Simile.

Obj.

Sol.

Simile.

bottom within the fubject, may spring forth with some ease: a ftone having a natural propenfion and impetus to defcend, if you do but quit the hand of it, it will down; but now to make a mighty ftone to mount the hill, to get up into the air, there being no natural aptneffe to this, it is a hard and difficult

attempt.

'Tis true, that a man hath an understanding and will, but the Mystery of Jefus Chrift is a riddle to the natural understanding the faculties naturally confidered, have no elevation to this object, unleffe the Lord by his Almighty power begets and works faith in the foul. The foule thinks not on him, neither can it draw it felf to him. Like the needle, untill it be touched, it will not start up towards the pole; fo unleffe the Lord doth touch our hearts by his bleffed Spirit, we fall never clofe with Chrift...

So then, this is one thing to fhew the difficulty of beleeving, the habit of it is out of our power, out of our fphear;it cannot be produced by any ftrength of nature, but by the fole Arme of God. Hence that of the Prophet, /a.53 1. Unto whom is the Arme of the Lord revealed? who hath beleeved our report? The testimony of the Gospel concerning Chrift will not be beleeved,unieffe the Lord doth reveale his own Arme, (that is) until he doth put forth his own Almighty ftrength.

2. There is a natural principle of infidelity and unbelief in every mans heart.If the paper were faire, if there were no precedent blurs and blots,then it were not fo hard to imprint fome legible Characters; Or if the wax were foft, and the iron heated, now it were cafie to engrave what kinde of armes the Artifier pleafeth; But when the wax and the iron are hard and cold,now the impreffion is difficult, because the resistance is strong; if there were in our hearts any obediential principles, which could before hand temper the minde, and frame the will, then when God offers Chrift, little-a do would ferve the turne; But our hearts naturally bend the other way; there is in us a natural unaptneffe, nay, an enmity to beleeve. Enmity to the habit and nature of faith, blindnesse, errour, pride, ftubbornneffe, disobedience in our hearts. We have fuch flow and untoward hearts, fo armed with all forts of corrupt reafonings, fo confulting with fenfe and rational evidences, so ready on every inevidence,

to

to mistrust, doubt, question, gainfay, that all Arguments will not perfwade us that God will give us Chrift, and pardon our finnes. You know that when the Lord fefus was per fonally on earth, and did preach himself, and in that manner, that none (pake with that Authority as he, and confirmed the truth of his Divinity, and Mediatorship by Scripture and miracles, yet very few beleeved, (hiftorically) that he was the Chrift, that he was the Sonne of God. Take me now a person, who is fenfible of his finful guilts; Tell hin of the need he hath of a Saviour, he will grant it, reprefent unto him the sufferings, the excellency, the tenderneffe of the Lord Jefus, that he is the Mediator, the Propitiation for finnes, that Remillion of finnes is in his blood,both intenfively, for the great degrees and aggravations of finne, and extensively, for the feveral kindes of finne. Tell him, that the Lord Jesus came to seek fuck a loft perfon as he, that he came to loose fuch a captive as he, that he came to binde up fuch a broken spirit as he is, that he came to cafe and refresh fuch a burdened and laden foul; Yea, and answer objection after objection, doubt after doubt, fear after fear, that the perfon cannot put by the arguments why he should beleeve, nor urge and reinforce his reafons, why he should hold off from clofing with Chrift, and putting his foule on him, yet this we finde, he cannot (when all is faid) he cannot beleeve. Unbelief doth throw up to many mifts, and so many feares, and is (many times) fo unreasonable, that yet it will hold off the heart. Neither the goodneffe of God,nor the truths of God,nor the mercies of God,nor the freeness of them,nor the person of Christ, nor the merits of Chrift, nor the tendernesse of Chrift, nor the gracious offer, invitation, command, threatning of Chrift, will make the heart to come in unto him.

3. There is a natural oppofition, in the Heart against Christ,and therfore it is hard to beleeve on him. The oppofition is manifold. First, to his Perfon,the Lord Jefus Chrift is an boly Perfon, and A fourfold op. none can take him in truth, but must take him fo, to be holy pofition. as he is holy. He is the holy one of God, and he is called the boly Child fefus, and an holy, undefiled high Priest, /eparated from finners. Now the heart (nsturally) is in love with finne and Chrift tells us that this very thing is a caufe why men beleeve not: See John 3.19. This is the condemnation, that light

M

A double ftate of Chrift.

is come into the world, and men loved darknesse rather then light. Chiift comes thus to a man, I am he who will fave thy foule if thou wilt take me, but then know, that I am an holy perfon; if thou wilt have me thou must let go thy finnes; Now this breaks off the match, hinders the bargain,this goes to the heart: A man naturally will as foon part with his life, as with the fin

of his love.

Secondly, to his condition: There is a double condition of Chrift, one is Triumphant, another is Militant; Gloria in excelfi, that is, the triumphant condition, Tubulationes in Terris, that is the militant condition; the Crown of Glory, that is the triumphant condition; the Crown of Thornes, that is the militant condition.

Now the heart naturally is unfuffering: It is a terrour to it to speak of afflictions, forrowes forrowes, reproaches, loffes; We are willing to enjoy the world, to tafte of pleasures, to handle profits, to reft in cafe, to walk at liber. ty, to rejoyce with our Friends, to be spread abroad with high eftimations. The young man when Chrift bade him fell all that he had, and give it to the poore, (It was præceptum experimentale) be goes away forrowfull.

Thirdly, to the Scepter and Government of Christ; we will not have this man Reigne over us, fay they; and you reade in Pfalme 2. How they did confult to break his bands afunder. The Scepter of Chrift is Heavenly, and his Lawes are fpiritual, and his Wayes are righteous and Atraight, they lay injunctions on the inward man, as well as on the outward converfation, and binde the thoughts, and the intentions and affections. Now what do you meane, to pinne up a spirit which would have elbow roome? what, would you have a licentious heart, and a turning and winding confcience, to be precifed, and narrowed, and restrained, and fo every way ftraitened? You must give it leave to break the Sabbath to improve its gaines difhoneftly, to fweare now and then, and to comply, &c.

Fourthly, to the Righteousnesse of Chrift. O what a do had that blessed Apoftle with the Romanes, with the Gala

tians, with others, to break them off from luftification by Works; And to faften upon their hearts the Juftification by Faith.

We are apt to stand upon our felves, and to look for the matter of our acceptance and acquittance in our felves on man; he thinks that his good meaning fhall make him speede Another thinks that his doing no body any barme will let him into Heaven, or elfe God help us; Another flands on his devout Sacrifices; Another on bis charitable bounties; Yea, and those who should know better in the Doctrine of Juftification, how extreamly do they cling to their inherent Graces? much a do, before they can be made to caft their Crowns to the earth,and to give the glory only to Christ who is Worthy. What paines is God forced to take to break us off from our felves? we are so proud, and fo unwilling to be beholding to Gods free grace, and Chrift, that God is faine to break our heart to pieces, and to split our ship into shivers,that we might only to Chrift.

He muft imprint the holy and mighty vigour of the Law on our consciences,to fhew us our utter impotency, and fenfibly ac quaint us with our marvellous imperfections in graces, and interruptions in duties, and excurfions of daily finnings, and all to fetch us entirely, to caft our safeties only on the righteoulneffe of Jefus Chrift

Econdly,as it is hard to believe,so it is eafie to mistake, and delude our felves in the matter of believing: Four things make it to be fo.

1. One is the various kindes of faith.

2. Another is the confimilitude of one of the extreams of faith.

3. The cafineffe of both. And,

4. the aptneffe in our hearts to be satisfied with these.

First there are divers kindes of faith: As the Apostle fpake of bodies, all bodies are not the fame bodies, but there are bodies Caeleftial, and bodies Terrestial; fo I fay of Faith, all faith, (I speak of habitual faith) is not the fame kinde of faith, we read of a Faith which the Devils have, and we read of a Faith which the Hypocrites have, and we read of a Faith which even (hrifts enemies (whom he did not dare to truft) had,and we read of a Precious Faith, a Faith of Gods Elect, a justifying and Saving faith. Divines ordinarily diftinguifh of faith;

There is an Hiftorical faith, which is a crediting the word relating, but not an embracing of it promifing; it is like the paffing through a Garden, and obferving and smelling, but not a flower is gathered, fo in Hiftorical Faith, the eye of the understanding goes over the Word of God, and hath fome apprehenfions, and general grants, and intellectual fubmiffions, that God doth not lye, but what he faith is true. Nevertheleffe, there is not that quality of juftifying faith in this which makes the heart to

clofe