is the care of those Ministers which divide Gods Word aright say our great Divines of Great Britaine first fitly and wisely to wound the Consciences of their hearers with the terrours of the Law and after to raise them by the Promises of the Gospell c. The Spirit first terrifies those who are to bee justified with the Law breaking and humbling them with threats scourges and lashes of Conscience that thereby despairing of themselves they may flie unto Christ. Wee cannot learne out of the Gospell saith Chemmitius that wee are to bee blessed in Christ except by an anthithesis as Luther speakes we also acknowledge that wee are accursed by the Law The Doctrine of the Law saith Davenant is to be propounded to the impious and impenitent to strike terrour into their hearts and to demonstrate their just damnation except they repent and she to Iesus Christ. Perkins that great Light of our Church both for soundnesse of learnâ—ng sincerâ—ty of iudgement and insight into the Mystery of Christ teâ—ching How Repentance is wrought telâ— vs That first of all a Man must have knowledge oâ— foure things Of the Law of God Of sinne against the Law Of the guilt of sinne and of the Iudgement of God against sinne which is His eternall wrath In the second Place must follow an application of the former knowledge to a Mans selfe by the worke of the conscience assisted by the holy Ghost which for that cause is called the spirit of bondage in this manner The breaker of the Law is guilty of eternall wrath saith the Minde But I am a breaker of the Law of God saith the Conscience as a Witnesse and an Accuser Therefore I am guilty of eternall death saith the same Conscience as a Iudge Every Law shall have His part in the Lake which burneth with fire and brimstone Reuel 21.8 But I am a Liar Therefore I shall have my part in that everlasting fiery Lake And so of other sinnes Covetousnesse Cruelty Drunkennesse Whoredome Swearing Defrauding Temporizing Vsury Filthinesse Self-uncleannesse Foolish talking â—esting Ephes. 5.4 Revellings Galat. 5.21 Prophaning the Lords Day strange apparell Zeph. 1.8 And innumerable sinnes moe which beeing all severally prest upon the heart by a discourse of the guilty conscience as I have said must needs full sorely crush it with many cutting conclusions from which set on by the spirit of bondage is woont to arise much trouble of minde which saith Hee is commonly called the sting of the conscience or penitence and the compunction of heart And then succeedes seasonably and comfortably the worke of the Gospell The Soule beeing thus sensible of and groaning under the burden of all sinne is happily fitted for all the glorious revelations of the abundant riches of Gods dearest mercies for all the comforts graces and favours which shine from the face of Christ for all the expiations refreshings and exultations which spring out of that blessed Fountaine opened for sinne and for uncleannesse Never any of Gods Children saith Greeneham were comforted thorowly but they were first humbled for their Sinnes The course warranted unto us by the Scriptures saith Hieron is this First to endeavour the softning of our Hearers hearts by bringing them to the sight and sense of their owne wretchednes before we adventure to apply the riches of Gods mercy in Christ Iesus The preaching of the Gospell is coÌ„pared by our Saviour Himself unto the Sowing of seedes as therefore the ground is first torne up with the plâ—â—gh before the seede be committed unto it so the fâ—llow ground of our hearts must first bee broken up with the sharpenesse of the Law and the very terrour of the Lord before wee can bee fit to entertaine the sweete seed of the Gospell I would have a Preacher to preach peace and to aime at nothing more then the comfort of the Soules of Gods people yet I would have Him withall frame his course to the manner of Gods appearing to Elijah The Text saith that first a mighty strong winde rent the Mountaines and brake the rockes then after that came an earthquake and after the earthquake came fire and after all these then came a still and a soft voyce After the same manner I would not have the still and milde voyâ—e of the Gospell come till the strong tempest of the Law hath rent the stoâ—y hearts of men and have made theâ—â— beliâ—es to tremble and rottennesse to enter into their bones Or at least because our Auditories are mixt consisting of men of divers humours it shall bee good for Him to deliver His doctrine with that caution that neither the humbled soules may be affrighted with the severity of Gods judgements nor the prophane and unrepentant grow presumptuous by the abundance of Gods mercy The person that is full despiseth the hony-combe saith Salomon And what doth a proud Pharisie or a churlish Nabal or a Politicke Gallio or a scoffing Ishmael care to heare of the breadth and length and depth and height of the love of God in his Sonne Iesus Except it bee to settle them faster upon their lees The Doctrine of that nature is as unfitting such uncircumcised eares as the snow the Summer and the raine the Harvest Vnto the Horse belongs a whip to the Asse a bridle and a rod to the Fooles backe c. Hee that intendeth to doe any good in this frozen generation had need rather to bee Boanerges one of the sons of thunder then Bar-Ionah the Sonne of a Dove The Word of God saith Forbes hath three degrees of operation in the hearts of men For first it falleth to mens eares as the sound of many waters a mighty great and confused sound and which commonly bringeth neither terrour nor ioy but yet a wondering and acknowledgement of a strange force more then humane power This is that effect which many felt hearing Christ when they were astonished at His Doctrine as teaching with authority What manner doctrine is this Never man spake like this man This effect falleth even to the reprobate which wonder and vanish Haâ—ak 15. Act. 13.41 The next effect is the voice of thundâ—r Which bringeth not onely wonder but feare also not onely filleth the eares with sound and the heart with astonishment but moreover shaketh and terifyeth the conscience And this second effect may also befall a reprobate As Felix Act. 24. The third effect is proper to the elect the sound of harping while the word not onely ravishâ—th with admiration and striketh the Conscience with terrour but also lastly filleth it with sweete peace and ioy c. Now albeit the first two degrees may bee without the last yet none feele the last who have not in some degree felt both the first two God healeth none saith Gouge but such as are first wounded The whole need not a Physitian but they that are sicke Christ
I think in such a Case it may be convenient and that such an One hath thereupon some cause and Calling seriously and impartially to search and trie His spirituall state For which purpose ponder seriously upon such considerations as these some of which may discover unsoundnesse Others His unadvisednesse 1. It may bee the Party is not yet come in truth to that sound humiliation contrition spirituall thirsting resolution to sell all c. required by the reverend Author in that most profitable and piercing Doctrine of Faith quoted before but onely hath passed over them overly not soundly superficially not syncerely and then no marvell tho no true and reall comfort come Informe thy selfe further in this Point and that thou mayst more fully know my meaning in it and be guided aright in a marter of so great waight Ibid. Cap. 2. Of the Author and meanes of Faith And Cap. 5. Of the difficulty of Faith pag. 284 c. 2. Or it may bee howsoever Hee protest otherwise and for all His partiall Legall terrour and trouble of minde His deceitfull heart may still secretly harbour and hanker after some sweet sinne as Pride Revenge strange Fashions Worldlinesse Lust Playes Gaming Good-fellowship as it is call'd c. From which it doth not heartily yeeld resolve and endeavour to make an utter and finall cessation and divorce And assuredly that false heart which regards and allowes any wickednesse in it selfe howsoever it may be deluded with some Anabaptisticall flashes yet shall never bee truly refreshed with ioy in the holy Ghost 3. It may bee tho there was some probable and plausible shewes that the Party was principally cast downe and affected with the heavy waight of sin and horrour of Gods wrath for it yet the true predominant cause of His heavinesse harts-griefe and bitterest complaint was some secret earthly discontentment the restlesse biting of some worldly sting And in such Cases remove this and you remove His paine Comfort Him about his Crosse and you set Him where Hee was And therefore as in all this He continues a meere stranger in affection to the sweetnesse amiablenesse and excellency of Iesus Christ so it is impossible that Hee should bee acquainted with any sound spirituall comfort But I will suppose all to bee syncere and as it should bee Let mee advise Thee then to take notice of thine unadvisednesse 1. Thou art perhaps so full of the want of feeling such a stranger to so much expected and desired ioy and peace in believing and by consequent so drowned in the unnecessary distractions and distempers of a sad heart that thou utterly forgets to give thankes and magnifie Gods singular and incomprehensible mercy for illightening convincing and terrifying thy conscience offering his Sonne raising in thine heart an insatiable thirst after Him and giving Thee spirituall abilitie to rest thy weary Soule upon Him And who knowes not that unthankfulnesse keepes many good things from us and is an unhappy blocke in the way to intercept and hinder the comfortable influence and current of God favours and mercies from being showred downe so frankly and plentifully upon His people And Hee is more likely to bee the more provoked in this Case because thou suffers thine heart to bee lockt up and thy Tongue tied by Satans cunning and cruell malice from praysing the glory of Gods free grace for such a worke of wonder I meane that mighty Change of thine from nature to grace in extolling of which were all the hearts and tongues of all the Men and Angels in Heaven and Earth set on worke industriously thorow all eternitie they would still come infinitely short of that which is due and deserved 2. Or it may be when some One of a thousand upon thy complaint that no comfort comes doth seriously labour to settle thine heart in peace pressing upon Thee for that purpose invincible and unanswer-able Arguments out of the Word of Truth to open it wide that over-flowing Rivers of Evangelicall joyes which may spring to Him that is advised and believes the Prophets abundantly even from the weakest Faith to refresh and comfort it Telling thee that as thine humbled Soule learning upon Christ drawes much heavenly vertue mortifying power and sanctifying grace from him so it may and ought also to draw abundance of spirituall lightsomnesse from that ever-springing Fountaine of life c. Yet notwithstanding all this thou suffers some malicious counter-blasts and contrary suggestions of the Divell to disperse and frustrate all these well-grounded and glorious Messages And therefore it is just with God that thou fare the worse at his hands and fall short of thine expectation because thou gives more credit to the Father of Lyes then the Lord of Truth Sith thou spills all the Cordials that are tendered unto thee in the Name of Christ by His faithfull Physicions thou art deservedly destitute of comfort still Many in such Cases while Gods Messenger who can rightly declare His wayes unto them stands by opening and applying the rich treasures of Gods free mercy in the mysterie of the Gospell and with present replies repelling Satans cavils are reasonably well cheared and revived But when Hee is gone they very weakely and unworthily give way againe to that foule lying Fiend to cast a dis-comfortable mist over the tender eye of their weake Faith and to domineere as Hee did before Tell mee true If thou wert in doubt and distresse about thy temporall state Tenure of thy Lands soundnesse of thy evidence Wouldest thou advise with and take counsell from a Foole a Knaue and an enemy or wouldest Thou make choise of an honest wise understanding Friend I doubt not of thine Answer And wilt thou then so farre disparage divne truth gratifie Hell and hurt thine owne heart as in that waightiest Point of thy spirituall state to consult and resolve with the Divell a Liar a Murtherer and sworne enemy to Gods glory and thy Soules good And neglect God Himselfe blessed for ever speaking unto Thee out of His Word by that Minister which in such a Case durst not falsify or flatter Thee for a World of gold Shall many thousands of worldly-wise men give credit very readily and roundly to Dawbers with untempered morter upon a false and rotten foundation to the most certaine and eternall ruine of their Soules And shall not an humble and upright-hearted Man believe the Prophet upon good ground that the bones which the heavy burden of sinne hath broken may reioyce God forbid 3. Nay but suppose the Party bee truly humbled very thankefull resolute against all sinne labour to believe the Prophets c. And yet no comfort come I say then there is an other Duty expected at thy hands right pretious and pleasing unto God And that is waiting By which God would 1. Set yet a sharper edge and eagernesse more hungring and thirsting greater longing and panting after the ravishing sweetnesse of His comfortable presence with which melting earnest crying dispositions Hee
unconquerablenesse in torment then affected with the raging paines of a most terrible execution 2. In others from a strong stirring perswasion and consciousnesse of the honesty and honour of some civill cause for which they suffer But fortitude in this case doth not arise from any inspired religious vigour or heavenly infusions but from the severer instigations of naturall conscience and acquired manhood of a meere morall Puritane Many such morall Martyrs have beene found amongst the more generous and well-bred heathen It is storied of a brave and valiant Captaine who had long manfully and with incredible courage with-stood Dionysius the elder in defence of a Citie that Hee sustained with strange patience and height of spirit the mercilesse fury of the Tyrant and all his barbarous cruelties most unworthy of Him that suffered them but most worthy him that inflicted the same First the Tyrant told him how the day before hee had caused his son and all his kinsfolkes to be drown'd To whom the Captaine stoutly out staring Him answered nothing but that they were more happy then himselfe by the space of one day Afterward hee caused him to be stripped and by his executioners to be taken and dragged through the Citty most ignominiously cruelly whipping Him and charging Him besides with outragious and contumelious speeches All which notwithstanding as One no whit dismaide Hee ever shewed a constant and resolute heart And witâ—â— cheerefull and bold countenance went on still lowdly recounting the honourable and glorious cause of His death which was that Hee would never consent to yeeld his Countrey into the hands of a cruell Tyrant With such stoutnesse did even meere morall vertue steele the antient Romane spirits that in worthy defense of their liberty for preservation of their Countrey or other such noble ends They indifferently contemned gold silver death torture and whatsoever else miserable worldlings hold deare or dismall 3. In some from an extreme hardnesse of heart which makes them senselesse and fearelesse of shame misery or any terrible thing This wee may sometimes obserue in notorious malefactours A long rebellious and remorselesse continuance and custome in sinne raging infections from their roaring companions a furious pursuite of outrages and blood Satans hoâ— iron searing their consciences and Gods iust curse upon their fearefull and forlorne courses so fill them with foole-hardinesse and with such a ferall disposition that they are desperately hardned against all affronts and dis-asters So that tho such savage-minded and marble-hearted men be to passe thorow the streetes as spectacles of abhorrednesse and scorne as hatefull monsters and the reproach of Mankind to be throwne into a Dungeon of darknesse and discomfort and there to be loaden with cold irons coldnes and want from thence to bee hurried to that loathed Place of execution and there to die a Dogs death as they say and finally to fall immediately and irrecoverably into a Lake of fire yet I say for all this out of a desperate hard-heartednesse they seeme still to bee in heart and to represent to the beholders a great deale of undauntednesse and neglect of danger in their carriage and countenances O the prodigious Rocke into which the stone in a gracelesse heart may grow both in respect of desperatenesse in sinning and sense-lesnesse in suffering 4. In others from an enraged thirst after humane praise and immortall fame as they call it Which may be so prevalent in them and transport them with such a vaine-glorious ambition this way that it may carry them with much seeming insensibility affected patience and artificiall courage thorow the terrors and tortures of a very violent and Martyr like death Heare what Austin saith to this Point Thinke yee there never were any Catholikes or that now there may not bee some that would suffer onely for the prayse of men If there were not such kind of men the Apostle would not haue said Though I give my body to be burned and have not charity I am nothing Hee did know right well that there might bee some which would doe it out of vaine-glory and selfe-love not for divine love and the glory of God O the bottomlesse depth of Hellish Hypocrisie which lyes hid in our corrupt hearts O the blind and perverse thoughts of foolish men O the murderous malice of that old red Dragon which exerciseth such horrible crueltie both upon our bodies and soules 5. In some from false grounds of a supposed good estate to Godward from an unsound perswasion of their present spirituall well-beeing and future wellfare Such Pharisies foolish Virgines and formall Professours are to bee found in all Ages of the Church especially in the fairest and most flourishing daies thereof and when the Gospell hath the freest passage who thus many times in the greate it of all earthly extremities even upon their Beds of death represent to all about them from a groundlesse presumption of being reconciled unto God a great deale of confidence resolution and many glorious expectations Vpon a partiall survay and perusall of their time past not stain'd perhaps with any great enormities notoriousnesse or infamous sinne out of a vaine-glorious consciousnesse unto themselues of their many good parts generall graces good deedes and plausiblenesse with the most by reason of a former obstinated distaste and prejudice against sincerity and the power of godlinesse as tho it were unnecessary singularity and peevishnesse and it may bee confirmed also unhappily in their spirituall selfe-cousenage by the unskilfull and unseasonable palliations I meane mis-applications of some abused promises unto their un-humbled Soules from some dawbing Ministers a generation of vilest men excellent Ideots in the mystery of Christ and mercifull Cut-throates of many miserable deluded Soules to whom they promise life and peace when there is no peace towards but terrible things even at hand tumbling of garments in blood noise of damned Soules and tormenting in Hell for ever I say from such false and failing grounds as these they many times in that last extremity the Lord not revealing unto them the unsoundnesse of their spirituall estate and rottennesse of their hopes demeane themselues chearefully and comfortably as tho they were presently to set foote into Heaven and to lay hold upon eternall life but God hee knowes without any iust cause or true ground For immediately upon the departure of the Soule from the Body shall they heare that wofull doome from Christs owne mouth as Himselfe hath told us before-hand Depart from mee I never knew you Such men as these having been formerly acquainted with and exercisde in the outward formes and complements of Religion are woont at such times to entertaine their visitants and By-standers with many goodly speeches and Scripture-Phrases representing their contempt of the World Willingnesse to dye readinesse to forgive all the World Hope to bee saved desire to bee dissolved and bee in Heaven c. They may cry aloude with much formall confidence Lord Lord open to
was annointed to preach the Gospell to the poore to heale the broken hearted c. Ob. Many have believed who never grieved for their misery as Lidia c. Answ. Who can tell that these greeved not It followeth not that they had no greife because none is recorded All particular actions and circumstances of Actions are not recorded It is enough that the greefe of some as of the Iewes of the Iaylour of the woman that washed Christs feete with Her teares and of others is recorded Lidia might bee prepared before she heard Paul For shâ—e accompanied them which went out to pray and shee worshipped God Or else Her heart might be then touched when she heard Paul preach The like may bee said of those which heard Peter when Her preached to Cornelius And of others Certaine it is that a man must both see and feele Hiâ— wretchednesse and bee wounded in Soule for it before Faith can be wrought in Him Yet I deny not but there may be great difference in the manner and measure of greeving c. The heart is prepared for faith and not by faith Iustifiâ—ation beeing the worke of God is perfect in it selfe but our hearts are not fit to apply it untill God have humbled us brought us to despaire in our selves The whole preparation beeing legall wrought by the Spirits of bondage to bring us to the Spirit of Adoption leaves us in despaire of all helpe either of our selves or the whole world that so beeing in this wofull plight wee might now submit our selves to God who infusing a lively faith into our hearts gives us His Son and our iustification with Him None ever had conscience truly pacifyed that first felt not conscience wounded The preparation to repentance Hee meanes Evangelicall are those legall sits of feare and terrour which are both in nature and time too before Faith As there can bee no birth without the paines of the travell going before so neither no true repentance without some terrours of the Law and streights of Conscience The reason is plaine None can have repentance but such as Christ cals to Repentance Now Hee cals only sinners to Repentance Mat. 9.13 even sinners heavy laden with the sense of Gods wrath against sinne Mat. 11.28 Hee comes onely to save the lost sheepe that is such sheepe as feele themselves lost in themselves and know not how to finde the way to the fold It is said Rom. 8.15 Yee have not received the spirit of bondage againe to feare which shewes that once they did receive it namely in the very first preparation vnto conversion that then the spirit of God in the Law did so beare witnes unto theÌ„ of their bondage and miserable slavery that it made them to tremble Now there vnder the person of the Romans the Apostle speakes to all Beleevers and so shewes that it is every Christians common case the law hath His use to worke 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 poenitentiam The Gospell His force to worke 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 resipiscentiam and both are needfull for Christians even at this Present as formerly they have ever bin Gods mercy may not bee such whereby His Truth in any sort should bee impeached As it should if it be prostituted indifferently and promiscuously to all as well the insolent and impenitent as the poore humble and broken hearted sinner For unto these latter onely is the promise of mercy made And if to others the gate of mercy should bee set open Gods mercies as Solomon saies of the wicked's that they are cruell mercies should be false and uniust mercies But God never yet learned so to bee mercifull as to make Himselfe false and unfaithfull The first thing that drawes unto Christ is to consider our miserable estate without Him Therefore wee see that the Law drives men to Christ And the Law doth it by shewing a Man His sin and the curse due unto the same Wee must know that nothing performed of us can give satisfaction in this matter of humiliation Yet it is such a thing without which wee cannot come to Christ. It is as much as if a man should say the Physitian is ready to heale Thee but then it is required that Thou must have a sense of the disease c No Man will come to Christ except He bee hungry Onely those that are troubled receive the Gospell No Man will take Christ for his Husband till Hee come to know feele the Waight of Satans yoke Till that time Hee will never come to take upon Him the yoke of Christ. To all you I speake that are humbled Others that minde not this Doctrine regard not the things of this nature But you that mourne in Zion that are broken-hearted you that know the bitternesse of sin to you is the salvation sent Vnder the causes I comprehend all that worke of God whereby Hee worketh Faith in any which standeth especially in these three things 1. That God by His word and Spirit first illightneth the understanding truly to conceive the Doctrine of Mans misery and of His full recovery by Christ. 2. Secondly by the same meanes Hee worketh in His heart both such sound sorrow for His misery and fervent desire after Christ the remedy that Hee can never bee at quiet till Hee enioy Christ 3. Thirdly God so manifesteth His love in freely offering Christ with all His benefits to Him a poore sinner that thereby hee drawes Him so to giue credit to God therein that Hee gladly accepts Christ offered vnto Him These three works of God whosoever findeth to have bin wrought in Himselfe Hee may thereby know certainly Hee hath Faith But without these what change of life soever may bee conceived there can bee no certainty of Faith The Law first breakes us and kills us with the sight and guilt of sin before Christ cures us and binds us up The holy Ghost worketh and maketh Faith effectuall by these three Acts 1. First it puts an efficacy into the Law and makes that powerfull to worke on the heart to make a man poore in spirit so that hee may bee fit to receive the Gospell The Spirit of bondage must make the Law effectuall as the Spirit of adoption doth the Gospell c. 2. The second worke is to reveale Christ when the heart is prepared by the spirit in the first worke then in the next place Hee shewes the unsearchable riches of Christ what is the hope of His calling and the glorious inheritance prepared for the Saints what is the exceeding greatnesse of His power in them that beleeve I say wee neede the Spirit to shew these things c. 3. The third Act of the Spirit is The testimony which hee gives to our spirit in telling us that these things are ours When the heart is prepared by the Law and when these things are so shewed unto us that wee prize them and long after them yet
there must bee a third thing To take them to our selves to beleeve they are ours and there needes a worke of the Spirit for this For tho the promises bee never so cleare yet having nothing but the promises you shall never bee able to apply them to your selves But when the holy Ghost shall say Christ is thine All these things belong to Thee and God is thy Father when that shall witnesse to our spirit by a worke of His owne Then shall wee beleeve c This is the order observed in our iustification 1. First There is a sight of our misery to which wee are brought by the Law 2. Secondly There is by the Gospell an holding forth of Christ as our redemption from sin and death 3. Thirdly there is a working of Faith in the heart to rest on Christ as the ransome from sinne and death Now when a man is come hither Hee is truly and really iust Wee teach that in trve conversion a man must bee wounded in his conscience by the sense of his sinnes His contrition must bee compungent and vehement bruising breaking renting the heart and feeling shee throwes as a woman labouring of Childe before the new-Creature bee brought forth or Christ truly formed in Him It is not done without bitternesse of the Soule without care indignation revenge 2. Cor. 7.11 But as some Infants are borne with lesse paine to the mother and some with more so may the new-man be regenerated in some with more in some with lesse anxiety of travell But surely grace is not infused into the heart of any sinner except there bee at least so great affliction of Spirit for sinne foregoing that He cannot but â—eele it c. This bruising is required before conversion 1. That so the Spirit may make way for it selfe into the heart by levelling all proud high thoughts c 2. To make vs set an high price upon Christs death This is the cause of relapses and Apostasies because men never smarted for sin at the first They were not long enough under the lash of the Law Hence this inferiour worke of the Spirit in bringing downe high thoughts is necessary before conversion By this time it doth most clearly and plentifully appeare what a foule and fearefull fault it is for men either in the managing of their Publike ministery or more private Passages of conference visitations of the sicke consultations about a good estate to Godward and other occasions of like nature to apply Iesus Christ and the promises to promise life and safety in the evill Day to Soules as yet not soundly illightned and afflicted with sight of sinne and sense of Gods wrath to consciences never truly wounded and awaked I insisted the longer upon this Point because I know it full well to bee a most universall and prevailing Policy of the Devill whereby hee keepes many thousands in His cursed slavery and from salvation To confirme as many Pastours as Hee can possibly willing enough to drive their Flocks before them to damnation in an ignorant or affected Preiudice and forbearance of that saving method of bringing Soules out of Hell mentioned before and made good with much variety of evidence And to nourish also in the hearts of naturall men a strong and sturdy disconceite opposition raging against downe-right dealing and those men of God able as they say but falsely and furiously against their owne Soules by their terrible teaching to drive their hearers to distraction Selfe-destruction or despaire who take the only right course to convert them and to bring them to Iesus Christ as Hee Himselfe invites them to wit labouring and heauy laden with their sinnes Matth. 11.28 Dawbers then who serue Satans craft in this kinde and all those who dispence their ministery without all spirituall discretion and good conscience of whom there are too many as great strangers to the right way of working grace in others as to the worke of grace in themselves I say they are a generation of dangerous men Old excellent as they say in an accursed Art of conducting poore blinded Soules merrily towards everlasting miserie and setting them downe in the very midst of Hell before they bee sensible of any danger or discovery of their damnable state Great men they are with the men of this world with al those wise fooles and sensuall great ones who are not willing to bee tormented before their time or rather who desire impossibly to live the life of pleasures in the meane time and yet at last to die the death of the righteous They have still ready at hand hand over head mercy and pardon Heaven and salvation for all commers and all they come neere without so much as a desire to put any difference or divide the pretious from the vile Which is a prodigâ—â—usly-arrogant folly pernicious in the highest degree both to their own soules and those they delude Heâ—â—e 〈◊〉 they are branded in the Booke of God calling them 〈◊〉 Sâ—wers under mens elboes Ezek. 1â— 1â— That 〈◊〉 laid soft and lockt fast in the Cradle of security thâ—â— may sinke suddenly into the Pit of destruction before they be aware Criers of peace peace when no peace is towards Ier. 6.14 but horrible stirs tumbling of garments in bloud burning and devouring of fire A â—â—n-pleasers â—alat 1.10 who chuse rather to tickle the itching eares of their carnall hearers with some fâ—othy Frier-like conceits out of Dung-hill 〈◊〉 And so smooth Great Ones in their humours by their cowardly flatteries especially if they any waies depend upon them for countenance rising and preferment rather then conscionably to discharge that trust 〈◊〉 upon them by their great Lord and Master in Heaven upon answerablenes for the bloud of those Soules which shal perish by their temporizing silence and flattering vnfaithfulnesse Healers of the hurt of their Hearers with 〈◊〉 words Ier. 6.14 while their Soules are 〈◊〉 by the wounds of sinne unto eternall death Preachers of smooth things Isa. 30.10 which kinde of Men the greatest part and all worldlings wonderfully affect and applaud tho to their owne everlasting vndoing They swell under such Teachers with a Pharisaicall conceite that they are as safe for salvation as the precisest of them all but alas their hope is but like a hollow wall which beeing put to any stresse when the tempest of Gods searching wrath begins to shake it in the time of a finall triall of it's truth and soundnesse it shatters into pieces and comes to naught Heare the Prophet Now go write it before them in a table and note it in a booke that it may bee for the time to come for ever and ever That this is a rebellious people lying children children that wil not heare the Law of the Lord which say to the Seers see not and to the Prophets prophesie not unto us right things speake unto us smooth things prophesie deceits Get you out of the way turne aside out
empoysoner of mens soules which beeing the glorious issue of thine owne infinite understanding was purposely created as a most pretious Panacea an universall medicinall store-house for the cure of all spirituall maladies an inexhausted treasury of all sound comfort true joy peace and refreshing Now the Lord rebuke thee Satan and returne as dung upon thine owne face this villanous base and wicked slaunder which by thy gracelesse instruments thou labourest to cast upon the glorious face of Christianity the incomparable sweetnesse of the wayes of grace and that One necessary thing I have knowne when the onely wise God hath suffered for ends seene and seeming good to his heavenly wisedome the hideous and raging humour of melancholie to darken the native clearenes of the animall spirits in the braine requisite to a due discretion of things apprehended and to blunder and disorder the objects and operations of the phantasie in his dearest child even to distraction and breaking out into that inordinate passion against reason I say then the concurrent cry and clamour of the enemies to the power of Godlines to bee This it is now to bee so bookish to follow preachers so much to be more holy then their neighbours never to have done in serving of God Her so much reading the scriptures and such poring upon precise bookes so they call those which most pierce the conscience and guide the cleerliest in the holy path hath made her starke mad The Puritan is now besides her selfe c. Now I say againe the Lord rebuke thee Satan who sits with such extreme malice and soule-killing folly in the hearts heads of such miserable men whom thou so sottishly hood-winkes and hardens to the height for a most desperate downefal and horrible confusion at last Were now the glorified soule of that blessed Saint consulted with and asked Diddest thou ever receive hurt by reading Gods blessed book by searching sweetly into the great mystery of Christ crucified by meditation upon heavenly things Did the sacred sense of those divine Oracles dissettle thy noble faculties or ever make sad thy heart c. Oh! with what infinite indignation would it sly in the face of such cursed Cavillers and wranglers against the truth Is it possible for the sole and soveraigne Antidote sent from heaven by God himselfe against the sting and venome of all heart-griefe and horror the sacred Sun of saving truth which is onely able to ennoble and glorifie our understandings with wisedome from the brest of the everlasting counsell of Iesus Christ should become the cause of discomfort and dissettlement of the soule No no. There is such a quickening healing and mighty efficacy and vigour shed into it from the Father of lights and shining in it from the face of Christ that by the helpe of the blessed spirit it can turne darkenes into light death into life hell into heaven the deepest horrour into height of joy Tell mee of any misery upon the body soule outward state or good name any calamity felt or feared in this life or the life to come and if thou wilt bee converted and counselled I can send thee to some both Promise and Precedent in this book of God which may upon good ground fill thine heart as full with sound comfort as the Sun is of Light and the Sea of Waters Nay give mee a wounded spirit with all it 's inexplicable terrors and bitternesse which is the greatest misery extremest affliction of which an understanding Soule is capable in this life And let first all the physitians in the world even the Rose-knights as they call themselves lay all their heads skill and experience together for the cure Let all the highest Monarchs upon earth shine upon it with their Imperiall favours for comfort Let the depth of all humane wisedome and the height of the most excellent oratory bee improoued to perswade it peace Let all the creatures in heaven and earth contribute their severall abilities and utmost to still it 's rage And when all these have done and have done just nothing I will fetch a cordiall out of Gods owne booke which shall mollifie the anguish expell the venome and bind it up with everlasting peace which passeth all understanding that the broken bones may rejoyce and the poore soule groaning most grievously under the guilty horrour of many foule abominations and ready to sink into the gulph of despaire bee sweetly bathed and refreshed in the fountaine opened by the hand of mercy for sinne and for uncleannesse Christs dearest bloud the glorious wel-spring of all lightsomnesse and joy Heare how precisely for this purpose and how punctually against such pestilent cauillers some of the ancient Fathers doe Puritanize There is no malady saith Chrysostome either of body or soule but may receive a medicine out of Gods booke One comes oppressed with sadnesse and anxiety of businesses overwhelmed with griefe But presently hearing the Prophet saying Why art thou cast downe O my soule and why art thou so disquieted within mee Hope thou in God for I will yet praise him who is the health of my countenance and my God Hee receives abundance of comfort and abandons all heavines of heart Another is pinched with extreme poverty takes it heavily and grieves seeing others flowing in riches swelling with pride attended with great pompe and state But hee also heares the same Prophet saying Cast thy burden upon the Lord and hee shall sustaine thee And againe Be not afraide when one is made rich when the glory of his house is increased For when hee dieth hee shall carry nothing away His glory shall not descend after him There is another which assaulted with insidiations and calumnies is much troubled thinkes his life uncomfortable finding no helpe in man Hee is also taught by the same prophet that in such perplexities wee must not resort to the arme of flesh Heare what hee saies They slandered and I prayed The mouth of the wicked and the mouth of the deceitfull are opened against mee They have spoken against mee with a lying tongue They compassed mee about also with words of hatred and fought against mee without a cause For my love they are my adversaries But I give my selfe to prayer Another is slighted and contemned by some base contemptible underlings and forsaken of his friends And that is it which most troubles his mind goes nearest to his heart But hee also if hee will come hither doth heare that blessed man saying My Lovers and my freinds stand aloofe from my sore and my kinsmen stand afarre off They also that seeke after my life lay snares for mee and they that seeke my hurt speake mischeivous things and imagine deceipts all the day long But I as a deafe man heard not and I was as a dumbe man that openeth not his mouth Thus I was as a man that heareth not and in whose mouth are no reproofes for in thee O Lord do I hope thou
bee said Hee died in a Ditch They are Desolators not Consolators as Austin somewhere calls them Not sound Comforters but true Cut-throates Besides that which I have said before of the precedency of the working of the Law and of the spirit of bondage to make way for Christ let mee further tell you upon this occasion that it may appeare that much more is to bee done herein then is ordinarily imagined before comfort may upon good ground and seasonably bee applied to the Conscience awaked what an excellent Divine both for depth of learning and height of holinesse delivered somewhere in this Point to this purpose No man must thinke this strange that God dealeth with men after this strange manner as it were to kill them before Hee make them alive to let them passe through or by as it were the gates of Hell to Heaven to suffer the spirit of bondage to put them into a feare into a shaking and trembling c. For Hee suffers those that are his to bee terrified with this feare 1. First in respect of His owne glory For the magnifying both of His iustice and of His mercy 1. Hee glorifies His iustice when lessening or altogether for the time abstracting all fight of mercy Hee lets the Law Sinne Conscience and Satan loose upon a Man to have their course and severall comminations and sets the spirit of bondage on worke c. Thus as in the great worke of redemption Hee would have the glory of His iustice appeare so would Hee have it also in the application of our redemption that iustice should not bee swallowed up of mercy But even as the Woman 2. King 4. who had nothing to pay was threatned by Creditours to take away her two sonnes and put them in prison so wee having nothing to pay the Law is let loose upon us to threaten imprisonment and damnation to affright and terrifie and all this for the manifesting of His iustice Furthermore the Booke of God is full of terrible threatnings against sinners Now shall all these bee to no purpose The wicked are insensible of them to them therefore in that respect they are in vaine Some there must needs bee upon whom they must worke Shall the Lion roare saith the Prophet and no man bee affraide Sith then they who should will not Some there bee who must tremble This the Prophet excellently setteth â—orth Isai. 66.2 where the Lord sheweth whom Hee will regard But to this man will I looke even to Him that is poore and of a contrite spirit and trembleth at my Word Neither is it without good cause that God dealeth thus with his owne in this manner tho it bee sharpe in the experience First wee must feare tremble and bee humbled and then wee shall receive a spirit not to feare againe 2. His mercy also is thereby mightily magnified Which would never bee so sweet nor relish so well nor bee so esteemed of us if the awfull terrour of iustice had not formerly made us smart A King sometimes doth not only suffer the Law to passe upon some grievous malefactor for high treason but also causeth him to bee brought to the place of execution yea and lay downe his head upon the blocke ere Hee pardon and then mercy is mercy indeed and melts the heart abundantly with amazâ—mâ—nt and admiration of it So God dealeth with us many times Le ts the Law loose against us puts us in feare casts us into Prison and threatneth condemnation in Hell for ever so that when mercy commeth to the Soulâ— beeing now lost in it selfe and at the Pits brinke it appeares to bee a wonderfull mercy the riches of exceeding mercy most seasonable most sweet most ravishing Why doe so many find no savour in the Gospell Is it because there is no matter of sweetnesse or delight in it No it is because they have not tasted of not been soundly toucht and terrified by the Law and the spirit of bondage They have not smarted nor as yet been afflicted with a sense of the bitternesse of sinne nor of iust punishment due unto the same God therefore sends into our hearts the spirit of feare and bondage to prepare us to rellish mercy And then the spirit of adoption not to feare againe And thus by this order the one is magnified and highly esteemed by the fore-going sense of the other 2. Secondly for our good and that two waies first in Iustification secondly and in Sanctification 1. For the first wee are such strangers unto God that wee will never come unto Him till wee see no other remedy being at the Pits brinke ready to starue hopelesse c. Wee see it in the prodigall Sonne He would never thinke of any returne unto his Father till all other helpes failed Him money friends acquaintance all sorts of food Nay if Hee might have fed upon huskes with the Swine Hee would not have thought of returning any more to his Father This beeing denied him the Text saith Hee came to Himselfe shewing us that when Men runne on in sinfull courses they are mad men out of themselves even as wee see thâ—se in Bedlam are beaten kept under denâ—ed comforts till they come to themselves And what faith Hee then I will arise and goe to my Father and will say unto Him Father I have sinned against heaven and against Thee c. So it is with us untill the Lord humble and bring us low in our owne eyes show us our misery and spirituall poverty and that in us there is no good thing that wee bee stript of all helpeâ— in and without our selves and see that wee must perish unlesse wee beg His mercy I say untill then wee will not seeke his face and favour nor have recourse to Iesus Christ the rocke of our salvation It is with us in this Case as it was with the Women whom Christ healed of the bloody issue How long was it ere shee came to Christ She had been sicke twelve yeeres She had spent all her living upon Physitions neither could she bee healed of any Now this extremity brought Her to Iesus Christ. This then is the meanes to bring to Christ To bring us upon our knees to drive us out of our selues hopelesse as low as may bee To shew us where helpe is onely to bee found and make us runne unto it The hunted Beast flies unto his Den The Israelites being stung by fiery Serpents made hast to the Brazen Serpent a Type of Christ for helpe The Man-killer under the Law chaced by the avenger of blood ranâ—e a pace to the City of refuge Ioab being pursued for his life fled to the Tabernacle of the Lord and laid fast hold upon the horneâ— of the Altar A wounded man hies unto the Surgeon Proportionably a poore Soule broken and bruised with the insupportable burden of all his abominations bleeding at heart-roote under sense of Divine wrath by the cutting edge of the Sword of the Spirit managed
life no acquaintance at all with the waies of God but continue cursedly carelesse what becomes of the Gospell or Gods children so that they may rise grow rich and sleepe in a whole skinne 8. By this time now is he become the drunkards song table-talke to those that sit in the gate Musicke to great men at their feasts a By-word to the children of fooles and the children of villaines men viler then the earth whose fathers hee would have disdained to have set with the doggs of his flocke And what then Even thus they dealt with David Iob Ieremie Nay they told the Sonne of God himselfe in whom the Godhead dwelt bodily that he was a Samaritane and had a Devill What man of braine then that gives his name to Christ and lookes to bee saved will looke for exemption Especially sith all the contumelies and contemptes all those nick-names of Puritan Precisian Hypocrite Humorist Factionist c. with which lewd tongues are woont to load the Saints of God are so many honourable badges of their worthy deportment in the holy path and resolute standing on the Lords side Some noble Romans having done some singular service to the state and after troubled and handled violently in some privat Cases were woont to bare their bodies and to shew in open court the scars and impressions of those woundes which they had received in their Countries cause as characters of speciall honour and strongest motives to commiseration So many lying imputations unworthy usages and persecutions in any kinde for profession of godlinesse which the faithfull Christian shall bring to the Iudgement seate of Christ so many glorious and roiall representations of excellency of spirit and height of courage in Christian causes shall they bee accounted in the sight and censure of almighty God and the blessed Angels and make him more amiable and admirable in the face of heaven and earth Thus much of the Theorie as it were I come now to the Practicke part To a particular application of some speciall soveraigne Antidotes to the most grievous ordinary maladies incident to the soules of the Saints But first give mee leave to premise some generall well-heads out of which do spring abundance of comfort and overflowing rivers of refreshing for all intents and effects in point of temptation and trouble of minde 1. And first take a fruitfull cluster and heavenly heape of them together those twelve heads of extraordinary immeasurable comfortable matter for spirituall medicines which I have heretofore erected as so many invincible bulwarkes against all assaults of despaire oppositions of Satan exceptions of distrust 1. The infinitenesse of Gods mercy sweetely intimated Isa. 55.6.7.8 The mercy of God is like himselfe infinite All our sinnes are finite both in number and nature Now betweene finite and infinite there is no proportion and so no possibility of resistance And therefore bee thy sinnes never so notorious and numberlesse yet in a truly broken heart thirsting for and throwing it selfe upon Christ unfainedly resolving upon new-obedience and his glorious service for the time to come can no more withstand or stand before Gods mercies then a little sparke the boundlesse and mighty Ocean throwne into the midst of it nay infinitely lesse If all the sinnes that all the Sonnes and daughters of Adam have committed since the Creation to this time were all upon one soule yet so affected as I have sayd and put into such a new penitent gracious temper it should be most certainly upon good ground and everlastingly safe I speake not thus to make any secure for any one sinne pleasing and raigning will ruine a soule for ever But to assure of mercy enough how great or many so ever the sinnes haue been if the heart bee now truly humbled for them all and wholly turned heaven-ward 2. The unvaluablenesse of Christs meritorious blood Which is call'd the blood of God and therefore of inestimable price Vnderstand mee aright It was the blood of God not of the God-head but of him who was both God and man For the man-hood of Christ was received into the union of the second person And so it may bee called the blood of God for so speakes S. Paul Act. 20.28 God purchased his Church with his owne blood that is Christ God incarnate Our Devines expresse it thus It was the Sonne of God and Lord of life that died for us upon the Crosse but it was the nature of man not of God wherein he died and it was the nature of God and infinite excellency of the same whence the price valew and worth of his passion grew This blessed blood then is of infinite efficacie and therefore if thou be now turning to the Lord assure thy selfe whatsoever thy sinnes have beene they have not out-gone the price that hath been payd for them This blood upon repentance did take off the transcendent scarlet guilt from the soules even of those that shed it Act. 2. c. 3. The riches of the Word in affording precedents of the Saints and of the Sonne of God himselfe who have surpassed thee and that perhaps very farre in any kinde of miserie thou canst name Thou art perhaps consulting with the Prodigall to come-in but there comes terribly into thy minde the extraordinary hainousnesse of thy former sinnes and that hinders Cast thine eie then upon Manasses a man of prodigious impiety and matchlesse villany Hee shed innocent blood very much till hee had filled Ierusalem from one end to another Hee did that which was evill in the sight of the Lord like unto the abominations of the heathen whom the Lord had cast out before the children of Israel Hee caused his children to passe through the firâ—â— in the valley of the sonne of Hinnom also Hee observed times and used inchantments and used witch-craft and dealt with a familiar spirit and with wizzards Hee wrought much evill in the sight of the Lord to provoke him to anger c. And yet this great sinner humbling himselfe greatly before the God of his Fathers was received to mercy Suppose which yet were a horrible thing that after conversion by extraordinary violence of temptation strong in-snarement of some sudden sensuall offer and opportunity treacherous insinuation of thy owne false heart and furious re-assault of thy former bosome-sin Thou shouldest be overtaken grossely with some grievous sin and scandalous fal and then upon illumination remorse and meditation of returne reason thus within thy selfe Alas what shall I doe now I have undone all I have wofully againe defiled my soule so fairely washed in my Saviours blood with that dis-avowed sinne of my unregenerate time I have shamed my profession disgraced religion for ever I have broke my vowes lost my peace and my woonted blessed communion with my God c. And therefore what hope can I have of any acceptation againe at the Throne of grace I say in this case to keepe thee
from between the teeth of bloody persecuting Wolues 2. Tim. 4.17 Secondly Sometimes Hee takes away or lessens the sting and fury of the torment and torturers The fire had no force at all over the bodies of those blessed men Dan. 3.27 And no doubt in Queene Maries dayes of most abhorred memory Hee many times mollified and sweetned the rage and bitternesse of those mercilesse flames for our Martyrs sakes Thirdly Sometimes he supports and supplies them with supernaturall vigour and extraordinary courage over the smart and rigour of the most terrible and intolerable tortures The heart of that holy Proto-Martyr Steven was furnished and filled with those heavenly infusions of spirituall strength and ioy when the Heavens opening He saw the glory of God and Iesus standing on His right hand which were gloriously transcending and triumphant over the utmost of all corporall paine and Iewish cruelty And so graciously dealt He with many other Martyrs in succeeding ages as we may reade in Ecclesiasticall Stories Fourthly Hee may sometimes also out of His mercifull wisdome put into their hearts such a deale of Heaven before-hand and ravishing comforts of the World to come that the excesse thereof doth swallow up and devoure as it were the bitternesse of all bodily inflictions and sufferings of sense Thus mercifully dealt Hee with that worthy Martyr Master Robert Glover even when He was going towards the Stake He poured into His Soule upon the sudden such over-flowing Rivers of spirituall joyes that no doubt they mightily abated and quencht the ragefull fury of those Popish flames wherein Hee was sacrificed for the Profession of the Gospell of Christ and Gods everlasting truth And assuredly that comfortable Sun-shine of unexpresse-able joy which by the good hand of God was shed into Master Peacocks sorrowfull heart in the depth of His darkenesse and desertion a little before the resignation of His happy Soule into the hands of God did make the pangs of death and that dreadfull Passage a great deale lesse painefull and sensible if not very lightsome and pleasant Now in both these men of God a wofull spirituall dereliction was a fit introduction and immediate preparative to the effusion of such a sudden torrent of strange exultations and ravishments of spirit upon their sad and heavy hearts Conceive the Point then thus The Lord sometimes even in tendernesse and love to His owne deare Children whom Hee designes for extraordinary sufferings may purposely possesse them with such a Paradise of divine pleasures as a counter-comfort to the extremity of their paines that besides their owne private refreshing and support their couragious insensibility and victorious patience thereupon may bring a great deale of terrour to their tormentors glory to their Mercifull Maister credit unto the cause and confusion to the enemies of grace And that there may be an addition of more heart and life to such joyfull elevations of spirit and that He may make the excellency of that spirituall joy proportionable to the exquisitnes of their tortures and trouble He may in His unsearchable wisedome make way thereunto by a spirituall desertion As Hee did in the fore-named glorious Martyr Master Glover For want of the sense of the comforts of godlinesse for a season doth make our Soules a thousand times more sensible of their sweetnesse upon their re-infusion 8. Eighthly Thus may the Lord sometimes deale with His best and dearest Children even by withdrawing the light of His countenance leave them for a while to these inward conflicts and confusions of spirit that thereby they may bee fitted and informed with an holy experimentall skill to speake feelingly and fully to the hearts of their Christian Brethren which may afterward bee tempted and troubled as they have been For God is woont at all times in His Church so gracious is Hee purposely to raise up and single out some speciall men whom Hee instructs and enables in the Schoole of spirituall experiments and afflictions of Soule with extraordinary dexterity and Arte to comfort and recover other Mourners in Zion in their distresses of consciences stronger temptations spirituall desertions decaies of grace relapses Eclipses of Gods face and favour wants of former comfortable feelings in case of horrible thoughts and hideous injections darkenesse of their owne spirits and such other Soule-vexations And such a blessed Physition which is able to speake experimentally to a dejected sorrowfull heart out of practise and sense in His owne Soule is farre more worth both for a true search and discovery and sound recovery and cure of a wounded conscience then an hundred meere speculative Divines Such an One is that One of a thousand spoken of by Iob which can wisely and seasonably declare unto His Soule-sicke Patient the secret Tracks hidden Depths of Gods dealings with afflicted spirits Let us take instance in those experimentall abilities which David gained for such a purpose by His passing thorow that most grievous spirituall desertion Psal. 77. The Case of that Christian were most rufull both in His owne fearefull apprehension and to the un-judicious 〈◊〉 the Beholders who having spent a long time 〈◊〉 Zealous professiō of the Truth walking with God and secret communion with Iesus Christ should come to that passe and fall into those wofull straights of spirituall trouble First That Hee should feare not without extraordinary horrour lest the mercies of God were departed from Him for ever and that the Lord would never more bee intreated or ever shine againe with his favourable countenance upon His confounded Soule Secondly that the very remembrance of God which was woont to crowne his heart with a confluence of all desire-able contentments should even rent it asunder and make it fall to pieces in His bosome like drops of water Thirdly That the pouring out of His Soule with pittifull groanes and complaints in secret unto His God which heretofore did set wide open unto Him heavenly flood-gates of gracious refreshing should now quite overwhelme His spirit with much distracted amazement and feare Fourthly That that heart of His which had formerly full sweetly tasted those holy pleasures which farre passe the comprehension of any carnall conceit should now be so brim-full and damm'd up with excesse of griefe that no vent or passage should bee left unto His speech Fifthly And which Mee thinkes is the perfection of His misery in this kinde that amidst all these heavy discomforts His Soule should refuse to bee comforted That tho the Ministers and Men of God stand round about Him bring into His minde and presse upon Him the pregnant evidences and testimonies of His owne godly life the unchangeablenesse of Gods never-failing mercies to His the sweetnesse of His glorious Name the soveraigne power and mighty price of His Sonnes blood the infallible and inviolable pretiousnesse and truth of the promises of life c. Yet in the agony and angvish of His grieved spirit Hee puts them all away from 〈…〉 none of His nor as properly belonging to His