A Treatife ofGonfcience... 7'; in the common -wealth when one breaketh the peace, fo it is a (tine in the ipirit to break the peace of confcience ; we are all bound to the peace . 3. If the children ofGod have it not al_ wayes, then they feel the want ofit ; and in the want of that comfort nothing elfe will comfort them. It is not all the peace and profperity of the world that can comfort their hearts as long as they have not this peace ; not all the mirth in theworld cancontent them until' they enjoy this peace again, the peace and quiet of a goodconfcience;they faint for ir,and.longafter-it, they can have no ftrength without it;7heLordWill giveflrength unto his people;the Lordwill bleffe his people Withpeace, It is not fo with corrupt hearts; they can be without peace, and yet never faint;they can eat and drink for all that, & fleep & be merry for all that, yea & go about their profits and their earthly bufinefles as roundly as ever for all that; But the childrenof God if they want the peace of confcience, they have no ftrength to do any thingalmoft,they faint til they have it again.4The godly always have the feeds of it in them ; Light is fown for the righteoru, etndgladneffefor theupright in heart, Mark ; it isfown in their hearts, and it will fpring up at one timeor other to chear them and to comfort them. As it is with thewicked ; they may feem nowand thentohave true peace, but they have the feeds of horroural wayes in them, which will fprout forth at Taft, and then they (hall find the worm of an evil confcience again; fo» on the contrary fide, the godlymay feem now and then tohave no peace, but yet they have aiwayes the feeds of true peace in them, which will in time (hew themfelves, and folace their fouls for ever. 5. They never want peace as the wicked do want it, The wicked want it, and have no poíbi'ityof having it ; they go in fuch paths as wherein they (hall -never loom peace, fuch paths as will never lead them unto it ; í}i11 their confcience is able to fay, they are not right, they arecarnali and not fpiritu- ali; they know no true peaceofconfcience, neither can they But the children of God walk in fuch wayes as will bring them to truepeace ofconfcience ere they have done. By this you feewhat a good and quiet confcience 'is. It can- not Pfa.zg Pfa.97,II Ifai. 59, 8,.
RkJQdWJsaXNoZXIy OTcyMjk=