to the E PH E SI AN S. Ill he /hewed abundance of grace in ? It is the work of converlion; working in ""-..A.../\ them wifdom and prudence, that is, faith and hohnefs, as you /hall fee by and~ byThe Obfervation then from thence is this, That God ll1ewerh abundance of Objerve, mercy in converting of a man.. It is an abundant grace_ be lingleth out, that you fee here eminenrly, and Paul, m that other place, fztd tt was over full; he was (faith he there) exceeding abundant, [peaking of!liSconverlion. . TogivcyouanothcrSmptureiotlt, I ·1Jet. 1. l· Ble.(Jed be God the Fmher of our Lord ,7e{tts Chrifl,who tircordwg to his abtmd,mtgrace, hath done; what Jor us? bath 6egotlentts again. There is an abundance ot mercy enunently above all other works in aman fl1ewed in his convcrlion. I might ·inlarge upon this, but I will only give you one reaf~n and fo l'afs fromi'. ft is the fun(hmental mercy to all grace and glory. ft rs the ~r(l app~anng of the love of God to a man. Ttt. l· l• 4· After lh<~t 1he kl!ldnejs mtd loveoj God ottr S.tviottr tow.Irds tts appe,zred, ~Jot by w orks of >'~ghteouft~efs which we have doJJe, 6ttt accordmg to his mercy he javed us by_ the w.z/bmg of reger~er,Jtioll audrmewi11g of the Holy Gho(l. God's love IS like a R.rver or a Spring that runs under ground, and hath done fo .from etermty,. where breaks it up fir£!? where bubbleth it fir£!, (as the word m theText fign•fieth, Jt is a limilitude I have ufed before, but the words in the Text wrll bear It,) where cloth this fountain begin to bubble up or ilfue forth? When a man is firl1 called, then that love that bath run from everlal1ing under ground, and through the heart of Chril1 upon the Crofs , breaks out in a mans own heart too: And it is the fundamental mercy of all grace and glory whatfoever. My Brethren, the word here ufed doth comp1re God to a frill FutmtaitJ, which was reil rained dl thejitlneflof time came, when he would break forth in love to a man. Oh! when fl1all it once be, f•ith he? And when the time comes, his Love and Mercy gufl1 out upon a man, when he calls and converts him. This is the meaning of the word in the Greek: ft was the time of his Efpoufals, a time of love. So much for the fir(\ thing in the Text, that whe.reby he lets· out the greatncfs of this blefTing, wherei11 be hmh a6ottndedtowardtu. f come Secondly to the BleJling itfelf, wherein (as f told you) ther~ are two parts of it. Here is firl1 the Internal part, the work of grace upon the hearr, e>prell here by wifdom andprudmce: And here is the External Calling, in the 9th Verfe, M<~king k110W11 the 111)•(/eryof his will,f~c. He exprelfeth Converlion, and the whole work inheremly wrought in us by the makwg of a mmt wiji:. It is ufu~l in the Scriptures, and you may oft-times meet with it. Pfa!. '9·7· Converting the S'ottl, m,lking wtje thejimple, Prov, 2 • 10, the beginning of converlion, and fo all along, the increafe of all grace to the end is exprelled by Wifdoms entring into a mans heart, If wijdom mtrr itttothy be<Jrt, and fo goes on to do more and more; not into thy head only; a man may have all that,and be a fool in the end; bm when it entreth into the heart, and draws all the affeetions after it, and along with it, whm knowled~e is pleafimt to thy S'otti, then a man is converted ; when God breaks open a mans heart,and makes wtjdom fall in,enter in,and make a man wife. U-'ijdom.J. It is taken fo_metime for the 'Doctritte of the Gojpel, in which a flu; pcnd1ous D1vme wrfdom ts to be feen and adored; r Cor. 2. 7. We jpeak (faith he) thewtfdom of God i11 a mJfler)·, even the hiddm wifdom, ~c. Ipeaking of the Doctnne of the Gofpel, he calls it the wijdom, and the hiddm wtjdom of God. Orelfe Wtjdomi• taken forthegiftof S,1ving Grace, working a principle in the Soul, whereby our Souls are made able to take in all the Truths of the Gof– pel effectually: and foit is taken in this very Chapter, vtr. I 7· for the Grace of wifdomm the k11owledge of Chrijl, and to be wife to {q/vatiolt; he prays there, that theymay have theJpirit cf w1jdom mtd revt!atioll i1J the k11owledge of ihnjl, that Is, to have the Holy Gholl working wifdom in them, and giving a Prmc:ple to be capable of all the Spiritual faving Truths, that difcovers the knowledge of Chn11, and to enlighten that Principle, to take them in and ,w:fely to apply them to themlclves; in one word, to be wife 1111to jalv.1• 1(1011. Some
RkJQdWJsaXNoZXIy OTcyMjk=