Hearts deceive them Sometimes even by the Good that is in them The Heart of Man can make a Snare of every Creature Condition Relation or Comfort can make a Net for Souls of the coursest or of the finest Thred can undo them by their Friends and by their Enemies by their Prosperities and by their Adversities by their Sins and their Rigthousness Where-withal may this Man be enticed to Sin to neglect Christ and his Soul Some Mens Hearts find that a Harlot will do it others that a drunken Companion will do it others that nothing but Gold and Silver will do it others that applause will do it some that Idleness others that Business some that Friends others that Enemies some that Prosperity others that Affliction will be the likeliest Temptations and accordingly it manages its deceiving work Our Hearts can deceive us by the best we have by our Vertues by our Duties by our Priviledges and this is often the most dangerous deceit The more generous the Wine in which thou receivest thy Poison the more deadly the Potion Some Hypocrites Hearts tell them they are sincere But how can they make them believe it Why if the Heart may not be believed for its own word the Word of God must be brought to witness this lye Doth not the Scriptures say Rom. 10.9 If thou confess with thy Mouth the Lord Jesus and believe in thy Heart that God raised him from the Dead thou shalt be saved And do not I believe the Resurrection of Christ from the Dead Do not I confess and acknowledg it I be ieve it with all mine Heart I confess it before all the World and therefore without doubt I am in a state of Salvation If this will not do but the Heart perceives there must be more in that belief than a notional Assent there must be more in that Confession than a verbal Acknowledgment than its Virtues and Duties and Priviledges its Prayers and Hearings and Alms its Sobriety and Temperance its keeping of Sabbaths and attending upon Ordinances must all be call'd forth to testifie Am not I of God Am not I in Christ Let my Prayers speak let mine Alms speak let my Temperance let my Patience let my Sabbaths speak whose I am I keep the Sabbath whilst others pollute it I hear whilst others forbear I pray and fast whilst others neglect both and therefore sure it must be well with me when yet it may be the Man is ignorant of the Spirit and a secret Enemy against the Power and Purity of Religion all the while I might multiply Instances of the several sorts of the Heart's deceivings and shew that there is nothing but in some way or other may be made use of to beguile us 3. Of what may our Hearts deceive us Even of all we have Of what did our first Parents Hearts deceive them Of their Portion in God and their place in Paradise Of what did Esau's Heart deceive him Of his Birth-right and the Blessing Of what did Sampson's Heart deceive him Of his Locks and of his Life Of what did that Fool 's Heart deceive him Luke 12.20 Of his Soul Isa 44.20 A deceived Heart hath turned him aside so that he cannot deliver his Soul You that believe your selves Saints are apt to think that what-ever you be deceived of yet your Souls are safe and therefore that you have no such need to Fear as other Men. But it may be you may be deceived in this and this very confidence That thy Soul is safe may prove its eternal loss But if you should come off at last with the Salvation of your Souls yet how many desperate hazards do you run of losing them by hearkning to these evil Hearts How much of your time do they steal away which was given you for the working out your Salvation How many Duties have they lost you how many Ordinances have they lost you which the Interest of your Souls could ill have spar'd What a dead and dark and carnal and loose Spirit hast thou sometimes been bewitched into wherein God hath been laid by Soul hath been forgotten Conscience hath been laid a-sleep and all care about the things of God hath been swallowed up of the cares of this Life Is it nothing to thee to be in such a case Doth it not grieve thee to think whither thou art fallen and art thou not afraid what the issue may be whether ever thy Soul may be lifted up out of this Pit whereinto it is sunk so deep in mud and mire But if thou should'st be ask'd now Friend how camest thou in hither who hath led thee into this Dirt who hath cast thee into this Pit May be thou wilt be ready to answer as Eve did The Serpent beguiled me in or as Adam did The Woman deceived me in thou wilt find some else to father thy Faults upon the Devil deceived me into this case the World deceived me in evil Company deceived me in Like enough they did But what could they all have done if thine Heart had not joyned with them The hand of Joab is in all this thine Heart is the Joab that hath dealt this subtilly and deceitfully with thee 1 Kings 22.20 Who will perswade Ahab saith the Lord that be may go up and fall at Ramoth Gilead I will go saith the Devil I will perswade him But where-with wilt thou perswade him I will be a lying Spirit in the Mouth of his Prophets Go up and prosper go up and prosper that shall be the word that shall do it There 's no fear of falling at Ramoth thou shalt prevail against thine Enemies and return a Conqueror If it shall be said in like manner who shall perswade this foolish Man to go on his evil wayes that he may fall and perish I will go sayes his Heart presently I 'le be the Devil to perswade him But wherewith wilt thou perswade him O I 'le be a lying Spirit within him I 'le make him believe he shall prosper and have peace in his way he shall not fall nor shall hurt come unto him Go sayes God to the Devil and take heed he sayes not so to that false Heart of thine Go thou shalt perswade and thou shalt prevail Thou shalt intice this idle Person thou shalt harden this vain or this careless Person and he shall hearken to thee he shall follow thee till he fall and perish Christians we have every one of us such an Heart as this that is too ready to go upon such a wretched Errand Have we not suffered much by it's treachery Hath it not often trip'd up our heels or turned us out of our way Hath it not betray'd us out of our Refuge and led us aside after lying vanities Though Grace hath been some security to us against it yet hath it not often been too hard for all the Grace we have Who is there of us that dares stand forth and say My Heart I hope is no such heart It is better than
the Apostle advises concerning the word of Exhortation Heb. 13.22 Suffer the Word of Exhortation will be much more needed here suffer the Word of Conviction It is a Word that will not be suffered by them that need it most The proud and stubborn heart either rises and swells and flings it back in the Preacher's Face or at least it builds a Fort against it sometimes a Fort of Unbelief I cannot believe my case is so bad and sometimes a Fort of Faith such a Faith as 't is I believe in Christ and therefore as wicked as I am through him I hope to be saved Friends give the Word a free passage let it have entrance into your Hearts and how hot work soever it makes there let it abide till it hath finished its Work Give it time hold upon thine Heart the sense of the misery and danger the Word hath brought thee to till the end be obtained The sharpest Plaister will not raise a Blister as soon as it 's clap'd on it must have time to work and though it smart it must be kept on till the work be done Some Foolish Patients if it put them to pain will tear it off and throw it away Sinner hath the Word smitten thee and cut thee to the heart hath it made thee raw and clap'd on a Plaister of Fire the sense of Wrath and Judgment Hath it made thee who once wert a strong confident and wouldst not suspect but thou wert in a safe and happy state hath it made thee now to feel the Wrath of God abiding upon thee Dost thou feel thy Peace broken thy Hopes and thy Carnal Confidence broken down Make them sure never let them be built again beware how thou ever recover to thy old Presumption again but hold that Fear upon thy heart till there be a. new and a sure Foundation laid upon which thou mayest be built up in hope of Eternal Life Some foolish Sinners when God hath discovered their unsoundness and afrighted them with those dreadful Consequents that they see running in upon them like a Flood their desires and endeavours are after present ease and quiet if they can make a shift to be at rest and at ease for the present however it may be with them here-after that 's all they look after they are more for hiding themselves from their Fears than from their Danger and glad they would be if they could but get them back into their former state wherein they felt no trouble nor fear'd any evil Some smitten Sinners that are pursu'd by the Terrors of the Lord will often do as the stricken Deer that 's hunted by the Dogs he 'l thrust himself if it be possible among the Herd that there the Dogs may lose him When the Word hath terrified a Sinner and Conscience dogs him at the heels so that he can be no-where at rest away he will into the Herd amongst his Companions with whom he was used to be merry in hope to forget his trouble his Carnal Friends will advise him and he 's ready enough to take their advice to try what he can do to drink away sorrow and laugh away all his trouble and this it may be may yeeld him a present relief yea and reduce him to a more secure and sensless state than ever before wherein he may abide and never know fear or trouble more till he be brought to the King of Terrors and all the evils he formerly feared be come upon him to the uttermost and he can no longer escape Beware of this folly Sinner Hath God convinced thee of thy Sin and thy Danger and pierced thy very Entrals with a sense of that Wrath that hangs over thy head Do not seek ease in any other way but by the removal of the cause of thy Fears Be not such a Child as to think of hiding thy self from danger by shutting thine eyes from seeing it 'T is a poor Cure of a Disease thy being laid to sleep that thou mayest feel no pain Beware of running into the Herd again for ease When God hath smitten thee wilt thou to the Devil for a Cure Keep thy Sore open and do not skin it over whilst the Core still remains within Sinner thou wert once far from fear or trouble thou couldst once follow the World and follow thy Sins and live in a constant neglect of God and thy Soul and nothing of all this troubled thee Is this the state thou wouldst return to Is it not safer to be a wounded than a secure Sinner an awakned than a sleeping Sinner Chuse rather to live in God's Fire than the Devils Mud in God's Purgatory than in the Devil's Paradise Wilt thou rather die of thy Lethargy than endure those cuttings and scarifyings which might save thy Life If thou art for ease whether it be to Life or Death or if thou wouldst purchase thy Peace on such terms as thine everlasting Ruine then return to thy secure Presumptuous State Objection But I have confidence in God and yet I hope I am not Presumptuous I have good grounds for my Confidence I have been convinced of my Sin I have believed in Christ and have joy and peace in believing and by the Grace of God do now go on my way rejoycing in hope of everlasting Salvation Answer 1. But hast thou examined the grounds of thy Confidence whether they be sound or not Hast thou put thy Faith to the Tryal whether it be indeed the Faith of God's Elect What enquiry hast thou made into that change that is made upon thee Thou mayest examine and yet be unsound Examination is a means to discover sincerity but no mark to prove it But dost thou not examine and yet conclude thy self sound Darest thou trust thine heart without trying it What is Presumption if this be not to conclude thy self to be what thou never provedst whether thou art or not though self-examination be no mark of sincerity yet non-examination is a shrewd sign of Hypocrisie 2. Dost thou never suspect thy self to be unsound Does thine Heart never shake Art thou not sometimes afraid lest thy Confidence should deceive thee lest all thy Hopes and thy Joys should prove a Delusion Thy very being without Fear is ground enough to make thee afraid When we observe how far many have gone in the Profession of Religion to how high Attainments they have arrived what a face of Holiness hath appeared in their Lives and how great Peace and what raptures of Joy they have had in their Hearts and yet at last by their total Apostacy from Christ they have proved that they were all this while under a Delusion when we consider such sad Instances whereof we have seen so many what does this speak unto us but in the words of the Apostle Be not high-minded but fear Dost thou not yet Fear Sure I am afraid of thee I will not say how it may be with here and there one of the most grown and experienced Christians those of
343. at the beginning of l. 26. add the Figure 2 But the chief faults are in the paging viz. After p. 224. instead of 225. is 257. and after p. 320. is p. 305. and after p. 320 again is 337. But in the Book it self there is not any thing out of its proper place but all comes in in its order the only error herein being in the Figures of the Pages Godly Fear OR The Nature and Necessity of Fear and its Usefulness c. PROV 28.14 Happy is the Man that feareth alway YOU will not expect that I spend time in enquiring after the connection of these words with the foregoing or the following parts of this Chapter if you consider the Book in which they are found The Book of Proverbs wherein many precious Truths are laid and pack'd together but not connected together this Book being rather a Golden Mine than a Golden Chain The words of the Text are an entire Proposition which may be logically resolved into 1. A Subject the Man that feareth together with the Circumstances of time alway 2. An Attribute or something affirmed concerning this Man happy he is an happy Man For the opening of these words briefly Happy or blessed or as it is in the Original O the blessedness O how blessed he is a very happy Man the Man that feareth that is say some The Man that feareth all the evil that is before him the misery that is before him the danger that he is in Say others The Man that feareth God according as it 's express'd Prov. 23.17 that is in the fear of God all the day long Others that walks cautelously and warily Qui prospicit ne quid temerè aggrediatur nec absque debitâ deliberatione consilio sollicitè cavens ne quid boni omittat nec in malum ruat He that walks with Counsel and Care that he neglects not his Duty nor fall into danger Put all these Interpretations into one and you have the full sense of the words He that walking under an awe and reverence of God and a sense of the danger he is in wisely and warily orders his steps that he be not surprized by Sin or by Wrath. Alway The Caldee renders it Omnia that feareth all things that feareth himself his Eyes his Ears his Tongue his Table his Estate his Business his Company his Friends and his Enemies that is as far forth as they may be Inlets or Instruments or Temptations to Sin and so may expose him to danger But the word is alway that feareth at all times that is never secure The Doctrine that I shall hence insist upon is this Doct. A Life of Holy Fear is a Blessed Life In the opening hereof I shall more particularly enquire 1. What that Fear is to which Blessedness is pronounced 2. What that Blessedness is which is pronounced to this Fear In the handling whereof I shall together give in the proof of the Doctrine 1. What that Fear is to which Blessedness is pronounced There is a Fear that is our weakness As 1. the Fear of the faint-hearted a natural pusillanimity or cowardize there are such weak Spirits in whom every little danger or but the shadow of a danger shakes their Hearts and puts them into anxieties and disquiets In what perpetual bondage do some timerous Spirits live how restless are their hearts like the troubled Sea that cannot be at rest every little gust raises a storm In what a daily and hourly succession of vexing disquiets do they live 2. The Fear of the Scrupulous about some supposed moral Evils which concern their practice who through weakness of Understanding or the abounding of Melancholy do often fancy that to be Sin which is no Sin and thereby fright themselves off from the use of their Liberty and sometimes from their very Duty Every Morsel that they eat every Garment that they wear they are afraid lest it be too much or too good or too fine c. and thereby scruple themselves out of their convenient Food and all comely Apparel Some poor Melancholick Christians dare not pray for fear of taking the Name of God in vain dare not come to the Table of the Lord at all for fear of coming unworthily In this Fear there is a mixture of Good and Evil there 's something Good an aversion from Sin and tenderness of running into it and there 's something evil a sinful mistake counting that evil which is not evil as we may not call Evil Good so neither may we call Good Evil this weakness as it is evil so it is mischievous too it leads us into Sin we may sometimes sin for fear of Sin and it brings us into Bondage we may say concerning this fear of Sin as the Apostle doth concerning the fear of Death Heb. 2.15 There are some who through fear of Sin are all their life time subject to Bondage Of the two it 's much a less evil than the other extream better a scrupulous Conscience than a dissolute Conscience better strain at a Gnat than swallow a Camel there 's less danger in being frighted at a Bug-bear than not afraid of a Bear whatever there be in Nicety it 's a vertue in comparison of Licentiousness yet this Fear this groundless mistaken Fear is an evil and to be suppressed There is a Fear which is Mens great wickedness a Fear of Religion and Righteousness a Fear of the Labours and Severities of Religion and of those Sufferings it may expose them to Sometimes Men Fear the Yoke of Christ they dare not be his Disciples his Yoke they doubt will be too heavy for their Necks To be tied up so short from every Sin from all their Carnal Liberties and Pleasures to be held so close to painful Duty and to such constant Duty the foresight of it scares them back from Christ they dare not be his Disciples I would be a Christian but I am afraid how I shall ever be able to bear his Yoke But mostly they Fear the Cross of Christ they have heard what Christ expects Matth. 16.24 If any will come after me let him take up his Cross and they see that it so falls out that no sooner is the Yoke taken upon the Neck but the Cross is presently laid on upon the Back He that will be a sincere Christian must be a suffering Christian All that will live godly in Christ Jesus must suffer Persecution 2 Tim. 3.12 Must they so Then serve Christ who dare for me They dare not be Followers of the Lamb for fear of being a prey to the Wolves There is a Fear which is Mens Punishment the Fear of the Guilty a guilty Heart is a terror to it self a Magor-missabib Fear round about and makes almost every thing else a terror to it Prov. 28.1 The wicked flee when no Man pursues his guilt still dogs him at the heels the terrors of the Lord fall on him and horror and astonishment take hold of him All these Fears are
there can be nothing whether Good or Evil that can be hid from his Eyes If there be a God he is Almighty able to save and to destroy As his Eye will find out so by his Power he can revenge all ungodliness and wrong If there be a Judg one that is Holy Righteous All-seeing and Almighty if there be a Judg then there shall be a Judgment wherein every Man must give an account of himself and receive the reward of his doings whether they be good or evil Rom. 2.6 2 Cor. 5.10 'T is Mens Atheism that lies at the bottom of their Security in sinning The Devil would have found it hard work to have fill'd the World with so much wickedness if he had not first filled it with Atheists and Infidels Sinner how is it that thou darest be as thou art and live as thou dost How canst thou eat or drink or sleep for very fear Dost thou not see how much wickedness thou compassest thy self about withal What are thy Sins but so many Devils or worse and art not thou afraid of the Devil Whether thou art or no Remember that there is a God Can that Holy One but hate such a Beast as thou art Does not the All-seeing One see thee will not his Eye find thee out Will not the Almighty one be too strong for thee Art thou stronger than he and able to stand it out against him Is there not a Judg to sit upon thee before whose Bar thou must be brought forth to answer for all thine ungodliness Shall not the Judg of all the Earth do right Will he either destroy the Righteous with the wicked or will he spare the wicked with the Righteous There is a God Sinner there is a God believe and fear The belief of the very being of a God would make Sin to be feared But what will the belief of what God hath said The Word of God hath more plainly and fully declared beyond what might be gathered out of the bare notion of a God what the Sinners of the Earth must expect to receive from his hands Why what is it that the Lord hath spoken Search the Scriptures that 's a Book as to impenitent Sinners like Ezekiel's Roll Ezek. 2.10 Written all over with Lamentations Mourning and Wo. Herein is the Wrath of God revealed from Heaven against all ungodliness and unrighteousness of Men Rom. 1.18 Who hath appointed a day wherein he will judg the World Acts 17.31 Who will appear in flaming Fire rendring vengeance on them that know not God and obey not the Gospel of our Lord Jesus Christ Who shall be punished with everlasting destruction from the Presence of the Lord and from the Glory of his Power 2 Thess 1.8 9. Who shall be cast into the Lake of Fire Rev. 20.15 These and many more like words are written against Sinners in the Scriptures of God O were this Word believed that it is indeed the Word of God O were this God believed that he is not as Man that he should lye or as the Son of Man that he should repent but will certainly perform and do according to all things that are written in this Book This would make the stout-hearted to faint and the strong Sinner to bow down at his Feet But because of Mens unbelief therefore the Hearts of the Sons of Men are fully and fearlesly set in them to do evil O what Mettal are believing Sinners hearts made of What dost thou believe the Scriptures and yet not afraid to transgress Believest thou that God resists the Proud and yet does not thy Pride make thee afraid Believest thou that by thy lying and covetousness and oppression or but by thy vain life thy walking after the flesh and fulfilling the lusts thereof thou art treasuring up Wrath for thy self against the Day of Wrath and yet darest thou go on canst thou be quiet and secure Sure that heart of thine is a very stone within thee One would think it were not possible for such Sinners as believe the Scriptures but we should find them all fallen upon their Faces smiting upon their Thighs shivering and quaking for fear of the Wrath of God and the Judgment of the Great Day But canst thou hold up thine Head and keep on thy way and mock at Fear Sure either thy Belief is Unbelief thou believest not what thou thinkest thou dost or else thy heart is as the nether Milstone 3. Another Reason why Men Fear not is their Presumption As Mens Unbelief so some Mens Belief is the Reason why they do not Fear Presumption is Belief without a Bottom an House built upon the Sand a Spider's Web spun out of their own Hearts strong confidence founded on the weakness of a conceit or the belief of a lye This Presumption may be either 1. Of the goodness of Mens present State Or 2. Of the happiness of their future State what-ever their present State be 1. There is a Presumption of the goodness of their present State It is some Mens unhappiness that they believe themselves to be happy their great danger that they believe themselves to be out of danger Some Unbelievers and impenitent Sinners take themselves to be Believers and Converts to Christ some that are the Children of Hell believe themselves to be the Children of God This was the case of those Jews John 8.39 who said with great confidence Abraham is our Father we are the Children of Promise and vers 41. We have one Father even God What-ever thou accountest us we are the Children of God And this Confidence Men sometimes grow up unto upon little search or examining whether it be so or no. Nay it may be the Reason is their not examining at all how 't is with them Their case may be so extreamly bad and unsound that a very little search would break down all their confidence There are multitudes that are perswaded 't is well with them upon no other ground but because they cannot tell how bad 't is with them and therefore they understand not their misery and danger because they never search'd nor look'd into themselves nor ever spent a serious thought about the state of their Souls It is a wonderful thing that Men can so easily satisfie themselves in so great a case as multitudes do Let a Minister of Christ come to deal with such Persons let him go from House to House from Man to Man amongst the rude and ignorant Multitude how far may he go how many may he enquire of e're he meet with one that is so much as in doubt but all is well Let him ask How is it with your Soul what hope have you in God Why I doubt not but by the Grace of God my condition is good I hope in God all is well with me Let him go farther and ask But are you not mistaken are you sure you are not No I do not question but by the Grace of God my Soul is in a good condition Let him
yet enquire What ground and reason can you give of the hope that is in you and it may be all the answer that will be given amounts to no more than this I hope because I hope I am perswaded because I am perswaded my Mind gives me so mine Heart tells me so I can have no other thought but that it is well and shall be well with me There 's many a Man that 's like unto that Man pointed out Deut. 29.19 who though he heareth the words of God's Curse blesseth himself in his heart saying I shall have peace though I walk in the imaginations of mine own heart Though God speaks never a good word though the Scriptures speak never a good word of such though God curses such a Man yet his own heart blesses him Though God sayes to him Thou Fool thou Belial thou Infidel thou Child of the Devil yet not a word is heard from his own heart but an honest Man a good Christian and a Child of God There is sometimes to be found a poor trembling Christian whom the Devil sets a cursing himself when God doth bless him that calls himself Hypocrite Unbeliever a Cast-away and Reprobate from God though God calls him Beloved and highly favoured and so there is that blesses himself whom God hath cursed It 's vain to tell him Thus saith the Lord or to bid him search the Scriptures hearken to what the Lord God will speak or to say to him as Jehoshaphat to the King of Israel 1 Kings 22.7 enquire of the Prophet of the Lord. Doth God his Scriptures his Ministers speak any good concerning thee It 's vain to speak thus to him Thus saith mine heart is more with him than Thus saith the Lord. Thus my mind gives me is enough to make him dis-believe the God of Truth he will rather make God a lyar than not believe his lying heart Consider this Sinners whether this be not your case God sayes The Ignorant the Unbelievers Liars Swearers the evil Workers and Impenitent are the Children of the Devil and shall never inherit the Kingdom of God And yet thou though thou canst not say but that thou art ignorant impenitent an evil worker given up to thy hearts lusts and hardned in thy way wilt not be perswaded but thou art a Child of God God sayes thou art none of his and thou wilt still say thou art to his Face Just thus was it with those Jews afore-mentioned John 8.44 Christ tells them to their Faces Ye are of your Father the Devil and proves it to them for saith he The Lusts of your Father ye do and you are just like your Father he was a Murtherer from the beginning and a Liar and the Father of it and what else are you And yet behold the confidence of the Men No we are Abraham's Seed and the Children of God Sinner who-ever thou art that art doing the Lusts and working the Works of the Devil Christ speaks this very word to thee which he here spake to those Jews Thou art of thy Father the Devil If yet thou sayest I hope not God is my Father and I am his Child there is that Presumption that may keep thee from fearing till thou too late feel the Wrath of God seizing upon thee This Presumption that 't is so well with thee already that if it be possible I may make thee afraid of that which keeps thee from fear know for a certain it will endanger so to hold thee in thy wretched state that 't is never like to be better with thee than ' t is This is it which hardens thee against Counsels and Reproofs slights the tenders of Mercy and out-faces the terrors of the Lord this shuts up thine Ears and thine Heart against the word of Reconciliation and does non-plus all the importunities of the Ministers of the Gospel Let them bid thee believe thou art a Believer already Let them command thee to repent Thou hast done it let them warn thee to flie from the Wrath to come and this is all the Fruit thou tellest them thou art already passed from Death to Life The confidence that thou art well enough already is like to make the Preaching of Christ to be of none effect to thee And because this is such a brazen Wall as keeps Christ and Grace out of the Heart and resists and repels all those Arguments which the Word makes use of to perswade to Christ and Life I shall make some batteries upon it as I pass along The first step to Conversion is Conviction Conviction is Presumption broken down and the breaking in of that Fear which makes way for Faith There are in Conviction these three things 1. Illumination 2. Redargution 3. Consternation 1. Illumination the enlightning of the Mind the opening of Sinners eyes and making their Sin and the danger that it exposes to known unto them the convincing Spirit brings the Commandment before them by which is the knowledg of Sin Rom. 7.7 and vers 9. When the Commandment came Sin revived and appeared to be Sin and exceeding sinful vers 13. It could be no longer hid nor any longer be look'd on as a light thing but a very dreadful thing to be a Sinner the truth is we none of us know Sin as it is some Light hath broken in upon our Hearts but 't is but little in comparison and thereupon we can be venturous so far upon it and too easily go out with it and lick our selves whole when we have sinned but if we knew the Heart and the Tail of this Scorpion what malignity there is in it and what comes after 't would make us tremble and take heed When the Spirit of the Lord brings the Commandment to us and layes Sin by that 't will look with another face than now it does 2. Redargution The Spirit of God not only shews what Sin is and what a fearful thing it is to be under Sin but withal proves and demonstrates to Sinners what-ever their confidence hath been of the contrary that they are under Sin when the Commandment hath done its work to discover Sin and the evil of it then Conscience is brought forth to do its work to witness the Sinner guilty Hast thou not sinned let Conscience speak does not thine own Heart tell thee of thy Lying and of thy Swearing and of thy Coveting and of thy company-keeping and a World more of such evils that thou hast lived in And hast thou ever been purged from thy Sins hast thou repented and turned from thy evil Wayes thou knowest thou hast not thou art in love with Sin in a league with Sin and livest to this hour in the practice and under the power of it Is this the Man that hath been so confident of the goodness of his state whose heart hath blessed him and promised him that no evil shall befal him What a Sinner and yet at peace What an impenitent Sinner and yet so confident thou shalt have peace Thou must
the Devil what harm will it be to take his Money or his Pleasure Why this may be the case In all those little things as thou countest them there may be poison in the Cup there may be the Devil in the Company the Pleasures that are before thee the Money that is before thee these may be the price the Devil is offering thee for thy life May it be so I but I do not think 't is so my Soul may be safe enough for all that why therefore fear that there may be such danger and you never know or suspect it Nay this Devil lies still in wait not only in those places and wayes which look like suspicious places and suspicious ways but he 's every-where at hand even where he is least suspected When could Men think themselves more secure from the Devil than when they are with God in Duties and Ordinances But doth he never meet them there Hath the Devil never met thee in thy Closet or in the Congregation of the Lord How is it at this very hour Now that we are come together before the Lord now that the Lord is instructing us and warning us of the danger we are in Is there not one standing behind and out of sight either stealing away your hearts from minding the Warnings or else contradicting the Word of the Lord Come ccme these are but words and conceits the Devil is far enough off thou art in no such danger of him are there no such whisperings in none of your ears at this time Why whose Voice is this you little think whose 't is 'T is the Devil that thus speaks to the end you may lose this Warning and so he may have his advantage upon you Lord open the eyes of these Men to use that Prayer for you which the Man of God did for his Servant 2 Kings 6.17 So the Lord opened his eyes and he saw all the Mountains full of Angels Chariots of Fire and Horses of Fire If God should so open our eyes I trust we should see this House full of the Angels of God ministring to us but withal we should see this House full of Devils attempting to mischief us a Devil at every Ear a Devil at every Heart trying his skill to stop the one and harden the other from receiving this Word of the Lord. We are never an one of us more secure than Joshua the High-Priest of whom we read Zech. 3.1 That when he was standing before the Lord Satan stood at his right hand to resist him You 'l say again it may be you do not think 't is so why therefore Fear that the Devil should be so near and so busie with you and you neither understand nor will believe it though it be told you Such Ignorance is cause enough of Fear If any of you should have been told ten or twenty years ago how the Devil would serve you how he would hinder any word of Counsel or Instruction from prospering with you how he would hold you under this Ignorance of God and hardness and impenitence of Heart you would have been like enough to answer I hope not I hope to get more of the knowledg of God I hope God will bring me to Repentance one time or other I hope his Word will prosper with me And yet you see how 't is he hath sufficiently plaid the part of a Devil with you you were not so blind or so dead or so hard in your hearts many years ago but you are every way as bad or worse at this day and because you had not this foresight to discern that thus it might be had you not the more reason to Fear it would be so And what say you now as to the time to come If it should be said unto you at this day He that hath dealt thus by you hitherto will be like enough to deal as bad or worse by you to the end of your dayes so that you shall never be brought to Repentance nor ever recover your selves out of the snares of the Devil will you yet again say I hope not I fear it not that very word is enough to make you tremble If the God of this World had not blinded your Minds he could never have thus hardned your Hearts If you that have known Christ and have been in Christ many years ago If some of you should have been told that if you look'd not the better to it the Devil would meet you at the very threshold of Christianity and hold you there from making any farther entrance in would keep you Babes and Infants in the Grace of God that he would keep you all this time so weak in the Faith so cold in your Love so barren in your Life that all this while you should have gotten no more victory over this World and the fleshliness of your Minds and Hearts nor no more intimate acquaintance with God and your own Souls than some of you have at this day If when you had been told you were in danger of being serv'd thus If you had then answered I do not Fear it I should have made bold to tell you You do not know what a Devil he is with whom you had to do and now that you may know him better by observing how he hath dealt by you hitherto you will at length I hope learn to Fear What if the Devil should now appear to you in some bodily monstrous shape would it not fright you Why you may see his foot though you do not see his face you may see him in what he hath done in his temptations of you and the unhappy success of them upon you in that ruinous state your Souls are hereby in and surely Friends to those that understand him The Devil in a secret temptation is more formidable than the Devil in an Apparition the prints of his Hoofs are a more dreadful sight than the Horns of his Head 2. Another reason why we should Fear is because of the deceitfulness of our Hearts What-ever our dangers are from without what-ever designs or devices the Devil or the World have against us yet if all were true within us if our Hearts were true to us our hazard were not so great but saith the Prophet Jer. 17.9 The Heart of Man is deceitful above all things So that we may not only say with the Prophet Micah 7.5 Trust ye not in a Friend put not confidence in a Guide but with Solomon also Prov. 28.26 He that trusteth his own Heart is a Fool. The deceitfulness of the Heart stands 1. In its Treachery 2. In its Subtilty 1. In its Treachery The Heart of a Man is false to it self it is like the Devil a lying Spirit there is no believing it what-ever it speaks It 's full of all guile and will if left to it self betray it self into the hands of its Enemies 2. In its Subtilty It is a crafty Heart it hath many plots and devices to deceive Prov. 19.21 There are
to deal thus with me I dare trust it it is a plain and honest heart there 's no deceit or guile found in it Is there ever a one of you that dare say thus What complaints are there every-where heard against it even amongst the best of Christians But O what do Sinners hearts deceive them of What a price is there in Sinners hands if they had an heart to it There 's the Blessed Gospel before them exhibiting Christ and Pardon and Life to them they have the Scriptures before them they have Sabbaths and Ordinances amongst them but behold they can make nothing of them The Gospel is opened and yet it is hid from them Christ is preached but 't is not accepted by them they can live ander the preaching of the Word be conversant at Prayers Fasts Sacraments a whole Age together and get nothing by them they can dwell by the Wells of Salvation and get not one drop of Water live by the richest Mines and get not a dust of Silver walk in the Sun-beams and see never a gleam of Light come into the Store-houses and yet starve for want of Bread can get neither Grace nor Knowledg but remain blind and dead under all that Light that hath shined unto them But how is it Sinner that it 's thus with thee Whom hast thou to blame but thine own Heart This hath been telling thee either that thou hast no need of Christ or his Grace or that thou hast time enough before thee or else hath diverted thee from giving heed to the Word of Life by finding thee so much other work to do and hereby thou seest how it hath left thee It hath hitherto lost thee a Christ lost thee a Gospel lost thee Sabbaths and Ordinances and is just losing thee thy Soul This Heart is it that would not suffer thee when thou hast been commanded to accept of Christ or deliver thy self up to him Any else that comes to demand it thy Soul is presently delivered up Let Lust come and require Deliver up thy Soul to me Let thy Companions come and demand Deliver up thy self to us Let the World or let the Devil demand Deliver up thy Soul to me let me have the rule and the government of it and up thou resignest it presently any but Christ may have thee for asking Will the Men of Keilah deliver me up said David once 1 Sam. 23.11 Will they Lord or may I trust my self with them Trust them not sayes God they will deliver thee up Dost thou ask will mine Heart deliver me up deliver me up to Lust or to the World or the snares of the Devil or may I trust it Trust it not it will deliver thee up But to Christ it will not deliver thee up It will be telling thee that Christ is an austere Man and thou shalt find him an hard Master 't will shew thee the Yoke and the Cross How severe is his Government how short his Allowance how hard will be the usage thou must expect of him or for his sake And thereupon it will suggest how much it doth befriend thee in refusing to deliver thee up to him It will never tell thee of thy need of Christ of the gain that will come in by him thou must not be suffered so much as to think of that if thou turn aside at any time to commune with him or to look within the Vail where his Treasures lie it calls thee off presently or throws in the World its Cares or its pleasures upon thee to thrust out and turn thee aside from all such thoughts lest he should gain thy consent and good liking Thus thine Heart hath serv'd thee all thy dayes so that hitherto thou wilt none of Christ and thus 't is like to serve thee to the end of thy dayes till there be no Christ nor Mercy nor Salvation to be had for ever And thus have I given you a short hint of the deceitfulness of the Heart and is not such an Heart to be feared Is such an Heart to be trusted an Heart that will deceive you about every thing that you are concern'd to mind about matters past present and to come that will neither let you consider what you have done nor know what you are nor think what 's like to become of you herafter that will deceive you by every thing you have to do withal that can make every Relation every Companion every Condition every Comfort every Cross every Creature a Gin and a Trap to take your Souls that will deceive you of all that ever you have that like those Locusts and Caterpillars the Plagues of Egypt will not leave any green thing in you that will deceive you of your selves of your lives of that Christ of that Gospel which is all you have for Eternity that will lie at you every day every hour as Delilah at Sampson to betray you into the hands of the Philistines and cast you into the eternal Prison Have you such an Heart have every one of you such an Heart have you prov'd by so long experience what mischief it hath done you already and yet not afraid O Christians let us get more acquaintance with these Hearts of ours if we do not fear them 't is because we know them no better Let us observe them daily at their work what colours and fair pretences they have to palliate and lead unto Sin what shifts and excuses they make for the neglect of Duty what delayes and puttings off from the minding our necessary and most weighty concerns and what wiles and devices they have to lull us and hold us fast asleep whilst our opportunities of obtaining Mercy steal by us and are lost Know this Heart of thine more thorowly and then tell me if thou dost not fear it If there be an Absalom in the Court a Sheba in the City a Judas in the Company a Thief in the House is there not cause of fear Thou hast a Judas in thy Breast a Thief in thy Bosom thou hast not an Heart within thee if thou hast not a mortal Enemy that seeks thy life As I said before so I say again Study and observe your Hearts more believe the Truth of what hath been said or if you will not believe your Ears believe your own Eyes believe your Experiences and Observations if you have been so wise as to make any Observations upon your selves Indeed that 's the reason why we are so hard to believe our Hearts are so bad because we have no more observed them Have you observed have you considered how they have dealt with you Who is it that hath kept you back from Christ and short of the Grace of God or at least Who is it that hath kept you so low and so barren and such aa ill Steward of that Grace which you have received has not thine own Heart had the great hand in it Be not deceived it is the same Heart still and is like to take the
not but in doing mischief 2. The Devil loves to dwell where he may be at rest That is not from Work his Work is his rest but from Resistance or Opposition In carnal and unclean Hearts the unclean Spirit may be at rest there 's nothing to disturb or give him disquiet He may dwell at ease and rule and domineer at pleasure Nay if he please he may be at rest not only from Opposition but from Work too he may take up such Habitations for his Houses to sleep in his Work goes on whether he wakes or sleeps Wicked Hearts do the Devil's Work to his hand he may save himself much of his labour they will run on to Death and Hell without the Devils driving them Foolish Sinners are apt to think themselves secure from the Devil they live in I constant calm and find no such buffetings and blusterings of the Devil upon them as some of the Saints do but are in quiet and at peace and thereupon are confident there 's no Devil near them But stay Friends not so confident cast an eye upon Luk. 11.21 there you may read When a strong Man armed keepeth the House his Goods are in peace It is not because the Devil is not near you that you hear no more of him but because he hath you sure enough and needs not keep a stir to make you surer Do but offer to depart and make an escape give but a shake at his Yoke to get it off and get you away towards Christ and then you shall find whether the Devil be at hand or no. He is at rest in thee Sinner and that 's the reason thou hearest no news nor noise of him he hath thee safe enough or else thou shouldst be sure to find he were not far off from thee Seeking rest and findeth none He goes through these dry places from Saint to Saint from Heart to Heart in hope to find entertainment but is still disappointed Here 's little rest for me to be had these dry places I see are no place for me Here 's such watching and wrestling and warring against me such jealouses and suspicions of me so much praying and complaining against me that thre's no stay for me here This whether it be the Truth of the Text or no I will not peremptorily determine but a certain Truth it is The Devil seeks entertainment in the Saints but cannot find to his mind Then he saith I will return to mine House from whence I came out Well I see there 's no hope of rest for me here but I know whither I may go and be welcome I 'le back to my old Habitation And when he is come he findeth it empty swept and garnished A little cleaner and handformer than when he left it the Devil can allow Sinners a little Reformation But though it be a little cleaned and garnished yet it lies empty still there 's no other Tenant hath taken it up though the Devil went out yet Christ was not let in but there it lies void for the next that comes Then goeth he and taketh seven other Spirits more wicked than himself and they enter in and dwell there and the last state of that Man is worse than his first Beware of a returning Devil the Devil at his return often makes seven-sold worse work than before he did Friends it may be there be some among you in whom the unclean Spirit hath been ruling and spurring and riding you post on upon all manner of wickedness Drunkenness Whoredom Swearing Cursing and all manner of Abominations But at present it may be he is for a season departed and hath a little with-drawn from you and now you are grown more sober and temperate and chast much reformed of what you once were you are swept and garnished you have laid by your former profaneness and taken up the Profession of Religion and put on a Form of Godliness there is a better face upon you and upon your wayes and now you think all 's well you are become new Men and your state is happy But do you not stand empty still Hath Christ taken up these Hearts for his own Habitation If the Unclean Spirit be gone out is the Holy Spirit come in How much soever you are Reformed of what you have been are you transformed by the renewing of your Mind Are you not only garnished with common Grace but are you furnished with special Grace Is Christ within you If not O take heed the Devil may come about again and make his re-entry upon you and then you have not been so wicked heretofore but you may become seven times more vile and your latter end may be worse than your beginning Beloved I hope and am perswaded that there are divers among you from whom through the abundant Grace of God towards you the unclean Spirit is not only withdrawn but cast out that you are not only a little overly swept and garnished but established in the Grace of God I hope and believe that there are many here in whom the Holy Spirit hath gotten such footing that the Devil shall never come in again to set up his Throne or take up his Rest in you But yet I warn you especially the younger Professors among you to maintain a Godly Jealousie of your selves and to fear how it may be with you Now Friends consider what hath been said Are there Preparations for Grace which yet are no Grace Are there Images of Grace which yet are no Grace And may they be so well like that they are often taken to be the same May you have many Properties of Sincere Christians and yet be no Christians May all you have of them go back and come to worse than nothing Believe this and see if it work not fear in you Objection But is this the Work of a Minister of the Gospel to fill poor Christians Heads and Hearts with Doubts and Fears The Word of the Gospel is a Word of Peace a comforting Word and that 's the charge laid upon the Ministers of the Gospel Isa 40.1 2. Comfort ye comfort ye my People speak ye comfortably to Jerusalem cry unto her that her Iniquity is pradoned And the poor People of God have need enough to be comforted they have fears enough from the World and their own evil Hearts and do you make Christ to be the Minister of fear to them also Our Doubts are our Sins our Fears are our Infirmities and do you go about to nourish our Diseases The Word of Christ is the Food of Souls and 't is but poor feeding for Christ's Sheep to feed them with Fear Solution 1. All are not Christ's Sheep that are found in Sheeps Clothing the Devil hath some Goats in Christ's Fold All are not Israel that are of Israel Rom. 9.6 And whilst it is really a question whether thou be not one of the Devil's Goats he does thee no harm that puts thee in fear whether thou be or no. This fear is not to
in particular that he is our Prophet and Teacher sent to us from God to shew us the path of life that he is our Priest and Sacrifice that he is our King and Ruler A knowledge of the conditions that he imposes and the Laws he gives to them that will be his Disciples and that expect salvation by him as to believe and obey the Gospel to repent and be converted These things must be first distinctly known otherwise in consenting to Christ we do we know not what we subscribe to a blank Our close with Christ must be an understanding close otherwise it signifies nothing This being premised I shall now shew 1. That our consent to Christ notes our approving and good liking of Christ Therefore we read that Peter in his Preaching Christ to the Jews that he might Preach them to Christ endeavours first to gain their approbation of him and that he might be approved of them he tells them that he was approved of God Act. 2.22 Ye men of Israel here these words Jesus of Nazareth a man approved of God among you by signs and miracles If he could not have assured them of Gods approbation of him there had been little hope of gaining their approbation and if he had not their approbation there had been no hope of their acceptance The same Apostle tells us 1 Pet. 2.4 that he was disallowed of men and those that disallowed despised and rejected him He was to the Jews a stumbling block and to the Greeks foolishness 1 Cor. 1.23 But as for them that are called they had other manner of thoughts of him to them he is Christ the Power of God and the Wisdom of God They might have been invited long enough before they would have come if they had not been first perswaded that he is the Power and Wisdom of God Wilt thou consent unto Christ he must have thy approbation or he can never have thy consent There must be an approving and liking of his Person of his personal excellencies and worthiness to be embraced Men must be well satisfied both of his sufficiency that he is able to save to the uttermost those that come to God by him and of his faithfulness that he will do it He that is not satisfied that 't is safe venturing upon Christ will never be perswaded to it There must be an approving and good liking of his whole way of Salvation of all that he hath done of all that he hath suffered of all that he demands and requires in order hereto And as they must be able to say He hath done all things well so must they say also concerning what he requires Good is the Word of the Lord. What doth the Lord require will he be trusted will he be loved will he be obeyed will he have me for his servant my estate my time my strength my body my soul to be all at his Service Good is the Word of the Lord it is but right it should be so it 's best thus to be his 2. Our consent to Christ notes our accepting him Approving is not all he may be approved and yet rejected video meliora proboque c. there are who approve the things that are excellent and yet will not embrace them Rom. 2.18 there must be an accepting of Christ as well as an approving There is An assent to a Proposition and A consent to a Proposal 1. There is an assent to a Proposition As to instance in that of the Apostle 1 Tim. 1.15 Christ came into the world to save Sinners There may be an assent to this that this is a true saying and worthy of all acceptation which is short of accepting 'T is one thing to say I believe and am perswaded in my heart that Christ is a Saviour of Sinners and is worthy of all acceptation and another thing to say I accept him 2. There is a consent to a Proposal Christ is not only declared in the Gospel to be the Saviour of Sinners that chosen one that mighty one upon whom their help is laid but there is an offer made of this Jesus unto Sinners who are all invited to look unto him to come unto him and be saved Matth. 11.28 and also assured that whosoever come unto him and believe in him shall not be confounded 1 Pet. 2.6 In the Preaching the Gospel the Lord not only gives us this record concerning his Son that in him is Eternal life and that he that hath the Son hath life 1 Joh. 5.11 12. but withall makes this proposal to every Sinner wilt thou have this Jesus shall this Saviour be thy Saviour if thou wilt have him thou shalt Do not say now sure he is worth the having if redemption from death if everlasting life be worth the having then Christ is worth the having but say on wilt thou have him shall it be a match betwixt Christ and thy Soul shall he be thine and wilt thou be his Does thine heart say I will I accept I henceforth take him for mine own and will trust my self with him I put my life into his hands here my Soul shall pitch Upon this stone which is laid in Sion will I adventure all Does thine heart say to all this I will this is thy sincere consent to Christ provided that there be 3. A dedication and giving up the Soul to Christ. The matter that is to be consented to is not only that Christ be ours but that we be his Our consent that he should be ours is our taking him and our consent that we should be his is our giving our selves to him It is said of the Macedonian Christians 2 Cor. 8.5 they gave themselves to the Lord. This giving our selves to Christ hath in it the giving him The right of us The possession of us 1. The giving him the right of us He hath indeed a right to us already whether we give our selves to him or no he hath bought us and paid for us we are his by purchase 1 Cor. 6.19 20. Ye are not your own ye are bought with a price And yet though we be his already he expects that we give our selves to him he loves the claim by gift above that which comes only by purchase and therefore he requires Prov. 23.26 My Son give me thine heart Thou may'st say it is not mine to give what have I to give to the Lord All is his already I am his with all that I have The Father hath given all to the Son and he hath paid dear enough to purchase the Lordship of me Well though thou be his own already canst thou not say Take me then Lord take me as thine own 'T is more than rebellious Sinners will say though they be his by right yet they will rob him of his right and hold back his own from him They give themselves away from Christ to the Devil and to the World They might say to these when they demand give me thine heart it is not mine to give
3. That you may not fear the severities of Religion fear the severity of Christ against Irreligion Thou canst not bear the work of Righteousness but how wilt thou bear the wages of Unrighteousness if thou canst not be tied up so strait by the cords of his Discipline how wilt thou endure the chains of his indignation If the severities of his service be to thee a stumbling-stone the wrath of the Lamb will be a mill-stone if this stone fall upon thee it will grind thee to powder Matth. 21.44 Sinners let their tongues run at a wild rate I must have my ease I must have my liberty I was never in bondage and cannot now endure it to come under such a severe restraint But thou that professest thy self to be one of his Disciples wilt thou say as these say I cannot bear it I cannot endure it Canst thou burn what thinkest thou of the everlasting severity Consider what thou dost either submit to Christs Pastoral Rod or fall for ever under his Iron Rod wherewith he will crush thee to pieces like a Potters Vessel Why is this the case must I bow or burn must I come under his Government or be ground under his Milstones O I have done no more reasoning with flesh and blood no more picking quarrels with Religion whatever there be in it I dare not but submit to it all for fear a worse thing come unto me Well but wilt thou submit then wilt thou set thine heart to all his words wilt thou set thy Neck to all his works This is the third thing now I exhort you to follow after Severity and strictness in the wayes of the Lord which because it hath something more of asperity and roughness in it than those that follow there will be so much the more need of Fear to bring us to it 4. Simplicity Severity may be in Hypocrisie the Scribes and Pharisees were severe severe in their Fasts disfiguring their faces looking with sad and dejected countenances severe in the observation of the Rites Customs and Traditions of their Fathers yea and of the Letter of the Law of God there were very strict sects of them Act. 26.5 and yet they were Hypocrites Simplicity notes The Heart in our work Singleness of heart 1. Simplicity notes Heartiness in our Work nothing is plain and honest but that which is hearty doing the Will of God from the heart Ephes 6.6 Ye have obeyed from the heart Rom. 6.17 My Son give me thy heart Prov. 23.26 What is it to give God the heart This is one thing comprehended in it to give him the heart for a servant or to serve him with the heart He that gives God the heart gives him the best he hath and gives him all he hath the heart will command the tongue and the hands and the time and the Estate to be all at his service which way the heart goes all goes Serving the Lord with the heart is serving him in good earnest we do but play with duty we do but mock God where the heart is not 't is only serving him in spirit that is serving him in truth Friends be real and in good earnest in what you doe let all your Religion come deep let your Prayers and your Prayses and all the exercising your selves to Godliness of life be the streamings and issuings forth of your hearts to the Lord. Whatever you doe do it heartily as unto the Lord. Serve the Lord as you have been used to serve your flesh in good earnest What you have done for your Estates what you have done for your Names or for your safety you have done it heartily and shall that only which we do for God and for our Souls be done without an heart what is God what are our Souls and the concernments of them that they should be thus put off Is this heartless service all that God is worthy of will he accept it at our hands or is it no matter whether he accept it or no Is this spiritless service answerable to the worth of our Souls and the weight of Eternity will you venture all upon shadowes and lyes Are we but in Jest when we talk of a God or a Christ or a World to come Are our hopes and fears about hereafter but delusions and dreams Do you believe from the heart and dare you not obey from the heart How can you say you believe there is a God indeed that of a very truth there is such an Heaven and such an Hell in one of which your immortal Souls must dwell for ever how can you believe such things and not feel your very inwards even all the Powers of your Souls engaged about them Am I speaking to those that believe not is it not to you that believe that I now direct my words Consider friends The God in whom you believe is a Spirit and will be served in Spirit and in Truth God is a great God and infinitely worthy of the best and of all you have your Souls are precious eternal Life and eternal Death are serious things and which of these two will be your lott is a serious question and sure these most serious things do call for your most serious and hearty attendance upon them Away with all guile and hypocrisie provoke not the jealous God fool not away your Souls by trusting to lyes Worship God in the Spirit lift up your Souls in your Prayers chasten your Souls in your Fastings And as your Souls must be in your Lips in your Eyes in your Ears while you are solemnly worshipping of God so let your Hearts be in you Hands too in all that you have to doe Let your heart have an hand in all the actions of your lives Eccles 9.10 Whatever thine hand findeth to doe do it with thy might that is do it with all your heart the heart is the might of the man God is the strength of the heart and the heart is the strength of the man Sinners when they go forth upon service for the Devil they carry their heart in their hands Micah 7.3 They do evil with both hands earnestly Earnestly there 's the heart in their hands They do their worst that God will suffer them Thou hast done iniquity as thou couldest Jer. 3.5 as much as ever thou wert able As Sinners do their worst so let Christians do the best they can Whatever thou hast to do for thine own Soul by gathering in and treasuring up against the time to come do the most and the best thou canst be as hearty in laying up treasure in Heaven as ever thou hast been in laying up treasure on Earth Whatever service thou hast to do for God in thy generation by doing good to others do it with all thine heart In your instructing admonishing counselling reproving in your working righteousness in your shewing mercy in your promoting and encouraging any good work or preventing evil in your propagating serious Religion in your pulling poor sinners as