Two treatises of Mr. Jeremiah Burroughs. The first of earthly-mindedness

AN Heavenly Conversation is, a growing Conversation. Oh! they grow mightily, they do thrive in grace exceeding much in a very little time, they grow to attain to a very great measure of Communion with God the Father, and with Jesus Christ, and every day they grow more and more spiritual, having so much of heaven within them: It's true, when they come into Heaven, they shall be perfect: But now, the fetching from Heaven is that that makes them grow, it must be the influence from Heaven that must cause the growth of Saints; As now, suppose that the ground upon which flowers and herbs grow, be never so fertile in its self, and the herbs or plants be never so well rooted in the earth, yet if there be not an ⟨p. 244⟩influence of heaven upon them they will not grow much, nay not at all, but quickly wither: So it is with Christians, let them have never so much means of growing below, never so many Ordinances, yet if they have not rich dews from above they will not grow, or if there be any growth, yet either they will bear no fruit, or else it will be very shrivelled and sour fruit. You know, that fruit that hath the most of the beams of the Sun that comes from heaven upon it, that fruit grows riper and sweeter than other fruit; fruit that grows in the shade, that hath the influence of Heaven kept off from it, it is sour fruit. And the reason that the Saints have so little fruit, and that it is so sour, it is because that they have not more influences from heaven, they do not stand in the open Sun, their souls are not presented daily before God, and have the warm beams of the Sun of Righteousness shining from Heaven upon them; but there is something between Heaven and their souls: but a Conversation in Heaven, as it would be a Convincing Conversation, so it would be a Growing Conversation.