"vation." When Chrift hath once taken poffeffion of the foul by his fpirit, he fortifies it by his power, as a garrison: that ufing the means, it be furprized or betrayed no more into the enemy's hand, fo as finally to be loft.

He builds this confidence alfo upon the promises of God, which are his fecurity in future dangers: And how are all the pages of the Bible befpangled with fuch promises, as the firmament is with bright and glorious ftars? Such are thefe of the first magnitude, 1 Cor. i. 8, 9. "Chrift fhall confirm you to "the end, that ye may be blameless in the day of our Lord "Jefus Chrift. God is faithful, by whom ye are called unto "the fellowship of his Son Jefus Chrift our Lord." And no lefs fatisfying and fweet is that, Jer. xxxii. 40. " And I will "make an everlasting covenant with them, that I will not turn "away from them to do them good; but I will put my fear in "their hearts, that they fhall not depart from me." And of the fame nature is that alfo, John x. 27, 28. My fheep hear "my voice, and I know them, and they follow me, and I give "unto them eternal life; and they shall never perish, neither "fhall any man pluck them out of my hand.'

If there be any hypocrite in theeps-cloathing, he hath no part or lot in this promife; but it fecures the whole flock of Christ, great and small, against all danger.

He also builds his affurance upon the faithfulness of God, which stands engaged to make good every line, word, and fyllable of his promises to his people; fo we find, in 1 Cor. x. 13. "There hath no temptation taken you but fuch as is com mon to man ; but God is faithful, who will not fuffer you to "be tempted above that ye are able; but will with every temp"tation make a way to escape, that ye may be able to bear "it." And, 2 Thef. iii. 3." But the Lord is faithful, who "shall establish you, and keep you from evil."

Add to this, the conftant prevalent interceffion of Chrift in heaven for his people, in all their trials, and then you will fee a fincere Chriftian need not to deny himself the joy and comfort of his affurance, upon the account and fuppofition of his future trials.

Caution 2.

NOR

OR do we here fuppofe, in this affertion, that inherent grace in the faints hath a fufficiency of ability in itself to endure the greatest and severest trials that can befal it in this world. It is certain that it fhall

be carried fafely through all, but not in its own ftrength and ability.

That is a true obfervation of the learned Gerfon, Perfectiones fibi relicta, funt pondera ad ruinam: The most perfect creature left to itself, will fall into ruin. This was exemplified in the angels that fell; and in Adam, though in a perfect state. Divine preservation is the prop which supports the best creatures from ruin. Grace itself is but a creature, and therefore a dependent being: It is but a ftream, depending upon the fupply of the fountain: If the fountain let not forth itself, what becomes of the ftream? That is a true and judicious obfervation of the learned Dr. Ames, Perfeverantia fidelium, vel immutabilis eorum conditio fecundum integram ejus rationem, non pervenit a principio intrinfeco folo, nec a folo extrinfeco; fed partim ab intrinfeco, ex natura vita fpiritualis a Chrifto fluentis, et partim ab extrinfeco, ex cuftodia, protectione et directione Dei; Amefii Coronis, Art. 5. The perfeverance of believers, or the immutability of their condition, if we view the whole ground and reason of it, is not wholly from within, or wholly from without itself; but partly from the nature of the fpiritual life which flows. from Chift into them, and partly from the keeping, protection, and direction of God: That protection is always afforded to this life of grace; and this life of grace always needs that protection. The best of men are but men at beft, as one Ipeaks: It was not Peter's grace and resolution that kept him, but Chrift's care of him and interceffion for him, Luke xxii. 32. "Be strong in the Lord, (faith the apostle) and in the power "of his might," Ephef. vi. 10. "Without me (faith Chrift) 66 ye can do nothing," John xv. 5.

Neither of thefe is that which I have before me to prove ; but this is that which I aim at, that such seeming grace as was never yet brought to the trial, nor will be able to bear the trial, when God fhall bring it thereto, must not pass for current (as too frequently it doth) among us: Such grace will neither comfort us now, nor fave us hereafter: For,

I.

F

SECT. III.

IRST, great numbers of perfons in the profeffing world are deceived and deftroyed by trufting to feeming and untried grace: this was the miferable condition of those Laodicean profeffors in the text; they reckoned themselves. rich, but were really poor: All is not gold that glifters; their gold (as they accounted it) was never tried in the fire. If -a man's whole eftate lay in fome precious ftone, suppose a rich

diamond, how is he concerned to have it thoroughly tried, to fee whether it will bear a smart stroke with a hammer, or fly like a Bristol diamond under it? All that you are worth lies in the truth and fincerity of your grace; and till that be tried you know not whether you be worth any thing or nes thing.

Reader, There are two fad fights in the world, which cannot but deeply affect every upright heart: one is to fee fo many thousands of rational and ingenious men in the Romish church, by an implicit faith in their guides, venturing their fouls upon their bare word; never fearching the fcriptures with their own eyes, but wholly trufting to the infallibility of a pope or a council; when, in the mean time, they would fear to take their word for a fum of money, without fome further fecurity. It is amazing to behold the foul-deftroying, eafy credulity of thofe men; but this is a stroke of madness and fpiritual infatu ation, judicially inflicted upon them, that the judgment which is written might be fulfilled in them, "God fhall fend them « ftrong delusions, that they should believe a lie,” 2 Thef. ii.

· IV.

And yet more amazing is that stroke of God upon multitudes of vain and formal profeffors even in the reformed Prote ftant churches, where no man is reftrained from fearching the fcriptures; nay, where men are fo frequently and earnestly preffed, from fabbath to sabbath, to examine themselves, and prove their own work, that yet so many are content to leave all at hazard, and without any more ado, or farther fearch in the matter, eredit the report of their own deceitful hearts, and take all for granted, without due trial or examination of the matter.

Surely, no one thing fends down more fouls daily to hell out of the profeffing world, than this doth. The five foolish vir gins (i. e. the unprincipled profeffors in the reformed churches) perifhed this way; they took it for granted all was well, because they had lamps of profeffon as well as others; and faw not the cheat till the cry was heard at midnight, and their unfurnished lamps went out, Matth. xxv.

2. Secondly, The promises of falvation are made over to tried grace, and fuch only as will endure the trial: So James i. 12. "Bleffed is the man that endureth temptation; for when he is ❝ tried he shall receive the crown of life which God hath pro"mised to them that love him" We must be first tried, and then crowned. "If a man ftrive for mafteries, yet is he not ❝ crowned, except he ftrive lawfully," 2 Tim. ii. 5. He manifeftly alludes to the Roman games, to which there were judg

es appointed to fee that no foul play were offered contrary to the law for wreftling; and where it was found, the crown was denied them. Not to him that fets forth in the morning with refolution and gallantry, but to him that holds out till the evening of his life, is the promise made; Matth. x. 22. "He that "endureth to the end fhall be faved." So Rom. ii. 7. "To "them who by patient continuance in well-doing feek for glo"ry, and honour, and immortality, eternal life." And once more, Heb. iii. 14. "We are made partakers of Chrift, if we "hold the beginning of our confidence ftedfast unto the end.” So that if you should endure some few flighter troubles, and faint at last, give out when a clofer trial befals you, all your labours and sufferings are in vain. Sincerity and final perseverance are the conditions of all special promises.

3. Thirdly, Every man's graces and duties must be tried and weighed by God in the great day; and if they cannot endure thefe leffer trials to which God expofes them now, how will they endure that severe and exact trial to which he will bring them then? No man can fearch his own heart with that exactnefs in this world, as God will search it in the world to come.

may fay in this cafe to you as the Lord spake to Jeremiah, chap. xii. 5. "If thou haft run with the footmen, and they have "wearied thee, then how canft thou contend with horses? and "if in the land of peace, wherein thou trustedst, they have swearied thee, then how wilt thou do in the fwelling of Jor"dan?" This was fpoken to encourage the prophet to constancy in his work; and as if the Lord had faid, O Jeremy, do the ftrivings of the men of Anathoth, thine own town, difhearten thee? Pluck up thy fpirits, and faint not; there are harder trials than these that thou must undergo at Jerufalem; thefe are no more, to what is coming, than the running with footmen is to contending with horfes, or the paffing a small rivulet to the fwellings of Jordan.

To allude to this; if our graces and duties cannot bear these lighter trials; if a little lift of prosperity, or lighter stroke of adverfity discover so much falseness, rottennefs, pride and felfishness in the heart; if we cannot refift the motions of corruptions, but yield ourselves to obey fin in the lufts of it; if we can neither keep our hearts with God in duties, nor mourn for our wanderings from him; if a few scoffs from wicked tongues, or trials of perfecution from the hands of men will cause us to faint in the way, and turn back from following the Lord, what fhall we do when He comes, whofe fan is in his hand, and VOL. VII.

"who will thoroughly purge his floor;" Matth. iii. 12. who will try every man's work as by fire, 1 Cor. iii. 13. fearch the fecrets of all hearts, Rom. ii. 16. weigh every man to his ounces and drachms? furely we can take little comfort in that which is fo unable to bear the fevere trials of that day, that it cannot fland before the flighter trials of this day.

4. Fourthly, True grace is willing to be tried, and nothing is more desirable to an upright, soul, than to know his own condition: if therefore we fhun the trial, and are both to search ourfelves, or be fearched by the Lord, our condition is fufpicious, and we can take little comfort in it. It was David's earneft defire, Pfalm exxxix. 23. that God would thoroughly "fearch his heart and reins, and fee if there were any way of wickedness in him. False grace is thy of God's eye, it cares not to be examined; but this is the delight of fincere ones: "Every one that doth evil hateth the light, left his deeds should "be reproved; but he that doth truth, cometh to the light, "that his deeds may be made manifeft, that they are wronght -" in God," John iii. 20, 21.

The reafon is plain why hypocrify cannot endure to come to the touchffone and teft; for hypocrites, having a fecret consciousness of their own guilt and unfoundness, know that, by this means, their vain confidence would quickly be confut ed, and all their reputation for religion blasted. But, oh! if men dare not stand before the word, as it is now opened and applied by minifters, how will they stand when it shall be opened and applied, in another manner, by Jefus Chrift? ·

O profeffor, if thy condition be good, thy heart right, thou wilt defire to know the very worst of thyself; and when thou haft made the deepest search thou canft, thou wilt ftill fear thou haft not been severe enough, and impartial enough to thyfelf; nothing will give thee more content than where thou feelest the word dividing thy foul and spirit, thy joints and marrow; nothing fo much comforts thee under, or after an affliction, as the difcovery it hath made of my heart; thou wilt seem to feel with what affection those words came from the prophet's lips, Jer. xii. 2. "But thou, O Lord, knoweft me, thou haft seen "me, and tried my heart towards thee.” · O what a refreshing fweetnefs will ftream through thy heart, and all the powers of thy foul, when thou canst make the like appeal to God with like fincerity! And certainly, without fuch a difpofition of fpirit towards the trial of our graces, we can have little evidence of the truth of them.