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that his parents conveyed to him by natural generation-one who follows the dictates of his own fenfual foul, and is neither born of God, nor led by the Spirit of God. "The natural man," fays the Apoftle, "receiveth not the things of the Spirit, for they are foolishness unto him, neither can he know them, because they are fpiritually difcerned." He has no fenfe properly exercised for this kind of discernment, his 66 eye hath not seen, nor ear heard, neither have entered into his heart, the things, which God hath prepared for them that love him."

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The reverfe of the natural man is the fpiritual, fo called, because God hath revealed fpiritual things to him by his Spirit, who is now in him a principle of fpiritual and eternal life. fpiritual man," fays the Apostle, "judgeth, i. e. difcerneth all things, yet he himself is difcerned of no one." The high ftate he is in can no more be difcerned by the natural man, than the condition of the natural man can be difcerned by a brute.*

St. Paul not only defcribes the fpiritual man, but fpeaks particularly of his internal, moral fenfes. Chriftians, fays he, of full age, by reafon of use, have their fenfes exercifed to discern good and evil. He prays, that the love of the Philippians may abound more and more in knowledge, and ev on you in all fenfe or feeling." The fcriptures conftantly mention, or allude to one or other of thefe fpiritual fenfes: -Give me leave to produce fome inftances.

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1. To begin with the SIGHT. St. Paul prays, that, the eyes of his converts being enlightened, they

*1. Cor. ii. 10-15. §Heb. v. 14.

+Phil, i. 9.

they might know what is the hope of their calling. He reminds them, that Chrift had been evidently fet forth crucified before their eyes. He affures them, that the God of this world hath blinded the eyes of them that believe not the gospel; and declares that his commiffion was to open the eyes of the Gentiles, and turn them from darkness to light. Abraham fav Chrift's day, and was glad. Mofes perfevered, as Seeing him who is invifible. David prayed, Open my eyes that I may fee wonders out of thy Law. Our Lord complains, that the heart of unbelievers is waxed gross, that their ears are dull of hearing and that they have clofed their eyes, left they fhould fee with their eyes, underftand with their hearts, and be converted. He counfels the Laodiceans, to anoint their eyes with eye-falve, that they might fee. He declares, that the world cannot receive the Spirit of truth, because it fees him not; that the things, which belong to the peace of obftinate unbelievers, are, at laft, judicially hid from their eyes; and, that the pure in heart fhall fee God. St. John teftifies, that he, who does evil, hath not feen God; and that darkness, hath blinded the eyes of him, that loves not his brother. The Holy Ghoft informs us, that believers look at the things which are not seen, and behold the glory of God, fhining in the face of Jesus Christ. These are the eyes, with which believers fee the falvation of God. They are so distinct from those of the body, that when our Lord opened them in St. Paul's foul, he fuffered fcales to grow over his bodily eyes. And no doubt, when Chrift gave outward fight to the blind, it

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was chiefly to convince the world, that it is he who can fay to blind finners, Receive your fight; fee the goodnefs of the Lord in the land of the living; look unto me and be faved.

2. If you do not admit of a spiritual HEAR ING, what can you make of our Lord's repeated caution, He that hath an ear to hear, let him hear? And what can be the meaning of the following fcriptures-Hear, O foolish people, who have ears and hear not. Ye uncircumcifed in heart and ears. Ye cannot hear my words; ye are of your father the Devil. He, that is of God, heareth, God's words; ye, therefore, hear them not, because ye are not of God? Can it be fuppofed, that our Lord fpake of outward hearing, when he faid, The hour cometh, and now is, that the dead fhall hear the voice of the Son of God and live. My fheep hear my voice. He that hath heard and learned of the Father, cometh unto me? Do not all finners ftand fpiritually in need of Chrift's powerful Ephphatha, Be thou opened? Is that man truly converted, who cannot witnefs with Ifaiah, The Lord hath wakened my ear to hear as the learned; and with the Pfalmift, Mine ears haft thou opened? Had not the believers at Ephefus heard Chrift, and been taught of him? When St. Paul was caught up into the third heaven, did he not hear words unfpeakable? And far from thinking fpiritual hearing abfurd, or impoffible, did he not quef tion, whether he was not then out of the body? And does not St. John pofitively declare, that he was in the Spirit, when he heard Jefus fay, I am the first and the last?

३० 3. How void of meaning are the following

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paffages,

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paffages, if they do not allude to that 'SENSE, which is calculated for the reception of, what the barrenness of human language compels me to call fpiritual perfumes? The fmell of thy ointments is better than all spices. The fmell of thy garments is like the fmell of Lebanon. All thy garments fmell of myrrh, aloes, and caffia; and because of the favour of thy good ointments, thy name is as ointment poured forth.

4. If believers have not a spiritual faculty of TASTING divine things, what delufion muft they be under, when they fay, Chrift's fruit is feet to their tafte; and cry out, How fweet are thy words to my taste! they are fweeter than honey to my mouth? But how juftly can they speak thus, if they have tafted the heavenly gift, and the good word of God, and, as new born babes, defire the fincere milk of it? Surely, if they eat the flesh of the Son of God, drink his blood, and taste that the Lord is gracious, they have at right to teftify, that his love is better than wine and to invite those, that hunger and thirst after righteousness, to taste that the Lord is good, that they alfo may be fatisfied with his goodness mercy, as with marrow and fatnefs.

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5. If we are not to be perfect Stoicks in Reli gion, if we should have one degree more of devotion, than the marble ftatues, which adorn our churches, we fhould have, I think, fome FEELING of our unworthinefs, fome SENSE of God's majefty. Chrift's tender heart was pierced to atone for, and to remove the hardness of ours. God promises to take from us the heart of fone, and to give us an heart of flesh, a broken and contrite heart, the facrifice of which, he will Dd 2

not

not defpife. Good king Jofiah was praifed, be caufe his heart was tender. The converfion of the three thoufand, on the day of pentecoft, began by their being pricked in their heart. We are directed to feel after God, if haply we might find him. Our Lord himfelf is not afhamed to be touched, in heaven, with a feeling of our infirmities. And St. Paul intimates, that the highest degree of obduracy and apoftacy, is to be paft feeling, and to have our confcience feared as with a hot iron.

I hope, Sir, you will not attempt to fet afide fo many plain paffages, by faying, they are unfit to fupport a doctrine, as containing empty metaphors, which amount just to nothing. This would be pouring the greatest contempt on the perfpicuity of the oracles of God, the integrity of the facred writers, and the wifdom of the Holy Ghoft, who infpired them. As certainly as there is a fpiritual life, there are fenfes calculated for the difplay and enjoyment of it; and these senses exift no more in metaphor, than the life, that exerts itself by them. Our Lord fettled the point, when he declared to Nicodemus, that no man can fee the kingdom of God, the kingdom of grace here, and of glory hereafter, except he is firft born of God, born of the Spirit; juft as no child can fee this world, except he is first born of a woman, born of the fleth. Hence it appears, that a regenerate foul hath his fpiritual fenfes opened, and made capa ble of difcerning what belongs to the fpiritual world, as a new born infant hath his natural fenfes unlocked, and begins to fee, hear, and

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