18.

V. 20.

into a Way of obtaining everlasting Salvation. Lefs than this we cannot fuppofe to be contained in thefe Promifes of Chrift, that the Gates of Hell hall never prevail Mat. 16. against his Church, and that be, by his Spirit, will be with his Apofiles and their Succeffors to the End of the World. But then Ch. 28. it is to be remember'd always, that it doth not follow from hence, either that any particular Church is fecure from Error, or from other great Failings; or that any particular Church fhall always continue to be a Church. Because a particular Church, or a particular Nation, may fo reject the Guidance of the Holy Spirit, and by their grievous and often repeated Tranfgreffions fo affront God, as to provoke him at laft to give them up, and to remove their Candlestick from them, as Rev. 2. 54 St. John expreffes it. The Promise of the perpetual Prefence or Advocatefhip of the Holy Spirit is only made to the Church of Chrift in general, not to any particular Church or Member of that Body; and it is only fo made to the Church in general, as to import that that Church fhall never fail from the Earth; but not at all that it fhall never fall into Errors or Corruptions.

Secondly, As the Holy Ghoft, for mak-. ing good the Promifes of Chrift, will take care that there fhall always be a Church; (viz. feveral Societies of Men agreeing in the common Faith under their lawful Pators, wherein fo much Chriftian Truth shall

be taught as is neceffary to Salvation); fo
the fame Spirit will always take care to be
prefent in the Ordinances and Adminiftra-.
tions of the Church, both for the enlight-
ening the Understandings of Men to receive
and embrace all neceffary Truths, and in-
clining their Wills to practise accordingly.
I dare not fay of any Sort of Men in the
World that have the Effentials of Chriftiani-
ty among them, but that the Holy Spirit is
always at hand, by his inward Power and
Virtue, to accompany the outward Means
which God hath been pleased to bestow or
continue amongst them.

Thirdly, I fay this further; the Holy Spirit of God never did, nor ever will fail to direct and govern the Lives and Actions of all Believers that mean honeftly, and heartily devote themselves to the Service of Jefus Chrift. He will not fail to inspire their Minds with good Thoughts, to give them Grace and Strength to refift the Temptations of the Devil; to affift them in their Prayers and Devotions; and whereas they know not what they should pray for as they Rom. 8. ought, to make Interceffion for them with

26.

Groanings which cannot be uttered (for which Reason chiefly, as fome learned Men have conceived, he hath the Name of Paraclete or Advocate given him in Scripture, namely, as the Interceffor for the Saints; tho' I am apt to think, with St. Chryfoftom, that this Text is rather to be understood of the

Extraordinary Gifts of Prayer in the firft Ages:) And to preferve them from all dangerous and deftructive Errors, to furnish them with fufficient Powers to mortify and overcome all their evil Habits and corrupt Affections; and finally, if they be compliant with his holy Motions, to bring them all at last to the Kingdom of Heaven. I do not say that they fhall be fecured against all Errors, and against all Sins; but if they be Perfons of Probity and Integrity, fuch as fincerely defire to know their Master's Will,. and to do it, they fhall for ever be kept from all damning Errors, and for ever be fecured from fuch Snares and Temptations to evil Practices, as, if they were expofed to, and left to themselves, they could not avoid falling under them.

But fourthly and laftly, While I am talking of the ordinary Grace of God, and the ordinary Inftances of the Holy Ghoft's Advocateship in the World; yet I would not exclude out of that Account even the extraordinary Communications of God's Grace and Spirit, when an extraordinary Occafion offers its felf. When in our Days an unusual Cafe happens, that is to say, when a particular Church, or a particular Perfon, is put under fuch Difficulties, or Trials, or Temptations, that God Almighty fees they cannot be got over without a greater Affiftance of his divine Power than is ordinarily beftowed; in fuch a Cafe as

this, I fay, God will beftow all the Affiftance that is needful: And that Affiftance of the Spirit, tho' it be more than is ufual, yet, in our Cafe, comes under the Notion of ordinary Grace, or the ordinary Acts of the Spirit's Advocatefhip. Our Lord Jefus hath purchased the Holy Spirit for his Difciples, not only for thofe of one Age, but for all his Followers to the World's End; and at the fame Time that he promised to fend the Holy Ghoft for the Advocate, he promised that he should abide with us for ever, as my Text hath it. There were indeed greater Occafions of his appearing illustriously, visibly, and miraculously at the Beginning of Chriftianity, than there can be now. But if the fame Occafions could happen again, he would, without doubt, appear fuitably to those Occafions; for his Power is not fhortened; and we may be certain that he will never leave us nor forfake us, unless we firft leave and forfake him. In the mean Time let us not be difmayed at any Thing; let us not doubt of his conftant Support and Affiftance. Tho' he do not inspire us to work Miracles, or speak Languages; yet he will for ever infpire us both to believe aright, and to practife aright, if we use our Understandings as we ought to do, and do not wilfully depart from the known Rules of our Duty. And if ever it please God to expofe us to extraordinary Temptations, his Spirit will then

extraordinarily affift us, and we fhall as certainly overcome them, as if we had been acted in the fame Way that the Apostles and primitive Chriftians were.

I have been the more careful in diftinguishing between the extraordinary and ordinary Inftances of the Holy Ghoft's Advocate fhip in the World; because the not attending duly to it hath brought abundance of Fanaticifm, and Enthufiafm, and other Mischiefs into the Church of Chrift. Whilft we are reading the New Teftament, and do often there meet with fuch furprifing Things about the Gifts and Effects of the Holy Spirit, and do not diftinguish between those that were proper and peculiar to the apoftolick Age, and thofe that were to be continued to the Church for ever after, it is hardly avoidable but we muft needs run into a great many Mistakes; and fuch Miftakes as have by Experience been found very prejudicial both to the Peace of Chriftendom, and the Salvation of Men's Souls.

For Inftance, I pray what is it that hath made fo many Quakers and gifted Brethren amongst us, but the misinterpreting and mifapplying those Texts which fpeak of the Gifts of the Spirit, which they fo understand as to make no Diftinction between the Times then and the Times now? They read, for Inftance, a Prophecy in Joel, that when the laft Days fhould come, God would pour Joel 2.28. his Spirit upon all Flefb, and their young Men Acts 2.17.

Bould