Obj,EI. Phi!. 2. 13, Sol. • 1. There is a grace 1 egc:oerating, ()rconverting, whe,cby of dt:a.l men in fin we come to have aLife ofgrace. .2~ There i~a g1ace cxcit– mg, flirring. fll)f IDutie.s in ([5enetal. Chap.:2.Sea. 6. hout me] fignifieth, Separate frcm me, or apnrt frcm me; and intimateth this only, Trat till we are knit unto Chrifr, we arc but dead and barren branches, and foChrill: txplains himrelf, As the brant·h cannot bring forth frllit of it ji If, c:acpt it abu!c w the Vme, m, more can ye, e:rc:ept ye Abide_in m(.. . It may be objeCted agam, It" God that wo;k_sth both to wz/1 atJd to do of hisgood pleafure. · This denies not that the Saints have in them A feed, a JPring, a principle of life, ,, power; but on the contrary, it affirms, That they have a power, onlY that this powrr is of God; We lhould work_o~tt our {alvation in humility,not boaning in our own felves;for all is received of God~more (ully, God is faid to work_the~vill and the dred, * r. By giving a principle of ltfc,habitual grace, a renewed frame of heart. 2. By exciting and ftrengthning this grace ; and beth thefe are ever afforded to the Saints, only t'he hitter is more or lelfe, according to his pleafure: So that in the worfl: times a Believer bath power to do good, though not alike at all times; and this power we mull: ufc, and put forth our·felves as we are able, or we cannot with reafon expe<'i: his help. A fhip hath innruments of motion (though not an internal principle) and if the Mariner would nave help by the winds, he mull: loofe his Cables, and hoife his Sails ; fo mull: we, or clfe ·we may lie frill. qmckning,whereby rhatformer principle ofgrJce isfiirrtd up,anrt provoked w attion; now as m:m is rhe fubjell of ~he fuH convcrriug grace, (o he IS mculy pafiivc:, he doth not at all coopcrare, 01' wo1 k with che gr-.ce ()[God : but n is otherwifewirh the excmo~, quickning, alling grace, for there being the fupernaiurJI princlvlcs. of g1ace- be– fore, when he i~ flirrcd up, he i£> not mrerly pafflve: Alli ,.gimus,being movc:.d,wc mo, e: dm ts cxellcnrly exp1 dlt~l by the-Church, Draw us, mfd wee wilt run ~Jter tha, Can. 1. 4• The Church wa~ ltOiclle, unp;·epitrcd, <:nd rherrto 1 e fhc dcfircs the g1at.:eofGod ro dral'?.1 lur. and then file would. run rtft~:r bim, Drt:W il dead man,aorl for all thar hecJ.n:. not run, bm the Church had the life of g1ace in her, only (he wanced ahii quickmog, cxciung grace, ifChrdt would but gwe her thlt, why thc:n !he would run ajrer bim. Burges ofgrace. Now that which we are to do, is,-- Firll, To ll:ir up our fclves; for God bath promifed to meet us and to reach out his hand to help us, if we be not wanting to our felves: It is certain, a godly man cannot, by his own endeavours alone, raife up his foul, nor recover his lolfe, though he fhould lay Mountain upon Mountain, and pile endeavours upon endeavours ; yet as endea– vours without God cannot, fo God Without enaeavours will not help us herein, and therefore labour we to quicken our felves, (i.) work we upon our own hearts, by our underflandings ; as the ll:riking of the Flint and Steel together begetteth fire, fo the meeting of there two faculties having an internal life in them do quicken the foul. Thus Pial. 42 • 5• we fee David pleading with himfelf, fometimes chidmg, Why flrt rho1t cafl.!ovrn 0 my font, and why art thou d1fquieted within me? fometimes exciting himrclf to Dmy,Prafo ::i::: :~~: ;: the Lord 0 my jolll, all thllt i!Within me prmfe his holy Name: fometimcs comforting himfeltin God, T11rn to thy refl 0 my foul,for God lwh dealt bOllntifuily tVith thee: It was an ufual thing for him to talk with himfdf, and he found fo much good in this way, that he puts all upon it, Comnmne with)'our own hearts t:pon;•our beds, and be j1ill ; the Ff<l. 4· 4: underftanding is to the heart, as the flomack to the body, all is fed by it; Set therefore upon our hearts with quickning thoughts : for as rubbing and chafing the hands with hot Oyls is a means to recover them when they are benumb'd ; fo rhe plying of the hcartwithll:irring thoughts, and enforcing arguments is a meansto revive it: And amongll: all thoughts, there arc none more prevalent, then Of fins pafl, Of Heaven, Heii,Etcrnity, Love ofChrij1, there are ll:rong Cordials to chear up the Spirits. 2. To fall on the Duty•; for if W€ be doing, he will work with ns, in m, and for"'· Is itthm (0 my (o11l )thatthy heart isrfirrcd, rowz.ed, revived? then Jet to thy h~nds: idle beggers mufl be whtpped; he thanwli not work_, muj/ not eat. Remember, we have a )1fe in us if we be in Chrill:: and as we have a life', fo there is a never-failing· prefence of the Spirit, to attend that power which we have : If then we put forth our felve~ to that we are able, and as.far as our power extends, God will draw near to us. It is true,that which we want is out ofour reach,we are not able to make crooked things to become ll:raight, to lay thofe [welling mountains of corruption lcYel,but.yet we 1mlir fet to the work : Jojh~ta could not with the ll:repgth of Rams horns founding,cap down the 'walls of Jericho,but yet he mufl: fet upon the work: when the M,dianitc.i fall,the're n1uil: Jud .:,; 1 g, • b~_T~e ~word of the Lwd~ and Gideon : The father holdeth an Apple to the child, tl.'e g · - 'litld cannot reach 1t,yet h1s fhort arm nmfi be put forth,and th~n the father whore arm IS· tong enough will reach it to him ; we muft: be doing, and yet wbm all is dom,our hcorts · mull:
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