Ver. I I. the 17thChapter óf St. JO H N; 144 the Towers of the World to come : They may have a great !hare of Church -Gifts. .Nay, Gifts themfelves wither and vani(h, when the bodily Vigor is fpent. i Pet. i,. 24. A!1 Flesh is Grafi, and all the Glory of Man as the Flower of Graft ; the Graf; withere¡h, and the Flower thereof falleth away. Whatever Excellency we have by Nature, Wit, Know- ledg, Strength of natural Parts, nothing but what the Spirit of God worketh in us; will lau for ever. So for feeming, unfound Grace, as falfe Faith, fuch as beginneth in Joy, will end in Trouble : it eafeth you for the prefent, but you (hall lie down in Sor- row. General Probabilities, loófe Hopes, uncertain Conjeh ures, vanifhing Appre- henfions of Comfort, all fail. The planting of true Faith is troublefom at firlt, but it leadeth to true Joy ; you may look upon the Gofpel with Come kind of deleaation. Thorns may blaze under the Pot, tho they cannot keep in the Fire. Do not rat in taffing the good Word ofGod, Heb.6.5. in Come fleight and tranlitory Comfort. Hyine neus and Alexander are faid to make jhipwrack of Faith r Tim. t. 19, 20. that is, Of a falfe Faith. So for a formal Profeffion, Men may begin in the Spirit, and end in the Flesh. Gal. 3. 3. Pre ye lb foolifli, having begun in the Spirit, are ye now made perfeá by the Fiefs? A Man may feem to himfelf, and to the Church of God, to have true Grace; nay, he may be enlightned, find tome comfort in the Word, efcape the Pol- lutions of the World, foul grofs Sins 5 yea, thefe good things may be the Works and the Eflets of the Spirit of God, not of Nature only, not profelfed out of a carnal Aim : but there is no fetled Root, and therefore it is but of Ihort continuance. But certainly that Form, that is taken up out of private Aims, will furely fail. God de. lighteth to take off the Mask and Difguife of Hypocrites, by letting them fall into Come fcandalous Sins. Paint is foon washed off. Therefore reti not in thefe things, till fo- lid and fubuantial Grace be wrought in your Hearts. tifi 6. Is Comfort to God's Children. Grace is fine, and the Privileges of it Cure.. Grace is Cure ; through your Folly it may be nigh' unto Death, but it cannot die. This is the Advantage of fpiritual Comforts, that they do not only fatisfy our Delires, but fecure us againu our Fears. Ifa. 35. to. The Ranfomed of the Lord flea1 return, and come to Zion with Songs, and everlafling Joy upon their Heads : They jball obtain Jo, and 6ladnefs, and Sorrow and Sighing (ball jlie away. Once in Chrift, and you (hall be fat ever preferved. The Leaven and the Dough can never be fevered, when kneaded to- gether; fo neither can you from Chrift. Grace would be little better than temporal , Things, if it did yield but temporary Refrefhment. You are Cure that nothing thall cut you off from enjoying God, for nothing (hall altogether cauCe you to ceafe to love God. The Children of Godwould be troubled, tho their Grace fhould not fail, if their Privileges(hould be cut off ; but you.are Cure of both. God will maintain a Spark; and the Seed remaineth, and the Privileges of Grace are fare too. This was figured under the Law : An Ifraelite could never wholly alienate his Title to the Lands Lev: 25. 23. The Land full not be fold for ever; for the Land it mine, for ye were Strangers and Sojourners with me : His Title to the Land (hall riot be quite cut off, it flea!l not be fold for ever. Which was a Type of our fpiritual Inheritance in Chrift, which cannot be alienated from us. He might for a while alienate and pals away his Inheritance; yet the Property remained ; he knew it would return again :. So here; God's Children are never difmherited. By Regeneration we are made Coheirs. with Chrift, we have an Intereft in the whole Patrimony of the Gofpe!. Now God will not cut off the Entail; nor take theadvantage of every Offence which his Children commit: To infure us, he bath not only put the Entail into our hands, by giving us his Promife ; but he bath given us Earneft and Seiftn in part, and he hath chofen a Feoffee in Trutt to keep the Eftate for us, our heavenly Patrimony is kept fafe in his hands. It is true, we fotfeìt it by the Merit of our Aaions, but the Trutt uandeth will enrolled in the Court of Hea ven, and is not cancelled : Chrift is to look to that, and it being conveyed in and by him as the fire Heir, he is to interpole his Merit. As under the Law, if the Perfon were not able to redeem the Inheritance, the Kinfman was to redeem it: Chrift is out* Kinfman after the Fleth, he is Our Goal, and maketh all firm and fure between God and us. it is true, we lofe the Evidences that are in our keeping, Peace Of Confcience; Joy in the Holy-Ghoft ; but the Eftate is undefeizable, and cannot be made awayfrode us. Well then, you fee that Grace is kept, and the Privileges of Grace are kept. O what a Tweet Comfort is this ! But now; becaufe Comforts are never príied but in their Seaton; Men that have noë been exercifed err fpiritual Comforts; naufeatethefe fweet Truths, they knów nòt what
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