To this purpose is the advice of the apostle, Eph. v. 18, 19, “ Be not drunk with wine, wherein is excess; but be filled with the Spirit; speaking to yourselves in psalms and hymns and spiritual songs.” When men are drunk with wine unto an excess, they make it quickly evident what vain, foolish, ridiculous imaginations it filleth their minds withal. In opposition hereunto the apostle adviseth believers to be “ filled with the Spirit,’—to labour for such a partici- pation of him as may fill their minds and hearts, as others fill them- selves with wine. To what end, unto what purpose, should they desire such a participation of him, to be so filled with him? It is unto this end, namely, that he by his grace may fill them with holy, spiritual thoughts, as, on the contrary, men drunk unto an excess are filled with those that are foolish, vain, and wicked. So the words of verse 19 do declare; for he adviseth us to express our abounding thoughts in such duties as will give an especial vent unto them.
Wherefore, when we are spiritually minded, we shall abound in spiritual thoughts, or thoughts of spiritual things. That we have such thoughts will not sufficiently evidence that we are so, unless we abound in them. And this leads us unto the principal inquiry on
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this head, namely, what measure we ought to assign hereof, how we may know when we abound in spiritual thoughts, so as that they may be an evidence of our being spiritually minded.
I answer, in general, among other Scriptures read over Ps. cxix, with understanding. Consider therein what David expresseth of himself, as unto his constant delight in and continual thoughts of the law of God; which was the only means of divine revelation at that season. Try yourselves by that pattern; examine yourselves whether you can truly speak the same words with him, at least if not in the same degree of zeal, yet with the same sincerity of grace. You will say, “ That was David. It is not for us, it is not our duty, to be like unto him, at least not to be equal with him.” But as far as I know, we must be like him, if ever we intend to come to the place where he is. It will ruin our souls, if, when we read in the Scrip- ture how the saints of God express their experience in faith, love, delight in God, and constant meditation on him, we grant that it was so with them, that they were good and holy men, but it is not necessary that it should be so with us. These things are not written in the Scripture to show what they were, but what we ought to be. All things concerning them were “written for our admonition,” 1 Cor. x. 11. And if we have not the same delight in God as they had, the same spiritual mindedness in thoughts and meditations of heavenly things, we can have no evidence that we please God as they did, or shall go to that place whither they are gone. Profession of the life of God passeth with many at a very low and easy rate. Their thoughts are for the most part vain and earthly, their communica- tion unsavoury, and sometimes corrupt, their lives at best uneven and uncertain as unto the rule of obedience; yet all is well, all is life and peace! The holy men of old, who obtained this testimony, that they pleased God, did not so walk before him. They meditated con- _ tinually on the law; thought of God in the night seasons; spake of his ways, his works, his praise; their whole delight was in him, and in all things they “ followed hard after him.” It is the example of David in particular that I have proposed; and it is a promise of the grace to be administered by the gospel, that “he that is feeble shall be as David,” Zech. xii. 8, and if we are not so in his being spiritually minded, it is to be feared we are not partakers of the pro- mise. But that we may the better judge of ourselves therein, I shall add some few rules unto this direction by [way of] example:—
1. Consider what proportion your thoughts of spiritual things bear unto those about other things. Our principal interest and con- cern, as we profess, lies in things spiritual, heavenly, and eternal. Is it not, then, a foolish thing to suppose that our thoughts about these things should not hold some proportion with those about other
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things, nay, that they should not exceed them? No man is so vain, in earthly things, as to pretend that his principal concern lieth in that whereof he thinks very seldom in comparison of other things. It is not so with men in reference unto their families, their trades, their occasions of life. It is a truth not only consecrated by the testimony of him who is Truth, but evident also in the light of reason, that “where our treasure is, there will our hearts be also;” and the affections of our hearts do act themselves by the thoughts of our minds. Wherefore, if our principal treasure be, as we profess, in things spiritual and heavenly, (and woe unto us if it be not so!) on them will our affections, and consequently our desires and thoughts, be principally fixed.