Wesley Corpus

2. O how honourable is a beast of God’s making, compared to one who makes himself a beast ! But that is not all. You make yourself a devil. You stir up all the devilish tempers that are in you, and gain others, which perhaps were not in you; at least you heighten and increase them. You cause the fire of anger, or malice, or lust, to burn seven times hotter than before. At the same time you grieve the Spirit of God, till you drive him quite away from you; and whatever spark of good remained in your soul you drown and quench at once. 3. So you are now just fit for every work of the devil, having cast off all that is good or virtuous, and filled your heart with everything that is bad, that is earthly, sensual, devilish. You have forced the Spirit of God to depart from you; for you would take none of his reproof; and you have given yourself up into the hands of the devil, to be led blindfold by him at his will. 4. Now, what should hinder the same thing from befalling you, which befel him who was asked, which was the greatest sin, adultery, drunkenness, or murder; and which of the three he had rather commit. He said drunkenness was the least. Soon after, he got drunk; he then met with another man's wife, and ravished her. The husband coming to help her, he murdered him. So drunkenness, adultery, and murder went together. 5. I have heard a story of a poor wild Indian, far wiser than either him or you. The English gave him a cask of strong liquor. The next morning he called his friends together, and, setting it in the midst of them, said, “These white men have given us poison. This man” (calling him by his name) “was a wise man, and would hurt none but his enemies; but as soon as he had drunk of this, he was mad, and would have killed his own brother. We will not be poisoned.” He then broke the cask, and poured the liquor upon the sand. 6. On what motive do you thus poison yourself? only for the pleasure of doing it? What I will you make yourself a beast, or rather a devil?