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Show 3.Prop. Cant. 2. 15• 1ak! 111 tlu f oxrs, the little fox en for !hey JPoil tbe VinCI, and our Vinn have tender CJ.-pe~. ·1 Concluded the iall day with an Exhortation to the weak, . to · row in gr.ace and in the knowledg of the Lord Jefus. Chnfis wfder care of them fbould, (I told you) oblige them to [orne c~re oftherrifclves. Jn order co this growth reafon tells us, r. J'he hmderances mull (as much as lies in us} be avoided. 2. T~e furtherances of it attended. Under the firfl Head fall_s t~e tak~ng of the Foxes, the little Foxer: I ain now to dtreCl: _you tn tb~s Chafe • Two propofitions yet of the four firfl menuoned rematn :. r. That Believer~ are Vinu,Chrijll Vmer, you have heard' 1hat Jome of thefe Vznts have but tender grapet, you have beard: You are yet to hear, 1 • 1hat there ore Foxes, little. Foxes whiCh wzU Jim I theft Viner, thole efpecially of them whtch have tender grace, 2 That it is~ piece of Duty which the Spou{e1 owe to ChriJf, M t>~eU a; to themfolvu utak! the{e Foxu, tbefe little Fcxu. ~ chufe rather to join both thefe together, ( thot•gh I make two Dlfcourfes) be· caufe the Application will belong to the latter: Take them there- ·fore both united in this one Propofition. . That it i4 a piece of JJ~~y .. hich the Church, and the parttcular Soul 0w1 a[rtteU to her Lord a1 to h"{ilf, to t.ak! the Foxu, the lzJtle Foxes, which Jpoil the Viner ; and more ejpecz•Uy when they have ten· .derT gh"isP P"r·o pofition I. fuppofeth that there are Foxes, rt tt Ie Fo :m whichfPoil the Ville; when they have tender grapu. Secondl.Y, It afferts That theje are to be tak!H, and that as well pro Domtno Re~C ac pr~ [e. It will therefore run me into a very wide field of Dt • courfe which yet I !hall contract as much as I can. 1• To an enquiry what are thofe Foxu, thofe little Foxu, tho~e , things or perfons, that ex fua n~tura vel malitia) either from thetd own nature or from their mahc.t, hinder Chnf\ans growth ah proficiency' in grace ; ( for I rather chofe fo to Interpret . t e term Foxu little Foxe~ than as [orne do rellraining it as to thts or that kind ~f perfons 6; things as well to reconcile Interpreters upon this Text as becaufe I think the Holy Ghoft hath a morel ' genera Foxu, £enera1 fenfe in thefe words, than particular Interpreters general- - Jy have fixed upon. , • 2. To an .enquiry how tbr[c may be taken; for there may be an uregular taktng of thefe Foxes, thefe little Foxes: and wherein the duty of the Spoufe ofChrifl ; (whether by it we undetfland Magitlrates, or Miniflers, or private Chrillians:) lies, as to thetaking of rhem. 3. T~ dcmonflrate that this is their duty , (Tam Domino Rrgi quamfibz) as well upon their Lords interefl, as their own: Take . for us the Foxes, the little Foxu. 4· When I !hall have done this, 1 jhaU come to the pra[Jical Application of the whole. I !ball begin with the firll of thefe. You know I chofe rather to interpret the Text generally, of •!I thofe means by which the work of grace is hind red as to parttcular Souls, than (as fome interpret it) of this or that particular mean by which fuch work is hindered in particular Souls. For as th.us I !ball reconcile all Interpreters, fo I think I !hall better hint the fenfe oftheho!JI Gboft. For the Foxe~ the little Foxes a1e here mentioned more for the general malignir'y of their nature's to the Vines, in fpoiling them, and that particularly when they have tender grapes, than in refpect to any particular quality of thefe · Foxu: we will therefore firfl Enquire, What art thofe things, or prrfons, .. hich are prejHdicial u!lto the foul~ ofChriftianl a1 to their l!.rowth and progrefi in grace; and eJPmal/ y to fuch of them in whom God1 work,. is yet more imprrfd1 who have burtender grapn l ' I think I may well enough reduce them to four Heads : r. Inward corruptions, 2. Forrein Tempt•tions, 3· Falfe 'Ieacber1 and frduceu: and 4• Perfecution. All thefe are Fo:m old ·or little Foxes, which fpoil the v'ines,and then efpecially when thefe Vines have the moll tender grapes. I begin with the firfl: I. Thofe I calllnr~~arrl corruptionJ,are thofe whith theApollle calls .,J9nJ.'TzJ.<ftt.t,VileaffelJions, .,e;eHt -N~.lfltt.1@-,The deed1 o{thf body, ~om~8·'}· Our ~embers which are upon the earth,Co1.3·5· -rcl J.<tM tW'lTo< )'nt: ~ecmfullu(h,Eph.4. 22, The luft1 of the f/ejh,Rom. '3• · 14.More plamly,they are the motions of our Senfitive appetite con- !\om· 1 -~ trary to !he will of God. There is as a fpi ri tual good which fo Rom: ,; ~3: prefents llfelf to our better part; fo a Senfitive good which lieth in Col. 3· S• ple~(um; projill, honour~, and our Senfual part thirfleth after thefe. Thefc: Luftzngs are as to the work of God within us Foxes, little Foxe.s, |