An Enquiry after amans eOate. i9 T. Without this knowledge a man cannot have an accufing I1. ar :ata excuíng confcience in refped of his eflate ; but men may hatie yea'many men have a confcience accufing them of being in a very bad eface; and many men have an excufing confci- ence that plainly doth witneffe that they are in a very good and gracious eflate I and my people are wicked, faith Pharaoh. His confcience did accule him of being in a bad efface, lam holy, z7od.9' faith David; I am thy fervant.His confcience told him he Pfal.a6.2. was in the {late of grace. So that he need not go farre to know what eflate you are in: there is that in your bofome that can decide the matter. 3. Men cannot delire norflie from an unknown eflate : But III. men are commanded to fife from a bad eflate, and leek out a good one: Therefore they may know the one and the other. 0 Match. 3. generation of vipers, Who hath warned you to flie from the wrath 7. a. to come? Bring forth therefore fruits meet for repentance, faith fohn to the Pharifees. He fuppofeth thefe men might eafily know that they were in a very bad eftate, or elfe how could he lay thus unto them ? Before I come to the Ufes let us confider thefe three things : r. That every man living is born in a very bad efface. We all know it well; but oh that we would canfider it : We are all Eph. a. 3. by nature children of wrath. Now here lieth the queflion, When did we change our eflate ? We are in the fame Elate of damnati- on wherein we were born except we are come out of it. I fay, here lieth the queftion, Whether we are come out of is or no, whether we have mended our eflate. a. Confider that the greatefl part of the world never mend their effates : But as they were born in a curled efface, fo they live and die in it, And I (peak not thisof heathen only ; but alas ! how many in the vilible church dër fo, how many were there in theChurch of Philippi whom theApof ie could not think Phil.3 =7. of without weeping when lac confidered. in whateftate they were So in the Church of Corinth, not many wife,' not many r. Cori . rich, not many noble called, ,. commonly,the.; nitanefi in 26. the eye of the world were ir:çhë bell eflate towards God. C Nay
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