Caryl - Houston-Packer Collection BS1415 .C37 v4

Chap. .I r. eAn Expofation upon the Book of J O B. Verf 13. in puttingon all, and in doing everygood. This is thework which yob is adviléd unto The fummeofall fafe and wholfome counfel is contraaed into this one fentence, Frepare.thy heart. .Hence observe, Fir(l, God maßhave the heart. He made the heart, therefore he deferves it. He gives us his heart, therefore he deferves ours. Whatfoever we give himwith- out a heart we give him nothing. There is only fo much of value in what we doe, as there is ofheart in it. It is the voiceofour hearts, not the .mulìck of our tongues that God regards, ei`t!y fonne, give me thine heart , God mull have your bell piece , for he is the belt ofall. Secondly, Any heart will not ferveGods tarn;; it muff be it preps-, redheart. He accepts not the bell fervice without a heart : How then fhould he accept anevil heart , whichcan doehimno fervice or none but ill ? As a good heart is the bell part ofman, fo an evil heart is the worfl, and there is no heart, but is one of there; That which is not good is evil, and that which is not prepared, is not good. Therefore the heart, which is a gift fit for God, mull be a prepared heart. Thirdly, Ourpreparationsfor Clodmuff begin at the heart. When Zophar would direEt 7ob, he faith , Jf.thou prepare thine heart; never think to cleanfe your hands before you cleanfe your hearts.: who can fweeten the flream, while the fountain is bit- ter or make the fruit good , while the tree is evil ? (AcF. t 5, 9.) i-Jepat no difference between us andthem; parifying their hearts byfaith : Where the holy Ghofl begins, wemuff : They who a- gree not in purityofheart, (hall differ for ever. They who agree in purity of heart, though theydifagree in opinion , Ihouldput no difference (I am fore not (uch wide ones as now are) be- tween themfelves. The truth is , where hearts are really purified by faith, their differences in opinion cannot be very wide; for they who are fo wide that they cannot be faved , were never pu- rified e When once the heart is purified , head and hand cannot continue very long or verymuch unpurified. For though purr fyingbegins alwaies at the heart , yet it never flays there. Many a man hath purified his head from falle principles. (he is very or- thodox) and his hands from falte praaices (he is very honefi) 0 i whole :

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