The Soul's Preparation for Christ

Now canst thou jeer at the Saints, that are thus wounded? and canst thou wound them further? and pierce him to the heart, and discourage him? The Lord will remember thee in the day of thy death, and as thou hast showed no mercy, so shalt thou receive no mercy in that day. I have known many such opposers of God and his Grace, that have been forced to lay violent hands upon themselves, and when the Lord hath gotten some of them upon their sick bed they lye roaring there; and the Lord lays his full wrath upon them; If there be any such in this congregation, I pray God let them see some sudden vein of his vengeance, that if it be possible they may find and feel the weight of this trouble of conscience; that they themselves also may find mercy from the Lord.

Now canst thou jeere at the Saints, that are thus wounded? and canst thou wound them further? and pierce him to the heart, and discourage him? The Lord will remember thee in the day of thy death, and as thou hast shewed no mercy, so shalt thou receive no mercy in that day. I have knowne many such opposers of God and his Grace, that have beene forced to lay violent hands vpon themselves, and when the Lord hath gotten some of them upon their sick bed they lye roaring there; and the Lord layes his full wrath vpon them; If there be any such in this congregation, I pray God let them see some sudden veine of his vengeance, that if it be possible they may finde and feele the waight of this trouble of conscience; that they themselves also may finde mercy from the Lord.

The second part of the Use is this; as we must pity those thus wounded; so hereby we see the best way to send help to such as are wounded in their hearts, the wound is in the heart, therefore let the salve be applied to the heart. It is in vain to tell a poor wounded soul of Hawks or Hounds, or the like: he is not wounded in his body, but in his heart: the physic must be applied to the part diseased. If the head be sick or sore, you must not apply a salve to the arm; and ⟨p. 191⟩if the breast be ill, you must not apply a salve to the foot: so it is a vain thing to offer riches or pleasures, or profits, to a man that is wounded in his conscience for sin; the wound is not there: if the wound were in disquietness, then pleasure will cure it; if the wound were in poverty, then riches would cure him; if the wound were in baseness and contempt, then honours would cure him. No, thy heart is wounded, and the conscience is terrified in the apprehension of Gods wrath; And therefore apply the spiritual Balm of Gilead, even the blood of Christ: the case is clear that all the Crosses and Crucifixes, and Agnus dei in the world, & all the popish pardons can do no good to a wounded Conscience. There is never a popish shaveling under heaven can cure a woū dead soul, he cannot apply that spiritual salve that should comfort him: he may delude him, and lead him into the commission of sin, but he cannot minister any true comfort unto him: thus they cure a poor Christian by searing of his conscience, and make him sin so much the more, and never be troubled for sin, as if a man should kill a sick person, and say now he feels no hurt, so it often falls out that a man feels no sin, but yet he is not cured, because his sin is not removed, and his heart unpacified in the blood of Christ.