Grace that I have not to my Knowledge boldly provok'd thee in any respect this day for to thy Grace alone is this Honour due I know nothing of my self yet am I not hereby justify'd 'T is thy Sentence must make or undo me for ever O God thou art greater than our Hearts and knowest all things if therefore my State is still dangerous if any pestilential Habit still cleaves to my Soul if any Mortal Act or Word or Thought hath escap'd my Memory in my Examination enlighten me I beseech thee and suggest it to my remembrance that I may mingle my Tears with thy Mercy and Christ his Blood before I dare to slumber O suffer me not to lean on a delusive Peace But if it be otherwise praised be thy Goodness as for all thy Mercies so especially for this Gift of Innocence Keep me from being high-minded on this or any other account and give me true Sobriety of Mind that I may not through Giddiness and future Neglects fall after all from Favour 3. Glory be to thy Grace and the Merits of Christ that those many latent Deficiencies from thy Law which cleave even to the sanctified in this state will not shut me out of thy Kingdom may by degrees be lessen'd more and more here and will be wholly remov'd hereafter O cleanse me from all my secret Faults be they blotted out by the Blood of thy Son and grant that by great Advances in Grace an entrance may be vouchsaf'd me into the glorious Kingdom of God 4. With this comfortable Faith I rely this Night on thy Providence for convenient Repose and Defence both of Mind and Body In the Name of Christ I beseech thee do thou accept this imperfect Sacrifice of Prayer and Praise in his comprehensive Form I also crave pardon for the Wandrings and Imperfections thereof and do testifie my Charity to thy Creation Our Father c. THE Midnight Office OF ABSTRACTION 1. O My Soul now thou art secret unto Men but thou art not so unto God nor for all that thou knowest unto many good and bad Angels who often behold thee as well as thy Creator when thou neither seest nor thinkest of them Now therefore that thy Eyes are bound by the Darkness of the Night let thy Mind also be turn'd inwards by the profound silence of thy internal Powers that the Darkness of external Sense may encrease the Vigour of my intellectual Sight 2. Commune now with thine own Spirit O search and see whether it be fit for Communion with God which may be easily known if thou know'st whether Light or Darkness be the predominant Principle therein Call to remembrance thy Sins call to remembrance the Mercies of God dive deep into thy self and then say if thou canst that there is not something in the centre of thy Frame which is not perishable like the Efforts of thy Blood Do not be like the captive Multitude of Sense who thro' neglect of Abstraction are a secret to themselves Turn thy Nature over and over in thy Thoughts and especially view the better part thereof and observe wherein thou hast defac'd or improv'd it 3. Think 'till thou art thoroughly convinc'd and when thou art so do thou frequently consider that thou carry'st Immortality in Embrio always within thee 'T is true the Soul rather believes than sees whilst 't is thus imprison'd in the Womb. But when its Mortal Part is ripe for the Grave which may be long before even the Autumn of Man's life 't will make its entrance upon the immortal Stage 4. Think therefore of thy great Change in time before thou art forc'd to launch into the Ocean of Eternity lest the unexpected and unprepar'd-for sight of the invisible World surprize thee with another-guess Dread than that which the Faithful do find then Remember that the State of Man here on Earth is like the old Probationary State of Fallen Angels before they degenerated into Devils and like the State which all the Impenitent who are gone before thee once enjoy'd a State of Time and Opportunity a State of Work and Preparation for that State which is unalterable But the State of Saints and Fiends the State of Loyal and Apostate Angels the State of Angels and Men who have been acquitted and condemn'd before the last Tribunal is a State of exact Judgment Reward and Eternity 5. Then be thy Recompence Glory or Vengeance it will never expire there will be no escape from the one or loss of the other it will indeed have a beginning but its end will never be found Since therefore Eternity will find and keep thee such as Time leaves thee and Eternity is inestimable how canst thou value Time at too high a Rate Let the Time past suffice thee to have serv'd Pride Envy and Concupiscence Now be thou entirely a Servant of Christ and a Subject of Divine Zeal and Charity that an ample Prospect of Heaven may ennoble and enlarge thee 6. Make the Agonies of the Tormented in Hell and the Joys of the Bless'd above familiar to the Mind by Meditation that it may supplant the inchanting intimacy which sense will otherwise find in thy Soul as it does mostly in the Souls of the MANY Fancy thy Spirit to be taking leave of this Cottage of Flesh for this Custom tends greatly to the purgation of the Heart and the weaning of thy Affections from all its darling Idols It makes bare the Vanity of the World stabs the Love of an Earthly Life to the Heart and cherishes divine Love in the Soul Awake therefore O my Soul strive to be cloath'd with new Strength and to regain Paradise Meditate and abstract thy self whilst Sense is tame and quiet and does not hinder the orderly Peace of the Mind check every wanton Sally of Imagination be-aw'd with a sense of the Divine Omnipresence prostrate thy Thoughts of thy self and consider and say Great was the Rebellion and the Overthrow of the Apostate Inhabitants of Heaven Great was and is their Envy against us and the Fall of all Mankind in Adam Great is the Mercy of our affronted God and the Redemption that is tender'd by the Lord Jesus Great is our Blindness and Obstinacy deep and strong are our ill Habits mighty indeed are our Ghostly Enemies Mightier and more are the Angels that are for us wonderful is the Courtesie powerful are the strivings of the supreme Spirit with Man Sharp is the Edge of Conscience even sharper than a Two edged Sword and so great is the Peace of a good Man that it alone might satisfie and every one but himself is a stranger to his Joy Amazingly great is the change of Death so terrible also is the Day of the Lord and the Universal Judgment of Angels and Men. Who can dwell in Everlasting Burnings Are we stronger than God Who can conceive the Pleasures of Heaven What Mortal hath ever feasted upon God 7. And cannot all this provoke that aspiring Principle within me which was made
our selves and loath and despise our selves more as we deserve The First Evening Office of Repentance for deliberate Sins may clasp with their case If we are of the Third we are wary Christians only let us be thankful and be kept humble and watchful by our secret Faults and it shall be well with us indeed 5. But tho' in the Embryo of Repentance the Penitent may close the Day with the First Evening Office yet something more solemnly if Life last must be perform'd with speed for which purpose there is a large distinct Penitential Office design'd 'Till that is publish'd I shall content my self with this Address to the Impenitent Why will ye trample on Opportunity and fight with wonderful Mercy Are ye stronger than God Is his Hand shortned that he cannot punish because his Compassion has hitherto been prolong'd to you Wherefore do ye spend your Money for that which is not Bread and your Labour for that which satisfies not Encline your Ears and bow your necks to Christ and your Souls shall live Then there will be no need as now to skip from Attempt to Attempt for the Grace of God compleated in the Soul will give satisfaction that wants no change nor new uncertain Trials O seek the Lord while he may be found call upon him while he is near forsake all your wicked Ways and unrighteous Thoughts return unto the Lord and he shall return unto you for such he will abundantly pardon for his Thoughts are not as the Thoughts of Men nor his Ways as our Ways for as the Rain comes down and the Snow from the Clouds and returns not thither but watereth the Earth and wakes it bud and bring forth so that it gives Seed to the Sower and that Bread to the Eater so shall his Word that goes forth concerning a tender contrite lowly hungry relenting Soul not return unto him void but shall accomplish that Paradise of Graces which was intended Instead of a Curse and that flaming Sword of a terrible Cherub within an horrible Expectation of Vengeance there shall arise a prospect of an eternal Kingdom Instead of the Thorns shall the Firr-tree come forth and instead of Briars the Myrtle Where Scepticism and Infidelity where Doubts and Darkness had tyranniz'd before Light and Alacrity Faith and Hope Charity and Purity shall banquet the Soul with Divine Refreshments Be wise therefore ye thoughtless be chang'd ye impenitent let the time past suffice every one of you to have spoke and thought and understood and acted as a Child Why will ye die O Children of Men and not try to become the Children of God How is it that ye can thus sottishly be contented to hug Ruine and to sprawl in your Blood Or can you conceive nothing beyond this state Nay my Brethren if God and a future Judgment be quite out of your Thoughts or Damnation tho' in your Thoughts can't wake you 't is not for me to pretend to raise the Dead you are past the help of the hands of Man and therefore I surrender you into the hands of God whose ways are unsearchable and like the great Deep He is the Lord of Possibility and spans Eternity with a Glance He of old said Hosts of Angels exist and behold they were Let there be Light and there was Light and who will say Come forth ye Dead at the signal Catastrophe of Time and Opportunity and they shall arise This same God of Might let him but say to a hardned Soul Receive the original Sensations of a Soul be alive once more as holy Angels and Saints are alive and instead of a Temple in heaps the Divine Spirit of the Man in less than three moments shall be rebuilt and become a Palace fit for the Spirit to reside in and Angels to gaze on with wonder and delight All this may be done and at the last Gasp too and perhaps has been done for a Confessor of Christ after he was forsook by Disciples when ridicul'd by Multitudes on a Cross and before the suppos'd Imposture rose from the dead all this I say may be done for the first strictly speaking Disciple of the Crucify'd Jesus and may perhaps still be done for some Persons in peculiar Circumstances foreseen only by God But is this thy case Is it likely to be such Hast thou not the general Rule This do and live before thee and wilt thou presume to deferr thy Repentance presumptuously relying on a Miracle of Grace which is not certain to thee tho' possible to God What God may do for any daring Sinner who may read this I know not but this I know and dare affirm That setting aside miraculous Changes of Soul Abuse of Opportunity continu'd to a dying Hour is sowing the Wind and will reap the Whirlwind of the everlasting Vengeance of the Almighty 6. And now true and faithful Disciples of Christ those little ones whom Angels honour Devils envy and a perverse Generation opposes and derides I cannot conclude till I have said I gratulate your Souls those Edens of God yea from my Heart I gratulate their Conversion their Passage from Darkness and Bondage to the marvellous Light and Liberty of the Sons of God And do ye gratulate and emulate each others Vertues Be courteous to all Men excel your selves and consort much together unite your Love and Force against united Malice Dangers and Temptations Be patient and watchful if it be possible allowing the Polity of Darkness no advantage by thoughtlessness or immoderate thoughts of your selves or contempt of others Let no Terror no Flattery cause you to do that which will disturb your Peace and grieve â—hat great Spirit whose select Vessels ye â—re Remember the Promises of God are â—ot Yea and Nay Quit your selves Manâ—ully in the Day of Battel die Conqueâ—ors and enter into your Great Masters's â—oy when he shall come in his Fathers and â—he Glory of his Holy Angels And since he is the Author of all Reâ—onciliation Affiance Perseverance and Plerophory in Man since by no other Name lost Man is become capable of Salvation since without him no Design can prosper I commit you with my self to his Conduct and my poor Endeavour to promote Souls to his Acceptance and Blessing In him let us trust to him with holy Triumph of Soul ascribe we O let us be glad and rejoice and give Honour unto him and say Thou art worthy O Lord to receive Glory and Honour and Power for thou hast created aâ—â— things and for thy pleasure they arâ— and were created Worthy is the Lamb that was slain to receive Power and Riches and Wisdom and Strength and Honour and Glory and Blessing For thou wast slain and hast redeemeâ— us unto God by thy Blood out of everâ— Kindred and Tongue and People anâ— Nation Blessing Honour Glory and Power be unto him that sitteth on the Throne and to the Lamb for ever and ever Glory be to the Father and to tâ—â— Son and to the Holy Ghost As it was in the beginning is noâ— and ever shall be World withoâ—â— end Amen FINIS
for the Enjoyment of a God to discipline its Thoughts To be choice in the Motions of my Will To make the Body know its original distance from the Soul To resist the Faction of Hell To be always on its Guard when it converses with its frail and treacherous Fellow-creatures To be a wise Steward of Time To have a mean Opinion of my self and this flowing State To keep close and constant correspondence with Heaven by frequent Prayer and Praise and holy Hungrings and Thirstings after the Beatifick Vision And in a word to use its utmost skill and all possible care to file and burnish and enrobe my Soul with all those beauteous Fruits of the Spirit which are the ground-work of the Happiness of a Man That so it may be conquer'd throughout endless Ages by the Brightness and Love of God and obtain a Place among the innumerable the eternal and inconceivably glorious Conquerors and Kings and Priests of God With this Hope return to thy Rest O my Soul The Lord guide the Lord strengthen thee and bring thee to the Haven where thou would'st be Amen for Christ his Sake A Practical Directory CHAP. I. Modestly defending clearly explaining and affectionately pressing the regular use of this New Method of Daily Devotion IT being very fitting that the Reasonableness of a Daily Method of Devotion which professes to be entirely new after so many Volumes of this Nature should be demonstrated It being likewise as fitting that those who mean well tho' they know little should not only be furnished with suitable helps to Devotion but also with a clear Explanation of pious helps by any person who offers them such Assistance that they may not pray only with Chearfulness and Affection but also with that clear Understanding which is a valuable Gift of the Spirit and recommendation of our Addresses to God as well as the other two And lastly it being very fitting that the faint hands and hearts should be animated and lifted up which the best dispos'd persons may sometimes stand in need of I have thought fit by the Adviee of some good Christians and my own Commiseration of the Ignorance of some illiterate and mine own and others Sluggishness now I have by God's Blessing finished this small part of a large Body of Devotions to add a practical Directory wherein by God's help I shall I. Give a short and clear Account concerning daily growth in Grace II. I shall consider how Closet-Devotion contributes to it III. What Method of daily Closet-Devotion contributes most liberally to it therein shewing the Reasonableness of this new Method of Devotion in general IV. I shall lay open the Structure of each particular Office and the Reasonableness of it V. I shall add two or three necessary Cautions VI. I shall conlude with some suitable Practical Exhortations CHAP. II. Of Daily Growth in Grace SInce the Real Christian 's daily Religion of the end is to grow in Grace 't is necessary in the first place to speak something concerning Growth in Grace I will therefore first shew what Growth in Grace is and secondly how a Man may know whether he grows in Grace Grace is any Degree of Beauty and Strength of Soul which is more than natural There are Degrees of Knowledge and Liberty of Will which we enjoy by Nature and are essential to the bare existence of a Nature which is partly spiritual These Degrees are the Gift of God and such as our Souls cannot lose unless they cease to be In short they are such Degrees of Light and Liberty which are consistent with a spiritual Nature's being in a state of Vncreatur'dness tho' not of Vncreatedness Now the Death of Adam and Devils not consisting in a cessation from being but a deprivation of so much Light and vigorous Rectitude of Will as is necessary to make a spiritual Creature happy Man may be and is born with certain Portions of Light and Vigour of Will which we call natural and are the issue of God's bare willing our Existence and yet nevertheless be in a state of Damnation Consequently this being consistent with the Enmity of God who will'd by an eternal Decree whether we will or no our Existence and the Existence of all spiritual Natures to be eternal but not to be eternally happy by an unconditional Decree of the same extent that which is eminently call'd the Grace of God is his Tender to us by and thro' Christ of that more than natural Degree of Light and Rectitude of Will whereby a Man is plac'd in a state of Evangelical Fitness for the eternal Complacency of God in the said Nature improv'd This Complacency of God in the said Nature improv'd arising from the said Degrees of Knowledge and Rectitude of Will is that real Immortality which Lucifer lost in Heaven and Adam forfeited in Paradise Hence 't is that both the General Capableness of human Nature's receiving this degree of Light and Liberty by Christ and also the more wise and industrious individual Partakers of the said redeemable Nature their Acquisition thereof are both call'd Grace because 't is extraordinary Compassion and Gift a greater than the Gift of a Creator only the Gift of such a degree of Light is call'd Illumination because the former degree of Light is Darkness in comparison with this and the latter degree of Scope of Will is call'd the Liberty of the Sons of God because the narrow degree of its natural Scope is a Prison when compar'd with supernatural Scope For a Devil and a meer natural Man have both of them some degrees of Knowledge and Scope and consequently of Light and Liberty otherwise they would cease to be susceptible of a Hell for 't is Heaven discern'd in themselves according to their primitive Capacity that causes that Anguish and Envy which arises from their Reflection on their foolish and ungrateful abuse of Opportunity So then a state of Grace as 't is us'd in the New Testament is a state of supernatural Light in the Soul of Man together with at least as much Rectitude of Will as is necessary to recover the Favour of God Now growth in this Grace is as essential to the flourishing Condition of the Divine supernatural Life of a Christian Soul during its continuance here it being an Human Soul's state of Adolescence as growth in heighth and bulk of Body is essential to the thriving Condition of the Animal Life till the Body has commenc'd Manhood And this growth in Grace is the Soul 's encreasing in Faith Magnanimity Heavenly-mindedness Humility Purity Charity and all such-like Divine Principles and internal Habits that are proper to regenerate Souls and are exerted in the external Exercises of forgiving Injuries prudent Provision for our Bodies and Dependents oral Prayer and Praise and the like external Subjects of the Gospel-Precepts From this account of Growth in Grace we may easily know secondly when we grow in Grace For since Grace is a state of universal Rectitude of Soul
and Body in our Closets we make our Senses do Obeisance to Faith and give an irresistible Evidence of our sense of God's Omnipresence to our own Consciences By this we keep our Souls intent on the other World and we see how far the things of the World do and how far they do not make deep Impression on our Affections But because the happy Tryal of the constant Observance of this Religious Practice recommends it more than the Tongue even of an Angel can I resign those who neglect it to the Discipline of that Mighty Spirit of God whose methods of bringing Souls to God surpass our comprehension and will proceed to shew what method makes this Religious Exercise contribute most to a Soul's growth in Grace And since I have given a Specimen of the most advantagious daily Method of Ordinary Devotion that I know of this may be done as well as I can do it by a clear and brief Representation of the Reasonableness of this Method in general As for the Seasons of the Day the Three first of them were the set Seasons of those two great Masters of Address to God DAVID and DANIEL and the Fourth Season sometimes is mention'd by the former of them and was famous in the Infancy of the Christian Religion The different Natures of the several Parts of Addresses to God and those particular holy Tempers of Soul that are peculiarly ornamental of each Part and the Propriety of each Part to the Season herein allotted for it together with the Reasons of the different Structures of each Office shall God willing be laid open in the next Chapter Wherefore the only thing which remains to be accounted for in the defence of the General Structure of the whole Daily Office is our allotment of a distinct Season foâ— each principal different Part of Address to God It is agreed by all devout Persons be the Nature of our Address to God what it will That Humility an awful Sense of God and Faith are necessary Recommendations of it because these are general Essential Ingredients of all acceptable Address to God and therefore peculiar to none accordingly I took particular care to contrive that a Vein of these run thro' every one of the Offices 'T is I presume also agreed that Petitionary Penitential Eucharistical and Intercessive Addresses to God have each of them besides those already-mention'd Qualifications that are common to them all their certain peculiar ornamental holy Tempers of Spirit which differ very much with respect to the natural Modifications of Sense which attend them tho' as they are sanctify'd they all conspire to the same end as Grief for our Sins a sense of our Wants and a joyful sweet sense of God's Mercies and the like Consequently these different postures or Spirit with respect to the different Modifications of Soul wherewith they are necessarily attended in this state tho' they are very reconcilable at different times or at the same time in very low degrees since as they are sanctify'd they carry on the same end and are but the same universal holy Frame of Spirit differently modifying the Soul at different Seasons upon different Occasions cannot be all together at the same time each in their Zenith or immediately in succession so The consequence of which is that those different parts of pious Addresses to God which require the said different holy Tempers of Mind cannot be all so solemnly perform'â— together as at different Seasons oâ— the Day tho' every part may bâ— implicitely in each and yet each Office require the vigorous exertion of but one holy Modification of Soul Wherefore whereas the usual Method of using every sort of Devotion thrice a day distinctly and explicitely either makes the solemn use of each part of Address wholly impracticable which betrays into Lukewarmness or else makes it impracticable without a great deal of time and trouble to change so many different Postures of Soul immediately one after another which inconvenience induce Tediousness and often betrays in to frequent omission of Closet Devotion to God On the contrary the Method of Distinction iâ— this Book makes Devotion be more pleasantly and intently perform'd in all its parts and with less expence of Time and hinderance of our social Duties For the Soul by this means agit quod agit does what it does to the purpose because it has but one posture of Soul at a time to provide and yet by the use of the Lord's Prayer which of it self is a compleat Office of mix'd Devotion it uses all together every Season with due Reverence though not with the utmost heighth of every Passion Thus in all the inspir'd Psalms be they Penitential or Eucharistical or of any other kind 't is easie to observe that though here and there a sprinkling of some other part of Devotion be incidently inserted yet the solemn use of it require but one reigning Cardinal Posture of Soul CHAP. IV. A View of the particular Structure of every Office OUr Sprightliness after the Refreshment of sound and temperate Sleep being a lively Image of the future Resurrection of our Bodies and naturally disposing our Minds to be brisk and chearful I could not but think the Morning the properest time for the pleasant Exercise of Religious Gratitude This Office is divided into Five Classes The First is preparatory to the due Exercise of Gratitude The two First Sections may be us'd before any Address to God it being only an Acknowledgment of the Apostacy of our Nature and our unworthiness to approach to God in order to engage us to Reverence and Humility in our Addresses and also a Remembrance of our Saviour's purchasing the Favour of Access and a Capableness of Regeneration in order to maintain within us a modest Faith and Confidence But the Third Section must be appropriated to this Office it being an express Resolution to praise God from the Consideration of our Liberty under the Gospel and Obligation thereto and especially upon the account of Christ's shedding his Blood for us which being here mention'd by the way of Eminence it is not mention'd in the next Class This Second Class begins with Glory therefore putting in execution what was resolv'd upon before By Recital is meant speaking of God in the Third Person HE and by address in the Second as THOV The former is almost as frequent in the Psalter as the latter The Second Section Commemorates God's Infinite and Incomprehensibleness in general the Third His Attributes and splendid Attendance the Fourth the Beauty and Order of the Inanimate Worlds the Fifth and Sixth the Works of Creation and Providence and particularly the Preservation of Human Nature by Birth which is a very Instructive Subject to the Thoughtful and excites wonderful Thoughts of God for our last Night's particular Preservation At last the Soul perceiving God's Mercies too many to be numbred concludes in an holy Amaze Therefore the Soul after oral Gratitude prostrates the Body to the Ground and uses
to all their deluded Courtiers Many and mean Enjoyments may cloy but the true the supream Enjoyment only can fill an intellectual â—nd voluntary Creature Let this Consideration constantly find room in thy Thoughts and let this make thee wise in the choice of the Subâ—ect matter of thy Application to â—he Throne of Grace Let the â—arnal Soul pray for Long Life â—ere for Wealth and Dignity â—n this Stage of a World and the Philosopher for Natural Knowledge but let a Christian pray for an Eternal Kingdom and all those Qualifications which will secure thy Investiture in it In the use of these Petitions thou canst not be too earnest or too particular and that thou may'st pray with the greater largeness of Soul frequently meditate on the Scriptures especially on our Saviour's Sermon on the Mount and the Parables of our Lord with the 12th and 13th Chapters of St. Paul to the Romans and some parts of St. Peter's and St. James's and the other Epistles of St. Paul which are more useful for the Generality thaâ— reading the Historical Scriptures iâ— order tho' 't is very useful in Ecclesiastical Assemblies for every thing which becomes an Assembly is not so convenient for private Persons of all Circumstances in their Closets Many Persons have little Leisure and perhaps less Judgment and therefore may be the worse for too inquisitive an use of some parts of Scripture and therefore their precious Time should be spent in Thoughtfulness on the plainest and most moving Scriptures that their Souls may thrive in Grace and Divine Love Do thou therefore daily use some of the Portions appointed by our Church for Epistles and Gospels and before thou readest and after thou hast read both ponder and pray that that which was intended for a Savour of Life may not prove a Savour of Death by Irreverence or Negligence God's Spirit will be an Interpreter to those who consult him with Simplicity and an ingenuous readiness of Mind to receive the Truth be it kind to their Temporal Interest or not and when we read the Scriptures thus we should trust firmly and boldly in God that if we are patient and humble in the use of this Method he will inform us clearly of all those Truths which his infinite Wisdom knows to be convenient to be known by us in our present Circumstances 'T is Men's Deficience more or less in these Tempers and Methods of handling the Scriptures together with their daring Neglect of not endeavouring to keep pace in their Lives with their Light that causes the different Irregularities of their different Creeds Wherefore Fellow Christian when thou usest the Prayer taken out of the Sermon on the Mount take care to fix thy Mind so that iâ— may be the Prayer of thy Spirit and the Epitome of thy Conversation The Favours we request in it are the greatest we can ask and are the Fruits of a large Thirst and an assiduous Vigilance do not therefore only ask but seek and knock too that thy Soul may be seal'd with that no counterfeit Arrhabon which will be a Key to the Kingdom of Heaven Open therefore thy Soul and if thou canst not yet perceive what it is to be poor in Spirit and pure in Heart the Bounty of God shall give thee this Knowledge with the Gifts themselves If the Clause concerning Distributions does not suit thy Circumstances thou may'st understand it of Spiritual Charity or alter it thus Lift up my Thoughts from the Earth and fix my Heart upon Heavenly Things 4. And now having endeavour'd to conduct thee safe thro' the Temptations of the Day let me entreat thee in the Evening to look into thy self and to consider what Company thou hast been in what Time has been allotted for external Religious Duties what Time for Industry in thy Human Calling and to exact a strict Account of the Use of the Whole Day 's Time And do not pass thy Sentence according to some external Wariness or Unwariness but according to the Biass of thy Mind Outward Wariness without the Renovation of the Mind signifies nothing Let this be truly rectify'd and 't is morally impossible that a Man should be guilty of any imputable Degrees of Incircumspection Be not over rash in judging of thy self lest thou be found at last among that Generation who are pure in their own eyes tho' they are not cleans'd from their Filthiness There are Three sorts of unclean Men in the World Some that are so unclean and wicked that tho' the Consideration of the state of their Souls has no dwelling in their Thoughts yet cannot but know their own Uncleanness these know it but lay it not so truly to heart as is necessary for their Purification Others there are who labour under Degrees of voluntary Uncleanness which cannot be consistent with a state of Salvation even according to the gracious Covenant of the Gospel But this is a Secret to them because they have not examin'd themselves so carefully as they ought Others again there are who notwithstanding strict Catechizings of Conscience are unclean in certain Degrees in the Eyes of God but not of God-Man of the Conscience under the Law but not of Faith under the Gospel which they know in general and therefore ascribe Righteousness to their Maker and Him only but that cannot explain Particulars so mysteriously deep is the Corruption of our Human Nature This Uncleanness would exclude from Heaven were it not for Christ's Death But now it shall not exclude those that are truly humble industrious to be at peace with God for such are unclean in the Creator's sight but not in the Mediator's All of these always were and are still unclean but the last alone daily become less so They are all unclean but not in the same degree nor alike sensible of nor affected to it One neither repents of known nor secret Impurity the other repents of known Impurity but knows not as much as he might were he very diligent in search and therefore is guilty of his secret Sins But the other is not guilty of known or secret Uncleanness for the known is savingly repented of and the Secret is secret only because it can't be yet known by the Soul altho' it searcheth daily and diligently Whatever degree of Uncleanness is not owing to obstinate Self-negligence is wash'd away by the Blood of Jesus if there be but a general Repentance for them Here then is encouragement for a Soul to labour to be as clean as iâ— can for then all secret Degrees oâ— Uncleanness will be remitted foâ— humble Deprecation and wholly remov'd in another World If we are of the first sort we have the great Work of Repentance to begin and yet 't is much more difficult after it has been begun to be compleated No Devotions are assign'd for them for they whilsâ— such will use none If we are oâ— the second we must probe our Hearts with severe Cancinations of Conscience that we may know more of