18. There is none that so much hardeneth the wicked in his sin, and furthereth the damnation of souls, as the backslider. If you would but drive your sheep or cattle into a house, those that go in first, do draw the rest after them; but those that run out again, make all the rest afraid, and run away. One apostate that hath been noted for religion, and afterwards turneth off again, doth discourage many that would come in: for he doth, as it were, say to them by his practice, Keep off, and meddle not with a religious life; for I have tried it, and found that a life of worldliness and fleshliness is better. And people will think with themselves, Such a man hath tried a religious life, and he hath forsaken it again; and therefore he had some reason for it, and knew what he did. "Woe to the world, because of offences! and woe to him, by whom the offence shall come!" Matt. xvii. 7; Luke xvii. 1. How dreadful a thing is it to think that men's souls should lie in hell, and you be the cause of it! "It were good for that man, that a millstone were hanged about his neck, and he were drowned in the depth of the sea," Matt. xviii. 6, 7; Luke xvii. 2.
19. There is none that are so great a terror to weak christians, as these backsliders. For they are thinking how far such went before they fell away; and those that think that true grace may be lost, are saying, Alas, how shall I stand, when such that were better and stronger than I have fallen away? And those that think that true grace cannot be lost, are as much perplexed, and say, How far may a hypocrite go, that after falleth away! How piously did this man live! How sorrowfully did he repent! How blamelessly did he walk! How fervently and constantly did he pray! How savourily did he speak! How charitably and usefully did he live! And I that come far short of him, as far as I can discern, can have no assurance that I am sincere, till I am sure that I go further than ever he did. Woe to thee, that thus perplexest the consciences of the weak, and hinderest the comforts of believers!
20. Thou art the greatest grief to the faithful ministers of Christ. Thou canst not conceive what a wound it giveth to the heart and comforts of a minister, when he hath taken a great deal of pains for thy conversion, and after that rejoiced when he saw thee come to the flock of Christ; and after that, laboured many a year to build thee up, and suffered many a frown from the ungodly, for thy sake; to see all his labour at last come to nought, and all his glorying of thee turned to his shame, and all his hopes of thee disappointed! I tell thee, this is more doleful to his heart, than any outward loss or cross that could have befallen him: it is not persecution that is his greatest grief, as long as it hindereth not the good of souls: it is such as thou that are his sorest persecutors, that frustrate his labours, and rob him of his joys; and his sorrows shall one day cost thee dear. The life and comforts of your faithful pastors, is much in your hands, 2 Cor. vii. 3. 1 Thess. iii. 8, "Now we live, if ye stand fast in the Lord."
21. Thou art more treacherous to Christ, than thou wouldst be to a common friend. Wouldst thou forsake thy friend without a cause? especially an old and tried friend? and especially, when in forsaking him thou dost forsake thyself? Prov. xxvii. 10, "Thy own friend, and thy father's friend, forsake not." Prov. xvii. 17, "A friend loveth at all times; and a brother is born for adversity." If thy friend were in distress, wouldst thou forsake him? And wilt thou forsake thy God, that needs thee not, but supplieth thy needs? Ruth was more faithful to Naomi, Ruth i. 16, 17, that resolved, "Whither thou goest I will go; and where thou lodgest I will lodge; where thou diest I will die—." And hath God deserved worse of thee?
22. Nay, thou dealest worse with God, than the devil's servants do with him: alas, they are too constant to him. Reason will not change them, nor the commands of God, nor the offers of everlasting life, nor the fears of hell; nothing will change them, till the Spirit of God do it. And wilt thou be less constant to thy God?
23. Consider also that thy end is so near, that thou hadst but a little while longer to have held out; and thou mightst have known that thou couldst keep thy worldly pleasures but a little while. And it is a pitiful thing to see a man that hath borne the sorest brunt of the battle, and run till he is almost at the end of the race, to lose all for want of a little more; and to see a man sell his God, and soul, and heaven for fleshly pleasure, when perhaps he hath not a year or month, or, for aught he knoweth, a day more to enjoy it. For a man to be weary and give over prayer, just when the mercy is at hand! and to be weary and give over a holy life, when his labour and sufferings are almost at an end! How sad will this day be to thee, if death this night be sent to fetch away thy soul! Then whose will all those pleasures be that thou soldest thy soul for? Luke. xii. 19-21. If thou knewest that thou hadst but a month or a year to live, wouldst thou not have held out that one year? Thou knowest not that it shall be one week. This is like the sad story of a student in one of our universities, who wanting money, and his father delaying to send it him, he staid so long, till at last he resolved to stay no longer, but steal for it rather than be without; and so went out, and robbed and murdered the first man he met, who proved to be his father's messenger, that was bringing him the money that he robbed and killed him for; which when he perceived by a letter which he found in his pocket, he confessed it through remorse of conscience, and was hanged; when a few hours' patience more might have saved his innocency and his life. And so is it with many a backsliding wretch, that is cut off, not like Zimri and Cozbi in the act of their sin, yet quickly after; and enjoy the pleasure which they forsook their God for but a little while.
Direct. IV. When you are awakened to see the terribleness of a relapsed state, presently return and fly to Christ to reconcile your guilty souls to God; and make a stop and go not one step further in your sin, nor make any delays in returning to your fidelity. It is too sad a case to be continued in. If thou darest delay yet longer, and wilfully sin again, thou art yet impenitent, and thy heart is hardened; and if the Lord have not mercy on thee, to recall thee speedily, thou art lost for ever.
Direct. V. Make haste away from the occasions of thy sin, and the company which insnareth thee in it. If thou knewest that they were robbers that intended to murder thee, thou wouldst be gone; if thou knewest that they had plague-sores running on them, thou wouldst be gone. And wilt thou not be gone, when thou knowest that they are the servants of the devil, that would infect thee with this sin, and cheat thee of thy salvation? Say not, Is not this company lawful, and that pleasure lawful? &c. If it be like to entice thy heart to sin, it is unlawful to thee, whatever it is to others; it is not lawful to undo thy soul.
Direct. VI. Come off by sound and deep repentance, and shame thyself by free confession, and mince not the matter, and deal not gently with thy sin, and be not tender of thy fleshly interest, and skin not over the sore, but go to the bottom, and deceive not thyself with a seeming cure.[92] Many a one is undone, by repenting by the halves, and refusing to take shame to themselves by a free confession, and to engage themselves to a thorough reformation by an openly professed resolution. Favouring themselves and sparing the flesh, when the sore should be lanced and searched to the bottom, doth cause many to perish, while they supposed that they had been cured.
Direct. VII. Command thy senses, and at least forbear the outward acts of sin, while thy conscience considereth further of the matter. The drunkard cannot say, that he hath not power to shut his mouth: let the forbidden cup alone; no one compelleth you; you can forbear it if you will. The same I may say of other such sins of sensuality. Command thy hand, thy mouth, thy eye, and guard these entrances and instruments of sin.