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ourfelves, yet with Paul we may defire to diffolved. The perfection that moft Chriftians attain to, is but to defire to live and be content to die. Oh! confider what I have faid on this matter, and invert the order of those words in your hearts, Be content to live, defire to die.

But what! would you have us pray for death? Answer: I fpeak not of a formal praying, either for one or the other. What the apostle speaks of the greatest of fins, 1 John v. 16. I am ready to fay of this ftate of freedom from all fin, I do not fay that ye fhould pray for it. You will tell me that David and Hezekiah prayed for life; and I could tell you that Elijah prayed for death, 1 Kings xix. 5he was indeed a man fubject to paffions, James v. 17. but I believe this was none of them. But I will not inveigle myfelf in any controverfy: methinks the fad confideration laid before your eyes, whilft we are in the body, we are abfent, diftant from the Lord, fhould wring out an, Oh! wretched man that I am, &c. or an, I defire to be diffolved: Or if not words, yet, at least, a groan after immortality, with our apostle here---We groan within ourselves that mortality may be fwallowed up of life.

But can a foul poffibly long for the deftruction of the body? Philofophy indeed tells us that it cannot. Be it fo; yet I am fure divinity teaches, that a foul may long after the redemption of the body; the redemption of it from this kind of animal, corruptible, enfnaring condition that it is. now in, Rom. viii. 23.---We groan within ourselves, waiting for the redemption of our body. If we cannot wish to be uncloathed, yet we may long to be

cloathed

cloathed upon, verfe 4. of this chapter. At least, methinks, the Heathen fhould not out-do us, who could fay, Mori nolo, fed me mortuum effe nihil

curo.

But, will all cry, Oh if we were fure of an intereft in Chrift, of pardon of fin, of truth of grace, of eternal life, then we could freely leave all? Anfw.

1. That is, you would live to be more holy before you die: you are not yet holy enough. No, nor never fhall be till you die. If you long after holiness, long to be with God then; for that is a ftate of perfect holiness. To defire to live, upon pretence of being more holy, is a meer fallacy, a contradiction. But, it may be, this is not the meaning of the objection: therefore,

2. A not having of what we would have, is not an excufe for not doing what we fhould do. It is our duty to rejoice in the Lord. Phil. iv. 4. which our not having of assurance, doth not except us from; though, if we have affurance, we might indeed rejoice the more. But to take off this plea at once:

3. Our earnest longings after a full and perfect enjoyment of God, and fo our breathings after an immortal ftate doth not depend upon our affurance, but indeed affurance rather depends upon that. I doubt not we are commonly mistaken in the nature of affurance; and, it may be, are in a wrong manner curious about the figns of Chrift's appearing in our fouls. For certainly a wellgrounded affurance of the love of God doth most difcover and unfold itfelf in the growth of true godliness in the foul; now the love of God, and

an

an earnest desire to be like unto him, and to be with him, is the better half of all religion, Matt. xxii. 37, 38. fo that it rather seems that affurance fprings up from this frame of foul, than that this arifes out of affurance. If affurance be the thing that you defire, get your fouls joined to God in an union of affections, will, and ends, and then labour and long to be closer to him, liker to him, perfectly holy and happy in him; and be ye asfured that Chrift is in you of a truth: for these mighty works which he hath wrought, thefe divine breathings, thefe holy pantings after him, do bear witness of him.

4. Whether ever you come to that feeling knowledge, that powerful sense of your state or no, which you call affurance, yet know, that it is your duty to long after immortality. We are wont to call affurance the privilege of fome few. but the Scriptures make this temper, that I am fpeaking of, the duty of all believers, which I the rather name, because I find few profeffors of this temper; and indeed but few that are willing to believe that they ought to be fo. Our Saviour calls all believers to as much, in effect, as I do, Luke xxi. 28. Look up, and lift up your heads, for the day of your redemption draweth nigh. Whereby is not meant a bare pofture and speculation, but joy and longing are required by that phrase, say the Dutch Annotat. See alfo Rev. xxii. 17. der further, (which, methinks, should strike cold to the hearts of cold-hearted profeffors) that this very temper is made one of the greateft characters of true and fincere faints. I do not know of any one oftener named, fee Rom. viii. 23. We groan

Confi

within ourselves, waiting for the redemption of our body, 2 Tim. iv. 8. The Lord fhall give the crown to them that love his appearing, Tit. ii. 13. We fhould live godly in this prefent world, Looking for that bleffed hope, and the glorious appearing of the great God, and our Saviour Jefus Chrift, 2 Pet. iii. 12. What manner of perfons ought we to be in all holy conversation and godliness, looking for, and baftening to the coming of the day of God, Jude 21. Keep yourselves in the love of God, looking for the mercy of our Lord Jefus Chrift unto eternal life.

Do all these plain and pathetical scriptures ftand for cyphers in your eye? Methinks they should not. But not to ftand upon the proof of it to be a duty, it matters not, whether there be an express command for it or no: this that I am speaking of, is not so much the duty of godly perfons, as the very nature, genius and fpirit, indeed of godlinefs itself. Methinks a godly foul, that is truly touched with divine goodness, influenced by it, and impreft with it, as the needle is with the loadstone, muft need ftrive powerfully within itself to be in conjunction with it. A holy foul, that after all its wearifome defeats, and fhameful difappointments in the creature, finds itself perfectly matched with this infinite, full, and perfect object, muft certainly and neceffarily be carried, without any other argument, with fervent longings after union to it, and communion with it. The Spouse might fay concerning Chrift, as he concerning her, Cant. vi. 12. Or ever I was aware, my foul made me like the chariots of Aminadab. And every godly foul, may in fome degree, say with that spouse. Cant. v. 4. 5. My beloved

put

put in his hand by the hole of the door, and my bowels were moved for him: I rofe up, &c. Tell me, friends, how can divine grace, that well of living water in the foul, chufe but spring up into eternal life? John iv. 14. I doubt not to affirm, that that which is of God in the foul, must needs carry the foul after God; as it belongs to heaven, so it will be longing towards heaven. That which is of a divine original, muft needs have a divine tendency; that which is of divine extraction, will have in it a divine attraction, and pursue a divine perfection, Col. iii. 1. That divine life and spirit, that runs through godly fouls, doth awaken and exalt in fome meafure, all the powers of them, into an active and chearful fympathy, with that abfolute good that renders them compleatly bleffed. Holiness and purity of heart will be attracting God more and more to itself; and the more pure our fouls are, and the more feparate from earthly things, the more earneftly will they endeavour the nearest union that may be with God; and fo, by confequence, methinks they must needs, in fome fenfe, defire the removal of that animal life, and dark body that ftands in their way: for they know that that which now letteth, will let (fuch is the unchangeable nature of it, till it be laid in the duft) till it be taken out of the way.

The

thirsty king, did but cry for water of the well of Bethlehem, and his champions broke through the hoft of the Philiftines, and fetched it, 2. Sam. xxiii. 15. And will ye not allow the thirsty foul, if not to break through to fetch it, yet at least, to break out into an, Oh! that one would give me to drink of the living water, of the fountain

of