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A84560
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An earnest exhortation to a true Ninivitish repentance. VVherein is briefly declared: 1. What true repentance is. 2. How a man should perceive it wrought in him. 3. Exhortation to a due examination of everie ones self. 4. A right penitentiall prayer. 5. The barres which hinder Christs working in the soul. 6. What true and living faith is. Also two questions resolved: 1. From whence warre doth spring. 2. By what means it ends. Together with other considerable matter fit for the times.
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1642
(1642)
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Wing E98; Thomason E83_23; ESTC R8690
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20,303
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28
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houshold of Faith a Religionist a Christian an heir and child of God but he that hath not such a Faith nor suffereth the fruits of love to grow and blossome in a right godly and not seeming-holy way or nature he knoweth neither of Faith Religion nor Christianitie yea of no God in truth though he understood all the Scriptures all mysteries and Articles of beleef and could thereof talk and dispute eloquently and rationally even as an Angel of Light yet is he in Gods sight an unbeleever a miserable and contemnable man for he hath not in him the living power of the living Faith which alwayes is fruitfull in love therefore he talketh and prateth much of Faith and its righteousnesse yet he knoweth not what either Faith or Faiths works are whiles he doth not find and feel them experimentally inwardly in spirit and truth nor outwardly sheweth his talking and knowledge in deeds and works which God and good men may approve With such unprofitable Bablers is alas at this day all the world replenished namely with such as with open mouth cry Lord Lord prophesie and do signes and wonders but fulfill and accomplish not the will of God in power all these are but external plaisterers external cryers and seekers of Christ and the Faith despisers of the inward power of God or of the living Word of Faith and the whole kingdom of God in men in whom and by whom is the fulfilling of the Commandements and also the true Christian freedome in holinesse and righteousnesse Therefore thou Faith-conceited Man beseech God that he would work this living Faith in thee and free thee from this damnable and wrath producing imaginarie faith since that thou by this faith prated into thee hast imagined to thy self a freedome to sinne to transgresse Gods Commandments relying upon Absolution according to thy accustomed manner whereby alas thou art verily free but not from sinne as Christs kingdom requireth but from God and the fulfilling of his will and the observation of his Commandements in perfect obedience and so art become truly a slave of Satan 1 Joh. 3. v. 7 8 9 10. Every one therefore that will be a master of Faith let him behave himself as a pattern unblameable inwardly by the office of the holy Spirit in doctrine and outwardly in life as a follower of Jesus Christ He that boasteth of faith let him shew the new obedience of faith by a new righteous holy and to Christ-conformable life and conversation in the Love of God and his neighbour He that vaunteth of the Articles of Faith let him shew them forth in deed and truth for God is served neither with knowledge babling nor disputation nor yet the Church of the Saints which overcometh all things with Love in Patience and consequently not with words but with power Therefore O beloved Man that sayest that thou beleevest in God or but that there is a God make thy faith appear with true fruit in the strict observation of his commandements otherwise is thy saying vain and thou in truth beleevest on no God nor that there is a God for otherwise thou wouldest tremble and shake at the breach of his Commandements Thou that sayest I beleeve that Christ is dead for me shew then by thy self in deed the death of Christ namely that thine old Adam is buried with him thy lust and desire is crucified with him and thou risen again with Christ in a new nature or life of the Spirit otherwise is thy faith of Christ an historicall knowledge without all power and propertie of Faith Thou that sayest I beleeve a Church of Saints which the holy Spirit enlightneth sanctifieth and purifieth examine thy self whether the holy Spirit doth inwardly enlighten teach chastise admonish anoint guide govern lead and direct thee and thou also hast by the power of the holy Spirit the kingdom of God revealed in thee so that thou resistest all that exalteth it self against Gods will his knowledge and confession through the office or power of the holy Spirit and that the tentation from the world flesh and blood and wicked enemie is a right hellish torment to thee so then art thou a true member of the true Church of Christ Sayest thou O Man so I am for I am a baptized Christian O beloved Man shew forth the drowning of the old Adam the mortification of his lusts and desires and the renuntiation which thou hast made to the Devill the World and the Flesh in truth so that they rule no more in thee nor move thee to sin though they entice stirre and egge thee on to it Doest thou not or findest thou not this so then art thou an unbaptized and unchristened man for thou livest in the old and not in the new birth therefore art thou a violator of the Covenant of God Sayest thou yet I partake of the flesh and blood of Christ If thou partake thereof then shew the living-making power of the flesh of Christ and that the blood of Christ hath cleansed thee from all sins in words and works so hast thou truly partaken of the flesh and blood of Christ otherwise goest thou to the Lords Supper to thy double condemnation In summe all the Articles must live sensibly in thee and outwardly demonstrate the living power of love otherwise is thy Christianitie meer hypocrisie seeming holinesse self chosen godlinesse and imaginarie faith which do but further the destruction both of body and soul as alas appeareth before our eyes and yet no man taketh it to heart or will duely examine himself Two Questions verie necessarie concerning these present and continuing Warres viz. 1. From whence Warre doth spring 2. By what meanes it ends AS the inward exterpation or rooting out of Jesus Christ with his holy and threefold office in mans soul which when she is obedient unto and receives him he then as the true and onely high-Priest perfectly reconciles sanctifies cleanses and presents her as a new creature to his heavenly Father in holy attire of Love and as the onely Master and Teacher in her sent from the heavenly Father makes her remember her miserie in penitencie chastises her instructeth teacheth guideth and preserves her from the spirit of errour and thus in her powerfully exerciseth his royall office as her Head and LORD to the utter ruine and demolishing of the Devils Sin pallace bruising the head of the subtle and holy-seeming Serpent quenching and suppressing of all that shall exalt it self against his inward kingdom of grace as also to the overcoming of all outward enemies through the Spirit of Prayer and his iron Rod or Scepter and thus killeth and crucifieth sin Death the Devill Hell the Flesh and Blood and break asunder the whole kingdom of sin so that it can no more bring under subjection or into darknesse the soul which he hath redeemed is the onely cause of unbelief and from thence springing unrighteousnesse wickednesse malice hypocrisie self-chosen godlinesse outward false worship of God or Sectarie
AN EARNEST EXHORTATION TO A TRVE NINIVITISH REPENTANCE VVherein is briefly declared 1. What true Repentance is 2. How a man should perceive it wrought in him 3. Exhortation to a due examination of everie ones self 4. A right penitentiall Prayer 5. The Barres which hinder Christs working in the soul 6. What true and living Faith is Also two Questions resolved 1. From whence WARRE doth spring 2. By what means it ends Together with other considerable matter fit for the times PER CHRISTVM TESTOR ANTI-CHRISTVM ASPERNOR LONDON Printed by T. P. and M. S. and are to be sold by Ben. Allen in Popes Head Alley 1643. TO ALL MEN DEDICATED And published by a Lover of TRUTH THat they might heartily try and examine themselves in this troublesome and miserable time so that each one might begin to enter into himself and there make a narrow search whether he be in CHRIST and CHRIST in him or whether he be united to the World the Devill and his own Flesh and Blood Whether Light or Darknes have dominion in him and over him for his servant he is and shal be whom he obeyes whether of Sin unto Death or Righteousnesse unto Life everlasting REPENT ACCORDING to the Repentance of Niniveh O Beloved Man who so ere thou art consider seriously in thy heart and mind thy present externall and internall estate and condition hast thou ever had any cause to Repent didst thou ever do or leave undone any thing unadvisedly didst thou ever repent thereof seriously examine thy self and help thy self thus Quest. What is Repentance Ans Repentance is a divine work in Man whereby GOD makes known to him that he hath forsaken GOD and his holy will in the inward ground of his soul and hath turned himself from the All-in-all enlightning Light of Grace CHRIST JESUS and through his own mind and fleshly-Will rejected the government of the Holy Ghost and yet imagined himself by his accustomed outward worship and assumed name of Religion to be a right true Christian although he evidently lived in the love of the world in fleshly lust and in spirituall and corporall pride For which subtiltie and all other deceits of the craftie Serpent GOD works in Man an heartie sorrow and repentance for complying with GODs enemie So that a man by divine Grace begins openly to acknowledge such heavie and inward fall and departure from GOD and his holy will bitterly to lament the same and in very earnest to hate his accustomed internall Idolatrie committed with the world flesh and blood and with the proud and holy-seeming Devill and so to forsake relinquish and abandon the same That when he is tempted either inwardly or outwardly he then by the living power of CHRIST within him resisteth fighteth subdues conquers and overcomes and thus he lets the new penitentiall Light appear without selfnesse or arrogancie and shine forth to the Glory of the most holy name of God and the edifying and amendment of his neighbour in a right divine Love according to the example of CHRIST without any selfnesse for by the divine Repentance which is true godly sorrow all selfnesse will at last be totally mortified and swallowed up From hence ariseth another Question 2. Quest How may a man know that such Repentance wrought by GOD is in him Answ By the inward and outward Combate which he hath daily and continually with the enemies of Christ who is his Head and overcomes their assaults Also when he is outwardly tempted by the world by its deceitfull Riches transitorie treasures and by getting of the reputed necessarie provision of silver and gold wherupon the Heart would relie if need should be or else leave it to his Children that then in faith he makes void and quencheth such darts of the world and saies Ah thou deceitfull world with thy seeming Riches and vain glorie I thank God through Jesus Christ who hath redeemed me from thy love and stirred up in me a Love to the heavenly Treasure which neither temporally nor eternally will forsake me Which when I have and keep I shall then truly possesse that which can and will keep maintain and preserve me for ever If the World with its Honour Reputation Greatnesse or else with Contempt Despight and Reproach begins to exalt it self against holy conformitie to the Crosse of CHRIST JESUS which follows upon this Repentance when a man will not conform himself to the world any more nor joyn with it in fleshly sports and sinfull works then the penitent soul is readie in Faith and saith Avoid away I know not of any honour greatnesse delight sport or pleasure but what I have in and by Christ and the Conformity with his Crosse whereby the world with all its honour c. is crucified to me and I to the world against all inward spirituall and bodily Temptations and assaults namely 1. against the bodily as cares for food and maintenance grief for losse of temporall things covetousnesse lusts desires and briefly in all and with all things wherewith the old Adam will delight content and cherish himself or be lustie wanton and alive for all these things are in the eyes of God an abomination whatsoever the sons of Babel will prate and fable to the contrarie it being so that God will have the old Adam killed through Christ in his lusts words and actions and by no means cherished Thus speaks the repentant Soul I am buried with Christ after the old nature of the flesh so that I neither may nor can shall nor will live any longer therein but in the New Life which is Jesus my Saviour I will serve God with fear and trembling in holinesse and righteousnesse which is such a delight as remains for ever and thus I will be a crosse to my fleshly Tabernacle as it in its Lusts is a Torment to me wherefore I bear also a longing desire for its laying aside and to be rid of it 2. Against the spirituall Temptations as when the Devill perswades the soul that she is a farre gloriouser beautifuller and better endued Spouse then others and that now all is so well with her that there is neither need nor occasion of Fear she may also now judge despise and condemne those that speak any thing dissonant from her or else are not as it were subject to her nor will not suffer themselves to be moulded in her frame to brand all those with Heresie anathematize curse and condemne them that God would easily connive and wink at her she being the Spouse of Christ although perhaps she failed now and then or went beyond the bounds c. Here we must observe that it is impossible for a man to understand and perceive all the Devils subtilties and craftie stratagems unlesse God reveal them to him and in Christ defend him from them so that they may not hurt the soul Against these craftie assaults of the Devill thus speaks the repentant and beleeving Soul I am Nothing a poore wretched miserable