(3.) Pray that God would give us grace to be sensible of the perils of the day wherein we live. It may be we have had confidence, that though thousands fall at our right hand and at our left, yet we shall be able to carry it through. Believe me, it is great grace. Point your private, closet prayers, and your famiiy prayers this way; and the Lord help us to point our public prayers to this thing, that God would make' our hearts sensible of the perils of the time whereinto we are fallen in these last days !
Use 2. The next thing is this, that there are two things in a peril- ous season, — the sin of it, and the misery of it. Labour to be sen- sible of the former, or you will never be sensible of the latter. Though judgments lie at the door, — though the heavens be dark over us, and the earth shake under us at this day, and no wise man can see where he can build himself an abiding habitation, — we can talk of these
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things ; and hear of other nations soaking in blood ; and have tokens of God's displeasure, — warnings from heaven above and the earth be- neath; and no man sensible of them! Why? Because they are not sensible of sin ; nor ever will be, unless God make them so.
I shall range the sins that we should be sensible of under three heads : — the sins of the poor, wretched, perishing world, in the first place ; the sins of professors in general, in the second place ; and our own particular sins and decays, in the third place. And let us labour to have our hearts affected with these. It is to no purpose to tell you this and that judgment is approaching; — for your leaders, and those that are upon the watch-tower, to ciy, " ' A lion ; my lord,' we see a lion." Unless God make our hearts sensible of sin, we shall not be sensible of judgments.
Use 3. Remember there is a special frame of spirit required in us all in such perilous seasons as these are. And what is that? It is a mourning frame of spirit. 0 that frame, that jolly frame of spirit that is upon us ! The Lord forgive it, the Lord pardon it unto us ; and keep us in a humble, broken, mournful frame of spirit: for it is a peculiar grace God looks for at such a time as this is. When he will pour out his Spirit, there will be great mourning, together and apart ; but now we may say there is no mourning. The Lord help us, we have hard hearts and dry eyes under the consideration of all these perils that lie before us.
Use 4. Keep up church watch with diligence, and by the rule. When I say rule, I mean the life of it. I have no greater jealousy upon my heart, than that God should withdraw himself from his own institutions because of the sins of the people, and leave us only the carcase of outward rule and order. What doth God give them for? for their own sakes? No ; but that they may be clothing for faith and love, meekness of spirit and bowels of compassion, watchfulness and diligence. Take away these, and farewell to all outward rule and order, whatever they are. Keep up a spirit that may live affected with it : get a spirit of church watch ; which is not to lie at catch for faults, but diligently, out of pure love and compassion to the souls of men, to watch over them, — to wait to do them good, all we can. As it was with a poor man, who took a dead body and set it up, and it fell; and he set it up again, and it fell; upon which he cried out, " Oportet esse aliquid intus," — " There wants something within," to enliven and quicken it; — so is it with church order and rule; set them up as often as you will, they will all fall, if there be not a love to one another, a delighting in the good of one another, " exhorting one another while it is called To-day, lest any be hardened through the deceitfulness of sin."
Use 5. Reckon upon it, that in such times as these are, all of us
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will not go free. You find no mention of a perilous season in Scrip- ture, but it follows some shall have their faith overthrown, others shall follow pernicious ways, and others shall turn aside. Brethren and sisters, how do you know but you or I may fall? Let us double our watch, every one ; for the season is come upon us wherein some of us may fall, and fall so as to smart for it. I do not say we shall perish eternally ; — God deliver us from going into the pit ! but some of us may so fall as to lose a limb, some member or other ; and our works will be committed to the fire that shall burn them all. God hath kindled a fire in Zion that will try all our works; and we shall see in 'a short time what will become of us.