The truly blessed man, or, The way to be happy here, and forever being…

3. Doth the Spirit strive with any of you? Take heed that you do not resist him; are there any inward strivings of Conviction; shakings of contrition, sharp prickings of compunction, sec••• persuasions to hearken to the concerns of your Souls? Doth the Word take how of you, awaken Conscience, and put you upon serious thinking? These are inward addresses of the Spirit, and say he is near, be sure to ta•e the opportunity; put him not off; To quicken you, Consider,

3. Doth the Spirit strive with any of you? Take heed that you do not resist him; are there any inward strivings of Conviction; shakings of contrition, sharp prickings of compunction, sec••• perswasions to hearken to the concerns of your Souls? Doth the Word take how of you, awaken Conscience, and put you upon serious thinking? These are inward addresses of the Spirit, and say he is near, be sure to ta•e the opportunity; put him not off; To quicken you, Consider,

1. If he should cease thus to strive, the means would do you no good. He hath chosen the means to come in, and apply his grace to our Souls, and we are diligently to attend on them for this end: ⟨p. 351⟩and the neglect of so doing is an affront put upon the Spirit. However, all the saving efficacy of it ••pends on his influencing them: if he apply them with power, we are savingly benefited by them, if he withhold that from them, there will he no such blessed effect flow from them; it is not Pauls Planting, &c. God often affords as eminent means to a declining people, as to those that flourish in a profession: but they have not the •••e effect, because he comes not in them with […] if then you send him away, you hinder your own profiting. What a sad remark was that of Moses?