The sound believer. A treatise of evangelical conversion. Discovering the work of Christ's spirit,…

If Christ were present upon Earth, the Soul (not the Body) only could truly receive him; Christ comes to the Elect only by his Spirit, and hence on Spirits only are fit to receive him and close with him. Thousands hear Christ outwardly, that inwardly a• ⟨p. 131⟩deaf to all God's Calls, their Spirits see not, taste not, feel not; it is therefore the Soul that is the Subject of Faith: And, I say, it is an humble empty Soul which is the Subject; for a full, proud, broken Spirit cannot, nay, will not, receive Christ, as we have proved; and therefore Luke 14. the Servant is commanded to bid the poor, halt, and blind, and Lame to come in; they would not make Excuses as others did: They that were stung to Death with fiery Serpents, were the only Men that the brazen Serpent was lifted up for them to look upon, and to be healed, John 3.14. And therefore the Promise doth run, If any Man lack Wisdom, let him ask it, but if any Man want Wisdom, Jam. 1.5. so if any Man want Light, want Life, want Peace, Pardon, want Christ and his Spirit, let them ask, and the Lord will give, away with your Money if you come to these Waters to buy, and take freely: If any Man would be wise, let him be a Fool, (saith the blessed Apostle) an empty Nothing: A Soul in a perishing, helpless, hopeless Condition, is the Subject of Faith; such only feel their Need of Christ, are glad at the Offer of Christ, and therefore such only can and will receive Christ, and come unto Christ by Faith: And truly if we had but Hearts, the Consideration of this might be Ground of great Comfort and Confidence unto all God's People, whose Souls come unto Jesus Christ; for that which was in Thomas, John 21. is in all Men naturally, if we could see Christ with our Eyes, and feel him with our Hands, and embrace him (as Mary did) with our Arms, if we could hear himself speak, we could then believe as they said, if he will come from the Cross, so we say, if he will come down from Heaven thus unto us, we will then believe; if we want this, we fear we may be at last deceived, because ⟨p. 132⟩