and the deceivableness of sin, Jer. xvii. and Heb. iii. 13. These are the
volumes he would daily turn over to learn to discern the sophistications,
self flatteries, blindness, darkness, and self love of his own heart, to
take off the deceiving mask of pretences and appearances of good, and
behold sensibly the true and real inclinations of the heart to wickedness,
to passion, pride, uncleanness, malice, envy, and all those affections of
the flesh,--to find out the true beating of the pulse of the heart. And
indeed this just discerning and discovery of the thief in the soul, is a
great part of his arraignment, for if sin be under the view of an eye that
hates it, and loves God, much of its power and virtue, which be in
darkness, is taken away. I press this the more because I verily apprehend
it to be the plague of many Christians, who have some general insight into
the matter of good and evil, and espy some more gross corruption in
themselves, and have some affection to good. Yet this estrangedness to our
own hearts, and the vein or strain of them, the not unbowelling of our
hidden affections, and not discerning of the poison of pride, self love,
love of the world, and such like lusts, which are intermingled in all that
we do, and spread, as it were, universally through the whole man, this, I
say, makes most of us to be subject to so many surprisals by sin. We are
often routed before we draw up, and often conquered ere we consider. This
makes us such unproficients in mortification, so that scarce any sin is
killed, while the roots of all sin lie hid under the ground from us. Then
withal, I desire you to study how deceivable a thing sin is,--how many
deceitful fair pretences it is covered with. It hath the voice of Jacob,
but the hands of Esau. Look, what it is that is pleasant or suitable to
our natural spirits,--it insinuates itself always under the shadow of that,
and if there be not much heedfulness and attention, and much experience of
the wiles of that subtile one, it is a great hazard to be catched with it
unadvisedly, while we clasp about another thing which is presented as a
bait and allurement. Now, is it any wonder that a poor soul be drawn to
sin often, when our enemy doth not for the most part profess hostility,
but friendship, and under that colour pleads admission within our ports?
And, besides, we have a treacherous friend in our bosom, that betrays us
into his hands, that is, our own deceitful hearts. These t