life consisting not in a bare and naked profession or in worde onely but also in deede and action when as euery grace of Gods spirite lurking inwardly in the heart sendeth foorth fruit in life according to the nature and kinde of it For as it commeth to passe in our bodies both in the whole and also in the seuerall partes and members of them that the more they are exercised the more they are both confirmed in strength and augmented in quantitie and contrarilie the more they cease from perfourming theyr naturall functions the lesse able they are to perfourme them yea by this meanes it commeth to passe that they are littlâ— and weake euen so it commeth to passe in the soule the graces whereof as they are more or lesse put in practise in the doing of of good workes and the performaunce of Christian duties so they do either encrease or decay For example a Christian is diligent in practising the duties of loue towardes his brethren hee imparteth his goods and whatsoeuer he hath vnto them for the relieuing of their necessitie and the supplie of their wants this Christian by this meanes increaseth loue in his owne soule by giuing hee becommeth more liberall by shewing mercie on the distressed more pittifull the more hee giueth to his brethren of his temporall goodes the more hee getteth to himselfe of spirituall loue the more wee suffer afflictions the more wee learne patience as it is sayde of Christ in the fifth to the Hebrewes and the eight verse That hee learned patience by his sufferinges and as it is sayde in the fifthe to the Romanes That afflictions worke patience the more the bodie is tamed and kept vnder by fasting such other means the more the soule is strengthned and so it commeth to passe in all other graces Foâ— by practiâ—e they are kept and increased by the want of practise they are diminished and lost Whereby it appeareth how necessarie good workes are in regarde of the good estate of the soule and that as they take their being froÌ„ inward graces so they giue backe againe vnto them strength and increase Thus Christ Mat. 7. in the parable of the wise and foolish builder maketh the practise of Christianitie to bee the foundation of Religion in the heart of a man euen that without the which it cannot stand and continue but will decay by little and little and at length fall to the ground in lyke manner Paule 1. Tim. 6.17 maketh good workes the foundation of godlinesse although in truth and in proper speach it bee the fruit of it And Iam. 1.22 Be ye not onely hearers but also doers of the law otherwise yee deceyue your selues for that all your Religion will soone vanish away and come to nought For the facultyes both of bodie and soule are lost by idlenesse as they are strengthened by vse and labour and therfore wee are not to doubt but that good workes howsoeuer little esteemed by many and seldome to bee found in the lyues of any haue a necessarie and notable vse in this spirituall Diet. And surely whosoeuer considereth the liues and professions of many Christians yea euen of those of whom we are to thinke no otherwise but that they are truely endued with faith how fruitlesse and altogether barren of good works they are neede not maruaile why most men either decrease or stand at a stay in godlinesse but may easely see and acknowledge that the graces of God are lost for want of vse and the practise of Christian duties For now a daies châ—istians being too much adâ—icted to the world and worldly pleasures content themselues with the performance of those Christian duties which belong to God as are prayer hearing the word receiuing the sacrameÌ„ts leading an vnblameable life But as for the duties of loue and mercy which cannot be performed without cost the impairing of our worldly state and diminishing of our earthly pleasures these are not to bee found among men but cleane laide aside as things of no necessitie nor of any great vse in regard of saluation But the trueth is that the more they are neglected the more the graces from the which they should proceede are diminished For as good children are to their parents so good workes are to inward graces they cherish and maintaine them as they came from them and so are in respect of them both as causes and as effects And therefore that we may be stirred vp to the daily practise of good works wee will breefely consider in how many other respects they are good and needfull Sect. 15. THe first motiue and that which ought to be of greatest force to perswade vs to good works is the setting foorth of Gods glory for the which purpose weâ— were both created in the beginning and recreated in regeneration 1 Cor. 6.20 You are bought with a price therefore glorifie God in your bodies and soules which are Gods For that God is greatly glorified by our good workes wee know both by the scripture and by coÌ„mon reason Mat. 5.16 Let your light so shine before men that they seeing your works may glorifie your father who is in heauen And Ioh. 15.8 Herein is my father glorified that yee bring foorth much fruite and become my Disciples And 1. Pet. 2.12 Haue your conuersation honest among thâ— Gentiles that they beholding your good works may glorifie God in the day of their visitation Yea this is agreeable to reason it selfe for by this meanes it appeareth that the God whom we serue is not euill or vniust or any approuer of euill but of puritie iustice vprightnesse and goodnesse Again by obeying Gods commandements we shew and professe to the whole worlde that we acknowledge loue and feare him that we beleeue his worde promises and threatnings that we hope and trust in him whereas by neglecting those Christian duties which God requireth we shew indeed whatsoeuer we professe in word that wee make small reckoning of him or of his word Secondly we ought to abound in all good workes that so we may giue both to others and also to get to our own coÌ„sciences many arguments and pledges of true regeneration the which cannot be knowen by any other meanes But shall wee go a little further and say that good workes are some cause of our saluatioÌ„ as being in part the matter of our iustification It is not good or lawful to speake or lie in the cause of God or to perswade good works by an vntruth yet thus much we may safely say that looke what is to be giuen to renewed holinesse in the matter of our iustification and saluation So much may and must bee granted to good workes which are a part thereof to wit the holinesse of the outward action For holinesse is exercised by good works especially by those which are most costly and troublesome vnto vs. For whosoeuer doth any thing contrary to his temporal commodity he doth it in al likelihood in some spirituall respect and for conscience
worlde aboue the highest heauens and beneath the bottome of the earth and yet it is a straunger at home most ignoraunt of the owne estate as the manifold doubts cōtrouersies and cōtentions which haue from time to time troubled the heads schooles and bookes not onely of Philosophers but also of learned Diuines about the originall creation substaunce infusion infection or corruption and separation of the soule do plainely testifie Yea in the soule of man nothing is so vnknowne to man himself as that which both of it selfe and to all others is most apparant and conspicuous as are the spots in a mans face to wit the wants infirmities and enormities of it This cōmeth to passe by reason of that self loue engrauen by nature in man and in all other things by the which it cōmeth to passe that as he is better affected towards himselfe thē to any other thing so the iudgement following affection he thinketh better of himself then he ought to do being vnwilling to heare and vnable to conceaue anie thing tending to the disgrace of himselfe especially of his soule wherein his excellencie dooth consist And therefore as Philosophers knowing that men are altogither ignorāt of their owne faults and vices set this precept Nosce seipsum in the beginning of their morall institutions so the first lesson which a diuine is to teach and a Christian to learn is this know and acknowledge the sinfulnesse of thy soule wherof of thy selfe thou art altogither ignorant And surely so it is for although the soule of man bee so wholy infected with the leprosie of sinne that there is no cleane part or piece from the top to the toe of it yet it seemeth to it selfe most pure beautifull and glorious as by the receiued opinions of perfect inherēt righteousnesse iustification by works merit of pure naturals free will doth plainly appeare Reuel 3.17 Thou sayest I am rich and am enriched the one by nature the other by freewil and industry and haue need of nothing and knowest not that thou art wretched miserable poore blinde and naked These are the opinions conceits which al mē haue of themselues thinking far better of thēselues in euery respect thē they shuld do yea the errors before named as they are natural to man so they haue place cōmonly in most if not generally in all carnall men who howsoeuer perhaps for cōpany and fashions sake they make profession of the cōtrary truth yet in their minds they hold the puritie of mans nature thinking it no more corrupt then it was created by god then it was in Adam during the time of his innocēcie yea that it is impossible to shew how possibly either his nature shuld be corrupted or his corruption deriued to his posteritie Yea thinking it to be the most excellent nature or little inferior or different frō it wherof it commeth that they do so vsually resemble the diuine nature vnto it honoring fearing worshipping trusting inuocating it as god yea ascribing to it what soeuer is glorious in god making saints of sinful men gods of saints wheras in truth it is not only not most excellent but euen very base and meane not onely corrupt in sinfulnesse but euen filthy and loathsome not weake or sick but dead and rotten not happy but of all natures if wee except the the diuel his angels the most wretched wofull Likewise for outward actiō he thinketh that those works which haue any shewe of goodnes although they be neuer so imperfit corrupt and hipocriticall are meritorious before god yea to be a sufficiēt price of eternal saluation both for himself also for others For meane ordinary sins he thinketh them venial light offences not to be accounted or auoided his good meaning is as good as perfit holinesse his owne righteousnes perfite and absolute yea this blindnes and ignorance of their own estate appeareth euen in the natural gifts of men who vsually iudge themselues of all other the wittiest most wise and most worthy of honour although there bee no such cause yea althogh they be most simple vnlearned yet they are as stifly addicted to their owne opinions and fashions as they who haue the surest ground for their actions course of life In these other like respects our naturall blindnesse is to be considered and so to be applied to our spiritual estates in respect whereof this blindnesse is greatest and most hurtful Sect. 2 BVt how shall wee bring the naturall man to see his owne sinfulnes Surely 〈◊〉 by setting before his eyes the glasse of the morall law wherein if he will open his eies for of himself by nature he hath some knowledge of good and euill remaining in his minde he may see himself to be a most vgly and filthy leaper defiled in nature soule and bodie in minde will and affections in worde deed and in all his actions with all maner of sin The which exercise of comparing the puritie of the law of god to wit the obedience commanded in it with the sinfulnesse of their owne soules and the sins of their liues we do earnestly cōmend vnto all those who desire to walke aright in this way of repentance leading to regeneration and saluation And not only to consider the bare wordes of the tenne commandemēts the whch being of set purpose made short cōpendious for memories sake do onely mention the principall duties forbid grosse and capital sins but also to learne the meaning of them by reading marking and remembring those manifolde expositions which are made of the sayde commaundements both by Christ himselfe the head doctour of the Church Matth. 6. and also by his Ministers in their wrytings according to the measure of grace receaued from him In the which thou who soeuer thou art that takest in hande this happie worke of Repentance shalt see the greate varietie and multitude of thy sinnes thy originall sinne which is the totall corruption of thy nature prone to all euill and abhorring from all goodnesse and thy actuall sinnes thy inwarde sinnes to witte the wicked vniust and filthy motions of thy minde will and affections and thy outwarde sinnes to wit thy vaine foolish and filthy talke thy lewde behauiour dishonourable to God and iniurious to thy brethren thy sinnes of ignorance and thy wilfull and rebellious sins committed with a high hand and obstinate purpose and a shamelesse face against God and man The sins of thy youth and the sins of thy ripe age thy smal sinnes although the least may be counted great in that it bringeth vvith it the endles wrath of God and thy hainous and horrible sins as are atheisme idolatrie periurie murther incest and adulterie all these and many other sorts of sins thou shalt find in euery one of the ten cōmaundemts and in euery part of thy bodie soule if it please thee to take the paines for it wil be a painfull and greeuous peece of worke painfull indeede
the more ashamed in respect of God and of his holy angels as they are more excellent pure more abhorring the filthinesse of sinne then any man is or can be as we knowe that Adam and Eua were ashamed of their nakednesse or rather of their sinne which made their nakednesse shamefull which of it selfe was glorious when as there were not any other men to see it And therefore howsoeuer the Atheisme of men be so great that they are not perswaded and therefore not ashamed of the presence of God yet all they who haue any dealing with God or do any way seeke vnto him must be more ashamed of their sins in respect of god then men and yet to nourish this shamefastnes in regard of their brethren as being good and profitable for the more that they are humble towards men the greater wil their humiliation be in respect of God The second part of inward humiliation is sorrow which is a greeuous sense of some present euill as feare is of some euill to come both which affections cannot but be great and vehement in this repentant for that his eyes being now at length opened hee seeth and feeleth himselfe to be in a most miserable estate to bee for the present in slauerie to sinne and Sathan altogether destitute of grace of al the means of attaining it beside many temporall crosses wherewith hee is afflicted and for the time to come in the very gnawes of the deuill and in the vnquenchable furnace of the wrath of God It is not needefull that we should insiste in declaring how great and iust cause hee hath of sorrow feare yea rather it is not possible for vs to declare it in any measure If we suppose a mā liuing in health wealth and all maner of pleasure to haue this of a sudden made knowne vnto him that he is condemned of treason committed against his Prince and countrey and that therefore hee is forthwith to be depriued of life and al those pleasures which he doth enioy there being no hope of pardon which can not possibly be procured by himselfe or any other it depending wholly in the gracious fauor free inclination of the prince who vseth to be greatly inflamed with anger against al such offenders not to spare one of a thousand of them can wee fully conceiue in mind or expresse in word the greatnesse of his greefe sorrow and feare How much more greeuous and fearefull a thing shall wee then thinke it to incur the displeasure of God the losse of eternal ioy and happines togither with those endlesse paines which are prepared for the wicked And therefore when as wee see men labour and grone vnder this burthen of their sinnes and the anger of GOD wee are not as vsually men doo who haue no sense of these things to iudge them as men subiect to foolish and melancholie passions but rather to thinke and confesse that there is good cause why they shoulde be thus affected Yea this repentant is to giue himselfe to the daily and serious consideration of these things that so this humiliation which is of great vse and verye needfull in regard of his saluation may bee procured For as it is often needfull for the preseruation of the bodily life that the patient be by detraction of blood brought to a swowne and so euen to deaths doore so it is needfull for the procuring of this spirituall life of the soule that the repentant be by sorrowe and feare cast down euē to the gates of hell as one forlorne and being in a most wretched estate Thus the apostle writeth 2. Cor. 7.8 I do not repēt me that I made you sorrowfull by an Epistle yea I am glad not that ye were sorie but that ye sorowed to repentance not to be repented of for worldly sorrow bringeth death But as this humiliation is carefully to be procured in regard of the great commodities which it bringeth which are afterward to be declared so it is to be moderated least that it driue to desperation as in the place before named he warneth the Corinthians that they doo not vse too great seueritie toward the incestuous person least that he be swalowed vp of excessiue sorow For it may easely come to passe that men entering into a serious consideratiō of their sins of the iudgments of god denounced and executed against sinners do plunge thē selues into the gulfe of horror and desperation out of the which they are hardly recouered so fearefull a thing is the wrath of God that euen one blencke of it is able to driue a sinner out of his wits and vtterlie to astonish him And what maruaile is it that a sinfull man who in respect of the anger of God is euen as hay stubble or flaxe meeting with fire bee soone ouercome and faint vnder this heauy burthen lying on his conscience when as euen Christ himselfe who in himselfe was free from sinne and whose humane nature was vpheld by the Godhead to beare the burthen of Gods wrath due vnto the sinne of man was by the sense of it so amazed and confounded that all the faculties both of his bodie and soule were shaken and loosed as for the one those drops of blood which he swet and for the other those wordes vttered in humane weakenesse and feare My God my God why hast thou forsaken me do plainly witnesse So that if a short consideration and apprehension of the wrath of god could work such a strange effect in him who knew no sin what maruaile is it if in sinful men it stir vp the very flame of hell fire as to let all other examples passe we reade of one Francis Spira in whom wee may beholde the very picture of that spirituall torment of a gnawing and terrifying conscience which is prepared for the wicked in the worlde to come But it must bee preuented by hauing in the midst of the view of our wretched estate the other eye set on the mercifull promises of God made as touching the pardon of sinne whereof although this penitent cannot haue any assurance that they belong vnto him in that hee feeleth not as yet grace wrought in his heart which is the onely earnest penny pledge of saluation and of the loue of GOD yet hee may hope for it in time to come it being like inough that GOD who hath begunne this repentance in him will also worke regeneration in his good time And therefore there must in this case a meane be kept so as wee be neither secure and senselesse in regarde of our sinnes and the wrath of GOD much lesse puft vp in pride and vaine confidence supposing our state to be good and happy whenas it is wofull and miserable nor yet swallowed vppe of excessiue sorrow and feare as if there were no hope of helpe left vnto vs as many haue beene to whom the burden of this sorrow and feare hath beene so intollerable that despairing of any other remedie
our sinnes to god by good workes for a thousande good workes will not counteruaile the least sin before Gods iudgement seate but that as by our sinnes heeretofore committed wee haue disobeyed and dishonoured God so now wee are to obey and glorifie him by our good workes and Christian liues yet in regarde of our brethren wee may and must to the vttermost of our power make full recompence Thus dooth Zacheus in his repentance Luke 19.8 promise Christ that hee will first giue halfe his goods to the poore in a testification of his obedience thankefulnesse and faith which he had toward god and then for satisfaction of men restore foure folde to euerie one from whom hee had iniuriously taken any thing Thus wee see the first part of this renouation to wit amendement of life to the which Iohn exhorteth the Iewes in his ministerie of repentance saying Matth. 3.8 Bring foorth fruits worthy repentance or such as beseemeth them who professe themselues to haue changed their course of life and to be conuerâ—ed from sinne to God But our repentant must not stay here for then hee plaieth the hypocriticall Pharisie making the outside of the cup cleane but leauing it foule and filthie within and therefore we must desire him to trie what he can do in mending the corrupt and sinfull life of his soule and of all the faculties thereof This is no doubt a hard peece of worke passing the cunning of any creature and belonging to God onely yet man may in some sort chaunge his soule although not from sinfulnesse to holinesse yet from vice to vertue and from ignorance to knowledge Wherein our repentant is to labour vsing all good meanes of getting knowledge and vertue He is to giue himselfe carefully to the reading and studying of the Scripture and of all other bookes conteyning sounde and true doctrine gathered out of the worde of GOD. Yea although hee meete with manie poynts of doctrine which hee cannot possiblie vnderstande conceaue or beleeue yet hee is not to giue ouer but rather to ascribe the hardnesse of them to his owne dulnesse and the impossibilitie of others of them to his owne incredulitie not considering the power of God Likewise he is to labour in chaunging the inward disposition of his will and affections framing and bending theÌ„ from euill to good by reasons and perswasions takeÌ„ both out of the scripture and also out of prophane writers in whom we may find notable pattern of al vertues by the examples of Christians and also of Infidels of whom many haue so profited in these exercises that they may seeme to haue attained to the perfection of vertue Yea he is to vse great seueritie towarde himselfe in repressing the peruersenesse and rebellion of these head-strong faculties and that by denying vnto them the lawfvll vse of things that so they may be farre from vnlawfull desires To be short hee who doth desire and seeke for regeneration must by all meanes endeuour not onely to purge himselfe from all open and grosse sinnes by leading a life vnblameable before men but also from smal and secrete sinnes by keeping a good conscience in all his wayes in the sight of God yea not onely to abstaine from euill but also to perfourme all Christian and honest duties both to God and man Yea he must purge not onely his life and actions from sinne but also his minde from ignoraunce vsing all good meanes to be instructed in Religion yea his will and affections from all vices lustes and corrupt desires and so as much as lyeth in his power to renue himselfe And yet when he hath done all that he can hee is but where he was to wit a carnall man as dead in sinne as any man is in his graue Yet he hath vsed the first meanes of obtayning grace and eternall glorie and hath done that whereby that grieuous condemnation which is appointed for the wicked is auoyded and the fauour of God procured at least for temporall blessiings Sect. 3. THe second meanes of attaining to regeneration is the ministerie of the worde the which is the ordinarie meanes by the which God worketh regeneration in his elect We say ordinarie beâ—â—use some time it pleaseth God to worke without it by other meanes as namely by priuate reading instruction and exhortation by myracles by crosses and great humiliations yea sometimes by temporall blessings plentifully and straungely bestowed on men yet the vsuall and appointed meanes is the publike ministerie of his holie worde perfourmed in a plaine and simple maner as we reade 1. Pet. 1.23 Being borne againe not of mortall seede but of immortall by the worde of God enduring for euer If it be asked what needeth any meanes in regeneration it being an immediate worke of God why this meanes more then some other why the publike ministerie of the worde rather then the same doctrine priuately taught Wee answere to the first question that as in all others miracles so also in this God vseth some shewe of naturall causes that so hee may conceale his owne extraordinarie working as it is Prouâ—rb 25.1 It is a glorie to God to conceale his doings So in regeneration as great a myracle as any other yea the onely myracle in this time of the Gospel continuing in all ages of it GOD vseth ordinarilie the meanes of his worde preached in which respect it is a mediate worke of GOD yet because this meanes hath not this power inherent in it selfe in truth it is an immediate worke To the second question wee answere that God for the ende mentioned to wit the concealing of his myraculous working vseth to vse a meanes hauing in it a vertue although not able to bring foorth the effect yet helping towardes it and of some force for that purpose euen in the iudgement of a naturall man And so in regeneration it is plaine that the ministerie of the word seemeth to haue for most men thinke that it hath indeede the power of renuing men inherent in it selfe For thus they reason men being endued with reason may by teaching bee brought to knowledg by force of argumeÌ„t they may bee perswaded to vertue and moderation whereof a vertuous and honest life will easely followe yea there is no doubt but that God doth ordinarily prepare men after a sort for grace drawing them nearer to himselfe then other carnall men are and therefore the ministerie of the worde is a fit meanes of regeneration The third poynt may verie well be made a question among those who thinke that the ministerie of the worde hath the facultie of regenerating inherent in it selfe for why shoulde not a man learne and bee perswaded as well by himselfe as with others as well at home as in the Church Otherwise it is no question neither is there any other answere to bee made vnto it but onely this that so it pleaseth God to worke by publicke and not by priuate means And yet no man can denie but that it is more meete that