Sincerity and hypocricy. Or, the sincere Christian, and hypocrite in their lively colours, standing one by the other.: Very profitable for this religion professing time. / By W.S. Serjeant at Law. Together with a tract annexed to prove; that true grace doth not lye so much in the degree as in the nature of it.

SECT. XXIV.

But by all this we have spoken of the com∣pleat and exact obedience of the sincere Chri∣stian, we do not intend, nor would be understood that the sincere Christians life is perfect, and without sinne; for that is to affirm contrary to what the Holy Ghost affirmeth, and experience hath evidenced to us of the lives of all men, and the best men that ever lived, that they all had their faults, and to assure us thereof, some of them, yea very many of them are recorded in Scripture, and left us for our learning, to let us know that there is not a man that liveth & sin∣eth not. The phrases of speech therefore which we have used, and that which we have affirmed of the obedience of the sincere Christian, that hee leaveth all sinne, and doth all duties at all times, and in all places, cases, &c. And the Phrases of the Scripture applyed to the Saints, that they followed the Lord fully, were

in all the commandements of God blamelesse, and were perfect, they are to be understood not in a legal or in a litteral, but in an Evangelical sense: For doubtlesse the utte••most obedience that is expected, or that can be performed by the most absolute and perfect Christian that is most sincere is. That hee hath a real and unfai∣ned will, and desire, and a real intention and purpose, and doth his endeavour with all his might to doe and fulfil the whole wil of God therein. And he is grieved that he cannot doe it more perfectly. And that which he doth of it he doth in sincerity. And when he hath done all, he thinketh himself to be but an unprofitable ser∣vant, and to have done lesse than was his duty to doe. And he doth not trust to himself there∣in but to the Righteousness of God in Christ. And in this only or especially in this point doth the sincere Christian eminently excel and out∣strip all the Hypocrites, yea the most refined Hy∣pocrites in the world, who have not any such un∣fained wil, desire, purpose, or intention (but rather the contrary thereof) in them. Nor do they endeavour at all so to doe in all things as we have shewed elswhere at large. And this progress towards the perfect doing in the sincere Christian is esteemed with God as the perfect doing of the thing it self, Heb. 11. 17. By Faith Abraham when hee was tried offered up

Isaac, &c. 1 Cor. 8. 12. For if there bee first a willing minde it is accepted according to that a man hath, &c.. VVe are here also to adde this cau∣tion further in reference to all that wee have spoken to this head, that the faigned Graces of the Hypocrites and their gifts, are in some hearts so like to true Grace, that it is hard to distin∣guish them. And in the hearts of the most sincere, corrupt affections and motions stirre so much, that it is hard to conclude any thing cer∣tainly and definitively herein, more or further than this. That the more we find of the motions and operations of Sinceritie, the more cause we have to judge our selves sincere. And the more we see of the motions and operatious of Hypo∣crisie, the more cause wee have to suspect our selves thereof. All these things therefore are cautiously to be heeded and used. But for this see more in the beginning of the next Chapter. If yet you shall desire to see some more certain signes of the sincere man, and of the Hypocrite, we shall endeavour to give you some of them in the nevt Chapter.