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Show chrifl to hiJ Spgufe, aJ the Appletrce ~. But ,Secondly; The limilitude will. guide us .• littlefurther, in the difcerniog the particular excellenctes of Chrif! above all the - world betides. Let us follow ita little, and fee yet more particularly how Chrifl to the believing Soul is as the Appletrte amongfi the trees of the Wood : The Appletree is famous for two things. 1 , Fruitfulnrfi• 2. Sbadcrl', and io refpdl of both excels all the trees of the Wood. I will inhrge the notion no further, and for this latitude, we have not only the evidence of experience, but alfo ~ foundation in the text, where both thefe are inllanced in. r. For Jrrtitji.!nefi: There are thoufands of trees in the Wood, but the Appletreeexcels them all; fome are barren Trees, of little ufe but fort he fire; fomeare timbertrees, and ofbetter ufe: Some are fruitful Trees but inferiour to the Applctree : they bring forth acorn1, and majl fer Sr~>ine, but no fruit tit for mans-eating; others bring forth fruit, which man may cat, but it is ncxicuJ and bJtrtjul; But in three things doth rhe Applttree, (as to its fruitfulnefs) ex. ~el the beLl trees in the Wood. r. In tho variety cfitl frnil: There are feveral kim I< of Apples. 2. In the pleaf4ntne[1 of it. 3.In the wholeflmne[l •fit. Apples 3re a cordial f~uit, and of great ufc. In the great wood of the World, there are a great many Trees ; forne are altogether barren, they bring forth no fruit but what is poifonous; all the fruils of their Lives, are oppreffion, violmce, rx· lortion, Cov>tcufnefs, Dr•nk,!nnefJ, Vncleannefs, Cnrfing, Blafphem· ing the prerious word of God ; others there are that bring forth fome Fruit, bnt 'tis no better then acm11, mail fer hog~: what's tk end of their lives, but to add houfe to hocf: that there be no room left upon the earth, to heap up Ricbn as the dufl? A t~ird fort they bring forth fruit that is fomerhing better, they are jujf aHd c!Jajl, moral, temperate men. There is a fourth fort that bring forth exceUmt frnit; the fruit of the Spirit, Love, Jny, Peace, Holintfi, Righteou{itrfs, &c. Ah l but there-is no'1e that brings forth fruit like tit Chrifl: as the Appletree among!l the trees of the wood, fa is Chri!l amongfl all the fons; C.ttera ligna umbram habent fo· latii,'(CII vii£ rrf/e{lionem, nan fdrtti.< frtttlru ;mpetrtOJ. Other Trees bring forth fomc rcfrdbment co their Brethren; but none refrdheth them with life. r. Nome that brin.g1 fmh jj much fruit, a~d Jiteh varirty a1 Chri~ doth, he is the tree of Life which brings forth twdve manner of Fruits, >111mmt1 certur pro inmto. One Chrifiian is fruitful by in· £\ruction, ,unbllg.ft the trw oft he Wood. llrullion, :i~other by prayer, a third by mini firing to the necellitlcs of poor Saints, a fourth by an exemplary life; but Chri!l_helps every way. Oh I the variety of fruit that groweth upon thts tree oflife ! effectual Calling, JuftificaticH, Regeneration, Santlifiea~io~, AtJcption,Strength, 9<f!ick!ning, comfortiHJ!. Grac<,all that a Chrtfil· an lives upon, all groweth upon this Tree. 2 , Secondly, no fr>~it f9 pleafoHt aJ that rl'hich grorl'l upon thi.< 'Iru. Tell me,O you tnat have tafied how good the Lord is, was ever fruit like his fruit l you 'that have tafled of the powers of rhe life to come, that know what it is to have your iniquities forgiven, and your Sins covered, did ever any thing ta!le fo fweet to your Souls? you that ever tailed the Spirit of Regeneration, and found a new heart in your felves, was ever any thing fo fweet unto you? you that have found the firwgrnenings of Grace unto any duty, under any Temptation, that have found any qnicknings of the Spirit of Chri!l; in fhort, any thing of di!Hnguifhing Grace, ar.y fruit of which you have any ~errain evidence that jt came from Chrifi, and wasthe fruit of thisApplttm, did ever any tr~es of the Wood bring forth any like this? you it may be have been fhaking the Tree ofwordly T.-ffick,_, and it hath dropt Silvtr •nd Go/J upon you; or fhaking the trerJ of the Eartb,and they have dropt HoHcur or Pk•/•re:but was ever any of them like to thefe joys? this is the peae~ that paffetb un:ierjlanding.You it may be have had much f weet converfe with Friends in rhe world, much with the Saints of God in the world, .and alfhave been very fweet; but was ever any like an hour's intimate communion, like a day's fellowfhip with Jefus Cbri!ll 3· No fruit fo_r~>holefome , as that which comes from this Appletree; for the fi·uit of LHjlJ•ni Corruptio>u, hath it not been like rhe fruit of thor Appletree of which Eve eat? it was indeed fair to rhe eye and ~!lticed you to pluck and Eat : but what good did it do · her? it brought forth the curfe upon Ad•m, upon Eve, upon the earth fQr their fakes. 'Ihe w•~tn of Sin if deotb; ( faith the Apo!lle, Rom. 6.) and again: What fruit had you of thc[e thing! rPhmcf yo•· Horl' are a{h~med? Worldly imployments, traffick and Trade, is a T.ree, that brings forth fruit, the fruit of Riches and Honours, &c But what wholefomnefs is there in this fruit, they commonly de-•· bauch the Soul, and they profit nothing in the day of evil ; in rhe day of death, whofe fhall thefe things be? in the day of wrarfo, they will not go in exchaNge for a Soul; nor ranf'Om any one Soul from the pit of deUruCiion.. T.hcfe |