An Expojition of the Epiftle ~ To give you a Scripture for this, and that pertinent and prop.e~ to the thing in Strmon hand. It is in 2 Cor-4-6. The Apof\le there compareth t he Spmtual knowledge XXV. which was in his own heart, and wluch by Ius Mm11lry the Holy GhoO: had bt- ~ gotten in the heart of others, he compareth the very knowledge of it to no lefs than the creating Light out of Darknefs at fir{l. Read the Scnpture, For God ( faith he) who commandd the Light to jbwe o':'t of 'Darkne{s , hmb jhined in mtr hearts, to give tbe Ltgbt of tbe knowledge of tbe Glory of God, 111 tbe face of ]eftU Cbrifl. He comparetl1, I fay, the knowledge which God wrought in his own heart being converted, and which by his means (being an Apofile) was begotten in the heart of others, to that great work of creating Light out of Darknefs. Saith he, Tbt God, the fame God that commanded L ight to/hint out of 'Darknrfs, tht fame God hatb cmefed tU to bavt the k11owledge of God; and ma(k it, why doth he add, 111 the fact of .7efm Chrt~? The Word 1n the O– riginal is, in tbtPerjott of .1efu< Chr;fl ;, •ii "eJ'""''' It JS a perfonal knowledge, it is a reallmowlcdge of God ; that knowledge I have defmbed all tlus whtle, it is not a notional knowledge, it IS the knowledge of his Perfon brought down into our he•rts by the Holy GhoO:, which is an Artifice that tranfcendeth the power of any Creature,it is peculiar to the Holy GhoO: to give a SubfiO:ence of ChriO: to a man's Soul. And that the ApoO:le fpeaks here of a mighty power that works this know– ledge, is evident in the next words; for going on in the next Verfe , he faith, Wt have thu treafitre in earthen Vtffels: That we lhould have fuch a knowledge in us, and be able to convey it to others, it is a Treafure indeed this gift, and 1t is in Earthen Vellels : To what end? That the excellency of powtr, Hyperbo– le, tbat tbe great1tejs of I he powtr may 6t of God, may be afcribed to him, that thus createth by an Almighty power, the Light of the knowledge of the Perfon of ChriO: in the heart of a man, So that now you fee, that the working of knowledge (I do not tell you of all the great difficulties, for.to draw a mm to believe in ChriO:, and to lay hold on ChriO:, and to love ChriO:, all which require the fame power; but I fpe'ak (imply of Spiritual knowledge, to believe the things themfelves in a true, real, fub!lantial manner) this is from an Almighty power. Tbat)•t may know ( faitl1 be) what iJ the exceeding greatnrfs of hu power to m-ward, who 6t!ieve ac– cording to the worki11g of hu mzghty power. To work Faith in the very Under– fianding of a man; all this is required. So much now for the firft part; that to believe, to have Spiritual knowledge wrought in a man , reqaireth exceeding greatnefs of power. I could not have made this plain under lefs time than what I have now fpent upon it, and Faith you fee is in the Text, for it is to m-ward who 6elieve ; I have therefore a little larger infiO:ed upon ir. I come now in the Second place to the Will of a man (I will be brief in it) and that which is put in there too it requiretl1 an exceeding greatne(s of power to make that Holy, to make aman conform1ble to the things he knoweth. I will inO:ance bm in one thing. That the Will of man lhould be raifed up to aim at God's Glory in all that he doth, and to make God the ChiefeO: Good, it muO: be an Almighty power that muO: put this Principle into aman's heart, a higher power than limply was in the firO: Creaaon, to do Jt as Behevers are mabled to do it. Go take all Creatures that were made by God's Almighty power, take Men, take BeaO:s, they have nothing of thisin them at ~ll, not of Holine(s to aim at the Glory of God; take Nature fimply confidered 10 Jt felf as man hath it now, there is no fuch thing in him, nor in all the Creatures befides man; but Angels that had it created in them at firO: after the Image of God that created them, indeed they had it, and Adam had it fo too. To put therefore fuch aPrinciple as this is into a man, that his Spi· rit !hall love God naturally as now he loveth himfelf, and fubordin ate himfelfuo· to God : ( and herein lieth Holinefs) My Brethren, this is the greateft work in the World. You may eafilyknow thegrcatnefs of the work from the exce·!lency of the thing. This puttetiJ down all Creatures, it makes a man differ from other men, as aman cloth from a beaO:, Aman hath t~ree lives that he liveth; the life of a Plant,
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