iii CIqIL EMPLOYMEiVT5. 7 ful Nature brings Grace into 'captivity, (which Paul complains of, Rom. 7.) and makes Grace to ferve it. To exhort and reprove another for fin, is from God's fpirit that it is done ; but to, reprove at an unfeafonable time its from firrful corruption, abufing God's grace, and ma- king Sampfon to grind. Its from the excel- lency of a knife to cut well ; but to cut my finger with it when I fhould be cutting my meat with it arifeth not from the end of the knife, nor from the intention of him that made it ; fo to think of good things, it is from the fpirit, I grant ; but to think of them in fuch a feafon that God Pets you a work to mind and follow other occafions, its from the ene- my of God's fpirit, and your own peace. For as it is a fin to nourifh worldly thoughts when God lets you a work in fpiritual heavenly em- ployments ; fo it is, in fome refpeas, as great a fin to fuffer your fell to be dif}raaed by fpi- ritual thoughts, when God Pets you on work in civil, yet 'lawful, employmnénts t fuch thoughts, I conceive, are but the leaven of Monkifh holinefs, if they divert you from your lawful affairs, when the Lord calls you to fol- low them. For the Lord never calls you to two divers employments at the fame time, un- lefs you make the one to be a means to fur- ther the good of the other ; which fuch pious thoughts in fome civil employments do ; it be- ing no piece of chriftian wifdom or honefty to turn round in worldly employments fo long till by giddinefs we fall downs but by fecret Reps$
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