4. There is required that the afi'ections be purged and quickened ; these are the vigorous motions of the will, and therefore this must be heedfully regarded : purged they must be from that carnality and fleshliness that cleaveth to them. This is called in scripture the cir- cumcision of the heart, Deut. xxx. 6 : ' The Lord thy God shall circumcise thy heart, to love the Lord thy God with all thy heart, and Avith all thy mind, that thou mayest live.' It was figured in the cutting of the foreskin, or the circumcision of the flesh, which, because it was an action done with pain, sometimes noteth the humbling of the heart and soul-affliction. Lev. xxvi. 41 ; but because it was done not only with pain, but the foreskin was cut off", so it noteth the purging the heart from that fleshliness and carnality that cleaveth to us : Acts xv. 9, ' Purifying their hearts by faith.' Sin is wrought out more and more by the blood of Christ applied to the conscience. And some- times this is expressed in scripture by ploughing up the fallow ground, Jer. iv. 4. There are perverse inclinations, like briars and thorns, that grow in us, and the strength of vile aftections ; now unless these be abated and broken we shall soon be transported by them. It is an allusion to ground broken up for tillage : till the ground be ploughed, and the noisome weeds destroj'ed, the good seed will not grow. Secondly, the affections must be quickened, acted, and set awork by the love of God : Gal. v. 6, ' Prepared ready to serve the Lord,' Eph. ii. 20. Amor mens est pondus ineum — love and delight in God's ways go together.
Thus much of the nature of the sound heart.
Secondly, Let me now come to show you the value and worth of this privilege. It is a great blessing ; that will appear by two things : —
1. The respect that God hath to it.
2. The evil it freeth us from, ' That I be not ashamed.'
1 . The respect that God hatli to it. This is the thing that God
344 SERMONS UPON PSALM cxix. [Ser. LXXXVIII.
delights in and looks after : 1 Chron. xxix. 17, 'I know also, my God, that thou triest the heart, and hast pleasure in uprightness.' He can discern integrity, and preferreth it before all manner of service and pomp in worship that is yielded to him. Now this delight of God is not only in the thing itself, in the uprightness, but in the persons of the upright, upon account of their uprightness : so Prov. xi. 20, ' The upright is his delight.' That person that is upright for the main, though otherwise he hath many failings, is of great esteem with God. But can the holy God delight in any of the sinful sons of Adam ? Before the fall God rejoiced in us, as in the work of his hands. But since sin marred us and defiled us, how can God take pleasure in us ? The love of good-will may fall upon sinful unworthy creatures, but the love of complacency cannot fall upon these. A fit object the sinner is not, and exactly perfect none can be ; there is therefore a middle person, the upright and sincere man ; and this delight of God passetli from the person to his actions : ' The prayer of the upright is his de- light/ Prov. XV. 8. Alas ! our prayers are, as our persons, poor slender things at the best; yet a little findeth acceptance with God ; it is welcome for the person's sake, who is accepted in Christ. Now, how will God manifest this delight ? In his providence : 2 Chron. xvi. 9, ' The eyes of the Lord run to and fro, that he may show himself strong in the behalf of those whose hearts are upright with him.' He looks up and down in the world to find out such persons to do them good, that he may employ all liis power and grace for them : so God shows it in his word. God's work is to assure them of a blessing : Micah ii. 7, ' Do not my words do good to them that walk uprightly ? ' There he comforts, and strengthens, and revives their hearts. He doth not only speak good, but doth good to them that walk uprightly. Nay, that is not all, but by his Spirit and internal grace he doth more en- courage them, and renew strength upon them in their way to heaven : Prov. X. 29, ' The way of the Lord is strength to the upright.' The more they walk with God, the more easy and sweet they find it so to do. So that if all these promises will encourage us, we had need to look after this sound heart. What honour and esteem soever others purchase with men, these obtain favour with the Lord, and are more regarded in all his dispensations.
2. Let us come to the evil it freeth us from ; in the argument of the text, ' That I may not be ashamed.' They whose hearts are not sound with God, one time or other they shall be put to shame ; but others shall be kept from this effect, which is so grievous to nature. Let me open this. A man may be ashamed either before God or men, our- selves or others.