rine of the divine decrees holds in
the system of revealed truth. They hesitated to proclaim a free salvation
and a willing Saviour to all man kind, simply on the ground of their
common destitution as sinners, and they sought to extricate themselves
from the difficulties, arising out of the doctrine of election on the one
hand, and the common offers of the gospel on the other, by the chilling
hypothesis, that these offers were made in reality, whatever might be
their form, to convinced, or in the language of the period, "sensible"
sinners only. Binning, spurning at such systematic trammels, took his
stand upon the clear testimony of God in the gospel. He not only taught
that Christ is the Saviour of sinners, but pressed upon every sinner the
offer of the Saviour. Instead of requiring those whom he addressed, to
accept of salvation, by the discovery of convictions, or feelings, or any
thing else in themselves, constructive of an initial work of grace, he
simply and unreservedly taught them that sinners, as such, are addressed
in the gospel, and that all who are sinners have an equal warrant to
accept freely that which is thus so freely proffered. "I think," he says,
"a man should seek nothing in himself whereupon to build his coming to
Christ. Though it be true, no man can come to a Saviour, till he be
convinced of sin and misery, yet no man should seek convictions, as a
warrant to come to Christ for salvation. He that is in earnest about this
question, how shall I be saved?--I think he should not spend the time in
reflecting on, and examination of himself, till he find some thing
promising in himself, but, from discovered sin and misery, pass
straightway over to the grace and mercy of Christ, without any intervening
search of something in himself to warrant him to come. There should be
nothing before the eye of the soul but sin and misery and absolute
necessity, compared with superabounding grace and righteousness in Christ,
and thus it singly devolves itself over upon Christ, and receives him as
offered freely, 'without money and without price.' I know it is not
possible that a soul can receive Christ, till there be some preparatory
convincing work of the law, to discover sin and misery. But I hold, that
to look to any such preparation, and fetch an encouragement or motive
therefrom, to believe in Christ, is really to give him a price for his
free waters and wine, it is to mix in together, Christ and the law, in the
poin