Samuel Rutherford - A Selection From His Letters

My very dear brother,
You are heartily welcome to my world of suffering, and heartily welcome to my Father's house. God give you much joy of your new Master. If I have been in the house before you, I was faithful not to give the house an ill name, or to speak evil of the Lord of the family: I rather wish God's Holy Spirit (O Lord, breathe upon me with that Spirit!) to tell you the fashions of the house (Ezekiel 43:11). One thing I can say is that through waiting on, you will grow a great man with the Lord of the house. Hang on until you get some good from Christ. Take ease yourself, and let Him bear all; lay all your weights and your loads, by faith, on Christ--He can and He will bear you.
I rejoice that He has come and has chosen you in the furnace; it was even there where He and you set tryst. He keeps the good old fashion with you that was in Hosea's days (Hosea 2:14): "Therefore, behold I will allure her, and bring her to the wilderness and speak comfortably to her." There was no talking to her heart while she was in the fair flourishing city and at ease, but out in the cold, hungry, waste wilderness He allured her; He whispered news into her ear there, and said, "You are mine." What would you think of such a bode? You may soon do worse than say, "Lord, hold all; Lord Jesus, a bargain be it, it shall not go back on my side."
You have gotten a great advantage in the way of heaven, since you have started to the gate in the morning. Like a fool, as I was, I suffered my sun to be high in the heavens, and near afternoon, before I ever took the gate by the end. I pray you now keep the advantage you have. My heart, be not lazy; set quickly up the brass on hands and feet, as if the last pickle of sand were running out of your glass, and death were coming to turn the glass. And be very careful to take heed to your feet in that slippery and dangerous way of youth that you are walking in. Dry timber will soon take fire. Be covetous and greedy of the grace of God, and beware that it be not a holiness which only comes from the cross; for too many are that way disposed. "When He slew them, then they sought Him, and they returned and inquired early after God." "Nevertheless, they did flatter Him with their mouth, and they lied unto Him with their tongues" (Psalm 78:34,36). It is part of our hypocrisy to give God fair, white words when He has us in His grips (if I may speak so), and to flatteer Him till He win to the fair fields again. Try well green godliness, and examine what it is that you love in Christ. If you love but Christ's sunny side, and would have only summer weather and a land-gate, not a sea-way to heaven, your profession will play you a slip, and the winter-well will go dry again in summer.
Make no sport in Christ; but labor for a sound and lively sight of sin, that you may judge yourself an undone man, a damned slave of hell and of sin, one dying in your own blood--except Christ come and rescue you, and take you up. Therefore, make sure and fast work of conversion. Cast the earth deep; and down, down with the old work, the building of confusion, that was there before. Let Christ lay new work and make a new creation within you.