N17286:794
The saints everlasting rest
The saints everlasting rest: or, A treatise of the blessed state of the saints in their enjoyment of God in glory: extracted from the works of Mr. Richard Baxter, by John Wesley, M.A. late fellow of Lincoln College, Oxford.
Philadelphia: printed by Prichard & Hall, 1790
Part 3 › Chapter 9: How to manage and watch over the Heart through the whole Work.
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.
But take up the authority which GOD hath given thee, command thy heart; if it rebel, use violence with it; if thou be too weak, call in the Spirit of Christ to thine assistance; he is never backward to so good a work, nor will deny his help in so just a cause: GOD will be ready to help thee, if thou be not unwilling to help thyself. Say unto him, "LORD, thou gavest my reason the command of my thoughts and affections; the authority I have received over them, is from thee, and now, behold they refuse to obey thine authority; thou commandest me to set them to the work of heavenly meditation, but they rebel and stubbornly refuse the duty; wilt thou not assist me to execute ⟨p. 371⟩that authority which thou hast given me? O send down thy Spirit and power, that I may enforce thy commands, and effectually compel them to obey thy will."
And thus doing, thou shalt see thy heart will submit; its resistance will be brought under; and its backwardness will be turned to compliance.
2. When thou hast got thy heart to the work, beware lest it delude thee by a loitering formality; lest it say, I go, and go not; lest it trifle out the time, while it should be effectually meditating. When thou hast perhaps but an hour's time for meditation, the time will be spent before thy heart will be serious. This doing of duty, as if we did it not, doth undo as many as the flat omission of it. To rub out the hour in a ba•e lazy th•nking of heaven, is but to lose that hour, and delude thyself. What is to be done in this case? Why, do here also as you do by a loitering servant; keep thine eye always upon thy heart; look not so much to the time it spendeth in the duty, as to the work that i done: you can tell by his work, whether your servant hath been painful: ask, what affections have yet been acted? How much am I yet got nearer heaven? Verily many a man's heart must be followed as close in this duty of meditation, as an ox at the plough, that will go no longer than you are calling or scourging; if you cease driving but a moment, the heart will stand still.