1,4 3 2 The right manner ofdraunng nigh [port, or any thing rather than t15 come into Gods pretence. We know how it was with .Adam, when God appeared in the Garden and called to him, he ran to bide himfelf, , Why ? Be- caufe he had guiltinefs uponhim. Oh ! the evil that the guilt of fin brings upon the Soul, it makes the pretence of God terrible. The pretence of God it Ihould be more comfortable to us, than our lives ; but our fin makes Gods pretence grievousand terrible. AChild ibmtimes when ic hath offended the Father, and is confcious to its felf of theoffence that it hath given the Father, it had rather be in the Kitchin among the Servants, than to come into the Hall, or Parlor, where the Father is, becaufe it bath offended him. And fo ic is with a guilty Confcience, when it is confcious to its felf of fome haunt of evil that ic bath given it felfunto, it huh no mind at all or coming into the prefenoz of the Father, but hangs off. MyBrethren, the very pretence of God in the Communion of his Saints, is terrible to a guilty Con- fcience, the very looking upon a Godly man is terrible to a guil- ty Confcience : When as thou haft been abroad, and been lode . and wicked in thy waies, Ixpeal to thy Confcience, when thou comeft into the pretence Offome holy, gracious man or woman that lives clofe with God, Doth it not daunt thee ? Now is the pretence of God in thevery faces of his Saints, terrible to a guil- ty Confcience : How terrible is the pretence of God inhis Ordi- nances tl _!n ? Indeed tholemen and women, whofe Confciences are not enlightened, but are Ignorant and fottifh, they can fin againft God, and go into his pretence without any trouble; you than havemen fwear, and be drunk over night, and come to the Sacrament the next day ; WhaL's the reafon ? Becaufe there is no light in their Confciences, their Confciences are in darknefs, they are befotted in their fin ; but I [peak nowofone who bath an enlightened Confcience, the pretence of God is terrible to fuch an one. AThird Ufe is this, Here's the reafon why Hypocrites do meet with fuch vengeance from God as they do. I confefs we than meet with this more efpecially afterwards, only by the t-ay take notice of it, Hypocrites above all men may expel': fevereft judgments of God upon them, becaufe t1,7y come nigh God; for theycome often to the Duties of GC Wore thip 5
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