A Goodly Heritage

"He bringeth forth fruit unto himself"; and yet, literally, he brings forth no fruit at all, only long stem and tendril, and leaves innumerable; his fruit is all foliage. The figure is very Hebraic and grand. Israel is a vine, and a growing vine, but Israel misses the purpose of the vine by never growing any wine; growing nothing but weedy leaves, and so disappointing men when they come to find fruit thereon, and discover none. The Church is an empty vine. Theology is an empty vine. All religious controversy that is conducted for its own sake — that is to say, with the single view of winning a victory in words — is an empty vine, — luxuriant enough, but it is the luxuriance of ashes. "According to the multitude of his fruit he hath increased the altars; according to the goodness of his land, they have made goodly images." They have gone  pari passu  with the Almighty — He, the living Father, doing the good, and they, the rebellious men, doing proportionate evil. Wh

Whereas the Lord had, by His prophets, frequently inculcated that exhortation, to taker pains on their own hearts, to bring forth the fruits of piety and righteousness; they, on the contrary, took pains enough in serving sin, wherein they wanted not fruit, though it should disappoint their expectation. This challenge is farther amplified and enlarged by showing what was the fountain and spring of all this wickedness; to wit, their carnal confidence in the sinful ways and courses they followed, both in matters of state and religion, and their confidence in their many valiant men. 1.  Many are so perverse, as they are not only content to live in sin, neglecting their duty, but they will be at pains to promote sin, and will trouble themselves to undo themselves. 2.  Sin is a very fertile weed among the children of men; such as are bent on it will soon get their hearts' desire of it, and God will give up such as are diligent that way, to a height of impiety, as a plague upon them.

God has been pleased to give us instruction not only by His Word, but also by His works. Nature echoes Scripture to our sins, and if we would permit it, to our hearts. The ground we till is under the curse of God for man's sin; that its natural produce is only thistles, weeds, brambles. You have seen a piece of ground that has been left waste and uncultivated, and how it has become full of weeds, and rank with poisonous herbs, and infested with noisome creatures. Just such a place is man's heart. You have but to look at what man becomes when left to himself, without knowledge, without instruction, without the restraining and renewing grace of God, and you cannot doubt but that the inclination of his heart is not to good, that its imaginations are only evil continually. And out of that heart comes all manner of wickedness that is practised amongst mankind. Suppose any one of you had a garden overrun with weeds, how would he set about getting rid of them, so as to do it effectua

The secret of the Lord is with them that fear Him."   —  PSALM xxv. 14. A LL true Christians are peculiar. Their singular character and their exclusive privileges make them so. The Lord causes them to differ from all others by what He does in them, and by what He does for them. He creates a new heart in them, and they fear Him. He puts His Spirit within them, and makes known to them His mind. Into their soul He infuses life, and into their ear He speaks His secrets. Fearers of God are thus favourites of God; and both as His fearers and as His favourites, they are a peculiar people. I. True Christians differ from all others because they only fear the Lord. "I will put my fear within them," is a promise fulfilled to them all, and to them only. Covenant grace was put within them ere covenant secrets were made known unto them. Those who fear the Lord, are and must be, quickened souls.  They were once dead in sins, but they are now alive to God; and they live because

 The Duty enjoined. Every step of the way of our sal vation hath on it the print of infinite majesty, wisdom, and goodness, and this amongst the rest ; that men, sinful, weak men, are made subservient in that great work of bringing Christ and souls to meet ; that by the foolishness of preaching (or what appears so to carnal wisdom,) the chosen of God are called, and come unto Jesus, and are made wise unto salvation ; and that the life which is conveyed to them by the word oflife in the hands of poor men, is by the same means preserved and ad vanced. This is the standing work of the ministry, and this the thing here bound upon them that are employed in it, to feed the flock of God that is among them. Jesus Christ descended to purchase a Church, and ascended to provide and furnish it, to send down his Spirit : He ascended and gave gifts, parti cularly for the work of the ministry ; and the great use of them is this, feed the flock of God. Not to say any more of this usual resemblance of

That being justified by his grace, we should be made heirs according to the hope of eternal life. This is a faithful saying, and these things I will that thou affirm constantly, that they which have believed in God might be careful to maintain good works. These things are good and profitable unto men”—Titus 3:7, 8. The best way both to provoke others and ourselves to good works is to be often affirming to others the doctrine of justification by grace and to believe it ourselves. “This is a faithful saying, and these things I will that thou affirm constantly, that they which have believed in God, might be careful to maintain good works” (Tit 3:8)…I tell you that the best way to be fruitful in them is to be much in the exercise of the doctrine of justification by grace. And they both agree: for as faith animates to good works, so the doctrine of grace animates faith. Wherefore, the way to be rich in good works is to be rich in faith; and the way to be rich in faith is to be conscient

But upon a day, the good providence of God did cast me to Bedford, to work on my calling; and in one of the streets of that town, I came where there were three or four poor women sitting at a door in the sun, and talking about the things of God; and being now willing to hear them discourse, I drew near to hear what they said, for I was now a brisk talker also myself in the matters of religion, but now I may say, I heard, but I understood not; for they were far above, out of my reach; for their talk was about a new birth, the work of God on their hearts, also how they were convinced of their miserable state by nature; they talked how God had visited their souls with his love in the Lord Jesus, and with what words and promises they had been refreshed, comforted,and supported against the temptations of the devil. Moreover, they reasoned of the suggestions and temptations of Satan in particular; and told to each other by which they had been afflicted, and how they were borne up under his

T he  term “law” in Scripture is to be understood either in an extended or in a restricted sense. In its extended or large acceptance, it is used sometimes to signify the five books of Moses (Luke 24:44), at other times all the books of the Old Testament (John 10:34), sometimes the whole Word of God in the Scriptures of the Old and the New Testament (Psalm 19:7), in some places the Old Testament dispensation as distinguished from the New (John 1:17), in others the Old Testament dispensation, as including prophecies, promises, and types of Messiah (Luke 16:16; Hebrews 10:1) and in several the doctrine of the gospel (Isaiah 2:3 and 42:4). In its restricted or limited sense, it is employed to express the rule which God has prescribed to His rational creatures in order to direct and oblige them to the right performance of all their duties to Him. In other words, it is used to signify the declared will of God, directing and obliging mankind to do that which pleases Him, and