Page:The works of the Rev. John Wesley, M.A., late fellow of Lincoln-College, Oxford (IA worksofrevjohnwe3wesl).pdf/322

 dage. The glory is departed from him, even the kingdom of God which was in his heart. He is dispossessed of righteousness, as well as of peace and joy in the Holy Ghost.

II. 1. Such is the nature of what many have termed, and not improperly, the wilderness-state. But the nature of it may be more fully understood, by enquiring, secondly, What are the causes of it? These indeed are various. But I dare not rank among these, the bare, arbitrary, sovereign will of God. He rejoiceth ''in the prosperity of his servants: he delighteth not to afflict or grieve the children of men''. His invariable ''will is our sanctification, attended with peace and joy in the Holy Ghost''. These are his own free gifts: and we are assured the gifts of God are, on his part, without repentance. He never repenteth of what he hath given, or desires to withdraw them from us. Therefore he never deserts us, as some speak: it is we only that desert him.

2. The most usual cause of inward darkness is sin of one kind or another. This it is which generally occasions what is often a complication of sin and misery. And, first, Sin of commission. This may frequently be observed to darken the soul in a moment: especially if it be a known, a wilful or presumptuous sin. If for instance, a person who is now walking in the clear light of God's countenance, should be any way prevailed on to commit a single act of drunkenness or