Serm. i 1. te difcern'their Spiritual .çomditiata ? 303 mer fens you to Rudy the book of Gods Word , this calleth upon you to Rudy the book of your own hearts. The other is a dire& a& of the underflanding, this is a reflect a& to make a judgemeut of thy Rate; whether there be a Tranfcript of thofe things in chine own heart : for every Believer bath the Gofpel -laws written upon the table of his foul by the fpirit of God. Affurance cannot be had ordinarily , without the examination of our own Hearts, for affurance is the certain know- ledge of the conclufon,. drawn from the pre mifes, one our of the.Scri- ,pture, the other by the refle6l a& of the underaanding,or Confcience, thus : He that believeth and is juflified, fhall be faved ; 'that is the Word of God : Then by the fearch of his own heart, he mutt be able to fay ; But I believe and am ju(lified, and from there two, doth re- fuit this affurance that he may conclude : therefore I ih 111 be faved. Lute I 5.8. The woman that had loft a piece of fiver, did light a Candle,and fwept her houfe, and thereby found what the had ioR.Con- fcìence is this Candle, the Scripture is the fire at which it muff be ligh - ted,and felf- examination is the broom whereby the heart is fwept, and fo the Race of the foul which before was not difcerned , comes Co be difcovered. But here take heed thy heart be not rafh in affirming or denying, fufpend the determination till thou hall made a narrow, Rri& inquiry into thy foal, as thou loveR thy foul do not prefume, as thou valueft thy comfort do not deny any work of the fpirit of God upon thy heart, but with thankfulnefs acknowledge any thing that thou canR difcern to be a fr,uic of the fpirit. Search threughly, and judge impartially. Say therefore co thy foul, to mike thy felt more ferrous in this weighty Detas eJi ecúius work ; thou art now, oh my foul, in the prefence of the great Heart- fearching L fnit,s God, that knoweth certainly what thy Rate and condition is, what thy will, heart, and affe5ions are : thou mua, oh my foul I (hortly Rand at the B ar of God , as now chou R indeR at the bar of Confcience, and mua be fearched, judged by the Lord , and have the fentenceof Life or Death, of abfolution or condemnation, accor- ding as thy Rate (hall be found to be. Confider, oh my foul , thou art now about the greaten concernment in the World,rnany have been iniftaken, many are now tormented in Hell, that once thought their condition was good, it is not therefore for thee to flatter thi fell, and it is eafie to be rniaaken , and if thou 1houldeR be miRaken , it is as much as thy foul is worth, if thy condition be bad, and thou con- elude it to be good, thou wilt but goe more merrily to Hell : It is as much as thy comfort is worth , if thy condition be good, and thou 0 cl con-
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