any further than the spirit concurs with the Light Revealed Now 1. The spirit causeth the soul to be filled with a Holy Complacency in beholding the Pretious Divine Light that the Gospel Reveals 2. The spirit moves an insatiable Thirst in the soul after the continuance of that Pretious Divine Light shining from the Gospel into his Poor Obscure Heart 3. The spirit melts the Heart by the beholding that Light that the spirit puts into it so as the Heart is made most pretiously Tender and Pliable and Flexible to the Blessed Will of God in every thing 2. The Spirit impels constrains the Soul to believing strongly The Lord rules in the heart of believers by the Royal Scepter of his Word but not as the Word is barely revealed unto a Soul in the letter of it but as the Word is brought into the heart by his own Spirit And therefore when the Spirit sways not the Scepter of the Word in their hearts the word looseth its Imperial Royal Authority that it hath over the Soul and so the Soul lies not under so strong an Obligation to any Duty as it doth when the Spirit brings the Word to the heart 3. The third Act is the inabling the soul powerfully to believe According to that in Phil. 2.13 By him we receive both to will and to do that is both the disposition and the Act of the Disposition both an inward bent of Spirit to believe and power also to act that Disposition This is that mighty Power that works in those that believe Eph. 1.19 So that the Soul that could only Believe waveringly that it was the Lords will to receive his despicable loveless Soul into union with the Lord Jesus shall by the powerful ability of the Spirit infused into the Soul by the Spirit be able to receive it fixedly to believe it undoubtedly unquestionably without the least inconstancy for the present that the blessed God of Love will out of his own free love accept his despicable loveless Soul into the nearest union with the Lord Jesus and himself through him That is the exciting work of the Spirit There is now the fifth and last work of the spirit unto souls for that end to be opened which is the spirits Attestation to the soul The Spirits Attestation that is to say his Witnessing unto the soul that it shall be certainly Infallibly in its Cleaving to Lord Jesus admitted into Union and Communion with him It is the good pleasure of the Lord not only to shew the immutability of his Counsel concerning believing souls and the infallibility of their acceptance into Union and Communion with the Lord Jesus in their souls cleaving to him but it is also the good pleasure of the Lord to shew more than Sufficiency the Unchangableness of his Counsel to such souls According to that Pretious place Hebr. 6.17 The Lord willing more abundantly to shew the Immutability of his Councel Ex Abundanti as Beza Translates the Original The Lord having a Pretious good will to shew in a way more and beyond what was necessary to believing souls the Impossibility of their souls failing of Union and Communion with the Lord Jesus in their cleaving to him he doth therefore now add his Blessed Spirit to be the Comforter of Believing souls not only in a Degree that is necessary for them for which end all those four former Effects of the spirit upon souls were appointed but the Lord appoints the Spirit to be a Comforter beyond what is necessary And therefore after the Spirit hath given to Believing souls a clear Evidence of their Acceptance into Union with the Lord Jesus so as thereby the spirit had filled their souls with strong Consolation Yet the Lord appoints the Spirit to add a higher work which is its Attestation This Attestation of the Spirit is that you shall find Eph. 1.13 In whom also after that ye Believed ye were Sealed with the Holy Spirit of promise Or as the Word may be rendered In whom Believing ye were Sealed which Imports the neer Conjunction of these two Blessed works of the Spirit or the immediate following of the Spirits Attestation upon the Spirits Excitation of their Souls to Believing And this work of the Spirit is that you find also in 2 Cor. 1.21 22. Now he that Establisheth us with you in Christ and hath Annointed us is God who hath also Sealed us and given us the earnest of the Spirit in our Hearts And this you shall find also Eph. 4.30 Grieve not the Spirit of God by which you are Sealed unto the day of Redemption And so Rom. 8.16 The Spirit it self beareth Witness with our Spirit thaâ— we are the Children of God Now least any should question whether the Spirit doth thus work in a Witnessing way it would be necessary to clear the Interpretation of most of those places from some other Glosses that are Frequently put upon them It is true say some the Scripture speaks of the Sealing work of the Spirit unto Souls but the meaning of the Spirit of Truth is only that by Graces and Holy Dispositions that the Spirit Communicates unto Believing Souls it doth confirm Souls in the certainty of their Acceptance into Union with Christ So that by the receiving of the Spirit by Beliveâ—s spoken of in the Scripture of Truth is only meant Believers receiving the Precious Working of the Spirit in their Hearts in Holy Habits and Dipsositions For Answer I must acknowledge that by the Spirit is frequently meant in Scripture the Holy Dispositions infused by the Sanctifying Spirit into Believing Souls And I must acknowledge also that the Graces or Holy Habits infused by the Spirit in Believing Souls are spoken of as Witnesses unto Souls of their Union with Christ And indeed it is questionless that an effect may Witness its own proper cause And the Scripture speaks expresly that the works of God are Witness of God Act. 14.17 And so Christs works were Witnesses of his Godhead John 5.36 Yet this is not that which is primarily intended in the former Scriptures by the Spirits Sealing the Believing Soul which may appear to you by two or three Reasons I. In regard the Spirits Sealing the Believing Soul is declared to follow the Souls act of Believing in order of Nature As in Eph. 1.13 In whom after ye Believed ye were Sealed Or In whom ye Believing were Sealed by the Holy Spirit of Promise Now all the Pretious Holy Habits that the Sanctifying Spirit Infuses into any Soul are in order of Nature Infused before there is any Believing act in the Soul Though the Believing act in a Believing Soul may be Contemporary that is at one and the same time yet the Infusing of all the Holy Habits and Dispositions into the Soul must be conceived to have a precedency in order of Nature before there can be a Believing act I confess some and those learned ones too have imagined that the Sanctifying Spirit should work as an external
acting by his own power the divine Light communicated to the soul p. 233. 2. The spirits Irradiation of the Promise or of the Gospel of Jesus Christ Diverse things in the Promise or in the Gospel that the Spirit doth evidence to the Soul when it is revealing its Vnion with Christ This is clear in many particulars from p. 234. to 340. The first beam of Divine Light p. 236. A Second Beam of Divine Light p. 254. A Third p. 262. A Fourth p. 267. A Fifth p. 269. A Sixth p. 274. The security given to Souls from the Covenant Oath Seal p. 274. From the many engagement upon God himself p. 305. 3. The Spirits conviction of the Conscience p. 340. What Conscience is The two most eminent works of Conscience The spirits excitation of the habits of grace formerly infused into their proper exercise p. 345. What the spirits excitatioin is p. 350. 5. The Spirits Attestation or Witness unto the Soul Both its Attestation to sense and to faith p. 355. to 392. Quest How Souls that conceive themselves to have received certain and satisfying evidence of their Vnion with the Lord Jesus may know certainly and infallibly that the evidence of their Vnion with Christ received is really from God and not a Diabolical Enthusiasm or Inspiration or a Delusion by the Devils translation of himself into Angelical glory p. 392. Several things concerning Diabolical Inspirations p. 393. The grounds of the different actings of the Devils policy towards Believers and Vnbelievers p. 406. Quest Can the Devil look into the understandings of Men to know what the inward actings of their Minds are p. 425. 2. Satans power upon the Conscience p. 431. 3. Satans power upon the Affections and Passions p. 436. Premises about a Souls tryal of the evidence of his Vnion received whether it it be from God or be a diabolical inspiration p. 437. Four sinful Distempers incident to believing Souls when doubtful of the truth of their Evidencs of their Vnion with Christ which do incapacitate for a just Trial and true examination of the evidences of their Vnion p 445. Quest If souls under the Dominion of impatiency rashness irrational affections prejudicial conceits against the truth of their evidence of their Vnion with Christ and under decays of holiness be unsutable for a right Tryal of their Evidences then what sutable means remains for such souls in these sad conditions under fears that their Eaidences are delusions Answer p. 455. If the examination can only be taken from those Evidences which remain in their perspicity clearness and sanctifying power then Quest What use could souls make of the evidences they conceive they had received of their Vnion with Jesus Christ when the Lustre and orient brightness of their evidences be Eclipsed p. 472. Answered in 4 Propositions Six Holy Vses the soul is to make for former Evidences p. 479. Nine Arguments from former Evidences to plead with the Majesty of Heaven p. 483. From all those Considerations the Question is thus Stated Quest How shall any Soul that conceives he hath received and doth actually injoy certain and sufficient evidence of his Vnion with the Lord Jesus Demonstrate from certain necessary and evident reasons that those his Evidences are really from God p. 491. Answ There are but two kinds of Demonstrations 1. The first and most certain ground is taken from the Causes Now there are but two principal Causes of the Souls Vnion with the Lord Jesus both which concur together and are never Separated one from another that is the Lords Blessed Written Word and that pretious Spirit of Jesus Christ. That the first primary and principal reason from whence a Soul may conclude that the Evidences of his Vnion with Christ received are really from God is that those Evidencing Beams of Light do proceed from the Blessed Spirit of Jesus Christ Two things opened to clear this 1. That the Light that proceeds from the Spirit to Evidence to any Soul its Vnion with Christ doth Evidence it self to proceed from the spirit p. 493. 2. That the light that proceeds from that spirit to discover to the soul its Vnion with Christ is the most potent invincible Demonstration of its own proceeding from God p. 499. The second Instrumental cause that shineth into any heart really from God to discover its Vnion with Christ is the Lords pretious Word p. 502. Where is cleared that the Scriptures are the Word of God p. 512. 2. The second sort of Demonstrations a posterioti taken from the effects Five acts in Believing Souls whereby they exalt the name of God Souls Confident they shall be everlastingly saved by Christ put upon it to search into their Hearts and seriously lay six things before them to consider of A TREATISE OF THE Souls Vnion WITH CHRIST c. Ephes 1.10 That in the Dispensation of the fulness of Times he might gather togather in one all things in Christ both which are in Heaven and which are in Earth even in him THE Apostle taking care of the Church of Ephesus after his departure from it writes this Epistle for the Establishing their Hearts in the Riches of the Lords Free Grace in Christ that the Lord had made their Souls Partakers of that thereby he might excite and quicken them to all sutable walking to such Priviledges This being his Scope in this first Chapter the Apostle begins to reckon up all those Glorious Priviledges by their several names in their several Causes and orders and therefore you shall see in ver 3. He breaks out in the very beginning into a Holy Rapture of Praise and Admiration of God to Bless his name for those high Priviledges as Election Justification Vocation and Glorification Now in ver 8. is comprehended the great Priviledge of their Vocation in those words wherein he hath abounded towards us in all Wisdom and Prudence or Understanding That is in which Grace and Love before named the Lord hath abounded towards us through the Communicating that Grace of Wisdom and Understanding to us That is that Grace that made us receive and rest upon the Doctrine of the Wisdom of God to Salvation And having thus named the Priviledge it self ver 9. He opens the manner of the Lords thus effecting this grace upon their Souls in these words having made known unto us the Mystery of his Will according to his good pleasure which he had purposed in himself The manner of the effecting of it is by the Lords manifesting the Mysteries of his will to their Souls And what he means by the Mystery of his will he tells us ver 13 it is the Word of Truth the Gospel of Salvation He means indeed the Salvation Preached in and through the Lord Christ alone which was the great Mystery that the Angels desired to pry into Now by the Revelation of this Mystery the Lord did Communicate that Grace and Understanding to them whereby they did embrace that pretious doctrine that made them wise to salvation
and the same time and they are both but witnessing one and the same thing and helping the soul to draw one and the same Conclusion at the same time III. There is the manifestation of the true inseparable effects of union with Jesus Christ to be in the soul That is the souls beholding the very juice of Jesus Christ the precious Vine flowing down into his soul as into one of his Branches The soul finding the same graces that are in Jesus Christ the head drop down into his Bosom So that the soul concludes he must needs be a Member to the Head having influences from it Now there are three things to be opened about this which are concauses which may clear up to our understandings what may be safely holden forth in these 1. That none of these neither the shining of Faith nor the Testimony of Conscience nor the inseparable effects of union are concauses in evidencing unto the soul the Will of God in taking the particular soul into union with Christ The promise it self affords this light to the soul by the sole aid of the Spirit of God without respect to any Dispositions Inclinations believing qualifications whatever can be imagined 2. These three are only concauses in producing to the soul the effects of that first evidence That is in producing in the soul the conclusion of his own union with Jesus Christ that doth arise from the first evidence of the Lords will to take his soul into union with Christ 3. That it is only the first of those three things which is the shining forth of the light of Faith that 's properly a coadjoyning cause in the making up a souls evidence from the promise of his union with Christ Those two latter do follow after the first clear evidence in the soul of his union with Christ from the promise and so cannot come in as joynt concauses to make up the evidence Answ 3. Thirdly I answer There are indeed three joynt concurring causes for the making up this union to the souls Faith of its union with Christ And that is the Spirit of God the light of Faith and the Witness of Conscience taking the Witness of Conscience only for an experimental knowledge that soul doth receive and hath received the Lord Jesus freely given by God to be one with the soul so that Conscience doth only answer as it were like a precious Eccho to the soul the voice of the Spirit of God to the soul The Spirit of God revealing the light of the promise or applying the promise to the soul The light of Faith shewing the souls receiving of the promise And the voice of Conscience consenting to the voice of the Spirit of God or giving the Echo to the voice of the Spirit of God in the soul Answ 4. Fourthly I answer There be some that may be said to be concauses or joyn concurring causes in the evidencing to the soul his union in the promise Yet they are all but subordinate causes to one prime principal cause which is the Spirit of God Should I take these three which some have conceived to be joynt concurring causes which is the light of Faith the Witness of Conscience and the manifestation of the inseparable effects of union yet all these come in a way of Subordination to the principal Efficient Instrumental cause which is the Spirit of God As you may see if you look upon the light of Faith 1 Cor. 2.12 We have received not the Spirit of the World but the Spirit which is of God that we might know the things that are freely given us of God You see the internal Vision or internal Light they have of any grace of any gifts is by the light of the Spirit of God put upon those gifts or put into the soul to discern those gifts So likewise of the second the Testimony of Conscience whatever Testimony Conscience would give be it either through practical or experimental reason drawn from the Word of God Or be it only to bear Witness to the souls own act and so taken only for a sense of the souls own beleiving yet also this Witness of Conscience hath its Subordination to that principal cause the Spirit of God As Rom. 9.1 When the Conscience is said to bear Witness of any good act in the soul it s said to be through the Spirit And indead the Conscience being altogether corrupt naturally the habit of Spiritual Light and discerning by which it Judge being only from the Spirit of God Thence it must necessarily follow also that every acting of that renewed light that the Spirit of God hath infused into the Conscience must be by the Spirit of God For out of all question the acting of every habit of grace received doth as well depend upon the Spirit of God as the first infusion of it into the soul did And if you look upon the third also which is the manifestation of all the effects of union that comes under that in 1 Cor. 2.12 All gifts All gifts of grace through union must be discerned through the Spirit of Wisdom in the heart inabling souls to discern the things freely given them of God As the Apostle doth well Illustrate it v. 11 comparing the light that the Spirit which they have received gives to them to discern the gift of God to the light of Conscience to discern what is in man What man knoweth the things of a man save the Spirit of man which is in him Even so the things of God knoweth no man but the Spirit of God Whereby he makes it evident that the use of the Spirit of God dwelling in the soul is the same for the discovering of all the workings of the soul to it as the use of the Spirit of a man is to discover to him the heart of man as man Answ 5. Fifthly I answer That the Spirit of God alone is the principal most immediate and natural Instrumental efficient cause of the promises evidencing to the soul his union with Christ Though you see there be divers causes that may afar off have some kind of influence yet no Influences further then they have a dependance upon the Spirit of God working in them and through them And however the sight of Faith and the Testimony of Conscience may in some measure be said to be concauses yet the Instrumental efficient cause that hath the Alpha and Omega that which strikes the first and last stroke that assures the souls Faith that he is united to Christ that 's the Spirit of God alone It s that which set on work all other means for that end Now that the Spirit of God alone is this principal efficient instrumental cause I shall clear to you by some demonstrations I. It appears by the general office of the Spirit of God The Spirit is designed to that office alone to reveal truths or to guide souls into all truth as appears John 16.43 When the Spirit of truth is come he will
guide you into all truth and observe why for he shall not speak of himself but whatever he shall hear that shall he speak He shall have a Commission from Heaven as it were to lead them into all truth Now in this guiding the soul into all truth there are two offices that the Spirit of God is designed to First the making known of truth to the soul Secondly the application of truth made known First The making known of truth to the soul It is the office of the Spirit to cast in the precious principles of Spiritual knowledge whereby the soul should be any ways apprehensive of any truth This making known of truth to the soul consists in three things 1. In the communicating of Spiritual light to the soul or in giving the soul a Spiritual eye of discerning We are all like poor Bartimeus born Blind The Natural man receiveth not the things of the Spirit for they are Foolishness to him neither can he know them because they are Spiritually discerned 1 Cor. 2.14 Now it is the office of the Spirit alone to make a precious Eye Salve that may restore spiritual sight to the soul and make it capable of discerning truth Therefore it is said in 1 John 5.20 In Conversion we are said to receive a mind to know him that is a disposition to know him an understanding capable of knowing him 2. The Spirit presents truth to that Spiritual eye tâ—â—t that he hath communicated Therefore in Eph. 1.17 The Apostle prays for a spirit of wisdom and revelation Not only a spirit of wisdom that is an internal spiritual habit of spiritual light to discern truth But a spirit of revelation also that is of manifesting the truth unto the Soul 3. In making known spiritual truths the spirit of God removes all impediments that do prevent the discerning of truths presented Though the spirit gives eyes and presents truths there may be such impediments between the Souls eyes and the truth that may prevent the Souls discerning There may be some films or some corrupt humours some film of lust or selfishness that may hinder the sight of the truth Secondly The Spirit makes application of the truth known The first truth that God discovers to a Soul which is his own sin his guilt and danger of condemnation must as well be applied to the Soul by the Spirit as revealed to the Soul by the Spirit Therefore John 16.8 The office of the Spirit is to reprove or convince the world of sin of righteousness and of judgment to make it clear to the conscience of every particular man that there is a judgment for him that he is one of those sinful wretches that believe not That the Spirit also must make this application will appear in two things 1. In that there should be an equal and proportionable sense of the effects of Sin and Wrath according to the measure and degree of every sinners understanding sin and wrath If it were not the Spirit alone that did make application of the truth made known it could not be then but so far as every Soul did understand what Sin and Wrath was the effect both of the knowledge of Sin and of Wrath would remain in such a heart But alas experience enough teacheth us that many sinners that have large knowledge of the nature of sin and of the consequences and effects of sin which is Wrath and condemnation yet have not the knowledge of this effect in the least manner The effects are two Condemnation in the Souls Judgment Horrour and anguish in the sense of condemnation He that understands sin rightly in the least degree understand it to be damnable therefore the effects of it must needs be condemnation in his own Soul But nothing is more common than for men to confess every sin to be damnable and to confess themselves to be sinners but far off from drawing a sentence of condemnation They will be sure enough of the conclusion though they conclude sin to be damnable yet they will not conclude themselves to be in a damnable condition So if you look upon the second effect that follows the knowledge of Sin and that 's Horrour and Sense of the dreadfulness of that Condemnation Though it may be sometimes a soul goes so far as almost to conclude it self to be in a Damned condition yet far is it from letting it take effect upon his heart so as to lie heavy upon his heart as an intolerable burthen Therefore it is plain not only the revealing of the truth but the application of truth revealed depends upon the Spirit of God The Spirit must say here is thy Sin and yonder is the Pit of Misery before a man can apply those truths to his own soul 2. It must be the Spirit of God that makes the applicationâ— in regard the Terrours and Horrours for Sin are appropriated by the Scripture to the Spirit and to his work alone Whence you shall see Rom. 8.16 Fear is said to be the work of the Spirit of Bondage You have not received the Spirit of Bondage again to fear that is the Spirit of Bondage again working Fear and Anguish and Vexation of soul in respect of the guilt of Sin 2. The Spirit alone must be the principal efficient cause in evidencing to the soul from the promise his union with Christ in regard of the Spirits particular and peculiar office that it is appointed unto by Jesus Christ The Spirit hath its office and that is to Comfort and Refresh the souls of the peculiar ones of Christ Hence the name of the Spirit is the Comforter John 16.17 Now this being the peculiar office of the Spirit of Christ to comfort those that are the the Members of Jesus Christ it must needs be that that must needs be the principal Instrumental efficient cause in revealing to the soul his union with Christ in the promise And that will appear in two things 1. In regard the Word of promise alone is the ground of all Consolation unto the souls Faith Now the Spirit should give souls but small comfort could he not give them Comfort unto Faith did not the Lord reveal the everlasting Inheritance to be theirs everlasting Union and Communion with Christ to be theirs and then let them see Holiness in them to be a drop of the Inheritance that the soul shall feed it self with to Eternity the Comfort were but small 2. In regard it must be by appropriating the thing promised that the promise is able to afford any Consolation There must be two things for the soul to receive comfort from the promise Propriety and Security The Soul must see propriety or else no love at least no satisfaction to the heart and while there is not the satiating of the soul there is no comfort Comfort is the content the soul hath in beholding his desired satisfaction Now whatever the soul sees it satisfieth not till it hath a propriety in it And till there be a security
in that propriety he is not satisfied fears and doubts arise of losing it again Could the soul see union with Christ unless the voice say thus I am thine and will never separate from thee it would give no true comfort The soul would be more afraid of the loss of that happiness then rejoyce in the present good injoyed 3. It will appear in regard there is nothing sufficient to evidence to the soul his union from the promise satisfyingly but the Spirit There must be an equal authority in the revelation to the soul of his union with Christ to that that was in the revelation to the soul of his Sin Guilt and Subjection to everlasting Damnation before the soul can receive any satisfaction or any true freedom from those dreadful Horrours that possess a soul upon the true revelation of his dreadful estate of Sin Wo and Misery Now its apparent that it is the Spirit of God alone that reveals with Power the Condemnation of the soul through his own Sin And therefore unless the Spirit of God should come again with another voice which hath as great a power to pronounce the absolution of the soul from Condemnation through Christ the soul could never receive any satisfaction nor be free from receiving the sentence of Condemnation in himself IIII. The Scripture it self testifies that it is the proper peculiar office of the Spirit I need quote only that one place Rom. 8.16 The Spirit it self beareth Witness with our Spirit that we are the Children of God When he would rise to the highest evidence he rises to that the Spirit of God Witnesseth with our Spirit There are two or three things in the Text that will clear it that it must be meant the special operation of the Spirit it self and that by a special peculiar application of the promise 1. It is said it is the Spirit it self Intimating it is not the gifts of the Spirit nor the graces of the Spirit as sometimes the Spirit is taken in Scripture But in a way of distinction from graces he puts the Emphasis upon it the Spirit it self that Witnesseth with our Spirits Intimating that it is the person of the Spirit whose office it is thus to Witness to the soul 2. He puts it as a distinct Witness it Witnesseth with our Spirits 3. It is by particular application It Witnesseth to our Spirits that we are the Sons of God It Witnesseth Adoption Now we cannot believe our Adoption without the Witness of the Spirit and that from a Word and therefore that can be nothing but the application of the promise to the soul Thus you have the second question opened that is by what means a soul doth receive the infallible evidence of his union There is a third question Quest 3. In what manner doth the soul receive the first infallible evidence of his union with Christ It was concluded from the first Question That the absolute promise of God receive any Poor Despicable Loveless Forlorn Soul that would into Vnion with the Lord Jesus was the first infallible ground of the Souls evividence of union And it was eoncluded that there were various means that did concur together to inable the soul to receive his union from this absolute promise Though there was one immediate means that works in the promise assuring the Souls Faith in the promise that he is united to Jesus Christ The Question now remains how this means doth produce this end Or how the Lord worketh in and through these means to make the absolute promise efficacious and effectual to manifest to the poor doubting soul his Vnion with Christ For the opening of it I must premise something for the right understanding of it and then lay down the answer to it in positive conclusions Prem 1. First I must premise That all the Influences that any means whatsoever do contribute unto the evidencing unto any doubtful soul his union with the Lord Christ only produce the same kind of effects in that soul that doth receive the evidence of his union with Christ As suppose it is through seeking the face of God in prayer that the Lord doth at one time bring to mind the absolute promise in the clearness of light it holds forth and makes application of that promise for the satisfying of the soul about his union with Christ And suppose another time the Ministry of the Word is appointed by God for the effecting of this end Still there is the same effect begotten by these various means whereby the soul is inabled to receive the evidence of his union Prem 2. Secondly I shall premise That all the Influences that any means do contribute for the evidencing from the promise the souls union with Christ are comprehended under the Influences of the spirit of God alone So that the efficacy of the word or of prayer or any ordinance towards the effecting of that blessed end in the soul may properly be said to be the efficacy of the spirit of God in regard those means contribute not the least in themselves otherwise than the spirit of God imploys them as his own instruments for assuring to the soul his faith in Christ from the promise Prem 3. Thirdly I must premise That in regard of the manner of the working of the spirit of God for assuring the souls faith of union in the promise that the spirit of God hath not limited himself to any constant particular order in assuring unto souls their union with Christ from the promise The spirit of God is truly the spiritual wind that blows where and how it listeth There is no limitation propounded in the word whereby it should appear the spirit should bind himself to work in the same order in all souls to evidence to them their union with Christ And in like manner the spirit of God hath set no bounds to himself of any degree of those effects that it doth produce to souls whereby the promise is made efficacious to assure to the souls faith his union with Christ but it works variously in the heart Prem 4. Fourthly I must premise that the explication of the manner of the Spirits working in assuring to the Soul from the promise his union with Christ to the full and life of it is altogether unspeakable and inexpressable Surely that in 1 Cor. 2.9 is meant only of those Gospel joys that are the effects of this union that eye never saw nor ear never heard neither did it ever enter into the heart of man as man to conceive the things that God hath laid up for those that love him And likewise well may that place be applied that no man knows the mind of God but the Spirit of God 1 Cor. 2.11 12. Neither doth any man or Angel know those secret discoveries of the Lords mind and opening of his heart to the Souls Faith whom he doth assure from the promise that he is united unto Christ Prem 5. There is a fifth premise Though the Spirit of God
the evidencing to them from the promises their union with Christ and that is the manifestation or Irradiation of the promise it self or of the Gospel of Jesus Christ There are two ways how the Spirit doth reveal any thing to a Soul The 1. is by infusing of divine light The 2d is by manifesting the object to that divine light It is not sufficient light communicated to the faculty of discerning that inables it to discern a thing presently but there must be also an enlightning and manifesting of the object to be discovered unto that light communicated The most acute Eye that is of the greatest perspicuity and clearness can discern nothing any further then the things themselves are presented to them So that the Spirit in evidencing to the Soul from the promises must cast as it were beams of light some kind of holy rays from the promise it self upon the Eye as well as light into the Eye to discern the light that is cast upon the Eye That 's the reason that a Soul at one time shall discern the very Heart of Christ towards him in the promises or in the Gospel and at another time looking upon the same Word the same promise with the same diligence and yet it not so much as giveth a sufficient ground for an imperfect hope or an act of Faith in way of adherence and this is from a different manifestation of this Irradiation of the Spirit unto the Soul Now this manifestation or Irradiation doth consist in two things 1. The Spirit presents the Gospel or the promises to the Soul We are not sufficient of our selves to think any thing as of our selves 2 Cor. 3.5 There must be as well an application of the object to the Eye as an application of the Eye to the object and yet both must be also by the Spirit of God Therefore John 14.26 it is put as a part of the office of the comforting Spirit or the evidencing Spirit to bring the pretious things that Christ had spoken to his Disciples to their remembrance again 2. The Spirit doth evidence the promise or the Gospel that it hath presented to the Eye It brings it to remembrance and then opens it and reveals the very nature and intent of it You must conceive there is a twofold evidence of things there is an evidence of narration and an evidence of the matter it self Now the Gospel is always evident in matter of narration that is as spoken from the mouth of God in his written Word But the Gospel is very inevident in regard of the matter or of the thing it self it is an hidden mystery so dark a riddle as cannot be found out without the help of the Spirit it self Now though the evidence only of narration of the Gospel be sufficient to excite the Soul to act Faith by way of adherence and recumbency upon God yet it is not sufficient to excite the Soul to act Faith by way of assurance Divers things there are in the promise or in the Gospel that the Spirit doth evidence to the Soul when it is revealing its union with Christ First beam of divine light First It presents and evidenceth to the Soul the Lord Christ fully unquestionably and everlastingly taking away all sin and wickedness from every Soul that shall embrace him You shall observe Rom. 8.33 34. that it was through the knowledge of this that the Faith of Paul took wing first to mount above in a tryumphant way saith he what shall we say to these things What things Things that he had before spoken of in the beginning of the Epistle especially Chap. 5. where he had made it appear clearly That where sin did abound grace did much more abound super-abound abound without measure in that Grace did triumph over sin through Jesus Christ Now saith he what shall we say to these things He stood in admiration at the thoughts of it and then began to say Who shall lay any thing to the charge of Gods elect Here Faith began to triumph from the knowledge of Christs compleat removal of all sin from every Soul that did embrace him Now the Spirit evidenceth divers things to the Soul for the clearing of this I. The Spirit makes it evident that the Lord Christ took upon him to be surety for every Soul that would embrace him He became the surety of the new Covenant Heb. 7.22 The Spirit makes the Soul discern that Christ stept into his Father to undertake to be bound to pay all the debts for every Soul that shall hereafter embrace him And herein the Spirit is wont to evidence two things concerning the suretyship of Christ 1. That Christ undertook to be a surety of the whole Covenant for Souls That he undertook to fulfil all that Justice or Mercy it self should require to be fulfilled for those Souls for whom he undertook 2. That he became such a surety as he undertook to pay the debt alone Hence Isa 49.8 he is called the Covenant it self Intimating that the whole Covenant concerning taking away sin is only between God the Father and Jesus Christ Hence it is said 2 Cor. 5.19 God was in Christ reconciling the World unto himself not imputing their trespasses to them II. The Spirit evidenceth that Christ as Mediatour stood in the relation of a common person and took upon him to represent all the persons of those that should hereafter believe on him so that whatever satisfaction he should give to his Fathers justice in regard of sin should be not only in stead of satisfaction to be given to the Father by the Souls themselves but also to be done as it were in their stead to be accounted as if they themselves had given satisfaction This the Spirit may evidence from the promise from some such place as 1 Cor. 15.48 which shews that Jesus Christ stood as a common person in stead of all those that should believe on him as Adam the first man stood as a common person to represent all those that should come out of him Or from such a place as that Rom. 5.14 where the old Adam is called a Type of Jesus Christ that was to come The second thing the Spirit clears is the things themselves done by Jesus Christ in those relations unto Souls as he stood as a common person and as the surety for those that should hereafter believe on him I. Therein the Spirit cometh to clear the effusion of the Blood of Christ the offering himself by death as a sacrifice for sin Thence you shall observe the first thing Paul instanceth in when he lets his Faith look upon the removing of all Sin is Christ dying saith he in a holy Triumph of Faith who shall condemn Why Christ hath dyed As if he should say how shall either carnal reason or conscience or unbelief or Justice or Law or Hell or Devil bring any accusation against our Souls seeing Jesus Christ hath died he hath offered up himself by death as a
secondly it evidenceth the sutableness of the satisfaction and that in two things 1. In regard of the things suffered by Christ to give satisfaction Those things every way sutable to what Justice could require from the Soul it self in regard of his sin Two things sin declareth the Soul hath merited to suffer for ever First The Death of the Body wherein sin is acted and committed Secondly The Death of the Soul it self in the separation of it from God which was the chief actor in the transgression of the Law Now the Spirit evidences the Death of Christ a sutable satisfaction in regard of the things suffered by Christ First In regard the humane Body died that stood in the stead of those that had been the transgressors of the Law he took upon him flesh and so died for sin in the flesh in the same nature in the same kind of Body that sin was acted in Secondly In that there was a separation of the Soul of Christ from injoyment of communion with his Father as appears Matth. 27.46 My God my God why hast thou forsaken me That is why hast thou deprived me of communion with thee And though indeed the separation was not eternal yet in regard of the person bearing the separation it was equivalent to an eternal separation One moment of separation was as great an evil inflicted upon such a person as an eternal separation could have been to have been inflicted upon a poor finite Creature 2. The Spirit evidenceth the sutableness of satisfaction to the Father in regard of the sins themselves laid to the charge of Christ in his suffering what Justice could require should be suffered by the transgressor and that both in the kind of sin and also in the degree of sin yea and also in the circumstance of sin too That which was equivalent to all kind of sin was imputed to Christ to be suffered that should have been suffered by transgressors Apostacy from God was imputed to him by being imputed to be a Devil Enmity to God in the highest degree was imputed to him in that he was imputed the Prince of Devils All kind of fighting against God was imputed to him in that he was imputed a Blasphemer and a striver to sit down in the Throne of God himself and an impostor and deceiver So that no kind of sin that Conscience can object against the Soul but the Spirit can and doth evidence at such a time was imputed to Christ and Christ suffered for such a sin that was equivalent to that kind of sin II. In the Spirits evidencing the Lord Christ to have fully and everlastingly taken away all the wickedness of what kind soever from every Soul that shall embrace him it evidenceth the resurrection of Jesus Christ from the Dead This is clear Rom. 8.34 It is Christ that died yea rather that is risen again In this the Spirit evidenceth three things to the Soul 1. It evidenceth the Fathers acknowledgment of his own satisfaction for the sins of all the persons that should ever embrace Christ and believe on him The Spirit evidenceth to the Soul Christ having once taken upon him as a surety to bear the transgressions of all that should believe on him having entred into Bond to pay all their debts and suffered himself to be arrested by the Justice of God yea to be carried to the prison of the Grave by the Hand of Justice for those transgressions he must never have come out till he had paid the uttermost farthing And that 's the reason that in 1 Cor. 15.14 the Apostle tells them That their Faith is vain and their Preaching of Christ is vain unless Christ be risen Whence the Apostle noteth That though the Death of Jesus Christ was the matter of sattisfaction to the Justice of the Father for the Justifying of all the persons that Christ sustained yet there is no evidence unto Faith that God the Father is satisfied for those transgressions by the Death of Christ unless Christ be risen 2. The Spirit evidenceth to the Soul Christs own triumphant victory over sin and all the concomitants and consequents of sin Now therein the Spirit evidenceth Christs removal of all kind of sin from every Soul that shall hereafter embrace him in regard he hath now captivated sin he hath got sin under his own power to trample under his Feet and to do with as he please he hath taken sin and tied it to his Chariot wheel as the word imports 3. The Spirit doth evidence in and from the resurrection of Jesus Christ from the dead as he was a surety that the Lord doth account his acquittance given to Jesus Christ for sin that was charged upon him to be an acquittance of all those that ever should embrace Christ through believing and also that Christ in receiving that acquittance from God did receive it in the room and in the stead of all that ever should embrace him And thence the Spirit evidenceth to the Soul that the Scripture attributes unto every believer a participation of the resurrection of Christ yea that it attributes to them a Co-resurrection with Christ Col. 2.13 You being dead in your sins hath he quickned together with him that is hath made you partakers of the vertue of his resurrection and raised you with himself and vers 14. Blotting out the hand writing of Ordinances that was against us which was contrary to us and took it out of the way nailing it to his cross that is Justifying our Souls from all that ever Sin Conscience the Law or the Devil could bring against us III. The Spirit evidenceth to the Soul the Ascension of Jesus Christ to the right Hand of the Father as he was a surety and as he did represent sinners that should receive him to be their Mediator Thus Rom. 8.34 Paul through the Spirits manifestation of Jesus Christ at the right Hand of the Father had such a full evidence as he could make a challenge to the Law and to Sin and Hell and the Devil to bring all their accusations and see if they could lay any thing to his charge Who shall condemn saith he Jesus Christ is gone to the right Hand of the Father Now from Christ's Ascension to the right Hand of the Father the Spirit is wont to evidence these four things 1. That the Lord Christ as a surety for all sinners that should embrace him as their Mediator hath now received an acknowledgment in Heaven that he hath fully taken away all the sins of all that ever so receive him The Spirit brings to the Souls remembrance what welcom as it were Jesus Christ had into Heaven It shews the Soul from such a place as that Psal 110.1 The Father said to Christ when he came into Heaven Well done thou obedient Son sit thou down at my right Hand There are two things observable in that First In that welcom given by the Father there is an evidence that the Father acknowledgeth the work
without it self in any of the motions of his love whatever So that thence the spirit evidenceth to the soul that it were a denying of the glory of the God-head to conceive that God should look out of himself for any argument any motive any incentive that should either excite or incline the divine will to any motions of love whatever to wards any creature II. The spirit evidenceth the absolute will of the Father alone to be the first principle and also the only cause of admission of souls into union and communion with the Lord Jesus So that both the purpose of God to accept souls into union and also the execution of that his purpose do depend only upon the Lords bare will and good pleasure According to that in Eph. 1.5 6 compared with ver 9. III. The spirit evidenceth the Lord Christs willingness to accept of souls into union to be only done through the Commission that he received from the good pleasure of his Fathers will concerning such souls According to that in John 6.37 38. When he saith he would reject no one soul in no wise under no consideration whatever he gives this reason for I came down from Heaven not to do mine own will but the will of him that sent me There is a fifth beam of light that the spirit causeth to shine forth from the Gospel and that is Fifth beam of divine light The admirable and incomprehensible fulness of all perfection of love and mercy that is comprehended in this tender of union with the Lord Christ to every particular Soul that will accept it Notwithstanding those former beams of divine light there is a two fold necessity for the Spirit to cause this beam of divine light also to sparkle before the souls eyes I. That there may be a fulness of sufficiency to produce acts of Faith in a soul by way of fulness of confidence and assurance And in this regard there is a necessity of the spirits casting this beam of light also before the souls eyes to open the incomprehensible perfection of all kind of love that the soul soul can imagine he should have the least necessity of II. To excite and quicken the affections to more enlarged operations or workings Though there hath been a former apprehension of the infinite perfection of love in the tender of the union yet there is no answerable working of affection towards the union unless there be that very actual Vision Now when the operation of the affections towards the union tendered are but small then the souls assurance of its acting of Faith by way of fulness of confidence of its union with Christ is but in a small degree Therefore it is in this respect that the spirit doth manifest the absolute compleat incomprehensible perfection of love that is included in the tender of union And this the spirit doth in divers particulars 1. The spirit reveals the Lords tender of passing over himself and all that is in himself wholly unto souls through this union with Christ For the evidencing this the spirit only brings to remembrance the sum of all the promises according to the Lords own abstract and Compendium that he hath made of them And that is this That God hath said he will be the souls God in Christ Here are two particulars included under this one depth First The spirit manifests that the highest interest that is possible to make a soul capable of in the infinite perfection of God himself is offered to be passed over to the soul in the tender of union Secondly The spirit manifests that the Lord offers in this tender of union to interest the soul in himself with such an interest as should be most sutable for the fullest communication of himself to the soul that it shall be as proper and peculiar for God to love the soul as it should be proper to the nature of God to be loving himself 2. The spirit reveals that the Lord hath laid the highest obligation upon himself to be the souls own in all that he is in his passing over himself unto the soul through that union with Christ This the spirit manifests by bringing to remembrance the Lords asseverations and protestations and highest oath that he adds unto that his word that declares him to pass over himself unto souls through their union with Christ Hebr. 6.13 3. The spirit reveals the Lords establishing the transactions of himself and all that is in himself over to the soul through its union with Christ upon his own will alone on purpose that there might be a fulness of all love contained in him Three particular ends the spirit may bring to the Souls remembrance for the clearing of this First That there might be no possibility of an alteration of that perfect love of his to a soul through union with Christ by any Power or Possibility of the soul The Holy Ghost affirms Rom. 11.9 The Lords Election of love to be meerly established upon his own will for that end that the Election might stand being not of Works but of Grace That is that it might be certain being unchangable So as the souls wickedness and wretchedness rising to what height soever yet it might not be able to make an alteration in that perfect love So Rom. 9.16 Secondly That there might be a fulness of love and to make a constant immutable ground for his peoples faith to rest upon him for the perfection of of his love towards them This the spirit may reveal to the soul from that in Hebr. 6.17 18. The Lord is said to add the confirmation of his Oath that there might be two immutable grounds in which it was impossible for God to Lie Thirdly That his people might have a sufficient satisfactory consolation from that fulness of his love in all necessities upon all occasions and at all times That by two immutable things they might have strong consolation 4. The spirit reveals the Lords undertaking to effect in and for the soul the whole transaction of himself over unto the soul through his union with Christ by the Almighty Power of his own love alone Eph. 2.5 The whole work of Salvation is attributed to nothing but love The Spirit reveals this two ways First The spirit reveals that the Lord hath engaged himself by promise to effect the transaction of himself over unto the soul by the Almighty Power of his love Isaiah 41.10 11. Secondly The spirit remembers the soul of the necessity that the Lord hath imposed upon Jesus Christ to effect it John 10.16 5. The spirit reveals that the Lord hath undertaken the sutable tempering and disposing of the soul for all sutable walking in union with the Lord Jesus that is tendered This the spirit may and doth evidence from that in Jer. 31.33 Where the Lord reveals it to be the very Covenant This shall be my Covenant or this shall be the love that I will promise This is part of Gods love to souls
of his Mercy and Love revealed in the Gospel from the bare word of God alone but if they could see any fruit of that Love and Mercy in their bosoms then they think they should believe You see the Spirit hath here in this case also evidenced the Lord to have afforded a real experiment of his Mercy and Love to a Soul in the case of unbelieving Thomas who was not only inclined to see ground of believing in a visible way from the sight of his Eyes and the feelings of his Hands but he was resolved to have it that way or no way unless I see thus and thus I will not believe III. A third case wherein the Lord hath given presidents is in the case of loathsom horrible dreadful and most hateful imaginations working in the Heart against God In this case the Lord hath not left himself without some experimental witness of the discovery of his Mercy and Love Now the case being very high I find an experiment of Gospel Mercy and Love discovered in a case that is as high In this case the Lord hath left Jesus Christ himself as a pattern his Heart and Spirit was perplexed and troubled with as hateful horrible imaginations propounded to him as ever were propounded to any Soul in Matth. 4.6 9. the Devil propounded to him that he should murder himself If thou be the Son of God cast thy self down Secondly That he should presume upon his Fathers promise to him and be careless of walking according to his Fathers will saith the Devil He hath said that his Angels should have charge over him least he should dash his foot against a stone There is a third sort of thoughts propounded to his imagination worse then these and that is that he should worship the Devil What more hateful and horrible thoughts could be injected into any bosom than this to worship the Devil himself Now under this general are comprehended these two particular cases 1. There is comprehended the cases of all blasphemous thoughts that are wont to perplex distressed Souls That if a Soul should say within himself sure never any object of the Lords Love ever had such hellish thoughts as are presented to my mind such thoughts as my Heart trembles to name the Spirit may then bring to the Souls remembrance this pretious pattern of Christ the Devil injecting into his pure mind thoughts that were as dreadfully derogatory to the honour of the Lords highest Majesty thoughts that had as much of the poison of Hell in them as ever thought that was injected into thy cursed Heart 2. Under this comes in all kind of Temptations concerning self murder or self destruction In this case the Spirit may bring to remembrance the Lord Christ himself as the Souls president or pattern the Lords letting him be perplexed with temptations of the same kind IV. A fourth case is the want of all sensible manifestations of God to the Soul either in quickning and reviving or in comforting In this case you may take the dearly beloved one of God David Psal 22. wherein indeed he speaks typically relating to Christ especially yet also speaks but the thoughts of his own Spirit at that time too saith he v. 1. My God my God why hast thou forsaken me Why art thou so far from helping me and from the words of my roaring And v. 14. so Psal 77.3 4. I remembred God and was troubled I complained and my Spirit was overwhelmed c. Another pattern the Lord gives us of the Holy man Job he cries out Chap. 6.4 The arrows of the Almighty are within me the poison whereof drinketh up my Spirit c. So Chap. 13.24 25 26. Wherefore hidest thou thy face and holdest me for thine enemy c. Now under this come in two particular cases of the Soul 1. The case of the defect of all the workings of the quickning Spirit into the Soul 2. Under this comes in the case of the Souls wanting the manifesting light of the Spirit to reveal the Gospel in its beauty and glory to its Soul So that if any Soul wanting this manifesting light of the Spirit should begin to cast off all confidence and to waver and stagger and doubt least the Lord should not be willing to accept it to be an object of Gospel love then the Spirit may and doth sometimes bring to remembrance these eminent patterns of those who were in the very same temper under the same wants and yet they were really the objects of that love and mercy that the Gospel in Christ reveals V. A fifth case is the case of fruitlesness inefficacy of the breathings of the Soul after God in prayer In this case also the Lord hath given eminent patterns Those two forenamed ones both Job and David you shall find to have been in the same case Job 23.8 9. Behold I go forward but he is not there and backward but I cannot perceive him on the left hand where he doth work but I cannot behold him c. His meaning is he used all kind of means the utmost diligence in seeking after God but he would not be found So if you look upon David Psal 22.2 O my God I cry in the day time but thou hearest not and in the night season I am not silent So that here God shews Souls an experiment of some who were in the same case and yet objects of his love and mercy VI. A sixth case is the inability of the Soul to pour out requests That in Isa 63.17 will shew the Lord to have left his whole Church as a pattern in that case Why hast thou made us to err from thy ways and hardned our hearts from thy fear These Souls complain of the Lords suffering such senslesness and blockishness of Spirit to be upon them as made them unsutable for every duty of the Lords worship and yet notwithstanding these were objects of mercy and love VII A seventh case is the beholding all arguments that are possible to be imagined in a Soul against those promises of love and mercy that the Gospel tenders In this case the Lord hath given that pretious pattern of Abraham whom he chose to be the pattern of all believers Rom. 4.18 19. He against hope believed in hope that is against all ground and reason and arguments of hope that could be imagined Though he saw all possibility against that promise of love and mercy that the Lord had given him concerning the Messiah to come through his loins to be his lawful seed by Sarah yet notwithstanding he believed though he saw his own body dead and the deadness of Sarahs womb yet it is said v. 20. he staggered not at the promise through unbelief his Spirit did not so much as waver Under this general may be comprehended these three particular cases of the Soul 1. The case of the Souls thinking himself to be the most unlikely under Heaven to be an object of Gospel mercy and love The Soul considering
it constrains it to receive that clear Infallible Demonstration that the Blessed Word of God gives of the Lords Will to receive his Stubborn Rebellious Unworthy Soul into union with the Lord Jesus Indeed by the Spirits Illumination and the manifestation of the Gospel to the Soul there is a most Unquestionable Demonstration given of the Lords Will to accept any one particular soul to be one with him if he will accept him but in the Work of Conviction is most properly the Mighty Overpowring work of the spirit upon the Mind and Conscience constraining it to receive the Demonstration Conviction is properly the silencing all Cavils Doubts of Contradictions of the mind against any truth propounded and a making of it undenyable to it that it dare not make any objection or raise any one Cavil more to what the Lord propounded to his particular Loveless soul but to sit down satisfied and confess the truth of what the Lord propounded to him to confess that it is the Will of the Blessed God indeed that it should be one with himself in the Lord Jesus and enjoy everlasting Communion with him There is a necessity of the Spirits thus convincing the Soul besides its Illumination and its Irradiration of the Gospel to it and that in two respects First in respect of the Mind or Understanding And Secondly in respect of the Conscience First In respect of the mind The Power of Corruption hath so Captivated the Mind and Understanding that both the Illumination of it and Irradiation of the Gospel unto the mind would be Ineffectual should not the spirit strike in to make up the souls Conviction There is a four fold Disposition in the Mind that doth cause a kind of necessity of this Conviction of the spirit besides the Irradiation of the Gospel to the Mind I. There is a Wretched Unteachableness that naturally possesseth all our Minds There is not only Darkness possessing the mind but an opposition against the receiving Light Now in respect of this Disposition of our minds naturally we are unapt to receive any thing the spirit reveals should there not be a further Power and Efficacy of the spirit upon the Heart II. There is a most Superlative incredulity that remains in our minds The God of the World hath blinded the mind 2 Cor. 4.4 not by a privative extinction of Light infused that is beyond the Devils Power but by a positive darkness a positive Ignorance by perswading the minds of all to believe other Principles such as contradict those blessed Principles of Divine Truth Now in respect of this Incredulity that possesses our Minds there is a necessity that the Spirit should have a further work upon the soul than bare Illumination and Manifestation of the Gospel to the soul III. There is an Indisposition in our Minds to receive any thing that they cannot Comprehend Now all the Glorious Discoveries in that Mystery of the Gospel of Jesus Christ being Incomprehensible thence the mind would receive none of those Pretious Discoveries though the Spirit did Irradiate the Gospel of the Lord Jesus to it if another Mighty Power of the Spirit should not come in upon the Heart to Convince the Soul of it IV. There is an absolute Enmity in the mind against those Divine Truths Rom. 8.7 The Carnal Mind is Enmity against God Now this Cursed Enmity dwelling in the Unregenerate part makes its constant Opposition with all its Power and Strength against all that the Spirit reveals And so all the Pretious Discoveries of the Gospel of the Lord Jesus to the Mind would be ineffectual should not another Mighty Power of the Spirit come in to Conquer the Cursed Enmity and to Constrain the Soul to receive those Demonstrations of the Will of God to receive the Loveless Soul into union with himself as a thing undenyable Secondly there is a necessity of it in regard of the Conscience also The Conscience is a Register Might and Power placed by the Lord in the Understanding What Conscience is to record all the Motions of the whole Man and to Discover the Equity or Iniquity of them and to determine of them either with the Soul or against the Soul Now the Conscience is also so Corrupted that there is a necessity of this Conviction of the Spirit besides this Illumination and Irradiation for the mind and Conscience is defiled Titus 1.15 Now there are two that are the most eminent Works of Conscience I. To Discover the Equity or Iniquity of any thing Propounded to the Soul to be done or of any thing that is done by the Soul Now in this the Conscience is dreadfully Corrupt here the Conscience calls Iniquity Equity and Equity Iniquity calls Good Evil and Evil Good naturally in a great measure Now thence there is necessity of this Conviction of the Spirit also in regard the Conscience will never determine that it is good for the Soul to receive those Pretious Discoveries of the Gospel of Jesus Christ to it unless the Spirit Overpowers the Corrupted Conscience and Convince it of the Equity of receiving it II. The second act of Conscience is to determine of any thing that is already done by the Soul Its work is to Accuse and Excuse the Soul both in its doing of things and after the doing of them Now Conscience is so dreadfully Corrupt naturally that like a Corrupt Judge or a Bribed Judge it accuseth when it should Excuse and Excuseth when it should Accuse it Frees the Guilty and Condemns the Innocent Now in respect of this Corruption of the Conscience though the Spirit of the Lord doth Illuminate the Soul in part for its never higher and then present the Gospel to the Enlightned Understanding and gives clear Manifestations of the Lords Will to admit the Soul into Union with himself in Christ yet the Corrupt Conscience will never determine with the soul to Excuse the Soul in receiving those Pretious Discoveries of the Gospel of Jesus Christ to it but would and will perpetually Accuse the Soul as a Presumptuous Wretch unless the Spirit of God should exercise this Convincing Power upon the Conscience even after the work of the Irradiation of the Gospel to the Soul So that this work of the Spirit in Conviction draws clear unquestionable Demonstrations for the soul from the Gospel to prove that it is an Infallible certainty that it is the Lords Will to accept that Particular Despicable Forlorn Sinner to be one with him and it consists also in the Commanding Power of the Spirit of God upon the Determination whereby it silenceth all Cavillings of the Soul and puts a Holy Constraint upon the Mind and Conscience to receive that Determination as True and Undenyable So that the Spirit maketh him to confess with his own Mouth that it is the Will of the Blessed God that even this my Forlorn Loathsome Despicable Unlovely Soul should be one with himself for ever This is the Spirits Conviction which is the third work of the
him from time to time as it dare not trust its Heart when it deals most Plainly and Uprightly Now from this Holy Jealousie there ariseth a Difficulty to settle and Establish the Heart and to free it from all Wavering in its Conscience Now in respect of this the Lord adds this work of the spirits Attestation that the soul may have a full Satisfaction that there may be no inward Misgivings of Heart in its Confidence of the Lords acceptance of it into Union and Communion with the Lord Jesus in its Cleaving and Adhering to him IV. There is a natural Unconstancy that possesseth every such Believing soul in some degree Ever since the Heart of Man was drawn from that first Blessed Center it hath naturally been Unconstant in all its Restings Now from this Unconstancy of the spirit the Heart is exceeding prone to have its Confidence shaken when the spirit hath raised it to a high Degree And in respect of that the Lord Vouchsafeth to add the work of Attestation for the perfect Establishing of the Wavering Soul V. There is all the Concurrent Rage of Hell Imployed against every Soul attaining that Confidence of his Acceptance into Union and Communion with the Lord Jesus in his Adhering to him Now should there not be a Witness from Heaven or greater Authority in the souls Apprehension than any Dictates of the Counsel of Hell the Believing soul would soon call in question the Pretious Word of the Majesty of Heaven and Incline to give Credit to the Dictates of Hells Counsel Therefore in respect to this least the Believing soul through this means should be Robbed of that Pretious Joy and Peace in Believing that the Lord intends the Lord hath Determined that his Blessed spirit should become the souls Comforter by way of Attestation to bear Witness to the certainty of the souls Acceptance into Union and Communion with the Lord Jesus in the souls Cleaving to him that so the Witness of Heaven might be of higher Authority to the soul than all those Cursed Lying Dictates of Hell frequently propounded to that Believing soul Now the second thing to be opened is what this Attestation or Witness unto the souls Faith is What the Spirits Attestation unto Faith is I conceive that this Attestation unto Faith is a Pretious Beam of Heavenly Light darted into the Understanding whereby the spirit clearly Demonstrateth to the Believing soul the Lords Approbation of the souls act of Believing or Confidence and that with such an unspeakable Divine Authority as is irresistable by the soul so that hereby the soul is Established in a Plerophery or more than a fulness of Confidence There are four things in this Description that you must observe I. This Attestation unto Faith is a Pretious Beam of Heavenly Light darted into the Understanding That is the nature of the Witness This is as commonly called by Divines and Christians a secret Voice or a sweet Whispering of the spirit And thence many have sadly Mistaken and Conceived that Witness to be some strange kind of Revelation by a Voice from Heaven But indeed it is therefore spoken of as a secret Voice because it is a secret Beam of Heavenly Light And thence it is rightly called the Witness of the Spirit of the Lord Witnessing with our Spirits that we are the Sons of God Witness that is bear Record give a Testimony Now to give a Testimony is to declare a thing Verbally Now indeed in this respect it is not unfitly called the Voice of the Spirit for a Voice is nothing else but an Expression of the inward Conception of the mind by words Now by this secret Beam of Heavenly Light darted into the understanding the spirit of the Lord doth secretly express the mind of God II. This Attestation or Witness of the spirit unto Faith is such a Beam of Heavenly Light as doth Clearly and Infallibly and Unquestionably Demonstrate or Manifest to the soul the Lords Approbation of his act of Believing or of his act of Confidence All the Unquiet Tossings and Agitations and Perplexing Waverings of souls from what occasion soever they have their Original in some kind of Doubting whether it be according to the Blessed Will of God that their Forlorn Despicable souls should be so Confident of their Acceptance into Union with the Lord Jesus in their adhering to him Now therefore the Light that the spirit casts into the Understanding is on purpose to clear and make it out of all doubt to the soul that it is Infinitely pleasing to the Blessed God that even that particular soul should be so Confident of his Acceptance into Union with the Lord Jesus That is the matter it self that the spirit doth Testify to the soul or the Testimony it giveth III. You must observe in the Description That this Attestation of the Spirit is such a Beam of Heavenly Light that so clears to the Believing Soul the Lords Approbation of his act of Believing or his act of Confidence that it carrieth along with it an Inconceivable Divine Authority It is such a Beam of Light as hath such an Impression of the Majesty of the Blessed God upon it that it is impossible for the Heart to make Resistance IV. Observe in the Description that it Establisheth the Soul in a Plerophery a more than a fulness of Confidence a Triumphing Confidence That is the peculiar Inseparable effect of this Testimony that the spirit gives it fixeth the Wavering Unconstant Soul This is the Spirits Attestation unto Faith Now we shall come to the Spirits Attestation unto Sence But there is an Objection will be cast in that must first be opened whereby the depth of this Unspeakable Mystery may be something more Unfolded Obj. Some Soul may say If the Spirit giveth no other Testimony to the Soul than this That his particular Soul shall be Certainly and Infallibly Accepted into Union and Communion with the Lord Jesus in his Adhering to him and Produce no other Confidence in the Soul than this that I even I this Unlovely Soul of mine in Adhering to the Lord Jesus shall Infallibly have Union and Communion with him to all Eternity then saith the Soul even after the Witness of the Spirit unto the Soul it may remain doubtful of its Union with Christ still seeing by this Testimony of the Spirit unto Faith the Soul is not assured of his own Cleaving and Adhering unto Christ and seeing the certainty that the Spirit giveth by the Testimony to the Souls Faith of his Union with Christ hath its whole Dependance upon the certainty of the Souls Cleaving and Adhering unto Christ Ans 1. For Answer to this Grand Objection First When this Testimony of the Spirit is given unto the Souls Faith and he is assured that his particular Unlovely Forlorn Soul shall certainly and Infallibly be accepted into union with the Lord Jesus in his resting upon Christ for union it is not then possible that there should be any Solid Ground
for that Believing Soul to question his own Cleaving and Adhering unto Jesus Christ unto all Eternity And that will appear in two things I. In regard there is a sufficient ground revealed to the Soul that hath this Testimony of the Spirit unto his Faith of his Confidence of his Everlasting Cleaving unto Christ as there is of the Lords Acceptance of his Soul into Union and Communion with him in Adhering to him The promises of the Covenant of Grace that are tendred in the Lord Jesus do as perfectly and as clearly contain and include in them strength to inable Souls to Embrace and Accept those Promises as they do contain in them a fulness and alsufficiency of Love and Mercy for those Souls that do Embrace them The Lord that hath said It is my Will that such Perishing Sinking Despicable Souls as will accept my Tender shall be one with me through the Lord Jesus and have Everlasting Communion with me hath also said will Allure and draw your Hearts to Embrace and Accept according to my Will this Union and Communion with me in Christ that I freely tender you According to Jer. 31 32 33. This shall be my Covenant I will put my Law in their inward parts and Write it in their Hearts That is to say I will infuse sutable Dispositions into the Hearts of all the Embracers of the Lord Jesus to Incline Dispose and Inable them to fulfil all my Revealed Will in some Measure and Degree So that the Soul hath as sure a Word Revealed to it to depend upon from whence may arise a Confidence in it that the Lord will Inable him to Cleave and Adhere Everlastingly to Christ as it hath a Word whereupon his Soul may Depend and may be Confident the Lord will accept him into Union and Communion with him in Cleaving unto Christ II. In regard that very Confidence that the Spirit doth produce in the Soul of its Infallible Acceptance into Union and Communion with him is the very act of Cleaving and Adhering unto Christ There are four particular acts of the Soul Included under this Confidence of the Souls Acceptance into Union with Christ in its Cleaving and Adhering to him 1. In this is Included the Election of Union with Christ by the Will of the Soul Now this is but the receiving of Christ that the Gospel requireth To as many as received him to them gave he Power to become the Sons of God John 1.12 Now the consent of the Will to close with Christ in Union and Communion that is tendred to it is the very Receiving of Jesus Christ 2. In that very act of Confidence there is Included the Souls Credence or giving Credit to the Word of God When the Soul is Confident of the Lords Accepting of it into Union and Communion with him in the Souls Cleaving and Adhering to him it is only because of such a Word of Promise from the Mouth of Christ to which the Soul giveth Credit or which the Soul Believeth 3. In this act of Confidence there is a Resignation of the Soul wholly unto Christ Such as that which is spoken of in 2 Tim. 1.12 I know whom I have believed and I am Perswaded that he is able to keep that which I have Committed unto him That is to say I know whose Word it was that I gave Credit to and that I was so Confident of the Truth of That I leaned my Soul upon the Truth of that Word for its Everlasting Happiness So that then in this act of Confidence there is Included that Mutual Interchangable Covenanting that the Word of the Lord requires from Souls in Accepting the Lord Jesus Tendered 4. In this very act of Confidence there is Included a full Dependance of the Soul upon Christ a hanging the Soul upon the Faithfulness of Jesus Christ and his Word So that indeed all the acts that the Gospel Requires from Souls are Included in this one act of Confidence that is produced by this Testimony of the Spirit to the Souls Faith Now the act of the Souls Confidence being also the act of its Cleaving and Adhering unto the Lord Jesus and the Souls Cleaving and Adhering unto Christ being Gradually as strong as the act of its Confidence of Accepting into Union and Communion with Christ in his Cleaving to him Thence it appears that there can be no solid ground of the souls questioning his own Adherence unto the Lord Jesus when the spirit gives this Testimony forementioned unto the souls Faith and produceth 〈◊〉 Confidence in the soul of his Acceptance into Union and Communion with the Lord Jesus in Adhering to him In this very thing lies the whole Mystery of assurance unto Faith The very Confidence that the spirit begets in the soul of the Lord Jesus his Accepting it into Union and Communion with him in Cleaving to him the very act of Confidence is the act of the souls Cleaving to him Answ 2. Secondly I Answer further that whenever the Spirit by its Testimony to the souls Faith doth beget that Confidence in the soul that the Lord will Accept it into Union with himself in his Adhering to him then the soul cannot question his own Adhering unto Christ any more than he questions the Lords Acceptance of his soul into Union and Communion with him in his Adhering to him The spirits Testimony unto Faith is or such a nature that it doth equally beget a Confidence in the soul of his Everlasting Cleaving unto Christ to the Confidence that it doth beget of the Lords Acceptance of the soul into Union with himself in the souls Adhering to him And that will appear in three things I. In regard the spirits Attestation unto Faith is concerning the truth of the whole Gospel of Jesus Christ or of all the promises The spirit in the Irradiation of the Gospel clears that it is the Lords Will to have the whole Glorious work of the Union of Loveless Sinners with the Lord Jesus to have its sole dependance upon himself So that it manifests Believing Strength to inable the soul to Cleave and Adhere to the Lord Jesus fully to be tendered in the Covenant of Grace as well as Union with Christ himself is tendered Now then the spirits Attestation which follows this Irradiation of the Gospel is as large as its Irradiation work I mean the spirit doth in a Judicial Authoritative way Witness the truth of all those Gospel Truths Revealed to the soul So that the soul cannot possibly resist that Determination that the spirit gives into its Bosom Now then there being the same Witness of the spirit unto the souls Faith that the Lord will inable it to Cleave and Adhere to the Lord Jesus that there is unto its Faith that the Lord will Accept into Union and Communion with himself in Christ every soul that will Adhere to him Thence it cannot be that a soul should more question his Adhering unto Christ than he should question the Lords Acceptance of him
The readiness of the soul naturally to concur and agree with the testimony of corrupted conscience while it bares witness against Faith The reason is evident in regard the ful bent of the spirit stands to judge of all things according to sense and reason Now therefore the Lord adds this testimony of the spirit unto sense and feeling to give matter for conscience to build a new judgement upon concerning the souls everlasting estate II. The Lord addeth the testimony of the spirit unto sense and feeling to its testimony unto faith that the evidence of the souls union unto Christ might every way counterpoise the evidences that the soul hath received of its separation from Christ There are three evidences unto a soul of his separation from Christ and this testimony of the spirit unto sense and feeling doth parallel the soul with a sufficient evidence of his union with Christ answerable to those three evidences of the souls seperation from Christ 1. There is the blessed word of the Majesty of Heaven determining that every Son and Daughter of Adam is by merrit and desert everlastingly seperated from the Lord Jesus and actually the first moment of his Being void of union and communion with Christ 2. There is the evidence of the souls work The contrary opposite rebellious working of the soul against Christ doth evidently declare that there is no union between Christ and any soul naturally as the Apostle saith 1 John 3.8 He that committeth sin that is with full purpose and bent of spirit with a full determination of his judgement and will is of the Devil 3. There is the testimony of conscience founded upon these contrary workings of the Heart unto Christ that a soul is seperated from Christ Now in opposition to these three the spirit gives testimony unto faith that even such a particular despicable lost sinner shall infallibly in his cleaving to the Lord Jesus enjoy everlasting union and communion with him And then the Spirit adds this Testimony also unto sense and feeling whereby he makes the Soul discern even from the moving and working of his Heart towards the Lord Jesus that he is actually united to him and from thence Conscience cannot but bear witness that the Soul is actually united unto Christ III. The Lord doth vouchsafe to make a super-addition of the Spirits Witness to sense that the whole blessed word of God might sweetly concur together in bearing Witness to the Souls union with the Lord Jesus As for example that word in 1 John 4.13 Hereby we know that God dwells in us and we in him that is that we have union and communion with God in Christ because he hath given us of his Spirit This vvord bears not Testimony to the Souls Faith of its union vvith Christ but it bears Testimony unto the believing Souls sense that is united vvhen the Soul is sensible that the Spirit is conveyed from God into its Bosom Likevvise that other vvord in 2 Cor. 13.5 Examine your selves whether you be in the faith prove your own selves know ye not your own selves how that Jesus Christ is in you that is to say that the life and grace and holiness of Jesus Christ is communicated to you that Jesus Christ acts and vvorks in you and through you knovv ye not this except ye be Reprobates Novv this Word bears no testimony to the Souls faith of its union vvith Christ because the indvvelling of Christ in the Believing soul is not the object of Faith but the object of spiritual sight IV. The Lord adds the testimony of his spirit unto the souls sense that believing souls might receive the earnest of their everlasting union with the Lord Jesus here below according to that Eph. 1.13 Ye were sealed with the Holy spirit of promise which is the earnest of our inheritance until the redemption of the purchased possession So in 2 Cor. 1.22 Who hath also sealed us and given us the earnest of his spirit in our hearts The earnest imports two things First That the Lord giveth the soul part of his everlasting portion before hand 2dly That the Lord gives that small portion as a pledge to assure the soul of the enjoyment of the full inheritance Now in the spirits testifying unto sense the souls union the spirit doth clearly manifest the very entrance of the soul into union and its participation of some degree of union with Christ already in regard it discovers some of the graces of Christ to be actually inherent in the soul V. The Lord superadds the testimony of the spirit unto sense unto its testimony unto faith that he might effect the fuller degree of conformity to his whole will in the soul Two commands are impossible for the soul to yield a perfect obedience to without this Testimony of the spirit to the souls sense of his union with Christ First The command of examining and proving the soul whether it be in Christ and all commands of the like nature that enjoyn the soul to examine whether this or that fruit of the spirit be in the soul whether love to God or love to the Brethren be in the soul or no There can be no effectual obedience to any command of that nature without the spirits testimony to the souls sense of his union with Christ in regard it is the proper and peculiar Office of the spirit only to discover all its pretious workings to the soul to be in the soul Secondly The command of perpetual rejoycing in the Lord could not be effectually obeyed without the testimony of the Spirit unto the souls sense Though indeed believing be the primary original of all spiritual joy yet the souls sense of its believing is a necessary adjunct to make up the perfection of that spiritual joy VI. The Lord adds the testimony of the spirit to the souls sense of union with Christ to his testimony to faith that the believing soul might be filled with joy unspeakable and full of glory All those glorious portions of the Lords word whereby believers are described by the pretious habits of grace infused into their hearts would be as so many strong holds for the powers of Hell to fortifie in against the Believers soul and would be turned by the policy of Hell into condemning sentences against the soul so as the precious Tower of the souls consolation would be always battered the sweetest streams of comfort would always meet with one interruption or other in their flowing down into the bosom of the soul did not the Lord add the testimony of his spirit unto sense What the Spirits witness is unto sense The third thing to be opened is what the spirits attestation to the souls sense and feeling of his union vvith Christ is It is a precious secret immediate clear and authoritative irradiation of the souls believing act or confidence causing the truth sincerity and uprightness of the heart in believing to shine so resplendently that the soul in the
act of believing is made sweetly conscious to it self that it doth rightly believe whence the renewed Conscience determines boldly that the soul is everlastingly one with Christ That I might the more perspicuously unfold this work of the spirit we shall take the description in peices and open it in parts First You are to understand in the description the act of the spirit in this testimony unto sense The act is an act of irradiation a cloathing the Believers soul with a transparent glory and brightness In a word it is but a precious beam of Heavenly light that the spirit casts upon the act of believing for indeed it is nothing else but light to faith and light to sense that is the original of all the comfort to believing souls There are three acts to be observed concerning this irradiating work of the spirit I. It is an immediate irradiation Nay it proceeds from that blessed spirit so immediately that nothing can concur with the spirit in casting that pretious light upon the souls believing act 1. It is so immediate as none of the precious Ordinances of the Lord can properly be said to effect or produce instrumentally this precious manifestation of the souls believing act to it self Though it is frequently yea constantly through some precious Ordinances that the spirit doth vouchsafe thus to irradiate or manifest to the believing soul the truth of his own believing act yet it is not by vertue of any of these Ordinances 2. It is such an immediate work of the spirit upon the soul that demonstrations either from the antecedent or consequent from the cause or from the effect of believing hath no place here Though it is certain there may be infallible demonstrations drawn by a believing soul from the effect of his believing that his heart was true sincere and upright in believing yet the Spirit doth so immediately manifest this believing act in the truth sincerity and uprightness of it to the believing soul that it doth not send the soul to this or that work to see what holiness or strength of love or affection unto Christ nor what readiness of heart to all obedience to the will of God were the consequence of his believing but the blessed spirit doth immediately in the very moment of the souls acting that believing act cast a beam of Heavenly light upon that very act that there is evidence enough in the act it self that the act is a true believing act according to the evidence of the Lords revealed will 3. This act of the spirit is such an immediate act that the spirit useth not the assistance of the discursive power of the mind to collect from the description of true Believers in the word that his act of believing is upright and sincere according to the Lords will It is certain that in the spirits irradiation of the souls believing act it doth discover clearly infallibly and unquestionably all the properties whereby believers are described in the word to be in the soul also yet in this that is properly called the witness of the spirit unto sense in its manifesting the believing act of the soul it doth not make the discursive power in the mind the instrument whereby the soul should compare together his own believing act and the description of the true believing act that the Lord requireth in the word so as thence to collect by discourse that the believing act is true 2dly It is a clear act full of perspicuity and transparency The spirit in this irradiation casts as clear a light upon the souls believing act to make it discover it self as the rational soul doth cast a natural light upon its own natural act so that it is proportionably evident to the soul that his soul doth believe as it is evident that the soul liveth or that the soul wills or that it hath a being 3dly The act of the spirit in irradiating the souls believing act is authoritative irresistibly powerful This beam of light that the Spirit casts upon the believing souls act hath such a commanding power included in it that it even commands the beâ—… yea it commands undeniably so as it is not possible for the believing soul to shut its eyes but it must see II. The second thing to be observed is the object of this act of the spirit in its testimony unto sense The object named in the description is the souls believing act or confidence That is to say the very act of credit that the soul giveth to the blessed word of God testifying that it is his will that that particular loveless souls should adhere cleave to the Lord Jesus to be one with him to have communion with him and likewise testifying that in the souls giving credit to that word oâ— God it shall everlastingly enjoy union and communion with the Father and the Son and Spirit Now there are 4. things observable under this to prevent mistakes I. You must observe that it is only the present believing act that is the object of the Spirits manifestation or irradiation The Spirit doth not cast those beams of Heavenly light upon the souls former and past acts of believing though they have been multiplied but only upon the present momentany act of believing that the Spirit hath drawn forth from the soul by its manifesting of the Gospel and revealing the tender of union and communion with Jesus Christ to the despicable sinner in its Glory and Brightness II. You are to observe that the believing act of the soul is only the principal and primary Object of the spirits irradiation or manifestation So that the spirit casts beams of Heavenly Light upon no other act in the believing soul at present but only upon that act commonly the spirit doth at the same time so cloath the act of Love with such a Glorious splendor and brightness as that 's also visible in the same moment to the believing soul that it seeth unquestionably his Arms of Love grasping the Lord Jesus as well as he sees the truth of his own confidence in the Word of Christ that he will admit him into union and communion with him III. You must observe the vertue of the spirits irradiating or manifesting this believing act to the soul The Vertue of it is to discover the Truth Sincerity and Uprightness of the heart in believing 1. The Truth and Sincerity To make it unquestionable and Undeniable to the believing soul that his Wretched Corrupt heart doth not delude nor deceive him but that his heart doth rely with some degree of strength and embrace the Lord Jesus tendring union and communion to the soul 2. It makes apparent the uprightness that is the strait Conformity of the heart in some degree to the rule and command of believing IV. You may observe here how the spirit is the earnest of the souls everlasting inheritance or of the souls everlasting union and communion with Christ It is only as the spirit doth irradiate the souls believing
act to it self that it becomes the earnest of the souls inheritance That is that it becomes as a small portion given by the Blessed Majesty of Heaven to the soul in hand in Testimony that it shall injoy the full inheritance The spirit is such an earnest in irradiating the souls believing act three ways 1. In regard the spirit manifests its own presence in the believing soul by its irradiating the souls believing act in discovering to the believing soul that it doth uprightly according to the Will of God believe It doth discover Holiness to be infused into the soul and so consequently discover it self to have taken up its Habitation in the believing soul So that the believing soul by the sight that the spirit puts into the believing act making it Visible to his own eye discerns the presence of the holy spirit in his heart and thus indeed there is a pretious earnest given to the soul of his everlasting union and communion with the Lord Jesus 2. In regard the communion between Jesus Christ and the soul by the sight of his believing act appears to the soul to be begun The soul discerns Jesus Christ and himself to be partakers of one and the same life by discerning infallibly the truth of his own believing act 3. In regard it enters the soul into the very fruition of union with Jesus Christ and so becomes indeed a first Fruit of Heaven gives it actual possession of that highest blessedness that sanctifyed souls shall possess in Heaven The fruition of it consists in two things First In the certain knowledge that it hath of union and communion with Christ Secondly In the sense of the sweetness and comfort of union and communion with Christ Nothing though it be possessed can be said to be enjoyed unless the party possessed of it hath a sense of the sweetness and comfort of the good that he is possessed of III. The third thing observable is the effect of the manifestation or the enlightning of the believing act in the soul That is a pretious sweet consciousness in the believing soul in his very act of believing that he doth rightly believe It is by the spirits irradiation of the pretious Gospel of Jesus Christ to the souls understanding that the soul discerns by faith the bosom of that blessed Redeemer the Lord Jesus ready to receive his loveless perishing sinking soul into the nearest union and communion with him so likewise by the spirits irradiation of the souls believing act the spirit makes the soul see also as clearly that it doth as it were creep into the open bosom of the love of the Lord Jesus IV. The fourth and last thing observable in the description of the spirits witness to the souls sense of its union and communion with the Lord Jesus is the inseparable adjunct or concomitant testimony of the spirit unto sense That 's the determination of the renewed Conscience in the believing soul that he is everlastingly one with Christ This is properly the effect of the spirits testimony unto sense whereas the light of every Grace though they be luminous Bodies and proceed from the spirit of light is such a small light in it self that unless there be an addition by the Spirit unto sense it shines not apparently to the believing Soul and therefore the infallible testimony of the Believers own Spirit or of his renewed Understanding or Conscience is but the consummation or the consequent of the Spirits irradiating the Souls believing act yet it is inseparable from it no sooner hath the Spirit witnessed to the Souls sense that it is one with Christ but the renewed Conscience answers also Thou art one with Christ The witness of the Believers Spirit or of the renewed Conscience is but the Eccho of the witness of the Lords own Spirit according to Rom. 9.1 My Conscience bearing me witness in the Holy Ghost It is the Spirit as it were that puts words into the mouth of renewed Conscience it doth but answer what is the voice of the Holy Spirit as the Eccho answers our voyce Now when the Spirit hath witnessed unto the Souls Faith that in its cleaving to the Lord Jesus his Soul shall be infallibly admitted into Union and Communion with him and in that witness hath drawn out the believing disposition to act in its strength and then casts a brightness and splendor upon the believing act that it shineth thus apparently in the Souls eye yea so apparently that the renewed Conscience bears witness that the Soul doth rightly believe then doth the Soul say with those in 1 John 4.16 I know and believe the Love that the Father of the Lord Jesus bears to this my Loveless Soul then is the poor wavering Soul established and setled as upon an everlasting Rock the Rock of Ages Then 1. All the beginnings of Hell in his own Spirit are past All the condemning Sentences of Conscience that he was wont to hear every day are obliterated and blotted out I mean so long as the testimony of the Spirit thus continues all the Frowns of Conscience are gone 2. All tormenting Fears are banished The inward perplexity anguish and vexation that perplexed the Soul through the fear of his everlasting separation from the Glory of the presence of the Majesty of Heaven all cease and there is a blessed Calm possesses the Soul and then the Soul is brought like a weather-beaten Ship into the sweetest and most commodious Haven of rest 3. The Spirit of Glory possesseth the believing Soul Then is its contentment in union and communion with the Lord Jesus infinite unspeakable then doth it rejoyce yea triumph in the Lord Jesus Rom. 5.3 Thus through this testimony unto Sense added to the testimony unto Faith the Soul is even set down with one foot as it were into the great City of the King of Heaven sweetly expecting his full fruition of that transcendent Glory that it solaceth it self in the sweetest expectation of till time shall come that Faith and Expectation shall cease and Sight and Vision shall only take place Thus you see what the sealing-witness of the Spirit is unto Sense There are now some Cautions that of necessity must be given to you believing Souls to prevent any sad Mistake about this great Mystery Caution 1 First therefore you must understand That though the fulness of the Souls infallible certainty of his union with the Lord Jesus doth depend upon this attestation of the Spirit unto his Faith and Sense yet the Lord doth vouchsafe much comfortable evidence to many believing Souls of their certain and infallible union with the Lord Jesus to whom he doth not send this blessed Spirit thus to avouch and attest to their Souls their Union with Christ 1. The Spirit may and doth by those four former precious effects upon the believing Souls establish their Souls in a sweet Soul-chearing Soul-reviving confidence of the Lords acceptance of them into union with Christ There is the whole Materiality
Lords conferring temporal blessings upon it And he pries into the understanding to discern what Judgment it passes upon the Lords withdrawing temporal blessings and inflicting sore evils and according to ordinary and common conceptions of the understanding upon such providences of God he may also propound his lying arguments of the souls union with Christ Thence it is you shall observe that the Devil takes much advantage to confirm some poor ignorant ones in their Soul-deluding confidence of their Peace and Union and Reconciliation with God from the constant influence of all Temporal Blessings in their Bosoms And thence it is that other souls he confirms in their soul killing hopes of their Union with Christ and Peace with God from the multitude of Crosses and Tribulations they meet withal here below Thence are those Speeches that you shall hear from many Ignorant ones I hope the Lord looks upon me as his Child because he thus Chastises me I hope saith another that I have my Punishment for my Sins here below III. The third Act of Power that the Devil exerciseth upon the Mind and Understanding is this He doth Secretly Inwardly and Indiscernably Communicate these his lying Arguments his Rotten False reasons from whence he falsly insinuates into souls their Union with Christ As the Prince of Darkness was a Created Angel he hath a kind of neer though mediate aceess to the Minds and Understandings of Men so that he can secretly Propound all his lying Reasons yea he can suggest them so indiscernably that the person to whom they are suggested shall not Understand in the least that they are from the Devil but shall rather conclude they are the right Reasonings of his own faculty of reason that God hath Communicated or they are the Workings of the Lords Blessed spirit Thus the Devil was a lying spirit to Ahab in the Mouths of the Prophets 2 Chron. 18.23 The way of this neer access of the Devil to the Understanding to Communicate his lying Argument to them of their Union with Christ undiscernably is by these two means 1. By means of the Subtility of his nature by which he is able to Pierce insensibly and indiscernably into the very Bodies of Men they neither Seeing Perceiving nor Feeling that Penetration of Satan into their Bodies So that by this he enters insensibly into the very brains of Men which is the very Organ of the common Senses 2. He doth both discern and stir up and Collect together the Species and Images of things that are in the inward Senses that is to say the Fancy and by moving and stirring all those Phantasms those Images of things that are in the Fancy he doth secretly Convey all his own lying Reasons into the Mind and Understanding so as the persons to whom those lying Reasons concerning their Union with Christ are suggested perceive them not to be from Satan but either imagine they are true Reasonings from the Word of God or from the Spirit of God cast in their Minds IV. The Fourth act of Power that the Devil exercises upon the Mind is this That he doth through his Neer and Familiar access through the Fancy to the Mind and Understanding Suggest and Propound Frequently and Importunately his Rotten Arguments and Fallacious grounds of Souls Union with Christ He doth renew again and again the same lying Arguments unto Souls of their Union with Christ so as they shall scarse pass out of their Thoughts and Mind And this indeed hath no small Power upon the Understanding to settle the Mind and Understanding in a Conceit of the truth of those his lying Arguments The very Frequency of Thoughts and Imaginations have the secret force of an Argument to perswade the Mind that the thing is so You shall observe it when any matter runs in our Mind Frequently Familiarly and almost Constantly we will then easily believe there is something in it The frequent suggesting of those reasonings is a kind of Importuning the mind to consent to them and embrace them As that unjust Judge Luke 18.5 condescended to the Widow because of her importunity though the justice of her cause that she propounded bore no sway in his unjust mind so though the reason it self at first suggested should bear little sway yet the importunity of the Devil in suggesting the reason prevails much with the mind to consent to it and close with it 5. A fifth act of the Devils power upon the mind and understanding is this that he doth through his accute and clear knowledge of the Images of things together in the fancy and through his power to collect and gather them together in the fancy suggest a multitude for his lying arguments his false rotten reasonings fo the souls union with Christ at one and the same time He doth so multiply his deluding grounds of the Souls union that the number of the arguments for the union hath a power upon the understanding when the arguments themselves have little power The Devil deals with Souls as he did with Jesus Christ in his tempting of him he presented all the glory of the world in the twinkling of an eye that so it might have had some perswasion in the mind of Christ thus the Devil doth at once set almost all his rotten reasons that are sutable to that understanding whom at present he is to delude thus you shall observe the Pharisee in that 18. Luke whom the Devil deluded concerning his acceptance with God he had at once in his thoughts the great difference that was between him and others that he was not as other men were and also his exactness and strictness according to the Lords Law paying Tithes of all things his extraordinary frequency in solemn duties his fasting twice a week and it is probable all that ever the Devil could say concerning the Souls acceptation with God was propounded at once to him so that what one rotten lying reason want to perswade the soul of his union with Christ another may supply 6. The sixth act of the Devils power upon the understanding for this purpose is that he holds and retains the mind and understanding with its full intention and strength upon those lying arguments and rotten reasons of the souls union with Christ that he suggests to him This the Prince of Darkness effects two ways I. By diverting or turning away the mind from all those thoughts that should contradict those lying reasons for its union Now in this Satan doth exeecise a three-fold power First he doth excite and secretly draw into exercise the natural loathness unwillingness and indisposedness of the mind to any poor holy thoughts suggested by the blessed sanctified Spirit Secondly Satan doth excite the vanity instability and wantonness of the mind Thirdly The Prince of Darkness stirs up the inward enmity in the mind against all such thoughts II. He doth hold and retain the mind upon its lying reasons for its union by a constant application of these his lying reaions to the
through a clear evidence hath begotten such a precious confidence in the Soul The believing Soul ought to say concerning that his confidence as Job said concerning his Job 27.5 I will not remove my integrity from me I will not let go this my confidence till I have proved and examined the evidence of my union with the Lord Jesus from whence this confidence did arise This also may appear in two things 1. In regard the diminishing of this confidence in the believing soul before the trial of the evidence of his union with Christ received is an infinite injury to the sweetest Comforter the blessed Spirit who through the manifestation unto the Soul that he is united to the Lord Jesus establisheth the Soul in that pretious confidence The rejecting of that confidence so wrought by the blessed Spirit is a slighting of the spirit in his most precious Office and a disparagement of the very witness of that blessed Spirit 2. It is a most sinful unconstancy and fickleness to reject any thing received before clear demonstration of the errour of the soul in receiving It is contrary to the order rhat the Lord requires should be in all the motions of the soul which is that they should be subject to the power of holy sanctified reason So that this confidence before trial ought to be maintained in its full strength in case such a confidence was begotten by an evidence formerly received that he is actually united to the Lord Jesus Quest But here is a question then by the way would be opened But will the Soul say wherefore then are the commands given by God to prove and examine our selves whether we be in the saith and so consequently to examine the evidence of our union with Christ if we must not be dubious and anxious whether the evidence of our union with Christ received be true or no before we proceed ro the trial and examination of them Answ 1. For answer to this question by the way briefly I answer first that these Commands of Souls examining themselves whether they be in the faith are given universally to all Souls on purpose that deluded souls by the trying and proving themselves might discover their own delusions and discern their lying confidence of their acceptance into union with the Lord Jesus 2. These commands are given on purpose to believing souls to maintain the life of the confidence of the Lords will to admit them into union with Christ and the confidence that they are admitted into union with the Lord Jesus These commands are occasions to Souls truly united to the Lord Jesus to review over the grounds of their confidence of the Lords will to admit them into union with Christ and of the Lords actual admission of them into union Now the more the Soul views the ground of his confidence the more it views that blessed word of God that reveals the Lords will to admit even his Soul into union with the Lord Jesus in case he accepts it and by the Souls gazing upon that blessed word it discerns more of the truth and certainty infallibility and unchangeableness of that word and the more frequently and fully the Soul discerns that the stronger is its confidence in the will of the Lord that he will admit even that his Soul into union with the Lord Jesus and thence there is more occasion for the blessed Spirit to irradiate rhe souls believing act to enable the soul to see and feel it self to believe aright by which means the actual confidence of the souls admission with Christ lives and is maintained in its strength 3. These commands are given that there might be more preparedness against all assaults that are made from Hell against those souls Through this examination believing souls have their confidence maintained in its life and strength and so are fortified against temptation because it discerns clearly the foundation upon which his own confidence stands 4. The Lord gives these commands on purpose to draw forth into exercise all manner of holy dispositions in the believing soul This is done by the renewed view of that light that doth evidence unto the souls faith or unto the souls sense its union with the Lord Jesus Thenâ—… is the pretious subjection of the Heart to the will of God in all things acted then is the correspondent love of the soul answerable to the Lords love to the soul drawn out in its strength then are all the thirstings after near communion with God in Christ acted Pre. 3. Thirdly a third thing to be premised is this That there are many sinful distempers incident to believing souls in the times when they are doubtful of the truth of the evidences of their union with Christ which whenever they do prevail in any soul during their prevalency they do incapacitate those souls for a just trial and true examination of the evidences of their union There are especially four of those sinful distempers incident unto believing souls at such a time 1. There is an impatiency and frowardness of spirit under the obscurity of that truth of their evidence of union with the Lord Jesus incident to every believing soul Indeed our spirits are naturally impatient under every burden but when any Arrows from the Almighty are shot into the Conscience or any Arrow from Hell stick fast there I mean any doubtfulness any terrors and fears of the fulness of their conceived evidence of their union with the Lord Jesus then are their spirits in a superlative manner prone to fret and vex and fume by the prevailing of unruly passion Thus David under the doubtfulness of the Lords fulfilling a promise made to him breaks out into most dreadful impatience in 1 Sam. 27.1 I shall one day perish by the hand of Saul So in Psal 116.11 I said in my haste all men are liars So Psal 31.22 I said in my haste I am cut off from before thine Eyes So the holy man Job Chap. 3.3 and Chap. 6.8 9. Now during the prevalency of this distemper of impatiency and frowardness of spirit under doubting the truth of their evidence their spirits are made uncable of a just trial and examination of the truth of the evidence of their union with the Lord Jesus There are two ways how this sinful distemper doth incapacitate souls for the just examination of the evidence of their union 1. It doth prevent a serious deliberate view of the evidences of their union with Christ that they have received by drawing out the intentions of their Spirits to look upon the grounds of their fears of the falseness of the evidence of their Union When any passion prevails in any Spirit it draws out the whole strength of the Soul that way Now the intention of the soul being drawn out to look upon the object of his fears the grounds of his doubts and the matter of the suspition of the falseness of his union by this the soul is made unsuitable to take any right deliberate
view of the evidences of his union 2. Impatiency of Spirit under the doubtfulness of the truth of the souls evidence of his union with Christ doth occasion every seeming opposition to the truth of the souls evidences to appear greater than it is in its own nature Thence it is frequent with souls under this distemper every suggestion from Hell bears such weight upon the Spirit as it is in a fume upon every such suggestion conceiving there is abundant argument against the truth of his union whereas upon the examination of the same objection by the same soul with a quiet calm spirit those objections appear to be invalid to have no weight nor scarce any colour whereby they should manifest the falseness of the Souls evidence of his union II. The second sinful distemper is an irrationality that the Soul subjects it self to in all the conclusions that it draws up against it self Now whenever a believing Soul subjects himself to this sinful distemper that he endeavours not to suppress every affection of Hope Fear or Joy which is not founded upon some blessed word of God then the Soul doth make it self uncapable of examining and trying justly the truth of his own evidences of his Union 1. In regard the Soul will of necessity be irrational in all its conclusions But when the Soul is irrational in its confusions it is uncapable of a just trial of the evidences of his union it is uncapable of comparing that blessed golden Rule of the Lord word and his own evidences together 2. In regard the thoughts of the Soul are all distracted when any thing is brought to the thoughts for the truth of his union that Soul without examination immediately entertains some hopes Again when any thing is objected to the Soul to prove the falseness of his evidence immediately again the soul entertains fears without examining the reality of what is objected against his evidence and those hopes and fears continuing enterchangeably working make such distraction in the souls thoughts that it makes it uncapable for any deliberate view of the evidences of his union 3. The third sinful distemper is a rashness hastiness or suddenness of spirit Thus some doubting of the truth of their former evidences of their union with the Lord Jesus because of some backsliding from God that they are conscious to themselves of will suddenly from such a place as that Heb. 6.4 concludes that they have sinned presumptuously and that there is no renewing them again by Repentance or unto Repentance The words run thus For it is impossible for those who were once enlightned and have tasted of the heavenly gifts and were made partakers of the Holy Ghost and have tasted the good word of God and the powers of the world to come if they fall away to renew them again unto Repentance whereas did those Souls examine the intent of the Holy Ghost in these words it were easily to discern that the Holy Ghost intend those who finally apostatize from God not intending any slips and falls and backslidings that are incident to every believing Soul were there but a just examination of this portion of the word by collecting it and comparing with another word that would testify many Saints to have had their fallings and backslidings after their tasting of the heavenly gifts and after their being partakers of the Holy Ghost â—…ly in a higher way than the Spirit means here he mean here by partaking of the Holy Ghost only some participation of common gifts of the Spirit other Scriptures testify David and Abram to have had their falls yea almost every Saint after their tasting of the heavenly gift and yet to be renewed again by Repentance Now this distemper doth make the soul uncapable of a just examination of the truth of the evidence of his union with Christ 2 ways I. In regard this rashness makes the Soul uncapable of discerning the depths of Satan whereby he endeavours to obscure the truth of every Believers evidence of his union with Christ This sinful rashness occasions the Soul only to take a superficial of whatever is suggested or propounded Now Satans Suggestions have some sparkling of Angelical Glory some vernish of truth and holiness so that every suggestion of Hell whilst the distemper of rashness prevails in the soul cannot but be judged a sufficient ground to build a doubt and scruple upon and then Satan being always watchful to maintain a dispute that he once began with the Soul to make reply against whatever can be objected against his first suggestion every of these objections of Satan they will be counted sufficient ground for the rash Soul to draw another safe conclusion or to strengthen the Soul in the drawing its former false conclusion 2. This rashness also begets a confusion in the Soul the soul drawing conclusion upon conclusion upon every seeming ground and one conclusion maintains contradicting another a contradition of hope contradicting a conclusion of fear and there being no examination through the domineering power of rashness in the Soul of the truth of the one and the falseness of the other these conclusions begin to fight in nhe Soul at once yea multitudes of conclusions seem contrary each to other 4. The Fourth distemper that doth incapacitate a Soul for the just tryal of the truth of his own evidence is a prejudicial conceit against his own evidences even before any examination of the truth of the evidences of his union This is the sad distemper that prevailed in Asaph Psal 77.2 my Soul refused to be comforted he did refuse to receive any evidence that the Lord would be faithful But certainly this was the distemper of the Church Lamen 3.17 18. Thou hast remove my Soul far off from peace I forgot prosperity or rather as it is rendred by some I forgot God it is most probable she refused to entertain any of those thoughts that the Lord would yet be gracious Hence it is that many Souls under the Power of this distemper do study to wind themselves from under the Power of any truth that should lay hold upon their hearts so as to answer their objections and cavils against their acceptance into union with the Lord Jesus Now this Distemper doth make Souls uncapable while it prevail of a just examination of the truth of their own exidences in regard it causeth slighty unworthy thoughts of their own union Pre. 4. Fourthly it is to be considered that whenever any Soul is declined from or decayed in his former activity and operation of holiness he is then unsutable to examine and to try justly the truth of his own evidence of his union with Christ He is unsutable in these five respects 1. In regard the light of manifestation from the spirit is always suspended when the heart is in this decaying temper in holiness When ever any heart decay in holiness his first original decay is in the activity and strength of the precious believing disposition of the will
to close with and accept of the precious tender of the Lord Jesus to the Soul now when the Spirits light of manifestation whereby it doth irradiate the word to the Soul is withdrawn the Soul must needs be uncapable to examine the truth of his own evidences for it is only through the Spirits irradiation or manifestation of the word that any believing Soul doth at first clearly and satisfyingly and unquestionably discern the Lords will to accept his Soul into union with the Lord Jesus and therefore when this Light of manifestation from the Spirit is withdrawn again it cannot be that the believing Soul should clearly discern their precious truth and so long as the Soul enjoy not this evidence unto his saith of his certain acceptance of union with Christ it is impossible the Soul should have any evidence unto sense seeing the evidence unto sense doth wholly depend upon the evidence unto faith 2. In regard all the opposite powers of corruption in his Soul unto the Souls evidence of union with Christ do renew in some degree their Tyrranny over the Soul Yea not only so but all the powers of corruption that do oppose the Souls union with Christ are then furnished with renewed arguments and objections against the poor Souls acceptance into union yea with such objections as nothing can answer but saith it self As for example 1. Then carnal Reasons ' mouth is filled with new matter of objection against the Souls union Carnal Reason that said formerly thou art a Rebel an Enemy that have continued thus many years in enmity therefore cannot be admitted into union with the Lord Jesus can now say more thou hast now dealt unfaithfully with God thou art an Hypocrite a Bacstslider it is impossible that the Lord that bore thy enmity and rebellion should bare thy falseness and hypocrisy 2. Natural Distrust of God cursed Jealousies and Suspitions of the Faithfulness of God do renew their Tyranny also when Holiness decay Now natural Distrust and cursed Jelousy of God can say what dost thou think it is possible for the Majesty of Heaven who is so just who hath said he will avenge himself upon those that go on in their wickedness should ever accept theâ— into reconciliation with himself 3. The corrupt Conscience renews his Tyrannizing Power when the Soul decay in Holiness Now Conscience is furnished with a new Bill of Indictment against the Soul it can now lay to the Souls charge guile and deceitfulness of heart with God and willing Apostacy from God so that now it can with a full mouth pass the sentence of Condemnation against the Soul afresh and is furnished with such arguments as nothing but Faith can answer nothing but a renewed vision of the Lords will declared in his blessed word to accept of every poor undone perishing Soul be he as bad as an incarnate Devil in case the Soul will accept of union with him can satisfy either carnal reason or suspitious argmments or consciences accusations 3. The Soul decaying in Holiness is unsutable to examine the evidence of his union in regard the Soul remain under an inevitable an unavoidable necessity to submit to the Judgement that Sense shall pass upon his Soul Now Sense can pass no other Judgemennt upon a Souls estate that is decayed in Holiness but that certainly the evidences of his union with the Lord Jesus that he conceive he had received were delusions Sense can see none of those precious inseparable effects of a Souls evidence of union with Christ and sense can pass no other Judgement unless it be captivated unto the power of Faith 4. In regard there is apparent defect in such a Soul of the proper inseparable effects of the true manifestation to a Soul that it is united to the Lord Jesus The inseparable effects of an evidence unto a Soul that it is united to the Lord Jesus is an heighth of Holiness now when Holiness is decayed Satan can say by a fallacious argument thy evidences of thy union that thou thoughtest thou hadst are delusions indeed dost not see by the effects of the evidences those that have evidences of their union with Christ have their hearts in an adoring admiring frame of God they have their hearts enlarged to the utmost towards God in Christ but thou hast a blockish senselese careless heartless mindless unprofitable Spirit surely thy evidences therefore are delusions Now indeed here is a fallacy in Satans arguments that is hard to be discerned here is a depth of Satan here is one of those cunning devices that most Souls are ignorant of He fails of nothing in his argument but only in time His arguments should have run thus only Souls that have true evidence of their union with Christ whilst those evidences remain they are in an admiring adoring frame and their hearts elivated and enlarged in all kind of Holiness If this had been Satans major proposition his assumption must have been false then he could not have said but thou in that moment and instant when those evidennes were given to the during the continuance of those evidences in their clear light that thou wert united thy heart was not enlarged in all kind of Holiness and taken with a precious admiration of the Lord Jesus 5. In regard the Soul is under an actual provocation of the Lord to a penal suspension of all kind of manifestation unto the Soul either that the Lord would admit him into union with Christ or that he is admitted The Soul he can never discern the truth of his own evidence satisfyingly and infallibly without the manifestation of the same light both manifesting the word to the believing disposition and manifesting the believing act also to the Souls apprehension Now therefore the Soul must needs be unsutable to examine the truth of his evidence of union with Christ while he is actually provoking the Lord to withdraw that blessed Spirit and to suâ—pend his operations unto the Soul Now here is a question necessarily cast in to be opened by the way before we can proceed any farther Que. But will the Soul say if Souls under the dominion of impatiency rashness irrational affections prejudicial conceits against the truth of the evidence of their union with Christ and Souls under decays of Holiness be unsutable for a right tryal of their evidences then what sutable means remain for such Souls under fear that the evidences of their union are delusions Ans First I answer that the only immediate effectual means of redemption of such Souls from such torturing fears suspitions and jealousies that the evidences of their union with Christ are but delusions is a renewed act of confidence in the truth of the Lords word to their particular Souls wherein the Lord doth declare his will to give the Lord Jesus freely to every perishing Sinner that shall accept him to mediate a reconciliation with the Father for him though plunged into the most bottomless depth of Sin The Universal Unlimitted Offer
satisfying power of the manifesting light unto his faith that he should be accepted into union with Christ doth now again in this renewed act gain a sight and manifestation of that satisfying power in a manifesting truth that his Soul should be acepted into union with the Lord Jesus Now thence the Lord discerns the causelesness of his own prejudicial thoughts and opinions of his former evidences unto faith and so consequently abhor himself in that he dishonoured the blessed work of the Spirit 5. Through the vertue and efficacy of this believing act that decay in holiness which did make the soul unsutable to take a just impartial tryal of the evidences of his union with Christ are repaired that appears in two things 1. The mind of the believing soul is filled with all the notions conceptions and apprehensions from whence Holy Actings do arise are Maintained and Increased and through the defect of which Holiness Decays and Consumes in any Soul These Holy Notions from whence Holiness proceeds are principally these That there is a fulness of all Love and Mercy tendred freely by God to this Poor Unlovely soul that the Lord is so infinitely rich in his love that he doth pass over all that can be sutable for the poor empty Soul freely to it in Christ Now it is impossible there should be a Renewed Believing act without these Notions being brought fresh to the Remembrance of the Believing Soul 2. All the Holy Affections are excited also to a Renewed exercise by vertue of the Renewed Act. All the Affections are under the command of these two Love and Hatred Now both these are excited to a Renewed Exercise and that with a Mighty strength by vertue of the Renewed Act. Love towards God is nothing but the very reflecting of the Lords love cast upon the soul upon God again The actings of love always proceed from the Apprehensions of the Lords love to the Soul Now in the Believing Act there is an actual view of the infinite unspeakable Riches of Love to the Unlovely Forlorn Soul and thence Love is drawn forth in its very strength towards God again Likewise Hatred which command the other part of the Affections is nothing else but the Displicency tha is in the Will against any object whatever which affections do naturally proceed from the souls love Now therefore the hatred of the soul is properly against Sin and whatever is contrary to God and his Will In the same degree that Love acts in the soul towards God in the same degree doth hatred work towards every thing that is contrary to God Now by the stirring up of these two all the other Holy Affections also are excited into their exercise thence the decays of Holiness are sweetly repaired and the soul put into a sutable temper for the tryal of his own Evidence Answ 2. Secondly I answer That all the Lords Ordinances and Appointments for his peoples souls to injoy Communion with himself in are also mediate and second means of the delivery of those souls from the dreadful Tyranny of the Fear and Jealousie that the Evidences of their union are Delusions Thus Prayer Conference Meditation hearing the Word are all secondary means to wait for the spirit to breath in power from the Lord Jesus to enable the soul in this Renewed Believing Act and to continue the Believing Act in the soul So that you see a sufficient means left for these Distempred or Declined souls that are either Uncapable or Unsutable for a just examination of the Evidence of their Union to deliver them from Fear and Terrour that the Evidences of their Union with Christ Received are Delusions Now in Regard the question is about a matter so practical I shall therefore turn the last Answer into a kind of Advise Beseeching and Intreating every Distempered or Declined soul in Holiness to take this course to strive for deliverance of his soul from under the power of his Tormenting Fears that the Evidences of his union with Christ are Delusions And for that end I desire you would take these four Directions Direct 1. First that you forbear for a little season the Trial and Examination of your own Evidence with the Lord cease a little to Plead your Title with the Lord Spend not all your thoughts about what Evidence you have Received as though there were no good to be expected except your former Evidences were real Direct 2. Secondly let me advise you to take a strict accompt of your own hearts of all your fears and all the grounds of your suspitions whereupon you suspect that your evidences where delusions gather together and sum up all hypocrisie and falseness the unconstancy the loosness the vanity the rashness the blindness that 's now brought to your remembrance to prove your evidences received were but meer delusions gather together all the defects of those precious effects of real evidence from God to any soul of its union with Christ that you apprehend your souls want and further suppose them all to be true take all for a little season for granted suppose that your heart was false and that you were wholly and altogether an Hypocrite that all the workings of your spirit were nothing but common workings of the blessed spirit But then Direct 3. Thirdly search the holy records the Lords blessed word for all the discriptions of those to whom union with Jesus Christ is freely tendered and find out whether thy soul supposed to be in the estate fore-named be excluded from the number of those to whom union with Jesus Christ is freely tendred Search from Scripture whether thou canst find any one Hypocrite any one captivated soul by the Devils deluding reasonings any one false hearted treacherous wretch ever excluded from the number of those to whom the Lord freely offers union with the Lord Jesus search whither any lost Soul any Rebel whether any rational Creature to whom the Gospel of Jesus Christ comes be exclured from the number of those to whom the Lord freely offers union with the Lord Jesus strive beseech you now to gain that clear apprehension that so at last thou maist baffle the Devil in all his arguments and silence him in one word saying well though I have been false to the blessed Majesty of Heaven all this time though I be now under thy cursed power O Satan though thou holdst me fast in thy cursed Chains of Darkness yet thou maist say the blessed Majesty of Heaven he that can never lye tells me that union with the Lord Jesus and so Redemption from thy cursed slavery is freely offered to my Soul still the Lord tells me his will admits me to be still one with Christ if I can be contented that he should mediate a reconciliation between the Father and me Direct 4. Fuorthly Plead with thy opposite contrary mind to make thy heart consent to the blessed word of God wherein he doth offer union with Jesus Christ and himself through Christ to every
to apprehend aright any truth from the blessed Word of God propounded to him Even when the understanding of the soul is renewed and some pretious beam of Heavenly Light Communicated to the poor soul so that in a Metaphorical Sence the blind soul became a seeing soul yet there is a necessity also that the same spirit that Communicated the seeing eye to the understanding should also Communicate the seeing of the eye It is necessary that the same spirit that Communicated the Habit should Communicate also the Act the same spirit that gave a Principle of Divine Knowledge to the soul must also act the same Principle of Spiritual Knowledge to make the soul actually know or understand any Spiritual Holy Mystery aright Now then when the Evidences to the soul of its union with the Lord Jesus actually remains then is the mind and understanding of the soul thus actuated by the Blessed Spirit then is the Principle of Holy Knowledge drawn forth into exercise so that the mind is then inabled to discern into the Mystery of the Gospel of Jesus Christ thence it appears that the soul can only then take a Righteous Examination of the Evidences of his union 2. In regard it is then only that the soul is Conquerer over the natural Enmity of the Mind that oppose the Minds consent to the truth that doth evidence unto the soul its union The Carnal Mind is Enmity against God Now in the same degree the believing soul remains unregenerate enmity still possesses the believing mind and then only hath the Believer conquest over those reliques of enmity that possess the mind when he hath actual evidence of his union with the Lord Jesus now it is only then when the enmity of the mind against God is brought into captivity to the Law of faith that the Soul is suitable to take the examination of the truth of his own evidences of his union with Christ in regard the mind now is disposed to accept or agree unto those truths of the Gospel from whence the Spirit doth manifest unto the soul its union with Christ 3. In regard it is then only that the Soul understands and believes what the true Celestial Star is from whence those beams of light that do really come from Gods evidence unto a Soul his union with Christ must flow and arise The pretious word of the ever-living God to every lost sinner declaring that his will is to admit every of those Souls that will to be reconciled to himself in Christ is that precious bright orient Star from whence those beautiful beams of light that do or may discover unto a soul his union with Christ must arise Now it is then only when the beams of light shine from the Word perspicuously and clearly unto a soul declaring his will to admit of reconciliation with them through the Lord Jesus that they understand and believe this to be the true Heavenly Star from whence the light that evidences unto them their union must flow 4. In regard It is then only that the irresistible power that those precious beams of light contain in them that do evidence unto any soul really from God its union with Christ is ready to take impression upon the heart The irresistible power that the beams of light contain in them is the Authority of the blessed Majesty of Heaven They are nothing but the discovery unto the Soul that the Lord hath spoken it that it is his will to receive the soul into union with Christ Now this irresistible power of these beams of light only take impression upon the Heart according to the lively actings of holiness in the heart And the lively actings of holiness in the heart are only according to the degree of light the soul enjoys discovering unto it the Lords will to receive him into union with the Lord Jesus So that when those beams of Heavenly light shine most clearly in the most transcendent beauty then is the heart filled with the most lively holy actings then do love and fear and joy and delight working their power and strength And therefore it is only that the Authority of God speaking or declaring any thing to the soul take the deepest impression upon the soul 5. In regard the believing disposition in the will of the soul is only then in exercise in its power and strength The prime evidence unto a soul of his union hath been discovered to you to be only an evidence unto faith and in like manner the prime demonstration of the truth of that evidence must be a demonstration given to faith only Reason must not aspire so high to be the Judge of faiths action Still it must be another act of faith that must pass a security upon the former act of faith So that thence when the believing disposition infused into the will of the believing soul is strongest in exercise then only is the soul suitable to take a righteous examination of the evidences of his union with Christ 2. It is only then when the evidences of the souls union with Christ are clear and perspicuous that it is suitable to take examination of his evidences rightly in regard of the evidences themselves which then only appears in their native self-discovering glory It is the inseparable property of those beams of Heavenly light that shine from the word of God to discover themselves really to be from God even by their own native lustre and glory Those beams of light come forth with the name of God written upon their foreheads so that the believing soul no sooner beholds them but he reads the name of God written upon them now this their native self-discovering glory never appears to the soul but when these beams of light actually remain in the soul in their perspicuity and clearness and therefore when the spirit suspends its influences then the soul cannot behold those beams of light what they are Quest There is another Question that here interposeth it self which must of necessity be answered Believing souls will now reply in this manner If an impartial examination of any souls evidences of his union with the Lord Jesus can be only taken while the splendor and brightness of his evidences remain in the soul then what use should souls make of the evidences they conceive they had received of their union with Jesus Christ when the lustre and orient brightness of their evidences be eclipsed and their commanding power enervated or wounded that their evidences cease to witness unto them their union with Christ In order to the satisfaction of souls in this scruple we shall lay down divers Propositions Prop. 1. First whenever the celestial glory of those pretious beams of light that the Lord vouchsafes to cast into any believing soul to evidence his union with Jesus Christ be dark and those invincible and impregnable demonstrations that the blessed spirit gives unto the souls faith to prove and demonstrate its union with Christ be weakned yet it is
then doleful weakness yea abhorred wickedness in any soul to cast off all confidence of the Lords admission of his soul into union with Jesus Christ Though the oratory light of the blessed spirit or the superadded light to the word that causes the word to give so clear and satisfying a testimony unto faith of its union with Jesus Christ be withdrawn and suspended yet there is a Heavenly shining burning Lamp of the written word of God that stands constantly shining to discover to the faith of the believing soul the open bosome of the love of the Lord Jesus and his outstretched Arms ready to grasp the soul into the nearest union Therefore it must needs be dreadful horrid wickedness for any soul to neglect slight undervalue or disregard the light of that pretious written word because those Heavenly beams of superadded light that the spirit sometimes gives are by the wisdom of the Lord or through the occasion of the souls own iniquity sometimes suspended The Command of believing stands as an everlasting command founded and built upon the meer written word making a pretious discovery of the Lords will to admit every lost perishing soul that will to be reconciled 1 John 3.23 Now thence it is most wretched disobedience in any soul when he hath lost that glorious light of manifestation from the spirit to disobey that precious Heavenly command also Prop. 2. Secondly Whenever any soul subjects himself to the Principle of darkness and unbelief that still dwells in him upon the Lords withdrawing the brightness and glory of that satisfying light of the spirit that did evidence unto the soul his union with Christ and cast off his confidence of the Lords admission of his soul into union with Christ then the soul is uncapable while he so remains of making any pretious holy use of those former evidences that his Soul enjoyed of his union with Jesus Christ 1. In regard while the soul so remains there can be no holy conception of the evidences that his Soul did formerly enjoy First take holiness for all kind of strictness and righteousness and conformity to the Lords blessed will and in that sense there can be no righteous conception of his former evidences The soul cannot understand them what they are nor discern them as they were Secondly Take holiness effectively for these conceptions that do excite and quicken a believing soul unto holy actings and in that sense there can be no holy conception of his former evidences while the soul so remains All such conceptions or apprehensions of the way of God towards us are as holy effectively that is that produce or quicken a soul to holiness are such as do apprehend some beam of excellency shining forth from those ways of God in relation to that particular souls good now while a soul casts off all his confidence of the Lords will to admit him into union with the Lord Jesus he cannot conceive of his former evidence in such a manner as to conceive any beam of excellency shining forth from God in relation to his particular soul 2. While any Heart so remains he is uncapable of making a holy use of his former evidences in regard the activity of all holy affections whatever depend upon the activity of that believing disposition they live and die together The moving Principles that move holy affections objectively are the believing conceptions and apprehensions of God that is to say the apprehensions of the Lords will to receive the poor loveless soul to be reconciled to him through his union with Jesus Christ And therefore while a soul casts off all his confidence that the Lords will is to admit his soul to be one with Jesus Christ there is a defect of moving Principles to move the affections to their exercise and so consequently there can be no activity of any pretious holy affections 3. In regard all the Ordinances that should excite and quicken the heart to the holy use of his former evidences are made useless While the soul enslaves himself to carnal reason through unbelief not believing Gods will to make him one with Jesus Christ though the Gospel should be preached by the mouth of Angels and they should be sent from Heaven to be mouths to those souls in Prayer yet those Ordinances could have no operation upon those souls saith the Apostle Heb. 4.2 The word that was preached profited not because it was not mixed with faith in them that heard it if there be not some degree of confidence in that great and grand Gospel-truth to the particular soul there can be no mixing faith with any other Gospel-truth that should be Preached so as to make it have a pretious efficacy upon the Heart 4. When any Heart yields up himself captive to unbelieving reason and so casts off all that his pretious confidence it cannot make a believing use of his former evidence of union with Christ in regard there is a continual decrease in all holiness and encrease in all the working of corruption while the soul so remains The Heart is so naturally active that it will be spending its strength in some kind of activity or other and therefore when the holy actings of the forenamed precious confidence is sealed the Heart will spend all its strength in corrupt workings when the Heavenly plant of faith doth not grow and flourish in the soul the weeds that come from the Devils Garden will be all flourishing hardness indisposition for God hard thoughts of God will all be augmenting daily Prop. 3. Thirdly No Soul ought to entertain such a superlative conceit of the use of those evidences of his union with Christ that he formerly received that he should make those his evidences the sole or the primary or the principal Prop or Pillar whereupon he builds his confidence that the Lord will admit his soul into union with Jesus Christ The utmost use intended by God that believing souls should make of former evidences received can be but strengthnings and encouragements to renew the strength of their confidence in his truth and faithfulness to fulfil his blessed word unto their souls It is utterly strange from the mind of God that souls should make any one act of God towards or in the soul the principal Pillar Rock and foundation whereupon to build its hope of his union with Jesus Christ All those actings of the spirit of God whether by way of light and manifestation or by way of infusion of holiness they are meerly arbitrary excepting only the spirits constant influence for the preservation of the life of a believing soul and consequently changeable and various according as the infinite wisdom of Heaven doth see suitable for the estate of various souls but now the Lord out of that transcendent riches of his love in Christ hath prepared unchangeable Rocks where the prime Anchor of believing souls hope should be fastned unmoving Pillars that never shake whereupon the foundation of their confidence must be laid according
suitable for believing Souls that there is a Night and a Day as well in the Spiritual life as in the natural life ought to be a ground to maintain a lively hope that when it is Night Day may break and therefore it is his Duty unquestionably to nourish and cherish such a lively hope 3. From the remembrance of its former evidence the Soul ought to obstruct it self in the obscurity darkness and dreadful blindness of his own mind The believing Soul ought to say within himself O when the Spirit of Jesus Christ irradiated the blessed word of God how clear how unquestionable was it to my Soul that it was the Lords blessed will to receive my Soul into union with Jesus Christ if I will embrace him and though I have now the same word to testifie the same thing to my Soul yet how dark is it to my Soul for the present how hard is it for my poor blind Mind to receive and apprehend that the Lords will is to receive this my Soul into union with Jesus Christ 4. From the remembrance of the Souls former evidence the Soul ought to instruct it self in the mystery of the Lords way towards believing Souls From hence the Soul may learn that the Lord carries on the Soul towards full Communion with himself through Christ as well by sensible decays in Communion as by sensible encreases in Communion And from thence the Soul might instruct it self that joy and peace ravishment of Spirit triumphing acts of faith are not so inseparable from believing Souls but that they may be wanting that they are not absolutely necessary to be constant at least to the Souls attaining unto perfection of Communion so that thus the Soul may learn to adore the Lord in apprehending the unsearchableness of his ways even towards believing Souls the unsearchableness of his Wisdom that neither Man nor Angel can measure 5. From the remembrance of the Souls former evidences whose brightness and glory is now ecclipsed the Soul may instruct it self in the absolute necessity of an intire constant uninterrupted dependance upon Jesus Christ for the Spirit of light and manifestation The Soul ought in remembrance of that full satisfaction that it enjoyed when that blessed Spirit of light gave beams of light to his dark mind to clear up the will of God revealed in his precious word to say O how infinite is the necessity of hanging upon Jesus Christ continually for the constant operation of the Spirit of light into this my dark Heart 6. From the remembrance of the Souls former evidence of his union with Jesus Christ the Soul ought to collect holy Pleas and pretious Arguments to intercede with the Majesty of Heaven for the return of the blessed Spirit of light and manifestation unto his Soul This was the constant practice of all the Saints who had enjoyed any experiences of the Lords mercy and kindness they did endeavour to engage the Lord to return when he seemed to be absent Many are the Arguments that a believing soul may collect from the former enjoyment of evidences of union with Christ to plead with the Majesty of Heaven to return with the same spirit of light and manifestation again to his Soul 1. From the remembrance of the Souls former evidence the soul may remember the pretious suitable disposition that possessed his Heart for the worshipping of the Lord in every Ordinance Now from thence the Soul may raise a pretious Argument wherewith he may go boldly to the Throne of Grace and cry to the blessed Majesty of Heaven when shall that blessed Spirit of light return to this darkned Soul of mine 2. The Soul may remember the readiness the quickness the activity of the Heart in all manner of obedience to the Lords blessed will Now from hence the Soul may fetch a strong Argument wherewith to come before the Throne of Grace O my God may the believing Soul say When thy blessed Spirit of light had the pretious operation upon my Heart what a blessed concurrence was there in this my crooked opposite will to this thy holy will O what an union of love was there between this thy Majesty and my opposite Heart how impatient then was my Soul of any disagreement between my will and thy will how readily was my heart disposed for any thing thy blessed Majesty commanded But now alas Lord now the workings of the Spirit of light are suspended what a disagreement is there between thy Majesties will and my will how strait and narrow and weak and feeble are the inclinations of my Heart now to obedience to thy blessed will Lord may the Soul say Have respect to thine own honour send down the Spirit of light into this dark Heart 3. The Soul may remember how highly the blessed Name of God was exalted and magnified in his Heart when that blessed Spirit of light continued its blessed operation to evidence actually its union with the Lord Jesus Now from thence the Soul from whom the lustre and glory of these his former evidences of union with Christ is now Ecclipsed may argue with the blessed Majesty of Heaven to send down the same Spirit of light and manifestation again to his dark Soul 4. Even when the orient brightness and Heavenly lustre of the Souls former evidences is Ecclipsed and darkned yet then the Soul may remember the capaciousness and enlarged openness of his Heart towards communion with God while the orient lustre of the evidences of his union with Christ did actually remain Now from hence the Soul may gather strength of Argument to appear before the Lord to Petition the return of the blessed Spirit of light and manifestation again to his Soul The Soul may plead that the suitableness and right disposition of the Heart for Communion with the Lord depends upon the enjoyment of the Spirit of light and manifestation 5. Even when the orient brightness of the Souls former evidences are ecclipsed and obscured yet then the Soul may remember how gloriously the lovely beauty and Soul enamouring brightness of the way of holiness was transparent through him when the Heavenly lustre of his former evidences did actually remain in the Soul Now from hence the Soul may gather a pretious Argument whereby he may lay an engagement upon the Majesty of Heaven to send down the Spirit of light again Thence the Soul may plead that the lustre and Heavenly beauty of the ways of holiness to be manifested through him depend upon his enjoyment of the Spirit of light and manifestation 6. When the cammanding power of the evidence of a Souls union with Christ is ceased for the present to evidence to the Soul its union yet then the Soul may remember that the tender compassionate bowels of God have moved within him and yearned toward his Soul formerly Now from thence the feeble almost fainting drooping Soul may still gather more strength and lift up its Head again to claim the Spirit of light and manifestation to
are really from God Now I beseech you every Soul believing or unbelieving remember as far as possible all the considerations that have been premised about this Question and withall these fixed and established in your minds proceed with me to make a righteous trial of the evidences that you conceive your Souls have received of your union with the Lord Jesus So then all these considerations premised our Question propounded must be thus staâ—ed Quest How shall any Soul that conceiveth he hath received and doth actually enjoy certain and sufficient evidences of his union with the Lord Jesus demonstrate from certain necessary and evident reasons that those his evidences are really from God Answ For Answer then directly to the Question There are but two kind of Demonstrations whereby a Soul can demonstrate to its self the reality of his evidence received proceeding from God You must understand we are now speaking of knowledge and what was spoken before of faith must not come into our remembrance in this thing For you must remember we gave you a distinction between knowledge faith and opinion we look not for opinion now That is some probable ground of our union with Jesus Christ nor we do not look to faith which is the declaration of Gods will to admit it into union with Jesus Christ But we look to knowledge and there are but Two Demonstrations a Demonstration Priori and a Demonstration à Posteriori A Demonstration taken from the Causes and a Demonstration taken from the Effects The first and most certain ground whereupon the Soul may prove its union from God is taken from the causes now the Causes are various But the Two Principal Reasons must be taken from the Two Principal Causes Now there are but Two Principal Causes of the Souls union with the Lord Jesus both which concur together and are never separated one from another The Two efficient Causes instrumental is the Lords blessed written Word and that pretious Spirit of Jesus Christ The written Word is the more remote cause and the Spirit of the Lord Jesus is the more immediate efficient cause Now because the reason whereby we may draw any conclusion is most strong that it is taken from the most immediate cause of any thing And in respect that the Spirit of Jesus Christ is the most immediate efficient cause though but still instrumental because the Spirit doth more immediately send down those beams of light that do most clearly reveal to faith the Lords will to take the Soul into union with Christ and also those beams of light that discover to the Soul the integrity of his Heart in believing Thence we shall first speak of that reason which is taken from the blessed Spirit of Jesus Christ and so I answer thus That the first primary and principal reason from whence a Soul may conclude that the evidences of his union received are really from God is that those evidencing beams of light doth proceed from the blessed Spirit of Jesus Christ And it is the knowledge of this that they are those beams of light proceeding from the Spirit of Christ by which a Soul attains the most certain and infallible knowledge that his evidences were from God by this he attains that which is most properly called knowledge according as the Philosophers say to know a thing is to discern the nature or being of it by its most proper immediate cause But now least the Soul should say you here answer one doubt by another which is as great a doubt and leads the Soul but on into further darkness the Soul is as doubtful of this you will say whether those beams of light proceed from the Spirit of Jesus Christ as it is whether they were from God Therefore for your satisfaction here must be Two things opened First That the light that doth proceed from the blessed Spirit of Christ to evidence unto any Soul its union with Jesus Christ doth evidence that it doth proceed from the blessed Spirit Secondly It must be opened that the light that so proceeds from the Spirit to evidence to the Soul its union with Christ is the most potent and powerful demonstration that begets the most certain knowledge of the Souls union with Christ even the most proper and highest kind of knowledge First It must be manifested that the light that proceeds from the Spirit to evidence to any Soul its union with Christ doth evidence it self to proceed from the Spirit There are such sparklings of Divinity in those pretious Beams of Light that the spirit sends down into any Believing soul to discover its union that the eye that beholds those Beams of Light see the very Divinity of them he seeth that they come out from God There is such Coruscations or Bright shinings of Heavenly Glory upon those Beams of Divine Light as gives a satisfying discovery that they are from the Spirit of God Those beams of light they bear the Image of God upon them they have in a manner the name of the blessed spirit of Jesus Christ Ingraven upon them that the soul that beholds them even reads the name of the blessed spirit Ingraven there So that those Beams of light by an inseparable property that the Lord hath annexed to them do so discover their Original to be from the spirit of God as they do satisfy every soul to whom they are sent down and make it unquestionable that they are from the Spirit of God Yea the name of the spirit of God is so palinly Ingraven upon those beams of Light that the soul so easily discerns it that all Fears Doubts and Suspitions all workings of Jealousie that those evidencing beams of light are not from the spirit are Banished by their Mighty Power I mean the soul injoying those at that instant while their lustre their Hevenly bright shining Coruscations and Glory continue the soul fears not that they are Delusions he doth not so much as question that they are Delusions According to that in 1 John 2.27 But the Anointing which ye have Received of him abideth in you That is the spirit of Jesus Christ Communicated to you abides in you which is here called the Anointing because according to that in Isa 61.1 2. The pouring out of the spirit of Grace and Holiness upon Christ as Mediatour is called the Anointing of Christ for his Mediatorial Office and so the participating of the spirit by Believers is called the Anointing of Believers to partake of their head Now saith he the Anointing abides in you that is the spirit abides in you and ye need not that any man teach you but as the same anointing teaches you all things and is truth and is no lye The spirit teaches you all things He doth not mean of all truth and the whole Counsel of God for that no believing soul yet understood while he dwelt in Houses of Clay Paul himself understanding but in part but he speaks of the truths forenamed the grand Gospel Truths
spirit of Jesus Christ is only the spirit of light whatever Holy Dispositions whatever Pretious Heavenly Quality any Believing soul shall discern in it self it must be discerned by a Beam of light from the Spirit of Jesus Christ Secondly The second thing to be opened is That the light that proceeds from the spirit to discover to the soul its union with Christ is the most Potent Invincible Demonstration of its own proceeding from God which begets the most Certain and Infallible knowledge in the soul of his union with Christ That pretious light of the spirit of Jesus Christ doth so clearly discover it self to be from the spirit of Christ that there can be no reason that can make any Addition or Increase of that pretious clearness It shines so brightly with the very Image of the spirit of Jesus Christ upon it as nothing can make it more manifest to be from the spirit than its own light This will appear in divers particulars I. In regard that Beam of light that proceeds from the spirit to discover to the soul its union with Christ discovers nothing but what is infallibly true Not only what is infallibly true in it self but it discovers nothing but what is infallibly true to the souls Apprehension to whom it doth discover it Now when the Principles of a Demonstration are infallibly true then hath it the first property of the highest and most Potent Demonstration II. In regard that light which discovers the first light of the spirit to be the light of the spirit doth also again Evidence it self to be the light of the spirit also Now that 's the highest demonstrative Reason to prove that any thing proceeds from God that is to say that it is discovered by the spirit of God Now that light of the spirits first light doth plainly demonstrate that to the soul that it comes from the spirit of God So that there is no other Medium no other reason that can be imagined higher to prove that the first light from the spirit that discovers to the soul its union with Christ was from God III. In regard it is the most evident perspicuous discovery of those beams of light to be from God that can possibly be given Every reason from whence any Conclusion is Collected must be clearer and more evident than the Conclusion it self Now it is only the light of the spirit of Jesus Christ which is more evident and clear than the Conclusion it self drawn that the Evidences are really from God So that if it were possible for a higher proof to be made of the certainty of the beams of light that discovers to a soul its union with Christ of the certainty of their being from God then this very light that these Beams of light contain in themselves then there must be some light clearer than the very first light that proceeds from the spirit of light and manifestation whose office it is to discover all things to the soul IV. In regard it is that light only that can truly inforce or cause the Conclusion to be drawn that the Beams of light that did discover to the soul its union with Christ were from God Now that 's the highest kind of demonstrative Reason to shew the truth or reality of any thing when the principles that is the reasons from whence the Conclusion is Collected are the cause of the Conclusion Now thus the light of the spirit was those Beams of light that discovered to my soul its union with the Lord Jesus was really from God why because they came from the spirit of God Such Premises as these to say what the spirit of God reveals and discovers that must of necessity proceed from God doth even force the Conclusion to be drawn Whereas nothing else hath so much power in it to cause the Conclusion to be drawn as that light that proceeds from the spirit Now from these things opened you may hence take notice that every soul to whole Faith and Sence the spirit of Christ hath truly Revealed their union with Christ have full satisfaction clear undoubted satisfaction concerning his union with the Lord Jesus in all its most Serious Deliberate Meditations and Contemplations So that so long as those Pretious Beams of light from the spirit do remain actually shining into the soul there is no kind of Doubt Scruple or Darkness in the soul about its union with the Lord Jesus So that any soul that hath received this truâ—… discovery from the spirit of light both unto Faith and Sense of his union with the Lord Jesus need not inquire for any more proofs than his own soul possesseth at that instant that God and his soul are one through Christ § Secondly The second Instrumental cause that shines into any heart really from God to discover to that heart his union with Jesus Christ is the Lords Pretious Word That Heavenly light that shines into any dark and doubtful heart to reveal its union with the Lord Jesus to it clearly is only a pretious spark that sparkles forth from the Pretious Burning Lamp of the Lords Written Word And it is the Blessed Spirit of Jesus Christ that doth as it were Incense and Inflame that burning lamp of the Lords Blessed Word and cause it to send forth those Blessed sparks into dark hearts And it is that same Blessed spirit also that enlightens those dark hearts to see discern and behold those sparks that that burning lamp of the Lords Word send forth So that the spirit of Jesus Christ and the Written Word are but Concauses that joyntly and sweetly joyn together to enlighten the Doubtful soul and clearly reveal its union with the Lord Jesus So that the soul hath for his assurance the hand of the ever Blessed God and the Testimony of God that it is his own hand He hath that secret light that discovers it self to be of God which discovers to the souls faith his union with Christ and to his sense the truth of his own believing act And hath the Written Word which is a Letter Written from the Almighty to loveless souls that bears Witness also to the same thing So that then the second reason next to the prime reason that the light that the soul receiveth proceeds from the spirit of God is this that the soul beholds it clearly shine forth from the Lords Written Word But to clear this there must be two things opened First That a believing soul ought to receive the light that discovers to him his union with the Lord Jesus from the Written Word of God and ought to receive that light as certain and infallible because it shines from the Written Word Secondly That the Lords Pretious Written Word doth discover to particular believing souls their particular union with the Lord Jesus both unto their Faith and unto their Sence First It must be cleared That a believing soul ought to receive the light that discovers to his soul his union with the Lord Jesus from
trust to his truth and faithfulness for the fulfilling that his word Now whereas it is objected that no particular word speaks to a particular soul and says thou Thomas and thou John or thou Elisabeth or thou Mary shalt be accepted into union with the Lord Jesus if thou wilt accept him 1. I answer that either every particular is perfectly comprehended in the universal offer and universal command of believing as if the Lord should name every person to whom he speaks or else there can be no faith of assurance concerning any Gospel-truth whatever Else there can be no assurance that our Bodies shall rise again from the dust and appear before the judgement-seat of Christ It is no where said thou Thomas or thou John or thou Mary shalt arise out of the dust again and come to judgement yet I suppose every one that hath the least beam of spiritual light shining down into his soul will acknwledge that the written word of God doth reveal particularly that this soul and that soul even his own soul shall arise from the dust and come to judgemen Now it is apparent that there is as clear a discovery in the written word to any particular souls faith of his certain resurrection from the dead and coming to judgement 2. Either all those particulars are to be fully comprehended in that universal offer and universal unlimited command of believing or else there were no obedience to the will of God commanded to any particular soul whatever nor no disobedience to the will of God reproved It is no where said thou Thomas or thou John shalt worship the Lord in Prayer It is no where said thou Thomas or thou Mary shalt receive me as thy only God and worship me only Likewise no disobedience to the will of God were reproved It is no where said thou Thomas shalt not steal thou John shalt not lye thou Mary shalt not commit adultery yet I conceive thou whose believing disposition is most out of exercise at present darest not say God hath not said to thy soul do not steal do not lye that God hath not commanded thee to worship him in his ordinances appointed So that it is clear the word of God doth reveal to particular souls undoubtedly their certain admission into union with Jesus Christ in case they accept him Secondly The precious written word of God reveals unto particular souls sense their particular union with the Lord Jesus That is to say whenever the spirit of light and manifestation sent from the Lord Jesus shall irradiate the precious written word of God so as to make its own heavenly light shine into a dark heart and also irradiate at the same time or cast beams of light upon the precious believing act that the same spirit of Jesus Christ hath begotten in that soul then that light that the written word of God holds forth particularly declares to such a particular soul its certain actual union with the Lord Jesus Now the written word of God speaks to the sense of a believing soul his union with the Lord Jesus in these two ways 1. In its general description of the nature of that believing act that the Lord requires from the soul Now the written word describing the nature of that believing act that the Lord requires in general and declaring that believing act to be required in the same manner from every soul that written word of God doth particularly reveal unto such a particular souls sense his actual union with the Lord Jesus as thus the written word of the Lord describes the nature of the believing act to be a coming to Jesus Christ Mat. 11.28 to be receiving the testimony of God that he gave concerning his Son selling to its seal that God is true John 3.33 A receiving the Record that God hath given of his Son 1 John 5.7 8 9. To be a receiving of Christ himself John 1.12 To be a will in the soul concurring with what the Lord tenders Rev. 22.17 Now I say in the spirits describing the general nature of that believing act the Lord requires it doth speak particularly to the believing soul when the spirit is so evidencing to him his union with the Lord Jesus and declares the souls certain and infallible union with Jesus Christ As thus the spirit having first revealed to the souls faith the Lords will to admit having sweetly encouraged the soul yea powerfully irresistibly effectually commanded the soul to set to his seal that the Lord is true and to say Lord be it unto thy Servant as thou hast spoken then the same spirit irradiates that written word that describes the general nature of the believing act letting the soul discern that the believing act is a sweet consent of the mind and heart to the truths of the Lord in the tender of the Lord Jesus to him to reconcile the Father and him and then the spirit irradiates also the precious consent of the mind and heart that holy trust and confidence that is then in the soul and then the written word saith particularly that thou dost consent to accept of what the Lord thus tenders in Christ to thee thou art certainly and everlastingly united to the Lord Jesus thou art he who dost receive what the Lord hath propounded in Christ so thee and therefore thou art certainly lodged in the everlasting arms of the Lord Jesus 2. The second way that the written word dclares unto the particular souls sense his particular union with the Lord Jesus is by its description of the constant certain and inseparable operation of the believing disposition describing the manner of the working of the believing disposition or describing the various effects of faith 1. By the written word declaring that the proper operation of faith is by love to Jesus Christ Gal. 5.6 2. By declaring that the proper operation of faith is to abase the soul in it self and make it altogether nothing Rom. 3.27 3. The Scripture doth declare that the proper operation of faith is by purifying the heart cleansing it from all unholy dispositions Acts. 15 9. 4. In declaring that the proper operation of faith is an high and unspeakable estimation of Jesus Christ himself Phil. 3. 8 9. Now thus the written word declaring the proper manner of the operation of faith doth declare particularly unto any particular soul his union with Jesus Christ and so consequently the same written word declares that in whatever heart the believing disposition thus particularly works there is that precious believing act the Lord requires there is that precious faith unfeigned that Jesus Christ commands in his precious Gospel and so it speaks particularly to a particular soul thou dost believe with that precious faith unfeigned that Jesus Christ requires and thus the spirit doth but make this written word of God speak to the souls understanding what it doth always speak in it self which is that that particular soul doth now believe according to the will of God So
that thence it appears the word of God doth speak and declare as particularly to a believing soul his union with the Lord Jesus as if it did speak to any soul by name for that light that discovers to the souls sense and feeling or knowledge his union with Christ is but the discovery of the truth of his own heart in believing the written worb speaks as plainly to a particular souls sense and Knowledge his union with the Lord Jesus that is declares to him that he doth particularly believe as it doth declare to any particular rebellious obstinate sinner that he particularly doth sin the word saith whosoever walks thus or thus transgresseth the will of God now this speaks to every particular soul so sinning Que. But the soul may say how can a soul know that those Books of the Old and New Testament are the Lords own word May there not be some mixture of men That the Scriptures are the writen word of God Answ For answer to the question first negatively secondly affirmatively I. Negatively I answer that the soul cannot be assured by all the powers and possibilities of men no not by any created power that the Books of the Old and New Testament are the written word of God Though I deny not that the testimony of men may give some kind of ground to the soul to believe it and I fear the greatest number among us have no other ground yet no testimony of man can assure the soul sufficiently that these are the Lords written word the matter contained in the written word of God is altogether spiritual and therefore it must be a beam of spiritual light that must satisfyingly and sufficiently discover to a soul that the spiritual matter is the truth of God and did proceed from God 2. All the most exquisite reasoning that the most elevated wits of man can extract are not sufficient to demonstrate satisfyingly unto a soul that the Books of the Old and New Testament are the written word of God himself indeed If it were so then the wisest of men should have been ready to receive the word of God as the word of God whereas the Scripture testifies the most wise have been most oppsite to receive it 1. Cor. 1.26 Scribes and Pharisees the wisest of the People were the greatest opposers to our dearest Redeemer 3. The written word of God barely and simply taken without the Mighty Power of the spirit conrurring with the Word is not able to demonstrate it self to be the Word of God Questionless if it were then whoever had been partaker of the Written Word or had heard the Word Preached that is Written must in like manner have given credit to it whereas the Scripture Testify that when Jesus Christ himself spake of those things he had wrought some Opposed and Blasphemed But then I answer affirmatively I. That the Blessed Spirit of God only is able to demonstrate Clearly Evidently Satisfyingly and Infallibly unto a soul that the Written Word of God is the Written Word of God This the Apostle affirms directly 1 Cor. 2.9 to 12 that the spirit had Revealed those things to them which they by the Power of Reason could never comprehend And that all the things given to them of God are Revealed by the spirit to be so given And the Written Word of God is none of the smallest gifts of God to his people Therefore consequently it reveals that also to be given to them So likewise he affirms that it is the Spiritual Man that Judgeth all things that is of truths that is it is only the Man Begotten by the Spirit of Jesus Christ unto God and led by the light of that Blessed spirit of Jesus Christ that is able to Judge of Truths to Judge what Truths have their Original from God and to Judge what have not their Original thence It is the spirit also saith he that searches the deep things of God that discovers the very Mystery of God to them so as to make the Divinity shine forth in them Whereas the most heightned reason of the Accutest Sons of Adam can discern nothing but Foolishness in the deep Mysteries of Godliness v. 14. And indeed were it not the Testimony of that Blessed Spirit to a Believers Heart that the Books of the Old and New Testament are the Lords Written Word that they have their Original from the Lord himself then the Foundation of Believers Faith were not a Divine Authority neither could a Believer say in believing any truth contained in those Books that he knew whom he hath Believed with a Relation to God himself II. When that ever Blessed Spirit doth reveal to any Believing soul the Written Word to be the Written Word of God then the proper light of the Written Word it self shines forth so gloriously as it discovers it self also to be the Lords Word That is to say the matter of the Lords Written Word appears to be so Transcendent so far surpassing the Capacities of weak men yea the quality of the Word appears to be so Holy so Pure and Undefiled so contrary to the Powers of Hell and the Kingdom of the Devil and so contrary to the Tyranny and Dominion that mans Corrupt Affections naturally desire to bear over him yea the quality of the Word appears to be so Unspeakably Unconceivably excellent that the soul sees infinite reason even in the Word it self to perswade it that it is the Lords Word Yea the manner of the Written Word speaking the very Language it speaks favours so much of Heaven that it appears to the Believing soul to be so Cloathed with Power and Irresistable Authority it appears to have such properties of God himself peculiar unto God Soul-Searching Heart-Dividing Properties finding out the Secrets of the Heart that then the Believing soul is Compassed about with Reason Cloathed in with Reason that appears shineing from the Word it self that satisfys the Believing Soul that it is the Word of the Almighty Majesty of Heaven Divinity is then every way Ingraven upon the Written Word in the Believer So that as the spirit in its casting the Pretious Heavenly Light into the Beliving soul did Write his own name upon those Beams of light and made them appear to the soul to be from the spirit So likewise in the souls discerning the light also to proceed from the Lords Written Word there is the name of God Written upon those Beams of light also that the soul knows as well as believes them to proceed from God himself seeing they shine forth from that Word of his that the soul believes with Confidence yea so Satisfyingly and so knowingly to his full contentment it is the Word of the Blessed Majesty of Heaven Would you know you that are Confident this day that a light did shine into your souls to satisfy you concerning your union with Jesus Christ whether this union be from God or no Would you be assured as well to knowledge as to faith that you
are not deluded Then see whether that light that shined into your Souls have shined from the Lords written word Yet let me add a caution in this least I might possibly shake some Soul into whose heart some beams of light from the Spirit hath really descended to discover to the Soul his union with Christ though the light that doth shine into every Soul which truly proceeds from God to discover to the Soul its union with Christ doth and ought to shine forth from the Lords written word yet I dare not affirm that whenever the spirit of light doth discover to a Soul its union with Jesus Christ clearly both to faith and sense that then the spirit fastens some particular portions of the Lords word by name from such a Chapter and verse from whence the spirit doth make that light shine forth into that believing Soul certainly the spirit of Jesus Christ may send down precious beams of divine light into a dark Soul to discover to the Soul satisfyingly its union with the Lord Jesus both to faith and sense when such a particular sentence that is written in such a Book in such a Chapter in such a Verse is not brought to the Souls memory But there may be an extract of the quintessence that is of the prime light the most glorious light of many places of Scripture that concur together in one to testifie the fame truth to the Soul there may be an extract made by the Spirit of Christ of the grand truth that the Gospel reveals to faith and of the truth of the Souls believing act that the spirit reveals unto the Souls sense from many places of Scripture so as the light that the spirit causeth to shine into the Soul is still from the written word and the soul discerns it to his own satisfaction while the glory of the light actually remains that it doth shine from the precious written word though it may be the soul could not at that time be able to produce such and such particular sentences from such a Chapter and such a Verse though I dare not but say also but as the soul receiving that certain evidence doth discern that that sweet light that shines into his soul shines from the written word so likewise upon recollecting of himself and upon serious deliberation with himself he might be able to produce such portions of the Lords word as would sufficiently testifie to the truth of what the spirit of Jesus Christ had so revealed to his soul from the word yet observe this that the soul must then so deliberate and so consult with his heart about the matter while the heavenly lustre and commanding power of those evidencing beams of light remain shining into his soul for in case the soul be bereaved again upon any occasion of the lustre and glory of those precious beams of light the soul may so far forget the very sentences that the spirit of Jesus Christ did then dictate to it that the soul through the darkness and obscurity that passes upon him immediately again may for the present be uncapable of discerning in the written word of God what his soul clearly discerned in the same word formerly that the soul may in case the spirit of light should absent it self long perchance begin to draw some sad conclusion that the evidence that the Soul received was not a light shining from the Lords word but some delusion from the Devil transforming himself into Angelical Glory This is the second reason whence a soul may prove that the beam of light received is from God when the soul discerns it to shine from the written word The second sort of demonstrations whereby a soul may prove to himself his union with Jesus Christ must be a demonstration a posteriori A Demonstration taken from the effects that those beams of light that shine into the soul discovering to a soul its union with Jesus Christ do beget in the Soul Now all the effects that any thing that proceeds from God begets in believing Souls are but the accomplishment of the Lords eternal intent they are but the production of the Lords precious thoughts of love towards those believing Souls from before the foundations of the world were laid So that whatever is communicated to any believing Soul if it doth demonstrate it self to proceed from God by its effects that it begets in him it must then conduce in some degree to the effecting of the Lords precious eternal will towards that believing Soul Now those eternal intents of God towards believing Souls they may be reduced to three Heads according as the Spirit of truth sums them in 1 Cor. 3.22 23. All are yours whether Paul or Apollo or Cephas or the World or Life or Death or things present or things to come That is Heaven and Earth all are yours that is destinated unto your good to accomplish your Salvation And ye are Christs that is ye believing Souls are destinated to accomplish the glory of Jesus Christ And Christ is Gods that is Christ himself considered mystically as the Mediator is appointed for the manifestation of the Fathers glory for the exaltation of him in the hearts of Saints and Angels and before the eyes of all the world so as all may admire him and adore him There are three intents and precious ends of the Lord from Eternity towards those believing Souls First There is the accomplshment of the glory of those believing Souls Secondly The perfecting of Christs supernatural glory as he is Mediator And Thirdly The perfect manifestation of the Fathers glory through both these And therefore seeing these three are those prime and principal ends the very ultimate end of God the very sum and compendium of all those precious thoughts that wrought in the blessed Majesty of Heaven before the foundations of the world were laid thence whatsoever proceeds from God into a believing soul must in some degree or other tend towards the accomplishment of one of those ends So that it must demonstrate it self to proceed from God by one of those three effects if it any way can be proved by its effects to proceed from God himself Only by the way you must take this distinction for prevention of mistakes the dealings of God towards the Saints do either immediately to the exaltation of the Saints and the exaltation of Christ and the manifestation of the Fathers glory or else they tend immediately The Lords promissive will or the Lords sufferance of a Believer to sin doth not immediately manifest any of these yet mediately it doth perfect all that when the Lord doth suffer the soul to slide and fall yet then through the mighty Power of his love to the believing soul in Christ he doth send down the spirit of Jesus Christ so to work in that believing soul that those very falls and slips and backslidings of that believing soul shall produce more watchfulness over his own ways more charity towards others more abominations of those
the Lord to discover to the Soul its union with Christ must necessarily thus Crucifie the Heart to all things so as to be alive to God in Christ only both in regard the Soul apprehends the doleful sinful miscarriages of his Heart about every of those things what sad snares they are to his Spirit and also he beholds the emptiness and nothingness by comparing things temporal with things eternal and he beholds a full object of all contentment wherein all the desires of his Soul may be concerned together in one wherein is all happiness that his Spirit can breath after and he may bless himself in the full enjoyment of it V. The Fifth means whereby the Soul experimentally manifests the fulness of the Lords love so as the name of God is exalted through him is the fulness of contentment that the Soul takes in the enjoyment of the love of God in Christ only in the absence of all things else Now even this also is produced by such a light evidencing to the Soul his union with the Lord Jesus yea so powerful is this contentment of the Heart in the love of God in Christ in the absence of all things else effected by such a light of Heaven discovering to the Soul his union with Christ that the Soul while the beauty and lustre of that light remains takes not only its full contentment but even more than contentment even glorying in his God in Christ in the want of all things That you may see Rom. 5.1 2. Being justified hy faith we have peace with God through our Lord Jesus Christ and not only so but we glory in tribulation also We glory that is we make our boast of God we bless our selves in him we are able to set the love of God in opposition to all things else and even in tribulations themselves to triumph and glory to conceive our selves so filled with excellence that we even boast our selves of him So that thus all those precious acts of a believing soul whereby he declares and manifests the fulness of the Lords love in Christ to unlovely sinners so as the Name of God is exalted through the Soul by that means all those acts are necessarily and infallibly produced by the power of that light from Heaven that doth discover to any Soul his union with the Lord Jesus And so it appears that this may be a second reason from whence a believing Soul may prove that the evidence of his union with the Lord Jesus received is really from God because it causeth the Name of God to be exalted through him Thus we have opened the first way of the Souls manifestation of that glorious love to be in God that God hath revealed to be in himself that is by the Souls manifesting that unspeakable fulness to be in the love of God in Christ to despicable sinners that all perfections and glorious excellencies whatever that could be suitable to a Soul is compleatly contained in it 2. Secondly A Soul doth manifest that glorious love to be in God which God hath revealed to be in himself unto despicable Sinners By discovering or manifesting such an absolute perfection to be in that love of God in Christ to unlovely Sinners as nothing can prevent and hinder or turn away that love When a Soul shall declare that the infinite multitudes of wickedness that his Soul heaped up before his knowledge of God in Christ and all the infirmities and imperfections that abound in his Soul now yet are no hindrance to the working of the Lords love in Christ to his unlovely Soul yea when the Soul shall triumph against imperfections as Paul did against tribulation and say apparently who shall separate this loathsome Soul of mine from that pretious love of God that is in Christ Jesus Shall my deadness hardness vanity looseness Shall my stubborn opposite backsliding disposition my hopocritical false treacherous disposition separate this loveless Soul of mine from the love of God that is in Christ Nay in all these infirmities and imperfections the love of the Lord in Jesus Christ never ceases its working Nay so glorious is the freedom of that love of God in Christ that it breaks through all such oppositions as my vilest Heart makes against it Then is the Name of God exalted in the glory of his love through the Soul Thus did Paul exalt God when he had been acknowledging that in him that is in his flesh dwelt no good thing Rom. 7.8 That not a spark not a disposition not an inclination to comply with the Lords blessed will dwelt in him and declares the mighty operation of the Law of his members which were the cursed dispositions of his Heart against the Law of his mind which was the blessed disposition in his Heart to comply with God when thus I say he declared that the Law that was in his members was so full of power and might that it maintained a strong battel against Jesus Christ yea that it wounded him and made him a Slave and Vassal to that cursed disposition yet then he exalts God by this occasion breaking out thus Rom. 8.1 There is therefore now no condemnation to them which are in Christ Jesus Mark that word now Now seeing the vile rebellious disposition of my vilest Heart cannot turn away the workings of the Lords free love now seeing though my Heart maintain War against the Spirit of Jesus Christ yea such War as leads my Soul Captive also and even enslaves and enthrals and vassalageth me under the power of sin though it be thus yet the love of God in Jesus Christ can never cease it workings He thus declares to the whole World in a kind of triumphing way that the freedom of Gods love is so absolute and perfect that even now though there be such opposition made against the workings of it by the vilest crooked Heart yet there can never be a turning away of that love never a Sentence of Condemnation drawn out by God against any Soul that accepts that his love in Christ This manifestation that there is such an absolute perfection of freedom in the love of God in Christ that nothing can prevent and turn away that love from any soul that embraceth it this is manifested three ways through which the name of God is exalted through the Soul 1. This is manifested by the souls sensible free acknowledgement of its abhorred vileness and loathsomness when the Lord tenders his love in Christ to it yea when the Lord receives his unlovely Soul into the dearest sweetest embrace of his love When the soul shall readily and freely declare nothing but enmity opposition contradiction to the blessed God of Heaven to have been in his vilest heart when that blessed news came down from Heaven to his hopeless Soul that the Lord was ready and willing to admit of reconciliation peace and agreement and love to be between his soul and himself This indeed is a high exaltation of the name of God
were enough to cast them down into the everlasting Lake of burning if the Lord should act in justice with them Hence it is that when Jesus Christ draws forth the sweetest believing actings in the hearts of Believers then they are most ready to accept of any chastisement that the Lord inflicts upon them in respect of their transgressions Lament 3.39 So that thence souls enjoying the clearest beams of light from the spirit of light revealing unto them their union with the Lord Jesus are commonly most filled with acclamations against themselves and all their prayers filled with self-judgings and abhorrings Yea likewise hence it is also that believing souls enjoying the evidences of their union with Jesus Christ are filled with those high admirations and that their souls conceive of the love of God in Jesus Christ to them as a mystery unsearchable past finding out either by Men or Angels because then they apprehend the infinite worthiness of those thousands and ten thousands and Millions of iniquity that they have committed to incense the anger of the Lord against their Souls Yea likewise hence also proceed those enlarged desires after the sweetest meltings of heart for sin from those Souls to whom the spirit of Jesus Christ hath certainly evidenced their union with him But as the Scripture testifies to the truth of this so reason testifies that there cannot but be a connexion between the spirits evidencing to the soul its union with Jesus Christ and the souls sense of worthiness for the least transgression to be punished with everlasting indignation 1. In regard the spirits evidencing unto the soul that it is united to Jesus Christ doth declare and manifest to the soul the equity of a perfect subjection of every soul to the Lords blessed holy will When the spirit bears witness to the soul that the blessed Majesty of Heaven is willing to be reconciled and united to poor despicable rebellious wretches to those whose hearts swell with enmity against the Crown of his glory yea when the spirit testifies that the Lord even seeks and sues for the reconciliation with the soul thence it cannot but be clearly manifested to the Soul that is but infinitely equal that a poor rebellious wretch yea such a desperate enemy to his blessed Majesty should consent to what the Lord propounds Now from this manifestation of the infinite equity of a perfect subjection to be given by every soul to the Lords blessed will from thence there is necessarily such deep apprehensions of the infinite injustice and unsearchable depth of unrighteousness and wickedness that is in the least contradicting that blessed will that the Soul conceives every such transgression or disobedience to that blessed will to be infinitely worthy to be punished with infinite and everlasting indignation 2. The Spirits evidencing unto the Soul that it is united unto Jesus Christ doth declare the absolute perfection of goodness in the Lords blessed will so as it manifests every motion of that will to be absolutely transcendently good When the spirit bears witness unto any soul of its union with Jesus Christ it represents God only as a mass of love in Jesus Christ It represents God willing all kinds and degrees of good unto every Soul that will accept it and thence every act of the Lords blessed will is represented to the Soul as absolutely good now by that means every transgression of the Lords will is represented as in opposition to infinite goodness and thence every transgression cannot but be apprehended as a just occasion for infinite wrath and indignation to burn in its fierceness and extremity against the Soul 3. The Spirits evidencing unto a Soul his union with Christ doth necessarily occasion the soul to declare to the honour of God that the least degree of communion with God causes any Soul to participate in some degree of his holiness This the Apostle testifies in 2. Cor. 3.18 That while they did with open-face behold as in a glass the glory of the Lord they were changed into the same in age from glory to glory that is they are conformed into the likeness of God while they see the beams of his excellency glitter upon them through the great truths of the Gospel of Jesus Christ yea that gradually according as they behold the glory so they are changed also by degrees from glory unto glory from one degree of likeness unto God to another degree Thus likewise the Apostle testifies 1 John 1.5 6. That God is light that is to say that he is holiness itself purely holy nothing but holy and then bears witness that it is impossible for any soul to have the least fellowship with him but we must be partakers of that holiness if we say that we have fellowship with him and walk in darkness we lye and do not the truth as if the Apostle had spoken in these words The Lord is so infinitely transcendently holy such an infinite perfection of holiness dwells in him and an infinite averseness to any thing that is unholy that it is impossible any soul should dwell with him but he must participate of his holiness So in 1 John 2.6 He that saith he abideth in him ought himself also to walk even as he walked So likewise he testifies the same thing again in 1 John 3. 6. Whosoever abideth in him that is united to Jesus Christ hath union and communion with him sinneth not that is he sins not according to the manner that he sinned before his union with Jesus Christ there are other disposition infused into his heart there are some drops of the holiness of Jesus Christ communicated to his Soul through his union with Jesus Christ whosoever sinneth hath not seen him neither knows him that is whoever sins in the same manner that he did when he was void of the knowledge of Christ void of union and communion with him whatever he professeth he had not the experimental knowledge of the love of God that joyned his heart to Christ he never had the true vision of the glory of Jesus Christ he hath not so seen him whereby his Soul was transformed into the likeness of Christ And in regard of this that the spirits evidencing unto the Soul that he is united unto Jesus Christ doth necessarily cause such a declaration that the least degree of communion with God cause the Soul to participate of the holiness of God Thence it is First That the sin and transgression of a Soul enjoying the evidence of his union with Christ is so intollerably burdensom This is the reason why souls enjoying the evidence of their union with Christ melt and break so sweetly under the remembrance of any sin that they are confounded in themselves that they loath and abhor themselves in regard the glory of God is so ecclipsed and thence the remembrance of his own sin wounds so deeply because in effect he by sensual formal unworthy walking doth declare that communion with God doth not make him partaker
with the strength of my Soul after the things before after the height of the vertue of the death and resurrection of Jesus Christ that is the experimental knowledge of the vertue of his death and resurrection that is to say the full communion with Christ in his holiness Fifthly He testifies that he passeth over or leaps over all difficulties all impediments and hindrances in his striving after this perfect conformity to Jesus Christ in his Death and Resurrection which is also contained in that he doth profess towards the mark he doth thrust through all troops of impediments that stand to oppose him in his way and with all the powers and possibilities of his soul extended makes the persuit after the full experience of the vertue of the Death and Resurrection of Jesus Christ Yea likewise he hears witness that every sincere believing soul ought to walk according to this rule to be thus minded ver 15. Let us therefore as many as be perfect be thus minded That is let us thus count of our selves to be infinitely short of that which ought only to satisfie our souls whatever degree of holiness we have apprehended and let us fix our eyes singly and constantly upon the perfect holiness that souls attain to through Communion with Christ in his Death and Resurrection and let us forget all our labours and endeavours and all the degrees of holiness that we have attainted to so as not to satisfy our selves in that measure and degree and let us stretch out our Arms after full Communion with Jesus Christ and let us pass over all difficulties pressing towards the mark the fulness of Conformity to the Lords will which the Lord hath determined to bring beleivers to through Communion with Jesus Christ their Mediatour in his Death and Resurrection Likewise the Apostle John testifies as much in 1 John 3.3 Every one that hath this hope in him purifieth himself even as he is pure Mark what hope he speaks of The second verse tells you saith he we are the Sons of God and we know that when Christ appears we shall be like him for we shall see him as he is So that the hope that he speaks of is the hope of Adoption the hope of their union with Christ the first-born of all the Elect ones and the hope of their perfect Union and Communion with Jesus Christ in the highest Heavens Now mark what the effect of this hope is Those that have received this hope infused from the spirit of Jesus Christ it occasions the souls to purify themselves as Jesus Christ is pure that is all one as God the Father is pure Christ being but the express image of his Father The Apostle means not that actually any soul having such an evidence of his union with Christ from the spirit as produceth that blessed hope in him is actually purified according to purification of purity that is in Christ But he means that the soul into whom this hope of his union with Christ is infused doth desire breath after long for endeavour with all the intentions of his soul the same purity that is in Jesus Christ satisfying his soul with no degree no measure less then the fulness of likeness unto Jesus Christ himself Likewise it is evident that the spirit revealing unto any soul his union with Christ doth occasion the soul to declare that a conformity to the will of God is the only satisfying object of the desires of any soul in regard the spirit of Christ makes the promises of union and Communion with God in Christ to be the motive unto perfection of holiness 2 Cor. 7.1 Now if the very propounding of the promise be that which excites an heart unto perfect holiness perfect Conformity to the Lords will then much more must the sense of the souls interest of Union and Communion with God in Christ necessarily constrain a soul to pursue with all his strength after perfection of conformity to the Lords will and to declare that no less then Conformity to the Lords will perfectly ought to satisfie the desires of any soul And likewise it might be evident from the very prayer of the Apostle that he always made for believing souls which was for their perfect Conformity to the Lords will 1 Thes 5.23 Now the very God of Peaee sanctify you wholly in Spirit Soul and Body And he prays that they might be filled with the fulness of God Eph. 4.19 And as Scripture thus Testifies that God is thus exalted in his holiness in any soul to whom the spirit doth reveal its union with Jesus Christ by that souls declaring that a Conformity to the Lords will perfectly ought only to satisfy the desires of any soul So likewise the experience of souls receiving the evidence from the spirit of their union with Christ bears Witness of the same I. Hence it is that those souls that injoy the Evidences of ther union with Christ are unsatisfyed with their most holy duties and acts of purest Obedience to the Lords blessed will So that souls injoying their union with Christ are always complaining of Imperfections and wants in their most holy actings And 1. Hence it is that we shall hear constantly those pretious souls complain with much Bitterness of the narrowness and straitness of the working of their wills in Conformity to the Lords Will. 2. You shall hear them always complaining when Assisted most mightily by the spirit of Christ of their want of singleness of Simplicity of heart in their wills conforming to the Lords will 3. They are constantly complaining of the want of liberty of spirit in the compliance of their wills with the Lords blessed will This David Intimates when cries out 51.12 Restore to me the Joy of thy Salvation and Establish me with thy free Spirit He Apprehended his spirit to be much under Bondage and Thraldom and with much earnestness he desires Communion with God again 4. Hence those souls are always sadly complaining in their acts of purest obedience of their want of fixedness and stability of the workings of the disposition of their wills to comply with Gods will 5. You shall hear them complain of the Weakness and Imperfection of the inward acts of the most pure Obedience that their souls render of the Imperfection of their desires in prayer even when they are drawn out by a mighty power from the spirit of Christ II. It is from hence also that souls injoying the evidence of their union with the Lord Jesus are perpetually groaning after a fuller measure of the sanctifying spirit of Jesus Christ in what measure soever the sanctifying spirit is poured out upon them Thus David often in the 119. Psalm begs for quickening which in a word is but this Lord send down more of the spirit of Life and Holiness from the Lord Jesus Yea this you may observe from the workings of the spirit of the great Apostle Paul Rom 7. how his soul groans after a larger portion of the sanctifying