A92141:1437
Influences of the life of grace
Influences of the life of grace. Or, A practical treatise concerning the way, manner, and means of having and improving of spiritual dispositions, and quickening influences from Christ the resurrection and the life. By Samuel Rutherfurd, Professor of Divinity in the University of St. Andrews in Scotland.Influences of the life of grace. Or, A practical treatise concerning the way, manner, and means of having and improving of spiritual dispositions, and quickning influences from Christ the resurrection and the life. By Samuel Rutherfurd, Professor of Divinity in the Vniversity of St. Andrews in Scotland.
London: printed by T.C. for Andrew Crook, 1659
Title page typeset from the transcription.
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.
so here faith makes a fair wind, Luke 11. 9, 10, 11, 12, 13. It is not so in nature, the husbandmans natural faith, that it shall be a sweet, warm, fruitful Summer, makes not a fruitful Summer: The Sea-mans natural faith, believing fair winds, and no storms at all, makes it not to be so; for often faith here is but fancy, but faith acting daily upon the precious promises of the word, brings strong gales, and summer-influences of heart warmness of the Spirit, and in a manner creates new blowings of the North and South-wind, fainting under the breathings and knockings of the Spirit of Christ, makes him withdraw, Cant. 5. 2, 6. Here unbelief binds up the wind and breathings of the spirit, as it doth the mighty actings of Christ, Mat. 13. An unbeliever, as touching his state is a Pagan, and doth the holy spirit dwell in an Heathen? Lively hope (for there is a dead and withered hope) is no less a fruit of the spirit then faith. This is a ⟨p. 421⟩specific difference between an unconverted Pagan who wants the spirit, and a convert who hath the spirit. The former is one who has no hope, and so is without God, and without Christ, and without the Spirit of God in the world, and so is not capable of influences, Ephes. 2. 12, 13, 14. and one whom the Lord according to his abundant mercy hath begotten again unto a lively hope by the resurrection of Jesus Christ from the dead, 1 Pet. 1. 3. For in such a man there be many actings of the Spirit. As Faith. 2. Perseverance therein, v. 4, 5. Rejoicing in God, v. 6. Patient believing in the furnace, v. 7. Love, v. 8. all which are fruits of the spirit,1 Gal. 5. 22. And hope under deadness spreads abroad the sails, and hoises them up to receive and gather in the wind: it brings home influences of grace to lie at the tide and wait until the wind blow sweetly and fairly from the Spirits earth. Hope is the onwaiter, expecting showers of influences in the conscionable using of the means. The hope of him who purifies not himself,