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74
FLESH
AND
SPIRIT,
&C."
CSERM.
IV.
Remark
V.
How much do
our
fellow-
christians
de-
serve our
pity,
that labour under great
difficulties,
and
great
darkness, through the perverse humours
of
their
flesh
?
through
the
untoward
constitutions
of
their na-
ture, through
the
peevish,
or
proud,
or
malicious,
or
passionate tempers
of
their mortal
body
?
Some have
a
more wrathful,
some
a
more wanton
mixture
of
blood
and
natural
spirits
;
others again
are
more melancholy
in
their constitution, are ready
to
over-
whelm themselves with
despair
and unbelieving
sorrows;
they
go
on fighting
and mourning
all
the day long, with
many
,a
violent
contest, many
a groan and
struggle,
many a
sharp combat, and perhaps
with many a
wound
too. They
are
often
upon their
knees
for strength
to
subdue
this
ever present
enemy the
flesh,
and can gain
but
little advantage
;
they
are
fighting from day to day,
and their
sins
are
so
powerful
still,
that
they
think they
never get
nearer
to
the conquest
:
they
labour
and toil,
pray and endeavour
to
obtain
divine assistance, and
yet
are
too
often overcome. This
is
the
case
of
many
a
ehristian
who
bath
some
strong
corruption
mingled with
his
constitution,
Let
us
pity
such,
and
pray
for them
too, and
not
be
hasty in censuring
their character and
their state :.
Bless
God
if
your constitution
be
of
a
hap-
pier
mould,
and
if
your trials are not
so
great, and
your
temptations
so
heavy
as
theirs.
But
you
will say,
"
They
sin often,
and
fall
very
foully,
and
dishonour
religion more
than
you."
Itmay
be
so
:
but
it
may be
they
fight
harder
than
you do,
and
labour
with
more
assiduity, and exercise
more grace
than ever you
did,
and yet are more frequently over-
come
by
sin;
so
strong
is
the constitutional iniquity
in
some
natures, more than
it
is
in
others. Therefore,
while you
condemn the
sin,
let not
the
poor
striving
mourning sinner
be
censured
heavily as to
his
character,
or
as to
his
state.
It
was
said
of
a
very
great
man
of
God heretofore,
that
he
had grace enough for ten men,
but not half
enough for
himself,
because
his
natural
con
-
stitution.was
so
very
violent and passionate.
When thou seest therefore
a
christian often
in
sorrow,
confessing his
follies,
and continually humbled under
a
sense
of
the
levity
of
his
spirit, or the vanity
of
his
na-
tural temper;
when he grieves,
that
in
such and such
a
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