man is ingrafted into Christ and thereby becomes one with Christ and Christ one with him Eph 3. 17. Now whosoeuer is by faith vnited vnto Christ the same is elected called iustified and sanctified The reason is manifest For in a chaine the two extremes are knit togither by the middle linkes and in the order of causes of happinesse and saluation faith hath a middle place and by it hath the child of God assured hold of his election and effectuall vocation and consequently of his glorification in the kingdome of heauen To this purpose saith S. Iohn c. 3. v. 36. He that beleeueth in the Sonne hath euerlasting life And c. 5. v. 24. He that beleeues in him that sent me hath euerlasting life and shall not come into condemnation but hath passed from death to life This is the Ground Now for answer to the Question diuerse places of Scripture are to be skanned wherein this case of Conscience is fully answered and resolued Sect. 1. The first place is Rom. 8. 16. And the spirit of God testifieth together with our spirits that we are the sonnes of God In these words are two testimonies of our adoption set downe The first is the Spirit of God dwelling in vs and testifying vnto vs that we are Gods childreÌ„ But some will happily demaund How Gods spirit giues witnesse seeing now there are no reuelations Answ. Extraordinarie reuelations are ceased and yet the holy Ghost in and by the word reuealeth some things vnto men for which cause he is called truly the Spirit of Reuelation Eph. 3. 5. Againe the holy Ghost giues testimonie by applying the promise of remission of sinnes and life euerlasting by Christ particularly to the heart of man when the same is generally propounded in the Ministerie of the word And because many are readie presumptuously to say they are the children of God when they are not and that they haue the witnesse of Gods Spirit when in truth they want it therefore we are to put a difference between this carnall conceit and the true testimonie of the Spirit Now there be two things whereby they may be discerned one from the other The first is by the meanes For the true testimonie of the holy ghost is wrought ordinarily by the preaching reading and meditation of the word of God as also by praier and the right vse of the Sacraments But the presumptuous testimonie ariseth in the heart and is framed in the braine out of the vse of these meanes or though in the vse yet with want of the blessing of God concurring with the meanes The second is by the effects and fruits of the Spirit For it stirrs vp the heart to praier and inuocation of the name of God Zach. 12. 10. yea it causeth a man to crie and call earnestly vnto God in the time of distresse with a sense and feeling of his owne miseries and with deepe sighes and groanes which cannot be vttered to craâ—e mercie and grace at his hands as of a louing father Rom. 8. 26. Thus did Moses crie vnto heauen in his heart when he was in distresse at the red sea Exod. 14. 15. And this gift of praier is an vnfallible testimonie of Gods Spirit which cannot stand with carnall presumption The second Testimonie of our Adoption is our Spirit that is our conscience sanctified and renewed by the Holy Ghost And this also is knowne and discerned first by the greefe of the heart for offending God called Godly sorrow 1. Cor. 7. 10. secondly by a resolute purpose of the heart and endeauour of the whole man in all things to obey God thirdly by sauouring the things of the Spirit Rom. 8. 5. that is by doing the workes of the Spirit with ioy and chearefulnesse of heart as in the presence of God and as his children and seruants Now put the case that the testimonie of the Spirit be wanting then I answer that the other testimonie the sanctification of the heart will suffice to assure vs. We knowe it sufficiently to be true and not painted fire if there be heate though there be no flame Put the case againe that the testimonie of the spirit be wanting and our sanctification be vncertaine vnto vs how then may we be assured The answer is that we must theÌ„ haue recourse to the first beginnings and motions of sanctificatioÌ„ which are these First to feele our inward corruptions Secondly to be displeased with our selues for them Thirdly to beginne to hate sinne Fourthly to grieue so oft as we fal and offend God Fiftly to auoid the occasions of sinne Sixtly to endeauour to doe our dutie and to vse good meanes Seuenthly to desire to sinne no more And lastly to pray to God for his grace Where these and the like motions are there is the spirit of God whence they proceed and sanctification is begun One apple is sufficient to manifest the life of the tree and one good and constant motion of grace is sufficient to manifest sanctification Againe it may be demanded what must be done if both be wanting Answ. Men must not dispaire but vse good meanes and in time they shall be assured Sect. 2. The Second place is the 15. Psalme In the first verse whereof this question is propounded namely Who of all the members of the Church shall haue his habitation in heauen The answer is made in the verses following and in the second verse he sets downe three generall notes of the said person One is to walke vprightly in sincerity approuing his heart and life to God the second is to deale iustly in al his doings the third is for speech to speake the truth from the heart without guile or flatterie And because we are easily deceiued in generall sinnes in the 3 4 and 5. verses there are set downe seauen more euident and sensible notes of sinceritie iustice and trueth One is in speech not to take vp or carrie abroad false reports and slanders The second is in our dealings not to doe wrong to our neighbour more then to our selues The third is in our companie to contemne wicked persons worthy to be contemned The fourth is in our estimation we haue of others that is to honour them that feare God The fift is in our words to sweare and not to change that is to make conscience of our word and promise especially if if it be confirmed by oath The sixt is in taking of gaine not to giue money to vsurie that is not to take increase for bare lending but to lend freely to the poore The last is to giue testimonie without briberie or partialitie In the fift verse is added a reason of the answer he that in his indeauour doth al these things shall neuer be mooued that is cut off from the Church as an hypocrite Sect. 3. The third place of Scripture is the first Epistle of Iohn the principall scope wherof is to giue a full resolution to the conscience of man touching the certainty of his
and such like blasphemous thoughts there be which are not fit to be vttered amongst meÌ„ forasmuch as they are most horrible and execrable as any can be conceiued Sect. 1. That we may the better know this Temptation let it be considered what are the forerunners thereof and by what meanes it takes place in the heart possessed of it Sometimes it commeth meerely and onely of the suggestion of the Deuill which troubleth the phantasie euen of those which are in that regard innocent and casteth into their hearts impure and vngodly thoughts Sometimes againe it comes vpon men by an euill custome when as they willingly lend their eares to leude and cursed speeches that immediately tend to the dishonour of God or the wilfull abuse of his word his iudgements and mercies and vpon the hearing either giue their applause and approbation though not expressely or doe not hinder or stay them as much as in them lyeth Otherwhiles it creepes into the heart of man by degrees when he beginnes to waxe cold in Gods seruice to make little conscience of those duties that immediately concerne his worship consequently inures himselfe to the taking of the name of God in vaine by often and causelesse swearing forswearing cursing c. By these and such like meanes is this foule and horrible tentation conuaâ—ed into the minde of man Now the danger of it whether it ariseth from these or any other causes is exceeding grieuous specially to those that haue begun to chuse the way of truth and to applie their hearts to serue God and to feare his name For it bringeth forth strange and fearfull effects as namely desperation and manifold horrors troubles of minde Yea diuers persons haue hereupoÌ„ bin astonished in such sort that they haue bin mooued to make dispatch of themselues beeing in their owne iudgement no better then the very firebrands of hell Sect. 2. Now for the Curing of this wonderfull trouble and distraction of Conscience two things are to be done to wit Inquirie must be made into the next causes whence this Tentation should arise and after that the Remedie is to be applied For the first Inquirie is to be made whether the present distresse had his beginning from the thoughts of a mans owne minde or from the suggestion of the Deuill For this is in all likelyhoode the next way to minister Comfort to the afflicted partie It may be said How shall a man discerne the thoughts that are from the Deuill from his owne thoughts Ans. He shall know them by sundrie notes First by the entrance of theÌ„ into the mind For those that coâ—e from the Diuill come speedily as lightning into a house and they are after a sort forced into the minde by violence so as the partie cannot auoide them and they come into the minde againe and againe yea a thousand times in a day so as by their often comming they weaken the memorie dull the senses wearie and confound the braine These are thoughts that come from the Deuill and by him are coâ—…uaied from without into the minde of man And if such cogitations were from a mans own self they would not come with so great vehemeÌ„cie and celâ—ritie but with leisureâ— and they would rise with more moderation and lesse violence Yea further the frequent vse of them would not produce so many and so fearfull effects as it doth Secondly such thoughts may be discerned to come from the Deuil by this signe because they are directly against the very light of nature the sparkes whereof are not quite extinct in vs by sinne For euery man thinkes reuerently of God by nature But these cogitations are most wicked and deuilish fastning vpon God things that are most vile and monstrous whereas commonly the thoughts that arise from our selues are not against the light of nature though they be most corrupt The third signe is that at the first conceiuing of them the partie 〈◊〉 smitten with an extraordinarie feare his flesh is troubled and oftentimes sicknes and faintings doe follow But the thoughts that men conceiue of theÌ„selues cause neither feare nor fainting nor sicknes Fourthly blasphemous thoughts cannot come ordinarily from the hart of any saue of those alone that are of reprobate mindes But the parties that are thus distressed are honest ciuill and such as professe the Gospell at least in shew yea sometime they befall such as are the true members of Christ. Therefore it is manifest that they come from without euen from the Deuill casting them into the minde and not from within a mans owne selfe In the next place Inquirie must be made whether the partie doth approoue loue and like these and such like thoughts or no To this he will answer if he be asked that he abhors them as the Deuill and Hell it selfe Thus euen naturall men will answer that truly After Inquirie thus made the Remedie is to be applied And the first and principall remedie pertaines to doctrine and instruction in which the partie is to be informed of his or her estate namely that the foresaid blasphemies are not his sinnes but his crosses For they are the Deuils sinnes and he shall answer for them and they are not ours till we intertaine receiue approoue and giue consent vnto them For proofe hereof let this be considered That vncleane thoughts which haue their residence in the minde of man are of two sorts Inward and Outward Inward are such as haue their originall from the flesh and arise of the corruption of mans nature though stirred vp by the Deuill And these at the very first conceiuing are our sins though they haue no long abode in our mindes and they are directly forbidden in the tenth commandement Outward thoughts are those which haue relation to an outward cause or beginning of which sort are those euill thoughts that be conueied into the minde by the Deuill and if we take no pleasure in them nor yeeld consent vnto them they are not to be accounted our sinnes but the Deuills by whome they are suggested The truth hereof appeares in Christs example into whose minde the deuill cast this blasphemous tentation thereby moouing him to infidelitie coâ—etousnes and idolatrie which neuerthelesse were not his sinnes because his holy-heart gaue not the least approbation to them but abhorred and repelled them and therefore was free from any taint of sinne in or by them This distinction of thoughts must be remembred For hence it followes that blasphemous thoughts not consented to by vs are not our sinnes but the Deuills Euen as in like case wheÌ„ one wickedly disposed sollicites another to treason or murder if the said partie listen not nor yeild thereto he cannot be holden guiltie of those crimes Therfore men must not feare those kind of thoughts ouermuch at lest if they please not theÌ„selues ouermuch in them because though they be indeede their crosses yet are they not their personall sinnes for which they shall incurre the wrath and displeasure
Daniel did worship the Image as well as others Ans. Daniel was not accused as the three children were and for that cause there is no mention made of his refusall Againe put the case he had beene accused yet the King tooke no knowledge of his accusation because he was in fauour both with him and the people The fourth Obiection Paul togither with foure men that had made a vow yeelded to purifie himselfe according to the lawe of Moses because he would not offend the weake Iewes Act. 21. 24. And yet that Law concerning purification as also the whole bodie of Ceremonies was abrogated in the death of Christ. Now if he might doe that which was vnlawfull for the auoiding of offence why may not a man goe to Masse and so preuent the scandall which may be taken on the behalfe of the Papists Ans. It is true that there was an end put vnto the Ceremoniall lawe by Christs death yet it was not at the first wholly to be abolished but by little and little Againe the vse of ceremonies remained as a thing indifferene in it selfe till the Temple of Ierusalem was destroied by Titus and the Church of the New Testament throughly planted And till both these were accomplished the vse of the Ceremonial lawe was no sinne provided that it were not holden or vrged as a thing necessarie to saluation Now whereas it is saide that we may be present at the Masse for the auoiding of offence it may further be answered first that we are to doe our duties though men be neuer so much offended for it was the rule of Christ in like case Let them alone they be the blind leaders of the blind Matth. 15. 14. Secondly we ought not to doe euill that good may come thereof The fift Obiection The Masse is Gods ordinance appointed by Christ though now it be corrupted by men Ans. It is a most damnable Idol yea worse then any Idol of the Gentiles and the adoration performed therein is most abominable and hath more affinitie with grosse Gentilisme then with the Institution of our Sauiour Christ. III. Question Whether any man especially a Minister may with good conscience flie in persecution and if he may flie when Sect. 1. This Question consisteth of two parts Touching the first Sundrie men are of opinion that it is vtterly vnlawfull to flie in persecution as Tertullian who hath written a whole booke of this argument and besides him certaine Heretikes named Circumcelliones in that part of Afrike which we now call Barbarit and some also of the sect of the Anabaptists But the truth is that sometimes it is lawfull to flie though not alwaies For proofe whereof consider these reasons First Christs commandement Matth. 10. 23. When they persecute you in one citie flie into an other If it be saide that this commandement was limited to the times wherein the Aposties preached in Iewry and therfore is temporarie I answere No for there cannot any text of Scripture be brought to shew that it was euer yet repealed And the Apostles who had receiued this commandement euen after Christs ascension and the giuing of the holy Ghost being persecuted did flie from one place to another as we may read Act. 9. 2. Cor. 11. If it be alleadged that if this be a commandement to flie then all must â—â—ie I answere againe that though the commandement be generall to all persons and therefore euery Christian may lawfully shunne apparent danger yet the same is particular in regard of circumstances of time and place For though all may flie yet there be some places and times wherin men may not vse that libertie as shall appeare afterward The second reason is taken from the example of many worthy men recorded in Scripture Iacob the Patriarch fled from the presence of his brother Esau into Haran to Laban Gen. 27. and againe from thence to the land of his fathers Gen. 31. Moses after he had slaine the Aegiptian fledde out of Egypt into Madian where he liued 40. yeares Exod. 2. And this was no rash flight but a worke of faith Heb. 11. 27. Obadiah the gouernour of Ahabs house hid a hundreth men of the Lords Prophets by fiftie in a caue and fed them with bread and water when Iezabel would haue destroyed them 1. King 18. 13. Eliah being in feare of his life fled from Iezabel into Mount Horeb 1. King 19. 3. Againe in the N. Testament our Sauiour Christ being in danger withdrew himselfe Iohn 10. 39. and that sundry times till the hower of his passion was come Paul when the Iewes tooke counsell together to kill him was let downe by the brethren in a basket through a wall in Damascus Act. 9. 25. And when the Grecians went about to slay him hee was brought by the brethren to Cesarea and sent to Tarsus ver 29. 30. Againe being in danger he vsed Christian pollicie to saue himselfe For by saying he was a Pharisee he made a diuision betweene his accusers the Pharisies and Sadduces and so escaped Act. 23. 6. 7. And if that were lawfull for him to doe then is it also lawfull for a man by flight to saue himselfe in case of danger whether he be a priuate man or a Pastor Yet for the better clearing of the Answer some allegations to the contrarie are to be examined Obiection I. Persecution is a good thing and that which is good may not be eschewed Ans. Good things are of two sorts Some are simply good in and by themselues as vertues and all morall duties and these are not to be eschewed Some againe are good onely in some respects Of this sort are things Indifferent which he neither coÌ„manded nor forbidden but are good or euill in respect of circumstances And these may be eschewed vnlesse we know that they be good for vs. Now persecution beeing of this kind that is to say not simply good but onely by accident may be auoided because no man can say that it is good or bad for him Obiect II. Persecution is sent of God for the triall and good of his Church Ans. First euill things sent of God may be auoided if he shewe a meane or way how they may be auoided For example God sendeth sicknes famine the plague and sword he sends also meanes and remedies for the preuenting and remoouing of them as physicke and foode c. And these we may lawfully vse for the said purposes and in like manner may persecution be auoided if God offer meanes of escape Secondly there is a twofold Will of God his reuealed and his secret will By his Reuealed will he hath appointed that in case of present daunger when meanes of escape be offered they may be vsed Now because they that flie lawfully are assured of Gods reuealed will therefore in obedience thereunto they vse the meanes to saue themselues from danger As for his Secret will because it is vnknowne and therefore vncertaine vnto vs we may not rashly presume thereof and against
his expresse will refuse the meanes offered but vse them rather till God reueale the contrarie Obiect III. To flie in persecution is a kinde of deniall of Christ and against confession he therefore that flies seemes to make no confession but rather to denie Christ. Ans. Christian confession is double open or implicit Open confession is when a man boldly confesseth his faith before the Aduersarie euen to the death This is the greatest and highest degree of confession and in it the holy Martyrs in former times continued euen to the losse of their liues vndergoing the punishment of death inflicted vpon them by the Aduersaries of Christ Iesus for the maintenance of the truth Implicit is when a man to keepe his Religion is content to forsake his countrey friends and goods This is a second degree inferiour to the former and yet it is a true Confession acceptable to God And vnder this kind comes Flight in persecution Whence it appeareth that lawfull flight in times of danger is no deniall of Christ nor yet against Confession For sometimes it pleaseth God to call men to professe his name and truth openly by suffering sometimes againe not openly by suffering but by flying this latter way though it be not so high a degree as is the former yet it is indeede and in truth in the measure a true profession of Christ and pleasing vnto God Obiect IV. Our Sauiour Christ commands vs Feare not them that can kill the bodie Matth. 10. 28. Now if a man must not feare them then he must not flie Ans. The text speaketh not of all feare but of such feare as tendeth to Apostasie and causeth men to renounce faith and good conscience Againe it speakes of that feare whereby man feareth man more then God Thirdly it speakes of such feare as by which a man is vrged to tempt God by doing some thing that is repugnant to his will and that out of his calling Now when the Question is of Flight in persecution we vnderstand not such a flight as tendeth to Apostasie or argueth the feare of man more then of God or that is repugnant to Gods will but that alone whereby we vse the meanes offered according to his appointment least we should seeme to tempt him and bring vpon our selues vnnecessarie danger And thus the first part of the Question is answered Sect. 2. The second is concerning the Time when a man may flie Minister or other And for better resolution thereof we are to remember that there be eight Conditions required in Christian Flight especially that which pertaines to the Minister The first is if there be no hope of doing good by his abode in that place where the persecution is But while he conceiues any hope of doing good by teaching preaching or otherwise he may not flie This the Minister shall easily discerne in Christian wisedome To this purpose Paul Act. 18. 10. hauing a while preached at Corinth and finding that the Iewes detested him and his ministerie intended a present departure thence But the Lord appearing vnto him by night in a vision warned him to stay for saith he I haue much people in this citie that is many that are to be conuerted and brought vnto the faith Euery Minister in his place must haue a speciall care of furthering Gods kingdome whether it be by flying or not flying The second Condition Consideration must be had whether the persecution be personall or publique Personall is that which is directed against this or that mans person Publique which is raised against the whole Church If it be directed against the person of the Pastor he may vse his libertie For it may be that his flight will bring peace to the Châ—… But what if the people will not suffer him to flie Ans. They should be so farre from hindering of him in this case that they ought rather to succour and releeue him Thus when Demetrius had raised a tumult against Paul vnder pretence of Diana he would haue presented himselfe vnto the people in the common place the Disciples suffered him not Act. 19. 30. And what care they had of his preseruation the same ought the people to haue of their Pastor in case of like perill But if the persecution be common to the whole Church then he is not to flie For it is necessarie at such times especially that those which are strong should support and confirme the weake The third Condition If there be in the Pastor a moderation of minde For he must take heede of these two extremities that he be neither ouercome with excessiue feare nor through ouermuch confidence runne headlong into apparent danger And that he may auoide these extremities he must first pray vnto God for wisdome courage and constancie and secondly vse the consent and aduise of the Church for his direction in this behalfe that all things may be done in wisdome The fourth Condition of lawfull flight is that the Minister withdraw himselfe onely for a time not vtterly forsake his charge and calling Yea if he be principally aymed at in the persecution he may lawfully goe apart and it is the dutie of the Church also to see him conuaied away in safetie till the persecution be ouer And thus doing he neither forsakes the Church nor his calling but onely vseth the meanes of his preseruation for the keeping of faith and a good conscience This warrant our Sauiour giues to his Apostles Matth. 10. 23. When they persecute you in one citie flie into another The ende of that commandement was that the Apostles might preserue themselues in safetie till they had preached the Gospel to all the cities of Israel as the next wordes doe declare The fift Condition If after due triall and examination he finde not himselfe sufficiently armed with strength to resist or beare the extremitie For then he may retire himselfe into some place of safetie where he may liue to the glorie of God keeping faith and a good conscience The sixt Condition is If he be expelled or banished by the Magistrate though the cause be vniuft For subiection is simply to be yeelded to the punishments and corrections of Magistrates though we doe not alwaies tender Obedience to their commandements The seauenth is If God offer a lawfull meanes and way of escape and doth as it were open a doore and giue iust opportunitie to flie In this Case not to flie especially if he haue not strength sufficient to stand out is a tempting of God The eight condition If the danger be not only suspected surmised and seene a farre off but certaine and present Otherwise the Pastor falles into the sinne of Ionah who fore-casted dangers in his calling and therefore preuented them by flying to Tarsus These conditions being obserued it may be lawfull both for Pastor and people to flie in times of persecution Sect. 3. In the next place it may be demaunded When a Pastor or other may not flie For answer herevnto the Signes
that it be done with keeping of true religion and good conscience This Rule was practised by Paul Act. 28. 11. who liuing among the Heathen was constramed to speake as they and therefore he saies that he departed in a shippe to Rome whose badge was Castor and Pollux Act. 19. 10. Againe he was three yeares in Ephesus an idolatrous place where the great goddesse Diana was worshipped yet in all that time he contained himselfe and spake nothing in particular against Diana but onely in generall against false gods saying that they be no gods that are made with hands v. 26. Nay Alexander could not charge him with this that he had in all that while blasphemed their goddesse Diana Paul therefore was faine to yeeld to the sway of those times that so he might doe some good in Ephesus by his Ministerie Whereas if he had spoken against Diana directly it had not bin possible for him to haue done that good by preaching which otherwise he did Againe in the Primitiue Church the Apostles for the weaknes of the Iewes did yeelde to the vse of Circumcision and permitted abstinence from blood and that which was strangled c. so farre forth as it stood with pure religion and good conscience and if they had not so done they should not haue wonne the Iewes to the faith as they did IX Rule If we cannot doe the good things that we desire in that exquisite manner that we would we must content our selues with the meane and in things which are good and to be done it is the safest course to satisfie our selues in doing the lesse least in ventring to doe the more which cannot be we grow to the extremitie and so faile or offend in our action It is a good and wise counsell of the Preacher to this purpose Eccl. 7. 16. Be not iust ouermuch and his meaning may be this Be not too strict or curious in effecting that which thou intendest exactly when thou canst not but rest contented in this that thou hast done thine endeauour and take to the lesse when the greater cannot be effected In some countries Popish Images erected in Churches doe stand vndefaced The good desire of the people is that they may be pulled downe but this cannot be brought to passe What then are they to doe in this case they must not grow to extremitie and pull them down themselues but they must intreat the lawfull Magistrate for their remooueall and pray to God that he may be mooued so to doe and in the meane time rest content with that they haue done and waite the Magistrates pleasure In the Iudiciall law by reason of the hardnes of the Iewes hearts sundrie sinnes could not vtterly be taken away as diuorcements polygamie vsurie Hereupon the Lord makes a law of Toleration without approbation and did not remooue them quite away for that was not possible in regard of man for the time but restrained the euill that could not be quite off and abolished otherwise And herein appeared the great wisdome of God in making a Law not to allow of nor yet vtterly to take away but to moderate the practise of these sinnes in the Iewes for the hardnes of their hearts In like manner in this our land there is the practise of Vsurie a sinne that cannot nor euer shall be rooted out vtterly For this cause the States of this kingdome haue out of their wisdome prouided a Law for the toleration thereof after a sort and that vpon speciall cause For if the Magistrate should haue enacted a Law vtterly to abolish it it would before this in likelihood haue growne to great extremitie The same was the practise of the Apostles in their times who yeelded to beare with the vse of Circumcision for a time when they could not otherwise vtterly cut it off II. Question Whether a man may lawfully and with good conscience vse Pollicie in the affaires of this life Ans. There be foure principall Caueats which beeing obserued Policie may be vsed and is not against Christian religion I. Nothing must in policie be said done or intended to preiudice the truth specially the truth of the Gospell II. Nothing is to be said done or intended against the honour and glorie of God either in word in deede or in shew III. Nothing must be wrought or contriued against iustice that is due to man IV. All actions of policie must be such as pertain to our calling and be within the limits and bonds thereof For if any action whatsoeuer be done out of that calling wherein God hath placed vs or at least be not answerable thereunto though it be plotted and attempted in neuer so great wisedome and policie it is vnlawfull and not warrantable These Caueats obserued it is not vnlawful to vse that which we commonly call Policie And the reason is this when any busines is to be done we must make a twofold inquirie First into the thing to be done whether it be good or badde lawfull or not lawfull commanded or forbidden Secondly into our selues whether the worke in hand be agreable to the calling of the doer or answerable to that dutie which he oweth to God and man Now because both these are grounded vpon the former cautions therfore we conclude that whatsoeuer busines is taken in hand and not suted vnto them it hath not good warrant and so cannot be done with good conscience Yet for better clearing of this answer let vs a little consider the Scriptures and the examples there recorded touching this policie In Iosh. 8. 5. we shall finde that Ioshua vseth Martiall policie in the besieging of Ai placing one part of his armie in an ambush and causing the other part to flie for by that meanes the men of Ai comming out of the citie and pursuing those that fled the souldiors that lay in ambush tooke the citie and destroied it In 2. Sam. 5. 23. Dauid beeing to make warre against the Philistims asketh counsell of God and God teacheth him policie he therefore in his owne example allowes policie and more especially those wise and prudent shifts in warre which we call Stratagâ—ms or policies of the field We haue also the example of Paul for this purpose who Act. 21. 26. faines himselfe to haue made a vowe to be a Nazarite that he might yeelde somewhat to the weakenes of the Iewes who were not sufficiently informed in the doctrine of Christian libertie This practise was warrantable neither was it a sinne in Paul for he did it by the counsell of the Church at Ierusalem v. 20 24. And Paul himselfe neuer made mention of this as of a sinne which he would vndoubtedly haue done had it beene sinne Againe Act. 23. 6. when he was brought before Ananias the Priest and the councell at Ierusalem beeing in some danger he vseth policie for he pretended that he was a Pharisie and by that meanes raised a dissension between the Pharisies and the Sadduces And this was no sinne in Paul for