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534 OF THE ACTS AND DUTIES OF HOLINESS. [BOOK IV.
Rom. viii. 4, " Walk not after the flesh, but after the Spirit." To walk after the flesh is to have the principle of indwelling sin acting itself in us unto the production and perjaetration of actual sins. Wherefore, to walk after the Spirit is to have the Spirit acting in us, to the effecting of all gracious acts and duties. And this is given unto us in command, that we neglect not his motions in us, but comply with them in a way of diligence and duty: see verses 14, 15. So are we enjoined to attend unto particular duties through " the Holy Ghost which dwelleth in us," 2 Tim. i. 1 4 ; that is, through his assist- ance^ without which we can do nothing.
2dly. As we are said to be led and acted by him, so he is declared to be the autlior of all gracious actings in us: Gal. v. 22, 23, "The fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, long-suffering, gentleness, good- ness, faith, meekness, temperance." All these things are wrought and brought forth in us by the Spirit, for they are his fruits. And not only the habit of them, but all their actings, in all their exercise, are from him. Every act of faith is faith, and every act of love is love, and consequently no act of them is of ourselves, but every one of them is a fruit of the Spirit of God. So in another place he adds a universal affirmative, comprehending all instances of particular graces and their exercise : Eph. v. 9, " The fruit of the Spirit is in all goodness and righteousness and truth." Unto these three heads all actings of grace, all duties of obedience, all parts of holiness, may be reduced. And it is through the supplies of the Spirit that he trusteth for a good issue of his obedience, Phil. i. 19. So is it ex- pressly in the promise of the covenant, Ezek. xxxvi. 27, " I will put my Spirit within you, and cause you to walk in my statutes, and ye shall keep my judgments, and do them." This is the whole that God requireth of us, and it is all wrought in us by his Spirit. So also, chap. xi. 19, 20; Jer. xxxii. 39, 40. All the obedience and holiness that God requires of us in the covenant, all duties and act- ings of grace, are promised to be wrought in us by the Spirit, after we are assured that of ourselves we can do nothing.
odly. Particular graces and their exercise are assigned unto his acting and working in us: Gal. v. 5, "We through the Spirit wait for the hope of righteousness by faith." The hope of the righteousness of faith is the thing hoped for thereby. All that we look for or ex- pect in this world or hereafter is by the righteousness of faith. Our quiet waiting for this is an especial gospel grace and duty. This we do not of ourselves, but " through the Spirit:" We "worship God in the Spirit," Phil. iii. 3 ; love the brethren " in the Spirit," Col. i. 8 ; we " purify our souls in obeying the truth through the Spirit unto unfeigned love of the brethren," 1 Pet. i. 22. See Eph. i. 17; Acts ix. 31; Rom. v. 5, viii. 15, 23, 26; 1 Thess. i. 6; Rom. xiv. 17,
CHAP. VILJ OF THE ACTS AND DUTIES OF HOLINESS. 535
XV. 13, 16. Of faith it is said expressly that it is "not of ourselves; it is the gift of God," Eph. ii. 8.
[3.] There are testimonies that are express unto the j^osition as before laid down: Phil. ii. 13, " It is God who worketli in you both to will and to do of his good pleasure." The things thus wrought are all things that appertain unto our obedience and salvation, as is evident from the connection of the words with verse 12, " Work out your salvation with fear and trembling." Hereunto two things are required: — Is^. Power for such operations, or for all the duties of holiness and obedience that are required of us. That this we are endued withal, that this is wrought in us, bestowed upon us, by the Holy Ghost, hath been before abundantly confirmed. But when this is done for us, is there aught else yet remaining to be done? Yea, 2dly. There is the actual exercise of the grace we have received. How may this be exercised ? All the whole work of grace consists in the internal acts of our wills, and external operations in duties suitable thereunto. This, therefore, is incumbent on us, this we are to look unto in ourselves, it is our duty so to do, — namely, to stir up and exercise the grace Ave have received in and unto its proper operations. But it is so our duty as that of ourselves we cannot perform it. It is God who worketh effectually in us all those gracious acts of our wills, and all holy operations in a way of duty. Every act of our wills, so far as it is gracious and holy, is the act of the Spirit of God efH- ciently ; he " worketh in us to will," or the very act of willing. To say he doth only persuade us, or excite and stir up our wills by his grace, to put forth their own acts, is to say he doth not do what the apostle affirms him to do ; for if the gracious actings of our wills be so our own as not to be his, he doth not work in us to will, but only persuadeth us so to do. But the same apostle utterly excludeth this pretence: 1 Cor. xv. 10, "I laboured abundantly; yet not I, but the grace of God which was with me." He had a necessity incumbent on him of declaring the great labour he had undergone, and the pains he had taken in "preaching of the gospel;" but yet immedi- • ately, lest any one should apprehend that he ascribed any thing to himself, any gTacious, holy actings in those labours, he adds his usual epanorthosis, "Not I;" — "Let me not be mistaken; it was not I, by any power of mine, by any thing in me, but it was all wrought in me by the free grace of the Spirit of God." " Not I, but grace," is the apostle's assertion. Suppose now that God by his grace doth no more but aid, assist, and excite the will in its actings, that he doth not effectually work all the gracious actings of our souls in all our duties, the proposition would hold on the other hand, " Not grace, but I," seeing the principal relation of the effect is unto the next and immediate cause, and thence hath it its denomination. And as