1. Have you, in the way of your profession, had any experience of these spiritual decays ? I doubt not but that there are some who have been preserved green and flourishing from their first conversion unto God, who never fell under the power of sloth, neglect, or tempta- tion, at least not for any remarkable season ; but they are but few. It was not so with scarce any of those believers under the Old Tes- tament whose lives and walkings are recorded for our instruction ; and they must be such as lived in an exact and diligent course of mortification. And some there are who have obtained relief and deliverance from under their decays, — whose backslidings have been healed, and their diseases cured. So it was with David, as he divinely expresseth it, Ps. ciii. 1,3-5, "Bless the Lord, O my soul; and all that is within me, bless his holy name. Who forgiveth all thine iniquities ; who healeth all thy diseases : who redeemeth thy life from destruc- tion; who crowneth thee with loving-kindness and tender mercies: who satisfieth thy mouth with good things, so that thy youth is re- newed like the eagle's." So doth he celebrate his deliverance from that state whereof he complains, Ps. xxxviii., — which we mentioned before. And there is no grace or mercy that doth more affect the hearts of believers, that gives them a greater transport of joy and thankfulness, than this of deliverance from backslidings. It is a bring- ing of the soul out of prison, which enlargeth it unto praise, Ps. cxlii. 7. Of this sort I doubt not but that there are many; for God hath given great warnings of the danger of a spiritually-decaying state ; and he hath made great promises of recovery from it ; and multitudes in the church are daily exercised herein. But I speak in general unto all. Have you any experience of such spiritual decays, either in the frame of your spirits or in the manner of your walking before God ; or, at least, that you are prone unto them, if not mightily pre- served by the power of grace in your own utmost dihgence ? If you have not so, then I fear it is from one of these two causes : —
446 HOW TO EECOVER FROM SPIRITUAL DECAY,
(1.) That, indeed, you have never had any flourishing spiritual state in your souls. He that hath been always weak and sickly doth not know what it is to want a state of health and strength, because he never had exj)erience of it ; much less doth he that is dead know what it is to want life. But he that from an exquisite temper of health falls into languishing distempers, knows distinctly both how it was and how it is with him. And the frame of the minds of many professors of religion, with the manner of their walking, is such, as that, if they are not sensible of spiritual decays, it is evident that they never had any good spiritual health ; and it is to no purpose to treat with such persons about a recovery. There are, amongst those who make an outward profession of true religion, many that live in all sorts of sins. If you should deal with them about backslidings, decays, and a re- covery, you will seem unto them as Lot did to his sons-in-law, when he told them of the destruction of Sodom, — as one that mocked, or made sport with them, Gen. xix. 14; or you will be mocked by them for your pains. They have been always such as they are; it was never otherwise with them ; and it is a ridiculous thing to speak to them of a recovery. We must be able in this case to say to men, " Remember whence you are fallen, and repent, and do the first works," Rev. ii. 5. They must have had an experience of a better state, or they will not endeavour a recovery from that wherein they are. Such, therefore, as see neither evil nor danger in their present condition, but suppose all is well enough with them, because it is as good as ever it was, will not easily be brought under this conviction ; but they have that which is of no less importance for them to in- quire into, — namely, whether they have had any thing of the truth of grace or no. Or, —
(2.) If you have not this experience, it is to be feared that you are asleep in security, — which is hardly distinguishable from death in sin. The church of Laodicea was sensibly decayed, and gone off from its primitive faith and obedience ; yet she was so secure in her condition, knew so little of it, that she judged herself, on the contraiy, to be in a thriving, flourishing state. She thought herself increased in all church riches and goods, — that is, gifts and grace, — while " she was "wretched, and miserable, and poor, and blind, and naked," Rev. iii 1 7 ; in such a state as Vv^herein it is questionable whether she had any thing of the life and power of grace to be found in her or no. And so is it with many churches at this day, especially that which boasts itself to be without error or blame. And it is strange that a church should suppose that it flourisheth in grace and gifts, when it hath no- thing but a noise of words in their stead.