Letters in Two Parts, Part 1 · LETTER 191
To CARDONNESS Elder. (191)
Much honoured Sir.
I long to hear how your soul prospereth: I wonder that ye write not to me, for the holy Ghost beareth me witness, I cannot, I dare not, I dow not forget you, nor the souls o these with you, who are redeemed by the blood of the greaf Shepherd: Ye are in my heart in the night watches, ye are my… joy & crown in the day of Christ: O Lord bear witness, if my soul thirsteth for any thing out of heaven, more then for your salvation: Let God lay me in an even ballance & try me in this. Love heaven let your heart be on it: Up, up & visit the new land & view the fair city & the white throne & the Lamb, the bride's husband, in his bridegroom's clothes sitting on it: It were time your soul should cast it self & all your burdens upon Christ. I beseech you by the wounds of your Redeemer, & by your compearance before him & by the salvation of your soul, lose no more time, run fast for it is late: God hath sworn by himself who made the world and time, that time shall be no more, Rev. 10 Ye are now upon the very border of the other life; your Lord cannot be blamed for not giving you warning: I have taught the truth of Christ to you & delivered unto you the whole counsel of God, & I have stood before the Lord for you, & I shall yet still stand: awake, awake to doe righteously: Think not to be eased of the burthens & debts that are on your house, by oppressing any or being rigorous to these that are under you: remember how I endeavoured to walk before you in this matter as an example: behold here am I, witness against me, before the Lord & his Anointed, whose ox or whoseass have I taken? Whom have I defrauded? Whom have I oppressed? Who knoweth how my soul feedeth upon a good conscience, when I remember how I spent this body in feeding the lambs of Christ? At my first entry hither, I grant, I took a stomack against my Lord, because he had casten me over the dike of the vineyard as a dry tree, & would have no more of my service: My dumb sabbaths broke my heart, and I would not be comforted: but now he whom my soul love this come again, and it pleaseth him to feast me with the kisses of his love: A King dineth with me and his spikenard casteth a sweet smell: The Lord my witness is above, that I write my heart to you, I never knew by my nine years preaching, so much of Christ's love, as he hath taught me in Aberden by six moneths imprisonment. I charge you in Christ's name help me to praise & shew that people & countrey, the loving kindness of the Lord to my soul, that so my sufferings may someway preach to them when I am silent: He hath made me know now better then before, what it is to be crucified to the world: I would not now give a drink of cold water for all the world's kindness: I ow no service to it: I am not the flesh's debter: My Lord Jesus hath dâted his prisoner, & hath thoughts of love concerning me: I would not exchange my sighs with the laughing of my adversaries. Sir, I write this to inform you, that ye may know it is the truth of Christ I now suffer for, & he hath sealed nay sufferings with the comforts of his spirit on my soul, & I know he putteth not his seal upon blank paper. Now, Sir, I have no comfort earthly, but to know that I have espoused, and shall present a bride to Christ in that congregation. The Lord hath given you much, and therefore he will require much of you again: Number your talents & see what ye have to render back again, ye cannot be enough perswaded of the shortness of your time: I charge you to write to me, & in the fear of God be plain with me, whether or no ye have made your salvation sure, I am confident & hope the best, but I know your reckonings with your Judge are many and deep. Sir, be not beguiled, neglect not your one thing [Philip. 3, 13] your one necessary thing [Luke 10: 42] the good part that shall not be taken from you. Look beyond time: things here are but moon-shine, they have but Childrens wit who are delighted with shadows & deluded withfeathers flying in the air. Desire your children in the morning of their life to begin & seek the Lord, & to remember their Creator in the dayes of their youth [Eccles. 12: 1.] to cleanse their way by taking heed thereto according to God's word [Ps. 119: 9.] youth is a glassy age: Satan findes a swept chamber [for the most part] in youth-hood, & a garnished lodging for himself & his train: Let the Lord have the flower of their age: The best sacrifice is due to him: Instruct them in this, that they have a soul, & that this life is nothing in comparison of eternity: They will have much need of God's conduct in this world, to guide them by these rocks upon which most men split; but far more need when it cometh to the hour of death & their compearance before Christ. O that there were such a heart in them to fear the name of the great & dreadfull God, who hath laid up great things for these that love & fear him! I pray that God may be their portion. Show others of my parishoners, that I write to them my best wishes and the blessings of their lawfull Pastor: Say to them from me, that I beseech them by the bowels of Christ, to keep in minde the Doctrine of our Lord and Saviour Jesus Christ, which I taught them; that so they may lay hold on eternal life, striving together for the faith of the Gospel, & making sure salvation to themselves: Walk in love & doe righteousness: seek peace, love one another, wait for the coming of our Master & Judge: Receive no doctrine contrary to that which I delivered to you: If ye fall away & forget it & that Catechisme which I taught you, & so forsake your own mercy, the Lord be judge betwixt you & me, I take heaven & earth to witness, that such shall eternally perish; but if they serve the Lord, great will their reward be, when they & I shall stand before our Judge. Set forward up the mountain to meet with God: climb up, for your Saviour calleth on you. It may be, God call you to your rest when I am far from you, but ye have my love & the desires of my heart for your souls wel-fare. He that is holy, keep you from falling & establish you, till his own glorious appearance.
Aberd. 1637. Your affectionat & lawfull Pastor, S. R.