diftinguish'd from Impoftors and Counterfeits. Accordingly he appeals Verfe 4. to the variety of the Gifts themselves, which though differing in kind, were yet but one in their Source and Original, and came down from the fame Fountain of Light, the Holy Spirit; this was that glorious Spirit which on the Day of Penticoft affum'd the visible form of cloven Tongues, and at once fat upon the Heads, and infpir'd the Hearts of the Holy Apoftles; 'twas the very Spirit promis'd under the notion of a Comforter, by our bleffed Saviour, when he was about to leave the World, and a forrowful Family of Servants behind him; in a word, 'twas this fame Holy Ghoft, the bleffed Spirit of the Father and the Son, to whom we owe all the happy and wonderful effects of this Day, not only the appointment of Prophets, Apoftles, Teachers, and Minifters in the Church of God, bur all thofe Graces and Operations, whether publick or private, by which the Foundation of the Church was laid at firft, and the whole Fabrick has been frengthen'd and promoted ever fince. For 'twas indeed for the advancement of Chriftianity, in all the parts and branches of it, that

this

this great Priviledge was confer'd, and this is what the Words of my Text do more immediately point at; For the manifeftation of the Spirit is given to every one to profit withal."

In difcourfing upon which Passage I fhall choose to follow this Method.

I. To explain the true Import of the Words, and thereby the Nature of that great Priviledge contain'd in

them.

II. To reprefent from the Words themselves, the main End and Purpose, for which God was pleas'd in fo various a manner to difpenfe this Benefit to the World. And

III. To lay before you the proper Ufes that we are inftructed to make of fo ample a Priviledge. And

A

I. In order to explain the genuine meaning of this Paffage, I must take notice, that in the Language of Scripture, the Spirit is often made ufe of to denote, not the Perfon of the Holy Ghoft, the third in the order of the Bleffed

Bleffed Trinity, but the Gifts and Graces, the Acts and Operations proceed-, ing from him; and though in all those Scriptures where the Word is us'd, 'tis clear from the Context, in what Sense it ought to be taken, whither for the Holy Ghoft himself, the Principle of the new life in Chriftians, or elfe for thofe Graces and Qualifications which are the Signs and the Fruits of it; yet Men of ill and perverse Minds have made a fcurvy ufe of this mix'd and general way of interpreting the Word, and have inferr'd from hence, though very erroneously, that the Holy Spirit is not a Perfon or Being diftinct by himself, but rather a mode or quality, fuch as we may take the Faculties of the Human Soul to be. But I prefume, this wilful Error (for fuch I conceive it) is abundantly confuted from feveral Verfes in this Chapter, befides the cited one in my Text; for as at the 5th and 6th Verfes we find that the Gifts and Ornaments there mention'd are a quite different thing from that Principle (the Spirit of Grace) from which they flow, fo may we

collect from the Phrafe made ufe of

in my Text; (The manifeftation of the Spirit) that thereby we intended, not only the Talents and Capacities which were in a fupernatural way confer'd on Mankind; But the Author likewife and Giver of thofe good Gifts, even God the Holy Ghoft, who proceed ing from the Father and the Son, was by the Confent of both, defign'd the Inftrument of our Sanctification and Bleffedness: Now that which may induce us to believe that the Perfon and Deity of the Holy Spirit is meant in this place, is the Term here us'd of his Manifestation, or Difcovery to the World, which feems very clear. ly and directly to allude to the publick and visible defcent of the Holy Ghost, (as upon this Day); for whatever Powers the Apoftles, or other Holy Perfons, might have been actually invefted with, or whatever great or amazing things they might have perform'd in virtue of thefe Powers bestow'd on them, yet this could not have been ftil'd properly the Manifeftation of the Spirit, had not there been fome confpicuous and extraordinary Appearance, which by conveying this Capacity in fuch a way, and

4

at

at fuch a time, was therefore a fufficient Warrant that fuch Works and Operations were deriv'd from fuch a Power of Principle working in, and conferr'd upon these very Perfons; we may than gather from the Words, that not only were the Works manifeft, which the Apoftles wrought by the efficacy of the Spirit, But the Spirit it felf was Manifeft likewife by which those Works were perform'd; and this exactly quadrates with the Phrafe of God manifeft in the Flesh; 1.Tim. 3. 16. By which we can understand nothing lefs, than the Birth of Chrift, publickly declar'd by Signs and Wonders in the firft Place, and in the other the real and visible descent of the Holy Ghost, in a general Affembly of Jews and Gentiles, at the Feast of Penticoft.

All that remains for the clearing this Paffage, is to expound that part of the Paragraph, which tells us, that the Holy Ghoft was given to every Man, (that is to every Man, to whom it was manifeft in fo fpecial publick a manner) to profit withal. And this indeed feems to carry its own Interpretation with it, for can we conceive

that