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pany salvation, though we thus speak. For God is not unrighteous, to forget your work and labour of love, which ye have showed toward his name, in that ye have ministered to his saints, and do minister. And we desire that every one of you do show the same diligence, to the full assurance of hope unto the end." So the apostle directs the Galatians to examine their behaviour or practice, that they might have rejoicing in themselves in their own happy state: "Let every man prove his own work, so shall he have rejoicing in himself, and not in another." And the Psalmist says, "Then shall I not be ashamed, when I have respect unto all thy commandments:" that is, then I shall be bold, and assured, and steadfast in my hope. And in that of our Saviour-" Every tree that bringeth not forth good fruit is hewn down, and cast into the fire. Wherefore by their fruits ye shall know them." Though Christ gives this, first, as a rule by which we should judge of others, yet, in the words that next follow, he plainly shows, that he intends it also as a rule by which we should judge ourselves: "Not who saith unto me, Lord, every one Lord, shall enter into the kingdom of heaven; but he that doeth the will of my Father which is in heaven. Many will say unto me in that day, Lord, Lord, &c. And then will I profess unto them, I never knew you: depart from me, ye that work iniquity. Therefore, whosoever heareth these sayings of mine, and doeth them, I will liken him unto a wise man, which built his house upon a rock.-And every one that heareth these sayings of mine, and doeth them not, shall be likened unto a foolish man, which built his house upon the sand." I shall have occa

sion to mention other texts, that show the same thing, hereafter.

But for the greater clearness in this matter, I would, first, show how Christian practice, doing good works, or keeping Christ's commandments, is to be taken, when the Scripture represents it as a sure sign to our own consciences that we are real Christians. And, secondly, will prove, that this is the chief of all evidences that men can have of their own sincere godli

ness.

1. I would show how Christian practice, or keeping Christ's commandments, is to be taken, when the Scripture represents it as a sure evidence to our own consciences, that we are sincere Christians.

And here I would observe, that we cannot reasonably suppose, that when the Scripture, in this case, speaks of good works, good fruit, and keeping Christ's commandments, that it has respect merely to what is external, or the motion and action of the body, without including any thing else; having no respect to any aim or intention of the agent, or any act of his understanding or will. For, consider men's actions so, and they are no more good works, or acts of obedience, than the regular motions of a clock; nor are they considered as the actions of the men, or any human actions at all. The actions of the body, taken thus, are neither acts of obedience nor disobedience, any more than the motions of the body in a convulsion. But the obedience and fruit, that is spoken of, is the obedience and fruit of the man; and, therefore, not only the acts of the body, but the obedience of the soul, consisting in the acts and prac tice of the soul. Not that I suppose, that when the

Scripture speaks, in this case, of gracious works, and fruit, and practice, that in these expressions is included all inward piety and holiness of heart, both principle and exercise, both spirit and practice: because then, in these things being given as signs of a gracious principle in the heart, the same thing would be given as a sign of itself, and there would be no distinction between root and fruit. But only the gracious exercise and holy act of the soul is meant, and given as the sign of the holy principle and good estate. Neither is every kind of inward exercise of grace meant; but the practical exercise, that exercise of the soul, and exertion of inward holiness, which there is in an obediential act; or that exertion of the mind, and act of grace, which issues and terminates in what they call the imperate acts of the will; in which something is directed and commanded by the soul to be done, and brought to pass in practice.

Here, for a clearer understanding, I would observe, that there are two kinds of exercise of grace, 1. There are those that some call immanent acts: that is, those exercises of grace that remain within the soul, that begin and are terminated there, without any immediate relation to any thing to be done outwardly, or to be brought to pass in practice. Such are the exercises of grace which the saints often have in contemplation; when the exercise that is in the heart does not directly proceed to, or terminate in, any thing beyond the thoughts of the mind, however they may tend to practice (as all other exercises of grace do) more remotely. 2. There is another kind of acts of grace, that are more strictly called practical, or effective exercises, because they immediately re

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spect something to be done.

They are the exertions of grace in the commanding acts of the will, directing the outward actions. As when a saint gives a cup of cold water to a disciple, in and from the exercise of the grace of charity; or voluntarily endures persecution in the way of his duty, immediately from the exercise of a supreme love to Christ. Here is the

exertion of grace producing its effect in outward actions. These exercises of grace are practical, and productive of good works, not only in this sense, that they are of a productive nature, (for so are all exercises of true grace,) but they are the producing acts. This is properly the exercise of grace in the act of the will; and this is properly the practice of the soul. And the soul is the immediate actor of no other practice but this: the motions of the body follow from the laws of union between the soul and body, which God, and not the soul, has fixed, and does maintain. The act of the soul, and the exercise of grace, that is exerted in the performance of a good work, is the good work itself, so far as the soul is concerned in it, or so far as it is the soul's good work. The determinations of the will are indeed our very actions, so far as they are properly ours, as Dr. Doddridge observes. In this practice of the soul is included the aim and intention of the soul, which is the agent. For not only should we not look on the motions of a statue, doing justice or distributing alms by clock-work, as any acts of obedience to Christ in that statue, but neither would any body call the voluntary actions of a man, externally and materially agreeable to a com

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• Scripture Doctrine of Salvation, Sermon I. p. 11.

mand of Christ, by the name of obedience to Christ, if he had never heard of Christ, or any of his commands, or had no thought of his commands in what he did. If the acts of obedience and good fruits, spoken of, be looked upon, not as mere motions of the body, but as acts of the soul, the whole exercise of the spirit of the mind, in the action, must be taken in, with the end acted for, and the respect the soul then has to God, &c. otherwise they are no acts of denial of ourselves, or obedience to God, or service done to him, but something else, Such effective exercises of grace, as these that I have now described, many of the martyrs have experienced in a high degree. And all true saints live a life of such acts of grace as these; as they all live a life of gracious works, of which these operative exertions of grace are the life and soul. And this is the obedience and fruit that God mainly looks at, as he looks at the soul more than the body; as much as the soul, in the constitution of the human nature, is the superior part. As God looks at the obedience and practice of the man, he looks at the practice of the soul; for the soul is the man in God's sight: "For the Lord seeth not as man seeth, for he looketh on the heart."

And thus it is, that obedience, good works, good fruits, are to be taken, when given, in Scripture, as a sure evidence to our own consciences of a true principle of grace; even as including the obedience and practice of the soul, as preceding and governing the actions of the body. When practice is given, in Scripture, as the main evidence of our true Christianity to others, then is meant that in our practice which is visible to them, even our outward actions;

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