An exposition with practical observations continued upon the thirty-eighth, thirty-ninth, fortieth, forty-first, and forty-second,…

And as Natural, so Spiritual cold is a great binder. A cold heart is a bound heart. When the heart hath in it no heat of love to God, or hath not been heated with a sense of the love of God: when the heart hath in it no heat of zeal for the glory of God, nor for the good of men; when these sad colds are upon the heart, 'tis bound indeed. He that hath this cold upon him, can say but little to God; and will say, and do less for God: He is bound not only hand and foot, but tongue also. Take heed of cold upon your hearts, it will hinder you from holy activity, bind you up from duty both towards God and man. He that is only luke-warm will do God little service, can do none that is pleasing and acceptable unto God; but he that is key-cold, as we say, neither will, nor can do any thing at all, that may be called Service. The Apostle Paul (Acts 20.22.) was bound in the Spirit to go to Jerusalem, which was a great service for Christ; that is, The heat of true affection, which the instinct of the holy Spirit caused in him, engaged him beyond all power of revocation to undertake that hazardous journey. But when any are bound in spirit by the coldness of their affections to Christ, they always prove hand-bound and foot-bound, I may say (without affectation according to the use of that word in our language) hide-bound also, as to any thing that is good; especially, if it be (as it was in the Apostles case now mentioned) either dangerous or costly. And when a soul is in those bands of the Mystical Orion, the evil spirit, surely none but God can loose them, seeing none but he can loose these in the Text. Canst thou loose the bands of Orion, the Winter-bands?

And as Natural, so Spiritual cold is a great binder. A cold heart is a bound heart. When the heart hath in it no heat of love to God, or hath not been heated with a sence of the love of God: when the heart hath in it no heat of zeal for the glory of God, nor for the good of men; when these sad colds are upon the heart, 'tis bound indeed. He that hath this cold upon him, can say but little to God; and will say, and do less for God: He is bound not only hand and foot, but tongue also. Take heed of cold upon your hearts, it will hinder you from holy activity, bind you up from duty both towards God and man. He that is only luke-warm will do God little service, can do none that is pleasing and acceptable unto God; but he that is key-cold, as we say, neither will, nor can do any thing at all, that may be called Service. The Apostle Paul (