A second volume of discourses or sermons on several scriptures

Secondly,¹ Therefore doth God suffer sinful inclinations to remain in the best Christians, that he might have wherewithal continually to exercise the Graces of his People. Some Graces are Graces of War if I may so call them, which would never be exercised if we had not Enemies to encounter with; and therefore as it is said in Judges 3.2. That God would not utterly drive out all the Nations before the Children of Israel, but left some of them among them, that by continual combating and fighting with them, they might learn War; so neither hath God utterly expelled the Spiritual Canaanites out of the hearts of his People, to this end, that by daily conflicting with them, they might learn the Wars of the Lord, and might grow expert in the handling and using every piece of their Spiritual and Christian Armour; how should we keep up a holy Watch and Ward, if we had no Enemies to beat up our quarters? and how should we exercise Faith, which S. John tells us is our victory, if we had no Enemies to conquer? and how should we exercise Repentance and godly Sorrow, whereby the Soul is recruited, and whereby its ⟨p. 232⟩Graces are reinforced again, if so be we were never foiled nor overcome by ou• Spiritual Enemies; part of our Spiritual Armour would soon rust, but that ou• corruptions and sinful inclinations put u• daily upon a necessity of using of them shortly when we come to Heaven, we shall have no need nor use of these Graces, there we shall be out of the reach o• all Enemies; and therefore God is resolved to exercise these Graces here, and therefore he suffers corruption to abide in this life, that so Grace making way thorough this corruption may enter into Heaven, where it shall for ever rest and triumph; these warring Graces of the Saints, have no time nor place to be exercised in, but only in this life; and because God will have all the parts of holiness have their due exercise, therefore hath he left these corruptions in the Soul that their warring Graces might have Enemies to encounter with.

Secondly,