to the E P HE S I AN S. there is an antienter Seal tha'n that, the Original feal of a!I, whereby falvation ~ is made fure in it fel f, even God's Eterttat p11;poje, and thts [eali11g_ is a diflinCl: &r.'XVL. thing from that 2 Tzm,2o19. Thefotmdattolt of I he. Lord remmuethjztre; havhtg~ this Seal The Lord k11owrth who are hu; fpeakmg of eter11at Etrato11 ; that is, rather'a fetting of usupon God's heart as a!eat, (.as the expreillon is,Ca1118.6. Srt me P4 a Seal upq11 thttte heart,) than God s feahng our hearts by, lHs Spmt. This is not the meaning here, for he had fpoken of that before, he had fpoken how by predejlitJilli01~ they were appointed to it,v. r I .and how by faith they had obtained it,and the thmg was conveyed ; they hat! obtatned a11 lnher~ta~tce;v.r 1, There is th'erefore another ufe of a Seat; It IS to afcertaw the parnes, or o· tii.ers to whom the thing is made over unto, that they might have that to fl1ew for it'for ever. So indeedjeatiiJgis taken in the Scripture, not only fo much for making Salvation fure in it felf, as to alfure our hearts? (as the phrafe is that the Apollle ufeth in his Epifrles.) It is parallel to What is m 2 Cor. I .u, 22. He which flablijbetb 115 wtth JOtl Ill et' if/, tJIId bath atJOIIJtrd Uf. IS God, who bath atjo jMiedu;. Seali11g and A11oi 1ti11g, is there put for ftabltjbi?Jg us, making us fure of it, not making the thing fi re. Now, becaufe there are two ways of making us fure of falvation ; the one mediate, by the witnefs of our Graces, and the witrtefs of the blood of Chri!t, fprinkled upon the Confcience, and laid hold upon by Faith : And the other im– mediate, which is an immediate tef1imony of the Holy Ghof/, as I /hewed out of 1 Joh.5 .8. where there are faid to be Three that bear witnefs that we have Etn-.tal life, (as it followethafterward, vrr.rt.) there is the Water, Blood, and Spirit. Now by Spirit there is meant the Holy Ghof1, by Water is meant our Graces and SanCl:ificltion,and by Blood is meant the blood of Jefus Chri!t,looked upon by Faith; when Faith bath a recourfe unto it, it leave~h a witnefs behind it felf. A man never cometh to Chrifl, but he goeth away fomewhat quieted, fomewhat comforted ; he never layeth hold upon that Blood, but it ea(eth or pa€ifieth the Confcience more or lefs. Now when Spirit is made a diflinCl: thing from the other two, it tnuf1 needs be an immediate witnefs of the Spirit dillinCl: from the other two. Why? Becaufe the Holy Ghojl witnelfeth with the Blood and Water; therefore when he faith Spirit as a third Witnels; it is differin<> from both thefe, it mnfi be the Holy Ghojl witne!ling without thefe. . 0 The Q\lefiion is then, Which of thefe ate meant here, when he faith, Ye a>'t fe,zled with the Spirit of Promife? . I Anfwer, If you take it in a large fenfe, every witnefs; and all alfutance of Salvation by any of thofc witnelfes, it may be called a fealiug of the Spirit; if you take[ealt11g in a large feMe, for te!tifying or witneillng a thing that is tru~, as .'loh. H l· where the word is ufed, He that 6elieveth (faith he) bath Jet to hi& · Seal, that Godis tr11e. If you will take it for witneillng any thing; every one of thefe Witnelfes, in fuch a Metaphorical fenfe, may be called a Seal. Yet I take it, that which is principally aimed at here, is an immediate t~fiimony of the Holy Ghof1. The Metaphor of featiug an Inheritance implieth as much; fo,r you know, in conveying Inheritances, (as I /hewed out of Jeremiah,) there are Wunelfes that are as Standers-by; but the aCl: of {ta!iug is the imme· d1ate aCl: of the party tlut conveyeth it. And the Seal of great Perfons, it is frt to without withelfes; the Seal of the King is without Hand, as the Br.ad-Stat a~ongfl us you know is: and fo Eflh:8.8. the Seal of the King Abafiurtu was Without a Hand, there was no other wrtnefs but the King's Seal to it. So now, when th~ Great God of Heaven and Earth, when his Spirit will witnefs over an~ above Water and Blood~ he will do it himfelf. My Brethren, Every Seal is a Witnefs, but every W1tnefs IS not a Seal, in a firiCl: fenfe. Now th~n concerning thisfeal of the Spirit, we having found what is princi- . pally meant, (fdr all th1s IS butto find out the meaning of it.) I gave you thefe Three things. . The Fir!t Was, Thai it was a difiinCl: light from the ordinary light of Faith 1 a light beyond that light. It is indeed Faith elevated, though not to Vifion, where Fattb lhall ceafe, as it is in Heaven; yet as Stevm's bodily eye was raifed to fee ~hnfl. beyond what the-power of the ordinary fight could have done: fo here IS a ltght, beyond what the ordinary light can reach unto. .
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