to Salvation. It is a Principle in the Hearts of Folks, which is vented now by many, that the Word doth not reach their particular Carriages and Converfations, in civil Matters, these are apprehended to be without the Sphere and Compafs of the Word; while it is commonly caft up to Minifters, meddle with the Word and spiritual Things, and not with our Matters. Truly I think, if we feparate thefe from the Word, we may quickly feparate all Religion from fuch Actions; and if fuch Actings and Bufineffes be without the Court of the Word, they are alfo without the Court of Confcience; Confcience, Religion and the Word being commenfurable. Therefore I befeech every one of you, take the Word for the ruling of your Callings and Converfations among Men, extend it to all your Actions, that in all thofe you may act as Chriftians, as well as Men. It is certainly the Licentiousness of the Spirits of Men, that cannot endure the Application of the Word into their particular Actions and Converfations. and honoured. There must be Darkness in that Way, where this Candle which was a Lamp to David's Feet, fhines not. Some promife to us Liberty, but they themselves are the Servants of Corruption; it is no Liberty to be above all Law and Rule. It was innocent Adam's Liberty to be conformed to a holy and juft Command, nay, this was his Beauty: The Spirit indeed gives Liberty where he is, but this Liberty is from our Sins and Corruptions, not to them, it loofes the Chains of a Man's own corrupt Lufts off him, to walk at Freedom in the Way of his Commandments, the Spirit enfargeth the Frifoner's Heart, and then he runs, but not at random, but the Way of his Commands, Pfal. cxix. 32. It was our Bondage to be as wild Affes, traverting our Ways, to be gadding abroad, to change our Way Now, here is the Spirit's Liberty, to bring us into the Way, and that Way is one. Let us then learn this one Principle, the Word must be the Rule of your Walking, both common and religious. Alas, 'tis not fpiritual Walking, to confine Religion to fome folemn Now this fpiritual Walk proceeds from Duties: Remember, is a Walk, a con- fpiritual Principles. It is certain, the Spirit tinued Thing, without Interruption, there- of Jefus Chrift is he in whom we live, fore your whole Converfation ought to be and move, and have our Being fpiritu as fo many Steps progreffive to Heaven. ally, without him we can do nothing: Your Motic should not be to begin only and therefore Chriftians ought to waik when you come to pray, or read, or hear, with fuch a Subordination to, and Deas many Men do, they are in a quite dif- pendance on him, as if they were meer ferent Way and Element, when they step Inftruments, and Patients under his Hand; out of their civil Callings, into religious though I think in regard of endeavoured Ordinances; but Chriftians, your Motion Activity, they should beftir themselves, fhould be continued in your eating and and give all Diligence, as if they acted indrinking, and fleeping, and acting in your dependantly of the Spirit: Yet in regard Callings, that when you come to pray, of Denial of himself, and Dependance on or read, you may be but ftepping forward the Spirit, each one ought to act, as if he in the Way, out of one darker obfcurer did not act at all, but the Spirit only acted Path, into a more beaten Way. Re-in him. This is the Divinity of Paul, member, this Word can make us perfect I laboured more abundantly than they 4 A a all, all, yet not 1, but Grace in me, I live, yet not I, but Chrift in me. O how difficult a Thing is it to reconcile thefe two in the Practice of Chriftians, which yet cannot really be, except they be together? It is certainly one of the great Myfteries of Christianity, to draw our Strength and Activity from another, to look upon our felves, and our Actings, as they can do nothing, as empty Vines; and that notwithstanding of all infufed and acquired Principles. Whatever we ought to do in jud ing and difcerning of our Condition, yet fure I am, Chriftians in the Exercife and Practice of Godliness, fhould look upon themselves void of any Principle in themselves, either to do or think, not that we are fufficient of our felves: The proficient and growing Chriftian, fhould look no more on his own Inclinations and Habits, than if he had none; he should confider himself an ungodly Man, that no Fruit can grow upon, one that cannot pray, as he is in himfelf. But alas! we come to Duties,in the Confidence of Qualiications for Duties, acts more confidently in them, because accuftomed to them, and fo makes Grace and Religion a kind of Art and Difcipline, that Ufe and Experience makes expert into. Learn now this one Thing, which would be inftead of many Rules and Doctrines to us, to fhut out of your Eye's the Confideration of what you are by Gifts or Grace, or Experience: Do not confider that, but rather fix your Eye's on the Grace of Jefus Chrift, and upon the Power and Vertue of the Holy Spirit which is given by Promife; that when the Way is all the eafieft to you, both by Delight and Custom, yet you may find it to your natural Principles as infuperable, as at the Beginning; and may Atill cry, Draw me, and I will run after thee; lead me, and I will walk with thee. Do not measure the Call into Duties, by the Strenth thou finds in thy felf, but look unto him who ftrengtheneth us with all Might. Now the Spirit worketh in us b fubordinate fpiritual Principles, as believing in Chritt, and loving of him, as our Lord and Saviour; and these two Acts drives on a Soul fweetly in the Way of Obedience. Fear, where not mixt in its Actings with Faith and Love, is a Spirit of Bondage: but the Chriftian ought to walk according to the Spirit of Adoption, which crys, Abba, Father, Yet how many Chriftians are rather in a fervile and flawith Manner driven on by Terrors and Chaftifements to their Duty, than by Love: There is a Piece of Liberty in Chriftian Walking, when there is not a Reftraint upon the Spirit, by this flavish Fear; this, I fay, is not befeeming these that are in Chrift Jefus; you ought to have the Spirit of your Father for your Leader and Guide. O! how fweet, and how certain and neceffary alfo, would this Walking be? The Love of Chrift would be an inward Principle of Motion, and would make our fpiritual Actings as easy and pleasant, as natural Motions are. Fear is but a violent Principle, that is like the Impulfe of a Stone thrown upward; as long as that external Impreffion remains, it moves, but ftill flower and flower, and at length evanisheth: But if you believed in him, and your Hearts were engaged to love him, O! how would it be a pleasant and native Thing to walk in his Way, as a Stone goeth downward. Confider your Principles, that acts you to Matters and Duties of Religion: Many Men there be, in whom appears no Difference of their Work to Beholders; but, O! how wide a Difference doth God difcern in them? Engines and Artifice may make dead and lifelefs Things move and walk as orderly as Things that have Life. But the Principle of this Motion, makes a huge Difference; the one is moved from without, the other from it felf. The most part of us act as irrational and brute Beafts in Religion; nay, we walk as inanimate and fenfeiefs Creatures: 'Tis fome one or other Confideration without us, moves us, Custom, Cenfure, Education, and fuch like Ah! thefe are the Principles of our Religion. How many would have no Religion, no Form of it, if they were not among fuch Company? And therefore we see many change it, according to Companies, as the Fish doth its Skin, according to the Colour of that which is nearest it. How many would do many Things they dare not for Punishment and Cenfure, and for that fame dare not leave other Things undone? In a Word, the moft part of us are fuch as would walk in no Path of Godliness, if it were not the Custom of the Time, and Fear of Men that constrained us. But, my Brethren, let it not be fo among you, you who are in Chrift Jefus; let this be the Predominant in your Hearts to conftrain you, not to live to your felves, but unto God, even this, that you believe, Chrift bath died for Sinners, that they might live from Sin; and from this let your Hearts be inflamed with his Love, that it may carry you on in a fweet and bleed Neceffity Lo walk in all well-pleafing: Let the Confideration of his Love lay on a Conftraint, but a Conftraint of Willingness, to live to him who hath thus loved you. But as the Principle is fpiritual, fo muft the End be; and I think these two compleat the Myftery of the Practice of Chriftianity, to act from another Principle unto another End; even as thefe two make up the Myftery of Iniquity in our Hearts, to act from our felves, unto our felves; every Man naturally makes a god of himself, is his own Alpha and Omega, the Begin ning of his Actions, and the End of them, which is proper to God. As the Fall hath cut of the Subordination of the Soul to God in its Actions, that it cannot now.de rive all from that bleffed Fountain of Allbeing and Well-being, fo is this Channel of Reference of all our Actions to God ftopped, that they do not tend unto him, as they are not rived from him; and thus they return unto a Man's felf again. There is one Point of Self, and making it our Aim and Defign, which poffibly many doth not take heed unto. It is or. dinary for us to act and walk in Chriftian Duries, for our Salvation, for obtaining of Life Eternal, as our chief and only End, which is but an inferior End; because we ought not to walk mainly for Life, but to Life; we should not walk after the Com. mand only for Heaven, but in the Way of it unto Heaven. Our fpiritual Walking can never purchase us right unto the leaft of his Mercies; when we have done all, this fhould be our Soul's Language, We are unprofitable Servants, our Righteousness extends not to thee. What Gain is it to the Almighty that thou art righteous? Yet for the moft part, we make our Walking as a Hire for the Reward. The Covenant of Works, doing for Life, is fome Way naturally imprinted in our Hearts, and we cannot do, but we would live in doing; we cannot walk unto all well-pleasing, but we would alfo walk unto pacifying of God. Self-righteoufnefs is Men's great Idol, which when all other bafer and groffer Idols are down, they do ftill feek to establish. But Chriftians, obferve this Evil in your felves, and fuffer this Myftery of Godliness to be wrought in you, the abafing of your felves, the Denial of your felves. I would have A a 2 you you, in respect of Diligence and Earnestnefs, doing, walking, and running, as if ye were to be faved by it only: But again, you must deny all that, and no more confider it, or lean weight upon it, than if ye ought to do nothing, or did nothing. But your Ends fhould be more divine and high, as your Nature is, to glorifie God in your mortal Bodies, fince ye are bis, and bought with a Price. O how ought ye not to be your own? The great Purpofe of your Obedience should be, a Declaration of your Senfe of his Love, and of your Obligation to him: Ye ought to walk in his Way, because ye are escaped Condemnation, and faved by him, and not that ye may be faved only. It is the Glory of our Heavenly Father, and the Honour of the Redeemer, for Chriftians to walk, even as he walked, and follow his Footsteps; it commends the Grace of Jefus Chrift exceedingly. Therefore this cannot but be the Choife and Delight of a believing Soul, to walk unto all wellpleafing, to have the Glory of him as their great Design to aim at; who for our Salvation laid afide his Glory, and embraced Shame and Reproach. We use to walk in Obedience to God, that we may pacific God for our Difobedience: But let a Chriftian abhor fuch a Thought, Chrift's Blood muft pacifie, but the walking of his Child pleaseth him in his wel-beloved Son. When he is once pacified for Sin, when he once accepts your Perfons, your Performances are his Delight: Now this should be the great Scope of a Soul, that all its Powers fhould be fixed on, to please him, and live to him. Now these three being eftablished, we muft conceive that the chief Agent and Party in this walking must be fpiritual; therefore Mens Bodies are not capable of this Walk after the Spirit principally. Out ward Ordinances are but the Shell where. in the Kirnel must be inclosed; all our walkings that is visible to Men, is but like a painted or engraven Image and Statue, that hath no Breath or Life in it, unless the Spirit actuate and quicken the same. I fay not only the Spirit of God, but the Spirit and Soul in Man; for the Spirit's immediate and divine Operations are upon fuch a fuitable Subject, as the immortal Soul. Verily, there is a Spirit in Man, and the infpiration of the Almighty gives him Understanding: We must not abolith the outward Form, because it hath fome Divinity in it, even the Stamp of God's Authority; and therefore, thefe who are fwelled above Ordinances, I fear they be monftrous Chriftians. A Man is compofed of a Spirit and a Body, acted and quickned by that Spirit, without either of thefe, he is not a complete man: So I say, he is not a Chriftian, that doth not worthip God in the Spirit, and in Truth both; and it is not Religion that excludes either the inward Soul-communion with God, or the outward Ordinance and Appointment of God. But alas, this may be our Complaint, we come and worship God, and draws nigh with our Bodies, but our Hearts are far removed. Here is the Death of many's Worship, the Soul is feparated from the Body of it, these are but Pictures and Images of Christians; we have Mouths and Faces of Saints, but O! how little of divine Affection, or of Souldefires, breathes in us? We are Deniers of the Power of Godliness, by resting in a Form, and this is the great Sin of this Generation, the Effentials, the vital Spirits of Chriftianty, are exhaufted, and fome dry Bones, like an Anatomy of a Chriftian, remains behind. I beseech you, gather your Spirits to this fpiritual Walking, they only can follow the Spirit, your Bodies are are earthly and lumpish, and the Way is all upward to the Holy Hill. Look inwardly and measure your felves fo, outward Appearance is no juft Meafure; retire within your Souls, and engage them in this Exercife, and enter them to this Motion, and your Spirits will fweetly and furely act your Bodies and Externals, in all Matters of Godliness. SERMON VI. Verf. 1. Who walk not after the Flesh, &c. the Mercy of God, and Merits of Chrift, always in their Mouth, who yet declare by their Conversation, that they do not fo much as defire, or purpose to seek after Holiness: I do not fpeak of these who are Antinomians in profeffion, but of a great Multitude in the visible Church, who are more really Antinomians, to wit, in Practice, than most Part of professed Antinomians. You hear all, of free Grace, and free Redemption in Jefus Chrift, of tender and enduring Mer T is one of the greatest Mysteries in a Chriftian's Practice, to join these two together, which the Gospel hath conjoined, Juftification and Sanctification, and to place them in their due Order: There is much Mifcarrying in both these, if either they are feparated, or misplaced But, the Truth is, they cannot really be, except they be jointly; yet, often it falls out, that in Mens Apprehenfions and Endeavours, they are disjoined: This then were the Argument of a living, and believing Chriftian, to join the Study of Ho-cies in God, and this you take for the linefs, with the Exercife of Faith in Chrift, for Remiffion of Sin, and Righteoufnefs; and not only to join it, but alfo, to derive it from that Principle: There is both an Union between these, and an Order eftablished in Scripture. The moft Part of thefe that profess the Gospel, are of two Sorts; they do either divide Holiness from imputed Righteousness, or Chrift's Righteousness from Holiness: I do not fay, that any Man truly feeks to be covered with the Righteousness of Jefus Chrift, and to have his Sins freely "pardoned, but he will also study to walk before God, in all well-pleafing; but the Truth is, many do pretend, and profefs to feek Salvation, and Forgiveness in Chrift's Blood, and have whole Gofpel; and prefently upon the Notion of Mercy and Grace, you conclude unto your felves, not only Immunity and Freedom from all the Threatnings of the Word, and from Hell, but likewife ye. proclaim fecretly in your own Hearts, a Liberty to fin fo much the more fecurely; the Door of Mercy caft open in the Gospel, and the free Access to Chrift, manifested therein, through the Corruption that is within us, proves the very Occasion of many's giving Indulgence to their Lufts; of delaying Reformation, and turning to God. You all profess, that you seek to be juftified, and saved by Jesus Christ; yea,you perfwade your felves, to be escaped Condempation, by Chrift: Now then, con 1 |