Of Pre[umptuou.r Sins. 437 for the Comb~t; finful Thoughts and. finful DeJires go before, as Armcu:- bearer; ufe ro go before their Champums, and proclam1 what &rea r Lull: rs about ro make an Aifault upon the Soul. Now fuch Fore-warmngs as rhefe are, is a great Advantage that we have to repel and fubdue them. Job j4·. ; : · That 1vhich I fee ~Jot, teach thou me. And what follows? Why, !f I ha":'e.JQ11e l?UJUS~ ty, I will do [ono m()7'e, When a Man fees an Ene_my before hnn, this Js a m1ghry Advantage, either to avoid or ro conquer. Tht: Advantage now we have not againft[mallerSi.ns; we cannot fo eafi\y efcape Smsof Ignorance, becaufc we cannot fee chem; nor yet the Sins of our Thoughts and Defircs, bccaufe we cannot fore · fee them: Who of us all knows, what Thoughts will next bubble up in our Hearts, whether I:Joly and Gracious, or wh~rh.er S~nful o~· Propha~te? Thefe ftrike without Warmng, and as an Enemy wtrhm, nfe up m the nudft of our Hearts unfeen. Sins ace of cwo Sorrs ; either fuch by which we are tempted or fi.tch to which we are tempred: The Devil makes uie of one Sin to temp~ anmher; of a lefs to tempt a greater; thus wicked Thoughts are at once Sins in chcmfelves, and alfo Temptations unto wicked Actions. Now it is very hard, beca u~e chefe fpring up im~ediarely i~ t~1e Hear~, without any fore-going Temptations eo them ; but whtle the D~v!l1s rempcmg us. to finful ACt:ions by finful Thoughts, rhen the Soul bath Le1fure tO recollect It felf, to mufter up all itsGraces, to fer its Guards w call inDivineHelp and Affiftance · and upon thefe Preparations it may more eafily refifi the Sin, and overcom~ the Temptation; and chat's one great Advantage we have to keep our felves from prefumptuous Sins. Secondly, Natural ConfcietKt al[o abhorrs mwe, and doth mwe oppofo theft otttragiou1 Natural pre{umptuotu Situ, than it doth thofe Sim that it judgetb proceed onl.J from Weakne/s Confoien•e and !tJjirmity; and this al{o gives us a mi$hty Advantage to keep our [elves from them. oppofet.hthe Litcle Sins do not much difiurb the Peace and QuiemeiS of a Man's Con. commiffion fcience ; and therefore the Apojfle fpeaks of his himfelf before his Converfion ;{!;:fum~ in ACfs 2~. J, I have lived~ fays he, in aU good Confcienct before God, until this ver;·sins. day. ',nd fo in Phi/. l· 6. Teaehing the Law, fays he, fpeaking ofhimfelfbefore his ,onverfion, I ?V a! blamelefs. How could that be ? What, blamelefs and uncunvened, and in a Stare of Nature ! Yes, he was not guilty of noto:.io'us fcandalous Sins ; and as for leifer Faults, his Confcience over-look'd them~ and never blam'd him for them; and fo rruly is it with many a moral Man~ J1is Confcience hath not a \Vord tO fay.againft their !mall and petty Sins· le~ their Hearts be fenfual, and their Thoughts vain, and their Difcourfe t;nfavoury ~ and their Lives unprofitable; yet fiill Confcience and They live very friendly together : But let the Devil tempt. fuch a fober Sinner as this is, to Murther~ or Adultery, or Drunkennefs, or fome fuch branded Impiety Con· fcience then flings Fire· brands, and ftorms and cries out with Haz.. ael What .is thy Servant a Dog, that he flJou/J do fucb Thin.~s tU the{e art? As SubjeE!s Pay to their Prince many little.Sums without grudging, which, were they exacted from them all ar once m one great Tax, would make them r epine, if not rebel ; fo is it wirh us; we fiand nor with the Devil for final! Sins, bur if he tempts us eo greater Abominations, then Confcience makes an Alarm, an Uproar in rh: Soul, an~ will nor, nay, canno! c~nfent eo damn ic felfby \Vhol efalc; certamly, .chat 1Vlan that can, as o~r ::>avt~ur fpeaks ofchePharifees, fwallow Camels, Sms of a huge Bulk and Stze, wuhom any Check or StraininK at them~ muft needs hm'e a Confcience as wide-mouth'd as Htll; and he who hath fo large a Confciencc, hach no ConfCience ac all; and chat's anocl~er Advan· cage we have againft prefumptuous Sins. Th~rdly, The Fear of Shame and of Infamy in the Wodd, many times puts a great Fear of R.eftramt upon the Lr~jls ofMen, and keeps them from breaking out into tho{e daring Shame and and prefumpttwtu Wickedneffis, that otherwife they would do. Therefore our ~ifam{ 4 S~viour defCribes the unjuft .1udgc to .be one of a ftrange Temper, tbat t;;:p~r~= rmther feared God, nor regarded Man, Luke 18. 2. Why, thofe that haveJitmptuom worn off all Fea r of God from their Hearts, yet ufually have fome Awe Sinr, ?f Man full left them; though they arc hardned, that they fear not God's judging them, yet they are ~irhal fo Childifh~ rha; they fear Man's cenfuring 'hem i loth they arc chat chetr Names fhould be tofs d to and fro, from Tongue to
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