and he is going westward, as long as he hopes he is right, he will go on; and as long as he goes on hoping, he goes farther amiss: When he despairs of coming home, except he turn back, then he will return, and then he may hope. Just so it is, sinner, with thy soul: Thou art born out of the way to heaven, and hast proceeded many a year; thou goest on, and hopest to be saved, because thou art not so bad as many others. Except thou throwest away those hopes, and see that thou hast all this while been quite out of the way to heaven, thou wilt never return and be saved. There is nothing in the world more likely to keep thy soul out of heaven, than thy false hopes of being saved, while thou art out of the way to salvation. See then how it will aggravate the misery of the damned, that with the loss of heaven, they shall lose all that hope of it, which now supports them. [Footnote 250] Proverbs xi, 7. [Footnote 251] Job xi, 20. § 5. (3.) They will lose all that false peace of conscience which makes their present life so easy. Who would think, that sees how quietly the multitude of the ungodly live, that they must very shortly lie down in everlasting flames? They are as free from the fears of hell as an obedient believer; and for the most part have less disquiet of mind than those who shall be saved. Happy men, if this peace would prove lasting! _When they shall say, Peace and safety; then sudden destruction cometh upon them, as travail upon a woman with child, and they shall not escape._[252] O cruel peace, which ends in such a war! The soul of every man by nature is Satan's garrison; all is at peace in such a man till Christ comes, and gives it terrible alarms of judgment and hell, batters it with the ordnance of his threats and terrors, forces it to yield to his mere mercy, and take him for the Governor; then doth he cast out Satan, _overcome him, take from him all his armor wherein he trusted, and divideth his spoil_,[253] and then doth he establish a firm and lasting peace. If therefore thou art yet in that first peace, never think it will endure. Can thy soul have lasting peace, in enmity with Christ? Can he have peace against whom God proclaims war? I wish thee no greater good, than that God break in upon thy careless heart, and shake thee out of thy false peace, and make thee lie down at the feet of Christ, and say, _Lord what wouldst thou have me to do?_ and so receive from him a better and surer peace, which will never be quite broken, but be the beginning of thy everlasting peace, and not perish in thy perishing, as the groundless peace of the world will do. [Footnote 252] 1 Thessalonians v, 3. [Footnote 253] Luke xi, 22.