Flavel John on Keeping the Heart

8/13/2019 Flavel John on Keeping the Heart

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On Keeping the Heart

John Flavel

This volume is an abridgment extensively circulated in the USA by the American

Tract Society. It is without doubt a classic without peer on the subject o the

boo!" and has gone through myriads o printings.

#eep thy heart with all diligence$ or out o it are the issues o

lie.%&roverbs '( )*.

The heart o man is his worst part beore it is regenerated" and the best

aterward$ it is the seat o principles" and the ountain o actions. The eye o

+od is" and the eye o the ,hristian ought to be principally ixed upon it.

The greatest diiculty in conversion" is to win the heart to +od$ and the

greatest diiculty ater conversion" is to !eep the heart with +od. -ere lies

the very orce and stress o religion$ here is that which ma!es the way to lie

a narrow way" and the gate o heaven a strait gate. irection and help in this

great wor! are the scope o the text( wherein we have"

I. An exhortation" /#eep thy heart with all diligence./

II. The reason or motive enorcing it" /For out o it are the issues o lie./

In the exhortation I shall consider"

First" The matter o the duty.

Secondly" The manner o perorming it.

0. The matter o the duty( #eep thy heart. -eart is not here ta!en properly or

the noble part o the body" which philosophers call /the irst that lives andthe last that dies$/ but by heart" in a metaphor" the Scripture sometimes

represents some particular noble aculty o the soul. In 1om. 0( )0" it is put

or the understanding$ their oolish heart" that is" their oolish understanding

was dar!ened. &salm 002( 00" it is put or the memory$ / Thy word have I hid in

my heart(/ and 0 John *( 03" it is put or the conscience" which includes both

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the light o the understanding and the recognitions o the memory$ i our heart

condemn us" that is" i our conscience" whose proper oice it is to condemn.

4ut in the text we are to ta!e it more generally" or the whole soul" or inner

man. 5hat the heart is to the body" that the soul is to the man$ and what health

is to the heart" that holiness is to the soul. The state o the whole body

depends upon the soundness and vigour o the heart" and the everlasting state o

the whole man upon the good or ill condition o the soul.

4y !eeping the heart" understand the diligent and constant6 use o all holy

means to preserve the soul rom sin" and maintain its sweet and ree communion

with +od.

6 I say constant" or the reason added in the text extends the duty to all the

states and conditions o a ,hristian7s lie" and ma!es it binding always. I the

heart must be !ept" because out o it are the issues o lie" then as long as

these issues o lie do low out o it" we are obliged to !eep it.

8avater on the text will have the word ta!en rom a besieged garrison" beset by

many enemies without" and in danger o being betrayed by treacherous citi9ens

within" in which danger the soldiers" upon pain o death" are commanded to

watch$ and though the expression" #eep thy heart" seems to put it upon us as our

wor!" yet it does not imply a suiciency in us to do it. 5e are as able to stop

the sun in its course" or to ma!e the rivers run bac!ward" as by our own willand power to rule and order our hearts. 5e may as well be our own saviours as

our own !eepers$ and yet Solomon spea!s properly enough when he says" #eep thy

heart" because the duty is ours" though the power is o +od$ what power we have

depends upon the exciting and assisting strength o ,hrist. +race within us is

beholden to grace without us. /5ithout me ye can do nothing./ So much or the

matter o the duty.

). The manner o perorming it is with all diligence. The -ebrew is very

emphatic$ !eep with all !eeping" or" !eep" !eep" set double guards. This

vehemence o expression with which the duty is urged" plainly implies how

diicult it is to !eep our hearts" how dangerous to neglect them:

The motive to this duty is very orcible and weighty( /For out o the heart are

the issues o lie./ That is" the heart is the source o all vital operations$

it is the spring and original o both good and evil" as the spring in a watch

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that sets all the wheels in motion. The heart is the treasury" the hand and

tongue but the shops$ what is in these" comes rom that$ the hand and tongue

always begin where the heart ends. The heart contrives" and the members execute(

/a good man" out o the good treasure o his heart" bringeth orth that which is

good$ and an evil man" out o the evil treasure o his heart" bringeth orth

that which is evil( or o the abundance o the heart his mouth spea!eth./ So

then" i the heart err in its wor!" these must miscarry in theirs$ or heart

errors are li!e the errors o the irst concoction" which cannot be rectiied

aterward$ or li!e the misplacing and inverting o the stamps and letters in the

press" which must cause so many errata in all the copies that are printed. ;

then how important a duty is that which is contained in the ollowings

&roposition.%The !eeping and right managing o the heart in every condition" is

one great business o a ,hristian7s lie.

5hat the philosopher says o waters" is as properly applicable to hearts$ it is

hard to !eep them within any bounds. +od has set limits to them" yet how

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Fourthly" Apply the whole.

First" I am to consider what the !eeping o the heart supposes and imports.

To !eep the heart" necessarily supposes a previous wor! o regeneration" which

has set the heart right" by giving it a new spiritual inclination" or as long

as the heart it not set right by grace as to in habitual rame" no means can

!eep it right with +od. Sel is the poise o the unrenewed heart" which biases

and moves it in all its designs and actions$ and as long as it is so" it is

impossible that any external means should !eep it with +od.

>an" originally" was o one constant" uniorm rame o spirit" held one straight

and even course$ not one thought or aculty was disordered( his mind had a

perect !nowledge o the rea!er" as the First ,ause" by sel?dependence$ as the ,hie +ood"

by sel?love$ as the -ighest 8ord" by sel?will$ and as the 8ast @nd" by

sel?see!ing. Thus he is


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and disordered when they come to another: Thereore every duty needs a

particular preparation o the heart. / I thou prepare thine heart and stretch

out thine hands toward him"/ c. To !eep the heart then" is careully to

preserve it rom sin" which disorders it$ and maintain that spiritual rame

which its it or a lie o communion with +od.

This includes in it six particulars(

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perhaps their spirits may be more remiss$ but when it comes to the heart7s case"

they extend their spirits to the utmost" ill their mouths with arguments weep

and ma!e supplication( 7; or a better heart: ; or a heart to love +od more$ to

hate sin more$ to wal! more evenly with +od. 8ord: deny not to me such a heart$

whatever thou deny me( give me a heart to ear thee" to love and delight in

thee" i I beg my bread in desolate places.7 It is observed o an eminent saint"

that when he was conessing sin" he would never give over conessing until he

had elt some bro!enness o heart or that sin$ and when praying or any

spiritual mercy" would never give over that suit till he had obtained some

relish o that mercy.

'. It includes the imposing o strong engagement upon ourselves to wal! more

careully with +od" and avoid the occasions whereby the heart may be induced to

sin. 5ell advised and deliberate vows are" in some cases" very useul to guard

the heart against some special sin. / I have made a covenant with mine eyes"/

says Job. 4y this means holy men have overawed their souls" and preserved

themselves rom deilement.

C. It includes a constant and holy jealousy over our onto hearts. Duic!?sighted

sel?jealousy is an excellent preservative rom sin. -e that will !eep hisheart" must have the eyes o the soul awa!e and open upon all the disorderly

anal tumultuous stirrings o his aections$ i the aections brea! loose" and

the passions be stirred" the soul must discover it" and suppress them beore

they get to a height. 7 ; my soul" dost thou well in this= >y tumultuous

thoughts and passions" where is your commission=7 -appy is the man that thus

eareth always. 4y this ear o the 8ord it is that men depart rom evil" sha!e

o sloth and preserve themselves rom ini


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vanity. -oly Job durst not suer his heart to yield to an impure" vain thought"

and what was it that moved him to so great circumspection= -e tells us" /oth

not -e see my ways" and count all my steps=/

In such particulars as these do gracious souls express the care they have o

their hearts. They are careul to prevent the brea!ing loose o the corruptions

in time o temptation$ careul to preserve the sweetness and comort they have

got rom +od in any duty. This is the wor!" and o all wor!s in religion it is

the most diicult" constant" and important wor!.

0. It is the hardest wor!. -eart?wor! is hard wor! indeed. To shule over

religious duties with a loose anal heedless spirit" will cost no great pains$

but to set thysel beore the 8ord" and tie up thy loose and vain thoughts to a

constant and serious attendance upon him$ this will cost thee something. To

attain a acility and dexterity o language in prayer" and put thy meaning into

apt and decent expressions" is easy$ but to get thy heart bro!en or sin" while

thou art conessing it$ melted with ree grace while thou art blessing +od or

it$ to be really ashamed and humbled though the apprehensions o +odBs ininite

holiness" and to !eep thy heart in this rame" not only in" but ater duty" will

surely cost thee some groans and pains o soul. To repress the outward acts osin" and compose the external part o thy lie in a laudable manner" is no great

matter$ even carnal persons" by the orce o common principles" can do this( but

to !ill the root o corruption within" to set and !eep up an holy government

over thy thought" to have all things lie straight and orderly in the heart" this

is not easy.

). It is a constant wor!. The !eeping o the heart is a wor! that is never done

till lie is ended. There is no time or condition in the lie o a ,hristian

which will suer an intermission o this wor!. It is in !eeping watch over our

hearts" as it was in !eeping up >oses7 hands while Israel and Amale! were

ighting. o sooner do the hands o >oses grow heavy and sin! down" than Amale!

prevails. Intermitting the watch over their own hearts or but a ew minutes"

cost avid and &eter many a sad day and night.

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*. It is the most important business o a ,hristian7s lie. 5ithout this we are

but ormalists in religion( all our proessions" gits and duties signiy

nothing. / >y son" give me thine heart"/ is +odBs re


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into the enemy7s hand" was the evil o their hearts. / ; Jerusalem" wash thine

heart rom wic!edness" that thou mayest be saved$ how long shall thy vain

thoughts lodge within thee=/

; the wic!edness and vanity o their thoughts +od too! particular notice$ and

because o this the ,haldeans must come upon them" / as a lion rom his thic!et"

and tear them to pieces./ For the sin o thoughts it was that +od threw down the

allen angels rom heaven" and still !eeps them in /everlasting chains / to the

judgment o the great day$ by which expression is not obscurely intimated some

extraordinary judgment to which they are reserved$ as prisoners that have most

irons laid upon them may be supposed to be the greatest maleactors. And what

was their sin= Spiritual wic!edness. >erely heart?evils are so provo!ing to +od"

that or them he rejects with indignation all the duties that some men perorm.

/ -e that !illeth an ox is as i he slew a man$ he that sacriices a lamb" as i

he cut o a dog7s nec!$ he that oereth an oblation" as i he oered swine7s

blood$ he that burneth incense" as i he blessed an idol./ In what words could

the abhorrence o a creature7s actions be more ully expressed by the holy +od=

>urder and idolatry are not more vile in his account" than their sacriices"

though materially such as himsel appointed. And what made their sacriices so

vile= The ollowing words inorm us( /Their soul delighteth in theirabominations./

Such is the vileness o mere heart?sins" that the Scriptures sometimes intimate

the diiculty o pardon or them. The heart o Simon >agus was not right" he

had base thoughts o +od" and o the things o +od( the apostle bade him /

repent and pray" i perhaps the thoughts o his heart might be orgiven him./ ;

then never slight heart evils: For by these +od is highly wronged and provo!ed.

For this reason let every ,hristian !eep his heart with all diligence.

). The sincerity o our proession much depends upon the care we exercise in

!eeping our hearts. >ost certainly" that man who is careless o the rame o his

heart" is but a hypocrite in his proession" however eminent he be in the

externals o religion. 5e have a stri!ing instance o this in the history o

Jehu. / 4ut Jehu too! no heed to wal! in the ways o the 8ord +od o Israel with

his heart./ The context gives an account o the great service perormed by Jehu

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against the house o Ahab and 4aal" and also o the great temporal reward given

him by +od or that service" even that his children" to the ourth generation"

should sit upon the throne o Israel. Ket in these words Jehu is censured as a

hypocrite( though +od approved and rewarded the wor!" yet he abhorred and

rejected the person that did it" as hypocritical. 5herein lay the hypocrisy o

Jehu= In this$ he too! no heed to wal! in the ways o the 8ord with his heart$

that is" he did all insincerely and or selish ends( and though the wor! he did

was materially good" yet he" not purging his heart rom those unworthy selish

designs in doing it" was a hypocrite. And though Simon >agus appeared such a

person that the apostle could not regularly reject him" yet his hypocrisy was


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There still remains some wildness in the thoughts and ancies o the best to

humble them$ but i you ind a care beore to prevent them" and opposition

against them when they come" and grie and sorrow aterward" you ind enough to

clear you rom the charge o reigning hypocrisy. This precaution is seen partly

in laying up the word in thy heart to prevent them. / Thy word have I hid in

mine heart" that I might not sin against thee./ &artly in your endeavors to

engage your heart to +od$ and partly in begging preventing grace rom +od in

your commencement o duty. It is a good sign to exercise such precaution. And it

is an evidence o uprightness" to oppose these sins in their irst rise. /I hate

vain thoughts./ / The spirit lusteth against the lesh./ Thy grie also

discovers the uprightness o thy heart. I with -e9e!iah thou art humbled or

the evils o thy heart" thou hast no reason" rom those disorders" to


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>ar! the order( irst" wanton or revengeul thoughts$ then unclean" or murderous

practices. And i the heart be holy" then it is as with avid( / >y heart is

inditing a good matter%I spea! o the things which I have made touching the

!ing$ my tongue is as the pen o a ready writer./ -ere is a lie richly

beautiied with good wor!s" some ready made% I will spea! o the things which I

have made$ others ma!ing%my heart is inditing$ both proceed rom the heavenly

rame o his heart. &ut the heart in rame and the lie will


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they apply again to heart?wor!( when the salt o heavenly?mindedness is cast

into the spring" the streams will run more clear and more sweet.

'. The comort o our souls much depends upon the !eeping o our hearts$ or he

that is negligent in attending to his own heart" is" ordinarily" a great

stranger to assurance" and the comorts ollowing rom it. Indeed i the

Antinomian doctrine were true" which teaches you to reject all mar!s and signs

or the trial o your condition" telling you that it is the Spirit that

immediately assures you" by witnessing your adoption directly" without them$

then you might be careless o your hearts" yea" strangers to them" and yet no

strangers to comort( but since both Scripture and experience conute this" I

hope you will never loo! or comort in this unscriptural way. I deny not that

it is the wor! and oice o the Spirit to assure you$ yet I conidently airm"

that i ever you attain assurance in the ordinary way wherein +od dispenses it"

you must ta!e pains with your own hearts. Kou may expect your comorts upon

easier terms" but I am mista!en i ever you enjoy them upon any other( give all

diligence$ prove yourselves$ this is the scriptural method. A distinguished

writer" in his treatise on the covenant" tells us that he !new a ,hristian who"

in the inancy o his ,hristianity" so vehemently panted ater the inallible

assurance o +od7s love" that or a long time together he earnestly desired some

voice rom heaven$ yea" sometimes wal!ing in the solitary ields" earnestlydesired some miraculous voice rom the trees and stones there( this" ater many

desires and longings was denied$ but in time a better was aorded in the

ordinary way o searching the word and his own heart. An instance o the li!e

nature another learned person gives us o one that was driven by temptation upon

the very borders o despair$ at last" being sweetly settled and assured" one

as!ed him how he attained it" he answered" /ot by any extraordinary revelation"

but by subjecting my understanding to the Scriptures" and comparing my heart

with them./ The Spirit" indeed" assures by witnessing our adoption$ and he

witnesses in two ways. ;ne way is" objectively" that is" by producing those

graces in our souls which are the conditions o the promise$ and so the Spirit"

and his graces in us" are all one( the Spirit o +od dwelling in us" is a mar!

o our adoption. ow the Spirit can be discerned" not in his essence" but in his

operations$ and to discern these" is to discern the Spirit$ and how these can be

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discerned without serious searching and diligent watching o the heart I cannot

imagine. The other way o the Spirit7s witnessing is eectively" that is" by

irradiating the soul with a grace discovering light" shining upon his own wor!$

and this" in order o nature" ollows the ormer wor!( he irst inuses the

grace" and then opens the eye o the soul to see it. ow" since the heart is the

subject o that inused grace" even this way o the Spirit7s witnessing includes

the necessity o careully !eeping our own hearts. For"

0. A neglected heart is so conused and dar!" that the little grace which is in

it is not ordinarily discernible( the most accurate and laborious ,hristians

sometimes ind it diicult to discover the pure and genuine wor!ings o the

Spirit in their hearts. -ow then shall the ,hristian who is comparatively

negligent about heart?wor!" be ever able to discover grace= Sincerity: which is

the thing sought" lies in the heart li!e a small piece o gold on the bottom o

a river$ he that would ind it must stay till the water is clear" and then he

will see it spar!ling at the bottom. That the heart may be clear and settled"

how much pains and watching" care and diligence" are re


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heart with all diligence.

C. The improvement o our graces depends on the !eeping o our hearts. I never

!new grace to thrive in a careless soul. The habits and roots o grace are

planted in the heart$ and the deeper they are rooted there" the more lourishing

grace is. In @ph. *( 0G" we read o being /rooted / in grace$ grace in the heart

is the root o every gracious word in the mouth" and o every holy wor! in the

hand. It is true" ,hrist is the root o a ,hristian" 4ut ,hrist is the

originating root" and grace a root originated" planted" and inluenced by

,hrist$ accordingly" as this thrives under divine inluences" the acts o grace

are more or less ruitul or vigorous. ow" in a heart not !ept with care and

diligence" these ructiying inluences are stopped and cut o%multitudes o

vanities brea! in upon it" and devour its strength$ the heart is" as it were"

the enclosure" in which multitudes o thoughts are ed every day$ a gracious

heart" diligently !ept" eeds many precious thoughts o +od in a day. / -ow

precious are thy thoughts unto me" ; +od: -ow great is the sum o them: I I

should count them" they are more in number than the sand( when I awa!e" I am

still with thee./ And as the gracious heart nourishes them" so they reresh and

east the heart. />y soul is illed as with marrow and atness while I thin!

upon thee"/ c. 4ut in the disregarded heart" multitudes o vain and oolish

thoughts are perpetually wor!ing" and drive out those spiritual thoughts o +odby which the soul should be rereshed. 4esides" the careless heart proits

nothing by any duty or ordinance it perorms or attends upon" and yet these are

the conduits o heaven" whence grace is watered and made ruitul. A man may go

with a heedless spirit rom ordinance to ordinance" abide all his days under the

choicest teaching" and yet never he improved by them$ or heart?neglect is a

lea! in the bottom%no heavenly inluences" however rich" abide in that soul.

5hen the seed alls upon the heart that lies open and common" li!e the highway"

ree or all passengers" the owls come and devour it. Alas: It is not enough to

hear" unless we ta!e heed how we hear$ a man may pray" and never be the better"

unless he watch unto prayer. In a word" all means are blessed to the improvement

o grace" according to the care and strictness we use in !eeping our hearts in

them.

E. The stability o our souls in the hour o temptation depends upon the care we

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exercise in !eeping our hearts. The careless heart is an easy prey to Satan in

the hover o temptation$ his principal batteries are raised against the heart$

i he wins that he wins all" or it commands the whole man( and alas: how easy a

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which we may be excused rom this wor!$ yet there are some signal seasons"

critical hours re


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among ,hristians many have been much the worse or it. -ow good had it been or

some o them" i they had never !nown prosperity: 5hen they were in a low

condition" how humble" spiritual and heavenly they were but when advanced" what

an apparent alteration has been upon their spirits: It was so with Israel$ when

they were in a low condition in the wilderness" then Israel was /holiness to the

8ord(/ but when they came into ,anaan and were richly ed" their language was" /

5e are lords" we will come no more unto thee/. ;utward gains are ordinarily

attended with inward losses$ as in a low condition their civil employments were

wont to have a savour o their religious duties" so in an exalted condition

their duties commonly have a savour o the world. -e" indeed" is rich in grace

whose graces are not hindered by his riches. There are but ew Jehosaphats in

the world" o whom it is said" / -e had silver and gold in abundance" and his

heart was lited up in the way o +od7s commands./ 5ill not this !eep thy heart

humble in prosperity" to thin! how dearly many godly men have paid or their

riches$ that through them they have lost that which all the world cannot

purchase=

*. #eep down thy vain heart by this consideration$ +od values no man the more

or these things. +od values no man by outward excellencies" but by inward

graces$ they are the internal ornaments o the Spirit" which are o great price

in +od7s sight. +od despises all worldly glory" and accepts no man7s person$/but in every nation" he that eareth +od and wor!eth righteousness is accepted

o him./ Indeed" i the judgment o +od went by the same rule that man7s does"

we might value ourselves by these things" and stand upon them( but so much every

man is" as he is in the judgment o +od. oes thy heart yet swell" and will

neither o the ormer considerations !eep it humble=

'. ,onsider how bitterly many dying persons have bewailed their olly in setting

their hearts upon these things" and have wished that they had never !nown them.

-ow dreadul was the situation o &ius Duintus" who died crying out

despairingly" / 5hen I was in a low condition I had some hopes o salvation"

when I was advanced to be a cardinal" I greatly doubted$ but since I came to the

popedom I have no hope at all./ An author also tells us a real" but sad story o

a rich oppressor" who had scraped up a great estate or his only son( when he

came to die he called his son to him" and said" /Son" do you indeed love me=/

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The son answered that / ature" besides his paternal indulgence" obliged him to

that./ / Then Hsaid the ather express it by this( hold thy inger in the

candle as long as I am saying a prayer./ The son attempted" but could not endure

it. Upon that the ather bro!e out into these expressions( /Thou canst not

suer the burning o thy inger or me$ but to get this wealth I have ha9arded

my soul or thee and must burn" body and soul" in hell" or thy sa!e$ thy pains

would have been but or a moment" but mine will be unethin!s this should awe and humble the vainest heart

that ever was in the breast o a saint. #now or a certainty that the 8ord

records all the mercies that ever he gave thee" rom the beginning to the end othy lie. 71emember" ; my people" rom Shittim unto +ilgal"B c. Kes" they are

exactly numbered and recorded in order to an account$ and thy account will be

suitable( /To whomsoever much is given" o him shall much be re


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had given him much substance. /And Jacob said" I am not worthy o the least o

all thy mercies" and all the truth which thou hast showed thy servant$ or with

my sta I passed over this Jordan" and am now become two bands./ Thus also it

was with holy avid$ when +od had conirmed the promise to him" to build him a

house" and not reject him as he did Saul" he goes in beore the 8ord and says"

/5ho am I" and what is my ather7s house" that thou hast brought me hitherto=/

So indeed +od rey soul rejoiceth in the 8ord$/ not in the mercy" but in the +od

o the mercy. So also >ary( />y soul doth magniy the 8ord$ my spirit rejoiceth

in +od my Savior./ The word signiies to ma!e more room or +od$ their hearts

were not contracted" but the more enlarged to +od.

H'. The mercies o +od have been great restraints to !eep others rom sin.

/Seeing thou" our +od" hast given us such a deliverance as this" should we again

brea! thy commandments=/ Ingenuous souls have elt the orce o the obligations

o love and mercy upon them.

HC. The mercies o +od to others have been as oil to the wheels o their

obedience" and made them more it or service. ow i mercies wor! contrarily

upon mar heart" what cause have I to be araid that they come not to me in love:

It is enough to damp the spirits o any saint" to see what sweet eects mercies

have had upon others" and what bitter eects upon him.

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II. The second season in the lie o a ,hristian" re


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will be his Father" and he shall be my son( i he commit inien may loo! shy upon you" and alter their

respects as your condition is altered$ when &rovidence has blasted your estate"

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your summer?riends may grow strange" earing you may be troublesome to them$

but will +od do so= o" no( /I will never leave thee nor orsa!e thee/ says he.

I adversity and poverty could bar you rom access to +od" it were indeed a

deplorable condition( but" so ar rom this" you may go to him as reely as

ever. />y +od will hear me"/ says the church. &oor avid" when stripped o all

earthly comorts" could encourage himsel in the 8ord his +od$ and why cannot

you= Suppose your husband or son had lost all at sea" and should come to you in

rags$ could you deny the relation" or reuse to entertain him= I you would not"

much less will +od. 5hy then are you so troubled= Though your condition be

changed" your Father7s love is not changed.

C. 5hat i by the loss o outward comorts +od preserves your soul rom the

ruining power o temptation= Surely then you have little cause to sin! your

heart by such sad thoughts. o not earthly enjoyments ma!e men shrilly and warp

in times o trial= For the love o these many have orsa!en ,hrist in such an

hour. The young ruler /went away sorrowul" or he had great possessions./ I

this is +od7s design" how ungrateul to murmur against him or it: 5e see

mariners in a storm can throw over?board the most valuable goods to preserve

their lives. 5e !now it is usual or soldiers in a besieged city to destroy the

inest buildings without the walls in which the enemy may tale shelter$ and no

one doubts that it is wisely done. Those who have mortiied limbs willinglystretch them out to be cut o" and not only than!" but pay the surgeon. >ust

+od be murmured against or casting over that which would sin! you in a storm$

or pulling down that which would assist your enemy in the siege o temptation$

or cutting o what would endanger your everlasting lie= ;" inconsiderate"

ungrateul man" are not these things or which thou grievest" the very things

that have ruined thousands o souls=

E. It would much support thy heart under adversity" to consider that +od by such

humbling providences may be accomplishing that or which you have long prayed

and waited. And should you be troubled at that= Say" ,hristian" hast thou not

many prayers depending beore +od upon such accounts as these$ that he would

!eep thee rom sin$ discover to thee the emptiness o the creature$ that he

would mortiy and !ill thy lusts$ that thy heart may never ind rest in any

enjoyment but ,hrist= 4y such humbling and impoverishing stro!es +od may be

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ulilling thy desire. 5ouldst thou be !ept rom sin= 8o" he hath hedged up thy

way with thorns. 5ouldst thou see the creature7s vanity= Thy aliction is a

air glass to discover it$ or the vanity o the creature is never so

eectually and sensibly discovered" as in our own experience. 5ouldst thou have

thy corruptions mortiied= This is the way( to have the ood and uel removed

that maintained them$ or as prosperity begat and ed them" so adversity" when

sanctiied" is a means to !ill them. 5ouldst thou have thy heart rest nowhere

but in the bosom o +od= 5hat better method could &rovidence ta!e to accomplish

thy desire than pulling rom under thy head that sot pillow o creature lights

on which you rested beore= And yet you ret at this( peevish child" how dost

thou try thy Father7s patience: I he delay to answer thy prayers" thou art

ready to say" he regards thee not$ i he does that which really answers the end

o them" though not in the way which you expect" you murmur against him or

that$ as i" instead o answering" he were crossing all thy hopes and aims. Is

this ingenuous= Is it not enough that +od is so gracious as to do what thou

desirest( must thou be so impudent as to expect him to do it in the way which

thou prescribest=

G. It may support thy heart" to consider that in these troubles +od is

perorming that wor! in which thy soul would rejoice" i thou didst see the

design o it. 5e are clouded with much ignorance" and are not able to discernhow particular providences tend to the ulilment o +od7s designs$ and

thereore" li!e Israel in the wilderness" are oten murmuring" because

&rovidence leads us about in a howling desert" where we are exposed to

diiculties$ though then he led them" and is now leading us" by the right way

to a city o habitations. I you could but see how +od in his secret counsel has

exactly laid the whole plan o your salvation" even to the smallest means and

circumstances$ could you but discern the admirable harmony o divine

dispensations" their mutual relations" together with the general respect they

all have to the last end$ had you liberty to ma!e your own choice" you would" o

all conditions in the world" choose that in which you now are. &rovidence is

li!e a curious piece o tapestry made o a thousand shreds" which" single"

appear useless" but put together" they represent a beautiul history to the eye.

As +od does all things according to the counsel o his own will" o course this

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is ordained at the best method to eect your salvation. Such a one has a proud

heart" so many humbling providences appoint or him$ such a one has an earthly

heart" so m7any impoverishing providences or him. id you but see this" I need

say no more to support the most dejected heart.

. It would much conduce to the settlement o your heart" to consider that by

retting and discontent you do yoursel more injury than all your alictions

could do. Kour own discontent is that which arms your troubles with a sting$ you

ma!e your burden heavy by struggling under it. id you but lie


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this !nowledge I arrive at my lodging" however unprovided I ind it" methin!s it

is much better than I deserve. 5hy doth the living man complain=/ Thus the heart

may be !ept rom desponding or repining under adversity.

III. The third season calling or more than ordinary diligence to !eep the heart

is the time o Lion7s troubles. 5hen the ,hurch" li!e the ship in which ,hrist

and his disciples were" is oppressed and ready to perish in the waves o

persecution" then good souls are ready to be shipwrec!ed too" upon the billows

o their own ears. It is true" most men need the spur rather then the reins in

this case$ yet some men sit down discouraged under a sense o the ,hurchBs

troubles. The loss o the ar! cost @li his lie$ the sad posture in which

Jerusalem lay made good ehemiah7s countenance change in the midst o all the

pleasures and accommodations o the court. 4ut though +od allows" yea" commands

the most awa!ened apprehensions o these calamities" and in /such a day calls to

mourning" weeping" and girding with sac!cloth"/ and severely threatens the

insensible$ yet it will not please him to see you sit li!e pensive @lijah under

the juniper tree. /Ah" 8ord +od: It is enough" ta!e away my lie also./ o( a

mourner in Lion you may and ought to be" but a sel?tormentor you must not be$

complain to +od you may" but complain o +od Hthough but by the language o your

actions you must not.

ow let us in


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to us= I the 8ord will have Lion ploughed as a ield" and her goodly stones lie

in the dust$ i it be his pleasure that Anti?,hrist shall rage yet longer and

wear out the saints o the >ost -igh$ i it be his will that a day o trouble"

and o treading down" and o perplexity by the 8ord +od o -osts" shall be upon

the valley o vision" that the wic!ed shall devour the man that is more

righteous than he$ what are we that we should contend with +od= It is it that

we should be resigned to that will whence we proceeded" and that -e that made us

should dispose o us as he pleases( he may do what seemeth him good without our

consent. oes poor man stand upon e


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yet that argument with which ,aleb and Joshua strove to raise their own hearts"

is o as much orce now as it was then( /The 8ord is with us" ear them not./ A

historian tells us" that when Antigonus overheard his soldiers rec!oning how

many their enemies were" and so discouraging one another" he suddenly stepped in

among them with this


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earthly vanities$ to be


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belly o the wic!ed be illed with hidden treasures" and the teeth o the saints

with gravel?stones= Still there is much matter o praise$ or electing love has

distinguished" though common providence has not( and while prosperity and

impunity slay the wic!ed" even slaying and adversity shall beneit and save the

righteous.

E. 4elieve that how low soever the church be plunged under the waters o

adversity" she shall assuredly rise again. Fear not$ or as surely as ,hrist

arose the third day" notwithstanding the seal and watch upon him$ so surely Lion

shall arise out o all her troubles" and lit up her victorious head over all

her enemies. There is no reason to ear the ruin o that people who thrive by

their losses and multiply by being diminished. 4e not too hasty to bury the

church beore she is dead$ stay till ,hrist has tried his s!ill" beore you give

her up or lost. The bush may be all in a lame" but shall never be consumed$

and that because o the good will o -im that dwelleth in it.

E. 1emember the instances o +od7s care and tenderness over his people in ormer

diiculties. For above eighteen hundred years the ,hristian church has been in

aliction" and yet it is not consumed$ many a wave o persecution has gone over

it" yet it is not drowned$ many devices have been ormed against it" hitherto

none o them has prospered. This is not the irst time that -amans and

Ahithophels have plotted its ruin$ that a -erod has stretched out his hand tovex it$ still it has been preserved rom" supported under" or delivered out o

all its troubles. Is it not as dear to +od as ever= Is he not as able to save it

now as ormerly= Though we !now not whence deliverance should arise" / yet the

8ord !noweth how to deliver the godly out o temptations./

G. I you can derive no comort rown any o these considerations" try to draw

some out o your very trouble. Surely this trouble o yours is a good evidence

o your integrity. Union is the ground o sympathy( i you had not some rich

adventure in that ship" you would not tremble as you do when it is in danger.

4eside this rame o spirit may aord you this consolation" that i you are so

sensible o Lion7s trouble" Jesus ,hrist is much more sensible o and solicitous

about it than you can be" and he will have an eye o avor upon them that mourn

or it.

IN. The ourth season" re


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time o danger and public distraction. In such times the best hearts are too apt

to be surprised by slavish ear. I Syria be conederate with @phraim" how do

the hearts o the house o avid sha!e" even as the trees o the wood which are

sha!en with the wind. 5hen there are ominous signs in the heavens" or the

distress o nations with perplexity" the sea and the waves roaring$ then the

hearts o men ail or ear" and or loo!ing ater those things which are coming

on the earth. @ven a &aul may sometimes complain o /ightings within" when

there are ears without./

4ut" my brethren" these things ought not so to be$ saints should be o a more

elevated spirit$ so was avid when his heart was !ept in a good rame( /The 8ord

is my light and my salvation" whom shall I ear= The 8ord is the strength o my

lie" o whom shall I be araid=/ 8et none but the servants o sin be the slaves

o ear$ let them that have delighted in evil ear evil. 8et not that which +od

has threatened as a judgment upon the wic!ed" ever sei9e upon the hearts o the

righteous. / I will send aintness into their hearts in the land o their

enemies" and the sound o a sha!ing lea shall chase them./ 5hat poor spirited

men are those" to ly at a sha!ing lea: A lea ma!es a pleasant" not a terrible

noise$ it ma!es indeed a !ind o natural music( but to a guilty conscience even

the whistling leaves are drums and trumpets: /4ut +od has not given us the

spirit o ear" but o love and o a sound mind./ A sound mind" as it standsthere in opposition to ear" is an unwounded conscience not wea!ened by guilt(

and this should ma!e a man as bold as a lion. I !now it cannot be said o a

saint" as +od said o leviathan" that he is made without ear$ there is a

natural ear in every man" and it is as impossible to remove it wholly" as to

remove the body itsel. Fear is perturbation o the mind" arising rom the

apprehension o approaching danger$ and as long as dangers can approach us" we

shall ind some perturbations within us. It is not my purpose to commend to you

a stoical apathy" nor yet to dissuade you rom such a degree o cautionary

preventive ear as may it you or trouble and be serviceable to your soul.

There is a provident ear that opens our eyes to oresee danger" and


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tyrannical passion which invades the heart in times o danger" distracts"

wea!ens and units it or duty" drives men upon unlawul means" and brings a

snare with it.

ow let us ina!er is thine husband" the

8ord o hosts is his name$/ he is 8ord o all the hosts o creatures. 5ho would

be araid to pass through an army" though all the soldiers should turn their

swords and guns toward him" i the commander o that army were his riend or

ather= A religious young man being at sea with many other passengers in a great

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storm" and they being hal dead with ear" he only was observed to be very

cheerul" as i he were but little concerned in that danger( one o them

demanding the reason o his cheerulness" /;"/ said he" / it is because the

pilot o the ship is my Father:/ ,onsider ,hrist irst as the #ing and supreme

8ord over the providential !ingdom" and then as your head" husband and riend"

and you will ethin!s the command o ,hrist should have as much

power to calm" as the voice o a poor worm to terriy thy heart. /I" even I" am

he that comorteth you( who art thou" that thou shouldst be araid o a man thatshall die" and o the son o man that stroll be made as the grass" and

orgettest the 8ord thy >a!er=/ 5e cannot ear creatures sinully till we have

orgotten +od( did we remember what he is" and what he has said" we should not

be o such eeble spirits. 4ring thysel then to this relection in times o

danger( 7I I let into my heart the slavish ear o man" I must let out the

reverential awe and ear o +od$ and dare I cast o the ear o the Almighty

or the rowns o a man= Shall I lit up proud dust above the great +od= Shall I

run upon a certain sin" to shun a probable danger=7%; !eep thy heart by this

consideration:

'. 1emember how much needless trouble your vain ears have brought upon you

ormerly( /And hast eared continually because o the oppressor" as i he were

ready to devour$ and where is the ury o the oppressor=/ -e seemed ready to

devour" yet you are not devoured. I have not brought upon you the thing that you

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eared$ you have wasted your spirit" disordered your soul" and wea!ened your

hands to no purpose( you might have all this while enjoyed your peace" and

possessed your soul in patience. And here I cannot but observe a very deep

policy o Satan in managing a design against the soul by these vain ears. I

call them vain" with reerence to the rustration o them by &rovidence$ but

certainly they are not in vain as the end at which Satan aims in raising them$

or herein he acts as soldiers do in the siege o a garrison" who to wear out

the besieged by constant watchings" and thereby unit them to ma!e resistance

when they storm it in earnest" every night rouse them with alse alarms" which

though they come to nothing yet remar!ably answer the ultimate design o the

enemy.%; when will you beware o Satan7s devices=

C. ,onsider solemnly" that though the things you ear should really happen" yet

there is more evil in your own ear than in the things eared( and that" not

only as the least evil o sin is worse than the greatest evil o suering$ but

as this sinul ear has really more trouble in it than there is in that

condition o which you are so much araid. Fear is both a multiplying and a

tormenting passion$ it represents troubles as much greater than they are" and so

tortures the soul much more than the suering itsel. So it was with Israel at

the 1ed Sea$ they cried out and were araid" till they stepped into the water"

and then a passage was opened through those waters which they thought would havedrowned there. Thus it is with us$ we" loo!ing through the glass o carnal ear

upon the waters o trouble" the swellings o Jordan" cry out" 7; they are

unordable$ me must perish in them:7 4ut when we come into the midst o those

loods indeed" we ind the promise made good( /+od will ma!e a way to escape./

Thus it was with a blessed martyr$ when he would ma!e a trial by putting his

inger to the candle" and ound himsel not able to endure that" he cried out"

/5hat: ,annot I bear the burning o a inger= -ow then shall I be able to bear

the burning o my whole body to?morrow=/ 4ut when that morrow came he could go

cheerully into the lames with this scripture in his mouth( /Fear not" or I

have redeemed thee$ I have called thee by thy name" thou art mine$ when thou

passest through the waters I will be with you$ when thou wal!est through the

ire thou shalt not be burnt./

E. ,onsult the many precious promises which are written or your support and

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comort in all dangers. These are your reuges to which you may ly and be sae

when the arrows o danger ly by night" and destruction wasteth at noon?day.

There are particular promises suited to particular cases and exigencies$ there

are also general promises reaching all cases and conditions. Such as these( /All

things shall wor! together or good"/ c. /Though a sinner do evil an hundred

times and his days be prolonged" yet it shall be well with them that ear the

8ord"/ c. ,ould you but believe the promises your heart should be established.

,ould you but plead them with +od as Jacob did" H/Thou saidst" I will surely do

thee good"/ c. they would relieve you in every distress.

G. Duiet your trembling heart by recording and consulting your past experiences

o the care and aithulness o +od in ormer distresses. These experiences are

ood or your aith in a wilderness. 4y this avid !ept his heart in time o

danger" and &aul his. It was answered by a saint" when one told him that his

enemies waylaid him to ta!e his lie( /I +od ta!e no care o me" how is it that

I have escaped hitherto=/ Kou may plead with +od old experiences or new ones(

or it is in pleading with +od or new deliverances" as it is in pleading or

new pardons. >ar! how >oses pleads o that account with +od. /&ardon" I beseech

thee" the ini


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the senator returned this noble answer" /that he was a senator" it was it he

should be at the senate$ and i being there" he were rea!e it your business totrust +od with your lie and comorts" and then your heart will be at rest about

them. So did avid" /At what time I am araid I will trust in thee(/ that is"

78ord" i at any time a storm arise" I will shelter rom it under the covert o

thy wings.7 +o to +od by acts o aith and trust" and never doubt that he will

secure you. / Thou wilt !eep him in perect peace whose mind is stayed on thee"

because he trusteth in thee"/ says Isaiah. +od is pleased when you come to him

thus( 7Father" my lie" my liberty and my estate are exposed" and I cannot

secure them$ ; let me leave them in thy hand.B The poor leaveth himsel with

thee$ and does his +od ail him= o" thou art the helper o the atherless( that

is" thou art the helper o the destitute one" that has none to go to but +od.

This is a comorting passage" /-e shall not be araid o evil tidings$ his heart

is ixed" trusting in the 8ord./ -e does not say" his ear shall be preserved

rom the report o evil things" he may hear as sad tidings as other men" but his

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heart shall be !ept rom the terror o those tidings$ his heart is ixed.

00. ,onsult the honor o religion more" and your personal saety less. Is it or

the honor o religion Hthin! you that ,hristians should be as timorous as hares

to start at every sound= 5ill not this tempt the world to thin!" that whatever

you tal!" yet your principles are no better than other men7s= 5hat mischie may

the discovery o your ears beore them do: It was nobly said by ehemiah" /

Should such a man as I lee= and who" being as I am" would lee=/ 5ere it not

better you should die than that the world should be prejudiced against ,hrist by

your example= For alas: how apt is the world Hwho judge more by what they see in

your practices than by what they understand o your principles to conclude rom

your timidity" that how much soever you commend aith and tal! o assurance" yet

you dare trust to those things no more than they" when it comes to the trial. ;

let not your ears lay such a stumbling?bloc! beore the blind world.

0). -e that would secure his heart rom ear" must irst secure the eternal

interest o his soul in the hands o Jesus ,hrist. 5hen this is done" you may

say" 7ow" world" do thy worst:7 Kou will not be very solicitous about a vile

body" when you are once assured it shall be well to all eternity with your

precious soul. / Fear not them Hsays ,hrist that can !ill the body" and ater

that have no more that they can do./ The assured ,hristian may smile with

contempt upon all his enemies" and say" 7Is this the worst that you can do=75hat say you" ,hristian= Are you assured that your soul is sae$ that within a

ew moments o your dissolution it shall be received by ,hrist into an

everlasting habitation= I you be sure o that" never trouble yoursel about the

instrument and means o your death.

0*. 8earn to


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but then it is li!e a candle blown out by a pu o breath" which is easily

blown in again( but i the ear o +od extinguish it" then it is li!e a candle


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condition" these considerations may" through the blessing o the Spirit" prove

eectual(

0. I +od reduces you to necessities" he therein deals no otherwise with you

than he has done with some o the holiest men that ever lived. Kour condition is

not singular$ though you have hitherto been a stranger to want" other saints

have been amiliarly ac


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to be in paradise without one. @ven the dar!ness o hell itsel would be no

dar!ness comparatively at all" were there but a promise to enlighten it. ow"

+od has let many sweet promises or the aith o his poor people to live upon

in this condition$ such as these( / ; ear the 8ord" ye his saints" or there is

no want to them that ear him$ the lions do lac! and suer hunger" but they

that ear the 8ord shall not want any good thing./ /The eye o the 8ord is upon

the righteous to !eep them alive in amine./ / o good thing will he withhold

rom them that wal! uprightly./ / -e that spared not his own Son" but delivered

him up or us all" how shall he not with him also reely give us all things=/ /

5hen the poor and the needy see! water" and there is none" and their tongue

aileth or thirst" I the 8ord will hear them" I the +od o Israel will not

orsa!e them./ -ere you see their extreme wants" water being put or their

necessaries o lie$ and their certain relie" / I the 8ord will hear them(/ in

which it is supposed that they cry unto hits in their distress" and he hears

their cry. -aving thereore these promises" why should not your distrustul

heart conclude li!e avid7s" / The 8ord is my shepherd" I shall not want=/

74ut these promises imply conditions( i they were absolute" they would aord

more satisaction.7 5hat are those tacit conditions o which you spea! but

these" that he will either supply or sanctiy your wants$ that you shall have so

much as +od sees it or you= And does this trouble you= 5ould you have themercy" whether sanctiied or not= whether +od sees it it or you or not= The

appetites o saints ater earthly things should not be so ravenous as to sei9e

greedily upon any enjoyment without regarding circumstances.

7 4ut when wants press" and I see not whence supplies should come" my aith in

the promise sha!es" and I" li!e murmuring Israel" cry" /-e gave bread" can he

give water also=/ ; unbelieving heart: when did his promises ail= whoever

trusted them and was ashamed= >ay not +od upbraid thee with thine unreasonable

inidelity" as in Jer. )( *0" / -ave I been a wilderness unto you=/ or as ,hrist

said to his disciples" /Since I was with you" lac!ed ye any thing=/ Kea" may you

not upbraid yoursel$ may you not say with good old &olycarp" /These many years

I have served ,hrist" and ound him a good >aster=/

Indeed he may deny what your wantonness" but not what your want calls or. -e

will not regard the cry o your lusts" nor yet despise the cry o your aith(

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though he will not indulge your wanton appetites" yet he will not violate his

own aithul promises. These promises are your best security or eternal lie$

and it is strange they should not satisy you or daily bread. 1emember the

words o the 8ord" and solace your heart with them amidst all your wants. It is

said o @picurus" that in dreadul paroxysms o the colic he oten rereshed

himsel by calling to mind his inventions in philosophy$ and o &ossodonius the

philosopher" that in an acute disorder he solaced himsel with discourses on

moral virtue$ and when distressed" he would say" /; pain" thou dost nothing$

though thou art a little troublesome" I will never coness thee to be evil./ I

upon such grounds as these they could support themselves under such rac!ing

pains" and even deluded their diseases by them$ now much rather should the

promises o +od" and the sweet experiences which have gone along step by step

with them" ma!e you orget all your wants" and comort you in every diiculty=

*. I it be bad now" it might have been worse. -as +od denied thee the comorts

o this lie= -e might have denied thee ,hrist" peace" and pardon also$ and then

thy case had been woeul indeed.

Kou !now +od has done so to millions. -ow many such wretched objects may your

eyes behold every day" that have no comort in hand" nor yet in hope$ that are

miserable here" and will be so to eternity$ that have a bitter cup" and nothing

to sweeten it%no" not so much as any hope that it will be better. 4ut it is notso with you( though you be poor in this world" yet you are /rich in aith" and

an heir o the !ingdom which +od has promised./ 8earn to set spiritual riches

over against temporal poverty. 4alance all your present troubles with your

spiritual privileges. Indeed i +od has denied your soul the robe o

righteousness to clothe it" the hidden manna to eed it" the heavenly mansion to

receive it" you might well be pensive$ but the consideration that he has not may

administer comort under any outward distress. 5hen 8uther began to be pressed

by want" he said" /8et us be contented with our hard are$ or do not we east

upon ,hrist" the bread o lie=/ /4lessed be +od Hsaid &aul who hath abounded

to us in all spiritual blessings./

'. Though this aliction be great" +od has ar greater" with which he chastises

the dearly beloved o his soul in this world. Should he remove this and inlict

those" you would account your present state a very comortable one" and bless

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+od to be as you now are. Should +od remove your present troubles" supply all

your outward wants" give you the desire o your heart in creature?comorts" but

hide his ace rom you" shoot his arrows into your soul" and cause the venom o

them to drin! up your spirit( should he leave you but a ew days to the

buetings o Satan( should he hold your eyes but a ew nights wa!ing with

horrors o conscience" tossing to and ro till the dawning o the day(%should he

lead you through the chambers o death" show you the visions o dar!ness" and

ma!e his terrors set themselves in array against you( then tell me i you would

not thin! it a great mercy to be bac! again in your ormer necessitous

condition" with peace o conscience$ and account bread and water" with +od7s

avor" a happy state= ; then ta!e heed o repining. Say not that +od deals

hardly with you" lest you provo!e him to convince you by your own sense that he

has worse rods than these or unsubmissive and roward children.

C. I it be had now" it will be better shortly. #eep thy heart by this

consideration" 7the meal in the barrel is almost spent$ well" be it so" why

should that trouble me" i I am almost beyond the need and use o these things=7

The traveller has spent almost all his money$ 7well"7 says he" 7though my money

be almost spent" my journey is almost inished too( I am near home" and shall

soon be ully supplied.7 I there be no candles in the house" it is a comort to

thin! that it is almost day" and then there will be no need o them. I amaraid" ,hristian" you misrec!on when you thin! your provision is almost spent"

and you have a great way to travel" many years to live and nothing to live upon$

it may be not hal so many as you suppose. In this be conident" i your

provision be spent" either resh supplies are coining" though you see not

whence" or you are nearer your journey7s end than you rec!on yoursel to be.

esponding soul" does it become a man travelling upon the road to that heavenly

city" and almost arrived there" within a ew days7 journey o his Father7s

house" where all his wants shall be supplied" to be so anxious about a little

meat" or drin!" or clothes" which he ears he shall want by the way= It was

nobly said by the orty martyrs when turned out na!ed in a rosty night to be

starved to death" /The winter indeed is sharp and cold" but heaven is warm and

comortable$ here we shiver or cold" but Abraham7s bosom will ma!e amends or

all./

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7 4ut"7 says the desponding soul" 7I may die or want.7 5ho ever did so= 5hen

were the righteous orsa!en= I indeed it be so" your journey is ended" and you

ully supplied.

74ut I am not sure o that$ were I sure o heaven" it would be another matter.7

Are you not sure o that= Then you have other matters to trouble yoursel about

than these$ methin!s these should be the least o all your cares. I do not ield

that souls perplexed about the want o ,hrist" pardon o sin" c." are usually

very solicitous about these things. -e that seriously puts such


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say" 7; i it were but a single aliction" coming rom the hand o +od by way

o trial" I could bear it$ but I have brought it upon mysel by sin" it comes as

the punishment o sin$ the mar!s o +od7s displeasure are upon it( it is the

guilt within that troubles and galls more than the want without.7 4ut it is not

so here$ thereore you have no reason to be cast down under it.

74ut though there be no sting o guilt" yet this condition wants not other

stings$ as" or instance" the discredit o religion. I cannot comply with my

engagements in the world" and thereby religion is li!ely to suer.7 It is well

you have a heart to discharge every duty$ yet i +od disable you by providence"

it is no discredit to your proession that you do not that which you cannot do"

so long as it is your desire and endeavor to do what you can and ought to do$

and in this case +od7s will is" that lenity and orbearance be exercised toward

you.

74ut it grieves me to behold the necessities o others" whom I was wont to

relieve and reresh" but now cannot.7 I you cannot" it ceases to be your duty"

and +od accepts the drawing out o your soul to the hungry in compassion and

desire to help them" though you cannot draw orth a ull purse to relieve and

supply them.

74ut I ind such a condition ull o temptations" a great hindrance in the way

to heaven.7 @very condition in the world has its hindrances and attendingtemptations$ and were you in a prosperous condition" you night there meet with

more temptations and ewer advantages than you now have$ or though I coness

poverty as well as prosperity has its temptations" yet I am conident prosperity

has not those advantages that poverty has. -ere you have an opportunity to

discover the sincerity o your love to +od" when you can live upon him" ind

enough in him" and constantly ollow him" even when all external inducements and

motives ail.

Thus I have shown you how to !eep your heart rom the temptations and dangers

attending a low condition in the world. 5hen want oppresses and the heart begins

to sin!" then improve" and bless +od or these helps to !eep it.

NI. The sixth season re


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discovers itsel more than at such times. -ow oten does the poor soul cry out"

7 ; 8ord" how gladly would I serve thee" but vain thoughts will not let me( I

come to open my heart to thee" to delight my soul in communion with thee" but my

corruptions oppose me( 8ord" call o these vain thoughts" and suer them not

to estrange the soul that is espoused to thee.7

The y

heart is ixed" ; +od" it is ixed./ 5hen you go to +od in any duty" ta!e your

heart aside and say" 7; my soul" I am now engaged in the greatest wor! that a

creature was ever employed about$ I am going into the awul presence o +od upon

business o everlasting moment. ; my soul" leave triling now$ be composed" be

watchul" be serious$ this is no common wor!" it is soul?wor!$ it is wor! or

eternity$ it is wor! which will bring orth ruit to lie or death in the world

to come.7 &ause awhile and consider your sins" your wants" your troubles$ !eep

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your thoughts awhile on these beore you address yoursel to duty. avid irst

mused" and then spo!e with his tongue.

). -aving composed your heart by previous meditation" immediately set a guard

upon your senses. -ow oten are ,hristians in danger o losing the eyes o their

mind by those o their body: Against this avid prayed" /Turn away mine eyes

rom beholding vanity" and


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you are when engaged in religious duty" and act as i you believed in the

omniscience o +od. /All things are na!ed and open to the eyes o -im with whom

we have to do./ 1ealise his ininite holiness" his purity" his spirituality.

Strive to obtain such apprehensions o the greatness o +od as shall suitably

aect your heart" and remember his jealousy over his worship. /This is that the

8ord spa!e" saying" I will be sanctiied in them that come nigh me" and beore

all the people I will be gloriied./ /A man that is praying Hsays 4ernard

should behave himsel as i he were entering into the court o heaven" where he

sees the 8ord upon his throne" surrounded with ten thousand o his angels and

saints ministering unto him./%5hen you come rom an exercise in which your heart

has been wandering and listless" what can you say= Suppose all the vanities and

impertinences which have passed through your mind during a devotional exercise

were written down and interlined with your petitions. ,ould you have the ace to

present them to +od= Should your tongue utter all the thoughts o your heart

when attending the worship o +od" would not men abhor you= Ket your thoughts

are perectly !nown to +od. ; thin! upon this scripture( /+od is greatly to be

eared in the assemblies o his saints" and to be had in reverence o all them

that are round about him./ 5hy did the 8ord descend in thunderings and

lightnings and dar! clouds upon Sinai= why did the mountains smo!e under him"

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connect one stated duty" as it were" with another" and !eep the attention o the

soul alive to all its interests and obligations.

E. I you would have the distraction o your thoughts prevented" endeavor to

raise your aections to +od" and to engage them warmly in your duty. 5hen the

soul is intent upon any wor!" it gathers in its strength and bends all its

thoughts to that wor!$ and when it is deeply aected" it will pursue its object

with intenseness" the aections will gain an ascendancy over the thoughts and

guide them. 4ut deadness causes distraction" and distraction increases deadness.

,ould you but regard your duties as the medium in which you might wal! in

communion with +od in which your soul might be illed with those ravishing and

matchless delights which his presence aords" you might have no inclination to

neglect them. 4ut i you would prevent the recurrence o distracting thoughts"

i you would ind your happiness in the perormance o duty" you must not only

be careul that you engage in what is your duty" but labor with patient and

persevering exertion to interest your eelings in it. 5hy is your heart so

inconstant" especially in secret duties$ why are you ready to be gone" almost as

soon as you are come into the presence o +od" but because your aections are

not engaged=

G. 5hen you are disturbed by vain thoughts" humble yoursel beore +od" and call

in assistance rom -eaven. 5hen the messenger o Satan bueted St. &aul bywic!ed suggestions" Has is supposed he mourned beore +od on account o it.

ever slight wandering thoughts in duty as small matters$ ollow every such

thought with a deep regret. Turn to +od with such words as these( 78ord" I came

hither to commune with thee" and here a busy adversary and a vain heart"

conspiring together" leave opposed me. ; my +od: 5hat a heart have It shall I

never wait upon thee without distraction= 5hen shall I enjoy an hour o ree

communion with thee= +rant me thy assistance at this thee$ discover thy glory to

me" and my heart will


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success o duty and the inward comort arising rom the perormance o it" are

unspea!ably dear to the ,hristian$ but both o these will be lost i the heart

be in a listless state. / Surely +od heareth not vanity" nor doth the Almighty

regard it./ The promise is made to a heart engaged( /Then shall ye see! or me"

and ind me" when ye shall search or me with all your hearts./ 5hen you ind

your heart under the power o deadness and distraction" say to yoursel" 7; what

do I lose by a careless heart now: >y praying seasons are the most valuable

portions o my lie( could I but raise my heart to +od" I might now obtain such

mercies as would be matter o praise to all eternity.7

2. 1egard your careulness or carelessness in this matter as a great evidence o

your sincerity" or hypocrisy. othing will alarm an upright heart more than

this. 75hat: Shall I give way to a customary wandering o the heart rom +od=

Shall the spot o the hypocrite appear upon my soul= -ypocrites" indeed" can

drudge on in the round o duty" never regarding the rame o their hearts$ but

shall I do so= ever% never let me be satisied with empty duties. ever let

note ta!e my leave o a duty until my eyes have seen the #ing" the 8ord o

-osts.7

03. It will be o special use to !eep your heart with +od in duty" to consider

what inluence all your duties will have upon your eternity. Kour religious

seasons are your seed times" and in another world you must reap the ruits owhat you sow in your duties here. I you sow to the lesh" you will reap

corruption$ i you sow to the Spirit" you will reap lie everlasting. Answer

seriously these


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to abuse and wrong the people o +od. /The wic!ed devoureth the man that is more

righteous than he./ ow when we are thus abused and wronged" it is hard to !eep

the heart rom revengeul motions$ to ma!e it mee!ly and y enemy

deserves to be hated"7 let conscience reply" 74ut doth +od deserve to be

disobeyed=7 MThus and thus hath he done" and so hath he wronged me.7 74ut what

hath +od done that I should wrong him= I my enemy dares boldly to brea! the

peace" shall I be so wic!ed as to brea! the precept= I he ears not to wrong

me" shall not I ear to wrong +od=7 Thus let the ear o +od restrain and calm

your eelings.

). Set beore your eyes the most eminent patterns o mee!ness and orgiveness"

that you may eel the orce o their example. This is the way to cut o the

common pleas o lesh and blood or revenge( as thus" 7o man would bear such an

aront(7 yes" others have borne as bad" and worse ones. 74ut I shall be

rec!oned a coward" a ool" i I pass by this( 7no matter" so long as you ollow

the examples o the wisest and holiest o men. ever did any one suer more or

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greater abuses rom men than Jesus did" nor did any one ever endure insult and

reproach and every !ind o abuse in a more peaceul and orgiving manner$ when

he was reviled he reviled not again$ when he suered" he threatened not$ when

his murderers cruciied him he prayed Father" orgive them$ and herein he hath

set us an example" that we should ollow his steps. Thus his apostles imitated

him( /4eing reviled"/ say they" /we bless$ being persecuted" we suer it$ being

deamed" we entreat./ I have oten heard it reported o the holy >r. od" that

when a man" enraged at his close" convincing doctrine" assaulted him" smote him

on the ace and dashed out two o his teeth$ that mee! servant o ,hrist spit

out the teeth and blood into his hand" and said" / See here" you have !noc!ed

out two o my teeth" and that without any just provocation$ but on condition

that I might do your soul good" I would give you leave to !noc! out all the

rest./ -ere was exempliied the excellency o the ,hristian spirit. Strive then

or this spirit" which constitutes the true excellence o ,hristians. o what

others cannot do" !eep this spirit in exercise" and you will preserve peace in

your own soul and gain the victory over your enemies.

). ,onsider the character o the person who has wronged you. -e is either a good

or a wic!ed man. I he is a good man" there is light and tenderness in his

conscience" which sooner or later will bring him to a sense o the evil o what

he has done. I he is a good man" ,hrist has orgiven him greater injuries thanhe has done to you$ and why should not you orgive him= 5ill ,hrist not upbraid

him or any o his wrongs" but ran!ly orgive them all$ and will you ta!e him

by the throat or some petty abuse which he has oered you=

*. 4ut i a wic!ed man has injured or insulted you" truly you have more reason

to exercise pity than revenge toward him. -e is in a deluded and miserable

state$ a slave to sin and an enemy to righteousness. I he should ever repent"

he will be ready to ma!e you reparation$ i he continues impenitent" there is a

day coming when he will be punished to the extent o his deserts. Kou need not

study revenge" +od will execute vengeance upon him.

'. 1emember that by revenge you can only gratiy a sinul passion" which by

orgiveness you might con


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overcome your enemy" the victory would be unhappy and inglorious" or in gaining

it you would be overcome by your own corruption$ but by exercising a mee! and

orgiving temper" you will always come o with honor and success. It must be a

very disingenuous nature indeed upon which mee!ness and orgiveness will not

operate$ that must be a linty heart which this ire will not melt. Thus avid

gained such a victory over Saul his persecutor" that /Saul lited up his voice

and wept" and he said to avid" Thou art more righteous than I./

C. Seriously propose this


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troubles" and said" / The 8ord hath ta!en away" blessed be his name./

G. ,onsider how you are daily and hourly wronging +od" and you will not be so

easily inlamed with revenge against those who have wronged you. Kou are

constantly aronting +od" yet he does not ta!e vengeance on you" but bears with

you and orgives$ and will you rise up and avenge yoursel upon others= 1elect

on this cutting rebu!e( /; thou wic!ed and slothul servant: I orgave thee all

that debt because thou desiredst me$ shouldst thou not also have compassion on

thy ellow?servant" even as I had pity on thee=/ one should be so illed with

orbearance and mercy to such as wrong them" as those who have experienced the

riches o mercy themselves. The mercy o +od to us should melt our hearts into

mercy toward others. It is impossible that we should be cruel to others" except

we orget how !ind and compassionate +od hath been to us. And i !indness cannot

prevail in us" methin!s ear should(%/I ye orgive not men their trespasses

neither will your Father orgive your trespasses/.

. 8et the consideration that the day o the 8ord draweth nigh" restrain you

rom anticipating it by acts o revenge. 5hy are you so hasty= Is not the 8ord

at hand to avenge all his abused servants= /4e patient thereore" brethren" unto

the coming o the 8ord. 4ehold the husbandman waiteth" c. 4e ye also patient"

or the coming o the 8ord draweth nigh. +rudge not one against another"

brethren" lest ye be condemned. 4ehold" the Judge standeth at the door./Nengeance belongeth unto +od" and will you wrong yoursel so much as to assume

his wor!=

NIII. The next season in which special exertion is necessary to !eep the heart"

is when we meet with great trials. In such cases the heart is apt to be suddenly

transported with pride" impatience" or other sinul passions. >any good people

are guilty o hasty and very sinul conduct in such instances$ and all have need

to use diligently the ollowing means to !eep their hearts submissive and

patient under great trials(

0. +et humble and abasing thoughts o yoursel. The humble is ever the patient

man. &ride is the source o irregular and sinul passions. A loty" will be an

unyielding and peevish spirit. 5hen we overrate ourselves" we thin! that we are

treated unworthily" that our trials are too severe( thus we cavil and repine.

,hristian" you should have such thoughts o yoursel as would put a stop to

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these murmurings. Kou should have lower and more humiliating views o yoursel

than any other one can have o you. +et humility" and you will have peace

whatever be your trial.

). ,ultivate a habit o communion with +od. This will prepare you or whatever

may ta!e place. This will so sweeten your temper and calm your mind as to secure

you against surprises. This will produce that inward peace which will ma!e you

superior to your trials. -abitual communion with +od will aord you enjoyment"

which you can never be willing to interrupt by sinul eeling. 5hen a ,hristian

is calm and submissive under his alictions" probably he derives support and

comort in this way$ but he who is discomposed" impatient" or retul" shows

that all is not right within%he cannot be supposed to practise communion with

+od.

*. 8et your mind be deeply impressed with an apprehension o the evil nature and

erects o an unsubmissive and restless temper. It grieves the Spirit o +od" and

induces his departure. -is gracious presence and inluence are enjoyed only

where peace and


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C. Shame yoursel" by contemplating the character o those who have been most

eminent or mee!ness and submission. Above all" compare your temper with the

Spirit o ,hrist. /8earn o me"/ saith he" /or I am mee! and lowly./ It is said

o ,alvin and Ursin" though both o choleric natures" that they had so imbibed

and cultivated the mee!ness o ,hrist as not to utter an unbecoming word under

the greatest provocations. And even many o the heathens have maniested great

moderation and orbearance under their severest alictions. Is it not a shame

and a reproach that you should be outdone by them=

E. Avoid every thing which is calculated to irritate your eelings. It is true

spiritual valour to !eep as ar as ive can out o sin7s way. I you can but

avoid the excitements to impetuous and rebellious eelings" or chec! them in

their irst beginnings" you will have but little to ear. The irst wor!ings o

common sins are comparatively wea!" they gain their strength by degrees$ but in

times o trial the motions o sin are strongest at irst" the unsubdued temper

brea!s out suddenly and violently. 4ut i you resolutely with stand it at irst"

it will yield and give you the victory

IP. The ninth season wherein the greatest diligence and s!ill are necessary to

!eep the heart" is the hour o temptation" when Satan besets the ,hristian7s

heart" and ta!es the unwary by surprise. To !eep the heart at such times" is not

less a mercy than a duty. Few ,hristians are so s!ilul in detecting theallacies" and repelling the arguments by which the adversary incites them to

sin" as to come o sae and whole in these encounters. >any eminent saints have

smarted severely or their want o watchulness and diligence at such times. -ow

then may a ,hristian !eep his heart rom yielding to temptation= There are

several principal ways in which the adversary insinuates temptation" and urges

compliance(

0. Satan suggests that here is pleasure to be enjoyed$ the temptation is

presented with a smiling aspect and an enticing voice( 75hat" are you so dull

and phlegmatic as not to eel the powerul charms o pleasure= 5ho can withhold

himsel rom such delights=7 1eader" you may be rescued rom the danger o such

temptations by repelling the proposal o pleasure. It is urged that the

commission o sin will aord you pleasure. Suppose this were true" will the

accusing and condemning rebu!es o conscience and the lannel o hell be

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pleasant too= Is there pleasure in the scourges o conscience= I so" why died

&eter weep so bitterly= 5hy did avid cry out o bro!en bones= Kou hear what is

said o the pleasure o sin" and have you not read what avid said o the

eects o it= /Thine arrows stic! ast in me" and thy hand presseth me sore$

there is no soundness in my lesh because o thine anger" neither is there any

rest in my bones because o my sin"/ c. I you yield to temptation" you must

eel such inward distress on account o it" or the miseries o hell. 4ut why

should the pretended pleasure o sin allure you" when you !now that unspea!ably

more real pleasure will arise rom the mortiication than can arise rom the

commission o sin. 5ill you preer the gratiication o some unhallowed passion"

with the deadly poison which it will leave behind" to that sacred pleasure which

arises rom hearing and obeying +od" complying with the dictates o conscience"

and maintaining inward peace= ,an sin aord any such delight as he eels who"

by resisting temptation" has maniested the sincerity o his heart" and obtained

evidence that he ears +od" loves holiness" and hates sin=

). The secrecy with which you may commit sin is made use o to induce compliance

with temptation. The tempter insinuates that this indulgence will never disgrace

you among men" or no one will !now it. 4ut recollect yoursel. oes not +od

behold you= Is not the divine presence everywhere= 5hat i you might hide your

sin rom the eyes o the world" you cannot hide it rom +od. o dar!ness norshadow o death can screen you rom his inspection. 4esides have you no

reverence or yoursel= ,an you do that by yoursel which you dare not have

others observe= Is not your conscience as a thousand witnesses= @ven a heathen

could say" /5hen thou art tempted to commit sin" ear thysel without any other

witness./

*. The prospect o worldly advantage oten enorces temptation. It is suggested"

75hy should you be so nice and scrupulous= +ive yoursel a little liberty" and

you may better your condition( now is your time.7 This is a dangerous

temptation" and must be promptly resisted. Kielding to such a temptation will do

your soul more injury than any temporal ac


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'. &erhaps the smallness o the sin is urged as a reason why you may commit it$

thus( 7 It is but a little one" a small matter" a trile$ who would stand upon

such niceties=7 4ut is the >ajesty o heaven little too= I you commit this sin

you will oend a great +od. Is there any little hell to torment little sinners

in= o$ the least sinners in hell are ull o misery. There is great wrath

treasured up or those whom the world regard as little sinners. 4ut the less the

sin" the less the inducement to commit it. 5ill you provo!e +od or a trile=

5ill you destroy your peace" wound your conscience" and grieve the Spirit" all

or nothing= 5hat madness is this:

C. An argument to enorce temptation is sometimes drawn rom the mercy o +od

and the hope o pardon%+od is merciul" he will pass by this as an inirmity" he

will not be severe to mar! it. 4ut stay( where do you ind a promise o mercy to

presumptuous sinners= Involuntary reprisals and lamented inirmities may be

pardoned" /but the soul that doth aught presumptuously" the same reproacheth the

8ord" and that soul shall be cut o rom among his people./ I +od is a being

o so much mercy" how can you aront him= -ow can you ma!e so glorious an

attribute as the divine mercy an occasion o sin= 5ill you wrong him because he

is good= 1ather let his goodness lead you to repentance" and !eep you rom

transgression.

E. Sometimes Satan encourages to the commission o sin" rom the examples oholy men. Thus and thus they sinned" and were restored$ thereore you may commit

this sin" and yet be a saint and be saved. Such suggestions must be instantly

repelled. I good men have committed sins similar to that with which you are

beset" did any good man ever sin upon such ground and rom such encouragement as

is here presented= id +od cause their examples to be recorded or your

imitation" or or your warning= Are they not set up as beacons that you may

avoid the roc!s upon which they split= Are you willing to eel what they elt

or sin= are you ollow them in sin" and plunge yoursel into such distress and

danger as they incurred=%1eader" in these ways learn to !eep your heart in the

hour o temptation.

P. The time o doubting and o spiritual dar!ness constitutes another season

when it is very diicult to !eep the heart. 5hen the light and comort o the

divine presence is withdrawn$ when the believer" rom the prevalence o

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indwelling sin in one orm or other" is ready to renounce his hopes" to iner

desperate conclusions with respect to himsel" to regard his ormer comorts as

vain delusions" and his proessions as hypocrisy$ at such a time much diligence

is necessary to !eep the heart rom despondency. The ,hristian7s distress arises

rom his apprehens

Documents

Flavel John on Keeping the Heart