The real Christian, or, A treatise of effectual calling wherein the work of God…

I wonder that Mr. Shepherd, being not only a very holy man, but so able a Divine, should let such a Logical fault slip, and not take notice of it; if you ask what? Ignoratio Elenchi: I pray, what is our question? What is the Head that now he is upon? It is the Souls humiliation and preparation for Christ: he is not come at Faith yet in Christ till the Soul comes to this. Hence Mr. Hooker tells us, p. 145. Before this no Faith can be infused into the Soul: so far as the heart is from this contentedness, to be at Gods dispose [what that is, read p. 112, 140.] so far it is from true preparation for Christ. Here Mr. Shepherd gives us the experiences of Christians who were ever comforted now, and never comforted till now: So again; now they come to have the sense of his Love: this he hath seen constantly, he saith. But, I pray are comforts and the sense of Gods love the same? the next things to preparation for Christ? I thought (and I am sure so thought Mr Shepherd) that between preparation and comfort, union with Christ (the ground of comfort) should have come in: Is it because you are weary and laden, therefore, Rest? ¹Coming to Christ comes in between weariness and rest. But Mr. Shepherd, if he will prove his question by experiences which he hath constantly seen, must prove, that he ever saw Christians were rightly prepared for Christ, and never rightly prepared for Christ till they came to this contentedness, to be damned if God will have it so: But his experiences tell us of comforts, and sense of Gods love: So true it is that, ⟨p. 126⟩— Quandoque bonus dormitat Homerus. We know it is a long time indeed before many Christians attain to comforts and sense of Gods love, after they have union with Christ, and that is more then preparation for Christ. Reverend Mr. Hooker, and Mr. Shepherd, would have done well to have satisfied the Church of Christ, whether in their own experiences upon their own hearts, they found this work they preach to others, and were assured of it, upon infallible grounds, they had no Grace till then. I knew a woman of Mr. Shepherd's Church, who told me, as Mr. Shepherd writes, that she could never come to settled comfort, till she came thus to be content without Gods love, (no doubt but a man may trust his heart when it tells him so:) I knew the woman several years before as good a Christian as when she told me this:

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