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allowed by us, but watched and ftriven against; therefore, as near as poffibly you can, do nothing to break and interrupt your peace with God for one moment. And because when you have done all, many things may and will fall out (we having finful finning hearts, and living in a world of fnares and temptations) for which God may justly frown

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Secondly, every day make even with him. In the close of every day let us confider wherein we have broken with God, come short of duty, given any grief and diftafte to his holy fpirit; and by faith and prayer let us fue out the pardon of it; and let us not lie down, if poffible, without fome intimation of his pardoning love. For which end,

First, We should act faith on the blood and advocateship of Jefus Chrift, whom God hath set forth to be a propitiation, through faith in his blood, to declare his righteousness for remiffion of fins, Rom. 3. 24, 25. And indeed Chrift hath fet up a standing Office in heaven, which we may call the pardon-office; he procureth new pardons for his people daily under their new fins;-We have an advocate with the Father, Jefus Chrift the righteous, and he is the propitiation for our fins, 1 John 2. 1, 2. Have daily recourse to the blood of Christ; truly without it there's no living; the best, the ho

lieft on earth have daily need of his blood, and should have daily recourfe unto it, for the maintaining of their peace, and for the renewing of God's pardoning love in their fouls.

Secondly, We fhould be humbly and earnestly importunate with God in prayer, refolving not to let him go without his bleffing, carrying upon our fpirits the fenfe of the worth, and also of our unworthiness of it. Thus the holy men of God, of old have done: they have ufed out the pardon of their fins by faith and prayer, and gotten a fresh fenfe of God's love when they have broken with him; as I might inftance in Job, in David, and others.

We should every day pray, as that Father did, O Lord, faith he, do not, after the manner of a Judge, weigh or confider what I have done, what I have spoken, what I have thought; but blot out all my fins with thy own blood. And as another of them did; Lord, faith he, there is that in me which may offend thy holy eyes, I know and confefs it but who fhall cleanse me?

Or, to whom

O hide not thy have walked most

fhall I fly for relief but to thee? face from me. Truly, when we watchfully, moft circumfpe&tly, many things may, and will fall out, that may offend the pure eyes of God's glory, which we should confess and bewail

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before him, fuing out the pardon of them by the blood of his Son.

Some of the faints have made this their daily practice, and fo have maintained their peace for many years together; and when they have come to die, have glorioufly triumphed over death; and have gone off the ftage with much comfort; and fo fhould we.

Fourthly, Would you indeed have all right? all in order in your fouls for a dying hour? Then be true and faithful to your own consciences, that you may have them for you, and not against you, both while you live, and when you die. Confcience (my beloved) is Chrift's deputy or vicegerent in the foul; it is both a judge and a witness for God within us; it either accufes or excufes, acquits or condemns, Rom. 2. 15. And according as confcience is either for us, or against us; fo we are either ready or not ready; prepared or not prepared for death and judgment: if we have the witness and judgment of our confciences for us, then have we boldness and comfort both in life and death; then we can welcome death's approach to us; but if the witness and judgment of conscience be against us, then death cannot but be terrible to us :-This is our rejoicing (faith the apoftle) the teftimony of our confciences, that in fimplicity and Godly fincerity,

not in fleshly wisdom, but by the grace of God, we have had our conversation in the world, 2 Cor. 1. 12. And again: if our hearts condemn us, God is greater than our hearts, and knoweth all things; but if our hearts condemn us not, then have we confidence towards God, 1 John 3. 21.

Oh my beloved, as a peace with God, so a found and holy peace with a man's own confcience (that is to fay, to have the witness and judgment of a man's own confcience for him and not against him) is highly requifite for a right difpofing and preparing of us for a dying hour. As ever, therefore, you would have all ready and in order against fuch an hour, mind this, and look after this; be fure you carry it fo to your own confciences, as that you may have them always for you, and not against you, when you come to die. In order to which, mind thefe two things.

First, Labour to get your confciences well enlightened and informed, and be much with God in prayer; in order thereto, beg and implore God for a true and faithful confcience, a confcience that will bear a true and faithful witness in your fouls, and that will pass a right judgment upon things," both in your state and actions. In Heb. 10. 21. we read of a true heart or a true confciencce, that is, a confcience rightly informed, a conscience that bears

a true and faithful witnefs, and that paffeth a true and faithful judgment upon things: fuch a confcience fhould we beg of God, and labour by all means poffible to attain unto.

Oh, my beloved, it is a dangerous thing to have. an erroneous confcience, a mistaking conscience, a confcience not rightly informed: for pray mark, this is what leaves a man under a neceffity of finning, and fo of grieving the fpirit of God on the one hand, and it endangereth his peace and comfort. on the other hand, for having an erroneous confcience, whether we obey it, or obey it not, we fin; if we obey it we fin, beeaufe confcience commands what is not agreeable to the word of God; if we obey it not, we fin, becaufe we rebel against the light and dictates of confcience, omitting that which confcience tells us is a duty, though it be not a duty; or do that which conscience tells us is a fin, though it be not a fin; labour therefore to get your confciences well informed and enlightened.

Secondly, be fure you do nothing against the light and dictates of confcience, being rightly informed, but obey it in all things.

In Job 24. 13. we read of some that rebel against the light, that is, that do fin against their own confciences; which is a double fin, a fin cloathed with

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