Life of 9raci. 43 are not lure when you have cut off that member to live a day after : butyetbecaufé it is poßîble, becaufe it is the way to natural life : andyet ifyou have that lifegrant- ed, fitppofe for term ofyears, as Hezekiah had forfifteen years, yet itisbutánatu- ral life, a life fullof mifcry, a life expofed tomany vexatious and difquiets,a life that hatla fo many troubles Mir, that men inthe belt eftateof healthwith fornetimes that they were dead, through difquiets, and troubles, and yet for the prefervation ofa troublefomelife, ifyou were furs of that, you wouldlofe a member. I know when we come, and fpeak ofrenouneing your former wayes, yourcovetoufaefs, and pro- phanenefs, andpride, and vanity, andwickednefs in any kind, we fpeak ofcutting off of hands, ofmembers ofthe body, they arc fo dear : therefore Chrift faith, Iftk? hand offendthee,cut it off; ifthine eye offendthec pull it out ; it is better to go to hea- venwith one hand, than to hell with both. This I fay, Iknow you apprehend it a hard leffon, there is no life, no Chrift, without fuch adeath to fin. Yet it is a truth, and a neceffary truth for you toknow, and therefore confider it, and that ferioufly what you lofe,if we comeand perfwade you to cut off fomeufeful member,yetyou yield to that for a natural life : youwill cut off ahand that is as ufeful as any member ofthebody : but we bid you cut off fuperfluousmembcrs,thofe needlefs members, the members offin that will be your death. We would have you but to be rid óf the Ulcer, that isall we wouldhave you deprived of, to preferve fpirituallife, and to live to God. If I were to fpeak fora natural life, it were but temporal, it were but upon conje&ure : but we fpeak fora life upon certainty. When we perfwade you todie to fin,thatyoumay live toGod ; we affure you that this will certainly follow on it, you thalllive toGod, if fin die in you, and we fpeak not only upon certainty, but for eternity too, you !hall do it for eteruity,too, you (hall do itfor eternity : it isnot a life that ends. Nay, we fpeak for a lifewherein there is true happinefs, that hath no mixture ofmifery to make you weary, buta life thathath perfect peace and joy : a life that bath bleffednefsbegun, and !hall have bleffcdnefs perfected in hea- ven: this life we perfwade you to live. Confider now what we fay; ifthere were more, ,you (hall live to God themore youdie to fin. Shin for skin (faith job) and all that a man bath bewill givefor bis life: but if it be fuch a life as this, to live to God, a fpiritual life ; what ? to live as theAngels do, that live withGod ! to live as the Saints in Heaven, that live in the fruition aiidfiglst ofGod, wherein they are bleffed I fuch a life we perfwade you to. A life infinitely above this,ifthis tifc'had a11'the"contentment the earfh could give it, it were not worthy to bc compared, though' man might live athoufand years in the confluetice andabundance ofall profperiry,i t were not tobe compared with one moment ofthe happinefsofthefpiritual life thatwe 'h all live in for all eternity with Chrift. Now confider,take things, and compare them together; here is fuch a par- ticularfin thatI wasgiven to,topride,to covetoufnefs,to prophanenefs,to w ickednefs of this fort or of that fort, if Igo onin it, I die eternally, i lofe God,and heaven,and my foul,and happinefs : what 'hall I get by this when I have done it? I gratifie Sa- tan, I deftroy my foul, I have loft my felfand am undone forever. And whata madnefs is this for a mantoventure the eternal ruine and deftruá±ionofhimfelf, and that for a thing ofnothing, for that will make him miferable now, and more mile- table eternally. Confider, and know to whom I fpeak, I fpeak to you thathave heard the Word, and many times received the Sacrament. What did you when you received the Sa- crament? was it not a pledge to you of your intereft in Chrift, and ofyour union with him ? and that Chrill is as truly united withyOu, as that you eat and drank ? Now let it appear, make you account, whatfoever you were before, make you ac- count,reckon ye,go not by guefsand lay,I hope it will be better withmethan itbath been; no, but reckon, conclude,madeaccount,I muftbe another man,Imaynot be what I was, I muff leave thofe things that are ill ; I muff apply my felf to another courte; Indeed I Walkedin a way of enmity to the wayesof God,and eftrangement fromGod,inworldly wicked wayes, but it mull not now be fo,Imuff make account now that Chrift is mine, I am nowdeadto fin, and therefore dead to fin, that Imay K k k live
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