Casuistical morning-exercises the fourth volume /

First, To how few God ever gives repentance at the last, even of those who have as good means and helps as their weak, and dying condition ⟨p. 235⟩will admit of. It is one of the saddest parts of a Ministers work to visit dying sinners. How few do they leave any better than they find them? How few give any hopes of a through change wrought in them? How few can they persuade to believe in Christ when they have an hundred times before rejected him? How few can they bring to repentance then, when they never minded it before? Ministers even the best are but Men and not God, flesh and not Spirit; and means, instructions, exhortations, are but means, whose whole efficacy depends on Gods co-operation with them; and when he with-holds his Blessing, they are altogether ineffectual. When they judge of man's eternal State, though their judgment is not to be rash nor peremptory, yet it should be reasonable; some good grounds they should have for it. But alas! if they keep to Scripture-rules, in how few of them that never repented before, do they find, when dying, so much as a foundation for a charitable judgment of their Spiritual state?

First, To how few God ever gives repentance at the last, even of those who have as good means and helps as their weak, and dying condition ⟨p. 235⟩will admit of. It is one of the saddest parts of a Ministers work to visit dying sinners. How few do they leave any better than they find them? How few give any hopes of a through change wrought in them? How few can they perswade to believe in Christ when they have an hundred times before rejected him? How few can they bring to repentance then, when they never minded it before? Ministers even the best are but Men and not God, flesh and not Spirit; and means, instructions, exhortations, are but means, whose whole efficacy depends on Gods co-operation with them; and when he with-holds his Blessing, they are altogether ineffectual. When they judge of man's eternal State, though their judgment is not to be rash nor peremptory, yet it should be reasonable; some good grounds they should have for it. But alas! if they keep to Scripture-rules, in how few of them that never repented before, do they find, when dying, so much as a foundation for a charitable judgment of their Spiritual state?