand, Prov. 21.1. Are your Sins many and aggravated▪ Are your Transgressions of a deep Dye and crimson Colour? Yet there is Vertue enough

in Christ's Blood to wash them all away. Read Isa. 1.18. & 1 Joh 1.7. He is a God of infinite Wisdom, He sees all your Difficul|ties, knows all your Wants; nothing is hid from Him, and his Wisdom is more than a match for all. When a Person is sick, many times Physicians are called, but they are non-plush'd, know not what the Malady is; and when they do, it may be, cannot help. A Parent can stand and weep over a Sick and Dying Child, & cannot relieve it. Oh! But JESUS CHRIST is an alsufficient Physician, Saviour, and Redeemer; Heb. 7.25 He can Save to the uttermost. Oh! What Encourage|ment is there then to go to Him, since He can, and none other can, help you.

Motive. 2. He is a Ready & a Willing Saviour. He is as willing as He is able: He is more ready to help poor Sinners, than they are to be helped by Him. Mercifulness is one of the Glory's of God's Nature. We reckon it a very Amiable thing in man to be Pitiful: And this doth more abound in the Lord, than in any Creature whatsoever. There is no man in the world (as Dr Preston Expresses it) so ready to forgive as GOD is. If our Sins be exceeding many & exceeding great, yet the Lord is Merciful & exceeding ready to forgive. He graciously invites men to come, Mat. 11.28, 29. Come to Me, poor, burthened,

tyred Soul. Rev. 22.17. Come: The Spirit says Come, and the Bride says Come. And who|soever will let him (come and) take of the Water of Life freely. Joh 6.37. He that comes I will in no wise cast out, says the Lord. Isa. 45.22. Look unto me, and be ye saved all the ends of the Earth. Why do you Object your own Unworthiness? Isa. 55.1. Come and buy with|out money, — Tho' you have no Worthiness, yet come. If Naked go to Him for Cloathing, Read Rev. 3.18. You think your wants are too great to be supplied! why go freely, and ask liberally: You cannot ask too great Blessings. Psal. 81.10. Open thy mouth wide, & it shall be filled. Be not strait-handed in asking, if you would have God liberal in bestowing. You see the readiness of God to accept Penitent, Returning Prodigals. In the Parable of the Prodigal, Luk. 15.20. The Father saw him afar off & ran to meet him. You don't read that the Son ran to meet the Father; but that the Father he ran to meet his Son. All which is to shew the Readiness of God to receive and help poor needy Souls; His Arms are stretch'd out, He stands with open Arms ready to receive the Sinner, Job. 6 36, 37. Oh! Be perswaded to fly to Jesus Christ for help for thy poor needy Soul.

Motive 3. Consider the great Necessity you lie under. If you don't go, you Perish, if you fit

still you are sure to Die: As they said, 2 King. 7.4. If we fit still we die. So I say, JESUS CHRIST is the City of Refuge, thither you may flee and be safe; but if you fit still you must die; and it will be a great aggravation of your Misery, to fit still & die, when there is help to be had, especially having so great Encouragement to seek it.

Motive 4. Your Time is short & uncertain too. Therefore don't delay; nor don't dally and trifle; up and be doing; be in good earnest and maste haste; Fly, fly, Oh! Flee to the City of Refuge; Heb 6.18. Flee for refuge to lay hold on the hope that is set before you. It has reference to the City of Refuge, of old appointed for Man-slaughter; but not to save wilful Murderers: And if the Man-slayer was slow, slack, negligent, the Avenger of blood might overtake him, and so he Perish; therefore he was to flie and make hast. So says the Apostle here. Man must flie as from an Enemy, flie as a Bird from the Fowler or Hawk; flie as for Life; make haste, left the Justice of God (the Avenger of blood) over|take you. Give your selves no rest till you have got into the City of Refuge; if you fall short and sit down, tho' at the gate, tho' at the door of Heaven, yet you'l Perish. You may go far, yet you'l Perish for ever, if you rest short of Jesus Christ.

To Conclude with some Directions.

1. Get pinched with the sense of your Wants. The Prodigal never comes to any serious Thoughts of returning to his Fathers house, till pinched with Hunger, Luke XV. So here, Whatever men thinks of it, they will never be truly willing to go to Christ for help in a right way, till they are starved out of house and home. So long as they can live with|out Christ, they will. Oh! Study your own Hearts, Reflect upon your Lives, dwell much in Meditation upon your Natural miserable State and Condition, till you feel that sense That there is no Hope, you'l never go to Christ for help upon Gospel Terms, Mat. 9.12 The Israelites look'd not to the Brazen Serpent, till they found themselves stung by the Fiery Ser|pents. Now, Oh! Now 'tis that a Saviour is Precious! Men that before slight Jesus Christ and the Offers of Mercy, when they come to feel themselves sinking, Oh! What would they give for a Saviour? A drop of that Blood which once they could trample under foot, is more worth than the whole World to them now. Sense of Sin, Misery, Danger, & Fear of Hell, will make a saviour Precious.

2. Go Humbly if you would go Acceptably. Go Poor, & Wretched, and Empty. Oh! Don't think to carry any thing with you that will Recommend you to God: Isa. 55.1. Go without

Money & Price. Go Empty, that so you may Receive freely. Go Empty, sensible that you are so, and then you'l be Welcome. Be willing to set the Crown upon the Head of Jesus Christ, that He shou'd have all the Praise and Glory of your Salvation.

3. Look earnestly to God to Prepare & Lead you. If He don't undertake and lead you, you'l never find the way to Jesus Christ, Isa. 42.16 Tell the Lord, He can do it, He has done it for others, and He can do it for you. Plead hard Night & Day: 'Tis a matter of greatest Moment, highest Consequence. Your poor Souls and all lies at stake. Don't think that God will bestow Grace upon the Negligent and Careless Sinner, or upon the Cold▪ and Indifferent Seeker. The little Pains that some men take, is an Argument that they are like to miss of God's Grace & Mercy.

4. Wait on GOD in the diligent Ʋse of all Means. Neglect no Duty, beware of all Sin, Eph. 4.30 Don't do any thing wilfully that may grieve the Spirit of God, lest you pro|voke Him and He forsake you Have you waited long? Yet be not discouraged, but hold out and wait still. A Ship that beats long upon the Coast, may at last arrive safe in the Harbour: So a Soul that has many Years been Seeking and Waiting, may at last obtain Mercy.

5. Lastly, Realize the Advantage that you will gain by a Gospel Compliance with Duty If you once get safe into Jesus Christ, you are made for ever: It will make you rich amends for all your Pains. You will never Repent, & say that you have been too Speedy, or too Early, or too Painful, nor for the whole World be out of Jesus Christ again, so much as for one Hear. Oh! Believe it, It would be worth a while to swim through whole Seas of Blood to get to JESƲS CHRIST: (As one said.) When you come to Heaven, one Hour in the Presence of GOD, where is fulness of Joy unspeakable, (Psal. 16 ult.) will swallow up and make you forget your Sorrows and your Tears, here. Oh! It is well worth your while to be at utmost, yea at all Pains, to 〈◊〉〈◊〉 an Interest in JESUS CHRIST. Amen.