Iesus Christ humbly to praise God for those meanes he offereth in mercie vnto you and to vse them in faith accordingly and so God shall blesse you by them And then by such conference as you may haue from hence wherein if I may stand you in any steede rather for the good opinion you haue of me then for any great matter I am able to performe I shalbe ready to offer any office of loue vnto you as God shall inable mee and so farre foorth as I shall bee at any time instructed in your perticular estate In some letters sent from you by conuenient messengers I perceiue that you ar afflicted with the blindenes of your minde and hardnes of your heart which cannot be mooued either with the promises of Gods mercies or feare of his iudgements nor affected with the loue and delight of the thinges which bee good nor with the hatred and loathing of the euill great cause you haue of griefe I confesse but no cause of dispaire dare I graunt because I am perswaded that your perswatioÌ„ is somewhat false partly for want of a sounde iudgement of your estate and partly for some defect of faith somwhat through your owne default First therefore know you for certainty that this is no other tentation than such as diuers of Gods children haue been humbled with afterward haue had a good issue out of it if it please God to moue ye to credit me my selfe haue known others as deeply this way plunged as you can be Remember therefore God is faithfull who wil not suffer you to be teÌ„pted aboue that you shalbe able to bear And farther yet to confirme you the holy scriptures do shew that this way god heretofore hath humbled his own people in whose person the prophet Esaye lamentably complaineth Esa. 3. 15. O Lorde looke downe from heauen behold from thy dwelling place of thy holines and of thy glorie VVhere is thy zeale thy strength the multitude of thy mercies and of thy compassions They are restrained from me And afterwards O Lord why hast thou made vs to erre from thy waies and hardened our hearts from thy feare And in the next chapt VVe haue been alas an vnclean thing all our righteousnes is as filthy cloutes and we all doo fade as a lease and our iniquities as the winde doth take vs away and there is none that calleth vpon thy name neither that stirreth vp himself to take hold on thee for thou hast hid thy face from vs consumed vs because of our iniquities And before 59 chap. 5. We grope for the wal like the blinde and we grope as one without eyes we rore like beares and mourne lyke doues So complaineth Ezechias in the bitternes of hys soule Like a crane or a swallowe so did I chatter I did mourn as a doue and when Dauid crieth Create in me O God a cleane hart renue in me a right spirit Restore to me the ioy of my saluatioÌ„ establish me with thy fre spirit doth he not couÌ„t his hart vnclean his spirit croked the ioy of his saluatioÌ„ lost himselfe subiect to the spirit of bondage so that waÌ„ting the spirit of libertie or adoption he could nether cry Abba Father nor haue anye power against sin Thus you see how Gods children maie be blinded in minde hardned in heart for a time so that they feel the grace of the holy spirit to be in theÌ„ nere perished and dead Farther to releeue the infirmitie of your iudgement in this case which may much distres you know that there bee two kindes of hardnes of heart the one not felt the other felt and of the former ther be two sorts the first which is most fearefull when any do purposely and wilfully resist the motions of Gods spirit means of their saluation of which the Prophet Zachary speaketh 7. 11. They refused to harkeÌ„ pulled away their sholder stopped their eares that they shuld not heare yea they made their hearts as an adamant stone lest they should hear the law the words which the Lord of hosts sent in his spirit by the ministery of the former Prophets The outragious sin of these men the Prophet Esay expresseth in their owne fearful termes 28. 15. VVe haue made a couenant with death and with hell we are at agreement though a scourge run ouer passe thorough it shall not come at vs for we haue made falshood our refuge vnder vanitie are we hidden This was a fearfull estate indeede yet for all that no man can saye but some of those might bee and were afterward conuerted The other kinde of hardnes of hart which is not felt nor perceyued or is perceiued yet not felt albeit it is lesse fearfull yet it is daungerous enough is in such as although they wilfully resist not Gods spirite in good means yet securely willingly they lye in sin without anie remorse of it or true taste of good things Such was Dauid his estate for the space of a yeare before Nathan the Prophet came to reproue him rouse him from his lulled sleepe Both these kindes I am perswaded you are free from otherwise thâ—n in temptation Sathan maye sometimes mooue ye therevnto the other kind of hardnesse of heart which is perceiued felt is of two sorts the one in them which are desirous of meanes whereby they may be releeued although they finde smal or no ease at all in themselues for a time Of this kinde the Prophet Esay in the name of some of Gods people complaineth Esa. 63. Such was Dauids state after NathaÌ„ reproued him gods spirit begaÌ„ to work with him that he crieth out as ye heard before of the losse of Gods graces when he saith that God will accept of no sacrifices nor petitions without a contrite hart broken spirit he sheweth that for a time euen after the prophet had reproued him he wÌ„ated both This is your case therfore you are in the state of saluation for Dauid was in this case euen after hee had confessed his sin as my trust is you doo was certainly perswaded of the pardonablenesse of it throgh gods mercie althogh he was farre off from the feeling it or applying to his wofull conscience his state was good and very wel to be hoped of and you must knowe and be perswaded that those things which are written of Gods saints namely of Dauid and Peter such others are examples for vs if we will stay our selues vpoÌ„ the word of God in the mysterie of his seruants and wait vppon the Lords good time til he come neerer vnto vs by his spirite nerer I say for he is come alreadie vnto you or it may be he neuer went from you because to be greued and humbled with blindnes of minde and hardnes of heart to beleeue certainly the trueth of God is promised in generall to reuerence the seruants of God which bring the glad tidings of the Gospel
of thys life haue griefe comming vppon them to remember howe they haue spent Gods graces banished his good giftes and misspent their time or else if they haue not this grief they fall into voluptuousnes and drawe such a skin vpon their harts as will cause the strongest denouncement of Gods iudgements to rebound bee they driueÌ„ on neuer so hard And sure it is the sinne of this world that men beeing controuled in their consciences whilest they are a praying feele a secrete charge said vppon them to beware of guile in buying and selling either haue theyr checkes and so grow to be prophane or els afterward they are wonderfully wounded that they haue beene so worldlye so greatly pursuing earthly and vaine things so coldlye purchasing heauenlye and permanent things Thus euen our priuy thoughts not profited are breeders of farther trouble Now the remedie against this is willingly and wittingly not to cherish anie sinne to with that the Ministers should touch our most priuie and secret sinnes to bee glad priuately to be admonished to profite by our Enemyes when they doo reproach vs and rather desire in such a case to be humbled than suffer our selues to be flattered This trying of our selues must yet stretch it self farther not onely to the committing of euill but also to the omitting of good As when after some good working of the spirite and feeling thereof we begin a fight and conflict with our consciences thogh I must pray I must haue time also to prouide for my familie if I go to heare the word of God surely I shall bee in danger to loose this profite if I thus attend vpon the exercises of religion I shall be cut short in the vse of my plesures Wherefore it shall be good to search our heartes both in the careles not vsing of the meanes but also in the negligent watching ouer the frutes of the meanes saying to our selues in this manner I haue heard a Sermon but alas without anie feeling or working vpon my affections I haue bin praying but with no power of the spirit I haue receceyued the Sacrament but without those ioyes glorious vnspeakeable which I was woont to taste of it I sawe the Discipline of the Church executed but without anie feare of sinne at all in my selfe or compassion of the member censured And heere I dare from my owne obseruation assuredly affirm that outwarde sins haue not beene at some times so grieuous to Gods Children as that they haue some tymes vsed very good meanes with little reuerence lesse frute And no maruell we shal see many men at some times not so much grieued for the sicknesse it selfe as for that they haue willingly neglected the meanes which might haue preserued their health or abused the Phisicke that might haue restored their health to them againe in like manner I saye it fareth with them who eyther vnreuerentlye haue refused the meanes which shoulde keepe theyr soules from surfetting or else vnthankfullye haue abused those helpes which might haue recouered them again From hence it commeth that some are much grieued for not vsing their good giftes to the benefit of Gods Church as others are troubled for abusing their good gifts to the hurt of Gods Church as we shall see a rich man somtimes humbled for not giuing money to the poore which hee might haue done as also for heaping vp riches falsly that hee ought not to haue done And thus manie hauing receaued good giftes and graces from the Lord are seasoned and sanctified by afflictions wherby they are taught to put their gifts in vre and to offer their seruice to Christ and others are feare â—o hide their gifts which cannot bee without some decay of Gods glory without offence to the weake without the losse of manie soules which otherwise might bee wonne to the Gospell and without strengthening the hand of the Aduersarie to slander our darke and dumbe profession All which things will in the end bring terror gf mind because if the Lord cannot work vpon vs by taking away goods credit wife children or such like to bring vs to Repentance he will surely whippe our naked consciences hee will enter euen into our very entrayles and pierce our secrete bowells As wee must examine our selues thus for sinne past and present so must wee vse this practise in sinnes that are to come and this is verie needfull for were it so that our life and conuersation were such as neither before nor after our calling any man could iustlye accuse vs Yet the hidden corruption of our nature may threaten some haynous downefall in time to come Which hath made men of verie good report and conuersation hang downe their heads and feare their secret hypocrisie as that which may breake foorth to the shame of all their former life in time to come But because we forgate to speak of them that in the examining of their liues past are much grieued for the want of sinceritie and priuie vainglorie in themselues let vs beware we go to the searching of our hearts in sinne To come to speake somewhat of those men troubled for this priuie pride they are touched or not touched If the veyle of sinne was great in them that it hid Christ froÌ„ them it is the good will of god that by this sight of their most secret sinnes they shuld come to see the righteousnes that is in Christ Iesus and so they shall be kept the better from being Iusticiarie Pharisies for when beeing a long time well brought vp leading a ciuill life the Diuell would perswade vs of some inherent righteousnes in vs It is the wisedome of God to touch vs with the conscience of most hidden corruptions as allso to make knowen vnto vs that euen from our birth there was a secret feede of sinne in vs which without the Lord watching ouer vs woulde surely haue broken forth to his dishonor As for them which haue had some woorking in them and yet are often plunged in sore distresses this trouble commeth to them for two especiall causes either for some hypocrisie which they did more in showe than in truth wherefore the Lorde bringeth them backe agayne to see their corrupt proceedings that they may knowe that al their religion is but hipocrisie and all their righteousnes to bee but vnrighteousnes or for the abusing of their knowledge in that they made it but a mask to iuggle in and that they made theyr affections to fight with their owne iudgments Wee must remedie this by not thinking of our selues aboue that that is meete and by labouring to embrace the truth And here let vs note that many of gods Children accuse themselues of hypocrisie when indeede they offend not in it And yet this accusation ariseth from some fault for though they haue done things in truth yet becaus they stroue not to see their secrete corruptions in some other matters they susteine this troubled minde So that there is nothing harder than to sift
and serch our owne hearts at the bottome whether we respect our sins past or present whether we we looke to our priuy pride hidden wants or secret corruptions And to retourne from whence wee were digressed to the examination of our heartes In sinnes to come let vs obserue that in Gods children there is such a iealousie that they tremble at the verie first motions and quake at the least occasion to sinne although because vice will sit in residence very nere vnto vertue there may be in thē somtime too much scrupulousnes this feare causeth the dearest of the Saintes of God to reason on this sort O Lord I see how many excellent men in gifts and constant in profession for a long time whose end hath not answered their Beginnings whose death was not like to their liues This is true whether we looke into the word or into the world and it is a thing that maye much humble vs. For though we maye remember what wee haue been and knowe what wee are yet who can tell what may come vnto him heereafter Oh that the serious meditation heereof would dwell long vpon our consciences that with a holie iealozie wee might preuent that sin that is to come But alas there bee some wayne people whych thinke it no masterie to offer themselues to masking minstrelsie and dauncing nor to runne into quarrells braules and contentions as though they had theyr eares theyr eyes theyr hands and theyr feete in their owne power and at commaundement to vse gouerne as themselues list Howbeit GODS Children better fenced with hys grace than those bolde buzzardes are afrayde of these occasions as knowing full well that theyr eyes maye soone bee prouoked to lust their eares maye quicklye listen vnto vnchast delightes their handes maye sodainely strike a deadly blowe and their feete may easely be snared in the spreaded nettes of carnall pleasures Beware O man bee circumspect O Woman that thou prostitute not thy selfe to too much libertie for althogh in comming to such lasciuious cōtentious places thou diddest purpose none euill yet for thy ventring with out warrant thou mayst bee ouer thy shooes in sinne and plunged in some wicked attempts ouer head and cares ere thou beest aware And yet because vice is so confine vnto vertue beware also of superstition for still the enemie laboureth to make thee too hardie in sinne or else he will cause thee to be too fearfull and superstitious eyther hee will puffe thee vp with presumption or assault thee with desperation To these tentations our nature is very appliable first to presumption as maye appeare by our common speech tush the Preacher is but a man as I am I am sure he hath infirmities as others haue wee are no Angels our nature is corrupt we are but men I am sure you would not haue vs Gods Thus the diuell commeth to tempt but he apparelleth himselfe in another sute when hee commeth to accuse and then of a flye he maketh an elephant of the very smallest pricke of a pin a gloabe of the whole earth of a moal-hill a mountain presseth silly soules with fear terror that they know not how to winde themselues If he cannot bring thē to make conscience where they shuld make conscience hee will labour to bring them to make conscience where they need make no conscience He careth not whether thou be remisse or superstitious so thou be one of them If he cannot get you to follow the epicurisme of the world as Libertines in diet and apparell hee wil make you so precise as to thinke it a hainous sinne to eare one bit of meate or to weare one ragge of cloath more thā for necessity How needfull therefore it is to saile with an euen course we may coniecture by other thinges which will bewraye the corruption of our nature In the time of a plague we shall see some will be so bold that without anie lawfull calling or godly warraunt they will rush into places infected and then falling sicke their conscience pricks them for their tempting of God by an vnaduised boldnes in the instaunt moment of theyr death Others plunged as deeply in a quite contrarie extremitye are too fearefull when they doo but heare of sickenesse and for very feare haue been brought to deaths dore onely by imagining themselues to haue been infected when they haue beene most free who oftentimes haue euen died and that without anie naturall cause that euer could be knowen but onely through immoderate fear the iudgement of God comming vpon them for their infidelitie and vnbeliefe Thus it is with vs in Christianitie in that as well the oppressing our selues with too much feare to be ouercome as the carnall securitie in not fearing to bee ouercome maye bring sinne vpon vs. God his childrē must labor for a measure and that must be sought for in the Word which wyll teach them how they shall neither decline on the right hand nor on the left but wil guide them in the narrowe way showing in euery thing what is the vertue what is the vice what is the meane what is the extreame Among manie Examples let vs consider of zeale a most precious vertue in Christianitie so long as it is free from the extremities If we be cold in zeale it is a sinne on the left hand if we bee zealous without knowledge it is preposterous and becommeth a sinne on the right hand But can wee not come to some perfection No if you vnderstand it for an absolute vnspottednes albeit to that perfection which the Scripture taketh for soundnesse truth and sinceritie of hart which is voyd of careles remissenes we may come Neither doth the lord deal with vs after our sins nor reward vs after our iniquities in whole eies the most glorious actiōs of men are but as waters flowing purely from the Conduit but defiled by passing through a filthy chanell Wherefore although wee haue our imperfections let vs not seeke to be more righteous than we can be saying for euerie errour of this life Oh I am none of Gods hys sonnes I am none of hys daughters for I cannot find that perfection in me which is to be required But let vs comfort our selues in the truth of our hearts and singlenes of our desires to serue God because he is God and so wee shall bee accepted of God I speake this to this end that poore soules might haue cōfort know that if they abhor sinne as sinne if they examine themselues for it if they feare to fall into it the Lord will not pursue them with the rigor of his lawe but wil giue them the sweetnesse of his promises they are no more vnder the curse but vnder grace But farther to inforce our Exhortation to auoyde too scrupulous feare which hindereth the true examination of our heartes let vs thinke that it happeneth in the spirituall conflict as in ciuill war Wee read that manie Citties being in great securitie haue sodainly both
when the bodye needeth rather a strong purgation than a matter restoratiue and as incarnatiue medicines for the time allaye the payne of the patient but after the greefe becommeth more greuous so the comfortable applying of Gods promises are not so profitable for euerie one that is humbled especiallye when their soules are rather to be cast downe than as yet to bee raised vp so the sugred consolations may for a time ouer-heale the conscience and abate some present greefe but so as afterwardes the smart will be the sorer the grief may grow the greater whereof insueth this effect that comfort seemeth to cure for a while but throgh want of wisdome in the right discerning of the cause wee minister one medicine for another and so for want of skil the latter fitte grindeth them sorer than the former Some there be who without precept and practise wilbe theyr owne Phisitions and these so soone as the fit commeth vpon them thinke it the best to chastise and to chase awaye their sorrowe by drinking at tauernes by minstrelsie in merrie companie by purging melancholy in phisicke all which seeme to weare away the paine for a while but yet after it byteth more deeplye when the burning feauer of the spirit shaketh them wyth a seconde recourse and for that before they were not truly searched purged seared and launced it commeth to passe that the seconde relaps is more dangerous than the first To come to our purpose wee must knowe that all griefes are either confused or distinct and sure it is that the minde is appalled eyther for some cause verye well knowen to vs as certaine or for something vnknowen to vs and vncertaine To them which are troubled with such blinde griefes whereof they can see no reason as often it happeneth to Gods Children who either neuer knew God or had but a general knowledge of him I answere that as I denie no Phisicke to bee ministred if it in part proceed from a naturall cause so I require the word especially to shew the principall and originall cause to begin in the soule And this I doo the rather because I would haue wisedome both in considering the state of the bodie if need so require and in looking chiefly to the soul which so few thinke of If a man troubled in conscience come to a Minister it may be he will looke all to the soule and nothing all to the bodie if hee commeth to a Phisition hee onely considereth of the bodie neglecteth the soul for my part I would neuer haue the Phisitions counsell seuered nor the Ministers labour neglected because the soule and bodie dwelling together it is conuenient that as the soule should be cured by the word by prayer and by fasting by threatening or by comforting so the bodye also should bee brought into some temperature by Physicke by purging by dyet by restoring by musike and by such like meanes prouyding alwayes that it bee styll done so in the feare of God and wisedome of his spirite as we thinke not by these ordinarie meanes to smoother or smoake out our troubles but as purposing to vse them as preparatiues whereby both our soules and bodyes may bee made more capable of the spirituall meanes to follow after As we require these things to bee the matter of our Ministerie in such a perplexitie so I would wish the persons ministring to be men learned and of sounde iudgement wise and of Godlye experience meeke and of most louing spirites for when the troubled patient shal be perswaded of our knowledge and discretion and therewithall shall perceiue vs to come in tender and louyng affections I thinke an enteraunce is in a manner made and all preiudice is taken away so as wee may the more freely woorke vppon the greeued Conscience first bringing them to the sight of sinne as to some cause of their trouble Heerein wee must labour to put awaye all confusion and blindnesse of sorrowe endeuoring by wisedome to bring the parts wounded to some certaine obiect matter of their trouble and so drawe out of them the confession of some especiall secrete and seuerall sinne I say secrete and seuerall sinnes because I know how manie through a palpable blindnes or disordered discerning of sinne talke nothing so much as of sinne and yet they eyther discrie seuerall sinnes or they will not bee brought to acknowledge theyr secrete sinnes whereof the one proceedeth of the ignorance of the Lawe of God the other of selfe loue which maketh vs loath in our trauel of mind to shame our selues Now that the confession of perticular sinnes is requisite it maye appeare by the two and thirtieth Psalme wherein beeing a Psalme of instruction concerning the forgiuenesse of sinnes the Prophet by his owne experience teacheth vs that hee could finde no reliefe of hys sicknes vntill he had remembred and made confession of his sinnes What shal we thinke that the Prophet of God taught so wonderfully by the word and by the spirite did not see his sinnes before Be it farre from vs. Rather let vs know that he had not seuerally and perticularlye ripped vp hys sinnes before the Lorde in a seuerall confession of them Which things the Lord knoweth farre better than wee our selues yet such kinde of sacrifice is most acceptable vnto him Now if in this trouble the persons humbled can not come to the perticular sight of sinne in themselues it is good to vse the help of other vnto whom they maye offer their hearts to bee gaged and searched and their liues to bee examined more deeply by hearing the seuerall Articles of the law laid open before them wherby they may square the whole course of their actions For as we said before the grosest hypocrite will generally complaine of sinne and yet deale wyth them in perticular poynts of perticular precepts proue them in applying of things to bee done or vndone to their owne consciences and wee shall see manie of these poore soules tossed too and fro now floting in ioies now plunged in sorrowes not able to distinguish one sin frō another Now when we see the wound of the spirit arise of any known sin it is eyther for some sinne alreadie committed wherein wee lie or els for some sinne as yet not committed whereunto wee are tempted For the former It pleaseth God oftentimes to bring old sinnes to minde when wee not truely repented of them before that so as it were representing them to vs afresh we might fal into a more misliking of them And yet herein is not all to mislike our selues for some perticulars although it bee good to bee occupied about some speciall sinnes for as it is not enough for the auoyding of hypocrisie to see some generally so it is not enough to eschue the deceauablenes of the heart euer to bee poaring busily in one perticuler and to be forgetfull of the great and generall sinnes And let vs learne by the perticulers to passe by the generalls When anye such