5. Another direction to help us to walk sincerely is, especially to look to the heart, look to the beginning, to the spring of all our desires, thoughts, affections, and actions, that is, the heart. The qualification of that is the qualification of the man. If the heart be naught, the man is naught. If that be sincere, the man is sincere. Therefore look to the heart. See what springs out thence. If there spring out naughty thoughts and desu-es.,
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suppress them in the beginning. Let us examine eveiy thought. If we find that "we do but think an evil thought, execute it presently; crush it: for all that is naught comes from a thought and desire at the first. There- fore let us look to our thoughts and desires. See if wo have not false de- sires, and intents and thoughts answerable.
1 God is a Spirit, and ho looks to our very spirits : and what we are in our spirits, in our hearts and affections, that we are to him. Thereibi'e, as a branch of this, what ill we shun, let us do it from the heart, by hating it first. A man may avoid an evil action from fear, or out of other respects, but that is not sincerity. Therefore look to thy heart, see that thou hate evil, and lot it come from sincere looking to God. ' Ye that love the Lord, hate the thing that is evil,' saith David, Ps. xcvii. 10 : not only avoid it, but hate it ; and not only hate it, but hate it out of love to God. And that which is good, not only to do it, but to labour to delight and joy in it. For the outward action is not the thing that is regarded, but when there is a resolution, a desire and delight in it, then God accounts it as done. And BO it is in evil. If we delight in evil, it is as if it were done already. Therefore in doing good, look to the heart, joy in the good you do, and then do it ; and in evil, look to the heart, judge it to be evil, and then abstain from it.
This is the reason of all the errors in our lives. Because we have bad hearts, we look not to God in sincerity. Judas had a naughty heart. He loved not the Lord Jesus Christ, and therefore he had a naughty conclusion. What the heart doth not, is not done in religion. Thus we see how we may come to have our conversation in sincerity, that we may I'ejoice in the testimony of our conscience.
Use. Therefore now, to make an use of exhortation, u-e should labour for sdncerity, a)td esttriu hif/hlt/ of it, because God so esteems of it. Truth is all that we can allege to God. We cannot allege perfection. St Paul himself saith not, I have walked exactly or perfectly : no, but he saith, ' This is our re- joicing, that we have walked in sincerity.' So, if a man's conscience can excuse him of hypocrisy and doubling, though it cannot free him from im- perfections, God in the covenant of grace looks not so much at perfection as at truth.
Ohj. Here I might answer an objection of some Christians. Oh, but I cannot pray without distraction, I cannot delight so in good things, &c.
Aus. Though a Christian's heart cannot free him from this, yet his heai-t desires to approve itself to God in all things ; and his heart is ready to say to the Lord, as David said, ' Lord, try me, if there be any way of wicked- ness in me,' Ps. cxxxix. 23. And therefore he will attend upon all means to get this sincerity. He will be diligent in the word of God, for therein the mind of God is manifestly seen. The word of God, it is a begetting word, it makes us immortal, it makes us new creatures. It is truth, and the instrument of truth. Truth will make truth. The time sincere word of God, not mingled with devices, it will make what it is. The word of God, being his word w^ho is Almighty, it hath an almighty transforming power from him. It is accompanied and clothed with his Almighty Spirit. Truth will cause truth. Such as it is in itself it will work in our hearts.
In that mongrel, false religion, popery, they have traditions, and false devices of men, and so they make false Christians. Such as they are they make. Strain them to the quintessence, and they cannot make a tnie Christian. Truth makes true Christians. Therefore attend upon God's ordinance with all reverence, and it will make thee a sound heart. It is a
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transforming word. Those that desh-e to hear the word of God, and to have their consciences to be informed by the hearin{:( of it, they are sincere Chi-istians ; and those that hibour to shut up the word of God, that it may not work upon the conscience, they arc false-heartcsd.
A heart that is sincere, it prizoth the word of God that makes us sincere. The word of God hath this etlect, especially being unfolded in the ministry of it, that a man may say, as Jacob did, ' Doubtless God is in this place,' Gen. xxviii. 17. It is all that is ours. Nothing runs upon our reckoning but sincerity. For what I have not done truly, conscience saith I have not done to God, and therefore I can expect no comfort for it ; but what I have done to God, I look to have with comfort : for I know that God regards not perfection, but sincerity. He requires not so much a great faith, as a true foith ; not so much perfect love, as true love, and that I have in truth, as St Peter said, ' Lord, thou knowest that I love thee,' John xvi. 30.