selves, that Christ Jesus is in you, except ye be reprobates? What can be more full? To be in the faith, is more than to believe: it intimates a habit of faith; that is, more than an act. Now, what proof, what trial can there be of our faith, if we cannot know that we have faith? Surely, a trial doth ever presuppose a knowledge. If a man did not know which were good gold, to what purpose doth he go to the test? Now, how dwells Christ in us, but by faith? So may they, so must they, know Christ to be in them, that, if they have him not, they are reprobates. And, if they know not they have him, they can have no comfortable assurance against their reprobation.

See, then, how emphatical and full this charge is. He saith not, "Guess at yourselves;" but, prove and try yourselves. He saith not, "Do ye not morally conjecture?" but, Do ye not know? He saith not, "whether ye hope well;" but, whether ye be in the faith. And that, not of the faith of miracles, as Chrysostom and Theophylact; nor of a faith of Christian profession, as Anselm; but, such a faith, as whereby Christ dwells in our hearts. He saith not, lastly, "unless ye be faulty and worthy of blame;" but, unless ye be reprobates. The place is so chokingly convictive, that there can be no probable elusion of it.

were any

The shift of Cardinal Bellarmin, wherein yet he would seem confident, is worthy of pity; That the place hath no other drift, but to imply the powerful presence of Christ amongst the Corinthians; strongly confirming the truth of his Apostleship; whereby, if there faith at all in them, except they were given up to a reprobate sense, they must needs be convinced of the authority of his ministry for what was this to their being in the faith, whereof they must examine themselves? or, who can think that to be in the faith is no more, than to have any faith at all? Neither doth the Apostle say, that "Christ is among you," but in you: neither could the not knowing of Christ's presence amongst them by powerful miracles, be a matter of reprobation. So as this sense is unreasonably strained to no purpose; and such as no judicious spirit can rest in. And this act of our knowledge is taken for granted, by him, that works it in us.

And, indeed, what question can there be of this act, when God undertakes it in us? The Spirit of God witnesseth with our spirits, that we are the sons of God; Rom. viii. 16. Can any man doubt of the truth of God's testimony? Certainly, he, that is the God of Truth, cannot but speak truth: now he witnesseth together with

us.

"Yea, but," you say, "though he be true, yet we are deceitful: and his Spirit doth but witness according to the measure of our receipt and capacity, which is very poor and scant; yea, and perhaps also, uncertain." Take heed, whosoever thou art, lest thou disparage God, whilst thou wouldst abase thyself. He witnesseth together with us. The Spirit of Truth will not witness with a lying spirit. Were not, therefore, that witness of ours sure, he would check us; and not witness with us. Now, what witness can he give

with us and to us, if we do not hear him; if we do not know what he says; if we cannot be assured of what he testifies?

Let no Bellarmin speak now of an experiment of inward sweetness and peace; which only causeth a conjectural, and not an unfailing certainty. The man hath forgot, that this testimony is of the Spirit of Adoption; whereby we do not seem sons, but are made so, and are so assured: and that it is not a guess, but a witness: and, lastly, that there can be no true inward peace out of mere conjectures.

Yea, here is not only the word of God for it, but his seal too; and not his seal only, but his earnest: what can make a future match more sure than hand and seal? aud here we have them both; 2 Cor. i. 22. Who hath sealed us. Lo, the promise was past before; verse 20: and then yet more confirmed, ßébaιwv; verse 21: and now past under seal, gayicάuevos; verse 22. Yea, but the present possession is yet more, and that is given us in part by our received earnest, doùs Tov appaßāva. Earnest is a binder: wherefore is it given; but, by a little, to assure all?

In our transactions with men, when we have an honest man's word for a bargain, we think it safe: but, when his hand and seal, infallible: but, when we have part in hand already, the contract is past; and now we hold ourselves stated in the commodity, whatever it be. And, have we the promise, hand, seal, earnest of God's Spirit; and not see it, not feel it, not know it?

Shortly, whom will we believe, if not God, and ourselves? no man knows what is in man, but the Spirit of God, and the spirit of man that is in him; as St. Paul to his Corinthians. Ye have heard God's Spirit: hear our own, out of our own mouth. Doth not every Christian say, "I believe in God, &c. I believe in Jesus Christ: I believe in the Holy Ghost: I believe the communion of saints, the forgiveness of sins, and life everlasting?" And doth he say he believes, when he believes not; or, when he knows not whether he believe or no? What a mockery were this of our Christian profession? Or, as the Jesuitical evasion commonly is, is this only meant of an assent to these general truths, That there is a God, a Saviour, a Sanctifier, saints, remission, salvation; not a special application of these several articles to the soul of him, whose tongue professeth it? Surely then, the Devil might say the Creed no less confidently, than the greatest Saint upon earth. There is no devil in heil, but believes, not without regret, that there is a God, that made the world; a Saviour, that redeemed it; a Blessed Spirit, that renews it; a remission of sins; an eternal salvation to those, that are thus redeemed and regenerate: and if, in the profession of our faith, we go no further than devils, how is this Symbolum Christianorum? To what purpose do we say our Creed?

2. But, if we know that we believe for the present, how know we WHAT WE SHALL DO? what may not alter in time? We know our own frailty and fickleness; what hold is there of us, weak wretches; what assurance for the future? Surely, on our part, none at all: if we be left never so little to ourselves, we are gone. On God's

part, enough. There is a double hand mutually employed in our hold-fast; God's, and ours: we lay hand on God; God lays hand on us: if our feeble hand fail him, yet his gracious and omnipo ent hand will not fail us: even when we are lost in ourselves, yet in him we are safe: he hath graciously said, and will make it good; I will not leave thee, nor forsake thee. The seed of God, saith the beloved disciple, 1 John iii. 9. remains in him, that is born of God; so as he cannot To ȧpagtíav, trade in sin, as an unregenerate; not lose himself in sinning: so as, contrary to Card. Bellarmin's desperate logic, even an act of infidelity cannot mar his habit of faith; and, though he be, in himself and in his sin, guilty of death, yet, through the mercy of his God, he is preserved from being swallowed up of death: while he hath the seed of God, he is the son of God; and the seed of God remains in him always.

That of the great Doctor of the Gentiles is sweet and cordial; and, instead of all, to this purpose: Who shall separate us from the love of Christ? shall tribulation &c. ПÉTεioμa &c. I am fully persuaded, that neither death, nor life, nor angels, nor principalities, nor powers, nor things present, nor things to come, nor height, nor depth, nor any other creature, shall be able to separate us from the love of God, which is in Christ Jesus, our Lord. Rom. viii. 35-39. O divine oratory of the great Apostle! O the heavenly and irrefragable logic of God's penman! It is the very question, that we have now in hand, which he there discusses; and falls upon this happy conclusion, That nothing can separate God's elect from his everlasting love. He proves it by induction of the most powerful agents, and triumphs in the impotence and imprevalency of them all; and, while he names the principalities and powers of darkness, what doth he but imply those sins also by which they work?

And this he says, not for himself only; lest any, with Pererius and some other Jesuits, should harp upon a particular revelation: but, who shall separate us? he takes us in with him: and, if he seem to pitch upon his own person, in his TÉT; yet the subject of this persuasion reacheth to all true believers, That nothing can separate us from the love of God, which is in Christ Jesus, our Lord: Üs; not as it is over-stretched by Bellarmin and Vasquez, indefinitely, for those that be predestinate in general; but with an implied application of it to himself, and the believing Christians to whom he wrote. The place is so clear and full, that all the miserable and strained evasions of the Jesuitical gainsayers cannot elude it, but that it will carry any free and unprejudiced heart along with it; and evince this comfortable truth, That, as for the present, so for the future, we may attain to be safe for our spiritual condition.

What speak I of a safety that may be, when the true believer is saved already? already passed from death to life; already, therefore, over the threshold of heaven?

Shortly, then, our faith may make our calling sure: our calling may make sure our election: and we may, therefore, confidently build upon this truth, That our calling and election may be made

sure.

II. Now, many things may be done, that yet need not; yea, that ought not to be done; this both OUGHT and MUST BE ENDEAVOURED, for the necessity, and benefit of it.

This charge here, as it implies the possibility; so it signifies the convenience, use, profit, necessity of this assecuration: for, sure, if it were not beneficial to us, it would never be thus forcibly urged upon us. And, certainly, there needs no great proof of this: for nature, and our self-love grounded thereupon, easily invites us to the endeavour of feoffing ourselves in any thing that is good. This being, then, the highest good, that the soul of man can be possibly capable of, to be ascertained of salvation; it will soon follow, that, since it may be done, we shall resolve it ought, it must be endeavoured to be done.

Indifferent things, and such as without which we may well subsist, are left arbitrary to us; but those things, wherein our spiritual well-being consisteth, must be mainly laboured for: neither can any contention be too much to attain them. Such is this, we have in hand: without which, there can be no firm peace; no constant and solid comfort to the soul of man.

Three things, then, call us to the endeavour of this assurance; our Duty, our Advantage, our Danger.

1. We must do it out of DUTY; because our God bids us. God's commands, like the Prerogatives of Princes, must not be too strictly scanned. Should he require ought, that might be loss-full or prejudicial to us, our blindful obedience must undertake it with cheerfulness: how much more then, when he calls for that from us, than which nothing can be imagined of more or equal behoof to the soul! It is enough, therefore, that God, by his Apostle, commands us to give diligence to make our calling and election sure. Our Heavenly Father bids us: what sons are we, if we obey him not? Our Blessed Master bids us: what servants are we, if we set not ourselves to observe his charge? Our Glorious and Immortal King bids us: what subjects are we, if we stick at his injunction? Out of mere duty, therefore, we must endeavour to make our calling and elec tion sure.

2. Even where we owe no Duty, oftentimes ADVANTAGE draws us on; yea, many times, across those duties, which we owe to God and man: how much more, where our duty is seconded with such an advantage, as is not parallelable in all the world beside! What less, what other follows upon this assurance truly attained, but peace of conscience, and joy in the Holy Ghost? in one word, the be ginning of heaven in the soul? What a contentment doth the heart of man find, in the securing of any whatsoever good! What a coil do money-masters keep, for security of the sums they put forth! and, when that is taken to their mind, are ready to say with the rich man in the Gospel, Soul, take thy ease. Great venturers at sea, how willingly do they part with no small part of their hoped gain, to be assured of the rest! How well was Hezekiah appaid, when he was assured but of fifteen years added to his life! How doth Babylon ap plaud her own happiness to herself, when she can say, I sit as a

queen: I shall not be a widow: I shall know no sorrow! It must needs follow therefore, that, in the best things assured, there must be the greatest of all possible contentments. And surely, if the heart have once attained to this, That, upon good grounds, it can resolve, "God is my Father: Christ Jesus is my Elder Brother: the angels are my guardians: heaven is my undoubted patrimony;" how must it needs be lift up, and filled with a joy unspeakable and glorious! What bold defiances can it bid to all the troops of worldly evils, to all the powers of hell! With what unconceivable sweetness, must it needs enjoy God, and itself! How comfortably and resolutely must it needs welcome death, with that triumphant champion of Christ, I have fought a good fight: I have finished my course: I have kept the faith; and, now, from henceforth, there is laid up for me a crown of righteousness, &c! 2 Tim. iv. 7, 8. Out of the just advantage, therefore, of this assurance, we must endeavour to make our calling and election sure.

3. Neither is the Advantage more in the performance hereof, than there is DANGER in the neglect. In all uncertainties, there is a kind of afflictive fear, and troublesome mis-doubt. Let a man walk in the dark, because he cannot be confident where safely to set his steps he is troubled with a continual suspicion of a sudden miscarriage; and, therefore, goes in pain. What can there be but discomfort in that soul, which knows not in what terms it stands with God? Yet, while there is life, there may be hope of better. But, if that soul be surprised with an unexpected death, and hurried away with some sudden judgment, in this state of irresolution; in how deplored a condition is it, beyond all expression! I cannot but, therefore, lament the woeful plight of those poor souls, that live and die under the Roman Discipline; who, when they have most need of comfort in the very act of their dissolution, are left pitifully disconsolate, and given up by their teachers to either horror or suspense. Even the most saint-like of them, (except his soul fly up in martyrdom like Gideon's angel in the smoke of his incense,) may not make account of a speedy ascent to heaven. Insomuch as Cardinal Bellarmin himself, of whom our Coffin dares write, that his life was not stained with mortal sin; page 27: he, that could call heaven Casamia; and whose canonization the Cardinals thought fit to be talked of in his sickness: when Cardinal Aldobrandino desired him, that, when he came to heaven, he would pray for him, answered, "To go to heaven so soon, is a matter too great for me: men do not use to come thither in such haste; and, for me, I shall think it no small favour to be sure of purgatory, and there to remain a good while;" page 42: which yet, himself can say, differs not much, for the time, in respect of the extremity of it, from hell itself. And, to be a good while there! O terror, past all reach of our thoughts! And, if the righteous be thus saved, where shall the sinners appear? For ought they can, or may know; hell may, but purgatory must be their portion: heaven may not be thought of, without too high presumption. Certainly, if many despair under those uncomfortable hands, I wonder that no more: since they are