io An Enquiry after a mans eflate. Nay more then fo; Manyof them who leek to get into a good eflate mite of it and perith. See, Luk, 13. 24. Strive to enter in at the firait gate:Mark,it's a firait gate,and letteth but few in :for many fall feel¿ to enter in and fballnot be able. Here and there a few, even where the confiant miniflery is, 3. 3. Confider that it is a marvellous hard thing to paffe from flare unto irate, from a bad unto a good errate. There is a ve- ry vaft gulf between the 'late of fanne and the {late of grace, and it is marvellous hard to paffe it. There things premifed, the Ufes follow. i e r. r. This point may be many ways ufeful : Firfr, for inflru- Of In- éìion. If God had made it poffible unto us to find out what flruai- eflate every one of us is in, then lure he would have us go a- on bout it and enquire after it. God might have left us to perifh It i, every in our natural blrndnefl'e, never to have known in what cafe we mans duty had been, untill we were pair recovery. Firfl, we are all wande- to enquire rers from God, and from the ways of peace, and therefore sties his God might fully have fuffered us for ever to have wandred, efrate. and never to have been able to find out whether we had been right orwrong. Secondly, God hath dealt fo with force : lie bath haltered tome to go on all their days blindfold to hell. Thus the Lord dealt with the Scribes and Pharilees. Let them a- lone, faith he, they be blind leaders of the blind, and if the blind 'Matth.a5. lead the blind, they Will both fall into the ditch. Ye fee the Lord 14 hathdealt fo wich force; and it is his mercy he hath not dealt fo with us. Sith God hath made it poflible for us to know, it is our duty to enquire after it : And that yet further for thefe reafons, Reafans. r .Firfi,becaufe the Lord commandeth it : Examine your oWn z, Car a 5. [elves whether ye be in the faith, prove your (elves : know ye not 5 your oWn[elveshoW that ?efusChriFt is in you,except ye be repro- bates? Where you fee the Apoflle commandeth the duty of felt- trial; And confider how he prelleth it upon us : a,` ho ye not knoW what eflate you are in? then examine and enquire 2. Doye think,you are in a good eflate ? look. ye prove it, and be lure you be not in an errour. Doye objeft ye do not know, neither can.
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