rejoicing over the recovered souls Our great joy should be every man over the recovery of his own soul With what joy should this word be spoken this my soul was dead and is alive and we should rejoice over any other recovered souls It is matter of rejoicing when we can say this my Child or this my Brother or this my Neighbour was dead and is alive What joy is it to a travailing woman when she is safely delivered of a living child J h. 16.21 A wâ—man when she is in travail hath sorrow because her hour is come but as soon as she is delivered of thâ— chilâ— she remembreth no more the anguish for joy that a man child is born into the World Sinners your deliverance may cost you pain and travel but when you are once delivered and recovered you will forget all this pain then you will and then you ought to rejoice What joy is the day of victory to the triumphing Souldier What joy was the year of Jubilee to the indebted or the servants when they were to go out free from there debts and service What joy to the Mariner who hath been tossed with tempests to have gotten safe to shore Hast thou shot the gulf and gotten safe to land Hast thou gotten death and hell under thy feet Is death destroyed and is life and immortality brought to light in thy soul Art thou passed from death to life O what a day of joy what a day of praise should this be to thee Rejoice in the Lord O ye righteous and again I say Rejoice Phil 4.4 Stand Christian stand and look back on that death that was lately feeding on thy soul stand and look down into the hole of the pit from whence thou art delivered Remember how it was with thee not long since when thou wert without Christ and without hope and without God in the World when thou wert a slave to every lust in thy heart to every vile companion when thou wert by led by the Destroyer and posting on to destruction When thou Wert without fear and without sense of that danger and misery which was running upon thee like a floud Remember how it was with thee when God first open'd thine eyes and thy fears came upon thee How did thy soul cry out I am lost I am undone when thou sawest what a gulf there was fixed between thy natural estate and the state of grace When thou sawest a necessity of conversion and yet wert astonished at the difficulty of obtaining it When thy proud heart would not stoop thine hard heart would not break nor yield unto the Lord When thou wert afraid that thou shouldst have perished in the birth and never have seen life remember how it hath been with thee and how it is now What hath the Lord delivered thee from thy fears conquered to thee thy difficulties Is thine heart broken and brought about to the Lord Is the day broken and the day star risen in thine heart art thou passed from death to life What s y st thou now Is it not meet thou shouldst rejoice Is not this birth day the day of thy new birth a day of joy and praise Dost thou not bless thy self that it is not with thee as it hath been Does not thine heart shake to think what if I had been let alone let to go on in the way that I was going I went with the Drunkards I was among the Lyars and Swearers and Covetous and the Scoffers I was one of them As much against a new heart and new life as any of them as true a drudge to my flesh and this world as the worst of them How is it that the Lord God singled my soul out of that wicked crowd and brought me up out of that state of the dead and brought me into the light of life and hath written me amongst the living in Jerusalem Bless the Lord O my soul and all that is within me bless his holy name Magnifie the Lord O my soul and let my spirit rejoice in God my Saviour He that is mighty hath done for me great things and holy is his name 3. Let us again take up a lamentation over the imperfection of our recovery Rejoice in the Lord but rejoice with trembling Psal 2.11 Rejoice that the work is begun that thou art come to the morning of the day of redemption that the day is dawned that the Sun is risen upon thee yet lament that there are still such clouds yea so much of the darkness of the night remaining upon thee Rejoice that thou art born again but yet lament that thou art but as a new born Infant so imperfectly washed from thy pollution in thy bloud and that so much of the shame of thy nakedness is yet appearing that though thou art made a child of light yet there is so much of thine old darkness of thine old ignorance and unbelief abiding upon thee that though thou art born from above yet thine heart should be so much below that though thou art risen with Christ thy affections should be so little set on things above that though thou art born of the Spirit the Flesh should still have such power in thee Lament and bewail it that thou art no more perfectly recovered that it can yet hardly be discerned whether thou be alive or dead or if it appear thou art alive lament that thou art such a a dwarf still or such a sickly and unthriving child that thou art such a froward and unruly child Lament that thy recovery is so imperfect and be growing up towards perfection be working out those remains of thine old corrupt state be working out this carnality and this earthliness and working up thine heart to more spirituality and heavenliness and let both thine heart and thy life be as the path of the just which shineth more and more unto the perfect day Prov. 4.18 Christians whilst I have hope of many of you that you are passed from death to life and in this hope do rejoice over you yet I have sorrow in mine heart for you that you that have life have it no more abundantly that you are yet so imperfectly recovered from among the dead and that you are not which I doubt is the case of too many among you contending and reaching forwards towards perfection How many living Christians soever there be of you yet I can see but few growing Christians among you Pray Friends look inwards what sensible improvement have any of you made of late years Yea how many of us are there that do not lay it to heart that do not lament it that they are improved no more Who of you can say that you are breathing and thirsting after an increase or if you thirst for more grace how very few are reaching forth and labouring and that in so good earnest that they are impatient in their spirits and restless till it may be better with them O what might I do to whet your appetites after
to you Be more Zealous for the Salvation of your own Souls be more fearful of their Damnation be more tender of wounding and wronging your Souls Take heed of sin Prov. 8.36 He that sinneth wrongeth his own Soul all they that hate me love Death You that sin against God ye wrong your own Souls Love your Souls better and you will never be such proud Livers or such Worldlings or such Drunkards or Rioters you would be sober and serious and circumspect If you lov'd your Selves better you would take heed of this Lying and these Oaths and this unrighteous Dealing of this hardness of Heart in your sins you would fall upon your Knees you would fall upon your Faces and be ashamed and bewail and repent of your sins and return to the Lord from them all had you more of this true Self-love within you Sinners why come you not in to Christ Why will you not yet be perswaded to repent Why Man hast thou no love to thy Self The Apostle tells us Eph. 5.29 No Man ever yet hated his own Flesh but nourisheth and cherisheth it He useth that word to press Husbands to love their Wives who says he are their own Flesh Dost thou not love thy Self What wouldst thou say of a Man that doth not love his Wife but would play the Tyrant and Tygre brawling and snarling yea fighting and beating her You would say This were a Monster among Men rather than a Christian worse than the very Brutes amongst whom it 's seldom seen that the Male snarleth or biteth or pusheth at the Female What then is he that loveth not his own Soul Lovest thou thy Self Lovest thou thine own Soul Then take heed of going on in thy Sins then take heed of standing it out against Christ You hear what a reward there is for the Righteous you hear what an Inheritance Christ hath laid up for his Saints an Inheritance in Light Life Love Joy everlasting Pleasure and everlasting Glory Christ would make those poor Souls blessed Souls joyful Souls glorious Souls partakers of the everlasting Riches of his Glory and Joy But what wilt thou say My Soul shall have no part in it My Soul shall never come there my Lot shall never be with the Saints but shall be without amongst Unbelievers Impenitents amongst Dogs and Sorcerers and Idolaters In refusing to come to Christ to Repent and be made Holy thou sayest in effect my Soul shall never come to Heaven Let it to Hell amongst Dogs and Devils and that vile and wicked Generation of the Damned But Sinner hast thou forgot that thou art a Man Art thou a Monster of Men Hast thou lost all love to thy Self to thine own Soul Doest thou neither love nor pity thine own Soul Wouldst thou that Christ should ever love thee when thou whilt not love thy Self Wouldst thou that Christ should ever pity thee when thou wilt not pity thy self O Sinners love your own Souls pity your own Souls be not so cruel and hard-hearted to your selves Will you for the love of your Lusts for the love of the World sell your Souls to the Devil sell them to Hell to make Faggots for the everlasting Burnings Where are your Bowels O pity pity that poor blind and miserable Soul of thine and bring it to Christ for pity's sake go on in thy evil ways no longer be a Drunkard no longer a Worldling no longer a Lyar a Scoffer no longer be no longer hardned in your sins but come away to Christ and escape for your Lives if you love your Selves come if you have any pity for your Selves come let the dread of the Cruelties of the Devil bring you back from following him and come you in and cast your Selves upon the Blood upon the Bowels and Compassions of Christ who is such an High Priest as can have compassion upon the Ignorant and those that are out of the way and even on the worst of Sinners that will return to him What shall I say more to you I will speak but the same words let every one of you see that he so love himself as Christ loved the Church washing it and saving it by his Blood Love your Selves and save your Selves love your Selves and bless your Selves in the God of Truth Don't bless your selves in the Earth in your Money in your Lands in your carnal Pleasures in your carnal Friends these things are not nor ever think they will be your Blessedness but bless your Selves in the God of Truth bless your Selves in Jesus whom God hath sent to bless you in turning you from your Iniquities Act. 3.26 Turn to Christ and you shall be blessed be Believers and you shall be Blessed come in this day and let your Names be written among the blessed of the Lord come every one of you and put in your Names among the Disciples of Christ Let me be one Lord let me be another write down my Name for one among thy Disciples I am willing to be thine and do solemnly covenant and this very day give my Self to Thee Who of you are there that will thus come in Will you be perswaded to it or must I lose my labour Are there any of you Is there any one of all the Sinners in this Company that will thus come in Come then in the Name of the Lord come get your Names to be thus written in the Lamb's Book and and he will write it in Heaven there it will be found in the last Day written in the Book of Life this do and then you that have been hitherto the Haters and Wrongers and Cruel will hence-forth appear to be Lovers of your own Souls 2. There is a sinful Self-love this is the great Heart Idolatry and the Root of all Rebellion and Disobedience to God Here I shall shew you 1. What this sinful Self-love is 1. It is a Love of mistaken Self of Carnal-self a love of the Flesh and it's Affections and Lusts a love of that Flesh which Christ would have us to hate and deny Mat. 16.24 Himself that is his Flesh or Carnal-self Men are mistaken in themselves and count that their Self which is not their Self as Christ said to the Woman of Samaria John 4. concerning her Husband He that thou hast for an Husband is not thine Husband so may it be said to Sinners That which thou takest for thy Self is not thy Self this Flesh which thou takest for thy Self and lovest as thy Self is not thy Self You that love your Flesh you love your Enemy you that please your Flesh you are pleasing your Enemy you that are working for your Flesh and providing for your Flesh and pampering your Flesh you are working for and feeding your Enemy you count you are seeking of and working for your Self no 't is for your Enemy this Flesh is your Mortal Enemy Now this is one sort of sinfull Self-love when we love our Flesh or our corruptions when we love our Selves as Fleshly-minded Men when we love to please and
prosper if it hath not your constant care 'T is true we are not to speak the same words in all Companies and our behaviour is not to be alike in its particular Circumstances in all Companies but in the general a serious and holy behaviour the carrying our selves so as men that are in a journey heavenwards the owning and propagating serious Religion the behaving our selves so that others may evidently see the spirit of Glory and of God resting upon us and may be both convinced that God is in us of a truth and if it be possible be gained to God or at least made ashamed of their own sinful and carnal ways Such a temper should we be in and such a carriage should we be of in what Company soever we be we are alwayes in the sight of God and we should be no where but upon business for God and we should carry our selves as such What the Apostle speaks of his Ministry should be exemplified in the practise of Christians 2 Cor. 2.17 As of sincerity as of God in the sight of God so speak we in Christ Wherever you are behave your selves in sincerity in simplicity whatever you speak speak it as in the sight of God be faithful approve your selves to God in all that you do O friends this even this steady this sincere course of life this universal approving your selves to God in all you do will be the fruit of such an abiding sense of God upon your hearts This will be the poise that will make you move swiftly this will be the Ballast that will make you sail steadily And this swift and steady motion heavenward will both make you appear to be Christians indeed and mightily improve and advance your souls in that grace of God that bringeth Salvation O beloved that this now might be the fruit of these many words that I have spoken to you that you would every one of you set your hearts to it to get and to hold such a deep sense of the eternal things upon your spirits as might have influence to the carrying you on in this even and steady course Do not every one of you need some establishment more settledness more fixedness in an heavenly frame do not you feel your selves so up and down so off and on that you can hardly fix Would it not be more comfortable for you if you could get to be more like the unchangeable God that as he is the same God so you might be the same Christians of the same Spirit of the same way so fixed and composed in your Spirits that you might not be moved from the hope nor from the holiness of the Gospel would it not be comfortable to you were it thus with you would it not be much to the honour of the Gospel and to the joy of your own Souls then once again I exhort you by the Lord Jesus get this sight of God in your eye keep this sense of God upon your hearts which will have its fruit unto this settled and even course of holiness the end whereof will be everlasting life This is that which I strive for and am reaching towards in mine own Soul and I must say with the Apostle Phil. 3.12 I press these things upon you not as though I had already obtained but I follow after if I may obtain through Christ Jesus And what I seek and wait and hope for in mine own Soul my hearts desire is that you also may follow after and be partakers of the same Grace that my Soul is in pursuit of that you and I may rejoyce together in the day of the Lord. Thus much for the keeping the heart under Government 2. Keep the Heart under Guard Keep it and all the good that 's in it in safety that it be not lost Christians must keep their Hearts as Worldlings keep their Money and their Jewels and their writings by which they hold their Estates If they have any stronger or safer place than other there they lay them up and whatever else they have to look to their special eye and their strictest Watch is upon their treasure And here I shall shew you 1. Why Christians must especially guard their hearts 2. How Christians must guard their hearts 1. Why Christians must especially guard their hearts They must set a guard upon their tongues they must watch their words and all their carriages but above all keeping they must keep their hearts So the word in the Text is rendred and interpreted by some keep the heart with diligence above all keepings Keep the heart but why so because the heart is 1. The fountain of Life 2. The spring of all vital actions 3. The record of all our sacred Transactions 4. The cabinet of our Jewels 5. Our box of evidences 6. The ark of our strength 7. A sacrifice for God 8. The temple of the Lord. 1. Because the heart is the fountain of Life It is the reason urged in the Text for out of it are the issues of Life The issues that is the streams or rivuâ—ets of life The heart is the fountain from whence all our living streams do flow Christ is our life and the seat or habitation of Christ is in the heart therefore that expression Col. 1.27 Christ in you the hope of Glory The hope of the Saints is a living and lively hope the life of our hope is from Christ and from Christ within us Eph. 3.17 Christ dwells in the heart by Faith The heart Natural is the fountain of Natural Life it is the primum vivens and the heart Spiritual is the fountain of Spiritual Life we begin to live from within as death begins in the heart so life Death Natural ends in the heart the heart is the last that dieth but death spiritual begins in the heart the heart is the first that dies Sinners dead works do all arise from their dead hearts the root dies first and then the branches and fruit wither and fall off the Devils great design is firstly upon the heart when he hath slain the good that is within he can with ease destroy whatever good is without the fruit will fall off of it self when the root is dead The heart is the first that dies in a spiritual sense and 't is the first that lives It is there the seed of God his immortal Seed is first received and takes its root so that there is the same reason to set a guard upon our hearts as to preserve our life if you would keep your selves alive if you would not fall down among the dead then look well to your hearts which are the fountain of life 2. It is the spring of all our vital actions and operations This is included in the former the heart is the fountain of life and life is the fountain of action A dead man cannot see nor hear nor speak nor move he must live before he can speak or move And what can the spiritually dead do The dead praise
hath sealed to you that he will help you and never fail you nor forsake you when your flesh and your heart fail you he will be the strength of your heart When you are in doubts and fears that you are none of the Lords nor can lay any claim to him then remember the Covenant which hath been made between him and you and how you own it and stand to it to this day and that may satisfie you Of such great use will this Covenant of God be to you and therefore your hearts which are the Records where it is kept must be carefully looked to 2. In point of Communion There have been great dealings between Christ and you in a way of Friendly Communion What Correspondencies have there been held betwixt Christ and you what friendly interviews have there been between you Christ hath been often looking down upon you and rejoycing in his portion and you have been often looking up to him and solacing your selves in his love Christ hath been supporting and sustaining your hearts and you have been staying and leaning upon your beloved What mutual entercourses have there been Christ hath been often sending down Messages of love to you telling you Soul I am thine Hath he never sent thee some tokens of his love sent thee thy pardon sent thee his peace hath he never sent thee down some tastes of the hidden Manna and the white stone and the new name Rev. 2.17 and such a comfortable word with it Soul be of good comfort thy sins be forgiven thee thy name is written in heaven And do you never send up to your beloved If you have nothing but a sigh to send or a tear to send yet up it must be sent to your beloved to tell him I am sick of love or at least I am sick for love How often hath thine heart ascended in Prayers and his heart descended in gracious returns what mutual embraces have there been of thy Faith with him and his love with thee There hath been a Jacobs Ladder set up betwixt Christ and thee Christians Such experiences I hope some of you have had of such comfortable Communion with Christ But what becomes of all these blessed Experiences hast thou forgotten them are they lost O how hast thou kept thine heart sure such Mercies should be carefully recorded and the record should be warily kept 4. It is the Cabinet of all our Jewels Christ and all his Graces are kept in the heart 1. Christ and his Graces are jewels Christ is a precious Jewel he is the pearl of great Price which the wise Merchant Mat. 13.46 traded for and is there said to be a Pearl of great price of so great a price that this one Pearl bought the whole World It s intimated Mat. 16.26 that one Soul is more worth than all the World this Pearl is more north than a whole World of Souls It hath bought not only this world below but the World above this one pearl hath bought the whole Kingdom of heaven all the everlasting treasures the everlasting joy and pleasures above that exceeding eternal weight of glory all hath been bought by this Pearl Christ is reckon'd by foolish sinners at a very low rate Judas sold this Pearl for thirty pieces of silver Sinners many of them sell Christ at a lower rate than this for their foolish and fleshly Lusts They tread this Pearl in the dust and take very dung in its stead The very dung of their filthy Pleasures is that which sinners take in Exchange for Christ Whilst the Apostle counted all things dung in comparison of Christ sinners make very dung of Christ for the sake of their sins but whatever sinners count him Christ is a Pearl more worth then all the world and all the Glory and Bravery and Beauty of the World are but Dunghil things in comparison of Christ As Christ so all the Graces of Christ are jewels Faith is a jewel called 2 Pet. 1.1 Precious Faith Meekness and Humility are jewels of great price in the sight of God Love is a jewel and of so great price that it is not to be bought for Money Cant. 8.7 If a man would give all the Substance of his house for love it would be contemned As little reckoning as sinners make of the love of God now though this Grace be offered them and they may have it for the taking an heart to love the Lord is one of the branches of the Covenant which the Lord freely offers to sinners yet now they so slight it that they will not accept it a lust is taken up in stead of this love yet hereafter these very sinners would give all that ever they have for the least grain of the saving love of God As little as you regard the love of God now we can't perswade you to accept it yet when you come to die there 's none of you but would give all that ever you are worth for a little sincere love to Christ O now for a little Faith O now that I could love the Lord Jesus in sincerity I would be content to be a beggar and not to have a Mite left me in all the World all my Farmes all my Oxen all my Houses and Lands all my Money all the substance of mine House they shall all go so that I might now find the saving love of God in me No they will not be bought so If a man would give his house full of Gold for it it would be contemned as a poor and low price to buy love The like may be said of every Grace they are all Jewels and they make those who have them to be Jewels Mal. 3.17 in the day that I make up my jewels Every gracious Soul is a Jewel in the sight of God Sinners tread the Saints under feet make very dirt of them but God will take them into his bosom as his precious Jewels 2. These Jewels Christ and his Graces are all kept in the heart As the Heart is the Seat of Grace Faith dwells in the heart and Love dwells in the heart and Hope dwells in the heart so is it also the seat of Christ Christ dwells in the heart by Faith intimated in that Prayer of the Apostle Eph. 3.17 If Christ hath any dwelling in sinners 't is only in their Mouths and upon their Lips these will talk of Christ and talk of Grace but they have no dwelling in them but upon their Tongues but it is in the heart of the Saints that Christ and his Graces dwell Col. 1.27 Christ in you the hope of Glory The heart of Saints is as the Heavens all bespangled with these beautiful Stars Christ is the Sun in those heavens his Graces are as so many Stars that have their brightness and lustre from his light The hearts of sinners are meer Dungeons and dark holes in which neither Sun nor Star appears if there be any glimmering light they are but Commets or Torches or stinking Snuffs that
you ascend not by Ordinances if you get not up to have Communion with God in them this flesh and this world will be thrusting in upon you and steal your hearts away Christ hath been riding down to you this day as the chariots and horses of fire once were sent down for Elijah 2 Kin. 2.11 The Chariots came down to fetch up the Prophet in them the Ordinances of God that you have been at this day was the Chariot of God that was sent down on purpose that those hearts of yours might ride up in it into Glory I hope some of your hearts got up into the Chariot and are ascended with your Lord who came down to fetch them up What Christian is thine heart yet below where was it when the Chariot came down what are your Souls yet among the Sheep and the Oxen among the grass of the Field and the dust of the Earth what yet among the wormes what yet creeping upon this Earth and feeding upon Ashes do your Soules still dwell in these Tombs and Sepulchres I hope there may be some among you can say I thank the Lord mine heart is no longer here it is risen it is ascended with my Lord who came down for it and hath carried it up with him But man how is it with thee whose heart is left behind Christ hath been here and those that were wise took the Season and got up with him into the Chariot But is thine heart still upon this Earth and must it away again to its old trading to its old feeding on this dirt and trash hast thou been tasting of that Angels Food that hidden Manna the bread of God that came down from heaven and canst thou now return to thy Quailes or thy Husks sure thou hadst not a taste of that heavenly food if thou dost not yet disgust and disrelish thine old carnal Delights But are your hearts any of you yet left below behold yet a Chariot from God is before you this Ordinance of Preaching behold the same Jesus in this Chariot is come down again for those hearts that are not yet gotten up Thy Lord is loth to leave thee here wilt thou yet ascend with him Why is there not a cry among you Lord help me up into thy Chariot Lord take my Soul up with thee Lord let not me be left behind Let Christ hear that voice from you Lord take me up with thee here this poor wretched heart of mine lies at thy feet I can't lift it up 't is too heavy for me it hath weights but no wings yet it groans after thee it would not that thou shouldst go up without it Lord lift me up Lord carry up this poor and wretched heart from Earth to Heaven What must I yet dwell in Meseâ—◠〈…〉 mine heart amongst the tents of Kedar M◠〈…〉 amongst these Theives and Robbers O where 〈…〉 that hath brought thee down again for me 〈…〉 thou me O Lord and wilt thou yet leave me at 〈◊〉 â—â—stance from thee O take pity O take me up that I may from henceforth be with thee where thou art Christians O that I could set you even every one of you a crying thus after the Lord and a bemoaning these earthly and too carnal hearts that they are not yet ascended Let Christ yet hear that voice and let it come deep even from the bottom of thy Soul Let Christ hear not that mouth crying nor those eyes crying but that Soul crying Lord take me up also with thee and he will take thee up O get you into the Psalmists Posture and Spirit Psal 42.1 Psal 84.2 As the hart panteth after the water brooks so panteth my soul after thee O God My soul thirsteth for God for the living God when shall I come and appear before God My Soul longeth yea even fainteth for thee my heart and my flesh cryeth out for the living God When Lord O let this be the day take me this very hour and carry me up to the mountains of spices Christians be but unfeignedly willing that Christ should carry away those hearts from this Earth be but in good earnest with him when you say Lord take me up and he will not leave you behind Get these hearts to heaven and keep them there Get you up from Earth to Heaven and come not down again from Heaven to Earth Let that blessedness be antedated which is promised to be after the Resurrection 1 Thes 4.17 Then shall we ever be with the Lord. Say to the Lord even from henceforth as he sayes to his Church Psal 132.14 Thou shalt be my rest here will I dwell for ever Let it not be a Visit to Heaven that will satisfie you but a Conversation in heaven Phil. 3.20 Our Conversation is in heaven Let it not be a few heavenly hours or a short heavenly repast but an heavenly life that you design and follow after When you get you once thus near unto the Lord live as much as possible in the constant viewes of his Glory so continually beholding and feeding upon the foretastes and forethoughts of his Goodness and Grace that you may be changed daily from Glory to Glory into the same image Know friends that if there be any security in the world from the Robbers and the Spoilers from your Lusts and Temptations from suffering such losses again in your peace the only security you have is to keep your hearts still above Hast thou gotten thine heart to heaven keep thee where thou art keep you out of harmes way If the Devil can but catch those hearts again below catch you a roving catch you a wandring after your carnal things if he can but meet you declining from an heavenly to an earthly Conversation from a spiritual to a carnal Conversation O what sad spoiles of whatever good days you have had of whatever delights and satisfactions and joyes and comforts you have had what spoiles will he make of them all Christians when ever you can get or do feel your hearts in a better frame most full of the love and life and joy of the Lord O think what pity 't is what a sad fall it will be to make an exchange of this blessed state for the barren and brackish Pleasures of this world think with your selves shall I forsake the sweetness of the Fig-tree and the fulness of the Olive and go and browze upon brambles The design friends of all this is to perswade and invite you to live in constant Communion with God You have been received and entertained this day into special communion with God and the intent and meaning of this solemne communion is that by the sweetness and refreshing you find in it you may be set into a way of ordinary communion with him That your life may be a life of Communion with God a life of faith a life of love a life of Holiness and Joy that so you might prophesie to your selves with the Psalmist Psal 23.6 Surely goodness and mercy
with this vain and foolish life I will go and return unto the Lord and then it will be better with me than now 2. The next step to this recovery is coming to God the first is coming to your selves and the use and exercise of your reason and understanding And who among poor sinners shall these words preach into your right senses You have been foolish sensless souls is there any of you that are yet come to your selves Do you judge it better for you to come back from your vain ways and to come about to the Lord Is this voice heard in your hearts Oh if I could break off from my sins and become a real Convert to Christ then would it be better with me than now It would be an happy change this day would be an happy day this Sermon would be to me an happy Sermon if the Lord would bless it so to me as to bring me off from my sins and bring me to God O how wonderfully better would it be for me than it is now If any of you are come so far to your selves as to judge and to say it would be better for me let me go on with you and ask you further What will you resolve upon Will you say on with the Prodigal well I will arise and go to my Father It is better for me so to do and I will do it through the help of God I will return Now for Repentance now for Religion and Righteousness now for a new heart and a new life I have done with my old heart Sathan I have done with my old life sin and vanity I have done with henceforth through the grace of God I will be for God and godliness Do you say so Are you resolved so Come on but one step further if you say the word come on and do likewise the Prodigal when he said I will go to my Father he arose and went accordingly Be not like the Son in the Parable who said I go Sir but went not but say and do come and joyn your selves to the Lord come into his house come into his ways give your selves to him for his servants and go on and serve him then were your souls recovered Then should it be said to you as concerning him These my children were dead and are alive were â—ost and are found and we should say over you as the Father did It is meet we should make merry that this day should be a glad day a joyful day it is meet that we should rejoice for this our Brother is recovered he was dead and is alive O let the Lord God thus rejoice over you O let all his Saints rejoice with you Come sinner make a joyful day of it come unto the Lord come to your Father and he will be ready to meet you and with open heart and open arms would receive and embrace you 2. What men may do to recover They cannot recover themselves of themselves it is God that must do it but they may and must do something towards it 1. Men can pray for their recovery Even carnal men may pray and though there be no full promise that God will hear yet God hath both required them to pray and hath appointed this as a means of their recovery Acts. 8.22 The Apostle bids Simon Magus pray that the thoughts of his heart might be forgiven him It is an hopeful sign that God has a purpose to give grace when he sets sinners a praying for grace at least if they cannot pray themselves they can speak to others that can and desire them to pray for them This that Simon Magus did he begged the Apostles to pray for him O what a wretched case are those in that will neither pray for themselves nor so much as beg Christians to pray for them Sinner when didst thou ever do such a thing When didst thou ever go either to a Minister or a Christian with such a word in thy mouth pray for me It may be when thou hast been sick thou hast sent to the Congregation to pray for thy bodily recovery but when didst thou send or speak to them to pray for thy souls recovery Is not thy soul more precious than thy body Is it not thy soul more desperately sick than ever thy body hath been is not prayer for sick souls as needful and as much prevailing as prayer for sick bodies And yet how many bills have we sent in to pray for recovery from bodily diseases to one sent in to pray for the conversion of a soul But whether thou do it or not this thou canst not deny but thou canst do this towards thy conversion thou canst pray for it and desire others to pray for thee 2. Men can hear the Word This is another means of mâ—ns recovery Is 55.3 Incline your ear and come unto me hear and your soul shall live And this means also they can use The same feet that will carry them to an Alehouse can as well carry them to Church The same ear that can hear a Song or foolish and idle talke câ—â—â—s well hear a Sermon Thou wilt say this I do and yet am not recovered Therefore 3. Men can give heed to what they hear They can mark and observe what the Word speaks Luke 8.18 Take heed how ye hear Give heed to what you hear and do not sleep under the sound of the Word or fit heedlesly or carelesly without minding what the Lord speaks And herein is the great neglect Sinners will come to a Sermon but mind as little what is preached to them as those that never come here This is a wretched neglect and the common case of many hearers Mat. 13.13 Hearing they hear and do not understand Our words could not have such poor success if people would mind more the things that we speak O sinners bethink your selves how often have you been here and not heeded one word that hath been spoken 4. Men can think What is easier than thoughts we use to say good words are cheap but good thoughts are cheaper than good words the exercising of mens thoughts is noted to be the first step to repentance 1 Kings 8.47 If they shall bethink themselves and repent and so Ps 119.59 I thought on my ways and turned c. Thou sayst thou canst not recover thy self I but canst thou not bethink thy self neither what a case thou art in Thou hearest sometimes from the Ministry of the Word that thou art a lost man a lost soul But when thou hearest it preacht to thee canst thou not think upon it Thou dost not think upon it it is too true no longer than the Word is a speaking nay it may be nor then neither What thoughts have you had of it since you were told that naturally you are lost and what a miserable case it is to be a lost soul Have you since thought such a though Wo is me I am a lost soul oh what a poor wretch am I while
mindedness and yet art never well but when thou art greedily heaping up what should feed thy worldly disease never talk of hating the sin if thou fear not if thou shun not the temptation thou still lovest the sin Well sinners set your hearts upon a perfect amendment and keep your selves in such a constant exercise of repentance that you may amend more and more every day Consider is it better with thee to day than it was yesterday or at least is it better with thee this year than it was last year or some years agone Is it better or is it worse Or art thou in the same case What hope hast thou to be recovered if there be no amendment all this while To provoke you to the present and constant exercising your selves to repentance I will propose some questions to you Q. 1 What do you think of your former state and your ways hitherto Is it well with you Are you not lost souls and your carnal ways are they not the ways of perdition Have ye lived like wise understanding men Do ye think ye have Will you say I have done wisely in following the wine and strong drink in following my companions and my pleasures I have dealt wisely to live such a covetous and worldly life I should have been a fool to have been a Christian or a convert to have left all and have followed Christ from my first time You have liv'd a fleshly and worldly life you cannot deny that but let me ask you as the Apostle did the Romans Rom. 6.21 What fruit had ye of those things whereof ye are now ashamed Are you come so far towards repentance as to be ashamed of your former folly What fruit have you What is there now remaining to you as the fruit of your former ways O I have some good fruit I hope I have lived a worldly life I have got the world about me I have got me an estate and am become a rich man I should have been poor enough if I had hearkned to Christ and come back from the world sooner this house is the fruit this money is the fruit these lands are the fruits of my labors Would praying and repenting and forsaking the world have ever brought me to such an estate as now I have And do you yet ask me what fruit have ye of your worldliness Answer 1. But are these the fruits you can satisfie your selves in Are these the fruits you can bless your selves in Will these estates answer for you to your Judge And make way for you into the everlasting Kingdom Will this be a good plea for entrance into Heaven set open the door for here comes a rich man a monied man a landed man let him have entrance into the Everlasting Kingdom Freinds what you have thus gotten will sink you and drown you in perdition and destruction but never he p you to glory and this is the good fruit you boast of that you have gotten such weights about your necks as will drown you in the Pit But 2. What fruit have you of your ways that have lived at ease and lived in pleasure in idleness or wantonness or excess of riot in sporting and laughing and carnal jollity What is become of all the pleasures of your life What fruit is there remaining of all thy crackling thorns Are they not all burnt to ashes and vanished away as a dream 3. Have all your former ways done any thing to the recovering of your lost souls Have not they left you sons of perdition nay are you not become seven times more the children of Hell by these practises than you were by nature Thou wert naturally a child of wrath Ephes 2.3 and you have by practice been children of disobedience as verse 2. and hath your disobedience delivered you from wrath I say therefore again What do you think of your selves and your ways The Judgment of God you see what it is you are a child of disobedience and a child of wrath and what is your Judgment What are your own thoughts of your selves Does not your Judgment and your conscience tell you sure it is an evil case that I am in No wise man would ever stay a minute longer in such a state or way Have you come so far towards repentance as to change your mind Are there any of you of better minds than you have been Is this now your mind and your setled judgment It would be good for me to repent and come about to God Have you any mind to Christ any mind to godliness and serious Christianity Q. 2. Will you continue in your former state and way or will you endeavour for recovery If you say you have a mind to be a Convert and become a new man will you set your hearts to it will you exercise your thoughts about it will you set to praying for repentance to resisting and striving against your old sins Will you go on as before or will you come back Who is there among you that hath yet the heart to say O I have done with my old ways I have done with my old companions I have done with this World I have done with this fleshly life I am ashamed I am afraid I repent that I have lived such a life hitherto the Lord change my heart the Lord help me to change my way What say you Christians it is an important question to answer the Lord God puts you this day to it to be plain and downright and in good earnest to resolve what you will do What say you Who of you are for repenting and who for going on in your sins God puts you to it and in the name of God put your selves to it to give in your answer What do you mean to do will you hearken to the Lord or will you yet go on to harden your hearts Have these words so far prevailed upon you as to bring you into a good mind Have you a mind and purpose to return Q. 3. Shall it suffice you to take up with the beginnings of repentance or will you make thorough-work Shall it suffice you to set your faces towards God or will you come home to him Jer. 4.1 O Israel if thou wilt return return unto me Come not towards me and then stay at half way but come home to me come thorough to me Repentance is dispatched by degrees first those that were running away are brought about to be looking and making towards God then those that are afar off are coming near to God then those that are come near do come in to God and then those that are come in do by degrees fix and confirm their hearts upon God that they may never go back to the way of sin What is it that will satisfie you Shall it suffice you to be looking towards God or coming half way towards Heaven or are you for coming home for coming in to the Lord for making sure work for making thorough work If you
Death Eternal Death but if ever God should recover thee again and revive his work and enliven that almost Dead Carkass then at last learn from thine own miserable experience to take heed of taking Cold again as long as thou livest Thus much for the recovering the Heart which is pre-supposed to the keeping of the Heart The Heart thus recovered out of its lost State must be kept and well look'd to that it fall not back again and here 2. Now I shall shew you what it is to keep the heart or how it must be kept and so 1. It must be kept under Government 2. It must be kept under Guard 1. It must be kept under Government here I shall shew 1. The necessity of keeping the Heart under Government 2. How the Heart must be Governed 1. The necessity of keeping the Heart under Government that will appear by considering what an Heart it is and because the Heart is recovered in part and there is much of its Old and Original pravity remaining in it which will be apt to boil up and break forth again I shall a little open the wretched temper and disposition of it which will evidence how great a necessity there is to keep it under Government 1. It is a wicked mischievous heart Jer. 17.9 Desperately wicked Psalm 5.9 Very wickedness Rom. 8.7 Enmity against God It is the Fountain whence all the filthy streams that pollute and defile our lives do flow and are cast forth It is the Furnace whence all the stinking fumes and smoaks that annoy the World are sent forth It is the Nest where all the Cockatrices Eggs are Hatched It is the Sink that gathers in all manner of filth into it and then sendeth it abroad to do mischief Psal 41.6 His Heart gathereth iniquity to it self as the Sinks gather in all the filth of the Town and when he goeth abroad he telleth it only there is this difference between this and other Sinks other Sinks gather in the filth but 't is in order to the conveying it and carrying it away Into this evil evil Sink of the Heart all the filth is gathered and there it stops and stinks and casts it self back in its annoying streams Out of the Heart comes evil Thoughts Murthers Adulteries c. Mat. 15.19 All this Filth and Mudd all this Wickedness and Malignity as it Naturally dwells in every Heart so there 's much of it remaining even in renewed Hearts and will if there be not constant care to keep down and by degrees to cast it out will rise and swell and work up again in them Christians you may thank God that there is Salt cast into these filthy Fountains for the healing these muddy waters that there is a Spring of Living Waters broken in your Hearts by degrees to drain out your Dirt that there is Grace begotten in you to resist and repell the contagion of Lust but this little Grace will be choak'd up again if Lust be not kept under And as it is a Wicked so 't is a Mischievous Heart it 's set upon mischief Wickedness will be doing wickedly as 't is said of the Workers of Iniquity so 't is true of all as far forth as they are unrenewed Mischief is in their Hearts Psal 28.3 There 's the same Reason of keeping our Hearts under restraint as of keeping Mad-men in they will be doing mischief if they have their liberty Besides the mischief that our evil Hearts will be doing to others they will be mischiefing themselves Mad Men will tear their own Flesh will cut and wound themselves if they be let alone and there is no such danger of evil Hearts as in regard of that mischief they do themselves 1. Our evil Hearts will hinder us from doing good to our Selves or of receiving or laying up good for our Selves Rom. 7.19 The good that I would I do not why what hinders See Vers 21. I find a Law the Law of Sin in the Heart When I would do good evil is present with me Gal. 5.17 The Flesh lusteth against the Spirit so that we cannot do the things that we would Sometimes good Counsel is given us from the Lord but we do not take it How many good Counsels have you heard from the Ministry of the Word that are lost and forgotten and come to nothing Sometimes a good motion comes into the Heart to repent and amend our ways to pray or to Meditate or to search out Hearts to cease from this Earth and Flesh from serving our Sense and minding only the present and to lay up Treasure in Heaven and provide for the time to come have you never such motions Do you never hear such a voice within you Get you Baggs that wax not Old a Treasure in Heaven that faileth not Choose the good part lay hold on Eternal Life give your self to Praying keep a good Conscience take heed and beware of Covetousness use more diligence live with more heedfulness have your Conversation in Heaven and keep your self unspotted of the World keep your self in the love of God set the Lord alway before your Eyes behold his Face in Righteousness study to shew thy self approved of God and to walk so in all things that thou mayest be accepted of God are there not such motions as these come into your hearts You that are Christians sure you have many such good motions But how do they take What do they bring forth If you had obeyed all the good motions that you have sometimes felt within you O what manner of Christians would you have been What mortified what circumspect what raised and Heavenly minded Christians had you been But how do your good motions take What success are they attended with Do not you see that they are often strangled in the Birth and die away and come to just nothing Or at least do you not meerly halt and trifle in the pursuace of them If you Pray or hear or set your Hearts to humble your selves before the Lord how are you Distracted and Diverted and Deadned and all your duties spoiled in the doing so that you can have little comfort or real advantage by what yo do Do you not often mourn over your Prayers and Sermons and Sabbaths as meerly lost to you When you would work up your Hearts Heaven ward and fix above when you would love and del ght your selves in the Lord and Solace your selves in the contemplation of the Divine Love and Goodness when you would fain set your Hearts to live such a Godly Conscientious Circumspect Self-denying Life and comfort your selves with such thoughts I hope I shall never live such a Careless Carnal Useless Unsavory Earthly Life again I hope you have many such Thoughts Desires Hopes and Aims you are lamentable Christians if you have not but how do they succed What do they bring forth Do they not often prove Abortive and bring forth nothing May it not be said of you as of those Job 15.35 They conceive
This is your own wilfulness you have been perswaded to Christ but you will not come you have been perswaded back from your sins but ye will not come back you have been instructed in the way of Life but you will not learn you have been taught and call'd upon to become New Men to become serious Christians but you will not hearken you have been pressed to give your selves to Prayer to studying the Scriptures to studying your own Hearts to the ordering your Conversations according to the Gospel but you will not yield unto it you will walk after the flesh you will be proud you will be covetous and Carnal livers and thus you spend out your days Sinners consider who is it fit should have the Government of you The will of God or your own wills What would be best for you in the end to be subject to the Law of God or this Law of sin What is it that God would have with you This is the will of God your Salvation he would have you to Heaven he would that these poor Souls of yours whom the Devil hath made Drudges to your Flesh and Slaves to his Lust and Sacrifices to his Malice God would have you to be Vessels of Honour to bear his Image to shine forth in his Glory to live in his likeness and to rejoice in his everlasting Joy Man this is that which God would have that thou maiest live in everlasting Blessedness he would have thee to Heaven and he would have thee by an Holy Life to be fitted for that Blessed Life to be made meet to be a partaker of the Inheritance of the Saints in Light Therefore 't is that he commands you to Repent therefore 't is that he with so much importunity perswades you to Christ that he might wash you with his Blood and guide you by his Word and sanctifie you by his Spirit and present you blameless and faultless before the presence of his Glory with exceeding Joy as Jude 24. This is the will of God that you should be thus Governed and thus Ordered that these Earthen Vessels these dirty Souls might be made Vessels of Honour and of his everlasting praise And what is it that your own wills are for but to live so that you may be fit for nothing but to be Vessels of contempt to be Fuel for the everlasting Fire The Devil and your own Hearts are conspired so to sully and to black you with your ways that you may be fit for no other place but to live in the Smoak and the Fire of the everlasting Furnace Gods will is to bring you to that Inheritance which is reserved in Heaven he would have you to have all the Hell you shall have on this side the Grave and your Heaven in that Eternity which comes after Your sorrows all here and your troubles here and hereafter your rest from them all but your will is to have your Heaven here your good things here your Mirth and your Pleasure here and so leave nothing but your Hell for hereafter Now which of these two wills God's will or your own will is it the best for you to be Governed by If you say God's will is better for me to follow than mine own will 't will end best whatever it seems to be at present then one would think you should see so much Reason against this self-will'dness against this wilfulness and hardness and obstinacy in your own ways as to tremble to think of being left any longer under the Government of your own wills Sinners let me do you a kindness this day let me break the Yoak of Bondage the will of your Flesh from off your Necks and unhorse your Riders the Devil Rides your wills and your will rides your Souls come off from this drudgery Let me do the Lord this Honour this day to perswade you under the Government of his will what God would have me to do that will I do as God would have me to live so will I live will you say the word once God would have me be a Penitent and through his grace a Penitent I will be God would have me to be a Christian a sincere Christian and through his help a Christian I will be God would have me to walk humbly to live honestly to live a blameless Consciencious Heavenly Life and O this is the Life that I will give my self to What if you should say this word and say it heartily What if this word should prevail to fetch you off from your Wilfulness and the hardness of your hearts and lay your Souls at the Feet and under the Government of the Almighty What if such a change should now be wrought upon you that your hearts should now be brought about from Will towards God from Lust to Conscience from this thy Carnal and Sensual and vain Life to a Spiritual and Heavenly Life Would you not bless God for such a change Would you not say This is an happy Day for me a Blessed change the Lord hath wrought upon me Then hearken to the word you have heard and say the word once I will be the Lords and from henceforth he alone shall have the Government of me You that will not but will be self-will'd still will be hardned in your way still go home and chew upon this thought Whether will this wilful hardned Heart lead me at last 2. In the conversion of a Sinner the power of self-will is broken the Controversie betwixt God and the Sinner is determined The Controversie is whose will shall stand the will of God or the will of the Flesh in Conversion the Sinner yields that God's will shall be thenceforth his Law It was foretold of Christ Gen. 3. That he should break the Serpents Head the Serpents Head is his Power over Man and his Head-quarters is the will of Man this is his Strong-hold and in the Conversion of a Sinner the Devil is beaten out of and hath lost his Strong-hold 2 Cor. 10.4 The Weapons of our Warfare are mighty through God to the pulling down the Strong-holds the will of Man which is the great Fort or Strong-hold is so broken and pulled down that 1. He is heartily willing to resign up to God to his Will and Government he that before said Not God's will but mine own can now say Not my will but the will of the Lord be done He that before said I will not that this Man that Christ should Reign over me now says I will not that this Flesh shall Rule over me Psal 110.3 Thy People shall be willing in the Day of thy Power the Day of Conversion is the Day of Gods Power wherein the Power of God's Grace is revealed upon Sinners Hearts in the Day of this Power Sinners shall be willing When the Power of Grace hath conquered the Power of Nature the Sinner shall yield and resign up to God and be heartily contented to be thenceforth under his Rule and Government This is the
thy self in these things as great a Pleasure to thee and dost thou find as great a delight in them as thou findest in eating and drinking in buying and selling and getting gain dost thou love to be Praying or to be Praising the Lord as thou lovest to be getting Money dost thou love to be sending thine Heart to Heaven and there to solace it in the thoughts and joyes of the Lord as thou lovest to be thinking of thy Corn or thy Cattel or thy Income by thy Trade Thou knowest thou dost not Canst thou say with the Psalmist Psal 84.1 2. How amiable are thy Tabernacles Oh Lord my Soul longeth yea even fainteth for thy Courts mine Heart and my flesh cryeth out for the liveâ—ng God A day in thy Courts is better than a thousand a door in thine House is better than all the dwellings of the World Lord lift up thy Countenance upon me and that shall put more gladness into mine Heart than when their Corn and Wine encreased Let the Corn and the Wine be whose it will so that the Lord God will be mine let this World go cross and frown upon me as it will so that the Face and Countenance of God do but shine upon me let me be poor rather than a Stranger from God let me want an House or want Money or want bread rather than want the presence of God canst thou say so heartily say so thou knowest that thou canst not the good things of the earth the Riches and the Pleasures of the Earth are the Riches thou lovest and the Pleasures thou lovest and thou couldst be content to be straitned in the Lord so that thou mightest abound in these carnal things Is it so with thee O what a Heart hast thou what dost thou think of thy Self art not thou an Idolater a lover of Money more than a Lover of God a lover of Pleasures more than a lover of God a lover of thy Self and flesh more than a lover of God and yet art thou not an Idolater doth thine Heart go a Whoring after thine Idols run away from God after thy Money run away from God after thy Pleasures run away from God after thy Self and flesh and yet not an Idolater art thou an Idolater then an Idolatrous Christian an Idolatrous Professor O! how is it that such a thought does not fill thy Face with shame and set thy Soul a weeping and cause trembling and astonishment to take hold upon thee what Friends is it nothing with you to be Idolaters to have Idolatrous Hearts whoring Hearts whoring from God and whoring after your flesh and the Lusts thereof sure Friends it would make the best of our Hearts to ake if we were sensible what degrees of this Idolatry there were to be found in every one of us and many of us I fear it would convince that they are Idolaters to so high degree that there is nothing of true and real love to God in them 2. It 's the root of all Rebellion and Disobedience Self-love 2 Tim. 3.2 is put in the Head of a black-troop of Lusts and Wickednesses Men shall be lovers of themselves there 's the ring-leader and what follows behold a troop cometh covetous boasters proud blasphemers disobedient to Parents unthankful unholy without Natural affection Truce-breakers false Accusers incontinent fierce despisers of those that are good Traitors Heady High-minded lovers of Pleasure more then lovers of God what a Regiment of sins is here led on by Self-love And observe it lovers of themselves lead on the Van and lovers of Pleasures bring up the Rear Heart-sins are Root-sins and Self-love is the Root of these Roots Pride is the Root of Contention Malice is the Root of Revenge Covetousness is the Root of Oppression and self-love is the Root of them all The Apostle says 1 Tim. 6.10 The love of Money is the Root of all Evil and Self-love is the Root of the love of Money particularly that you may know what a mischievous evil this Heart-sin of Self-love is and how pregnant of all other wickedness consider that it is 1. The Rot of all Religion 2. The Root of all Vnrighteousness and Vnmercifulness 3. The Root of all sinful Brawls and Quarrels 4. The Root of sinful Self-seeking 1. It is the Rot of all Religion that is where it is predominant and carries the main stroak in our Religion It is the rottenness of the Heart under all its most specious Religious pretences or performances All sincere Religion is animated by the love of God the love of God is the Soul of Religion If there be no love to God in our profession of Religion if no love to God in our practices of Piety if no love to God in our Prayers no love to God in our Fastings and Alms all our Religion is rotten at Heart Self-love which is it's only Root is it's rotteness Self-love will 1. Limit our Religion 'T will limit it by self-Interest no more nor no other Religion will it allow than will serve our Carnal turns no farther may we go in it than will consist with this love of our selves whatever part or exercise of Religion will pinch upon the Flesh the self-denying part the self-abasing part the Flesh-mortifying part of Religion unless it be to some further Ends Self-love will never bear it So much professing so much Praying and Hearing as will consist with our Ease and our safety as will not put us to too much pains or expose us to too much danger and reproach so much Religion as will not hold us in too strictly and severely and closely Self-love will bear it but where the Yoak of Christ wrings and galls there it must be thrown off 2. It will corrupt our Religion and turn it into Hypocrisie Selfish Professors are Hypocrites and all their Religion is Hypocrisie and Hypocrisie is the rottenness of the Heart You that are Professors see to it that ye be not self-loving Professors if ye be whatever there be in your Tongues or your Looks or your Religious performances you are rotten at the Core rotten in your Hearts It is love to God wherein our sincerity lies Self-love is our Hypocrisie and where this rotten Self-love hath tainted your Hearts your Hearts will taint and corrupt all your Duties it will pervert and corrupt all that ever you do and turn it into quite another thing your Religion is no Religion your Christianity is no Christianity your Praying is no Praying your Spirituality is but fleshliness your Heavenly-mindedness is but Earthiness your seeming fruitfulness is but Emptiness and barrenness Israel is an empty Vine he bringeth forth his Fruits to himself Hos 10.1 Israel seemed to be a fruitful Vine that had her Clusters upon it there were Clusters of Prayers and Clusters of Sacrifices and Clusters of Alms Israel had their Fruits and yet they were but a Barren and empty Vine how so Why whatever Fruits they had they were all brought forth to Self Self brought them
it and a beautiful and fair Sun-rising 't were well if it would hold but after a while Clouds gather and it is darker with them at Noon than it was in the Morning their Joy sinks and their Love sinks Clouds of Corruption overspread both their Joyes and their Hopes However it may be with some Beginners and it is never so well as they think if it do not hold however it may be with some Beginners yet ordinarily they are only the grown Christians who are Partakers of solid substantial Joy for a great part of their time it is as Zech. 14.7 It is neither Light nor Dark with them neither Night nor perfect Day but in the Evening there shall be Light In our first time it must be said only as Psal 97.11 Light is sown for the Righteous and joyful gladness for the upright in Heart this Joy is sown in Sorrows and sown in Tears but as we grow up what was sown in our Infancy breaks forth and shines in our Age. Friends dote not too much on your Morning Infant Joyes they may vanish into Darkness It is the solid Joy of the grown Christian that is usually the abiding Joy therefore if you would not be put off with some short fits of Joy if you would have that standing Joy which no Man can take from you set your Hearts to it to increase in the grace of God be thriving Christians grow in Grace and grow in the Knowledge of our Lord Jesus Christ and then your Joy shall abound and abide Friends you now go on drooping and doubting and fearing you have many a sad day of it but would you see good dayes would you have your Cloudy to become clearer Dayes Would you have more Sun-shine upon your Hearts Then get the Sun of Righteousness to rise higher in you Misty Mornings as the Sun riseth higher the Mists are dispelled and the Day groweth clear at Noon which was so Dark in the Morning Christians how many Arguments have I used with you to perswade you to press on after an Increase in Grace after a more Spiritual and Heavenly Frame of Heart and Life What success have former perswasions had Are you grown Are you improved Or do you set your Hearts upon it Are you reaching forward or do you not contentedly keep at a stand and seem to grow backward and lose your former Life and Vigour What shall I say to you What may I do for you to Nurse you up to higher Statures We live in a declining Age every where there are sad complaints that Rel gion is at a stand and growing to decay How is it with you Are there any lively Souls among you Do you get ground does your Light break forth Do your ways as the Path of the Just Prov. 4.18 Shine more and more toward the perfect Day Friends pray inquire one by one Is it thus with me It it thus with me If I might but prevail with you to set your Hearts to it O what a Goshen might we be in comparison of the Dark places of the Earth Whilest there is such sad Darkness in most places of the Land yet in this Goshen there would be Light O might we see more of the Light of Grace in you we should surely see much of the Light of Joy If the Soul of Hearty Christianity might gather more strength within you and bring forth more Fruit without if you would tread upon this Earth blow off these Ashes blow up the Coals shake off this sluggish sleepiness of Heart if we could get these cold Hearts to be warmed once would it not be a Joy and rejoycing to us Be perswaded Friends to set to sowing more joy for your Selves Whilest Sinners are Sowing Tears for themselves and Sorrows and Lamentations this they do in their Carnal Merriments Carnal Mirth is but the Seed of Sorrow and Misery as Light is Sown for the Righteous Mourners so Darkness is Sown for rejoicing Sinners and their rejoicing is the Seed of that Darkness and when they come to suffer everlasting Misery they do then but Reap the Fruit of their sinful Jollity whilest Sinners are Sowing Tears let Christians set to Sowing Joy to themselves Do what you can to make your last Days your best Days and every Day brighter than other Do not barely wish it were better and hope for better but work for better Days desire more earnestly pray more heartily look more wishtly and labour more painfully for a visible and sensible improving and advancing in the Power and Spirit of Religion and Godliness and then your Hearts shall rejoice and your Joy shall no Man take from you Beloved I have but two Works to do among you all whereunto I labour and strive with you in the Gospel but these two works I have to do to fetch in those that are without and to fetch up those that are within Sinners you that are yet without without Christ without the Covenant of God that are yet in your Sins in your Ignorance in your Impenitence and hardness of Heart Strangers from Christ and Aliens from the Life of God my work with you is to Preach you into Christ to Preach you in by Repentance I travail in Birth with you that Christ may be formed in you might I prevail in this Work might any more among this Company of poor Sinners of you be brought to Repentance and be Converted O what Joy would there be in this Luke 15. There 's Joy in Heaven over one Sinner that repenteth and there would be the Foundation of Joy laid in your own Hearts Come Sinners come to Christ the Fountain of your Joy and your Hopes come and be humbled with Christ and you shall be exalted with him come and mourn with Christ and you shall be comforted come and Repent and you shall also rejoice But if I should not prosper in this work if Sinners should continue to be hardned and refuse any more of them to come in if I should not fetch more in yet let me fetch up those that are within you that are come in come up higher Stand not always at the Threshold content not your selves with the lowest place Friends sit up higher ascend ascend ascend in your Aims ascend in your Desires get to be better Christians daily more experienced Christians more mortified Christians more lively and Active and fruitful Christians and then look for it you shall be more joyful Christians get you to be more strong in the Lord and the Joy of the Lord shall be your Strength 2. Rejoyce not in Iniquity Charity doth not and therefore Christians must not rejoice in Iniquity 1 Cor. 13.6 Let not your sin make you Merry if it does that which now makes you merry will shortly make you mad with anguish and indignation at your own folly Merry Sinners are all Fools and some of these Fools will be always laughing but we must say with Solomon Eccles 2.2 I said of such laughter thou art madness 3. Rejoice not
but for a Moment 4. Sinners live in their own Light in the Light of their own Fires and Sparks Walk in the Light of your Fire that 's all the Light you have it is all Dark to them from above the Sun shines not the Candle of the Lord gives them no light God speaks Terrour and Trouble to them but they speak Peace to themselves their own Joy and Mirth is all they have to comfort and chear them 5. Sinners Light serves for nothing but to Light them down to Darkness Walk in your Light this shall ye have of mine Hand ye shall lie down in Sorrow Sinners how Light soever your Walk be how Merry soever your Lives be yet what is your lying down like to be He is a Wise Man that taketh care that how uncomfortable or weary soever his Way and his Walk be yet he may have a comfortable lying down Psal 37.37 Mark the Just Man and behold the Perfect Man the End of that Man is Peace But O ye Jolly and Merry Souls what is your End like to be Remember your lying down when your Hearts are Merry within you when you live such Laughing and Sporting Lives in the midst of your Cups of Pleasure your Musick and Dancing your Feasting and Sporting and the Jollity of your Revelling and Rioting think with your selves What doth all this lead to When these Merry dayes are over what a Night am I like to have of it When the Candles of your Worldly Prosperity are Burnt down in what a stinking Snuff will they go out What a stink will they be in your Nostrils When your Fires and your Sparks will Light you no longer then they will burn you your Mirth will burn you your Pleasures will burn you your abused Prosperity your Riches your Money your Plenty and the Joy that you now take in them will burn you and they will burn to the bottom of Hell Will you yet rejoyce in these Carnal things Rejoyce with Trembling Tremble to think what the End of these things will be Prov. 14.13 In the midst of Laughter the Heart is Sorrowful and the End of this Mirth is heaviness if the former of these in the midst of Laughter the Heart is sorrowful c. should not be true if you should Laugh and rejoyce and know no Sorrow if it should be with you as with those Merry ones Job 21.9 Their Houses are far from Fear and your Hearts should be as far from Sorrow as your Houses from Fear if you should have all Sweet and no Bitter all Sun-shine and no Clouds if the first Part should not be true upon you if in the midst of Laughter your Hearts should not be sorrowful yet the latter shall certainly be true there shall be no avoiding of that the End of your Mirth shall be heaviness Hold up while you will maintain the Mirth and the Jollity of your Hearts while you can the End of this Mirth will be heaviness you shall lie down in Sorrow Sinners what will ye choose What would a Wise Man choose A Merry Life or a Joyful Death Which do ye think in your Judgments and Consciences is the best choice to Die in Peace to Die in Joy or to Die in Sorrow How would you have it with you when you come to Die Would you then find that all your Sorrow is gone and now your Joy is come Or would you be forced then to say Now farewel all my Mirth I have seen my last of it and henceforth nothing but Sorrow and Anguish for ever Dost thou not tremble to think What if this should be my Case Know it for a Truth there 's no avoiding it if you go on to live this Merry Jolly Life this shall be thy End thou must lie down in Sorrow Christians envy not the World's Mirth nor let your Hearts lust after it you have other Joyes than their crackling Thorns will yield you have your Sorrows while they have their Mirth but you have this advantage of the World 1. You have Joy in your Sorrows as in the midst of Laughter the Heart is sad so in the midst of your Sorrows your Hearts may be Joyful 2. Your Sorrows shall End in Joy this shall you have of the Hand of your God you shall lie down in Peace You that Sow in Tears shall reap in Joy Psal 126.6 Whilest those that Sow in Mirth shall Reap in Tears you that go on your Way weeping whilest they go on their Way Laughing yet mark the End of both Isa 65.13 14. Behold however it be now behold how it shall be hereafter How shall it be My Servants shall Eat but ye shall be Hungry my Servants shall Drink but ye shall be Thirsty my Servants shall rejoyce but ye shall be ashamed my Servants shall sing for Joy of Heart but ye shall cry for Sorrow of Heart and shall howl for vexation of Spirit and ye shall leave your Name for a Curse to my chosen for the Lord God shall slay thee Now your Enemies Eat and some of you are an Hungry c. But think how it will be in the Day when the Scales be turned when the Sinners Eating Days and Drinking Days and Jolly merry Dayes are over and their Hungring Dayes and howling Dayes overtake them and you that now Hunger and are Sorrowful shall Eat and Drink and be satisfied with the Joy of the Lord. O envy not and meddle not with the sinful Joyes of the World these Strangers shall not meddle with your Joy Prov. 14.10 Meddle you as little with theirs let your God be your Joy and if he give you any matters of rejoycing in this World and allow you some Measures of Joy even in these outward things yet rejoyce with trembling and let your Fear so moderate your Joy in these lower things that you do not lash out into that Carnal Mirth the End whereof is Heaviness Especially when the Matters of Worldly Joy increase upon you you that grow Rich and Prosper in the World that find the World smiling and come crowding in upon you that have even what your Hearts could wish and then feel your Hearts to be tickled and pleased and delighted in your Prosperity then take heed then fear lest you forget God and your Soul and neglect and lose the Joy of the Lord and your care of pleasing the Lord in your abounding Worldly Joyes and never count any such Joyes lawful or safe for you but such as make you to love the Lord the more and serve the Lord with more chearfulness and care If you do not serve the Lord better and walk with God closer and bring forth more of the Fruits of Holiness and Righteousness in more Spirituality and Heavenliness of mind if you be not some way the better God-wards and Heaven-wards in the abundance of all things than you could be or than others are in the want of all things count that Prosperity greater cause of trembling than of rejoycing to you 4.
that gave it Man though he hath a mortal body yet he hath an immortal Soul The Spirit of a man is the Candle of the Lord and when this Candle is once lighted it shall never go out It s carried away hence but it s carried to God that gave it The Souls of all men good and bad when they die do all go to God even those that go to the Devil are first carried to God by him to receive their Sentence to their everlasting state Sinners when they die go not to God as their Reward or Blessedness but to God as their Judge Sinners will say as Christ did Luke 23.46 Father into thy hands I commend my spirit but God will say to them who are ye away from me ye workers of iniquity I know you not Mat. 7.23 I am none of your Father ye are of your Father the Devil get you down to him Commend your Spirits to me what have you given up your Souls to the Devil and all your life long have they been serving of him and he been corrupting and depraving of them blinding them hardning them made them such a filthy and unclean thing and now do ye think to come off so to commend these filthy and unclean Souls to me away with them I 'le none of them If those that are sanctified by my Spirit and serve me with their Spirit come to me when they die I 'le take them to me I will acknowledge my self their Father they shall dwell with me but those that have served sin and the Devil while they lived let not them think to commend their Spirits to me when they die I 'le none of them Well but whether we must dwell with God or the Devil into the other World all Souls good and bad must pass when they go hence 2. There is an eternal Judgement So the Apostle tells us Heb. 6.2 of the Doctrine of eternal Judgment It is call'd an Eternal Judgement not as if the day of Judgment should last for ever in how long or how short a time that judgment shall be dispatched no man certainly knows the glorious God can make short work and will do so in that great and dreadful day It s called Eternal Judgment because it sentenceth men to their everlasting state and its the last judgment there shall never be another to all Eternity but the sentence of this Judgment shall stand for ever 2 Cor. 5.10 We must all stand before the Judgment Rom. 2.6 Who will render to every man according to his works to them that by patient continuance in wel-doing do seek for glory honour and immortality eternal Life but to them that are contentious and obey not the truth indignation and wrath tribulation and anguish to every Soul of them that do evil 3. In the Judgment to come the secrets of the heart shall be opened and judged Men shall be judged for their words men shall be judged for their deeds but not for these only but for the secrets of their hearts Eccl. 12.14 God shall bring every work to Judgment with every secret thing whether it be good or evil The Judgments of men are only over our Bodies and outward Acts they know not our hearts and therefore cannot be our hearts Judges But 1. God sees the heart I the Lord search the heart and try the reins Jer. 17.10 He seeth in secret and he that seeth in secret will reward openly Mat. 6.4 1. He seeth the good that is in secret the love and fear of his Name our inward desires and thirstings and breathings after him every holy thought every holy purpose the inward mournings of the heart under sin and temptation the inward strivings wrestlings of the heart against temptation and corruption our self-loathings and self abasings the integrity and uprightness of our hearts whilst men are censuring or reproaching or punishing us as hypocrites God sees the integrity that is in our Souls O Friends get an honest upright heart in the sight of God you shall never loose the benefit and blessedness of it God sees the sincerity of the upright and will certainly reward it 2. He seeth the evil that is in secret the proud heart the false and guileful heart are open before him Beware of playing the Hypocrite of satisfying your selves with Hypocritical Duties hypocritical Praying hypocritical Hearing or Professing God sees what that heart of thine is a doing while thy tongue is a praying or thine ear hearing thou mayst deceive men and thine own self but God cannot be deceived 2. The secrets of the heart shall be opened and judged in that Judgment of God 1 Cor. 4.5 Judge nothing before the time until the Lord come who will both bring to light the hidden things of darkness and make manifest the Counsels of the heart and then shall every man have praise of God 1. The things of the heart are hidden and dark things The thoughts of the heart dark thoughts the Counsels of the Lord dark Counsels even the good things that are in the heart are to all others but dark things 2. In the day of Judgment these things of darkness shall be all brought to light the secrets shall be all made manifest What a sight will there be in that day when the hearts of all the World shall be seen as it were at one view What a blessed sight will there be when all the Beauty and inward Glory of the Saints all their Graces shall be seen What a black sight also will there be when all the filth and garbage that is in sinners hearts all the venemous brood all the Cockatrices eggs that ever have been hatch'd in those unclean hearts when all the wicked Counsels and Devices of their hearts all the Curses and Blasphemies all the Couzenage and Fraud of the heart all the wicked Plots and Contrivances of the heart against God or his Saints all the Adulteries and Filthiness of the heart all the Madness and Follies of the heart all the Malice and Spite and Rage of the heart when all these shall be presented at one view O what an odious sight will there be Sinners do not cheat your selves in your sinful ways with hopes of Secrecy for all must be brought to light If all that wickedness and hypocrisie if those filthy lusts and unclean thoughts that are in your hearts should be now seen by all this Congregation how would you be ashamed and how would you blush to look any body in the Face but because thy naughty heart and its naughty thoughts and desires cannot be seen thou mayest be a proud fellow of a froward heart of a dissembling lying heart and no body the wiser therefore thou lettest thy self alone to be as thou art as long as thou hast a secret covering for all thy ugly Conditions 't is well enough but do not cheat thy self thus all these hidden things of darkness must be brought to light thou must be turned inside outward and all the shame of
not the Lord Psal 115.17 The living the living he shall praise thee Is 38.19 That is spoken of the naturally dead and living and must we not say the same of the spiritually dead and the living Souls dead Souls can't praise the Lord they can't pray nor believe nor hope nor serve the Lord the living the living Soul it shall praise thee it shall pray unto thee and serve thee Hypocrites are all dead at heart and therefore all their services are but dead services they make a shew and keep a stir in the outward parts of Religion they can talk as Christians and walk and move but it is with these dead Souls as with those dead bodies which we call walking Ghosts they look like men and speak like men and go up and down like men but still they have no Soul in them It is the Devil that acts in them and speaks in them and carrieth them up and down none of all their actions or motions are vital actions the devil can make them speak and walk and look like living men but he cannot make them live such is the Hypocrites Religion he can pray and hear and sing and speak as Christians do but he is dead at heart and thereupon all his duties are but dead duties Friends you are as much concerned to keep your hearts as you are to be able to do any thing that will please God or save your Souls What is the intent of your Religion why do ye come together to pray and hear and partake of the Table of the Lord You will say I come to perform these duties to please the Lord I come in order to the saving of my Soul Do you so then look to your hearts better see that there be the root of Religion within you see that your praying be the praying with the heart that your hearing be not the opening your ear but the opening of your heart to the Word see that whatever you do that hath any shew of Religion in it you do it heartily watch your hearts when you come into the house of the Lord watch your hearts when you set upon any work for God lest they give you the slip and so make all your Services to be but bodily exercises which as 1 Tim. 4.8 profit little Bodily exercises that is the outward part of our Religion Ear Religion Tongue Religion Knee Religion these bodily Exercises where there is not an heart at the bottom of them profit nothing at all they will do nothing to the pleasing of God or the saving our Souls Friends beware of Hypocrisie take heed lest any of you be found hypocrites that your faith you seem to have be not the faith of hypocrites that your hope be not the Hypocrites hope that your praying and fasting and almes be not all the Sacrifices of hypocrites and such sacrifices they are if they be Sacrifices without an heart Come not before the Lord with hollow Vessels which will make a sound but have nothing in them We that look upon you can't tell what there is within you we see your faces and hear your voices but what is under God knows look you to it that it be not all hollow and empty within he that seeth the heart seeth what there is within and will accept or reject according to what he finds of the heart in all you do Friends What do ye here this day have you brought with you ever a Sacrifice for God ever a living Sacrifice the living God will regard none of you if you bring not a living Sacrifice He doth not require of you as he did of old a Bullock or a Ram for a Sacrifice No nor a Dove nor a Lamb for a Sacrifice it is a Soul for a Sacrifice a living Soul that is quickned and sanctified by the Bloud and Spirit of Christ And upon this account farther are you concerned to look to and to keep your hearts as ever you would do any thing in Religion that is acceptable with God or of any avail to your own Salvation The heart is the spring of all vital Actions and they are only our vital Actions our living and lively duties that will be accepted of the living God Would you not be rejected for hypocrites would you not compass the Lord about with lies as Ephraim did Hos 11.12 would you not come before the Lord with lies and comfort your selves with lies then see that you bring your hearts with you before him Is there any life begotten in your hearts is Christ formed upon you is the Spirit of Christ poured forth into you is there the life of God in your hearts and is this the spring of all your acceptable services then as you love your lives as you fear to serve the living God with dead service set a careful guard upon your hearts that neither these be stolen away from God nor that life which is within you be stolen out of your hearts Brethren I would not that any of you be found hypocrites therefore do I labour with you therefore do I preach to you and warn every one of you that you may be presented perfect and upright in the day of the Lord. I would not that you be found hypocrites in that day nor would I that your Religious actions be found hypocritical actions in your present day 'T is said of the limbs of Antichrist 1 Tim. 4.2 That they speak lies in hypocrisies I would have Christians not only none such as speak lies in hypocrisie no nor to speak truth in hypocrisie to do good in hypocrisie and therefore 't is that I have spent so much time among you upon this Subject of looking to your hearts that these may be right with God in all that you do I fear there are hypocrites among you I fear that much of the Religion of some of you may be but hypocritical Religion but look to your selves and as you would be loth to have no better acceptance than hypocrites as you would dread to have your portion with hypocrites so dread it to satisfie your selves with hypocritical duties serve the God of your hearts with an hearty service serve the true God with an heart and with a true heart serve the living God with living hearts see that there be the life of God in your hearts and let the life within you be the Spring of all your Performances that all that ever you do in Religion be the issues of life 3. It is the record of all the transactions which have been betwixt Christ and your Soules If ye be Christs there have been great dealings betwixt Christ and your Souls Christ hath been dealing with you dealing with you by his word dealing with you by his Spirit instructing and enlightning your Souls convincing and awakening your Hearts perswading and alluring your hearts after him Christ hath been dealing with you about your repenting and turning to the Lord about your Reconciliation and making peace with God God hath been in
Christ reconciling you to himself 2 Cor. 5.19 You have not had us dealing with you in the name of Christ who are the Ministers of Reconciliation 2 Cor. 5.18 but he who is the great Reconciler Christ himself hath been dealing with you and hath reconciled you to God So sure as the Devil hath been dealing with sinners he hath drawn them away from God drawn them to sin and wickedness against God hath been hardning them against God you could never have been so wicked you could never have been so hardned against God as you are hardned against conversion hardned against repentance if the Devil had not been dealing with you You see what hard hearts you have we cannot humble you we cannot perswade you to repent and turn our words do nothing with you you will not be perswaded to return but you go on your way and remain stupid and sensless of your sin and misery you will not be perswaded 't is so bad with you We cannot for our hearts make you sensible of your wretched cases nor put a stop to you in your sins You may see well enough who hath been dealing with you that you continue so sinful still and so hardned in your sins It is the Devil that hath had to do with you thus to deprave you and to harden you as sure as the Devil hath been dealing with sinners so sure hath Christ been dealing with his Saints 'T is not Ministers that have awakened you that have convinced and humbled you and brought you about to the Lord 't is Christ that hath done these things for you We could never have humbled you we could never have perswaded nor turned nor reconciled you to God if Christ himself had not done it You were once foolish and disobedient led about with diverse lusts you were once Drunkards Liars Covetous and Prophane and you had been amongst this uncircumcised Crew to this day if Christ had not fetched you off 't is with him you have had to do as 't is said Heb. 4.13 All things are naked and open before his eyes with whom we have to do You have to do with Christ Christ hath been dealing with you that are Christians or you had never come to this you had never been these living Souls you had never known what you do of God nor known what you do of Sin nor been washed from your sins your had never been here praying and hearing and praising the Lord and become followers of the Lamb if Christ had not had to do with you Particularly you that are Christians there have been great transactions betwixt God and your Souls 1. In point of Covenant Behold you that are Christians you are in Covenant with the Lord by reason whereof I may say concerning you as Moses concerning Israel Deut. 26.17 18. Thou hast avouched the Lord to be thy God to walk in his ways and keep his statutes And the Lord hath avouched thee to be his peculiar People You have avouched the Lord to be yours and the Lord hath avouched you to be his a solemn and mutual Covenant hath there passed between the Lord and you he is become your Covenant God you are become his Covenant People How came this to pass how is it that you are not still as poor sinners are in Covenant with Death and Agreement with Hell how comes it to pass that when poor sinners are in Covenant with the Devil you are in Covenant with God O you may thank Christ for this he hath been effectually dealing with you in this thing He hath not only procured such a gracious Covenant a Covenant of Mercy a Covenant of Pardons a Covenant of Peace but he hath also 1. Made offer of this Covenant of God to you inviting you to come and joyn your selves to the Lord in a perpetual Covenant that shall never be forgotten 2. He hath made void your Covenant with Death and disanull'd your Agreement with Hell He hath given you an heart to break and make void that wicked Covenant to break with the Devil to break with Sin and the World and to come out from among them 3. He hath effectually perswaded you into this Covenant of God He hath brought you into the bond of the Covenant Ezek. 20.37 He hath sprinkled you with the Blood of the Covenant and hath gained your hearty acceptance of all this You have opened your Mouth to the Lord you have vowed your selves you have sworn your selves his Covenant Servants not with your Mouths only not in profession only but you have engaged your hearts to the Lord. Jer. 30.21 Your Hearts are no longer your own you have given them to the Lord to be his for ever So that you can now say through Grace to the Lord what he said to Israel Is 54.20 The Mountains shall depart and the Hills shall be removed but through the help of God my faithfulness shall not depart nor shall the Covenant of my peace ever be removed His I am and through his Grace I am determined to be the Lords for ever Friends such a solemn and sacred Covenant transaction hath there been in those very Hearts of yours betwixt the Lord and you He hath avouched himself to be yours and you have avouched your selves to be his own and those Hearts of yours are the Records wherein this Transaction is registred and kept Remember and look back and consider if there have not been such mutual engagements passed betwixt the Lord and you Look into your Closets and remember what of this kind hath passed between him and you in secret look back to your Sacraments and remember what Covenanting have been between the Lord and you at his Table and what solemn sealing there hath been God sealing to you and you sealing back to him Your Hearts are the Records wherein these Sacred Transactions have been Registred look into thine Heart doth not this testifie for thee how thou hast bound thy self to be the Lords for ever and hast accepted of his Bond to thee The remembrance of this Covenant Transaction will be of use to you as long as you live will be of use to comfort you in the day of your doubts and fears to confirm you in the day of Temptations to hold you close to the Lord according to the Vows that are upon you to quicken you and hold you on in that way of holy and lively Obedience which you have covenanted for When you grow cold and careless and remiss in your way of Religion then remember Is this the Life I covenanted with God to live When you are tempted to decline to a worldly life or a fleshly life then remember I have promised to the Lord that I will never return to such a life again When you are out of heart and complain of weaknesses and want of strength and so are discouraged and disheartned I shall never be able to hold to such an industrious life then remember the Covenant of the Lord with you who
have need of many washing dayes who have so many sinning dayes Every day should be a washing day to us Take that counsel of the Prophet Isa 1.16 Wash ye make ye clean put away the evil of your doings Make you clean and keep you clean Wash ye and watch ye put away the evil of your doings if you would that your hearts should long be kept clean Wash your hands and wash your face and wash your feet or these will defile your hearts Put away the Garment spotted with the flesh keep your outward man clean keep you unspotted from the World that so you may be blameless and unreprovable in the sight of God O Christians let us study every one of us to get to such a blameless and unrebukable Conversation that not only the world may have nothing to spot us with but that our Consciences may have nothing to spot us with that our hearts may not have wherewith to reprove us as little as may be of the common and unavoidable infirmities of our flesh but however we may be overtaken as to these yet be unreproveable as to any tolerated or allowed iniquities these are the great blots wherewith the heart is defiled Brethren beloved whoever among you that fear the Lord I would fain do what I can to prepare you an holy habitation for the holy one that whereas he hath said 2 Cor. 6.16 I will dwell with them and walk in them you may be such in whom his Soul may delight to dwell that he may say of you all as Psal 132.14 This is my rest for ever here will I dwell for I have desired it It is a strange expression the holy God speaks this to all his holy ones to thee in particular to thine heart if it be but a clean heart the Almighty God says to thee there is my rest in that heart of thine will I dwell for I have desired it the Lord God hath a desire to be thy Guest hath a desire to that poor Soul of thine to take it up for his own dwelling I would that you may be presented at last unspotted and unreproveable in his sight and to this end that you may be presented holy at last I would that you may be preserved holy and without blame at present O look to those hearts keep you pure let there be written upon you holiness to the Lord they should be a little heaven into which nothing that defileth should enter O purge your selves of whatever may offend and then guard your selves against it This is my warning to you and this is my prayer for you that the very God of Peace will sanctifie you wholly and I pray God that your whole Spirit Soul and Body may be preserved blameless against the coming of our Lord Jesus Christ And to him I commend you who is able to keep you from falling and to present you faultless before the presence of his Glory with exceeding joy to him be Gloro for ever Amen 3. Against Distempers A good temper of heart will be an advantage to us in any thing we have to do An heart out of temper is like a bone out of joint or like a Tempestuous Sea there 's no good sailing in it We cannot keep our way but shall be driven about this way and that way with every wind and wave An heart out of temper is like a door off the hinges or a Chariot off the Wheels it draggs and goes untowardly and heavily on O how often are our Souls unhinged our Chariots off the wheels or our wheels without oyl and then what pitiful work do we make at any thing we have to do when we have been in a crowd of worldly business or been foolishly merry and vain what a discomposure do we find upon our Souls and how unfit are we then for duty when we come to pray or to hear what labour doth it cost us to reconcile our hearts to our Duties or to get us into a praying or hearing frame We come to pray as a Musitian comes to play when his Instrument is out of Tune he must spend a good deal of his time in tuneing before one stroke can be strook How much work have we to tune our hearts at such times and it may be at last 't is more then we can do and so we must either let the duty alone or make such sad melody in the Ears of the Lord as a Musitian would do in ours who should play on his Instrument when every string is out of tune Get your hearts in temper and keep them so Be able to say with the Psalmist Psal 57.7 O God mine heart is fixed mine heart is fixed The good temper of the heart notes freedom and towardliness and disposedness for any thing God calls to and firmness and stability in that towardliness Let your hearts be established in Good Let there be an abiding holy temper upon your Spirits some of the distempers that we should guard our hearts against are 1. Slightness and vanity of Spirit A well tempered heart is a serious heart Seriousness of heart is as ballast to a Ship we shall go steadily whilst our hearts are serious 1 Pet. 1.13 Gird up the loyns of your minds and be sober Soberness here is the same with seriousness Christians are always engaged about serious and weighty things their Eternity is concern'd in every day they live and in every thing they do Every action of our Lives is a stroke at that work which must have an influence upon our Eternal State We have weighty work lying upon our hands every day and hour and how unsuitable is a slight and trifling Spirit to important affairs a slight heart is an empty and shallow heart and a shallow heart is unfit to meddle in the deep things of God Watch against slightness of Spirit Frothiness and Vanity becomes not a Christian at any time we may say of the frolicks and light and jovial lives of the carnal world as Solomon says of laughter Eccl. 2.2 I said of laughter it it is mad A Christian is besides himself when he indulgeth to a vain and frothy Spirit Friends 't is not for us to live in jest Eternal Life and Death are no jesting matters learn to live in good earnest those that are light and vain that are little else but froth and vapour in their ordinary Course do use to be but little better in their most serious Duties O what slight praying is there amonst us what shallow and empty Duties do our slight and trifling hearts satisfie themselves withal it may be some of us when we have spent a whole Sabbath with the Lord if we do reflect upon the temper we have been in may sometimes find that we have hardly had a serious hour in a whole day If they should be asked as Christ asked his Disciples Mat. 26.40 What could ye not watch with me one hour what could ye not be serious with me one hour what could we answer
which all need the utmost you can do for them Where are your Bowels to usward for our sakes awaken for our sakes arise and be doing we die if you will not give us a better example we die if you sleep on who should awaken and save us The whole Interest of God in the World calls upon you for his names sake for the Gospels sake for the Churches sake for Religions sake which sinks which decays for the sake of all these recover your Souls and your Life O friends what shall all these loud cryes do upon you shall all leave you such lumps and loyterers Christians be yet awakened call up all the Grace you have whet those dull and blunted Spirits get you a better edge upon them Why may not this word give a whet to you If you come hither sleepy Souls what a Mercy would it be if you might return home awakened if you came hither dead and dull and listless Souls what a comfort would it be if you might return home quickned and enlivened what if you should feel that this word had kindled a fire in you had made your hearts burn within you burn with holy Love and Life what a mercy would this be to you what if you might be sent hence with ready minds forward minds bent upon a more active and useful and heavenly life And what if after all this you should go away just as you came hither though the Bellows have been blowing yet your ashes are not purged away though the fire hath been kindled yet it will not burn would you like it if all this should be lost and do nothing upon you if this untoward and dull temper of Soul should be too hard for the Word and you should return from the Physician of Souls with your diseases uncured Do what you can friends every one of you to help to your own recovery to get up to this lively active frame and if you can obtain it then look to your hearts as long as you live that if it be possible this wretched distemper of a leaden unuseful lifeless listless unactive heart may never return upon you 2. How the heart must be guarded This I shall answer in these 5 particulars 1. Set a constant watch upon it 2. Keep all your Powers up in Armes 3. Keep close by your Captain and Physician 4. Carry up your Hearts where your Enemies can't come 5. Commit the keeping of them to the keeper of Israel 1. Set a constant Watch upon it That 's a word that is given to every Christian Mark 13.37 What I say unto you I say unto all Watch. And of all things we have to watch the heart is it that must chiefly be watched Our eyes must be chiefly there whether ever else we have to look we must especially look upwards and look inwards We must look upwards our eye must be upon Gods eye that all seeing eye that seeth in secret Whether our eye be or no Gods eye is ever upon our hearts I the Lord search the heart and try the reins Jer. 10 18. The eye of rhe Lord is a searching eye there is no secret of the heart but he espieth and searcheth it out and 't is a jealous eye that will not wink at nor allow nor indulge to the least heart evils The sense of that jealous eye would awe us into more watchfulness over our selves The reason of our neglect of self inspection is that we forget that the Lord looks upon us We cannot look upwards but we shall behold the very eye of God upon us If an hundred men stand looking upon us and we do not look upon them we cannot tell whether they look upon us or no but if we look stedfastly upon them we may see in their very eye that they are looking upon us Look up to God and you will plainly see that his eye is upon you And the observing of Gods eye upon you will turn your own eyes upon your selves What is it that the Lord looks thus upon me for what is it that he sees in me Is it any thing he likes that he looks upon Is it his approving eye that is upon me Is it a look of love or of kindness or is it that which he is offended at or disliketh Is there Jealousie is there Displeasure or Anger in that holy eye that is upon me is it a smiling look or a frowning and angry look that he casteth upon me Look on me I see he doth His Eye is never off me let me look upwards when I will I see that God looks downwards and his Eye is directly upon me and his Eye is a piercing Eye it pierceth to my very entrailes he beholds the very bottom of my heart I had need look carefully to mine own Soul when there is such an Eye upon it Night and Day Thus look upwards and set the Lord before your sight as the Psalmist did Psa 16.8 And then look inwards and set your hearts before your selves There is an Expression 2 Kings 8.47 If they shall bethink themselves which may be interpreted if they shall return into themselves the Eye of the Body can't see it self but the eye of the Soul may and must be chiefly upon its self You that are looking about this way and that way you had more need look homewards There are men that are of great acquaintance in the world but yet have no acquaintance with their own hearts VVhither their Souls be in safety or among Thieves VVhither their Hearts be clean or all bespotted and defiled whether they be healthful or sickly Souls whether they be alive or dead 't is more then they can tell where they be or in what case they are How is it with your Souls Friends How fares it with you in your inner Man VVho is there within with you Are there none but Friends Is Christ there Is the Spirit of Grace there Is there a good Conscience or are there not Robbers within Is not thine heart an houseful of Thieves Is not the world gotten in are not the pleasures of the Flesh within Is not the Devil within that unclean Spirit hath he not defiled and defaced the Image of God Is he not sowing his Tares in thee Is not thine heart a defiled diseased distemper'd heart Is it not a slight and frothy and vain heart Is it not a loose and licentious heart Is it not an untoward wayward listless heart Look inward Christians and look often inward and see what hearts you have and how 't is with them Psal 4.4 Commune with your own hearts Look into them and talk with them and take an Account how it fares with them If I should ask you how is it with your hearts are they alive or dead Are they clean Hearts holy Hearts tender Hearts heavenly Hearts lively and strong and working upwards Or are they hard Hearts polluted defiled hearts dull and slow and listless Hearts If I should ask you thus what account
shall follow me all the days of my life and I shall dwell in the house of the Lord for ever Brethren do you in good earnest desire to get you up to such a life as this do you heartily wish it might be thus with you have you any hope that you shall obtain and will you follow after it will you go hence as men and women designing any such thing shall we that have been with the Lord together this day now agree together in the Name of the Lord to be reaching forward with one heart and with one soul towards such an heavenly life shall we help one another and quicken one another and set examples one to another of such spirituality and heavenliness what do ye think would be the fruit of our appearance before the Lord this day might we return to our houses with our hearts full of such holy Resolutions with our hearts flaming in such holy desires Oh be impatient of thinking to return again to your old carnal and sensual and worldly frames to your cold and indifferent and lukewarm and lifeless way of Religion Let not the Devil catch you again wandring or carelesly jogging on at your wonted rate if he do look for it that whatsoever of the Divine Life or Love of the Divine Hope or joy hath been kindled in you this day you will be quickly spoiled and robbed of it all and those poor and weakly hearts will fall into a worse condition then before If you would keep any thing about you that might comfort you if you would secure your Souls from being rifled of all that you have received if you would not return to be dark and dead and barren Souls then remember this Counsel you have received from the Lord to whom my Prayer is for you which was Davids for Israel 1 Chron. 29.18 O Lord God of Abraham Isaac and Israel our fathers keep this for ever in the imagination of the thoughts of the heart of this people and prepare their heart unto thee Keep these thoughts fresh upon your hearts and you shall thereby keep your hearts after the Lord hath spoken Grace unto you from returning again to folly Lastly Commit the keeping of your hearts to the keeper of Israel Commit them to God Psal 127.1 Except the Lord keep the City the watchmen waketh but in vain The keeping of the heart is a greater trust than the keeping of a City and therefore had need be put into safe hands G d is able to keep it 2 Tim. 1.12 I know whom I have believed that he is able to keep that which I have committed to him unto that day God is able and God is faithful faithful is he that hath called you and will do it But it may be you will say O I shall never be able to keep mine heart in heaven keep up the love and life and joy of God in my Soul keep my self pure keep me close to God that the Devil never catch me wandring abroad Why I see he may catch me every hour mine heart is given to wandring and I cannot hold it in It would be an ease and a joy and a great delight to me could I get to be raised to such a pitch to be all spiritual and heavenly and there to fix and be ever with the Lord. O what a joy it would be to me had I but hope I might get to such a pitch but wo is me I shall never be able Why do your duty and for such a comfortable success let that care lie on the Lord. Commit it to him both to help you into such a frame and to keep you in it he hath said he will not fail you He hath sealed to you this day that he will help you that he will keep you trust upon him and he will do it But what is it to commit the keeping of our hearts to the Lord 1. To give them to the Lord. God will keep nothing but what is his own Wilt thou give thine heart to the Devil and then commit it to God to keep it for him give your hearts to the Lord give them to him for his Servants and then commit them to his Custody 2. To trust him with the keeping of them Psal 143.9 Deliver me O God from mine enemies for I flee unto thee to hide me I have many enemies that lie in wait for my Soul I dare not trust to my self for security God is my trust and my refuge I flee unto thee to hide me I will trust under the shadow of thy wings Psal 36.7 Therefore brethren my Exhortation to you shall be the same with Peters Exhortation to suffering Christians 1 Pet. 4.19 Commit the keeping of your Souls to him in well doing as unto a faithful creatour Observe it commit but in well doing Do not neglect your duty and think to make it up with this I have committed the care of my self to God I say do not neglect your hearts be not idle and careless of your own duty do not leave your selves open to the Usurpation of lust or the invasion of the Devil do not suffer your hearts to lead you on in your carnal ways leave not that heart of thine to be a blind house a dark hole and filthy Dungeon full of Abominations and then think to make up the matter with this to say I have committed it to the Lord to wash it and cleanse it and keep it I trust God with my Soul he I hope will preserve it commit the keeping of your Souls in well doing do your duty keep your hearts under Government keep them under Guard be washing your hearts daily be watching your hearts daily though God be also yet you are every one your own keepers do your part to keep that which God hath committed to you and then fear not but God will do his part he will keep whatever you have committed to him And thus I have at length run through this great duty of keeping the heart The Lord knows how great need there is of every word that hath been spoken O that none of it might be lost Our poor hearts God knows have hitherto found us but poor heart-keepers The case they are in is Evidence sufficient to prove how sadly they have been look'd to Some of them continuing in a lost state to this day others of them but half recovered others relapsed and fallen back from what they were once hopefully recovered to none of our hearts but have often been among Thieves where we have suffered great loss and how many have been the heart distempers and diseases we have fallen into O what slight what licentious what listless dull and lazy Souls have we been sure these hearts have found us but bad keepers O what shall be the success of these many words that have been spoken what say you Christians is there any hope that your hearts shall be better look'd to for the future what say you will you now be faithful will you keep this charge of the Lord keep this heart with all diligence who is there among you that will say I confess my faults and my great neglects this day I confess I have been careless the sad frame mine heart is in is a witness against me but through the Grace of God I will look better to my self and hope I shall not forget this word as long as I live I hope I shall leave medling with other mens matters and leave censuring of other mens ways and from henceforth keep mine eye more close and constant upon mine own Soul This do be more faithful in keeping your selves and then you may be bold to commit your selves to the Lord as unto a faithful Creator What hath been my design and desire in this whole work But 1. To prepare your hearts for the Lord that he may accept them 2. To bring them over to the Lord that they may become his own 3. To keep them for the Lord to keep them pure that he may take pleasure in them O let this be done and then you may commit them to the Lord to keep them safe Will you be perswaded will you be prevail'd upon thus to prepare and bring over your hearts to the Lord thus to preserve and keep them pure and faithful to him and so trust to his faithfulness Might I prevail with you in this I had done my work and having put you thus into safe custody should there be bold to leave you in this Confidence that you should be thenceforth all kept by the mighty power of God through faith unto Salvation FINIS
thy frowardness and thy malice and enmity against God and his holiness those cursed weeds that thou art overgrown withal that miserable plight that thy poor soul is in do sufficiently evidence what a miserable keeper thou hast been of thy self But man what a reckoning dost thou think thou shalt give Dost never think of being brought to a reckoning Dost think that God will ever let thee alone Dost think thou shalt never hear of thine idleness and this carelesness of thy self Thy Parents must give an account how they have done their duty how they have kept thee whilest under their power whether they have taught whether they have governed thee and educated thee in the Lord and thou must give the same account how thou keepest and teachest and governest thy child Ministers also must give an account of thee how they have instructed thee warned thee and watched over thee Heb. 13.17 Obey them that have the rule over you and submit your selves for they watch for your souls as they that must give an account Think not much that we deal so plainly and so closely with you that we are so instant in exhorting in reproving in warning and watching over you We must give an account how we discharge our duty towards you Paâ—â—nts must keep their Children Ministers must look to their Flocks and must give an account hereof to God but besides this every man must give an account of himself to God Rom. 14.12 How he hath obeyed them that were set over him in the Lord how far he hath hearkned to their counsels whether he hath received instructions and submitted to their exhortations and reproofs whether their discharge of their work towards him hath set him faithfully to his own work concerning himself And oh what account will you give of your selves to God what have many of you done more than others that have never had Ministers to take care of them how little have many of you lived better than those that never have been taught Sinners look into your hearts look upon your lives and understand if you have so much understanding in you in what a miserable case you are to this day Is it not a miserable thing there should be so much ignorance after so much teaching Are not those hard hearts those barren and unsavory lives much more those lewd and wicked lives that some of you live that Lying and that Drunkenness and that Sabbath-breaking and that Covetousness that some of you still live in are not these sufficient evidences that whatever Ministers have been to thee thou hast been a miserable keeper of thy self And what a reckoning must you be brought to for this Dost not think that God will reckon with thee for all Reckon with thee for thy Lying reckon with thee for thy Drunkenness reckon with thee for all thy carelessness and negligence What wilt thou say for thy self when God shall demand of thee How hast thou kept that Vineyard committed to thee How hast thou kept that soul of thine How hast thou ordered thy Life How wilt thou stand speechless in that day and receive the sentence of an unfaithful Steward and an unprofitable Servant From V. 24. Put away from thee a froward mouth and perverse lips put far from thee Note two things 1. The unruly evil must be ruled The Tongue is an unruly evil James 3.8 It is one of the hardest works that some Christians have to rule their Tongues but yet it must be done Object It is said it cannot be done the tongue can no man tame What doth Religion put us upon impossibilities to tame that member which â—annot be tamed Sol. The meaning there is that 〈◊〉 man can tame anothers tongue Thou maist rule thine own tongue but if thou wilt not do it thy self it is more than all the World can do to tame it for thee Who can stop uncircumcised lips who can silence the tongue of the froward Neither Laws nor Penalties will do it neither softest nor hardest answers will do it when the tongue is set on fire there is no water will quench it and yet it must be done 2. That which cannot be ruled must be put away Put away your froward mouth put away perverse lips Put away frowardness and perversness from thee frowardness cannot be ruled perversness cannot be kept in order When we have done all we can frowardness will be froward perversness will be perverse and therefore that is the way to rule the tongue to put away that frowardness which will not be ruled 1. What frowardness is I need not say much to answer that most men know it too well in their own experiences of the froward ones they dwell or have to deal withal There are few men but know what frowardness is unless it be those that are froward the eye that sees others yet cannot see it self He that is of a froward mouth is hardly brought to understand that he is froward He that hath a froward wife she that hath a froward husband they that have a froward neighbour need not be told what frowardness is but he that hath a froward heart it is he that hath most need to be told it 1. He is froward that is hard to be pleased apt to be provoked that is ever finding fault who is like Tinder apt to catch on fire by every spark and that fire is quickly kindled but hardly quenched no arguments no patience no forbearance will do but there it burns and will not be quenched Eccl. 7.9 Anger rests in the bosome of Fools of these froward Fools we are speaking of Frowardness is folly That fire which is intended as a revenge upon others doth burn and vex and fret out their own hearts II. He is of froward mouth that gives vent by his lips to the frowardness of his heart in virulent and bitter and provoking language 2. The necessity 〈◊〉 putting it away 1. The Lord commands us to put away froward mouths What if thy Friend or thy Neighbour cannot pacifie or silence thee shall not God pacifie thee neither If thou wilt not hear Man pleading for peace and quiet wilt thou not hear the Lord God neither God commands thee silence God commands thee to hold thy peace and to utter not a word more of thy furious folly what a perverse spirit art thou of on whom the authority of the Almighty will not prevail What dost thou say in effect but I will speak my mind whether God like it or not 2. It is a sign whilest it prevails that mens Religion is in vain James 1.26 If any man among you seem to be religious and bridleth not his tongue but deceiveth his own heart this mans Religion is in vain 1. There are some professors of Religion whose Religion is but an outside and pretence they do but seem to be religious they seem so to themselves and seem so to others but they are deceived there is no such thing as Religion in them 2. Some seem
vanity will this a running on upon mine own death and a shutting up the door of mercy forever against me and yet shall I continue as I am Is there a way of life yet before me is there a door of mercy yet open to me and shall I not get into the Way and be making towards the door Consider sinners what is the best the wisest and the only safe course to take from henceforth and do accordingly 2. Why must we ponder our paths 1. God pondereth them Is 26.7 Thou weighest the path of the just 2. The devil pondereth them Luke 22.31 That he may sift you as wheat 3. Wicked men our enemies ponder them 4. Our way may be right in our own eyes for want of consideration when yet upon consideration it may appear to be the way of death Prov. 14.12 There is a way that seemeth right unto a man but the end thereof are the ways of death 1. There is a way of some men that is not so much as right in their own eyes who as little as they do consider it do see their way to be the way of death and not of life the way of the openly Prophane the way of the Drunkard and Adulterer the way of the Swearer and Blasphemer Prophanness doth not pretend to be the way of life Drunkards and Adulterers know they are out of the way their consciences tell them this is not the way of God this is not the way to heaven their conscience tells them I must turn I must repent and take up a better way ere I die I must not die a Drunkard I must not die a Blasphemer or a Scoffer I must repent or I am lost and hopes they have that they shall repent and this their hope hardens them The consideration that such men should take up is not to convince them that they are out of this way of life that they know already but to convince them of the necessity of a present turning and changing their way Darest thou not to die a Drunkard or a Libertine or a Licentious Liver how then darest thou to live so a day longer Art thou sure but that death may meet thee before thy turning day comes And how if it should thou knowest that then there is no hope of thee but Everlasting wrath must be thy portion Thou countest upon turning and repenting but consider what is the reason thou dost not repent at present that thou dost not this day give a divorce to all thy wickedness shake hands with all thy companions and forthwith become a new man Why not now O I cannot bring mine heart to it And dost thou in good earnest think that it will be easier hereafter Hath the Lord been perswading thee to a change all thy life long and thou seest his word cannot prevail thou seest it doth not after all thy convictions and fears and threatnings of the Word and checks of thy conscience hitherto thou goest on thy lust is too hard for thy conscience or convictions and dost thou think in thy heart that this is the way to make it easy to repent to continue longer in thy sin A course of sin hardens thee sinner Thine heart is not so hardned against repentance this year but look for it thou art like to find it harder the next year The farther thou goest on in sin the farther off art thou from repentance 2. There are others whose ways are right in their own eyes which consideration would make appear to be the way of death and not of Life I shall instance in two sorts 1. The ways of moral unbelievers These are they that are sober and temperate and harmless and just in their dealings with men and courteous and good natured this is their way and this way seems right unto them in this way they hope to come to heaven though whatsoever they have of morality they have nothing of Christianity in them Conversion or Regeneration are as strange things to them as they were to Nicodemus Jo. 3.3 who when Christ told him except a man be born again he cannot see the kingdom of God he answered how can these things be And they have need to ask as Pilate did what is truth So they what is this new birth what is this new creature what is this conversion Consider man what dost thou think of this plea at last when this is all thou canst say I am an honest man but God help me no good Christian I am no drunkard but yet an unbeliever I am no Lyar nor Swearer but yet no convert to Christ Consider those scriptures Jo. 3.3 except a man be born again he cannot see the kingdom of God â—â—d Mat. 18.3 Except a man be converted he cannot enter into the kingdom of God And dost thou bless thy self in thy harmless and less vitious way when thou hast never felt any such thing as Regeneration upon thee This thy way is thy folly and though it be right in thine own eyes yet it is and thou will find it to be the way of death 2. The way of hypocritical professors some hypocrites know themselves hypocrites and the way seems not right to them others are hypocrites and yet take themselves to be sincere and the deceit of their hearts may be so deep that there is need of deep consideration to discover it They pray and they hear and have some face of Religion upon their ways they will speak of God and the things of God with some affection and live in the visible communion of the church with good approbation they are it may be well reputed and well reported among all men and yet for all that the root of the matter may not be in them they may be unsound and rotten at heart and neither themselves know it and others suspect it there may be some secret reigning lust in their hearts they may be lovers of the world lovers of their ease or their pleasures more than lovers of God Whatever they have there may be one thing lacking as it was the case of the young man Mar. 10.21 whose life was commendable in many things yet says Christ one thing lackest thou and that one lack was loss of heaven And have we not all need to consider our selves and to consider deeply how it is with us A sincere Christian is an entire christian psal 119.1 Blessed are the undefiled that is the entire in their way that labour to be entire lacking nothing and sure we had need consider whether we are or no. Some Professors are so lame and halting in their way that they lack many things almost all things of serious Christianity Thou hast the profession of christianity but is not the power of it lacking Thou dost some of the works of righteousness but may not the Lord complain of thee as of Sardis Rev. 3.2 I have not found thy works perfect before me thou dost some of the works of Christians but are not the inward graces lacking Some of
you may be upon the getting hand whilest they are abating be you for abounding let there be an adding daily to you be not satisfied with the grace you have with the duties you do but let your eye be upon adding daily to your store whilest others add sin to sin guilt to guilt let it be in your heaâ—s to add grace to grace fruit to fruit Consider what is lacking in you and follow after a supply follow after it by your earnest desires follow after it by diligent labour and endeavours and follow after it by uncessant and importunate prayer unto the God of all grace that he would cause all grace to abound towards you and in you that having all-sufficiency in all things you may abound to every good work Brethren it will be a mercy if these words may have such fruit upon you as to set your hearts upon getting and adding daily to your grace and good fruits and then a considering how you may most effectually improve accordingly I pray receive the Exhortation in the name of the Lord I beseech you forget it not ponder your paths consider what is lacking what is lacking within to set your outward man a going what is lacking without in your goings that need a supply Consider what you would have God do more for you than yet is done consider what you would do more for God than you have done in what particulars you fail and wherein you would be especially helped forward Consider and desire desire and labour labour and pray that the Lord would fill up what ever is wanting in you and then I shall be bold to assure you in the words of the Apostle Phiâ— 4.19 My God shall supply all your needs according to his riches in glory by Jesus Christ to whom be praise for ever Amen Doctr. The great care that lies upon every man in the World is to keep his heart There are many cares that lie daily upon us we have our Estates and our Names and our Families and our Bodies to take care of but our great care must be of our Hearts 1 What is meant by Heart This is sometimes taken for the principal part of the body of man sometimes for the soul of man so Jer. 17.9 The heart is deceitful and wicked that is the soul is deceitful Sometimes for the will and affections of the soul so 1 Chron. 28.9 here it is taken for the whole soul and this command keep thy heart is the same with that in Deut. 4.9 keep thy soul diligently What is the Soul Most men know not what and none of us know perfectly what a Soul is It is our inward and invisible substance which gives life to our bodies it is an essential and the most excellent part of us That hath most of the nature and image of God in it It is our immortal part that hath life in it and gives life to the body and never dies Our Reasons and Wills whereby we differ from Brutes these are the essential faculties of our souls The Soul is that in which our capacity lies of the highest blessedness and the extremity of misery The blessedness of the Soul is the highest blessedness The Body as such is capable of no greater happiness than a Beast is capable of onely the pleasures of sense the Soul is capable of spiritual and eternal pleasures the torments of the Soul are most exquisite and intolerable torments the burning of the Body is nothing in comparison of the wrath of God burning in the Soul The excellency of the Soul above the body you may guess at by considering what the Body is when the Soul is departed What a gastly thing what a stinking and rotten Carkass doth the most beautiful Body become when it is dead and the Soul is departed It was this the Soul of Man that was the great prize that Christ had in his eye when he died to redeem us he died to redeem souls especially to recover that blessed immortality that our Souls had lost the natural immortality they had not lost That is a great part of our misery that sin left us immortal Creatures such of whose misery there shall never be an end It was not our natural immortality that Christ died to recover that was not lost but our blessed immortality This invisible immortal most excellent part of Man his Soul this is it which we are to understand by Heart Keep thy heart that is keep thy soul 2. What it is to keep the heart 1. There is somewhat that is supposed to the keeping of our souls and that is the recovering them out of their lost state The Devil hath the keeping of Sinners souls whilest they are sinners and the first work they are to do in order to the keeping their souls is to get them back out of the Devils hands That they may recover themselves out of the snare of the Devil 1 Tim. 2.26 Here I shall shew you these three things 1. The Souls of all men naturally are lost 2. Mens souls are not so lost here but that they are recoverable 3. This must be mans first care to recover their lost souls 1. The souls of all men naturally are lost souls It may be said of every sinner as the father of the prodigal said of him Luke 15.32 This my son was lost Fathers you may say of every child you have whilst they are in their natural state this my son is lost this my child is a lost child yea and you may say the same of your selves whilest in your sins mine own soul is a lost soul and whether you will say it or no we must say to every one of you fathers and children that are yet in your sins you are lost souls As Christ came himself so he hath sent us in his name to seek and to save them that are lost Luke 16.10 What is it to be lost Why it is the same as to be damned to be damned persons signifies to be lost and to be lost in this spiritual sense is to be damned So that word 2. Cor. 4.3 If the Gospel be hid it is hid to them that are lâ—st to them that be damned that is in a state of damnation and in the way to actual and everlasting damnation O tremble sinners tremble all you that are yet in your sins what will you tremble at if not at being damned the word calls every man of you that are not in Christ Reprobates from God 2 Cor. 13.5 Know ye not that Jesus Christ is in you except ye be reprobates Is Christ in thee Art thou a convert to Christ No Then thou art a reprobate from God thou art a damned lost soul live and die in this estate thou art in at present and thou art eternally lost What mean you sinners that you are so much at ease so much at rest in your state of sin Is it nothing to be damned Is it nothing to be Reprobates O think what it will be
live and die unconverted and so go to Hell at last These very warnings that now thou hast if they should not work upon thee to turn thee from thy sins and bring thee to Christ if the Gospel should leave thee in the case thou art this day thou wilt to Hell as sure as if thou wert there already and then all that thou now hearest or shalt ever hear whilst thou livest will but heat thy Furnace seven times the hotter against thou comest down But because there is yet hope thou mayest be converted thank God thou art here for there is hope as from this first ground because thou art within the reach of the bloud of Christ so 2. There is hope from this that sinners are yet under the ministry of reconciliation as the Apostle 2 Cor. 5.19 To us is committed the word of reconciliation So we may say to sinners to you it is given to hear the word of reconciliation it is for your sakes that this word of reconciliation is committed to us that we might preach it unto you God hath not onely continued you within the reach of the bloud of Christ but under the teachings of his Ministers whose work it is to tell you how you may have the benefit of his bloud to make a tender and offer of this bloud of Christ to you and to persuade and make you willing to accept it we are sent to preach Christ unto you and to make known unto you what help there is in Christ for you and what freedom you have given you to lay hold on Christ and also to persuade and bring you into Christ that you may have the benefits of his bloud It is a strange word we have given us Luke 14.28 Compel them to come in Go and call poor sinners to me and if they be not willing to come compel them in not force them in whether they will or no Christ will not have any sinner against his will but compel them that is use all the importunity you can to make their unwilling souls willing use such arguments as if it be possible they may not be able to resist and though they do resist yet do not give them over so but do your your best by your importunity to overcome their resistance Go says Christ to his servants fetch in all the sinners in the Country to me here is room for them all as many as there are come already yet there is room for more v. 22. Let my house be filled with guests filled with Converts go find out these poor wretches where they lie rotting and perishing in their sins and bring them in Christ doth not say to his Ministers concerning sinners as once he did to his Disciples concerning little children Mat. 9.14 Suffer little children to come to me suffer poor sinners to come to me do not put them back or discourage them when they would come but persuade them in help them in press them to come in beseech them to come and be reconciled to God I am not willing that any of them should perish but that all should be brought to repentance and obtain everlasting life 2 Pet. 3.9 This is the business of our Ministry and this Ministry of reconciliation thou poor sinner art under to this day Now does not all this give sinners hope that yet they may be recovered Why hath God let thee live to hear this word Why hath God brought thee hither this day to hear it What canst thou not say I hope it is that I may be converted I hope it is that I may be recovered The Lord yet comes among you to tell you what you must do to be saved what you must do to get Christ to be yours to preach repentance to you that you may recover your selves out of the snare of the Devil who are held captive by him at his will 2 Tim. 2.26 Sinners You are all Prisoners and Captives but yet you are Prisoners of hope you are dead souls but there is hope you may be made alive you are lost souls but there is hopes you may be found There is hazard that you may be quickly irrecoverably lost but some hopes there is you may be recovered O will you come to Christ will you come to the means grace as men of hope Hear the Word in hope that it may work savingly upon you pray for such a work in hope that God may hear though all the sinners among you in one sense are men of hope yet in another sense the most of sinners are men of no hope in this sense you are all men of hope that there is a door of hope yet open to you but in this sense you are men of no hope that is if you continue as you are there is no hope but you must perish A wild and groundless hope too many sinners have they hope against hope they hope for recovery without using the means of recovery they hope for salvation without reconciliation they hope for remission without repentance they hope to be redeemed from death without being redeemed from iniquity this is to hope against hope this is to hope for that of which there is no hope There is no hope of salvation without repentance no hope of escaping without returning Ministers of the Gospel are to break down such false and deceitful hopes not to build them up That which from what hath been said I would persuade you to is to hope for salvation and in that hope to look after conversion to hope for conversion and in that hope to hear the converting word to hope for a new heart and life and in that hope to pray that God will give you this new heart Dare not to sleep in hope to sin in hope to harden your selves in your sins in hopes of forgiveness pray in hope hear in hope humble your selves in hope turn in hope that God will accept and be merciful to you When you come to hear do not come as most sinners do not knowing or considering wherefore they come together but when thou goest to hear and to pray go with this hope in thine heart I am going to hear the word of Faith the word of Repentance and I hope God will bless it to me that it may work Faith and Repentance in me I am going to hear the heart-breaking and the heart-humbling word the converting word and I hope the Lord will humble and break and convert me by it I have often heard and have been never the better hitherto I have not been humbled and broken by it this wretched heart is as dead and as hard as if it had never been preached to Well but doth the Lord yet again call me forth to hear this word O I will go in hope that yet at last it may work upon me Hope hath two things in it Desire and Expectation This is the hope I would persuade you to come to the word in to come with desire to be wrought upon and
censure those that fear God as fools and to charge Religion with folly Proud Fool get thee a little more understanding and then thou wilt see what an ignorant poor mistaken soul thou art The convert looks upon the Gospel and the goodness of God and the grace of Christ and the holiness of the Spirit as marvellous things excellent things he sees an excellency in Religion a beauty and desirableness in all the ways of God he sees the folly of Sin and the wisdom of Religion the baseness and unworthiness and the filthiness of Sin and the worth and the purity of Religion he sees himself to have been a very beast and a fool whilst he continued and went on in his sins and can never have a good thought of himself but as far forth as he is changed from his sins he looks upon that little change that is begun as a blessed change and a comfortable change Now I have something of the understanding of a man returned into me Now I thank God I begin to live and stand up from among the dead O I thank God for this little wisdom that is begotten in me I was a very fool till now I have been told I was a fool I have been told I was a beast many a time but I could never see it till now until the Lord hath thus opened mine eyes this is some degree of the sinners recovery such an opening of his eies though it is possible he may be very much recovered in this respect and yet be a sinner still 2. The man whose heart is opened Thus Lydia's conversion is expressed Acts. 16.14 Whose heart the Lord opened There is a double opening of the heart 1. An opening of the heart to the Lord so as to receive and embrace him when offered The hearts of natural men are shut against the Lord they are not only void of grace and without Christ but bolted and bar'd up against Christ and his grace they are unwilling of conversion unwilling of sanctification Jer. 13.27 O Jerusalem wilt thou not be made clean No they will not O sinner wilt thou not have the Lord to be thy God wilt thou not have Jesus to be thy Lord Wilt thou not that he should come into that soul of thine and wash thee with his bloud and govern thee by his spirit make thee a new soul and of another spirit than thou hast been No thou wilt not thine heart is shut against Christ To the Devil thou wilt open to the world and its lusts and its pleasures thou wilt open thine heart nay it stands open night and day to these but it is shut against Christ and his grace thou art not willing that Christ should come in Sinners if your hearts would but open Christ would come in this very hour and bring in his salvation to thee There is not one man amongst you all that shall go home this day without Christ without the sanctifying grace of Christ that is but unfeignedly willing to give entertainment to him Art thou willing of Christ willing to have grace Wilt thou so receive Christ as to resign up thy self to his guidance and government art thou really willing this is the very opening of thine heart to the Lord wherein thy conversion stands Thou art the man whose heart the Lord hath opened 2. An opening the heart to godliness or christianity The former opening notes a readiness of the heart to receive Christ in and his Grace in This opening of the heart notes the souls letting it self out after Christ and his holy ways a letting its self out in holy desires in love and holy affections in resolutions and holy purposes to serve and cleave to the Lord. When the heart is open to Christ it is open to Christianity When it hath received Christ Jesus the Lord it will be for walking in him The heart of the Hypocrite though it professeth to be open to Christ yet it is shut against Christianity Hypocrites are willing of a part in Christ in the priviledges and hopes and comforts of the Gospel and so will trust in Christ and boast of Christ and glory and rejoice in Christ Jesus but as to the exercise of Christianity especially in those harder and severer parts of it the mortifying the flesh the denying themselves the being crucified to the World the close and downright and industrious following the Lord in holiness of this they are not willing their hearts are shut against it That heart that is sincerely opened to the Lord and hath indeed taken Christ in doth freely open it self to all the ways of the Lord and hath a propension and disposiâ—ion and resolution for powerful and practical Christianity He is a resolved Disciple of Christ a resolved follower of Christ Now this is the recovered soul the man whose eyes are opened who hath the knowledge of God of the beauty and excellency and goodness of all the ways of God and the man whose heart is opened who hath both received Christ Jesus the Lord and who is resolved to walk in him this is the soul that was dead and is alive Vse Are sinners lost souls then let us take up a lamentation over them What a lamentation did the Prophet take up over the sinful Jews Jer. 9.1 O that my head were waters and mine eyes a fountain of tears that I might weep day and night for the slain of the daughters of my people O what a slaughter hath sin made amongst us our Houses our Streets our Congregations how full are they of the dead dead souls whom sin hath slain Behold the dead that are in every place so many sinners so many dead and lost souls Here be the dead but where are the mourners Verse 17. Consider ye and call for the mourning women that they may come and send for cunning women skilful at mourning and let them make hast and take up a wailing for us that our eyes may run down with tears and our eye-lids gush out with water Women are more pityful than men and more apt to mourn Call says he for the pityful among women let them take up a wailing for us and let them set us a mourning let the women set the men a mourning that our eyes may run down with tears and v. 20. let the Mothers teach the daughters wailing and every one her neighbour lamentation Why what is the matter v. 21. O Death is come up into our windows and is entered into our palaces our houses are houses of the dead It is not onely with us as with Egypt when their first-born were slain when there was not an house in the Land wherein was not one dead there are but few houses in our Land where there is one alive they are almost all dead dead Fathers dead Children dead Husbands dead Wives dead in trespasses and sins Death hath not onely entered in at our windows and slain here and there one but the doors have been set open to it whole
an increase to set you a running and striving and fighting against all that hinders Oh what might be said to get those creeping souls upon the wing to quicken your motions heaven-ward O how might I help you off with those weights that hâ—ng on those weights of earth and flesh of cares and lusts and sins that you might run with patience and run with alacrity and joyfulness the race that is set before you O consider the imperfect state you are in consider and lament it lament and make on forgetâ—ing the things that are behind reach forth unto those things which are before 2. Are sinners yet recoverable Oh lose not the present season but seek your recovery as Is 55.6 Seek the Lord whilst he may be found So seek your souls whilst they may be found seek recovery while it may be had But what shall I do to recover 1. Get you to be heart-sick of the misery that is upon you If ever God recover you he will first smite you he will wound you that he may heal you Micah 6.13 I will make thee sick in smiting thee said God in another case The Devil smites with a deadly wound but Gods wounds are healing wounds Hos 6.1 Come let us return to the Lord for he hath smitten and he will heal us The Devil smites with blindness the Devil smites with hardness and insensibleness of heart What is the reason thou art such a blind and hardned and sensless soul O the Devil hath smitten thee into this blindness and hardness Gods smiting of the heart is like Moses his smiting of the rock Exod. 17.6 He smote the rock and water issued out God will so smite these rocks as to fetch a stream of tears and sighs and groans out of the hard heart he will make those stones to feel The Devils work is to put sinners past feeling and O how successful hath he been at this work Poor sinners the Devil hath been at work with you smiting you into insensibleness and what sensless souls hath he made you Though the word of the Lord which is shâ—rper than a two edged sword and pierceth to the dividing asunder of the soul and spirit of the j ints and marrow hath been driven home upon you yet you feel it not The Devil hath made thâ—e such a stupid sensless soul that thou canst feel nothing but God smites to recover your feeling he will make you sick in smiting you He will â—o so if ever he means to heal you O sinner do not resist bur help forward this work of God upon you Do what you can to recover your own sense do not harden your hearts against the word do not harden your hearts in your sins pray that God would make you sick at the heart under all your misery It would be some encouragment to Ministers to bring an healing word unto you if we could once find you to be sick If we could but recover your sense we should have hope to save your lives but here it is that our work sticks we cannoâ— by all that we can say recover you to sense to a sense of your lost estate Wo is me for I am undone said the Prophet in another case Is 6.5 O might we hear such a word from sinners mouths Wo is me for I am undone I am an undone soul I am a lost soul You are undone you are lost souls and before ever you be soundly recovered you will by the sense and sickness of your hearts be forced to acknowledge it Wo is me for I am undone Sinner dost thou think thy self well art thou whole and ailest nothing This is thy senslessness and this senslessness is the most deadly part of thy disease a sick man that is grown sensless is the next step to a dead man if his sense be recovered there is more hope of his life What a word of hope would it be might we hear this word running through all the company of hardned sinners here wo is me for I am undone what shall I do what will become of me I am a lost soul dead in trespasses and sins held under the power of the Devil dragging on to destruction I am well enough as to my body and my outward condition but O my poor soul my poor blind soul my poor hardned soul my poor guilty soul in what a woful case is it Could we perceive such a sense of your case could we hear such bemoanings and complainings of your misery this were hopeful we should then hope you were upon recovery if we could by any means work you to such a sense of your estates But how is it with you sinners Is there any such good token to be found upon you Sinners here be God knows enough of you but where be the smitten sinners Where be the sensible sinners the broken sinners the fearing sinners where be the men that the word of God hath made them sick in smiting As it is with some Physick for the body so it is with Gods Physick for souls it never worketh kindly but it makes men sick in the working Where be the sick sinners In one sense you are all deadly sick but were be the sinners whom Gods Physick hath made sick Whom the word hath made sick whom conscience hath made sick that is hath made them feel their sickness No no the Lord be merciful to you your Soul-physick will not work it leaves you at your ease under the hardness and senslesness of your hearts as if you were indeed sound men and needed nothing But sinners know that till you are wrought to a sense of the misery you are in there is no hope of your recovery Do but â—enture on a while longer in this stupid hardened state and you will be past recovery You are at present without feeling but if you once be past feeling you are past recovery for ever O get you broken hearts O cry unto the Lord that he would smite you and make you sick in smiting you That he would set you a trembling that he would affright you and afflict you for your sins O stir up and awaken those sleepy souls O study and consider and get a little understanding what a woful case you are in Believe God he tells sinners that they are sons of death sons of perdition under condemnation Beheve God before the Devil and your own hearts these have agreed together to tell you a lie to tell you your case is not so bad you shall do well enough you shall escape well enough believe not the Devil believe not your deceitful hearts believe God believe the scriptures read over that word and see how dreadfully it speaks of the case of sinners and know that all this it speaks to thee all the plagues and terrours of the Lord which you read or hear out of the Scriptures these words belong to you who are yet in your sins Sinners I would fain preach you to Christ and preach you to
life I would do mine utmost to save and recover your lost souls and O let me help you to Christ let me be a means of your recovery But that I have no hope of unless vâ—â—n will so fâ—r heed and believe the word that I prâ— â—nd â—â—vâ—â— so close and so home upon your hearts 〈…〉 no longer be hardned through the deceit◠〈…〉 might be said concerning you up◠〈…〉 â—ords as concerning them Acts 〈…〉 heard this they were pricked at their 〈…〉 Brethren what shall we do 〈…〉 so concerning thee Hath this 〈…〉 heart Dost thou feel thy heart 〈…〉 art thou afraid and in that fear dost thou cry out Men and Brethren what shall I do Wretched man that I am who shall deliver me Hath it made thee so sick that thou art calling after the physitian Is there such a cry in thy soul Help Lord save Lord or I perish Wo is me I am undone what must I do to be saved If the Lord hath made thee thus sick in smiting thee sick of thy covetousness sick of thy wickedness and of that bondage thou art hitherto held under If the word of the Lord hath pricked thee to the heart and put thee to pain so that nothing but a deliverance from thy wretched state can ease thee or satisfie thee if it be thus with thee if thou art thus sick thus pricked at the heart then be of good comfort it is an hopeful sign that thou art upon recovery there is now good hopes concerning thee that though thou art dead thou mayest be made alive 2. Vnderstand what Christ hath done and must do for your recovery Christ is our only Reedemer and Reconciler and Christ redeems 1. By price 2. By power 1. Christ redeemeth by price 1. Cor. 6.20 Ye are bought with a price Christ himself was that price and he laid down his life as a price for us In this respect he is called our ransom Mat. 20.28 He gave his life a ransom for many And his redeemed ones are called his ransomed ones Is 35.10 We by sin are become prisoners and captives Prisoners to the justice of God to whom by sin we had forfeited our lives and Justice took hold of us as a company of Traitors and Malefactors whom it condemned to death Now Christ paid himself to divine justice gave himself to die that he might ransom us from death Let me stand in these Sinners stead let thine hand be upon me and let them escape death is the wages of sin let my death says Christ pay that wages 2. Christ redeemeth by power Sinners were prisoners to divine justice and captives to the Devil 2 Tim. 2 26. By price he redeems them from the revenging justice of God and by power be redeems them from the Devil In the former sense he redeemed us as a purchaser he bought our lives in the latter sense he redeemeth as a Conquerour the Devil held us and Death held us too death reigned over all Christ conquereth both Death and the Devil He overcame death and him that hath the power of death that is the Devil Heb. 2.14 Having spoiled principalities and powers he made a shew of them openly triumphing over them in himself Col. 2.15 He brake the Serpents head as it was promised he should Gen. 3. that he could no longer hold his captives The Devil tempted him to sin but he overcame the temptation and sinned not The Devil set the Jews to slay him but he overcame death by his resurrection from the dead The Devil got him among the dead but he could not hold him he rose from the dead by which it was impossible for him to be holden beyond the time appointed And as Christ conquered the Devil and conquered Death so he conquereth Sin too He conquered the Devil as our Captain so called Heb. 2.10 The Captain of our Salvation he broke the power of the Devil and led out his captives as a Captain doth his recovered prisoners He conquers sin as a Physician healing all those wounds and diseases which the Devil had brought us under he is therefore called a Physician Mat. 9.12 The whole have no need of a Physitian This now is that which Christ hath done and hath to do for our recovery to give himself a price or ransome to the justice of God by laying down his life for sinners to break the power of the Devil and rescue us from his captivity and to heal us of our sins and thereby destroy the works of the Devil 2. Vnderstand what sinners have to do towards their own recovery that they may obtain the benefit of what Christ hath done and performed This I shall sum up in this one word To perform the conditions of their recovery What are those conditions 1. To accept of Christ as your ransom to give off all other hopes of recovery and to take him as our only Redeemer Some sinners reject Christ and will none of him they care not for a ransom nor will mind any such thing as their recovery but are content to be slaves to Sin and the Devil for ever like those slaves under the Law who when they might would not go out from their Masters but would have their ears bored to the threshold that they might not depart for ever How many such desperate wretches are there among sinners Sinners they are and sinners they will be slaves to the Devil they are and they will not accept of deliverance Christ is preached to them a Redeemer and tendered to them as their ransom and liberty is offered to these captives but they will not accept him they say in their hearts as that servant I love my old Master I love my sins I love my lusts those very chains by which the Devil holds them and reject Christ who comes to ransom them How is it sinner that thou art yet a captive to the Devil and a slave to thy sins How is it that thou art left out from among the redeemed ones of the Lord There is a ransom paid there is a price laid down to buy out that soul of thine from the wrath of God and this ransom hath been offered thee and thou hast been persuaded to come out of the prison but yet there thou art yet thou art a bond-slave to the Devil and thy sin Why is it thus with thee Why onely because thou wilt not accept of thy ransom thou wilt not accept of Christ who would redeem and recover thee Thou art such a stupid sensless soul that thou dost not mind any such thing as thy recovery or redemption thou mindest thine ease or thy pleasure thou mindest thy trade and thy gains and thy business in the World but thou never mindest the redemption of thy soul never hast such a thought how shall I escape out of the hands of the Devil How shall my soul be delivered from sin and everlasting wrath When dost thou use to mind seriously any such thing Not being sensible of thy misery thou mindest
come and make a Saint of thee Hath Sin made a very Devil of thee and art not thou willing that Christ should make thee a Saint What wouldst thou do in Heaven if thou wilt not be made a Saint or dost thou think thou mayest continue a Devil whilest thou livest on the earth and yet at last be a Saint in Heaven What say you sinners There be some it may be of you that have made a mock at holiness that have despised the saints that are on earth and made them the objects of your scorn rather than your desire but speaks man art thou yet willing that Christ should come this day and make thee a saint Wilt thou that he should humble thee and bring thee to repentance Wilt thou that he should wash thee and bring thee to holiness Wouldst thou who camest hither an ignorant sinner an hardned sinner an impenitent sinner be glad at thine heart if thou mayst r turn an enlightned a convinced yea a converted sinner a beleiver a sincere christian Wouldst thou carry home another heart than thou broughtst hither a new heart transformed and changed into the image of him that created thee or art thou content to go home as thou camest such an ignorant hardned polluted creature as thou camest hither If thou be heartily willing of such a change as this that is a great part of thy cure Art thou willing to be cured willing to be cleansed Then bring forth that leprous soul of thine lay it at the feet of Christ and speak to him as the leper did Mat. 8.2 Lord if thou wilt thou canst make me clean As vile a state as this soul of mine is in as deadly as my diseases are as very a Leper as my soul is become yet Lord if thou wilt thou canst make me clean Let Christ hear such a word from thee Lord help me Lord heal me if thou wilt thou canst And then there is hope that thou maiest hear the same words from Christ as that poor Leper did I will be thou clean And immediately his Leprosie was cleansed 2. Take Christs medicines To what purpose is it that the physitian comes to a sick man and prescribes to him and adviseth him to what will recover him if he will not take what he prescribeth Christ hath medicines to recover sick souls but his medicines must be taken or they will not recover them Christs medicines are 1. His bloud His bloud is purging and cleansing bloud Heb. 9 14. 1 Joh. 1.7 Therefore he is said to wash us in his bloud By the bloud of Christ is meant the same with the death of Christ There is vertue in the death of Christ to destroy the life of sin Our old man is crucified with him that the body of sin might be destroyed Rom. 6.6 It is the body of sin that must be first laid at The inward pravity of our natures our original corruption Christs physick must be firstly applyed to the root and fountain of our disease those sinful natures those depraved habits and sinful dispositions within you must be changed The inward enmity must be slain and there is nothing will do that but the bloud of a crucified Iesus That is the soveraign medicine that must help and heal you But how must this medicine the bloud of Christ be taken 1. Christ himself must be taken Christ offers himself to you to be yours and you must accept of him for your own Your hearts must by faith consent unto Christ to put your selves into his hands to put your life into his hands expecting and depending upon him trusting your selves with him for your recovery It is Christ alone with whom I lay up all mine hopes upon whose sufficiency and faithfulness I will venture my soul If I die I le die under his hand and if I live I look for life only from him Put your selves thus into the hands of Christ and take Christ into your hearts Take him as your own he gives himself to you to be your own Christ offers to every sinner among you I will be thine own thine own Jesus thine own Saviour if thou be willing to have me Take him at his word Since he says to thee I will be thine own if thou wilt let thy heart lay hold on this blessed word and say content Lord since thou wilt thou shalt be mine own I accept thee with all my heart Now if Christ be once yours his bloud shall be yours his death shall be yours and all the benefits of his death Whereas nothing of Christ can be yours nor any fruit of his death if he be not first yours Let Christ be once imbraced by you and if there be any purging or cleansing or sin-killing ver ue in his bloud your sins shall be purged away If all that the bloud of Christ can do for thee will recover thee thou shalt be recovered 2. You must have frequent recourse to the bloud of Christ by renewed acts of faith Look up to this crucified Jesus Cast thy polluted soul into the fountain of his bloud Zach. 13.1 He is a fountain opened for sin and for uncleanness His bloud is the fountain cast thy soul into it You are come into the bloud of sprinkling Heb. 12.24 Christians are so and they may freely lay hold on it for their cleansing 1. Believe that there is such vertue in him to cleanse thy soul Say with the woman Mat. 9.21 If I may but touch him I shall be made whole 2. Believe that it is free for theâ— Thou mayst come with boldness to him Christ would have thee to be bold with him and to lay thine help upon him Believe that it is free for thee to lay hold on the bloud of Christ and 3. Come and lay hold upon it Lean upon him for his help and trust him for it 4. Lift up a prayer to him Lord here is a polluted dying soul that is even lost and choaked up in the mud and mire of my sins there is no help for me but I must die and perish in them if thou wilt not look upon me and save me In thy bowels I have hope in thy bloud I have hope and that is all the hope I have O sprinkle me with thy bloud wash me in thy bloud and my soul shall live Wherefore Lord didst thou die Wherefore didst thou shed that precious bloud Was it not for the recovery of lost souls for the cleansing of polluted souls Is not my poor soul one of the number of those for whom Christ died Have not I as great need of of thee as any Is it not thou thy self that hast brought this my soul to thy door crying for thine help Lord Jesus hear let some drops of that bloud some of the vertue of thy death be shed abroad upon my sinful heart and it shall live My sins must die Lord or my soul will never recover I must get this lust destroyed this enmity slain this proud and hard and stubborn
heart broken and nothing but the bloud of Christ the lamb will ever melt this hardness or wash me from this uncleanness This will do it and therefore here I am come before the throne of thy grace and here I will stand and look and beg and hope till thou hear and answer me Help Lord for in thee I trust and look for thy salvation only 2. His word The word of God as it is food for souls so it is medicine or physick for souls And it hath in it a remedy for every disease 1. It is an awakening word to sleepy souls On these it thunders that it may awaken them Ministers must be as Barnabas sons of consolation so also as Boanerges sons of thunder And all their thunder bolts they are to have out of the word of God O how many trumpets have been sounded in your ears how many thunder claps have you heard how many thundring Sermons hast thou heard in thy time What and yet art thou asleep still Man what is that heart of thine made of What a dead sleep art thou in that art not yet awakened This world is all asleep asleep in their sins and therefore the Ministers of the word are to do as the Prophet was to do Is. 58.1 Cry aloud spare not lift thy voice like a trumpet and tell my people of their sins Our first work is to call unto them as the mariners to Jonah Arise sleeper carest thou not that you perish Awake thou that sleepest stand up from the dead This thunder is the voice of the Lord. Psal 29.6 c. The God of glory thundereth the voice of the Lord is powerful the voice of the Lord is full of majestie it breaketh Cedars it maketh the wilderness shake This word of the Lord which is his voice is a thundring voice It breaketh the Cedars the tall and mighty sinners and it shakes the wilderness shakes up those Beasts of the earth out of sleep This sleepy evil is the disease of sinners and it binds them up under a senselessness of all their other diseases till the voice of the Lord doth shake them up out of sleep 2. It is an enlightning word that giveth sight to the blind In this word is that eye salve Rev. 1.18 Wherewith sinners eyes are to be anointed that they may see This eye salve are the instructions of God 3. It is for the breaking and mollifying hard hearts In the word is revealed 1. The righteousness and severity of God Herein is the wrath of God revealed from heaven against all ungodliness and unrighteousness of men Rom. 1.18 And thus it is Gods Hammer whereby he breaks the rocks and Gods Axe Whereby he hews the blocks in pieces 2. The goodness and kindness of God And thus it is Gods oyl whereby he supples and dissolves and melts them into a plyableness to his will 4. It is for the changing the tempers and inward dispositions of sinners It is a transforming word we are changed into the same image 2. Cor. 3.18 a sanctifying word Joh. 17.17 Sanctify them by thy truth thy word is truth This is one of Christs medicines and this medicine is to be taken But what is it to take this medicine Why it is to hear the awakening word and to suffer it to work upon you to be awakened by it to receive the instructions of the word and so to be enlightned by it to be broken and mollified to be transformed and changed by it Now this is that which I exhort you to if you would recover let the word of God come let it have a free passage into your hearts and let it do its work upon you Be awakened when you hear an awakening word let it shake you up out of your sleep Awake sinners awake you that sleep hear the voice of the Lord and rouze you up out of that secure and sensless state Where is it that thou sleepest At the very mouth of the Lions Den on the top of a Mast I have heard of a drunken man riding in the night on full speed he knew not whither rode to the top of St. Vincents Rocks near Bristol and the horse and man tumbled down the horse was crushed in pieces the man caught by the boughs of a Tree and there fell asleep till morning It was a strange place to sleep in none but a drunken man could have ever slept in such a place In such a desperate sleep art thou as upon the brow of a Rock on the bough of a Tree whence thou art every moment in danger of dropping down into the deep Sleeping sinners this is the case of every one of you it is a wonder you have not broken your necks that you have not fallen into the deep before this day and yet here thou art asleep still Awake you that sleep and understand the danger you are in 2. Get those blind eyes of yours to be opened and receive the instructions of the Word Here we bring you eye-salve be anointed with it that you may see 3. Get those hard hearts to be broken and melted Gods hammer is lifted up lay that stony that hard heart of thine under it that it may be broken Gods Ax is a hewing come bring that knotty piece under it that it may be cut cloven asunder Consider the severity and kindness of God his severity if thou still continue in thine hardness if his Hammer do not break thee his Mill-stones his wrath and indignation will shortly grind thee to powder Consider his severity and consider his goodness and kindness what a wonder is it that after thou hast so long abused the goodness of God and hardned thy self against mercy that mercy should not have given thee off and let thee alone to perish without remedy It is a mercy of God that he is yet preaching to thee of his severity it is the mercy of God that he is yet hammering and hewing at that hard heart of thine God is so good and so kind to thee that he hath sent his Word once more to trie if any good may be done upon thee he is loth thou shouldst perish he would fain thou shouldst recover and live he hath pity upon thee he hath compassion upon that wretched soul of thine and thence is it that he continues to be dealing with thee for thy recovery O wonder wonder that such mercy should not melt thee that such goodness and kindness should not wound thee to the soul that thou shouldst abuse such strange grace that thou should yet resist and stand it out against such a God of compassion Wonder at thy self and be ashamed wonder and be confounded and blush and weep and fall down now at last and yield unto God What art thou hardned still a stone or a stock still Wilt thou go away as far from remorse as far from repentance as thou camest hither God forbid man God forbid that yet thou shouldst provoke the Lord farther against thee Thou hast
gone away hardned from many a Sabbath thou hast gone away hardned from many a Sermon and must this Day and this Word leave thee as all the rest have done When dost thou hope to be recovered if thou wilt not be broken Wilt thou say it is no matter though I never be recovered though I perish and die in this hardned state Wouldst thou fear to be let alone till thou be past recovery to be lost forever Then yield to the stroke of the Word and let thine heart be humbled and broken and brought to repentance 4. Get the temper of your hearts to be changed Let the Word work to the mollifying you and to the changing of you to the renewing you after the image of God in righteousness and holiness And what ever awakenings there have been of your sleepy consciences what ever light or understanding there may be conveyed into your minds yea and what ever wounds and breaches there have been made upon your hard hearts yet till you be renewed in the very frame and temper and dispositions of your hearts never count your selves to be recovered Thou art a lost soul till thou art a sanctified soul that is till thine heart be broken off and brought back from the love and lusts and ways of this World and brought about unto God and his holy ways till godliness be gotten into thine heart and formed into thy nature and thou hast a love of it and hearty good liking of it and the very bent of thine heart which was formerly towards sin and vanity be now towards holiness and heaven When thou art brought to this this new frame of heart then thou art recovered Now Sinners let this be that you have in your eye and upon your hearts let this be your endeavour let this be your prayer that God would so bless his Word to you that it may awaken your sleepy consciences enlighten your blinded minds soften and break your hardned hearts that you may be changed and renewed after the image of God in righteousness and true holiness that you may be wrought into a new temper changed into another spirit loving and savouring and delighting in the holy ways of God that Religion may become sweet and pleasant to you that your spirits may be made suitable to God and his holy ways that the food of God may relish with you and the work of God may be more easie to you Sick men can neither relish their food nor endure their work Dost thou find no relish in Religion Does the work of holiness seem contrary to thee Dost thou groan under it as that thou canst not bear Dost thou groan under this praying and repenting and watching and striving against sin and denying thy self and mortifying thy flesh Canst thou not endure to be held to such work It is a sign that thy sickness is still upon thee and thou art not recovered O get your hearts to be so changed and renewed by the Word and Spirit of the Lord that both the food of God may relish with you and his work may be pleasant 3. His Rod. Sinners are fools and the Rod is Physick for Fools The rod is for the Fools back Prov. 26.3 Psal 119.67 Before I was afflicted I went astray but the Rod reduced me now have I kept thy word Sinner thou hearest the awakening word but it doth not awaken thee thou sleepest on Thou hearest the mollifying and breaking word but it does not break nor mollifie thee thou art still a wilful stubborn soul and thine heart is so obstinately set upon thine own loose and wild ways that thou wilt not be broken off thy will nor broken off from thy course but God may bring some affliction upon thee bring thee into poverty cast thee on thy sick bed set death at thy beds foot to stare thee in the face and this will tame thee then thou mayest be spoken to then the Word there is hope will enter into thee and work upon thee Indeed some sinners are so desperately hardened that neither word nor rod will do What afflictions come they rather stupifie than awaken them They continue as very stocks under the smitings of God as they are under his teachings and therefore take heed the longer thou goest on to harden thine heart against the word there is the less hope that thou wilt be humbled by afflictions Dare not to encourage your selves and harden your hearts against repentance by hopes and purposes that when sickness comes and death looks thee in the face then thou wilt repent no no the longer thou hardnest thy self against the word the less hope there is that thine heart will be broken by afflictions But some hope there is that when the word awakens not the rod may But if that do not neither then God be merciful unto thee there is but one thing more and that will certainly do it the unquenchable flames will awaken thee Hell will do that which all the means under Heaven cannot do But that fire will not be thy physick to cure thee but thy plague to kill thy soul for ever The afflictions of this life are Gods physick for the recovering thy soul O take this cup at the hand of the Lord take this physick for thy soul But what is it to take this medicine so as it may be recovering physick 1. Submit to afflictions when God lays them on Be patient and contented that the Lord should afflict thee Do not fret nor murmur at the afflcting hand of God Some froward patients if their Physitian be forced to give any harder physick it will not down but they fret and fume against the physitian as if he were cruel and will not submit to take what he offers them Be patient under the hand of God and submit to what ever he layes on 2. Consider thine afflictions Eccl. 7.14 In the day of adversity consider Affliction is a considering time Sinners you will not consider now but you may have time enough to consider it afterwards You will neither consider what you do Ecles 5.1 They consider not they do evil Nor will you consider what the Lord speaks to you you hear our words that we speak to you from the Lord but we cannot perswade you to consider them Consider what we say and the Lord give you understanding in all things Think over the words that you hear It is a miserable plague that hath seized upon your hearts this inconsideration and that which hinders you from profiting by the word and holds you under your senselessness and hardness of heart Think of what you hear think what a wretched case the word declares you to be in When you hear such words He that committeth sin is of the Devil 1. Joh. 3.8 He that liveth after the flesh shall die Rom. 8.13 He that is not born again cannot inherit the Kingdom of God When you hear such words as these then consider then think with your self what a word have I heard to
to flourish amain when you are come to this once to disrellish your old delights and to feed your thoughts and feed your affections on things above and to forbear and come off from the love and lusts and companions and pleasures of this world then you will live and thrive and flourish in the House of the Lord and grow up before him as his peculiar children whom the Lord hath saved The sum of this direction I shall give you in short in these three particulars If ever you would recover 1. Abstain from that carnal worldly life in which hitherto you have lived 2. Abstain from those carnal companions in whose converse you have delighted 3. Delight your selves in God feed your thoughts and affections upon things above 2. Vse good exercise Stir your selves out of your lazy humours and keep doing Idleness breeds diseases exercise will help to the cure Particularly exercise your selves 1. To prayer 2. To repentance 3. To the keeping a good conscience 1. Exercise your selves to prayer The prayer of the faithful shall save the sick Jam. 5.15 The sick soul as well as the sick body Prayer is a stirring exercise that if performed as it ought sets all the powers of the soul on work it is a striving with God it is a wrestling with God it is the lifting up of the heart and the pouring out the soul to God When thou settest thy self to praying it is both a sign that thy recovery is begun and an hope it will be perfected Set your selves to praying Sinners stir up your selves to prayer There is none that stirreth up himself to take hold on thee Is 64.7 Pray and stir up your selves in prayer It is not sleepy lazy cold formal praying but stirring prayer that must do the cure Stir up your desires in prayer be passionate and affectionate seekers stir up your fears in prayer consider what if I should not prevail What if the cry of my sins should be louder than the cry of my prayers I come for the pardon of my sins I come for power against sin I am begging my life and the saving my soul from going down into the Pit my very life my soul lies at stake if God should not hear me I am lost for ever Awaken oh my soul and pour forth strong cries bow thy self with thy might before the Lord. Plead with God poor sinner for that poor miserable soul of thine plead with him upon his mercies upon his bowels upon his promises upon the bloud of Christ Take unto thee words Lord I am a miserable sinful soul I am a lost creature I am sick unto death I am bound in the chains of my sins and cannot get loose I am a blind hardned defiled creature these eyes must be opened this heart must be broken this filth and pollution must be washed away or I shall be swallowed up of the pit Where are thy bowels O Lord Art thou a God of pity and hast thou no pity for me Where is thy promise Lord Thou hast said Ask and you shall have seek and you shall find knock and it shall be opened unto you To whom hast thou spoken this word Is it not to me as well as to others Where is the bloud of Christ doth it not speak for sinners Doth it not make intercession for transgressors It doth Lord thou hast said it doth And what doth this bloud speak Lord forgive this poor sinner that comes to thee for pardon Lord purge him with thy bloud Lord heal him with thy bloud Lord give him that new heart and life which he comes for O doth this precious bloud speak thus for me and wilt thou not hear Sinners if ever you would be recovered set upon this exercise and keep you to it Go to God this night be with him again to morrow morning and again in the evening and every day as duly as the day comes go alone and retire your selves into the presence of God fall upon your knees and pour forth your souls in your requests to him Beware you neither neglect it and beware you do not trifle at it do not deceive your selves with the shadow or image of Prayer in stead of Prayer Consider thou art upon a matter of life and death when thou goest to prayer and let that awaken and stir up all thy powers in it Friends I doubt either that you do not pray or that it is but mock-praying that too many of you satisfie your selves withal O what pitiful hasty short dead praying is it that thou satisfiest thy self with Trace thy self into thy praying corners consider how seldom thou art there how quickly thou hast done how miserably thou shufflest over thy duties without life or affection what is this but mock-prayer will such praying recover thy lost soul No thou seest it will not thou art the same man of the same spirit running the same course from one week to another from one year to another without any change for the better It may be said of such praying as it was said of the false Prophets preaching Jer. 6.14 They heal the hurt of my people slightly Slight praying is attended but with slight healing something it seems to do it skins over the wound that it smart not for the time it keeps people quiet for the time but it will never work a thorough cure Your wound is deeper your disease is eaten into your flesh and your bone to your heart and your soul and your medicine must go as deep as your disease There must be deep sighs and groans and deep desires that must come up from the bottom of your hearts or they will never reach the bottom of your disease Be ashamed of your slightness be ashamed of your folly that you should ever think that God would help you the sooner for such trifling and mocking prayers Oh pray and exercise your selves in prayer Stir up all within you to this work look to your selves I am afraid that this duty which is a means of recovery may prove the loss of your souls I am afraid lest the Lord the jealous God that will not be mocked I am afraid that he may damn you for your prayers your trifling mocking prayers Dare not to trifle any longer dare not for thy life that the Lord ever again meet thee in thy closet meet thee on thy knees with nothing but the sacrifice of Fools a few heartless words upon thy lips Beloved I can hardly pass over this word thus there being so much weight lying upon it and yet there being so much hardness of heart under this soul-deceiving and soul-damning practice shuffling in prayer What say you Have I said enough yet Are you yet made sensible how much you are many of you concerned in this word Are you yet sensible how greatly guilty you are of this miserable hypocrisie Will all that I have said yet do to bring you to be serious and in good earnest in every prayer you make Are you come
you from henceforth to do Will you hear conscience when it speaks Will you be guided and governed by conscience I will not henceforth please my self but will endeavour to please God and conscience to live a consciencious life that is the best way to recover thy conscience to recover its speech Thy conscience is ready to die if it become speechless When sick men are come to be speechless we count them dying That conscience of thine that hath so long lien speechless it will die if thou take not some sudden course to recover its speech O get you a stirring lively conscience that will not hold its peace 4. A Scepter Conscience is to be the Governour in the soul God hath said to Conscience as he said to Christ Psal 110.2 Be thou ruler in the midst of thine enemies Thou livest in the midst of enemies all within the carnal mind the carnal will the carnal affections every lust of the heart these are all enemies to conscience but yet God says to it conscience be thou ruler in the midst of thine enemies Those that are under the government of God he puts them all under the government of Conscience as Isaac said to Esau when he came for a blessing after Jacob had been blessed before him I have says he made him thy Lord and thou shalt be his servant though thou shalt break his yoke from off thy neck So God says to the heart and all within it I have made conscience your Lord you will break its yoke from off your necks you will all conspire to rebel and to resist conscience to blind and to muzzle and destroy conscience Lust is Consciences deadly enemy but yet I have said to conscience be thou ruler in the midst of thiâ—e enemies All the World are governed by God or the Devil and both these Governours have their Viceroys Conscience is the Viceroy of God and Lust is the Viceroy of the Devil Now these two Viceroys contend who shall have the dominion who shall have the government in the soul Lust cannot endure that Conscience should bear any sway Carnal earthly minded men will rather mock at conscience than be governed by it Lust will not endure that Conscience should bear the sway and Conscience can never be safe or successful in its government till lust be trodden under foot Whilest Conscience is kept as an underling and is checked and controlled and put to silence by Lust so long it is in an evil case Conscience is never recovered till it hath recovered its authority and dominion God that hath given the dominion to Conscience and under Christ laid the government upon its shoulder hath also put a Scepter into its hand to execute its government withal and hath given to Conscience a twofold Scepter 1. An Iron Scepter and he hath said to it concerning Sinners obstinate sinners as he said concerning his enemies Rev. 2.27 Thou shalt rule them with a rod of iron This iron Scepter put into the hand of Conscience hath teeth in it hence do sinners who will not hear the commands sometimes feel the bitings of Conscience and the teeth of a provoked Conscience will bite worse than the teeth of a Lion or a Bear Thou that rebellest against Conscience that abusest and wrongest Conscience take heed of the bitings of Conscience thy conscience is a Lion and though now it be a sleeping Lion and thou darest play with it or use it at thy pleasure yet look to it when this sleeping conscience is awakened then thou wilt feel the teeth of this Lion As it is said of Wine Prov. 23.32 In the end it biteth like a Serpent and stingeth like an Adder So it is true of every sin every sin will bite those carnal pleasures those worldly gains that look upon you with a pleasant fawning face all your sins and sinful pleasures will bite bite like a Serpent with â— poisonous deadly biting sin will thus bite and sin bites with the teeth of Conscience O the gripes that some sinners feel the deadly gripes when they fall under the teeth or talons of a sin-provoked Conscience Sinners I warn you to take heed of ever slighting Conscience again Come under the dominion of Conscience let Conscience govern thee let Conscience rule thee or look for the Iron Scepter to fall upon thee the teeth whereof will bite thee as a Serpent and sting thee as an Adder 2. A Golden Scepter Conscience doth not onely enforce its authority and our submission to it by the terrors of its iron Scepter but encourages submission by the comfort of holding to us its Golden Scepter King Ahâ—suerus his holding out the golden Scepter to Esther was in token of his favour and her acceptance with the King Esth 5.2 She found favour in his sight and the King held out to her the golden Scepter Those that find favour with Conscience as all those that observe and obey and live under the government of Conscience do those that find favour with Conscience Conscience will hold out the golden Scepter to them will speak peace will speak comfortably to them and to have Conscience speak peace an upright Conscience is the same as to have God speak peace to be able to stand comfortably before Conscience is the same as to be able to stand with comfort and boldness before the face of God 1 Joh. 3.20 21. If our hearts condemn us If our hearts our consciences condemn us for falshood and unfaithfulness God will condemn us but if our hearts condemn us not if conscience acquit us and say to us well done good and faithful servant thou hast been faithful if our upright consciences acquit us then have we confidence and boldness before God The comfort and the rejoicing that flows into the heart from the testimony of a good conscience see in the 2 Cor. 1.12 Friends how would you have your Conscience to deal with you Would you that it hold out the golden Scepter Would you that Conscience speak peace that Conscience should say well done thou hast been faithful would you have this testimony from conscience that you have had your conversation in simplicity and godly sincerity Is the peace of conscience the joy of that peace the sweetness and calmness and serenity of heart which is the fruits of consciences speaking peace Is this peace is this rejoicing of any value with you Whilest others are under the checks and rebukes under the terrours and the sting of an abused conscience whilest conscience bites them and worries them with the teeth of its iron Scepter whilest conscience affrights and terrifies them whilest conscience judges them and condemns them for their following their lusts whilest it is so dreadful with men of an abused griping conscience if you would prize and desire and rejoice in the peace and the comforts of conscience then hearken to conscience and be governed by conscience in all your ways And if conscience may but govern you it will certainly comfort
mischief and bring forth vanity or a lie May it not be said of you I have conceived Truth conceived good I have had many hopeful conceptions and yet at last I bring forth a lie I am utterly frustrated and dâ—sappointed of all my good Hopes Desires and Aims But how comes this to pass that you are thus disappointed that your desires succeed not that your labours prosper not that you are brought to no better a pass O this is your evil hearts that hinder you when you would do good evil is present with you so that you cannot do the good that you would 't is that evil Law in your Membets that evil heart that does you all this mischief that spoils all your Prayers that distracts all your holy Meditations that breaks all your holy Purposes that defeats and frustrates all your good designs for a more holy and fruâ—tful life this heart is that which hinders you that you cannot do as you would you cannot pray as you would nor hear as you would nor live as you would and thus it will serve you as long as you live if you do not get those evil hearts into and keep them in better order 2. It tempts and turns us aside after that which is Evil. As our hearts hinder us in that which is good so they betray us and entice and tempt us to that which is naught Jam. 1.14 Every man when he is tempted is drawn aside by his own lust his hearts lust and enticed You that have given up your Names to Christ and count your selves the People of God sometimes turn aside after the Lusts and ways of the World and instead of having your Conversation in Heaven live as men that are written in the Earth mind earthly things live a worldly greedy life and like those 2 Pet. 2.20 who after they seem to have escaped the pollutions of the World through the Knowledge of our Lord and Saviour Jesus Christ are again entangled therein and overcome Are there none of you Professors with whom 't is thus hath not the world return'd upon you the love of the World and the cares of the World and the inordinate minding and following of the World are you none of you again entangled by the World encumbred by the world and even overcome of those encumbrances 'T would make a tender heart to shake and bleed to consider how sadly this worldly mind and Life hath grown upon Professors and hath eaten out the very heart and life of their Religion O how many Demas's are there amongst the followers of Christ that have forsaken him and embraced this present World Christians in the name of the Lord I warn you I charge you before God and his holy Angels to consider if it be thus with none of you Is it thus with thee How comes this to pass this is a mischief that thine own heart hath done thee Ezek. 33.31 32. Their hearts go after their Covetousness They hear the Word thou art to them as a lovely Song of one that hath a pleasant voice they will hear a good Minister they seem to love a good Sermon the Doctrines of God and his Gospel the Doctrines of Christ and his Redemption and the most enlivening and affectionate discourses of the Righteousness Holiness Kindness Compassion of God in Christ and of the hopes and joyes of his Saints these have a pleasant sound to them they are taken and pleased at the hearing of them but for all this they are gone they have embraced this present World their hearts are gone after their Covetousness And as some mens hearts carry them after their Covetousness so others hearts carry them after their vain company others after their slothfulness others after their carnal Pleasures their hearts have tempted them and by their hearts lusts they are thus drawn aside and enticed Consider these two sorts of mischiefs mens hearts do them their heart hinders them from what 's good and tempts and carries them away after that which is evil and then you will understand what a necessity there is that such mischievous hearts should be carefully kept under government 2. It is an unruly heart It 's said concerning the Tongue Jam. 3.8 It is an unruly evil but whence is the unruliness of the Tongue but from the unruliness of the heart 'T is the heart that is the Lord of misrule Prov. 16.32 He that ruleth his own Spirit is better than he that taketh a City There 's need of more Wisdom of more Watchfulness of more care and skill to rule the heart than to rule a whole City or Countrey Governours of Kingdoms do not find it so hard to rule their numerous People as to govern their own hearts To shew the unruliness of the heart I shall instance 1. In the Thoughts of the heart Who can rule his own Thoughts Who is there that hath such command of his Thoughts that can think of nothing but what he should think of What rovings and stragglings and wanderings are there of the Thoughts Prov. 17.24 The eyes of fools or his Thoughts are in the ends of the Earth running about every where to sin to vanity to impertinencies Consider your selves in your praying or hearing or any of the most serious and important Exercises of Religion your thoughts then most especially should be composed and fixed should be fix'd upon God should be all giving their attendance upon the work of God Those most weighty things the eternal things that you are dealing about should take up all your thoughts But how do we find it at such times what distractions and wandrings and runnings off of our thoughts do we then find We can't hold our selves in to think what we pray for to attend on what we hear and this is the great reason of the deadness of heart in Prayer of the inefficacy and unfruitfulness of our hearing we that preach to you should have more hope of Success upon you if we could but fix your hearts and get you to think more intently on what we speak but when the thoughts are gadding we may to as good purpose speak to Stones as to Souls How is it with you now and how does it use to be with you when you come to the Worship of God where have your thoughts been since you came here how many things have you been thinking of that you should not It may be thy thoughts have been at home all this while or abroad in the Fields upon thy Business or upon thy Pleasures or thou knowest not where Who are there of us that do use to gird up the loyns of our minds and to keep them close to the work we are upon and whether do your thoughts run at other times how little room is there left for the thoughts of God or of our Souls or of the things Eternal amongst those crowds and swarms of worldly thoughts of wicked and vile thoughts of vain and impertinent thoughts which are still thronging in upon us
in an Army what would an Enemy desire more than to have the Army he was to fight against to be in a Mutiny amongst themselves the Devil will not doubt his Conquest whilst he can but keep all within you in disorder Mens Damnation does frequently begin in Thoughts evil Thoughts corrupt the Affections evil Affections corrupt the Manners and practice and evil works have their end in Destruction Never again make a light thing of Thoughts how many men are there who by giving themselves leave to be thinking of their Pleasures and thinking of their Gains and thinking of their Lascivious lustful Objects do think themselves into very Beasts first and then into Devils Job 31.1 I made a Covenant with mine eyes why then should I think upon a Maid The next to looking is thinking the eyes let in Fuel for the Thoughts the next to thinking is lusting the Thoughts provide Fuel for Lust the next to Lusting is Whoring and the next to Whoring is Death and the like in other Cases For the World the next to thinking is loving the next to loving is lusting and inordinate desiring the next to lusting is seeking and progging the next to seeking is getting and heaping up and loading our selves with thick Clay and the next to this is sinking and drowning our selves in Perdition and Destruction 2. These are the Evidences of what we are in respect to our Eternal State Men may judge themselves and come to know themselves by the Thoughts and Affections Rom. 8.7 To be carnally minded is Death but to be Spiritually minded is Life and Peace Those that are after the Flesh do mind the things of the Flesh and those that are after the Spirit do mind the things of the Spirit Where art thou Friend art thou in the way of Life or the way of Death why how may I tell that why where are your minds what are they running upon where are your Thoughts your most serious and delightful Thoughts are they in Heaven or on Earth on things Spiritual or on things Carnal where are your Affections working upwards or downwards Such as thy Thoughts and Affections are such is the State of thy Soul To be Carnally minded is Death but to be Spiritually minded is Life and Peace It 's true many serious Christians have too many Carnal Thoughts Vain and Wandring Thoughts but 't is their Affliction and 't is their care and endeavour to give check to such Thoughts but when the allowed Stream runs towards Earth and sin 't is a sign thou art an Earthly Fleshly Man and in the State of the Dead 3. There are Idols set up in the Heart after which if it be not well looked to it 's apt to go a Whoring It is true more or less of all men what is said of the Elders of Israel Ezek. 14.3 These men have set up their Idols in their Heart Whatsoever the Heart loves more than God whatever the Heart serves or seeks more than God yea whatever the Heart loves or serves or seeks ultimately for it self without respect to any higher end this is an Idol set up in the Heart those very men that abhor those Idols that are set up in the House or the Church that detest Saint-Worship or Image-Worship the Worshipping of Stocks or Stones or Pictures the work of mens hands yea that call that an Idol or Idolatry which God never called so that cry out Idolatry Idolatry against every thing that is not according to their own Minds even these very men may have set up their Idols in their Hearts The Heart hath multitudes of Idols set up in it there are in the Heart as the Apostle said 1 Cor. 5.8 there are in the world Gods many and Lords many The World is an Idol some men make their Lands and their Money their Gods though Job would not chap. 31.24 yet some mens Hearts will say to their Gold Thou art my God Others there are who make their Belly their God Whose God is their Belly Phil. 3.19 Others make their Honours and their Pleasures their God and these may be said to be as those 2 Tim. 3.4 Lovers of Pleasures more than Lovers of God The Heart hath many Idols set up in it but the great Heart-Idol to which all the rest must stoop and serve is Self the World is served Honours are sought Pleasures are loved but all for the sake of Self Whatever Idol there be the great Idol is Self which is set up in the room of God Mans original Apostacy was his falling from God to Self and mans recovery to Christ is his bringing back from Self to God Therefore he tells the World that whoso will come along with him and be his disciple must deny himself Mat. 16.24 If any man Christ suffered that he might bring us to God 1 Pet. 3.18 And that he cannot do unless he come back from Self he departed from God when he declined to himself and he must deny himself that will return to the Lord. God and Self divide the whole world The most are for Self and there is not a man of all these for God some few are for God and every one of these have denyed and departed from Self Mens recovery by Christ is their returning from Self unto God but this Recovery is but imperfect this Self carnal Self I mean hath a Seat higher or lower in the best hearts There is a sinful Selfishness wherewith we still remain infected and there is still a danger even after our recovery of Apostacy to this Self again The great Idoll set up in the heart is self and the great Idolatry or going a whoring after this Idol the great heart Idolatry stands in these three things 1. Self-conceit 2. Self-will 3. Self-love 1. Self-conceit The magnifying our own Opinions the Idolizing our own apprehensions the growing wise in our own eyes and the resigning up our selves to the conduct and government of our own carnal Reasons or Understandings This Solomon intimates is an encroaching upon God yea denying of God he sets these two as Opposites one to another the acknowledging of God and the leaning to our own understandings Prov. 3.5 6. Lean not to thine own understanding in all thy wayes acknowledge him Intimating that whilest we lean to our own understandings we deny and do not acknowledge God It belongs to God as God to be the Supreme Guide and Dictator to us but when men take upon them to be so wise as that their own Opinions and Conceits must be their Guide they therein deny the God that is above Take heed of being self-conceited The worst of Sinners as blind as they are yet they are wise in their own eyes they think their Way is good and their State is good they have a conceit that their own way is best they have taken up conceits against the ways of God this strictness of Religion this Preciseness of Holiness they have a conceit 't is all but Nicety and Hypocrisie and that
Voice of Converts which was the Voice of the Church Isa 26.13 Other Lords have had Dominion over us but now by thee only will we make mentiom of thy Name they are Dead they shall not live they are Deceased they shall not rise the old Lord is dead it is Deceased and shall never rise sin shall no longer have Dominion over us the Devil shall no longer Will shall no longer have the Dominion over us to thee Lord to thee only do we resign up our selves I resign to the Lord I subscribe to the Lord I give the Hand to the Almighty and put my Neck under his Yoke for ever his I am and him alone will I serve This is Conversion this breaking off from under the Dominion of your own wills and resigning up to the will of the Lord. 2. He doth actually submit to and obey the will of God A Convert doth not only say I will submit I will obey but he doth submit he doth obey The old Will will be contending still for the Government but the Heart now answers as the Men of Sodom to Lot Gen. 19.9 Stand back this Fellow came in to sojourn and now he will be Lord. Stand back O my Carnal Will stand back this Stranger shall no longer be Lord over me I have resign'd up my self to the Lord and him will I obey Yea and his will it doth obey this is the will of God that he repent and the Convert doth repent this is the will of God that he be Holy and harmless that he walk in all the Commands of God blameless and this he sets his Heart to do Psal 119.3 They do no iniquity they walk in his ways 3. Yet the will is not so broken but that this Self and Flesh hath a Root remaining in it and this Root will be Springing and growing up again like that Root of Bitterness mentioned by the Apostle Heb. 12.15 That Root of Malice that Root bearing Gall and Wormwood the Apostle warns them to look to it that it spring not up again to trouble and defile them this Root that Self hath even in the will of Converts how often doth it actually spring up and trouble and defile them There 's scarcely any business but self will have a stroak in doing of it there 's scarcely any Duty but Self strikes in and spoils it in the performance O how much of this self-will'dness is there to be found even amongst Christians How often is it that their wills are set upon vanity and how strongly are they often set upon their own wills How heady and wilful are they in their way What stiffness and tenaciousness is there of their own purposes They will not be advised nor perswaded out of their course though as to the main they have resigned themselves up to the will of God yet in many particular Cases either upon mistakes in their Opinions or being overswayed by corruption they are head-strong in their way and will not be turned back When they come to themselves it is their shame and affliction it should be so yet too often so it is that this self-will'dness carries them on even against Counsel and Conscience It 's true where this self-will does carry the main stroak in the Life where the ordinary course and way of the Life is Governed by will there 's no Conversion but there 's no Convert but more or less does groan under the Usurpation and Tyranny of this Self and Flesh You that are Christians would never have liv'd as sometimes you have done would never have carried it as sometimes you have so much against Judgment and Counsel and the most serious advices if Will had not had too much power over you We should be even all of us more considerate and deliberate in our goings we should be more easily intreated and perswaded back from running headlong on in some of those wayes which cost us sorrow afterwards if this self-will'dness had not prevailed in us 4. Therefore there is a necessity that the Heart be kept under Government The Government of the Heart is to the same end and of the same necessity as the Government of a Kingdom The Government of a Kingdom is to be for the encourageing of the good and for the terrour and suppression of the evil Rom. 13.3 And to the same end is the Government of the Heart to foster and cherish and maintain and keep alive the good that is in it and to crush and keep under the evil that is in it If self-will hath an evil Root in the Heart if this evil Root be apt to spring up then is there necessity of governing the Heart to keep it under To the governing the Heart is necessary a double instrument a Spur and a Curb a Spur to the good that is in us to quicken Grace and keep it in action a Curb to that which is evil in us to curb and hold under corruption these two instruments of Government are the reward and punishment the blessed reward will be a Spur to Grace the punishment to come will be a Curb to Lust and Flesh the eying these two great recompences of reward Glory and Wrath the holding the sense of that Life and Death upon the Heart is a great part of our excercising this Government upon us thy self-will is such an obstinate Enemy as nothing but Fire and Sword the Fire of Divine Indignation and the Sword of Divine vengeance will conquer and subdue it There must be Government and there must be severe penalties kept in sight or there 's no good to be done Friends If ever you would Conquer this self-will'dness shew it the Fire the Racks the Gridirons the Gibbets the everlasting Prison that it 's rushing and hurrying you upon Self-will'dness is not only a kicking against the Pricks but a running upon the Pikes of Divine Vengeance thou art heady and wilful in thy way thou art set upon thine own will whatever thou likest and art pleased with thou art so set upon it that there 's no perswading thee back but be advised take heed if thou wilt be wilful at thy Peril be it look before thee to the precipice by which this self-will'dness is tumbling thee headlong down into the Everlasting Pit whenever you feel Will begin to rise and work work against Reason work against Conscience work towards iniquity and vanity when you feel this self-will getting up lay hold on the Bridle put on the Curb give check to it with all your might look towards the land of Darkness whither it 's carrying thee when the fit is up the wilful fit for though there be an abiding habit of wilfulness in the Heart yet it comes forth but by fits when the wilful fit is up think Lord what now Whither is this wilful will driving me What will be its Fruits and Wages What end am I like to come to if this be my way Stop Oh my wretched Heart strike sail Oh my obstinate will take
Counsel be well advised and run not thus headlong upon thine own ruin O hold up such Government in your Spirits that your Hearts may be tractable and flexible plyable Hearts let them be stiff and fast to the concernments of God but loose and easily withdrawn from the interest of Self Stiff against sin stiff against Temptation resolute for Holiness Is thy will brought about for God for Religion for Conscience Stand to it to the Death never be perswaded out of your Religion never be perswaded out of your Consciences or Consciencious walking let your Hearts be resolved for the greatest strictness of Religion and be strict and stiff in such Holy resolutions but never again be so set upon your own wills your Carnal wills here get a pliable Heart never to be perswaded off from God easily to be perswaded back from Self and Flesh It 's Prophesied Isa 11.6 There shall be such a change wrought upon the rough and furious and ravenous Spirits of Sinners by the power of Christ that the Wolf and the Leopard and the Lyon shall be so tamed that a little Child may lead them They shall be so flexible and pliable that they may be easily lead that the least Items or Intimations from God or from Conscience may bring them to any thing that when Lust puts hardest upon them for sin when Self presses most impetuously upon them for minding or pursuing it's Interest or will a Word from God an Item from Conscience may bring them about after the Lord that Self may never be able to fortifie them against Conscience but that Conscience may with ease break the Bands and loose the Cords of Self and command them after their God It was said of Caesar's Souldiers that where his Interest was concerned they were more than Men in their own concernments they were less than Women Let the Servants of Christ learn so much of the Souldiers of Caesar let them be so true so fast to the Interest of Christ and Religion of Holiness that they may be above the Spirit of a Man and so the Spirit of a Christian is above the Spirit of a Man but let them sit so loose from the Interest or the Commands of Self that a Woman or a little Child may bring them back from the pursuance of it that such a word from whatever Mouth it comes what is this Self or this Flesh to thee that thou so hearkenest to it or insistest so upon it Wilt thou obey thine adversary Wilt thou cleave to thy Mortal Enemy Self is no better 't is the worst Enemy thou hast and wilt thou feed thine Enemy Strengthen thine Enemy Fight for thy Enemy That such a word may be enough to countermand the will of the Flesh and to bring the Heart back from obeying it's strongest motions and Lusts This will be the blessed Fruit of a due Heart-government the defeating and subduing of Self-will and the sweet and easie compliance of the Heart with and it's complacency in the will of God and it will be no hard thing for such a Soul to say Not my will but the will of the Lord be done 3. Self-love 1. There is a Self-love which is our Duty there is an innate Principle of Love planted by God himself in the Nature of Man in his State of Innocency God hath made all Men living lovers of themselves and he would have them so That word Thou shalt love thy Neighour as thy Self evidenceth that we must love our selves The fruits of this Self-love are 1. Self-preservation 2. Self-blessing 1. Self-preservation the securing our selves from Mischief the saving our selves from danger Acts 2.40 Save your selves this generation He that said Save your selves from this evil generation hath therein said much more save your selves from Condemnation To save our selves from sin to save our selves from Wrath to save our Souls this is a great Duty lying on every man in this World and this Self-saving or Self-preservation our Self-love will prompt and press us to He that loveth himself will save himself he that duly loveth his Soul will do what he can to save his Soul That men destroy and Damn themselves that men neglect Christ the Author of Salvation that men neglect Religion and Godliness the way of Salvation is for want of a true love to themselves Sinners Christ is Preached unto you and tendred to you and if you lov'd your selves better you would love Christ and accept of him You are exhorted to Repentance to Godliness and if you loved your own Souls you would repent and be holy Thou art an hater of thy Self an Enemy a Murderer of thine own Soul who art not a lover of Christ and of Religion and godliness What a Brute art thou O sinner yea worse than a Brute thou canst love thy Friends thou canst love thy Wife and thy Child thou canst love thy Companions yea thou canst love thy sins and thy lusts only thou hast no love to thy Soul 'T is laid down as a mark of wicked Persons among many others 2 Tim. 3.3 Without natural Affection For a Child to be without natural Affection to the Parents for Parents to be without natural affection to the Child for men to be strangers to their own flesh without natural Affection to their Friends or Relations this is a mark of a wicked man What is it then for men to be without natural affection to their own Souls wilt thou say thou lovest thy Soul when thou so sadly neglectest thy Soul when thou takest no care for thy Soul when for the love of thy Lusts and thy Pleasures and thy Companions thou wilt Damn thy Soul Sinners what have you done for your Souls ever since you were born You have done something for your Flesh you have fed it and cloathed it and wrought hard for it to get a provision and maintenance for it but what have you done for your Souls what pains didst thou ever take that it might be well with thy Soul what knowledge hast thou gotten what Grace hast thou gotten what Peace for thy Soul hast thou gotten Peace with God hast thou done any thing toward the reconciling thy Soul to God thou knowest how little thou hast done thou hast loaden sin upon thy Soul thou hast loaded guilt upon thy Soul thou hast left it like the Soul of a Laodicean Rev. 3.17 Poor and miserable and Blind and Naked that Soul within thee is a miserable Soul a guilty Soul a blinded hardned Soul a polluted naked Soul it would make your hearts ake if you consider'd it in what woful wretched case you have left your Souls to this day If you have so much sense in you think of it and lay it sadly to Heart what a miserable case you have left your Souls in the reason of this is because you are without love to your Souls hence is it that you have had so little care of your Self-preservation 2. Self-blessing Isa 65.16 There is a Self-blessing that is
provide for and satisfie our fleshly minds when we foster and cherish this Flesh 2. An inordinate love of our Selves Natural when we love that which is our Selves more or otherwise than we ought to love it Our Natural Selves our Bodies and our Souls are to be loved ut supra We ought to love our selves not our Souls only but our Bodies also and so to love them as to seek the good and well-being of our selves not only our Eternal but our Temporal well-being we may love our ease and our freedom from Pain we may love our Credit and our freedom from Reproach and Disgrace we may love our maintenance and freedom from want yea we may love our beauty and comeliness and freedom from Deformity and we may so love as to maintain and provide for our selves in all these respects to maintain our selves in Health to preserve our selves from temporal misery to provide for our temporal necessities but now our sinful Self-love is when we love our Selves more or otherwise than we should 1. When we love our selves more than God When we love our selves to the neglect of God as Christ said Mat. 10.37 He that loveth Father or Mother more than me he that loveth Son or Daughter more than me so may it be said he that loveth himself his own flesh his own life more than me is not worthy of me Much more when our Self-love makes an abatement of our love to God when Self is lov'd so much that God is lov'd the less when the more Self is minded or cared for by so much the less God is regarded 2. When we love Self as separated from God or otherwise than in subordination to God when our love determines in Self and rises no higher every man should love himself but it must be for the sake of God whose servant he is and whose Image he bears 3. When we love our selves to the prejudice of the love of our Neighbour The word is Thou shalt love thy Neighbour as thy self thou shalt love thy self but so as it may not hinder thee from loving thy Neighbour When self Monopolizes our love when our Love which should be a Common is an Enclosure and is impropriated and confined to our selves when we so intensely love our selves that we love no body else or care for no body else or at least love not others so much as we should when we care not whom we displease so we may but please our selves when we care not whom we neglect so we may provide for our selves when we care not how it be with others let them be in sickness let them be in want let them starve let them die we care not how it be with them so it be but well with our selves when our Self-love is only for the advancing of Self-Interest and will invade and encroach upon and wrong the Interest of others when we can thereby advance our own Lay these things together and therein you may see what sinful Self-love is a love of mistaken Self or an inordinate love of our natural Self 2. That sinful Self-love is the great Heart-Idolatry and the root of all Rebellion and Disobedience to God 1. It is the great Heart-Idolatry Whatever we love more than God we make it a God yea when we love any thing equal with God or in separation from God and not in subordination to God If we love our Selves only for our Selves we therein deny the God which is above As he that loves Riches only for Riches sake as he that loves his meat and drink only for the Pleasure he hath in eating and drinking so he that loves himself only for selfs sake is an Idolater Whatever we make our last end we make our God Therefore as the Apostle 1 Cor. 10.31 Whether ye eat or drink or whatever ye do so whatever ye love or regard or desire let it be all let it be only for the glory of God Rom. 11.36 To him are all things by him they were made and to him they must be directed O Beloved what an Idolatrous piece is the Heart of man become O what an Idolatrous Heart is there then in every one of us Is Self-love Idolatry then who of us can be free from this charge of Idolatry we have every one of us more or less set up this Idol Self in our Hearts Do we not love mistaken Self our sinful flesh do not our Hearts go after our Covetousness our carnal Ease our carnal Pleasures do we not love that carnal Self which should be denyed which should be Mortified and Crucified do none of us so love as to cherish our flesh and make provision for the flesh thou hast a Proud Heart and dost thou not maintain and keep up that Self-esteem thou hast a covetous Heart and dost not thou nourish and feed thy covetousness thou hast a Lust after thy carnal Pleasure and Liberty and thou Indulgest it all thou canst thou lovest to be high thou lovest to be Rich thou lovest thy Pleasure and thy Liberty these things thou lovest and dost thou not love them more than God the more thou lustest after these things and the more thou hast of them is not God so much less loved and regarded Dost thou not know that if thou hadst checked and crossed that proud mind if thou hadst denyd that covetous Heart the Lord God should have had more of thy regard more of thy Love than now he hath had do you not think you should have lov'd God better if you had lov'd the World less or your Ease or your Appetites less behold these things have broken in and encroacht upon Gods right have carried away Gods due this Self for whose sake all these are loved this Self hath stolen into the Heart and carried it away after it O what a woful thing is it that it should be said of any Professor of Religion that this should be said of them it were well for these men or at least better than 't is with them if they loved God but as well as they love their flesh if they served God as heartily as they serve their Covetousness if they were set upon the Pleasing of God but as much as they are set upon pleasing their Appetites if they were delighted in God as much as they are delighted in the World if they could find as much Pleasure in the meditation of God and Exercises of Religion as in the businesses of this life Thou knowest it is not thus with thee thou dost not Love and Delight thy Self in God as thou lovest and delightest thy Self in this earth and flesh Is Communion with God is communing with thy own Heart about the things of God is conversing with God in Prayer in holy Contemplation and Meditation is the exercising thy Faith on God thy Hope on God and thy looking into the Gospel of God and searching out and feeding upon the Blood and Bowels and unsearchable Treasures laid up in Christ is the exercising
his Love and lost his Life and lost his Zeal for God in his loving and caring and good husbandry for himself Pray consider if this be none of your cases and if this be not a sad case and whether you can take any comfort in it or no Had not those Hearts need to be look'd to that have thus gone a Whoring 't is no better that have gone a whoring from Christ after the World Hast thou govern'd that Heart of thine well which thou hast suffered thus to play the Harlot Hast thou not need of looking better to it Christians do you not see you had need to be more watchful over your Hearts and to hold them in under a closer and severer restraint than you have hitherto done Again if you do not see how far sinful Self-love hath prevailed in you above the Love of God consider further for conviction 1. Do you love them that love God as you love them that love your Selves There 's scarce any Man that is so ill natur'd but will love those that love himself Do not even the Publicans the same Mat. 5. They love those that love them and are beneficial to them But do you love those that love God as you love those that love your selves Those that are loving and kind and friendly to you you will love them whether they love God or no and do you find that those that love God you can love them whether they love you or no If they should any of them be unkind and unfriendly to you yet can you love them because they love God If not if you can love them that love you though they do not love God and cannot love them who love God in case they do not love you what think you Is not this an evidence that this Self-love hath greater power in you than the love of God 2. Are you angry with those that offend God as you are with those that offend your Selves The Psalmist could say Psal 139.21 22. Do not I hate them that hate thee am not I grieved with those that rise up against thee Yea I hate them with a perfect hatred I count them mine Enemies Can you say so I am angry with them that are angry with thee I am grieved at them that sin against God those that are his Enemies I count them mine own Enemies Those that wrong our selves and offend our selves that wrong us in our Names by traducing backbiting or slandering of us that wrong us of our Right by Fraud or Oppression that do but speak an angry or unkind word to us how quickly does the Fire kindle We are too hot and touchy when Self is concerned but are we grieved are we offended at those that sin against God yea even though they be never so kind to our selves Can we not wink at sin in our Friends can we not palliate and excuse it and hide our eyes from the sins of them whom we love and upon whose kindness and friendship self hath some dependance How then canst thou say thou lovest God as thou lovest thy self Touch self-Interest who dare he shall not escape thy wrath let him kick against God sin against Christ and thou art never moved Dost thou love God as thou lovest thy self It was said of Holy Calvin that when he heard that Luther call'd him Devil that he answered But he is the Servant of the most High God 't is said of Lot 2 Pet. 2.8 That Righteous Man living among the Sodomites vexed his Righteous Soul with the filthy Conversation of those wicked Ones Lot had none of the best Neighbours in those wicked Sodomites doubtless he suffer'd many Personal wrongs and unkindnesses from them that Righteous Man could never be Neighbour to such wicked ones without suffering from them himself but yet we read not that he ever fretted or vexed at any thing they did against himself their wickedness against God their filthy Conversation this was it which vexed his Righteous Soul There was a Man that loved God indeed silent at wrongs done to himself only vexed at what is done against God Is it so with thee Is it so with us O how quite contrary are we Vexing and fretting and chafing at whatever is against our selves and silent and quiet and not moved in the concerns of God Is this our love to God Are we lovers of God more than lovers of Self Sure beloved this very thing our being so impatient of Self-offences and so patient of offences against God this very thing if well considered might make the most of our Hearts to ake and draw Tears from our Eyes might set us all a Weeping to think what daily Arguments we have of this kind to prove how powerful this Self-love and how weak the love of God is in us Sure the more dear the Lord grows to us the more will it go to our Hearts that he should be offended by any and the more Self-love were mortified the easier should we bear Self-wrongs and Offences And what can we say with respect to our Brethren Neighbours Do we not so love our selves but that we are heartily concern'd for our Neighbours Have we compassions towards them in their afflictions Do we rejoice at their Prosperity Can we grieve with those that grieve suffer with them that suffer and rejoice with them that rejoyce and prosper We can be glad when God prospereth our Selves and can we be glad when he prospereth others O how do Men rake and catch what they can one from another how do Men envy the prosperity of their Neighbours O how do some Men gape after the Possessions of their Brethren wishing even for their Death when they are like to get any thing by it How many Landlords are glad of the death of their Tenants How many younger Brothers are glad at the death of the Heir Yea how do some Children wait for the death of their Parents that the Inheritance may fall to themselves And whence is all this wickedness Is not this from Self-love O what Murtherous desires and hopes doth it sometimes bring forth Though it dare not put upon Murtherous Practices though it doth not make Murtherous hands yet it often makes the Heart a Murtherous heart and fills it with Murtherous desires and practices Mat. 15.19 Out of the Heart proceed evil Thoughts Murthers Adulteries 'T is this Self in the Heart that is the Original Murtherer and Adulterer You that are Professors of Religion see diligently whether there be no degree of this wickedness to be found in any of your Hearts to hope for to wish for or at least to be well pleased at the death of others when Self doth get by their Death Therefore 4. There is a necessity of keeping the Heart under Government Is Self such an Idol in the Heart Is Self-love Idolatry and the Root of so much wickedness The Rot of Religion The Root of Unrighteousness Unmercifulness Yea and of such Murtherous desires and wishes And is there something of
thine Ease and art nothing troubled at it thou art Rich and hast Money enough at least thou hast an House and hast Bread enough thou art in thy Health and thy Strength and so long thou carest not thou art not troubled about thou wilt not so much as think How is it with my Soul Is not my poor Soul ready to perish and like to be Damned for my Sins And wilt thou yet say thou lovest thy Soul 'T were well for thee better than 't is if thou lovest thy Soul as thou lovest thy Flesh nay as thou lovest thy dirty Pleasures and vile Companions thy Horses in thy Stable thy Pigs at the Trough thy very Dogs thou lovest better than thou lovest thy Soul this is the wickedness of every Sinner among you and where the Soul is less loved God himself is less loved than these vile things yet thou wilt say Thou lovest God no thou dost not love him as thou lovest the Dirt of thy Heels the Lusts of thy Flesh O wonder wonder Sinners and be astonished at your Selves that ever there should be such a vile and wretched Heart within you and yet you should sit here or go up and down the World as well pleased with your selves as well satisfied with your selves as you are Who would think that behold Sinners Faces how merry they look who would think these merry ones should have such a vile and wicked Heart within them How is it with thee Sinner What aileth thee I am well I thank God Well art thou What and have such a Devil in thy Bosome such a wicked Heart as despiseth the Lord and makes a God of thy Belly or thy Money or thy Pleasure The Lord make you deeply sensible of this wickedness for 't is certainly your cases 't were better with you than it is if you had loved God as well as you do the Beasts that perish if you loved your Souls as well as you do those rotting and perishing Carkases And for you that are Christians who do love your Souls more than your Bodies and God more than all yet it is so little that God hath the Preheminence in your Love that you are hard put to it in your Examination to prove whether the love of God hath the Preheminence in you or no whether there be not something that you love more than God It is a shame for us Friends that the love of God is no more perfected in us that there is no more sensible strength of our Love to God that we should be so often put to it to Question which we love best God or our selves God or this present World Well this should be the Order and Measure of your Love as I said before that God be first loved next our Souls then our Bodies and after that the Creatures which are for the Bodily Prosperity that the Creature be loved no farther than it is serviceable to the Health of our Bodies and our Bodies loved in order to the service of our Souls and all so much and no more than conduces to the Honour and Service of God this should be the Order and Measure of our Love and this would be one Fruit of the due Government of our Hearts That I may the more effectually perswade you to set up and keep up this Government in your Hearts let me ask you Quest 1. Can you except against this Order and Measure of your Love Order in the Heart is as necessary as Order in a Kingdom Army or Family and a due Order in our Love is necessary to the keeping up Order in the Heart 1. Consider Order in the Heart is as necessary as Order in a Kingdom c. What is a Kingdom if there be no Order in it What is an Army what is a Family where there is no order in it What is there but Confusion and Ruin All runs into confusion all runs to ruin where no Order is Jam. 3.16 Where envy and strife is there is confusion and every evil work where envy and strife is there is disorder good Order would prevent strife and envying and where no good Order is there is confusion and every evil work O what Tumults and Mutinies are there in our disorderly Hearts there is no good doing and there is every evil work 2. Order in our Love is necessary to the keeping our whole Hearts in Order upon the right Order and Measure of our Love will follow the right Ordering of all our Affections there 's no one of all our Affections but will be in good Order if our Love be in Order if we love what we should love we shall hate what we should hate and fear what we should fear and desire what we should desire and grieve for what we should grieve and be angry only at what we should be angry and when there is a due Measure in our Love where we love as much as we should we shall hate as much as we should and fear and grieve and rejoice as much as we should and no more the motions and workings of all our Affections do follow and flow from the working of our Love as when we love God we shall hate and fear and grieve for all that is contrary to God so when we love God as much as we should that is above all and with all our Hearts we shall desire him above all and hate and grieve for sin which is contrary to God with all our Hearts The Reason why we hate not sin as we should why we fear not sin and grieve not for sin the Reason why we desire no more after God why we desire Grace no more and Holiness no more it is because we have no more love to God and his Holiness The Reason why we love that we should not love and desire and fear what we should not the Reason of our Carnal griefs and Worldly Sorrows those Sorrows that bring Death 2 Cor. 7. is because we duly love not God more love to God would help and heal those inordinate Passions you would never be lovers of this Self of this Flesh of this World of these Pleasures did you duly love God and the things of God you complain of the unruliness of your Passions of your frettings and vexings and the unquietness of your Hearts you complain of the hardness of your Hearts you cannot hate sin as you should nor mourn for sin nor fear it as you should this you say is your Affliction and you know not how to help it why do but get more love to God more intense and ardent love to Him and his Holiness and you will find all these Distempers to fall then you will hate and fear and mourn for sin as you ought to do there will be an end of your complainings of hardness of Heart that you can't fear nor grieve nor mourn for sin there will be an end of your complainings of your over-loving the World of your unreasonable passions and frettings and anger at what
you should not when once you have gotten duely to love the Lord. Well by this you see the Order in the Heart and in special the due Order and Measure of your love that is necessary and how necessary it is Can you therefore except against this Order and Measure of your Love What should be first and chiefly loved Wilt thou not say That God should be he Which should be most in our Love our Bodies or our Souls Will you not every one say O my Soul my Soul is of more worth than my Body and more worthy of my Love Which should be more loved your Bodies or your Estates and the Creatures you enjoy Surely you would all say in this as Christ said Mat. 6.25 The Life is more than Meat and the Body than Raiment what would you think of such a Man that loves his Money more than his own Body that would suffer his Body to Starve and Pine rather than spend his Money upon it you would say This Man is a Monster and is not he as much a Monster who loves his Body more than his Soul or himself more than God as he who loves his Money more than his Body Christians would you not count it well with you if your Love were thus regulated What if you could now feel that which you have so often questioned and doubted whether it be so or no that you can now love God above all that the whole stream of your Love did run into the Ocean If you could feel such strong and such lively and such passionate workings of your Hearts towards God such dearness and such tenderness and such strength and ardency of Affection to the Lord if you could feel your Hearts burning within you with the Divine Love if these Hearts were all flameing Hearts and flaming upwards and that so sensibly and so strongly that there might be a resolving of that doubt and you saâ— it true beyond question and you could say Now I feel who hath mine Heart none but God none but Christ Whom have I in Heaven but thee there 's nothing in the Earth that I love in comparison of thee God is the love of my Heart and my Portion for ever what if you could now feel it thus within you What if from your own sense and experience you could heartily speak out such words Take this Heart to thee O Lord thine it is thou art mine only Love and nothing will I love or regard but in Order to thee would you not bless your selves in such an experience Would it not be Marrow and Fatness to your Souls Would you not rejoyce in the Lord and triumph in Christ and praise his Holy Name that had wrought you to that pass That God should have thus gotten to be the chief in your love and Self and Flesh and the whole World were brought to stoop and stand aside yea and to be trampled on in comparison of him Sure you that are Christians would count it happy with you if it were thus and I dare say concerning you this is it you pray for and hope for and wait and thirst and long after and would count it an infinitely greater matter of joy and praise than if the Corn and the Wine and the Oyl if all the Pomps and Pleasures and Grandeur of the World were increasing unto you and were rolling in upon you and therefore you for your parts have nothing to except against this Order and Measure of your love Qu. 2. But how is it with you If it be an excellent thing if it be a blessed thing to have our Hearts brought into such a Frame and Order what do ye find Are you made partakers of this blessedness O the Lord help me I am far short of it I can feel that I love this World I need no tryal whether I love this Flesh or no whether I love my Credit or no whether I love my Money or my Lands or mine Ease or my Pleasures I feel I love these things but whether I love my Soul as I ought whether I love God as I ought there 's my great doubt and I fear I do not Dost thou fear Dost thou doubt whether thou lovest thy Soul as thou lovest the World Whether thou lovest thy God as thou lovest thy Flesh And is there any thing but need then that thou shouldst be brought to a better pass Canst thou be quiet canst thou be comforted in any thing whilest it is thus with thee Christians would you ever be clearly satisfied concerning your eternal State that you shall hereafter dwell in the eternal Love Would you be comforted touching your present Case that God is your God That Christ is your Jesus That the Covenant and the Promises and the Mercies of God are yours that you are passed from Death to Life that your Names are written in Heaven and that you are Enrolled amongst the Saints and shall have an Inheritance with the Saints in Light Then put hard on for this blessed Frame of Heart let it henceforth be the great thing in your Eye look for it pray for it reach forth towards it down with this World tread upon this Earth and Flesh love nothing but what God would have you love love nothing but in subordination to God Dread the encroachments of the Creatures upon the Right of God despise these carnal Pleasures despise this Money and these Lands or this Credit so far forth as they stand in competition with God set your Foot upon the Necks of them all give your Hearts unto the Lord and let him be your Love and your Delight and your Portion for ever 2. For our Desires in this as in the former we must desire what we should desire and as much as and no more than we should desire it the Object of our desires is the same with the Object of our Love that which is Good Now of all the Good which may or ought to be desired 1. Something is to be desired Absolutely and Vltimately and thus God only is to be desired 2. Other good things are to be desired Absolutely but Subordinately and thus the first Grace is to be desired and the evelasting Happiness of our Souls absolutely but subordinately we are to desire our own blessedness but chiefly that therein God may be glorified 3. Other good things are to be desired in subordination and with submission And thus the higher Degrees of Grace the best and most advantageous Means of Grace Gifts the gift of Prayer gifts for Edification c. these all are to be desired with submission to the will of God the first Grace or saving Grace we are not to desire with submission so as to be content to be deny'd it no not to the will of God for there is no such will of God for us to submit to God would not have any Man to submit to it to be for ever left an Enemy or a Reprobate from God God would not have any Man content to
be Damned Indeed the worst of Sinners must be silent to God though he Damn them for their sins and not charge God foolishly but acknowledge that he is Righteous in Damning them but they are not required to submit or be contented to be Damned The first grace sincerity in Grace is to be desired absolutely but as to higher Degrees in Grace the gifts of Grace the means of Grace c. these are to be desired but only with submission 4. Other good things must be desired with submission and Moderation thus all Temporal good things are to be desired 1. With submission We may and ought to desire our Bodily Health our Life and our Prospering in the World but this must be put in if it be the will of God and for the honour of God And if it be the will of God to deny us therein we must submit 2. With Moderation We should not desire great things for our selves nor any thing too earnestly we may seek outward good things but with a great indifferency we must not be greedy seekers Greediness notes 1. A desire after much 't is not a little that will satisfie the greedy mind 2. An eager Desire a greedy Appetite is a ravenous Appetite which scarce any thing will satisfie or quench and such an Appetite we must not allow in our selves after these Temporal things We must desire an increase of Grace yea and of the gifts of Grace Earnestly 1 Cor. 14.31 Covet earnestly the best gifts we must not be content with a little Grace though we must submit to Gods dispensation we must not so submit to be of little Faith as not to seek and seek earnestly for an increase yet so far we must submit as to be without murmuring yea and to be thankful for that little we have Reach forth to the things that are before press hard on towards the Mark be zealous in contending for the highest pitch of Grace and Holiness yea and as to the gifts of Grace the Apostle exhorts 1 Cor. 14.12 Seek that ye may excell to the Edifying of the Church Those that do not press on after an increase in Grace 't is a sign they have no Grace in them that 's True here he that is content with a little 't is an Evidence that he hath nothing Let your eye be upon getting up to the highest form of Christians so as to excell and shine forth most gloriously in the Grace of God but if notwithstanding all your endeavours you still fall short and it continue to be low with you murmur not at God Blame your selves that you have no more there 's the fault you are not straitned in the Lord but in your own Bowels in your own narrow Hearts yet still as little as you have be thankful that there is something of the Grace of God in you if ye be some of the lowest of the Servants of the Lord yet bless him that you are his Servants still contending and that earnestly to rise and increase more and more This increase of Grace and of the gifts of Grace is to be desired with submission but yet earnestly but in seeking after Temporal good things there must be not only submission but great Moderation we must neither seek much of them nor be over eager in our desiring of them From what hath been said will follow these Three Directions for governing your desires 1. Quicken and enlarge your desires after God and the good things above and desire them as much as you should 2. Curb and limit your desires after the good things below and desire them no more than you should 3. Crush and crucifie your desires after the Evil and hurtful things below and desire them not at all 1. Quicken and enlarge your desires after God and the good things above and desire them as much as you should Fear not transgressing in the excess you can't desire God or his Grace too much enlarge your desires 1. Desire to have as much as you can Desire as much of God as much Grace as possible seek great things for your selves here the more of God you can get the more blessed are you and the more Grace you have the more of God you have Desire to abound and excell in the Grace of God get as much Likeness to God as much Love to God as much Faith in God as much sence of the Love and Goodness and Kindness of God as your Hearts can hold The Apostle prays for the Colossians Chap. 1.9 That they might be filled with the Knowledge of God in all Wisdom and Spiritual understanding and Vers 11. Strengthned with all Might according to his glorious Power What is his desire for them let be your desires for your selves that you may be filled with the Knowledge and Grace of God that you may be as full of God as Sinners are full of the Devil that you may be as full of Love as Sinners are of Lust that you may be as full of Holiness as they are of Wickedness Sinners are full of sin Acts 13.10 O thou full of all subtilty and guile The Devil fills their Hearts Acts 5. Why hath Sathan filled your Hearts Get your Hearts to be emptied of the Devils fulness and to be filled with all the fulness of God Let this be your desire Christians not to have something of God something of the grace of God let not a little content you seek to have all grace to abound in you let this be your Ambition to get up to be the best of Christians the chiefest of Saints the least and lowest in your own esteems but the highest in the grace of God seek as much grace as possible 2. Desire God and his Grace with as much earnestness and intention of Soul as possible Let your desires be large desires and let them be ardent desires let your Hearts burn in Love and burn in Holy desires after God let this be the one thing you desire Psal 27.4 One thing have I desired of the Lord that I may dwell in the House of the Lord and behold the beauty of the Lord here Note 1. God and all the things of God are but one thing and our desire after all these is our desiring but one thing In desiring God we desire the grace of God and the means of grace and the delights and comforts of God and our desiring of grace and the things of God is our desiring God to desire God and to desire grace is one and the same thing 2. The Saints desiring after God and his grace are strong desires the fixing of the desires upon one thing notes the intention of our desires when the whole Stream runs in one Channnel and towards one point it runs more strongly when the Heart is divided betwixt many things God hath something of the desire and the World also hath its part and share with God its Motions are the more weakly towards him O stir up and quicken your desires after God and
that they may be quickned into the more strong desires unite them let all your desires be after this one thing the grace and good will of the Lord. Christians let me ask you What would you have What is it you desire O let the Lord be my God let me have grace from the Lord but what of God how much of the grace of God would content you It may be some of you would answer O! if it were never so little if I could have Faith though it were but as a grain of Mustard-Seed if I could get any thing of God in my Heart if by the grace of God in me this Heart of mine might be but as a bruised Reed and smoaking Flax if I might get any thing that God would not despise this should satisfie me 'T is true the least degree of saving grace the least Beam of the Divine Light the first springing of the Life of God in us the least Spark of his Holy Image our desires should be so far fixed on this that nothing short of this nothing short of the truth of Grace should in the least suffice us and we should be thankful for the very first grace if we should never have any more or rise no higher But are there not some that would have this and care for no more that bound and limit their desires to the first and lowest degrees of grace This desire is not the desire of the Children of God thou mayest go to Hell with such desires after God he that desires not to be perfectly Holy is not sincerely Holy Do you desire God do you desire grace Stir up and enlarge your desires let those narrow Hearts open their Mouths wide be covetous Christians covet much and covet earnestly these best of giâ—ts say with the Psalmist This one thing I desire nothing but God nothing but grace take Corn and Wine who will take the Gold and the Silver who will let the Lord God be mine and that shall suffice me Desire God only and follow after God fully as Psalm 63.8 My Soul followeth hard after thee Friends you have some Wishes and some weaker desires after the Lord O quicken up these fainty Hearts look oftner before you how worthy the Lord is of all your desires what a Jewel what a Treasure the grace of God is look oftner Heaven-ward get a sight of God and his glorious Treasures live more in the Contemplation of his glory and goodness it is the sight of the Object that must kindle and quicken desires you that have cold Hearts Heaven-ward 't is a sign your Eye is little in Heaven Believe it some clearer views of the Love and Goodness and Holiness and Kindness and Glory of the Lord would whet your Appetites would put Life into those dull Desires would make you hungry Souls and thirsty Souls and longing Souls O look oftner upward dwell in the Mountain of Spices get some Taste and Relish of the goodness of God by being more constantly conversant with him and this will set abroach all your Vessels your Souls would stream forth in the Words and Sighs of the Psalmist Psal 42.1 As the Hart panteth after the Water Brooks so panteth my Soul after thee O God My Soul thirsteth for God for the living God 2. Curb and limit your desires after the good things below and desire them no more than you should particularly 1. Desire not over much of them The best Food the best Physick if we take too much of it becomes hurtfull and pernicious when the Stomach is overcharged and so when the Heart is overcharged it surfets and suffereth prejudice by what it hath received That Prayer of Agur Prov. 30.8 should be the desire of Christians Feed me with Food convenient a convenient Habitation a competent Portion of these Earthly things should be the Proportion of our desires O if Men knew what were enough and when they had enough it would prevent the extravagancy of our desires Jer. 45.5 Seekest thou great things to thy self Seek them not Thou canst not bear great things great Possessions are great Temptations Seek no greater things than thou canst bear a Ship that hath more than its Load will sink and drown The Journey or Voyage of the Heart is upwards you are Travelling Heaven-wards this Earth the more you have of it presses you down-ward and hinders your ascending O how much nearer Heaven might some of our Hearts have ascended how much nearer to God and Glory might we have gotten had we not been clogged with the things of this Earth Some Men are too Rich and too Prosperous in this World to be Spiritually-minded Great Estates bring great Cares and encumbring Business so that they cannot be at liberty nor at leisure to think on God or their Souls Desire only so much of the World as is best for you and that proportion is best for you which will help you Heaven-ward and least hinder you know what is a competency and desire no more That 's not a competency which is enough to satisfie your Appetite you will never say you have enough if you will stay till your Appetite say It is enough this is like those two Daughters of the Horse-Leach Prov. 30.15 that still cry Give give Get get and never say It is enough That is not a competency which will satisfie your Appetite but that which will comfortably serve your necessities know what is a competency and desire no more 2. Desire them not over earnestly be not over hungry and greedy Souls desire but a competency and desire it but moderately that you may not over-desire these Earthly good things do not over-prize them Carry it towards the good things below as Sinners carry it towards Christ and the good things above how do Sinners carry it towards Christ They make light of him Isa 53.2 They see no beauty in him that they should desire him See as little beauty in the World as Sinners see in Christ make as light of the good things of the Earth as they do of the good things of Heaven and then your desires will be as cold after these things as theirs are after Christ O if Christians did desire this Earth no more than Sinners desire Heaven how mortified would all their Earthly desires be Mortifie your inordinate desires after the World quench your thirst after the good things thereof or else these desires will mortifie and quench your thirst after God Christians you would fain love God more it is your Affliction that your Affections to things above are so dull and so flat that you have no more strong and working desires Heaven-ward abate your desires to things below and then they will rise more to the things above never look to love God more than you do till you love the World less than you do Do ye mean to hold up at this height in your Carnal desires Will you not set Bounds to your Earthly Appetites Then count upon it God is like to
this Earth and the Fulness thereof You now that are for Government in your Hearts for the Government of your desires take this course for thus Governing of them desire God and the things above as much as you should desire the good things below no more than you should desire the evil things below not at all get your desires after Lawful things to be moderated your desires after sinful things to be Crucified put Wings to your Holy desires put Clogs and Fetters upon your Natural desires and up to the Cross to the Gibbet with these sinfull desires and herein have you set up the Lord to be the King in your Hearts and brought your very Appetites to be subject to him 3. For our Joys for the due raising and limiting of these I shall shew 1. The Object of Joy is the same with the Object of Love and Desire He that Loves whatever it be if he hath it not he desireth it if he hath it he rejoiceth he that loves God if he can hear such a Word from God I am Thine that 's a joyful Word then he can rejoice in God he that loveth Money or the gains of this World if he hath it not he desireth it if he hath it he rejoiceth his Money is his Joy his Estate is his Joy such a joy as 't is a poor flashy Joy yet Joy there is to him The Woman in the Parable Luke 15.9 that had lost her piece of Silver when She had found it She calls her Neighbours together to rejoice with her sure such a Woman loved Money well Joy arises 1. Originally from its Object or the Thing loved It is God that is the Fountain of Divine Joy thence it springs and comes in therefore the Apostle prays Rom. 15.13 The God of Hope fill you with all Joy There are Three wayes by which our Joy in God is raised 1. By Contemplation by Contemplaâ—ing of God we come to see and find out what matter of Joy there is in God it brings the goodness and kindness the satisfying and ravishing Excellencies of God to our sight those to whom the glorious Lord is as a barren Wilderness or Land of Darkness as the expression is Jer. 2.31 it is either from their Ignorance or their want of Contemplating of God It is a sign thou art a blind Soul and knowest not God or that thou art a Sranger to Divine Meditation Thou lookest little Heaven-ward thou dost not send up thy Thoughts in search for God who yet sayest Where is that Joy Where is that Blessedness Where is that Joy Look more diligently in the Face of God let thy Soul dwell in the Study and Contemplation of his infinite goodness thou hast a glass before thee the glass of the Word wherein his glory shineth look more into that glass and Meditate much upon what that Word revealeth of the Excellencies of God and then thou shalt see his Glory and Taste his Joy 2. Expectation and Hope therefore we Read of Rejoycing in Hope Rom. 5.2 When Contemplation hath discovered the Blessedness that is in God then Hope layes hold on it this Blessedness may be mine saith the Soul and I have good Hope it may be mine and in that Hope I joy What Malefactor that is in fear of Death for his Offences that should be told there is yet hope of thy Pardon hope that thou mayest live but would rejoyce in that Hope What poor Man that is in want that should have Tidings of a Rich Inheritance that was falling to him but his Hope would make him to Sing for Joy Dost thou hear of the unsearchable Riches of Christ of the Treasures of everlasting Joy that that are in the Lord God and hast thou Hope that these will be thy Riches and thy Treasures how canst thou but rejoyce in Hope of the Glory of God 3. Fruition or the enjoying of the Object loved and this is it which brings the fullest Joy Fruition stands 1. In our Actual Possession of the Object when we have what we hoped for and there is a double Possession of God that the Saints have in this Life 1. A Possession by Faith 1 Joh. 5.12 He that hath the Son hath Life that is he that believeth in Christ hath Christ his Faith puts him into Possession and from this the Possession of Faith Joy followeth Rom. 15.13 The God of Hope fill you with all Joy and Peace in believing 2. A Possession by Sense when we Taste that the Lord is gracious when we feel the comfortable refreshings of his loving kindness when the beams of his Light and the Streamings of his Love shine upon and warm our Hearts when his Light Shines into our Darkness and gives us the Knowledge of the Glory of God in the Face of Jesus Christ 2 Cor. 4.8 And when his Love is shed abroad into our Hearts by the Holy Ghost which he hath given us Rom. 5.5 When we see how lovely the Lord is and feel that he loveth us 2. In the satisfaction of our Hearts with this Possession when we are pleased and delighted and satisfied with his goodness A full satisfaction of the Heart will not be till hereafter Psal 17.15 When I awake I shall be satisfied and therefore our fulness of Joy is reserved till then but satisfaction to such a Degree there is upon our present Possession as gives us a kind of present Fruition 2. This Joy arises as from the Object so immediately from the very Act of Loving Joy ariseth from love 1. By way of immediate resultancy there is a great Pleasure in Love as there is bitterness in grief and sorrow so there is sweetness in Love this very Blossom of Love casteth forth such a fragrancy as no Man knows but he that hath it It is a Sweet and a Pleasant thing to live ln the love of God He that loves God and feels that he loves him and he hath him whom he loves cannot but rejoice in him 1 Pet. 1.8 Whom having not seen ye love and believing ye rejoice with Joy unspeakable and full of glory There we have 1. A Christians love to God whom having not seen ye love 2. His Possession of what he loves believing Believing is as I said before getting Possession and then 3. The Joy that followeth ye rejoice c. 2. By way of Reflection when a Christian upon his review of this his love to Christ perceives that he loves him in sincerity this is to him a Token of Christ's love to him Dost thou see dost thou feel that thou lovest Christ This thy love to Christ is a Token that he hath sent thee into thy Heart to tell thee that he loveth thee And when thine Heart can say I am my Beloveds and my Beloved is mine the Lord is my God my Saviour my Portion and Inheritance canst thou say so Then thou wilt add with the Psalmist Psal 16.6.9 The Lines are fallen to me in a Pleasant Place and I have a goodly Heritage
therefore mine Heart is glad and my Glory rejoiceth Thou wilt shew me the path of Life in thy presence is fulness of Joy and at thy Right hand there are Pleasures for evermore And as it is with Divine Joy the Object whereof is God so is it in a poor and pittiful manner with Earthly Joy the Object whereof is the good things below This Joy is raised from our Contemplating of Worldly things and those Carnal Delights they will yield and thereby sucking out such Juice as they have for our Carnal hearts to feed upon by expectation and hope that these things that we may get get Money get us Estates and the comforts of them and also by our Fruition of them when we get them our loving and taking the delight and contentment of them and according to what we have of these things and the Degree of our Love to them such is the joy that ariseth to us from them 2. I shall give you some Directions for the right raising and due limiting of your Joy 1. Rejoice in the Lord and let your joy in the Lord 1. Bear some Proportion as much as those narrow Hearts can reach to to that fulness and those Everlasting Treasures of infinite Love and Goodness which are in God for you I could tell you something of that satisfaction and rest which your Souls shall one day enjoy in God from the Word of God and the Experiences of some of his Saints will tell you much more but when your Eyes shall come to see God then you will say That one half was not told me If some drops of this Joy let fall upon the Saints here on Earth have sweetned all the Waters of Marah turned their Prisons into Pallaces yea their very Stakes and Gibbets into Triumphal Chariots if a few drops of that Joy have been so sweet and so powerful what will the Rivers of his Pleasures be As the Apostle 1 Joh. 1.4 These things I write so these things I speak that your Joy may be full Rejoice in the Lord and let the Joy of the Lord be your Strength let this Joy be the Strength of your Hearts and the Strength or Top of all your Joyes 2. Let your Joy in God be raised 1. From the Evidence of your Interest in God at present from your sincerity in the grace of God and your Union with Christ You must be in Christ ' ere ever you can rejoyce in Christ Jesus what will it be to Joy in God if God be none of yours Satisfie not your selves with mistaken Joyes There is the Joy of the Hypocrite some there are who upon some light touches of the Word of God upon them and some little change it makes are all on a sudden wrapt up into Extasies of Joy though still they remain short of the grace of God yet they seem to be transported with the Joy of God such Joy often proves to be but as a Flash of Lightning which comes in on a sudden and then vanisheth into greater Darkness Job 20.5 The Joy of the Hypocrite is but for a Moment it comes on a sudden and in a great Flash and on a sudden it is gone again The Joy of the Saints is not so sudden but it is lasting it is not such a glorious Flash but is solid and substantial like a deep River that makes no great Noise when the shallow Brooks make a greater Bubling See that the Foundation of your Joy be laid in Peace and the Foundation of your Peace be laid in Grace Get an Interest in Christ soundness of Heart towards God and sincerity of Love to Christ see to it that you be his own that you be not Hypocrites and Hangby's upon Christ but his real Members and Hearty Disciples Thou rejoicest in God thou rejoicest in Christ Jesus but art thou of the Circumcision Of a Circumcised and Sanctified Heart Dost thou worship God in the Spirit as the Apostles expressions are Phil. 3.3 Is thine Heart with the Lord Dost thou love him with thine Heart and cleave to him with thine Heart and serve him in thy Spirit in thine Inwards and all the Powers of thy Soul If thou art of the Circumcision and thus worshippest God in the Spirit which are the Properties of sincere Disciples then thou mayest rejoice Beware of trusting to the most Elevated Joyes that you seem any of you to have felt in Religion and the Exercises thereof you may seem to have much of the Joy of God who have nothing of the Grace of God Thou mayest carry such Joyes with thee to the Grave and they may drop down with thee into Hell and be swallow'd up of everlasting Sorrow judge not of your Religion by your Joyes but judge of your Joyes by your soundness in Religion See then that thou art gotten beyond an Hypocrite before thou meddle with the Joy of the Saints 2. From your Hope of the Glory of God Rejoice in Hope of the Glory of God Rom. 5.2 Thou that art a real Christian it may be thou hast little sense of the sweetness of Religion thou goest heavily under thy Burthens the Burthen of thy Corruption and Infirmities thou livest much in the Dark the Light of the Lord is within the vail and thou canst perceive but very small glimmerings of it thou goest heavily on thy way hungring and thirsting and fearing and fainting and mourning over thine uncomfortable condition yet lift up the Hands that hang down yea lift up your Heads you disconsolate ones though the Light and the Love and the Comforts and the Kindnesses of God be vailed from thine Eye yet let thine Hope enter into that within the vail Psal 42.11 Why art thou cast down O my Soul Why art thou disquieted within me Why how can it be otherwise wherewithal may I be cheared and comforted Why Hope in God Hope in God for I shall yet praise him who is the Light Let these two Directions go both together 1. Let the Foundation of Joy be laid in sincerity of Grace I can never bid thee rejoice till thou be perswaded to be an Hearty Christian 2. Let your supply of the want of Joy in Sense be made up from the Joy of Hope If thou art a Stranger to all present Joy yet if thou art not a Stranger from Love thou hast this Hope to chear thee that thou shalt verily see the goodness of the Lord in the Land of the Living 3. From your Increases in the Grace of God They are ordinarily the Stronger and more grown Christians who can sincerely rejoice in God Younger Christians are often Mourners and do but go on lamenting after God It 's true there are some Young Converts or that seem to be such whose Joyes meet them at the very entry of Christianity who at the very first being wrought upon seem to be all in a Flame of Love and Joy Jer. 2.2 I remember the kindness of thy Youth and the Love of thine Epousals who have a bright Morning of
over much in any of the good things below we may rejoice in our outward good things James 1.9 Let the Brother of low degree rejoice in that he is exalted that is let the Poor rejoice when he is made Rich Poverty is an Affliction and Riches are a Mercy and such a Mercy as we may rejoice in But though we may rejoice in every outward Mercy yet we may not rejoice overmuch in them particularly for the limits of this Joy they must be such as these 1. Joy not in any of these good things as if they were your happiness they may be Means to our happiness but must not be made the Matter of our happiness to make our Estates our happiness is to make them our God and the way to make us miserable he is a miserable Rich Man who maketh his Riches his Happiness 2. Joy not so much in them as to rejoyce ever the less in God You have so much need of God in the greatest Plenty and Prosperity as you have when you have nothing and you should so much thirst after the Joy of God in your greatest Worldly Joy as in your Sorrow Take not your Worldly Joy in stead of Joy in God think not to supply your want of Joy in God by the abounding of Worldly Joy You may as well feed your Souls with Meat and Drink you may as well provide for your Souls by your Money or Estates as comfort them by that Joy that ariseth out of these Earthly things Souls must have a God the Comfort of God the Joy of God to refresh them and support them that Soul is a Carnal Soul that can feed upon Carnal Joys you nevertheless need the Joy of God for any Worldly Joy and you must look to it that your Worldly Joys be never to that height as to lessen your esteem of the Joy of the Lord. The Joy of God will quench your thirst after the World and then the Joy of the World exceedeth it's Bounds when it quencheth your thirst after God and the light of his Countenance Thou art Rich thou art full and prosperest in the World thy Bull gendreth and faileth not thy Cow calveth c. thy Oxen are strong to labour thy Sheep bring forth Thousands and ten Thousands in the Streets and now thou hast Hearts Ease and rejoycest in thy Portion but how standest thou now in respect to God Is God ever the less needed Is God ever the less loved Is the Joy of God still thy chief Joy Or dost thou not even forget that thou hast a God or a Soul and leave it to them that have nothing below to rejoyce in God that is above What thinkest thou of thy self Hath this Earth eaten up Heaven Hath the Joy of this Earth swallowed up the Joy of the Lord Sure it hath transgressed its Bounds It may be thou wilt say as the Prophet Hab. 3.17 18. and it is well if thou canst say so Although the Fig-Tree doth not Blossom c Yet will I rejoyce in the Lord and Joy in the God of my Salvation When thou art Poor and in Want and hast nothing left thee in the World to comfort thine Heart in then thou wilt look to the Lord and he shall be thy Joy and thy Comfort but how is it with thee when the Fig-Tree doth Blossom when thou livest in the abundance of all things Dost thou then feel thou hast as much need of a God dost thou then take as much Joy in God canst thou say of all here below These are miserable Comforters if God be not my Comfort these are miserable Pleasures if God be not my Joy This is something and thus it should be 3. Rejoice with Trembling That 's the Psalmist's Counsel Psal 2.11 Serve the Lord with Fear and rejoice with Trembling in allusion to that let me say Seek the World with Fear and rejoice in the World with Trembling let fear be a Bridle to prevent the excess of your Worldly Joy Fear what should we fear Why fear lest you should forget God lest that which is your Joy become your Snare and turn you aside from God lest your Joy in the World should prove Worldly Joy and serve for nothing but to feed and heighten your Worldly Lusts fear lest this Joy of the World should do the same by you as sometimes the Sorrows of the World do which the Apostle says 2 Cor. 7. Worketh Death fear lest it kill your Souls there is nothing that does more corrupt and endanger the Soul than Carnal Mirth Eccle. 11.9 Rejoice O young Man in thy Youth c. but what followeth Know that for all these things God will bring thee to Judgment that is to Condemnation These Joys drag the Soul to the Bar of Justice and thence to Execution in the Fire There is scarce any thing that does Ripen Men faster for Ruin than the Mirth of the World Job 21.10 11. Their Bull gendreth and faileth not there 's the matter of their Joy their Children Dance they take the Timbrel and the Harp and rejoyce at the sound of the Organ there 's the Measure and Expression of their Joy they are so lifted up that they must have the Musick and their Dancing to heighten their Mirth but what 's the end In a Moment they go down to the Grave and thence into the Bottomless Pit O the Madness of this Merry World That can see nothing in God to Joy them in and yet can rejoice in a thing of nought that undo themselves by their own Felicity their Joy and Mirth Joy is the sweetest Flower that grows in that Garden the Heart of Man and this Flower must be the Poyson to kill them and is never sweet to them but when it growes up out of a Dung-hill out of their Fleshly Lusts What Multitudes have surfeited and Died of their Carnal Mirth and yet foolish Souls will never fear it but this must be their only Heaven which leads to Hell what do these Carnal Joys serve for but to corrupt Men first and then to confound Men Worldly sorrow it 's said worketh Death but it may be said of Worldly Sorrow and Mirth as of David and Saul Saul hath slain his Thousands and David his ten Thousands Worldly Sorrow hath slain many but nothing so many as Carnal Mirth whilest that Saints wade through their Temporal Sorrows to everlasting Joy Sinners pass through their Worldly Joy to everlasting Sorrows Isa 50.11 Behold ye that kindle your Fires c. Here 1. Sinners have their Fires that is to comfort and chear and warm their Hearts these their comforting Fires are their Joy and Jollities 2. Sinners Fires are of their own kindling their comforts come not from God but they raise them up to themselves they comfort themselves and chear themselves but are not comforted of God 3. Sinners Fires are all but Sparks a Spark will not warm and will not last the Triumphing of the Wicked is short and the Joy of the Hypocrite is
thou Lord by thy favour hast made my Mountain so strong but what follows The very next Word is Thou didst hide thy Face and I was troubled Security opens the Door to Iniquity and Iniquity will hide us from our Joy It is Matter of Joy that we are at War with Sin and have gotten any little Conquest and have such a Captain to lead us on woe to them that are at Peace or in a Truce with Sin and have nothing to comfort them but only this that there is a present Cessation of Arms and they feel not the buffeting of Sathan against them they will quickly feel the miserable fruits of that Truce Stand to your Arms stand upon your Guard whilest you are Drinking most deeply of your Waters of Joy fear that Wormwood that Sin will cast in to imbitter your Pleasant Waters That Joy which will consist with a sinful Life is no Joy of God the Joy of God is Holy Joy and that Joy of God that leaves us secure and careless is not like to be long liv'd Do you rejoyce in God As ever you would that Joy should continue take heed of Iniquity you go in danger while you live it is not so clear and bright with you now but it may be all Cloudy and Stormy to morrow if the Devil can but lead you out to Iniquity he will quickly raise such Storms as will make you forget your joy forget not this danger if you do once but forget your danger two to one but it presently overtakes you and swallows you up Christians if ever you would live in settled solid Joy you must alwayes have a tender Heart and a tender Eye that will quickly espy and quickly be startled at the Invasion of sin Be Watchful be tender Hearted and then your Hearts shall rejoyce and if you would abide in Peace never live out of Fear Never live out of Fear till you are gotten out of Danger and out of Danger you cannot be till you are got to Heaven 2. Much less not so to rejoyce in the good things of the Earth as to forget our Sins Thou art a Rich Man thou hast a Confluence of all the kindnesses that this Earth can do thee the Sun shineth on thy Tabernacle 't is all fair Weather with thee thou Prosperest in the World and herein thou dost rejoyce But Man thou art a Sinner all this while Hast thou not great guilt lying upon thee Hast thou not unconquered Lusts remaining in thee Or dost thou not go in daily danger of being turned aside from God and led out into Iniquity If thine outward Prosperity make thee glad yet let the Sin that lieth upon thy back or at least lyeth at the Door make thee tremble and so to tremble as to be an allay to thy rejoycing when with the Peacock you spread abroad your Plumes and lift up your Crests look down on your Black Feet when you glitter in your Worldly Glory behold the stain that is upon all your Glory whatever fair Out-side you have what an Inside have you Is there not Poverty within whilest there is such Plenty without What a Poor and Wretched and Blind and Naked Soul hast thou whilest as to thine Outward Man thou art Rich and hast need of nothing Canst thou in the midst of thy Prosperity forget thy sinking and sinful Soul Canst thou remember thy Soul and will not this take thee a Button lower as to thy Carnal Joy The Prosperity of the Soul and the joy that grows up out of it need not be abated in the least by the Poverty of the Outward Man if thou be never so Poor and afflicted without yet an Holy Soul an upright Heart and the Joy of a good Conscience will make amends for all that but will thine Outward Prosperity make amends for thine Inward Poverty You with whom all things go well in this World yet still think on that Rust that 's Eating out your Treasure think on that Moth that 's fretting out your Garments behold the stain that appears upon all your Beauty the stain of Pride the stain of Covetousness and Carnality the Moth of Envy and Contention that 's eating out your Hearts Why shouldst thou be sad would Carnal Comforts say What hast thou wanting to thee What hast thou to trouble thee Thou hast Houses and Lands and Money and Health and Friends What wouldst thou have Why dost thou not rejoyce and make Merry Why why 't is true all things go well with me without I have a good Estate and a good Trade and a good House and am in good Health but O what a Soul have I O what a Wretched Heart have I Do you ask What I have to trouble me O I have Sin to trouble me this Pride and this Covetousness and this Guilt that is upon me God knows I find enough to trouble me and to trouble me more than I am or can be troubled Do you ask me What I want to make me merry O I want God! I want Grace I want more Faith and more love to Christ I want a better Heart matters go not right between God and me whatever I have for this World O how little have I for the Eternal World Can I be Merry and Jocund whilest sin hath made such wasts upon my Inward Man Christians do but thus remember your Sins and this will allay your Carnal Joyes Art thou so Merry that thou forgettest thy Sins Take heed the time cometh when thy Sins shall appear and stare thee so in the Face as to make thee forget all thy days of Mirth and Laughter 2. Not so to rejoyce as to forget our Brethrens Afflictions and Miseries It 's well with thee but how is it with thy poor Neighbours and Friends How many are there that are in Penury whilest thou art in Plenty How many are cloathed in Rags whilest thou shinest in thy gorgeous Apparel How many are ready to Starve and Die for Hunger whilest thou hast thy fulness of Bread and abundance of all things Thou hast enough and thereupon rejoycest but is it nothing to thee that there are so many that would be glad of thy Crumbs of thy Leavings and cannot have them Thy very Dogs it may be have many a better Bit and Warmer Lodging than some of thy poor Neighbours is this nothing to thee When thou blessest thy self in thy Plenty then remember those for whom nothing is provided Forget not in thy Joy how 't is with thy poor Neighbours much less how 't is with the poor Church of God Psol 137.5 6. If I forget thee O Jerusalem let my Right Hand forget her cunning let me never touch the Harp more or rejoice at the sound of the Organ if I forget poor Jerusalem if I don't remember thee Let my Tongue cleave to the Roof of my Mouth let me never sing Song more no nor never speak Word more if I preferr not Jerusalem above my chiefest Joy Friends you that can be Merry and Jolly
Temptations are to be feared and warily used Riches and outward Prosperity is a Temptation our Money and our Lands and our businesses in the World are Temptations He that will be Rich falleth into Temptation c. and therefore must so be feared as to make us the more wary and circumspect in the seeking and using of them follow your Trades with fear go into your Fields and Markets with fear Eat and Drink with fear fear your fine Houses fear you Plentiful and Prosperous Estates lest by these you be led away to sin and to forget God You are every day among Temptations throughout the whole time of your lives and therefore is the Exhortation of the Apostle 1 Pet. 1.17 Pass the time of your Sojourning here in fear 4. The punishments of sin are to be feared The wrath and the curse of God that Everlasting death which is the wages of sin as I told you before fear him who is able to destroy both body and soul in Hell He is able and he will do it if thou continue in thy sin This fear is planted in the heart as the Sword of the Angel was placed in the way of Balaam to keep him back from his wicked designs This world is a wicked world notwithstanding that God hath placed such a flaming sword in sinners ways notwithstanding all their fears how wilfully wicked are they but what world would this world be if there were no fear upon mens hearts to bridle or restrain them Secondly We are to keep the heart out of fear of what it should not fear to suppress and keep down all unreasonable and sinful fears There are two things especially which men fear but should not fear 1. The Yoke of Christ the difficulties and severities of Religion some men continue to be sinners because they are afraid to be Saints they continue under the power of the Devil because they are afraid of Christ They look on Christ as an hard Master his service as hard service his Yoke as an hard Yoke some desires they have after Religion they could wish themselves Christians but they are afraid to venture The difficulties and the severities of a Godly life keep them off they are afraid of them that they shall never bear them As God placed a flaming sword in Eden Gen. 3. so these fears are a flaming sword of the devils placing to keep the way of the tree of Life to keep sinners back from Christ they dare not come to Christ for fear of him and the heavy yoke that he would put upon their Necks 2. The Cross of Christ that is 1. The sufferings of this Life These are not to be feared Rev. 2.10 Fear none of those things which you shall suffer And this very charge not to fear them is an Evidence that even Christians are too apt to fear Sufferings 2. Death for Christs sake Luke 12.4 Fear not them that kill the body Fear not the worst that men can do You may not only be persecuted by evil men imprisoned spoiled of your Goods but you may be slain put to death by them yet fear them not and as a violent death a being put to death for Christ so neither is a natural death to be feared death is the King of terrours The Apostle tells us Heb. 2.15 That for fear of death men are all their life time subject to bondage There is a natural fear of death implanted in every man even in Christ himself and there is a sinful fear of death and then 't is sinful when 't is excessive when there is so great a fear of death as to distress and distract us in the duties of our lives When there is so great a fear of death that we cannot quietly and patiently submit to its stroke when we cannot comfort and support our selves against the fear of death by the hope we have in our death the righteous hath hope in his death Prov. 14.32 As the Apostle speaks concerning sorrow for the dead 1 Thes 4.13 Sorrow not as men without hope the same may be said concerning the fear of death fear not as men without hope The righteous hath hope in his death he lies down in hope goes to his grave in hope and this hope fortifieth his heart under all its fears Now friends would you keep your hearts under Government learn these two Lessons 1. Keep your hearts in fear and particularly 1. keep you in the fear of God keep up the Aw and Reverence of God in your hearts get you trembling hearts before the Lord behold the severe and jealous eye that is upon you live under such a deep sense of the Greatness Glory and Majesty of the great God as may constantly awe you Sanctifie the Lord God in your hearts and let him be your fear and your dread Those that live not under an awe of God lye open to the Devil and all his Temptations It is this the fear of God that is the bridle to keep us in due order 2 Keep you in fear of sinning against God Psal 4.4 Tremble and sin not Art thou a professor of faith in God and dost thou not yet fear to sin against God dost thou believe that God is the observer of all ungodliness that thine iniquities are all marked before him dost thou believe that God is the avenger of all ungodliness and that all thine iniquities shall be recompensed and returned upon thine own head how is it then that thou art no more afraid of iniquity Art thou an hypocritical professor and doth not thine hypocrisie make thee afraid art thou a proud Professor or a worldly Professor or a luke-warm or froward or carnal or slothful Professour how is it that thy pride thy covetousness that thy coldness or frowardness or carnality or slothfulness doth not make thee afraid are these Evils this Pride and this Hypocrisie this Coveteousness this frowardness rooted and raigning in thy heart where are thy fears all this while call up fear put on fear and let this suppress these lusts which will else be breaking forth into practical iniquity If you would fear a life of Covetousness a life of Pride fear this heart of Pride this worldly carnal heart if you would fear a froward look a froward tongue fear a froward heart crush this Cockatrice Egg before it hatch into practical wickedness 3. Fear Temptation to Sin What does use to foment or heighten the lusts of thine heart What doth use to draw them forth into practice Whatever it be fear it as you would fear the Devil Particularly 1. Fear whatever you over love in the World 1. When you have your pleasant dishes before you and varieties of them when you have your pleasant cups before you fear your being tempted to excess feed not your selves without fear especially feast not without fear put a knife to thy throat if thou be given to appetite when thou seest dainties before thee Prov. 23.2 Look not on the wine when it is red in
who will reply why they were even as good come amongst us as amongst some of your selves and as much they are like to get and as little harm by us as by you Friends I have more than once provoked you to be more Spiritual and more Heavenly in your Converses but what hath been the fruit Is it better then it hath been O that you could tell me it was I thank God it is a little better I have set mine heart upon it I have put my self to it to bring forth something of what I have learned for others benefit I must tell you this unprofitableness is an ill sign as to your selves as well as it may be a snare to others barren lips are a sign of barren hearts 't is to be feared there is not so much of Christ within you when there is so little coming forth that there is but little truth in your hearts when there is so little Grace in your lips O Friends that you would yet check your selves for this neglect that you would yet charge it upon your hearts to be more fruitful this way To what purpose are you preach'd unto to what purpose do I warn you if you will not amend I 'le tell you one way to help it Let your own hearts be more set upon God get more spiritual savour more life and power of holiness in your own spirits and it will find an easier vent More divine Communion will be the best help to more holy Communication But this by the way 5. For our Grief or Sorrow I shall shew here 1. That the Object of our Sorrow is evil The Evils we are to greive for are 1. Sin 2. Misery or Affliction 2. What are the due degrees and just limits of our Grief 1. Sin This is the great and special object of Sorrow and sorrow for Sin is the best and most necessary of sorrows Sin is a grievous evil and it most calls for grief of heart He loves neither God nor himself that grieves not for sin Sin is the abuse of God and the wrong of our own Souls How canst thou say thou lovest God if thou canst abuse him or see him abused without sorrow how canst thou say thou lovest thy self when thou canst wrong thy self and not be grieved what wilt thou grieve for if not for that which is so provoking to God and so distructive to thy self Sin seems good in the eyes of sinners and therefore it seldom troubles them 't is that which pleaseth them and suits with their tempers 't is that which profits them and brings them in all their gains Sinners that must hereafter die for their sins do at present live by their sins they are beholding to their sins for their livelihood Some men live by lying and stealing and defrauding by Coveteousness and oppression 't is that which brings them in their Estates they had been some of them but poor men if their sin had not gotten them Estates Others live by their Pleasures and carnal merriments 't is their mirth and their pleasure that keeps them alive Sorrow and Melancholy they think would kill their hearts Sinners live upon their sins and therefore will not be grieved at them But though thou thinkest thou livest by thy sins thou must die for thy sins thy sins are making a grave for thee and carrying thee to it thy sins are preparing an Hell for thee and leading thee down to the chambers of Death Thy sin spoils thee at present of all that is good and makes thee good for nothing but to be fuel for the fire Holiness prepares the Saints and makes them meet for the inheritance of the Saints in light Col. 1.12 and sin prepares sinners and makes them meet for the inheritance of everlasting darkness fit to serve none but the Devil fit to dwell with none but the Devil Sinners you that go on in your sins you are herein but fitting and preparing you for the Devil This Pride that you live in these Pleasures that you live in this Covetousness that you live in by all these the Devil is preparing you for Hell There is a fire prepared for you Mat. 25.41 Everlasting fire prepared for the Devil and his Angels there is an Hell prepared for you and your sin is as fast as it can preparing you for that place of Torment Your going on in your sin is your ripening for wrath thou art almost ripe already and art ripening every day and as soon as thy sin hath but made thee fully ripe thou droppest as ripe fruit uses to do down thou droppest to rottenness into the grave and into the darkness of the pit Thou art grown to that height in sin that thou mayst be ripe before to morrow and as soon as thou art ripe thou wilt be rotting thy Body in the dirt thy Soul in Hell This is the fruit that sinners get and shall get at last by their sins Rom. 6.23 The wages of sin is death But yet because at present they live by their sins their sins make them merry their sins make them Rich they get money by them they get Estates by them therefore they are not troubled though they sin they will not sorrow Thou hast smitten them but they have not grieved Jer. 5.3 'T is said with respect to the punishment of sinners and it might be said concerning them they have smitten themselves and yet have not grieved Sin seems good in the eyes of sinners and therefore it doth not trouble them but sin seems to be sin to Saints Rom. 7. that is the greatest and worst of Evils for so sin when it appears to be sin doth appear to be the worst of Evils and therefore to them its matter of Sorrow When sin appears to be exceeding sinful as the Apostles Expression is before then the heart will be exceeding sorrowful the degrees which by the right Government of the heart this sorrow for sin is held up to and the bounds and limits it is held within are these 1. This sorrow must be so great as to answer the ends and bring forth the proper fruits of it The end of this sorrow and the fruits it must bring forth the Apostle tells us 2 Cor. 7.9 is Repentance I rejoyced that ye sorrowed unto Repentance And ver 11. This self-same thing that ye sorrowed after a godly manner what carefulness it wrought in you yea what clearing of your selves c. What ever trouble for Sin what ever sorrow any of you have in your hearts if it doth not bring forth Repentance a forsaking and turning from sin if this sorrow doth not work a fear of falling back into sin if it doth not work a care of preventing your fall if it do not work to Indignation and Zeal against Sin if it leave you the Friends of sin still the followers of sin still if this be all you can say I am troubled at it but I cannot help it it 's my trouble that I am a Drunkard it
's my grief that I am a Worldling or proud or froward but God be merciful to me I can't get rid of these evils if your sorrow whatever it be doth not bring forth Fruit unto Repentance it is not wrought up high enough there must be more load layd on there must be more of its Thorns and Spears and Stings thrust into that hard Heart of thine thou must feel more of its Gripes it must fetch out more Groans and Sighs and Tears out of thee thou must be brought to another manner of trouble for sin then yet thou art e're it reach the due degree of Godly sorrow 2. This sorrow must not be so great as to hinder the exercise of any other Grace or Duty 't is seldom there is an errour in the excess we don't use to sorrow over much no no we are apt to err in the defect we do not usually come up to sufficient sorrow our hearts have but a light hurt upon them our wounds ordinarily are not deep enough 't is this which mostly undoes us we find our sin to be too light a burthen 't were well if our hearts were more sick that we could find them bleeding inwardly and bleeding more abundantly as 't was said of false Teachers Jer. 6.14 They heal the hurt of the Daughters of my People slightly It is seldom that we can now a dayes hear of such a thing as a troubl'd Soul and a wounded Spirit We are even Professors of too whole and unbroken hearts The Sacrifice of God is a broken heart Psal 51.17 but how few such Sacrifices are there any where found for the Lord The work of the Ministry God helps us is seldome that more acceptable work an healing work to heal the wounded Soul to bind up the broken heart to comfort them that are cast down but the main of our work lyes in making wounds in pricking to the heart in casting down the high and hardned hearts Is not there much of this work lying upon our hands to be hammering and humbling and piercing your hearts through with Godly sorrow How few are there of you who can truly say I thank God this work is done upon me the breaking work the afflicting work the affrighting work is done upon me my heart through Grace is brought low and made soft and made sick of my sins so that I am prepared for the healing and comforting work That sharp two edged Sword of the word hath pierced so deep and made such work such wounds in my heart that now the Oyl is more needed and the Balm to heal my wounds O it is matter of trouble and sadness of heart to find no more such sad Souls and sorrow bitten hearts then we can either see or hear of in the World 'T is seldom therefore I say that there is too much of this sorrow that trouble for sin riseth too high but yet sometimes and in some cases it may be so there may be an excess of sorrow for sin Christians may be pressed down over measure they may be swallowed up of overmuch sorrow as the Apostle intimates and would have prevented 2 Cor. 2.7 Comfort such an one lest perhaps he should be swollowed up of overmuch sorrow Therefore in this case there must be Limits set to our sorrow and it must be held within these Limits It must be so much only as may not hinder the exercise of other Graces and Duties it must neither hinder our Hopes nor hinder our Faith nor our Love no nor our Joy in the Lord It should be with Christians in this case as with the Apostle in another case 2 Cor. 6.10 As sorrowing yet alwaies rejoycing Sorrowing yet believing sorrowing yet hopeing cast down yet comforted It must not hinder our Duties Some Christians have been so overwhelmed with trouble that they have not been able to hear nor pray nor think with any Comfort upon God or the things of God this is an excess of sorrow and must be restrained Sorrow for sin no more then will help you to believe and Hope and Love and praise and serve the Lord. 2. Affliction This is another object of sorrow The Degrees and Limits of this are 1. That we sorrow not so little but that we have a due and a deep sense of the hand of the Lord upon us Otherwise we despise the chastning of the Lord which the Apostle forbids Heb. 12.5 Despise not thou the chastning of the Lord. By afflictions I mean here the sufferings of this Life Crosses and Losses of Estates of Friends Husband Wife Children or near Relations Sufferings in our persons by Sicknesses Pains Languishing and the like these must be grieved for God complaines Jer. 3.5 I have smitten them but they have not grieved 'T was their sin that they did not sorrow 2. That we sorrow not so much as to sink under our sorrows That we be not swallowed up of overmuch sorrow As we may not slight or despise the chastnings of the Lord so we may not faint when we are chastned The Apostle tells us 2 Cor. 7.10 That worldly sorrow the sorrows of worldly-men for their worldly crosses worketh Death It sometimes kills their Bodies some men die of their griefs but it often kills their Hearts sinks them in their Spirits stupifies them and makes them fit for nothing We may not be so depressed with sorrows but that we still keep our Hearts alive and to be of good courage 3. Not as men without hope We must sorrow for all our afflictions but as the Apostle would have Christians sorrow for the dead 1 Thess 4.13 Sorrow not says he as others which have no hope The Righteous hath hope in his Heart and his hope must moderate his sorrow This sad state will not last alwaies there 's hope of an end of his afflictions and that should moderate his sorrow The Righteous hath hope in his Death Prov. 14.32 and hath this double hope 1. That Death will put an end to his sorrows 2. That the end of his Sorrows shall be the beginning of Everlasting Joyes and in this hope he must comfort himself under his sufferings and moderate his sorrows for them 4. Alwaies as men that have worse matters to sorrow for The least sin is a worse evil then the greatest affliction and calls for more of our sorrow Christians must take heed that they do not loose the sense of sin in their excessive sorrowing for affliction When affliction lyes too heavy sin usually lyes too light Jer. 30.15 Why cryest thou for thine affliction because thy sins were increased I have done these things unto thee Why art thou impatient under thy sufferings Whatsoever thou sufferest how hard soever it goes with thee in the World there 's a worse thing then all this that should set thee a crying thy sin thy sin which is the root of all that which thou sufferest 5. Let your sorrow for Affliction never be so great as to hinder your sorrow for sin Sorrow more
would prize and pursue a more meek and quiet spirit Never expect freedom from vexations and perturbations till you have conquered that vexatious Spirit 4. Know that implacable anger marks thee out for one whom God hath excluded from pardon If there be any one person in the world that hath so angred thee that thou wilt not be pacified that anger of thine will certainly carry thee to hell If you will not forgive you shall never be forgiven Mat. 6.15 that 's the word your forgiveness of others is made the condition of Gods forgiving of you your peace with others is made the condition of your peace with God Thou that art an implacable creature how darest thou ever take the Lords Prayer into thy mouth how darest thou say forgive us our trespasses as we forgive them that trespass against us there is this included in it If I do not forgive all the World let not God forgive me Perhaps you will say oh but I do forgive I thank God I can say it with a clear Conscience I forgive all the World and any Person or Persons that I have had a particular quarrel against I forgive them with all my heart I shall never forget but I do forgive Oh what a folly and meer self delusion is this I will forgive but I cannot forget that is I will forgive but I cannot forgive It is the plain English of I cannot forget I cannot heartily forgive I will do them no hurt I will chide no more with them but you must excuse me if I carry a secret grudge in mine heart against them Is this thy forgiveness thou canst satisfie thy self with wouldst thou that God should say so to thee I forgive thy wickedness but I will never forget it Angry Soul art thou resolved to venture it to go unpardoned to thy grave would it not be a terrible word to thee if God should say to thee I will never forget thine iniquities nor blot them out of my book wouldst thou have thy name blotted out of Gods book thy sins must be blotted out or thy name blotted out Wouldst thou have thy sins stand upon Record against thee at the great Day then at thy perill look to it that thou quench this fire of implacable anger 5. Know that whilst the effects of anger remain the passion of anger will sinfully remain Whilst there are the fruits still continuing there the root is not cut up Nay if there be but some of the fruit remaining If thou forbear thy sowre looks and put off an angry countenance yet if thy distance and strangeness continues If thou saiest I will do them no hurt but I will never have any more to do with them if thou forbearest to give them provoking words to their faces yet if thou continuest to bite them on the back takest thy liberty to censure them to rip up the old sores to others behind their backs deceive not thy self thine anger is not turned away but thy wrath is stretched out still 6. Spend more of your anger against your selves for your own sins and then you will have the less to waste upon others That Counsel of Christ Mat. 7.5 is of use here thou hypocrite first cast out the beam out of thine own eye Cast thy first stone at thy self yea it may be thou mayest see reason to spend all the stones thou hast to throw here upon thy self and thine own sins and have none left to spare to cast at thy brother How have I carried it towards the Lord O how have I provoked and do provoke the most high O this proud heart of mine O this peevish heart O this envious hypocritical heart Lord what can I say for it Lord how can I bear such a wretched deceitful provoking heart can I bear nothing from others Lord how shall I bear it that thou hast been so oft provoked and dishonoured by me O my foolish Soul thou hast other quarrels that are fitter for thee to be engaged in quarrel with thy self be angry with thy self thou hast sinned thou hast sinned against God and there let thine anger shoot all its darts This would sow up thy lips and put a bridle in thy mouth as it did in Davids Psal 39.2 I was dumb with silence I held my peace I had not a word to say when I looked up to God What if Michal mock if Shimei curse God had a quarrel with me and 't was he opened their mouths against me thou Lord didst it and therefore I was dumb and had no more to say Christians remember all these things and apply them every one of you as far forth as your cases need it Do not say as sometimes some do here such or such a one was strook at this word was directed to such a man or such a woman do not put it off so but take it to thee it s a word sent from God to thy self as far forth as thy case is concerned in it Let every one of you reflect and cast an eye upon your selves and consider how far forth you are guilty of sinful anger and then enquire as the Disciples did in another case Lord is it I Lord am not I one of them thou hast been preaching this word unto See every one of you how farr forth it may be your own Cases and accordingly accept of the warning as sent from God on purpose to you and so use the several means prescribed that if it be possible you may hereby be enabled to get the Rule and the Government of your own Souls Remembring what I told you but now from Solomon He that ruleth his own Spirit is better then he that taketh a City If you can but get the rule of your own Spirits it s unspeakably better to you then if you had conquered all your adversaries if you can restrain your own anger it will be more comfortable and more tend to the enjoying your selves in peace and sweetness then if you could so charm the whole world that there should never any one do any thing that might offend or provoke you And thus I have dispatched what I have to say touching the Government of some of the Passions of the heart to order and regulate them so that we may love nothing but what we should love c. O what a blessed frame should we be in were we brought to this 't is true it is not to be expected that we should be brought fully up to this frame in this imperfect state but so much might be done towards it as might make our whole way of Religion much more even and easie than it is All our difficulties and failings do arise from the inward disorders and distempers of our hearts The better order and the better temper our hearts are brought into the more easie will our work be and the more sweetâ—y carried on Now therefore after these many words I have spoken after these many days work that have been spent upon this
subject let me in the name of God ask you what is there that hath been yet done upon you what is there that hath been added to your holy love to your holy desires and joys fears and griefs are there any little sparkes added to you do you love God a little more then you did do you desire after him a little more strongly are your fears of sin your fears of temptations to sin your grief and sorrow for sin a little encreased Is there any abatement of your love to the World of your worldly desires and joys Is there any allay of your fretful angry passion Who of you can say I thank God these words have not been spoken to me in vain I thank God I find this World taken down a little lower I do not love it so well nor desire it so much nor I hope shall ever again seek it so earnestly as I have done are you any thing the more in fear of sin or greiv'd for sin are you in hope that your anger shall henceforth not be without a cause nor above or higher then its cause nor ever last as it has used to do Friends consider in the name of God consider What is there nothing done are you as cold in your love to God as hot in your love to the World as much without fear and greif for sin as if none of all this had been spoken The Lord be merciful to us what shall become of such hearing What serves this Preaching for what serves this hearing for Doth God take pleasure or can you take comfort in your coming together to hear and being a little affected with the word whilst 't is preaching or speaking some words after of your approbation and liking what you have heard when yet the Word doth not work nor leave any standing and abiding impressions upon you It s vain to commend a Sermon in words if the fruit it brings forth commend it not The best commendation of your food is by your eating it and maintaining your health and gathering strength by it O Friends that 's the commendation we would have of our preaching and the only commendation that we can take comfort in that our word reacheth its end that there is some sign of our ministry upon your hearts and in your lives that we may say concerning you as the Apostle concerning the Corinthians 2 Cor. 3.2.8 Ye are our Epistle and are declared to be the Epistle of Christ written not with ink but with the spirit of the living God Those are the best Sermon Notes that are written not with ink and paper but by the Spirit of the living God in the fleshly tables of our hearts These are the best Sermon Notes and these are the best commendation of our preaching Now pray friends consider I do not ask you what there is written of these Sermons in your note books but what is there written of them in your hearts Is there any thing more of the love of God of desires after God of fear of sin c. written or begotten within you Had I ability and opportunity of personal converse with you I should be willing to deal with you in private hand to hand and to ask you these questions man by man but to supply that defect of speaking personally and in private to each one of you take what I speak in my publick Ministry as if it were spoken to thee in particular and I were dealing with thee hand to hand Though thou canst not give me thine answer yet fail not to give answer in thine own heart when I ask thee whither thou hast gotten any more love to God any more desires after God any abatement of thy love to the World any more fear of Sin c. Answer thine own Conscience in this particular I must substitute thy Conscience in my room and let Conscience take thine Answer Speak every man of you iâ— your Consciences how do you find it is there any thâ—ng done upon you by these words or is there nothing 〈◊〉 what do you think of all your hearing these words if thâ—re be nothing done if there be as much love to the World as little love to God or fear of Sin if there be the same touchiness the same pettishness the some angry distemper as if you had kept you at home all this while and never heard any of all that has been said Are not you ashamed are not you afraid that these words of the Lord should have no effect upon you Beloved I have preached to you in hope I have hoped for fruit I have hop'd for some change for the better upon you in all these respects O set your hearts unto all these words remember what you can and recover what you have forgotten look up to God look up to God and pray this prayer to him Lord let the things that have been spoken be written Let them be written not with ink and pen but by the Spirit of the living God not in a book or paper but in the fleshly table of mine heart Look up to God for his help and determine in your selves to set your hearts to it to follow after this blessed Order and Government of your hearts Study within your selves how to get up your affections to things above to get loose your hearts from the World and things below be not content to be thus dead in your hearts towards God thus alive towards the World nor be content to wish for more of the divine love to wish you could abate towards this world but in good earnest make it your business and study so to do Might we once bring you to this that while we are labouring with you in the Word and Doctrine you would labour with us in the Lord to work your hearts to an affectionate compliance with our words if you would be stedfast and unmoveable and abounding in this work then there would be hope that neither our labour nor yours should be in vain in the Lord then should we look to see the death of these Worldly loues and lusts and a spring of the divine love and life and joy and glory this earth and flesh under foot and the Spirit of Glory and of God resting upon you Put on therefore in the fear of the Lord set you close to this Heart-governing-work quicken strengthen encourage your hearts herein with these words Yet further the Government of the heart stands 4. In suppressing all manner of evil and exciting and maintaining the good that is in your hearts There are in the heart as there are in a Kingdom two parties the evil party and the good party The evil party are the Rebellious Lusts of our hearts the good party are the Graces of God The Government of the Heart is to be as the Government of a Kingdom for the suppressing the evil and the encouraging and upholding the good The evil Party are the lusts of the Heart Pride Envy Malice Covetousness c.
there 's no Government of these but by keeping under and suppressing them they cannot be kept in order they are not subject to the Law of God nor can be Rom. 8.7 but must be rooted out and Crucified Those that are Christs must crucifie the flesh with the Affections and Lusts Gal. 5.24 Our business is not barely to moderate them but to kill them Moderate Pride or moderate Envy or moderate malice or moderate Covetousness is not that which should be intended in the Government of the heart nor is there any such thing possible the least degree of lust is immoderate As Christ determines the case about swearing whether it be little or greater Oaths Mat. 5.34 'T is not swear but a little or but seldom but swear not at all such must be the determination here be not Proud at all be not Envious or Malicious or Covetous at all to allow our selves to be moderately Proud or Covetous is all one as to allow men to be moderate Drunkards or moderate Adulterers this may be as well allowed as moderate lusts Moderate Lusts will cast into intolerable fire Possibly thy Hell may not be altogether as hot and scorching whose Lusts are more tame but yet it will be intolerable It is poor comfort for any one to think I shall have the easiest place in Hell He that is least in the Kingdom of God shall have his load of Everlasting Glory shall have as much joy and blessedness as his heart can hold shall be full of the goodness and Glory of the Lord and he that is least in the Kingdom of darkness shall have more then his load of the wrath of God his heart shall be brim full and running over the fury of the Lord shall break the Backs and the Bones and tear the Bowels inexpressible Torment shall be given to the least of the Damned Sinners Moderate lust if it be not mortified lust will cast into intolerable Wrath and Vengeance therefore these must not be suffered in the least degree but must be crucified and mortified But how may I suppress these Lusts 1. Never make your Flesh your Favourite If a Prince take a Rebel for a Friend and take him into his Bosom not only his Government but his Life is in danger How was it with Sampson when he took in Delilah into his Bosom She betrayed his strength from him She betrayed him into the hands of the Philistines If you befriend this Flesh it will betray you it will betray you into the hands of the Devil little do you think what mischief you are working to your selves whilst you favour your Flesh In nourishing your corrupt Flesh you nourish a Viper that will sting you to the Heart Know it for your Enemy and keep it off from you as your Enemy Do not gratifie and please and pamper your Flesh but starve it rather and crucifie it If we would be so wise as to count our lusts our Enemies and deal with them as our Enemies deal more hardly and more severely with them we should rid our selves of much of our danger and of our disturbance in the ordering our hearts 2. Never make the Flesh your Counsellour Gal. 1.16 When it pleased the Father to reveal his Son in me immediateâ—y I conferred n t that is consulted not with flesh and blood Let Flesh and Blood be none of your Favourites nor none of your Counsellours What Government is there like to be when the King is compassed about with wicked Counsellors Prov. 25.5 Take away the wicked from about the King and his Throne shall be Established by Righteousness Then there 's like to be an Holy Government within you when you have none but Holy Counsellours Your Flesh will be just such a Counsellour to you as Rehoboams young men were to him 1 Kings 12. their Counsel cost hâ—m the loss of the Kingdom Do not ask Counsel of your Flesh nor take its Counsel If you would know what you should eat or drink or to what measure do not ask your Appetites counsel that would say eat to the full spare not for cost eat what thou hast a mind to drink whilst thou listest Do not ask your Pride how shall I be cloathed what Garments shall I wear what Fashion shall I use If you ask your Pride what counsel do you think 't would give you Do not ask your Covetousness what alms shall I give what good shall I do with my Estate where shall I bestow what I have keep it to thy self keep it for thine own make thee great with what thou hast gotten build thee an House and build thee a Name in the Earth for a Rich and Wealthy man get what thou canst and then leave thy substance for thy Babes thy Children after thee that 's the Counsel that Covetousness would give Do not ask thy sloth what pains is needful to be taken for God or thy Soul whether industry and diligence in working out thy salvation be so necessary Sloth will counsel thee take thine ease do not make the way to Heaven harder or straighter then God hath made it favour thy self and do not expose thy self to too much hardness Christians you have Multitudes of Lusts that will be ready to give you counsel in every case but take heed take counsel of none of them Take counsel of God take counsel of the Scriptures take counsel of Conscience how would God have me to use my Estate What Almes would he have me to give What Bounty what Liberality doth he call me to How would God and Conscience have me to feed my self and cloath my self Doth God say as this Pride says On with thy Ornaments follow the Fashions deck thy self with that attire that will best please thee doth God say as thine Appetite says Eat whatever thine heart lusteth after drink as much and fit at it as long as thou hast a mind to Doth Conscience say as this sloth sayeth Favour thy self take thine ease be not too painful and industrious for thy Soul be not too strict or too precise nor expose thy self to the contempt and scorn of the World by thy zeal in Religion Take counsel of God Christians take counsel of Scripture and Conscience but do not make Flesh and Blood your Counsellors To make your Flesh your Counsellour is to take the Malefactor from the Barr to the Bench and there set it in Judgment in its own case your Lusts are the Malefactors that are to be consulted against to be condemned and crucified to the Barr with them let them have sentence against them but let them not be called up to the Bench to be consulted withal 3. Never look for any Government or safety till you have gotten this Flesh under Foot It will be in the Throne if it can while it lives it will be aspiring to the Government Deal with your Flesh as Herod and Pilate did with Christ when they feared he would take away the Kingdom Let it be Crucified or as Saul endeavoured to
thy Nakedness and thy Naughtiness be made appear and be laid open before God Angels and Men. 4. There are eternal Rewards and Punishments that in this Judgment of God shall be awarded to every soul What ever the state of your Souls shall then be found to be they shall receive a due recompence of reward and eternal recompence Therefore this Judgment as I told you before Heb. 6.2 is call'd an eternal Judgment because it appoints to every man an eternal reward To the repenting and renewed and upright hearts it appoints Eternal Blessedness for their Reward to the impenitent wicked and unrenewed Hearts it appointeth Eternal Torment for their Reward Mat. 25.48 These the wicked shall go away into everlasting punishment but the righteous into life eternal O what a weight is there in the Crown of Glory that shall be the reward of the righteous The Apostle calls it an exceeding eternal weight of Glory 2 Cor. 4.17 And O what a weight is there in that Curse and that wrath that shall be the reward of the Wicked how will it break the backs and crush the bones and tear the bowels and burn the Souls of every wicked one Sinners a fire a fire is prepared for you What Torment is like the Torment of fire and what fire is like the fire of Hell But O that word Eternity Eternity that 's the scalding and scorching Word Everlasting Fire that shall never be quenched How weary are the days how long are the nights to a sick man that 's tormented in his bed but what will an eternal night be that shall never know morning Who can dwell with the devouring fire who can dwell with everlasting burnings Isa 33.14 It is fire that you must have your dwelling in It is devouring fire that will devour all your former gâ—ins and pleasures of sin as the lean kine in Pharaohs dream did eat up the fat ones This fire shall eat up all your pleasant dayes and merry nights Ye will devour your selves these Bodies and Souls it will devour it will devour by burning a tormenting burning O dreadful sinners do not your hearts yet tremble what not to think of burning devouring burning how do ye think that ye shall look upon sin when these Bodies and these Souls of yours shall be all on a light fire when those Eyes and that Tongue and those Hands and every Limb shall be all glowing fire as red hot iron in a Furnace how do ye think ye shall endure it but yet you have not all the worst is yet behind 't is Everlasting burnings fire that shall never be quenched O that word Never never never an end what a burning Dagger will it be in the Souls of those damned ones think what it hath already been to Judas who hath been burning in this fire above 1600 years think what it hath been to Cain that hath been burning there almost ever since the World began above 5000 years and yet are burning still at this day what a long and dismal time have they had of it already but all this is not so much as a minute or a moment to those Everlasting Ages of Torment that are still to run out and will never be expired Such are the Rewards of the Wicked Torment Torment in extremity and Torment to Eternity and the upright heart shall be rewarded with a weight of Glory and Joy and this shall be an exceeding and eternal Glory 5. A sense of these eternal Rewards is the very strength and sinews of Government Where I shall shew 1. What I mean by a sense of these eternal things There are three things in it 1. A believing these things That there is such an Eternal Judgment and Eternal Reward These things are certain Psal 58.11 Verity there is a reward for the righteous verily he is a God that Judgeth in the earth And as verily as there is a reward for the righteous so verily there is a reward for the Sinner These things are certain and these things must be believed Heb. 11.6 He that cometh to God must believe that God is and that he is the rewarder of them that diligently seek him And as he must be believed a Rewarder of them that seek him so a Revenger of them that slight him and disobey him He that cometh to God and will obtain this Reward and escape this vengeance must believe this or he will never come The reason of the Rebellion of mens hearts against God is their unbelief believe the Judgment of God and that will bring you under his Government When you come to say verily 't is so this is no sable or delusion 't is certainly so 't is undoubtedly so such a Judgment there shall be such rewards there shall be given as verily as if I saw it done then your hearts will be govern'd and never till then 2. An understanding what these rewards shall be What great and wonderful Rewards they are Things to come must be known ere they will affect Heady sinners However they say they believe yet they little know what 't is to believe They know not what 't is to be saved they know not what 't is to be damned Psal 92.6 7. A bruitish man knoweth not neither doth a fool understand this When the wicked spring up as the grass and all the workers of iniquity do flourish it is that they should be destroyed for ever A brutish man understandeth not this neither that sinners shall be destroyed nor what a dreadful destruction their destruction shall be It s true these things to come cannot be perfectly known here we know but in part we understand but imperfectly 1 Cor. 13.9 1 Joh. 3 2. It doth not yet appear what we shall be Now are we Sons of God but it doth not yet appear what we shall be And so of sinners now are they the children of the Devil but it doth not yet appear what they shall be Sinners that are brands prepared for the burning do little think what that burning is that is prepared for them and they shall never know it perfectly till they come there But yet such a knowledge of these great and astonishing things may be had here as may work mightily towards the governing of the heart and a knowledge there must be of them or they will never work There is a fore-knowledge that 's gotten by believing and meditating of these things Psal 107.43 Who so is wise will ponder these things and they shall understand the loving-kindness of the Lord and as his loving kindness so his Wrath and indignation and there is an after-knowledge or an experimental knowledge Some sinners will never know what hell is till they know it by experience till they fail into the pit and the sense of that wrath when they come to be preyed upon and wrap'd up in the devouring Flames teach them what a dreadful wrath it is Beware sinners of such an experimental knowledge of Hell wherein your flesh and your bones
they take for Star-light Sinners whatever brightness or beauty there be in any of your Faces whatever Gaudy or merry Outsides you have yet what an inside have you your hearts are all dark holes where dwells every abominable thing Toads and Serpents Zim and Jim Owles and Satyrs and every unclean thing dwells within you Thou that hast the fairest outside there are Toads and Serpents and Worms crawling and breeding in thine heart You would every one of you be afraid of your selves you would loath your selves and you would tremble at your selves you would if you knew how run away from your selves in a fright if you knew what were in your hearts Sinners care not to look into their hearts and some of them are afraid to look inwards and well enough you may you would see such ugly and monstrous Sights as might even scare you out of your Wits Saints have all their Riches within them they have a treasure in their hearts A good man out of the good treasure of his heart Mat 12.35 There may be and often is poverty without but there 's a treasure within the richest of sinners they have all their Treasures without them in their houses in their Purses in their shops in their Chests but all the while there 's poverty and beggery in their hearts Thou art a very beggar Sinner with all thy load of Wealth 't is a poor beggarly Soul thou hast how richly soever thy Carcase be provided for 'T is the heart of the Saints where God bestows all his Riches Christians Look to your hearts you carry more riches in you then the whole World is worth you loose all that ever you are worth if you loose your hearts He that hath a Treasure in his house will look more carefully to the locking of his doors especially the room where his Riches lye must be most fortified with Bolts and Bars You have more to loose than the Princes of the Earth and therefore have the more reason to keep those hearts wherein all your riches lye Not only your graces but your good works are all kept in your hearts If ever you have done any good in all your lives whereof you hope for a reward in the other World all your Duties the holiness and fruitfulness of your Conversation your works of Righteousness your works of Mercy these are all kept in your hearts Conscience is the keeper of them the Conscience of an honest holy gracious heavenly life is a precious Treasure kept within you 2 Cor. 1.12 This is our rejoycing the Testimony of a good Conscience All your Duties arise from your hearts all your Holiness and Fruitfulness and activity for God are so many holy streams flowing from an holy heart and all these streams return into the heart there they must be kept against the day of Accounts 5. It is the Ark of your strength Some mens strength lies in their heads in their Wisdom and Counsel and Policy a wise man is a strong man Other mens strength lies in their hands a Princes strength lies in his Armies in his Forts and Castles and strong Towers but a Christians strength is in his heart The Lord is in his heart and Psal 73.26 Thou art the strength of mine heart Eph. 6.10 Be ye strong in the Lord and in the power of his might The weakest Christians have a strong God and hence it is they are strong and of good courage Christians have need of strength 1. Of Strength for their Work there are great things they have to do they have much work hard service the life of a Christian is not a toying but a toyling life You shall never get to Heaven by play or by Idleness you have much business lying upon you and great business The working out your Salvation is hard work The Soules of Sinners lye idle as if they had nothing to do What pains dost thou use to take for thy Soul What hast thou done all thy life long towards the working out thy Salvation Sinners you live as if God should throw in Heaven upon you and cloath you with Glory and immortality whilst your Souls are fast asleep no you must work if you will live you must labour for the meat that endures to eternal life Joh. 6.27 if ever you will have the eating of it You must pray and watch and strive to enter in at the strait gate if ever you will get in This should be your work and it is the work of Christians and for this their great work they have great strength given them and all their strength is in their hearts 2. Christians have need of strength for their burthens Christians have hard work and heavy burthens lying upon them Besides the Care that is upon them for their Souls which is a great and weighty burthen and their fear of miscarrying in the matters of their Souls which is another burthen they have burthens of Sufferings and Afflictions ordinarily upon their backs All the hatred and malice all the scorns and reproaches of this Evil World light and lie upon the backs of poor Christians and how shall they bear their burthens if they have no strength 3. They have need of Strength against their Enemies Christians live in the midst of Enemies Enemies without the Devil and his Instruments Enemies within their own Lusts and Corruptions and they must be in continual fight against these Enemies and their Enemies being so many and so strong they have need of strength to resist them Christians have need of strength and strength they have and all their strength is in their hearts There their Armour lies The shield of Faith the breast-plate of Righteousness the helmet the hope of Salvation and there their Captain dwells the Captain of their Salvation lodges in their hearts Lose your hearts and lose your strength and what will you do at your Work how will you bear your burthens how will you stand against your Enemies when your strength is lost What became of Sampson when he was deprived of that wherein his strength lay what weakly Souls are careless Christians every little duty is too hard them how quickly are they weary weary of Praying weary of Hearing weary of Meditation weary of a watchful Life a little work will make them weary How little can they do and how little can they bear every little cross sinks their spirits and what resistance can they make against Enemies every lust is apt to carry them away every Temptation overcomes them O Christians by how slow a pace do we keep on our way how little sign do we make at our work we have been Christians some of us of twenty years standing or more how little good have we done how little treasure have we gotten in how little execution have we done upon our sins and lusts what poor weakly lifeless half-starv'd Souls have we to this day sure we have been ill keepers of our hearts the ark of our strength hath been laid waste strangers
the heart that makes them such Prayer is a Sacrifice Psal 141.2 Let my prayer come before thee as incense and the lifting up of mine hands as an evening sacrifice Praise is a Sacrifice Psal 50.14 Offer up to God thanksgiving Almes are a Sacrifice Heb. 13.16 With such sacrifices God is well pleased But what maimed Sacrifices are all these if offered up without an heart What is Prayer without an heart what is Praise what are Alms when the heart is not offered up with them they are heart Prayers and heart Praises and heart Alms that are such Sacrifices with which God is well pleased 2. What kind of heart it is that is a Sacrifice to God A broken or a wounded heart The broken heart is the only sound heart The wounding of the heart is as the lancing of the Impostume it lets out the corruption and leaves it a sound heart The hard heart is a Sacrifice for the Devil with such Sacrifices with hard and unbroken hearts the Devil is well pleased Is thy heart an hard heart and wilt thou thus give it up to God Get it to be broken or thou mayest as well carry it to the Devil for a Sacrifice The Devil loves an hard heart but it is an abomination to the Lord. An hard heart is an unclean beast which is not for Sacrifice All the filthiness and rottenness of the heart lies baked up together in an hard heart 't will never be gotten out 'till the heart be broken In the Law the Sacrifices were to be without blemish Lev. 22.20 21 22. Whatsoever hath a blemish that shall ye not offer It shall be perfect and without blemish Whatsoever is blind or maimed or having a Wenn or Scurvy or Scabed ye shall not offer The unbroken heart is an heart full of Blemishes Wens and Ulcers a Scurvy and a Scabed heart 't is the wounded or broken heart that is the perfect heart or an heart without blemish Now herein you see both the necessity of looking to your hearts and what it is that you must secure your hearts against from all things that may be a blemish to the heart from all those Malladies and Diseases that will be a blemish to the heart that so you do not Sacrifice to God a corrupt thing Mal. 1.14 He that sacrificeth to God a corrupt thing cursed be that deceiver A sacrifice without an heart is a lame and maimed thing a sacrifice from a polluted heart is the sacrifice of a corrupt thing Beloved you come with your offerings to the Lord but what have you to offer O you have prayers and praises to offer up but is there an heart in your prayers an heart in your Praises and is it a perfect and upright heart an heart without blemish A perfect heart an heart without blemish who can bring such an heart who can â—y mine heart is perfect who can say mine heart is clean Lord be merciful to me mine heart is the worst thing within me all sores and all blemishes and corruption Obj. My mouth must be stopped for ever my tongue must be silent for ever If I must never pray nor praise God till mine heart is a clean and a perfect heart Sol. There is a double perfection a double cleanness of heart 1. Legal and so that only is a perfect heart that fully answers the Righteousness of the Law or first Covenant that only in this sense is a perfect heart which hath nothing of Evil or Hypocrisie no spot or blemish at all in it that the strictest Justice could be offended at thus there 's not a man in the World can say mine heart is perfect mine heart is a clean heart 2. Evangelical Such a perfection which the new Covenant accepts uprightness a sincere heart is in a Gospel Sense a perfect heart An heart that hath been broken by the Word of Christ and been purged by the bloud of Christ an heart that is a purging and cleansing daily that hath its great spots and blemishes of unbelief and impenitence purged away and hath no spots but are begun to be purged and are cleansing dayly Now an heart that hath been thus initially purged and cleansed will unless it be carefully looked to contract new spots the imposthume will gather and fester again the Leprosie will fret and eat deeper and deeper into it longer than the purging work is carried on the corrupting work will be carrying on If the wounds of the heart be not carefully kept open the Devil will quickly heal it up his hardning is his healing the heart He will be searing the heart so as that though there be never so much wickedness in it it shall not be felt and perceived and when we cease to feel our sores when the heart grows senseless of its sins then is a time when iniquity is like to abound And there 's no way in the World to prevent this increase of our corruptions and hardning our hearts under it but by keeping a constant Guard upon them the Devil will be doing sin will be working and growing upon us if there be not a constant watch kept And what will ye do then for a Sacrifice for God wherewithal will you come before the Lord and bow your selves before the most high God if you have not an heart a clean heart a perfect and upright heart that he will accept As you would be loth that God should meet you in all your Duties your praying and hearing and praising his Name and say unto you as to Israel Isa 1.11 To what purpose is the multitude of your Sacrifices when you come to appear before me who hath required this at your hands to tread my Courts Bring no more vain Oblations your incense is an abomination to me Your Sabbaths your coming to the Assemblies I cannot away with it is iniquity even your solemn meeting Your meetings my Soul hateth they are a trouble to me I am weary to bear them and when you spread forth your hands I will hide mine eyes from you Yea when you make many prayers I will not hear Friends would you have the Lord thus to speak to you Is this all the entertainment and acceptance you would have when you come together to pray and to hear would you have the Lord to say I am weary of this People I am weary of these meetings my Soul hateth this praying and this hearing Doubtless this will be all the entertainment you will have whilst you come hither and bring not your hearts for a Sacrifice yea and that broken hearts hearts without guile sincere and perfect in the sight of God and such hearts you will never bring unless you will take more care and pains about them and therefore I exhort you as the Prophet goes on ver 16. Wash ye make ye clean put away the evil of your doings so also watch ye keep ye clean prevent the return of your evils upon you And then I should be bold to add as ver 18. to
call upon you and encourage you in the Name and the Words of the Lord Come now and let us reason together saith the Lord. Let your hearts be thus kept and then come come with your prayers come with your praises and I will hear and accept you 8. It is the Temple of the Lord. 2 Cor. 6.16 Ye are the temple of the living God 't is the heart especially that is this Temple There are four things in the Temple of God which are so many reasons why our hearts should be carefully kept and guarded 1. The law of God is in his Temple The law was read in the Temple and kept in the Temple and as in that Temple made with hands so in that living Temple made without hands the Law of God is placed and preserved Christians have the Law of God within them their Bibles in their hearts in the heart of a Christian is the Copy of the Bible God hath not only preach'd it to their hearts but they have laid it up in their hearts Psal 119.11 I have hid thy word within mine heart that I might not sin against thee Mary kept the sayings of Christ and laid them up in her heart Luk. 2.51 God promised Jer. 31.33 I will write my Law in their hearts and he hath done what he promised he that once wrote his Law in Tables of Stone hath also written it in fleshly Tables of Hearts Therefore Psal 40.8 Thy Law is within mine heart The Law written in the heart Notes 1. All those holy Notions of God of Christ of Glory Honour Immortality of the Power Wisdom and Goodness of God and of the Mistery of Christ which are written in the Scriptures are revealed in the heart 2. All those holy Principles or divine Axioms concerning Truth Righteousness Holiness Mercy Temperance Sobriety c. the nature and necessity of them to true Godliness and Blessedness 3. That Law of the Spirit of life which is in Christ Jesus the new Law or Covenant of Grace by which we are freed from the Law of sin and death Rom. 8.2 the Tenour and the Terms of the Covenant the Promises and the Conditions of the Covenant the great Charter of the Saints which gives them Title to and will give them an entrance into the Everlasting Kingdom The writing that Law is the writing the new Covenant in the heart 4. That inward living Law the holy bent inclinations dispositions begotten in the heart by the Word and Spirit of the Lord that renewed Conscience inwardly obliging and holding the heart to the Obedience of the Word A Christian hath not only something without him but something within him binding him to obedience whereby it may be said much more of him then of those Gentiles Rom. 2.14 He is a law to himself His own heart holds him in to Christ his own heart holds him on in Obedience to the Gospel If all our Bibles should be lost or burnt if all our Preachers that urge and press our Obedience were laid aside and trodden under foot a Christian hath that within him that would hold him on in his Christianity That knowledge of God and those Principles of Christianity that love of Christ and that renewed Conscience within him will keep him a Christian still Now all this treasure those holy Notions holy Principles this Law of Grace and this living law of the new Covenant being all kept in the heart the heart being the Temple of God wherein all this is preserved had need be carefully kept Would you not have all the Notions of God and the knowledge of Christ dimm'd and darkned and razed out would you not loose all your holy Principles of Righteousness and Honesty of Temperance and Sobriety would you not have the book of the Covenant stolen away on which all your Hopes and Expectations all your title to Everlasting blessedness depends would you not loose that holy bent and those holy inclinations and that renewed Consciences by all which you are disposed and inwardly bound bound in Spirit to the life of Christianity would you not that all these should be lost would you not return to be dim sighted and dark Souls would you not exchange your holy Principles for carnal Principles your renewed purged Consciences for corrupt Consciences would you not that the Temple of the Lord be robb'd would you not that your heart be robb'd of all these Treasures then set a Guard upon your hearts 2. The name of God is in his Temple Jer. 7.10 12. 't is said often he places his name there And of these living Temples the hearts of Saints 't is said Rev. 3.12 I will write the name of my God and the name of the City of my God upon them And Chap. 2.17 in this heart there is a precious stone put and upon this stone a new name written which no man knows but he that hath it A Christian hath not only the names of Christ call'd upon him he is call'd a Christian after the name of his Lord but he hath this name written upon him written upon his heart Sure that Table should be kept clean in which is written such a precious name What shall the name of God be written on a dunghil wilt thou suffer Sin and the Devil to make a very dunghil of thy heart and in that dunghil write the name of thy God If the heart be not well guarded the Devil will be not only carrying out but carrying in all the precious Treasures that are in your hearts let Satan alone a while and hee 'l carry them all away Whatever thou hast now thou shalt have nothing of God left in thee nothing of Christ lest in thee none of all thy Graces none of all thy comforts Hast thou love for Christ hast thou hope in Christ hast thou peace or joy in God hast thou either the image or the comforts of God in thee Satan stands ready if thou look not to him to carry all away thou wilt quickly be left a very miserable Soul poor and blind and naked if thou take not heed And as the Devil will be carrying out so he will be also carrying in to that heart of thine Thy Gold and thy Jewels he will carry away and he will bring in dirt and filth and trash As he unloads thee he will load thee unload thee of the treasures of light and load thee with the treasures of darkness He will fill those hearts with every unclean thing he will make those Temples to be very Stables or Sties he will make that heart a very Dunghil and Christ must either have no name within thee or that precious name written on a dunghil and will you suffer such an affront and abuse to be put upon your Lord If you do not keep your hearts so it will be 3. The Worship of God is in his Temple Mine house shall be called an house of Prayer Mat. 21.13 In this inward Temple the heart is the inward and spiritual Worship of
God The people of God are said to be the People that worship God in spirit Phil. 3.3 There are great thoughts of heart and many Scruples arising about the outward Worship of God about the keeping that pure about the clearing and securing of that against the Superstitious Inventions and corrupt mixtures of humane Impositions And 't were happy if the Houses of God in the Land were swept cleaner and kept cleaner from these than they are But the main of our care lies not here these are not the great things we are concern'd to take care about If outward Ordinances were never so purely administred and kept never so free from adulterating mixtures there 's a greater thing then this that lies upon us that the inner Temple be kept pure that the heart Worship be kept pure and intire The heart also is to be an house of Prayer and shall we make this house of Prayer a den of Theeves or an house of Merchandize O what droves of unclean beasts are let in to these hearts of ours what houses of Merchandize are these houses of prayer become these Sanctuaries of the Lord are become meer shops of buyers and sellers Whilst they should be employed in those spiritual excercises of loving and fearing of praying and praising God offering up living and spiritual Sacrifices to the Lord behold how our money is brought into our hearts our sheep and Oxen buying and selling and trading and getting gain these are the inhabitants and these are the exercises of our hearts It is a very grievous thing to consider how much the hearts of Christians are taken up with these things we cannot love the Lord as we should we cannot mind Glory and Immortality as we should It is miserable praying lamentable praising or meditating on God that is to be found in us we are so disordered distracted and confused in these spiritual exercises there is such a mixture of Carnal thoughts such carnal Affections worldly Projects and Cares are thrusting in that corrupt and spoil and enervate all our spiritual Duties that we can find nothing but blind and broken and maimed Sacrifices to offer up unto the Lord. Friends How do you find it when you set your selves to pray or meditate on God Is not the World presently thrusting in are not your carnal Friends or your businesses or pleasures thrusting in and do not your thoughts and affections fall a gâ—â—â—â—ing and a wandring after these and do you not hereby loose many a Prayer and loose many a Sermon and sadly complain of your selves that whatever duty you perform it s all spoil'd in the doing so that you can take no comfort in them What help is there for it but setting a better guard upon your hearts Sure friends we had every one of us need to be mo e vigilant and watchful to prevent these sad matters of our complaints It is not complaining how bâ—d 't is that will make amends or make up the matter po â—ibly your complaints of your selves may seem to give you â—ome ease but consider the same complaints that you make of your selves God also makes of you The Lord God hath complaints against you for the same things Think 〈◊〉 that more than you do God complains of you do you say I am weary of such a distracted divided worldly heart and I am weary too says the Lord Ah I will ease me of them Isa 1. I am weary of these halting trifling distracted hearts these cold Prayers these hypocritical Praises these maimed broken confused Services I am weary of them saith the Lord. If you go on thus to Worship God come hither as often as you will God will be weary to meet you here he hath been waiting from week to week from Sabbath to Sabbath to see if it may be better if he could meet with such Sacrifices here such hearts here as might be pleasing to him he hath waited thus so long and still finds so little of what he likes so few living Sacrifices he hath waited so long and found so little that 't is to be doubted if we continue thus we may come hither to meet one another but our God will be weary to give us a meeting Friends if you would not that the things that offend in your hearts should drive God away then take more heed how you suffer these offences or things to come in or to lodge any longer in you 4. God himself is in his Temple 2 Cor. 6.16 Ye are the Temple of the living God God hath said I will dwell in them and walk in them The hearts of the Saints are the house of God and the house of God is his Habitation The holy God will have none but an holy habitation Will you let sin in and the Devil in to Gods habitation These will darken and defile your hearts Those hearts are but blind houses and dirty holes where Sin and the Devil dwells and is this the best habitation you can afford to the Almighty what place do you think God will prepare for you if you prepare no better a place for him How long will the Lord stay with you how certainly will he withdraw and forsake you if you let lust in with him Sure Friends if you had a due and a deep sense upon your hearts of the Holiness of the Glory of the Majesty of the Jealousie of the holy God If you did verily believe that of a very truth this Holy and Glorious God had a mind to come and take up those very hearts of yours for his own habitation that he would come and dwell in you and walk in you and make those hearts his Chambers of Presence and the Thrones of his Glory If you had such respect for God and such affection that you would have him pleas'd with his habitation and not meet with that which is an offence and a loathing to him in you were you sensible did you verily believe all this you could not but take more care to keep these hearts cleaner and more free for him If you had a great Friend a Lord or a Knight that would come but to lodge a Night in your house what would you do How would you prepare your house for the entertaining of such a friend what sweeping and washing and rubbing and scouring and adorning would there be every Vessel would be brighted every room would be beautified Would you let it lie all dirty and dusty hang'd with Cobwebs and Spiders would you let it lie nasty and filthy and every thing out of its place and order Sure you would not and when he were come in would you set open your doors to let in a rabble of sordid Beggars or common Rogues or Drunkards to come and drink and roar and spue in the very room where your friend were entertained no you would sweep all within and set a Porter at your doors to keep the unclean rabble out O what is the greatest friend in the World to the great and holy
God Prepare him an holy habitation open the doors and let the King of Glory come in and then shut the door and let no unclean thing enter to offend and displease him that so the Lord may take pleasure in you and delight in you and may say concerning you this is my rest here will I dwell for ever 2. How the heart is to be kept under Guard 1. What 't is to be guarded against that is against Theeves Blots Distempers 1. Against Theeves The great Thief is the World and all that is of the World and all that in the World which is purloyning from the heart Its profits or worldly gains its Pleasures and carnal Mirth its Favour and Friendship and Fawnings These all lie in wait for entrance into the heart to the end they may rifle and spoil it of all that it hath The World steals in upon the heart and it never comes there but to steals away its Treasure and therefore 't is to be observed that the hearts of such Christians as are most possessed of the World are ever the most poor and beggarly Never look to find much of Christ or his Grace if any thing at all where the World hath gotten Possession Christ comes into the heart on purpose to carry away the heart from the World his Word is where he comes give me thine heart Prov. 23.26 Love not the world nor the things of the world 1 Joh. 2.15 And the world comes into the heart on purpose to steal it away from Christ again There is never any one that embraceth this present World but 't is to his loss whatever the World brings it takes away better than it brings 2 Tim. 4.10 Demas hath forsaken us and embraced this present world He embrac'd the World and what got he by it the same day he embraced the World he forsook Christ Christian art thou fallen in with the World Are its gains and its pleasures gotten into thy heart doth it fawn and smile upon thee and is thine heart taken and pleased with its fawnings Look to thy self what hast thou within thee hast thou Grace hast thou Peace does thy Soul flourish for ought I know thou hast seen the last of thy good days what time this World is thus embraced by thee O friends set a watch against this Thief set a guard against it Take heed and beware of Covetousness Luk. 12.15 That 's the same Counsel as guard your hearts against this World Covetousness is the opening the door to let the world in nay the world is gotten in already where Covetousness is Thou which hast a Covetous heart thine heart is already possessed of the world May be thou hast yet but a little of it in thine hand but thine heart is already full of it the whole world is gotten in where Covetousness is gotten in Worldly Professors methinks you should be startled at it if you considered what a Theif you have within you Whatever thou seemest to have of Christ or the Treasures of heaven thou art like to be but a poor wretch in a little time And how is it like to be with thee whose heart hath entertained the Pleasures and the merriments of the world or the favours and fawnings of the Men of the world who lovest to be some body with evil men to have their respect and esteem he that would fain be some body with the world is like to be no body with Christ Make the world to know its distance and whatever you have to do in it keep it at a distance from your hearts Never look to thrive in Christianity whilst you venture to be too busie with this world or to dote on its favours or friendship O it were well with us were we yet but sensible what a snare this world is to us what a bane it is to all that 's good in us Never a flower in all our Garden will flourish where these thorns stand so thick about it that little Grace you have will be less dayly it will be choked up and devoured if you keep you not more clear of this world It were happy for us were we deeply sensible of the danger we are in but there 's the Misery of it people will not be sensible nor be warned to take heed of it this Theif steals away mens Reason and Consciences makes them such children and fools that they will not understand what an enemy it is to them How many Sermons have been preached and published to warn you to take heed of a worldly heart and yet how very few hearts are there that do escape it 't is who can be richest and who can be greatest in the world that the most of our hearts are set upon 't is not who can be the holiest or most heavenly 't is not who can improve in the Faith and Hope of the Gospel in the love and fear of the Lord who can get most of Christ and Heaven into his heart and grow rich unto God but who can grow greatest in this present world Is not this too common a Case though the Lord hath been knocking off our fingers from it pulling off our Chariot wheels and making us to drive heavily letting loose the spoilers upon us to catch from some of us what we have gotten fed the Husbandman with short harvests filled the Tradsman with complaints of bad Markets yet all is one how little soever many men can catch of this world yet they will catch after it still and what wonder is it then while this world doth so generally carry our hearts that Christ hath so much lost them You that would save any thing of what you have left in you you that would ever get any more while you live you that would not go down to your graves strip'd and naked of all that should then comfort you get again I say to you take heed of this world take heed of this worldliness 2. Against blots that is against wilful allowed sins Every wilful sin will be a blot upon your hearts Our sins are blots and blemishes upon our lives but every blot upon the life is also a blot upon the heart Blots will Darken and Obscure Defile 1. Blots will darken and obscure the Heart I told you that in the heart is kept all our evidences for heaven our sins that we give way to will be blots upon our evidences will so obscure and blur them that they will not be legible Our sins will do the direct contrary to what the blood of Christ will do the bloud of Christ will blot out the hand writing that was against us Col. 2.14 Our sins will blot out whatever hand-writing there is for us Thou that art a Christian there is an hand-writing upon that heart there is the Covenant of God which is thy Charter for glory written upon thy heart There is the token of the Covenant and thine interest in it the Circumcision of the heart there are the Articles of the Covenant
which have been consented to between the Lord and thee recorded in thine heart whilst thou keepest thine heart clean there thou may'st read thy Title to Glory thou wilt find that within thee which will comfort thee concerning thine everlasting state There are the very Prints and Marks of the Lord Jesus his image formed upon thy soul which mark thee out for an heir of life but what wilt thou do for comfort when these writings and this holy image are all blotted when thy Circumcision is become as uncircumcision will blotted evidences Satisfie thee will a defaced image prove thy Title to Christ goâ—d Set a guard against Sin allow not your selves in any iniquity fear what sad work it will make upon your inner man Hath the bloud of Christ blotted out the hand-writing that was against you hath the Spirit of Christ engraven a new hand-writing for you O watch against iniquity which will renew the old hand-writing and blot out the new Have you any comfortable Title to Glory any comfortable evidences for heaven O sin them not away Whatever comfortable evidences you have never look that they should speak comfortably to you longer then you keep your watch against sin nor never trust to that comfort which will hold up the head whilst thou allowest thy self in sin Psal 66.18 If I regard iniquity in my heart God will not hear my prayer And what comfort canst thou have when thou art become such a one as God will not hear when thou prayest Thou art a Professor of Religion and thou hast comfort in Christ and confidence thou shalt be saved through him and yet for all this thou canst lie for thy advantage or to cover a fault thou canst drink if not to down right drunkenness yet to intemperate excess and make thy self a fool if not a down-right beast or at least be a companion of Drunkards in their drunkenness Thou canst defraud or do wrong put off false wares use deceitful ballances thou canst defame or backbite thou canst be peevish and give rope to thy fretful passions and let thine anger rest upon thee thou canst prophane the Sabbath by Working or Travailing or Loytering thou canst live in an ordinary neglect of thy Family and the Souls of them without instructing them or praying with them and the like and thou canst let thy self alone in these evils or some of them or some other such like But how dost thou hold up thine head under these things when thou lookest into thine heart how dost thou find it there dost thou not find thy sins to be blots within thee dost thou not find the writing blotted thine evidences blurr'd the image of Christ defaced thy comforts vanished If thou dost not if thou canst be of good comfort still if thou art of good chear and confident still this comfort this confidence is not the comfort of God but false and deceitful Thou may'st comfort thy self and speak peace to thy self still but mistake not thy self God speaks not a word of comfort to thee in such a case if thou hadst any real comfort before that thou wilt find all blotted and the true sense of it utterly lost If thou hast peace in thine heart 't is none of the peace of God that is broken by thy returning to have peace with sin Psal 85.8 God will speak peace but let them not turn again to folly 2. Blots will defile They are stains upon all our Glory The coming in of Sin upon the heart is as the breaking in of the Heathen upon Gods inheritance Psal 79.1 O God the heathen are come into thine inheritance thine holy temple have they defiled The heart of a Christian is as is said the Temple of the Lord the Temple of the Lord is holy Holiness becometh thine house Psal 93.5 't is only a clean heart that is a fit habitation for God God hath been at great cost to make the hearts of his people clear that they may be a fit habitation for him He hath washed them with bloud with the bloud of his Son hath washed out those original blots and stains that were upon them 1 Joh. 1.7 The bloud of Jesus Christ cleanseth He hath washed them with water The Sanctifying work of his Spirit God hath made him a clean habitation and he looks that we should keep it clean 1 Cor. 3.17 If any man defile the Temple of the Lord him shall God destroy God will depart from God will pull down that house and make a dunghil of it which sin is suffered to defile we had need take heed of such blots and stains upon our hearts lest they drive out the holy One of Israel from us Whilst we keep our selves pure the Lord God will delight to take his abode with us Who is it Christians you would have to dwell in you O let me be an habitation for the Lord let the holy Jesus let the holy Spirit dwell in me none but God none but Christ thou Lord art mine inhabitant let me be thy habitation Where God dwells there light dwells there peace dwells there hope and joy dwells I count upon nothing I have no joy no hope no peace all that I have is lost all that I have to comfort me all that I have to stay or support me all that I have to delight and refresh me all is lost yea I have lost my self when God is departed from me Do you indeed look upon it as so miserable a case when the Lord hath forsaken you then take heed how you defile his habitation Let wilful sin in and that will certainly drive the Lord out and if you would keep sin out of the heart keep it out of your lives Life sins are heart blots Jer 2.22 Their iniquity is marked before me And 't is the heart that bears its black marks upon it O friends what sad marks have we upon us what speckled and spotted souls have we how miserably are our insides defiled Minds defiled Affections defiled Consciences defiled 't is a sign what Lives we have lived 't is a sign how well we keep our Garments how well we keep us from practical iniquity our heart stains our heart defilements shew sufficiently how much iniquity hath abounded in us Friends look inward see what work sin hath made within you what a Conscience hath it left you what affections hath it left you how hath it dimm'd and defaced the Image of God in you Do you complain that God is withdrawn from you that you have lost his quickning presence his comforting presence that you have lost your Acquaintance lost your Communion with God that your only friend and portion and hope is become a stranger to you learn to keep you cleaner if you would have it better count upon it there is no hope that God should take pleasure in you or give you any pleasure in him that God should be a comfort to you longer then you keep you more pure Oh get your hearts washed anew we
what returns do you think slight and triflling duties are like to have Look to it God will give you but a slight answer if you be but slight in seeking O be sober be serious and if you would be serious in your most solemn duties get this holy seriousness to be your temper Beware of a vain and frothy habit habituate your selves to Godly seriousness not but that there must be at times some little Relaxation the bow would grow weak if it should stand always bent But then 1. Relaxation or remitting the intention of our Spirits must be but short and no more than necessary 2. Never such as to be an hindrance to seriousness afterward though I must sometimes unbend yet I would never unhinge my Soul or disjoint or discompose it for its return to its work We must not be of those whose lives be in jest and only now and then a fit of seriousness 't is thy life thine ordinary course thine ordinary frame and only some little intervals for Recreation To seecure your selves against the distemper of a slight and vain Spirit get a deep and standing sense upon your hearts of the weight and importance of those great concerns that are dayly upon you look more into Eternity Remember you have an immortal God whose eye is always upon you You have an immortal Soul that must live or die for ever Your business in this World is not to please your humours and gratifie your flesh and your fancies but to serve the living God to secure this God to your selves to be your God to seek your peace and reconciliation with God and to that end to make Christ the reconciler sure to you to serve the Lord Christ and hereby to secure the Salvation of your Soul Remember that you have this great work lying upon you and this is not the work of some short inches of your time of an hour in a day or one day in a week but that this must be your every days work and your all days work Think often what if I should miscarry in this great work if I should loyter out or laugh out or trifle out so much of my time that when I shall come to die and away for the other world I should find that work I liv'd for here were not done or but half done or but slightly done if I should then find that I had been light and vain in my Conversation and but slight and shallow in my Religion and whilst I was allowing my flesh what it would have I cut my Soul short of what it should have had Death will make every one of you serious the Grave when you are stepping into it will make you all in good earnest And how would your living in jest or in pleasant idleness then look upon you remember these things daily let deep thoughts of them come daily upon you and this would put you out of your slight and merry tune the sense of these serious things would hold you in a serious temper 2. Looseness There 's a double looseness 1. Such as is opposite to fixedness that 's the same with lightness and vanity of heart a whiffling in and out unstable Soul a slippery heart that we never know where to have it 2. Such as is opposite to strictness that is the same with licentiousness and that is it which I am now to speak to A Licentious heart is a distempered heart The contrary to this Distemper is the compliance or closing of the heart with the Rule and keeping to it The new heart is made after the pattern of Christ its new Lord there 's the same Spirit in a Christian which was in Christ as he was so are we in this world 1 Joh. 4.17 His very Spirit and Image is formed upon our hearts And it is conformed to the new Law or Rule which Christ hath prescribed to it and it stands determined for strictness or exactness of walking according to this rule whereof the Apostle speaketh Gal. 6.16 As many as walk according to this Rule peace be unto them That is a strict heart which is determined and disposed to live by Rule Licentiousness of heart is the hearts allowing and indulging its Liberty and Latitude in its Course Christianity in general is that which it takes up but it will not be held within the limits of it The strait Gate and the narrow way is too strait and too narrow for it That way it pretends to have chosen but it will be breaking over the hedge as the Inclinations and Interest of the Flesh lead it In some things a Christian in other things a Libertine O how much of this Licentiousness of heart is to be found amonst Christians amonst all the Christians amongst us how few exact and strict Christians are there whose hearts determine for exactness and strictness of life who impose and charge upon themselves the whole Rule and the diligent observing of every point and tittle of it such exactness in point of Practise we cannot in this imperfect state reach unto in many things we offend all Jam. 3.2 Our feet slip and our steps are turning aside every day but it is the indulging our selves a liberty for this turning aside or the hearts not charging strictness upon it that is this Licentiousness of heart There is a gradual Licentiousness of heart and there is a total Licentiousness A total Licentiousness is of such who utterly reject the Yoke of Christ and will not come under his Government but will resign up themselves to Lust and carnal Inclinations to command in Chief over them As those Ephes 2.3 Who walked in the lusts of their flesh fulfilling the desires of the flesh and of the mind Such Licentious ones are no Christians if they have the name yet the heart of a Christian is not found in them Gradual Licentiousness is when the heart though it hath put it self under the Yoke of Christ and resigned up its self to be governed by him in opposition to the lusts of the flesh and the World yet often falls a lusting after that liberty from the exactness and severities of Christianity which in the general it hath professed to consent and yeild its self unto And though the decree of the Soul for following Christ in every thing be not made void and utterly broken yet it is so remiss and weak that it will not hold it closely in but there is a frequent breaking loose from the rule and the heart too often indulgeth its self that liberty How far forth a Christian may break loose from the Rule and how far forth he may indulge and allow himself at times and yet be a Christian still is not easie to determine but this is certain that every degree of this heart loosness is a pernicious distemper that must be watched against especially if it rise so high as that there be a dislike of strictness and such a groaning under the severities of Religion as maketh it seem
Wherefore dost thou doubt so wherefore dost thou drag so O thou of little Faith Where 's our Love to Christ when our work for Christ goes so slowly on 2 Cor. 5.14 The Love of Christ constrains us The Love of Christ will quicken us the Love of Christ will put Life into us we should find our Tongues and find our Hands and find time to be more abundant in service could we feel more of the Love of Christ in us Thou makest nothing of it that thou art such a dull untoward unactive Souls but is it nothing to want Faith Is it nothing to want love to Christ Is it nothing to be without Grace in thy heart Or if thou hast any to have so very little as thou canst not tell whither 't is any or no It is an ill sign that thy Soul is in a very doubtful case at least 't is to be doubted Whether thou hast any Grace in thee Where in ordinary thou art so untoward and listless to the matters of God and the businesses of Religion 3. 'T is of ill consequence 'T is a sign our case is bad and it is an hindrance from our growing better It is the vivacious active stirring soul that 's like to be the thriving Soul Sluggards and Sleepers are never like to come to any thing We may preach to you while our hearts ake we may instruct you and tell you what is your duty while we will and you may hear us while you will but in vain shall we preach and in vain will you hear till we can fire you out of this deadness and whet and set an edge upon those blunted Souls what will it be to be told of your Duty whilst you remain to have so little heart to it what becomes of all the Sermons you hear of all the teaching you what you should do and how you should live what becomes of all the convincing awakening quickning words that are in your ears from day to day what doth all our Preaching and all your hearing bring forth upon you truly friends the little success that is to be perceived of our Preaching among you either to the converting of sinners or improving of professors the small success that does appear what there is within God knows does even make us out of heart But as little success as we have we are never like to have it much better unless we may stir your hearts and awaken you to more diligence and activity When we have done all we can we are I doubt like at last to leave the most of you either quite dead in sin or but very Dwarfes in Religion Sinners is it nothing to you that the enlivening word should leave you still among the dead Christians is it nothing to you that the nourishing and quickning Word should leave you but babes and infants Is it not a trouble to you and a discomfort to you that you get no more that you grow no faster much more that any of you should consume and languish under the hands of your Physicians I must tell you it is a discomfort to us but is it not more a discomfort to you can you continue at this pass and not be troubled at it O what a comfort is it to be a thriving lively Christian Methinks when you see any such before your eyes you should at least sigh out such a wish O that it were so with me and breath out such a groan wo is me that 't is not so methinks it should be an heaviness of heart to you to feel your own soul in Cloggs when you see others upon the wing O that I could make you sensible of your diseases that I could preach you heart sick that I could but make your hearts ake under your distempers that you might no longer be able to go up and down without trouble in this unthriving case Sure friends you whose case this is had need to be troubled and 't would be well for you if your Souls were in pain and refused to be comforted till you be cured To make you yet more sensible of the perniciousness of this untoward dull and listless temper look a little more upon the excellency of the contrary a chearful lively temper 'T is call'd 2 Cor. 8.17 A forward mind 1 Pet. 5.2 A ready mind that need not be spurred and whip'd but goes chearfully and freely on its way What is a sprightful horse to a dull and heavy jade what is a blunted rusty knife to that which is bright and keen what is a consumptive languishing body to one that 's lively and healthful what is a dark and lowring to a Sunshine day what is Winter to Summer yea what are the living to the dead what a pitiful thing is that dead and spiritless heart of thine when thou lookest on them in whom is the life of God Hear O ye sleepy and listless Souls awaken stir up your selves shake off this sloth and sleep work out this untoward spirit What do you mean to hang thus betwixt alive and dead will you hold you at this pass till you come to your Graves Is this all the care and the pains you ever mean to bestow on God and your Souls must the Lord ever find you so unready and untoward to what he calls you to shall the world find a forward mind in you shall your flesh find such a ready mind to whatever it hath for you to do and will you only be unready and unactive for God Wherefore have you Reason and Understandings wherefore have you the Scriptures before you what are Sabbaths and Ordinances and Ministers for must we come hither only to sing you asleep or to rock von in your Cradles Where is that Grace that is in you where is your Faith where is your love to Christ where is your hope if you have any Grace where is it what must all these precious talents be eaten up with rust or laid up in a napkin Remember the slothful Servants doom Mat. 25.30 What are your immortal Souls what is the holy God what is Jesus Christ what are the glorious treasures of Eternity are all these worth no more of your care and industry will none of these things move you will not these great things quicken you Hear them all calling upon you God calls upon you oh my children if you have any respect for me come along come faster after me Christ calls oh my Disciples if you have any love to me if all that I have done for you if all that I will do for you will move you arise and mend your pace Heaven calls upon you if ever you mean to come here gird up your loyns and come on Yea Hell calls look ye down hither what a place is here prepared for Sleepers and Loyterers Your poor Souls call have ye any pity for me must I perish and die for the pleasing this lazy flesh Your poor Families call your poor Children call your poor Neighbours call
could you give I doubt this is the account the most of you would give I cannot tell God knows how 't is with me for my part I know not how ' t is That Heart hath been well look't to mean while hast thou carried it like a wise man the while Thou hast great acquaintance in the world thou takest upon thee to know other mens hearts and wilt judge and censure them as thou listest what man and yet hast so little acquaintance with thy self Be thou thine own judge hast thou been a wise man the while to be such a stranger to thy self that thou dost not know thine own heart Thou wilt say the word tells me Jer. 17.9 The Heart is deceitful and who can know it how then should I know it I answer 1. The more deceitful the Heart is and the harder 't is to know it the more it had need be looked into 2. Though it cannot be perfectly known yet there may be much of it known the heart of man is a great deep 't is true and though thou canst not easily see to the bottom of it yet if thou wilt but look down into the deep thou must see a great way 3. If thou canst not see thorow thine heart with thine own Eyes yet with Gods eyes thou mayest Take the help of the Eyes of the Lord and thou mayest understand even all that is in thine heart God that sees the Heart reveals the heart and he hath given thee such discoveries of thy very heart in his word he hath made the Scriptures such a Looking-glass for thee that if thou wouldst look into that more there thou mightest see thy self and all that is in thee Heb. 4.12 The word of God is a discerner of the thoughts and intents of the Heart Christians if you would secure your hearts from danger know them and be acquainted more throughly with them if you would know your hearts better look oftner inward commune with your hearts go down dayly into your own Bosoms take an account of your selves question with your selves how fares it with my Soul is there any real saving Grace in me If there be how fares it with that Grace I have Does it thrive doth it flourish is it kept up in Life and Activity Doth my light shine doth my Love flame do my thoughts and my affections climb and are they working upwards how is it with my Conscience Is it kept pure Doth it speak peace Doth it deal faithfully Doth it check me doth it smite me for the least Evils Doth it comfort me when 't is better Have I a good Conscience Have I the Testimony of a good Conscience Doth my Conscience witness for me that I have been faithful that my Desire and my care and endeavour is and hath been in all things to approve my self to the Eye of God and to be sincere and upright before him O Beloved What a Mercy to us would it be if we would be perswaded to be much in such heart inspection and much in such heart communing The Devil would find the harder work to get in there 's no Disease or Distemper would then grow upon your hearts but it would be espyed in the beginning and so the more easily removed Friends let me prevail with you in this thing I beseech you in the name of the Lord set more upon this Heart-study Of all the business you have to do in the world there 's nothing more necessary nothing more advantageous and yet I doubt nothing more neglected Friends if you have been strangers at home be no longer strangers never say again I cannot tell how it is with my Soul study it til you can tell and study it diligently and you shall be able to tell The Lord will help you to understand your selves if you will but more diligently commune with your own Hearts will you be perswaded to it will you resolve upon it to make this a great piece of your every days work Never look for Soul prosperity never look for Soul security without a serious and frequent discharge of this great Duty You may hear all your days and pray for a better heart as long as you live and all in vain if you will not Watch as well as Pray O that the Lord would so strike home this word upon your hearts that you might feel this charge of the Lord sensibly abiding upon you to keep your Hearts by Heart-Acquaintance and Heart-watchfulness My Soul is exceedingly concern'd about the bringing you upon this Duty and I am in great doubt that the most of us are very deficient herein either neglecting it or but slightly or seldom being conversant in it Sure Friends our Tongues would be better employed our Speech would be with Grace seasoned with Salt we should have more savoury words coming from us we should commune one with another more about the concerns of our souls were there more faithful communing with our Hearts our whole conversations would savour more of it We should be more Spiritual and Heavenly more active for God more fruitful and abounding in every good work our work for our Souls would be carried on with more Life and with more Power we should live a more self-denying a more circumspect a more heedful and a more watchful Life were there a due watchfulness over our Hearts What shall I say more in this thing Be diligent be careful be diligent to know the state of your hearts If I should say with Solomon Prov. 27.23 Be diligent to know the state of thy Flocks and look well to thine Herds would you not hearken to me If I should say be diligent to look well to your Trades and to your Money would you not hearken to me in this if I should say be diligent to take care for your Healths and look well to your Bodies would not this Counsel be accepted by you How much more then should you hearken to me in this Be diligent to know the state of your Souls O Friends be diligent to know and be diligent to get your Souls into a good state and to secure them in it be diligent to know what 't is that hurts you and what 't is that hinders you and what it is that endangers your Souls and take heed of it and then be diligent to know what 't is that will help you and further you and advance you and stablish your Souls in peace and build them up in holiness that you may take those advantages and improve those helps that are before you Such watchfulness as this what an heart reviving what an heart flourishing what an heart rejoycing would follow upon it to your selves And what abundant Praise Glory and Honour would grow up to the Name of God and our Lord Jesus Christ Then should those Hearts of yours which are now too much Dens of Thieves Shops of Vanity Fountains of folly Nests of Lusts and Houses of Merchandize become the sacrifices of the Lord and the Temples of
the Living God and he would dwell in them and walk in them and say of them these are my rest here will I abide for ever 2. Keep all your powers up in armes Our Enemies will fight for our Heaâ—ts Sin the World and the Devil are like Absalom 2 Sam. 15.6 at first he used fair and flattering Speeches and complemented and kissed them that came nigh him saying O that I were made Judge in the Land his meaning was O that I were King what a King would I be to you So he stole the hearts of the Men of Israel Afterwards he takes up Armes and fights against those whose hearts he could not steal from David Our Spiritual Enemies deal a like by us at first they attempt to steal away our Hearts from God Sin smiles upon us and fawns upon us and promiseth what it will do for us O that you would hearken to me how happy should ye be if you will follow me It doth not pretend to be King but to be our Servant if you will love this world all that is in the world will be your Servants but if this will not do our Enemies will fight for us our Fleshly Lusts will war against our Souls to take them Captives 1 Pet. 2.11 and the World and the Devil will side with Lust The Devil will buffet the world will rage and bluster against those that will still continue the Servants of Christ Hereupon Christians are said to be Souldiers 2 Tim. 2.3 their state here is a warring and warfaring state they are to fight 1 Tim. 6.12 fight the good fight of Faith they are to wrestle Eph. 6.12 against flesh and bloud against principalities and powers against the Rulers of the darkness of this world against spiritual wickednesses or wicked Spirits in high places Gal. 5.17 The Flesh lusteth that is fighteth against the Spirit and the Spirit must lust or fight against the Flesh and all this fighting what is it for 't is for our hearts The Devil and the World are fighting and our Souls lie at stake He that overcometh there 's a Soul gained a Soul saved he that is overcome there 's a Soul lost When Men fight for their lives when this must be the issue kill or be killed how desperately do they fight we mannage our warfare against sin and the Devil as if there were no great matter lying upon it Men count not themselves any great loosers if they be overcome and hereupon 't is that we leave our selves so open to Temptations and stand as so many naked men against our Adversaries and entertain such Truces and Treaties with them and make such weak resistance against them as if our contention were about a Flea or a dead Dog Men do not consider that it is for their precious life the Devil and the World is fighting but that 's it that sin and this world would have of you they would have your hearts they fight for your Souls Now hereupon Christians must be alwayes up in Armes and stand to their Armes As the Devil rallies up Armies against us so the Lord provides us of Armour and requires us Eph. 6.13 to put on our Armour and to stand to our Armes Take unto you the whole Armour of God that ye may be able to withstand in the evil day and having done all to stand We may neither stand unarmed nor put on our Armour to sleep in put on your Armour and stand in your Armour especially we must keep close about us these 6 pieces of Armour 1. The Shield of Faith v. 16. wherewith ye shall be able to quench all the fiery Darts of the Devil The Devil is shooting his Darts at us and every Dart is levelled at the heart The Devils Darts are fiery Darts burn when they hit that will burn up all the good in the Soul Darts will stick and fiery Darts will burn When you see one Man burn in Lust there 's a Dart of the Devil that burns in his Heart when you see others flame in anger and fury there 's a fiery Dart of the Devils in his Heart his Tongue is set on fire of Hell Jam. 3.6 Think on this you that are apt to be thus set on fire the next time you are in such an heat that your hearts burn with fury and your Tongue spits fire in venting furious Language then think with your selves I feel my Soul in a flame the fire comes out at my Mouth Lord whence comes all this O I had need look to my self sure there is a fiery Dart from the Devil in mine Heart these angry hot and hasty words are no other but the smoak of that Fire which the Devil hath kindled within me Such a Thought as this might be as water to quench that Fire But if such a thought won't do it then take the Shield of Faith by which you may quench these Fires We are therefore exhorted 1. Pet. 5.9 to resist the Devil stedfast in the Faith Trust upon Christ for your help stand against the Devil as David against the Philistine 1 Sam. 17.45 thou comest against me with sword and Spear saies David but I come to thee in the Name of the Lord of Hosts that is I come trusting in the Lord of Hosts This day will the Lord deliver thee into mine hand There 's his Faith and that 's his best Weapon Resist the Devil and trust in God fight against sin and trust in Christ for the victory Isa 26.4 Trust ye in the Lord Jehovah for in him is Everlasting strength 2. The helmet of hope which is called the helmet of Salvation ver 17. Rom. 8.24 Ye are saved by hope Hope will strengthen the heart and hold up the head Christians should withstand Temptations and assaults as men of hope whatever your Tempations are whatever buffetings of Satan you may be encountred with how furiously soever the world falls on threatning you thundring against you persecuting you for your faithfulness to Christ or fawning upon you or flattering you away from your integrity how thick soever the suggestions of your hearts lusts come upon you enticing you urging and pressing you Do not undo thy self by thy Religion do not ruine thy self by thy Conscience come about after this World save thy self from its rage and accept of its kindnesses how hard soever you may be thus tempted and set upon and how apt soever thy faint heart may be to fear and doubt thou shalt never be able to stand hold fast thine helmet hope in God who will be thy helper and deliverer Psal 43. ult Why art thou cast down O my Soul Hope in God Strive against sin but strive in hope resist Temptations but resist in hope withstand this evil world withstand its flatteries withstand its furies and withstand in hope Do not say as once David did 1 Sam. 27.1 I shall one day or other perish by the hand of Saul I shall one day or other fall by Temptation I shall never hold out
and so shift for thy self hope for the Victory hope in God for his help hope in Christ for his strength and in that hope stand against Temptations 3. The girdle of Truth ver 14. Having your loyns girt about with truth Look especially to this that you be armed with truth and uprightness of heart Whatever other Armour you seem to have what ever faith you have whatever hope you have whatever word you have to support you whatever Prayer you make to help you there 's no armour will hide an hypocritical heart from God or the Devil God strikes his dart into the false heart through the joints of thine armour And for the Devil he is gotten in already the Devil is already in thine heart if it be a false and hypocritical heart O get sincerity and uprightness before the Lord see that there be truth in your inward parts A sound heart will be the best shelter both against the Accusations and Temptations of all your adversaries whereas if there were no enemies from without a rotten heart will be its own ruine That rust and that moth which is bred within will eat thee out though there should be no Theif to assault thee from abroad 4. The breastplate of Righteousness Put them both together Truth and Uprightness of heart and righteousness of Life will be a mighty security against the Devil and all his whole Party The Psalmist would trust to no other Armour without that Psal 25.21 and that he will trust to Let integrity and uprightness preserve me for I wait on thee Faith without Truth Hope without Righteousness or Uprightness will never secure us Sincerity and Uprightness of heart is our best heart Armour the Hypocrites Faith will not save him the Hypocrites hope will perish with him 't is sincerity that will carry the day Be honest and plain hearted towards God Let there not be Guile and Unrighteousness found in you Prov. 10.4 He that walketh uprightly walketh surely Hic murus ahaeneus esto A good Conscience is a wall of brass against all the darts that are cast against us 5. The Sword of the Spirit Ver. 17. which is the word of God This was the weapon by which Christ conquered the Devil when he fought him hand to hand Mat. 4.3 It is written man shall not live by bread onely It is written thou shalt not tempt the Lord thy God It is written thou shalt Worship the Lord thy God Be well versed in the Scripture and you have a sword by you to resist every Temptation Art thou tempted to Pride Remember it is written God resisteth the proud Art thou tempted to a Covetous worldly Life it is written take heed and beware of Covetousness Art thou tempted to Anger and the bitter expressions of it it is written if ye bite and devour one another ye shall be consumed one of another Art thou tempted to a carnal vain sensual Life it is written if ye live after the flesh ye shall die Art thou tempted to a cold Lukewarm indifferent temper or way it is written because thou art neither hot nor cold I will spue thee out of my mouth And so whatever the Temptation be have a particular word ready at hand which may be a sword to strike through it 6. The spirit of prayer Ver. 18. Praying always with all prayer and supplication in the Spirit Meet every Temptation with the Sword in your mouth and with a Prayer in your heart Believe and Pray Hope and Pray be True be Upright and pray the Lord rebuke thee The Lord strengthen and uphold me pray to him be true to him hope in him who was tempted himself and is able to succour them that are tempted Put on all this Armour and stand to your Armes be always up in Armes be alwayes ready to receive the Alarm Let that word be for an alarm to you and be ever in your ears Rise Sampson the Philistines are upon thee Rise Soul Sin is upon thee the World is upon thee thy Company are upon thee or that Word of Christ Mat. 26.46 Arise he is at hand that betrays me that ease that thou lovest those Pleasures that thou lovest that Money thou lovest that carnal Acquaintance that thou lovest whom thou never suspectest to be Enemies they have a design to betray thee of thy life to take away thine heart from God and they are ever at hand to betray thee however thou thinkest thou art armed take heed of being secure of what use is Armour to him that is asleep Remember Saul and his whole Army when they were asleep David came upon them and had them at his mercy for all their Arms and if he had hearkned to Abishai had smitten him dead in the place be never secure stand upon your Watch or you never stand to your Armes Never think you are out of danger you are in jeopardy every hour your Enemy the Devil is ever walking up and down and watcheth to devour you Therefore that Counsel is needful 1 Pet. 5.8 Be vigilant be sober for your adversary c. Be alwayes as the besieged in a Town that have their Enemy close at the Gates and the Walls they are upon their Guard night and day especially let the main fort the heart be still well watched and guarded Set fear for your Sentinel live in constant fear of a surprize fear will keep the Soul waking be conversant in the World in fear be amongst your carnal friends and acquaintance in fear eat and drink in fear pass the time of your whole warfare here in fear O this fearless secure heart how often hath it betray'd us into Mischief How often have our hearts been even choked up of the World and surfeited of carnal Pleasures and rob'd of its peace and spoil'd of its Treasuries and we have exchanged a sprightful lively chearful healthful Soul for a flat leaden earthly senseless frame before we were aware and all because we were secure and without fear Live in fear daily and in constant jealousie be jealous of your friends be jealous of your enemies be jealous of this world be jealous of every sin be jealous of your selves Let an holy jealousie dwell in your eye and let it keep you waking and watching After all your professing and praying and believing and hoping would you not loose your hearts at last and loose all you have hoped and laboured for then beware of Security if you would be in safety then be never secure but always stand with your loins girded and your lights burning Stand upon your watch Tower keep your doors shut but your windows open Let your eye observe the approaches and be ready and prepared for the assaults that your enemies are making daily upon you I never look you should be flourishing or conquering Christians till you will be perswaded to be jealous Christians fearing and watchful Christians and therefore what I said to you before I say to you again and again stand upon your guard
and watch 3. Keep close by your Captain and Physician 1. Keep by the side of Christ You know what a stream there once ran down from that precious side a stream of Blood and Water this stream as to the vertue and influence of it is running down daily and it is for the healing of diseased and for the washing of spotted Souls There 's no balm will heal our diseases this Bloud is it Christ must do it There 's no Sope will scowre off our spots this water must cleanse us this Physick will heal every disease this water will cleanse us from every spot and will present us at last without spot or wrinkle Eph. 5.27 but what will diseased polluted Souls do when their Physician is out of the way Many sick persons die of those diseases which had they been near the Physician might have been cured Keep you ever near to Christ his Presence will be either preventing Physick and keep off your Soul Diseases that they sieze not upon you or else 't will be curing Physick that no disease shall be mortal to you We never wander from Christ but we catch that which we cannot easily claw off if the Devil can but catch a Christian wandring what sad work doth he make with him we may all say of our wandrings from Christ as Naomi Ruth 1.21 I went out full but I return empty I went out whole but I return wounded I went out fat and full but I return lean and naked What a sad plight do we see loose and wandring Souls to be in keep you home When Dinah Jacobs Daughter would be gadding abroad what a blot got she Gen. 34.1 She went out a Virgin and came home a Whore Our very departings from Christ are our playing the Harlots against him our other lovers to whom we turn aside do deflour us What harlots do many of our hearts often become We cannot stay by our Lord out we must be running after other lovers and so we are defiled O prevent your Soul Pollutions by keeping home Art thou gotten near to Christ know when thou art well and keep thee there As Naomi said to Ruth Ruth 2.22 Let not the man find thee in another field Gleaning after other Reapers gadding after other Lovers he will take that unkindly if he do and thou maist smart for it Hath Christ done by thee as Boaz by Ruth spread his Skirt over thee and charged thee keep fast by me and by my Servants dare not to be gadding after others you will smart for it if you do and if ever you return it will be by weeping Cross Whatever wounds you receive you will not say as Zach. 13.6 These are the wounds which I received in the house of my friend but these wounds I have gotten in my absence from my Friend If I had kept me in I had saved all this hurt O prevent your miseries that you sustain by departing from Christ by keeping you by him And if you have been wandring and catch'd any hurt O return to your Physician and when thou art made whole then say to thine heart as Christ to the Man Joh. 5.14 Sin no more wander no more lest a worse thing come unte thee Christians In our first coming to Christ and our union with him our deadly disease is cured we that were dead are made alive we that were sick are made sound But the same Jesus that gave us this Life and Health is he that must maintain our Souls in Life and that life and spiritual health which we received from Christ by our Union must be preserved by our Communion with him See that you be in Union with Christ that you be by Faith joyned to the Lord and then live in constant Communion with him take heed of Ruptures and breaches take heed of distances and estrangements from Christ Have you gotten Christ within you O keep him within you Let your beloved lodge between your breasts and keep his dwelling in your Souls and let there not be in you an heart of unbelief let there not be in you an heart of vanity or iniquity an heart of Pride or Guile a Carnal or Worldly heart to depart from the living God Keep your hearts true to Christ keep your hearts chast keep you pure in his sight In your Union or Espousals to Christ you Covenanted against forsaking him Hos 2.19 I will betroth you unto me for ever So you have said the same to him Lord I betroth thee unto me for ever Betrothing or espousing is both the nearest Union and the firmest Union 1. 'T is the nearest Union Our becoming Christians is our Union of hearts with the Lord. Christ hath therein given you his heart and you have therein given him your hearts and your heart and his become as one heart You that are Christians are near unto Christ as his own Soul 1 Cor. 6.17 He that is joyned to Christ is one spirit He loveth you he careth for you he tendereth you as his own Soul 2. It is the firmest union I will betroth thee forever It is written concerning Christ and his Saints as concerning Husband and Wife whom God hath joyned together let no man no nor Devil neither put asunder Now when there is such a nearness of Relation and such a dearness of Affection there must be also Cohabitation You must live together and dwell together with Christ This is not only your duty as Christians but your safety depends upon it He who is your Husband is your refuge where you may dwell safely your only rock in whom you may hide your selves from danger if you forsake your Rock take heed you be not forsaken of your Rock Take heed you neither prove runaways from Christ and forsake him utterly no nor slink away and skulk out or turn aside from him Keep constant to Christ and keep close to him Let there be intimacy and dearness maintained betwixt Christ and your Souls keep you in the memory of Christ let your beloved be ever before your eye bâ— looking dayly towards him keep you ever in the 〈◊〉 of Châ—iâ—◠〈◊〉 much in solacing your selves in the Contemplation of his love and keep your hearts in a flame of love to him Be render how you provoke him to jealousie against you Keep you close to Christ by making all your carnal things keep their distance from your hearts Keep you in the diligent exercise of all the acts of Christianity whereby your Communion with Christ is maintained let there be nearness to Christ in point of Conversation walk with Christ yea walk in Christ as the Expression is Col. 2.6 as ye have received Christ Jesus the Lord so walk in him Whilst others walk in the Flesh let Christians walk in the Spirit Walk in Christ both in Union with Christ living in the strength of Christ and in Conformity to Christ in all wel-pleasing before him Let no place be a place for you let no way be a way for you let no
company be company for you where Christ would not be pleased to find you Let no temper or frame of Spirit grow upon you but what Christ would be pleased to find you in Would Christ be pleased to find you among the vain company or vile ones of the Earth would Christ be pleased to find you in a careless senseless untoward jolly frothy or in a sower angry envious impatient temper keep you from such ways keep you from such company keep you out of such temptations have as little to do as possible with them Keep you out of vain and evil ways company and temptations and keep you on with life and vigour and power in the ways of Christ Let not your ways only please Christ but your walking in them do not be sluggs and drones and triflers in Christianity follow the Lord and follow him fully follow the Lord and let your Soul follow hard after him Be doing the Will of Christ and let your hearts stand compleat in all the Wills of Christ The most watchful diligent painful lively Christians these are they that keep nearest to the Lord. Friends be warned to keep you thus near to the Lord. The Lord calls you such Psal 148.14 A people near unto him Approve your selves to be such since the Lord hath made you near keep you near to him Live in Union and Communion with Christ in intimacy of Acquaintance with Christ and with all possible care that your whole course may be such as may be a walking worthy his great name and be well pleasing to him This is the way to keep you out of danger and whatever befalls you whilst you are thus walking in Christ you will be still near your remedy whilst you are near Christ he will not be far from you but will be ready to help and ready to comfort you You complain it may be every one of you that your hearts are out of order One cries O my heart what a proud heart it is another complains O mine heart it is a fretful peevish heart Another cries out O mine heart is an earthly worldly heart another O my heart is a sluggish slothful heart another O what shall I do mine heart is a dead and an hard heart why bring them all to the Physician Where be the diseased or distressed Souls among you what be you all well Is there no Soul disease upon you O there is never a one of you but have your Soul Distempers and sad ones too why come to your Physician for your cure If you were any of you sick of the Palsie or Dropsie Fever or Consumption and Christ stood here as of old every such diseased body would be thronging upon him come ye poor blind hardned Souls come lay your selves before the Lord and cry unto him Lord that mine eyes might be opened Lord that mine hard heart might be broken that my dead heart might be quickned Who ever of you hath a complaint to make hath a wound hath a disease or hath a weakness or discomfort come every one of you whatever ailes you come bring in all the lame and the blind and the diseased defiled and distressed hearts bring them in to the Physician come and lay them all at the feet of Christ Lord help me Lord heal me Lord wash me But be sure you come with a purpose to keep you by him when you come to him come unto Christ and he will heal you and then keep you by him and he will preserve you from Relapses into the same or a worse disease which if you wander from him again is like to come upon you 2. Keep under Christs Banner Keep to your Colours The Banner of Christ hath engraven upon it or his Colours bears upon it as his Coat of Arms the Covenant the Cross and the Crown with this Motto Pugnanti victoria vincenti Corona Victory to him that fights the Crown to the Conquerer The Covenant is for our union with Christ the Cross for our Trial the Crown for our Encouragement And here I shall give you three Directions 1. Let the Covenant be upon your hearts The Covenant is 1. For the strength of our hearts it notes our listing our selves under Christ as his Servants and Christs undertaking the conduct of us When we understand what we are engaged in what hard service we have bound our selves to what a painful active life as Christians we must count upon our hearts will be apt to fail us and cry out of the life of a Christian as the Apostle of the work of the Ministry 2 Cor. 2.16 Who is sufficient for these things I shall never be able to bear through such a life but then remember your Covenant your Baptismal Covenant I mean which doth not only engage you to the Lord but engageth the Lord to you Look to the Captain of your Salvation who hath bound himself to help you through who hath said Heb. 13.5 I will never fail you nor forsake you And then you shall be able to say with the Apostle Phil. 4.13 I can do all things through Christ that strengthens me Venture not on any thing in your own strength fear not nor be dismay'd at any thing whilst you have the Lord Jesus to be your strength Christians be not disheartned fear not to engage in the strictest and severest course of Christianity lean upon the Lord and he will help you through Set your hearts to the work and leave the care of Success to him that careth for you Remember this let your trust in Christ your hold on the Covenant be your strength on which you lean for the carrying you through the whole of your Christian course 2. This Covenant will be the guide of your hearts What is it that I have to do how is it that I must live why look into your Covenant what is it that you have engaged to do how is it that you have covenanted to live you have covenanted Holiness and Righteousness you have covenanted against an idle Life or doing nothing against a trifling life or doing your work by halfes against a worldly or fleshly or wicked life the World Flesh and Devil these you have all covenanted against You have covenanted the crucifying the Flesh and the World the resisting the Devil and to follow Christ against them all You have covenanted to fight against the Flesh and the World and to fight to the Victory not to be less fleshly than oth r men to be less worldly than other men but you have covenanted against a fleshly and worldly life Think not of carrying it fair with both of cutting out a middle way betwixt Christ and the World betwixt a fleshly and an heavenly life 't is a total victory over this flesh and this world over a fleshly and a worldly life which you have covenanted to pursue When ever you are at a stand and are in doubt as to any particular actions or way of life that you have before you and
are questioning whether you should go on or forbear why then examine would this be a serving my flesh or a serving the Lord determine that well and then your covenant would guide you whether to do or forbear Once let your hearts stand resolved to pursue the ends of your covenant to live such an holy such an heavenly such a mortified such a self-denying such a diligent life as you have covenanted to live and then your very hearts which are the records of your covenant your very hearts will teach you what you should do When your flesh at any time pleads with you for any abatement of the strictness of Christianity for any Liberty of compliance with the more remiss and loose amongst Christians and suggests to you not too far not too fast not too high in Religion drive on softly deal gently with thy flesh be not over rigid or severe to it be not over busie do not tire thy self at thy work take time take thine ease drive on as thy carnal interest and thy carnal inclinations can bear then read over your covenant and consider Is such a life according to the writeing that hath been agreed upon betwixt my Lord and me Is this cold and indifferent and easie way of Religion all that I have covenanted for well this is one thing if you would keep to your Colours keep to your Covenant 2. Take up your Cross upon your back This is your Lords word Mat. 16.24 Whosoever will come after me let him take up his Cross This will be the proof of what there is of Christ or Christianity in your hearts a sound heart will make a strong back He that loves much will bear any thing he whose heart is not cross-proof is an unsound Christian Your sinful shunning the Cross is your running from your Colours Christians some little Trials we have had some crosses we have met with but for ought I know the Lord may be preparing heavier crosses greater sufferings for you then ever you have been proved withal O be so busie a fortifying your hearts that you may never baulk your Christian course whatever cross may stand in the way I would not that we should needlesly run upon the cross when we may avoid it Sufferings may come fast enough without our pulling them upon our selves But this I would we might every one stand to resolve in the strength of the Lord to be never the less hearty Christians never the less holy never the less precise never the less zealous in the pursuit and practise of a sincere and exemplary Godly Life for any thing you may suffer for it from Men or Devils I do not barely say take up your cross rather then lay down your Christianity but take up your cross rather than lay down your bold Profession of Christianity take up your cross rather than lay down your zeal for Christ or turn aside from the closest and most resolved following of Christ Let the Cross neither make us of Christians to become no Christians no nor to be less Christians than we have seemed to be It hath been so in former ages that Christianity hath never improved nor thrived so much as under the sharpest and severest persecutions and why should it not be so still Look to your selves friends there is hazard that your Souls may suffer that you may be inward loosers by your over solicitousness to escape outward losses the Souls of many Professors may be losers and the Souls of some may be quite lost by the fears of the cross Look to your selves that this be none of your Cases that you be not loosers by persecutions especially take heed that you be not lost your Souls lost by them Be not persecuted from Christ be not persecuted to Hell let not the cross drive you ba k under the curse from which you hoped that you had escaped And that you may not be loosers do what you can to be gainers as other Christians have been before you If it grow to be winter without get you to be warmer within if the winds rise keep your garments the Closer about you Think not to make your peace with evil men by striking sail and following Christ more aloof but make your Peace with God more sure that you may be the more able to bear the reproaches of the World Be as the Stars that are never so bright as when the night is darkest Love one another help one another quicken and comfort and encourage one another so much the more for that the world hateth and goes about to hinder you and never think after all that hath been said about the governing and guarding the sanctifying and keeping your hearts that yet your hearts are right till you can hold fast your integrity and hold on your way in all changes of weather 3. Keep the Crown in your eye and let that word be ever in your ear Rev. 3.11 Hold fast what thou hast that no man take thy Crown Run from your Colours and you loose the Crown He that hath heaven in his eyes will not fear to have holiness in his life The hope of the victory will encourage in the fight the hope of the Crown will make the cross to be easie and make us faithful in the covenant Therefore Remember that word Rev. 2.10 Be thou faithful unto death and I will give thee a Crown of life Christians if you would not loose the Crown then be faithful be faithful to the death in the covenant of your Lord. Whatever difficulties or discouragements you may meet with in your way what ever hardships or tribulations may befal you if you can yet say with the Church Psal 44.17 18. Though all this be come upon us yet have we not forgotten thee neither have we dealt falsely in thy Covenant our heart is not turned back neither have our steps declined from thy way If you can but say this your Lord will say also to you whatever I have done or brought upon you yet I have not forgotten thee the Covenant of my peace shall never be removed Fight the good fight keep the faith till you have finiâ—hed your course and then know there is laid up for thee a Crown of Righteousness which I will surely give thee at that day 4. Carry up your hearts thither where your enemies can't come Carry them up to heaven whatever treasure you lay up there neither moth nor rust can corrupt nor theives break thorow and steal There 's no safety below the Theif will be every where upon you whilst you are conversant in the world walking after the flesh these are your enemies quarters your hearts are in the midst of them in the midst of those Thieves that seek your life whilst they are conversant about these fleshly things Yea whilst you are where God is in your Duties in Ordinances if your hearts be not above at such times if you feed only on what comes down if you ascend not in your Duties if