Blueridge Believer
Puritan Board Professor
Presumptuous sins, these are the thieves that
‘break through and steal’ the saint’s comfort away.
When the Christian comes to look into his soul after
such a bold act, and thinks to entertain himself, as
formerly, with the comforts of his pardoned state, interest
in Christ, and hopes of heaven through him,
alas! he finds a sad change. There is no promise that
will give out its consolations to him—the cellar-door
is locked, Christ withdrawn, and the keys carried
away with him. He may even cry out with a sad complaint,
as Mary when she found not Christ’s body in
the sepulchre, ‘They have taken away my Lord, and
I know not where they have laid him.’ Thus the
Christian may, with aching heart, bemoan his folly,
‘My pride, my uncleanness, my earthly-mindedness,
they have taken away my treasure, robbed me of my
comfort. I could never have a comfortable sight of
God’s face in any duty or promise since I fell into
that foul sin.’ And therefore, Christian, have a care
of such robbers of thy peace as this. ‘The spirit of
man’ is called ‘the candle of the Lord,’ Prov. 20:27.
Hath God lighted thy candle, Christian—cheered thy
spirit, I mean, with the sense of his love? Take heed
of presumptuous sins. If such a thief be suffered in
this thy candle, thy comfort will soon sweal out. Hast
thou fallen into the hands of any such presumptuous
sins as have stolen thy peace from thee? Send speedily
thy hue and cry after them—I mean, take thy sad
moan to God, renew thy repentance out of hand, and
raise heaven upon them by a spirit of prayer. This is
no time to delay. The farther thou lettest these sins
go without repentance, the harder thou wilt find it to
recover thy lost peace and joy out of their hands. And
for thy encouragement know, God is ready, upon thy
serious and solemn return, to restore thee ‘the joy of
his salvation,’ and do justice upon these enemies of
thy soul for thee by his mortifying grace, if thou wilt
prosecute the law upon them closely and vigorously,
without relenting towards them, or being bribed with
the pleasure or carnal advantage that they will not
spare to offer, so their lives may be spared.
2. Again, as presumptuous sins are the ‘thieves’
that with a high hand rob the Christian of his comfort;
so sloth and negligence are as the ‘rust,’ that in
time will fret into his comfort and eat out the heart
and strength of it. It is impossible that the Christian
who is careless and secure in his walking, infrequent
and negligent in his communion with God, should
long be owner of much peace or comfort that is true.
What if thou dost not pour water of presumptuous
sins into the lap of thy joy to quench it? It is enough
if thou dost not pour oil of duty to feed and maintain
it. Thou art murderer to thy comfort by starving it, as
well as by stabbing of it.
WILLIAM GURNALL.
‘break through and steal’ the saint’s comfort away.
When the Christian comes to look into his soul after
such a bold act, and thinks to entertain himself, as
formerly, with the comforts of his pardoned state, interest
in Christ, and hopes of heaven through him,
alas! he finds a sad change. There is no promise that
will give out its consolations to him—the cellar-door
is locked, Christ withdrawn, and the keys carried
away with him. He may even cry out with a sad complaint,
as Mary when she found not Christ’s body in
the sepulchre, ‘They have taken away my Lord, and
I know not where they have laid him.’ Thus the
Christian may, with aching heart, bemoan his folly,
‘My pride, my uncleanness, my earthly-mindedness,
they have taken away my treasure, robbed me of my
comfort. I could never have a comfortable sight of
God’s face in any duty or promise since I fell into
that foul sin.’ And therefore, Christian, have a care
of such robbers of thy peace as this. ‘The spirit of
man’ is called ‘the candle of the Lord,’ Prov. 20:27.
Hath God lighted thy candle, Christian—cheered thy
spirit, I mean, with the sense of his love? Take heed
of presumptuous sins. If such a thief be suffered in
this thy candle, thy comfort will soon sweal out. Hast
thou fallen into the hands of any such presumptuous
sins as have stolen thy peace from thee? Send speedily
thy hue and cry after them—I mean, take thy sad
moan to God, renew thy repentance out of hand, and
raise heaven upon them by a spirit of prayer. This is
no time to delay. The farther thou lettest these sins
go without repentance, the harder thou wilt find it to
recover thy lost peace and joy out of their hands. And
for thy encouragement know, God is ready, upon thy
serious and solemn return, to restore thee ‘the joy of
his salvation,’ and do justice upon these enemies of
thy soul for thee by his mortifying grace, if thou wilt
prosecute the law upon them closely and vigorously,
without relenting towards them, or being bribed with
the pleasure or carnal advantage that they will not
spare to offer, so their lives may be spared.
2. Again, as presumptuous sins are the ‘thieves’
that with a high hand rob the Christian of his comfort;
so sloth and negligence are as the ‘rust,’ that in
time will fret into his comfort and eat out the heart
and strength of it. It is impossible that the Christian
who is careless and secure in his walking, infrequent
and negligent in his communion with God, should
long be owner of much peace or comfort that is true.
What if thou dost not pour water of presumptuous
sins into the lap of thy joy to quench it? It is enough
if thou dost not pour oil of duty to feed and maintain
it. Thou art murderer to thy comfort by starving it, as
well as by stabbing of it.
WILLIAM GURNALL.