Brooks - BT750 .B7 1669

2 Cor. A Box of precious Ointment : Or, give his glory to Graven Images. Affaredly the too hard, the too brill, the too fevere, the too jealous thoughts and conjectures, and the too humble (if I may fo fpeak) cenfures and furtnifes that many weak doubting Chriffians have of themfelves, or of the goodnefs or gracioufnefs of their Eaates (by reafon of the weaknefs of their Graces, or depth of melancholy, or the prefent prevalency of fume unmorti- fied luf1s, or the fubtilty of Satan) shall never make void the faithfulnefs of God, or the Promifes of God, which in Chrifi Jefus are all rea and Amen. Doubtlefs God will ne- ver Phut any poor weak doubting Cluiflian out of Heaven, becaufe through bafhfulnefs or an excels of modefly, or the prefent darknefs that is upon his underflanding, or through the ungroundednels of force firong fears of an eternal mif- carriage, he cannot entertain fuch good thoughts, fuch ho- nett thoughts, fuch gracious thoughts of himielf, or of the aoodnefs or happinefs of his condition, as he fhould enter- tain, and as he would entertain, if once he could but be too hard for the World, the Fleih, and the Devil. 0 that you would remember this for ever, viz-. That the Lord never makes any Promifes to fupport, comfort, cheer, and encourage his people againfl their fadtiefs, darknefs, doubts and droopings, but they shall fupport, comfort, cheer, and encourage his poor people in that condition, for otherwife the Lord should provide means for an end, out of his infinite Wifdorne, love, and tender care and compaf.: Pion towards his people, and yet they fhould never attain that end, but thus to imagine is no fmall folly ; yea, ,'tis little lefs than Blafpherny. Well Sirs, this is to be for ever re- inembred, viz,. That whatfoever gift or Grace of God in man brings him within the Compafs of Gods PromiSes of eternal favours and mercies, that gi't, that Grace ,mull needs be an infallible fign or evidence _of Salvation ; but ,fuch are the gifts and Graces fpecified in the fifteen parti- culars but now cited, and therefore that Soul that really finds -thole gifts and Graces in himfelf (or any of them) shall ,cer- tainly be faved. But, The

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