§6. This being premised; what is to be understood by the expreffion of our Lord;-"How much more fhall your "heavenly Father give the Holy Spirit "to them that ask him?" Luke xi. 13. Two obvious points are contained in the words:

1. The GIFT of the Holy Spirit.

2. The PERSONS, to whom the Holy Spirit is given;-namely, to them, that afk this gift of their heavenly Father.

And who, of himself, is fufficient to think or to speak of thefe great things! May my mind therefore be rightly prepared to confider matters of fuch high importance! For this end, lead me, Thou Spirit of Grace, into the wisdom and mercy of thine holy office. Suffer me not to err; for, though but a mean and unworthy witnefs for Thee, I would speak thy truth in love, to the edification of my brethren and of my own foul. Neither fuffer me to fear; but, as a faithful witnefs, give me power in

this cafe to declare thy truth, thy whole truth, and nothing but thy truth, according to thy will and word!

$7. 1. The GIFT of the Holy Spirit. What are we to understand by thefe Words?

Certainly, not the Power of effecting miraculous Operations; for these were only intended, at the time and for a time, to be evidential Demonftrations of the Divine Miffion of our Lord and his Apoftles, or almoft immediate followers, and, of course, have long fince ceased, their purpofe having been fully accomplished. Nor does the Gift of the Holy Spirit imply Vifions, Raptures, or any enthufiaftic Appearances or Impreffions; for thefe can be no Proofs now of Truths already communicated and proved; nor are they promised in the ftandard of truth to any man, because they are no longer neceffary for the establishment of faith, and because the falvation of believers is carried on without them.

The

The Gift of the Spirit, then, muft bet understood agreeably to the declarations made in the Scriptures concerning his Office in the Covenant of Grace; which declarations import all that is neceffary to be known and realized for the converfion, edification, and final happinefs of thofe perfons who are interested in it; or, in other words, the whole Church of God from the beginning to the end of the world. It does not imply or impart any new revelation, but enables the mind to understand and digeft, fo far as is neceffary for each man's particular welfare, the Revelation already given and established, which contains in it the whole plan and accomplishment of human redemption.

Accordingly; we find, that the great. leading objects of this Paraclete, this Promife of the Father, this Sent-one of the Son, this indifpenfable Agent of Salvation, are fuch as thefe;-to enliven, to enlighten, to renew the foul, and to ᏴᏎ . tranflate

tranflate it from the kingdom of darknefs into the kingdom of God's dear Son-to imprefs upon it, as a mean to this end, a deep fenfe of the fpirituality and condemning force of the Holy Law, by which the foul feels its bondage, be-holds its ruin, abhors itself with Job "in duft and aihes," and is made, more or lefs, cuttingly or keenly alive to the horrible nature of fin and to the inborn finfulness of the heart, in all its defires, paffions, and powers. This operation is called in the holy fcriptures a quickening with Chrift, a refurrection from the death of trefpaffes and fins, a new life from the dead; becaufe, till this folemn event paffes upon the foul, it is without true fenfe or knowledge of God, of Chrift, of the Holy Spirit, of its own real ftate and condition, of the deep malignity of fin, of the falfehood and folly of felf-righteoufnefs, and of the purport of the fcriptures, which point out these truths, and which, plain as

they

they are in themselves, are not understood and cannot be understood by the natural man, nor by any man, but as he is taught by the effective and internal energy of the Holy Ghoft. When this first and very effential work is, according to the divine purpose, wrought within the foul, the Holy Spirit carries on his facred office, by prefenting the grace and glory of the Gofpel to the eyes of the mind, and by establishing that principle of life, which is called the new man, the inner man, the new birth, a new creation, &c., and then he enables the foul, through this principle of gracious life, both to receive faith as his free and blessed gift, and to act faith by his influential power; and then afterwards, in the course of faithful acts, humbly and meekly to embrace Chrift in all his offices, for pardon, righteousness, peace, fanctification, and redemption. By the precious gift of this living, or lively, faith in Chrift, the darkness and doubts, always

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