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And thus you see what an advantage it is against temptation to infidelity, to have the impress of the Gospel of Christ on our hearts, and the witness in ourselves.

Sect. XV.

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2. So if the tempter should persuade such a man to doubt whether the Gospel be true, or be God's word, this believer may have recourse into his soul for a testimony of it; thence he can tell the tempter, by experience, that he hath found the promises of this Gospel made good to him. Christ hath there promised to send his Spirit into the souls of his people, and so he hath done by me; he hath promised to give light to them that sit in darkness, and to guide their feet into the ways of peace; to bind up the broken-hearted, and set at liberty the captives; and all this he hath fulfilled upon me: all that he hath spoken about the power of his word and grace, and the nature of its effects, I have found upon myself. The help which he promised in temptations, the hearing of prayers, the relief in distress; all these I have found performed; and, therefore, I know that the Gospel is true.'

3. If the tempter would persuade you that there was no need of a Redeemer, the believer hath a testimony of the contrary in himself. Experimentally he hath been convinced of the need of a Redeemer, and so hath advantage against this temptation.

4. If the tempter would persuade you that Christ came but to seek himself, and only to be believed on, and magnified in the world, here also the true believer hath the witness in himself, from whence he can conclude, and prove, that Christ came into the world to save sinners, to be a physician to the sick, to seek and to save that which was lost, and to pull down the kingdom and powers of darkness: for of all these he hath experience in himself, and from hence may sufficiently repel this temptation.

5. If any should question whether there be, indeed, such a thing as a sanctifying Spirit of Christ sent forth into the souls of believers, to recover them to God (as many carnal persons, and deceivers of late, do,) the true believer may have recourse to his own heart, and prove the thing by the testimony within him. He can think of the sins that this Spirit hath mortified, and of the heavenly image which it hath planted on his soul, and the discoveries and changes which it hath made within him, which flesh and blood could not have made, and thus can experimentally confute such deceivers.

Thus you may perceive, that it is the duty of the saints to fetch arguments from within them, for the repelling of such temptations, and the confutation of all suggestions to unbelief: and here, if ever, to show ourselves instructed to the kingdom of God, by fetching out of our treasure things new and old. If the wiser heathens, yea, almost all the pagan world, could gather that there was some life for us after this, from those small sparks of virtue which they found in man's nature, how much more easily and solidly may we conclude, both this and much more, from the spiritual principles, inclinations, and actions, which are wrought on the souls of the sanctified, by the grace of Christ, and the power of the Gospel? Doubtless, there is something within a true Christian that takes part with Christ against all contradictors, as there was something in the new-created man, Adam, that would have taken part with God, if any had denied the Godhead: yea, and as there is something yet in the common sort of mankind, that would make them rise up against him that should be a professed atheist. Do not tempt God, upon confidence of this, by thrusting yourselves into the mouth of temptation, or lending your ears to heretical deceivers or infidels; but if you are cast upon such temptations, make use of this antidote, and observe whether there be not somewhat within you, that contradicteth the seducer, and riseth up against the blasphemies which are suggested? If a child should be persuaded to think ill of his own father, whatever arguments were brought to persuade him, the very natural love of a child would contradict them, and much advantage him against any slanderous reports that might be raised of him. Another man that neither so well knoweth him, or loveth him, would be far more easily drawn to believe them ; but there is somewhat within him that will not let a child believe them so easily. If a deceiver should say to him, ' This man is not thy father, and hath nothing to do with thee; he meaneth but to undo thee, and desireth not thy good,' would not something within, even natural love, and experience of his father's kindness, establish a son from crediting such a deceiver? Believers have an inward rooted love to Christ. They love him above father, mother, house, land, or their own lives. They have tasted also and tried how good he is and is it easy to break these bonds, and make such an one believe that the Gospel is false, or that Christ is not indeed the Messiah? When Christ standeth without, and knocks at the door of men's hearts, he then pleadeth but his

right for admittance, and though his arguments be very cogent with evidence, and he fully proveth all that he saith, yet it is less wonder that he is kept out by unbelief, because, though he have the right, yet his enemy hath the possession. But in a true believer, Christ hath possession, as well as right: and, therefore, it will be harder for the enemy to dispossess him, by drawing that soul again to infidelity. His Spirit keeps possession; his graces all keep possession; his precepts and promises also without, do hold them to their allegiance. His threatenings awe them, and are as a wall of fire before them, and they have their eyes opened to see the angel with the sword. He telleth them, that if any man draw back, his soul shall have no pleasure in him. (Heb. x. 38.) That it is impossible for those who were once enlightened, and have tasted of the heavenly gift, 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 shall fall away, to renew them again unto repentance, seeing they crucify to themselves the Son of God afresh, and put him to an open shame. (Heb. vi. 4, 5, 6.) I see no necessity that this must be understood of the unregenerate and unjustified; yet doth it not affirm, that eventually any sanctified, justified person shall come into this sad condition, but it warneth them that they do not, and telleth them the danger, that hereby it may be prevented for Christ causeth his people's perseverance, by telling them of the possibility, facility, and danger, in itself, of not persevering. So that all these advantages do fortify a true believer against infidelity: but especially in that the precepts, and promises, and threatenings of Christ's law, are all written over again in his heart: these are they that hold fast. A precept, and promise, and threatening in the Bible, may do much; but when a true Christian is tempted to unbelief, he can say, 'There is a precept to the contrary written in my heart: there is a threatening against infidelity written in my heart: there is a promise to believers written in my heart. How then can I do this great evil and sin against the law that is within me and the Lord that doth possess me?

You see, then, what hope the devil hath to speed by such temptations, and where it is, that the upstart generation of cunning infidels in this age, here in England, must seek their prey, and find matter to make unhappy proselytes of; not among the experienced, well-grounded, renewed, and truly regenerate ones, that have a Christ in their hearts, as well as

his name in their books, but among those that are merely nominal, titular, traditional and superficial Christians of such as these is their apostatized party composed.

Obj. But some that have seemed as godly and experienced Christians as the best, have of late fallen to deny Christ and everlasting life.

Answ. 1. All seemers have not the witness in themselves, nor the law of Christ put into their hearts.

2. I hope some of those that deny the fundamentals opiniatively and speculatively, may hold them virtually and practically; and that their infidelity is not yet rooted or habituated, nor hath extirpated the better habits which were in them, though it have so far prevailed with their fantasies, opinions, and tongues.

3. If it were proved that some true believers do apostatize unto perdition, yet would the doctrine which we are upon remain unshaken, that it is a great advantage against temptations to unbelief, to have the witness in ourselves.

Sect. XVI.

Obj. May not a Turk or a pagan say the like, that there is something within them that dissuadeth them from a change; and resisteth all motions that would draw them from their religion? That is, there is prejudice, through education, custom, company, and interests, and prepossession; and there is a kind of love to their own idols, and conceits hereupon. And what is yours more than this?

Answ. My answer consisteth of two parts, which I desire you to observe together. 1. It is easy to possess men with prejudice, and with love, and friendship, to a false teacher, false religion, or way, which hath nothing in nature against it, but for it; but it is not easy to possess men with the like persuasions and affections to that which nature is not for but against. If Mahomet will promise men dominion on earth, and sensual felicity after that they are dead, and make a sensual life to be the way to it, what wonder if nature be easily drawn to this religion? Here is much in carnal hearts to befriend it, but little to gainsay it. But if Christ call men from all their pleasing sins, and instead of satisfying their flesh do require them to take it as their enemy, and to crucify it; and instead of making them great in the world, do call them to leave all, and deny themselves, and take up their cross and follow him, if

they will be his disciples; and setteth men upon high and spiritual employments, and all in hope of a reward, which is unseen here flesh and blood will resist; carnal nature will rise up against it; this will not easily down, till more than human strength effect it; so that you may see the case is so different between the christian religion and others, that it will no way follow, that we may love Christ without a supernatural work, because a man may love Mahomet without it.

2. And further note, that we do make a great difference among Christians themselves, between those that believe and love Christ merely upon such prejudice, custom, or interest; and those that believe in him, and love him sincerely, and upon right grounds. And we confess, that those of the former, being but superficial and seeming Christians, may be drawn away to infidelity: but what is that to their case, that have a true faith and love? There is a double difference between these and the other one in the object of their faith and love, and another in the act. For, first, it is but the cheap and easy part of the christian religion, which those customary professors do indeed entertain in love; and so they love Christ but as the author of these and so they make another thing of christian religion in their conceits, than indeed it is; and it is not indeed that religion which they embrace or love, but the name of it, and some parcels torn from the rest; but it is not so with the sincere and then, secondly, it is but a superficial, dreaming, ineffectual belief, that they receive the very history of the rest; and therefore not accepted by a sovereign love.

Such a faith and love as Mahometans have to Mahomet, such many seeming Christians have to Christ; and these are not the confirmed ones, by the testimony in themselves. But such a rooted faith and love, as is proper to the saints, in one that so crosseth their carnal inclinations and interests, as is aforesaid; this cannot be found in any but in Christians. Men of other religions have no such object for faith and love, and no faith or love for such an object.

Consider, also, that so much of God as there is remaining, even in those religions which otherwise are false; so much, it is, even by the professors of it, resisted and opposed, in the points that are cross to carnal interests and inclinations and, therefore, we find that even among the heathens, as Seneca and others tell us, an abstemious, temperate, contemplative man, that would not do evil as freely as others, was the common

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