SERMON x. Lti K E XIV. 23· T/,e Lord Jaid to tf,e So·l!d11t, Compel them to come i11, that my Houfe may be full. II. I Am now to confider theMeans by which Men are wrought on to accept of the Invitations of Grace in the Gofpel. The Sum of what has been difcourfed of finful and miferable Man is this, The Under!landing, the directing Faculty, is in ignorant DarkneiS, and a dead Slumber, not apprehenfive of his Mifery. A dead Eye does not fee i~ want of Sight; nor a dead Heart feel itS want of Life. If the Head • be ob!lructed with clammy Humours, the whole Body is without Senfe: . for the Nerves have their Root in the Brain, and are the Channels to convey powerful Spirits, to give Senfe, and Vigor, and Motion to all the Parts. The Will is a fierce and free, Faculty, commanding and a<'live, perverted and !lubborn again!! the holy Law of God. The Affections are exceedingly difordered, and !lrongly incli n'd to fenfiml Things that Aatter them with Satisfaction, and very tumultuous and fiery again£1: whatever lha ll crofs their natural Inclinations. Now how can one fo fiupid and refractory, be made foft and flexible to the Call of Mercy? As the Epicure.n in iuUy objeCts againfi: the making of the \Vorld, quO! mac!Jir.tl! qui 'VeEies, What Engines, what Lcavers were ufed in raifing this vafi Fabrick ~ \Vhat he fpoke in Dcrifion, may be fa id with Wonder? What Engines, what In!l:ruments are ufed in craning up a Soul funk below the Cenrre, to the highe!l: Heaven! What in making the new Creation·, that i s more glorious and Jailing than the firft' 'Tis a Work refpectively impoflible, not abfolutely, it can only beeflccted by the Power of God. There is no Principle of Recovery left in fallen Man. The Convcrlion of him from Sin coHolinefs, and from t!1e Creature to God, is a Miracle ofGrace: if he converted 11imfelf, it were fuper-miraculous. God can by his Commanding Power bring Light out of Darknefs ; but 'ris plainly impofiible that Darknels lhould produce Light. The external Minifiration of the Gofpcl, without the concomitant Miniil.ry of the ;6~r~eai:tiif~~~~~e.no;~~~::;~ec~~~~a~~e;r~~b7~t f~~~~ ~~pf;:; J}:;:~: ~%~~~ blime Eloquence overcomes all the admired Orators of the World, yet comp l ain~, Who rfa. "' has hlie'Ued our Report? to whom is tbe Arm of tbe Lord reveafd? The Angels ofLight, / if they were fent ffom Heaven, and were in this fenfe miniflring. Sptrits, they could not by their Seraphick Zeal, and mo£1: excellent Eloquence change and reform Sinners. One evil Angel feduced and corrupted the bcft Man, A dam, in the State of Innocence and Happinefs : but a Council of good Angels cannot re!lore one Man, tho the Iea£1: tai nted, to HolineiS and Felicy. No Creature can be a Creator; the Sanctification of a Sinner is a new Creation. 'Tis only the Word of Life fpoken by tbe Lord of Life, that can raile dead Bodies and dead Souls. Suppole the Word of God be afli!l:ed by his Rod, yet that will be ineffedu:xl to cleanfe and change thetr Hearts without Divin e Grace. 'Tis according to the wife Order of God, whom the Word does not convert , the Rod is made uf~ of to cure; and whom the Rod doCs not cure, the Sword cuts of[ Profperity furnifhes the Carnal Appetites with delightful Objects, and Men are eafily induced to neglect their Duty: like Chi ldren that forget their Leffon when they are at play. Sen0·that reigns in Beafls, and thould ferve m Men, is then predominan t. But AffliCtion 1mbittcrs the carnal Sweets, an~ is a proper Means to fix rhe·Thoughts, and reftore the Mind to its Right nnd ]urifdictwn :. as Blows and hard Ufage bind up the ranging FancY in dill:racted Perfons; tames and tires them, and thereby reduces them to Sobriety. Thus God is often pleafed, by Afflictions, to fhew Me>1 their ira•ifi.rrf. job 3 , , jions, to open their Ears ~o Difapline, and effeEluai!J· command them to return from their Iniquities. But without the InfiruCtion of his Spirit joins with the Vo iccol" the Rod rhe utmofi ERect of even lharp and long Afflictions is a forc'd and fading Repent~nce. ConO;ained Devotion is like Fire ftruck out of a. Flint, hardly got, and toon gone. Thus t1Sf01d of the l[raebtes m the Wddernefs, Whe>1 hef/ew tbem, they foughi him, tbry retunld andfought early after God; but their He(lrt was not rigbt wirb bim, Heitker Bbbbb 10erd
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