The Soul's Preparation for Christ

Now it falls out with a sinner as it is with a bankrupt debtor, one man throws him into prison, and when he is there, every one comes against him, and so he shall never come out, but ⟨p. 23⟩die and rot in the prison, so though the Lord will not execute judgement on thee speedily, yet in the end the Lord will be paid for all thy sins; and when thou art in hell, then mercy, and justice, and patience will cry all to heaven for justice and vengeance; then happily a drunkard is cast into prison for his drunkenness, and for his blasphemy, and then all his filthiness comes in as so many bills of indictment against him: Oh therefore labour to see sin alive: we play with sin as if it were dead: when children see the picture of a dead lion upon a wall, they labour to pull him in pieces, but if there were a live lion in the place, it would make the strongest to run. So thou paintest thy sin, and sayest it is thy infirmity, & God forgive your swearing, & the like; and thus you dally with your sins: but brethren, labour to see sin alive, and to see sin roaring upon you, see the paw of sin and the condemnation that shall be thrown upon the soul by it, and this will awake the soul in the apprehension of it.

Now it falles out with a sinner as it is with a banckrout debtor, one man throwes him into prison, and when he is there, every one comes against him, and so he shall never come out, but ⟨p. 23⟩die and rotte in the prison, so though the Lord will not execute judgement on thee speedily, yet in the end the Lord will be paid for all thy sins; and when thou art in hell, then mercy, and justice, and patience will cry all to heaven for justice and vengeance; then happily a drunkard is cast into prison for his drunkennesse, and for his blasphemy, and then all his filthinesse comes in as so many bills of inditement against him: Oh therefore labour to see sinne alive: we play with sinne as if it were dead: when children see the picture of a dead lyon upon a wall, they labour to pull him in pieces, but if there were a live lyon in the place, it would make the strongest to runne. So thou paintest thy sinne, and sayest it is thy infirmity, & God forgive your swearing, & the like; and thus you dally with your sinnes: but brethren, labour to see sinne alive, and to see sinne roaring upon you, see the pawe of sinne and the condemnation that shall be throwne upon the soule by it, and this will awake the soule in the apprehension of it.