N00800:156
The peril of the times displayed. Or The danger of mens taking up with…
The peril of the times displayed. Or The danger of mens taking up with a form of godliness, but denying the power of it. Being the substance of several sermons preached: / by Samuel Willard, teacher of a church in Boston. N.E. ; [One line from Augustine in Latin]
Boston: printed by B. Green, 1700
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.
3. Have a care that you do not take up with, and rest in a form of Godliness; and it concerns us all to take great heed to our selves on this account, and that upon these three considerations.
1. There is great danger of it. It is a thing which sinful man is in great hazard of, as will be evident, if we consider;
1. The natural deceitfulness and wickedness of the heart; we are told, Jer. 17.9. The heart is deceitful above all things, and desperately wicked. Now the wickedness which is in the heart naturally, inclineth us to all manner of sin, and is continually prompting of us that way, Gen. 8.21. the imagination of mans heart is evil from his youth. So that it will do its utmost to keep out every thing that is truly good; and if we add to this the guile which it is full of, and the innumerable cunning tricks that it hath to impose upon men by, yea, upon the man himself, we may be convinced that we have great reason to be afraid of being trapanned by it. It is certain, that true Godliness is a thing contrary to the resentments of the corrupt heart in us; if therefore it can but reach to the sinister ends upon which unregenerate men do engage in the profession of Religion, and yet keep sin upon the throne within, it will certainly do it; ⟨p. 149⟩and it will encourage the man to go through all the formalities of it too, with the greatest show that can be; and if you trust to i• you will beyond question be imposed on, and never go beyond a form: hence we have that advice,