S a c T. VI. OJ GalsPL'orkraanfiìip. 2 that they all fßa tvitb:JèrangeTongues ; Noletl'ei §ikhere. Thy tongue prai- fjno of, and praying to God, fpeaksin -a ltrange tongue to what it did once, when lying and cuttingcame as fo maoyfparks of hell out of thy mouth. Oh when will God appear thus in his power, when will he bow the Heavens'and come down 2 Now the grounds why God takes Inch untoward and indifpofedmateri- Gods reafonor als to any thing that is good, and makes them complying with, and imbracing end in chang- of his holineffe, are tng Ixch indif Firll, To /hew forth the Glory of his Power and Grace. That which Paul Pcfed people. fpeaks concerninghimfelf, whom he makes a moo tier of men, and ftileth him- Pelf, (hechiefeît of all fanners: Now (faith he) God converted him, that the exceeding riches of his grace might be made manifefl to the ages to come. Gods power andGoodneffe is wonderfully revealed in this: His Power that he can fubdue the beamofmen foaverle, and fo oppofitely bent: And his goodneffe, that he will do it to fuch enemies to him. That he fhould furprize Paul in his journey to perfecute the peopleof God, with fo much melting Grace, when hemight have(truck him into Hell with the Thunder -bolt of his anger, This was unspeakable Goodneffe; fo that upon this ground, the Minifters of God may earneiìly importune God that he would turn their people from darkneffe to fight, O Lord, thou doll all things for thy Glory I Now the more unwil- ling, unable and oppofite men areto their ownSalvation, the greater will thy glory be inhelping of them ; As Davidufeth this as an Argument , that God would have mercy on him for his fins are very great. Some indeed tranflate it (Although) Thus we may urge, O Lord, Pity them and Phew compaffioit to them, forthey are a people cruel to their own fouls ; and therefore God bath many times chofen the worti of men, that fo his Goodneffe may be the more remarkable. Thus (tome fay) the Jewes were the molt brutifh and blockifh people in the world,yet God chofe them rather then anyother to bebis people. So the Corinthians, theywere noted to a Proverb for wickedneffe and uncleanneffe : They had a Temple dedicated to Venus, and many Virgins were dedicated to her yearly to make Whores ; And Cory'sthe Heathengodfor uncleanneffe, was there worfhipped, yet God tu rneth theirBealls intoSaints, andfweet Herbs come upwhere Brambles and Thorns did grow. Secondly, God bath this end in this ffiritual Creation, to /hew his abfolute Do- 2, minion, and free Liberty inexercifing his gracious Power upon chat Subjefts be pleafeth. He cloth notmany times vouchfafe his Grace to thofe that are civil andof a lovely converfation , nor to men alwaies ofwifdomandparts, as our Saviouracknowledgeth with the admiration of Gods wifdome herein; Thou haft hid tho%things from the Wife, and revealedthem to Babes. The Apofile Paul, Remit. doth profeffedlydifpute Gods Dominion herein, Whom he mill he choofeth, andWhom he Will he hardeneth e AndWho are thou, Oman, that difjrutefd with God ? Gods Difpenfationherein is wholly Arbitrary, and none may fay unto God, Whydoeft thou fo? Thus while the Apoftleswere preaching, it is raid, Aimany as Were ordained to eternallife, believed, Aél.1.48. And the EleEli- on barb obtained, Roma t. Hereupon it is that the ApoftleBoth fooften put the godly inmindeoftheir eleftion, that herebytheir hearts might befurred up to all Thankfulneffe ; for what an overwhelming confideration would this be to thegracious heart, to confider ofthofe many thoufands lying in a lump of fin, God fhould choofe thee amongothers, and leave the reltin a perilhingcon- dition! A third end, Hereby GodWill for ever keep his New Creatures in Humility and 3, felf-emptineffe. For whenwe know, that Juftification and Regeneration are Priviledges vouchfafed unto us, not for any Works we have done, forwe were enemies to God; This keeps us in daily humbleand low thoughts about our P p 3 Pelves,
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