216 Direaions forgettinjand keeping you to- hide,excufe and extenuate fin,then to open it and fee it as it is. His endeavour to drive poor fouls into terrours, is ufually but when he can rio longer keep them in prefumption Whenhe can hide their fin no longer, nor make it feem finall,to keep them in impenitencv,then he will make it feeqnunpardonable and.remedilefs if he can : but ufually notbefore. So that you fee the frame of moft mens fpirits doth re-' quire them, to be rather 'Over- jealops in fearching after their fins, thenover carelefs and confident of thernfelves; 2. MideS , I had rather of the two that Chrillians would fufpeet and fearch too much then too little , becarile there is an hundred times more danger in feeing fin lefs then it is, or overlooking it, then in feting it greater then it is,and being overfear. ful. The later miftake may bring us into forrow, and make our lives uncomfortable to us (and therefore (liouldbe avoided:) but ufually it doth not endanger our happinefs ; but is oftenmade a great occafion of our good. But the former miftake may hazard OM everlafting falvation, and fo bring us to remedilefs trouble. 3. Yea, left, you fhould fay, This sfad language to comfort-a di(Ire(fed woundedfoul, let me add this one Reafon more. So far as I can learn by reading the Seri ptures,and by longexperience ofvery many fouls under troubles ofconfcience,it is moft commonlylope notable cherifhed corruption that breedeth and feedeth the foil uncomfortable eflate ofmoll profefors, except tholi who by melancholy or verygreat ignorance, arefi Weak in their intelleEluatt,as that they are "Incapable of making any trae difcovery of their condition, and of 1;,ig
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