Some men are blood-red sinners, crimson sinners, sinners of a double dye: dipped and dipped again before they come to Jesus Christ. Art thou that readest these lines such a one? Speak out, man. Art thou such a one? and art thou now coming to Jesus Christ for the mercy of justification, that thou mightest be made white in his blood and be covered with his righteousness? Fear not; forasmuch as this thy coming betokeneth that thou art of the number of them that the Father hath given to Christ; for he will in no wise cast thee out. "Come now," saith Christ, "and let us reason together: though your sins be as scarlet, they shall be as white as snow; though they be red like crimson, they shall be as wool." I might tell you of the contests and battles that great sinners at their conversion are engaged in, wherein they find the besettings of Satan above any other of the saints. At which time Satan assaults the soul with darkness, fears, frightful thoughts of apparitions; now they sweat, pant, cry out, and struggle for life. The angels now come down to behold the sight, and rejoice to see a bit of dust and ashes overcome principalities, and powers, and mights, and dominions. But whea these come to be a little settled, they are prepared for helping others, and are great comforts unto them. Their great sins give great encouragement to the devil to assault them; and by these temptations Christ takes advantage to make them the more helpful to the churches. The biggest sinner, when he is converted and comes into the church, says to them all by his very coming in, "Behold me, all you that are men and women of a low and timorous spirit, you whose hearts are narrow--for that you have never had the advantage to know, because your sins are few, the largeness of the grace of God--behold, I say, in me the exceeding riches of his grace. I am a pattern set forth before your faces, on whom you may look and take heart." Christ Jesus makes of the biggest sinners bearers and supporters to the rest. Christ saved the thief, to encourage thieves to come to him for mercy; he saved Magdalen, to encourage other Magdalens to come to him for mercy; he saved Saul, to encourage Sauls to come to him for mercy; and this Paul himself doth say: "For this cause," saith he, "I obtained mercy, that in me first Jesus Christ might show forth all long-suffering for a pattern to them which should hereafter believe on him to life everlasting."