'spotless and unblamable.' This is no more, and that is no less.

55. Upon this account the commandments are not only possible but easy, necessary to be observed, and will be exacted at our hands as they are imposed. That is, 1. That we abstain from all deliberate acts of sin. 2. That we never contract any vicious habit. 3. That if we have, we quite rescind and cut them off, and make amends for what is past. 4. That our love to God be entire, hearty, obedient, and undivided. 5. That we do our best to understand God's will and obey it, allowing to ourselves deliberately or by observation not the smallest action that we believe to be a sin. Now, that God requires no more, and that we can do thus much, and that good men from their conversion do thus much, though in differing degrees, is evident upon plain experience and the foregoing considerations. I conclude with the words of the Arausican council: "Omnes baptizati, Christo auxiliante et cooperante, possunt et debent quæ ad salutem pertinent, si fideliter laborare voluerint, adimplere:" "All baptized Christians may, by the grace of the Lord Jesus Christ, if they will faithfully labour, perform and fulfil all things that belong to their salvation."

56. The sum of all is this: The state of regeneration is perfection all the way, even when it is imperfect in its degrees. The whole state of a Christian's life is a state of perfection. Sincerity is the formality or the soul of it: a hearty constant endeavour is the body or material part of it : and the mercies of God accepting it in Christ, and assisting and promoting it by his Spirit of grace, is the third part of its constitution, it is the Spirit. This perfection is the perfection of men, not of angels; and it is as in the perfection of glory, where all are perfect, yet all are not equal. Every regenerate man hath that perfection, without which he cannot be accepted, but some have this perfection more, some less. It is the perfection of state, but the perfection of degrees is not yet. Here men are διὰ τὸν πατρικὸν νοῦν τελειούμενοι, "made perfect according to the measure of their fathers," as Porphyry expressed it; that is, by the measures of mortality, or as it pleases God to enable and accept them.

SECTION IV.

The former Doctrine reduced to Practice.

1. THE law is either taken for the law of Moses,' or 'the law of works' the law of works is that empire and dominion which God exercised over man, using his utmost right, and obliging man to the rigorous observation of all that law he should impose upon him. And in this sense, it was a law of death, not of life; for no man could keep it; and they that did not, might not live. This was imposed on Adam only.

2. But when God brought Israel out of Egypt, he began to make a covenant with them, with some compliance to their infirmities: for because little things could not be avoided, sacrifices were appointed for their expiation; which was a mercy as the other was a misery, a repentance as the sin: but for great sins there was no sacrifice appointed, no repentance ministered. And therefore still we were in the ministration of death: for this mercy was not sufficient; as yet it was not possible for a man to be justified by the law. It threatened sinners with death, it inflicted death, it did not promise eternal life, it ministered no grace, but fear and temporal hope it was written in tables of stone, not in their hearts; that is, the material parts of the law of Moses were not consonant to natural and essential reason, but arbitrary impositions; they were not perfective of a man, but very often destructive. This was a little alteration or ease of the covenant of works, but not enough.

3. From this state of evil things we were freed by Christ; the law was called the letter,' the ministration of death,' the ministration of condemnation,' the old testament;' apt to amaze and confound a sinner, but did not give him any hopes of remission, no glimpse of heaven, no ministry of pardon: but the Gospel is called the Spirit,' or 'the ministration of the Spirit,' the law of faith,'' the law of liberty; it ministers repentance, it enjoins holiness, it gives life, and we all have hopes of being saved.

4. This, which is the state of things in which the whole world is represented in their several periods, is by some

made to be the state of every returning sinner; and men are taught that they must pass through the terrors of the Law, before they can receive the mercies of the Gospel. The law was a schoolmaster to bring the synagogue to Christ; it was so to them who were under the law, but it cannot be so to us," who are not under the law, but under grace." For if they mean the law of works,' or that interposition which was the first intercourse with man, they lose their title to the mercies of the Gospel; if they mean the law of Moses,' then they do not "stand fast in the liberty, by which Christ hath made them free." But whatsoever the meaning be, neither of them can concern Christians. For God hath sent his Son to establish a better covenant in his blood, to preach repentance, to offer pardon, to condemn sin in the flesh, to publish the righteousness of God, to convince the world of sin by his Holy Spirit, to threaten damnation, not to sinners absolutely, but absolutely to the impenitent, and to promise and give salvation to his sons and servants.

5. I. The use that we Christians are to make of the law, is only to magnify the mercies of God in Jesus Christ, who hath freed us from so severe a covenant, who does not judge us by the measures of an angel, but by the span of a man's hand. But we are not to subject ourselves, so much as by fiction of law or fancy, to the curse and threatenings of the covenant of works, or of Moses' law, though it was of more instances and less severity, by reason of the allowance of sacrifices for expiation.

6. II. Every Christian man sinning, is to consider the horrible threatenings of the Gospel, the severe intermination of eternal pains, the goodness of God leading to repentance, the severity of his justice in exacting great punishments of criminals, the reasonableness of this justice punishing such persons intolerably, who would not use so great a grace in so pleasing a service, for the purchase of so glorious a reward. The terrors of the law did end in temporal death, they could affright no farther; but in the Gospel, heaven and hell were opened, and laid before all mankind: and therefore, by these measures, a sinner is to enter into the sorrows of contrition and the care of his amendment. And it is so vain a thing to think every sinner must, in his repentance, pass under the terrors of the law, that this is a very

destruction of that reason, for which they are fallen upon the opinion. The Law is not enough to affright sinners; and the terrors of the Gospel are far more to persevering and impenitent sinners, than the terrors of the law were to the breakers of it. The cause of the mistake is this: the Law was more terrible than the Gospel is, because it allowed no mercy to the sinner in great instances: but the Gospel does. But then if we compare the state of those men who fell under the evils of the Law, with these who fall under the evils threatened in the Gospel, we shall find these to be in a worse condition than those by far, as much as hell is worse than being stoned to death, or thrust through with a sword. This we are taught by that excellent author of the divine Epistle to the Hebrews; "He that despised Moses's law, died without mercy under two or three witnesses: of how much sorer punishment, suppose ye, shall he be thought worthy, who hath trodden under foot the Son of God, and hath counted the blood of the covenant, wherewith he was sanctified, an unholy thing, and hath done despite to the Spirit of grace?" So that, under the Gospel, he that sins and repents, is in a far better condition, than he that sinned under the Law, and repented. For repentance was not then allowed of; the man was to die without mercy. But he that sins and repents not, is, under the Gospel, in a far worse condition than under the Law; for under the Gospel, he shall have a far sorer punishment, than under the Law was threatened. Therefore, let no man mistake the mercies of the new covenant, or turn the grace of God into wantonness. The mercies of the Gospel neither allow us to sin, nor inflict an easier. punishment; but they oblige us to more holiness, under a greater penalty. In pursuance of which, I add,

7. III. The covenant by which mankind must now be judged, is a covenant of more mercy, but also of more holiness and therefore let no man think that now he is disobliged from doing good works, by being admitted to the covenant of faith: for though the covenants are opposed, as old and new, as a worse and a better, yet faith and works are not opposed. We are, in the Gospel, tied to more, and to more excellent works than ever the subjects of any law were; but if, after a hearty endeavour, we fall into infirmity, and

i Heb. x. 28, 29.

still strive against it, we are pitied here, but there we were not. Under the first covenant, the covenant of works, no endeavour was sufficient, because there was no allowance - made for infirmities, no abatements for ignorance, no deductions of exact measures, no consideration of surprises, passions, folly, and inadvertency: but under the new covenant, our hearty endeavour is accepted; but we are tied to endeavour higher and more excellent things than they. But he that thinks this mercy gives him liberty to do what he please, loses the mercy, and mistakes the whole design and economy of God's loving-kindness.

8. IV. To every Christian it is enjoined, that they be perfect: that is, according to the measure of every one: which perfection consists in doing our endeavour. He that does not do that, must never hope to be accepted, because he refuses to serve God by something that is in his power. But he that does that, is sure that God will not refuse it; because we cannot be dealt withal upon any other account, but by the measures of what is in our power; and for what is not, we cannot take care.

9. V. To do our endeavour or our best, is not to be understood equally in all the periods of our life, according to the work or effect itself, not according to our natural powers, but it is accounted for by the general measures and great periods of our life. A man cannot pray always with equal intention, nor give the same alms, nor equally mourn with sharpness for his sins. But God having appointed for every duty proper seasons and solemnities, hath declared, that he does his best, who heartily endeavours to do the duty in its proper season: but it were well we would remember, that he that did a good act to-day, can do the same to-morrow in the same circumstances; and he that yesterday fought a noble battle and resisted valiantly, can, upon the same terms, contend as manfully every day, if he will consider and watch. And though it will never be, that men will always do as well as at some times, yet when at any time they commit a sin, it is not because they could not, but because they would not, help it.

10. VI. He that would be approved in doing his best, must omit no opportunity of doing a good action; because, when it is placed in its proper circumstances, God lays his