The Spirit of Mercy Should Move Us
Preachers need to take heed, therefore, how they deal with young believers. Let them be careful not to hold the standard too high, making things necessary evidences of grace which are not in agreement with the experience of many a good Christian, and making salvation and damnation depend on things that are not fit to bear so great a weight. In this way, men are needlessly torn down, and may not soon be built up again by themselves or others. The ambassadors of so gentle a Savior should not be overbearing, setting themselves up in the hearts of people where Christ alone should sit, as in his own temple. Giving too much respect to man was one of the inroads of popery. “Let a man so consider us: as ministers of Christ” (1 Cor 4:1), neither more nor less, just so much. How careful Paul was, in cases of conscience, not to lay a snare upon any weak conscience.
Source: Sibbes, Richard (1577-1635), The Bruised Reed, Chapter 5: The Spirit of Mercy Should Move Us, 1630.
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