Christ Inviting Sinners to Come to Him for Rest

Book excerpt: Every now and again, a work will be published by a reformer or puritan that Christians find to be of such great spiritual worth, that it is hard to put into words the incalculable and infinite good that such a work is to the Christian soul. This book, friends, is one of those works. Burroughs expounds Matthew 11:28, “Come unto me all ye that labor, and are heavy laden, and I will give you rest.” Christ invites sinners to come to Him for rest. Sinners, in this way, can be either Christians or unbelievers. Both are beckoned to “come.” In this work Burroughs shows first, the burden of sin, the burden of the Law, the burden of legal performances with the misery of those that are under them, the burden of corruption, and the burden of outward affliction. Secondly, he shows that Christ graciously offers to them that come to him, rest from all those burdens. In this he demonstrates what it is to come to Christ; that Christ requires nothing but to come to him. Several Rules to be observed in right coming to Christ, the means to draw souls to Christ, that in coming to Christ God would have us have respect toward ourselves, that there is no rest for souls out of Christ, and the reasons for this, with some conclusions from it. Thirdly, Burroughs shows the rest believers have from sin, that the deliverance from the Law by Christ is, privatively, and positively. He will show the rest believers have from the burden of the Law by coming to Christ, how Christ gives rest from the burden of legal performances, how Christ gives rest from the burden of corruption; in which is shown how sanctification and holiness comes only from Christ. And Burroughs demonstrates encouragements to come to Christ for holiness. He will explain how Christ gives rest from outward afflictions, and then considers some directions on how to get rest from Christ in spiritual desertions. God’s people have been personally helped by Burroughs throughout the centuries by all his works, and in this volume on coming to Christ, he again shows the inestimable spiritual value of his preaching and writing. This is a life-transforming work which will enable Christians to inwardly examine themselves as they consider how the Law of God correlates to their abiding in the Lord Jesus, and what steps they must take to come to Christ in a saving and sanctifying manner. This work is not a scan or facsimile, has been carefully transcribed by hand being made easy to read in modern English, and has an active table of contents for electronic versions.