Imatges de pàgina
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ture, hearing of the word, praying and meditating, and other duties, as if they were the causes that fhould bring thee unhappily to this fearful end? And is it a small matter to give occafion to wicked men to blafpheme God's truth, or to expofe that religion which thou profeffeft, to their flanders and calumniations? Oh far be it from thee! Now the good Lord prevent this! Let it not be told in Gath, nor published in the streets of Afkelon, left the daugliters of the Philistines rejoice, and of the uncircumcifed triumph,'

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5. Againft thy own felf, by making thee guilty of a molt horrible fin, and also obnoxious to most grievous punishments for fin: Self-murder is a mishapen monster, compounded of many fins: As, 1. Of hellish pride, which fuffers thee not to floop under God's afflicting hand. Of impatiency, whereby thou murmureft and repinest agaiaft God's providences. 3. Of defpair, whereby thou cafteft away all hopes of mercy, and miferably becomeft thy own butcher and hangman: But oh the fearful plagues. that follow after this fin! not only a temporary death, but immediately after death thou fendest thy foul bleeding to the dreadful tribunal of the ever living God, the moft certain and fure revenger of all bloodshed; and what follows this but damnation? A fad, bufinefs, to be fo impati ent of the heat of the fun, as for ease to leap into the fire of hell: I will not, I dare not judge thus of them, who thro' the abundance of melancholy are diflracted of their wits, or who being terrified with Satan's temptations, do run headlong into this fin, not knowing what to do; but if thou art in thy right mind, and upon fettled purpose, and willing choice, and ferious deliberation, fhalt murder thyfelf, that thou mayft be freed from fome miferies, loffes or difgraces which thou wilt not outlive, I profefs to thee in the word of Chrift, thy foul is in danger of hell fire; and therefore thou hadst need to pray, Lord, lead me not into temptation, but deliver me from evil.

By this time we may difcern the difference betwixt the holy Spirit, and the evil fpirit's workings; both bring into, and keep fouls under bondage, only the bondage of the holy Spirit is mitigated by the conjunction of hope,

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and works towards a deliverance, but the bondage of Satan excludes all hope, or poffibility in the foul's apprehenfion of ever being removed. Again, the bondage or fears of the holy Spirit are deftinated for converfion, they are not penal only, but medicinal alfo; they are a fort of God's rods by which he brings men within the bonds of the covenant, and makes them to enquire what they fhall do to be faved; but the bondage, fears and horrors which Satan fets home on fouls, are merely for deftruction, they are not medicinal, but only penal.

Object. Yea, but my fpirit of bondage is hellifh and def perate; fometimes I am apt to blafpheme the mercy of God as not able to pardon me, and out of defperate horror of spirit to chuse strangling, or any thing, that I might be put out of my prefent terrors, and know the worst of my condition: And is there, or can there be any thing of God's Spirit in fuch a dismal bondage as mine is?

This is Mr. Ford's objection, and I have known it the real objection of many a foul; but he anfwers, No doubt thefe fearful fuggeftions and injections proceed from the prince of darkness emanative, they are minted in hell, for they bear his image and fuperfcription, but the Spirit of God hath an hand in them divers times, difpofitive, by way of difpofal and management; and that the poor foul may eafily fee, in that he hath not utterly left him to himfelf, but hath preserved him many a time from executing those horrid temptations, and gratifying Satan by felf.deAtraction. Come then, and bear up poor foul, think with thyfelf, if the Spirit of God would have given thee over to Satan, why not fooner? And if he hath preferved thee hitherto, why may he not longer? Whilft thou liveft under the means of grace, there is hope; he that is above ground is in fight of heaven: See and acknowlege the gracious conduct of the holy Spirit hitherto, and do not by too long adventuring to parley with Satan, drive the Holy Ghoft from thee.

SECT. VI.

Of Satan's Affaults upon forrow for fin. HE next work of the Spirit is forrow for fin; it is God's promife, I will take away the ftony heart out of your

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flefb, and I will give you an heart of fiesb, Ezek, xxxvi. 26. that is to fay, a foft heart, a pliable heart; the Spirit of God works on the affections, and melts them into godly forrow for fin, which is all one with an heart of flesh here promised.

Now herein Satan counter-works, and either keeps the heart as long as he can from mourning for fin, or if that. will not be, then he labours might and main to keep the confcience continually on the rack: And I fhall fpeak to both thefe.

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1. Satan is exceedingly induftrious to keep the heart refolutely stubborn and hard. Well he knows, that if once a poor foul bruifed with the burden of fia, into, tears of godly forrow, and penitent foftnefs, fhall but fly into the. bofom of Chrift Jefus bleeding upon the crofs, it will de. prive him of all right and intereft unto that foul for ever, and therefore he labours to keep it as long a he can from mourning for fin; yea, fuch a ftirrer is he against true forrow, that indeed moft know not what it means; or if the heart begins to be wrought upon by the word, he rai fes all poffible oppofition against its yielding: And oh the loathness of fouls to leave Satan's fervice! Oh the with.. flanding of the word, miniftry, motions of the Spirit, and all other means to lead fouls out of hell into the glori-, ous liberty of the fons of God! But above all, oh the hardnefs of mens hearts! Oh the difficulty of a minifter's duty to, prick a ftony heart to the quick, to make a rock to weep. and tremble! either muft God bare his own arm, and put to his own ftrength, power and efficacy, or it will never, be done.

2. And if indeed, God's merciful violence fhall conquer, fouls, and they begin to melt kindly under fin, then Satan labours on the other fide, that fuch may be fwallowed up with over much forrow: Was not this the cafe of the inceftuous Corinthian? No queftion the fentence of excommunication, and his delivering up to Satan, wrought deeply upon him, fo that Paul was fain to wrte in his fecond epiftle, that they should release him of his cenfure, receive him into the church, and minister a word of comfort to him, left he were swallowed up with over-much forrow, *2 Cör.

2 Cor. ii. 7. This is another of Satan's depths; when god forrow is once on foot in an afflicted foul, very pron it is to feed ftill on tears: When the flood-gates of the heart are but once opened, it is Satan's defire that they should run for ever; and in this cafe what ado is there, and what a hard matter it is to be perfuaded of God's mercy and to apply the promifes: Oh how the devil interpofes with all his cruel policy, and curfed contradiction! He then objects, and urges to the utmoft, heinoufnefs of our fins, the littlenefs of our forrow, together with the great! difproportion betwixt our heinous fins and little forrow, the number of our fins, and fewness of our tears.

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SECT. VII.

Of the Duties that concern us in this Refpect.

HE duties of wrestling muft ftill be fuitable to Satan's affaults. So then,

1. To that affault of keeping the heart from mourning for fin. Confider,

1. Thy heart hath been the fountain whence all the filthy thoughts, raging paffions, wicked purposes, rotten fpeeches, rebellious actions have fprung and iffued out, then great reafon haft thou to make that heart of thine a fountain of godly forrow, of penitent tears, of mourning and lamenting, of bleeding, and bewailing over all thy fins.

2. If Chrift Jefus open a fountain of his own dear warm heart's blood for fins and for uncleannefs; furely thou art a curfed wretch, and cruel enemy to thy foul's comfort, if thou doft not endeavour to keep open in thy heart a counter wall, as it were, of weeping over him whom thou haft pierced, and for those fins which have put the Son of God to death? What? fhall the precious heart of God's own Son fall afunder in his breast, like drops of water for thy fin's? And fhail not thy finful heart groan and figh at all? fhall it not mourn and melt for the infinite abominati ons of thine own heart and life?

3: If that heart of thine be not wounded, by the mini ftry of the word, while it is called to day, it will and must hereafter be filled with that horror which would bufst á thousand hearts to think upon it. This was Chrift's threat,

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Wo be unto you that laugh now, for ye shall wail and weep, Luke vi. 25. There is a weeping of defpair in hell; There fball be weeping and gnafbing of teeth, Mat. xxii. 13. Either therefore now make thy heart the fubject of godly forrow, or as fure as thy heart is in thy body, it will here. after become the object upon which the fierce wrath of God, and fierceft torments in hell (hall be exercifed and executed with extremity and everlastingness.

4. In cafe of outward troubles, as loffes, croffes, dif graces, death of friends, or the like, thou canft take on extremely; and is not fin more grievous than any of these? If all outward miferies require one tear, the leaft fin of the foul may justly challenge a whole torrent; if the death of thy friend, or of thy fon deferve a figh, well may the death of thy foul challenge the last drop of thy dearest heart blood.

5. A truly broken heart gets a title, right and interest to all the purchases of Chrift's paffion, all the promifes of life, and all the pleasures in heaven; yea, in this way thou fhalt bring down the great majefty of heaven, to dwell in thy heart, as in a royal throne, chair of eftate, and feat of eternity. Thus faith the high and lofty one, that inha⚫biteth eternity, whofe name is holy, I dwell in the high and holy place, with him alfo that is of an humble and contrite fpirit, to revive the fpirits of the humble, and to revive the hearts of the contrite ones,' Ifa. Ivii, 25.

6. God hath appointed efpecial fovereign means for the foftning of hearts: If thou fayeft, what fovereign means? I anfwer,

1. The word; Is not my word like a fire, faith God, and like an hammer that breaks the rock in pieces' Jer. xxiii. 29. An hammer it is that breaks and thus doth the law break our hearts, by fhewing us the terrors thereof; a fire it is that melts, and thus doth the gofpel melt our hearts, by revealing to us the mercy of God in Chrift; Oh, will a foul fay, Hath the great God in heaven and earth fent Chrift into the world for me? hath he left angels [now devils] and many thousands of men to chufe me? whofe heart will not melt that is warmed with this love of God?

2. Prayer;

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