And thus we return to God by cleaving to him, from whom we fell by distrust, hving under a new covenant merely of grace, Jer. xxxi. 3, and no grace fitter than that which gives all to Christ. Considering the fountain of all our good is, out of ourselves, in him, it being safest for us, who were so ill husbands at the first, that it should be so, therefore it is fit we should have use of such a grace that will carry us out of ourselves to the spiiug head.
The way, then, whereby faith quieteth the soul, is by raising it above all
214 THE SOUL'a CONFLICT.
discontentments and storms here below, and pitching it upon God, thereby uniting it to him, whence it draws virtue to oppose and bring under what- soever troubles its peace. For the soul is made for God, and never finds rest till it returns to him again (h). When God and the soul meet, there will follow contentment. God simply considered, is not all our happiness, but God as trusted in ; and Christ as we are made one with him. The soul cannot so much as ' touch the hem of Christ's garment,' but it shall find ' virtue coming from him,' Mat. ix. 20, to sanctify and settle it. God in Christ is fuU of all that is good. When the soul is emptied, enlarged, and opened by faith to receive goodness oliered, there must needs follow sweet satisfaction.
§ II. 1. For the better strengthening of our tnist, it is not sufficient that we trust in God and his truth revealed, but we must do it by light and strength from him. Many believe in the truth by human arguments, but no arguments will convince the soul but such as are fetched from the in- ward nature, and powerful work of truth itself. No man can know God, but by God ; none can know the sun, but by its own light ; none can know the truth of God, so as to build upon it, but by the truth itself and the Spirit revealing it by its own light to the soul. That soul which hath felt the power of truth in casting it down, and raising it up again, will easily be brought to rest upon it. It is neither education, nor the authority of others that profess the same truth, or that we have been so taught by men of great parts, &c., will settle the heart, until we find an inward power and autho- rity in the truth itself shining in oui* hearts by its own beams. Hence comes unsettledness in time of troubles, because we have not a spuitual discerning of spiritual things. Supernatural truths must have a superna- tural power to apprehend them, therefore God createth a spiritual eye and hand of the soul, which is faith. In those that are truly converted, all saving truths are transcribed out of the Scripture into their hearts, ' they are taught of God,' Isa. liv. 13, so as they find all truths, both concerning the sinlul estate and the gracious and happy estate of man in themselves. They carry a divinity in them and about them, so as from a saving feeling they can speak of conversion, of sin, of grace, and the comforts of the Spirit, &c., and from this acquaintance are ready to yield and give up them- selves to truth revealed, and to God speaking by it.
2. Trust is never sound but upon a spiritual conviction of the truth and goodness we rely upon, for the efiecting of which the Spirit of God must likewise subdue the rebellion and malice of our will, that so it may be suitable and level to divine things, and relish them as they are. We must apprehend the love of God, and the fruits of it, as better than life itself, and then choosing and cleaving to the same will soon follow ; for as there is a fitness in divine truths to all the necessities of the soul, so the soul must be fitted by them to savom- and apply them to itself ; and then from an hamiony between the soul and that which it applies itself unto there will follow, not only peace in the soul, but joy and delight sui-passing any contentment in the world besides.
8. As there is in God to satisfy the whole soul, so trust carries the ivhoh sold to God. This makes trust not so easy a matter, because there must be an exercise of every foculty of the soul, or else our trust is imperfect and lame. There must be a knowledge of him whom we trust, and why we trust, an affiance and love, &c. Only they that know God will trust in him ; not that knowledge alone is sufficient, but because the sweetness of
THE soul's conflict. 215
God's love is let into tlie soul thereby, wliicti draweth the whole soul to him. We are bidden to trust perfectly in God ; therefore, seeing we have a God so full of perfection to trust in, we should labour to trust perfectly Ib him,
4. And it is good for the exercise of trust to put cases to ourselves of things that probably may fall out, and then retui'n to our souls to search what strength we have if such things should come to pass. Thus Da^•id puts cases. Perfect faith dares put the hardest cases to its soul, and then set God against aU that may befaU it, Ps. iii. 6 ; xlvi. 3 ; xxvii. 3.