Ver: 5. the 8th Chapter of the ROMANS. 49 2. Tour comfort dependeth on it ; For here is your evidence, either you mutt mor tifie the Flefh, or gratifie the Flefh: if you gratifie the Flea], you are not under the con- du& of the Spirit, and fo not under the hope of glory : if you mortifie it, then you !hall live. The only evidence that will content and fatisfie you, as to your gracious fiate, is filch an high e(timation of God, and Chrift, and Grace, as weaneth you, and draweth off the heart from other things. A dull approbation of that which is good, will make no evidence; nor a few good withes5 nothing but fuch a fi:ong bent as deadneth your affe&ions to the World, Gal. 6. 14. God forbid that I fhould glory, fave in the croft of lefas Chrifi, by whom the world is cruciid to me; and I unto the world. 3. This will be jour Wifdom. There is a falfe Wifdom, and a true Wifdom; James .3. 15. This wifdom del endeth not from above, but is earthly, fenlual, devrllífh. Ver. i 7. But the wifdom that is from above, is fiïß pure, then peaceable, &c. This 'is the true Wifdom, to be wife for the Spirit. I do the rather infift upon this, becaufe there is a Notion of Wifdom in the Word of the Text. Carnal men judg their own way wi- t-eft, and the way of the godly to be meet folly, r Cor. 2. 14. The natural man recci- veth not the things of the fpirit of God, for they are fooliflinefs to him : neither can he re- ceive them, becaufe they are fpiritually difcerned. The godly imploy themfelves to get things fpiritual, and fuch as God's Honour is mainly concerned in; and are not at- tended with an Income of worldly advantage, but rather of.loft and detriment : But yet the end (hall prove, that they that thought themfelves the only wife men and gainers, have been meet fools ; and the greateft Wets ( thofe others whom they looked upon as mad men ) are the wifeft adventurers , and the greateft gainers : The iffue will fhew it, Gal. 6.8. He that foweth to the flefh, fhall of the flefh reap corruption; but he that f meth to the fpirit, fhall of the fpirit reap life everlafling Rom. 8. 6. To be carnally minded is death, but to be fpiritually minded is life and peace. 4. The Flefh is really our enemy; yea, our greateft enemy' Therefore we should not indulge the Flefh, but give up our felves to be ruled by the Spirit, s Pet. 2. io, r1. Ta*e heed of flefhly lofts which war againfi the fpirit. That it is one of our enemies, is clear by that, Eph. 2. 2,3. Wherein in time pafi ye walked according to the courfe of this world, according to the prince of the power of the air, the fpirit ;bat raw ruletb in the children of difobedience: among whom alfo we had our ronverfation in times pall in the tuffs of our flefh, fulfilling the defres of the flefi and of the mind ; and were by nature the.children of wrath, even as others. There is the courfe of this World, and the Prince of the peer of the Air, and our own Flcfh. Corrupt Na- ture within us would make us vile enough, without external incitements and fuggetÉi- ons, tho there were never a Devil to tempt, or evil Example to follow : If the De- vil lhould (land by, and fay nothing, there is enough within us to put us upon all manner of evil, tho there were no other irritation than God's Law, Rom. 7. 9. When the commandment came, (in revived, and I died. Other enemies could do us no harm without our own Fle(h. We are tempted to fin by Satan, encouraged to fin by the ex- ample and cuftom of others, inticed to fin by the baits and allurements of the World; but inclined to fin by our own Flefh : It is the Flefh that holdeth correfpondence with Satan, the Flefh that openeth the door to Temptations, the Flefh that maketh our abode in the World fo dangerous, the Flefh that choaketh the good Seed, that hinde- reth all our heavenly thoughts, and maketh the Service of God fo burdenfome : The Flefh is within us, and maketh- a part of our (elves. There is more imminent dan- ger from a Plague in.the body, than from,an enemy that waiteth in the ftreets to kill us. If we would but keep our (elves from our (elves, we fhould do well enough : It is the Flefh that lulleth us aleep in carnal fecurity, that tainteth all our A&ions, and is fo ready to betray us. The Devil dealeth with us as Baalam by the 'freebies ; all his Curfes and Charms prvailed nothing, till he found a means to de(lroy them by them - felves, to corrupt them by Whoredom, and by Whoredom to draw them to Idolatry. It is the Flefh that is the Domeflical Enemy, that dwelleth with us, and in us, and fo maketh us a ready prey to Satan : We carry it about with us wherever we go, and fo it is ready td do us mifchief upon all occafions : When we aré about holy Duties, it diftrað us with vain thoughts, and taketh off our edg, and makes us drowzy and dead - hearted, and weary of God's Service : When we are about our Callings, it is the Flefh that maketh us lazy and negligent, and diverteth us by the propofals of fenfu- al Obje &s ; or elfe to be fo earoeft in them, tat we have no time nor heart for God, 8G and
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