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ference which is between the beginning of a thing, and the perfection of it.

Having thus endeavoured to clear this truth, I come,

in the

Fourth and laft place, to make some brief application of it to ourselves.

1. This is matter of great encouragement to us, under the fenfe of our own weakness and impotency. When we confider the corruption of our nature, the ftrength of our lufts, and the malice and power of the Devil, and compare our weakness with the ftrength of thofe mighty enemies of our fouls, we are apt to defpond in our minds, and our hearts are ready to fail within us; like the people of Ifrael, when they heard the report of the fpies, concerning the ftrength of the land which they were to conquer; and the terror of the inhabitants, they wifhed themselves almoft dead for fear of death; Would to God we had died in the land of Egypt; or would to God we had died in the wilderness. Wherefore hath the Lord brought us into this land, to fall by the fword Were it not better for us to return into Egypt? Numb. xiv. 2, &c. Thus we are apt to be dif heartened, when we look only to ourselves, and confider the power of our enemies; but when we look beyond ourselves, as Caleb and Joshua did, to that prefence and ftrength of God, which was promifed to go along with them if we would but confider thofe gracious and powerful affiftances of God's Holy Spirit which are offered to us, and are ready to join with us in this holy warfare of fighting, againft fin, and fubduing and mortifying our lufts we fhould then encourage ourselves as they did Fear ye not the people of the land; for they are bread for us their defence is departed from them, the Lord is with us, fear them not, Numb. xiv. 9. would but apply ourfelves to God for the aids of his grace and Holy Spirit, and make use of that affiftance which he offers, we fhould (as the Apoftle fpeaks in another cafe, Heb. xi. 34.) out of weaknefs be made ftrong, wax valiant in fight, and be able to put to flight the armies of aliens. If we would

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If we

but

but wifely confider our own ftrength, How should one chafe a thousand, and two put ten thousand to flight! All our fpiritual enemies would quail before us, and as it is faid of the Canaanites, Josh. v. 1. Their hearts would melt, and there would be no more Spirit left in them. 2 Kings vi. 15. when Elifha's fervant faw an hoft compaffing the city of Samaria, with horfes and chariots, he was in great fear and perplexity, and said, Mafter, what shall we do? but when upon Elisha's prayer, the Lord had opened the eyes of the young man, and he faw, and behold the mountains were full of horses and chariots of fire round about Elisha: then he took heart, and his fears vanished, because those that were with them were more than they that were against them. Thus, if our eyes were opened by faith, to difcern thofe invifible aids and affiftances which ftand by us, how fhould this raise our courage and our confidence, and make us to triumph with the Apostle, Rom. viii. 31. If God be for us, who can be against us? And to rebuke our fears, and the defpondency of our spirits, as David does, Why art thou caft down, O my foul? and why art thou difquieted within me? Truft fill in God: and to fay with him, when multitudes of enemies compass us about, in the name of the Lord we will deftroy them. Eph. vi. 10. when the Apostle reprefents to the Chriftians what enemies they had to conteft withal, we fight not only against flesh and blood; that is, not only against men who perfecute us; but against Devils, who continually infest and tempt us, against principalities and powers, &c. he encourageth them against all thefe, by the ftrength of God, Finally, my brethren, be strong in the Lord, and in the power of his might. Thus we fhould encourage ourfelves in God, and animate our refolutions from the confideration of God's Holy Spirit, that Spirit of might and of power, which God is ready to give to every one of us, to affift us to do whatever he requires of us. And we have no reason to complain of weakness, fo long as the ftrength of God ftands by us, and the powerful aids of God's Spirit are ready to join themfelyes to us.

2. Let us earnestly beg of God his Holy Spirit, feeing it is fo neceffary to us, and God is fo ready to beftow this beft of gifts upon us. Bread is not more neceffary to the fupport of our natural life, than the Holy Spirit of God is to our spiritual life and ftrength and there is no father upon earth more ready to give bread to his children that cry after him, than God is to give his Holy Spirit to those who heartily and earnestly beg it of him. Did we but know how great a gift the Spirit of God is, and how neceffary to us, we would not lofe fuch a bleffing for want of asking, but we would be importunate with God, and give him no reft, ask, and seek, and knock, and address ourselves to him with all earneftness, and never give over till our defires were granted.

3. Let us take heed of grieving the Spirit of God, and provoking him to withdraw himself from us. As God is very ready to give his Spirit to us, fo we fhould give the best entertainment we can to fo great a gueft, left we give him caufe to take away his Holy Spirit from us. And there are two things chiefly which provoke God hereto.

(1) If we refift and quench the motions of his Spirit, and be not compliant to the dictates and fug. geftions of it. We affront the Spirit of God which is given us for our guidance and direction, when we will not be ruled, and governed, and led by it; we thruft the Spirit of God out of his office, and make his prefence ufelefs and unneceffary to us; and this caufeth him to go away grieved from us.

(2.) If we harbour and entertain any thing that is of a contrary quality and nature to him, and inconfiftent with him; and of such a nature is every luft and corruption that is cherished in our fouls. The Spirit of God is the best friend in the world: but as friends have the most tender refentments of unkind ufage, fo the Spirit of God is of a most tender and delicate fenfe, and cannot bear unkindness, efpecially fuch an unkindness as to take in to him the greatest enemy he hath in the world: for there is no fuch strong antipathy in nature, as there is be

tween

tween fin and the Holy Spirit of God.

The Spirit of God cannot endure to dwell in an impure foul. If we would have the Spirit of God abide with us, we must give no entertainment to any luft, we must banifh the love of all fin for ever out of our hearts : for if we harbour any luft in our bofom, it will be to us as Delilah was to Sampfon, it will infenfibly bereave us of our strength: the Spirit of God will depart from us, and we all be like other men.

4. And lastly, God's readiness to afford the grace and affiftance of his Holy Spirit to us, to enable us to the performance of our duty, and the obedience of his laws, makes all wilful fin and disobedience inexcufable. Let us not pretend any longer the impoffibility, or infuperable difficulty of our duty, when fo powerful an affiftance is offered to us. If any man come fhort of happinefs for want of performing the conditions of the gospel, it is by his own wilful fault and negligence; becaufe he would not beg God's grace, and because he would not make ufe of it. If any man be wicked, and continue in a finful courfe, it is not for want of power, but of will to do better. God is always before-hand with us in the offers of his grace and affiftance, and is wanting to no man in that which is neceffary to make him good and happy. No man fhall be able to plead at the day of judgment want of power to have done bis duty for God will judge the world in righteousnefs; and then I am fure he will condemn no man for not having done that which was impoffible for him to do. God hath done enough for every man to leave him without excufe. St. Paul tells us, that the blind Heathen fhould have no apology to make for themselves. Next to the being of a God, and his goodness and juftice, I do as verily believe it, as I do any thing in the world, that no man shall be able to fay to God at the great day, Lord, I would have re pented of my fins, and obeyed thy laws, but I wanted power to do it; I was left deftitute of the grace which was neceffary to the performance and dif charge of my duty; I did earnestly beg thy Holy Spirit, but thou didst deny me. No man shall have

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the face to say this to God at the great day; every man's confcience will then acquit God, and lay all; the fault upon his own folly and neglect: for then every mouth fhall be stopped, and God fhall be juftified in his faying, and overcome when we are judged.

SERMON CCLIV.

The bad and the good ufe of God's fignal judgments upon others.

LUKE xiii. 5.

I tell you, Nay: but except ye repent, ye shall all likewife perish.

T

HE occafion of thefe words you have at the beginning of the chapter, There were prefent at that feafon (fays the Evangelift fome that told our Saviour of the Galileans, whofe blood Pilate had mingled with ther facrifices. Thele in all probability were fome of the faction of Judas Gaulanita, who about that time, as Jofephus tells us, had ftirred up the Galileans to a fedition against the Roman government, under a pretence o of afferting their liberty, by freeing themfelves from the Roman tribute; and fome of thefe coming to Jerufalem to facrifice, (as the custom of the Jews was, efpecially at the time of the paffover) Pilate caufed them to be flain upon the place, while they' were at this fervice, fhedding their blood with that of the beafts, which were killed for facrifice. The report of this profane cruelty being brought to our Saviour, he (as his cuftom was in all his converfation, to raise fome useful meditation, from fuch occurrences that happened, and to turn them to a fpiritual advantage) takes occafion from the relation of this.

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