Precious faith considered in its nature, working, and growth

Fourthly, Faith, so far as it is acted, though it make not a total riddance of it, doth yet imprison it, that it cannot go at large and riot in scandalous Sins. No, nor steal out in an evil thought, but it will be arrested in its passage to the Will for a consent; as it was Gods caution, beware that there be not a thought in thy Belial-heart against Charity, Deut. 15.9. So it is Faiths endeavour to stop corruption even in a thought; the flesh is still a lusting, and would have one piece of forbidden fruit or other in its mouth; but Faith opposes, and would, if it could, leave nothing of it to breath in the Believer: This is that the Scripture calls, The crucifying of the old man; Faith arraigns the old man as the Arch-malefactor in the World, condemns him as worthy to die; strips him of his veils and false coverings, and by ⟨p. 266⟩holy restraints nails him to the Cross, that unless in a slumber of Faith, he cannot move or stir himself, but dies away by little and little. As the light of Nature, being imprisoned in unrighteousness, as the Apostle speaks, Rom. 1.18, is every day exhausted and weakened; so the corruption of Nature being thus restrained by Faith, gradually loses its life and vigour. Martinus Polonus tells of a terrible Dragon at Rome, who killed many daily with his poisonous breath, but was at last shut up with Brazen gates through the Prayers of Sylvester Bishop there. Were this Fable true, Faith doth a nobler work in restraining the inward Serpent of corruption, whose deadly poison hath spread it self over all Men, and is eternally fatal to all but Believers.

Fourthly, Faith, so far as it is acted, though it make not a total riddance of it, doth yet imprison it, that it cannot go at large and riot in scandalous Sins. No, nor steal out in an evil thought, but it will be arrested in its passage to the Will for a consent; as it was Gods caution, beware that there be not a thought in thy Belial-heart against Charity, Deut. 15.9. So it is Faiths endeavour to stop corruption even in a thought; the flesh is still a lusting, and would have one piece of forbidden fruit or other in its mouth; but Faith opposes, and would, if it could, leave nothing of it to breath in the Believer: This is that the Scripture calls, The crucifying of the old man; Faith arraigns the old man as the Arch-malefactor in the World, condemns him as worthy to die; strips him of his veils and false coverings, and by