How Sincerity Covers the Saints’ Failings - from Gurnall's, The Christian in Complete Armour

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Ed Walsh

Puritan Board Senior
Greetings,

I am posting a section of Gurnall's, The Christian in Complete Armour, that really encouraged me this Lord's Day. It is only 4 pages out of his 1,000-page opus. Therefore it is radically out of context. I also attached a PDF of pp. 226–240 of the three chapters below on sincerity.

Chapter VI
of the second kind of truth, truth of heart, or sincerity, with the kinds of it; and in particular of moral uprightness,
together with its deficiency; and a double caution about this; the one to the saints, the other to the morally upright person

Chapter VII
of evangelical or godly sincerity, what it is, and what uncomelinesses this girdle covers, as also how it covers them

Chapter VIII
an account why sincerity covers the saints’ uncomeliness​

[This section is an expert from Chapter VII.]

SECTION IV.—Secondly, To shew positively how sincerity covers the saints’ failings.

First, Sincerity is that property to which pardoning mercy is annexed. True, indeed, it is Christ that covers all our sins and failings; but it is only the sincere soul over which he will cast his skirt. Psa. 32:2: ‘Blessed is he whose sin is covered; blessed is the man unto whom the Lord imputeth not iniquity.’ None will doubt this; but which is the man? The next words tell us his name; ‘and in whose spirit there is no guile.’ Christ’s righteousness is the garment that covers the nakedness and shame of our unrighteousness; faith, the grace that puts this garment on; but what faith? None but the faith unfeigned, as Paul calls it, 2 Tim. 1. ‘Here is water,’ said the eunuch; ‘what doth hinder me to be baptized?’ Acts 8:36. Now mark Philip’s answer, ver. 37: ‘If thou believest with all thy heart thou mayest;’ as if he had said, Nothing but an hypocritical heart can hinder thee. It is the false heart only that finds the door of mercy shut. He that promiseth to cover the sincere soul’s failings, threatens to uncover the hypocrite’s impiety, Prov. 10:9: ‘He that perverteth his way shall be known,’ that is, to his shame.

Secondly, Where sincerity is, God approves of that soul as a holy, righteous person, notwithstanding that mixture of sin which is found in him. As God doth not like the saint’s sin for his sincerity, so he doth not unsaint him for that. God will set his hand to Lot’s testimonial, that he is a righteous man, though many sins are recorded in the Scripture which he fell into, and foul ones too; and Job perfect, because the frame of his heart was sincere, the tenure of his life holy, and he was rather surprised by them as temptations, than they entertained by him upon choice. Though sincerity doth not blind God’s eye, that he should not see the saint’s sin, yet it makes him see it with a pitiful eye, and not a wrathful; as a husband, knowing his wife faithful to him in the main, pities her in other weaknesses, and for all them accounts her a good wife. ‘In all this,’ saith God, ‘Job sinned not;’ and at the very close of his combat God brings him out of the field with this honourable testimony to his friends, that had taken so much pains to bring his godliness in question, that his servant ‘Job had spoke right of him.’ Truly God said more of Job than he durst of himself. He freely confesseth his unadvised froward speeches, and cries out, ‘I abhor myself, and repent in dust and ashes.’ God saw Job’s sins attended with sincerity, and therefore judged him perfect and righteous: Job saw his sincerity dashed with many sad failings, and this made him in the close of all rather confess his sins with shame, than glory in his grace. God’s mercy is larger to his children than their charity is many times to themselves and their brethren. First, to themselves: Do you think the prodigal, the emblem of a convert, durst have asked the robe, or desired his father to be at such cost for his entertainment as his father freely bestowed on him? No, sure, a room in the kitchen we see was as high as he durst ask, to be among the meanest servants in the house. Poor soul! he could not conceive he should have such a meeting with his father at first sight. A robe! he might rather look for a rope, at least a rod. A feast at his father’s table! O unlooked for welcome! I doubt not but if any one had met him on his way, and told him that his father was resolved, as soon as he came home, not to let him see his face, but immediately send him to bridewell, there to be whipped, and fed with bread and water for many months, and then perhaps he would at last look on him, and take him home, but in his starving condition this would have been good news to him; but as God hath strange punishments for the wicked, so he hath strange expressions of love and mercy for sincere souls. He loves to outdo their highest expectations,—kiss, robe, feast, all in one day, and that the first day of his return, when the memory of his outrageous wickednesses were fresh, and the offensive scent of his swill and swine, from which he was but newly come, hardly gone! What a great favourite is sincerity with the God of heaven! Again, God’s mercy is larger to his children than their charity is towards one another. Those whom we are ready to unsaint for their failings that appear in their lives, God owns for his perfect ones, because of their sincerity. We find Asa’s failings expressed, and his perfection vouched by God together, as I may say in a breath, 2 Chron. 15:17. It was well God cleared that good man; for had but the naked story of his life, as it stands in the Scripture, been recorded, without any express testimony of God’s approving him, his godliness would have hazarded a coming under dispute in the opinion of good men; yea, many more with him, concerning whom we are now put out of doubt, because we find them canonized for saints by God himself, would have been cast, if a jury of men, and those holy men too, had gone upon them. Elijah himself, because he saw none have such zeal for God and his worship, as to wear their colours openly in a free profession, and hang out a flag of defiance against the idolatry of the times, by a stout opposing it, as he did, which might be their sin, makes a sad moan to God, as if the apostasy had been so general, that the whole species of the godly had been preserved in his single person. But God brings the holy man better news, 1 Kings 19:18: ‘I have left seven thousand in Israel, all the knees which have not bowed down to Baal, and every mouth that hath not kissed him.’ As if God had said, Comfort thyself, Elijah; though my number be not great; yet neither is there such a dearth of saints as thou fearest in this ungodly age; it is true their faith is weak; they dare not jostle with the sins of the age, as thou dost, for which thou shalt not lose thy reward: yet those night-disciples, that for fear carry their light in a dark lantern, having some sincerity which keeps them from polluting themselves with these idolatries, must not, shall not be disowned by me. That God, who bids us be most tender of his lambs, is much more tender of them himself. Observable is that place, 1 John 2:12–14. There are three ranks of saints, ‘fathers, young men, little children;’ and the Spirit of God chiefly shews his tender care of them, as by mentioning them first, ver. 12, so by leaving the sweet promise of pardoning mercy in their lap and bosom, rather than either of the other: ‘Little children, I write unto you, for your sins are forgiven you for my name’s sake.’ But are not the fathers’ sins, and the young men’s also, forgiven? Yes, who doubts it? But he doth not so particularly apply it to them, as to these; because these, from a sense of their own failings, out of which the other were more grown, were more prone to dispute against this promise in their own bosoms: yea, he doth not only in plain terms tell them their sins are forgiven, but meets with the secret objection which comes from their trembling hearts in opposition to this good news, taken from their own vileness and unworthiness, and stops its mouth with this, ‘Forgiven for my name’s sake;’ a greater name than the name of their biggest sin, which discourageth them from believing.

Thirdly, Sincerity keeps up the soul’s credit at the throne of grace, so that no sinful infirmity can hinder its welcome with God. It is the ‘regarding of iniquity in the heart,’ not the having of it, stops God’s ear from hearing our prayer. It is a temptation not a few have found some work to get over, whether such as they, who see so many sinful failings in themselves, may take the boldness to pray, or without presuming to expect audience when they have prayed; and sometimes prevails so far, that because they cannot pray as they would, therefore they forbear what they should; much like some poor people,’ that keep from the congregation, because they have not such clothes to come in as they desire. To meet with such as are turning away from duty upon this fear, the promises, which are our only ground for prayer, and chief plea in prayer, are accommodated, and fitted to the lowest degree of grace; so that as a picture well drawn faceth all in the room alike that look on it; so the promises of the gospel covenant smile upon all that sincerely look to God in Christ. It is not said, ‘If you have faith like a cedar,’ but, ‘If you have faith like a grain of mustard-seed, ye shall say unto this mountain, Remove hence to yonder place, and it shall remove,’ Matt. 17:20: neither is justifying faith beneath miraculous faith in its own sphere of activity; the least faith on Christ, if sincere, as truly removes the mountainous guilt of sin from the soul, as the strongest; hence all the saints are said to have ‘like precious faith,’ 2 Pet. 1:1. Sarah’s faith, which in Genesis we can hardly see, as the story presents it wherein it appeared, obtains an honourable mention, Heb. 11, where God owns her for a believer, as well as Abraham, with his stronger faith. What love is it the promise entails the favours of God upon? Not ‘Grace be with them that love our Lord Jesus’ with a seraphim’s love, but with a ‘sincere’ love,’ Ephes. 6:21. Not blessed they who are holy to such a measure; this would have fitted but some saints; the greatest part would have gone away and said, There is nothing for me, I am not so holy; but that no saint might lose his portion, it is, ‘Blessed are they which hunger and thirst after righteousness:’ and this takes in all the children of God, even to the least babe that is newly born this day to Christ. The new convert hungers after holiness, and that sincerely. And wherefore all this care so to lay the promises, but to shew that when we go to make use of any promise at the throne of grace, we should not question our welcome for any of our infirmities, so this stamp of sincerity be upon our hearts. Indeed, if sincerity did not thus much for the saint, there could not be a prayer accepted of God at the hands of any saint that ever was or shall be on earth to the end of the world, because there never was nor shall be such a saint dwelling in flesh here below in whom eminent failings may not be found. The apostle would have us know that Elijah, who did as great wonders in heaven and earth too by prayer, as who greater? yet this man God could soon have picked a hole in his coat. Indeed, lest we attribute the prevalency of his prayers to the dignity of his person, and some eminency which he had by himself in grace above others, the Spirit of God tells us, he was of the same make with his poor brethren: ‘Elijah was a man subject to like passions as we are, and he prayed,’ &c. Jam. 5. A weak hand with a sincere heart is able to turn the key in prayer.

Gurnall, W., & Campbell, J. (1845). The Christian in Complete Armour (pp. 233–236). London: Thomas Tegg.
 

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Brother, you have no idea how much I needed to read this today. Oh, I needed it so badly. Our God is truly a merciful God.

Here are some of my favorite excerpts from this:

"As God hath strange punishments for the wicked, so he hath strange expressions of love and mercy for sincere souls. He loves to outdo their highest expectations."​
"He doth not only in plain terms tell them their sins are forgiven, but meets with the secret objection which comes from their trembling hearts in opposition to this good news, taken from their own vileness and unworthiness, and stops its mouth with this, 'Forgiven for my name’s sake;' a greater name than the name of their biggest sin, which discourageth them from believing."​
"The least faith on Christ, if sincere, as truly removes the mountainous guilt of sin from the soul, as the strongest."​
"What love is it the promise entails the favours of God upon? Not 'Grace be with them that love our Lord Jesus' with a seraphim's love, but with a 'sincere love.' Not blessed they who are holy to such a measure; this would have fitted but some saints; the greatest part would have gone away and said, There is nothing for me, I am not so holy; but that no saint might lose his portion, it is, 'Blessed are they which hunger and thirst after righteousness:' and this takes in all the children of God, even to the least babe that is newly born this day to Christ."​
 
Brother, you have no idea how much I needed to read this today. Oh, I needed it so badly. Our God is truly a merciful God.

Here are some of my favorite excerpts from this:

I too liked the sections you quoted. I loved it all, but I think this was my favorite part.

"Do you think the prodigal, the emblem of a convert, durst have asked the robe, or desired his father to be at such cost for his entertainment as his father freely bestowed on him? No, sure, a room in the kitchen we see was as high as he durst ask, to be among the meanest servants in the house. Poor soul! he could not conceive he should have such a meeting with his father at first sight. A robe! he might rather look for a rope, at least a rod. A feast at his father’s table! O unlooked for welcome! I doubt not but if any one had met him on his way, and told him that his father was resolved, as soon as he came home, not to let him see his face, but immediately send him to bridewell, there to be whipped, and fed with bread and water for many months, and then perhaps he would at last look on him, and take him home, but in his starving condition this would have been good news to him; but as God hath strange punishments for the wicked, so he hath strange expressions of love and mercy for sincere souls. He loves to outdo their highest expectations,—kiss, robe, feast, all in one day, and that the first day of his return, when the memory of his outrageous wickednesses were fresh, and the offensive scent of his swill and swine, from which he was but newly come, hardly gone! What a great favourite is sincerity with the God of heaven!"

Thanks, Taylor, for sharing, and God bless.

Ed
 
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