The right method for a settled peace of conscience, and spiritual comfort in 32…

And what a snare is this to us, as well as a grief? what if we should he so moved with compassion of your troubles, as to fit almost all our Doctrine and Application to you? what a fearful guilt should we draw upon our own souls▪

Nay, what a snare may you thus prove to the greater part of the Congregation? Alas, ⟨p. 397⟩we have seldom past one or two, or three troubled Consciences in an Auditory (and perhaps some of their troubles be the fruit of such wilful sinning, that they have more need of greater humbling yet) should we now neglect all the rest of these poor souls, to preach only to you? O how many an ignorant hardhearted sinner comes before God every day! Shall we let such go away as they came, without ever a blow to awaken them and stir their hearts! when alas, all that ever we can do is too little! when we preach you into tears and trembling, we preach them asleep! Could we speak swords, it would scarce make them feel, when you through misapplication have gone home with anguish and fears; how few of all these have been pricked at the heart, and said, What shall we do to be saved? Have you no Pity now on such stupid souls as these? I fear this one distemper of yours, that you cannot bear this rousing preaching, doth bewray another and greater sin; look to it, I beseech you; for I think I have spied out the cause of your trouble: Are you not your self too great a stranger to poor stupid sinners? and come not among them? or pity them not as you should? and do not your duty for the saving of their souls? but think it belongs not to you but to others? Do you use to deal with servants ⟨p. 398⟩and neighbours about you, and tell them of sin and misery, and the remedy, and seek to draw their hearts to Christ, and bring them to duty? I doubt you do little in this (and that is sad unmercifulness:) for if you did, truly you could not choose but find such miserable ignorance, such senselessness and blockishness, such hating reproof and unwillingness to be reformed, such love of this world, and slavery to the flesh, and so little savour of Christ, Grace, Heaven and the things of the Spirit, and especially such an unteachableness, intractableness (as thorns and briars) and so great a difficulty of moving them an inch from what they are, that you would have been willing ever after to have Ministers preach more rousingly then they do, and you would be glad for their sakes when you heard that which might awake them and prick them to the heart.