all the feveral steps of condefcenfion and humiliation; in all the tenderness and tranfports of his paffion; in all the melancholy fcenes of his fufferings, and the bright and chearful ones of his glory. This is the faith that fets us free.

3. We must not ftop in faith, till it be made perfect in love. We muft meditate divine truths till they have fired our fouls; till they have enkindled our affections; till we be poffeffed by an ardent love of God, of Jefus, of righteoufnefs, and of heaven; till all our other defires and paffions be converted into, and swallowed up of love; till God becomes the center of our fouls; and in him we reft, in him we glory, and in him we rejoyce. O love! how great and glorious are the things that are faid of thee! 'tis thou who doft impregnate and animate faith itself: 'tis thou who doft furmount the difficulties of duty, and make the yoke of Chrift easy, and his burden light: 'tis thou, who doft caft out fear, and make religion full of pleasure 'tis thou, that doft make us watchful againft temptations, and impatient under the interruptions of duty: 'tis thou, that makeft us difrelish the pleasures of this world, and long to be diffolved and to be with Chrift. Here is the liberty of the fons of God. Bleffed are they, even in this world, who attain it. But one caution

I

I must here add, that our love must not be a flash, a fit; but a fteddy and well-fetled affection; an affection that has the warmth of paffion, and the firmness of habit. We must therefore, by repeated meditations and prayers, daily nourish this flame of the altar, and not fuffer it to go out.

4. We must never be at reft, till we have poffeffed our minds with a perfect hatred of the fin which we are moft fubject to. The love of God, his long-fuffering and forbearance, the fufferings of Jefus, the ftruglings of the fpirit, the peace and pleasure of holiness, the guilt and vexation, the fhame and punishment of fin, its ill influence on our present perfection and happinefs, on our peace and hopes, are proper topicks to effect this. A thorough hatred of fin, once fetled and rooted in us, will produce that forrow, that indignation, that watchfulness, that zeal, which will remove us far enough, not only from the fin, but alfo from the ordinary temptations to it; and place us almost without the danger of a relapfe.

To this fourth rule, Ifhould add this other that when once a man has refolved upon a new courfe of life, whatever difficulties he finds in his way, whatever baffles he meets with, he muft never quit the defign of virtue and life; he muft never give over fighting till he conquer:

the

the reafon is plain, for he muft either conquer or die. But this belonging rather to perfeverance in virtue, than the beginning of it, therefore I but just mention

it.

5. It will not be imprudent in this moral, as in phyfical cures, to obferve diligently, and follow the motions and tendencies of nature. Where there are feeds of generofity and honour; the turpitude and fhame of fin, the baseness and ingratitude of it, the love of God and of Jefus, and fuch like, are fit topicks to dwell upon. Where fear is more apt to prevail, there the terrors of the Lord are the moft powerful motives: and fo whatever the frame and conftitution of nature be, it will not be difficult to find arguments in the gospel adapted to it, which will be fo much the more prevalent, as they are the more natural.

6. Lastly, We must use all means to obtain the Spirit of God; and to increase and cherish his influence: we must ask, and feek, and knock, i e. we must pray, and meditate, and travel with patience and with importunity, that our heavenly Father may give us his Holy Spirit: and, when we have it, we muft not grieve it by any deliberate fin; nor quench it by fecurity or negligence, by fenfual freedoms and prefumption; but we must cherish

every

every motion, improve every defire and paffion that it works in us; we must fhun every appearance of evil; we muft press on towards perfection; we must watch unto prayer; we must spend the time of our fojourning here in fear; we must rejoyce and glory in the Lord; and we muft wait for the bleffed hope, and the glorious appearance of the great God, and our Saviour Chrift Jefus. And now I have finished what I had to fay on this fubject, of the perfect man's liberty as it relates to mortal or wilful fin: I have fhewed what this fin is; and how far man may be freed from it, referring the reader to chap. 4. for the fruit of this freedom. İ have here, laftly, given that advice which I thought moft ferviceable to the attainment of it. And through this whole chapter, I have had regard, not only to perfection, but fincerity; it being indeed improper to do otherwife, fince we cannot arrive at the one, but through the other. For fincerity is Perfection in its infancy or non-age; and Perfection is nothing elfe but fincerity cultivated by meditation and difcipline, and cherished by the the influence of heaven. And now let no man's heart fail him, while he contemplates the difficulties which block up the way to his liberty. The way indeed is fteep, and the top is high; but ferenity

and

and happiness, fecurity and glory dwell there. Many indeed are the temptations which would forbid our ascent, and thrust us down; but we are armed all over; they cannot hurt us; the Spirit fupports and encourages us; and nothing but our cowardife and inconftancy can prevent our fuccefs: Watch ye, ftand faft, quit ye like men, be strong; and then you fhall be sure to conquer and enter into reft.

CHAP. VII.

Of unfruitfulness, as it confifts in idlenefs. Idlenefs, either habitual or accidental. Confiderations to deter men from the fin of idleness.

Nfruitfulness is a fit fubject to conclude a difcourfe of liberty with, or begin one of zeal; for lying, like a tract of ground, between two bordering kingdoms, it may indifferently be laid to either. As it implies a direct oppofition to spiritual life and fincerity, it naturally falls in under the confideration of zeal as it implies a fervile fubjection to fomé vile luft or other, it naturally falls in under the confideration of liberty: fo that by allotting it this place, I fhall at once compleat my reflections on the argument of liberty,