jiO An Expojition of the EpijUe ·~ Ser.XXJV. \.fV"'t.J SERMON X X I\l) Wherefore remember tl1at ye being in ti~ paffedGentiles in the Flejh; who tire calledUnmmmcijion by that whrch is called (irmmcifion in the Flefli made'fJy Hands. · I Shall not open thcfe Words by way of Expofition ; but !ball only fin le out a Point which !• ofgreat Ufe, and which I !ball handle~d finilb at ttis time. And tt IS thiS, What Ufe and Advantage and Improvement ll<lievers lhould make of their having ~een in the State of Nature, as you know all once were, whether converted fooner or later. Wherefore (faith the Apo!tle here) remember th•t;e were once Gentiles in the Fkjh. ' There are two Ways of handling this Dottrine. The one is by !hewing-the End that God hath, in leaving his Children in fuch an Efl:ate and Condition : And with that I will not at all meddle hereat thistime. • The fecond is the Ufe and Improvement, that is to be made ofthat Condition by them. And what Ufe or Improvement may be made ofa Man'sfinful Condition, while he was in the State ofNature, the fame alfo may with– al be made ofthofe Sins a Man hath fallen into fince he was in the State of Grace. The Holy-Gho£1: here you fee, cloth exhort us to Remember [Whmfore remem• ber, faith he.] He had difcourfed at large ofthe State ofNature in the former Ver– fes, and faith he, Let this for ever fl:ick with you, let it be ever in your Eye: Whmfore remember. And we may make the following Improvements, of what the Apoltle enjoyns to thcfe Ephejian1. FirJI, It lbould ferve us to this End, to magnify the greatnefs and freenefs of God's Grace to us: Do but fee what Pa11l f.1ith (for I !ball give you his Infl:ance and Example) in 1 Tim. 1. 12. I thank._Chri.ft (litith be) for pttlting me i11to the Mi11ijlry; why fo? Becallft I"'" a 'Biafj_hemer, a Perfte~~tor, and lnj11riot#; but f~ith he, I obtained Mercy, becauft I did it Ignorantly thrOJtgh VtJbclief; and the Gr4CC of our Lord wa1 exceeding abundant with Faith and Love, which >sin Chri{i ']efo!. Ifa Man had been but in Paul's Heart, and but feen when be confidewi that, I that w.u a '?JiaJPhemer, &c. obtained Mercy, how he brought 'Bia.fPhemer and Mercy . together, and what amixture ofAffections it wrought in his Heart. My Brethren, That is that which God aims at, to bring contraries at once into a Man's Soul,and by them to work the moft glorious mixture ofAffections in us, both of Confufion in our felves, and oftriumph in the freenefs ofbis Gr~ce. To that end, hebrings in and preferveth the Senfe both ofhis own Free-Grace, and ofour own Vilenefs, to work this mixture ofAffeB:ion in us. In this fame 2dofthe EphejanJ,wherethe Apofl:le had difcourfed of their having been in this NaturalCondition,you !ball find that he f.1tth twice,B; Graceye arc faved,he contents not himiHfto have faid it once, but he faid it again : fo you have it ver. 5· By Grace ye arefaved; fo you have.'t agau1
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