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more you will see the worth of them : Luke vi. 23, ' Rejoice and leap for joy, for great is your reward in heaven.' And of the eunuch, when he had sealed covenant with God, Acts viii. 39, it is said, ' he went his way rejoicing/ Faith cannot do its office, that is, out of an holy gratitude to God, to draw us off from the allurements of sense, and fortify us against adversities and troubles, and engage us to the duties' of Christianity, which are distrustful to flesh and Llood, unless it did fill our hearts with an higher and better joy than the world yieldetb. Surely it is comfortable to be jiardoned and reconciled to God, to be in the way, and under the hopes of eternal life.
Thirdly, The effects which these acts produce. These may be stated by the several uses for which the word of God serveth. (1.) It is the seed of a new life ; (2.) The constant rule of all our actions ; (3.) The sure charter of our hopes ; (4.) Our strength and preservation against all temptations from the devil, the world, and the flesh ; (5.) Our comfort and cordial in all afflictions.
1. It is the seed of a new life : 1 Peter i. 23, ' Being born again, not of corruptible seed, but of incorruptible, by the word of God, Avhich liveth and abideth for ever ; ' and James i. 18. ' Of his own will begat he us, with the word of truth, that we should be a kind of first-fruits of his creatures ; ' and also, 2 Peter i. 4, ' AVhereby are given unto us exceeding great and precious promises, that by these you might be partakers of the divine nature.' When we so believe the pardon, and grace, and blessedness offered, that our hearts are changed into the life and likeness of God ; for the truth is not rightly owned and believed till this change be wrought both in heart and life, then we are cast into the mould of this doctrine : Rom. vi. 17, ' Te have obeyed from the heart that form of doctrine that was delivered to you.' Gospel truths serve not for speculation or mere talk and discourse, but for sanctification ; and therefore if this seed be sown and engrafted in your hearts, and you begin to live to God an holy and heavenly life, you have the surest evidence of your faith ; for causes are made sen- sible to us by their effects. It is usually brought as a proof of the word, the sanctifying virtue of it ; so it is of the sincerity of your faith, for the word profiteth not unless it be mingled with faith ; and since both faith and the word concur to this effect, it may be ascribed to either. Surely therefore if we believe the word of God, and value it as we ought, it doth leave the impression of God's image upon us, for it is the fairest draught and representation of God that ever was in the law and life of Christ, 2 Coi'. iii. 18. If our souls and lives be a transcript of the word, this image is thence deduced to us by the Spirit, and of necessity it must be so, for Christ's comforting promises of mercy and glory are made to these new creatures who live the holy and heavenly life. They have God's mark and signature upon them, and therefore are said to be ' sealed to the day of redemption,' Eph. ii. 30, and Eph. i. 3. This renovation of the soul is the seal of God, the pledge of his love, and the earnest of the heavenly inheritance.
2. The constant rule of all our actions. There is a fixed determined rule from whence we cannot swerve and vary without sin, and if we would have communion with God here or enjoy him hereafter. We must keep close to this rule : Gal. vi. 16, ' As many as walk according
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to this rule, peace be on them, and mercy, and upon the Israel of God.' This rule, that is the word of God, which directeth us as to our genei'al path and way, and all our steps or particular actions : Ps. cxix. 105, ' Thy word is a lamp unto my feet and a light unto my paths.' We must hide the word in our hearts : Ps. cxix. lIO, ' Thy -\vord have I hid in my heart, that I might not sin against thee.' We nuist con- sult with it upon all occasions, as willing to understand our duty : Ps. cxix. 24, ' Thy testimonies also are my delight, and my counsellors.' And because we may mistake through error of mind, or be tempted aside through aversion of heart and manifold temptations, therefore we must earnestly beg it of God : Ps. cxix. 133, ' Order my steps in thy word, and let not any iniquity have dominion over me.' And we must nse all study ourselves, Kom. xii. 2, and constant watchfulness : Eph. V. 15, ' See then that ye walk circumspectly, not as fools, but as wise.' Now that which I say is this : When the word ruleth the main course of our lives, and teacheth us how to live in the world, soberly, righteously, and godly, the tenderness of the word, and high respect to it, that we dare not transgress it whatever temptations we have so to do, showeth that faith hath obtained its effect in us ; for trembling at the word, fearing of a commandment, and whatever of that kind is spoken of in the scripture, they are all fruits of faith.