The safety of appearing at the day of judgement, in the righteousness of Christ

all your labour will be in vain, and your souls will be lost if you come not to Christ. 4. You will exceedingly bewail it hereafter, if you do not accept of Christ: you will rue it in another world, you stand upon frivolous objections, & neglect to come unto Christ: but this will cost you many a tear, you are preparing sorrow for your selves: your hearts will break hereafter to think what you have done: when you see how you have ruined your selves, you will take up a bitter lamentation: it will make your heart break to think that there was but a step between you and life, and yet you missed it: that you have thrown away your souls, and needlessly damned ⟨p. 289⟩your selves, that you were under fair opportunities and brought to the very gate of heaven, and yet would not go in: when you see others that lived in the same Town, or dwelt under the same roof with your selves, in glory: how bitter will it be to think that you heard the same Sermons, enjoyed the same advantages, but by unbelief, have deprived your selves of what they do enjoy: when you think of it, how you took it into consideration, and were advising about it, had many thoughts about coming unto Christ: how bitter will it be to you to think that you did not go through with it, that you minded it by halves, and did not make up the match with Christ: when you think how plain the way is, how fair the terms, what assurance God gave you, it will he like the gall of asps within you to remember, how you cavilled, what excuses you made, what frivolous things you stood upon, what objections you turned off the calls of the Gospel by: the reflections upon your unbelief, will be bitter reflections another day: when you see the end of it, what it brings you to, what it costs, you will grievously lament it: and say as Prov. 5.12, 13. how have I hated instruction, and my heart despised reproof, I have not obeyed the voice of my Teachers, nor inclined mine ear to them that instructed me. 5. Others will rejoice in it if you come to Christ: your unbelief is a grief of heart to many that seek your good: Paul had great heaviness and continual sorrow in his heart upon this account, respecting his country men, Rom. 9.2. and Jesus Christ wept over Jerusalem, because she knew not the things of her peace: and it is one of the great burdens of the people of God that so many among whom they live, ⟨p. 290⟩