Methinks this considered, should win thy Love to Christ, and cause thee to break forth into such Language as this, and say, O my Soul, as yet through the Mercy and Patience of God to thee, there is a wide difference betwixt thy state, and the state of damned souls; for tho thou hitherto hast not loved Christ, which is thy heinous sin, yet thou mayest, which is God's great Mercy to thee: For tho now thou art without Christ, which is thy misery, yet thou mightest have Christ, which will be thy remedy; when the Damned love not Christ, nor can love him, for they have not Christ, nor can have him: Thou art yet in the land of hope, and under the means of hope, and thy remedy is at hand, if by thy wilful refusals of recovering Grace, thou dost not dash this hope, when those poor, wretched Souls, that are passed out of Time into Eternity, from Earth to Hell, from Hearing in this world, to Howling in the next, are now and there Christless; and because now and there Christless, are therefore there, now, and for ever hopeless and remediless. O then, my Soul, look towards this Christ that thou mayest have! Behold! This Christ and all his Benefits, upon Gospel-Conditions, are yet communicable unto thee for thine Everlasting Good. Dost thou ⟨p. 27⟩not hear the Offers of Pardon, Peace, and Glory, made to thee in his name? Dost thou not perceive him yet standing at thy door, and knocking, crying, calling there, Open to me, and I will save thee? Dost thou not feel his Spirit yet striving with thee? Dost thou not see Mercy hath not yet delivered thee into the hands of Justice, and to God's fiery Indignation? Here thou standest, while others are lying, rolling in a Lake of burning Brimstone; Doth not his Grace still woo thee for thy Love? Doth not his Goodness still entreat thee, and his Patience still wait upon thee? If thou wilt be holy, yet thou mayest; if thou wilt have Mercy, Mercy thou mayest have; and if thou wilt have the fruit and benefits of Christ's Death, as yet it is not too late. Is not this enough to melt an heart of stone? To break an heart as hard as adamant? To dissolve thee into tears? to kindle and inflame thy love? And with admiration cause thee to cry out and say, Is this thy Mercy, Lord, to me! to me! to me that have so long abused thy Grace, despised thy Mercy, and slighted thy Love! To me, that have lived so long, and never loved thee!
Methinks this considered, should win thy Love to Christ, and cause thee to break forth into such Language as this, and say, O my Soul, as yet through the Mercy and Patience of God to thee, there is a wide difference betwixt thy state, and the state of damned souls; for tho thou hitherto hast not loved Christ, which is thy hainous sin, yet thou mayest, which is God's great Mercy to thee: For tho now thou art without Christ, which is thy misery, yet thou mightest have Christ, which will be thy remedy; when the Damned love not Christ, nor can love him, for they have not Christ, nor can have him: Thou art yet in the land of hope, and under the means of hope, and thy remedy is at hand, if by thy wilful refusals of recovering Grace, thou dost not dash this hope, when those poor, wretched Souls, that are passed out of Time into Eternity, from Earth to Hell, from Hearing in this world, to Howling in the next, are now and there Christless; and because now and there Christless, are therefore there, now, and for ever hopeless and remediless. O then, my Soul, look towards this Christ that thou mayest have! Behold! This Christ and all his Benefits, upon Gospel-Conditions, are yet communicable unto thee for thine Everlasting Good. Dost thou ⟨p. 27⟩not hear the Offers of Pardon, Peace, and Glory, made to thee in his name? Dost thou not perceive him yet standing at thy door, and knocking, crying, calling there, Open to me, and I will save thee? Dost thou not feel his Spirit yet striving with thee? Dost thou not see Mercy hath not yet delivered thee into the hands of Justice, and to God's fiery Indignation? Here thou standest, while others are lying, rowling in a Lake of burning Brimstone; Doth not his Grace still woo thee for thy Love? Doth not his Goodness still intreat thee, and his Patience still wait upon thee? If thou wilt be holy, yet thou mayest; if thou wilt have Mercy, Mercy thou mayest have; and if thou wilt have the fruit and benefits of Christ's Death, as yet it is not too late. Is not this enough to melt an heart of stone? To break an heart as hard as adamant? To dissolve thee into tears? to kindle and inflame thy love? And with admiration cause thee to cry out and say, Is this thy Mercy, Lord, to me! to me! to me that have so long abused thy Grace, despised thy Mercy, and slighted thy Love! To me, that have lived so long, and never loved thee!
