t in plenty upon his people will quickly
bring them to an embracing of him, and to a public acknowledgment and
avouching of the same._ Thus it was with the people of God in the
text--no sooner does the Lord "pour water upon the thirsty, and floods
upon the dry ground," even his Spirit upon the spiritual seed of Israel,
but presently they are at covenanting work and subscribing work; "One
shall say, I am the Lord's," etc. In prosecuting this doctrine he shewed
first negatively that he was not for that occasion largely to treat of
the several ways that the Spirit useth to manage this work of engaging
the hearts of his people to embrace Christ, and so to make a public
avouchment of the same; whether he doth it by representing to their
views the sweet and precious promises made in the covenant of grace,
thereby sweetly alluring and drawing them with the cords of love to
himself, or by holding forth to their consciences the terrors and
threatenings of the law, and thereby powerfully constraining them to fly
to him as to the city of refuge from the face of Divine Justice pursuing
them: for seeing the Spirit is a free agent and blows both how and where
he listeth, he may engage a soul to close with Christ by either of these
ways, though most usually he doth it by a conjunction and concurrence of
both. Only this ought to satisfy us, that what way soever the Spirit
taketh in bringing a soul to embrace Christ upon the gospel terms, he so
manageth the work as that the end is effectually and infallibly
attained.

Nor Secondly, Was he to enquire into the measure of the outpouring of
the Spirit's graces and operations, which is effectual for attaining the
end, this being one of the deep things of God which the Spirit alone
searcheth, and therefore is not necessary for us further to know, save
only that we understand so much to be needful as may serve to empty the
creature of all confidence in or dependence upon itself, or any other
creature-helps whatsoever, and bring it to rely upon Christ alone, for
acceptance with God; so much is necessary, and less cannot be
sufficient.

Nor Thirdly, Was he to handle the material differences between those who
are brought really and sincerely to accept, embrace and acknowledge the
Lord for their Lord, and to avouch the same publicly, which presupposeth
a mighty power of the Spirit manifested in the sweet impressions which
he maketh upon the soul, moving them sweetly and readily to comply with
an