Five particulars to be observed in praying against guilt 3/3

 In earthly courts, when the man dies his cause dies with him, because out of their jurisdiction, and past their summons.  But, at death, thou fallest into the hands of the living God, who will pursue his quar­rel with thee in the other world also.  No sooner is thy soul abandoned of thy body and turned out of its earthly house, but it shall return to God to receive its doom.  Neither shall thy body long rest in the grave where it is earthed, but be called forth to share with the soul in torment, whose partner it hath been in sin.  The parting of these at death to a guilty soul is sad enough; but their meeting again at the great day of judgement will be much more dismal.  For husband and wife, that have joined in some bloody murder, to be attached and sent to several prisons in order to their trial, must needs fill them with fear and terror of their approaching judgment, but much more dreadful is it to them when brought forth to receive their sen­tence, and suffer at the same gibbet together.  At death, the sinner's body is disposed of to one prison, his soul to another, and both meet again at the great day of assize for the world—then to be sent by the final sentence of the Judge to everlasting flames in hell’s fiery furnace, where, after the poor wretch hath experimented a thousand millions of years the weight of God’s just vengeance, he shall find himself no nearer the end of his misery than he was the first day wherein his torment commenced.  Then death will be desired as a favour, but it shall flee from him—his misery being both intolerable and interminable.  By this time, I suppose, a pardon will be thought worth thy having, and too good to be lost by sluggish sleepy praying for it.  When, therefore, thou hast chafed thy soul thus into a sense of the indispensable necessity of this mercy, then take up a holy resolution to lay thy siege to the throne of grace, and never to rise till God open the gates of his mercy to thee.  As it is so necessary thou canst not want it; so thou hast the promise of a faithful God that thou shalt not miss it, upon the timely and sincere seeking of it.  ‘If we con­fess, he is faithful and just to forgive.’  Prayers and tears are the weapons with which the Almighty may be overcome.  Manasseh, who could not on his throne —when he sinned and stouted it out against God —defend himself from the justice of God, yet in his dungeon and fetters, greatly humbling himself before the Lord, obtained his mercy.  So Ephraim, ‘when he spake trembling, he exalted himself in Israel; but when he offended in Baal, he died,’ Hosea 13:1.

           (2.) The second thing in sin to be deprecated is the defiling power of it.  He that desires not to be purged from the filth of sin, prays in vain to be eased of the guilt.  If we love the work of sin, we must like the wages also.  A false heart, could be willing to have his sin covered, but the sincere desires his nature to be cured and cleansed.  David begged a clean heart as well as a quiet conscience: ‘Blot out all mine iniqui­ties; create in me a clean heart, O God; and renew a right spirit within me,’ Ps. 51:9, 10.  He desires water to purify his heart, as well as blood to sprinkle and pa­cify his conscience.  Now, in framing thy requests as to this, observe these particulars.