The Reasonableness of Personal Reformation, Title page 1 – Dedication
THE REASONABLENESS OF Personal Reformation, And the NECESSITY OF CONVERSION;
The true Methods of making all Men happy in this World, and in the World to come. Seasonably discoursed, and earnestly pressed upon this Licentious Age.
By J. F. A sincere lover of his Native Countrey, and the Souls of Men.
Levit. 26. 23, 24, 25.
And if ye will not be reformed by these things, but will walk contrary unto me: then will I also walk contrary unto you, and will punish you yet seven times for your sins. And I will bring a sword upon you, that shall avenge the quarrel of my Covenant.
Isa. 48. 18.
Oh that thou hadst hearkened to my Commandments! then had thy peace been as a River, and thy righteousness as the waves of the Sea.
LONDON: Printed for Thomas Cockerill, at the Three Legs in the Poultrey, over against the Stocks-Market. 1691.
To all such as are most immediately and particularly concerned in the following Treatise, of what Rank or Quality soever they be.
Gentlemen,
TWO of the greatest, faithfullest, and most intimate Friends in the World, Reason and Conscience, command me here in their Names, courteously to salute and invite you in.
They earnestly desire three or four Hours serious and private conference with you about some very important Personal Concerns of yours, which cannot admit of denial, or long delay. And if you make any trifling excuses, they have commanded and instructed me here to answer them.
In case of absolute and obstinate refusal to hear them, they order me to tell you, If you will not talk with them now, they'll talk with you shortly whether you will or no. If you say, you are not now at leisure, having other business to do; they both desire you to consider, First, You can have no Business in the World of equal importance with theirs. Secondly, That whatever other lawful Affairs you are pursuing, their Business with you will no way obstruct, but greatly promote it. And Lastly, That a greater Person than any of you lost his Life by pocketing up a Letter at Night, saying, To morrow is a new Day; and it proved to him indeed D…es novissima, his last Day, he losing by that Neglect the only Opportunity of living longer.
If you demand how your Reason came to be bound up in this little Book, and say, That which is Reason to this Author, may be folly and non-sense to you; I am bid to tell you, you are obliged first to read and compare, else your own Reason will presently call it your own folly and non-sense so to pronounce. Sound Reason is uniform, and like it self all the World over. Its true Laws and Dictates equally oblige one, as another, in like cases and circumstances.
If you say, there have been some Jars and Disgusts betwixt you, and your Reasons and Consciences; you and they have fallen out so oft, that you have no great fancy to come near them in private, for you expect nothing but harsh and chideing Language from them, and therefore are fain by continual Diversions and quick Successions of Business, to maintain your Peace, by keeping at as great a distance from them as you can.
'Tis their desire you should here know, First, That their debates with you will be as calm and friendly, as they are seasonable and necessary. Secondly, That they both profess (and you may believe them) they neither do, nor can design any thing but your good. Thirdly, That that Person is certainly in a very bad Case, that cannot endure to converse with himself. Fourthly, That you herein deny a Civility to your own Reasons and Consciences, which you daily pay to Strangers and Inferiors. And in a Word, that they desire a reconciliation with you, upon as fair and honourable terms, as can well be desired. And that this being done, they will both stick faithfully by you in all the troubles and dangers of your Lives, and follow you as your inseparable Friends, into any thing but Sin.
If you say, This is but a Wheedle to draw you into a Book, that will make you melancholy, and perhaps mad.
'Tis their Sense and Judgment, that of all men living, you have least reason to pretend the one or the other in this Case. For they are very confident you are now in the most Melancholy circumstances men can ordinarily be in on this side Hell. And for Madness, they desire to know what you your selves would call that man, that is running with such posthaste to Hell (as will not admit of two or three hours stop upon the Road) to prove himself to be no Mad-man, but in his right mind and wits?
Moreover, they command me to inform you, It is their desire, that seeing their debates with you will neither be tiresome nor impertinent, you will please to hear them out what they have to say to you; and then if you shall find cause to complain that your Pleas and Excuses are not fairly drawn, or that you have new Matter to furnish a better Apology, they are both content you shall have your liberty to amend or add what you please; and if they be not able to refute them, they'll give you no further trouble or interruption in your course.
This, Gentlemen, is what I have in charge to say to you in the Porch; and now if you please, the Door is open; you may be as private as you will. They'll attend you to your Bed-chamber or Closet; and I heartily wish an happy issue to this friendly debate.
J. F.