The sound believer. A treatise of evangelical conversion. Discovering the work of Christ's spirit,…

4. By clearing up the Equity and Justice of God in the Law, if the Lord should never pity nor pardon it, not show any Respect or Favour to it; for this is the Frame of every Man's Heart, if he cannot find ⟨p. 101⟩Rest in his Duties and Endeavours, as he once expected he should, but sees Sin and Weakness, Death and Condemnation wrapping him about (like Jonah's Weeds) in all he doth, then his Heart sinks, and quarrels, and falls off further from Christ by Discouragement, and grows secretly impatient that there should be no Mercy left for him, because it thinks now the Lord's eternal Purpose is to exclude him; for if there were any Thoughts of Peace towards him, he should have found Peace before now, having so earnestly and frequently sought the Lord, and having done so much, and forsaken his sinful Ways, according to his own Commandment from him; and hence it is you shall find it a certain Truth, that the Soul is turned back as far from God by sinking discouraging Sorrow for sin, as ever it was to a state of Security by the Pleasures of sin; and hence sometimes it thinks it is in vain to seek any more, and hence leaves off Duties; and if Conscience force them to it, yet it sinks again, because it's Foot is not established upon the Rock Christ, but upon the Weakness of the Waters of it's own Abilities and Endeavours; what therefore should the Soul do in this Case, to come to God? It knows not, it cannot; fly from him it dare not, it shall not; the Spirit therefore by revealing how equal and just it is for the Lord never to regard or look after it more, because it hath sinned and is still so sinful, makes it hereby to fall down prostrate in the Dust before the Lord, as worthy of nothing but Shame and Confusion, and so kisseth the Rod, and turns the othe• Cheek unto the Lord even smiting of him, acknowledging if the Lord show Mercy, it will be wonderful, if not, yet the Lord is righteous, and therefore hath no Cause to quarrel against him for denying special M•••• to him, to whom he doth not owe a Bit of ⟨p. 102⟩Bread. And now the Soul is indeed humbled, because it submits to be disposed of, as God pleaseth; thus the Church in her Humiliation, Lam. 3.22. having in the former part of the Chapter, drunk the Wormwood and the Gall, at last lies down and professeth, it is the Lord's Mercy, it is not consumed; and Vers. 29. he puts his Mouth to the Dust, if there may be any Hope;