Gospel Fear, Sermon 3
SERMON III. June 23. 1644.
2 Kings 22.19.
—Because thine heart was tender; &c.
The Preciousness of a Tender Heart.
ALL that I shall do at this time, is to shew unto you the Preciousness of this Tender Heart, and how God accepts of it; and then conclude by way of Comfort to them that have such Tender Spirits.
For the first, the Preciousness of this Tender Heart: I have heard thee, said God: O it is a disposition that I prize exceeding much! Is thy Heart Tender?
First know, it is very Precious, because it is a special Fruit of the Covenant of Grace wheresoever it is. Doth thy Heart begin to melt to God? surely this comes from God's Heart melting towards thee first, and that in the way of the Covenant of Grace. Those Heart-melting means in the Covenant of Grace, do begin to flow in upon thee, when thy Heart begins to melt towards God. That Ezek. 36. is a clear Text, by all Divines interpreted of the Promise of the Covenant of Grace, and as a special Fruit of it; ver. 26. there is a Promise, A new Heart also will I give you, and a new Spirit I will put within you, and I will take away the Stony Heart out of your Flesh, and I will give you an Heart of Flesh? and I will put my Spirit within you, and cause you to walk in my Statutes, and ye shall keep my Judgments and do them. A new Heart! every one naturally hath a hard Heart; though some Men and Womens Hearts may seem to be softer than others, yet every one in the World hath a hard Heart: What is this new Heart that God Promises to give? Why, I will take away the stony Heart; and I will give an Heart of Flesh. Here's the Fruit of the Covenant of Grace, whosoever then hath this Tender Heart, is one certainly receiv'd into the Covenant of Grace, and that shews a great deal of Preciousness that there is in it, for all things that are proper to the Covenant of Grace are Precious things, for the Covenant is a Precious Covenant; and the Treasures of the riches of God's Grace in the Covenant are very Precious indeed, and this is one of the choice Jewels that there is in the Treasures of the Covenant of Grace; and God gives thee this choice Jewel out of the Treasures of the Covenant of Grace, when he gives thee a Tender Heart.
Certainly, if God should give unto thee Kingdoms to possess: if he should give unto thee the possession of all the World, it were nothing to this gift. For God may give the possession of this World unto one that he will never receive into Covenant with him; God may give all this World out of his General Bounty and Patience. I remember Luther saith of the whole Empire of the Turk, It is onelyonly a crum that great House-holder the Lord doth cast to his Dog, all the Empire; but now this tenderness of heart is a Fruit of the Covenant of Grace, & to have the least fruit of the Covenant of grace, is a greater mercy then to have al the fruits of God's general Bounty and Patience.
Secondly, A Tender Heart is very Precious, because it hath in it so many Graces to be the ingredients of it. For indeed the Heart of Man is supple and made tender by the composition, and mixture of many of the Graces of God's Spirit. The Oile that doth supple the Heart of a Sinner, is an Oile that is compounded of abundance of Graces; indeed all the Graces of the Spirit of God, are but the ingredients into this composition that doth supple the Heart of a Sinner: there you may see Humility, and Faith, and Wisdom, and Patience: add what Grace you can name, it is in this composition. God sees all Graces.
I remember Chrysostom expressing this that I am now Preaching, of Tenderness of Spirit, and the excellency of it, saith he, When the Spirit of God works this Tenderness, it is like some Lady that is making of some precious compound, some sovereign Balsom, and she hath all her Maidens of Honour attending upon her, and she calls to one to fetch this ingredient, and to another to fetch the other, and she takes them altogether and makes a soveraign Balsom or Oile, or what she hath a desire to do. So, saith he, the Spirit of God doth as it were cal all Graces to come in to make this compound of this Oyl to supple the Heart of a Sinner. And the truth is therefore, though thou poor tender Spirit art not able to see the distinct workings of those Graces, yet they are there in thee: as in an Oyle that a Physitian should prescribe you, such or such an Oyle, or a Conserve, made of such ingredients; saith he, you must take such a thing made of such ingredients, if you will be cur'd: upon which he goes to the Apothecary and carries the Bill, now the Apothecary gives him onelyonly a little Oyl, or conserve in a Glass; I but, saith he, the Physitian tells me there must be a great many particulars in it: the Apothecary tells him here is all, and it is made out of those particulars, though he is not able to discern them.
So it is here in a Soul, the Scripture requires several Graces, Faith, Humility, Patience, Heavenly-mindedness and the like. Now a poor Sinner that hath this Tenderness of Spirit, many times is troubled because it cannot find the exercise of such and such particular Graces: I but now, hast thou a Tender Spirit, thou hast them all, they are all there, they are all in the Oyle that did suppl… thy Heart, if there had been wanting any one Grace of God's Spirit, that is, a Saving Grace, thy Heart had never been brought to this Tenderness, and that shews the Preciousness of a Tender Spirit.
3. A third thing that shews the Preciousness of a tender spirit is this, that it is a disposition that doth put the Soul into a fitness for Mercy, it fits the Soul for any mercy that the Lord hath to bestow upon it. Saith Bernard; God doth not use to powr the Oil of his Mercy, but into a Contrite Heart: and so it is certain. But now if the Heart be contrite and Tender, the Lord then presently powrs the Oil of his Mercy into such a one: it is in a fitness for to receive any Mercy, and the Lord who doth delight in Mercy, surely he will not lose the Glory of it when he sees a subject capable of it, and fitted for it. Now thy Soul is made fit to receive any Mercy that the Lord hath to bestow, and the Lord is infinitely willing for to bestow Mercy; there is no other reason why any Man or Woman in the World wants Mercy but because their vessel is not fit, it is not in a fitness for it. You will say indeed, God might make them fit; I but God is not pleased to put forth his Almighty Power to make fit every vessel: but if once it appear that God hath such a Love to such a Soul, as to make fit such a vessel for Mercy, such a Soul may fully conclude, that there is Mercy enough for it: perhaps thou hast it not for the present, but this is certain, there is as much for thee as thou canst hold; I may say to thee, as the Lord doth to his People in another case, I know the thoughts that I have towards them, the thoughts of Peace and Love: so whatsoever thy thoughts are, thou art afraid, yet the Lord saith to thee; I know the thoughts that I have towards this Sinner, the thoughts of Love & Mercy. I might give you many Scriptures to shew how this disposition doth put the Soul into a fitness for Mercy; that's a notable one in Zech. 12.10. I will powre upon the House of David, and upon the Inhabitants of Jerusalem, the Spirit of Grace and of Supplication: and they shall look upon me whom they have pierced, and they shall mourn for him, as one mourneth for his only Son: I will powre out the Spirit; what Spirit? the same that was promised before in Ezek. and so he describes the manner of their mourning. Then in the beginning of the 13. ch. In that day there shall be a Fountain opened, and a Fountain of Mercy opened; and it shall flow in upon their Hearts when they have such a Spirit as this powred out upon them. Here you have the Spirit of Grace and mourning put together; a Tender Heart is called a Spirit of Grace, not only because of the free Grace of God in it; but because of the many Graces of God that are powred into the Heart, when that is powred into it: that's a third thing.
4. And then a fourth thing wherein the Preciousness of this appears is in this, That it doth make the Soul fit for a kindly work of all Ordinances, and of all the waies of God towards it. As now, it fits the Soul for hearing of the Word, as it did Josiahs, how did Josiah Sanctifie the Name of God, in hearing Gods Word at this time!—And for receiving of the Sacrament there's nothing more suitable than this Tenderness of Spirit: Why, for then you come to have Communion with Jesus Christ, and saith the Text, Of his fulness we receive, and Grace for Grace: that is, as the Print of the Seal is in the Wax, there is Print for Print, look what there is in the Seal, the same there is in the Wax. So the Soul hath Grace for Grace, i. e. suitable to the Grace in Christ, there is the print of that Grace upon the Heart. Now when we come to receive the Sacrament, we come to have communion with Jesus Christ that we might receive of his fulness, and especially we come to have the Seal of the Covenant of Grace set upon our Hearts, for that's the nature of a Sacrament: it is the Seal of the Righteousness of Faith. Now what fitter disposition of Heart for a Seal than of a soft Heart? When you come to the Sacrament, a great care you should have that you come with soft Hearts, that you bring this Tender Heart with you, for you there bring your Hearts to have the Seal of the Covenant of Grace set upon them. Oh this is a Precious Disposition, the Lord loves it well, when he sees a Company come to receive the Sacrament, who have softned their Hearts before they come, and so prepared the Soul fit to have the Seal set upon it. All God's waies do work good upon a tender Heart, if there be but the least Mercy of God, any beam of God's Love melts a Tender Heart, and therefore it is very Precious in the Eye of God.
5. It doth much honour God, it lifts up God's Name. No disposition in the World doth honour the Name of God more than a Tender Heart: more reverences God, and Fears before him and acknowledges his Soveraingty and Power,, and gives him the Glory of his Justice and Mercy: here's a disposition that Glorifies God, as one way I told you of a Trembling Heart that Glorified God, so a Tender Heart doth much advance the Name of God.
6. It is a disposition that doth commend all our services to God, and makes them acceptable, and without this no service that we can perform is any waies acceptable unto God. That famous place I suppose you cannot but take notice of, in Psa. 51. Where the Prophet saith of a Contrite Spirit, v. 17. The Sacrifices of God are a broken Spirit; a broken and a Contrite Heart, O God, thou wilt not Despise. Mark, this broken and Contrite Heart is all one with that in the Text, and this tender Heart it is the Sacrifices of God, Sacrifices in the plural number. Now that's to note the choice of all Sacrifices, the choice of all Sacrifices is a Tender Heart: it's that that God doth require above all Sacrifices.
And then Secondly, It is that that is instead of all Sacrifices; if thou canst not offer any thing else to God, yet if thou canst offer this Sacrifice, God is well pleased. Many poor Sinners complain and are troubled, that they can do but very little for God, but canst thou offer up to God a Tender Spirit, a Contrite Heart? I say, this is instead of all Sacrifices whatsoever, before him.
And then Thirdly, The Sacrifices of God are a broken Spirit; that is, here's a disposition that commends any other Sacrifice, let but this Sacrifice be put in, and it is all one as if all other Sacrifices were there, and any thing must needs be acceptable where this is, and nothing without it. In Isa. 66. Saith the Lord: but to this Man will I look, even to him that is poor and of a contrite Spirit, and trembleth at my Word. And then it follows, that he that offers up Sacrifice there is but as if he slew a Man, or cut off a Dogs neck, that is, one that is not of that Contrite and Humble and Tender Spirit, all his Sacrifices are cast off. Now what an excellent Disposition is this, that it commends all our Sacrifices: and it is instead of all Sacrifices whatsoever before the Lord.
7. Further, a Pretious Disposition it is, for such a one that hath a Tender Heart cannot but keep close to God, and cleave to him; it is a disposition that keeps the Heart continually close to God: for if there be but the least declining in a Soul, that hath a Tender Heart quickly he perceives it, and cannot be quiet till he gets to God again, and if the Lord doth withdraw himself but never so little, one that is of a Tender Heart he is sensible of that; so that it is a disposition pretious in this, because it keeps the Heart of a Sinner close to God.
8. Lastly, a Tender Heart is a disposition that makes a Man or Woman a very useful member in Church or Common-Wealth; makes them an useful companion: for one that is of a Tender Spirit is alwaies one that is very harmles. A sowre Spirit is one that is very troublesome where he lives, but a Tender Spirit yields to any thing, if so be that God shews him the reason. And he is of a quiet and Gentle disposition, such a one is very sensible of the Publick-good, or the Publick-evil; one that is of a Tender Spirit is as sensible of the good of others many times as of himself: come and propound any thing to him that concerns the Glory of God or the publick good, you make him presently sensible of it, because he is of a Tender Spirit: whereas come to another and propound any thing to him, that doth not concern their Flesh, & the satisfaction of that, you cannot make them sensible of it, but a Tender Spirit is sensible of any thing you propound to him for God or for the good of others: h…re's the excellence of a Tender Spirit. Now the Lord doth manifest a great deal of high esteem of this Tender Spirit.
First, Here's the principal Object that draws God's Eye in all the World, the Lord looks towards him, in Isa. 66. But to this Man will I look saith God, &c. there is no Object then upon the Face of the Earth that draws the Eye of God more to it than this doth.
Secondly, The Heart of God is much towards such a one. That place that we have concerning Ephraim is full for that in Jer. 31.18. I have surely heard Ephraim bemoaning himself thus, Thou hast chastised me and I was chastised. Ephraim sate alone and was bemoaning himself, his Heart began to break, and he was Lamenting his Condition all alone: mark now how God's Heart is affected to him in the twentieth verse. Is Ephraim my dear Son? is he a pleasant Child? for since I spake against him, I do earnestly remember him still: therefore my Bowels are troubled for him: I will surely have Mercy upon him saith the Lord. Is there any Soul that shall get alone, bemoaning it self and its sin out of a true sence of the evil of it, and the dishonour that God hath had by its sin, the Lord looks upon such a one with his Heart towards him, his bowels do yearn towards such a one.
Thirdly, Which is a principal one to consider on, and that that hath in it indeed enough if we should say no more, but I shall not be large in this: Jesus Christ is anointed by God the Father in special purpose, to be the comforter of such a Heart; wheresoever I say, there is such a Tender, broken, contrite Heart, for they are the same expressions of the same disposition, let such a one know, that God the Father hath anointed his Son on purpose to be the comforter to such a Soul. That appears clearly in Isa. 61. The Spirit of the Lord is upon me, because he hath anointed me to preach good tidings to the meek he hath sent me to bind up the broken-Hearted, and then ver. 3. To appoint unto them that mourn in Zion, to give unto them beauty for Ashes, the Oyl of joy for mourning, the Garment of Praise for the Spirit of Heaviness, that they might be called Trees of Righteousness, the planting of the Lord that he might be Glorified. The Spirit of the Lord God is upon Jesus Christ and hath anointed Jesus Christ to Preach good tidings to those that are of broken Spirits, and to appoint unto them that mourn in Zion, and to give unto them Beauty for Ashes &c. Surely the Soul cannot want Comfort that Jesus Christ is by God the Father designed in way of Office to Comfort; he is a Christ for it; that he may Comfort it: For so when it is said, The Spirit of the Lord God is upon me, because he hath anointed me: It is as much as if it had been said, the Lord God the Father, hath made me Christ, for so the Word Christ signifies nothing but Anointed; hath made me a Christ that I might preach good tidings to the broken Hearted Sinners. Here's God's accepting now of a Tender Spirit, when he will send his Son out of his Bosom, and bids him go into the World and take it as a principal part of his Office to be a Comforter to such Tender Spirits; to pour the Oyl of Joy, that hath had before another Oil to supple their Hearts and make them thus Tender: And that's the third thing.
Fourthly, The many pretious Promises that there are in Scripture, especially directed unto them: (every one of them is worth a Kingdom) For so the Scripture calls the Promises, exceeding great and Pretious Promises, and the Saints do account their Riches to consist in the Promises. That one Promise in Psa. 34. one that hath a Tender Spirit would not be without for a World, The Lord is nigh to them that are of a broken Heart, and saveth such as be of a contrite Spirit, and then that other Promise in Isa. 57.15. that's rather more full than this, For thus saith the high and lofty one that inhabiteth Eternity, whose name is Holy, I dwell in the high and Holy Place, with him also that is of a Contrite and Humble Spirit, to revive the Spirit of the Humble, and to revive the Heart of the Contrite ones. My Brethren, though Heaven be a Glorious mansion of God, yet it will not serve his turn: God doth not think that enough, unless he hath a dwelling likewise in a tender broken humble Spirit, that's the dwelling that the Lord prizes as well as the dwelling in Heaven. As ye know Great Princes, they have several Palaces in several Countries, so the great King of all the World, keeps his Court in Heaven and in a Contrite Heart, those are the two Principal places. Though Princes have in several places where they use to go, some Houses of their own, yet commonly you shall have them have some two or three principal Places for the Court: So though the Lord have all the World where he is, and fills Heaven and Earth; yet the two great Places where he keeps his Court is the highest Heavens and the lowest Heart; and mark, he is said to dwell with them. You know when a Man doth pass by, he may be bountiful in passing by, but in the place of his residence there he is most useful; a Man in his Travel going by, he may do good to some, but he is most useful where he dwells; so the Lord, though he may bestow some common favours in passing by to others, yea the Lord there lets out his Mercy where he dwells. God dwells in the Heart, God abides there in a constant way for the Communication of himself unto them; and to what End? he dwells with the Contrite Spirit to revive them, the Living God is alwaies dwelling with them: let thy dwelling be never so mean, never such a poor dark hole that thou are fain to hide thy Head in; yet having a Contrite Heart, know that there is a Glorious Palace for the Great King of Heaven and Earth to dwell in. Many Promises we have, Blessed are those that mourn, and Blessed are the Poor in Spirit, and the like. Time would quickly be gone if we should name the several Promises, and look out in Scripture what the Lord saith of this disposition of a Tender Spirit. And that's another thing wherein God manifests his high respect unto them.
Fifthly, That the Lord doth exceedingly Tender one that is of a Tender Heart in the time of his Affliction; if there be any burden upon one that is of a Tender Spirit, the Lord knows such a one is sensible of it, and therefore he is sensible of their Condition; the Lord is as sensible of thy Condition as thou art sensible of thy burden, and the great Care of God is that such a one should never fail before him: so we have it in Isa. 57. the forenamed place, where he said, he dwelt with him that is of an Humble and Contrite Spirit, For saith he; I will not contend for ever, neither will I be alwaies wroth: for the Spirit should fail before me, and the Souls which I have made. O saith God, I will not suffer burdens to be alwaies upon them though I may for some special end that I have, and good unto them, manifest for the present some displeasure yet I will not be alwaies wroth: I know they are sensible of the least displeasure of mine, and therefore I will be tender over them who have such tender Hearts, lest saith the Lord, the Spirit should fail before me: their Spirits are ready to fail before the Lord, if the Lord come out against them in an anger. Therefore in Isa. 27. saith the Lord there, Fury is not in me, but who will set Briers and Thorns before me I will go through them, Saith God; as for mine own People; I will be tender over them, and will manifest no fury towards them, but indeed for your hard Hearts, that are as the Briers and Thorns, let them be set before me, those that are of rugged and sowre Spirits, let them be set before me, and my Fury shall go through them, and burn them up together, but the Lord is tender over those that have such tender Spirits.
Sixthly, again, He doth seal such up for Mercy in time of publick calamity: in Ezek. 9. you may find that those that did mourn for the sins that were committed, the Lord gave a Command that the Seal of preservation should be set upon them, before the City should be destroyed: So certainly, wheresoever there is any Tender Spirit, the Lord doth set a Seal of Mercy u…on them; and so then whatsoever Calamity comes upon the place where such a one lives, he shall be marked out for Mercy. And so we know it was with Josiah, that was one special evidence that the Lord would shew of his Mercy to Josiah, that he should not see the Calamity that was to come, but he should be delivered before it came.
And that lets out to get a further expression of God's Love to a Tender Spirit, and that is, that in case the Lord sees that there are Calamities coming upon Kingdoms, and he sees such a Man or Womans Heart being so tender will not be able to bear those Calamities, the Lord in much Love takes them away to himself before they come, and that is most proper for the example of Josiah.
I say, where the Lord sees Men and Women of Tender Spirits, so as they are not able to bear the sight of the Grievous Calamities that God intends to Places, where the Lord will manifest his sore displeasure, in much Love God takes them away before; for Josiah was taken away, but not by the War of his own Country, of his Kingdom, but it was the War of one King against another; for the War against the Kingdom was not come until God took away Josiah: and so I make no Question, but the Lord hath shewn Mercy to many of our Fore-Fathers, that in their time did lament the Sins of the Kingdom, some the Lord removed away from us, and others the Lord took away by Death, …hat were Men and Women of Tender Spirits: because the Lord saw that they could not bear, to see and hear the Dreadful things that we are reserved to see and hear: But indeed the Truth is, it is that the Lord hath reserved us, a hard hearted Generation to: We now indeed can hear of Dreadful things, but because they are at some distance from us, we are not sensible at all of the Dreadful things that others suffer, so that it seems the Lord hath reserved this Generation to see and hear, and feel Dreadful things; the Lord hath taken away the Tender-Hearted Generation. If a Mothers Breast be to be cut off having a Cancer or a Woolfe, or some such Disease in it, the Father will get away the young Tender Children that he knows are not able to bear such a sight, to have their Mothers Brest cut off; and to hear and see her to be in such pain as she must needs be in: even so God the Father doth take away his Tender-Hearted Servants, when their Mother the Church must have as it were her Breasts cut and Lanc'd, nay cut and Sear'd. When Grievous Afflictions are coming upon the Church, the Lord doth Ordinarily take away such tender Spirits before hand; because they are not able to bear such a sight, nor hear such Dreadful things as they must hear: and in this God shews a great deal of respect to his Servants, many of his Servants that have spent much time alone Lamenting the Sins of the Nation, are now taken away from the evil that was to come, and the Lord hath taken them up to himself: for if their Hearts were thus Affected, lest the Sword should come, O how would they be able to bear if they had seen and heard such things as we see and hear at this very day.
Application.
Now then I shall endeavour to wind up all in a word or two of Application. I had thought to have shown how God reveals himself to them, and how they prevail most with God in Prayer; the Lord hears the Prayers of the Poor, he doth prepare their hearts and incline his Ear to hear their Prayers.
Hence then if a tender heart be thus precious and so highly valued by God, it is a very dangerous thing for any one to wrong one of a tender heart; therefore let men take heed of it, for God will right it: God hath a mighty high esteem of such as those are, and it may be, because they are of tender and humble Spirits you may venture upon it, they will not give you blow for blow perhaps, but they get themselves alone and make their moan to their Father, and tell him of all the wrongs that you have done to them, and so they open their hearts to God, and they ease themselves that way. Many of you when you are wronged by others, you have no other way to ease your hearts but this, that you must rail again, and give them as good as they bring; I, but one of a tender Spirit hath a better way to ease himself, he can go alone and get his heart to melt before the Lord, and there he hath ease: Now it is like to go very ill with you, for you had better have wronged a hundred other men than those; If so be you have a Child that you know to be of a softly and tender spirit, that he will not be fighting presently, and one wrongs him, upon which he comes with tears in his eyes, and makes his complaint to you; would it not stir up your spirit to right your Child, and the rather, because you know your Child is of a softly tender Disposition? Certainly so it is with God, God will right them. I remember I have heard of a great woman in Scotland, that she profest she was more afraid of the Fasting and Prayer of John Knox and those that followed him, than of an Army of an hundred thousand Men. Be ever afraid to do those Men and Women of tender spirits any hurt, for God hath a high esteem of them.
And for you that are of tender spirits, O that you would take what hath been said as your portion, and rejoyce in it; It may be God hath not given you much of this World, I but he hath given you a tender heart, and that is infinitely more; it may be you have weak memories, and weak abilities, you cannot do as others do, I, but hath not God given you a tender melting heart that's more than all the parts in the World.
And it may comfort you against the weakness of your Graces, they are weak, but they are made up in this Tenderness. And it is a great question, whether God doth more accept of one that is very eminent in all Graces and less in brokenness of heart, or more eminent in brokenness of heart, though very weak in other Graces: For though brokenness of heart is made up of other Graces, yet brokenness of heart may be very eminent where other Graces are but weak; because, besides the mixture of other Graces, there is the Spirit of God, and the Spirit of God may Actuate the Soul, and some pa…ticular Grace in the Soul. it may actuate it more that others; and so one that is weak otherwise may be eminent in this, and being eminent in this thou hast an excellency that is as excellent as others that are of greater Graces: So —
Though perhaps thou art of such a temper that thou canst not hear profitably, nor obey the word as thou dost desire; but yet canst thou feel, hast thou Tenderness of Spirit: certainly there is Life in thee; so long as there is the sence of feeling there is Life.
Likewise comfort it may be to thee against all thy fears; thou fearest God's wrath, hast thou a tender he rt, the Lord will be careful that thou shalt never know what much displeasure means: For thou hast sanctified the Name of God already and thou art sensible of the least manifestation of his Displeasure: O then surely thou shalt never have much manifestation of the displeasure of God to thee!
And be comforted in this, that Jesus Christ's sorrows are for thee, thou hast thy portion in the sorrows of Jesus Christ. Thou art of a mournful spirit thy self, but know, thou must not rest in the Tenderness of thy heart, but rather look up to Christ that was of a tender Spirit.
And the Tenderness that is in thy heart if it be true, thy Tenderness is but as the Oyl that came from Aarons Head down to his Garments, from Christ thy Head down to his Members, Christ was one of a very tender Spirit. And the tenderness that was in Christ it is thine; he was tender upon Earth, and he is as tender now, and will be at the day of Judgment of as tender a heart as ever, and in this thy Soul should rejoyce and be comforted.
But O Lord, did I but know that those comforts did belong to me, may not one apply them too soon and be presumptuous?
I shall give thee but one Note that you may infallibly come to know whether these shall belong to thee or no.
Doth the hearing of these things and the applying of these things upon your hearts, do they make your hearts more tender; and mollifie your hearts the more towards God? Do you but find this, that upon the hearing of this you can have your hearts made more tender by it, and not go away more hardened? Do you find that upon this you can feel your hearts to be so affected as the more to be humbled, and the more to loath your selves, and to abhor your selves before the Lord, the more you hear that the Lord doth look upon you with an eye of acceptation? Certainly then it belongs to thee, it is thy portion, and thou mayest take it safely. I will give you a Scripture for this that so you may take in the comfort of it safely into your Souls: In Ezek. 36, the same place where the Lord promised a tender heart, v. 26. God promised to take away the stony heart, and to give an heart of Flesh; now mark one special Fruit of this heart of Flesh, after the Lord had made divers Gracious Promises to such, that he would save them from all their uncleanness, and he would give them many mercies, now saith the Text v. 31. Then shall ye remember your own evil ways, and your doings that were not good, and shall loath your selves in your own sight for your Iniquities, and for your Abominations: why, can this then be applyed this very day, can it be said I heard such a Sermon of a tender heart opened to me, how pretious it was, and how God did accept of it, and then at that time did I feel my heart thus breaking; O I remember my evil ways against God, O that I should walk so unworthy of all these mercies from God, and so wretchedly before the Lord! I find my heart more broken by that my unworthy walking, than by any Argument that the Lord had applyed to me a long time before; canst thou say so, that at that time, at that Sermon it was so; why then peace be to thee, for it is all thy portion, and much good may it do thee: O go away and imbrace it, and make much of this thy Tenderness of Spirit, maintain it, if thou wouldest maintain thy comfort maintain thy tenderness of Spirit.