40 / 808
Ephe/ians,Chap.
I.
V
B
It.3.
itdothmake
him
both
glad
and
thankfull,
Romans
1.8.1
Corinth.
r.4
ROMANS
6.17.
The
V
fe
of
whichconfideration,isto let
us
fee
what
kind
of
creatures
we
are:If
we be rifen
with Chrift,we will affeá things
fpirituall;forgive-
neffe
of
(inne,
the
gift
of
faith,
fanûification,
and fuch like; fo
as
to
be
thank
full
for them,joyfull
of
them:yea,if
we have any fellow
-
feeling,as
members
knit
together
in
the
fame
bad y,we
(hall
not
be able
to
fee
thefe
benefits
in
any,but they
will move
us
to
be thankful!.
Obferve
thirdly;In
regard
of
God,what
kinde
of
benefits he
doth
give
his
children;to wir,fuch
as
are
fpiriruall;every
thing
in
nature
doth
com-
municate with
that
which
is
begotten
of
it, fuch
a
like
nature
as it felfe
retaineth
:
Thus it
is
alto with
civil!
men, for
they
leave
their children
Gold
and Silver, Houfe and
Land,
and fuch like
other good
civil!
bene-
fits
:Thus our heavenly father,he
is a
fpirit, hc,erge, maketh
us
partakers
of
a
divine nature,
who
are his
children, and bleffeth
us
with
fpirituail
bleffings.
Now
a
bleffing
is
fpiritual
in
two
regards.
s.In
refpect
ofthe
nature,whé
it
is
a
thing
wrought,not
by
any
power
of
nature,or
meanes
naturall;but
by the
vertue
of
Gods
fpirit, and meanes fupernaturall, fuch
as is
Gods
word. z. Things
are
then
in
fome fort fpirituail, when
though
for
their
Effence and
being, they exceede
not
nature, yet they aredirected
by
a
fupernaturall providence,
to worke unto
an
end above nature, evento
bring
us
unto happineffe with
God,fuch
as
is
fpirituall and fupernaturall.
Now
God doth thus
give
his
children many
bleffings
fpirituall,
for
na-
ture; and doth
fo
guide
all
things, health, wealth,
fickneffe,
poverty,
thatthey
worke
together
unto
the
fpirituall and fupernaturáil falvation
ofthofe who
are
his.Ifthen
one fhould
object,
and
fay,Why, the
godly
have
the
benefits
ofthis
life, naturali and civil!,
as
well
as
thofe belong
-
ingto another,
ergo,
are not
b!efi'ed
onely with fpirituall
bleffings.
I
an-
rwer.That
even thefe benefits are in fome
fort fpirituall, while
by Gods
providence they are elevated and guided
to
a
higher
end
then
is
the
fer-
vice
of
this life
onely.Hence wemay
make
a
rule,whereby
we
may know
whether
we
be Gods true children,whether
we have
the
children
blef-
fing.Let
us
enter into our
felves,and looke
if
we
find
thefe fpirituall blef-
fings, then we may
fecure
our
felves,
that
we are
the Lords
:
Thefe
are
all
of
them appurtenances to the matter
of
inheritances.
Now
we
know,though Parents
give Legacies tomany
ufes,to
many perfons,who
are no kinne
to
them, yet
they conveigh
the
matter
of
inheritance onely
to children
;
So doth our God
give many bleffings
to
men devoid
of
grace,
to caft-awaies; but
thefe
fpiriruall bleffings
of
found
faith,repen-
tance,&c.which
ferve
to enter
us
into
the
inheritance
of
that
everiafting
kingdome, he
beftoweth thefe
on none
but
children. Let not
men
deceive themfelves, becaufe
they
have thefe outward things: Efts'
got the
bleffing,
which the dew
of
heaven,
and
the
fatneffe
of
the
earth might yeeld
him
:
Wuhan,
gave gifts
to the
children
of
his
Concubines,
though not
/flak,
bleffing.
Thou
canft
not
know
thy
felfe bleffed
of
God, by
outward things, unitlfe thou
findeft them
to