A heavenly conference between Christ and Mary after His resurrection. Wherein the intimate familiarity,…

That the souls of his hearers being captivated with the inward beauty and glory of Christ, and being led into an experimental knowledge of heavenly truths, their spirits might not evaporate, and discharge themselves in endless gainless, soul-unedifying, and conscience-perplexing questions: For as it is in nature, a man that hath tasted the sweetness of honey, will not easily be persuaded that honey is bitter. But he that hath only taken it up upon credit, may soon be baffled out of it, because no act can go higher then its principle; and so it is in Religion; for those good souls that have embraced the truths of Jesus Christ, upon a supernatural principle, and experimented not only the truth but the goodness of them, in their own souls, they are the clinched christians, the good holdfast ⟨image 4⟩men (as Mr. Fox stiles some Christians in his days) they are the even and steady walkers. Whereas those that have only a form of godliness, a slight tincture, who have only out of novelty and curiosity, or pride and ambition, or other self ends, professed Religion, will prove giddy and unconstant, like Clouds carried about with every blast; and while they promise themselves liberty, be a prey to the net of every fancy and opinion.

That the souls of his hearers being captivated with the inward beauty and glory of Christ, and being led into an experimental knowledge of heavenly truths, their spirits might not evaporate, and discharge themselves in endless gainless, soul-unedifying, and conscienceperplexing questions: For as it is in nature, a man that hath tasted the sweetness of honey, will not easily be perswaded that honey is bitter. But he that hath only taken it up upon credit, may soon be baffled out of it, because no act can go higher then its principle; and so it is in Religion; for those good souls that have imbraced the truths of Jesus Christ, upon a supernatural principle, and experimented not only the truth but the goodness of them, in their own souls, they are the clinched christians, the good holdfast ⟨image 4⟩men (as Mr. Fox stiles some Christians in his dayes) they are the even and steady walkers. Whereas those that have only a form of godliness, a slight tincture, who have only out of novelty and curiosity, or pride and ambition, or other self ends, professed Religion, will prove giddy and unconstant, like Clouds carried about with every blast; and while they promise themselves liberty, be a prey to the net of every fancy and opinion.