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The text, thus explained, contains an exhortation very suitable to the season when it was spoken, and to all men in general; and affords us a powerful excitement to pray continually for the assistance of God's holy spirit to aid our good resolutions.

But this explication of the text, how worthy soever of its author, and agreeable to the circumstances under which it was delivered, will not easily be digested; because it undermines the favorite doctrine of sins of infirmity, which, on the slender encouragement of this text, has wonderfully thriven, ridding men of all the trouble and pains of repentance and amendment, by easing them of the terrors of guilt.

The text, when used to this purpose, is thus explained: the disciples are supposed to have committed some great fault, for which our Saviour rebukes them; but then checking himself, he makes this excuse for them, The spirit indeed is willing, but the flesh is weak; absolving them for sake of the willingness that was in them, and throwing all the blame and guilt of sin on the weakness of the flesh. But to make the most of this, the fault of the disciples was only that of falling asleep after long watching, which, like the indulgence of many other natural wants, was a very pardonable infirmity.

As some men of melancholic temperament have fancied every sin committed to be sin against the Holy Ghost, and themselves thereby rejected irrecoverably, so others of a different temper have reckoned all their sins to be sins of infirmity, and themselves secure from danger. The one set pay dear for their mistake in this world by their constant terrors: the other will have no reason to be proud of their contrivance in another. There is just as much good policy in this conceit, as in his, who shut his eyes and thought nobody could see him.

But the better to judge of this matter, it may be proper to inquire what are sins of infirmity, and what value there is in

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the excuse. First then, it is considered what is the Scripture sense of infirmities: secondly, what sort of sins they are, which will admit of an excuse, because of the infirmity from which they proceed.

1. The state of human nature is such, as to be liable to many pains, diseases, and at last to death: and though all are not equally affected by these miseries, yet all are equally liable to them this is the first and proper notion of infirmity; and in this sense Christ is said to bear our infirmities, being, as St. Paul says, crucified through weakness; that is, by the condition of his humanity.

But men are not more weak and imperfect in their bodies than in their minds; nor more exposed to bodily pains than to the impressions of sin, which is our spiritual disease; and though all are not sinners alike, yet all are alike weak and subject to the temptation of sin: and this is the general sense of infirmity when applied to our spiritual condition. It is shown how St. Paul opposes the law of sin to the law of the spirit of life; and the condition of a person who was under the law of sin, in whom is the weakness of the flesh, to that of him who is under the law of life, in whom is the spirit of righteous

ness.

In his argument St. Paul more than once speaks thus: If I do that I would not, it is no more I that do it, but sin that dwelleth in me: which is thought by some to come very near to the case of sins of infirmity; for the excuse from infirmity is made up of willingness and want of power. In all moral actions there is a proportion between the ability to perform, and the guilt of not performing; but if we consider ourselves as Christians, who do not depend solely on our own strength, but likewise on the assistance of God, the terms of the proportion will be altered, and the guilt of our disobedience will be measured by the ability we might have had to perform our

duty if we had not power to withstand temptations, this want of power may have been our own fault; and the not observing this is the true foundation of men's reliance on the excuse of infirmity this point enlarged on.

Next to this general sense of infirmity come the particular infirmities included in it. As every disease of the body is called an infirmity, (for our Saviour, when he healed the sick of their particular distempers, is said to have cured their infirmities,) so by the same analogy, every particular sin may be called an infirmity. Thus David, speaking of his distrust of God's goodness, calls it his infirmity. So in the Epistle to the Hebrews it is said, The law maketh men high priests which have infirmities. But in the Scripture it is no where used in this sense as an alleviation of guilt.

The sense indeed of Scripture is the least thing regarded in setting up this plea of infirmity, which has been invented and used to shelter particular and darling sins; but seldom or never for the universal imperfection of all, even the best of our actions, in which sense only it can be reasonably used. But the bosom sin is to be defended: in which case two things are generally urged, a natural passion, and the violence of the passion the passion is said to have the same author with nature; and its violence is excused by particular constitution and temperament: but what sin may not be thus permitted?

The Scripture uses weakness, in another sense, opposed to knowlege; as weak Christians are those newly converted, and not yet confirmed in the knowlege and mysteries of Christianity: but this sense is nothing to our purpose: neither is that of weakness as applied to those who have tender consciences, easily offended, such as those who scrupled to eat meat which had been offered to idols.

These are the most usual, if not all the Scripture senses of infirmity; but some of these have enough in them to be an

excuse for sin. All sin is weakness: it was our weakness that made it necessary for the Son of God to rescue us from the law of sin and death and to what purpose is the Holy Spirit promised or given, but to overcome our infirmities, that the strength of God may be made perfect in weakness?

But after all we cannot be perfect. St. James says, in many things we offend all. How shall these errors be excused, to which the best men are liable? This will be

answered if we consider,

cuse.

Secondly, what sort of sins they are which admit the exAnd here we are not to expect a catalogue of sins: for no kind of sin can be otherwise excused than by repentance and amendment; and at best there is an impropriety of speech in sins of infirmity. The necessary effects of our infirmities are not sinful where they are not necessary, they may be sinful; but why they are called sins of infirmity, in distinction to other sins, is hard to say. There is an imperfection in the obedience of the best men; but without question God will favorably look on their failings, and accept their sincere though not perfect obedience. But the common notion of sins of infirmity gains nothing by this; for let any one say, what is the sin of infirmity that all good men are guilty of. There is an imperfection which flows from the weakness of our present state, and shows itself in various instances. Thus many good Christians complain of a coldness sometimes in their devotion, and of wandering thoughts: others are troubled with evil thoughts, unworthy conceptions of God and Christ; and they suffer great torment and anxiety of mind because of them : but such are objects of compassion to God and man; and their infirmities are so far from forming an excuse, that they are an aggravation of the guilt of others, who have not the same obedience and virtues to plead for themselves.

Since then there is so little reason to depend on this excuse,

though all stand in need of it, there remains only one way of intitling ourselves to the plea, which is, sincerely and universally to endeavor to obey God's will: we shall then be in the number of those whose infirmities, for the sake of Christ, shall be forgiven.

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