Riches of mercy to men in misery, or, Certain excellent treatises concerning the dignity…

But this is not all, it is true this is required in the beginnings of mercy, viz. an exceeding great desire after forgiveness; But a resolution to serve God for the time to come, this is to receive or to be worthy, viz. to be willing to part with father and mother and all for Christ, such a disposition must be wrought in you before you can lay hold upon any part in these riches, yet I say this is not all, but if you would have these mercies continued, you must walk worthy of them; those gracious qualifications are ordered in tendency to your introduction and admittance into the Covenant of grace and the mercies here spoken of, but after you are brought into covenant with God, you cannot secure the comfortable contents of it unless you labour to walk worthy of them, pleasing the Lord in all things, as St Paul saith, and as it is in Psal. 18. 25. with the upright man thou wilt show thy self upright, and with the froward thou wilt show thy self froward, that is, you shall find as much mercy in me as I find Enemies of behaviour in you, but if you walk stubbornly and frowardly with me, I will walk stubbornly with you. Therefore it is, that when the Saints step out of the way and walk unevenly with God that he chasteneth and afflicteth them, he recompenseth saith Solomon the righteous in this life, that is, he afflicteth ¹the righteous when they go astray from his ways. Put this together with that place in 1 Pet. 1. 17. we call him ²father that judgeth every man according to his works, that ⟨p. 18⟩is he doth this to his own children, chasteneth, and afflicteth them when their carriage to him is not upright. Therefore, saith the Apostle, making this as a motive to that exhortation which followeth; pass the time in fear, take heed now of offending: for we call him father that judgeth every man according to his works, for though it be true that God is rich in mercy, yet there must be a worthy walking, for he holdeth not the wicked innocent, though he deal wisely and lovingly wi•h his children, yet he will be sanctified in them, he will have such a carriage from them as befitteth those that are his children, therefore as you would have him deal mercifully with you so you must walk worthy of his mercies.