And yet alas! there is no point in all practical divi nity that we are naturally fo much averfe and backward unto as unto this; neither doth Satan ftrive to hinder us fo much from doing any thing else as this: and hence it is, that we are all of us naturally apt to abide and continue in that finful and miferable eftate that the first Adam plunged us into, without either taking any notice of it, or being at all affected with it; fo far are we from coming out of it: and if the Lord be pleafed by any means to open our eyes to fee our mifery, and we do thereupon begin to step out of it; yet alas! we are prone rather to go backwards towards the first Adam's pure eftate (g), in ftriving and struggling to leave fin, and perform duties, and do good works, hoping thereby to make our felves fo righteous and holy, that God will let us into paradife again, to eat of the tree of life and live for ever: and this we do, until we fee the flaming fword at Eden's gate, turning every way to keep the way of the tree of life (b), Gen. iii. 24. Is it not ordinary, when the Lord convinceth a mar, of his fin (either by means of his word or his rod) to cry after this manner: O I am a finful man! for I have lived a very wicked life; and therefore furely the Lord is angry with me, and will damn me in hell: O what fhall I do to fave my foul? And is there not at hand fome ignorant, miferable comforter, ready to fay, Yet, do not defpair, man, but repent of thy fins, and afk God forgiveness, and reform your life, and doubt not but he will be merciful unto you (i); for he hath promised

(g) i. e. To the way of the covenant of works,which innocent Adam was fet upon.

(b) i. e. Till we be brought to defpair of obtaining falva tion in the way of the covenant of works. Mark here, the fpring of Legalifm,namely, the natural bias of man's heart towards the way of the law, as a covenant of

works; and ignorance of the law, in its fpirituality and vaft extent, Rom. vii. 9. and

.There is not one word of Jefus Chrift the glorious Mediator, nor of faith in his blood, in all the advice given by this Cafuift to the afflicted; andagreeable thereto is the effect it hath upon

the

mised (you know) that at what time foever a finner repeateth him of his fius, he will forgive him (k).

And doth he not hereupon comfort himself, and fay, in his heart at least, O if the Lord will but fpare my life, and lengthen out my days, I will become a new man! I am very sorry that I have lived fuch a finful life; but I will never do as I have done for all the world: O you shall see a great change in me, believe

And hereupon he betakes himself to a new courfe of life; and, it may be, becomes a zealous profeffor of religion, performing all Chriftian exercises both public and

and private, and leaves off his old companions, and keep: company with religious men; and fo, it may be, goes on till his dying day, and thinks himself fure of heaven and eternal happiness and yet, it may be all this while is ignorant of Chrift and his righteousness, and therefore establifheth his own.

:

Where is the man, or where is the woman, that is truly come to Chrift, that hath not had fome experience in themselves of fuch a difpofition as this? If there be any that have reformed their lives, and are become profeffors of religion, and have not taken notice of this in themselves more or lefs, I wish they have gone beyond a legal profeffor, or one ftill under the covenant of works.

Nay, where is the man or woman, that is truly in Chrift, that findeth not in themselves an aptnefs to withdraw their hearts from Chrift, and to put fome confidence in their own works and doings? If there be any that do not find it, I wish their hearts deceive them

not..

Let me confefs ingenuouffy, I was a profeffor of religion at least a dozen of years before I knew any other way to eternal life, than to be forry for my fins, and ask forgiveness, and ftrive and endeavour to fulfil the law, and keep the commandments, according as Mr Dod, and other godly men had expounded them: and truly, I remember, I was in hope I should at lastTM attain to the perfect. fulfilling of them; and, in the mean time, I conceived that God would accept the will for the deed, or what I could not do, Chrift had done for me.

And though at laft, by means of conferring with Mr Thomas Hooker in private, the Lord was pleafed to convince me that I was yet but a proud Pharifee; and to fhew me the way of faith and falvation by Chrift alone; and to give me (as I hope) a heart in fome measure to embrace it: yet alas! through the weakness of my faith, I have been, and am ftill apt to turu afide to the covenant of works; and therefore have not attained to that joy and peace in believing, nor that

mea

measure of love to Chrift, and man for Chrift's fake, as I am confident many of God's faints do attain unto in the time of this life. The Lord be merciful unto me, and increase my faith.

And are there not others (though I hope but few) who being enlightned to fee their mifery, by reafon of the guilt of fin, though not by reafon of the filth of fin; and hearing of juftification freely by grace, thro' the redemption which is in Jefus Chrift, do applaud and magnify that doctrine, following them that do moft preach and prefs the fame, feeming to be (as it were) ravifhed with the hearing thereof, out of a conceit that they are by Chrift freely justified from the guilt of fin, though ftill they retain the filth of fin (/). Thefe are they that content themselves (with a gofpel-knowledge) with mere notions in the head, but not in the hearts; glorying and rejoicing in free grace and juftification by faith alone; profeffing faith in Chrift, and yet are not poffeffed of Chrift: thefe are they that can talk like believers, and yet do not walk like believers: these are they that have language like faints, and yet have converfation like devils; thefe are they that are not obedient to the law of Chrift, and therefore are juftly called Antinomians.

Now both these paths (m) leading from Chrift have been justly judged as erroneous; and, to my knowledge, not only a matter of eighteen or twenty years ago, bat alfo within these three or four years there i hath been much ado, both by preaching, writing, and diíputing, both to reduce men out of them, and to keep them from them; and hot contentions have been on both fides, and all, I fear to little purpose: for hath

(7) Mark here the fpring of Antinomianifm; namely the want of a found conviction of the odioufne fs and filthinefs of fin, rendring the foul lothfomeandabominable in the fight of a holy God. Hence as the finner fees not his need of, fo neither will

B 3

not

he receive and reft on Chrift for all his falvation; but will go about to halve it, grafping at his juftifyingblood,neglecting his fanctifying Spirit; and fo falls fhort of all part or lot in that matter.

(m) viz. Legalifm and Antinomianifm.

TALOGUE of thofe Writers Nama I whom i have collected much of the 2contained in this enfoing dialogue.