aia CHRISr'SA}larm I. For the firft, the efpscient caufe , that snakes one a living Chrifîian, is God: as the Pfalmifi Cayes, he it the fetentaine of life, Pfal.36.9. He is the fountaine of all life; it is he that makes one a living man. Hegiveth life and breath to a, Aii.17.a5. If he fhould take away our nacurall life, we dye and turne again unto our earth ; as long as he breatheth on us we live ; as Elibtt fpeakes, the ireath of the Almighty gives me life, Job.33.4. yea all the world would be a dead chaos, if he did not quicken it; there's akinde of life in every thing that bath being. But it would be a dead gaffe, if he did not concurre with it ; what is money, and meat, and clothes, and friends, and lifè, and health it félfe? Men thinke they are well to live when they have them all. True, if he blelfe them and quicken them unto us ; but if he be wanting to them, they are dead things and can due us no good ; nay, the word of life it fell, it is but a dead Fitter without him, all the ordinances of God, we fee they Mmifler lif to leime, be- caufe God outs life into them, but if he doe not put life into them, they are fappeleffe and cadaverous things ; to that God is the author, even of our naturall life ; as Yoko (ayes, In him it life, and hit life is the life of men, Joh.t.4. in him we live, and move and have our being ; and therefore it is a great ['nine not to be thankfull to him for our naturall life ; David bielles God for his naturali 1úè very often ; life is a very great bleffing, a poor thing that bath life, a living D g, is better then a dead Lyon. A man will give skinne for skinne, and all that he bath for his life ; I am lure many of us may be very glad of life, for if it were gone now, we fhould be in hell ; and therefore we had need to makemuch of our na- turaall life, yea, every houre of it, leafl we dye before we be converted, and brought home to God. But this is not the life that we doe fpeake of ; we (peak of fpiritnall life, and God is the author of that more clpecially ; when a man is alive towards God, he is theonely caufè of it. He fpiritualiy moveth our hearts by the holy Ghofi;, and begets us agatne after a fleange, and an ineffable manner ; by joyning
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