an exceeding
loud and bitter cry; it made Judas hang himself: yea, and it will make
thee curse the day in which thou wast born, if thou miss of the
kingdom, as thou wilt certainly do, if this be thy course. But,

THE EIGHTH USE.--Again, How, and if thou by thy lazy running should'st
not only destroy thyself, but also thereby be the cause of the
damnation of some others? For thou, being a professor, thou must think
that others will take notice of thee; and because thou art but a poor,
cold, lazy runner, and one that seeks to drive the world and pleasure
along with thee; why, thereby others will think of doing so too.
'Nay,' say they, 'why may not we, as well as he? He is a professor,
and yet he seeks for pleasures, riches, profits; he loveth vain
company, and he is so and so, and professeth that he is going for
heaven; yea, and he saith also he doth not fear but he shall have
entertainment; let us therefore keep pace with him, we shall fare no
worse than he!' O how fearful a thing will it be, if thou shalt be
instrumental to the ruin of others by thy halting in the way of
righteousness! Look to it, thou wilt have strength little enough to
appear before God, to give an account of the loss of thy own soul;
thou needest not to have to give an account for others, why thou didst
stop them from entering in. How wilt thou answer that saying, 'You
would not enter in yourselves, and them that would, you hindered?' For
that saying will be eminently fulfilled on them that through their
own idleness do keep themselves out of heaven, and by giving others
the same example, hinder them also.

THE NINTH USE.--Therefore, now to speak a word to both of you, and so
I shall conclude.

1. I beseech you, in the name of our Lord Jesus Christ, that none of
you do run so lazily in the way to heaven as to hinder either
yourselves or others. I know that even he who runs laziest, if he
should see a man running for a temporal life, who should so much
neglect his own well-being in this world, as to venture, when he is
running for his life, to pick up, here and there, a lock of wool that
hangeth by the wayside, or to step, now and then, aside out of the way
to gather up a straw or two, or any rotten stick; I say, if he should
do this when he is running for his life, thou wouldst condemn him. And
dost thou not condemn thyself that dost the very same in effect? nay
worse; that loiterest in thy race, notwithstanding thy soul, heaven,
glory, and all i