A53712:410
The Nature, Power, Deceit, and Prevalency of Indwelling Sin
The nature, power, deceit, and prevalency of the remainders of indwelling-sin in believers together with the ways of its working and means of prevention opened, evinced, and applied with a resolution of sundry cases of conscience thereunto appertaining.The nature, power, deceit, and prevalency of the remainders of indwelling-sin in believers together with the wayes of its working and means of prevention opened, evinced, and applyed with a resolution of sundry cases of conscience thereunto appertaining.
London: printed for Thomas Cockerill, 1675
Modern spelling is a reading aid: the words are the author’s, only the spelling is modernized. Original shows the page as printed, with the transcription marks.
Secondly, And these very men, fell not into their great sins at the beginning of their profession, when they had had but little experience of the goodness of God, of the sweetness and pleasantness of Obedience, of the power and craft of sin, of its impulsions, solicitations and surprisals, but after a long course of walking with God, and acquaintance with all these things; together with ⟨p. 222⟩innumerable motives unto watchfulness. Noah according to the lives of men in those days of the World, had walked uprightly with God some hundreds of years before he was so surprised as he was, Gen. 9. Righteous Lot seems to have been towards the end of his days, ere he defiled himself with the abominations recorded. David in a short Life, had as much experience of Grace and Sin, and as much close spiritual Communion with God as ever had any of the Sons of men, before he was cast to the ground by this Law of sin. So was it with Hezekiah in his degree, which was none of the meanest. Now to set upon such persons, so well acquainted with its power and deceit, so armed and provided against it, that had been conquerors over it for so many years, and to prevail against them, it argues a power and efficacy too mighty for every thing but the spirit of the Almighty to withstand. Who can look to have a greater stock of Inherent Grace than those men had; to have more experience of God, and the excellency of his ways, the sweetness of his love, and of communion with him than they had; who hath either better furniture to oppose sin withal, or more obligation so to do, than they? and yet we see how fearfully they were prevailed against.
Secondly, And these very men, fell not into their great sins at the beginning of their profession, when they had had but little experience of the goodness of God, of the sweetness and pleasantness of Obedience, of the power and craft of sin, of its impulsions, solicitations and surprizals, but after a long course of walking with God, and acquaintance with all these things; together with ⟨p. 222⟩innumerable motives unto watchfulness. Noah according to the lives of men in those dayes of the World, had walked uprightly with God some hundreds of years before he was so surprised as he was,