[2.] The fresh, taste they have had of spiritual things keeps up such a savour and relish of them in their souls, as that worldly con- tentments, whereby men are drawn off from close walking with God,
DECAY IN GRACE FROM THE PREVALENCE OF SIN. 291
are rendered sapless and undesirable unto them. Having tasted of the wine of the gospel^ they desire no other, for they say, " This is best." So was it with the apostles, upon that option offered them as to a departure from Christ, upon the apostasy of many false pro- fessors: "Will ye also go away?" John vi. 67. They answer by Peter, " Lord, to whom shall we go? thou hast the words of eternal life," verse 68. They had such a fresh savour and relish of the doc- trine of the gospel and the grace of Christ upon their souls, that they can entertain no thoughts of declining from it. As a man that hath been long kept in a dungeon, if brought forth on a sudden into the light of the sun, finds so much pleasure and contentment in it, in the beauties of the old creation, that he thinks he can never be weary of it, nor shall ever be contented on any account to be under darkness again ; so is it with souls when first translated into the mar- vellous light of Christ, to behold the beauties of the new creation. They see a new glory in him, that hath quite sullied the desirableness of all earthly diversions. And they see a new guilt and filth in sin, that gives them an utter abhorrency of its old delights and pleasures; and so of other things.
Now, whilst these and the like springs are kept open m the souls of converted sinners, they constrain them to a vigorous, active holi- ness. They can never do enough for God; so that oftentimes their zeal as saints suffers them not to escape without some blots on their prudence as men, as might be instanced in many of the martyrs of old.
This, then, is the first, at least one way whereby indwelling sin prepares men for decays and declensions in grace and obedience, — it endeavours to stop or taint these springs. And there are several ways whereby it brings this to pass: —
1st. It works by sloth and negligence. It prevails in the soul to a neglect of stirring up continual thoughts of or about the things tliat so powerfully influence it unto strict and fruitful obedience. If care be not taken, if diligence and watchfulness be not used, and all means that are appointed of God to keep a quick and living sense of them upon the soul, they will dry up and decay; and, consequently, that obedience that should spring from them will do so also. Isaac digged wells, but the Philistines stopped them, and his flocks had no benefit by them. Let the heart never so little disuse itself to gra- cious, soul-affecting thoughts of the love of God, the cross of Christ, the greatness and excellency of gospel mercy, the beauties of holiness, they will quickly be as much estranged to a man as he can be to them. He that shuts his eyes for a season in the sun, when he opens them again can see nothing at all. And so much as a man loseth of faith towards these things, so much will they lose of power towards him. They can do little or nothing upon him because of his unbe-
292 THE NATURE AND POWER OF INDWELLING SIN.
lief, which formerly were so exceedingly effectual towards him. So was it with the spouse in the Canticles, chap. v. 2 ; Christ calls unto her, verse 1, with a marvellous loving and gracious invitation unto communion with himself She who had formerly been ravished at the first hearing of that joyful sound, being now under the power of sloth and carnal ease, returns a sorry excusing answer to his call, which ended in her own signal loss and sorrow. IndwelHng sin, I say, pre- vailing by spiritual sloth ujDon the souls of men unto an inadvertency of the motions of God's Spirit in their former apprehensions of divine love, and a negligence of stirring up continual thoughts of faith about it, a decay gTows insensibly upon the whole soul. Thus God oft com- plains that his people had " forgotten him;" that is, grew unmindful of his love and grace, — which was the beginning of their apostasy.
'2dly. By uvframinr/ the soul, so that it shall have formal, weaiy, powerless thoughts of those things which should prevail with it unto diligence in thankful obedience. The apostle cautions us that in dealing with God we should use reverence and godly fear, be- cause of his purity, holiness, and majesty, Heb. xii. 28, 29. And this is that which the Lord himself spake in the destruction of Nadab and Abihu, " I will be sanctified in them that come nigh me," Lev. x. 8. He will be dealt withal in an a-svful, holy, reve- rent manner. So are we to deal with all the things of God wherein or whereby we have communion with him. The soul is to have a gi-eat reverence of God in them. When men begin to take them into slight or common thoughts, not using and improving them unto the utmost for the ends whereunto they are appointed, they lose all their beauty, and glory, and power towards them. When we have any thing to do wherein faith or love towards God is to be exercised, we must do it with all our hearts, with all our minds, strength, and souls ; not slightly and perfunctorily, which God abhors. He doth not only require that we bear his love and grace in remembrance, but that, as much as in us lieth, we do it according to the worth and ex- cellency of them. It was the sin of Hezekiah that he " rendered not aofain accordinsr to the benefits done to him," 2 Chron. xxxii. 25. So, whilst we consider gospel truths, the uttermost endeavour of the soul ought to be, that we maybe " changed into the same image" or likeness, 2 Cor. iii. 18 ; that is, that they may have their full power and effect upon us. Otherwise, James tells us what our " beholding the glory of the Lord in a glass," there mentioned by the apostle, — that is, reading or hearing the mind of God in Christ revealed in the gospel, — comes unto: chap. i. 23, 24, "It is but like unto a man beholding his natural face in a glass: for he beholdeth himself, and goeth away, and straightway forgetteth what manner of man he was." It makes no impression upon him, begets no idea or image of hi.s