to the E PHES I AN S. IO i Mens Lives; Yea, niany Sins areabPraitied from, in relation to the LuPrs of the <'J..__f' Mind ; the luPrs of the Mind will devout otherl uPrs, and keep them under, for Scrm. V~~~Credit's fake, and the like. The luPrs of the Mmd have the largdl Revenues of~ Comfort of any other, becaufe they can fetch it ont of an~ thing.; whatfi.>evcr one bath. that is excellent, Apparel, Beauty, Wtt, Learmng, Rtches, Power, Buildings (Is 1101 thisgrtat Babe!, that I have built, by themight of my Power, nnd for theho,;om·of "'Y M,tjefly ? ) whatfoever it is, all thefe feed the lufl:s of the Mind. Therefore now many LuPrs, that have fecmed to have other Names, as the love of Money, it is not properly the love of Money it fclf, but it is a lufl: of the Mind that makes a Man given to it; it is to uphold his State among hisNeighbours, and his Rank, to erect a Name, and leave a Pofl:erity after him, to have faid, he died worth fo much; all thcfe are the lufls of the Mind. And likewilc, as they are the ll:rongell:, becaufe they are of the ,l~rgefi: compa!S; fo they are the ftrongeft, becaufe they have the moll: reafonings for them ; therefore when you come to turn to God, you do not ll:ick fo nmi:h at parting from fenfuallufi:s, as thofe lull:sthat hol~ the debate with you, that bring reafon to plead for them, as the repute offnends, the holdmg correfpondency with others, and the like ; the[e_ are the great Roots, hke thofe wbtch, I ·take. tt, you call Tap-roots, that every Tree bath ; all the lmle Roots may be eafiiy jmll'd iri pieces, but thefe fl:ick ; they are the lafl: repented of, when one comesto cafi: off the old Man. And the ground of thts ts, becaufe the Strength of a Man lies in his Reafon, therefore to part with thole tufl:s that lie in the rational part, tlic Strength'of a Man !hews it felf to the utmofl: there: Therefore, in 2 Cor. ro. 4 . the Apofi:lefpeaks of Reafomngs, and h1gh Thoughts, and flrong Holds in Men; that are to be pulled down, when Chnfi: comes to convert; tbcfe are they that keep a Man from turning. All the great Ordnance that natural Corruption bath, lies in this Tower of the Mind; (as Ariftotlecalled the Soul, Al'x aninu:;) as for other lull:s, Reafon it felf is againfi: them, ani! the more reafori a Man bath, the more the folly of them is difcovered ; but for the!e lufi:sthere is a great deal of reafon : ·A Man !hall lofe but his Humour in parriog with the one ; but he lofeth his Honour, his Repute, and the like; in parting with the other : Other lufl:s do not perfuade by reafon; no, rea!on isf,tin to condefcend unto them, becaufe they pleafe the Man, and he can have no other happinels, but R.ea!on it !elf is againfi them ; but now for the lufi:s of the Mind, all the fl:rength of reafo 1 i takes par> with them. · . . And therefore let me give y~u a third Rule aifo, and that is this : Thai ofall lull:s they are the deceitfulle!t, (you have that Phrafe given in Scripture, deceit• ful Lttjh,) other fenfuallufi:s, they do but deceive, by. promifing more than they can perform, by tempting you; but thefe, a Man may live in them, and not fee them, and1 0 they deceive moll, for natural Men judg nothing finful, but what bath a grofs action; now all fuch aerial lufi:s as thefe, which are the lufi:s of the Mind, they have no fuch groG acl:ion, nay, the ObjeCts of them are things law• ful, yea commendable. Other lufi:s in the Cenfitive part are more turbulent· more violent, and fo more difcernable, and in that refpect they deceive leafi: ; Like Poifon that is in the Bowels, which mokes a Man roar, and fo is more dil– cerned, than Poifon taken in at the Nofe, into the Head, which kills before it i•· felt, becaufe it ftrikes that part which !hould feel ; fo the lufts of the Mind, be– ing feated in that part which !hould di(Cern, polfeffing that part, they take the Senfes away, and in that refpect deceive mofl:. The Eye fees not the Bloodfhed that isin it felf, but will fee a fpot that is on the hand, ot upon another Member; The Underfianding cloth not fo eafily, being corrupted, reflect upon it felf ; therefore the lufi:s of the Mind are more deceitful. And laftly; Of ali luCrs, they are the worfi: lufrs, as having the mofi: Sinfulnefs in them ; for the greateCr Idolatry is here: Therefore, both in the Coloj/ians, ~nd in the Ephejia11s, you !hall find, that when he fpeaks ofCovetoufnefs, (which IS an intellectuallufi:) fl:ill he puts a difference, and an emph1is upon it, from other lu_fts : Covetoltji~efs, faith he, which is Idolatry, becaufe the greateft Idol is that whtch the Mind is fe.t upon, and b<:l:aufe that ts a lull of the Mind, he puts that
RkJQdWJsaXNoZXIy OTcyMjk=