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Show u6 The Sfollfls relief in SoNl-troHble if from Chrifl. thtfe things be in it of a truth, it need. not doubt an~ fe~r: but alas 1 be can give it no alfuran,e,no evtdenct; and thts wtll bell ap-pear by the third thing: . . . . . . • 3· And that is the way of Appilc4ttoH llm§.r.>;, whtch IS by way oflmprtffioll upontheheort; iris the heart that IS wounded, and to that the cure mu(( be applied. I wiU jP~ak,.comfortably to her (faith Gud by his Prophet; ) in the Heb: t! .ts, I wzU [peak,. to her heart. Man c~n but fpeak to the Ear; tt ts true, man hath a natural power of applying in fame degrees to t~e heart the .fou~d which he receiveth at his Ear, viz. by medztalton; but tl11S wtll not do; as a man oft times wants a power to believe.~h~t he re_ads and hears becaufe he believes them not true. For It ts tmpolltble a man fh~uld believe what he thinks to be falfe. So though the Soul may hear of the promifes, and hearing them may meditate upon them, and fo apply them to its he~ct by a natural a6h yet he cannot imprint them upon his heart; thts mull h: the.work of the Lord Jefus Chrifl , by a mighty fe~ret po:wer tnabl~ng the Soul to look upon thefe promifes as belongmg to It felf. As m the work of Regentratioll: It is not enough that the Minijler preach th.e hw of God and the man hears it and when he hath heard, medt· tales on it: but above and belid;s all this, God mufl write his Law in his peoples hearts, and by an Almighty powe( transform• the. heart into the likenefs of it. So it is in the work of comforting, and flrengthening, and railing up a deje6l:ed Love-lick Soul; it is not enot•gh (roperfe6l: the cure) ~hatthe Soul be told of the promifes, hears them, reads them, medttateth o~ them; but there mull be a mighty power of -God to make the rmpreffion·of them upon th~ heart, fo as the Soul !hall believe them to belong unto it iop:nticular, and to be its portion. . Secondly,As this truth is thus. evident from Reafon; fo It ts alfo evident by Experie~ce. For if a Soul thus lick, could be cured by any other hand then that of Chrifl; why are they fo long fie~) It is !'rue fome poor Souls may live in an ill Air, where they may want an Inttrpreter,one ofa.thoufimd, one th~t is able to fpeak any thing ro a wounded Soul; and may wound· m!lea.d ofcunng, as fome oft he watchmen in this Song do (rhe world tsfull of Qcracks in Oivinity as well as. in PhyfickJ '> but befides thefe, how many experiences have ;o.ve of troubled Spirits und.er the miniflry of able, godly,painful Preachers, who take pains wtth t?em both as l~· rhe p_ublick Preachin~ of tbe Gofpel, and as to pnvate oifcrs of tt 1.0 thetr· The spo~tfes relief in Soul tronble If from' Ch~ifo iheir Souls? they tell them the promifes, and fet out the:Riihes of · the Love of God to Sinners; but the Plaijterr wiU notjhc~ God withholds his own left hand, and doth nor give out his mighty power upon the Souls; and when we have faid what we can, yet rhe Soul is troubled and cafl down, and refuferh to be comfor-ted; yet let none lay, ifrhis be true what need of Preaching~ what matter who be the Minifler, if be cannot work this Cure? if the efficacy of the word and Ordinances doth not depend ·upon the Minil!er ? I pr.efume that none would be fo irrational and regardlefs ofhimfelf,as to fay fo concerningPhyjicians or Pl;yfick.for · his body.For thougb it be the Lord th•t b .. aletb, yet he doth it ordi· narily in the ufc of means.Heze~ah mtt{ll;y a plaifler of Fig!' to thr fore; yea, and of proper means too, and rherdore every prudent man ifhe be lick will ralre Phyfick,.,.yea and that nor ofEmpyrick,{, but of able skJlful Phy(zcians, becau!e of Gods ufual concurrence with proper means. So certainly, every prttdent Chrillian, though he believes, that it is Chri11 and · Chrifi alone, thanan cme the lick Soul, yet for as much as Chrifi worketh this Cure in the ufe of means and of fuch mean~ as (from his inOitution) are mofl proper for th~t end, every Chrillian will take himfelf concerned to prize and value Ordinances; to wait upon God in them, as they are difpenfed out by fuch whom his Soul judgeth mofl able and faith-ful, and with-whom God doth plea(e .ordinarily to concurre : In this caution I have prevented my fell. A li'ttle to the application; , you m•y if you pleafe tool< upon.'what !'have · liifl faid, as one branch of the application of this dor1rjn): I !hall proceed to add , a. word or two mor~. . · · ' I. Letthen every Soul lo•k.. HPOI.I 111 and upon aU ir.-turu;as he r. Vf.'> {bould look,;•poJt IU and tbem, and not think of any above what he ought to think. The befl ofMiniflers are but asApqUo and Paul, poor creatures whom God ufeth to plant and to water; . but it is God that mull give the increafe; we are no GadJ, to give unto Soitls Strength and Comfort: We are help~rs on of their Faith and j"y; · that's all om .Notion. There is a tempring.Devil that. polfelfeth many a Soul,and we are not able to cafi it out. And hence .Jet all fobe! Chriflians learn two things: Flffi, Not to vilifie a painful godly' Mini(lir, becaufe'he dotb no I ' find that Comfort and Strength HHder hi! Minijlry which he dr]ireth. Indeed there are fame th1t deferve to be vilified; fuch as make themfelves vile, and by their leud liv¢5, carelefs difcharge of their , places, |