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SERM. XXXI. ftrument of the Spirit in this glorious work, and is therefore called, The word of life, Phil. ii. 16. This word hath not yet been made a regenerating quickening word to their fouls. Polfibly it hath enlightened them, and convinced them: it hath wrought upon their minds in the way of common illumination, and upon their confciences, in the way of conviction, but not upon their hearts and wills, by way of effectual converfion. To this day the Lord hath not given them an heart opening itself, in the way of faith, to receive Jesus Christ.

Secondly, The effects and figns of fpiritual life, do not appear in them: For,

First, They have no feeling, or fense of mifery, and danger. I mean, no fuch fenfe as throughly awakens them to apply Christ their remedy. That spiritual judgment lies upon them, Isa. vi. 9, 10. "And he said, Go and tell this people, Hear ye indeed, "but understand not; and fee ye indeed, but perceive not; "make the heart of this people fat, and their ears heavy, and "fhut their eyes.”

Secondly, They have no fpiritual motions towards Chrift, or after things that are fpiritual; all the arguments in the world cannot perfuade their wills to move one step towards Chrift in the way of faith, John v. 40. Ye will not come unto me: Were there a principle of spiritual life in their fouls, they would move Chrift-ward and heaven-ward, John iv. 14. It would be in them a well of water fpringing up into eternal life. The natu ral tendency of the fpiritual life is upward.

Thirdly, The unregenerate have no appetite unto fpiritual food; they favour not things that are fpiritual; they can go from week to week, and from year to year, all their life-time, without any communion betwixt God and their fouls, and feel no need of it, nor any hungerings nor thirstings after it; which could never be, if a principle of fpiritual life were in them; for then they would" esteem the words of God's mouth more than "their neceffary food," Job xxx. 12.

Fourthly, They have no eat, or fpiritual warmth, in their affections to God, and things above; their hearts are as cold as a stone to spiritual objects. They are heated, indeed, by their lufts, and affections to the world, and the things of the world: but O how cold, and dead are they towards Jefus Chrift, and fpiritual excellencies.

Fifthly, They breathe not spiritually, therefore they live not fpiritually were there a fpiritual principle of life in them, their fouls would breathe after God in fpiritual prayer, Acts ix. 11. "Behold he prayeth." The lips of the unregenerate may

move in prayer, but their hearts and defires do not breathe and pant after God.

Sixthly, They have no cares, or fears, for felf-preservation, which is always the effect of life; the pooreft flie, or filliest. worm, will fhun danger: the wrath of God hangs over them in the threatenings, but they tremble not at it: hell is but a little before them; they are upon the very precipice of eternal ruin, yet will ufe no means to avoid it. How plain, therefore, is this fad cafe, which I have undertaken here to demonftrate, viz. that Christless and unregenerate fouls are dead fouls? The ufes follow.

Infer. 1. If all Chriftless and unregenerate fouls be dead fouls, then how little pleafure can Chriftians take in the fociety of the unregenerate?

Certainly, it is no pleasure for the living to converse among the dead. It was a cruel torment, invented by Mezentius the tyrant, to tie a dead and living man together. The pleasure of fociety arises from the harmony of spirits, and the hopes of mutual enjoyment in the world to come; neither of which can fweeten the fociety of the godly with the wicked in this world *. It is true, there is a neceffary civil converfe which we must have with the ungodly here; or elfe, (as the apostle speaks), we must go out of the world. There are alfo duties of relation, which must be faithfully and tenderly paid, even to the unregenerate : but certainly, where we have our free election, we shall be much wanting both to our duty and comfort, if we make not the people of God our chofen companions. Excellently to this purpose speaks a modern author †, "Art thou a godly master ? "when thou takeft a fervant into thine houfe, chufe for God, "as well as thyfelf.-A godly fervant is a greater blessing than we think on he can work, and fet God on work alfo for his "master's good, Gen. xxiv. 12. “O Lord God of my master A"braham, I pray thee, fend me good speed this day, and fhew "kindness unto my master." And sure he did his master as much "service by his prayer, as by his prudence, in that journey.— Holy David obferved, while he was at Saul's court, the mif"chief of having wicked and ungodly fervants, (for with fuch G 2

* As diseases bred in one part of the body, ufe to spread their pernicious influence to the other members which are near to that part; fo the vices of the wicked use to infect those that have intercourfe with them. Tertullian against Valentine.

† Gurnal's Chriftian Armour, part 2. p. 256, 257

SERM. XXXI, "was that unhappy king fo compaffed, that David compares "his court to the prophane and barbarous Heathens, among "whom there was scarce more wickednefs to be found, Pfal, "cxx. 6. "Wo is me, that I fojourn, in Meshech, that I dwell "in the tents of Kedar;" i. e. among those who were as pro.

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digiously wicked as any there); and no doubt, but this made "this gracious man, in his banishment, before he came to the "crown, (having feen the evil of a difordered houfe), to refolve what he would do when God fhould make him the head of fuch a royal family, Pfal. ci. 7. "He that worketh deceit, fhall "not dwell within my houfe; he that telleth lies, fhail not "tarry in my fight."

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Art thou godly? fhew thyself fa in the choice of husband or wife. I am fure, if fome, (and thofe godly ones), could "bring no other teftimonials for their godlinefs, than the care "they have taken in this particular, it might justly be called in"to queftion, both by themselves and others. There is no one "thing that gracious perfons, (even thofe recorded in scripture as well as others), have fhewn their weaknefs, yea, given of fence and fcandal more in, than in this particular, "The fons "of God faw that the daughters of men were fair," Gen, vị. 2. "One would have thought, that the fops of God fhould have "looked for grace in the heart, rather than beauty in the face; "but we fee, even they fometimes turn in at the faireft fign, "without much enquiring what grace is to be found dwelling "within." Look to the rule, O Christian, if thou wilt keep the power of holiness, that is clear as a fun-beam written in the fcripture," Be not unequally yoked together with unbelievers," 2. Cor. vi. 14.

Infer. 2. How great and wholly fupernatural, marvellous and wonderful is that change which regeneration makes upon the fouls of men! It is a change from death to life, Luke xv. 24. "This "my fon was dead and is alive again." Regeneration is life from the dead; the most excellent life from the moft terrible death it is the life of God re-infpired into a foul alienated from it by the power of fin, Eph. iv. 18. There are two ftupenduous changes made upon the fouls of men, which juftly challenge higheft admiration, viz.

1. That from fin to grace.

2. From grace to glory.

The change from grace to glory is acknowledged by all, and that juftly, to be a wonderful change for God to take a poor creature out of the fociety of finful men; yea, from under the bur den of many finful infirmities, which made him groan from day

to day in this world; and in a moment to make him a complete and perfect foul, fhining in the beauties of holiness, and filling him, as a veffel of glory, with the unspeakable and unconceivable joys of his prefence; to turn his groanings into triumphs, his fighings into fongs of praise; this, I fay, is marvellous, and yet the former change, from fin to grace, is no way inferior to it, nay, in fome respect, beyond it; for the change which glory makes upon the regenerate is but a gradual change, but the change which regeneration makes upon the ungodly is a specifical change. Great and admirable is this work of God; and let it for ever be marvellous in our eyes,

Infer. 3. If unregenerate fouls be dead fouls, what a fatal ftroke doth death give to the bodies of all unregenerate men? A foul dead in fin, and a body dead by virtue of the curfe for fin, and both foul and body remaining for ever under the pow. er of eternal death, is fo full and perfect a mifery, as that nothing can be added to make it more miferable: it is the comfort of a Chriftian, that he can fay, when death comes, Non omnis moriar, I fhall not wholly die; there is a life I live, which death cannot touch. Rom. viii. 13. "The body is dead "because of fin; but the fpirit is life, because of righteoufnefs." Bleffed and holy is he, that hath part in the first refurrection: on fuch the second death hath no power. As death takes the believer from amidst many forrows and troubles, and brings him to the vifion of God, to the general affembly of all the perfected faints, to a ftate of complete freedom and full fatisfaction; fo it drags the unregenerate from all his fenfitive delights and comforts, to the place of torment: it buries the dead foul out of the prefence of God for ever it is the king of terrors, a ferpent with a deadly fting, to every man that is out of Chrift.

Infer. 4. If every unregenerate foul be a dead foul, how fad is the cafe of hypocrites and temporary believers, who are twice dead? Thefe are those curfed trees, of which the apoftle Jude fpeaks, Jude ver. 12. "Trees whofe fruit withereth, without fruit, twice dead, plucked up by the roots." The apostle alludes unto dying trees; trees that are dying, the first time, in the fpring, then they fade, decay, and caft of their leaves, when other trees are fragrant and flourishing: but from this first death they are fometimes recovered, by pruning, dreffing, or watering the roots; but if in autumn, they decay again, which is the critical and climacterical times of trees, to difcover whether their difeafe be mortal or not; if then they wither and decay the fecond time, the fault is ab intra, the root is rotten, there is no hope

SERM. XXXI. of it; the husbandman bestows no more labour about it, except it be to root it up, for fewel to the fire. Just thus ftands the cafe with falfe and hypocritical profeffors, who though they were ftill under the power of fpiritual death, yet, in the beginning of their profeffion, they seemed to be alive; they fhewed the world the fragrant leaves of a fair profeffion, many hopeful buddings, of affection towards fpiritual things were feen in them, but, wanting a root of regeneration, they quickly began to wither and caft their untimely fruit. However, by the help of ordinances, or fome touzing and awakening providences, they feem to recover themselves again; but all will not do, the fault is ab intra, from the want of a good root, and therefore, at laft, they who were always once dead, for want of a principle of regeneration, are now become twice dead, by the withering and decay of their vain profeffion. Such trees are prepared for the severest flames in hell, Matth. xxiv. 51. their portion is the faddeft portion allotted for any of the fons of death. Therefore the apostle Peter tells us, 2 Pet. ii. 20, 21. "For if, after they have efcaped the pollutions of the world, through the knowledge "of the Lord and Saviour Jefus Chrift, they are again entang"led therein, and overcome; the latter end is worfe with them "than the beginning. For it had been better for them not to "have known the way of righteousness, than after they have "known it, to turn from the holy commandment delivered unto "them." Double measures of wrath feem to be prepared for them that die this double death.

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Infer. 5. If this be fo, then unregenerate perfons deserve the greatest lamentations. And were this truth heartily believed, we could not but mourn over them, with the most tender compaffion, and hearty forrow. If our husbands, wives, or chil. dren are dying a natural death, how are our hearts rent in pieces, with pity and forrow for them? What cries, tears, and wringing of hands, discover the deep fenfe we have of their mifery! O Chriftians, is all the love you have for your relations spent upon their bodies? Are their fouls of no value in your eyes? Is fpiritual death no mifery? Doth it not deserve a tear? The Lord open your eyes, and duly affect our hearts with spiritual death, and foul miferies.

Confider, my friends, and let it move your bowels, (if there be bowels of affection in you), whilst they remain fpiritually dead, they are useless, and wholly unfer viceable unto God in the world, as to any special and acceptable fervice unto him, 2 Tim. ii. 21, they are incapable of all spiritual comforts from God; they cannot taste the least sweetness in Chrift, in duties, or in promises,

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