piness being a relative thing, implies, in the very nature of it, a mutual correspondence between the objects which present us with happiness, and the faculties which taste and enjoy them; and be the objects never so good in themselves, never so pregnant with pleasure and bliss, yet if they do not agree with the faculties whereunto they are objected, instead of blessing, they will but afflict and torment them; and if a man were placed in the midst of heaven, among all the ravishing fruitions with which that blessed place abounds, yet unless his mind and temper did suit and agree with them, they would be so many miseries and vexations to him, and he would be afflicted even in Abraham's bosom, and grope for heaven in the midst of paradise. So that supposing that God were so unreasonably fond of the happiness of wicked souls, as to prefer it before the honour of his government, and the purity of his nature, and the sanction of his laws, yet still there is an invincible obstacle behind, that must render their future felicity impossible; and that is, that it cannot be without a plain contradiction to the nature of things, the temper of wicked souls being wholly repugnant to all the felicities of the other world: so that if they were all set before them, they would not be able to enjoy them, but must be forced to pine and famish amidst all that plenty of delights, there being no viand in all that heavenly entertainment that they would relish any sweetness in. And therefore if God should so far pardon them, as not to punish them himself by any immediate stroke of vengeance, that would be the utmost favour that his omnipotent goodness could do for them whilst they continued in their sins; which, notwithstanding such

a pardon, would for ever continue them extremely miserable. And what great matter doth a pardon signify to a malefactor that is dying of the stone or strangury? He could but have died though he had not been pardoned, and die he must though he be. And just as little almost would it signify to a depraved soul to be pardoned and absolved by God, whilst it hath a disease within that preys upon its vitals, and hastens it on to a certain ruin: for it could have been but miserable in the future life, if it had not been pardoned; and miserable it must be, if it continue wicked, whether it be pardoned or no. For it is not so much the place as the state that makes either heaven or hell; and the state of heaven and hell consists in perfect holiness and wickedness; and proportionably as we do improve in either of these, so we do approach towards the one state or the other. For as heaven is the centre of all that is virtuous, pure, and holy, and all that is good tends thither by a natural sympathy; so hell is the centre of all impiety and wickedness, and all that is bad doth naturally press and sink down thither, as towards its proper place and element; and should not the divine vengeance concern itself to exclude wicked souls out of heaven, yet their own wickedness would do it for that is a place of such inaccessible light and purity, that no impurity or wickedness can approach it, but must of necessity be beaten off with the dreadful lightnings of its glory, and tumbled headlong down as oft as it essays to climb up thither; as on the other hand, should not God by an immediate vengeance precipitate wicked souls into hell, yet their own wickedness, by the mighty weight of its own nature, would inevitably press and sink

them down into that miserable condition. What egregious nonsense therefore is it for wicked men to talk of going to heaven. Alas! poor creatures, what would you do there? There are no wanton amours among those heavenly lovers; no rivers of wine among their rivers of pleasure to gratify your unbounded sensuality; no parasites to flatter your lofty pride; no miseries to feed your meager envy; no mischiefs to tickle your devilish revenge; nothing but chaste and divine, pure and spiritual enjoyments, such as your brutish and devilish appetites will eternally loathe and nauseate. Wherefore if we mean to go to heaven, and to be happy there, we must now endeavour to dispose and attemper our minds to it, which is no other way to be done, but by leading a heavenly life and conversation; which by degrees will habituate and naturalize our souls to the heavenly virtues, and so work and inlay them into the frame and temper of our minds, that it will be our greatest pleasure to be exerting and exercising them: and then our souls will be dressed and made ready for heaven; and when we go from hence to take possession of its joys, they will be all so agreeable to our prepared appetites, that we shall presently fall to and feed upon them with infinite gust and relish. But till by living a heavenly life we have disposed ourselves for heaven, we utterly are incapable of enjoying it. So that now things are reduced to this issue, that either our sins or our souls must die, and we must necessarily shake hands either with heaven or our lusts. And therefore, unless we value eternal happiness so little, as to exchange it for the sordid and trifling pleasures of sin, and unless we love our sins so well as to ransom

them with the blood of our immortal souls, it concerns us speedily to engage ourselves in this heavenly life and conversation: for this is an eternal and immutable law, that if we will be wicked we must be miserable.

CHAP. IV.

Concerning the militant or warfaring part of the Christian life, by which we are to acquire and perfect the heavenly virtues; shewing how effectually all the duties of it conduce thereunto.

HAVING in the former chapter given a large account of the heavenly part of the Christian life, and shewn how directly and immediately the practice of all the virtues that are comprehended in it tends to the heavenly state, and how naturally they all grow into eternal happiness; I shall in the next place endeavour to give some brief account of that part of the Christian life which is purely militant, and which wholly consists of those instrumental duties, by the use of which we are to conquer the difficulties of those heavenly virtues, and to acquire and perfect them; which difficulties, as I shewed before, chap. ii. are the inbred corruptions of our own nature, together with those manifold temptations from without, by which they are continually provoked and excited. And so to subdue and conquer these, as that they may neither take us off from, nor clog and indispose us in, the exercise of the heavenly virtues, is the great design and business of this warfaring part of the Christian life.

That I may therefore handle it distinctly, I shall divide it into three parts, and endeavour with as much brevity as I can, first, to explain the duties of each

part, and to shew how they all conduce to our conquering the difficulties of the heavenly virtues, and to the acquiring and perfecting them; and, secondly, to press the duties of each part with proper and suitable arguments.

In this part of our Christian life therefore, there is, 1. Our beginning, or entrance into it; which is in scripture called, Repentance from dead works.

2. Our course and progress in it; and this is nothing but a holy life.

3. Our perfecting and consummation of it; and this is final perseverance in well-doing each of which have their proper and peculiar duties, which I shall endeavour in this chapter to explain and enforce.

SECT. I.

Concerning those duties that are proper to our beginning and entrance into this warfaring part of our Christian life, shewing how they all conduce to the subduing of sin, and acquiring the heavenly

virtues.

THIS first part of our militant life being nothing but our initial repentance, or the first turning of our souls to God for a state of wilful sin and rebellion, the duties that are proper to it, and by which this turn of our souls is to be introduced and performed, may be reduced to these six heads:

1. A hearty and firm belief of the truth of our religion.

2. A due consideration of its motives, and a balancing of them with the hardships and difficulties we are to undergo.

3. A deep and through conviction of our great need of a mediator to render us acceptable to God.