The Nature, Power, Deceit, and Prevalency of Indwelling Sin

Secondly, Beyond bare Vows and Promises with some watchfulness to observe them in a rational use of ordinary means, Men have put, and some do yet put themselves on extraordinary ways of mortifying sin. This is the foundation of all that hath a show of Wisdom and Religion in the Papacy; their hours of Prayer, Fastings, their immuring and cloistering themselves, their Pilgrimages, Penances, ⟨p. 297⟩and self-torturing Discipline, spring all from this root. I shall not speak of the innumerable evils that have attended these self-invented ways of Mortification, and how they all of them have been turned into means, occasions, and advantages of sinning; nor of the horrible hypocrisy which evidently cleaves unto the most of their Observers; nor of that superstition which gives life to them all, being a thing riveted in the natures of some, and their constitutions, fixed on others by inveterate prejudices; and the same by others taken up for secular advantages; but I will suppose the best that can be made of it, and it will be found to be a self-invented design of Men ignorant of the Righteousness of God, to give a check to this power of Indwelling-sin whereof we speak. And it's almost incredible, what fearful self-macerations, and horrible sufferings this design hath carried Men out unto: And undoubtedly their blind zeal and superstition will rise in judgement, and condemn the horrible sloth and negligence of the most of them to whom the Lord hath granted the saving Light of the Gospel. But what is the end of these things? The Apostle in brief gives us an account; Rom. 9. 31, 32. They attain not the Righteousness aimed at; they come not up unto a conformity to the Law; sin is not mortified; no nor the power of it weakened; but what it loseth in sensual, in carnal pleasures, it takes up with great advantage, in blindness, darkness, superstition, self-righteousness, and soul-pride, contempt of the Gospel, and the righteousness of it, and reigns no less, than in the most profligate sinners in the World.

Secondly, Beyond bare Vows and Promises with some watchfulness to observe them in a rational use of ordinary means, Men have put, and some do yet put themselves on extraordinary wayes of mortifying sin. This is the foundation of all that hath a shew of Wisdom and Religion in the Papacy; their hours of Prayer, Fastings, their immuring and cloystering themselves, their Pilgrimages, Penances,