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this, viz. the death and destruction of sin, and the improving the whole man for the service of God; though in many things we may fail, and sometimes by our indwelling enemy, be put to the worst, yet if this be our bent, inclination, sincere desire and endeavor, it will be accepted of God, and we shall be accounted by him, as such as do keep under the body of sin, and bring it into subjection. And thus of the first thing proposed to be spoken to; we pass to the second.

II. We shall endeavor to show, how this keeping under the body of sin is necessary in order to the fighting to purpose in the spiritual war; and here, if we lay these two or three considerations together, it will sufficiently appear.

1. Every one that fights to purpose in this spiritual war, hath given up himself to Christ, he hath listed himself under him, he is engaged to fight under his command and conduct; he is to march and follow him in the spiritual warfare. Christ is their captain, and they are his soldiers; "God hath given Christ to be a witness to the people, a leader and commander to the people." Isa. lv. 4. A leader to go before them as their prince and captain, and a commander to give them laws and rules for their obedience. And every one that is indeed engaged in this spiritual war, have listed themselves under the Lord Jesus Christ, to follow him as their leader, and to observe his laws and rules as their great commander, and are willing to follow him whithersoever he goes, and to subscribe all the articles and terms that he shall propose unto them.

2. Hence every such man is under the greatest obligation to endeavor the keeping under the body of sin, and bringing it into subjection. This is the command of Christ; yea this was the very end of the death of Christ: rather than sin should not die, Christ himself became obedient unto death. Now our very baptism doth oblige us unto this, to fight against sin to the very death of it. If that be sacramentum militare, then every one that hath taken that oath, that hath received that press-money, and yet is in friendship with sin, and doth not endeavor the death and destruction thereof, he is proditor militiæ, a flyer from his colors, and runs into the enemies' camp. But when we grow up, and actually give up ourselves unto the Lord Jesus Christ, if we are sincere in our engaging ourselves to serve him; though we are not free from the assaults of sin, yet we resist it steadfastly; yea, we have in some measure and degree mortified and subdued it; it is an inseparable character of those that are Christ's, Gal. v. 24. "That they have crucified the flesh with the affections and lusts."

3. The body of sin if it be not kept under, and brought into

subjection, will hinder from a faithful serving of Christ: Fleshly lusts are pernicious enemies. Well might he say,

Inimicorum nequissimum carnem meam.

His flesh was the worst enemy in the world.

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This enemy is always present with us, it encamps in us, round about us, and doth "most easily beset us," Heb. xii. 1. It lies in ambush behind, and in the midst of all our lawful affairs and employments. Yea, it frequently starts out upon us, and surpriseth us in our best duties and performances; "when we would do good this is present with us (Rom. vii. 21.) to impede and hinder us. It is adjacent and always at hand to oppose and hinder us in all our intercourse and correspondence with Heaven. So that unless we resist steadfastly, and endeavor to bring it under, it will captivate us, imprison us, and lay such weights and fetters upon us, by reason of which we shall be utterly unable, "to walk at liberty and seek God's precepts." Ps. cxix. 45.

4. A man is exposed to all the assaults of Satan and other enemies, as long as he doth not endeavor to keep under the body of sin, and bring it into subjection. In vain do we pretend to maintain a war with enemies abroad, if so be we are at peace with them at home; we lie open like a prey to our enemies without, if we do not see to it, that we keep under those that are within. The wise man tells us, Prov. xxv. 28, that "he that hath no rule over his own spirit, is like a city that is broken down and without walls;" That man whose spirit, i. e. his passions and unruly affections, be not kept under, and brought into order, that man is like Hazor, which had neither gates, nor bars to keep enemies out. Jer. xlix. 31. He lies open to all the assaults and temptations of the devil and the world; innumerable are the dangers and mischiefs that such an one is exposed to. And since sin let alone doth so expose us; it concerns us to endeavor our own safety and security, to do what in us lies to obviate the danger, which by it we are obnoxious unto, and that by using all good means that it may be kept under, and subdued in us.

5. There can be no obtaining a crown of glory (which is the reward through grace of fighting to purpose in this spiritual war) unless there be an endeavoring to keep under the body of sin, and bring it in subjection. Only those will be found to have fought to purpose, who shall obtain the crown. The apostle exhorts Timothy, 1 Tim. vi. 12. "Fight the good fight of faith, lay hold of eternal life;" get a good title to that, then do we fight the good fight to purpose; and hence the same apostle, speaks concerning himself, 2 Tim. iv. 7, 8. "I have fought a good fight, henceforth there is laid up for me a crown of righteousness." And only those shall have this crown, as a gracious reward of their fighting the

good fight, who have maintained a war with sin, and have endeavored the death and destruction of that. It is most certain, there are but two sorts of men in the world, there are no neutrals, no middle state: Every man is either under the rule and government of the Lord Jesus Christ, or else he is under the command of the devil, his greatest enemy; he hath either listed himself under Christ's banner, or else he is a soldier in the devil's regiment. He therefore that willingly serves his lusts, and is in friendship with them; yea, that doth not endeavor the death and destruction of them, is an enemy to Christ, refuseth his service and shall such an one ever share in the glorious reward, which they have conferred upon them who are faithful? No, instead of the reward of a friend, such an one shall have the punishment of an enemy. Luke xix. 27. "Those my enemies that would not that I should rule over them, bring them hither, and slay them before me." This is all the crown they shall experience: And therefore,

6. Those that do not endeavor to keep under the body of sin, and bring it into subjection, shall most certainly perish and be destroyed. If we do not endeavor to keep under our body of sin, and bring it into subjection, it will in a sense destroy us here in this world; for it not being subdued, will grow outrageous and foil us before God, angels and men: it will bring us into scandals, and expose us to open shame. How many hath it served thus, who have indeed belonged unto the Lord Jesus Christ? when they have let sin alone, and have discontinued the exercise of the mortification of it: we may see it in David, Solomon and others: this enemy hath cast down many wounded, yea many strong men in this sense have been slain by it. But that which is the dreadful consequent and effect of not keeping under the body of sin, and bringing it into subjection, is the perdition and destruction that it exposes to in the world to come. This war with sin, will terminate in nothing short of the death of one of the parties engaged in it. If we are not the death of our lusts and corruptions, they will most certainly be the death of us, of our souls: if we are conquered by them, and brought into subjection to them, we shall have no other stipend and pay for our service, but death. Rom. vi. 23. Our great Captain will not spare any man that spares any of his sins. God hath appointed every lust to death, they are all men of death by his appointment; and whosoever spares them, or lets them go, his life must go for theirs. As it was said to him, 1 Kings xx. 42. "Because thou hast let go out of thine hand a man whom I appointed to utter destruction, therefore shall thy life go for his life." We must therefore vanquish by endeavoring the subjection of sin, or else we shall be overcome by that, and must die ourselves. So that laying these things together, it is very evident and clear, that those that would fight to purpose in this spiritual war, must endeavor to

keep under and bring into subjection, all those carnal lusts and affections, which they have warring in them. And thus of the two first things proposed briefly to be touched upon : We come

to the third and last, which is the

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Let every one that would fight to purpose in the spiritual war, endeavor to keep under their body of sin, and bring it into subjection. If so be we had no lusts warring in us and against us, there would be no need of such an exhortation; but since we have, a necessity lies upon us to suffer it and attend it, and wo unto us if we do not. We read concerning Moses, Exod. ii. 11, 12. "That when he spied an Egyptian smiting an Hebrew, one of his brethren, he slew the Egyptian." There are, if I may term them so, Egyptian lusts within us, which ever and anon smite our souls, which are nearer friends to us than a brother: they are our darlings, our all; whenever therefore we espy these cruel taskmasters, (they would be so,) smiting our spiritual part, we must encounter them, and endeavor to slay them. To animate and encourage us hereto, I shall lay down but two particulars, unto which I shall subjoin two or three words by way of direction, and so conclude.

Motive 1. This combat after a while, you may hope, will not be irksome and tedious, but pleasant and delightful. Sinners that are overcome and led captive by their lusts, they count that captivity their greatest satisfaction, and most pleasant life; they like their service, love their master, and are unwilling to go out free; they think they must change Naomi for Marah, and therefore when called upon hereto, are ready to say with the olive-tree and fig-tree, Judges ix. 9, 11. "Should I leave my fatness, should I forsake my sweetness and good fruit?" should I leave the pleasures that I enjoy in walking in the way of mine heart, and the sight of my own eyes, to mourn, to fast, to live a strict life of mortification? This they cannot tell how to comply with. Well, but give me leave to tell you, as to this warfare, you are under a mistake: You are not called to quit your pleasures, only to change the objects of them, and that every way for your profit and advantage; to leave those that are low and base for them that are high and noble; sensual delights, for spiritual delights, the satisfactions of swine, for those of angels; and therefore if pleasures and delights will charm you, or have any influence upon you, I will assure you, that here in this warfare you may enjoy those that are rational and heavenly; whereas as long as you continue slaves to your lusts, you may enjoy only those that are base and filthy

delights of a beast, yea, of a devil. Believe it, you will find one hour spent in prayer, mourning for sin, and secret communion with God, better than many spent in the service of sin, and those lusts that sinners are wont to indulge themselves in; so that though the beginning of this encountering the body of sin may be hard, it will be easy after a while, and at length very pleasant.

Motive 2. The victory is certain, and also most signal and glorious. This is that which encourages a soldier to be valiant, the hope of victory; and this is the privilege of the Christian soldier, that he shall most certainly have victory. He is not left at uncertainty, to the chance of war, wherein the victory in battle is not always to the strong but a Christian may know and be assured, that he shall overcome and obtain the victory. The issue of the war is revealed, and made known to us by Christ in his word as sin, Satan, death and hell, could not conquer our Lord Jesus Christ, the captain himself, so neither shall any of them be able to conquer his soldiers. A Christian may sometimes be foiled, and seem to be beaten back, but yet he shall recover himself again; though he fall yet he shall rise again: It may be said of him, as of Gad, Gen. xlix. 19. "Though a troop may overcome him, yet he shall overcome at last." And as this victory is most certain, so it is most signal and glorious; the victory itself is most signal and glorious, and so is the reward of it. The victory itself is so, it is a greater conquest than to be conqueror of the world; for some that have been conquerors of the world, have yet been taken captives by their own lusts and affections, Prov. xvi. 32. "He that is slow to anger is better than the mighty, and he that ruleth his spirit, than he that taketh a city:" he that ruleth his spirit is better and more victorious and more glorious. This is the noblest and most signal victory, and the reward also is most signal and glorious, it being no less than a crown, not of silver or gold, but of eternal life; if we through the grace and assistances of the Spirit, do kill and put to death the deeds of the body, we shall live eternally. Rom. viii. 13. Let then the consideration hereof encourage us to our duty. For direction take a few particulars briefly.

Direction 1. Begin with this enemy betimes; crush it in the first motions of it, it is easiest overcoming at the first. Warriors are wont to set upon their enemies, where they find them feeblest; so we should set upon sin before it get head, and if we do, before it get too much hold upon our faculties, or break forth by outward acts, we may more easily subdue it, and hold it under, as a slave and vassal. These lions, we may more easily conquer and tame if we set upon them while they are whelps; whereas if we let them grow up, as in a little time they will, to be savage beasts,

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