The Almojl-ChrifliaTt Difcovcred. <1-lth ,,-; it ,;,,ere perform half the task, and bear half the burden of the other. Thus then you fee, whence it is that ,nJ.tural Men may make fo great a progrefs towards Chrifl:ianity, fo as to be almoft Chrijl-iam, from the Power of Nature, :1nd from the attraB:ivcncfs of Religion : Nqw here if you ask me, how fha\1 I know, whether it be the Power of Nature helped by the common workings of the ~pirit, or the Power of fupernatu ral Grace, that carries Men out to a\l their Protdlion? I fhall give you hut th~sonc difcr~~ninating ChrraEfer of it.: See whether your abili· Jitic<:. be.grcatcr in the th1ngs that belong to Grace and Holmefs, than they arc to na-- tnral things. A Child of God who is but of weak parts as to the thinr..s of the World, that can fcarcc give you a rational account of fuch aflairs, when propoundeq to him, Why bring him but to the things of God, and how admirably will he be able to tmfold 'even the very myfterits that are hid from the wife and prudent of the World, hut Put him upon any common dilcourfe, how broken and incoherent is he, but engage him in Prayer, how doth he t:qatiate mtd enlarge, and what a Torrent of Divine Rfutorick will he then pour into the Bofom of God? Is this from nature that he is able to exceed and go beyond himfelf? No certainly ; It is very obfervable conr;erning the ways of God what the Prophet fpeaks , /fa 3)· 8. A high way jhall be thtre, a/'ld it jiJalt be c.tUed a way of holinef, the zmchan ]hall not paf over it. Thouoh they wander and err in every other way, though they do not take the .. ri gh t 'w~y to be rich , and great, and honourable ir1 the. World; yet thefe that are foo ls in eve ry thing elfe they !ball not err from the way of Holir1efs~.and therein lies the on ly Wifdom. But no~ take a mcer carnal Man, that. bath emm~nt abilities in earthly thing~;. ufually, he IS n~vcr _weaker than when he Is en~aged m that which is holy and fpmtual; at leaft his ch1efeft excellency doth not he there, though he cloth perform the ~nty well, yet he_ d.oth .not do it beyond what he cloth in ordinary and natural thmgs . Now how ts It w1th you? Do you find your felves carried much beyond the rate and fizc of your natural abilities, that you never fo much exceed your [elves, nor do fa well as when you arc about fome holy and fpiritual em~ ploymen t, that you ~re. not fo artificial in any thing as in holy performances; this is a good fi en, that 1t IS from the Power of Grace, and not Otl.}y the Power ofNature that c~rries you forth to the Profeffion of Religion you make. I take the extrao~di nary gifts beftowed 11pon unregenerate Men in a vaft difproportion from their natural _abili[ies, to b~ long ago ceafed. Thus you fee .,.;Jt:~.t inables a natural Man to go fo far towards Chriftianity. 737 The third ge~eral propounded, was to lhew what it is that hinders thefe proficients from makmg further progrefs, that when they are Almoft wltat keeps them from being alrogethtr Chriftians: I anfwer to. th is in general; It is only through a willful and wretched tugltfl of what they rn1ght do, that any of them do fall fuort of Grace here, and Glory hereafter. It is not from our want of Power, but our ...vant of Will, or rather indeed our willingnefs ,that makes us mifc:arry to our Eternal Perdition. l fhall illuftrate this by a plain and obviousSimjlitude: Suppofe that God fhould promife to beftow Heaven upon us, if we would but reach forth and touch it with our hands: Now although we can never reach fo high; yet if we do not ftretch for~h our ~ands, and r.eac:~ ~s high ~s we ar~ .able to do, t~e fault of lofing Heaven wt\1 not he 11pon the mablluy and tmpoffibtluy, that was m us to touch it but it lies in our wiUful negltO of ftriving to our ouunoft to do what we are able t; do; why, the reafon why we fall fuort, would not be bc:c:aufe our Ann is not long enough, but becaure we do not ftretch ic forth to the utmoft length. The inftance is fomewhat plain and familiar, but yet il holds an exaCt proportion to the cafe in hand, God promifeth Heaven to us if we will bUt touch it, that is if we will lay hold on Chrift by Faith, which Faith we can no more work in our fel;es by our own proper efficiency, than touch Heaven with our Finger; yet howfocver, if we do not do cur utmoft, our falling fhort of Heaven and Faith cannot be imputed to the impoffibility tha~ we. lay under, but ~oour willful Oath a~d negleCt. It is not Men's cannots but their wlll nots, not their lmpottncy bu& their QbjtjnaC)', that deftroys them; y e will not come to mt that ye may ha'ut Lij'r, John }· 4 o. Ye WJIJ not. Doth not: Chrift himfelf tell us, that no Man can come to him,. except the Father draw him? True, but the fault lies in the ftubbornnefs of your Wi/Js; though you. could come, you would not; therefore it is not your weaknefs but your willfulnefs rh;tt keeps you from comiPg to Chrifr. Lea me here appeal to your felves ; Doth Aaaaaa ®~
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