18 S E R M O N S upon Semi. Lures, Rom. 1. 19. God Chewed it them , they might feefomewhar of God in the crca. tures, his Wifdom, Power, and Goodnefs; and God excited their minds to behold it, and did dart in force light into their confciences. There was, more of the fpirit given by the legal Covenant, they might fee much more of the Power, Wifdom and Good. nefi of God in his Statutes and Laws than Heathens could in the book of Natures but generally it wrought unto bondage,e free fpirit was but fparingly difpenfed, and to Come few choice fervants of God; but there were but as a few drops of grace, the great Flood of grace was poured out by the Gofpel. The Apotle puts the Galatians to the Ouetion, by what Dotsrine they received the fpirit, Gal. 3. 2. This only would I learn of you, receivedyou tb e fpirit by the works of the law,or by the hearing of faith ? He appeal - eth to their confcience and experience what kind of Doecrine conveyed the fpirit to them, the preaching of the Law, or the preaching of the Gofpel; and this is meant not only of the Spirit that wrought Miracles, but the fan£ii fying fpirit, he fpeaketh of both, ver. 5. He therefore that minifireth to you the fpirit, and worketh miracles among yon. Where the miniltration of the fpirit is made a ditint branch from working miracles; Both he it by the works of the law, or by the hearing of faith ? So that the fpirit of Re- generation,.Sanûification and Adoption, cometh bythc, Doiïrine of theGofpel. I will prove rhis by Come reafons. r. From the Inftitution of God. God delighteth to biefs his own means; and the great Infiitution of God for the benefit of mankind is the Gofpel, which being a fuper- natural Dottrine, needed to be attefted from Heaven, that the truth of it might be known by the mighty Power that doth accompany it ; therefore this new Covenant is the law of the fpirit; the Powerful Influence of the Spirit of God on all t hofe that Cub - mit to it,is the feal and confirmation of it ; no other Dottrine can fo change the foul, and convert it to God, John 17.17. Sandifrethem through the truth, thy word is truth, John 8. 31, 42. And ye (hall know the troth, and the truth ¡hall make lint free. That is to fay, then we know it to be the truth, a Doctrine of God, fandifying us; and making us Conquerors over fin and Satan. 2. From the nature of the Gofpel. For God will work agreeably by fuitable means, not only agreeable to theSubjel upon which he worketh,thefouls of men,but agreeably to the Objeft by which he worketh. 1. In the General. It is a fpiritual Do51rine. By a fpiritual Doftrine he will pour out more of the fpirit, which was but fparingly difpenfed when the Ordinances which he inftituted were carnal and bodily;morehilly, when he had given a Law that fuited more with his own fpiritual nature, and came clofer to the foul of man, than the law of a car- nal commandment ; this law was by the Law of the fpirit; when he would break the, obftinacy of the yews, he tried them by many pofitive Laws, and external Obfervances-, but when he would reduce the world into a Date of liberty, his laws were fpiritual and rational, and with them he poureth out a mighty fpirit ; therefore the Apofile intima- teth, that they ferved God in the oldnefs of the letter, but we ferve him in the newnefs of the fpirit, Rom. 7.6. that is, in that true holinefs whereunto we are renewed by the Holy Gho(t, through the preaching of the Gofpel, which is called the mini firy of the fpirit, 2 Cor. 3. 8. There was more letter then, but more fpirititow, Phil. 3. 3. A belie- ver hath no confidence in theJlefh; doth not place his hope in. the Obfervances of carnal Ordinances,but rejoiceth in Chrift Jefus,ferving God in the fpirit.. 2. More particularly, The Gofpel is fuited to the Operation of the fpirit : It being a Doctrine of profound Wifdom, great Power, and rich goodnefs, in companion of which all other knowledg is but cold and dry ; the fpirit we are poffeffedwithall is but a tranfcript of the word, Heb. 8. to 2 Cor. 3. 3. Te are manifeftly declared to be the Epi- file of Chrifl,written not with ink, but with the fpirit of the living God. There is the pre - fcript, there the tranfcript ; as fuppofe a man would Damp his Coat of Arms upon Wax, there needethWax, a Seal graven with it,and an hand to apply.it ; this is the cafe here, God wota1d Damp his Image upon our fouls, but firt the Charafters of it are upon the word,by this word of Wifdom, he will give us the fpirit of a found mind, that we may know God, and our, (elves, and the difference between good and evil ; by this Word of Grace, or-account of his love to us in Chrift, he gives us the fpirit of Love ; by this lYor d of Power wherein there are fisch rich and great Promifes, he will raife a noble fpi- rit in us to carry us above the world; the tamp is prepared only to make an impreffion, there is required a thong hand to apply it to the heart of man ; for tho the Gofpel doth powerfully excite our dead and drowfie hearts, to fpiritual and heavenly things ; yet 'tis not enough that the Doctrine be opened,but it mut be applied to the foul by the fpirit, or
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