Reneming of tb( ConfcioJce. ----~--- wil\ fuliy. By Faults I mea'n Sins of Cl~ily l nfi-r':Tli~y and Surreption, fuch as do frequently furpri ze the beft and the ho!Jeft Chrlibans, from which no Man's Piety nor Watchfulnefs can fccure him. \ Vhv, n?w thou~h we be overtaken with FauitJ, and every Day and Hour contraCt new and trefh Gmlt upon our Confcienccs, yet we may have dear and good Confcienccf> wh1le we are careful to keep our felves from Crimn, flom all Sws that are fo in their own Nature by the horri.tne[) of the FaCt, and from all Sins that are made fo by gre:.ttning Circumftances of being deli.. berate and wilful; while we keep our felves from thefe we have good Confci· ences, notwithftanding Sins of ordinary VVeaknefs : That. Man hath a good Con~ fcience who prcferves himfelf from all infamous and grofs Su1S, and from all other wilful and deliberate Sins. Now this clearnefs of Conftirncr is a thi ng poflible to be attained; Men may, with care and caution, keep thcmfclvcs free from all felf~ condc!lllling Crimes, and live fo evenly that when t heir Confcienccs are moft peevifh and tutchy, yet they Jhall have noth ing to accufe them of, but what is com~ man to all Men; of fuch Men as thefe, this we may affirm, that they have been able with Joy to reftett: back upon their paft Li\'ei in a ?ying_ hour, that polllbly never kne\'f any Guilt by themfelves, than what the Sms ot common and daily Infirmity hath cxpofed them unto. This now is to keep good Confcicnces. ~Ve ti'!.!e well, fays St. Auftin, if we live without Crimes ; toli'Ve ruithout Ft~t~lr is impojJiblr, and-he that rfJinks ht doth it, Imps him[d[11ot from Sin but from Pardon. (2.) Secondly, Anothenr;ay to keep our Con[ciences 6/CAr, is by clranJing them when they are defiled. He keeps his Garments clean that keeps himfelf ftom fall ir.g; and next degree, he who being fallen haftes to deanfe himfelf from his contracted Filth : And thus, at l eaft, \"l e may keep our Confcienc.:es clear both from Crimes and from Fault.• alfo, while we labour to clegnfe them from their Defilements, and to rub out and wa01 away rhofe Spots with which at ~ny t ime we are O(tafionally befpatter'd. There is a twofold Blot Sin leaves behind it, there is a Blot of .Difcrcdit and a Blot of Defilement; the former is i ndel ible: As t he Scar remains when the Wound is healed ; fa this Blot remains upon the Soul , when the Gnilt of Sin is removed. It is a Difcrcdit to a Male.. faUor, though pardoned, that ever he fh0 nld do that which dcfCrv'd Death: And fo it is a kind of Blot upon a Chriftian's Naine for ever, to have commited thofe Sins that have defcrved eternal Death, though throt1gh the free Mercy and unfpeakahle Grace of God he barb obtained the Pardon of them . But then there is another Blot, a Blot of De filement, that renders Men loarhfom and ddormed in the Eyes of <?od ; and thus every Sin we commit leaves a Blot and a Stain upon the Soul; a Stain that defaceth God's Image, and that defiles our own Confci~ ences :, and when t his Sta in and Blot is cleanfed, then are we faid to haYe clear Confcimces, whcu we have ta ken off that Blot and Defilement t hat Sin hath lcfc whereby we arc rend red deformed in the fight of God, and whereby the Image of God is defaced upon t he Son}. Thus you fee in general there are two ways ro keep a clear Confciencc; the one by preventing its Defilement, and the other by clean· n· 8 . fin g of it when i t is defiled. Now to help you in both thefe Cafes, I Jhalllay fo:':t:alu down feveral Particulars. t~rtmg 1n.t kupingrj a clcatConfoienr!, Fir~, ~~ ) ou rrould ha-ve )'our Co11[cience ciet~r, get them r~{hty informed. How can 1 , ConfCicncc be clear, f0 long ai the Foges and thicks Mifts of Ignorance and Error Get con. poffeE it? Lab~ur, tit~rcfore, to let i_n fpiritual Light into it, that you may fee fc!~nce. hc::w to dca?~c r.t . I~ rs as....much Vamty t o go about to cleanfe an ignorant Can .. {~f~z~~~~ fc1ence, <:s It IS 1n ..,. n_n ~o •WeCJ~.a dark Room. An ignorant, confcicn t ious Man , · • th.at k~O\-\'S 11ot. the LIOllts ~f Sm and Duty, may, after a great deal of pudder With his Confctencc, leave It muth ~o~.rorfe than he found it and caft out Jewels inftea~ of Rnbbilh : Indeed it is impoffible for a1~ i gn?ra~t Man t o have a good ConfCJcncc, whether we refpeB: Duty or Comfor t; m polllt of Duty l have lhewcd y~u formerly that Ignorance \-<,•il~ make Confci ence unneceffarily fcrupulous, or da~ r mg\y prefumptuom: Now ne1ther can an ignorant Confcience be good in re.. fpeB: of ~om(ort, becaufc through ~gno_rance Confcien~e oftcnthm:s q,uarrels at that wh1ch IS a true Ground of Re,oyc,ng. Conftience IS that Giafs whereby we may both view our 1e1ves1 _and alfo our AClions: Now as a G lafs, when falfiy frame~, reprefents a beautiful Face monftrous and frightful, fo Confcience, when fa!Oy tnformed, makes even lovely ACtions appear mifhapen and t errifying, by di... ftor(ed Reprefentationsof thofe Things that are lawful, and perhaps our Duty. _ Therefore
RkJQdWJsaXNoZXIy OTcyMjk=