are too feldom in our closets, too little upon our knees; and when we are there, we gain but little; we come not off such gainers by duty as we might. O Chriftians! think when you are hearing and praying, I am now trading with heaven for that which is infinitely better than gold. God is rich to all that call upon him: What a treasure may I get this hour, if the fault be not in mine own heart? And thus of the fecond obfervation.

CHAP. IV.

Wherein the third doctrine, being the main fubject of this treatife, is opened, and the method of the whole difcourfe ftated.

DOCT. III.

That only is to be accounted true grace, which is able to endure all thofe trials appointed or permitted for the difcovery of it.

TH

SECT. I.

HE moft wife God hath feen it fit to fet all his people in a state of trial in this world. Firft, he tries, and then he crowns them; James i. 12. "Bleffed is the man that endureth temptation, " πειρασμόν, i. e. [probation or trial;] for when he is tried, he shall "receive the crown of life," &c.

No man can fay what he is; whether his graces be true or falfe, till they be tried and examined by thofe things which are to them as fire is to gold. Thefe felf-deceivers in the text, thought they had grace; yea, they thought they had been rich in grace; but it proved no better than drofs: And therefore Chrift here counfels them to buy of him gold tried in the fire; i. e. true grace indeed, which appears to be fo upon the various proofs and examinations of its fincerity, which are to be made in this world, as well as in the great folemn trial it must come to in the world to come.

The fcripture fpeaks of a twofold trial, viz.

A trial of mens

Opinions,

and Graces.

1. First, The opinions and judgments of men are tried as by fire; in which fenfe we are to understand that place, 1 Cor. iii. 12, 13. "Now if any man build upon this foundation, gold, filver, pre"cious stones, wood, hay, stubble, every man's work fhall be made "manifeft; for the day fhall declare it, because it fhall be revealed "by fire, and the fire fhall try every man's work, of what fort it is." This text fpeaks of fuch perfons as held the foundation of Chriftianity, but yet fuperstructed fuch doctrines and practices, as were no more able to endure the trial, than hay, wood, or ftubble, can

endure the fire. Such a perfon hereby brings himself to danger: and though the apoftle will not deny the poffibility, yet he afferts the difficulty of his falvation; "He fhall be faved, yet fo as by fire t;" i. e. as a man is faved by leaping out of his houfe at midnight, when it is all on fire about his ears; for fo that phrafe imports, Amos iv. 11. and Jude 23. Glad to escape naked, and with the lofs of his goods; bleffing God he hath his life for a prey: As little regard fhail fuch have to their erroneous-notions and unfcriptural opinions at laft.

2. Secondly, The graces of men are brought to the teft, as well as their opinions. Trial will be made of their hearts, as well as of their heads; and upon this trial the everlasting fafety and happiness of the perfon depends. If a man's opinions be fome of them found hay or ftubble, yet fo long as he holds the head, and is right in the foundation, he may be faved; but if a man's fuppofed graces be found fo, all the world cannot fave him: There is no way of escape, if he finally deceive himself herein. And of this trial of graces my text fpeaks: Sincere grace is gold tried by fire.

There is a twofold trial of grace; active and paffive.

First, An active trial of it, in which we try it ourselves, 2 Cor. xiii. 5. "Examine yourfelves; prove yourfelves;" i. e. measure your hearts, duties and graces, by the rule of the word; fee how they aniwer to that rule: Bring your hearts and the word together by folemn felf-examination; confer with your reins, and commune with your own hearts.

Secondly, A paffive trial of it: whether we try it or no, God will try it, he will bring our gold to the touchftone, and to the fire. "Thou, O Lord, knoweft me; thou haft feen me, and tried mine heart towards thee," faith the prophet Jer. xii. 3.

Sometimes he tries the ftrength and ability of his fervants graces; and thus he tried Abraham, Heb. xi. 17. And fometimes he tries the foundness and fincerity of our graces, fo the Ephefian angel was tried, and found drots, Rev. ii. 2. And fo Job was tried, and found true gold, Job xxiii. 10. These trials are not made by God for his own information; for he knows what is in man; his eyes pierce the heart and reins; but for our information; which is the true fenfe of Deut. viii. 2. "Thou shalt remember all the way which the Lord "thy God led thee thefe forty years in the wilderness to humble "thee, and to prove thee, to know what was in thy heart ;" i. e. to make thee know it, by giving thee fuch experiments and trials of it in those wilderness ftraits and difficulties.

And these are the trials of grace I am here to speak of, not excluding the active trials made by ourselves; no, no, all thefe trials

Upon a thorough trial they vanish into fmoke.

From which judgment he thall efcape juft as one does naked, or only with his life, out of the midst of flames.

Chryfoftom

made by God upon us, are defigned to put us upon the trial of ourfelves: When God tries, we fhould try too.

Now the method into which I fhall caft this difcourfe, fhall be to

fhew you,

1. First, What those things are which try the fincerity of our graces, 537 as fire tries gold.

2. Secondly, For what ends doth God put the graces of his people 43 upon fuch trials in this world.

3. Thirdly, That fuch grace only is fincere as can endure these trials.

4. Fourthly, and lafly, To apply the whole, in the main uses of it.

SECT. 11.

1. First, WHAT those things are which try the fincerity of grace, as fire tries gold.

Before I enter into particulars, it will be needful to acquaint you, that the fubject before me is full of difficulties. There is need, as one fpeaks, of much cautious refpect to the various fizes and degrees of growth among Chriftians, and the viciffitudes of their inward cafes; elfe we may darken and perplex the way, inftead of clearing it.

.

The portraiture of a Chriftian is fuch as none can draw to one model, but with refpect to the infancy of fome, as well as the age and ftrength of others.

Great heed ought alfo to be had in the application of marks and figns; we fhould firft try them, before we try ourselves or others by them. Marks and figns are by fome diftinguifhed into exclufive, inclufive, and pofitive: Exclufive marks ferve to fhut out bold pretenders, by thewing them how far they come fhort of a faving work of grace; and they are commonly taken from fome neceffary common duty, as hearing, praying &c. He that hath not these things, cannot have any work of grace in him; and yet if he do them, he cannot from thence conclude his estate to be gracious: He that fo concludes, he deceives himself.

Inclufive marks rather difcover the degrees than the truth of grace, and are rather, intended for comfort than for conviction: If we find them in ourselves, we do not only find fincerity, but eminency of grace; They being taken from fome raifed degree and eminent acts I of grace in confirmed and grown Chriftians.

Betwixt the two former there is a middle fort of marks, which are called pofitive marks, and they are fuch as are always, and only found, in regenerate fouls: The hypocrite hath them not; the grown Christian hath them, and that in an eminent degree: The pooreft Chriftian hath them in a lower, but faving degree: Great care muft be taken in the application of them. And it is paft doubt, that many weak and injudicious Chriftians have been greatly prejudiced by finding the experiences of eminent Chriftians propofed as rules to mea

fure their fincerity by. Alas! thefe no more fit their fouls, than Saul's armour did David's body.

These things being premised, and a due care carried along with us through this difcourfe, I fhall next come to the particulars, and fhew you what those things are which discover the state and tempers of our fouls. And though it be true, that there is no condition we are in, no providence that befals us, but it takes fome proof, and makes fome difcovery of our hearts; yet, to limit this difcourfe, and fall into particulars as foon as we can, I fhall fhew what trials are made of our graces in this world, by our profperity, and our adverfity; by our corruptions, and our duties, and, lastly, by our fufferings upon the score and account of religion.

SECT. I.

IRST, Profperity, fuccefs, and the increase of outward enjoyments, are to grace what fire is to gold. Riches and honours make trial what we are; and by these things many a false heart hath been detected, as well as the fincerity and eminency of others graces difcovered. We may fancy the fire of profperity to be rather for comfort than trial; to refresh us rather than to prove us; but you will find profperity to be a great difcovery, and that scarce any thing proves the truth and ftrength of men's graces and corruptions more than that doth: Rara virtus eft humilitas bonorata, faith Bernard; to find humility with honour, is to find a Phoenix. Let an obfcure perfon be lifted up to honour, and how fteady and well compofed foever he was before, it is a thousand to one but his eyes will dazzle, and his head run round when he is upon the lofty pinacle of praise and honour*; Prov. xxvii. 21. “As the fining-pot for filver, and the furnace for gold, fo is a man to his praife:" Put the beft gold into the fining-pot of praife, and it is a great wonder if a great deal of drofs do not appear, Ifa. xxxix. 2. the vain-glory of good Hezekiah rofe like froth or fcum upon the pot, when heated by profperity. It was fuch a fining-pot to Herod, as difcovered him to be drofs itself, Acts xii. 23. How did that poor worm fwell under that trial into the conceit of his being a god, and was justly destroyed by worms, because he forgat himself to be one? We little think what a strange alteration an exalted ftate will make upon our fpirits. When the prophet would abate the vain confidence of Hazael, who would not believe that ever he would be turned into fuch a favage beaft as the prophet had foretold; he only tells him, "The Lord hath fhewed me, that thou "fhalt be king over Syria," 2 Kings viii. 13. The meaning is, Do not be too confident Hazael, that thy temper and difpofition can never alter to that degree; thou never yet fatteft on a throne: When men fee the crown upon thy head, then they will better fee the true temper of thy heart.

* Magiftratus indicat virum ; i. e. Preferment proves a man.

How humble was Ifrael in the wilderness, tame and tractable in a lean pafture; but bring them once into Canaan, and the world is ftrangely altered; then " we are lords, (fay they) we will come no

more unto thee," Jer. ii. 2, 7, 31. Profperity is a crifis both to grace and corruption. Thence is that caution to Ifrael, Deut. x. 11, 12. "When thou haft eaten, and art full, then beware left thou forget the Lord thy God." Then beware, that is the critical time; furely that man must be acknowledged rich, very rich in grace, whofe grace fuffers no diminution or eclipfe by his riches; and that man deferves double honour, whose pride the honours of this world cannot provoke and inflame.

It was a fad truth from the lips of a pious divine in Germany upon his death-bed; being fomewhat difconfolate by reflecting upon the barrenness of his life, fome friends took thence an occafion to commend him, and mind him of his painful ministry and fruitful life among them; but he cried out, Auferte ignem, adhuc enim paleas habeo; Withdraw the fire, for I have chaff in me; meaning, that he felt his ambition like chaff catching fire from the fparks of their praises. Like unto which was the faying of another, He that praifes me, wounds me.

But to defcend into the particular difcoveries that profperity and honour made of the want of grace in fome, and of the weakness of grace in others; I will fhew you what fymptoms of hypocrify appear upon fome men under the trial of profperity, and what figns of grace appear in others under the fame trial.

SECT. IV.

ROSPERITY difcovers many fad symptoms of a naughty heart; and, among others, these are ordinarily moft confpicuous. 1. First, It cafts the hearts of fome men into a deep oblivion of God, and makes them lay afide all care of duty; Raro fumant fœlicibus are; the altars of rich men feldom fmoke, Deut. xxxii. 13, 14, 15. Jefhurun fucked honey out of the rock, eat the fat of lambs, and kidneys of wheat: But what was the effect of this; he kicked and forfook God who made him, and lightly esteemed the rock of his falvation. Inftead of lifting up their hearts in an humble thankful acknowledgment of God's bounty, they lifted up the heel in a wanton abufe of his mercy: In the fatteft earth we find the most slippery footing.

He that is truly gracious may, in profperity, remit fome degrees; but a carnal heart there lofeth all that which in a low condition he feemed to fave. Augur's deprecation, as to himself, no doubt, was built upon his frequent obfervation how it was with others; Prov. xxx. 8; 9. "Left I be full, and deny God."

It is faid Ecclef. v. 12. "That the abundance of the rich will not "fuffer him to fleep ;" and I wish that were the worst injury it did VOL. V.

3. Z