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133 in the ftate of Nature, under the guilt of all my fins, with the wrath of God abiding on me? Iffo, is this a Condition to be refted in?

Let me advise thee, as thou loveft thy foul, to deal faithfully, and in good fadneffe with thy felf: Let me advise thee to review, and ferioufly to reflect upon the whole course of thy life paft; And (befides thy natural vileneffe) Confider, how many actual fins, failings, mifcarriages, and violations of Gods righteous Law, omiffions of good, commiffions of vil, thou hast been guilty of, in the feveral parts of thy life, and in the feveral places where thou haft lived. Believe it, few people do reckon up one fin of ten that they are guilty of. Allow thy Confcience therefore, a liberty to peak freely to thee, and to fet thy fins in order before thee. And if thou findeft thy felf for the prefent in a bad condition, and that the cafe is not with thee as it should be, confider whether it will not be an extream folly and madneffe, to go on in that courfe, not minding, nor regarding fpeedily to turn to God, and to fettle the great affairs of thy foul, while thou haft time? O Remember, remember, thou haft a precious and immortal foul, that must be shortly either in Heaven, or Hell; either in unconceiveable Joyes, or in endleffe, eafeleffe, and remedileffe torments. Doth it not therefore concern thee to confider, and caft about, how to

attain the one, and escape the other? D it not behoove thee to look to the fecurin the main Chance, and to deliver thy felf fr the wrath to come? Believe it, nothing und mankind more, than want of due and fer Confideration; than want of frequent exa ning the state of their Confciences, and of pondering and thinking of their everlaftin Concernments.

2 Cor.13.5. Examine your felves, whethery in the Faith, prove your owne felves; know not your owne felves, bow that Fefus Chris in you, except ye be Reprobates ?

Pfal.119.59. Ithought on my waies; and in my feet unto thy Testimonies.

V.60. I made haft, and delaied not to kept Commandements...

Ifa.1.3. The Oxe knoweth his owner, and th his masters Crib, but Ifrael dith not know, people doth not Confider.

Deut.32.29. Othat they were wife, that they derftood this, that they would Confider their ter end.

Hag.1.5. Now therefore, thus faith the Le Hofts, Confider your waies.

Lam.3.40. Let us fearch and try our waies, “ turn again to the Lord.

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Gal.6.4. Let every man prove his owne wel and then fball he have rejoycing in himself, not in another.

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V.5. For every man fhall bear his owne burden. Pfal.77.6. I call to remembrance my song in the night, I commune with mine own heart, and my Spirit made diligent fearch.

Rom.14.12. So then every one of us fhall give ac count of himself to God.

Ezra 8.22.-The hand of our God is upon all them for good that feek him: but his power, and his wrath is against all them that for fake him.

HAV

CHAP. II.
of Repentance.

Aving feriously examined thy Conscience, and impartially confidered thy waies, and courfe of life, and the state of thy foul towards God; The next duty I would advise thee (beging the affiftance of the Spirit of God) to fet upon the speedy practife of; is true, and ferious, and unfeigned repentance.

I fhall therefore for thy benefit, 1. Open the nature of true repentance. 2. Give fome directions about it. 3. Some motives to it. Repentance unto life is an Evangelical Grace wrought in the foul by the Spirit of God. And the parts of it are these fix,

1. Conviction.

2. Contrition.

3. Hating and loathing fin.
loathing fin.

4. Cox

4. Confeffion of fin.
5. Forfaking fin.

6. Converfion, and turning the bent of the heart towards God.

First, Conviction. The Spirit of God first opens a finners eies, before he breaks a finners heart. The foul of a true penitent is convinced, and made apprehenfive of these three things,

1. The evil,odioufneffe, and filthine of fin. 2. The danger, defert, and mischievous effects and confequents of it:

3. Its own deep guiltinesse, both of original and Actual fin.

I. The evil of fin appears in these seven particulars;

1. 'Tis contrary to Gods holy Nature.

2. To his righteous Lawes.

3. It robs and deprives the foul of Gods Image, confifting in knowledge, righteousnesse, and holineffe.

4. It depraves, diforders, diftempers the foul, weakens the powers of it, difables it for holy operations, and brings a corrupt difpofition into it.

5. It defiles the foal, and leaves fuch a blot, and stain upon it, that nothing but the blood of Christ can wash out.

6 It enslaves the foul to the devil.

7. It makes the foul like unto the devil. Holineffe is Gods Nature: Sin and wickednesse is the devils. 'Twas fin that at first, turn'd An

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gels of light into devils of darkneffe: And if we could feparate fin from them, they would cease to be devils, and clear up again into Angels of light.

II. The great danger of fin appears in that i brings fuch a guilt upon the foul, as makes i f liable to Gods wrath and curfe, and to punish

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ments.

1. Temporal: Sickness, pain, vexation, mifery, death which to the wicked are truly pu#nishments, and fruits of Gods vindicative juftice, and have their fting ftill in them.

2. Spiritual. 1. Loffe of the favour of God, and communion with him. 2. The immediate = frokes of his anger on the foul, wounds of Confcience, drops of his wrath, horrour of mind, despair. 3. Hardneffe of heart, a Spirit of flumber, blindne of mind, a reprobate fenfe, to be given over to vile affections, and to Sathan. Thele are most fearful judgements.

3. Eternal. Such as concern the foules immortall condition after this life. And they are either punishments of loß or pain. 1. of loß, in being for ever banished from the prefence of the Lord, and the joyes of Heaven, 2 Thel 2.9. being punished with everlasting deftruction from the presence of the Lord, and the Glory of his power. 2. Of pain, con fifting in those exquifite and unconceivable torments, which shall be inflicted on the damned; fet forth in Scripture by everlasting fire, utter dark

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