September 10. I hear Mr. Fletcher is dead. May I follow him as he followed Chrift! He was a ftar of the firft magni. tude in God's church; but now he is gone to shine in glory, and to fet no more for ever. A fixed ftar to all eternity. The wife fhall inherit glory, and I think, if there was a wife man in the world, he was one.

September 13. I was difcouraged this day, but I prayed unto God, who comforted and delivered me from all my fears. Glory be to thee, O Lord, who never faileft them that feek thee! When man difcourages, how clear it makes our faith, that God does help. Difcouragement from man, weans us from man; and help from God, draws us nearer to God.

November 23. I waked this morning at four o'clock. I thought much about believing, and what many affert, that you muft believe now, and you have what you believe for, either pardon or holiness. I fear this has led many, of a warm imagination, to believe they are fanctified, when a little time has proved they have been mistaken. I was much perplexed about their manner of fpeaking, and confidered our Lord's words, "Whatsoever ye ask in prayer, believing ye receive it, ye fhall have." This I could not well underfland, how I was to believe I receive, before it was really given unto me. And it came into my mind, that God speaketh of things that are not, as though they were. Faith in like manner fays, I have it, though it is not yet given; that is, believes in the certainty of it as if already come to pass. Thus faith anticipates the bleffing, and makes us as fure of it, as if it were already accomplished. In this manner a believer may go on, from strength to strength, and from grace to grace; believing and rejoicing in the fure word of God's promife, until he believes himself to heaven. Thus faith lays hold on every bleffing, yea glory itself; but leaves the time and manner unto God.

November 28. In meditating, I had a very fatisfying view of the covenant of grace, in contra-diftinction to the covenant of works, viz. As all have faned; the covenant of works fhews

no

no mercy. The covenant of grace is full of compaffion. In this, God is reconciled to us, by the blood of his dear Son; and waits to be gracious to every returning finner, in blotting out his fins, and remembering his iniquities no more. He has promised to write his law in our hearts, even his law of love. Whofoever lives in obedience to this law of love, finneth not, for, having always a loving intention to please God, he never offends him, neither is God offended with him. In this covenant of grace, confirmed by the blood of Jefus, all involuntary ignorances, miftakes, and infirmities, God does not charge upon him as fin: nothing but wilful acts. Thus he that is born of God, and lives in this covenant under the law to Chrift, does not commit fin, neither can he fin, because his loving intention is always to please God, his feed remaining in him. He loves his neighbour, and love worketh no evil; but contrarywife good. Therefore love is the fulfilling of the law. According to the tenor of the first covenant no man is free from fin; but he that fulfils the law of love, the love of God and his neighbour, is as free from it, according to the new covenant, as he would be, according to the old, were he to fulfil the utmost demand of the moral law.

In the eye of the law, every man is a finner; but in the covenant of grace, he that loveth is free. To reafon upon the law is bringing a man into bondage; but to believe according to grace, is living in the glorious liberty of the fons of God. Many, who are continually harping upon the purity of the law, and viewing Chriflian liberty, in this mirror, grow blinder and blinder, and cannot fee how a man can live without fin. But how unwife is this? If the Father of all mercies, the God of love, in confideration of the impoffibility (through the weaknefs of the flesh,) of being made perfect by the law, has fubftituted a milder covenant, full of grace, mercy, and love, whereby we may thus live; why fhould we not immediately embrace it? One would think we fhould encourage one another, by faying, "well, Brother, though you cannot by the law, obtain

4 L 2

obtain the perfection of the law; yet by the grace of God you may obtain the perfection of the gospel, even the depth of hum◄ ble love." But, instead of this the law is frequently made use of to difcourage the expectation of obtaining holiness by the gofpel. One fays, "The law is fo pure, that I do not fee how 1. can be free from fin." Another, "If I was clean from fin, what need fhould I have for the atonement ?" A third reafons, "Sin is in the flelh which covers my bones; and therefore this putrified cafk will make all that comes out of it impure." By this way of reasoning. they conclude, they can never be made clean from fin on this fide the grave; and they difcourage those who defire it according to the gospel. O what a pity it is, that we are fo` flow in believing, or looking into the glorious law of liberty and love, and continuing therein, that we may be happy!

J. R

Some Account of Mr. JOHN APPLETON.

JOHN APPLETON was a native of Shropshire, and

JOHN

ferved his apprenticeship to an eminent currier, in the town of Shrewsbury. During his youth, he practiced too much the vices of the age, as he often mentioned in his public difcourfes with deep repentance and humiliation, and most grateful acknowledgments for the mercies and goodness of his Saviour, who had called him out of darkness into light, and from the power of Satan unto God. During these thoughtless times he had frequent and fevere checks of confcience, fo that he was very unhappy in his mind. He often refolved to leave off finning, and to feck in carneft, to fecure his falvation; but it was not till he went to Briflol, that he experienced a thorough converfion, which was confirmed by the following awful judgment.

Ha

He had been converfing with religious people called Methodifts, whom he highly approved; but one Sunday he happened to go into church where a minifter was to preach, who had before exerted himfelf in two other churches to preach againft the Methodists, ufing the fame text, which was, "Having the form of godlinefs, but denying the power thereof." He in veighed very much against the novel fect, the upftart Metho difts, as he called them, adding, thefe are the men, whom St. Paul foretold would come, "Having the form &c." He then laid many grievous things to their charge, without any colours of truth, and warned his flock to turn away from them. Shortly after, he preached at St. Nicholas' church; but when he had named the above text twice, was fuddenly seized with a rattling in his throat, attended with a hideous groaning, and fell backward against the door of the pulpit, burft it open, and felb down the fairs. He was then carried home, and on the Sunday following died..

Mr. Appleton being in the church, was greatly ftruck with this folemn event. When he returned to Shrewsbury he took a house, where he fitted up a room, in which he preached for many years, as long as his health would permit, and had full congregations. He conftantly preached two days in the week at feven in the evening, after labouring hard at his trade all the day, and twice on Sunday. He had great power in prayer, and his petitions. were fo conftantly granted, that he faid, he was almoft afraid to afk, for fear he fhould afk amifs. His experience was very extraordinary, as will appear from the following extract of a letter which he wrote to a friend, giving him fome account of the fame.

"You afk, firft, Did God teftify to me that I was faved from all fin? If you mean original fin, or the corruption of the heart: I answer that God's Spirit did testify to my heart and my fpirit, that I was cleanfed from all thefe fins. You afk fecondly, In what manner? I anfwer, firft, By fhewing me fome of my outward fins, and making me feel trouble of

confcience,

confcience, and giving me a measure of inward forrow, and outward amendment and true repentance: and after a season, at a time of prayer, by making me feel a weight of unbelief upon my foul, which made me cry, I believe, Lord help my unbelief. This had no fooner afcended out of my heart and lips to God, than the angel of the covenant, or the bleffed fpirit, poured into my heart faith, love, peace, and joy un-fpeakable and full of glory.

"I remained in this my first love, or efpoufals to Chrift, for a feason, not perceiving that either men or devils could do me any harm: but afterwards the battle commenced; my top-fail of felf-confidence fell down, and I faw I wanted the frength: of God, and that nothing elfe could preferve me from fins without, and legions of fins within; but the Lord delivered me out of my temptations. Befides the daily vifits of his grace, one day it was impretfed on my mind that the Holy Ghoft was come upon me; and whilft the Lord thus fpake, I believed not. for joy and wonder; til at last grace overcame my unbelief, and I then was filled, as I apprehended, with the Holy Ghoft, after I had believed,

"Now prayer and praise flowed out of my heart, without meditation; and I had light given me, to fhew what was grace, and what was the depravity of my own heart. This remained on me as a refiner's fire; but as confolations did thus abound, I thought all manner of temptations did abound alfo. After a feafon of great conflicts, both within and without, at a time of public prayer, I thought my mind was on a fudden enlightened to fee three perfons, which it was revealed to me were the holy Trinity. I faw them all joined together, and become as one. I faw one with a feal in his hand, which he impreffed on my breast. My heart was now filled with fuch happiness and glory, as tongue cannot exprefs, which gave me to believe, that I was fealed by the fpirit to the day of redemption.

"You may fay with me, "Surely I fhall find an inward war no more;" but although fin and Satan was thus foiled and conquered,