Useful instructions for a professing people in times of great security and degeneracy

2. If the Command laid upon you be never so cross, be ready and willing to obey it: it may be, that which God expects may be exceeding averse, an Opinion which thou hast been long rooted and riveted in, and dwelt upon with great confidence; a sin which hath brought thee in a great deal of profit, credit, or the like: the thing which God commands may seem to carnal Reason unreasonable, &c. now a proud heart will fling away; but have a care thou bring not such an heart before the great Searcher of hearts: Come, able in some measure sincerely to say, Speak Lord, thy Servant heareth; Command me what thou wilt. I am ready to obey and follow thee.

2. If the Command laid upon you be never so cross, be ready and willing to obey it: it may be, that which God expects may be exceeding averse, an Opinion which thou hast been long rooted and rivetted in, and dwelt upon with great confidence; a sin which hath brought thee in a great deal of profit, credit, or the like: the thing which God commands may seem to carnal Reason unreasonable, &c. now a proud heart will fling away; but have a care thou bring not such an heart before the great Searcher of hearts: Come, able in some measure sincerely to say, Speak Lord, thy Servant heareth; Command me what thou wilt. I am ready to obey and follow thee.

4. Begin at home in your enquiry: be sure search your own hearts in the first place, whether the Achan, the troubler of Israel be not lodged in your own breast. We keep a great deal of do abroad, searching, enquiring, censuring as if we were true men to God, and resolved to […] but we are like some treacherous Constable, ⟨p. 72⟩that hath a Warrant to search for a Malefactor, he is very busy and strict in his Office, searcheth and ransacks every house in the Town, pries into every corner, as very desirous to find him out, and bring him forth, and yet mean while he lies had at home in his own house: Oh! this will never do, if thou knowest any sin harboured in thy heart, lie not to God by thus enquiring, nay if thou do but suspect it, let that be enough to cause a search: and to that end examine all thy ways and actions, and see whether they have not been provoking to Cod. examine them throughly.