The strait gate, or, Great difficulty of going to Heaven plainly proving

There are five things, for the want of which, this people will not be able to enter.

First, this kingdom belongs to the elect, to those for whom it was prepared from the foundation of the world, Matt. 25. hence Christ saith, when he comes, he will send forth his angels with a great sound of a trumpet, and they shall gather together his elect from the four winds, from one end of heaven to another, Matt. 24. and hence he saith again, I will bring forth a seed out of Jacob, and out of Judah, an inheritor of my mountains, and mine elect shall inherit it, and my servants ⟨p. 77⟩shall dwell there; they shall deceive, if it were possible, the very elect, but the elect hath obtained it, and the rest were blinded, Rom. 11. 7.

Secondly, They will not be able to enter, because they will want the birth right; the kingdom of heaven is for the heirs, and if children then heirs, if born again then heirs: wherefore it is said expressly, except a man be born again he cannot see the kingdom of God; by this one word, down goes all carnal privilege of being born of flesh, and blood, and of the will of man, canst thou produce the birthright, but art thou sure thou canst? for it will little profit thee to think of the blessed kingdom of heaven, if thou wantest a birthright to give thee inheritance there? Esau, did despise his birth-right, saying, what good will this birth-right do me? and there are many in the world of his mind to this day: tush (say they,) they talk of being born again, what good shall a man get by that? they say, no going