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harmony. There is not, where gofpel truth is effectually received, and experienced in the foul, only a confonancy merely between the foul and the word, but between the foul and Chrift by the word, and the foul and God by Chrift. And this gives affured eftablishment unto the foul in the things that it doth believe. Divine truth fo conveyed unto us, is firm, ftable and immoveable: And we can fay of it in a fpiritual fenfe, that which we have heard, that which we have feen with our eyes, which we have looked upon, and our hands have handled of the word of life, we know to be true. Yea a believer is a teftimony to the certainty of truth in what he is, much beyond what he is in all that he faith. Words may be pretended; real effects have their teftimony, infeparably annexed unto them.

3dly, Hence, it appears that there muft needs be great affurance of thofe truths which are thus received, and believed. For hereby are the fenfes exercifed to dif cern good and evil, Heb. xv. 14. Where there is a spiritual fenfe of truth, of the good and evil that is in doctrines, from an inward experience of what is fo good, and from thence an averfation unto the contrary; and this obtained id viv, by reafon of an habit, or an habitual frame of heart, there is ftrength, there is sted-> faftnefs, and affurance. This is the teaching of the unction, which will not, which cannot deceive. Hence many of old and of late, that could not difpute, could yet die for the truth. He that came to another, and went about to prove by sophistical reasonings that there was no fuch thing as motion, had only this return from him, who either was not able to anfwer his cavilling, or unwilling to put himfelf to trouble about it; he arofe, and walking up and down, gave him a real confutation of his fophiftry. It is fo in this cafe; when a foul hath a real experience of the grace of God, of the pardon of fins, of the vertue and efficacy of the death of Chrift, of juftification by his blood, and peace with God by believing; let men, or devils, or angels from heaven, oppose these things, if it cannot answer their

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fophifms, yet he can rife up and walk; he can, with all holy confidence and affurance, oppofe his own fatisfying experience unto all their arguings and fuggeftions. A man will not be difputed out of what he fees and feels: And a believer will abide as firmly by his fpiritual fenfe, as any man can by his natural.

This is the meaning of that prayer of the apostle, Col. H. 2. That your hearts might be comforted, being knit together in love, unto all riches of the full affurance of understanding, to the acknowledgment of the mystery of God, and of the Father, and of Christ. Understanding in the mysteries of the gofpel they had; but he prays, that by a farther experience of it, they might come to the affurance of understanding. To be true, is the property of the doctrine itself, to be certain or affured, is the property of our minds. Now, this experience doth fo unite the mind and truth, that we fay, fuch a truth is most certain, whereas certainty is indeed the property of our minds, or their knowledge, and not of the truth known. It is certain unto us, that is, we have an affured knowledge of it, by the experience we have of it. This is the affurance of understanding here mentioned. And he farther prays, that we may come to the riches of this affurance: that is to an abundant plentiful affurance. And that is iniyvwwv, to the acknowledgement of the mystery of God, owning it from a sense and experience of its excellency and worth.

And this is in the nature of all gofpel truth; they are fitted and fuited to be experienced by a believing foul. There is nothing in them fo fublime and high, nothing fo myfterious, nothing fo feemingly low and outwardly contemptible, but that a gracious foul hath experience of an excellency, reality, power and efficacy in it all. For inftance; look on that which concerns the order and worship of the gospel: This feems to many to be a mere external thing, whereof a foul can have no inward fenfe or relifh. Notions there are many about it, and endless contentions, but what more? Why, let a gracious foul in fimplicity and fincerity of

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fpirit, give up himself to walk with Chrift according to his appointment, and he fhall quickly find fuch a tafte and relish in the followfhip of the gospel, in the communion of faints, and of Chrift among them, as that he fhall come up to fuch riches of affurance in the understanding and acknowledgments of the ways of the Lord, as others by their difputing can never attain unto. What is fo high, glorious, and myfterious as the doctrine of the ever bleffed trinity? Some wife men have thought meet to keep it vailed from ordinary Chriftians; and fome have delivered it in fuch terms, as that they can understand nothing by them. But take a believer, who hath tafted how gracious the Lord is, in the eternal love of the Father, the great undertaking of the Son in the work of mediation and redemption, with the almighty work of the Spirit, creating grace and comfort in the foul, and hath had an experience of the love, holinefs, and power of God in them all, and he will, with more firm confidence, adhere to this myfterious truth, being led unto it and confirmed in it, by fome few plain teftimonies of the word, than a thousand difputers fhall do, who only have the notion of it in their minds. Let a real trial come, and this will appear: Few will be found to facrifice their lives on bare fpeculations. Experience will give affurance and stability.

We have thus cleared the credit of the teftimony, now to be improved. It is evident on thefe grounds, that there is a great certainty in thofe truths, whereof believers have experience. Where they communicate their power unto the heart, they gave an unquestionable affurance of their truths, And when that is once realized in the foul, all difputes about it are put to filence.

These things being fo, let us inquire into the faith and experience of the faints on the earth, as to what they know of the truth propofed unto confirmation; namely, that there is forgivenefs with God. Let us go to fome poor foul that now walks comfortably under

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the light of God's countenance, and fay unto him, Did we not know you fome while fince to be full of fadness, and great anxiety of fpirit; yea, forrowful almoft to death, and bitter in foul?

Anfw. Yes, faith he, fo it was indeed; my days were confumed with mourning, and my life with forrow; and I walked heavily in fear and bitterness of fpirit all the day long.

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Why, what ailed you, what was the matter with you; feeing as to the outward things you were in peace?

Anfw. The law of God had laid hold upon me, and flain me; I found myself thereby a woful finaer, yea, overwhelmed with the guilt of fin. Every moment I expected tribulation and wrath from the hand of God; My fore ran in the night and ceafed not, and my foul refufed comfort.

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How is it then that thou art thus delivered, that you are no more fad? Where have you found ease and peace? have you been by any means delivered, or did your trouble wear off, and depart of its own accord?

Anfw. Alas, no; had I not met with an effectual remedy, I had funk, and everlastingly perished. What courfe did you take?

Anfw. I went unto him by Jefus Chrift against whom I have finned, and have found him better unto me, than I could expect, or ever should have believed, had not he over-powered my heart by his Spirit. Instead of wrath which I feared, and that justly, because I had deferved it, he faid unto me in Chrift, Fury is not in me. For a long time I could not believe it; I thought it impoffible that there fhould be mercy and pardon for me, or fuch a one as I. But he ftill fupported me, fometimes by one means, fometimes by another; until taking my foul near to himfelf, he caufed me to fee the folly of my unbelieving heart, and the vilenefs of the hard thoughts I had of him, and that indeed there is with him forgiveness and plenteous redemption.

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This hath taken away all my forrows, and given me quietnefs, with reft and affurance.

But are you fure now that this is fo, may you not poffibly be deceived?

Anfw. Says the foul; I have not the leaft fufpicion of any fuch matter; and if at any time ought doth arife to that purpose, it is quickly overcome.

But how are you confirmed in this perfuafion?

Anfw. That fense of it which I have in my heart, that sweetness and reft which I have experience of, that influence it hath upon my foul, that obligation I find Y laid upon me by it unto all thankful obedience; that relief, fupportment and confolation that it hath afforded me in trials and troubles, in the mouth of the grave, and entrances of eternity, all anfwering what is declared concerning these things in the word, will not fuffer me to be deceived. I could not indeed receive it until God was pleased to speak it unto me. But now let Satan do his utmost, I fhall never ceafe to bear this teftimony, that there is mercy and forgiveness with him.

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How many thoufands may we find of thefe in the world, who have had fuch a feal of this truth in their hearts, as they cannot only fecurely lay down their lives in the confirmation of it, if called thereunto, but alfo do chearfully and triumphantly venture their eternal concernments upon it. Yea, this is the rife of all that peace, ferenity of mind, and ftrong confolation which in this world they are made partakers of.

Now this is to me, on the principles before laid down, an evidence great and important. God hath not manifefted this truth unto the faints, thus copied it out of his word, and exemplified it in their fouls, to leave them under any poffibility of being deceived..

Inftitution of religious worship an evidence of forgiveness.

VII. God's

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