The Nature, Power, Deceit, and Prevalency of Indwelling Sin

and yet what prevalency this Law of sin wrought in and over them, we see. And there is no end of the like examples; they are all set up as Buoys to discover unto us the Sands, the Shelves, the Rocks, whereupon they made their shipwreck, to their hazard, danger, loss, yea and would have done to their ruin, had not God been pleased in his faithfulness graciously to prevent it. And this is the first par• of this Evidence of the power of sin, from its effects.

and yet what prevalency this Law of sin wrought in and over them, we see. And there is no end of the like examples; they are all set up as Buoys to discover unto us the Sands, the Shelves, the Rocks, whereupon they made their shipwrack, to their hazard, danger, loss, yea and would have done to their ruine, had not God been pleased in his faithfulness graciously to prevent it. And this is the first par• of this Evidence of the power of sin, from its effects.

Secondly, It manifests its power in the habitua• declensions from zeal & holiness, from the frame▪ state and condition of Obedience and Communion with God, whereunto they had attained, which are found in many Believers. Promises of growth and improvement are many, and precious; th• Means excellent and effectual; the benefits great and unspeakable: Yet it often falls out, that instead hereof, decays and declensions are found upon Professors, yea in and upon many of th• Saints of God. Now whereas this must nee• principally and chiefly be from the strength an• efficacy of indwelling sin, and is therefore a great ⟨p. 225⟩evidence thereof; I shall first evince the Observation it self to be true; namely, That some of the Saints themselves do oftentimes so decline from that growth & pimrovement in faith, grace, & holiness which might justly be expected from them; and then show that the cause of this evil lies in that, that we are treating of. And that it is the cause of total Apostasy in unsound Professors, shall be after declared. But this is a greater work which we have in hand. The prevailing upon true Believers unto a sinful declension & gradual Apostasy, requires a putting forth of more strength and efficacy, than the prevailing upon unsound Professors unto total Apostasy. As the wind which will blow down a dead tree that hath no root, to the ground, will scarcely shake or bow a living well-rooted tree. But this it will do. There is mention made in the Scripture of the First ways of David, and they are commended above his later,