Precious faith considered in its nature, working, and growth

In the Affections there is a Divine spark, which makes them aspire and elevate towards Heavenly things, whilst the earthly part clogs and presses them downwards. In a word, Grace is spread all over the Soul, as the Israelites were over Canaan, to drive out the old inhabitant, the corruption in every faculty. In the Natural Conflict, Man walks in his own Circle, the only design is for the, Kingdom of Reason; and which is the common blast upon Morality, nothing is done in ordine ad Deum. In the Spiritual Conflict, the aim is all for God and Christ, that their Throne may be in the Heart, and all their enemies there, may be made their footstool. Thus Grace, ushered into the Soul by Faith, doth by little and little work out and extirpate Sin; as the day breaks upon the Heart, darkness goes off; as Holiness flows in, Corruption departs; the more of Heaven is there, the less of Earth.

In the Affections there is a Divine spark, which makes them aspire and elevate towards Heavenly things, whilest the earthly part clogs and presses them downwards. In a word, Grace is spread all over the Soul, as the Israelites were over Canaan, to drive out the old inhabitant, the corruption in every faculty. In the Natural Conflict, Man walks in his own Circle, the only desigu is for the, Kingdom of Reason; and which is the common blast upon Morality, nothing is done in ordine ad Deum. In the Spiritual Conflict, the aim is all for God and Christ, that their Throne may be in the Heart, and all their enemies there, may be made their footstool. Thus Grace, ushered into the Soul by Faith, doth by little and little work out and extirpate Sin; as the day breaks upon the Heart, darkness goes off; as Holiness flows in, Corruption departs; the more of Heaven is there, the less of Earth.

Thirdly, Faith discovers the great evil of Original Sin, and so raises up an hatred against it, and hatred is a murderer, and would, if it ⟨p. 264⟩could, annihilate its opposite; Faith shows it to be an All-evil, a Mother of abominations. Some particular Sins are such monsters in Morality, that when viewed only in the light of Nature, they appear very odious; such was the cruelty of Nero, Effeminacy of Sardanapalus, and the like; much more odious, when inspected by the light of Faith, must that appear which is All-sin in one, a [Greek or Hebrew], or universal Seminary of iniquity. Anthony holding Caesars bloody Coat up to the People, moved them against the Conspirators; Faith holding up the Murders, Adulteries, Blasphemies, Villainies in the World, unto the Believers eyes, stirs his Heart against the venomous root of all these. Faith shows it to be an universal evil, all over the Soul, breaking forth like the boils of Egypt, upon man and upon beast, upon the intellective and sensitive faculties, and all over the Believers duties; lying as the locusts there upon every herb and green thing, upon the verdure and glory of every good work; it is a blemish in the Believers eye, a plague in his Heart, an ataxy in his Affections, a damp on his Prayers, a cooler to his Charity and Zeal, and a dead fly in all the precious Ointment of his duties and good works. Faith shows it to be an utter enemy to God, Antichrist-like, opposing every appearance of him in the Heart, quenching every good motion, trampling on every holy beam, slighting at the two great periods of Mankind, Heaven and Hell; and jeering at that holiness and iniquity which lead