Baxter - Houston-Packer Collection BT770 .B39 1670

.7be Life of Faith. 141 Lich : And there let your finches be principally bent ; that yöu. may have particular armour todefend you againft particular affaults : And get fuch light by communication, with wifer andmore experienced men, as may furnith yon for that uíe ; that no obje&ion may be made againfi your faith, which you are nor atwaies ready to anfwcr. This is the true fenfe of r Pet. 3. 15. Saneti f e the Lord God in your hearts, and be rea- dy alwaies to give an anfwer to every man that askethyou areajcts of the hope that is inyou, with meektsefs and fear. Dire6. 6. Mark well thofe works of God in the world, which are the plain fulfilling of his Word, God doth not make fuch notable difference by his Judge- ments, as (hall prevent the great difcoveries at the Litt, and makehis Aflìze and final Judgement to be unneceffary, by do- ing the fame work before the time. But yet his Providences do own, and bear witneß to his Word: and he leaveth not the world without dome prefent fenfiblc teflimonics of his foveraign governmetit,to convince them,and refìrain them. t. Mark how the flare of the finful world agrecth to Gods dcfription of it, and how malicioufly Godlinefs is every where oppofed by them, and how notably God full cafieth fhame upon finners; fo that even in their profperity and rage they are pittied and contemned in the eyes of all that arc wife and Cober, and in the next generation their names do rot, Pfal. r5m3, 4 Prov. ao 7. And it is wonderful to obferve, that fin in the general and abfirat , is Rill fpoken of by all as an odious thing, even by them that will be damned rather than they will leave it : And that Vertue and Godlinefl, Cha- rity and 3ufiiee are Rill praifed in the world, even by them that abhor and perfecute it. 2. And it is very obfervablc, howmots ofthe great changes of the world are made ? By how fmall, contemptible and unthought of means ? Efpecially where the intcrefi of the, Gofpcl is mat concerned ! The inilance of the Reformation in Luther's time, and manyothers nearer to our daies, would thew us much of the conjunction ofGods works with his Word, if they were particularly and wifely opened. The

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