Fourthly, If your obedience spring from Faith, then you §4will endeavour to obey God in the Spirit of the Command, as well as in the letter of the Command. In every Command of God there is an intra, and an extra, one part of Christs Law binds the Flesh, and another part binds the Spirit, Thou shalt do no Murder, 1there is the letter of the Command. Thou shalt not be angry with thy Brother without a cause, there is the Spirit of the Command. Thou shalt not commit Adultery, there is the letter of the Command: Thou shalt not look upon a Woman to lust after her, there is the Spirit of the Command. The Pharisees of old did not look to the Spirituality of the Law, but only to the Letter of the Law; they rested wholly upon an outward conformity to the Law, when their hearts were full of Hellish lusts, they were all for the outside of the Law, they regarded not the inside of the Law; they were all for washing of Platters and Cups, and for beautifying of Tombs, like an Adulteress,2 whose care is to paint, and set a fair face upon a foul matter; they were all for paying Tithe of Mint and Anise and Cummin; but they regarded not the inside of the Law, they omitted the weightier matters of the Law, viz. Judgment, Mercy, and Faith. While Paul walked by the letter of the Command, he was blameless in his own account; but when he came to walk by the Spirit of the Command, then sin revived, and he dyed. Friends, there are the more general duties of Religion, as Hearing, Praying, Reading, Receiving, Fasting, Repeating, Discoursing, &c. Now these all lye in the very letter of the Command, and there are the more inward and spiritual duties of Religion, as the exercise of Faith, fear, love, hope, joy, patience, contentation, humble submission, and choosing of God, and cleaving to God, and delighting in God, and admiring of God, and exalting of God, and following hard after God, and holy Meditation, and Self-examination, &c. Now all these lye in the very spirit of the Command. Now in the exercise of these more spiritual ⟨p. 140⟩duties, our fellowship and communion with God mainly lies. In the more general duties of Religion, an hypocrite may manifest the excellency of his gifts, but in the more spiritual duties of Religion, a sincere Christian doth manifest, both the excellency and efficacy of grace.
Fourthly, If your obedience spring from Faith, then you §4will endeavour to obey God in the Spirit of the Command, as well as in the letter of the Command. In every Command of God there is an intra, and an extra, one part of Christs Law binds the Flesh, and another part binds the Spirit, Thou shalt do no Murther, 1there is the letter of the Command. Thou shalt not be angry with thy Brother without a cause, there is the Spirit of the Command. Thou shalt not commit Adultery, there is the letter of the Command: Thou shalt not look upon a Woman to lust after her, there is the Spirit of the Command. The Pharisees of old did not look to the Spirit•ality of the Law, but only to the Letter of the Law; they rested wholly upon an outward conformity to the Law, when their hearts were full of Hellish lusts, they were all for the outside of the Law, they regarded not the inside of the Law; they were all for washing of Platters and Cups, and for beautifying of Tombs, like an Adulteress,2 whose care is to paint, and set a fair face upon a foul matter; they were all for paying Tythe of Mint and Annise and Cummin; but they regarded not the inside of the Law, they omitted the weightier matters of the Law, viz. Judgment, Mercy, and Faith. While Paul walked by the letter of the Command, he was blameless in his own account; but when he came to walk by the Spirit of the Command, then sin revived, and he dyed. Friends, there are the more general duties of Religion, as Hearing, Praying, Reading, Receiving, Fasting, Repeating, Discoursing, &c. Now these all lye in the very letter of the Command, and there are the more inward and spiritual duties of Religion, as the exercise of Faith, fear, love, hope, joy, patience, contentation, humble submission, and chusing of God, and cleaving to God, and delighting in God, and admiring of God, and exalting of God, and following hard after God, and holy Meditation, and Self-examination, &c. Now all these lye in the very spirit of the Command. Now in the exercise of these more spiritual ⟨p. 140⟩duties, our fellowship and communion with God mainly lyes. In the more general duties of Religion, an hypocrite may manifest the excellency of his gifts, but in the more spiritual duties of Religion, a sincere Christian doth manifest, both the excellency and efficacy of grace.
- 1Matth. 5.21.22. Verse 27, 28.
- 2Matth. 23.23. Phil. 3.6. Rom. 7.9. Could a man come up to all affirmative and negative Precepts in his outward conversation; yet if he were not spiritual in all these, his obedience would be but as a body without a Soul. The Pharisees rise high in their outward obedience, and yet Christ clearly and fully convinces them, that they were wretched Adulterers and Murderers, though they were not guilty of any such outward crimes, &c.
