The excellency of a gracious spirit Delivered in a treatise upon the 14. of…The excellency of a gracious spirit Deliuered in a treatise upon the 14. of…

Secondly, these spiritual excellencies are the beginnings of eternal ¹life, the same life we shall have in heaven: and hence the work of Gods Spirit in the soul, is called, The Earnest of the Spirit; not a pawn, but an Earnest: for a pawn is to be returned again, but an Earnest is part of the whole sum that is to follow. That which we have of Gods Spirit, is part of the same glory we shall ⟨p. 87⟩have fully in heaven; it is not only an evidence unto us that there is glory coming, but it is a beginning of the glory, the fullness whereof is to come afterward. Such a spirit as hath this life, lives a life far above the common life of the world, even the life of heaven, the same life that Angels and Saints do live in heaven, the life of those blessed spirits there. We mistake if we think eternal life is only in heaven; eternal life is in this world, in the excellent frame of the spirits of Gods servants, 1 John 3. 15. Life is the chief excellency communicated to the Creature, and the highest life, the highest excellency. There is more distance between the excellency of the meanest, weakest godly man in the world, and the most eminent man for parts & common gifts only, than between the meanest and weakest godly soul, and the most eminent glorified Saint in the highest heavens; the weakest godly man excels him that is most eminent in common gifts, more than ⟨p. 88⟩the most eminent Saint in heaven excels him: for the glorified Saint is only higher in some degrees in the same excellency, which in the principles, yea, and in some lustre, the meanest Saint on earth hath; he hath that which will at last grow up to heavens glory: but the distance between him, and the man who only hath the excellencies of parts, learning, common gifts, it is essential: All parts and common gifts in the world can never grow up to this.

Secondly, these spirituall excellencies are the beginnings of eternall ¹lise, the same life we shall have in heaven: and hence the work of Gods Spirit in the soule, is called, The Earnest of the Spirit; not a pawne, but an Earnest: for a pawne is to be returned againe, but an Earnest is part of the whole summe that is to follow. That which we have of Gods Spirit, is part of the same glory we shall