The Almoft-Cbriftian Difcovered. after Sin, and thus you rebound from one wickednefs to another, till at latl: you ·be plunged inecoverably into that Lake, which burns with Fire and Brimftone · And this is the fourth Confidcration; difcovering the Folly and Mifery of thofe tha; go far towards Cbrifl:ianity, and yet fall fuort . . Fifthly, Though thefe ProfcfiOrs may hover between .Heaven and Earth in tbeir ]nres, yet they fhall not hover between Hravm and Heli m tfteir Deaths. No the half Chriftian !hall be as infallibly and as certainly call into Hell, as thofe who ~\'ere altogether wicked. He~e it may be tho~ art neither Godly nor Prophane but hereafter thou muft be Cither Saved or Damned. There is none (as the P~pifrs . Picture E~afim~&.J that hang between Heaven and Hell. Whoever thou art, thou muft be Clther Ill a ~tate of Nature or of .Grace, and accordingly !hall thy Efbte then be for ever, ·ctther a ftatc of Salvation among the Saints, or elfe a frate of Damnation with the Unregenerate. Though thou art never fo lofty and fublime a Profcffi)r, yet the fame Hell that holds the Prophane, muft eternally hereafter hold Thee roo, if through thine own wilful Negligence thou ftop any where !hart of true Gr<1cc.. If the Almoft Chriftians could by their g,l_ittering·.ProfeJ!ton gain 3 cooler Hell, rf they could get (I fay) but a cooler place m Hell, rf thmProfeffion coc!d gain you thisl if it could procure you Purgatory for venial Sins, or the moder,lte punifhment which the Papifts call Limb;,u Pat;-um, then you had fame fhew o~ Reafon to rcit where you are, but when the fame Hell, and the fame everlafting Fire mu re be t he Portion of thefe, who have proceeded fO far (and yet fall !hart) as well as the portion of the vi left Wretch, whom they have now as far exceeded in goodne!S,. as the holicfr Saint alive exceeds them; it is the very height of folly and madncfs to lit down any where lhort of true Grace, unlefs they are fully refolved to fit down no where fhort of Hell. Sixthly andLallly, Coofider, lt will be the infupportable aggravation of thefe M.en)~ juft and cverlafting Condemnation, for them, t~ lie gr,.tting ufon this fad rtflethon m Hell, that once thCJ were near to Heaven, but loft tt through thetr own wdful de.. fault. It will be the aggravation, (l fay) of thefe Men's juft and everlafriug Condemnation, 1.0 make this doleful and furious reflection upon themfelves in Hell, that once they were in a very hopeful State, that they were once n.ear to Heaven, but loft it through their own wilful default. 0 when they fhalllle in Helll and from thence give a fad and ghaftly look up to the Glory of the Sainu in Heaven; 0 how· will it pierce their Souls to think, that they were once near to that blefied Eftatc, though now there be ah infinite and unpaffable Gulph between tbcm and thar bleJTcd Inhccitancc, which the Saints enjoy in Heaven! Thus wilJ they refte& upo• themfelves, though 11ow the1e be an unpaJTable Gulph bmveen me and Ht4ven, yet once there was but a ftep or tW9 that parted us: Had I mortified but on~Lufl more,had I oppofed one Temptation morc,had I put up but one {cr11ent Prayer more ;po.ffib!y I might now have bten in Heavtn: But, 0 my curfcd, curfod {o!IJ, whm I was at the very G'Ate and Thre/hoJd of Heav~n, that even then Ilhould ftop, and after the relinquifi1mcnt of my Lufts, and after all my Progrefs in the ways of Holincfs, to return again to the commiOion of thofe Sins, in which I had formerly lived, when 1 had already gone through the hardeft and moft diffic.ult part of Religion, then to break off my courfe! What is this but procuring for my felf this Damnation, which l now fuffer, and muft fuifer for wer! 0 that Light, that once I enjoyed how it thickens this everlafting Darknefs ! 0 -thofe t:ifts I once had of the Powers of the. World to come, and reli!hed fa much fwcetnefs in, how do they now imbitter this Cup of fury and trembling, that I muft for ever drink of! 0 thcfe Heavenly Gifts that once I had, do but now ia· creafe thcfe Hellifh torments, and the fight of Heaven which I have had, now dif.. covers to me what 1 have loft; nay, what I_have wilfully ~ht'own away through mine own iloth and negligence. 0 how frrange is mine Apofracy! After l had gone fa great a way towards Chriil:ianity, rather than 1 would mov~ one ftcp fur ... ther') 1 chafe to lie here in this Hell for ever burning and confumtng? Oh what fad and tormenting Thoughts will thcfe be! How will they fret and gnaw the Souls of thofe Wretches, with Eternal Anguifh and >nfujJporrablc Torments? Thus you have fecn in thefe Particulars, fomewhat difcovered to you of the defperate tolly and madnefs, (and mifery alfo) that Men are guilty of that do pro. ceed fo far as to be Almoj/, and yet will not be perfoaded to be A/10ge<h<r Chrijiians. ' A DIS~
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