ther, the fountain-head of that river of grace whereof a rivulet hath reached his barren and stony heart, and changed it into a fruitful field. There is in the soul of such a man whom the Holy Ghost hath quickened, a perpetual offering unto God the Father of the incense of devotedness of heart, and soul, and strength, and mind. It passeth up through Christ, in acknowledgment of the Spirit, which through Christ descendeth, but it reacheth unto the Father, and deposits there a fruit, a living fruit of that work which Christ wrought, another object of that purpose which the Father purposed in Christ. This state of the soul,-raised and wound up to the pitch of devotedness, and bound upon errands of grace,-bath its full and perfect exemplar in the Lord, but is often attained unto in those in whom the Holy Ghost worketh effectually, and is truly the only holy condition of the redeemed creature, and therefore that after which we should continually strive, believing that it is in the power of the Holy Ghost to accomplish it in the weakest and most wicked of the sinful creatures. And he who is possessed of it, is, without doubt, in the clear light of the Divine favour, and can no more doubt of it, than he can of the light which shineth at noon day. And it is revealed unto himself in acts of the soul inward, which no one can enter into: in enlarged contemplations of God, and enlightened views of his being, and of his work, ravishing possessions of the

Spirit, most intimate communion with Christ, and all the other secret and intimate conversations of the renewed soul with God, which cannot be expressed nor uttered, but which are wont to be known, and remembered, and desired, and delighted in by the saints of God. How doth the self-complacency of a vain man sit upon him, and entertain him, and beam forth from his countenance, even when he hath nothing to say or to do! How doth the self-sufficiency of a proud man gird his spirit with might, and lift his face with scorn, and erect all his person, and dwell with him, and feed upon him, and he on it, even when he hath nothing in purpose or in hand! And so of every other form of the evil spirit of man. Now, in like manner, a soul informed with the grace of God, doth yield such silent, solitary, and sequestered obligations unto the God and Father of all grace, being moved and enabled thereto by the Holy Ghost, and admitted to the sight and presence of the Father, through the mediation of the Son; out of the fulness and the overflowings of which Spirit of grace, all directed to the Father, cometh that delight in the word of God which wearies not by day nor by night; that unsatisfied perusal of the person of Christ as therein revealed, and diligent study of his work from the beginning to the ending of it: and likewise from this same full offering of the soul as an eucharist unto God, cometh the communion of saints, which are on the earth,

and the participation through faith of all their weakness, and of all their sufferings, and the bearing of their burdens, and the sharing of their joys: seeing we look upon them as the temple of the Holy Ghost, the members of Christ, and the chosen ones of God.

Now, brethren, if ye have understood this first fruit of a thankful heart, which is the offering of the heart itself, and will look upon the church as it is at present, I believe there never was an age in which her acts were so much outward and so little inward, when there was so little · of that unseen and hidden, that closet worship and thanksgiving which God loveth; so much of that street and public offering which hath its reward from men, and in this present life. Concerning these acts of the church's thanksgiving, it is not now the time to inquire; but that they are all, or almost all, that she offereth, is to me manifest, first, From the great lameness, and poverty, and briefness of all visible acts of devotion, betokening that the fountains and springs in the heart are run dry; secondly, From the great ignorance and barrenness of discourse either from the pulpit or amongst brethren, which is chiefly for or against some public thing, not for or against any inward thing; thirdly, From the great preference of all public meetings, and public acts, over those of a private and personal kind: so that it is as true a bondage, a soul-scourging bondage, as the business of the world; and, fourthly, From the exclu

sion of the form of acknowledging God, or seeking his blessing from those public assemblies which they hold in the highest repute. Truly if the free-will offerings of the heart, the voluntary gratuities of the soul unto God, be the eucharistical service which he loveth, the church hath indeed become eminently unthankful in these latter times, since this spirit of publicity and business, this revival of religion, as they call it, this great desire of converting a world which is to be destroyed, hath sprung up.

Now, the heart which is thus filled with the grace of the Holy Spirit, and expresseth the same in spiritual offerings of the affections of the soul unto God, doth not rest there, but proceedeth by every outward act to declare its devotedness unto Him who hath redeemed it. For this is of the nature of thanksgiving, not a requital of the grace done, which is to treat it as debt, and not as grace, but a desire to express in all possible ways the sense we have of the grace far beyond and above all repayment. Therefore, when any one hath thus been visited with the electing grace of the Father, he hath an earnest desire to honour Him whom the Father desireth to be honoured, and to obey Him whom the Father desireth to be obeyed; that is Christ Jesus, whom the Father hath set forth as the brightness of his glory, and the express image of his person. Now, the first offering which we make to Christ, is the offering of our faith, to receive him and rest upon him alone for sal

vation; 1 consider faith towards the Lord Jesus Christ to be the highest act of thanksgiving unto the Father, who hath called us with his electing love. And what doth faith imply, but the receiving of the whole person and work of Christ, as God at sundry times, and in divers manners, hath testified the same? for to manifest and testify Christ, is the spirit of all prophecy. God the Father hath presented us Christ to be believed on; and our return for this infinite gift is to believe on him. Now faith is no selfish act of the mind, intent upon its own well-being, but a most self-denying act of the mind, preferring the cross of Christ to the pleasures of the world, and looking at the things which he is to bring with him, in preference to the things which are seen and temporal. It is a continual preference of things not seen to things seen, and a continual crucifixion of self to the honour of Christ; in short, a preference of Christ unto ourselves, and of the things which stand upon his promise, to the things which stand in the favour of every sense. This, brethren, is the first offering of the soul, the first act of thanksgiving unto God the Father, even the acting of our faith upon Christ Jesus whom he hath sent. Now, to the right presentation of this offering, there is required, first, a thorough knowledge of the person of Christ, and of the work of Christ, and of the glorious kingdom which he is to establish, as these are set forth in his holy word: for, to believe that which we do not know, is

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