saist He is that Almightie one and so he is for God saith to Abraham Gen. 17.1 I am God Almightie and Jeremy calles him Jer. 32.18 19. The great and mightie God great in Counsell and mightie in strength Almightie is one mightie to doe all or one that is all-sufficient for all things in himselfe and for us This Almightinesse or All-sufficiency stands in his skill in his will and in his power He is Almightie in skill to know all things Almightie in will to will all things that are good and Almightie in power to doe all things according to his will Were he not Almightie all these waies he could not be self-sufficiently blessed in himselfe neither could he be almightily sufficient for us Were he not Almightie in skill he could not almightily will according to an almightie knowledge Were he not Almightie in will he could not almightily doe according to an almightie knowledge and will Were he not Almightie in power were he never so Almightie in skill and will he could not be an all-sufficient worker for his own and our blessednesse But when these three things meet his knowing all things his willing all things good and doing all things according to his will nothing can lye between him and his own blessednesse nothing can hinder us from our blessednesse in him if we lye in his rode Vse The serious thought of this should my child humble direct and comfort thee It should humble thee under the mightie hand of God Power breeds feare and fear humilitie God made his power known to Job in the wind horse earth-quake and Leviathan Job 42.6 And then he abhorred himselfe and repented in dust and ashes Act. 12. As when the men of Tyrus and Sidon heard that Herod would wage warre with them they knowing that they were nourished with the Kings bread feared his power so when thou hearest of this Almightinesse thou must not so much feare them that kill the body Matth. 10. as feare him that is able to cast body and soule into hell if thou approach not to him with due obedience Againe thou must be directed from hence to labour to feele this Almightie power of God in thy body and soule for thy sanctification and salvation Paul prayes for the Ephesians Eph. 1.19 20. that they may know what is the exceeding greatnesse of his power to us-ward that beleeve according to the working of his mightie power which he wrought in Christ when he raised him from the dead And how is this Surely onely by feeling that as God raised up Christ so by their fellowship in and with them he doth raise up them from the death of sinne to the life of grace The good Lord grant that it may be thus with thee that as the power of that Almightie one did raise up the Lord Jesus so thou maist find thy selfe raised in and from him to such a new life as may appeare before God with acceptance Lastly thou maist have singular comfort also from this meditation in any adversitie that may come upon thee For this Almightie one can change thy vile body Phil. 3. and make it like unto his glorious body according to the mightie power by which he is able to subdue all things unto himself What though by affliction thy face be withered with weeping thy body crusted like a potsheard and burnt to ashes yet this Almightie one is able to raise thee up in the latter day Joh. 6. and to make those eyes of thine to see thy Redeemer Job 19. when thou shalt arise for thy selfe to the glory of Gods grace and thy everlasting comfort Next here thou tellest me how God hath manifested his Almightinesse God made all things By making and governing of all things That this Almightie God made all things doth appeare in Genesis Gen. 1. and 2.4 5. Esa 44.24 and God saith by Esay I am the Lord that maketh all things that doth stretch forth the heavens alone and spreadeth abroad the earth by my selfe To make all things is to give all things their being God gives the heavens to be the earth to be and all creatures in heaven and earth their severall beings And doe but weigh that it cannot be otherwise For the world was neither made by chance nor by nature Not by chance For as thou maiest see an excellent order in every thing and chance is an enemy to order so maist thou discerne set purpose in every thing All creatures have every thing provided of purpose to perfect them An eye hath a colour an eare a sound a palate a tastable thing and a smell savours yea brute beasts have fodder and man hath heaven and earth of purpose for body and soul Neither is it made by nature For then as nothing could be done above nature the contrary whereof thou maist perceive in the very butter-flies painted wings and the little gnats trunk which can pierce and draw bloud thorough a tough horses skin so could nothing be done against nature but thou maist observe the contrary Josh 10. for the Sunne stood still in Gibeon and the Moone in the valley of Ajalon in the daies of Joshuah and the Sun went ten degrees backward as was to be seene on the diall of Ahaz yea thou readest of an Eclipse of the Sun at the death of Christ when the Moon was at the full which was quite against nature If therefore the world was neither made by chance nor by nature thou mayst justly conclude that the Almightie God made all things Vse Therefore my deare child learn how to use and feare to abuse We must use all the creatures from God any of Gods creatures Thou must aske Gods leave to use any of them we hold all in God and from God and have no freedom to use them but as we have leave from him Godlesse people account every creature within their power their own and because they have a creatures right and a civill right by the laws and compacts of men they think they have an absolute right without dependance Therefore they never looke to God but say with Nabal shall I take my meat 1 Sam. 25. and my bread and my drinke which I have provided for my servants and give it unto strangers whom I know not from whence they come or whither they go But it must be otherwise with thee Thou hast the use of the Sun Moon and Stars heaven earth and all their furniture God made them all therefore thou must not dreame of an absolute right but humbly pray that thou mayst have libertie to use them under God without which thou canst have no sound comfort Besides We must not abuse any of the creatures thou must feare to abuse any of them because they are the good creatures of God Wilt thou dare to abuse the Kings stuffe or furniture of his house or those provisions which he hath made for his servants How then wilt thou dare
on of water that doth forgive thy sins nor doing of it in the name of the Father Son and holy Ghost but it is God that doth it for the merits of Christ and by the assistance of the holy Ghost and sealeth it to thee in the covenant of Baptisme if thou keep it according to the measure of grace given 32. Q. What benefit hast thou by the Supper of the Lord A. The body and bloud of Christ verily and indeed taken and received by my beleeving soul Mark this comfortable benefit by the Lords Supper The benefit of the Lords Supper Thy body receives the bread and wine Thy soul receives the body and bloud of Christ by beleeving God offers him in a promise this is my body this is my bloud and thou canst not receive a thing in a promise but by beleeving it If I promise to give thee houses and lands and seal a conveyance of them to thee thou canst not receive it but by beleeving my words and conveyance so it is with thee in this Sacrament Christ in respect of his bodily presence is in heaven for they are not to receive him Act. 3.21 till the time of the restitution of all things yet in the Sacrament we have his body and bloud taken and received As a maried woman hath her husband one flesh and heart with her though he be a thousand miles off Prov. 2. by vertue of the Covenant of God which they made so by vertue of the covenant and promise of God in the Sacrament though Christ be in heaven and thou upon the earth thou hast his body and bloud A man may be present in a place or to a place In a place as thou art here with me To a place as Paul was absent in body 1 Cor. 5. but present in spirit to the Corinthians that is by his Apostolicall spirit power and authority So is Christs body and bloud present to the receivers of the Sacrament faithfully When the Sun shines full upon our window we say that the Sun is come into the house yet it is not the Sun but the shining of it so we say that Christs body and bloud is in the Sacrament yet it is not Christs body and bloud carnally bloudily but the Rayes of his person and merits to the comfort of thy soul Every thing is received by us as it is perceived of us Thou receivest a colour by the eye because that perceives it Thou receivest a sound by the ear because that perceives it Thou receivest a scent by the nose because that perceives it Thou receivest savourie things by the taste because that perceives it Thou receivest the Revolution of the heavens by the understanding because that perceives it but thou receivest Christ in the Sacrament none of these wayes Thou seest him not feelest him not tastest him not hearest him not smellest him not understandest not how bread and wine both before in 1 Cor. 10.16 1 Cor. 11.27 28. and after consecration can be the naturall or glorified body and bloud of Jesus Christ and yet be bread and wine yet set thy faith on work upon Gods promise and thou canst truly receive Christ because thou perceivest him by faith and no otherwise He is given to thee as he may satisfie thee that desires him but thou desirest him to satisfie not a corporal but a spirituall hunger Joh. 6.35 36.62.64 Joh. 6.63 He is given as he may do the good but it is the spirit that quickeneth the flesh profiteth nothing Ob. If thou think that though his naturall flesh profits nothing yet his glorified flesh would Sol. Christ tels thee that it is his naturall body that comforts thee in the Sacrament not his glorified for Christ saith this is my body which is broken for thee this is my bloud which is shed for thee and I am sure that his glorified body was not thus dealt withall Ob. If thou ask me why the bread and wine consecrated in the Sacrament should then be called the body and bloud of Christ Sol. I tell thee it is not because it is properly so but first because of the Sacramentall union between the signe and the thing signified by Gods pact and covenant If thou receive the signe faithfully 1 Cor. 10.16 thou shalt have a reall communion with Christ by promise Next because of the change of the bread and wine from common to holy use Though there be not a substantiall change of them yet is there a change in use in name and in honour In use it is not used as common bread and wine but as the Supper of the Lord. In name during the time it is not called bread and wine but the body and bloud of Christ In honour It is used by the faithfull to give a reall communion with Christs body and bloud Use Therefore my dear childe make speciall use of this sweet benefit Who would not joy in such a communion Who would not be glad when he comes unto it Who except fools or mad men would not cashier all wicked society for this with Christ Nay if thou love thy soul and thy Christ the Saviour of it thou must abandon it As David said Away from me ye wicked Psal 119. I will keep the commandements of my God so thou must say away ye wicked I will have communion with the body and bloud of Christ Be of his minde that thought one dayes fellowship with Christ to be more worth then all the world But remember that thy soul must be a beleeving soul or else thou wilt never draw water out of this well suck honie out of this Rock There are thousands in the Church who presume to come to the Sacrament and think they may have fellowship with Christ yet keep their old sins their old fellowship also who never look what faith they have to carrie Christ home But what ever they do be thou sure to follow Gods will and my counsell about it forsake all and follow Christ If thou say that thou maist come to the Sacrament long enough before thou be assured that thou doest take and receive the bodie and bloud of Christ I le tell thee that I have observed two wayes whereby thou maist get some comfortable witnesse in thy soul of it First by the Spirit of Christ His bodie and bloud were never dis-united from his divine nature How we may be assured that we receive Christ in the Sacrament Ezek. 1.21 Therefore where his body and bloud goes his spirit goes along with it As the Prophet saith the spirit of the horses were in the wheels so the spirit of Christ is in his body and bloud to make them act for thy good Doest thou then finde his spirit Mark what Paul saith where the spirit of Christ is there is a killing vertue to subdue the flesh Rom. 8.9 10 11. and a quickning vertue to raise you from the death of sinne to the life of grace If it
thou art subject to the miseries of this life and of the life to come The miseries of this life are all crosses to thy person comfort credit and state as sicknesses sorrows disgraces discomforts both within and without The miseries of the world to come are thy separation from the Lord and his Law the two principles of life for ever As when thy soul is separated from thy body a naturall death is made up so when thy person is separated from God and his word of comfort a spirituall death is made up which begins in this life and is continued for ever and ever Vse Oh my child feare and tremble under this burthen Thou art apt as all others to build up thy way to heaven with untempered morter saying to thy own soule that all is well when all is amisse This makes thee with an hard and impenitent heart to goe on in thy accursed courses But this doctrine of curses will teach thee that thou wert in danger before thou wast borne and ever since Thou mightst justly have been cast into hell before thou didst breath in this open world Thou hast all thy life been under the destruction of sinne and this hath enwrapped thee in the destruction of misery Thou feelest many paines and sicknesses which are but the light flashes of hell fire Thou art like a man condemned to a tormenting and dying death As if a man had a Caldron of boyling lead hang over his head and he starke naked under it First one drop falls upon his head another upon his shoulder another upon his arme another upon his hand another upon his backe another upon his belly another upon his legge upon his foot another which makes him start and shreeke but at the last the whole showre comes which makes him roare and tumble like a wild bull in a net So thou by this volley of curses art first nipt in one part then in another which makes thy joy to be interrupted and thy mirth many times turned into mourning But at last in death and Judgement comes an whole Sea of them which makes weeping howling and gnashing of teeth Weigh it seriously before it be too late It may be that God will leave a blessing behind to make thee search after a deliverance which is the next thing that comes to be skanned But first let me try thy profiting Thou toldest me that thou breakest all Gods commandements according to which thou shouldst serve him Tell me therefore Q. How many wayes doest thou breake them A. Three wayes Q. Which be they A. First in Adam secondly in the pronenesse of my nature thirdly in breaking one I breake them all Q. But the seventh part of time comes but once a weeke how canst thou break the commandement which concernes that every day A. I breake it before it comes and when it is gone Q. How before it comes A. By doing that upon the week day which makes me unfit to keep it when it comes Q. How when it is gone A. By not learning Gods wayes and not walking in his pathes Q. Art thou in danger of Gods curse A. Yes both in my body and in my soule Q. How doth God curse A. By inflicting of punishment Q. What punishment doth he inflict A. A destruction of my body and my soule Q. How doest thou know thy selfe to be destroyed A. When I am not used to that end that God made me for Q. What follows upon this A. A subjection to the miseries of this world and of the world to come Doe not forget how farre thou art gone God made thee thou art made to doe him service thou shouldst serve him as he commands thou breakest all his commands and therefore thou art under the curse and so a more miserable creature then a toade or any serpent if thou be not delivered Tell me then 21. Q. How shalt thou escape this curse A. Onely by Jesus Christ our Lord. Thou answerest rightly Christ is our deliverer from the curse Act. 4.12 for there is no name under heaven whereby thou canst be saved but onely the name of Jesus that is no authoritie power vertue or merit Gal. 3.13 It is he that hath redeemed thee from the curse of the law being made a curse for thee Col. 2.14 15. It is he that blotted out the hand-writing that was against thee and tooke it out of the way nayling it to his crosse and having spoyled principalities and powers made a shew of them openly triumphing over them in himselfe on the crosse and therefore when Paul groveled under the burthen of his sinne he could find no rest for his soule but in the Lord Jesus Christ Rom. 7.24 25. and thus must it be with thee therefore it behoves thee to know him If thou didst owe millions of pounds yea and satisfaction to the law by death and hadst but one friend in all the world that would and could undertake to discharge thee from all thou wouldst know him or else thou wert unworthy to have benefit by him So thou must know Christ in his names natures offices and uses by which thou hast saving good by him or else thou art unworthy of him And because this is signified in his names thou must throughly know the sense and vertue of them for thee He is called Jesus Matth. 1.21 because he saves his people from their sins He saves thee three wayes By Ransome by Rescue and by Mortification He saves thee by Ransome by laying down his life for thee Joh. 10.15 Thou shouldst have died the first and second death for ever and ever Christ died the first death and overcame the second for thee He saved thee by Rescue by delivering thee by strong hand When God was satisfied thy enemies the world the flesh and the devill would not let thee goe Luk. 1.71 74 75. Therefore Christ saved thee from thy enemies and from the hands of them that hate thee that thou being delivered from them mightst serve him without feare of them all the dayes of thy life in holinesse and righteousnesse before him He saveth thee by Mortification by killing of sinne of thee least thou be killed in sinne When thou art ransomed and delivered yet sinne sticks closer to thee then thy skinne Therefore to perfect thy salvation Christ strengthens thee with might by his spirit in the inner man Ephs 3.16 17. Rom. 8.13 and dwels in thy heart by faith that thou mayst mortifie the deeds of the flesh by the spirit He is called Christ because he is anointed Psal 2.2 Col. 2.9 This anointing is his having the fulnesse of the Godhead dwelling in him bodily He was not onely made partaker of the divine nature as we are but he was full God and full man personally united Joh. 3.34 and so he received not the spirit by measure but was anointed with the oyle of gladnesse above his fellowes Psal 45.7 The reasons why he was anointed were that
thou hast of the nature and use of it Speak therefore on this manner to thy soul O my soul thou art now going to the Lords table doest thou know that God Nah. 1. Mal. 4. with whom thou haste to do who is a Lord of Anger and a consuming oven to approaching stubble and a God of mercy to humble souls Doest thou know thy sinne so farre as to hate it for drawing thee from thy God and making thee a stranger to the covenant of promise Doest thou know thy Christ who is the Covenant of his people Doest thou know the nature and use of the Sacraments which bindes God to thee on his part and thee to God on thine If thou do not thou wilt never desire to come unto the Sacrament as thou oughtest to renew thy covenant with God If thou knowest all this which is the ground of thy desires doest thou finde thy desires caried aright What doest thou principally desire when thou comest to the Lords Table doest thou not desire Christ Saist thou not Ps 42.1 2. my soul panteth after thee O God even for the living God Doest thou not desire all Christ a Jesus to save thee a Christ to anoint thee a Lord to rule over thee Doest thou not throw away what ever may hinder the comfort of the Sacrament He that desires to fill his hands with gold and silver will lay aside what ever baser matter he hath in them Doest thou desire to cast away thy old transgressions that thou maist become a new creature in Christ Doest thou finde that thou hast no contentment without Christ no rest till thou enjoy Christ and that when thou hast him he is all in all unto thee Then comfort thy self from thy fit desires Secondly thou must examine the fitnesse of thy Repentance Repentance The King never offers a sealed pardon before Delinquents are sory for their faults and promise amendment neither will God seal thy pardon in the Sacrament before thou do thus 1 Cor. 5.7 8. Exod. 12. Thou must purge out the old leven and then keep the feast The Paschal Lamb must bee eaten with the sowr hearbs of Repentance As the Jewes did not eat the Passeover before they had separated themselves from the abominations of the heathens Ezr. 6.21 22. so nor thou must come to the Lords table before repentance hath disingaged thee from thy sinnes Tit. 1.15 Hag. 2.13 14. Conscience defiled with any known sins corrupteth the holy thing of God to thee Now this Repentance stands in grief for thy sins past hatred also and loathing of sinnes past and present and an holy purpose and endeavour to forsake them This is that repentance which thou must examine Speak therefore on this manner to thy soul Vse O my soul Lam. 3.39 thou art now going to the feast of fat things and fined wines Doest thou search and try thy wayes that thou maist turn unto the Lord Dost thou know what sinnes of thine have made a separation betwixt God and thee and kept good things from thee Doest thou see how these things gape upon thee thy ignorance infidelity security deadnesse of heart prophannesse of spirit and the like Are these and other sinnes as pride hypocrisie gluttony drunkennesse whoredome envie hatred malice and all thy injustice so noticed unto thee as thou grievest to think that thou hast offended so good a God Jude and hatest the garment spotted of the flesh and resolvest never to do the like again Art thou full of care to forsake thy sinnes and to keep thy self from offending thy God Art thou full of clearing to pacifie thy conscience from wrath present to come The bloud of Christ rested on by faith 2 Cor. 7.11 Art thou full of indignation against thy sins and thy self for sin as David who chides himself so foolish was I and ignarant Psal 73. and as a beast before thee Art thou full of fear of offending God lest thou should fall into the same sin a 2d. time Art thou full of desire to walk with thy God and to do his will with all well pleasing Art thou full of zeal to run the way of Gods commandements and to purifie thy self from sin Art thou full of indignation to beat down thy body by holy acts of mortification to bring it into subjection to the will of God If thou art then thou hast this Repentance fit for the Sacrament Thirdly Faith thou must examine the fitnesse of thy faith The Sacrament is not appointed to begin faith but to encrease and confirm it Rom. 4.11 and therefore is it called a seal And as a man will not be such a fool as to set his hand and seal to a blank for then any man that hath it may put in any covenants and conditions so nor is God so unwise as to give a seal to thy soul where faith hath not written thy obligation and Gods promises Heb. 4.1 As the word of God profits not except it be mixed with faith so nor the Sacrament It is faith which is the eye foot hand and mouth of thy soul as I have said Besides when thou comest to the Sacrament thou drawest near to God and art at peace with him and thou must draw near to God by faith Heb. 10.22 and being justified by faith thou art at peace with him though not with his enemies Speak then my childe on this manner to thy soul O my soul now the fatted Calf is provided for thee in the Sacrament hast thou a fit faith to feed upon him Doest thou cast thy eye upon sinne and hate it because it is against thy word of faith Doest thou cast thy eye upon Christ and rest with confidence upon him for thy salvation Hast thou a license of Christ to rest upon him Thou knowest that every slovenly Clown with his dirty hands must not rest upon a King nor must every wicked sinner rest upon Christ There is not the wretchedst beast in the world but will say if he know Christ that all the world shall not beat him off from resting upon him But hath Christ given him a license If he have not he will say Touch me not Depart from me I know thee not Mat. 11.28 He doth give a license to some saying Come unto me all ye that labour and are heavy laden and I will give you rest Doest thou labour under the burthen of sinne crying out with David my sinne is an heavy burthen too heavy for me to bear Art thou heavie laden to think that thou canst not be so good as thou would'st and therefore criest out with the Apostle Rom. 7.24 Oh wretched man that I am who shall deliver me from the body of this death Doest thou finde that thy faith works purgation and charity True faith doth purifie the heart Act. 15. fundamentally in Christ derivatively from Christ Rom. 6.1 2 and argumentatively by drawing such reasons from the
for ever and can help for ever These are thy reasons The confident expectation of Gods answer is in this word Amen By this thou sealest thy consent and doest signifie thy desire and confidence And thou must do it For it is but a toy for one man to say the prayer onely and another man to say Amen Amen is part of thy devotion and all both Ministers and people or all others that pray must say Amen Use Therefore my childe once more hear this word of exhortation Use all these reasons and this Amen so as thou maist pray with successe and confidence O my God am not I in thy Kingdom Art not thou the God of power Will it not end in thy glory which was also the end why thou madest me And do'st not thou only live for ever everlastingly to help me I cannot but depend upon thee and confidently say Amen So be it Now in this close let me see how thou hast profited by what I have opened to thee about prayer Q. Why is prayer a means to encrease faith A. Because God must do it and he will be sought Q. How doest thou know that thou prayest aright A. When my soul doth religiously move out of it self to God Q. To what end A. To draw my self into fellowship with him against sinne and for grace Q. Where doest thou learn the matter of prayer A. In that which Christ taught his Apostles Q. Tell me the enterance into it A. Our father which art in heaven Q. Why callest thou him Father in prayer A. Because it ensureth my faith Q. Why sayest thou Our A. Because in love I must pray for all that are in communion with me to life Q. Why sayest thou which art in heaven A. Because it might raise up my heart thither Q. What doest thou ayme at in prayer A. The hallowing of Gods name Q. How canst thou hallow it A. When I live like a creature of God not of Satan Q. What doest thou need to this end A. Grace in my heart Q. How shalt thou get it Q. By Gods Kingdom comming into me by faith Q. Is it enough to hallow Gods name if thou have grace in thy heart A. No I must act grace in my life by doing of Gods will Q. How must thou do it A. By faithfull and zealous doing of it as they that are in heaven Q. But to hallow Gods name doest thou not need the things of this life A. Yes therefore I beg daily things convenient for my nature and person Q. What must be removed from thee for the hallowing of Gods name A. My sinnes past and sinnes present and to come Q. What would'st thou have done against thy sinnes past and present A. I crave a discharge from them for the merits of Christ made mine by faith Q. What would'st thou have done to prevent sinne to come A. I would not be left to my self or to the power of the Devill and the world Q. Why would'st thou not be in such a state A. Lest I fall into the evill of sinne and the evill of punishment Q. What is the evill of sinne A. Out of an evill conscience to love sinne and to like it Q. What is the evill of punishment A. To be left in the hardnesse of my heart to the condemnation of hell Thus O my childe Prov. 31.2 the childe of my wombe and the childe of my desire I have as I have learned given thee to hear the instructions of a mother I have been an instrument to bring thee into the world of sinners wherein thou art too like me and thy father in that wherein thou art most unlike unto God oh that I might be a meanes also to bring thee into the world of saved ones In the bowels of a tender mother let me perswade thee in time Jer. 8.6 to smite thy hand upon thy thigh and say what have I done It is enough yea too 1 Pet. 4.3 4 too much that thou hast spent the time past of thy life after the lusts of the world walking in wantonnesse and in other abominable wickednesses Eccles 12.1 Now remember thy Creatour in the dayes of thy youth and though when thou runnest not with others into the same excesse of riot thou be spoken of as an evill doer yet be not discouraged Esa 66.5 God will appear to such persons shame and thou shalt be comforted If thou wert of the world the world would love thee Joh. 15.19 but if thou be taken out of the world and keep faith 1 Tim. 2.19 Joh. 15.10 and a good conscience the love of the Father shall abide in thee and lead thee to everlasting life And because it cannot be thus with thee except God open thine eyes Act. 26.18 and turn thee from darknesse to light to receive forgivenesse of sinnes and inheritance among them that are sanctified by faith in Christ therefore I charge thee as thou wilt answer it to God in the dreadfull day of judgement that thou suck into thy soul this milk for babes It will plainly open unto thee thy Creation from God thy corruption by sinne thy cursednesse for sin and thy deliverance by Jesus Christ If thou be carefull feelingly to know these things together with Faith which is thy onely way to make Christ thine and canst but sensibly perceive the working and growth of it by the Gospell seals of it the Sacraments and prayer the work is done I will not say thou art a stranger to the Covenant of grace or that thou art not farre from the Kingdome but thou art a childe of the Kingdome and heir of life As therefore David said to Solomon up and be doing about the house of God so say I be diligent to learn and to feel this doctrine distill as the dew upon thy soul that thou maist passe from death to life Heb. 13.20 21. Now the God of peace that brought again from the dead the Lord Jesus Christ that great Shepheard of the sheep thorough the bloud of the everlasting Covenant make thee perfect in every good work to do his will working in thee that which is pleasing in his sight through Jesus Christ to whom be Glory for ever and ever Amen FINIS 1 Secret Sinnes discovered 2 Christ exalted amongst men 3 The Soul secured OR THREE SERMONS The first preached at Andrewes Holborn at a publike Fast The two other preached upon severall occasions at the Covent-Garden near Martins in the Field in the Moneth of February 1645 6. By ROBERT ABBOT Preacher of Gods Word at Southwick in Hantshire PROV 28.13 He that covereth his sinnes shall not prosper but who so confesseth and forsaketh them shall have mercy GEN. 48.19 I have waited for thy salvation O Lord. LONDON Printed by John Legate for Philemon Stephens dwelling in Pauls Church-yard at the signe of the gilded Lyon 1646. The Texts and Summe of what is handled in the following TREATISES Psal 119.12 Who can understand his
Christ because the Church is the royal seat of Christ he is in it as in his kingdom Apoc. 1. Matth. 28. and walks in the midst of the seven candlesticks is with thē always to the end of the world In respect of lawes because the Church hath heavenly laws given by the King of heaven and earth even the everlasting laws of Charitie to God in Christ 1 Cor. 13. and all the Saints In respect of the plants which are planted in it All Gods people in the Church are like trees planted by the rivers of waters Psal 1.3 but to be transplanted in Gods due season to heaven The Church is the nurcery depending upon the great orchard or garden of heaven where onely no weed grows and therefore is it called the kingdom of heaven In respect of the Inhabitants of the Church They are in their better parts Citizens with the Saints Eph. 3. Gal. 6. Col. 3. Eph. 2. and of the houshold of faith who have their conversation in heaven and sit in Christ in heavenly places In respect of the order and reference that God hath made between heaven and the Church As Jacob said of Bethel so may we of the Church Gen. 28.17 This is none other but the house of God and the gate of heaven As a great house which hath an hall for the family to meet in and chambers to rest in for them who properly belong unto it so is the Church and heaven The Church is the place of repast Joh. 14. and heaven of many mansions for rest Lastly in respect of the use that is made of it As heaven doth help these inferiour bodies three wayes by motion and light and influence So the Church doth help to all that she can reach unto moving up and down Man like a company of pilgrims 1 Pet. 2. and strangers for the gathering together of the body of Christ out of all mankinde It carryed the law out of Sion Esa 2. and the word of the Lord from Jerusalem to bring us poore heathens to be of the inheritance of Christ Psal 2. and to make the uttermost parts of the earth to be his possession It is like the heavens and firmament Psal 19. which declares the Glory of God amongst every speech and language that Christ may rule there It carries light to them that sit in darknesse Lumine Matth. 4. and in the region of the shadow of death giving the light of knowledge as from the face of Jesus Christ and the light of life that others seeing their good works 1 Pet. 2. may glorifie God in the day of their visitation It gives the Influences of grace from their faith hope and charitie Influentia 1 Cor. 1◠to warme the hearts of those that belong to Christ and to help forward their new birth and their growing in grace by the knowledge of the Lord Jesus Christ Jam. 1. 2 Pet. 3. Seeing therefore that the Church is the royal seat of Christ hath the laws of Christ is a nursery for heaven is Jerusalem which is from above full of heavenly Citizens Gal. 4. is the place of repast for Gods servants before their rest and hath such an heavenly use by her motion light and influence it is no wonder that it should be called the kingdom of heaven Use 1 Let every one of us think of it to our comfort and to our exhortation Be comforted I beseech you to see the glorious priviledges of Gods people that even in this world they dwell in the kingdom of heaven yet in heaven on earth not in heaven Travellers tell us that they that are on the top of the Alpes may see showers under them which they overlooke but they come not at them and if you make use of this priviledge to live in the kingdom of heaven ye may overlook your troubles and not be disjoynted by them The very Philosopher could say out of all well pleasance with his morall and naturall fansies unto the tyrant that beat him in sunder piece-meale Beat Beat Tunde tunde Anaxarchum non tundes thou shalt not beat out Anaxarchus He would keep his heart in the ruines of his body Much more may a Christian keep his life of faith when the outer man and all things belonging unto it doth utterly perish and come to this worlds nothing Use 2 Be exhorted also all you Christians who professe your selves to be members of the Church to live like those that are in the kingdom of heaven Some live in a region of darknesse and some live as in the confines of hell God forbid it should be said so of you Heare that fearfull speech the fearfull who dare not shew themselves for Christ but fear man more then him the unbeleeving who Apoc. 21.8 Apo. 22.15 notwithstanding the offers of grace doe stand out against Christ and not rest upon him for salvation the abominable who thinke and doe abhorred things the murtherers who are cruell against Gods peoples bodies and soules and whoremongers who give themselves to the uncleannesses of body and soule and sorcerers who give themselves to spels enchantments delusions conjurations and witchcrafts to dishonour Christ and Idolaters who thinke to convey Gods worship to him by Saints and Angels or Images or any other superstitious way and therefore doe fall down or do other respects before them with reference to God and all lyers who forge and faine devises in hypocrisie to bring in false wayes in hypocrisie or otherwise are enemies to that truth which belongs to their neighbours shall have their part in the lake which burnes with fire and brimstone which is the second death Take heed and be none of these if you would live in the kingdome of heaven Otherwise the kingdom shall be taken from you notwithstanding your strength and confidence and given to a nation which will bring forth amendment of life answerable to this good kingdome of heaven Secondly the Gospel is valued by the person that trades for it A Merchant man The person that trades for the Gospel This doth represent a true Christian in the Church who is more honoured by the Gospel then the Gospel can be honoured by him Yet the honour of the Gospel upon them seemes to reflect upon it self For as the Merchants of Tyrus are called by Ezechiel the companions of Princes so Christians are Christs fellowes who trade for the Gospel Psal 45.7 which surely shews the worth of it Mark then Christians are Meachants That Christians are Merchants and truely this may easily be demonstrated by comparing what we finde to be proper to Merchants with that which answereth in a Christian state First a Merchant hath his sea his ship his Merchandise and his losses and so hath a Christian His Sea that is the world This tosseth him up and down and he sees the wonders of God in this deep As John saith in another case I saw before
Psal 139.12 13. and hidden lusts A man that made a work can easily espie the least fault that another makes in it so God can see all the disorders that Satan and thy wicked heart hath wrought in thee and this must make thee walke in feare of offending such a God and with a resolution to doe all things to the honour of him that made thee Every man that makes a thing doth desire to have the comfort and credit of it much more doth God who made man for himselfe Prov. 16.4 as well as all things else Vse Therefore Whether thou eate or drink 1 Cor. 10.31 or what ever thou doe doe all to the glory of thy God Doe to his glory in thought word and deed do to his glory in disposing thy selfe in all the occurrences of this life Thou mayst make other comfortable reflexions upon thy soule from this point if thou weigh the Texts in the margine Psal 149.2 Psal 119.73 Psal 100.1 2 3. Job 30.13.15 but I leave them to thy own meditations as God shall quicken thy heart with a love to the good word of God Tell me next 2. Q. Who Redeemed thee A. Jesus Christ Mark my good child Christ Redeemed us 1 Tim. 2.6 It is Christ that gave himselfe a ransome for us even the ransome of his blood by which he hath redeemed us out of all the world Apoc. 5.9 To redeeme is to buy thee again when thou wert lost in thy enemies hands Thou wert lost by the sinne of Adam As thou seest when a Carp is taken by a Fishers hooke or net and dieth thousands of spawnes in his belly are caught and die with him so was it with thee and all mankind We were all in that one man in his first transgression Therefore Blessed Paul saith Rom. 5.12 14. By one man sinne entered into the world and death by sinne and passed upon all men even over those that had not sinned after the similitude of Adams transgression for that all have sinned When thou wast in this cursed condition with all mankind Christ came and bought thee again Joh. 10.11 by laying down his life for thee Vse Remember this and make such use of it as Paul would have the Corinthians Ye are not your own 1 Cor. 6.19 20. for ye are bought with a prize therefore glorifie God in your body and in your spirits which are Gods If you buy any thing you expect the comfort of it whether it be for the health of your body or of your soule Thinke but the same of Christ and you will be willing to live to him that died for you 2 Cor. 5.15 and rose again Tell me next 3. Q. Who sanctified thee A. The holy Ghost Mark here The holy Ghost doth sanctifie us If I should aske thee What it is to be sanctified it is to be made holy But when I aske thee who sanctified thee it is to make thee holy and this is the worke of the holy Ghost Therefore Paul telles the Corinthians when they were changed in their state That they were sanctified by the Spirit of our God 1 Cor. 6.11 Now the holy Ghost doth sanctifie thee by taking away of sinne and giving of grace As if thou wert to give entertainment to a great and good friend thou wouldst first sweep out the dust and brush down the cobwebs and then lay out thy carpets cushions and other ornaments so the holy Ghost takes the besome of destruction the hammer Jer. 23.29 and fire of the word and sweeps out thy raigning sinnes by Repentance and the spirit of Judgement Esa 4.4 Gal. 5.22 23. Eph. 3.17 1 Cor. 3.16 and then brings in the graces of the Spirit to make thee an holy Temple for Christ to dwell in by faith All this the holy Ghost works by the Word Sacraments and Prayer By the Word for Christ prayeth Joh. 17.17 Sanctifie them through thy truth thy word is truth By the Sacraments for Paul saith Eph. 5.26 That he sanctifies and cleanseth his Church with the washing of water by the word and that We being many are one bread and one body 1 Cor. 10.17 for we are all made partakers of one bread Implying that in the Lords Supper we are sealed up into the body of Christ and we cannot be properly without holinesse By Prayer for Christ saith that if we aske the Father he will give us his spirit Vse Therefore my deare child ply the holy Ghost in this way wherein thou art sanctified and shalt encrease it more and more 2 Cor. 7.1 till thou grow to or perfect thy holinesse in the feare of the Lord. If there were but one Mart or Market where all necessary commodities were to be had thou wouldst ply that upon all urgent occasions so must thou deale with the Word Sacraments and Prayer if thou wouldst have the holy Ghost shine upon thee in the beautie of holinesse Tell me next because thou namest the Father the Sonne and Holy Ghost even these three 4. Q. How many Gods are there A. There are three persons and to us Christians but one God Goe to Jordan and thou shalt see the heavens opened There are three persons Matth. 3.16 17. whence the Father sent a voice from heaven the Sonne baptized and the Holy Ghost descending like a Dove to make up three persons Reflect upon thy own Baptisme and thou shalt behold thy admittance into the Church in the name of the Father Matth. 28.19 and of the Sonne and of the Holy Ghost to make up three persons again Consider our witnesses and thou shalt finde that we have three that beare record in heaven the Father the Word 1 Joh. 5.7 and the Holy Ghost and that these three are one For though there are three names or persons in the Godhead Yet is there but one God 1 Cor. 8.5 6. and though there be many that are called Gods and Lords yet to us Christians there is but one God This heavenly mystery may be shadowed unto thee a little in a fiered coale There is the substance of the coale the light of the coale and the heat of the coale and yet but one fiered coale So soone as ever the coale is fiered there are these three the substance of the coale the light and heat of it So in the same Divine Essence though in a more transcendent way is there the Father the Sonne and the Holy Ghost Yea it may be shadowed in thy selfe So soone as ever thou art borne into this world thou art a creature to God a childe to thy Parents and a subject to thy King and yet art thou but one So so soone as ever as God is that is from all eternitie he is Father Sonne and holy Ghost and yet but one God Vse This will help thee mightily in cleaving to the Scriptures and in all thy devout prayers to God Art thou tempted to question the truth of
he might be a fit Prophet Heb. 7.25 Joh. 1.18 Ephes 1.17 1 Cor. 1.30 Esa 53. Priest and King to perfect thy salvation As he was a Prophet he came out of his Fathers bosome to reveale his will unto thee that so he might be thy wisdome to shew thee the way to heaven by him Heb. 7. As he was a Priest Rom. 8. he offered himselfe in sacrifice for thee and still maketh request for thee at the right hand of God As he was a King he had all authority and power committed to him to rule over thee and overrule thy enemies Thus nothing lies in the way to hinder him from being the Prince of thy salvation by mortification as a King and Prophet by ransome as a Priest and by rescue as a King He is called our Lord Act. 10.36 Rom. 7.25 Phil. 2.8.9 10.11 as one that hath power to maintaine that salvation which he hath procured thee because by purchase from God for thee and conquest over the world the flesh and the devill he doth possesse thee as his owne 1 Cor. 6.19 20. and therefore must give an account to him Thus thou seest him that saveth thee from the Curse Vse Therfore my dear child build thy self upon Jesus Christ our Lord upon Christ for salvation for dominion All his garments smell of Myrrhe Aloes and Cassia Psal 45.8 That which covers thee and comforts thee frō Christ is preservative as Myrrhe compurgative as Aloes comfortative as sweet smelling Cassia Christ wil not only comfort thee from guilt but purge and preserve thee from the body of death Without Christ nothing can purge thee Mich. 6.6 7. Luk. 18.11 12. Esa 1.11 12 13 14. Hypocrites will runne to thousands of Rams and tenne thousands of Rivers of Oyle Moralists will run to their civill carriages Formalists will runne to the outward acts of Gods Ordinances but nothing will doe thee good without Christ If thou seeke to Christ only then all things succeed to this end The Holy Ghost purgeth by way of infusion Faith by way of application Repentance by way of disposition Holinesse by way of repression and mortification Zach. 13.1 but Christ is the fountaine whence all proceeds Would'st thou have peace with God Rom. 5.1 It must be through our Lord Jesus Christ Would'st thou have joy Rom. 5.11 It must be through our Lord Jesus Christ Would'st thou have grace raigne Rom. 5.21 It must be by Jesus Christ our Lord. Would'st thou be justified Phil. 3.8 It must be by the knowledge of Jesus Christ our Lord. Would'st thou walke in Christ Col. 2.6 As thou hast received the Lord Jesus Christ so walke in him Would'st thou have grace and peace 1 Thess 1.1 It must be from the Lord Jesus Christ Wouldst thou have any saving grace 2 Pet. 1.8 It must be by fruitfulnesse in the knowledge of our Lord Jesus Christ Still whole Christ must be rested on or it will doe thee no good When a wise Physician gives a certaine quantity to purge rebelling humours thou must take it all so when God gives the Lord Jesus Christ thou must apply him all Christ cannot be divided Jesus cannot be Jesus except he be a Lord. He was anointed to be a King as well as a Priest and a Prophet and without the exercise of all his Offices he saves not one soule There is not the vilest sinner in the Church but would have Jesus He would runne to his salvation because he is convinced that he cannot be saved without him but they cannot abide the Lord Jesus who must rule and raigne Ob. It may be thou maist thinke that thou runnest to the Lord Jesus Christ daily Sol. If thou doest then as a man cannot plunge himselfe into a fountaine daily and not be cleanner or as a man cannot live among sweet odours and not be sweeter so nor can a man runne unto and use Christ daily but he shall be better Ob. It may be thou maist thinke that thou shalt not be the worse though thou lie under the burden of some sinne because we cannot be quite rid of the body of death But I would have thee know that there are three sorts of sinners Sol. 1 Some that neither know the sinnes they might know nor desire to know them These can not make use of Christ because they have no sight of their foulenesse and therefore they can neither renounce it nor goe to the fountaine to cleanse it Some know them and when they are convinced Deut. 29.19 20. sigh to know them yet live in them wilfully under hope of mercy These cannot look for salvation for God will not be mercifull to such Some are such sinners as Paul was These are in the way of salvation by Christ Rom. 7.15 1 Cor. 9.27 If thou aske what manner of sinner Paul was I tell thee that he was such a sinner as hated sinne and cared not who knew what was in him and practised great works of mortification Rom. 7.24 and accounted himselfe a base wretch the least of Saints the greatest of sinners and one that walked humbly under the sense of finne and one that made diligent search after Christ to save him and when he had found him thanked God for whole Christ even for the Lord Jesus Christ Be thou such a finner through Gods grace and I shall not feare the Curse of the Law which lies upon thee for sin Now tell me 22. Q. What is Jesus Christ A. He is the eternal Son of God made man This is also Gods truth What Jesus Christ is for when Christ was baptized and when he was transfigured a voyce came from heaven saying This is my well beloved Sonne Matt. 3.17 Matt. 17.5 And that he is the Eternall Sonne of God appears because he was in the beginning Joh. 1.1 that is when God made Time he was before God made that Time to wit in eternity and so was God This crowned Peters faith in the name of all the Apostles when he said Thou art Christ Matt. 16.16 Matt. 3. Luk. 3. the Sonne of the living God And that he was made man the Genealogies prove And tha the was the Son of God made man appears from Johns testimony The Word was made flesh and dwelt amongst us Joh. 1.14 and we beheld his glory the glory of the onely begotten of the Father and from the Testimony of the Angel who saith to Mary Luk. 1.35 an holy thing shall be borne of thee which shall be called the Sonne of God 1 Joh. 3.1 not nuncupatively by name onely but shall be the Sonne of God As Gods people are called the sonnes of God by adoption and are so so Christ by nature As borne of the Virgin so he was made man as the Sonne of God so was he God The Son of God must be thy Saviour Luk. 3.38 because he might give thee what thou wantest Thou wast
in Adam the sonne of God by falling in him Joh. 8.44 thou becamest the sonne of the Devil thy Saviour comes to make thee the sonne of God againe without which thou canst not be the heire of glory Now marke God cannot give thee what he hath not The Father is not the Sonne neither is the Holy Ghost the Sonne but the Sonne is the Sonne Therefore he becomes thy Saviour to give thee sonship The Sonne of God becomes the sonne of man to make the sonnes of men become the sonnes of God He is made man that he might be a fit sacrifice Man is a more noble sacrifice then a woman Mal. 1.14 for cursed is he that hath a male in his flock and offers a corrupt thing Vse Now ponder seriously on this my child with thy selfe that thy Saviour is the eternall Sonne of God I tell thee that if thou have but any ingenuity in thee it will make thee both hate and avoid sinne Hadst thou such a Plague soare botch or boyle about thee that nothing could cure but the heart-bloud of the Kings sonne and the King should be so loving as to kill his onely sonne for thy health would'st thou not hate such a disease and take heed that thou never didst fall into such a disease againe This is thy case Thy sinne is a soare wound and plague that nothing could cure but the heart-bloud of the Sonne of God God out of his infinite love did send him into the world to take thy nature upon him that he might be reviled for thee spit upon for thee scourged for thee crowned with thornes for thee sweat drops of bloud for thee be crucified for thee and shed the bloud of his hands feet and heart for thee and all to cover and cure thy finne Wilt thou not now hate thy finne and be carefull to suppresse it and never fall into the like againe I hope thou wilt or else thy latter end will be worse then thy beginning Goe on now and tell me 23. Q. What hath Christ Jesus done for thee A. He suffered the paines of death for me Thou hast seene what Christ was What Christ hath done for us and is now sadly consider what he hath done for thee Thou happly mayst thinke it little for him to be borne for thee to live for thee though it were infinite love but because the purity of his nature and perfection of his obedience have influence into the value of his sufferings therefore thou doest mention onely these paines of death Peter mentioneth these paines of death Act. 2.24 and Paul cals them Rom. 6.9 the Dominion of death Phil. 2.8 and his humbling of himselfe and becoming obedient unto death even the death of the crosse What paines and torments Christ endured for thee then is unexpressible yet they may be valued a little Heb. 5.7 by his offering up prayers and supplications with strong crying and teares to his Father and by sweating drops of bloud when he grovelled upon the ground in so cold a season as made Peter creep to the fire in the high Priests Hall Surely there was fire nigh which caused this sweat What may the cause then of these paynes and torments be Surely the sight of our sinnes charged upon him Heb. 7.22 and the sense of his Fathers wrath He stood a Surety in our roome and was to answer for all our sinnes to God and not be discharged till he had satisfied for them all Look therefore as if a man were bound for a million of thousand pounds for other men when he was once attached his whole charge would be put in against him and this sight would be fearefull to him especially if he considered that they were his chiefe enemies for whom he was bound and a nest of unthankfull creatures who did load him with disgrace and obloquy Just thus was it with thy blessed Saviour Though he had the testimony of his enemies that never man spake as he did Joh. 7.46 Mar. 7.37 Act. 10.38 and that he had done all things well because the Lord was with him Yet when he was under arrests and executions Esa 43.24 he was made to serve with our sinnes and was wearied with our iniquities 2 Cor. 5.21 for he was made sinne for us who knew no sinne when all our sinnes were charged upon him and he was to make satisfaction to God his Father for them And whose sinnes were these The sinnes of those that were his enemies Rom. 5.10 the sinnes of his Disciples who runne away from him the sinnes of Peter who denied him and the sinnes of Jewes and Gentiles who crucified him The Jewes and Gentiles bare a world of enmity against him Eph. 2.16 yet he reconciled both unto God in one body by the Crosse having slaine the enmity in himselfe Thinke seriously whether this was not a torment and paine of death to have all the debts presented unto him of such sinners to be satisfied for Besides when God his Father saw him thus covered with sin in the State of a surety though the holinesse of his person was never polluted he withdrawes the blessed vision of the divine nature Wheresoever it shined abroad upon others yet though hee was personally united unto it it shined not upon himselfe but left him to sweat drops of bloud and his soule to be heavy unto death and his heart and tongue to cry out Psal 22.1 Mat. 27.46 My God My God why hast thou forsaken me Is not this an unutterable paine and torment of death Was it not enough for him to die but he must endure the sorrowes of death thus Use Oh my deare child forget not this point It will humble thee for sinne drive thee from sinne and comfort thee against sinne It will humble thee for sinne to think that it should present such a cursed visage to God that such a fearfull load must be laid upon thy Surety for it It will drive thee from sinne to thinke that if thou neglect so great salvation as Christ hath offered unto thee thou shalt be for thy sins in a worse case then he was He was able to slay hatred and enmity but thou canst not by suffering millions of millions of ages and therefore thou shalt have thy sinnes lye before thee for ever and the wrath of God will presse thee to all eternity It will comfort thee against sinne to thinke that thy Surety having endured this for thee it were unjust for God to impose it upon thee againe Onely be sure that thou keepe the Covenant of the Gospel that is when thou hast been translated out of the kingdome of darknesse into the Kingdome of his deare Sonne that thou honour the Father in the Sonne by beleeving in him with a faith working by love and then thou wilt have cause to triumph as Paul Rom. 7.25 I thanke God through Jesus Christ our Lord. Now let me see what thou remembrest and
all thy debts are payed If any man were bound for thee and cast into prison and after enjoying the libertie of a free subject thou mayst conclude that all thy debts are payd so mayst thou rest thy soule that God is well pleased and satisfied with what his sonne hath done for thee when thou seest by miracles acts and many testimonies that he is risen from the dead Vse Therefore my deare child feed thy soule comfortably with these natures of thy blessed Saviour and with the uses he made of them for thy good He was man to performe lowly offices he was God to performe exalted offices of love Is he to dye an accursed death He is a man Rom. 8.3 in the similitude of sinfull flesh Psal 24. Is he to rise againe He is the King of Glory the Lord mighty in battell who knows how to vanquish the last enemy 1 Cor. 15. death as well as any that appeared before He that is thy suretie so able so willing will satisfie to the utmost farthing He that is thy Advocate so faithfull so wonderfull in counsell will not leave any of thy worke behind till he have brought thee a Certificate of thy full discharge When thou repentest and art ready to be swallowed up of sorrow let thy poore soule rest here and thou shalt have joy by beleeving and come with confidence and boldnesse to the throne of grace But it may be that the extent of this benefit may something damp thy spirit Therefore tell me 25. Q. Whether all men are saved by Christs death A. No onely they are saved which have a true faith Right thus doth the Scripture teach If all were saved it were happy for the children of darknesse and sons of Belial Hell should soone be emptie and heaven fuller then ever God meant it God should be made the greatest tyrant in the world if he should require such repentance faith mortification Godly living of some and yet save all by Christs death who never touched any of Gods holy rules with their little finger Therefore certainly this salvation must be limited to them that beleeve Thus doth Christ Joh. 3.16.18.36 Whosoever beleeveth in him shall not perish and he that beleeveth on him is not condemned and he that beleeveth on the Sonne hath everlasting life and Luke saith That at Antioch when Paul and Barnabas preached as many as were ordained to eternall life beleeved This was the receit that Philip gave to the Eunuch Act. 13.48 Act. 8. Act. 16. and Paul and Silas gave to the keeper of the Prison and it must be thine For faith is the eye the foot the hand the mouth of thy soule yea it is all in all to give thee union with Christ for life and salvation It is the eye of thy soule therefore God saith by the Prophet Looke upon me and be ye saved Esa 45.22 O ye ends of the earth that is beleeve in me It is the foot of thy soule therefore Christ saith Joh. 6.35 He that comes to me shall never hunger that is he that beleeves in me It is the hand of thy soule therefore John saith Joh. 1.12 So many as received him to them he gave a free right to be the sons of God that is beleeved in him It is the mouth of the soule therefore Christ saith Except ye eate the flesh of the Sonne of man Joh. 6.53 and drink his bloud ye have no life in you that is except ye beleeve in him Yea it is all in all for uniting thee to Christ therefore John saith 1 Joh. 3. Rom. 1. Heb. 10. Gal. 2.20 Joh. 14. He that hath the Sonne hath life and Paul saith By faith we live because it is that excellent Instrument which unites us to Christ who is both our way truth and life Vse Therefore my deare child be not beguiled with the deceitfulnesse of Satan as too many are who dreame of the saving of all Christians if they doe but professe to beleeve in Christ upon a generall knowledge of the grounds of Christianity No no thou must have faith and thou must have a true and a living faith if thou wouldest have thy salvation by Christ The faith that ordinary professors at large dreame of is an easie way to heaven They may swallow downe all their sins with greedinesse and goe thither at an houres warning It is but knowing and assenting to the truth of Christianity and saying upon presumptuous grounds that Christ died for them and they hope to be saved by him as well as the precisest of them all But thou wilt find it an harder worke to have a true faith of Gods elect For thou mayst find that when sinners are brought into the straits of death sometimes they can not beleeve and sometimes they dare not beleeve They can not beleeve for their lives as Francis Spira who cried out that he could no more beleeve then the Devill If a man will ever runne he will runne when he runs for his life and if a man will ever beleeve he will beleeve when he beleeves for his life But poore sinners when the sight of their owne unworthinesse and Satans temptations are let loose upon them can not beleeve for their lives Sometimes they dare not beleeve as wicked Christians who see they must lose all if they beleeve in Christ They must lose father mother wife children houses lands and all sublunary contentments if they beleeve in Christ As a man that hath gotten a great deale by greedy scraping ravening and holding dares not beleeve that Covetousnesse is Idolatry for then he shall be undone So dare not a professor at large beleeve in Christ Phil. 3. because he knows that he must account all things losse and dogs-meat for the excellent knowledge of Jesus Christ and him crucified He must deny all his rotten grounds of confidence as I keep my Church I am neither whore nor thiefe I wrong no man I am a good neighbour I have a good heart to God-ward I have a good meaning though I doe not pray as others yet God knows my heart though I cannot say as others yet I know the way to heaven as well as the best I doe as I would be done unto and the like he must I say deny all these rotten grounds which he dare not doe for then he sees that he shall be a dunghill and hath nothing to please himselfe in Get thou therefore true faith even the faith not of the world but of the Gospel In this I 'le helpe thee as I can and therefore tell me 26. Q. What is this true faith of Gods elect A. It is the resting of the soule upon Christ for salvation Understand this well as thou lovest the life of thy soule What true Faith is Some will tell thee that it is an assenting to the truth of the Gospel It is not assenting to the truth Jam. 2. and in truth thou must agree to the
that though thou art sorry for thy sins by which thou hast broken thy Covenant of Baptisme and purposest to do so no more and therefore canst look back to thy Baptisme with comfort yet thou failest again and again And therefore thy God of mercy hath pleased to give thee leave to come and renew thy covenant again and again in the Supper of the Lord and if thou purposest to deal faithfully with God as thou renewest thy covenant with God so God renews his Covenant with thee Therefore it is called a seal to conclude this Covenant betwixt God and thee Again Joh. 3.16 in the Sacrament is confirmed thy faith in the promise when thou art of years to judge what thou hast done and doest God makes a gracious promise in the Covenant of the Gospel that if thou beleeve in Christ thou shalt be saved Oh how hard is it for thee to grapple with thy unbeleeving heart When thou lookest to Gods love and Christs merits thou art cheered but when thou lookest to thy own unworthinesse thy faith flags and faints Therefore thy good God doth send his Ambassadour 2 Cor. 5.20 with bread and wine to confirm thy faith and assure thee that as sure as thou hast this bread and this wine given unto thee so surely God will make good thy salvation to thee if thou beleevest in his Christ Lastly the Sacrament as a seal doth convey Jesus Christ and all his benefits to thee so as thou maist say I am my beloveds and my beloved is mine Look as houses and lands may be conveyed unto thee by a sealed writing and though thou never see either house or land yet in a court of Record thou maist have it made thine if it be within the Kings dominions So Christ by his promise and seal is made thine and though thou see him not according to the flesh yet thou hast communion with the body and bloud of Christ 1 Cor. 10.16 by the court of Record in the Scriptures in the kingdome of the great King of heaven and earth The manner of this conveyance is sacramentall that is as a signe and seal For it doth not convey Christ as I can convey money to thy purse or hand or as cloaths to thy back by naturall instruments but as Sacraments can convey him that is they can signifie the conveyance of Christ and seal it unto thee by the covenant and ordinance of God Vse Therefore let me charge thee my good childe to prize this truth as a seal upon thy heart and a signet upon thy right hand Wert thou not most miserable if thou wert not in covenant with God If he did not take thee into speciall protection as thy God If thou didst not engage thy self to be one of his people who have illumination forgivenesse sanctification and perseverance All this God doth assure thee of in the seal of the Sacrament Would'st thou not account thy self in a sad condition if God had made thee a promise of salvation by Christ and when thou art beaten off by the sin of thy heart thou hadst no confirmation of it from the God of truth yet this is confirmed by the seal of the Sacrament Would it not adde to thy saddest thoughts If thou hadst many promises of comfort by Christ and yet hadst no performances Behold the seale of the Sacrament doth convey Christ unto thy soul by faith Is it not registred in the Records of heaven that this bread is my body Luk. 22. 1 Cor. 11. this wine is my bloud as Christ hath witnessed Hadst thou but a cut finger thou couldst not have the vertue of the salve to cure it except thou hadst the plaister of the salve it self nor canst thou have the merits of Christ except thou hast Christ himself though not in a carnall way Use the Sacrament as a signe to signifie but let it be a signe and not the proper thing signified Use it as a seal yet let it be but a seal to assure a possession of what thou hast though thou seest it not Get possession of Christ and it is enough In the mean time turn thou this doctrine into practice and plead with God from the Sacrament Good father let these signes signifie powerfully thy love to my soul Let these seals be a sweet conclusion of the covenant of Grace betwixt thee and me be a confirmation to my doubting faith and be a conveyance of Christ to me that he may live in my soul by faith and confound sinne more and more and quicken me to all Grace to thy Glory Now cast thy eye backward and tell me seeing thou must have faith or else thou canst not be saved by Christ Q. Who must work faith in thy heart A. The Holy Ghost Q. Why must he work it A. Because it is an infinite comfort against the infinite horrour of my sin Q. Where must it be wrought A. In my heart Q. Why saist thou so A. To put a difference betwixt the faith in the head and the faith in the heart Q. How must it be wrought in thee A. By the outward preaching of the Gospel Q. How many wayes is faith encreased A. Two wayes Q. Which is the first A. By the preaching of the Gospel Q. Why is faith encreased thus A. Because the oftner we hear the word of promise the more we will beleeve it Q. What is the second A. By receiving the Sacraments Q. Why is faith confirmed by them A. Because they are seals to assure Gods promises Q. What are Sacraments A. Signes and seals of the righteousnesse of faith Q. What is the righteousnes of faith A. The meriting obedience of Christ rested on by faith Q. Why are the Sacraments called signes A. Because they signifie something unto us Q. What doth the water in Baptisme signifie A. The bloud merit and spirit of Christ Q. What doth laying on of the water signifie A. My death and buriall with Christ Q. What doth the running or wiping off of the water signifie A. My rising with Christ to a new life Q. What doth washing or cleansing signifie A. Forgivenesse of my sins Q. What doth the bread signifie A. The body of Christ Q. What doth the wine signifie A. The bloud of Christ Q. What doth the breaking of the bread signifie A. The suffering of Christ upon the crosse Q. What doth the powring out of the wine signifie A. The shedding of Christs bloud upon the crosse Q. What doth the Ministers presenting them to thee signifie A. God the Fathers offering his sonne to me Q. What doth thy receiving them signifie A. The faith of the Gospel Q. Why are they called seals A. Because they do conclude confirm and convey Q. What is concluded A. A Covenant betwixt God and me Q. What is that Covenant A. That God will be my God and I will be one of his people Q. What is confirmed in the Sacrament A. Faith in the promise Q. What is that promise A. That if
proportion and thy eyes being exalted and clarified thou shalt see beside this great Leviathan creeping things or sinnes innumerable For as in a train of gunpowder set one grain on fire and all will be in a blaze so let thy soul be fired with godly sorrow for one sinne and thou shalt quickly see those thou never sawest before Fourthly thou maist finde them out by bringing sinne to a propimity or neernesse As sinners put farre from them the evill day so they put as farre as they can from them the sight of sinne When they do it they are loath to see what they do because it is a work of darknesse It is a bastard brood betwixt Satan and a wicked soul and therefore they remove it into the Country as farre as they can because they would not see it themselves nor suffer others to see it But bring it to a neernesse and that which seemed no sinne will appeare to be a sinne and what seemed a little one will be a very great A man upon the top of an high hill looks as little as a childe but bring him down and you shall see his proportion So bring sinne to a present view as it wounds the conscience defaceth Gods image and hindereth our traffick with our God we shall see it big enough to a miracle in it self and all the brats and broods of many secret ones which are as a retinue and hangs upon it Fifthly thou maist finde them out by declining such ways as bring the judgement of God upon thy soul If because thou art filthy God say be filthy still and because thou wilt not see God give thee over to blindnesse of minde thou wilt see but a few of thy sins till destruction come like an armed man It was a fearfull speech hear ye indeed Esa 6.9 10. but understand not and ye see indeed but perceive not Make the heart of this people fat and make their ears heavy and shut their eyes lest they see with their eyes hear with their ears and understand with their hearts and be converted Even so it is a lamentable thing that Gods judgement should seal thy eyes up from seeing thy sinnes for then thou maist suddainly be wasted and made desolate and removed farre away from God Therefore if thou would'st discover thy secret sinnes keep off this judgement of God by sinning against conscience Conscience is Gods deputy and the affront that is offered unto it is offered to God who gave it authority over thee Sinne against it and thou sinnest against Gods officer and God cannot but take it as an unworthy act It makes him angry brings his judgement and then where art thou Thy eyes are blinded thy heart is hardened thy sinnes like Philistims are about thee and thou seest them not Therefore decline this thunderbolt of judgement and God will be eyes to thy blinde soul to see secret sinnes Lastly thou maist finde out thy secret sinnes by not believing the world and the wayes of it If thou believe the world that will praise and flatter thee and offer thee so much profit pleasure Excellens sensibile destruit sensum and honour that the splendour of these will dazle thy eyes and hinder the sight of thy secret sinnes There are none that live in strong Garisons and feel not miseries abroad where sight is more cleer but are so flattered and fawned upon with the lust of the eye the lusts of the flesh and the pride of life to patching painting and a thousand disguises besides other voluptuous sins that their eyes are put out from seeing some open and all secret sins Hence is it that they swim in the Kingdome of pleasure and with their eyes to heaven are going as fast as they can to hell in a feather-bed But take heed believe not the world and thou wilt have leisure to see that and those secret sinnes which will make thy heart ake Thus have I discovered some means by which you may know your secret sinnes It may be now a way is broken open better light may discover better helps Yet in the mean time take these and use them in Gods strength to the glory of God and to the humbling of thy soul But What we must doe when we have found out secret sinnes it may be you will ask me when I have found them what shall I do with them In generall you must make head against them Let them not rest in you as in their proper places but groan under their burthen complain of them to God cast off what you can and use meanes to mortifie the rest But more particularly Zach. 13.1 look to Christ the fountain opened for sinne and for uncleannesse When Alexander the Great saw Jaddus the high Priest comming towards him out of Jerusalem in all his Priestly attire he of reverence spared the City and when God sees you come towards him in the garments of your brother Christ made yours by faith out of love to him Psal 45. whose garments smel of Myrrhe Aloes and Cassia he will spare you We reade that when Antonius the Roman Oratour did uncover the shoulders of Aquileus before the Senate he caused the sentence of death to be reversed from him Much more when you shew the fresh bleeding wounds and merits of Christ rested upon by faith before God your judge he will take off the sentence of death from you pronounced both against open and secret sins and give you life Therefore in the bowels of Jesus Christ take a double prospect First cast your eyes down into your selves and see what you can all your secret sins whose guilts gape for vengeance as well as open being as contrary to Gods nature Next lift up your eyes to heaven and see Christ appearing with all his merits as your Surety and Advocate and making request for you and rest upon him with confidence as those that are weary and heavie laden under the burthen of sinne and are willing to honour the father in him his sonne and the work is past neither open nor secret sins shall appear against you to your confusion But now at length you must not forget Davids Act about this Object that is Act cleanse me his prayer that God would cleanse him Hear a word of this Sinnes have a pollution That even secret sinnes have a pollution as well as other sins from which we must desire cleansing That other sinnes have a pollution is visible enough from many Texts and other grounds The Text doth speak Psal 51.2 Ezech. 16. Wash me from mine iniquity and cleanse me from my sinne and makes a fearfull description of the pollution of sinne and compares it to the vomit of a Dog and myre of a Sow 2 Pet. 2.22 yea and makes God look with an ill eye upon his own till they be washed Joh. 13.8 As to other grounds the Father of sin is an unclean spirit Matth. 12. and the mother of it an
lighted Candle in a clear Lanthorn as not to see Christ thorough the actions and motions of the body if he dwell in the soul But alas in how few is he discovered by life Secondly in respect of the adorning quality Pearls are accounted the greatest ornament but a pearl of great price is a greater yet therefore do you hang them out on head throat breasts and fingers So nothing is such an ornament to a Christian Eph. 3. as Christ dwelling in his heart by faith As Albinus for his worth was called Englands Library Athanasius the eye of his time Melancthon the Phoenix of Germany Augustine the Mallet of Hereticks so Christ is called the Glory of Israel Simeon could see in him nothing but salvation when hee was a childe Talk not of other pearls this is that onely one therefore Paul desired to know nothing at Corinth but Jesus Christ and him crucified Thirdly In respect of the preciousnesse of Christ pearles are accounted the most precious of things and a thousand worlds cannot procure Christ where he is not All gold and gaine cannot purchase his miraculous gifts Act. 8. much lesse himselfe and his invaluable merits Fourthly in respect of the breeding of pearles If Naturalists say true as all Divines of all sides observe pearles are bred in shelfish which lye gaping in the ayre This ayre breeds these pearles and by how much purer the ayre is that blowes then by so much more pure and generous are the pearles So If I say as Paul Gal. 4. My little children of whom I travell in birth again till Christ be formed in you you will aske me two questions What is meant by Christs forming in you and How he is formed By forming of Christ in you you may understand the framing of your Judgements affections and actions into the Image of Christ You know him in his natures uses and offices to doe you good Esa 53. You know this righteous servant to Justifie you and know this Sonne Jesus Christ to eternall life Joh. 17.3 You love him as the Saviour of his Church and Head of his Body and put your whole trust in him for all the worke which his Father committed to him to doe And you doe though not with equall paces as Christ your Husband did in all Morall Actions according to the measure of grace given And now when men look upon you in your state and course they may say that you are as like Christ as if you were spit out of his mouth as we phrase it in our Proverb Yea and you may say as Paul Gal. 2.20 I live but not I but Christ lives in me by faith If you would know how Christ is thus formed in you You open your mouth wide by enlarged desires going after him Joh. 3. and the winde that goeth where it listeth and no man knows whence it comes and whether it goes that is the spirit of the Father and of the Sonne the holy Ghost works it by the Gospel and by how much more purely it blows without intermixture of your flesh by so much more you are unlike to your selves and like to Christ this pearle of great price Fifthly Christ may well be called this pearle of great price In respect of the Comparison betwixt the best earthly pearles and the pearle Christ Earthly pearles make richer but no better for they that will be rich fall into temptation 1 Tim. 6.9 and a snare and into many foolish and noysome lusts which drown men in perdition and destruction Fulgent monilibus moribus sordent They that shine with pearles are too often sordid and degenerous in manners But this precious pearle Christ makes all better who doe enjoy him Eph. 3.6 If he dwell in our hearts by faith we are graffed with him into the similitude of his death Rom. 6. to dye unto sinne and into the similitude of his resurrection to rise unto newnesse of life Earthly pearls can give no true contentment As Solomon saith Eccl. 5.10 He that loveth silver shall not be satisfyed with silver nor he that loveth aboundance with encrease But if you can get Christ Col. 3.11 Joh. 14. he is all and in all As Philip said shew us the Father and it sufficeth so say much more of Christ for us Col. 1.19 Joh. 1.16 For it pleased the Father that in him should all fulnesse dwell and of his fulnesse have we all received and grace for grace Lastly In earthly pearles there is no assurance either we are taken from them or they from us But this pearl Christ shall be with us for ever Matth. 28. Joh. 10. and none shall take us out of his hands Use 1 Seeing therefore Christ is this pearl of great price place your riches in Christ lock him up in your hearts and forget not where your pearl lies First place your riches in Christ He that hath not Christ may in a carnall way say with Esau I have enough my brother but he that hath him may say with Jacob I have all things If a man were as high as the Sunne Psal 19. which comes out of his chambers and rejoyceth as a Giant to run his course and should see the courses of men he should see the souldier place his riches in half a crown a day and plunder The Commander in getting pay or half pay which is too much for prolonging warre The Gentleman in keeping his estate or using it to the best advantage he can The Tradesman in using a thousand shifts to bring in The Merchant in importation and exportation of the most vendible commodities The poor man in getting by hard labour meat drink and apparell for him and his The owner in making the most of his own and the Farmer in a cunning disappointing of him by pretence of rates contributions plunders excises and many such pretty devices But a few poor good Christians onely to place their riches in their Saviour Christ Be you I beseech you of this number It will bring in all the commodities of the world that shall do you good Math. 6.33 First seek the Kingdome of God and the righteousnesse therof and all other things shall be added unto you For if God make you rich in his Sonne Rom. 8.32 how shall he not with him also freely give you all things Use 2 Secondly lock Christ your pearl up in your hearts Many will croud him into the narrow room of their heads they are willing to know him Many put him into the narrower room of their tongues they will talk of him even of his great things and a man would wonder that there should be so much of Christ in their upper parts and so little any where else But do you good Christians lock him up in your hearts Matth. 6. If he be your treasure your heart wil be upon him if he be your pearl you will lock him up there Thence can his influences
flye into all the parts of his soul and body Rom. 10. There is his royall seat for man beleeveth with the heart and thence he commands all your parts and powers Rom. 6. to be weapons of righteousnesse unto holinesse Lock him up any where else and as it fell out with the corn that was sowed in the high-way and stony ground Matth. 13. the Fowls of the ayr will pick him from you or hee will spring awhile and withdraw when he should do you most good But if you lock him up there out of your belly shall flow living waters Joh. 7.38 Joh. 4.13 14. for you shall have in you a well of water springing up into everlasting life which shall make you never to thirst after any earthly pearl or vanity Use 3 Thirdly forget not where your pearl lies There is not a Christian amongst you but will say that he and she hath this pearl Christ But surely if ye have him ye forget where he lies If he lye in the tongue alas ye spit him out at every word by your lies oathes blasphemies idle yea and wicked speeches If he lye in your hands Esa 5â— you throw him away by smiting with the fist of iniquity and all injuriousnesse If he lye in your heads you blow him out with imaginary covetousnesse pride and uncleannesse If he lye in your stomacks you vomit him up with gluttony and drunkennesse Oh remember where he lyes ye will hug him with all reverence and observance He should lye in your hearts to rule your whole man and then you will say 1 Cor. 6. shall I take the Members of Christ and make them the Members of an harlot Shall I take the head the hand the tongue the mouth the foot of Christ and make them the earthly members of pride luxury riot whoredome oppression wrong or robbery God forbid You shall lose nothing by remembring where the pearl Christ is in you yea you shall gain this that either for love of him you will not or for fear of him you dare not abuse any of your members to sinne Thus we have valued the worth of the Gospel The invincible diligence of the Merchant-man about it by the commodity which is traded for Now lastly value it by the invincible diligence of the Merchant man about it He seeks and never leaves seeking till he finde it Our pearl Christ is not found of every eye but of the seeking and searching eye Mark that he seeks Col. 3.3 and seeks till he finde Paul saith that our life is hid with Christ in God therefore every eye cannot finde him Indeed it is hid Who would have looked for life in such an out-side as Christ had In respect of state he had no form nor beauty Esa 53.2 and when we should see him there was no comelinesse that we should desire him He was a poor womans sonne Mark 6. Matth. 11. and a Carpenter he was called a wine-bibber a friend of Publicans and sinners a Samaritan Joh. 8. one that had a Divell and did his great works by Beelzebub he was accounted one not worthy to live and dealt with all accordingly even to the cursed death of the Crosse Must it not be a searching eye that must finde the pearl here Who could finde glory in his shame life in his death righteousnesse in his condemnation ransome in his captivity innocency in his slanders and wisedome in silence but the seeking Merchant-man Christ is to be found in the preaching of the Word 1 Cor. 1. for we preach Christ the wisedome of God and the power of God But look upon it and upon them that preach it and tell me what you can see In preaching you see the foolishnesse of preaching 1 Cor. 1.21 28. to them that perish especially when it comes not with excellency of speech 1 Cor. 2.1.4 and wisedome nor with the enticing words of mans wisedome but in demonstration of the spirit and of power In them that preach what can you see but at the best a treasure in earthen Vessels laden with infirmities 2 Cor. 4.7 Here none can finde Christ neither but a seeking and searching eye Such an eye can meet with all the Arm of the Lord Esa 53.1 Rom. 1.16 1 Thes 2. the power of God to salvation and the words not of men except when they are such by self-fansies but as they are indeed the words of God and so seeking they finde Christ the pearl Christ again is to be found in the Sacraments when ye go thither what do ye finde Water Bread and Wine Poor things to look upon But a seeking and a searching eye thorough these elements looks to the promises Acts 2.38 repent and be baptized in the name of Christ for the remission of sins and ye shall receive the holy Ghosts gift and this is my body this is my bloud and so it having Christ offered in a promise doth carry away Christ by faith It is plain that had not the wise Merchant a seeking and searching eye he could never finde out the pearl Christ Therefore Good Christians be you perswaded seriously to trade for the eye-salve Apoc. 3.17 18. Christ perswades Laodicea to trade with him for this commodity Have ye not this you will be as blinde as Agar Gen. 21. who had a well of water before her and she could not see it But have you this it is no lesse then the minde of Christ 1 Cor. 2.16 or the supernaturall light of faith by the Gospel by which the soul being enlightened sees things that neither eye hath seen ear hath heard nor the heart of man is able to conceive This gives you the light of the knowledge of God 2 Cor. 4.6 in the face of Jesus Christ Ob. Oh whether must I trade for this you will say Sol. Even to Christ The depth saith it is not in me man saith it is not in me but in Christ are all the treasures of wisedome and knowledge Col. 2.3 Esa 25.7 2 Cor. 3.16 He will swallow up the veil of the face and will turn the heart to the Lord that the veyl may be taken away Christ onely can do this Ob. But doth he require nothing at my hands for the setling of this eye-salve upon me Sol. Yes he requires submission to the word of Christ that may dwell richly in you in all wisdome Col. 3.16 2 Tim. 3.15 If you know the Scriptures they will perfect your sight that you may finde Christ in all his wayes Therefore as the Psalmist said of the Scriptures in his time open my eyes Psa 119.18 that I may see the wonders of thy Law so do you say of a more full Scripture now Remember the Prophet Elisha's prayer for his servant I pray thee open his eyes that he may see 2 King 6.17 so pray for thy self Lord that I may receive my sight that when I seek according to