fhall receive of mine, and shall shew it unto you. The work of the Spirit is to glorify Christ: whence by the way, we may fee how far that Spirit is from being the Comforter, who fets up himself in the room of Christ; fuch a Spirit as faith, He is all himfelf for as for him that fuffered at Jerufalem, it is no matter that we trouble ourselves about him: this Spirit is now all. This is not the Comforter; his work is to glorify Chrift, him that fends him. And this is an evident fign of a false spirit; whatever its pretence be, if it glorify not that Chrift, who was now speaking to his apostles; and fuch are many that are gone abroad into the world. But what fhall this Spirit do, that Chrift may be glorified, be fhall, faith he, take of mine, what these things are, is declared in the next verfe; all things that the Father hath are mine, therefore 1 faid, he hall take of mine. It is not of the effence, and effential properties of the Father and Son, that our Saviour fpeaks; but of the grace which is communicated to us by them. This Chrift calls my things, being the fruit of his purchase and mediation: on which account he faith, all his Father's things are his; that is, the things that the Father in his eternal love hath provided to be dispensed in the blood of his Son, all the fruits of election: thefe, faid he, the Comforter fhall receive: that is, they fhall be committed unto him, to difpofe for your good and advantage, to the end before propofed. So it follows, he shall fhew or declare, and make them known to you. Thus then is he a Comforter. He reveals to the fouls of believers, the good things of the covenant of grace, which the Father hath provided, and the Son purchased. He fhews to us mercy, grace, forgivenefs, righteousness, accepta

tion with God; letteth us know that these are the things of Chrift, which he hath procured for us, fhews them to us for our comfort and establishment. Thefe things, I fay, he effectually declares to the fouls of believers; and makes them know them for their own good: know them as originally the things of the Father, prepared from eternity in his love and good-will; as purchafed for them by Chrift, and laid up in ftore in the covenant of grace, for their use. Then is Chrift magnified and glorified in their hearts: then they know what a Saviour and Redeemer he is. A foul doth never glorify or honour Christ upon a discovery, or fenfe of the eternal redemption he hath purchafed for him, but it is in him a peculiar effect of the Holy Ghost as our Comforter. No man can fay, that Jefus is the Lord but by the Holy Ghost, 1 Cor. xii. 3.

3. He beds abroad the love of God in our hearts, Rom. v. 5. That it is the love of God to us, not our love to God, which is here intended, the context is fo clear, as nothing can be added thereunto: now the love of God is either of ordination or of accepta tion: the love of his purpose to do us good, or the love of acceptation and approbation with him, both thefe are called the love of God frequently in feripture,, as I have declared. Now how can thefe be fhed a-broad in our hearts? not in themfelves, but in a fenfe of them; in a spiritual apprehenfion of them; ek-ket butai, is hed abroad, the fame word that is ufed: concerning the Comforter being given us, Tit. ii. 6.. God fheds him abundantly, or pours him on us; fo he sheds abroad, or pours out the love of God in our hearts. Not to infift on the expreffion which. is metaphorical; the bufinefs is, that the Comforter gives a sweet and plentiful evidence and perfuafion of the love of God to us, fuch as the four is ta

ken,

ken, delighted, fatiated withal. This is his work, and he doth it effectually. To give a poor finful foul a comfortable perfuafion, affecting it throughout, in all its faculties and affections, that God in Jefus Chrift loves him, delights in him, is well pleased with him, hath thoughts of tenderness and kindness towards him; to give, 1 fay, a foul an overflowing fenfe hereof, is an unexpreffible mercy.

This we have in a peculiar manner by the Holy Ghost it is his proper work: as all his works, are works of love and kindnefs, fo this of communicating a fenfe of the love of the Father, mixes itself with all the particulars of his actings. And as we have herein peculiar communion with himself; fo by him we have communion with the Father; even in his love, which is thus fhed abroad in our hearts: fo not only do we rejoice in, and glorify the Holy Ghoft which doth this work, but in him alfo whose love it is. Thus it is alfo in refpect of the Son; in his taking of his, and fhewing of it unto us, as was declared. What we have of heaven in this world, lyes herein: and the manner of our fellowfhip with the Holy Ghost on this account, falls in with what was fpoken before.

4. Another effect we have of his, Rom. viii. 16. The Spirit itself bears witness with our fpirits, that we are the children of God. You know whose children we are by nature; children of Satan, and of the curfe, or of wrath. By the Spirit we are put into another capacity, and are adopted to be the children of God, inafmuch as by receiving the Spirit of our Father, we become the children of our Father. Thence is he called, ver. 15. the Spirit of adoption. Now fometimes the foul, because it

hath

hath somewhat remaining in it, of the principle that it had in its old condition, is put to question, whether it be a child of God or no, and thereupon as in a thing of the greatest importance, puts in its claim, with all the evidences that it hath, to make good its title. The Spirit comes and bears witnefs in this cafe. An allufion it is to judicial proceedings in point of titles and evidences. The judge being fet, the perfon concerned lays his claim, produceth his evidences and pleads them; his adverfaries endeavouring all that in them lies, to invalidate them, and difanul his plea, and to caft him in his claim: in the midft of the trial, a perfon of known and approved integrity comes into the court, and gives teftimony full and directly on the behalf of the claimer, which ftops the mouths of all his adverfaries, and fills the man that pleaded, with joy and fatisfaction. So it is in this cafe. The foul by the power of its own confcience, is brought before the law of God; there a man puts in his plea, that he is a child of God, that he belongs to God's family, and for this end produceth all his evidences, every thing, whereby faith gives him an intereft in God. Satan in the mean time oppofeth with all his might; fin and law affist him: many flaws are found in his evidences; the truth of them all is questioned, and the foul hangs in fufpence as to the iffue. In the midst of the plea and conteft, the Comforter comes; and by a word of promife, or otherwife, overpours the heart with a comfortable perfuafion, (and bears down all objections) that his plea is good and that he is a child of God. And therefore it is faid of him, when our fpirits are pleading their right and title, He comes in and bears witnefs on our fide; at the fame time, enabling us to put forth acts of

filial obedience, kind and child-like, which is caled, crying, Abba Father. Remember still the manner of the Spirit's working before mentioned; that he doth it effectually, voluntarily, and freely. Hence fometimes the difpute hangs long, the caufe is pleading many years; the law feems fometimes to prevail, fin and Satan to rejoice, and the poor foul is filled with dread about its inheritance, perhaps its own witnefs, from its faith, fanctification, former experience, keeps up the plea with fome life and comfort; but the work is not done, the conqueft is not fully obtained, until the Spirit who worketh freely and effectually, when and how he will, comes in with his teftimony alfo; cloathing his power with a word of promife, he makes all parties concerned to attend unto him, and puts an end to the controversy.

Herein he gives us holy communion with himff. The foul knows his voice when he speaks; nec hominem fonat. There is fomething too great in it, to be the effect of a created power. When the Lord Jefus Chrift, at one word stilled the raging of the fea and wind, all that were with him, knew there was divine power at hand, Mat. iv. 39. and when the Holy Ghoft by one word fills the tumults and ftorms that are raifed in the foul, giving it an immediate calm and security, it knows his divine power, and rejoices in his prefence.

5. He feals us. We are fealed by the holy Spirit of promife, Eph. i. 13. and grieve not the holy Spirit whereby you are fealed to the day of redemption, chap. iv. 30. I am not very clear in the certain peculiar intendment of this Metaphor, what I am perfuaded of the mind of God in it, I fhall briefly impart. In a feal two things are confidered, 1. The

nature