Heaven upon earth, or, The best friend in the worst of times. Delivered in…

Thirdly, We judge amiss of our selves, because of the deceitfulness of our hearts. The heart of man is deceitful above all things, and desperately wicked; who can know it? Jer. 17.9. Gross wickedness is apparent to the purr-blind eye; but where there is an abstaining from gross outward sins, there are special workings of Corruption, such as pride, self-love, distrust of God, and love of the world; any of which shut up the soul against God, as with bolts and bars; and these lying inward are not discerned. Other accounts may be given of the unaptness to make a due judgment of our selves: it concerns us therefore ⟨p. 53⟩to be exact in our trial, and trust not to a sudden answer; for we are ready to make a short work of it, and to save our selves the labour, and to sit down with charitable thoughts of our selves. Whatsoever answer therefore our hearts give us, let us see cleared, and have such reason for it, that we may know how to proceed with our selves, upon a right judgment of our selves. The chief work of trial in this particular acquaintance with God, will be from those particulars wherein I opened the nature of the souls acquaintance with God. Let us therefore take those Heads and our own Experience of our selves, and by a rational deduction, let us find out our own estate.

Thirdly, We judge amiss of our selves, because of the deceitfulness of our hearts. The heart of man is deceitful above all things, and desperately wicked; who can know it? Jer. 17.9. Gross wickedness is apparent to the pur-blind eye; but where there is an abstaining from gross outward sins, there are special workings of Corruption, such as pride, self-love, distrust of God, and love of the world; any of which shut up the soul against God, as with bolts and bars; and these lying inward are not discerned. Other accounts may be given of the unaptness to make a due judgment of our selves: it concerns us therefore ⟨p. 53⟩to be exact in our tryal, and trust not to a sudden answer; for we are ready to make a short work of it, and to save our selves the labour, and to sit down with charitable thoughts of our selves. Whatsoever answer therefore our hearts give us, let us see cleared, and have such reason for it, that we may know how to proceed with our selves, upon a right judgment of our selves. The chief work of trial in this particular acquaintance with God, will be from those particulars wherein I opened the nature of the souls acquaintance with God. Let us therefore take those Heads and our own Experience of our selves, and by a rational deduction, let us find out our own estate.