IT is the Spirit of God, even the Holy Ghost that convinceth us of
sin, and so of our damnable state because of sin.
Therefore the Spirit of God, when he worketh in the heart as a
spirit of bondage, doeth it by working in us by the law, for by the
law is the knowledge of sin. Rom. 6: 20. And he in this his working
is properly called a spirit of bondage; because by the law he shows
us that indeed we are in bondage to the law, the devil, and death
and danmation.
He is called in his working the spirit of bondage, because he here
also holds us--to wit, in this sight and sense of our bondage
state--so long as it is meet we should be so held; which to some of
the saints is a longer, and to some a shorter time. Paul was held in
it three days and three nights, but the jailer and the three
thousand, so far as can be gathered, not above an hour; but some in
these later times are so held for days and months, if not for years.
But I say, let the time be longer or shorter, it is the Spirit of
God that holdeth him under this yoke, and it is good that a man
should be his time held under it.
Now, as I said, the sinner at first is by the Spirit of God held
under this bondage; that is, hath such a discovery of his sin and of
his damnation for sin made to him, and also is held so fast under
the sense thereof, that it is not in the power of any man, nor yet
of the very angels in heaven, to release or set him free, until the
Holy Spirit changeth his ministration and comes in the sweet and
peaceable tidings of salvation by Christ in the gospel to his poor
dejected and afflicted conscience.
The Spirit loveth to do what it does in private: that man to whom
God intendeth to reveal great things, he taketh him aside from the
lumber and cumber of this world, and carrieth him away in the solace
and contemplation of the things of another world.
This water of life is the very groundwork of life IN us, though not
the groundwork of life FOR us. The groundwork of life FOR us is the
passion and merits of Christ; this is that for the sake of which
grace is given unto us, as is intimated by the text, Rev. 22:1. It
proceeds from the throne of God, who is Christ. Christ then having
obtained grace for us, must needs be precedent as to his merit, to
that grace he hath so obtained. Besides, it is clear that the Spirit
and grace come from God through him. Therefore, as to the
communication of grace to us, it is the fruit of his merit and
purchase.
But I say, IN US grace is the groundwork of life; for though we may
be said before to live virtually in the person of Christ before God,
yet we are dead in ourselves, and so must be until the Spirit be
poured upon us from on high; for the Spirit is life, and its graces
are life, and when that is infused by God from the throne, then we
live, and not till then. And hence it is called as before, living
water, the water of life, springing up in us into everlasting life.
The Spirit then and graces of the Spirit, which is the river here
spoken of, is that, and that only, which can cause us to live; that
being life to the soul, as the soul is life to the body. All men
therefore, as was said afore--though elect, though purchased by the
blood of Christ--are dead and must be dead until the Spirit of life
from God and his throne shall enter into them; until they shall
drink it in by vehement thirst, as the parched ground drinks in the
rain. Now when this living water is received, it takes up its seat
in the heart, whence it spreads itself to the awakening of all the
powers of the soul. For as in the first creation, the Spirit of God
moved upon the face of the waters, in order to the putting of that
creation into that excellent fashion and harmony which now we behold
with our eyes, even so the new creation, to wit, the making of us
new to God, is done by the overspreading of the same Spirit also.
As the herb that is planted or seed sown needs watering with
continual showers of the mountains, so our graces implanted in us by
the Spirit of grace must also be watered by the rain of Heaven.
"Thou waterest the ridges thereof abundantly, thou settest the
furrows thereof, thou makest it soft with showers, thou blessest the
springing thereof." Hence he says that our graces shall grow. But
how? "I will be as the dew unto Israel; he shall grow as the lily,
and cast forth his roots as Lebanon. His branches shall spread, and
his beauty shall be as the olive-tree, and his smell as Lebanon.
They that dwell under his shadow shall return; they shall revive as
the corn, and grow as the vine; the scent thereof shall be as the
wine of Lebanon."
All the warmth that we have in our communion, is the warmth of the
Spirit. When a company of saints are gathered together in the name
of Christ to perform any spiritual exercise, and their souls are
edified warmly and made glad therein, it is because this water, this
river of water of life, has, in some of the streams thereof, run
into that assembly. Then are Christians like those that drink wine
in bowls, merry and glad; for that they have drank into the Spirit,
and had their souls refreshed with the sweet gales and strong wine
thereof. This is the feast that Isaiah speaks of when he saith, "In
this mountain shall the Lord of hosts make unto all people a feast
of fat things, a feast of wine on the lees, of fat things full of
marrow, of wines on the lees well refined." Isa. 25:6. This is
called in another place, "The communion of the Holy Ghost." 2 Cor.
13:14. Now he warmeth spirits, uniteth spirits, enlighteneth
spirits, reviveth, cherisheth, quickeneth, strengtheneth graces;
renews assurances, brings old comforts to mind, weakens lusts,
emboldeneth and raiseth a spirit of faith, of love, of hope, of
prayer, and makes the word a blessing, conference a blessing,
meditation a blessing, and duty very delightful to the soul. Without
this water of life, communion is weak, flat, cold, dead, fruitless,
lifeless; there is nothing seen, felt, heard, or understood, in a
spiritual, heart-quickening way. Now ordinances are burdensome, sins
strong, faith weak, hearts hard, and the faces of our souls dry,
like the dry and parched ground.
This drink also revives us when tempted, when sick, when persecuted,
when in the dark, and when we faint for thirst. The life of religion
is this water of life; where that runs, where that is received, and
where things are done in this spirit, there all things are well--the
church thrifty, the soul thrifty, graces thrifty, and all is well.
You that are spiritual, you know what a high and goodly lifting up
of heart one small gale of the good Spirit of God will make in your
souls; how it will make your lusts to languish, and your souls to
love and take pleasure in the Lord that saves you. You know, I say,
what a flame of love, and compassion, and self-denial, and endeared
affection to God and all saints, it will beget in the soul: "Oh, it
is good to be here," saith the gracious heart.
This is the reason why so many are carried away with the errors that
are broached in these days, because they have not indeed received
the Lord Jesus by the revelation of the Spirit and with power, but
by the relation of others only; and so having no other witness to
set them down withal, but the history of the word and the relation
of others concerning the truths contained in it, yet not having had
the Spirit of the Lord to confirm these things effectually to them,
they are carried away with delusions.