8o The Tryal>' of itru&ion, he cannot be fuppofed to have come to know the Ele- gancies of the Tongue, nor fee his errors therein ; fo nor doe men come to be Critiques indeed, and cunningly skilful! in the more curious Errataes of their hearts and fpirits, till they have attained to fuch a degree of mortification, as to be free from groffer evils. And indeed, chofe who are grown in grace, have attained ordinarily fome freedome from fuch finnes ; therefore (ayes fohn, i Epifi. 2. 14. rou young men are gong, and have overcome that evil?one : they have attained fo much flrength as to overcome the groffer evils, thole evills. So as to allude to what the Apoftle layes in another cafe, they then come to con. flip not fo much withfeT and blood, and outward evils, as with fpirituatl wickZedneffes within, (that is) with affeetions and difpo- litions contrary to the worke of grace, and therein lies their chiefeft exercife, which is not till they have fome free- dome and viftory over theother, and fo areat leafure to view thefe. Secondly, we may difcerne our.vi&&ory over our lulls, by our ability more or leile ro deny our felves the more we grow up to a readinefle, willingneffe, and freenefl'e, and cheerfulneffe of heart to deny our felves when we are called and put upon doing of it,the more are lulls purged our : for the reafon that our hearts confult fo much with carnal! ends in bufîneffes, that we have fo much adoe with them ere we can bring them off to part with fuch and fuch things, as God and our owne confciences doe call us u;sto, is through want of purging : For all want of felf- denyall is from an adháefion to outward things.. Were we free and un- married men to the world, were our hearts loofned from all ; and were all the fecretfibrEe, thofe f}ings of lulls that (hoot into things, cut, it would be nothing to us to part with them : this was in that great Apotile, how ready was he to lay downe his life ? Aly life is not deare to me, fo I may fulfill my miniflratio i- with joy and fo when the time of his departure was at hand, fayes he, Iam ready to be offered, 2 Tim. 4.6. He fpeaks it inMae prefent tenfe, cwi.vd'othcu, Iam offered, it was done in his heart already : As in like phrafe of fpeech it is laid, deb. 1 a, that Abraham offered up hisfon, becaufe in his heart he fully purpofed it. When men mull be forced by terrors of eonfcience, as Phearrao
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