When the soul can without hypocrisy say. My God, it engageth us to universal and unlimited obedience. We shall be ambitious of doing that
* Dicat anima, secura dicat, Deiis meus es tu, qui dicit animro nostras : Salus tua ego sum. — Auffljustiiie] in Ps. cxxxii.
THE soul's conflict. 269
which may be acceptable and well pleasing to him ; and, therefore, this is prefixed as a ground before the commandments, enforcing obedience. ' I am the Lord thy God,' therefore ' thou shalt have no other gods before me,' Exod. XX. 3, whomsoever else we obey, it must be in the Lord, because we see a beam of God's authority in them ; and it is no prejudice to any infe- rior authority, to prefer God's authority before it, in case of dift'erence one fi'om the other. Nem'mijit injuria cid j)raponitur Deus.
When we know we are a peculiar people, we cannot but be ' zealous of good ivorks,' Tit. ii. 14. ' If I be a Father, where is mine honour ? ' Mai. i. 6. Special relations are special enforcements to duty.
4. The Spii-it of God, which knows the deep things of God and the depths of our hearts, doth reveal this mutual interest betwixt God and those that are his, it being a principal work of the Sphit to seal this unto the soul, by discovei'ing such a clear and particular light in the use of means, as swayeth the soul to yield up itself wholly to God. When we truly tinist, we may say with St Paul, ' I know whom I have trusted,' 2 Tim. i. 12 ; he knew both that he trusted, and whom he trusted. The Spuit of God, that reveals God to be ours, and stirs up faith in him, both reveals this trust to our souls, and the interest we have in God thereby. ' The Lord is my portion, saith my soul,' Lam. iii. 24 ; but God said so to it fii'st. If instinct of nature teaches dams to know their young ones, and their young ones them, in the midst of those that are alike, shall not the Spirit of God much more teach the soul to know its own father ? As none knows what is in man, but the spuit of man, so none knows what love God bears to those that are his, but the Spuit of God iu his. All the hght in the world cannot discover the sun unto us, only it discovers itself by its own beams. So all the angels and saints in heaven cannot discover to our souls the love that is in the breast of God towards us, but only the Spirit of God, which ' sheds it into our hearts,' Rom. v. 5. The Spuit only teaches this language, My God. It is infused only into sanctified hearts ; and, therefore, ofttimes mean men enjoy it, when great, wise, and learned persons are strangers to it. Mat. si. 25.
5. The Spirit when it witnesseth this to us is called ' the Spuit of adop- tion,' Rom. ■siii. 15, and hath aiwaj's accompanying of it a spiiit of supph- cation, whereby with a familiar, yet reverend * boldness, we lay open our hearts to God as a dear father. All others are strangers to this heavenly intercourse. In straits they run to their friends and carnal shifts, whereas an heir of heaven runs to his Father, and tells him of all.
6. Those that are God's, are known to be his by special love-tokens that he bestows upon them, as,
(1.) The special graces of his Spirit. Princes' childi'en are known by their costly jewels, and rich ornaments. It is not common gifts, and glo- rious parts that set a character upon us to be God's, but gi-ace to use those gifts, in humility and love, to the glory of the giver.
(2.) There is in them a suitableness and connaturalness of heart to all that is spiritual, to whatsover hath God's stamp upon it, as his truth and his children, and that because they are his. By this likeness of disposition, we are fashioned to a communion with him. Can two walk together and not be agreed ? It is a certain evidence that we are God's in Christ, if the Spirit of God hath wTought in us any impression like unto Chiist, who is the image of his Father. Both Christ looking upon us, and our looking upon Christ by faith, as ours, hath a transforming and conforming power.
(8.) Spiritual comforts in distress, such as the world can neither give, * That is. ' reverent.' — En.
270 THE soul's conflict.
nor take away, shew that God looks upon the souls of his with another eye, than he beholdeth others. He sends a secret messenger that reports his peculiar love to their hearts. He knows their souls, and feeds them with his ' hidden manna,' Rev. ii. 17. The inward peace they feel is not in free- dom from trouble, but in freeness with God in the midst of trouble.
(4.) Seasonable and sanctified corrections, whereby we are kept from being led away by the error of the wicked, shew God's fatherly care over us as his. Who Avill trouble himself in correcting another man's child ? yet we oftener complain of the smart we feel, than think of the tender heart and hand that smites us, until our spirits be subdued ; and then we reap the quiet fruit of righteousness. Where crosses work together for the best, we may know that we love God, Eom. viii. 28, and are loved of him. Thriv- ing in a sinful course is a black mark of one that is not God's.