aboue ten in the hundred the iust rate he likes not it sounds like Vsurie but as much aboue as you can with a good conscience A fourth will gine somthing to a Preacher vpon condition he may bear the Preachers purse and bee his Farmor A fifth will ride with you from morning to night so hee may hold his finger still in other mens sores Away Hypocrites away make no mote profession talke no more of it till you meane to be honester men either shew vs Pauls conscience or none If you cannot reach this here yet you must that there Heb. 13.18 Defire to liue c. else there is no truth in you no comfort for you no heed to betaken of you downe you will when a little prest like a hollow wall 2. All ye of Pauls Profession vse this exercise cease from others beginne with your selues trauell not so much for good houses good liuings good faces good heads as for good consciences seeke not so much the fauour of the world the countenance of Princes as of your owne conscience Here studie here sweat here labour to be throughout blamelesse Oh the peace of a quiet and well pleased conscience is great the boldnesse of him that hath it is great he eats well sleepes well dwels well liues well hee is in much safety hee can hold vp his face ioyfully before a world of accusers So is not the vnconscionable Euery bush is a man euery man an enemie euery leafe an executioner A sound of feare is in his eares and the noyse of troubles makes him aske Who can stand before a continuall burning As for libertie that 's lost he must not speak against others lest they stop his mouth he must bee a seruant to euery one of whom hee would borrow a good word For the purpose Say a man be couetous how must hee crouch to euery one for his word how many apologies and excuses must he drop at euery doore wheras a good conscience concludes I haue done my best and now let them say their worst I will weare it as a Crowne Well then sith so many sweet things be bound vp in conscience peace comfort courage libertie esteeme it highly resolue with Paul I had rather dye than lose my reioycing this way Lose it if you will not take vp his exercise and keep it from offence Which that you may doe I will shew you these things 1. What it is to offend the conscience 2. what be the degrees of this offence 3. what the means whereby 4. what the remedies 5. what the letts in the vse of these remedies First to offend the conscience is to trouble the welfare of it The foot is then offended when the health of it is impeached and the exercise of it hindered that either it cannot stir at all or not straightly and with any ease Thinke the same of conscience the health of it stands in three 1. in the clearenesse of it 2. in the goodnesse of it 3. in the liuelinesse and sensiblenesse of it as t is in the eye the clearnesse of it is double 1. oppesed to ignorance and delusion 2. to hypocrisie and falsenesse The goodnesse of it stands in the quietnesse and peace of it And thereto is opposed 1. a troubled conscience and 2. a benummed conscience The tendernesse of the conscience is its quicknesse in apprehending its owne estate and iudging of its owne doings Whereto is opposed 1. a sleepy 2. a dead and seared conscience When any thing is done or left vndone whereby the clearenesse quietnesse or working of the conscience is any way impeached then conscience is offended Secondly the degrees of these offences are diuers as a man may more or lesse wound his foot against a stone V. notes on Pron 18. 1. there is a tempting of the conscience when a man vnresolued of the lawfulnesse of a thing venters vpon it as vpon meat neuer tried before 2. a wounding of the conscience when a man for feare hope c. doth a thing against knowledge 3. a killing of it when he trades in knowne sins of purpose to paue and brawne his conscience 3. The meanes whereby the conscience comes to be offended is double 1. when we are wanting to it 2. when wrongfull to it Wanting when we doe not watch and saue the conscience as we doe the eye from dust 2. When we do not speedily looke to wounds if any If any thing breed in the eye it may soone be lost The conscience is a vessell that must bee washt daily as dimme eyes bee and that by Repentance and Faith 3 When wee doe not establish the heart and conscience A weake childe soone stumbles vnlesse vpheld so conscience This must be vpheld first by grace secondly by conference c. 2 Wrongfull to it 1. when wee hinder the worke of it for euery thing delights in acting its owne operations 2. when we force sinne vpon it against light of nature or grace especially grosse sinnes 4 The remedies 1. Pacifie it not by dawbing c. but by Gods meanes 1. The sinne offending must be reuersed as meate that will not be digested it sticks as an arrow in the flesh that must be pluckt out by repentance and satisfaction 2. Christs bloud applyed the onely salue for a sicke soule 2. When reconciled peace must be maintained Here take these rules 1. do nothing wilfully against conscience 2. nothing doubtingly when resolution may be had 3. nothing blindely for meat vnwittingly taken may after trouble 5 Thus you see directions To the end that you may practise remoue 1. letts which are of two heads 1. want of will 2. want of skill The first arises from three wants 1. of faith as if the course were vnprofitable 2. of loue to Gods truth man c. 3 of truth and vprightnesse wee had rather be hypocrites than otherwise c. See all 1. Tim. 1.5 2. Want of skill which arises 1. from want of vnderstanding the Word 2. want of experience 3. want of exercise c. Then sith in this vessell Conscience lyes all our treasure faith life it selfe c. therefore preserue it well get ouer all difficulties helpe faith loue truth c. vse all meanes c. follow Paul till thou canst say with him I desire to keepe a good Conscience 3 Apology for such as stand vpon Conscience These are the worlds fooles but t is no matter they are Gods iewels and delight and when they stand as Paul before the iudgement feat of man nay of God they shall finde a good conscience a better brest-plate and buckler than a world of wealth Onely be sure of this 1. that tis conscience There be two things in the world that look a little like it but are not conscience 1. Custome which breedes in blinde men Popish persons and most vnregenerate men who haue had good breeding a kinde of trouble and regret which is no more conscience than the aking of the stomacke when it wants its set meales 2. Preiudice and conceit when a man vpon some presumptions and probabilities hath pitcht vpon a conclusion eyther for or against a thing and will not be remoued True Conscience differs from both these For first that knowes it ground secondly that ground is some Scripture which because it may bee haply mistaken therefore conscience is euer teachable as willing to heare as to speake to lay downe as to take vp an opinion Not so the other they are violent if opposed and euery man that thinks not as they thinke wants iudgement or truth or both 2. This conscience must bee cleere towards God and man and haue both it eyes What hath the hypocrite to doe with conscience A man of conscience must and vsually will be suteable and throughout orderly though I doubt not but that there is a partiall hypocrisie as well as ignorance in some men at all times and in all men euen in Saints at some times 3. It must be our owne conscience as Paul here speaks and fourthly to make an end a good conscience must bee qualified as is heauenly wisedome for this is a great part of it How is that St. Iames shewes it chap. 3.17 1. pure in it selfe 2. peace towards others and it selfe 3. moderate and not exacting extremities 4. teachable and easie to be perswaded 5. pitifull and helpefull euery way And as it must haue these excellencies so must it bee voyde of partialitie in causes and persons and of hypocrisie betweene God and it selfe And hee that hath such a conscience or labours for such with Pauls exercises shall hold out his profession and hold vp his face when a thousand others shall blast and wither FINIS
S. PAVLS CONFIDENCE DELIVERED IN A SERMON before the IVDGES of ASSISE By Robert Harris LONDON Printed for IOHN BARTLET at the gilt Cupin Cheape-side 1628. S. PAVLS CONFIDENCE ACTS 24.16 And herein doe I exercise my selfe to haue alwaies a Conscience voyde of offence toward God and toward men THe words read were vttered by Paul the place where was 1. Caesarea 2. the iudgement hall the time when when Tertull us the Orator had made a bitter inuectiue against him the manner how by way of Apologie and Defence being deepely slandered The order of them is thus 1. hee wipes away the Lawyers aspersions in particular 2. giues account of his life in the generall And here for here lyes our businesse at this time he doth two things 1. he giues vs a summe of his Faith verse 14.15 2. of his Life 16. In point of Faith and Profession Paul and wee agree in Life Practice we are far wide therefore we will dwell vpon that this houre This verse then containes the briefe and map of Pauls life where first note his action exercise Secondly the subiect of it Pauls selfe Thirdly the obiect of in his conscience Fourthly the end of it to haue it voyde of offence in all cases towards all persons For the First Pà ul doth as Salomon bids him set his bones to worke and all his strength Time hee neither idles nor sleights but vses both diligence skill and constancy together 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 for all these are wrapt vp in his word For the Second He thought it best husbandry to till his owne ground best policie to bee wise for himselfe and to keepe home and therefore he takes himselfe to taske and becomes his owne Physitian And in the third place because t is as good doe nothing as nothing to the purpose he makes choyce of a good subiect to worke vpon conscience Conscience is a thing much talked of but little knowne and yet lesse practised than vnderstood I meane not a schoole Lecture or Philosophicall Discourse yet must I expound my Text. Conscience is considered two wayes one way by Philosophers another way by Diuines Philosophy and naturall Learning bring vs thus farre acquainted with the nature of Conscience i. the Masters hereof for the most part of them make the soule a building consisting of many roomes some higher some lower whereof the highest is the vnderstanding This vnderstanding is either speculatiue containing some generall notions and principles of truth or practicall containing the like principles and axiomes of good things for at the first there were nay still there are some generall principles belonging partly to knowledge partly to practice left in the soule of man Now to this latter belongs in their iudgement Conscience whose office is to reason and discourse and therfore belongs to the vnderstanding And its worke lyes about that which is good or bad at least doable and therefore belongs to that part or respect of the vnderstanding which is termed practicall In this there is considerable 1. the nature 2. the working of Conscience The nature so they conceit of it as of a naturall facultie in the vnderstanding onely or chiefly For the working it accomplishes its owne operations and driues them to an issue by discourse thus That which I would not haue done to mee I must not doe to others I would not haue wrong done to mee therefore c. This conclusion is a conclusion of Conscience for the premisses they haue in their distinct discourses seuerall termes but of them enough 2 For Diuines We may distinguish them into two fourmes i. some are pen men of holy Writ some only of priuate bookes These latter are not so attentiue to the terme as to the thing and therfore they call sometimes the power of so reasoning somtimes the whole reason and syllogisme sometimes each proposition apart sometime the effect and consequent following such an application and conclusion by the name of Conscience But now come to the inspired Prophets and Apostles and there the word is vsed as other words of like nature in like cases are two waies 1. more strictly and properly when it is ioyned with other faculties of the soule Cic. pro Cluen dixit conscientiam mentis nostrae c. as Tit. 1.15 1 Tim. 1.5 In the first it is differenced from the minde in the latter from the will 2. More largely when t is put alone and so it stands for the whole heart soule and spirit working inwardly vpon it selfe by way of reflexe So the Hebrewes generally spake making heart spirit soule conscience all one especially the two former So Iohn speakes in his first Epistle Thus the word is here vsed being referred both to God and man Pauls conscience heart and spirit sound one and the same thing in this place the difference at the most is but in the manner of considering Well what would Paul with his conscience he would haue it voyde of offence he would goe an end in the waies of God without halting without stumbling for that 's his allusion A wise Traueller in a rough way is loth to offend his foot lest that offend him Paul is the same for his conscience by no meanes would hee wound that lest that should wound him Hence his studie to keepe his Conscience voyde of offence Offence 1 say first passiue whereby his spirit might be grieued secondly actiue whereby his spirit might grieue either himselfe or others vnseasonably This was his study thus inoffensiue straight hee would bee with all persons God and Man so that his Conscience should not bee vpon him for faltring with either and in all cases by all means or at all times as his words may indifferently bee construed 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 Thus liued Paul at last who was so wilde at first why should we despaire hauing the same Chirurgian But of the Words so much Now for Instructions your selues see many let me commend the maine vnto you and binde vp all in this one Doct. Christians must haue a speciall care of themselues that they doe not in any thing offend their owne consciences To keepe the conscience from offence and hurt must be the taske of euerie Saint Looke how charie a proude woman is of her beautie a wise man of his eye a weake man of his stomacke so and much more than so should a Christian man be carefull of his conscience of his heart Will you precept for this Solomon speakes home Pro. 4.23 Above all watchings watch the heart c. That 's the tower that commands and Conscience is one of the Iewels that 's there lodged Will you example One Paul is sufficient Hee was once averse enough but after conuersion in point of faith hee was all for Christ in point of life all for conscience c. 23. Heb. 13.18 Acts 23.1 2 Cor. 8.28 Will you reasons There are enow both for the one and the other namely for heeding the conscience first
and each man his owne next For the first we will out of manie cull but two reasons Reas 1. Giue the conscience content and rest and it will pay thee a hundred fold and proue to thee next to God its Master the greatest friend in the world .i. the trucst friend whereas others are sometimes too short in reproofes sometime in comforts mutter and will not speake out but thinke more than they le say and say more to others than to thy face this friend Conscience if thou deale friendly with it will deale friendly with thee This will round thee in the eare and say This is well howeuer it be taken therfore be not discouraged this is naught howeuer applauded or painted it is stark staring naught pride hypocrisie c. therefore amend Ah brethren as no friend lyes so neere vs and can sound vs so well as couscience so none will deale so plainely with vs if we doe not offend it 2. Conscience is the fastest friend in the world Others goe and come and stand afarre off now at hand now I know not where but conscience is no starter its neuer from our fides out of our bosomes in rides with vs it sits with vs it lyes with vs it sleeps it wakes with vs as it can say much from God and of vs so it will if not offended 3 The sweetest friend in the world A good cheerfull heart saith Solomon is a continuall feast Oh then a satisfied and pacified conscience what is that what ioyes be those which will carrie a man out of the earth and make him say Though I haue wife children friends wealth house health ease honour c. after my owne heart yet these are nothing to my contentments within What ioies those that will make one sing vnder the Whippe at the Stake in the Flames a Oh Conscience thou hast a speciall gift in comforting that canst make the patient laugh when the spectators weepe and carrie fraile flesh singing and reioycing through a world of bonds rods swords racks wheeles flames strappado's these ioyes be strong vnspeakcable indeed this peace passing mans vnderstanding c. Phil. 4. 4 The surest friend in the world Other friends loue not to come to a sicke mans bedde side or if so they cannot abide to heare his grones to see a dead man at the most they can but follow one to the graue but Conscience will make ones bed in sicknesse and cause him to lye the softer will stand by him when he groanes and doe him comfort will hearten him vpon death when its comming and say Thy Redeemer lineth will whisper to him when departing and say Thy warfare is accomplished will lodge the bodre in graue as in a bed manne the soule to heauen and make him able to looke God in the face without any terrour So fast a friend is this that when riches husband parents friends breath life nay patience hope faith haue left vs in some measure this will not leaue vs. And would not such a friend a friend so true firme kinde sure be much made of shall such a one be offended Reas 2. The conscience offended becomes the sorest enemie The greatest friends are bitterest foes when once diuided no wars to ciuill to domesticall warres The neerer the worse and the conscience is neerest and therefore if an enemy the heauiest For this enemy is 1. vhauoydable Others may be kept off with strength or put off with skill but so will not conscience no barres no bolts no bulwarkes can keepe that from thy table thy bed Dan. 5.5 Belshazzer may sooner keepe out ten thousand Medes than one conscience That will passe through all his Officers to his Presence and in the face of his Nobles and Concubines arrelt him and shake him in despight of his securitie Nor will this watchfull Officer be bobd with a bundle of distinctions and cuasions When God sets it on worke it marcheth furiously like Iohn and will take thee vp with his answer What peace so long as thy whoredom and sins remain As ther 's no respondens like conscience so no obiector like to that A man may make a shift with a wrangling Sophister with the Diuell himselfe better than with his conscience For no Diuell knowes that by me which I doe by my selfe And the conscience shall haue hearing when the Dinel shall not for conscience is the Kings Sollicitor and speakes for the great King 2. This enemie is vnsufferable it strips vs at one stroke of all other comfort A sicke stomack makes one wearie of his bed chaire chamber house meats drinks yea that meate that before much pleased now encreaseth his sicknesse So doth a sicke conscience it takes away the rellish of all naturall comforts of all spirituall exercises and ordinances and makes one a burthen and terrour to himselfe 2. it fils one full of horrours and vnhappinesse A wounded spirit who can beare the Stone Goute Strangury who can beare Yes c. But when the pillars are shaken that which should beare vp all is wounded when the heauen's fight against a man and a poure creature must wrestle with infinite instice power c. oh how hard is this The wrath of a King is terrible the rage of Seas of Fires of Lyons but still here is creature against creature weake to weake but who knowes the power of Gods anger Psul 90 Who can stand before that consuming fire not Men not Mountaines not Angels The terrours of God and anguish of spirit casts the Diuell himselfe into a frenzic and makes him mad nay a wounded spirit made the Heire of all things vtter his griefes in these sad termes My God my God c. That which a thousand mockes tenne thousand prisons and persecutions could not haue done this one alone when nothing else ailed him was able to effect and therefore good reason haue we to guard this part and to giue our spirits no occasion of griefe And for the first these Reasons shall serue the turne Now touching the second Euery man must keepe his own vine and please his owne conscience Why Hold still whilest I poure in these Reasons because I am in haste 1. T is fit that euery one should be beft seene in his owne Booke and t is a thousand pities that in this bookth age this Book of Conscience is least studied 2. This is a meare-stone that diuides the Christian and the Hypocrite The Hypocrites knowledge runnes outward and fromward the Christians lookes inward and reflects vpon is salfe the ones is science the others conscience the one leues to be doing with other mens consciences the other with his owne 3. Here 's the triall of a mans wisdome He that 's wise saith Solomon will be wise for himself and The righteous hath care of his owne soule 4. This watching at home keepes out pride iudging in businesses abroad makes one quiet with others tame in himselfe low and base before God in his owne eyes But wee