'Ihe Danger of ProJPerity. addrelfcs to God's propitious Throne, to encline his Mercy to regard and relieve us : but a Sinner, the more full fruition he has of the World, the more he foril!kes and provokes God, and the more he is abandon' cl to his worO: Enemies, his LuO:s, and Satan. This will be amplified more in the following parts of the Di!Courfc. This being prcmis'd, we come to lhew how Profperity abus'd is dellruCtive to Sin, ncrs, both mcricorioufly, as it induces a deadly gmlt, and makes them. obnoxious to the revenging Wrath of God; and effeCtively as 'tis oppofitc ro the Felicity and PerfeCtion of Man, that confdl:s in the renovation of the Image of God 111 the Soul, Jnd in joyful Communion with him for ever. This will appear by the following ConfideratiOns. 1. Profperity is the continual Incentive of the vicious AffeCtions, tbe flejhly Lujis that war again}/ tbe Soui; that dcpriv~ ~t of its Beauty, Order, Frc~dom,. andFclictty: .Man is compounded of Flefh and Spmt ; by the one he commumcatcs 111 nature With rhc Bcafis,~ by the other he confines with the Angels. By rhc original Law of Union, rh~ Body was fi•bjeet ro rhc Soul ; and tho' taken from the Earth, did not cpprefs it, and hinder i<S Heavenly Flight: lbe Flejh did not luj/ againj/ the Spirit, nor tbe Spirit againj/ the Flejh. Bur as the motion of rhe rwo Eyes in rhe Head is always uniform, and directed ri:e fam_c way ; f? Rcafon and Scnfe a~cordcd, the Ap~etitcs were regular an~ concentnck wtth the Mmd. . Upon this eftablHhed Order, rhe mtcrnal Peace and Hohnefs of Man depends. But by the rebellious Sin of Adum, the Soul loll: its regal Power and Freedom: and as in die firfi Temptation the Soul infected the Body, fo now the Body infeCts the Soul. The carnal Appetite, the fpring of Lull and Anger (that infernal pair that reigns fo univerfally) over-rules the ranonal Wtll, and gtvcs Law to lv!_en: The Love of f!.:!nfi1al Pleafurcs is natural to Men; as Temptations are more clPnmng and increas'd, 'ris more predominant. The Senfes, die Fancy, and the Palflons, arc in a confj>iracy again!l the Soul ; and rhcrc is a continual circulation in their worki1~g, .they excite one another. By the Scnfes pleafrng things obtain an cafie entrance tnro the Fanc.y; and Fat~cy has a ftrange Power to charm or terrific byfa1fe Reprefentations ;. i~ ~f~~~~~,rh:;,;~!ffi~~~ ~;~~~~;:d,t!~cn~e~~:'rf.~~~dkfn~h~f;;red~n~r~Ge ~~~If;~~~~';],~ Mind, and draw the (::onfcnt of the Will by the actual Plcafure that is mixr in rhe gratifying of them. And as Adam loll his Innocence and Paradife by his compliance widt the bla11diOunen<S of his Wife; fo the Squllofcs its Purity and Happincfs, by yielding to the DcfLrcs of the Flcfl1 that is in conjunCtion with it. For this reafon, Man in his fallen ~rate is called Fie.(h,; iS if thcr~ 'yerc no other.Principlc in his Nature, and of his 2~~::.~:!~;, ,J;;;e dora~~l f~~t ~~~ec~~~~~~it~~cu~i~:'rJ~%~i~~~~ ~r"~e~~nd~l~~~~~= . rural Srate, by the Apo!l:le, is a full proof of this: We ali had our Co1t'Verfation in times Epher. 2. paf/ ;, the Lvj/s of the Flejh, fulfilling the dejires of the Flejh, and of the Mind. 'Tis obfervable that the Lulls of the Flefl1, tl1ar fpring from the fenfual Parr, are drawn forth into aCt by the concurrent Wills of the Flefl1, and of the Mind. The nobler Faculties, the Underfl.anding and w,u arc depraved, and freely indulge the Carnal Appetites in rhelf purfinr of Pleafurcs. Prod•g!oUs degeneracy of rhe reafonable Creature! Of this we hav~ a refcmblance in rhe marvellous transforming Power of N~turc. If a Cy~:m be grafted mto a Tree of another kind, the Fruit that grows on it wtll not be accordmg ro the Nature of the Stock, but of the Graft that over-rules the Sap, arid turns it co its own quality. Thus the Beafl: is~ grafted inco the Man, and the intelleCtual Powers arc ~h~~u;:~~.cl~tc~~~~ J~~~ ~~{,';; i~nd~h~0~~1 ~~n~~~~~i~~ ~h~ubi~rm~~'% tf,~1e ~~~~ ble and unruly Appetites. Man has only this privilege, rhat he is a more ingenious B~tre, to fpring new Pleafttres, to make provtfion for his fenfual Defires, and ro accompliflJ them. Now in.Profpcrity, wh~n the Senfes ar~ ehtcrtained with variety of alluring ObjeCts, rhc Fancy 1S more prcdommanr and contagwus: It has more force, vivacity, and extent, the. more 'tis converl:mt about fenfible things: .And the polluted Imagination is rhe mofi a&,vc and general Principle of corrupting the fteart: for the Mind tranfcribes a Copy of what is written m the Fancy, and prefenrs it with a falfe glofs ro the Will, that is ready to chute what brings aCl:~al Pleafure. And the fenfirive AffeCtions are ·excited by rhc Fancy, fo that the prcfence of a fuirable Object, foments the warmth into hear, and turns the hear into fire, and rhe fire into flame. And the more rhe carnal Affections are indulg'd, the .more they ~re inlarg'd, the more importunate and hcad-ftron~ they b~cOI.ne ; and rhe Soul JS Utterly d1fabled from recovering it felf from rhe beforred VJic Pro11mttwn, . ~
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