the worke is so farre accepted as it hath an operation on our hearts and affections It is so in every duty as in Prayer when you call on God in private doth God regard the words of a prayer No but ' its working on your hearts ' it s humbling of them ' it s bringing of them into frame and making them perfect with God every day by a thorow renewing of your repentance and this is the doing of the thing Amongst your selves if a servant doth onely make a show of doing a thing it is not regarded but hee that brings the thing to passe is accepted of you and that is it which the Lord requires and accepts in our performances Now we shall see that this Text will helpe us to all that is required in a Fast as will appeare in the particulars Phineas the sonne of Eleazar c. In the former part of the Chapter the disease is set downe and that is Sinne which is indeed the onely disease of the soule illustrated from two consequents First from the wrath of God who as the Text saith was very angry with Israel for they had committed whoredome and joyned with Baal-Peor That was the disease the sin for which they had brought on them Gods wrath And secondly from an effect of that wrath the Plague God struck them with pestilence that is the punishment In this verse is set downe the remedy and that is the turning away of Gods wrath For as the Physitian sayes Morbi curantur contrarijs so it is true in Divinity as the wrath of God was the cause of the Plague so the turning away thereof is the remedy This turning away of his wrath is set forth by the cause of its turning away and that was the zeale of Phineas while hee was zealous for my sake and that is made good by two reasons One is in the latter end of my Text therefore have I not consumed them in my jealousie As if hee had said If Phineas had not beene zealous my jealouâ— should have burned more and more and the jealousie of that should have beene utter destruction The second is Gods owne Testimony set downe before my Text. The Lord himselfe said unto Moses that his wrath was turned away I will say no more for opening the words but in them you shall see these five points lye evidently before you First in that the removall of the Plague is attributed to God and to the turning away of his anger this is clearely deduced That it is God only that doth good and evill for you see his anger brought the Plague on them and the turning away of his anger healed them againe Secondly it is sin that causes Gods anger anger in God hath alway relation to sinne for sinne is the cause of it Thirdly the way to turne away the Lords anger is zeale for his sake Fourthly if there be want of this zeale among us his jealousie shall grow hotter and hotter it shall encrease upon us more and more Fifthly and lastly the issue of this jealousie of his will be utter destruction Wee will begin with the first which is That it is God onely that doth good and evill to every Nation to every Church and Kingdome yea to every particular person As you see here it was not the corruption of the Aire that brought the Plague nor the clearing of it with fâ—ost and wind that turned it away but the cloud of the Lords wrath shed this storme on them and when he was appeased with them there followed health and peace The Lord wounds and the Lord heales For what is the Plague but a sword in the hand of an Angell who drawes it out and puts it into its sheath againe at his Masters appointment And is not there the same reason of all other evils Warre you know is a terrible thing when Enemies come as Bees on a Land but doth not the Lord hisse for them And againe they are driven away as with a breath at his appointment Famine is a leane devouring evill which causes the Land to eate up the inhabitants thereof but is not the Lord the onely cause of it Doth not he make the Heaven as Brasse and the Earth as Iron Doth not he when he will open the windowes of Heaven and unstop the bottels of the clouds and powre outraine unseasonably And is not hee the cause of death which is the journeys end of both the former To which every one of us is subject yet wee consider it not Though we see men fall from the Tree of Life every moment yet wee regard it not This the Lord takes onely to himselfe Psal. 68.20 To the Lord belong the issues from death and therefore let us give to the Lord this great Prerogative of his That he onely doth good and evill and let no man question it You will say who doth question it It is very true we doe not question it in words but if we question it in our deeds it is an argument that our hearts make a doubt of it though our tongues doe not question it Therefore let us examine the matter If wee thinke the Lord onely doth good and evill why then will not we obey him and serve him and please him in all things But provoke him to anger by our words and by our workes as the Prophet speakes Perhaps you will say to me as Saul answered Samuel when he came from the warre of the Amalekites Oh thou blessed of the Lord I have fully kept the Commandement of the Lord but saith Samuel If thou hast done so What meanes the bleating of the Sheepe and the lowing of the Oxen So I say to you if you obey the Lord what meanes so many sinnes amongst us What meanes Fornication and Whoredome which is so frequent What meane those Oathes amongst us for which the Land mournes Not onely greater oathes but smaller oathes which exceed the greater for frequency though the greater exceed them in that they take the Name of God in vaine Againe what meanes the breaches of the Sabbath Of which I will speake a word by the way and that you may know that I doe not blame you for that as a sinne which is no sinne I will make this digression Doe you not think that Sabbaths are to be kept and to be kept holy I will name but two reasons to make it good you shall finde them in Esay 57.30 It is My Holy Day First it is a Holy Day and if it be holy you may doe nothing thereon that is common A Vessell that is sanctified and made holy may not bee imployed to take up common water or used in common services for it is holy So the time of the Sabbath is holy therefore you must not spend it about common actions for if you doe you prophane that which is holy Seeondly it is My Day and if it be My Day rob mee
is fallen into sinne continues in it the guilt and power of it remaines upon his soule and he excuses himselfe with the smalnesse of it This is a common fault and therefore I will presse it the more Consider that which Christ saith Heaven and earth shall passe but the least jot of this Law shall not passe What is the meaning of that It is as if he had said somethings in the Law of God you may thinke small which are but ïotas though other things be greater but take you heed that you keepe every particular for there is not a jot of it but the Lord will have all his servants regard it exactly they shall have respect to every Commandement and to every part of that Commandement the least particular in his Law shall not passe away For consider if it were not so it would bee a prejudice to the Lords wisdome for there would bee something that hee commands which wee might slight But the Lord that hath commanded all both great and small knowes that it is best that all shall bee kept and therefore though heaven and earth shall passe yet the least jot of that Law shall not passe that this is the meaning of the place you may see by Christs exposition of the Law The Pharisies said Adultery must not be committed but I say saith CHRIST He that lusts hath committed adultery in his heart They said You must not sweare by the Temple but I say Sweare â—ot at all they said An eye for an eye and a tooth for a tooth but I say You must forgive your brethren Thus we must labour to resist sin in every even the least particular and reforme our selves in the omission of the least particle of the Law And so much likewise for the second point Thirdly we come now to consider what it is that turnes away his wrath and that is Zeale Phineas hath turned away my wrath while hee was zealous for my sake so that Zeale turnes away the Lords wrath You shall see it exemplefied in Elijah's answer to the Lords demand 1 Kings 19.4 What dost thou here Elijah As if he had said what hast thou done abroad in the world Sayes hee I have beene zealous for the Lord of Hosts because the children of Israel have broke thy covenants throwne downe thine Altars and killed thy Prophets and I onely am escaped As if he had said I have done the most I could for the safety of the Church I have beene zealous for the Lord and therefore hee prevailed with God for his owne deliverance You may see it likewise in Iehu who being zealous not in word onely but in deed also turned away the wrath of the Lord. And you may know it by the contrary that it is zeale that turnes away the Lords wrath because it is coldnesse and luke-warmenesse that brings on his wrath Rev. 3.16 consider there what is the reason why the Lord will spue out the Church of Laodicea and cast it away Because it was luke-warme and therefore the meanes to continue or procure his favour is it not heate and zeale Againe Rev. 2.4 The Church of Ephesus fell from her first love what then Therefore I will come against thee shortly and remove thy Candlestick Then to abound in love so that our workes may be more at last than at first to bee zealous for the LORD is the way to stay the Lord among us and to continue his Gospell of peace Therefore by the way it is not only the great sinnes of the Land that are causes of Gods wrath but the coldnesse of them that are otherwise good that causeth the Lord to remove the Candlesticke The very coldnesse of the Church of Ephesus in falling from her first love the luke-warmenesse of the Laodiceans the LORD would not endure in them Let every man consider this is his zeale now as much as it hath beene if not let us know that it is reckoned coldnesse and luke-warmenesse the falling from our first love is the cause of bringing Gods judgements on a Nation But what is this zeale Zeale is nothing else but the intention of all holy affections and actions I will goe no further than this Text to shew the nature of it Phineas was zealous that is he not onely did the thing but his heart burned within him with zeale for GOD. So as First there must be a stirring up of affection Secondly it must be holy it must bee for the Lord and this is it that discovers true zeale to looke onely to the Lord to have no by-respects as there may be zeale that makes a great deale of heaâ—e and yet it comes from the earth although it makes as great a show as the best Againe there must bee intention not only of affections but also of action Therefore it is said while hee was zealous for my sake among them as if he had said this zeale of Phineas was not kept smothered in his owne brest but it brakâ— forth into action hee did something for the Lord. And indeed it is action that glorifies GOD and that benefits men onely actions stand on our reckoning for you know God judgeth every man according to his workes It is action that doth our selves good that makes us usefull and serviceable to men and the Church that makes us instruments of Gods glory Therefore adde action to affection and know that zeale stands in both for it is the intention of holy actions and affections I will adde no more in the explication but will briefly apply it And first if it bee zeale that turnes away the Lords wrath then why should wee discourage zeale by it I dare bee bold to say the Citie stands Why doe wicked men cry downe all religion and zeale under the name of precisenesse and overmuch strictnesse of life walking bouldly in the streets and reckoning it their glory to wound God through the sides of men So that they make those that beare the name of Christ ready to reckon that their shame which is their glory to hang downe the wing and to seeke corners to hide their heads in whence it is that the servants of Christ follow their Master a far off as if they were halfe ashamed of his service when as they should weare his Livery in open view as accounting that their greatest honour It were well if some meanes were used to prevent this If it be zeale that turnes away the wrath of God wee should doe well then to nourish and cherish them that are zealous Are not religion and zeale the two which hold all up Are they not the pillars that beare up the Church and Common-wealth Are not they the rescues that deliver the Citie Yet doe not wicked men with them as those that to lop the Tree are still hacking at the boughes But the Lord still holds them up and the world for their sakes For why is this heape
turnes away the wrath of the Lord. Therefore remember these in particular and consider what it is to spare in this case Saul was lost by sparing Agag and remember what Elijah gained and Iehu gained by being zealous The manner we will wholly leave to you onely be zealous for the Lord. The second thing you must doe for the Church to turne away the Lords wrath is to contend for that which maintaines the Church I meane Faith maintaine that which maintaines you preserve that which preservs you the whole Church and Kingdome Wee will therefore commend to you that of Iudges I exhort you saith he that you contend for the faith which was once given to the Saints Marke it you are to contend earnestly for so much the word implies herein we are to be contentious men The very example of our adversaries may teach us to contend for thâ— Truth if we consider how they contend fâ—r the contrary if we observe what unity there is among them what joynt consent in opposing the truth Againe remember what you are to contend for it is for Faith for the whole doctrine of Faith every jot whereof is precious and it is the faith that was once given to the Saints As if hee had said looke to it if you lose it it shall be recovered no more Christ will not come againe from heaven to deliver this point of doctrine And againe it was once delivered to the Saints for what Certainly to be kept as we keepe Pearles and Iewels that it may not suffer the least detriment And let no man say he hath nothing to do with this for it is the common faith which every man hath to doe with you know in common things wherein every man hath interest every man is ready to maintaine his right Consider this and stand for the whole Faith for all the doctrine of Faith and know that these are matters of exceeding great moment all that we have said before of the punishment of Injustice Whoredome Idolatry and Superstition c. is not so much as this for a man may turne aside to these sins and yet have a right judgement but so long as the judgement is perverted the soule is irrecoverable Againe these are of exceeding great consequence for what Elisha did with the Syrians who when they thought they were led to the man whom they sought to take were brought into Samaria to be taken the same falls out where there is an errour of faith that which men think builds them up unto the Kingdome of GOD leads them to that which will bee their destruction Therefore contend for the Faith for the whole doctrine of Faith for every point of Faith and remember to contend for it earnestly The third and last action that wee will commend unto you is this Labour to doe that most which will most glorifie God that is endevour to set up a learned Ministery in the Land and Church you know it is a great complaint My people perish for want of knowledge and who are they that perish Acts 20.28 Even the flocke that God hath purchased with his owne bloud And at whose hands must it be required It is true we are the Vines that beare the Grapes but you are the Elmes that must hold up the Vines It is true wee are the Shepheards to defend the flock but it must bee your care to see that every flocke have a Shepheard Is it not a lamentable thing to see how many perish for want of knowledge in Wales in the Northerne Countries and in many places besides Is it not your part to take care and labour as farre as you may that every Candlestick may have a Candle set in it to give light That every Pâ—rish have an able Preaching Minister It is true every Parish cannot be provided for alike Starres are of different magnitudes some Stars are greater some are lesser some Starres shine not at all some againe shine in another Hemisphere and not in our owne some shine like Meteors for a little time and then disappeare againe let it be your care that all Sâ—rres that are in the firmament of the Church I meane those that are to dispence the mysteries of salvation may though weakely yet like true Starres shine These things wee must commend to your care onely remember this you know the wrong that is done to the flock if dogges be suffered among them therefore let them be removed I meane those that endeavour to put out the light that so they may the better prevaile and teach their doctrines of darkenesse As when the day is done the beast wanders abroad and doe not we finde it so amongst us For where doth Popery abound so much as in the darke places of the Kingdome I beseech you consider this and be zealous I should have added more but so much shall serve for the third point The other I will but name and indeed I will the rather name them though I doe no more because they follow so one upon another You have heard that GODS anger brings all evill that sinne is the cause of that anger that it is zeale that turnes away that anger Now Fourthly it followes that if you be not zealous his jealousie shall grow hotter it shall encrease more and more The very word Iealousie hath something in it when the Lord looks on a Church or Nation the losse of their affection breeds a jealousie which is intended more and more if there be not care to prevent it Therefore when the Lord is jealous he sends some tokens of his jealousie as when a man strikes we know he is angry so when the Lord sends a plague among us we may conclude he is angry When a messenger comes the sooner he hatâ— his answer the sooner hee is gone but hee will stay till hee hath his answer and will the Lord send this messenger in vaine Doth hee not send it for an answer And what is the answer the Lord lookes for That you fast and pray and humble your selves and turne from your evill wayes and bee zealous for his sake What else is the end of all his judgements Are they not as medicines or plaisters to heale a Church or a Nation or a particular person They will stick on till the sore be healed but when it is healed they will fall off so you shall finde these judgements of the Lord as long as wee remaine unreformed they will stick by us till we bee healed the playster wil continue Therefore are those phrases in Scripture his hand is stretched out still and still as in Deut. 28. Till wee be healed hee will not make an end of correcting he is now as it were engaged and you know when a man is engaged to proceed in a thing hee must goe on till hee hath brought it to an issue else it will be counted rashnesse and doe you thinke the LORD will turne from his wrath now it is begun
you will say I doe many things in secret out of Conscience and I hope it is not so much corrupted I will adde this then to that I said before you must know it is not a good Conscience which only suppresseth and restraineth from evill The matter is in what termes it stands with God If it looke on God as a chast loving wife lookes on her husband or a son on the father that out of reverent loving respects feares to offend him because they prize their favour more than any mans favour in the world and after this manner restraines it is a good Conscience but if it restraine us as a servant is restrained under an hard master or as a theefe under the Iudge trembling at his word at his Iudgement this is not a good Conscience Your Conscience may restraine you from many things nay you may doe many things in secret between you and God alone and yet for all this have no good but an evill Conscience So you see the corruption of man in the Vnderstanding Will Memory and Conscience I will adde another and that is the sensuall Appetite And this you shall finde exceedingly out of order above all these faculties I have named it is ready to run over and beyond all measure By this I understand that appetite in a man by which he taketh pleasure in sensible things such as are conveyed by the eyes the eares or the taste set any object before it it is ready to run out quickly by inordinate affections as to women to meat and drinke to any kinde of sport or recreation or sensible thing How corrupt is this sensuall Appetite How prone to evill How ready to run out to breake over the Pale to goe aside the rule If any delightfull object be propounded how ready is it to embrace it But you will say and indeed it is Bellarmines quarrelling The rebellion of the sensuall Appetite is but naturall the same that is in beasts because before originall sin was committed he was in the same constitution there was such rebellion between the sensual appetite and reason as there is now and therefore being naturall it is not sinfull But this is his Errour though every man be hereby ready to excuse himselfe thinking the rebellion of the sensuall Appetite not to be so great a matter But to take his owne words he saith the same as it is in Beasts It is true if it were with us as it is with beasts it were no sin and so not a thing which gives us cause to be so much humbled for in beasts the sensual Appetite hath no superiour governour but is supreme To expresse it to you Take an horse in a pasture that is loose and free if he run up and downe and play we finde no fault with him for he is loose but if he doth this under the bridle when the rider is on his back will you not now reckon him a stiffe-necked horse and count it a fault in him for there is a rider on his backe So for this sensuall Appetite in beasts where there is liberty and no superiour command to keepe them in order the beasts are not to be blamed But take a man where God hath set reason above the sensuall Appetite and grace above reason to guide it in him this sensuall Appetite rebels against reason which it should obey and this shewes it to be a great sinne in men considering that reason should be the rule to guide and keepe in the sensuall Appetite for God hath givâ—n it for that purpose Indeed some desires are naturall Christ desired life which was lawful and a right object of desire but take this withall it was perfectly subjugated and brought under and made obedient to the will of God as his will was holy and sanctified So we may desire meat and drinke but many times the Law of God may forbid it as in many cases it doth for it may differ from the will of God as it is holy and yet in it selfe it may be right Here is no more but subordination required But when this runnes out amisse affecting of things inordinately though you doe suppresse it yet that affection is sinfull and you must be humbled for it God sees it in you and it is hatefull and abominable to him These things I should make use of But I am lesse carefull of that because all these points are immediately usefull Why It is to make you know your selves and to be acquainted with the corruption of your nature And doe not you thinke it to be enough that this be as an hand in the margent pointing to the corruption of your hearts or that you may content your selves with the contemplative knowledge of these things so to cause a new light to shine in your understanding Our end is to make you examine the corruption of your natures your disobedience your rebellions to see how you have behaved your selves to be acquainted with your owne particular sins your owne particular failings and to labour to bee humbled for them Otherwise you may have a knowledge of these Truths but not a saving knowledge and such as wil be profitable But this you shal see when I come to make use of them And now for the Sacrament these things be of speciall use because as you heard before out of Levit. 23. On the day of reconciliation when an atonement was to be made he that afflicted not his soule was to be cut off from his people When we come to the Sacrament there is a reconciliation an atonement to be made in a speciall manner What must you do then Afflict your soules consider your sins see what debts you have run into see what corrupt natures you have and likewise know what you have in Christ and rejoyce therein for those must goe together an humbling of the soule for sin and rejoycing in CHRIST for your Deliverance from it The end of the Second Sermon CERTAINE SERMONS VPON HVMILIATION The third SERMON ROMANS 1.18 For the wrath of God is revealed from heaven against all ungodlinesse and unrighteousnesse of men which with-hold the Truth in unrighteousnesse THe last faculty is The Affections and here you shall find exceeding great cause to say that they are full of unrighteousnesse and ungodlinesse for they come like a mightie Tempest like a turbulent wind that carries us away even then when we are well set The disorder of them exceeds the disorder of all the rest for they are quickly moved nothing sooner and when they are moved they are exceeding apt to exceed to transcend their limits for such is the fullennesse the awkednesse and waywardnesse of our affections either they are not active not placed where they should be or if they be placed as they ought to be they are ready to run over to over-love and over-grieve and over-joy I say where we may love lawfully and rejoyce lawfully they are readie to exceed If I should come
that they have you shall finde a double difference First though in the Truths they know they goe exceeding farre as I have shewed you yet in this they fall short that they understand not the secrets of God There be certaine secrets which God reveales to none but to them that feare him There is something in these Truthes that civill men doe not understand Consider that speech spoken by our Saviour to Ierusalem O Ierusalem that thou hadst knowne the things belonging to thy peace but now they are hid from thine eyes What was hid from them not the things themselves simply considered for they were fully revealed Christ himselfe Preached there there wanted no light to shine to them yet it was hid from their eyes that is there was a certaine secret which if God had revealed it would have perswaded them to have turned to him effectually but that was hid from their eyes and so they were strangers from the life of God So the life of holinesse and religion these men understand not there is something spirituall which they cannot comprehend There light goes as farre as it may when a man hath a naturall a common light it will apprehend common objects such as are sutable to it it apprehends but that which is spirituall it cannot reach unto 1 Cor. 2.14 A naturall man understandeth not the things of the Spirit of God for they are spiritually discerned that is the very thing wherein the Image of God consists wherein true holinesse expresseth it selfe they do not understand Therefore it seemes a strange thing to them as in 1 Pet. 4.4 that others runne not into the same excesse of ryot It seemes strange now marke that word nothing seemes strange but when a man is ignorant of its cause is not acquainted with it and therefore he is still finding fault with it Therefore unholy men have a light that reaches to common Iustice and to a common care of serving God to common morall vertues and to an upright behaviour to men but further they cannot goe they know not what it is to be exact and strict in all things and that is the first difference they know not the secret of God they may goe thorow the whole course of Divinity and be acquainted with all the mysteries of Salvation but that secret of his they understand not Secondly there is this difference in the things they doe know they know them indeed I speake of them they doe know that are within their owne sphere their owne compasse but they have not the savour of what they know that is it which the Scripture cals 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 the savour of these Truthes they want and therefore they receive the Truth but not the love of the Truth they doe not relish it they apprehend it not aright and for that cause they practise it not You have them excellently set downe in Iude 14. they speake evill sayes the Apostle of the things they know not You see there be some things they know not and therefore they speake evill of them And what things they doe know as beâ—sts without reason in them they corrupt themselves that is they doe not practice according to their knowledge though they are acquainted with the wayes of God in that measure that they know they ought to abstaine from these and these sins yet in these things that they know naturally they are corrupt So you see the difference betweene them and the truly regenerate in matter of understanding Secondly to keepe the same method I did in the other for matter of Conscience you shal finde this difference and in this they fall short Though they doe make Conscience of many things notwithstanding they have not a good Conscience for Conscience is good in two respects either because it witnesses good to us and so wee commonly use it or as it is subjectively good and so the love of God is good and the feare of God is good and in this they have not a good Conscience for it is required that the Conscience be inherently and subjectively good that a man make Conscience not out of slavish feare but out of willingnesse as a chaste wife desires to please her husband because shee loves him shee is loth to displease him will not lose his favour for any thing and therefore shee observes him exactly and will not offend him when the Conscience stands in this reference to God it is a good Conscience On the other side let a man make Conscience of never so many things yet if it be out of feare as a servant feares his Master or as the Theefe feares the Iudge his Conscience is not good So that the civil men cannot be said to have a good Conscience in the things they abstaine from out of Conscience because they doe it not willingly but as of necessity Now all God lookes to is to have what is done done willingly and therefore it is no wonder that Divines give this as a sure rule that Desire is a signe sure enough of Grace If a man hath a true desire to please God it cannot deceive him for the desire is more than the deed as Saint Paul saith in 2 Cor. 8. In matter of giving You have not onely beene ready to doe but to will and to be forward as if the will were more than the deed and so it is indeed A man may performe many actions of Religion abstaine from many sins reforme his life in many things but it is another matter to desire to please God according to that of Nehemiah 1.11 Let thine eare be attentive to the prayer of thy servants that desire to feare thy Name there is none but the servants of God that desire to feare him If others be asked whether they could not be content there were no law to restraine them that no necessity of holinesse lay on them they will answer they could desire that there were none that they were at liberty and therefore when they make Conscience of any thing it is not out of willingnesse but out of a slavish feare though it be out of Conscience yet the Conscience is not good and in this respect they fall short Thirdly for matter of morall vertues they may have many excellent vertues planted in their hearts which are the gifts of the Holy Ghost for the Holy Ghost doth not only enlighten the understandings of some that shall never be saved but also places many gifts in their will and affections But this defect they have they neither come from a right Principle nor tend to a right end they come from no higher a Well-head than Nature they be common to them that be only naturall and therefore it cannot be proper to them that shall be saved I say Nature is able to bring forth these vertues even as the earth for that similitude will expresse it is able to bring forth two things Weeds and Grasse You know weeds are unprofitable and many of
sinne by frequencie in any actuall sin As Varnish intends colours it puts on no new colours but intends it makes it more bright if there was a glimmering light before addition of light makes the former light greater so frequencie of sin makes sinne more active more efficacious more vigorous as humours being accustomed to a place are ready to breake forth there so a sin wherein you have had an issue wherin you have given your selves liberty there sin gets greater victory over you therefore consider if you be not guilty of the power of sin of the impetuity of your lusts Lastly consider if you have not deserved that God should give you up to these lusts many are taken in sin as the fish on the hooke which cannot get off it seizes as an Apoplexie on a man that cannot be cured When the sinne gets ground it is like the sea getting ground on the land which cannot be recovered I confesse this is the Case of many hundred men but consider if you have not made way for this for as the lower stayres lead up to the higher so there be lesser sins which make way for greater not by way of efficacie as Acts beget an habite but by way of merit God may Iustly give them over to this strength of sin Therefore though their lusts bee strong and impetuous yet this doth not make them inexcusable Fifthly when none of this will serve the turne then they are readie to lay it on their temptations How can a man doe otherwise when it stands in such circumstances that is subject to such company to such occasions such businesses and so many things to draw him away When that within will not excuse him he comes to that without To this I answer when a man is drawne to any thing without it is the concupiscence within that doth it put fire to that which is not combustible it will not burne it is the corruption within that doth all Therefore observe that in Act. 5. It is Peters speech to Ananias and Saphira Why hath Satan filled thy heart As if he had said It is true Satan hath put this into thy heart he hath tempted thee to the sin to lye to the Holy Ghost but know thou wast the cause of it thou hadst the keyes of thy heart if thou hadst not suffered Satan to have entred he could not have done it And besides consider if thou hast not put thy selfe into this Temptation It is one thing for God to lead into temptation and another thing to lead our selves into it You know what is said of Ahaziah 2 King 8.27 He walked in the wayes of the Kings of Israel and did as the house of Ahab had done because he had the daughter of Ahab to wife As if he had said It is true it was Ahabs daughter that led him into those sins but he led himselfe into the temptation he should not have married Ahabs daughters Consider whether thou hast not put thy selfe into this circumstance and led thy selfe into this temptation Last of all another Pretence and Excuse is as I have the temptation that others want so I want the means others have If I had the means others have I should doe well enough I answer first consider if thou hadst not meanes and didst not profit by them consider how many meanes God affoorded thee from whence thou receivedst not that fruit and profit which thou mightest have done And if thou didst not and God deprived thee of the meanes know thou art the cause of it thy selfe for when men neglect the meanes when God shall set up a light and men will not worke by that light he doth as Masters doe with their servants when they set them a candle and they play by it and will not use it as they should they take it away in anger so God removes away the light he takes away the Gospell he sends a famine of the Word when we neglect it or as parents doe when their children play with their meat they take it from them When men will not use their Talents God takes them away and this Talent of the Word above all other when it shall be abused and not used to Gods glory If all this will not serve to excuse them in generall then are they ready to excuse themselves in particular First by denying the fact or Secondly by slighting the fault First by denying the Fact they deny that they are guilty of a thousand sins of which they are guilty this disposition you shall finde in them in Malach. 1. You have despised me and you say Wherein have we despised thee And you have robbed me and spoiled me and you say Wherein have we robbed thee And you reckon it a wearinesse to serve the Lord and you say wherein are we weary So it is the nature of man to deny the Fact if it be possible See Gods answer when they have asked these questions You have offered the lame and blinde in sacrifice Consider what you doe doe you not despise God in the prayers that you make doe not you performe them in a sleight and perfunctory manner Doe you not offer to God of the worst There be men that Salomon speakes of that despise their way that is some things they neglect which they thinke are not worth looking after some things they reckon as trifles which they will not care for this is to despise God Secondly If they cannot deny the Fact they sleight the Fault and one of these they say either the sinne is small which they commit and hope that will excuse them or if they be greater sins they fall into them by humane frailty and infirmity and are sorry for what they have done so extenuating what they doe and making it a matter of nothing But to answer first for small sins sins are not to be measured by the bulke but by the circumstances with which they are committed though thou thinkest it a small sin in it selfe yet considering it with the circumstances it may bee great A sin committed against light of conscience and with deliberation is a great sin as the Prophet that turned another way it was a small thing for him to doe it yet having the sure Word of God for a rule not to doe it you see God punished him not as for a small sinne and he being just we may argue from the greatnesse of the punishment that the sin was great so Adams eating of the forbidden fruit to eat an Apple was a small matter but there being the Almighty God's Command to the contrary the punishment shews what the sin was So men thinke that to sweare a small oath is no great matter but Christ saith Let your yea be yea and your nay nay and when God hath commanded a thing though it be never so smal yet that makes it great so it was a small thing for Saul to sacrifice before Samuel came
is none shines into the house so when men thinke they understand most yet they want this light to shine into the house Luke 24.45 Then opened he their understandings that they might understand the Scriptures They had heard Christ before but they understood not his Word like those which sowed seed on ill ground and therefore received not the fruit of it but when the Holy Ghost comes into thy heart that will convince thee of evill it will expell darknesse and set right thy Iudgement otherwise though you heard Paul preach yea Christ himselfe were your Iudgements never so good yet it would not be done till the Holy Ghost teacheth you you will never know him never see him aright in his glory never see him so as to delight and long after him so as to desire nothing in the world so much as communion with him Thus it is when his Image is renewed in Knowledge and Truth and where this Knowledge and Truth is Holinesse instantly followes There are many that know and practice not and there are many which neither know nor practice but where this Image is what ever they know they practice Well let us apply this unto our selves briefly If to bee a New Creature there is required of us this Faith and Love Truth and Holinesse Knowledge and Righteousnesse then let us learne not to bee deceived to regard nothing else in comparison of this Doe as the Apostle Gal. 6.15 For in CHRIST IESVS neither Circumcision availeth any thing nor Vncircumcision but a New Creature that is it is no matter for any thing in a man Circumcision is no better than Vncircumcision Goe thorow all the duties of Religion you shall finde them nothing till you bee made a New Creature I know many doe many things they come to Church and give almes well saith the Apostle Circumcision and Vncircumcision is all one so say I Prayer and no Prayer is all one doing justly and unjustly it is all one untill a man bee a New Creature Therefore saith Paul 1 Cor. 13.3 Though I give all my goods to the poore which is a glorious action nay though I could be content to bee a Martyr though I give my body to bee burned and have not love it profiteth nothing So except you be New Creatures your labour is lost for Nature may doe much with the knowledge of the Gospel As the Earth brings forth grasse of it selfe and some flowers of the lowest sort but to bring forth a crop and flowers of the finest sort it must be tilled and there must bee seed put in Nature I say may doe much but this New Creature must come from an Immortall seed sowen in the heart by God himselfe Therefore looke whether thou hast that wrought in thee or no. For this is all the comfort we have when the body is decayed and waxen old yet let us not be discouraged though this outward man decay and perish there is a new youth springing up This is all the comfort we have that when the old house is going downe we have a new house setting up in stead of it Every man is glad to see an old house pulled downe and a new set up in stead of it but to see an old house going downe and no new one to bee set up the ruine of it is a most miserable Spectacle Take an Husband-man who hath taken great pains in plowing and sowing his ground when he sees his corne is rotten he is glad of it because he knowes new will come up in stead of it so when we see the body decaying and our day drawing towards evening when the Sunne of life is ready to bee set upon us when we shall grow no more this presents nothing but confusion yet here is hope for us There is light Sowen unto the righteous All the consolation and all the comfort wee have in these dayes of our vanity is that we have a New Creature that is not subject to vanitie The end of the Third Sermon THE FOVRTH SERMON VPON THE NEW CREATVRE 2 COR. 5.17 Therefore if any man be in Christ let him be a new Creature NOw we come to the last thing to be observed in the New Creature which is that there is not only an infusion of a new Quality but a weakning of the old Therefore we put that into the description A man is a New Creature when his heart is cast into another mould by the infusion of a new quality of grace and by a destroying of the old And this is specially to be observed because there bee two parts of the New Creature a mortification of sinne as well as a vivification For Common Nature is like a Bowle between two byasses Corruption is the wrong byas carrying us out of the way and Grace the good byas carrying us into the way So you must knocke off the old byas as well as put on a new one that is Common Nature lyes as an indifferent thing betweene Grace and Sin the Flesh and the Spirit Corruption and Holinesse so that as the body is betweene health and sicknesse so is Common Nature between originall sinne which is as the sicknesse or death of the Soule and Holinesse which is the health of it Now it is not only required that there be an infusion of the new Quality but likewise a weakning of this old both cannot stand together so farre as you strengthen one the other is weakned it is alwayes so where is contrariety where there is no contrariety two may stand together but when things be opposite the comming in of the one is the weakning of the other the comming of heat is a weakning of cold this is of speciall use And this use we are to make of it that hence then you see this will follow that if you finde much newnesse in your selves according to your owne opinion you finde you can doe many things you could never doe before you are able to doe these and these duties of new obedience well suppose it yet except there be a mortification of the old lusts if thou find that there be any lusts continue in thee in strength that in that regard thou art the same man still whatsoever addition there be it is no matter it is certaine thou art not yet a New Creature for a New Creature consists not in superinduction of the new Quality the old remaining but in a weakning of the old too It is not only a superaddition of the new but the death of the old also Therefore if thou findest any corruptions continuing in the fulnesse of their first strength not weakned at all though thou hast all signes of grace all parts of a New Creature to thy seeming yet thou art deceived because if thou wert new there would be a mortification of the old lusts So againe it is true on the other side Put case thou finde a great change in thy selfe such lusts as have been vigorous and lively thou findest to be
now dead except it be by the ingresse of this New Creature thou hast little cause to comfort thy selfe for those lusts are but covered and laid asleepe for a time and will wake and rise againe as Sampson when hee was tied with cords rose againe and was as strong as ever he was when the opportunity came And it was told him The Philistims are upon thee Sampson So lusts are laid asleepe till the opportunity comes when all the threed of good purposes breaks and they rise again in their strength therefore if there bee not a New Creature brought within thy soule thy lusts are but laid asleepe they will rise againe Or put case they be dead and rise no more yet except it be by the ingredience of this New Creature they are but dead of themselves and so long as they die of themselves God regards not that death for that which is required of us in Rom. 12.1 is that we sacrifice our selves Now two things are required in the Sacrifice one that it be slaine that it die not of it selfe for that is not a Sacrifice Secondly that it be offered to God and not to any other god Now this we oft finde that lusts die of themselves change of age experience operation of circumstances time place and many things may alter the desires for you must know The world passeth away and the lusts of it that is they are of a transitory Nature A man doth not desire that this yeare which he did the last Doe wee not see many have beene riotous and prodigall in youth yet there is a great change in them not for grace but age and use and experience and many things make alteration These are not slaine to the Lord but they die of themselves so God would not accept them Againe they may be slaine but not to the LORD thou mayest offer them to thy selfe which is the same as if thou offeredst them to another god that is a man may finde much evill and inconvenience much bitternesse in them it may be they have brought shame and misery on thee Againe thou mayst feare Gods judgements and therefore mayest restraine thy selfe In a word If thy selfe be thy end in abstaining from any sin what ever it be there is a Sacrifice thou hast slaine it but not offered it to the Lord it is not done to him It is not because thou lovest the Lord Iesus therefore it is not a fruit of the New Creature for till then every man makes himselfe his end in all he doth but when hee is made a New Creature hee makes the LORD his end This therefore is the use of this there must be two parts of this New Creature Vivification and Mortification an infusion of the new Quality and a weakning of the old Because this is a point of much moment I will presse it a little further and deliver this Rule I say this other Consectary may be gathered If it be so then thou must finde in thy selfe these two things Thou must find in thy selfe something more than Nature and againe thou must finde in thy selfe something lesse than Nature Thou must have lesse than what thy corrupt nature had in it and more than common nature hath in it or else thou wantest this third part of the New Creature this third thing wherein it consists the induction of a new Quality and a weakning of the old We will urge this a little First there must be a lessening and a weakening of that was there before for you must know every man hath some personall infirmities some sinnes more peculiar to his Nature than others something wherein hee is weake every man hath it one of one sort another of another sort every man hath a more inclination to this or that sinne which is bred and borne with him If thou findest that this continues with thee still that thou hast the same running-sore on thee that thou hadst that thou findest no alteration in that that there is no lessening no weakning no destroying and mortifying of that then thou art not a New Creature and consequently thy sins are not forgiven for Iustification and Sanctification are inseparable It thy sins were pardoned they would be healed that is the thing you must consider It is certaine therefore if you doe not find them healed you are not yet in Christ for if thou wert in Christ truly there would a vertue come out of him that would heale thy bloudy-issue for the vertue of his death is never disjoyned from the merit of his death where ever he forgives sin he cures sinne therefore if thou findest that hee hath not cured any sin know it is not forgiven You may see it every where Mary Magdalen as much was forgiven her so she had a great cure wrought in her shee was changed she became another woman you see how exceeding holy she was when Christ said Thy sinnes are forgiven she went away with another heart So it was with Paul when once his sins were forgiven when God sent word by Ananias that hee was a chosen vessell withall he was made a glorious Professour of a raging Persecutour there was a healing of sin as well as forgiving of it So David when his sinne was forgiven when God told him by Nathan so much his sin was cured hee did not commit adultery againe therfore in the one and fiftieth Psalme the cure stands on record that all the world may know that where God forgiveth he healeth likewise So Peter when God had forgiven him that sin of denying his Master he cured it too To adde a little more I say Sinne must be healed if it bee forgiven for it cannot bee otherwise if God take any man to beare his Name and his sins bee not healed his Name should be blasphemed it would redound to his dishonour Againe if he should forgive and not heale us we should have no comfort from him nor he no service from us we should have no comfort from him because of the rage and vexation of ruling lusts Againe he should have no service from us for how can we serve him when we are not healed Can a sicke man doe any service Hee must be healed and restored to health first Now doe you thinke God will put his children in a condition that neither they shall have comfort from him nor he service from them therefore it is of necessity wheresoever sin is forgiven it is healed Therefore in Hosea 14. When I take away your iniquities I will heale your rebellions So in Deut. 30.6 when he will have mercy upon them saith hee I will also circumcise your hearts and the hearts of your seed that you shall love mee with all your soule and with all your strength Hee never pardons but he likewise circumciseth So in Ier. 24.7 I will set mine eye upon you for good that is I will pardon you and receive you to mercy and also will give you an heart to know