4 The MORTIFICATION 0&,0*.%a 9. W.Z!7%1.5,/k R, F;CQ F, J ce t, BR e3°f, J e't r.t 1âV'íl CHAP. II. The principal affertion concerning the neceffity of mortification propofid to confirmation. Mortification the duty of the bell believers, Col. iii. 5. Cor. ix. 27. Indwellingfin always abides: two perfetïion in this life, Phil. iii. 12. t Cor. xiii. 12. 2 Pet. iii. 18. Gal. v. 17. etc. 'The allivity of abidingfin in believers, Rom. vii. 23. Jam. iv. 5. Heb. xii. r. Its fruitfidnefs and tendency. Every lull aims at the height in its kind. The fpirit and new nature given to contend againfl indwelling.fin, Gal. v. 17, 2 Pet. i. 4, 5. Rom. vii. 23. The fèarful Oise of the neg- lec'b of mortification, Rev. ìii. 2. Heb. iii. i3. The firfi general grin- ciple ofthe whole difcourfe hence confirmed. Want of this duty lamented. AV I N G laid this foundation, a brief contmaeion of the fare- mentioned principal dedu&ions will lead ine to what I chiefly in- tend. I. Vat the choie believers, who are garedly freed from the con- demningpower of fn, ought yet to make it their b:finefl all their clays to mortify the indwelling power of f n. So the apofile, Col. iii. p. Mortify then f re ycur members,which are upon earth, Whom fpeaks he to? Such as were rifea with Choy!, m. I. Each as we e dead with him, v. 3. filch as tvhofe life Chrifi was, and who íhou!d appear with him in glory, V. 4. Do youmortify, do you make it your daily work, be always at it vhil f you live ; ceafe not a day from this work, be killing fin, or it will be killing you; your being dead with Chrift virtually, your beingquickned with. him, will not ex ufe you from this work. And our Saviour tellsus, how his father deals with every branch in him that beareth fruit ; every true and living branch, He purgethit, that it may bring forth morefruit, fohn xv. z. He prunes it, and that not for a dayor two, but whilfo it is a branch in this world. And the apoRe tells you what was his pro&íce, t Cor. ix. 07. I keep under mybody, and bring it into Subjection. I do it, faith he, daily, it is the work of my life, I omit it not, this is my bufinefs. Some briefaccount of the realms hereof may be given. 1. Indwelling fin always abides, whiff we are in this world, therefore it isalways to be mortify'd. The vain, foolifh and ignorant difputes of men about perfe& keep- ing the commands of God, of perfe&ion in this life, of being wholly and perfectly dead to fin, I meddle not now with. It is more than probable, that the menof thole abominations never knew what belongedto the keeping of any one of God's Com- mands, and are fo much below perfe&ion of degrees, that they never attained to a perfe&ion of parts in obedience, or univerfal obedience in linceriey. And therefore many in our days, who have talked of perfe&ion, have been wirer, and have affirmed it to confft in knowing nodifference between good and evil. Not that they are per- fe& in the things ave call good, but that all is alike to them, and the height of wick- ednefs is theirperfection. For us, who darenot be wife above what iswritten, nor boat by other men's lines of what God hath not donefor us, we fray, that indwelling fin lives in us in fortemoulure and degree whilfl ose are in this world. We dare not fpeak as though we had already attained, or were already perfefl, Phil. iii. 1 z. our inward man is to be renewed day by day, whilfl Itere we live, z Cor. iv. 16. and according to the renovations of the new, are the breachesand decays of the old. Whine we are here, weknew but in part, r Cor. xiii. la. having a remainingdarlmefs to be gradu- ally removedby our growth in the knowledge ofour Lord °fetus Chrf, z Pet. iii. t8. And the flf, lufleth againjl thefpirit, fo that we cannot do the things that ere would, Gal. v. 17. and are therefore defeftive in our obedience, as well as in our light, r f, fohn i. S. We have a body of death,- Rom. vii. z4. from whence we arenot delivered, but by the deathof our
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