Ambrose - Houston-Packer Collection BX5200 .A49 1674

Book U. er 1 and to that purpofe we have his willies and promifes, which we may turn into prayer: 0 go toGod, and put him in remembrance of that which he hath delired in his Word, 0 t!.Jt thir pcop!c had {<tch bearu, ai wott'd fear me, and lzeep my Command· mmt! alwayeJ! fay unto the Lord, it is as eafie with ·him w creote :uch an, heart in Dcur. S· 29 • thee, as to wi~1 rholl hadll fuch an he~rt :.Put the Lord in mmd of h1s pror~ufe, I wiUEtek, tr.r 9 ; r.l;g a'!lJay thezr jlony hcarl!, and I mll grve them heartJ of f/rjh l entreat h1m !or the Lord Jt fus fake to make good this Word to thee, cry to him, Come £qrd, andbreak,_ this bJrd heart of mine, pric( it, and lance it and r<thcr then Iperifh, let thy hofji Spi· rit be.jpirit ofbondage to it, that I m.ry he a,ff/iC/ed, and mourn . and weep for my fins. 2 .· To that .afhult :of (wallowing LIP thy heart with over•much forrow, thi$ is more ufual with Go~s people; many a foul hath many a time complaine.d, No heart fo hard a! mine, my finr are above ordinary, ofa[carlet and crim[o11 dye, andmyfor• :·tJW is very p •Dr1 aJtd fca;zt iu_,:opurportio11)~ mygreat a;zd griev?urprovocat~•m, and ther_efore a < Y" I c•m10t, d•re 110t, wdl 11ot medle n>Zth a~ry mercy, apply •ny pr.,mife, or be perjwad· cd that Jefiu Cbrijl belmgi unto me: Oh that any !hould thus wiltully lye upon tl{e rack of terror, and trouble of mind! Oh that any fhould lay himfelf thus open · tC! SJtans hurrib!c injections, ahd crud temptations I Awav, away with all cxceJStions; pretexts fcruples, llanding< out to receive Jefus Chrill: And confider;- x. It is not the muchnds of thy !orrow, but the truth of thy forrow for linf, as fin, that God expects. The Devil tells thee of thy great fin, and little forrow, and oi the poor proportion botwixt rhefe two; and the mah is, if an exact proportion of limow to the inherent nature and demerit of fin be lo.oked at, there is none fi1eh to be found : Alas, what proportion is there betwixt finite and infinite? thy lorrow is tinito, but thy !call fin being agaiufl an infinite God it is therdore infinite : And fnp– pofc thy forrow· were intinire as thy fin, yet according tv the tenour of the lirll Cove• nant it would ' not be acccptablt, becaufe there is no c]aufe in the (.oyenant to give any hope of repent.mce.; loo\{ theretore at the truth and lincetiry of thy forrow, for this is rh: prop?rt10n of the Gofpel; heart:forrow is Oofpel·forrow: Ml,a. 37 ; When the Jews were Jmc!,!d m thezr be.ru, then Peter hke a good Chyr,t~rgi.C!n, would not keep thofe bleeding Patient; any longer in pain with there wounds qpen, Aft. 2 , 37 • but prefently he clapt on the heali~g pla~ller of the Gofpcl, Belzwe pn the Lord Jefiu. Weeping loul, doth thy heart, wh,n rbou arc in fecret weeping for thy fin, c0ndemR thee> or doth ic clear thee >if thy he:ut be falfe, 1cannot help tnee, no, IJOr the Gofpel ncith(f ; but if thy heart be ftncere , then be of good comfort, for certainly thou art not far from the Kiggdome of Gnd. , Match. 11 , tat z, Jefus Chrill calls thee, IS not that h1s vorce! Come un•o me aU ye that are weary andheavy laden, a;td I will eafc yoz<· wade on a httle witn me in the unroldil)g of chis focomtortable a Call, and be revived. Fidl then here is to be confidered; who calleth: Secondly, whom he calleth: Thirdly, why he calleth: Every ofthefe containes in it Wine of comfort, and Oyl ofGrace to glad the heart, and to chcar up the heavy ceun– tenance of the forrowlul and fobbing foul. •· Conf!der whocalleth.; Is it not the Woman> Seed appoiHted tacrulh and bruife the Serpents head? Is it not that root of Jr§e, that Son of David, that fweet Emanuel, that meek MeffiaJ, that merciful JefoJ, that foie and only Medraror, which in his olfn perfonhath concluded a peace, and made a full atonement between theLord and thee?( Js it nott?at ]efus Chrilllhadowedi~ the Law, foretold by the Pr.bphets, and in me ap·\ Mattb.J.ot, .; p01nrea lime exllibJted? Surely he 1t Is, and none but he: Thou !ayefr, thoze ort afinntr, . agrievous {tnner, and he tells thee, hi1 namt is Jefoi, for he wiU fave hi1 people from' theirfi~ti:Oh! iffaul; would belieye this,would not this dry up theirte&rs?Thou fayll,thou fcell him not,buttloou hall .t.is Word, and he is real in what he fpeaketh•: Suppofe then, that in the chamb<r where thou art crying after him, or.in the Church where thou art waiting for him, he lhould appear; !uppofe that he whom thou hearetl in big Word !hould appear, and vifibly appear before thine eyes, opening his bofome and bowels, and blood before thee, and calling unto thae to >t-his purpofc, I entre.; thet, and befcecb t!J;e, by all thofc tear! 'I have [hc'tl fo~ !het 'in the dayu of my j/tfh, by aU thofe buter ag,onm I have fufferedfo( thee , b~ •11 thofc tender bowc'II which'bave bun rolled together to'(l.·ardi tlm, come to ;,;,, imbrace mc, and lay thy lvcary weltrittg SoHt i11thii blejJedbojomeofmi>te; Who would not now come in? who would not rife out ofthe dull, and with chcarfu\ !pirit imbrace the motion of his dear Re~eemer? why he it is that callech thee,

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