Sense and Faith. Sense presents to us the pleasing delights on the one side; on the other, the present afflictions and persecutions that attend a good profession. Faith lays before us the glorious things of a future life, and the endless miseries and torments abiding for sinful souls in the world to come. Now, it is not for every one to deny all credit to his sense (alluring him with all present and visible pleasures, and discouraging him with the terror and pain of present and visible afflictions,) and to yield himself, hood-winked, to be led by faith (fore-promising only better things afar off, and fore-admonishing him of dangers, future and invisible.) Faith only is that heroical virtue which makes a man with a holy contempt to overlook all the pleasing baits of the world, and with a brave courage and fortitude to despise all the menaces and painful inflictions of its present fury. This works our eyes not to look upon the things which we cannot but see-the present shews of the world, whether alluring or terrifying. Had Lot but looked back on Sodom, the pleasant plain of Sodom that lay like the garden of God behind his back, he had never escaped into the mountain. Had the glorious Protomartyr fixed his eyes only upon his persecutors, his heart could not but have failed to see the fire in their faces, the sparkling of their eyes, the grinding of their teeth, the bending of their brows, the stopping of their ears, their furious running upon him, their violent halings and draggings; and lastly, a whole volley of stones discharged mortally upon him: he had been utterly daunted with such an impetuosity of death. But he, as not seeing any of this pomp and ostentation of horror, looks up stedfastly to heaven; and there

N

sees (that which might well make him blind to all other visible objects) the heavens open, and Jesus standing at the right hand of God; and, upon this sight, he shut up his eyes and slept. The true Christian, then, hath, with holy Job, made a covenant with his eyes, not to look upon either the cruel insolencies of the raging world with fear and dejectedness, or on the tempting vanities of the world with amorous glances; but with a sober and constant resolution entertains the objects of both kinds. Very justly did Tertullian jeer that heathen philosopher who pulled out his eyes to avoid concupiscence; and can tell him, that a Christian can hold his eyes, and yet behold beauty unbewitched; and can be at once open-eyed to nature, and blind to lust. And what the apostle said of the use, he can practise of the sight, of the world and earthly objects; he can so behold them as if he beheld them not. How oft have we, in a deep study, fixed our eyes upon that which we the while thought not upon, neither perceived that we saw! So doth the Christian to these worldly glories, pleasures, profits; while his mind and affections are on the things above, where Christ sitteth on the right hand of God.' There, Lord, let me behold those things which cannot yet be seen; but shall once, in the sight of them, make me blessed. And let me not look on the things that are seen: for the things that are seen are temporary; but the things which are not seen are eternal.'

2

XIII.

There is not more strangeness than significance in that charge of the apostle, That we should 'put on the Lord Jesus Christ.'1 The soul is, as it were, a body; not really and properly so, according to the gross error of Tertullian, but by way of allusion. This body of the soul then may not be naked, but must be clad: as our first parents were ashamed of their bodily nakedness; and so still are all their (not savage) posterity; so may we of our spiritual. Every sinner is naked: those rags that he hath are so far from hiding his nakedness, that they are part of it: his fairest moralities are but glittering sins; and his sins are his nakedness. Aaron had made Israel naked to their shame:'2 not so much in that they were stript of their earrings, as that they were enwrapped in the sin of idolatry. No marvel if we run away and hide us from the presence of God, as our first parents did, while we are guilty to ourselves of our spiritual deformity. As then we are bodily naked when we come into the world, so we are spiritually naked while we are of the world; neither can it be either safe or comely for us till we be covered. There is no clothing can fit the soul but the Lord Jesus Christ. All other robes in the wardrobe of earth or heaven are too short, too strait; like those which the scorn of Hanun put upon David's messengers, reaching but to the hams; for, though the soul of man be finite, the sin of the soul is scarce so; and that sin must be covered, else there can be no safety for the soul; according to that of the psalmist,

1 Rom. xiii. 14; Gal. iii. 27.

2 Exod. xxxii. 25.

'Blessed is he whose transgression is forgiven, whose sin is covered." None, therefore, but the robes of an infinite righteousness can cover the soul so woefully dressed; none, therefore, but the Lord Jesus Christ, who is God blessed for ever, can cover the soul, that it may not appear unrighteous, or can cleanse the soul, that it may not be unrighteous: and cleansed it must be ere the Lord Jesus can be put on. We shall wrong his perfect holiness if we think we can slip him on, as a case, over our beastly rags. It is with us as with Joshua the high priest: the filthy garments must first be taken off; and then the Lord shall say unto us, 'Behold, I have caused thine iniquity to pass from thee, and I will clothe thee with change of raiment." We put on a garment when we apply it all over to our body, so as that part which is clothed appears not, but is defended from the air and from the eye. If we have truly put on the Lord Jesus nothing of ours is seen, but Christ is all in all to us: although this application goes yet deeper; for we so put him on, that we not only put ourselves into him, but also put him into ourselves by a mutual kind of spiritual incorporation. We put him on then upon our intellectual parts, by knowing him, by believing on him. This is eternal life to know thee, and whom thou has sent,' saith our Saviour; and for faith, no grace doth so sensibly apprehend him, and make him so feelingly ours. We put him on upon our wills and affections, when we take pleasure in him, when we love him, delight in him, and prefer him to our chiefest joy. Thus do we put him on as our Lord, in our humble and duti

ful subjection; as our Jesus in our faithful affiance; as Christ the anointed of God to be our king in all holy obedience; our priest in our willing consecration to him; our prophet in our cheerful readiness to be instructed by him. How happy are we if we be thus decked! We prank up these poor carcasses of ours gaily with no small expence; and when we have done, the stuff or the fashion, or both, wears out to nothing; but here is a garment that will never be out of fashion: Jesus Christ yesterday, and to-day, and the same for ever;' yea, the same to us: here we put him on in grace; there in eternal glory. The Israelities were forty years in the wilderness, yet their shoes not worn, their apparel not impaired ;' but this attire shall not only hold good in the time of our wandering in this desert, but after we are come into the Canaan of glory, and is best at last. Wherefore do we put on our choicest attire on some high days, but to testify the cheerfulness of our hearts ? Let thy garment be white,' saith the preacher, for now God accepteth thy works.'" Mephibosheth changed not his raiment since David went out, as one that would have the sorrow of his heart seen in the neglect of his clothes; although many a one under a gay coat hath a heavy heart; but this attire doth not only testify but make cheerfulness in the soul. 'Thou hast given me more joy of heart than they had in the time that their corn and their wine increased; and, 'In thy presence is the fulness of joy.' What can this apparel of ours do, but keep us from a blast or a shower? It is so far from safeguarding the soul, that it many times wounds 2 Eccles. ix. 7, 8. * Psalm, iv. 7. 4 Psalm xvi. 11.

Deut. xxix. 5.