For God reserves not all for heaven. God gives his children some taste and feeling, some little joy and comfort, the 'first-fruits of the Spirit' here, Eom. viii. 23. So they were persuaded from the authority of the speaker, and some sense and feeling of the thing in some measure.
Now, this persuasion hath its degrees.
There is a, full persuasion.
And there is a persuasion that is not so full, that is growinw to further persuasion still.
And this persuasion hath degrees, both in the general persuasion of the truths themselves, and in their particular interest ; for all Christians are not alike persuaded of divine truths themselves, nor all Christians are not alike persuaded of their particular interest in those truths. There be degrees in both respects.
1. For the things themselves, we may grow stronger and stronger per- suaded ; even as the light and our eye grows clearer the stronger is our sight, so our persuasion while we are here may grow stronger and stronger. It was strong in Abraham ; yet not so uniformly strong, but that it was weaker some times than others, as we see in the story.
2. And so for jmrticular persuasion. The Spirit of God may give assur- ance that may be shaken; ay, but he recovers himself presently. The tenor of a Christian's life is usually a state of sight and persuasion, when he is himself and when he remembers his own principles.
To come particularly, you see here that Spiritual persuasion is necessary.
Both of the things in general, and of our interest in them. * That is, ' conceives ' — G.
430 FAITH TRIUMPHANT.
Quest. It may be asked, whether there may be a persuasion of the truth in general, without a persuasion of our own particular interest in them ?
Ans. I answer. No ; not a sound, undoubted, spiritual persuasion. There is a double conviction, a conviction when a man cannot_ tell what to say against it; but spiritual conviction is when a man is convinced of the truth "and goodness of the thing, and this always draws the other with it, first or last. A man may be convinced that he cannot tell what to say acrainst the truth, but that is not properly persuasion. A man is per- suaded by divine truth that all the promises are true in the gospel, and^ it draws with it a particular light; he sees, and is persuaded, of his own in- terest in it, first or last. For a strong persuasion of divine truth, of God's word, when I know it is God's word, it works in my flesh, it changcth me, it lifts me up, it casts me down, &c. So that a Christian knows that the word of God is the word of God by a spiritual persuasion, wrought by the efficacy of the word, from an intrinsecal principle in the word itself.
But sometimes it falls out that a Christian may be convinced of the truth of the word in general that it is God's word, and that the promises of salvation are true, and yet notwithstanding he may not feel the parti- cular persuasion of the forgiveness of his sins, and of his acceptation to life everlasting, and his interest in Christ. These two are sometimes separable in regard of feeling. A Christian hath alway a persuasion of the truth of God, of the things, but he hath not alway a like persuasion of bis own interest in them.
Quest. How do you prove that these are severed sometimes ? Ans. Thus: there is the birth and infancy of a Christian. When a Christian is in his birth, he is not persuaded of his own good estate, as he is after when he is grown. Then he knows his estate. A soul that is in the state of grace, that hungers and thirsts after good things, at that time it may be it is not acquainted that it shall be satisfied ; it is not acquainted of its own interest, but stretcheth itself forward for entire satisfaction, and it shall be satisfied ; that is, the soul that hungers and thirsts after the persuasion of God's love in Christ, and the forgiveness of sins, and life everlasting, there is never soul that thus hungers and thirsts, but God satisfies it at length ; for the most part in this world, or else certainly in the world to come for ever. But alway where there is this persuasion supernatural, that the word of God is true indeed, that there is salvation to all true believers, when it is wrought by the Spirit, there is either a persuasion of our interest, or somewhat tending to persuasion, some hun- gering and thirsting, some desire that God accepts for the deed, to shew that such a man is in the state of grace.
I speak this the rather, because some are deceived in their own estates. They do not conceive aright of themselves. They think they are not in the state of grace, when they find not that particular, strong, assured per- suasion.
I answer, they may be in the state of grace notwithstanding. A Christian knows not his own estate alway, at all times. It is one gi'ace to be in a good estate, and another to have the knowledge of it. They be difierent gifts of God, and God suspends the knowledge of a man's being in a good estate for several ends.