to conceive of it, that the barren soul becomes a joyful mother of children. David sat for half a year under the public lectures of the law, and the womb of his heart shut up, till Nathan comes, and God with him ; and now is the time of life : he conceives presently, yea, and brings forth in the same day ; falls presently into the bitter pangs of sorrow for his sins, which went not over till he had cast them forth in that sweet Psalm 11. Why should this one word work more than all the former, but that God now struck in with his word, which he did not before ? He is therefore said ' to teach his people to profit,' Isa. xlviii. 1 7. He sits in heaven that teacheth hearts. When God's Spirit, who is the head master, shall call a soul from his usher to himself, and say. Soul, you have not gone the way to thrive by hearing the word ; thus and thus conceive of such a truth, improve such a promise ; presently the eyes of his understanding open, and his heart burns within him while he speaks to him. Thus you see tlie truth of this point, that the Christian's strength is in the Lord. Now we shall give some demonstrations.
Section I.- — Beas. 1. The first reason may be taken from the natin-e of the saints and their grace ; both are creatures, they and their grace also ; liow in- esse est deesse creatiirce. It is in the very nature of the creature to depend on Gpd its Maker, both for being and operation. Can you conceive an accident to be out of its subject ? whiteness out of the wall, or some other subject ? It is as impossible that the creature should be, or act without strength from God : this, to be, act in and of himself, is so incommunicable a property of the Deity, that he cannot impart it to his creature : ' God is, and there is none besides him;' when God made the world, it is said, indeed, that he ended his work, that is, of creation. He made no new species and kinds of creatures more, but to this day he hath not ended his work of providence :, ' Hitherto my Father worketh,' saith Christ, John v. 17 ; that is, in preserving and empowering what he hath made with strength to be and act, and therefore he is said to hold our souls in life. Works of art, which man makes, when finished, may stand some time without the workman's help, as the house, when the carpenter that made it is dead ; but God's works of nature and grace are never off his hand ; and therefore, as the Father is said to work hitherto for the preservation of the works of nature, so the Son, to whom is committed the work of redemption, he tells us he worketh also. Neither ended he his woi-k, when he rose again, any other ■way than his Father did in the work of creation. God made an end of making, so Christ made an end of purchasing mercy, grace, and glory for believers, by once dying ; and as God rested at the end of the creation, so he, when he had wrought eternal redemption, and ' by himself pin-ged our sins, sat down on the right hand of the Majesty on high,' Heb. i. 3. But he ceaseth not to work by his intercession with God for us, and by his Spirit in us for God, whereby he upholds his saints, their graces, and comforts in life, without which they would run to ruin. Thus we see, as grace is a creature, the Christian depends on God for his strength. But fm-ther,
Secondly, The Christian's grace is not only a creature, but a weak creature, conflicting with enemies stronger than itself, and therefore cannot keep the field without an auxiliary strength from heaven. The weakest goes to the wall, if no succour comes in. Grace in this life is but weak, like a king in the cradle, which gives advantage to Satan to carry on his plots more stronglj', to the disturl)ance of this young king's reign in the soul ; yea, he would soon make an end of the war in the ruin of the believer's grace, did not Heaven take the Christian into protection. It is true, indeed, grace, wherever it is, hath a j)rin- ciple in itself that makes it desire and endeavour to preserve itself according to its strength ; but being over])owered, must perish, except assisted by God, as fire in green wood (which deadens and damps the parts kindled) will in time go out, except blown up, or more fire put to that little ; so will grace in the heart. God brings his grace into the heart by conquest : now, as in a conquered city, though some yield and become true subjects to the conqueror, yet others plot how they may shake off this yoke ; and therefore it requires the same ])ower to keep, as it did to win it at first. The Christian hath an unregcnerate part, that is discontented at this new change in the heart, and disdains as much to come under the sweet government of Christ's sceptre, as the Sodomites that Lot should
IQ BE STRONG IN THE LORD.