{"name":"confession-before-sermons","title":"A CONFESSION OF OVR Sinnes, commonly vsed in the Church of Edinburgh, before Sermons","text":"It is of thy mercie, O Lord, and not of our merites, that it hath pleased thee to shew thy selfe vnto the world, euer from the beginning, and vnto vs nowe in this last & most corrupt age: yea Lord, we further confesse, that neither Lawe nor Gospell, can profit vs to saluation, except that thou of thy meere grace, worke in vs aboue all power, that is, in this our nature. For albeit thou teach, we shal remaine ignorant, albeit thou threaten, wee shall contemne, and albeit thou promise mercie and grace, yet shall we dispair and remaine in infidelitie: Vnles that thou create in vs newe hartes, write thy Lawe in the same, and seale in vs remission of our sinnes, and that the sense and feeling of thy fatherlie mercie, by the power of the holie Spirite. To the old world, thou spakest by Noah. To Pharaoh, & his people, by thy seruant Moses. To all Israell, by the fearfull trumpet of thy Lawe. To the Citie of Ierusalem, by thine owne wisedome, our Lord Iesus Christ, and to the multitude, as well of Iewes as Gentiles, by the preaching of the holy Apostles. But who gaue obediēce? Who trembled, and constantly feared thy hotte displeasure? Who did rightly acknowledg the time of their visitation? And whoe did embrace and keepe to the end, thy Fatherlie promises? Onely they O Lorde, to whome thy Spirite was the inward teacher, whose hartes thou openest, and from whome thou remoouest rebellion and infidelity, the rest were externally called, but obeyed not, they heard aswell mercy offred, as thretnings pronounced, but neither with the one nor with the other, were they effectuallie mooued. We acknowledge, O Lorde, that the same corruption lurketh in vs, that buddeth forth in them to their destruction, and iust condemnation. And therefore wee most humblie beeseech thee, O Father of mercie, for Iesus Christ thy Sonnes sake, that as thou hast caused the light of thy word clearly to shine amongest vs, and as thou hast plainlie instructed vs, by the externall ministerie in the right way of saluation. Soe it will please thee, inwardlie to moue our dull hearts, and by the power of thy holie spirit, that thou wilt write and seale in our harts that holy feare and reuerence, which thou crauest of thy chosen children, & that faythfull obedience to thy holie will, together with the feeling & sense that our sinnes are fullie purged, and freely remitted by that onely one Sacrifice, which only by it selfe is acceptable vnto thee, to wit, the obedience, death and meditation of thy onely son our Soueraigne Lord, only Pastour, Mediatour, and high Priest, our lord Iesus Christ. To whome with thee, and with the holy Ghost, be all honor and glory, world without end."}