Will ye then see what leading of the Spirit can evince us to be the sons and daughters of God? know then, that if we will hope for a comfortable assurance hereof, we must be efficaciously led by his sanctifying Spirit: first, in matter of judgment; secondly, in our dispositions; and, thirdly, in our practice.

For matter of judgment: ye remember what our Saviour said to his disciples; When the spirit of truth is come, he will lead you into all truth, John xvi. 13; that is, into all saving and necessary truths; so as to free us from gross ignorance or main error. Whosoever, therefore, is enlightened with the true and solid knowledge of all those points of Christian doctrine which are requisite for salvation, is, in that first regard, led by the Spirit; and in this behalf hath a just title to the sonship of God: as, contrarily, those that are grossly and obstinately erroneous in their judgment of fundamental truths, let them pretend to never so much holiness in heart or life, shall in vain lay claim to this happy condition of the sons of God.

For our disposition, secondly. If the Holy Spirit have wrought our hearts to be right with God in all our affections; if we do sincerely love and fear him; if we do truly believe in him, receiving him, as not our Saviour only, but as our Lord; if our desires be unfeigned towards him; if, after a meek and penitent self-dejection, we can find ourselves raised to a lively hope and firm confidence in that our blessed Redeemer; and shall continue in a constant and habitual fruition of him: being thus led by the Spirit of God, we may be assured that we are the sons of God; for flesh and blood cannot be accessory to these gracious dispositions.

Lastly, for our practice, it is a clear word which we hear God say by Ezekiel, I will put my Spirit into the midst of you, and will by it cause you to walk in my statutes, and keep my laws, Ezek. xxxvi. 27. Lo, herein is the main crisis of a soul led by the Spirit of God, and adopted to this heavenly sonship. It is not for us to content ourselves to talk of the laws of our God, and to make empty and formal professions of his name. Here must be a continued walk in God's statutes: it will not serve the turn for us to stumble upon some acceptable work; to step aside a little into the paths of godliness, and then draw back to the world. No, my beloved; this leading of God's Spirit must neither be a forced angariation, as if God would feoff grace and salvation upon us against our wills; nor some sudden protrusion to good; nor a mere actual, momentary, transient conduction, for a brunt of ho

liness and away, leaving us to the sinful ways of our former disobedience, and to our wonted compliances with the world, the devil, and the flesh; but must be in a steady, uninterrupted, habitual course of holy obedience; so as we may sincerely profess, with the man after God's own heart, My soul hath kept thy testimonies, and I love them exceedingly, Psalm cxix. 167.

Now then, dear Christians, lay this to heart seriously, and call yourselves sadly to this trial. What is the carriage of our lives? What obedience do we yield to the whole Law of our God? If that be entire, hearty, universal, constant, perseverant, and truly conscientious; we have whereof to rejoice, an unfailing ground to pass a confident judgment upon our spiritual estate, to be no less than happy. But if we be willingly failing in the unfeigned desires and endeavours of these holy performances, and shall let loose the reins to any known wickedness, we have no part nor portion in this blessed condition.

Mark, I beseech you, how fully this is asserted to our hands; In this, saith the beloved apostle, the children of God are manifest, and the children of the devil; whosoever doeth not righteousness is not of God, neither he that loveth not his brother, 1 John iii. 10. Observe, I pray you, what test we are put to. Ye hear him not say, "Whoso talks not holily," or, "Whoso professes not godliness:" in these, a hypocrite may exceed the best saint; but, Whosoever doeth not righteousness. Withal, see what a clause the disciple of love superadds to the mention of all righteousness, neither he that loveth not his brother: surely the Spirit of God is a loving spirit, Wisdom i. 6; and St. Paul hath the like phrase, Rom. xv. 30.

To let pass, then, all the other proofs of our guidance by the Spirit, instance but in this one. Alas! my brethren, what is become of that charitable and Christian carriage of men towards one another, which God requires of us, and which was wont to be conspicuous amongst Christian compatriots? Woe is me! instead of that true and hearty love, which our Saviour would have the livery of our discipleship, the badge of our holy profession; what do we see but emulation, envy and malice, rigid censures and rancorous heartburnings amongst men? Instead of those neighbourly and friendly offices, which Christians were wont lovingly to perform to each other: what have we now, in the common practice of men, but underminings, oppressions, violence, cruelty? Can we think that the Spirit of Him who would be styled Love itself

would lead us in these rugged and bloody paths? No, no; this alone is too clear a proof how great a stranger the Spirit of God is to the hearts and ways of men; and how few there are, that, upon good and firm grounds, can plead their right to the sonship of God. Alas! alas! if these dispositions and practices may bewray the sons of an holy God, what can men do to prove themselves the children of that hellish Apollyon, who was a manslayer from the beginning?

For us, my beloved, O let us hate and bewail this common degeneration of Christians; and, as we would be, and be acknowledged, the sons of God, let us put on, as the elect of God, holy and beloved, bowels of mercy, kindness, humbleness of mind, meekness, longsuffering; forbearing one another, forgiving one another, if we have a quarrel against any even as Christ forgave us. And above all these things put on charity, which is the bond of perfectness. Col. iii. 12, 13, 14.

And, lastly, forsaking the misguidance of Satan, the world, and our corrupt nature, which will lead us down to the chambers of death and eternal destruction, let us yield up ourselves to be led by the Holy Spirit of God, in all the ways of righteousness and holiness, of piety, justice, charity, and all manner of gracious conversation; that we may thereby approve ourselves the sons and daughters of God; and may be feoffed in that blessed inheritance which he hath laid up for all his. To the possession whereof may he happily bring us who hath dearly bought us, Jesus Christ the Righteous: To whom, with the Father and the Blessed Spirit, One Infinite God, be given all praise, honour, and glory, now and for ever. Amen.

SERMON XL.

THE MOURNER IN SION.

ECCLESIASTICUs iii. 4.

There is a time to weep, and a time to laugh; a time to mourn, and a time to dance.

I NEED not tell you that Solomon was a wise man. His wisdom, as it was in an extraordinary measure put into him by Him that is wisdom itself; so was it in a more than ordinary way improved by his diligent observation. His observation was universal; of times, things, persons, actions, events: neither did he lock his experiments up in the closet of his own breast; but, by the direction of God's Spirit, laid them forth to the world in this divine sermon; which, not as a king, but as a prophet, he preached to all posterity. Every sentence here, therefore, is a dictate of the Holy Ghost.

It is not Solomon then, but a greater than Solomon, even the Holy Spirit of the great God, that tells you, there is not a time only, but a season too, for every thing and for every purpose under heaven; that is, as I hope you can take it no otherwise, for every good thing or indifferent: as for evil things or actions, if men find a time, yet sure God allows no season; those are always damnably unseasonable abuses of times and of ourselves.

Not to meddle with other particulars; our thoughts are now, by the Divine Providence, pitched upon a time to weep and a time to laugh, a time to mourn and a time to dance; or rather, only upon the time to weep and mourn, for our time of laughing and dancing is past already: and perhaps we have had too much of that in our former times, which makes the causes and degrees of our now weeping and mourning, as more uncouth, so more intensive we must be so much deeper in our mourning, by how much we have been more wild and wanton in our laughter and dancing.

To fall right down therefore upon our intended discourse, without any previous circumlocutions; there is a threefold time of just mourning: 1. When a man is sensible of his punishments; 2. of his sins; 3. of his dangers.

Of his punishments first; or rather, which is more general, of his afflictions, for all afflictions are not intended for punishments; some are fatherly chastisements only for our good, whereas all punishments are afflictive. When we are whipped, then, when we smart with the rod, we have cause to weep; and if in this case we shed no tears, it is a sign of a graceless heart.

It is time, therefore, to mourn, when we are pressed by sufferings; whether from the immediate hand of God, or mediately by the hands of men; whether by private or public calamities.

Are we smitten in our bodies by some painful and incurable diseases? Doth the pestilence rage in our streets? Hath God forbidden us the influence of heaven, and cursed the earth with barrenness? Hath he broken the staff of bread, and sent leanness into our souls? Hath he humbled us with the fearful casualties of fire or water? by wrecks at sea; by lightnings and tempests by land? Hath he sent murrain amongst our cattle and destroying vermin into our barns and fields? Now God tells us, it is a time to mourn.

Are we disquieted in our minds by some overmastering passions of grief, for the miscarriages of children, for the secret discontents of domestical jars, for unjust calumnies cast upon our good name? Are we molested in our minds and spirits with impetuous, and no less importune than hateful temptations? Now it is a time to mourn.

Do we find in our souls a decay and languishment of grace; a prevalence of those corruptions which we thought abated in us? do we find ourselves deeply soul-sick with our sinful indispositions? shortly, do we find the face of our God for the time withdrawn from us? now, now it is a time to mourn.

If we turn our eyes to those evils which are cast upon us by the hands of men: Do men find themselves despoiled of their estates, restrained of their liberties, tortured in their bodies? Do they find the woful miseries of an intestine war, killings, burnings, depopulations? Do they find fire and sword raging in the bosom of our land? Now it is a time to mourn. Were these evils confined to some few persons, to some special families, they