confider the law as a covenant, or as a rule, and we get both fulfilled in Chrift; the law as a covenant is fulfilled by receiving Chrift; the law as a rule is fulfilled by walking in him: and fo the two tables of the law, in either of thefe refpects, are anfwered by thefe two tables of the gofpel; for, "Chrift is the end of the law for righteoufnefs, to every one that believeth."

I must only here touch a little, 1. At the denomination of the duty, it is a walking. 2. The qualification of it, it is a walking IN CHRIST. As to the

First, The denomination of this duty, it is a walking. I know many things might be faid in running the parallel; but I do not defign to fqueeze the metaphor beyond the scope of the text, but juft to obferve what is intended therein. And there are these three things that I apprehend are intended. It plainly denotes, 1. Practice. 2. Progrefs. 3. Permanency.

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[1.] It denotes practice, or practicalnefs. And this is oppofed to a dogmatical faith, where there is no practical religion. These that have received Chrift they ought to be practical Chriftians, practical believers; As ye bave received Chrift Jefus the Lord, fo WALK ye bim: let your faith be a working faith. As by the fame hand that we receive a thing, by the fame hand we work; fo your faith, if it be faving, then as it receives Chrift in the promise of the gospel, fo it will work by love in the precept of the law: if it receives Chrift in the covenant, it will work by love in the commandment; Gal. v. 6. "In Chrift Jefus, neither circumcifion availeth any thing, nor uncircumcifion, but faith that works by love:" Why? his commandments are not grievous.

QUEST. If we have received Chrift, "what need we more: Chrift hath done all, and therefore we need do nothing?

ANSW. Indeed many good principles are abufed in the world; e. g. Christ hath done all for his people in point of merit, and he does all in his people in point of power; and fo without him we can do nothing: here is a good principle; but thence to infer, that the duty and lawful use of means is not ours, is to abuse this good principle to licentioufnefs." When fin abounds, grace much

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more abounds; there is a good principle; but thence to infer, Let us fin, that grace may abound, is to abuse that good principle, and a turning the grace of God to wantonness. We are justified by faith, without the works of the law; there is a notable gofpel principle: but thence to infer, that a juftified man needs not be conform to the law, here is a good principle abused; for, "Do we make void the law, through faith? God forbid; nay, we establifh the law."

There are two things concerning a juftified perfon, which call for practical religion; the one is, God glorifies him; and the other is, he is to glorify God. God glorifies him; for, "Whom he juftifies, them he alfo glorifies," Rom. viii. 30. But then God is to be glorified as well as he, and will be glorified by all that are juftified; and therefore, that they may glorify God, they are to bring forth good fruit. And, on this account, may the Lord deliver us from a dead, unfruitful, and uprofitable faith.

There are four great reasons why they that have received Christ, by a gospel-faith, fhould walk in him, by a gospel-practice, namely, because hereby the power of faith is feen; hereby the trial of faith is made; hereby the beauty of it appears to others; and the comfort of it accrues to ourselves.

1. Hereby the power of faith is feen, in that it leads to a gofpel-practice. How is it that its power is thus feen? Why, even in oppofing many and strong lufts: though it fhould not conquer them, yet it opposes them; and to oppofe and fight against fin, in fcripture-language, is to conquer it: this is a fighting the good fight of faith. The power of faith is feen in a gofpel-practice, while faith is thus exercifed in fouring the sweetest fin, in bearing the greatest burden, and making eafy the hardest commandment. When Chrift fpeaks of doing the greatest things, then he compares faith to the leaft things; when he speaks of removing mountains, then he compares faith to a grain of mustard feed: and indeed, faith makes a man to remove mountains of pride, and fets a man's hatred upon that which he loved; and fets a man's love upon that which he hated. How fhall a

heavy weight of lead be made easy to a child? Why, if you do not pare the lead, to make the weight lefs, then you must add ftrength to the child; and if he has more ftrength, though the weight be not pared, yet it makes no matter, becaufe the child hath ftrength to bear it: even fo, God in the gofpel makes the command light and eafy; how fo? not by paring, or abating the commandment, or diminishing the rule, (that is our corrupt way;) but God does it by giving more of faith, and more of Chrift.And fo the power of faith is feen in carrying a man thro' the greateft duties and trials.

2. Hereby the trial of faith is made; I fay, by a gofpel practice. Many judge of the truth of their faith by the degrees of their confidence; but the beft trial is by the degrees of their conqueft over fin; the degrees of their conquefts over their lufts and corruptions. As I faid before, you may know the height of the fun by the fhortnefs of your fhadow, more than by the degrees of altitude. How much doth a man believe? even as much as his faith purifies his heart, and mortifies his lufts; fo much does he believe, and no more. It is true, a man may be believing in Chrift for juftification, and coming under the covert of his blood, while in the mean time he fees no measure of fanctification; but on the contrary his heart full of hell, and enmity and corruption; yea, but in the mean time what is that light wherein he fees his own vilenefs, but fanctifying light? And what is that grace whereby he is loathing and abhorring himself, but fanctifying grace? And fo when juftifying faith is bufy flying under the covert of blood, fanctifying grace is not idle; nay, the more that faith acts upon Chrift for juftification, the more will it act in purification. Again,

3. Another reafon why a gospel faith fhould have a gofpel-practice is, because hereby the beauty of faith appears to others, and our light fhines before men, fo as they feeing our good works, do glorify God. The beauty of faith is feen by others, not in faith itself, but in the gofpel-walk and practice that it produces. If a man would know in the morning whether the fun be rifen in the eaft, he will readily look to the weft, and fee whether VOL. III. † D

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he can notice the reflection of the fun-beams upon the top of a house, or the top of a hill; he looks the quite contrary way from the fun; and yet he does it ingenioufly enough even fo here, if a man would know you to be a believer, he will not look into your faith, but will look out to your life, or look back to your converfation, and fee what marks your faith makes there; hence faith the apoftle, Shew me thy faith by thy works. Faith and works are contrary in point of juftification, and yet when a man would fee your faith, he will look to the contrary part, and fee how it appears in your walk and work: and if it appears not there, the beauty of faith is not seen.

4. Hereby the comfort of faith accrues to yourselves: even by a gofpel-practice you have the comfort of faith; for, "Great peace have all they that love his law: the fruit of righteoufnefs is peace." There is no greater comfort in the world than for a man to get, by faith, mastery over fin, and grace to do duty for God. Whatever a man does for God, leaving self behind him, it carries the sweetest relish in the world with it. All duties, and fufferings both, are made fweet by this, that it is done for God. Self, in any duty, doth four the duty be it never fo admirable; "Let every man prove his own work, faith the apoftle, then fhall he have rejoicing in himfelf, and not in another," Gal. vi. 4.-Thefe are fome reafons why gofpel-faith, in receiving Christ, must be attended with gofpel-practice in walking in` him.

Many talk of practical religion in our day, but few know what it is to walk in it; they are like the lark that fings with the higheft, but builds with the lowest fome fing with the higheft, as if they were almoft angels; but where do they build? where are their affections? where are their hearts, their aims, their ends? They are low, earthly, and fenfual. You that profefs to be friends to the gofpel, O let the mouths that reproach religion be ftopped by the power of religion in your walk. If the world call us Antinomians; "It is the will of God, that by well-doing we put to filence the ignorance of foolish men," I Pet. ii. 15. We account them the greatest stars that give the greatest light; fo men will account them

still the greatest Christians that give the greatest light, by their gofpel practice in holinefs toward God, and righteoufnefs toward men. If you be not a better fervant, a better child, a better parent, a better mafter, than you were, or than others are, what credit will religion get by you? Therefore, feck a practical faith, leading to a gofpel practice.

[2.] This walk imports not only practice, but pros grefs; to ftand ftill is not to walk. Walking imports progrefs and growth from faith to faith, from ftrength to ftrength, from glory to glory. For the truth is, by reafon of corruption, we are like the boat in a stream; if we go not forward by the oar, we go backward by the tide fo, if we go not forward, by the ftrength of grace, we will go backward, by the firength and power of corruption; even as the boat in the ftream cannot ftand, it must go backward. It is true, people may be at a stand in religion and yet feem to walk; men may go the round of duties, and yet not be walking; like a fpinning wheel, it goes round, but yet it is in the fame place ftill. Many may be called old job-trot profeffors; they are the fame now that they were twenty years ago; no more holinefs, no more knowledge, no more experience.

QUEST. What is this growth and progress?

I anfwer, It is not like a wheel that runs round, and ftands ftill in the fame place; but where there is more knowledge of Chrift, more infight into the myfteries of the gospel, more feeling of the power of the gospel, more victory over lufts and corruptions, &c. there is growth and progrefs. It is true, a child of God may fall, and he may relapfe, and fall again; his feet may be benumbed that he cannot walk: but here is the happiness of a true child of God, one that hath truly received Christ, that his fins are always beneficial to him; he will gain more in holinefs by one fin, than a natural man will gain by an hundred duties: for his fall is like the ftumbling of a horse that makes him ride the fafter; fo the believer may ftumble, but when he gets to his feet again, he runs the fafter, makes quicker progress in the ways of God; his fall humbles him, and makes

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