Imperfections of your Heart and Life, and to obtain more uninterrupted Communion with God, in your religious Approaches to him?-Or, to fum up all in a Word, can this be doubted, when (under the fharpest Conflict you can meet with from this Quarter) you are able fincerely to fay, that though when you would do Good Evil is present with you; yet you delight in the Law of the Lord, after the inward Man?

You must, befide this int ftine War, ave the Trial of another Campaign. You will find Enemies from without, as well as within, to maintain a continual Conflict with. For we wrestle not againft Flesh and Bl od only, but against Principalities, against Powers, against the Rulers of the Darkness of this World, and against fpiritual Wickednejes in high Places. (Eph. vi. 12.)This is what you have probably had no Experience of. A Prifoner in the Hands of his Enemies, led Captive by them at their Pleasure, has no Acquaintance with the Progrefs of Wars and Conflicts, Battles and Sieges; makes no Attempts for Victory and Triumph; but fubmits to the Injunctions of his Conquerors; and the more chearful his Submiffion, the more Ease and Comfort he will find. - This you must acknowledge to be eminently true of fuch who, without Oppofition, refign themselves voluntary Prisoners into their Enemies Hands; as all careless and fecure Sinners do into the Hands of Sin and Satan.--But when once Perfons come to be, in good Earneft, engaged in the Caufe of Chrift, what violent Opposition do they meet with? What dreadful Temptations do they often encounter, which carry their own Evidence with them from what Quarter they come ?-This I warn you of beforehand, that when you come to the Experience you may not be discouraged, but established in the

Faith

Faith of that Revelation which you find experi mentally true.

How frequently are Chriftians indeed called into this Field of Battle? How frequently are they affaulted with most violent and impetuous Temptations, which will follow and hurry them, and fometimes foil them, notwithstanding all their good Defires, godly Refolutions, and most active Endeavours after Holinefs?What horrendous, blafphemous Thoughts are often injected into the Minds of fuch, which though the greatest Burthen and Abhorrence of their diftreffed Souls, yet follow and haunt them where-ever they go, and whatever they do, and especially at the Seafons of their nearest Approaches to God? What doubting Apprehenfions, what fubtile,furprizing Reatonings will be darted into the Minds of fome, even the molt eftablished Chriftians, against the very Being of God, and the Truth of Chriflianity, notwithstanding their highest rational Conviction, and fulleft Satisfaction of the Truth of these great Fundamentals of Religion?What horrible and amazing Difpofitions and Affections will feem to arise in the Minds of fome of the moft devout and heavenly Perfons in the World, who, in the dreadful Conflict, are fometimes made to roar by Reason of the Di quietnefs of their Hearts?. What diftreffing Dark nefs, Dejections, and Defpondings will fome Chriftians be exercised with, after clear and fatisfying Evidences of God's Favour, against all the comforting Confiderations which can be proposed; and notwithstanding all the former Manifeftations of the Love of God to their Souls? And do not these, and fuch like fiery Darts of the wicked One, as clearly difcover the Agency of Satan, as if we faw him make his Attacks in a visible Appearance?

I'm fenfible, that many of thefe Temptations are ordinarily imputed to bodily Disease; because Satan

frequently

frequently makes the fiercest Attacks upon the weakeft Walls, where there is the greatest Profpect of Suc cefs. But though bodily Disorder may expofe us to Darkness of every Kind, yet what Blafphemy can there be in the Spleen? How came Infidelity by a Lodging in the Humours of theilody? Or how can any difordered Temperature of the Body produce in the Mind (contrary to the habitual Bent and Bias of the renewed Soul) fuch fierce, impetuous, and irresistible Blafphemies against the glorious God, and the bleffed Redeemer of the World? If this be only from bodily Disease, how comes it to pass, that many Persons of vigorous Health of Body have met with the fame diftreffing Trials?-Herein then the Truth of Chriftianity is confirmed by Experience, when the Chriftian meets with the very fame Trials, which the Scripture forewarns him of; and the Fierceness of the Combat may not only establish him in the Faith, but strengthen his Hopes of Victory. He fees the divine Original of the Chriftian Institution, by the Enmity and Oppofition of the infernal Powers against it. feels the Warfare juft fuch as the Scriptures defcribe; and may therefore conclude, that he has no Temptation but what is common to Men, and may confide in the Captain of his Salvation, that he is leading him on to Victory.

He

Thirdly, Another Inftance, wherein the Truth of Christianity is brought to be a Matter of fenfible Experience, is the Comfort, Peace and Joy of a religious Life. Our bleffed Lord has told us, that his Yoke is eafy, and his Burthen light. (Mat xi. 30.) Peace he leaves with his Difciples, his Peace he gives unto them, and this in a Manner which the World cannot give. (Joh. xiv. 27) And the Apostle represents Chriftians as rejoicing in Chrift Jefus, without Confidence in the Fleb. (Phil. iii. 3.) and as having the Love of God fhed abroad in their Hearts, by the Holy Ghoft, who is

G

given

given unto them. (Rom. v. 5.)-Now what Doubt can remain in the Heart of a Chriftian of the Truth and Faithfulness of these Promises, when he feels them actually fulfilled unto him; when he fenfibly feels, that Chrift doth not leave him comfortless, but manifefts himself to him, fo as He doth not unto the World; and when he joyfully feels the Spirit of God witneffing with his Spirit, that he is a Child of God?

You may perhaps efteem this to be all Cant and Delufion, Enthufiafm, or heated Imagination; but is it reasonable in a Man that was born blind to conclude, that because he himself has no Idea of Light and Colours, therefore no Man ever faw the Sun; but all Pretences of Delight, from the beautiful Appearances of the Creation, are mere Chicanery

and Deceit ?

I hope, Sir, you'll quickly be led forward by the Spirit of God into these bleffed Paths of Joy and Peace; and then you'll need no other Argument to convince you of thefe glorious Truths, than your own happy Experience. Then with furprizing Delight you'll be able to feel the Exercife of Faith in the Son of God, and to apply the gracious Promise, that him who comes to Chrift, he will in no wife caft out. Then you'll feel a most humbling and Soulabafing Senfe of your own Vilenefs and Unworthinefs, and with facred Rapture admire, adore, and praife the Riches of that fovereign Grace, by which you are plucked out of the Hands of Sin and Infidelity, and out of the Jaws of Death and Hell, and become accepted in the Beloved. Then a Ray of (before unexperienced) Light will break into your Soul and give you fuch a fpiritual View of the divine Perfections, as you never before had, fuch a Discovery of redeeming Love, as will fill you with Wonder and Praife. Then the World, with all its empty Pageantry, will vanish out of Sight, and you

will

will be no longer emulous of the Riches and Grandeur of the greatest Men in the World, nor of the Pleafures of the moft fenfual Epicure.Your Soul will then be folaced with more pure and substantial Joys, with Delights more anfwerable to its Defires, and more fatisfying to its Tafte, than it is poffible it should find from any of the vain Amusements of Time and Sen c.Then you'll obtain fuch a fenfible and affecting Discovery of the future Glory, as will put your Soul upon the Wing, and excite your molt ardent Defires after the more intimate and eternal Enjoyment of that blessed Hope.In a Word, then the Light will fhine out of Darkness, and give you the Light of the Knowledge of the Glory of God, in the Face of Jefus Chrift. And if you are favoured with this delightful View,when you come to encounter the King of Terrors, you will be able to ftand the Shock with Courage, with Comfort and Joy (as I have seen many do) from a delightful Profpect of your future Inheritance, and breathe out your laftBreath with that triumphant Song, O Death, where is thy Sting! O Grave, where is thy Victory!

It is true, this is not always the happy Frame of every fincere Chriftian.We are here in a militant State, and mult often meet with fore Conflicts from our fpiritual Enemies, as was before obferv'd; but when those more exalted Joys and Comforts are wanting, Believers have yet Meat to eat, which the World knows not of - The Promises will still prove an Anchor for their Souls, to keep them fure and fledfaft in the moft tempeftuous Seafons. They will find Delight and Comfort from the Ordinances of God, and at least find occafional Returns of fenfible Communion with him, which will make them rejoice more than when Corn and fine and Oylincreafe.And often, in the M dit of their greatest Darkness, they will have fudden and furprifing Gleams of Light and Joy break into their Souls, by which they will, before they