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STN
DISCOVERED
BY
THE
AFFLICTION.
Jt)t
any
near relation,
God
may
punish
that fondness
by
a
removal of
the
delight
of
our
eyes
;
or
if
dve
have
abused
those
who
were
near relations
or friends,
God
may
take
them away
to
teach
us
to
abuse
his
mercies no more.
God
can
curse
all
our
blessings.
Prayer it
may
be
has
been neglected
in
a
family,
and
that
family has fallen
un-
der
some
stroke of the
hand
of God.
If
we will
not hear
when
God
speaks in
his word,
he
will
not
hear
us when
we
speak
in
our lamentations under afflictions;
"
Because
ye would none
of
my
counsel
I
will
not hear
when ye
cry."
If
we
have wasted
our health
in vanity,
God
will
bring
diseases
'and
weakness
upon
us
to
shew us
our folly;' and
wt
find in less
as well
as
greater
providences an answer-
ableness
between the
sin
and the punishment.
It
is
time
for
us
to reflect.
We
may say
God contends
with
us
as
a
nation
in
which
there
is
war
*,,
(although,
blessed
be
God,
it
is
not
in
our land) but let
us
mourn over the sins
of
this nátion,
that
We
may
not
be ,sharers in
national sor-
rows.
God contends
with
us
as
a
Church of
Christ, then
we
are
led
naturally
to
ask,
Whether.
we
have waited
upon. God
with
pleasure and delight
in
church ordi-
nances
?
Whether
we
have pleased ourselves more in
social worship, and delighted
more therein than
in
the
society of the
world
?
It
becomes us all to ask
our
own
souls, Why
does
God contend
with us
?
God
contends.
with
us as
a
church
in lessening
our
numbers,
by
calling
away
those. who,
were
joined
to us in
the
fellowship
of
the
.gospel.
Let
us
enquire
whether or no
we
have
re-
ceived them
with
delight and
joy,
and embraced them.as
from the hands
of
God,
as
a
new
additional
mercy
to us
Whether
we
have longed for the kingdom
of
Christ,
and
rejoiced.
in
the increase
of
it
as
we
ought?
Happy
those
soul
sthat
have been made
part'of
his
household,
hismem-
bers and
family here on ,earth,
that
they
may have
a
sweet
and comfortable
entrance
into the
family
of Christ
above
!
This
may
be
ground
for
us to
rejoice
upon their
account,
that God
has fitted
and called
any away
from
this house, and inade them citizens
in his
house
in glory
;
r,q
let
us
hearken
also to
what
may
be
the
voice
of
God
r,Troving
us
in
such
providences
as these.;
let
us
hence-
i
his was
preached
in
the year
1702,
during the
war in
the
beginning
of
he
reign
of
Queen Anne.