And is not God willing to do this? Surely he is. For God loveth thee. He gave his only Son, that thou mightest not perish, but have everlasting life. Christ died for thee. And he that believeth on him hath everlasting life. Mark that word: he _hath_ it. He hath it now. He hath the beginning of heaven even upon earth: for his soul is filled with the love of God: and the love of God is heaven. He that truly believes on Jesus Christ, hath a peace which earth cannot give: his mind is always calm; he hath learned in every state therewith to be content: he is always easy, quiet, well pleased; always happy, in life and in death. For a believer is not afraid to die; he desires to be dissolved and to be with Christ: he desires to quit this house of clay, and to be carried by angels into _Abraham_’s bosom: to hear the voice of the archangel, and the trump of God, and to see the Son of Man coming in the clouds of heaven: to stand at his right-hand, and hear that word (which I earnestly beg of God you and I may hear:) “Come ye blessed, receive the kingdom prepared for you from the beginning of the world!”
A WORD to a DRUNKARD.
1. ARE _you_ a man? God made you a _man_. But you make yourself a _beast_. Wherein does a _man_ differ from a _beast_? Is it not chiefly in _reason_ and _understanding_? But you throw away what _reason_ you have. You strip yourself of your _understanding_. You do all you can to make yourself a mere _beast_: not a fool, not a madman only; but a _swine_, a poor filthy swine. Go and wallow with them in the mire! Go, drink on, till thy nakedness be uncovered, and shameful spewing be on thy glory!
2. O how honourable is a _beast_ of God’s making, compared to one who makes himself a _beast_! But that is not all. You make yourself a _devil_. You stir up all the devilish tempers that are in you, and gain others, which perhaps were not in you: at least you heighten and increase them. You cause the fire of anger, or malice, or lust, to burn seven times hotter than before. At the same time you grieve the Spirit of God, till you drive him quite away from you. And, whatever spark of good remained in your soul, you drown and quench at once.
3. So you are now just _fit_ for every _work_ of the _devil_, having cast off all that is good or virtuous, and filled your heart with every thing that is bad, that is earthly, sensual, devilish. You have forced the Spirit of God to depart from you; for you would take none of his reproof: and you have given yourself up into the hands of the devil, to be led blindfold by him at his will.
4. Now what should hinder the same thing from befalling you, which befel him, who was asked, which was the greatest sin, adultery, drunkenness, or murder? And which of the three he had rather commit? He said drunkenness was the least. Soon after, he got drunk. He then met with another man’s wife, and ravished her. The husband coming to help her, he murdered him. So drunkenness, adultery and murder went together.
5. I have heard a story of a poor, wild _Indian_, far wiser than either him or you. The _English_ gave him a cask of strong liquor. The next morning he called his friends together, and setting it in the midst of them, said, “These _white men_ have given us _poison_. This man (calling him by his name) was a wise man, and would hurt none but his enemies. But as soon as he had drunk of this, he was mad, and would have killed his own brother. We will not be _poisoned_.” He then broke the cask, and poured the liquor upon the sand.
6. On what motive do _you_ thus _poison_ yourself? Only for the _pleasure_ of doing it? What! will you make yourself a beast, or rather a devil? Will you run the hazard of ♦committing all manner of villainies; and this only for the poor _pleasure_ of a few moments, while the _poison_ is running down your throat? O never call yourself a Christian! Never call yourself a man! You are sunk beneath the greater part of the beasts that perish.
♦ “commiting” replaced with “committing”
7. Do you not rather drink, for the sake of _company_? Do you not do it, to oblige your _friends_? For _company_, do you say? How is this? Will you take a dose of _ratsbane_ for _company_? If twenty men were to do so before you, would not you desire to be excused? How much more may you desire to be excused, from going to hell for _company_? But, “to oblige your _friends_”――What manner of _friends_ are they, who would be _obliged_ by your destroying yourself? Who would suffer, nay entice you so to do? They are villains. They are your worst enemies. They are just such _friends_, as a man that would smile in your face, and stab you to the heart.
8. O do not aim at any excuse. Say not, as many do, “I am no one’s _enemy_ but _my own_.” If it were so, what a poor saying is this, “I give none but _my own_ soul to the devil.” Alas! is not that too much? Why shouldst thou give him _thy own_ soul? Do it not. Rather give it to God.