diftance from God, his mind is reftlefs till he return to him again; "Return to thy reft, O my foul; for the Lord hath dealt bountifully with thee," Pfal. cxvi. 7. The top-fwarm, as it were, of his inclination mounts up this way.

5. He mounts up in heavenly affections: hence is that injunction, "Set your affections on things above, and not on things on the earth," Col. iii. 2. He endeavours, through grace, to have his affection fome way correfponding with God's affection, fo as to love what God loves, and hate what God hates; yea, to love as God loves, and to hate as God hates. God loves holinefs with a firong and great love; fo doth the belieGod hates fin with a perfect hatred; and fo doth the believer, "I hate every falfe way." See alfo, Pfal. cxxxix. 21, 22.

ver.

6. They mount up in a gofpel-converfation; fo faith the apostle, "Our converfation is in heaven, from whence we look for our Saviour, the Lord Jefus Christ," Phil. iii. 20.

7. The winged faint mounts up in a heavenly walk: as Enoch and Noah walked with God; fo doth the winged foul, whofe ftrength is renewed; he runs without wearying, and walks without fainting on the Lord's way. His heavenly walk difcovers itfelf, 1. In his hea venly words, they are feafoned with falt, and edifying. And, 2. In his actions, wherein he ftudies fobriety, righteousness, and godliness in all the duties of religion, prayer, and praife. And, 3. In his company, for he can fay with David, "I am a companion of all them that fear thee," Pfal. cxix. 63.

II. The next thing was, The feafons when it is that the believer, whofe ftrength is renewed, doth mount up.

1. Whenever he gets the new nature, and the disposi tion; whenever he is converted, he mounts up on wings as an eagle. It is faid of Paul, Acts ix. 11. whenever he was converted, "Behold, he prayeth :" think you Paul never prayed any before that time? Yea, many a prayer had he uttered, no doubt; for he pro

fited in the Jewish religion, above many of his equals in his own nation: he had learned to fay his prayers as well as the best of them; but he never prayed spiritually and acceptably before; he had never mounted up to heaven in his prayer before but now, “Behold he prays;" behold he mounts up, whenever he is

converted.

2. He mounts up to heaven, all the days of his life, after his converfion; he is ftill making fome progrefs heaven-ward; whatever backfets he may get by fin and Satan, now and then, yet he gets up again, and ftill afcends nearer and nearer heaven; "Nevertheless, I am continually with thee," Pfalm lxxiii. 23. Whatever I do, I endeavour itill to be up on the mount with God. David would have both day and night spent with God; "The Lord will command his loving-kindness in the daytime, and in the night his fong fhall be with me, and my prayer unto the God of my life," Pfal. xlii. 8. He went to bed, as it were, with God in his arms: For he remembered him upon his bed, and meditated on him in the nightwatches; and his foul was fatisfied as with marrow and fatnefs: and when wakened out of his fleep he found him in his arms; "When I awake, I am ftill with thee."

3. He mounts up, when he gets a fresh gale and new influences of the Spirit. The believer, at his lowest, is like a fhip wind-bound, lying at anchor, but ready to fet fail whenever the wind is fair; he can but make fmall progress with the oars of diligence, when the wind and tide is against him. O Sirs, if there be any galė of the Spirit blowing among you this day, then mount, mount, mount; you may make more progress then in an hour, than you will do without it in many a year, yea, in a whole life-time.

4. The believer uses to mount up with wings about a communion-time; nothing lefs will ferve him than to come to Bethel, the house of God; he will go into the chambers of prefence, and never reft till he be at the end of his flight. Where is that, fay you? Doth he mount to a communion-table; nay, he must be farther doth he mount to the top of duties and ordinances; nay, he must be farther: doth he mount to heaven;

heaven; nay, he must be farther yet.

Strange!

Where would he flee next! Indeed, he would flee into the heart of Chrift; "Set me as a feal upon thine heart" yea, and which is more yet, he would not only have himself in Chrift's heart, but he would have Chrift in his heart; "Chrift in him the hope of glory." And what would he do with him when he hath got him there? O then, faith he, "He fhall ly all night between my breafts;" if I can, I will keep him all the night-time of this life, which is but a night, "Till the day of eternity break, and the fhadows fly away."

5. The believer mounts up on wings, as an eagle, at the day of death; then he foars aloft: "This night. thou fhalt be with me in Paradife." It is faid of the adder, that when fhe is old, fhe goes through fome ftrait paffage, and leaves her old fkin in the paffage, and thereby renews her vigour and life. This paffage of death is flrait, and uneafy to the body, which, like the adder's fkin, is left in the way; and not without much pain and difficulty to it but the foul paffeth through without any harm; and the next moment mounts up to her fate of immortality and happiness: then the believer mounts up indeed to the general affembly and church of the firft-born, to the innumerable company of angels, to God the judge of all, and to Jefus the Mediator of the new covenant; yea, then he is mounted up a pillar in the temple of his God.

6. The believer will mount up at the day of judg ment as with eagle's wings; then will he flee up to meet Chrift in the air; "Then we which are alive and remain, fhall be caught up together with them in the clouds, to meet the Lord in the air, and fo fhall we ever be with the Lord," 1 Thef. iv. 17.-You fee then when the believer mounts up.

IV. The Fourth thing is, To speak to the manner how the believer mounts up, He mounts up with wings as an eagle. In whatever respects the eagle mounts up, the fame way doth the believer.

1. The eagle mounts up freely and naturally; God gives it a mounting nature:" Doth the eagle mount up at

thy

thy command?" fays the Lord to Job, chap. xxxix. 27. nay, it is by the inftinct which the Lord hath given it; fo that it is natural to it. Thus the believer mounts up naturally after God hath given him the new heart; it is natural to him to be mounting towards God: when the hypocrite mounts, he is forced up contrary to his natural tendency, as it were, like a ftone caft up into the air; it is not natural to it to fly up, but rather to fall down but the believer mounts up naturally and freely.

:

2. The eagle mounts up highly; fhe flies higher than other birds: fhe makes her neft on high, on fome inacceffible rock; not like the oftrich, that leaves her eggs in the fand, as fome leave their fouls here on earth but thefe fpiritual eagle - believers, these heavenly birds, they fly high, even to the Rock of ages; and hence their daily defire is," Lead me to the Rock that is higher than İ."

3. The eagle mounts up ftrongly, vehemently, and violently; it is a strong bird, and when it hath got the prey, it flies with violence. Thus doth the believer mount up; "For the kingdom of heaven fuffereth violence, and the violent take it by force." With fuch earneftness and intentnefs doth he mount up towards heaven, that no difficulty in the way fhall hinder him.

4. The eagle mounts up fwiftly and fuddenly this follows upon the other; for its ftrength and violence in flying, infers celerity: fo doth the believer, under the lively influences of the Spirit. O how quick is his motion!" Or ever he is aware, his foul makes him like the chariots of Amminadab."-It is a speedy flight, that the believer makes towards Chrift; he mounts fwiftly.

5. The eagle mounts up gradually: tho' its flight be strong and swift, yet it is gradual; it comes not to the utmost extent of its motion, but by degrees: fo the believer mounts gradually; he goes from ftrength to strength, till he appear before God in Zion, Pf.lxxxiv.7. He flies ftill higher and higher; and fo the object of his aim draws nearer and nearer to him, while he comes

to

to more and more knowledge of God, and more and more communion with him, till faith and hope land in vifion and fruition.

6. The eagle mounts up frequently and daily; and in respect of its mounting difpofition, conftantly: fo it. is with the believer, he is always mounting; he hath ftill a mounting difpofition, and he is conftantly endeavouring to be actually mounting. The carnal profeffor never mounts up, but about the time of a communion, or the time of fome fore affliction or conviction; and whenever thefe feafons are over, he goes as fast down as he went up: but it is the believer's trade of life to be mounting on week-days, as well as on Sabbath-days; and on ordinary Sabbaths, as well as communion Sabbaths.

V. The next thing is, To fhew the reafons why the believer, who hath his ftrength renewed, mounts up on wings like an eagle.

1. Because he hath an eagle's nature. I faid before, that the believer mounts up naturally; why, because he hath an eagle's nature. It is the natural difpofition of the eagle to fly upward; fo the believer hath a dif pofition to mount up to God, he being a new creature ; "If any man be in Christ, he is a new creature,” 2 Cor. V. 17.-This new nature afcends to heaven from whence it defcended; the old nature goes always downward, but the new nature mounts upwards. If you want the new nature, you want the mounting difpofi

tion...

2. He mounts up on wings like an eagle; because he hath an eagle's eye: fo the believer, he can fee that invifible Sun, which no natural eye can attain to: "The poor in fpirit, and pure in heart, fhall fee God, Mat. v. 3. 8. The natural man receiveth not the things of the Spirit of God; for they are foolishness unto him," 1 Cor. ii. 14. but the believer knowing the mind of Chrift, fees farther than the world; he fees the King in his beauty, and the land afar off. When he fees thefe things, he cannot but mount up to them; He endures, as feeing him who is invifible," Heb. ii. 27. He is far fighted: "Abra