A SERMON OF .REPENTANCE.. 341 9 The true convert is one that is muchat home ; his heart is the vineyard which he is daily dressing his work is ordinarily about it ; and, therefore, he is acquainted with those secret sins, and daily failings, which ungodly men, that are strangers to themselves, do' not observe, though they have them in dominion. 10. Lastly, a serious Christian is a workman of the Lord's, and dailybusy at the exercise of his graces, and, therefore, hath occa- sion to observe his weaknesses, and failings, and from sad experi- ence is forced to abhor himself. But with careless, unrenewed souls, it is not so': some of them mayhave a mild, ingenuous disposition, and the, knowledge of their unworthiness; and customarily they will confess such sins as are small disgrace to them, or cannot be hid ; or under the terrible gripes of conscience in the hour ofdistress, and at the approach of death, they will do more ; and abhor themselves, perhaps, as Ju- das did ; or make aconstrainedconfession through thepower of fear ; but so far are, they from this loathing ofthemselves for all their in- iquities, that sin is to,them as their element, theirfood, their nature, and their friend. And now, honorable, worthy, and beloved auditors, it is my du- ty to inquire, and to provoke you to inquire, whether the repre- sentative body of the commons of England, and each man of you in particular, be thus affected to yourselves or not. It concerns you to inquire' of it, as, you love your souls, and love not to see the death-marks of impenitency on them. It concerneth us to inquire of it,.as we love you and the nation, and would fain see the marks of God's return in mercy to us; in your self-loathing and return to God. Let consciençe .speak as before the Lord that sees your hearts, and will shortly judge you : have you had such a sight of yournatural and actual sin and misery, of your neglect of God, your contempt Of heaven, your loss of precious,, hasty time, your worldly, fleshly, sensual lives, and your omission ofthe great and holy works Which you,were made for ? Have you had such a sight and sense of these as bath filled your souls with shame and sorrow, and caused you, in tears, orhearty grief, to lament your sin- ful, careless lives, before the Lord? Do you loathe yourselves for all this, as being vile in your own eyes; and each man say, ' What a wretch was I ! what an unreasonable, self -hating wretch, to do all this against myself! what an unnatural wretch ! what a monster of rebellion and ingratitude, to do all this against the Lord of love and mercy ! what a deceived, foolish wretch, to prefer the pleasing of my lusts and senses, a. pleasure that perisheth in the fruition, and is pastas soon as it isreceived, before the manly pleas- ures of the saints, and before the soul's delight in God, and before the unspeakable, everlasting pleasures ! Was there any compari- son between the brutish pleasures of the flesh, and the spiritual
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