SERM. XXIII. pollos nothing, but God that giveth the increase, 1 Cor. iii. 7. Let the most learned, eloquent, and powerful orator be in the pulpit, yet no man's heart is perfuaded, till it hears the voice of God; Cathedram in coelis habet, qui corda docet.

Secondly, They have influence upon the mind, to remove what hindred it from Chrift. Except the minds of men be firft untaught thofe errors, by which they are prejudiced against Chrift, they will never be perfuaded to come unto him; and nothing but the Father's teachings can unteach those errors, and cure thofe evils of the mind. The natural mind of man flights the truths of God, until God teach them; and then they tremble with an awful reverence of them. Sin is but a trifle, till God fhews us the face of it in the glafs of the law, and then it appears exceeding finful, Rom. vii. 13. We think God to be fuch a one as ourselves, Pfal. 1. 21. until he difcover himself unto us in his infinite greatness, awful holiness, and fevere justice; and then we cry, who can ftand before this great and dreadful God! We thought it was time enough here. after, to mind the concernments of another world, until the Lord open our eyes, to fee in what danger we stand upon the very brink of eternity; and then nothing alarms us more, than the fears that our time will be finished before the great work of Salvation be finished. We thought ourselves in a converted state before, till God made us to fee the neceffity of another manner of converfation, upon pain of eternal damnation. We readily caught hold upon the promises before, when we had no right to them; but the teachings of God make the prefumptuous finner let go his hold, that he may take a better and furer hold of them in Chrift. We once thought that the death of Christ, in itself, had been enough to fecure our falvation; but under the teachings of God, we difcern plainly the neceffity of a change of heart and state; or elfe the blood of Chrift can never profit us. Thus the teachings of God remove the errors of the mind, by which men are with-held from Christ.

Thirdly, The teachings of God powerfully attract, and allure the will of a finner to Christ, Hof. ii. 14. But of thefe drawings of the father I have largely fpoken before, and therefore fhall fay no more of it in this place, but haften to the last thing pro. pounded, viz.

Thirdly, Why it is impoffible for any man to come to Chriff, without the Father's teachings; and the impoffibilities hereof will appear three ways.

1. From the power of fin.

2. From the indifpofition of man.

3. From the nature of faith.

By all which, the last point defigned to be spoken to from this fcripture, will be fully cleared, and the whole prepared for application.

First, the impoffibility of coming to Chrift without the teachings of the father, will appear from the power of fin, which hath fo strong an holdfaft upon the hearts, and affections of all unregenerate men, that no human arguments, or perfuafions whatsoever, can divorce or feparate them; for,

Firft, Sin is connatural with the foul, 'tis born and bred with a man; Pfal. li. 4. Ifa. xlviii. 8. It is as natural for fallen man to fin, as it is to breathe.

Secondly, The power of fin hath been ftrengthening itself from the beginning, by a long continued cuftom, which gives it the force of a fecond nature, and makes regeneration and mortification naturally impoffible, Jer. xv. 23. "Can the Ethiopian change "his fkin, or the leopard his fpots? Then may he alfo do good "that is accustomed to do evil.”

Thirdly, Sin is the delight of the finner: "it is a fport to a "fool to do mifchief," Prov. x. 23. Carnal men have no other pleasure in this world, but what arifes from their lufts; to cut off their corruptions by mortification, were at once to deprive them of all the pleasure of their lives.

66

Fourthly, Sin being connatural, cuftomary, and delightful, doth therefore bewitch their affections, and inchant their hearts, to that degree of madness and fascination, that they rather chufe damnation by God, than feparation from fia: "Their hearts are fully fet in them to do evil," Ecclef. viii. 11. they rush into fin, as the "horfe rufheth into the battle," Jer. viii. 6. And now, what, think you, can separate a man from his beloved luft, except the powerful and effectual teachings of God? Nothing but a light from heaven can rectify, and reduce the inchanted mind; no power, but that of God, can change and alter the finful bent, and inclination of the will; 'tis a talk above all the power of the creature.

Secondly, The impoffibility of coming to Chrift, without the Father's teachings, evidently appears from the indifpofedness of man, the subject of this change: "The natural man receives not "the things which are of God," 1 Cor. ii. 14. Three things must be wrought upon man, before he can come to Chrift: his blind understanding must be enlightned; his hard and rocky heart must be broken, and melted; his fliff, fixed, and obftinaté will must be conquered and fubdued: but all these are effects VOL. II.

Kk k

SERM. XXIII. of a fupernatural power. The illumination of the mind is the peculiar work of God, 2 Cor. iv. 6. Rev. iii. 17. Eph. v. 8. The breaking and melting of the heart is the Lord's own work; 'tis he that giveth repentance, Acts v. 31. 'Tis the Lord that "takes away the heart of stone, and giveth an heart of flesh," Ezek. xxxvi. 26. 'Tis he that poureth out the fpirit of contrition upon man, Zech. xii. 10. The changing of the natural bent, and inclination of the will, is the Lord's fole prerogative, Phil. ii. 13. All these things are effectually done in the foul of man, when God teacheth it, and never till then.

Thirdly, The nature of faith, by which we come to Christ, plainly fhews the impoffibility of coming without the Father's teaching. Every thing in faith is fupernatural; the implantation of the habit of faith is fo, Eph. ii. 8. 'Tis not of ourselves, but the gift of God; 'tis not an habit acquired by industry, but infufed by grace, Phil. i. 29. The light of faith, by which fpiritual things are difcerned, is fupernatural; Heb xi. 1, 27. It feeth things that are invisible. The adventures of faith are supernatural; for "against hope, a man believeth in hope, giving glory to God," Rom. iv. 18. By faith a man goeth unto Christ, against all the dictates, and difcouragements of natural fenfe and reafon. The felf-denial of faith is fupernatural; the cutting off the right-hand, and plucking out of right-eye-fins, muft needs be fo, Mat. v. 29. The victories and conquests of faith do all speak it to be fupernatural: it overcomes the ftrongeft oppofitions from without, Heb. xi. 33, 34. It fubdueth and purgeth the moft obftinate and deep-rooted corruptions within, Acts xv. 9. It overcometh all the blandifhments, and charming allurements of the bewitching world, 1 John v. 4. All which confidered, how evident is the conclufion, that none can come to Chrift without the Father's teachings? The ufes follow.

Firft ufe for information.

Infer. 1. How notoriously falfe and abfurd is that doctrine, which afferteth the poffibility of believing without the efficacy of superna tural grace? The defire of felf-fufficiency was the 'ruin of Adam, and the conceit of felf-fufficiency is the ruin of multitudes of his pofterity. This doctrine is not only contradictory to the current ftream of fcripture, Phil. ii. 13. 1 John i. 13. with ma ny other fcriptures; but it is alfo contradictory to the common fenfe and experience of believers: yet the pride of nature will ftrive to maintain what fcripture and experience plainly contradict and overthrow.

Infer. 2. Hence we may alfo inform ourselves, how it cometh to pass that many rational, wife and learned men, mifs Chrift; whilst

the fimple and illiterate, even babes in natural knowledge, obtain intereft in him, and falvation by him. The reafon hereof is plainly given us by Christ, in Mat. xiii. 11. "To you it is given to "know the mysteries of the kingdom of heaven, but to them it " is not given." It is the dropping and dews of divine teaching upon one, and not upon another, that dryeth up the green tree, and maketh the dry tree to flourish. Many natural men have very fine brains, fearching wits, folid judgments, nimble fancies, tenacious memories; they can fearch out the mysteries of nature, folve the phoenomena, fatisfy the enquiries of the most curious; they can measure the earth, discover the motions of the heavens : but after all take up their place in hell, when, in the mean time, the ftatutes of the Lord (by the help of his teachings) make wife the fimple, Pfal. xix. 17. It is no matter how dull and incapable the fcholar be, if God undertake to be the teacher. I remember, Austin speaks of one who was commonly reputed a fool, and yet he could not but judge him to be truly godly, and that by two figns of grace which appeared in him; one was, his seriouf nefs when he heard any difcourfes of Chrift: the other was, his indignation manifefted against fin. It was truly faid by those two Cardinals (who, riding to the council of Conftance, overheard a poor fhepherd in the fields with tears bewailing his fins) Surgent indocti et rapient coelum; The unlearned will rife and take heaven, whilft we with all our learning fhall descend into hell.

Here

1

Infer. 3. This also informs us of the true reafon of the strange and various fucceffes of the gospel upon the fouls of men. we fee why the miniftry of one man becomes fruitful, and another's barren; yea, why the labours of the fame man profper exceedingly at one time, and not at another; these things are according as the teachings of God do accompany our teachings. We often fee a weaker and plainer discourse blessed with success,` whilst that which is more artificial, neat and laboured, comes to nothing. St. Austin hath a pretty fimilitude to illustrate this; Suppofe, faith he, two conduits, the one very plain, the other curiously carved and adorned with images of lions, eagles, c. the water doth not refresh, and nourish, as it cometh from fach a curious conduit, but as it is water. Where we find most of man, we frequently find leaft of God. I speak not this to encourage careleffnefs and lazinefs, but to provoke the dispensers of the gospel to more earneftnefs, and frequent prayer for the affiftance, and bleffing of the Spirit upon their labours, and to make men lefs fond of their own gifts and abilities: blear

SERM. XXIII. eyed Leah may bear children, when beautiful Rachel proves barren.

Infer. 4. Learn hence the tranfcendent excellency of faving, fpiritual knowledge, above that which is merely literal and natural. One drop of knowledge taught by God, is more excellent, than the whole ocean of human knowledge, and acquired gifts, Phil. iii. 8. John xvii. 3. 1 Cor. ii. 2. Let no man therefore be dejected at the want of thofe gifts, with which unfanctified men are a dorned. If God have taught thee the evil of fin, the worth of Chrift, the neceffity of regeneration, the mystery of faith, the way of communion with God in duties; trouble not thyfelf because of thine ignorance in natural, or moral things: thou haft that, reader, which will bring thee to heaven; and he is a truly wife man that knows the way of falvation, though he be ignorant and unfkilful in other things: thou knoweft those things which all the learned doctors, and libraries in the world could never teach thee, but God hath revealed them to thee: others have more feience, thou haft more favour and fweetnefs: blefs God, and be not difcouraged.

Second ufe for examination.

If there be no coming to Chrift without the teachings of the Father; then it greatly concerns us to examine our own hearts, whether ever we have been under the faving teachings of God, during the many years we have fat under the preaching of the gofpel. Let not the queftion be miftaken, I do not ask what books you have read, what minifters you have heard, what stock of natural, or speculative knowledge you have acquired; but the question is, whether ever God fpake to your hearts, and hath effectually taught you fuch leffons, as were mentioned in our laft difcourfe? O there is a vaft difference betwixt that notional, fpeculative, and traditional knowledge which man learneth from men, and that spiritual, operative, and transforming knowledge which a man learneth from God. If you afk how the teachings of God may be difcerned, from all other mere human teachings; I anfwer, they may be difcerned, and distinguifhed by thefe fix figns,

Sign 1. The teachings of God are very humbling to the foul that is taught. Human knowledge puffeth up, 1 Cor. viii, 1. but the teachings of God do greatly abafe the foul, Job xlii. 5. "I "have heard of thee by the hearing of the ear, but now mine "eye feeth thee; wherefore I abhor myfelf, and repent in duft "and afhes" the fame light which discovers to us the holiness, justice, greatness, and goodness of God, difcovereth alfo the vile.