CHRIST INVITING SINNERS TO COME TO HIM. › Chapter 3, Christ inviting sinners to come to him for rest by Jeremiah Burroughs (1659) | AskReformation

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First, Those notions, or truths that before lay floating as it were in the understanding; Those truths of God, and apprehensions of the evil of Sin that lay before as it were aloft in the understanding of a man; now the Lord causes them to sink down within the heart, And doth press the evil of Sin upon the Soul, making the soul now, not only to apprehend, but to be sensible of Sin, of the evil of it, in the reality of it; it feels I say, those truths that were but hovering in the understanding before, now to settle upon the heart, and to press the heart with the real apprehension of sin; saith the Soul, I heard talking of it before, and I could speak of it before; but now I feel it; now saith the soul, those things that were as notions before are the greatest realities that are in the world; the Lord presseth them down upon the heart so as they are heavy upon the Soul, so heavy as to be crushed as it were under them; now all those vain reasonings, all those vain hopes, those shiftings that before the Soul had for to quiet it self, they are now quite crushed under the real apprehensions of sin. If there should be a Mill-stone upon the ground, and a few light things put on the top of it, and an other Mill-stone should be let fall upon them, it would even grind them to powder; so before there were vain Hopes, and vain reasonings in the heart. But when God causeth those truths and the realities of them to press upon the heart, it crusheth all those vain Hopes, and vain reasonings to nothing.

First, Those notions, or truths that before lay floating as it were in the understanding; Those truths of God, and apprehensions of the evil of Sin that lay before as it were aloft in the understanding of a man; now the Lord causes them to sink down within the heart, And doth press the evil of Sin upon the Soul, making the soul now, not only to apprehend, but to be sensible of Sin, of the evil of it, in the reallity of it; it feels I say, those truths that were but hovering in the understanding before, now to settle upon the heart, and to press the heart with the real apprehension of sin; saith the Soul, I heard talking of it before, and I could speak of it before; but now I feel it; now saith the soul, those things that were as notions before are the greatest realities that are in the world; the Lord presseth them down upon the heart so as they are heavy upon the Soul, so heavy as to be crushed as it were under them; now al those vain reasonings, al those vain hopes, those shiftings that before the Soul had for to quiet it self, they are now quite crushed under the real apprehensions of sin. If there should be a Mill-stone upon the ground, and a few light things put on the top of it, and an other Mill-stone should be let fal upon them, it would even grind them to pouder; so before there were vain Hopes, and vain reasonings in the heart. But when God causeth those truths and the realities of them to press upon the heart, it crusheth al those vain Hopes, and vain reasonings to nothing.

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Secondly, The soul that finds all those Comforts that did attend sin before, to vanish and come to nothing; there is scarce any man or woman in the world, or very few so vild as to delight in sin, merely because it is sin without any other consideration; but sin as it hath some comforts attending upon it, is pleasing unto the hearts of men; as now there comes in perhaps some gain or pleasure to men, and that gives content to them; but when the heart is burdened with sin, the Soul feels sin so weighty, as it is sensible of it, as a dreadful evil notwithstanding all the comforts that do attend it. Al the comforts that attend upon sin do vanish and come to nothing; now the Soul can take no further contentment in any thing that comes in by sin; & that is the second thing; it is so burdened with sin as it can take no contentment with any thing that comes in by sin; whatsoever gain comes in that way it casts it off: or whatsoever pleasure or other seeming accommodation sin is attended with, the soul looks upon them all with disdain.

Secondly, The soul that finds al those Comforts that did attend sin before, to vanish and come to nothing; there is scarce any man or woman in the world, or very few so vild as to delight in sin, meerly because it is sin without any other consideration; but sin as it hath some comforts attending upon it, is pleasing unto the hearts of men; as now there comes in perhaps som gain or pleasure to men, and that gives content to them; but when the heart is burden'd with sin, the Soul feels sin so weighty, as it is sensible of it, as a dreadful evil notwithstanding al the comforts that do attend it. Al the comforts that attend upon sin do vanish and come to nothing; now the Soul can take no further contentment in any thing that comes in by sin; & that is the second thing; it is so burdened with sin as it can take no contentment with any thing that comes in by sin; whatsoever gain comes in that way it casts it off: or whatsoever pleasure or other seeming accomodation sin is attended with, the soul looks upon them al with disdain.