by following thine orders, fighting thy battles, and relying entirely upon thy promises. I would not question thy faithfulness to them, nor fear any enemy against whom thou hast commanded me to fight. would not doubt of thy strength to carry me through the battle, or to give me the promised victory. In this faith I conduct my warfare, and I would have all my success to bring fresh glory to thee. I know that the courage which I have in the field of battle is not from nature, but from grace. It arises from the belief, that I am armed with the whole armour of God, and that the enemies against whom I fight, are his as well as mine-his, whom he conquered for me, and is now conquering in me; and all to his own praise. From hence, Lord, arises my sure and certain hope of victory. I ground it on thy word. I fight in faith. I trust to thy complete victory, and now am sharing in it. My daily victories are only the fruit and effect of thine. O my almighty Jesus, give me grace to ascribe all the glory to thee. It is thy due. Make we willing to give it thee for the victories obtained for me, and in me. O keep me by thine almighty power, through faith, till I have fought the good fight, and won the prize. Grant me this, blessed King of saints, to thine eternal honour and glory. Amen.

CHAPTER XII.

The Believer marches on, fighting the good fight of Faith, and daily gains victory over the world.

THE world signifies the visible frame of nature; not the earth only, but also the present constitution of the universe, of animate and inanimate beings: all which were created good at first, but, through the sin of man, and the just sentence of God, are now subject to vanity.

The world has become a great enemy to fallen man; because it is always presenting something to his senses which is a temptation to sin. It keeps him from God by its flatteries, promising to make him happy in its enjoyments. It sets them before him. He looks and loves. willing sacrifice to the world,

He gives his heart a

and suffers himself to be entirely influenced by its hopes and fears.

While man was innocent, every object raised in him some spiritual idea, and thereby led him to contemplate and adore the great Creator in his works; but upon the fall, he lost this use of natural objects; they did not, as they struck upon his senses, excite correspondent ideas in the mind; because the man was "alienated from the life of God, through the ignorance that was in him." His understanding was in darkness: he could not see the things of the Spirit of God; neither could he know them, for want of spiritual discernment. Being thus deprived of the image and likeness of God in knowledge, having

no will but the will of the flesh, and his heart being at enmity with God, he sinks into communion with the creature. His very mind is carnal. His affections are earthly. His pursuits are after temporal things. His enjoyments are in the delights of sense. In this state he lives a mere animal life, without God in the world.

Indeed he has within him an immortal soul, but it is apostate. It is fallen from God, and has no more communion with him by nature than the devil has. The law has condemned it to death: the soul that sinneth it shall die;—and it is already spiritually dead to God, being as incapable of quickening itself as a dead corpse is. Therefore it cannot attain of itself any true knowledge of God, or have any real fellowship with the things of God. While fallen man is in this state, his earthly and sensual appetites take the lead; and all the light in his mind, and the desires of his heart, only dispose him to seek for their present gratification. Outward objects offer themselves to him; they make an impression upon his senses, and sometimes act upon them very forcibly, soliciting and enticing to the enjoyment of some fancied good; and so long as he continues an unregenerate man, these temptations prevail, and keep him from God. He does not see God in outward objects. He does not love God for them. not enjoy them to the glory of God. God is not in all his thoughts.

Man has been called a microcosm.

derfully made, that the whole creation the observation of some of his senses.

He does

He is so won

comes under

His eye, by

means of light, can discover the form and surface of

The nose

The palate tastes

all objects. The ear takes in all sounds. perceives all vapours and smells. all sorts of fluids. All sorts of solids come under the sense of feeling, which is in every part of the body, for the benefit and preservation of the whole. Thus every object in the universe is fitted to act upon some of the senses, and was intended by the Creator to excite some spiritual idea. But this use was lost by the fall. The impression made by outward objects does not raise up the mind to God, and excite adoration and praise; but keeps the heart from him, and affords a continual temptation to live to the world, and to the things of it. Whatever is presented to the eye, to the ear, &c. can stir up and bring forth evil. And actually does, according to the scripture: for "the whole world," as fallen from God, "lieth in wickedness," and is at enmity with him; and therefore believers are commanded, "Love ye not the world, neither the things that are in the world: if any man love the world, the love of the Father is not in him for all that is in the world, the lust of the flesh, and the lust of the eyes, and the pride of life, is not of the Father, but is of the world." Mind, all that is in the world is the means of feeding some lust; for which reason the apostle calls it "this present evil world,”—evil because of sin, and because of its temptations to keep the heart in love with it, and to shut out the love of the Father.

How awfully solemn are these scriptures! What strict examination, O my soul, should they put thee upon! Search and try thyself by them, and see whether thou art saved from the love of the world. It is a blessed part of redemption, and it is one of

the brightest jewels in the Redeemer's crown. How infinitely glorious is this character: "Jesus Christ gave himself for our sins, that he might deliver us from this present evil world!" This deliverance is worthy of God. We had sinned by loving this present evil world, and he came to save us from our sins. It ruled over our hearts and lives, and kept us under its tyranny, and he came to deliver us from the love and from the power of it.

Thrice happy

are they for whom he thus gave himself. O my soul, read and study the everlasting honours of this great victory, and see whether thou art indeed a partaker of them. Jehovah was made flesh for his people, and, as their divine surety, came to conquer their enemies, the world among the rest. He was, in their nature, to enter into open war with it, and to overcome every temptation by which it had drawn Adam or any of his descendants from God. Thus he was to conquer the world for them; and then by his Spirit he was to conquer it in them. He began the battle with his first breath, and every moment of his life he was victorious. The world has its snares for every age and state, but he fell into none of them. His hands were clean; his heart was pure: he never lifted up his soul to vanity; he was in his infancy the holy child Jesus; and he grew in wisdom and staWhen he was twelve years old, he was wiser than his teachers; for he sat in the midst of the doctors, both hearing them and asking them questions and all that heard him were astonished at his understanding and answers. His delight was in the law of the Lord, and in this law did he meditate day and night. He saw things as they are there

ture.