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Spirit, 1 John ii. 20; that which the Scripture calls the seed remaining in him, 1 John iii. 9.

Secondly, God by his gracious means and ordinances of the gospel does increase this habit and these graces.

Now, because every man that is truly regenerate, carries about with him the body of sin and corruption, and lies open daily unto the temptations of the world and the devil; a truly regenerate man may be drawn, not only into sins of ignorance and common frailty, but into gross sins; whereby the light and warmth of God's Spirit may be so chilled and darkened, that he may break out into presumptuous sins. Yea, upon his negligent use, or omission of the means of the spiritual life and strength, God may justly give him over to a fearful declension in grace and backsliding; yet the truly regenerate fall only from some degrees of holiness, and from certain acts of holiness; but not from the infused habit of holiness; that blessed seed ever remains in him, 1 John iii. 9. His falling is either only into particular sins, and into much failing in particular good duties; or if it be towards a more general defection, yet it is never universal from the general purpose of well-doing, into a general course of evil.

For the regenerate man does never so sin, as the unregenerate man does, although for matter their sins may be alike, yea, sometimes those of the regenerate, greater. There is great difference in their sins, and manner of sinning.

1. Regenerate men may sin through ignorance, but they are not willingly and wilfully ignorant, as are the unregenerate in some things or other, 2 Peter iii. 5.

2. Regenerate men may commit, not only the common sins of infirmity; into which, by reason of the remains of the lusts of the flesh, they fall often; such as rash anger, discontent, doubts, fears, dulness, and deadness of heart in spiritual exercises, and inward evil thoughts and motions of all sorts; but they may also commit gross sins, such as an open and direct breach of God's commandments; yet those are done