any is in us The third thing is the instrument by which Union is begot in the soul and that is on our parts faith on the Lord's part the Spirit of life in Christ conveied by the promise and baptism The fourth thing is the effect of this Union even in habiting and dwelling of the Spirit in that soul which is becom one with himself so that now God in Christ by the Spirit is that to the soul which before her lusts were all in all Lord and King light and defence heaven and happiness Vse I. It is a terror to all hang-byes and time-servers who have it at their tongues end they are Gods and they bee saved how few soever they are But they cannot proov it by any ingrafting or union The old stock appear's in them no planting into a new no life of grace no Chirst to bee theirs no bringging to God by his flesh and the union of it to God no promise to fasten upon by which they may com no Spirit of God to bee between them and to unite both as the spirits Knit the bodie and soul in one Vse II. All you that will needs claim it by union Trie your selvs about it if yee bee united to God then hath the Lord chased you from your wandring vagaries and old haunts and brought you back like the prodigal Vse III. It 's use of thankfulss and comfort to all God's people 1. Of thanks for who art thou that the Lord should thus unite himself to such a lump of earth and sin Secondly comfort against all thy bad inmates and lusts which disquiet thee and make thee rather a Stie of uncleanness rather then an Hous of God Bee of good cheer the Lord esteem's thee not by these necessarie inmates but by the voluntarie Keep out them and the Lord will look upon his pearls not thy dung-hill Vse IV. It is to teach us both what dignitie and what dutie lie's upon God's people in this respect of their union The dignitie must needs bee great to bee one with God for by this means all his and our things are common hee suffer's in and with us in all our crosses Hee is honored or reproached in all our obedience or disobedience wee stand not nor fall to our selvs but to him Secondly it 's to teach us our dutie viz. To bee sensible of this union continually wheresoever wee becom A wife that honor 's her husband will so carrie her self that her husband may not bee impeached by any unseemly carriage idle looks speeches or liberties shee look's at his credit whose shee is Such a narrow eie should this union with the Lord work in us That his honor and name should bee the mark wee shoot at and look what wee think would jarr with his affections trench upon his glorie that wee should cut off III Regeneration The order of Gods working whereof is this First the word present's to the soul her loss of God not in a few beams or raies of his but his whole divine nature life and beeing Secondly it present's hereby the succession of miserie upon this loss and that most deserved all the curses wooes and penalties written in the law are written also and engraven by the finger of God's convinceing Spirit upon this person as a book written all over within and without Thirdly the Lord present's this soul with her fearful condition in this respect viz. that dangerous eas and quiet which the deluded soul lie's in in the midst of all this privation of God A most miserable spectacle to behold a creature miserable and yet thinking it self posse'st of all rich cloathed and furnish't with all necessaries Fourthly where the Lord will regenerate to a new life hee bring 's the soul to the sens of her lofs by the light of his law shineing as in a dark place as the light in the morning discover's to a man robbed in the night of his treasure at once what a case hee is left in and sease's it with a spirit of miserie and beggerie really ignorant now what to do wringing his hands and saying What shall becom of mee how shal I live and pass my life how shall I avoid the pinch of beggerie the shame of an undon man and the sorrowes that will ensue I say when once the Lord saveingly work 's this for els it may vanish hee doth in season present the soul with the newes of second life to prevent utter sinkeing and staie's the heart thereby Hee shewe's it that as lost and forlorn as shee is yet there is a way to restore her to her former integritie again Now as touching this way the Lord 1. First enlighten's the Soul in it 2. Secondly applie's and fasten's it upon the same 1. Hee enlighten's it in two kindes First about the Order of this way Secondly about the way it self Touching the Order of it hee tell 's her that forasmuch as shee once had this image of God creäted in her and hath wilfully lost it therefore before hee can restore her to it the second time his justice which is wronged by her sin and hath justly accursed her for it must first bee satisfied and the soul must apprehend this satisfaction to herself as her own and by this means her guiltiness and curs must bee washed off and removed out of his way For otherwise how can hee and the corrupt soul bee brought together What communion can there bee between sin and pureness Secondly Hee enlighten's the soul in the way it self To wit that in his wisdom and love hee hath granted his own Son true God and the nature which was offended to suffer the imputation of guilt and the death which it procureth in the nature and for the nature of guiltie man and by this suffering hee satisfied justice to the full so that hereby the way which sin had shut up might stand and lie open for the restoring of the poor lost soul to her former nature and life of God again Haveing thus enlightned the soul about this way hee then applie's it to the soul And that by a second and closer work of his grace For first hee applie's this work of Regeneration by the instrument of his word and promise which is as a seed of Regeneration cast into the womb of the soul by hearing it preached As Saint James saith Of his good will begate hee us by his word of truth This word carrieth with it a forming power of the second birth even a creating of God in the soul again Secondly the efficient caus is the Spirit of Regeneration taking this word and casting it into the soul and there hatching and cherishing the same till it have formed Christ therein who is the second Adam the true way and life that quickning Spirit And thirdly hee effect's this in the soul by the power of Faith which receiv's this seed of the word and this quickning of the spirit and possesseth the soul therewith Onely note this that Faith doth
Abhor thirdly a presumptuous heart which haveing heard of som hope abuseth it to forestall the Lord's work Abhor fourthly all means of Satan which might turn off quite or dash and quench this work Yeeld not to the impossibilitie of recoverie run not into despair take not thought for thy sweet sin God will make thee no looser Sculk not into corners to eas thy self of this yoak let God that put it on hold it on his time till hee hath trulie tamed thee If it seem long know there is a caus Vse IV. Let it teach us to pitie the loos and jollie in sin oh they make either work for hell or if God re-call them for the law for their chains must bee hereby increased and they shall meet with a Jailor that will handle them accordingly Oh! hear counsel betimes the counsel of minister husband wife parent master friend yea childe or servant to yeeld to God at the first that so thy yoke may bee the easier Vse V. Of exhortation Burie not this work of the Spirit under these clods of flesh streighten not the spirit of conviction Beg of God that by all these six staires thou maiest fall lower and lower till thou art brought to the earth Ask thy self When Lord shall my laughter light frothie merrie quiet heart bee met with thorowly Lie under this work and suffer affliction Say I see the Lord is in earnest hell is no painted fire the eas of a sinfull cours differ's from that little eas of the law I am in a streight I know not whither to turn mee No wealth friends credit marriage honor eating sleep play or musick can help now Away now all old companions the Lord hath laid sorrow upon my soul such as no tales or jigs can put by my meat is now mingled with gall and God seem's to forsake mee wrath hell and horror are upon mee my nights are wearisom and my daies miserable Chuse rather to bee thus for the killing of thy flesh then at libertie for the death of thy soul And wait in this estate upon God till hee caus light to break out ARTIC VII The LORD leave 's not the Souls of his Children in this miserie but uphold's them by the hopes of the Gospel The Lord where hee mean's to save keep 's not the soul alway in this anguish but cause 's som upholding of his secret spirit to keep up the soul of him whom hee will save from utter extremitie This hee doth by shewing them a door of hope in the wilderness as hee saith in Hos 2. 15. causing som glimps afar off to appear to them as a crevis of light in a Prison-wall as to consider that God hath had a gracious meaning to thousands whom hee hath thus humbled that by hell lie's the way to heaven that God delight 's not in this cours if the rebellion of the heart did not require it that God doth that which the soul shall not know till after hee mean's to make Christ sweet precious and welcom hee begin's to lay som ground of mortisication which in due time the Gospel shall perfect By such glimps of the gospel which God require's to bee joined with the law the Lord keep 's his from revolt to old base lusts from a despair of mercie and undoing themselvs or from a careless dissoluteness which end goe's forward And so haveing upheld them by the chin from sinking for a time hee doth let in light by such degrees as hee see 's them meetest to bear and to keep them low from waxing bold and venturous till at length hee sâ—ttle them upon his promise The Reasons why God useth this method are Reas I. First to keep the Soul from extremities of presumeing or despairing both being dangerous rocks the one separateing the means from the end running to their old liberties and yet hopeing to fare well the other separateing the end from the means after all their humblings yet thinking there is no mercie for them See Jer. 2. 25. Reas II. Secondly hee encourage's such to bear the yoke of the law which otherwise for the tediousness of it would shake it off Reas III. Hee deale's according to the capacitie of their weakness becaus they cannot bear much terror hee ease's them and becaus they dare not hearken to much comfort at once hee giv's them little at once Reas IV. Hee doth it for the honor of his own work of calling hee hath promised to call those whom hee hath chosen which hee should not do if hee left them in these briers Reas V. By this hope hee shewe's them hee is as able to give them his full promise and the effect thereof sound peace as hee can stay them up from sinking when they are at so low an ebb of casting down The LORD work 's this hope By presenting to them duly the sight of a possibilitie to get out of this terror That hee deal's not in afflicting his as with the wicked Esel 27. 7 8. Hee will do it in measure That hee abhor's excess in his terrors Esay 64. 12. That hee bar's none from him who bar not themselvs 2 Chron. 15. 2. That there is a necessitie of afflicting them with such tedious terrors or els hee delight 's not in it That hee hath not don this to destroy but to humble And all these doth hee caus them to digest and to stay themselvs by and fasten upon in more or less measure to keep them from extremitie causing terror to decreas and hope to succeed as wee see in his cours with Job as tedious as it was This hope goeth before faith yet it is such as the Lord enableth to uphold them between the horrors of the law and the grace of the Gospel The marks of this Hope 1. the entrance it is very weak and staggering between fear and hope very doubtful 2. Yet this little hope keep 's from the hardest and desperatest attempts 3. It rather bend's the eie to the end why God troubleth the soul then at the trouble it self in a plodding manner who know's whether hee will asswage and shew mercie for all this 4. It 's wearie of trouble rather by that eas which God sheweth then by tediousness See Hab. 3. 16. 5. It weakly turn's the thoughts to muse what would follow upon it if God should shew mercie Oh this is great newes to one that was so oppressed Oh now therefore to swither up with thoughts of welfare is a great change 6. And lastly trouble decaye's and hope encrease's as that little oyl and meal wasted not till plentie came Vse I. Instruction to God's Ministers to discern wisely of the season of staying the troubled heart For els they may spend much labor in vain It fare's with an heavie heart as with the bleeding wound and the deep humor of Melancholie while the dint is they refuse plaister and counsel And again when they see the season com let them applie God's fittest mid'cines Let terrors serv for the
still mai'st hear the word which is a favor for an Angel but that thou breathest in the aire or treadest upon the earth Thou objectest If thy hard heart were not so hideous upon thee thou couldst hope But I answer What hath caused it save thy self that wofull hardner which would get out of her fears by her own way and so hath dallied out the time and hardned thee But the promise tell 's thee if thou would'st trade with it thou should'st finde a contrarie effect Thou wilt say True if I were elected I might but I feel that I am not The promise will shew thee God's cords in thy dungeon and the robes which hee offer 's thee and will ask thee Dost thou not see mercie at the bottom At which end of the ladder would'st thou go up What hast thou to do with Election when the cords are so near thee or why would'st thou to heaven when the word is thy heart Thou wilt say Thou art most unworthie sinful and cursed and thy sin is ever before thee Yea it is so But why elsâ— should mercie offer it self save to the miserable Yea but then thou hast long continued a wretch and saped thy self in sin The promise will tell thee This objection from self-deceit as if thou might'st plead mercie if thy sins were smaller or thy self better whereas thy plea must bee the greatness of grace not the smalness of sin But my heart hath been hardned against mercie it self and dallied with it The promise will tell thee The Lord JESUS died for them that slew the Lord of life and for sins against the Gospel also Yea but thou saiest many have been converted since I began The Word will replie God hath all the hours in the day to work in if thou wilt attend him the eleventh as well as the seventh Thou wilt object If God had mean't mee good I should have felt it long since The Lord will tell thee so thou hast if thou wert not unthankful for it and rather delightest in descanting than believing Bee encouraged to hearken to the promise if thou would'st see all distempers drowned in the sea A second motive to believ may bee the heavie doom of unbelievers Their condemnation is of all others deservedly the fearfullest wors then the furnace of Nebuchadnezzar heat thrice hotter They had the Son of God in the mid'st of it with them therefore felt it not these contemn the Son of God they tread the blood of the Covenant under foot and count it a vain thing and count eternal life unworthy of them Therefore it shall consume them without consumption for ever If our Gospel bee hid it is so to them that perish The condemnation of the world is That they hated light that is not the light of the Law but of the Gospel the promise Hee that hath surfeited his bodie by intemperancie may die but hee that throw's the potion sent him the onely one which can cure him against the walls must needs die If they who despised Moses Law died how far greater judgment are those worthie of who sin and that finally against this Remedie can they resist the force of this Rock falling upon them and grindeing them to powder I deny not but even moral sins standing in relation to infidelitie either as causes Joh. 3. 19. or as effects 1 Tim 1. 13. are in themselvs damnable How much more unbelieving it self which make's them so Do not think this still stream is safe it 's the most deep and deadly gulf It oppose's the wisdom the counsel of God the depth of his riches of love the second love of mercie above the first creätion the providence of God's dispensation appointing this as the best way for redemption the direct way for the magnifyiug of his bottomless grace who could finde in his heart to love enmitie it felf and hate holiness in a sort that hee might love sinful enemies it resist's the omnipotent power of God in creäting man The second time of wors then nothing it disannul's his attributes his offer truth and faithfulness make 's God a lier chuse's a wors choice then Eve and Adam did hell before heaven and therefore deserv's to die that death which it hath chosen Oh! therefore judg of this sin by the spiritualness of it and prevent a treble hell by humble accepting and believing promise Lastly to conclude this doctrine should teach all God's people to keep their eies upon this Mirror of the Promise so closely till it transform them from glorie to glorie The least glimpse of mercie in the promise is glorious yet the Lord is not idle in his peoples hearts but that hee can reveal himself more clearly and gloriously to them day by day if they bee not in fault and lay barrs in his way For as the day from the dawning to noon-tide so the promise encreaseth in light where once the day-Star is risen The righteousness of God is revealed from faith to faith there is a spirit of the promise whereby God sealeth his people after they have once believed so that as Rom. 8. The Spirit fellow-witnesseth with us about our adoption our redemption our reconciliation all are ours wee are the Lord 's Many haveing got som flashes of hope by the Woâ—d rest there go no further wax waily wanton frothie thinking any of their own humors may well complie with the glad tidings of Heaven and so shake off their fears and turn grace into wantonness But if the true Spirit of the Promise were in them their Covenant would draw them to seek more assurance evidence and hold then before Therefore let us look to this work of the Spirit And to this end trie it by these few marks First such an heart growe's lower and lower in it self daily by how much grace growe's higher and the reproach of God in his fulness cause 's the soul to crie Depart from mee a sinful wretch It work 's not lightness Secondly such an heart hath much busied it self in and about the faithfulness of the promises that so the Lord may as by an earnest 2 Cor. 1. 22. give her his seal to assure her Thirdly shee feel's the priviledges accompanying pardon to bee hers and out-grow's her fears bondage doubts assaults temptations by the spirit of libertie peace joy thanks admiration c. Fourthly shee grow's in the seal of holiness as well as of assurance beeing more zealous fruitful upright hereby Fifthly shee covet's the use of Baptism appointed to seal her Sixthly shee grow's more real savorie setled more confident in praier and more lively in hope more readie to die more mortified in lusts more cheerfull and fruitful in communion of Saints THE THIRD PART ARTIC I. That hee who is in CHRIST is a new Creature THe Scripture expresseth this sundrie waies all tending to the same end all may bee reserred to these heads for either they look at the main principle of the Spirit of sanctification as when the tearms of renovation