52 'LESII AND SPIRIT. submit and yield to the fretful or the luxurious humours of the body; and thus the brutal powers overcome the mind, and I are led away captive to sin. If I had not an eye, I had not been drawn away to the commission of this folly; if I had not an ear, I had not been tempted from God at such a season ; if I hadnot such appetites or senses in- exercise, I had been secured from many a snare ; if I did not wear this flesh about me, which is so fond and tender of itself, and so impetuous and active in the pursuit of its own ease and satisfaction, I had not shrunk away at such a time from a dangerous duty I had not been so fearful and cowardlyat such a placein the professionof my faith, nor so often pollutedmy soul with sensnalities, and made work for bitter repentance. Thus the experience of christians, and the language of scrip- ture concur in this point, That the occasions of sin evidently lie most in the flesh : and a contradiction or opposition to sin, pro- ceeds more from the spirit. It is trueindeed, and must be confessed, that thesoul being but in part sanctified, too often complies with these motions of sin which work in'onr members; and the affections of the soul itself, being not perfectly holy, are too easily induced to indulge the de- sires and passions of the flesh ; and thereby sin is committed and guilt contracted. The law or principle, ofsire in the members, leads the mind, too often, captive;_ Bons. vii. 23. Thus the soul is very culpable for want of perpetual resistance; and becomes guilty before God, by every such inordinate passion breaking forth, and by the satisfaction of every such sinful ragingappetite ; yet I must believe that the soul Of a christian would not beguilty half so often, if the lusts of the body were not more active than the mere abstracted lusts of the mind are. The spirit lusteÉid against theflesh, andtheflesh against the spirit ; Gal. v. 17. That part which is chiefly sanctified, and that which is chiefly unsanc- tified, strike against each other ; and it is true in a literal sense, . as well as a figurative one, that a saint with his mind serves the lawof God, but too often with his flesh the lare of sin. Thus I haves given the chief reasons why the principles of sin are represented inscripture by flesh, and the springs ofholi- ness by spirit. [This sermon maybe divided here.J From thisconsideration of fleshand spirit, of holiness and sin, which areset forth intheword of God, and thus explained in the most free and intelligible method that I am capable of, I would derivesome remarks for our information andpractice. Remark L We may hence derive a rule of judgment con- cerning our own state, and find whether we have any prin- ciple of holiness in our hearts or no, or whether we are yet in the flesh, and in a state of sin. We may draw an easy
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