Chap. Y 4 and the Covenant of Grace. 95 . fo theWord bath its efficacy in fome foul- íhaking, and that by the Lawes difcovery ,. by Which is the knowledge of ftnne, as horn. 3. 2o. Evangelical allurements (on which by force the whole of the work is laid) can never (l fuppofe) work on the foul without Law- convic}ons. Thefe Gofpel-allurements if they draw to Chrift they Mat draw from fin, and how fhall any be drawn from what he does not know ? nor ever understood either to be evìll or dangerous ? It is with me no leffe a Paradox, that a man may be drawn from fin without the difcovery of the Law, as to be drawn to Chrift without the light of the Gofpel; And to fay the Gofpel difcovers fin as well as the Law, taking the Gofpel in oppofition to the morall precepts, (as here it muff be taken) is the greateft abfurdity. Extrn. gr. If it be queftioned whether to take up armes be a fin ? whether to fight a duel be a fin ? whether ufury be fin ? or to marry within the Levitical de- grees forbidden be fin,íhall I determine this out of a Gofpel -pro- mile ? That lefts. Chrift came to fave finners. ?'hat the blond of Chrift takes away all fin. 7 hat in him all that beleeve are jnf'tifaed. A thoufand of thefe will contribute nothing to the expediting of thefe, or like queftions, or the conviction of any under guilt; The work muff be brought to the rule, the aelion to the line for difcoverie,upon the Laws convi &ions there may follow Gofpel - aggravations But convi &ion is the work of the Law, as an in- ftrument of the Spirit This conviction unto change is hardly without compunction, retnorfe, and terrours in the foul. It was not the tingle cafe of the Corinthians, but common with other Chriftians,the natural work of godly furrow, that it worketh re- pentance not to be repented of, z Cor 7.10. I will not fund to di- fpute whether any ever are exempted from this preparatory work. I queftion not Gods prerogative, I am upon enquiry after his ufu- all method: I know force infrancc in t_?'latthew, who being cal- led, fuddenly followed Chrifi, and we hear nothing of any work . upon his fpirit to trouble. But who knows whether Ili atthew a Jew were not called by grace before this call to anApoftlefhip? and if not in grace whether it neceffariiy followed in that inftant? The like is objected of 4 dia, It is laid i he Lord opened her heart, that fhe attended to the thins that were !token of' Paul, Arts id. 14. Without any mention of farrow, or troul4 in fpirit , nei- ther is there mention of any joy, or rejoycing in fpirit ; and fhe by Some degrce of fèul-ibaking by the Law ne- cefi àry.
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