'Of-INDWELLING SI'N: 507 leave God for the devil, after at man hath made fonte tryal of him and his fervice; heaven for hell, after a man bath had fonie cheering, refrefiing thoughts of it ; the fellowlhip of the faints, for an ale-houfe or a brothel- haufe, after a man hash been admitted unto their communion, and tailed of she pleafantnefs of it; to leave walking in pure, clear, ftreight paths, towallow inmire, draughts and filth, this will be for a lamentation: Yet this doth fin prevail upon.apoftates unto; and that againft all their light, convihion, experiences, profefiions,engagements, or whatevermay be ftrong upon them to keep them up to the known ways of righteoufnefs. (4.) It evinces its fttength in them by, prevailing with them unto a total renunciation of God as revealed in Chrift and the powet of all gof- pet truth, in the fin againft the Holy Ghofi. l do not now precifelyde- termine what is the fin againft the Holy Ghoft, nor wherein it doth con - lift. There are different apprehenfons of it all 'agree in thus; that by it an end is. put to all dealings between God and clan in a way of grace. It is a fin unto death. And this doth the hardnefs áhd bllfidnefs of many men's hearts bring them to; they are by them at length fet out of the reach of mercy. They chufe to have no more to do with God, and God fwears that they (hall never enter into bis refs; So fin brings forth death. A man by it, is brought to renounce the end for which he Was made, wilfully to reject the means of his coming to the enjoyment of God, to provoke bhp to his face, and fo to perilh inhis rebellion. I have not mentioned thefe things, as though I hoped by them to fat out to the full thepower of indwelling fin in unregenerate men ; only by a few initances I thought to give a glitnpfe of in He that would have a fuller view of it, had weed only to open his eyes, to take a little view of that wickednefs which reigneth, yea, rageth all the world over. Let hittl confider the prevailing flood of the things mentioned byPaul to be the fruits of the ffefh, Get!. v. 19, 20, 2 I. that is, among the fops of men, in all places, nations, cities, towns, pariíhes; and then let him add thereunto but this one confideration, that the world; which is full of the fteam, filth, and blood of thefe abominations, as to their outward adingsof them, is a pleafant garden, a paradifei compared to the heart of tnan, wherein they are all conceived, and hourly millions of more vile abominations; which being ftifled in the womb by foaie of the ways before infifed on, they are never able to bring forth to light. Let a man; I fay, Ming the law for his light and rule, take thiscourfe, and if he have any fpiritual difcerning, hemay quicklyattain fätisfadion in this matter. And I Hewed in the entrance of this difeourfe; how this confiderä= tion doth fully confirm the truth propofed. CHAP
RkJQdWJsaXNoZXIy OTcyMjk=