through Natural! impoffibilitie.f. r89 felves ? As a difhonour to God , fo a great hinderance to your felves to doe thus : it tunes Godout of the wayofhis mercy ; Nay, fayes God ) feeing you vvill have no mercy but in a roade ofmeanes , you (hall have none but in a roade of meanes ; fo mercy comes thinne , and fcant , and by little drops ; whereas otherwife mercy would come thick,and and large. Hereby you are put upon indired meanes to get out of trouble : pray , what is the ground that caufes men to ufe ' indirect meanes to get out of trouble ? is not this at the bot- tome ? you thinke meanes milli be ufed ; this is at the bottome. Beloved in the Lord, as you-do deGre God may not be dif-. honoured , that Mercy may come full and not fcant unto you, learne to beleeve at another rate then ever you have done ; when all meanes faile and feeme to lie dead before you, then beleeve: fo for thy Souk,fo for thyBody, fo for thy .Efiate. Youwill fay , How fhould I do this ? to beleeve when all ,92ef . meanes faile and lie dead beforeme ? I have a great profpeet in my firme.s ; the guilt of one finne comes and that huh a blow at,rrly confcience : and the guilt of another finne that comes and that gives a blow to my confcience , and my confcience is all blacke and blue with blowes , and they all cry out and fay, poor damn'd, damn'd and undone creature, and I fee no way, no meanes at all left for my falvation ; Ah I Lord what (hall I do tobeleeve nowwhen all meanes faile ? I !hall onely fpeake a word to it, and fo winde up all, esinftV. thus Know, that thou mayeft truft God , that thou mayeft find Mercy , that thou mayeft beleeve in fuch a cafe as this is. Beloved, therefore thou hall not beleeved in fuch a cafe heretofore,becaufe thou didfi think thou mightft not beleeve. But now know from the Lord, 'tis no temptation, 'tis no prefumption, in filch a cafe as this thou mayeft leane thy poor guilty foule upon God this day. I am loath to make compa-
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