Or, 'TheNew 'Birth. 517 wretched floth ? Doth one end of them lie ~urning as a ~rand. in Hcli Fire, ~nd Will you not Ilretch ont your Hand to pluck It then:c? Believe It, as long as you continue in a finful ftatc you are 'Yra'pt about With Ten Thonfand Curfcs, the Wrath d Gcd is con t inually making its approaches unto you, and there is only a thin Mud \\Tall of Flclli to fence it out, which is frill monldring and full ing away, and whether it will be able to hold out one day longer you know not;, you h;1ng over the bottomlefs Pit only by the weak Thread of a.frai\'Life, which is ready to be fnapt afunder every moment ; and if fame confumingSickncfs lhollld fiet this Thread, or fame forc-unfecn Cafi.lalty fhould break it offfnddenly; if Death work a change 11pon you before Grace works a change in you, of all God's Creation you 3re the rnofl:: miferable; better that you had been the moft loathfome Creature that crawls upon God,s Earth, yea, better that you had n~ver been, than that you fhould for J get and neglect this great work of Renovation one moment too ·long; therefore nfe no delay; every moment that is not ~his prefent is too long a_delay; while you arc dreaming of Repentance and Convertmg fome Months, or poOtbly fame Years hence, God may Iitatch you away before the next Sand is run in Time's Glafs, and where arc you then? Now t5 the accepted time, now U the day of falvation; wh:ltcver is not now may be too late, and e'er that time comes that you have prefixed to your (elves, God may fet up your Souls as flaming Monuments of his Difpleafure, Jufiice, and Severity, jn Hell for ever. If you ask me what you Jhall do to be Renewed? [ anfwer, the Directions are notTuot Dirt· many ; take only thefe two. Bims h~w Fjrft, Be jnftant with God.by Prayer., t?at he would by hU Omnjp~tent Grace new .create ;;g;':!a~' you to him(elf, and pamp agam upon you hu effaced Image. There IS a prevalency 111 the ttd, lf1fd Prayer o( a meer natural Man when h_e prays for G~ace, elfe St. .Peter would never&rnpga~ have exhorted Simon MagU:I', who was m the ,tall ofbttternefs, and m the bo11d of iniquity, 1 • to pray rbat fo the thought of hU htart might be forgiven him. Pr~Jtr. Secondly, ImprtYUe diligently all the Means of Regeneration, whereof the Word is the chief. ~~ Of his oWn will begat he m by the Word of'Truth, fays the .Apoftle, 7/ames I . t8. Attend A oltlslen# it~onil:antly, meditate. upon it fre9.uently, ~ndeavour faithfullY to pra?ticc it;:~;,:~'" this hath been the way ,-m all Ages that bath proved fuccefsful for the bnngmg in ofprrnmnmt S~nners unto God; Heaven is f~ll of happy Souls that hath been fitted for that glo~of ,u th• nous Eftate, by fil ch very Ordmances as thefe are that now you fet under. It ism'""' •h trnc, thefe are not of themfelves a fuffi.cient means; alas, what is the weak Breath Gr.ct. of a poor Man to make imprcffions upon Hearts that are harder than the 11uher ffiilftones? What can we do to give Sight to the Blind, and Life to the Dead, but only God who dcmolifhed the Walls of 7fericho by the found of a few Rams Horn1 doth likewife make ufe of the preaching of the Gofpcl to demolilh the frrong hold; of Satan, which would have been as impertinent and as infi~nificant a found as that was, had not God put his Inftitution upon it, and his Spirit mto it? Wait upon the Ordinances therefore, that that happy Soul-faving Word may at length be fpoken that may caufe thee to arife, and to ftand up from the Dead; endeavour to do whatever li es in thy power in order to thy Regeneration ; it is true, it is not in our power to make our felves New Cieatures; but when God fees thee Confciencioufly improving that power that thou haft,. he will then give thee that power that thou wanteft; never yet was there an inftance ofany tlvttdid vigoroufly to their utmoft labour after Grace, that did not alfo leave fom·e good Evidences behind them that they did obtain it ; and certainly thou halt no reafon to think that God will make thee the firfr infrance and prefident. So much for this time, and for this fubjeC\; . Uuuil 2 THE
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