N00569:80
Early religion. Urged in a sermon. the duties, wherein, and the reasons wherefore, young…
Early religion. Urged in a sermon. the duties, wherein, and the reasons wherefore, young people should become religious. Whereto are added, the extracts of several papers, written by several persons, who are dying in their youth, left behind them those admonitions for the young survivors; with brief memoirs relating to the exemplary lives of some such, that have gone from hence to their everlasting rest. / By Cotton Mather. ; [Two lines of Scripture text]Early religion. Urged in a sermon. the duties, wherein, and the reasons wherefore, young people should become religious. Whereto are added, the extracts of several papers, written by several persons, who are dying in their youth, left behind them those admonitions for the young survivers; with brief memoirs relating to the exemplary lives of some such, that have gone from hence to their everlasting rest. / By Cotton Mather. ; [Two lines of Scripture text]
Boston: printed by B.H. i.e for Michael Perry, 1694
Modern spelling is a reading aid: the words are the author’s, only the spelling is modernized. Original shows the page as printed, with the transcription marks.
Quest. III. You have put off Religion a LONG WHILE ALREADY; and, I pray, is not That Long Enough? Let me call upon our Young People, as the Angel did upon Young Austin; Take up and Read! Take up and Read! And now, Like Him, upon that Cal•, Read what is in Rom. 13.11. Now it is High Time to Awake out of Sleep. You are fast Asleep, Young People, till you come to be Religious: But O Awake, and see how high the Sun is Risen. They are no Inconsiderable Things that you have to do; There are a vast multitude of Sins, whereof there is a Pardon to be obtained; You have mighty Corruptions to be Subdued; You have mighty Temptations to be Conquered; You have many Relations to be Fulfilled; and many Services to be Performed: and your Evidences for Heaven are all still to be Treasured up. And what? Asleep still! Begin to be Religious, when you will, you may say, Nimis sero Te Amavi, O•, Lord, I blush that I have made it so ⟨p. 49⟩Late, before I begin to Love thee. I am sure, as to many of you, That if you should (And Oh! that you would!) this Afternoon Turn to God, yet you will have cause to Admi•e the Credit, and Comfort of some others, whereof you may Confess your selves with Paul, As Born out of Due Time. To Stand Barren among the People of God, for Three Years together, is by much too much; but it is Likely that some of you have stood so, for more than Three-times Three. Let me Enquire of you; I pray, How Old are you? It may be, Twelve, or Fifteen, or Twenty Years Old. And what? A Slave of the Devil all this while! Sure, 'Tis Time for you now to say, as in 1 Pet. 4.3. The Time past of our Life may Suffice us, to have wrought the will of the Gentiles; And much more, To have wrought the will of the Devils! All the World has Cried out upon the Insolence of that Pope, who made the Roman Emperor wait Three Days upon him Abroad, before he would give him any Audience. Young man, The Spirit of Almighty God has been waiting for an Admission into thy Heart for this many a Day; He has been Calling, Open to Me ▪ and this, till His Head has been wet with the •ew; but thou hast kept the Door of thy Sinful, Doleful Heart hitherto shut upon Him. And what? Is it not yet Long Enough? Young man