. '"''' ' 499 Thirdly, As to the .Ajfeflioru,_, t~J! .fw~,ehn~~i,t~$ - of th~ {fea~t, though t~eY, are 'l!fully _3 •. much relied o'!, 1ycr cw~ theJ! Ajfi~w~s untfJ 'hOtj 'afld IJtavenly Ob;eEf.s ate not ~1way~ mfal- ~tf~:~. Lib/e c'!Jidtnu af a lvfttn s Rlgener.,won. In .il{a't. 13. 20. there are fome fatd there to h :J t n ai"Vt riJe J1'i1Yd with joy; anCi1y'~t that th~~ WCt:e unregenerate is clear,_ fbr ~t _is faido~~~~r! the)' iJtld "0 Root. . And fo 'Jo.h;Py. 3)· Chnft reus the 'Jews that they dtd rejOice forn~ nlilkna ie:tfon 'ii1 the light of 'John Baptifo, that"{S~ -in his D6a:rine and PreacJling; and m!fRtgc· Herod alfo is fa id to hear him gladly: So that-you fee thefe AffctHons ofLdelight in rlltltn.F~r, hol y Duties and Ordinances, they may be in thofe that are yet witlloilt a ·faving work of ·Gracc. And as there may be thefe Aftetlions of joy aqd delight, fo al('o of · farrow foi: !in: Tlms Mra. 27. 3· it is faid)cxpt:efiy of 'judfl1, that he repmrcd hihzfelf; and ..Ahab?S humiliation was _fo great; tlia:,ttGod tookfJ?etial no_tic~ of it~ I Kings 2. 21. 1 \;vhy now all thefe AlfcCbons arc ,.bi1t ·Temporary and Vamlhmg, and they maY be excited frotn fcvcral adv-antages that·'hOly things 'have in them tO commend them to the hearts of carnal and unregenerate Men. . Firft, r£mmiincs the ve1y Novelry and Strangemfs of thtm r.nay affi£t them. Novel ty I. ufi.1a11y breeds deli ght, which longer Cuftotn and Acquaintance fomcwhat ab:J.tes :S~mtttmtl And this may be given as a true rea fan why'foon after Converfion new Converts NO'Ull~a AffC(tious are more ftrongly drawn out in th~ ways of God than afterwards When hem•J 11 ' • is a grown aod fen led Chriftia'n; his Atreiliol').s then may not have that full Spring- . tide'.as when he was but a MviC( in Chriftian ity, the reafon is, becaufe Novelty in that way and courfc that he is enired upon cloth naturally affect him, befide the real defire:thl enefs of the things themfelvcs; and this alfo may fatisfie us, though many have turned afide from the Truth as it is in Jefi.ls, and from the ways of his Worfhip th:ll he hath appointed, do yet bo:tft that they have in thofe new ways found more new Cotufort and fweet Afti::d:ions than they d id before; yet is not thiS'bccaufc that thofc ways have any thing in them that r.eally yields-more Comfort and Delight, but m;Jy hec.l.ufe they are new ways, and new things will for the prefent affect; after fame continuance in thofc ways, they .find t~1at joy and delight thJt they fpakc of to fl ag, and then they feek ottt other n·ew yvays~ and commend them as much, having as great dclip;ht in them .; and it is no:~ontler, for new-ways will frir up new . AffeCtions. And thus may thc JAfrettioils of; 6rnal unregenerate Men be Il:irrcd up hy their entrinp; upon the Profefiion and external PraCHt'e o.f Religion, bccaufe of the Novelty of it to them. ·~ ' .. . Secondly, Good A/foUions may be flin-ed in m ftom the affiEling nnt·ure of fpiritual Ob- 2 . jeif.r, (or fpirituaf Objeffs may 4fo£1: uJ in a natural way. Who can read the Hiftory G01i Affc· of Chrift's PJnion without bcin?; atfeB:ed with farrow for all that farrow that heBiMJ 111"7 underwent for us ? He hath a HcartcertJinly harder than a Rock that can think of}; "':/,'4 t he .A e;onies, Repro:tche-s, cruel Scourging$, and curfed Death, that fa Innocent:(~i"; and fo E;..:cdlcnta Pcrfon as Chrift was, undenvent; and that forSinnersalfo, andn.,tW'•if not be moved and aftCded with grief and compaffion to him : And yet it is poffiblcfPi~itt~~~l thcfc Affi~ct i ons may be dcceivable, and ·inove no other ways than they would do in OSJc 8 ' · .the read ing of fame Tr.<tifJcal Story in a Romance; to read fame fad and difinal Storywill naturally aff~a thc"Heart with grief and farrow: And fo it may be with the Trnths re vealed in the Gofpcl, npon thy reading of them they may afi"Ctt thee ac~ cord i n~ as thole Truths arc; if they prOmife Bleffmgs, they may atfefr thee with joy i if they threaten, and thou r eadelt fad and difinal Events, they may affctl: thee with for row, and yet all · this may be only from the nature of the ObjeB:s, and not from any Divine AffCCl- ions· that arc in thy Soul. Thirdly, The A./fictions may be ftirred ftom or by the .Art~{icial Rhetoric~ of others, by 3· ;he Abilitio 1 a-f tbe Minift~rs whom you hear. And thus God tells the Prophet, Ez:.ek. J!:-::~~; _33 · 32· 'Tm)llttl''t unto thtm M a lovely _{ong, tU one that hath a pleafont 'Voice, and ct~.nft fiimd r, 1 pl11y we !I upon •111 injfrumcnt. ·They may have their Judgments pleafed with the Learn-Art~i•l ing fhcwed in a Scnnott, and with the well methodizing of it, and their AffcttionsRhtt<trlei, may he plea fed with the Ora.t?ry, and ~werful Utterance of it. Now though~-~ft!~ thcfe arc good helps to fpmtual Affc~hons, yet are they not good tr'yals of.AMitifl. them. Fourthly, Prt'dc and folffeekinr; may in the pe~formance of Duties excite good .AjfiffionJ. 4 • And Men m:ty be ~U!ch dec~ived in this particular, as in Prayer they may thinkPridt ~n~il .they arc <~ffr.:acd '~1th the thmgs that t~cy pray for, .when a.s poffibly their Atrec:tions~tlf-fotk: a:c moved onl y w1tl~ the ma~ner of thc1r Prayer, With then· Words, with that eo-:! ~~;; _p1ous, free and ad1mrablc G1ft they have of eXprefiion; whereas a contrite Heartgoo~Aj~ S f f f that/1;.,,,
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