SECT.- v.1 THE SAPPINESS OF SEPARATE SrIRITS. 437 assaults of the powers of earth and hell, it may be worth our enquiry, whether this release be not sufficient ofitself to render the work of sanctification complete, and bring it to a state of perfection, supposing still the ordinary concurrence or influence of the sanctifying spirit ? Or whether there must be any immediate, almighty and pre- sent .change wrought.in the soul by a new and extraordi- nary influence of the blessed Spirit at the very moment of death, by which sanctification is at once completed. Which of these is true I know not. I confess this last has generally been the opinion of our protestant .writers; and perhaps it may be the truth : But the scripture is silent. Who can tell therefore whether a holy soul, that bath received the divine seed of grace, which is called the di- vine nature, and is regenerated, and renewed, and. sanc- tified by the holy spirit, hath not all its remaining sins and imperfections owing to its bonds of sinful flesh and blood ? And whether its compliance with so many temp-. tations, is not to be attributed to its close attachments to corrupt animal nature and sensible things ? And there- fore whether this sanctified nature would not become completely free from sin, when it is freed from all the influence of a tempting body and a tempting world ? Whether the divine bent and bias that is given it by the Spirit of God at first conversion, and by which it main- tains continual opposition to sinful flesh, would not make its own way toward perfection without new and extraor- dinary operations ? Whether this would not 'be sufficient to cause the soul for ever to ascend naturally toward God in desire, and love, and delight, when all clogs and embarrassments are removed ? So a vessel filled with upper air, and dragged down by some heavy weight to the- bottom of the sea,, labours and wrestleswith the un- easy burden, and bath a perpetual tendency toward this upper region : But if the weight be once taken ofd. it immediately of itself rises through the water, and never. ceases its motion till it come to the surface. I confess this is a nicer speculation, and of doubtful evidence though when St. Paul lays his sinful compli- ances and captivity so much to the charge of his flesh and members in the vii. chapter to the Romans, and in other places of his writings, one would be ready, to think St. 2 F 3
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