might occasion some trouble to themselves hereby as conceiving themselves excluded from the comfort of the Doctrine because though they have other works of the Spirit that accompany salvation yet they have not had experience of this assuring act For their sakes therefore let it suffice once for all to tell them that if the Spirit of God have wrought in them any work that accompanies salvation all that which shall hereafter be said concerning the priviledge of Assured souls is no less proper to them R. 1. For if there be but the least spark of grace in the soul the Spirit that works it will not undoubtedly go so ready a way to quench it as this in all likelyhood would be 2. Besides if the Spirit should do so it would testifie contrary to the Scripture which says that there is no condemnation to them that are in Christ Jesus c. Rom. 8. 1. Besides it were a flat counteracting of himself 3. For he would divide peace from grace when that is the fruit of this To understand the point in the sense propounded farther take notice by way of explication 1. That this Doctrine denies not but the best Saints of God after assurance may be under troubles of conscience again I told you upon the last Doctrine that a Saint may lose the actual Assurance of Gods love and there is nothing more frequent in Scripture then the sad complaints of precious people of God under such darknesse The Lord to take off all ground of expecting such an exemption from his people was pleased to hide his face from his own natural sonne and to withdraw from him the sensible comfort of his divine nature upon the crosse and before that left him to grievous temptations from Satan himselfe True there is difference in our Saviours case thine for Christ under his desertion was under part of that satisfactory punishment which Gods justice inflicted upon him for sinne Thy after troubles are not of that nature But herein the parallel holds that height of enjoyment of God and height of communion with God are no sufficient security to a soul of never losing the sense and comfort of them A prisoner many times may be detained even by the keeper after the Judge acquits him till hee pay his fees And it may be the holiest man may be unthankfull and so be clapt up again in the house of Bondage 2. That the dearest Saints of God after Assurance may fall not only into trouble of spirit again but into bondage of spirit also They may fall so low out of the assurance of Gods love that they may conclude him an Enemy and feele all the Terrours of GOD in the same kind as they did under the Spirit of Bondage at the first They may come to question all again and their Consciences may be as full of horror and blacknesse and as full of the hell of anguish and confusion as ever before I am perswaded David after his great falls was under as great fears of Hell as ever he was in his first conversion The answer of Nathan to him implyes so much The Lord hath put away thy sinne thou shalt not dye If David had not been afraid of death eternal which is the proper wages of unpardoned sinne 2 Sam. 12. 13. why doth Nathan adde that promise from God to encourage him Beside when he speaks of the horrible pit out of which God pull'd him where he stuckfast in mire and Psalm 40. 2. clay and could not lift a foot to relieve himself certainly we can rationally understand no other then the dungeon of Terror of which we are speaking A man whom the Judge and Jury acquits at the Assise may bee arrested at anothers suit and layd up again And so may a child of God after a discharge from the suit of conscience in his first conversion bee arrested again and as much fear the Law as ever 3. Nay possibly his after-terrors may be greater and longer then the former Hee may have a far more hideous dungeon and heavier chains then ever he was in before and lie longer by it For it may be 1. God intended providentially such a condition to him before but saw his weaknesse at the first conversion for the under-going of so heavy a burthen and therefore in pity forbare that rigor then til by the warme influence of some glances of love from his countenance he had fitted him with a proportion of strength to glorifie him in greater trials In measure saith he when it shooteth forth will he debate with it He stayeth his rough wind in the day of his east wind Isa 27. 8. He spares a tender bud when it first buds forth that he may exercise it with more hardship afterwards when it is able to bear more He wil not put new wine into old bottels Matth. 9. 17. i. e. proportion our work and strength 2. Such soules come out of light into darknesse and so their last enjoyments make their present troubles more intolerable Bitternesse upon our peace is mar mar Bitter bitterness Isa 38. 17. Had they continued in a dungeon of horrour stil after conscience had first committed them their continued experience of that condition by long acquaintance might have made it lighter But to be taken out of prison and cherished with some flashes of liberty and then shut up againe is an addition to their present Torment from the most grievous torture of all others in such a case the fresh remembrance of the comforts last parted withall Eclipses of the Sun because they come but seldome appeare more terrible 3. Conscience in such a case is apt to take all former experiences for meere dreames and delusions and is more difficultly brought to accept of any comfort now then formerly for feare of being so deluded againe and so bolts the door of the prison faster upon the soul then formerly Aprisoner that hath once had his prison-door set open to him and been permitted quietly to depart if after he hath enjoyed a shadow of liberty an Hue and cry fetch him back again will scarce adventure to goe forth againe when the doores are set open to him a second time for saith he I had better stay whiles I am here then goe forth and be fetched back againe So saith a poore soule in such a case Surely it is better for me not to receive any comfort then to take it and lose it againe as I have done once already I was deluded then with a fallacious liberty and peace and I may be so againe 4 Sins which trouble the conscience in such a second bondage are aggravated by the evidences of Gods love formerly enjoyed and so terrifie the soul more under their guilt Then every sin looâ—… like a blasphemy against the Holy Ghost an unpardonable sinne A man can tell what to plead before but now his mouth is stopped Ezr. 9. 10. Psal 51. 15. 40. 12 5 Then supports from God are
Ointment on his head reacheth his garments Psalm 133. 2. Joh. 1. 16. And strength I have laid help saith he upon one that is mighty Help What help surely sufficient supplies and means of relief for all his people in all their wants and exigencies Psal 89. 19. Sutable to this is that Phil. 4. 13. And for all supplies See Col. 1. 19. It pleased the Father that in him should all fulnesse dwell Why so see verse 18. Because hee was to have plenitudinem capitis the fulnesse of an head He is the head of the Body So that whatever I want it is for security if I may so say already made over to that friend in trust so as God to eternity can never revoke it 2. Study God in his performances to Christ He never asked any thing no not in the days of his humiliation in which he did not prevaile Father I thank thee saith he that thou hast heard me and I know thou hearest me alwayes John 11. 41 42. Many thousands have made use of his name from the beginning of the World and never any one failed of acceptance to this day 3. Consider the neere union between the divine nature and the humane in Christ That it is not onely an union of relation as between friend and friend father and sonne nay nor husband and wife and yet this last is so near an union that the Scripture calls them two one flesh But a real personal union in which God and man make up the same one person Christ Now surely this nearnesse of union between God and our nature cannot but infer the most entire friendship and by consequence the most full communion that can be And as by the relation that wee have to his humane nature now marryed to the divine we are emboldened by the relation of our flesh to come to Christ and he by the relation of his flesh bound to sympathize with us so by the relation that his flesh in this union hath to God the Father we may come to God the Father too with assurance that this marriage into our kindred must needs derive some more particular respect unto his family and humane relations And to encourage thee to this I add that no natural relation that he had in the World as such would be more prevalent with him then thou if thou be of his family by faith No not his very mother according to the flesh so that were I of the Papists mind for praying to Saints to intercede for me to Christ I should as boldly use any of the glorified Saints as her mediation and if she were on earth if she prayed in her sonnes name she had no more advantage by the relation of a mother to his natural body then another Saint by the relation of a member of his mystical body For as Christ received not his person from the virgin but his nature so hee cannot be affected with any such personal respects as we are but whoever doth the Will of his Father as himself saith when his mother and brethren came upon the account of relation to call him off from a work that concerned the spiritual good of other Saints is his brother his sister and his mother Mar. 3. 34 35. i. e. As dear as any of those Relations And for this reason I doubt not when his mother it is likely upon the account of her relation spake to him to work a miracle in turning water into wine that she and others might not think that upon that ground he would do more for her then for other Saints he answers her by the common terme of woman and takes her up so short Joh. 2. 4. It may be you may conceive if you had a natural relation to Christ you might be more bold with his name to the attainment of any thing from God I tell you again the meanest woman here upon Christs account may aske as boldly as the Virgin Mary might because the union between God and man in Christ is not such an union in which he assumed a humane person but only an humane nature 6 And lastly pray not ordinarily but upon a due preconsideration of the wants you are under with the exigency and necessity of your condition This I have before told you will cause boldnesse He that is in want strains no complements This consideration made Hester bold Hest 4. 13 14 15 16 17. she and her people were like to perish by Hamans plot and if she went not in there was no preventing it therefore saith she I will go in boldly not straining at legal formalities I can but perish by going in and I shall perish if I go not in therefore I will go in though not according to Law and if I perish I perish Ans 2. If thou be one that hath had this boldnesse in the presence of God and hast lost it my advice to thee for the recovery of it is 1. Enquire how thou hast lost it whether 1 By some renewed sin This is a thing that will make a Saint hang down his head in the presence of God Psal 40. 12. David under the guilt of sin complains Mine iniquities take such hold of me that I cannot lock up And Ezra coming to God in relation to others under a great sin Lord saith he I am ashamed and blush to lift up my face to thee Ezra 9 6. Ever since sin came into the world shame came in with it Adam when he had sinned hid himself from God hee could not endure the presence of God as before Gen. 3. 8. But of this as of the following Hinderances of boldnesse I have spoken before and therefore shall but touch them now 2. By some grosse neglect of keeping constant communion with God in Duty It may be thou art growne a greater stranger to God then before God hath not been visited by thee as frequently as he was wont to be 3 By some sinful neglect of stirring up the Graces of God in Prayer Thou hast prayed it may be but in a cold formal superficial way If any of these be the cause of it my advice to thee in the next place is as formerly 2 Remember whence thou art fallen and repent and do thy first works Remove the obstacle as was directed above in the case of lost Assurance and then thou maist renew thy confidence 3 Practise all the Helps to the recovering of this holy confidence when it is lost which are above prescribed to the attainment of it at the first Look on it as a Duty fortifie against the forementioned discouragements study Promises renew thy apprehensions of God in Christ come with a due pre-consideration of thy wants and the exigencies of them 4 To these add 1 An holy expostulation with God concerning former familiarities Mind the Lord of the acquaintance that hath been between him and thy soul intreat him to continue it Lord where are thy ancient loving kindnesses How many hours have I spent in familiar intercourse
to eternity But 2. That thou acknowledgest the Justice of God herein gives good hope of thee To accept of the punishment of our iniquity and to acquit God is one good sign of the truth and soundnesse of humiliation When a man is humbled as low as hell takes it for his portion and deserved too sure God useth not to be deaf to such an acknowledgment as this The Judg at the Bench is never more inclined to mercy then when an Offendor takes his guilt on him and acquits the Bench and the Jury and confesseth his condemnation is and execution will be just 3. We may possibly offend in bringing down God to the line of men in this case and therefore there are Promises of acceptance to such as thou art Hos 14. 4. Jer. 3. 22. Though thou canst not go to God upon meer grounds of probability yet thou maist upon his own Promises and Engagements Object But possibly I have sinned against the Holy Ghost Answ 1. Every sin against the Holy Ghost is not the sin against the Holy Ghost the emphatical sin against the Holy Ghost Every Apostasie is not that sin then Peter had sinn'd unpardonably and Cranmer and divers others in the late times that have recanted the Truth and have returned againe to their stedfastnesse and dyed for it Every wilful sin against convictions is not that sin then had David no doubt in his plotted murder and adultery sinned against the Holy Ghost in this unpardonable way So had Abraham in denying his wife and Peter also in denying his Master sure they knew such acts were sins That sin is all these but you must add to make up the full nature of it that it must be a total Apostacy against full light ending in a malicious persecution of the knowne Truth and wayes of holinesse The Pharisees were such Persecutors and Reproachers of the Doctrine and Works of Christ as coming from Satan which by the miracles that accompanied him they could not but in their consciences believe came from God and therefore Christ chargeth them justly with that sin Malice there must be for persecution out of ignorance in Pauls example is pardonable 1 Tim. 1. 17 18. And in an heat of passion one godly man hath persecuted another So Asa 2 Chron. 16. 10. Lastly That thou hast not sinned that sin is clear in that thou art affraid of it and that fear is thy greatest grief and burthen c. That sinne carries with it an heart that cannot repent a seared conscience However look on thy present condition as very dangerous although not desperate Penal hardnesse of heart and the fore-mentioned attendants of it are a rode way to it Timely caution may prevent thy falling so far Please not thy selfe in such sins with this conceit that yet thou hast not sinned the sin against the Holy Ghost and therefore mayst yet go on in them with hope of mercy Presumptuous sinnes are the ushers to the great transgression Psalm 19. 13. as we render the word CHAP. XXV An exhortation to certain duties proper to this condition of bondage HEre is also an Exhortation to such as are under this condition 1. Be patient under the present hand of the Spirit A man will bear a great trouble patiently when he can see likelyhood of a good issue in it A sick man is contented to be made sicker for healths sake Finis confert amabilitatem mediis say the Schoolmen and a man that hath a gangrened arm or legge will endure the sawing it off willingly to save the whole body Troubles of conscience are grievous troubles But so long as they are in the hand of the spirit as instrumental means to facilitate conversion how patiently shouldest thou undergo them If they were to thy eternal confusion patience were meet partly as to a punishment deserved and of thy own choice partly as to a condition which repining at it may augment but never remedy How much more when these troubles are converting saving troubles or are used by the spirit to that end The good ground brought forth its fruit with patience Luke 8. 15. And if ever thou wilt see fruit of thy soul troubles thou must stay the time 2. Keep up hope under all discouragements I know a thousand discouragements are ready upon every occasion to beat thee off thy hold and hopes And against them set those promises which Scripture is every where full of to persons in thy condition together with the examples of others recorded there and to these add thy own experience both in the persons of others and thine own Think how many such sad souls in all ages Gods Spirit hath conducted through the wildernesse and caused them to rest in the full assurance and undoubted evidence of his love Read over the sad complaints of David in his convictions and soul troubles and how God at last compassed him about with songs of deliverance set in joynt all his broken bones and bestowed on him the joy of his salvation Nay how many of those Saints that you dayly do or may converse withall can speak no lesse from their own experience Thou art under a condition of hope whiles thou art under this work it is the method of the Spirit in conversion as was before shewed It is with thee as with the people Ezra 10. 2. though thy case be sad yet now God hath affected thy heart with thy sinne and misery and made thee confesse and bewail thy sinnes before him now there is hope in Israel concerning this as Shechaniah saith after the humiliation of the people for their strange wives in the preceding Chapter Thou art yet a prisoner but a prisoner of hope Zech. 9. 12. See what advice and encouragement the Church from her own experience gives Lam. 3. 26 27 28 c. It is good for a man to hope for the salvation of the Lord why so See verse 31 32. For the Lord will not cast off for Lam. 3. ever but though he cause grief yet will hee have compassion according to the multitude of his tender mercies O saith the soul what is my strength that I should hope as Job 6. 11. alas the Lord hath cast me off for ever I see my present agony and distresse of spirit that he intends to break all my bones and send me ver 4. to hell with all my bones broken on the wheele of his displeasure The more I cry ver 8. the more deaf he seems to be unto my prayer ver 4 6. he hath brought me into darknesse and made my skin old he hath builded against me fortified ver 5. his kingdome against all my attempts by a resolution that I shall not enter into his rest he hath compassed me with gall and travel hee ver 5. 6. 7. 8. 10. 11. 12. 13. 15. 16. hath set me in dark places he hath hedged me about and made my chain heavie he shuts out my prayer he is a bear and a lion
you lost it I have before shewn you what duties will preserve it and what sinnes will forfeit or obscure it Examine your memory now what duty have I failed in of all those or what sinne have I fallen into which is before discovered In the day of adversity consider Eccles 7. 14. Examine the particulars Have I not been carelesse in recording my evidences either in mine own memory or if I have not have I not entrusted them more with my self then with God have I not relyed upon my own strength to preserve them Have I laboured in the use of all means to strengthen them Have I not been guilty of spiritual pride in them carnal boasting of them security and carelesnesse in preserving and maintaining them presumptuous sinning because of them formality and spiritual sloath in the duties of Religion earthly-mindednesse keeping cooling company Have I lived a life of love thankfulnesse and obedience under them In a word have I carryed my self as became the receiver of so great a mercy the possessor of so rich a treasure If you find where and how you lost it seek it there It may be it was but mislaid by carelessenesse Think then what duty thou hast been carelesse in remember whence thou Apoc. 2 5. hast fallen Or if by some sinne thou hast lost them find out that sinne and when that is removed out of the way it will bee found again David had laid two great blocks upon his box of writings and they were even lost for a whole year or very little lesse till renewed repentance removed them and he re-enjoyed them So Peter by denying his Master lost his comfort but repenting hee recovers a favourable respect from Christ again Go tell the Disciples and Peter saith the Angel that he is risen Mar. 16. 7. Tell Peter in particular by way of peculiar favour Qu. But how shall I know what sinne it is that obscures or mislays or steals away my evidence How shall I know why God denies me the wonted influence of his comforting Spirit A. First Enquire or God Job 10. 2. And then Secondly search by these Rules 1. Ordinarily that sinne which upon serious search of thy heart and ways first presents it self to the eye of conscience is the sin whether it be of omission or commission God is not a little seen in the experiences of his people this way The voice of conscience is the voice of God not only in those things for which it hath a certain rule but in those things where its knowledge is but conjectural many times it speaks by an immediate suggestion from Gods holy Spirit certainly Jacobs sons had other sinnes upon them when they were in that streight in Egypt which we finde recorded in Gen. 42. but of all their other sinnes they are directed by the Spirit in a special manner to their former unnatural cruelty towards their brother Joseph committed about twenty years before and they take this voice of conscience as the voice of God and fasten on that particular sinne v. 21. Therefore say they is this distresse come upon us The soul will bleed afresh as dead bodies do at the approach of that sinne which is guilty of occasioning its spiritual trouble 2. Ordinarily also though it were not so in the case of Josephs Brethren before mentioned nor is it always so in the present case with divers others yet I say ordinarily the sinne that is most freshly committed before Gods with-drawing from the soul is that which that affliction points at and that being last committed is ordinarily also in the eye of Conscience Conscience immediately after the fact committed useth to blush and thereby betrayes its guiltiness if it have not by a frequent repetition of sins lost all modesty and shamefastnesse altogether and contracted an whores forehead which a soul acquainted with God cannot easily do If an Officer come in upon the sudden after a murther is newly committed 't is no hard matter for him to find in a throng who did the Fact by the fresh circumstances which he cannot easily overlook So though all other sins have an hand in this fact yet a man shall commonly observe in the sins newly committed some tokens and indications more then ordinary which may provoke the soul immediately to lay hold upon them in an especial manner and indict them for the Fact 3 Examine what sin thou didst when as yet thou didst walk in the light of Gods countenance most fear and suspect as laying wait for the life of thy Assurance Commonly the Saints observe in themselves some one constitution-sin or other darling corruption which at all times they find themselves most inclined to and that sin if they manage their comforts as they ought they set a special guard upon as suspecting it more then ordinary Psal 18. 23. Now if it chance at any time that this guard be slackned it is ten to one if a backsliding into that sin do not murther their spiritual peace And if so 't is no hard matter to find it guilty of the fact by strong circumstances and probabilities if not by certain and convincing Evidences because God puts a special Mark upon such sins as enemies to the peace of his Saints Psal 85. 8. God will speak peace to his people but then let them not turn again to folly let them take heed of Apostatizing and falling back to their former master sins q. d. if they do they will quickly lose their peace againe I kept my self saith David from mine iniquity that sin which I was peculiarly prone to Now this is a good rational and probable ground of proceeding against such a sin that there are such suspicious against it If a murther be secretly committed and the Authour of the Fact not presently apparent yet if from certain evidence it can be gathered that such a person threatned him often and laid in wait to take away his life formerly and the murthered party had a constant jealousie of him it is as great evidence as circumstances can make that such a person did the fact and therefore the Judge will examine such a person narrowly where he was when the Fact was committed and if he cannot give a probable account of his distance from the place at that time 't wil go hard with him Now take thou the same course Some sin or other hath taken away the life of thy soul which is the comfortable presence of God Psalm 30. 5. If thou canst not find the murthering sin presently and upon the place then examine that sin which hath often threatned it and hath watched frequent opportunities to do it and enquire whether that sin were so far from thee about the time of Gods departure as may excuse it from the suspicion of the Fact and if not but that thou hast at least in thy heart near that time taken acquaintance with it again there needs no farther evidence Take it and crucifie it 4 Possibly it may be a
thorow fear or temptation as at other times moving it to conceale the Devils counsell but out of distraction and oppression of spirit Now if this same soul find it selfe in the same condition before God when it sets to prayer it may lay the blame hereof on the greatnesse of its burthen and content it selfe in the assurance of as kind an acceptance of its sighs and groans as if they were drawn out in long prayers But if the straightnesse be not towards men or other imployments but only in duties to God-ward then enquire after farther causes whereof take these following 2. The admission of some late grievous sinne that yet is unrepented of Guilt is a tongue-tying thing When the man in the Gospel was taken without a wedding garment the Text sayes 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 he was speechlesse Mat. 22. 12. his mouth was stopped with a gagge Great sins are great gaggs And 't is not only so with the unregenerate but with the Saints also See it in Davids example Psalm 51. 14 15. Deliver me saith he from blouds O Lord then my tongue shall sing aloud of thy righteousnesse Open my mouth c. Davids lips had a padlock upon them guilt had locked them up He dared not speak to God whom he had so grievously offended And no wonder if Saints dare not speak where they are sure not to speed if they be dumb when they know God is deaf David knew well enough that sinnes make Gods ear heavy as he informes us Psalm 66. 18. If I regard iniquity in my heart God will not hear my prayer and the Prophet Isaiah tells us no lesse Isai 59. 1 2. The Spirit of prayer also will be grieved and depart from us if we defile his lodging he is a pure an holy Spirit Eph. 4. 30. In this case the counsel of Zophar to Job 11. 13 14. is very good If thou prepare thine heart and stretch out thy hands towards God If iniquity be in thy hand put it far away c. So shalt thou lift up thy face confidently c. Search out the sinne and remove it by renewed repentance and the fresh application of the bloud of Christ by faith which is the fountain of Evangelical repentance and then try again the Spirit of Grace that enables thee to mourne will bee a Spirit of Supplication too Zech. 12. 10. 3. Sometimes Gods glory is the cause of thy restaints of spirit God intending to teach thee that all thy enlargements are from him alone We often pray in the strength of natural parts or gifts at the best and it may be we idolize these last in our selves and others Now God may in his wisedome leave us to straightenednesse of spirit in prayer to make us lesse depending upon those helps And this he will do to choose at such a time when afflictions are heavy upon us because that is a time if any be when it may be supposed necessity will enlarge parts and gifts to the utmost Afflictions are usually incitements and occasions of enlargement in prayer God makes account that at that time he shall hear from his people Hos 5. 15. and in our straits commonly we give God many faire words are rhetorical more then ordinary flatter with our lips Psalm 78. 36. A Scholar at the Vniversity that seldome writes and it may be if he do oftner then ordinary yet writes curtell'd letters to his friends at other times yet against Quarter-day when hee needs his pension will be sure not to fayle of a large letter and a bill of expences annexed Hence oftentimes the people of God are very fondly conceited of afflictions and under deadnesse of spirit are too apt to wish them out of a conceit that when they come they are able to make great use of them to quicken their hearts to prayer But the Lord chasteneth their foolish expectations divers times by stopping their mouths under those very troubles whence they hoped for great improvements and enlargements hereby teaching them that the Spirit of supplication as well as the Spirit of sanctification bloweth where and when he listeth John 3. 8. This case whenever it befalls any as we may ghesse when it doth so by our former valuation of gifts and conceits of improving afflictions c. calls upon such persons to give God the glory of his own peculiar attribute the preparer of the heart and the Spirit of its own office the Spirit of Supplication and call for and rely on divine assistance meerly in that work 4. Sometimes misapprehensions of God may be the cause of straightnesse in duty Thoughts that God is our enemy c. And then we deale with God as we do with our best friends many times in an humour we have a conceit that they have done us a discourtesie or are fallen out with us it may be upon slight reports or other as slender evidence and then our stomacks presently swell so bigge that we cannot so much as speak to them Pride and discontent will so swell a mans stomack like spleen winds up to a mans mouth that he cannot speak except to belch out the language of discontent and passion Sometimes we conceive God so offended at us that he casts away our prayer Lam. 3. 8. And where a man hath little hope to speed he will have very little heart to speak whereas hope to prevaile is the most fluent fountain of Rhetorick that can bee thus want of Faith makes the voyce of prayer stick in the teeth as we use to say The Spirit of Adoption only is the Spirit of Supplication and a man cannot pray so much to the purpose as when he can call God Father Then we cry 't is 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 Rom 8. 15. When David was in that grievous trouble Psalm 116. What lets his tongue loose in prayer I believed saith he therefore I spake v. 10. Friends prayer is the child of Faith not Fancy not the voyce of Invention but Affection begotten not in the brain of an Oratour but in the heart of a child A child is very copious and fluent in expression commonly when he complains to a Father but will lye still and cry it out in a sullen mood and say never a word if a stranger aske what ayles it The cure in this case is Look over all your evidences remember dayes past and the years of the right hand of the most high thy songs in the night and his mercy and lovingkindnesse in the day Call to mind promises of everlasting love in and notwithstanding the heaviest afflictions apply them and labor to urge them Challenge God upon old acquaintance as Christ My God my God why hast thou forsaken me Mat. 27. 46. O Lord how comes it to passe now that I have lost my acquaintance with thee Lord return and visit me with thy ancient loving kindnesses Psal 25. 6. 2 After discovery and removal of the impediments and obstructions aforesaid Study your own case distinctly and clearly