DISCOURSE XXIII.

The EXERCISE and PROGRESS of a CHRISTIAN.

PHILIPIA NS iii. 12.

Not as though I had already attained, or were already perfect; but I follow after, if that I may apprehend that for which alfo I am apprehended of Chrift FeJus.

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Come now to the fecond, where he doth testify his humility there he doth engage himself to care and diligence. But I follow after, if that by any means I may apprehend that for which I am apprehended of Christ Jesus. And indeed we have all encouragement from the divine revelation, as to faith, fo to patient labour, and serious good endeavours: and this is our great concernment. The fober modeft. believer he is not in haste, but he lives by faith; and by this, he stays himself; as the prophet faith, The juft fhall live by faith, Hab. ii. 4. which is thus applied by the apostle resolving in himself, That be which shall come will come and will not tarry; Heb. X. 37. and therefore he will stay himself upon God, and not be in hafte. And indeed, wherever God is, there is both help and ftrength; fo that he may act, and be up and doing. Wherefore, every good

man

man applies himself to God, and attends upon his pleasure, waiting for his influence in a carefu】 and diligent use of all means, in the pursuit of his faith. And indeed, fuch an one doth not tempt God, either by impatience, or diftruft, or by the neglect of his duty. For concerning the use of the means, he who looks up to God, puts himself in a way of fubferviency to his agency and providence ; and he that doth not do fo, his faith is but in colour, and meer pretence; he is not serious in religion; he does not mean, tho' for fome end, he may profefs for we expect God to come in a way of bleffing; and therefore we should think it fit and neceffary on our part, to be found in his way; to wit, in the use of means: and for any that acknowledge God, fo far as to pray to him, and to beg his prefence, influence, and bleffing and not to fet himself in in a way of obedience, and to answer his faith by subserviency, and acting in the due use of fuch means as God hath appointed; this is not religion, but a proVocation of God. 'Tis a true faying, God is not moved by men that are afleep; with them that are lazy and fluggish; but by thofe that are in motion: when men are upon action, God doth acknowledge them. We must pray with humility and fervency; believe with expectation; and do with care and diligence. This is the true christian temper, and practice. He is not renewed, or enlivened with the noble and vigorous fpirit of the gofpel, who doth not thus: but is in the dult fpirit of the world; and as to fpiritual things, he remains still as a heavy clod of ftupid earth, not fown at all with the feed of God, as the apoftleufeth the phrafe,

1. John iii. 9. The feed of God doth not remain in him. For if it did, he would not fit ftill, nor confent to act in the contrary nature. No one can imagine, that we are endued with power from above, or that we are made partakers of the divine nature by a communication of God to us, and his influence upon us, but it will fhew itself in generous and noble acts towards him.

But to give you an account of this I will fuggeft three things.

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1. That these are principles of action. For faith carries us on against defpair, which doth difcourage action and then humility, that excludes prefumption, felf-opinion, and conceit that it hath already attained, and that nothing remains to be done. 2. It is the cause of action. For while we are in the ftate of faith and hope, there is no full poffeffion; but we are in expectation. And then where there is humility, there is fenfe of want; nothing there is found partial, nothing fond and conceited; but the truth of things takes place.

3. There is neceffity of action. For we are to be fubfervient to God. The work is to be done in us, and fo cannot be without us, we being only paffive. Repentance which is indifpenfibly neceflary to the recovery of a finner, cannot be given to us unless we alfo repent. For converfion is a mutual act, and fo is faith. We do believe to the obtaining of remiffion of fins, and we must work for eternal life with fear and trembling, because God works in us to will and to do of his own good pleasure. Phil. ii. 12, 13. And the apostle conjoins these two as things are conna

tural:

tural: which must stand or fall together. Work out your own falvation, for it is God that worketh in you. And awake thou that fleepest, and arife from the dead, and Chrift fhall give thee life. Eph. v. 14. They are put in conjunction, as things that are connatural; and the one does fuppofe the other. A man can neither be made holy here, or happy hereafter, by any thing that is wholly without him felf, but he muft have an internal temper, life and fenfe, and feel and conceive, confent and chufe: for converfion and regeneration are vital acts, and do denote an internal act, life and motion. Eph. ii. 1. You bath be quickened, faith the apoftle, who were dead in trefpaffes and fins. Thus much for explication, where he doth give teftimony of his modesty and humility, there he doth engage himfelf to activity, care and diligence. But I follow after, but I prefs forward to the mark for the prize of the high calling of God in Chrift Jefus.

Now from what I have faid, I infer two things. 1. Then, they are not in good earnest to fave their fouls, who are careless and negligent about them. We give our minds to that, which we intend and mean; and where we do not mean, we are nothing at all, tho' there be a fhew and feeming delight. They speak prophanely, who fay, they will truft God with their fouls, while they themfelves are careless and negligent about them. There is none doth fo depend upon God for food and cloathing, or any of the neceffaries of this life; but they themselves will use their best brains, are thoughtful, are careful, and found in the use of fuch means as are

proper

proper for that end. Now in religion, effects and operations are always proportional to the principle: flight and ineffectual powers and principles are neither in nature nor in grace; for we fee that power is altogether in vain, that never is in use, in act, nor employment.

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2. Let not fhew and pretence, words and profeffion fignify religion; fo fhall the world be defend ed against scandal: let not these I fay, teftify religion, for they are not fufficient, and by these means the world fhall be preferved from fcandal. Men are not fo vain, faving only in the cafe of religion, as to think one is perfuaded, if he doth nothing at all I fay, we are not fo vain, faving only in religion, as to think, that any one is in good earneft fatisfied and refolved, if he do no more than talk. Certainly the demonftration and proof of faith is from its effects; and so hath St. James stated it; fhew me thy faith by thy works. Jam. ii. 18. For religion is regular, is rational, is uniform, and all its parts are proportionable and homogenial; fo that difpofition and profeffion, principle and practice, they are con formable. If a man be real in religion, and the feveral parts of it, the operations are uniform, and proportionable; the difpofition of the mind, the. profeffion fuch a man makes, the principles whereby he acts, and his practice, they are all of the fame stamp. And thus I have given you an account in general concerning the truth of this, that where any man who is ferious and an honeft-hearted belie- . ver; where he doth declare his faith, entertain any divine revelation, there his faith is attended with modefty,