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A treatise on comforting afflicted consciences - The Digital Puritan

A treatise on comforting afflicted consciences - The Digital Puritan

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—;166 INSTllUCTIONS FOR COMFORTINGment of the most as God's dearest children ; and thatChrist's best servants sometimes may depart this life uncomfortablyto the eye and in the opini<strong>on</strong> of the greater partand we heard before that our last and everlasting doommust pass up<strong>on</strong> us, according to the sincerity or sensuality,the zealous forwardness or formality of our former courses,and not according to \he seeming of our last carriage up<strong>on</strong>the bed of death, and enforced behaviour in that time of extremity: I say, these things being so, I hold my c<strong>on</strong>clusi<strong>on</strong>still, and resoluti<strong>on</strong> not much to alter my estimati<strong>on</strong> of aman's spiritual state for the manner of his death (I exceptthe thieves up<strong>on</strong> the cross) : my meaning is, that there maybe some (I know not how few, but I am sure there is n<strong>on</strong>e,except he have in him the perfecti<strong>on</strong> of the madness of allthe maniacs that ever breathed, would run that hazard),who formerly out of the way and unreformed, may now atlast, being very extraordinarily and mightily humbled underGod's mighty hand, and cleaving to the Lord Jesus withtruly broken hearts indeed, follow by a miracle, as it were,the thief up<strong>on</strong> the cross to an everlasting crovvn. Andhere now I require the care, c<strong>on</strong>science, heavenly wisdom,experimental skill, and all his ministerial dexterity in thephysician of the soul, to discern aright between these andseeming penitents ; and then to apply himself proporti<strong>on</strong>ablywith all holy discreti<strong>on</strong> and seas<strong>on</strong>ableness to theirseveral different estates.But to fright and turn every <strong>on</strong>e for ever from that extremestfolly of hoping to follow that miraculous penitent thief,and from going ou in sin and deferring repentance up<strong>on</strong> sucha deceiving and desperate ground ; let us c<strong>on</strong>sider,(1.) What a holy and learned man of God (Greenham)saith to this point. " In great wisdom, that men at thelast gasp should not utterly despair, the L,ord hath left usbut <strong>on</strong>e example of exceeding and extraordinary mercy, bysaving the thief <strong>on</strong> the cross. Yet the perverseness of allour nature may be seen by this, in that this <strong>on</strong>e serveth usto looseness of life, in hope of the like ;whereas we mightbetter reas<strong>on</strong>, that it is but <strong>on</strong>e, and that extraordinaryand that besides this <strong>on</strong>e, there is not <strong>on</strong>e more in all theBible ; and that for this <strong>on</strong>e that sped, a thousand thousandshave missed : and what folly is it to put ourselves in a waywhere so many have miscarried ! To put ourselves into thehand of that physician that hath murdered so many ; goingclean against our sense and reas<strong>on</strong> : whereas in other wealways lean to that which is most ordinary, and c<strong>on</strong>cludenot the spring to be come because of <strong>on</strong>e swallow 1 It is asif a man should spur his ass till he spoke, because Balaam's

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