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EXTRAORDINARY
LvITNESS
017.-THE
SPIRIT.
[DISC.
)FIIy
of
those
who had
it,
with the
assurance. of
God's pardon
and
acceptance.
See
Miscellanea Sacra
Essay,
i.
p.
117,
126,
134.
IIId
Consideration.
There
is
no evidence from
rea-
son
or scripture,
that
all
such immediate
divine favours
are
ceased
;
and though there
is
not
the
same
occasion
for
the
frequency ,of them
as there
was
in
the beginning
of
christìanrty, yet the Spirit
of God
is
a free and
uncon-
fined
agent
;
and
since
it
is
plain
from
scripture,
that
he
doth
still dwell in his
people,
and carry
on
his
.divine
work
among the churches
of
Christ
in all
ages,
to
the
end of the
world,
why may he
not
sometimes discover
his
power and grace in an
extraordinary
manner, above and
beyond
his
ordinary
and usual operations
?
IVth
Consideration.
Some special.
seasons
and
occa-
sions may arise,
and
indeed
have arisen,
wherein
the
blessed
Spirit
of God
has
thought
it
proper
vastly to
exceed the
measures
and
rules
of
his
ordinary
operations,
in the
exercise
of
his
offices
of
illumination and
sanctifi-
cation
?
And
why
may
it
not
be allowed in his consola-
tions also
?
1.
There
may be some
reason'
for
extraordinary
acts
of
his
illumination
;
as when
persons
are not
able
to
read
the holy scriptures, or
when
the
bible
is
with-held
from
them,
and
when they have enjoyed
but
very poor
and insufficient
ministrations
of
the gospel
;
the
blessed
Spirit
may
sometimes shine
into
humble souls with
some
uncommon:
rays
of
divine
truth,
and
they
may
enjoy
more
sensible teachings
of
the Holy Spirit
:
Or
some-
times a
person
of
low-
parts,
and
weak understanding,
may have
been
illuminated
in the knowledge
of
some
scriptural
doctrine, beyond what the
mere
exercises
of
their
own feeble
reason
upon scripture
would have
at-
tained
to
in so
short a
time
:
And perhaps
some
Chris-
tians of better
capacities may
have
enjoyed
this favour
also.
Luther, that extraordinary servant of
God
in
the
reformation,
is
said to have oftentimes learned, more
of
the
gospel on
his
knees
in prayer,
than
in
his
laborious
studies.
Q.
There
may
be,
and,
there
have been, instances
of
an
extraordinary
work
of
sanctification.
To
what glorious
degrees
of
piety,
virtue, and
true
'holiness, have some
.
persons been raised
in
a
very
short
time
?
A
most asto-