A call to the unconverted, to turn and live

You can say, that the Holy Ghost is our sanctifier, but do you know what sanctification is? Why, this is it that I have now opened to you; and every man and woman in the world must have this, or be condemned to everlasting misery. They must turn or die.

Do you believe all this, fir•, or do you not? Surely, you da•e not say, you do not: For it is past a doubt or denial: These are not controversies, where one learned pious man is of one mind, and another of another; where one party saith this, and the other saith that. Papists and Anabaptists, and every sect among us, that deserve to be called Christians, are all agreed in this that I have said, and if you will not believe the God of Truth, and that in a case where every sect and party do believe him, you are utterly inexcusable.

But if you do believe this, how comes it to pass, that you live so quietly in […] verted state? Do you know that you are converted? And can you find this wonderful change upon your souls? Have you been thus born again and made a new? Be not these strange matters to many of you, and such as you never felt upon yourselves? if you cannot tell the day or week of your change, or the very sermon that converted you, yet do you find that the work is done; and such a change indeed there is; and that you have such hearts as are before described; alas, the most do follow their worldly business, and little ⟨p. 29⟩trouble their minds with such thoughts. And if they be not restrained from scandalous sins, and can say, I am no whoremonger, nor thief, nor curser, nor swearer, nor tippler, nor extortioner, I go to church, and say my prayers, they think that this is tine conversion, and they shall be saved as well as any. Alas, this is foolish cheating of yourselves. This is too much contempt of an endless glory; and too gross neglect of your immortal souls. Can you make so slight of heaven and hell? Your corpse will shortly lie in the dust, and angels or devils will presently seize upon your souls, and every man or woman of you all, will shortly be among other company, and in another case than now you are; you will dwell in those houses but a little longer; you will work in your shops and fields but a little longer; you will set in these scats, and dwell on this earth, but a little longer; you will see with these eyes, and hear with those ears, and speak with those tongues, but a little longer, till the resurrection day; and can you make shift to forget this? O what a place will you shortly be in of joy or torment! O what a sight will you shortly see in heaven or hell! O what thoughts will shortly fill your hearts with unspeakable delight or horror! What work will you be employed in! to praise the Lord with saints and angels, or to cry out in fire unquenchable with devils; and should all this be forgotten? And all this will be endless, and sealed up by an unchangeable decree. Eternity, eternity will be the measure of your joys or sorrows, and can this be forgotten? And all this is true, sirs, most certainly true: