true and adding of false Sacraments may be abandoned It must also be desired that the censures and keyes committed to the Church may be exercised with such discipline that the good may be encouraged the evill may be shamed and cut off from communion with the Church and that to the working of true awfull credit of the Church and advancement of the kingdome of Christ Iesus And that this authoritie may not bee abused for the maintaining of error disgracing or thrusting the best members out of the Church as did the Pharises who made and executed this Canon Ioh 9 2◠That if any did confesse that Iesus was the Christ he should be put out of the Synagogue Or as Diotrephes who did cast men out of the Church 3. Ioh. 10. for receiving the brethren The other externall meanes of establishing and governing this kingdome are the officers both civill and Ecclesiasticall The civill are the King or supreame Magistrate in any place and such as have lawfull authoritie under them whose office is to countenance and order whatsoever things or persons may promote Christs kingdome Isa 49.23 Therefore they are called nursing Fathers and nursing Mothers of the Church which office David and the godly kings of Iudah did performe Prayers must bee made for them but especially for our owne King and governours under him that they may so governe that their subjects may live in all godlinesse 1. Tim. 2.2 and honestie that like zealous Nehemiahs they may rule for the praise of them that bee good Rom 13. and for the terror of them that do evill that they set up and maintaine the onely one true religion among their subjects We must pray likewise against Anarchie when none reigne but every man liveth as he lusteth Iudg. 21.25 Also against evill government when Magistrates maintaine false religion or irreligion or else do tolerate them to the corrupting of the true The Ecclesiasticall officers whose office is to dispence the Word to administer the Sacraments and to have the chiefe ordering of the censure of the Church also such assistants as may help the other in their government Touching these it must bee requested that God would send forth labourers into his harvest Mat. 9.38 that he would increase their number that hee would give them gifts and skill to divide the word of truth aright Psal 132.9 that he would give them grace and will to feede their people with knowledge that he would deliver all such from unreasonable men that they may have liberty to preach the Gospel of the kingdome Lastly that they may bee of unblameable conversations ensamples to their flocks in good works Prayer likewise must bee made for all other that beare office in the Church that they may also have the mysterie of faith in pure conscience that they may also be diligent in discharging their office Contrariwise we must pray against having no ministerie government in the Church also against a false ministerie as that of Pope Cardinals Priests Iesuites c. Also against evill Ministers and officers Ezek. 34.3 Isa 56.16 which either cannot or will not teach or governe according to their place or teach idly rule remisely or teach erroniously or rule amisse Now albeit the kingdome of God may be come in respect of the externall meanes thereof yet if the internal means which is the holy Ghost and the effectuall working thereof be not come neither can the Magistrate with his sword nor the Minister with the word availe any thing to the converting of any one Christian or winning of one soule to this kingdome Wherefore it must be desired that the holy Spirit of God would effectually accompanie the outward meanes of gathering and building up the elect to the enlightening and translating them from the power of darknesse into the kingdome of his deare Sonne and that they may increase in knowledge and everie good grace according to the mightie working of his glorious power that the Word Sacraments and Discipline the weapons of this warfare may be mighty through God to pull downe strong holds and cast downe imaginations and high things which exalt themselves against the knowledge of God and may bring into captivitie every thought to the obedience of Christ In respect of subjects of this kingdome praier must be made that their number be increased and perfected that the fulnesse of the Gentiles may come and that the Iews the two sticks Iudah and the children of Israel his companions Ezek. 37.22.24 and Ephraim and the children of Israel his companions may bee united and gathered into Christs sheepfold and may have one King the Lord Christ the sonne of David that so all Israel may be saved as it is written Ro. 11.26 Isa 59.20 Also that being gathered they may be loyall to their King and at peace and loving one to another that there be no Schismes and divisions in this kingdome As for enemies to this kingdome not only Satan and sinne the chiefe which stand in direct opposition to Christ and the Spirit but all such men as are slaves to sinne and Satan and confederates with them are to be prayed against whether they be open foes or false friends which by force or fraud go about to undermine and resist the kingdome of Christ The most notorious of these are Antichrist the arch-enemie of the Church of the Gentiles Ezek. 38.16 and Gog and Magog the arch-enemie of the Church of the Iews All locusts which warre under their king Abaddon Rev. 11.9 All false Christs and false Prophets spoken of Matth. 24.24 which shall endeavour to seduce the Iewes and hinder their conversion Also everie member of the kingdome of darknesse must be resisted and prayed against Here is onely the place for imprecation and praying against men The case of imprecation But because Christians are commanded to love their enemies and to blesse them that curse and pray for them that persecute them speciall care must be had how any man pray against another Wherefore it shall bee needfull to observe some distinctiōs from whence rules of imprecations may be observed 1 Praier is made against enemies of Christs kingdome either in generall or against particular persons 2 Distinction must be put betweene the persons of evill men and their evill acts 3 Distinction must bee put betweene one evill person and another by their acts some sin the sinne unto death irrecoverably some who now are enemies yet are curable and belong to Gods election 4 Difference must be put betweene a mans owne private cause and the cause of God 5 Difference must be put betweene evils temporall and eternall 1 These things observed rules of direction doe follow First that every Christian may and must pray against the enemies of the Church in generall so David Psal 104.35 Let the sinners be consumed out of the earth 2 The sinnes acts and counsels of the enemies of grace are alwaies
by the discretive conjunctioÌ„ but which sheweth that in the latter clause the petitioner doth enlarge his desire and crave Gods helpe against sinne in a further degree then was asked in the first clause scil that God would not onely not leade thâ—â— into temptation of evill Ne inducas sed educas but to deliver them from evill Sinne here is considered in the immediate cause thereof scil temptation prayed against in the first clause Leade â—s not into temptation It is considered likewise in respect of the very act of sinne scil evill prayed against in the second clause But deliver us from evill In the first clause an act of God concerning temptation unto sinne is deprecated namely that he would forbeare to leade into temptation and forbeare to shew himselfe an adversary but this is asked not absolutely but under correction if it might stand with his pleasure and with his glory In the second clause their sute is enlarged wherein they desire a further act of God that if it must needs be that they must be exercised with temptations that he would stand for them and deliver them from the evill of those temptations this latter is asked for absolutely In both clauses of this petition wee must consider the person to whom sute is made scil God the persons for whom us the things praied against namely sin but in different respects both of the cause thereof temptation act of sinne evill Temptation Temptations unto which men are subect Tentatio probationis tentatio se ductâ—â—n are of two sorts proofes or trials of a mans graces these are not to be praiâ— against for in such hee must rejoyce Iam. 1.2 motions or enticements unto sinne by Satan by evill men or by a mans owne evill heart such as are spoken of Jam. 1.14 Temptation is good or evill A good and blamelesse temptation is when any one that hath right to make experiment of what a man is or of what he will do doth to a right and good end by lawfull meanes make triall whether a man will do or not do that to which he is moved or occasioned An evill and blame-worthy temptation is when the end of him that tempteth is that hee that is tryed or tempted should do that which is evill doing it with a mind to perswade thereunto Leade By this act of Gods leading into temptation we are to understand such an over-ruling act of Gods providence by which he disposeth of all things good and evill whereby partly by what he doth by his concurrence with him that tempteth touching the substance of his act and partly by what hee permitteth in not hindring what he could hinder concerning the evill and irregularitie thereof and partly by what he omitteth leaving a man to himselfe to strugle and wrastle with the temptation it commeth to passe that a man is not onely intised unto but overcome of the evill unto which he is tempted God must be acknowledged to have an holy hand in all temptations whether good or evill In good temptations God is properly an agent and worker Gen. 22.1.2 as when he proved and tempted Abraham by commanding him to offer his onely sonne Isaac likewise when he causeth men to prosper as when he rained Manna to tempt or proove the children of Israel Exod. 16.4 whether they would walke in his law In like manner when he sendeth afflictions as he did to the Israelites in the wildernes to humble them and to prove what was in their hearts Deut. 8.2 whether they would keepe his Commandements or no. In evill temptations God is not at all in proper speech an agent or worker of the evill of the temptation but yet he hath to do in and about all evill temptations and that not onely in determining them to a good end as to his owne glory and also in the concourse of his power to the substance of the act whether of Satan of a mans selfe or of other men when they tempt God hath further to do in evill temptations He hath to do in them both by way of permission in permitting and in not restraining Satan or a mans owne concupiscence or other men from tempting by which way of permission he is said to prove or tempt men as in Deuteronomy Deut 13â— in his permission of false Prophets to seduce and also by way of omission insuspending his action and forbearing to give grace or to do that which he was wont to do and if he would could do to keepe a man from acting the sin to which he is tempted By this way of omission God is said to have proved or tempted Ezekiah when the Embassadours of the King of Babel came unto him 2 Chron. 32.31 The Scripture saith God left him to try him that he might know what was in his heart These acts of Gods permission and omission for which in Scripture phrase God is said to tempt or to leade into temptation are expressed sometimes by words of negation and sometime by words of action By words of negation where it is said speaking of the great temptations which the Israelites saw Deut. 29.4 The Lord had not given them an heart to perceive c. By words of action where it is said by the Church Isa 63.17 O Lord why hast thou made us to erre from thy wayes and hardened our heart from thy feare Likewise God saith of false Prophets if the Prophet be deceived Ezek. 14.9 I the Lord have deceived him And in the Revelation it is said touching the ten Kings which became Antichristian God hath put into their hearts to fulfill his will namely Revel 17.17 his purpose and decree concerning the permission of the tyranny of Antichrist and to agree and give their kingdome to the beast c. Now because where God permitteth tempters to tempt and also forbeareth to give grace to resist the temptation he doth not remove that which if it were removed would hinder the temptation nor give that which should hinder the yeelding to it and for that hereupon such is mans sinful disposition temptation and sinning followeth infallibly therefore this permission and omission of Gods is expressed by words of action and by words as it were of eausality as here by leading though God be farre and farre from being any cause of the sinne or of being any blame-worthy cause of the temptation as shall further appeare hereafter To tempt unto sinne properly which God doth not and to leade onely into temptation which God doth and may do doe much differ For to tempt taken in the evill sense is to intice to indeavour to move the will of man to wickednesse and that with a minde to have him to act it according to that of the Apostle Iames Iam. 1.14 A man is tempted when he is drawne away by his lust and is inticed Of this tempting it is which the Apostle Paul speaketh when hee saith to the Thessalonians 1
except against any thing herein whether we respect Gods negative acts in not willing to hinder sinne but to permit it as also in his not giving grace to some men to rise out of it or whether wee respect his affirmative acts thereabouts as his concurrence to the substance of the act or his determination of the meanes whcreby sin should be committed and of the ends to which sinne should serue after it should bee committed Which I will make to appeare thus as followeth God intending to glorifie himselfe in the manifestation of his manifold excellencies in the attributes of his goodnes wisedome power mercie and justice he decreed and determined with himself to create man and to make him good even after his owne image and withall to give him power to persevere in that goodnesse if hee would Moreover hee decreed to leave him to himselfe even to the liberty of his will and to permit him to fall into sinne decreeing withall to raise some of mankinde out of their fall and sinfull condition through Christ by giving them faith repentance and grace to persevere in the way of holinesse and in the end to give them everlasting life notwithstanding that by sinne they had deserved everlasting death and that for the manifestation of his glory in the way of mercie mixed with remunerative justice likewise hee together decreed to leave the other some of mankinde fallen into sinne and not to vouchsafe them the grace of faith and repentance and withall hee decreed that for their sinne hee would punish them with eternall death and this for the manifestation of his glory in the way of justice vindicative This I conceive to be but one formall decree of meanes not subordinate one to another but ordained together tending to one maine end namely to the end of all ends even to the glory of God though in different wayes to wit in the way of mercy in the way of justice namely Rom. 9.22.23 to the making knowne of the riches of his glory on the vessels of mercy which he had afore prepared to glory and also to the shewing of his wrath and making of his power knowne on the vessels of wrath fitted or made up to destruction For God made therefore it must needs be that he decreed to make all things for himselfe Pro. 16.4 not onely the godly who are the vessels of his mercy for the day of salvation but also the wicked who are the vessels of his wrath for the day of evill even for the day of destruction God decreed that sin should be by his permission through Adams fall God did not leave it to be as a fortuitous or casuall thing which perhaps might come to passe perhaps might not come to passe but fore-saw it as a thing certaine that sinne would bee through Adams transgression of his Law in as much as he determined to permit him so to do Vpon this permission it did infallibly follow that Adam would sinne For this permission being granted the thing permitted must needs follow because Gods will can neither be changed nor resisted And without Gods will nothing can be The event also and mans woful experience doth too wel prove that sin is in the world God likewise decreed to leave some men in state of sin not giving them of his saving grace and also determined for sinne to condemne them as appeareth clearely by the Scriptures For Saint Peter saith that some stumbled at Christ the corner-stone and at the Word 1. Pet. 2.8 being disobedient whereunto also they were appointed 2. Pet. 2.9 And hee saith also that God knoweth how to reserve the unjust unto the day of judgement to be punished The Apostle Paul saith We are not ordained to wrath 1. Thes 5.9 implying that God hath ordained some namely the wicked unto wrath Saint Jude saith of certaine men that were ordained to this condemnation Iude 4 13. to wit to bee left to their owne hearts lusts turning the grace of God into wantonnesse and also for that their wickednesse to have the blacknesse of darknesse reserved for them Thus we see what it is which God hath decreed touching sinne Now lest God should have any the least imputation of unjustice or cruelty cast upon him or of being the author of sinne which were blasphemous to conceive I will therefore in the second place shew how and in what manner hee hath decreed sinne to be and to be punished whereby it shall appeare that God is holy and blamelesse even in this as well as in all other his wayes and will bee every way justified when he is judged It is most true that God decreed that sixe should bee but how He did not decree that sinne should be as he decreed that all good things should be namely by his operation hee producing them but he decreed that sinne should be onely by his permission It must also be considered how sinne came to have a being by Gods permission Permission either is a midle thing betweene command and prohibition and in that sense it imports a kinde of allowance in this sense God never did nor will permit sinne for he hath most straightly forbid iâ— or else permission is taken for a middle thing betweene furthering the being of a thing and impedition or hindering of the being of the said thing in this sense it is taken in Gods decree of sinne he willed it to be but so as he did not further the being of it as it is sinne nor yet did he hinder the being of it onely hee did permit it Great difference must be put berweene Gods decreeing the things that be good and the things that be morally evill For the decree that good things shall be is accompanied alwaies with an effectuall operation of God which causeth them to be but the decree that evill shall be by Gods permission is not accompanied with any effectuall furtherance or operation of God in the way of a cause to effect it God is truly the cause of every thing that is good but he is not at all truly the efficient cause of the evill of sinne yet there was good cause why God might decree to permit man for to sinne For he knew it could be no wrong done to the reasonable creature if he should leave him to his owne nature to do according to the nature and freedome of his will especially he having made it onely disposed to good and able to hold it selfe onely to that which was good if he would Besides he knew that to leave the creature made in such perfection to its owne nature was in it selfe not against but according to the common good of the creature Wherfore sith God knew how sinne might be without his causing of it to be and knew also that for the manifestation of his further glory it did belong to his omnipotent wisedome and goodnesse rather to draw good out of evill then not to permit it why might not he
in his holy wisedome decree to permit it Moreover there could be no faultinesse in such a decree because that in it was set such an order that neither the coming of things to passe by Gods permission nor that which should come to passe by his working should either offer violence to the wills of the reasonable creatures or should take away the liberty or contingency of second causes but doth establish them rather For Gods decree doth determine the creature to worke according to its nature that as all naturall agents as that stones should descend if they be not upheld and that fire should burne combustible matter should worke necessarily so all voluntary agents should worke freely and contingently The liberty of the creature together with the sinfulnesse of the act of the creature may and doth well stand with the decree of God Indeed upon supposition of Gods decree to permit Adam to fall it followed by necessarie consequent that Adam would fall yet was it not necessarie that Adam should fall necessarily But rather upon supposition of Gods decree Adams fall by eating the forbidden fruit which God permitted him to do came to passe freely and contingently that is with a possibility of the contrary namely of forbearing to eate of the forbidden fruit This was because God had made man a rationall and voluntary agent to worke contingently and freely according to the freedome of his will and not to be forced thereto by any necessity The decree of permitting sinne doth not lay any necessity upon any man to commit sinne Sinne hath not relation to Gods decree as the effect hath to its cause but onely as a consequent of it and as an object whereabout the decree is conversant Gods fore-knowledge of what shall come to passe and his will to permit it to come to passe are sufficient to denominate a necessity or certaintie of event that the same thing must needs come to passe but neither his fore-knowledge or his will that a thing shall come to passe by his permission maketh God the author of that which is fore-knowne or permitted but to produce a thing that maketh God to be the author of it As for sinne there is no operation of God concerning it as it is sinne but rather negation or suspension of that grace which if God did bestow would keep man from committing of it Gods decree to permit sinne doth not destinate any man to sinne for destination is the ordaining of a person to a certaine end an evill action cannot be the end to which a man is ordained And this decree of permitting sinne and of leaving him in his sinne and then of damming him for sin all which presuppose that God decreed to create man yet from hence it doth not follow that God made any man to the end hee might damne him the end of his creation and of all the parts of Cods decree was the manifestation of his owne glory He made all things for himselfe Prov. 16 4. Now if man might fall by Gods permission and yet God is free from being author of sinne then who can have any colour of exception if after man is fallen God do leave him in his sinne and shall condemne him for his sin especially sith that though Gods decree to leave a man in state of sinne and to reprobate him from faith and other graces needfull to salvation be absolute and without any cause out of God but of his meere will and absolute pleasure yet he never decreed to reprobate or destinate any to damnation absolutely nor yet doth he execute or damne any but for his sinne God never doth save or damne any absolutely but as they are found to be in Christ or as they are found to be in their sinnes out of Christ For God did not absolutely elect any unto salvation nor absolutely reject any to damnation but he decreed to save only those which should actually by his Spirit beleeve in Christ repent and persevere in an holy life to the end if they be of yeares of discretion and such as by secret union of the Spirit should by a way unknowne to us partake of and belong to Christ if Infants within the covenant of grace And he decreed to damne onely such as should persevere in their sinne and infidelity For the promise of salvation and the threat of damnation is made respectively onely to such Yet know that God of his meere will and pleasure did absolutely elect some and did determine to give them the grace of faith in Christ repentance towards God and perseverance in holinesse of life and likewise absolutely to reject others therefrom and to leave them in their sinne and infidelity Thus God is cleared from being any author of sinne or yet to blame if he proceed in rigour in the eternall punishment of some for sinne I will last of all shew that God was no deficient cause in Adams sinne though he did decree to permit it and did work accordingly either by denying his grace or by concurring with him to the substance of the act which was sinfull In all this God did not carry himselfe otherwise than an absolute Lord and a most holy God might rightfully do What though God made the forbidden fruit of an alluring nature pleasant to the eye and good for food as it seemed to Eve and was called by an alluring name a Tree of knowledge of Good and evill What though God exposed Eve unto the temptation of the Serpent and Adam to the temptation of his wife What if God restrained the good Angels that they did not as otherwise they might assist Adam against Satan and against his temptation by minding him of his duty to God and of the falshood and malice of the devill and how much he was but lately beholden to God And what though God left Adam and Eve to themselves without giving thē actuall assistance of his grace any more than what he gave them in their creation to preserve them from falling which he gave to the good Angels and denyed to others What hath God done in all this which he might not do For notwithstanding all this there was a naturall and true possibility in Adam and Eve to have forborne to eate of the forbidden fruit in spite of Satan though hee did his utmost that he could Adam and Eve did eate the forbidden fruit as freely without compulsion as ever before they had eaten of any other tree in the Garden No compulsion but bodily appetite leading them to eate of the common fruit and partly bodily appetite and partly affectation of being like God in knowing good and evill seducing them to eate the fruit which was forbidden There remained I say a true possibility in Adam to have stood For by vertue of the graee of God received in the creation he could not only have abstained from every outward action forbidden him of God but to abstaine from it in a gracious manner for that both outwardly and
resolution to will in all things to live honestly When the heart is thus made sure for God and for our selves the next care must be that the understanding the watchman and intelligencer of the soule bee rightly informed by the Scriptures of all such things that do belong unto its office in the Christian warfare First it must bee able to discerne between good and evill between things not sinfull and sinfull of good things to discern which are good but in part which every way good what things are good onely to sense and in appearance and what is good in truth also what is but in part evill and what is wholly evill and what is evill onely to sense and in appearance and what is evill in truth that the baites to draw unto sinne taken from the gaine pleasure and glory of this world may not move us because we shall know they are but uncertaine transitorie and not the true riches pleasure and glory and that on the other side the bug-beares to fright us from doing good may not remove us because they are but uncertaine momentanie and light evils in comparison of the certaine true riches of grace and of the everlasting true pleasures and glory which is laid up for those that bee constant in keeping faith and a good conscience to the death When the understanding is thus enlightened wee must alwayes set the true danger of sinning and the true good and glory that followeth upon well-doing before our eyes and it will cause the heart to chuse the good and refuse the evill Moses chose rather to suffer affliction with the people of God than to enjoy the pleasures of sinne for a season the reason was because his judgement was sound in discerning betweene good and bad for it is said Heb. 11.25.26 He esteemed the reproach of Christ greater riches than the treasures of Aegypt for he had respect to the recompence of reward If we can but judge aright of the joy that is set before us in the course of holinesse Heb 12 2. it will make us with our Saviour Christ endure the crosse and despise the shame which in this world doth accompanie Christianity and we shall with speed runne the race that is set before us notwithstanding the impediments that we shal meet withall Now when the heart is established and armed with grace and the mind with knowledge and judgement there must be a continuall watch set and faithfully kept wherefore the eye of the minde must be alwayes awake to see and observe what particular temptations do arise against us either from within or without Therefore the Apostle Peter saith 1. Pet. â— 8 Be vigilant for your adversary the devill as a roaring Lion 1 Cor. 16.13 seeketh whom he may devoure Watch saith the Apostle Paul else there will be no standing fast in the faith nor quitting our selves like men Our Saviour saith unto all Watch Mark 13.17 When by watchfulnesse the temptation is discovered then we must buckle all the Christian armour about us scil Sinceritie righteousnesse Eph. 6. patience hope faith and the sword of the Spirit the word of God And being thus armed we must animate and fill the heart with courage and resolution to resist even unto the death For which cause we must make an oration unto it such as wise and valiant leaders will make to encourage their souldiers wee must minde our hearts of the odiousnesse and hurtfulnesse of that thing to which wee are tempted how that it is a lust of the flesh and of the devill how it is enmity to our God and a deadly enemie unto us how that we must kill it or else it will kill us Let us minde our hearts with this that it will be to the dishonour of our King and countrey to be overcome that to yeeld to any temptation is contrary to our vow of allegiance which we entred into when we first professed to fight under Christs banner Lastly let us tell our selves of the equitie of our cause how that our war is just thinke also of the wisedome valour of our captaine our Lord Iesus Christ assuring our selves that how hard soever our conflict may be yet if wee do not yeeld in the end wee through him shall overcome and be more then conquerours Rom. 8.37 Having thus wonne the heart to resolution then let us as the Apostle saith 1 Cor. 13.16 Stand in the faith quit our selves like men In the conflict we must avoide two evils First we must not trust to our owne wisedome for then sinne will be too craftie for us Secondly we must not resist in the power of our owne might for then the principalities and powers will be too strong for us We must therefore resist by the wisdome of the holy Scriptures being able to say with our Saviour Christ It is written Mat. 4. I must not commit that sinne to which I am tempted and with Joseph Gen. 39.9 shall I commit this great wickednesse and sinne against God Resistance of sinne in this sort is not onely a defending of our selves but a wounding of our adversaries We must also be sure in our conflict to intreat Gods aide that in the power of his might wee may prevaile When we resist by the wisedome of the word and power of God if we submit unto God and be earnest and constant in resisting we shall put Satan to flight for God saith Iam. 4 7. Resist the devill and hee will flie from you But remember alwayes that his departure will be but for a season Luk. 4.13 we must therefore alwayes keepe on our armour and keepe our watch and let our experience of over-mastering former temptations give fresh courage unto us to resist all that are to come But deliver us Here our Saviour will have his Disciples to aske to be delivered out of their sinne into which they are fallen as well as to bee kept from falling Whence observe Doct. 7 It must be every mans desire and endevour if he be fallen into any sinne to be delivered out of it by repentance and that he may walke before God in new obedience Ier. 31.18 Turne us Lord and we shall be turned saith the Prophet The Church of Ephesus is bid to remember from whence she is fallen Revel 2.5 and repent And the Minister must waite when God will give repentance and recover evill men out of the snare of the devill 2. Timoth. 2.25.26 Which place sheweth that repentance is deliverance out of sinne and doth intimate that it must be desired Vntill a man have repented Reas 1 his prayers are not accepted of God for that cause God commanded the Iewes to repent saying Isa 1.26.18 19. Put away the evill of your doings cease to do evill and learne to do well and then they might come to God and hee would respect them Vntill sinne be repented of a Reas 2 man is as it were manacled
or as a bird touched with lime-twigges it taketh away the life and comfort of spirituall exercises as of hearing praying and receiving the Sacrament he cannot set about them with any nimblenesse of spirit while he lyeth in any sinne Sinne unrepented of taketh Reas 3 root and infecteth further and further it will increase it selfe and beget other sinnes Reas 4 While a man lyeth in sinne he may look every houre when God shall inflict some fearefull judgement or other and then the remembrance of a sinne unrepented of proveth more heavie and more stinging then the judgement it selfe Whereas though a man have sinned yet if God have given him repentance and have recovered him out of his sinne he may come before God with boldnesse and can performe exercises of Religion with chearfulnesse and shall either prevent crosses or remove them or they shall do much good to his soule while they lye upon him Vse 1 This is to reproove all such who as they care not how they fall into sinne so they care as little how they be delivered out of it yea though God call them to repentance and give them space to repent yea though sometimes God awake them by his judgements and by checks of conscience and doth offer them his Spirit to turne them unto him yet neither his patience nor bountie doth leade them to repentance They will say Lord deliver us from evill but refuse to be delivered This their hypocrisie aggravateth their impenitencie and their impenitencie aggravateth all such sinnes as are not repented of for it is a fault to commit any sinne but when it is not repented of this sinne is continued yea doubled and multiplied for everie day they should turne from their sinne as ordinarily as they seeke their daily bread No sinne so dangerous as impenitencie for therefore the sinne against the holy Ghost is unpardonable not in it owne nature but because they that commit it cannot be renewed unto repentance Heb. 6.6 Impenitencie therefore though it be not the sinne against the holy Ghost yet it must needs be a fearefull sinne For he that liveth and dyeth in impenitencie is as sure to bee damned as he that sinneth against the holy Ghost Let all that refuse to forsake their sinnes looke for Gods visitation Ier. 5.3.7.9 as he saith in Jeremy They have refused to returne c. How shall I pardon shall I not visite for these things and shall not my soule be avenged on such c. Vse 2 It doth therefore concerne every man having fallen into evill for who is it that sinneth not to use all means to repent and recover himselfe of his fall and then do his best to hold on a steadie course of new obedience Have not men in prison cause to seeke for deliverance and if any man be fallen into a lapse after a sicknesse hath he not cause to seeke for recoverie of his former health such is the estate of every sinner untill he have repented But let this repentance bee true and sound proceeding from griefe for sin and hatred of sinne not turning from one sinne to another or a bare leaving of sinne but it must be a conscionable turning from evill to good It must be in the bent and intention of the soule and in our whole endevour a turning from all sinne as well as from any one even from as many as wee can come to the knowledge of as well from secret as open as well from beloved sinnes and such as are in credit in the world as from any other Ezek. 8.31 We must cast away all our transgressions saith the Lord. It must be speedie while it is to day lest our hearts be hardened through the deceitfulnesse of sinne It must be constant Heb. 3.15.16 as daily as we aske daily bread If we would but enter into our hearts and consider what wee have done when wee have sinned how wee have transgressed an holy commandement thereby have grieved the holy Spirit disgraced our holy profession and have offended a mercifull Father and a severe Iudge who yet if we will turne will have mercy but if we refuse to turne he will punish and wil not pardon the thoughts of these things would worke griefe and hatred of sinne and hope of pardon from whence would follow repentance never to be repented of if withall we pray heartily saying Deliver us from evill for with all the meanes we do use prayer must be one for as we cannot repent without Gods helpe so he will not helpe and give us repentance except we aske it From evill By evill is meant sinne Our Saviour would have his Disciples pray against sinne under the name of evil Whence we may learne Sinne is evill and God would Doct. 8 have all men when they thinke of sinne represent it to their minde in the name and notion of an evil yea of the most evill thing It is called evill Rom. 12.9 where it is said Abhorre evill Ioh. 5.19 The whole world lyeth in evill Thus David in confessing his sinne unto God doth affect his heart with shame and remorse saying Against thee have I sinned and done this evill in thy sight Psal 51.4 Sinne is absolutely contrary Reas 1 unto God who is goodnesse it selfe yea enmity to him Rom. 8 7. therefore it is the evill of evils Sin doth separate a man froÌ„ the Reas 2 greatest good Isa 59.2 It doth separate a man from God No other evill bee it imprisonment poverty disgrace in the world sicknesse death doth separate a man from God he may enjoy God and may have a blessed communion with him notwithstanding the worst of these evils which he cannot do while he lyeth in his sinne Wherefore sinne must needs be the greatest evill Reas 3 Sinne is the cause of all the evill of punishment that any creature is subject unto for sin brought man under the curse and will hold him under it except the mercy of God through the merit of Christ do deliver him Reas 4 Sinne doth give denomination unto all things that are truly evill causing them to be called evill Gal. 1.4 the world is therefore called evill because it is a sinfull woâ—ld Men are called evill men 2. Tim. 3.13 because they be sinfull men And because the devill exceedeth all other in sinne he is called the evill one Matth. 13.19 Vse 1 Is sinne evill how then hath it bewitched and deceived most of the sonnes of men for they account nothing evill but what bringeth losse to their estate and shame to their name and paine to their body or some other misery to their outward man as touching sinne many are so farre from judging it to be evill that because they conceive it serveth for their pleasure gaine or credit of all courses they thinke none so good as those that are sinfull What man so vile but thinketh his course good and thinketh all are fooles that are not of his minde The Papist is
Gods providence or grace usually bestowed else let no man looke to have his prayer granted He that doth aske daily bread he must labour and use the lawfull ordinarie meanes of maintenance else he may justly starve notwithstanding his prayer So likewise a man may pray for knowledge for faith repentance and for eternall life but if this bee but a sluggards wish and be not joyned with using the ordinarie meanes of knowledge faith and repentance as namely hearing reading and meditating of the Word of God and a right partaking of the Sacraments If a man do not heed the Word if he do not consider it and lay it to his heart If he do not withall improve the strength which hee hath gotten in the use of the meanes of grace considering what grounds and what cause he hath to beleeve and repent c. and if he do not assay and put himselfe on to the leaving the sinne he prayeth against or to the doing whereof he desired grace of God let him never thinke that he shall obtaine the things prayed for For God never intended to give them but in the use of those means which he hath prescribed If therefore your person bee not thus qualified If either you be not in state of grace or if you live in any grosse sinne unrepented or if you bee not in charity with your neighbour or if you have beene and are unthankfull for old favours or if you be failing in not using the lawfull meanes of having what you aske you may thanke your selfe if though you have prayed yet you have not your petitions Though your person may be in the maine fitly qualified in the former respects yet there may be such failing in the particular act of praying that it may hinder the granting of the praier As 1. If you pray not to God onely 2. If you conceive not of God aright 3. If you pray not in the name of Christ at least impliedly 4. If the matter of your prayer bee not good and warrantable 5. If you do not pray with understanding 6. If you do not intend your prayer as a worship of God and be sincere in it 7. If it be not with a sensible desire 8. If it bee not with attention of minde 9. If it be not with fervour 10. If it be not with holy devotion 11. If it be not to a right and warrantable end 12. And if it be not in faith beleeving that you shall have your request put up to God in manner as aforesaid and if it bee not such a faith which causeth you to waite patiently then if God have not heard you must blame your self and if you would be heard another time consider wherein you failed and amend it and particulary take heed that when you have endeavoured to pray as well as you can that your not beleeving you should be heard be not the chiefe cause why you have not your prayers granted It will further be objected Ob. If the before-mentioned failings may hinder the granting of our prayers then who can beleeve that ever his prayer shall be heard for who faileth not in some or other of them I answer first God is many times better to us than our praiers and if hee please hee may grant our petitions though made with some speciall failings if he do it is of his mercy if he do not the fault was in us But secondly difference must be put betweene a failing out of weaknesse and manifold temptations and that which is through wilfulnesse and customary negligence If a mans conscience can witnesse to himselfe that when he prayeth the intent and the bent of his heart is to pray aright and not to faile then God for Christs sake in whose name prayer is made doth passe by and forgive such failings and doth certainely heare Wherefore in such cases we ought when we pray to beleeve that God will grant our prayers notwithstanding such failings in prayer Secondly though we have not offended him in our prayers yet God may see cause why he will not grant them For the generall rule of his promise to heare our prayers doth admit of some exception As first when if the thing asked were granted it would crosse some acts of his eternall purpose not knowne to us which he hath intended for the setting forth of his glory in wayes unknowne to us whether it be in things concerning his Church or our owne selves in particular Moreover we are apt to desire things to come to passe in such or such a way and by such or such meanes and in such or such a manner as we thinke may stand well with Gods will when yet God hath some other way some other meanes of doing his Church or of doing us good in another manner then we expect Many times wee would have it our way but God holdeth it best to give it his way 2 King 5.11 Like Naaman the leper he would be cured one way but God cured him by another way Act. 27.24.30.44 God saved Paul and all with him not as they would by the safety of the ship but by the pieces of the ship after shipwracke We are apt to rest upon such and such meanes and to set the meanes above God then it is fit that he should choose other meanes yea hee doth many times choose weake meanes to confound the strong that all the praise may be given to God and that no flesh might glory in his presence Many want comfort and other things because they prescribe to God the meanes Mat. 26.39 In such cases wee should alwayes pray with a reservation namely if thou wilt let this thing be or let this thing passe yet not my will but thine be done A second exception is if the thing asked be not for our good We many times aske for things good in themselves and lawfull for us to aske but God who knoweth what is better for us than we do he knoweth that if we had them they would not be good for us In this case to be denyed our suite is a mercy and and a favour to us God promiseth that we shall want nothing that is good Psa 34.10 Psa 84 1â— Rom. 8.28 and that hee will with-hold nothing that is good and that all things shall worke together for good to them that love him Thirdly God doth heare and grant our prayers when wee thinke that he doth not God doth grant our requests divers wayes Sometimes he giveth the same thing that is asked even in the same kinde as when God gave unto Hannah a sonne at her request 1 Sa. 1.27 Psal 21.2 and gave unto David his hearts desire Sometimes God doth not give the same thing in kinde which is asked but the same in effect or that which is farre better When wee aske temporall blessings as health wealth liberty or the removall of such and such a crosse it may be God doth not hold it fit that those particulars
Answ and these they have uncertainely without a blessing with them They have them but as fruits of his common goodnesse providence Psal 36.6 Psal 145.9 God knowing what imployments he hath for them amongst men and not as fruits of his speciall love promise and mercy God giveth them oft-times in wrath with a curse Tit. 1.15 they are impure unto them they make leane soules increasing their sin Psal 92.7 fatting them but it is to the slaughter it is that they may bee destroyed for ever whereas on the contrary all that pray aright shall in the best time have what is best for them with Gods blessing as a token of his speciall love unto them Vse 1 It is therefore a great fault in all those that shall under any pretence omit and neglect prayer then which fault I know none more common For except it be when all other helpes faile and they bee in a desperate extremitie who in comparison seeketh unto God by prayer When they be sicke to the Physitian or to the Surgeon onely but not to God by prayer yea some runne to Witches and Wizards to charmes to the divell to any thing rather then unto God If they be in want then they betake them to their friends to their hands to their wits yea to câ—asening and shifting but never looke up to God and the like in all other cases The same course they take for their soules If the comming to Church and formall hearing the word receiving the Sacraments and the prayers of others will save them they will not alwaies be wanting in these externall devotions but as for prayer any more then a little lip-labour which indeed is no prayer they are meere strangers to it Causes why men call not upon God This neglect of prayer commeth from prophanenesse and pride of heart from confidence in the creature and from selfe-dependance which causeth them to be unwilling to come into the presence of the holy God or to be beholding to him For this cause God in justice casteth them into want They have not Iam. 4.2 because they aske not or if he give unto them without asking he giveth it with a curse it is impure unto them Tit. 1.15 as before you heard There are some so prophane that they omit prayer in contempt and with deriding all which conscionably performe it But as for those which have got into the scorners chaire and have made themselves unworthy the pearle of a reproof I leave them to the considerations following They carry in their faces the very brand of an Atheist for it is his guise not to pray himselfe but would shame him which maketh God his refuge Psal 14 4 6. And how can they be called Christians to whom the description of the heathen doth so properly agree Ier. 10 25. The Prophet Ieremie describeth the heathen by this that they were families that call not on Gods Name and these he holdeth to be meete persons upon whom God should poure out his fury and fiercenesse of his indignation But I leave these and come Vse 2 to speake to Gods owne children who even in this point of prayer are much to blame For many of them make too little account of this pretious dutie How seldome doe they set about it how loath to come to it how cold and livelesse in it and how soone wearie of it Is it any marvell if they be full of crosses and be impatient under them Is it any wonder that the world doth so oft overcome them and the divell so oft foile them when they are so seldome and so weake in prayer This failing proceedeth from want of faith in God from too much confidence in the arme of flesh and meanes here below and from poring too much upon the prosperitie of those Psal 73.7 who without prayer have more then heart could wish and by laying their owne crosses in which they lie notwithstanding they have praied too close unto themselves From these and the like causes as lying in some sinne unrepented of or the like it is that you are unwilling to pray and when you doe pray your edge of praier is quite taken off But enter I pray you into Gods sanctuarie that you may see confesse and bewaile your folly and learne with that Psalmist to say Psal 73.28 It is good to draw neere to God and to put your trust onely in the Lord. Vse 3 Let all that professe the name of God bee exhorted not to conceive of praier as a thing arbitrarie and indifferent but as of a necessarie duty as hath beene proved in the Doctrine Are any afflicted Iam. 5.13 let them pray Are any in prosperitie let them pray and praise God In what condition or state soever ye are pray For besides that it is Gods command and his immediate worship Manifold motives unto prayer we by prayer injoy an holy communion with God taking sanctuarie under his wings We edifie our selves also in our most holy faith and in all other the saving graces of Gods spirit when we pray in the Holy Ghost for by it all the weapons of our Christian warfare all the good gifts of God and meanes of our salvation become usefull and good unto us By prayer either we shall prevent Gods iudgements and corrections or bee made able to beare them and be made much better by them By prayer wee shall obtaine pardon and repentance of sins past and strength to resist temptations of sinnes to come In thus doing we shall have all such good things as be needfull for us with a blessing upon them or with contentednesse without them grace and peace in this life perfection of grace and glory in the life to come Would wee doe good to our enemies and to our friends and would we doe our selves good would we be beneficiall to the Common-weale and Church then let us pray 2 Chron. 30.20 Gen. 25.21 Mark 9.25 Mat 15.28 Mat. 8.13 Gen. 24.12 For Kings have prayed for their subjects husbands for their wives fathers for their sonnes mothers for their daughters masters for servants servants for masters and all have beene heard in that which they praied Prayer because it is ordained by God and hath his promise calleth in and ingageth Gods power truth for him that maketh it and so through God becommeth omnipotent What hath beene or can be too hard for Prayer Exod 14.15.16 It hath caused the Sea to divide it selfe and become an high way to Gods people also together with the Whale Ionah 2 1.1.10 Iosh 10.12 to give up Ionas alive and set him ashore It caused the Sunne to stand still yea to goe backe It hath loosed chaines and unlocked Prisons Act. 1â— 5.7.11 and iron gates and delivered the prisoners What hath not prayer done what will it not doe in the behalfe of the Church or of any of Gods chosen Nothing so deepe but with this bucket we may draw
it up nothing so high above us or so farre from us but with this hand wee may reach it to us Hee that wrastleth by the strength of prayer though hee wrastle with the strong God shall prevaile as did Iacob of whom it is said Hee had power over the Angell and prevailed hee wept and made supplication Hos 12.4 Of all helps prayer is readiest at hand in all places and at all times if wee be not without our hearts wee neede not be without helpe It is the most universall helpe it is good for all persons at all times in all things It is a most certain helpe no faithfull prayer was ever made in vaine It is a key to open heaven all that have skill to handle it may from thence fetch all things that may doe themselves or their neighbour good Moreover when wee have made our requests knowne to GOD and have commended our cause to him by prayer this will comfort quiet and rejoyce our hearts so that wee neede bee no more sad with Hannah 1 Sam. 1.18 nor need we be carefull in any thing but may goe on in our calling in peace Phil. 4.6.7 and may lye downe in peace being assured that now God careth for us knowing that his wisedome truth and power are all set a worke for us And which is more then all which yet hath beene said Prayer is most pleasing to God hee delighteth to heare the voyce of his children It is a more sweet smelling sacrifice then that of incense It maketh way to thanksgiving It is a glorifying of his great name Sith it is the will of God that Vse 4 we should pray all feare of approaching to the throne of his grace may hence be remoued What though God be a God of majestie and thou bee an unworthy person in thy selfe It is no presumption to presse into his presence when hee commandeth this is instead of his scepter of acceptance of thee though no man might come uncalled unto that majesticall Ahashuereth yet any man might come being called nay the Queene was deposed from her place because she came not at his commandement So that it is not presumption to come but rebellion if you come not sith God every where in his word calleth you So that whatsoever thy case be thou maist come with good comfort to God and bee holpen as they say to the blinde man Marke 10.49 Be of good comfort hee calleth thee God calleth you to this duty feare not therefore to goe to God in prayer at any time Objections against prayer answered To this end you must bee able and willing to answer and resist all such objections and discouragements that Satan and your owne heart shall raise against it You may learne how to answer to those objections against the necessity of prayer namely God knoweth what we need and hee hath already decreed what we shall have and many that make no conscience of prayer have more then heart could wish by that which is written before in this doctrine in the third reason taken from the necessity of prayer And for your help I will propound and answer other objections as followeth I am not assured that I am converted Ob. and am the childe of God or that I have the Spirit of God wherefore I think that it belongeth not unto me to pray You are by profession a convert Answ and the childe of God and it may be you have the Spirit of God though yet you do not acknowledge it therefore it belongeth unto you to pray But suppose that you are not converted doth not God command you to convert Ier. 31.18 and turn unto him and finding your inability to turne you should with Ephraim pray saying Turne thou me and I shall bee turned And do you finde the want of the Spirit you should the rather pray for it that God according to his promise may give it Luk. 11.13 Do not say I cannot pray untill God have given me grace and abilitie to pray but having an expresse commandement of God to pray you must set about it assay to pray as well as you can desiring and expecting grace from him to enable you to pray For God doth not usually let us feele the strength of his grace requisite to the performance of a good dutie till that out of conscience of obeying of the command we craving his helpe do set about the doing of it Ob. My sinnes are so many and so great and I have relapsed into such grievous sinnes since I last prayed that I am ashamed and afraâ—d that I dare not come into the presence of God againe to pray unto him Answ The greater and more hainous your sinnes are the more need you have to come unto God whom by them you have offended to aske of him pardon of them And sith God is onely able to cure and heale your soule there is the more cause that by prayer you should seeke unto him to cleanse you of your sinnes and to give you power against them David doth not say because his sinne was great therefore I dare not pray but therefore prayeth thus Psal 25.11 For thy Names sake O Lord pardon mine iniquity for it is great And is not forgivenesse of sins one of the petitions which Christ hath bid you to make daily when you pray To bee ashamed for your sinne when you come before God is good and argueth that you are the fitter for prayer Ier. 31.19.20 and that you are now a meet object of Gods mercie and compassion but to be ashamed to pray and not to dare to come into Gods presence being by him commanded is a great sinne to be repented of Indeed we should not sinne at all 1. Ioh. 2.1.2 but if any man sinne be his sinnes many or few small or great we have an Advocate with the Father Iesus Christ the righteous and he is the propitiation who hath made satisfaction for and hath covered and done away all our sinnes When you come before God to pray in the name and mediation of Christ God looketh upon your sinnes which you confesse unto him as satisfied for done away in Christ Why then should you be afraid and ashamed to pray unto him Ob. When I should pray I feele my selfe so much straitened so dead and so much indisposed to prayer I want words and matter I can neither begin or at least hold out well in prayer to the end for that I am pestred with so many wandring impertinent and sometimes evill thoughts I cannot remember all the sinnes which I should confesse nor yet all the needfull good things which I should aske I cannot pray in faith but am so full of wavering and doubting that God is not well pleased with my prayer I oft feele my selfe worse rather then better after I have prayed I rise up oft times from prayers heavie and discomforted and I offend so many wayes in prayer that I oft times am readie
thus divided Summum bonum the first expresseth the desire of the chiefe good scil the glory of Gods name in the first petition Hallowed be thy Name the means whereby his Name is hallowed and glorified are the matter of all the rest delivered in a most heavenly order Gods Name cannot bee hallowed if hee doe not make his holy Name known by erecting his kingdome therefore the comming of his kingdome is the matter of the second petition And because his kingdome is not made manifest and his Name is not acknowledged to be holy and glory is not given unto him untill his will bee unfainedly obeyed therefore thy will be done is the matter of the third petition Now because no man can do the will of God upon earth except God sustain him on earth therefore daily support from God is prayed for and is the matter of the fourth petition And when a man hath all comfortable supplies for this naturall life yet if he bee not in Gods favour and be reconciled unto God he neither hath will nor power to glorifie God nor can bee accepted in any thing he doth therefore forgivenesse of sinnes and justification before God is the matter of the fift petition Lastly though a man have his sinnes past pardoned and he be justified he cannot do Gods will nor declare that the kingdome of God is come to him nor any way hallow his Name if he have not grace and power against sinne therefore the sanctification of the whole man is prayed for which is the matter of the last petition This is the holy order and subordination of the petitions Fourthly the different manner of propounding the petitions cause a different acception of them some are petitions properly so called when the good things asked are expressed and the evill prayed against is understood as in the foure first petitions some are deprecations when the evill prayed against is expressed and the good prayed for is understood as in the two last petitions The first petition is Hallowed be thy Name here it must bee considered what is meant by Name the object of hallowing then what hallow signifieth Name hath reference to God and it signifieth God himselfe scil the person named Also all such names and titles of God his attibutes actions ordinances and all things which have any speciall print of Gods holinesse stamped upon them are Gods name because by them he is knowne as men are by their names The word thy appropriateth the hallowing of the name unto him who is before named and described in the invocation opposing and preferring Gods name to the name of man or Angell or of any other creature To hallow is either to make a thing holy which was common or prophane or to declare and acknowledge and use holily some thing which is holy already Hallow must not bee taken in the first sense scil to make a thing holy for God and his Name alwayes was is and for ever shall be of it selfe most holy But to hallow Isa 29.23 here signifieth thus much to conceive and acknowledge with the heart and to declare with the tongue and life that God and his Name is holy and to bee respected and used as most holy in like sense as Wisdome is said to bee justified of her children Mat. 11.19 that is declared and respected as wisdome ought to bee respected For to hallow a thing is to respect and use it according to the holinesse thereof Prophaning Gods name is contrary to the hallowing of it The aime of our Saviour is that God may bee set up in mens hearts and may bee glorified and acknowledged in the world For this cause hee maketh choice of the most apt word that could be invented for hallowing leadeth vs to a consideration of Gods holinesse which is the glory of all other his attributes and includeth the cause why he should be glorified and therefore is a word of larger extent than magnified or glorified for the one doth but point out the glory of his greatnesse the other doth not expresse the cause why hee should bee glorified both which hallowed doth For holinesse is that rectitude in God and freedome from all impurenesse and from all shadow of imperfection or sinne which is the excellency and perfection of all other things that are in God and to speake with holy reverence of his Majesty the other attributes of God could not be commendable in God if they were not all infinitely holy His soveraignty would be tyranny his justice would bee cruelty his mercy would be foolish pity his wisdome would bee craft and subtilty if his greatnesse justice mercy and wisdome were not infinitely holy The like may be said of his other attributes For we see in creatures as in the Deuill and sinfull men the more strength and wisdome and skill they have the more mischievous they be because they want holinesse to use these gifts aright Wherefore in saying Hallowed be thy Name we desire that the excellency of his Godhead may be acknowledged as there is due cause according as they sing in the Song of the Lambe Rev. 15.4 Who shall not feare hee O Lord and glorifie thy Name for thou onely art holy Isa 64.2 This word Hallowed is set downe impersonally in such a forme of signification as includeth all persons or things which are capable of setting forth and acknowledging his holinesse As Let thy Name be hallowed by Thee so saith Christ Father glorifie thy Name Ioh. 12.28 and make Me to hallow thy Name in acknowledging thy holinesse and let all others acknowledge thee to be holy and to be the onely true God 1 King 18 36. Thus Elias prayed Let it be knowne this day that thou art God in Israel And God saith when hee will magnifie and sanctifie himselfe Ezech 38.23 I will be knowne in the eyes of many nations and they shall know that I am the Lord. The petition being thus opened we may expresse it in these or the like words Holy Father whose Name is holy to thee therefore all glory doth belong Lord glorifie thy selfe make it knowne that thou onely art God deserving all praises make me and all men to acknowledge thee onely to be God and our God and that of perfect excellencie according as thy Name in thy titles word and workes doe set thee forth And let thy Name Psal 111.9 which is holy and reverend be so honoured that so farre as any person or thing hath upon it any print of thy holinesse it be honoured and respected accordingly And farre be it from me or any man to deny thee in whole or in part or give any of that glory which is due to thee to any person or thing whatsoever or to prophane any thing whereupon any footsteps of thy holinesse is imprinted Hallowed be thy Name If it be observed that to desire that Gods Name should be glorified is the subject of this petition and that Christ hath set
must take those deeds for currant pay when they are but meere counterfeit stuffe if they trie their deeds by the touch of the directions before given Yet none so readie to upbraid God and hit him in the teeth as we speak with How good they are and what service they do him as these kinde of men who will challenge God like them in Isaiah Isa 58.3 Wherefore have we fasted and thou seest us not wherefore have we afflicted our soule and thou takest no knowledge No men presume that God should save them more than these They will say Lord Mat. 7.22 Lord have not we prophecied in thy Name and in thy Name cast out devils But he will answer I never knew you depart from me ye workers of iniquitie For actions which are good in the matter thereof yet do stinke and are very iniquitie in Gods account Isa 1.13 if they be not done aright For what is not done with a good conscience and in truth of heart is not done at all in Gods account for he looketh to the heart and manner how all things be performed Let it be every mans prayer Vse 2 and endevor to do good things well to fulfill Gods will in an heavenly manner viz. upon good ground with good conscience and good affections This is the heart life and verie soule of every good action And though there may happen to be some failings in the matter of what is done which also is not to bee allowed yet if the heart be upright in the manner God doth beare with much weaknesse and doth accept of truth and uprightnesse As in heaven The patterne of the right manner of doing Gods will is a perfect one taken from heaven Christ would have all men ayme at this whence note Doct. 5 Christians must ayme at perfection They must alwayes presse hard forward to attaine it Now the God of peace make you perfect to do his will saith the Apostle Hebr. 13.20 21. Let us go on unto perfection Heb. 6.1 Let us perfect holines in the feare of God saith he 2. Cor. 7.1 Naturall things do affect Reason and in their manner long after the perfection of themselves An infant is still growing in the wombe untill it come to a perfection Light bodies are not quiet if they be not above and in their place So that it may justly be doubted there is not truth of Christianity if there be not a desire and longing after perfection of Christianitie This blameth all that thinke Vse 1 they know enough and have made progresse farre enough in the race of Christianitie But what saith the Apostle 1. Cor. 9.24 Not all that runne receive the price If men fall back or stand at a stay they can never finish their course Wherefore hee would have others do as he did So run that they might obtaine and so fight that they might get the masterie and win the crowne Hee that puts his hand to the plough and looketh backe he is not apt for the kingdome of God Luke 9.62 Vse 2 Meanes of growing towards perfectiō The thoughts of heaven and of the patternes for imitation which are in heaven and the state of perfection in which we shall be when we come to heaven should be load-stones to draw us to heaven-ward and to perfection Be perfect saith Christ Mat. 5.48 as your heavenly Father is perfect in everie thing and everie way perfect The way to attaine this is first to convince the heart that we ought to bee perfect Phil. 3.12.13 then see with the Apostle that wee are not alreadie perfect Thirdly let us not look on what wee have done and what is behinde but on that which is before to bee done Fourthly 2. Cor. 7.1 be daily purging our selves from filthinesse of flesh and spirit and so perfect holinesse Fiftly that we may do all these be daily conversant in the reading hearing and meditation of the holy Scriptures for their end is 2. Tim. 3.17 to make the man of God perfect Lastly give al diligence and presse forward Phil. 3.14 as the Apostle did toward the marke and price of the high calling of God in Christ. Thus do and the rather because he that doth not ayme at perfection of degrees hath not the perfection of truth and of parts The fourth Petition Give us this day our daily bread Having dispatched the handling of the three first Petitions which did more immediately concerne God wee are now come to the other three which do more especially concerne man which are also meanes to enable a man to glorifie God by doing his will These petitions following concerne man in a double respect First in respect of the outward man for sustaining the bodie and life of nature in this fourth petition Secondly in respect of the inward man and good of the soule also scil the life of grace the hindrance whereof is sinne concerning which the Lord directeth his disciples to deprecate and pray against two things First the guilt and damnation of sinne praying for justification in the fifth Petition Secondly against the power dominion of sinne praying for sanctification in the sixt and last Petition Request for to have a comfortable naturall life and being upon earth doth follow immediately upon the request of doing Gods will on earth for the dead cannot praise God And if a man be not gathered into Christs kingdome before death there is no hope Isa 38.18.19 For there is no worke nor device nor knowledge in the grave Eccles 9.10 Wherefore because no man can doe the will of God on earth except God give him a comfortable life upon earth this petition followeth next the other in a most holy order This petition is placed before the other two which concerne the estate of the soule and of the life of grace not in order of prioritie of dignitie as if the temporall estate of the body were more needfull or more excellent than the eternall life of the soule for this latter is farre more excellent but because in order of nature the naturall life is before the spiritual and a man must have a being in nature before he can have a being in grace and a comfortable naturall life is both the fitter subject for the life of grace and fitter instrument by which grace worketh and doth the will of God upon earth therefore it is first prayed for Besides it is usuall in Scripture that the thing which is least to be insisted upon is placed first in order before that which sometimes is more excellent that having finished the lesse worthy subject in few words it might dwell more largely upon that subject which was most worthy As the histories of Iaphet and cursed Cham Gen. 10. are set before that of blessed Shem Gen. 36. and after Isaacks death the storie of prophane Esau i◠for this cause set before that of Iacob Gen. 37. So our Saviour in one petition and in few
to his justice he knowing that no person in the Godhead was capable as God onely to performe any act of satisfaction to God knowing likewise that no meere creature could be of all-sufficient power and worthinesse to satisfie his justice or to stand as a Mediator betweene God and man they being at enmitie by reason of sinne He therefore in his infinite wisedome and of his rich and free grace did ordaine his onely begotten Sonne the second person in Trinity now Iesus Christ our Lord by whom he made man and all things else and in whom all things consist that he should become man by assuming into the person of his dietie the very nature of man consisting of bodie and soule to subsist in the dietie by a personall union being to be verie God and very man in one person who being thus qualified to be a Mediatour Rom. 5.17 18 19. 1. Cor. 15.45 he ordained him to be a second Adam as a common root and to stand as a suerty in the stead of all those whom he co-ordained should be ingrafted into him and which should be made members of him and be saved by him Wherefore he together ordained that with mans nature he should assume the guilt of sinne Isa 53.4 2. Cor. 5.21 Rom. 8.3 and to be accounted as a sinner and by God himself to be proceeded against as against a notorious sinner For which cause hee was to be accursed not only by being made subject to humane infirmities but to be arraigned condemned and withall to have the fiercenesse of the wrath of God due to sinners poured out and executed upon him And that hee should dye the accursed death that by death he might expiate sinne and through death hee might overcome death and destroy him that had the power of death Heb. 2.14 even mans greatest enemie which is the devill All this our Saviour took upon him and perfectly fulfilled Philip. 2.8 being obedient even to the death of the crosse upon which he made that one oblation by the merit and efficacie whereof Ephes 2 15 hee slew the enmity and made the attonement between God and us having obtained eternall redemption for us Heb. 9.12 and became the author of eternall salvation unto all them that obey him Heb. 5.9 perfecting for ever them that are sanctified in that by the power of his dietie he conquered and rose from the death Act. 2.24 it being unpossible that he should be holden of it Heb. 8.1 and is set downe on the right hand of the throne of majestie in the heavens Heb. 7.25 ever living to make intercession for them Thus you see the first of those requisites which go before remission of sinnes namely satisfaction of Gods justice by the merit of those things which Christ Iesus did and suffered in mans stead Hee sheading his bloud as he himselfe saith for many for the remission of sinnes Mat. 2◠28 The worth and efficacie of this satisfaction made and redemption purchase◠by the precious bloud of Christ was greater than onely to merit at Gods hands that now his justice being satisfied he might forgive sinnes and save men if he would upon any such possible condition as hee should please to appoint and accept for Christ by his death resurrection and intercession deserved and procured that God should actually forgive Iob. 17.19 1. Thes 5.9 10. and also give grace and eternall life to all those to whom Christ was ordained to bee an head and a Saviour Act 3.31 even to all those whō from before the beginning of the world Ioh. 17 2. God gave unto Christ and were ordained to beleeve in Christ and that should be united to him by his Spirit A second thing required before that a mans sinnes shall be forgiven Rom. 10. ◠10. is beleefe and faith in Christ Iesus For faith is the condition of the new Covenant published in the Gospell Ioh. 6.29 and i◠is the bond of our spirituall union with Christ on our part and is the meane and instrument whereby wee receive Christ and do relie upon him Ioh. 1.12 and whereby we do apply him with all his merits and benefits unto our selves unto our salvation Ioh. 6.35 This the Scriptures do hold so usefull and necessarie that they ascribe our justification by forgivenesse of our sinnes unto it Rom 5.1 God accounting our faith as he did Abrahams Ro 4.3 5. unto righteousnesse But how is our faith accounted for righteousnesse not as it is a gracious qualitie inherent in us and a part of our sanctification but as it hath relation to Christ who is our righteousnesse and is the sole object of our faith unto justification for which cause we hold against the Papists that we are justified by faith onely Of this it is that all both Prophets Christ himselfe Ioh. 3 16. Act. 10.43 and all the Apostles have witnessed namely that through Christs name whosoever beleeveth in him shall receive forgivenesse of sinnes By faith in Christ I meane such a faith as is a sound a lively and an effectuall faith such a faith as hath faith in the Law unto conviction of sinne and unto penitence for sinne going before it and a faith in the precepts both of the Gospell and of the Law unto repentance of sinne and holinesse of life concurring with and following after it This condition of beleeving which doth qualifie a man for and which doth interest a man into the benefit of Christs redemption is not left as Adams standing or falling was in the hands of a mans free will for so there might have beene a possibilitie that all Christs sufferings might have been in vaine and none might have beene saved namely if none would beleeve But Christ dyed and rose againe not onely to satisfie Gods justice in the behalfe of all which were to be saved but also to give them faith that they might indeed be saved For it is apparant by the Scripture that the end why Christ dyed and gave himselfe a ransome for many was not Mat. 10.28 that onely hee might satisfie Gods justice in which satisfaction mans redemption doth virtually consist but that also God by him might give faith unto all which were ordained to eternall life Act. 13.47.48 by which their redemption and salvation purchased with Christs bloud might actually in the time appointed by God exist and take effect in them For faith is one of those blessings wherewith God blesseth Eph. 1.3.4.15 in and through Christ all whom he chose in him before the foundation of the world It was not enough for mans redemption and salvation Heb. 10.14.15.16.17 that Christ by his once offering of himselfe should onely beginne to save man but by the same he hath perfected for ever them that are sanctified Wherefore the promise of the new covenant is as the holy Ghost witnesseth that hee will put his lawes in their hearts and
the person God is understood The third circumstance concerneth the persons prayed for us that is the same persons mentioned in the fourth Petition namely our selves and all our neighbours living upon the earth that belong to Gods election be they alreadie justified or not justified As we forgive These words containe an argument to encourage him that prayeth to aske forgivenesse The Evangelist Luke saith for we forgive which place in Luke doth interpret this in Matthew The particle as doth import a resemblance from an act of ours towards man of that which we would have God do for us but it doth not denote either the measure or manner how we would have God forgive us but onely a certaintie of the truth of their owne forgiving of others And although this as and for in Luke shew that these words are a reason and argument to move us to aske and expect forgivenesse from God yet it doth not imply that our forgiving of others is the cause why God should forgive us but arguing from the lesse to the greater argueth thus We do and can forgive therefore God can much more forgive us also This is but a proposing of their estate and condition unto God reasoning from a signe of Gods love and grace towards them that they have cause to expect forgivenesse In like manner for is used Luk. 7.48 Her sinnes which are many are forgiven for she loved much where the womans love was not a cause of great forgivenesse but a fruit and signe of Gods forgivenesse So that in these words he that prayeth doth represent to his owne thoughts and doth utter unto God thus much That sith he himself that hath but a drop of mercie yet could and did forgive and sith this power in them to forgive others proceeded from a reflexe of his mercy towards them and so was an argument that he already loved them therefore they are bold to aske and expect forgivenesse of him who is infinite in mercie and hath begun to shew mercie to them alreadie The sense of this whole Petition may be rendred thus O Lord God who art the onely forgiver of sinnes sith we cannot glorifie thy Name neither can our lives be pleasing to thee or comfortable to our selves so long as thou art unreconciled to us and so long as thou hidest thy loving countenance from us bee pleased therfore through Christ whom thou hast made to be our redemption to be reconciled to me and to all thine elect upon the earth impute not our sinnes to us but free and acquit us from the whole guilt and punishment of all sinnes small and great For this cause we confesse our sinnes and do beleeve thy promise of forgivenesse Lord helpe our unbeliefe Impute likewise the righteousnesse of Christ unto us and grant that thy Spirit of Adoption may daily make more and more application of forgivenesse to our hearts untto he fâ—â— assurance of hope that we may have peace of conscience joy in the holy Ghost and in the end everlasting life Lord this thou canst easily and will readily do for even we that have but a small measure of compassion forgive those that wrong us And sith by this our forgiving of others we know thou hast begun to forgive us continue therefore thy grace and certifie daily to our hearts that thou art our salvation And forgive us our sinnes If it be observed how this Petition is joyned to the former intimating that natural life without forgivenesse of sinne will little availe a man and if it be considered that forgivenesse of sinnes in that sense as hath beene delivered is the subject of this Petition we may note It concerneth all men to desire Doct. 1 and endeavour after forgivenes of their sinnes through Christ with the application and assurance thereof to their hearts and consciences by the holy Ghost They must desire that God would not impute their sinnes but impute Christs righteousnesse unto them that they may be delivered from all guilt and punishment of sinne and may be heires of glorie and that he would daily passe the sentence hereof to their conscience Hoseah saith Hos 14.2 Take with you words and turne to the Lord say unto him Take away all iniquitie and receive us graciously The Prophet David to whom the Prophet Nathan had pronounced forgivenesse of his murder to his eares 2 Sam. 12.13 yet because God had not pronounced it to his heart but withdrew his countenance from him he is therefore earnest with the Lord saying Purge me with hysop Psal 51.7 to 13. make me heare joy and gladnesse Hide thy face from my sinnes and blot out all mine iniquities Renew a right spirit within me Restore to me the joy of thy salvation Vntill sinnes be forgiven Reason 1 they separate betweene God and man whether hee be converted or unconverted Isa 59.2 Your iniquities have separated betweene you and your God and your sinnes have made him hide his face from you that hee will not heare And We have transgressed and have rebelled saith Ieremie thou hast not pardoned Thou hast covered thy selfe with a cloud Lam. 3.42.44 that our prayer should not passe through If a man be not in state of grace his prosperity in this life doth but fat him against his day of slaughter and increase of his dayes are but a multiplication of his sinnes against the day of account And he may looke for death to arrest him every day which if it doe before his sinnes be remitted hee shall be found in his sinnes at the day of judgement to his everlasting perdition If a man be in state of grace yet if by new sinnes the Lord be provoked to withdraw his loving countenance and to shew tokens of his displeasure against him his life becommeth unprofitable and uncomfortable untill God speake peace to his soule againe He cannot come boldly into Gods presence to pray heare or receive the Sacrament or if he doe come he is very heartlesse in the performance of them and all that a man hath though it be a kingdome can give him no comfort Psal 32. Psal 51. as it was in Davids case But when God forgiveth sins God of an enemy becommeth a friend and of a displeased Father beginneth to looke graciously upon his childe from this pardon it is that a man is freed from all miserie and by the assurance and sealing of pardon to the conscience doe follow peace of conscience freedome and libertie of heart to come before GOD at all times and in the end everlasting life Vntill sinnes past be pardoned Reason 2 and the sinner is justified he cannot doe Gods will nor glorifie his name For Luke 7.47 â—7 untill much be forgiven no man can love much for to whom little is forgiven the same loveth little saith Christ A man is not sanctified untill he be first justified he can never repent and live holily in time to come untill hee have hope that all his sinnes past are
all the guilt and punishment be satisfied in Christ it must not bee thought that God will at a punish any that are saved by Christ Reason 2 Forgivenesse is no forgivenesse if there be not remisseâ— of punishment Ob. God pardoned Davids adulterie and murther yet reserved for him temporal punishment and the like may be observed in Gods dealing with many others wherefore sinne may be pardoned yet as punishment not remitted Sol. It must be granted that temporall evils did befall David after his sinne was pardoned and the like doth befall other of Gods children but it must be knowne that those afflictions were not satisfactorie punishments or had any respect unto the justification of those that were therewith exercised but they onely had respect unto their further sanctification The same evils in different persons namely the godly and the reprobate are of different natures and are sent of God for different purposes in the wicked they are signes of his wrath but to his children they are signes of his love Heb. 12. they are to the wicked plagues and fore-runners of destruction but they are unto the godly corrections unto instructions they are onely Gods physicke to purge out the corruption and to abate the power of sinne and are meanes leading to sanctification as I said but have no respect of satisfaction in any degree unto justification Vse 1 This confuteth Popish doctrine of satisfactions of Gods justice by temporall punishments either in this life or in Purgatorie They will acknowledge that Christ satisfied for all eternall punishment but not for temporall Which distinction was not knowne in Christs time it was onely invented to lay a foundation for Purgatory and the appurtenances thereof which being razed by this and like truths of Scripture will when Antichrist shall bee revealed by the spirit of Gods mouth be discovered to be but a fable It were little for the honour of Christ that he should pay so great a price for the redemption of man from eternall punishment and yet should leave him to himselfe to satisfie for temporall The hearts of all that beleeve Vse 2 in Christ should rejoyce at this to consider that they are not onely freely redeemed but that they are also fully redeemed from all punishment temporall and eternall If temporall chastisements be inflicted God doth send them in love either as trials of his graces wherewith he hath endued them or as physicke to prevent or remove the corruption of sinne which yet remaineth in them they do onely serve to shew what grace they have or prepare and make way for that grace they shall have Crosses are not curses to them but blessings for Blessed is the man whom the Lord correcteth and teacheth him out of his Law Psal 94.12 Vs that is the Disciples as well as others The Disciples were alreadie justified yet by Christs direction even they must every day make this petition even as oft as for daily bread whence learne Doct. 5 The best of Gods children notwithstanding they be alreadie justified must everie day aske forgivenesse of their sinnes Daniel prayed every day Dan. 6.10 and in his prayer he confessed and asked forgivenesse for his owne sinnes and the sins of the people Dan. 9.19 Reas 1 The best men are clothed with infirmities Iam. 3.2 and in something or other do sinne daily therefore had need to aske forgivenesse daily Reas 2 If pardon of a sinne bee not asked that day in which it is committed the guilt lying upon the conscience it doth benumme the conscience and so it is forgotten altogether or else when it is put off till many sinnes be committed either the heart is discouraged with multitude of offences that it is afraid to present it selfe before God or if it doe come into Gods sight those many sinnes are confessed and prayed against but confusedly and in grosse for the most part In asking forgivenesse a man Reas 3 doth not aske onely that universall and absolute justification of his person before God but also continuance of that his gracious acceptance of him into favour also he asketh under that word forgive new applications to the conscience of pardon of the sinnes which daily he doth commit with a further ratification of assurance of salvation unto his heart It is not enough that the pardon of mans sinne be actually passed with God but this pardon must be sued out that the same may also be passed in a mans conscience and this must be renewed daily even as the conscience is blurred and stained with sins daily else a man shall have little fruit or comfort of that generall and originall pardon which standeth upon record for him in the heavens The Lord hath in most excellent wisedome ordered that the justification of a sinner should be in this manner namely though it be a perfect and absolute act of God whereby the person of every membere Christ in the very instant of actuall ingrafting into Christ standeth acquitted of all sinnes yet in respect of the application of it by the worke of the holy Ghost and in respect of the full execution of it hee will that it shall be made knowne to man by parts and degrees and that he shall waite for the full execution of it untill the day of the Lord. For this maketh a man conceive more hainously of sinne and to be more circumspect that hee doe not commit it it maketh him more earnest to pray that it may be forgiven and it maketh him more heartily thankefull when it is forgiven If any dreame of perfection Vse 1 in this life this doctrine may serve to awake them out of it for if the best men need forgivenesse daily then without question the best doe sinne daily By this it appeareth that sins Vse 2 committed after Baptisme and relapses and backesliding after conversion are pardonable else our Saviour would not have framed this petition of asking forgivenesse for the use of Peter and the rest of the Church in case of their failings And if God require that one man forgive another not onely every day but seven times in one day then God will much more forgive his children if they sinne oft in one day if they doe but confesse their sinnes and aske him forgivenesse Vse 3 This reproveth those that put off the seeking of forgivenesse of sinne either untill the hand of God be upon them Danger of deferring to obtaine forgivenesse of sinnes or untill some especiall cause of humiliation be offered then through disuse they are much to seeke for time hath caused many sinnes to be forgotten and custome of lying long in sinne doth harden the heart that it doth not distaste sinne as it might have done when it was first committed Hence for the most part commeth slight generall and confused confessions and prayers or if they set themselves more carefully to search out their sinnes it having beene long since they made their peace with God the multitude of their sinnes come so thicke
Scripture is that we should abhorre that which is evill and cleave to that which is good Rom. 12.9 Reas 1 For Iustification and Sanctification are so inseparably conjoined that no man hath his sins forgiven who hath not withall the fruit of it unto repentance and holinesse of life here in this life This I shall make evident by these arguments following 1 It is one part of the new Covenant of grace that men should be holy and for that cause God hath not onely required holiness to be shewne on their part but hath promised as well to write his Law in the hearts of his people Heb. 8.10.12 as to be mercifull to their unrighteousnesse and not to remember their sinne 2. It is one end to which God hath chosen men in Christ to be holy Eph. 1.4.5 and without blame before him in love as well as to be adopted children by Christ to obtaine everlasting life 3. It is the end of the office and comming of our Saviour Iesus Christ and of the merit and efficacy of his death resurrection and intercession not onely that beleevers should obtaine forgivenesse of sinne and everlasting life but that so many as the Father gave unto him might beleeve repent and live holily and righteously in this present world Tit. 2.14 hee purging them to himselfe to be a peculiar people zealous of good workes 4. It is the end of the Scriptures not onely to lay the foundation of faith for the remission of sinnes that through consolation thereof Ioh. 15 4. Ioh. 17.7 Eph. 5.26 beleevers might have hope but also to sanctifie and cleanse them from the filthinesse of their sinnes that they might be holy and without blemish 5. It is the end of everie Christian mans profession and calling 1. Thess 4.7 not only to beleeve and hope to be saved by Christ but also to be holy and to become the servant of Christ 6. It is the end why God sendeth his Spirit into their hearts and causeth it to dwell in his children Rom 8.16 not onely to be a spirit of adoption to witnesse to their spirits that they are Gods children but also to be a spirit of sanctification to worke out the stony heart Ezâ—k 36.26 27. and to frame in them a new heart causing them to walke in his statutes and to do them 7. It is the end of the Sacraments the seales of the new Covenant not onely to signifie and seale remission of sinnes by Iesus Christ but also that by him all that beleeve in him being ingrafted into the similitude of his death and resurrection Rom. 6.4 5 6. should dye unto sinne and walke in newnesse of life These things considered it is most apparant that justification and sanctification are never severed in one and the same partie wherefore he that prayeth for and expecteth to be justified must also pray and indeavour to approve himselfe to be sanctified A second generall reason why all Christians should pray for and labour after holinesse is because if a man be not holy and righteous in this life he is not capeable of true glory and happinesse in heaven in the life to come and that whether we respect God or a mans selfe remaining in his sinne God will not admit him let him make what claime hee can unto the kingdome of heaven his put off shall be Luk 13.27 Depart from me I know you not ye workers of iniquity For without holinesse no man shall see God Heb. 12.14 But suppose it were possible that a sinfull man might be admitted into heaven heaven would be no heaven to him The place persons and exercises there would be tedious and a vexation unto him For all things there are things of God holy and spirituall most contrarie to the disposition of a natural and carnall man 1. Cor 2.14 God saith The naturall man receiveth not the things of the Spirit of God they are foolishnesse unto him To whom Gods ordinances and presence in them as in hearing praying and praising God and to whom holy company and holy conference is tedious in this life the same heart and affections remaining even these and the like things would be an hell to them even in heaven For to make a man happy even in heaven it is needfull that the faculties and powers of his soule be so fully rectified and perfected that hee may comprehend and enjoy the object that thing wherein mans happinesse doth consist Now though Gods presence in his glory and in his goodnesse which is the object of mans happinesse is alwayes in heaven yet if the understanding the will and the affections of a man be not sanctified and thereby made capeable of and suteable to the object what content and joy can he take therein It is with the reasonable soule in the apprehension of intellectual and spiritual things as it is with the senses in bodily objects Colours though never so orient and various yet they can give no delight to a blinde or ill-affected eye Sounds though never so melodious cannot delight a deafe or ill-affected eare Meat and drink though never so well relished and delicious cannot delight him whose pallat is out of taste nay the best do savour and taste ill with such a one Even so the most spirituall things in heaven would be so farre from delighting a carnall and unholy man that they would seeme to his fancy very foolishnes and they would be to him a very vexation Vse 1 It is therefore an intolerable fault for a man to professe the name of Christ and yet to live ungodly Num. 23.10 this is the fault of too many who desire to have their sinnes forgiven but desire not to have them mortified they desire to go to heaven like cursed Balaam when they dye but endeavour not to be holy while they live But as if this were not enough to be sinfull themselves many do make a jest at all conscionable living in others and a scorne of all that endeavour to keep a good conscience in all things and yet will expect that Christ shall save them How hath the devill deceived these men yet thousands are justly given over to this strong delusion If any of you shall happen to cast your eyes on these lines consider the Doctrine in hand and learne that for certaine he that is not holy in this life shall not bee happy in the life to come For whomsoever God justifieth Rom. 6. those he sanctifieth and whosoever have faith to partake of Christs merits do by the same faith partake of the vertue of Christs death to the killing of sinne and of the vertue of his life and resurrection to the quickening of the inward man And at the day of judgement all that professe Christ and yet obey not the Gospell of Christ 2 Thes 1.8 shall be burnt in flames of Gods vengeance as well as those which know not the Gospell and professe it not at all For
sinne is deprecated and his delivering out of sinne is prayed for whence may soundly be collected this doctrine following God hath an holy over-ruling Doct. 3 and disposing hand in the temptations and evils to which men are subject Hee can and doth restraine or give men up unto temptation he delivereth from sinne and out of sinne or suffereth men to fall into and lye in sinne even as in the holy wisedome of his soveraigntie it shall please him And this he doth and may doe without any the least touch staine or impeachment of his holinesse or being any way properly the author of any sinne as shall further appeare in the handling of this point Gen. 45.8.50.20 Exod. 14.4 The envious practises of Josephs brethren against him The hardening of Pharaohs heart Elies sonnes not harkening to the voice of their father 1 Sa. 2.25 Shemeâ—â— cursing of David 2 Sa. 16.10 The putting of a lying spirit in the mouth of Ahabs Prophets 1 Kin 22.23 The deceiving of those Prophets of the Idolaters mentioned in Ezekiel Ezek. 14 9 The blinding of the eyes Ioh. 12.40 and hardening of the hearts of the Pharisies Rom. 1.26 The giving up of the Gentiles to vile affections And the sending of strong delusion to those which receive not the love of the truth 2 Thes 2.11 All these that I may speak as the Scripture speaketh were of God or from the Lord which things though sinfull are said to be of God and hee speaketh as if he took all to himselfe not for that hee worketh them by an immediate hand of his providence For this were to make God the principall author of sinne which to conceive is blasphemy but because in those things hee permitteth something doth something and doth order and determine all things thereabout God before all times decreed Reas 1 what things should come to passe in time not onely all the good things that should come to passe by his working but also all the evil things that should come to passe by his permission The sinfull conspiracie of Herod and Pontius Pilate Act. 2.23 with the Iewes and Gentiles in putting Christ to death was no other Act. 4.27.28 then what Gods hand and counsell determined before to be done Reas 2 Gods providence and power is present to support and sustain in their naturall life strength all tempters to evill Act. 17.28 all actors of evill in his concourse to the substance of their acts Reas 3 God doth restraine chaâ—â—â— up Satan Iob. 1.12 Iob. 2.6 Psal 81.12 wicked men and a mans own evill heart or letteth them loose permitteth them to tempt even as he will Reas 4 God doth present when hee pleaseth such objects whereâ—â— a man through his owne corruption may stumble or be allured to fall into sinne The administration of certaine occasions and opportunities to sinne is often from God Reas 5 The Lord doth refuse to give his Spirit Mat. 13.11 1 Cor. 2.8.10.14 Deut. 29.4.5 without which no man can resist the first temptation or recover himselfe out of the least sinne or else doth 〈◊〉 it both to whom he will and when he will at his pleasure The Lord when he pleaseth Reas 6 doth withdraw his ordinary restraining and common graces and gifts of the minde whereby he suspendeth those powers of the soule which if they were not suspended might discerne betweene truth and falshood and betweene good and evill Rom. 1.28 he giveth many over to a reprobate minde to a minde void of judgement from whence vainnesse of imagination darkenesse of the understanding blindnesse of minde and hardnesse of heart doe follow as certainely as the darkenesse of the ayre doth follow the setting of the Sunne in the firmament God according as he pleaseth Reas 7 doth limit the sinnes of men both to the time when and to their bounds how farre and no farther Last of all God hath an hand Reas 8 of direction and ordering of mens sinnes ordering them in the manner of committing of them and directing them to their set object and to such good ends as he in his wisdome pleaseth Thus it is evident that God hath a hand in the temptations and sinnes of men Now that he is not blame-worthie or any way a cause of their sinne shall further be cleared For which cause let us consider these five things 1 First what God is in himselfe and in respect of man 2 How farre onely and no farther God hath a hand in mens sinnes 3 What acts come betweene Gods actions touching the action which is sinfull and the immediate act of sinne as it is sinfull 4 What are the ends that God proposeth and attaineth in those his actions 5 How God standeth affected to sinne both before and after it is committed 1 Consider first that God is holinesse it selfe his nature doth not admit of any possibility of erring Gen. 18.25 Heb. 6.18 or of doing any thing which is not holy equall good God is under no Law himselfe is his owne Law whatsoever therefore he doth according to the counsell of his owne will cannot be faultie Now Eph. 1.11 God doth all things according to the counsell of his will Moreover God is the Creator man is his creature God is an absolute Soveraigne no way bound to man to do him good or to preserve him from evill except he please to give him a promise He is so absolute that he needeth not give account to man of his actions nay Iob 33.13 because man when God had made him good did fall by his owne evil inventions or devices Eccles 7.29 he hath deserved that God should do him no good at all but that he should punish him with all evill Wherefore why may not his will be reason and equity enough why he will chuse some to be vessels of mercie and reject others to be vessels of wrath Rom. 9.18.19.20.21 and to dispose of all things concerning them that being left to themselves and to manifold temptations they shal worke out their owne damnation 2 If we consider how farre God worketh in evill all that can bee said that God doth in respect of sinne may as I suppose bee referred unto thoâ—e things mentioned in the reasoâ—â— of the point scil His decree His support of the actors and concurrance of his power to the substance of the act of sinne His permission His proposing of external objects His forbearing to give his sanctifying Spirit His withdrawing his common gifts of his Spirit whereby the powers of the soule become suspended and do cease to doe those good offices for man which else they might do His limitation of sinne and lastly His ordering of sinne to serve his owne ends as he pleaseth Now touching the counsell and decree of God to permit sinne and then for to leave man hardened in his sinne and last of all to punish him eternally for sinne no man hath cause to
inwardly hee was more disposed and better accommodated to obedience then to disobedience being made of an holy disposition within and having the commandement of God from without yea an easie commandment given to Adam for his greatest good and that from that God who had newly made him after his owne likenesse and had made all the world for him Wherein now was God wanting in any thing towards Adam which hee ought to have done for him Man now being fallen not through any fault in God for God made him good but they sought out many inventions Eccl. 7.29 which caused their fall that God should elect whom he will in Christ to give them grace and according to their grace to give them eternall glory and on the other side that God shall reprobate others whom he will and leave them in their sinnes and for their sinnes to punish them with eternall death who can justly complaine or except against it If any man cannot fully comprehend these things and satisfie his owne reason herein yet he is to beleeve that it is so For this is an object of our faith rather then of dispute how it can be It is sufficient that the Scriptures say it is so That saying of the Apostle O man that art a man of a shallow reach and apprehension that art a creature and now art a sinfull creature who art thou that repliest against God Hath not the Potter power over the clay to make of the same lumpe one vessell to honour another unto dishonour Rom. 9.20.21 This should satisfie every Christian in this point Secondly that God by an act of his providence and power upholdeth the tempters and tempted giving them life and strength for action this is not subject to exception for herein man is much beholding unto God for that in and by him Act. 17.28 he doth live move and hath a being Thirdly hee by an act of his soveraignty doth let loose Satan and doth not hinder the tempter from tempting Qui cum possit non prohibâ—t â—ubet Indeed amongst men hee that doth not hinder evill when he may hinder it becommeth accessarie and is saâ—â—tie but this is because the law of nature and the law of God requireth that no man shall suffer his neighbour to be hurt or indamaged if hee can hinder in but the absolute Lord God is not tyed in any such bond unto his creature no not before Adams fall much lesse sineâ— Fourthly God doth sometimâ—â— by an act of his wisedome propose some object whereby oâ—casion of sinne may be taken 〈◊〉 Bathsheba's washing her seâ—â—e was ministred unto Davids sight and the wedge of gold Babilonish garment by Gods providence was presented to the covetous eye of Achan and this he doth to discover what is in mans heart and why may he not We think we may laysome siluer or sweetmeats in fit places here there to try our servants or childrens fidelity may not God doe the like much rather Fiftly he forbeareth to give saving grace but whom doth he wrong herein sith hee is not bound to give grace to any man Sixtly God doth by an act of his justice giving up a sinner to a further degree of sinne doth withdraw those gifts of the minde which once he gave which thing hee hath just cause to do if he please for what man hath not by his sinne deserved this punishment If a man abuse his hand why may not God wither it 1 Kin. 13.4 as he did Jeroboam's We hold this to bee good justice and is it not as good justice that those that have abused their powers of imagination of understanding and of discerning things that differ should bee punished by being deprived of the right use of them There is no lesse holy justice in this latter than in the former Lastly that God doth limit sinne for time and measure as he did the sinnes of the Romans for the elects sake Mat. 24.22 and that hee doth direct them to good ends as hee did the sinne of Ioseph's brethen in selling their brother Gen. 50.20 and sending him into Egypt for the good of Iacob and all his family here is matter of praise and glory to God no matter of exception against God If God act no further in sinne than hath beenâ— said I hope it is manifest that hee may act thus farre and 〈◊〉 bee innocent Now God haâ—â— no further act in sinne Iam. 1.13 he tempteth no man Hee is no agent in sinne as it is a sinfull act for he doth not entice or solicite unto sinne he doth not incline mans will unto sinne by infusing or putting into it any evill which was not there before but only leaveth man to the temptations of his owne lusts the lusts of the world and of the devill The third thing considerable is what acts come betweene Gods act and the act of sinne or who are the immediate and proper actors of sinne as it is sin These agents and acts are either externall or internall the externall are the suggestions of Satan and the evill motions of men which propose entice and perswade unto evill the internall is a mans owne evill heart upon which the most blame doth lie For then a man is tempted saith Iames Iam. 1.14 when hee is drawne away by his owne lusts and is enticed Wherefore in those sinnes in which God is said to have most to do the fault was laid upon the person that wrought himselfe unto evill as upon the proper cause when still God is cleered As where God is said to harden Pharaoh's heart Exod. 7.3 the true and proper hardner was Pharaoh himselfe for so saith Moses When Pharaoh saw that there was respite he that is Pharaoh harned his heart Exod. 8.15 And whereas it is said God gave the Romans up to uncleannesse their acts of uncleannesse did not follow as properly caused by any act of God but from a cause in themselves for so hee saith Rom. 1.24 the dishonoring their owne bodies was through the lusts of their owne hearts Sinne is a concrete compounded of two things of the fact and of the obliquity of the fact wee 〈◊〉 distinguish betweene the â—â—stance of the act and the forâ—â— thereof wherein the sinfulnesse of the act doth lie God hee is a cause concurring to the substance of the act he concurreth not to the sinfulnesse of the act but onely denieth his grace which if he would have vouchsafed to bestow it would have hindered it which grace hee is not bound to give to any It was enough that hee gave a sufficient grace to Adam to stand if hee would So that wee may truly avouch that the devill or man that enticeth another or a mans owne selfe that enticeth himselfe Deus est ordinator uon author peccati are the true causes and authors of sinne but not the Lord who hath only a permitting an overruling and disposing hand in sinne as is is sin The
fourth thing to bee considered is the end which God proposeth and attaineth by permitting and ordering of the sinnes of men far different from those which men propose in committing of them which ends are holy good namely to set forth his owne glory and that many wayes as by discovering the impotency of the creature what need it hath to depend upon the creator for that man though perfect yet could not stand for want of a speciall grace to support him also to manifest his owne freedome and absolutenesse over his creature besides that his wisdome saw that permitting sinne in such a way as could no way impeach his holinesse it would make way for the manifestation of his power in his infinite grace and mercy mixed with justice towards some and in his infinite justice towards others This hee did not that he could not glorify himselfe otherwise but for that in his holy wisdome he held it fitteâ—â—â—o glorify himselfe thus But the end of the proper causes of sin is alwayes naught namely envy against man and malice against God was the cause why Satan tempted man to sinne the satisfying of some vile lust is the cause why man enticeth and is enticed unto sinne Why might not God first permit sinne to be in the world that so a cleere way might bee made to the manifestation of his holinesse in hatred of sinne and in his just revenge upon sinners in which respect though sinne was no way good in acting yet it was good that it should be acted And since the fall his end of giving up the wicked unto abhominable sins is to shew his displeasure in his righteous punishing of one sinne with another for this hee holdeth to bee a meet and equall punishment as he saith of the Romans Rom. 1.17 They received in themselves that recompence of their errour aâ— waâ— meete He doth thus dispose of their sinnes that it may also appeare that he hath just cause to damne them at the day of judgement Wherfore though sinne be evill yeâ— the punishment of sinne is 〈◊〉 evill but exceeding good The ends of the Lords permitting and disposing of the temptations and sinnes of the elect are manifold First at the first his permission of sinne to bee through mans fault made way for an object of his mercy since the fall he permitteth hiâ— owne people to be tempted unto sinne to shew his wisedome and power in sustaining theâ— that they do not fall into evill notwithstanding the subtilty of Satan and the dâ—ceitfulnesse of their owne heart or if they 〈◊〉 into sinne he suffereth it that he might shew his grace and mercie in forgiving and his almightie power in rescuing and delivering them out of the power of sinne Also God oftentimes suffereth his owne children to commit some great sinne that hee might discover unto them which do commit it that wickednes of heart which they would never else have acknowledged to be in them And this God doth that he might cure them of their diseases of sinne doing like a skilfull Physitian let them fall into one disease to cure them of a greater as they say they will cast a man into a burning ague to cure him of his Lethargie or like as a cunning Surgeon can gather dispersed humors unto an head and there make an issue whereas he may let out that corruption which otherwise could not be drawne forth even so God by suffering his children to fall into some great sinne letteth out that securitie and pride which else would not be cured and worketh that humiliation repentance and care to shunne sinne afterwards which would not else have beene wrought in them Seeing therefore God hath such good ends moving him to permit sinne and to dispose of it in manner as hath been said he is to be cleared from all imputation of faultinesse in all that he hath to do in the sinnes of men The last thing to be considered is how God standeth affected unto sinne Touching which be it knowne that he hateth it perfectly as it is sinne for he forbiddeth it before it be done he never approveth of it by his approving will when it is done yea he is so displeased with it that he never letteth it go unpunished after it is committed for he hath punished it in Christ for the elect and is daily in punishing of it and reserveth it to bee eternally punished by hell-fire upon the reprobate Thus Gods holinesse is every way cleared though he permitteth sinne and hath an over-ruling hand in mens sinnes God is the cause of the action which is the matter of sinne Ob. therefore of the sinne Here is no sound consequence Sol. for as sinne is an action and is an effect of God it is good and is no sinne Peccatum est defectus nou effectus but sinne is sinne as it is a defect and failing in the action swarving from the rule of righteousnesse which is not caused by God nor by any cause which hath any direct subordination from God the chiefe cause of all things God disposeth of sinne Ob. and worketh in sinne therefore in some respect an author of it Sinne hath reference unto God as it is an object Sol. or subject wherein or whereupon hee worketh disposing it to his own holy ends but it never hath reference unto God as the effect hath to the efficient cause Peccatum quà peccatum est objectum operis nbâ— opus Dei to be wrought by him therefore it doth not follow because he hath a worke concerning it or in it therefore he is a cause of it so long as it cannot be said he doth worke it Ob. God is a cause without which sinne could not be therefore a cause of sinne after a sort Sol. Grant that wirhout God sin could not be yet he is in no sort a cause for this kinde of cause which is called sine qua non is 〈◊〉 truth no cause And all that caâ— be yeelded is that God is onely a cause by accident now causâ—â— by accident are properly no causes No wise man will say the warmth of the Sunne is a true cause of the stinke of carrion which doth not stinke untill the Sunne did shine upon it the cause of the stinke is in the 〈◊〉 thy corrupt matter of the carrion not in the warmth of the Sunne for the same Sunne shining at the same time upon violets occasioneth a sweet smell The Scripture doth seeme to say plainly Ob. that the cause of some mens sinnes have beene of God 1. King 12.15 The King hearkened not to the people for the cause was of God Now in not hearkening to them the King sinned Cause Sol. in that place doth not signifie the proper effecting of a thing causally but a disposing of the proper causes so as they did produce this effect God left Rehoboam to his evill heart and suffered the young counsellours to give counsell according to the pride of their owne hearts by which meanes it
came to passe that Rehoboam sinned the infatuating of Rehoboam who was of himselfe partially and corruptly affected towards his young Councellours and the not putting of wisedome into Rehoboams greene head was of God but that Rehoboam made choice of the worst counsel that was a most free act of his owne Now Gods hand was in the disposing of these things that the thing before prophesied might come to passe Thus much the word translated cause doth signifie scil the thing brought about or brought to passe was from God This act of not hearkening must be considered in divers respects First as an evill act of Rehoboam and his evill Councellours in this respect God did not cause it Secondly it must be considered as a meet punishment of that kingdome and as a means to bring to passe the prophesie of Ahijah in which respect that God in justice should leave Rehoboam and his young Councellours to their folly and to the pride of their owne hearts it was good and was caused of God Thus it may appeare as I hope that God hath an over-ruling and disposing hand in mens sinnes without being author of sinne and without any impeachment of his-holinesse The uses follow They are therefore to blame Vse 1 that alter the forme of this petition saying Suffer us not to be led in stead of Leade us not Their end may bee good but their alteration is naught and to no purpose for in truth this change of words doth not cleare Gods justice any more then Christs owne words Let the petition therefore remaine and stand holy as it is set down by Christ for it is presumption to teach Christ how to speake This our tenent is an apology Vse 2 against Papists or any other that shall slanderously affirme that we hold either directly or by consequent that God is the author of sinne although wee say as this petition teacheth us that God leadeth into temptation and hath more to do in the sinnes of men then a bare permission Vse 3 This should cause all men to admire and magnifie the infinit wisedome and perfection of Gods holinesse that can have so much to do with sinners and with their sinnes and yet there doth not so much as one dust or spot of defilement cleave unto him Vse 4 Hereby are condemned the blasphemies of very many who to excuse or lessen their sin will lay the fault on God because Gods determinate counsell hiâ— providence power permission and his giving men over is in their sin and because he might have hindered it if he would therefore they thinke they cannot chuse but sinne and why should fault bee found with them if God would it shouâ—â— be otherwise Such are brought in objecting Rom. 9. Who hath resisted his will Why doth he yet finde fault This they take from Adam who before his conversion would have laid the fault on God rather then take it on himselfe for he saith Gen. 3.12 The woman whom thou gavest to be wiih me she gave me of the tree and I did eate But take notice that although he thus extenuated his sinne by laying it on God yet God could Gen. 3.17 and did curse Adam and the earth the bitter fruits whereof we feele unto this day Know therefore thou that any way darest put off thy sin upon God if thou do not beleeve in Christ and forsake thy sinne the Lord will one day shew to thy cost that he can bring it about that thou through thine owne evill heart shalt sinne he giving thee over unto it and yet can in holy justice cast thee into hell for thy sinne For he can say he deceived the false Prophet and yet justly punish the said Prophet and all that are deceived by him Ezek. 14.9 10. Vse 5 May God if he please leade into temptation and can we not be overcome by temptation except the Lord permit This should teach all men to live so that God may be their friend and may not be provoked in his justice to give them over to the power of the devill and unto their owne lusts For which cause observe and keepe these directions following 1 First make your peace with God by faith in Christ repent of all sinnes past and having hereby obtained friendship with God then keepe it by being good before him which is then approved when you shall endevour to please him by doing his will in time to come which if ye do for this is to be good before God or to please God then you shall escape the snares and nets the hands and bands of the most enticing harlot in the world the like may be said of all other temptations but the sinner saith Solomon shall be taken by her Eccles 7. 2 As much as in you is abstaine from all sinne for since mans fall Gods giving over unto sinne is a punishment for some former sinne but especially shunne those particular sins for which God doth in speciall sort give men over the chiefe whereof are these following 1 First all refusing 2 Thess 2.10.11 or a slight and formall receiving of the truth For this causeth God to send men strong delusion to beleeve a lye 2 Abusing or not making right use of that knowledge a man hath Rom. 1 21.22 23 24 26 28. doth cause God to infatuate and give him over to vile affections 3 A willingnesse of heart to be ignorant of the truth and a wilfulnesse to practise evill for of such saith the Lord Ezek. 14.4 He that setteth up his idols in his heaâ—â— and cometh to the Prophet I the Lord will answer him that commeth according to the multitude of his idols 4 Presumption of a mans owne power of himselfe to resist temptations Matth. 26.33 34. for this cause the Apostle Peter was given over to fall so fearfully 5 All willing casting of ones selfe into the occasions of sinne for this cause Jehoshaphat's familiaritie with Ahab 1. Kin. 22. caused him to be given over to beleeve Ahabs false Prophets rather then good Micaiah 6 Idlenesse to live without a calling or negligently in a calling Ezek. 16.49 doth expose a man unto the Lords giving him over unto many abhominations for this he gave over Sodom to uncleannes 7 Allowance of secret sinnes this provoketh God many times to give men over unto some grosse open sinne that it may worke sense of sinne shame for sinne and true repentance in the elect may worke unto shame and eternall perdition of the reprobate Shun all sinnes therefore as much as in you lyeth if you would not have God leade you into temptation but especially take heed of those before mentioned Let all that beleeve in Christ and have thereby true interest Vse 5 in God draw comfort from this doctrine for God you see hath an overruling hand in the temptations and the sins of all men Satan therefore cannot winnow us nor buffet us no Luk. 2â— 31 he cannot touch us but as
Whence we learne Whosoever would be preserved Doct. 6 from sinne must pray against and withstand the temptations thereof Hee that is not warie and carefull to resist temptations cannot live godly The divell did deceive Eve through his temptations Gen. 3. and Adam was likewise drawne into the transgression by the temptation of Eve Math. 4. whereas Christ Jesus the second Adam by resisting the divels temptations preserved himselfe from sinne The youth spoken of in the Proverbs was caught and insnared by the subtill temptations of the harlot Pro. 7.10.21 But Ioseph by resisting the temptations of his Mistrisse Gen. 39.9 kept himselfe chaste although her temptations were cunning and most importunate Christ saith again and againe Pray that ye enter not into temptation Luk. 22.40.46 Reas 1 For temptations and motions to sinne are the very seede and kernels of sinne which if they may be entertained so as they may but receive any warmth in a mans heart there is presently a conception of sin which will cause him to bee in labour and travaile of it untill he have brought it forth into act Iam. 1.14.15 There are no creatures so apt to beare issue nor ground so ranke to beare weeds no tinder or gunpowder so readie to take fire as the heart of man is to conceive sinne and be inflamed with lust by evill motions and temptations wherefore all that would avoid sinne have cause to resist it in the temptation To resist beginnings of the evill of sinne Obsta principijs is as needefull to be observed for a rule against diseases of the soule as to withstand evils of paine in their beginning is needefull in diseases of the body Hereby wee may judge what is the cause that sinnes doe abound Vse 1 and spread infinitely It is because temptations are not resisted which fault deserveth sharpe rebuke Yea many are so farre from praying against temptations that they willingly foster and nourish any that shall be offered and like him in the parable doe sweepe and garnish their hearts Mat. 22.44 opening the dores and making it ready prepared to entertaine any temptation They contrary to the Apostles command make provision for the flesh to fulfill the lusts thereof Rom. 13.14 still thinking and plodding on wealth or feeding themselves with high thoughts or are alwaies hunting after unlawfull pleasure running alwaies into those actions places and companies which minister most occasions of temptations Insomuch that the divell and lust are not more ready to present evill motions then the minde is to plot and contrive how to compasse them Micah 2.1.2 or then the hand is to act them yet these men will mocke God and say Leade us not into temptation And if they be exhorted to avoid the occasions of temptations they set light by it and would make us beleeve they are not so simple as to be taken with idolatrie covetousnesse whoredome drunkennes pride revenge or any such like crime although they keepe company with idolatrous or covetous or voluptuous or vaineglorious persons Yea if we would beleeve them they can wallow in the midst of occasions of sinne and yet come forth undefiled Let a man husband his heart as well as he can and let him sow into it the best seed he can get yet he shall finde that too many lusts will of their owne accord spring up hinder the growth of godlinesse in him We count them ill husbands that will not weede their land but if wee should see men plowing and sowing nothing but all manner of weedes would wee not say they were out of their wits Such mad men are all those that nourish in them temptations unto evill But what men sow or suffer to be sowne that they shall reape Prov. 22.8 If they sow wickednesse they shall reape vanitie At harvest when others shall have corne they shall bee sent empty away When in the day of the Lord the good Wheate shall be saved the wicked with their lusts shall bee cast into a fornace of fire Mat. 13.41.42 Vse 2 Would any therefore not be the breeders and nurses to those evils which will like vipers kill all that doe bring them forth Let them take heed of temptations which beget them Wee must be carefull to shun all occasions of sinne for it is much easier to avoid the occasion then running into the occasion to avoid the sinne Occasions and tentations are snares it is much easier to avoid a snare then being intangled to get out of it Let us al therfore watch pray that we fall not into them But it is doubted by some that it is not lawfull to pray against being tempted thinking it lawfull onely to pray that they may not be overcome of the temptation I answer I doubt not but the very temptation it selfe as it is a motion and enticement unto sinne is to be prayed against also For the Apostle Paul did not onely pray to overcome the pricke of the flesh and buffettings of Satan 2 Cor. 22.7.8 but that it might depart from him And why may not a man desire not to meet at al with those his enemies which seeke his life as well as when they assault him desire to quit himselfe of them I confesse request must be made for the one and the other with some difference When we pray that wee may not be tempted it is always under correction not absolute but if it might stand with Gods will and pleasure wee desire to runne the race of Christianitie without meeting with stumbling blockes or any occasions of our stay or turning out of the way but if God will have us meete with these impediments we pray absolutely that we may passe over them and not be let or turned out of the way by them And if he will that wee must enter into the conflict we pray that we may overcome Now because resisting of temptations is of great consequent it wil be worth the pains to consider these foure things First what is a temptation Secondly who are the tempters Thirdly how they tempt Fourthly how a temptation may be resisted 1 Temptation is any and every motion unto the doing of any thing which God hath forbidden in his word or to the leaving undone any thing that God hath commanded or to do any thing otherwise then God hath commanded When a thought of any evill is presented to the minde to be done this is a temptation 2 The tempters are Satan called the tempter Matth. 4.3 Iam. 2 14. and men with whom we converse when they move others to sinne and also the lusts of our owne evill hearts 3 These tempters doe move a man to sinne by presenting unto the minde thoughts of sinne to be committed by him The divell by his suggestions as hee did to David putting him in minde to number the people 1 Chro 2.21.1 Man tempteth by speech or some outward signe whereby he giveth a man to thinke what evill
unto the end thereof that in the end we may with firme remembrance of what hath been spoken and with good advisement redouble our desires and testifie our hope of audience when we say Amen Thus to pray is to pray in the spirit Amen In saying Amen a man repeateth and redoubleth his desire as if he said What I have desired I do againe and againe desire and wish it may bee so Whence note Doct. 3 There ought to be an holy fervor and earnestnesse in prayer Good King Hezekiah shewed his earnestnesse when hee said Encline thine eare O Lord and heare open thine eyes O Lord and see Isaiah 37.17 Daniel is likewise earnest when hee saith O Lord heare O Lord forgive O Lord hearken and doe deferre not for thy names sake Dan. 9.19 Aske seeke knock saith our Saviour Matth. 7.7 Those prayers which prevaile with God are called effectuall fervent prayers Iam. 5.16 For when a man is fervent Reas 1 in prayer it argueth that a man is sensible of what he doth aske and that hee is unfained in his asking It argueth that hee hath faith Reas 2 and hope to obtaine what hee asketh Mat. 15 22 25.2â— as it did the faith of the woman of Canaan The evils to bee prayed against Reas 3 are so extremely hurtfull and things to bee prayed for such as grace and glory are so excellent and so exceeding needfull that it concerneth men to be earnest God only can heare and help Reas 4 if he help not we perish good reason therfore why we should be urgent with him Reas 5 The more fervent any man is in requests the more hearty hee will be in thanksgiving Vse 1 This reproveth the faintnesse of the prayers of many persons who put up onely slender and single requsts unto God without redoubling or seconding them with pertinent repetitions or hearty adding of Amen to their requests which argueth that either they have no hearty desires of that they aske or they have little hope to speed both which faylings in prayer do much displease God Vse 2 Let all therefore that are to come before God in prayer not onely pray with understanding and in the spirit but with fervency of spirit Luk. 18.1.2 Christ teacheth this by the parable of the importunate widow and unjust Iudge for by importunity and earnestnesse she prevailed even with him Wherefore if wee would importune the righteous and most gracious God wee should prevaile much more This fervency commendeth and giveth force to our prayers yea though they bee utterred but with unperfect speech and inward grones more than the most fine phrases and most choice words that can be uttered if fervor be absent Amen doth also expresse that perswasion of faith and hope which hee that prayeth hath to obtaine his requests Whence we learne Whosoever prayeth aright Doct. 4 must beleeve and expect that he shall have his prayers granted This same Christ himselfe teacheth saying What things soever ye desire when yee pray beleeve that yee receive them and ye shall have them Mar. 11.24 The Apostle would have men pray every where without doubting 1. Tim. 2.8 John saith This is the confidence that wee have in God that if we aske any thing according to his will hee heareth us 1. Ioh. 5.14 Reas 1 Because whosoever asketh aright asketh onely those things which are lawfull and according to the will of God Therefore may expect to have them granted Reas 2 God hath peomised to grant the petitions of them that pray unto him saying Aske and it shall be given you Matth. 7.7 Our Saviour saith If ye abide in me and my words abide in you ye shall aske what ye will and it shall be done unto you Ioh. 15.7 Yea the promise is made with condition of beleeving that they shall obtaine therefore they must beleeve for Christ saith All things whatsoever ye shall aske in prayer beleeving ye shall receive Matt. 21.22 Reas 3 All which pray aright do aske the Father in the name of Christ Rev. 8 3. who is that Angel which hath much incense which hee doth offer with the prayers of the Saints thereby making them acceptable who hath by his word given all men assurance that whatsoever they shall aske the Father in his name he will give it Ioh. 16.23 This discovereth the sinne of Vse 1 many who notwithstanding they pray daily yet they are full of doubt and do not beleeve that God doth heare or grant their requests Nay many will say that it is not their case onely for they do heare many complaine that their prayers are not granted How can we beleeve that our prayers are or can be granted To such I answer Let not Satan and a misguided judgement deceive you For First the cause may bee in your selves that you are not heard Secondly though God do not take any exception against your person or praier but liketh both well yet in his wisedome he may see cause why hee will not grant your desire Thirdly God may heare and grant your petition when yet you may thinke that you are not heard Fourthly God may for good causes oft-times deferre the granting of your requests which must not be accounted for a deniall If the fault be in your selfe either through the faultinesse of your person or action in prayer then God of purpose forbeareth to grant your prayer not because he heareth not but because he would have you to amend what was amisse both in your selfe and in your prayer To qualifie a mans person that hee may have his prayer heard it is requisite 1. that he be the true childe of God that he be ingrafted into Christ by faith and that hee abide in Christ and have his word dwelling in him For Abide in me Ioh. 15.7 saith our Saviour and let my word abide in you ye shall aske what you will and it shall bee done unto you Or 2. if a man indeed be regenerate Psal 66.18 yet if hee regard any particular knowne iniquitie in his heart and if hee lye in any grosse sinne unrepented of the Lord hath cause not to heare for this sinne as a thicke cloud Lam. 3.40.42.44 causeth that his prayer as Jeremie saith cannot passe through 3. He that would himselfe be heard of God and have God to forgive him must be one that hath put on bowels of mercie Col 3.13 Mat. 6.14 and kindnesse and readinesse to give unto and to forgive his brother at his request else how can hee thinke that God will heare him Matth. 18.32.33.35 so as either to give unto him or to forgive him 4. It is requisite that hee which would have his new petitions granted should first be thankfull for former and for old mercies received else this may be a sufficient barre to the granting of new requests 5. He that would obtaine his petitions must be readie prest and be industrious in using those means wherein and whereby the good thing asked is by