would not have been considered as a privilege belonging only to believers, and being destitute of it, an argument of a per son's not belonging to Christ. As for the extraordinary dis-' pensation of the Holy Ghost, it was not inseparably connected with salvation; for many had it who were Christians only in name, and had nothing more than a form of godliness; and on' the other hand, many true believers brought forth those fruits' which proceeded from the Spirit, in an ordinary way, who had' not these extraordinary gifts conferred on them. Moreover the apostle speaks of believers through the Spirit mortifying the deeds of the body, Rom. viii. 13. Now if the work of mortifi-" cation be incumbent on believers in all ages, then the influences of the Spirit, enabling hereunto, may be expected in all ages. Now to apply this to our present argument; the Spirit's bearing witness with our spirit, that we are the children of God," which is the foundation of that assurance which we are plead ing for, is, together with the other fruits and effects of the Spirit but now mentioned, a privilege which believers, as such, are given to desire and hope for, and stand in as much need of as those who had this or other privileges conferred on them in an extraordinary way, in the first age of the gospel-church.

And to all this we might add, that the extraordinary gifts of the Spirit at that time, were conferred on particular persons, and not on whole churches; but assurance is considered, by the apostle, as a privilege conferred on the church to which he writes, that is, the greatest part of them, from whence the denomination is taken; upon which account, the apostle speaking to the believing Corinthians, says, We know that if our earthy house of this tabernacle were dissolved, we have a building of God, an house not made with hands, eternal in the heavens, 2 Cor. v. 1. by which he does not only intend himself and other minis sters, but the generality of believers, at that time, who are de scribed as walking by faith: and there are many other things said concerning them in the foregoing and following verses; which makes it sufficiently evident, that the apostle intends more than himself and other ministers, when he speaks of their having assurance, since many had it who were not made partakers of extraordinary gifts. Therefore we must not conclude that the church has, at present, no ground to expect this privilege, so that they are liable to the charge of enthusiasm if they do. But that this objection may farther appear not to be sufficient to overthrow the argument we are maintaining, we may appeal to the experience of many believers in this present age, who pretend not to extraordinary revelation; and therefore let it be considered,"

(3.) That many, in later ages, since extraordinary revelation has ceased, have attained this privilege, and consequently it is

now attainable. To deny this would be to offend against the generation of God's people, of whom many have given their testimony to this truth, who have declared what a comfortable sense they have had of their interest in Christ, and the sensible impressions they have enjoyed of his love shed abroad in their hearts, whereby they have had, as it were, a prelibation of the heavenly blessedness; and this has been attended with the most powerful influence of the Spirit of God enabling them to exercise those graces which have been agreeable to these comfortable experiences, whereby they have been carried through, and enabled to surmount the greatest difficulties which have attended them in this life. And many have been supported and comforted therewith, at the approach of death, in which respect the sting thereof has been taken away, and they have expressed themselves with a kind of triumph over it, in the apostle's words, O death, where is thy sting? O grave, where is thy victory? 1 Cor. xv. 55.

That some have been favoured with this invaluable privilege is undeniable; the account we have in the history of the lives and deaths of many, who have been burning and shining lights in their generation, puts it out of all doubt. And if this were not sufficient, we might appeal to the experience of many now living, since there is scarce any age or place in which the gospel comes with power, but we have some instances of the Spirit's testimony to his own work, whereby it comes, with much assurance, a comfortable sense of God's love, peace of conscience, and joy in the Holy Ghost, which is the first-fruits and earnest of eternal life. But since this will be particularly insisted on under a following answer *, and farther proofs given hereof; we may, at present, take it for granted, that many have been assured of their being in a state of grace, who have not made the least pretension, to inspiration; and to charge them with enthusiasm, or a vain ungrounded delusion, is to cast a reflection on the best of men, as well as on one of the highest privileges which we can enjoy in this world.

I am sensible that it will be objected to this, that though some have indeed expressed such a degree of assurance, yet this will only afford conviction to those that have it, who are best judges of their own experience, and the evidence whereon it is founded; but this is not a sufficient proof to us, with respect to whom it is only matter of report: And it may be said, on the other hand, that it is possible they might be mistaken who have been so sure of their own salvation.

But to this it may be replied, that it is very unreasonable to suppose that all have been mistaken or deluded, who have declared that they have been favoured with this blessing; chari

See Quest. Ixxxiii.

ty will hardly admit of such a supposition; and if there be no possibility of attaining this assurance, they must all have been deceived, who have concluded that they had it. Moreover, this privilege has been attained, not only by a few persons, and these the more credulous part of mankind, or by such who have not been able to assign any marks or evidences tending to support it; but many believers have experienced it, who, at the same time, have been far from discovering any weakness of judgment, or disposition to unwarrantable credulity; yea, they have enjoyed it at such a time when they have been most sensible of the deceitfulness of their own hearts, and could not but own that there was a peculiar hand of God herein; and the same persons, when destitute of the Spirit's testimony, have acknowledged themselves to have used their utmost endeavours to attain it, but in vain.

As to the conviction which this will afford to us who are destitute hereof; that though we suppose it true to a demonstration, to those who have it, as being matter of sensation to them, it is only matter of report to us; which we are no farther bound to believe than we can depend on the credibility of their evidence, who have declared that they have experienced it. To this it may be replied, that if there be such a thing as certainty founded on report, which to deny, would be the greatest degree of scepticism; and if this has been transmitted to us, by a great number of those who cannot be charged with any thing that looks like a disposition to deceive either themselves or others; then we are bound to believe, from their own testimony, that there is such an assurance to be attained by those who pretend not to receive it by extraordinary inspiration from the Spirit of God. This leads us,

III. To consider the character of the persons to whom this privilege belongs. Accordingly they are described in this answer, as such who truly believe in Christ, and endeavour to walk in all good conscience before him: these only have ground to expect this privilege. It is an assurance of our having the truth of grace that we are considering; which supposes a person truly to believe in Christ; and accordingly it is distinguished from that unwarrantable presumption whereby many persuade themselves that they shall be saved, though they be not sanctified. It is not the hope of the hypocrite we are speaking of, which, as it is said, shall perish, and be cut off; whose trust shall be as the spider's web, which shall be swept away with the besom of destruction, and be like the giving up of the ghost, which shall end in everlasting despair, Job viii. 13, 14. and chap. xi. 20. but it is a well-grounded hope, such as is accompanied with, and supported by the life of faith; so that we are first enabled to act grace, and then to discern the

truth thereof in our own souls, and accordingly reap the comfortable fruits and effects that attend this assurance; as the apostle prays in the behalf of the believing Romans, that the God of hope would fill them with all joy and peace in believing, Rom. xv. 13. So that an unbeliever has no right to this privilege, and, indeed, from the nature of the thing, it is preposterous for a person to be assured of that, which in itself has no reality, as the apostle says, If a man think himself to be something when he is nothing, he deceiveth himself, Gal. vi. 3. And if faith be necessary to assurance, then it follows, as it is farther observed in this answer, that they who have attained this privilege, walk in all good conscience before God; whereby the sincerity of their faith is evinced: Thus the apostle says, Our rejoicing is this, the testimony of our conscience, that in simplicity and godly sincerity, not with fleshly wisdom, but by the grace of God, we have had our conversation in the world, 2 Cor. i. 12.

IV. We are now to consider the means by which assurance is to be attained, viz. not by extraordinary revelation, but by faith, founded on the promises of God. As to the former of these, we have already considered, that assurance may be attained without extraordinary revelation, as has been experienced by some in this present dispensation of the gospel, in which extraordinary revelation is ceased. And, indeed, it may be observed, in the account the scripture gives of this privilege, that it does not appear, that when extraordinary revelation was granted to many, in the first age of the gospel, that the design thereof was to lead men into the knowledge of their own state, so as that they should attain assurance of their interest in Christ, and right to eternal life that way. The main design of inspiration was to qualify ministers in an extraordinary way to preach the gospel, as the necessity of affairs seemed then to require it; it was also necessary for the imparting some doctrines which could not otherwise be known: And, inasmuch as it was an extraordinary dispensation of divine providence, it was an expedient to give conviction to the world, concerning the truth of the christian religion, since God hereby was pleased to converse in an immediate way with men, and testified by this, the great regard he had to his church, and answered the great ends of inspiration, in propagating that religion which was then to be set up in the world. But we do not find that the work of grace was ordinarily wrought, or carried on this way; nor was it God's instituted means, without which they could not attain assurance, which the saints' arrived to, in that age of extraordinary inspiration, the same way as we are to expect to attain it. It is true, God has occasionally intimated, hy immediate revelation, that he would save some particular

persons, and that their names were written in the book of life, Phil. iv. 3. but this was a special and extraordinary instance of divine condescension, that some should be described by name, in scripture, who had obtained this privilege; though it is not designed hereby that others should expect to attain it this way; and therefore it will be hard to prove that the apostle Paul, and others whom he speaks of, who were assured of their salvation, though they received the knowledge of other things by inspiration, were led into the knowledge of their own state in such a way, much less may we expect to attain assurance by extraordinary revelation. And this leads us to consider the ordinary means whereby we may attain it, which is, in this answer, said to be, by faith, grounded on the truth of God's promises, and the Spirit's testimony, whereby we are enabled to discern in ourselves those graces which accompany salvation; accordingly we must consider,

1. That in order to our arriving to a comfortable persuasion that we shall be saved, there must be promises of life and sal vation revealed, which are contained in the gospel; these are remotely necessary thereunto; for without a promise of salva tion we can have no hope of it; but notwithstanding these promises are contained therein, yet many are destitute of it.

2. It is also necessary, in order to our attaining assurance, that there should be some marks and evidences revealed in the word of God, as a rule for persons to try themselves by, in order to their knowing that they are in a state of grace. Now we may say concerning this, as well as the former, to wit, the promises of salvation recorded, that though it be necessary to assurance; yet it is only an objective means for our attaining it, inasmuch as we are hereby led to see what graces experienced, or duties performed by us, have the promise of salvation annexed to them; and therefore let me add,

3. That it is necessary that we should discern in ourselves those marks and evidences of grace to which the promise of salvation is annexed; otherwise we have no right to lay claim to it; accordingly it is our duty to look into ourselves, and ob serve what marks of grace we have, from whence we may, by the Spirit's testimony with ours, discern ourselves to be in a state of grace; which leads us to consider,

(1.) That in order to our attaining assurance, we must exercise the duty of self-examination.

(2.) What we may truly call a mark or evidence of grace, whereby we may discern that we are in a state of salvation. (3.) Notwithstanding this we are to depend on, hope, and pray for, the testimony of the Spirit with our spirits, that we are the children of God, and that these evidences are found in us.