DISCOURSE XL 209 spirituallife in us ; otherwise the providential occasionAnd oppor tunity for the exercise of such a grace might be given, and paß9 away, and be lost, while the soul itself lies sluggish, negligent, andinactive, if the Holy Spirit did not set it on work : l'or we arenot of ourselves sufficient even to think' or do any thing truly good; 2 Cor. iii. 5. 4. The SpiritofGod sometimes assists this wit nessingwork,' by bringing some word of scripture into the mind, wherein the character of a child of God is described, agreeable to same holy disposition :which we find working in our own hearts : And this makes the matter clear, plain, And evident to the conscience: Though this be not, a constant method with God, yet surely the experience of many christians can subscribe to the truth of it, when they have, been searching their own hearts, to find what grace is there, someproper sentence of scripture hasbeen brought to their minds, wherein they have, as in -a glass, beheld their own' face, beheld the likeness of the children of God in their own souls ; and then they have been constrained to pronounce with holy joyconcerning themselves, " Surely I am a child of God."' Nor is it at all bard to suppose, that God's Holy Spirit should cast a happy sentence of his own word into our minds, or bring it to our remembrance, inorder to evidence our adoption, wheq it is generally granted the evil spirit may have such access tq our minds by the organs of the brain, or'the fancy, as to suggest to our thoughts profane, impure, malicious or blasphemons speeches,. or to tempt us to presumption or despair.' 5. It might be added, in the last place, that the discerning' faculty of the soul is enabled to act aright by the Spirit of God, and kept from all dangerous mistakes and self- deceivings in this work of examination. Hereby he makes it appear, that such a principle of faith; of love, or repentance, which we find working withinus,is true evangelical repentance, is sincere love, and f aitItt unfeigned; and that it is indeed God's own work in the heart And thus he puts an end to our doubtful fears about the truth of grace. These things seem to me so plain and intelligible in tl em< selves, and so correspondent -with those divine aids of the Holy Spirit which are promised to the children of God in all their se- rions and religious exercises, and without which we can do nothing that is truly good, that I trust- it will be easily under- stood, and readily received, by those who are muchconversant in transacting their most important affairs with God, according to the light of scripture. The substance of this testimony of the Spirit to our adop- tion maybe represented in short after this manner : The Spirit Of God in. his word has described the marks and characters of his children ; and, by'his gracious influence, he works these holy dispositions, these characters in our hearts: Godhas given us a
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