Ralph Erskine (Christ the People's Covenant), Sermons 1:154:
I WILL GIVE; O sovereign reason! No gift in the world so free as Christ. When men bestow gifts upon one another, there is some impulsive cause that excites them to it, drawn from their relation to, or interest in one another; drawn from services and favours received, or expected from each other; but no such impulsive cause here. We have no relation to God, but as his enemies; we can do him no service, but sin against him; therefore can merit nothing from him but his curse. His reason of doing, then, must be his own sovereign will. Men may rack their wit and dispute about the reason of God’s actions: but there would be more calm reasoning in the world, about gospel-truths, if all our reasonings did strike sail to the sovereignty of free-grace, and stoop to that. He will because he will: “I will give thee.”
I WILL GIVE; O sovereign reason! No gift in the world so free as Christ. When men bestow gifts upon one another, there is some impulsive cause that excites them to it, drawn from their relation to, or interest in one another; drawn from services and favours received, or expected from each other; but no such impulsive cause here. We have no relation to God, but as his enemies; we can do him no service, but sin against him; therefore can merit nothing from him but his curse. His reason of doing, then, must be his own sovereign will. Men may rack their wit and dispute about the reason of God’s actions: but there would be more calm reasoning in the world, about gospel-truths, if all our reasonings did strike sail to the sovereignty of free-grace, and stoop to that. He will because he will: “I will give thee.”
