an accuser acquiter and comforter was in Adam before his fall As long as Adam obeyed the commandement of God there was no cause that conscience should accuse him but as soone as he disobeyed Gods commandement conscience flew in his face as appeares by his flying from the face of God Which plainely shewes us this truth that conscience was in Adam before his fall but did not begin to accuse ' til Adam began to sin Secondly conscience say I is a naturall power which the joule of man hath c. Now whether this power be in the understanding onely or partly in the understanding and partly in the will I finde controverted amongst the learned My opinion I here humbly lay downe but I undertake not to state and determine the controversie This power we speak of I conceive to be a reflect act of the practicke understanding onely transcendently seconded by the power of the holy Ghost Saint Iohn confirmes the first that it is a reflect act of the practicke understanding onely where speaking of this power in the soule saith And hereby we doe know that we know him if we keepe his Commandements 1 Iohn 2.3 That is as if Iohn had said We doe view our waies by the word of God which is an act onely of the understanding and finding them to be in some measure levell with that holy rule we have this comfortable reflection backe upon our soules that our faith is not a fancy but a faith which worketh by love and so sincere and saving which reflection is no other as I conceive but an act of the understanding collecting a divine conclusion from divine premises He that keepeth Gods Commandements knoweth God savingly that he may safely conclude but I doe keepe the Commandements of God this I know for I have viewed the Commandements of God and my life by them and therefore I know that is I am assured that I truely and savingly know God which is no other but that power in the soule which we call conscience The Apostle Saint Paul I conceive confirmes the second that it is a reflect act of the understanding transcendently seconded by the holy Ghost where he saith My conscience bearing me witnesse in the holy Ghost Rom. 9.1 That is my conscience transcendantly seconded and assisted by the holy Ghost doth strongly testifie to my soule that I am full of bowels towards my kinsmen after the flesh and could doe any thing or suffer any thing for their good The order according to which the holy Ghost strikes in with conscience is this The understanding makes a double proposition one grounded in the word of God the other in the heart of man as thus He that keepeth the Commandements of God truely loves God this proposition is grounded in the word of God but I doe keepe the Commandements of God this is grounded in the heart of man And then drawes a conclusion from both therefore I doe truely love God This conclusion whilst holy and drawne from divine premises to wit the word of God and the grace of God in the heart of man the Spirit of God strikes in with the soule in making this conclusion and assists the weake soule so that he concludes thus with strong confidence that he truely loves God and not onely secretly assistes but seconds and saies the same thing to man that his owne spirit doth Then is fulfilled that of the Apostle the Spirit beares witnesse with our spirits that we are the Sonnes of God If the premisses be corrupt which the understanding makes for the minde makes propositions suitable to the light that is in it from which to argue the goodnesse or badnesse of man then the Divell that lying spirit strikes in and seconds the soule in that corrupt conclusion which he collects from corrupt principles concerning himselfe So that now the deluded soule is peremptory and wiser then ten men that give a reason in these is fulfilled that of the Apostle Their minds and consciences being defiled Thirdly I affirme conscience to be a naturall power which the soule of man hath above all unreasonable creatures c. Bruite beasts have no conscience and yet they better serve God in their kind then many of us which have conscience Bruit beasts want reason and therefore are not capable subjects of conscience and yet against reason and against conscience man ofttimes does worse then a beast Fourthly conscience say I is a naturall power which the soule of man hath above all unreasonable creatures to compare his waies by some rule and according as his waies agree or disagree with that rule so answerably to bear witnesse with or against him By the former part of this description is shewed unto us what conscience is according to its being in the soule It is a naturall power c. By the latter part of this description is shewed unto us what conscience is according to its office in the soule The office of conscience according to the description here given consists in two things First conscience compares a mans waies by some rule Secondly Conscience beares witnesse with or against a man according as a mans waies agree or disagree with that rule First say I conscience compares a mans waies by some rule If the understanding be enlightened with the truth to wit the word of God then conscience compares the waies of man by a perfect rule to wit the word of God But if the understanding be inlightned with naturall and morall principles onely then conscience compares a mans waies according to these principles only and so by an imperfect rule For 't is my judgment with submission to better that conscience in every man followes that light which the understanding holds up unto it This I know that a man may and often doth goe against conscience but conscience goes not against that light which the understanding holds up unto it A man may outwardly say this or that contrary to the light of his understanding but conscience inwardly speakes at the same time according to that light I will further cleare this unto you by an apt example Paul you know zealously persecuted the Church of God and his conscience for ought that I can finde never checkt him but doubtlesse rather acquitted him for it I meane as long as he remained unconverted And the reason I thinke is sufficiently rendred where 't is said that he did it ignorantly That is according to that light which his understanding held up unto him he thought he did God good service in sheading the blood of his Saints which me thinkes makes manifest what I say that conscience still followes the light of the understanding The Apostle Paul persecuted the Church of God and yet obtained mercie because saith the text he did it ignorantly hee did out of conscience as I may say shead the blood of the Saints But now the most men have received the knowledge of the truth therefore if now men persecute the Saints of
God either in heart tongue or hand they goe against knowledge so consequently against conscience for conscience followes the light of the understanding and so comes neere the committing of the unpardonable sin to the committers of which God hath said there shall be no mercy shewed either in this world or in the world to come Here I would have you observe this for the further clearing of what hath beene said That the word of God is the rule by which conscience compares the waies of men so far-forth as the understanding is enlightened by the word of God and no further So far-forth as the understanding is ignorant of the word of God so far-forth conscience is silent As long as St. Paul knew not lust to be a sinne conscience never accused him for lust as a sin And this surely is one reason why many shun the preaching of the word of God and the studie thereof least by encreasing knowledge they should increase griefe as Salomon saith least by this meanes they should come to the knowledge of their sinnes and so conscience pull them by the throat for them Of such as these the Apostle Saint Peter speakes where he saith Of this they are willingly ignorant that by the word of God the Heavens were of old and the earth and the world that then was perished 2 Pet. 3.3,4,5 That is they did purposely doe as much as in them lay to put out that light which was in their understandings which told them that he which at first made the heavens by his word and did by his word destroy them with water would one day againe destroy them with fire and brimstone this they did labour to keepe themselves ignorant of that so they might without checke of conscience goe on in their sinnes To such as these I may truely say with the Apostle If our Gospell be hid it is hid unto those which perish in whom the God of this world hath blinded the minds of them which believe not least the light of the glorious Gospell of Jesus Christ who is the Image of God should shine unto them 2 Cor. 4.3,4 He that keepes himselfe in ignorance that his conscience may let him goe on quietly in wickednesse loves to goe to hell without controle Thou that canst not indure that thy conscience should reprove thee secretly 't is no wonder that thou canst not endure that thy minister should reprove thee publikely Thou that canst not endure that thy conscience should reprove thee for sinne now must endure whether thou wilt or no conscience to torment thee for thy sin hereafter The second thing that I would have you to observe is this That conscience doth compare all a mans wayes with the rule of the word so far-forth as the understanding is enlightned with the word All that light which the understanding hath received from the word of God conscience takes it and makes it a rule by which he measures all a mans waies thoughts words and deeds to trie what agreement or disagreement there is betweene them and the rule That conscience compares the thoughts of men by the word of God so farre forth as the understanding is inlightned by the word as well as words and deeds is manifest by the language of the Apostle where he speakes of the Gentiles on this wise Which shew the worke of the Law written in their hearts their consciences also bearing witnesse their thoughts the mean while accusing or excusing one another Rom. 2.15 Divine light so far-forth as it shines into the hearts of heathens conscience makes use of it as a rule by which to examine their very thoughts and so answerably to accuse or excuse them as their thoughts are found to agree or disagree with the rule Saint Paul likewise in the ninth to the Rom. at the first verse confirmes this truth I say the truth in Christ I lie not my conscience bearing me witnesse in the holy Ghost that I have great heavinesse and continuall sorrow in my heart for I could wish my selfe separate from Christ for my kins-folk in the flesh Saint Paul here tels us that his conscience did beare him witnesse that his thoughts and desires were thus and thus sincere respecting his brethren which conscience will never doe before he hath leavelled a mans thoughts and desires by the word of God and found them to be so by consequence then it is manifest that conscience compares a mans thoughts by the rule as well as his words and deeds Conscience keepes court in the heart and therefore can and doth observe our thoughts as well as our words and deeds Conscience keepes a Court of justice in the heart and sits upon the life and death of the soule which is ten thousand times more precious then the body and therfore will not sift this and that and let other things goe which the word condemnes as well and as plainely as it doth any thing else The word of God you know condemnes evill thoughts as well as evill words and not onely grosse evill thoughts as thoughts of murder adultery and the like but vaine idle thoughts and therefore conscience can doe no lesse as Gods Vicegerent in this lower circuit but examine these as well as words and deeds by the rule of Gods word to see how farre they agree to or disagree from it Which worke when conscience hath exactly done then it beares witnesse with or against a man answerably as a mans waies agree or disagree with this rule which is the last clause in the description of conscience and comes now according to order and method to be a little opened Conscience when he hath compared a mans waies by the rule and exactly found out how they agree with or disagree from it the next thing he doth is he beares witnesse with or against a man This clause I adde in the description of conscience because 't is a divine power placed in the soule of man to be as it were a judge betweene God and man Conscience takes notice of things together with God and compares them by the rule together with God and then pronounceth sentence with or against man for God First I say conscience takes notice of things together with God and hence it is say the learned that this power in the soule is called conscience Scire say they is said of him which knowes one thing alone so as none else knowes it with him Conscire is said of three or foure which know some secret together Conscience therefore must needs signifie a combination of two at the least in the knowledge of some secret thing Now this combination cannot be betweene man and man for man doth not know the secrets of my heart no further then as I reveale them to him this combination neither cannot be betweene man and Angels for they doe not know the secrets of my heart together with thy selfe This combination then must needs be between God and man God knowes all our
villany in Israel and have committed adultery with their neighbours wives and have spoken lying words in my Name which I have not commanded them even I know and am a witnesse saith the Lord Jer. 29.23 By this we see that God the Father sees our sinnes and is a witnesse but because he will not be a witnesse in his own cause he will have two sufficient witnesses besides himselfe to wit Christ and conscience both very true The Divell would willingly be a witnesse against man as an evill spirit that knowes much by man but does not know so much as the Spirit of man which is in him and therefore not a sufficient witnesse But if that evill Spirit did know as much by man as mans owne evill spirit which is in him yet being corrupt he would prove a false witnesse against man a Knight of the Post and sweare any thing against man to bring as great misery upon him as is upon himselfe if he might be admitted for a witnesse such is his divellish hatred and malice to all beings better then his owne but therefore God will not admit of him as a witnesse for or against a man Two true witnesses will God have one without a man and another within him one in heaven and another in earth to wit Christ and conscience Behold I have given him for a witnesse to the People saith God the Father of Christ Isa 55.4 And this witnesse is in Heaven saith Iob Behold my witnesse is in Heaven Job 16.19 Not so in heaven that he is not also in earth or as if he were ignorant of any thing done in earth for then he could not be a sufficient witnesse Iob speakes of Christ according to his speciall place of residence and that is in heaven but Christ hath a Country house here below in our hearts where he hath one abiding continually that is equall to himselfe that tels him all to wit his spirit so that Christ is as competent a witnesse as conscience that sits as Register still in the heart and never stirres out of his place These two witnesses do as that man was commanded to doe which had a sheepe committed to his trust and the sheepe torne in pieces by wild beasts he was to bring some of that which was left some horne or hoofe or any part else that was left for a witnesse of the truth thereof Exod. 22.13 Thus Christ and conscience bring before God the soule those precepts which were by God committed to man to be kept and which he hath suffered his unruly heart to breake to pieces my meaning is so lively doe these two witnesses set before the sinner the breach of every precept according to every circumstance as ever any party under the Law could set before the owner the tearing in pieces of his cattell by the limmes and pieces thereof And this being done divine sentence is given and the soule must needs be silent being so legally handled and Angels and Saints be forc'd to breake forth and say Rightéous art thou O God in all thy waies and holy in all thy works Lastly God hath given this power to conscience to give testimony concerning mans simplicity or hypocrisie that so God at the great day may dispatch a great deale of weighty businesse speedily And I will come neere to you to judgement and I will be a swift witnesse against the sorcerers and against the adulterers and false swearers saith the Lord Mal. 3.5 What the Lord then spake respecting a particular judgement the same will be Gods proceeding with all at the great day The bookes shall be opened Christs booke and the booke of conscience and so in a moment in the twinkling of an eye that is very speedily all things shall be cleare to Judge and malefactour without troubling Juries and other witnesses as we doe here which would make a long worke at that great assize and all persons be judged sent to their place and so righteously judged that not one shall open his mouth to complaine Now this could not possibly be a work speedily done if God had not given this power to conscience to reflect and give testimony and to be instead of better then a thousand witnesses beside and all debating pro and con betweene them The wisedome of God is here to be admired for he hath made such a witnesse to give testimony with Christ for or against a man every way so fit that nothing in the world can be judged so fit Christ we must all confesse to be very sit to be Gods Delegate because he came out of the bosome of God and knows exactly all his Lawes which he hath given man to observe which Angels doe not and man is a party and therefore both unfit But the holy Ghost cannot be judged fit to be mans Delegate because one with the Father and Sonne and so a party in the cause And as for Angels they know not neither the proposed rule exactly nor the aberrations of the Delinquent and as for men they are parties in the cause and so would juggle together and sweare one for another or at least as one flesh and bone with foolish pity spoile a City as we say that is they would speake flattering and halting and so over-turne justice at last after a great deale of doe with them Now to prevent all this danger toile and stirre God hath created such a power within man as to observe all things done by man and no lesse one with man then Christ is with the Father and therefore as inexceptible a Delegate for man on the one side as Christ is for God on the other side And these two of an instant without all disturbance distraction or turmoile give in exact evidence concerning mans integrity or hypocrisie and so speedily without all clamour sentence and execution and all is finished and the Judge of all the world does more weighty businesse in a moment and farre better then all the Judges in this world could do in the age of the world Having thus given you the point and the grounds of it let us see in the next place how usefull this may be unto us all Hath God given power to conscience to give testimony concerning the simplicity or hypocrisie of mans waies Why then let us all take heed how we order our conversation in this world Give leave to your soules to thinke nothing speake nothing nor doe nothing but what you would have written downe and delivered into the Judge of all the world at the great day When we know a tale-teller is neare us we are very carefull what we say or doe Why we have alwaies a tell-truth in our bosomes where ever we goe or whatsoever we doe who will tell all to the Judge of all the world that we thinke speake or doe and therefore let us watch over our thoughts words and deeds and so thinke and so speake and so doe as those that looke to have the comfortable
he set Felix into a trembling and then saith he to Paul Goe thy way for this time when I have a convenient season I will send for thee Act. 24.25 So many will heare conscience whilst he gives testimony with them of this good thing and that which they have done and it may be whilst he tells them of lesser faults but when once he comes to reason throughly with them about their sinnes which are as deare as right eyes and right hands unto them and threatens them home with judgement to come when he tells them of that righteousnesse and temperance which the word commands how much they have neglected it and what they are liable to for it and so sets their soules into a cold shaking sweat then they have enough of conscience and they turne their eares and minds to some other matters and send conscience away till they be better at leisure this is no other but to sleight conscience in his place God will make no other of this but contempt of his prime Court of justice here below and those that sit chiefe there as for him and thou wilt finde no other but a great deale of secret soule mischiefe by this God hath no other Court here below but the heart of man and no Judge in this Court but conscience and conscience being Gods Chiefe-judge wilt thou hearken to him when thou pleasest and when thou pleasest turne the deafe eare to him say what he will Doest thou thinke that God sweares Judges for this lower Circuit which know not Law nor how to speake upon the Bench worth the hearing Doest thou thinke thy selfe too great to be arraigned by God and to answere to such interrogatories as he shall put unto thee As God will make no other but contempt of this so thou wilt finde no other but a great deale of secret soule mischief by this To sleight the voice of conscience is the ready way to bring the soule into security and presumption which are unsensible damning evils When there was no King in Israel nor royall Courts of judicature every man did what was right in his owne eyes So when this royall Court of conscience is sleighted the soule will grow fearelesse and carelesse and man will give leave to himselfe to thinke and speake and doe as he listeth and yet promise peace to himselfe though he live in the wickednesse of his owne heart then which what can be a greater soule evill Wherefore honour God in his Royall way of judicature and seeing he hath appointed an able Iudge in thy soule of thy waies sleight him not but diligently hearken to what he saith which is the last thing I would a little presse upon you Conscience can speake better of thy waies then any man can doe therefore give him leave to speake and diligently observe all his words and tell me what he saith to thee Doth he not tell thee that thou art a drunkard an adulterer a swearer a prophaner of the Lords day an unjust dealer a selfe-seeker a time-server a man that orderest thy devotion and conversation suitable to the times a man that makes thine owne ends thy aime in all thy actions Doth he not tell thee that thou art an idle person a busie-body a railer a scoffer and malicious person Or what is it that conscience saith unto thee For he speakes to no man else but to thy selfe so faithfull and discreet is he and therefore I can enquire of none but of thy selfe O sinner what conscience saies unto thee Conscience can give testimony with or against thee prethee hearken to him and tell me what he saith When Christ was arraigned and stood still and said nothing the high Priest arose saith the Text and said unto him answerest thou nothing What is it which these witnesse against thee Math. 26.62 So say I to you conscience doth arraigne you now and then and he doth give testimony what testimony is it that he gives Is it against you or with you If against you What is it that he accuses you of and condemnes you for Doth he condemne thee for the vanity of thy thoughts for the levity of thy words and deeds Doth he condemne thee for the pride of thine heart or for the pride of thine heart and life both Doth he condemne thee for sheading of innocent blood for scoffing and persecuting the waies of God Doth he condemne thee for hugging some secret sinne which the word disallowes or for thy superficiall perfunctory piety Whatsoever conscience accuses and condemnes thee for honour this Viceroy so farre as to weigh throughly what he saith and call to minde thy waies and consider whether they have not beene so as conscience saith and if so then compare what conscience saith of thy course with the word of God and if conscience within and the word of God without agree in one in what they say against thy course doe thou strike in with thy conscience and the word of God and say of thy selfe and waies as they say and joyne with them in judging and condemning thy selfe and thy courses And then begge the Lord that he will not strike in and judge thee too for if he judge thee too then thou art gon for ever Tell him that though thou hast sinned yet Christ hath died and here hold And then begge him to cleanse and cure thy wicked heart that thou maist goe and sinne no more least a worse thing befall thee namely to be delivered from the hands of a condemning conscience into the hands of a condemning God who will teare thee in pieces and there will be none to deliver If conscience give testimony with you that you are pure and upright as he useth the expression to Iob that in simplicity and godly sincerity you have had your conversation in the world why then weigh your waies by the word of God and see whether the word of God saith the same of your waies which conscience doth if so why then doe you strike in too and say as conscience and Gods Word doe and so owne Gods great worke of grace in your hearts in making them upright and thinke that thou canst never declare love enough to God which hath declared so much love to thee as to make thee a man after his owne heart to be a companion for his owne Sonne and selfe in grace and glory FINIS 2 COR. 1.12 For our rejoycing is this the testimony of our conscience that in simplicity and godly sincerity not with fleshly wisedome but by the grace of God we have had our conversation in the world and more abundantly to you-wards THE third proposition which now according to order and method comes to be handled is this That consciousnesse to our selues of the simplicity and sincerity of our conversation will yeeld us joy in the midst of troubles Pauls and Timothies conscience giving testimony with them concerning the simplicity and sincerity of their conversation made them to rejoyce in the midst of all
doe all his enemies what they can and this makes the heart of man leape within him in the midst of troubles as the babe in Elizabeths wombe when she heard the salutation of Mary Our rejoycing is this the testimony of our conscience that in simplicity and godly sincerity not with fleshly wisedome but by the grace of God we have had our conversation in the world Having shewed you in what troubles the testimony of conscience will give joy and what joy 't is that conscience causeth in the soule I will in the next place shew you the ground of the point why the testimony of conscience concerning a mans simplicity must needs cause joy in the midst of troubles This testimony of conscience is attended with a glorious power as the Apostle calls it 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 according to the glorious power of him saith the originall that is of the holy Ghost which makes the testimony so strong and so transcendently comfortable that troubles and sorrows for sincerity sake though never so great cannot possibly over-beare the heart Strengthned with all might according to his glorious power unto all patience and long suffering with joyfulnesse 1 Col. 11. There is a glorious power attending the testimony of conscience extended to upright soules in times of great troubles for uprightnesse sake which strengthens them with all might so that all burdens cannot depresse them unto all patience and long suffering so that they will never be weary and out of breath with bearing and to doe all this with joyfulnesse so that no outward hardship can utterly exhaust joy out of their spirits Now the testimony of conscience concerning our simplicity and sincerity being attended with this glorious power in times of trouble as Peter saith 't is the spirit of glory and of God rests upon such it must needs keepe up the dolorous spirit of man and make him rejoyce in the greatest troubles Paul and Timothy doubtlesse found this glorious power attending the testimony of their conscience strengthning them with all might unto all patience and long suffering with joyfulnesse which made them thus to say For our rejoycing is this the testimony of our conscience that in simplicity and godly sincerity not with fleshly wisedome but by the grace of God we have had our conversation in the world 2 Secondly the testimony of conscience concerning mans simplicity and sincerity must needs rejoyce a man in the midst of all troubles because conscience now minds a man that he walkes in the midst of all enemies and troubles just as Christ did There was no guile found in Christs mouth though he was put to it againe and againe Whatever he underwent from his Father from the divell and his children yet still he walked sincerely and faultered not in the least kind for the greatest advantage though he was proffered all the kingdomes in the world to doe it Now when conscience tells a man that in simplicity and godly sincerity he hath had his conversation in the world it doth at once tell him that he hath walked in this world just as Christ did As he was so art thou in this world O my soule which cannot but rejoyce the heart in the midst of the sharpest afflictions for Christs sake Thy Saviour O my soule though God yet was called a divell nay Beelzebub the prince of divels though temperate yet called a drunkard and Wine-bibber and companion to Publicans and Harlots though a man without guile yet called a deceiver though innocent yet scoffed imprisoned condemned and executed as a malefactour 'T is just thus with thee O my soule thou art studious to walke uprightly and yet censured for an hypocrit thou labourest to be better then any and yet the world judges thee to be worse then any thou labourest more for humility and love then for all the wealth in the World and yet the World judges thee to be fuller of pride and malice then any man thou dost not blow a Trumpet when thou givest almes but hidest from thy left hand what thy right hand doth and therefore the world thinks that thy religion towards God is without mercy towards man thou thinkest no evill to others but labourest to doe good to all and yet all almost thinke evill or speake evill or doe evill against thee In this O my soule thou art not alone 't was the condition of thy Saviour therefore mourne not O my soule but rejoyce according to the divine rule that thou art made like him Thus the testimony of conscience concerning a mans sincerity brings in matter of comfort and joy to the soule of man in the midst of troubles and makes it smile when under heavy burthens of cruelty Lastly it must needs be that the testimony of conscience concerning the simplicity of a mans conversation should minister joy in the midst of troubles because such plainely see their interest in the divine word of consolation Be glad in the Lord and rejoyce ye righteous and shout for joy all ye that are upright in heart Psal 32.11 Conscience now tels me that I am upright in heart and that in simplicity and uprightnesse I have had my conversation in the world and so consequently that joy here as well as hereafter belongs to me Out of this reasoning betweene conscience and the divine word of consolation joy will breake forth in the soule first or last lade an upright man with what burthens you will Rejoyce all ye that are upright in heart saith God thou art upright in heart saith conscience to a sincere soule and conscience will not stay here but will presse upon the soule to apply his owne mercies why then dost not thou rejoyce Dost thou thinke it a small matter to disobey a command of God This pressing language of conscience will make a sincere soule strive hard and pray hard to reioyce in afflictions for Christs sake according to the divine rule which prayer God will heare and bring the upright foule at last to say in the midst of troubles with these champions in my text For our rejoycing is this the testimony of our conscience that in simplicity and godly sincerity not with fleshly wisedome but by the grace of God we have had our conversation in the world Having given you the point and the grounds of it a word or two I would speake by way of application to you that are unsound and then a word more to you that are sincere and so conclude this point This doctrine may in the first place serve to unfold a riddle to you that are unsound Possibly you may wonder to see a man goe reioycing to prison and to fire and fagot especially when censured by learned men for such and such a malefactour you it may be thinke of such a man as he of Paul that he is mad and merry without cause as bedlams are or else that he laughs from the teeth outward as he that would put a good face upon an ill matter No
work of God upon the soule that it makes a man laborious to do every divine thing exact according to that divine manner which God in hiâ— word prescribes 'T is not thus with an hypocrite he is lead by customes and makes it a matter of conscience not to swerve from these how incongruous so ever to the word of God Or els he is fearefully given over to a careless Spirit to doe divine things as hits he cares not how any way or no way all is one Or else he is desperatly pinned to his owne will being wiser in his owne eyes then ten men that give a reason Thus thus he will walke say all the world what they will is it not thus with you If you tell me that yet you hold out weight by the ballance of the sanctuarie I am glad yet possibly you may be one graine too light Are ye laborious to doe all Gods will that God may have all the glory due to his name Do ye not sacrifice to your owne ners and take the glory to your selves of your labours like Herod When men applaud you is not this to you as the rubbing of a Parrat upon the head very pleasing and that which makes you hugge your selves within your owne thoughts Is not this great Babell which I have built Could such a thing have beene done if I had not done it Or could any man have done it so well as I Looke in upon your spirits before but specially after divine duties and see whether you doe not seeke your selves in them more then the glory of Christ Doe ye not give almes to be accounted liberall men and that the poore may applaud you for good men and good house-keepers Doe ye not blow a Trumpet when you give almes that is so distribute your charity as may be most advantagious to your owne repute in the world Do ye not let your left hand know still what your right hand doth Are ye not dampt in your designes of charity and bounty when 't is to goe forth in such a way as if it were cast upon waters or into the bottome of a Well where no eye can see nor no tongue speake of your good workes nor no likely'ud of the least returne Doe ye not looke for much observance from such to whom you doe much And repent of your kindnesse when men doe not answere it in thankfulnesse Doe ye eye Christs command and out of love to him give upon all just occasions as unto him Are those that are religious tendered and succoured by you in their bonds and miseries as if you were bound with them according to the divine rule Doe ye not in prayer more looke at words and expressions then to your spirits Doe ye not pray in the market-places That is so pray that others may observe you and blaze abroad that you are very devout persons Are ye not industrious to pray well as you call it in publike and carelesse and perfunctory when you pray in private Are ye not more constant a great deale in the performance of publike then in the performance of private prayers where there is no observer nor applauder but God which sees and heares in secret Doe ye not after prayer hug your owne gifts and admire your apt expressions dexterity of utterance and to thinke much that you have no more thankes given you for your paines and that those that joyned with you were no more affected Doe ye not pin your spirits to your owne acute studied formes and praiers in print boasting of things made ready to your hand as the Apostle speakes and scoffe at the spirit of grace and supplication Zech. 12.10 Doe ye not preach your selves and not Christ and more looke at words then matter to please men then to please God Doe ye labour to approve your selves to every mans conscience or to every mans fancie Doe ye not put plaine truths into abstruse termes a new coat upon old divinitie and strive to soare in drie Metaphysicall straines above your owne and others apprehension Doe ye not build hay and stubble upon the true foundation the opinions of Fathers and Schoolemen and the tenents of proud time-servers whom God hath given over to a Spirit of delusion to believe lies because they received not the truth in the love of it Doe ye aime at conviction conversion or ostentation in your preaching Doth it not almost make you sicke like Ahab that your claborate Sermons in places of eminent note have not yet brought you to a fat living Doe ye not preach Christ out of envie as the Apostle speakes to bring about your wicked designes and to vend your malicious spirits against the godly Doe ye not wrest the word of Christ to confirme your time-serving tenents to maintaine your voluptuous loitering life And if so is this in simplicity and godly sincerity to have your conversation in the world To you that by what hath beene said see that you are yet unsound at heart that you doe not in simplicity and godly sincerity order your conversation in this world I have three things to say Labour to be affected with your unsoundnesse Then judge your selves that you may never be judged of the Lord And then begge the cure of your foule disease First labour to be affected with your unsoundnesse This is the killing mischiefe of hypocrisie that it is hard and difficult throughly to be found out and truely to be bewailed Hypocrisie is vitium latens vitium transfigurans vitium adulans vitium obdurans a hidden a transforming a flattering and a hardening vice 1 'T is a hidden vice The heart is deceitfull and desperately wicked who can know it saith the Prophet The spirit of a man may know the things of a man but deceit and guile this lurkes and skulkes in such hidden corners of the heart that the spirit of man does not know it And hence it is that multitudes thinke themselves very sincere which yet are very unsound A man may discerne drunkennesse swearing and whoring in himselfe and yet all this while be utterly unable to see the hypocrisie of his spirit and hence 't is that you shall have drunkards swearers and whore-masters to confesse these vices and yet plead for the goodnesse of their hearts and meanings too 2 When the unsoundnesse of the heart is discovered by the word and spirit of God then hypocrisie becomes vitium transfigurans a transforming vice The heart strives now to put faire glosses upon foule matters to put a beautifull vizzard upon the uglie face of sinne and to appeare in the eye of awakened conscience quite of another colour or at least nothing so uglie as the word of God would make it to be 3 If this will not stop the mouth of complaining conscience then it becomes vitium adulans a flattering vice The heart tells conscience now that 't is true things are bad but God is very good he is not extreame to marke what is
thoughts There cannot be a thought hid from thee saith Job of God Iob 42.2 And he knowes all our words and deeds all things are naked before him with whom we have to doe And man also by a gift from God knowes together with God his thoughts words and deeds and compares them by the rule together with God and then beares witnesse with or against himselfe to God and this gift we therefore call con-science Here note this That conscience beares witnesse with or against a man no farther then his waies agree or disagree with the word of God There can be no bribing of conscience to speak better or worse of any man to God then his waies deserve Conscience beares witnesse against a man when having compared the waies of man by the word of God he findes them to disagree from it But here possibly some of you may say Doth any mans conscience beare witnesse against himselfe against his owne land-Lord in whose house he dwels To this I answer yes The Apostle confirmes this where he saith If our hearts condemne us God is greater then our hearts and knoweth all things 1 Iohn 3.20 If our hearts condemne us c. Conscience will give testimony and sentence against the very wombe that beares him if wicked and so far-forth as he knowes it to be wicked Conscience cannot now give an exact testimony nor an exact sentence against a sinner because the understanding holds not up unto it an exact light We know but in part though God know all things and knowing but in part conscience yet can doe his office but in part but what he does is faithfull and righteous according to the light which the understanding holds up unto him But hereafter when we shal all appeare before the judgement seate of Christ Christ will by his Almighty power set up a glorious light in every mans understanding so that they shall know all things done in the body whether good or evill as completely as Christ himselfe and then conscience will speake as plaine and as broad as Christ himselfe and hence 't is that men shall stand silent before the Judge of all the world The testimony which conscience gives against a man now is very audible so audible that it causeth the merriest heart in the midst of laughter to be sadde It will make the stoutest sinner stoop his heart to ake and shake within him and his countenance to gather blacknesse But at the great day it will make every sinner in Belshazzars case worse when he saw the hand-writing in the wall It will make sinners at their wits end to wish for mountaines to fall upon them and cover them or dispatch them utterly Conscience beares witnesse with a man when having compared his waies by the rule he findes that they agree therewith So audible and so sensible is the testimony that conscience gives now with a man that it makes him to rejoyce in the midst of all outward troubles and hardships For our rejoycing is this saith Paul and Timothy in the midst of all their outward troubles the testimony of our conscience that in simplicity and goâ—ly sincerity not with fleshly wisedome but by the grace of God we have had our conveâ—sation in the World Conscience spake so loud and so plain and so comfortable in giving testimony with them concerning their integrity that they understood well what he said and were more comforted by this still testimony within then if hundreds without had given testimony with them to their adversaries and said they were upright men But much more audible and comfortable will the testimony of conscience with a man be at the great day but I let that alone till then At presert I hope you see enough by this description of conscience to confirme the truth in hand to wit That conscience can give testimony concerning the simplicity or hypocrisie of a mans conversation Now the reasons why God hath given unto conscience this power are these First That man might have some thing within him to comfort or terrifie him when all things without faile Secondly That Gods proceedings with man may be by man confessed to be just Lastly That God at the great day may dispatch a great deale of weighty businesse speedily First God hath given this power to conscience to give testimony concerning the simplicity or hypocrisie or mans conversation That so man might have something within him to comfort or terrifie him when all things without him faile If a man walke sincerely conscience will be a comfort to him when father mother husband wife wealth and all friends faile him And this comfort will be a continuall feast in famine continuall honour in disgrace continuall wealth in poverty continuall liberty in bonds continuall peace in warre continuall health in sicknesse continuall ease under every burthen This was meate to eate to Paul and Timothy which the world knew not of Nay this was transcendent consolation in the midst of troubles to Paul and Timothy which the beleeving Corinthians dreamt not of and therefore 't is that they thus wrote to them Our rejoycing is this the testimony of our conscience that we have sincerely ordered our conversation in the world As if they had said thus Though we have lost many comforts yet we have not lost all we have something within us which is a continuall comfort to us in the midst of all the sorrowes and miseries which we meet withall and that is the peace of a good conscience And if man walk not sincerely conscience is by divine appointment to be an accuser condemner and in part an executioner of torture upon the delinquent in this life This worme shall gnaw within when things are carryed smooth without This dog shall bite and teare within when all are afraid to barke without This blood-hound shall dogge the sinner let him goe with Cain into the Land of Nod into what place he will or to what imployment he will so that proud man shall feele something within for his wickednesse when he feeles nothing without Secondly God hath given this power to conscience to give testimony concerning the simplicity or unsoundnes of mans conversation That so all Gods proceedings with man both here and hereafter may be confessed to be just One witnesse said God shall not testifie against any person to cause him to die Deut. 35.30 Two witnesses God accounted sufficient to vindicate every act of justice amongst men but under two God would not allow judicature against any man that so judgement might be cleare the Judge confessed to be righteous and the malefactour silent God the great Judge of all the world keeps himselfe to this rule in his proceedings of judicature against man Two witnesses will God have against every malefactour to wit Christ and conscience God doth immediately see all things done by man and is a witnesse himselfe to all that he commits in the body as we may guesse by his owne words Because they have committed
no doe not iudge so uncharitably it may be this man hath meat to eate which ye know not of It may be he hath his conscience testifying within that he hath walked in all uprightnesse and is not such a one as the world hath censured him to be and this makes him reioyce in the midst of all troubles 'T was wonderfull to Nebuchadnezzar to see the three children walke in the fiery furnace as if they had been walking in his stately walkes because he was not aware that they haâ—… such a divine comfortable companion as they had So 't is wonderfull to blind worldlings to see men so chearfull in suffering for trifles in religion as they call them and the reason is because they know not that divine comforter conscience which is continually within them unto them a feast This is to walke sincerely to be tender to obey all Gods will and this conscience tels the soule in the midst of all the troubles he undergoes from men of corrupt minds and large consciences and this language of conscience being attended with the glorious power of the holy Ghost as a comforter this soule cannot but reioyce though bleeding upon a Pillory groaning upon a Racke dying upon a Crosse and condemned by wise men for a foole in standing out in such small matters Secondly as this doctrine tells you blinde soules the reason why some are so chearfull under great troubles for small things so it tels you that are a little more growne in hypocrisie and wickednesse that your designe against the godly is frustrate The maine designe of the divell and his children in all the troubles he puts them to is to deprive them of all ioy and comfort to make their being upon earth hell which is a place without all consolation Now this they can never doe for as much as they cannot deprive them of the peace of conscience and ioy of the holy Ghost which goe hand in hand in an upright heart True it is if all the ioy of the godly did consist in outward things as wicked mens ioy doth then possibly they might serve the godly as God will one day serve them to wit utterly strip them of all consolation but the least part of an upright mans ioy consists in externall things his prime ioy is within from conscience and the holy Ghost which keepe company alwaies with it and these two all the wicked men upon earth nor all the Divels in Hell cannot suspend muchlesse silence from speaking comfort to an upright heart Conscience will still say this within that he which so walkes as before mentioned is upright when men and divels without say that he is an hypocrit a dissembler and not worthy to live And the Holy Ghost will still second this language of conscience by speaking over the same againe in such glorious expressions and with such sweetned words will the spirit of God beare witnesse with the spirit of man that doe what you will to this man he will still notwithstanding all rejoyce Cast him into prison nay cast him into a dungeon a dirty dungeon as Jeremies was nay cast him into a fiery Furnace into a fiery Furnace heat seven times-hotter then ordinary Give his backe to the smiters and his cheeks to them that plucke off the haire as the Prophet speakes Isa 50.6 doe what you will to him yet you will never deprive him of his joy As long as breath is in his nostrils conscience will comfort him and when this is gone by thy cruelty he will be in fulnesse of joy and in the fuller by how much the more cruelty thou hast inflicted on him The joy of conscience is proportioned to what we suffer for conscience as the afflictions of Christ abound in us so shall our joyes both here and hereafter And therefore doe not breake your sleepe and your braines to plot mischiefe against the upright for they will have more joy in suffering cruelty then you can have in inflicting it You doe but lessen your owne joy to encrease theirs The more terrible you are unto them the more shall the testimony of conscience be attended with a glorious Spirit of consolation which will make them rejoyce and be exceeding glad under all that you can inflict and this will exceedingly vex you Thirdly this doctrine will acquaint you with this truth That if consciousnes of sincerity will lessen and sweeten troubles by giving joy to the upright in the midst of them consciousnesse of hypocrisie and unsoundnesse must needs imbitter all troubles and make them more pressing and piercing upon you that are halters and time-servers this was that which Iobs friends drove at in all their discourses with him to bring him to sorrow doubly and trebly for as much as all his outward miseries were attended as they conceived with inward rottennesse intimating and that truly that it must be so and will be so with all hypocrits when conscience is once throughly awakened to tell them of their unsoundnesse under afflictions What a terrible sting will this be to a man in poverty when his conscience shall tell him Thou hast shuffled and shifted basely to get wealth and yet by all thy unjust waies thou canst skarce keepe a cue above a begger This blunt language of conscience will be such an addition of sorrow to poverty as will exceed the pressure of poverty when at greatest What a sting will this be to a man in disgrace when his conscience shall tell him Thou hast beene a time-server one that hast studied to humour and please men more then God that thou mightest get honour and keepe honour in the world and yet for all thy dog-like fauning and flattering thou stinkest in the nostrils of all and art cast unto the dung-hill as unsavory salt What a sting will this be to a man in sicknesse and death when his conscience shall tell him that he hath beene but an out-side Christian all the daies of his life a man zealous about humane inventions and bodily exercises to give God the outside and carelesse to worship God in spirit and truth this close language of conscience will paine a man more then any sicknesse or death can doe This was that which stung Balaam worse then death that his conscience told him he had beene but an hypocrit all his life This made Judas hang himselfe after he had sold his master for money for as much as his conscience told him then strongly that he had beene but an hypocriticall follower of Christ from the first to the last And thus would every rotten wretch doe or worse in every little trouble if God should not admirably step in and restraine and hinder so terrible is the sting of conscience when it testifies against a man and such deepe additions of griefe it bringeth to the soule in every calamity Sharpe arrowes and coales of Iuniper conscience shooteth and kindleth in the soule of man in every trouble when it testifieth against him as the
begets labour to attaine the thing beloved Thy testimonies are wonderfull therefore doth my soule keepe them Psal 119.129 Thy testimonies are wonderfull that is wonderfull righteous just and equall and wonderfull sweet sweeter then the honey or the honey-combe therefore doth my soule keepe them That is therefore doth my soule labour to keepe them As if he had said I see such a transcendant purity and taste such a transcendant sweetnesse in the testimonies of God that my soule cannot choose but labour to walke in them Sincerity makes a man laborious to doe the Will of God you see that is it makes a man constantly willingly and according to all his strength industrious That sincerity is such a speciall worke of God upon the soule that makes a man constantly laborious to doe the Will of God Paul in whom sincerity was confirmes And herein doe I exercise my selfe to have alwaies a conscience void of offence towards God and towards man Acts 24.16 Pauls industry was to obey the Will of God to day and the like next day and so he continued laborious every day that he might have alwaies a conscience void of offence towards God man The high way of the upright is to depart from evill saith Solomon Prov. 16. v. 17. That is this is their daily soule labour the continuall road in which they travell to get rid of sinne and to depart from that more and more An hypocrite stumbles into this path of piety now then but this is not his high way his usuall and daily road he quickly gets out of it againe to this unconstant cloud I conceive Salomon opposeth the upright man in the place forecited who makes it a beaten high way he is so constant in his endevours to doe good and to depart from evill I have enclined my heart to performe thy statutes alway even unto the end Psal 119.112 Sincerity is such a speciall worke of God upon the soule that it inclines the heart to labour alwaies to obey the Will of God which naturally is quickly weary of wel-doing As the touch of a Loadstone makes the needle to have a constant and restlesse inclination to the North so godly sincerity which I may call Gods secret touch of the heart it makes the soule of man have a constant and restlesse inclination to walke in Gods waies this constant inclination makes him constantly laborious to doe according to his daily desire Sincerity is such a speciall worke of God upon the soule that it makes a man to set God alwaies before him and to doe all things daily as in his presence I have set the Lord alwaies before me saith David Psal 16.8 For we are not as many which corrupt the Word of God but as of sincerity but as of God in the sight of God speake we in Christ 2 Cor. 2.17 This is the genuine nature of sincerity to make a man to set God alwaies before his eyes and to doe things as beholding him that is invisible Sincerity is such a speciall worke of God upon the soule that it makes a man so constant in his endeavours to do the Will of God that no opposition can make him to cease this labour The proud have had me greatly in derision yet have I not declined from thy Law Psal 119.51 Proud wretches scoff'd at holy waies and Davids holy endeavours to walke in them nay they did this vehemently and yet David being sincere held on his holy course still Nay else-where he tels us that they had almost consumed him upon earth such was their malice against him and yet he forsooke not his holy industry to obey Gods precepts Psal 119.87 Neither persecution of tongue nor hand though never so vehement can make a man in whose heart godly sincerity is to cease his industry to obey God and walke in his waies Hang him up as a bottle in the smoke Ps 119.83 and yet he will not forget this worke he is about to wit to obey Gods statutes Strong trials may make a sincere heart give backe for a time so farre may they prevaile upon the remaining unsoundnesse that is in the heart of man naturally when at best but they never prevaile to make a sincere heart give off his labour to obey God That sincerity is such a speciall worke of God upon the soule as makes a man willingly laborious to doe the Will of God is hinted to us by that expression of the Prophet Isai 1.19 If ye be willing and obedient ye shall eate the good of the Land Sincere men are such as shall eate the good of that holy Land which Canaan typified So that this being laid downe as an undeniable conclusion we see that sincerity is such a speciall worke of God upon the soule as toucheth the will and so makes a man not onely obedient but willing and obedient without which there is no eating that is enjoying of that holy Land which Canaan typified 'T was that which God did much looke at and stand upon under the old covenant that in all their sacrificall services which were of cost and charge they should be willing and chearfull or else God would not account their obedience sincere and therefore saith David an upright man and that God and all his people might see his uprightnesse in this chargeable way of serving God I will freely sacrifice unto thee I will praise thy Name O Lord for it is good I will freely sacrifice that is willingly chearfully bountifully c. If willingnesse were so much lookt at in their chargeable services under the old covenant as a symptome of sincerity much more doubtlesse doth God looke at it now in his services of the new convenant which are without expence and answerably doubtlesse is it with sincere men for the generall under the Gospell to wit more willing and chearfull in their services to God then they under the Law were A sincere man doth not labour to serve God of constraint and by compulsion as some servants all beasts serve us but of a ready minde as one that hath chosen this way of life above all others to walke in I have chosen the way of truth thy judgements have I laid before me Psal 119.30 Sincerity is such a speciall worke of God upon the soule that it makes a man see a greater beauty in Gods waies then in any waies beside and to taste a greater sweetnesse in these waies then in any waies and hence the soule is raised voluntarily and freely to choose these waies to walke in before all others Sincerity is such a speciall work of God upon the soule that it makes a man see the Word of God to be the straightest and truest rule of all others to walke by and therefore voluntarily chooseth this before others to lay before him as a rule to walke by I have chosen the way of truth thy judgements have I laid before me That sincerity is such a speciall Worke of God upon the soule
done amisse a thousand worse persons have found mercy and are gone to Heaven and therefore thou needst not so much trouble thy selfe O my soule He that beleeves makes not hast 't is time enough yet to amend all that is amisse and to be as good as the best 4 All this while that it is a hidden vice a transforming vice a flattering vice 't is a hardning vice All the while hypocrisie lies hid and after it is discovered and shifts and flatters it insensibly hardens so that whilst deceiving the soule is miserably deceived and then becomes past feeling conscience being seared with an hot iron that is God utterly leaving conscience to doe any office any longer for him in checking such a shifting shuffling sinner in his sinfull way And when this worke is done upon any soule you may leave tolling and ring out for he is dead and gone for ever Now because hypocrisie is of such a shuffling subtile nature as this 't is very hard for a man to become truely sensible of it and throughly affected with it and therefore I exhort you which are convinced by what was formerly delivered of your unsoundnesse first to labour to be truely sensible of it and deepely affected with it 'T is a vice that of all vices puts you into the furthest unlikenesse to God and the neerest likenesse to the divell It puts you into the furthest dissimilitude to God of all vices for God is most upright saith Isaiah Thou most upright doest weigh the path of the just Isai 26.7 God is most upright and an hypocrit of all men least upright and therefore an hypocrite of all men is least like God and yet most like the divell of whom I may say as the Lord of the Leviathan He is King faith God of all the children of pride So is the divell King of all the children of hypocrisie As 't is said of God that he is most upright so it may be said of the divell that he is most guilefull an arch hypocrit and therefore guilefull persons are most like the divell and the more guilefull the more like and hence is Elimas who was full of all subtilty by way of eminencie called the child of the divell by Saint Paul who knew well how aptly to stile hypocrits 'T is a vice that turnes man into a divell and God into fury fiercer then the divell for the divell is but Gods creature and therefore though his fury be unexpressible by us yet it is finite in it selfe but Gods fury against hypocrits is infinite and therefore you shall finde him spending a whole chapter in breathing out woes against hypocrits and therefore hell as the most suitable place and the greatest torments in hell as the most suitable thing to an infinit fury is reserved as a peculiar portion for hypocrits Were infinitnesse communicable and by a finite creature susceptible no lesse then infinite fury should hypocrits burne in When thou hast by such considerations as these brought thy spirit to be truely affected with thy unsoundnesse then judge thy selfe for it that thou maist not be judged of the Lord. Judge thy selfe as one most injurious to Christ and his glory of all men Judge thy selfe as a Traitour to the King of Kings as one that hast craftily conspired with the divell and thine owne heart to keepe out Christ from ruling and raigning in thee as one that hast subtily betrayed the honour of God in every action thou hast performed seeking thy selfe under pretence of seeking him Judge thy selfe as a cheater that hast beene cunning to deceive the godly and thine owne poore soule Judge thy selfe as a selfe-soule-murtherer that hast craftily baffled thine owne conscience that Gods word might not convert and turne thee from thine ungodly course and so save thy precious soule Judge thy selfe as a Iudas that kissest Christ bowest and cringest to Christ and yet betraiest and crucifiest Christ In a word judge thy selfe as a right hand of the divell by which he hath done a great deale of mischiefe judge thy selfe as a capitall offender as a sinner of all sinners the chiefe and then beg pardon And intreat God to cure the foule disease of thy heart Tell him how long this disease hath beene upon thee and what a loathsome creature ' tath made thee and what a prime vitall part 't is fastened upon and how neere perishing thou art and how 't is past the cure of all other Physicions and Surgeons and that there is but one way with thee speedily if thou hast not remedy forthwith from him and that thou hast nothing of thine owne to satisfie him for the cure of it but hast a friend Christ that will pay all Remember this to begge him who fashioneth all mens hearts alike to mend thy bad heart with a new one according to his promise Onely a new heart is an upright heart and this God hath promised to give and this thou must urge and believe and waite and this way shalt thou be healed helped and saved To you which upon examination finde that you do in simplicity and godly sincerity order your conversation in this world I have onely this to say you doe no more then you ought and therefore there is no place for boasting 'T is our beauty in Gods eye to be vile in our owne eyes what ever our parts and endeavours be Thy uprightnesse of integrity comes farre short of that uprightnesse of perfection in which thou wast created and therefore when thou hast done all that thou canst yet say that thou art an unprofitable servant a man that comes farre short of what thou shouldst be and of what once thou wast But that which I would rather stand on a little is this Thou that walkest sincerely doest no more then thou oughtst and therefore goe on The Apostles exhortation to the Hebrewes shall be mine to you Looke diligently least any man faile of the grace of God least any root of â—…ternesse springing up trouble you and thereby many be defiled Heb. 12.15 We have that within us and that without us which will corrupt our simplicity and turne us aside from our sincere conversation if we doe not watch over our selves 1 Where simplicity is hypocrisie is not wholly extir pated some remainders of this foule evill are in the best heart and these rootes of bitternesse if you be not still labouring to grub up they will quickly over-grow sincerity and all good in the heart And as we have that within us which will quickly seduce us from that simplicity which is in Christ so we have that without us too which will do the like if we be not very watchfull to wit the divell and his children The divell is an arch Apostate himselfe and he labours might and maine to make all the sons of men to fall from grace and goodnesse as he hath done that so every one may be as neere like himselfe in sinne and misery as may be He goes about
like a roaring Lyon seeking whom he may devoure saith the Apostle A thousand wiles hath the Divell to corrupt our simplicity and he is more laborious about this then about any designe against the soule of man The divell is not so laborious to make a breach upon a mans faith or patience or the like as upon a mans sincerity because he knowes that every breach made upon this is a stab to the heart which wil kill the soule for ever if God do not admirably cure it If labour will accomplish this designe the divell will not neglect that he goes about seeking whom he may devoure If terrours and affrightments will accomplish this designe the Divell will roare like a Lyon against a mans soule as if he would teare him to pieces and suddenly throw him into that bottomelesse pit without all redemption If flattery will be more prevalent then terrour to bring about this designe the divell will transforme himselfe into an Angell of light and promise us all the Kingdomes of the World to winde us about to him 2 And as the divell is laborious about this designe so he hath many Apostate children such as have lost that good that they seemed to have and these as their father being more like their father then any of all his children beside labour tooth and naile not onely passively by example but actively by promises and threatnings especially in these last daies to turne aside soules from simplicity in doctrine and manners and by their divellish craft have turned away many so that many have made shipwracke of faith and a good conscience and are gone in the way of Balaam the sonne of Bosor that arch hypocrit studying and labouring to mischieve Gods people for preferments and honours in the world speaking lies in hypocrisie having their consciences seared with an hot iron And therefore 't is but needfull and seasonable that I exhort you to looke to your spirits and take heed of these bitter rootes that ye be not defiled by them Remember what God saith by the Prophet Ezekiel When the righteous man turneth away from his righteousnesse which he hath done and committeth iniquity all the righteousnesse which he hath done shall not be mentioned but in his trespasse which he hath trespassed and in his sinne which he hath sinned in that shall he die Ezek. 18.24 And if once you wax weary of well doing and decline sincere walking all thy former integrity shall not so much as once be mentioned to thy comfort but to thy terrour often shall it be by way of upbraiding mentioned to thy conscience here and to the aggravation of thy condemnation hereafter as one that hast tasted of the powers of the world to come of the sweetnesse of the spirit of grace and yet after this hast grieved opposed and done despight against it Having therefore put your hand to the plough looke not backe having begun in the spirit doe not end in the flesh having begun to order your conversation sincerely and uprightly so continue unto the death what ever you undergoe in life All afflictions for righteousnesse sake shall be tollerable comfortable and at last augment your crowne They shall be tollerable when at height for no triall shall be above your strength God is faithfull by whom you are tempted who will with the temptation shew a way to escape 2 They shall not onely be tollerable but they shall be also comfortable when at the very height For as the afflictions of Christ abound in you so shall your consolations abound by Christ as the Apostle saith The prereception of bitters makes sweets the sweeter 3 Finally they shall be profitable to augment your crowne of glory in the life to come Blessed are ye when persecuted for righteousnesse sake for great shall be your reward in heaven saith Christ And this reward shall come quickly which addes to the worth and excellency of it Behold I come quickly and my reward is with me wherefore hold that fast which thou hast that no man take thy Crowne Revel 3.11 FINIS 2 COR. 1.12 For our rejoycing is this the testimony of our conscience that in simplicity and godly sincerity not with fleshly wisedome but by the grace of God we have had our conversation in the world and more abundantly to you-wards THâ—… second proposition now in order to be handled is this That conscience can give testimony concerning the simplicity or hypocrisie of a mans conversation Pauls conscience gave testimony with him that in simplicity and godly sincerity he had behaved himselfe in preaching and living in life and doctrine as a faithfull Minister of Christ ought to doe So likewise his conscience bore witnesse with him concerning his sincere and holy desires towards his brethren and kinsmen according to the flesh I say the truth in Christ I lie not my conscience also bearing me witnesse in the holy Ghost that I have great heavinesse and continuall sorrow in my heart for I could wish my selfe were accursed from Christ for my brethren my kinsmen according to the flesh Rom. 9.1 Iobs conscience also gave testimony concerning his integrity Let me be weighed in an even ballance that God may know mine integrity By this and many such like expressions of his 't is most plaine that his conscience could give testimony concerning his conversation what it was whether good or bad Davids conscience did the like Thou O Lord shalt judge the people judge me O Lord according to my righteousnesse according to mine integrity that is in me Psal 7.8 A large induction of particulars to this purpose might easily be made but I rather take another way to confirme this point The truth of this point I conceive will be better confirmed and opened by setting before you what conscience is and then you will plainely see what conscience can doe and doth doe in the soule of man Conscience is better felt then defined for ought that I can yet finde among the learned Conscience is a part of the understanding in all reasonable creatures determining of their particular actions either with them or against them say some Conscience is a reflection of the soule upon it selfe say others Conscience say I is a naturall power which the soule of man hath above all unreasonable creatures to compare his waies by some rule and according as his waies agree or disagree with that rule so answerably to beare witnesse with or against him First conscience say I is a naturall power c. My meaning is conscience is an ability wherewith God indowed the soule of man by creation as with other gifts and abilities for his comfort it he walked well for his terrour if he walked ill We may not imagine that conscience came not into the world untill after Adams fall this were to suppose Adam in Paradise to be a man without conscience Conscience indeed as an accuser and condemner came not into the world untill after Adams fall but conscience as
testimony of conscience with them at the great day of account That in simplicity and godly sincerity we have had our conversation in the world Under the old covenant God had a Tabernacle of witnesse which was the inner Court where the Arke was in which the Law was to give testimony against the Israelites when they did evill So God hath now under the new covenant a Tabernacle of witnesse and this is the inner Court to wit the heart where conscience is to give testimony against us when we transgresse And therefore let us set a watch upon our hearts and tongues and hands and intreat God with David to hold up our goings in his pathes that our foot-steps slip not Psal 17.5 I note this because I see multitudes live as if there were neither conscience nor God nor Divell Heaven nor Hell The speech of the Prophet of old may I sitly here make use of Men were then so audaciously wicked that the very shew of their countenance did testifie against them they declared their sinnes as Sodome and hid them not Woe unto their soule saith God they have rewarded evill unto themselves Isa 3.9 Thus may I say of multitudes amongst us now The very shew of their countenance doth testifie against them The wanton eye the fiery eye the drousie walling eye the burly Malmsey nose the painted face Anticke postures gestures and fashions doe all as Iobs wrinkles in his face testifie against thousands that they little lay to heart this doctrine That conscience can speake and tell all their doings to God Proud Hamans time-serving Doegs drunken Nabals whorish Iesabels scoffing Ishmaels declare their sinnes as Sodome and hide them not and as for conscience turne him off with a glasse of Sacke and a Play-house But let me say to these wretches with the Prophet Woe unto their soules for they have rewarded evill unto themselves You have made a long blacke bloody bill for conscience to open against you the last day of this Terme to wit at death which shall be tried the first day of the next Terme to wit as soone as you are out of the body and then will conscience give testimony so strongly against you that if you would give ten thousand Rivers of Oyle nay if you would give the fruit of your bodie for the sinne of your soule it shall doe no good the cause shall goe against you and sentence shall be past upon you and then shall you know by woefull experience the meaning of that place Rom. 2.5 But after thy hardnesse and impenitent heart treasurest up unto thy selfe wrath against the day of wrath and revelation of the righteous judgement of God Wherefore three things I would give in counsell to you all seeing conscience can give testimony concerning the simplicity or hypocrisie of mans waies suspend him not sleight not his language but give diligent attention to what he saith Let us not stop the mouth of conscience seeing he can speake and tell us what we are Many there are that labour to stop the mouth of conscience when he tels them plainely of their sinnes and to destroy that divine power which conscience hath to speake in them and to them The Apostle Peter gives us a hint of these where he saith Scoffers shall come in the last time and shall say where is the promise of his comming For this saith he they are willingly ignorant of that by the world of God the Heaveni were of old 2 Pet. 3.5 When conscience told those scoffers that would live in their sinnes and scoffed at the day of judgement saying where is the promise of his comming that God made the world by his word and drowned it quickly by his Word when it was overspread with wilfull wickednesse and therefore you have like cause to looke for like swift misery for as much as you are so wilfully and desperately wicked This sharpe and plaine language of conscience they could not indure and therefore willingly laboured to darken this divine light and to silence this faithfull House-Chaplaine Thus 't is with many sinners now Conscience now and then delivers stinging language to their soules for such and such sinnes and then they set to lift this faithfull Monitor out of his place and because they cannot possibly doe this being so immediately inducted by God they strive to gagge his mouth and kill him by running wilfully into wickednesse against all checkes and reproofes of conscience and friends as men desperately resigning up their soules to the divell because God will not humour and satisfie them in their owne waies and so ship wracke faith conscience soule and all for ever That which oft-times followes upon this is selfe-stabbing selfe-drowning selfe-hanging selfe-poysoning and the like This is crying wickednesse and incurable wickednesse 'T is crying wickednesse to strive to gagge and kill conscience 'T is Dei-cidium to murder God Conscience is no other but Gods Vicegerent in the soule or rather Gods judiciary presence in the soule So farre forth therefore as a man wilfully doth injury to this he doth commit high treason against the King of Heaven 'T is to stab the Judge of all the world as he sits upon the Bench speaking Law and Justice which very nature abhorres as desperatly divellish And 't is incurable wickednesse for 't is to destroy the first medium of conversion by which the holy Ghost workes in man to gagge and kill conscience The first thing that the Spirit of God doth when he come to convert a sinner is to convince his conscience and to make that sting him for his sinnes and then stirre him up to long after and to seeke for Christ and then gives faith in Christ and so saves the sinner Now he that strives to silence conscience undermines his owne salvation in the very foundation and first stone thereof He doth wilfully and wickedly prevent his owne soule of all the good that God doth in this way to bring sinners home to himselfe Thou doest little consider O desperate wretch what great wickednesse thou committest that strivest to gagge and kill conscience Thou committest double murther in a spirituall sense which is murther of the highest kind thou doest murther God and thine owne soule And therefore I beseech you all to take heed of this practice Seeing God hath given conscience ability and parts to speake let him speake freely though he speake never so sharply and plainely and doe not check him 2 Nay doe not sleight him which is the next thing I would a little presse upon you A man that can speake and speake to good purpose though he be an enemy we so farre honour him as to let him speake out fully what he hath to say and not turn away the eare from him give but this honour to conscience Many deale with conscience as Felix did with Paul he willingly heard Paul a while concerning the faith of Christ but when he came to reason of righteousnesse temperance and judgement to come
sorrow to all that be in it because a river of Brimstone from an everlasting fountaine runnes to it so heaven which is begun in joy upon earth to wit in the hearts of the upright 't is everlasting because fresh streames of consolation continually come from an everlasting fountaine to wit God God alwaies seconds conscience in him that is sincere with such a glorious power as Saint Paul calls it that though he be alwaies in sorrowes for Christs sake yet he is alwaies rejoycing As sorrowfull yet alwaies rejoycing 2 Cor. 6.10 You may many waies cause sorrow to an upright man but yet joy will live in all and outlive all his sorrowes You may set on fire the body of an upright man and consume that but you can never set on fire his joy and consume that You may various waies kill a sincere man but you can no way kill his joy as long as he holds fast his integrity The joy that conscience gives to the soule of man upon testimony of his sincerity 't will live in fire 't will live in water 't will live in this land 't will live in any land famine cannot starve it plague cannot infect it the sword cannot murther it the racke cannot teare it 't is very healthy 't is long-lived 't will never die 't is from heaven and will abide with the soule untill he come to heaven and then will be consummated to give full solace to the soule for ever If then thou wouldst have joy to sticke bythee in health in sicknesse in peace in warre in plenty in famine in honour in disgrace in liberty in bonds in life in death and eternally after death walke so that thy conscience may say that thou art simple and sincere in thy conversation The Scripture stayes not here but calls divine joy unspeakeable and full of glory As that joy which just men made perfect inherit is beyond conception so that it cannot enter into the heart of man to conceive of it so that joy which conscience gives to upright men in troubles 't is beyond expression the tongue of man cannot fully expresse it I doe not affirme that the heart of man cannot fully conceive it though possibly it may be so 'T is joy unspeakeable strong stronger and more vehement then the joy of worldlings when Corn and Wine and Oyle increase and yet 't is hard to expresse how much joy an earthy heart hath in great earthly increase 'T is joy unspeakeable sweet so that he which tastes of this joy tastes no more sweetnesse in sensuall things then in the white of an egge 't is sweeter then the Honey or the Honey-combe that is sweeter and more pleasing to the soule then all the delights of this life to the carnall heart and yet 't is hard to expresse how sweet and pleasing sensuall delights are to the carnall heart of man 'T is joy unspeakeable pure as David saith that the feare of the Lord is cleane so I may say that the joy of the Lord which he gives to man upon the testimony of conscience concerning his sincerity 't is cleane that is 't is pure unspeakeable pure and holy What was said of the generation of Christ that may be said of the generation of divine joy Who can declare his generation saith the Scripture of Christ so may I say Who can declare the generation of divine joy 'T is begotten in the heart as Christ was in Maries wombe to wit by the holy Ghost 't is shead abroad in the heart by the holy Ghost 't is continually nourished and cherished by the holy Ghost It fils the heart full of holy thoughts the mouth full of holy words and the hand full of holy deeds It is immediatly from heaven and makes a man have his conversation in heaven whilst on earth 'T is joy unspeakeably precious a dramme of it is more worth then the world a damned soule in hell would give ten thousand worlds if there were so many for the least droppe of this cooling comforting liquor to asswage his scorching torments but for a moment It hath heaven in it with which what can be compared for worth 'T is joy unspeakeable and full of glory The smiling face of God which is more glorious then the Sunne may be seene in it so diaphanous is it 'T is joy unspeakably lasting whereas all other joyes die when man dies if not long before this joy lives as long as the soule and God lives Labour then so to live that conscience may testifie before God and you that you are sincere and so leade your soules into that unspeakeable joy which will make you unspeakeably happy I have now a word or two to you which walke sincerely and uprightly in this world so I shut up this point If you doe not yet finde experimentally the truth of this point to wit your consciences causing you to rejoyce in the midst of your troubles by alively testifying your integrity to you then by prayer plead your integrity to God and intreat him so transcendently to second conscience with his glorious power which worketh in us that your hearts may be revived under every pressure for pieties sake Thus David was forc'd to doe sometimes to wit pleade his integrity to finde the benefit of it in troubles for God will be sought unto for every good thing though we be never so sincere Let integrity and uprightnesse preserve me for I waite on thee Psal 25.21 David you see was put to it to plead his integrity to God to obtaine the benefit of it in troubles and thus must we still doe if we finde our hearts to droope in troubles although we are conscious to our selves of our upright and innocent conversation Say Lord thou knowest that I have walked uprightly as concerning this thing and that about which I am troubled and therefore doe thou stand up in my heart and second my conscience by the Almighty power of thy holy Spirit and make it speak peace so lively and so gloriously within mee that I may rejoyce in this tribulation for thy sake that I may finde my integrity as a cordiall to me to keepe me from fainting in my mind and from stretching out tongue or hand to iniquity If you finde the comfortable testimony of conscience reviving and rejoycing you in your troubles then blesse God with David that he hath enabled you so to walk in this wretched world as to have the voice of conscience with you that you are sincere 'T is of God that we walk uprightly a moment did not he stand by us and watch over our deceitfull hearts and uphold our goings in his paths wee should shew our selves hypocriticall wretches in all our wayes God is my strength and power and hee maketh my way perfect Psal 28.32 When the lively testimony of conscience concerning Davids integrity had rejoyced and raised his dull spirit then he tooke wing and made his soule mount up to heaven like an Eagle to magnifie God
Christ and not in any strength of his owne I will goe in the strength of the Lord God I will make mention of thy rightousnesse even of thine onely Psalm 71.16 I will goe in the strength of the Lord God c. That is in every designe and in every businesse I will depend wholly upon the aide and assistance of God and upon no strength of my owne Thus we know David went against Goliah when he would declare his sincere love to God whom Goliah blasphemed Thus must we doe when ever we set upon any opportunity wherein to declare our sincere love to God or else we shall doe as Peter deny Christ instead of standing for him answerably to the occasion offered Now that what hath beene said touching this point of taking hold of golden opportunities offered for the declaration of sincerity you may all observe and follow thinke on these two or three things God calles for it Conscience calls for it Church and State calls for it Soule and body will else severely smart for it First thinke on this God calls for this at our hands that we should declare sincerity according to the speciall occasions calling thereunto Gather your selves together c. saith the Lord to the disobedient Jewes and in them to us before the decree come forth before the fierce anger of the Lord come upon you Seeke ye the Lord all ye meeke of the earth seeke righteousnesse seeke meekenesse it may be ye shall be hid in the day of the Lords anger Zeph. 2.1,2,3 A speciall time was offered wherein to shew themselves for God and for good and God called upon them carefully to take it as they tendered their temporall and eternall good God calls us now to the declaration of sincerity as by his word so by his workes both of mercy and justice God hath loaded us with mercies and corrections of all sorts and all for this end that we should declare our sincere love to him answerable to all opportunities offered hereunto Many a time as the Psalmist saith hath he turned away his anger and hath not made a full end of us when we have highly provoked him thereunto and all for this end that we should declare our sincere love to him answerable to all opportunities offered thereunto To the language of the Lord by the Prophet Amos I may fitly here allude God hath withholden the raine from us when there have beene but three months to the harvest God hath caused it to raine upon one shire and county and not upon another God hath smitten us with blasting and Mildew and all this to bring us to declare a sincere love to him according to all opportunities offered and yet we are backward hereunto God hath smitten us with the pestilence againe and againe and with the sword hath he threatned us againe and againe and all this to bring us on to declare a sincere love to him according to all occasions offered and yet we are backward hereunto Therefore thus will I doe unto thee saith the Lord to Israel and because I will doe thus prepare to meet the Lord thy God O Israel Amos 4. So say I to you forasmuch as all the milde meanes which God hath hitherto used are not effectuall for this end to bring us to declare our sincere love to him according to all opportunities offered therefore we must expect that God will take some severe course with us for the time to come and because we are to expect this at the hands of God let us prepare to meet the Lord our God Let every one of us repent of our halting and time-serving past and for the time to come let us set our selves to declare a sincere love to God according to all occasions offered 2. Conscience calls us hereunto as well as God Speciall occasions for the declaration of sincerity now so frequently and so openly shew themselves that every mans conscience tells him that he should shew himselfe a great deale more then he doth for God his King and Countrey As in the night the Owles and the Bats looke abroad so in these darke sad daies of sinne and wickednesse the eyes of Owles and Bats the eyes of wicked and secure sinners begin to open and their consciences begin to tell them that they should doe something more now then they have done for God and the good of this Church and Kingdome 3. Church and State cals for it They both now with one dolefull voice cry out to us in the language of the Psalmist Who will rise up for me against the evill doers or who will stand up for me against the workers of iniquity Psal 94.16 They know not neither will they understand they walke on in darknesse all the foundations of the earth are out of course Psal 82.5 Finally soule and body will else severely smart for it if we doe not now step in to take hold of all opportunities for the declaration of sincerity Curse ye Meroz said the Angell of the Lord curse ye bitterly the inhabitants thereof because they came not to the helpe of the Lord against the mighty Judg. 5.23 This curse may all such expect who now come not forth to declare their sincere love to Christ and his truth upon all just occasions calling thereunto The soules of such Christians as now neglect and put by these golden opportunities of declaring their sincere love to Christ will be given up to lukewarmnesse coldnesse deadnesse hardnesse and some to obstinatenesse and maliciousnesse against God and all goodnesse which are all soule cursâ—s with a witnesse And such bodies as have in them such cursed soules as these you may assure yourselves they shall meet with misery enough first or 〈◊〉 Paul intimates something to this purpose where he saith At my first answer no man stood with me but all men forsook me I pray God that it may not be laid to their charge 2 Tim. 4.16 Such as take not hold of speciall times and occasions for the declaration of their sincere love to Christ and his truth may feare that sad things will be first or last laid to their charge such as shall make body and soule shake Let us therefore all as we love our bodies and soules and as we professe love to Christ which should be dearer to us then our bodies or soules take hold of all opportunities for the declaration of sincerity As God brings about speciall times and occasions for this end so let every one of us after a speciall manner take hold of them that we may after a speciall manner be honoured of God both here and hereafter Dixi. Trinuni Deo gloria Imprimatur Tho Wykes Febr. 24. 1639
likewise shewes that the great designe of the wicked against the godly is frustrate which is to deprive them of all comfort if they could p. 139 140. c. If consciousnesse to our selves of the sincerity of our conversation will lessen and sweeten troubles consciousnesse of hypocrisie must needs imbitter all troubles p. 142 143 Man that is borne to troubles as the sparks flie upward exhorted to get an upright heart and so an excusing conscience to comfort him in all troubles p. 144 145 What kind of joy 't is that conscience raises in the soule in times of trouble for righteousnesse sake p. 147 148 c. What we should doe if walking sincerely we do not for all this finde our consciences raising sweet joy within us in all our bitter troubles for righteousnesse sake p. 155 What we ought to doe if we doe finde the joy of our sincere course p 156 157 The sweet joy which ariseth to us from conscience testifying our sincerity should cause us to keepe on in our sincere way p. 160 What sorrow 't is which conscience as an accuser for hypocrisie causeth in the soule p. 162 163 c. IV. Proposition That there be speciall times and occasions for the declaration of sincerity which ought to be observed and answerably to declare and shew our selves p. 177 Personall occasions for the declaration of sincerity p. 181 Personall occasions from the world for the declaration of sincerity p. 181 182 Personall occasions from the flesh for the declaration of sincerity p. 183 Personall occasions for the declaration of sincerity from the Divell p. 185 Domesticall occasions for the declaration of sincerity 186 187 Sociall or symmachicall occasions for the declaration of sincerity p. 189 190 Nationall occasions for the declaration of sincerity p. 191 192 The reasons why God in the course of his providence brings about speciall occasions for the declaration of sincerity p. 196 I. That the world and the divell may see that Gods people are indeed sincere p. 196 197 II. That God may hereby admirably advance his owne glory p. 199 III. That God may admirably adde to the torture of the divell his children p. 201 IIII. That the joy of the upright may be augmented in this life and in the life to come p. 202 The application of this fourth and last point 203 Men which through wilfulnesse and such as of weaknesse passe by speciall occasions for the declaration of sincerity blamed p. 203 204 When men wilfully passe ly speciall occasions for the declaration of sincerity p. 204 205 The causes why men wilfully passe by speciall occasions for the declaration of sincerity p. 206 Their sin is very great which wilfully shun speciall occasions for the declaration of sincerity how this appeares p. 207 208 Such as passe by speciall occasions for the declaration of sincerity out of weaknesse are to be blamed of which see 4 sorts p. 209 210 Some ignorant of what is right others of the time when that which is right should be stood for p. 210 211 The dangers which ensue by being ignorant of time or judgement p. 211 212 Some through carnall feare passe by speciall occasions for the declaration of sincerity p. 213 What such should doe for the cure of this evill p. 214 Some through carnall perswasion passe by speciall occasions for the declaration of sincerity and how this evill may be cured p. 215 216 Some out of carnall pitty passe by speciall occasions for the declaration of sincerity and how this evill may be cured p. 216 217 Seeing there be speciall times for the declaration of sincerity we should diligently observe them and how they may be knowne p. 218 219 As we are to take notice of speciall time occasions for the declaration of sincerity so we are to take hold of them and how we may doe this aright p. 221 222 Encitements to take hold of speciall times and occasions for the declaration of sincerity p. 224 God cals for it p. 224 Conscience cals for it p. 227 Church and State cals for it ibid. Soule and body will else severely smart for p 228 2 COR. 1.12 For our rejoycing is this the testimony of our conscience that in simplicity and godly sincerity not with fleshly wisdome but by the grace of God we have had our conversation in the World and more abundantly to you-wards NO grace how glorious soever in the eye of man goes for good weight in the eye of God without sincerity The greatest man in the world weighed in the Ballance of the Sanctuary without this will be accounted too light for Heaven 'T is a very needfull subject then that this Text plainely profers to our consideration And as excellent in it selfe as needfull to us is sincerity 'T is the precious extract of all graces and to call this a grace is too little 'T is that which gives to every grace its due lustre in the eye of God and to call any thing a grace in man without this is too much 'T is the glory of all graces as the Sunne is the glory of all the Starres 't is the vitall blood of the soule which that it may runne in the veines of you all unto your eternall happinesse have I chosen this Text to insist on For our rejoycing is this the testimony of our conscience that in simplicity and godly sincerity not with fleshly wisedome but by the grace of God we have had our conversation in the world c. No condition is trucly joyous without and no condition is truely dolorous with sincerity If a man be never so rich never so honourable yet if not withall sincere there is no true joy in such a man he laughes but in the midst of laughter his heart is oft times sad and his conscience spoiles his sport On the other hand if a man be never so poore never so much oppressed which is the deadliest and the most opposite enemy to joy of all yet if that man be sincere his heart may be as full of joy as it can hold for all this as you may see in these words read For our rejoycing is this the testimony of our conscience that in simplicity and godly sincerity c. Paul and Timothy have beene sincere servants of Jesus Christ for the good of his Church amongst the Gentiles and in this they had transcendant comfort in the midst of all the misery they met withall 'T is not misery but sinne that robs the soule of joy Let a man labour to live sincerely and then let men and divels doe what they can or will such a man shall never be bereaft of joy he shall have joy in poverty joy in disgrace he shall have joy in prison as much as in liberty and much more So had Paul and Timothy which made them thus bravely breake out in the midst of misery For our rejoycing is this the testimony of our conscience that in simplicity and godly sincerity not with
fleshly wisedome but by the grace of God we have had our conversation in the World and more abundantly to you-wards These words are the Apostles divine narration of their happy condition in misery And they containe two principall things usefull for all men to be well acquainted withall to wit true joy and the true ground of this desirable grace which the Apostle here makes sincerity and that testimony which conscience gives thereof to the Soule For our rejoycing is this what why the testimony of our conscience that in simplicity and godly sincerity that is in integrity and uprightnesse not with fleshly wisedome that is not with humane policy and eloquence as men proudly depending upon our owne parts and subtilly seeking our owne ends in our preaching and living but by the grace of God 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 but in the grace of God saith the originall that is in the strength and assistance of God which is a speciall fruit of his grace and favour We have had our conversation in the World that is we have carried our selves in life and doctrine amongst all and more aboundantly to you-wards 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 but specially amongst you saith the Originall Divine joy is set forth unto us in this Text according to its proper subject and according to its proper rise The proper subject of divine joy is the righteous man as the Psalmist frequently notes And this man is made the subject of Divine joy in my Text For our reioycing c. that is we which are sincere hypocrits have nothing to doe with divine joy Their joy is suiteable to their spirits deceit-full that which will flee from them and not stand by them as this joy of the Apostles did when trials come For our 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 boasting is this so the word in the originall strictly taken signifies Divine boasting notes divine joy in the conspicuous act thereof It notes joy as it hath strongly seized upon the heart within and it notes joy as it hath strongly seised upon the tongue and face and hands without so that it is all one as if the Apostle had said the cause of our strong and open rejoycing is this What That they had made provision for the flesh to fulfill the lusts of it No divine joy hath not such a Diabolicall rise The proper rise of divine joy is the testimony of a pure conscience concerning the uprightnesse of a mans conversation and this was the rise of Pauls and Timothies joy in affliction Their conscience bore witnesse with them that in integrity and uprightnesse not in flattery policie and subtilty they had preached and lived amongst all men as those that depended upon the strength and aid of Christin everything and not upon any abilities of their owne though they were endowed with greater humane gifts then any the false Apostles had Thus they carried themselves in a plaine downright faithfull way where ever they came to publish the Gospell of Christ but specially amongst the Corinthians To other Churches Paul used a more insinuating way of preaching but to this Church of the Corinthians all plainnesse and homelinesse sparing no expressions that might fully set forth their wicked waies and throughly awaken their drousie consciences as hereafter in due place God willing I shall shew unto you The Church of the Corinthians of all the Churches which Paul or other of the Apostles had planted was most loose every way and therefore Paul did not content himselfe with hints overtures and wrap up bitter Pils in sugred glib-goe-down words but with all godly boldnesse and plainnesse beyond what he did to other Churches he reproved them for and upbraided them with their wickednesse which is that he would have us apprehend in this last clause of my Text. But specially amongst you Doctrinae deductie Severall propositions are to be noted in this verse thus opened as first this That in simplicity and godly sincerity we ought to have our conversation in this World This truth is plainly intimated by the Apostle for he rejoyced that he had so ordered his conversation as Christ required not flattering and fauning with fleshly wisedome in his preaching to sooth men in their sinnes and to bring about his owne ends as false Apostles did but faithfully reproving every vice sparing no plainenesse of speech to such as otherwise would not be brought to see and bewaile their sinnes Whether this way of preaching were pleasing or displeasing to the World whether it brought honour or disgrace to himselfe from the world he heeded not whilst he knew 't was suitable walking to the Will of God Doct. 2. A second proposition is this That conscience can give testimony concerning the simplicity or hypocrisie of a mans conversation This truth is also plainely intimated in that the Apostle makes the testimony of his conscience concerning his integrity the ground of his joy For our rejoycing is this the testimony of our conscience that in simplicity and godly sincerity not with fleshly wisedome which had beene hypocriticall but by the grace of God we have had our conversation in the World c. Doct. 3. A third proposition is this That consciousnesse to our selves of the simplicity and sineerity of our conversation will yield us joy in the midst of troubles This truth is also intimated by the Apostle for in the midst of all his troubles and miseries he rejoyed in this that his conscience could beare witnesse with him that in simplicity and godly sincerity he had ordered his conversation in this world Doct. 4. A fourth and last point observable is this That there be speciall times and occasions for the declaration of sincerity which ought to be observed and answerably to declare and shew our selves in our places This truth is also plainly set forth unto us in the Text for Paul and Timothy thus carried themselves in their places toward the Church of Corinth which became very openly and grossely wicked 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 but specially amongst you They had declared sincerity and uprightnesse in their ministry amongst other Churches by a faithfull reproving of them as occasion required but no Church so scandalously carried themselves as this Church and therefore this Church needed above all others to be more throughly dealth withall which the Apostles as sincere men considered and answerably carryed themselves Doct. 1. I begin with the first of these to wit That in simplicity and godly sincority we ought to have our conversation in this World Paul could not justly have joyed in the simplicity and sincerity of his conversation had not his conscience told him that so to walke was to walke as Christ had commanded him Christs charge to his Apostles when he sent them forth was that they should be 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 Simple as Doves Mat. 10.16 that they should teach men to observe all things whatsoever he commanded them Mat. 28.20 now Pauls conscience and Timothies both