ther, that in him should all fullness dwell, and when thou art content to live out of thyself upon his fullness for the supply of all thy needs in time and in eternity. To live thus upon him is his glory, and it is thy privilege, thy interest, and thy happiness. In every state, spiritual and temporal, and in every circumstance, thou canst possibly be in, thou art to look up toChrist, that thou mayest receive out of his fullness. Depend upon him to save thee from every evil, and to bestow upon thee every good. In thy walk heavenwards, and in every thing thou meetest with by the way, put thy trust in Christ, and expect from him the fulfilling of all his promises. He has all power in heaven and earth for that very purpose. Still rely upon him, and cast thy burdens on him, when thou art tempted, when old corruptions arise, when the world and the devil assault thee, when under a sense of weakness and dullness in duty, when in darkness and desertion, in persecution and trouble, in pain and poverty, in sickness and death. This is the life of faith. Thou wilt live like a christian indeed, if, being in any of these cases, thou believest, that Christ is able, because he is

Almighty, and willing, because he has promised to supply thy wants, and thou canst trust in him for that supply. Depend upon it, thou shalt have it, and it shall be done unto thee according to his word. After the believer is become one with Christ, and through him has attained a right to all the riches of grace, and may by faith make use of them as his own, why is he so long in learning this lesson perfectly? Being adopted into the heavenly family, and an heir of the heavenly inheritance, why does not he immediately live up to his privilege, and to his estate? His title is good. The inheritance is sure. All things are become his: for all fulness is in Christ, and by virtue of his union with Christ, this fulness is his, and he may by faith be always receiving out of it every grace and blessing, which Christ has promised: why then does not he at once attain to this happy life of faith? Sad experience proves that young believers do not. They meet with so many difficulties, that they grow up slowly into Christ in all things. They do not attain to a solid establishment in the faith in a day. Enemies without and within stop their progress, insomuch that they often

continue little children for a long time. They have the same right to Christ, the same privileges, and the same promised grace, which young men and fathers in Christ have, but they have not learned by experience how to improve their interest in him, and to make the most of it. The difficulties and temptations, which weaken their hold of Christ, and stop their growth in him are many; some of the chief are these.

1. They continue little children and weak in faith, because they do not presently attain a solid acquaintance with the person of Christ, and are not thoroughly satisfied, how able he was and sufficient for every thing he undertook, and how perfectly he has finished every part of his work.

2. This keeps them ignorant of his salvation; they have not clear believing views of its fullness, and of its freeness:

3. By which means they labour under many doubts about the manner of their receiving this salvation. A legal spirit working with their unbelief puts them upon reasonings continually against being saved freely by grace through faith; and,

4thly, These legal unbelieving reasonings gain great power from their unskilfulness in their warfare between nature and grace, the old man and the new, the flesh and the spirit, and,

5th, All these difficulties are mightily strengthened from their hearkening to sense, and trusting to its reports more than to the word of God. While believers are under these difficulties, their faith meets with many checks in its growth, and until they be enabled to overcome them, they continue to be little children in Christ. Their weak faith receives but little from Christ, and it continues weak, because they have but little dependance upon the effectual working of Christ's mighty power. The exceeding greatness of his power is able to strengthen them, and he has promised it, but they dare not trust him. Consider therefore, reader, if thou art one of these babes, why thou dost not grow up faster into Christ. The

First thing that stops thee is the ignorance which is in thy mind about his person, and the prejudices against him, which is in thy carnal heart. These are in all men by nature; and these Satan will work

upon, in order to hinder the increase of thy faith. He will use all his cunning and his power to keep thee from that knowledge of Christ, which is eternal life. He will inject into thy heart blasphemous thoughts against his Godhead, and when thou art reading in Scripture, or hearing about his being God manifest in the flesh, he will try to puzzle and perplex thy imagination, with-How can these things be? He will represent the union of the two natures in Christ as a thing not to be understood, and as if they who believed it with the clearest evidence of God's word and Spirit, had only some fancy about it. He has an old grudge against Christ, and will not scruple to tell any lies of him. He was a liar from the beginning, and abode not in the truth. Regard him not. Mind what the word of truth says, and pray that thou mayest understand it: for the more thou knowest of the Lord Christ, that blessed God-man, the more wilt thou be settled, and established in him. It is written of him, first, that he is God, true and very God, in the holy blessed and glorious Trinity a person co-equal and coeternal with the Father, and the holy Spirit,