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Show fl'hat the Love of Chrifl ir. Cedars, yea, th< Lord breaketh the Cedars of Lebanoil, &c. But the Text fpeaketh of the voice of a beluved. Now there are two ways by which God doth more eminently declare his mind to his People, which above all others arc more eminently called his voice I, By hif word, .2. By hif Spirit. •; ' I. By his word; his word oftrnth, which il contained in the holy Scripturu, and (yet more !lriCl:!y) his word opened and preached by IJu meffengers. God you know of old fpake unto his people immediately in the giving of the La~, Exod. I9.20. but they were not able to h.ear it, and therefore defired that Moj(t uHght fpea~ frvm ~hat tJme. It h.ath been Gods ordinary courfe, to comm~mcate hts mind unto hts people by Mini!lers. Of old there were Prophets, Prieils, &c. Under the gofpel I Chriil himfe!f revealed his Fathe~s will; he chafe, 12. a~d io. and when he afcended up on htgh, he gave Gifts unto men, faith the Apolllc; he made fame Apofil.es, fome Evangelil!s, Corne Pallors and Teachers. Now thetr fatthful revealing the mind and will of God, is the Lords voice, Luk,.. IO. t6. He tbJt heareth you heareth me. 2 Cor. 5· 2o . . God befeecbeth you by u1 we pray yo~ i~ Cbrifts ft~a1· Not that the words of every one' that ca!leth htmfelf a Mmtiler fpeaketh the word's of God ; no nor are the words of many that are rnini!lers, The voice of God. But only. what they fpeak. from the Evidence of the word of God. There were falfe Prophets of old, and there were falfe Apollles under. the gofpel, and there are falfe teachers llill; and were it not (o there would be no difficulty in difcerning th~ voice of our beloved, but t.he Spoufe ~nowcth the voice of her beloved. The t~ue Church ts able to dtfcern of DoCl:rine, and fo is the true beltever. When I fpeak of the true Church of Chrill· I mean the number of Oadt ekiJ: For take the Church in the other notion as v.iftble, and except you underlland it of the whole body of it in the world, I dare not fay it is true. The Papifts teJ1 11s indeed that th~y have an tnfalltble choir; but all Protellants affirm that ,. parttcHI.•r-Chnrcb if infaUible, but any particular Church may err and .not dtfce.rn the voice of its beloved. And when I fay every part~cula~ behever, doth difcern thi< voice of its beloved I mean rot mfalhbly; it is very poffib!e~ that true believers ~ay think· uch ~one fpeak~ th~ language of Chrill, when indeed he fpeaks n othtng ~efs •. But tn a great rneafure it is true, 1 fay in a great meafurc • behevcrs have not a perfeCl: Jifotrllill_g_ Jpirit, but they · will Whai I be 'liOi;e D.(chrifl it. will in a great rneafurediicfrn ~otions and things that differ, and · know him that fpeaks the worJs ofCbri/f, from him that fpeaks the Lyes and Vanities of men, or of hi.s own heart. Re'D. 2. 1. Thr ChHrcb of Ephe[IH tried them lf'hich ]aid tluy were Apofltes and w'Te not, andfou~<dthem!;iart; you lhall find that fame other Churches did not fo in that ~hapter. Secondly, There if another voice of G"d, which Is the voice of his Spirit fpeaking fecretly to the heart by way of lmpr~ffion and SH~geilion, &c. As God doth fometimes let his p<o'Ple know his mind by his great and mighty loi(Orks of Providence ( which are there- . fure called hit Voice) And fometimcs by a found in tbe Air, ( as to the Jews, Exod. 20. to Saul, ABs. 9· 4·) And fometimes by his word, and the Mini!lry ofit, (as he ordinarily fpeaks, ) Co fometimes he fpeaketh to them in a more inward fecret way : By the j(cret Suggeftionr and lmpreffions of hit Spirit upon their heartr. Now as every voice from a Pulpit is not the voice of God:Hanania/1 . as w'ell,as Jeremiah, 'may f~ak from thence; fo neither is every Suggeflion mad<; to or l"'p#effioh rnaile upon our Spirits, to be looked ttpon ~ the v~ice ofCbrjj~ •. ' 'Hence til ere is a room for difcmting,' and dijlillj.'uifoing, and this is it wl\ich I fay, that the trH< be- . liever and the true Ch"rch doth in a great mea fore know and difcern ellis vaice of itr Beloved; thefe Sugge'ftions and Jmprcllions, from· other ftuggeftionr and Impt•fflont, The fetond Q!ellion fol- - lows · · ' •· · H~"l doth tk true ~p~~fo kilo."' thtfo voicer of Cbrljt more than 2 • Qtt. otherr that are nol fo near to btm 1 · - , That the Spoufe of Chriil doth thus know is certain ; Chrill: faith,hi4 jhetp know /;if Voice., "rhe Spoufc faith, it if the voice of my !Jel•ved. The Quellion is how they know it. Now in things that differ,to difcerq .one thing from another, there mufl necelfarily be fUppofed, fome certai11 and infallible Rules or 'Ioktns, by which they may be fo diilinguilbed. 2. There muft be fuppofed in thofe that make the Judgment, an ability of making an 11pplicatio11 of both the differing things , to that com111un Teft and rule of Try•!. , · . That ther·e is a real and vall difference betwixt the voice of Chrill and the voice'ofStraugers, the voice of our Beloved and the voice of Others, ii moll certain and undoubtedly true. That this difference may.be difcerned by men and women·, this is alfo moll certain; how elfe doth Chrill fay? · My jlmp bear my Z t~uice, |