naming. But, for the help of the few, that they may know they have fomething of gofpel purity, and that others may further know that they have it not, and fo may be humbled, and cry to the Lord for it, I fhall offer but these two means, or evidences, at the time, by which it may be tried. Try this purity then, 1. By the root of it. 2. By the fruit of it.

ift, Let this purity be tried by the root and spring of it. And,

1. This gospel purity is rooted in a divorce from the law. This may feem a paradox to fome, that purity, holiness, and conformity to the law, fhould be rooted in a divorce from the law: Yea, but it is a truth of the eternal God. Accordingly Paul declares of his own experience, Gal. ii. 29. I through the law am dead to the law, that I might live unto God. No living unto God, in point of purity and fanctification, until we be dead unto and divorced from the law, in point of justification. We must renounce it as a rule of acceptance, before we improve it as a rule of obedience. We do not make it a standard of holiness, fo long as we make it a conditiof life: for, while we do fo, we are under the law, and fo under the power and dominion of fin, and strangers to the grace of God, which only doth effectually teach to deny ungodliness and worldly lufts, and to live foberly, righteously, and godly. Now, have you ever been divorced from the law, by the killing ftroke of conviction, and by the mortifying ftroke of humiliation? Have you been convinced of the evil of fin, the guilt of fin, the power of fin; of the righteoufnefs of God, though he fhould deftroy you; and of the fpirituality and extent of the law, fo as the commandment coming, fin hath revived and you died?

2. This gospel purity is rooted in a marriage union to Chrift; Te are dead to the law by the body of Chrift, that ye might be married to another, even unto Chrift, that ye may bring forth fruit unto God, Rom. vi. 4. As there can be no lawful children before marriage; fo, no acceptable fruit unto God, no true purity, before marriage union to the Lord Jefus Chrift, without ingraftment into this bleffed vine, without whom we can do nothing.

7

nothing. Now, try your purity by this root of it.-Know you nothing of a marriage manifeftation of, and union to the Lord Jefus Chrift, having been divorced from the law, by a work of humiliation laying you low? Have you got a discovery of Chrift, in a gratious manifeftation of his glory? For, beholding his glory, we are changed into the fame image, from glory to glory.-Got you ever a view of the marriage contract? Did he never fay to you, I will be your God, ye shall be my people? Did he never fay, I will betrothe thee to me for ever, in loving-kindnefs, in tender mercies, and in faithfulness; declaring that his covenant is your charter, his righteoufnefs your garment, his Spirit your guide, his fulness your treafure, and his faithfulness your fecurity?--Know you nothing of the marriage proclamation? Did the Lord never fay to you fuch a word as that,, Come unto me, and you shall find reft to your fouls, poor, weary, and heavy laden creature? Did he never court you by the gofpel, faying, as Rebekah's friends concerning Abraham's fervant, with relation to Ifaac, Will you go with this man?- Know you any thing of the marriage confent? I will go with this man. Did he ever make you willing in a day of his power?- Know you nothing of marriage embraces, between Chrift and your foul? Hath he ever embraced you by his love, and made you to embrace him by faith? Surely gofpel purity is rooted here.

3. This gospel purity is rooted in the inhabitation and operation of the Spirit of Chrift; I will put my Spirit within you, and caufe you to walk in my ftatutes, Ezek. xxxvi. 27. Try then, the Spirit is for accomplishing the forementioned effects. The Spirit maketh a clear revelation of the grace of God in the gofpel. The Spirit having convinced of fin and unbelief, doth beget faith, even the faith of the word of grace, the faith of the death of Christ, the faith of the mercy of God in Christ, and the faith of the promise: and by faith the believer receives the Spirit; that is, more and more of the Spirit. In the firft approach of the Spirit to the heart, when he works faith, we are purely paffive; but afterward the Spirit is received: Received ye the Spirit by the works of the law, or by the hearing of faith? And now the Spirit dwelleth

in the heart, as the root of all purity and holinefs there; and then he works, and operates, and influences: this is the fap which comes from the root Chrift. The poor foul finds, that without new breathing, new influences of the Spirit, there can be no good motions, defires, affections; this is the well of water, put within the believer, fpringing up to everlasting life. Hypocrites may be fed with common influences, like pools from the clouds; but believers have a living fpring within them, fpringing up like a fpring well internally, even when there are no external motives many times.

4. This gofpel purity is rooted in a principle of faith; fo we read, Acts xv. 9. that their hearts were purified by faith for faith doth not only justify the perfon, but alfo purify the affections and heart of the perfon juftified. Faith is a working grace, 1 Theff. i. 3. In what works it? It works thus, even working out filthy corruption. As unbelief and infidelity pollutes a man's heart; and therefore Paul joins the unbelieving and the defiled together, Tit. i. 15.; fo alfo, on the contrary, it is the work of faith to fanctify the heart: and therefore as Paul, in the former place, joins unbelief and defilement together; fo, 1 Tim. i. 5. faith unfeigned, and a pure heart are coupled together. Now, faith purifies by drawing water out of the wells of falvation: having united the perfon to Chrift, the fountain-head, it draws vital influences from all Chrift's perfections and attributes; from all his offices, from all his promises, from all his providences, from all his relations; from his names, his righteoufnefs, his fulness, his purchase, by its frequent actings through the help of the Spirit of Chrift, which is given them.

And particularly, faith improves the death of Christ for this purpose. By his death he hath appeased the wrath, and fatisfied juftice, and hath obtained the communication of God's favour, and all the fruits of it, whereof this of fanctification and purification is one. Christ, by his death, hath taken out of the way the great obftacle of our fanctification, and that is our conceiving of God as an enemy, and fo being under the fear of God's wrath: for now, that Christ hath died, and this is reveal

ed

ed to us, this may beget in us kindly thoughts of God, and deliver us from our fears; and fo fhould we underftand that word, There is mercy with thee that thou maycft be feared. One would think if it were, there is wrath with thee that thou mayest be feared, they would underftand it better. Why, I tell you, while people fear the Lord and his wrath, that is no holiness: for devils fear him and his wrath; yea, they believe and tremble at his wrath, and yet have no holiness, no purity. But, while we fear the Lord and his goodness, as it is, Hofea iii. 3.; while we fear him in a filial way, from the faith and belief of mercy and goodness, this is purity and holiness. Now, Chrift, by his death, hath removed the great obstacle, viz. a flavish fear, and introduced the greatest encouragement, even the declaration of God's greatest mercy, and richest grace to poor finners: and faith's views hereof doth encourage us to love and ferve the Lord.

In a word, faith improves, and embraces, and pleads the promise of sanctification; fuch as, I will sprinkle clean water upon you, and you shall be clean; from all your filthiness will I cleanse you: I will put my Spirit within them: I will put my fear in their heart: I will fubdue their iniquities: I will fave you from all your uncleannefs: All which are Yea and Amen in Chrift. -Now, try your purity thus by the root of it.

2dly, Try your purity by the fruits and effects, parts and evidences of it; fuch as thefe following.

1. Gospel purity makes a man love God, because he is pure. Can you fay, from the bottom of your foul, that however impure and unholy you are, yet you love God because he is a pure and holy God; a holy God that hates fin? I look upon this as a fweet evidence of one that hath the ftamp of God's holinefs upon his foul. A hypocrite may love God because he is good, merciful, and the like: but can he love him because he is a holy God that hates fin? No. Now, is that the language of thy foul, Give thanks at the remembrance of his holiness?

2. Gospel purity makes a man love the people of God, because they are pure. A man may love the people of God because of fome other reafon, and yet have no pu

rity: but to love them because of their purity; and the more pure and holy they are, the more to love them, this is an evidence of being passed from death to life. Mawould rather choose to be in a drunken club and cabal, than in the company of thofe who fear God; they are kept under restraints while with them: but the man that is washed from his filthinefs, His delights are with the faints, the excellent ones of the earth, Pfal. xvi. 3.

ny

3. Another fruit and evidence of gofpel purity is, it makes the man love the word, because of its purity: Thy word is very pure; therefore thy fervant loves it, Pfal. cxix. 140. The word is the mean and inftrument of purity; Now are ye clean through the word that I have Spoken. Sanctify them through thy truth; thy word is truth. Of his own will begat he us with the word of truth. Now, to love ordinances, and to love the word, for this very reafon, because of its purity, is evidential of a perfon's being purified in part.

4. Gofpel purity makes a man hate fin, becaufe of its impurity, and ftand at a distance from it, under that confideration. He hates fin because of its impurity, and because of its oppofition to holiness: and therefore he hates every fin; I hate every falfe way, Pfal. cxix. 104. He hates fecret, as well as open fin; I hate vain thoughts, Pfal. cxix. 113. He hates little fins, as well as great, if any can be called little, feeing there is no little God to fin againft, no little hell to punifh fin in. Little fins have brought on great punishments; as Lot's wife looking back to Sodom; Adam's eating the forbidden fruit; fifty thousand men of Bethfhemith flain for looking_curiously into the ark; and Uzzah for touching it. The faints know that the least fin coft Chrift's precious blood; and therefore dare not think little of, or indulge themfelves in any fin.-Further, Gospel purity leads a man to ftand at a distance from fin. It is true, the child of God may fall into fin; but his way of finning is like the wicked man's way of ferving God. A wicked man may go to duty, he may go to his prayers; but he is only a bungler at it; he has no habit of grace, no dexterity for duty before God: fo, a godly man may commit fin, and try that work fometimes; but he is a bungler at it,