Ètek.IS s6. I Co'r.9.16 d t7'eatZfe of" Confcieuce the arrow of his wrath flicking in your fouls, this will adde forrow to forrow, and make your elute much more uncomfor- tableand unfupportable. Beloved, peace of conscience is goad at all times ; but it is moll precious when calamities fall on us : Then to have the peace of a good conlcience that may bring us good news from )eaen, that all is well within, all peace there, this is filch peace as all the world cannot give nor fell nor buy. Never more need of ti,e peace of confcience then now. As one laid of the books ofFaith, There be abundance ofbooks written offaith : buy them all up, faith he ; ye will need every one of them ere long : So may J fay of whatever may forward the peace of conscience ; Buy it, purchafe it, get it, as much peace as youcan poffible : ye will have need of it all ere long. Take heed of troubling your confciences or clogging themWith guilt, lefi theLord caRyou off, and left ye be hardned, and Co ye perith from the right way. Donot think thus,Owe are believers, and have no need of fuck threatnings. He who is certain ofhis iäl- vation kifloweth aflMredlyhe fhould bedamned ifhe fhould go on in finne without repentance ; This if is true enough ; If the righteous forfake his righteoufnsffe, all hisformer righteauf- neffe¡hall be forgotten. And, Woe is me, faith Paul, If f preach not the gofpel. In the Rate of innocencie there was ufe of threat- nings : to is there now in theRate of grace. TheLord threatned Adam in innocencie, If thou eat thereof thou fhalt die the death. Job was awedby threatnings not to lift up his hand againí the fatherleffe ; fer faith he, f rution fromGod was a terrour to me. Aly flefh, faith David, trembleth for fear of thee, and Sam afraid of thy judgements. Let us havegrace, faith the Apoflle, whereby we mayferve God acceptably with reverence and godly fear. Why ? for our God is a confuming fire. For be it that Gods children ( that is, all believers ' fhall never fall finally away ; yet this threatninv is one of Chrifls inPruments whereby he keepeth them from f:lling, : and they alto may t?ft ofmuch bitterneffe ifthey grow indulgent to their corruptions. O therefore take heed of thiscurfe, that your con - `fciences may not dog you with theguikoffinne and the appre- henfion
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