6:11, 12). It is a work that requireth the exercise of might and power; and therefore we have need to be strengthened with might by the spirit in the inward man, that Christ may dwell in our hearts by faith (Eph. 3:16, 17). I confess, it is easy, pleasant, and delicious in its own nature, because it is a motion of the heart, without any cumbersome bodily labor: and it is a taking Christ and his salvation as our own, which is very comfortable and delightful; and the soul is carried forth in this, by love to him and its own happiness, which is an affection that maketh even hard works easy and pleasant; yet it is made difficult to us, by reason of the opposition that it meets with from our own inward corruptions and from Satan's temptations. It is no easy matter to receive Christ as our happiness and free salvation, with true confidence and lively affection, when the guilt of sin lieth heavily upon the conscience, and the wrath of God is manifested by the word and terrible judgments: 'especially when we have been long accustomed to seek salvation by the procurement of our own works, and to account the way of salvation by free grace foolish and pernicious; when our lusts incline us strongly to the things of the flesh and the world; when Satan doth his utmost, by his own suggestions, and by false teachers, and by worldly

allurements and terrors, to hinder the sincere performance of this duty. Many works that are easy in their own nature prove difficult for us to perform in our circumstances. To forgive our enemies and to love them as ourselves is but a motion of the mind, easy to be performed in its own nature; and yet many that are convinced of their duty find it a hard matter to bring their hearts to the performance of it. It is but a motion of the mind to cast our care upon God for worldly things, and rich men may think they can do it easily; but poor men, that have great families, find it a hard matter. That easy comfortable duty which Moses exhorted the Israelites to, when Pharaoh with his chariots and horsemen overtook them at the Red Sea, "Fear ye not, stand still, and see the salvation of the Lord, which he will show to you to-day" (Ex. 14:13), was not easily performed. The very easiness of some duties make their performance difficult; as Naaman the Syrian was hardly brought to wash and be clean, because he thought it to be too slight and easy a remedy for the cure of his leprosy (2 Kings 5:12, 13). Even in this very case people are offended at the duty of believing on Christ as too light and easy a remedy to cure the leprosy of the soul; they would have some harder thing enjoined them to the attainment of so great an end as this

everlasting salvation. The performance of all the moral law is not accounted work enough for this end (Matt. 19:17, 20). However easy the work of believing seemeth to many; yet common experience hath showed that men are more easily brought to the most burdensome, unreasonable, and inhuman observations; as the Jews and Christian Galatians were more easily brought to take upon their necks the yoke of Moses' law, which none were able to bear (Acts 15:10). The heathens were more easily brought to burn their sons and daughters in the fire to their gods (Deut. 12:31).... They that slight the work of faith for its easiness show that they were never yet made sensible of innumerable sins and of the terrible curse of the law and wrath of God that they lie under; and of the darkness and vanity of their minds, the corruption and hardness of their hearts, and their bondage under the power of sin and Satan; and have not been truly humbled, without which they can not believe in a right manner. Many sound believers have found by experience that it hath been a very hard matter to bring their hearts to the duty of believing; it hath cost them vigorous struggles and sharp conflicts with their own corruptions and Satan's temptations. It is so difficult a work that we can not perform it without the mighty

working of the Spirit of God in our hearts, who only can make it to be absolutely easy to us, and doth make it easy or suffer it to be difficult, according as he is pleased to communicate his grace in various degrees unto our souls.

3. Tho we can not possibly perform this great work in a right manner until the Spirit of God work faith in our hearts by his mighty power, yet it is necessary that we should endeavor it; and that before we can find the Spirit of God working faith effectually in us, or giving strength to believe. We can perform no holy duty acceptably, except the Spirit of God work it in us; and yet we are not hereby excused from working ourselves, but we are the rather stirred up to the greater diligence: "Work out your salvation, with fear and trembling; for it is God that worketh in you both to will and to do of his good pleasure" (Phil. 2:12, 13). The way by which the Spirit works faith in the elect is by stirring them up to endeavor to believe. And this is a way suitable to the means that the Spirit useth; i.e., the exhortations, commands, and invitations of the gospel; which would be of no force, if we were not to obey them until we find faith already wrought in us. Neither can we possibly find that the Spirit of God doth effectually work faith, or

give strength to believe, until we act it; for all inward graces, as well as all other inward habits, are discerned by their acts, as seed in the ground by its springing. We can not see any such thing as love to God or man in our hearts before we act it. Children know not their ability to stand upon their feet until they have made trial by endeavoring so to do; so we know not our spiritual strength until we have learned by experience from the use and exercise of it. Neither can we know, or assure ourselves absolutely, that the Spirit of God will give us strength to believe before we act faith; for such a knowledge and assurance, if it be right, is saving faith itself in part; and whosoever trusteth on Christ assuredly for strength to believe by his Spirit doth, in effect, trust on him for his own salvation, which is inseparably joined with the grace of saving faith. Tho the Spirit worketh other duties in us by faith, yet he worketh faith in us immediately by hearing, knowing, and understanding the word: "Faith cometh by hearing, and hearing by the word of God" (Rom. 10:17). And in the word he maketh no absolute promise or declaration that he will work faith in this or that unbelieving heart, or that he will give strength to any one in particular to believe, or begin the work of believing in Christ; for faith itself is the first