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this walking did import. Walking, I faid, did import these three things efpecially, namely, practice, progrefs, and permanency: fo here, this walking in Chrift imports a practical improvement of Chrift; a progreffive improvement of him; and a permanent improvement of him.

(1.) A practical improvement of Chrift; that is, not only a receiving of Chrift, and then fuffering it to ly fleeping, as it were, in the dull habit; but it implies faith in practical actings and vigorous exercife of it, and laying fafter and fafter hold upon him; and reducing your faith into practice, that you may adorn the doctrine of God, our Saviour, in all things.

(2.) A progreffive improvement of Chrift; a following on to know the Lord. It is not a standing still, a fitting down, or going back, but a walking in Chrift, a going forward; "Forgetting the things that are behind, and reaching forth to the things that are before, and preffing towards the mark for the prize of the high calling of God," Phil. iii. 13. The man that walks in Chrift can never get enough of him.

(3.) It is a permanent improvement of Chrift. A man that takes a ftep or two forward, and then fits down again, he cannot be faid to walk: fo, fome take a start of devotion, a fit of zeal and concern for religion, perhaps about a communion, but it dies out. Thefe can

not be faid to walk in Chrift; for walking in him is a conftant, permanent, perfevering, and continued improvement of him. It is true, this conftant progrefs is not always difcernable; faints themfelves may have their winter-withering, as well as their fummer-fruit: and we are not to judge of the growth of a tree by looking to it this day from what it was yesterday; for there may be no fenfible alteration; but ftay till the fpring come, and then you will difcern the flourish and the fruit; yea, let fome years pass, and then you may fee fome fenfible growth of the whole tree: fo, the children of God are not always to judge of their continued growth, by comparing what they are this day, with what they were the former day; or what they are this month, with what they were the former month, left there be no difcerni

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ble advance; but let them (at leaft, if they be of any standing in Chrift) judge by what they are now, from what they were at their firft ingraftment into Christ, and they will find that they have attained more knowledge of Christ than at firft, more experience of his favour, more outlettings of his grace than they underftood before; more infight into the gofpel, more ftroaks that their corruptions have got, and fo more fruit and growth.

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This improvement of Chrift is permanent; it is a walking in Chrift, and abiding in him; John xv. 5. "He that abideth in me, and I in him, the fame bringeth forth much fruit; for without me, (or SEPARATE FROM ME,) ye can do nothing. And ver. 6. If a man abide not in me, he is caft forth as a branch, and is withered; and men gather them, and they are caft into the fire, and are burnt." To receive Chrift, is to enter upon the bridge; and to walk in him, is to keep the bridge; for a downfal on either fide is dreadful. Some fall down, as it were, on the right side of the bridge, as hypocrites and self-righteous perfons; fome on the left fide of the bridge, as thefe that give themselves over to profane practices. There is a few that keep the bridge, and these are true believers and receivers of Chrift; or, if they happen to fall, they are like a man that falls half down, as it were, and is kept up by a chain fastened to his body; he may get a hurt by the fall, and put to a terrible fright by it, lest he drown and perifh; but the chain pulls him up again; even fo, the believer, he is tied, as it were, to the bridge by a chain, a double chain, namely, the fpirit of faith dwelling in him, and the grace of faith wrought in him; for, "He that is joined to the Lord is one spirit;" and of this faith Chrift hath faid, "I have prayed for thee, that thy faith fail not:" yea, there is the chain of a fure promife, the chain of divine faithfulness, the chain of an everlasting righteoufnefs. However, if he do not keep the chain, he may fall fo as to be put in fear of perihing, in the gulf of everlafting wrath; and he may hing at the chain, as it were, betwixt hope and despair: he may hurt his peace and comfort by his unwatchfulness; and God may vifit his iniquity with the rod, and hing him over the gulf, till the chain pull him up again. It is there

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fore dreadful in any cafe not to keep the bridge. I come now to confider,

4tbly, What this walking in Chrift doth infer. It infers and brings along with it efpecially two things, namely, a walking with his Father, and a walking in his Spirit.

1. A walking with his Father. "Enoch walked with God. Walk humbly with thy God." And what is it to walk with God, but to walk in communion with him, and comfortable enjoyment of him?-In communion with him; in a conftant contemplation of him, fanctifying the Lord in our hearts; in a conftant affection to him, having his love fhed abroad in our hearts by the Holy Ghoft; and in a conftant dependence on him, receiving our all from him by faith, and returning our all to him in duty and gratitude. It is a walking in the comfortable enjoyment of him, as all our portion and happiness, all our falvation, and all our defire; renouncing all things in heaven and earth, as our portion, but a God in Chrift alone and indeed to enjoy God, is to enjoy all, and more than words can exprefs, or thought conceive; it is to enjoy BEING itself, in whofe nature is ingroffed all poffible perfections.

2. It infers a walking in his Spirit; Gal. v. 16. "Walk in the Spirit, and ye fhall not fulfil the lufts of the flesh." And to walk in the Spirit is, in fhort, to walk in the light of the Spirit, as a Spirit of wisdom and revelation in the knowledge of Chrift.-It is to walk in the love of the Spirit, as a Spirit of love in the foul, working love towards God and man.-It is to walk in the liberty of the Spirit, with enlarged hearts towards God, and the things of God.-In the comforts of the Spirit, Acts ix. 31.In the ftrength and power of the Spirit, Rom. viii. 2.— And in all the graces and fruits of the Spirit, Gal. v.

22, 23.

SER

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SERMON XXXVII.

COLOS. ii. 6.

As ye have received Chrift Jefus the Lord, fo walk ye in him.

THER

[The Fourth Sermon on this Text.]

'HERE are two things which the fcriptures principally teach, (as you may all know by your Catechifm) viz. What we are to believe concerning God, and what duty God requires of man.' Faith and practice are the two great things in it; what we are to believe, and what we are to do. This text then is a fhort compend of the whole fcripture; for it contains all that concerns firft our faith, and next our practice: yea, it not only teaches what we are to believe, and what we are to do, or practise, but also how we are to believe, and how we are to practife. How are we to believe? Even by receiving Chrift Jefus the Lord; for believing and receiving is the fame thing, John i. 12. “But as many as received him, to them gave he power to become the fons of God, even to them that believe on his name.” And fo to believe aright is to receive Chrift, and to receive him aright is to receive him as a Jefus, and as a Lord; as a Jefus, that we may be faved by the price of his blood; and as a Lord, that we may be governed by the power of his Spirit. Again, how are we to practife; even by walking in him; and walking in him as we have received him. Now as to the rule of the believer's walk, it lies moft emphatical here in the as and the fo, in the text; As ye bave received, So walk: which, in the general, imports, that a gofpel-walk is a walking by faith; for As we receive Christ Jefus the Lord by faith, so we are to walk in him, namely, by faith. There can be no right walking, or working, but by faith; this is the fpring of the fpiritual life; The juft fhall live by faith, VOL. III. Rom.

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Rom. i. 17. Hab. ii. 4. Gal. iii. 11. Heb. x. 38. And this walk is exprefly called a walking by faith, 2 Cor. v.7. We walk by FAITH, and not by fight. As ye bave received Chrift, fo walk ye in him: Did you receive him by faith? So walk in him by a continual receiving of him, and drawing virtue from him to enable you to hold on your way. But this leads us to the next general head of the method.

III. The third general head of the method is, To fpeak of the rule of the believer's duty, and the proportion it fhould bear to his reception of Chrift, namely, That he is to walk in Chrift, as he hath received him.

More particularly, feeing the great emphasis of the text lies in the as and fo, importing, that the walk is to be fuitable to the reception, we would enquire what proportion and fuitablenefs this walk fhould have to the receiving of Chrift: And here confider, 1. The proportion and fuitableness of this walk to the act of receiving, or the manner wherein we receive Chrift. 2. The proportion and suitablenefs thereof to the object received, or to the capacities wherein we received Chrift, namely, as he is Chrift fefus the Lord.

Firft, The proportion or fuitablenefs of this walk to the act of receiving; or the manner wherein we received him. Here then I must addrefs the believer, who only is capable of this work, because he only hath received Chrift, and muft enquire at him how he hath received Chrift, that he may be directed how to walk in him.

1. Then, Did you receive Chrift obedientially and warrantably, upon the warrant of the call and command of God, requiring you to come to him, and receive him? Did you not fee the authority of God interpofed, faying, "This is his commandment that ye believe in the name of his Son?" And to this authority you was made to ftoop in a day of power. Why then, as ye have received Chrift obedientially, fo walk ye in him, namely, obedientially; from a regard to the fovereign will and authority of a God in Chrift. And this is the will of God in Chrift concerning you, even that you receive the law from Chrift's

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