The life of faith in three parts, the first is a sermon on Heb.…

2. Remember that it is a practical and heavenly doctrine ⟨p. 88⟩which you are to learn: It is the Art of loving God, and being happy in his love. And therefore a worldly, sensual, vicious soul, must needs be under very great disadvantage for the receiving of such a kind of Truths. Do not therefore impute that to the doubtfulness of the Doctrine, which is but the effect of the enmity and incapacity of your minds: How can he presently relish the spiritual and heavenly doctrine of the Gospel, who is drowned in the love and care of contrary things? Such men receive not the things of the Spirit: They seem to them both foolishness and undesirable.

2. Remember that it is a practical and heavenly doctrine ⟨p. 88⟩which you are to learn: It is the Art of loving God, and being happy in his love. And therefore a worldly, sensual, vicious soul, must needs be under very great disadvantage for the receiving of such a kind of Truths. Do not therefore impute that to the doubtfulness of the Doctrine, which is but the effect of the enmity and incapacity of your minds: How can he presently rellish the spiritual and heavenly doctrine of the Gospel, who is drowned in the love and care of contrary things? Such men receive not the things of the Spirit: They seem to them both foolishness and undesirable.

3. Think not that the history of things done so long ago, and so far off, should have no more obscurities, nor be liable to any more Objections, than of that which was done in the time and Country where you live. Nor yet that things done in the presence of others, and words spoken in their hearing only, should be known to you otherwise than by historical evidence, (unless every Revelation to others, must have a new Revelation to bring it to each individual person in the world.) And think not that he who is a stranger to all other helps of Church-history, should be as well able to understand the Scripture-history, as those that have those other helps.