The Reformed Pastor - Richard Baxter

us to dangers; it abateth our consolations and delight in God, and taketh off
the sweetness of wisdom's ways; it maketh us less serviceable to God and
man, to bring less honor to our Master, and to do less good to all about us.
We get small benefit in the use of the means of grace. We too easily play
with the serpent's baits, and are ensnared by his wiles. A seducer will easily
shake us, and evil may be made to appear to us as good, truth as falsehood,
sin as duty; and so on the contrary. We are less able to resist and stand in an
encounter; we sooner fall; we hardlier rise; and are apter to prove a scandal
and reproach to our profession. We less know ourselves, and are more apt to
be mistaken as to our own estate, not observing corruptions when they have
got advantage of us. We are dishonorable to the gospel by our very
weakness, and little useful to any about us. In a word, though we live to less
profit to ourselves or others, yet are we unwilling and too unready to die.
Now, seeing the case of weakness in the converted is so sad, how
diligent should we be to cherish and increase their grace! The strength of
Christians is the honor of the Church. When they are inflamed with the love
of God, and live by a lively working faith, and set light by the profits and
honors of the world, and love one another with a pure heart fervently, and
can bear and heartily forgive a wrong, and suffer joyfully for the cause of
Christ, and study to do good, and walk inoffensively and harmlessly in the
world, are ready to be servants to all men for their good, becoming all things
to all men in order to win them to Christ, and yet abstaining from the
appearance of evil, and seasoning all their actions with a sweet mixture of
prudence, humility, zeal, and heavenly mindedness – oh, what an honor are
such to their profession! What an ornament to the Church; and how
serviceable to God and man! Men would sooner believe that the gospel is
from heaven, if they saw more such effects of it upon the hearts and lives of
those who profess it. The world is better able to read the nature of religion in
a man's life than in the Bible. 'They that obey not the word, may be won by
the conversation' of such as are thus eminent for godliness. It is, therefore, a
most important part of our work, to labor more in the polishing and
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