thus we are built up an "habitation of God through the Spirit: If any man open unto me, I will come in, and will Tup with him, and he with me."

[5.] Being come into the heart, he repairs the breaches and ruins that had been made upon it by fin and Satan while in their poffeffion; he proceeds to garnish and deck his dwelling-place with his own furniture, fo that the foul which had lien among the pots, becomes" as the wings of a dove covered with filver, and her feathers with yellow gold ;" and like the "King's daughter, all glorious within," Pfal. lxviii. 13. and xlv. 13.

[6.] Satan and fin and felf being dethroned, a new government is erected, Chrift is fet up and proclaimed King; his laws intimate, and not only intimate, but, as I faid before, written and engraven on the heart, as with a pen of iron. The law of faith to be believed, and the law of commandments to be obeyed, as the only rule of life, unto every one of which the foul fays, Amen. O this and that, and the other precept or promife," is a faithful faying, worthy of all acceptation," 1 Tim. i. 15.

" ever

[7] The foul being thus conquered and captivated to the obedience of Chrift, is admitted to new privileges and immunities, fome of which are prefently poffeffed, and others fecured by the oath of God and his gracious promife. Sin is prefently pardoned, its debt paid, and all former obligations to wrath cancelled, "I, even I am he that blotteth out thy tranfgreffions, for mine own fake." The man's perfon is accepted by virtue of his union with Chrift, the Lord our Righteoufnefs: Eph. i. 6. "He hath made us accepted in the beloved :" He has a new name given him; formerly his name was a child of the devil, a tranfgreflor from the womb; but now he gets the new name of a fon, a child of God, and this is an lafting name, that fhall never be cut off," If. lvi. 5. "As many as received him, to them gave he power to become the fons of God;" he becomes an heir of the kingdom, "If fons, then heirs, heirs of God, and joint heirs with Chrift." Now God fays to the man, "All are yours, and ye are Christ's, and Chrift is God's: He is admitted to fellowship and communion with God Father, Son, and Holy Ghoft; "I will fup with him, and he with me" The Lord fays to the man, "Eat, O friend, drink, yea, drink abundantly, Ó beloved." The foul is brought into the banquetting houfe, and God's banner over it is love," and it can fay in fome meafure, "Now verily my fellowship is with the Father, and with the Son Chrift Jelus:" A royal guard is fet about the foul, the guard of the divine attributes, and a guard of angels for his defence, "As the

mountains

mountains are round about Jerufalem, fo the Lord is about that foul; henceforth, even for ever, the angel of the Lord encampeth round about them that fear him :" He has the earneft and pledge of the inheritance of glory given him, "In whom also, after that ye believed, ye were fealed with the holy Spirit of promife, which is the carneft of our inheritance."

[8.] War (as you heard) is proclaimed against all other lords and lovers, but Chrift himself, and they treated as ufurpers and invaders of his kingdom and privileges: "Do not I hate them, O Lord, that hate thee? and am not I grieved with those that rise up against thee? I hate them with perfect hatred; I count them mine enemies." And thus Chrift, as a glorious Conqueror, having got poffeffion, he keeps poffeflion of the heart and foul to the very end, faying, "I will never leave thee nor forfake thee; be thou confident of this very thing, that he which hath begun a good work in thee, will perform it until the day of Jefus Chrift," when he shall prefent thee before his Father, without "fpot or wrinkle, or any fuch thing." And fo much for the manner of erecting this kingdom of God in the foul.

LUKE xvii. 21.-For behold the kingdom of God is within you.

THE FOURTH SERMON ON THIS TEXT.

v. Tof the excellent qualities and properties of this kingHE fifth thing in the method was to give you fame

dom of God in the heart.

You have four of them in a cluster, Rom. xiv. 17. where the apostle tells us, "that the kingdom of God is not meat and drink, but righteousness and peace, and joy in the Holy Ghoft."

ift, He lets us understand, that this kingdom is not of a carnal, but of a fpiritual nature: for it is not meat and drink. The men of the world, whofe portion is in this life, their cry

indeed is, "What fhall we eat? what fhall we drink? wherewith fhall we be clothed?-Who will show us any of this world's good?" But the man who has the kingdom of God within him, is taken up with things fpiritual and eternal; he looks not at "things that are feen, but at things that are not feen" He has meat to eat that the world knows not of; for the food of this kingdom is the hidden manna; he "eats the flesh and drinks the blood of the Son of man:" The glorious myftery of the incarnation and fatisfaction of Chrift, viewed and applied by faith, affords him many a fweet meal that the world knows nothing about.

2dly, The apoftle tells us, that it is a kingdom of righteouf nefs: Wherever God reigns, "righteoufnefs and judgement are the habitation of his throne:" When he comes into the heart of a finner, he makes him to fubmit unto the imputed righteoufnels of Christ, calling and owning him by that fweet name, Jer. xxiii. 6. "This is his name whereby he shall be called, The Lord our Righteousnefs." And then, by his Spi rit, he implants a principle of inherent righteoufnefs for fanctification, which influences the man to the ftudy of holi nefa in all manner of converfation; fo that holiness to the Lord becomes the beautiful badge and livery of the kingdom, Pfal. cx. iii.

3dly, It is a peaceable kingdom, or rather a kingdom of peace; the "kingdom of God is not meat and drink, but righteoufnefs and peace" Thefe are fweetly connected together, If. xxxii. 17. "The work of righteoufnefs fhall be peace, and the effect of righteoufnefs quietness and affurance for ever." What a calm does it bring into the foul, when, upon the imputation of the righteoufnefs of Chrift, God fays to the foul, "There is now therefore no condemnation to him that is in Chrift Jefus; because the righteoufnefs of the law is fulfilled. in him;" all the forms of law terrors are then hushed into a pleasant calm; and what ferenity and tranquillity doth it yield to the foul, when it is helped, with fimplicity and godly fincerity, to have its converfation in the world, Pfal. cxix. 165. "Great peace have they which love thy law:"Gal. vi. 16. " Ás many as walk according to this rule, peace be on them, and mercy, and upon the Ifrael of God. Their peace is like a river, and their righteoufnefs like the waves of the fea." This peace is fo great a part of the kingdom of God within, that we find the faints in fcripture refufing to throw it up; no, to please the greatest potentates, as in the cafe of the three children, Dan.

4. And when through untendernefs at any time they have been left to disturb the peace of the kingdom of God within them, they would give a world to have it recovered; as we fee

in the cafe of David, Pfal. li. He had broken the peace of the kingdom of God within him, by his murder and adultery, in the cafe of Bathsheba and Uriah: Well, how doth he roar and cry, as if his bones had been all out of joint, Pfal. li. 8. xxxii. 3.4.

4thly, It is a very joyful kingdom; "The kingdom of God is not meat and drink, but righteoufnefs and peace, and joy in the Holy Ghoft." While this kingdom, I mean the work of grace in the heart, is in a profperous condition, and is maintained in its purity and power, there is an air of joy and pleasure to be feen through every corner of the kingdom, and the joy of the foul is like the joy of harveft, or the joy of them that divide the fpoil, upon the back of a victory. While the ftreams of the pure river of the water of life, that proceedeth out of the throne of God and of the Lamb, waters the foul, the kingdom of God within is glad, Pfal. xlvi. 4. and its joy is fuch as adds no forrow; in the midst of the joy of the wicked their heart is forrowful, and their triumph is fhort, for a moment. But it is otherwife here, there is perpetual ground of joy and triumph, to them that have the kingdom of God within them. Hence are thefe or the like commands and calls to the righteous," Be glad in the Lord, and rejoice ye righteous: And thout for joy all ye that are upright in heart; rejoice evermore, and again I fay rejoice." Unto thefe I add,

5thly, That it is a hidden and myfterious kingdom, therefore called "the hidden man of the heart," 1 Pet. iii. 4. The way of its erection is a myftery, as Chrift tells Nicodemus, John iii. 8. "The wind bloweth where it lifeth, and thou heareft the found thereof, but canst not tell whence it cometh, and whither it goeth; fo is every one that is born of the Spirit." The way of its fubfiftence and prefervation is a myflery; for it is maintained by an invifible communication between Christ in heaven, and the poor foul upon earth; this kingdom "holds the Head Chrift, from which all the body as by joints and bands having nourishment ministered, and knit together, increaseth with the increase of God." The affairs of this kingdom are fuch a mystery unto a blind world, that they just wonder at the believer what he is doing, while he is purfuing the interests of the kingdom of God within him, I am a wonder unto many (fays David), but God is my strong refuge" and indeed they are fet for figns and wonders in Ifrael at this day, If. viii. 18.

6thly, It is a very pleasant and delectable kingdom, exceeding glorious and beautiful: and no wonder, for it is juft "the beauty of the Lord cur God upon the foul," Pfal. xlv. 13.

The King's daughter is all glorious within; her clothing is

of wrought gold." The Spirit of God takes the glory of Chrift, decks the foul with it, 2 Cor. iii. 18. We al win pen face, beholding as in a glafs the glory of the Lord, are changed into the fame image, from glory to glory, even as by he Spirit of the Lord." Ye have a very lofty account of the lory of this fpiritual kingdom, if liv. even when it is covered vith affliction, and toffed with the winds and waves of aderfity and trouble; when the world can fee no form or comenefs about it, ver. 11. 12. "Behold I will lay thy ftones vith fair colours, and lay thy foundations with fapphires; and will make thy windows of agates, and thy gates of caruncles, and all thy borders of pleafint for es."

7thly, It is an honourable kingdom; and no wonder, for it the kingdom of God. There is a greater tribute of honour nd glory levied to him out of this kingdom, than from all the orld befide," This people have I formed for myself, they all thew forth my praife." Hence believers are called trees of ghteoufnefs, the planting of the Lord, in whom he will be lorified; and that foul that has the kingdom of God within , becomes truly honourable. They are made "kings and riefts unto God-a chofen generation, a royal priefihood, a eculiar people-the excellent ones of the earth," and more cellent by far than the rest of the world, If. xliii. 3. 4. Ever fince thou waft precious in my fight, thou haft been ɔnourable; and I have loved thee, therefore will I give men r thee, and people for thy life; I gave Egypt for thy ransom, thiopia and Seba for thee."

8thly, It is a moft expensive and dear bought kingdom unto e Son of God, it colt him the travail of his foul, before it uld be reared up in the heart. Every grain of grace wrought the foul by the Spirit of the Lord is the purchafe of blood, id that not common blood, but of the best blood of the whole' eation: "We are not redeemed by corruptible things, fuch filver and gold, but with the precious blood of Chrift: The demption of the foul is precious," and had ceafed for ever, alefs this ranfom had been found for it.

f

9thly, It is a thriving and flourishing kingdom: "The righous thall flourish like the palm tree, he fhall grow like the cear in Lebanon," Pfal. xcii. 12. It is true, indeed, this kingdom oth not always flourish and grow in a fenfible way and maner, for it is moft oppreffed and borne down with the ftrength temptation, affliction, and trouble; hell and earth are connually feeking to ftifle and fupprefs it; but yet it is habitually ourishing, for out of weakness it becomes ftrong: The great ing, he rules fo dexterously in this kingdom, that he makes very attacks of the enemy fubfervient to, yea, and all VOL. III. 3 T

ne

crushing