Christ the fountain of lifeChrist the fountaine of life

I grant you, it is true, that sometimes, even those that have their sins pardoned, and the writing of transgression by which they had engaged themselves to everlasting torments hath been cancelled, yet even they have afterwards turned the grace of God into wantonness, through sinful lusts. As David and Peter &c. through some corruption or other; but you shall also find this to be true, that as they have been over-taken and over-whelmed with such corruptions as those be, so they have held forth as much repentance, and affliction in this case; that if you had taken many lives from them, you could not have grieved them so much as in this case they are put to. The blotting out of the sense of this pardon, hath been more bitter to them then death it self: And if it be not so, that Christian men in such a case do not more shame themselves before God, and loath themselves for all the evils they have done in Gods sight; they will either lye down seared and benumbed, and their spiritual life will evaporate away, and then it will argue, it was never true, and sincere; and if it were true; it will lye so close and hidden, that you may plainly see what a slaughter Satan hath made, and what heavy load he hath put upon such as are careless to maintain that peace with God, which he hath vouchsafed them. And therefore if God give us hearts to keep our peace, it is an evident sign God is at peace with us.

I grant you, it is true, that sometimes, even those that have their sinnes pardoned, and the writing of transgression by which they had ingaged themselves to everlasting torments hath been cancelled, yet even they have afterwards turned the grace of God into wantonnesse, through sinfull lusts. As David and Peter &c. through some corruption or other; but you shall also find this to be true, that as they have been over-taken and over-whelmed with such corruptions as those be, so they have held forth as much repentance, and affliction in this case; that if you had taken many lives from them, you could not have greived them so much as in this case they are put to. The blotting out of the sence of this pardon, hath been more bitter to them then death it selfe: And if it be not so, that Christian men in such a case doe not more shame themselves before God, and loath themselves for all the evills they have done in Gods sight; they will either lye downe seared and benumbed, and their spirituall life will evaporate away, and then it will argue, it was never true, and sincere; and if it were true; it will lye so close and hidden, that you may plainly see what a slaughter Satan hath made, and what heavy load hee hath put upon such as are carelesse to maintaine that peace with God, which hee hath vouchsafed them. And therefore if God give us hearts to keep our peace, it is an evident signe God is at peace with us.