Tenth Commandment. and l),unnation vifibly fi:amp'd upon their Foreheads : Such as he, chat 'can without RduUance commit them, mult needs own him~elffor the apparent Off~pring of rhf: Devil. But tOr an invifible Tbougpr, a Nodon_; ~ Defire, a Thing next nothing, this certainly I may pleafe my fi:lf wnhal, ,for thts can hurt no one. By a malicious Purpofe 1 wrong no Mao; _by a. c9vr:t~:ms D::?re I exr?rt from no Man; and .what fo great Evil then can there be mthts? lets true mdeed, wen thou only ~o deal wnh Men, whom Immaruial Things touch not, there were no fuch great Evil in them. But when thou ha !I likewife ro do with an Immaterial and Spiritual God, before whom thy very ThoughtS and Defires appear as fub!lamial and confiderable as thy outward AE\ions rhen know rhar rhefe, as flight and thin Beings as thoy arc, fall under his Cen· furd here, and will fall under his Revenge hereafter. Now were rh is Perfwafion e~ually wrought into rhe Minds of Men, were ir poffihle they fbould indulge themfdVes as they do, in vain, frotHy, unclean, malicious, Thoughts and Defiro5, were ir pcfiible they lbould fo clofcly brood on the le Ccck· atrice Eggs, whicb will bring forth nothing bur Serpents ro fling them ro Erernal Death; were it pc!ftble rbey lbould cklighr in rouling and rolling a Sin ro and fro in their Fancy, and by, Imagining ir make the Devillome Recompence for ~or d_aring ro commir it certainly fuch Men arc altogether unacquamred wuh rhe Ltf< and Power of uue Grace, when, 3S rbofe Sins which rhey date nor aEl, yer rhey dare with Pleafure conremplare, and dally with, in their Fancies and Imaginations . Turn [herefore your Eyes inwards; bewail and firive againft that natural Concupif. cence which lodgerh there; and never content thy felf that thou ball: dammed up rho Streams ofrhy Corruptions from overflowing thy Life and Aaions, till rhoa halt in fome good Mealine dried up rhe Fountain of it. Thirdf)l, See here the bell: and the fure!l Methods to keep us from rhe outward Violation ot God's Laws, which is to morrific our eonupt Concupifcence and Defires. And rherdore (as I told you) rhe Wifdom of God bath fer this Commmdmenr in the lafl Place as a Fence and Guard ro all the rell:; thou !halt nor Covet, and then certainly thou !halt nor Kill, nor Sreal, nor commit Adulreryl nor bear falfe Wit~ nefs, bur be kept pure from all outward D, filemenrs of the Flern, when thou art rhus cleanfed !tom the inward Defilements of rbe Spirit; for from rhefe ir rs tbar all the more vilible Sins of our Lives and Aaions have their Supply. And · therefore faith our Saviour, Maub. 1 5· 19. Our of rbe Heart proctcdEvil Thoughtr, Murden, ild!if.. teries. Fornicatinnr, Thefu, fa!fe Witne/r, BlafpbemJ. Obferve that he puiS Evil Thoughts in rhe Front as tbe Leader of all rhis Black Regiment; for our ot this Evil Treafure of the Heart Men bring fonh Evil Things; and all tbe Fruits of the Flelh, the Grapes of Sodom, aad the Cluflers of Gomorrah, receive rbeir Sap and Nourifhmenr from rhis Root of Bitternefs. Ir ougbr therefore moll: defervedly to bo the great and chief Caro of every Cbri!lian to lay rbe Ax ro this Root, and to p~rge and heal rh is Fountain, rhar fends forth fuch couupt and poifonous Streams, ro keop his Heart clean from ftnful Thoughts and Mfe£lions, and rben this Life will be clean by Confequence. And therefore God very prellingly requires this, ]er. 4· r4. 0 Je· rufalem, wajh thy Heart from WicfredAejr, bow long jha/1 voin Thougbtt lodge within thee? And !er me add, rbar unlefs we mako thi• our chief Care, unlefs we do moll foliciroufly obferve thi• !aft Commandment, all our Care in obfervine rho former will be urrerly in vain; nor only in refpe<l of our Accoprance and Reward with God, but as to any good Ilfue and Ufea. All other Endeavours will be as fucceflofs as to attempt the Cure of an Ulcerous Body without purging it, where the Corruption will quickly break forth again; or ro arrempr the emptying of a Pond rhat hatil !"'"Y Springs !\ill riftog up in rbobortom.ofit, whk:h will fgon grow as full as eve~ Jtwa~.
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