get not because they aske not or aske amisse Obiect But some man may obiect here what neede men aske and pray for repentance seeing God giueth it to many not asking as hee gaue it to Paul and others Answ I answere that this is no dispensation to free any man from this dutie It being a sinne for a man not to pray for the things which he is bound to haue though God then doe giue him them vndesired yet is hee to bee humbled in soule when he hath them for not praying for them And so no doubt they were that truly repented Besides Gods extraordinarie dealing is no rule for ordinarie things nor any warrant for a man to neglect ordinary meanes As it is no warrant for a man to neglect prouision for his life because the Lord extraordinarily fed the Prophet by rauens Yea rather men should thus inferre that if to them hee gaue it not seeking it and if hee was found of thē that sought him not how much more will he be found of those who seeke him and giue to those who aske it of him Vse 2. The second vse is to perswade men to vse this meanes by which they may thus obtaine repentance or renew it not onely to frequent the hearing of the word which is one meanes by which this may be wrought in them but feruently also to call vpon God who is powerfull by his word that it may be effectuall hereto and that hee would turne their hearts and doe that which is his proper glorious worke namely to drop into them his grace which may mollifie their stony hearts and to quicken their soules being cleane dead in sinne And this ought they to doe not seldome or coldly or negligently but often with vehemencie of affection and with all importunitie giuing no rest night nor day to themselues or to God till they haue obtained their desire For this importunitie how it will preuaile Christ sheweth in Saint Lukes Gospell by the parable of the vnrighteous Iudge Luke 18.5 which though hee feared not God nor reuerenced man yet because the widow troubled him by her importunitie hee would dee her right And to whet them on they ought to labour to see their want of it by reason of their owne sinfull and wretched estate together with their inabilitie to performe it of themselues who cannot make one haire white or blacke nor remooue any wrinkle from their faces much lesse change their soules They may be able to pray to God as Augustine did August Confess lib. 1. cap. 5. Augusta est domus animae meae que venias ad eam dilatetur abs te ruinesa est refice cam c. The house of my soule is very little how canst thou come vnto her doe thou therefore inlarge it It is very ruinous doe thou repaire it It hath many things which may offend thy holie eies I confesse and know it but who shall elense it or to whom rather should I pray then vnto thee Specially seeing the holy man Iob saith Iob 14.4 Who can make it cleane that commeth of an vncleane thing As if he said no man And yet Dauid saith to God Psalm 51.27 Wash me thorowlie from mine iniquitie and clense me from my sinne And againe Purge me with hyssope and I shall be cleane wash mee and I shall be whiter then snow And hee that shall thus pray shall obtaine hee that shall thus wrestle with God shall vndoubtedly ouercome For if men who are sillie wormes stand so much vpon their honour that they thinke it a disgrace that any man should say that hee had in vaine asked helpe at their hands as we reade of the Senators of Rome in old time Shall not God who is as able as the richest and as willing to giue as the frankest yea and hath as great care of his glorie as any man hath of his worldly worship and renowne thinke it a disgrace that any man should goe from him with this discomfort say I haue in vaine afflicted my soule humbled my selfe at his footstoole repaired to the place of his presence and called vpon him faithfully can get nothing And the rather shuld we thus frequently pray because God hath so often granted grace to men euen whilest they asked it and doth touch their hearts and soules by his spirit in the very instant while they are thus exercised in earnest prayer For as the Smith striketh the iron while it is hot or fit to receiue any forme or impression so God although hee could imprint his grace in the coldest and hardest heart or most flintie disposition yet hee rather doth it when the affections are stirred vp by hearing of the word publike praier or by some priuate Christian exercise of reading singing praying and such like and then chiefly sendeth hee his spirit and worketh and thereby conuaieth grace vnto men Therefore there should bee more care had in comming to the publike assemblies of the Church and praiers thereof and in stirring vp our affections to pray vnto God seeing at that time especially he giueth grace vnto men and if we be not wanting to our selues he will not be wanting vnto vs. He then that reiecteth these goeth on carelesly and negligently if God doe not giue him repentance but leaue him in the blindnes and hardnes of his owne hart he hath none to accuse but himselfe And thus much for the efficient causes of repentance whether principall or instrumentall without vs or within vs or from vs. The finall cause of repentance Gods glorie and a mans owne good Now we must proceed to the finall cause and end of repentance which is principally the glory of God and then the good of the repentant either temporall or spirituall either present or to come as the remoueall and preuenting of punishment or procuring of some good as earthly blessings and eternall happines I say all men ought to confesse their sinnes and humble themselues condēning all their waies in the sight of God and studie and labour for the mortification of the flesh and true regeneration that they may glorifie God by that change and new life and procure good to themselues spiritual and corporall temporall eternall Which is manifest by that in the book of Ioshua Ioshua 7.19 whē as Achan had sinned Ioshua biddeth him giue glorie to God confesse his sin And the Apostle Paul saith in the Epistle to the Romans Rom. 3.23 They haue all sinned and are depriued of the glorie of God as if he had said they are depriued of that by which God is glorified And if we consider of repentance as it is beneficial vnto mā S. Iohn saith Matth. 2.7 that repentance auoideth iudgements to come So they that heard Peter preach were such as by repētance did auoid the iudgement to come And our Sauiour Christ saith Luke 13.3.5 Except ye repent ye shall all likewise perish where he noteth that
marke for the price of the high calling of God in Christ Iesus And thus much may suffice for the parts of repentance in the next place wee must proceed to the causes of it Chrysostome hauing made three sermons vpon this matter of repentance beginneth the fourth thus Assiduè in eaâ—… c. Chrysost hom 4. de poenit It is the continuall cust ome of shepheads to turne their sheepe into those pastures where they see the grasse is long and plenteous and thence not to drine them before they haue eaten vp all Whom wee will imitate and this fourth day also feede our sheepe in this pusture of repentance and wee will not begin any other matter for the place affordeth much prosit verie much fruit and withall great store of ioy and comfort As that Father imitated those shepheards so will I follow his example and walke in his steps continuing in this fruitfull necessarie and comfortable matter till I haue communicated the whole vnto you The causes of repentance I must proceede then I say in the next place to the causes of repentance or of this change and conuersion namely to the efficient cause and finall for of the matter and forme hath been spoken in the description And first of the efficient which is either principall or instrumentall The first is God the second is either without man to wit the word or within him his faith or comming from him his prayer The efficient and principall cause of repentance is God For the first which is the principall efficient it is God he is the author of mans repentance and his conuersion whatsoeuer meanes may be vsed and applied for that purpose yet is he the principall worker of it in the heart of man For proose hereof wee know the speech of Ephraim Ierem. 31.18 Conuert thou me and I shall be conuerted Where she acknowledgeth God to be the author of her conuersion So like wise that honour was giuen vnto Christ that hee should giue repentance and remission of sinnes vnto men For so saith Peter of him Acts 5.31 That God had lift him vp with his right hand to bee a Prince and a Sauiour to giue repentance to Israel and forgiuenes of sinnes Likewise when Peter had shewed vnto the people the vision that he saw and the mercie that God shewed vnto the Gentiles Acts 2.28 They all glorified God saying Then hath God also to the Gentiles granted repentance vnto life Hence is that of Paul to Timothie Instruct them saith he 2. Tim. 2.25 with meekâ—…esse that are contrarie minded prâ—oâ—ing of at any time God will giue them repentance c. So Noah prayed Gen. 9.27 God perswade Iaphet to dwel in the 〈◊〉 of Shem. That is God conuert his heart that he may be of the Church and not of the wicked Also it was the Acts. 16.14 Lord that opened the heart of Lydia that she attended to the things which Paul spake Paul spake for her conuersion and the Lord opened her heart and conuerted her And Christ in the Reuelation saith Reuel 3.9 I will make them of the Synagogue of Satan to come and worship before thee Meaning that he would make the wicked to be of the number of the Church and conuert them to himselfe By all these it is manifest that the principall worker of repentance in the heart of man is God himselfe And it must needs in reason be so Reason 1. First because true repentance hath as a principall part of it the conuersion of the heart and inward man and to doe this requireth as much power as to make it for there was then no resistance of corruption but here now are all contrarieties the whole man being corrupted when then it was an infinite power that created man it must needes bee an infinite power that also must conuert and create him anew Reason 2. The second reason is Because man is by nature dead hauing neither power nor will to be conuerted And as S. Paul saith to the Ephesians Ephes 2.1.2 That euen then when wee were dead in sinnes God hath quickned vs together in Christ Then as no man can raise vp a dead man nor he quicken himself no more then Lazarus could being in the graue but it must bee the voice of Christ and his power that must doe it so must it be only God that must conuert the heart and worke this repentance in it Question Why doth God then in many places command men to repent and returne vnto him if they haue no power or abilitie of themselues to doe it but it bee his gift onely which they cannot haue vnlesse they receiue it from him Answer I answere with Augustine O homo in praeceptione intellige quid debeas habere De corrept grat cap. 3. Iubet aliquae quae non possumus vt nouerimus quid ab illo petere debemus De libero arbit ad Valent. cap. 2 O man vnderstand in these commandements of God what thou oughrest to haue So what thou oughrest to do And againe he saith God commandeth some things which wee are not able to doe that wee might know what we ought to big of him And therefore when he saith Returne vnto mee hee would haue our hearts sound with an echo againe Lord conuert thou vs and we shall be conuerted Lord turne thou our heaâ—â—s and we shall bee turned So that the Lord doth not command because wee can doe but because we ought to do and should seeke to him for grace to do it Vse 1. God is then the worker of euerie mans repentance and conuersion which first serueth to confute a point of Poperie which teacheth that men haue a great hand in their owne conuersion And that they may take and resist the grace of conuersion which we say is false because as I haue alreadie proued God giueth repentance Therefore these speeches and comparisons of theirs wee reiect as false when some of them make man by nature like one in fetters so him in his corruptions which being strucken off by grace he can presently goe of himselfe Some as the halfe dead passenger from Ierusalem to Iericho others like a sicke man which hath the power of walking but being faint he cannot vnlesse hee haue one to helpe him or to leane vpon So man hath power say they but it is a little languishing which if it be helped but a little by grace he can will and doe of himselfe that which is good But all these such like if there were a thousand of them are ouerthrowne with this one point that it is God and his grace which conuerteth the harts of al men Neither feare we to affirme this notwithstanding that they obiect that by this meanes wee make a man as a blocke and a stone for so we say hee is by nature in respect of any goodnes and that by the warrant of Ezekiel who saith in the person
107 Motiues to Mortification Page 111. 112 P PArts as also Helps are of two sorts Page 103. 104 A true Penitent is carefull to auoid all sinne 199. Two reasons prouing it Page 201 Why one Penitent person was receiued at the last houre Page 344 The Penitent is perswaded of Gods loue to him Page 227 The Penitent discernes two things which he saw not before Page 254 The Penitent will take an holy reuenge of himselfe Page 260 The Penitent is fit for death Page 266 The Penitent need not dread the day of doome Page 267 Popish Penances disallowed Page 255 Person and profession of a man must be distiguished Page â—3â— The Physike of the Soule continuall Page 289 Preaching where wanting their case is fearefull Page 143 Preaching is a great blessing Page 144 Preaching is much to bee respected Page 146 Preaching serues both to beget and to preserue Page 194 Preaching is not like other arts Page 195 Prayer is the instrumentall cause of repentance from within Page 150 Two reasons prouing Prayer so to be Page 151. 152 Presumption of Gods mercie an impediment of repentance Page 308 Three reasons proouing it Page 309 Helps against Presumption Page 312. 314 Presumption the cause of perdition Page 341 Popish Purgatorie of no vse Page 265 R REpentance deseribed Page 1 Repentance is a turning Page 1. 2 Repentance is a turning of the whole man from all sinne 3. and so proued by Scripture 4. And by two reasons Page 5. 8 Fiue sorts of men mistaken about Repentance Page 6. 7 The best way to begin Repentance is to deale with the heart first 9. But the more easie course is to begin with the life Page 9. 10 Repenting must be dailie Page 12 Repentance is from a iustifying faith Page 13 Abab Repentance was from a temporary faith Page 17 Repentance as faith is double Page 18 Repentance how it is before faith 18 How after Page 21 Repentance is not in the ignorant and vnbeleeuers Page 24 Repentance arisoth from the knowledge of a mans spirituall estate 27 Three reasons hereof Page 31. 32 Repentants must haue shame feare and sorrow 51. Three reasons thereof Page 51. 52. 53 The Repentant must be an Examiner an Informer and a Iudge Page 78 Repentance may be without teares Page 95 Repentance hath two parts Page 104 Repentance is not so easily made as is imagined Page 108 Regeneration described Page 113 Where repentance is there is regeneration proued by two reasons Page 115 Repentants are not perfect Page 121 The principall efficient of Repentance is God 125 Proued by two reasons Page 127 The Regenerate shall not fall away Page 132. 133. 134 A man cannot repent when hee list Page 134. 137 The outward instrumentall cause of Repentance is the word 139. 140 Three reasons proouing it Page 141 Why many doe not repent Page 154 The end of Repentance Page 161 Diuers kinds of Repenters Page 167 Remission of sinnes and Repentance goe together Page 169 Why RepentaÌ„ce is preached to the Page 17â— Repentance absolutely necessanie to saluation Page 180 The Regenerate must repent 181 Two reasons hereof Page 182 Seuen signes or effects of Repentance Page 197. 198 How Repentance may be knowno to be true Page 213 Three reasons shewing that Repentance produceth anger at sin Page 218 Three reasons prouing that Repentance makes a man afraid to sin Page 22â— Repentance works a seruent affect on to God and his word 233. Two reasons prouing this Page 233. 235 Reasons proouing that Repentance produceth zeale Page 242. 243. 244 Repentance must be with speede not posted off 136. 270. Fiue Reasons prouing it Page 271. 272. 273 The Proroguers of Repentance taxed Page 274 The danger of delaying repeÌ„tance set forth in fiue particulars Page 281. 282 Repentance must be constant Page 285. 291 292 Two reasons shewing it Page 286 287 The cares and pleasures of the world a let of Repentance Page 324 Three Reasons hereof Page 327. 328 Repentance hindred by scandals 333 Two reasons hereof Page 335 The peaceable ends of sinners a let to Repentance as also the vnquiet deaths of some Repentant Professors 338. 339. Three reasons of it Page 339. 340 Diuers differences betwixt the repentant theefe and our Adiourners of Repentance Page 345 No man is respected for his perfect repentance nor reiected for the imperfection of it Page 348 No restitution no Repentance Page 90 Shifts against Restitution remooued Page 99. 100. 101 Restitution how to be made without crazing credit Page 102 Non-Restitution excludes saluation Page 103 Reuenge the seuenth signe or fruit of Repentance Page 251. 253 How this Reuenge differs from indignation Page 252 Reasons prouing repentance to bring foorth this reuenge Page 253. 255 Reuenge how it may be taken Page 259 This life is the onely time of Repentance Page 262 Two Reasons prouing it Page 264 The delaying of Repentance fearefull Page 269 S SCandals and their remedies Page 333 335. 337 Scandals may by God be set before a man and why Page 338 Searching of a mans selfe necessarie Page 79 Search out two things Page 79. 80 Sinne separated man from God Page 5 Shame whence it ariseth Page 49 No Shame before repentance Page 51. 52 Sinne why of some liked Page 219 Sinners must not be hated except for sinne Page 213 Originall sinne described Page 80 The seedes of all sinnes are in euerie man Page 80 Stumps of sinne sticke in the regenerate Page 107 Sinne why not wholly slaine in this life Page 117 Sinne willingly committed may bee pardoned Page 190 Sins iterated haue been forgiuen Page 191 Of Sighes and sobbing Page 68 Sorrow for sinne makes a man defend himselfe against sin and Satan Page 207 Sorrow and ioy how they will stand together Page 287 Sorrow is ioyned with repentance Page 50. 51. 57 Sorrow for sinne must not bee deemd a melancholike passion Page 55 Sorrow should bee sutable to a mans sinnes Page 58. 59 Whence difference of Sorrow ariseth Page 59. 60 Soule-sicknes is continuall Page 289 T TVrning is of foure kinds Page 3 Turning from one sinne is made by some vnto another Page 8 Turning meerely outward may haue a benefit Page 11 Turning is not constaÌ„t without feare Page 53 V VIuification described Page 113 Vnworthie man must not despaire for his vnworthinesse Page 323 W GOds Word should be heard often Page 196 Why meÌ„ loue the word no better Page 235 Why some cannot abide the word Page 311 Good works from a corrupt fountaine are sinnes Page 46 Whipping vsed of Papists taxed Page 92. 93 Of Weeping for sinne Page 95. 96 The World is an enemie to repentance Page 325 Helps against worldly cares Page 329. 332 Z ZEale a fruit of repentance Page 247 Zeale little in the world Page 244 246 Zealous Protestants scorned Page 245 The difference of good bad Zeale Page 247 Zeale consists of Loue and Sorow Page 248 Zeale that is true how discerned Page 251 FINIS