The Grace and Duty of Being Spiritually Minded

(2) This Frame of Mind casts out all Principles, and Causes of Trouble and Disquietment, which are inconsistent with Life and Peace. There are in us by nature Principles of Contrariety and Opposition unto Spiritual Life and Peace, with sundry things, whose Abode and Prevalency in us, is inconsistent with them. I shall give only one or two Instances hereof.

(1) It will cast out all Filthiness and Superfluity of naughtiness from our Minds. Without this, we can receive no Benefit by the means of Grace, nor perform any Duty in a right manner, Jam. 1.27. This is that which stands in direct immediate Opposition and Contrariety unto our being spiritually Minded, so as they can have no Consistency in the ⟨p. 329⟩same Person. And they Expel on another like heat and Cold. And where there is this Filthiness and Superfluity of Naughtiness, there is neither Life nor Peace. Unclean Lusts of the Flesh, or of the Spirit, working, tumultuating, acting themselves in the Minds of Men, will not suffer either the Life of Holiness to flourish in them, or any solid Peace to abide with them. The Soul is weakened by them as unto all Spiritual Actings, and made like a troubled Sea that cannot rest, whose Waters cast up mire and dirt. Where they are absolutely predominant, there is an Hell within, of Darkness, Confusion and Enmity against God, preparing men for an Hell of Punishment without unto Eternity. And according as they remain, or have any Prevalency in us, so are Spiritual Life and Peace impaired and obstructed by them. Now the very nature of this Grace and its universal Exercise is suited to the casting out of all the Relics of this Filthiness and Superfluity of Naughtiness. It brings in a Principle into the Mind directly contrary unto that from whence they do proceed. All the Actings of it, which we have described, lie in direct tendency unto the Extirpation of these Causes of Filthiness which ruin Life and Peace; nor will they by any other way be cast out. If the Mind be not Spiritual, it will be carnal; if it mind not Things above, it will not fix it self inordinately on things below.