Captives bound in chains, made free by Christ their surety

1. They have this prejudice against the ways of God, that they are melancholy ways, if they become serious in Religion they must be mourning & sorrowing, & leave their pleasures, and never have a merry day more.—This is a clear mistake, a groundless prejudice; for first, though there must be sorrow and mourning and repenting, yet this is in order to rejoicing. Have you not sinned? and if you have sinned, must you not, should you not sorrow? is it not reasonable you should grieve that you have dishonoured God, provoked God, wronged and undone your own Souls? If your Child hath rebelled against you, would you have him go on in his rebellion and disobedience still, because if he return unto his duty, and he be received into your favour, he should be humbled, and profess his sorrow and repentance that ever he did rebel against you? do you expect this from your stubborn disobedient Child, and might not God expect this much more from you? and would you look upon it as an aggravation of his disobedience to go on therein without sorrow and repentance, that it would be much better for him to sorrow and return? If ⟨p. 42⟩you would judge impartially, you would determine the case to be as reasonable betwixt God and you.

1. They have this prejudice against the ways of God, that they are melancholly ways, if they become serious in Religion they must be mourning & sorrowing, & leave their pleasures, and never have a merry day more.—This is a clear mistake, a groundless prejudice; for first, though there must be sorrow and mourning and repenting, yet this is in order to rejoycing. Have you not sinned? and if you have sinned, must you not, should you not sorrow? is it not reasonable you should grieve that you have dishonoured God, provoked God, wronged and undone your own Souls? If your Child hath rebelled against you, would you have him go on in his rebellion and disobedience still, because if he return unto his duty, and he be received into your favour, he should be humbled, and profess his sorrow and repentance that ever he did rebel against you? do you expect this from your stubborn disobedient Child, and might not God expect this much more from you? and would you look upon it as an aggravation of his disobedience to go on therein without sorrow and repentance, that it would be much better for him to sorrow and return? If ⟨p. 42⟩you would judge impartially, you would determine the case to be as reasonable betwixt God and you.