CHRIST INVITING SINNERS TO COME TO HIM. › Chapter 13, Christ inviting sinners to come to him for rest by Jeremiah Burroughs (1659) | AskReformation

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:467p. 87–88

Secondly, This is that which is as a heavy weight that presseth them down in every holy Duty, so in that 12. of the Hebrews, Wherefore seeing we also are compassed about with so great a cloud of witnesses, let us lay aside every weight, and the sin which doth so easily beset us, and let us run with patience the Race that is set before us. ⟨p. 88⟩He speaks here of original sin, the sin of our Nature especially, it is a weight that lies upon our hearts in the performance of holy Duties, when we are striving to get our hearts up to God. This corruption of Nature keeps them down. I remember the story of that good man, that going abroad saw a Bird fluttering up, and when it had got up, it fell down again, and then it would flutter up, and then come down again, and he looking wistly upon it, saw a stone tied to the Birds Leg, and upon that the good man begins to weep, just so, saith he, it is with me, I would fain get up to God, fain would have communion with God, and sometimes I am getting up to God, but straightway there is a weight that pulls me down. Do not you find it thus? You that are conversant with God; you that get sometimes alone in Duty to God, and you would fain have your hearts raised to God, but how are your Hearts brought down again, and not only in these private Duties, but after public Duties, a day of fasting and Humiliation sometimes, Oh at night your Hearts are up, and now you resolve you will Live above the World. And above all these things here below, and you will live more to Gods Glory, but how are your Hearts brought down again by this corrupt Nature that is in you.

Secondly, This is that which is as a heavy weight that presseth them down in every holy Duty, so in that 12. of the Hebrews, Wherefore seeing we also are compassed about with so great a cloud of witnesses, let us lay aside every weight, and the sin which doth so easily beset us, and let us run with patience the Race that is set before us. ⟨p. 88⟩He speaks here of original sin, the sin of our Nature especially, it is a weight that lies upon our hearts in the performance of holy Duties, when we are striving to get our hearts up to God. This corruption of Nature keeps them down. I remember the story of that good man, that going abroad saw a Bird fluttering up, and when it had got up, it fel down again, and then it would flutter up, and then come down again, and he looking wishtly upon it, saw a stone tied to the Birds Leg, and upon that the good man begins to weep, just so, saith he, it is with me, I would fain get up to God, fain would have communion with God, and somtimes I am getting up to God, but straightway there is a weight that puls me down. Do not you find it thus? You that are conversant with God; you that get somtimes alone in Duty to God, and you would fain have your hearts raised to God, but how are your Hearts brought down again, and not only in these private Duties, but after publick Duties, a day of fasting and Humiliation somtimes, Oh at night your Hearts are up, and now you resolve you wil Live above the World. And above al these things here below, and you wil live more to Gods Glory, but how are your Hearts brought down again by this corrupt Nature that is in you.

:469p. 88–89

Thirdly, Corrupt Nature is a burden, because it affords matter for any temptation in the World, there is no temptation to any kind of sin, but our Nature affords matter for all kind of temptation, what a burden is this, if a ship be on fire in the midst of other ships, and we know that there is a great deal of Gun-powder in the ship that is on fire in the midst of the Rest, would not he that oweth the ship be afraid, and will he not toil and use all means he can that the fire may not take hold of the Gun-powder, I compare all the temptations to sin about us unto the fire, now we are compassed about with the ⟨p. 89⟩fire and what are our Hearts in them, there is matter for the temptation to take upon; as the Gun-powder is matter for the fire to take hold of, so our sinful Hearts are as ready to take upon every temptation as that is; now is not this a great Burden? That I should carry about me in my Heart matter enough to entertain all sin, any sin in the World, yea the sin of Blasphemy against the Holy Ghost, if I had not the mighty power of God to restrain me, thus it is with the sinful Nature of man.

Thirdly, Corrupt Nature is a burden, because it affords matter for any temptation in the World, there is no temptation to any kind of sin, but our Nature affords matter for al kind of temptation, what a burden is this, if a ship be on fire in the midst of other ships, and we know that there is a great deal of Gun-pouder in the ship that is on fire in the midst of the Rest, would not he that oweth the ship be afraid, and wil he not toyle and use al means he can that the fire may not take hold of the Gun-pouder, I compare all the temptations to sin about us unto the fire, now we are compassed about with the ⟨p. 89⟩fire and what are our Hearts in them, there is matter for the temptation to take upon; as the Gun-pouder is matter for the fire to take hold of, so our sinful Hearts are as ready to take upon every temptation as that is; now is not this a great Burden? That I should carry about me in my Heart matter enough to entertain al sin, any sin in the World, yea the sin of Blasphemy against the Holy Ghost, if I had not the mighty power of God to restrain me, thus it is with the sinful Nature of man.

:471p. 89–90

Fourthly, The sinfulness of our Nature is a burden in this respect, to have not only matter to entertain temptation, but it hath in it a Root from whence, (if God doth not come in with his Grace) all kind of sin may spring up from it, though there should be no kind of temptation, many of us do cry out of the Devil and temptation when we are overcome by sin, but consider what I say, there is not only that evil in your hearts that you are ready to entertain all temptations, but there is that evil in your hearts that would breed all kind of evils whatsoever, though there should be no temptation, though there were no Devil in Hell; as thus now, you know there are the seeds of weeds in the ground, though it is true, they do not come up to flourish till the rain and the Sun draws them forth, yet still there are the seeds of those weeds, so as they would come up in time though not so soon, that except they be rooted up, they will come up in time; so it is here, there is not only injections of the Devil in us, but our corrupt heart riseth to it, it is one thing to have some filthy thing cast upon us, and another thing to have the Body so rotten that a stinking steam should come from the Body it self, one may have some unsavoury thing cast upon him and so be unsavoury, but when the Body is rotten and that cast upon one, that would be more unsavoury, so it is here, may be the Devil may bring some temptation ⟨p. 90⟩upon us and make some disturbance in our heart, I but there is that in our Hearts that will make as great a disturbance in our souls as the Devil can.

Fourthly, The sinfulness of our Nature is a burden in this respect, to have not only matter to entertain temptation, but it hath in it a Root from whence, (if God doth not come in with his Grace) all kind of sin may spring up from it, though there should be no kind of temptation, many of us do cry out of the Devil and temptation when we are overcome by sin, but consider what I say, there is not only that evil in your hearts that you are ready to entertain all temptations, but there is that evil in your hearts that would breed al kind of evils whatsoever, though there should be no temptation, though there were no Devil in Hel; as thus now, you know there are the seeds of weeds in the ground, though it is true, they do not come up to flowrish til the rain and the Sun draws them forth, yet stil there are the seeds of those weeds, so as they would come up in time though not so soon, that except they be rooted up, they wil come up in time; so it is here, there is not only injections of the Devil in us, but our corrupt heart riseth to it, it is one thing to have some filthy thing cast upon us, and another thing to have the Body so rotten that a stinking steam should come from the Body it self, one may have some unsavory thing cast upon him and so be unsavory, but when the Body is rotten and that cast upon one, that would be more unsavory, so it is here, may be the Devil may bring some temptation ⟨p. 90⟩upon us and make some disturbance in our heart, I but there is that in our Hearts that wil make as great a disturbance in our souls as the Devil can.

:473p. 90–91

Lastly, The sinfulness of our Nature is a Burden in this respect, that it will damp all the activity of our Graces, the liveliness of our Graces, now the Saints of God make it to be the joy of their Souls to be active and stirring for God, but now this Corruption that we carry about with us damps all: as now a candle, if it were in a Coal-pit a Mine, there would come a damp that would make the Candle burn dim, so the Graces of Gods Spirit, in the best of us all, are but as a Candle in a Coal-pit, thy heart is like a Coal-pit, and God hath set up a Candle, some Grace in thy heart that shines there, but now though Christ takes care that all the damps of thy Corruption shall not put out thy Candle, yet God sometimes dims this Candle that it doth not shine sometimes, takes away the beauty, liveliness, and activity of thy Graces, that though thou hast some life and burnings, yet thou burnest but dimly before others with whom thou dost converse. I do not now speak of the stirring of sin, the working of sin, that is the next thing that I shall open, how that is a Burden to the Hearts of the Saints; as for instance, you know that the Scripture tells us that the flesh fights against the Spirit, and the spirit fights against the flesh, there is a continual fighting by this Corruption against all that is good, now that there should be Corruption in the Heart that continually fights against God, that is a more fearful thing, so it is in thy Heart. Now to be always in a fight or a combat it is a fearful thing, we count it a great burden that there should be Wars and Rumours of Wars within our gates, I but, there is a greater war in thy Heart. It is a thing that was not thought possible ⟨p. 91⟩ever to be in England, that there should be found such a Generation that should endanger their lives to make them and their posterity slaves, and yet for this they fight, who doth not see but the victory will be this in the Conclusion. But I will show you a worse thing then this in every of your Hearts, there are such Corruptions in your Hearts, as put your Souls to fight to mischief your selves; to bring your selves to be slaves to the Devil, this is in your Hearts, though indeed some are not sensible of this; and what is the reason that if corruption be a Burden that some people •eel it not?

Lastly, The sinfulness of our Nature is a Burden in this respect, that it wil damp all the activity of our Graces, the livelyness of our Graces, now the Saints of God make it to be the joy of their Souls to be active and stirring for God, but now this Corruption that we carry about with us damps al: as now a candle, if it were in a Coal-pit a Mine, there would come a damp that would make the Candle burn dim, so the Graces of Gods Spirit, in the best of us all, are but as a Candle in a Coal-pit, thy heart is like a Coal-pit, and God hath set up a Candle, some Grace in thy heart that shines there, but now though Christ takes care that all the damps of thy Corruption shal not put out thy Candle, yet God somtimes dimmes this Candle that it doth not shine somtimes, takes away the beauty, liveliness, and activity of thy Graces, that though thou hast some life and burnings, yet thou burnest but dimly before others with whom thou dost converse. I do not now speak of the stirring of sin, the working of sin, that is the next thing that I shal open, how that is a Burden to the Hearts of the Saints; as for instance, you know that the Scripture tels us that the flesh fights against the Spirit, and the spirit fights against the flesh, there is a continual fighting by this Corruption against al that is good, now that there should be Corruption in the Heart that continually fights against God, that is a more fearful thing, so it is in thy Heart. Now to be alwaies in a fight or a combate it is a fearful thing, we count it a great burden that there should be Wars and Rumors of Wars within our gates, I but, there is a greater war in thy Heart. It is a thing that was not thought possible ⟨p. 91⟩ever to be in England, that there should be found such a Generation that should indanger their lives to make them and their posterity slaves, and yet for this they fight, who doth not see but the victory wil be this in the Conclusion. But I wil shew you a worse thing then this in every of your Hearts, there are such Corruptions in your Hearts, as put your Souls to fight to mischeif your selves; to bring your selves to be slaves to the Devil, this is in your Hearts, though indeed some are not sensible of this; and what is the reason that if corruption be a Burden that some people •eel it not?