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upon, or as a labourer's hand grows hard by constant labour. And so sin becometh familiar to them, and they become "past feeling," and are "given up to work uncleanness with greediness" " A custom of sinning against reason doth make men in a sort unreasonable, by giving their sensuality the rule of their reason. We see by sad experience, when men grow old in ignorance, how hardly they are brought to knowledge, yea, or to be willing to learn. And when men are often drunk, or commit any other heinous sin, how it prostituteth their souls to the next temptation, and maketh sin as familiar to them as water to the fish. It must be by a miracle, or next to a miracle, that an old, ignorant, worldly or sensual sinner must be converted. By often sinning they have lost their understandings, and hardened their hearts, and think the greatest good to be evil, and think they cannot live without their sin. But as a man in a fever calls for cold water, so do they for the pleasure of their flesh. They must have it, they cannot forbear it, their flesh will have no nay. "If the blackmore can change his skin, or the leopard his spots, then may they that are accustomed to do evil, learn to do well." We see in public cases, what a power custom hath. If men be but used to any thing in God's worship, that is unmeet or contrary to the word of God, they will not hearken to the Scripture, but cry out, Custom, custom,' against that plain word that must judge them, and should direct them; as if the custom of their forefathers were of more authority than the word of God. No wonder then if a custom of swearing, or drunkenness, or worldliness, or wickedness, or contempt of a religious, godly life, do prevail with thousands to harden them to perdition; and this be a grievous hindrance to their conversion.

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Direct. 8. You that are yet young, take heed of a custom in sin, and you that are hardened in it already, in the fear of God make a stand and go no further. It is sad that you have gone so far. But if you wilfully go on but one day more, you know not but God may leave you to yourselves; and if you wilfully add but one sin more to the heap, it may seal you to perdition, it may break your backs, and sink you into hell. O what a folly is it then for men to delay their repentance to the last, when custom in sinning doth make " Eph. iv. 19, 20.

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Jer. xiii. 23.

the work of their conversion to be more difficult. Remember, I beseech you, that your custom is the aggravation of your sin, and not any just excuse. What! if you had taken a custom of spitting in the face of your own father or dearest friend, or any way abusing him, would you think it good excuse for you to continue it, because you are accustomed to it? Why, the oftener you have sinned, the oftener you have wronged God; and the oftener you have wronged him, the more should you now bewail it, and not therefore go on to wrong him more. If you had oftentimes hurt yourselves by falls, or cut your fingers by negligence or carelessness, will you do so still to keep a custom? so still to keep a custom? What greater madness can there be than to plead custom for sinning against the living God, and hastening your own souls to everlasting perdition? You shall have custom for suffering then, as you have for sinning now, and see whether you will therefore love your suffering. If you will love sin, because you are accustomed to it, you shall try whether you can love hell, because you are accustomed to it.

Hindrance 9. Another hindrance of conversion, is, Foolish self-love, that makes men unwilling to know the worst of themselves, and so keepeth them from believing their sinfulness and misery; and causeth them to presume and keep up false deceiving hopes, that they may be saved whether they are converted or not; or that they are converted, when indeed they are not. They think it is every one's duty to hope well of themselves, and therefore they will do so; and so while they hope they are converted already, or may be saved without conversion, no wonder if they look not seriously after it. Like many a sick man that I have known in the beginning of a consumption, or some grievous. disease, they hope there is no danger in it; or they hope it will go away of itself, and it is but some cold; or they hope that such or such an easy medicine may cure it, till they are past hope, and then they must give up these hopes, and their lives together, whether they will or no. Just so do poor wretches by their souls. They know that all is not well with them, but they hope God is so merciful, that he will not damn them, or they hope to be converted sometime hereafter, or they hope that less ado may serve turn, and that their good wishes and prayers may save their souls, and

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that in these hopes they hold on, till they find themselves to be past remedy, and their hopes and they be dead together. I speak not this without the Scripture; Prov. xi. 17. “When a wicked man dieth, his expectation shall perish, and the hope of the unjust man perisheth." Job xxvii. 8, 9. " What is the hope of the hypocrite, though he have gained, when God taketh away his soul? Will God hear his cry when trouble cometh upon him?" Job xi. 20. "And the eyes of the wicked shall fail, and they shall not escape; and their hope shall be as the giving up of the ghost.' There is scarce a greater hindrance of conversion, than these false, deceiving hopes of sinners; that think they are converted when they are not; or hope to be saved, when they have no ground for their hopes. Were it not for this, men would look about them and return.

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Direct. 9. I have formerly spoke and wrote to you of this point, and I have told you that it is none of my desire that any man should despair. But despair you must of ever being saved without conversion, or finding heaven in the way to hell. Till that kind of despair possess your hearts, we cannot expect a saving change. For men will not let go all their pleasure, and cast themselves upon these difficulties, which flesh and blood apprehendeth to be in the way of God, as long as they hope to do well enough without it. No wonder if men be unholy, that hope to be saved, whether they be holy or not. It is hope that keepeth your hearts from breaking, which must be broken for your former sins. It is hope of doing well enough in your present case, that keeps you from seeking out for a better: if you knew that you must be converted or condemned, and had no hopes of being saved, unless you were born again, then you would look about you, and run to God by prayer for his grace, and run to the word by reading for instruction, and run to the minister with inquiry for direction, and be glad of that company which would help you to heaven. I tell you, it is these carnal hopes that deceive the world, and hinder them from seeking Christ and life. The thing, therefore, that I request of you for the sake of your own souls, is but this, That you would but try your hopes by the word of God, and prove them sound before you trust them; and content not yourselves to say, I hope I shall be saved, but prove and try,

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whether you are such as God hath promised salvation to, or not for there are hopes that will never deceive men; that is, those that are well grounded on the word of God: and there are hopes, as you have heard, that will die with men, and undo them; that is, those that had no ground but their own self-love; when men hope they shall be saved, because they would have it so, and hope to come to heaven, when they will not go the way to heaven. Is it not one of the dreadfullest sights in the world, to see a man ready to leave this world, and have no hopes but what will die when he dieth? O, if you did but know what a terrible thing it will be for a man in his lifetime to hope for salvation, and as soon as he is dead to find himself in damnation, and all his hopes to vanish like a dream, you would sure be persuaded to try your hopes. Prove once by the marks of grace in your souls, that thou art one of those that God hath promised salvation to; that is, one of the regenerate, the heavenly, and the holy, and then hope for salvation and spare not, and the Lord confirm and maintain thy hopes. For these hopes are grounded on the word of God, which never yet deceived any. But if you hope well, and know not why, and you have nothing to shew for your hopes of heaven, but what an ungodly man can shew, or the most of the world may shew that shall perish, and cannot prove that you are new creatures, and holy, and heavenly, these hopes do but hinder your conversion and salvation.

Hindrance 10. The next hindrance of conversion, is, Those counterfeit graces, or half-conversion, which are like to true graces, but are not them, and so do not bring over the soul to God, but strengthen the false hopes, which we mentioned before. There is somewhat in the heart of an unconverted man, which is like in his eyes to true conversion. Some fears and accusation of conscience he may have, and some change thereupon: he may be convinced of his sin and misery, and see the necessity of another course, and hereupon may change his company, and betake himself to many duties, and break off many of his former sins, and seem to himself to be truly converted, and glory in this as long as he liveth, and think verily that he is indeed a converted man. He may know the very time, the book, the sermon, the words that were the means of doing this work upon his

soul, and therefore think that it is truly done. He may remember so great change that was made on him, that he may confidently conclude that it was a saving change, and yet it may be but common preparation, or mere terrors or convictions, or some common works, which many that perish, partake of. He may have hereupon somewhat that in his eye is like to every grace of the Spirit, and therefore think that these are they indeed; and this is a fearful, deceiving state, and mightily quieteth men in a miserable condition; when these common gifts should be otherwise used.

Direct. 10. Take heed, therefore, of trusting to counterfeit graces, or superficial works that do not effectually convert the soul. Labour to discern by the light of the word of God, whether the work be savingly done or not; how you may discern it, I have told you before. If God be set up highest in your souls, and brought nearest to your hearts, and your hopes are set upon the life to come, and all things in this world seem vain to you in comparison of it; if sin be bitter to you, and Christ, and grace, and holiness be sweet, then you may conclude that it is a saving work, but otherwise not. And therefore rest not in common works.

Hindrance 11. Another hindrance, is, When men live among strong temptations, and occasions of sin; as when they depend upon some great men, or parents, or other friends that are enemies to godliness, and would undo them if they should follow it; or when they are so engaged in a course of sin, that they cannot break it off without their worldly undoing or suffering; when their credit or their gain depends upon it. As the oppressor liveth by oppression, and the ale-seller liveth by the sins of drunkards, or tippling, idle companions, and because they think this gain is sweet, therefore they will not leave the sin. As Acts xix. 24, 25. because Demetrius and the rest of the craftsmen had their wealth and living by making shrines for the idol Diana, therefore they stirred up the people against the Gospel and the preachers of it, that would take down the idol that caused their commodity. In like manner, when men that are addicted to drunkenness will live among such company, or temptations, as will draw them to it: when lustful persons will live among those that do provoke or tempt them when ignorant, unresolved persons live among those that

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