cloaths him adorns him makes a feast for him and how glad was he that the lost child was found that the dead son was alive again Surely we may conclude that God is willing to receive those that being sensible they have sinned and perverted that which is right and it has not profited them Job 33. 27. do with their whole heart return to him 'T is true the Converts sins and unbelieving heart together do fill him many times with doubts and fears He remembers God and is troubled because he has so bitterly provoked him he is afraid to call him Father and very much doubts of being received but then again faith and hope are encouraged by such kind of promises as that which you read of 2 Cor. 6. 17 18. Touch not the unclean thing and I will receive you and will be a Father unto you and ye shall be my sons and daughters saith the Lord Almighty 3. The Convert eyes God as his ultimate end that God may be glorified that God may be enjoyed is his design in turning The sinner is sensible that while unconverted he liv'd to the dishonour of him that gave him life and in whose hand his breath is Now therefore he has the more zealous desires to walk worthy of the Lord unto all pleasing being fruitful in those works which are to his praise Before he sought himself he sought his own things he had no higher aim than to gratifie his worldly and fleshly inclinations with what his carnal and corrupted mind judg'd to be suitable and so himself were but profited and pleased he cared not how much the Lord were injured and provoked But now he is of another mind he carries on the same design that Angels do that Christ did namely to honour and please the God of glory And not only in his spiritual actions does he aim at this but also in his civil and natural actions and recreations which hereby become spiritualized he seriously minds that of the Apostle 1 Cor. 10. 31. Whether therefore ye eat or drink or what ever ye do do all to the glory of God And now he lives like a creature like a son before he lived like neither while he lived only to himself And by thus glorifying of God the Convert takes the right course to enjoy him He looks upon God as the best portion and therefore pitches upon him Let the men of the world take the things of the world if they please let them pursue after bubbles let them toyl and vex themselves for that which when gotten will prove only a further vexation My soul seek thou only after God he alone deserves thy seeking he alone when found can satisfie thee to the uttermost That 's now his language Nothing short of God will content the Convert wealth cannot do it credit sensual delights cannot do it nay Ordinances themselves are but like empty breasts and broken cisterns unless communion with God be enjoyed in them He prayes for God he hears for God he fasts for God he comes to the table for God Earth is like Hell when God is absent and Heaven he judges would not be Heaven if God were not alwayes present Thus have I shewed wherein conversion lies in being turned from darkness to light and from the power of Satan to God I shall add a word or two further to manifest through whom it is that sinners must turn to God if they would be received And the truth is 't is through Christ alone The Apostle plainly affirms That through him both Jews and Gentiles have access by one Spirit unto the Father Eph. 2. 18. And our Lord in express terms sayes Joh. 14. 6. I am the way the truth and the life no man cometh unto the Father but by me 'T is impossible that such guilty and polluted creatures as we have made our selves by sin should ever be accepted before a just and holy God without a Mediator Hence it follows there is a necessity we should look unto Jesus as the Apostles phrase is in whom God is reconciling the world unto himself 2. Cor. 5. 19. else we should not dare to approach but flie away for fear of being as we deserve to be consumed Now when we look unto Jesus the Mediator we must look upon him as our Righteousness as our Advocate as our Helper 1. We must look upon Christ as our Righteousness This is the Name whereby that branch that springs from David is called The Lord our Righteousness Jer. 24. 6. There is no coming unto God without some righteousness or other Our own righteousness is like filthy rags and because rags 't is not able to cover us because filthy rags it cannot adorn or commend us Therefore we must look unto Jesus to be made righteousness to us that for the sake of his obedience and sufferings in our stead our sins may be forgiven and our persons may be accepted in the sight of God The righteousness of Christ which is imputed to believers is so every way perfect and sufficient that the pure and piercing eye of God can â—spy not the leâ—st staw or defect in it If therefore we are covered with this none of our sins will appear against us or be laid to our charge Christ hath died and upon his death God doth justifie Who therefore shall accuse or condemn those that believe 2. When we turn to God we must look upon Christ as our Advocate 1 Joh. 2. 1. If any man sin we have an Advocate with the Father Jesus Christ the righteous This Advocate as he suffered to purchase pardon and grace so he intercedes that these may be bestowed upon returning sinners and God his Father hears him alwayes We ought to consider and to be encouraged by considering what an High-Priest we have at the right hand of God When the sinner beholds himself in himself undone and comes petitioning for remission of sin for the healing of his spiritual plagues and for the saving of his soul which seems to be just upon the borders of damnation This Advocate will take the sinners petition and present it to his Father and all shall be granted ay and infinitely more than the sinner can desire or conceive 3. When we turn to God we must look upon Christ as our Helper He does strengthen the feeble knees else we should not be able to set one step in the way to life The Lord Jesus is called the Author of our Faith Heb. 12. 2. and by him believers are said to have access into that grace wherein they stand Rom. 5. 2. The sinner must be made sensible of his own insufficiency to turn himself to set himself at liberty and upon this must look unto the Son of God to bring his soul out of prison to make him free indeed from the curse of the Law from the bondage of corruption and to enable to come to God and cleave to him In the last place follows the Application Vse I. Of Examination Since God
to forgive and plenteous in mercy unto all that call upon him Or is it because you never heard of the way and means of recovering life and flying from the punishment you have deserved How often have I sent my Prophets that you might be brought to believe to repent and to obey But still your neck is as an iron sinew you are resolved to rush on in sin If you perish you may thank your selves If you are destroyed 't is because you chuse destruction Three Doctrines the Text affords us First That evil wayes are the wayes of death Secondly The great reason why men die and die for ever is because they will Thirdly The Lord does call and call again upon sinners to turn from their evil wayes and live Doct. 1. I begin with the first Doctrine That evil wayes are the wayes of death As they are morally evil so evil and destructive to them that walk in them Indeed these wayes may seem right but because of this they are not the less but the more pernicious Prov. 14. 12. There is a way that seemeth right unto a man but the end thereof are the wayes of death 1. These evil wayes do many times accelerate and hasten death temporal That was the sentence pronounced upon mans fall Dust thou art and unto dust thou shalt return And how often by sin is the execution of that sentence speeded We read of some not suffered to live out half their dayes Psal 55. 23. the reason is because they live so wickedly Those whose carcasses fell in the wilderness might have lived to possess the Land of Promise but they sometimes murmured sometimes they commit idolatry sometimes fornication and at last the oath is sworn they should not enter into Canaan The intemperate and unclean how do they waste their strength How many diseases do they punish themselves with And though so miserably unprepared for judgment hasten their departure out of this world to the tribunal of him who judges righteously 2. These evil wayes God who is our life is not to be found in In a spiritual sense we are dead though alive while we walk here The Ephesians are said to be dead in trespasses and sin while they walked according to the course of this world and had their conversation in the lusts of their flesh Eph. 2. 2 3. If the life of the soul does consist in being united to God in being animâ—ted and acted by his Spirit then iniquity that separates between God and us Isa 59. 2. must needs be granted a deadly thing 3. These evil wayes are the beaten path to hells damnation to that death which is everlasting Never any came to hell but through these wayes and there is not one that continues to walk in them without conversion but shall at last come thither The enemy upon the pale horse without a second is deadful but when Hell follows immediately after him alas what hand can be strong what heart can be able to endure This second Death is by one of the Fathers called 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 The death that is immortal because the sinner is never put out of his pain alwayes tortured but never quite dispatched the fire burns still but never totally consumes them whom it burns the worm still gnaws but is never satisfied VVhither away besotted and blinded soul whither is it thou art making such post haste Is it gain delight and happiness which thou hast in chase that thou seemest rather to flie than run towards it Alas no 't is in the broad way that thou drivest on so furiously 't is not gain but loss 't is not pleasure but pain 't is not an happiness but misery ay and the extreamest misery which thou art pursuing Oh stop thy course and go no further Oh leave this lower path Prov. 15. 24. The way of life is above to the wise that he may depart from hell bâ—neath You see in what respects evil wayes are the wayes of death Now the righteousness of God in punishing those with death that persist in these wayes will be evident if these things following are considered 1. These wayes are expresly forbidden by him that is the supream Law-giver who has power to save and to destroy and for so mean a wretch as man is to affront and despise that Majesty and Authority that is so infinitely high above him does justly deserve an infinite punishment Besides the Lord profers himself to a sinner if he will forsake his evil wayes and thoughts Now if the sinner reject that offer and prefer not only the empty world but the vilest lusts before the blessed God let reason judge if it be not just that he should eternally be separated from him And this poena damni loss of God is most properly the death spoken of 't is indeed the very Hell of Hell 2. Sinners are threatned with death if therefore they will venture upon that which brings them under the lash of the threatnings 't is but just they should smart for that presumption They are forewarned to flee from that wrath which is to come but if they take no warning that wrath will very justly overtake them They cannot plead either that they knew not their Masters will or that they were ignorant of the penalty following upon their rebelling against it How often have those that enjoy the light of the Gospel been informed that 't is the will of God they should sorrow and rend their hearts for sin that 't is the will of God they should believe in his Son that 't is the will of God even their sanctification 1 Thes 4. Nay how often have they been foretold of the many stripes that must be endured by those that continue in wilful disobedience 'T is not unequal then since they made the Lord a lyar by their unbelief that he should vindicate his truth and cause them to feel those plagues and torments which thousands of times they were warned of but had no faith or fear concerning them 3. As sinners are threatned because of their evil wayes so they are shewed which is the way of life and peace and very much pressed to walk in it Assisting and strengthning grace is profered to them but if neither that glory and immortality at the â—nd of the way nor that help and grace which they may have in the way are regarded but the paths of destruction and misery as they are called Rom. 3. 16. are preferred they themselves indeed do wrong their own souls but God is righteous in destroying them The only use I shall make of this Doctrine is to caution you against these evil wayes that are the wayes of death You that have through grace left them take heed of declining towards them It has cost the Saints dear when they have stept aside their falls have defiled them and broken their bones And you that still resolve to walk in these wayes at last open your eyes and see whither you are going Upon the reading
THE CONVERSION OF A SINNER Explained and Applied FROM Ezek. 33. 11. Turn ye turn ye from your evil wayes for why will ye die O house of Israel Part whereof was preached some while since at Saviours Southwark THE Day of Grace DISCOURSED OF FROM Luke 19. 41 42. If thou hadst known even thou at least in this thy day the things which belong to thy peace But now they are hid from thine eyes By Nathanael Vincent Minister of the Gospel London Printed for Thomas Parkburst at the Golden Bible on London-Brdge under the Gate 1669. The Dedication To his Sacred and most Glorious Majesty the God of Heaven and Earth the KING of KINGS and LORD of LORDS who is much more above the highest Potentates and Emperors in the World than they are above their meanest Slaves Almighty Lord TO Thee I dedicate my Book to whom I have devoted my self all that is good therein it is thy own and if it do any good to Thee I must ascribe the praise The In 〈…〉 nt indeed might be ashamed and discouraged if he did not know that thou canst work as well by weak means as by strong nay sometimes thou makest choice of weak on purpose that flesh may not glory but the excellency of the power may be of thee alone It was most free and rich Grace which Eternity it self will be short enough to admire and adore that I my self was pitied who once lay as much polluted in my blood as any other who had run so far in the broad way and had sinn'd my self so neer the destruction which is everlasting But if I am not only made a Convert but also made use of to convert others my obligation will be hightned which is infinitely vast already to shew forth thy praise 'T is the desire of my soul O Lord that thy Kingdom may be advanced and that the Dominion which sin and Satan have usurped may be overthrown Since thy yoak is easie and thy government so sweet so gracious why should not thy subjects also be most numerous Gird thy sword upon thy thing Oh most mighty one and ride forth conquering and to conquer and thy right hand shall teach thee terrible things Let thine arrows be sharp and thy Word pierce like a two-edged sword and let the whole world either by conversion or subversion buâ— especially by conversion fall under thee Thou art the God of the spirits of all flesh is there any thing too hard for thee When the Devil sinn'd against thee and thereby became a Devil thou didst easily throw him out of heaven and shackle him in chains of darkness and canst thou not as easily throw him out of those sinners hearts which he has possessed and filled and pull down all his strong holds And as for sin though it be so mighty a thing that Adam in innocency was overcome by it that Angels in Heaven could not stand before it yet thou art able and hast promised to subdue it Oh shew thy power and Grace Since thy mercy is so great why should there be so few partakers of mercy Since thy Son is so able to save to the uttermost why should so small a number be saved by him Since the New Jerusalem is so spacious why should Hell fill so exceeding fast Oh let thy special love be more generally manifested Let thy healing and thy saving grace run in a much broader channel Let thy tents be enlarged and let them stretch forth the curtains of thine habitation Let not so many souls be the Devils prey which are of greater value than the world and which are capable of loving and admiring and glorifying thee for ever Answer O my God such desires as these so far â—â— consistent with the secrets of thy Counsel and thy Wayes and Judgments which are unsearchable and past finding out Let thy Gospel continue in this Land of England Let the Sun of righteousness shine forth in greater strength and glory and dispel the mists of error and chase away the night of Ignorance Let not the Sea be more full of water than this Land of the knowledge of thy glory As long as there is a Church on earth let there be a Church in England And let the Lamp of thy Word shine cleerly among us as long as the Sun and the Moon shall shine in the Firmament Thou who hast the hearts of all in thy own hand incline some to read these following Sermons and let all that read be the better by them Let them understand in this their day the things which concern their peace and obey thy Call to Turn before thou comest to this Resolution to call and cry no more after them Oh let none grow blâ—nder by the light 's shining in their eyes let none grow harder by the means which were design'd to soften them Let not the Word of Life prove unto any a deadly savour Let some souls date their conversion from their reading this Book and let those who are converted be further strengthned by it Encourage thy servant more and more by making his labours more abundantly successful who has resigned and given up himself to Thee and whose greatest Hâ—nour and truest Happiness it is to be Thine for ever NATHANAEL VINCENT THE EPISTLE TO THE READER Reader AS soon as thou hast looked on immediately look off again and look up to heaven How canst thou see to read with any profit unless the Father of lights do open thine eyes and give thee an understanding heart He can shew thee wonders in the most commune Truths which before thou wert unacquainted with Those doctrines that are most usually preached as thy Judgment may yet more fully be informed about them so I am sure thy affections have need to be stirr'd up to bear some more proportionable suitableness unto the weight and concernment of them It has moved my sorrow and almost my indignation to see how many Truths because often as 't is needful insisted on are nauseated by some Professors And yet alas these very Truths though they have often heard them they do not know them as they ought to know As to any heart-affecting and operative knowledge these persons who fancy and conceit themselves so very intelligent are very grosly ignorant Their consciences are stupid and they were never brought under the power of the Word which is preached to them Duties though plainly and frequently pressed are neglected and sins which they communly hear reproved are yet notwithstanding more communly given way to Thou who canst not like of a Discourse unless thy fancy be pleased and thy itching ear clawed what just reason hast thou to question whether thy nature has been indeed renewed for they who have been born again desire the sincere milk of the word though there be little mixture of what is humane that they may grow thereby Reader Art thou grosly ignorant and ungodly How much then doth it concern thee to use those means which are appointed for the attaining
these lines make a stop without delay lest sudden death sudden destruction sudden damnation come upon you and there be no possibility of escaping 1 Thes 5. 3. 1. Let not the profit of these wayes blind you Riches are deceitful they appear what they are not and while we are eagerly pursuing these we are gulled and cheated of far truer riches we miss of that treasure in heaven that will never fail Luk. 12. 33. Be not deluded by the unrighteous Mammon satisfaction ease contentment may be promised but you will be paid in trouble and vexation Riches are likened by our Lord to Thorns partly because they choâ—k the good seed of the Word and partly because they pierce those that do at upon them with many sorrows Take the ballances of the sanctuary and weigh the gain that you get by walking in your evil wayes with the loss that you both do and will sustain and then 't will be apparent that Satan's and the heart's plea of profit is very unreasonable You gain earth but you lose grace you gain gold but you lose God you gain a little of the world which you can keep but a very little while but you lose your souls and an whole eternity of glory 2. Let nâ—t the pleasure of these evil wayes ensnare you the pleasures of sin usually delight only the more bruitish part of man and how much does one that has a reasonable soul act below himself in minding those pleasures that are commune even to the beasts themselves Solomon had an abundance of them Whatever his eyes desired he kept not from them neither with-held he from his heart any joy but he found them so mean so low so unsuitable that in the midst of them he cryes out All is vanity and vaxation of spirit Eccles 2. 10 11. Pleasures are delightful dreams but how short are they how soon does affliction death if not Hell awaken us They that are lovers of pleasures more than lovers of God how inconsiderate are they what they chuse or what they refuse Pleasures are the baits which cover sin and make it swallowed down with eagerness they are the fatal potion which stupifie the soul and makes it lye senceless and helpless in extream danger they are the finer and yet most strong cords whereby Satan draws men down to the chambers of death nay they are the fewel that heat the burning lake Rev. 18. 7. By how much she hath glorified her self and lived deliciously so much torment and sorrow give her Oh how will the voluptuous one day smart for all their pleasures 3. Let not the multitude of those who walk in these evil wayes confirm and harden you Lot walked alone in the way of righteousness though Sodâ—m was generally defiled by an ungodly conversation he would not follow a multitude to do evil He that said Strait is the gate and narrow is the way which leadeth unto life and few there be that find it Mat. 7. surely never intended his Disciples should go in the beaten path of the world Sinner deceive not thy self with this Thou dost what others do and thou shalt shift as well as they Thou and they will fare alike indeed that is be turned into hell for your wickedness 'T will be no comfort there to have companions in thy misery but rather among the damned there will be a torturing grief and indignation at the sight one of another to consider what incarnate devils they were to one anothers souls and helped forwards one anothers condemnation Upon this score it might be that the rich man Luk. 16. was so unwilling his brethren should come to the place of torment because if damned for those sins which he in his life-time had been accessary to their company with him in Hell would have but added to his woe We use to say here The more the merrier but there 't will be The more the sadder When God has all his enemies in one place together and none of his people mingled with them then all his wrath will be stirred up and all the vials of his fury poured down upon them I have done with that first Doctrine That evil wayes are the wayes of death Doct. 2. The second Doctrine is this The great reason why men die die for ever is because they will They will be the servants of sin though death be all the wages they shall certainly have for all their toylsom and laborious service Sinners will not be purged Jer. 13. ult Wo unto thee O Jerusalem wilt thou not be made clean when shall it once be They will not be gathered under the wing of Christ though there only be the place of refuge both from the rage of Satan and from the wrath of God Mat. 23. 37. O Jerusalem Jerusalem thou that killest the Prophets and stonest them that are sent unto thee how often would I have gathered thy children together as an Hen gathereth her brood under her wings and ye would nâ—t Nay the wills of many who have often slighted the admonitions and calls of Moses and the Prophets are so desperately bent to sin that though themselves should see the flames and torments it makes others suffer yet they would not be perswaded to forsake it Luk. 16. 30 31. Nay Father Abraham but if one went to them from the dead they will repent and he said unto him If they hear not Moses and the Prophets neither will they be perswaded though one rose from the dead My work in the opening of this Doctrine will be first to demonstrate the truth of it That men die because they will Secondly to evidence that mens inability to what is good so often spoken of in Scripture does not at all contradict this doctrine The Arguments to demonstrate that mens own wills are the great cause of their death and perdition are these 1. One Argument shall be drawn from the natural corruption and depravation of the will of man And wherein does this corruption lye but in the wills declining from God the fountain of life and peace and inclining to what is evil Though the sinner wo unto him does call that evil good and imagins that to be sweet which will prove as bitter and poysonous as the very gall of asps unto him Peâ—agians may liken the will of man unto a pure Virgin which in the first Apostacy did escape deflouring but certain it is both from Scripture and experience that in the will original sin does most of all shew it self He that does not understand his heart to â—e desperately wicked Jer. 17. 9. 'T is a sign his heart deceives him and with his heart he is utterly unacquainted What unbelief what pride what alienation from the life of God what enmity against the command which is holy just and good Rom. 7. is there in the will of a natural man The will then being so deeply corrupted and bearing such sway as indeed it does must needs hinder conversion to God and holiness which it
shall see the Lord without it Sometimes the carnal heart rises against holiness because it imagines that nothing of delight and pleasure is consistent with it whereas indeed by being converted unto God our joy is not lost but only changed The Kingdom of God is not only righteousness but also peace and joy in the holy Ghost Rom. 14. 17. whereas the joy before was poor and low and bruitish and defiling being mixed with many secret grudgings of conscience and misgivings of heart Now upon conversion the joy is pure angelical satisfactory and an earnest of those pleasures which will be for evermore Psal 16. ult Neither is this unreasonable prejudice only against the wayes of holiness but also against the publishers of these wayes There was a prejudice against Elijah as if he had been a troubler of Israel against Jeremiah as if he had been unfaithful to the State and a secret friend to the Chaldeans against the Apostles as if they had been intolerable disturbers that had turned the world upside-down And truly the treasure oft-times is disregarded though of such inestimable value because of the vessel in which 't is brought But when any are turned the mist of prejudice is immediately scattered Then strict doctrine will go down which before was nauseated and made the heart to rise against it then a servant of Christ will be esteemed and obeyed that before was lookt upon as the filth and off-scouring of the world 1 Cor. 4. 13. 4. Converts are turned from the works of darkness These works are cast off Rom. 13. 12. No known presumptuous sin is allowed of they perceive the fruitlessness of their former wayes and therefore now are ashamed of them Rom. 6. 21. Formerly they went on securely in sin because they knew not whither they were going but now they perceive the tendency of these works of darkness even unto blackness of darkness for ever and so they are made free from sin that is from sins servitude and become the servants of righteousness Sin may plead hard against its being cast away but its pleas are all invalid The gainful sin does thus plead for it self I have raised thee from a mean to an high degree I have filled thy bag and furnished thy Table By me thou hast gotten a fair estate who else wouldst have been little differing from a beggar And what shall I now be cast off having been so beneficial and yielded so much advantage But the Convert has enough to reply to such a plea. Whatever he has gained unjustly he must restore and if he had trusted in God and done good he would have fared better the Mammon of unrighteousness is attended with a curse And all the while he thrived in a wicked way he was destitute of the true riches and 't is a wonder by such dishonest gaining of the world he lost not his soul long ago Now therefore he is resolved against sinful gain lest e're he is aware God and Christ and his soul be lost beyond recovery The pleasing sin also is not without arguments for its being cherished I have pleased thy flesh and rejoyced thy heart I have made dayes and nights to pass unsensibly away I have gratified thy senses and made thy tongue to sing for joy I have stupified and laid that Fury called conscience when it has begun to stir and torture thee I have chased away thy cares and made thee to forget thy sorrows Time was when the very thoughts of me were delightful and I was embraced as a darling and why should I now be banished and killed as if I were an enemy Is affliction of soul and brokenness of heart to be preferred before the sweetness I was wont to afford thee But the Converts ear is deaf unto such Syren-melody one word is enough to dash and answer all That the pleasures of sin are but for a season Heb. 11. 25. but the pains of Hell which without conversion are sure to follow will never have a period nor be in the least mitigated The rich man who had lived jocundly fared deliciously every day when he was cast into the flames begged but for a drop of water and 't was denied him Therefore the works of darkness are cast off by the Convert the pleasure of these works is nothing comparable to the pain nor the gain to the loss which will speedily follow 2. As this conversion implies a being turned from darkness so also a being turned unto light Eph. 5. 8. For ye were sometimes darkness but now are ye light in the Lord walk as children of light And so 2 Cor. 4. 6. God who commanded the light to shine out of darkness hath shined into our hearts to give the light of the knowledge of the glory of God in the face of Jesus Christ This light has a threefold property to discover to direct to operate 1. This light discovers The Apostle tells us whatever does make manifest is light The Convert sees what he never saw before There may be many toads and serpents and other loathsom and hateful creatures in a dungeon but till the light shine in these are not perceived the breaking in of light discovers them And so in the heart of man many impure and noysom lusts have their abode but they are not indeed acknowledged neither are they any annoyance till the light does make them manifest The Convert sees his sin his shame he is sensible of the plagues of his own heart and the absolute necessity of a cure His interest likewise is discovered to him and that is in seeking first the Kingdom of God and his righteousness in securing his soul which is of far greater value than the world in minding the one thing needful that good part which can never be taken away 2. This light directs It guides those who are turned into the way of peace and truth The Lamp of the Word the Spirit joyning with and teaching by it shews which are the perverse and crooked paths to the end that these may be shunned and avoided and it also directs into those wayes which are pleasing unto God and pleasant in themselves and moreover so exceeding safe that rone ever missed of heaven that continued to tread in them We are directed to believe and to obey and where faith and obedience are linked together the off-spring of that conjunction will most certainly be glory honour and immortality 3. This light operates in a powerful manner 'T is such a light as has heat along with it Converts were before told of the evil the folly of sin but now they see this by another light and their hearts are warmed with indignation against it They see sin so as to be deeply affected they sorrow for it and abhor it They were before informed of the mercy and alsufficiency and other perfections of God but now they have such a view of his glory in the face of Christ as that the fire of love is enkindled and that love does put
that he would pity those among you who are unto your selves cruel Oh that he would awaken the souls that are not only asleep but dead and break the hearts which have made themselves as an Adamant stone Oh that he would convince you of your sin and misery and effectually turn you from the one that you may be for ever freed from the other To these Petitions let every heart say Amen! Vse V. Of Direction I would believe by this time that you are willing to hearken unto and likewise follow some directions how to become sincere Converts Directions how to get ease when you are in pain how to recover health when you are sick or an â—â—tate which you have lost I am confident would be heeded And are not directions from the infallible word of truth how to be turned and saved of far greater consequence The Directions are these which follow 1. Think upon and with a serious spirit consider your wayes This Consideration had great influence upon the Psalmist Psal 119. 59. I thought on my wayes and turned my feet unto thy testimonies I made haste and delayed not c. That injunction is doubled Hag. 1. 5. And again v. 7. Thus saith the Lord of hosts Consider your wayes And that passage Ezek. 18. 14. is to be observed Now lo if he beget a Son that seeth all his fathers sins which he hath done and considereth and doth not such like c. If sinners would but consider what they do when they do evil it would be a means to make them cease to do evil and learn to do well Consider the misery and danger of being at a distance from God The wayes which naturally you walk in do lead you away from him and the Scripture sayes Those that are far from God shall perish he will destroy all them that go a whoring from him Psal 73. 27. Think of these things so long till you find your hearts affected so as to conclude it height of madness to lye secure in an unconverted state Let this thought take deep impression All the while thou persistest in thy evil wayes thou for sakest the Lord and forsakest thy own mercies and art travelling apace to the regions of eternal wo and darkness 2. Study the vanity of former excuses I know the natural mans mouth is very full of them but 't is very easie to answer them Sin thou sayest is rivited in thy very nature Therefore thou hadst need to cry to heaven that thy nature may be changed and to be made a new creature But sin is the commune practise Therefore thy danger is the greater and thou shouldst be the more careful lest thou be overwhelmed in that râ—in that will be so general But my lusts are both profitable and pleasant and why then should I abandon them Consider soul whether the damned who have lost their souls and eternal blessedness and suffer the vengeance of eternal fire have any reason to boast of gain or pleasure But men will deride and scorn me if I become a Convert They that do so are besides themselves and sober people use not to be concerned at the laughter of such as are out of their wits Oh contèmn their contempt despise the shame they cost upon you shortly they themselves will wish that instead of scorning at they had been imitators of you But to turn unto and follow God is very hard and the difficulty is a very great discouragement The work is hard indeed but the strength and assistance is great which shall be afforded The Lord will work all your works in you and for you Isa 26. 12. He commands nothing but what he is ready to help you to perform himself But if I am a Convert I shall never live a pleasant hour my tears will be my meat and drink and my sorrows my perpetual companions Oh gross mistake and unreasonable prejudice against the wayes of holiness If godliness be so melancholy a business why does the Scripture tell us of peace which passeth all understanding and joys that are unspeakable and full of glory Why is David so often singing so often harping if mirth and Religion were 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 altogether inconsistent Oh but if I turn I shall be exposed to suffering Well suppose thou art the sufferings of this present time are not worthy to be compared with the present grace and consolation which will attend thy trials much less with the glory that shall be revealed Study the vanity of all such excuses 3. Save your selves from the untoward generation you live among This was the advice the Apostle gave to them that had been awakened and pricked in their heart Act. 2. 40. You must shake hands with your former brethren in iniquity else they will be a great temptation and snare to you Carnal company are incarnate devils who endeavour to draw as many as they can to Hell along with them Therefore the wisest of men does use so many words of caution Prov. 4. 14 15. Enter not into the path of the wicked and go not in the way of evil men avoid it pass not by it turn from it and pass away Though you are not bound to be morose and uncivil towards the ungodly take heed of being delightfully familiar Many a conviction and good resolution has cooled and vanished by our lighting into the society of the wicked Suck not in any prejudices from them against true piety and when they presume to prate against prayer hearing fasting professing when they quarrel against the Lord's day and censure the Lord's people look upon all this but as the ravings of such as are in a spiritual sense distracted 4. Despise not Prophecyings The Ministry of the Word is ordained on purpose to work faith and to turn sinners unto God and therefore let not drowsiness distraction cares or pleasures or lusts or the deceitfulness of riches choak this Word and hinder it from prospering to this end whereunto it is appointed When Ezekiel prophesied over the dead and dry bones they presently revived and a valley of dead bones became a living Army And who knows while thou art prophesied over by the Ministry of the Gospel but of a sudden thou mayest be made alive who wast dead in trespasses Let powerful preaching be prized and frequented by you Certainly the word has a converting power when 't is set home Psal 19. 7. The Law of the Lord is perfect converting the soul the testimony of the Lord is sure making wise the simple 5. Quench not the Spirit 1 Thes 5. 19. His conviction you must not stifle but improve The Spirit of the Lord sometimes approaches very neer unto a drunkard a swearer a covetous worldling an unclean person and tells them the way they take it is perverse before him that there is but a step between them and death between them and damnation and therefore moves them to humiliation and to reformation He informs them they had better leave their sins than be undone for their sake Now such convictions might be heightned into Conversion if they were but closed with and improved But thousands resist the holy Ghost they had rather be permitted to sin without disturbance than to have the waters troubled though upon stepping in they might be healed what ever their spiritual malady and plague be Dost thou find the Spirit neer thee Oh heed his checks comply with all his motions and beg that thou mayst not be put off with commune operations but that a saving work may be wrought in thee 6. Lay hold upon and plead the Lords own Covenant In this Covenant he has engaged to give you a new heart to cleanse you from your filthiness and your idols to put his Spirit within you and cause you to walk in his Statutes that is in one word to convert you Ezek. 36. 25 26 27. Be earnest that these promises may be accomplished Resolve to take no nay the Lord will be pleased with your importunity in a matter which 't is so much for his own honour to grant you You cannot turn your selves but he can as easily do this work as leave it undone One word of life and power will raise you And since he sayes Turn ye turn ye from your evil wayes for why will ye die O house of Israel presently make this Text into a prayer Turn us turn us from our evil wayes for why should we die O thou God of Israel FINIS