A77983:350
Four books on the eleventh of Matthew
Four books on the eleventh of Matthew: viz: I. Christ inviting sinners to come to him for rest. II. Christ the great teacher of souls that come to him. To which is added a treatise of meekness and of anger. III. Christ the humble teacher of those that come to him. IIII. The only easy way to heaven. By Jeremiah Burroughs, preacher of the Gospel at Stepney and Cripple-Gate, London.Four books on the eleventh of Matthew: viz: I. Christ inviting sinners to come to him for rest. II. Christ the great teacher of souls that come to him. To which is added a treatise of meekness and of anger. III. Christ the humble teacher of those that come to him. IIII. The only easie way to heaven. By Jeremiah Burroughs, preacher of the Gospel at Stepny and Cripple-Gate, London.
London: printed by Peter Cole, 1659
Title page typeset from the transcription.
Modern spelling is a reading aid: the words are the author’s, only the spelling is modernized. Original shows the page as printed, with the transcription marks.
Nay perhaps he could be content to keep one Sabbath, but to keep Sabbath after Sabbath, that is burdensome to him, and perhaps he could be content ⟨p. 665⟩to pray one morning in his family, but to pray every morning, and every night, and to go on from morning to morning, and from day to day, and from week to week, and from year to year, Oh! this is wearisome, truly, we have no reason to grudge God any service all our days, but thus it is with a carnal heart.
Nay perhaps he could be content to keep one Sabboth, but to keep Sabboth after Sabboth, that is burdensom to him, and perhaps he could be content ⟨p. 665⟩to pray one morning in his family, but to pray every morning, and every night, and to go on from morning to morning, and from day to day, and from week to week, and from yeare to yeare, Oh! this is wearisom, truly, we have no reason to grudge God any service all our daies, but thus it is with a carnal heart.
Sixthly, The ease that a carnal heart hath, it is in his remissness in duty, in the remissness of his spirit, in his moderation that he pleads for, there lies his ease, but for the other, the extension of duty, that he pleads not for; you shall have a carnal heart plead for holy duties, but with moderation, we must be moderate, and if we do something that God requires, though we be not so hot and fiery as others, I hope it is well enough, doth not virtue consist in the middle way? As I like not the profaneness of some men, that are Swearers, and drunkards, & whoremongers on the one side, so I do not like your precise men on the other side, so that his ease lies in the remissness, in the lukewarmness of his spirit in holy duties. But now the ease of a gracious heart lies in the exactness of his spirit, to come to the very top of holy duties. It is with a gracious heart, as it is with many fowls, you shall have many fowls that fly, when they are low, they flutter, and it is a trouble to them to get on high, but when they are aloft, then it is no trouble to them; so it is with a gracious heart, to get up his heart, is some trouble to him, but now when he hath got up his heart, then he is in his element, there he can fly swiftly, when he hath got up into the highest region, there he gets the most ease. It is quite otherwise with a carnal heart, when he pleads for moderation, this virtue of moderation that he pleads for, it is not a middle of participation, the middle in which virtue consists; it is not a middle that doth participate of a degree of both the contraries, but a denying of the extremes of both, as the true virtue of liberality consists not between prodigality