but, what I now refolve to do? If my heart charge me presently with any deceit or refolution to tranfgrefs, I muft lay afide that deceit before I tranfact with God; but if my heart charge me with no fuch purpose, yea, I dare fay I refolve against every tranfgreffion; and although I think I will fall before fuch and fuch a temptation, yet that thought floweth not from any allowed and approven refolution to do, fo, but from knowledge of my own corruption, and of what I have done to provoke God to defert me; but the Lord knows I resolve notto tranfgrefs, nor do I approve any fecret inclination of my. heart to fuch a fin, but would reckon it my fingular mercy to be kept from fin in fuch a cafe; and I judge myself a wretched man, because of such a body of death within me, which doth threaten to make me tranfgrefs; in that cafe, I fay, "my heart doth not condemn me, therefore may and ought to have confidence before God, if this then be the cafe, I fay to thee, although thou fhouldft afterwards fail many ways, and fo perhaps draw upon thy felf fad temporal ftrokes thereby, and lofe for a feafon many expreffions of his love; yet "there is an Advocate with the Father to plead thy pardon," who hath fatisfied for our breaches; "He we wounded for our tranfgreffions, he was bruifed for our iniquities; the chaftifement of our peace was upon him, and with his ftripes we are healed. All we like fheep have gone aftray, we have turned every one to his own way, and the Lord hath laid on him the iniquity of us all." And for his fake, God refolveth to hold fast the covenant with men after their tranfgreffion; "If his children forfake my law, and walk not in my judgments; if they break my statutes, and keep not my commandments :-Neverthelefs, my loving-kindness will I not utterly take from him, nor fuffer my faithfulness to fail; my covenant will I not break, nor alter the thing that is gone out of my lips. Once have I' fworn by my holinefs"-Elfe how could he be faid "to bethrothe us unto himself for ever ?" And how could the covenant be called "everlasting,

ordered in all things and fure," if there were not ground of comfort in it, "even when our house is not fo and fo with God.

Yea, it were no better than the covenant of works, if these who enter it with God could fo depart from him again, as to make it void unto themselves, and to put themselves into a worfe condition than they were in be. fore they made it: "And I will make an everlasting covenant with them, and I will not turn away from them to do them good"-compared with Heb. viii. 6. " But now hath he obtained a more excellent miniftry, by how much more alfo he is the mediator of a better covenant, which was established upon better promises. "The

Lord hateth putting away." No honeft heart will ftumble on this, but will rather be ftrengthened thereby in duty; Hof. xiv. 4. to the end, "I will heal their backfliding, I will love them freely; for mine anger is turned away from himfrom him-Who is wife and he fhall understand these things? Prudent and he fhall know them? For the ways of the Lord are right, and the juft fhall walk in them." For other ties and bonds, befides the fear of divorce, and punishment by death to oblige the ingenuous wife unto duty; fo here men will "fear the Lord and his goodness.

Object. I have, at the celebration of the Lord's Supper, and at fome other occafions, covenanted exprefsly and verbally with God; but my fruitleffnefs in his ways, and the renewed jealoufies of my gracious state, maketh me queftion if ever I tranfacted with God in fincerity, and I think I can do it no otherwife than I have done it.

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Anfw. (1.) Men are not to expect fruitfulness according to their defire, nor full affurance of God's favour immediately after they have fled unto Chrift, and exprefsly transacted with God in him: these things will keep a man-on work all his days. The faints had their failings and fhortcomings, yea, and backflidings, with many fits of dangerous mifbelief, after they had very

seriously and fincerely, and expressly closed with God, as their God in Chrift.

(2.) Many do look for fruitfulness in their walk and eftablishment of faith from their own fincerity in tranfacting with God rather than from the spirit of the Lord Jefus. They fixed their heart in their own honey and refolutions, and not in the bleffed root Chrift Jefus, without whom we can do nothing, and are vanity altogether in our best estate. Men fhould remember, that

one piece of grace cannot produce any degree of grace; further nothing can work grace but the arm of JEHOVAH and if men could lean upon Chrift, and covenant with him as their duty abfolutely, whatfoever may be the confequence, at leaft, looking only to him for the fuitable fruit, it fhould fare better with them. God pleafeth not that men fhould betake themfelves unto Chrift, and covenant with him for a feafon, until they fee if fuch fruit and establishment fhall follow, purpofing to disclaim their intereft in him and the covenant, if fuch and fuch fruit does not appear within fuch a length of time. This is to put the ways of God to trial, and is very displeasing unto him. Men muft abfolutely clofe with Chrift, and covenant with him refolving to maintain these things as their duty, and a ready way to reach fruit, whatfoever fhall follow thereupon; they having a teftimony within them, that they seriously defign conformity to his revealed will in all things; and that they have clofed covenant with him for the fame end, as well as to be faved thereby.

(3.) Men fhould be fparing to bring in queftion their fincerity in tranfacting with God, unless they can inftruct the fame, or have great prefumptions for it. If you can inftruct any deceit or guile in your tranfacting with him you are obliged to disclaim and rectify it, and to tranfact with God honeftly and without guile : but if you know nothing of your deceit or guile in the day you did tranfact with him; Yea, if you can fay, that you did appeal unto God in that day that you dealt honestly

with him, and intended not to deceive; and did obteft him, according to his faithfulness, to fearch and try if there was any crookedness in your way, and to discover it unto you, and heal it ; "Search me, O God, and know my heart; try me, and know my thoughts: and fee if there be any wicked way in me; and lead me in the way everlasting; and that afterwards you "came to the light, that your deeds might be manifeft;" and if you can fay, that God's anfwers from his word to you, in fo far as you could understand, were anfwers of peace, and confirmations of your fincerity; yea, further, if you dare fay, that if upon life and death you were again to transact with him, you can do it no other way, nor intend more fincerity and feriousness than before; then I dare fay unto thee, in the Lord's name, thou ought not to queftion thy fincerity in tranfacting with God, but to "have confidence before God, fince thy heart doth not condemn thee;" and thou art bound to believe that "God dealeth uprightly with the upright man, and with the pure doth fhew himfelf pure." If a man intend honefty, God will not fuffer him to beguile himfelf; yea, the Lord fuffereth no man to deceive himfelf, unless the man intend to deceive both God and men.

(4.) Therefore impute your unfruitfulness to your unwatchfulness and your mifbelief, and impute your want of full affurance unto an evil heart of unbelief, helped by Satan to act against the glorious free grace of God; and charge not thefe things upon want of fincerity in your clofing with Chrift. And refolve henceforth to abide close by the root, and you fhall bring forth more fruit; and by much fruit you lay yourself open to the witnefs of God's Spirit, which will teftify with your fpirit that you have fincerely and honeftly clofed with God, and that the rest of your works are wrought in God, and approven of him; and fo the witnefs of the fpirit and the water joining with the blood, whereupon you are to lay the weight of your foul and confcience, and where alone you are to fink the curfes of the law due unto you

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for all your fins, and failings in your best things: thefe three do agree in one, viz. that this is the way of life and peace, and that you have intereft therein, and fo you come to quietnefs and full affurance; "Abide in me, and I in you as the branch cannot bear fruit of itself, except it abide in the vine, no more can ye, except ye abide in me. I am the vine, ye are the branches; he that abideth in me, and I in him, the fame bringeth forth much fruit; for without me ye can do nothing." "He that hath my commandments and keepeth them, he it is that loveth me, and he that loveth me, fhall be loved of my Father, and I will love him, and will manifeft myfelf to him. If a man love me, he will keep my words; and my Father will love him, and we will come unto him, and make our abode with him." The Spirit itself beareth witness with our fpirit that we are the children of God." "There are three that bear witnefs in earth, the fpirit, and the water, and the blood; and thefe three agree in one.

O bleffed bargain of the new covenant, and thrice bleffed Mediator of the fame! Let him ride profperouf. ly, and fubdue nations and languages, and gather in all his jewels, that honorable company of the firft-born, that ftately troop of kings and priefts, whofe glory it fhall be to have washed their garments in the blood of that spotlefs Lamb, and whofe happiness fhall continually flourifh in following him whitherfoever he goeth, and in being in the immediate company of the Ancient of days, one fight of whofe face fhall make them in a manner forget that ever they were in the earth. Oh if I could pert fuade men to believe that these things are not yea and nay, and to make hafte towards him, who hafteth to judge the world, and to call men to an account, efpecially concerning their improvement of this gofpel. "Even (o, come Lord Jefus."