160 The Mind .i/lum/nated·. State lil. holy law has long lodged there: fo thAt his foul · Iothe;; itfel(. No open fepulcbre, no puddle fo viie aRd lothfome in his eyes as himfelf, £zek. xxxvi. 3 r. Then}hall ye re– member y..our O'UJn evil 'UHlJI J andyour doingJ that. were not good, andjhalllothe yourfelvu in )'OUr C<V.-'n.Jight. He is no worfe than he was before: but the fun is fhining,and (o thefe pollutions are feen which he could not dif'cern when there was no dawning in him ; a's \the word is, lja . viii. :2 0 . wh jle as yet the da)\ of grace was not broken with bim. 4. He is enlightened in the knowl~dge of Jefus Chrifl; 1 Cor. i. 23, ~4· But wepreach Chrifi crucijic-q, unto, t,~e Jews ajlumbling bloc.~, and unto the Grr:ds foolijhmfi : but unto them that are called, both Jeczw andGreekJ·, Chrifl~ the power of God, and the wifdom of God. The truth is , ,unregene rate men,tho' capable o'fpre.aching Chri(t, h·a ve no t (proper_\y fpeaking) the knowledge. of him, but only an cpi· nioo, a good, opinion ?f liirn; · as~ one ·has of r.nan,y contro– verted points of clochiqef where in he is far fr·om cert;; in t y• .As. when ye meet with a !hanger upon the, roa~ ~ hebehav ing himfelf aifcreetly, ye conceive a good opin ion of him, and therefore wil-iingly converfe .·.v ith him: but yet ye \Vill not commit your mo.ney fo ,him; bec~.ufe, tho ~ ye ho. ·;e a good ~ opinion of the mao, he.·is a Hrang~ r ,to Yp,u, ye do not kr.~w him. So many they thinK. )yell of Ch<~"ift, bp t. they; ~vill ne.Ne r com_iJlit themfelves tohim ,;' r~\i'n'g t b_ey_know li iro. not. ? .u t faving illuminaiiol) carr) es th~""foul beyond op ini vn .. to the certain k r owl edge of Chrifi and l)is exctl lcccy, 1 'Thrjf. i. 5. For_cur go/pd came not unto)'ott in word on(y, but al;~ in pvJJer, and in tl•e holy uhc?fl, m;d i n much afitrancr. The light ofgra-ce thus difcovers t he fu itablenff' of the my– Hery of Cht i!J, ro the divine paf~ Cfions, and to the fi noe~: ' s cafe. Hence ·the regene'rate admire' the gloriou s php offal -: vati?n through ChriH crncifild; 1ay - th~i r whole weight up~ on it ; and heartily a..:quiefce _therein; for wha.~ ever he be to other s, he is to them Chrifl the porr.ver of Cod, dnd the cwijdom -,-j God. But unrenew~e:~ m,en , n o ~.f'eeing lhi s, are offended f'nhim; t·hey will not ventu re t heit foul~ in that bot– tom, but bet ake th emfel ves to the brok en bo ards 9f their own right·ecufnefs . Th e fame li ght convincingly difcov_!!·rs. a fu perlative wor th , !'l tr ~ nfcendent glory an.d excelle r ~z 10 Chrilt, which darkens all cre;ued exce!Ienc,ies, as thenfwg :---- · fun
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