MEDITATIONS OF INSTRVCTION OF EXHORTATION OF REPROFE INDEAVOVRING THE edification and reparation of the house of God 1. PET. 4. 10. As euery man hath receiued the gift so minister the same one to another as good disposers of the manifold grace of God LONDON Printed by I. L. for George Gibbs and Francis Constable 1616. TO THE RIGHT NOBLE THE SONNES of the most High his blessed Brethren by the best that is the second Birth TRuly Honorable whose Father is God and whose Inheritance a Kingdome the diuers sparks of holy fire which haue issued from the Spirit that baptizeth with fire I haue gathered together by their vnited heate to kindle a flame where is none or to increase it where it is alreadie kindled This blessing must come from God and therefore of God haue I desired it And surely the best as ye well know haue turnes of winter euen vpon their hottest zeale and then woe to him that is alone for how should he haue heate Therfore if in the time of cooling some spirituall worke be ioyned to the heart it may bee warmth will grow betweene them So haue I often from Elisha applied euen some Prophet of God receiued life and I wish that some quickning may proceede also from this worke which in all writings is more or lesse as the Spirit therein more or lesse speaketh These Meditations are indeede diuers in their matter being diuersly borne both in regard of time and occasion yet tend they to one ende and this profit often comes from variety that some one thing among many fitteth euery one and giues an answere to the particular question of his heart The glorie of God by your benefite is that which I seeke desiring also to be holpen by you both in prayer and exhortation As for an idle name made vp still of perishing and often of corrupt breaths I leaue it to them for an end to whom God is not an end sufficient But let our chiefe ioy and glory be to glorifie God and by being written in heauen to bee admitted vnto the beholding of his glory To that mark my beloued let vs steadily aime and sending our hearts before vnto Christ let vs goe on lustily to ouertake them Let vs draw hard vp the hill toward heauen and though the flesh presse downe the world and Satan draw backe yet strengthened by the Spirit incouraged by the word and fortified with the mutuall and vnited force of mightie loue let vs carry the Arke of God euen the soule wherein Gods Image dwells and his will is written from the Countrey of the Philistims to the Land of promise And though heere our fleshly brethren Ismael and his heires mocke and despise vs though Esau with his foure hundred men looke big vpon vs yet are we sure that their time is short and but for life whereas wee haue an inheritance eternally glorious Thither the sonnes of the flesh though with long pedegrees and large treasures can neuer enter but sitting without where is weeping and gnashing of teeth they shallsee despised holinesse triumph vpon magnificent and powerfull wickednes God our strength whose cloud and pillar guided Israel to Canaan guide vs to the heauenly Ierusalem by the grace of his Spirit This I humbly desire through Christ his first borne the purchaser of our inheritance and doore of all the mercy that issueth from God vnto man One of your least worthy brethren but a great louer of you and your peace F. R. 1 THe maine Faultinesse of these Times is a Disproportion betweene Knowledge and Action or rather a meere resting in knowledge short of Action So are we come from no knowledge to knowledge alone which will not lessen but increase our iudgement and from the ouerualuing of workes to the Neglect of them Surely the errour of workes without knowledge is lesse dangerous then the error of knowledge without works But this is the best of it it is the doctrine of our Nature not of our Diuinitie For while it is taught that workes deserue not some are content to thinke they are vselesse others being truly perswaded of their vse yet slouthfull to goodnesse lie down in knowledge and will not goe on to the labour of action But as hereafter the paine will follow the fault so now let the shame for certainly it is a great shame that so much knowledge should be idle and that skilful men should sleepe in this Midday light for the light was made for walking and working not for idlenesse The Father sheweth his will because he will haue it done wee are called to be sonnes because we should do the will of our Father and Nebuchadnezzar giues the greatest title when hee calls the three children the seruants of the most high God In the Spirit wherein is Life is also Actiuenesse If we nourish not the actiuitie of it we decay the Life so kill our selues with eternall Death Christ hath no dead or vnprofitable Limbes they all beare fruite or are not his and Faith which our slouth would magnifie by resting in her thrusts vs on for her life to action for shee liues onely when she is actiue If then faith not working bee dead and dead faith quickens not the vnactiue beleeuer may speedily with a Heathen see himselfe without life As these things may driue vs so the value of workes may draw vs for by Christ who worketh them in vs they are accepted of God and haue a valuation stamped vpon them by his Grace for Grace And first though workes iustifie not vs they iustifie our Faith in the day of iustice they shall goe so farre toward iustifying vs that they shall declare vs iust In the meane time they please and glorifie God the giuer of such gifts vnto men and then euen the least of them shall haue a reward of glory which they shall set as a crowne on their heads that wrought them Let vs not therefore bee wanting to this glorie belonging to God from vs and issuing from God to vs. Besides if we will cōsider what works are in themselues we shall finde that they are streames of the Deity their fountain and sparkes of that heauenly and eternall fire Accordingly they present and expresse something that is Diuine and supernaturally excellēt whence it was that a Reuerend Ancient wel said The deedes and conuersation of the Primitiue Christians had in them a perfume and sweetnesse wherwith they exceedingly delighted those with whome they conuersed And how can it otherwise be for whē he that is blessednesse and excellence powreth vertue from himselfe into these workes they must needs haue a resemblance partaking of their original And surely there are two things in them which as they are the most pleasant of all other so they most resemble and approach to the Creator One of these is Light and the other is Loue both which put life and soule into euery good worke God is Light and God is Loue and it is a pleasant thing to
wicked so blind so subiect to euery passion and vice was neuer let out as he now is from the hands of a most wise and powerfull essence and that to gouerne a great world whereof hee is not worthy as he is to be a partie he being so extremely vitious and corrupt and most creatures being more orderly then himselfe 7. Part. Againe another folly and blindnesse of theirs is that they see not the resurrection it is impossible that the end of mans bodie should bee this present life For then might we say with these Author that there might be some pleasure taken aboue in the torments here below For what generally doe wee see here but miseries paines oppression diuers tortures diuers deaths diuers heart-breakings care within and labour without a few onely liuing in some ease of which again but a few scape a great taste of miserie Indeed were there no life but this we might verily think that man was appointed to be borne to liue and die in a Iayle wherein hee is tied and bound vp to miserie and that this world was set forth for a spectacle of torments massacres wherein wee should infinitely wrong the infinite wisdom and goodnesse of the great cause of al things But as we haue learnd of God our own fall and present miserie so withall wee haue learned a remedie for our fall and a way out of this miserie into felicitie We know and belieue that the bodie dying returnes into that which it was and that is dust and if being dust at first it was then quickned wee know hee that quickned dust at first can quicken dust at last hee being the same for euer yea wee know that small portion of his Spirit which is in vs is abundantly able to performe it Wee doubt not but a little power included in an Acorne is able to raise out of it a mightie Oake because wee see it and we may as easily belieue that this Spirit which now shewes a farre greater power in our sanctification may also raise out of our dust a heauenly and glorious bodie To him that hath done so great workes daily seene there wanteth no power to do as great things yet vnseene For God hath not bounded his power by his works but if his wil be to worke more his power is still sufficient to proceede in working Now that it is his will his word doth plainely shew blessed bee hee who hath both willed it and shewed it and God the Author of these and all other good gifts stablish vs which belong to him in the knowledge and embracement of this his sauing truth that liuing and dying therein we may passe from this life which is worse then death vnto a true life of blisse and happinesse Part. 8. Another thing which flesh and blood hath not fully discouered and which hath been the author both of our fall and miserie and implieth a necessitie of a preseruer and redeemer is a State body politicke and kingdome of euill spirits which effectuall in craft mightie in power diligent in watchfulnesse and hauing all these their powers emploied and moued by an endles and great malice towards mākind go stil about seeking the mischiefe and ruine of weak silly man vnable of himselfe to stand against this Leuiathan and therefore necessarily wanting the helpe of a preseruer and redeemer Without a preseruer we cannot preuent the euils to come for against so mighty enemies we must bee hedged about with a prouidence mightier then the force of our enemies els can we not be safe from our enemies but shold be continually deuoured by them And we neede a redeemer for y e euils already by these enemies brought vpon vs for these euils we our selues can by no meanes take from our selues nor free our selues from the tyranny which Satan hath alreadie brought vpon vs. Therefore this strong man must bee bound by some stronger then himselfe and so we which were before his possession may be made free from that bondage Now the highest power only is master of this power of darknesse and therefore he only must performe this worke Some short and small viewes of some outward bodily and dissembled workings of these Principalities the Heathen haue obserued in their stories of witchcrafts oracles and apparitions which witnesse against themselues that there are such a people and that at times they are very mischieuous and malicious but the craft of this kingdome is so great the ignorance of man so grosse that sometimes vnder the shew of doing good as cures and the like and sometimes by foretelling future euents so hiding still their principall malice which was to the soule and eternall life of man they haue won silly men to take them for gods who are their sworne and most fierce enemies so farre are men from knowing they are a kingdome combined against mankind But Christ by his doctrine and the doctrine of his seruants the Apostles hath described them by name hath shewed their nature hath set foorth their malice and rage against man which begunne with the first man and continuing from thence increase now towardes the last of men Hee hath also set foorth a remedie against all his hurt and power and that is euen in this flesh which in the first man the Diuell conquered For God will shew to his owne glorie and the vtter confusion of this proud malicious Prince that by that verie weake creature which no way heeretofore was not able to match with him God is able to breake his head if hee doe but vnite and ioyne himselfe therewith And that of these men which thus were in the first man foyled and ouercome hee is able to set vp a kingdome mighty and durable which shall stand invincible in this world against the powerfull kingdome of Satan and the vnpreuailing gates of hell and shall at last ouercomming these mightie enemies passe victorious vnto glorie and life euerlasting Euen this performe in vs O Lord thy weake seruants weake in our selues but strong in thee Let thy power in vs ouercome that power which without thee would ouercome vs. And let vs being strengthned by thee march valiantly against our enemies being assured of conquest through that mightie one who loueth and supporteth vs. 58 The end seemes to vs to bee caused by the meanes and so at last it is but the end is indeed first and most chiefely the cause of the meanes for God proposing his end this end caleth out such meanes as shall accomplish it selfe so that it causeth that to be which causeth it selfe So in the Scripture when diuers things happened it is said that they happened that it might bee fulfilled which God had before purposed so that Gods purpose was the cause of the beeing of those actions which fulfilled his purpose Therefore if we go to the roote of the matter wee may perceiue that foolishly wee reason when we are discontented with the meanes saying If this meanes had not beene this
being filled with multitude nor with a spirituall the multitude hauing in them though fewest seuen thousand that bow not to Baal nor any dispensation from God for it but a law of God against it this neere intermarriage is a loathsome abomination in the eies of God It is a sinne against nature and so abominable euen to mans first and naturall apprehension 44 The course of the children of God through this world vnto heauen is the very course of the Israelites from Egypt to Canaan Israel is born in Egypt vnder the seruice of Pharaoh and brought from vnder him by a mightie and outstretched Arme escaping the death of Egypt by the blood of the Lamb. Gods children are begotten in the Kingdome of Satan and drawne from his subiection by his mighty power who can onely bind the strong man and take away his goods By the blood of the Lamb Christ Iesus they also escape that death which is due to them by being borne in the kingdome of Satan The Israelites by the red Sea were cleared from the prosecution and danger of Egypt and through it found a path toward the land of promise The true Israelites by spirituall and inward baptisme are dead vnto sinne and the kingdome of Satan and by that death escape from them hauing also a way painted out by the sanctification thereof to the Kingdom of blessednesse Forty yeeres long after their man-hood did the Israelites wander in the wildernesse vntill they came into Canaan and fortie yeeres are the vsuall time appointed to the children of God to trauell in this world before they come to rest And in this fortie yeeres the onely ordinarie food of Israel that gaue them life and comfort was Manna from heauen and the chiefe food of the regenerate is the Spirit of Christ which dwelleth in them and is their life and comfort Slender and light did that Manna seeme to the Israelites yet sufficed to bring them to the land of Promise and small doth the life and comfort appeare of this Spirit to fleshly reason euen of the regenerate but it will serue to bring them to heauen and to comfort and strengthen them by the way Manna shewed that man liueth not by bread onely but by euerie word which proceedeth from the mouth of God to teach vs that by this Spirit which proceedeth from the breath of God we haue as certaine a life as wee haue by bread But as at first there was an host to fetch Israel backe into bondage and at last there were hosts giants gates of brasse to keepe thē frō the possession of the Land of Promise Accordingly when Christians are escaped from the kingdome of Satan by regeneration and walking to Ierusalem which is aboue Legions and armies of wicked spirits the gates of hell yea Og the King of Basan the huge Prince of hel and the Principalities of darknesse fight against them and seek to turne backe and stop their progresse vnto rest But vnto Israel their enemies were as bread euen a prey and a triumph and to vs the God of peace will tread Satan vnder our feet the gates of hell shall not preuaile against vs but their temptations shall bee our aduancements and their resistance shall giue vs the title of conquerours And that we may make full benefit of this example let vs especially be carefull to walke like those Israelites which continued and perfected their course from Egypt to Canaan the chiefe resemblances among the Israelites of the true Christians among vs. Let vs auoide the sinnes of them who fell by the way let vs make great reckoning of the Manna of the Spirit feeding comforting and contenting our selues in all estates therewith in all estates trials and changes For this small dram of our new birth though it seeme to melt sometimes before the heate of tentation and the bread thereof tasts not so strong as the onions and flesh pots of naturall lust and pleasures yet it is of the wombe of the morning it comes from the day-spring on high it hath life eternall in it and this little seed shall raise vs vp in the glorious image of the incorruptible and euerliuing sonnes of God For the weake things of God are euer strong inough to accomplish their appointed end they are backt with omnipotence and if they wanted any thing in thēselues yet from that shall they draw perfect sufficiencie 45 The sanctified soule in this world is a widdow Christ is her husband and he is absent from her The senses haue their pleasant obiects to delight them the flesh hath grosse matter enough to satisfie the lusts thereof But the soule beholdeth not an obiect for her pure ioy for hee whom the soule loueth and should only loue is gone to a farre countrey yet is her heart towards him shee thinkes still vpon him though a pilgrime in a strange land shee breaketh out into longing passions and inquireth of the sheepheards for him she lookes by a chinke with the eye of spirituall light into heauen and so hath a glimse of him for whom shee is sicke of loue for he stands behinde a wall this earth of ours is a partition betwixt vs and him and he lookes through it but by a little grate yet still is shee his only as he is hers shee reioyceth in him and remembers his loue more then wine shee entreates him to draw her that shee may run after him to set her as a seale on his heart and as a signet on his arme for her Loue is as strong as death She fitteth her selfe for him by being all glorious within and chastly reserues her selfe vnto him as a garden inclosed and a spring shut vp Shee is decked with fruitfulnesse euen with fulnesse of all sweete fruits trees of incense al sweete spices Thus louing thus glorious thus chaste thus holy thus fruitfull in goodnesse shee waiteth for his returne vntill the eternall day breake and the earthly shadowes flie away This is a sanctified soule goe thou and doe the like 46 Herein is that in expressible height of Gods mercy to his elect much expressed that the most wise and laborious men in morall goodnesse yet not hauing grace passe vnder the Law and their very goodnesse is condemned to be sin For such indeede it is not comming from him who is the only Author of goodnesse nor returning to him who is the true end of all things Yet weake and sinful soules though laden with great infirmities by the mercie of God are taken from the Law into grace so their many sinnes are forgiuen them that weake and fraile men if striuing against sin though often falling into it might yet comfort themselues in that high mercie which laid hold on them and singled them out for its owne sake and not for theirs and that no flesh might reioyce in it selfe for the glory of flesh without the mercy of God is but shame to it selfe and matter for iustice As therefore we haue an infinite benefit freely